Letters

Making a Habit of Safety
In response to "A Royal Snub" (Bay View, Nov. 8), I would like to clarify some facts for you and your readership.

In years past the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Inc. have coordinated the Halloween in the Castro celebration, bringing in other community groups to help with start-up costs and people power. Community United Against Violence (CUAV) is one such group that had assisted us, but with mixed degrees of success. Last year, under Lester Olmstead-Rose's direction, CUAV was to provide 250 safety volunteers and help with security. In fact, less than 40 volunteers showed up. With a crowd of over half a million, we were left without a safety net; predictably, there were assaults and bashings.

Some good did come out of the safety fiasco: A community coalition was formed with an array of agendas. Among the more troubling agendas to me personally was greed -- a deadly sin. Budgets with mystery donors and inflated producer fees came from the CUAV camp; selling beer in the streets and charging instead of asking for donations also seemed strange.

Most agreed that it was time for the Sisters' stage show and disco to relocate and we worked within the coalition to make that happen. When it became clear that it wouldn't, and instead of entertainment there was to be extra security, the Sisters decided to produce a proper celebration elsewhere and raise money for local direct-service nonprofits. We remained as advisers to the coalition free of charge, with the hopes that there would be no problems in the Castro.

The Halloween '96 celebration is guaranteed to be a moneymaker, and thus we are guaranteed to see greed play a dominating role again. It is my hope that self-serving agendas can be laid aside for the greater good and safety of the community.

Sister Kitty Catalyst, OCP
(Of the Catnip Patch)
San Francisco

Race to Judgment
It's heartwarming to read such a highbrow reviewer as Eric Arnold extolling the virtues of viciousness inherent in the Coup's rap lyrics on Kill My Landlord and Genocide and Juice (WAMMIES Program, Nov. 8). Yeah! Why not go and attack an office employee of non-color, and then for dessert go and "fix" an Asian store owner? Who says kids don't have any heroic role models? Racism and misogyny rule! Long live gangsta rap! Even if O.J. is guilty, his victims were only a couple of crackers, so they deserved it. So go listen to the Coup's "Marxist critique of society." But for God's sake, don't mention Marx's ethnicity!

M. Kamionko
San Francisco

Editor's note: In the current conservative-fueled anti-rap climate, people mistakenly paint all rap with the same brush. The Coup aren't gangsta rappers but firm critics of the genre: The album title Genocide and Juice is a parody of Snoop Doggy Dogg's song "Gin and Juice," and refers to the harmful effects of both the ubiquitous alcohol imagery in hard-core rap and liquor advertisers' targeting of minority communities.

Instrument of Torture
I am wondering what compelled you to write anything nice at all about 93 Million Miles From the Sun ("Dark Sun," Film, Nov. 1). Thanks to your review I went to it and it was, quite literally, the most painful art experience of my life.

I am most interested in one phrase you use: "Mixing healthy doses of humor with weighty drama." What on earth are you referring to? Are you mad? That had healthy doses of humor? What, were you raised by some strict, dour, emotionally disturbed Christian Scientist? Were you raised by Carrie's mom? Jesus, what humor? People walking for hours through streets and alleys occasionally yelling "fuck"? Boy, you got to get out more often.

And weighty drama? You call a film with painfully long tracking shots, practically no dialogue, and an editorial style that evokes Jim Jarmusch on Valium weighty drama? The only dramatic thing about that film was that it made the audience want to kill themselves.

The same review says it was "shot entirely in the Mission District," referring as well to a gray and "angry" shot of the underside of the Bay Bridge. A character drives through the Broadway Tunnel; one sits in Washington Square; one stands up by Caff Freddy's -- come on, check your fucking map.

I am reporting you to Amnesty International.
Name Withheld by Request

Correction
The location of Cue's ("Mix Masters," Nov. 8), an outlet for mix tapes, is in Daly City; call 755-1110.