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ISSUE 5 2

C E L E B R AT I N G

VOLUME 49

47 YEARS

F R I D AY

DECEMBER 24, 2021

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FDA APPROVES INJECTABLE PREP One shot every two months

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The US FDA — the agency charged with approving new medications — has given its blessing to an injectable form of PrEP that only needs to be administered once every two months. The official announcement came on December 20. “Today’s approval adds an important tool in the effort to end the HIV epidemic by providing the first option to prevent HIV that does not involve taking a daily pill,” said Dr. Debra Birnkrant, the director of antivirals division at the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “This injection, given every two months, will be critical to addressing the HIV epidemic in the US, including helping high-risk individuals and certain groups where adherence to daily medication has been a major challenge or not a realistic option.”

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Seattle performing arts groups face long road ahead with Omicron Despite confidence from first in-person productions, future uncertain

Annalise Dautricourt as Clara (center) in the party scene from George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker®, choreographed by George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust. – Photo © Angela Sterling Photography

by Paige McGlauflin SGN Contributing Writer This autumn, several Seattle-based performing arts organizations opened their venues with in-person productions for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic struck in late winter 2020. Eager to welcome audiences back into their spaces, many of these organizations considered their fall performances to be like test runs for how productions would go for the rest

of the year, allowing them to take the first steps into what was once second nature. “Our fall and holiday productions were absolutely test runs for us,” Gary Tucker, director of communications for the Pacific Northwest Ballet, told the SGN in an email. “As the first performing organization back in McCaw Hall following the shut-down, we definitely took baby steps before finding our stride.”

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A kiss goodbye A tribute to Ken Campbell

Photo courtesy of Boy Mike

by Boy Mike Special to the SGN The fabulous Ken Campbell passed away on Dec. 13, 2021, but not before leaving his mark on the art world: his political cartoons for the SGN. Ken was very outgoing and kind, and loved his cat Cheeto. He loved his family fiercely. He also literally had hundreds of friends and family on whom he left an indelible mark during his life. We will

never forget how he touched our lives in so many ways. I first met Ken 31 years ago at Neighbours night club. I had a popular Tuesday night show there called “Retroverge,” mixing ’70s disco and ’80s new wave with a show and audience prizes. Ken never missed a night. We quickly became very close friends. At the time, I was the manager of Retro

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GREEN CARDS • VISAS • ASYLUM • CITIZENSHIP 1836 Westlake Ave N, Suite 302 Seattle, WA 98109

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DECEMBER 24, 2021

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In Memory of Ken Campbell

Staff Writers Mike Andrew • Sara Michelle Fetters Contributing Writers Lindsey Anderson • Janice Athill Josephine Baird • Alice Bloch Maggie Bloodstone Kylin Brown • Sharon Cumberland Carter Hemion • Daniel Lindsley Paige McGlauflin • Tim Peter Jessica Price • Renee Raketty • Nick Rapp Hannah Saunders • Gaysha Starr Sarah Toce • Ed Walsh Social Media Manager SGN Staff Cartoonist Ken Campbell Photographers Nate Gowdy • Renee Raketty Production Mike Pham SGN is published by Angela Cragin. © 2021. All Rights Reserved. Reprints by permission. Publication of names, photographs, or likeness 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. SGN 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 ad. Credit will be given for the balance owed. No exceptions.

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In this Issue

LOCAL NEWS 4 A&E • FILM • BOOKS 6 NIGHTLIFE 18 OP-ED 19 NATIONAL NEWS 20 INTERNATIONAL NEWS 21 DECEMBER 24, 2021

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In Memoriam

Photos courtesy of family and friends of Ken Campbell

KEN CAMPBELL continued from cover

Viva, a clothing store in the University District. I lived in a huge loft/warehouse space above the store. We had many parties there. One night, the police were called due to a few noise complaints. The loft faced the alley and was on the second floor. The police surrounded us but could not figure out how to get in. Ken got a kick out of that. I told him we would need to shut the party down, because partiers wanted to smoke outside. He said, “Hell no — let ’em smoke locked inside!” Thanks to Ken, the party raged all night. Ken frequently spent the night at the warehouse with me. He loved that loft. It How do you describe someone’s life in a short paragraph, especially when it’s Ken Campbell? Growing up as Ken’s little sister, life wasn’t anything but less than ordinary. So many stories to tell… One of many: Our mom’s BFF at the time swore she would never have children due to Ken and me (mostly Ken) — [once] while she was babysitting us, she took us to the mini-mart, [where] Ken proceeded to tell the cashier that she was going to rob him; he got scared and yelled for us to leave. Ken was always full of jokes and fun. Never a dull moment when being with Ken. Ken, if you knew him as an adult, sums up him as a kid: he never grew up. I always looked up to him. He was very talented and had such a creative mind. Ever since I can remember, he was either playing with action figures or reading a comic book, or had a pen and paper in his hand. In high school he was voted most likely to be a game show host. He was in show choir. He dreamed of becoming an actor (he did do a horrible commercial once) or a cartoonist for Disney. There’s so much more to Ken than his artwork. Our grandma once told him that he better be nice to me cuz one day I’d be his best friend. Ken told me that she was right. Well, he became mine as well. Ken never gave me bad advice, and he was always there when I needed to talk. Ken was also very proud of his niece Dominique and nephew Alex. Ken loved his

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was our own Party Palace. Then we discovered the rave scene. I remember getting $100 per night just to show up in disco club drag for ambiance. One night, the rave promoters hoisted me high above the dance floor on a swing. I looked like a big, sparkling, Gay piñata! The only problem was that they forgot to get me down. They couldn’t find the ladder. After nearly two hours, Ken finally saved me by finding a tall ladder. He was my knight in shining armor. He literally saved my life that night. I was always thrilled to be seen with him. He was so handsome, fun, unpredictable, and entertaining. Around 1991 I offered him a sales position at Retro Viva. We worked together for three or four years. One day, Ann and

family and friends very much. So many stories and memories to share! You’ll forever be in my heart big brother. Love, Your lil sis What can I say? Ken changed my life to such an extent it’s impossible to imagine him not being here anymore. Sure, we definitely had our issues, but his actions never left any doubt as to how important I was to him. No one else made me feel so important, thought of — in the most random and creative ways, no doubt — and just simply loved. I miss ya, Kenny. Thank you for putting me before everyone else. Thank you for involving me in your family’s Thanksgiving and Xmas get-togethers when mine wasn’t around. Thank you for making such a sturdy home for my tortoises that 7 years in, they haven’t been able to destroy the damn thing despite sleeping in it every night, and at times charging up against it and flipping it over. Thank you for celebrating my birthday. Every. Fucking. Year. I don’t even celebrate my birthday! Thank you for never growing boring even after almost two decades of knowing each other. You showed me more fun than I thought possible. Like that one forgotten time you helped me corner and grab a non-flightworthy duck (you read that right) that somehow managed to walk across

Nancy Wilson from Heart cane into the store. Ken worshipped them and was both flabbergasted and incredibly starstruck. Nancy was kind of a rebel and lit up a cigarette right in the store! Without skipping a beat, Ken used his artistic ability to quickly create a folded paper ashtray for her. He told me to let her smoke right there. It was a good decision, because the Wilson sisters became regular customers and would drop three to five thousand dollars at the store every Friday, without fail, for an entire summer. Ken got a cash bonus for that. Ken always had a unique way of expressing himself. When he was shocked or questioned something, he raised his eyebrows and ears. It was very Batman of him. He frequently looked like a surprised cat.

all the lanes of Aurora Avenue during rush hour without getting creamed and bring it back across Aurora to Green Lake whence it (presumably) came. The expressions on everyone’s faces were priceless. But memories are all we’ve got left of this amazing guy. Oh, wait. We’ve got his artwork, too. And jewelry. It looks like he did a good job of ensuring he’ll never be forgotten. And with a guy as awesome as him, that’s exactly the way it should be. You were the first person I fell in love with. Thank you, Kenny, for letting me get to know you, and then for loving me as fiercely as you did. I’ll never forget it. XOXOXOXOXOXO Louie <=P Oh, Kenny Campbell... You were my constant friend, confidant, counselor, and fellow mischief-maker for nearly three decades. You left us with an enormous legacy of creativity and invention. I like to think that a little piece of your soul is embedded in each of your finished works, like Horcruxes. Therefore, I will forever cherish and hold dear all the pieces you bestowed upon me. I am so very grateful for all of the memories we created together and all of the laughs we shared. You are irreplaceable. I will always remember you and love you. Heather

