Celebrating 42 Years! Issue 22 Volume 44
Billy Joel hits it out of the ballpark at Safeco Field
Motown inspirations for Chester Gregory
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SEC 2 PG 1
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Eleven states sue Obama administration over Trans guidelines
SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
State Labor Council says NO on I-1515
Obama and the Transgender restroom mandate – stream.org
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and officials in 10 other states have filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the Obama administration’s guidance that
instructs schools to let Transgender students use restrooms that correspond with their gender identity. Among the defendants in the lawsuit filed May 25 are the departments of Justice, Education, and Labor, and the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission). All have issued guidelines
Washington State Labor Council – thestand.org
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
see ELEVEN STATES page 8
The Washington State Labor Council (WSLC) gave a resounding thumbs down to I-1515, the measure that would repeal civil rights protections for the state’s Transgender community, at its May 21 political see NO ON I-1515 page 5
Vermont governor signs Trump to meet with law against conversion Christian right bigots therapy
Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin– strollingoftheheifers.com
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin signed SB 132 into law May 25, banning see VERMONT page 16
Donald Trump – Photo by Ron Sachs
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
In June Republican presidential nominee-in-all-but-name Donald Trump will meet with dozens of anti-LGBT extremists. see TRUMP page 13
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Celebrating 41 Years!
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ENDORSEMENTS by Janice Van Cleve Special to the SGN Caucuses are fine and primaries are okay, but the real down home, town hall, in your face politics happens in your legislative district organizations. This is where candidates plea for your vote in person. This is where pros and cons of initiatives are aired. This is where tons of information, flyers, posters, yard signs, and buttons are distributed. This is where there are no media filters, no talking heads, and no pundits. What you see and hear first hand is what you get. Washington state is divided up into 49 districts, each of which gets two representatives and one senator in the state legislature. The boundaries were redrawn in 2012 to rebalance populations counted in the 2010 census. You can find your district at www. redistricting.wa.gov/districtfinder. In Seattle the main districts are the 36th (Ballard, Magnolia, Queen Anne), 46th (NE Seattle to Kenmore), 43rd (north of Madison to Wallingford and Fremont), 37th (south of Madison to Renton), 34th (West Seattle and Vashon), and 11th (Georgetown, Tukwila, and south Renton). Each of these districts have strong Democratic Party organizations which hold monthly meetings and they vet and endorse the people you will see on your ballot. These Democratic Party organizations are important. The members not only debate and vote on whom to endorse, they have ground troops who bring these endorsements door to door to their neighbors. These ground troops are the PCOs – Precinct Committee Officers. Each district is divided up into many small precincts containing 400-800 voters. PCOs are elected by their neighbors way down at the bottom of the ballot in primary elections or they are appointed by the district if nobody is elected. Just think if you want to run for office or you are promoting some initiative. It is nearly impossible to reach all the voters personally or with your volunteers. Yet if you are endorsed by a legislative district, then you will have dozens of PCOs out there talking
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to voters, handing out your flyers, helping ballot measures but there are more choices with yard signs, and bearing the blessings of to make. You have plenty of time to join up the district to voters. These PCOs help vot- with your local district organization before ers make up their minds and most important, the statewide primary on August 2. they encourage them to vote and increase I was a PCO in the 43rd district for 15 voter turnout. years and when the boundaries moved, I beBecoming a member of your local Dem- came a PCO in the 37th. It’s fun. I like meetocratic Party district organization gives you ing the neighbors and they appreciate that the power to decide these endorsements. You somebody is doing this service. Besides, I get to make the early decisions before any- get to meet all the candidates, activists, movthing even gets to the ballot. You get to meet ers and shakers, and others who shape our your neighbors at meetings, share ideas, find world and I get to help them do that. out what’s going on, challenge what’s going Tip O’Neill, Speaker of the US House on, and move from complainer to activist. 1977-1987, once said “All politics is local.” You get to meet some amazing people, smart It doesn’t get more local than your legislative people, engaged people, and with them, ac- district organization. All are welcome! tually make a difference. It’s easy. Just find your district, go to their website, and sign up. Janice Van Cleve was elected PCO Of Most districts have a sliding scale for the an- The Year in both the 43rd and the 37th disnual dues. tricts. She also participates on occasion Last Monday, the 37th district held their with the 36th because they throw the best endorsement meeting. Of course everybody parties. voted to endorse US Senator Patty Murray, Governor Jay Inslee, and Attorney General Bob Ferguson. Most people know what they want at the top of the ticket. Just as important, however, are the candidates farther down the ticket. Let’s face it, most people have no idea who the judges are, and we really don’t want to have to meet them professionally, do we? Yet these people can make profound decisions in our personal lives locally and help set precedents for major decisions up the judicial chain. It is important to know them and to weed out the stealth rightwing nuts who try to sneak into these positions. The 43rd district endorsement meeting is June 21 at University Heights school at University Way NE and NE 50th St. A number of the other districts have already endorsed some candidates and Seattle districts map – seattle.gov
Celebrating 41 Years!
