SF supes OK 2 LGBTQs for homelessness panel

by John Ferrannini

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved six people for the brand new Homelessness Oversight Commission at its meeting Tuesday, including two LGBTQs who were recommended by the body’s rules committee last week.

They are Bevan Dufty, a gay man who is currently an elected member of the BART Board of Directors and was formerly a District 8 supervisor, and Joaquin Whitt Guerrero, a TwoSpirit trans man who is director of housing for Our Trans Home SF.

The oversight panel for the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Services was approved by voters last November as Proposition C. Four are appointed by the mayor with the consent of the supervisors, and three by the supervisors.

The supervisors’ picks were recommended by the rules committee at its March 13 meeting, as the Bay Area Reporter previously reported. (https:// www.ebar.com/story.php?323603)

The third appointment is Christin Evans, who was an advocate for Prop C and is the co-owner of Booksmith Bookstore and The Alembic Restaurant and bar in the Haight, where she lives with her husband.

At Tuesday’s meeting, District 11 Supervisor Ahsha Safaí – a member of the rules committee that selected the trio of Dufty, Guerrero, Evans – spoke highly of them.

“We had a lot of great people apply,” said Safaí, who represents the Excelsior and Outer Mission neighborhoods. “I don’t agree with every one of these people on every issue, but that’s not the point. Commissions should reflect the diversity of our city and these nominees will.”

District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston and District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen declared their support, too. But gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman moved to separate Evans’ nomination, which would have allowed the board to approve Dufty and Guerrero but reject Evans.

A vote to do so failed 7-4. Mandelman was joined in his quest by gay District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey – chair of the rules committee – as well as gay District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio and District 2 Supervisor

The Castro Theatre is the living room for the Castro neighborhood. Not only do we, the residents of the Castro, love it, visitors are amazed by its beauty and welcoming vibes. If alterations are made, believe me, these changes will be forever. There will be no turning back.

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Catherine Stefani, a straight ally.

After that, the supervisors unanimously approved the three.

Mandelman, Engardio, and Stefani did not respond to requests for comment for this report as of press time as to why they voted to sever the vote for Evans.

But Dorsey did, telling the B.A.R. late Tuesday that “I was extremely impressed with Tracey Mixon and I think we missed an opportunity to have an outstanding commissioner with a uniquely well informed perspective on homelessness, personally and professionally. If there was a path for getting Tracey on our homelessness oversight commission, I wanted to support it. The votes weren’t there, obviously, and I respect that.”

Dorsey had supported Mixon, a peer organizer with the Coalition on Homelessness, during the rules committee hearing, but Safaí and straight ally vice chair District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton went with Evans.

In a statement to the B.A.R. after the vote, Evans wrote, “I’m looking forward to serving on the homeless oversight commission. As I understand we will formally begin our work in May. My priority will be to ensure that there is a sense of urgency, in everyone involved, to house our homeless neighbors.”

Dufty told the B.A.R. after the vote that “there’s some very basic things that need attention.”

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George Knuepfel

San Francisco

“If we don’t do a good job with the programs that serve individuals, neighborhoods are not going to welcome us,” he said. “We need a tool box to make sure programs that serve our population are welcoming and safe and productive. We want people to live productive lives.”

Dufty once served as the late mayor Ed Lee’s homeless czar, running the Housing, Opportunity, Partnerships, and Engagement program.

Dufty noted that it was fortuitous that the vote was held after the board’s hourslong committee of the whole discussion about Mandelman’s “A Place For All” proposal. The board had passed “A Place for All” last June, which makes it city policy that San Francisco offer all homeless individuals a place to sleep. In December, the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing produced a report calling for an additional $1.45 billion in spending aimed at the creation of permanent supportive housing. That was discussed Tuesday, and Mandelman said that he hoped the hearing would serve as a re-set.

“We don’t have an extra $1.45 billion, but we can probably find enough in the budget for 2,000 more shelter beds,” Jackie Thornhill, a trans woman who is a legislative aide to Mandelman, told the B.A.R. Wednesday. “Mandelman is calling on the mayor and the board to fund rapid expansion of shelter beds in the coming

Art gallery adds hope to Castro

I write in response to the recent front-page story “Beleaguered Castro seeks signs of hope” [March 1].

I am disappointed that, amid the appropriately sober accounting of the state of local business and street conditions, no mention was made of the most hopeful young business on Castro Street. I’m speaking of Queer Arts Featured, the robust art gallery occupying the footprint of Harvey budget, and he is open to amending the homelessness gross receipts tax ordinance to remove the arbitrary cap on revenue that can be spent on shelter to do so. He is also open to finding the money in the general fund.”

Dufty said that the meeting was “fascinating.”

