Hooray for our Navy Seals and President Obama’s administration. We have struck a big blow in our continuing fight against terrorism. Well, now I’m off to Arizona.
District 3: The melting pot of San Diego
There are more than 30 languages spoken in the City Council’s 3rd District. This district brought us our first elected gay councilmember and currently the first councilmember of Filipino, Puerto Rican and Native American descent. The 3rd District is the home of San Diego’s most diverse neighborhoods and welcomes immigrants and refugees from around the world – neighbors to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender San Diegans.
The lesson of Proposition 8 was that the GLBT community must reach out more to people of color. Keeping the 3rd District together and keeping gays and people of color united is important to our future.
It is sad that the mostly all white so-called LGBT Redistricting Committee is working on a new 3rd District that would be about 70 percent all white and would kick out our first gay person of color elected to the city council.
I have lived in San Diego now going on 50 years and mostly in the 3rd District. I have fought for and supported the first Latino, Black and gay city council districts. Let us keep the District 3 as the most diverse melting pot of our great city. Thank you.
Future LGBT city council candidates
With all the current redistricting going on about our eight city council seats and establishing our new 9th Council District, some names are already being discussed as future city council candidates and not only for the 3rd District. After all, Carl DeMaio proved a member of the LGBT community could get elected outside of the 3rd District. Among possible future LGBT candidates being mentioned: Robert Gleason, Lisa Sanders, Stampp Corbin, Bob Nelson, Kevin Tilden, Joseph Rocha, Will Kennedy Rodriguez, Andrew Poat, Larry Baza – to name a few.
Harvey Milk/Chris Kehoe schools?
It is wonderful and our right that we have streets and schools in San Diego named not only after Martin Luther King and Cesar Chavez, but prominent San Diegans. Recently I had a talk with School Board Member Kevin Beiser about a future school named after Harvey Milk and Chris Kehoe (state senator, state assembleywoman, city council member, community activist and LGBT pioneer and trailblazer). We will be having more discussions about this proposal and how it can come about.
I also talked to Councilman Todd Gloria on how we go about naming a street after Harvey Milk and Chris Kehoe. Just like other San Diegans who have been honored with schools and streets dedicated in their name, our GLBT community also has citizens who have made major contributions to our great state and city and Harvey Milk and Chris Kehoe come first to many of our minds.
Stay tuned for developing information on this proposal/campaign.
Stuart Milk coming to town
San Diego has become like a second home for global gay activist and the nephew of Harvey Milk. Stuart Milk will be returning to San Diego on Friday, May 20 for the Harvey Milk Diversity Breakfast (about sold out with 1,000 people) at the Hilton San Diego Bay Front and later that night he will be at the Oceanside Museum of Art for a North County LGBT Coalition event. Then Stuart and I will be off to San Francisco for many wonderful Harvey Milk celebrations. Stuart Milk has just returned from Italy where he was the guest of Italian government officials and LGBT organizations.
My life as a “waiter”
Last weeks Dining Out for Life was another huge success, and I loved being a waiter for lunch and dinner at Bangkok Thai Bistro (540 University Ave.). Joining me as celebrity waiters were handsome ex-marine and new daddy, State Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher who I made fun of for spilling water on a customer, and Councilman Todd Gloria who did pretty good. The two standouts were School Board Member Kevin Beiser and Port Commissioner Bob Nelson, who were perfect “hosts.” City Commissioner Stampp Corbin was the usual “in charge” manager who kept tables moving. (We were swamped ‘til closing and had to turn people away.)
Also doing a good job were City Commissioner Shonee Henry, Big Mike and our Emperor Allan and Empress Erika. Half of all proceeds the owners will be giving to the Center’s AIDS programs. Thank you to all restaurants who participated and a special thank you to the Union-Tribune and San Diego’s most read and popular columnist Tom Blair who came for dinner at Bangkok Bistro. And good for R Gang Eatery who gave 100 percent of all their profits!
Fiesta! This Saturday!
You’re all invited to celebrate the Cinco de Mayo this coming Saturday, May 7 at Numbers. It will be a night of entertainment, Mexican food and Latino men and women and their admirers. There will also be a contest, lots of surprises and hot steaming fun. Ole! For more information, call Carlos Silva at 619-540-8727.
A.J. Turner’s birthday bash: May 10
Next Tuesday, May 10 the place to be is the beautiful Saigon on Fifth (3900 Fifth Ave.) for a fabulous and fun birthday bash in honor of one of our community’s hardest working activists, A.J. Turner. In lieu of gifts, he asked for contributions to the Student Scholarship Fund. There will be great hors d’oeuvres and entertainment from 6 to 8 p.m. For info, call 619-300-1232 or 619-692-1967.
Caliph celebrates 30 years!
