Issue 50 Volume 39
Celebrating 38 Years!
FRIDAY December 16, 2011 FREE! 25¢ in bookstores & news stands
BEST OF MUSIC 2011 Section 2
Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
GSA at UW Bothell site addresses anti-Gay slur
EXCLUSIVE: Verbena money case judgment by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Andy Nystrom/ Bothell-Kenmore Reporter
The saga of Verbena Health came one step closer to its end in a Seattle courtroom on December 7, 2011. On that date Superior Court Judge Kimberley Prochnau granted summary judgment for Verbena – represented by its sole remaining board member, David Haack – and against former Verbena Executive Director Mo Malkin. In May 2008, amid allegations that Malkin had embezzled an unspecified amount of money from the organization, Verbena Health – which evolved from the more limited Seattle Lesbian Cancer Heather Meyer-Love and Drue Nyenhuis in front of one of three University Project and provided health care programs to Seattle’s Lesbian, Bi of Washington, Bothell “Not On Our Campus” signed pledge posters. women, and Trans communities – by Shaun Knittel GSAs and the kids who join them collapsed. According to court documents, (and their supporters) have had to SGN Associate Editor fight for the right to exist as school Malkin’s attorney, Charles HamilIn 2011, one could argue that clubs, as well as make the up- ton, did not contest the substantive school Gay-Straight Alliance hill climb of trying to change the embezzlement charges. Instead, clubs were on the front lines of the see gsa page 21 see verbena page 20 anti-bullying war. State by state,
Jim Cole / AP Photo
Jeff Roberson
and anti-Gay Gay veteran: “You can’t Proamendments stripped from Defense Authorization Act trust” Mitt Romney
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney (r) talks to Bob Garon during a campaign in Manchester, N.H.
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney got into a heated argument with a Gay veteran at a diner in New Hampshire this week that concluded with the 63-year-old man telling reporters, “You can’t trust him.” The exchange began when Rom-
ney stopped at Chez Vachon in Manchester. The Republican was in the restaurant campaigning with Manchester Mayor Ted Gatsas, who officially endorsed Romney on Monday. According to The Washington Post, while working the room, Romney spotted a man in a flannel shirt wearing a Vietnam veteran hat and slid in next to him in
a booth. “Vietnam veteran!” Romney greeted Bob Garon. “I have a question for you,” Garon told the former Massachusetts governor. “New Hampshire right now has some legislation kicking around about a repeal for the same-sex marriage. And all I need
U.S. Representative W. Todd Akin
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
U.S. House and Senate leaders announced on December 12 that they had agreed on a version of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that omits all proposed amendments dealing with LGBT see veteran page 20 service members.
proud to Be Different
We are conveniently located on-site at Lifelong AIDS Alliance below the Thrift Store.
The annual Defense Authorization Act approves funding for the Pentagon. Because it is considered “must pass” legislation, it often serves as a vehicle for amendments addressing other, sometimes unrelated, policy issues. see defense page 21
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Celebrating 38 Years!
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Publication of names, photographs or likenesses of any person, organization, event or business in this publication cannot be taken as any indication of the sexual orientation of the person, organization, event or business. Opinions expressed in bylined articles, columns, and letters are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff or management of this paper. Seattle Gay News welcomes unsolicited material, including letters to the editor, but reserves the right to edit or reject material. All rights revert to authors upon publication. We assume no liability for loss or damage of materials, solicited or not. We invite feedback, please write. And please play safe. It is our policy that no money shall be refunded if you choose to cancel your subscription or ad. However, credit towards any size ad will be given for the balance owed. No exceptions.
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Steve Foiles, Scott Roger Alpert, Cookie Andrews-Hunt, James Leland Moore, Randy Peters, Lee Richeson, Shaun Shelton, Jim Tully, James Arnold
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Seattle Gay News
ERW raises over $57,000 at Toasting Equality we must be prepared to work, now and in the years to come, on the issues that affect our diverse community, including aging, AIDS/ On December 9, hundreds of community HIV, Transgender rights, safe schools, and members joined Equal Rights Washington LGBT homelessness,” ERW officials told (ERW) officials, elected officials, and mar- their supporters in an email following the event. riage equality advocates for the ERW Toasting Equality event – a breakfast, toast for same-sex marriage equality in Washington state for 2012, and fundraising effort for the ERW Education Fund. According to ERW officials, the event raised over $57,000. The Education Fund’s mission is to end discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in Washington state. The Education Fund, a nonprofit organization, seeks to do so by facilitating and coordinating the efforts of the LGBT At the breakand allied community that are directed to research, education, and community mobiliza- fast, pollster Alison tion. It is the educational sister organization Peters provided analysis of research she has done in regards to to Equal Rights Washington. ERW is a founding member of Washington same-sex marriage support in Washington United for Marriage, a coalition of organiza- state. She told Toasting Equality attendees tions, congregations, unions, and business that support for marriage is growing and associations working together to secure civil consistent, but many supporters of marriage equality are not yet strong supporters. She marriage in Washington state in 2012. “The general theme of the breakfast was also said support for marriage increases that we need to be focused like a laser on when people talk to people they know about building support for marriage equality and marriage equality, and while many marriage equality supporters are being asked to take action in support of marriage equality, most are not. “We all have to be asking our friends, family, co-workers, and neighbors to get engaged in our work,” said ERW officials. “So whether you are a member of the LGBT or allied community, tell your story about why marriage equality matters to you and how it can protect our families. The Education Fund helps amplify the voices of marriage equality supporters who have powerful stories to tell.” Marcos Martinez, the executive director of Entre Hermanos, moderated the panel, by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor
December 16, 2011
which included State Senator Ed Murray; Thalia Zepatos, director of engagement for Freedom to Marry; Josh Friedes, marriage equality director of Equal Rights Washington; and Zach Silk, campaign manager for Washington United for Marriage. “Entre Hermanos and the ERW Education Fund will collaborate on a project funded by the Social Justice Fund that will engage Latinos,” officials said. “The purpose of the grant is both to build support for marriage equality in the Latino community while increasing the capacity of Entre Hermanos to do advocacy work on a host of issues important to the LGBT Latino community.” The Social Justice Fund will provide $20,000 in 2012 to support this work. In addition, ERW announced the Education Fund has also received two grants from the Pride Foundation to continue its collaboration with faith communities to build support for marriage equality. “To our sponsors, table captains, and hosts, the chorus Diverse Harmony, our speakers and volunteers, we can’t thank you enough. The generosity of attendees was clear as you rose to the challenge match issued by Bob Eichler and together raised $30,000,” said officials. Equal Rights Washington is a statewide political advocacy organization for the LGBT community of Washington state. ERW has successfully advocated for the Anderson-Murray anti-discrimination law, the creation of the domestic partnership registry, the further expansion of domestic partnership protections, and the passage of the Healthy Youth Act. ERW works to organize the movement for equality, educate voters, and influence policy makers. They continue to advocate for the expansion of protections available to committed Gay couples and their children while working toward marriage equality. They also work to ensure that health care providers meet the needs of an aging LGBT community.
Celebrating 38 Years!
Marriage equality Remembering Chicago activist Ed Watson dies journalist Paul Varnell
Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times
Ed Watson (l) and partner Derence Kernek
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Bellingham Lesbian bashes back
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A man harassed the wrong Lesbians outside a Bellingham bar on December 11, and ended up thrown to the sidewalk by one of his intended victims and held for police. According to the Bellingham Herald, 22-year-old William Adam Lane yelled homophobic slurs at a Lesbian couple after he saw them embrace as they left the bar early Sunday morning. When the women refused to respond to him, Lane allegedly smashed the window of a Toyota belonging to one of the women, causing about $600 in damages. Unintimidated, one of the women then tackled Lane and pinned him to the ground. A bouncer at the bar helped to hold him un-
til police arrived. Police spokesperson Mark Young told SGN on December 15 that Lane had been charged on three counts and released pending trial. “He is charged with malicious harassment – basically a hate crime,” Young said, “because he targeted the victims based on their sexual orientation. “With malicious mischief in the third degree, because he broke out the back window of the victim’s vehicle. And disorderly conduct based on his behavior.” The Whatcom County prosecutor’s office told SGN that Lane was to be arraigned on December 16. The two women, ages 23 and 30, were not hurt in the incident, the Herald said.
courtesy rex wockner
Ed Watson died December 7 without achieving his goal. Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease earlier this year, he hoped to marry his partner of 40 years, Derence Kernek, while he could still recognize him. Sadly, he failed. Kernek announced Watson’s death at age 78 from complications of Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and hypertension. “Just wanted to let you know that Ed passed at 22:15 this evening,” Kernek, 80, said in an email to friends and supporters from the couple’s home in Palm Springs. Watson died on the eve of another court hearing on Prop 8, the initiative that overturned California’s same-sex marriage law and kept the couple from marrying. The couple became the face of California’s fight for marriage equality when they videotaped a plea to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in March, asking that the court allow Judge Vaughn Walker’s ruling striking down Prop 8 to take effect so they could marry before Watson’s Alzheimer’s became too advanced for him to remember his relationship with Kernek. The couple’s inability to marry deprived also Watson of coverage under Kernek’s out-of-state retirement plan, imposing financial hardship on the couple.
