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PHOTOSERIES PROVIDES SNAPSHOT OF SF QUEER IDENTITIES
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GOLDEN GATE
SF State’s student-run publication since 1927 CITY
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SOCCER
Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2019
Alumnus in critical condition after shooting
CAMPUS
Chinese cultural program closes
University cornered by U.S. government, loses Confucius Institute
BY CARLY WIPF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Demonstrators Tana Shauf-Bagas, Alexis David and Dr. Valerie Francisco-Menchavez (L-R) rally for Brandon Lee. (David Mamaril Horowitz/ Golden Gate Xpress)
BY DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ CITY NEWS EDITOR
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F State alumnus Brandon Lee suffered four bullets to his back, spine and jaw on Aug. 6 in the Ifugao Province of the Philippines while living there as an environmental activist. Family, friends and
colleagues of Lee are urging U.S. representatives to protect him and hold the Philippine government accountable. He’s survived eight cardiac arrests and remains on life support in critical condition, according to his close friend
Princess Bustos. Bustos, who is in regular contact with Lee’s mother and brother staying with him in the Philippines, said “suspicious people” appear to be surveilling Lee in the hospital and have asked for his medical records.
The shooting drew more than 60 people to the steps of San Francisco City Hall three days after he was shot. Demonstrators alongside Supervisor Gordon Mar demanded that the U.S. government protect Lee, investigate the shoot-
ing, censure the Philippine government and halt its funding toward the Philippine military. “I join (Lee’s) friends and family … in condemning the unconscionable human CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
CITY
San Francisco files joint lawsuit over Donald Trump’s newest anti-immigration policy Public benefits may cost immigrants chance at permanent residency BY DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ CITY NEWS EDITOR
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anta Clara County and the city of San Francisco sued the Department of Homeland Security on Aug. 13 over a federal rule broadening what public benefits can be considered grounds for denying an immigrant permanent U.S. residency.
GGX_FALL_2019_Issue 1.indd 1
“This rule forces people to make an impossible choice: their health or a better future for their family,” San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera stated in a press release. Sixteen states have since filed lawsuits opposing the rule, which would take effect
beginning Oct. 15. The regulation would redefine who is considered a “public charge,” a classification that can prevent immigrants who are entering or living in the U.S. from becoming permanent residents, according to the Immigration Act of 1882.
In 1999, the Department of Justice defined a “public charge” as an immigrant who is currently or is likely to become primarily dependant upon government-subsidized cash or long-term institutional care. The new provisions would CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
A wide-reaching Chinese cultural exchange program closed its doors after a 14 year run, buckling under federal pressures that threatened the funding of the university’s other language program: Chinese Flagship. The Confucius Institute, which will no longer have a presence at the university, brought free Chinese language and cultural education to SF State and other K through 12 schools throughout San Francisco. It also sent SF State cinema department students to China for film projects. Chinese Flagship received money from the Department of Defense (DOD) to help approximately 30 students per year study Mandarin and travel abroad. Confucius Institutes are funded by Hanban, an agency under the Chinese Ministry of Education. Last year, President Donald Trump signed the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019. The act specifically bars the federal government from giving funds to universities for Chinese language programs that are affiliated with any of the worldwide Confucius Institutes, meaning the DOD funded Flagship could lose funding if SF State continued supporting the Confucius Institute. The law was sparked by a series of U.S. concerns toward the Chinese Government. Sen. Marco Rubio asked FBI Director Christopher Wray at a U.S. Senate meeting if he was worried that Confucius Institutes were trying to manipulate public opinion and teach a sanitized version of Chinese history that favored the Chinese government. “We do share concerns about the Confucius Institutes,” Wray said in response. “We’ve been watching that development for a while. It’s just one of many tools that they take advantage of.” SF State and other universities across CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
8/27/19 3:47 PM
2•CAMPUS
TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG
Professor Confucius Institute closes to threatened save Chinese Flagship major in letter BY SAHAR SWALEH ONLINE AND SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR
As the College of Ethnic Studies prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary, a Palestinian professor received a vulgar letter in her mailbox on Aug. 13 calling for ethnic cleansing of Muslims in the U.S. Rabab Abdulhadi, Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas studies director and Muslim Student Association adviser, relies on student volunteers to check her mailbox when she is away. A student found the envelope and quickly shared it with Dr. Abdulhadi. The letter’s author didn’t provide a name but claimed to be a retired New York City police detective. The letter called Abdulhadi a “filthy, sneaky, malevolent swine,” “filthy eater of camel s---” and “sand monkey.” The author described Israel as triumphant and wrote that the Israel Defense Forces will win against Palestine, Abdulhadi’s country of origin. “I am very scared for my safety, my students and my community members,” Abdulhadi said. “This is a direct threat that is intended to silence me.” Abdulhadi has been targeted before as a pro-Palestine advocate. Canary Mission, a website that hosts dossiers on students, faculty and organizations has posted about her before, saying she endorsed hate speech. The Lawfare Project sued her and SF State in 2017, ultimately losing when a federal judge dismissed the case in October 2018. The AMCHA Initiative also accused her of supporting terrorism. Abdulhadi compared the language used in the threatening letter to Islamophobic and racist tweets by President Donald Trump against U.S. Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, who are both Muslim. The self-described police detective claims in the letter that although he would “never advocate violence as a remedy,” Abdulhadi should be careful if “accidents happen and if one should strike.” Abdulhadi alerted the dean of the College of Ethnic Studies and the University Police Department upon receiving the letter. Kent Bravo, a media relations specialist for SF State, said UPD has “an active investigation so [they] cannot provide any additional information.” Jemina Amatoru, a cellular and molecular biology graduate, saw the letter on Facebook where Abdulhadi had uploaded it. “I felt disgusted by the letter,” Amatoru said. “The profanity stood out to me and the fact [SF] State can’t really protect the faculty is already not great.” Amatoru and Abdulhadi fear for the safety of students as well. “I am worried about my students and for the upcoming semester,” Abdulhadi said. “They [the sender of the letter] know where my office and AMED is.” Although the letter was made known to the university, no email or other forms of notice have been sent to the student body.
