MARCH 25, 2021 Edition of the Bay Area Reporter by Bay Area Reporter

Nightlife fund doubled

Dain Drive is official

SF HR dept. gets out leader

ARTS

Night at the Opera

The

www.ebar.com

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

Vol. 51 • No. 12 • March 25-31, 2021

Queers, allies rally in Castro against AAPI hate

Rick Gerharter

A contingent marched in the 2019 SF Pride parade.

SF Pride plans in-person events by John Ferrannini

here will be no Market Street parade or Civic Center Plaza dance party this year, but the San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration Committee announced March 24 that it will be proceeding with some limited, in-person events to celebrate this June, according to a news release. The theme of SF Pride 51 will be “All in This Together.” “Our mission of connecting the LGBTQ+ communities of San Francisco and the Bay Area remains unchanged,” Fred Lopez, a gay man who is the executive director of San Francisco Pride, stated in the release. “Knowing how deeply people miss being together, we’ve worked tirelessly with our partners at City Hall, the Department of Public Health, and elsewhere to ensure a number of incredible, safe experiences. SF Pride this year will be all about locals, from queer-owned small businesses to fellow nonprofits that have displayed true leadership over this past year. It’s truly a Pride for the people.”

Three main events

That more localized focus is to be manifested in three events: a Black liberation event scheduled to coincide with the eve of Juneteenth, two successive movie nights in Oracle Park, and a Pride Expo at Civic Center Plaza. “Pride is one of my favorite times of year, and I am so excited that we’ll have the opportunity to come together and safely celebrate our LGBTQ community this June,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed stated. “While this year’s celebrations won’t look the same as they have in the past, SF Pride has done a great job creating events that will enable us to share our pride in our great City and stand united with our LGBTQ+ community.” Tentatively scheduled for Friday, June 18 – the eve of Juneteenth, a holiday celebrating the end of slavery in Texas – an event to celebrate Black LGBTQ people will take place in consultation with the African American Art & Culture Complex in the Western Addition. A similar event, the Marsha P. Johnson Rally, took place last year. Further information will be announced in May, the release stated. “The struggles for racial justice and LGBTQ+ equality are one and the same,” Carolyn Wysinger, a lesbian who is the president of the San Francisco Pride Board of Directors, stated. “Last year, we brought Black Lives Matter back to the forefront of the Pride movement with a Marsha P. Johnson Rally. This year, we’re working to center Black LGBTQ voices and culture even more strongly. I know how badly our communities want to be together after more than a year apart.” Melonie Green and Melorra Green, twin sisters who are the co-executive directors of the African American Art & Culture Complex, stated that they are proud to “celebrate the freedom to identify and love who we love, how we love.” “The African American Art & Culture Complex is proud to partner with San FranSee page 7 >>

Marchers filled Market Street March 21 after a rally in the Castro for solidarity against anti-Asian violence and the recent murders in the Atlanta area.

by Tyler Breisacher

arrying homemade signs with phrases like “Queers against Asian hate,” hundreds of people marched in solidarity with the Asian American and Pacific Islander community from the Castro Sunday in a show of solidarity following violent acts in the Bay Area and beyond.

The crowd gathered first in Harvey Milk Plaza for a rally to denounce such incidents, which many are labeling hate crimes. They include multiple incidents of AAPIs being beaten in the Bay Area, and last week’s shootings in the Atlanta region that left eight people dead, including six Asian women. See page 7 >> Rick Gerharter

Napa hires 1st LGBTQ police chief by John Ferrannini

ylvia Moir has settled into her role as the first woman and first LGBTQ person to serve as Napa’s chief of police. The 55-year-old is serving on an interim basis for the six to seven months it will take to search for a new permanent chief. The prior chief, Robert Plummer, resigned at the start of this year, citing a desire to be closer to his family in Nevada. Moir began her post February 22. She started her law enforcement career in 1988 in Sacramento. “Originally, I was compelled to safeguard people. Being a police officer is a defining and unique identity – a calling to step in, to safeguard people, and to provide a unique service in our society,” Moir, a lesbian, recently told the Bay Area Reporter. “When [city manager] Steve Potter contacted me to ask if I’d consider serving as interim police chief, they explored and examined me to see if I’d be a good fit, offered me the job, and I started last week and dove right in.” Potter expressed his confidence in Moir in a news release. “Throughout the assessment process, Sylvia Moir demonstrated that she is a knowledgeable, passionate, and dynamic public servant that is ready to assist our community,” Potter stated. “We are confident that Moir will help push forward Napa Police Department’s commitment to integrity and professionalism as well as provide stable leadership while we work through this transitional period.” After her time in Sacramento, Moir served as chief of the El Cerrito Police Department from 2010 to 2016. She said it was during that time she realized she could serve as a role model and a bridge as LGBTQ people became more accepted. “That gave me a shift in terms of recognizing my identity. I was asked to be part of the inclusion council,” Moir said. When asked what has changed most for LGBTQ officers in the last decades, Moir said there has been an effort to be more inclusive. “Inclusion is greater than before, tolerance is greater than before,” she said. “I think the most significant change is that there is a breadth of inclusion that was not appreciated before.” Moir subsequently became the police chief in Tempe, Arizona, from which she left in Oc-

Courtesy NPD

Interim Napa Police Chief Sylvia Moir

tober 2020. She is now living in Napa, at least for the time being. “I am here, full-time and delighted to be right here in downtown Napa serving the community,” she said. “My commitment is to be here for the amount of time it takes to do the evaluation – I can’t imagine that will take longer than fall – and turn it over to the right person to do the work so necessary,” Moir said. Moir, who now oversees a department with a $33 million budget, said she will not seek to become permanent chief. “I do believe there are some talented individuals who should be considered for the full-time position,” she said. As an interim chief, Moir indicated she does not want to institute a broad vision of change in the department by herself, but wants to point those under her command to “evidence-based practices” that will reduce crime and increase public trust. She said at the end of her tenure she wants to be able to provide “a thorough briefing of what I’ve seen from the seat I currently occupy, the strategies of policing I’ve observed, and be a guide and a mentor for whoever is selected.”

Some want more progressive view

Some in the community wish Moir would take a more progressive view.

Anne Sutkowi-Hemstreet, a queer woman who is the director of the Rainbow Action Network, told the B.A.R. that she made a public comment to the Napa City Council in February stating that she is “concerned that [Moir] is not as progressive as our community needs to steer our police department towards making serious reform, including reallocating resources to prevention and mental health services.” Sutkowi-Hemstreet stated to the City Council at that time that while she “immediately reacted with enthusiasm” to Moir’s appointment, the fact that Moir resigned her Tempe position after the city started seeking changes to its police department last year is a red flag. (The city did not give a reason for Moir’s departure, according to the Arizona Republic. Moir would not comment to the Republic, but in an email announcing her departure, Moir wrote that conversations with the city management led to her resignation, the Republic reported.) “It is unclear to me, based on my internet research, whether she truly believes that the law enforcement system needs serious reform or not. I believe it does,” Sutkowi-Hemstreet stated. “I am choosing to reserve some hope – based on the relationships I have developed with Napa’s city leaders over the last couple years – that she will prioritize engaging in the necessary conversations and steps to take the Napa Police Department toward serious reform.” Sutkowi-Hemstreet told the B.A.R. that she hopes the police department can “go to the community members that don’t trust them (for very good reasons) – Black, Indigenous, Latinx, other people of color, immigrant, and LGBTQ – and actually listen to them. Really listen.” Further, she said that relations between the LGBTQ community and the police department are strained to the point where LGBTQs don’t feel safe reporting crimes. “I have heard of multiple stories of recent LGBTQ hate crimes in Napa, including physical violence, property damage, and Zoom-bombing with offensive homophobic language, that go unreported because LGBTQ people don’t trust our police department,” she wrote in an email. “It is hard for me to say if this is because they worry See page 7 >>

<< Community News

t SF supervisor doubles nightlife recovery fund cash 2 • Bay Area Reporter • March 25-31, 2021

by John Ferrannini

istrict 6 Supervisor Matt Haney’s office announced March 18 that $3 million will be set aside for the Music and Entertainment Venue Recovery Fund – double the initial commitment of $1.5 million. “As chair of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, I am proud to be allocating $3 million of our city’s surplus to the venue fund,” Haney stated in a news release. “Our nightlife and entertainment venues are an important cornerstone of our city’s economy, and a vital part of our history and culture. Our venues need this money, they need it now, and we need our venues.” As the Bay Area Reporter previously reported, Haney authored legislation establishing the fund, which

was approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors February 23. Haney represents the South of Market neighborhood, home to the Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District. Robert Goldfarb, a gay man who is the president of the cultural district’s board of directors, stated to the B.A.R. that the district is “delighted.” “The money is vital to the survival of venues in San Francisco and in our district,” Goldfarb stated. “Our unique nightlife and entertainment venues are a cornerstone to our city, keeping them open preserves not only the locations, but the jobs they provide as well as the creative outlets for the performers and entertainers that help make this a wonderful place to live, work and play. “The increase helps ensure that more places will be there when it

SERVING OUR FULL MENU!! Congratulations, BAR on your 50th Anniversary!

Orphan Andy’s is open from 9am-7pm daily with inside and outdoor seating

...and in partnership with Twin Peaks serving food at their sidewalk tables from 12-7pm.

3991-A 17th Street, Market & Castro 415-864-9795

PlanningAhead Ahead isisSimple Planning Simple The benefits are immense.

Planning Ahead is Simple The benefits are immense.

is safe for us all to gather in public again,” he continued. Haney introduced the fund late last year after lobbying from entertainment venue owners, including some members of the Stud Collective that used to run the now-shuttered space at 399 Ninth Street. “With Supervisor Haney leading the charge to create the SF Venue Recovery Fund, and Mayor [London] Breed and Supervisor Haney’s commitment of $3 million into the fund, we’re hopeful we might actually make it through to the other side of the pandemic,” Rob Ready, the co-owner and artistic director of the Tenderloin’s PianoFight stated in the release. “It’s heartening to see city officials recognizing the importance of these cultural institutions and backing them up with much needed direct financial relief.” D’Arcy Drollinger, owner of the Oasis nightclub, expressed hope and thanks for the fund. He had told the B.A.R. last month he wished the fund was larger. As the B.A.R. previously reported, Oasis held a 12-hour telethon March 6 through which it raised $253,000. The telethon surpassed its goal of raising $100,000 to keep the doors open at the SOMA drag establishment, which had been threatened with permanent closure. Drollinger stated he is “very happy with this news” of the additional city money. “The additional funding feels like a real win for nightlife and that our efforts lobbying for more funding paid off,” he wrote in an email to the B.A.R. March 19. “While three million is double what was originally allocated, and is a welcome relief, it still is nowhere near enough. Fortyplus venues have been closed for over a year now. Just existing for the year is probably close to a cumulative $20 million, not to mention the months to come. As well as the costs of getting going again. “The ramifications of this shutdown will be affecting entertainment venues for at least another year once we’re open,” he added. Drollinger stated that Oasis could use more support. “Oasis had an amazing fundraiser,” he wrote of the recent telethon. “It was a real testament to what the community can accomplish if we come together. That money will be primarily used for paying off debt and securing rent for a few months to come. But we definitely need

Screengrab

D’Arcy Drollinger, left, was joined by Vanilla Meringue and Snaxx during the Oasis telethon March 6.

more aid and will welcome it. All the funds are going directly back into the business and to my staff. “Bottom line is that this fund and the additional money that has been allocated is extremely helpful, both monetarily and emotionally,” he added. “It feels like finally the city is saying, ‘We see you. And we’re here to help.’” Honey Mahogany, a queer, nonbinary trans person who is a legislative aide to Haney and a member of the Stud Collective, has not responded to a request for comment about whether the fund has begun to provide relief to businesses. Mahogany had told the B.A.R. last month that Haney’s office hoped funds would start being disbursed in March.

