Podcasts about castro district

Send us a textWe're proud to announce that starting today (June 11th, 2025), San Francisco officially has a women's sports bar! Rikki's is located in the iconic Castro district, and we got a sneak peak at the spot during their soft opening over the weekend. From the food, to the cocktails, to the company, this spot has it all! We sat down with co-owners Danielle Thoe and Sara Yergovich to discuss the importance of creating a welcoming bar that doubles as a community space, how they make difficult decisions despite them both being Libras, the overwhelming excitement and support they're received from both locals and local businesses, and some of their sports and business icons, including Rikki Streicher, the bar's namesake.Rikki's officially opens on Wednesday, June 11th from 3:30pm-10pm. See you there!Follow Rikki's on IGFollow Danielle Thoe on IGOnsite production support by Jeff Hunt of Storied: San FranciscoSupport the showThanks for listening and for your support! We couldn't have won Best of the Bay Best Podcast in 2022 , 2023 , and 2024 without you! -- Fight fascism. Shop small. Use cash. -- Subscribe to our channel on YouTube for behind the scenes footage! Rate and review us wherever you listen to podcasts! Visit our website! www.bitchtalkpodcast.com Follow us on Instagram & Facebook Listen every Tuesday at 9 - 10 am on BFF.FM

This week, Raoni welcomes to the "Raoni Washburn Show" stage, Clinton Otwell. Clinton shares with Raoni his not-so-unique polyamorous relationship with his two boyfriends and how he maneuvers through while living in the Castro District of San Francisco. Raoni and Clint also talk about roommate life in the city, the things that happen in the Fitness SF showers in the Castro, sex BINGO cards, trying to remember what condoms are for, and hookup pet peeves.Follow Clinton Otwell on Instagram @ clintincastroFollow The Raoni Washburn Show on:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Positive+1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠all @exposingmygay,Please subscribe to the "⁠⁠⁠Bossy Power Bottom Gay-Treon (Patreon)⁠⁠⁠" and get all things Bossy Power Bottom Productions bonus content from over four shows! Don't forget to go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠raoniwashburn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for any information you need on the show or Bossy Power Bottom Productions. While on the show website, look at the⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bossy Power Bottom Catalog⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and pick out your next piece for your upcoming gay or pride-related event. Do you have something you want Raoni to hear? Call in on the official Bossy Power Bottom hotline at 415 501 0401 and leave a message. Any other inquiries are received at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠mygayexpose@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ !

On June 30, 2010, Phil DiMartino, a beloved colleague and friend, left his office in San Fransisco to go out for the night in the Castro District. He never returned. Days later he was found dead by a worried colleague. When he was found, San Francisco police thought they might have a serial killer on his hands. FBI Profiler Julia Cowley was brought in to profile the unknown subject responsible for his murder. His murder, which includes notes from the killer and a voluminous amount of DNA, remains unsolved for inexplicable reasons. Julia, now the host of The Consult podcast, joins us to discuss her first case as an FBI profiler.To listen to The Consult episodes on Phil's case:https://www.truecrimeconsult.com/the-unsolved-murder-of-philip-dimartino-part-1https://www.truecrimeconsult.com/the-unsolved-murder-of-philip-dimartino-part-2To listen to the Beyond the Rainbow episode on Phil's case:https://podtail.com/podcast/beyond-the-rainbow-true-crimes-of-the-lgbt/s-14-ep-6-murder-of-phillip-dimartino/Contact me at silverliningshandbookpod@gmail.comCheck out the Silver Linings Handbook website at:https://silverliningshandbook.com/Check out our Patreon to support the show at:https://ww.patreon.com/thesilverliningshandbookJoin our Facebook Group at:https://www.facebook.com/groups/1361159947820623Visit the Silver Linings Handbook store to support the podcast at:https://www.bonfire.com/store/the-silver-linings-handbook-podcast-store/The Silver Linjngs Handbook podcast is a part of the ART19 network. ART19 is a subsidiary of Wondery and Amazon Music.See the Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and the California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today's Topics: 1) From the Bohemian Grove, former occultist Eira Wulfnothsson, comes home to the Catholic Church https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB4BPty_mrA 2, 3, 4) 37 facts about the Bohemian Grove. Let's discuss the facts that there are sacred places in the world: Lourdes, Fatima, Holy House of Loretto, and evil places in the world: Castro District in San Francisco, and Templo Santa Muerte in Los Angeles, along with many other evil places

Today's Topics: 1) From the Bohemian Grove, former occultist Eira Wulfnothsson, comes home to the Catholic Church https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB4BPty_mrA 2, 3, 4) 37 facts about the Bohemian Grove. Let's discuss the facts that there are sacred places in the world: Lourdes, Fatima, Holy House of Loretto, and evil places in the world: Castro District in San Francisco, and Templo Santa Muerte in Los Angeles, along with many other evil places

Today we discuss the significance of joy and faith during challenging times. Larry reminds us that it is Fleet Week in San Francisco, humorously addressing the cultural atmosphere in the Castro District. The conversation shifts to deeper themes of resilience and spirituality, with Brandon sharing personal experiences of dealing with adversity following Hurricane Helene. We explore the concept of a joyful Jesus, with references to Amy Jill Levine's book, 'The Misunderstood Jew,' and contemplate how joy can be found even in difficult circumstances. The episode concludes with inspiring anecdotes of community support and the necessity of maintaining hope and humor despite life's hardships.   00:00 Introduction to Fleet Week in San Francisco   00:39 God Talk Friday: Embracing Sensitivity   01:23 Finding Peace in Disruption   02:36 Joy in Solidarity: A Divine Perspective   04:09 The Humor of Jesus   06:51 The Reality of Hardship and Joy   11:28 Acts of Kindness and Community Support   13:18 Conclusion: Keeping Hope Alive   Dancing with Divine Fire: Joy in Solidarity smarticlepodcast@gmail.com #joyfromhardship #dancingjesus #drbarbaraholmes #cac #fatherrohr #richardrohr #centerforactionandcontemplation #spiritual #faith #godtok #faithtalk #realfaith #smarticlepodcast #podcast #smarticle @dailymeditations @Smarticleshow @BDDoble @larryolson threads.net/@smarticleshow @brand.dobes The Center for Action and Contemplation  The Smarticle Podcast   

Notes and Links to Andrew Maraniss' Work      For Episode 256, Pete welcomes Andrew Maraniss, and the two discuss, among other topics, carefree days of baseball card trading, formative writers and social justice activists, seeds for his latest series on inspiring contemporary athletes and their fights for justice, “writing” versus “sportswriting,” Glenn Burke and his singular fight for equality, how Andrew views writing about social issues in ways that young people can understand, and the restorative and challenging power that books hold.      Andrew Maraniss is the New York Times-bestselling author of narrative nonfiction; his first book, Strong Inside, about Perry Wallace, the first African-American basketball player in the SEC, won the 2015 Lillian Smith Book Award. He has recently launched a series of early chapter books for young readers, BEYOND THE GAME: Athletes Change the World, which highlights athletes who have done meaningful work outside of sports to help other people.     Buy Singled Out: The True Story of Glenn Burke   Andrew Maraniss' Website   Buy Andrew's Books   At about 1:30, Andrew talks about his family legacy of writing, and his early writing and reading At about 4:40, Andrew talks about his baseball love and love of other sports At about 5:50, the two discuss spreading baseball love in their families  At about 7:15, Andrew responds to Pete's questions about formative sportswriters and how Andrew sees “sportswriting” versus “writing” At about 10:25, Pete and Andrew lament missed opportunities with valuable sports memorabilia  At about 13:10, The two begin to discuss Singled Out: The True Story of Glenn Burke  and highlight Dusty Baker's key role  At about 14:10, Pete highlights the bold and moving way that Andrew starts th book in 1977, with Glenn struggling on the streets of San Francisco's Tenderloin  At about 18:30, Pete asks Andrew about the “double life” he writes about with regard to Glenn's minor league and major league careers  At about 21:50, Andrew recounts the story of the purported first high-five and Dusty Baker and Glenn Burke's roles At about 25:50, the two discuss Al Campanis' offer to Glenn and Glenn's last days as a Dodger At about 30:50, Andrew discusses the homophobic reactions that led to the shunning by the A's of Glenn At about 32:45, Pete compares Glenn's behaviors to that of a later career Jackie Robinson and Andrew talks about how Glenn had a tenuous amount of agency At about 34:00, Andrew details Glenn's time with Bay Area softball, and up and downs in his life, and how life in the Castro District in SF turned horrendous  At about 36:00, Andrew cites Dusty Baker as a great interview and a great guy At about 37:05, Andrew responds to Pete's questions about moments of joy in Glenn's painful last years and reflects on Glenn Burke's legacy At about 38:50, Andrew talks about Tommy Lasorda, Jr., and connections to Glenn's story; Pete and Andrew both cite an engrossing article by Peter Richmond At about 41:10, Pete is highly complimentary of Andrew's work and its progressive nature and   At about 42:00, Pete asks Andrew about seeds for his Athletes Change the World series, and Andrew cites book bans and hopes for his Glenn Burke book to be more widely-read; Andrew also details his books and connections to social issues At about 45:20, Andrew riffs on his books on LeBron James and Maya Moore and an upcoming book on Pat Tillman At about 47:00, Jordan Marie Brings Three White Horses Whetstone is discussed, in connection with murdered indigenous women and Andrew's book about her At about 48:10, Pete highlights a philosophy that Andrew uses in his books and his calls to action At about 49:15-LeBron love! Andrew details what he learned about LBJ through his book At about 52:40, Pete compliments the “surrounding infrastructure” of Andrew's work and asks him about difficulty in writing fewer words and for children with serious topics At about 56:30, Andrew details an imminent YA/adult book on the first Special Olympics At about 58:30, Andrew shouts out contact info, places to buy his books, and social media info            You can now subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and leave me a five-star review. You can also ask for the podcast by name using Alexa, and find the pod on Stitcher, Spotify, and on Amazon Music. Follow me on IG, where I'm @chillsatwillpodcast, or on Twitter, where I'm @chillsatwillpo1. You can watch this and other episodes on YouTube-watch and subscribe to The Chills at Will Podcast Channel. Please subscribe to both my YouTube Channel and my podcast while you're checking out this episode.       I am very excited about having one or two podcast episodes per month featured on the website of Chicago Review of Books. The audio will be posted, along with a written interview culled from the audio. A big thanks to Rachel León and Michael Welch at Chicago Review.    Sign up now for The Chills at Will Podcast Patreon: it can be found at patreon.com/chillsatwillpodcastpeterriehl     Check out the page that describes the benefits of a Patreon membership, including cool swag and bonus episodes. Thanks in advance for supporting my one-man show, my DIY podcast and my extensive reading, research, editing, and promoting to keep this independent podcast pumping out high-quality content!    This month's Patreon bonus episode features segments from conversations with Deesha Philyaw, Luis Alberto Urrea, Chris Stuck, and more, as they reflect on chill-inducing writing and writers that have inspired their own work.       This is a passion project of mine, a DIY operation, and I'd love for your help in promoting what I'm convinced is a unique and spirited look at an often-ignored art form.    The intro song for The Chills at Will Podcast is “Wind Down” (Instrumental Version), and the other song played on this episode was “Hoops” (Instrumental)” by Matt Weidauer, and both songs are used through ArchesAudio.com.     Please tune in for Episode 257 with Mirin Fader, a senior staff writer for The Ringer. I was honored to talk to her for Episode 76, about her first book, Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA Champion, which was a New York Times Bestseller. Her newest book Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon is out on this day, October 15, when the episode drops.    Lastly, please go to ceasefiretoday.com, which features 10+ actions to help bring about Ceasefire in Gaza.  

The Doodler Murders were a series of unsolved homicides that left San Francisco's LGBTQ community gripped with fear. The elusive killer, known as the Doodler, terrorized the city and vanished without a trace. The SFPD Homicide Detail is actively working on this cold case investigation and anyone with information is asked to call the SFPD 24-hour tip line at (415) 575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD. You may also contact Cold Case Investigators Tom Newland (415-553-1144), Dominic Celaya (415-553-9856), Daniel Dedet (415-553-1450), or Daniel Cunningham (415-553-9515). You may remain anonymous. For bonus content, ad-free and early episodes, archived episodes, a private Discord community, and more, subscribe to @fthatpod on Patreon!  Don't forget to check out the website! www.fthatpod.com If you liked what you heard today, give the podcast a like, review, and subscribe. Follow F**k That on Facebook, TikTok and Twitter @fthatpod Instagram @fthat_pod YouTube Channel: @fthatpod Thank you to this week's sources:  Castro District, San Francisco Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castro_District,_San_Francisco  Found SF The Castro: The Rise of a Gay Community  By: Chris Carlsson www.foundsf.org/index.php?title=The_Castro:_The_Rise_of_a_Gay_Community  The San Francisco Doodler Murders By: Kate Zaliznock  San Francisco Police Department The “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 19-014  www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/sfpd-provides-update-doodler-cold-case-investigation-19-014 San Francisco Police Department The “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 22-011 www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/doodler-cold-case-investigation-update-22-011 San Francisco Police Department The “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 23-009  www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/doodler-cold-case-investigation-update-23-009 San Francisco police name possible sixth victim of “Doodler” serial killer who targeted gay men Fox 23 News www.fox23.com/news/trending/san-francisco-police-name-possible-sixth-victim-of-doodler-serial-killer-who-targeted-gay-men/article_a0e4f865-b06e-55a2-b5d5-52509aa79b87.html  San Francisco Chronicle The Doodler Chapters 1-7 By: Kevin Fagan The above is available online or via podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Doodler Murders were a series of unsolved homicides that left San Francisco's LGBTQ community gripped with fear. The elusive killer, known as the Doodler, terrorized the city and vanished without a trace. The SFPD Homicide Detail is actively working on this cold case investigation and anyone with information is asked to call the SFPD 24-hour tip line at (415) 575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD. You may also contact Cold Case Investigators Tom Newland (415-553-1144), Dominic Celaya (415-553-9856), Daniel Dedet (415-553-1450), or Daniel Cunningham (415-553-9515). You may remain anonymous. For bonus content, ad-free and early episodes, archived episodes, a private Discord community, and more, subscribe to @fthatpod on Patreon!  Don't forget to check out the website! www.fthatpod.com If you liked what you heard today, give the podcast a like, review, and subscribe. Follow F**k That on Facebook, TikTok and Twitter @fthatpod Instagram @fthat_pod YouTube Channel: @fthatpod Thank you to this week's sources:  Castro District, San Francisco Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castro_District,_San_Francisco  Found SF The Castro: The Rise of a Gay Community  By: Chris Carlsson www.foundsf.org/index.php?title=The_Castro:_The_Rise_of_a_Gay_Community  The San Francisco Doodler Murders By: Kate Zaliznock  San Francisco Police Department The “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 19-014  www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/sfpd-provides-update-doodler-cold-case-investigation-19-014 San Francisco Police Department The “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 22-011 www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/doodler-cold-case-investigation-update-22-011 San Francisco Police Department The “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 23-009  www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/doodler-cold-case-investigation-update-23-009 San Francisco police name possible sixth victim of “Doodler” serial killer who targeted gay men Fox 23 News www.fox23.com/news/trending/san-francisco-police-name-possible-sixth-victim-of-doodler-serial-killer-who-targeted-gay-men/article_a0e4f865-b06e-55a2-b5d5-52509aa79b87.html  San Francisco Chronicle The Doodler Chapters 1-7 By: Kevin Fagan The above is available online or via podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Doodler Murders were a series of unsolved homicides that left San Francisco's LGBTQ community gripped with fear. The elusive killer, known as the Doodler, terrorized the city and vanished without a trace.The SFPD Homicide Detail is actively working on this cold case investigation and anyone with information is asked to call the SFPD 24-hour tip line at (415) 575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD. You may also contact Cold Case Investigators Tom Newland (415-553-1144), Dominic Celaya (415-553-9856), Daniel Dedet (415-553-1450), or Daniel Cunningham (415-553-9515). You may remain anonymous.For bonus content, ad-free and early episodes, archived episodes, a private Discord community, and more, subscribe to @fthatpod on Patreon!  Don't forget to check out the website!www.fthatpod.comIf you liked what you heard today, give the podcast a like, review, and subscribe.Follow F**k That on Facebook, TikTok and Twitter @fthatpodInstagram @fthat_podYouTube Channel: @fthatpod Thank you to this week's sources:  Castro District, San FranciscoWikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castro_District,_San_Francisco  Found SFThe Castro: The Rise of a Gay Community By: Chris Carlssonwww.foundsf.org/index.php?title=The_Castro:_The_Rise_of_a_Gay_Community  The San Francisco Doodler MurdersBy: Kate Zaliznock  San Francisco Police DepartmentThe “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 19-014 www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/sfpd-provides-update-doodler-cold-case-investigation-19-014  San Francisco Police DepartmentThe “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 22-011www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/doodler-cold-case-investigation-update-22-011  San Francisco Police DepartmentThe “Doodler” Cold Case Investigation Update 23-009 www.sanfranciscopolice.org/news/doodler-cold-case-investigation-update-23-009  San Francisco police name possible sixth victim of “Doodler” serial killer who targeted gay menFox 23 Newswww.fox23.com/news/trending/san-francisco-police-name-possible-sixth-victim-of-doodler-serial-killer-who-targeted-gay-men/article_a0e4f865-b06e-55a2-b5d5-52509aa79b87.html  San Francisco ChronicleThe Doodler Chapters 1-7 By: Kevin FaganThe above is available online or via podcastBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/f-k-that--5741034/support.

