puzzling English class

On the way to work, I was sitting behind a middle-aged Chinese woman who was staring at her spiral bound notebook. I peeked over her shoulder to see what she was fixated on. There were a bunch of writing in Chinese, and then above each line were the neatly printed English letters. The following words were translated:

HAPPY HALLOWEEN
NOV. 1 ALL SAINTS DAY
CASTRO DISTRICT
GAY=HAPPY