Today, we honor and celebrate the achievements and resiliency of transgender individuals and communities. Transgender Day of Visibility recognizes the generations of struggle, activism, and courage that have brought our country closer to full equality for transgender and gender non-binary people in the United States and around the world.
Their trailblazing work has given countless transgender individuals the bravery to live openly and authentically. This hard-fought progress is also shaping an increasingly accepting world in which peers at school, teammates and coaches on the playing field, colleagues at work, and allies in every corner of society are standing in support and solidarity with the transgender community.
In spite of our progress in advancing civil rights for LGBTQ+ Americans, too many transgender people — adults and youth alike — still face systemic barriers to freedom and equality. Transgender Americans of all ages face high rates of violence, harassment, and discrimination.
Nearly one in three transgender Americans have experienced homelessness at some point in life. Transgender Americans continue to face discrimination in employment, housing, health care, and public accommodations. The crisis of violence against transgender women, especially transgender women of color, is a stain on our Nation’s conscience.
To ensure that the Federal Government protects the civil rights of transgender Americans, I signed, on my first day in office, an Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation.
Today, we are proud to celebrate Transgender Day of Visibility alongside barrier-breaking public servants, including the first openly transgender American to be confirmed by the United States Senate, and alongside patriotic transgender service members, who are once again able to proudly and openly serve their country.
We also celebrate together with transgender Americans across the country who will benefit from our efforts to stop discrimination and advance inclusion for transgender Americans in housing, in credit and lending services, in the care we provide for our veterans, and more.
Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, announced early 2022 endorsements of four Congressional incumbents in key 2022 battleground districts on Wednesday: Rep. John Garamendi (CA-03), Rep. Josh Harder (CA-10), Rep. Katie Porter (CA-45) and Rep. Mike Levin (CA-49). Protecting the four incumbents and winning back Congressional seats lost to anti-LGBTQ+ candidates in 2020 will be a top priority for the organization ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.
“Protecting our champions in Congress and expanding our pro-equality House majority are critical priorities for the LGBTQ+ community,” said Equality California Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur. “Voters gave the Biden-Harris Administration a mandate in 2020: pass the Equality Act, reform our broken immigration system, advance racial justice and equity and expand access to quality, affirming healthcare. The Biden-Harris agenda is achievable, but only if we ensure they have pro-equality partners in Congress — and all four of these leaders have demonstrated their unwavering commitment to creating a world that is healthy, just and fully equal for all LGBTQ+ people.”
Candidate Reactions:
“I’m honored to be endorsed by Equality California—an organization that understands that we must have equal opportunity for all, do what we can to end discrimination, and remove barriers to opportunity,” said Rep. John Garamendi. “Throughout our country’s proud history, every generation has faced a national debate on civil rights issues. While these struggles have often been slow and arduous, as we have witnessed for more than two centuries, the trajectory of our society is toward more equality under the law. That’s why I support legislation like the Equality Act, which would update the Civil Rights Act to include LGBT Americans, specifically making it illegal to discriminate against them in the workplace, housing, and public accommodations. Thank you to Equality California for their endorsement. Together, we will work to end discrimination in our nation and create a more just and fair society.”
“No matter who you are or who you love, you deserve equal treatment under the law,” said Rep. Josh Harder. “I’m proud to stand with our LGBTQ neighbors and loved ones, and will keep fighting to make sure they are finally treated with the respect and equality they deserve.”
“Equality California has been a leader and a key partner as I advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and I am thrilled to receive their early endorsement,” said Rep. Katie Porter. “Until every American, regardless of who they are or who they love, can live free from hate, discrimination, and violence, I’ll keep up the fight. I look forward to continuing to work with Equality California to build an equal and just future for all.”
“Equality California is one of the nation’s most effective organizations advancing the rights of the LGBTQ+ community and social justice,” said Rep. Mike Levin. “In the past two decades they have led the fight to pass over 150 bills and resolutions advancing human rights in the California legislature. I am deeply honored that they have recognized me as an ally and that they have endorsed my campaign for re-election to Congress.”
For a complete list of Equality California’s current endorsements, visit eqca.org/elections.
