San Francisco Bay Times - August 24, 2017

August 24 - September 6, 2017 | sfbaytimes.com

A San Francisco Survivor: Wild Side West

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Compiled by Dennis McMillan

City and State Sue Trump Administration Over Latest Attack on Sanctuary Cities

‘Patriot Prayer’ Rally Scheduled for August 26, but There Are Alternatives The group Patriot Prayer—organized by Joey Gibson, who is of Japanese descent—is planning an August 26 rally at Crissy Field. While Gibson says that his group is primarily about exercising and strengthening free speech in the U.S., it has attracted neo-Nazis and people from the altright. Mayor Ed Lee and many others have therefore expressed concern over the August 26 rally and the potential violence it could incite. Street closures and public transit changes are expected. A second “No to Marxism Rally” is conf irmed in Berkeley from 1–5 pm on Sunday, August 27, in Martin Luther King, Jr., Civic Center Park in Berkeley. There are alternatives to these events, however. Activist and drag queen Juanita MORE!, for example, has confirmed that she will host a rally and march to Civic Center from Castro on Saturday, August 26. Participants will meet at noon in Harvey Milk Plaza.

See page 6 of this issue for more information.

California Legislative LGBT Caucus Introduces Resolution to Prevent Discrimination Against Transgender Service Members This week, Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Silicon Valley) introduced Assembly Joint Resolution 22, condemning President Trump’s announcement that he will ban transgender individuals from serving in the military and directing the California military not to discriminate against transgender service members.

“Trump’s decision to ban transgender people from serving in the U.S. military is offensive, misguided, and contrary to our American values,” said Low. “The thousands of transgender military service members who have put their lives on the line for our country deserve better. The California Legislative LGBT Caucus stands by our transgender service members and will do everything in our power to prevent further discrimination.”

California hosts more than 190,000 active and reserve service people from all five branches of the United States military and is home to three army bases, seven marine bases, ten navy bases, six air force bases and five reserve and national Coast Guard bases. Thousands of transgender troops are currently serving in our military and an unknown number are currently in combat zones. AJR 22 will be heard on the Assembly Floor in the coming weeks. asm.ca.gov Oakland Will Open Its First LGBTQ Community Center on September 7 On September 7, the grand opening of the new Oakland LGBTQ Community Center will take place. It will add to the estimated 27 such centers that already exist in the state of California. Founders Jeff Myers and Joe Hawkins recently spoke with the San Diego LGBT Weekly. “For the first time in history, Oakland will have an official LGBTQ community space that serves the diversity of our community regardless of age, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status, but focused on the most vulnerable among us,” Hawkins said. Myers, the new nonprofit’s Board President who is a surgical scrub nurse by profession and a frequent community volunteer, expressed: “This is a big moment for us! Having a central space is critical, not just to come together, but a place to find support and resources during times of crisis. We are actively fundraising for the center, and although we are seeking grants, we need a diverse stream of funding to make this work, and that means donations from

our LGBTQ community and allies.

This center will be a space that addresses key issues of the community. The time for an all-inclusive LGBTQ community center in Oakland has been way overdue.” www.oaklandlgbtqcenter.org/ Fresno’s Only LGBT Community Center Closes Its Doors As Oakland is opening its community center, Fresno is recovering from the recent closure of its similar hub. Difficulty in keeping its all-volunteer organization afloat was cited as a reason for the shutdown. Run by Gay Central Valley (GCV), the Fresno LGBT Community center, formerly at 1067 N. Fulton Street, opened in 2010 as the first such center for the LGBT community in Fresno in 20 years, according to GCV president Chris Jarvis. In a recent letter, it was announced that the center would be closing and that the GCV, formed in 2009, would also be ceasing operations by the end of the year. The letter, posted at gaycentralvalley.org and on the Center’s Facebook page, detailed the uphill battle Jarvis and other board members faced keeping the community center open for seven years. “Issues such as funding, staffing, volunteer/leadership changes and our ongoing philosophy of an allvolunteer organization (where no one receives compensation and all money raised is funneled back into the community) presented ongoing challenges,” the letter read. “… We sincerely hope that vital works such as the community center, The Rainbow Delegation and Cultural Competency Training Outreach will be taken on by other organizations.” Jarvis said, “I hate that the center is closing. This isn’t a decision we came to overnight.

This is a very time-consuming volunteer job, but we have lots of strong leaders in this community that are not going to abandon the LGBTQ community.” fresnobee.com City Grant Helps Fund Pink Triangle Park’s $250,000 Renovation Plan Dedicated in 2001, Pink Triangle Park is a memorial to the estimated 15,000 LGBTQ persons who were killed during the Holocaust. (Nazis made gay men wear pink triangles stitched onto their garments as a way to identify them.) The 15 pylons at Pink Triangle Park have become unsteady, and five have cracked at their base. Although it was the first such memorial in the United States, the park has since fallen into disrepair, attracting encampments, accumulating rubbish and going unnoticed by many, until now. The Castro/Upper Market CBD acted as the fiscal sponsor for the Pink Triangle Park’s bid to get grant money, and neighborhood groups like the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the Castro Merchants, the Eureka Valley Neighborhood Association, the GLBT Historical Society and others lent their support. The project has now been granted $91,400. The secured grant money will help to restore all 15 pylons (one for each of the 1,000 LGBTQ victims of the Holocaust), install a new irrigation system, and replant the park with new f lowers. Funding will also be used to make Pink Triangle Park partially handicapped-accessible.

Eventual upgrades may include: w iden ing a nd ex pa nd ing t he sidewalk on the 17th Street side, installing granite-block benches donated by the Children’s Garden, creating a formal park entrance where the bus shelter was removed on Market Street and planting lower-profile

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera announced that he has filed a second lawsuit against the Trump administration over what he believes are unconstitutional new conditions on federal law enforcement grants instituted by the Department of Justice (DOJ). The first lawsuit was filed in January, alleging an executive order aimed at defunding so-called sanctuary cities (of which San Francisco remains), exceeded presidential power and was unconstitutional. A federal judge has since invoked a preliminary injunction halting the enforcement of the executive order nationwide. The new lawsuit names U.S. Attorney General Jefferson B. Sessions III, acting Assistant Attorney General Alan R. Hanson, and the DOJ as defendants. “Once again, this president is attempting an end-run around the Constitution,” Herrera said. “The Department of Justice does not have authority from Congress to impose these conditions, and for good reason.

In the name of public safety, this president is undercutting law enforcement and trying to withhold money used to reduce crime. That’s like burning a mountain of coal in the name of environmental protection. Maybe that makes sense to this White House, but it doesn’t add up for most Americans.” sfcityattorney.org San Francisco AIDS Foundation Dedicates Wall San Francisco AIDS Foundation has dedicated a wall to the community of donors who supported the $15 million fundraising campaign to open Strut and sustain and grow the programs that occur there. CEO Joe Hollendoner spoke at the event and acknowledged the many community members who made Strut possible. “Not only did this campaign raise an unprecedented $15 million for our community, this building will be the cornerstone by which San Francisco AIDS Foundation and our community partners get to zero: zero new HIV infections, zero AIDS-related deaths, and zero HIV stigma,” said Hollendoner. He noted the public can check out the new donor wall on Strut’s second floor. strutsf.org Log Cabin Republicans Didn’t Endorse Trump but Booked Gala at Trump’s D.C. Hotel America’s foremost gay Republican group, which did not endorse Donald Trump for president last fall, is throwing its 40th anniversary party next month at his Washington, D.C., hotel. The Log Cabin Republicans booked the venue before the president signaled his intent to ban transgender people from serving in the U.S. military. “Our desired original venue was unable to accommodate us on any of our desired dates,” Gregory T. Angelo, the group’s president, said, adding that “the Trump Hotel gave us a very competitive deal.” Asked whether the group has considered a venue change in light of the growing backlash over the president’s tepid response to a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, over the weekend, the group said there has been “some discussion, but with barely a month until the event and every prime hotel booked, a change of venue would be impractical.” thewrap.com Democrats Introduce Resolution to Censure Trump In the aftermath of Charlottesville, many Democrats believe that Donald Trump has allowed white supremacists and Nazis to find a home in the Republican Party. They believe it is not enough for Republicans to sim(continued on page 30) S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

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was a feeling among some of the family that we don’t talk about sexuality, love, and relationships. We don’t even know how to talk about such things. We don’t even do so with respect to straight people, and we certainly don’t know how to do so with respect to people who might be “naughty.”

6/26 and Beyond Stuart Gaffney When I first came out as gay to my family over 30 years ago, my mom was wonderfully accepting. She already knew. For weeks before I actually told her one summer evening while I was home from college, she kept saying to me: “If there’s anything you want to tell me, I just want you to know that I will be very accepting … .” And so, one evening, I came out to her, and we had a great conversation. When she met John a few years later, I asked her what she thought of him, and she responded: “He’s nice.” But quickly realizing that could sound like damning by faint praise, she exclaimed: “Nicer than nice!” She thought he was great, and quickly loved him as one of her own.

As news about my being gay spread through my mother’s side of the family, however, word got back to me that a few in my extended family didn’t necessarily think it was so “nice” that I was gay. I learned that one of my Chinese aunties said she’d heard through the family grapevine I was “naughty.” In general, there

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Over the decades, John became completely integrated into my large extended family.

He has planned family reunions, supported family members through illness and death, and cooked our traditional family dishes for our annual Chinese New Year celebrations.

When John and I first married during San Francisco’s February 2004 “Winter of Love,” the date coincided with our family’s annual New Year gathering. The 2004 marriages were so spontaneous and joyful that my family toasted us with champagne and showered us with congratulations at that year’s annual family gathering.

The initial reticence on the part of some of my family to talk about LGBT life has been ref lected in the broader society in varying ways in different cultural contexts in America, Asia, and other parts of the world. Last week, however, John and I spoke about marriage equality and LGBT issues to university students from Taiwan, China, and Japan studying this summer at Stanford University as part of the Volunteers in Asia program.

If these students’ interest and excitement in learning about, and talking about, marriage equality and LGBT life—and their support for LGBT people—is any indication of things to come on a broader level, then enormous change is taking place in Asia, just as it did in my own family years before. The students’ thirst for knowledge about LGBT people’s lives was palpable. Our presentation began at 7:00 pm, and three and a half hours later at 10:30 pm, many students were still actively engaging with us with many insightful questions and comments about LGBT life in

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America and their home countries. We could have gone on all night.

The Taiwanese students beamed with pride when we and they talked about the historic court decision in favor of marriage equality in Taiwan, making it the first country in Asia with marriage equality. Students from all of the countries applauded the victory. One student spoke about her activism as a Taiwanese lesbian. Another added, “I was there!” when we showed a photograph of the massive celebration the day of the victory. A 2014 poll found that 70 percent of Japanese in their 20s and 30s support full marriage equality.

Many students asked perceptive questions about LGBT physical and mental health, legal issues about relationship and employment discrimination, and ways to improve life for LGBT students in schools.

Speaking with us at Stanford were our friends, the Tan Mercado family, two moms and their twin sons now in college, who were leaders in the fight against DOMA and discrimination against bi-national LGBT couples. Eight years ago, ICE arrested one of the moms in the wee hours of the morning at their home.

Today, they are a legally married couple, with one of their sons a Stanford undergraduate and one of the coordinators of the Volunteers in Asia summer program. The entire family came and told their story of standing up for their family and those of many others, and of overcoming adversity. They shared the message that love makes a family. Their very presence allowed students to learn about LGBT families directly, and to see firsthand how terrific children of same-sex parents can turn out. After the formal presentation ended, the students surrounded them with support and questions about their lives.

By far the question the most students asked us was the best one: “When we go back to our home countries, how can we help?” It’s the (continued on page 30)

The August 21 solar eclipse looked like a smile from Karl the Fog over San Francisco and much of the Bay Area. Perhaps Karl was proud of himself for taking over the sky show, which was still exciting to view. (The nickname “Karl the Fog” has evolved on social media in recent years.) America’s next total solar eclipse will happen in 2024. A total lunar eclipse will take place on January 31, 2018.

NASA PHOTOS

From Naughty to Nice

An Aggressive Boost for Electric Cars

• Establishing an incentive program to get everyone behind the wheel of an electric car • Getting 5 million EVs on the road by 2030, when half the state’s electricity will come from renewable energy sources • Creating a self-sustaining market for EVs.

Assemblymember Phil Ting When we think about the future we want for our children, we don’t picture them breathing dark plumes of polluted air, or witnessing the mass extinction of polar bears and other creatures. Avoiding these prospects requires us to step up our fight against climate change.

The international community is making progress. Over 150 countries have ratified the Paris Agreement to strengthen the world’s response to climate change. While the President has pulled our country out of it, and Congressional Republicans deny climate change exists, California has a chance to lead by expanding the use of electric vehicles (EVs).

Transportation accounts for 40 percent of California’s greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. It is also a large source of air pollution that disproportionately impacts low-income communities and communities of color. To confront these challenges, Governor Jerry Brown issued an executive order five years ago aiming to get 1.5 million zero emission vehicles on the state’s roads by 2025. Reaching this goal will require a more robust effort.

For this reason, I am authoring Assembly Bill (AB) 1184 to create the California Electric Vehicle Initiative.

The bill has three basic goals:

If enacted, AB 1184 will provide $3 billion to EV buyers in rebates that are redeemable at car dealerships in order to reduce the car’s sale price immediately. Rebate amounts would be larger initially, and decline over time as the EV industry grows and technology costs come down.

This bill is modeled after the California Solar Initiative. It was such a success in transforming the solar market that more rooftop solar has been installed since the program ended.

As technology evolves, car manufacturers have developed more environmentally-friendly vehicles. Over 20 EVs are now on the market in subcompact, hatchback, sedan, luxury, and SUV/minivan models. There has never been a better time to make a bold move to electrify our cars with buyer rebates.

In Ca lifor nia, there are nearly 300,000 electric vehicles on our roads today. Sales have been aided by the state-funded Clean Vehicle Rebate Project, which encourages the purchase of hybrids, electric vehicles, and other types of lower emission vehicles through tax rebates filed with the state. Over 200,000 rebates valued at nearly $440 million have been issued. And, with nearly 75,000 rebates awarded in the Bay Area alone, it’s clear that our region has been a major driver of this transformation to cleaner transportation. (continued on page 30)

About Our Covers The front cover shows Ellicott elementary school children listening to a performer during Diversity Day at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado on Friday, Aug. 26, 2016. The base hosted its annual Diversity Day celebration at an indoor running track. The event is held to celebrate diverse cultures, and to recognize the many contributions these cultures have made to society and to the Air Force.

Credit: U.S. Air Force Photo/Dennis Rogers The back cover (artwork by Colton Long) highlights an art event and march for equality on August 26 hosted by popular drag entertainer Juanita MORE! She told the San Francisco Bay Times, “Our city is expressing disbelief over the resurgence of hate in our society and in having a president who embodies that. This shock is understandable, but it must be met with action. San Francisco is coming together this weekend to resist hate and bigotry. Protests, non-profit events, dance parties and marches are being planned at Crissy Field, Harvey Milk Plaza, City Hall and other places throughout the day to express our collective disgust with white supremacy, fascism, and Nazism. I am in support of all of these events, and stand with the community and will not let the alt-right take us back in time.”

Juanita “We are on the right side of history, and with one MORE! voice proudly proclaim that hate is not welcome

here,” MORE! added. “We are united in our defense of the American values we cherish. Freedom, Liberty, Justice, and Equality for ALL. San Francisco is coming together to heal. Where there is darkness, we provide the light. Where there is hate, we provide the love. Where there is fear, we provide the hope. In my heart, the best place for me to bring my San Francisco family together is at Harvey Milk Plaza, where I will be joined by leaders from the Transgender Law Center, SF NAACP, SF LGBT Center, The National Center for Lesbian Rights, National Immigration Law Center, API Wellness Center, The Women’s March and more.”

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Nonviolent Communication, Part 1 er: “What happens to disconnect us from our compassionate nature, leading us to behave violently and exploitatively?” The answers he found led him to develop a communication process called Nonviolent Communication (NVC).

Roland Schembari and Bill Hartman, Co-Founders Randy Alfred, Founding News Editor 1978 Kim Corsaro Publisher 1981-2011

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Tom Moon, MFT One of the many bad effects of the current regime in Washington is that it has accelerated an already alarming national trend toward political hate speech, in which name-calling and ridicule replace civil discussion.

That same style has also infected interpersonal communication, especially on social media. We seem to be a society that is forgetting how to discuss differences in any way that might help to resolve them. Instead, we just yell.

