San Francisco – In response to a deceptive campaign ad mailed this week to San Francisco voters portraying Supervisor Scott Wiener, candidate for Senate District 11, as funded by the adult film industry due to his opposition to Proposition 60, a ballot initiative requiring the use of condoms in adult films, a group of individuals and civil rights, public health and HIV service organizations opposing the initiative issued the following statement:
“The campaign mailer sent out late last week to San Francisco voters is completely inappropriate on many levels. Not only does it slander Scott Wiener as being in “the pocket of pornographers,” stigmatize the adult film industry, and mischaracterize what Proposition 60 does, it appears to be a gross misuse of funds on the part of Michael Weinstein, his AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) and the “Yes on Proposition 60” campaign. Weinstein has twice filed suit against Wiener and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors over a pharmacy zoning issue, in a case that City Attorney Dennis Herrera called “meritless.”
As a 501(c)(3) organization, AHF is permitted to engage in issue-based electoral activities, such as the campaign to pass Prop 60, which was bankrolled entirely by AHF and Weinstein, who have contributed more than $4 million. However, campaigning by a 501(c)(3) for or against a candidate for political office is prohibited. Additionally, AHF and its sponsored ballot measure committee appear to have failed to report independent expenditures opposing a State Senate candidate. The offensive mailer did more than cross the boundaries of good taste; it appears to have violated both IRS and campaign finance laws.
Scott Wiener’s credentials as an advocate for HIV services and prevention efforts in San Francisco are unassailable. He has fought to broaden rent-control protections for people living with HIV, helped restore federal funding cuts to local treatment and prevention programs, secured nearly $2 million in public funding to establish a first-of-its-kind clinic for health and wellness for gay, bi-sexual and transgender men in San Francisco, worked to ensure affordable access to PrEP for low-income residents and secured funding for the City’s “Getting to Zero” initiative, aimed at curbing HIV deaths and transmission in San Francisco by 90 percent by 2020.
Proposition 60 would require condom use in all adult films produced in California and would allow members of the public to file suit against anyone involved in a production for a perceived violation. Wiener is joined by dozens of California’s most influential public health, civil rights and political organizations in his opposition to Proposition 60, joined by Equality California, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, AIDS Project Los Angeles, the San Francisco Medical Society, the California Democratic and Republican Parties, the Harvey Milk and Alice B. Toklas Democratic Clubs, and many others. In addition, the editorial boards of the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Sacramento Bee and other publications have come out in opposition to the measure.
Implementing and updating safer sex practices in the adult film industry should be a collaborative process that includes public health experts, HIV service organizations, state regulatory agencies, producers, and performers. The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health already regulates the adult film industry and requires that performers use condoms during production. Rather than curbing transmission of HIV and protecting performers, Proposition 60’s broad private right of action will drive production underground or out of state, and out of reach of California’s health and worker protection safeguards. By driving production away from regulations that require and encourage safer-sex practices in adult film production, Proposition 60 will exacerbate the very problem it purports to address, failing to take into account treatments like pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP, that are part of an arsenal of tools that can greatly reduce risk of transmission.
We, the undersigned, remain committed to working jointly with all groups to ensure the health and safety of all those who are involved in the production of adult films, and to working to end transmission of HIV and HIV stigma in California. False and misleading attacks on individual political candidates do nothing to advance that goal.”
Signed by: Equality California Senator Mark Leno San Francisco AIDS Foundation Robert F. Kennedy Democratic Club Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization dedicated to creating a fair and just society. Our mission is to achieve and maintain full and lasting equality, acceptance, and social justice for all people in our diverse LGBT communities, inside and outside of California. Our mission includes advancing the health and well-being of LGBT Californians through direct healthcare service advocacy and education. Through electoral, advocacy, education and mobilization programs, we strive to create a broad and diverse alliance of LGBT people, educators, government officials, communities of color and faith, labor, business, and social justice communities to achieve our goals. www.eqca.org