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
The California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, the LGBTQ Caucus of the League of California Cities and Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, announced their opposition to the misguided and dangerous effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom during a virtual press conference on Friday (Facebook, Download). Equality California Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, Legislative LGBTQ Caucus Chair Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Campbell), former Chair Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), Senator John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego), Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, League of California Cities LGBTQ Caucus Board Member Palm Springs Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Middleton and BART Board Director Janice Li praised Governor Newsom’s long record of support for LGBTQ+ civil rights and his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, national economic downturn and devastating wildfires. The leaders also spoke to the risk that the partisan recall effort, led and funded by anti-LGBTQ+ and pro-Trump extremists, poses to LGBTQ+ Californians and the diverse communities to which LGBTQ+ people belong.
After the press conference, 60* LGBTQ+ elected officials throughout California (listed below) released the following joint statement opposing the recall effort:
“As LGBTQ+ Californians and elected leaders in our communities, we strongly oppose the misguided effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom. This attempt to remove the Governor — led and funded by anti-LGBTQ+ and pro-Trump extremists — is the product of a coordinated disinformation campaign that will cost the state of California $100 million. Instead, this money should be used to support Californians as our state recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. The recall poses an especially grave threat to our LGBTQ+ community and the progress that California continues to make toward full, lived equality for all people.
“Throughout his career, Governor Newsom has been a dedicated ally of the LGBTQ+ community and an unyielding champion in our fight for civil rights and social justice. He stood with us at times when it was not politically popular, regardless of personal and professional risks, because he knew it was the right thing to do. He has taken bold, principled actions to advance marriage equality, expand access to life-saving HIV prevention medication, protect transgender Californians from discrimination, and ensure that California’s government reflects the diversity of our communities.
“Governor Newsom’s leadership has earned the trust of LGBTQ+ Californians, and our community stands ready to defeat a recall.”
The following officials signed the statement above:
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara
U.S. Representative Mark Takano
California Senator Susan Talamantes Eggman
California Senator John Laird
California Senator Scott Wiener
California Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes
California Assemblymember Evan Low
California Assemblymember Chris Ward
San Leandro Unified School District Board Trustee James Aguilar
San Leandro Vice Mayor Victor Aguilar
Berkeley Unified School District Board President Judy Appel
Signal Hill City Treasurer Larry Blunden
Los Angeles City Councilmember Mike Bonin
Anaheim City Councilmember Jordan Brandman
Former San Mateo County Harbor District Commissioner Sabrina Rose Brennan
El Monte Union High School District Board President Florencio Briones
Belvedere Mayor James Campbell
Pleasant Hill City Councilmember Ken Carlson
Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner James Chang
San Francisco Treasurer José Cisneros
Redlands City Councilmember Denise Davis
Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Board Member Anthony A. Duarte
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board Director Bevan Dufty
Oceanside Unified School District Trustee Eleanor Evans
Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority Director Shay Franco-Clausen
Los Angeles City Controller Ron S. Galperin
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria
Former San Diego City Council President Georgette Gómez
Cathedral City Mayor Gregory Raymond
Sacramento Municipal Utility District Board Member Rosanna Herber
Pajaro Valley Unified School District Trustee Jennifer Holm
Palm Springs Mayor Christy Holstege
West Basin Municipal Water District Director Scott Houston
Palm Springs City Councilmember Geoff Kors
Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila J. Kuehl
Dublin City Councilmember Shawn Kumagai
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board Director Janice Li
Monterey Park Mayor Pro Tem Henry Lo
Former Stockton Unified School District Board President Lange Luntao
San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman
Palm Springs Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Middleton
Encinitas City Councilmember Joe Mosca
College of Marin Board Trustee Stephanie O’Brien
San Leandro Unified School District Board Member Peter Oshinski
Oak Grove School District Board of Trustees Vice President Jorge Pacheco, Jr.
Chula Vista City Councilmember and California Coastal Commission Chair Steve C. Padilla
San Carlos Mayor Laura Parmer-Lohan
Los Angeles County Assessor Jeff Prang
San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District Director Miles Prince
El Cerrito Mayor Pro Tem Gabriel Quinto
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board Vice President Rebecca Saltzman
San Francisco Unified School District Commissioner Mark Sanchez
Cabrillo Community College District Trustee Adam Spickler
City College of San Francisco Trustee Tom Temprano
Marin Community College District Board of Trustees President Wanden Treanor
Los Angeles Community College District Trustee David Vela**
Palm Springs City Councilmember Dennis Woods
San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District Board President Thomas Wong
Fullerton City Councilmember Ahmad Zahra
Desert Healthcare District Director Dr. Les Zendle
*Number updated to reflect new total **Added March 18, 2021
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
Republican governor Kristi Noem has issued two executive orders to prohibit trans girls from playing on girls’ and women’s sports teams in South Dakota.