That is one of the reasons why I find the work of clinical psychologist Marshall Rosenberg (1934–2015) so timely. Rosenberg grew up in Detroit, surrounded by anti-Semitism, racism, and violence, and early in life made a commitment to find a better way. He wrote that he was preoccupied, from an early age, to discov-

He reasoned that we have all been socialized into styles of life-alienating communication, such as making moralistic judgments of others.

He saw an important difference between value judgments and moralistic judgments. We all make value judgments about the qualities we desire in life, but when we make moralistic judgments, our attention is focused on classifying, analyzing, and determining the levels of wrongness in others. Our attention is diverted from what we and others need, and focuses instead on blaming and attacking.

When we do this, we communicate in an impersonal and defensive way that doesn’t really reveal what’s going on inside of ourselves.

So, for example, if my partner wants more affection than I’m giving him, he’s “needy and dependent.” But if I want more affection than he’s giving me, then he’s “aloof and insensitive.” When I communicate in this way, any potentially productive discussion of how we might have a more mutually fulfilling relationship gets lost in the distraction of dueling judgments. Rosenberg cited evidence that suggests there is considerably less violence in cultures where people think in terms of human needs than in cul-

tures where people label one another as “good” and “bad” and believe that the “bad” ones deserve to be punished.

fact, however, the process has been tested and found practical in some of the most violent environments on the planet.

NVC is based on three core values: self-empathy, honest self-expression, and empathy for others. It offers a four-step model for self-expression that brings discussions out of the realm of judgments and re-focuses them on communicating needs and feelings. This model is very simple to understand, but requires sustained commitment to learn to practice. The four steps are:

Through his Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC), Rosenberg initiated peace programs in Rwanda, Burundi, Nigeria, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Middle East, Serbia, Croatia, and Ireland. NVC has also been found to be effective in prisons, schools, and corporations, as well as in couples counseling. The CNVC (https://www.cnvc.org/) has grown into an international nonprofit organization that provides training in 30 countries.

1. Make observations uncontaminated by judgment, analysis, or blame, of the concrete actions that are affecting our well-being.

2. Describe how we feel in response to what we are observing.

3. Identify the needs, connected to these feelings, and evaluate which needs aren’t being met (yet) instead of evaluating actions as “right” or “wrong.”

4. Express requests clearly, in positive language, as to how the other person could enrich one’s life. Essential in NVC is that the other person is to be left free to honor or deny the request.

The most common criticism of this form of communication is that it’s hopelessly unrealistic and unsuited for the harsh world in which we all actually live. Many people fear that practicing it would leave them vulnerable and exposed to attack. In

Most of us are probably prone, when in conf lict, to revert to tribalism— to divide the world between the good “us” and the evil “others.” But NVC shows that we also have some choice in the matter. It is possible for us to practice another way of dealing with conflict, in which the delusional division between “us” and “them” dissolves in the understanding that we’re all “us.” For those who would like to learn more about NVC, Rosenberg’s book, Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life, is an excellent introduction.

Next time: Nonviolent Communication and Anger Tom Moon is a psychotherapist in San Francisco. For more information, please visit his website http:// tommoon.net/

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CONTRIBUTORS Writers Rink, Sister Dana Van Iquity, Ann Rostow, Patrick Carney, Kate Kendell, Alex Randolph, Heidi Beeler, Gary M. Kramer, Dennis McMillan, Tom Moon, Tim Seelig, Cinder Ernst, John Chen Rafael Mandelman, Jewelle Gomez, Phil Ting, Rebecca Kaplan, Leslie Katz, Philip Ruth, Bill Lipsky, Karen Williams, Donna Sachet, Gary Virginia, Zoe Dunning, Marcy Adelman, Stuart Gaffney & John Lewis Brandon Miller, Jamie Leno Zimron Thom Watson, Michele Karlsberg Lyndsey Schlax, Elisa Quinzi, Randy Coleman, Debra Walker, Wendy Ross, Howard Steiermann

SF Sketch Randy Coleman

Photographers Rink, Phyllis Costa, Jane Higgins Paul Margolis, Chloe Jackman, Bill Wilson, Jo-Lynn Otto, Sandy Morris, Abby Zimberg

Randy Coleman hails from New York, but has lived in San Francisco since 1975. Coleman shares that before moving to the Bay Area, he studied Art History and Architecture at Boston University while working as a resident artist for architectural rendering at a Massachusetts historical society. “All of my life I’ve been an artist,” Coleman says. “To know me is to know that I have a passion for art and architecture. I love this project for the San Francisco Bay Times, and hope that you enjoy my sketches.”

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GLBT Fortnight in Review

By Ann Rostow Absurd Aussie Shenanigans, Part XXI I know I promised not to waste your time by discussing Australia’s continuing joyride on the marriage equality merry-go-round, but I simply must give you the latest. A week or so ago, after the parliament once again failed to do anything useful, the Turnbull administration authorized the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to conduct a national survey of registered voters via the postal service to gauge the public’s view of same-sex marriage. The $122 million survey will, of course, be optional, and will be conducted later this fall to produce results on November 15.

Oh, and the whole idea is being challenged in court in two lawsuits to be heard in early September.

Did I mention that the survey is not binding on Parliament, and indeed serves no real purpose whatsoever?

And how about the fact that far right groups and neo-Nazis have already begun to distribute nasty antigay fliers, etc., including a poster that shows a little boy cowering under rainbow whips held in the hands of his presumed gay dads. We only see the two arms of the men, but you get the picture. One of the reasons that activists have long opposed votes or surveys on marriage equality has been the assumption that such campaigns would needlessly open the floodgates of homophobic enmity.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who claims to be pro-equality, insists that he promised the nation that the public would be allowed to weigh in on marriage rights. Perhaps, but although polls consistently show that Australians back equality by a significant majority (in the high fifties), it’s not at all clear that this postal survey will reflect these views. Older people with more conservative views are more likely a) to be correctly registered to vote at their current address, and b) more likely to turn in the survey.

So, we’ll see. Turnbull promises that equality will roll through Parliament with ease if the public votes in favor, but what if it doesn’t? What if the vote is 51–49? Or what if Turnbull is wrong and Parliament doesn’t feel like holding a free vote on marriage?

Stay tuned by all means.

No News Is Good News When It Comes to Texas So, did you notice that Texans survived a legislative session, and then a special session, without dragging their knuckles through the scrub oak and passing a bathroom bill? In addition to the concerted and vocal opposition of Texan corporations, Joe Straus, the moderate GOP speaker of the house, came to the rescue yet again by shelving a number of hard right proposals. The San Antonio lawmaker also announced plans to run again for the speakership two years from now. (Texas might be one of the largest states in the union, but its legislature still only meets for a few months every other year.)

Fred Phelps’ antigay demonstrations back in the day. While other countries ban hate speech by law, Americans combat hate in the marketplace of ideas! (Chant with me! “USA! USA!”) But the First Amendment has limits, and one exception is speech that incites imminent violence. Yelling crazy racist blather to a crowd is one thing. Doing so to a crowd armed to the teeth and face-to-face with counter-protesters is another. I still don’t quite understand how we got to the point where average citizens are allowed to waltz around with firearms locked and loaded.

Speaking of violence, I was sorry to see that plans for a new, openly gay version of Xena: Warrior Princess have been cancelled by NBC. I think I mentioned that Mel and I recently discovered a new cable channel called “Heroes and Icons,” which airs an episode of Xena every day. To be honest, we tired of the nostalgic novelty after two or maybe three shows. I was also required to hit pause for thirty seconds or so at a crucial moment in the opening credits so Mel could linger over the scene where the warrior princess laces up her bodice. Anyway, it seems the man in charge of the Xena revival quit the project over “creative differences.”

Freaky Fresnan And what else is going on, you ask?

I’m sure you all read about Fresno school board president Brooke Ashjian, who complained about California’s requirements for positive education about sexual orientation in public schools.

“My biggest fear in teaching this— which we’re going to do it because it’s the law—but you have kids who are extremely moldable at this stage, and if you start telling them that LGBT is OK and that it’s a way of life, well maybe you just swayed the kid to go that way.” Speaking to the Fresno Bee earlier this month, Ashjian added: “It’s so important for parents to teach these Judeo-Christian philosophies.”

According to the Bee, Ashjian has a history of antigay activities, including some oddball antics. Not only did he give cash to the Prop 8 campaign, but he also apparently attacked the group Gay Fresno after Gay Fresno put his business on a boycott list in view of his support for the anti-marriage proposition. Three comments on a complaint board called Ripoffreport.com tracked back to Ashjian’s computer. The “complaints” said Gay Fresno was run by “pimps in disguise,” [who] “stole my money, my dignity and my virginity.” Ashjian’s fictitious character also told the Ripoffreport audience that: “these people are evil.”

Once exposed, Ashjian admitted that he used the website, but claimed that he couldn’t remember what he posted. Hmmm.

Gay Pets Murdered

I’m still in Scotland, by the way, and we still have wet gray skies with temperatures in the low sixties. Beats 105 in the shade back in the Lone Star State. I feel removed from the real world out here, appalled by the news, but somehow indifferent—in a dream state, if you will. I’m out of touch. Instead of acing the Slate weekly news quiz as usual, I’ve been getting very poor scores. Sad.

There’s also a horrible story out of Jackson, Michigan, where Jackson Pride Center director Nikki Joly and her partner Chris Moore saw their home destroyed by arson earlier this month. Lost in the fire were the couple’s two dogs and three cats. According to towleroad.com the town council recently received a hateful email from a local businessman promising “a violent response” in retaliation for a recent pride festival. Sure enough, investigators confirmed that accelerant was found at the scene of the blaze, although it’s not clear whether or not the email guy was involved.

Still.

I did see that the American Civil Liberties Union has decided it will no longer defend the First Amendment rights of armed protesters. Good for them. I have always loved my country’s dedication to free speech, exemplified by the ACLU’s defense of Nazi parades and even their support for

It’s always particularly tragic when animals or pets are killed. I am still haunted by the deliberate barn fire that killed eight horses owned by a gay man in Zanesville, Ohio. (There were antigay slogans at that scene.)

We recently lost both our dogs, one in May and one in July, but they were

both 15 years old and their time had come. I can’t imagine how we’d feel if they had been slain by an antigay psychopath.

Jackson, Michigan, by the way, is a small city of just over 30,000 people about a half hour south of Lansing.

According to Wikipedia, it claims to be the birthplace of the Republican party and the Coney Island hotdog.

Potpourris for Five Hundred, Alex I know, I know. This column feels jarringly disconnected. An item here, an unrelated item there. Xena, Texas, dead pets. And where’s the lengthy piece about our latest sex discrimination lawsuits?

It’s a vacation phenomenon. I’ve been doing zero reading (I told you about my Slate quiz scores, right?) and I’ve only spent a short amount of time looking for gay stuff to tell you about.

So, I’m missing that je ne sais quoi, that easy fluency in GLBT news, the ability to take a topic and run with it, spin it around like a cone in cotton candy until it’s dense and fun.

Instead, we’re stuck with this staccato game of news pepper. Still on my list I find the two men who were told not to share a sundae at a D.C. restaurant because it wouldn’t look good. I’ve got the lesbian bourbon heiress who was banned from the business, and the high school seniors who were censored by the yearbook people. Then there’s a gay marriage art project of sorts that I personally found odd, the appearance of the Canadian defense minister on a Vancouver pride float, and a freedom of information lawsuit by the Mattachine Society. Where do we start?

Okay then!

I know you’re wondering what the Mattachine Society is up to in the 21st Century. You should know that there is a new version of this, the original gay rights organization, and that the Mattachine Society of D.C. was reanimated in 2011 with a mission to preserve gay history. Towards that aim, the group filed a freedom of information act request in 2013 asking the Department of Justice for all records pertaining to the antigay purges that began with Dwight Eisenhower’s 1953 executive order banning homosexuals from government service.

To date, a lt hough t he Depar tment has provided a couple of thousand pages in response, the Mattachine lawyers argue that the search terms used by the Department of Justice have been inadequate to the task, and further, that the Department is withholding some materials based on overly broad censorship criteria. Recently, a federal judge ruled mostly in favor of the Mattachine Society, while siding with the Defense Department on some censorship issues.

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Prime Suspect So, that D.C. restaurant is called Prime Rib, and claims to be one of the most romantic restaurants in the country. Fifty-somethings Ron Gage and Henry McKinnon were dressed nicely and enjoying their dinner up until dessert. After ordering a sundae and two spoons, Gage informed the Washington Post that the server told them he would bring two dishes. “He said, ‘It wouldn’t look right with two gentlemen eating out of the same sundae. It doesn’t go with the ambiance of the restaurant.’”

Gage said he and his partner were “speechless,” and paid the bill without comment. Later they told the tale on social media, prompting a call

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(continued on page 30) S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

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Casey Donovan and the All-American Boys in the Sand when so many of us were deeply closeted and cowered by the cultural and legal stigmata placed upon gay men, he embodied the reality that “Gay is Good,” that our sexual desires are true and valid, that gay intimacy is normal and natural, and that gay life can be open, joyCasey ous, and without guilt. Donovan

Faces from Our LGBT Past Dr. Bill Lipsky Thirty years ago this month, we lost a pioneer in the crusade for sexual freedom. Casey Donovan did not organize rallies or picket businesses or lobby for political change. In an era

B or n Joh n C a lv i n Culver in 1943, but not intentionally sharing a name with that most puritan of Protestant reformers, Donovan never intended to lead or even participate in a sexual revolution. He was going to be a teacher. Soon after taking a job at an exclusive school in New York City, however, he was fired for allegedly disciplining one of his students

too harshly. He then decided that theater, which he loved, would be his career.

To pay his bills while waiting for his big opportunity, Culver took jobs as a salesman, a waiter, and a doorman, although his greatest success came from working as an escort. Eventually he got some walkons and small roles in Off-Broadway productions, making his Broadway debut in 1970.

The next year he made his first screen appearance in Ginger, a low-budget, straight sexplotation film. Three more movies, all gay-themed, followed.

The last of these made him an underground national celebrity, the first gay porn star. Different from every hardcore film that came before it, Boys in the Sand became the archetype for all that followed, beginning with its title. Instead of something pandering or squalid like Highway Hustler or Group Grope or Bisexual Built for Two, it played upon the name of Mart Crowley’s 1968 play and 1970 film Boys in the Band, which portrayed gay men as conflicted, pathetic, and ultimately alone.

Producer-director-scenarist Wakefield Poole’s film was no more realistic about gay life—all the men are beautiful, all the sex is wonderful—but at least it presented an ideal to which viewers could aspire, or a fantasy that they could enjoy. As the clean cut, sexually desirable—and available— golden boy-next-door, Culver, using the name Casey Donovan, became the quintessential gay man and the erotic star of stars.

Boys in the Sand led by example in almost every area. It was the first hardcore gay film to include credits for cast and crew, although many used noms de porn. It was the first to be advertised in The New York Times and the first to be reviewed by Variety; it appeared on the magazine’s list of the fifty top-grossing movies for almost three months. Many considered it “an artistically serious hardcore film” and it helped to define “porn chic,” which became popular in the early seventies.

In an era when it was illegal in almost every state and many considered it to be shameful, dishonorable, and malignant, Boys in the Sand presented same-sex intimacy between consenting adults as completely normal and deeply satisfying. Donovan was uninhibited, even exuberant, about his sexual self, which he continued to validate and celebrate across his career both on screen and off.

He paid a price for his success, of course. Although he and many others thought he could move from erotic to mainstream films, it never happened. “It was a rude awakening for me,” he said later, “to find out that Hollywood is one of the most closeted and hypocritical cultural centers in the world. I learned that an openly gay actor like myself was not welcome to gay directors and producers, who believe it is essential to keep their sexuality a secret.”

Both Donovan and Poole continued to be involved in filmmaking for gay adults, but also moved into other careers.

In 1978, Donovan opened Casey Donovan in Key West, a guest house for visiting gay men. In 1981, he began leading all-gay tours, then still a novelty, to Italy, China, Peru and other destinations. His advice column, “Letters to Casey,” first appeared in Stallion magazine in 1982. It ran until shortly before his death, five years later.

In 1975, after he moved to San Francisco, Poole and his lover Peter Schneckenburger, who appeared in Boys in the Sand as Peter Fisk, opened Hot Flash of America at 2351 Market Street. Living up to its motto—“Everything You Want But Nothing You Need!”—it was described by California Hotline as being “a super-creative store that is both an art gallery and a store with antiques and whatever— all distinctive.” Hot Flash of America also had a hair sa-

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lon in the rear of the store, so customers could get all prettified for their Saturday date in the back, and buy him or her a gift in the front, all in one stop. Its logo t-shirts, modeled after the Arm & Hammer logo, soon became an essential item for every Castro clone’s wardrobe. Hot Flash of America closed in 1979.

