Celebrating 41 Years! Issue 2 Volume 43
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Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
State can sue anti-Gay florist, judge says Reuters
Robert Ingersoll (l) and Curt Freed
Stutzman refused to provide flowers for the wedding of her longtime customer Robert Ingersoll to his now-husband Curt Freed, on the grounds that Gay marriages conflict with her Christian faith. Ingersoll complained to the state, and the Attorney General’s office wrote to Stutzman, demanding that she comply with the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) and the antidiscrimination statute. When she refused, Ferguson sued both the owner and her business, asking for a permanent injunction requiring compliance with the CPA. “[T]he clear language [of the consumer and anti-discrimination laws] supports both individual and corporate liability,” Ekstrom wrote in his decision. “As admitted by Stutzman, she not only participated in the conduct alleged, her personal actions [in defining corporate policy and in her interaction with Ingersoll] constitute the sum total of the conduct complained of by the plaintiffs,” Ekstrom continued. Ekstrom added that the Stutzman’s arguments “would completely deny the AG, the sole
government agency entitled to enforce the CPA, the ability to vindicate the public’s interest in ending discrimination … committed ‘in the course of trade or commerce.’” “It’s no accident that Judge Ekstrom’s ruling so closely mirrors our arguments, and we look forward to the decision on the remaining motions,” Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement. “We believe Washington law is very clear that businesses in Washington cannot discriminate. If you serve opposite-sex partners, you must serve same-sex partners equally.” Two additional motions remain to be decided. First, Stutzman claims that the Attorney General’s Office and the individual plaintiffs lack legal standing to sue. Second, the Attorney General and the individual plaintiffs have asked for summary judgment in the case, on the grounds that the undisputed facts show that Stutzman violated the Consumer Protection Act and the Washington Law Against Discrimination.
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
flower shop who refused to sell flowers to a Gay couple for their wedding, a judge said January 7. The state of Washington is entiBenton County Superior Court tled to sue the owner of a Richland Judge Alex Ekstrom ruled that state
Attorney General Bob Ferguson can sue Baronelle Stutzman and her business for violating the state Consumer Protection Act and the Law Against Discrimination.
Dueling Florida bishops:
Rod Hearne to run for Seattle City Council; takes on Kshama Sawant in Third District
One threatens to fire equality supporters, another says Gay marriage not a threat
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
see Florida page 14
see Hearne page 9
www.liberalamerica.org
at any time, they risk losing their jobs, but the Bishop of St. Petersburg says that the church should not see Gay and Lesbian couples as a threat. In a January 5 letter from Archbishop Thomas Wenski, Miami church employees were warned that “certain conduct, inconsistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church, could lead to disciplin-
Rod Hearne, former Executive Director and current Board member of Equal Rights Washington, is running for Seattle City Council District Three. He announced on January 7. That puts him in competition with incumbent Council member Kshama Sawant, if she decides to run in the Third District. There was brief speculation, fueled by an erroneous report in The Stranger, that Sawant would challenge Sally Clark for one of the at-large Council seats, but she said later that she is “definitely running” for the Third District slot. The Third District takes in Capitol Hill, the Central Area as far south as the Mt. Baker neighborhood, Madrona, Washington Park, and Montlake. Beating Sawant, who, polling shows, has high name recognition in the district, will be a challenge, Hearne admits, but one he says is “absolutely necessary.” “Anything I’ve ever done – wheth-
Bishop Robert Lynch from St. Petersburg, Florida
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer As Gay and Lesbian couples marry in all of Florida’s 67 counties, two of the state’s most prominent Roman Catholic bishops have issued contradictory statements on same-sex marriage. The Archbishop of Miami has warned its employees that if they support marriage equality in any way and
Rod Hearne
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Celebrating 41 Years!
