Category Archives: Events

Community Members Shame Absent SF LGBT Pride Parade Board

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"People's board meeting" votes unanimously to reinstate Bradley Manning as SF Pride grand marshal. Photo: Liz Highleyman

“People’s board meeting” votes unanimously to reinstate Bradley Manning as SF Pride grand marshal. Photo: Liz Highleyman

Approximately 60 people gathered Tuesday for a “people’s board meeting” in front of the SF Pride office at Market and Pearl Street, to protest the Pride board’s revocation of Bradley Manning’s grand marshal election and its lack of accountability to the community.

As previously reported, last week more than 100 community members attempted to attend a Pride board meeting and give public comment about their support for the Wikileaks whistleblower. That meeting ended in chaos after only a handful of people were allowed in to speak, with board treasurer David Currie promising that a new meeting would be scheduled in a larger venue.

On Sunday the board cancelled a previously scheduled May 14 membership meeting, stating that its Manning decision was firm and a public meeting would not take place until after the June 30 Pride fest.

Undeterred, community members came together anyway to shame the absent board members — represented by empty chairs on the sidewalk — and offer the public testimony they were previously denied.

“Bradley Manning is one of the heroes of this generation of soldiers,” said Michael Wong of SF Veterans for Peace. “Soldiers have a duty to report wrongdoing.”

Njobe, an organizer of the SF Dyke March, encouraged people not to support Pride, urging, “Don’t give them your money!” While some activists have called for a boycott of this year’s festival, others favor a large pro-Manning contingent in the parade.

Tommi Avicolli Mecca reminded listeners that many of the people who started the Gay Liberation movement in the late 1960s came from the Vietnam antiwar movement. “We have long history of supporting people who used radical means to change society,” he said.

Kyles DeVries announced that a group of radical faeries have named Manning the first “Queen of the Faeries,” after which many in the assembled crowd moved to the LGBT Center across the street to participate in a Harvey Milk Club PAC forum on Pride and Manning.
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Celebrations for Harvey Milk Day set for around the Castro

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Harvey Milk Day May 22ndIt’s been 5 years since Arnold Schwarzenegger established Harvey Milk Day. On May 22nd, we celebrate the life of this first-ever openly gay politician, gay rights activist, lover, brother, and to a lucky some, old friend. If you’re looking for a way to celebrate, check out some of the events happening around the Castro this week (if we are missing any, let us know and we will get them up!):

May 19th
At 1PM at Jane Warner Plaza, speeches, music and a reenactment of Milk’s stirring 1977 “You’ve Got To Have Hope” speech. The speech will be performed by five local artists: Courtney Walsh and Aaron Wimmer, two actors from “Dear Harvey”, the recent New Conservatory play about Milk’s life; Randall Mann, local poet and winner of the 2003 Kenyon Review Prize in Poetry; Sister Roma, drag artist and 20-year member of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, and; Andrea Shorter, political activist. Organized by the Castro Community Benefit District.

May 22nd
All day at the GLBT History Museum they will be giving free admission to all visitors and providing special Milk-related displays and tours. In addition, the museum is extending a welcome to Bay Area schools, many of which plan GLBT history activities in conjunction with Harvey Milk Day.

At 2:00, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30 at the Castro Theatre, the non-profit group, Friends of Harvey Milk, will be showing the film MILK which charts the last eight years of Milk’s life and his political platform, revealing a legacy that resonates in the here and now.

At 7PM at Books, Inc., in comemmoration of Harvey Milk’s birthday the SF GLBT History Museum and Books Inc. present An Archive of Hope: Harvey Milk’s Speeches and Writings, with editors Jason Edward Black and Charles E. Morris III, photographer & former employee at Harvey Milk’s camera shop Daniel Nicoletta, and Harvey’s speechwriter, Frank Robinson. Check out our review of the book.

Michelle Tea: SF Literary Revolutionary is Ready to Woo Generation Z Readers

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Michelle Tea, Author, Poet, Literary Revolutionary. Photo: from Original Plumbing

Michelle Tea, Author, Poet, Literary Revolutionary. Photo: from Original Plumbing

Michelle Tea is one of The City’s Queer literary treasures. She is a one woman, creative wrecking crew who uses words and stories to carve out space for herself in often inhospitable lands. She is an author, poet, and literary arts organizer who put the underground Mission culture of the 90′s on the map with her second book, a memoir, ‘Valencia’ (2000) which is being turned into a film of the same name.