Donovan remained the personification of liberated sexuality throughout his life. He was then, and still is now, an authentic gay icon. By always being his unabashed, unembarrassed sexual self, he confirmed that gay desires are authentic and gay intimacy is compelling and joyous. If nothing else, he showed that the all-American boy was not as boy-next-door as he seemed to be. Or perhaps there was more to the boy-next-door than anyone had ever known before.

Bill Lipsky, Ph.D., author of “Gay and Lesbian San Francisco” (2006), is a member of the Rainbow Honor Walk board of directors.

Celebrating LGBTQ Weddings

By Erin Berg When we opened Kipper Clothiers f ive years ago, we had one mission in mind: to make the high-end custom suit and shirt market available to the LGBTQ community. Since the birth of our company, we have been able to do just that, but with an additional bonus. We get to work very closely with clients to create one-of-a-kind items for one of the biggest days of their lives, their wedding day.

We knew we had an opportunity to make our dreams a reality the day that Prop 8 was repealed. We had seen many of our friends struggle to find well-fitting apparel that matched their unique gender expression, or their body shape. To make matters even worse, frequently we heard horror stories about many members of our community being harassed by customer service representatives, or being kicked out of stores. With the repeal of Prop 8, we knew we had a responsibility to our community to give them a safe, accepting place for them to go shopping for their wedding apparel.

After having the honor of taking part in styling hundreds of wedding outfits with clients from all over the country, we know the importance of being able to highlight a person’s true self for the big day. What we love about working with an LGBTQ clientele on their weddings is the ability to make their important days their own.

Without the constraints of needing to uphold many of the traditional customs that are used in the wedding market, we often begin our process with a blank slate, allowing us to find unique inspiration when working with each individual client. From a formal black velvet tuxedo to a casual button down shirt with shorts, we have created outfits that allow clients to express their gender identities so that they can be seen as their truest selves in front of all of their family and friends.

Our mission of LGBTQ accessibility and visibility has become essential during this hostile political time. We are seeing more clients than ever who want their weddings to be viewed as joyful, loving acts of resistance towards the current atmosphere around the country. We have seen a spike in the guest lists for our clients’ wedding celebrations.

When we started Kipper Clothiers, we had a much larger percentage of clients having small weddings at city halls. Now we see clients holding much larger celebrations in destinations across the Bay Area. We believe that, collectively, these are a hopeful expression of resilience within the LGBTQ community.

Erin Berg is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer at Kipper Clothiers. A neuroscience graduate from Oberlin College, Berg worked as a data analyst before meeting Kyle Moshrefi during an internship at a fashion start-up in San Francisco and ultimately partnering to create Kipper Clothiers. You can contact Kipper Clothiers at 415-890-4431 or via email at info@kipperclothiers.com Frederick Sullivan and Jaime Botello, who oversee the Weddings & Occasions page for the San Francisco Bay Times, are the talented wizards behind Sullivan-Botello Events (http://sullivanbotelloevents.com) and SnB Party Rentals (650-877-0840, www.snbpartyrentals.com). Both are Certified Wedding Planners with extensive experience in creating memorable, personalized events for special occasions. Their rental service is incredible, offering everything from beautiful gold Chiavari chairs to LED dance floors, and all at competitive prices. They are the creators of the Gay Vanity Wedding Show and are longstanding members of the Golden Gate Business Association, which is the nation’s first LGBT Chamber of Commerce.

Congratulations to Sandy Morris

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AUGUS T 24, 2017

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San Francisco Bay Times Tours Summer of Love exhibit Photos by Rink and Paul Margolis

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PHOTO BY PAUL MARGOLIS PHOTO BY PAUL MARGOLIS

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Members of the San Francisco Bay Times SF Pride Parade 2017 contingent and their guests gathered at the de Young Museum for a private docent-led tour of the Summer of Love exhibit. Celebrating our contingent’s success this year, the tour included the chance to view historic art and artifacts from cultural activities and events in 1967. Fashion displays and the listening room with songs by Janis Joplin and other musicians from the era proved to be favorites of our group members, who also enjoyed the de Young’s Friday Night programming. Thanks to all who joined us for the evening and to the staff who welcomed us!

Round About - All Over Town

Photos by Rink

Summer events continue aplenty and Rink is out and about as usual. Who do you recognize in this issue’s photo collections?

A huge crowd turned out for author Mark Abramson’s book talk and signing of his new book Minnesota Boy at Dog Eared Books on Castro Street.

Institute director Sigrid Savelsberg and other leaders from the Goethe Institute, the German Cultural Center in SF, are promoting the organization’s 50th Anniversary and upcoming Open House on August 26. The event will include art workshops and theater for children and adults, a poetry slam, jazz performances, German language classes, traditional pastries and a beer tasting.

A sitar player, performing under the colorful Summer of Love mural, attracted attention at the corner of Haight Street and Masonic Avenue.

David Hardiman and his band performed at the Afro Solo Festival’s outdoor show at Yerba Buena Gardens.

Audience members enjoyed performances during the 2017 Afro Solo Arts Festival at Yerba Buena Gardens.

Afro Solo executive director Thomas Simpson with Charles Hamilton, whose quintet performed during the festival on Saturday, August 5.

A crowd of Frameline41 volunteers gathered at Beaux to celebrate the success of the 2017 LGBTQ Film Festival.

Greeters David Warczak, Brian Ray and Peter Stein welcomed guests to the Frameline41 Festival’s Appreciation Party held at Beaux.

The Jewish Film Festival’s Jay Rosenblatt and Lexi Leban gave the Freedom of Expression award to Joe Berlinger (center) on stage before the screening of his Intent to Destroy documentary about the American Genocide.

Kevin Schaub (far right) along with volunteers and staff enjoyed the party at Beaux.

Frameline’s Frances Wallace and David Warczak at the Volunteer Appreciation Party held during July at Beaux.

Director Joe Berlinger (Intent to Destroy) accepted the important Freedom of Expression award presented at the Castro Theatre.

The t-shirt Contest for Frameline41 volunteers drew audience applause at Beaux during the Volunteer Appreciation Party.

Volunteers Alex Ray, Pablo and Derick Yih at the Frameline41 Party at Beaux.

Debi Shargel and Kristine Wilson with their pup at the Art Saves Lives show opening event held in July.

The Castro Theatre marquee announces the winner of the Jewish Film Festival’s Freedom of Expression Award.

Artist Element displays his sculpture at the Art Saves Lives exhibit opening at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation on Castro Street.

A couple enjoying the opening event for the Art Saves Lives exhibit at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation on Castro Street

Magnoliah Black performed on stage during the Art Saves Lives exhibit opening party.

Artist David Wayne Floyd (second from right) welcomed friends to the Art Saves Lives exhibit in the gallery space at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s Castro location.

Sister Mae Joy created a chalk painting on the sidewalk to welcome guests arriving for the Art Saves Lives show opening at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation on Castro Street.

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Sister Dana Sez: Words of Wisdumb from a Fun Nun with soldiers carrying on while war is going on above them; and a series of three “Mythological Erotica.” Everything will be on display for all of August. strutsf.org

Sister Dana sez, “Hey, Trump, what’s with all the constant overuse of hyperbole, superlatives, and bluster? ‘the likes of which the world has never seen before’?! Oh puhleeeze, I’m hugely, bigly, tremendously, terrifically, fantastically disgusted! Why don’t you try being presidential for a change?!”

In April, shocking news broke that gay men were being rounded up and held in concentration camp-like prisons in Chechnya, Russia. Reports claim that more than 100 men were detained, beaten, electrocuted, tortured, and at least three were killed.

In response to such accounts of gay concentration camps in Chechnya and President T-rump’s call to ban transgender individuals from U.S. military service, the SISTERS OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE hosted "STILETTOS FOR SHANGHAI FOR CHECHNYA,” a community event and fundraiser at the Castro Theatre. It was the U.S. premiere of Stilettos for Shanghai, a documentary depicting the drag nuns when they traveled to China for the city’s 2014 Pride festivities. In addition to the screening, there was a VIP cocktail reception, a pre-show performance by drag superstar Honey Mahogany, and several guest speakers. All ticket proceeds and any additional donations went towards two organizations that help LGBTQ people around the world seek refuge and asylum: the ORGANIZATION FOR REFUGE, ASYLUM, & MIGRATION (ORAM), and RAINBOW RAILROAD, which works directly with the Russian LGBT Network in Chechnya. The completed film—which includes interviews with former state Senator Mark Leno and former Assemblyman Tom Ammiano discussing international anti-gay legislation (there are over 70 countries with anti-gay laws on the books)—also includes rare archive footage supplied by the Sisters depicting the early days of the Order.

STRUT held an opening reception to celebrate their exhibition of the work of internationally-renowned artist, Felix D’Eon. “We are thrilled that he has come all the way from Mexico City where he lives to showcase his epic work with us,” said Baruch Porras-Hernandez, Community Organizer. “His work will be displayed on the first and third floors until the end of September.” D’Eon says he is enamored by history and art-historical styles, and has found through his practice that he is a good mimic of the artwork of different eras. He loves late Edwardian illustration, mid-century children’s books, and golden-era comics, to name a few styles. The work on display at Strut specifically celebrates his Latino heritage; the images play with traditional Mexican fantasies of romance, as imagined by the artists of the golden age of Mexican cinema, Mexican calendar painting, and advertising from the turn of the last century, for example. In these paintings, the tropes of Mexican imagery are inverted, so that queer characters act out the romantic fantasies traditionally embodied by the heteronormative and cis-gendered body. A few of my faves: “Summertime of Love and Lavender Romance,” a butterfly man kisses a man riding on a giant bee; “Midnight in the Trenches” 14

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ARTSAVESLIVES STUDIO AND PERFORMANCE SPACE again hosted the monthly “AUGUST RECEPTION AND PARTY” at the spacious gallery at 518 Castro and 18th Streets. Studio curator Thomasina De Maio featured more than 20 local artists such as Jack Mattingly and his mixed media sculptures mostly in gold tone; Bob Burnside (whose small geometric 3-D model interprets the much, much larger version stretching from one wall to another in majestic expansion), Christopher Wood; William O. Webster III; Michael Lownie; Antonio Castellanos (“Joteria: Playing with Pride”—a takeoff on Mexico’s Loteria with 16 LGBTQ-themed cartoon characters); Ed Terpening (local nature and landscape paintings); gorgeous color photography of Bill Haught (especially the purple “Winged Iris”); Michael Staley (who has bugle beaded and Swarovski-crystalled sculptures from toasters to skulls to marital aids); Daniel Lawrence Carniglia (acrylic artist of “St. Archangel Ariel: the Dawn of Destiny;” Fr. John Takahashi, Wil Fredo Santana (a series of mixed media vignettes of mysterious hybrid creatures); lush floral designs by Gary Virginia (“Namaste” and “Global Peace”)—among others. Offering live entertainment were Magnolia Black (singing a bluesy “I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl” and a sexy “I Just Wanna Make Love to You”); Claudio (giving us thrilling high opera with “O Sole Mio” and “Granada” while a ballet dancer illustrated with vivid choreography); Ruby Vixen with singing, burlesque, fan dancing, and more; Penny Poundcake lip-synching and stripping to “You Light Up My Life” while her dress and headdress literally lit up in sequence; and

Staff and friends of the San Francisco Bay Times assembled for the “SUMMER OF LOVE” Exhibit Tour at the de Young Museum as a celebration of our nice trophy win for the SF LGBTQ PRIDE PARADE contingent. Of course, true to theme, many of us dressed in a variety of tiedye shirts, bell-bottom pants, peace symbols, “flowers-in-our-hair” and other nods to the ‘60s. As we approached the museum, everywhere were ‘60s sayings on signs: “Give Earth a Chance;” “Love Is Happening;” “Make Love, Not War;” “Equal Rights;” and “Flower Power.” There were over 450 different pieces as part of the memorable exhibit, which has sadly gone like much of this summer. I was especially interested in the contemporary writers recording the Summer of Love and the free speech movement. We talked about fashion from the miniskirt to cheap vintage clothes at Good Will thrift stores to the blue jeans from Levi’s started here in EssEff in 1967 and the reappropriation with embroidery and patches to make the clothing your own. We spoke of our patron saint of San Francisco, St. Francis and his teachings of kindness to animals, against war and hate, and for love and acceptance. Psychedelic posters were all the rage—being turned out by the thousands in print shops to advertise upcoming rock shows.

That led to checking out the printing process of lithography using ink on stone. We honored Dr. David Smith who created the Haight/Ashbury Free Clinic for poor hippies needing free medical care. We enjoyed colorful light shows that were famous in dance venues—made from oil and food dye on overhead projectors timed to the music. We discussed the ugly President Nixon Watergate scandal and impeachment, which is all too familiar with today and Trump’s scandalous, impeachable activities. All in all, we saw how the “Summer of Love” is not very different from today’s “Winter of Discontent.” At least politically.

“DO WHAT THOU WILT”: KENNETH ANGER & THE DAWN OF AQUARIUS was a fascinating talk by curator Joey Cain at the GLBT History Museum.

Groundbreaking avant-garde gay film maker Kenneth Anger began expanding the possibilities of cinema in the late 1940s, and his visionary films had a decided influence on the participants in the Summer of Love.

A foundational element of Anger’s poetics is the work of bisexual poet and ceremonial “magickian” Aleister Crowley. Cain presented research into Crowley’s homosexuality, philosophy, and system of magick along with excerpts from Anger’s films to elucidate themes in Anger’s ecstatic cinematic dreamscapes.

THE SISTERS OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE hosted our annual PROJECT NUNWAY charity (continued on page 30)

PHOTO BY PAUL MARGOLIS

By Sister Dana Van Iquity

THE EUREKA VALLEY NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION (EVNA) held an OPEN HOUSE FOR MEMBERS AND THE CURIOUS AND THE QUESTIONING. Over 50 of us attended. “I hope the meeting helped with everyone’s understanding of the mission and goals of EVNA, its organizational structure, and the process and positions available for those who want to step into leadership and volunteering,” said Mark D. McHale, who facilitated. “Our general meetings will provide the forum for sharing stories, getting educated on issues, coordinating outreach and resources, and giving shape to the scope and efforts of the committees.

We need every hand to accomplish our work.” The next EVNA Board Meeting (for board members, general members, and the curious) is September 12, 6:30 pm, Chase Community Room, 15th and Market Streets.

many others to delight the spirit and the soul.

Dennis McMillan (aka Sister Dana) was all smiles wearing his peace symbol necklace at the de Young Museum during the San Francisco Bay Times private tour of the Summer of Love exhibit on Friday, August 11.

BACK TO SCHOOL

on Racism & Diversity

Teaching the Truth About Racism to Children

By Lyndsey Schlax (Editor’s Note: Teacher Lyndsey Schlax of the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts launched the nation’s first on-site high school LGBT course in 2015. She has just resumed teaching that groundbreaking class. In this column, her students share their thoughts about LGBT-related matters, including their concerns, what they have learned in class and more. Sometimes Schlax will share her thoughts too, as she does for this issue.)

There’s a picture going around on social media showing a tiny white child, no more than 2 years old, wearing a pointed white hood and robe. The outfit is immediately recognizable, and at complete odds with my standard “aw, cute baby” reaction. Standing in front of black police officers, the baby is reaching out to touch their riot shields, in typical curious kid fashion. It’s heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time to see innocence snuffed out and weaponized, in service of a hateful agenda. Indoctrination into racism and white supremacy starts that early, although not often that intensely.

That picture, of that baby KKK member, is from 1992. That child

is likely 25 years old now. Maybe they’re a police officer, a teacher, a doctor, or a parent; maybe they were at the rally in Charlottesville. Maybe they knew James Fields was planning to drive his car into the crowd.

Fields’ high school history teacher knew he idolized Hitler, so this wasn’t a new piece of him.

You know who didn’t know that James Fields was going to a white supremacist rally, where he might have the opportunity and desire to kill someone? His mother. She thought he was just going to a Trump rally.

She apparently knew he was violent, but couldn’t stop him, or change his views by the time he was an adult— he was too strong, and too set in his beliefs. The adults in his life didn’t explicitly teach him how not to be a bigot, and in the end, he became exactly that.

We can’t be those adults, whether parents, aunts, uncles, teachers, or mentors. We need to talk to our children about racism—teach them how to stop hate; read to them; give them role models, examples, and language for what’s going on in their world. We need to empower their voices because they will be the ones leading this fight. And we need to do it now, when they’re learning how to

be people. White supremacists are raising their children to be racists, and they will win this battle for our country if we don’t give our children the tools to stop them.

Some of us are learning right now that the America they believed they lived in isn’t real, and maybe never was. Some of us are not surprised, but are devastated all the same.

