Issue 07 Volume 40
Celebrating 39 Years!
MARYLAND MARRIAGE p. 6 NOM MUST REVEAL p. 8 drag brunch p. 29
Seattle Gay News
FRIDAY February 17, 2012 FREE! 25¢ in bookstores & news stands
SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
GREGOIRE SIGNS MARRIAGE BILL On February 13, Governor Chris Gregoire, surrounded by Gay lawmakers, supporters, and advocates of marriage equality, signed historic legislation to create same-sex marriage in Washington state. “It is signed,” announced an emotional Gregoire as the hundreds of witnesses erupted into thunderous applause. After years of fighting for marriage equality, advocates are pleased that since the beginning of 2012, there has been swift progress toward the signing of the bill. Gregoire announced her support for the same-sex marriage bill in January; weeks later the state Senate passed the bill 28-21 with four Republicans crossing party lines to vote with the Democratic majority; and then the state House of Representatives passed the bill last Wednesday by a 55-43 vote. Gregoire signed the bill in the state reception room in the Capitol. “I’m proud our same-sex couples will no longer be treated as ‘separate but equal,’” she said. She thanked Senator Ed Murray and
Representative Jamie Pedersen for their years-long leadership on the issue. In an instant, Washington became the seventh state to allow marriage equality, allowing for what Gov. Gregoire called “what is right, just, and fair.” The law takes effect June 7, unless opponents are successful in their attempt to put the measure up for public vote in November. Under the law, no church or religious denomination is required to marry same-sex couples.
Nate Gowdy/seattle gay news
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor
A HISTORIC MOMENT “This was a day so many have waited for, worked toward, toiled in times of great doubt for, and given their all to make a reality,” Zach Silk, Washington United for Marriage campaign manager, told Seattle Gay News. “It was amazing. We were literally witnessing history.” “History” was the word of the day. More than the obvious love and commitment, the truth is what transpired in Olympia on Monday, see marriage page 18
Governor Chris Gregoire (l) shakes hands with Senator Ed Murray after the Governor signed the Marriage Equality Bill into law on February 13 in Olympia.
New Jersey legislature OKs marriage Queer Youth Space Christie snubs Gregoire’s letter, promises veto Tim Larsen
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
introduces new board of directors
courtesy kyle rapiñan
The New Jersey Assembly passed its marriage equality bill on February 16 by a 42 to 33 vote. The state’s Senate already passed the bill on February 13, 24 votes to 16. The bill now goes to Republican Governor Chris Christie, who has promised “very swift action” to veto the bill. “Today, the Legislature has brought us to the promised land,” said Steven Goldstein, chairman of the LGBT rights group Garden State Equality. “We know the governor won’t let us enter,” he continued, referring to Christie’s threatened veto, “but we finally behold the view of our dreams and we will never turn back.” Washington Governor Christine Gregoire wrote to Christie in January, explaining why, as a Catholic like Christie, she came to support marriage equality, but he has not responded. A Queer youth supporter gets the word out “I have been on a personal jourizes the space, tools, and resources ney, because while I am governor, I by Shaun Knittel Queer young people need to be efam also Catholic,” Gregoire wrote SGN Associate Editor fective leaders, organizers, and adin the January 31 letter to Christie. Queer Youth Space (QYS) Three vocates – has announced its Board Wings – a youth-led nonprofit orsee new jersey page 20 ganization that creates and centralsee QYS page 20
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
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Happy, anxious, anxious, happy…. by Leslie Robinson SGN Contributing Writer The LGBT news in my part of the world has been good lately – stunningly good. The governor of Washington mastered her qualms, the legislature mustered the votes and soon misters will be marrying misters in the Pacific Northwest. This process has been so speedy and gratifying that I’ve been in a happy place for all of 2012. Anyone who knows me knows that couldn’t last. Recent LGBT news from around the world has plucked me from my happy place and plunked me down on an anxious acre. Listen, if it weren’t for that continuing glow from local news, I’d be on an irate island. Start with the fact that the “Kill the Gays” bill has resurfaced in Uganda. Oh, this time the death penalty has been dropped, accord-
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.
ing to the bill’s daddy, M.P. David Bahati. Now anyone convicted of “aggravated homosexuality” – which last time around included any HIV-positive Gay person who has sex – will merely get life in prison. Such a relief. Openly Lesbian Pepe Julian Onziema of Sexual Minorities Uganda told the BBC that in the few days since Bahati reintroduced his bill, anti-Gay harassment increased. In other words, Bahati got a lightning-quick return on his investment. A hate dividend. “What I’m worried about most is not even the police coming to arrest me, it’s my neighbor attacking me – it’s the [taxi] refusing to take me to a destination. I’ll be killed before I reached my destination,” said Onziema. Suddenly I’m filled with warmth for North American cab drivers. The prime minister and cabinet don’t support Bahati’s bill, having gotten an international earful about it in the past, but the legislation will receive an airing. “The facilitation of this debate should not be confused for the government’s support for this bill,” read an official statement. Will the government manage to quash the bill? Will there be some hideous compromise? How many more LGBT Ugandans will suffer at the hands of their neighbors? I have room if you want to join me on my anxious acre. I’m generous that way. Now to another part of the world that cur-
rently calls for hand wringing. St. Petersburg, the second largest city in Russia and considered the nation’s most sophisticated metropolis, moves ever closer to bumpkin status. The city legislature advanced a measure banning “Gay promotion.” Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported the bill puts the kibosh on any Gay Pride events. Authorities can levy fines up to $16,700 for “public activities promoting homosexuality (sodomy and Lesbianism), Bisexualism, and Transgender identity.” That whole legalizing homosexuality thing that happened in Russia in 1993 seems to have passed a lot of Russians by. Rather like democracy. The St. Petersburg legislature gave the second of three required approvals to this terrible measure, and the third reading is imminent. The bill first went before the legislature in November; between then and now the fines grew 10 times higher. Just how much does vodka cost these days? Not all the appalling LGBT news comes from abroad, of course. Ask 20-year-old Brandon White, who was beaten outside a neighborhood store in Atlanta by gang members hurling anti-Gay slurs and shouting that his kind wasn’t wanted in the area. Their kind tends to be not so popular, either. White didn’t plan to report the assault until he heard a video of it had been posted and gone viral. “By them going ahead and putting it on the Internet, I feel that they wanted the attention,” said White, according to The Huffington Post. “They wanted to make themselves look like they were brave or strong, but in my opinion, I’m the brave one.” A powerful sentiment. Powerful enough to fling me back to my happy place. Or at least within spitting distance. Leslie Robinson will next get anxious over a threatened referendum on Washington’s new marriage-equality law. Email Leslie at lesarobinson@gmail.com, and feed your anxiety at her blog at www.generalgayety. com.
In Loving Memory Of
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
February 17, 2012
Celebrating 39 Years!
Courtesy frank pichinini
Batter up!
An interview with ECSA’s Frank Pichinini by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN Contributing Writer It may seem odd to be talking about softball in the cold, rainy days of February, but the Emerald City Softball Association (ECSA) has been preparing for the upcoming season starting in April for weeks – months, in some cases. Entering its 33rd year, the LGBT sports league is one of the largest of its kind in the country. Thirty-five teams are expected to take the field in four different competitive divisions all looking to secure a spot in the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance (NAGAAA) World Series to be held this year in Minneapolis. “Our focus is to provide a softball league that includes LGBT and non-LGBT members and creates a unique community of excellence, sportsmanship, and acceptance for playing softball,” said current ECSA commissioner Frank Pichinini. “The growth in our league over the past decades has resulted in the ECSA being one of the largest NAGAAA member cities in the U.S. and Canada and the largest Gay sports organization in Seattle, as well as one of the largest softball leagues in the entire Seattle area.” In its continuing bid to bring new members into the fold, the league is holding its annual Skills Clinic for potential players on Saturday, February 18, at 11 a.m. at the Rainier Playfield (3700 S. Alaska St.). “We welcome anyone, regardless of skill level,” stated Frank proudly. “There is a place for
anyone in ECSA. I think one aspect that ECSA provides is the opportunity to establish great friendships. Sports leagues such as this one provide an opportunity for members of the LGBT community to play sports with friends and members of the LGBT community. I think there will always be a desire to create a community for playing sports. I see participation from the friends of the LGBT community increasing as social acceptance becomes more the norm.” Frank is excited both about the level of play to be put on the field this season as well as the opportunity for Seattle to have a major presence during the NAGAAA World Series, scheduled for August 13-18. “About 160 teams are expected to compete at the World Series this year [and we’ll] send eight of them with every level of play represented. There is a place for everyone: A/B Division, intermediate to advanced players; C Division, intermediate players; and D Division, designed for lower skill levels and for beginners.” Another item that has the commissioner hotly anticipating the coming season is the ECSA’s own national tournament, the Emerald City Classic (ECC) to be held on June 30 and July 1. “Teams from across the U.S. and Canada come to play in the ECC,” says Frank with a smile. “Last year, 45 teams participated in the tournament. In 2012, we expect at least 50 teams to come to our city and compete for titles in each of the represented divisions.”