She is also the chief alchemist in the long running and highly acclaimed, spoken word tour, Sister Spit, that gave voice to the often unheard community of primarily fringe women writers. In 2004 her anthology that celebrated all things Queercore/Avante Garde and included luminary writers like Dennis Cooper and Eileen Myles, ‘Pills, Thrills, Chills and Heartache’, landed on the LA Times’, non-fiction, best seller list for months.

She has now set her sights on conquering the Young Adult Fiction genre. Castro Biscuit’s Ken White spoke with Michelle at length about her new book, ‘Mermaid in Chelsea Creek’ in anticipation of her reading at a free event on May 14th at Books, Inc., 2275 Market Street in the Castro. (WP)

Castro Biscuit: Your new novel, ‘Mermaid in Chelsea Creek’, is your first young adult book. And it doesn’t even take place in SF’s Mission District! How is it different when you write for a younger audience?
Michelle Tea: My literary voice feels really different. It’s probably the result of being written in the third-person which I’ve never done before. There’s something in the way that I’m unfurling a fairy tale, that approach and that voice is part of the story itself. I was just working on the sequel this morning; and as I’m writing it I’m like, God this language, is this too big of a word? You can really over-think it. But thirteen-year-olds who are big readers are very likely reading a lot of different work and are more sophisticated than we give them credit for.
CB: What do you think of Young Adult as a genre?
MT: I think there’s really awesome people out there like Jacqueline Woodson, who’s amazing. I very vividly remember the YA books I read when I when I was young. I remember Judy Blume, I read all of her work, and the creepy amazing Lois Duncan. SE Hinton was such a huge influence. As far as the books that have inspired this book, I’d say there’s Francesca Lia Block and Weetzie Bat, the way she takes the everyday and infuses it with a magic that’s very believable. I would say the Philip Pullman books were really influential. They’re so engrossing!
Mermaid-in-Chelsea-Creek-Michelle-TeaCB: Tell us about Mermaid in Chelsea Creek.
MT: It’s that story of the Chosen One who’s going to come into their destiny and learn there’s going to be a lot expected of them. I set it in the town I actually grew up in, Chelsea, Mass. It was really enjoyable for me to return to that place that I’ve written so much about in memoir, and put this layer of magic on top of it. The magical back story contains this idea of a curse that’s not just on Chelsea but many places and is responsible for how sad and depressing the place is.
CB: Do you feel like you’re working out some childhood stuff by setting it…
MT: …by having this girl come in and save Chelsea? I’ve realized because of the particular abilities that Sophie has, where she’s able to feel other people’s feelings and take their dark feelings from them, omigod I’ve created her the most co-dependent heroine ever in literature! Like, ‘let me feel your feelings for you,’ it’s so ridiculous! But I think I’m obsessed with Chelsea. It feels very far away from me and the farther away I get the more it seems like an odd dream to me, [but] the obsession doesn’t fade. We just keep returning to our obsessions in a different form. It’s a way for me to talk about things I’m obsessed with–Chelsea, and a rough adolescence, being a girl in a tough town–and bring other elements into the story so these things aren’t the point anymore the way they were in my memoir, they’re just the flavor. And I want to represent poor and working class characters in literature because in general, there’s not enough of it that’s real.
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Pride Pulls Plug on May Meeting-Manning Disinvite Decision Stands

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SF Pride LogoSF Pride Committee has made it official. They are through debating.  Bradley Manning, the Queer, imprisoned US Soldier behind the Wikileaks whistle blowing case will not be one of the myriad of Honorable Grand Marshalls at the San Francisco 2013 LGBT Pride Parade.

This roller coaster ride regarding Manning’s invite/disinvite and how its affected San Francisco’s LGBT community standing in the eyes of the world at large has been raucous. Scathing editorials from the UK’s Guardian to The Village Voice have our Parade and it’s Committee portrayed in less than flattering light as the story has taken on a life of its own as the Parade’s decision making process on who is-or isn’t-qualified to be a Honorary Grand Marshall has bounced back and forth making headlines along the way.

On Mother’s Day SF Pride Committee released this decision via their Facebook page stating;

San Francisco Pride May Membership Meeting Update:

We are seeking a larger venue for the next SF Pride membership meeting, and so are postponing the May 14th meeting until a suitable location is secured. We want to allow people to have a chance to voice their opinions about the recent controversy, but also have a large event coming up, and do not want to let one issue, as important as it is to some, overshadow the concerns and interests of the hundreds of thousands who attend SF Pride.