Some of us are still in disbelief, some are disheartened, and the only people in America right now who aren’t worried and hurting are either white supremacists or are not paying attention. We shouldn’t be shocked, but many are, because they didn’t learn the truth while they were in school. We can change that—it doesn’t have to be this way. We can teach the truth.

We can, and must, teach our children to love, to take care of each other, and to see their country for what it really is, so they can work to bring the United States to its true potential, and to repair the harm that’s been done to so many marginalized groups. If America lived up to the myth of exceptionalism we’ve all been taught, it would be a phenomenal place. It would be the home of the tired, the poor, the huddled masses; where all people are creat-

STUDENT VOICES ed equal, and where no one will be deprived of life, liberty, or property.

This can all feel like too much to take on, or like it’s happening far away, or like it’s not your fight. But this is our fight, especially if you’re privileged in some way, and most especially if you’re white like me. We must all stand against the continued empowerment of neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and home-grown terrorists. Freedom only happens in solidarity—women like me can’t be free until the LGBTQ community is free, until people of color are free, until people with disabilities are free. Until we are all free.

The land of the free and the home of the brave doesn’t truly exist if we stay quiet when Nazis kill someone on American soil. It only works if we’re actually brave, and if our children are brave, because that’s what will make us all free. As I start a new school year of teaching in this polit-

ical reality, I’m recommitting to doing the work, and to believing that young people will lead us forward.

I hope you’ll join me. Go read them some books, talk to them about race, and show them what it looks like to fight back against racism, especially if you’re white.

We have to. Otherwise, hate will win.

For more information about the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, please visit http://www. sfsota.org/ Lyndsey Schlax has been a teacher in the San Francisco Unified School District since 2008. She is uniquely qualified to address multiple areas of LGBT studies, having also specialized in subjects such as Modern World History, Government, Economics and U.S. Politics. She is a National Board Certified Teacher, and earned her M.A. in Teaching at the University of San Francisco.

An Epic Eclipse of Conscientiousness

Cross Currents Andrea Shorter This week we experienced an eclipse of the sun that brought breathtaking darkness across the U.S. from the beaches of Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. While fog obscured our views here in the Bay Area, it was a memorable event nonetheless.

Throughout human history, myths and beliefs have captured our imaginations about the meaning and effect of a solar eclipse. Some believed—and still do—that a total eclipse of the sun means the world’s end. Considering the events of the week before the actual solar eclipse, it felt like a cosmic precursor to an apocalyptic end times.

rightfully faced piercing backlash for proposing moral equivalency between white nationalists and counter protestors. He then reluctantly delivered a forced teleprompter prepared statement of what was to have made him sound like he had a grasp on the totality of the situation at hand, a.k.a., a grip on reality.

courted, emboldened all the way to the White House.

ate monuments erected around the South.

In about the same time as a solar eclipse, he blew away any modicum of presidential decency, regressing quickly back to his initial bombastic insistence that the violence was incited by, and was to be held accountable by, “both sides.”

Before the solar eclipse, we collectively experienced the shattering aftermath of an already horrifically violent and deadly terrorism visited upon Charlottesville, Virginia, by white nationalists and supremacists. We are still reeling from the President of the United States’ spiral from one unconscionable utterance to another in his trenchant unwillingness to outright condemn white supremacists, their cause, and violence.

Then came the thunderous, meteoric plummet to planet Earth: finally, 24 hours later and teleprompterfree, adorned by the lush comforts of his very own granite and goldladen monument-to-self at Trump Tower, the President grabbed the mic after a press conference ostensibly about infrastructure. Eager to relieve himself of constraint before the press corps, he imparted a way, way off-script shameful reveal of his true, innermost twitterific feelings about the events and defense of the white supremacists he shamelessly

Effectively defending the white supremacists, he proposed that many of those marching with f iery tiki torch-bearing, locked and loaded arms and clubs-bearing, antiSemitic and other hateful chanters were actually “fine people,” you know, like the ones at his self-aggrandizing rallies. In fact—because he is always about the facts, right?— some of these folks were just innocuous history buffs (perhaps the ones in Polo shirts) there to quietly, civilly witness the take down of one of at least 1,500 cherished Confeder-

Then along came the equally morally corrupt band of counter-protestors spoiling for a fight with the fake media camera-ready provocateurs with torches, clubs, guns, and even an automobile unleashing its arson of decades pent-up KKK-inspired hate and violence empowered by the President himself upon peaceful or other resistors (see Trump campaign rally footage of Citizen Trump inciting violence towards unwelcome rally intruders).

After declaring “many sides, many sides” at fault for the violence, he

We have revisited, relived and re-litigated with good cause towards ad nauseam the litany of indefensible offenses and danger he presented to the world in an epic fail to lead and unify in crisis with moral clarity.

S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

(continued on page 16) AUGUS T 24, 2017

15

BACK TO SCHOOL

on Racism & Diversity

Charlottesville

Aging in Community Dr. Marcy Adelman The President’s press conference on August 15 was a watershed moment.

Trump exposed his true self. There could be no ambiguity about what he meant to say, and who he is. The President insisted there is little difference between white supremacists and neo-Nazis who traffic in hate and violence and the people in opposition to hate who seek equality and justice. Instead of speaking out against all forms of hatred, the President of the United States became an enabler of the

very groups that want to rip our country apart.

who we are and our future for generations to come.

As the events of Charlottesville unfolded, I found myself, like so many other Americans, filled with a mixture of sadness, repulsion and increasing determination to stop the hate and the madness. Armed neo-Nazis and white supremacists rallied in Charlottesville chanting racist and anti-Semitic slurs. A car driven by a white supremacist intentionally drove into a group of counter protesters and tragically killed Heather Heyer and injured 19 other people. In his response, the President failed to condemn hatred and white supremacists, and in so doing, shamelessly revealed that he is morally bankrupt as a person and as a leader.

I urge non-violent resistance and solidarity with all who would protest those who incite violence and hate.

White supremacists and neo-Nazis hold rallies to gain attention by inciting violence. We don’t have to play into their game.

We, the American people, need to look to each other to bring our country together and to restore cherished values of social justice, civil rights and treating each other, regardless of differences, with the dignity and respect each one of us deserves. How we choose to stand up to those who would destroy what we hold most dear will define

Eric Lui, founder and CEO of Citizen University and author of You’re More Powerful Than You Think: A Citizens Guide to Making Change Happen, identified four things to do to counter hate: 1- Practice self-reflection.

Right now, action is essential but action alone will not change the systemic racism in our country. Each of us needs to reflect on how we have contributed directly or indirectly to the hate and bigotry in our country. Going forward, we need to have a deeper conversation about race. Individual and collective reflection with compassion for ourselves and others will deepen and advance the conversation on race and enhance and inform the actions we take and the future we build.

2- Ensure that Nazi and white supremacist rallies, which are meant to incite violence, do not turn violent.

You can do this by not attending racist rallies. A peaceful and powerful alternative is to attend separate anti-hate counter rallies that are a positive statement of our common humanity and that reflect the full diversity of our country. It isn’t just what we do, but how we do it that says who we are.

White supremacists have secured a permit to rally in San Francisco on August 26. On August 26, a separate peaceful, anti-hate counter rally is being planned for the Civic Center. I plan on being there and hope you will join me.

3- Commit to being pro-active. The time to act against hate and intolerance in now.

Be willing to stand up and speak out publicly and/or privately against hateful and bigoted behavior and policies.

Contact your representatives and legislators and insist that they condemn hateful speech and that they condemn anyone in or outside the government

that speaks in support of neo-Nazis and white supremacists.

Reach out across differences to work together to restore our country to the values of social justice and equality. Urge our elected officials to stand up against hate and be counted. Call Paul Ryan, phone number 202-2253031, and Mitch McConnell, phone number 202-224-2541, and ask them to censure Trump for his failure to condemn hate groups.

4- Invest in causes and organizations that are working to make our communities and our country more inclusive and safe for all people.

Help to organize your networks— friends, neighbors, colleagues, congregations—to donate and support organizations that combat hate and empower marginalized and vulnerable communities. Here are links to six national organizations that are on the front lines: ACLU (https://action.aclu.org/secure/protect-rights-freedoms-we-believe8?s_src=UNW170001SEM&alt_ src=UNV170001SEM&ms=gad_

Andrea Shorter (continued from page 15) Instead, he continued with his same old tired shtick of blame games, name calling, score-settling tweets, temperamental ticks against fake media, in an all too obvious pivot from his defense of white supremacists towards an all-out cultural war guised by some very incomprehensible anti-political correctness chatter about erasing American history by taking down Confederate monuments—and maybe the monuments of slave-owning American forefathers, like George Washington! Gasp! Thomas Jefferson! Gasp! I do declare, where and when will it end?

Good question, Mr. President: where and when will it end? Will your naked attempts to deflect, divide, and distract from the exposure of the erupting, gaping fault-lines in your nascent presidency—such as the numerous Russia election interference, collusion, and criminal investigations your associates, campaign, and possibly you are under—ever come to an end?

Nice try at the three-card monte, but we haven’t forgotten.

Nor are we so distracted as not to see the behind the scenes drive to continue implementing your policy agenda to make America something, something other than great again by dismantling our regulatory agencies, civil rights, public education, and all else counter to the interests of the other fine global warming deniers you’ve cast at the helm.

Note to the GOP: thanks for the obligatory denouncing of racism in our society twitterstorm, but can you all please stop enabling, and giving this man a chance to magically rise to the precious occasion to act presidential? There will be no Eliza Doolittle transformation. Stop predicating your political calculations for maintaining majority houses in fear of alienating and angering his eroding base.

Party of Lincoln, follow the lead of the corporate leaders who (led by one of the few African American corporate CEOs) kicked him to the curb en masse for his blatant inability to break free from his coddle of white supremacists’ vitriol and hatred of Blacks, Latinos, Asians, Jews, Muslims, and LGBTQ people who are, and have always been, America—very much to their misguided dismay.

The long, tiki torch-lit Trumpian march to de-legitimize, eventually succeed, and erase the legacy of the first Black President of the United States with the winds of hatred, desperation, and division at his back must come to an end.

16

SA N FRANCISCO BAY T I ME S

Now, these people who lost their damn minds bearing witness to their worst nightmare—a Black president—are openly emboldened, played, and sympathized by a man to whom a scorched Earth, win at-allcost is his iron-clad brand.

His own clunky, yet calculated, attempts to distract, def lect, and divide tell that he is constitutionally resistant to maturing into a self-possessed secure man, with a depth of character that will recognize, regret, and make meaningful amends for his own epic, irreversible failure to lead against hate— not foment hate—with moral clarity and authority reasonably expected of the leader of the free world.

Donald Trump has no moral compass. As a self-convinced strongman President, he has shown himself in broad daylight not only to be the emperor with no clothes, but also to be a dangerous, weak-minded, bare-assed drama queen.

Please quit him. He is not a good boyfriend.

Muster the Courage of Peace and Non-Violence In a couple of days, white nationalists and supremacists are planning to descend upon the ultra-liberal, diversity-rich San Francisco Bay Area. It is expected that against the backdrop of the glorious Golden Gate Bridge, they are hoping, if not planning, for the incitement of another violent, bloody confrontation, such as what occurred in Charlottesville.

Of course, our City leaders, including our Chinese American Mayor, our African American President of the SF Board of Supervisors, and First Woman Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives have made it very clear that the hatred planned to be brought here is not welcome or wanted. Perhaps the permit to assemble in the National Park’s scenic Crissy Field will have been revoked, postponed, or something, but I doubt it. They do have a right to assemble and to free speech.

They do not, however, have a right to incite violence, and neither do we as resistors. For onlookers, peaceful resistors, and others it will prove difficult, but absolutely imperative, that we muster the courage of peace and non-violent resistance in the face of pure unadulterated hatred for all that we are, stand for, and aspire to be.

Do not give in to what they want: that singular, snapchat photo or fake news reel against the most recognizable, majestic, wonder of the world, the Golden Gate Bridge, in bloody battle defending them-

AU GU ST 2 4 , 2 0 1 7

selves against the left of the left, bluest of the blue, same sex marrying, transgender affirming, mix-raced loving, Jewish, Mexican, Asian, Muslim, medicinal marijuana smoking, elitist educated, technologists replacing industrial era jobs, etc.—the 21st Century shining collective anti-thesis against all for which they stand.

Do not give them what they want. Yes, everyone has a right to defend themselves against an act of violence. Yet, if you are there, unless you are there as them or to join them, you are most likely there to be a witness. Please stand firm as an heir and descendant of the non-violent civil rights movement against hatred faced down by Dr. Martin L. King, Jr., and living hero U.S. Representative John Lewis. Remember, it was Bayard Rustin—an openly gay, Black, Quaker—who infused the civil rights movement with the principles and practices of non-violence. It wasn’t easy then, and it won’t be easy for some now. But, it was done. And, it must be done now.

Better yet, stay away. Stay far, far away.

(Editor’s Note: Or go to Juanita MORE!’s event at Harvey Milk Plaza. See page 6 and the back page.)

Meditate on the 50th Anniversary of the 1967 Summer of Love. Join in alternative happenings in solidarity for peace, justice, equality, and love that celebrate the best of the San Francisco Bay Area, and all that we aspire to be.

It will be very difficult for some of us to contain decades and generations of our own painful hurt and disdain against the very ideology, rhetoric, and hate that has sought to completely enslave, eradicate, or obliterate us. This may be so. Still, please do not give them what they want.

Wherever we are and with whomever we are with, please let us honor the memory of Charlottesville’s lost sister and peaceful counter-protestor, Heather Heyer. Let us hold fast to each other in spirit, and stand firm in the righteousness of resistance by mustering the courage of peace in the coming days—and beyond.

Andrea Shorter is President of the historic San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women. She is a longtime advocate for criminal and juvenile justice reform, voter rights, and marriage equality. A cofounder of the Bayard Rustin LGBT Coalition, she was a 2009 David Bohnett LGBT Leadership Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

LGBTQ Americans Together to Denou and Racism

going impacts and injustice. parities in po will return to well as to cont excessive bail income peopl ately target h from air pollu evictions and

Out of the Closet and into City Hall Oakland City Councilmember At-Large, Rebecca Kaplan With the recent violence and racism spewing from the “Unite the Right” march in Charlottesville, Virginia, it is important that we stand strong and condemn bigotry, hatred, and white supremacy. Amongst the hate speech in Charlottesville, racist, anti-Semitic, and anti-gay slurs were shouted by a large group of attendees. As neo-Nazis become emboldened, we must remember that in Nazi Germany, pink triangles were used to identify gay prisoners who were sent to the concentration camps because of their homosexuality. It is time to speak up loudly against racism and homophobia, and demand that history move forward—not backwards.

In response to the events in Charlottesville, GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis sent this powerful message: “Countless LGBTQ Americans stand firmly together with other marginalized communities to denounce these disgusting threats and cowardly fear tactics. To the young Americans in Charlottesville who are LGBTQ or people of color: You are loved and you are perfect the way you are.”

In Oakland, and throughout the nation, we must also continue to work for tangible change, to undo the on-

New LGBTQ Oakland Just as we mu ebrate our di ue to build su al years ago, w resulted in ide our multicult work, importa volunteers ste community.

Thanks to the cussions, I am nonprofit, allHQ Office & S created prima and open to a ings, organiza at 3207 Lakes please contac landlgbtqcent

Oakland Pr And, on Sund er to celebrate been restored to volunteers participants in land Pride ta Oakland, aro 19th Street B check out ww

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Councilmem elected in 200 cilmember; s serves on the Management of the Alamed sion (ACTC).

There Comes a Time SEM_Bing_Search-Trump_ ACLU%20Donate_ACLU%20 donate_e_78202766912903)

But there are things you don’t know.

I think you’ll find them most interesting.

SAGE (https://sageusa.org/newsevents/release.cfm?ID=186)

• The 300 travelers are each paying their own way.

• The sizeable amount of money we are raising is to cover security, concert venues, advertising, staff, and musicians. (Did I say security?)

NCLR (http://www.nclrights.org/we-mustsmash-white-supremacy-together/) Indivisible (https://www.indivisible.us/) LGBTQ Task Force (http://ngltf.convio.net/site/ MessageViewer?em_id=8931.0&dlv_ id=13338) MoveOn.org (https://front.moveon.org/) This is a defining moment in history.

The future is in our hands.

Marcy Adelman, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist in private practice, is co-founder of the non-profit organization Openhouse. She is also a leading advocate and educator in LGBT affirming dementia care and a member of the Advisory Council to the Aging and Adult Services Commission.

s Must Stand unce Bigotry

s and disparities that perpetuate racism . This requires that we work to end disolice traffic stops and searches (this issue the Oakland City Council in the fall), as tinue pressure to end mass incarceration, and fines that are used to penalized lowle, and other harms that disproportionhistorically marginalized communities— ution, to predatory lending, to wrongful foreclosures.

