SGN Nov 1, 2013 - Section 1

Issue 44 Volume 41

Celebrating 40 Years!

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Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Senate battle to pass ENDA heats up

Reid schedules vote on Monday, Nov. 4, on long-stalled measure new york magazine

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced on October 28 that he would bring ENDA, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, to the Senate floor in the near future, touching off a scramble for enough votes to avoid a Republican filibuster. The measure, which would outlaw workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, won a Senate committee vote in July, and Reid has been waiting for a favorable opportunity to bring it to the floor. It is already illegal at the federal level for employers to discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, nationality, religion, age, or disability, and many LGBT rights advocates see ENDA as the logical next step. ALL DEMOCRATS IN FAVOR A previous version of the bill stalled in the House in 2009, even though Democrats held a majority there and then-Speaker Nancy

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid

Pelosi (D-CA) was a strong supporter of the measure. “We tried, it failed in the House of Representatives before,” Reid said on the Senate floor Monday. “But we’re going to take it up here again.” Reid has supported ENDA ever since the first Senate version was introduced in 1997, and he quickly lined up all his Democrats behind the measure. The last three holdouts – Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL), Mark Pryor (D-AR), and Joe Manchin (D-WV) – fell into line by October 30. Newly elected Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) has not yet been sworn in, but he is a longtime ally of the LGBT community and is certain to be a Yes vote. Washington’s two senators, Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, are strong supporters of the bill. “Despite the incredible gains we’ve made toward full equality for LGBT Americans, many businesses throughout the United States can still legally discriminate against an employee or an apsee enda page 21

SGN exclusive interview Hawaii Senate passes

Tom Ammiano

marriage equality

House approval nearly certain; California Gay activist is fighting for a livable minimum wage governor says he will sign

proudly endorses Ed Murray for Mayor of Seattle

all hawaii news

luke thomas / fog city journal

Tom Ammiano

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer California Assemblyman and social justice activist Tom Ammiano was in Seattle recently to speak at a Town Hall forum on living wage ordinances. He took the opportunity to talk with SGN about his long battle for decent wages for the country’s lowestpaid workers. Ammiano strongly supports the controversial SeaTac Proposition 1, to mandate a $15-an-hour living wage in airport-related businesses. “I applaud SeaTac for putting that on the ballot,” he told SGN, “and I applaud Seattle for talking about raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.” Recalling his own struggle to pass living wage ordinances when he sat on San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors (a joint city-county government), Ammiano chuckled, “It was a big fight – a fight to convince my colleagues, a fight with the mayor … there was a lot of negativity. Very nasty things were done … personal things done

Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

The Hawaii Senate passed its marriage equality bill by an overwhelming 20-4 margin on October 30. The measure now goes to the state’s House of Representatives. A House committee began hearsee ammiano page 8

ings on the legislation October 31. No floor action has been scheduled as yet. Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie, who called the legislature into special session specifically to pass the marriage bill, told Al Jazeera see hawaii page 8

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Seattle Gay News

op-ed

Vote Yes on I-522

Whether or not GMOs are ‘safe,’ we have a right to know if they’re there by Viktor Bogatko Special to the SGN

food so that they we can create a demand for the foods we believe are the best for our families and the environment. Dr. Lawrence Becker, of Oregon State University, an expert on the topic, agrees that his greatest concern is that “power is being increasingly concentrated in just a handful of corporations,” which could have a number of serious and negative consequences locally and globally. I am convinced labeling GMO foods would create a greater demand for natural unadulterated foods, which would decrease the demand for foods that were genetically modified, an occurrence that GMO corporations fear the most because it would de-

order to compete with one another, leaving scientists very few genes to work with in their constant effort to develop disease resistant and high yielding crops. Genetically modified crops have also been known to contaminate native crops through pollination. This occurs when a GMO crop is planted near a non-GMO crop and birds and insects pollinate the plants indiscriminately. This phenomenon may seem harmless but it is not. When farmers depend on saving seeds for next year’s crop, contaminated seeds pollinated with GMO plants may not be viable and the farmer is left with nothing to plant.