Team Popular joins the 11th AIDS/LifeCycle
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Jason Krech lives to cycle. It’s what he loves. Cycling is a big part of who he is. So when he found out that he could cycle, vacation, and raise money to save lives, he was all in. Last year, Krech participated in AIDS/ LifeCycle, a fully supported seven-day bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise money and awareness in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Every year, this landmark ride through California delivers a life-changing experience for thousands of participants from all backgrounds and fitness levels united by a common desire to do something heroic. Krech was just one of the 2,350 bicyclists and 600 volunteer “roadies” to complete the 545-mile ride. The event is hailed as the “world’s most successful AIDS fundraiser,” as riders hailing from nearly every state and 11 different countries raised a record
Frank Pichinini
But the initial focus is on the upcoming Skills Clinic. “Anyone participating should bring a mitt and wear either tennis shoes or softball cleats,” explained Frank. “Most of all, though, they should be prepared for a good time. ECSA not only stands for Emerald City Softball Association, but is also an
acronym that represents aspects of what our league embraces: Excellence, Community, Sportsmanship, and Acceptance. New and old players alike should be prepared to play ball, have fun, and, at the end of the day, be able to call both your teammates and foes your friends.”
Bar (916 E. Pike St.) from 7 to 10:30 p.m. The fundraiser’s event page can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ events/211728058922640, which includes links to ways individuals can make a private donation. The event, hosted by Seattle drag entertainer Lily Armani, will include a silent auction “with stuff you actually want to bid for,” said organizers. In addition, drink specials, an opportunity to commemorate a loved one on the actual ride, and (of course) lots of fun and entertainment. After the cyclists raise some money, it’s off to California to compete in an event that has become synonymous with compassion, community, and care. Participants range in age from 18 to 83, come from all over the world, and are at various levels of physical fitness. “Whether Gay or straight, HIV-positive or HIV-negative, they share a common commitment to ending HIV and caring for those living with the virus,” said event organizers. “So much so that each cyclist raises at least $3,000 to participate in a life-changing experience. Since its inception in 2002, AIDS/
LifeCycle has raised more than $70 million to fight AIDS.” Krech says that he, along with the rest of Team Popular, are up for the challenge. In many ways, participating in the 11th annual AIDS/LifeCycle is a two-pronged approach to a cyclist’s commitment to ending HIV/ AIDS. To even begin, they have to raise at least $3,000 to compete, and then they set out to complete the grueling ride. At the end of each day, Krech said, you can’t help but feel emotional about your journey – knowing you are a part of such an amazing event is overwhelming. Every nine and a half minutes, someone in the United States is infected with HIV. While the response has yielded much progress, serious challenges remain. An estimated 1.1 million Americans are living with HIV; approximately one in four are unaware they’re infected and may be unknowingly transmitting the disease to others. Gay and black communities, through not distinct from one another, are especially hard-hit. For more information, go to www.aidslifecycle.org.
$13,060,000 for the HIV/AIDS services of the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center and San Francisco AIDS Foundation. Krech told Seattle Gay News the experience truly was a life-changing event, saying that he intends to be an active part of this community of riders for many years to come. In addition, he says he would like to grow the event to the Pacific Northwest – a ride from Seattle to Portland, and onto San Francisco. This year, Krech – Seattle Team Popular captain – along with Tim Lee, Sean Haste, Jordan Simonson, and Peter Ricci, will ride, and they hope to raise $25,000 locally and $250,000 nationally. Krech says he is confident that Team Popular can reach their goal with the help of the community. The men are scheduled to ride during the week of June 3-9 and want to raise $25,000 before they head to San Francisco. To do this, they’ve already begun to raise funds, but are set to produce a Seattle Fights HIV/ AIDS fundraiser March 14 at the Lobby
Come meet Tim and Matt and join the family.
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February 17, 2012
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by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Maryland’s marriage equality bill cleared a key hurdle on February 14, as it passed a House of Delegates joint committee by a 25-18 vote. Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, a marriage equality supporter, expressed satisfaction with the vote. “Today’s vote is a significant step forward and we’ll continue to work to get the bill passed,” he tweeted after the vote. On February 10, O’Malley testified before a joint session of the House Judiciary and Health and Government Operations Committees. “It is not right or just that the children of Gay couples should have lesser protections than the children of other families in our state,” O’Malley told the panel. “Nor would it be right to force religious institutions to conduct marriages that conflict with their own religious beliefs and teachings.” O’Malley urged Maryland lawmakers to follow legislatures in seven other states – most recently New York and Washington – that have extended marriage rights to samesex couples. “We have the opportunity to do the same thing,” O’Malley told the joint committee. O’Malley attended the hearing with two African American ministers, who also testified in favor of the legislation. O’Malley’s appearance was part of what the Washington Post described as a “grueling 11-hour hearing” featuring emotional arguments from both supporters and opponents of marriage equality. O’Malley’s motives were challenged by a fellow Democrat, Delegate Emmett Burns Jr., an opponent of marriage equality. Burns said he was “surprised and shocked” that the governor would support a “divisive” measure when Maryland has pressing economic
courtesy wkys
Maryland marriage bill passes House committee
problems. Burns suggested that O’Malley wanted to bolster his chances to run for national office in 2016. Burns also implied that O’Malley had bought the testimony of the ministers who accompanied him. “I don’t know what he’s promised them or what he’s told them,” Burns said. “There is something wrong with men marrying men and women marrying women.” Delman Coates, one of the two ministers and a senior pastor at Mount Ennon Baptist Church, replied that his personal beliefs about same-sex relationships were not the issue. “The public policy question for me is simply whether Gay and Lesbian residents of this state deserve the same rights and benefits as the rest of us,” Coates said. “For me, the answer to that question is a resounding ‘yes.’” Later in the hearing, Delegate Luiz R.S. Simmons cross examined a panel of religious leaders opposed to marriage equality about their reasons for opposition. Simmons suggested they were only interested in imposing their religious beliefs on others. “I have heard no evidence at all how same-sex marriage affects your families, the church. … There’s not a syllable of evidence. You just don’t like it,” Simmons said. Stephen Reilly, an Annapolis business owner, said he had been raised by a Lesbian couple from the age of 14. His biological father left the family when he was 2, Reilly said, and his stepfather committed suicide when he was 13. “I’d like to say the best dad I ever had is a woman,” Reilly told the joint committee. He encouraged the panel to spend a day “with me and my family and see how norMaryland Governor Martin O’Malley mal we are.” The bill is now cleared to go the floor of Blade reports the House will take it up Fri- Maryland’s Senate may hold hearings on the the House of Delegates. The Washington day, February 17. The Washington Post says bill as early as February 17.
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Knights Out, the organization of LGBT West Point grads, will host a dinner at West Point on March 31 to honor the contributions of LGBT soldiers and members of the Long Gray Line. Former Captain Jonathan Hopkins, USMA ‘01, will be honored for his service. Captain Hopkins, recipient of three Bronze Stars – one with a “V” for Valor - was discharged in 2010 under the so-called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, but continued to serve, working with the Pentagon on DADT repeal implementation as a representative of
courtesy yalegala
Knights Out to host dinner at West Point OutServe, the association of actively serving LGBT military members. This dinner is the first of its kind at West Point, and is expected to become an annual event. Knights Out is a group of LGBT alumni of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and their allies. Knights Out was formed by a group of Gay and Lesbian West Pointers in March of 2009, with a twofold mission: (1) Support West Point in educating, training, and inspiring leaders of character for an Army that includes openly LGBT soldiers; and (2) Advocate for the rights of LGBT soldiers and their families.