Seattle Pride is an expression of our Constitutional rights Editor: I was rather surprised, as a civil libertarian, that your lengthy article on the Seattle Pride controversy did not contain a single mention of “free speech,” or “the First Amendment.” Pride parades and other celebrations began – and continue – as manifestations of our Constitutional rights to express ourselves and to petition our gov-
NO ON I-1515 continued from cover
convention. The Martin Luther King County Labor Council (MLKCLC) had already voted to oppose I-1515 on the recommendation of Pride At Work, the LGBT labor organization. Openly LGBT candidates also fared well at the labor convention. Current State Representative Jim Moeller (D-49) was endorsed in his bid for a Congressional seat from the 3rd District, King County Council member Dave Upthegrove was endorsed for Lands Commissioner, and former Seattle City Council member Tina Podlodowski got labor’s endorsement for Secretary of State. Supreme Court Justice Mary Yu was endorsed for reelection.
ernments. While the events are managed by particular organizations, they certainly should never assume an ability to limit the expression of members of our community. We have never delegated such a power to them! (Yes, the Supreme Court did allow the Boston Irish to keep a GBLT group from participating in a St. Paddy’s parade, but we are talking about a celebration of gay rebel-
lion, not a Catholic saint!) So it isn’t a matter of corporate sponsorship or not, or the interpretation of contract wording. It is about our inherent rights as recognized in the Constitutions of our Nation and State.
Laurie Jinkins (D-27) and Joan McBride (D-48) were also endorsed for reelection to their State House seats. WSLC did not make an endorsement in the race for State Treasurer, where current State Senator Marko Liias is running against four other candidates. In two open-seat races, openly Gay candidates did not get labor’s endorsement. In the race to succeed Jim McDermott in the 7th Congressional District, State Senator and immigrant rights activist Pramila Jayapal got WSLC’s approval over King County Council member Joe McDermott and State Representative Brady Walkinshaw (D-43). In the 43rd Legislative District, where Walkinshaw’s Congressional run leaves an open House seat, WSLC endorsed veteran union activist Marcus Courtney over seven other candidates, including openly Gay
Thomas Pitchford and Daniel Shih. In other actions, WSLC endorsed Governor Jay Inslee for reelection. Inslee spoke at the convention and was greeted with loud applause from state employees who credit him with getting them their first cost of living pay raises in six years. On the other hand, members of the Boeing machinists union sat stone faced with arms folded as the Governor spoke. The machinists say Inslee interfered in their 2013-2014 contract dispute with Boeing to force them into an agreement that stripped younger workers of pension benefits. There were also some surprises. “None of the candidates for federal office who voted for ‘Fast Track’ Trade Promotion Authority last year received the WSLC’s endorsement,” WSLC President Jeff Johnson wrote in a statement. “This includes all four of the state’s Re-
Phil Bereano Seattle Phil Bereano – nwsource.com
publican members of Congress, but also some Democratic incumbents who have been endorsed multiple times in the past, including Sen. Patty Murray, and Reps. Suzan DelBene, Rick Larsen, and Derek Kilmer.” So-called “fast-track” authority allowed the Obama administration to negotiate the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) trade deal in secret, and to submit it to Congress for an up or down vote without opportunities to amend the deal. Many LGBT activists have noted that the TPP will make vital HIV/AIDS meds exorbitantly expensive, especially in the Third World countries least able to afford them. The treaty also includes several notoriously anti-LGBT countries like Brunei and Singapore.
