Marin Pride: Upcoming events celebrate LGBTQIA+ community

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Marin Pride: Upcoming events celebrate LGBTQIA+ community

June is here, which means it’s time to break out those rainbow flags and loudly and proudly declare support for the lesbian, gay, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and otherwise members of the community.

Though Marin, the greater Bay Area and much of the state of California are historically known for being at the very forefront of acceptance and advocating for the legal and social advancement of the LGBTQIA+ community, there’s always room for improvement—and, in the case of this year’s pride-packed month of June, improvement could very well refer to Sausalito’s plan to unveil the first-ever citywide collaborative celebration of all things pride.

“Marin has always been very openly supportive of the LGBTQIA+ community,” said co-executive director for the Sausalito Center for the Arts (SCA), Louis Briones. “Obviously, it’s a liberal county surrounded by liberal cities, so I think in general Marin is very open to the LGBTQIA+ community, and I don’t suspect we’ll get a lot of pushback from people who are not in favor of pride.”

“Sausalito has always been very open as well,” continued Briones. “Possibly due to the prevalent artist community that has been established here since the ’20s and ’30s—it just seems like a logical, inviting and supportive place.”

SCA is set to kick off Sausalito’s month of celebration with their “Pride Not Prejudice” exhibition, where two separate exhibits will come together to highlight the June-wide spirit of pride. The first exhibit showcases Brian Van Camerik’s project entitled “Homosocial.” The concept behind “Homosocial” is to display an intimate, endearing and ever-growing body of photos, artwork, media and more, all of which represent the LGBTQIA+ community throughout various vintage eras.

“Brian is a very deliberate artist, and ‘Homosocial’ is a project that celebrates queer culture and is, at its core, a collection of vintage couples displaying a sense of intimacy, and there’s multiple pieces to the collection,” said Briones. “[‘Homosocial’] really is a true exhibit, very thought provoking. We saw that as something that would be educational and would have a lot of interest given Pride Month.”

Alongside Van Camerik’s “Homosocial” exhibit, SCA will showcase a gallery featuring the work of over 28 LGBTQIA+ artists from across California. The show was curated by Charlie Barboni and will feature works from notable artists such as Ajuan Mance, Clark Mitchell, Hunter Harvey, Shae Rocco, Wendy Franklin, Joseph Abbati and more.

“The exhibits are going to be divided,” explained Briones. “We’re setting up ‘Homosocial’ in a type of discovery space where there will be an entrance and you’ll kind of meander around to the displayed art panels. There will be a clear path to it, and it will invite you to enter and explore, whereas the gallery portion will be set up in a more traditional layout.”

The “Pride Not Prejudice” double-exhibit exhibition will be open to the public from Friday, June 9 to Tuesday, July 4—opening night will take place as a free and open-to-the-public celebratory reception with artists and allies alike in attendance. This event promises a chance to meet and speak with the artists, listen to live jazz and sip on light refreshments, all while getting a glimpse into the future with tarot card readings. Donations are welcome in lieu of an entrance fee.

Alongside the “Pride Not Prejudice” exhibitions, Sausalito is set on providing other opportunities for safe, celebratory spaces for the local LGBTQIA+ community to gather with allies during the month of June. The city has, in that spirit, developed a partnership with the Spahr Center, Marin’s own LGBTQ+ and HIV nonprofit support group.

“When we were coming up with the idea of creating a citywide nonprofit event for Pride Month, the Spahr Center was an obvious inclusion, as they do have some amazing resources and are right here in Marin and highly respected,” said Briones.

“If you look at the partners for this Sausalito Pride Month, you’ll see it’s the city itself,” continued Briones. “The mayor, the council, the chamber of commerce, Spahr Center, small businesses—the whole city is getting behind it!”

True to Briones’ description of the coming month, Sausalito’s June calendar is jam-packed with the following pride-themed festivities that will take place in tandem with SC’s “Pride Not Prejudice” exhibition:

From 2 to 5pm on Saturday, June 17, seafaring supporters of pride are welcome aboard the LGBTQ+ Pride Sail on the Matthew Turner.