SF Pride’s decision concerning the election process of Bradley Manning as Grand Marshal being consistent with SF Pride’s long-standing Grand Marshal election policy is firm. Thus, the discussion of that matter is closed for this year.

A meeting in a larger venue after the 2013 Celebration and Parade will allow people from all sides of that issue and others to fully air and hear one another’s viewpoints, without jeopardizing the production of this year’s event and the safety and security of the attendees. We ask everyone in the community to come together in Pride this June, recognizing that we can embrace difference without violence and hate.

If you’re late to all the drama heres a brief synopsis of this years Pride’s public relation nightmare:

Bradley Manning is announced as one of many Hon. Grand Marshall’s of SF’s 2013 LGBT Pride Parade, Pride Committee freaks over supposed rule violations and disinvited him, Committee then issues horrible explanation statement for disinvite, that fumble threw gas on what was already a bonfire, an outraged community protests, followed by an even worse bungled community meeting which was canceled after only 15 people got to participate, worldwide community protests, Pride Committee’s promise of another ‘larger/more open’ meeting to address the situation, to now this current decision: cancel public May 14th scheduled meeting, dig in their heels and just deal with the whole debacle after the parade is over.

“WHEW” That’s the kind of drama one usually finds in a soap opera not amidst one of the most respected and oldest celebrations of LGBT freedom, political struggle and pride.
Manning Pride Contingent 2012

Rumblings throughout the activist community are already hitting a fevered pitch and the parade is still six weeks away. Several groups have expressed outrage over Pride’s final edict and are gearing up for a large vocal and perhaps disruptive contingent in this years Pride Parade.

Regardless of where you stand on the issue there is one thing everyone I’ve spoken with seems with on the subject seems to agree on-this is really a horrendous mess.

I’d have to second that assessment.

See you at the Parade.

J’adorable: Tim asks Bennie if he can put a ring on it at SF Flashmob in the Castro

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Back in March, the SF Flashmob group got together at the entrance to the Castro Muni station for a very special performance. The group was tapped by a gentleman named Tim to perform his boyfriend Bennie’s favorite song, “Single Ladies” by Beyoncé. Tim wanted a special way to ask Bennie to marry him and despite the cloudy skies and the rain, Tim got his wish. And they got it on video (with nice production value I might add).

The video shows the couple walking up Castro Street towards the dancers. Tim and the unsuspecting Bennie stop to watch while Bennie is clearly getting into it. The dancers are strutting their stuff when all of the sudden one of the dancers pulls Bennie into it. He dances with the mob until the end of the song where he finds himself alone in the middle of the sidewalk with all the dancers surrounding him. Tim walks up beside Bennie, takes his hand, gets on one knee and asks Bennie to marry him. AWWWEEEE!!!!

Bennie obviously says yes and, according to the YouTube description, a double rainbow appeared after. It doesn’t get much more fabulous than that, amirite?

Peaches Christ Exposed: Summer Madness on Deck for the Castro

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Peaches Christ serving 'face'.

Peaches Christ serving ‘face’.

Peaches Christ-aka Joshua Grannell-is a San Francisco drag-terrorist/cult leader, emcee and award-winning horror film director, writer and co-star of 2010′s ‘All About Evil’. Peaches first burst onto the City’s club scene in the early, heady, years of Heklina’s world infamous club, Trannyshack, held weekly at The Stud in SoMa.

In 1998 Peaches established the wildly popular Midnight Mass movie series at the now shuttered Landmark Bridge Theatre. There she produced original stage show interpretations of her high camp/cult favorite midnight movies as pre-show entertainment to standing room only crowds. In addition to the films she often scooped up special guest stars to pay the stage a visit as well-Mink Stole, Tura Satana, Linda Blair, RuPaul, Elvira (Mistress of the Dark) and John Waters to name but a few have held court alongside PC. As the productions and crowds outgrew the capacity of The Bridge Peaches relocated most of these spectacles-er-spectaculars to the Castro Theatre where they’ve continued to attract sold out audiences.