“It’s ironic that he died on the eve of appeals about peripheral issues around a case that should have been settled more than a year ago,” said Richard Jacobs, chairman and founder of the LGBT advocacy group Courage Campaign. “None of this will matter to Ed or Derence.” U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled on August 4, 2010, that Proposition 8 violated the due process and equal protection rights of Gay and Lesbian couples guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Sponsors of Prop 8 then appealed Walker’s ruling and won a suspension of it pending the 9th Circuit’s ruling. Prop 8 supporters also filed suit claiming that Walker, who was in a same-sex relationship when he presided over the January 2010 trial, had a personal interest in the outcome and therefore should have recused himself. That argument was rejected by a different federal judge, and his ruling was, in turn, appealed by Prop 8 supporters. It was that appeal that was before the 9th Circuit on December 8, the day after Watson died. The L.A. Times reported that Kernek’s phone was disconnected when Courage Campaign activists tried to reach him. Apart from the email announcing Watson’s death, there has been no further communication from him.
Paul Varnell
by Rex Wockner SGN Contributing Writer My friend Paul Varnell, the well-known syndicated Gay journalist, has died. Paul was one of the most independent persons I ever have known. It wasn’t easy to get close to him, and I figure I got as far as anyone did. He was a journalist, he was an opinion columnist, he was a thinker, he was a libertarian and, I think, a Libertarian, he was an intellectual. He liked classical music and opera, he was a voracious reader. His columns raised the intelligence quotient of all the Gay papers he appeared in. He was an activist with the Illinois Gay & Lesbian Task Force and other entities.
He and I, as a journalistic exercise, tried to get a marriage license in Cook County – in 1989! And when rebuffed, we filed humanrights complaints with the city and the state. We lost. We claimed sex discrimination but they told us it was sexual-orientation discrimination and that that wasn’t illegal at that time in Illinois. The Sun-Times made a big story of our little effort. We turned down an invite to appear on Oprah. I suppose everyone is unique, but Paul was unlike anyone I’ve ever known. I think it was the degree of his independence and the degree of his self-sufficiency that stood out. He had very specific ideas about how he wanted to live his life – and that is exactly how he lived it, each day and without compromise.
IN MEMORIAM Joseph R. Eisenhauer 1944 – 1999 Joe Eisenhauer was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and moved to Arizona at an early age. He joined the Coast Guard, then attended college in Arizona. He then moved to Washington state, residing first in Mt. Vernon and then finally in Seattle where
he joined a group in 1983 to help people living with AIDS. He founded the Seattle AIDS Support Group, which is still providing assistance to people with AIDS today on Capitol Hill.
Come meet Tim and Matt and join the family.
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December 16, 2011
Seattle Gay News
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by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) and the law firm of Morrison & Foerster announced December 12 that their client, Petty Officer 2nd Class Jase Daniels, discharged in April 2005 and again in March 2007 under the discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) law, has been reinstated in the U.S. Navy and will return to active duty as a linguist. He was sworn in on December 12. “Today, I took an oath, and affirmed to defend the Constitution of the United States of America. I am humbled as I am reinstated to the job I love and by the enormous support I have received on this momentous day. I look forward to returning to the Defense Language Institute and ultimately, my career in the military,” said Daniels. “The reinstatement of Petty Officer Daniels into the United States Navy underscores that all qualified and needed service members are now officially welcomed back into the ranks. The new policy and regulations in this post-repeal era make this historic occasion possible. We continue to work with our clients and the services to facilitate more reinstatements and help process applications
for those discharged under DADT, who wish to serve their country again, whether it be on active duty, in the reserves, or in the guard,” said Army veteran and SLDN Executive Director Aubrey Sarvis. “This is a great day for Petty Officer Daniels. This also is a great day for the United States military. All qualified American men and women who want to serve their country in the armed forces are now welcome to do so without regard to their sexual orientation. When Jase decided to sue the Navy in 2010 seeking a court order reinstating him on active duty, repeal of ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ was uncertain. At the end of the day, a court order was not necessary in his case. I hope this is true for many others and that Jase is just one of many brave Gay and Lesbian former service members who will be quickly welcomed back into the services,” said M. Andrew Woodmansee, Daniels’ attorney at Morrison & Foerster. Jase Daniels is one of three plaintiffs in the case Almy v. U.S., filed by SLDN and Morrison & Foerster in December 2010, that challenges the constitutionality of the plaintiffs’ discharges under DADT and seeks their reinstatement to active duty. Sarvis said resolutions for the other plaintiffs, former Air Force Major Mike Almy and former Air
Gibuddhist
Jase Daniels, twice discharged under DADT, reinstated in U.S. Navy
Jase Daniels in Kuwait in 2007
Force Staff Sergeant Anthony Loverde, are expected soon. Daniels, now 29, entered the military five months before the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. He served his first tour of duty with the Ceremonial Guard in Washington, D.C., where he represented the U.S. at official White House ceremonies and during state and military funerals at Arlington National Cemetery. From his post at Arlington, he watched the Pentagon burn that day – an experience he says reinforced his desire to serve. He completed Hebrew linguist training and was stationed at Fort Gordon, Geor-
gia, where he came to terms with his sexual orientation and outed himself to his commander. “Keeping the Navy’s core values of honesty and integrity – and very much naïve to the severity of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ – I provided my commander with a written statement, which resulted in the start of discharge proceedings,” said Daniels. He was discharged in 2005. But in 2006, Daniels received a letter recalling him to service and served in Kuwait with the U.S. Navy Customs Battalion Romeo. Despite DADT being in effect, he served for a year before he was discharged a second time under the law.
foundation. According to the Susan G. Komen website, their Planned Parenthood funding paid for 139,000 breast exams and about 5,000 mammograms, detecting 177 cases of cancer in the past five years, Based in Nashville, LifeWay has a thriving online business and more than 160 brick-and-mortar stores, most of them in the Southeast. There are two in Washington, one in Tukwila and the other in Spokane. LifeWay is affiliated with the Southern
Baptist Convention, the most conservative of several Baptist groups in the U.S. B&H Publishing is a division of LifeWay Bookstores’ parent company, LifeWay Christian Resources, but it operates independently of the retail stores. The “Here’s Hope Breast Cancer Bible” – also known as “The Pink Bible,” pink being the signature color of breast cancer awareness – was distributed by LifeWays. It was sold at Walmart and other major retailers as well as the LifeWay retail stores.
Bible benefiting Susan G. Komen Foundation banned by Christian bookstore by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A Christian bookstore chain has pulled an edition of the Bible off its shelves because the publisher donates part of the proceeds to breast cancer screening sponsored by Planned Parenthood. LifeWay Christian Bookstores said it will no longer sell a Bible from B&H Publishing Group because $1 from the sale of each Bible goes to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The foundation, in turn, donates money to Planned Parenthood’s breast cancer programs – but not to any reproductive health programs. Even that connection was too much for LifeWay, however. “When our leadership discovered the overwhelming concern that some of Komen’s affiliates were giving funds to Planned Parenthood, we began the arduous process of withdrawing this Bible from the market,” stated a release by Thom S. Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay. “Though we have assurances that Komen’s funds are used only for breast cancer
screening and awareness, it is not in keeping with LifeWay’s core values to have even an indirect relationship with Planned Parenthood.” The Bible had been in stores since October. Controversy over it began this month after anti-choice websites such as Bound4Life.com and Lifenews.com began complaining. “The sign might as well read, ‘Buy a Bible and support abortion!’” wrote Susan Tyrrell of the Bound4Life blog. James W. Sedlak, vice president of the American Life League, said LifeWay made the right decision. While Komen does good work, he said, that work is tainted. “For the sale of Bibles to benefit the largest abortion provider in the nation is atrocious,” he said. The Komen Foundation also issued a statement, saying they were disappointed by LifeWay’s decision. All funds from the Bible sales would go to breast cancer programs, they said. Andrea Rader, from the charity’s marketing communication department, revealed that LifeWay had pledged $25,000 to the
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Seattle Gay News
December 16, 2011
Celebrating 38 Years!
Scott Aitken
Heather Carter, director of the OUTLoud component of the Youth Suicide Prevention Program, smiles at the GSBA Holiday Luncheon December 14. Carter received the GSBA’s 2011 Community Leadership Award. The annual business event was held to thank the GSBA’s outgoing board members and welcome the new 2012 Board of Directors.