Former Captain Jonathan Hopkins
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Seattle Gay News
February 17, 2012
Celebrating 39 Years!
NORTHWEST
NEWS
compiled by Rick McKinnon SGN Staff Writer
BORN THIS WAY KAFE FOR URBAN QUEER TEENS AT CAL ANDERSON PARK On Fridays, 5-9 p.m., at Cal Anderson Shelterhouse (1635 11th Ave., one block north of E. Pine St.), Seattle Parks & Recreation hosts Born This Way Kafe, a welcoming place where LGBTQ youth, friends and allies (ages 13-19) can gather, be themselves, and have fun. Meets every Friday. For more information and to help make it happen, contact Randy at Seattle Parks, 206883-6110 txt/phone, email randy.wiger@seattle.gov or Google “SeattleParksCOD.” TACOMA LESBIAN CONCERN – FORT FLAGLER RETREAT On February 15-20 (or 17-20) Tacoma Lesbian Concern hosts their annual retreat at Fort Flagler on Whidbey Island. According to their newsletter, the event is unique: each woman basically customizes the experience to suit her own interests and abilities. Some of the hardier, more able-bodies women spent a lot of time hiking the beach and exploring the outdoors. Others take full advantage of the opportunity to curl up with a good book and read to their hearts content. Some play cards, games and do jigsaw puzzles. Others spend much of their time talking and getting to know everyone better. TLC will be reserving two buildings to provide comfy accommodations for everyone to cook, eat, sleep and socialize. Costs will be shared by those who reserve – probably close to $25 per person plus pitching in some food. Some financial assistance is available. Day visitors are welcome. For complete information, visit www.tacomalesbianconcern.org. NORDIC HERITAGE MUSEUM – “THE ENDURING DESIGNS OF JOSEF FRANK” Austrian-born designer and architect Josef Frank (1885-1967) continues to be celebrated as a leading pioneer of Swedish Modern design. Unlike the severe approach to modernism taken by many of his contemporaries, Frank emphasized comfort and informality, producing whimsical designs inspired by nature. Frank’s lavish use of bright, bold colors and floral patterns quickly became popular with a host of Swedish designers and clintele. Many of Frank’s timeless textile designs and furnishings remain in production today. The exhibit showcases textiles and furnishings Frank created for Haus & Garten and Svenskt Tenn. The exhibit runs through February 19 at the Nordic Heritage Museum (3014 NW 67th St., entrance to parking lot is off NW 68th St.) The museum is open Tues.-Sat., 10 a.m.-4 p.m., and Sun., noon-4 p.m. Admission is $6-general; $4-student/senior. www. nordicmuseum.com IMPERIAL COURT OF SEATTLE – “OUT OF TOWN SHOW” On Friday, February 17, door at 6 p.m., show at 7 p.m., at R Place (619 E. Pine St.), join the Imperial Court of Seattle for the Out-of-Town Show, an evening of fine drag entertainment featuring performers and dignitaries from out-of-town near and far who are in town for Coronation Weekend paying tribute to the reigning monarchs. (For complete details, see SEATTLE CORONATION 2012 listing below.) ($10 suggested donation for the Out-of-Town Show.) SEATTLE PRIME TIMERS – COFFEE REUNION On Friday, February 17, at 7 p.m., join Seattle Prime Timers for an informal meet and greet – to socialize, chat, swap lies, find
what your friends have been doing, let others know your latest theater recommendations, etc., etc. Seattle Prime Timers is a social organization for Gay and Bisexual men over 40 and their admirers. www.seattleprimetimers. org.
com. On Friday, February 17, at 7 p.m., at R Place, the Court presents the Out-of-Town Show, featuring performers and dignitaries from out-of-town near and far. ($10 suggested donation for the Out-of-Town Show.) On Sunday, February 19, at 10:30 a.m., at Seattle Renaissance Hotel, the Court presents the Seattle Coronation 2012 Victory Brunch, celebrating the newly crowned Rainier XXXVIII and Olympia XLI. ($25 for the Victory Brunch.) On Sunday, February 19, at 3 p.m., at C.C. Attle’s (1701 E. Olive Way), the Court presents the Alaska Bird-Water Party featuring visiting guests from Alaska. (No cover for the Alaska Bird-Water Party.)
SEATTLE PRIME TIMERS – MOVIE MATINEE & LUNCH TIME SEATTLE On Saturday, February 18, join Seattle RED DRESS PARTY Prime Timers for a movie matinee and On Saturday, February 18, from 9 p.m.-2 lunch. Contact Gary at 206-841-4238 for a.m., at Fremont Studios (155 N. 35th St.), details. www.seattleprimetimers.org. join the incomparable Gaysha Starr with special guest performer Deborah Cox in her MICHAEL RANDALL EALY Seattle debut at the Seattle Red Dress Party SOCIAL JUSTICE FOUNDATION On Saturday, February 18, from 1-3:30 with DJs Brian Gorr and Almond Brown. p.m., at the Ebenezer AME Zion Church Proceeds from the evening will benefit Gay (23rd Ave. & E. Olive St.), in the downstairs City Health Project, Lifelong AIDS Allimeeting hall, the Michael Randall Ealy So- ance, Multifaith Works, and Rise ‘n Shine. cial Justice Foundation cordially invites you Tickets on sale now: $40-general admission to their annual meeting. Attendees are asked advance ($60 at the door), $100-VIP adto bring their input to a panel discussion for vance ($120 at the door, if available). Must strategizing on what actions we can take to be 21+ and MUST wear a red dress to atactually hold police in the Seattle area ac- tend. www.seattlereddressparty.org. countable for their crimes. Panelists will BOOK LAUNCH – tentatively include two mothers, from DeAT SECOND GLANCE troit and New York City, who won wrongful On Sunday, February 19, at 2 p.m., at the death lawsuits against their respective cities after those cities’ police departments killed University Bookstore (4326 University Way their sons. In Detroit, after being investigat- NE), join Gay City and several local aued, the police department was under a con- thors/contributors for an afternoon of readsent decree similar to one that is being con- ings from Gay City’s fourth literary antholsidered in Seattle following the Department ogy, At Second Glance. “There are always of Justice’s investigation of the SPD. A small at least two viewpoints to every story….” donation will be requested, but no one will FREE. www.gaycity.org. be turned away for lack of funds. For furSEATTLE PRIME TIMERS – ther information: 206-329-0562; mresjf@ MONTHLY POTLUCK yahoo.com; www.seattlejusticenow.org; PO On Sunday, February 19, at 2 p.m., at SeBox 22913, Seattle, WA 98122. attle First Baptist Church (1111 Harvard Ave. – enter through glass doors on Harvard SEATTLE WOMEN’S CHORUS – Ave.), join Seattle Prime Timers for their “SHOT THROUGH THE HEART” On Saturday and Sunday, February 18 and monthly potluck with a special presentation 19, at 2 p.m., at Benaroya Hall (3rd Ave. & this month from Gay City Health Project. University St.), join Seattle Women’s Cho- Please bring a dish to share that will serve rus for “Shot Through the Heart,” a concert eight or more people. Cost is $4 to help deof contemporary and classical love songs fray cost of renting the hall. Seattle Prime Timers is a social organizaand love songs from the Great American Songbook. Tickets: $22-$52. 206-388- tion for Gay and Bisexual men over 40 and their admirers. www.seattleprimetimers. 1400; www.flyinghouse.org. The Seattle Women’s Chorus will also org. be presenting a Friends & Family Preview SEATTLE RAINBOW Concert on Sunday, February 12, at 7 p.m., CONTRA DANCE at Renton Ikea Performing Arts Center (400 On Sunday, February 19, free lesson at S. 2nd St., Renton; 206-388-1400) and an out-of-town concert on Sunday, February 3 p.m., dance 3:30-6 p.m., at Dance Un26, at 3 p.m., at the Admiral Theatre (515 derground (340 15th Ave. E.), join Seattle Rainbow Contra Dance for an afternoon Pacific Ave., Bremerton; 360-373-6743). of live music and gender-free dancing for For more info: www.flyinghouse.org. LGBTQ folks and friends and all who want to dance. February 19 features the music of IMPERIAL COURT OF SEATTLE – Seattle’s Farm Report with Mariah Pepper SEATTLE CORONATION 2012, calling. Cost: $10 general admission. THE PRESIDENT’S BALL: “CHANNEL 41: SEATTLE GAY & LESBIAN A YEAR TO REMEMBER” BOOK CLUB – On Saturday, February 18, door at 5 p.m., BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN coronation pageant at 6 p.m., at Seattle The Seattle Gay & Lesbian Book Club Renaissance Hotel (515 Madison St.), the Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle and meets every Wednesday, at 6 p.m., at Seattle the Olympic and Rainier Empire presents Area Support Groups Community Center Seattle Coronation 2012, the President’s (303 17th Ave. E. at E. Thomas St.) Annie Prouix’s short story, Brokeback Ball “Channel 41: A Year to Remember.” Join Their Most Imperial Majesties Rainier Mountain will be the focus of the last two XXXVII Mark Surreal and Olympia XL meetings in February. The book for March will be Edmund Precious Cargo with many local and out-oftown visiting dignitaries for an evening of White’s new novel, Jack Holmes and His fine drag entertainment and pageantry pay- Friend, about a Gay/straight friendship that ing tribute to the Imperial Sovereign Court lasts a lifetime. One half of the book is told of Seattle, its reigning monarchs and title by the Gay character. One half of the book holders, past and present, visiting dignitar- is told by the straight character. The reader is ies from the Olympic and Rainier Empire plunged into the characters’ sex lives, their and beyond, culminating in the crowning of crises, their affairs, their quarrels, their lies. the Imperial Court of Seattle’s new reigning The writing is of the highest quality. For disEmperor and Empress for the coming year. count on cost of book, email Nick. All GLBTQ folks are welcome to particiTickets: $50. www.imperialcourtofseattle.