She gave the Biscuit a sneak peek into the upcoming Peaches Christ Summer Series at the Castro and the 40th celebration staging of The Rocky Horror Picture Show with special guest star, Patricia Quinn.
Peaches Christ: Hey! (gasping) Sorry-outta breath from running up some stairs.
Castro Biscuit: UH. Huh. (dripping with sexual innuendo) Shhhuuuree.
PC: (Laughing) Oh girl, no. Its a work day.
CB: So what’s on deck over at The Castro this coming Summer? I heard there’s going to be four events?

Mark Patton in 'Nightmare on Elm St. Part 2: Freddy's Revenge

Mark Patton in ‘Nightmare on Elm St. Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge

PC: Yes! First up in June is Night of a 1000 Scream Queens, ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge’ with special guest star Mark Patton thats co-presented with Frameline. It’s possibly the gayest horror movie ever made. In July we’re showing ‘The Craft’ and I’ve got a couple of my friend’s from RuPaul’s Drag Race, Alaska Thunderfuck and Sharon Needles set to help with the pre-show madness. In August its my annual presentation of the crowd favorite and Midnight Mass staple, ‘Showgirls’-free lap dance with every large popcorn purchased of course. And for Halloween we’re gonna close out the season with ‘Gray Gardens’ starring ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ 2013 winner, Jinkx Monsoon. She’ll be recreating her role from the Season 5 contest as Lil’ Edie while I’ll be her foil, Big Edie, in the pre-show.
CB: Which upcoming Castro show are you most excited about?
PC: I’m always excited about whatever comes next in the schedule to be honest. Its been my dream to bring the only boy ‘scream queen’ of horror films, Mark Patton to San Francisco for Midnight Mass. I ran into him randomly when I wandered into his fantastic shop in Puerto Vallarta, It’s really cool-stuffed with glitter encrusted handbags and Mexican folk art. We hit it off and hatched this plan. I had to include Frameline as its Gay Pride and all the Queer subtext of the film is so interesting. Mark’s character in ‘Freddie’s Revenge’ is the lone, male survivor in the film series ever.

Alaska Thunderfuck
Sharon Needles
Jinkx Monsoon as Lil Edie on RuPaul’s Drag Race

CB: It’s cool that you’re bringing Alaska and Sharon in for roles in the pre-show for everyone’s favorite Goth 90′s Witch-fest, ‘The Craft’. What’s it been like for Peaches to work with so many of the contestants and winners of RuPaul’s Drag Race?
PC: It’s really opened the doors for us on every level. Their fame extends deeply into the drag culture the world over. Outside of SF mine has been primarily within the Horror/Gore film buff community. Now we’re seeing new fans and admirers the world over tuning in as a result of our association. I mean you have no idea just how popular they all are. It’s kind of mind-boggling. I am honored to be friends with these talented gals and can’t wait to see what our collaborations are going to accomplish.
CB: This weeks event celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Rocky Horror Picture Show is quite a departure from your usual Midnight Mass formula.
Peaches Christ RHPS 40th AnniversaryPC: I can honestly say this is the most lavish and involved staging of any show I’ve ever attempted and the first we’ve ever done without showing the movie. The initial idea was our special guest star, Patricia Quinn, who played Magenta in the original film.  We’re really lucky to have her here-it’s her first visit to San Francisco. I’m so excited-the cast is superb, we’ve got great singers and musicians-we’ve rehearsed our feet off and there are gonna be some surprises that people aren’t expecting. The cherry on top is Patricia Quinn, reprising her role as Magenta and singing all of her iconic songs.
CB: What’s it been like working alongside Patricia? I mean her career has been so long and varied from being on the holy grail of UK Sci Fi, ‘Dr. Who’, to working with the kings off all things humor, Monty Python’s Flying Circus.
RHPS PatriciaQuinnPC: Well, she’s a real royal ‘Lady’. I mean it. She was married to the late actor Robert Stephens who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth which makes her Lady Stephens. She has some great stories about the Royals and I hope I can convince her to share some during this week ends event. She’s so much fun. She has impeccable style and taste. I really admire her so very much.
CB: Wow. A Lady?! It’s not everyday an Irish lass from Belfast becomes a member of English royalty! How many shows are there?
PC: Three in all. Friday May 10th and two shows on Saturday May 11th a matinée and an evening show. I’m so excited I can hardly wait!

You can purchase tickets to the 40th anniversary celebration and uniquely San Francisco Peaches Christ staging of the Rocky Horror Picture Show here.
Tickets to any of the coming movies and stage shows this Summer and Fall staged at the world-famous Castro Theatre can be found here.

