The weekly Board of Supervisors meeting at City Hall is traditionally a business affair, with the officials systematically ticking off items on their thick agenda.
Those present in the board’s chambers Tuesday, however, were treated to a dance performance by a Mission-based cultural group.
Supervisor David Campos said Ricardo Pena and Connie Rivera are business owners on 24th Street who have taught Aztec dance for more than 10 years “to hundreds of students.”
The board presented them with a certificate of honor “for passing down cultural traditions to younger generations [and] for the positive impact on the cultural vitality of the Mission District.”
The dancers decked in large feathered headpieces, jangling bells and beaded bodices performed an offering dance to the steady percussion of their drummer.
“It’s an honor to be here, and we really appreciate it,” Rivera said before the performance. “We are […] traditional dancers from Mexico, and now we live here in San Francisco. We love this community, we love the Mission District.”
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But, the board chambers was not so welcoming for one journalist who was assaulted by a court officer while documenting the performance.
Luke Thomas — a reporter with the Fog City Journal — said he had recorded video of the performance and was changing his position post-performance to get a better shot when Deputy Sheriff Thompson insisted that he “back up” from his location.
Although Thomas said he complied, he said the court officer dug his fingers into Thomas’s side and pulled from the board chambers “like a dog on a leash.”
After exchanging heated remarks in the hallway, Thompson consulted with Sheriff Sergeant Erdman and eventually returned to apologize for the assault, according to Thomas.