From 5:30 to 7:30pm on Wednesday, June 21, a free-to-attend author discussion and film screening event will be held at Sausalito Books by the Bay, highlighting author and single father Bill W. Jones. The event will offer an opportunity for dialogue on Jones’ book, Bachelor Father: The First Single Man to Legally Adopt a Child in America, as well as a screening of A Family of My Own—The Bill Jones Story documentary.

From 5 to 7pm on Thursday, June 22, Caledonia Street Pride Happy Hour celebrations will honor pride and the people who comprise it together as a community with food, family and friends.

Sausalito will also play host to Pride Night at Jazz and Blues by the Bay from 6:30 to 8 on Friday, June 30. Everyone is invited to come out and celebrate at this pride-themed evening of entertainment in the continuing City of Sausalito’s summer music series.

And, though the Night in Drag: A Glam Entertainment Evening event at Gene Hiller Menswear just barely misses the Pride Month marker with its 6:30 to 8:30pm show on Saturday, July 1, it most certainly makes up for the delay by being the epitome of the term, “fashionably late.”

Other Marin-based Pride Month celebrations include the CAFILM Pride—A Celebration of LGBTQIA+ Creativity in Cinema at the Rafael, the Mill Valley Library’s Drag Queen Story Hour and Marin County’s Queer Prom (to name only a few).

“We definitely invite families and all ages to see the ‘Pride Not Prejudice’ exhibitions,” said Briones. “It’s interesting, when you start putting together an art show that is comprised of LGBTQIA+ artists, because some people automatically jump to homoerotic imagery and nudes, but that’s a stereotype, and one we’re aiming to address through this exhibition.”

For more information about the SCA’s ‘Pride Not Prejudice’ exhibition, visit the website at sausalitocenterforthearts.org. To learn more about Sausalito Pride Month and its events across the city, visit sausalitopride.org. Additionally, information pertaining to the Spahr Center is available on the website, which may be found at thespahrcenter.org.

Mountain Play: ‘Into the Woods’ on Mt. Tam

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Mountain Play: ‘Into the Woods’ on Mt. Tam

The Mountain Play is an adventure. After driving, hiking, biking or shuttling to the top of Mt. Tamalpais, one begins by making their way past booths selling all manner of merchandise (including seat cushions).

One heads to a stone seat amid picnicking families and scurrying alligator lizards. There is pre-show entertainment starting around 12:30pm. Then, at 2, around when the last of the fog burns off, the show begins. This year, that show is the Sondheim musical Into the Woods. It runs Sundays (and one Saturday) through June 18.

Directed and choreographed by Nicole Helfer with musical direction by Daniel Alley, it is a reimagining of classic fairytales which follows familiar plots and characters to their “happily ever after” point and then keeps going. Ultimately, it becomes a cautionary tale about being careful about what one wishes for.

It’s notoriously hard to do musicals outdoors, but The Mountain Play, which started in 1913, has 110 years of experience. The sound design (Bruce Vieira) is top-notch, the live orchestra (under supervisor David Möschler) is very good and the set (Andrea Bechert) serves the double purpose of staging and stealing one’s attention from the surrounding view.

Foremost among some excellent performances is Melissa WolfKlain’s consistently grounded Baker’s Wife. Similarly, Samantha Rose Cárdena’s pragmatic take on Cinderella gives the lines weight that they normally lack. Celeste Kamiya’s Red Riding Hood is a character that can easily slip into one-dimensionality, but Kamiya gives an excellent, fully realized performance.

Sadly, not everything was well executed. In a bold choice, two actors (Roy Eikleberry and Max Kligman) formed Wolf’s body, with its puppet head controlled by Eikleberry. The actors, however, were not costumed alike, didn’t act as one unit and often seemed to forget they were both visible. Puppetry requires a lot of training. As no puppet master is listed in the program, it would be easy to dismiss the slapdash cow and the disjointed Wolf as the result of a lack of expertise, except that the same concept was executed flawlessly on The Giant puppet.