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
BY CARLY WIPF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
the nation were given an ultimatum: lose the Confucius Institute or lose Flagship. The university applied for a waiver, to save its Confucius Institute but was ultimately denied, according to Yenbo Wu, vice president of the Office of International Education. “Later we learned that all such waiver applications were denied,” Wu said. “Which means to everybody’s understanding, it was never intended to give any waiver.” Former university president Leslie Wong announced the closure on May 2, 2019. Sentiments toward protecting the Confucius Institute, caused insecurity for Flagship majors like third-year student Abby Wilson who said, because Wong did not cut ties immediately, he put students at risk. “This definitely put a lot of pressure on students like me and my classmates who were relying on flagship funding,” Wilson said, adding that it wasn’t very clear what the risks were for students working with the Confucius Institute.
Wilson said the money she received each year from Flagship was supposed to be her golden ticket for the schooling and study abroad required to complete the major. “We entered Flagship based on that promise,” Wilson said. “And I felt like we were really caught in the crossfire — students were caught in the crossfire of political issues.” Wu said the Confucius Institute at SF State has not done anything legally or ethically wrong, but that he cannot speak on behalf of other institutes. “I do know, although, the government is watching those Confucius Institutes because they are funded largely by the Chinese government,” Wu said. “Anything nowadays related to China and the Chinese government is suspicious, it seems.” The nation-wide closure of Confucius Institutes comes at a time of heightened trade tensions between the two economic powerhouses. “In this interconnected world — particularly in the relationship between the two largest economies in the world
— the mutual understanding, the dialogue, the conversation, the people to people exchange, these things are so so key and important for engagement,” Wu said. “Hopefully [it] creates a smooth future and a peaceful future.” Wu said there is really no evidence that anyone is trying to sabotage the U.S. and that people
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Anything nowadays related to China and the Chinese government is suspicious, it seems.
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might be inclined to see Confucius Institutes as a scheme to advance China’s interests because of the current strain on U.S.-China relations. The allegations stating China exerted its influence through university programs are not true, according to Wu, because the institute belongs to the university. “We applied to host a Confucius Institute, so
remember this is not the Chinese government imposing something on us, we wanted it,” Wu said. As part of the university’s Division of International Education, Wu himself reviewed programs and funding proposals that were sent Hanban. When Hanban approved the programs and disbursed funds to SF State, the university would match that amount. “Imagine those hundreds of thousands of young students in Northern California that got this opportunity to learn Chinese language through our programs, and now suddenly they are gone and for no good reason,” Wu said. “Why do we do this to ourselves?” Wilson said both Flagship and the Confucius Institute benefited students, but both programs had the motivation to place political pawns in each others’ countries, especially in the cases of students who are in SF State Flagship and UC Berkeley’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs at the same time. “Of course students being in flagship helps
the U.S. government,” Wilson said. “At least they think it has benefits and that they can use students in this way to gain intel and create a beneficial relationship for the U.S., between the U.S. and China.” Wilson said she felt sorry for the educators within the Confucius Institute, but was relieved for both her peers and herself that Flagship remained untouched. Former head of the Confucius Institute Jiaxin Xie said that just because the Confucius Institute closed, that doesn’t mean that SF State would stop supporting Chinese cultural programs. The university will still host Chinese Culture Day during International Education Week through Division of International Education funding. “I feel that this is a challenge and also an opportunity for the university because we had these very reliable very strong resources and very reliable partners, so we can still do our part in promotion of international education through Chinese language culture programs,” Xie said.
SF State welcomes newest addition to UPD BY DIMITRI BAILEY STAFF REPORTER
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eginald Parson, SF State’s newly dubbed chief of police, pledges to help the university police department build a safer community for students. The SF State alumnus was born in Frankfurt, Germany. His family often migrated from place to place due to his father’s military career before they settled permanently in the South Bay. “As an army brat,” Parson said, “I moved a lot with my family until my father retired and settled down when I was 10 years old in Seaside California.” As the youngest sibling of four, Parson attended Seaside High School before making his way to SF State, where he later graduated in 2004, earning his bachelor’s degree in psychology. With the encouragement of his military family and friends, Parson strayed from his origi-
nal goal of pursuing a human resources career. “My older brother was a Security Forces Officer in the Air Force. He was assigned to Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland for 12 years, so he was my inspiration into my [law enforcement] career,” Parson said. With 23 years of experience on the police force, a degree in psychology, and assuming the role of interim chief of police of UPD from May 2015 through August 2016, Parson acquired a vast wealth of knowledge and experience that aids him in the field. Parson said his psychology degree gives him a leg up in handling high intensity situations and understanding human behavior. University crime activity can be viewed on the daily crime log. Parson plans to combat and minimize campus crime by working closely with SF
State students and administration through strengthening communication via community engagement. “My intention is for the UPD to be an integral partner in building community at SF State,” Parson said. “The UPD will seek to build collaborations with students, staff and faculty to facilitate a safe environment for all community members.” The chief of police also plans to work closely with Lynn Mahoney, the newly appointed SF State president, on establishing new training ideas and policies for SF State police. “I look forward to working with President Mahoney,” Parson said. “The UPD has a variety of training and engaging programs such as our Community Liaison Unit (CLU) to the campus community. However, we’ve had challenges with promoting these services.” He said he plans to work with the
university’s Strategic Marketing & Communications division to improve UPD’s marketing and promotional efforts. Parson said he will also consider seeking law enforcement accreditation through the Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.