RELATIONSHIP INVENTORY – RECIPROCITY
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someone else, I would encourage you to look closely at yourself and your motivations to give all the time or take all the time. “Unconditional love” is often the excuse that is used to perpetuate these dynamics. I am sorry that I have to smash some ideals but “unconditional love” does not exist in adult relationships. Love is conditional because we want something back from the person we have given to. If you feel resentment in any of your relationships, look to see how the dynamic of reciprocity is between you and the other. Discuss expectations and ensure that you are adjusting to changing circumstances. Don’t be a giver all of the time and don’t be a taker all of the time. Michael Raitt, MA LMHC, is a Therapist and a Contributing Writer to the SGN. He writes a bi-monthly column in the SGN. If you would like to comment on this column, ask a question you’d like him to write about, or suggest another topic of interest, please contact him at Michael.Raitt@comcast.net www.zeroaggressionproject.org
by Michael Raitt SGN Contributing Writer Reciprocity comes from the word “reciprocate” and reciprocate is a verb – it means to give back. In adult relationships, reciprocity is about how well each gives back to the other. It is a dynamic of back-and-forth and both parties participate to varying degrees. Love (romantic or platonic) fuels this dynamic. It is always important to look at how well you give back to those who give to you. Relationships get into trouble when there is no reciprocity or one feels that there is some kind of unfairness in what is being reciprocated. There is an important quality that becomes an inherent flaw if it is not considered in the give-and-take of a relationship. The “value” of what is being given back in a dynamic is where problems can occur. It is a rare relationship (friend, family, partner, spouse) where everything is equal and what is given is returned with the exact value. In other words, it is very common for people in relationships to have unequal standing in one way or another. An easy example, in romantic relationships/marriages, is when one makes more money than another. Other examples where value exists – and which are less tangible than money – are in areas such as time and workload. How often have you heard something like, “I do all the dishes, laundry, dusting, and clean the cat box while he sits and plays on his phone!” This is an expression of a value being put on something someone is doing. The first step in making sure that the dynamic of reciprocity doesn’t become a problem is to recognize the inequitable nature that exists in the relationship. If I make more money, I may pick up the tab for dinner more often or pick up a larger share of the bill from time-to-time. If my partner is working 16-hour days at work and I have 2 weeks off, I may do more of the housework.
To this point, people have to be able to be flexible in the relationship. This means that as circumstances change, so does how and in what ways reciprocity occurs. Using the examples from the paragraph above: If my partner’s work schedule settles down, he may take on more duties at home or if he gets a raise, he may contribute more money when and where it is necessary. Having rigid expectations in relationships prevent people from being flexible with their give-and-take. If I’ve always picked up the dinner tab and it becomes expected that I do, even when circumstances change, then resentment is going to creep into the relationship. It is times like these when it starts to feel unfair and if these feelings of unfairness are not dealt with in the relationship, problems are certain to arise. In adult relationships (where neither individual is physically or mentally dependant in any way) reciprocity is essential. One should never be giving most, if not all, of the time and another should not be taking most, if not all, of the time. If you have a dynamic like this with
Celebrating 41 Years!
continued from cover er it was ERW or Referendum 74 or anything – it’s because I feel called to do it. It’s not the size or shape of the challenge,” Hearne said. “One of the things that attracted me to the race,” Hearne added, “is that it’s now going to be more door-to-door, more person-to-person. It’s all about constituent service now. That’s a perfect fit for my style and my interests.” Talking to SGN, Hearne recalled his days as a student in Chicago, where “the system was dysfunctional. The city was divided – geographically divided, racially divided – a lot of the same problems we have in Seattle but in Chicago they were way bigger. “We’ve been lucky as a city,” Hearne continued. “Seattle has been fairly functional. But voters have said they want to remake the City Council [by voting for district elections in 2013]. That’s going to change the way people think about the Council and Council elections. “It’s going to be a different kind of election. It’s going to be door-to-door and communitymember-to-community member. And that way, we’re going to build a voice for ourselves.” Under the new district system, Seattle voters will have only three City Council races on their ballots – the two at-large positions, and one representative for their district. That means voters will have to depend mainly on one Council member to take care