We're continuing our celebration of Pride Month by discussing the Frameline Film Festival (the world's oldest and largest LGBTQIA film festival, running June 19th-June 29th) with Executive Director, Allegra Madsen!Allegra is a badass bitch who has been able to marry her love of community building with her love of films as Frameline's newly coined Executive Director. She shares how she ended up in San Francisco, her (sometimes embarrassing) favorite movies growing up, how she was able to create a space for communities that are continually displaced in SF's Bayview district, and why film is a great gateway to other art forms. We then discuss our collective excitement over this year's festival lineup, including an epic (and free!) Juneteenth block party in the Castro District to kickoff the whole event. We'll see you there!Join the fun and get tickets to this year's Frameline Film Festival here!Follow Frameline Film Festival on IGSupport the Show.Thanks for listening and for your support! We couldn't have reached 11 years, recorded 800+ episodes, and won Best of the Bay Best Podcast in 2022 and 2023 without your help! -- Be well, stay safe, Black Lives Matter, AAPI Lives Matter, and abortion is normal. -- Subscribe to our channel on YouTube for behind the scenes footage! Rate and review us wherever you listen to podcasts! Visit our website! www.bitchtalkpodcast.com Follow us on Instagram & Facebook Listen every Tuesday at 9 - 10 am on BFF.FM

Barbara Tannenbaum is an award-winning journalist and author who writes essays on arts and culture for top publications like the New York Times and the San Francisco Chronicle. She also creates content for museums such as the Oakland Museum of California and the California Academy of Sciences. Barbara once served as Vice President of the Castro District's Rainbow Honor Walk, celebrating LGBTQ pioneer activists. An activist herself, she's now a strategic advisor for the Friends of Harvey Milk Plaza, working to make it a welcoming community space in the Castro. Tune in to hear our inspiring conversation with Barbara about her work and the History of the Castro. For more information about Barbara, please visit: https://barbaratannenbaum.com Meet Barbara Tannenbaum!

Following the Stonewall Riots, San Francisco's Castro District gained a reputation for its relative openness and soon emerged as a gay haven. During the 1970s and 1980s, a group of predominantly white, masculine-presenting gay men gained prominence for their uniform aesthetic, characterized by closely cropped hair, well-groomed mustaches, denim attire, and a rugged, hyper-masculine appearance.In this episode, we're exploring the origins and characteristics of this archetype, referred to as the Castro Clone, along with some famous Clones, and how this subculture both challenged and perpetuated narrow ideals of masculinity.Related Episodes:Listen to Episode 19. The Queer History of DiscoListen to Episode 24. Gay Villages: Won't You Be My Gaybor‪?‬ Listen to Episode 81. Are Mustaches Gay?Listen to Episode 82. Gay Gym CultureListen to Episode 86. Turn Off Your Code-SwitchingListen to Episode 92. Metrosexual MadnessAdditional Resources:Castro CloneCastro District, San FranciscoThe History of the CastroCruisin' with the Mustache CrewArthur EvansHow the '70s “Clone” Look Paved the Way for the Queer Clothing of TodayThe Incredibly Gay History of Manly ClothesAfraid You're Not Butch Enough?The Fabulous Sylvester: The Legend, the Music, the Seventies in San FranciscoSupport the Show.Get Your Merch

On today's episode…King Charles is going to ban cigarettes in the UK; Donald Trump and the judge in his NYC trial are butting heads; fire fighers stop for chic fil a instead before responding to call; a tik toker gets her boyfriend's name tattooed on her head & much more!   (00:00:00) - Intro (00:02:50) - Experiencing issues with the podcast? Let us know! (00:03:29) - Become a YouTube Member to get access to exclusive emotes and Macho Man badges: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC64xvoylxNRlsNHL8OBciAQ/join 

Ready to raise the bar? We're diving deep into the heart of San Francisco's Castro District with none other than the enigmatic Stephan Ferris. Once turning heads as the daring Blue Bailey in a world where condomless scenes were taboo even amongst fellow HIV-positive performers—he now rocks the courtroom and academia as a fiercely queer legal eagle. With credentials flaunting a Harvard-published piece and a seat on the board of Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom, Stephan's journey from sultry screens to California's courts is nothing short of legendary. Stephan also published memoir Blue Movie is a chronicling over 75 scenes from Ferris' life including sex, chems, sadistic Nazis, and even a dungeon death! Worlds collide when he and podcast cohost Dextra drag the law into the limelight with "Reading is Fundamental," demystifying the legal twists and turns of the entertainment world. Join Jon and Stephan as they explore the intersection of sexual expression, activism, and the letter of the law. This episode was recorded on the lands of the Yalukut Weelam clan of the Boon Wurrung peoples. We pay our respects to their elders, past, present and emerging, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. Find other JOY podcasts at joy.org.au Follow Reading is Fundamental on Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube! Stephan's links including his book and podcast are here: https://linktr.ee/stephanfferris  Keep up with Stephan on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SFnSF87/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/BlueBaileySF  

Chicago, IL; San Francisco, CA; and Portland, OR: Three tourist hotspots known for their cannabis culture. With so many themed dispensaries, cool experiences, and fantastic food in each state, where should canna-curious travelers start when picking what to smoke, see and do in these big cities?In this episode, host Brit Smith talks to Different Leaf magazine's cannabis travel writers about the coolest pot shops, lounges, sights, and hidden gems in The Bay, The Windy City, and Portlandia.First, writer Hannah Vyosky tells us about Chicago's must-see dispensaries, like Ivy Hall with its Great Gatsby vibe. She covers where visitors can consume weed without getting in trouble and offers up some lesser-known stoner experiences like picnics with the Dorothy and Toto statues in Oz Park, indulging your munchies at the global McDonald's, and exploring the city's famed Roman bathhouses.Then, writer Meena Thiruvengadum takes us on a tour of the essential stoner spots in the thriving hippie city of Portland, Oregon. She discusses the most worthwhile dispensaries like the Electric Lettuce, what to expect on the Portlandia bus tour, how to find the best beaches and hikes around the city, and where to get amazing wake-and-bake food like Gravy's french toast the size of your head.Finally, writer Carly Fisher delves into the best stops on the dispensary crawl through San Francisco's Castro District, where the legalization movement first began. She names some favorite consumption lounges, like the Barbary Coast draped in plush dark reds in a nod to the old Victorian era of San Fran. And she highlights the Bay's best outdoor experiences like the Oakland Cannabis Trail to the east and the Redwood forests to the north.Read our city guide by Hannah, Meena, and Carly starting on page 36 in the summer 2023 issue of Different Leaf magazine, available at DifferentLeaf.com or at thousands of in-person retailers. Find your local seller at DifferentLeaf.com/on-the-newsstandFollow us on social media @DifferentLeaf and find host Brit Smith @BritTheBritishCheck out our new merch line at xDifferentLeaf.com

When Tim Wessman started working at Tower, it was never previously on his radar. Tim was immediately impressed by the level of devotion his co-workers had for music. He felt an immediate fit when he started working for Tower.  With no portfolio he interviewed for the Artist position at the Berkley Video store and he was hired by Sue Peterson on the strength of his interview. At the end of 1990, Tim took a weekend trip to NYC and loved it so much that two months later he transferred to the NYC Village store #125. Working with a slew of artists at the Tower Art Loft at 4th & Lafayette, Tim was pulled aside by the Art Director and told to slow down as he was making the other artists look bad. Tim tells us about eventually taking over the role of Art Director and the highs and lows of working art and displays at the number one store in the US. Dealing with foam core full of bullet holes, artists who showed up to work to nap, the infamous Green Day in store where the Village store was torn to shreds, in stores with Lenny Kravitz, The Ramones, The Go Go's and Kate Bush's rare in store signing and being let down by the Prince in store and a whole lot more. The day after a Eurythmics Madison Square Garden reunion show, Tim flew back to the West Coast and started working at the Tower store in the Castro District, which was a completely different experience than what he had become used to. Tim finished his career with Tower as the Singles buyer. 

Are you a clinician looking for an organization that values independence, freedom, and flexibility? Look no further than the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy (CMP), a nonprofit counseling center for associate clinicians based in San Francisco. In today's podcast episode, I interview Scott Balderson, the director and founder of CMP, who shares more about the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy, what motivated him to start the CMP, and whether it might be a right fit for you.We discuss the unique level of freedom and flexibility given to clinicians over their practice decisions in the CMP, as well as the importance of creating a stable and supportive environment for associates. Join us as Scott explains what makes the CMP different from other agencies in the therapy field and how they prepare you for starting your own therapy practice. Plus, Scott shares great advice on how to make decisions about your practice!More about Scott Balderson:Scott Balderson LMFT, is the director and founder of Center for Mindful Psychotherapy, a non-profit counseling center for Associate clinicians. He has been practicing psychotherapy in the Castro District of San Francisco for over 30 years. In addition to traditional western psychological thought he honors different forms of self growth and knowledge including insight from the wisdom traditions of the East. In 2013, he founded the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy to provide a training community for Associate Marriage and Family Therapists in the process of obtaining hours towards licensure in the state of California. He still maintains a private practice as a psychotherapist serving individuals and couples in addition to serving as Director of the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy. Topics covered in this episode:Scott's story of going from private practice to founding a nonprofit counseling center.Why Scott prioritizes giving clinicians freedom and control over decisions like cancellation policies and fees.How the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy's financial model differs from other group practices and how it benefits therapists.Values and principles that guide Scott in running the CMP.Is the Center for Mindful Psychotherapy the right fit for you? How CMP supports you in transitioning smoothly into private practice after licensure without feeling lost.The Center for Mindful Psychotherapy encourages clinicians to take on additional roles within the organization, leveraging their skills and interests.How the technological advancements in therapy have shaped the profession and the way therapists attract and connect with clients?Advice on navigating the changing landscape of therapy and marketing strategies as a therapist in today's world.Connect with Felicia:Instagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coachMembership: Liberated BusinessFacebook group: Healing MoneyConnect with Scott:Website: mindfulcenter.orgRelated episodes:Episode 14: Choosing a Therapy Niche That Aligns with Your Values & Passions w/ April Snow, LMFTEpisode 8: Setting Boundaries & Valuing Your Worth as a Therapist with Emily AdamsQuote:“It felt really important to me to create an...

The Doodler was one of the first stories that drew me into the true crime world. Back in the 70s, a man was terrorizing The Castro District in San Francisco by luring in his victims with drawings of them on a cocktail napkin. I'd definitely be a sucker for a portrait of myself but would not want to meet the fate these men did. Originally broadcast June 19, 2019.Written, narrated, and edited by Schuyler Fastenau-Jones. Additional voices by Jacob Walle, Chris Wilkin, Richard Torres, Rick Jr., Steven Coe, Antonio Hill, Brandon Maple, Sandy Rose, and Daniel Fastenau-Jones.Follow us on:PatreonInstagramFacebookTiktokTwitterCheck out our other shows:The AftermathCereal KillerzCocktail BallerinaTrue Crime False CrimeThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/4120252/advertisement

Join us as we continue season 3, an exploration of the food industry. We got the opportunity to interview the legend, Ike of Ike's sandwiches. On the first day of operation in 2007, Ike Shehadeh did not sell a single sandwich in his small, hole-in-the-wall Ike's Place in San Francisco's Castro District. Now 15 years later, the man behind the goateed cartoon logo has built over a 90-unit empire and expansive menu catering to every diet preference. We talk about his life, his business, and more...including how YOU can get a sandwich named after you on the menu too!

