Dem queers gain posts
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Castro camera town hall soon
Selling queer books
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A riveting Ma Rainey
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Vol. 51 • No. 02 • January 14-20, 2021
SF leaders seek nightlife relief; handful of Castro bars received PPP loans by John Ferrannini Courtesy Juniperangelica Cordova
Juniperangelica Cordova finally received a diploma from UC Berkeley that has her lived name on it.
CA bill aims to end deadnaming trans college students by Matthew S. Bajko
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or a year UC Berkeley graduate Juniperangelica Cordova’s original diploma sat on a bookshelf in her Alameda home wrapped in the envelope it arrived in. Seeing it on a daily basis would have been too upsetting for the Los Angeles native who came out as transgender while in high school at the age of 15. The East Bay university had used Cordova’s deadname on the document it issued to her in late 2019 rather than her lived name. After raising a complaint with campus administrators about the mix-up, Cordova received a new diploma with her correct name on it in late November. She promptly had it framed and hung it prominently on a wall at her home. “That moment was what I had been working my whole life for,� said Cordova, 24, who is a senior organizer of the Gender Justice Leadership Programs, a collaboration between the Transgender Law Center and GSA Network. “It was great. It was what I had always wanted and didn’t get the first time when I opened the envelope to see my deadname. I was crushed the first time.� To ensure no other graduates of California’s community colleges and public universities experience the same crestfallen moment as Cordova did, Assemblyman David Chiu (D-San Francisco) is reintroducing his bill known as the Affirming Transgender and Nonbinary Student’s Names in College. He had introduced the legislation last January but had to table it in light of the COVID pandemic. In an interview Tuesday with the Bay Area Reporter, as the health crisis continues to rage across the Golden State, Chiu noted the diploma issue is just one of myriad concerns he is focused on this year in the Statehouse. With the pandemic impacting people’s employment, Chiu pointed out that trans and nonbinary graduates seeking new jobs may be outed to employers and face discrimination if their academic records list their wrong name. “A college diploma is their representation of years of hard work and academic achievement. It shouldn’t cause stress or emotional harm by having someone’s deadname on it due to outdated school policies,� said Chiu. “Trans and nonbinary people face lots of discrimination; the name on their diploma should not be another thing to worry about. This is a no-brainer. People should See page 9 >>
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t a perilous time for many small businesses in the pandemic, a San Francisco supervisor is proposing legislation to fund nightlife venues while another board member is spearheading millions of dollars in regulatory relief. Additionally, a handful of Castro area bars received federal assistance last year through the paycheck protection program. The nightlife fund, proposed by District 6 Supervisor Matt Haney, follows other city programs like fee waivers that have been passed by the Board of Supervisors. Some $5 million in fee and tax waivers, introduced by gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, passed the board January 5. The waivers and referrals are specifically geared to help entertainment and nightlife venues on the one hand and restaurants on the other. “The city will provide financial relief for approximately 300 businesses that have a Place of Entertainment permit and that have gross receipts of less than $20 million, representing a total of approximately $2.5 million in support for these businesses,� a
Rick Gerharter
Hi Tops’ sidewalk dining is closed now, but the Castro business was able to secure a federal paycheck protection program loan last year, records show.
January 5 news release explains. “Relief will be provided by waiving regulatory license fees and business regis-
tration fees for two years, and by waiving payroll expense taxes for 2020. Businesses that already paid these taxes and fees will receive an automatic refund. Businesses will still be required to file all applicable business tax returns,� the release states. Up to 1,500 businesses with a restaurant permit will receive relief; they must have gross receipts of less than $750,000. Businesses will also have more time to pay taxes and fees. “COVID-19 has devastated our small businesses. Many have been stuck on a merry-go-round of reopenings, closures, and new restrictions, while others have been unable to operate at all since March,� Mandelman stated. “This legislation will provide more than $5 million in fee relief for some of our hardest hit businesses. This round of relief cannot be the end of the city’s efforts to support our small businesses, but it does reaffirm our commitment to creating an environment where longtime businesses can stabilize and regrow and new businesses can flourish.� Not everyone is sanguine about the city’s moves, however. Dave Karraker, the See page 8 >>
SF supervisors elect Walton as board’s 1st Black male president by Matthew S. Bajko
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ollowing a year of racial protests over police killings of Black Americans, both in the Bay Area and across the country, San Francisco’s top two political leaders will be African Americans born and raised in the city. On January 8, the Board of Supervisors unanimously elected District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton as its next president, the first Black man to serve in the role. He succeeds former District 7 Supervisor Norman Yee, who was termed off the board after eights years in office and served as president of the 11-member body the last two years. “I look forward to serving this body as president with the compassion and values we together guard very fiercely,� said Walton, pledging to his 10 colleagues he would work with them “on issues that matter most to your district and to our precious city.� Leading up to last week’s inaugural meeting of the newly seated board there was speculation that District 3 Supervisor Aaron Peskin could once again serve as board president. But Walton was the lone supervisor to be nominated for the position. “During these difficult times I know Supervisor Walton’s quality and experience will help us
Courtesy SF City Hall
San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Shamann Walton
bring our diverse and wonderful city together leveraging our strengths in helping us to legislate fairly. I nominate him wholeheartedly,� said newly seated District 7 Supervisor Myrna Melgar. Her nomination came shortly after Melgar, representing the neighborhoods west of Twin Peaks, and District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan, representing the Richmond district, took their oaths of office along with the incumbent winners of the odd-numbered supervisor districts in the November election.
Melgar, the mother of a lesbian daughter, is a former city planning commissioner who has made addressing land use and building code reforms a key concern of hers as a supervisor. She was ceremonially sworn in the day before by lesbian former supervisor Susan Leal, the last Latina to be elected to the board. Chan, a former City Hall aide for Peskin, was also a spokeswoman for the city’s parks department. Noting it is the 20th year since he first served on the board, Peskin said he has come to consider Walton “a little bit like a sibling,� adding, “I have really been honored to deepen our relationship, which I think is one of mutual respect.� But he also issued a warning to not just Walton but all of his colleagues that because of the issues the city is facing now is not the time for the board, dominated by progressives, to be in an adversarial role with each other or with Mayor London Breed, a moderate. “Political divisions and camps, I think these are frankly what I would call mini hatchets and I think we need to bury them. I think we can do that together,� said Peskin. “It doesn’t mean we won’t have our policy differences. The same goes with the relationship between this board and the mayor.� See page 8 >>
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