Reginold Parson, an SF State alumnus will take on teh role of new university police chief starting this fall. (Photo courtesy of Chief Parson)
8/27/19 3:47 PM
SCIENCE & TECH•3
GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019
SF State born FogCam signs off
EVENT CALENDAR
8/28 YUGOSLAV CINEMA The Best of Yugoslav Cinema: Love affair, or the Case of the Missing Switchboard Operator 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Copola theater in the Fine Arts building.
8/28-29
FOOD CUPBOARD
Every Wednesday and Thursday at the pyramid next to Jack Adams Hall students can get meals and snacks for free with student ID.
8/29 REFLECTING WORKSHOP
From 2-3 p.m. in the library, room 242, there will be a free journaling workshop.
9/1 FOOD PANTRY
A screenshot of live FogCam footage following construction progress at the site of the future Liberal and Creative Arts building.
BY FRANK SUMRALL PRINT MANAGING EDITOR
I
t’s 1994 in the Bay Area. Some 2,600 journalists are on strike against both the San Francisco Chronicle and Examiner. The San Francisco 49ers hoist the Lombardi trophy for the fifth time in franchise history. And nearby, Stanford hosts the first U.S.based World Cup. Twenty-five years later, Baghdad by the Bay has drastically changed. Journalism has turned its back on paper in favor of the internet. The 49ers have missed the playoffs 16 times in the last 19 years. And soccer has never been more popular in the U.S. as the country awaits the World Cup’s re-
From 12:30-3:00 p.m. students can get up to a week’s worth of food at the Student Life Event Center at the Annex.
9/2
turn in 2026. Yet one piece of the city remains unchanged: SF State’s FogCam, the on-campus camera that has captured Karl the Fog for the last 25 years as he slinks into the city and blankets the skyline with his soupy cloud. But all good things must come to an end. “After 25 years, FogCam is shutting down forever at the end of August,” Jeff Schwartz and Dan Wong, the site’s creators and administrators, tweeted on Saturday. “The Internet has changed a lot since 1994, but FogCam will always have a special place in its history.”
FogCam was coined the oldest running webcam in operation, with fogcam.org holding the rank as one of the oldest websites ever created. Though the camera has changed locations throughout the years, SF State has been its home for a quarter-century. The camera is currently mounted by the J. Paul Leonard Library and faces Holloway Avenue, updating with a new image every 20 seconds to show how the fog rolls in and out of the city. The webcam’s genesis came in the form of a graduate school project by Schwartz and Wong. Inspired by the Trojan Room Coffee Pot cam that pre-dated
the internet from the University of Cambridge, FogCam grew into something substantial. “It was just a little pet project that developed a life of its own,” Schwartz said in an interview. “People liked it so we kept it going.” But with the passage of time, the project became too much of a hassle to maintain. “It’s just time to move on,” Schwartz said. Another quirky chapter in San Francisco history will officially close Aug. 30.
Forget Greenland, remember Puerto Rico
LABOR DAY
Campus will be closed for Labor Day.
MATTER OF FACT
Corrections will be placed here in future issues. To get in touch with our newsroom, email ggxnewsroom@ gmail.com
OPINION•3.5
BY ANDREW R. LEAL OPINION EDITOR
A
jest from President Donald Trump over Twitter on Aug. 19 became a national conversation about the U.S. purchasing Greenland from Denmark. And while the president has jokingly tweeted before — like a comedian trying out bits for a possible Netflix special — his enthusiasm for increasing the landmass of the U.S. would be better channeled to existing territory in the union. Trump should press for Puerto Rico to be the 51st state because, after decades of complex legal and political status and a personal beef with the island, it is simply the right thing to do. Puerto Rico, a Caribbean island and unincorporated U.S. territory, is well known in the news since Hurricane Maria, a Category 4 storm that hit the island on Sept. 20, 2017. The storm devastated the island’s infrastructure and resulted in 64 deaths by official counts, but it was estimated to actually be more than 4,600 deaths, according to a Har-
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vard University study. Puerto Rican authorities have since requested $94 billion to offset the damages from Maria. The U.S. acquired Puerto Rico under the Treaty of Paris of 1898 following the Spanish-American War. However, nearly two decades would pass before Puerto Ricans would receive U.S. citizenship in the form of a statute — citizenship different from those on the mainland and easily taken away with the passage of a bill. Puerto Rico has a population of 3.4 million, which would rank 30th among the 50 current states, and sends no senators to Congress, only a representative who acts more as a delegate due to the territory’s limited voting privileges and the absence of an electoral vote. In terms of economic value to the U.S., Puerto Rico has a gross domestic product of about $101 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. However, about 43% of Puerto Ricans experience
poverty, which means they are more impoverished compared to any of the 50 U.S. states. And it shares that same last-place ranking with unemployment at 10%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. What Puerto Rico does have is the political infrastructure to make the transition to statehood, with a governor who acts as its executive, a two-body legislative chamber with 78 elected members, a judiciary and a constitution which enshrines the island’s laws. Most importantly, the Puerto Rican people have demonstrated a love for the democratic process, with voter participation at above 50%, which is in the same ballpark as most states. And Puerto Ricans have voted on the referendum for statehood five times in the territory’s history, most recently on June 11, 2017, just months before Hurricane Maria hit the island. That June 2017 referendum passed with 97% in favor of statehood. Congress did not respond to the Puerto Rican people’s refer-
endum. There are those who would argue that Puerto Rico should not be a state. Those in opposition to statehood point to the 23% voter turnout for the 2017 referendum, the island’s debt of $124 billion and Puerto Rico’s governor scandal as reasons for their stance. Trump has ignored Puerto Rico’s repeat calls for statehood and instead turns his back on U.S. citizens for a pipe dream to harness Greenland, whose people do not want their home up for sale. However, if Puerto Rico was made a state, it would have actual political and legal representation in the federal government to better access resources when necessary, like after Hurricane Maria hit the island, and its people could be full U.S. citizens under the Constitution. So, President Trump, if you want to do some good to Americans who need help instead of discussing a fantasy Greenland acquisition, make Puerto Rico the 51st state.