INTRODUCTION: Martina Clark was the first openly HIV-positive person hired to work for UNAIDS in 1996. She subsequently worked for the United Nations system for 20 years, advocating globally for the rights of people living with HIV. Her collaborative work also led to a mandatory HIV In the Workplace program internal to the United Nations system, facilitating platforms for freer dialogue and a more supportive environment for all personnel, including LGBTQ, persons with disabilities, and other marginalized populations. Clark holds a BA in International Relations and an MFA in Creative Writing and Literature. Currently, she is an adjunct for LaGuardia Community College (part of CUNY) where she teaches English 101 and Critical Reading to NYC public high school students earning college credits early. Her award-winning debut book, My Unexpected Life: An International Memoir of Two Pandemics, HIV and COVID-19, was published in October 2021. INCLUDED IN THIS EPISODE (But not limited to): ·      A Deep Look Into Living With HIV/AIDS·      How COVID-19 And HIV/AIDS Are Connected·      Specific Implications For Women Living With HIV/AIDS·      Castro Street In The Mid 80's·      Doctoral Disrespect·      The Benefits of HIV/AIDS·      The Importance Of Maintaining A Positive Perspective·      Implementing Changes At The United Nations·      Disease Does Not Discriminate ·      Why It's Easier To Talk To Homeless People & Children CONNECT WITH MARTINA: Website: https://martina-clark.com/homeBook: https://martina-clark.com/buy-my-bookLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martina-clark-2735719/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martinaclarkwriter/Twitter: https://twitter.com/MartinaClarkPenFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/MartinaClarkWriter/YouTube: https://bit.ly/3IsGEjt CONNECT WITH DE'VANNON: Website: https://www.SexDrugsAndJesus.comWebsite: https://www.DownUnderApparel.comTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sexdrugsandjesusYouTube: https://bit.ly/3daTqCMFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/SexDrugsAndJesus/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sexdrugsandjesuspodcast/Twitter: https://twitter.com/TabooTopixLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devannonPinterest: https://www.pinterest.es/SexDrugsAndJesus/_saved/Email: DeVannon@SDJPodcast.com  DE'VANNON'S RECOMMENDATIONS: ·      Pray Away Documentary (NETFLIX)o  https://www.netflix.com/title/81040370o  TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk_CqGVfxEs ·      OverviewBible (Jeffrey Kranz)o  https://overviewbible.como  https://www.youtube.com/c/OverviewBible ·      Hillsong: A Megachurch Exposed (Documentary)o  https://press.discoveryplus.com/lifestyle/discovery-announces-key-participants-featured-in-upcoming-expose-of-the-hillsong-church-controversy-hillsong-a-megachurch-exposed/ ·      Leaving Hillsong Podcast With Tanya Levino  https://leavinghillsong.podbean.com  ·      Upwork: https://www.upwork.com·      FreeUp: https://freeup.net VETERAN'S SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS ·      Disabled American Veterans (DAV): https://www.dav.org·      American Legion: https://www.legion.org ·      What The World Needs Now (Dionne Warwick): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfHAs9cdTqg INTERESTED IN PODCASTING OR BEING A GUEST?: ·      PodMatch is awesome! This application streamlines the process of finding guests for your show and also helps you find shows to be a guest on. The PodMatch Community is a part of this and that is where you can ask questions and get help from an entire network of people so that you save both money and time on your podcasting journey.https://podmatch.com/signup/devannon  TRANSCRIPT: Martina Clark[00:00:00]You're listening to the sex drugs and Jesus podcast, where we discuss whatever the fuck we want to! And yes, we can put sex and drugs and Jesus all in the same bed and still be all right at the end of the day. My name is De'Vannon and I'll be interviewing guests from every corner of this world as we dig into topics that are too risqué for the morning show, as we strive to help you understand what's really going on in your life.There is nothing off the table and we've got a lot to talk about. So let's dive right into this episode.De'Vannon: Martina Clark is the author of My Unexpected Life, an International Memoir of two Pandemics, h i v, and Covid, 19. Now this book goes into great detail with regard to Martina Struggle living with H I V, surviving an Abusive Marriage, and her great efforts to establish an H I V awareness culture within the United Nation.Talk about a task, right? join [00:01:00] Martina and I as we travel in time from the Castro District in San Francisco in the 1980s, all the way up to the present days. We discussed life with H I v specific implications for HIV positive women and so much more. Hello, are you beautiful souls out there? And welcome back to the Sex Drugs in Jesus podcast. I'm your host Davanon, and I have of me today the wonderful and lovely Martina Clarke and this diva here. Is a, is a woman after my own soul. She has a history of H I V. She's also overcome Covid 19, and I have had to deal with those both.She wrote a book called My Unexpected Life, an International Memoir of two Pandemics, h i v, and Covid 19. And that is what we are here to discuss today. H I v. And Covid 19. Martina, how are you my dear? Martina: I am. I am well. How are you? [00:02:00]De'Vannon: I am fan. Fucking fantastic. Awesome. You know, after having lived through two diseases, which do come to kill you, what can I possibly have to complain about?You know, I'm here, I'm queer. I've got a bright pink beard going on because it's Mardi Gra down here right now. And, you know, I'm in, I'm in the season. And you know, you know, you know, how are, how are you? I read your book and everything for fuck's sake. How are you? , ? Martina: I, you know, I think I'm kind of the same. I think we are both virus overachiever and considering all that we've been through, I, you know, I'll complain cuz sometimes it's fun, but I really can't complain.I'm here. Getting ready to turn 59 in a few weeks and never thought that would happen. And it's all good. I feel like I'm the luckiest person alive. De'Vannon: Right. And y'all, so in this, in this interview, I hope to give you some [00:03:00] deeper insight into, H I v, you know, how it affects you mentally and emotionally and everything like that.Mm-hmm. , what Martina can offer that I cannot is that she was around and dealing with this back in San Francisco, you know, when all the shit started to hit the fan. Really, you know, I got H I V like in 20, like 10 years ago, 20 11, 20 10, or some shit, a far cry from what was going on back, you know, in the nineties and eighties and things like that.So I'm super excited to talk to her. . You know, I've never had anybody on my show who came quite out of this era. Oh wow. Okay. Great. A side note before we get started, because I noticed like everything, when I was researching you and some of your images, I saw a repeat of what looked to be like dragonfly earrings.Yes. Wondering what this is . Martina: Yeah. And you I have them on right now. Exactly. . So, I thi this particular pair of [00:04:00]dragon dragonfly earrings I got in Cambodia of all places and I saw them in the hotel lobby where I was staying. And I tried to never buy stuff like in the hotel stores cause I wanna find the actual artists and support them directly.But I just fell in love with them and I thought the hell that I'm gonna buy 'em and I wear them every single day. I've had them. Probably 15 years and somebody told me that when you see a dragonfly in nature, it means that the ecosystem is in good shape. So for me, I like to wear the dragonfly is partly cuz I think they're pretty, but partly because it makes me feel like maybe my own little personal ecosystem is in good shape and I need all the help I can getSo that's what they mean to me. De'Vannon: That is so beautiful and it reminds me, I was, a couple of years ago, I was looking out my backyard and there's a stream that runs back there and there was a swarm of [00:05:00] thousands of dragon flies. Oh, wow. The, the only time I've seen is in my life. I used to catch him. You know, as a kid, but I don't catch insects anymore.I just want them to be free. Yeah. But but it was like thousands of them and they happened to, to show up as the sun was setting at a certain angle and it reflected off of all of their wings sign. Oh my god. And Martina: it . Wow. That must have been De'Vannon: amazing. It is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen in my life.In I can imagine You're here, here for the dragonfly. Now that's the beautiful stuff. Let's get into the, the gritty part of this. So the cover of your. Absolutely titillating. I'm always interested in people's book covers, you know, and what it means. One thing that, so the cover of her book y'all, is like, it looks like a passport.Mm-hmm. her very emotionless passport photo. You know, they don't like you to smile in those photos. They want you to look like a goddamn statue. So you pulled off your statue esque look. Very [00:06:00] well. Thank you. She's got like a Covid virus. She's got like h I v Now you have Venezuela. It's the only country that I see on there.You have 18 September, 1996. Was that the day you found out you had H I V. And was that the country you were in or what is the significance of Venezuela and that date? Martina: That is an excellent question that nobody has ever asked me. So the reason for Venezuela is total random. Okay? It has nothing to do with anythingBasically I had an idea of the cover that I wanted and I sent some pictures of passport, actual pages of my passport to the woman who did the ultimate design and they came up. The, the variations on the stamps and why they selected Venezuela, I cannot tell you. I guess it just happened to [00:07:00] fit, but I actually found out that I had H I V in 1992 in may I think of 1992 for some bizarre reason.I don't know the exact date that I tested positive, which I find extremely weird. , but I haven't committed it to memory. Or maybe I blocked it, I don't know. But yeah, it was in 1992 when I found out. So I was in San Francisco and that is when that journey began for me. De'Vannon: Now she was 28 years old when she found out.Mm-hmm. . I'm gonna read a snippet. From your book, I do love story time and there are two snippets that I'm gonna read throughout this interview here. So if I may, yeah, of course. Thank you. Okay, so this snippet here, y'all, this is Martina now. She says, unnerved by my memories of the men. Who died in those years, neighbors who left for the hospital and never [00:08:00] returned the relentless funerals I found myself reliving the grief of decades past history was repeating itself again, far too many.Did not heed the warning. Now. In this snippet here, she's tidying up this book as Covid 19 is beginning and COVID 19 is causing you to be triggered about what was going on back in 1992. Right? So, and then while I'm reading this, I'm having all these poses, flashbacks, and I'm just, you know, you know, I'm right there with you in New York back in the dance hall scene and in pose it was only three seasons, but my God, it felt like years of, you know, so many funerals, so many people died, you know, watching poses.If you haven't seen pose people, I don't know what you're doing with your life. Martina: Forget on it. De'Vannon: So, yes. And, and Martina is in New York right now. That's where she lives. And so all of this is just [00:09:00] really coming together for me right now in a super emotional way. So, so tell us about how you felt when you got H I V and what was going on, and then how did C O V I D trigger this for you?Sure. Martina: So when I found out that I had H I V. , I felt like my life had just been erased. And I remember I was, I got the news on the phone, which is not how you're supposed to get it. You're supposed to get it from an intellectual person in real life. But I got the news on the phone and I was standing in a kitchen and I just stared at a cabinet and it's like a white kitchen cabinet.And I, I felt like that was my life. It was just a blank slate. And not necessarily in a good way, but that everything I had ever done. , it just didn't matter anymore cuz I had this new thing that I was gonna have to deal with. I had never seen another woman with H I v I probably had, but I didn't register that I had.And [00:10:00] despite living in San Francisco, which in the eighties and nineties was, you know, really hard hit by H I V and AIDS pandemic, I just still felt very, very alone. I knew plenty of people with H I V, but not another woman. But before all of that happened in 1992 I actually lived on Castro Street in the mid eighties.Yeah. And yeah, Castro Street. If you don't know, San Francisco is the hub of the most fabulous gay neighborhood, perhaps on the planet, I don't know. But certainly in San Francisco. And I lived there at the, really, at the height of the AIDS crisis, and there were. sirens all the time and ambulances going by and funerals, and it was just a constant state of sort of survival and grief.And yet in the midst of this extraordinary community who was always like, we're gonna be better than this. We're gonna be bigger than this. We're gonna, we're gonna still be fabulous and [00:11:00]wonderful. And when. going through the beginning of Covid. I live in Brooklyn, in New York City, which was the epicenter for this pandemic.And so it was similar in a sense that there was just a constant stream of ambulances going by and people were dying. And I'm, I'm a teacher now and my students were telling me these horror stories of one student's mom died and the family didn't even know where her body was. For like weeks and I mean, just trauma that is unbearable for anybody.And it was on such a scale that I was really triggered and I, I mean, nobody knew what to anticipate as we went into the covid epidemic, but our pandemic, I should say. But I, I was really triggered and I found myself like back on Castro Street. Seeing [00:12:00] apartments for rent, knowing that probably the person inside who had lived there before died, you know, or yard sales.There were yard sales all the time, which it was just, it was so much to handle, to know that there was so much death going on around you. And then to go through this again was was overwhelming to say the slightest least De'Vannon: bit. Two pandemics in a lifetime. . Yeah. You know, when, when Covid came out, you know, they were saying like, you know, we hadn't seen anything like this since, I think 19 you know, the early 19 hundreds when there was a Spanish flu?I believe it was right, but. But if, but if truth be told for people dealing with H I V we have seen it before . Martina: Yes, exactly. Exactly. Yeah. No, we've lived through it and, and I'm in touch with a lot of long-term survivors of H I V and we all were just like, Ugh, this feels too real. Too [00:13:00] close. Too much. Yeah.De'Vannon: And so, I hear you when you say that you found out over the phone, that is so not the way to do it. When I found out they didn't even bother to call, they left the voicemail. Oh my gosh. I re, I retrieve my positive diagnosis from a voicemail and so , so it, it is just, and this was only 10 years ago, so it's sad to see that healthcare and the way they deal with H I V has not evolved, you know?Yeah. Back in those days telling people over the phone, in my case, leaving a voice. You know, it makes me think that some doctors who deal with H I V patients just don't respect us, you know? And just don't consider us be human enough to treat with common dignity and decency. . Yeah, Martina: I agreed. De'Vannon: Totally agree.HIV people, you did it to yourself. It's all your fault. So you, you deserve what happened to you. So we'll just drop the shit on the, we'll just call you and whatever. Martina: Yeah. . Yeah. No, agree. [00:14:00] Agree. I don't understand why we haven't gotten past . De'Vannon: Yeah. Stigma. Now, when you found out, you said you, you stared at the, at the furniture, you know, and you felt like your life, everything was at that point, didn't matter.They said that they gave you five years to live. Mm-hmm. . How did it feel to hear a doctor try to, and clearly we're far past five years now, , you know, thank God for that. Yeah. And you, but how did it feel to have someone tell you, look, you got, what is it, 60 months left f ? Do with it what you will , you know?Martina: Yeah. I never thought of it in terms of months. It, it just felt, again, it, it, it definitely felt dismissive. I mean, in, in retrospect, I look back and I think, okay, this doctor was also navigating this territory and probably didn't know what to [00:15:00] say, and that was his best assessment. Right. But at the time, I, you know, I was 28 years old.I felt like, that's it, you know, my life is over. And and he kept telling me to relax and to, you know, don't stress , just, you know, be as calm as you can. Don't stress about things because stress is bad for you. So relax and try and get lots of rest. . It's like, fuck you. You know, you just told me I've got five years to live.I'm gonna maybe make it to 33 if I'm lucky. Right. And I'm not Jesus, so I don't want that end, you know? Right. I don't wanna go down that path. So I yeah, I just felt like my life was over and. because there was no treatment yet that didn't come till like 1996. I think that is what launched me into becoming an activist, cuz I felt like, you know, if I am gonna die, at least I can try and make something out of this [00:16:00] to help somebody else, or at least make myself feel better about myself, , or, I don't know make me feel like I had a purpose.and so I didn't really focus on myself as much as I think maybe I should have, but it was sort of what I needed to do. I just needed to stay in my mind, stay one step ahead of the virus cuz there was no other option at that point. De'Vannon: I think you did better than me. I was too self-absorbed and too concerned about me.I thought I was just gonna like die in a few months cuz I didn't have, they didn't tell me I had five months. They didn't tell me anything after. Forgot the voicemail. I never talked to anybody and I just went down this whole bad spiral. The only person I knew who had H I V died at like 24 ish, and I just saw him triple up into like this husk of a person covered with boils and sores.Mm-hmm. . And I thought, okay, well, you know, that's where it's headed. And so [00:17:00] but hearing you speak. You know, tells me what I should have done. You know, I should have taken the microscope off of me and had I focused on trying to heal other people than I would've gotten healed myself, you know? Which is how I usually would deal with, cuz I had a strong history of volunteerism, but I was not volunteering during this time because I had gotten kicked out of church.For not being straight. And so I had stopped all of my philanthropy and public service work, so I wasn't in that vein of operating like I usually would have been. Mm-hmm. . So I didn't even think about that. And so, So people, when we get sick, if anybody out there contracts, h i v, here you have it, , don't find a way to help somebody else.That way you don't get o overly self-absorbed with your own nightmarish fantasies about what you think are going to happen. I like to talk about this because sometimes people. Get H I v and people are [00:18:00] like, oh, there's medicine for it now you can just fix it. That that doesn't take away the mental mind fuck of being invaded by something that you can't get rid of and that, you know, desires to take your life.It doesn't matter how far technology has come, the mental health aspect of it is still is real today as it was back in the Castro days. Martina: Absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. No, I think that that is it's so important to, to highlight because people. , it's really not that big a deal now. You know, it's, it's so what?You take a pill every day and if you're probably fine, you'll probably have a regular lifespan. But that is so minimizing the reality, and it's just kind of bullshit because yes, there's medication and thank God it exists. And we're very lucky compared to so many people who are not here to even talk about this now.but the truth is you still have your body fighting this thing constantly. Research is showing that [00:19:00] for long-term survivors, it ages your body just because you've been fighting it for so long. So like in theory, I'm 12 years older physiologically than my actual age, and so I. 70 . So I'm now magically older than my siblings, which is kind of weird But then as you say, like all of the, the social dynamics and the mental health and the, you know, psychological, it's like you just still don't know. And the thing is, we still don't know, you know, we know that the medications are working so far so good, but we're the. Sort of cohort of people being studied to see if this medication actually works.I don't know, you know, maybe in another 10 years you're gonna be like, oops, it's as good as it gets. And that's, you know, it stopped working. Now, I don't know. And I don't know, like with Covid, you know, this is something I think about a lot was did I get c o because I have h I [00:20:00] V and I was more vulner. or when I got covid, did I not have a worse case because I'm also taking medication for H I V, which is not the same medication, but sort of in a similar family of fighting viruses.I don't know. You know? And it is a constant like just. every day. Not every day. Maybe after 31 years of living with H I V I don't think about it necessarily every single day, but I do think about it regularly, like, is something else going to go wrong tomorrow because I have H I V, you know, do I really have a full life to look forward to?Am I gonna live to 80 or 90? And of course, nobody knows how long they're gonna live, but I really, nobody knows how much h I V is actually still doing damage to. despite having the medications. Mm-hmm. like it's keeping us alive, but is it really you know, are we, are we actually still at a hundred percent?Like everybody likes to [00:21:00] pretend that you take the pill and you're good to go. You know? There's so much more to it, as you say. Yeah. De'Vannon: There's so much more to it and there's so many different medicines because everybody's body. reacts differently to different mm-hmm. things. No Doctor gives you a guarantee that medicine is going to work.They always have that same disclaimer, like, we're gonna try this. Hopefully it works. If this doesn't work, then we'll switch you to a different medicine. You hope and pray that your body doesn't grow a tolerance to whatever medicine that you are. Mm-hmm. . And you hope and pray that you don't get exposed to a different strand of it that could cause the virus within you to mutate, so mm-hmm.it's not just like a home free thing. It still has to, it still is a conscious. Yeah. I wanna give a word of caution too when people, you know, if you should happen to get H I V or hepatitis, I also, you know, have a history of Hepatitis B as well, you know, to be careful that you don't let it turn into anger.Mm-hmm. , when I was a teenager, this guy that I was. Dating, you know, he was like the same person who died of H I V or AIDS [00:22:00] was the same one. He was running around trying to intentionally give it to people. Mm. Because what happened with him is he got it and like me, I thought I was just gonna die. And I blamed myself.He got mad and he went out and tried to kill as many people as he could, you know, so, So just be careful, you know, your emotions that I like, we, we, Martina and I cannot overstate the emotional implications, you know, that can happen to people. Mm-hmm. . Now the last snippet that I have that I wanted to read talks about Different perspective on it.For, for instance, this is the panglossian outlook as you describe it in your book in the panglossian is just a very fabulous word that doesn't speak of mermaids or unicorns or the never ending story like you might think. It just means like a, a super optimistic person. . So , [00:23:00] so, so So the snippet reads, people living with the virus sometimes, say H I V, is a gift because it requires a long, hard look at yourself and your life.You take account of where you stand, it forces you to contemplate your mortality. Perhaps still, I've swapped my gift for a nice pair of shoes and so. after I settled the fuck down and realized I wasn't going to die, now we're talking what, four felonies and three trips to jail later. Because I really went off the deep end.I realized, you know, I gotta get healthy now. I have to, like, I started to like eat better, or at least think about it, you know? Mm-hmm. ways. And so for me it did turn into a gift. After I got my head back on straight . It was so funny to read. You say, you know, I'll take the pair of shoes.