Q Community Center to Open in

ust stand against hatred, we must also celiversity and LGBTQ pride, and continupportive community. In Oakland severwe convened an LGBT roundtable, which eas to take action to expand support for tural LGBT community. Through this ant plans were made and steps taken, and epped forward, to help build support and

e efforts of early participants in these dism pleased to announce that Oakland’s -inclusive, LGBTQ Community Center Space opens on September 7! This space, arily by African American LGBT people all, will provide space for events, meetations, businesses and more. It is located shore Ave., 2nd Floor. For more details, t 510-282-3352 and check out www.oakter.org

ride day, September 10, let us come togethe Oakland Pride, a festival that has now d and growing for several years, thanks who stepped forward and the urging of n the LGBT roundtable meetings. Oakakes place on multiple blocks of Uptown ound 20th Street and Broadway, near the BART stop in Oakland. For more details, ww.oaklandpride.org

erested in getting more involved in such uld like to share suggestions, you can cone at: atlarge@oaklandnet.com

mber At-Large Rebecca Kaplan was 08 to serve as Oakland’s citywide Counshe was re-elected in 2016. She also e Board of the Bay Area Air Quality t District (BAAQMD), and as the Chair da County Transportation Commis-

• 100% of the proceeds from tickets and donations will stay in the cities we visit. Gross proceeds, not net.

TLC: Tears, Laughs and Conversation Dr. Tim Seelig The lyrics of a familiar activist song are, “There comes a time when you just gotta stand. You’ve been down so long, someone will give you a helping hand.”

No one needs another article about our current political quagmire. We are living in a time of unbelievable turmoil in our country. The recent events in Charlottesville and the heartbreaking response from the President have brought us to a new low in our conversation about any group considered as “other.”

There is an enormous amount of hand-wringing and helplessness. Can one person make a difference? Should we march? Should we shout? Should we write letters/emails and sign petitions? Should we donate? The answer to all of the above is “yes.”

Three hundred people answered those questions “yes” and added another: Should we sing? Each of them decided to make a huge sacrifice of their own money, time, energy and talent and take a courageous step— together—to make a difference. Actually, not a step, but a ride—a long ride—on a bus!

The day after the November election, the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus decided to do what we do best: sing.

We decided to take our music and our voices to the South to encourage our LGBTQ brothers and sisters. We named it the Lavender Pen Tour for the lavender pen Harvey Milk gave to Mayor George Moscone to sign San Francisco’s first Gay Civil Rights Bill.

In less than 60 days, we depart on the tour—300 folks heading to Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina. All of this will happen over 9 days. Seven buses, two vans and a host of groupies.

We knew we needed to do this, but little did we know that the timing of our tour would take on even more importance as we have seen in these dark days. Are we frightened? Of course we are. Are we preparing in every possible way for any possible road bump or road block? Of course we are.

Photos courtesy of San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus

• With the help of partners in the various cities, we have chosen 20+ beneficiaries across the South who are all doing incredible work against almost insurmountable odds. They include HRC, ACLU, PFLAG and smaller groups that are truly fighting the fight in the trenches.

• We are being joined for the entire tour by the amazing 50-voice Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir.

It is far from a luxurious, tropical vacation for those traveling. There will be no lounging by the pool or disco dancing ‘til dawn on this trip. Those travelers know that we are going to bed late—after concerts every evening – getting up early to eat breakfast, and grab a box lunch for the bus ride between destinations. We will be stopping along the way to sing and share in the places listed below.

They also know that they have to make this 9-day trip packing in only one, yes one, suitcase! This is the hardest part.

Here is an overview of what we will be doing: 5 Full concerts with all 250 singers + guest choruses and artists 5 Church Services 5 Public Schools 4 Interfaith concerts in 4 different cities 3 University seminars (HIV/AIDS, Trans issues, LGBTQ support) 3 PFLAG groups 2 Community sings in city parks 2 University music department concerts

Come along with us or meet us along the way. (Mississippi State Capitol steps; Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama; National Coming Out Day in Knoxville, Tennessee; First Baptist Church in Greenville, South Carolina; big finale in Charlotte, North Carolina) Tell all your friends anywhere near MS, AL, TN, NC, and SC to please come and see/hear us.

Attend our Send-off concerts at Grace Cathedral or San Francisco City Hall in September or our Homecoming Concert at Davies Symphony Hall in March.

Send us your love, prayers, and best wishes for every step of the way.

Make a donation to help us reach our goals.

1 South and North Carolina youth conference

We are going to the South to “give them a helping hand.” They’ve been down so long. Our voices will no doubt inspire, unite and empower. The funds we leave behind will keep the work going long after the last notes have died away. Most of all, we know that our singing, sharing and shouting are going to leave an indelible mark on those whose paths we will cross.

1 University outdoor appearance

There comes a time. It is now.

There are some things you can do to help us make this tour all it can be:

Dr. Tim Seelig is the Artistic Director of the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus.

1 Edmund Pettus Bridge march 1 Gay Pride Parade (Winston-Salem)

Why are we doing this? Because we are the lucky ones. We are the ones who are blessed to live in a place that does not barely tolerate our existence.

It does not just accept our difference.

It celebrates who we are! This is what we want to take with us to our brothers and sisters across the South. We want to celebrate them. And we also want to raise our voices to shine a light on the worst discriminatory laws in our country.

You’ve read all about it. ( If you haven’t, drop everything, stop reading and go to www.sfgmc.org)

SFGMC’s Lavender Pen Tour Route Map S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

AUGUS T 24, 2017

17

The History and the Mystery of San Francisco’s Wild Side West

Photos courtesy of Karin Jaffie

By Karin Jaffie Despite being properly credentialed as one of the oldest lesbianfounded and continuously lesbian-owned and operated and patronized watering holes this side of the Sierras, Wild Side West doesn’t really identify as lesbian. But dykes rule and women come first, so don’t you forget it. This is exactly the way the ghost of owners past that haunts the place would want it.

HISTORY Dancing Girls & Sailors …

Wild Side was conceived in Oakland on Grove Street in 1962. Her moms, Pat Ramseyer and Nancy White, named her for the Barbara Stanwyck movie about a lesbian madame, Walk on the Wild Side. The story resonated with Pat, who liked

Wild Side West founders Nancy White and Pat Ramseyer Wild Side West’s contingent vehicle decorated for the 2001 San Francisco Pride Parade

In 1968, Pat and Nancy moved the business “overseas” to San Francisco’s North Beach, landing just east of the Broadway Tunnel near Broadway and Stockton. Now named Wild Side West (WSW), an impossibly heavy leather curtain defended the entry to a bar kept minimally lit for maximum privacy. The bar quietly drew an eclectic gathering of patrons: artists, musicians, and all the usual suspects. Yes, yes, Janis Joplin played music and pool (and possibly some slap and tickle) here, but what made Pat happiest was the community of decent and decidedly odd folks that formed WSW’s clientele.

Off-duty dancing girls from Big Al’s could relax away from hustling their bustles, without “being pawed by the men they performed for,’” as longtime WSW patron Sandra May put it. Of course, girls like Sandra May liked dancing girls too, and the girls often liked them back. “It was dyke city,” she reminisces, “Oh they were so pretty.” Years later at Pat’s memorial (she passed away in 2010), a group of “little old ladies” attended the services held at WSW. While none of the bar’s patrons immediately recognized them, it was later revealed that they were dancers who had found a haven behind WSW’s black curtain.

Surprisingly, among the WSW’s dykes and dancing girls could be found traces of seamen: sailors on shore leave and merchant marines with money to burn. WSW welcomed the occasional gentlemen found among these hordes, those that wanted only a quiet drink away from the blaring neon life east on Broadway. Sandra May recalls, “There we’d be—a bunch of young lesbians without a pot to piss in, and these guys would be buying us drinks just because they could. They knew that it was going nowhere, and we never had problems.” Pat tolerated no disrespect of “her girls,” and was oft quoted as saying, “So long as you have a reasonable IQ and can bend your elbow, we’ll welcome you.”

Kitty Tapata (3rd from left) at Beaux bar with (L-R) Joe Prince Wolfe, Empress Emma Peel, Kitty and her wife of 23 years Lori Howes, Emperor Salvador Tovar, and William Bulkley.

bian softball teams, one known for f lashing their breasts at one another in greeting. San Francisco Supervisor Nancy Walker kicked off her campaign there, as did California State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, who quipped, “Yes, WSW is a lesbian bar because everyone who enters becomes an honorary dyke.” There is a pool table and Pride decor.

A big butch firefighter used to ride her Harley in the front door down the accessibility ramp for kicks.

Dogs have always been welcome. For our sun-loving and/or smoking friends, there’s a deck and incredible garden out back. There’s even a barber chair if you need to re-enact the k.d. lang/Cindy Crawford Vanity Fair cover.

Commodes & Candy In 1977, Pat and Nancy moved WSW (including the actual physical bar and mirror) one last time … to San Francisco’s still untamed blue-collar neighborhood, Bernal Heights.

Further than the miles on the map from the ever-growing crowds of downtown, they bought an 1890s Italianate two-story and settled down. More than just a place of business, WSW at 424 Cortland was their home.

Less than two days after the bar opened, the neighbors welcomed them by throwing a big rock right through the front window as people were in the bar. Pat and bartender “Uncle” Bill Owens just sighed and covered the window with a sheet of wood, which remains covered. But that didn’t stop the welcoming committee. A couple of nice broken toilets were also tossed in the other window. Pat and Nancy, and their renegade group of backyard gardeners, turned the porcelain fixtures into lovely flower pots in WSW’s incredible “secret” garden. If ever there was a way to take someone’s ugly intention and turn into a living retort, they nailed it.

Eventually, the welcoming committee either got bored or enlightened, and the harassment ended. At a time when the only other action on Cortland was the annual robbing of neighborhood Bank of America, Pat took the next step in creating community: she offered candy to little children. Nothing salacious here, just that at Halloween she’d seen neighbor-

PHOTO BY GOOCH USED WITH PERMISSION

the “radical” idea of a woman in charge. Bear in mind that in 1962, it was illegal in California for a woman to be a bartender, so Nancy serving up beers to East Bay baby dykes was already a revolutionary act in itself.

hood families trooping Bernal’s streets. She began putting candy outside the bar entrance for trickor-treaters, and as the neighborhood grew, other merchants joined in what is now a nearly 40-yearold Bernal tradition. If it isn’t obvious, Pat’s idea of community really was inclusive, and is usually pretty fun.

MYSTERY Politics & Spirits Inside the WSW, for not being a dyke bar, things are quite the lesbian party. The bar sponsored les-

And yet, according to Sandra May, when Pat opened the bar, even she didn’t consider it a lesbian bar. She considered it a neighborhood bar. Because it was lesbian-owned and operated, though, lesbians came around and together they all felt safe. “She wanted to have it open to anyone and everyone as a place of refuge,” said May. May added unsolicited, “Pat leaving the bar to Billie (Hayes, current owner) saved this place and many lives.” Billie has vowed to keep the bar intact, and continues to welcome all; the same rules apply. If you don’t abide, Pat’s ghost often stops by to give us all a little reminder about

S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

(continued on page 20) AUGUS T 24, 2017

19

Wild Side West (continued) whose bar it really is, by rearranging and banging things, changing music unexpectedly, and sending a fat little hummingbird to eavesdrop on this interview in the garden. There is always a small altar to her at the end of the bar.

Author Miriam “Cookie” Palaia tended bar at WSW “back in the day.” A keen observer, Cookie believes WSW has its own “personality” that automatically weeds out jerks. She summed up WSW succinctly: “There was never a gay/straight division; it was an asshole/not asshole division. You can be weird, but don’t be an asshole.”

Karin Jaffie of KAR!N JAFF!E DES!GN is a graphic design, web and marketing specialist, whose work you have likely admired at the annual Pride Brunch (she’s created the colorful flyers for years), or for clients such as Lyon-Martin Health Services and UCSF. By night, Jaffie is the popular drag king Kit Tapata, who won the title of Mr. Gay San Francisco in 2011 and has earned many other honors since. For more information about Jaffie’s namesake business, please visit http://karinjaffie.com/

Is Wild Side West a Lesbian/Women’s Bar? Yes! Because it has/had lesbian owners and I have always felt supported by that community there. I only tell special people about Wild Side West to keep the atmosphere friendly and fun.

-Margaret Young, lesbian I think that being a lesbian bar is in its roots, for sure. It’s also always been a safe space for all sorts of people, especially the queer community. It’s still that today. It’s also very much a neighborhood bar where friends come together any day or night of the week to laugh, catch up, and support each other. When I began my transitioning process, the Wild Side West was the first place to provide me with unconditional support as a community. I proposed to my now wife on the back patio of the bar. It remains our second living room, and we continue to spend amazing times at the bar with so many awesome friends.

-James Ward, transman Yes, because that’s where its history comes from.

-Brad Larsen, gay dude I would think of it first and foremost as a neighborhood bar. Bernal Heights happens to have a big lesbian community, which makes it a natural meeting spot for lesbians. It also helps that you always feel welcome and it is a “safe” place to be your queer self. Traditional lesbian bars are very cliquey, in my opinion. It’s hard for an outsider to get into the community, especially if you are not lesbian. Wild Side West is not like that. It’s a lesbian bar. A queer bar. A neighborhood bar for the whole community.

-Hannah Sablestrom, cisgender gal

In the 1970s and ‘80s, there were seven active women’s bars in the city. Now Wild Side West is it. Why has WSW outlasted other women’s bars?

WSW has lasted so long because there is no other place like it and the owners are stubborn as hell. (laughs) It’s a touchstone for the community, whether they realize it or not. I have some really fantastic conversations with people from all over the world who come to the “only lesbian bar in town.” The garden ... the quirky clientele. Also, it has ghosts.

-Heather Dunham, WSW bartender It has that true San Francisco dive bar quality, cheap drinks and a beautiful garden. What more could you ask for? Oh, and cute bartenders. Plus, Kit Tapata hosts drag king shows there.

-Fudgie Frottage, drag king

To me, Wild Side West is first and foremost a neighborhood bar. In a neighborhood with a vibrant and active queer and lesbian community, you’re sure to see lots of LGBTQ regulars whenever you go in. I like Wild Side so much that I celebrated my 30th birthday there last year!

Because it welcomes all kinds, which also makes it a great neighborhood bar. It has one of the best bar patios in San Francisco. It feels like hanging out in a funky art exhibit.

-Brad Larsen, trivia regular

-Tom Temprano, gay dude

As a drag personality and pro DJ, Wild Side West has been welcoming to me and my friends. It has friendly and funny bartenders, a wonderful atmosphere inside with an eclectic interior of artifacts dating back to the early 60’s … . It’s a gem of a bar that I hope lasts for another 50 years.

-Tweaka Turner, drag queen DJ & promoter

If it isn’t, it should be. San Francisco needs a good lesbian bar. It’s a neighborhood fixture, which caters to lesbian clientele and locals.

-Tweaka Turner, drag queen It is when I’m there!

-Kitty Tapata, trivia host

It has lasted so long because if you behave, you are always welcomed. It is a real neighborhood dive.

-Tom Ammiano, local politician

Miss Kitty Tapata’s Fun & Free Trivia Wednesdays at Wild Side West Since 2013, Kitty Tapata (aka Karin Jaffie) has been hosting rather unique and fiercely funny trivia competitions on Wednesday nights at 8 pm-ish at Wild Side West. Part game show, part contact sport, and all comedy, Kitty’s trivia nights are one of the only independent (read: not corporate) pub quizzes in San Francisco. Oh, and she’s in drag.

Tapata pulls together 30 questions each week, 3 rounds of 10, with the last round being a special topic. She always makes a Facebook event to let players know what to study for, and often puts bold hints on the event page to see if folks are paying attention.

“I really like to make people work their brains,” Tapata says.

“It’s sexy that they try, even if they don’t get it right. I always say, ‘If you don’t know it, you just don’t know it yet!’”

Playing for booze and bragging rights, teams of 6 or less compete throughout the evening, taking two-song breaks between rounds. Tapata Trivia has three rounds and three rules.

Questions are projected on one of the bar’s big-screen TVs (so those darn sportsball games can be on the other). She 20

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hands out glitter chalk and “patented Kitty Tapata clean slates” to teams for writing their answers down, then they bring them up to her for some fun and interaction. Tapata keeps score on a Playskool chalkboard she’s been using since she began hosting trivia 7+ years ago at the now defunct Stray Bar, which was also on Cortland up the block from Wild Side West. She also hosted at the Mission Street 3300 Club prior to its demise in a fire almost 2 years ago.