Noem partially vetoed HB 1217 – also known as the Fairness in Women’s Sports bill – which would ban trans women athletes from playing in sports teams that align with their gender identity. The move shocked her conservative supporters as Noem had been a staunch supporter of the bill.
During an appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight, Noem explained that she rejected the bill in its current form over fear that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) would seek punitive action if it was passed. She argued that she declined the bill unless several stylistic changes are made.
However, the South Dakota state legislature voted Monday (29 March) to reject Noem’s “style and form” veto of the trans athlete bill, by a 67-2 vote. Republican congressmen Fred Deutsch wrote on Twitter: “Vote to pass the governor’s style and form veto on the Fairness for [Women’s] Sports bill fails 2-67.
“The bill now goes back to the governor for her to either sign or veto. House believes her style-and-form is unconstitutional.”
On the same day, Kristi Noem announced two executive orders would be put in place in South Dakota to ban trans athletes from participating in school sports as their correct gender. Noem said on Twitter: “Only girls should play girls’ sports.
“Given the legislature’s failure to accept my proposed revisions to HR 1217, I am immediately signing two executive orders to address this issue: one to protect fairness in K-12 athletics, and another to do so in college athletics.”
She added that she will be working with state lawmakers to “schedule a special legislative session in late May or early June” to address “this important issue” as well as “medical marijuana” and federal spending.
Under the new executive order, the department of education and the board of regents in South Dakota will need to ensure that publicly-funded K-12 school districts, colleges and universities restrict participation in girls’ and women’s sports to athletes who can prove their assigned sex at birth.
The ACLU of South Dakota vowed on Twitter that it will not “stop defending the right for everyone to live and thrive” in the state. It posted an image with text on it that read: “The fight isn’t over. If only for a moment, we were able to take a deep sigh of relief.”
Sonoma County Pride is Back!,Beyond The Rainbow – Thriving, Reviving, and Surviving
After a challenging year of cancellations and lockdowns, this year’s Sonoma County Pride celebration returns with hope and positivity! This annual event will include a month-long series of COVID-19 aware micro-events in varied venues throughout Sonoma County. The events will offer activities for all ages and abilities. This year’s theme, “Beyond the Rainbow: Surviving, Reviving, and Thriving”, takes inspiration from THE WIZARD OF OZ to offer renewal and support to the LGBTQ community. Sonoma County Pride’s Secretary Cheryl Kabanuck puts the beloved film’s lessons into perspective. “There’s no place like home being back together with our community. Courage leads us here, knowledge is how we survive and heart is what keeps us together.”Since the worldwide pandemic forced the cancellation of 2020 Pride events everywhere, it was important to find a unifying theme to recognize we’re not all in the same space mentally and emotionally. The past year has been incredibly challenging for everyone, and each of us faced different struggles. The focus for Sonoma County Pride 2021 is on the mental, physical and emotional health and wellness of community members. Vice President @Grace Villafuer emphasizes, “While some of us are reviving and thriving, some of us are still focused on surviving. Wherever we are on our journey, we hope Sonoma County Pride 2021 will offer each of us a feeling of community, pride, and peace. We strive to not only reach our unique rainbows – our dreams and inner strengths, but we look to go Beyond the Rainbow!”According to Director of Logistics Brian Rogers, “Those of us who survived this surreal year gained new respect and meaning for the prime lesson Dorothy learned in Oz: ‘There’s no place like home.’ Now that we have nearly SURVIVED the pandemic, let’s embrace that hopeful spirit as we REVIVE together and support one another so we can once again THRIVE.”Christopher Kren-Mora, President of Sonoma Pride, promises a different but exciting series of events to bring the community back together in a spirit of celebration. “It won’t be a single weekend this year, but a month of fun, hope, and renewal that we’ve all been hoping for.” The calendar of upcoming Sonoma County Pride events will be published as dates and venues are confirmed.
Half of Generation Z thinks that traditional gender roles and labels related to the gender binary are outdated, according to a refreshing new study.
As issues of gender equality continue to challenge societal norms and influence public opinion, US-based ad agency Bigeye sought to understand consumers’ perception of gendered products and advertising.ADVERTISING
For the 2021 Gender Study the agency polled 2,000 adults from a range of ages, incomes, locations, and gender identities. Questions included the kinds of clothing they wear to their opinion on gender-neutral children’s toys and education.
