The story that SFist broke last week about Facebook cracking down on drag queens and other performers who use drag names in place of their real names has spread all over and even made it to the Wall Street Journal and the BBC over the weekend. As of today, Supervisor David Campos's office has succeeded in getting a face-to-face meeting between some affected drag queens like Sister Roma and Facebook, which looks to be happening this week.
There was a protest planned for Tuesday that was going to bus a gang of people down to Menlo Park, which may or may not be canceled.
A short while ago Roma said, "Just got off the phone with Supervisor David Campos and representatives from Facebook. They have agreed to meet with us and members of the community for an open dialogue regarding their legal name policy. After the conversation I am more hopeful than ever that we can reach a solution."
I've reached out to Campos's office for a comment on the situation, but aide Nate Allbee said on Friday that Campos was concerned enough that he was pushing for this meeting to occur.
We'll update you as to whether Facebook, like Google Plus before them, is going to stop this silliness about policing stage names.
Update: In a statement, Campos says, "I am glad that Facebook has accepted our invitation to engage in a meaningful public dialogue with the drag queens and members of the transgender community who have been affected by the profile name policy. We know that many Facebook employees live in San Francisco and enjoy the contributions to nightlife that Heklina, Sister Roma and others have made. This will be a great opportunity for Facebook to constructively engage with its neighbors."
Also, Supervisor Scott Wiener has also gotten in on the action, making this statement on Facebook: "Preventing drag queens from using the names that actually define who they are also puts a number of people in the untenable position of having to choose between telling the world that they’re drag queens and abandoning Facebook for their drag personas. While many drag queens are 'out' about who they are, not all drag queens have that luxury. Plenty of discrimination, hate, and violence toward the LGBT community still exists in many parts of the world, and various people have drag personas that they feel the need to keep separate from the rest of their lives. People who disclose their non-drag identity - and who, conversely, announce to the world that they are drag queens - should do so because they want to, not because Facebook is forcing them to do so in order to continue using their profiles."
[SFBG]
Previously: Drag Queens, Other Performers Outraged As Facebook Forces Them To Use Their Real Names [Updated]