In Wild Side West’s namesake movie, Jane Fonda has a supporting role as a heart-of-gold prostitute from Texas named Kitty. Tapata, who did indeed grow up in Texas, was amused to learn this, saying, “So I guess it was my destiny to end up at Wild Side West, tickling folks’ medulla oblongata and touching their funny bones.”

Upcoming topics: (subject to change, cuz … life) Wednesday, Aug 30: Sports Wednesday, September 6: Rock & Roll Movies Wednesday, September 13: Catch Phrases

SF Drag King Contest to Hold ‘Summer of Glove’ All-Star Show on September 7

By Karin Jaffie The one and only San Francisco Drag King (SFDK) contest is celebrating turning 22 with a hot “Summer of Glove” night of unforgettable performances on Thursday, September 7. The event begins at 10 pm, when you are invited to come strut your stuff at this swashbuckling indulgence filled with Leather Daddies, Hippie Dandies, Mid-Century Mods, Tops, Bottoms, Sides with Sideburns, and Psychedelic Skirts.

Whether Groovy, Grungy, or Gone … be sure to wear a flower in your hair, or a glove on your fist, because as it should be, serious drag gets you a decent discount at the door.

Leigh Crow, Arty Fishal, Kitten on the Keys, and Nancy French. Oasis’s stage literally will be studded out, as recent SFDK winners Max Manchester, Mason Dixon-Jars, and Madd Dogg 20/20 give the audience a thrill, while the Oakland crews of RKO/Rebel Kings of Oakland and Alex U. Inn’s Momma’s Boyz give good group action.

Come cheer on this year’s ballsy contestants: Donny Mirassou, Ryder Moore, El SeVan, Meatflap, Gene Jeanie, and Lord Satan, who are all already signed up to compete.

Don’t again forget that there will be a discount at the door for 60’s Drag, Leather/Fetish Drag, Drag King & Faux King attire. Otherwise, all creative drag is encouraged. Tickets are $20–$25 at the door. General admission & limited $35.00 VIP tickets are available online at sfoasis.com For more information: sfdragkingcontest.com Karin Jaffie performs as drag king Kit Tapata. Read more about Jaffie on page 20.

The somewhat illegitimate brainchild of SFDK host and founder Dr. Fudgie Frottage (aka Lu Read of Dragstrip Productions), SFDK shines a spotlight on the often-overlooked art of male impersonation. Fudgie is flying in phenomenal drag illusionist Landon Cider, star of SoCal’s Drag King Explosion, and as Fudgie says, “the King who was banned by RuPaul’s Drag Race.”

Landon downplays the rift.

“She (RuPaul) is a huge inspiration of mine and a main, if not biggest, influence on the drag scene that has allowed me to make a full-time career out of Drag,” Landon explains. Landon believes Ru should see Kings as artists in their own right, and wishes “she’d shine some light down from her throne onto her brothers as much as she has her sisters.”

Sister Roma co-hosts this fun-filled evening benefitting a great local cause, PAWS/Pets Are Wonderful Support, and loves working with Fudgie. “Fudgie is such a baller,” quips the world’s most photographed nun. “Every year he has the hottest chicks on his arm—including me.”

All T and tons of shade are guaranteed. Fudgie has been busy packing the judge panel with local luminaries and Kings of note, including

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Moody, Atmospheric Queer Film Beach Rats Is Not to Be Missed pressions. His vacant stares palpably suggest his anxiety and internal conflict.

Film Gary M. Kramer Frankie (Harris Dickinson), the main character in writer/director Eliza Hittman’s phenomenal drama, Beach Rats, doesn’t think of himself as gay, but he regularly cruises gay Brooklyn chat rooms. When Frankie asks a guy he meets online to expose himself, he is embarrassed by (or ashamed of) his desires to articulate what he knows he wants—but he eventually relents. His conflicted nature forms much of this absorbing character study.

Hittman portrays a critical period of Frankie’s life with tremendous intimacy and a total lack of judgment.

She seems less interested in telling a coming out story, and keener on exploring the Janus-faced nature of a guy who is bored, broke, and horny.

Frankie may enjoy the public homosocial environment of hanging out with his handball buddies Jesse (Anton Selyaninov), Nick (Frank Hakaj), and Alexei (David Ivanov), but he also craves privately exploring his samesex passions. Those two worlds, of course, will collide.

The filmmaker coaxes an exceptional performance by Dickinson, who is on screen in just about every scene. The British actor, who has a commanding screen presence, is truly convincing as a working-class Brooklynite. Dickinson is sexy and moody, and able to communicate Frankie’s thoughts and emotions through the blankest of ex-

Beach Rats is focused more on mood than plot, which works to its favor. The f ilm is full of textures, from the shirtless boys and their buff bodies, to the plumes of smoke that are exhaled in a vape shop the characters frequent, to Frankie sitting in the rain at a particularly downbeat time in his life.

H it t ma n a lso c a p t u r e s t he rhythm of Coney Island and the boardwalk’s tactile sensations with noticeable aplomb.

From the noise of arcade games, to the smell of hotdogs, or the feel of the waves when Frankie and his pals jump around in the ocean in their underwear, there is an incredible authenticity. The environments, from Frankie’s claustrophobic house to the seedy motel or dark beach dunes at night where Frankie has his assignations, also inform much about the characters, whose lives are very much on the margins.

The story has Frankie meeting Simone (Madeline Weinstein) under the Coney Island fireworks and taking her home, where she makes it clear she wants to have sex. He doesn’t, and takes an easy way out, saying he is too wasted when she strips off his shorts and sees his limp penis. While she is angry with him—Frankie mocks her, rudely—he later apologizes and takes her out on a real date. Nevertheless, Frankie still cruises for guys online, meeting various men for sex. Despite his macho swagger, Frankie is passive when it comes to gay sex, and active

when it comes to oral sex. Suffice it to say, his relationship with Simone soon suffers as his interests lie elsewhere.

Frankie’s dating Simone is certainly a cover for his queer desires, and yet his reluctance to come out stems from an insecurity that is alluded to throughout the film. While Frankie may come off as being a bit cocky, it’s likely a façade. He is scared and unmoored—he is out of school, without a job or any money, and with no real thoughts about the future. Frankie should have his whole life in front of him, and yet, all he wants to do is get high and escape from who he is.

Beach Rats also features a subplot involving Frankie’s family that reveals some of the pressures in his life. His father (Neal Huff) is dying from cancer, and he frequently steals his dad’s medication to remain comfortably numb. Frankie’s mother Donna (Kate Hodge) may or may not be fully aware of her son’s drug use, but she does express concern for Frankie when he comes home early in the morning, high as a kite. Their relationship has moments of mutual concern, but she starts to ride him harder once she sees how aimless and self-destructive Frankie is.

Hittman’s strength as a filmmaker is her absolutely relentless depiction of Frankie’s life. This is a supreme compliment. She and Dickinson so fully realize the extent of his internal conf lict that it becomes extremely difficult to watch as he makes bad decisions as he feels boxed in a corner by his family, by Simone, by his buddies (who want him to score them drugs), (continued on page 30)

Marcy Moving and Shaking San Francisco Bay Times columnist Dr. Marcy Adelman was selected this month by the Nob Hill Gazette to be honored in their “Movers & Shakers” column. We were delighted to see her sharing the designation with Oakland Raider Marshawn Lynch and other luminaries. nobhillgazette.com

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HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE DE YOUNG AND LEGION OF HONOR

Eustache Le Sueur’s Sleeping Venus In the permanent collection, Gallery 6, at the Legion of Honor The mythological union of Vulcan, ancient god of fire, and Venus, goddess of love, serves here as a pretext for Le Sueur’s primary artistic interest: the female nude.

Skillfully composed with a highly decorative palette of warm red, rich blue and cold white, a sense of drama is created by emphasizing the languorous, erotic form of the sleeping goddess in contrast with the conspiratorial figure of Cupid, and Vulcan, who is seen working at his forge in the background.

The pose of Venus derives from an antique sculpture, Sleeping Ariadne (Vatican, PioClementine Museum), also repeated in paintings by Titian and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. This celebrated composition has been copied and engraved a number of times.

About the Artist Praised as the “French Raphael,” Eustache Le Sueur (1616–1655) was apprenticed as a boy to Simon Vouet, the most influential artist of his era. His training exposed him to the art of antiquity and Italian painting, as well as to the refined taste of the cultural leaders of seventeenth-century Paris.

Combining the talents of an inspired decorative painter with the spirituality of a religious one, Le Seuer’s works are imbued with a rare classical grace and harmony.

Eustache Le Sueur, “Sleeping Venus,” ca. 1638-1639. Oil on canvas, 48 x 46 in. (122 117 cm). Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Mildred Anna Williams Collection, 1977.10

Something Rotten! Presents Thought-Provoking Ode to Musicals, Shakespeare Style The creators of the musical Something Rotten!, now playing at the Orpheum Theatre through September 10, have infused it with multiple layers of meaning tied to the surprising combination of Shakespeare, Renaissance-era history, Broadway musical history, sexual innuendos and current events. Some of its humor stems from the ridiculous arrogance of its Elizabethan characters who think they are ultra modern and progressive. As the opening number goes: So dark and barbaric, So dull and mundane That was so middle ages That was so Charlemagne…

PHOTO CREDIT: JEREMY DANIEL

Here we’ve made advances in the sciences We have the latest gadgets and appliances Our mugs are made of pewter Our houses all are Tudor Decorated with a modern flair See us in our petticoats and farthingales Our trendy beards we trim to look like swallow tails.

Cast of the Something Rotten! National Tour

The comedy tells the story of brothers Nick and Nigel Bottom, two playwrights who are stuck in the shadow of that Renaissance rock star, William Shakespeare. When a soothsayer foretells the next big thing in the-

atre involves singing, dancing and acting at the same time, the Bottom brothers set out to write the world’s very first musical.

Adam Pascal

Cast of the Something Rotten! National Tour

PHOTO CREDIT: JEREMY DANIEL

The pedigree behind the show is almost as impressive as the real Shakespeare. It was directed and choreographed by Tony Award-winner Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon, Aladdin), with music and lyrics

by Grammy Award-winner and Tony Award nominee Wayne Kirkpatrick and Golden Globe Award and Tony Award nominee Karey Kirkpatrick. The book was written by Tony Award nominees Karey Kirkpatrick and best-selling author John O’Farrell.

It helps to be a “musical nerd” to get some of the insider Broadway humor stemming from well-known shows like Chicago, Jesus Christ Superstar and The Music Man, and familiarity with Shakespeare doesn’t hurt. The snappy riffs and melodies from the past hit shows often hold universal appeal, though, and lend richness to Something Rotten!’s upbeat score.

Check out a preview of the show at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vz1TvdzDoQ&feature=youtu.be For tickets and more info: https://www.shnsf.com/Online/default.asp?BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::permalink=some thingrotten&BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::context_id=&gclid=CKbcrtbQ69UCFRq2wAodwVMLIw S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

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PHOTO CREDIT: JOAN MARCUS

It’s a tongue-in-cheek reminder that each generation thinks of itself as the latest and greatest, with time and a different perspective often revealing otherwise.

Core Strengthening Hacks

Take Me Home with You! Nabisco

Easy Fitness “My name is Nabisco, and I’d like to introduce you to my brother, Keebler! I’m the more outgoing one, but we’ve both been told that we’re sweet-ascan-be. We’ve spent the last 10 years living together, and we’re looking for a quiet home that we can share. Keebler and I are total lap cats and we’re hoping to find someone who likes to snuggle as much as we do!”

Keebler

Cinder Ernst “Hack” is a trendy and relatively new term that refers to any trick, shortcut, skill, or novelty method that increases productivity and efficiency, in all walks of life. Today I’m going to give you abdominal strengthening hacks so that you can improve your core strength in surprising and easy ways.

You will learn an ab exercise you can do in the car, one for while you’re in the elevator, and one that is easy to do at your desk.

Nabisco and Keebler are presented to San Francisco Bay Times readers by Dr. Jennifer Scarlett, the SF SPCA’s Co-President. Our thanks also go to Krista Maloney for helping to get the word out about lovable pets like Nabisco and Keebler.

To meet Nabisco and Keebler, as well as other pets seeking their forever homes, please visit: San Francisco SPCA Mission Campus 250 Florida Street San Francisco, CA 94103 415-522-3500 Aside from major holidays, the adoption center is open Mon–Fri: 1–6 pm and Sat– Sun: 10 am–5 pm. Free parking is available for those wishing to adopt! For more info, please visit sfspca.org/adopt

The last three “Easy Fitness” columns were devoted to the ins and outs of abdominal and core strengthening.

We learned that ab crunches are obsolete, pelvic tilts are the bomb, and you can’t spot reduce, so let go of that idea. Check the archives for more details.

Ab Hack#1: Core in the Car Seated pelvic tilts work well in the car. To do them, you sit up tall and

Dr. Jennifer Scarlett and Pup

then press your lower back into the seat. It is important to keep your ribcage lifted throughout the tilt. You can add a butt squeeze to this move for more range of motion and benefit. We call this a Tush Tilt, and you can find additional directions on YouTube. To make this more interesting, try squeezing one butt cheek at a time with your tilt. That one butt cheek with a tilt gives you a diagonal motion that works your abs in a different and useful way. Also, it’s fun, and hard to do without a smile. Hacks are best when they are fun!

Ab Hack #2: Elevate in the Elevator Your time in the elevator can be well spent when you do a standing pelvic tilt. Start with your feet hip distance apart, knees unlocked, and ribcage lifted. Keep your eyes straight ahead, which is good form in an elevator anyway. Now, sustain the standing posture and tuck your butt under with a squeeze, moving your pelvis forward and your navel to your spine. If your back is feeling stiff or sore, then do these gently with a rocking motion. If you feel fine, then secure your posture, hold and tilt and breathe normally until you reach your floor. When you are in the sustained standing tilt, if you lift an arm or both overhead, it creates more challenge. You can try the Elevator Ab Hack right now or anytime you are standing around.

Ab Hack #3: Do It at Your Desk This Ab Hack I learned from the TTapp exercise lady (she is one of the original exercise hackers). It’s so sim-

ple. Just sit up tall and straight in your chair and press your feet into the floor. You will feel the muscles in your mid-section tighten up, as though you are wearing a corset. Hold for a few seconds. Be sure to breathe. When you get the hang of this, you can hold longer. It’s really important to breathe throughout the contraction. The “Do It at Your Desk” Ab Hack is also a great stress buster. If you are aggravated with someone, just press your feet into the f loor instead of losing your temper!

Have fun with these hacks while you improve your core strength.

Cinder Ernst, Medical Exercise Specialist and Life Coach Extraordinaire, helps reluctant exercisers get moving with safe, effective and fun programs. Find out more at http:// cinderernst.com

Project Nunway 8: SINFINITY Photos by Paul Margolis

Sponsored by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and emceed by Sister Roma and VivvyAnneForeverMore on Saturday, August 19, at SomaArts, the 8th annual Project Nunway attracted an appreciative and lively audience once again this year.

Fitness SF Trainer Tip of the Month Sam Carpenter, Fitness SF Fillmore Bent-Over Row: “The Bent-Over Row is a great exercise for strengthening the numerous muscles of your back, including the lats, rhomboids, rear delts, and even biceps. Simply hold the barbell with a pronated or supinated grip, bend your knees slightly, and bring your torso forward by bending at the waist. Keep your back straight until it is almost parallel to the floor. Keep your head up as you bring the barbell in towards your stomach.”

Tore Kelly, Director of Creative & Social Media for Fitness SF, provides monthly tips that he has learned from professional trainers. For more information: fitnesssf.com 24

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The show’s vision for 2017 was: “We imagine a science fiction world filled with the Sisters … designers (will) fulfill their mandate to take these 21st century nuns and populate them throughout space, time and technology.” Congratulations to all on the success of the evening, and we were delighted to see that our own Sister Dana was dressed for the occasion along with many other Sisters, friends and supporters.

Kick Balls Like Bruce Lee

Sports John Chen Picture it: 1978. The home team was down three runs in the bottom of the final inning with two outs. But, the bases were juiced, and before there was a “Karate Kid,” Kung Fu Kid— Bruce Lee’s secret young disciple— strode into the kicker’s box. The 4th grade Montrose Elementary School kickball recess championship was on the line.

The crowd chanted, “Kung Fu Kid, kung fu kick! Kung Fu Kid, kung fu kick!”

With nerves of steel and veins of ice, Bruce Lee’s secret young disciple unleashed a kick so ferocious, so devastating, so Earth-shattering, and so beyond any stretch of imagination that it distorted the very fabric of reality. I was that Kung Fu Kid and my into-the-orbit kick was a walk-off grand slam. I dare you to find proof to the contrary. Who are you to judge me?!

