The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco has named Sunday, July 24 as “Hand Holding Day”.

The event was planned after a security guard employed by the museum told a lesbian couple that they weren’t permitted to hold hands while viewing the “Seeing Gertrude Stein” exhibit last week.

I suppose the irony in this situation is that Gertrude Stein wrote some of the earliest works about lesbian relationships and sexuality. Either way, the security guard overstepped boundaries, which created heated discourse between the employee and the couple.

After discovering what had happened, the museum immediately apologized, but didn’t believe mere words were enough… and so “Hand Holding Day” was born.

The one-of-a-kind event will coincide with this upcoming Sunday’s “LGBT Family Morning of Stein” which focuses on kids artistic activities, followed by a wonderful line-up of performances by SF Lesbian/Gay Band, the Voices Lesbian Choral Ensemble, and Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco.

In the afternoon, couples and friends will be encouraged to hold hands while enjoying the activities, exhibit, and a special performance by actress, Laura Sheppard.

Sheppard will star in a one-woman show, based on the new biography of Gertrude Stein by Harriet Levy, entitled “Paris Portraits: Stories of Picasso, Matisse, Gertrude Stein and their Circle”.

Reprinted with permission from Shalom Life