The rally took place on city streets where city data shows about two people dying from drug overdoses every day.
"We are fed up with a recovery community. We get sober, we get responsible. We get jobs and now we are doing our part for advocacy and for ourselves and other people," said Cedric Akbar, executive director of Positive Directions Equals Change.
Akbar runs the Eleanora Fagan Center, a recovery-focused transitional housing and health facility in San Francisco that also serves as a stabilization center.
More than 100 formerly incarcerated individuals, people in recovery and advocates attended the rally. Akbar said the city should enforce laws against public drug use.
"The last time I checked sleeping on the street, using drugs on the street is against the law so I expect the law to be upheld," Akbar said.
In May 2026, San Francisco opened the RESET Center as an alternative to jail or the emergency room for people arrested for using drugs or alcohol on city streets. Akbar questioned the program's effectiveness and said the city has not sent anyone to his center.
"We spent $14 million for the RESET Center, and the RESET Center I was told that it was going to be used to be able to if people refused help or treatment that they would be arrested. The RESET Center is not that," Akbar said.
MORE: San Francisco to open RESET Center as mayor shifts drug policy toward enforcement, treatment
The San Francisco Sheriff's office is the law enforcement agency overseeing operations at the center along with the DPH.
Asked whether the center is working, Chief Deputy Jim Quanico of the San Francisco Sheriff's Office pointed to the number of people served since opening.
"I believe the RESET is working since opened May 4th of 2026 basically we've 1,245 arrivals, 1192 were admitted," Quanico said.
According to the sheriff's office, deputies bring people arrested for drug or alcohol use on city streets to the center. After they are stabilized, they are offered treatment and services.
MORE: SF mayor signs legislation for officers to arrest drug users, send them to RESET Center
Since May, nearly 400 people have been referred elsewhere for help through the center.
Quanico said participation in services remains voluntary.
"The individuals that don't opt for services we basically provide them with literature at the end the connection staff does that and if they have the ability to come back and follow with connections they will," Quanico said.
Some advocates argued the city should do more.
"We need to just enforce the law. We allow people to do things that are illegal. Nobody's held accountable. And our solution in any public form is to provide more housing. That is not the answer to San Francisco's drug and homeless crisis lending accountability with opportunity and providing more treatment and getting people off of drugs and giving them back their lives. That's the solution," said recovery advocate Steve Adami.
According to the San Francisco Sheriff's Office, people stay at the RESET Center for about eight hours on average. Officials said individuals cannot be forced to accept help, but those arrested again for drug use on city streets can be taken back to the center.
In a statement the Dept. Public Health said:
"SFDPH works every single day throughout San Francisco to engage people trapped in the cycle of addiction with the services they need. One of the department's highest priorities is to give people the opportunities to get the treatment and services they need. We proactively connect people with services through street outreach, easy to access treatment, rapid connections to medications for opioid use disorder, healthcare embedded in supportive housing, and more. We are focused on high-impact interventions that get people into effective treatment, as well as strengthening retention and continuity of care for improved long-term stabilization and recovery. Through June 2026, there have been 27% fewer accidental overdoses than in the same period in 2025. We remain fully committed to building a more coordinated, efficient, and effective network of health and behavioral health services because everyone deserves a chance to recover and thrive."