MOHAI convenes a critical community conversation about the Seattle/King County’s heroin epidemic on Monday, June 6
SEATTLE, WA – In King County, more people enter detox for heroin than they do for alcohol. Families are being devastated – the number of opiate-related deaths has tripled since 2009. As a community, how do we respond? Join us at Seattle’s Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) (860 Terry Ave. N.) on Monday, June 6, from 7-8:30 p.m. (doors open at 6:15 p.m.) for “The Heroin Epidemic: A Community Conversation,” as we take up that question and much more. Guests are encouraged to preregister (http://bit.ly/1TE75Fc) for this FREE event. “As a catalyst for our community, MOHAI strives to promote the region’s wellbeing through the exploration of our past, present and future,” said Leonard Garfield,
MOHAI’s Executive Director. “In recent years, a surge in heroin addiction has emerged as a major issue. But this powerful drug has been a part of Seattle’s history for centuries. Opiates were introduced to the city as early as the 1880s – a result of robust international maritime trade. In the 1980s and ’90s, Seattle was among the first cities in the nation to implement clean needle exchanges during the height of the AIDS crisis. These moments in Seattle history underscore the continuous story of the city’s struggles with opiate addiction, its causes, and potential treatments.” KCTS 9’s Director of Community Partnerships Enrique Cerna, will moderate the conversation. Panelists include King Coun-
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ty Prosecutor Dan Satterberg, Penny LeGate, founder of The Marah Project, Molly Carney, Executive Director of Evergreen Treatment Services, Dr. Caleb-Banta Green of the University of Washington’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute, along with other experts and individuals affected by the heroin epidemic. “As a parent who has lost a child to heroin, I am devoted to educating others about this often misunderstood epidemic,” said LeGate, former KIRO-TV anchor whose daughter died from a heroin overdose in 2012. “We are dealing with a brain disease that does not discriminate. Those struggling with substance abuse disorders are NOT throwaway people.” “Our goal in this conversation is to not only explain how and why heroin and opioid addiction has become so widespread, but to also examine what is being done to save lives and provide much needed treatment,” said Cerna. King County Television will record the conversation. It will be streamed live and available for viewing on KCTV, MOHAI.org and KCTS9.org and will be aired on KCTS 9 on Tuesday, July 5 at 8:00 p.m. Please join in the discussion on Twitter at #chasingheroin.
ABOUT MOHAI MOHAI is dedicated to enriching lives through preserving, sharing, and teaching the diverse history of Seattle, the Puget Sound region, and the nation. As the largest private heritage organization in the State of Washington, the museum engages communities through interactive exhibits, online resources, and award-winning public and youth education programs. For more information about MOHAI, please visit mohai. org, or call (206) 324-1126. Facebook: facebook.com/seattlehistory Twitter: @MOHAI.
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ABOUT KCTS 9 KCTS 9 brings quality public media programming to the public when and where they need it – on the air, online, and in our communities – serving more than 2.2 million viewers each week in Western and Central Washington State, British Columbia and across Canada. To learn more about our programs and initiatives, visit KCTS9. org. On Facebook: facebook.com/KCTS9 – On Twitter: @KCTS9 Courtesy of MOHAI and KCTS 9
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Celebrating 41 Years!
Puget Sound Business Journal and GSBA celebrate The Business of Pride
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor On Thursday, May 26, the Puget Sound Business Journal held its first Business of Pride Celebration in partnership with the Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA). The event took place from 5:30-8 p.m. inside the beautiful Paramount Theatre in downtown Seattle. “Let’s come together to recognize out-
standing leaders and businesses, which share a voice in advancing equality,” said Puget Sound Business Journal officials. Puget Sound Business Journal and the Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA), hosted its first Business of Pride Celebration to recognize outstanding leaders and businesses that have shared their voice in advancing equality in the workplace, according to both organizations. The event is designed to highlight the
inclusion of all types of businesses, small and large, and across all demographics. “GSBA is the largest chamber organization in the country that promotes diversity and inclusion for all,” said Business Journal officials. Everyone was welcome to the all-inclusive event to celebrate the momentous occasion, although general admission tickets to the event were $85. “Together we can continue to support our diverse community,” said officials. The 2016 Outstanding Voices were: Joe Adams – 1st Security Bank; David Armstrong – Fifth Avenue Theatre; Jeff Butler – Alaska Airlines; Jennifer Cast – Amazon; Steve Davis – PATH; Jenny Durkan – Quinn Emanuel Urqhart & Sullivan LLP; Jody Hall – Cupcake Royale; Clayton Lewis – Arivale; Linda Marzano – Pacmed; Richard Meadows – Seabourn and
Cunard North America; Trish Millines Dziko – Technology Access Foundation; Roger Nyhus – Nyhus Communications; John Rubino – GreenRubino; Brad Smith – Microsoft; John Wong – LPL Financial Services. The 25 LGBTQ-Owned Business Listmakers were: A la Mode Pies; B-Bam! Inc.; BANG; Board and Vellum; Broadcast Coffee; Bulk FR8; Capitol Hill Wealth Management; Choke Shirt Company & Choke Print Shop; City Catering Company; Fuel Coffee; Herban Feast; Marination; Naccarato Restaurant Group; Nyhus Communications; Pie; Poppy; Precision Door Service; Soaring Heart Natural Bed Co.; Starline Luxury Coaches; Terra Plata; TomboyX; Tutta Bella Neapolitan Pizzeria; Wezee’s Plumbing; Your Man Friday & Friday People; ZippyDogs.
