March 11, 2021 Edition of the Bay Area Reporter

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AIDS activist Tryfan Llwyd dies

PR rep takes final bow

LGBTQs join immigrant panel

ARTS

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Queer Black Theater

The

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Serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities since 1971

Vol. 51 • No. 10 • March 11-17, 2021

More funding set for Black trans groups by John Ferrannini

S Courtesy CA Prevention Training Center

Dr. Ina Park of UCSF

Report : Some Syphilis diagnoses rise in 2020 by John Ferrannini

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he final rates for sexually transmitted disease diagnoses in San Francisco last year show a rise in many iterations of syphilis, part of a troubling nationwide trend, officials said. The December 2020 STD report, which includes year-end numbers, was released by the San Francisco Department of Public Health March 5. Cases of syphilis citywide declined from 1,864 in 2019 to 1,730 in 2020. However, cases of syphilis in women rose from 158 to 178, which precipitated a rise in congenital syphilis (four to five cases). Congenital syphilis is when a person with syphilis passes the infection on to their baby during pregnancy. Also on the rise were cases of latent syphilis heretofore unknown (96 to 211), and late-latent cases (235 to 246). Dr. Ina Park, a straight ally who is an associate professor at the UCSF School of Medicine, told the Bay Area Reporter that the increases are significant from a public health perspective. “In terms of formal statistical significance, I can’t do that on the fly, but the increase of syphilis among women – 13% – is significant,” Park said. “The congenital syphilis I know are small numbers, but of public health and clinical significance: it’s huge. It’s huge because for years there were zero cases in San Francisco and this for years mirrors what’s happening nationally.” Cases of congenital syphilis nationwide have risen 261% from 2013 to 2018 (the most recent See page 4 >>

Share your B.A.R. memories by Cynthia Laird

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he Bay Area Reporter will mark its 50th anniversary next month and we want to hear from you, our readers. We’re inviting readers to send in brief emails about what the San Francisco Bay Area’s leading LGBTQ newspaper means to you. Was there a particular story that grabbed your attention or spurred you to action? Why is a publication devoted to covering the queer community important to you? Send in your comments and include your name and a daytime phone, the latter for verification only. You can also send in a photo of yourself. Email to news@ebar.com with BAR 50 in the subject line. Please try to keep your comments to 150-200 words. The deadline for submissions is March 25. The B.A.R.’s special 50th anniversary issue will be published April 1 (no foolin’). t

an Francisco will be redirecting $2.2 million from law enforcement to invest in Black-led and transgender-serving organizations over the next two years, according to a March 11 announcement from the office of Mayor London Breed and Sheryl Evans Davis, the executive director of the city’s Human Rights Commission. The funding is one part of Breed’s Dream Keeper Initiative, which is reinvesting $120 million from law enforcement to the city’s Black community over two years. “With the Dream Keeper’s significant investment in the Black community, we knew that it was critical to provide dedicated funding to address the unique needs in the Black transgender community,” Breed stated in a news release. “I am committed to ensuring Black trans people can thrive in San Francisco and that organizations have the resources to deliver services that the community needs, which is why we are investing in the Black trans-led organizations that have been doing this work for years.” The Bay Area Reporter reported last December that city officials were seeking proposals for $1.6 million in grants for the trans community. Applications were due in January and awardees notified before they could

Rick Gerharter

A Black Trans Lives Matter street mural was installed in the Tenderloin last August.

start receiving grant funding February 1, running through January 31, 2023. The city’s HRC had opened up the process for both nonprofits and social service agencies to submit proposals for $1.375 million to be divided by three organizations. But the March 11 announcement includes both more funding and more grant awardees than had originally been announced. According to Sarah Owens, a deputy press director with the mayor’s office, subsequent meetings with SF HRC led to a commitment that at least 5% of Dream Keeper Initiative funding would go toward the LGBTQ com-

munity, which led to additional funding for the Black-led and trans-serving organizations. “As the funding amounts for the LGBTQ community increased, the city was able to offer awards to additional Black trans-serving organizations,” Owens stated. The Transgender District, TGI Justice Project, TAJA’s Coalition, the Lavender Youth Recreation & Information Center, and PRC are all beneficiaries. They have been allocated $717,500; $687,500; $250,000; $200,000; and $225,000, respectively. “The Transgender District is incredibly honored to help create high impact solutions toward the disparity that Black transgender people face in San Francisco,” Aria Sa’id, a trans woman who is the executive director of the district, stated in the release. “While San Francisco is a premiere city for the acceptance of queer and transgender people, the data has not shifted over the last 30 years in regards to what we face including increased rate of homelessness, abject poverty and marginalization. “We have a multi-pronged strategy to make immediate changes for our community that promote the empowerment of Black and Brown transgender people and include creation of innovative solutions to advance housing, economic advancement and cultural enrichment for and by our community,” Sa’id added. t