DECEMBER 24, 2021

Last Christmas he presented me with a magnetic sculpture of Tinkerbell from Peter Pan and a hand-drawn caricature of me in drag. I will always treasure them. Ken was my partner in crime. My cohort. My muse. I loved hanging out with him at his apartment on Capitol Hill just down from the Eagle Tavern. He was one of my closest and most treasured friends. I’ve gathered a few of his friends’ and family’s photos and memories of him. Please continue to read them below. Ken was treasured, and his legacy will never be forgotten. I love you, Ken! XXX OOO Boy Mike

You were always making the room laugh with your corny and dirty jokes. I remember you telling me jokes I didn’t even understand, but you would have one right after that that I would. You were extremely artistic and creative, and I’m trying to understand how I never got that gene since my mom says we hold a pen and write the same. You would even do some digital artwork for me for school. I’ll always remember all the jewelry, artwork, and ornaments you made for us, especially the dick-and-balls ornament you made for our Christmas tree year, or when you made poop out of clay and set it on the table during Thanksgiving at Grandma Bertha’s house! You were always there for me if I needed you. I remember when you lived with us. I thought there was a ghost because my glass of lemonade started sliding toward me, and I ran to your room and you told me it’d be okay! This doesn’t feel real, and I wish it wasn’t. You’ll always be the coolest mncle!!! Love, Your coolest nephew, Alex

To try and describe you in a paragraph would be worthless, because you were larger than life, with your dirty, yet hilarious jokes, your ability to make us all laugh no matter how serious the situation, your creativeness and talent — and yet you were still so much more. You were always the highlight of the holidays. I always knew I’d be getting a gift from you that was handmade, which made it that much more special. Anyone can buy a gift, but not anyone can make beautiful jewelry or ornaments or whatever else it was that you would make us. And you’d always be down to help us pull some Christmas pranks on Grandma or Mom. Anything to make them want to pull their hair out and chase us around. All of my friends in high school adored you, especially when you lived with us. You might have scarred them a bit with your bizarre yet hilarious poem about Louis’s butthole that we accidentally found, which we still laugh about to this day, but I think that might have made them love you even more. Like I said, you were always larger than life, and I believe you will continue that legacy in heaven. That is, if you’re even allowed in there, with all your dirty jokes. We will love and miss you forever! Love, Your favorite and only niece

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

Local News

GSBA announces new president & CEO by A.V. Eichenbaum SGN Managing Editor

Michael Soto – Photo courtesy of GSBA

The GSBA announced December 16 that its search for a president and CEO is finally over. Michael Soto, formerly the executive director of Equality Arizona, will be taking over the mantle in February of 2022. The statement comes over a year after Louise Chernin, who held the position for 19 years, publicly declared her retirement. “We are thrilled to have Michael joining GSBA as our new President & CEO,” said Jay Petterson, the GSBA board chair, in a press release email. “His deep experience with policy and advocacy will be instrumental to GSBA’s continued success regarding the issues facing small businesses across the state. Michael has been a fierce advocate for equality for all for a number of years. His experience on the national stage will further GSBA as a leader for the LGBTQ+ community.” Soto holds a BA in women’s and gender studies and an MS in justice studies from Arizona State University. He plans to work

toward a PhD in justice studies starting this year, also at ASU. During the 2020 presidential election, sources close to Soto say he and his team played an important role in turning the state blue at a critical time. Soto also served the community as the economic equity policy director for the Arizona Community Action Association prior to his tenure at Equality Arizona. “I’ve been dedicated to advocating for the Arizona LGBTQ+ community, having led a team of professionals to build its political power,” Soto said in the press release. Despite being a lifelong resident of Arizona, the new GSBA president is ready for a little Seattle rain. “I am excited to call the Pacific Northwest my new home and am proud to work toward equality and inclusion in the Seattle area and beyond through GSBA.” The GSBA also announced that there will be plenty of opportunities for its members to get to know Soto, both virtually and in person.

Seattle Office for Civil Rights announces two nonprofits will join the Collective Network to address the carceral state by Hannah Saunders SGN Contributing Writer Under the Seattle Office for Civil Rights, the Collective Network, which seeks to address violence against the BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities and supports alternatives to incarceration and policing, chose the Lavender Rights Project and Liberation Medicine School to support community members who have been negatively impacted by law enforcement. For 2022, $500,000 in funding will be available, and another $500,000 will be available the following year, lasting until Dec. 31, 2023. This year the OCR used the same template for applicants as in the past but made an adjustment. “We included solidarity among Black Trans and gender-nonconforming individuals,” said Community Investments Manager John Page. “Our investment strategy and focus stayed the same and added pieces that include and build solidarity with the community and Black Trans individuals.” “The first thing that stood out [about the two organizations that were selected] is they were led by Black Trans individuals who had deep relationships in the community, a lot of credibility, and existed in doing this work long before it became sexy and popular,” Page said. The eight applicants that were not selected for the Collective Network will be debriefed in Jan. 2022. Background “In 2018, advocates with Budget for Justice called on the city to realign [its] criminal legal system funding priorities,” said Page. According to Page, the city allocated $1.08 million to the Seattle Office of Civil Rights’ 2020 budget to fund communitybased organizations for the Collective Network. “We adopted the social justice funds Giving Project model to distribute that money into the community,” Page said. According to Page, the OCR recruited eight Black, Indigenous, POC, Queer, and gender-nonconforming people in Nov. 2020 to rate 2021’s applicants and make funding decisions. They received training, came up

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Image courtesy of Seattle Office for Civil Rights

with equitable funding principles, developed rating criteria, and conducted outreach. “After the grant process in 2020, it was no longer a collaborative grant-making contract, it was really a connective network, and that’s what we called the contract,” Page said. “For the city to be willing to examine ways that it is traditionally funded and try to do a funding process takes the power away from the city.” The Collective Network’s request for proposal (RFP) was launched in Aug. 2021, with the goals of investing in organizations and coalitions in order to build a connected network in Seattle. Liberation Medicine School The Liberation Medicine School is a group of AfroQueer and AfroIntersex medical professionals that works to tackle healthcare disparities relating to the Black LGBTQI+ community. The LMS acknowledges how Black LGBTQI+ people are disproportionately impacted by the US healthcare system, which it refers to as the “deathcare” system. “Black Trans Sovereignty: Our Origins & HxStories of Medicine” was the proposal submitted by the group, which included an in-depth examination of the carceral

state and how it intertwines with the medical-industrial complex. The group also included strategies of building independent spaces within medicine for the Black Transgender community. The OCR found that Liberation Medicine School is capable of reaching its investment strategy goals. According to the OCR, the Liberation Medicine School provided strong examples of healing projects that focused on wellness needs and trauma processing from transphobia and racism. Lavender Rights Project The Lavender Rights Project is a Black Transgender–led nonprofit organization that addresses oppressive systems that are harmful to LGBTQ+ communities of color, with a primary focus on Black and Indigenous gender-diverse people. The organization offers a variety of legal services and education to assist with housing, gender-based violence, and poverty, among other issues. “The Lavender Rights Project is funded well with human resources and relationships, with deep access in prisons and the Department of Corrections,” Page said. In its proposal, titled “Black Trans-Led Organizational Capacity Building and Indirect Intervention of Carceral Systems

DECEMBER 24, 2021

Experienced by Black Trans and Gender Diverse Communities in Washington State,” the Lavender Rights Project displayed strong legal support services for Black Transgender and gender-diverse communities, while also highlighting internalized oppression, such as transmisogyny. “They are more interested in… that indirect intervention that comes with avoiding the carceral system in the first place,” said Nona Raybern, communications advisor at the OCR. Page brought up how access to good healthcare and a living wage employment are all needs that can prevent someone from entering the prison system in the first place. “Unfortunately, our country criminalizes poverty — especially folks in Black Transgender and gender-nonconforming communities,” Raybern said. “They aren’t as accepted by society, and it’s difficult for them to live their truth in our culture.” According to Raybern, the Lavender Rights Project will “really build those safety nets and support systems to make sure that cycle of poverty stops, and in essence, [prevent] entry into the criminal legal system.”

