A year ago, 48 Hills covered trans performance community Fishbowl Collective’s struggle to maintain both its tenancy and venue at The Red Victorian hotel. A lawsuit between the Fishbowl Collective and its “co-living” landlords, District Commons, has ended in a settlement out of court. Now, the building is empty, and the fate of The Red Victorian hangs in the air.
Below are the events of the past several years that led to this tragic situation and the players involved. Our story asks: Who gets to live in San Francisco’s historic buildings? Who gets to lay claim to the city’s historic counterculture? And, will working-class trans people find a home in San Francisco amid a tech exodus?
Author Natalia Robyns-Kresich reads the story aloud on SoundCloud.