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Student Alvin Thomas (left), who plays Sister Boom Boom in Emily Mann’s Execution of Justice, meets the real Sister Boom Boom, Jack Fertig (right).
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USF to Commemorate SF Slayings with Performances, Symposia
A week of on-campus activities Nov. 6-12 will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the slayings of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk.
Called “25 Years: Remembering George Moscone & Harvey Milk,” the week will include student performances of the play Execution of Justice and a panel discussion Nov. 9 with authors who covered the trial of assassin Dan White. There will also be a rare appearance Nov. 12 by White’s attorneys, Stephen Scherr and Douglas Schmidt, and remembrances of Milk on Nov. 10 and Moscone Nov. 11. All events will take place in the University of San Francisco’s Presentation Theater.
“Many of our students today don’t know who Milk and Moscone were and their legacies are so important to the history of this city,” said Peter Novak, assistant professor of performing arts and the events’ organizer. “It’s my hope these special events will spark some interest so our students will carry that legacy on.”
Moscone and Milk, who was gay, were shot to death in 1978 by former Supervisor Dan White for their work to insure civil rights for gays. White’s trial ended in 1979 with a voluntary manslaughter conviction. He served five years in prison and, upon his release, committed suicide in the garage of his San Francisco home.
For Execution of Justice by Emily Mann, students from the performing arts and social justice major researched their roles and the era so they could fully understand the aftermath of the 1978 assassinations, which is the play’s subject. Students interviewed reporters who covered the trial; politicians, such as Harry Britt, who assumed Milk’s post as supervisor; Sister Boom Boom, who ran for supervisor in 1982 and is a character in the play; and Mike Weiss, author of Double Play: The San Francisco City Hall Killings. In addition, they spoke with photographers, artists, and activists who participated in and chronicled the events.
“It’s not about doing a play for the sake of doing a play, it’s about engaging a history, a text, and the lives of the people involved,” said Novak, who directs the play.
On Nov. 9 at 7 p.m., KQED radio’s Michael Krasny will host a panel of authors who wrote about the slayings, the subsequent White Night Riots, and Dan White’s murder trial. Panelists include Mike Weiss, Paul Krassner (Sex, Drugs and the Twinkie Murders), and San Francisco Chronicle writer Lance Williams. The authors will discuss the 1978 murders, explain how they changed The City, and answer questions from the audience.
In a rare appearance, White’s attorneys Stephen Scherr and Douglas Schmidt, who developed the famous “Twinkie” defense, will discuss his trial and its legal implications 25 years later with Jim Hammer, San Francisco assistant district attorney. The event, titled “From Harvey Milk to Diane Whipple: 25 Years of San Francisco Legal History,” will be held Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.
For more information on the events and to reserve tickets, go to www.executionofjustice.com.
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