DDB Interns Take to the Streets to Rewrite San Francisco’s History for Women’s Equality Day

In celebration of Women’s Equality Day on August 26, DDB San Francisco’s summer interns are honoring the foremothers of the City by the Bay by taking to the streets to rewrite the city’s history - quite literally.

Inspired by the fact that only 27% of all the streets named for historical figures in San Francisco are named after women, the agency’s interns launched the “Ms Representation Project,” an effort to reclaim the story of San Francisco in the name of some of the city’s less-recognized female pioneers and even the score of history. The interns recently hit the streets and spray-chalked “Ms." in front of male-denoted street names stamped into curbs all over the city, along with the project’s Instagram handle @MsRepresenationProject. For example, King St., named for former state senator Thomas Butler King, became Ms. King St., named for San Franciscan jazz club owner and “Queen of Fillmore” Leola King. San Franciscans were invited to visit the campaign’s social profile to read the her-story of the incredible women that the streets, thanks to DDB’s efforts, now recognized.

The intern team has reassigned nearly 14 streets to female namesakes across the city, highlighting women of all industries and eras. All of the women’s stories will also be immortalized via the campaign’s website, msrepresentationproject.com, along with the Instagram handle.