Wednesday, March 28, 2012

SF Board of Supes:
Lower UN, US Flags for Day Against Homophobia

There's the most fantastic news to share today from San Francisco, where the United Nations was chartered, that just came to the Gays Without Borders groups from Latino gay Supervisor David Campos's office.

The Board of Supervisors yesterday unanimously passed the resolution he introduced last week on our behalf to direct the city to recognize May 17 as International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, as to lower the UN and American flags for 24-hours at UN Plaza.

Thanks to Gays Without Borders, which has staged four previous IDAHO actions, and our united Supervisors speaking with one, clear, loud voice from City Hall, this is the first year when San Francisco is officially endorsing, promoting and participating in IDAHO. 

Major gratitude to the eleven Supervisors for this fabulous development and may our city now join every IDAHO in the coming years!

Here's a snippet of the vid of the March 27 meeting. The IDAHO discussion and vote starts at the 00:50 mark and runs until the 03:06 mark:

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Many big thanks to Campos for taking the leadership role on the resolution and to all of the Supervisors for voting in favor directing the Department of Public Works to lower the iconic UN and American flags for a solid day to send a visual message of solidarity to the many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals who daily contend with threats of violence and murder.

Gays Without Borders is very pleased with the Supervisors showing international solidarity with LGBTI people and we look forward to continued coordination on the flag lowerings in May.

The Supervisors not only have an clip-and-paste edit function for the vids of their meetings, but they also provide the caption notes to the public. These are the very rough phonetic notes of Campos making his speech for IDAHO and UN Plaza flags flying at half staff on May 17. I've made minor cuts:

President Chiu:  Item 13.  oaking withizing a day against homophobor and transphobia and calling on officials to lower the united

nations flags in united nations

plaza for a 24-hour period on May 17, 2012. Supervisor campos?

Supervisor campos: thank you. I wanted to make a couple points on this item.

This a resolution that

recognizes international day of homophobia and transphobia. It's important to simply note

that often here in supervise we take many things for granted.

The reality is in most parts of

the world, lgbt people are

still suffering not only discrimination but in some of these countries you're talking about violence and at times even death and I think it's

important for those of us who

live in places like san francisco where we don't have

to deal with those -- with such a horrible situation that we acknowledge the suffering that other people have and that's

what this resolution is about.

i think it's important for us to recognize that and I know that other countries like

spain, belgium, mexico, costa rica have recognized this day

and we are calling upon the city officials and specifically the director of the department of public works to lower both

the american flag and the U.N. Plaza flag on May 17 and I want to thank the co-sponsors of this resolution.

Supervisor olague, supervisor kim, and President Chiu.

Thank you very much.

President Chiu: thank you, supervisor. Unless there's any further discussion, colleagues, can we take this item, same call?  Mr. President, it's not the

same house, we have supervisor olague back.

President Chiu: roll call vote. item 13, vfsor kim?; aye.  supervisor mar? ; aye. Respect sprfors olague?; aye.  supervisor wiener?; aye.  supervisor avalos?; aye.  supervisor campos?; aye.  President Chiu?; aye. supervisor chu? Aye. supervisor cohen?; aye.  supervisor elsbernd?; aye.  supervisor farrell?; aye.  there are 11 ayes.

President Chiu: the resolution is adopted.

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