of their needs, Hearne notes, and that person will have to be able to build a working relationship with other Council members to get results for their constituents. “You need a dedicated problem solver,” he says. “You need someone who opens doors and builds bridges, not someone who slams them and burns bridges.” Although Sawant has been criticized for being “divisive” and for sniping at her colleagues on the Council, Hearne says he is not running specifically to defeat her. In fact, he says, he has a range of projects he’s eager to take on. “I’m excited about the opening of the new light rail station [on Broadway],” Hearne tells SGN. “I want to work to make it match the needs of the district. That will take a lot of balance, a lot of analysis, a lot of meetings. “There are also problems of density and affordability, and directing growth to areas where we already have the infrastructure to deal with it,” he continues. “And I’m very interested in a city-wide broadband system. You know, many years ago the City Fathers decided we should build our own public electrical system, and now it provides some of the cheapest electricity in the country. “But our broadband system – we have two Rod Hearne providers, but they’re not building out their system and they charge an exorbitant amount for the service. We can really do better than that.” One who was rumored to be running, Don run this year. Another potential challenger, Other potential candidates for the Third Blakeney of the Chinatown/International 43rd District Democratic chair Scott Forbes, district have yet to materialize. District BIA, told CHS blog that he will not also said he had no plans to run. www.capitolhillseattle.com
Hearne
Social Outreach Seattle teams with #BLACKLIVESMATTER and Seattle University for Body Diversity Photo Project by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Nearly two years ago, Social Outreach Seattle (SOSea) officials began working with a local photographer, Richard Wood (kapchure.us.photography) to create something new: photos that showcased the many different body types, gender expressions, and more, that make up the LGBTQ community. Since then, the social justice organization has held a number of different photo exhibits and town hall style meetings on LGBTQ and aging, Lesbian life, Gay agenda and more. Recently, however, a new topic has come into view: Race and social justice for the black community, #BLACKLIVESMATTER, in particular. I first met Tyrone Brown, administrative coordinator for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) for Seattle University, through a friend and student leader at University of Washington, Brian Tracey, one week before the decision not to indict the white police officer that shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager in Ferguson, Missouri last August. Tracey was moderating a community conversation about the impact that Ferguson has had on Seattle. The discussion was important I think, and Tyrone Brown was the featured speaker and shared his story about traveling to Ferguson to march in solidarity with the protestors and to experience what was awakening in the nation in the wake of the tragic death. I immediately liked Brown; he is authentic. Brown started at the university in 2007, working in the President’s Office and then Student Development. After earning his
MFA in Arts Leadership in 2010, he participated in a directing fellowship with the Drama League in New York. Returning to the university in 2011, he worked in Center for Justice in Society before taking on his current role. He says working in CAPS affords him a different perspective on SU’s mission to care for the whole person. “I also appreciate working in an environment that provides space for my artistic endeavors and allows me to grow personally, professionally and artistically.” As a white Gay male I know that – although it has had a profound effect on us all – this is not my fight. But I also understand that I have privilege and that means if I care, then I must be a good ally. If I am going to be a good ally then I need to know when to help and how to help. I have learned, as many of you have, or will, to ask. Ask when. Ask how. No more, and for sure, no less. At this moment in our history, and especially during the #BLACKLIVESMATTER movement, the last thing anybody needs right now is white people telling everybody what to do and how to do it. Although it was hard, I waited. I got an email recently from Brown and Tracey requesting to meet with me and Social Outreach Seattle about race issues in Seattle and to brainstorm about how we, in our own little way, could change things or make them better. Finally, we met the day after Christmas in my Capitol Hill apartment for nearly three hours. The initial meeting was slated for one hour. Suffice to say we each had a lot to say and ideas began to flow. When Brown asked me how SOSea could fit into all this I wasn’t quite sure. I mean, I do run a social justice nonprofit, yes. But with all the hands in the pot and the some-
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times aimless demonstrations that seem to drift off into nothingness and irritate holiday commuters, the question actually tripped me up for a moment. Then I thought about how I view black lives. Or, in fact, do I think about them at all? Then it hit me – obviously, unless you are a hateful bigoted person – black lives matter because all lives matter. But what do we see when we, nonblacks, look at our black neighbors, friends, classmates, etc.? Do we see the thug that mass media wants us to? What about the thief that will steal your purse if you are a white woman? Or how about the sassy nanny, popping her gum and snapping her fingers and saying everything with that pop culture “You go, girl!” style we love so much. Or do we just see another human being; someone trying to make it in this world? Or how about a loving son, daughter or father? Maybe a veteran, or hell – a police officer? I explained Social Outreach Seattle’s Body Diversity Photo Project to Tracey and Brown and we all agreed that this was a perfect fit for something that Brown call’s Moral Monday’s at Seattle University. Brown said that he has designed the get-together to share ideas and feelings and really create a space where people can talk honestly about morals, ethics, and all the things were aren’t supposed to talk about at the dinner table. In short – real talk. No bullshit. Just … education without prejudice and opinion without ignorance. I was sold on the idea. On March 2, Social Outreach Seattle, in cooperation with Moral Mondays and Tyrone Brown present #BLACKLIVESMATTER Body Diversity Photo Project and community discussion. Moral Mondays
