Onetime District 6 supervisor candidate and longtime veteran of City Hall, Honey Mahogany, is joining the London Breed administration as the new executive director of the Office of Transgender Initiatives.
Mahogany will assume the job on Monday, May 6, and she takes over at the seven-year-old office for Pau Crego, who left in December after a 20-month stint in the office.
As the Bay Area Reporter explains, the Office of Transgender Initiatives leases an office within the San Francisco LGBT Community Center, where it will continue to reside. And starting this summer, the office will come under the aegis of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission, which also has an LGBTQ advisory group.
Mahogany may have known for a while that she was in line for the position, and she did not run in March to continue her role on the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee where she served as its first Black and trans chair beginning in 2021.
"I did not run again for the San Francisco Democratic Party this year," Mahogany told the BAR. "I have chosen to put my energy elsewhere. I served on the body for seven or eight years and I enjoyed my time there serving as chair, though it definitely had its challenges. I'm ready for a new challenge."
Mahogany adds, "I've always had a passion toward working toward solutions and creating change, and this is a really incredible opportunity to build on the work I've done over my career, being able to be both an advocate for the trans community and create change within the system, so I'm excited for the opportunity and I'm excited for this work to insure San Francisco remains a welcoming place for trans people."
In a statement, Mayor London Breed said, "Right now, across the country, our transgender and LGBTQ+ culture and community is under attack, but in San Francisco we continue to embrace and celebrate the amazing individuals and organizations who through their advocacy and art have contributed to our history around social justice and equity. Honey Mahogany is a proven champion and in her new role will work to advance San Francisco's values of inclusion that will inspire communities."
Breed added, "I look forward to partnering with Honey to ensure our City continues to be a place of acceptance, fairness, and opportunities for all."
The Office of Transgender Initiatives (OTI) was created in 2016 under Mayor Ed Lee, and officially began its work in 2017, under the leadership of Clair Farley.
The OTI had been overseen by the City Administrator's office, and the move to bring it under the Human Rights Commission has been underway for some time.
"By bringing two closely aligned agencies together, we are furthering the city's ability to leverage policy and resources to advance equity for transgender and gender nonconforming San Franciscans," says City Administrator Carmen Chu in a statement. "I am grateful for the OTI staff, Shane Zaldivar, Cherry Javier, and Asri Wulandari, who have been integral in ensuring a smooth transition, and look forward to working with Director Mahogany to continue fostering economic stability and create equal opportunities for our TGNC community."
Honey Mahogany was a frequent drag performer at The Stud starting over a decade ago, and she appeared on Season Five of Rupaul's Drag Race — a season that featured legends like Jinkx Monsoon, Detox, Alaska Thunderfuck, and Alyssa Edwards.
She later became part of The Stud collective, which just successfully reopened the nightclub in a new space on Folsom Street two weekends ago.
Mahogany served as legislative aide to former supervisor Matt Haney, and was also a co-founder of the Transgender District — the world's first officially recognized district for transgender people, in the Tenderloin.
In 2022, Mahogany ran unsuccessfully to become District 6 supervisor, and was notably passed over by Mayor London Breed for an interim appointment that would have made her the incumbent. That appointment went instead to Matt Dorsey.
Top photo by Kori Suzuki