There were similar issues in Amie Schow’s costuming. Her design consisted of interesting choices that served the story, but lacked on-stage cohesiveness.

It doesn’t matter if the play was excellent, terrible, or like this production, an entertaining show with rough edges. The Mountain Play is well-worth experiencing. Splurge on the seat cushions, though. We aren’t joking about the stone seats.

‘Into the Woods’ runs Sundays through June 18 (and Saturday, June 10), at the Cushing Memorial Amphitheatre in Mount Tamalpais State Park. 801 Panoramic Hwy., Mill Valley. 2pm. $25–$190. 415.383.1100. www.mountainplay.org.

Burger & Brew: A pairing for the ages

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Burger & Brew: A pairing for the ages

Consuming animal protein with a fermented beverage represents an ancient evolutionary step in the development of humankind hearkening back to the Neolithic Age. We’ve been perfecting the combo ever since.

The dominant iteration of the pairing, for at least the past century and a half, is the hamburger and beer. Typically ground beef (though there are a few acceptable variations), sandwiched between a pair of buns, dressed with various garnishes and chased with a frosty brew is about as American an experience as it gets. This may sound ironic since more than a few other countries claim to be the burger’s birthplace. Hamburg, Germany, of course comes to mind for obvious reasons, but the same applies to a pair of brothers who claim to have served a ground beef patty betwixt halves of a bun at a county fair in Hamburg, New York, circa 1885.

The history of beer is just as murky (unless it’s properly filtered). But all this frothy japery is beside the point when one is on deadline and needs a burger and brew ASAP. Where to go in Marin on an early Thursday afternoon? Fortunately, we now live in the Information Age:

“Okay, Google… Find me a burger and a beer, right now and right here,” I commanded my phone. I was at Venture Pad in San Rafael (a.k.a., our Marin field office), and my faithful phone recommended Flatiron, which was A) within walking distance and B) had just fired up the grill since it opened at noon on Thursday.

For this excursion, I went classic—the signature half pound burger delivered in a Tribeca Oven challah bun, crisp lettuce, ripe tomato and the neighborhood favorite’s own secret sauce (there are plenty of extras to choose from as well, from avocado and bacon to fried egg and “melted onions”). Likewise, the beer selection is broad, featuring the usual suspects from Lagunitas to Hen House, to more obscure offerings like the East Brother Red Lager, Vienna Lager or the Almanac LOUD! Hazy Double IPA at a whopping 8.3 ABV. Overall, a straight up burger and brew experience with all the contemporary accoutrements, but old school enough to do it right.

Flatiron is located at 724 B St., San Rafael, and is open Tuesday-Saturday noon to 2am, Sunday 10am to 12am, and Monday 5pm to 2am. For more information, visit flatironsanrafael.com or call 415-453-4318.

Nonviolent Power: Myths and reality

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Nonviolent Power: Myths and reality

A commonly held myth is that war concludes well with peace. In fact, conflict research shows that the losing side may accept defeat in a public-facing manner, only to fester and plot to get revenge later.

Violence and war generally lead to further violence and war. Although it may lead to short-term “peace,” violent conflict rarely works to build sustained peace.

But what if the war could have been avoided in the first place?

It is true that conflict is inevitable. War and violence are not. Where violence leaves winners and losers, constructive ends that foster working relationships are never constructed from violence. It is nonviolent action that produces working relationships. Nonviolent action as a response to conflict is essential to building and sustaining a culture of peace. But what is nonviolence? When has nonviolence been successful? And how does it contribute to building sustainable peace?

Indeed, there is empirical research by Harvard professor Erica Chenoweth and former State Department official Maria Stephan on the many cases in which nonviolent insurgency overthrew dictatorships at a success rate nearly double that of successful violent uprisings.

Key to nonviolence is the strain it creates on the ruling elites that challenges the dominant structure. Collective social strain forces leaders, militaries and perpetrators to change their methods. In the Chenoweth and Stephan study, they found that if 3.5% of a population become involved participants in a nonviolent campaign, the likelihood of success is almost guaranteed. Imposing costs on those in power can be done without shooting anyone.