“Supervisors were talking in great detail about what they hoped to see and what will get the city on the right path. It was fortuitous: four hours, hearing from the public, and this is emblematic of the work this commission gets the opportunity to do,” he said. “A word that came up was anger, disappointment, anxiety about homelessness.

“At one point, one of the supervisors talked about not being defeatist, and that really spoke to me because this work can be very difficult and it can be polarizing, but it was a reminder that we can only succeed if we put our intellect and energy and investment into solving it and so I felt honored to be unanimously approved by the board and I feel very excited about being part of the effort to change the trajectory of homelessness in San Francisco,” he added.

Guerrero did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

The supervisors also approved three of Mayor London Breed’s nominations to the homelessness panel. They are Katie Albright, CEO of Safe and Sound; Jonathan Butler, Ph.D., a social epidemiologist and associate director of the Black Health Initiative at UCSF and executive director of the San Francisco African American Faith-Based Coalition; and Sharky Laguana, the former president of the city’s Small Business Commission and nightlife advocate.

The fourth mayoral nomination withdrew before the rules committee had the chance to vote on him last week: Vikrum Aiyer, a straight man, fudged his resume regarding his education and billed U.S. taxpayers for personal expenses that totaled more than $15,000 when he worked in former President Barack Obama’s administration, as had widely been reported.

At the rules committee meeting, Dufty said he understands residents’ frustration.

Milk’s historic camera shop.

In its mission to enrich the community by showcasing local queer creators, Queer Arts Featured represents a continuity of purpose that follows Milk’s: amplifying LGBTQ expression in order to provide hope to those struggling to find it. I am part of the rising generation inspired to embrace this pursuit, as are Queer Arts Featured’s millennial founders. They land within a junior minority among Castro business owners, proving that the enterprising spirit of the neighborhood might persist into the future if given the chance.

Queer Arts Featured offers dynamic programming that attracts new crowds into the Castro. I lead a community event, Queer Bedtime Stories, which recently held a successful first gathering in the gallery. It drew 40 attendees eager to indulge in the words of LGBTQ authors. Many who attended are newcomers to San Francisco and moved in when rent became more affordable compared to pre-pandemic pricing.

Queer Arts Featured is a crucial foothold for young queers passionately engaged in the struggle to manifest vibrant communities in the wake of historic loneliness and exis-

“I have a good sense of what San Franciscans are feeling and I’m hopeful that the commission can get things done and create some shared values around how to respond to homelessness in an effective and caring manner,” Dufty said.

Dufty also noted how important it is to have LGBTQ representation on the committee (as the B.A.R. editorialized recently).

Guerrero could not be reached for comment after that hearing, but he voiced a similar sentiment during his remarks.

“Like many trans leaders in San Francisco, I came here to access trans services and be somewhere I can be myself with safety,” Guerrero said. “I’m here because I feel a sense of duty as a transgender person as our community is under attack.”

The committee agreed about the need for trans representation since the problem of homelessness disproportionately affects the community. Breed last year released a plan to end trans homelessness by 2027.

“Forty-one percent of transgender people of color experience homelessness in their lifetime,” Dorsey said during the proceedings. “Transgender community members face five times the rate of homelessness. One of the things I’ve seen throughout my career, but especially in the last couple of years, is the disproportionate violence that targets the transgender community, particularly transgender people of color.”

Dufty said that his goal is to increase the public’s confidence in city government, which he characterized as low.

When asked about alternative approaches, Dufty brought up Pathways to Housing PA in Philadelphia. The group helps people address the problems that lead them on the path to eviction. He was adamant in the meeting that “we’ve got to stop the evictions.” tential political threats. The gallery space is often aglow with welcoming events like drag makeup tutorials, clothing swaps, mindfulness workshops, and art show openings that can erupt into the street with music, dance, and general gay revelry.

“I think it [stopping the evictions] looks like providing the financial support necessary to prevent an eviction and then providing support to the tenant to address the issues that put them there,” Dufty said. t A longer version of this story is online at ebar.com.

This moonshot of a business exists because of $39,000 collected from about 100 donors, proving that hope emerges when we pool our resources. As recently reported by the B.A.R. [“Castro arts gallery starts fundraiser as rent doubles,” February 6], the gallery’s mission continues to conjure collective support via a GoFundMe campaign, ), which aims to mitigate a more-thandouble rent increase.

The fact that the gallery’s pink neon sign stays lit despite myriad struggles endemic to the Castro can help brighten the gloom.

Want to find hope in a beleaguered Castro? Look to the cushioned bench planted at 575 Castro Street. Then, step inside Queer Arts Featured to marvel at the dazzling creativity within our community. Harvey Milk, the Godfather of Hope whose painted face beams from the shop’s front wall, would be proud.