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RuPaul is in the Hall
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Smuin Ballet
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Serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities since 1971
Gay man confirmed as 9th Circuit judge by Lisa Keen
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he Senate voted 53-40 Tuesday afternoon to confirm a gay man to the nation’s largest federal appeals court. Patrick Bumatay’s confirmation December 10 to the 9th Courtesy Department of Justice U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals makes him Patrick Bumatay the second openly was confirmed as gay man to be ap- a judge to the 9th pointed to a fed- U.S. Circuit Court eral appeals bench of Appeals. seat. The first was Todd Hughes, appointed by President Barack Obama to the U.S. Circuit Court for the Federal Circuit and confirmed by the Senate in 2013 by a 98-0 vote. Charles Moran, managing director of the national Log Cabin Republicans, said the group was “heartened” by Bumatay’s confirmation, adding that it makes him “the highestranking LGBT jurist in the nation.” “He is an accomplished prosecutor with solid experience, and we’re thankful to President Trump for pushing forward with Patrick’s nomination and the Senate confirming him,” said Moran. “I know all Americans will welcome Patrick’s arrival on the 9th Circuit, bringing some sanity back to the circuit most known for being out of the mainstream.” The vote on Bumatay, 41, was along strict party lines, with 53 Republicans voting for confirmation, 40 Democrats and independents voting against, and seven senators not voting. The Senate’s two out members – lesbian Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) and bi woman Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) – voted against confirmation. The sprawling 9th Circuit is the nation’s largest federal appeals court, with 29 seats and jurisdiction over 20% of the nation’s population, covering California and eight western states. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which has 12 judges, deals specifically with disputes involving international trade, government contracts, and federal personnel, among other things. Bumatay’s nomination was opposed by California’s two Democratic senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris. During Bumatay’s October 31 confirmation hearing, Feinstein said she appreciated the diversity Bumatay would bring to the bench but that she did not think he has the experience necessary for the job. Feinstein voted against confirmation; Harris was not present for the vote. Bumatay worked in the White House Office of Legal Counsel under President George W. Bush and has worked as a federal prosecutor in San Diego since 2012. He graduated from Yale University and Harvard Law School. Civil rights groups were opposed to Bumatay. Lena Zwarensteyn, fair courts campaign director at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said Bumatay’s confirmation is part of the president’s “shameless effort to reshape the 9th Circuit.” “The confirmed nominee’s record on civil rights is beyond troubling,” Zwarensteyn said in a statement. “He has served as a political operative in the Trump administration and has pushed a far-right agenda. For example, Bumatay played a central role in reinstating policies that perpetuate the mass incarceration of communities of color. He also played a key role in vouching for the nominations of anticivil rights nominees Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh during their Supreme Court confirmation fights.” See page 9 >>
Vol. 49 • No. 50 • December 12-18, 2019
Harassment, threats lead to restraining orders in Castro Castro Community on Patrol officers Brian Hill, left, and Greg Carey walk about the Castro neighborhood on a recent Friday night.
by John Ferrannini
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s the holiday season brings shoppers to the Castro, residents and merchants are weary of incidents of harassment of women – employees and customers – despite the fact that in at least two cases, stay-away orders have been issued to two men, according to copies of the orders obtained by the Bay Area Reporter, and court records.