Same-sex marriage may boost Gay men’s health by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Gay men who live in states where samesex marriage is legal are healthier, have less stress, make fewer doctor visits, and have lower health-care costs, a new study released on December 15 finds. The study included more than 1,200 patients at a large Massachusetts health clinic that provides services for Gay men and other sexual minorities. According to results of the study, during the 12 months after the 2003 legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, there was a significant decrease in medical care visits, mental health visits, and mental health-care costs among Gay and Bisexual men compared to the 12 months before the law changed. This led to a 13% reduction in health-care visits and a 14% reduction in health-care costs. The health benefits were similar for single Gay men and those with partners. No reduction was seen in HIV-related health visits by HIV-positive men, which suggests that those in need of HIV/AIDS care continued to use needed health-care services, the researchers said. The study was published in the American Journal of Public Health. “These findings suggest that marriage equality may produce broad public health benefits by reducing the occurrence of stress-related health conditions in Gay and
Bisexual men,” lead author Mark Hatzenbuehler, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation scholar at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, said in a foundation news release. Lesbians weren’t included in the study because there were too few who visit the clinic. Previous research has shown that not having the legal right to marry can have a stressful effect on Gays, Lesbians, and Bisexuals, according to the release. “This research makes important contributions to a growing body of evidence on the social, economic and health benefits of marriage equality,” Hatzenbuehler said.
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December 16, 2011
Seattle Gay News
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NEWS
U.N. CHIDES NIGERIA OVER SAME-SEX BILL Nigeria was criticized at United Nations headquarters in New York this week over the recently passed Senate bill banning same-sex marriage. During a panel discussion to mark Human Rights Day, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch Kenneth Roth and Nigerian Gay rights activist Ifeanyi Orazulike took turns calling for international action against Nigeria and other countries passing such laws. Orazulike, who is the executive director of the International Center for the Advocacy and Rights to Health, based in New York and Abuja, Nigeria, said that since he launched a campaign against the bill, he had been receiving death threats through email, texts, and his Facebook page. He disclosed that he would be returning soon to Nigeria, but said, “I am afraid for my life and the life of my son.” During the panel, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, “Homophobic bullying of young people constitutes a grave violation of human rights,” adding that governments must take measures to protect their citizens from violence and discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity. There are currently 76 countries where individuals face criminal sanctions for engag-
courtesy topnews
INTERNATIONAL by Scott Wittet SGN Contributing Writer same-sex amorous relations.” “What on earth is an indirect public display of affection?” wondered Akwaeke, a Nigerian student and writer. “Basically if you were holding hands with a friend of yours of the same sex you could be arrested,” she said. “So there are a lot of loopholes that are going to be used to persecute a lot of people. People aren’t talking about that because everyone thinks it’s about marriage. It’s not.” Ultimately, this law “opens the door to all kinds of police abuse,” said Boris Dittrich, advocacy director of the LGBT program at Human Rights Watch. “This is going to be a tool for the government to silence opposition and other civil society organizations.” “In Nigeria, politicians use the LGBT community as a scapegoat while they should address issues like poverty and corruption.” KENYAN LEADERS LIVID OVER GAY-AID LINK A plan by the U.S. government to use foreign aid and diplomacy to push countries into recognizing Gay rights has sparked outrage in Kenya. Religious leaders vowed to resist attempts to “impose homosexuality” on Kenyans, even at the cost of losing hundreds of millions of dollars in American aid. Addressing diplomats in Geneva, Switzerland, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Eric Miller
Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika
ing in private in consensual sexual relations with another adult of the same sex. In addition to criminalizing Gay marriage, the Nigerian bill also targets people and organizations that “witness, abet, and aid the solemnization of a same-sex marriage or civil union, or support the registration, operation, and sustenance of Gay clubs, societies, or organizations” and those who “directly or indirectly make a public show of
stressed that “Gay rights are human rights,” and directed U.S. government agencies to consider Gay rights when determining who gets American aid. When Clinton spoke, many ambassadors walked out of the room. Kenya received $714 million from the U.S. government this year alone for military training, anti-drug trafficking, anti-terrorism, health and child survival, and the fight against AIDS.
Vladimir Putin
The National Council of Churches of Kenya general secretary, Canon Peter Karanja, said, “America and other Western powers have no right to bully other countries. It is obnoxious and amounts to neo-colonialism.” The Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims national vice-chairman, Alhaji Abdullahi Kiptanui, accused America of seeking to introduce evil practices in the country, saying the Quran and the Bible condemn homosexuality. MALAWI REVIEWING SODOMY LAWS The African country of Malawi has announced that it was reviewing a number of laws, including its anti-Gay and anti-Lesbian laws. Malawi’s Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Ephraim Chiume said in a statement, “In view of the sentiments from the general public and in response to public opinion regarding certain laws, the government wishes to announce to the Malawi nation that it is submitting the relevant laws and provisions of laws to the Law Commission for review.” Chiume said provisions of the penal code concerning “indecent practices and unnatural acts” would be among the laws reviewed. The U.K. recently withdrew financial assistance in response to poor governance in Malawi and to moves against civil society and the media. Malawi, however, blamed the withdrawal on non-governmental organizations supporting LGBT human rights. Western governments criticized Malawi last year for jailing a Gay couple on sodomy charges. During their trial, President Bingu wa Mutharika called homosexuality “evil and very bad before the eyes of God.” He later pardoned the couple following international condemnation of the sentence. Malawi Broadcasting Corporation bulletins said that organizers of recent pro-Gay demonstrations wanted to use photographs of demonstrators to show to foreign aid donors that Malawians support Gay rights and same-sex marriages. A presidential spokesperson said that organizers of the demonstrations have been receiving “huge sums of money” from Gay rights groups outside the country. Other laws to be reviewed include those banning publications and demonstrations, allowing warrantless searches, and a law that doesn’t allow citizens to sue the government. The government has not said how long the law review will take or when it will start.
mir Putin, and his United Russia Party suffered large losses – the Putin forces made crass appeals to homophobia by introducing a spate of anti-Gay legislation to outlaw almost any expression of pro-homosexual sentiment, according to veteran Gay activist Nikolai Baev in an interview with Gay City News. Baev is the newly named head of the Gay Russia Human Rights Project and a key organizer of Moscow’s perpetually banned Gay Pride. “Homophobia is always used in Russian political campaigns because this is a very good tool against political opponents, from both sides. United Russia calls its opposition ‘Gays,’ while the anti-Putin opposition calls United Russia ‘fags.’” “For example, the KPRF – a very homophobic party which advocates re-introduction of Soviet-era criminal penalties for homosexuality [repealed in 1993] – uses in its campaign the slogan ‘Better to be red than blue.’ The double meaning of this phrase is that blue is the party color of United Russia, and at the same time the word blue (in Russian, goluboi) also is a slang word for Gay men. So, it is not a surprise that United Russia has used homophobia in this campaign.” Russia’s Gays lack allies in the electoral arena to help them challenge Putin’s ironfisted exercise of power – with one possible, tenuous, and tiny exception. As Baev explained, “There is not one single deputy in the Russian Duma who supports Gay rights. All four parties represented in the last Duma, and which will be represented in the next, are homophobic. Things could improve if the liberal Yabloko party can win any seats in the next Duma. I doubt they will, but today I voted for them.” “They were homophobes just a year ago. However, Youth Yabloko – the youth movement in the party – is much more Gayfriendly and they lobbied last year in support of Gay rights. As a result, Yabloko’s leader, Sergei Mitrokhin, declared last October that Gay rights should be respected. Five years ago, the same Mitrokhin called Gay Pride a ‘provocation.’ I see that the situation with Yabloko is getting better. I hope that one day they will publicly support us.”
GHANAIAN GAY REFUGEE IN CANADA SPEAKS Imagine if your family published a newspaper story saying you were evil, and that the story made some neighbors feel obligated to smash your skull with rocks. There are thousands of stories like this in Africa. This one has a happy ending. Vancouver lawyer Rob Hughes, wellPUTIN PLAYS known for representing Gay and Lesbian HOMOPHOBIA CARD refugees over the past 20 years, says CanaIn the run-up to the Russian parliamentary dian law allows refugee protection for those elections earlier this month – in which the country’s authoritarian strongman, Vladisee INTERnational news page 17
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Seattle Gay News
December 16, 2011
Celebrating 38 Years!