New Mission Station captain meets a beleaguered Castro by John Ferrannini

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ission Station’s new captain is spending at least some of her first weeks on the job reconnecting with the communities she serves in central San Francisco. “It’s been absolutely fantastic,” Captain Rachel Moran told the Bay Area Reporter. “It’s great reconnecting with staff at the station and going out to talk with the community from a captain’s perspective. It’s good for your soul – great, but busy, let me tell you.” As the B.A.R. reported last month, Moran, who’d been an officer at Mission Station for about a decade until being transferred to the special victims unit for a year and a half, returned to become the first woman to lead the station February 20. In addition to the Mission district, the station serves part of the Castro and Noe Valley. “I don’t stay at the station,” Moran said. “I love to go to the deli, get coffee, and I’m out there.” Moran had said she was scheduled to meet with Masood Samereie, a straight ally who is president of the Castro Merchants, March 9. “If I have time prior to that we can do it sooner,” she said. Samereie told the B.A.R. he indeed had the chance to meet with Moran on March 2. “She is excited and ready to tackle the issues on hand here in the district in collaboration with the neighborhood business and residents organizations,” Samereie stated. “She knows and we all know no one person can resolve all of our issues, but she is committed to do all she can to help us resolve challenges we face on daily bases in the Castro district, including drug dealing and open drug use on our streets, helping unhoused by offering services, break-ins, burglary and theft.” Subsequently, Moran gave brief remarks at the beginning of the March 4 Castro Merchants meeting. “I’m really excited to be here and in the community of Mission Station,” Moran said. “I’m coming back home – the officers are the same, the supervisors are the same and the community is the same, obviously.” Behind Moran, who appeared via Zoom, were some greenery.

Courtesy SFPD

Mission Station Captain Rachel Moran

“I brought plants, I brought pictures and I’m here – God willing – to address your problems.” she added. “I’m looking forward to meeting everyone.” Dave Karraker, a gay man who is a spokesperson for and board member of the Castro Merchants, confirmed that Moran will be attending the association’s monthly membership meeting again in April and will give a presentation. He stated he also had the chance to meet with her. “She will be an exceptional resource in addressing the issues currently facing the Castro,” Karraker stated in an email. “Of particular note during our meetings with Captain Moran is her pledge to focus on tackling the very obvious problem of the district’s unhoused, particularly those who are actively using drugs and those with mental health challenges. These individuals are creating an environment where small business employees, residents, and visitors to the neighborhood don’t feel safe, and based on our research are also suspected to be the individuals responsible for a great deal of crime in the area – particularly malicious mischief/vandalism.” San Francisco Police Department communications director Matt Dorsey confirmed that Mo-

ran will be going on an official merchant walk. As the B.A.R. previously reported, neighborhood leaders and city officials such as Samereie; Tom Temprano, a gay aide to gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman; Matt Donahue, a bisexual assistant district attorney who is the DA office’s liaison to the Castro; and David Burke, a straight ally who is District 8 community liaison, have been going on these walks to identify issues to address in the neighborhood. Terry Asten Bennett, the general manager and one of the owners of Cliff’s Variety in the Castro, said March 1 that she planned to meet with Moran March 3. “I have found when I make myself known to the new captains they are more responsive when I have a need,” Asten Bennett, a straight ally, stated. “I think it is important to humanize yourself so that it reminds people that you are not just a statistic but a living human being.” After that meeting, Asten Bennett stated, “It was great. She is very open and personable. She was honest about her goals and limitations for the department.”

Safety in the Castro at a crossroads

As Karraker mentioned, one major issue that the Castro neighborhood faces is the number of unhoused people there, some of whom have mental health challenges. “The businesses and the residents of the Castro understand quite clearly that the current environment simply cannot continue if we want to preserve one of the most iconic neighborhoods in the city and a global beacon for the LGBTQ community,” Karraker stated. Richard Wigen, a gay man who is a 35-year resident of the Castro and retired social worker, told the B.A.R. that street conditions in the area this past year are the worst he’s seen. He said that while the Healthy Streets Operations Center sometimes comes to clear homeless encampments, they often reappear in the same spot shortly thereafter – something he said he thought police had the authority to stop after HSOC teams had done their work. See page 4 >>


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