With this, power is taken from the few, and the power is dispersed among the people. Because of this, nonviolence also can contribute to building democratic societies. Once the world knows about the power of nonviolence, ideally, they will see it as a viable, and vital, option in the face of conflict.

To quote Martin Luther King Jr., “At the center of nonviolence stands the principle of love.”

Haley Morrow is a conflict resolution master’s candidate at Portland State University.

Letters to the Editor, Week of June 7

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Letters to the Editor, Week of June 7

Disqualified

After reading both Miriam Ginden’s Open Mic column (May 10) and Barry Barnett’s letter to the editor (May 31), I became intrigued by the possibility of barring from elected office anyone who participated in, encouraged or supported the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021.

Upon researching the Disqualification Clause, I found that the clause makes no mention of requiring a vote of Congress to enforce it, but it does allow Congress to exempt insurrectionists from being subject to the clause if two-thirds vote to do so.

However, enforcing the Disqualification Clause and applying it to current or prospective elected officials does not require a vote of Congress. Those accused of insurrection, including current members of Congress, can be tried in a court of law, and if found guilty, would automatically become ineligible to hold office, unless two-thirds of Congress votes to overturn the court’s decision.

It is my opinion that the Disqualification Clause of the 14th Amendment amends Article I, Section 5 of the U.S. Constitution to make expulsion for insurrection automatic, rather than subject to a vote of Congress.

Chris Wenmoth

Santa Rosa

Sonoma-Marin ag report calls for collaboration, amid weather warnings

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Sonoma-Marin ag report calls for collaboration, amid weather warnings

This winter’s heavy rain storms offered the North Bay a respite from a three-year drought, but a report released in late May warns that local water users should remain vigilant.

The publication, titled “Agricultural Resilience in the Face of Extreme Dry Conditions,” was prepared by a variety of public agencies, nonprofits and ag industry groups. It offers lessons learned from the 2019-2022 drought, when rainfall in Marin and Sonoma counties ranged from 17 to 68% of normal levels.

First and foremost: Continue to think about water use even if the hills are green now, because extreme weather (characterized by wilder fluctuations between dry and wet years) is now the norm.

In a statement announcing the release of the report, David Lewis, the director of Marin County’s University of California Cooperative Extension, said: “Our focus should be on building community resilience to the [climate change-fueled weather] fluctuations. That will come from us talking about the adaptations and responses needed across those swings. Concepts like drought and flood need to be replaced with water resource planning for extreme conditions.”

Although drought is a community-wide issue, it’s not surprising this report came from—and focuses on—the agricultural industry. Afterall, ag uses a lot of water—and there’s money on the line. In 2021, agriculture production value from Sonoma and Marin counties totaled nearly $900 million, with $540 million of the total coming from wine grapes.

In reviewing the 2019-2022 drought years, the report credits regional policy makers and private groups with moving quickly to plan a response in the winter of 2019. Actions ranged from local water districts allowing trucks to deliver water to drought-stricken ranches and other agricultural interests, and state water officials allowing Sonoma Water to temporarily reduce the flow of water in the Russian River and Dry Creek.

Moving forward, the report calls for ongoing collaboration on drought issues. In that vein, it leads with a quote from a May 1978 state report on the just-passed 1976-77 drought: “We must take the opportunity now, while events are still fresh in mind, and we have the breathing spell provided by the 1978 rains, to plan for coping with the next dry period. There is no assurance that the next drought is not just beyond the horizon. We can be assured, however, that drought will return, and, considering the greater needs of that future time, its impact, unless prepared for, will be much greater.”

According to climate scientists’ recent studies, that dire drought may be unfolding already.

“Severe, extreme, and exceptional droughts in California and many western states have become more frequent, intense, unpredictable, and damaging over the past two decades as climate change impacts have intensified,” the Sonoma-Marin report states. “This most recent drought that began in the fall of 2019 and has continued through 2022, is one of the most severe droughts California has faced.”