A couple of weeks ago, I received a pamphlet in the mail that caught my attention. It was from the opponents of Initiative 522, urging me to vote no on labeling GMO foods. Of course by this point I had already heard of the initiative and my decision IMPOVERISHING FARMERS seemed like a no-brainer. After all, what Globally, local farmers and indigenous harm is there in labeling food for what it is? peoples are paying the highest price for Wouldn’t consumers be more informed and GMO crops, literally and figuratively. GMO therefore more equipped in making healthy corporations often charge outrageous prices choices at the grocery store? for their seeds and they have been known to Although the obvious answer is that laincrease prices once farmers become depenbeling GMO foods would be more helpful dent on their seeds. Indigenous people are for consumers in making healthy and also more vulnerable to crop diseases more sustainable decisions, I was in- I am convinced labeling GMO foods as they more often than not depend trigued that I was hearing more from just a few different crops to surwould create a greater demand for on opponents about the issue. Besides vive and when one of them fails, famthe typical attacks in bold print, I no- natural unadulterated foods, which ine is just around the corner for much ticed in the bottom right corner, in of the world’s already poor populathe smallest of print size was a short would decrease the demand for foods tion. list of the top five sponsors of the There are many more reasons why that were genetically modified. pamphlet. I was shocked to see that we should discouraged the use of the largest contributors were GMO and crease their profits and their iron grip over GMO foods or, at the very least, why we chemical corporations, including Monsan- the food industry. At the core of the issue for should label them. One very important fact to, ConAgra, and DuPont. The blitz-style opponents are profits, not the well-being of about the issue to recognize is how contro“No on 522” ads now made sense but they consumers or the preservation of our natu- versial the topic is. There must be a reason were also very concerning because I knew ral resources, which brings me to my next why so much of the world’s population fears how powerful these corporations were. I re- point. the consumption of GMO foods – because membered how last year a similar measure The truth about the safety of GMO foods there are many known negative consein California, Proposition 37, failed largely is that we simply do not know enough about quences and too many unknowns. To date, due to the involvement of these outside how GMOs affect our bodies. Not enough 64 countries label GMOs and many of them companies. time has passed for us to be able to deter- ban GMOs altogether. An outrageous 44 million dollars was mine the negative effects on our health, and Over 100 years ago, muckrakers reported spent on defeating the proposition com- few studies have been performed to deter- on unsanitary and unsafe conditions in food pared to just over 7 million dollars spent by mine the safety of these genetically modi- processing factories, which resulted in Conproponents. Despite this lopsided disadvan- fied foods. We do know, however, that the gress passing the Pure Food and Drug Act tage, Prop 37 was able to get 47 percent of pesticides and herbicides used on GMO of 1906. These reporters outraged the public the vote, which gave me some comfort for crops are being used more and more every by revealing to them that their Polish sauour chances of victory here in Washington. year and they are raising serious health con- sage, in addition to pork, might also contain Still, in an attempt to contribute to some- cerns. More farm workers are experiencing some rat or human feces. Today, instead of thing I believe is very important, I was en- pesticide poisoning while crops are becom- macroscopic dangers, we face potential micouraged to voice my opinion. ing increasingly vulnerable to diseases, fu- croscopic hazards that we know very little eling the already vicious cycle of pesticide about. These hazards are GMOs and we are CONCENTRATION OF POWER and herbicide use. GMO foods also encour- becoming increasingly dependent on them, While there are many reasons why I be- age monocropping, a dangerous practice of while losing control of what should rightlieve labeling GMO foods is a good idea, growing one type of crop or one variety of fully be ours – a right to know. It is therethe most important one I see is that con- a crop, which further exacerbates disease fore very important that on Election Day, sumers ought to be able to determine what vulnerability and pesticide use. In addition our state leads the rest of the country in our is on our grocery shelves, not large corpo- to fueling the cycle, monocropping dis- effort to curb the power of the corporation rations. Consumers should have access to courages genetic variability as more farm- and increase the power of individual choice. information concerning the contents of our ers switch to higher yielding GMO crops in Please vote Yes on Initiative 522.

November 1, 2013

Celebrating 40 Years!