Mayor seeks to streamline permitting

Haney’s move came just before Breed’s office announced legislation to support small businesses decimated by the pandemic. The priorities of the Small Business Recovery Act are to reduce bureaucracy in permitting, increase flexibility for small businesses, and support the city’s arts and culture. If it passes, the hours that businesses will be able to hold live performances will be expanded, and businesses will no longer be required to have an entertainment permit for solo performances. “The legislation removes the limitation on the number of onetime-event entertainment permits that can happen at a location each year,” a news release from the mayor’s office states. “Additionally, the

legislation provides a clear pathway for long established nighttime entertainment uses to receive clarity on land use authorization and further simplifies the requirements for a conditional use permit.” Breed’s office is pledging 30-day turnaround times for permit applications. “The streamlined process that we created with Proposition H is helping small business owners throughout San Francisco, from adding a second restaurant location and transitioning from a retail establishment to a restaurant, to opening a new storefront,” Breed stated. “With this legislation, we’re expanding that simplified process to even more neighborhoods and making it even easier to start or operate a business in San Francisco. Especially as we look to recover from the devastating impacts of the pandemic, it’s critical that we make it as easy as possible for small businesses to open or adapt, so that they can make it through and we can come out of this pandemic even stronger than before.” City voters approved Prop H last November as one of several pandemic-related measures to help San Franciscans and business owners. On March 12, Breed visited the Castro neighborhood with two city supervisors to announce another piece of legislation, which would make permanent the Shared Spaces program being used by small businesses, such as bars and restaurants, for outdoor service. Breed also framed that initiative in terms of cutting bureaucracy and red tape. t

The benefits are immense.

When you plan your life celebration and lasting remembrance in advance, you can design every detail of your own unique memorial and provide your loved ones with true peace of mind. Planning ahead When your celebration lasting protectsyou your plan loved ones fromlife unnecessary stress and and financial burden, you remembrance plan your celebration and lasting remembrance allowing themlife to focus on what will matter most at that time—you. in advance, you can design every

When in advance, you canofdesign every detail of your ownand unique memorial detail own memorial provide Contact usyour today about theunique beautiful ways to create a lasting legacy at the San Francisco Columbarium. and provide your loved ones with true peace of mind. Planning your loved ones with true peace of mind. Planning ahead protects your loved onesProudly from unnecessary stressunnecessary and financial burden, ahead protects yourserving loved onesCommunity. from the LGBT allowing them focus on whatburden, will matter most them at thattotime—you. stresstoand financial allowing focus on what will matter most at that time—you. Contact us today about the beautiful ways to create a lasting legacy at the San Contact FranciscousColumbarium. today about the beautiful ways to create a lasting legacy at the San Francisco Columbarium. One Loraine Ct. | San Francisco | 415-771-0717 Proudly serving our Community.

SanFranciscoColumbarium.com Proudly serving the LGBT Community. FD 1306 / COA 660

Rick Gerharter

Honoring Native lives lost to AIDS One Loraine Ct. | San Francisco | 415-771-0717

SanFranciscoColumbarium.com FD 1306 / COA 660

olunteers unfolded a panel of the National AIDS Memorial Quilt during a small, private ceremony March 20 to commemorate National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day and honor American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians across the United States and Territorial Areas lost to the disease. The event was held at the National AIDS Memorial Grove in San

Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, which is the steward of the quilt. People can view the exhibition honoring Native lives at https://www.aidsmemorial.org/. It is featured as part of a 50-state virtual exhibition of the quilt that was launched on World AIDS Day and features more than 10,000 quilt panels.

Live RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY ROUND BARN S A N T A

R O S A

• TOWNHOMES FROM $599,990 • EXPANSIVE VIEWS • DECKS AND PRIVATE COURTYARD • SOLAR INCLUDED • COMMUNITY POOL, SPA, CABANAS, PARKS, PLAYGROUND AND GARDEN

1 ,74 6 -1 , 8 8 4 Sq . Ft . | 3 - 4 B e drooms | 2 . 5 -3 . 5 B aths

RussianRiverLiving.com | 707-657-3353 | 208 Semillon Lane, Santa Rosa, CA 95403

All renderings, floor plans, and maps are concepts and are not intended to be an actual depiction of the buildings, fencing, walkways, driveways or landscaping. Walls, windows, porches and decks vary per elevation and lot location. In a continuing effort to meet consumer expectations, City Ventures the right to modify prices, floor plans, specifications, options and amenities without notice or obligation. Square footages shown are approximate. *Broker/agent must accompany and register their client(s) with the onsite sales team on their first visit to the community in order to be eligible for any broker referral fee. Please see your Sales Manager for details. ©️2021 City Ventures. All rights reserved. DRE LIC # 01979736.

<< Open Forum

4 • Bay Area Reporter • March 25-31, 2021

Volume 51, Number 12 March 25-31, 2021 www.ebar.com

PUBLISHER Michael M. Yamashita Thomas E. Horn, Publisher Emeritus (2013) Publisher (2003 – 2013) Bob Ross, Founder (1971 – 2003) NEWS EDITOR Cynthia Laird CULTURE EDITOR Jim Provenzano ASSISTANT EDITORS Matthew S. Bajko • John Ferrannini CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Tavo Amador • Roger Brigham Brian Bromberger • Victoria A. Brownworth Philip Campbell • Heather Cassell Michael Flanagan • Jim Gladstone Liz Highleyman • Lisa Keen Matthew Kennedy • David Lamble David-Elijah Nahmod • Paul Parish Tim Pfaff • Jim Piechota • Gregg Shapiro Gwendolyn Smith •Sari Staver • Charlie Wagner Ed Walsh • Cornelius Washington • Sura Wood

ART DIRECTION Max Leger PRODUCTION/DESIGN Ernesto Sopprani PHOTOGRAPHERS Jane Philomen Cleland • FBFE Rick Gerharter • Gareth Gooch Jose Guzman-Colon • Rudy K. Lawidjaja Georg Lester • Rich Stadtmiller • Fred Rowe Steven Underhill • Bill Wilson ILLUSTRATORS & CARTOONISTS Christine Smith

VICE PRESIDENT OF ADVERTISING Scott Wazlowski – 415.829.8937

NATIONAL ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE Rivendell Media – 212.242.6863

LEGAL COUNSEL Paul H. Melbostad, Esq.

News Editor • news@ebar.com Arts Editor • arts@ebar.com Out & About listings • jim@ebar.com Advertising • scott@ebar.com Letters • letters@ebar.com Published weekly. Bay Area Reporter reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement which the publisher believes is in poor taste or which advertises illegal items which might result in legal action against Bay Area Reporter. Ads will not be rejected solely on the basis of politics, philosophy, religion, race, age, or sexual orientation.

Yes, Collins should resign

istening to some San Francisco Unified School District students speak at Tuesday’s Board of Education meeting was a lesson in humility – or at least it should have been for embattled Commissioner and board Vice President Alison Collins. Racist tweets that Collins posted in 2016 were recently unearthed and they show a shocking disregard and prejudice toward Asian American and Pacific Islander people. Written prior to her 2018 election to the school board, they nonetheless prohibit her from being an effective leader today. She wrote that “many Asian Am. believe they benefit from the ‘model minority’ BS.” And “In fact, many Asian American Ts (teachers), Ss (students) and Ps (principals) actively promote these myths. They use white supremacist thinking to assimilate and ‘get ahead.’” In another tweet, Collins, a Black woman, referred to Asian Americans using the N-word. “Do they think they won’t be deported? profiled? beaten? Being a house n****r is still being a n****r. You’re still considered ‘the help,’” she wrote. Only two of the board’s trustees who are also the only AAPI members, Jenny Lam and Faauuga Moliga, have called on Collins to resign (along with nearly all of San Francisco’s elected leaders, including Mayor London Breed). The rest of the school board members have buried their heads

since Collins’ tweets resurfaced. President Gabriela Lopez, acting on advice of legal counsel, opened public comment to students and then the general public, limiting the latter to 20 minutes each for those opposed to Collins and those supporting her. It was the students that really hammered home the message that Collins is now an ineffective representative. One lambasted many of Collins’ colleagues, saying they were shallow and hypocritical. Student Amy Chang said she “felt disgust and pain. Call it what it is – racist tweets.” A District 3 Democratic Club (Chinatown) official expressed regret that the club had endorsed Collins in 2018 and the president of the Lowell Alumni Association criticized Collins for her failure to acknowledge or take responsibility for the tweets. Several of those in support stated they believed the outrage was politically motivated by those seeking to recall Collins, Lopez, and Moliga and those opposed to the board’s decision to end merit-based admissions to Lowell, the district’s elite high school. But these deflections do not absolve her of culpability. The tweets “show her true belief,” as one speaker said. Collins should resign from the school board. Like many elected officials before her, Collins’ comments and actions have disqualified her from holding the public’s trust. Her political career is over, and she should take responsibility for her own words and put the district’s students ahead of her incendiary views. t

SOGI data needed in COVID pandemic by Sean Cahill

re Black LGBTQ people disproportionately vulnerable to COVID-19? Are they more hesitant about getting vaccinated? What about LGBTQ immigrants, or older LGBTQ people? Unfortunately, we have little public health data with which to answer these important questions. A year into the COVID-19 pandemic, we still lack basic information on how it is affecting LGBTQ people. This need not be the case. Sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) data collection is fairly wonky, but super important. If public health systems don’t count us, we don’t count. While there are still problems and several lawmakers have requested an audit of the state health department, California has been a leader on collecting SOGI data in health care settings, and since late 2020 in COVID-19 testing and care outcomes. California is one of five jurisdictions that are collecting SOGI data in COVID-19, along with Oregon, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia. Hopefully, more states will follow soon. The federal government has not yet taken steps to encourage or require the collection and reporting of SOGI data in COVID testing, care, and vaccination. (And California is not collecting COVID vaccination data.) Given the BidenHarris administration’s commitment to LGBTQ equality and health equity, I am hopeful that they will take action soon to rectify this. There are many reasons why LGBTQ people are disproportionately susceptible to infection by the novel coronavirus. LGBTQ people are twice as likely to work in front-line professions such as retail, food services, health care, and education.[1] LGBTQ people are disproportionately poor, especially people of color, bisexual women, transgender people,[2] and older adults.[3] Many LGBTQ people inhabit urban areas, live in dense congregate housing, and rely on public transit, making social distancing difficult. LGBTQ people, especially older adults, are more likely to have chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma, and cardiovascular disease,[4] and risk factors like smoking and vaping,[5] that may put them at risk for complications from COVID-19.