8/27/19 3:47 PM
4•CITY
TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG
GOLDEN Local LGBTQ+ groups hold GATE a Month of Momentum to
X
PRESS protest ICE
EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Carly Wipf cwipf@mail.sfsu.edu
PRINT MANAGING EDITOR Frank Sumrall fsumrall@mail.sfsu.edu
ONLINE MANAGING AND SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Sahar Swaleh sswaleh@mail.sfsu.edu
ART DIRECTOR Emily Ayer eayer@mail.sfsu.edu
CITY NEWS EDITOR David Mamaril Horowitz dhorowitz@mail.sfsu.edu
CAMPUS NEWS EDITOR Paisley Trent ptrent@mail.sfsu.edu
OPINION EDITOR Andrew R. Leal aleal@mail.sfsu.edu
SPORTS EDITOR Jimmy DeRogatis jderogatis@mail.sfsu.edu
COPY EDITOR Cody McFarland cmcfarla@mail.sfsu.edu
BY JUAN CARLOS LARA & DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ STAFF REPORTERS
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wo demonstrators held a giant floral bed sheet reading “Queers for Open Borders” in front of San Francisco’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services headquarters on Aug. 19. Dozens stood beside them protesting the agency’s treatment of the LGBTQ+ community at the U.S.-Mexico border. Dubbed “Queers Melt ICE,” the gathering was one of this August’s daily demonstrations against the immigration agency’s border policies — a month-long succession of curbside protests named the “Month of Momentum.” “The idea is that every community is affected,” event organizer Kate Raphael said. “We all need to be doing what we can, and we wanted to have a way for every community to show up. This would also be a way to show the breadth of the movement.” Drought and crop failure have exacerbated the border crisis for Central Americans
fleeing their countries due to poverty and insecurity, according to the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute(MPI). Last fiscal year, MPI states, U.S. Customs and Border Protection apprehended more than 142,000 individuals from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador — a figure that has more than tripled this fiscal year. The border crisis is especially dire for LGBTQ+ individuals who risk the journey. A study by the United Nations Refugee Agency found that 90% of the LGBTQ+ refugees and asylum speakers the agency spoke to had experienced sexual and gender-based violence, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. “We know LGBTQ+ people are seeking asylum because they face violence in their home countries, but they face more violence in detention,” Carla Schick, a member of Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism (QUIT), said.
Roxsana Hernandez Rodriguez, a transgender Honduran woman, died last year in ICE custody from “severe complications of dehydration superimposed upon HIV,” according to an independent autopsy filed by Rodriguez’s family as part of a wrongful death claim. Amanda Bloom, another QUIT member, pointed to the federal policy of leaving thousands of asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while their applications are processed, which she said exposes them to an increased danger. “We’re worried about the ways ICE treats trans and queer people, including the death of Roxsana Hernandez,” Bloom said. The group handed out flyers listing demands that included putting an end to ICE, deportations, immigration raids, detention camps and “hateful white supremacist rhetoric that has provoked violence against immigrants in the U.S.” Demonstrators engaged in a series
of chants, including dia out of fear they were “We’re trans, we’re not safe to be themself. queer, immigrants are “I think our civil libwelcome here,” and “El erties are being quashed pueblo, unido, jamas by the administration, sera vencido,” which and migrants are the translates to “The peo- most vulnerable,” Jha ple, united, will never said, holding a tall sign be defeated.” with the word “migrant” J Jha and Keith Hen- written in shining gold. nesy, a pair of writers Rafael, who organized from India and Canada the demonstration, statrespectively, performed ed that the “Culmination an excerpt from a Protest of Everyone” is play titled “Queer Mi- scheduled for Aug. 30 grants,” a piece on their and is intended to end experience immigrating the Month of Momento the Bay Area. tum with a bang. The play comments on immigration policy as well as the history of colonialism linking the U.S. to the CenWe know tral American countries many LGBTQ+ people migrants come are seeking from. “We are here asylum because because we got they face through those gates,” Jha said. violence in their “So we have a home countries, responsibility to but they face those waiting at the door to get more violence in in and survive.” detention. Jha, who is t r a n s g e n d e r, said they left In-
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J Jha holds a sign reading “migrant” in a sea of protesters. (Photo by Juan Carlos Lara/Golden Gate Xpress)
8/27/19 3:47 PM
CITY•5
GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Anti-immigration policy would discriminate against poorer communities, experts say BY DAVID MARAMIL HOROWITZ CITY NEWS EDITOR expand the term’s scope to include individuals who receive one or more public benefits for “more than 12 months in the aggregate within any 36-month period” after Oct. 15. For example, a person receiving two public benefits, such as food stamps and federal housing assistance, in one month would count as taking public benefits for two months. Additionally, it broadens the list of public benefits that factor into the decision to mark an immigrant as a “public charge.” If an immigrant applies to certain programs, including Medicaid, that assist with housing, food or non-emergency medical care after Oct. 15, the request could hurt their chances at obtaining a green card. The policy also establishes new factors that determine whether a person is a public charge, most based on resources and capabilities. Under these provisions, families that make over 250% of the federal poverty level would be heavily favored while applying for permanent residential status. On the other hand, families that are under the poverty level, or make up to as much as 125%, are disadvantaged. This policy does not apply to naturalized citizens. It also excludes immigrants who are admitted through humanitarian programs, applying for citizenship or already ineligible for green cards, according to the San Francisco Human Services Agency. Acting Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Ken Cuccinelli said the
