Effort to induct gay drag icon Sarria into CA Hall of Fame pays off

by Matthew S. Bajko

For the past eight years friends and admirers of the late José Julio Sarria, a gay man and drag queen who left a lasting impact on politics and the LGBTQ community, have sought to see him inducted into the California Hall of Fame. The Latino World War II veteran became the first known gay person to seek public office with his ultimately unsuccessful 1961 bid for a San Francisco Board of Supervisors seat.

Four years later he had founded the Imperial Court System in San Francisco and proclaimed himself Empress I of San Francisco. The philanthropic drag organization has since crowned scores of empresses, emperors, and other drag royalty while raising funds for charitable causes and now has 70 chapters in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

Thus, many LGBTQ community leaders and elected officials have argued for years that Sarria, born in San Francisco, was more than worthy of being in the hall. But their entreaties to the state’s governors and their wives, who oversee the selection process, each year went ignored.

Until now, that is. Sarria will be part of the hall’s 16th class inducted virtually by Governor Gavin Newsom and first partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom on Tuesday, August 22. Like Sarria, who died in 2013, all of the 2023 inductees are being honored posthumously.

“We are thrilled to announce the newest class of inductees joining some of our state’s most revolutionary, innovative, and brightest in the California Hall of Fame,” Newsom stated. “The outstanding legacy of this group has and will continue to embody what it means to be a Californian. There is no doubt their legacies will continue to live on and inspire millions across our state for generations to come.”

Siebel Newsom added, “The governor and I are delighted to honor the contributions of this remarkable group of visionaries. Each one of these pioneers has uniquely impacted California through their boundless creativity, perseverance, and courage — encapsulating the California dream through their lives and legacies.”

Induction amid drag backlash

Sarria’s selection comes amid a backlash against drag performers by conservatives. Republican-controlled legislatures in a number of states have passed laws banning drag events at public venues or targeted performers directly. The legislation has subsequently been challenged in court, with several federal judges finding them to be unconstitutional and blocking their implementation.

Newsom spoke out against such anti-drag laws earlier this year. It likely played into his decision to finally induct Sarria into the hall after snubbing him since becoming governor in 2019, suggested promoters of Sarria’s inclusion. He is the second drag queen named to the hall, as Newsom inducted RuPaul into it in 2019.

See page 12 >>