News Briefs: Great Hauntway returns to Sunset Dunes

The Friends of Sunset Dunes will hold its fifth annual Great Hauntway at the Ocean-fronting park, Sunday, October 26, from 1 to 4 p.m. It marks the first time the official city park will play host to the spooky event.

The event takes place between Judah and Taraval streets. It will feature trick-or-treat stations, bounce houses, live music, and costumes galore. The event is free and open to everyone.

Sunset Dunes, the new city park, was created this spring due to the passage of Proposition K last November that saw a portion of the Great Highway permanently closed to vehicles. Before that, the friends group had held the event alongside the beach when that stretch of the highway was closed to cars on weekends, a compromise measure developed during the COVID pandemic. (The passage of Prop K led to the recall of gay District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio last month; his last day in office is Friday, October 17.)

Partnering with the friends group on the Great Hauntway are the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department and Bay to Breakers.

For more information, including volunteer opportunities, go to sunsetdunes.org/hauntway.

Bay Area to hold ‘No Kings’ marches
The second round of “No Kings” marches is set to hit cities across the country Saturday, October 18. Events are planned throughout the Bay Area, including San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, and San Jose.

No Kings marches were held in June as organizers mobilized millions of people to take to the streets and declare that America has no king, the website noted. At the time, President Donald Trump held his military/birthday parade in Washington, D.C., which was largely rained out, as protesters rallied in cities across the country.

Four months later, organizers pointed to Trump’s continued immigration policies that have seen masked federal agents detain and arrest people without warrants, gutting health care access, and threatening to overtake elections through gerrymandered congressional districts in red states. California is fighting back with a special statewide election November 4 asking voters to support Proposition 50, which would allow the Legislature to implement redrawn congressional districts with five more Democratic-leading ones for the 2026 midterm elections. The country is also in the midst of a federal government shutdown, and Trump said last week that some furloughed workers may not receive back pay.

No Kings, which is co-organized by Indivisible, stressed the peaceful nature of the events.

In San Francisco, there will be a march starting at 1:30 p.m. at Embarcadero Plaza at Market and Steuart streets that will continue up to Civic Center Plaza.

In Oakland, the march will start at 12:30 p.m. at Wilma Chan Park, 810 Jackson Street, across from the Lake Merritt BART Station. It will end at the Lake Merritt Amphitheater between 12th Street and First Avenue.

In Berkeley, a march will start at 10 a.m. at 2307 Telegraph Avenue. San Jose’s takes place at noon at St. James Park at the intersection of Second and St. James streets.

Numerous other marches are planned. To find an event, visit nokings.org/#map.

 
ALRP to hold benefit reception
Gay actor George Takei and gay San Francisco attorney David Tsai will be honored at the AIDS Legal Referral Panel’s 42nd annual reception Thursday, October 23, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at The Grand, 520 Fourth Street in San Francisco.

Tsai is a trial lawyer who focuses on intellectual property and is a partner at Pillsbury, Winthrop, Shaw, Pittman. He is a former board member of Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund and the Bar Association of San Francisco. He currently serves on the board of Equality California, the statewide LGBTQ rights organization.

Tsai will be receiving ALRP’s Clint Hockenberry Award, named for the agency’s first paid staff member.

Takei, known for his role as Hikaru Sulu in the “Star Trek” franchise, has been an outspoken advocate for the LGBTQ community, especially since publicly coming out in 2005. He is known for his humorous social media posts and support for progressive causes.

Takei will be receiving the Bill Hirsh Award, named for the gay former longtime executive director of ALRP.

ALRP provides civil legal services for the HIV/AIDS community. It has paid staff members as well as volunteer attorneys.

Tickets for the “Rights, Resilience, Revelry!” reception start at $50. For tickets and more information, visit alrp.org/events/42nd-annual-reception.

For more information on the agency, visit alrp.org.

SF Dyke March elects advisory committee
The San Francisco Dyke March recently elected members of its advisory committee. The organization held the first election in its history September 27 and chose eight of nine open seats on the committee, according to a news release. Seven candidates were a mix of returning and new volunteers; one was an interim steering committee member.

The winners of the election were 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 (“Black”) Robicheaux, 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 successful candidates were Lex McGowen, 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 Celestina Pearl, a queer femme dyke and mixed-race Native Chicana who was an interim steering committee member. M Rocket will continue to serve as interim project director.

Crystal Mason, outgoing president of the interim steering committee, congratulated the new members.

“My deepest wish for the incoming advisory committee is that they lead with courage, joy, and care for one another and our community – while also dreaming boldly about what the Dyke March can grow into,” Mason stated.

The release noted that in the coming months, the advisory committee will continue to build the internal structure for the organization and begin planning for the 2026 Dyke March, set for Saturday, June 27.

Dykes interested in getting involved are encouraged to join as a member. For more information, visit thedykemarch.org.