The problem certainly isn’t limited to the North Bay. In February 2022, the journal Nature Climate Change found that the Western U.S. and northern Mexico had been experiencing their driest period in at least 1,200 years. “Climatologists have reported that the last multi-decade megadrought, comparable to this dry period, occurred in the 1500s,” the Sonoma-Marin agriculture report states.

Free Will Astrology, Week of June 7

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Free Will Astrology, Week of June 7

ARIES (March 21-April 19): “Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves,” said psychologist Carl Jung. What was he implying? That we may sometimes engage in the same behavior that bothers us about others? And we should examine whether we are similarly annoying? That’s one possible explanation, and I encourage you to meditate on it. Here’s a second theory: When people irritate us, it may signify that we are at risk of being hurt or violated by them—and we should take measures to protect ourselves. Maybe there are other theories you could come up with, as well, Aries. Now here’s your assignment: Identify two people who irritate you. What lessons or blessings could you garner from your relationships with them?

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In 1886, a wealthy woman named Sarah Winchester moved into a two-story, eight-room farmhouse in San Jose. She was an amateur architect. During the next 20 years, she oversaw continuous reconstruction of her property, adding new elements and revising existing structures. At one point, the house had 500 rooms. Her workers built and then tore down a seven-story tower on 16 occasions. When she died at age 83, her beloved domicile had 2,000 doors, 10,000 windows, 47 stairways and six kitchens. While Sarah Winchester was extreme in her devotion to endless transformation, I do recommend a more measured version of her strategy for you—especially in the coming months. Continual creative growth and rearrangement will be healthy and fun!

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): “All the things I wanted to do and didn’t do took so long. It was years of not doing.” So writes Gemini poet Lee Upton in her book, Undid in the Land of Undone. Most of us could make a similar statement. But I have good news for you, Gemini. I suspect that during the rest of 2023, you will find the willpower and the means to finally accomplish intentions that have been long postponed or unfeasible. I’m excited for you! To prepare the way, decide which two undone things you would most love to dive into and complete.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Cancerian author Denis Johnson had a rough life in his 20s. He was addicted to drugs and alcohol. Years later, he wrote a poem expressing gratitude to the people who didn’t abandon him. “You saw me when I was invisible,” he wrote, “you spoke to me when I was deaf, you thanked me when I was a secret.” Now would be an excellent time for you to deliver similar appreciation to those who have steadfastly beheld and supported your beauty when you were going through hard times.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Don’t make a wish upon a star. Instead, make a wish upon a scar. By that I mean, visualize in vivid detail how you might summon dormant reserves of ingenuity to heal one of your wounds. Come up with a brilliant plan to at least partially heal the wound. And then use that same creative energy to launch a new dream or relaunch a stalled old dream. In other words, Leo, figure out how to turn a liability into an asset. Capitalize on a loss to engender a gain. Convert sadness into power and disappointment into joy.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): At age nine, I was distraught when my parents told me we were moving away from the small town in Michigan where I had grown up. I felt devastated to lose the wonderful friends I had made and leave the land I loved. But in retrospect, I am glad I got uprooted. It was the beginning of a new destiny that taught me how to thrive on change. It was my introduction to the pleasures of knowing a wide variety of people from many different backgrounds. I bring this to your attention, Virgo, because I think the next 12 months will be full of comparable opportunities for you. You don’t have to relocate to take advantage, of course. There are numerous ways to expand and diversify your world. Your homework right now is to identify three.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Most of us continuously absorb information that is of little or questionable value. We are awash in an endless tsunami of trivia and babble. But in accordance with current astrological omens, I invite you to remove yourself from this blather as much as possible during the next three weeks. Focus on exposing yourself to fine thinkers, deep feelers, and exquisite art and music. Nurture yourself with the wit and wisdom of compassionate geniuses and brilliant servants of the greater good. Treat yourself to a break from the blah-blah-blah and immerse yourself in the smartest joie de vivre you can find.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Over 25 countries have created coats of arms that feature an eagle. Why is that? Maybe it’s because the Roman Empire, the foundation of so much culture in the Western world, regarded the eagle as the ruler of the skies. It’s a symbol of courage, strength and alertness. When associated with people, it also denotes high spirits, ingenuity and sharp wits. In astrology, the eagle is the emblem of the ripe Scorpio: someone who bravely transmutes suffering and strives to develop a sublimely soulful perspective. With these thoughts in mind, and in accordance with current astrological omens, I invite you Scorpios to draw extra intense influence from your eagle-like aspects in the coming weeks.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “When I paint, my goal is to show what I found, not what I was looking for.” So said artist Pablo Picasso. I recommend you adopt some version of that as your motto in the coming weeks. Yours could be, “When I make love, my goal is to rejoice in what I find, not what I am looking for.” Or perhaps, “When I do the work I care about, my goal is to celebrate what I find, not what I am looking for.” Or maybe, “When I decide to transform myself, my goal is to be alert for what I find, not what I am looking for.”