pate in this FREE book club. For more information, email nickdimartin@earthlink. net, visit http://faculty.washington.edu/ switter/SGLBookClub/ or contact SASG at 206-322-2437; www.sasgcc.org. “BOOST: POETRY TO UPLIFT YOUR SPIRITS” – A BENEFIT FOR TARA HARDY On Thursday, February 23, doors at 6:30 p.m., show at 7:30 p.m., at Fremont Abbey Arts Center (4272 Fremont Ave. N.), a poetry benefit for Tara Hardy will be held. Tara Hardy is a noted community spoken word artist and founder of Bent Writing Institute. Tara recently developed a lifethreatening illness that impacts her body’s ability to produce blood platelets. She has gone through her savings to cover her medical expenses and community members are rallying to raise funds to help finance her medical struggle. Admission is $15, with special $100 booster seat tickets (which include a signed book, poster and front row seats). www.brownpapertickets.com/ event/223558. www.indiegogo.com/boosttaras-platelets. “THE CAR THAT BROUGHT YOU HERE STILL RUNS: A PORTRAIT OF RICHARD HUGO” 2/23-2/26 Turk Miller, veteran film and stage actor, performs a tribute to the great poet of the Pacific Northwest, Richard Hugo (1923-1982), at Richard Hugo House (1634 11th Ave.). The show runs February 23-26 – Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. Tickets: $16-general, $14-student/senior. www.brownpapertickets.com/event/217937 “WINTERGRASS” – BLUE GRASS MUSIC FESTIVAL 2/23-2/26 Hyatt Regency (900 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue). www.acousticsound.org ACADEMY AWARDS PARTIES On Sunday, February 26, at 4 p.m., at Purr (1518 11th Ave.), Purr and the SGN host “A Night at the Oscars.” Watch the Academy Awards on Purr’s numerous screens. Stop in early to fill out your ballots. Prizes awarded all night. No cover. On Sunday, February 26, Madison Pub (1315 E. Madison St.) hosts an Oscar Party with a “Cast Your Vote” contest with cash prizes of $150, $50 and $25 to participants with the most correct votes. No cover. On Sunday, February 26, 4 p.m. VIP; 5 p.m. general admission, at Cinerama Theatre (2100 4th Ave.), join Three Dollar Bill Cinema and Gay City Health Project for their 7th annual Academy Awards Party. See Hollywood’s biggest stars shine on the biggest screen in town. Enjoy light bites and delicious drinks as you celebrate the Academy Awards while supporting Three Dollar Bill Cinema and Gay City Health Project. Must be 21+, ID required. Tickets start at $30. www.gaycity.org/oscars. LIFELONG AIDS ALLIANCE – 3RD ANNUAL BENEFIT BREAKFAST On Thursday, March 8, from 7:30-9:30 a.m., at Red Lion Hotel (1415 5th Ave.), join Lifelong AIDS Alliance and keynote speaker, Robert Greenwald, a member of the Presidential Advisory Committee on HIV/AIDS and one of the nation’s leading authorities on health care reform for people living with HIV/AIDS, for a breakfast in support of Lifelong AIDS Alliance’s vital programs. You will also learn about the agency’s history as well as how healthcare reform will affect people living with HIV/ AIDS. Suggested donation: $150. 206-3288979; www.lifelongaidsalliance.org. 20TH ANNUAL WASHINGTON STATE LEATHER PRIDE WEEK MARCH 16-25 www.wsmlo.org
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If Romney can sign his name, he’s good enough, Grover Norquist says by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Grover Norquist
At the CPAC convention last week, antitax guru Grover Norquist made the case for the Republican right wing to accept Mitt Romney as the party’s nominee. He can sign his name and he will follow orders, Norquist said, so he’s good enough. “Pick a Republican with enough working digits to handle a pen to become president of the United States,” Norquist told CPAC attendees. “This is a change for Republicans: the House and Senate doing the work with the president signing bills. His job is to be captain of the team, to sign the legislation that has already been prepared.” The Republican leaders in Congress are now far more important then the president, Norquist added, and all they need is a compliant president to sign their legislation. “All we have to do is replace Obama,” Norquist said. “We are not auditioning for fearless leader. We don’t need a president to tell us in
what direction to go. We know what direction to go. We want the Ryan budget.” “We just need a president to sign this stuff. We don’t need someone to think it up or design it. The leadership now for the modern conservative movement for the next 20 years will be coming out of the House and the Senate.” Norquist is president of Americans for Tax Reform and the author of the so-called Taxpayer Protection Pledge. The pledge requires politicians who sign it to “oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses; and to oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates.” Norquist is widely suspected of using his no-tax pledge to try to strangle federal social programs. “I’m not in favor of abolishing the government,” he once said. “I just want to shrink it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.”
He then served as a legal advisor to a secretive right-wing group called Committee for Truth in Politics that ran attack ads against Sen. Patty Murray in 2010. Bopp, a Republican National Committee vice chairman, was also legal advisor for Citizens United in the case in which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down federal campaign finance and disclosure laws. Bopp said he would appeal the 1st Circuit’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The 1st Circuit ruled against NOM in a related case last year, in a suit involving disclosure of contributions to individual candidates. The Supreme Court has not yet decided whether to hear that case, but is expected do so by the end of February. Marriage equality supporters have collected more than 100,000 signatures to put same-sex marriage back on the Maine ballot in November, almost twice the 57,277 signatures needed to qualify.
NOM must reveal donors, 1st Circuit Court says by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A panel of federal judges ruled on February 13 that the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) must comply with a Maine law that requires it to disclose the names of donors who financed its $1.8 million campaign to overturn Maine’s marriage equality law. The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals panel rejected NOM’s argument that the law violates First Amendment free speech rights and upheld a district court ruling that the group must reveal its donors. “We agree with the district court that such transparency is a compelling objective ‘in a climate where the number of ballot questions Maine voters face is steadily increasing,’” Senior Court Judge Kermit Lipez wrote in his ruling.