Lifelong’s Chicken Soup Brigade windows shattered by vandals by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Sometimes a prank goes too far or an accident occurs and a window gets shattered. It’s an unpleasant feeling. Nobody really likes the sound of falling, breaking glass. It’s loud and it almost always sounds worse than the damage really is. Remember when you were little and your parents told you not to kick your shoes off because you might break a window? That is the kind of shattered glass I am talking about. But then there are times when a prank is replaced by cruelty and intolerance and instead of an accident a hate crime is committed. The sound of the falling glass whenever this kind of thing happens can be deafening. On Saturday, workers at Seattle’s Lifelong arrived to find that although there was shattered glass to greet them at the door, the spirit of what is known as the Chicken Soup Brigade is unbreakable. At least two windows at Seattle’s Lifelong’s Chicken Soup Brigade building were found shattered last Saturday morning when employees came to work. Seattle police discovered copper BBs below the shattered glass that were fired at the windows. It is possibly a bias crime but as usual, SPD does not want to jump to conclusions about the crime and will make their decision known as the investigation continues. Unfortunately, the building in which the food prep is done (where the windows were broken) does not have any security cameras. The Chicken Soup Brigade supplies meals and support to about 2,200 homebound people with different illnesses and relies on donations. Chicken Soup Brigade improves the nutritional health of individuals living with chronic conditions and hunger. “We recognize the importance of nutrition to overall health. It has the power to reduce symptoms of many illnesses. It can minimize medication side effects,” say officials. “And it can provide comfort when it is needed most.” Chicken Soup’s clients have specific
health challenges, such as HIV, diabetes, kidney disease, cancers, or disabling arthritis. Most are living below the Federal Poverty Level, and all require assistance in managing their nutritional health. Chicken Soup offers a comprehensive food and nutrition program designed not only to feed people but to nourish them. In 2014, Chicken Soup Brigade provided vital food and nutrition services to 1,640 people in the Puget Sound region. “We filled and distributed 37,047 grocery bags, served 162,000 meals,” said officials. CHICKEN SOUP BRIGADE’S PROGRAMS CONSIST OF: Grocery Program: Full bags of wholesome groceries that include dairy and meats, fresh produce, a variety of easily prepared comfort foods, and tasty snacks. To be eligible for this service, you must be living with a chronic medical condition and meet some other specific criteria. Meal Program: Wholesome, homemade meals are prepared in our own kitchen, and frozen for convenient reheating at a later time. Most meals meet the nutritional guidelines of the American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association. Specialized meals meeting diets such as vegetarian, no gluten/no dairy, or easy digestion are available. To be eligible for this service, you must be living with a chronic medical condition and meet some other specific criteria. Welcome Home Meal Delivery Program: Chicken Soup Brigade provides low-income, isolated individuals living with chronic illness with a series of nutritious meals specialized for their medical diagnosis within 24 hours of release from the hospital. The goal is to prevent future admission to hospital and assisted living facilities so the healing – and road to health – can happen at home. Nutritional Counseling: This counseling, called “Medical Nutritional Therapy,” includes a thorough assessment of each client’s nutritional health and individual
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dietary needs by a registered dietitian. Together, the dietitian and client determine which diet changes work into the client’s current lifestyle, including social and financial limitations. Volunteer Opportunities: Chicken Soup Brigade needs your help! We are always on the lookout for volunteers to help cook meals in our fully-equipped kitchen or to deliver groceries to our clients. Volunteers also pack and hand out grocery bags for clients in our pickup center, assist our nutritionists with community cooking classes, and solicit food donations at local grocery stores and farmers markets. Learn more and fill out an application today! Are you or someone you know living with a chronic medical condition and need
help with nutrition? Call a care coordinator at (206) 957-1686. Throughout the existence of the organization, HIV/AIDS dominated their work. Now, as modern medicine and research are starting to pay off, people are not passing away like they used to; when receiving a positive test result for HIV/AIDS almost always meant you had very little time left to live. Thanks to HIV/AIDS prevention drugs like Pre-exposure prophylaxis (or PrEP) and new HIV/AIDS infections decreasing, Lifelong can now help people who are in need as they recover from major illnesses. The damage has set the organization back about $7,000-$8,000. That is money that Chicken Soup Brigade officials say they do not have. To make a donation, go to www.LifelongAIDSAlliance.org.