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Vincent van Gogh painted Wheatfield with a Reaper, showing a man harvesting lush yellow grain under a glowing sun. Van Gogh said the figure was “fighting like the devil in the midst of the heat to get to the end of his task.” And yet, this was also true: “The sun was flooding everything with a light of pure gold.” I see your life in the coming weeks as resonating with this scene, Capricorn. Though you may grapple with challenging tasks, you will be surrounded by beauty and vitality.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I suspect that your homing signals will be extra strong and clear during the next 12 months. Everywhere you go, in everything you do, you will receive clues about where you truly belong and how to fully inhabit the situations where you truly belong. From all directions, life will offer you revelations about how to love yourself for who you are and be at peace with your destiny. Start tuning in immediately, dear Aquarius. The hints are already trickling in.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The renowned Mexican painter Diego Rivera (1886–1957) told this story about himself: When he was born, he was so frail and ill that the midwife gave up on him, casting him into a bucket of dung. Rivera’s grandmother would not accept the situation so easily, however. She caught and killed some pigeons and wrapped her newborn grandson in the birds’ guts. The seemingly crazy fix worked. Rivera survived and lived for many decades, creating an epic body of artistic work. I bring this wild tale to your attention, Pisces, with the hope that it will inspire you to keep going and be persistent in the face of a problematic beginning or challenging birth pang. Don’t give up!

What a Drag! ‘Kinky Boots’ in Mill Valley

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What a Drag! ‘Kinky Boots’ in Mill Valley

Watch it, Mill Valley! Your quiet little burg is currently under siege from what may be—according to some pundits and politicians—the greatest threat our nation faces in these troubled times. Lock the windows and bolt the doors because attendees of the latest show at the Throckmorton Theatre have reported multiple sightings of … drag queens! They’re easy to spot as they’re attired in full regalia, from outrageous hair helmets/wigs right down to their … Kinky Boots!

Kinky Boots the Musical, running at the Throckmorton through June 4, traces its roots back to a 1999 BBC documentary about a struggling English shoe manufacturer that staved off closure by creating a brand of women’s shoes for men. A 2005 feature film based its story on the doc, which became the basis for the Harvey Fierstein/Cyndi Lauper musical that took Broadway by storm in 2012.

Charlie Price (Sieiman Alahmadieh) has no interest in continuing in the family shoe business and heads to London with his fiancé, Nicola (Kaylee Miltersen), for a career in real estate. His father’s passing leads to his return, where he discovers the business is in serious financial trouble. He returns to London in search of a financial rescue when he comes upon a woman being harassed by a man. He intervenes, is knocked unconscious and wakes up in the dressing room of a drag club where he discovers the woman he was attempting to rescue is Lola (Adam Green), the club headliner. Seeking to make small talk, he notices the shoddy footwear Lola uses isn’t designed to hold the weight of man.

Charlie returns to the factory and, after a prodding from an assembly line worker (Sarah Jiang) to find an underserved niche market to save the company, enlists Lola to design a line of footwear for men who dress like women. All he has to do is get his employees to buy in and find the money to finance a trip to Milan for a runway debut.

