The Tenderloin: Sex, Crime, and Resistance in the Heart of San Francisco

by Randy Shaw

America once had many Tenderloin neighborhoods. Today, San Francisco's Tenderloin is the last. Surrounded by Union Square's posh retailers to the north, upscale Hayes Valley to the west and the Twitter/Mid-Market tech scene and affluent SOMA to the south, San Francisco's Tenderloin remains a primarily low-income, ethnically diverse neighborhood in a city of vast wealth. How has it survived? Randy Shaw answers this question in his long awaited new book. Shaw, who has worked in the Tenderloin for 35 years and published four prior books including The Activist's Handbook, traces the mystery of the Tenderloin's survival from its post-quake rebuilding in 1907 through today. What he discovers challenges longstanding assumptions about urban neighborhoods. Not only does the Tenderloin show that residents can act to avoid the inevitability of urban gentrification, but also that low-income communities can enjoy the benefits of neighborhood improvements without these becoming a harbinger of displacement. The Tenderloin is a must read for anyone concerned about the future of urban neighborhoods. It offers a new model and roadmap for neighborhood improvement that defies common assumptions about how big cities can maintain economic diversity in the 21st Century. Named for a part of the city where bribes bought police the highest-grade beef, San Francisco's Tenderloin is the last of many such neighborhoods once found across the United States. Shaw shows that for nearly a century the Tenderloin has fought against the establishment time and time again. And often won. Shaw shows how those outside the mainstream independent working women, gay men, screaming queens activist SRO hotel tenants and many others led these struggles. Once known for girls, gambling and graft, the Tenderloin was also fertile ground for the Grateful Dead, Miles Davis, Dashiell Hammett and other cultural icons. The Tenderloin is the untold story of a neighborhood that persisted against all odds. It is a must read for everyone concerned about the future of urban neighborhoods.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

280 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1960

Reviews

[Barry Hammond · Rating 4 out of 5]

San Francisco's "Tenderloin" area, named for the police graft that allowed vice to thrive in the area for years and bought policemen the best cuts of meat, also has a rich history of unconventional lifestyles, community activism, and cultural activities that were years ahead of their times. Randy Shaw, who has worked in the area for 35 years has put together a book which shows a rich cross-section of the ethnically diverse area that has seen the cutting edge of many aspects of the modern world. It's a fascinating story beautifully and abundantly illustrated with period photographs, vintage match book covers, posters, and newspaper clippings. Anyone interested in San Francisco or its cultural history will find a treasure trove of unique stories and culture in its pages. - BH.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Longtime TL legal activist Randy Shaw has dug up some incredible history of the Tenderloin, from its days as the upscale capital of the city's risqué nightlife to its downfall during San Francisco's crackdown on prostitution and, especially, gambling houses. He reveals its history as the center of gay and trans life in the days before gay liberation and its rebirth as a destination for waves of immigrants in the early 80s. With archival material pulled together from decades working in the area (and pushing for housing rights), Shaw tells the story of San Francisco's often forgotten (and just-as-often scorned) anomalous neighborhood downtown.

[Alicia Tapia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most comprehensive history of the TL I’ve been able to find, and is so important to the beauty and tumult of this district. The author is a lawyer, which I believe had an effect on how the history was told mostly with names and dates and details and cases and decisions, but overall there is a spirit of the TL’s past, present, and future that is extractable through reading its past. I will say, that this book is biased, and as someone who has affection for the TL, this fed it. Perhaps it’s because most of what’s written about the TL is so ugly that this book has to be written to reveal its beauty, but there are a lot of facts about the TL today that no matter how you spin it are dire. How do we reimagine it’s future while holding on to the best parts of its past, a haven always.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would recommend to anybody interested in history of San Francisco and the tenderloin. The author is a local activist in the community and an amateur historian, which shows at times, but overall fills a much needed gap. I don't usually finish history books so that says something in and of itself.

[Arthur Salyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A so so book. Start of it was very interesting about the history of the that part of the city. The last part got a little boring talking about politics and political programs.

[Charlie Stigler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A detailed, engaging look at the Tenderloin's entire history. Shaw's writing style is straightforward yet interesting, and his critiques on recent Tenderloin policies (like the Twitter tax break) are especially interesting given his personal involvement as founder of the Tenderloin Housing Clinic. His tendency to talk constantly about his own projects and involvement, often in a glowing tone, is sometimes distracting. But it's a small flaw in an otherwise thorough and well-produced history.

[Christa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great comprehensive history of the Tenderloin.

[Derek Ouyang · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wonderful and valuable read if you're an SF resident and/or interested in how different the reality of a neighborhood is from its reputation.