hoofed, chatted and hyperventilated her way through 18 all-new shows in Seattle and numerous runs in New York, London, San Francisco and Provincetown, among other cities. compiled by Rick McKinnon “The Dina Martina Christmas Show” runs SGN Staff Writer through December 31 at Re-bar (1114 Howell St.) Visit www.brownpapertickets.com/ BORN THIS WAY KAFE 2012 GSBA & PRIDE FOUNDATION event/203891 or call 1-800-838-3006 for FOR URBAN QUEER TEENS schedule of performances and to order tickSCHOLARSHIPS AT CAL ANDERSON PARK GSBA and Pride Foundation would like to ets: $20-advance; $25-at the door. NOTE: On Fridays, 5-9 p.m., at Cal Anderson encourage students of any age or sexual ori- All bar sales at Re-bar are cash only. No Shelterhouse (1635 11th Ave., one block entation from Alaska, Oregon, Idaho, Mon- credit cards accepted for drinks. north of E. Pine St.), Seattle Parks & Rec- tana, and Washington, who are persuing any reation hosts Born This Way Kafe, a wel- post-secondary education (including com“HAM FOR THE HOLIDAYS: coming place where LGBTQ youth, friends munity college, public or private colleges A LARD’S DAY NIGHT” and allies (ages 13-19) can gather, be them- and universities, trade apprenticeships, or Seattle sketch mavens Lisa Koch and selves, and have fun. Meets every Friday. certificate programs) to consider applying Peggy Platt (Dos Fallopia) ring in the holiFor more information and to help make it for their scholarships. Deadline for applica- days with the 11th edition of their cult holihappen, contact Randy at Seattle Parks, 206- tion is January 31. For more information, day show, chock full of maladjusted char883-6110 txt/phone, email randy.wiger@se- visit www.pridefoundation.org/pride-foun- acters, tacky costumes, and more wigs than attle.gov or google “SeattleParksCOD.” Lady Gaga. “A Lard’s Day Night” features a dation-scholarships-apply-online-today1 plethora of questionable taste: INTERNATIONAL DAY Country duo The Spudds give film noir a WA WOMEN IN THE TRADES – TO END VIOLENCE makeover with “Double-Wide Indemnity;” “STORIES & SNAPSHOTS” AGAINST SEX WORKERS – game show “Who’s Your Deity?” spanks 2012 ROSIE THE RIVETER VIGIL AND PROCESSION dogma with panelists Harvey Fierstein, CALENDAR On Saturday, December 17, from 5-7 Kirstie Alley and Professor Dumbledore – www.wawomenintrades.com p.m., at Cal Anderson Park (11th Ave. & hosted by Sister Mary Agnes; get to know E. Olive St.), the International Day to End “OUR FAMILIES, OUR CHILDREN” – Michele and Marcus Bachmann up close Violence Against Sex Workers – Vigil and BEAUTIFUL 2012 CALENDAR in “Bachmann Xmas Overdrive,” Ballard Procession will be held. This candlelight FEATURES LGBTQ stalwarts The Polka Dots mangle popular vigil will be a space to show our love and PARENTED FAMILIES songs and the English language, polka style; respect for sex workers murdered due to FROM THE SEATTLE AREA the tiny Sequim Gay Men’s Chorus add two marginalization, stigmatization and hatred. The Lesbian and Gay Child Care Task new Lesbian members and a name change We invite our allied community to mourn Force is excited to offer once again its beau- (S.Q.U.E.E.L.). collectively. Participants are more than wel- tiful calendar of LGBTQ parented families The show runs through December 24, come and encouraged to bring a poem, song, from the Seattle area. The task force has at Theatre Off-Jackson (409 7th Ave. prayer, or loving words. This event is open been producing the calendar for ten years S., at S. Jackson St.) – Wed.-Sat. at 7:30 to the public. For more information on this with the mission of providing the visual p.m., Sat.-Sun. matinees at 3 p.m. Tickets: event: www.swopusa.org/dec17. For more reminder to children, teachers and families $15-$33. www.brownpapertickets.com/ information on SWOP-Seattle: www.NW- that families look different and that all fami- event/202493 or call 1-800-838-3006. SWOP.org lies are welcome. Additionally, the calendar has been displayed in diverse work places “HOMO FOR THE HOLIDAYS” SEATTLE RAINBOW and in colleges and universities with teacher An unforgettable all-star cast brings you CONTRA DANCE preparation programs. innovative burlesque and cabaret perforOn Sunday, December 18, from 3:30-6 The upcoming year is the tenth anniver- mances to help you beat the holiday blues. p.m., at Washington Hall (153 14th Ave.), sary of the calendar. The task force revisited “HOMO for the Holidays” is a hearty holijoin Seattle Rainbow Contra Dance for an families from the “early years” and invited day fruitcake packed with rollicksome reinafternoon of live music and gender-free twelve (plus two more!) families to come deer, enticing elves, ghostly guests, sexy contra dancing for LGBTQ folks and friends back for another picture shoot. Each family snowstorms, agile angels, musical Macand for all who want to dance. Free lesson at picture has a small inset picture from the first cabees, and new ways to define coming 3pm. Mariah Pepper and band TBD will call time the family was in the calender. Many home. It’s not Christmas in July, it’s Pride the dance to warm us up for the holiday sea- families have grown; others have changed in December! Light your menorah, stuff son. $10 general admission. their make-up, and the tragic loss of one dad your stockings, and join our chosen family illustrates that our families and our children in celebrating our favorite wintry holiday JET CITY HOOPS – experience life, death, and change just like of all, “HOMO for the Hoidays.” Featuring SEATTLE’S CO-ED GLBTQ other families. an all-star cast of burlesque, cabaret, dance, BASKETBALL LEAGUE Proceeds from the calendar help the task drag, and musical local luminaries, BenJet City Hoops winter season games will force to produce the calendar for another DeLaCreme, Kitten LaRue, The Cerdonna be held on Sundays, November 6-Decem- year, onward to the twentieth year and be- and Lou Show, Jinkx Monsoon and Major ber 18, at Miller Community Center (330 yond. An order form is online at www.safe- Scales, Fuchsia FoXXX, ilvs strauss, James 19th Ave. E., just north of E. Thomas St.). schoolscoalition.org/ocof/OFOC_Calen- McHendry, and Jimmy Longwell. The show Recreational division games will be held 9 darOrderForm2012.pdf or you can call Bill runs 12/10-12/24, 12/10 preview at 7 p.m., a.m.-noon; competitive division games will Sanders at 206-226-3352. Suggested do- 12/15, 16, 17, 22, 23 at 8 p.m., 12/24 at 7 be held noon-4 p.m. Spectators welcome. nation is $15 which includes shipping and p.m. and 10 p.m. West Hall, OddFellows www.jetcityhoops.org. handling. Building, 915 E. Pine St., 2nd Floor. Tickets: $20-advance; $25-at the door. www. KOLENU HOSTS “DINA MARTINA brownpapertickets.com/event/90561. GLBTQ HANUKKAH CHRISTMAS SHOW” CELEBRATION Sleigh bells ring; are you listening? SEATTLE MEN’S CHORUS – On Wednesday, December 21, from 7-9 They’re heralding the arrival of the 61st “COOL YULE: p.m., at The Lobby Bar (916 E. Pike St.), annual Dina Martina Christmas Show! THE BIG BAND THEORY” Kolenu Seattle hosts Seattle’s 3rd Annual Unwittingly hilarious and wonderfully biBig Band music meets the CBS sitcom GLBTQ Hanukkah Celebration. Enjoy tasty zarre, Dina Martina is the chanteuse with The Big Bang Theory for a concert of toelatkes, colorful dreidels, music and a beau- the leastest; the dancer with the hunchfront; tapping musical pyrotechnics. This year a tiful candle lighting symbolizing both the the childlike lady who, year after year, is the live swing band, complete with brass and miracle of Hanukkah and the idea that great holiday gift that truly keeps on giving. saxophones, will complement a program leadership and community action will preA perennial favorite of the likes of John filled with holiday favorites like “Let It vail against oppression. Celebrate the mir- Waters, Margaret Cho, Matt Stone and Gra- Snow,” “Walkin’ in a Winter Wonderland,” acle of Hanukkah as we honor community ham Norton, Miss Martina’s shows have “Sleigh Ride,” “Have Yourself a Merry Litleaders who have been influential in our lo- long been a favorite holiday tradition for tle Christmas,” “Jingle Bells,” and “Silent cal fight for equality. FREE and open to the those who want something other than the Night.” At the same time, hilarious fun is in community, including family, friends and usual holiday fare. store as the show features the four exceedallies. Due to location, this is a 21+ event. Brimming with botched carols, ungraceful ingly nerdy scientists from The Big Bang RSVP through Kolenu Facebook page or dances, overburdened costumes and truly Theory and their hilarious attempts to interthrough Jconnect Seattle’s event page. For bizarre audience gifts, this ALL NEW holi- act with the real world. Their job in “Cool more information, visit www.kolenuseattle. day extravaganza guarantees Dina Martina’s Yule” (as performed by four talented Chocom. sidesplitting blend of low-brow, top-notch rus members) is to determine exactly why comedy and near-acid-trip surrealism. And, holidays are so magical. This results in nuSAFE SCHOOLS COALITION – due to overwhelming demand, this year’s merous misfires until they finally – quite by LOCAL AND NATIONAL ALL-NEW show also guarantees the return accident – land on a winning equation. SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS of Miss Martina’s ace accompanist, former The show runs 12/3 at 8 p.m., 12/11 at FOR LGBTQ STUDENTS child prodigy CHRIS JEFFRIES! 7:30 p.m., 12/15 at 8 p.m. (12/15 at Pantagwww.safeschoolscoalition.org Over the years, Dina Martina has sung, es Theatre, 901 Broadway,Tacoma), 12/17
