Petrelis Files

SF Mayor Lee Booed
at Poetry Event Over Stop-and-Frisk

Late in June, my friend gay and AIDS activist Gary Virginia started a Facebook page opposing San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee's controversial proposal to launch a stop-and-frisk effort to prevent crime.

Last night in North Beach another good friend, Tate Swindell, who used to work at the Market Street marijuana co-op until federal prosecutor Melinda Haag forced it to close, made his displeasure with the mayor's proposal known. Tate shared this note yesterday evening with me:

Went to a poetry event at Jack Kerouac Alley this evening. It was great until the Mayor showed up. I was the only one to boo him and got shushed by 'some old biddy' as my brother Todd would say. 

I waited until the middle of his speech to let him know that 'stop & frisk' is a terrible idea. Apparently they were using this event, the kickoff to SF's international poetry festival, to announce the new poet laureate for the city, Alejandro Aurguia.

Well, despite all that I had a good time. 

Let's hope the mayor soon drops his unpopular push to use this tactic in San Francisco. Kudos to Gary, Tate and others who are creatively sending a message to Mayor Lee against stop-and-frisk.