Local news

courtesy kaffeklatsch via facebook

A little taste of Deutschland in Seattle

Brian explained, is set at a higher temperature.

by Susan B. Gemson Special to the SGN

LET’S HEAR IT FOR ANNETTE Kaffeeklatsch is a two-and-a-half-yearLet’s go back to Annette Heide-Jessen, old German bakery in little old Lake City. What makes Kaffeeklatsch special are its the female counterpart of Kaffeeklatsch. owners, Annette Heide-Jessen and Brian She told me that she and Brian opened Kaffeeklatsch in January 2011. Annette is Hensley. from Berlin and has German citizenship. “In Germany, a hyphenated last name is A WORD ABOUT BRIAN For 25 years, Brian, from Monroe, Wash- very common,” she says. “Heide is my ington, held a steady hammer in the con- maiden name and Jessen is my married struction business. “I have been doing this name.” Annette let me know that she used [baking] for three years,” revealed Brian, to be a nurse before opening her successwho went on to say that he needed a change ful Lake City bakery. One of the reasons from his previous occupation. As to the very Annette changed careers was that the nursfirst pastry he ever made, Brian reminisced, ing education she attained in Germany “I used to make a lot of pies, like apple and was not accepted in the United States. So cherry pie.” Brian later went on to enlighten in 2000, Annette decided to pursue a came that the piecrust recipe he uses is his reer in the bakery business. Commented Annette, “I brought in ideas from German grandmother’s. Brian’s day starts at 4:10 a.m., when “I recipes that came from family cookbooks.” open things up and have my first cup of cofA CHEF’S INSPIRATION fee.” He begins with the breads, getting his Brian told me that one of his most inspisourdough starter going by giving it water. “It is made up of natural organisms, a natu- rational chefs is Andrew Meltzer, who also works at Kaffeeklatsch. “He used to teach in ral form of yeast.” I asked this young pastry chef what his New York 20 years ago,” he told me. What most time-intensive bakery item is. “That advice would Brian Hensley, pastry cook would be the triple ginger cookie,” he said. extraordinaire, have for anyone thinking “It has a lot of different ingredients.” Brian about going into the bakery business? “It is doesn’t “eyeball” his ingredients when he important to enjoy what you are doing, because it is a lot of work.” bakes – everything is carefully measured. What does Kaffeeklatsch translate to Brian even told me about the ovens he uses. “The top oven I use in baking pastries. in English? “It means a social gathering It is always at 350 degrees. The lower oven I around coffee,” said Annette. And with that, use for breads and sweets.” The lower oven, I bade Kaffeeklatsch a hearty Auf Wieder-

Murray campaign cleared of alleged ethics violation No evidence found to support McGinn’s charge of collusion with donors

Annette Heide-Jessen and Brian Hensley

fox

sehen. I felt a kinship to Kaffeeklatsch that welcomed my Canadian and Eastern European heritage. And that’s not a half-baked idea – it’s “completely baked,” to quote Dustin Hoffman from The Graduate. Ah, what a school of thought is Kaffeeklatsch, a

little bit of Germany in Lake City. Kaffeeklatsch is located at 12513 Lake City Way N.E., Seattle. Their e-mail address is info@kaffeeklatschseattle.com, and their website is www.kaffeeklatschseattle.com. Bis zum nächsten Mal! (See you next time!)

local developers, Vulcan Inc. and Richard Hedreen, colluded with CASE and People for Ed Murray to hide the fact they were giving money to Murray’s campaign. People for Ed Murray is an independent expenditure campaign, and as such may not coordinate with the candidate’s official campaign, Ed Murray for Mayor.

August 2. The Ethics and Elections Commission ruled that CASE was at fault for concealing the donation from Vulcan and for concealing the fact it was earmarked for Murray’s campaign. Neither Vulcan, nor People for Ed Murray, nor the official Murray campaign organization were found to be at fault.

CASE ADMITS IMPROPRIETY In a settlement announced October 30, CASE admitted it had conversations with Vulcan, agreed to pay the fine, and promised not to offend again. Curiously enough, the Vulcan principal who handled the transaction with CASE was Phil Fujii, who served as McGinn’s deputy mayor for three months before abruptly resigning in 2010. According to the settlement document, Fujii asked CASE director George Allen to earmark Vulcan’s $15,000 contribution for Murray’s primary campaign. In a July 24 e-mail to People for Ed Murray fundraiser Rachel Padgett, the document continues, Allen wrote that a “hefty check is coming in today/tomorrow that will ensure the buffer we need for our next contribution to you for $15K.” CASE received the $15,000 check from Vulcan on July 24 or 25, and CASE contributed $17,500 to People for Ed Murray on