Advertising rates available upon request. Our list of subscribers and advertisers is confidential and is not sold. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, and writers published herein is neither inferred nor implied. We are not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or artwork.

in the sand, babbling about restorative justice – without providing a plan for Collins to engage in that – and refusing to acknowledge the obvious: they have a colleague who made many racist public statements via social media. At the very least the trustees should have removed Collins as vice president; that they took no action speaks to this board’s problems with decisive leadership and effective policy. Trustee Kevine Boggess asked the public “to give me and my colleagues as much space as possible.” Mark Sanchez, a gay man who’s the only LGBTQ member on the board, said he was making his first public comments on the matter. He condemned Collins’ tweets but doesn’t believe she’s a racist. “I’m deeply sorry for everyone in this situation,” he said. At the outset of the meeting, Collins offered “my heartfelt apologies” without ever stating what she was sorry for. She said she was engaged with her colleagues to work with students, “especially Black students,” indicating she had no idea of the pain she’s caused AAPI students, who make up about 44% of the district. Previous to the meeting, she stated that the tweets were taken out of context, which has befuddled AAPIs who have spoken with her, according to Mission Local . Board members noted that 1,000 people attended the March 23 online meeting, the first

Screengrab

Sean Cahill, left, appeared on New England Cable News in May 2020 talking about the importance of SOGI data.

Recently a group of LGBTQ health policy advocates wrote to the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers asking state health directors to include LGBTQ and intersex people in their vaccine dissemination plans.[6] We did this because, as a result of stigma and discrimination in health care, LGBTQ people – especially people of color[7] and transgender people[8] – experience medical mistrust, which could affect willingness to get the vaccine. Many older people experience medical mistrust because in their youth the medical establishment pathologized same-sex behavior and gender diversity, subjecting them to shock therapy or worse.[9] Intersex people mistrust the medical community due to abuses many experience in childhood and adulthood.[10] Lesbian and bisexual women are less likely to access routine, preventive care,[11] which could cause them to access vaccination at lower rates. We need affirmative outreach to LGBTQI people to ensure that they access vaccination equitably. While we don’t have good public health data yet on LGBTQ people and COVID, we are starting to get survey data. The Williams Institute, a think tank at UCLA School of Law, recently published an analysis of Axios/Ipsos panel survey data and found that LGBTQ POC were more likely than straight, cisgender POC to test positive for COVID-19, and twice as likely to test positive for COVID-19 than LGBTQ White people. LGBTQ people of all races were more likely than non-LGBTQ people to report being recently laid off from employment.[12] A recent analysis in the journal Vaccines of online survey data found that Black

and Native American gay men and other men who have sex with men, or MSM, in the U.S. were less willing than white MSM to get vaccinated for COVID-19, while Asian American MSM were more likely to get vaccinated. There was no significant difference between Latinx MSM and White non-Hispanic MSM.[13] Despite excellent state laws written by Assemblyman David Chiu (D-San Francisco) and gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), California has struggled to collect and report SOGI data in COVID-19 testing and care. As the Bay Area Reporter has reported, testing labs say that because SOGI is not included in the Health Level 7 International’s main health information technology standards, that they cannot transmit SOGI data collected in testing to the state health department. I hope that HL-7 can quickly update its standards to include SOGI. Usually this process takes a lot of time, but HL-7’s CEO told California leaders that they are working on it. This interaction highlights the connection between health data collection efforts and the need for quality SOGI data standards in health information technology systems like HL-7. Since 2011 a number of federal government agencies and private entities like the Joint Commission have encouraged or required the collection of voluntary SOGI data to improve quality of patient care. The LGBTQ+ community must advocate for better SOGI standards to replace the outdated ones in the SNOMED-CT system (which still use the terms “homosexual” and “transsexual”), and get them adopted by HL-7’s Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resource (FHIR), and by the U.S. Core Data for Interoperability. It’s critically important that we keep up with the changing architecture of health IT systems in order to ensure increased collection and use of SOGI data to understand LGBTQ health disparities, and how they intersect with racial/ethnic, immigrant, rural and other disparities. t Sean Cahill, Ph.D., is director of Health Policy Research at the Fenway Institute in Boston.

Citations >> [1] Whittington C, Hadfield K, Calderón C. The lives and livelihoods of many in the LGBTQ community are at risk amidst COVID-19 crisis. Washington, DC: Human Rights Campaign. 2020. Available at: https://www.hrc.org/resources/ the-lives-and-livelihoods-of-many-in-the-lgbtq-communityare-at-risk-amidst [2] Badgett MVL, Choi SK, Wilson BDM (2019, Oct.). LGBT Poverty in the United States: A Study of Differences Between Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Groups. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA School of Law, The Williams Institute. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/ National-LGBT-Poverty-Oct-2019.pdf [3] Cahill S (2020, Dec.). LGBT Aging 2025: Strategies for Achieving a Healthy and Thriving LGBT Older Adults Community in Massachusetts. Boston: The Fenway Institute, the LGBT Aging Project. https://fenwayhealth.org/wp-content/ uploads/LGBT-Aging-2025-Report-December-2020.pdf [4] Fredriksen-Goldsen KI, Kim H-J, Emlet CA, et al. The Aging and Health Report: Disparities and Resilience Among

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Older Adults. Seattle: University of Washington; 2011. [5] McCabe SE, Matthews AK, Lee JGL, Veliz P, Hughes TL, Boyd CJ. Tobacco use and sexual orientation in a national cross-sectional study: age, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity– attraction differences. Am J Prev Med. 2018;54(6):736–745. [6]https://fenwayhealth.org/wp-content/uploads/12.18.20LGBTQI-Data-Vaccination-Letter.pdf [7] Cahill S, Taylor SW, Elsesser SA, Mena L, Hickson D, Mayer KH. Stigma, medical mistrust, and perceived racism may affect PrEP awareness and uptake in black compared to white gay and bisexual men in Jackson, Mississippi and Boston, Massachusetts. AIDS Care. 2017;29(11):1351-1358. [8] D’Avanzo PA, Bass SB, Brajuha J, et al. Medical Mistrust and PrEP Perceptions Among Transgender Women: A Cluster Analysis. Behav Med Wash DC. 2019;45(2):143-152. [9] Blakemore E. (no date). Gay Conversion Therapy’s Disturbing 19th-Century Origins. HISTORY. Accessed December 17, 2020. https://www.history.com/news/gay-conversion-

therapy-origins-19th-centuryv [10] Covid-19 Survey Report. OII Europe. Published December 9, 2020. Accessed December 17, 2020. https://oiieurope.org/covid-19-survey-report/ [11] American Cancer Society. 2020. Cancer Facts for Lesbian and Bisexual Women. https://www.cancer.org/healthy/ find-cancer-early/womens-health/cancer-facts-for-lesbiansand-bisexual-women.html#:~:text=Studies%20suggest%20 that%20some%20lesbian,and%20cervical%20cancer%20 screening%20tests. [12] Sears, B. Conron, K.J, & Flores, A.J. (2021). The Impact of the Fall 2020 Surge of the COVID-19 Pandemic on LGBT Adults in the US. Los Angeles, CA: The Williams Institute, UCLA. [13] Teixeira da Silva D, Biello K, Lin WY, et al. COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance among an Online Sample of Sexual and Gender Minority Men and Transgender Women. Vaccines 2021, 9, 204.

Politics >>

March 25-31, 2021 • Bay Area Reporter • 5

San Francisco supervisors seat gay asylee to city panel

by Matthew S. Bajko

he San Francisco Board of Supervisors has seated a gay Malaysian-Chinese asylee to a city oversight committee. Hans How is the first LGBTQ immigrant who has yet to become a U.S. citizen to serve on a local advisory body. The supervisors voted unanimously 11-0 at their March 23 meeting to seat How, along with Bernita Burge, Jon Jacobo, and John Baranski, on the Housing Stability Fund Oversight Board. Their terms end December 13, 2022. The supervisors also seated Davida Sotelo Escobedo, a Chicanx trans nonbinary Oakland resident who grew up in the city, to the fund’s oversight body. Their term ends December 13, 2024. The board approved Remhai Menelik, Gen Fujioka, Fernando Marti, Shanti Singh, and Alex Lantsberg to serve on the oversight body in terms that also end December 13, 2024. How is the second non-citizen to be approved for membership on one of the city’s public oversight panels in recent weeks. Earlier this month Sarah Souza, a DACA recipient from Brazil, won approval to serve on the city’s Immigrant Rights Commission. Souza and How were both instrumental in the successful campaign last fall to pass Proposition C, the Aspiring Citizens’ Charter Amendment, on the November ballot. It brought city policy in line with a change in state law instituted in 2019 that allowed non-citizens to be appointed to statewide oversight and advisory bodies. The Housing Stability Fund Oversight Board is also the result of the passage of two city ballot measures adopted in November championed by District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston. Proposition K authorized 10,000 additional units of permanent affordable housing in San Francisco and also allowed for the creation of municipal social housing, a form of affordable housing for the public good, charging low rents and housing a broad range of incomes. And a portion of Prop I is being used to pay for such housing. It established a higher tax on the sale of property valued at $10 million or more in the city. The fund oversight body will make recommendations and provide guid-

Courtesy Hans How

Hans How is now a member of the city’s Housing Stability Fund Oversight Board.