[00:24:00]did you find any benefits? I mean, Martina: you know, I, I, I always say that I would clearly, I would like, I'm sure everybody would like to have had a life without h I v. I would like to have tried that one out, but I would also be a liar if I said I didn't have some benefits because, because of the fact that I had h I v and it was just, you know, sort of the timing and my particular set of skills in life and all of these things converged and I ended up having a career for more than 20 years with the United Nations, which I don't think I would ever have been able to even fantasize about.You know, it just, it all unfolded because I had H I V and through that, Traveled the world. I have met extraordinary people from all walks of life in all kinds of places, and I wouldn't trade that for anything. I have been so [00:25:00] blessed to, to be able to go places and like, be in the company of the people who actually live there, you know, not get on a, a tour and ride around in a bus and wave at the, at the locals.You know, I actually got to be with the people who live in all of these places and. a little bit understand what they were going through and know that like their journey with H I V was different for certain reasons. or despite having living, being living in different totally different countries, we actually have a lot of things in common, you know, that sort of stuff that you realize.There's so many things that connect us as human beings. And when you're dealing with something as traumatic and big as h I v, a lot of those things they become super important and it no longer matters. You know, where you're from, what language you speak, what you look like, any of that. It's just like this common shared life experience and.to have had so many of those experiences is just, I feel like I am the [00:26:00] richest person on the planet in terms of life experience. Not quite as rich in terms of money, but that's okay. . And so things like that. I definitely got a lot of great, you know, not pairs of shoes, but a lot of great other gifts,De'Vannon: hey, perspective is everything. A person can have so much in front of them and focus on a few things that they don't have and forfeit all the good stuff that they do have. Yeah. And then, you know, it's all about perspective. Millionaires kill themselves, you know? Yeah. It's not about money, you know, it's about not getting tricked into over focusing on the, on the, what you don't have, and being happy for what you do have.Agree. Yeah. Now before we dive deeper into the United Nations, the last question that I had about your more like personal life was do you ever think about like, where you got h i v from, you know, how you contracted it, who gave it to you, or [00:27:00] you got it from a needle? Like, do you ever think about that or do you have closure on that?Martina: Excellent question. I. Sort of forced closure on it. The truth is, I don't know a hundred percent where I got H I v. I am certain it was from a sexual encounter, unprotected sex. Only cuz I never did any drugs that involve needles cuz I'm afraid of needles. And we'll leave it at that. Not that I didn't try on plenty of other stuff, , , but that was not myThat was not my, my method of choice, party De'Vannon: on, party on, but . Martina: But none of none of those things would've put me at risk for h I V except for maybe not being in my best mental frame of reference to make good choices. But I don't know for sure. I have a pretty good idea of where and when I was exposed, and that's [00:28:00] as much as I'll ever know.And I, you know, I think one of my friends told me a story once, she's from Uganda, and she said that when a snake gets into your house, the first thing you think about is not, gosh, how did the snake get in the house? . Hmm. Let's ponder that. No, what you think about is how do I get that snake out of my house and get it away as far away as possible, so it's not gonna come back.Right. You're not thinking about like, how does it get in? That's sort of a, a luxury to think about in a way when you have to fight, you know, the virus is very much a real live living thing in your body. That's the thing that's more important to worry about. At least for me that has held true that I sort of, I've pondered it and probably more at the beginning, but as time has passed, like it doesn't matter.I have it. I gotta deal with it and move forward. [00:29:00]De'Vannon: Oh, to move forward. Some days it's easier. Some days it almost seems impossible, but move forward, we must move forward, we shall.No. I have one more question before we move on to the un. Okay. In your book, I was reading, and you're very, very transparent about how you, while you didn't judge like the gay men or anything like that in according to your head knowledge, you really didn't think as being like a, a straight woman, that it was something that you were at risk for, you thought.I believe in your book, you said you thought you were like immune to it or like it could not impact you. So what do you have to say to people to this day who might still be laboring under the delusion that it's, you know, a disease for those people over there? Or , you know? Martina: Yeah. Well I think I mean, we can take a lesson from Covid.A virus does not care who you are, what you look like, or you [00:30:00] know how you get it. They just want you to get it and live in your body and mess things up. So anybody can get H I V. It's has nothing to do with who you are. If you're a good person, a bad person, or you're smelly or you have green eyes or left-handed.It has nothing to do with any of that stuff. It is a virus and anybody can get it, and I think that in this country, . I mean, certainly in 2023 we barely hear about H I V at all anymore. It's my perception. And that's even as somebody who's in the world of H I V right? It's just, it's not like out there in the public discourse like it used to be.And I think that that's like on one hand you don't want to alarm people unnecessarily. Blah, blah, blah. But at the same time, I don't think that we're giving people an accurate reflection of the fact that it could be any, anybody. You know, it's a [00:31:00] virus. Anybody can contract it given the correct circumstances.And globally, more than half of the people living with H I V are women. . And I think most people don't know that either. There is a perception to this day that it is just a gay man's disease, which is complete nonsense. It is a human being's disease, and I think that's a really important thing. And again, if we can learn anything from Covid, it is that viruses do not discriminate and neither should we.De'Vannon: No, we absolutely should not. And. . So, so let's shift gears to the, to the UN here. So you were the first openly H I V positive person you worked for UN AIDS in 1996. Mm-hmm. . How does that feel? Martina: It feels like, and, and it's sort of what prompted me to write the book is that I feel like I [00:32:00] own this little teeny, tiny piece of the history of the AIDS pandemic.And if I didn't tell the story, nobody would or could, cuz it's my story. I look back at it now as an extraordinary sort of privilege to have had that, that position at the time. It felt like a nightmare cause I, you know, I was hired to have my job. NGO liaison. So I was the person who linking all of the nonprofits around the world working on h i v to our program, which is a huge job all by itself.But what I felt my job was, was to be sort of the voice of reason in-house and call everybody to task on the work and say, you're not considering the needs of people living with H I v. You're just thinking of this as a scientist, or you're thinking of this as. Communication specialist, but you're not considering What are our needs in our job at U N A S is to serve people with h i v first and foremost.And so I was sort of like the in-house [00:33:00] act up yelling and screaming all the time. And it was a, it was a crazy job. It was so hard. And I put a lot of that pressure on myself, but it was also kind of weird because as the first person, , I felt like some of my community thought that I had sort of sold out and gone to the, to the UN more as a self-serving, you know, this is a great job and it was.It was a great job. Had a nice salary. I moved to Switzerland. You know, all of these extraordinary things happened, but I was sort of alienated from my community in a way cuz I was the only person there. And it took a while to sort. Earn their trust again, that I was doing something that was actually helpful to them because I think they were also watching me seeing like, okay, is she actually gonna be there and do what she's supposed to do and stand up for all of us?Or is she just gonna sort of settle in and go, cool, [00:34:00] I like this big salary, I'm just gonna float coast, not really do the job that I could be doing. So it was, it was really. , it was a lot to take on. And this is just four years after I'd found out I had H I V and I hadn't really processed it all internally like I probably should have.But again, I just sort of like launched myself into space to take on this huge job. And it was a lot. But again, I look back at it now all these years later and I just feel like I was really lucky and. above all, hope that I did the right stuff and made sure that in those early days of unaids, which very much changed the way the UN responded to the pandemic, that I helped to keep them honest a little bit.Do De'Vannon: you feel like any of the policies you created [00:35:00] impacted not just the organization within the United Nations? Do you think any of those, any of your work filtered down? are most, you know, local communities. Martina: I, I do. And I would say not so much the work at unaids, but the next sort of big job that I had with the UN was a few, few years later with UNICEF and I was the h I V in the workplace coordinator.I don't know what my title was, but that was my job, was to make sure that UNICEF had an h i v in the workplace program for all of the countries where we work. and that means implementing programming so that all of the personnel who work in any given office were getting education around H I V. That ultimately morphed into a UN system-wide program.So the entire UN system in, you know, 160 countries where we work, and tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of [00:36:00] people ultimately were exposed to those trainings because it was a mandatory program. and that I know made a difference because the way we were approaching it was, you know, you have to go through this training and maybe you feel like you don't need this training because you're, you don't perceive you have any risk of getting H I V, but we wanna make sure that you know how to educate the other people in your life and your kids and grandkids and so on and so forth.So it trickled down in that way, into communities. . Which was amazing. I also know that it helped in the sense that our program staff, like for example, somebody who worked in the accounting office in one country, she was afraid to have people who were hired to work for us come to her office to collect their checks cuz she was just didn't want people with h I V in her office cuz she just mm-hmm.wasn't, you know, educated. [00:37:00] Right. . And so it was holding up program work and once we started doing the training, she's like, oh, okay, now I realize I have nothing to worry about. I am not at risk. They can come to my office. They're just picking up a check. It is not a big deal. It allowed the work to move forward and for her to be more comfortable and in turn other people in the office to be more comfortable.And you know, it's, it sort of sounds like a little tiny nitpicky example, but it actually ended up making a big difference for the programming in that. and it also, we were finally sort of modeling what we were supposed to do as a un. And so we were able to influence governments and local businesses and say, look, we have an H I V in the workplace program.You should too. Can we help you set one up? . And so I know that, you know, it clearly hasn't fixed everything by any means, but it made a difference, at least a small difference in lasting ways. And that program is like officially [00:38:00] doesn't have a team dedicated to it anymore cuz it's been going for so long.But I know that the work is still happening and country offices are still doing trainings and making sure that we have. Respect also for our own personnel living with H I V, and it's really changed the whole way that the UN approaches staff wellbeing. It made it easier for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer people to be out in the office, which is a huge thing.Maybe they couldn't be in their own lives, but at least in the family of the United Nation system, it's better than it was. It's still not perfect. , but all of that work like made the UN a better employee, in my opinion. De'Vannon: I think I would concur with your opinion because it sounds like your work, like you said, they don't have dedicated teams, but it's been around for so long.It's some [00:39:00] it's, it almost sounds like it's been ingrained into the subconscious culture of. In. So is it its own living organism? I mean, there's nothing more you could ask for. I mean, what an honor and a compliment . Martina: Yeah, yeah. No, no, absolutely. And it, it's, I'm really, really proud of that work. . I feel like I was so lucky to be a part of the team that did the work.And again, I was like one of the people holding everybody accountable and saying, you know, we need to have the right priorities. And it was really hard to do because the UN is such a big bureaucracy, but we did it and it's, as you say, it's, it's ingrained into the culture now and De'Vannon: Oh, beautiful. And I wanna give a shout out to unicef, who you mentioned, and they do great work for kids.Yeah. Globally. That is, that's my favorite nonprofit of all the nonprofits and all the nine realms [00:40:00] because Cause I just, I just fucking love children. And they're just so like, , it's just simple to talk to a kid. Mm-hmm. , you know, when I, when I get tired of grown up bullshit and faking this, and they feel like they have to do this, I go talk to one of two people, either homeless people or a child, because mm-hmm.they don't have a, they're, they have no motivation to be anything other than what they are. And I used homeless before, and so that's where I got this, this, this from, you know, extended. , you know, conversation with homeless people, which I used to talk to 'em before became homeless. But those two, I just go fucking find me a, a fucking seven year old to talk to, just to get some common damn sins from them.Yeah, yeah, Martina: absolutely. De'Vannon: Absolutely. And so [00:41:00] did you ever come across any like opposition that you, when you were trying to. two cuz really what you were trying to push was love and open-mindedness to an organization that's already supposed to stand for that. And we all know it doesn't matter what church somebody goes to run to or what.Nonprofit that has a big ideal that it stands for. Those bitches are there at work because they're trying to get paid primarily. Mm-hmm. completely different. If you've been somebody who has gone through something that your organization services, but your main reason is to get paid, people go to church to save their own souls, they're not going there to help you.They're gonna help themselves. Mm-hmm. . And so, so when, so when they're confronted, with somebody who has H I V or somebody who is the polar opposite of them. Then there's that gut check moment. Okay, so you work for the un, you are all about hu you know, human service, you know, helping people. Or you go to your church or whatever, supposed to be about the same thing.Now will you close the door in their face? You [00:42:00] don't wanna give them a check, you know, so you, so you know the. You know what your company stands for. You know, you recited the creeds and the core values, but when it came down to it, you couldn't deliver . So it's all great when it's an idea, but when you actually have someone in need standing in front of you, Then what the hell do you do?This person you had to help them do what they signed up to do. . Mm-hmm. . That's very, very big of you. . Cause you, you could have gone in there and cussed the bitch out, you know, and been like, what the hell is your problem? But you took the high road and you showed you shared love. I just wanted to point that out, that that's, this is a really, , you know, a stretch for you to have to do this.F E U N, of all places . Martina: So, yeah. Yeah, I mean, I I tried really [00:43:00] hard to always come at it with love and understanding that, you know, everybody, not everybody knows all the stuff that we know about H I V. . And if you're hired as an accountant, that is, you don't have a background in public health. You know, why would you know all of this stuff?Right? So I was sort of trying to be compassionate that everybody's learning this information at some point for the first time, and maybe I'm the person teaching them for the first time. But I can also tell you , had my moments . I, on my, on my very last training that I did for UNICEF before I, I left I was doing this workshop and it was in the middle.which is a tricky region to talk about anything around sex to start with. And it was specifically, we were, we had a people from countries that were in conflict. So these [00:44:00] people already are like, I have so much to think about. H I V in the workplace is really the last thing on my mind. So they were like, maybe okay to be there.They're not really against it, but at the same time they're like, why is, why do I have to do this? and then one woman. I said, we're gonna talk about how we're gonna get condoms in your offices, because that was one of the mandatory principles of our workplace program is that even if you have 'em in a basket in the kitchen, Where it's in a closet next to the, you know, to the sugar packets, and only the staff knows that they're there.They have to be somewhere, because if we don't make them available, then staff who are afraid to go to the store and buy them themselves, or they can't, for whatever reason, you know, we make sure that at least they're available and hopeful. breaking down the stigma associated with condoms, right? So I had one woman in this one training who basically said, we can't do that because it just promotes immoral [00:45:00] behavior of it, it increases the immoral behavior of bad people, basically, is what she said.I was just like, woo.I lost it and it was my last training and I had told them at the beginning that this would be my last training and I was leaving UNICEF to go on and do other things. And at that moment I took off my glasses and I said, I didn't tell you why. , I'm leaving unicef. But part of why is cuz I can't listen to people like you anymore.And everybody else in the room was just like, oh, no, she didn't. No, she didn't. Oh my God. and I, yeah. I was just like, oh Lord, what did I just do? But at the end of the day, , the other people in the room were like, thank you so much, because she is a pain in a neck and she's always fighting us on this condom issue.And you [00:46:00] have the luxury that at the end of the week you get on a plane and you leave. , you don't have to work with her anymore, but you've said to her what? We can't. And so apparently the fact that I kind of blew up on this woman ultimately was helpful. But I also, you know, I was just like, I can't, I can't make up these stories anymore.I can't pretend to be nice to you when you are being ridiculous. It's like, it's not up to you. You, we have to do this period, end of. Figure it out. And she eventually, she sort of said, okay, I morally I can't contribute to this, but I will not fight it, and I will put my energy into other parts of the work and let other people focus on that part because I, I'm not comfortable with it.And I'm like, , okay. There's a team in every office if you're not gonna take on that part, but you will not block it. I can live with that. And I had that, that was probably the worst one. But I've had, had a lot of other [00:47:00] moments where there was another guy in Venezuela who was basically blaming the H I v rates In Columbia, or no, on in ve I can't remember which direction.But in any case, he's, he was, I guess he was from Venezuela working in Colombia, and he was blaming the rates of H I V in Venezuela, on Colombians being bad, dirty people. And I also called him out and I was like, HKI, use me . And I yelled at him in a meeting and he was mortified. And I, I guess the next day he said, you know, that woman from u n a, she's short, but she's mean.And I felt like, good, I did my job . You know, he heard me and he, he heard me. That's what mattered. People De'Vannon: like them. Both of them are stupid bitches, you know? It just is what it is. And they're also. , they carry the spirit of a [00:48:00] bully. Yeah. You know, who are just, they're consumed with their own point of view and as far as they're concerned, if you don't see any given thing like them, then you are wrong.And that, and that's just the end of it for them. And they keep pushing people around and pushing people around till someone does like you. And I think our homegirl miss Elektra from Pose would. Quite impressed with the read, cuz you basically read them for Phil and nobody has ever read anybody quite like a lecture, Vo and so , you know, and they keep, they keep badgering and abusing people until somebody slaps them across the fucking face, metaphorically speaking, you know, like you did, you know, gonna.and evolve are they're gonna just lean more into it. Yeah. That you can't do. Yeah. But Godammit, sometimes shit needs to be said. This is why I had to leave the workplaces. I can't deal with dumb bitches like that and not say something. I'm like, oh, hell no. Maybe it's my P T S D or [00:49:00]whatever. But, you know, veterans, us veterans with ptsd, T S D, we not gonna take no shit off of you.You like bet you said what? Oh, no, no, no. . Like . Yeah. Martina: No, absolutely. Absolutely. And, and you know, at the end of the day, if we don't stand up and say something, you're doing a disservice to other people. You know? I think it is, like, for me, I felt like it, it is my duty. I am in a position where I can talk back to this person.because of my, you know, sort of my role in the system. The other people in this room cannot, cuz they're not in the same position. And if I don't, then I have let them all down. De'Vannon: Right. And so I think you did well. So, so, so y'all, her book is like, like you mentioned earlier, you know, you got to live. , you know, with these people we're talking about cultural infusion, you know, reading through it is kind of like a very detailed travel guide.You know, you mentioned like your Ugandan friend. I, I [00:50:00] appreciated the story you had in there. About your time. It's like you're asleep and you're thinking a hut, and they come in there, they wake you up to go look at the stars and you gotta shake your shoe out to be sure no scorpions or whatever. You gotta put your shoes on, you gotta step on any snakes.You know, it's like, it's like going from, you know, country to country and place to place, but deeper. It's not just look at all the pretty, but this is what's like, what's really going on. I did a missions trip to The Bahamas years ago. . And what struck me was that, you know, all the brochures and everything, crystal, Clearwater beaches and everything, but when we got back there into the schools where these people live and everything, abject, poverty, you know?Mm-hmm. never spoken of, you know, and all the brochures and everything like that. And I felt, I like lied to and just like, like I wasn't giving the whole truth. And like those people hadn't been marginalized cuz they're not talked about. Mm-hmm. . And so what I love about your book is that you give. , you know, the realness, you know, in all of these different places.So it's a, [00:51:00] so who, who, who is your target audience for, for your book and what do you hope people gain from it? Martina: This is a million dollar question. I. . I'm still trying to figure this out because like my initial thought was obviously people who work in the UN will find it interesting cuz they've had a similar experience.I think people with H I V will find it interesting because they have had a similar experience. Mm-hmm. . Beyond that, I feel like it's the target AR audience is probably just people who care about the world. which I would love to think was everybody, but is not actually everybody , but people who care about the world, who are curious how the UN works who have survived some other traumatic thing.It doesn't have to be h I V but dealt with another life-threatening disease or, you know, just some other traumatic event where you feel like in that moment you're not gonna get through it, but in the end you are.[00:52:00]and I guess what I really hope people take away from it, to me the most important thing is that everybody knows that they can do something to make the world better, even if it is just smiling to somebody or holding the door for somebody that you don't have to hold the door for or being kind to, you know, the person who looks like they're having a really shitty day and saying, can I help you?Do you need something, you know? Little tiny acts of kindness all add up. And if we all did more of them, then I think the world would be a better place. But but also that, you know, the little things matter, but that don't be afraid to take on bigger things too, that we can all make a difference in the world.I really, truly believe that. De'Vannon: I concur and I think like one of the opening quotes in your, in your book was from, [00:53:00] I wanna say maybe Gandhi. And it was like if you don't, if you think you're too small to make a difference, try sleeping, you know, next to a mosquito. Yeah. That's sad. Lama Lama. Sorry. Yeah.Yeah. So. And so, so I thought that that was very interesting. Y'all, her book, you know, the woman's been through a lot. You know, the, there's an abusive marriage, there's a fostering of a believe a teenager, you know, there's a lot more than just H I V and AIDS and traveling. It's a very, very transparent read that I feel like can touch you on many different levels.You know, whoever may be listening. So then the last two questions that we have. Mm-hmm. , turn the floor over to you for your last words. We're gonna talk about. Is there any sort of specific h I V AIDS implications just specific to women that you might like to talk about? Martina: Oh, that's a good question. So I think for women the whole issue around reproductive [00:54:00] health is a huge one that, you know, for, for many women, younger women, they wanna have children and to know.In 2023. That is something that women can do safely if they're in good care and they're very affordable treatments to, to ensure that the baby is not born with h I v. They work and in North America, Western Europe, almost no babies are born with H I V anymore. So that is really a positive thing. And obviously parenthood involves two people generally, but.For the woman carrying the child. That's a really important thing to know. I think that h I v probably impacts women throughout our lives, you know, as we go through menopause and other things as well. But there's not as much research as we'd like on all of that. But I think. Probably the most important thing for women is to think about [00:55:00] the reproductive health issues and just to make sure that they don't let their doctors say, well, this works in men.It's fine for you. Make sure that you learn as much as you can, and don't hesitate to call 'em out on it and say, but are you certain, have there been research studies involving women or has this only been tested on men? Prove to me that this is gonna work for me in a smaller body. If, like in my case, I'm, I'm five four, I'm a smaller person than a six foot man, right?So I need to have the empowerment to know that it's okay to ask my doctor, are you sure this is also going to work for me in the same way and prove it, you know, sort of like, don't just say yes, show me the data, sort of thing. I think that's really important. And I think also that the stigma is different in the sense that people still don't understand that women get H I V.And so there's a lot of like slut [00:56:00] shaming associated with the diagnosis where people assume if you've got h I v, you must be some sort of awful, terrible sexual being and how dare you and it's your fault. And I suspect that happens with everybody that gets H I V, but I know that it happens with women in a, in a very specific kind of way.And and just know if that happens, if you get H I V and you're a woman, that that's not true. You are a human being. It's a virus. and don't, don't believe the stories that people tell you about yourself. Believe your own story.De'Vannon: Like, like, Lord, help me like, like Mama RuPaul says, unless they pay in your bills, pay them bitches. No mind. Yeah. Unless they pay in your bills. Pay them bitches. No mind. Cause people always got a fucking opinion about every goddamn thing besides themselves. . And then, so then the last thing, world AIDS Day stood out to me, my research to [00:57:00] you of you, this, this, this, this has been the case since December 1st, 1988.And so is there anything you'd like to say about World AIDS Day and what that means to you? Ooh Martina: You know, it's kind of like. At this point, it's I think it is a day that we kind of do lip service to the pandemic. And while I think it's great that people do events on World AID'S Day to focus our attention, make sure that it is being talked about in our communities I think people need to remember that there are the other.What, 364 days of the year that we're all still living with H I v. And you know, I thought about this yesterday with, with Valentine's Day. I was explaining to somebody who's from another country about Valentine's Day here, and I said, you know, it's, it's sort of a cute. cheesy holiday and we like heart-shaped candy if we like candy.But it's also complete nonsense because [00:58:00] if you love somebody, you don't have to wait till February 14th to tell them that. Right. . It should be a daily thing. And I think the same for World AIDS Day that I I have a real. Love hate relationship with the day. Like part of me wants to support activities and events.Part of me hates the day and wants to just, you know, skip it and talk again on December 2nd cuz I don't wanna think about it cuz it's not a, it's not a joyful day. It is it's a day of a somber remembrance to me. You know, it's remembering all the people who aren't here to celebrate it or not to observe it.I should say, not celebrate, but that's my feeling on world eight's day. Yeah, De'Vannon: I can imagine that it would be triggering, excuse me, like triggering as hell. So, So everyone make up your own damn mind about World Aids Day? I'm kind of over like pretty much every holiday at this point. Yeah. Cause [00:59:00] they're either fake or overly commercialized or whatever the hell the case may be.So I'm just like, just fuck it all. And so in terms of holidays, but still show love to people on every day. Exactly. Whether it's Christmas or you know, and, and give a damn about Jesus. Even if it's not Easter . Yeah. Who the fuck exactly. Fucking bunnies. I don't want to get started on that. . It is almost Easter.And so, so thank you so much for coming on the show. Any last words that you have? Wait a minute, y'all. Her website is martina clark.com. I'm gonna put all this in the show. The book again, is My Unexpected Life at an international memoir of two Pandemics, h i v, and Covid. 19. She's on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, you name it, she's there.All of this will go in the show notes as always. So, Thank you for being such an incredible [01:00:00]guest. If there's any last words you'd like to say to the world, say it and then you'll close us out with that. Martina: Oh my goodness. No pressure. I would just say thank you and, and again, thank you for all that you're doing, for putting good stuff out into the world.I really appreciate you and for the listeners, you know, you can be one of those people who puts good stuff out into the world. So do it. Thank you so much.De'Vannon: Thank you all so much for taking time to listen to the Sex Drugs and Jesus podcast. It really means everything to me. Look, if you love the show, you can find more information and resources at SexDrugsAndJesus.com or wherever you listen to your podcast. Feel free to reach out to me directly at DeVannon@SexDrugsAndJesus.com and on Twitter and Facebook as well.My name is De'Vannon, and it's been wonderful being your [01:01:00] host today. And just remember that everything is gonna be all right. 