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May 27, 2016
Seattle Gay News 7
Cleveland student: “Seattle Safe Place Program could’ve helped me” by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor
One high school student, a senior, who lives all the way in Cleveland, Ohio, recently published an editorial in the Seattle Times, Andy Huynh, says that Seattle Police Department’s “Safe Place” campaign could have helped him when he was coming out. “When I was 12 years old, a mere seventh-grader at Mercer Middle School, there was a guy who showed affection toward me,” Huynh recalls in the article, published May 25, in the Times. “I knew I was Gay, but no one else did. I tried my best to play the role as a straight guy, because I knew at the time homosexuality wasn’t a highly accepted thing.” But Huynh says he decided to tell some close friends that he was Gay and that he wanted to come clean about his feelings for the guy who showed him affection. And so, a few of his friends went to support him, but he said that when he asked the guy out on a date, “he rejected me.” Unfortunately, Huynh realized that “affection” the boy had shown was a joke to him and he had misread the signs. “It got worse,” continued Huynh. “Among the group of people I thought were my close friends, one kid immediately told everyone what had happened. ‘Andy is Gay. Andy got rejected by that guy,’ he said.” And so instead of coming out of the closet when he was ready, Huynh says he “was dragged out.” “The following summer was the first time I was bullied for being Gay, and cyberbullied,” he explains. “Somebody made a fake Facebook account using my name and posted horrible things that weren’t true. I had to back away from all of it. The account was deactivated, but that didn’t stop the bullying.” But that wasn’t the first time for the
ELEVEN STATES continued from cover
stating that Trans people are protected under the federal civil rights laws Title VII and Title IX. Both Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 contain prohibitions on discrimination on account of sex, and the Obama administration has interpreted that as a protection of gender identity. Paxton and other Republican officials disagree, and now federal courts will be asked to rule on the issue. In addition to Texas, the plaintiffs include Alabama, the Arizona Department of Education, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine Governor Paul LePage, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. “Defendants’ rewriting of Title VII and Title IX is wholly incompatible with Congressional text,” the Republican complaint says. Instead of following the letter of the law, the lawsuit charges, “Defendants have conspired to turn workplaces and
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boy. He says that in eighth grade – the first school year that everyone knew he was Gay – he was targeted by many bullies. “The worst was an acquaintance who was in one of my classes,” said Huynh. “One day he started shouting homophobic comments at me. I attempted to defend myself, but he continued shouting as I ran away crying. A teacher heard the comments and reported the incident to a school administrator. He was suspended, but then he contacted me to try and persuade me to tell the administrator to let it go. I decided to forgive him and I talked to the administrator.” The boy returned to school right away and the bullying continued. “He found out that my dad was against homosexuality, and so he threatened to tell my dad about my sexual identity,” said Huynh. “I reported this to the administrator. The administrator talked with him oneon-one and the threats were over. But the bullying continued over the school year. He threw broken pencils at me, and he continued to shout homophobic comments at me. I stayed strong and independent, because I knew that people like him will never change.” When Huynh started high school at Cleveland, he entered a totally different world. Cleveland was filled with people that didn’t care what someone’s sexuality is, according to Huynh. “It was amazing,” he said. “The first school year outside the closet was a nightmare,” he admits. “I only had a few close friends and cousins I could trust, but even that didn’t help me. They could only offer a few words of wisdom and small moments of comfort – all temporary solutions. I had to wake up every day knowing I was going to face more homophobia.” With the Seattle Police Department expanding their “Safe Place” campaign for LGBTQ students in Seattle Public Schools,
Huynh says he thinks, “What if there was a safe place when I came out of the closet?” “Maybe I wouldn’t have cried myself to sleep in fear of enduring bullying the next day,” he said. “Maybe I wouldn’t have felt like a target. Maybe I wouldn’t have felt that I was merely nothing, and if I disappeared from this world no one would care.” Huynh says he likes the idea of the “Safe Places” campaign. “… but for this campaign to work, schools should try their best to get every
educational settings across the country into laboratories for a massive social experiment, flouting the democratic process, and running roughshod over commonsense policies protecting children and basic privacy rights.” HRC, which strongly supports the Obama administration’s policy protecting Trans people, quickly condemned the lawsuit. “Ken Paxton has already disgraced himself and his office by undermining the rule of law and shamefully encouraging state officials to ignore the U.S. Supreme Court’s marriage equality decision last June,” HRC Communications Director Jay Brown said. “Now, he’s gone so far as to attack transgender youth, whom he has a responsibility to protect as Attorney General. Countless schools all across the country have policies in place that ensure transgender students are safe, protected from discrimination and can live authentic lives. Ken Paxton’s use of taxpayer resources to dismantle such protections is a reckless and expensive abdication of his responsibilities, and he should be held accountable.”