They found that 50 per cent of Generation Z-ers are pushing back against the gender binary, and that sentiment is even higher among Millennials at 56 percent.
More than half (51 per cent) of all respondents agreed that, in a decade, we will associate gender with stereotypical personality traits, products, and occupations much less than we do today.
“While the majority of Americans are cisgender, a significant percentage of younger generations believe the notion of identity is fluid and decidedly non-traditional,” said Adrian Tennant, VP of Insights at Bigeye and the leader of the research team.
“This study provides a snapshot of the broad, generational spectrum of opinions and beliefs held toward gender identity and expression within the media we consume daily through TV, ads and online platforms.
“While the majority of older generations remain skeptical of advertising’s ability to change perceptions of traditional gender roles, Gen X and younger are leading the charge and challenging brands to portray more diverse audiences and expressions.”
It seems women are more likely to embrace gender-neutrality than men, as nearly three-quarters of cis female parents encourage gender-neutral play for their children (73 percent), a figure significantly higher than cis male parents (59 per cent).
And fifth of female respondents believe that none of the consumer product categories benefit at all from being gendered.
“Toiletries are constantly gendered and it is completely unnecessary. They should be labeled with the qualities of the product and the fragrance, if any. No mention of male or female is needed,” one Gen Y respondent wrote.
In another positive finding, LGBT+ participants were more likely to have faith in the next generation, with 82 per cent of queer millennials and 88 per cent of queer Boomers believing that Gen Z is better educated about non-binaryand transgender identities.
Julius’, a beloved New York City bar, has occupied the corner of Waverly Place and West 10th Street in the West Village for nearly 160 years. With little identifying it beyond its name in simple green cursive, the watering hole’s unassuming exterior belies its importance in gay rights history.
Like the Stonewall Inn just a few hundred feet away, Julius’ has been a lifeline to New York’s queer community for decades.
Now its owner is determined to make sure that legacy — and the bar itself— isn’t a casualty of the pandemic, which has devastated New York City nightlife.
Opened as a dry goods store in 1840, the building at 159 West 10th Street was already serving as a saloon by the 1860s. During Prohibition, Julius’ was a speakeasy, allegedly taking its name from the proprietor. Numerous unmarked doors and basement tunnels used for coal delivery allowed for quick escapes if the bar was raided, according to long-time bartenders Tracy O’Neill and Daniel Onzo.
Much of Julius’ remains unchanged from that era, including the long wooden bar with a century’s worth of “scratchitti” carved into it. Jacob Ruppert Brewery beer barrels serve as tables and stools.
Chandeliers dangling overhead are made from wagon wheels of horse-drawn carriages that once delivered ice.
Julius’ had started attracting a gay following at least by the 1950s and, according to local lore, was a popular hangout for midcentury queer luminaries like Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote and Rudolf Nureyev.
But New York State Liquor Authority regulations at that time prohibited serving drinks to “known or suspected homosexuals,” whose very presence was considered disorderly behavior.
“This law was used to prevent the existence of gay bars, so the ones that did exist were under the control of the criminal underworld,” Randy Wicker, a member of the New York chapter of the Mattachine Society, one of the first gay rights groups, said. Either the mob ran the establishment or bar owners would pay for protection to avoid being raided.
“It forced gay people into that underworld,” Wicker, 83, said. “It led to exploitation, blackmail, people being brutalized.”
Wicker said The Mattachine Society wanted to challenge the liquor laws. “We felt it was very similar to how Black people were being denied the right to sit at a lunch counter,” he said.
The idea for a protest, or a “sip-in” as it was eventually called, was inspired by the sit-ins of the civil rights movement: On April 21, 1966, four members of the New York Mattachine chapter walked into a bar, declared they were homosexuals and demanded to be served. Assuming they would be refused, the group planned to file a complaint with the New York City Commission on Human Rights.
Julius’ was actually the fourth place the group hit that day, with Wicker joining Mattachine president Dick Leitsch, vice president Craig Rodwell and member John Timmons. The first bar they visited, the Ukrainian-American Village Restaurant, had been tipped off and closed early.
At Howard Johnson’s, the group declared, “We’re homosexuals and we want to be served.”
“The waitress laughed and said, ‘No problem,’ and took the order,” Wicker said.
It was getting late and they were in danger of losing the reporters who had tagged along. Julius’, it turned out, was the perfect spot for their test case: It had a sizable homosexual following, Wicker said, but the management was determined not to let it become a “gay bar.”
