Arts and Culture

“I Want a Dyke For President” Poem Posted in Castro District Front Yard

The Bay's best newsletter for underground events & news

I want a dyke for president castro

My friend Aubree sent this to me earlier today. She saw it posted in the front yard of a house on Ord St. between Market and 17th Sts.

Written in 1992 by Zoe Leonard an artist, activist, and member of the queer women art collective Fierce Pussy, “I want a Dyke for President” speaks to the fact that the president of the US  is “always a john and never a hooker. Always a boss and never a worker, always liar, always a thief, and never caught.”

I’ve been obsessed with the poem every since I was introduced to it by Pinky Maraschino last summer, and I was feeling it especially hard during the election, considering neither candidate seemed to be in touch with marginalized people. Considering the current regime, this poem is as important now as it has ever been.

A huge reproduction of the original piece is now on permeant display on the High Line in New York City. You can watch and hear Mykki Blanco recite the poem right here. Check out the original version below:

I want s dyke for president

 

Previous post

Statue of Little Girl Stands up to Wall Street Bull

Next post

We wanna send you to see Symphony Silicon Valley perform Chamber of Secrets Live!


Broke-Ass Stuart - Editor In Cheap

Broke-Ass Stuart - Editor In Cheap

Stuart Schuffman, aka Broke-Ass Stuart, is a travel writer, poet, TV host, activist, and general shit-stirrer. His website BrokeAssStuart.com is one of the most influential arts & culture sites in the San Francisco Bay Area and his freelance writing has been featured in Lonely Planet, Conde Nast Traveler, The Bold Italic, Geek.com and too many other outlets to remember. His weekly column, Broke-Ass City, appears every other Thursday in the San Francisco Examiner. Stuart’s writing has been translated into four languages. In 2011 Stuart created and hosted the travel show Young, Broke, and Beautiful on IFC and in 2015 he ran for Mayor of San Francisco and got nearly 20k votes.

He's been called "an Underground legend": SF Chronicle, "an SF cult hero":SF Bay Guardian, and "the chief of cheap": Time Out New York.