policy encourages and ensures that self-suf- to use certain government-funded proficient immigrants enter or stay in the U.S. grams would bear the brunt of the new But the rule would also have two chill- rule’s impact, said SF State Chair of ing effects, according to a lawsuit filed Economics Anoshua Chaudhuri, an exon behalf of 13 states by Washington pert on immigration health in the U.S. Attorney General Robert Ferguson. Although student financial aid is exFirst, it would deter both immigrants cluded from the rule’s included public and their family membenefits, the new policy bers from participating in would still affect students public benefit programs, uniquely, experts state. The Ferguson’s lawsuit states. “A hungry student is a He added that because student who cannot study, government’s these rules exclude emercannot focus on her studies, public charge gency care from the list of and whose success is uncerregulation is an tain,” Teresita Wisell, execpublic benefits used in the public charge test, many utive director of the Comill-conceived immigrants would feel munity College Consortium measure that forced into unnecessary for Immigrant Education, will undermine stated in a press release. and expensive state-subsidized emergency programs. Her statement reinforcthe ability of Second, fear and confues Asian American studies higher education sion would chill immigrant department Chair Russell to contribute families’ participation in Jeung’s concern that constate and local welfare proto our nation’s ditions will worsen for SF grams that aren’t actually State’s homeless population. economic classified as public benefits The rule would also take a engine. in the public charge test, heavy toll on the U.S. econoaccording to the lawsuit. my, according to the nonpar“Those chilling effects tisan Presidents’ Alliance on will lead to individuals and families for- Higher Education and Immigration, which feiting health insurance, medical care, nu- comprises more than 430 presidents and trition assistance, and shelter not only for chancellors of colleges and universities. themselves but also for their entire house“The government’s public charge regholds — including U.S. citizen adults ulation is an ill-conceived measure that and children,” the lawsuit concludes. will undermine the ability of higher edThose with health conditions, lower in- ucation to contribute to our nation’s ecocomes, less education or the likelihood nomic engine, shrink the tax base, and
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discourage future immigrant entrepreneurs and innovators from coming to our country,” PAHEI Executive Director Miriam Feldblum stated in a press release. Daniel Phil Gonzales, a law professional and SF State teacher of 49 years, said he sees the American Civil Liberties Union and other civil rights organizations filing for injunctive relief to halt the new rule and being at least initially successful. He recalled a similar occurrence in 1994, when a large majority of white, Asian American and African American voters favored Proposition 187. It proposed to bar all undocumented immigrants from non-emergency health care, public schools and other government services. A legal injunction halted its implementation. Four steps must occur for that to happen again: Someone must be harmed, someone has to file for injunctive relief in a district court, a judge must make a decision and then — assuming the judge’s ruling is contested — a decision must be made at the appellate court level, Gonzales explained. Eric Mar, SF State professor and former San Francisco supervisor, expressed his hope that San Francisco’s joint lawsuit would stop the new rule. “If we don’t stop the public charge rule, it will have a particularly devastating impact to huge immigrant communities in the poorest areas of the country,” said Mar, who once was an immigration attorney and former director of the local Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Activist Brandon Lee shot in the Philippines BY DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ CITY NEWS EDITOR rights abuses of Philippine President (Rodrigo) Duterte’s regime — abuses that have now hit close to home and left a son of San Francisco and the Sunset District fighting for his life,” said Mar, a friend of Lee who organized the rally. Representatives from numerous human rights and civil rights organizations, such as the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, made similar demands. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., recently joined their call to action. They accuse the Philippine military of attempting to kill Lee for defending the human rights of indigenous people as a worker with the Cordillera Peoples Alliance and Ifugao Peasant Movement since 2010. Lee and his colleagues at both alliances have experienced numerous human rights violations since 2011, according to a release by the CPA and Cordillera Human Rights Alliance. Close friends of Lee said that in 2015, he and other IPM leaders were vilified on social media and red-tagged as enemies of the state. In a video interview conducted last year, Lee said he’d received a traditional burial blanket that represented a death threat. In 2014 and 2018, two other IPM environmental activists like Lee, William Bugatti and Ricardo Pugong Mayumi, were shot and killed. Last year saw more environmental activists murdered in the Philippines
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than in any other country, according to the independent watchdog Global Witness. The shooting of Lee occurred several months after San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a resolution censuring the Philippine government for its crackdown on dissidents. Duterte’s “war on drugs” has killed more than 29,000 Filipinos, according to the resolution. Thirty labor leaders are among the deceased, it states. Meanwhile, the U.S. provides at least $184.5 million annually to the Philippine military, according to the San Francisco resolution. “We have to not only help ensure Brandon’s safety, but also to end U.S. military aid to Duterte’s regime until the extrajudicial killings end,” stated SF State Asian American Studies professor and former Supervisor Eric Mar, who befriended and worked alongside Lee more than a decade ago. Many of Lee’s friends, classmates and teachers from SF State emphasized that his growth as a human rights advocate happened in his college years. The university’s League of Filipino Students held a gathering for Lee the night he was shot. “He had no roots in the Philippines,” his longtime friend Carlo Montemayor said. “But it didn’t matter to him because he recognized the humanity of all people, even if they were on the other side of the
world, even if they were out of his sight.” Lee’s advocacy won respect and friendship from dozens in the Bay Area’s Filipino community. Nearly 100, many strangers, organized an emergency fundraiser for his medical bills at the Filipino Bindlestiff Studio, bringing total donations near the initial goal of $30,000. “He was such a human rights activist that I was really proud of him representing Asian American studies, and pursuing the legacy of the third world liberation front,” SF State Asian American Studies Chair Dr. Russell Jeung said. “I think our administration really needs to step up and protect American citizens abroad when they’re threatened or when their health and safety are threatened,” Jeung said. “It’s the government’s responsibility to protect and care for citizens. I expect the Trump administration to do its job.” The Philippine U.S. Embassy assists U.S. citizens who are victims of crimes in meeting their legal, medical and emergency needs in the Philippines, according to the embassy website. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is in contact with Lee’s family and the Philippine U.S. Embassy, but she cannot discuss confidential casework, her office said. The Department of State, citing privacy concerns, declined to comment on whether the Philippine U.S. Embassy, which is un-
der its direction, can provide law enforcement or protections for U.S. citizens abroad, directing the query to travel.state.gov. The website does not directly address it. The Department of Homeland Security and White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Brandon Lee is a human rights and environmental activist in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Princess Bustos)
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6•ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG
Celine’s Culinary Corner: broke & famished
Editor’s note: Our staff food columnist Celine Wuu will bring you the latest food news and advice to plan your stress eating accordingly.