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at 8 p.m. (12/17 at Everett Civic Auditorium, 2415 Colby St., Everett), 12/18 at 7:30 p.m., 12/19 at 7:30 p.m., 12/22 at 7:30 p.m., 12/23 at 2 p.m. & 8 p.m., at Benaroya Hall, 3rd Ave. & University St. Tickets: $22-$77. 206-388-1400; www.flyinghouse.org. “INJUSTICE AT EVERY TURN” – COMPREHENSIVE TRANSGENDER DISCRIMINATION STUDY SHARES TWO PERSONAL STORIES ON “IN THE LIFE” http://www.itlmedia.org/html/other/Injustice%20at%20Every%20Turn.html LGBT LIBRARY NOW OPEN The LGBT Library houses a wide range of fiction and non-fiction works of interest to those in the LGBT community and its allies. The Library is located at Gay City’s offices, 511 E. Pike St., on the ground floor behind Kaladi Brothers Coffee (just follow the signs). Library hours are Mon-Fri, 2-8 p.m., and Saturday, 2-5 p.m. Items may be borrowed free of charge; however, ID is required. For your convenience, a drop box for returning borrowed items is available next to the front door when the library is closed. LGBT RESOURCE & REFERRAL LINE The Resource & Referral Line can connect you to LGBT-friendly resources throughout Puget Sound and beyond. Coming out and just learning what is out there? Visiting and want to know about nightlife options? Interested in drug or alcohol counseling? For these or any other LGBT issues, call 206323-LGBT. Phone line hours are Mon-Fri, 2-8 p.m., and Saturday, 2-5 p.m. Leave a voice message at all other times and your call will be returned. Alternatively, you can view our resource lists at www.gaycity.org under the resources menu. “COMMUNITY STORIES” DOCUMENTS THE CIVIL RIGHTS ISSUES & HEALTH CARE STRUGGLE AROUND THE AIDS CRISIS IN SEATTLE IN THE 1980S The onset of AIDS “was a health crisis, but it was also a civil rights crisis,” recalls Carol Sterling, former director of the Chicken Soup Brigade. Produced by the Seattle Channel (Cable Channel 21), “Community Stories” looks back to the 1980s and the start of the AIDS epidemic in Seattle. This history is told through the words of people – including Sterling, City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, Seattle Gay News editor George Bakan and King County AIDS Program Director Bob Wood – who lived and worked on the front lines in the community. Learn about this important history by following this link now: http://www.seattlechannel. org/videos/video.asp?ID=3170902. SOLDIERS PROJECT NW OFFERS FREE COUNSELING FOR VETS/ACTIVE MILITARY & THEIR LOVES ONES Soldiers Project NW is a 100% volunteer organization whose purpose is to provide free counseling to those who have served or are serving in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and to their families and loved ones, including LGBT active military/veterans and their loved ones. Many people choose to receive help directly from the military or the VA. Soldiers Project NW offers an alternative for those who, for whatever reason, do not or cannot utilize those benefits. Soldiers Project NW has put together a list of licensed private practice therapists from Olympia to Bellingham who are willing to see one client (or couple, or family) at no charge, for as long as they need to be seen to deal with any of the stressors that have come from being involved in combat or loving someone who has. For more information, call the Soldiers Project NW’s 24-hour phone line, 206-290-1035.
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Celebrating 38 Years!
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Celebrating 38 Years!
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1-866-4 CRISIS (427-4747)
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Celebrating 38 Years!
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Murad Sezer
Turkish occupied zone in Cyprus legalizes Gay sex Northern Cyprus, occupied by Turkey since its invasion of the island nation in 1974, has agreed to legalize Gay sex. Northern Cyprus is the last part of Europe where it is illegal to be Gay. Same-sex relations have been legal in the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus, in the southern part of the island, since it joined the E.U. in 2004. Same-sex relations are also legal in mainland Turkey. Dervis Eroglu, the leader of the Turkish Cypriot government in the northern part of Cyprus, said he would sign a repeal law banning Gay sex. Members of the European Parliament led by Marina Yannakoudakis, a British representative of Cypriot origin, had pressed for the change. In a letter to Yannakoudakis on December 13, Eroglu says that a repeal bill has been submitted to the Northern Cypriot legislature. “The draft proposal for the repeal of the part of the criminal code, chapter 154, which penalizes same sex sexual activity has been submitted to the general assembly on 25 October 2011 by a political party, the Communal Democracy Party,” he wrote. “This draft legislation states that not only girls and women but also boys and men can be victims of rape and sexual abuse.” Eroglu pledged to support the repeal, say-
ing, “We gave our considered opinion to the government that the draft proposal concerned should be adopted and section 171 should be abolished without delay.” “I am pleased that Eroglu has honored the promise he made to me in October,” Yannakoudakis replied. “There have been a number of concerns about human rights in the northern part of Cyprus. By agreeing to decriminalize homosexuality Eroglu is taking concrete measures to ensure those living in the north part of Cyprus may enjoy the same human rights as their fellow Europeans.” In October, seven men were arrested for “homosexual offenses” in Northern Cyprus, leading to an international outcry against the anti-Gay law. They included former Cypriot finance minister Michalis Sarris. According to the Cyprus Mail he skipped a November 17 court appearance, forfeiting the equivalent of $61,000 in bail money. Four of those arrested accused the police of brutality. According to LGBT Asylum News, the Northern Cypriot group Initiative Against Homophobia accused the Northern Cyprus media of “normalizing an attitude of hatred” and “feeding homophobic reports and comments to the public” in their coverage of the case. On December 13 Sarris was appointed chairman of Marfin Popular Bank, the second-biggest bank in Cyprus, based in the Republic of Cyprus.
“From significant fines (and LGBT-supportive statements) following anti-Gay epithets, to its public partnerships with us and other LGBT advocacy organizations, to the appearances by Grant Hill and Jared Dudley in a wonderful ad campaign from GLSEN, to its support of now-openly Gay former
Phoenix Suns CEO Rick Welts, to Shaquille O’Neal’s appearance in our ‘Amplify Your Voice’ campaign, to Ray Allen’s support for an anti-bullying advocate, the NBA and commissioner David Stern have proven themselves to be strong allies to the LGBT community,” GLAAD said.
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Turkish Cypriot President Dervis Eroglu
NBA union adds “sexual orientation” to contract language by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The NBA ended the lockout of its players on December 8 with a new, Gay-friendly union contract. The collective bargaining agreement ratified by the NBA’s Board of Governors includes, for the first time, language protecting players from discrimination based on their sexual orientation. “I am pleased to announce that we have concluded the collective bargaining process and have reached an agreement that addresses many significant issues that were challenges to our league,” said NBA Commissioner David Stern. “This collective bargaining agreement will help us move toward a better business model, a more competitive league, and better alignment between compensation and performance.” Major League Baseball announced a similar move in November. The National Foot-
16 Seattle Gay News
ball League added the same language to its union contract earlier this year. The NBA already has protected sexual orientation in its collective bargaining agreement with its own employees. “Players should be judged on their skill and drive on the basketball court, not their sexual orientation,” said Tico Almeida, president of Freedom to Work, a national organization committed to ending all career discrimination. If a player were to face harassment or workplace retaliation after coming out, the non-discrimination provisions in the new union contract will create legally enforceable protections, Almeida said. However, he added, “these protections are unfortunately still missing in federal law as well as the state laws in a majority of states in our country.” Sixteen of the 30 NBA teams are in states where it is legal to fire or harass a player just for being Gay. Two such teams participated in the 2011 Finals – the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat. “The NBA now joins leading Fortune 500 companies and the vast majority of Americans who believe that Gay people should have the same opportunities to work and live freely as who they are,” said Mike Thompson, acting president of GLAAD. “This decision shows that homophobia has no place on the court or in the game and we hope that local, college, and high school teams follow this important example.” In a press release, GLAAD congratulated the NBA on its initiatives “to place the sport of basketball near the forefront of a changing sports landscape, in terms of LGBT inclusion.”
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roborated details given earlier in the refugee Gay World 2012 contest in South Africa application about the danger he faced.” next April. Namibia has not passed any laws against MR. GAY NAMIBIA Gays or Lesbians and its constitution forBEATEN, ROBBED bids discrimination on the basis of sexual A Gay rights group has condemned a orientation. physical assault on the winner of the first However, former president and liberaever Mr. Gay Namibia contest. According to tion struggle icon Sam Nujoma spoke out the organizers, Wendelinus Hamutenya was strongly against Gays and Lesbians during his time in office. courtesy pink news
who can demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution. They must also prove they cannot be safe in another part of their country and that their own state government is unable or unwilling to protect them. Hughes represented newcomer Sombede Korak at a refugee hearing in 2011. Korak is from Ghana’s second largest city, Kumasi, in the centre of the country’s Ashanti Region. Although Korak is now safely in Canada, he prefers to remain anonymous and his name here is a pseudonym. As a young Ashanti boy, Korak knew he was different. One day, after he wore his sister’s clothes on the street, his father beat him so severely it took several weeks to recover. His adolescence was difficult, but at age 20, he met his first boyfriend. “We stole time together. … That same year, 2001, a male relative demanded that I date a woman and have sex to prove I was a man, not a homosexual. My family forced me into a heterosexual relationship.” He moved in with his wife and had children. Korak was rarely home with the babies and their mother. He had a successful business and claimed his trading operation kept him absent, but all along, between 2000 and 2009, he and his boyfriend continued their relationship. “One afternoon, my boyfriend and I were at a hotel that rented rooms by the hour. Suddenly, my boyfriend’s family broke the door and barged into the room, catching us in bed. The mother and sisters screamed and made a loud scene. There was lots of shouting.” “I ran away. Later, I tried to call my boyfriend several times, but his mobile phone was dead. That was the last time we saw each other. We’d been together nine years.” The boyfriend’s family made sure Korak’s relatives found out he’d been caught redhanded.