Deeper than the economic storyline, Kinky Boots is a tale of fathers and sons, family and friends, passion and prejudice, and accepting someone—including yourself—for who they are.

Director Adam Maggio’s cast brings energy and genuine emotion to the stage. Green and Alahmadieh are well matched in the leads, and their delivery of “Not My Father’s Son” was an emotional gut punch.

The combined effort of the Kinky Boots creative team results in a joyous and life-affirming show. Drag someone to see it.

‘Kinky Boots’ runs through June 4 at the Throckmorton Theatre. 142 Throckmorton Ave., Mill Valley. Fri & Sat, 7:30pm; Sun, 2pm. $29-$48. 415.383.9600. throckmortontheatre.org

Moral Panics, Then and Now

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Moral Panics, Then and Now

For at least half a century, at least once every decade in the English-speaking democracies of the West there’s been a moral panic of some sort, usually related to progressive social change.

In the 1980s, it was the now almost forgotten “Satanic Panic,” which spread like a sociological wildfire in Canada and the United States, despite only extremely dubious anecdotal evidence to support it. People later exonerated by the legal system were tried in the court of public opinion and had their lives turned upside down, often on the basis of visibly coached testimony from supposed victims.

After the earlier hysteria around Satanism in daycare centers had passed, it was clear that at its core the panic was a sexist reaction to the growing participation of women in a workforce previously dominated by men, which led to an ever-greater need for childcare for working parents.

In our own time, QAnon and Pizzagate have recycled aspects of this debunked panic to accuse some well-known Democrats of doing similar and even more outrageous things to children.

That the Satanic panic was squarely aimed at women simply repeats a pattern that existed with witch trials. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and states began passing laws to further restrict the long-established (50 years for the nation, longer in some states) right to abortion in the country, many politicians on the American right began to target the right of women to use birth control to avoid an unwanted pregnancy.

All this is nothing more than an authoritarian ploy to take control of women’s lives and forcefully return them to their previous status as second-class citizens.

Helped along by the internet and a global pandemic that isolated most of us for almost three years, we are now seeing multiple moral panics at the same time, often grouped together under the nonsensical idea of “woke” ideology (and its close cousin, “cancel culture”) by a reactionary right that substitutes personal grievance and hatred of tiny marginalized groups like trans people for policy making.

Derek Royden is a Canadian journalist.

Honey Wine: Winemaker Gordon Hull

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Honey Wine: Winemaker Gordon Hull

Gordon Hull is the founder, proprietor and winemaker at Heidrun Meadery. Located on a bee forage farm in Point Reyes Station, the meadery produces the only naturally sparkling methode champenoise varietal honey wines in the world. The following is an interview with Hull:

What do you do?

I manage a farm and a wine production facility. Basically, that means I’m repairing farm and winery equipment, paying bills and filling out government forms. On good days, I’m sampling honey varieties from around the world for consideration in our wine production or I’m outside driving the tractor.

When I’m not at work, I’m spending time with my extraordinary wife, Jeffra—who makes it possible for me to do what I do at work—and our two teenage daughters.

Where do you live?

Our home is on the farm in Point Reyes, but owing to the location of our children’s schools on the other side of the county, we have a place in Kentfield too.

How long have you lived in Marin?

15 years.

Where can we find you when you’re not at work?

Attending one of our daughter’s sporting events, on a Marin hiking trail or on our skiff on Tomales Bay.

If you had to convince someone how awesome Marin was, where would you take

them?

Hands down, I’d take them to the farm at Heidrun Meadery on a sunny weekday afternoon for a picnic of oysters, local cheese and Brickmaiden Bread and a glass of bubbly, then scoot over to Limantour Beach in time for sunset. That’s livin’!

What is one thing Marin is missing?

A bowling alley.

What’s one bit of advice you’d share with your fellow Marinites?

Marin is a little bit of heaven, but it’s important to escape that bubble periodically in order to stay grounded in the realities of the world.

If you could invite anyone to a special dinner, who would they be?