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Lipez quoted from District Judge D. Brock Hornby’s ruling, that “knowing which interested parties back or oppose a ballot measure is critical, especially when one considers that ballot-measure language is typically confusing, and the long-term policy ramifications of the ballot measure are often unknown.” The court concluded that the same state interests that justify applying disclosure rules to PACs also supported applying them to ballot question committees. The Maine law says that groups spending more than $5,000 “for the purpose of initiating or influencing” a referendum must disclose the names of their donors. The court’s decision means that NOM will have to reveal the names of individuals who gave more than $100 to its campaign against marriage equality in Maine. Thomas Knowlton, Maine’s assistant attorney general, said the state was pleased that the constitutionality of its disclosure law had been upheld. That law has been at the center of litigation since 2009, when a so-called “people’s initiative” overturned Maine’s marriage equality law. In the campaign, NOM poured more than a million dollars in contributions into Stand for Marriage Maine, the group organized to oppose same-sex marriage. NOM’s lawyer, James Bopp Jr., claimed that NOM donors should remain unidentified because they faced retaliation from LGBT rights activists. “The homosexual lobby has launched a nationwide campaign to harass supporters of traditional marriage,” he said. “When they disclose who they are they can reasonably expect to be harassed.” Bopp’s name should be familiar to SGN readers. He represented Protect Marriage Washington – the group formed to oppose the state’s domestic partnership laws – in Doe v. Reed, its suit to conceal the identities of people who signed the Referendum 71 petition.
February 17, 2012
Celebrating 39 Years!
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor OutServe, the association of actively serving LGBT U.S. military personnel and one of the largest LGBT employee resource groups in the world, has announced that its second annual International Leadership Conference will take place October 25-28 at the military’s Shades of Green Resort in Orlando, Florida. According to officials, the conference welcomes currently serving LGBT and straight military members, veterans, spouses/partners, and allies to join workshops and meetings. Much like the 2011 conference, it will provide an international forum on creating an environment of respect in the military with regard to sexual orientation and gender identity, and provide the LGBT military community a venue for building professional networks, sharing best practices, and formulating strategies that help build a stronger military community. OutServe’s International Leadership Conference is the only conference designed around and for the LGBT members of the largest fighting force in the world. The 2011 OutServe conference in Las Vegas maxed out capacity at over 200 attendees, including several from allied nations and an assistant secretary of defense. With the ongoing veteran employment crisis, OutServe will also host a job fair during the event that will be open to veterans and employers. OutServe events during the conference will take place at various locations on Walt Disney World properties. “Disney’s support of the military and
LGBT communities goes hand in hand with the support and sponsorship provided by Orlando Gay Travel, Come Out with Pride Orlando, and the Metropolitan Business Association of Orlando, and is why we chose Orlando as our 2012 destination,” said Ty Walrod, co-director of OutServe. “We have made tremendous progress over the last few months with the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’” said Josh Seefried, active duty Air Force lieutenant and co-director of OutServe. “LGBT military members must be visible and confident, showing the leadership that will set the example for future generations of service members.” The Human Rights Campaign, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, the Courage Campaign, and others will be co-sponsoring the OutServe Conference. Registration can be completed at www. outserve.org/2012conference. For information on sponsoring the conference, contact Tom Nibbio at tom@outserve. org. OutServe is the association of actively serving LGBT military personnel. With more than 4,900 members and 42 chapters worldwide, it is one of the largest LGBT employee resource groups in the world. OutServe works to support a professional network of LGBT military personnel and create an environment of respect in the military with regard to sexual orientation and gender identity. For more information, go to www.outserve.org. For more information on OutServe’s magazine, which is distributed on military installations, visit www. outservemag.com.
The meaning of choice by David Webb Courtesy of The Rare Reporter After four decades of watching people struggle to keep up with the politically correct standard of the day in discussing LGBT life, I’m beginning to think it’s time for everyone to relax a little. I reached that decision a few weeks ago when I read about activists getting in an uproar over Cynthia Nixon, an actress who starred in Sex and the City, telling the New York Times Magazine she preferred being Gay to straight because she had lived both types of lives. Her remarks created a furor among those who demand we frame all of our speech in a way they think best advances the LGBT rights movement. A few days later Nixon softened her stance in a Daily Beast interview by saying she was a Bisexual by no choice of her own, presumably in an effort to quell the controversy. Frankly, Nixon’s first remarks in the New York Times Magazine article made sense to me, and so did her later remarks about believing she never made a conscious decision to be a Bisexual. It’s just that I regretted she felt compelled to revise what she had said earlier to appease her critics. I got what she meant the first time without her follow up explanation, and I imagine most other enlightened people did as well. Nixon, who gave birth to two children with a male partner, probably did make a choice to live a Gay life when she became sexually involved with a woman. If someone is attracted to both the opposite and the same sex, there probably does come a point when the individual might need to make a choice in terms of permanent or semi-per-
manent partnership. Certainly Nixon ought to be the best judge of what happened in her own life so what’s wrong with her telling the truth as she sees it? Nixon noted correctly that many LGBT activists shudder every time they hear the word “choice,” “preference” or “lifestyle” because they fear it supports conservative religious arguments that homosexuality is a perversion practiced by degenerates who get their kicks out of being wicked. As the theory goes, that gives credence to the evangelists’ claims that Bisexuality, homosexuality, and gender variance can be cured by the administration of a good dose of Bible verse in quantities sufficient enough to scare the holy bejesus out of the sinner. As we all know, that doesn’t work. Actually, even most straight people realize that won’t work because most of them have also suffered the wrath of the evangelical community in condemnation of some aspect of their lives, such as the urge to masturbate or engage in sexual activity before marriage. In reality, the only ones who truly believe a pack of Bible thumpers can transform a person’s sexual orientation are people who are either lying about it, have been brainwashed into believing it or are just too ignorant to understand scientific research. Decades of scientific evidence make it clear that every aspect of a person’s physical and mental makeup – which certainly includes sexual orientation – comes about as a result of heritable genes and the impact of sex hormones on the brain and other body parts of the developing fetus. In his book, Gay, Straight, and the Reason Why, published by Oxford University
Karen Ocamb
LGBT military group announces conference on Army resort
OutServe co-founders Ty Walrod (l) and Josh Seefried
Press in 2011, neuroscientist Simon LeVay outlines decades of scientific studies that all point to the same conclusion. In essence, people are what nature made them, as LeVay, who served on the faculties of Harvard Medical School and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, has pointed out in various articles and books he has authored over the years. The results of a scientific study LeVay published in Science in 1991 showing marked differences in the brain structures of Gay and Straight men is credited with helping spur the two-decade wave of scientific research aimed at determining a biological basis for sexual orientation. What the body of scientific evidence does for most reasonable people is confirm what common sense had already told them. There’s just no way certain people with obvious mental and physical characteristics could have been anything other than what they became – namely Gay, Lesbian, or Transgender. With others in the LGBT community it’s a little trickier because they display either few or none of the obvious characteristics identifying them as anything other than straight. Environment might have played some role in their development, but again the scientific evidence points to biological factors.
What’s more the individuals usually report experiencing feelings since their earliest recollections that set them apart from heterosexual people. Still, the unpredictability of humans makes it impossible to categorize all people. Some members of the community undoubtedly did feel an attraction to the LGBT lifestyle and chose to embrace it for that reason. The very size and the diversity of the world’s LGBT community is so staggering that if we come across some people who are merely practicing free will it shouldn’t be so surprising. That’s why I liked Nixon’s earlier remarks that it didn’t matter how people came to be a part of the LGBT community. As she said, it doesn’t matter how each and every person got here, and words will never sway the opinions of bigots and opportunists. It will require life experiences – such as coming to realize they have a child or grandchild who is Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual or Transgender – to hopefully educate them about the realities of life. David Webb is a veteran journalist who has reported on LGBT issues for three decades for the mainstream and alternative media. He can be reached at davidwaynewebb@hotmail.com.