S1 | E16:  Alegre Home Care is a safe place for everyone, including it's LGBT clients and staff.  Founder and CEO, Charles Symes, started Alegre from a small apartment in San Francisco's Castro District by following his personal mission to be of service.  His company now serves people in nine office throughout the greater Bay Area, and they do it thoughtfully.  As a gay man starting his own business, Charles wanted other LGBT mentors.  He found groups like the Golden Gate Business Group in San Francisco and the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce.  Since 2014, Alegre Home Care is the only in-home care business that is LGBT certified in all of California.  While advertising as an LGBT certified business is a plus for many, it carries the risk of anti-gay backlash too, which Charles candidly explains seems to be on the rise lately.  Stay tuned for our conversation with Charles and his colleague, Carol Parks, as Kalina and I continue our education about how Marin works.  Guests:  Charles Symes and Carol Parks, Alegre Home Care www.alegrecare.com For more information on today's episode follow us on Instagram at weareonemarin_podcast

This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, August 30th, 2022. August 30th?! Time is flying! That’s why you need to sign up for our conference… FLF Conference Plug: Our upcoming Fight Laugh Feast Conference is just about 6 weeks away from happening in Knoxville TN, October 6-8! Don't miss beer & psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers which includes George Gilder, Jared Longshore, Pastor Wilson, Dr. Ben Merkle, Pastor Toby, and we can’t say yet…also dont miss our awesome vendors, meeting new friends, and stuff for the kids too…like jumpy castles and accidental infant baptisms! Also, did you know, you can save money, by signing up for a Club Membership. So, go to FightLaughFeast.com and sign up for a club membership and then register for the conference with that club discount. We can’t wait to fellowship, sing Psalms, and celebrate God’s goodness in Knoxville October 6-8. https://thepostmillennial.com/san-francisco-businesses-threaten-to-stop-paying-taxes-until-city-officials-fix-homeless-problem?utm_campaign=64487 San Francisco businesses threaten to stop paying taxes until city officials fix homeless problem Small business owners of San Francisco are demanding the city solve the growing mental health, crime, and drug problems exacerbated by the high rate of homelessness in the area, threatening to stop paying taxes if the issues continue. The Castro Merchants Association, named after the city's Castro District, sent a letter to San Francisco city officials saying group members who own businesses in the area plan to stop paying taxes if the city doesn't do more to address the problems, reported KTVU. In the letter, the organization complained of homeless people who "regularly experience psychotic episodes," vandalize storefronts, and harass business owners, employees, residents and tourists. "Our community is struggling to recover from lost business revenue, from burglaries and never-ending vandalism/graffiti (often committed by unhoused persons) and we implore you to take action," stated the letter. "Every day we wake up and have to help people on the street. We have to clean up feces on the street. We have to clear our people from doorways, so we can open our businesses. It's not fair," said Terrance Alan, co-president of the association, and owner of Flore Dispensary and Cafe Flore to KTVU. "At this point it's a failure of the system to help them." The association requested that the city reserve 35 beds in homeless shelters for people in the Castro district, in addition to devising a plan for offering services to people who decline help and keeping monthly records of how many people have been offered services and shelter. "Sometimes they do get violent," said Deen Nasher, manager of Castro Smoke Shop. "The city does need to take care of these people, find a place for them to stay and help businesses. When we call, [the police] come 30-40 minutes later." Dave Karraker, the other co-president of the association, said that if the association’s demands are not met, they may ask store owners to stop paying taxes and other city fees. San Francisco’s Department of Public Health (DPH) responded to the group, acknowledging the association's concerns and citing state policies that make their demands difficult to meet. San Francisco businesses have seen a large increase in burglaries and vandalism since 2019, prompting The Castro Merchants Association to begin documenting incidents. The association noted over 90 incidents totaling more than $170,000 in repair costs since 2020. https://thepostmillennial.com/google-revises-search-results-to-better-facilitate-abortions?utm_campaign=64487 Google revises search results to better facilitate abortions Google will now filter search results to indicate which locations identified as providing pregnancy services specifically provide abortions. The search engine had come under fire from pro-abortion activists for including results for pregnancy centers that do not provide abortions. Prior to this change, crisis pregnancy centers were also included in search results for abortion clinics. These are centers that help women who are unexpectedly pregnant keep their babies. Crisis pregnancy centers are in the business of facilitating birth, motherhood, and families, and encourage women to keep their babies, often providing help not just to the expecting mother, but for her partner as well. When a user searches for abortion facilities, those facilities that specifically provide abortions will be labeled as "provides abortions." If the search engine doesn't know whether or not a facility provides pregnancy termination, that result will be labeled "might not provide abortions." Google search results had not been differentiating between pregnancy centers that seek to help women, and those that offer pregnancy termination. As a result, some women seeking abortions were directed to services that would not provide them. This happened, according to Bloomberg, about a quarter of the time. In June, after the Supreme Court ruling overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that federally legalized abortion, lawmakers pressed Google to make this change. Their ask to Google came after a study from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which "found that 11 percent of the results for a search for an 'abortion clinic near me' or 'abortion pill' in some states were for centers that oppose abortion," Reuters reported. This study was done in states that sought to make abortion illegal once the right to legislate on the matter was returned to the states. The Center for Countering Digital Hate also put together a list of the top ten accounts that have specifically sought to counter the genital mutilation of children, and called those users hateful for demanding that healthy children not be sterilized or otherwise mutilated. Those lawmakers who demanded Google change their search results to facilitate ease of finding access to abortions directed their letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. In the view of these lawmakers, crisis pregnancy centers that encourage the continuance, instead of the termination, of a pregnancy are "fake clinics." They cite the Center for Countering Digital Hate, saying that the ads for crisis pregnancy centers are "misleading." "Google’s updates," TechCrunch reports, "around searches for abortion come as a group of more than 600 Google employees is pressing the company to expand worker health benefits, divest itself of some political ties and bolster user privacy in light of the Supreme Court decision to strip federal abortion rights." https://fee.org/articles/cnn-medical-analyst-says-masking-stunted-her-toddler-s-language-development-and-taught-her-an-important-lesson-about-tradeoffs/ CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen Says Masking Stunted Her Toddler’s Language Development Throughout the pandemic, Wen was in what I’ll call the “pro-mandate” camp. In March 2021, she excoriated governors who rescinded or failed to pass mask mandates in their states. “We are not out of the woods. We haven’t reached the end of the pandemic,” Wen said in a pro-mask CNN piece. “It’s counterproductive and truly infuriating these governors are treating this as if the pandemic is over. It’s not true.” Later that year, she went so far as to argue that unvaccinated people shouldn’t be allowed to leave their homes. https://twitter.com/i/status/1436372898651033601 - Play Video A year later, Wen’s views have changed. In a recent Washington Post article, she explained why she’ll no longer be masking her children and how she shifted away from “being extremely cautious” with Covid protocols. “I accept the risk that my kids will probably contract covid-19 this school year, just as they could contract the flu, respiratory syncytial virus and other contagious diseases,” she writes. “As for most Americans, covid in our family will almost certainly be mild; and, like most Americans, we’ve made the decision that following precautions strict enough to prevent the highly contagious BA.5 will be very challenging.” Wen’s observations are not wrong. The new variants are less deadly, and this is particularly true for children, which has always been the case. A year ago, when Wen was still advocating strict mandates, we pointed out that the CDC’s own data showed small children were at far greater risk of dying from the flu, drowning, vehicle collisions, cancer, and other things than Covid. This data, for whatever reason, apparently did little to persuade Wen in 2021, however. What does appear to have changed her mind is that her child appears to have suffered from the mandates. “Masking has harmed our son’s language development,” she bluntly asserts in the article. Dr. Wen no doubt knows a great deal about public health, just like Anthony Fauci and Rochelle P. Walensky. But even Fauci and Walensky, I suspect, would concede that it’s Wen who knows what’s better for her child. It must be stressed that it’s not just that Wen wants what’s best for her child. It’s that she actually knows what’s best for her child because she has infinitely more knowledge about her child than any distant bureaucrat or meddling politician could ever possess. Nobel Prize-winning economist F.A. Hayek detailed this “local knowledge” concept in his work exploring “the knowledge problem,” and he showed why central planners seeking to engineer society through force are capable of producing little beyond “planned chaos.” This is why it’s so important that freedom of decision-making is left to those who have the most local knowledge and can most accurately assess the risks and rewards of any given action. The good news is that Wen, to her credit, appears to have learned something throughout the tragedy of the Covid pandemic, as have so many others. Classical Conversations Classical Conversations supports homeschooling parents by cultivating the love of learning through a Christian worldview in fellowship with other families. We provide a classical Christ-centered curriculum, local like-minded communities across the United States and in several countries, and we train parents who are striving to be great classical educators in the home. For more information and to get connected, please visit our website at ClassicalConversations.com. Again that’s ClassicalConversations.com. Alright guys, it wouldn’t be a Garrison Hardie News Brief without my favorite topic… sports! College football is back up and running, so here’s the rundown of games and results… MATCHUP RESULT Austin Peay @ Western Kentucky WKU 38, APSU 27 Nebraska @ Northwestern NU 31, NEB 28 Idaho State @ UNLV UNLV 52, IDST 21 UConn @ Utah State USU 31, CONN 20 Wyoming @ Illinois ILL 38, WYO 6 Duquesne @ Florida State FSU 47, DUQ 7 Charlotte @ Florida Atlantic FAU 43, CLT 13 Florida A&M @ North Carolina UNC 56, FAMU 24 Nevada @ New Mexico State NEV 23, NMSU 12 North Texas @ UTEP UNT 31, UTEP 13 Vanderbilt @ Hawai'i Van 63- Haw 10 This has been Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. If you liked the show, hit that share button down below. If you want to sign up for a club membership, then sign up for our conference with that club discount, and THEN sign up for a magazine, you can do all of that at fightlaughfeast.com. And as always, if you’d like to email me a news story, ask about our conference, or become a corporate partner of CrossPolitic, email me, at garrison@fightlaughfeast.com. For CrossPolitic News… I’m Garrison Hardie. Have a great day, and Lord bless!

This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, August 30th, 2022. August 30th?! Time is flying! That’s why you need to sign up for our conference… FLF Conference Plug: Our upcoming Fight Laugh Feast Conference is just about 6 weeks away from happening in Knoxville TN, October 6-8! Don't miss beer & psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers which includes George Gilder, Jared Longshore, Pastor Wilson, Dr. Ben Merkle, Pastor Toby, and we can’t say yet…also dont miss our awesome vendors, meeting new friends, and stuff for the kids too…like jumpy castles and accidental infant baptisms! Also, did you know, you can save money, by signing up for a Club Membership. So, go to FightLaughFeast.com and sign up for a club membership and then register for the conference with that club discount. We can’t wait to fellowship, sing Psalms, and celebrate God’s goodness in Knoxville October 6-8. https://thepostmillennial.com/san-francisco-businesses-threaten-to-stop-paying-taxes-until-city-officials-fix-homeless-problem?utm_campaign=64487 San Francisco businesses threaten to stop paying taxes until city officials fix homeless problem Small business owners of San Francisco are demanding the city solve the growing mental health, crime, and drug problems exacerbated by the high rate of homelessness in the area, threatening to stop paying taxes if the issues continue. The Castro Merchants Association, named after the city's Castro District, sent a letter to San Francisco city officials saying group members who own businesses in the area plan to stop paying taxes if the city doesn't do more to address the problems, reported KTVU. In the letter, the organization complained of homeless people who "regularly experience psychotic episodes," vandalize storefronts, and harass business owners, employees, residents and tourists. "Our community is struggling to recover from lost business revenue, from burglaries and never-ending vandalism/graffiti (often committed by unhoused persons) and we implore you to take action," stated the letter. "Every day we wake up and have to help people on the street. We have to clean up feces on the street. We have to clear our people from doorways, so we can open our businesses. It's not fair," said Terrance Alan, co-president of the association, and owner of Flore Dispensary and Cafe Flore to KTVU. "At this point it's a failure of the system to help them." The association requested that the city reserve 35 beds in homeless shelters for people in the Castro district, in addition to devising a plan for offering services to people who decline help and keeping monthly records of how many people have been offered services and shelter. "Sometimes they do get violent," said Deen Nasher, manager of Castro Smoke Shop. "The city does need to take care of these people, find a place for them to stay and help businesses. When we call, [the police] come 30-40 minutes later." Dave Karraker, the other co-president of the association, said that if the association’s demands are not met, they may ask store owners to stop paying taxes and other city fees. San Francisco’s Department of Public Health (DPH) responded to the group, acknowledging the association's concerns and citing state policies that make their demands difficult to meet. San Francisco businesses have seen a large increase in burglaries and vandalism since 2019, prompting The Castro Merchants Association to begin documenting incidents. The association noted over 90 incidents totaling more than $170,000 in repair costs since 2020. https://thepostmillennial.com/google-revises-search-results-to-better-facilitate-abortions?utm_campaign=64487 Google revises search results to better facilitate abortions Google will now filter search results to indicate which locations identified as providing pregnancy services specifically provide abortions. The search engine had come under fire from pro-abortion activists for including results for pregnancy centers that do not provide abortions. Prior to this change, crisis pregnancy centers were also included in search results for abortion clinics. These are centers that help women who are unexpectedly pregnant keep their babies. Crisis pregnancy centers are in the business of facilitating birth, motherhood, and families, and encourage women to keep their babies, often providing help not just to the expecting mother, but for her partner as well. When a user searches for abortion facilities, those facilities that specifically provide abortions will be labeled as "provides abortions." If the search engine doesn't know whether or not a facility provides pregnancy termination, that result will be labeled "might not provide abortions." Google search results had not been differentiating between pregnancy centers that seek to help women, and those that offer pregnancy termination. As a result, some women seeking abortions were directed to services that would not provide them. This happened, according to Bloomberg, about a quarter of the time. In June, after the Supreme Court ruling overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that federally legalized abortion, lawmakers pressed Google to make this change. Their ask to Google came after a study from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which "found that 11 percent of the results for a search for an 'abortion clinic near me' or 'abortion pill' in some states were for centers that oppose abortion," Reuters reported. This study was done in states that sought to make abortion illegal once the right to legislate on the matter was returned to the states. The Center for Countering Digital Hate also put together a list of the top ten accounts that have specifically sought to counter the genital mutilation of children, and called those users hateful for demanding that healthy children not be sterilized or otherwise mutilated. Those lawmakers who demanded Google change their search results to facilitate ease of finding access to abortions directed their letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. In the view of these lawmakers, crisis pregnancy centers that encourage the continuance, instead of the termination, of a pregnancy are "fake clinics." They cite the Center for Countering Digital Hate, saying that the ads for crisis pregnancy centers are "misleading." "Google’s updates," TechCrunch reports, "around searches for abortion come as a group of more than 600 Google employees is pressing the company to expand worker health benefits, divest itself of some political ties and bolster user privacy in light of the Supreme Court decision to strip federal abortion rights." https://fee.org/articles/cnn-medical-analyst-says-masking-stunted-her-toddler-s-language-development-and-taught-her-an-important-lesson-about-tradeoffs/ CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen Says Masking Stunted Her Toddler’s Language Development Throughout the pandemic, Wen was in what I’ll call the “pro-mandate” camp. In March 2021, she excoriated governors who rescinded or failed to pass mask mandates in their states. “We are not out of the woods. We haven’t reached the end of the pandemic,” Wen said in a pro-mask CNN piece. “It’s counterproductive and truly infuriating these governors are treating this as if the pandemic is over. It’s not true.” Later that year, she went so far as to argue that unvaccinated people shouldn’t be allowed to leave their homes. https://twitter.com/i/status/1436372898651033601 - Play Video A year later, Wen’s views have changed. In a recent Washington Post article, she explained why she’ll no longer be masking her children and how she shifted away from “being extremely cautious” with Covid protocols. “I accept the risk that my kids will probably contract covid-19 this school year, just as they could contract the flu, respiratory syncytial virus and other contagious diseases,” she writes. “As for most Americans, covid in our family will almost certainly be mild; and, like most Americans, we’ve made the decision that following precautions strict enough to prevent the highly contagious BA.5 will be very challenging.” Wen’s observations are not wrong. The new variants are less deadly, and this is particularly true for children, which has always been the case. A year ago, when Wen was still advocating strict mandates, we pointed out that the CDC’s own data showed small children were at far greater risk of dying from the flu, drowning, vehicle collisions, cancer, and other things than Covid. This data, for whatever reason, apparently did little to persuade Wen in 2021, however. What does appear to have changed her mind is that her child appears to have suffered from the mandates. “Masking has harmed our son’s language development,” she bluntly asserts in the article. Dr. Wen no doubt knows a great deal about public health, just like Anthony Fauci and Rochelle P. Walensky. But even Fauci and Walensky, I suspect, would concede that it’s Wen who knows what’s better for her child. It must be stressed that it’s not just that Wen wants what’s best for her child. It’s that she actually knows what’s best for her child because she has infinitely more knowledge about her child than any distant bureaucrat or meddling politician could ever possess. Nobel Prize-winning economist F.A. Hayek detailed this “local knowledge” concept in his work exploring “the knowledge problem,” and he showed why central planners seeking to engineer society through force are capable of producing little beyond “planned chaos.” This is why it’s so important that freedom of decision-making is left to those who have the most local knowledge and can most accurately assess the risks and rewards of any given action. The good news is that Wen, to her credit, appears to have learned something throughout the tragedy of the Covid pandemic, as have so many others. Classical Conversations Classical Conversations supports homeschooling parents by cultivating the love of learning through a Christian worldview in fellowship with other families. We provide a classical Christ-centered curriculum, local like-minded communities across the United States and in several countries, and we train parents who are striving to be great classical educators in the home. For more information and to get connected, please visit our website at ClassicalConversations.com. Again that’s ClassicalConversations.com. Alright guys, it wouldn’t be a Garrison Hardie News Brief without my favorite topic… sports! College football is back up and running, so here’s the rundown of games and results… MATCHUP RESULT Austin Peay @ Western Kentucky WKU 38, APSU 27 Nebraska @ Northwestern NU 31, NEB 28 Idaho State @ UNLV UNLV 52, IDST 21 UConn @ Utah State USU 31, CONN 20 Wyoming @ Illinois ILL 38, WYO 6 Duquesne @ Florida State FSU 47, DUQ 7 Charlotte @ Florida Atlantic FAU 43, CLT 13 Florida A&M @ North Carolina UNC 56, FAMU 24 Nevada @ New Mexico State NEV 23, NMSU 12 North Texas @ UTEP UNT 31, UTEP 13 Vanderbilt @ Hawai'i Van 63- Haw 10 This has been Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. If you liked the show, hit that share button down below. If you want to sign up for a club membership, then sign up for our conference with that club discount, and THEN sign up for a magazine, you can do all of that at fightlaughfeast.com. And as always, if you’d like to email me a news story, ask about our conference, or become a corporate partner of CrossPolitic, email me, at garrison@fightlaughfeast.com. For CrossPolitic News… I’m Garrison Hardie. Have a great day, and Lord bless!