God, I suppose, but only if there really is such a thing. Otherwise, I’d settle for the enlightening company of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.

What is some advice you wish you knew 20 years ago?

For every thing you buy, get rid of a thing you already own.

What is something that in 20 years from now will seem cringeworthy?

Perhaps our penal system.

Big question. What is one thing you’d do to change the world?

Continue working to reduce the impact of our species on it.

Hull can be found at @heidrunmeadery on Instagram.

Marin Pride: Upcoming events celebrate LGBTQIA+ community

Photo courtesy of Sausalito Center for the Arts
June is here, which means it’s time to break out those rainbow flags and loudly and proudly declare support for the lesbian, gay, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and otherwise members of the community. Though Marin, the greater Bay Area and much of the state of California are historically known for being at the very forefront of acceptance and advocating for...
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Mountain Play: ‘Into the Woods’ on Mt. Tam

Photo by Ed Smith
The Mountain Play is an adventure. After driving, hiking, biking or shuttling to the top of Mt. Tamalpais, one begins by making their way past booths selling all manner of merchandise (including seat cushions). One heads to a stone seat amid picnicking families and scurrying alligator lizards. There is pre-show entertainment starting around 12:30pm. Then, at 2, around when the...
Read more

Burger & Brew: A pairing for the ages

Photo by Daedalus Howell
Consuming animal protein with a fermented beverage represents an ancient evolutionary step in the development of humankind hearkening back to the Neolithic Age. We’ve been perfecting the combo ever since. The dominant iteration of the pairing, for at least the past century and a half, is the hamburger and beer. Typically ground beef (though there are a few acceptable variations),...
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Nonviolent Power: Myths and reality

A commonly held myth is that war concludes well with peace. In fact, conflict research shows that the losing side may accept defeat in a public-facing manner, only to fester and plot to get revenge later. Violence and war generally lead to further violence and war. Although it may lead to short-term “peace,” violent conflict rarely works to build sustained...
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Letters to the Editor, Week of June 7

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Disqualified After reading both Miriam Ginden's Open Mic column (May 10) and Barry Barnett's letter to the editor (May 31), I became intrigued by the possibility of barring from elected office anyone who participated in, encouraged or supported the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021. Upon researching the Disqualification Clause, I found that the clause makes no mention...
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Sonoma-Marin ag report calls for collaboration, amid weather warnings

Photo by Matt Dolkas
This winter’s heavy rain storms offered the North Bay a respite from a three-year drought, but a report released in late May warns that local water users should remain vigilant. The publication, titled “Agricultural Resilience in the Face of Extreme Dry Conditions,” was prepared by a variety of public agencies, nonprofits and ag industry groups. It offers lessons learned from...
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Free Will Astrology, Week of June 7

ARIES (March 21-April 19): "Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves," said psychologist Carl Jung. What was he implying? That we may sometimes engage in the same behavior that bothers us about others? And we should examine whether we are similarly annoying? That’s one possible explanation, and I encourage you to meditate...
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What a Drag! ‘Kinky Boots’ in Mill Valley

Watch it, Mill Valley! Your quiet little burg is currently under siege from what may be—according to some pundits and politicians—the greatest threat our nation faces in these troubled times. Lock the windows and bolt the doors because attendees of the latest show at the Throckmorton Theatre have reported multiple sightings of … drag queens! They’re easy to spot...
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Moral Panics, Then and Now

For at least half a century, at least once every decade in the English-speaking democracies of the West there’s been a moral panic of some sort, usually related to progressive social change. In the 1980s, it was the now almost forgotten “Satanic Panic,” which spread like a sociological wildfire in Canada and the United States, despite only extremely dubious anecdotal...
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Honey Wine: Winemaker Gordon Hull

Gordon Hull is the founder, proprietor and winemaker at Heidrun Meadery. Located on a bee forage farm in Point Reyes Station, the meadery produces the only naturally sparkling methode champenoise varietal honey wines in the world. The following is an interview with Hull: What do you do? I manage a farm and a wine production facility. Basically, that means I’m repairing...
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