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Uganda government shuts down Gay rights conference by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Uganda’s State Minister for Ethics and Integrity Simon Lokodo
Uganda’s State Minister for Ethics and Integrity, Simon Lokodo, personally broke up a secret Gay rights conference in Entebbe, the Uganda Daily Monitor reported. Lokodo arrived with police at the Imperial Resort Hotel on Valentine’s Day, February 14, as Gay rights activists were preparing for a poolside barbeque to close the conference. “I have closed this conference because it’s illegal. We do not accept homosexuality in Uganda. So go back home,” Lokodo told the participants. “This is an outrageous attempt to prevent lawful and peaceful activities of human rights defenders in Uganda,” Amnesty International General Secretary Salil Shetty said in a statement. “The government’s claimed opposition to the [“Kill the Gays”] bill needs to be supported through their actions. The Ugandan government must allow legitimate, peaceful gatherings of human rights defenders, including those working on LGBT rights.”
The conference was intended to be a twoweek retreat for some 30 activists, and was planned to close on February 14. It had been organized by Freedom and Roam Uganda, a group that lobbies for the recognition of same sex relationships in Uganda. Lokodo ordered the arrest of Freedom and Roam leader Jacqueline Kasha Nabagesera, but she escaped, BBC News reported. Lokodo told reporters that the hotel management had apologized for hoisting the event. According to the Daily Monitor, hotel staff had been instructed by the organizers not to admit anyone to the hall where the conference was taking place unless the person had been cleared by the organizers. The government’s raid comes on the heels of the reintroduction of David Bahati’s antiGay bill in Uganda’s parliament. The latest version of the bill still contains increased penalties for “aggravated homosexuality,” but the death penalty has reportedly been dropped. The Ugandan government has said it does not support Bahati’s bill, but does uphold existing laws against same-sex relations.
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer An international team of researchers has discovered that some human cells can repel HIV infections by “starving” the virus of the necessary raw materials of life. The study, published in the journal Nature Immunology, shows how macrophages and dendritic cells resist HIV infections. It remains to be seen if these new findings have practical application in treatment of HIV infections, the researchers said. Viruses like HIV cannot replicate on their own. They attach themselves to other cells, using material from them to produce more viruses. HIV attaches to cells involved in the human immune system, weakening it and inviting secondary infections. Not all parts of the immune system are
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easily subverted by the virus, however. Macrophages and dendritic cells, which have important roles in orchestrating the immune response, seem to be more resistant. Last year researchers identified the protein SAMHD1 as being a critical part of this resistance. Now they believe they know how it works. The new research shows that SAMHD1 breaks down the building blocks of DNA. When a cell needs to replicate itself it will have a pool of these building blocks – deoxynucleoside triphosphates, or dNTPs – which make new copies of the DNA. The same dNTPs are also used by viruses like HIV. The latest study shows that SAMHD1 lowers the levels of dNTPs below what is needed to build viral DNA, and therefore helps to prevent infection. When researchers removed SAMHD1, cells had higher levels of dNTPs and were infected by HIV. “By depleting the pool of available dNTPs, SAMHD1 effectively starves the virus of a building block that is central to its replication strategy,” the report says. Macrophages and dendritic cells can produce the SAMHD1 protein because they are “mature cells” which do not go on to produce new cells, and therefore do not need to conserve dNTPs. “It makes sense that a mechanism like this is active in macrophages,” Professor Baek Kim, one of the researchers from the University of Rochester Medical Center, said. “Macrophages literally eat up dangerous organisms, and you don’t want those organisms to have available the cellular machinery needed to replicate and macrophages themselves don’t need it, because they don’t replicate. “So macrophages have SAMHD1 to get rid of the raw material those organisms need to copy themselves. It’s a great host defense.” Dr. Jonathan Stoye, virologist at the Medical Research Council National Institute for Medical Research in England, was part of
February 17, 2012
Angie fox
Researchers discover HIV vulnerability
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
the team that determined the chemical structure of SAMHD1 last year, and predicted that it would attack dNTPs. “We hypothesized that it works in this fashion and the paper tells us we were right. It is depleting cells of these dNTPs, in cells which are not proliferating,” he told BBC News. The downside, Stoye said, is that some
cells – CD4 cells, which are prime targets for HIV infection – actually do need to replicate and boost their numbers as part of the immune defense. “Cells which are proliferating would be in trouble if we took dNTPs away,” Stoye said. “How we can use the anti-retroviral action of this protein is not clear to me,” he added.
Celebrating 39 Years!
Two Super Bowl winners
by Dan Woog SGN Contributing Writer Although billions of dollars were bet on this month’s Super Bowl, the score of the game shouldn’t have mattered to the LGBT community. Both the New England Patriots and New York Giants were winners. As the website OutSports noted, the title contenders are among the NFL’s most Gayfriendly teams. Both have long and varied histories of supporting LGBT issues. For example, when the Gay Bowl took place in New York, the Giants sent a Lesbian staffer to a panel discussion on being Gay in the NFL. A team spokesman told Outsports founder Cyd Zeigler that the Giants were “an all-inclusive family that does not care about sexual orientation.” Those are not mere words. Last spring, team owner Steve Tisch and former star Michael Strahan created videos supporting New York’s successful drive for same-sex marriage. Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft is at least as Gay-friendly as Tisch. Last year he spoke at an LGBT networking event. The Pats had already become the first NFL team to sponsor a Gay Bowl. They also sent player Andre Tippett to the opening ceremonies to speak
his greatest accomplishment, he tweeted back: “marriage equality support & playing in a Super Bowl.” In a speech at the University of Delaware, Ayanbadejo told students that hearing some negative responses to his own background – his mother is white, his father is Nigerian – impelled him to fight for equal rights for Gays. He added that straight allies are important, and that he has never received backlash from teammates. Also standing up for the LGBT community: Scott Fujita. In a 30-second “Americans for Marriage Equality” video for the Human Rights Campaign, the Cleveland Browns linebacker said, “I’ve been married for 12 years and I know that it is unfair to keep other loving and committed couples from getting married and protecting their families.” “It’s just me standing up for equal rights,” he told the New York Times last year, about his earlier advocacy efforts. “It’s not that courageous to have an opinion if you think it’s the right thing and you believe it wholeheartedly.” Fujita too knows something about prejudice. His adopted father, a Japanese-American, was born during World War II in an internment camp in Arizona. Fujita began speaking out on Gay rights when he learned about laws limiting Gay adoption. Such legislation, he said, focuses on sexual orientation, rather than finding safe homes for children. “It’s also saying that we’d rather have kids bounce around from foster home to foster home throughout the course of their childhood, than end up in a permanent home.” “By and large, the players are more tolerant than they get credit for,” he said. “It’s not a big issue. Some guys will think you are crazy for believing one way, but they’ll still accept you.”
The league itself is also more accepting of Gay issues than many people believe. Its collective bargaining agreement protects all players against discrimination based on sexual orientation, and the league office offers same-sex domestic partner benefits. Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue has been a very public supporter of PFLAG. He spoke at a New York chapter dinner about his love for his Gay son, Drew, and Drew’s partner. Tagliabue also made a major contribution to the organization. Last fall he and his wife donated $1 million to his alma mater, Georgetown University, to establish the Tagliabue Initiative for LGBT Life. What we don’t know, though, is which Gay-friendly team – the Patriots or Giants – Tagliabue supported in this year’s Super Bowl. Dan Woog is a journalist, educator, soccer coach, Gay activist, and author of the “Jocks” series of books on Gay male athletes. Visit his website at www.danwoog. com. He can be reached care of this publication or at OutField@qsyndicate.com.