This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, August 30th, 2022. August 30th?! Time is flying! That’s why you need to sign up for our conference… FLF Conference Plug: Our upcoming Fight Laugh Feast Conference is just about 6 weeks away from happening in Knoxville TN, October 6-8! Don't miss beer & psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers which includes George Gilder, Jared Longshore, Pastor Wilson, Dr. Ben Merkle, Pastor Toby, and we can’t say yet…also dont miss our awesome vendors, meeting new friends, and stuff for the kids too…like jumpy castles and accidental infant baptisms! Also, did you know, you can save money, by signing up for a Club Membership. So, go to FightLaughFeast.com and sign up for a club membership and then register for the conference with that club discount. We can’t wait to fellowship, sing Psalms, and celebrate God’s goodness in Knoxville October 6-8. https://thepostmillennial.com/san-francisco-businesses-threaten-to-stop-paying-taxes-until-city-officials-fix-homeless-problem?utm_campaign=64487 San Francisco businesses threaten to stop paying taxes until city officials fix homeless problem Small business owners of San Francisco are demanding the city solve the growing mental health, crime, and drug problems exacerbated by the high rate of homelessness in the area, threatening to stop paying taxes if the issues continue. The Castro Merchants Association, named after the city's Castro District, sent a letter to San Francisco city officials saying group members who own businesses in the area plan to stop paying taxes if the city doesn't do more to address the problems, reported KTVU. In the letter, the organization complained of homeless people who "regularly experience psychotic episodes," vandalize storefronts, and harass business owners, employees, residents and tourists. "Our community is struggling to recover from lost business revenue, from burglaries and never-ending vandalism/graffiti (often committed by unhoused persons) and we implore you to take action," stated the letter. "Every day we wake up and have to help people on the street. We have to clean up feces on the street. We have to clear our people from doorways, so we can open our businesses. It's not fair," said Terrance Alan, co-president of the association, and owner of Flore Dispensary and Cafe Flore to KTVU. "At this point it's a failure of the system to help them." The association requested that the city reserve 35 beds in homeless shelters for people in the Castro district, in addition to devising a plan for offering services to people who decline help and keeping monthly records of how many people have been offered services and shelter. "Sometimes they do get violent," said Deen Nasher, manager of Castro Smoke Shop. "The city does need to take care of these people, find a place for them to stay and help businesses. When we call, [the police] come 30-40 minutes later." Dave Karraker, the other co-president of the association, said that if the association’s demands are not met, they may ask store owners to stop paying taxes and other city fees. San Francisco’s Department of Public Health (DPH) responded to the group, acknowledging the association's concerns and citing state policies that make their demands difficult to meet. San Francisco businesses have seen a large increase in burglaries and vandalism since 2019, prompting The Castro Merchants Association to begin documenting incidents. The association noted over 90 incidents totaling more than $170,000 in repair costs since 2020. https://thepostmillennial.com/google-revises-search-results-to-better-facilitate-abortions?utm_campaign=64487 Google revises search results to better facilitate abortions Google will now filter search results to indicate which locations identified as providing pregnancy services specifically provide abortions. The search engine had come under fire from pro-abortion activists for including results for pregnancy centers that do not provide abortions. Prior to this change, crisis pregnancy centers were also included in search results for abortion clinics. These are centers that help women who are unexpectedly pregnant keep their babies. Crisis pregnancy centers are in the business of facilitating birth, motherhood, and families, and encourage women to keep their babies, often providing help not just to the expecting mother, but for her partner as well. When a user searches for abortion facilities, those facilities that specifically provide abortions will be labeled as "provides abortions." If the search engine doesn't know whether or not a facility provides pregnancy termination, that result will be labeled "might not provide abortions." Google search results had not been differentiating between pregnancy centers that seek to help women, and those that offer pregnancy termination. As a result, some women seeking abortions were directed to services that would not provide them. This happened, according to Bloomberg, about a quarter of the time. In June, after the Supreme Court ruling overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that federally legalized abortion, lawmakers pressed Google to make this change. Their ask to Google came after a study from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which "found that 11 percent of the results for a search for an 'abortion clinic near me' or 'abortion pill' in some states were for centers that oppose abortion," Reuters reported. This study was done in states that sought to make abortion illegal once the right to legislate on the matter was returned to the states. The Center for Countering Digital Hate also put together a list of the top ten accounts that have specifically sought to counter the genital mutilation of children, and called those users hateful for demanding that healthy children not be sterilized or otherwise mutilated. Those lawmakers who demanded Google change their search results to facilitate ease of finding access to abortions directed their letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. In the view of these lawmakers, crisis pregnancy centers that encourage the continuance, instead of the termination, of a pregnancy are "fake clinics." They cite the Center for Countering Digital Hate, saying that the ads for crisis pregnancy centers are "misleading." "Google’s updates," TechCrunch reports, "around searches for abortion come as a group of more than 600 Google employees is pressing the company to expand worker health benefits, divest itself of some political ties and bolster user privacy in light of the Supreme Court decision to strip federal abortion rights." https://fee.org/articles/cnn-medical-analyst-says-masking-stunted-her-toddler-s-language-development-and-taught-her-an-important-lesson-about-tradeoffs/ CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen Says Masking Stunted Her Toddler’s Language Development Throughout the pandemic, Wen was in what I’ll call the “pro-mandate” camp. In March 2021, she excoriated governors who rescinded or failed to pass mask mandates in their states. “We are not out of the woods. We haven’t reached the end of the pandemic,” Wen said in a pro-mask CNN piece. “It’s counterproductive and truly infuriating these governors are treating this as if the pandemic is over. It’s not true.” Later that year, she went so far as to argue that unvaccinated people shouldn’t be allowed to leave their homes. https://twitter.com/i/status/1436372898651033601 - Play Video A year later, Wen’s views have changed. In a recent Washington Post article, she explained why she’ll no longer be masking her children and how she shifted away from “being extremely cautious” with Covid protocols. “I accept the risk that my kids will probably contract covid-19 this school year, just as they could contract the flu, respiratory syncytial virus and other contagious diseases,” she writes. “As for most Americans, covid in our family will almost certainly be mild; and, like most Americans, we’ve made the decision that following precautions strict enough to prevent the highly contagious BA.5 will be very challenging.” Wen’s observations are not wrong. The new variants are less deadly, and this is particularly true for children, which has always been the case. A year ago, when Wen was still advocating strict mandates, we pointed out that the CDC’s own data showed small children were at far greater risk of dying from the flu, drowning, vehicle collisions, cancer, and other things than Covid. This data, for whatever reason, apparently did little to persuade Wen in 2021, however. What does appear to have changed her mind is that her child appears to have suffered from the mandates. “Masking has harmed our son’s language development,” she bluntly asserts in the article. Dr. Wen no doubt knows a great deal about public health, just like Anthony Fauci and Rochelle P. Walensky. But even Fauci and Walensky, I suspect, would concede that it’s Wen who knows what’s better for her child. It must be stressed that it’s not just that Wen wants what’s best for her child. It’s that she actually knows what’s best for her child because she has infinitely more knowledge about her child than any distant bureaucrat or meddling politician could ever possess. Nobel Prize-winning economist F.A. Hayek detailed this “local knowledge” concept in his work exploring “the knowledge problem,” and he showed why central planners seeking to engineer society through force are capable of producing little beyond “planned chaos.” This is why it’s so important that freedom of decision-making is left to those who have the most local knowledge and can most accurately assess the risks and rewards of any given action. The good news is that Wen, to her credit, appears to have learned something throughout the tragedy of the Covid pandemic, as have so many others. Classical Conversations Classical Conversations supports homeschooling parents by cultivating the love of learning through a Christian worldview in fellowship with other families. We provide a classical Christ-centered curriculum, local like-minded communities across the United States and in several countries, and we train parents who are striving to be great classical educators in the home. For more information and to get connected, please visit our website at ClassicalConversations.com. Again that’s ClassicalConversations.com. Alright guys, it wouldn’t be a Garrison Hardie News Brief without my favorite topic… sports! College football is back up and running, so here’s the rundown of games and results… MATCHUP RESULT Austin Peay @ Western Kentucky WKU 38, APSU 27 Nebraska @ Northwestern NU 31, NEB 28 Idaho State @ UNLV UNLV 52, IDST 21 UConn @ Utah State USU 31, CONN 20 Wyoming @ Illinois ILL 38, WYO 6 Duquesne @ Florida State FSU 47, DUQ 7 Charlotte @ Florida Atlantic FAU 43, CLT 13 Florida A&M @ North Carolina UNC 56, FAMU 24 Nevada @ New Mexico State NEV 23, NMSU 12 North Texas @ UTEP UNT 31, UTEP 13 Vanderbilt @ Hawai'i Van 63- Haw 10 This has been Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. If you liked the show, hit that share button down below. If you want to sign up for a club membership, then sign up for our conference with that club discount, and THEN sign up for a magazine, you can do all of that at fightlaughfeast.com. And as always, if you’d like to email me a news story, ask about our conference, or become a corporate partner of CrossPolitic, email me, at garrison@fightlaughfeast.com. For CrossPolitic News… I’m Garrison Hardie. Have a great day, and Lord bless!

Fed up with homelessness, Castro District merchants have taken matters into their own hands.  Find out what the merchants are doing with Mark Thompson.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fed up with homelessness, Castro District merchants have taken matters into their own hands.  Find out what the merchants are doing with Mark Thompson.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Bald Brad Show, small business owners in San Francisco's Castro District are demanding city officials take action to address the growing issues of crime, drug use, and homelessness in the area. Moreover, a four-month-old baby and an 18-month-old toddler were rescued after being abandoned in the desert by smugglers, according to John R. Modlin, chief patrol agent of the U.S. Border Patrol's Tuscon Sector. In addition, NFL superstar Aaron Rodgers blasted the media's COVID vaccine “witch hunt” in a Saturday appearance on Joe Rogan‘s podcast and explained why he refused to get the jab during last year's football season. Lastly, a U.S. Army colonel turned away four busloads of Americans, orphans, and others with verified paperwork guaranteeing safe passage out of Afghanistan, members of a volunteer evacuation team claimed in a new documentary.

The Mission is just a big wow! And the business owners in the Castro Gayborhood are threatening to withhold paying taxes due to harsh sidewalk conditions --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/sanfranciscodamn/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sanfranciscodamn/support

Business owners in San Francisco's Castro District are calling on city leaders to provide more beds for the unhoused community.Some are threatening civil disobedience if the city doesn't address the growing issues in front of their storefronts."It's next to impossible to run a successful business in the Castro right now," Dave Karraker, Co-President of the Castro Merchants Association said.Karraker, owner of the MX3 gym in the Castro, has had enough of the unhoused community impacting the neighborhood.LIKE & SUBSCRIBE for new videos everyday. https://bit.ly/3KBUDSK

Adult content.GUEST BIO and LINKSStephan Ferris is an entertainment attorney with over a decade of experience as a performer in the adult entertainment industry, perhaps better known to many as Blue Bailey.  He counsels LGBTQ+ and adult content creators, and he is part of an emerging generation of openly queer and sexually progressive activist attorneys who see the law as an opportunity to make social, civic, and cultural change.  He uses his skills and experiences to amplify this perspective to a wide range of audiences through multiple published pieces and speaking engagements related to queer issues, media, and the law. Stephan founded the Law Office of Stephan F. Ferris in 2020 to extend his experience in business and build upon his passion for equity, diversity, fairness, and inclusion in entertainment, cannabis, and psychedelics. Stephan balances his professional life with active social and volunteer commitments including service with various Bay Area LGBTQI+ organizations, such as Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom (“BALIF”), where he currently presides as Programs Co-Chair.  Stephan is also the producer and co-host of the entertainment law podcast Reading is Fundamental.  He is licensed to practice in the State of California with his primary residence in San Francisco and an office centrally located in the heart of San Francisco's Castro District.StephanFerrisLaw.comReading is FundamentalTwitter.com/BlueBaileyXXXROBERT BLACK LINKSRefer friends to SexualHeroes.comJoin the Facebook group at Facebook.com/groups/SHHeroesandFansFollow Robert on Twitter at Twitter.com/RobertBlackXXXFollow Robert on Facebook: Facebook.com/RobertBlackonFacebookSubscribe to Robert Black News Robert's home page: RobertBlackXXX.comEndorphin High - School of BDSM: Endorphin High.orgSUPPORT THE SHOWAmazon Wish ListBuy Robert a Coffee: BuyMeaCoffee.com/SexualHeroesBecome a Patron: Patreon.com/SexualHeroesSupport the show

TW: It's no secret that society has very rarely been kind to queer people. In this episode, there will be mentions of laws, violence, discrimination, etc against people of the non-cis-het varieties. We will not be graphic, but we also don't want to censor the history of our queer ancestors. In addition, we did our best to include as much as we could find in this timeline, but I'm sure that there are so many monumental events that were missed. Please forgive us for this and if there is something you wish to be mentioned, reach out to us and we will see what we can do! This week, Mx. Dizzy and Pup Rekkr talk about some Queer History in the Kinky Tavern's mini-series “Queer History!” We started our research for this portion of Queer History at the beginning of the “new world,” America and plan to cover up til the most recent events. Of course, so many of the timelines found are very ethnocentric to America and there's not a wealth of easily found information for other areas of the world, though we do plan to dig them up to share with you as we continue this series! So, our story begins (in this episode) with the 1980s with Castro District's influence on gay culture! We cover the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, activism, art, philanthropy, research, and more! This era shows a lot of progress and backsliding in legislation that continues today. Documents discussed: Gynecologists who will perform a tubal sterilization BDSM/Kink Resources and Media Check out Scruff Pup's #BarkAgainst campaign! https://twitter.com/PuppScruff https://twitter.com/search?q=%23BarkAgainst&src=hashtag_click https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/barkagainst/barkagainst-pin-badges A Big Thank You to our Patrons: lovelauseng Moon_goddess Check out The Kinky Tavern's socials and more! https://linktr.ee/TheKinkyTavern If you have any questions about the kink or BDSM community, please send it to us on whatever platform you have access to. If you ask a question and it is featured in an episode, you will get a shout-out for that account unless you request to be anonymous. Please join our Discord! It's a great place to chat about sex, kink, bdsm, or whatever! You can ask questions, find out what the next episodes are going to be about, suggest topics, and just chat with us! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thekinkytavern/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thekinkytavern/support

