By Tom Temprano
Although I spent last year as the president of the Harvey Milk Club, I was unprepared for the pretty-girl-at-the-prom attention that our club got during this past weekend’s PAC endorsement process.
The 2013 elections featured a bunch of unopposed incumbents and even with a major battle, and victory, over 8 Washington, I can’t say that we felt much heat around our endorsements.
Turns out 2014 is going to be a whole lot hotter. All Saturday morning there was a constant flow of hopeful endorsees making their way through the Women’s Building to woo our club and get our nod for the June primary. Everyone from prospective judges to sitting state legislators made their pitch, and rightfully played up their LGBT credentials.
The candidate who walked the strongest walk was Assembly Speaker John A. Perez, who just so happened to be the only queer candidate on our dancecard and is running to be California’s first ever statewide LGBT elected official. From getting serious laughs as he recounted an awkward conversation with the governor, where he used personal experience to explain the need for LGBT-specific health services, to talking about going toe to toe alongside Tom Ammiano in the fight to keep transgender youth safe in our schools, he made it clear that having LGBT elected officials is as important in 2014 as it has ever been.
I was happy to see our club endorse him in his historic race for controller, which alongside our early endorsement of David Campos in his race for the Assembly, means that we’re doing our namesake proud and carrying on his legacy of fighting for LGBT representation. After our endorsements I had to dig up a favorite quote of Harvey’s to share with you all:
And if you help elect to the central committee and other offices, more gay people, that gives a green light to all who feel disenfranchised, a green light to move forward. It means hope to a nation that has given up, because if a gay person makes it, the doors are open to everyone.
Someone who didn’t have nearly as many fans as Speaker Perez at the Milk Club PAC meeting was Tim Colen, who represented the No on Prop B campaign. Milk and other progressive organizations went hard to stop 8 Washington and conventional wisdom held that we would again stand in favor of limiting luxury development on our waterfront and support a democratic process for major land use decisions affecting our whole city.
That didn’t stop Tim — and I have to hand it to him for holding his own in front of a tough crowd. At the meeting he did, however, promise that the entire conversation we were having would be moot come Tuesday when a judge would assuredly declare that Prop B was unfit for the ballot. He said that this would be a lot of “red faces” across the city come the new week. I’m not sure if the red faces were supposed to come about from folks taking advantage of the heatwave while leaving their sunscreen at home or what because on Tuesday said judge tossed the appeal of the measure and left it right where it ought to be – on the ballot for the voters to decide.
As I strolled past Dolores Parklet this sunny Sunday I was sad to see one of my two favorite halves of the park shut down for renovations. While I’m excited that the outcome will be less muddy grass and shorter bathroom lines, it’s going to be a long, cramped, lonely summer for my favorite park.
Dolores Parklet, as it shall be referred to by me until its entire grounds are opened again for our sunning pleasure, plays host to many of the events that make San Francisco San Francisco. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have already been forced to move their Hunky Jesus Contest to Golden Gate Park, which, given that it’s also 4/20 might not be the most awful thing in the world.
I’m now shifting my worry to Pride, where the Dyke March and Trans March, two events that made a full park feel cramped, will now have to contend with half the acreage to squeeze in crowds that have grown every year I’ve attended. Whatever solution the organizers of these events come up with, I hope that the whole community throws its weight behind obtaining the permits and fundraising necessary to make these marches as magical as they’ve ever been.
TOM’S TOP TWO THINGS TO DO THIS WEEKEND
1)Â Â Â Trannyshack Steve Nicks Tribute Night. Friday, 9pm-2am at DNA Lounge.
Some gays (many gays?) love Madonna. Others go crazy for GaGa. My kind of gays lose their witchy minds for Stevie Nicks. The last Stevie Nicks tribute night may have been my favorite Trannyshack ever and with this one featuring Alaska Thunderfuck, my previous beset could well be bested.
2)Â Â Â Cocktailgate Kylie Minogue Tribute Night. Sunday, 9:30pm-2am at Truck.
SO MANY TRIBUTES TO SO MANY DIVAS THIS WEEKEND. Kylie is kind of the anti-Stevie Nicks, but in some ways she is also the anti-Madonna and is basically my favorite Australian export to put on sliced bread since Vegemite.
