By Joanie Juster

Slava Ukraine

As the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine grows monumentally with each day of the Russian invasion, so does the need for us all to step up and help. In our last issue of the San Francisco Bay Times, I listed a number of organizations that are helping all Ukrainians, as well as LGBTQ+ Ukrainians, in particular. Since then, more have come to light, and benefit concerts, protests, and events are popping up all over the Bay Area. Please do what you can to support these efforts. Every dollar counts. Here’s one place to help: https://tinyurl.com/mr4yd2zd

stop the hate

While the state legislatures in Texas and Florida have grabbed most of the media attention for their hateful bills targeting trans kids, other states seem to be trying to outdo each other in a race to see who can pass the most gratuitously cruel and damaging legislation. It’s a torturous game of whack-a-mole: every time we think we have alleviated the situation in one state, two more pop up with ever-more-destructive laws. Alabama, Idaho (which may win this month’s Most Hateful State award), and now Alaska are trying to erase and punish trans people, and—just to add another level of evil—to punish anyone who loves or tries to help them.

My friend Ruth in Alaska is one of the smartest and most compassionate allies and activists I know. This week she penned a letter to the Alaska Senate Education Committee, strongly opposing a bill that would force students to play on teams that aligned with the gender assigned to them at birth. Ruth was having none of it:

“Dear Senate Education Committee,

I strongly oppose Senate Bill 140: ‘The Even Playing Field Act.’

Trans kids deserve to live honestly, and if they want to play games, let ’em. Sports are supposed to be for fun and personal achievement and teamwork, not a zero-sum gladiatorial trial for scarce resources to determine who can continue their education. If that’s what school sports are about then we have bigger problems to address, and forcing trans kids to play on a different team isn’t going to fix that.

What this will definitely achieve is making life harder for trans students by painting them as a threat to their classmates’ success, when they’re already struggling for acceptance. I’m not convinced that trans girls possibly winning a trophy now and then is all that big a threat to anyone, especially not when compared to the very real threat of losing more LGBTQ kids to hopelessness when they don’t see a place for themselves in their school or in their home state. The danger of trans athletes sounds like the latest incarnation of the trans bathroom bogeyman, or the argument that letting gay people get married will ruin marriage for everyone else. Those were bad-faith concern-trolling hogwash to rile up a political base, and this is too … this is national politics using us, and using other state legislatures, to generate a lot of sound and fury around an emotional wedge issue as we head into midterms. Focusing negative political attention on trans kids will hurt those kids, it will hurt all LGBTQ Alaskans by sending the message that they are not welcome to be themselves here … .”

There’s more, but you catch her drift. We all need to speak up against this kind of legislation. Thanks to Ruth for setting an example for allies everywhere.

Mental Health Resources from Juanita MORE!

Spring may be in the air, with more sunshine and flowers blooming everywhere, but we are still living through particularly stressful times, and many are struggling to maintain their emotional and mental health. Juanita MORE!, who just completed her successful reign as Empress of San Francisco, keeps her finger on the pulse of the community, and responded to the despair she was seeing by publishing a compassionate and thought-provoking article that includes a valuable list of mental health resources compiled by Queer Life Space, a local nonprofit that provides long-term, low-fee mental health and substance abuse therapy for the Queer community.

MORE! candidly shares that she has at times struggled with some mental health issues herself, and addresses the challenges head on: “Queer people often struggle with suicidal ideation, depression, anxiety, substance abuse, trauma, abandonment, and loss of family. As if any of these issues weren’t problematic enough, government funding for nonprofits dealing with mental health issues has decreased dramatically over the past few decades. And their model doesn’t address long-term-based services, as well.” She adds that the past two years of COVID-induced isolation have been particularly challenging.

The comprehensive list of mental health resources, compiled by Queer LifeSpace, is available on MORE!’s web site: https://tinyurl.com/4j5d8sm8

And while you’re at it, mark your calendar for Queer LifeSpace’s 10th anniversary gala, coming up on May 7. More info coming soon.

https://tinyurl.com/QLS10Gala

Save Easter Weekend for the Sisters

And now for some truly joyful news. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence will be filling up our dance cards on the weekend of April 16 & 17 for two celebratory events, only in San Francisco.