People gather in front of Devil’s Teeth Baking Company on Aug. 25, 2019. (Photo by Celine Wuu/Golden Gate Xpress)
Quinghe Li delivers food to the table at his restaurant, Kingdom of Dumpling, on Aug. 25, 2019. (Photo by Celine Wuu/Golden Gate Xpress)
BY CELINE WUU STAFF REPORTER
W
hether you are new to SF State or a returning student, back to school means back to penny-pinching and finding the best spots around the city to refuel and take a break from studying. Here are five spots in the Outer Sunset District just a bus ride away from campus with tasty options under $10. Breakfast: Devil’s Teeth Baking Company Devil’s Teeth Baking Company is a bustling, quaint bakery near Ocean Beach, and was founded about nine years ago according to general manager Chris Cooney. The bakery produces about 500 to 1,000 biscuits on busy days for its neighborhood-famous special breakfast sandwich. The line starts going out the door around 9:30 a.m. with no sign of slowing down until 2 p.m., but goes at an efficient rate according to Cooney. Devil’s Teeth also uses organic and local produce, and most everything is made from scratch. Order: The special breakfast sandwich ($9.50). Scrambled eggs, garlic aioli, melted pepper jack cheese, avocado and bacon in between two fresh-
ly-baked flaky biscuits. Breakfast: New Taraval Cafe The family-owned New Taraval Cafe has sat at the corner of 21st Avenue and Taraval Street for 25 years. Owner Stanley Lui has worked there since he was 8 years old while his parents ran the business. Over the years prices have stayed consistently low, as Lui wants it to remain a place where locals can gather and eat breakfast. Order: the Breakfast Special: two eggs, two pieces of bacon or sausage, and two pieces of pancakes or toast ($7). Ask for a bonus side of rice ($2). It’s a classic breakfast for the homesick soul. Lunch: Dinosaur Dinosaur is literally a stall in the wall at the tip of Ocean Avenue and Junipero Serra Boulevard. It’s small and easy to miss if you’re driving. The menu consists of a selection of banh-mis, traditional Vietnamese sandwiches with crispy bread, pickled daikon, vegetables and a choice of protein. Order: The steamed pork and Xiumai (Shu-my) style meatball banh-mi
($8). The meatballs are packed with flavor and taste like the filling of xiumai, a traditional Chinese pork dumpling. They also have vegan options including a roasted portobello banh-mi with veganaise ($8). Lunch or Dinner: Kingdom of Dumpling Kingdom of Dumpling is a hole-inthe-wall dumpling spot on Taraval, with both Shanghai soup dumplings, pan-fried dumplings and steamed dumplings. Owner Quinghe Li first came to the Sunset neighborhood 20 years ago from the Chinese province Hebei. Li opened Kingdom of Dumpling in 2007, bringing his local cuisine to the area. It’s open 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. for lunch and re-opens for dinner at 5:30 p.m. during weekdays. Order: The steamed Napa cabbage and pork dumplings ($7.95). Each serving plate comes with 12 steaming dumplings that may not look like a lot, but are quickly filling. They also have great condiments served with dumplings, including their special vinegar-based dumpling sauce, as well as
an orange chile sauce that has some heat. Dinner/After-Dinner: Seniore’s Pizza Seniore’s has been open since the early 2000s and used to get calls from the SF State dorms every two hours according to James Moraes, an employee who has worked at the pizzeria for the past nine years. What attracts their customer base is the house-made pizza dough and the convenient hours from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m. daily, according to Moraes. Order: The chicken pesto pizza generously covered in cheese, pesto and tomato sauce ($3.60). It’s a slight grease bomb, but for under $4, it’s a decent slice of hot pizza worth every penny at 2 a.m. They also have other specialty pizza slices such as veggie or the Seniore’s combo, as well as classic cheese and pepperoni.
Left: The Special Breakfast sandwich at Devil’s Teeth Baking Company on Aug. 25, 2019. (Photos by Celine Wuu/Golden Gate Xpress) Right: The Napa cabbage pork dumplings at Kingdom of Dumpling with orange chili sauce and a vinegar-based dumpling dipping sauce on Aug. 25, 2019.