officially begins January 26, according to Brown. Other topics include: The Pilgrimage, Erased: Community Conversation with Women and Girls of Color; HANDS UP!: 6 Playwrights, 6 Testaments; MLK Jr. sole visit; OMA Workshop w/Chad Goller Sojourner; Ferguson Update; Theology after Ferguson (sponsored by Campus Ministry); Slave Ship (art installation); Selma (the movie) Viewing and Dinner Night; Trayvon Martin remembrance; Malcolm X and/or James Baldwin event; Memorial Service (for Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Renisha McBride, etc.); Open We Carry / Carry We Openly; Kathya Alexander (stories of the Civil Rights Movement); Sharing of Amnesty International Report on Ferguson; Possible Law School event; to name a few. For now, Social Outreach Seattle (SOSea) will begin taking submissions for #BLACKLIVESMATER Body Diversity Photo Project. The rules are there are no rules but one – the work(s) you submit must be your own and they should be representative of #BLACKLIVESMATTER. What does that mean to you? Is it just an activist saying? How do you visualize #BLACKLIVESMATTER? We will accept art in the form of photos, drawings, paintings and sculptures. There is no limit to the number of pieces any artist can submit and there is no age requirement; #BLACKLIVESMATTER Body Diversity Project is open to everyone. If your work(s) get chosen to be one or more of the 25 pieces in the exhibit, then you will be asked to be present and take place in the discussion at the event. If you would like to take part in this cooperative community event, please send an email to SocialOutreachSeattle@gmail.com.
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Condomless porn shoot responsible for HIV infection, CA officials say
California public health officials have issued an alert stating that a male porn actor was infected with HIV as a result of a film shoot in Nevada. There is “very strong evidence,” the California Department of Public Health said in its alert, that the actor contracted HIV during a sex scene with “several other males.” In 2012 Los Angeles County enacted an ordinance requiring porn actors to wear condoms as a workplace safety measure, but porn producers have attempted to evade the law by moving their shoots to other locations, in this case Nevada. Los Angeles County officials say that permit applications for porn shoots have dropped by nearly 90% since the ordinance was enacted. According to California health officials, an actor in the Nevada shoot worked on two films. He tested negative before filming the first one, but “During the second film shoot, he had symptoms of a viral infection,” the alert states. “The actor went to a clinic and had another blood test that showed he had recently
become infected with HIV.” One actor from the second shoot also tested positive for HIV. According to the Health Department, lab results indicate the first actor who tested positive “probably transmitted” HIV to the second. The Health Department said it could not immediately release further details regarding the lab testing and investigation. Their alert notes that very early in an HIV infection, the test can be negative “even though the actor really does have HIV.” “In this case, the actor and production company thought he was HIV-negative during filming,” the alert states. “Shortly after his negative test, HIV levels in his body rose rapidly to where he could infect other actors through unprotected sex.” AIDS Healthcare Foundation President Michael Weinstein, one of the leaders of the drive to require condom use on porn sets, said the report proved that condomless porn shoots endangered actors. “This is not AHF or supporters of condoms claiming that an HIV transmission occurred on the set of an adult film. This is California’s Department of Public Health and OSHA Oc-
ww.cbc.ca/news
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
cupational Health officials who vetted the performers’ blood samples with the CDC and concluded after genetic sequencing that this HIV infection occurred on set,” Weinstein said. “For years adult film producers have claimed that performers who have tested HIVpositive while working in the industry did not
contract HIV in the industry, but became infected through exposure in their personal lives outside and away from adult film sets. This new case puts truth to the lie that the industry has promoted year-after-year, years that sadly saw several additional performers infected while working in the porn industry.”
What ever happened to Oscar Wilde’s wife? by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer That’s right, 19th Century Gay icon Oscar Wilde had a wife – and two sons – and new information found by Wilde’s grandson solves the mystery about why she died three years after he went to prison. Constance Lloyd married Wilde in 1884, and the couple promptly had two sons, Cyril and Vyvyan. In 1891, Wilde met Lord Alfred Douglas, known to his friends as “Bosie,” the third son of the Marquess of Queensbury. Much to Queensbury’s disgust, Wilde and Douglas began an on-again, off-again sixyear relationship. In 1894, Queensbury left a note at Wilde’s London club accusing Wilde of sodomy, which was then a felony. Wilde sued Queensbury for slander. At the trial, Queensbury’s attorneys were
allowed to introduce evidence that Wilde was Gay, and had sexual interactions with a number of men. The day after the slander trial concluded, Wilde was arrested, charged with sodomy and gross indecency, convicted, and sent to prison.