“There had been an entrapment case recently — someone went home with an undercover policeman,” he said. “So they patrolled the bar very strictly. If there were too many men together inside, they’d stop letting men in unless you came with a woman.”
The group walked in and ordered, then Leitsch announced, “We are homosexuals. We are orderly, we intend to remain orderly, and we are asking for service.”
A New York Times photographer captured the moment the bartender put his hand over a glass and stopped making their drinks.
“I think it’s against the law,” he said, according to Wicker.
It was exactly the reaction Mattachine members had hoped for: Publicity from the “sip-in” led to the New York State Supreme Court ruling a year later that simply being gay — or even cruising or kissing — was not indecent behavior.
It didn’t just change liquor regulations, Wicker said. “It helped moved the gay community out of the grasp of the criminal world.”
Within a few years, there were legitimate, independent gay bars. They remained the nexus of gay life for decades, said LGBTQ historian Ken Lustbader, cofounder of the New York City LGBT Historic Sites Project.
“Because of LGBTQ discrimination by authorities, in policy and practice, there were really no other meeting places, no community centers,” he said. “Julius’ has been that space for so many people for so many years.”
And while New York’s gay bar scene has become a shadow of its former size — a victim of assimilation, gentrification and dating apps — Julius’ remained packed most weekends.
“I think there’s a pilgrimage aspect of it, especially for younger people,” Brian Sloan, a filmmaker who lived in the West Village for 20 years, said. “It has historical significance but it’s also a throwback to what gay bars used to be — lively, friendly, unpretentious. That’s harder to find now.”
Julius’ is still popular with celebrities — Lady Gaga, Sarah Jessica Parker, Zachary Quinto and Neil Patrick Harris have all stopped in, according to staff and regulars — and it has appeared in numerous films, including the Oscar-nominated Melissa McCarthy movie “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” and “The Boys in the Band,” both William Friedkin’s 1970 movie and the 2020 Netflix adaptation by Ryan Murphy.
Director John Cameron Mitchell, who first ventured into Julius’ in 1985, calls it his “local bar.”
“It’s dripping with queer history,” he said. “The photos on the wall, the Mattachine sip-in. It really led to the legalization of gay bars in New York.”
In 2008, Mitchell launched a monthly dance party at Julius’ called, appropriately enough, Mattachine.
“[We] wanted to preserve the feeling of our favorite alt-queer bars where you could hear rock, new wave, soul, funk and even slow jams,” he said. “Every month we honored a queer icon, and if they were still alive they would show up.”
Director John Cameron Mitchell celebrates his birthday at Julius’.Courtesy Julius’
Honorees have included the neurologist Oliver Sacks, the punk rock impresario Danny Fields, the Village People’s Randy Jones and Leitsch himself. “We even cursed queer villains like Roy Cohn in absentia,” Mitchell said of Sen. Joseph McCarthy’s chief counsel. Cohn targeted government officials as communists and homosexuals, despite being gay himself.
There’s no denying Julius’ place in history but, by drawing hundreds of revelers late into the night, the Mattachine parties have helped keep the bar from turning into a museum piece.
In 2016, the 50th anniversary of the sip-in, Julius’ was placed on the National Register of Historic Places for its role in “an important early event in the modern gay rights movement.”
Lustbader, who helped get the designation, said it’s mostly honorific and doesn’t protect the business itself, which has been hobbled by coronavirus lockdowns.
Tennessee became Friday (26 March) the third US state to cruelly pass a bill banning trans girls from playing in middle and high school sports as their correct gender.
State governor Bill Lee announced on Twitter he had signed Senate Bill 228 to “preserve women’s athletics and ensure fair competition”.
Under the ban, student-athletes in Tennessee will be required to prove what sex they were assigned at birth to participate in school sports.
This is, in part, because there is no service or agency that tracks the number of trans athletes in the States.
While such a figure can be difficult to precisely pin down, a Gallup survey this year found 0.6 per cent of American adults are trans.
In fact, when two dozen state sponsors were asked by the Associated Pressto provide an example, any at all, of a trans teen causing the level of mayhem they make them out to cause, the news agency said most could not “cite a single instance in their own state or region where such participation has caused problems”.
Even Tennessee’s house speaker Cameron Sexton, the outlet reported, admitted that there likely aren’t even any openly trans youth taking part in middle or high school sports.
