San Francisco boasts dozens of small gay-owned and gay-friendly venues, from bars to boutiques, in part due to an ordinance that makes it very hard for chains to establish themselves in historic neighborhoods such as the Castro. That’s why you are more likely to see run across Cafe Flore than Starbucks. But that policy occasionally creates rather, well, uncomfortable situations.
The hip clothier American Apparel is known for paying decent wages and providing health care to its largely immigrant workforce. It came out against Prop 8 with “Legalize Gay” T-shirts. It’s ad campaigns are unmistakably homoerotic. The floor (or locker room) of any SF gym will display the popularity of their smart but inexpensive gear among gay men. Yet the retail chain is running into major hassles opening a store on Valencia Street in the Mission, a gay haven walking distance from the Castro, despite the many vacant storefronts that line the street.
The Castro’s representative on the board of supervisors, Bevan Dufty, has not taken a position on the matter but is a strong supporter of the anti-chain law. No word on whether Dufty favors American Apparel garments.