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ARTS

Arts & Entertainment

continued from cover Prior to its current production and holiday staple, The Nutcracker, the PNB hosted two productions, one in September open only to subscribers, and another in November for socially distanced audiences. Tucker said these allowed PNB to put “some experience under our belts,” and continue with The Nutcracker and its production of Romeo et Juliette, planned for February. “Our first live performances in our building are coming up in January, and I’m excited. It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost two years,” Jeffrey Herrman, managing director of Seattle Repertory Theatre, told the SGN. The theatre hosted its first live audiences at the Cornish Playhouse last weekend for a screening of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, filmed over the summer. “As we’re starting to ramp up, it’s like, how do we do this again? I think everybody’s like, ‘I sorta remember how to produce a show,’ but you have to kind of figure it out all over again.” Uncertainty stirs amid already tight production regimens With recent concern over the emergence of the highly contagious Omicron variant, potential cancelations are plaguing these organizations yet again. In New York City, major productions, including the Rockettes and Saturday Night Live, shut down their remaining holiday shows at the last minute in response to rising cases in the Big Apple. Now, across the country and here in King County where new COVID-19 cases are averaging 515 per day, organizations dedicated to bringing the public together in the name of art and entertainment might face the same fate. “I’m just seeing a lot of cancelations starting to happen again. I’m concerned about what that means for our reopening in the middle of January,” Herrman said. “A reality that we all need to face is that… as much as we’ve managed to get through most of December thus far and keep things going, we don’t know what will happen as the winter progresses,” Samantha Berry, marketing and sponsorship manager for Seattle Choruses, told the SGN. “Winter is a rough time for the sick season, and the Omicron [variant] has definitely brought concern to a lot of people.” Berry said the chorus had received messages from patrons prior to concerts indicating that they had to forgo their planned attendance due to concern over COVID-19 exposure. “All we can say is that we’re taking these precautions, and that of course, we want them to feel safe. So it is entirely up to them what they decide to do with their time and space,” Berry said.

When the Delta variant was raging in Seattle, arts organizations had to drastically change their production processes. Rigorous biweekly PCR testing and rapid tests were required of cast, crew, choir, and orchestra members of the organizations that spoke with the SGN, adding more expenses to productions. For The Nutcracker, PNB had to reduce the number of children in the cast, requiring several students to fill different roles for each act, and the costume shop had to create masks for the children to wear. Similarly, in ACT Theatre’s production of A Christmas Carol, no cast members are under the age of 12, ensuring that all company members are vaccinated. ACT also included health and safety protocols in the pre-show speech, and created the role of a narrator, who would welcome the audience while masked. As part of their holiday concert series Snow Business, all members of the Seattle Men’s Chorus are masked while performing, except soloists, who are tested prior to their on-stage performance. “Because of the size of the cast and the population that we work with, which tend to be marginalized folks, I think there was a particular worry about COVID, and transmission of disease,” Herrman said of The Winter’s Tale, which relied on cast

participation from local groups, including the Boys and Girls Club, the Ballard Senior Center, and Jubilee Women’s Center. “This pandemic has been particularly cruel when it comes to this particular program, right? Because it’s all about assembling a huge [number] of people together to make a play... This is what the pandemic hasn’t allowed us to do.” Organizations and ticket buyers taking wait-and-see approach Unfortunately for many area performing arts organizations, uncertainty surrounding the Omicron variant has forced them to stick with a wait-and-see approach that has become the industry’s COVID-19 status quo. Despite this, in-person productions are still planned. “The one thing we’ve learned from this whole COVID pandemic is the need to be flexible and to assume that everything is subject to change. So we remain optimistic that things are on the path toward ‘normalcy,’ but with the understanding that the ‘new normal’ is not the same as the ‘old normal,’ and protocols will remain fluid for the foreseeable future,” Tucker said. As holiday productions wrap up and early winter approaches, organizations are also taking the time to quickly reflect and rework their upcoming performances.

“I think we’re all feeling really good about how this has gone thus far with the first production back,” Berry said. “It’s constantly a learning process. We’re going to be sitting down and doing a sort of defrag of: how did everything go, what went really well, what didn’t, and taking any suggestions into consideration that come up during that.”. The Seattle Women’s Chorus is expecting to showcase its girl-group and sister-acts-themed We Are Family concert series in early February. Herrman noted that the Seattle Rep and other venues have experienced more lastminute sales of tickets instead of traditional advance purchases, another curveball for these venues. “What we’re seeing from our colleagues is that people are doing just fine. It’s just that those sales are happening very close to the actual performance,” Herrman said. “Which is terrifying for live venues, right? We like to know that there are going to be people in the house, and we’re used to having these advance sales to give us a sense of what we’re doing, and people are just making decisions much closer to the performance. And that’s okay, that’s just the dynamic that we’re in right now, and I expect that’s what we’ll see once we get into the new year.”

Photos by Paige McGlauflin

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DECEMBER 24, 2021

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

Ring in the new year with tone-deaf comedy at Climate Pledge Arena by Nick Rapp SGN Contributing Writer In a not-so-shocking turn of events, a certain “canceled” comedian has been given a large platform to spout vitriolic nonsense and unfunny jokes: Dave Chapelle is set to perform for New Year’s Eve at Climate Pledge Arena. For those not tuned in to the culture wars of late, Netflix released a comedy special by Chapelle, The Closer, on October 5, which caused uproar for its hateful rhetoric against the Trans community. An employee walkout was organized in mid-October, joined in protest by members of the public. A group of Netflix employees allege they were fired for speaking up against airing the special (Netflix denies these allegations). Netflix’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos claims he screwed up in dealing with his employees’ worries about the special, but was seen smiling and taking photos with Chapelle at his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in late October. Does this surprise anyone? Probably not. Netflix is an over-$200 billion company. Its co-CEO likely does not care about the dissent of employees or viewers all that much. Chapelle’s specials bring in lots of viewers and revenue; The Closer was his sixth in a long-standing deal with Netflix. His “cancelation” brought nothing but attention to himself and Netflix as a streaming service, good or bad. It seems that meaningful change is a tough ask from monopolistic companies that exist for profit and not much else. Chapelle’s slated performance here has caused Seattle Pride to demand an apology from the comedian before he is allowed to bring his act to Climate Pledge Arena. Part of the organization’s statement reads: “Seattle Pride is concerned that Mr. Chappelle’s purposeful homophobic and transphobic remarks are being given a platform at Seattle’s new Climate Pledge Arena. The Arena claims to be ‘… the most progressive, responsible, and sustainable arena in the world’; however, we do not see how this can be the case when [it is] hosting an individual who refuses to acknowledge — and now is further perpetuating — his harmful statements.” Seattle Pride also called on the arena to “postpone Mr. Chappelle’s performance until he issues a sincere apology to the

Image courtesy of CPA

transgender community and acknowledges the harm he causes when he normalizes anti-transgender beliefs and denies the complexities and nuances of gender.”

The organization has also reached out to Live Nation, Seattle Center, Amazon, and Climate Pledge Arena partners, Alaska Airlines, and Symetra, asking for support

Image courtesy of CPA

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DECEMBER 24, 2021

for the postponement. Chapelle’s show has not been postponed, though, and it is sold out. Tickets are reselling for over $100. The entire situation stands as a testament to the ridiculousness of the smoke-andmirrors “activism” of Amazon in naming a billion-dollar arena after a pledge to reach net-zero emissions while simultaneously ignoring workers’ rights, destabilizing local businesses, and generating an estimated 465 million pounds of plastic waste in 2019 alone. Jeff Bezos’ net worth is greater than $200 billion while his delivery drivers and warehouse employees scrape by, and we are supposed to believe that an arena named by his company is going to take a stand on issues faced by marginalized communities? No amount of approval or acknowledgement by large corporations is enough to justify the inequities driven by profit-seeking, monopolistic business models. Some are worried that Climate Pledge Arena is gladly giving a platform to a transphobic comedian that refuses to engage with dissenting opinions over his hateful remarks. More concerning is the discussion of celebrity and corporate stances on social issues can serve as a smokescreen to conceal the inherent evils of a company encouraging rampant consumerism at the expense of employee livelihoods — while pledging to help slow climate change — while the founder’s net worth is greater than the GDP of more than 140 countries. The “most progressive, responsible, and sustainable arena in the world” was named by a large driver of inequality and environmental degradation. Climate Pledge Arena cannot claim this title, with or without allowing Dave Chapelle to perform B-grade, offensive comedy on its stage.

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Film

Coen’s surrealistic Macbeth is firm, good, and nothing short of spectacular

Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand in The Tragedy of Macbeth – Photo courtesy of Apple Original Films / A24

by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN Staff Writer THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH Theaters (Dec. 25, 2021) / Apple TV+ (Jan. 24, 2022) By the pricking of my thumbs, something wickedly entertaining this way comes. Joel Coen’s unsettlingly expressionistic The Tragedy of Macbeth is a masterful reworking of William Shakespeare’s timeless piece. Playing with shadow and light, the action mostly takes place on a series of jaggedly obtuse sets like something out of a Dr. Seuss storybook, conjoined with images liberally pulled from a Salvador Dalí painting. The visual ferocity driving this production is mind-blowing. Production designer Stefan Dechant (The Call of the Wild), costume designer Mary Zophres (La La Land), cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel (Darkest Hour), and composer Carter Burwell (Carol) all do extraordinary work, while stars Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand deliver virtuoso performances that held me spellbound. It’s an unforgettable production, and even if the prose is a little too streamlined, Coen’s solo directorial effort (brother Ethan took this film off) nevertheless remains nothing less than dazzling start to finish. Washington is Scottish Lord Macbeth, while McDormand is his devious, Machiavellian wife, the Lady Macbeth. Brendan Gleeson is King Duncan, the monarch the pair will conspire to usurp. The remainder of the cast is composed of a bevy of talented character actors, including Corey Hawkins, Bertie Carvel, Alex Hassell, Harry Melling, Moses Ingram, Brian Thompson, Ralph Ineson, Stephen Root, and Sean Patrick Thomas. Best of all is a magnificent Kathryn Hunter, slipping on the skins of all three witches who plant the seeds of Macbeth’s murderous coup with insidiously sinister ease. She also brilliantly portrays a fourth character whose identity I refuse to spoil.

