Nudity ban passes (again)
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Tech class helps trans people
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North Sea Texas
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Serving the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender communities since 1971
LGBT shelter gets grant by Seth Hemmelgarn
B
ackers of a proposed LGBT-friendly homeless shelter in San Francisco announced this week that they’re getting some help in making the long-delayed space a reality. A Tuesday, December 4 news release from gay Supervisor David Campos said that the Haas Jr. Fund is offering a $30,000 challenge grant for the space, which is planned for 1050 South Van Ness Avenue. Bevan Dufty, the gay director of the city’s Housing OpBill Wilson portunity, Partnerships and Engage- Supervisor ment program, David Campos helped secure the grant, which is to be matched in community donations, according to Campos’s office. In an email, Matt Foreman, Haas’s director of gay and immigrant rights programs, said the challenge grant is from the organization’s critical assistance program. He didn’t directly answer a question about whether the shelter’s supporters would get the grant if they don’t raise $30,000. “We are confident that with the leadership of Dolores Street and Bevan Dufty, the challenge will be met in the very near future,” Foreman said. Dolores Street Community Services, the nonprofit that already runs a shelter at the site, will operate the planned mixed-gender, 24-bed shelter. Work to establish the gay-friendly space began not long after a Board of Supervisors committee hearing that Campos led in March 2010 in which LGBTs testified about harassment in the city’s shelters. “There have been several hurdles in getting this project off the ground,” Campos noted in his statement. Issues involved in expanding the shelter have included redoing bathrooms and setting up partitions. The designated space is in a second floor section that’s been used as a classroom. Last December, Dolores Street Executive Director Wendy Phillips and others learned that her group’s existing shelter didn’t have the permit to operate as such. “We were ready to go with the rehab work on the expansion for the new queer-friendly space, and when the architect went to pull the permits, they realized our existing space See page 12 >>
Vol. 42 • No. 49 • December 6-12, 2012
HIV rates rise in U.S. youth by Chuck Colbert
T
he number of new HIV infections in the United States remains relatively stable, standing at about 50,000 people annually. But HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is on the rise among younger Americans under the age of 25. In fact, too many youth in the United States continue to become infected with HIV, federal officials said. And few are tested. Those are two key take away points from a new report out by the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which was released to coincide with World AIDS Day. Specifically, young people between the ages of 13 and 24 in the U.S. account for more than a quarter of new HIV infections each year (26 percent) while 60 percent of these youth living with HIV are unaware they are infected, according to the CDC’s Vital Signs report, released November 27. The most-affected youth are gay and bisexual men and African Americans. The analysis looked at the latest data on HIV infections, testing, and risk behaviors among young people. The report offers insights into what kinds of behavior are driving the high rates of infection.
Jane Philomen Cleland
Singer Martha Wash, a friend and colleague of the late Sylvester, stood with AIDS Emergency Fund Executive Director Mike Smith as a boulder commemorating the disco singer was unveiled at the National AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park as part of World AIDS Day activities.
For example, young men who have sex with men – or MSM – were more likely to report having had sex with four or more partners or injecting illegal drugs. In addition, among students who were currently sexually active, young MSM were also more likely to have used alcohol or drugs before their last sexual experience and were less
likely to have used a condom. And young MSM were also less likely to report having been taught about HIV or AIDS in school.
A silent epidemic
Medical professionals expressed concern See page 11 >>
Gay SF couple dreams of citizenship by Matthew S. Bajko
O
ne gay San Francisco couple this holiday season is dreaming of a path to employment and eventual U.S. citizen-
ship. Edgar Cruz, 28, and Gustavo Cerritos, 22, both came to the U.S. illegally as children, brought by parents seeking a better life for their families. Cruz was born in Mexico and came to America at the age of 2. Cerritos is a native of Honduras and arrived in the U.S. when he was 9 years old. “All our family is here. This is home,” said Cerritos. They are among the 11 million illegal immigrants living in the U.S. who are hopeful of seeing Congress and President Barack Obama in 2013 adopt new rules for them to gain lawful status and citizenship. In the meantime, Cruz and Cerritos are in the process of applying with federal authorities for what is known as deferred action for childhood arrivals. The program is aimed at providing 1.7 million immigrant youth, known as Dreamers, a way to attend college or be legally employed despite not having U.S. citizenship. “I want to go back to school for teaching,” said Cerritos, who works under the table as a housekeeper. “It’s been hard. You have to limit yourself to so many things. I can’t apply to go to a big college or for loans because they ask
Rick Gerharter
Edgar Cruz, left, and Gustavo Cerritos showed the documentation they need for their applications to the deferred action for childhood arrivals program.
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for your Social Security number. It puts you down.” Without the proper documentation Cruz has limited employment opportunities. He had been working for a national retailer at its Peninsula location and was up for a manager position. But he had to leave the company when his employer asked for several documents he did not possess. “We can’t do anything,” said Cruz, who has found some work as a freelance florist in the Mission. “I was accepted to UC Berkeley, but I couldn’t get the funds to go.” “There aren’t a lot of scholarships for undocumented students,” added Cerritos. Even their movements are restricted, for they lack proper identification to pass through airport security. His confinement has been particularly rough for Cruz, who prior to meeting Cerritos was married to a woman for six years with whom he fathered two children. Following a custody battle his ex relocated to Florida, and Cruz now talks to his kids via Facetime. He is trying to save enough money in order to fly them to the West Coast in June, as they are supposed to live with him until the summer of 2015. “I can’t hop on a plane,” said Cruz, adding that he does not want to move to Florida. “I grew up here. I may have been born in Mexico but I am a San Franciscan.” If Cruz and Cerritos are granted deferred See page 12 >>