on behalf of the team, and make the ceremonial coin toss. Kraft’s support for Gay issues has created an environment of openness and celebration that filters down throughout the entire organization. Player Bret Lockett has appeared in the NOH8 (“No Hate”) campaign against California Proposition 8, and has been a vocal supporter of Gay marriage. Ziegler also notes that the two Super Bowl teams represent states – Massachusetts and New York – that allow same-sex marriage. New Jersey – where the Giants actually play – may soon do the same. In addition, the NFC runner-up San Francisco 49ers offer same-sex domestic partner benefits to all employees. (As for Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, who last year participated in a Super Bowl ad for the anti-Gay Focus on the Family group: He got trounced by the Pats.) But it’s not just Super Bowl participants that – Tebow-types notwithstanding – are moving the NFL forward on Gay rights. Baltimore Raven Brendon Ayanbadejo – hey, he played for a team that was in the conference championship too – has been an outspoken supporter of Equality Maryland, the Gay marriage effort in that state. And he too stripped down – well, he took off his shirt, which was plenty – to make a NOH8 statement. When a Twitter fan wanted to know
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marriage
continued from cover and it was a once-in-a-lifetime moment. Nobody knows that more than Murray, an openly Gay lawmaker who has fought to advance LGBT rights in Washington for 17 years. Murray came to the Legislature after the death of his friend, Washington’s first Gay lawmaker, Senator Cal Anderson. The late senator had worked for nearly 10 years on civil rights legislation. “My friends, welcome to the other side of the rainbow,” an elated Murray told the crowd gathered at the Capitol to witness the signing of the bill. “No matter what the future holds, nothing will take this moment away from us.” When asked how he felt witnessing the signing of the bill, Murray replied, “Happy, humble – I was moved by all the work everyone did.” Pedersen, the bill’s chief sponsor in the State House and also an openly Gay lawmaker, said, “Years from now, our kids will look back and ask what all the fuss was about.” “I’m elated,” beamed Pedersen, who says he plans to marry his longtime partner. “We have a lot of work ahead of us in the next nine months, but this moment is very sweet.” Josh Friedes, Equal Rights Washington marriage equality director, said that although he was not in the front row to witness the signing, what he did see were “tears in the eyes of loving committed couples, hands held, and glances between partners and friends which told the story both of great joy and the acknowledgement of how much
A roar of applause erupted as Governor Gregoire signed the bill.
pain not being able to marry had caused.” “I felt a great calm and a sense of personal relief,” he told SGN. “I’ve been working on marriage equality nonstop since 1997, first in Massachusetts and now in Washington, and to see the strength of the Washington United for Marriage Campaign – dare I call it a movement – gives me great hope that we can preserve the marriage equality law in Washington state.” Friedes says he also couldn’t help but think “we really are at different place in America in 2012.” “The number and diversity of clergy in the bill signing room, joined by union leaders and members and business people, reminded me of the broad support we have today,” he said. “It’s a wonderful time to be LGBT in Washington state, and we need to celebrate that just as much as the actual marriage equality law itself.”
And celebrate we did. The community – which could barely contain its joy over the new law – and out supporters, took to Capitol Hill restaurants and bars to commemorate the historic victory. In addition, over 300 singers from the Seattle Men’s Chorus and Seattle Women’s Chorus partnered with Washington United for Marriage, Equal Rights Washington, and SGN to celebrate at Plymouth Congregational Church (6th Ave. and University St.). The event, attended by over 1,000 people, was an opportunity for all members of the community to come together and celebrate the historic moment. Together, attendees sent a strong message to opponents that we stand in solidarity for marriage equality. Seattle City Council member Sally Clark and Plymouth Senior Minister Brigitta Remole joined Silk, Pedersen, and Murray to speak at the event. VOTERS MAY FACE A REFERENDUM, INITIATIVE IN NOVEMBER “Voters will have the opportunity to define marriage in our state,” declared Joseph Backholm, executive director of the Family Policy Institute of Washington – proponents of a referendum that would put the marriage equality law to public vote. The newly formed group filed the referendum with the secretary of state within hours of the governor signing the bill. “Marriage is the union of one man and one
woman for good reason,” said Backholm. “Marriage is society’s way of bringing men and women together so that children can be raised by, and cared for by, their mother and father – the people responsible for bringing them into the world. It is the most important child-focused institution of society and we will fight to preserve it. Voters will have the opportunity to define marriage in our state.” Opponents of the new law have until June 6 to collect 120,577 voter signatures to qualify the referendum to the November ballot. Once the signatures are filed, the legislation is stayed and does not go into effect. The Preserve Marriage Washington coalition initially includes the Family Policy Institute of Washington, Stand for Marriage Washington, Concerned Women for America and the National Organization for Marriage. It is expected that hundreds of groups, churches, and individuals will be involved in the signature-gathering phase, and even more during the campaign. “We call on the community of faith and all citizens to join in this referendum to give the voters of Washington the right to decide the definition of marriage in our state,” said Representative Matt Shea (R – Spokane Valley), a spokesman for Stand for Marriage Washington. “Already we have had an outpouring of support from pastors, legislators, and individuals who are ready to go to work to preserve marriage in our state. Thirty-one other states have voted on marriage, and every one has voted to preserve marriage
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as the union of one man and one woman. Washington state will do the same.” The marriage equality referendum has been named Referendum 74. It is important to note that, if Referendum 74 makes it on the November ballot, marriage equality supporters must vote in favor of the referendum – as referendums ask to “keep” an existing law in place. On top of the referendum, notorious rightwing lawyer Stephen Pidgeon has filed a November ballot initiative to repeal samesex marriage in Washington state. “We believe this issue is even more volatile than domestic partnerships,” Pidgeon said. “The voters should get to vote on it. Let’s see what they think.” Pidgeon’s initiative would alter the current state statute’s definition of marriage from a civil contract “between a male and a female” to “between one man and one woman.” The clarification is needed because Pidgeon says legalizing Gay marriage “will lead to the liberalization of marriage laws to allow for polygamy and other forms of relationships.” Pidgeon and supporters have until July 6 to amass the requisite 241,153 valid voter signatures to put a repeal before voters in November. The ACLU and Legal Voice argued Wednesday in Thurston County Superior
Court that with the recent passage of samesex marriage legislation, Pidgeon’s initiative language is now inaccurate. It fails, the organizations say, to acknowledge that marriage in Washington is no longer restricted to opposite-sex couples. The two rights groups said the initiative needs to make it clear to voters in November that they are voting not to uphold the nowoverturned marriage law that restricts marriage to only a man and a woman, but rather are voting to approve or reject the new state law that allows same-sex couples to marry. CAMPAIGN FOR POPULAR VOTE Murray is confident that marriage equality can still prevail, even if Referendum 74 makes it to the November ballot. “Yes, we can and we will win,” he said. “But winning will depend on the courage and commitment of the community. We reached this point because so many people have been willing to share deeply personal stories about their own experiences, about their hopes for their Gay or Lesbian children, or even about close friends or coworkers. Ultimately, it’s those stories that will decide how the public votes.” Silk agreed, telling SGN, “We can win!” “It will take us all working together, joining the cause and supporting one another as see marriage page 21
Emotions ran high among the spectators.
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new jersey continued from cover
“I’ve reached a point where I have found my place.” Gregoire’s office made the contents of the letter public after she signed Washington’s marriage equality law. Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for Christie, told Bloomberg News he could not confirm whether Christie got the letter. Gregoire also offered to phone the New Jersey governor and urge him not to veto New Jersey’s marriage bill. The Assembly debate was marked by emotional speeches from both sides, punctuated by applause from their respective supporters. Many Assembly members spoke to their own religious convictions. One Democratic Assembly member, Cleopatra Tucker, said that as a deaconess in her church, she had “struggled over this. ... I really had problems and struggled with this.” Nevertheless, she decided that her religious beliefs were not the main issue, she said. “This bill today is not a religious issue. It’s a civil rights issue,” Tucker said. Under New Jersey law, Democratic leaders in the legislature have until January 2014 to override the governor’s veto. Fifty-four votes in the Assembly and 27 in the Senate would be required to override Christie’s veto. The pro-equality votes are well short of that number. Democrats have been unsuccessful in past attempts to override Christie’s vetoes, nota-
bly failing to reinstate a surtax on the state’s millionaires. Christie and most Republican lawmakers say they want same-sex marriage put to a popular vote. Democrats have contended that marriage is a civil right protected by the Constitution and therefore should not be subject to referendum. Republican Senator Kip Bateman has already drafted a resolution to put same-sex marriage on the November ballot, but Democratic Senate President Steve Sweeney stated he will not allow it to come to the floor for a vote. Marriage equality supporters are in no hurry to go to the ballot, they say, even though polls indicate a majority of the state’s voters support same-sex marriage. Popular support for marriage equality in New Jersey is at an all-time high – 52% in favor to 42% opposed, according to one recent poll – but LGBT rights activists expect that number to continue to grow. “Civil rights is incremental, civil rights is long-range, and you take one achievement at a time,” Goldstein said. “Marriage equality in New Jersey is a matter of when – not if. New Jersey should choose to join the right side of history soon, because loving same-sex couples and their families should not have to wait any longer,” Lambda Legal said in a statement. Other national LGBT groups also took a long-term view of the situation. “If the governor sticks with his threat of a veto, Freedom to Marry will work throughout the entire remainder of the legislative session, supporting local families, leaders,
and advocates as they make the case and win the extra handful of votes needed to override the veto and do right by these families,” Freedom to Marry stated. “Governor Christie may veto this legislation, but he is out of step with the majority of voters on this issue. We will not give up until marriage equality becomes a reality in New Jersey,” HRC President Joe Solmonese said in a statement.