Constance fell down a flight of stairs and subsequently died while undergoing emergency surgery in 1898, at the age of only 39. Rumor had it that her health had been undermined by syphilis she contracted from Oscar.
Their grandson, Merlin Holland, says that family letters prove otherwise. Holland told The Guardian newspaper that he discovered a trove of more than 130 letters describing Lloyd’s symptoms and her treatment – or mistreatment – by two doctors. The letters reveal symptoms modern doctors commonly associate with multiple scle-
rosis, including losing the ability to walk, chronic pain, headaches, and fatigue. She first contacted a German “nerve doctor,” who was not named in the letters. He prescribed hot baths and electricity, a common remedy in the 19th Century. When those treatments failed to improve Lloyd’s health, she consulted an Italian doctor, Luigi Maria Bossi, who believed that she could be cured with “gynecological operations.” After falling down stairs and injuring herself, Lloyd went to Bossi for a gynecological procedure, during which she slipped into a coma and died. “People somehow never put two and two together and thought: ‘Why is a gynecologist operating on her spine?’” Holland said to The Guardian. The family never pursued legal action elcorreo.com
Constance Lloyd
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against Bossi, Holland added, because Lloyd had consented to the operation despite several warnings against it by other doctors. Twenty years after Lloyd’s death, Bossi was shot and killed by the husband of another patient, who accused the doctor of “unethical behavior and professional misconduct.” “[The operation] cost her her life,” Holland says. “Ultimately, both Bossi and the hapless Constance met their ends tragically – he by the bullet of an assassin and she by the knife of an irresponsible surgeon.” When Wilde took up with Douglas, he brought him home and introduced him to Lloyd. Thereafter, he spent less and less time at home with her. When Wilde was arrested in 1895, she took her sons and fled to Genoa, Italy, to escape the scandal, and changed the family name to Holland. Cyril Holland was killed in the First World War. Merlin’s father Vyvyan also served in the war, but survived to become an author and publisher. He died at age 80 in 1967. Wilde himself died in 1900, three years after being released from prison. Before dying he had himself baptized into the Catholic Church. Douglas also became a Roman Catholic. At another slander trial involving Gay defendants, Douglas repudiated Wilde, and said he regretted ever having met him. Douglas sued the Cambridge University literary magazine Isis for libel when it published a story linking him with Wilde, and was himself sued for libel by none other than Winston Churchill for an article accusing Churchill of lying about the Battle of Jutland in the First World War. After serving six months on the criminal libel charge, Douglas softened his opinion of Wilde, writing that Gay sex should not be considered a crime. He died in 1945.
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Normalization will help LGBT Cubans, activist says negracubanateniaqueser.com
Yasmin Portales Machado said most LGBT activists in Cuba have not accepted support from Americans because U.S. government policy toward Cuba was based on removing the socialist government there. “While the United States is the enemy of our state, we can’t work with them,” she said in an interview in Havana. “Any support you receive makes you a traitor.” Portales founded the LGBT rights group Proyecto Arco Iris (Project Rainbow) in 2011 to give Cuba’s LGBT community a voice that was independent of the country’s government. Until Project Rainbow came along, the only group pushing for greater freedom for LGBT Cubans was Mariela Castro’s National Center for Sexual Education. As the daughter of Cuban President Raul Castro and the niece of revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, she has used her connections with the government to push for greater recognition of LGBT rights. Norway and Belgium give Castro’s organization financial support, and normalization Yasmin Portales Machado of relations with the U.S. could open new avenues of assistance to Cuba’s LGBT community. According to the New York Times, the Obama will make it easier for Cuban LGBT activists by Mike Andrew administration has spent millions of dollars to work with, and get help from, their counSGN Staff Writer terparts in the United States, a Cuban activ- assisting LGBT groups around the world, but none in Cuba because of the lack of formal reNormalization of U.S. relations with Cuba ist told the New York Times.
