An Open Letter to Kate Kendall

An Open Letter to Kate Kendall

Dear Ms. Kendall,
We were very sorry to hear that you will be participating in an event at Manny’s Wednesday night , The State of the LGBT Rights Movement in the US - What are we fighting for?

As lesbian/dyke activists over the past almost 50 years, we have shared many struggles with NCLR. Before NCLR even existed, we fought as a community to keep lesbians and children safe from husbands/fathers. We joined NCLR in demanding a California law to legalize second parent adoption, providing a means of legalizing lesbian and gay families.

So it is particularly appalling that NCLR is choosing to legitimize Manny in his quest to become the center of “civic social gathering” in SF. Manny is contributing to displacement in the Mission by creating an upscale winebar at the contested corner of Valencia and 16th where he encourages “social discourse” among the elite who are evicting, dispossessing, and replacing the working class primarily Latinx population that is trying to remain here.

On top of this, Manny, in his recent op-ed in the SF Chronicle and his outreach to some of the most hateful, racist and anti-queer zionists in the bay area, has declared his intention to normalize zionism in progressive communities and struggles. These zionists perpetuate the lie that Arabs are anti-queer, while Israel is a ‘haven’ for the LGBTQ communities.

Despite the disagreements we have had with NCLR over the years, we are still shocked and disappointed that you would choose to stand with Manny’s in supporting displacement and gentrification, and stand with “Stand With Us” and “Wider Bridge”, the zionists who are supporting him. We urge you to cancel your participation in this program and to join the picket line supported by an increasing number of organizations including the Lucy Parsons Project, Black and Brown for Justice, Gay Shame, Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism (QUIT!), the International Jewish Antizionist Network (IJAN), Jews Against Zionism (JAZ), and the Palestinian Youth Movement -Bay Area.

Deeg, Tory