First, on Saturday April 16, a modest little one-block street near Dolores Park will be undergoing a high-profile name change, when Alert Alley receives the commemorative designation “Sister Vish-Knew Way, in honor of Kenneth Bunch, aka Sister Vish -Knew, one of the original founders of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. For almost five decades Sister Vish has been a pioneering human rights activist who has devoted their life to serving the community. Congratulations sister!

Then on Easter Sunday, April 17, the Sisters are bringing back, live and in person, one of San Francisco’s favorite traditions: Easter in Dolores Park. Promising live entertainment, drag, and miracles, fans are excited about the return of the Foxy Mary and Hunky Jesus contests.

https://tinyurl.com/BacktoHabits

Rainbow World Fund heads back to Cuba

When Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February, Rainbow World Fund jumped into action, creating an emergency fund to aid vulnerable LGBTQ+ Ukrainians who were at risk of being marginalized and scapegoated.

An all-volunteer LGBTQ-based organization, Rainbow World Fund did this on top of their ongoing work of providing humanitarian aid to countries around the world, including planning their ninth annual humanitarian visit to Cuba on May 12-22. Annual visits have helped build relationships and community, as they meet with human rights activists, members of the LGBTQ community, politicians, artists, scientists, and leaders in many fields. Past visits have also included visiting schools and medical clinics, delivering medical and educational supplies, attending LGBTQ Pride events in Havana, and marching in solidarity in the Pride parade.

Tickets are available to take part in this journey. For more information:

https://tinyurl.com/436e6nje

2nd Annual Weaving Spirits Festival

Weaving Spirits Festival of Two-Spirit Performances is celebrating its second anniversary at Counterpulse Theatre; you can catch their second weekend on March 24-26. The festival brings together local and national Native American artists whose powerful performance offerings range from traditional song to modern dance and drag.

https://www.weavingspirits.com/

That’s it for this week. Please take time to be kind to others, and to yourself.

Joanie Juster is a long-time community volunteer, activist, and ally.

Published on March 24, 2022

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Heather Hoffman just wants to spread a good mood.

A bartender in San Francisco for 15 years, she finally fulfilled her dream of owning a bar in town and started Propagation, a “garden-centric” cocktail bar that opens to the public on Wednesday in the Lower Nob Hill area.

“We [didn’t] I want to try too hard for a topic, but it just came by itself, “said Hoffman from the bar.” … After this COVID stuff, we need something again to feel good about, you know? “

Hoffman’s wife, Lauren Nguyen, designed and built the bar – and luckily, is a plant person who gave the bar its plant feel and helped fill the space with greenery. And while the company looks risky after a year of restaurant and bar shutdowns during the pandemic, Hoffman said the time felt right with the introduction of vaccinations and the change of political parties at the White House. Hoffman found the space for the new bar in the former Tonic on Post Street and felt like “there was no better time than now”.

“It was like, ‘Well, we’re going to do it. Let’s just do it, ‘”Hoffman said of her discussions with Nguyen about opening the bar.” Self-doubt is a real thing and sometimes you can’t let it take over. You just have to walk with your stomach. [Nguyen] believed in me and I believed in her and we just looked at each other and said, ‘We’ll try.’ “

Hoffman uses her years of experience as a bartender with her cocktail menu. For the opening on St. Patrick’s Day, Hoffman is preparing a Teeling Irish Whiskey Cold Brew with a salted pistachio crema top, a variant of the Irish coffee cocktail. Hoffman is also excited to share an acai cali champagne – a piña colada served with California cuvee – and a beet-washed Japanese gin drink called red snapper, which is in the style of a Bloody Mary.

Pop-up Mezcla will provide the accompaniment for the multiplication, with dishes such as yucca fries with aji amarillo cheese sauce, shrimp ceviche and Colombian empanadas at the beginning of the opening week.

Hoffman imagines Propagation as a neighborhood bar reminding of the places she went to when she moved to San Francisco. Over the past few years she said she felt like there weren’t too many bars like hers, instead tending to be stuffy or divine.She hopes propagation will fill that middle space for those who like the fun parts of San Miss Francisco and just want a casual happy hour to hang out without the overpriced drinks.

“When you go out, you want to feel like it’s the place that maybe a little nicer than your own house,” Hoffman said. “That’s why you go to a bar, isn’t it? You can always be at home and have a drink – so this place is only for people who want to enjoy a nice neighborhood drink and don’t have to think about it too long.