For many of us, kickball was a staple elementary school activity that brought us fond memories. The game was fun and easy to play. You really just needed a big bouncy ball, the bigger the better! Over the years, I’ve always wondered why we never continued to play as adults.

(Left to right) Nathaniel Cleveland, Abbey Wampler and Matt Clark demonstrating their kicking techniques

Recently, a friend of mine who lives in San Diego told me about their LGBT adult kickball league and how hundreds upon hundreds of people enthusiastically play, making it one of the most successful gay sports leagues in San Diego. He enlightened me to a similar league that’s growing rapidly in San Francisco, so I had to check it out!

Enter San Francisco Varsity Gay League ( VGL) K ickball. League Managers Kevin Jones and Cameron De Lay welcomed me with open arms and introduced me to their really fun, really creative and really groovy (going back to the ‘70s) teams and players. With team names such as Daddy Issues, Shockingly Average (my personal favorite), and Sit on My Base, San Francisco Kickball has enough inspirational gay puns, unpredictable slapstick, and comedic rhetoric rivaling many live improv performances. Suff ice to say, there are plenty of kicks, tumbles and laughs to go around.

Coming from an athlet ic background, Cameron pointed out that kickball is the perfect sport for both athletes and non-athletes because it’s the type of fun competition that anyone can play and enjoy. The barrier to entry for kickball is so low that it’s below low.

Nathaniel Cleveland joined the league because kickball is an easier sport to play compared to, say, baseball. Nathaniel admitted that, as a child, he was afraid of a baseball, but a kickball is soft and not scary at all!

Matt Clark echoed a similar sentiment, but his primary reason for playing kickball is, “I have a big butt and big legs, perfectly suited for kickball!” Former competitive softball and soccer player, Abbey Wampler, loves kickball because the sport combines the rules of softball with the kicking technique of soccer.

Under the umbrella of Varsity Gay League, Kevin said kickball—among other VGL sports, such as dodgeball—is great for people who don’t consider themselves as athletes. Players can come out to get some sun, some exercise and to be a part of a fun, safe and cohesive community, where friendships and common bonds are easily forged. Currently there are three kickball seasons: spring, summer and fall. Kevin is expecting nearly 300 players and 16 teams for the upcoming fall season.

Watching kickball games on a sunny, and somewhat warm, summer Sunday afternoon, listening to all the giggles and laughter, and seeing the enthusiasm and excitement, brings back all of those great Bruce Lee kick memories and a tremendous sense of nostalgia. I can still hear the crowd chanting, “Kung Fu Kid, kung fu kick!”

OURTOWNSF NONPROFIT EXPO Saturday, October 14, 2017 12:30 pm - 4:30 PM Eureka Valley Recreation Center 100 Collingwood St. at 18th

For more information on VGL kickbal l, v isit varsit ygayleag ue.com and look for San Francisco under “leagues.”

Kevin Jones ready to punish the ball!

John Chen, a UCLA alumnus and an avid sports fan, has competed as well as coached tennis, volleyball, softball and football teams.

2017 San Francisco VGL Kickball Summer League

Largest LGBTQ+ Nonprofit Expo Ever in San Francisco S AN F R ANC IS C O BAY T IM ES

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Speaking to Your Soul ARIES (March 21–April 19) It’s time for bold, non-conforming expression of self. Hold nothing back. You need more pleasure in your life to counter the fear you carry.

TAURUS (April 20–May 20) There could be a big reveal in your family. You might have an important realization about your own needs and about what home means to you. You could finally let go of a family myth or pattern that doesn’t serve you.

Astrology Elisa Quinzi To answer the call of the hero’s journey, we must suspect we are the hero. Now is the time to completely kick doubt to the curb and access our individual super powers. By being our biggest fan and wholeheartedly making self-love our goal, we learn to trust our inner guidance, align with the natural intelligence of the universe, and embark on helping to save the world.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Your mind is ready to take an evolutionary leap. The content of your thoughts is limiting you. Acknowledge that your biases keep your world too small, and choose to focus your curiosity on the places you think you might not be ready to go.

CANCER ( June 21–July 22) It’s time to take a risk on your own behalf. Your comfort zone does not nourish your self-esteem, nor does materialism. Apply effort toward your self-development. Real security is found within.

LEO ( July 23–August 22) Events are unfolding to urge you to love and believe in yourself at a level you haven’t yet. All roadblocks fall away and you begin a new cycle of action based on true power that emerges from realization of your magnificence. Settle for nothing less than your full radiance.

VIRGO (August 23–Sept. 22) A cycle has ended and you’re letting go. That which is greater will then come in to fill up the empty space. A portal has opened through which you have access to spiritu-

al realization. Pay attention to your dreams. Some solitude will help you catch the messages.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) The clouds part and a vision appears for your future. Dream big. Strategize and take steps toward your more authentic, joyful life. Find your tribe who will support you.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Pay attention to significant insights about your career path.

Make necessary course corrections to better align your mission with your newly-empowered sense of self.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22–Dec. 21) If ever your travels would lead you to a life-altering perspective, it’s now. Take a leap of faith as your mind is flooded with new ideas. Your paradigm is about to shift.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22–Jan.19) You have a huge opportunity for a psychological leap forward. Significant material surfaces from within you for healing and release. Courageously expose your deep self.

AQUARIUS ( Jan. 20–Feb. 18) Your ideals about partnership and close friendships come up for air. Risk giving voice to them. There is room for more love and more joy. Your heart is expanding.

PISCES (Feb. 19–March 20) Pisces has spiritual gifts to give the world, but there’s work to be done right now to bring them into form. Loving yourself more means taking the necessary actions to improve the health of your body, mind, emotions, and spirit. The world needs you, and you will feel better in the world.

Elisa has been enjoying the art of astrological counseling since earning professional certification many years ago. In addition to astrological knowledge, she brings a high degree of conscious presence to her work, and creates a safe, comfortable atmosphere for sessions to unfold organically. Contact her at futureselfnow@gmail.com or 818-530-3366 or visit www.ElisaQuinzi.com

As Heard on the Street . . . What is your bucket list goal for the next year?

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compiled by Rink

Kay Hoskins

Fred Teti

Marie Rodin

Kevin Bard

Denise D’Anne

“To find a good home for 2-yearold sweet adoptee, Victoria, a wheelie, through the Family Dog Rescue: ilovefamilydog.org”

“Visit Tokyo and Barcelona”

“To find the sweetest peach in the world”

“To be in the next ‘When We Rise’ series”

“Promoting single payer health care”

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Professional Services

LAW OFFICES OF MILES & TORRES Estate Planning 1393 Noe Street, San Francisco, CA 94131 (415) 308-2307 www.milestorreslaw.com

PHOTO BY SANDY MORRIS

NewPer specti ves Center for Counseling

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Calendar of Upcoming Events sfbaytimes.com Compiled by Blake Dillon

24 : Thursday

25 : Friday

Motion NightLife @ California Academy of Sciences, Golden Gate Park, 55 Music Concourse Drive.

The weekly NightLife event invites you to explore the science and beauty of motion in the natural world and to dance the night away.

6-10pm. calacademy.org

Hair in Concert @ Feinstein’s at Hotel at Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason Street.Young Bay Area artists present the tale of hippies rebelling against the Vietnam War through the familiar songs and stories of the enduring musical. Also on August 26. feinsteinsatthenikko.com

LGBT San Francisco – Daniel Nicoletta Photography Slide Talk and Book Signing @ SF Public Library, Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin Street (6pm) and After Party @ Veteran’s Building, Green Room, 401 Van Ness Avenue, 2nd Floor. sfpl.org Forever’s Gonna Start Tonight Screening @ Tenderloin Museum, 398 Eddy Street. Produced by Kim Klausner and Susan Stryker, the documentary is a tribute to legendary drag performer Vicki Marlane. 7pm. tenderloinmuseum.org Blues Is A Woman @ Custom Make Theatre, 533 Sutter Street.

Pamela Rose and her band, including Tammy Hall, Daria Johnson, Ruth Davies, Kristen Strom, Shaunna Hall and Pat Wilder present a multimedia theatrical concert on the history of American women blues artists. Thursdays-Sundays through August 27. custommake.org

MAX Happy Hour and Games @ Brewcade, 2200 Market Street. A social mixer at San Francisco’s first arcade/beer bar.

6-8pm. maxsf.org Drag Queens On Ice: Bedtime Stories @ Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th Street. A live skating spectacular with a full cast of professional figure skaters, dancers and singers; produced by Carnal Productions and benefitting Queercon. 6:30pm. Also on August 26. queensonice.com Queerly Tèhuäntin | Cuir Us Exhibit @ Galeria de la Raza, 2857 24th Street. A celebration of the new exhibit (August 11-October 7) about the ongoing struggle to be Mixican or Chicanx and queer or “cuir” in the sense of nonconventional sexualities and non-normative gender expressions.

6:30-9:30pm. galeriadelaraza.org

26 : Saturday San Francisco Equality Rally @ Civic Center. Hosted by the

Women’s March San Francisco.

10am-12pm. womensmarchbayarea.org Fillmore Shop Out Day @ Fillmore Merchants Association Shops on Fillmore Street. The second annual Shop Out Day benefits the SF LGBT Center with 10% of sales going to help fund critical services. sfcenter.org Transgender & Gender Queer Committee Meeting @ Oakland LGBTQ Community Center, 3207 Lakeshore Avenue, Oakland. The first meeting of the new Oakland Center’s committee to plan its initial needs assessment.

3pm. oaklandlgbtcenter.org 3rd Annual Proud of My Family Weekend @ Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, 180 Woz Way, San Jose. Featuring awardwinning artist Ramekon O’Arwisters and the Rainbow Women’s Chorus on Saturday and the Rainbow Dance Party on Sunday. 10am-5pm Saturday/12-5pm Sunday. cdm.org Silicon Valley Pride Night Festival @ Cesar Chavez Park, 1 Paseo De San Antonio, San Jose. In conjunction with the Parade and Festival on Sunday, August 27.

6-11pm. svpride.com Boy George @ SAP Center, 525 W. Santa Clara Street, San Jose.

IHeart80’s Birthday Bash features Boy George and other special guests. 7:30pm. sapcenter.com Love or Confusion: Jimi Hendrix in 1967 @ Museum of the African Diaspora, 685 Mission Street. Composed of photographs of the artist in 1967 celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love. Last day is August 27. moadsf.org

27 : Sunday Rescheduled to September 10 - Azucar con Ache Farewell Concert @ Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse, 2020 Addison Street, Berkeley. The final show by the Bay Area’s popular women’s jazz/salsa band featuring vocals by Maria Cora. 7-10pm. freightandsalvage.org Silicon Valley Pride & Parade & Festival @ Market Street (Parade) and Cesar Chavez Park (Festival), 1 Paseo De San Antonio.

Silicon Valley Pride 17 continues the annual tradition in the South Peninsula area. 10am Parade/12-6pm Festival. svpride.com Living Peach Wall Ceremony with Holly Near@ Sebastopol Town Center. Activist Near is one of five whose names will be added to the Wall. 11am-12pm. sebastopollivingpeacewall.com Danny Nicoletta presents LGBT San Francisco Book 28

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Readings @ Dog Eared Books Castro, 489 Castro Street. An informal artist’s talk and book signing with photographer Daniel Nicoletta, who is best known for his images of his friend Harvey Milk. 2pm. dogearedbooks.com The Mathematics of Love @ Brava Theater Center, 2781 24th Street. The newest play from awardwinning Chicana writer, playwright and educator Cherrie Moraga, spanning five centuries of indigenous history. 3pm. brava.org Molly’s SRS Benefit with Connie Champagne, The Sparkling Wynettes, Kitten On The Keys and More @ Ivy Room, 860 San Pablo Avenue, Albany. 4pm. ivyroom.com Avotcja & Modúpue Concert @ Piedmont Piano Company, 1728 San Pablo Avenue, Oakland. The award-winning jazz group will be joined by numerous musicians for an evening of sharing the vibe. 4pm. piedmontpiano.com Rain Pryor in Fried Chicken & Latkes @ Levy Family Campus, 14855 Oka Road, Los Gatos.

Richard Pryor’s daughter brings her show about growing up Jewish and black in Beverly Hills. 7:30pm. sjmag.org Comedy Fundraiser with Sampson McCormick @ Oakland LLGBTQ Center, 3207 Lakeshore Avenue. Sampson brings his lighthearted style of comedy to a benefit for the new LGBTQ Center in Oakland. 8-9pm. oaklandlgbtqcenter.org Todd Gray: My Life in the Bush with MJ & Iggy @ Museum of the African Diaspora, 685 Mission Street. Michael Jackson’s personal photographer presents archival images from the 1980s. Wednesday-Sunday through August 27. moadsf.org

28: Monday Strut Book Club Reads Gods and Monsters @ Strut, Second Floor, 470 Castro Street. The final evening on the August book selection with some wine and great conversation about literature. 7:30-9pm. strutsf.org Screening of Reel in the Closet @ Roxie Theater, 3117 16th Street. A One Night Only Benefitting the GLBT Historical Society’s film and video collections, the screening presents a documentary featuring home movies dating back to the 1930s. 7pm. roxie.com Hair: An Homage to the Summer of Love Exhibit @ McLaren Lodge, 501 Stanyan Street.

Curated by Harvey Milk Photography Center’s Dave Christensen, the exhibit celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the

Broadway play. Monday-Friday, 9am5pm. harveymilkphotocenter.org Picturing Kinship: Portraits of Our Community Exhibit @ GLBT History Museum, 4127 18th Street, Photos and paintings by artist Lenore Chinn featuring her work depicting individuals who have contributed to the diversity of the SF cultural landscape. 11am-6pm Monday-Saturday; 12noon-6pm Sunday through September 18. glbthistory.org

29: Tuesday Velvet Rage Book Club @ Strut, 470 Castro Street. The weekly Tuesday book club of the SF AIDS Foundation’s Stonewall Project, with facilitators Wade Smith and Christopher Zepeda, exploring the complexity of gay identity and culture, HIV, substance use, healing relationship and more. 4-5:30pm. strutsf.org Nightly Illuminated Scenes in Golden Gate Park Inspired

by Rare Tropical Flowers @ Conservatory of Flowers, 100 JF Kennedy Drive. A public display of a light art installation every night through October at approximately 9:15pm. conservatoryofflowers.org La Cage Aux Folles @ SF Playhouse, 450 Post Street. A musical revival by Harvey Fierstein and Jerry Herman of the Tony Awardwinning musical celebrating love, romance and being true to who you really are. Tuesdays-Sundays through September 16. sfplayhouse.org

30: Wednesday Castro Farmers’ Market @ Noe & Market Streets. On-going outdoor market in the Castro featuring fresh and organic foods from local vendors. 4pm-8pm, every Wednesday through Nov. 4-8pm. pcfma.org Fifty Years After the Summer of Love with Peter Hartlaub and Bill Van Niekerken @ San Francisco Chronicle, 901 Mission Street. The Chronicle’s pop culture critic and librarian share stories and photo treasures form the paper’s archive in a multimedia exhibit. 6-8pm. sfchronicle.com Flower Power Exhibit @ Asian Art Museum, 200 Larkin Street.

Continuing through October 1.

With the role of flowers as symbols of peace during the Summer of Love, the exhibit looks at flowers in Asian art through the symbolism of the lotus, plum blossom, cherry blossum, chrysanthemum, tulip and rose. asianart.org

31: Thursday Dee’s Keys Piano Bar @ Beaux, 2344 Market Street. Weekly

happy hour live piano bar welcoming Unleash! Dance Party @ Ivy singers and featuring Dr. Dee Spencer Room, 860 San Pablo Avenue, Albany. at the Piano. 4-8pm. beauxsf.com Mingle and dance in support of DJ Page Hodel at the lesbian-owned bar.

Queer Heritage Mixer at the ivyroom.com Historic Gangway @ The Gangway, 841 Larkin Street. The GLBT Historical Society’s Historic Places Working Group hosts its inaugural happy hour at the 50-year-old bar in “The Polk.” 5:30-7:30pm. glbthistory.org

San Francisco Mime Troupe’s Walls @ Dolores Park, 19th & Dolores Streets. The acclaimed troupe presents their new show, addressing the question, “How can a nation of immigrants declare war on NightLife Spotlight: August @ immigration? ”on various dates throughout the Bay Area through California Academy of Sciences, September 10. 2pm. sfmt.org Golden Gate Park, 55 Music Concourse Drive. The weekly Sunday’s A Drag @ The Starlight NightLife event presents an evening Room, Powell Street. Hosted by featuring “Adult Chemistry” with Donna Sachet, the event features a Drake’s Brewing Company and stobrunch and a troupe of entertainers ries from the field with described as “The Greatest Drag Dr. Jason G. Goldman. 6-10pm.