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GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT•7
Photo series provides snapshot of San Francisco queer identities
SF State alumni and Bay Area photographer explore how people flag in the LGBTQ+ community
BY CARLY WIPF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
S
onia Nicklès rolled up to photographer Lauren Tabak’s house on a $5 skateboard she bought in the Castro, decorated with stickers of gay icons like pro skater Brian Anderson. Soon after Tabak asked her to relay her life story and pose shirtless with her board in the name of LGBTQ+ visibility. She was one of many invited to shoot with Tabak for her project “Gayface,” a photo series born from a friend’s question of whether or not having a “gay face” or looking queer was significant anymore in a place like San Francisco. Tabak was curious about how people “flag” or signal to others that they identify as LGBTQ+. “It’snot about passing. It’s more about flagging,” Tabak said. “It’s about wanting to have community and [to] be seen.” This is especially important, she said, for people who are femme presenting or people who pass as straight. Tabak said she has been mulling over the concept of identity since writing her college thesis 20 years ago about feminism, fashion and identity politics. She felt this summer was a good time to revisit the idea after a broken arm left her unable to go on the road trip she initially planned. The outcome: a series of about 30 anecdotes and portraits on a bubble gum pink background, illustrating the many faces of San Francisco’s LGBTQ+ community. Tabak said she personally “flags” or presents herself as androgynous or in the style of what she calls an LA lesbian, wearing big brimmed hats and a septum ring. She has lived in the Bay Area for two decades and said her project started out as a way to connect with friends she hadn’t seen in a while. It was also a way to indulge her own curiosity, exploring what it means to be queer in 2019. Nicklès, an SF State alumna who studied art and sexuality studies, said the personal exploration with Tabak was daunting at first. “I guess I really struggled with how do I neatly summarize navigating my queer identity because it’s been such an arduous complicated thing,” Nicklès said. Nicklès said she tried to hide her bisexuality when she was
younger and now that she embraces it, she worries that she might not be queer enough. “Uncertainty is a consistent theme of the bisexual experience,” Nicklès wrote in her picture’s accompanying description on Instagram. “Feeling uncomfortable with straight culture and feeling alienated by queer spaces is also a common thing; it’s been difficult to shake off.” She said she is currently dating a woman but in the past she dated cisgender male partners and sometimes feels the need to prove herself among the hierarchy of “gold star lesbians.” As for her appearance, Nicklès said she has gayface just by existing as a queer person, but adds that flagging is important in letting the rest of the community know she is bisexual. “People tell me that I seem gay becasue I have this sort of like deep flat voice, I have vascular
“It was a very provocative talk. To the point that it was something that I had never even thought about myself, describing what it was like to be bisexual,” Crier said. “I felt like having some way to think about that and having some way to articulate it would be beneficial.” For Tabak, it was also a learning experience that challenged her own assumptions. “In particular, there was someone who I didn’t know but I had seen around at a company I work at. And I just assumed he was just a cis guy, I didn’t even know if he was straight or gay,” Tabak said. Then a man, identified in her series as Miles, called her showing his interest in the project. He revealed he was a trans person who started his transition at age four. “I was like ‘wow, okay,’ I feel like I have a pretty good gaydar,” Tabak said. “That was kind of a moment that caught me off guard.” In the statement he wrote for Tabak’s series, Miles said I guess I really he hid the fact struggled with how he was transgender well do I neatly summarize and ignoring navigating my queer his own identity identity because it’s was isolating. “Because of been such an arduous that internalcomplicated thing. ized shame it’s taken me a long time to be comfortable publicly identifying, arms, muscular thighs,” Nick- even within an LGBTQ+ space,” lès said.“I guess like having this Miles said his statement. “Now shitty partially shaved haircut is that I have though, I’ve realized kind of a way to flag.” what a pleasure it is to be seen for SF State alumnus Kyle Crier, your whole self.” who participated in the photo Crier said the way society is series, had a different perspec- progressing, people are starting tive. He said he wasn’t aware to realize that diversity exists that flagging was even a term in even in distinct groups like the the community and doesn’t think LGBTQ+ community. one’s outward appearance should “Being visible in a space that be a hot or controversial topic. was maybe not so queer before “I’ve always been someone I think is going to be important who just does what they want for us going forward,” Crier said. to do in regard to style,” Crier “Again, art is art, it inspires peosaid. “When it comes down to it, ple. I think this is something in and when I have always thought the art community and just as about how I got dressed, I didn’t people should be celebrated and think about how that was going should be out for others to see.” to be perceived by another perTabak’s work will be featured son.” Sept. 21 at the Dreamers and Nevertheless, Crier said he Make Believers Salon. The found the project exciting and opening reception will take place creative direction Tabak provid- from 7-9 p.m. ed during the photo shoot.
