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San Francisco | Arts + ActionSan Francisco leaders are trying to cancel a party!
Cancel Halloween in the Castro? San Francisco leaders are trying to cancel a party.
D. Boyer 8/8/07 City officials, namely Bevan Dufty and Gavin Newsom, have decided to think for the city and its residents by supposedly committing to the shut down of the Halloween celebration in the Castro for 2007. Audrey Joseph from the city's Entertainment commission declared "There will be no party," and efforts to try and hold an outdoor concert at the baseball park have failed. So far only one business has said they will close for Halloween. Bevan Dufty believes the party will get more violent, but some members of the community believes it's just a sign of the times as gang violence and homicides are on the rise and is now spreading into other neighborhoods. Some residents said believe city officials are blaming the people for their lack of leadership when it comes to crime, and they believe that the leaders are ruining the fun in San Francisco. Halloween in the Castro is the "Gay Christmas" and has become a tradition. Historically traditions are hard to break, so police may have their hands full this Halloween, and so far the Entertainment Commission has failed to update their website since Halloween 2005, so getting the message out may be slow going. http://www.sfgov.org/site/entertainment_index.asp
Add Your Comments
Comments (Hide Comments)It is not the party that is the issue-- it is the lawlessness
Thursday Aug 9th, 2007 2:45 PM
Cancelling the party is a sad statement that lawlessness is out of control. Residents hardly can enjoy their own city anymore.
Commercialization turns a party into an extravaganza that is a magnet for people with nothing to do. If San Francisco is ever to be a pleasant place to celebrate again it needs to solve its widespread crime problem. Cancelling the party sets a bad precedent for other celebrations and gatherings (including protest). How many people know that AT&T Park is protected with federal Homeland Security $$$-- at the expense of the districts? I think the city is wise to do what it is doing-- a party that attracts violence for doesn't need to happen. But it is really sad. It is a sign of a citywide failure to make the city safe for everyone. Give tax dollars to house the 15,000 homeless, not for Halloween
Thursday Aug 9th, 2007 6:53 PM
I was shocked to read that last year and in previous years, San Francisco taxpayers, including myself, have been paying for stages, bathrooms, police overtime and Muni Railway overtime (to sell tickets to the Castro) for the Halloween stupidity. Childhood ends at age 10, and there is absolutely no reason for anyone over age 10 getting hystrical about Halloween. Those who say it is a gay event can have their event instead their private homes and private auditoriums. THERE IS NEVER ANY REASON FOR THE TAXPAYERS TO PAY FOR ANY HALLOWEEN EVENT. We have 15,000 homeless, no program to build affordable rental housing for those who sell their labor for less than $50,000 a year, slums for those who can find an apartment, lots of hunger, and a school system that is not educating the workingclass. If you have so much money to buy stupid costumes, instead give that money to the homeless. If you have even more, pay for hotel rooms for the homeless. The Castro is on the edge of the Mission District, and a short walking distance from the Fillmore, both very poor neighborhoods. Why don't you walk the streets of those areas on any day of the week and give your money to the poor since you have so much money and so much time to throw at stupid childish nonsense like Halloween? The arrogance of demanding thousands of our tax dollars for a stupid Halloween street party that has been a danger to all who live there for years is utterly despicable. I am glad to hear that the City of San Francisco finally figured out that THE TAXPAYERS ARE LIABLE FOR ALL THE VIOLENCE AND PROPERTY DESTRUCTION PERPETRATED AT THIS STUPID PARTY, and have finally cancelled this stupidity, which they should NEVER HAVE PAID FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE. HIP, HIP, HOORAY! Now let's get on with the task of eliminating poverty.
"give your money to the poor"?
Thursday Aug 9th, 2007 9:53 PM
Well, ya know, "if I cant dance..." and all that. Don't be a killjoy-- it drives people away from the revolution.
Even St. Emma spent money-- money raised by other activists to support her activism-- on flowers. And "the help." Even poor people like to party in costume in public. It relieves the tedium of the misery of daily life. Maybe you should try it sometime. Do ya good, gets you out of the house and away from the computer... |