Today our guest is Nicholas Polk, a Northeastern University Alumnus, a comedic performer, a sketch comic, standup comedian, mime, writer, and clown. We discuss LGBTQ+ and POC representation in the media, the price to put on a show or perform, and the clown scene in Chicago and Los Angeles. Trigger warning: suicidal thoughts related to being LGBTQ+ Check out his Instagram: @febrezefartss Check out my Website and Instagram: https://www.emicoproductions.com/ @empersico @artistswithem @emicoproductions

A Safeway supermarket in the Castro District of San Francisco just announced that it would be going from a 24/7 operation to closing early at 9 PM in an effort to deter shoplifters, becoming the latest chain store to make drastic changes in the city's current retail crime wave. According to a Safeway spokeswoman, the store will also be removing self-checkout lines as well as other operational changes due to the thefts. Walgreens is shutting down five of its stores in San Francisco due to rampant shoplifting in the city, the company announced Tuesday. A referendum called Prop 47 passed in 2014, raising the dollar amount for how much merchandise had to be stolen in order for shoplifting to be considered a felony. After Prop 47 passed, theft of commercial merchandise under $950 became only a misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of 6 months in jail. The referendum is called “The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act.” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew and Matty welcome legendary drag icon Peaches Christ and screenwriter Michael Varrati for a chat all about the new podcast incarnation of MIDNIGHT MASS!  For over twenty years, Peaches Christ has brought their irreverent reverence for film to throngs of discerning fans. In 1998, Peaches birthed MIDNIGHT MASS at Landmark Theatres Bridge Theatre in San Francisco. The show was such a success it eventually moved to the famed and storied Castro Theatre in San Francisco's Castro District. The stage show welcomed absolute legends: Mink Stole, RuPaul, John Waters, and more. And now, MIDNIGHT MASS is back, as a podcast with co-host (and horror screenwriter) Michael Varrati! Listen in– and be sure to subscribe to MIDNIGHT MASS today! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode of OutBüro Voices featuring LGBTQ professionals, entrepreneurs, and community leaders worldwide, host Dennis Velco chats with Andy Cramer, retail entrepreneur, founder of the gay.com network, ROIgenius™, and his newest venture with his husband, Al. It's called ExtendaTouch.com. Growing up in the 1950's he was closeted in an era where Allan Turing, arguably the father of computers, was castrated for being homosexual. Andy attended the University of Pennsylvania at the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce. After college, Andy headed out West and opened his first retail store in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Andy remained there for 4 years before moving to San Francisco, where he opened the first stores in 1977 in the heart of Polk Street and the Castro District. Over the following 20 years, he grew to 10 stores and became a local attraction with great music, LGBTQ products, clothing, and home furnishings. The stores were an icon in the LGBTQ community. As the HIV/AIDS epidemic began in 1981, the stores became a refuge and provided services to those in need. Working with numerous HIV/AIDS organizations, they took care of thousands of individuals during the epidemic. It was a difficult time for all. Andy explains that there was practically no outside help until the AIDS quilt was displayed on the National Mall, Rock Hudson became sick, and Elizabeth Taylor got involved - all bringing awareness to this epidemic. 40 years into the HIV/AIDS epidemic, scientists still have not developed a vaccine. From Andy's experience in retail with customers from all over the world and his experience in the early years of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, he realized the need for the LGBTQ community to connect. Before the World Wide Web was public, Andy launched gay.net. Serving members with dial-up modems., Andy and his team built the first LGBTQ bulletin board. Members would dial in directly using long-distance calls to this bank of modems. He partnered with 10 of the largest LGBTQ newspapers to publish their news. They started with 8 modems, then 16. In the first year, they grew to 10,000 monthly subscribers. It was a huge hit. By 1999 they merged Gay.com and Gay.net merged with over 4-million members. In 2004 the company went public - the first LGBTQ business to do so. Several years later, it merged with Here Media. Those internet properties combined with other sites and now those URLs redirect to the Los Angeles LGBTQ Community Center. In 2020 Andy and his team launched ExtendaTouch.com. It is an anonymous online platform for caregivers to seek advice and support. A person may sign up seeking help or sign up offering assistance - or both. It's an opportunity to connect with others who have experienced similar situations. There are over 30 categories topically focused, such as dementia, Alzheimer's, Veterans, PTSD, and many more. It's 100% free to use. It is not a medical or social platform. It's a network to get help and access over 10,000 non-profits in 250 cities to provide ongoing support. They are building a foundation in the United States and plan to roll out the network globally to a caregiver community ever more in need of help. To connect with Andy, find him on LinkedIn here. https://www.linkedin.com/in/andycramer100/ Join Andy and me on OutBüro, the LGBTQ professional and entrepreneur online community network for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, allies, and our employers who support LGBTQ welcoming workplace equality-focused benefits, policies, and business practices. https://OutBuro.com --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/outburo/message

Ashika is joined by Brittania Jamay, a drag queen born in the Castro District in San Francisco. Brittania shares her coming out story as a drag queen and the two gals gab about what it takes to be a drag queen, drag queen pet peeves and the dos and don'ts of interacting with a drag queen at the club/bar. The drinks are flowing and the tea is spilling!

Miss Áffrika is a 34-year-old Queen from Colombia that moved to Europe to work as a full time Drag Queen. Now part of the Drag Taste ensemble, Miss Áffrika has found her home. https://www.dragtaste.com/ May 22 is Harvey Milk Day What is Harvey Milk Day? Harvey Milk Day is a day to commemerate an extraordinary leader whose courageous work to end discrimination against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community in the 1970s set the stage for many of the civil rights advances we see today. Who was Harvey Milk? Harvey Milk was an activist, organizer, and the first openly gay man elected to public office in the country as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in the late 1970s. Harvey Milk came out and started organizing against discrimination of gay and lesbian business owners in the Castro District of San Francisco, and against the Briggs Initiative (this was an initiative on the California state ballot in 1978 that would have banned gays and lesbians from working in California schools). Milk was responsible for passing gay rights ordinances for the city of San Francisco and served eleven months in office before he was assassinated on November 27, 1978, along with San Francisco Mayor George Moscone. We celebrate Harvey Milk Day on his birthday, May 22. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/queervoicez/support

This week Z and Kevin cover their first unsolved case. A serial killer that roamed the Castro District during the '70s. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

This week, I wrote a review of a wonderful new Glenn Burke biography called Singled Out. It's the most comprehensive examination to date of the life and times of the first openly gay player in MLB history and the numerous difficulties he faced during his all too brief career. On today's pod, I'm joined by Singled Out's author Andrew Maraniss to examine Burke's trailblazing legacy and the tragedies he endured in order to be true to himself in the conservative and close-minded world of late-70s baseball. Andrew recounts the incredible impact Burke made on teammates who embodied a range of personality types from Dusty Baker's coolness to Steve Garvey's "wholesome" image consciousness. We also discuss Burke's bravery in living an open gay life as a celebrity in San Francisco's Castro District at the same time Dodgers management did everything possible to keep it under wraps. Finally, Maraniss details the many prominent moments of post-Stonewall LGBTQ history that intersected with Burke's career. It's a fascinating conversation. And it's important that we tell all of Glenn Burke's story to pay proper tribute to his life--both the heroic and tragic aspects. You can purchase Singled Out here. Twitter: @KenSchultz_ @trublu24 Insta: @kenthinguy @amaraniss Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we take this illustrious train to the land of Rice A Roni, the Golden Gate Bridge and those son of bitch basketball Warriors...San Francisco, California. Considered the cultural, commercial, and financial center of Northern California. San Francisco is the 16th most populous city in the United States, and the fourth most populous in California, with 881,549 residents as of 2019.    Between January 1974 and September 1975, the LGBTQ community of the Castro District and surrounding city of San Francisco were terrorized by yet, another serial murderer. Still trembling in fear from the previous horrors of the Zodiac killer, tentatively responsible for over 30 deaths and the Zebra murders, which were a string of racially motivated murders committed by a small group of black Muslims that took the lives of at least 15 people. Needless to say, citizens of the area were locking their doors and looking over their shoulders, knowing that evil could be behind every corner or hiding in every shadow.   The gay community already faced plenty of unfortunate danger without the added prospect of being targeted by a fucking serial killer. Even in the comparatively welcoming environment of the city’s Castro neighborhood, being outed in the mid-1970s meant risking stigmatization, injury, and even death, owing to antigay sentiments prevalent across the United States. (Harvey Milk’s election to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors was four years away. If you’re unaware, Harvey Milk was an American politician and the first openly gay elected official in the history of California who was assassinated on November 27th, 1978 along with Mayor George Mascone by a piece of shit former San Francisco board of supervisors member who I won’t mention his name because fuck that guy! He did commit suicide in 1985 after serving only 5 years in prison. Dickhead.)   Fear of such repercussions led three men who survived encounters with the Doodler to refuse to cooperate with police. One, reportedly, was a European diplomat (according to the Chronicle, he was stabbed six times before fleeing). Published reports about survivors also mention a “nationally known” entertainer and an individual who quickly skipped town and declined further contact with law enforcement. Four decades later, the identities of these men still remain unknown.   While the Doodler is thought to have been active between January 1974 and June 1975, there has been some confusion over his total number of victims. In 1976, reporter Maitland Zane made blunt reference to the number of unsolved homicides of gay men at the time—17 had occurred in 1975 alone—in an article for the San Francisco Chronicle titled “The Gay Killers.” Owing to this tragically large number, some reports have suggested that the Doodler’s true body count may be as high as 14.   In the five cases officially tied to the Doodler, the victims died from numerous stab wounds. Each body was found in a park or by the beach. Following the discovery of the Doodler’s fifth victim, Harald Gullberg, in June 1975, the killings seemed to stop.   During the mid-1970s, the overall homicide rate in San Francisco was more than double what it is today. In 1974, there were 129 homicides in the city. The following year, there were 132. Needless to say, the SFPD’s homicide detectives were busy, and the Doodler wasn’t even the only serial killer on their radar. At the time of Cavanaugh’s death, the city was enduring the infamous Zebra murders, and arrests were still three months from being carried out. A murderer that would draw a sketch or doodle of men in order to entice them to lower their guard, was seemingly hunting homosexual men from the area. This prolific killer ended the lives of 5 confirmed men with up to 14 potential deaths under their belt, in total. All of the victims were found within 4 miles of one another and all within 18 months. So who was the Doodler, aka The Black Doodler? No one knows for sure and may never. This is what makes this story one of the most horrific.    THE VICTIMS   January 27th, 1974  On the morning of January 27, 1974, at approximately 1:25 a.m., police dispatch received a phone call reporting the discovery of a corpse at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach.   “I believe there might be a dead person,” the caller said in a calm, male-sounding voice before declining to give their name and hanging up.   When officers arrived on the scene 30 minutes later, they found the body of 50-year-old Gerald Cavanaugh. He’d been stabbed 16 times.   Over the course of the next year and a half, five victims—all white gay men—would be linked to the serial killer dubbed the Doodler. Despite its childish quality, the Doodler’s nickname is a haunting reference to the killer’s reported fondness for sketching cartoons of the men he’d meet at bars in San Francisco’s Castro district, then lure somewhere more remote with the promise of sex. June 25th 1974 A woman walking by Spreckles Lake happened upon the body of 27 year old female impersonator and local area comedian, Joseph “Jae” Stevens. Stevens worked at Finnochios, a club and bar that was started as a speakeasy in 1929 and was located on Stockton Street. Authorities believe that Stevens had possibly driven his killer to the lake area and one report claims that the murder had taken the car to flee crime scene, only to crash the vehicle into the side of a house, forcing the them to abscond from the accident by foot. Stevens was stabbed 5 times and was presumably dragged roughly ten feet into the brush.   July 7th, 1974 Walking her dog “Moondance” around the foot of Lincoln Bay at Ocean Beach, Tauba Weiss noticed what seemed to be the lifeless body of a man, 31 year old Claus A. Christmann, a German citizen who had worked for the tire company Michelin. Christmann was married with children, though they did not accompany him to America. When his body was found, he was wearing a tan leather jacket, heeled ankle boots, a white Italian shirt and orange bikini briefs, with his pants unzipped and pockets emptied, other than a single tube of makeup. He was left wearing three rings on his hands, including a gold wedding band. Christmann was stabbed at least 15 times with three of the wounds slashing his throat. The coroner report states that it was “ In a manner which seemed as though the assailant had attempted to decapitate the deceased.” Inspector David Toschi, a 20 year veteran of the department, described to the Sentinel, that the murder was “one of the most vicious stabbings he has ever seen. (Toschi also investigated the Zodiac murders, which are also still unsolved.)   May 12th, 1975 Nearly a year after the murder of Claus Christmann, the body of 32 year old registered nurse and former Navy medical corpsman in the Vietnam War, Frederick Elmer Capin, was found.  His corpse was discovered by a hiker, walking by a sand dune, not far from a highway that runs parallel to Ocean Beach. Capin was a tall, thin man approximately 6 foot tall and at 148 pounds. The coroner's report states that he had been stabbed in the aorta and heart and that he had blood smeared on his shoes, hands and torso. It was also noted that there were marks in the sand leading to the body that “indicating that he had been dragged approximately 20 feet.” Notably, Capin had received a commendation medal for saving four men under fire while serving in Vietnam.   June 4th, 1975 While hiking by the Lincoln Park Golf course, the body of 66 year old Swedish immigrant, Harald Gullberg was found ten yards from a nearby trail. Gullberg was a sailor who had travelled to numerous harbors, including Boston, Puerto Vita, Cuba, Shanghai, Melbourne, San Luis Obispo, Yokohama and Liverpool, according to immigration records. When the body was found, Gullberg’s pants were unzipped and he was not wearing undergarments. Some speculate they were taken by the killer. He had been slashed across the throat and due to bug activity, the coroner indicated that the body had been deceased for approximately 2 weeks. This was the oldest and assumably, the Doodler’s last victim.   In the time around the murders, three men had come forward claiming that they too had been assaulted by the supposed Doodler. Reports claim that one of these men was a “well known entertainer”, with speculations of news outlets pointing to actor Richard Chamberlain, singer and pianist Johnnie Ray and actor Rock Hudson although police have confirmed that it was, in fact, NOT Rock Hudson and that the entertainer is indeed still alive. Of the three, Chamberlain would be the only surviving person. Due to the victims understandably wanting to keep their sexuality private, none of the men would come forward, publicly, nor assist the police in their investigation. LGBTQ rights activist and politician Harvey Milk had defended their refusals by saying “I understand their position. I respect the pressure society has put on them.”    THE SUSPECTS 5 months after Harald Gullberg’s body was found, the San Francisco Police Department released a sketch composite of an african/american male between the ages of 19 and 22 standing between 5’10” and 6 foot tall, with a slim build, wearing a Navy style watch cap. The profile of the man was of a quiet man, possibly an art student, from an upper middle class background.    In Jan 1976, a man had been arrested at a Tenderloin District bar after a patron had called the police claiming that a man was inside that matched the composite and he was offering to draw sketches of other patrons. New reports claimed that when the police arrived and arrested him, that he was carrying a butcher knife and a sketch pad. Police questioned him, however they did not have evidence and without the assistance of the witnesses they could not prosecute him. He was booked for carrying a concealed weapon and, after he attacked homicide inspectors during an interrogation, charged with aggravated assault. Police came under fire because the community didn’t think that they were helping. As Gay sex was illegal until Jan of 1976 which lead to complete mistrust of the police department    In the last few years the case has had a resurgence. Police are looking at it with fresh eyes and have been able to locate the European diplomate, however they cannot find the entertainer  DNA has been submitted – no word in results yet  In Feb 2019 police offered a $100,000 reward in info that leads to the identification and prosecution of the killer  They have also released an age progression composite sketch of what the man would likely look like today.  They are also looking for a man who called into dispatch about one of the bodies found. Here is the audio from that phone call.    (*audio?*)    Police think that the killer may have been seeing a psychiatrist in the East Bay area with the name Priest and are currently seeking information about that doctor as well.  Anyone with information can call the San Francisco police at 1-415-575-4444.     Ace’s Depot http://www.aces-depot.com   BECOME A PRODUCER! http://www.patreon.com/themidnighttrainpodcast   Find The Midnight Train Podcast: www.themidnighttrainpodcast.com www.facebook.com/themidnighttrainpodcast www.twitter.com/themidnighttrainpc www.instagram.com/themidnighttrainpodcast www.discord.com/themidnighttrainpodcast www.tiktok.com/themidnighttrainp   And wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.   Subscribe to our official YouTube channel: OUR YOUTUBE

EP02: 萬聖節Halloween從香港蘭桂坊玩到去三藩市Castro區。分享萬聖節嘅自製裝扮、美國傳統習俗及疫情新玩法“不給糖就搗蛋”、鬼屋哈囉喂、雕刻南瓜再遊遊南瓜園。| From Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong to Castro District, San Francisco, we share our Halloween experience on tradition & New Normal of Halloween Costumes, Trick-or-treat, haunted house, and pumpkin patch & carving.