Masood Samereie, a straight ally who is president of the Castro Merchants business association, said that he has not heard of the two individuals who are the subjects of the orders harassing anyone since the summer. “We are working closely with Supervisor [Rafael] Mandelman’s office and the Mission Station police captain (on safety), and, as a matter of fact, got additional foot patrol officers,” Samereie said. There will be extra officers “in the area
of Market Street between Castro Street and 19th Street” between 6 a.m. and 1 a.m., as well as around Jane Warner Plaza and the Eureka Valley/Harvey Milk Memorial Library through the holidays, according to spokesmen from the San Francisco Police Department. Ronald Mitchell, 44, was ordered by a San Francisco judge May 8 to stay at least 50 yards away from Orphan Andy’s restaurant at 3991 See page 10 >> Rick Gerharter
5 seats on Castro cultural district board up for election by John Ferrannini
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welve people are running for the first five seats on the inaugural advisory board of the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District. The election takes place Saturday, December 14, according to a news release from the district. Anyone who shows up can vote. Jesse Oliver Sanford, one of the candidates who is also current governance chair for the district, said the voting criteria were “intentional.” “The Castro is not just a neighborhood but a global symbol of the LGBTQ community, and we wanted to recognize and encourage all the various commitments different folks have to it, particularly in the face of the housing crisis,” Sanford wrote in an email. Subsequent elections will be held in the coming months for the remaining 10 seats on the advisory board, according to Sanford. “If someone loses they will be able to run again,” Sanford, a gay man who lives in the Castro, said in a phone interview with the Bay Area Reporter. “The reason we are doing three elections – it was [LGBT Community Center executive director] Rebecca [Rolfe’s] idea – is that picking everyone in a single meeting can throw the direction of the organization.” Rolfe did not respond to a request for comment. Sanford said that the second election is expected to be held in January or February, and that there will be a public notice of 30 days before it occurs. Shaun Haines, a gay black man who is part of the cultural district’s working group, which currently oversees the district’s governance, is also running for the board. He said that one reason the elections are being staggered is to ensure that “we will have the diversity, equity, and inclusion required for us to do a good job.” Elizabeth Lanyon, a lesbian who has been involved with the cultural district for five months, said that she is running for the advisory board to make sure different communities are part of it. “My main goal with running for the cultural district is to ensure diversity is represented, that lesbians have a voice in the process and a seat at the table,” Lanyon wrote in an email to the B.A.R. “We live and work in the Castro, some of us own businesses and homes in the Castro. “It’s important for the leadership of the cul-
Courtesy Castro LGBTQ Cultural District/Rick Gerharter (Haines)
Shaun Haines, left, Jesse Oliver Sanford, and Elizabeth Lanyon are three of the 12 candidates vying for seats on the inaugural advisory board of the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District.
tural district to be representative of the people who contribute to the vibrant neighborhood fabric of the Castro,” she added.
Third LGBTQ district in SF
The Castro cultural district is the third cultural district that seeks to define locations in San Francisco that have a special significance for the LGBTQ community. The first was the Compton’s Transgender Cultural District – named after Compton’s Cafeteria, a diner at Turk and Taylor streets that closed in 1972 where transgender people rebelled against police harassment in 1966 – three years before the Stonewall riots. The second was the Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District, which was established in the South of Market neighborhood that’s synonymous with leather, bondage, and SM culture and which includes storied bars such as the Eagle, the Stud, and Powerhouse. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors gave final approval to the Castro cultural district in July. Sanford said that by designating certain neighborhoods as cultural districts, the city is trying to help the diverse neighborhoods that San Francisco is known for retain their individual characters in the face of gentrification. “It gives organizations more weight in planning and development they place within the area,” Sanford said. “We’d expect to express our opinion about whether a particular development project adds to or takes away from LGBT culture in the district. If it was the whole city,
our opinion would be diluted.” Haines said he has been involved in the cultural district “since day one,” and that while the advisory board will replace the working group in the “leadership role,” he doesn’t expect that the working group will cease to exist. Haines said that if elected, he hopes to help convene focus groups of those with a stake in the Castro for their needs on different subjects. There has already been one for youth, Haines said, but he wants more for “seniors, women, the trans community, and communities of color.” Haines said that “street-level elements,” multimedia, informational kiosks, and creative art can be used to bring people from the cultural district’s boundaries on mid-Market Street to “the core at Market and Castro.” He hopes that creating these things will help create job opportunities. The heart of the district is centered along the 400 and 500 blocks of Castro Street as well as the surrounding residential area. The district’s boundary also stretches down the neighborhood’s commercial corridor along Market Street to Octavia Boulevard where the LGBT community center is located. It also includes the blocks of Laguna Street where the LGBT senior services agency Openhouse has its offices and affordable senior housing development. Also incorporated into the district is the stretch of Valencia Street where the See page 10 >>