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Coen’s minimalist approach can be jarring. A few of the more complicated narrative beats aren’t especially clear, and if one is not well versed in Shakespeare’s original play, I imagine it would be easy to feel more than a bit lost. A few key characters are almost removed entirely, most notably King Duncan’s fearful cad of a son, Malcolm. While he’s still responsible for setting up the final confrontation between Macbeth and Macduff, there’s not much more to him in this production, which is rather strange, considering how important the character is to the outcome of the play. Not that it matters. Since making his unabashedly sexy big-screen Shakespearean debut in Kenneth Branagh’s swashbuckling Much Ado About Nothing back in 1993, Washington appears to be far more at ease spouting iambic pentameter now than he was almost three decades ago. His com-

mand of the language is staggering, and the two-time Academy Award-winner ravenously consumes each syllable with delectable relish, as if it were his final meal. He is matched by McDormand. Her delivery of the “Out, damned spot!” speech is one of the greatest dramatic moments I’ve witnessed in all of 2021. McDormand’s performance chilled me to the bone, and there were times when she vanished so completely into her role that it was difficult to know where the Fargo and Nomadland Oscar winner ended and Lady Macbeth began. The two become one, the actor’s mastery of the material nothing short of stratospheric. Cinematically speaking, Shakespeare’s Macbeth has been treated fairly well over the decades. Filmmakers such as Orson Welles, Roman Polanski, and Akira Kurosawa have all taken their crack at the

play, and each has delivered something uniquely memorable. Most recently, Justin Kurzel composed a grittily faithful version released in 2015, starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard, and his blood-soaked approach was liberally caked in equal parts mud and guts. Is Coen’s take better than those previous efforts? That’s not an assessment I’m prepared to make right now. What I will say is that The Tragedy of Macbeth is sure to hold up on repeat viewing and is almost guaranteed to be remembered for decades to come, like those other productions. The toil and trouble of mounting something this surrealistically ambitious pays off, and as the fire burns and the cauldron bubbles, the charm of Coen’s adaptation is firm and good. Heck, I’d go so far as to call it downright spectacular.

Director Joel Coen and Frances McDormand on the set of The Tragedy of Macbeth – Photo courtesy of Apple Original Films / A24

DECEMBER 24, 2021

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

Lana Wachowski resurrects The Matrix with the power of love

Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss in The Matrix Resurrections – Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN Staff Writer THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS Theaters / HBO Max Early on in The Matrix Resurrections, esteemed video game designer Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves) is informed by his business partner (Jonathan Groff) that their corporate overlords are going to make a sequel to his groundbreaking action trilogy “The Matrix.” Anderson can either journey back down that rabbit hole and try to put an indelible stamp on the production, or he can turn his back on his signature work and decline. Either way, with or without him, 20 years after its original release, this game is going to happen. This is not the only moment of sly subversiveness director and co-writer Lana Wachowski inserts into the opening act of her legacy sequel, but it is the most obvious signifier that the talented filmmaker has no intention to play it safe. In that moment — and the gloriously silly montage set to Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” that immediately follows — it becomes clear this is Wachowski’s Wes Craven’s New Nightmare or Gremlins 2: The New Batch, a decidedly euphoric middle finger to studio mandates and nostalgia-laden franchise filmmaking that is perfectly content to infuriate as many viewers as it might captivate. Those expecting an action-heavy retread of 1999’s trailblazing The Matrix or either of its 2003 sequels (The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions) will be in for a shock. This is a deeply self-referential, indulgently meta continuation that’s more interested in being a sly social commentary on the past decade or so — along with becoming a deeply passionate, overtly melodramatic love story — than it is in doing almost anything else. The film is a cagily thrilling intellectual barn burner that also happens to have a handful of meticulously crafted action sequences sprinkled here and there, while the tone is similar to Lana and her sister Lily Wachowski’s short-lived, cult-favorite Netflix show Sense8. For a series built upon a foundation of waking up from a false reality, learning to embrace inner truths, and crafting chosen families free from societal paradigms, The Matrix Resurrections deconstructs its mythos even as it celebrates the ideas it has always held nearest to its heart. There is no coddling happening here. Returning characters do not walk into the frame with much in the way of fanfare. Instead, Wachowski and her co-writers David Mitchell and Aleksandar Hemon (both of whom worked on Sense8) leave

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The Matrix Resurrections – Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

it for the audience to recontextualize each old character in a different way, while also introducing a small handful of new ones who will throw into disarray preconceived notions of this world, how it is set up, and the building blocks of its mythology. I have not talked about the plot. I am not going to. Yes, Anderson and Neo are still one and the same. Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) has also been resurrected as Tiffany, the seemingly contented, happily married suburban mother of two, but the how and why of her existence — she was impaled and left for dead near the end of The Matrix Revolutions — are better left a mystery. Other characters from the trilogy coming back for more include Niobe (Jada Pinkett Smith) and The Merovingian (Lambert Wilson), but, again, how they are connected to this new story isn’t a thing I’m willing to spoil. As for those newcomers, they include the perceptive hacker Bugs (Jessica Henwick), a rogue program (Yahya AbdulMateen II) designed in the image of one of Neo’s most trusted mentors and allies, and Anderson’s concerned therapist, known only as “The Analyst” (Neil Patrick Harris). There is also Groff, and I will say a little about him: his character has an unknown force lurking within that is revealed when the illusions separating fantasy and reality dematerialize, making Anderson’s business partner a viral force of mayhem that, once unleashed, may not be easily controlled. Control. Maybe that’s the word of the

hour. Who has it? Is control even possible? Are destinies set in stone? Or can a person’s fate be decided in ways that go beyond any individual decision? Maybe control is an illusion, so ephemeral and nondescript that the reality in which a person lives makes them oblivious to everything else outside of their personal stratosphere? Ultimately, as unashamedly queer and brazenly political as the underlying subtext to Neo’s latest journey through the looking glass is, this remains an epic love story. Wachowski paints in broad, colorful strokes, showcasing the types of big emotional motifs that would fit right at home inside a 1950s Douglas Sirk melodrama like Written on the Wind or All That Heaven Allows. This series has always put Neo and Trinity’s romance at the forefront, and it is the focal point for everything that transpires in this installment as well. The action sequences are missing the presence of martial arts impresario Yuen Woo-Ping, and there is a pointed choppiness to how the early sequences are edited that, while undoubtedly purposeful, is initially jarring. But the cinematography and effects work are stellar, and the climax is an absolute blast that remembers to put its primary characters first without skimping on the spectacle. Reeves and Moss are wonderful, and I was completely enthralled with the way they put a fresh spin on Neo and Trinity, taking them in an unforeseen direction yet ensuring they are still familiar as the duo

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introduced back in the original trilogy. I was also quite taken with Henwick, even if I do wish that Bugs had a bit more to do. Harris fully invests himself in the material, and it’s a pleasure to watch The Analyst verbally spin a web of truthful deceit that showcases how easy it can be to fall under the Matrix’s mesmeric spell. As for Groff, he’s superb, and his gleefully malevolent exuberance is infectious. Nostalgia is a weapon in The Matrix Resurrections. Wachowski knows audiences have been bludgeoned into a state of comatose ennui in which letting go of the past is next to impossible. Disagreements are not allowed to become debates. Discussions descend into shouting matches. Lies are not called out for what they are but rather are inexplicably given the weight of truth. Coups are born from fabrication without a shot being fired. The director asks viewers to break through that façade, to see how corporations and governments have utilized all of this and more to subjugate the masses into a state of disaffected complacency. Wachowski attempts to open eyes and hearts. She does so by embracing the power of a love that is selfless in its devotion to the needs of others and all-encompassing in its compassionate ability to tear apart falsehoods, revealing ancient truths that never should have been forgotten. In short, welcome back to the Matrix. Whoa.