lations between the two countries. Norway’s openly Gay ambassador to Cuba, John Petter Opdahl, acknowledged that Castro’s organization has been criticized for its ties to the Cuban government, but defended the $230,000 his government has given her. “It’s fine to criticize, but you also have to acknowledge that they’ve done good,” Opdahl said in a recent interview. “She has taken off a lot of the stigma for most people in the country, and she has made life so much better for so many gay people, not only in Havana but in the provinces.” In 2010 Fidel Castro apologized for Cuba’s treatment of its LGBT citizens in an interview with the Mexican newspaper La Jornada. In the 1960s and 1970s, Gay Cubans were ostracized and many were sent to so-called “reeducation camps,” but by 1979 Gay sex had been legalized in Cuba. Later on, the Cuban government also forcibly quarantined HIV/AIDS patients, although the AIDS epidemic in Cuba mainly affected heterosexuals. In 2014, the government passed a new law that bans discrimination against Gay and HIV-positive Cubans. Transgender Cubans are still unprotected under the law, but the national healthcare system does provide free transition services, including surgery, to Trans Cubans.
Washington Community Action Network 2015 “Facing Race” Report On January 7, a packed house of about 200 people filled the New Holly Gathering Hall (7054 32nd Ave.) to attend a town hall style meeting with community members and legislators to coincide with the release of the Washington Community Action Network 2015 “Facing Race” Report. The report details Washington Community Action Network’s Racial Equity Agenda for 2015, and is endorsed by over 50 organizations and institutions – including some LGBTQ organizations. The report, “Facing Race,” provides a breakdown demonstrating racial inequalities that exist in Washington state and provides an analysis of the impact of state budget cuts over the past five years and identifies the legislative priorities regarding racial equity for the 2015 session. “This report recognizes a failure to thoroughly consider the impact of policy decisions on the persistent inequity between communities of color and white communities,” said report author Chris Genese of the Washington Community Action Network. “We are seeing the effects of those decisions deeply hurt Washington’s core health and human services, education, and community safety structures.” “Washingtonians of color face tremendous inequities that limit their ability to access a high-quality education, become economically secure, and have access to quality healthcare. It is imperative that our state address these racial and ethnic disparities, and the “Facing Race” report sheds light on the reforms that must occur,” said report author Kim Justice of the Washington Budget & Policy Center. The report’s findings show that a good job is the foundation for economic security, but Black and Latino workers have higher rates
of unemployment and are more likely to be in a job that pays a lower wage than the overall population. In addition, good health is central to a good quality of life, yet nearly one in three Latinos and one in four American Indians and Alaska Natives lack health care coverage. Also, a high-quality early learning experience is crucial to a child’s future, yet three out of four Latino children are not enrolled in preschool. Likewise, higher levels of education equate to better job security and increased wages, but Latinos, American Indians, and Alaska Natives face the biggest hurdles to college enrollment. The report notes that a strong democracy is dependent on equal representation, but the racial and ethnic composition of the State Legislature does not reflect the state’s diversity. People of color comprise 29 percent of the state’s population, but less than 10 percent of the State Legislature. Some of the legislative recommendations in the report are to increase access to affordable health coverage to make it attainable to those left behind by the Affordable Care Act. Even with tax breaks, those in our state just above the income threshold for Medicaid often cannot afford coverage. Also, increase the state minimum wage to ensure that all workers in Washington state share in economic growth. Statistics show when people make enough money to maintain basic needs, the entire economy benefits. Another legislative recommendation calls for the approval of progressive state revenue reforms, including the closure of tax loopholes and the addition of a capital gains tax. As the nation’s single most regressive tax state – where low-income citizens pay the highest portion of their income in state taxes – Washington needs to implement reforms that begin to reverse that trend like the capital gains tax used by 42 other states. Also, the case was made Wednesday night
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by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor
that Legal Financial Obligations are hurting these burdens by preventing interest from those who have served sentences for past accruing until after release from prison and criminal conduct and are struggling to reen- eliminating the possibility of going back to ter society. Washington state needs to enact see Race page 14 common-sense reforms that help reduce
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Indian town elects first Trans mayor A Trans woman has been elected mayor of the Indian city of Raigarh, upsetting an incumbent backed by India’s governing BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party). Madhu Kinnar was declared the winner on January 4, after racking up a 4,537-vote margin of victory over her opponent. BJP is a right-wing Hindu nationalist party, which won India’s national elections last year. In India, Kinnar is considered a hijra, a term not quite equivalent to the English word “Transgender,” because hijras can include professional drag performers and Intersex people as well as people who identify with a gender other than that assigned to them at birth. Hijras were officially recognized as a “third sex” under Indian law in April 2014. In addition to being hijra, Kinnar is also a Dalit, one of the so-called “untouchable” caste. Before running for mayor of Raighur, she made a living singing and dancing on
the Howrah-to-Mumbai passenger train – a traditional occupation for hijras. “People voted for me as promises made by BJP and Congress [parties] were never fulfilled,” she told the Times of India newspaper, referring to India’s two largest parties. “My victory is a reflection of peoples’ love and blessings. I got overwhelming support from people during the campaign.” She added that cleanliness, the construction of drains, and aid to Raighur’s poor were her priorities. “The poor stood by me, but I will have to take care of all in Raigarh. I will restore ration cards of poor, which were canceled,” she said. Ration cards are the equivalent of SNAP or food stamps in the United States. Most of the beneficiaries belong to less-favored castes, minority tribal groups, or to socalled “Backward Classes.” Hundreds of thousands – perhaps millions – of ration cards have been cancelled by government agencies, allegedly because they could not verify the identities of the cardholders.