Rather than undergo a traditional cleansing ritual that was likely to kill him, Korak escaped. His family searched for him and relatives contacted Ghana’s National Democrat newspaper, announcing they were hunting him for a cleansing ceremony. The article was as good as signing a death warrant. Ashanti beliefs – that being homosexual shamed the ancestors – meant any-
Mr. Gay Namibia Wendelinus Hamutenya
one could beat him to death on sight. Realizing he could not stay in Ghana, Korak applied for a visa and arrived in Canada as a tourist. In a strange twist, the news story’s open invitation to violently cleanse Korak saved his life. Rob Hughes explained: “The Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board member who heard the case said she ruled in favor because of the proven death threat [Korak] faced at home. The newspaper clipping cor-
assaulted by two men as he returned home. “The men approached Wendelinus and requested the money he won at the Mr. Gay competition,” Joe Gerstmayr, managing director of Mr. Gay Namibia, said in a statement. After a short confrontation, one of the attackers kicked Hamutenya to the ground, while the other grabbed his mobile phone and wallet. Hamutenya is set to take part in the Mr.
KILLERS OF TRANSGENDER PEOPLE TO GET LONGER SENTENCES IN U.K. The U.K. has announced longer minimum jail sentences for murders motivated by hostility to a Transgender person. The starting point used by the judge to set the minimum term will double from 15 to 30 years. Justice Secretary Ken Clarke said: “Hate crimes are abhorrent, they leave sections of society living in fear and at risk of unprovoked violence. These proposals make clear offenders should be in no doubt that they face a more severe sentence for these unacceptable crimes.” In September Leon Fyle, 23, was jailed for life for the murder of Destiny Lauren, a preoperative Transgender person who worked as a prostitute. There are no specific figures for violence or hostility towards Trans people but it is believed to be on the increase. The murder of Lauren, who had been born Justin Samuels, was one of a number of recent murders of Transgender people. CEBU, PHILIPPINES ACTS ON DISCRIMINATION People who discriminate against others on the basis of disability, age, health, sexual orientation or gender identity, ethnicity, or religion will soon be penalized in Cebu City. Six city councilors are sponsoring the new law. Under the draft ordinance, it is unlawful see INTERnational news page 18
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for anyone to deny any person access to public services or to refuse admission or to expel a person from education institutions on the basis of disability, age, health status, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, and religion. To ensure that negative social attitudes change, the draft states that the Cebu City government should implement a discrimination and stigma reduction program. If the ordinance is passed, those who violate it will be punished by a fine of up to $115, or imprisonment of 60 days to one year. The court may impose both penalties. HUNGARIAN HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS ATTACK “FAMILY DEFENSE” BILL Human rights groups have appealed to the European Parliament and the Council of Europe to appeal a draft bill which stipulates that families are solely based on heterosexual marriage or common-law partnerships, calling it discriminatory. The Gay rights group Background Society for Homosexuals said that the bill could push hundreds of thousands of couples into a position of legal uncertainty. The groups noted that the European Court of Human Rights recently ruled that all cohabiting couples constitute a family, regardless of sexuality.
club and arrested its operator, one employee, and three customers – who had been caught cavorting naked (or nearly naked) – on charges of obscene behavior in public or abetting such behavior. The club, Destruction, has been in business since 1997. “The club is on the second floor of an office building,” according to a local news reporter. “There are about 20 private cubicles closed off by curtains and one large room. There are peepholes for looking into the cubicles. Most of the customers prance around completely naked or nearly so, and if you brush up against another customer, that’s likely to lead to some action.” Admission is 500 yen ($7) for minors and 1,500 yen for those 20 and over. Depending on the night of the week, the club would organize special events catering to “baldies,” “guys with short hair,” “guys with beards,” and so on. The club is situated in a quiet residential area, and nearby residents, apparently aggravated by raucous, animal-like screams being emitted, complained to police, which resulted in the raid and arrests.
PUERTO RICAN POLITICIANS IGNORE TRANS MURDERS AS THEY PROPOSE HATE CRIMES REVERSAL Puerto Rico appears to be going through a wave of vicious murders of Transgender people. At least six people have been murdered in the last 12 months – but none have been recorded as hate crimes. The U.S. territory has had a hate crime law since 2002 covering crimes based on sexual orientation or gender identity, but activists say that au“NOISY GAY ORGY” IN TOKYO thorities are not using it. PROMPTS RAID “None of these cases have been considOn October 29, a squad of officers from ered by the state as hate crimes despite ofthe Shinjuku Police Station raided a men’s fenders even admitting that their motivation
was the ‘homosexual panic.’ This shows an extreme level of homophobia and Transphobia.” In spite of the murders, the Puerto Rico Senate late last month approved a provision that would eliminate sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, ethnicity, and religion from the current criminal code statute. The House of Representatives is expected to vote on the amended penal code during a special legislative session. “To eliminate these groups as protected categories is to invite the commission of hate crimes in Puerto Rico,” said Representative Héctor Ferrer. “It is a setback in the country’s public policy.” U.S. ASYLUM URGED FOR TRANS MEXICAN On November 30, Lambda Legal and a group of organizations that advocate for the rights of people living with HIV, including HIV-affected immigrants, urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to grant asylum to a Transgender Mexican woman living with HIV/AIDS. “Growing up in Mexico, Karolina Lopez Berera suffered horrific abuse at the hands of her family and police because of her Transgender identity,” said Iván EspinozaMadrigal, Lambda Legal Staff Attorney. “She fled to the United States to escape that abuse, and immigration officials concede that she was persecuted.” “Ms. Lopez Berera has been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Notwithstanding her diagnosis and her credible claims of persecution and abuse, the U.S. government is intent on deporting her to Mexico. Her forced removal, in light of rampant HIV stigma, discrimination, and persecution amounts to nothing less than an indirect death sentence.” The friend-of-the-court brief highlights country condition reports, media accounts, and studies that document the persecution, discrimination, and neglect that Transgender individuals, especially Transgender people living with HIV/AIDS, face in critical HIV-related health care services in Mexico. Transgender people are often deliberately excluded from access to HIV medications, says the brief, and Lopez Berera likely will not have access to them. In addition, the brief discusses how Lopez Berera’s HIV status places her in great danger of persecution because people living with HIV in Mexico are frequently the victims of hate crimes. SOUTH AFRICAN LESBIANS LIVE IN FEAR, REPORT FINDS Black Lesbians in South Africa endure ridicule and abuse in schools, workplaces, and churches, sometimes being accused of witchcraft, a Human Rights Watch (HRW) investigation has found. “Lesbians and Transgender men live in constant fear of harassment as well as physical and sexual violence,” the watchdog group reported. The research was based on interviews with 121 Lesbians, Bisexual women, and
Transgender men over two years in the impoverished townships where most South Africans live. Same-sex marriage is legal in South Africa, and the country has some of the most liberal laws on sexual orientation on the continent. But cultural attitudes do not always match the constitution. A number of Lesbians have been murdered, apparently because of their sexuality, in what activists believed should be classified as hate crimes. Noxolo Nogwaza, 24, was stoned and stabbed to death and apparently raped earlier this year. One woman told HRW of a series of rapes by her cousin, her coach, and her pastor. Another said a female cousin spiked her drink so that the cousin’s boyfriend could rape her. Raping a Lesbian, HRW researchers found, can make a man a township hero. Attackers boast publicly of their crimes and declare to their victims: “We’ll show you you’re a woman.” Such attacks are often referred to as “corrective rapes” in South Africa. Lesbians and others who do not fit the norm tend to avoid being alone in public, try not to attract men’s attention, and hide their sexual orientation, the report added. Nearly all those interviewed by HRW said they were reluctant to approach the police for protection or to report crimes. Nomboniso Gasa, a gender policy analyst, said the country needed to confront a culture of violence and homophobia that betrayed its democratic foundation. “This violence makes a farce of all that we claimed to achieve in post-apartheid South Africa in the constitution,” Gasa said. “If there was any other group that was targeted in the way LGBT people are targeted, South Africa would declare a crisis. This report lifts a veil of silence to make visible the realities that South Africa would rather pretend do not exist.” COUNCIL OF EUROPE CONDEMNS DISCRIMINATION AGAINST GAY AND TRANSGENDER COMMUNITIES Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland warned this month that Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Europeans continue to face discrimination in many parts of the continent. “Homosexuality has been decriminalized all over Europe, but prejudice and hypocrisy still exist towards LGBT persons in Europe,” Jagland said in a statement to mark International Human Rights Day (December 10). Recently, discriminatory laws have been proposed or adopted in member states such as Lithuania, Ukraine, and in some parts of the Russian Federation. “This is a violation of basic human rights and a setback to the progress we have achieved in promoting and protecting human dignity,” he said. “My message on this year’s International Human Rights Day is to always remember this, and to bear in mind that human rights are for all or they are for none.”
