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Vol. 54 • No. 3 • January 18-24, 2024
Gay SF educator’s life upended by false sexual misconduct claim by John Ferrannini
Arnold Niemanis
The all-female rock band the Go-Go’s were named to the California Hall of Fame.
Go-Go’s, Brown named to CA Hall of Fame by Cynthia Laird
T
he iconic all-female rock band the Go-Go’s, including bi guitarist Jane Wiedlin, were named as members of the 17th class of the California Hall of Fame, Governor Gavin Newsom announced January 11. Former San Francisco mayor Willie L. Brown Jr., a longtime ally who authored the bill decriminalizing consensual same-sex relations when he was in the state Assembly, was also named to the class. Former governor Jerry Brown signed that bill in 1975. The Go-Go’s emerged from the sunsoaked landscapes of Southern California, shaping the sound of an era and breaking down gender barriers in the music business, a news release from Newsom’s office stated. Formed out of the Los Angeles punk scene by lead singer Belinda Carlisle and guitarist Wiedlin, the Hollywood punkettes quickly recruited lead guitarist Charlotte Caffey. Solidifying their lineup with the rhythm section of drummer Gina Schock and bassist Kathy Valentine, the band’s energetic club shows and catchy songs propelled them to the forefront of the city’s vibrant music scene. Despite their popularity, the male-dominated record industry refused to see the young women’s potential, the release stated. Signed to legendary IRS Records in 1981, the Go-Go’s proved their doubters wrong with their debut album, “Beauty and the Beat.” Fueled by the hits “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “We Got the Beat,” a fledgling MTV and nonstop touring, the band and their music were embraced by audiences around the world. The Go-Go’s became the first – and still, to date, only – all-female band to top the Billboard charts, according to the release. “Writing their own songs, playing their instruments and persistently believing in their right to be heard, these young women not only captured the hearts of music lovers; they represented possibility and selfdetermination,” the release stated. With follow-up albums “Vacation” (1982) and See page 8 >>
I
t’s the concern that gays in the education profession fear the most. And it’s an ugly stereotype: A false allegation of sexual misconduct with a student that can derail careers and lead to tragic consequences. In San Francisco, one gay educator is speaking out after enduring a lengthy investigation that, while ultimately clearing him, has left a lasting impact. David Hemminger, 58, who went through the sexual misconduct investigation in 2022, also alleges mistreatment by the San Francisco Unified School District. The district, he claims, dragged its feet on what was supposed to be a 90-day inquiry and, after he was exonerated, forced him to transfer to another school. To top it all off, a second male educator, who is bisexual, alleges that he was falsely accused of sexual misconduct by the same student and her parents about a year after Hemminger’s investigation. In his case, however, the girl’s family declined to move forward with the complaint, which they said allegedly occurred off-campus in a city the educator had never been to.
Rick Gerharter
McKinley Elementary School in San Francisco’s Castro district was the focus of two false sexual misconduct complaints by the same family against a gay educator and a bisexual educator.
Started in 2022
Back in March 2022, Hemminger, a resource specialist with the district, had been working at McKinley Elementary School at 1025 14th Street in the LGBTQ Castro neighborhood when he received a notice he’d been placed on paid administrative leave. He’d been working for the district for a dozen years.
“I talked to my union rep, who said it was sexual misconduct I was accused of,” Hemminger told the Bay Area Reporter. “I wasn’t made aware of who this student was. I met with two attorneys – a labor attorney and a criminal defense attorney.” See page 8 >>
Harvey Milk Plaza ‘buzz-raiser’ meeting coming to Castro by John Ferrannini
T
he Friends of Harvey Milk Plaza is holding an event next week to drum up support for the long-planned new memorial to be constructed at the public parklet above the Castro Muni station. It’s been nearly seven years since the friends’ group began working on a plan to re-imagine the plaza, which was named in honor of Milk, the city’s first gay elected supervisor, back in 1985. Milk was elected to the board in November 1977, took office in January 1978, and was assassinated, along with then-mayor George Moscone, that November. Milk was a vocal transit advocate. The friends group’s most recent design, by SWA Group, includes a canopy above the Castro Street entrance to the subway, among other features. Friends’ officials said the January 25 meeting is to sort of jump-start the project, which needs to raise more than $30 million and began a “quiet” capital campaign last year. But the upcoming session is not to solicit funds, organizers said. “I guess you’d call it not a fundraiser but a buzz-raiser,” Brian Springfield, a gay man who is the friends’ executive director, told the Bay Area Reporter on January 10. “It is not unusual for a nonprofit in a capital campaign to have the quiet phase – where they’re working behind the scenes to get significant gifts, then reach out to the public
Courtesy SWA Group via Friends of Harvey Milk Plaza
A rendering shows an overview of the Memorial at Harvey Milk Plaza.
for the last 15%-20% – but because this is about Harvey Milk, the board decided that wasn’t the right approach, and we’re bringing the community along with us.” The friends’ group has also rebranded the project, now known as the Memorial at Harvey Milk Plaza. Springfield said that name came about around five years ago as a way of distinguishing
the old and new plazas. “The challenge is that there already is a Harvey Milk Plaza but it lacks that memorial,” Springfield said. The design from SWA Group, an international landscape, architecture, planning, and urban design firm that is working on the project, was revealed in 2021, as the B.A.R. reported at the time. See page 2 >>
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