QYS
continued from cover of Directors. QYS officials – who say they are working against ageism in the Queer community and oppression within the community at large – wrote in a press release, “We envision a culture that prioritizes youth voices in all organizations that focus on youth.” The organizers believe that young people are key actors in “challenging systemic violence and creating a dynamic Queer culture.” “Thanks to generous individual and foundational support, we are moving forward with Queer Youth Space in opening Wing 1, a cultural arts center on Capitol Hill,” announced officials February 14. The cultural arts center QYS envisions is a “comfortable place for Queer youth that is open to all people and works to undo ageism, economic violence, racism, heteronormativity, and intersecting oppressions.” “Our other two components are Wing 2, the wellness collaborative, a partnership with local organizations to provide critical education and mental health services to address queer youth disparities; and Wing 3, the community-based research and education wing, a think tank that builds youth leadership and creates policy and community change through research, education, and advocacy,” said officials. “Together,” they continued, “we work toward the cultural and societal empowerment of Queer identities. We hope that you will join us in transforming our collective vision into a reality.” QYS has yet to release the location of the planned physical space. However, on February 14, the youth-led organization did introduce the community to its Board of Di-
rectors. The board members are Andrew Nelson, Shireen Nori, Kyle Rapinan, Thomas Nguyen, Logan Thompson, Genna Watson, Emma Petersky, Sam Bottman, Sammy Grow, Timothy R. Gaynor, and Brady Friedrich. “QYS is distinct in recognizing young people as the leaders of this movement and empowering them to effect change,” said board member Nelson. Nori agreed, saying, “QYS is a strong and positive force with a simple message: take action and create change.” “I began working towards empowering Queer youth, like myself, in the small Utah city where I grew up,” said Logan Thompson, a QYS board member. After he moved to Seattle, Thompson said, QYS “stood out to me as a fantastic organization with its centered approach on young people.” “As a youth-led group that was highly aware of its actions they also took a universal approach to work toward ending all oppression,” he said. Thompson admitted that “by living in Seattle” he though he “would automatically be immersed in the Queer community.” “I was shocked to find that I had no medium for meeting the Queer community. Not allowed in bars or priced out of functions, there were little to no options,” he recalls. “It was a lonely time. Only when I began working with this non-profit, was I really able to socialize with my peers, and it was fantastic!” “I showed up at a random meeting and I was welcomed in with open arms,” he says. “QYS truly creates space wherever we go.” Emma Petersky, another board member, said, “I believe QYS will offer a unique cultural arts center that will have positive reverberations for youth throughout Seattle.” “I live on the Eastside and I am here to represent the blossoming Queer youth perspective from our side of the pond,” she continued. “After all the teen centers close, we have nowhere to go besides parking lots or 7-11. QYS will be a destination for young people from all over the Puget Sound region!” QYS and Three Wings are funded by the community. If you would like your donation to be tax-deductible under federal law, email info@queeryouthspace.com.
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www.sgn.org 20 Seattle Gay News
February 17, 2012
Celebrating 39 Years!
marriage
continued from page 19 we fight to protect this hard-earned victory,” he said. “We’ve been having long conversations with the voters of Washington, from successfully passing bills in Olympia to our successful defense of Referendum 71.” Silk maintains that if Washington United for Marriage speaks with voters “early and often and tells them stories about love, commitment, family, and equality,” we will win. “We can only do that if people join our cause,” he reminded us, pointing out that although the campaign is already underway, SGN readers might want to think about volunteering with the organization, making a campaign donation, and staying informed about the campaign by visiting www.washingtonunitedformarriage.org. “I believe we could secure marriage equality in 2012 but only if we approach each day as if the referendum were tomorrow,” Friedes told SGN. Friedes led the successful Washington Families Standing Together campaign that approved Referendum 71 in 2009. Since then, Friedes went on to become executive director at Equal Rights Washington, marriage equality director at the organization, and a proud member of Washington United for Marriage. “The referendum is winnable, but complacency and overconfidence coupled with the incredible flow of anti-Gay money that will come from out of state are our greatest threats,” warned Friedes. “Our stories continue to be our power and we must not simply say ‘We will need to APPROVE Referendum 74’ if it qualifies
for the ballot, which is sadly a near certainty,” he continued, “We must tell our stories and then say, ‘This is why I ask you to join me in voting to approve 74’ if it qualifies for the ballot.” Friedes says it is our stories that not only move undecided voters, “it is our stories that bind our soft base to being marriage equality supporters.” “We must each take personal responsibility for talking to our social networks and doing our part to support the Washington United campaign and that must include each of us seeing ourselves as donors,” he said. “We won in Olympia,” echoed Silk. “Now we need to protect that victory at the ballot box.” “The only way we can ensure the religious right does not roll back marriage equality is for people to join us today,” he concludes. “Got to www.washingtonunited.org, sign up, volunteer, and give.” TODAY, WASHINGTON STATE IS A BETTER PLACE In her seven-year tenure as governor of Washington state, Gregoire told the media that the day she signed the marriage equality bill was “one of the best.” On Monday, Gregoire said, quite simply, “Love is love.” “I’m proud that Washington became the seventh state in the nation to provide civil marriage for same-sex couples, and that it stood up for what is right and just,” wrote Gregoire in a Huffington Post editorial, published February 14. “I’m proud that our same-sex couples will no longer be treated as separate but equal; they will be equal. I’m proud that the children of same-sex couples will no longer
have to wonder why their parents’ love is treated differently than that of other loving families,” she continued. “I’m proud of the parents who have fought fiercely for the rights of their much-loved Gay and Lesbian children. And I’m proud that those who are growing up and realizing they are Gay or Lesbian can see that they, too, can look forward to the day when they make that important vow in front of their friends and family to the person they love.” As a parent, Gregoire says there is no greater joy than “seeing your grown child walk down the aisle and make a lifetime commitment to the person they love.” In Washington state, she said, the words “I do” will now carry the same meaning for all families. “Like laws in other states, our legislation provides broad protections for religious organizations, religiously affiliated schools, and social service organizations,” wrote Gregoire. “While no religion will be required to perform a marriage against its beliefs, the state will no longer discriminate in the issuing of marriage licenses.” This legislation makes us stronger, she told SGN readers. “The stories of everyday citizens who give back to their communities, support one another in their relationships, care for aging parents, raise healthy families, and save for their children’s futures are legion.” Gregoire spoke of a young man who received his associate’s degree in computer science as a senior in high school and recently emailed her, saying that his biggest obstacle in life is not his passion or intellect, but his sexuality. “As he so thoughtfully wrote, ‘One day, as this nation continues to change, people like
me will not have to be extraordinary to appear ordinary,’” she recalled. “That’s as it should be.” Marriage is important to everyone, she declared. “In Washington state, it is important enough that this bill passed with a resounding ‘yes’ that was achieved only with bipartisan support. Republicans and Democrats both stood up for what is right. Leaders from both parties, Gay and straight, made impassioned, eloquent speeches conveying that marriage equality is not a partisan value or a religious value, but a human value,” Gregoire continued. “Major corporations such as Microsoft, Starbucks, and Nike endorsed the bill and said, rightly, that diverse workforces are key to economic success.” “But this bill is much more than a piece of legislation,” she concluded. “It is about telling couples, some who have been together for 20 or 30 years or more, that a lifetime commitment matters. That their love matters. That their families matter.” “It’s that simple,” wrote Gregoire. “And today, Washington state is a better place.”
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22 Seattle Gay News
February 17, 2012
Celebrating 39 Years!
Visit us online www.sgn.org
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