Sister Dana Sez, Words of Wisdumb from a Fun Nun–
Sister Dana sez, “Happy LEATHER WEEK to one and all! You don’t have to proudly love or wear leather—but you need to respect us LGBTQ folx and friends who do! Leather plays a big part in the Queer Community!”
The introduction to LEATHER WEEK is always LEATHERWALK, which this year is on Sunday, September 22. Meet at City Hall at 11 am, visit our favorite SOMA venues, and end up at Eagle Plaza around 3 pm to raise the LEATHER PRIDE FLAG! Get your gear on (or not); bring your kink (or don’t); and join fellow leather folx, kinksters, and queer community members and friends to celebrate our vibrant heritage, foster community spirit, and encourage authentic self-expression. The event benefits the Leather Legacy Landmarks Sidewalk Plaques Initiative. Details at https://leatherwalk.org/
This year, Leather Week is packed with parties, programs, and other activities that celebrate our queer and kinky lives. Here is an overview of some of these joyous events: https://bit.ly/3XJMPqV
The Grand Finale of LEATHER WEEK is the annual FOLSOM STREET FAIR on Sunday, September 29, on Folsom Street, between 8th and 13th Streets, from Howard to Harrison. The organization, FOLSOM STREET EVENTS, is committed to cultivating a safe, open, and inclusive environment for the kink, leather, and alternative sexuality communities while centering
equity for BIPOC and LGBTQ people in their work. They unite, strengthen, and affirm the community through support, resources, education, advocacy, visibility, and celebration by centering and uplifting marginalized voices. They are dedicated to sexual liberation and the right to pleasure as a crucial part of the whole liberation movement. https://www.folsomstreet.org/
On September 6 at the Asian Art Museum in Samsung Hall, Mayor London Breed announced Genny Lim as San Francisco’s 9th POET LAUREATE. Lim is now the city’s first Chinese American ever to serve in this role.
On September 11, “a day we will never forget,” Trump invited known conspiracy theorist, radical right-wing, 9/11 denier Laura Loomer as his guest on his private plane to the Memorial Flight 93 crash site and Ground Zero. Sister Dana sez, “That is ironic and unconscionable!”
A Community Celebration produced by CASTRO COMMUNITY BENEFIT DISTRICT to Landmark the GILBERT BAKER RAINBOW FLAG was apparently held on September 13 at 11 am at 4127 18th Street and then later at Harvey Milk Plaza. Sister Dana (The Lame Nun) could not attend—still trapped at home with a mangled ankle. The grand event was advertised previously: The SAN FRANCISCO PRIDE BAND to open and close; remarks by SF Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, GILBERT BAKER FOUNDATION Chair Charley Beal, Senator Scott Wiener, former Mayor Willie Brown; speech and bill signing by Mayor London Breed; Flag Changing Ceremony led by Castro Merchants Association President Terry Asten Bennett; and everyone to walk across the street to Twin Peaks Tavern for a celebratory drink. I trust everything went well as planned.
RUTH’S TABLE is a Front Porch Community Services program committed to increasing access to creative opportunities for older adults and adults with disabilities, providing an inclusive and inspiring environment for creative expression and meaningful connections. Participation in the arts—whether as a maker, supporter, or observer—enhances the quality of life for individuals, providing opportunities for self-expression, social engagement, and personal growth. With intergenerational exchange at the core of their mission, “Ruth’s Table” offers a dynamic combination of rotating gallery exhibitions, creative programming, and community initiatives. For older adult participants, engagement in multi-disciplinary arts also contributes to their physical, intellectual, and emotional well-being, reduces isolation, stimulates cognitive functioning, and promotes personal growth and an active lifestyle. Ruth’s Table is funded by the City of San Francisco’s DEPARTMENT OF DISABILITY AND AGING SERVICES. Located at 3160 21st Street, Ruth’s Table offers a variety of ongoing services, workshops, galleries, and more to anyone and everyone—that really should be checked out further at https://www.ruthstable.org/
SF PRIDE will present the 2024 EXCELLENCE IN GOLF AWARD to Tisha Alyn, former pro golfer and media personality, for her outstanding leadership in advancing LGBTQ visibility and inclusion in the sport of golf. A fundraising reception will be in the Fairmont Hotel Crown Room, 7 pm on September 20. https://sfpride.org/golf
Sister Dana sez, “In a big ol’ slap to Fox-TV (Trump butt-smooching) News, James Murdoch, son of Fox media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for President! ‘Fair and balanced’ Fox news? Karma’s at work, Rupert baby!”
The legendary MONSTER SHOW, famously known as “San Francisco’s most ridiculous drag show,” will celebrate its 21st birthday. As the longest-running weekly drag show in the Castro, the Monster Show is renowned for welcoming wildly creative styles and expressions of drag, keeping the art form weird in an era of increasing conformity. The Monster Show will host its 21st Anniversary Show on Thursday, September 26, 10 pm, at the Edge Bar, 4149 18th Street. The show will feature a dozen favorite local performers, each doing an “especially Monster Show” number. Founded by the late legendary drag queen Cookie Dough and her partner DJ MC2, The Monster Show has become a beacon for drag experimentation and inclusivity. The show is currently hosted and co-produced by Elsa Touche, KaiKai Bee Michaels, and Oliver Branch, with co-producer/stage manager Otter and DJ Real of Melbourne. The Monster Show goes on at 10 pm every Thursday night at the Edge.