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Elizabeth Warren ... at last ... authentic grasp by Janice Van Cleve Special to the SGN
AP Photo/Elise Amendola
At last! A politician with a solid, authentic grasp of our economic system and how to fix it. Elizabeth Warren spoke to an overflowing crowd at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle last Friday, and it was my pleasure and privilege to find a seat right up near the front row. The event was billed as a joint campaign stop and fundraiser for U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D- Wash.) and for Elizabeth Warren, who is running for U.S. Senator from Massachusetts. King County Executive Dow Constantine emceed the event and Congressman Jay Inslee, who is running for Washington state governor, did the introductions. Most people know of Elizabeth Warren from her work on the Congressional Oversight Panel, which monitored the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). Her close scrutiny of the banks recommended her to President Obama who named her to create and run the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. She pressed for tighter control of Wall Street banks, more stringent regulations on derivatives, ceilings on bank fees and interest rates, and for clear and plain credit card contracts. Naturally, the banks hated and feared her. They whipped up Republican opposition to her appointment and Obama withdrew her name. So she returned to Harvard where she is a professor of commercial law and there she was recruited to run for senator. She would replace Scott Brown, a Tea Party candidate who is filling out the remainder of the late Ted Kennedy’s term. Yet Elizabeth Warren is not some privileged child of New England millionaires. She spent the first part of her talk introducing us to her background. She was born in Oklahoma City in 1949, the fourth child of working-class parents. Her father was a janitor and her mother answered phones at Sears. Warren grew up as a sharp debater and that earned her a scholarship to college where she got a degree in speech pathology and audiology. She taught disabled children in public school. Thanks to a National Defense Education Act (NDEA) grant, Warren went on to earn her J.D. degree at Rutgers. Along the way she had two children and today she is a grandmother. Elizabeth Warren has written more than 100 scholarly articles, six academic books, and two best-sellers. Her teaching and writing led her to specialize in bankruptcy law. She saw first-hand how many families were going under through no fault of their own. She fought against the so-called Bankruptcy Abuse Protection Act of 2005, which se-
verely limited the right of consumers to file for bankruptcy. In 2006 she was appointed to the FDIC Advisory Committee to expand access to underserved populations. In 2008 she was appointed to the Congressional Oversight Panel. In 2010 President Obama appointed her to implement the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which she had advocated for a long time. “I felt strongly that a new consumer agency would make the credit markets work better for American families and strengthen the economic security of the middle class,” she said. “The issues we deal with – a middle class that has been squeezed and business models built on tricks and traps – are deeply personal to me, and they always will be.” Then Warren laid out three solid, practical proposals to fix America’s economic decline. These are not bandages, but long-term investments that have served us well in the past and which she wants to draw our attention to in the future: 1) Invest in education. We used to have a GI bill so returning soldiers could go to college and then get a good job. Today our returning soldiers face foreclosed homes and tuition out of their reach. We used to have NDEA grants to help smart kids with no money get advanced degrees in strategic industries like science, engineering, medicine, and teaching. (Yes! Warren, a former teacher, emphasized that teaching was valued back then.) By contrast, today’s students are hopelessly crippled under thousands of dollars of debt. 2) Invest in infrastructure. We constructed a huge network of interstate highways, modernized airports, expanded ports, and launched an ambitious space program. That was back in the days when the 1% paid up to a 90% marginal tax rate. The wealthy prospered, and so did the rest of the country. Today our bridges are collapsing, our levees are breaching, and our astronauts have to book flights on Russian rockets. The only people prospering are the Wall Street bankers and hedge fund managers.
Elizabeth Warren
3) Invest in research and development. Most of the big advances we made to get us to the 21st century were based on government-sponsored research – the internet, spin-offs from the space program, mapping the genome, and hundreds more. Today American ingenuity is wasted on complex financial schemes instead of real products, and American investment is focused on bailing out banks. The crowd responded to Elizabeth Warren’s proposals with an enthusiastic standing ovation. She did not come across as a
smooth-talking, practiced politician spitting out sound bites. Instead she was a genuine professor with solid facts and a burning passion to fix our broken American economy. A new poll by the University of Massachusetts shows Warren leading Brown 49% to 42% in spite of Karl Rove’s increasingly rabid attack ads. Stay tuned. Janice Van Cleve is a political activist and writer in Seattle. She received an NDEA grant to earn her master’s degree. Copyright 2011.
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Verbena
continued from cover he claimed to the court that Haack lacked standing to bring the suit, that the suit was improperly filed, and that Malkin had been improperly served. Judge Prochnau ruled against Malkin on all points. Verbena was awarded $80,000, plus interest in the amount of $32,114. For Haack, the award was vindication after almost four years of what he described as “agony” in an SGN interview. “Thank God,” he exclaimed, when asked how he felt. “It’s done. Three and a half years of my life. Done!” For former Verbena employees, directors, clients, and community supporters the judgment might bring some sense of closure to an unhappy episode in the Seattle LGBT community’s history. Deepening suspicions According to Haack, who spoke with SGN about the case, Malkin was hired in 2006. “There was an outside audit in 2006,” Haack noted, “and it was released in the first quarter of 2007.” The audit showed that its finances were in order when Malkin was hired, contrary to rumors spread at the time Verbena closed in 2008, Haack said. Haack joined the Verbena board in November 2007. His first clue that something was wrong came in “late February or early March 2008,” he told SGN.
“I got a phone call from Mo,” he remembered. “Mo was crying, she said she didn’t know what she was going to do. There was no money to meet payroll.” Haack helped secure a loan of $12,500 from a Verbena supporter to cover the shortfall. At that time he asked about scheduling an audit of the organization’s books, but Malkin told him it was not necessary, he said. By the time of the March 2008 board meeting, several board officers had resigned. It was decided that each of the remaining members would have to take on an executive position. Haack says he accepted the position of treasurer in spite of the fact that he had very little financial management experience. “You don’t want me to be the treasurer,” he grinned. “You want me on development. You want me to help raise money.” Because of his inexperience as a treasurer, Haack invited a friend – an accountant – to join the board and help with the financial management of the organization. Haack says that after an initial examination of Verbena’s books, his friend warned him, “If I were you, I’d leave this organization immediately.” In April 2008, Haack continued, Malkin cancelled a scheduled meeting with Verbena’s accountant. Although she promised she would reschedule the meeting, she never did. On May 7, Haack says, he got a call from Verbena’s development director saying that the organization’s checks were bouncing. Soon after that, he got a call from the sup-
porter who loaned Verbena the $12,500 to According to Haack, Malkin had also concover payroll, informing him that she had structed an elaborate system to embezzle not been repaid on schedule. Verbena’s funds. Malkin denied both reports, Haack said. “When we went to WaMu [where Verbena had its account], we found two other checkThe jig is up ing accounts we didn’t know about,” Haack By May 10, Haack told SGN, the board told SGN. “We also found two credit cards discovered that its treasury was empty. we were unaware of. In the one account we “I got a phone call from Chris [Hanss- had access to, we found $12,000 of misapmann, the board president],” Haack re- propriated funds.” called. “He said, ‘David, we don’t have any Malkin had apparently concealed her money.’” theft by transferring funds back and forth “The board got together the same day,” from the secret accounts into the public one. Haack continued. “Of the four members Spreadsheets presented to Verbena’s board present, three left immediately.” always appeared to be in order, Haack mainHaack elected to stay on to try to make tained. some sense of the mess, and to retrieve any The board president was listed as a signer money he could. He does not criticize the on the account, but his signature was not reboard members who resigned. quired on checks, and he rarely signed any, “The members I was able to work with Haack said. were absolutely phenomenal,” he mainHaack also found that the man he was told tained. “There was just no way we could was Verbena’s accountant “never did any sustain the organization.” accounting work whatsoever.” According to court records, Malkin had While some of Verbena’s financial pracwritten checks on Verbena’s account to her- tices almost seem to invite abuse, they are self, to fictitious consulting agencies she not uncommon in community organizations. owned, and to her partner. She also wrote Haack insists on revisiting Verbena’s expechecks to Caesar’s Palace casino in Las Ve- rience as a warning to other organizations. gas. “It’s so important that we, as a commuOn May 11, Malkin was put on adminis- nity, figure out how this happened, so that it trative leave. never happens again,” he told SGN. In all, Haack estimates that Verbena lost “I understand people’s reluctance to take $500,000. it up again, but we owe these women who The consequences for anyone associated built this organization, and supported it with with Verbena fiscal collapse were devastat- their time and money, and who depended on ing. On May 13, Verbena’s entire staff was it.” terminated. “It cost $1,000 a day to keep the staff,” Haack noted. “Later we found that no payroll taxes had been paid. And we had a continued from cover $19,000 tax lien from the IRS.” When Verbena closed, it defaulted on its rental agreement for the space it shared with is a yes or a no. Do you support the repeal?” “I support the repeal of the New HampGay City at 511 E. Pike Street, putting an extra strain on Gay City’s budget. Verbena shire law,” Romney said. “I believe marwas also the fiscal sponsor of several small- riage is between a man and a woman. That’s er LGBT organizations, none of which re- my view.” Garon, who lives in Epsom, New Hampceived money to which they were entitled. Wrapping up outstanding employment is- shire, was eating breakfast with his hussues took several months, Haack said. Then band. He turned to Romney and said, “If two he and the remaining board members turned to finding Malkin and trying to recover Ver- men get married, apparently a veteran’s spouse would not be entitled to any burial bena’s money. “The biggest challenge was to find a law benefits or medical benefits or anything that firm,” Haack said. Eventually Perkins Coie the serviceman has devoted his time and effort to his country [for], and you just don’t agreed to take the case pro bono. A private investigator tracked Malkin to support equality in terms of same-sex marChicago, and she was served with papers in riage?” “I believe that marriage is a relationship 2010. When Verbena’s attorneys deposed her, she pled the Fifth Amendment on every between a man and a woman,” Romney question, including routine questions about replied, adding, “and we apparently disher address and occupation, court records agree.” At that moment, a Romney aide called for say. him to wrap up the conversation, saying, “Governor, we’ve got to get on with Fox How did it happen? Part of the missing money story seems to News right now.” “Oh, I guess the question was too hot,” be a lack of oversight by Verbena’s board. According to Haack, board members never Garon told Romney. “No, I gave you the answer,” Romney resuspected Malkin until it was too late. “I don’t think there was anyone who plied. “You said you had a yes-or-no [questhought Mo would do anything like this,” he tion]. I gave you the answer.” “You did,” Garon said. “And I appreciate said. “She appeared to be such an activist, your answer. And you know, I also learned she spoke so eloquently….”