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Film

Vulgar King’s Man is an abhorrently oppressive misfire

Harris Dickinson in The King's Man – Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios

by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN Staff Writer THE KING’S MAN Theaters I did not like The King’s Man. Watching this prequel made me sick to my stomach. It was like being slapped in the face nonstop for 130 minutes. By the time the film was over, I didn’t know whether to be sad for the talented cast and crew who made it or instead angrily hold them accountable for willfully torturing me with so much apparent elated abandon. Director Matthew Vaughn once again returns to Miles Millar and Dave Gibbons’ comic book world, co-writing the script with Karl Gajdusek (Oblivion) for this third entry in his R-rated series. Instead of continuing the story begun in 2015’s Kingsman: The Secret Service and continued in 2017’s Kingsman: The Golden Circle, the pair retreat back to the start of WWI to tell a tale about the secretive international spy agency’s origins. Haphazardly utilizing historical events, twisting them about willy-nilly to push the plot where they need it to go, Vaughn and

Gajdusek concoct an inane scenario involving the birth of the Great War, Grigori Rasputin (Rhys Ifans), Mata Hari (Valerie Pachner), and the relationship between British King George, German Kaiser Wilhelm, and Russian Tsar Nicholas (all portrayed by a game Tom Hollander). At the center of the madness are Duke Orlando Oxford (Ralph Fiennes) and his gung-ho son Conrad (Harris Dickinson), the pair utilizing their cunning wit and lethal skills to aid their king and secretly help England push the United States into joining the war effort. That’s a simplistic, streamlined version of events, but the plot is so obnoxiously convoluted that trying to recap this movie would take far more effort than I’m willing to give. It does not help that this smarmy, thuggishly oppressive tale grows increasingly off-putting as it goes along. It was almost as if Vaughn was going out of his way to commit acts of narrative atrocity so vulgar he was purposefully challenging people to keep watching. At certain points, part of me even began to wonder if he had total disdain for his audience, almost as if the director was playing them for fools and getting ecstatic enjoyment in doing so.

Pity, because the man sure as heck can construct and unleash a viscerally masterful action sequence when he sets his mind to it. There’s a run to safety through noman’s-land that’s as technically marvelous as anything I’ve seen this year, while a goofily eccentric showdown between Duke Oxford, Conrad, and Rasputin is so lovingly staged and executed that the entire stunt team deserves a standing ovation. Yet none of that matters. This is a loathsome exercise in excess and nihilism that grows increasingly odious. Characters are dispatched with such jovial abandon that their deaths are meaningless. There is nothing truthful about the emotions on display, no authenticity to any of the tears shed or the angry shouts of vengeful mourning that reverberate off the walls of the theater. Worst of all, the moral to this saga has a disturbingly vile undercurrent I found inexcusable. There is an almost joyful fetishism for violence and fascism that would be hysterical if it were meant to be satirical. But it’s played so straight I cannot help but wonder if Vaughn means for audiences to take what he and Gajdusek are selling seriously. While I have trouble believing this to

be the case, that is still how it came across, and intended or not, that’s a turn of events I have no willingness to stomach at this particular time. I kind of liked Kingsman: The Secret Service, even if I could still see the seeds being planted for something rather sickening if a sequel were ever to be made. My suspicions grew into reality with The Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and even though there were facets of that second effort I felt worked quite well, mostly I found it a sadistically abusive disaster that I was all but certain had killed the franchise for good. Well, if that one didn’t do it, I honestly don’t see how The King’s Man isn’t the final nail in this series’ cinematic coffin. While it saddens me that Fiennes will never have an action franchise to call his own, in which he gets to be the undisputed hero — whether it’s swordplay or fisticuffs, the actor makes for a suitably dashing do-gooder — I cannot see a way this prequel turns out to be a success. It’s an abhorrently unlikable misfire, and I truly hope I do not have to see its like again anytime soon.

Rhys Ifans in The King's Man – Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios

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C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

Books

Alexandria Bellefleur’s Queer romance novel brings Seattle into the new year by Lindsey Anderson SGN Contributing Writer Navigating the holiday season with friends and family can be stressful. So escape from the messy chaos of your real life with a copy of Alexandria Bellefleur’s fun and messy rom-com novel Written in the Stars. Recently I sat down with the author to talk about her holiday-themed novel, as well as her illustrious writing career. While Written in the Stars is a wonderful contemporary romance, Bellefleur actually got her start in the fantasy genre. Despite those early novels, she said she always wanted to write more realistic stories for readers. “I think it really had always been my plan to write contemporary romance, and the short fantasy novelette that I had published by a small press was kind of just my way of dabbling. It was my way of dipping my toe into the water of publishing.” Queer relationships Not only is Written in the Stars one of her first contemporary novels, but it is also Bellefleur’s first time writing a womenloving-women (WLW) romance. “I kind of got to explore the relationships that I that I wanted to see but hadn’t had the access to growing up in major media,” she said of Queer fiction. For Bellefleur, Queer relationships were more commonly found in fanfic than on the bookshelves. The ones she did find in popular media never ended in satisfying and happy ways, either. “All the ships that I liked in TV and films weren’t canon, so it was kind of my way of getting to fulfill what I had always wanted to see. Not even what wasn’t canon but what wasn’t fulfilled. I hated how Willow and Paris ended in Buffy, the whole bury your gays. As well as Clarke and Lexa in The 100.” From the very beginning, Bellefleur knew she wanted Written in the Stars to be a Queer romance. The story was inspired by her love of the classic winter rom-com Bridget Jones’s Diary. “That was baked in from the very beginning. My original inspiration was to give nods to both Pride and Prejudice and Bridget Jones’s Diary, but not have a direct retelling beat for beat. I wanted to explore the archetypes and kind of capture that same feeling, but I wanted to make it Queer. From the very beginning, I definitely wanted to make it Queer.” Writing Queer stories is important to Bellefleur, who identifies as Bisexual. The second book in her Written in the Stars series, Hang the Moon, focuses on an M/F couple, but, Bellefleur confirms, it is still a Queer story. “It actually is a Queer romance. Annie is Bisexual, and it was really important for me to portray a Bi woman in a relationship with a man, but she’s no less Queer and no less Bi for that. That was exciting for me, to show the different relationships that Queer individuals can be in. I think that a lot of people conflate relationships and individual identities… relationships don’t have identities, people do.” Bellefleur finds Bi representation in particular an important part of her writing. In Written in the Stars, she makes sure to include that one of the two main characters is Bisexual. “I always like to sneak that in to affirm that for readers,” she said. Queer joy For readers of any and all identities, Bellefleur hopes the takeaway from her novel is the same. “I hope that readers can take away the importance of Queer joy. I think that there are a lot of stories out there that are focused on characters com-

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Image courtesy of Avon

ing out or coming into themselves or maybe grappling with who they are in that sense. I think those stories are very important, but I wanted to focus on characters who are comfortable with themselves and their queerness. I wanted to show that Queer joy is really worthy of representation as well.” Fans of Bellefleur know that her books are full of joy, and for those wishing for more joyful reads, the future’s looking bright. Bellefleur’s third Written in the Stars novel, Count Your Lucky Stars, will hit shelves in early 2022. Like the previous two, this book also follows a Queer couple finding love in Seattle. “It’s a secondchance romance, it has a roommates trope, its Queer: Margo identifies as pan and her roommate Olivia is Bi,” she said. She is also toying with the idea of branching out into more genres. “I have been playing around with the idea of a paranormal novel, maybe. That’s something I have been thinking about. Nothing is set in stone,” she said. Seattle and the Pacific Northwest A Seattle native herself, Bellefleur tries to set as many novels as possible in the Pacific Northwest, hoping her readers can come to love the place she still considers home. “I grew up in Seattle and I still consider Seattle to be home even if I don’t live there now. It’s the city that has my heart, it’s the city I know best, it’s amazing in terms of everything you can do. I feel like everyone likes to boil Seattle down to ‘it rains a lot,’ but there’s so much more than that. I’m currently living in Tampa, Florida, but it is my goal to get back to Seattle hopefully in the next few years.” You might just recognize some of the locations Bellefleur includes in her novels. She loves to name-drop some of her favorite digs, and is especially fond of the city’s most historic neighborhoods.” I grew up on the Eastside, in Bellevue. I love Bellevue, but it’s not my favorite place. I always felt like Capitol Hill had such a heart to it, I was always drawn to Capitol Hill, it’s where I loved to go with my friends. I was also drawn to the U District. I used to go to improv shows with my friends there,” she said. While some writers tend to make up details about the towns their stories are set in, she likes to keep it real. “I like to plant little Easter eggs of my favorite locations and I wanted to do a mashup of betterknown touristy locations and lesser-known locations. In Hang the Moon all the characters are trying to convince Annie to move to Seattle, so I focused on Pike and the Great Wheel, but to give a more accu-

Alexandria Bellefleur – Photo courtesy of Harper Collins

rate reading, I wanted to focus on the thrift shops and local eateries. I set up an escape room in the underground, which doesn’t actually exist. I wish there was an escape room in the underground!” she laughed. One of her favorite restaurants, Wild Ginger, also makes an appearance in the novel. While Bellefleur won’t be in Seattle for Christmas this year, she still holds the city close to her heart. She hopes to be back soon, but in the meantime, she has plenty of holiday traditions in Florida. One of her top traditions is baking with family. “My family always bakes Christmas cookies, and we get together and decorate them. We also have gingerbread house contests, where we decorate them and rank them all. We get really into it, but we also give points for effort. Playing board games is also another one, we get really into that,” she said with a smile.