heeno.com.br
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Madhu Kinnar
AIDS activist abducted in Honduras Ap
Keren Dunaway Gonzalez
According to witnesses, Keren Dunaway Gonzalez was seized by three gunmen in a parked car. A prominent Honduran AIDS activist was Dunaway runs an organization called reported abducted on January 6, and her fate Llaves, which publishes a magazine for HIVremains unknown. positive children. Now 18, she first came by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
to the world’s attention at the 2008 International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, where she spoke movingly about her experience as an HIV-positive child. Her family appealed for her release through a spokesperson. “The Dunaway family is appealing for Keren to be freed because she must take her anti-retroviral medication,” the spokesperson said. Honduras is the epicenter of the AIDS epidemic in Central America, with an estimated 60% of the HIV/AIDS cases in the region. It is also one of the most violent countries in the world, according to the UN Office for Drugs and Crime, with more than 80 murders per 100,000 inhabitants. In December 2009 Gay activist Walter Trochez was murdered by still unidentified assailants in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa. Trochez was known to be a supporter of leftist President Manuel Zelaya, who had been overthrown in a right-wing coup only six months prior to the murder. In addition to working to restore Zelaya to office, Trochez was documenting anti-LGBT hate crimes in Honduras. Shortly before his own death, he reported that since the June 2009 coup that deposed Zelaya, “nine transex-
ual and gay friends were violently killed, six in San Pedro Sula and three in Tegucigalpa.” While Honduran officials blame narco traffickers for much of the country’s violence, activists say the police are implicated in many murders, especially those targeting activists and the LGBT community. In 2011, an incident – now infamous in Honduras – led to a purge of top police commanders. Two students, Alejandro Vargas and Carlos Pineda, were found shot to death in a ravine outside Tegucigalpa. Police initially suggested that the victims had been involved in gang activity, but private security videos uncovered later showed a police vehicle following the victims’ car and the DNA of one student was discovered on another police vehicle. Forensic studies suggested the police shot at their car, wounding Vargas. When the students pulled over, the police killed both men and then dumped their bodies. Honduran President Porfirio Lobo was forced to fire his top police commanders and disband the unit accused of the murders. No one was formally charged with the murders, however, and most of the officers involved were reassigned to new areas.
Russian thugs storm Gay nightclub, four men injured A group of anti-Gay thugs stormed a Gay nightclub in Russia on January 3, injuring at least four club patrons, one of them seriously enough to require hospitalization. The incident took place at the Fantom nightclub in the southwestern Russian city of Togliatti, named in honor of the late Italian Communist leader Palmiro Togliatti. Russian media reported that at least one of the customers was hospitalized with serious injuries, with at least three more receiving medical care at the scene. Police say they have no suspects. Information linking the incident to neo-Nazi or Russian nationalist groups has not yet emerged. Konstantin Golava, a local Gay activist, demanded a full investigation of the crime leading to arrests. “It is known that several of the attackers had previously been seen near the places, maybe they were planning an attack on the
club,” he said. “It is not surprising that this happened because the representatives of LGBTQ community and their friends in Russia are [being expelled] as ‘defective’ from all walks of life.” Writing on LGBT Russia blog, Golava listed many teachers who have been fired for being Gay and charged that Russian authorities have little interest in protecting the LGBT community, a charge often made by LGBT activists. Golava called on LGBT Russians to become politically active, saying that they can no longer hide out in supposedly safe neighborhoods and clubs. “Gay men can create their own cozy ghetto in a club that seems to be safe. But they are wrong,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with having fun and relaxing, but they must protect themselves, protect their rights and not to grumble that activists ‘provoke’ and [claim] ‘our rights are not violated.’