ance for the use of the city’s Housing Stability Program Fund for social housing developments. The money is overseen by the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development and used for such purposes as acquiring land, constructing or rehabbing housing developments, and issuing loans and grants. The city office gets to appoint one person to the 11-member oversight board. How applied for asylum in the U.S. after facing persecution in Malaysia, a country that carries a possible jail sentence of up to 20 years for LGBTQ citizens. How, who has lived in San Francisco for four years, became an asylee in December, having won his case right before Christmas. He is a volunteer vice president of AsylumConnect, a tech nonprofit that created a website and mobile app for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers. How has also worked on affordable housing issues in various capacities since 2017, most recently as an impact investment associate with New Island Capital Management. At the March 15 hearing of the supervisors’ rules committee, which recommended which applicants to seat to the fund oversight board, How pledged to use an equity lens as a member of the advisory body. He noted he brings to the board his lived experience growing up in public housing and, when he arrived in San Francisco, living in a Chinatown single-room-occupancy hotel. “I am committed to use my experiences in affordable housing and development, and lived experience advocating for marginalized communities, and use my experience as

a non citizen on the housing board,” How, who now lives in Nob Hill, told the panel. As campaign coordinator at Jobs with Justice San Francisco, Escobedo focuses on the housing needs of union members and other workers in the city. Thus, much of the work they do overlaps with the oversight body’s purview, prompting Escobedo to apply to become one of its inaugural members. “I fight for workers’ ability to stay housed in San Francisco. This board seems like an opportunity to build out social housing that really works for all San Franciscans and all workers in the city,” said Escobedo, who in 2018 was a San Francisco Planning Department housing affordability intern. They told the Bay Area Reporter they are interested in moving back into the city at some point. But for now, due to the COVID pandemic, plan to remain in Oakland. “We shall see how the year shakes out,” said Escobedo. The supervisors also voted Tuesday to allocate slightly more than $10 million in property tax revenue, the first to be allocated from the money generated by Prop I, for the acquisition, creation, and operation of affordable, social housing under the Housing Stability Fund. A similar amount was allocated toward the city’s Rent Resolution and Relief Fund to assist renters and small property owners who have accumulated COVID-related debt. “This is housing justice in action,” stated Preston. “San Franciscans overwhelmingly voted to demand more from the wealthiest real estate investors, and today the board fulfilled the voters mandate by directing this money to help tenants and small property owners struggling with back rent, and to fund permanently affordable housing.” t Web Extra: For more queer political news, be sure to check http:// www.ebar.com Monday mornings for Political Notes, the notebook’s online companion. This week’s column reported on the renovation of an AIDS monument in Los Angeles and a call for names of those lost to the epidemic to add to it. Keep abreast of the latest LGBTQ political news by following the Political Notebook on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/politicalnotes.

Dain Drive is official

meryville Mayor Dianne Martinez, left with dog Chloe, and gay City Councilman John Bauters, with dog Reyna, stand next to the newly installed street sign at 47th Street and San Pablo Avenue in Emeryville March 22 honoring the late trans gym teacher Steve Dain. The City Council approved the street renaming after the school board in 2018 declined to name the high school gym in Dain’s memory. Dain was fired by the school district in 1976 after he received gender confirmation surgery. He won a small judgment following his legal case and died in 2007. Earlier this month the school board issued an official apology for the district’s action at the time.

Rick Gerharter

Barry Schneider Attorney at Law

family law specialist* • Divorce w/emphasis on Real Estate & Business Divisions • Domestic Partnerships, Support & Custody • Probate and Wills www.SchneiderLawSF.com

415-781-6500 *Certified by the California State Bar 400 Montgomery Street, Ste. 505, San Francisco, CA

LGBT PROGRESSIVE CATHOLICS † OUR FAMILIES & FRIENDS

Celebrating our Sexuality and Love as Gifts of God Liturgy & Social: Every Sunday 5pm First Sunday Movie Night Second Sunday Potluck Supper Third Wednesday Faith Sharing Group 1329 Seventh Avenue † info@dignitysanfrancisco.org Follow us on Facebook!

<< Community News

6 • Bay Area Reporter • March 25-31, 2021

SF supervisors OK Isen to lead DHR by Cynthia Laird

he San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved an out woman to head up the Department of Human Resources. Carol Isen, a member of the LGBTQ community, was approved on a vote of 11-0. Gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who also voted for Isen’s nomination at a rules committee meeting Monday, March 23, stated that he was pleased to see her confirmed. “It sends a strong message to the city’s LGBTQ workers, and all of our 38,000 city employees, to have an out woman leading our Department of Human Resources for the first time,” he stated to the Bay Area Reporter. “The department has some serious issues that need to be addressed, but Director Isen’s decades of experience with the City and County of San Francisco and with organized labor give me confidence that she is up to the task,” he added. Mayor London Breed had nominated Isen to the post March 9. She put out a statement after the board’s vote.

“As we look ahead to San Francisco’s recovery and the challenges that are before us, I’m confident that Carol Isen is the right person to lead the Department of Human Resources,” the mayor stated. During Tuesday’s board meeting, Isen was asked about workforce equity. “I do intend to set the tone from the top,” she said. Supervisor Hillary Ronen talked about the time it takes to hire a city employee, which she said she previously discussed with Isen. “I beg you to come in with a fresh set of eyes and make some major change,” Ronen said. Supervisor Ahsha Safaí brought up the city’s practice of contracting out work instead of hiring workers and said it creates frustration. Mandelman brought up the “sheer number of vacancies” in city departments such as the Department of Public Health and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. Isen reiterated what she said during the rules committee hearing, that DHR is under-resourced but that a new applicant tracking system, expected to come online

Screengrab

Carol Isen spoke during her hearing Monday before the San Francisco Board of Supervisors rules committee.

this summer, will help departments know how the process is going for prospective employees. There are about 175 employees at DHR, Isen said, with many of them dealing with workers’ compensation issues. The sprawling department provides HR services to the city’s workforce across its 60 depart-

ments. Since last October, Isen has served as acting head of DHR. Prior to that, Isen served in a number of municipal positions such as employee relations director for three years, BART chief labor relations director, and San Francisco Public Utilities Commission director of labor relations and community programs. During her remarks before the rules committee, which met virtually, and included Supervisor Aaron Peskin, chair, and Supervisor Connie Chan, Isen said that the rights of all workers must be respected. Referencing her identity as a member of the LGBTQ community, Isen said that trauma at work due to being bullied or being unfairly discriminated against is “intolerable.” Referring to communities of color, Isen said she approaches the job with “a commitment to being a full partner.” She paused during her remarks to comment on the recent instances of violence directed at the Asian American and Pacific Islander community: “xenophobia has no place in city employment.” She told the committee members that DHR needs to tighten

its internal controls, promote and enforce healthy workplaces, and foster a culture of robust respect in the workplace. “I’m committed to a highly-focused equity lens,” she said. Isen explained that DHR needs to be modernized and that she’s looking forward to a new applicant tracking system. “The department is badly in need of resources,” she added. Prior to Isen’s comments, Peskin said he’s known her for the better part of 20 years, including her work with organized labor and as a city employee. During the hearing, Chan, herself a former city employee before being elected supervisor last year, said reform of equal employment opportunity is needed and that department heads need to be held accountable. “Be it public corruption, harassment, or discrimination, when [they] come to light we know we’ve gone through a pattern that’s built up to lawsuits,” Chan said. “I look forward to your leadership.” See page 7 >>

Obituaries >> Sally McDonnell October 29, 1950 – March 16, 2021

Friends are mourning the loss of Sally McDonnell, the first woman president of Folsom Street Events and a pillar in the San Francisco community. Sally passed away on March 16 after a short battle with leiomyosarcoma. She was 70. Born in Chicago, Sally lived for many years in Michigan before settling in San Francisco. Sally had a distinguished 28-year career with the Federal Reserve Bank, as a national information security technology manager. She retired in 2016. Volunteering for various organizations was very important to Sally throughout her life. Sally began volunteering for South of Market Merchants’ and Individuals’ Lifestyle Events, which was the predecessor to Folsom Street Events. Sally became the first woman president of the all-volunteer Folsom Street Events board in the early 2000s, where she continued to serve in that capacity until February 2005. FSE produces the large events Folsom Street Fair and Up Your Alley, which raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for San Francisco-based HIV and LGBTQrelated charities each year. In addition to FSE, Sally spent considerable time volunteering for several public safety organizations, including the California Highway Patrol, the San Francisco Police Auxiliary Law Enforcement Response Team Program, and the International Police Association. She was also a volunteer for her neighborhood response team (SF NERT), which is the San Francisco volunteer earthquake response program. Finally, she worked with AlertSF, which is the text, email, and phone-based emergency notification system for San Francisco residents and visitors. Her contributions to these organizations will be missed. After her retirement, Sally spent time enjoying the fruits of many years of labor by traveling extensively, often touring with the International Police Association. She enjoyed visiting many ports of call all over the world, but particularly loved the north coast of California. She loved good food, wine, and engaging conversation about politics, social justice, and all things San Francisco. Donations can be made in Sally’s name to either the Monterey Bay Aquarium or the Women’s Building in San Francisco May the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warmth upon your face. The rains fall soft upon your fields. Until we meet again.

t <<

Community News >>

Rally

From page 1

The March 21 rally, organized by GLBTQ+ Asian Pacific Alliance with support from several other organizations, was an expression of the pain and fear the AAPI community is experiencing, as well as a show of unity between the LGBTQ+ and AAPI communities. “I thought it was fuckin’ amazing to be in solidarity with other fellow Asians and also allies,” said Alice Tang, a straight ally who attended. “I was really touched by all the speakers.” In particular, a speech by drag performer Kristi Yummikochi resonated most with her. Yummikochi spoke about the importance of telling stories and remembering history. “We have to tell our stories, because stories, they’re little pieces of history,” Yummikochi said. “They’re little lessons that we take with us as we go into the future.” One of the most emotional speeches of the day was from Eugene Clifton Cha, a gay Korean man who shared his fear and disbelief upon hearing about the attacks in the Atlanta area last week. He encouraged everyone to take the time to mourn, check in with others, and take care of themselves, but also to allow themselves to be moved to action. “As much as this is a horrific and unthinkable tragedy against our communities, and one we must grieve, mourn, and remember, we can’t let a crisis go to waste,” he said. “And at some point our pain must turn to resolve, to action, to change.”

SF Pride

From page 1

cisco Pride, as we create space to celebrate and honor the collective freedom of our Black LGBTQIA sisters, brothers, and sibs,” they stated. “We are committed to activating and strengthening our relationship by being a safe space for our collective LGBTQ+ voices through visibility and community building. Last year in June, we proudly hosted the Marsha P. Johnson Black Trans Lives Matter Rally in our open-air gallery. It was a beautiful and much-needed beginning! It is our desire that our community embrace all our individual and collective displays of freedom!”

