News Briefs: Annual walk to kick off SF Leather Week

The annual LeatherWalk, kicking off Leather Week in San Francisco, will be held Sunday, September 21. The annual fundraiser, produced by the Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District, celebrates the leather, kink, and LGBTQ communities ahead of the big Folsom Street Fair in the city’s South of Market neighborhood set for September 28.

Walkers will gather outside San Francisco City Hall at 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place at 10:30 a.m. A brief program will follow, then the walk commences at 11, a news release stated. The walk concludes at Eagle Plaza, where the leather Pride flag will be raised as part of the Leather Pride Fest at the SF Eagle bar, 398 12th Street.

“We are delighted to manage this community tradition and both activate our businesses and increase visibility for our communities,” stated Bob Goldfarb, a gay man who is executive director of the leather district.

The LeatherWalk is an opportunity for community members to raise $15,000 to support the leather district’s efforts to keep SOMA kinky and queer, the release noted. People can register with teams or as individuals. Registration is free. Those walkers interested in fundraising can utilize an easy peer-to-peer platform and will be supported by the leather district to reach their fundraising goals, the release stated.

Last year’s walk helped fund the first of the district’s Leather Legacy Landmarks sidewalk plaques, five of which were installed last month. The plaques will be featured as part of guided neighborhood walking tours.

“These plaques are more than markers of history – they are symbols of resilience and visibility and make us proud to call this neighborhood home,” Goldfarb stated.

Additional plaques are expected to be installed by San Francisco Public Works as part of the Folsom Streetscape Project, a separate release stated. The plaques are part of a larger initiative to commemorate 77 historically significant locations across the SOMA neighborhood.

Community members can celebrate the unveiling of “Cemented in History,” a special event on Tuesday, September 23, at 6 p.m. at Powerhouse, 1347 Folsom Street, and Driftwood, 1225 Folsom Street. Gay District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey, who represents the area, is scheduled to speak.

To sign up for the LeatherWalk, go to leatherwalk.org.

For more information on the Leather Legacy Landmarks project, go to sfleatherdistrict.org/plaques.

Drag artist to sell her vinyl collection for LYRIC
Drag artist Juanita MORE! is parting ways with her legendary vinyl collection and it’s all for a good cause. The collection is a musical time capsule of San Francisco’s nightlife and queer history, a news release noted.

On Sunday, September 21, from 2 to 4 p.m., MORE! will sell a curated collection of her most prized records, with all proceeds benefiting LYRIC Center for LGBTQQ+ Youth. The sale takes place at Dark Entries Records, 910 Larkin Street in the city’s Tenderloin neighborhood.

The release stated that the collection features albums by disco divas Sylvester, Donna Summer, and Grace Jones, as well as a substantial selection of 12-inch disco singles and early 1990s dance tracks.

A Bay Area native, MORE! shopped for vinyl at Amoeba Music in the Haight, Gramophone on Polk Street, The Record Factory in Sausalito, Tower Records in North Beach, and Street Light Records and Aloha Records in the Castro, according to the release.

Gael Lala-Chávez, who is nonbinary and the executive director of LYRIC, did not return a message seeking comment.

LYRIC provides services to LGBTQQ youth and last year reopened a part of its storied Purple House in the Castro, which underwent renovations.

SF Dyke March board elections
The San Francisco Dyke March will hold its sixth town hall and elections to its advisory committee Saturday, September 27, from noon to 2 p.m. at Queer Arts Featured, 575 Castro Street.

According to an email to supporters, candidates will have two minutes to speak and three minutes to answer questions from attendees. Eight advisory seats are available. One person from the interim steering committee will remain on the advisory committee, for a total of nine members. Successful candidates need to receive a minimum of 60% of the vote.

The candidates are Sabrina Brennan, a lesbian and founder of the Committee for Equity in Women’s Surfing and Surf Equity and a former elected member of the San Mateo County Harbor District; Jess Trochet, a transgender dyke who wrote and edited the Dyke March’s 2025 values statements; Mellanique Robicheaux (“Black”), a longtime member of the queer community and DJ; Lyra Wallace, who helped bring the Dyke March back this year and has a financial background; and Cyndi Vee, a queer trans dyke of color and volunteer.

Other candidates are Lex McGowan, who hears using cochlear implants and led the Accessibility Committee for this year’s Dyke March; Kate Simpson, who has experience in labor and communications; and Renee Trochet, who ran the safety team for this year’s Dyke March.

For more information, go to thedykemarch.org-upcoming-events.

Fall well-being fair
Mukunda Studio will be holding its free Autumn Abundance SF Well-Being Fair Saturday, September 20, from noon to 5 p.m. at the Harvey Milk Center for the Arts in Duboce Park, located at Duboce and Scott streets.

According to a news release, the event will feature a sampling of services such as sound baths, yoga, movement classes, intuitive readings, conversation circles, a healer’s marketplace, art zones, and more. The afternoon is a collaboration between Marc Morozumi, owner of Mukunda Studio, and the arts center, with support from the San Francisco LGBT Community Center.

Thirty practitioners will be sharing their services, information, art, and more.

For more information, go to sfwellbeingfair.com.

Coastal cleanup day in the East Bay
Volunteers and East Bay Regional Park District staff will come together to clean and protect local shorelines and waterways during the 41st annual California Coastal Cleanup Day Saturday, September 20, from 9 a.m. to noon. In a news release, the park district stated that cleanups will take place at 11 sites across East Bay regional parks, including bayside beaches, shoreline trails, and inland lakes. Staff and volunteers will work together to collect and dispose of litter and recyclables, beautify the shorelines, and help maintain delicate ecosystems.

Cleanup sites are located in Alameda, Antioch, Fremont, Hayward, Livermore, Martinez, Oakland, Oakley, and Richmond.

This year, the park district is adding a new feature – a TRASHure Hunt. Participants who find a golden trash grabber hidden at each cleanup site will win a special prize.

The park district will provide garbage bags and gloves to those who need them. Volunteers are welcome to bring their own trash-hunting gear. Participants are encouraged to bring refillable water bottles, hats, gloves, and sunscreen. They must wear closed-toe shoes. Layered clothing is recommended.

All locations welcome drop-ins, though registration is encouraged.

For a list of cleanup sites and to register, go to www.ebparks.org.

San Jose church to mark 150 years
First Congregational Church of San Jose will close its 150th anniversary celebration Saturday, September 27, at 10 a.m. with a reflection on its unique role as one of the Bay Area’s earliest and most consistent voices for LGBTQIA equality and progressive inclusion.

The church, a member of the United Church of Christ denomination, is located at 1980 Hamilton Avenue. Members took part in last month’s Silicon Valley Pride parade, according to its website.

The church became an open and affirming congregation in 1998, among the first in the South Bay to declare a public covenant of welcome for LGBTQIA people, a news release stated. In 2008, as California wrestled with Proposition 8, the same-sex marriage ban initiative, the church’s ministers and members took a bold stand and vowed to perform no marriages until all couples could wed. (Prop 8 was passed by voters but eventually found to be unconstitutional; same-sex marriages became legal in the Golden State in June 2013.)

The release noted that commitment built on decades of advocacy, from supporting the ordination of women more than a century ago to hosting community forums on AIDS awareness in the 1980s and 1990s, when many faith communities remained silent.

The release noted that in 2023, the church reaffirmed its inclusive mission with an updated open and affirming statement that explicitly welcomes people of every identity and background.

“While we address real challenges within our community, the work of the church in our world continues,” stated Kristin Link, interim moderator.

The public is welcome to attend the special service. For more information about First Congregational Church of San Jose, go to firstccsj.org.