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A trip to Seattle isn’t the only thing on her wish list. Bellefleur would also love a date night at one of her local bookstores. “I would love a trip to a bookstore to pick out books for each other to read and then go back home… and spend some time by the fireplace or space heater, eat Christmas cookies, and enjoy some time together reading the books we picked out for each other,” she said of her ideal winter date. If your ideal winter date also involves books, stop by any of Seattle’s bookstores and pick up a copy of Written in the Stars, and read along with us in the SGN Book Club. Let us know what Seattle locations you recognize in the pages, and take some of that joy Bellefleur spices her novels with into your new year.

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Books

Season’s readings: Best of 2021’s books

by Terri Schlichenmeyer Special to the SGN There’s still a lot of winter left. Once the holiday decorations are down, the toys are all put away, and you’ve rediscovered your gift certificates... what do you do with them? You buy books, of course. And to get you started, here are a few sure-fire picks for the Best of 2021. Fiction What would you do if life throws you a curve-ball? In The Guncle by Steven Rowley (Putnam, $27.00), Gay, former TV star, Palm Springs fixture, no-responsibilities Patrick is asked to take care of his niece and nephew for the long term. But he never wanted kids at all. He never wanted to fall in love with them, either. Cute, sweet, funny, heartfelt — what more could you want? You don’t have to have read any of the other Cork O’Conner novels to enjoy Lightning Strike by William Kent Krueger (Atria, $27.00), which takes readers back to 1963, and a murder in small-town Minnesota. O’Conner is a young teen then, the son of the local sheriff, and he knows that Big John Manydeeds couldn’t have possibly hanged himself. But how does a boy go about proving something like that? For longtime fans, that’s a can’t-miss question. For new fans, it’ll send you racing toward the rest of the series. Watchers of The Handmaiden’s Tale will absolutely devour Outlawed by Anna North (Bloomsbury, $26.00). In a small corner of Texas, at an unstated time, 17-year-old Ada is struggling to give her husband children, which embarrasses him, and that’s something only witches do. And so Ada is cast out of the community and

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heads north, to safety, where barren women are outlaws. This dystopian, feminist Western is dangerous and delicious. Raft of Stars by Andrew J. Graff (Ecco, $26.99) is a coming-of-age story of two boys who are best friends, one of whom is abused by his father. Tired of seeing his friend hurt, the other boy shoots the man, and both boys run away to escape what surely will be legal trouble and maybe even jail time. They’re running toward a lie, though, a waterfall they don’t know is there. This is one of those books with heartbreakingly beautiful prose in a story that’ll leave you with sweaty palms. And finally, have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you’d taken a different path? In The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano by Donna Freitas (Pamela Dorman Books, $26.00), one woman has many options in her life, each one ending in a way she never thought possible. It’s like Groundhog Day with a twist that’ll roll around in your mind for days... Nonfiction For every kid who grew up with a pile of comic books next to the bed, in a drawer, or in the closet, American Comics: A History by Jeremy Dauber (W.W. Norton, $35.00) is a must-have. Here, Dauber follows comics from their political roots to today’s activist cartoons, and how we went from Katzenjammer Kids to MAD Magazine to comix as we know them. The bonus is that Dauber puts comics into fascinating historical perspective. Did you buy your lottery ticket this week? If you did, it’ll make a fine bookmark for Jackpot: How the Super-Rich Really Live — and How Their Wealth Harms Us All by Michael Mechanic

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(Simon & Schuster, $28.00). You might think twice about the burdens of wealth after reading this book — and you might reexamine your thoughts on what one person’s wealth does to everyone else... Readers who love memoirs will enjoy Punch Me Up to the Gods by Brian Broome (HMH, $26.00), who writes about growing up, being in love with the boy who abused him, and the father who did, too. It’s a coming-out tale that’s sometimes funny and always graceful, one that will sometimes make you gasp, and that you’ll be glad you read. You know that feeling you get when you come across a stack of old magazines in the attic? That gentle, hometown, oldtime feeling is extra-rich inside The Ride of Her Life by Elizabeth Letts (Ballantine, $28.00). This is the story of Annie Wilkins, aging, ailing, and alone, and the audacious cross-country ride she decides to take on a horse she’d just purchased. This feel-good story is set in the 1950s, and its neighborliness might make it be the perfect antidote for today’s world. Lastly, The Redemption of Bobby Love by Bobby and Cheryl Love with Lori L. Tharps (Mariner Books / HMH Books, $28.00) might be the most unusual memoir you read this winter. As a young man, Walter Miller ran away from a prison bus and to New York, where he renamed himself Bobby Love and went into hiding in plain sight. Love kept to the straight-and-narrow, fell in love, got married, and raised a family but forty-some years later, the law caught up with him. This astounding, impossible story, told alternately between both Loves, is one you’ll... um, love.

Children’s books Based on a real event (the Mexican Revolution), The Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna by Alda P. Dobbs (Sourcebooks, $17.99) is the story of a young girl who becomes responsible for her abuelita and her little sister when the federales destroy their village and their home. This causes the trio to run north, one step ahead of those who wish to kill them, on a race to reach the border and make it to the US. It’s an exciting read for 8-to-14-year-olds. Kids who love silly stories will enjoy Egg Marks the Spot: A Skunk and Badger Story by Amy Timberlake, the second in what appears to be a series. A whirlwind named Skunk and his very staid, very reticent friend, Badger are at odds again — this time, over a missing rock from Badger’s collection. There are chickens involved, a bit of a mystery, dinosaurs, and a lot of fun for your 7-to-10-yearold. Hint: find the first Skunk and Badger book; your child will want that one, too. For teens who enjoy unique memoirs, Violet and Daisy: The Story of Vaudeville’s Famous Conjoined Twins by Sarah Miller (Schwartz & Wade, $17.99) is the story of the Hilton sisters and their careers and lives. Born conjoined at the bottom of the spine, Violet and Daisy were adopted by a woman who ruled their lives. When she died, the girls were passed on to that woman’s heirs, who mishandled their careers and left them nearly penniless. This is a thrilling tale of legalities, Vaudeville, and two women determined to make their own ways, despite that they were conjoined forever. It’s the perfect read for any 14-and-older reader, including adults who love memoirs. So now, get to the bookstore. Hunt at the library. Don’t miss these excellent books for adults and kids — and “Season’s Readings”!

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DECEMBER 24, 2021

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Nightlife

Sapphic Seattle: A look inside the group bringing parties to the “girls, Gays, and theys”

by Kylin Brown SGN Contributing Writer Just after Halloween weekend, a raspy voice-to-text reader sounded through my phone speaker. A group named @sapphicseattle on TikTok spookily asked, “Have you ever been to a WLW Halloween party?” The video, showing footage and photos of partying Queers in costume, was gaining traction and now has 91,900 views. Slightly jealous interest sent me stalking their Instagram page. Scrolling through the trendy text posts and party pictures, I discovered that Sapphic Seattle is a volunteerled community group for Queer women and sapphic people. They throw parties about once per month, and have been growing exponentially. To learn more, I spoke with the group’s core organizers, Hannah Balducci, Varsha Nandula, and Siobhan Fox. Balducci manages the uber-trendy social media for the group. She came up with the idea for sapphic-only party spaces in 2020, but had to table the idea until vaccinations rolled out and nightlife returned. “My friends and I were planning a house party, and I thought it would be fun to advertise the party on Tinder,” she said. “I told my matches we were throwing an allQueer party, and while they were skeptical, about 50 or so came. It was a fun experience, so a few days later, I created the Instagram ‘Sapphic Seattle.’” She made engaging digital content about the meet-up, and the group quickly found some online traction. Comments on the group’s videos are filled with interest — and longing. Simultaneously, word of mouth from her 50 Tinder matches and their Queer friends began to spread across Seattle from August to October. Balducci’s small friend group who supported her in bringing her idea to life were suddenly transformed into an organized posse of event-planning women who love women. They threw the TikTok-famous Halloween party next, and began to strategize their purpose in Seattle. “As a young Lesbian, I felt very starved

for nightlife that was engaging and well matched for myself and my community,” said Balducci. “I appreciate Wildrose deeply for being in the scene so long; however, it is disappointing that there are only 21 Lesbian-centered bars left in the Unites

DECEMBER 24, 2021

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Photos courtesy of Sapphic Seattle

States. It seems like our spaces seem to be shrinking, despite our community growing. I really felt there was a need for energetic, welcoming parties for Queer women and sapphic people to connect with one another.”

