LGBTI / Queer News

On September 10, Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was fatally shot by a sniper while speaking in Utah. The event was the first stop of TPUSA's "American Comeback Tour." On November 10, Turning Point concluded their tour at UC Berkeley. The campus was locked down beforehand by a phalanx of riot police. Despite the show of force, hundreds of demonstrators turned out to denounce TPUSA. Several arrests were made.

On Halloween, San Francisco’s queer community marched down Market Street to the U.S. Immigration Court on Montgomery Street to counter tyranny with costumes and protest. The Halloween event first assembled at the Powell Street cable car turnaround, where banners were unfurled that read, "Queers for Open Borders" and "Fags, Dykes, We All Hate ICE." When the march arrived at the courthouse, the building was renamed the “ICE Abduction Center.”

Women’s Declaration International held a conference in San Francisco the weekend of September 16. Their mission is to attack what they call "gender ideology" and they align with ultra-conservative groups including Christian nationalists and Republican politicians to enshrine bigotry into law and otherwise further marginalize transgender folks. LGBTQ+ rights activists rose up in opposition with several rounds of protests and counter-protests.

From the solidarity website: "Peppy and Krystal are exceptional and caring humans. For decades they have been active participants in solidarity with oppressed and marginalized people. Their tireless advocacy and community building has put them in the crosshairs of state repression. They will both undoubtedly face a long and arduous court process in the months, if not years, ahead.... Today they need our support."

In response to anti-government protests after police murdered a seventeen-year-old boy of Algerian descent, the French government has taken a number of repressive anti-democratic actions. Several hundred protesters were tried, convicted, and sentenced to lengthy prison terms within just forty-eight hours. One teenager with no prior record was sent to prison for a year and a month for allegedly throwing an empty soda can at a group of police.

San Francisco's is one of the biggest Pride parades in the world, but as it has grown larger so have criticisms that it has become too corporate. While this year was an opportunity to push back against a wave of homophobia and anti-trans hate across the US, as usual corporate floats abounded at the main event along Market Street. The real spirit of resistance was in the smaller People's March held at the same time in the Tenderloin district.

Banko Brown was a 24-year-old transgender organizer in San Francisco. On April 27, Walgreens' security guard Michael Anthony shot and killed Banko after accusing him of shoplifting. Anthony was arrested by SFPD. When the SF DA refused to file charges, the community was outraged. Banko's friends and community members have continued to protest to demand accountability for the killing. On May 26, Banko's family filed a wrongful death civil suit.

So far in 2023, lawmakers in 46 states have introduced more than 650 anti-LGBTQ bills. Citing these vicious attacks on trans people, drag artists, and the entire LGBTQ+ community, demonstrators said that they are standing up for not only themselves but for others who cannot do so. More than 1,000 rallied and marched starting at San Francisco's Union Square on April 8 in a show of solidarity that had the atmosphere of a colorful festival.