SF Prides Meeting on Manning Goes Awry-Media & Community Turned Away

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Pentagon Papers whistle blower, Daniel Ellsberg, speaks with a reporter from Fox Channel 2

Pentagon Papers whistle-blower, Daniel Ellsberg, speaks with a reporter from Fox Channel 2

The public meeting called by SF Pride Committee on Tues, May 7th to address community concerns and questions regarding the de-selection of whistle-blower Bradley Manning as Honorary Grand Marshall of the Pride Parade ended with media and protestors locked out.

The meeting, set for 7PM at the Pride Office on Pearl St., saw a crowd of about seventy-five arrive early to line up at the doors of Pride’s office building in anticipation of getting to address the issue with the Board directly.

Photo: Marke Bieschke

Photo: Marke Bieschke

The crowd was comprised of the news media, Pentagon Papers whistle-blower Daniel Ellsberg representing Mr. Manning, pro-Manning activists from  Code PInk, Gray Panthers, Bradley Manning Support Network, ACT UP/SF as well as members of the community who’d come to show support for Pride’s decision to oust Manning.

Who wasn’t there was anyone from Pride’s Board. No one to greet the throng and calm the situation, explain the process that would take place, or act as a public liaison between themselves and the media.

Crowded into Pride's office foyer

Crowded into Pride’s office foyer

15 minutes after the appointed meeting start-time, building doors finally opened and the crowd moved into a very small and narrow lobby queueing to ride the elevator up to Pride’s offices. Their access to the elevator was immediately blocked by an unidentified member of the Board and security who stated that no cameras would be allowed into the event.

The crowd began to chant, “Let the press in!” while those in front jockeyed for space on the elevator. In the end approximately 15 people were allowed upstairs to attend the meeting-a few members of the press including a reporter from the B.A.R., Daniel Ellsberg, former Grand Marshall Gary Virgninia and blogger/activist, Michael Petrelis. Once that initial group entered the elevator to Pride’s office, the conveyance was turned off keeping anyone else from going up.

According to those who were allowed in after basic Pride Committee formalities were accomplished, members of the public were reminded of the no-cameras rule and told they’d be given one minute each to comment on the subject.

Downstairs on the street the crowd continued to grow. They were very angry about the lack of cooperation that was showed and started chanting in front of the building on Market St from the MUNI F lines elevated stop, “They say court-martial, we say Grand Marshall!”

SFPD showed up informing the community via Pride spokespeople that Pride would let in only 15 people at a time to comment. When one group was done, they’d exit, and another would enter for their turn. SFPD also set officers in stairwells and on the perimeters of the event to, in their words, ‘maintain order’.

SFPD speaks to crowd on behalf of Pride Committee

SFPD speaks to crowd on behalf of Pride Committee Photo: Liz Highleyman

Forty five minutes into Pride’s scheduled one hour meeting no other members of the community beyond the original handful had been let in.

By 8:15, Pride informed those remaining who’d wish to comment that the meeting was canceled and would be rescheduled at a larger venue on a date to be announced. People were, to say the least, not amused and for a brief time a sit in occurred in the building’s lobby.

From my perspective, as one of the media kept on the outside-along with other notable journalists like SF Bay Guardian’s Marke Bieschke, Pride’s idea of a ’community’ meeting, to be blunt, was a shit-show and a public relations debacle of epic proportions.

What could’ve been a productive meeting turned into a power-struggle where a few people’s voices were heard while a resolution for many in the community remained unattained.

The Board must have anticipated that a large crowd would show up, but instead of moving the meeting to a larger venue like the LGBT Center across the street from Pride’s office, they chose to keep it in-house in a small, inadequate space.

Photo: Liz Highleyman

Photo: Liz Highleyman

The Board has issued several long explanations about why Manning doesn’t qualify for the Hon. Grand Marshall distinction (not local so therefore void), how those who nominated and voted for him were wrong (as past members they knew the rules and chose to ignore them), and have also released rambling explanations for all their actions of the past week that have neither calmed nor sated anyone. Their lack of transparency and refusal to allow media/cameras-even those from mainstream outlets like Fox Channel 2-into their own forum is suspect and unnecessary.

If the Pride Committee wants to quell the uprising, they’d better act soon, and in good faith, to resolve the situation or the 2013 Pride event will be tainted with the controversy and in all likelihood see more drama play out in demonstrations by outraged activists during the parade itself.