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“When Gay Russians think their rights are not being violated, even after attacks like this, then only more of this darkness will continue.” On December 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the European Human Rights Council that “The problem with the rights of Gays in Russia is a label put on Russia by other states.”
Putin claimed the United States, was far more homophobic than Russia, because “[Russia] has no criminal liability,” while 14 U.S. states still have laws banning Gay sex – although they are unenforceable under the 2003 Lawrence v. Texas Supreme Court decision.
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FLORIDA
continued from cover ary action, including termination, even if it occurs outside the normal working day and outside the strict confines of work performed by the employee for the Archdiocese.” Wenski’s letter also warned employees that even Tweets and Facebook posts – presumably including congratulations to Gay and Lesbian friends on their weddings – would be subject to scrutiny by church officials. “Employees should exercise discretion when posting on social media sites, and note that online activity indicative of prohibitive behaviors may subject an employee to disciplinary action or termination,” it read. The Archdiocese of Miami includes 118 parishes and missions across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Monroe counties and 1.3 million parishioners. It operates 73 elementary and high schools, two hospitals, two seminaries, nine health care centers, and three senior living centers. Its two colleges, St. Thomas University and Barry University, have a combined enrollment of over 13,000 students and more than 1,000 faculty and staff. As would be expected, Wenski was critical of court rulings that overturned Florida’s ban on Gay and Lesbian marriages. “[B]y imposing a new definition of marriage on the people of Florida, the courts are changing what marriage means for everybody,” he told NBC TV 6. Same-sex couples began marrying across the state just after midnight on January 6, when U.S. District Judge Robert L. Hinkle’s ruling took effect in all 67 counties.
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Wenski’s letter stands in stark contrast to a statement by Bishop Robert Lynch of St. Petersburg. “I do not wish to lend our voice to notions which might suggest that same-sex couples are a threat incapable of sharing relationships marked by love and holiness and, thus, incapable of contributing to the edification of both the church and the wider society,” Lynch wrote in the Tampa Bay Times newspaper. “In the midst of changing societal definitions and understandings of marriage, there may no doubt be some confusion. However, with patience and humility, our church must continuously strive to discover what the spirit is saying and respond to the Synod Fathers’ suggestion to discern what pastoral response faithful to church teaching and marked by respect and sensitivity might be appropriate for same-sex couples, even as God’s creative designs for and the church’s sacramental understanding of marriage are affirmed.” The diocese of St. Petersburg oversees 90 parishes and missions serving 400,000 Catholics, and runs six high schools and 27 elementary schools. “These contradictory narratives cause a bit of whiplash for Catholic Floridians,” HRC said through a spokesperson. “In Miami, Catholics are told they can’t even publicly congratulate their LGBT loved ones celebrating marriages today. Yet across the state in St. Petersburg, the Church’s message is one of compassion celebrating the love and value of same-sex couples. I can tell you it wouldn’t take long for me to decide which of these church leaders’ sermons I’d prefer to hear.”
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RACE
continued from page 8 jail for failure to pay. One recommendation would ensure all workers can receive paid time off when they are sick to prevent the spread of illness and to help workers avoid more serious, longterm health problems. In addition, supporters of social justice say it is time to improve public education by complying with the McCleary ruling and providing equal access to higher education for all children. “This is critical to our state’s future economy,” notes the report. “The additional investment ordered in the McCleary ruling, which found the state government was not meeting its paramount duty of providing a quality public education system, will decrease dropout rates, improve training for educators, and start to close the gap for students of color.”
“Our state has many more people of color than it ever has,” says spokeswoman Rosalind Brazel. “This moment is crucial for Washington state history because the awareness of racial justice is heightened and although the focus of specific incidents will fade, remembering is fundamental to continuing the fight for racial equity both from criminal justice and economic justice perspectives. “We are collectivizing our power to make real change in Washington,” Brazel says. “There are many things people can do to be active on these issues,” Brazel says. “They can protest and sign petitions to demand change and accountability. They can also read, watch and understand these issues so they can inform people who care, but may not be paying close attention to the movement. People can get active by keeping the conversation going on social media to let others know they still care.” For more on Washington Community Action Network, go to www.washingtoncan.org.
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