About Us

Our Purpose

Nightlife is central to the Bay Area’s queer culture. Those whose primary source of income is in nightlife are currently experiencing economic insecurity as a result of bar closures and event cancellations in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this fund is to provide financial relief to workers in the nightlife industry for as long as the current crisis continues.

“Queer nightlife is a renowned and integral aspect of San Francisco Bay Area culture. The people who produce and staff local queer nightlife have been financially devastated by the venue closures resulting from the coronavirus crisis. The Bay Area is known worldwide as a center for amazing queer nightlife. Let’s keep that nightlife alive by lending a helping hand to those who need our help in these trying times.”

Race Bannon

“Queer nightlife is at the heart of our community. For generations of LGBTQ people, nightlife is how we found our community and learned that we aren’t alone. The workers who make queer nightlife run are unsung heroes…. We need to be there for them. For those of us fortunate enough to still have a paycheck, let’s chip in to help these members of our community survive. The San Francisco Bay Area Queer Nightlife Fund is an amazing way to do so.”

Calif. Sen. Scott Wiener

“We need to band together as a community to help support our friends who work in nightlife, now more than ever. With COVID-19 just starting to affect our City, the newly instated quarantine is going to rapidly change the lives of those who help make the magic happen, night after night. The SF Queer Nightlife Fund will secure their stability now and until this pandemic is over.”

Juanita More

“All of us who still have jobs can support those who don’t. We must all support our friends and neighbors as we face this new challenge to our community and our nation. We’ve been to this rodeo before, and we know what to do.”

Cleve Jones

1. Employed in Queer Nightlife

Those eligible to receive funds are those for whom nightlife employment constitutes a significant portion of their regular monthly income, and where nightlife is defined as working as:

• A service industry worker, such as a bartender or server at a nightlife establishment.
• An entertainer, such as a DJ, dancer, or drag performer who performs at nightlife events.
• An artist, such as a production, lighting designer, or event photographer.
• A vendor or contractor primarily serving the nightlife industry.
• A producer or organizer of nightlife events.

2. Financial Hardship & Need

Applicants’ annual or monthly income should be considered low- or moderate- income (LMI) for the SF Bay Area.

Only life-line expenses will be considered for a grant, such as:

• Rent
• Electricity, Gas
• Basic Telephone / Internet Service
• Food (normal basic maintenance)
• Medical, Insurance (if none other is available)

3. Application Deadlines & Limitations

QNF organizers expect a significant need for community-members affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

To ensure that the fund provides sufficient relief to affected individuals, we are limiting the initial application cohort (due March 31, 2020) to 200 awards.

Additional application cycles may be added if further relief is required for workers to meet their life-line needs during the COVID-19 crisis and community support is available to fulfill this demand.