Show in San Francisco.” Two shows calacademy.org every Sunday at 11am and 2pm.

LGBTQ Inclusive Kindergarten & Preschool Fair 2017 @ San Francisco Day School Auditorium, 350 Masonic Avenue. Speakers forum and information tables for families seeking to navigate the public and private school systems with Our Family Coalition as co-sponsor. 6-8pm. ourfamily.org HRC San Francisco Bay Area Federal Club Mixer @ Resolute, 678 Geary Street. Drinks, aps and networking plus an update on HRC’s work nationally. 6-9pm. jbalbers@gmail.com

starlightroomsf.com

4: Monday California Revels Antler Dance @ Joaquin Miller Park, Pinewood Picnic Area, Joaquin Miller Road. Oakland. The annual picnic and public performance of the classic Abbots Bromley Horn Dance dating to the 11th Century as a folk tradition. 11am picnic, 1-3pm performance. californiarevels.org

The Seen: What You Would Have Seen on Haight Street in 1967 @ SF Public Library Park Branch, 1833 Page Street. An exhibit of then and now photos providing a Disney’s Beauty & the Beast @ walk down memory lane of the Woodminster Amphitheater, Joaquin Haight-Ashbury scene from 1967.

Miller Park, Joaquin Miller Road at Through December 7. sfpl.org upper Sanborn Drive, Oakland.

Woodminister’s Summer Music series Something Rotten! @ SHN Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market concludes with their production of Street. The story of Nick and Nigel the stage adaptation of the beloved Disney movie. Also on selected dates Bottom struggling for recognition against the absurdly popular William through September 10. 8pm woodShakespeare. Multiple dates through minster.com September 10.

Love’s Labour’s Lost @ Forest orpheumtheatersanfrancsico.org Meadows Amphitheater, Dominican University of California, 890 Belle Avenue, San Rafael. Marin Shakespeare Company’s outdoor Castro Rotary Club Meeting Shakespeare festival concludes its @ The Sausage Factory, 517 Castro 28th season with Shakespeare’s play plus picnic options and pre and post- Street. The organization’s monthly show conversations. Sept. 1, 2 and 3. meeting for building goodwill & friendships, exchanging ideas and takmarinshakespeare.org ing action to make a difference.

Older & Out @ North Berkeley h2opendoors. portal.clubrunner.

Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Avenue, ca/13807 Berkeley. Group discussions on topics 10th Annual Fabulosa such as dating, loss of friends, going back in the closet to survive, dealing “Feminist in Nature” @ Big Table Ranch near Yosemite. The with exes and children, aging and annual feminist camping party held in loneliness and Alameda County services. Also on Fridays at 3:15pm. Info: a private location presenting a varianne@pacificcenter.org or 510-548- ety of performers, workshops and swimming organized by the Fabulosa 8283 ext 126 collective. fabulosa.org

1: Friday

5: Tuesday

Laurel Bookstore Reading @ Laurel Books, 1423 Broadway, Oakland. Genny Lim, Kitty Tsui, Nellie Wong and Canyon Sam reunite to continue their decadeslong fight against racism, domestic violence, class and sexual oppression.

7pm. laurelbooks.com First Tuesday - Grab ‘em by the Songs Performing Arts First Tuesdays @ The Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph Ave, Oakland. The monthly songwriter series featuring Bay Area songwriters performing songs in the round presents event founder Kim Lembo, Mya Byrne, Kress Cole and Lauren Hulbert. 7:30-10pm. grabembythesongs.com Degas, Impressionism, and the Paris Millinery Trade @ Legion of Honor, Lincoln Park, 100 34th Avenue. Featuring more than forty Impressionist paintings and pastels, including key works by Degas, as well as Renoir, Manet, Cassatt and Loulouse-Lautrec, in addition to a display of forty examples of period hats. Continues through September 24. 9:30am-5:15pm. legionof honor. famsf.org Summer of Love Exhibit @ ArtHaus, 411 Brannan Street. A 50th Anniversary celebration exhibit of multiple media works curated by James Bacchi and Annette Schutz featuring gallery artists. TuesdaysSaturdays thru September 30. arthaus-sf.com

6: Wednesday Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club’s 41st Annual Gala @ Gray Area Art + Technology, 2665 Mission Street.

An annual dinner plus evening of queer politics and awards ceremony. milkclub.org Inequality and Broken Dreams in the Bay Area @ East Bay Community Foundation, 353 Frank H Ogawa Plaza, Oakland.

Horizons Foundation presents a panel discussion on the impact of income equality in the Bay Area and how to address it. 7-8pm. horizonsfoundation.org Tapata Trivia Round UP! @ Wild Side West, 424 Courtland Avenue. Kit Tapata hosts the weekly on Wednesdays trivia competition mixed with music and live improv at the popular Bernal Heights location.

7-9pm. tapatatwins.com

2: Saturday Julie Mehretu Art Exhibit @ San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr Atrium, Floor 1, 151 Third Street. The debut of Mehretu’s site-specific diptych’s two vast canvasses commissioned through a new program of SFMOMA. Artist Talk on Sept 14 at 6:30pm. exhibitsfmoma.org Family dog Rescue – Castro @ 18th and Castro. Weekly mobile adoption event on Saturdays. wearefamilydog.com * Go Bang! Celebrates Sylvester! @ The Stud, 399 9th Street. With Jim Hopkins and Paul Goodyear, the 6th annual celebration of Sylvester’s birthday. 9pm-3am. studsf.com

3: Sunday Live in the Castro! Wolfie T. Wolf’s Puppet Party @ Jane Warner Plaza, 17th and Castro. The Castro Business District’s ongoing series of live events continues. 1-2pm.

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A Fond Farewell for Empress Rémy Martin

Photos by Rink

An Imperial State Funeral was held at St Francis Lutheran Church on August 19 in memory of Absolute Empress XIX de San Francisco, Rémy Martin (Lawrence Kim), who passed away on July 31. Following the Procession of Imperial Monarchs, the program’s presentations included a reading by all attending of Psalm 23, and reflections on the life of Empress Rémy by Queen Mother of the Americas Nicole the Great and Emperor XXVIII John Carrillo. Vocal performances were by Empress XXXIV Sheba and Empress XLII Chika. The Lord’s Prayer was said by all attending in both English and Hawaiian. A memorial wake was also held at Churchill Bar with attendees sharing memories and champagne toasts.

Empress Remy Martin, 2011

NEWS (continued from page 3)

GAFFNEY (continued from page 4)

ply tweet that they oppose hatred and bigotry—they must denounce Donald Trump. House Democrats are introducing a resolution to censure Donald Trump for his defense of the white supremacist mob in Charlottesville. According to Tom Perez, Democratic National Committee Chair, the Republicans in Congress have a choice: they can declare their support for our American values, or they can stand with the leader of their party who appears to have embraced white supremacists and given voice to their cause. democrats.org

the director of InterfaithFamily Bay Area where, according to her website, she helped “interfaith couples navigate bringing two backgrounds into one home.” Prior to that, she was the Rabbi and Senior Jewish Educator at Hillel at Stanford for eleven years. Many Sha’ar Zahav members know her from her work as a Rabbi in Residence at Camp Tawonga, and from her presentations to Introduction to Judaism classes. She was an Assistant Rabbi at The Jewish Center of Princeton, NJ, a Conservative Egalitarian synagogue, and a Rabbinic Intern at Congregation Beth Simchat Torah, New York’s LGBT synagogue. shaarzahav.org

Sha’ar Zahav Welcomes New Rabbi Mychal Copeland

Momentum Builds for SB 384 ‘Nightlife’ Bill

At a special congregational meeting, Sha’ar Zahav members voted to approve the recommendation of the search committee and Va’ad to hire Rabbi Mychal Copeland as their new “settled” rabbi. Rabbi Copeland’s past position was

California legislators and Los Angeles nightlife supporters joined together in the Broadway Theater District in Downtown Los Angeles calling for the

passage of a bill authored by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) to allow communities to expand nightlife in California. Senator Wiener was joined by co-authors Assemblymember Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) and Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills) and Los Angeles nightlife and hospitality leaders, who spoke about the positive economic and cultural benefits of Senate Bill 384. SB 384 allows—but does not require—local communities to extend alcohol service to as late as 4 am. The LOCAL Act, which stands for Let Our Communities Adjust Late Night, applies to bars, nightclubs, and restaurants, but not to liquor stores. SB 384 is pending i n t he A s sembly A ppropr i at ion s Committee, which is the last stop for the bill before being considered by the full Assembly. In May, the LOCAL Act passed the Senate with a bipartisan super-majority vote of 27–9. sen.ca.gov

ROSTOW (continued from page 9) from the Post. Contacted by the newspaper, Prime Rib general manager said he would be investigating and reaching out to the two men. “I cannot believe that a waiter would have ever said anything like that,” MacLeod said. “There’s no way we would condone anything remotely like this.”

pictures. Their classmates all had quotations, and indeed Joey and Thomas had written quotes as well.

“Of course, I dress well, I didn’t spend all that time in the closet for nothing,” wrote Joey. As for Thomas, he had written: “If Harry Potter taught us anything, it’s that no one deserves to live in the closet.”

Gage and McKinnon said they don’t plan to return to the eatery, but I’m guessing they might have a few free meals coming their way.

Apparently, someone somewhere decided that the comments might alarm someone somewhere. In a statement signed by district Superintendent Bill Nicely, the school said its practice is to err on the side of caution.

Meanwhile, Joey Slivinski and Thomas Swartz, two openly gay seniors at Kearney High in Missouri, were stunned to find blank spaces under their yearbook

“Doing so in this case had the unintentional consequence of offending the very students the practice was designed to protect. We sincerely apologize to those students … . We acknowledge our mistake and will use it as a learning opportunity to improve in the future.”

Finally, google “lesbian bourbon,” and I believe you’ll learn all you need to know about Hollis Bulleit, the First Lady of Bourbon, who has been shunned by her own distillery. Due to space constraints, I will not rehash an unfortunate bourbon incident from my teen years that put me off all whiskey for an entire lifetime. arostow@aol.com

question that gives us the most hope and inspiration—that together, LGBT people in Asia and America are moving forward on the ongoing journey from “naughty” to “nice” … even nicer than nice!

Stuart Gaffney and his husband John Lewis, together for over three decades, were plaintiffs in the California case for equal marriage rights decided by the California Supreme Court in 2008. Their leadership in the nationwide grassroots organization Marriage Equality USA contributed in 2015 to making same-sex marriage legal nationwide.

TING (continued from page 6) Despite this progress, vehicle sales have never reached a breakthrough level. Last year, according to the California New Car Dealers Association, Californians bought over 2 million new cars, but only about 74,000 electric cars. This is why we need AB 1184.

A coalition of clean energy, environmental, and social justice organizations has rallied around the bill. If you would like to help us pass this bill this year, please register your support on our website at www. assembly.ca.gov/ting Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) represents the 19th Assembly District, which includes the Westside of San Francisco along with the communities of Broadmoor, Colma, Daly City, and parts of South San Francisco.

KRAMER (continued from page 22) and by his same-sex assignations. Viewers will feel for Frankie, who is sympathetic because his despair is so transparent. When he does have a breakdown of sorts on a party boat one night, the sequence of events is so intense that viewers, like Frankie, will be craving relief.

Such is the unshakable power of Hittman’s film and Dickinson’s unforgettable performance. The realism of the atmosphere and the rawness of the emotions make Beach Rats feel fresh and exciting. Don’t miss it. © 2017 Gary M. Kramer Gary M. Kramer is the author of “Independent Queer Cinema: Reviews and Interviews,” and the co-editor of “Directory of World Cinema: Argentina.” Follow him on Twitter @garymkramer

SISTER DANA (continued from page 14) fashion show at SOMArts. Project Nunway featured fashion designers paired up with Sisters to create runway looks using recycled and innovative materials. This year’s theme was “SINFINITY ”, a scifi extravaganza celebrating fashion, diversity, and the Arts in a true San Franciscan way. Special guest judges—Reigning Emperor Nic Hunter; Reigning Empress Mercedes Munro; Alex U. Inn; Queen Dilly Dally; and Francisco Rangela and Stefany Gallante of El/La Para Trans Latinas—chose the winning design with the help of the audience. The winner was Sister Freda Desire by designer Kitty Muentzel. Sister Dana boldly worked the catwalk in a divine creation by Bridget McCracken of Trash Mash-Up. We lost, but we won in fun! The event also featured performances by local San Francisco artists, such as king of Bear-lesque, Devyl Mae Kare; Landa Lakes lip-synching an emotional “I’m Only Human;” totes gorge singing by Kat Robichaud; and fascinating dance numbers by Lady Satan; Rasa Vitalia; Stela Furtado; and Mini Minerva. The show was emceed by 30

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Sister Hera Sees Candy; Sister Roma, and VivvyAnne ForeverMORE. This year’s beneficiary was EL/LA PARA TRANSLATINAS, an organization for transgender Latinas that works to build collective vision and action to promote survival and improve the quality of life of transgender people in the San Francisco Bay Area. To Sinfinity … and beyond!

SISTER DANA SEZ, “IF YOU’RE NOT HUNKERED DOWN IN YOUR FALLOUT SHELTER HIDING FROM IMMINENT NUCLEAR ATTACK, CHECK OUT THESE FUN EVENTS ABOVE GROUND!” “GAPA Runway 29: SLAYYY-vatar” The Legend of GAPA is Saturday, August 26, 7 pm at Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Avenue. Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, there was harmony throughout the Gay Asian Pacific Alliance community. Then, everything was trumped!

Only the Slayyyvatar can restore the unity within GAPA and save the world. Join GAPA for San Francisco’s most popular annual pageant that celebrates the gaysian commuAU GU ST 2 4 , 2 0 1 7

nity—where candidates will vie to be crowned Mister and Miss GAPA, and where the new Slayyyvatar shall fabulously re-emerge. gapafoundation.org Adultery, blackmail, confessions, amnesia, nervous breakdowns, bigamy, adoptions, divorce, kidnapped babies, evil twins, seduction, catfights & shoulder pads! “BITCH SLAP” is D’Arcy Drollinger’s send-up of the 80’s television soap opera and telenovela in this high-camp exploration of melodrama. With nods to Dynasty, Days of Our Lives, María la del Barrio, Jackie Collins and more, Bitch Slap centers around Diana Midnight, and her fashion empire, as she struggles to maintain power and desperately keep control of her prize possession … the patent for shoulder pads.

The stars of this hilarity are Manuel Caneri, Leigh Crow, D’arcy Drollinger, Crissy Fields, Nancy French, Steven Lemay, Sergio Lobito, Matthew Martin, Adam Roy, Katya SmirnoffSkyy, and Jef Valentine. Now through September 9, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at the Oasis, 298

11th Street. 21 and over: it’s also a bar, ya know. sfoasis.com

Tickets: roxie.com/ai1ec_event/reelcloset-stu-maddux-joseph-applebaum

A special showing of “REEL IN THE CLOSET” is on Thursday, August 31, 7 pm at the Roxie Theater, 3117 16th Street. It will benefit preservation of the film and video collections of the GLBT HISTORICAL SOCIETY. The feature-length documentary reveals LGBTQ life through rarely seen home movies dating back to the 1930s, drawing on extensive footage from the Historical Society and from other archives around the world.

The screening will offer a new cut of Reel in the Closet with added historical material providing glimpses of 20thcentury life as it was experienced, viewed, and recorded by members of the LGBTQ community. Filmmakers Stu Maddux and Joseph Applebaum will be on hand to introduce the film and respond to questions, plus they›ll show a bonus episode of their new web series, Queer Ghost Hunters. General admission is $15; admission for GLBT Historical Society members is $12.50. Advance tickets are available for purchase online via the Roxie Theater website.

HARVEY MILK LGBT DEMOCRATIC CLUB presents the 41ST ANNUAL DINNER & GAYLA on Wednesday, September 6, 6:30 to 9:30 pm, Gray Area/Grand Theater, 2665 Mission Street to celebrate 41 years of queer progressive politics and activism in San Francisco. Their focus includes: resistance against the current regime; police accountability, reform and transparency; fighting for Trans lives; solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement; preserving our Sanctuary city; housing affordability; addressing the homelessness crisis; fighting for economic, social, and environmental justice; and working with progressive elected officials to ensure our voices are heard and counted. milkclub.org Sister Dana sez, “We must tell T-rump and his Repugnicans: Stop advancing a hate-filled agenda. White supremacy? Racism? Hell no! Stand against the forces of exclusion and exploitation. Help us build a country where justice and equality prevail!”