Isen

From page 6

The City Attorney’s office continues to investigate public corruption that was revealed more than a year ago with the arrest and indictment of former Public Works director Mohammad Nuru. Several high-ranking employees

Napa police chief

From page 1

how they will be treated by the police officers or they just assume nothing will come from reporting it or if they just want to forget a traumatic thing that happened to them.” Moir, told of these concerns about lack of trust in LGBTQ and other communities, said that “community policing” and “procedural justice” are the ways to increase community trust. “It comes down to community po-

“I think that was my favorite speech,” said Chinsin Sim, a gay Asian man. “I immediately thought about my parents, my aunts, my uncles, my grandparents.” Other attendees commented on the intersection of communities of color. “It’s been a year of tumultuous change for everybody, and in 2020, we all came together for Black lives, and we’re still here for Black lives,” said Martin Muñoz, a gay Latinx man. “But with all the Asian hate and hate crimes that have happened, from March at the beginning of the pandemic, throughout the history of San Francisco, I mean it’s due time that we’re here for Asian lives.” Over the last year as the pandemic swept across the globe, former President Donald Trump and some of his supporters have repeatedly used racist phrases such as “kung flu” or “China virus” to describe the coronavirus and are accused of fanning anti-Asian sentiment. As the Los Angeles Times noted in a recent column, “California history bristles with violent attacks on Chinese individuals, including an outbreak of lynchings of Chinese residents in Los Angeles in 1871, and on Chinese neighborhoods in San Francisco and Los Angeles.” At the rally, holding a traditional Chinese fan in one hand and a sword in the other, drag performer Hennessey Williams danced and lip-synced to “Dynasty,” by LGBTQ Japanese British artist Rina Sawayama. “The song ‘Dynasty’ talks about overcoming depression, intergenerational trauma, and breaking conventions, which speaks a lot to the LGBT Asian Ameri-

March 25-31, 2021 • Bay Area Reporter • 7

Courtesy GAPA/FB

GAPA Chair Michael Nguyen marches in support of antiAAPI hate.

can community and women & transfeminine people,” Williams wrote in an Instagram message. “The song speaks a lot to me personally but I felt like it was appropriate for the audience and other LGBT Asian people as well.” Several speakers drew parallels between today’s climate of violence and hate, and other times in history when Asian people were victimized or scapegoated, such as the World War II-era Japanese internment camps and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. At the Angel Island Immigration Station, on the bay north of San Francisco, nearly one million immigrants from mainly Asian countries were detained and processed between 1910 and 1940.

Gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) drew another parallel. “I am not a member of the AAPI community, but I am a Jew and I am a gay man. And I know what happens when society refuses to take responsibility for a pandemic, and decides to blame and scapegoat marginalized communities for supposedly causing pandemics to happen,” he said. “We know, as queer people, what happens when we get blamed and scapegoated for a pandemic,” Wiener added. “That’s what happened, and this was ground zero around HIV/AIDS, and the scapegoating and the attacks on our community that caused so many members of our community to die and so much violence to happen. So we need to stop that in its tracks.” Tran Hoang, who identified herself as “LGBT-friendly,” said the speeches were inspiring. “This was a time to really have our voices heard and really stand up for equality and know that Asians are people as well,” she said.

March

After about two hours in the Castro, the group took to the streets and marched down Market Street toward Civic Center, carrying handmade signs such as “We are not silent.” They were led by a large school bus painted white and labeled “wool bus,” provided by the Big-Ass Amazingly Awesome Homosexual Sheep Burning Man Camp. DJ Confetti Canon blasted music from the back of the bus as participants danced and onlookers cheered.

After the march made its way to Civic Center, the tone shifted to a more intimate feel, as the crowd diminished in size and several people sat down in the plaza for another set of speakers. Cecilia Chung, a trans woman who works at the Transgender Law Center and is a San Francisco health commissioner, gave the crowd a brief history lesson on civil rights leader Kiyoshi Kuromiya. “He was born in the internment camp, he was an assistant for Dr. Martin Luther King, he was a delegate to the Black Panther convention, he also was one of the ACT UP movement leaders, and he founded organizations to advocate and fight for resources for people living with HIV,” she said. “But how many of you have heard of him?” she asked. No one responded. “Because why? Because our education in this country is fucked up.” Tiff Lin said the killings in the Atlanta area were particularly painful for her because of her past experience as a tantric massage bodyworker. “As someone who honestly believes in sexual expression and pleasure and joy and compassion and unity, how is one to feel all of this when our world is feeling so much pain?” Lin asked. Yuan Wang, a community organizer at API Equality Northern California, reminded those in attendance to stay involved in local organizations beyond just the day’s rally and march. “Share your resources, your skills, and your time. We need you to find your role,” she said. t

Film screenings will occur at Oracle Park in the city’s South Beach neighborhood June 11-12, in cooperation with the San Francisco Giants and Frameline, producers of the LGBTQ film festival. “This socially distanced and ticketed event, subject to state-mandated capacity limits, grows out of SF Pride’s long-standing relationship with the nation’s longest-running LGBTQ+ film festival,” the release states, adding that more information will be announced next month. “Frameline is very excited to be partnering with San Francisco Pride and the San Francisco Giants to host the largest film screenings in our 45year history,” James Woolley, the executive director of Frameline, stated.

“We cannot wait to wow the audience by showing some great films on a jumbotron screen. Films are best enjoyed with an audience, and we are thrilled to be presenting a communal, but safe, event for the local community to enjoy,” he added. Stephen Revetria, the president of Giants Enterprises, touted his organization’s commitment to LGBTQ inclusion in the past. “We have collaborated with San Francisco Pride on our annual LGBTQ Nights at Oracle Park, participated in the SF Pride Parade, and raised awareness for issues important to the LGBTQ community through many initiatives, including our annual Until There’s A Cure Day,” he stated. “Hosting these

movie nights is a natural extension of our collaboration.” The Pride organization is billing the Pride Expo as “a modified version of the annual celebration in Civic Center.” “Instead of featuring entertainment on community-programmed stages and venues, the expo will have the look and feel of a resource fair,” the release states. “Queer-run businesses and organizations have borne the brunt of the pandemic, and it is vital for an institution such as SF Pride to establish a safe forum for LGBTQ+ vendors, merchants, and nonprofits to reconnect with the community, engaging with potential volunteers, customers, and clients.”

The release states that the “dates and exact location” of the expo will be announced “over the next few weeks.” SF Pride officials stressed that all events will follow public health guidelines. The City and County of San Francisco entered the orange tier of COVID restrictions March 24 at 8 a.m., and vaccination rates continue to climb. When reached for comment March 24 Peter-Astrid Kane, communications manager with San Francisco Pride, wrote in an email that “neither Fred [Lopez] nor Carolyn [Wysinger] is available to speak with the B.A.R., I’m sorry to say.” t

have also been swept up in the scandal, including former San Francisco Public Utilities general manager Harlan Kelly. His wife, former city administrator Naomi Kelly, resigned from her job after her husband was charged with fraud. Naomi Kelly has not been charged. Harlan Kelly has not yet entered a plea in his case.

The B.A.R. has reported on three separate cases of alleged discrimination and harassment at the San Francisco Fire Department. Three SFFD employees, all LGBTQ people of color, have filed lawsuits or a claim in recent months. A claim is a precursor to a lawsuit. During public comment, all the

speakers except from one group supported Isen’s nomination. The Black Employee Alliance said it did not think Isen provides “the impact for change for Black employees.” At Tuesday’s meeting, Board of Supervisors President Shamann Walton said that he would continue with proposed legislation for

changes related to equity, including hiring an independent investigator to oversee equal employment complaints. He urged Isen to work with the city’s Human Rights Commission and Office of Racial Equity “I am committed to legislation for these changes,” he said.t

licing, not as a program but as a way of doing business: problem solving, relationship building and organizational transformation,” she said in a follow-up interview. “That, with procedural justice, which has four pillars: fairness, impartiality, giving voice and transparency. “For our relationship with the LGBTQ community, it is absolutely essential we embody these pillars and connection with the community,” she added. “It’s about trust and relationships we have with the community – genuine relationships with the

community where they recognize us as treating them with fairness. My responsibility, though I’m not the fulltime, permanent chief, is to influence the culture and climate of the organization and lay the foundation for a climate that supports community policing and procedural justice.” Moir said the department is “engaged ... in a specific targeted and approved diversity, equity and inclusion training.” Regarding the reallocation of resources, Moir said that that’s not op-

timal for now but is something that lawmakers should work toward. “I think we are often not the appropriate actor to respond to some calls for service,” she said. “Do I think we should remove police immediately? No. We don’t have the systems in place with the appropriate actors. Until we do, I think it’s appropriate to have police as a part of that.” The city of Napa is currently in the process of “evaluating and readdressing strategies in view of what services we do provide [and] who are the right

folks,” Moir said. Moir said she’d love to get in touch with Sutkowi-Hemstreet to discuss further. Moir hopes her tenure will expand what women and LGBTQ people feel is possible for them. “Being a woman in a masculinedominated world of policing, and being a member of the LGBTQ community, may show some young folks out there opportunities that – prior to my being here – they may not have identified,” she said. t

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556151

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039238900

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039252600

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039266900

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021

Legals>> ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556134

In the matter of the application of RANDOLPH MARTIN VARGAS, 739 VALENCIA ST #3, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner RANDOLPH MARTIN VARGAS is requesting that the name RANDOLPH MARTIN VARGAS be changed to BRANDOL MARTIN VARGAS BORRELL. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 6th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

In the matter of the application of THOMAS PATRICK MOONEY & ELIZABETH RACHAEL BULLOCK, 2221 MORAGA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner THOMAS PATRICK MOONEY & ELIZABETH RACHAEL BULLOCK is requesting that the name JOHN PATRICK O’MOONEY be changed to JOHN PATRICK MOONEY. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 13th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021

The following person(s) is/are doing business as THOMAS BRENDA P. DDS, 2299 POST ST #101, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94115. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BRENDA PEOPLES THOMAS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/04/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/04/21.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as AQUINO’S PROFESSIONAL CONSULTING, 338 BOSWORTH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed LINDA A. AQUINO RODRIGUEZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/11/21.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as INA BOTANICALS & TEA, 1766 43RD AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BERNADETTE AGUIRRE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/08/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/22/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021

See page 7 >>

<< Classifieds

8 • Bay Area Reporter • March 25-31, 2021

Legals>>

Legals

From page 8

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039274400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GENEFACTOR, 26 CAMELLIA AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GENE LEE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/09. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/26/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039274000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SURF HOTEL, 2265 LOMBARD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed NARANJIBHAI PATEL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/01/96. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/26/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039244100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE TECH TRIFECTA, 46 SUMNER ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed RYAN MEINZER. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/05/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039244500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as SRI THAI CUISINE, 4621 LINCOLN WAY, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed SIRIWAT CHITKLAEW & SONGPHOL AMORNRIT. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/23/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/08/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039268700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as HENRYS HUNAN RESTAURANT, 1708 CHURCH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed EDDY & JEFFS HUNAN INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/29/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/23/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039269900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as CALG LLP, 96 JESSIE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105. This business is conducted by a limited liability partnership, and is signed BENJAMIN FEUER (GENERAL PARTNER OF CALIFORNIA APPELLATE LAW GROUP LLP) & ANNA-ROSE MATHIESON (GENERAL PARTNER OF CALIFORNIA APPELLATE LAW GROUP LLP). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/24/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039248800

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556052

In the matter of the application of ANAHIT ABRAHAMI PASKEVICHYAN ARAKELYAN, 1071 MISSISSIPPI ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner ANAHIT ABRAHAMI PASKEVICHYAN ARAKELYAN is requesting that the name ANAHIT ABRAHAMI PASKEVICHYAN ARAKELYAN be changed to ANAHIT ABRAHAMI PASKEVICHYAN. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 29th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556141

The following person(s) is/are doing business as ON CALL PROJECT MANAGEMENT, 132 PARNASSUS AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JOANA PROCTOR GRAY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/02/88. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/17/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039263300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE FIDDLE MERCANTILE, 305 SHOTWELL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BRANDON SCOTT GODMAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/08/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/19/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039275800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as EXCELSIOR WELDING COMPANY, 261 MUNICH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ROBERTO CARLOS ACEVEDO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/11/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/26/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039280100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as JPG YOGA, 1569 DOLORES ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JOHN PAUL GAUER. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/02/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039283000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as APEX SOFTWARE SERVICES, 1535 CLEMENT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed AARON SADINO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 02/18/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/03/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039278600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as SLK TRADING CO., 899 41ST AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94121. This business is conducted by individual, and is signed SHIKAI LI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/20/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/01/21.