Before we get started today, I would like to Thank my Patreon Family for their support: Angelo N, Reva and Alan R, David S, Marianne M, Danielle N, Tara N, and The Golden Gays NYC. If you'd like to become a member of my extended family visit https://patreon.com/callmeadamnyc In this episode of Baring It All with Call Me Adam on the Broadway Podcast Network, I am chatting with gay singer/songwriter Tommy Boi, whose latest single "Blessing In Disguise" has just been released. We have a great time talking about making music, coming out, finding love and support, and so much more! For more on Tommy visit https://www.tommyboimusic.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Spotify! Like what you hear? Then become a member of my Patreon Page for exclusive behind-the-scene perks! Theme Song by Bobby Cronin (https://bit.ly/2MaADvQ)  Podcast Logo by Liam O'Donnell (https://bit.ly/2YNI9CY)  Edited by Drew Kaufman (https://bit.ly/2OXqOnw) Outro Music Underscore by CueTique (https://bit.ly/31luGmT, Facebook: @CueTique) More on Tommy: Tommy Boi is a pop artist hailing from Sacramento, California. As a proud gay musician living in California, the night life in San Diego, Weho, and the Castro District has been a huge influence on both his pesonal style and musical career. Tommy Boi’s sound is reminiscent of pop icons like Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, and Nick Jonas, while he is heavily inspired by pop queens like Ariana Grande, Shania Twain, Lana Del Rey, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, and Tove Lo. Tommy Boi started taking piano lessons and sang in his church at just 7 years old. At 19 years old, he auditioned for American Idol, after he was cut, Nicki Minaj gave him invaluable advice to never quit and to keep honing his craft. Tommy took this advice to heart and focused on writing more songs and learned how to record. At the age of 21, while attending a Christian university, Tommy fell in love for the first time. He wrote the single “Glue” about his first relationship and later that year came out to his family. Tommy feared the rejection and judgement from his family and community, but his parents were very supportive of him and reminded him that he was their son over everything. After graduating in 2015 with a scholarship and music degree at 22, he moved to Los Angeles to write and record more new music. Tommy struggled with money and couch surfed for the first few months in Los Angeles to make his dream a reality. Five months after moving to Los Angeles, Tommy got into a major car accident and had to move back home with nine months of recovery and a huge obstacle to overcome in his personal life and musical career.  In 2017, he came out as gay publicly and started releasing music under his stage name Tommy Boi. He released his first single “Found Again,” and began building up his music career with multiple successful singles. In 2018, he released “Glue” and “Holiday,” which told his story of moving to Los Angeles and escaping the past. Tommy Boi has performed at the Santa Barbara Pride Festival in 2019 and the Breaking Pride Event at the Peppermint Club with other queer pop icons like Michael Medrano and Davy Boi. His biggest single, “You Never Called Back,” recently hit one million streams on Apple Music and 800,000 on Spotify.  Tommy’s journey to pursue music as a career has shaped him into the person and writer he is today. He hopes to encourage his audience to live freely and openly as their true selves, and inspire people to stay positive and hopeful during hard times. Tommy Boi is currently working on a new EP project including his newest single, “Blessing In Disguise,” an inspirational pop ballad in support of the LGBTQ community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California public schools are moving slowly to address the most common reading disability. We’ll hear about who is getting left behind. Then, we learn who’s behind the name of San Francisco’s Castro District. And, we’ll hear a reading from a local author and garden expert who’s written a book about growing marijuana in the garden.

STUPID LOVE IS OUTTTTT!!!!!! Consider our brain brains as broke broke as they’ve ever been. We scurried on down to San Francisco’s historic Castro District to play Stupid Love as many times as possible, while being declared the winners of Super Tuesday, obsessing over the ‘Say So’ music video, and going CRAZY for CRAZY FROG!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Midnight Charette is now The Second Studio. SUBSCRIBE  • Apple Podcasts  • YouTube  • Spotify CONNECT  • Website: www.secondstudiopod.com • Instagram • Facebook • Twitter  • Call or text questions to 213-222-6950 SUPPORT Leave a review :) EPISODE CATEGORIES  •  Interviews: Interviews with industry leaders.   •  After Hours (AH): Casual conversations about everyday life.  •  Design Reviews: Reviews of creative projects and buildings.  •  Fellow Designer: Tips for designers.

In the event of our premiere, I have a special bonus episode for you all! August 26, 2017 - San Francisco's morals were put to the test when neo-nazi and white supremacist groups organized a "Patriot Prayer" rally at Crissy Field. Community icon and drag queen, Juanita More. She tells us about joining forces with longtime friend Cleve Jones to organize a peaceful protest in the Castro District. Together they lead hundreds down Market Street to City Hall, reminding the community what this city stands for; LOVE! In the event of our premiere, I have a special bonus episode for you all! Check out photos from the event: https://salserpe23.wixsite.com/sals/cometogether

In 1974 and 1975 five white gay men were savagely stabbed to death by a young African American man who attracted his victims by sketching their likenesses in the bars and cafes of San Francisco's Castro District, eventually luring them away to their doom.  He has never been identified, let alone arrested.  So how do we know so much about this killer and his modus operandi?  We know because three additional victims of the so-called "Doodler" survived to tell their stories - and each of them described that same scenario.  All three of those victims also provided similar descriptions of their attacker  And, tragically, all three insisted on full anonymity - all refused to be named or to step forward into the public light or press charges even if their would-be murderer were ever arrested.  And the reason for that is heartbreaking - and (in today's world) almost impossible to comprehend.  In this fascinating and heartfelt account of "The Doodler" and his serial murders, Melissa also explores San Francisco at a turning point in its history, the hidden heartbreak of being forced to live one's life in closeted fear and shame, and the Castro District businessman-turned-politician who understood that pain, exposed it and ultimately gave his life so that gay men and women everywhere would never be forced into it again.

Hey Area is where we find answers to questions you ask. One listener wanted to know, what is the back story of Jose Castro, the individual that the Castro District is named after?

If you enjoy this podcast please consider supporting us. We are 100% listener supported. Go to www.patrickcoffin.media/donate. ******************************************************** Subscribe and Rate the podcast. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! We read a lot about “the priestly sex abuse scandal,” which goes by various names, most of them euphemisms meant to deflect the truth of the matter. Joseph Sciambra knows all about the deflection of truth. He grew up in the San Francisco Bay area, a product of the beige Catholicism Lite of the 1970s and 80s. Casual porn use starting before he was ten led him down an increasingly perverse path including a complete embrace of the homosexual lifestyle. He performed in gay porn. He had a near-death experience. He had terrifying encounters with the demonic. And Jesus Christ liberated him. Joseph became friends with the founding father of reparative therapy, Dr. Joseph Nicolosi, PhD, and the founder of the Courage apostolate. Father John Harvey, OFSF. His fine blog, josephsciambra.com, is the go-to place if you want to see the pro-LGTB dioceses, archdioceses, gay-friendly prelates and programs infecting the Catholic Church in America and beyond. In this interview, we discuss just how lavender is the Church today, even after the ostensible efforts at ridding the Church of what Pope Benedict XVI called “the moral filth”?   In this episode you will learn How he escaped the brutal, dark world of the Castro District homosexual life Why homosexuals cannot function as healthy, effective Catholic priests How homosexuality became normalized through pop culture The reasons why Sciambra believes the “born that way” theory is dead wrong How chastity and living the sacramental life of Christ continues to change his life His message to bishops and archbishops who allow the LGTB agenda to take root in their dioceses   Resources mentioned in this episode Disordered: A Critical Examination of Gay Life and Culture From One Who Survived by Joseph Sciambra Shame and Attachment Loss: The Practical Work of Reparative Therapy audiobook by Dr. Joseph Nicolosi, PhD Living the Truth in Love: Pastoral Approaches to Same-Sex Attraction Kindle Edition ed by Janet Smith and Father Paul Check Courage Apostolate for same sex attracted Catholics and those who love them Joseph Sciambra’s blog   Join the Conversation Question of the week: Why are so many Catholic leaders either afraid to speak the truth about homosexuality or are ignorant of that truth?     Follow PCM on Facebook here. Don’t forget to Subscribe to the show in YouTube, as well as the podcast so you can get the weekly show updates.  Subscribe and Rate the podcast. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! Join our waiting list for Coffin Nation here. Doors open this summer 2019.  

August 26, 2017 / 12:30 / 37°46'17.4"N 122°25'26.1"W / On The March / Donald Trump’s election was in direct opposition to the values this city holds dear, and his agenda has emboldened groups not normally found in San Francisco / On August 26th, a group calling itself Patriot Prayer organized a “free-speech rally” that many felt was a thinly-veiled attempt to introduce hateful rhetoric into the public consciousness / Thousands of protesters organized peacefully in opposition to the group and several marches took place; this one began at the top of Market Street in the Castro District and ended at San Francisco’s famed Civic Center / One can hear old civil rights songs and new chants for equality / In between, there is the comforting chatter of protestors bonding over a shared agenda // All recordings and Photos by Randy Johnson See the PDF: https://issuu.com/bivouacrecording/docs/60_minute_cities-_san_francisco

Matt Grippo is the Bar Manager, bartender, and partner at Blackbird Bar in San Francisco’s Castro District. Matt knows the Bay area well – the people and their tipple picks! He loves experimenting with new flavors and concepts. Matt recently created a limited-edition, off-the-menu selection of cocktails inspired by Game of Thrones which was a huge hit! Matt’s all-time favourite cocktail is Eucharist (Nopa Bar).   In addition to dynamic bartending, Matt is actively into writing about cocktails and his experience on both sides of the bar. Most of all however, Matt is a dedicated Father! You’ve heard from the lovely Shirley Brooks in our fourth episode and now you get the whole family together.   Talking about San Francisco, Matt says, “Cocktails, beer, wine, amazing food -- it has so much to offer I couldn't ask for a better city to live an indulgent lifestyle. We are spoiled and I love it.”   We get into family life in the service industry. They touch on how the industry comes together and despite some hardship, how life is great!   Links:   Nickies Bar Blackbird West of Pecos Beretta Bartending Series Mockingbird Palio Speed Rack Bottom of the Barrel Cold Drinks   Instagram: Bottom of the Barrell, Matt, Shirley

Спонсоры и поддержка Подкаст выходит благодаря помощи наших слушателей. Для подписчиков на патреоне мы выкладываем после-шоу. Мы открыты к рекламным предложениям. Криптоподдержка BTC Wallet 1PVZqD1rDS1UEbSkpmUCVahXr9tXBP1BRr BCH Wallet qqpe9ka2amy6yatgngay8schjah5kyx8fy0s9w3k47 ETH Wallet 0x61eec8366449Fd198edc8CD380E025A1e08b81D5 LTC Wallet LdQzkEMmhuKhkqv6XfkftxoF65h6a4yTDp Живое общение с создателями и слушателями шоу Телеграмм Паб «Инфа100%» Ссылки и шоу-ноты «Трампа разбудили 28 раз». Как послание Путина обсуждали на телевидении и как на это отреагировал Запад Castro District, San Francisco Империя должна умереть: История русских революций в лицах. 1900-1917 (Russian Edition) Kingdom Come: Deliverance - Special Edition - PlayStation 4 The Terror Decision fatigue Second Amendment to the United States Constitution Подкаст «Привет, Андрей»(ссылка на айтюнс) MacFamilyTree 8 Социальныe сети Твитер Фэйсбук Вконтакте Телеграм канал Дата записи: 2018-03-04

It's one of the most difficult topics for Catholics to tackle: the cultural rise of homosexual ideology. Joseph Sciambra knows the gay world first hand. As a young man, he left home and went straight to the infamous Castro District […]

It’s one of the most difficult topics for Catholics to tackle: the cultural rise of homosexual ideology. Joseph Sciambra knows the gay world first hand. As a young man, he left home and went straight to the infamous Castro District […] The post Ep. 37: Joseph Sciambra on Being and Leaving “Gay” appeared first on OnePeterFive.

The Bundy Boys are emblematic for the entire Wingnut Wing of the Conservative Party in the country, they are not entirely sure what it IS they want, but they sure as hell know what they DON'T. And that is anything that comes out of Washington, except the occasional small business loan, federal disaster relief when range fires wipe out their homes, jobs at the dead alien storage facilities with great union benefits. You know real salt of the earth cowboy jobs, like guards at federal prisons! And, a lot of them want one thing more than anything else: to keep minorities as far away from them as possible. As though people are going to fight their way through war, death, famine and torture to finally make it to America and then move to a land so desolate, remote and filled with ideological zealots it makes Raqqa seem like the Castro District of San Francisco. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thirty years ago an HIV diagnosis was a death sentence. Today, sophisticated drug cocktails known as highly active antiretroviral therapy, or HAART, have dramatically changed the fates of people with the disease. They can now live with a chronic manageable disease instead of dying from a fatal one. Yet in many ways we’re treading water: each year the U.S. sees around 50,000 new HIV cases, and estimates show that 20-25% of these people don’t know they’re infected. And, while the drugs are effective, many people throughout the world can’t afford them. So should we consider our response to HIV a complete success story? This episode of Distillations tries to find the answer. Our journey begins in San Francisco’s Castro District, the epicenter of the city’s HIV epidemic in the 1980s. Reporter Andrew Bowen talks to AIDS activist Tez Anderson, who started an organization to combat AIDS Survivor Syndrome. Then we talk to Dr. Mark W. Kline and Andrew P. Rice, a physician and a virologist who have been working on HIV since the 1980s, and ask them if we can claim victory. SHOW CLOCK:  00:03 Introduction 01:49 Surviving Survival: Tez Anderson's Story 12:06 Interview with Mark W. Kline and Andrew P. Rice CREDITS: Hosts: Michal Meyer and Bob Kenworthy Guests: Dr. Mark W. Kline and Andrew P. Rice Reporter: Andrew Bowen Producer & Editor: Mariel Carr  We recorded our conversation with Mark W. Kline and Andrew P. Rice during CHF’s 2014 Chao Symposium, “Can We Meet the Challenge of HIV/AIDS?” Special thanks to Houston Public Media for hosting us in their studio.  Music courtesy of Audio Network.   Check out Distillations magazine at distillations.org, where you'll find articles, videos, and our podcast.

If you haven't visited San Francisco's Castro District lately, you're in for a big surprise.  San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener joined us to talk about the sidewalk expansion project he lead.  The project included extending sidewalks on Castro from Market St. to 19th Street, adding trees, and an extensive GLBT … Continue reading →

If you haven't visited San Francisco's Castro District lately, you're in for a big surprise.  San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener joined us to talk about the sidewalk expansion project he lead.  The project included extending sidewalks on Castro from Market St. to 19th Street, adding trees, and an extensive GLBT … Continue reading →

Joseph Sciambra, author of the book 'Swallowed by Satan' is my guest.I wanted to know more about him after his interview on the Howard Stern show. I love Howard's antics but I thought Joseph needed a chance to talk without so many interruptions. He agreed to chat with me .http://www.josephsciambra.com/http://www.swallowedbysatan.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dixbdf6EeHI&feature=sharehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLen_Zlx9MM&feature=sharehttp://www.josephsciambra.com/2013/03/ex-gay-porn-star-joseph-sciambra-on.html?spref=twfrom his website.....Joseph Sciambra was born in 1969, in Northern California, not far from San Francisco. He grew up in a stable and loving home while attending Catholic parochial schools from kindergarten through twelfth grade. Early on, the dark shadow of pornography would cloud his entire childhood and teenage years. Throughout the 1990s, Joseph lived around the homosexual culture of the Castro District, offering him rare insight into the daily lives and struggles of many gay men. Later, he became an amateur porn actor and escort. In 1999, following a near death experience, Joseph returned to the Love of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church. Since then he has written extensively concerning the real-life issues of pornography, homosexuality, and the occult. He received his BA from the University of California at Berkeley in Art History and his MA from Sonoma State University.

Joseph Sciambra, author of the book 'Swallowed by Satan' is my guest.I wanted to know more about him after his interview on the Howard Stern show. I love Howard's antics but I thought Joseph needed a chance to talk without so many interruptions. He agreed to chat with me .http://www.josephsciambra.com/http://www.swallowedbysatan.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dixbdf6EeHI&feature=sharehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLen_Zlx9MM&feature=sharehttp://www.josephsciambra.com/2013/03/ex-gay-porn-star-joseph-sciambra-on.html?spref=twfrom his website.....Joseph Sciambra was born in 1969, in Northern California, not far from San Francisco. He grew up in a stable and loving home while attending Catholic parochial schools from kindergarten through twelfth grade. Early on, the dark shadow of pornography would cloud his entire childhood and teenage years. Throughout the 1990s, Joseph lived around the homosexual culture of the Castro District, offering him rare insight into the daily lives and struggles of many gay men. Later, he became an amateur porn actor and escort. In 1999, following a near death experience, Joseph returned to the Love of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church. Since then he has written extensively concerning the real-life issues of pornography, homosexuality, and the occult. He received his BA from the University of California at Berkeley in Art History and his MA from Sonoma State University.

The Black Friday Weekend Edition to help you recover from family time.  This episode is absolutely, 100%, rated EXPLICIT.  This week they have banned nudity in the Castro District, why ruin a good thing?  Matt's show, The Irish Curse has opened which leads us too and in-depth discussion on penis size and the purple monster makes an appearance.  The boys prepare to get naked again on stage, Wendy, finally gets a glimpse of the Walking Dead,Joey explain how to make the perfect Old-Fashioned and the acronym CJLB is coined.

HOST: From KALW News in San Francisco, I'm Casey Miner with this local news update. Advocates of same-sex marriage are celebrating in San Francisco today, after a federal court ruled California's Proposition 8 unconstitutional. The majority decision upholds a lower court ruling against the ballot measure, which has banned same-sex unions since 2008. KALW's Jayme Catsouphes has more. AMBI Cheering CATSOUPHES: The court found that Prop 8 lessens “the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California.” Earlier today, dozens of people gathered outside the federal building to celebrate the 2 to 1 decision. Joe Capley-Alfano said he and his husband have been worn down by discrimination. CAPLEY-ALFANO: I grew up hearing the messages that I didn’t matter and that I could never fall in love, and that gays were incapable of loving, and other horrible stereotypes like that. And I’m really happy now that the next generation of kids don’t have to grow up that way. They get to grow up in a world where they are included and accepted and treated as equals, and that’s an amazing thing. CATSOUPHES: San Francisco Supervisor Scott Weiner represents the Castro District – the same district that Harvey Milk represented 30 years ago. Milk was the city’s first openly gay elected official. WEINER: When Supervisor Milk was in office, it was a lot less clear whether LGBT people would ever get true equality in this country. Today, we can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel. We still have a ways to go but we can actually see the end game here, and that’s something that I’m sure Harvey Milk is smiling from heaven right now. CATSOUPHES: The ruling applies only to same-sex marriage in California. Proponents of Proposition 8 are expected to appeal to the US Supreme Court; the advocacy group Protect Marriage issued a statement saying today’s decision “disregards the will of 7 million Californians.” For KALW News, I’m Jayme Catsouphes.