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something, and New Hampshire is right: You have to look a man in the eye to get a good answer. And you know what, governor? Good luck. … You’re going to need it.” “You are right about that,” Romney said, as he stood up from the booth and headed into a side room for his interview. According to the Post, reporters swarmed around Garon’s booth at Chez Vachon, where he and his newlywed husband eat breakfast almost every day. Garon, who says he’s an independent voter, said he would not support Romney in the January 10 primary. “I was undecided,” Garon said. “I’m totally convinced today that he’s not going to be my president, at least in my book. At least Obama will entertain the idea. This man is ‘No way, Jose.’ Well, take that ‘No way, Jose’ back to Massachusetts.” Asked why he felt so strongly about Romney’s response, Garon said, “Because I’m Gay, all right? And I happen to love a man just like you probably love your wife. All right? And I think that he or she or whatever is entitled to the same rights that I have. I fought for my country, I did my thing, and I think that my spouse should be entitled to the same entitlements as if I was married to a woman. What the hell is the difference? I was definitely offended. He doesn’t even open the door to a conversation. It’s just a boom! But I did ask him ‘yes or no,’ so I got what I asked for.” “You can’t trust him,” Garon said. “I just saw it in his eyes. I judge a man by his eyes.”
gsa
continued from cover hearts and minds of bigoted administrators, parents, and other youth who have been led astray by hate speech. Fortunately, most of the time, the GSA kids are successful. And they are brave. Earlier this year, when Heather Myer-Love, president of the University of Washington, Bothell GSA, learned that the anti-Gay slur “FAGS” had been scrawled onto a campus map, she was offended. Meyer-Love decided right then and there that she would not let this hateful language thrive on campus. It was time for action. “For me, this is a compromise and a breach of safety for my community. And as the Gay-Straight Alliance president, I feel it is my responsibility to ensure that
everyone in this community is treated with respect,” Meyer-Love told the Bothell Reporter. “And that’s why I took the stance to say, ‘Look, we’re here, and we’re not gonna tolerate this.’” Meyer-Love spearheaded a “Not on Our Campus” campaign, where GSA students tabled at campus common areas for four days, speaking with students about the incident. According to Meyer-Love, nearly 200 people signed three large posters with their names and messages of anti-hate. During the tabling efforts, Meyer-Love wore a button with a slash through the words “HATE CRIMES.” “We want to educate people who may tolerate hate, and listen to people who don’t tolerate it,” she said. “It’s been amazing. It’s been received really well.” The GSA’s vice president, Drue Nyenhuis, also a senior at Bothell UW, said the incident made him second-guess the good nature of the campus. “It reminded me of regressing back to juvenile, high-school age,” he told the Bothell Reporter. “That’s not the respectful, higherlevel academic setting that we’re in. We’re performing at a better level.” According to Meyer-Love, she discussed the matter with Freddie Hensen, president of the Associated Students of UW-Bothell (AS UW-B). The graffiti had been written steps away from his office. Luckily, according to news reports, only a few people had seen the writing as it was immediately removed from the wall. Meyer-Love says that, due to the fact that two members of the AS UW-B are openly Gay, this incident may have been an attack against them. Following her meeting with Hensen, Meyer-Love met with UW Bothell Chancellor Kenyon Chan about the matter. Chan noted, in an email to students and faculty, “although this offense was targeted at our LGBT community, it is an insult to all of us. I hope all of you will join me in commenting on the ‘wall’ and signing the commitment. It will demonstrate to those who were wounded by this single act of hate that this community stands with them.” According to school officials, the school reported the incident to Campus Safety and the Bothell Police Department for investigation. Vice Chancellor Richard Penny told the Bothell Reporter this is the first anti-Gay incident that the administration has heard of,
and noted he was “proud … of our students, the way they’re turning what was certainly a very, very unfortunate and regrettable event” into an educational dialogue through the campaign. The UW-Bothell GSA isn’t finished just yet, said Meyer-Love. The group is planning a zero-tolerance campaign in January with guest speakers, music, and more.
defense
continued from cover The joint conference report on the 2012 authorization resolved differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill and allowed allocation of some $662 billion for military programs and service members’ pay to go forward. The conference removed language from the House version that prohibits military chaplains from officiating at same-sex weddings and bars the use of base facilities for such ceremonies. Rep. W. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) inserted the language during the markup of the bill. The joint conference also dropped language in the House bill that was added by Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) stating that the Defense Department must comply with DOMA. Instead of these provisions, the conference settled on the Senate language added by Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). That language allows chaplains to opt out of samesex weddings if they object to them. “A military chaplain, who, as a matter of conscience or moral principle, does not wish to perform a marriage may not be required to do so,” the language reads. The final bill also omits language found in the House version added by Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), that would have expanded the certification requirement for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal to include the four military service chiefs. Certification happened over the summer, so the language was deemed to be moot. LGBT rights advocates opposed the Akin amendment as an extension of DOMA beyond the restrictions that are already imposed by the anti-Gay law. Adoption of Akin’s language would have rolled back Pentagon guidelines issued on September 30, saying military chaplains could officiate at same-sex weddings if they chose to do so, and allowing military facili-
ties to be used for the ceremonies. The Hartzler amendment was seen as simply redundant given existing restrictions under DOMA. Servicemembers Legal Defense Network Executive Director Aubrey Sarvis commended the conference for removing the anti-Gay language from the House bill. “We congratulate the House and Senate conference committee for having struck the correct balance on the chaplains provisions,” Sarvis said. “Clearly, there was no place for the restrictive Akin language as the Defense Department continues to move forward on effective implementation of open service in our military.” On the other hand, the conference report also leaves out language from the Senate bill to repeal Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which criminalized “sodomy.” The Pentagon had asked for repeal of the “sodomy” ban as recommended by the Comprehensive Review Working Group report on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” that was issued late last year. Both LGBT activists and the Commission on the 50th Anniversary of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, informally known as the Cox Commission, had also called for an end to the “sodomy” ban. Sarvis expressed disappointment that conferees didn’t include the Senate language in the conference bill. “Dropping Article 125 has been recommended for more than a decade by SLDN and several groups, including the Cox Commission that includes distinguished legal scholars from the military and academia, as well as the Comprehensive Review Working Group,” he said. “The Senate was right to take this action, and it is unfortunate that their attempt to end Article 125 did not prevail.” The Defense Authorization Act must now go back to both House and Senate for a final up-or-down vote on the language agreed on by the joint conference. Both branches of Congress are expected to approve it and send it to President Obama for his signature. The White House, however, has threatened that the president will veto the bill over a provision entirely unrelated to LGBT issues. Obama reportedly objects to language that requires military custody of terrorist suspects and allows indefinite detention of some suspects without trial.
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