MAR 4, 11, 18, 25, 2021

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039269000

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of RAYMOND C. YIN (AKA RAYMOND YIN), C/O MARISSA C. SMITH (SBN#275382), 4306 GEARY BLVD #301, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. A Petition for Probate has been filed by RAYMOND C. YIN (AKA RAYMOND YIN) in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. The Petition for Probate requests that JACQUELINE L. YIN be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent. The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. The petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: March 29, 2021, 9:00 am, Rm. 204, Superior Court of California, 400 McAllister St., San Francisco, CA 94102. If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the latter of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined by section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law. You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk. Attorney for petitioner: JACQUELINE L. YIN, 4306 GEARY BLVD #301, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118; Ph. (415) 742-4522.

MAR 11, 18, 25, 2021 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556161

In the matter of the application of ANDRES MORENO, 365 WILDE AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner ANDRES MORENO is requesting that the name ANDRES MORENO be changed to ANDREW MAXIMILIAN FRIEXA. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 29th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021

In the matter of the application of HANNAH VICTORIA CENTER, 818 VAN NESS AVE #307, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner HANNAH VICTORIA CENTER is requesting that the name HANNAH VICTORIA CENTER be changed to HANNAH VICTORIA CENTER MAVERICK. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103 on the 13th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039256900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as ELECTRONIC PAYMENTS OF CALIFORNIA, FOUR EMBARCADERO CENTER #1400, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94111. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed EPICALI LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/23/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/10/21.

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF RAYMOND C. YIN (AKA RAYMOND YIN) IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO: FILE PES-20-303725

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556140

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021

The following person(s) is/are doing business as BRIDGES TO MENTAL WELLNESS, 754 ATHENS ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed KARIMAH ADISA THOMAS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/24/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039268000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as PIZZA INFERNO; GRANDMA’S HOMEMADE PASTA; PARMA PIZZAIOLO; PASTA INFERNO; 1800 FILLMORE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94115. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed 1800 FILLMORE CORP (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/23/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039281500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as PORTOLA GROCERY OUTLET, 1390 SILVER AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed FDC FOOD INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/17/16. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/02/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039277800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as PETER PANOS, 109 GEARY ST FL 2, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a married couple, and is signed PANOS ARISTAKESSIAN & SALPIE ARISTAKESSIAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/13/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/01/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039285700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as COTE OUEST BISTRO, 2953 BAKER ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed MARLAU LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 02/10/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/05/21.

MAR 11, 18, 25, APR 01 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039289900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE FRESH CUP, 798 SOUTH VAN NESS AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CYNTHIA OLMEDO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 02/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/11/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021

In the matter of the application of CHELSEA DORA TURNER, 818 VAN NESS AVE #307, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner CHELSEA DORA TURNER is requesting that the name CHELSEA DORA TURNER be changed to CHELSEA DORA SHAFRON MAVERICK. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. Dept. 103 on the 13th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039289500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as AUSSIE RECRUIT, 1387 FRANCISCO ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed AUSSIE SF BAY LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/18/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/10/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-038486300

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as ANA ELLIOTT & ASSOCIATES, 55 MANCHESTER ST #6, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business was conducted by an individual and signed by ANA ELLIOTT. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/22/19.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-038382800

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as HARMONIOUS GOODS, 2490 46TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94116. This business was conducted by a limited liability company and signed by HARMONIOUS GOODS LLC (CA). The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/01/18.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556149

STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-037897900

In the matter of the application of BISERA JAHICFERRERO, C/O ALEXANDER M. KALLIS (SBN 264915), 951 MARINERS ISLAND BLVD #300, SAN MATEO, CA 94404, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner BISERA JAHIC-FERRERO is requesting that the name BISERA JAHIC-FERRERO be changed to BISERA JAHIC FERRERO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 13th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556187

In the matter of the application of LILIA OUNDI KAZEMI, 840 POST ST #906, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner LILIA OUNDI KAZEMI is requesting that the name LILIA OUNDI KAZEMI be changed to LILIA KAZEMI. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 22nd of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039281900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as 24 BART LIQUOR STORE, 3347 24TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BINAYA POKHAREL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/01/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039277400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as CURATED STATE, 26 BRODERICK ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed COURTNEY NORRIS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/01/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/01/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039278300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as CREATIVE MUSIC OF SF ONLINE; CREATIVE MUSIK EMPORIUM, 911 SADDLEBACK DR, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ELBA CLEMENTELAMBERT. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/06/85. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/01/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039287900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as VALENTINA SADIUL PHOTOGRAPHY, 680 8TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed VALENTINA SADIUL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/16/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/09/21.

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as BAY HOTEL, 124-128 JONES ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business was conducted by a limited liability company and signed by BAPU DOLATSINH LLC (CA). The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/13/17.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556197

In the matter of the application of MOLLY ROSE BRUNO, C/O EVA M. MARTELLE (SBN 233139), ALLAN & MARTELLE LLP, 2076 LINCOLN AVE, SAN JOSE, CA 95125, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner MOLLY ROSE BRUNO is requesting that the name MOLLY ROSE BRUNO be changed to MOLLY ANIELA ROSE. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 27th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-21-556195

In the matter of the application of TARA VEERATHANONGDECH & MICHAEL PICCIRILLI, 941 PAGE ST #2, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioners TARA VEERATHANONGDECH & MICHAEL PICCIRILLI are requesting that the name MAGNUS VEERA PICCIRILLI be changed to MAGNUS LUCA PICCIRILLI. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 27th of APRIL 2021 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039291700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as QUICKFOOT BOOKS, 555 ULLOA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94127. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JOHN MAINARD ODELL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/05/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/12/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039284400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as REALLY GOOD SOUND, 2393 MISSION ST #1, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CONAN MATTISSON. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on

The following person(s) is/are doing business as BAY CITY VENDING, 310 HAMILTON ST #4, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MIA MIKA ANDERSON. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/10/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039283200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as VALDEZ OPTOMETRY, 231 MONTGOMERY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94104. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed LYNN VALDEZ OPTOMETRY (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/01/16. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/03/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039273400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GROSVENOR ATRIUM, 1690 BROADWAY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a limited partnership, and is signed VGA LLC (CA), GENERAL PARTNER. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/01/77. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/25/21.

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021

02/27/20. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/04/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039292800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as THRIVING LIFE WELLNESS CENTER, 2126 SUTTER ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94115. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CHRISTINE L. CANTWELL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/06/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/15/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039293000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as LATER DAZE, 631 O’FARRELL ST #1214, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DANA A. CHRISTY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/11/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/15/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039285800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as YOU RULE THERAPY, 58 WEST PORTAL AVE #110, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94127. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CYNTHIA HOFFMAN MFT. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/05/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039295900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GOSFRENTALS.COM, 2740 GREENWICH ST #103, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DEBBIE J. MILLIGAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/07/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/17/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039284000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TIP TOP DENTAL; TRUSTING DENTAL, 2279-A MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed DR. SOE DENTAL CORPORATION (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 02/02/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/04/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039276100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SAN FRANCISCO SPINE SURGEONS PC, 1 SHRADER ST #600, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed SAN FRANCISCO SPINE SURGEONS PC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/26/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039279700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MOVEMINT RELOCATION CONCIERGE, LLC, 1365 10TH AVE #10, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed MOVEMINT RELOCATION CONCIERGE, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/21. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/02/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039292300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as DYNAMICO.SPACE, 447 SUTTER ST #405, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed GOLDEN BAY CAPITAL, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/12/21.

MAR 25, APR 01, 08, 15, 2021

Classifieds General>>

MAR 18, 25, APR 01, 08, 2021 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-039289300

Hauling>> HAULING 24/7

(415) 441-1054 Large Truck • Security on Doors • Door Installs • Door Weather Stripping • Door Repair • Metal Gates Installed • Weather Stripping • Locks Installed • Cameras Installed • Motion Detector • Gates Repaired • Saftery Glass Install • Mailbox • Repair Wood Gates • Peep Hole • Security Prevention Work • Light Bulb Installed • Plexiglass Work • Handicap Bars Installed • Bars on Windows • Restroom Safety Bars Installed • Wooden Window Repair • Windows Locks Installed • Window Insulation Work. BONDED • LICENSED • INSURED

415-225-4637 To place your classified ad, call us at 415-861-5019

Tech Support >> MACINTOSH HELP 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE SFMacMan.com

RICK

415.821.1792

Tech Support Ralph Doore 415-867-4657

Professional 30+ years exp Virus/Malware GONE! Device setup Mobile Support Network & wireless setup Discreet

 Yelp reviews

Shervin Lainez

music. His mother was a singer and a clarinet player, and his grandmother was the music director and pianist at church. They had a definite influence on him. “I have never had a moment in my life when my family told me that I couldn’t do something or I shouldn’t do something,” he said. “They were always so supportive. They always took me to Houston and Dallas to see concerts.” Holiday recalls a time when he had a bad headache. He told his grandmother that he couldn’t sing at church. She told him that he was going to sing anyway. “And what that did is that it taught me how to persevere and push through those moments when you don’t feel good on stage,” he said. “Luckily to this day I have not had to cancel a performance due to being sick. I usually will go onto the stage and give my whole entire being, whatever I have to give, and part of that is because of the way I grew up with my grandmother always pushing me to do the very best that I could in the most beautiful of ways.” And now, after a lifetime of singing, Holiday’s star is rising. He was excited to say that he was working on securing a recording contract but noted that it was too early to reveal any details. “When I’m singing, I feel most free, I feel young, I feel most pure,” he said. “I feel that I could do any, any, any, any good thing. And so when I’m singing, I want people to know that there is joy, love and peace in it, and that my responsibility which I believe theirs is as well is to leave the world a better place with our gifts. And luckily, one of my gifts is singing, and one of my gifts is teaching, and another of my gifts is being a mentor. But our goal in life should be to leave the world a better place with those gifts that God has endowed us with.”t

by David-Elijah Nahmod

ohn Holiday, who gained national recognition from his appearances on The Voice, can be seen and heard performing everything from the classical composer Vivaldi, to the operatic “Summertime” from Porgy and Bess, to tunes made popular by Frank Sinatra. In one particularly joyous video, Holiday belts out a stunning rendition of “Over the Rainbow,” the gay anthem from The Wizard of Oz, which Holiday, who is openly gay, dedicates to Pride. On top of all that, he often accompanies himself on the piano. Holiday, 35, hails from a small town in Texas, where his grandmother encouraged his musical aspirations. And though it was The Voice that first brought him to the attention of a national audience, where he and John Legend performed a stirring duet of “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” Holiday performed at Carnegie Hall in New York as early as 2012. He is also a voice teacher. Holiday’s performances for 2020, including his scheduled debut at Metropolitan Opera, were all cancelled due to the pandemic, which led to him auditioning for The Voice. He stunned the judges with his cover of “Misty” (the Erroll Garner song made popular by Ella Fitzgerald and Johnny Mathis), with Legend smiling joyfully and proclaiming, “Yeah....” and an astonished Kelly Clarkson shaking her head and saying “Wow!” Holiday was on his way to stardom. “For me the most important aspect of picking a song is the idea of connectedness,” he said in a BAR interview. “What is it that I can bring to the floor that will allow my audiences to have some kind of connected tissue