Sister Dana sez, “As we go to press, OHIO Senator JD Vance is doubling down on Springfield, Ohio, Haitians eating pets. Nor has ANY Congressional Republican denied this heinous, racist lie! Reprehensible!”
Get ready for a special concert experience that blends the worlds of music and visual art! Join the SAN FRANCISCO PRIDE BAND for PORTRAITS OF THE AMERICAS, a program featuring composers from North, Central, and South America. “The San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band” has updated its name to “The San Francisco Pride Band,” reinforcing its commitment to inclusivity across the LGBTQ spectrum. The new name reflects extensive community feedback and aligns with the organization’s broader initiatives. The Band will be returning to the historic Herbst Theatre stage, 401 Van Ness Avenue on Sunday, September 29, 4 pm to 6 pm. https://sfprideband.org/
Disgraced, four times indicted ex-president Trump has recently vowed to greatly reshape the federal bureaucracy in a wide-ranging, raging, as usual unhinged speech at his Wisconsin campaign rally. There he pledged to ultimately eliminate the DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, redirect the efforts of the DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE to suit his means, and fire any and all civil servants charged with carrying out Biden administration policies that he disagreed with. He will order long-term prison sentences to anyone—in his actual written capitalized words—including “Lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officers … prosecuted at levels never seen before in our Country.” And this autocrat made many more radical pledges suggested by a group of ultra-conservative organizations to develop policies for the next Republican president. Sister Dana sez, “In other words, while before he was distancing himself, Trump has now CONFIRMED that he intends to implement ‘PROJECT 2025’! Be afraid! Be very afraid! And go everywhere to Queer the Vote!”
In a fierce, emotional, spine-tingling, nationwide televised debate on September 10, Vice President Kamala Harris easily put Trump on the defensive, and kept him there. Harris opened by first approaching and extending and shaking Trump’s tentative hand, and then getting under his (orange) skin for a full 90 minutes. She shrewdly, skillfully revealed exactly who she was and positively what she stood for—while her weak opponent did sorta the same, but revealed his same old self and one-trick pony of negativity, while telling us our country was currently “going to hell.” Sister Dana sez, “If anyone still has doubts after that great debate, they must be suffering from Trump AMNESIA. Do they not recall the HELL that Trump brought during his terrible reign as ruler of AmeriKKKa?!”
Sister Dana sez, “During the debate, Harris kept tossing out the bait, and Trump kept taking the bait like the fish that he is. As TV’s Jimmy Kimmel remarked, ‘I’ve never seen such master baiting!’”
Taylor Swift encouraged her fan base to vote for Joe Biden in 2020, and voter registration SPIKED. Sister Dana sez, “I’m a Swiftie nun, and now even more than before—because Taylor Swift has endorsed Kamala Harris in a post to her 283 MILLION Instagram followers! Note: More than 400,000 new voter registrations occurred the day Swift convinced them to register! And the numbers keep climbing!”
PROJECT 2025 has become a flash point in the 2024 presidential election discourse. Dubbed the “2025 Presidential Transition Project,” Project 2025 is a framework for using the power of the federal government to impose “traditional family values” and a Christian Nationalist agenda across the country. It’s evil. But how would it target LGBTQ equality, civil liberties, and human rights? Join me at the upcoming HORIZONS FORUM on Zoom—free with advanced registration—on Wednesday, September 25, 5–6 pm, for PROJECT 2025: A FRAMEWORK FOR THE EROSION OF LGBTQ CIVIL RIGHTS, a virtual public discussion about the implications of Project 2025’s blueprint for the LGBTQ community. It will be featuring HORIZONS FOUNDATION moderator Francisco O. Buchting, PhD, and panelists Wendy Via and Heidi Beirich from the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE). Come prepared with questions to be answered live by their experts, and be a part of this important conversation! I will be asking how “Project 2025” could affect those already legally married same-sex couples. Register at https://bit.ly/3Xu1Zzf
NATIONAL HISPANIC (LATINO) HERITAGE MONTH is annually celebrated from September 15 to October 15 in the United States for recognizing the contributions and influence of Hispanic Americans (Latinx, Latinos, Latinas) to the history, culture, and achievements of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. It began as a week-long celebration in 1968 under President Johnson, and was expanded to a month by President Reagan 20 years later in 1988. The day of September 15 was significant because it is the anniversary of Independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrated their Independence days on September 16 and September 18, respectively.
Join PRC at their signature annual fundraiser, MIGHTY REAL, when they celebrate their clients’ journey as they imagine the possibility of a better life, inspire the motivation to take the first step, and act to make it a reality. October 4, 6:30 pm, The Pearl, 601 19th Street. Named after the signature song, “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” of PRC’s patron saint and greatest benefactor, “Queen of Disco,” Sylvester, this event pays homage to the star who benefited from PRC’s services and, in turn, gifted his future music royalties to PRC. There will be more info in my October 3 column. In the meantime, go to: https://prcsf.org/
Another Government Shutdown looms as Congress grapples with a funding bill that is set to expire October 1. Speaker Johnson had to remove it because it had attached the anti-voting SAVE ACT requiring—among other bad pork—proof of citizenship to vote. Congressional Democrats were against it, and remarkably some Republicans joined them. Sister Dana sez, “Here we go again! Anti-immigrant, hate-mongering rhetoric flows from Trump into our Halls of Congress! Do NOT shut down our Country!”
Words of Wisdumb from a Fun Nun
Published on September 19, 2024
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