How we got to this point LGBT Americans have no protection whatsoever in federal civil rights statutes, making them dependent on state and local nondiscrimination laws and union collective bargaining agreements. However, the EEOC ruled in 2012 that Title VII’s ban on workplace discrimination on the basis of sex also protects against discrimination on the basis of gender identity. In their ruling EEOC cited a number of court decisions reaching the same conclusion and prior Supreme Court decisions barring sex-stereotyping. In 2013, the Departments of Education and Justice announced a settlement agreement in a complaint filed by a Transgender student whose school district prevented him from using facilities appropriate for his self-identified gender. In 2014, federal officials issued guidance under Title IX that protects students on the basis of gender identity in cases of sexual violence. In the same year, the Justice Department announced it was backing the EEOC’s interpretation of Title VII. Since then, federal agencies have advanced the Title IX interpretation by
May 27, 2016
student to support the idea behind the campaign: That students shouldn’t feel powerless – that they can take action to end the bullying or harassment that they face,” he told the Times. “If the Safe Place campaign was present when I first came out the closet, things would have been different. I wouldn’t have felt defenseless all those years ago. I wouldn’t have felt that I had no say on what to do about the endless bullying.”
Adny Huynh – Photo by Cleveland Publications
pushing several school districts into compliance. In October, 2015, federal attorneys filed an amicus brief with the Fourth Circuit supporting the claims of a Trans high school student who wanted to use the restroom that corresponded to his gender. A Fourth Circuit panel ruled in April that Title IX could, indeed, be applied in that way. The most recent DOJ guidance states that “a school must not treat a transgender student differently from the way it treats other students of the same gender identity. The Departments’ interpretation is consistent with courts’ and other agencies’ interpretations of Federal laws prohibiting sex discrimination.” The guidance issued to public schools on May 13 instructs schools that get money from the federal government – almost all public school districts and many colleges and universities – to allow Transgender students use facilities consistent with their gender identity in a wide range of settings, such as restrooms, dorms, and sports venues.
Celebrating 41 Years!
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Celebrating 41 Years!
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Celebrating 41 Years!
Seattle rents increased by 11 percent last month by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Seattle makes the top slot of a lot of lists, weekly. Seattle is always the best this or the best that. And for many locals and visitors alike; they are just fine with that. But recently Seattle has climbed to the top of a list that I think I am safe to say we do not want to be number 1 on and that is the “City with the highest rental rate increase.”
Rental site Abodo has released their National Apartment Report for May 2016, which includes a breakdown of the places in the US where average one-bedroom rents rose and fell over the last month. In Seattle one-bedroom rents rose more than any other city in the nation. Seattle one-bedroom apartment rents shot up from $1,722 to $1,906 between April and May. And what’s worse for people already feeling the crunch? The annual “Out of
Reach” report, which compares the minimum wage to housing costs in each county in America, ranks Washington 10th in the nation for high housing costs. According to the report, a renter in Washington would have to make $23.13 an hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment and $18.39 to afford a one-bedroom. In King County, that’s even higher: $29.29 and $23.56. Those wages are significantly higher
than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. And, in fact, the “affordable” perhour range is also significantly higher than Washington’s minimum wage of $9.47, and Seattle’s minimum wage (which eventually will be $15 an hour). Last year, a Journal of Urban Affairs study found that for every increase of $100 in median rents, the homeless population in metro areas increased by an average 15 percent.