John Holiday’s night at the opera

to the text? Is there something emotional, is there some kind of statement that the song is making? Is there some kind of statement the song is making that goes along with my platform? How does it make me feel? If it makes me feel good maybe it’ll make someone else feel good.” Holiday also spoke of why he equated “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” with Pride, pointing to a quote by Dr. Maya Angelou: “Be thankful for your storm, because there’s always a rainbow in the clouds.”

“And so I think of all of the times that our LGBTQIA brothers and sisters have gone through tumultuous times,” Holiday said. “And how we are still in some ways entrenched in those times, with egregious acts that are against some of our brothers and sisters. But I am aware of the fact that somewhere over the rainbow, there is peace, there is joy, there is love, and we have to continue to seek that peace, that love, that joy, and justice. All of that is somewhere over the rainbow.” In many ways Holiday seemed destined for

Dutch Crunch

‘Immersive Van Gogh’ arrives by Jim Gladstone

fter a year in which many of our cultural activities have taken place on screens and in cyberspace, San Franciscans are itching to get back to the terrestrial arts scene. Surely that’s one of the reasons that the public has been gobbling up pricey tickets to

Immersive Van Gogh, the blockbuster touring exhibition in residence through September 6 at SVN West, the massive event space and former Honda dealership, at the intersection of Market Street and Van Ness Avenue. Having attended a preview just prior to the show’s official opening, I can confirm that the sensation of being completely surrounded by animated highlights of the Dutch master’s oeuvre while buffeted by a thunderously am-

plified soundtrack is great fun and sometimes even a bit uplifting. That uplift is provided by the brushstrokes of Van Gogh –captured in all their textural glory in extraordinary highresolution photography– and the wizardly technological choreography of Show One, the Toronto-based production company behind this touring spectacle. But let’s be honest. This show has much more in common with our cultural intake

Read the full interview on www.ebar.com during the pandemic than with our best preCOVID art experiences. It’s a digitally mediated, largely antisocial experience. This is emphasized by the social distancing circles projected on the venue floor which keep visitors safely cosseted within their own pods rather than intermingling with strangers in real time. One of my favorite things about going to museums is the carte blanche they give you to look at other people looking at art, to gauge your impressions against the looks on other patrons’ faces and their comments to each other about the work. Here, it’s too dark to enjoy your fellow exhibit-goers’ changing facial expressions as they get dive-bombed by scary Van Gogh crows or marvel at the gorgeously unfurling iris petals that, to this viewer, provide the show’s most stirring moment. And that audio system makes eavesdropping impossible. It’s so loud, you can barely share your thoughts with whoever you’re attending the show with. None of this is a bad thing. It’s just not the thing that many commentators and promoters want to suggest that it is. Immersive Van Gogh is no epoch-ending opportunity to vote with your feet for the distinctive joys of pre-pandemic society. It’s just a higher-browed sibling of The Museum of Ice Cream. No harm, no foul. But no return to lost glory.t Immersive Van Gogh through September 6. $24.99 (children)-$55.00 10 South Van Ness Ave. www.vangoghsf.com

For tips on visiting, read the full review on www.ebar.com

LIVING HISTORY DISCUSSION THE BAY AREA REPORTER AT 50: WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT OF LGBTQ HISTORY FREE/DONATION • FRIDAY, APRIL 2, 6PM

Hosted by the GLBT Historical Society, a group of activists, writers and culture-makers will recount their relationship to and history of the BAR. Pre-register now: https://bit.ly/2PtYutC

<< Film & Books

10 • Bay Area Reporter • March 25-31, 2021

Locally-made, with love.

Lebowitz’ Netflix series The Pretender Fran excavates New York City by Brian Bromberger

Gay-owned, locally in SF! FREE DELIVERY IN SAN FRANCISCO COUNTY 1-844-23-COCOA 1-844-23-26262 Winner Best Chocolatier in America Award, ‘20 & ‘21 Winner Good Food Award, 2018

M i c h a e l s c h o c o l at e s . c o M

here’s an unintended poignancy to Pretend It’s A City, the new limited-series documentary on Netflix, showcasing author, public speaker, and humorist Fran Lebowitz. Filmed in 2019, it portrays a vibrant Manhattan chock full of people engaging in normal daily activities, that are almost nonexistent in our pandemic world and now sorely missed. The chief draw of Pretend is bright banter in the form of witty, often acerbic, quips Lebowitz volleys about her beloved city as well as her personal philosophy of life. Her co-conspirator and close friend is Martin Scorsese, who is her conversation partner (great director, lousy interviewer) but is mainly there to feed her suggested discussion ideas and laugh hyper-hysterically over literally everything Leibowitz says. Pretend is their second collaboration as Scorsese made a 2010 HBO film documentary Public Speaking following Lebowitz in her travels. Similar to Public, it includes clips of TV interviews/appearances Lebowitz has done with others.We watch shots of her strolling through the streets in her standard uniform: Levi’s jeans, white shirts, cowboy boots, male blazers, and her now trademark tortoiseshell glasses. Lebowitz, now 70, grew up in Morristown, New Jersey, was ex-

Fran Lebowitz

pelled from high school, and moved to NYC at age 19. She began her career as a columnist for Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine and won acclaim for two collections of satirical essays: Metropolitan Life (1978) and Social Studies (1981), though having experienced “writer’s blockade” for decades, has since rarely written. Lebowitz supports herself through speaking engagements (especially on campuses where she’s very popular with students, despite being anti-technology). She has redefined the role of public intellectual, democratizing it through her clever remarks and wisecracks, and her masterful observational humor. As the contemporary Dorothy Parker, she seems to have an opinion on almost every conceivable issue as well as airing her pet peeves.

Pretend could be considered a love letter to New York except Lebowitz is quite critical of the city, even though she is aware it is changing constantly and is never boring. The title comes from her annoyance at ‘morons’ who are always on their cell phones, not looking where they are going, especially when crossing intersections, hence her advice, “Pretend it’s a city.” Still, it’s stunning that in a portrait of NYC, the world’s largest queer city, her being a lesbian is mentioned for literally one minute during the course of a 3.5 hour show, which is bound to disappoint LGBTQ audiences. Pretend It’s A City will be most meaningful to viewers who grew up or lived there. But unless you are a diehard fan, this is not the kind of series that lends itself to bingewatching. While often amusing and insightful, Lebowitz can be abrasive and cranky in her brutal honesty and iconoclasm, though she has impeccable timing in her delivery as a matchless raconteur. This documentary may prove Mae West’s adage that too much of a good thing can be a bad thing, with its tedious patches. There’s an undercurrent of cultural elitism indigenous to the affluent also here.t

Read the full review on www.ebar.com

Reading Out Women’s History Month by Victoria A. Brownworth

A Professional headshots / profile pics Weddings / Events

StevenUnderhill 415 370 7152 • StevenUnderhill.com

Let’s talk cannabis. CASTRO • MARINA • SOMA C10-0000523-LIC; C10-0000522-LIC; C10-0000515-LIC

nother Women’s History Month is winding down with lesbian, bisexual, queer and trans women largely left in the shadows, where they have spent most of history. Here are some new books from established and new writers that center LBTQ women and offer reminders that such stories have rarely and barely been told–and representation matters. The Selected Works of Audre Lorde by Audre Lorde, edited and with an introduction by Roxane Gay Norton; 384pp; $16.95 There is perhaps no more significant writer of radical lesbian feminist theory than Audre Lorde. Roxane Gay’s new, definitive selection of what Gay calls Lorde’s “intelligent, fierce, powerful, sensual, provocative, indelible” prose and poetry is exceptional reading. It is also a compendia to introduce Lorde to a new generation of readers. Self-described “Black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet,” Lorde was one of the first writers to center the experiences of Black lesbian/queer women. As she wrote back in the early 1970s: “The true feminist deals out of a lesbian consciousness, whether or not she ever sleeps with women.” This new essential reader is packed with power, and highlights Lorde’s massive contributions to intersectional feminism, queer theory and critical race studies in 12 essays and more than 60 poems, all of which have been selected and introduced by Gay, herself a major writer on race and gender. Among the essays included here are Lorde’s most famous “The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the

Master’s House,” “I Am Your Sister” and excerpts from her books A Litany for Survival and Sister Outsider. This is a book that belongs on every bookshelf as Lorde’s words belong in every lexicon. As Lorde stated, with her characteristic acuity, “Revolution is not a onetime event.” Reading Lorde remains a revolutionary act, now more than ever. The Power of Adrienne Rich: A Biography by Hilary Holladay Nan A. Talese; $32.50; 496pp Holladay’s book is the first comprehensive biography of Adrienne Rich, feminist and lesbian icon and internationally acclaimed Guggenheim and National Book Awardwinning poet. No woman shaped the modern poetic landscape more than Rich did, and her story of personal invention and re-invention is an extraordinary tale of radical transformation and unflinching, integrity-driven politics, polity and so much writing. A Radcliffe-educated lyric poet and married mother of three sons, Rich turned, mid-life, into a path-breaking lesbian-feminist author, coming out into the lesbian life she had always wanted to live. She partnered with Jamaican writer Michelle Cliff in 1976 until her death in 2012. Rich was a vital, sometimes abrasive voice for the vulnerable and a non-stop crusader for women in general and lesbians in specific. She wrote some of the most critical and crucial essays and analyses of feminism and women’s lives of the late 20th century. Holladay’s somewhat uneven telling of Rich’s story culls from a plethora of unpublished materials, including Rich’s correspondence and in-depth interviews with numerous people who knew her.

