November 1, 1937 – July 11, 1987
November 1, 1937
On this date in 1937, Tom Waddell, Olympic athlete and founder of the Gay Games who is now honored on the Castro’s Rainbow Honor Walk, was born in New Jersey.
October 30, 1963
On this date in 1963, the California Bureau of Alcohol Beverage Control yanked the Black Cat’s liquor license the day before their annual Halloween party. The bar defiantly held the party anyway, serving nonalcoholic beverages.
November 1, 1981
On this date in 1981, the Shanti Project organized the first peer support group for San Franciscans diagnosed with AIDS.
November 1, 1988
On this date in 1988, San Francisco formed what will become the nation’s largest needle exchange program to reduce the spread of AIDS.
October 31, 2002
On this date in 2002, four or five people were stabbed at the Castro’s annual Halloween festivities.
October 31, 2006
On this date in 2006, nine people were shot — none fatality — at the Castro’s Halloween celebration, bringing an end to the annual street festivities.
October 28, 2009
On this date in 2009, President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard Act extending Hate Crimes protections to acts based on sexual orientation.
DR. Tom Waddell was my physician for a couple of years….. He was very compassionate and warm….. He’s been gone for a long time, and I really do miss him very much.