Bigotry doesn’t pay
County lost $285 million because of NC hate law, Charlotte Chamber of Commerce says by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer North Carolina’s Mecklenburg County has already lost $285 million and 1,300 jobs as a result of HB 2, according to the Charlotte, North Carolina, Chamber of Commerce. HB 2 repealed Charlotte’s city ordinance protecting LGBT residents and barred other North Carolina cities from passing similar measures or raising the minimum wage above the $7.25 federal standard. Charlotte is the county seat of Mecklenburg County and the largest city in North Carolina. The Chamber of Commerce report on the economic effects of HB 2 also says that inquiries about new economic development are down 58% since lawmakers passed the bill in March, and client visits are down 69% from last year. “We have said all along that the economic loss has been real, the risk of further loss is great, and this is potentially cata-
TRUMP
continued from cover The meeting was organized by Trump’s former rival for the nomination and current campaign surrogate Ben Carson and will be co-hosted by the Family Research Council, Vision America, and AFA Action, the political arm of the American Family Association. All three organizations are deemed anti-LGBT hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Center. According to a copy of the invitation to the event obtained by National Review magazine, Trump will be joined by ultra-right activists including Tony Perkins, James Dobson, Penny Nance, Jim
strophic to our economy,” Chamber President Bob Morgan said. The report was distributed to Charlotte City Council members and some state lawmakers. On May 23, the Charlotte City Council voted 7-4 not to consider a repeal of the city ordinance that prompted lawmakers to pass HB2. Meanwhile, the San Francisco FortyNiners said they will donate $75,000 to Equality North Carolina “to further their work.” Team CEO Jed York also called on the North Carolina legislature to repeal HB 2. He is in Charlotte for an NFL conference and met with LGBT activists to discuss the impacts of the bill. “The San Francisco Forty-Niners are deeply concerned about North Carolina’s recently enacted House Bill 2, which overturned protections for LGBT people and sanctioned discrimination across the state,” York said in a statement released May 24. “HB2 does not reflect the values of our organization, of our country, or the majority of North Carolinians.”
Garlow, Rick Scarborough, Phil Burress, Ken Cuccinelli, Lila Rose, E.W. Jackson, Harry Jackson, Tim Wildmon, Ralph Reed, Pat Robertson, and Cindy Jacobs. National Review is a conservative journal that ran a special “Against Trump” issue in January, and is now considered the voice of the so-called “Never Trump” wing of the GOP. Many attendees should be well known to SGN readers from their years of antiLGBT activism, but some of the lesserknown ones are even scarier. Cindy Jacobs, for example, claims to receive direct messages from God. According to Right Wing Watch, a watchdog website, she says that the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell led God to kill
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Bob Morgan – charlotteobserver.com
masses of birds in Arkansas. Jim Garlow is apparently on even better terms with God. He doesn’t merely get messages from the Almighty, God takes advice from him, or so he says. Garlow claims that it was his prayers that led God to command Prop 8 to pass in California. Bishop Harry Jackson claims he has identified a number of “demonic principalities,” in other words high-ranking devils, that led the fight for marriage equality. “The Enemy wants it to be a legacy, or a seed that is planted in this generation that corrupts, perverts and pollutes generations to come,” he said of samesex marriage.
Pastor E.W. Jackson, no relation to Bishop Harry, has said of LGBT people that “Their minds are perverted, they’re frankly very sick people psychologically, mentally and emotionally and they see everything through the lens of homosexuality.” God has stopped blessing the US military, Jackson says, because Gay men and Lesbians can now serve openly in uniform. Trump has already pledged to nominate justices to the Supreme Court who will reverse the high court’s landmark rulings on reproductive choice and marriage equality, and has vowed to defund Planned Parenthood.
May 27, 2016
Seattle Gay News 13
Walmart still silent on Trans restroom policy by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Walmart refuses to discuss its Transgender restroom policies, according to the New York Daily News, which has repeatedly contacted the retail giant for clarification. The Daily News said on May 26 that it had attempted to get an answer from Walmart “every day for the past week.” The newspaper’s questions were prompted by a story it ran May 16 about a cisgender Connecticut woman who said she was harassed in a Walmart restroom by another customer who mistook her for a Trans woman. Aimee Toms told the Daily News that as she entered the restroom in the Danbury, Connecticut, Walmart a woman suddenly approached her from behind and yelled, “You are not supposed to be here! You need to leave!” The woman then flipped her off, Toms said, told her she was “disgusting” and stormed out. Toms said she believes her short hair and the baseball cap she wore that day made the other customer assume she was a Trans woman. After posting a Facebook video about the incident, Aimee Toms said she’s been
threatened by Internet trolls and called a “Lesbian” and “whore.” “People have irrational fears, I’d like for them to know this simply isn’t something to be so angry about,” Toms told the Daily News. The newspaper noted that in Connecticut – as in Washington state – Trans people have a legal right to use restrooms that correspond to their gender identity, and asked Walmart to comment on their corporate policy. Target, one of Walmart’s competitors in the discount retail market, made international headlines last month when company officials said Trans people were welcome to use restrooms that correspond to their gender identity. “Walmart’s silence on this is more than just silence. It’s giving bigotry a free pass,” said Jessica Levin, communications director for the worker advocacy group Making Change at Walmart. “It’s the number one retailer in the country and it could set the standard for what other retailers do.” Kevin Costello, a New Jersey civil rights lawyer who represented a Transgender Walmart employee in a prior case against the company, called their silence “disturbing.” “It’s disturbing because it’s an easy
Walmart – theodysseyonline.com
answer,” he said. Following Target’s lead, a number of high-profile corporations, including Starbucks, Barnes and Noble, and Lord and Taylor have said customers are free to use restrooms that match their gender identity. A sign prom ising a “safe
environment” for all customers outside a gender-neutral restroom at an Athens, Georgia, Kroger store became an icon of equality after it went viral in March. Kroger is a national retail grocery chain that owns Fred Meyer and QFC.