The world famous Caliph Lounge (3100 Fifth Ave.,) celebrates its 30th anniversary this Saturday, May 7, starting at 2 p.m. Thank you Sherman Mendoza for always giving back! Nicole Murray Ramirez has been an award-winning columnist since 1973, and a Latino and gay activist for well over 40 years. He is currently a city commissioner and has served the last five mayors of San Diego. He is also a national board member of the Harvey Milk Foundation and chairman of the International Court Council of the USA, Canada and Mexico. Nicolemrsd@aol.com.
Thanks for the great overview of the important redistricting process. Most importantly, your celebration of the great diversity we have today in the 3rd District. It would be tragic if any plan were adopted that moved Todd Gloria out of his own district; without a doubt, Todd is the most multi-ethnic member of the city council in San Diego history, something we are all proud of. BTW, Nicole, there is NO chance in you-know-where that I will ever be a candidate for ANY elective office. Seriously. No, really, seriously. It is time to be looking to the up-and-coming younger people in our community to help lead us into our shared future. 🙂
This is just horribly wrong!!! The fact that Todd Gloria is being incredibly selfish by not offering to move a HALF MILE to stay in a gay-friendly district does not warrant implying that the hard-working LGBT volunteers who are protecting our community are racist. Nicole, the Latino Redistricting Council is 100% Latino — and they demanded, rightfully, that City Heights be theirs! It voted YES on Prop 8 and we need downtown and Mission Hills for the gay district because they voted NO on Prop 8. Are we really going to screw the Latinos out of their second city council district (they are 30% of the city!), and weaken the gay district just so this selfish man doesn’t have to move a few blocks? Nicole nothing could be worse than implying that those who are on the right side of this issue – Latino empowerment – are racist. That’s the lowest blow.
I must be missing something… apparently Katie is aware of some info not available to the rest of us. But as someone not intimately aware of the redistricting machinations behind the scenes, I certainly didn’t see anything in this column that hinted at racism. I can’t imagine Nicole or Todd wanting to “screw” the Latinos out of anything. Todd should run for what ever district suits him best, and if that means he doesn’t move into a different district just for re-election, bully for him. In any event, these comments should relate to the column… not far afield situations. IMHO.
Nicole,
I would like to know how many of the LGBT Redictricting Task force meetings you attended? Did you write a letter to the task force? Did you send your comments and thoughts to the chair in the form of a letter or email? Did you comment on the open Facebook Page or contact any of its members? Did you come to CLC meetings to express your displeasure at the direction you PERCEIVED the task force to be going? I am going to assume that the answer is no.
The Task Force is diverse. Take a look at the members of their facebook page and the speakers they invited. However, if you felt strongly enough to call people out why did you wait until after the presentation was created? I find nothing racist in creating a second Latino empowerment district. As a resident of District 8 I see the power in that. What I find appalling is that without offering to help you blast those who were trying to help.
My grandmother used to say:If you do not want to be part of the solution, don’t be part of the problem. You relish being part of the problem with little regard for those trying to find a solution. Wheres your map?
I am confused and appalled by the Opinion piece written by Nicole Murray Ramirez that appeared in the LGBT weekly this past Thursday.
I am confused that a supposed leader of the LGBT and Latino community would oppose the creation of the strongest possible LGBT civil rights supportive district. He then turns around, and in the name of diversity, opposes the creation of a Latino Empowerment District to help give the Latino community another seat at the table of power. Does that make any sense? It appears that Mr. Ramirez real priorities are simply that he does not want Councilmember Gloria to have to move. While I sympathize with Mr. Gloria, the Charter clearly states that districts cannot be drawn for the convenience of the incumbent.
I am appalled that Mr. Ramirez, unable to defend his position by strong argument or benefit to the communities in question, stoops to the lowest form of race baiting. He attacks a group of people whose only sin is working really hard to empower the LGBT and Latino communities. Oh, and according to Mr. Ramirez, being white.
I was appalled at his disrespect for Linda Perine and her hard work. She assembled a team that was diverse politically, socially, economically, and ethnically. She worked had to build a district that would be a gem for any representative. To call her a racist is appalling. She deserves an apology and respect for what she accomplished.
Log Cabin Republicans San Diego stands behind her work. I served on this task force gladly. I am a proud Republican and helped to draw a district that my party stands little chance of winning. Building a strong LGBT District is important for more than political reasons. This is our home. No matter where we sleep, the LGBT Community lives in District 3. That is one of the things I took away from this work. I am proud to have been on the task force and the work that was done. The work is not over either. These were just the pre-map meetings.
It saddens me that the leaders of a community that has had such heartbreaking losses to bullying, allow and indeed enable this kind of bullying in public discourse.
Can we please raise the level of the discussion? If you have good ideas or suggestions for redistricting, let’s hear them and talk them through with a modicum of civility.