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Bay Area photographer Lauren Tabak’s subjects identified in her series as Lauryn, Stuart, and Miles (top to bottom), pose for photos that reflect their style. Each photo has an accompanying anecdote on the @_gayface Instagram that talks intimately about their LGBTQ+ experience. (Photos by Lauren Tabak)
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8•SPORTS
TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG
BASEBALL OPINION
Bochy’s final playoff run in the hands of Giants’ ace Madison Bumgarner
BY JIMMY DEROGATIS SPORTS EDITOR
T
he turnaround for this San Francisco Giants 2019 ballclub has been one for the ages. With the team rapidly heading down the drain before the season turned to summer, the phrase “it’s not how you start, but how you finish” will be the team’s motto at the end of the season. The gritty San Francisco Giants built a winner’s attitude unlike anything seen before. That same charismatic sense this team has continued to poise itself on is led by one man and one man only: Madison Bumgarner. How the San Francisco Giants team looked in early April and May is not how the team looks late in the season during the August and September months thanks to Madison Bumgarner. Although he is posting a 3.6 ERA for the month of August, the Giants are attempting to resurge with the season on the line. When beloved manager
Bruce Bochy’s last season was seemingly coming to a deadend halt, the team looked flat and uninteresting. With the Major League Baseball 2019 trade deadline ending soon after the 2019 All-Star break in Cleveland, star left-handed slinger and starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner was set to be dealt to a potential playoff-caliber ballclub. The behemoths of the sport, such as the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers were set to bid away and dump house on their farm systems just to acquire Madison Bumgarner for a potential World Series title run this year. These rumors ultimately fell by the wayside and MadBum once again survived the potential trade deadline, continuing to toe that rubber every fifth day for manager Bruce Bochy until season’s end in the Fall Classic. Although the Giants have
stalled out slightly this month, so far going a combined record of 9-12 this August, this little bump in the road will only enhance the drama and suspense coming down the wire. Bumgarner will take control of this pitching staff and propel this young but talented roster into that coveted No. 2 playoff spot. Bumgarner will regain his World Series poise and should forever remain a San Francisco Giant. This city is where his legendary “old-school,” no nonsense level of play has made a name for itself and sent a message to the rest of the National League. MadBum is like a football coach out there on the mound, always emotional and never afraid to point, yell at or even stare down opposing batters at the plate. This franchise turned this country boy from the small town of Hickory, North Carolina, into a Bay Area hero
and a sheer first ballot hall of famer in the shiny halls of Cooperstown. Bumgarner is the quintessential figure for the city of San Francisco. Although hailing from the deep south, MadBum for the last decade has given his heart and soul to the orange and black. He will certainly have a statue outside of Oracle Park once he decides to hang it up — hopefully, and mercifully, in a Giants uniform. Bumgarner continues to be a leader among men, from the long-tenured veteran Giant players such as Buster Posey and Pablo “The Panda” Sandoval, to the brand-new, fresh-faced rookie phenoms like Michael Andrew Yastrzemski. He can galvanize any level of a professional ballplayer. The Giants would be essentially tanking the rest of the year if they traded away Bumgarner, with the message
sent to the loyal San Francisco fan base at that point being “game over.” With the revitalization from MadBum staying put, the Giants seemed to step up to the plate with the fiery, fighting attitude of Bumgarner living up to his expectations as a three-time World Series champion, twotime Silver Slugger Award winner and a four-time National-League All-Star selection. With many of the Giants upcoming games being against sub-par teams such as the Marlins, Pirates and Rockies, the Giants will sweep two of these three series, Bumgarner will have a career game going the distance and will strike out 13 en route to a 2019 playoff berth. Give them a chance to scratch and claw their way back from the NL West grave with MadBum as the winning pitcher in the wildcard.
Cameron’s defense looks to tear opponents apart BY FRANK SUMRALL PRINT MANAGING EDITOR
I
t was uncharted territory for the women’s soccer team. A four-game win streak to end the 2018 season en route to their first playoff appearance in eight years. A streak that saw the Gators score 10 goals over four games; the same amount of offense they orchestrated over their first 13 games. A streak that came crashing down against UC San Diego, the No. 10 ranked Division II team. “I’m really proud of my team and what we accomplished this season,” said the former Gator coach Tracy Hamm during an NCAA press conference. That press conference not only concluded their spirited playoff run but it also ended Hamm’s fouryear tenure as head coach. Now, after scram-
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bling on playoff turf for the first time since 2010, the Gators are ready to build upon last season in Hamm’s honor with the ambition of making playoff appearances not a rare holiday retreat but an annual inevitability. The difference maker in last season’s playoff run was Brittany Cameron, creating a new competitive culture. “It is the only culture I know, ones that compete and play in the playoffs,” Cameron said. After a debut season as an assistant, the torch has been passed to her as the soccer team’s newly minted bench boss. “I’ve been best friends with Tracy [Hamm] since I was 13,” said Cameron. “I have learned a lot from her and wish her the best.” Hamm left San Francisco State for a
head coaching job at UC Davis. Before Cameron’s coaching career got started, she played professional soccer for the Vegalta Sendai team in Japan as a goalkeeper for four seasons. She also spent time with Sky Blue FC in the National Women’s Soccer League and played in the United States Women’s Senior National Pool. Her vast career as a goalkeeper, which included a 2008 West Coast Conference Defender of the Year award at UC San Diego, helped turn San Francisco State into a defensive powerhouse. Last season the Gators had over 50 percent more saves than their opponents on average, anchored by the team’s goalkeeper and minute leader Nicki Rucki. The work ethic on both offense and defense is an intense fo-
cus for Cameron. “It all starts with practice. Once they cross that white line they know its time to compete,” said Cameron. They increased their saves from 82 to 113 in one season’s time. With the women’s
soccer team turning over a new leaf in hopes of becoming a perennial playoff powerhouse, fans continue to slowly fill the bleachers of Cox Stadium. But no one is a bigger fan than their male counterparts sharing the same field.
“They are so supportive and [they] are with us every step of the way,” said Cameron. The San Francisco women’s soccer team kicks off their season against Regis University Sept. 6.
The women’s soccer team celebrates, as the team secure the 1-0 victory against the Stanislaus State Warriors on Friday, Oct. 19, 2018. (David Rodriguez/Golden Gate Xpress)
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