Less than half of businesses in San Francisco's LGBTQ neighborhood that participated in a 2021 survey conducted by the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District were "owned or managed" by members of the queer community, neighborhood leaders told the Bay Area Reporter.
According to the survey results only 45% of the 129 businesses that responded to it were owned or managed by LGBTQ people.
The B.A.R. previously reported on the survey at the time it was being undertaken. The information was gathered for inclusion in a Cultural History, Housing and Economic Sustainability Strategies, or CHHESS, report, according to Tina Aguirre, a genderqueer Latinx person who is manager of the cultural district. That report is required by the city, which funds San Francisco's 10 cultural districts.
"We did not disseminate the entire results of this survey publicly," Aguirre stated to the B.A.R. "Instead, we used it as a data source for our CHHESS report that is currently in development, and I shared key takeaways with OEWD [Office of Economic and Workforce Development] and MOHCD [Mayor's Office of Housing and Community Development] in the last year."
Aguirre stated, "This information underscores the need for intentional small business support that centers LGBTQ culture and community needs in the Castro district."
They hoped the survey would be shared with the Castro Community Benefit District, the Castro Merchants Association, the Duboce Triangle Neighborhood Association, and the Eureka Valley Neighborhood Association.
Castro Merchants Association President Terrance Alan and treasurer Terry Beswick, both gay men, stated to the B.A.R. that "this report raises a lot of questions."
"We wish we had more historical data to compare it to and we recommend the survey be conducted yearly," they stated. "The report identifies some 50% [sic] of survey respondent businesses are owned or managed by LGBTQ people. While that percentage may be troubling to some folks who would like to see the Castro have a more LGBTQ focus to business ownership, we must remember that not being LGBTQ-identified doesn't mean what it did 25 years ago. Today in our informal meetings with new owners and managers, they chose the Castro, despite not being LGBTQ, because of its diversity and makeup. They can't think of a more diverse and exciting place to locate."
The two stated there's work to be done to make the Castro more inclusive for those who aren't white, cis gay men like themselves.
"There's always a lot of talk about how the Castro is changing, or is not welcoming to certain groups, but it's encouraging that the data show a fair amount of diversity," Allen and Beswick added.
"We want the Castro to be welcoming to LGBTQ folks, BIPOC folks, women and allies especially, and there's no better way to do that than to have businesses owned or managed by these groups, and employing diverse workers," they stated, referring to Black, Indigenous, and people of color. "We have a lot of work to do, and this report will help with that."
Survey details
A summary of survey results found that "although businesses were less likely to be owned or managed by queer people, LGBTQ people were employed in most businesses," with 72% of the participating businesses reporting they had LGBTQ employees.
"Racial diversity was high amongst the businesses in the district with a majority having employed people of color, many of whom were also queer," the summary continued. "A little over half of businesses employed queer women."
Eighty-six percent of the businesses had at least one person of color employed, the summary stated, and 53% employed queer women. However, the percent owned or managed by an LGBTQ person was 45%.
The survey did not include 70 businesses within the district's boundaries, as they were "unavailable or uninterested in the interview," according to the report.
The survey was conducted on weekday afternoons.
"Time restrictions and business hours restricted the ability to collect data in that the Castro includes several early-day businesses or late-opened businesses," the summary stated. "Several businesses refused to answer if their workers were queer or POC due to their comfort to give this information or lack of this information of the employees."
Four specific questions were asked: is the "business owned or managed by someone who is LGBTQ/queer?"; "Are there workers who are LGBTQ or Queer?"; "Are there women workers who are also LGBTQ or Queer?"; and "Are there any workers who are people of color (POC)?"
"The subjects interviewed were the owners, managers, or employees of the district's businesses available to speak with the interviewers in-person at the time of the data collection," the summary stated. "The interviews were offered in English and Spanish. The responses were counted as 'Yes' and 'No,' and the interviewers noted additional commentary provided by the participants, as well as observations. Data collected was inputted into a digital spreadsheet after interviews were completed; the spreadsheet calculated the sums of 'Yes' and 'No' responses for the four categories of questions. Then, the sums were converted into percentages for presentation."
Participating businesses contacted by the B.A.R. did not respond to requests for comment.
Jen Reck, a queer person who's a professor at San Francisco State University, connected the interns who conducted the research, Hanelye Mazariegos and Alejandro Barrientos, a pansexual woman and a gay man, respectively, with the district.
When asked for Mazariegos' and Barrientos' contact information, Aguirre stated to the B.A.R. "Please do not reach out to my previous interns as they are not authorized to represent the district or this work." Reck did not respond to a request for comment for this report as of press time.
Aguirre continued, "the project is complete though we may do a follow-up survey in the fall."
As of press time, they had not responded to a follow-up about when the CHHESS report is expected to be completed.
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