“Our bar welcomes everyone,” Hoffman added later. “We’re not a gay bar. We’re not a straight bar. We’re not a trans bar. We’re everyone’s bar and everyone is welcome. So come on down, bring your good attitudes with you.”

Multiplication, at Post St. 895 in San Francisco, opens Wednesday, March 17th. Their opening times are Thursday, Saturday, 4 pm-11pm. The opening times are subject to change. So check out the latest information at instagram.com/propagationsf.

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The limited reopening of the main San Francisco library this month brings hundreds of guests through its doors every day. But there are plans for the next month to reopen all floors, increase capacity, end a visiting deadline and even let people read at tables.

And as the main library expands its reopening, more of the library system’s 27 branches will also reopen – although it will take a few months for all of them to open. The two, who opened this week, each saw hundreds of guests on the first day.

Weeks ago, library officials and Mayor London Breed celebrated the reopening of the main library on May 3rd for personal service after more than a year since it closed due to COVID-19. “There’s nothing like browsing the shelves and picking out your next book,” Breed said at the time.

Since reopening, the main library has seen an average of around 400 to 450 guests per day, far from the average of more than 2,000 prepandemics. But more visitors are expected next month as the main library expands its reopening and more people will feel comfortable when the state lifts its COVID-19 level restrictions on June 15.

Currently, users are allowed to go to the first floor of the main library, where they can access the photocopier, use one of the 14 public computers, browse the book collections, and ask questions to staff. At this point, they are limited to visits of up to an hour.

However, starting June 14, the library plans to reopen all floors of the main library to visitors, library officials said this week. And there will be no time limit for your visit. You can search collections on all floors, use a number of computers to be determined, and sit at tables. However, the number of seats is limited as there is only room for one person per round table and two people per rectangular table. Masks and social distancing are still required.

The current capacity of the main library is limited to a maximum of 55 simultaneous users. That will increase to 750 in the next month. The current operating hours remain in effect. They are Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. and Sunday from 12 noon to 5.30 p.m.

“We hope everyone comes back,” Library spokeswoman Michelle Jeffers told The Examiner Friday. “It’s nice when it’s a busy, busy place.”

Jeffers said the current daily usage of the reopened libraries was “a large number”. Although there is a capacity limit, she said they never got to a point where they had to hold people up by the door.

“Certainly they don’t match where we were before the pandemic,” Jeffers said of the customer numbers. “I think it takes a while for people to feel good again when they are in some form or way in the church.”

Nevertheless, the demand for branches to be reopened is apparently high. But it will take time for that to happen.

The Chinatown branch opened on Monday when about 300 visitors came through the door, followed by the Mission Bay branch on Tuesday which library officials said there were also about 300 customers.

The latest timeline shows the Ortega, Richmond and Visitacion Valley stores reopening for personal service on June 21st and the Excelsior stores reopening on June 22nd.

In July, the offices in Bayview, Bernal Heights, Eureka Valley, Glen Park, Ocean View and Western Addition will reopen for personal service.

“We don’t know what exact dates they’ll open yet,” Jeffers said. “We’re aiming for mid-July.”

Jeffers expected the remaining library branches – with the exception of the newly renovated mission branch – to be reopened for personal visits by September.

One reason for the schedule is a staff shortage. Many library staff were deployed as disaster relief workers to help with the city’s pandemic response.

“The reopening of these libraries and the establishment of additional locations for personal services depend on the staffing capacity,” said city librarian Michael Lambert to the library commission this week. “I know all of our residents want their facility to reopen and reopen for personal service.”

He said the library had more than 100 disaster relief workers and 139 jobs that were vacant last year.

“It will take us some time to bring all of our employees back from civil protection work and fill our vacancies,” he said.

While the libraries were closing due to COVID-19, a roadside service known as SFPL to Go was launched in August in some locations, starting with the main library. The library will add the Bernal Heights, Golden Gate Valley, Ingleside, North Beach, Sunset and Western Addition branches to roadside service in June, followed by the Noe Valley, Parkside and Presidio branches in July. SFPL to Go ends in mid-June in the main library and branches when they reopen for personal services.

jsabatini@sfexaminer.com

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