House OKs amendment protecting LGBT workers, then votes down amended bill by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer In less than 24 hours, the US House of Representatives first passed an amendment barring anti-LGBT discrimination by companies doing business with the federal government, then voted down the amended bill. Had the bill passed as amended, it would have given statutory authorization to a 2014 executive order by President Obama barring federal contractors from firing, harassing, or discriminating against employees based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Openly Gay Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) had attached the amendment to an energy and water spending bill, which House members, both Democrats and Republicans, subsequently voted down. Maloney’s amendment passed on May 25 by a vote of 223 to 195. On May 26, however, the underlying spending bill was defeated by 112 votes to 305, with all but six Democrats voting No because they had objections to spending limits and policy riders imposed by Republicans. Among the Republican amendments to the bill was one that that prohibits funds appropriated by the bill from being taken away from any entity in North Carolina for
14 Seattle Gay News
any reason at all, including fraud, failure to carry out the terms of a contract, or outright violation of the law. The amendment, offered by Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-NC), was intended to prevent federal officials from cutting off money to North Carolina because of its anti-Transgender law, HB 2. Despite the success of his amendment, Maloney himself voted No on the spending bill. Some 130 GOP members also voted against the bill because they objected to the pro-LGBT amendment. The outcome leaves Obama’s executive order in place and enforceable as long as he remains president, but since it lacks statutory backing it can be reversed by the next president. Attaching controversial amendments to “must pass” legislation like spending bills is a common tactic in Congress. Maloney had previously tried to attach the same amendment to a defense spending bill, but that was defeated on May 20 when House Republican leaders browbeat six of their members into changing their votes from Yes to No. According to The Hill, House GOP leaders could still try to bring additional spending bills to the floor, creating opportunities for Maloney to reintroduce his amendment. However, Republican lead-
May 27, 2016
President Obama delivers remarks before he signs an executive order to protect LGBT employees from workplace discrimination, July 21, 2014 – Photo by Pete Souza
ers could have additional bills considered under a process that prevents lawmakers in either party from offering unlimited amendments. Asked whether the House can pass more spending bills this year, Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) told The Hill “I think so, yeah,” adding that rules limiting the opportunity
for amendments process would “be considered.” “We’ll adapt to the circumstances and move on,” he said. Maloney said he would keep trying to amend future bills to bar discrimination against LGBT workers.
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VERMONT
continued from cover conversion therapy for minors in the state. The law was passed by the Vermont legislature in April and goes into effect on July 1. The governor’s signature makes Vermont the eighth US jurisdiction to ban the controversial practice of attempting to change sexual orientation or gender identity through practices that can amount to torture. The states of California, New Jersey, Oregon, Illinois, and New York, and the cities of Washington DC, and Cincinnati
16 Seattle Gay News
have also outlawed conversion therapy. “We are thrilled that Vermont has joined the rapidly growing number of states leading the way to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy,” said the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) Youth Policy Counsel Carolyn Reyes. “Vermont families can now have confidence that the mental health professional they turn to in times of uncertainty may not use their state license to profit from their children’s pain. Most importantly, Vermont children can now rest easy in the knowledge that they cannot be forced or coerced to undergo dangerous and dis-
May 27, 2016
credited treatments to try to change who they are. Today brings us one step closer to the day when all LGBTQ youth know they were born perfect.” HRC President Chad Griffin also issued a statement cheering the ban. “No young person should be subjected to this extremely harmful and discredited practice, which medical professionals agree not only doesn’t work, but can also have life-threatening consequences,” he said. It is nothing short of child abuse. We thank Governor Shumlin and the Vermont State Legislature for prioritizing the wellbeing and safety of our nation’s youth, and
remain committed to working with partners to ensure that this quackery is banned from coast to coast.” NCLR and HRC spearheaded the fight to pass SB 132, along with local groups Pride Center Vermont. and Outright Vermont. In February, NCLR, HRC, and the Southern Poverty Law Center filed a historic federal consumer fraud complaint against a major provider of “conversion therapy,” urging the Federal Trade Commission to take enforcement action against the organization and all practitioners engaging in similar fraudulent advertising and business practices.
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