Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday declared California’s monkeypox outbreak a state of emergency, despite a gay leather kink festival taking place in San Francisco over the weekend — just over a year since children were banned from school due to the COVID.
California became the second state in three days, after New York, to take the step, and Newsom said the statement will help state officials better coordinate a government-wide response, seek more vaccines, and guide awareness and education efforts about, where people can be treated and vaccination.
“We will continue to work with the federal government to secure more vaccines, raise awareness about risk reduction and stand by the LGBTQ community in fighting stigma,” Newsom said.
A booth on San Francisco’s Folsom Street Sunday offers information about monkeypox at the Dore Alley, or Up Your Alley, fetish and leather festival as the viral disease continues to spread in California. Nearly 800 cases of monkeypox have been reported in the state
Nearly 800 cases of monkeypox have been reported in California, according to state health officials.
But that didn’t stop the LGBTQ+ community on Sunday from organizing a street fair called “Dore Alley” or “Up Your Alley,” a leather and fetish event commonly compared to the Folsom Street Fair — California’s third-biggest singles. Daytime and outdoor spectator event – as well as the world’s largest leather event and showcase for BDSM products and culture.
Festival officials ensured this year’s venue was more spread out and that hand sanitizer stations were visible
California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency over monkeypox on Monday, becoming the second state in three days to take the step after New York — the epidemic of the viral disease
Kinky games and street vendors selling leather clothing including chokers, collars, whips and bondage kits are common at this venue, which attracts mostly gay men from all demographics. A sound stage was also set up for festival-goers to dance on.
“I like to think of it as the biggest leather block party,” executive director Angel Adeyoha told ABC 7.
However, she expressed concern about the schedule for this year’s festival, given that it came shortly after the city of San Francisco declared a state of emergency over monkeypox on July 28.
“I don’t know if you’ve come in years past, but you were body to body. That’s clearly not the case now, we’ve made room for people,” Adeyoha told ABC 7.
In 2020, both Up Your Alley Fair and Folsom were canceled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year, the San Francisco Department of Public Health was on hand to educate local people about the virus and keep them safe by adding hand sanitizer stations.
The festival was also more extensive than usual, allowing people to roam freely.
“I think probably riskier things in both Outside Lands and Dore Alley will be the things that happen after the event or in the private function rooms where people are intimate with each other,” said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, infectious disease specialist of the UCSF NBC-Bay area.
City officials in San Francisco have declared a state of emergency in the face of a growing outbreak of monkeypox, which has so far mostly affected gay and bisexual men. Pictured: A volunteer distributes flyers about the virus at the Dore Alley festival in San Francisco on Sunday
A volunteer working at the ‘Dore Alley’ festival on Sunday checks the COVID vaccine status of a festival goer, alongside a flight promoting monkeypox awareness
Festival-goers (pictured) were more spread out than usual at Sunday’s Dore Alley festival compared to other years. In 2020, the venue was canceled due to COVID
The monkeypox virus spreads through prolonged and close skin-to-skin contact, which can include hugging, cuddling, and kissing, as well as sharing bedding, towels, and clothing. So far, it has mainly affected men who have sex with men, although health officials note that the virus can infect anyone.
“Public health officials are clear: stigma is unacceptable and counterproductive in the public health response,” said Michelle Gibbons, executive director of the County Health Executives Association of California. “The fact is, monkeypox is mainly spread through skin-to-skin contact and sharing of items like sheets or towels, with no regard for sexual orientation or gender identity.”
The type of monkeypox virus identified in this outbreak is rarely fatal and people usually recover within weeks. However, the lesions and blisters caused by the virus are painful and can prevent swallowing or defecating in the throat or anus.
The statement in California followed a similar one in upstate New York on Saturday and in San Francisco on Thursday. The Newsom government said on Friday that it was too early for such a statement.
After urging Newsom to make such a statement, State Senator Scott Wiener (D-SF) welcomed the governor’s decision.
“The monkeypox outbreak is an emergency and we must use every means we have to control it,” Wiener said.
People stand in long lines at San Francisco General Hospital on July 12 to receive the monkeypox vaccine
A man holds a sign urging greater access to the monkeypox vaccine during a protest in San Francisco July 18
Newsom’s proclamation allows emergency medical personnel to administer federally approved monkeypox vaccines.
That’s similar to a recently enacted law allowing pharmacists to prescribe vaccines, the Newsom government said. The state’s response builds on steps developed during the coronavirus pandemic to establish immunization clinics and ensure vulnerable populations are reached in collaboration with local and community-based organizations.
California has received more than 61,000 doses of the vaccine and has distributed more than 25,000 doses.
“We have no time to waste,” Los Angeles County Superintendent Kathryn Barger said in a statement. She said the country’s most populous district must use all available resources to expedite vaccine distribution and help those infected.
Newsom’s office said Los Angeles County received a separate allocation of vaccines.
As of last week, the state had expanded its testing capacity to more than 1,000 tests a week. Critics have said the long wait for test results is delaying treatment options.
Home to one of the United States’ largest LGBT communities, New York City is on the verge of receiving 110,000 doses of the federal government’s upcoming 800,000 monkeypox vaccines — but Gov. Kathy Hochul still wants more.
The number of cases in New York City, the current US epicenter of the outbreak, surpassed 1,400 on Friday. Across the country, the total number of cases exceeds 5,000.