Around 73 per cent of Americans also support trans children participating in sports, according to a recent poll from the Human Rights Campaign, regardless of how much a hot-button issue it has been made out to be.
Reading International, Inc. announced its Reading Cinemas with TITAN XC in Rohnert Park, California location will be welcoming back movie lovers on Friday, March 19 with extensive sanitization and safety measures in place. In an environment carefully designed to address COVID-19 concerns, and to comply with the various governmental guidelines, guests can return to share the magic of movies again on the big screen.
Taylor Green, the theater’s general manager, said “Our audience has always enjoyed watching a wide variety of films on the big screen at Reading Cinemas, and we so look forward to seeing everyone again. For our reopening weekend, we are excited to continue to offer moviegoers with Sonoma County’s Best Movie Value – $8.50 tickets for all movies, all ages – to enjoy family-friendly films such as Raya and the Last Dragon, The Croods: A New Age and Tom & Jerry – alongside action-packed blockbusters and Oscar nominated hits.”
“Reading Cinemas has been working hard to enrich safety protocols and to train our team to abide by federal, state, local and industry guidelines,” said Division Manager Jennifer Deering.
“We are delighted to welcome back our guests and the community to enjoy movies in a safe and responsible way.” Reading Cinemas has implemented the following policies and procedures to help keep the community safe: • Masks are required to be worn by all guests and staff. Guest are permitted to remove masks when seated in their auditorium enjoying fresh popcorn and other refreshments.
• Guests will be encouraged to skip the box office and buy tickets in advance, either online or through the Reading Cinemas mobile app in order to decrease physical contact. • Only credit, debit, or gift cards will be accepted to limit monetary exchanges. A designated transactional space will be available on site at each location where cash amounts can be transferred onto a gift card. • Guests should arrive no earlier than 30 minutes before their showtimes in order to decrease building traffic and allow for increased sanitization. • To keep a safe distance from others, guests will be required to sit in their assigned seats, and ticket purchases for each party will automatically account for six feet of social distancing between parties, by blocking off the seats surrounding each group. Reading Cinemas further encourages parties to be made up of immediate household members where possible. • Increased cleaning and sanitation will take place regularly, with extra sanitation at high-touch point areas. Auditorium seating and armrests will be disinfected after each use. • To improve air quality, each cinema has upgraded all HVAC filters and increased maintenance frequency. • Floor decals and signage have been placed throughout the theaters to help guests maintain a safe distance from others. • Hand sanitizer stations will be placed throughout the theaters. Guests will be encouraged to wash their hands before and after consuming food and drinks. Reading Cinemas Rohnert Park’s opening weekend lineup features something for everyone: for families, The Croods: A New Age, The War with Grandpa, Tom & Jerry and Raya and The Last Dragon; for action fans, Monster Hunter, Chaos Walking and Wonder Woman 1984; and for those looking to see the Oscar nominees on the big screen, Minari, Nomadland, and Promising Young Woman. Advance tickets are on sale now for Warner Bros. Godzilla vs. Kong, scheduled to open March 31. A complete list of all films and showtimes are available at readingcinemasus.com/rohnertpark. In addition to new releases, beginning in April, Reading Cinemas will offer a variety of private screening options for guests: • VIP screenings, allowing groups to enjoy a private screening, and select their movie from the list of over 60 options! Film categories include Family, Date Night, Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi Hits and 80s Favorites. • Private Rental Events, in which groups can provide their own content via Blu-Ray, streaming device, or even gaming console, and make their own VIP Event. • Buyouts, in which guests can reserve all the seats in an auditorium to view any of the theater’s current releases to enjoy a private screening.
Reading Cinemas Rohnert Park with TITAN XC is located at 555 Rohnert Park Expressway West. For more information, please visit readingcinemasus.com/rohnertpark or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About Reading International, Inc.Reading International Inc. (NASDAQ: RDI), an internationally diversified cinema and real estate company, is a leading entertainment and real estate company, engaged in the development, ownership and operation of cinemas and retail and commercial real estate in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. The family of Reading brands includes cinema brands: Reading Cinemas, Angelika Film Centers, Consolidated Theatres, and the State Cinema in Tasmania; live theatres operated by Liberty Theatres in the United States; and signature property developments, including Newmarket Village, Auburn Redyard, Cannon Park, and The Belmont Common in Australia, Courtenay Central in New Zealand, and 44 Union Square in New York City. Additional information about Reading can be obtained from the Company’s website: http://www.readingrdi.com.
