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www.ebar.com
Since 1971, the newspaper of record for the San Francisco Bay Area LGBTQ community
Vol. 47 • No. 23 • June 8-14, 2017
Cheering on LifeCycle riders Rick Gerharter
Jo-Lynn Otto
People walked by a memorial for the Pulse nightclub victims at 18th and Castro streets June 12, 2016, shortly after news spread of the mass shooting.
South Bay community leaders kicked off Pride Month announcing an Equality March for Unity and Pride that will be held June 11.
Equality march Sun. in San Jose
Bay Area marks Pulse anniversary
by Heather Cassell
by Seth Hemmelgarn
T
he South Bay is taking the lead in holding the Bay Area’s Equality March for Unity and Pride Sunday, June 11 in San Jose. The event is one of many satellite marches timed to coincide with the national equality march that will take place in Washington, D.C. Nearly 15 community and government leaders representing Silicon Valley’s LGBT and allied communities kicked off Pride Month June 1 announcing the march. The march is the only one happening in the Bay Area, organizers said. A solidarity march in San Francisco was canceled due to an unrelated event happening at the city’s Civic Center, confirmed gay activist Kelly Rivera Hart and Sister Chola de Dah of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Oakland isn’t on the list of participating cities on the Equality March for Unity and Pride’s website. Organizers said that buses will be available from San Francisco and Oakland to transport people to San Jose.
A return to its roots
At last week’s news conference, community leaders called for people to return to community activism to defend the rights gained by LGBTs since the Stonewall riots in 1969, and more recently, during the Obama administration. “We gather here today to announce that Pride Month must go back to its roots,” said Bryan Aubineau, chief branding officer at Project More Foundation, one of the organizations producing the march in Silicon Valley. “We must come together in solidarity, inclusive of all backgrounds, sexual orientation, and gender identities in defense of our rights. We will fight to continue to be able to live comfortably, safely, and to be able to live our lives open and genuinely on June 11.” Gabrielle Antolovich, president of the Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center, was critical of President Donald Trump’s administration. “The new administration is almost like an embodiment of a backlash,” Antolovich told the Bay Area Reporter following the news See page 14 >>
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Rick Gerharter
or 20 years LeNore Cymes and Irene Kelly have been cheering on the participants in what is now called the AIDS/ LifeCycle as they leave from the Cow Palace on the ride to Los Angeles Sunday, June 4.
Participants numbered 2,200 this year and $15,160,771 was raised for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. The ride ends in southern California June 10.
vents are planned around the Bay Area to honor the 49 people Omar Mateen fatally shot and the 53 people he wounded after he entered the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida June 12, 2016 and opened fire. Mateen, 29, was eventually killed in a shootout with police at the club, but he left behind scores of family members and friends of people who’d been celebrating the club’s Latin night. See page 15 >>
SF marks 20 years of equal benefits by Cynthia Laird
Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club at the time. They took their an Francisco officials celeproposal to the board’s out membrated the 20th anniversary bers, Katz, Tom Ammiano, and of the city’s groundbreakSusan Leal, who were successful ing Equal Benefits Ordinance at seeing it passed 10-0 (then-suamid a call for new strategies to pervisor Tom Hsieh was absent for protect transgender employees. the vote, according to the board’s Speakers on a panel hailed the November 4, 1996 minutes.) historic nature of the law, which “It was amazing how the comrequired companies doing busimunity came together,” Sheehy ness with San Francisco to offer said, crediting former city Human the same benefits to domestic Rights Commission staff member partners that they offered to Cynthia Goldstein with developstraight married workers. And ing guidelines for enforcing the they talked about how it was not ordinance so that it “had teeth.” easy getting a domestic partner With President Donald Trump benefits law approved when Jane Philomen Cleland in the White House, Sheehy said marriage equality was a blip on City Administrator Naomi Kelly, left, talked about San Francisco’s that LGBT advocates have to get activists’ radar and many com- Equal Benefits Ordinance with former City Attorney Louise Renne, creative. He said he wants to work Supervisor Jeff Sheehy, AT&T California President Ken McNeely, panies were hesitant to back it. with the city administrator to “At the time, we’d just fin- and Port of San Francisco Commissioner Leslie Katz. make sure trans people are includished a bruising fight to get doed in equal benefits policies, and mestic partner rights,” lesbian that companies have “meaningful of then-deputy city attorney Dennis Aftergut. former supervisor Leslie Katz explained during non-discrimination policies on the books.” “Back in those days, no one thought we the June 1 program in City Hall. would win,” former City Attorney Louise Katz, now a Port of San Francisco commisRenne said, adding that Aftergut was out of the ‘United Against United’ sioner, recalled that United Airlines, in particuIn addition to the legal fight, Sheehy discountry and couldn’t attend the program. “It lar, was “very concerned,” as it “offered a slew of cussed the importance of activists’ involvement was a team effort.” benefits to their employees’ spouses.” Gay District 8 Supervisor Jeff Sheehy, who or- during the “United Against United” boycott that In fact, it was United and the Air Transport he organized. One memorable action included ganized the event, was one of the three activists Association that waged a yearslong court fight who came up with the idea for the ordinance. the late rainbow flag creator Gilbert Baker and over the ordinance. Ultimately, the case was He, attorney Geoff Kors, and city attorney inSee page 14 >> won by the city, in large part due to the legal skill vestigator Carol Stuart were all members of the
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