Organizers told me their mission is to build a safe, inclusive events group for Queer women and sapphic people across the gender spectrum to meet up casually. “[We’re] giving sapphic folk an engaging nightlife space for them to meet potential partners, friends, or anything in between,” said Fox. “As a budding group, we’ve made it a point to gather contributors of diverse backgrounds to help us identify potential accessibility or inclusion concerns. We were excited to work with a BIPOC host on our last event, and are in communication with BIPOC organizations to work with in the future,” the organizers said in an email. They added that “everything is a learning process,” and expressed that they will continue to adjust as they develop their expertise about Sapphic Seattle’s audience. While the young group continues to bring sapphic people together on a monthly basis, they are hoping to meet increasingly high demand. Their last event, the “Winter Workshop” party, sold out within hours of both the presale and general sale announcements. Looking toward 2022, the organizers plan to be flexible in order to serve as large an audience as possible, said Fox. “We’re considering more frequent events, larger events, or partnering with other groups to make sure everyone can come out and connect with their community.” “We are very open to partnerships,” Balducci added enthusiastically. She said they are currently in conversation with a couple of businesses and venues. “Any bars, restaurants, clubs, or other entities that would like to sponsor or collaborate on our events are very welcome to reach out.” If you are a Queer woman or a Queer person who identifies as sapphic, the group hopes you’ll follow along, either virtually or in person at an upcoming event. They are open to people of all ages and backgrounds — just not men! Follow @sapphicseattle on Instagram and TikTok to learn more. For business or partnership inquiries, contact sapphicseattle@gmail.com.

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

Op-Ed

Remembering bell hooks

Photo courtesy The bell hooks Institute

by Lindsey Anderson SGN Contributing Writer There also seems to be a boldness associated with queerness, and also many other “non-normative” identities. There seem to be criteria for being queer, beyond just identifying as queer. Policing identities and gatekeeping communities is a particular tool of oppression and is often used by white supremacy and the patriarchy. — bell hooks How do you memorialize a hero with only the written word? On Wednesday, December 15, 2021, the world lost a legend. Gloria Jean Watkins, better known by her pen name bell hooks, died surrounded by family in her home in Berea, Kentucky, at the age of 69. hooks was an author, professor, and social activist. She was well known for her theories on the intersections of race, capitalism, sexuality, and gender, speaking out against systems of oppression and class domination. Her essays and novels inspired generations of feminists and made academic writing accessible. Born in 1952, hooks grew up in a working-class Black household. Her father was a janitor, and her mother made a living cleaning the homes of wealthy white people. She experienced intersectional systemic oppression from the very beginning, getting her education amid Southern segregation. Putting her intuition to work, she soon began to theorize about how overlapping

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Image courtesy of Routledge

identities led to unique experiences of marginalization for women of color. She entered college while the second wave of feminists burned bras and demanded equal pay for equal work. While she was inspired by these feminists at the time, she also noticed that issues important to women of color were left out. These women demanded reproductive rights but excluded conversations about the forced sterilization of women of color. They

wanted to talk about bringing white women into the workforce, but in turn, refused to advocate for better working conditions for the women of color who had been the foundation of the working class. Seeing a need for more intersectionality in feminism, she began a career of tireless activism, analyzing the experiences that shape the ways women of color are excluded from conversations about gender, race, and sexuality. In 1981 hooks published her first novel, Ain’t I a Woman, inspired by the speech of the same name given by Sojourner Truth in 1851. It was the first of nearly 30 books that she would release in her lifetime. hooks’ words were liberation in action. She broke down complex ideas and hoitytoity theories in ways that were easy to understand and digest. bell hooks was my messiah as a secondyear college student bogged down by academia. Before I encountered her work, I was your run-of-the-mill white feminist. So steeped in my privilege, I never gave a second thought to the ways my movement was excluding women of color, and Trans, Queer, and disabled women. I only ever met hooks through the pages of her books, but over the next three years, she rearranged my feminism and changed my life. hooks was Queer. She never officially labeled her sexuality beyond that. This, like refusing to capitalize her name, sent a message to the world: the complexities of the human experience cannot be summarized

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in any set of binaries. On a panel, hooks once said, “Identifying as queer and moving beyond binaries is revolutionary and is centered in abolitionist thought — so why is the community that has been oppressed for centuries using the same tools as the oppressor? It reminds me of one of my favorite Audre Lorde quotes: ‘The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house.’” It was hooks who first introduced me, and thousands of other young feminists, to the idea that binaries were chains holding us in a system created to oppress the many for the benefit of the few. hooks led by example and showed that, though it was not easy, living a life outside of the binary was a step toward freedom that all those suffering under oppression could take. No number of words can add up to her achievement. To simplify her life in one article is impossible. bell hooks made feminism accessible. She entered into a wellintended but deeply flawed movement with the clarity to understand how to revolutionize it. The world, because of her, has been changed for the better. We have lost a hero when the world needs her the most. But hooks did not leave us without instruction. Thanks to her tireless work, thousands of people now have the language and understanding to reshape their experiences and see themselves as the heroes of the feminist movement. Rest in power, bell hooks, and thank you for lighting the match that will fuel the revolution.

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National & International News

FDA approves COVID pill by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The FDA has approved the first pill to treat COVID-19, the federal agency said on December 22. The drug Paxlovid — manufactured by Pfizer, one of the early COVID vaccine makers — is a faster, cheaper way to treat early COVID-19 infections. All of the previous medications approved to treat COVID require an injection or intravenous administration. An antiviral pill from Merck also is expected to win authorization from the FDA. Experts said that Pfizer’s drug is all but certain to be the preferred option because of its mild side effects and superior effectiveness, including a nearly 90% reduction in hospitalizations and deaths among patients most likely to get severe disease. “The efficacy is high, the side effects are low, and it’s oral. It checks all the boxes,” said Dr. Gregory Poland of the Mayo Clinic. “You’re looking at a 90% decreased risk of hospitalization and death in a highrisk group — that’s stunning.” The FDA authorized Pfizer’s drug for adults and children ages 12 and older with a positive COVID-19 test and early symptoms who face the highest risks of hospitalization. That category includes older people and those with conditions like obesity and heart disease. Children eligible for the drug must weigh at least 88 pounds (40 kilograms). Both the Pfizer and Merck pills are expected to be effective against Omicron

Photo by Merck & Co Inc / Handout via Reuters

because they don’t target the spike protein where most of the variant’s worrisome mutations reside. The US government said it would purchase enough Paxlovid to treat 10 million people, but Pfizer currently has only 180,000 treatment courses available worldwide, with roughly 60,000 to 70,000 allo-

cated to the US. Federal health officials are expected to ration early shipments to the hardest-hit parts of the country. Pfizer said the small supply is due to the manufacturing time — currently about nine months. The company says it can halve production time next year. Pfizer says it’s on track to produce 80

million courses globally next year, under contracts with the UK, Australia, and other nations. Health experts agree that vaccination remains the best way to protect against COVID-19. But with roughly 40 million American adults still unvaccinated, effective drugs will be critical to blunting the current and future waves of infection. The US is now reporting more than 140,000 new infections daily, and federal officials warn that the Omicron variant could send case counts soaring. With those facts in mind, experts warn that Paxlovid’s initial impact could be limited. Scientists warn that Paxlovid has only proven effective if given within five days of symptoms appearing. With testing supplies stretched, experts worry it may be unrealistic for patients to self-diagnose, get tested, see a physician, and pick up a prescription within that narrow window. “If you go outside that window of time, I fully expect the effectiveness of this drug is going to fall,” said Andrew Pekosz, a Johns Hopkins University virologist. The FDA based its decision on company results from a 2,250-patient trial that showed the pill cut hospitalizations and deaths by 89% when given to people with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 within three days of symptoms. Less than 1% of patients taking the drug were hospitalized, and none died at the end of the 30-day study period, compared with 6.5% of patients hospitalized in the group getting a dummy pill, which included nine deaths.

11-week Kellogg’s strike comes to an end by Kylin Brown SGN Contributing Writer

not stop fighting, we will not give in, until that is attained.”