Holladay’s biography is powerful, essential reading that should spark a revisiting of Rich’s work. Lady Romeo: The Radical and Revolutionary Life of Charlotte Cushman, America’s First Celebrity by Tana Wojczuk Simon & Schuster; 240pp; $27 Charlotte Cushman was a towering, iconic performer known on two continents as the greatest actor, female or male, of her time. Born in Boston in 1816, a family tragedy propelled Cushman onto the stage as a teenager: her family was destitute and needed money. Cushman fell in love with the stage and it her. She began a career of nearly four decades in the U.S. and Europe, captivating audiences that included Abraham Lincoln, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Queen Victoria. Walt Whitman wrote of “the towering grandeur of her genius” and Louisa May Alcott put her in a novel. Cushman made both women and men swoon from the stage, but Cushman lived openly as a lesbian, setting up a lesbian enclave in Rome for artists and writers that included several of her lovers, often vying for her attentions. Drama followed Cushman, on and off the stage. The excerpts from Cushman’s letters make the story of her complicated personal life riveting reading. Wojczuk’s framing is enticing and gives a clear sense that Cushman’s lovers were as in thrall to her as were her audiences. Lady Romeo is a provocative, fun and easy read. While academic biographies are often pedantic and plodding, Wojczuk writes with a gossipy, entré nous style that brings this queer icon vividly to life.t

For more reviews, including Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo and Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, visit www.ebar.com

TV>>

March 25-31, 2021 • Bay Area Reporter • 11

Chris Meloni returns

Christopher Meloni returns to Law & Order with a new spin-off.

by Victoria A. Brownworth

hen Chris Meloni left Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2011, many queried if the show could survive without the dynamic Meloni’s character, Det. Eliot Stabler had created with his partner, Det. Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay). But a decade later, Hargitay owns what is now the longest-running drama on TV, Det. Benson has risen to Captain and Hargitay is the longest starring female lead in TV history. The return of Eliot has been teased repeatedly, but never materialized–until now. Law & Order: Organized Crime is the seventh series in the Law & Order franchise which debuted with the original show in 1990. The new series will debut April 1 in a crossover event with SVU. Law & Order: Organized Crime has Stabler return to the NYPD after a personal loss to lead a new task force that battles organized crime. Unsurprisingly, Stabler –who was always a loose cannon who often represented exactly why we need police reform and was always a tough guy who stuffed his feelings– finds that the criminal justice system has changed over the past decade. NBC says of Stabler’s return: “He must adapt to a criminal justice system in the midst of its own moment of reckoning. Throughout the series, we will follow Stabler’s journey to find absolution and rebuild his life, while leading a new elite task force that is taking apart the city’s most powerful criminal syndicates one by one.” Meloni has often gravitated to butch daddy roles. Prior to SVU he starred in the prison series, Oz. There he played Chris Keller, one of the most amoral of the characters, for five seasons. Keller was a bisex-

Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) appeared on CNN to denounce anti-Asian hate crimes.

ual serial killer and psychopath who preyed upon gay men in the outside world while hiding his sexual orientation through a series of marriages. A very hot and cut Meloni spent a lot of time shirtless. Since SVU, Meloni has co-starred on some notable series, among them True Blood, Veep, The Handmaid’s Tale and Pose and starred in the Syfy series, Happy. Meloni was fabulous in Pose as Elektra Wintour’s sugar daddy. Law & Order: Organized Crime is helmed by out lesbian show runner Ilene Chaiken. Chaiken created the iconic series The L Word and its reboot, The L Word: Generation Q, as well as the reality series The Real L Word. Chaiken also was executive producer on Empire. She has been executive producer of The Handmaid’s Tale since 2017. All that queerness Chaiken has brought to her series is bound to influence Law & Order: Organized Crime. One of the chief complaints about the Law & Order franchise has been no queer characters in a city the size of New York. SVU recently added a bisexual character, Kat Tamin (Jamie Gray Hyder), to the squad. But as is so often the case on TV, she does double duty as the squad’s only woman of color. The new series has several women of color in the main cast, including Tamara Taylor (Bones) and Daniele Moné Truitt (Rebel), which is promising. Meloni is so good, and Chaiken is so adept, we’re sure Law & Order: Organized Crime will soar–hopefully with queer characters in the mix.

Anti-Asian hate crimes

Another story of misogyny + racism + guns played out across our TV screens this week. Eight people murdered by yet another angry white guy who didn’t get enough “WAP.” Richard Aaron Long, 21, killed seven women, six of them Asian, as well as a white veteran who worked at one of the Asian-run massage parlors that Long frequented. Long was having a “bad day,” Capt. Jay Baker of the Cherokee County Sheriff ’s Office told us in a televised press conference. Long was “fed up.” And so he bought a gun and killed the women he blamed for his professed “sex addiction.” Two days later we watched Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) in tears on

CNN as she responded to Rep. Chip Roy’s (R-TX) use of lynching imagery while he dismissed the escalating violence against Asian/AAPI people that his party has fomented. Then we saw an interview with Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), who was born in the Poston War Relocation Center, an internment camp in Arizona. It wasn’t that long ago if Matsui is younger than the President. Then a GNC Korean lesbian friend told us about how she was standing on a street corner when someone said a series of anti-Asian and antigay slurs behind her and when she turned, they shoved her hard and she narrowly missed falling into oncoming traffic. Then we cried. CNN’s Kyung Lah has been covering anti-Asian/AAPI violence for months. Anchors Brianna Keilar and Erin Burnett have highlighted the issue often. Both women have called out Trump surrogates using anti-Asian slurs to describe the COVID-19 pandemic during the previous administration. Keilar famously cut away from Peter Navarro after he referenced the “China virus.” But the response to the escalating violence–one Asian/AAPI advocacy group we spoke with noted they had received thousands of reports of harassment and violence in 2020–has been overwhelmingly silence from mainstream media and our nonAsian/AAPI electeds.t

For more TV coverage, including Sharon Osbourne’s racist comments on and off-camera at The Talk, the second season of the queer disability comedy Special, and HBO Max’s trans docuseries The Lady and The Dale, read the full column on www.ebar.com

n o p Ho . . . r e ov

ster a e o t ff en stu ver ything d r a g From find e ts. l l ’ u o ske es, y suppli tuff your ba to s

479 Castro Street, San Francisco, CA 94114

www.cliffsvariety.com

Avenidas April 2021

Calendar of Events

March 31 2:30pm-3:30pm A Great Day at Filoli Q Programs Coordinator/Community Liaison. Join us for a tour through the beautiful landscapes of Filoli Estate and Gardens, enjoy lunch in the café, and experience the current Botanical Art Exhibit. Initiative, will provide hisand unique insights intoonline thefor the day. Go to filoli.org to learn more about how to purchase your tickets. After Admission is $22-25 dollars reservations must be made purchasing your tickets, please email Thomas Kingery at LGBTQ@avenidas.org to join our tour group and get further meet up information.

April 1 3:00pm-4:00pm Avenidas Wonder Woman Lesbian Social Group n, Stanford Forgiveness You’re invited to come beProject. a part of our lesbian community. Open discussions, social conversations, and good times are to be expected. Bring your unique flair and personality to the group and help us in becoming the best social group for Lesbian women in north Santa Clara County. Join us on the first and mental health. He offers easily practiced skills

HOP 2

and third Thursday of each month.

April 5

2:30pm-3:30pm

Avenidas LGBTQ Elder Empowerment and Connections Group

April 8

3:00pm-3:30pm

Gay Men’s Walking Group

“SOGIE; Sexual Orientation Gender Identity and Expression. Pt. 1” This month we will be offering participants a better understanding of the different identities within the LGBTQ Community. Join us and learn why the LGBTQ community encourages the use of gender-neutral language and non-binary pronouns. Empower yourself and the community by helping us to create an environment of support and learning.

The Gay Men’s Walking Group is a great way to get out of the house and make new friends in a safe and responsible way. The guys meet for lunch, exercise, and social engagement, while social distancing and wearing masks, during the second and fourth weekend of each month. The Thursday meeting on Zoom is the planning meeting for the upcoming walk. Join us on the second and fourth Thursday of each month at 3pm to plan the walk for the following weekend.

SSUES Diana Dean Gendotti April 8 4:00pm-5:00pm Avenidas Song Appreciation Group ndotti is an estate planning and trust administration Theme of the Day: “Favorite Song by an LGBTQ Artist” Songs hold meaning. Come join us and share your songs that have touched your life. Submit your who has been licensed for 31group years, andThomas has Kingery an at tkingery@avenidas.org then during the group zoom meeting we will play your song song in advance via email to the facilitator and provide the lyrics to the group to read along. After the Los Altos. She will highlight the critical aspectssong ofhas been played, we discuss the meaning of the song and how it relates to the you and the topic of the day. anning, especially as it relates to LGBTQ issues. y burningApril questions! 15 3:00pm-4:00pm Avenidas Wonder Woman Lesbian Social Group

Instructor, will19lead2:30pm-3:30pm everyone in a quickAvenidas and April LGBTQ Elder Empowerment and Connections Group

HOP 4

“SOGIE; Sexual Orientation Gender Identity and Expression. Pt. 2” Frank Pena, certified SOGIE trainer, will offer a short presentation on the different identities within the LGBTQ Community as well as joining in our discussion on the use of gender-neutral language and non-gendered pro-nouns. This is a safe space for authentic conversations. Empower yourself and the community by helping us to create an environment of support and learning. Join us on the first and third Monday of each month.

April 22

3:00pm-3:30pm

Gay Men’s Walking Group

OUR VILLAGE April 22 4:00pm-5:00pm Avenidas Song Appreciation Group Theme of the Day: Favorite Love Song rs: Jenn Chan and Loretta Austin, Avenidas ity is especially important right now. Building and 23 12:00pm-1:00pm AARP LGBT Prepare to Care Workshop With Avenidas Rainbow Collective ening yourApril village will help oryou Discover Caring for a family member close thrive. friend is one of the most important roles you will play. Having a plan and preparing for the future is critical. Join AARP and Avenidas Rainbow Collective a Prepare to Care workshop and learn how to create a plan using five simple steps. No matter where you are ities for new connections with ourforintergenerational in the journey of family caregiving, anticipating a need, helping to coordinate a big move, or taking care of a family member full-time, having a plan to program and social groups. Learn where to find help guide you and your loved one will make the process easier. RSVP: https://aarp.cvent.com/caregiving042321 or contact Grace-Sonia Melanio at (669) 212-4385. ty resources and how to build a safe space.

Affairs

Free and inclusive to all! Register on our website at avenidas.org/programs/lgbtq-seniors-initiative/ or email LGBTQ@avenidas.org, or call (650) 289-5433 to get registration assistance.

(650) 289-5400 • www.avenidas.org

Please reference the name of group or event that you are interested in joining.

With support from the County of Santa Clara, Office of LGBTQ Affairs

n up at www.avenidas.org

Call (650) 289-5433 or sign up at www.avenidas.org