For the last 11 weeks, over 1,400 workers employed by the food giant Kellogg’s have been on strike. Tuesday marked the end of the workers’ fight, though, when they voted through their union to accept a new collective bargaining agreement with the company.

Online and national impact In holding the picket line these past few cold months, the strikers also received national attention and an outpouring of internet support. Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) made an appearance to encourage the crowd to continue, and hosted the event’s livestream for the rest of the nation to watch. Throughout the country, some stores’ breakfast shelves were labeled “empty due to Kellogg’s Worker Strike.” Also, many have begun to advocate for boycotts of Kellogg’s products. The company owns dozens of household names, from the classic cereals Corn Flakes and Raisin Bran to meat-alternative brand Morning Star and Carr’s crackers. TikTok videos portray the breadth of brands for all to behold and boycott, saying, “Don’t cross the picket line! Avoid these products.” Kellogg’s did not respond to this internet “cancelation,” but just days before the end of the strike, it tweeted its decision to remove Kellogg’s marcations from its popular breakfast toaster pastries Pop-Tarts. Twitter users responded that this move proves the effectiveness of boycott. One TikTok creator, Sean Wiggs, decided to get involved after reading about the strike online, and found a community of like-minded individuals across the country on the Reddit board r/Antiwork. Putting his passion for coding to work (he is self-taught), he developed a bot full of random data that allowed users to spam Kellogg’s job postings while the company was attempting to hire scabs [https://bit. ly/3yS2tm7]. Kellogg’s was unable to keep up with the resulting applications. Acts of support such as this demonstrate the country’s realization that we are almost all working people. Workers’ rights violations will no longer be tolerated, and even Gen Z is finding creative ways to say so.

Workers’ demands and the new agreement Workers from all of Kellogg’s US production plants began to strike on October 5, citing poor workplace conditions and the corporation’s unequal, two-tier pay structure, which was cutting wages and making promotion more difficult for new employees, meaning also that transitional employees were paid significantly less than their “legacy” counterparts for the same work. Meanwhile, long-time employees said they were extremely overworked, especially during the pandemic. Prior to the strike, the company’s US plants, located in Omaha; Memphis; Battle Creek, Mich.; and Lancaster, Pa., were running beyond 100% production capacity, “24/7,” according to CEO Steve Cahillane. “[Kellogg’s] is breaking production records every single day,” he said in an early-pandemic interview with CNBC. Stay-at-home life provided the cereal company a boost in profits, with 2020 bringing in $1.76 billion in commercial sales. Though the financials were impressive at the time, the strike brought to light an unfortunate reality for workers at workers. “They want you to use your vacation days as opposed to having sick days,” said Todd Manusos, who has worked in production labor at Kellogg’s for 24 years. “And [work in] excess of 120 days in a row.” Manusos is one of several workers who testified during the strike that they worked through weekends and holidays the past two years and sometimes prior. Kellogg’s hiring of permanent replacements for the 1,400 employees on strike

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Photo by Alyssa Keown / AP

was suspended as Tuesday’s agreement was being settled. Kellogg’s received criticism from President Biden for the threat. But now, employees who were on strike will return to work alongside the replacements who were hired. The agreeement This second attempt to come to a deal offers improvements in both conditions and contracts for newer employees. Addressing the two-tier system, it describes the potential for “transitional” employees to receive the same pay as legacy employees after four years of employment (though not with equal benefits). Cost-of-living increases will begin immediately for all employees, and transitional employees will now get paid $24.11 an hour, up from $19.92. Tuesday’s vote by the workers’ union, the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers’ International Union (BCTGM), came just as workers were speak-

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ing of large-scale changes beyond Kellogg’s. Anthony Shelton, the BCTGM’s president, issued a statement Tuesday: “Our striking members at Kellogg’s ready-to-eat cereal production facilities courageously stood their ground and sacrificed so much in order to achieve a fair contract,” he said. “This agreement makes gains and does not include any concessions.” The union and strikers rallied outside of Kellogg’s headquarters in Battle Creek just last Friday. Those on the picket line spoke of all the time they have spent fighting for these changes and generally the end of corporate greed. “We didn’t set out to fix things in a shortterm fashion; we set out to fix things in a long-term fashion,” said Trevor Bidelman, a fourth-generation Kellogg’s worker and the BCTGM Local 3-G president in Battle Creek. “They’re exploiting us. That’s what we’re here to do: to stop the exploitation of the middle-class worker,” he said. “We will

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

National news highlights by Daniel Lindsley SGN Contributing Writer

Maia Kobabe – Photo by Tristan Crane

Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich / Pexels

PREP

continued from cover The newly approved medication is called cabotegravir and will be marketed under the name Apretude. It is the same drug that the FDA approved for use as an HIV treatment in January 2021. In the HIV medication Cabenuva, cabotegravir is combined with rilpivirine in an injectable form. Cabotegravir is made by ViiV Healthcare, a pharmaceutical company owned by pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline. “People who are vulnerable to acquiring HIV, especially those in Black and Latinx communities who are disproportionately

International news highlights by Daniel Lindsley SGN Contributing Writer

Photo by Rodrigo Garrido / Reuters

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impacted in the US, may want options beyond daily oral pills,” Deborah Waterhouse, CEO, ViiV Healthcare, said in a statement. “That’s why ViiV Healthcare is proud that Apretude was studied in one of the most diverse and comprehensive HIV prevention trial programs to date, which also included some of the largest numbers of transgender women and Black men who have sex with men ever enrolled in an HIV prevention trial.” Patients who are prescribed Apretude must start by having two injections, one month apart. They can then move to one injection every two months. Before having their first injection, they can take cabotegravir tablets (marketed as Vocabria) for four weeks in order to moni-

tor their tolerance of the drug ahead of their first injection. As with other PrEP meds, anyone wanting the medication must be tested to establish they are HIV-negative. The FDA says Apretude will come with a boxed warning about this, because HIV-positive people taking the drug may develop drug resistance and limit their future treatment options. The FDA approval comes after a trial on 7,700 participants in 13 countries. That study concluded that Apretude was even more effective than daily PrEP pills at preventing HIV infection. Shipping of Apretude to wholesalers in the US will begin in early 2022.

Santiago: Young socialist Boric wins presidency CNN reported on December 20 that leftist candidate Gabriel Boric has been announced the winner of Chile’s presidential election, with 55.87% of the vote, beating his ultraconservative opponent Jose Antonio Kast’s 44.13%. Chile had legalized same-sex marriage just over a week earlier. Reuters featured the voices of Chileans the day before election day, showing a votership “split” on the future of the country. Some who supported Kast compared his opponent to the “leftist dictator” Salvador Allende, who was democratically elected in 1970 and overthrown in 1973. Others claimed their support was “pragmatic,” even if they disagreed with his social conservatism. Thirty-five-yearold Boric’s supporters said they believed he, unlike Kast, would protect women’s rights, abortion rights, sexual diversity, and “democracy itself.”

Budapest: EU panel says new laws violate human rights Reuters reported on December 14 that the European Union’s criticism of Hungary’s anti-LGBT laws has again advanced, with the Venice Commission, a panel of human rights experts, saying that the country’s ban on the subject of homosexuality and Transgender issues in classrooms violates international human rights standards. The commission said the laws bar children from objective, unbiased information on gender identity and sexual orientation. “On the contrary,” the panel’s assessment said, “the amendments contribute to creating a ‘threatening environment,’ where LGBTQI children can be subject to health-related risks, bullying, and harassment.” Meanwhile, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban approaches the 2022 election, in which his party may face its first substantial challenge.

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Image courtesy of Oni Press

United States: Author of oft-banned Queer memoir speaks out NBC News reported on December 19 that nonbinary author Maia Kobabe (e/em/eir) has responded to controversy around eir award-winning book, Gender Queer: A Memoir, which has been criticized for its presence in US schools for allegedly containing “pornographic imagery.” The memoir tells the story of Kobabe’s life from adolescence to adulthood, and how e grappled with coming out and the trauma of living in a binary-minded society. Kobabe acknowledged that some of the book’s images may be inappropriate for children in elementary school, but that the accounts were meant to be frank. “It’s very hard to hear people say ‘This book is not appropriate [for] young people,’” Kobabe said, “when it’s like, I was a young person for whom this book would not only be appropriate, but so, so necessary.”

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DECEMBER 24, 2021

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 7 Y E A R S!

Episode 15: Olivia Sterne Activist and generally interesting person Olivia Sterne is our guest this week! Also in this episode, Ash & Lindsey go over the week's events, talk their top picks for 2021, and set intentions for the new year! IT. IS. A. HOOT.

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DECEMBER 24, 2021

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