‘BASELESS’ ALLEGATIONS Dean Nielsen, a spokesman for People for Ed Murray, said the McGinn campaign’s allegation of collusion with the donors and CASE was “absolutely baseless.” “CASE made a contribution to People for Ed Murray and we accepted it. There was nothing nefarious about it. There’s nothing to it,” Nielsen said. “It’s just like a labor union making a contribution to a political committee, which happens all the time.” In a statement, McGinn consultant John Wyble demanded an apology from the Murray campaign, which is separate from People for Ed Murray. Murray campaign spokesperson Sandeep Kaushik told SGN that the campaign had no comment on the ruling “other than to say that Seattle Ethics’ draft finding makes it clear this is an issue between CASE and one of their donors, and that the Murray for Mayor campaign was neither aware of or involved in the communications in question.”

Hot

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Seattle’s Ethics and Elections Commission has found that Sen. Ed Murray’s mayoral campaign is not guilty of ethics violations alleged by his opponent. The Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce’s CASE PAC was fined $1,500 for concealing the source of contributions, however. According to a document released by

Ethics and Elections, “there is no evidence that People for Ed Murray or Ed Murray for Mayor [the official campaign] had knowledge of the communications between Vulcan [Inc.] and CASE, or sought in any way to conceal the source of any contribution made to People for Ed Murray or Ed Murray for Mayor.” Murray’s rival, incumbent Mayor Mike McGinn, filed the complaint in September. McGinn’s campaign complained that two

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Celebrating 40 Years!

Fighting for the majority in 2014

have been made over the last few years if Republicans had a majority in either legislative house,” said Fighting for the Majority officials. “While there clearly are individual Republicans who support equality for LGBT people, the party as a whole, and the leadership of the party in particular, have been staunch opponents of LGBT equality.” Here is how next year’s election is shaping up:

The progressive campaign to recapture the State Senate starts now file photo

“While there clearly are individual Republicans who support equality for LGBT people, the party as a whole, and the leadership of the party in particular, have been staunch opponents of LGBT equality.” KEY HOUSE RACES Democrats currently hold a 55-to-43 majority in the House. Incumbent Democrats expecting to face serious challenges include Hans Dunshee, Tami Green, Larry Seaquist, Roger Goodman, Kathy Haigh, Roger Freeman, Monica Stonier, and Dawn Morrell. Democrats will have to defend several midterm appointments, including in the 41st District (Mercer Island) and may also have the opportunity to pick up seats in the 30th (Federal Way), 35th (Mason County), and 44th (south Snohomish County). KEY SENATE RACES Although Democrats are technically in the majority, a Republican-dominated cartel known as the “Majority Coalition Caucus” controls this chamber by a one-vote

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Fighting for the Majority, a group of progressives who raise money to elect Democrats to public office with the goal of achieving a majority of seats in both chambers, held their 16th annual major fundraising event at South Lake Union Discovery Center on October 30. In terms of dollars raised and attendance, the event was a major success. The money raised this fall will help fund the campaign to unseat Rodney Tom and his Republican colleagues and ensure that advances in LGBT civil rights and on other progressive issues can resume in our state, said officials. Fighting for the Majority is co-chaired by Josh Castle and Audrey Haberman. FOUNDING AND PURPOSE In 1998, after a Republican controlled legislature overrode then-Gov. Gary Locke’s veto to create the state’s so-called Defense of Marriage Act, a dedicated group of Gay and Lesbian citizens recognized that if the LGBT community were to advance civil rights at the state level they would need to get involved in the electoral process in a clear and powerful way. They decided to create a fundraising mechanism to help elect legislators who would stand for equality. According to officials, by and large, Democrats were the only candidates and legislators willing to back LGBT causes, so the event benefitted Democrats. These citizens dubbed the successful fundraiser Fighting for the Majority. It became an annual event, and today Fighting for the Majority raises

margin (25-24), due to two conservative Democrats who caucus with the GOP (Tim Sheldon and Rodney Tom). Democrats have several real opportunities to pick up seats in the Senate and retake the majority. Vulnerable Republican/conservative incumbents the aforementioned Tom and Sheldon, as well as Andy Hill, Joe Fain, Steve O’Ban, Doug Ericksen, Michael Baumgartner, and Pam Roach. Democrats will also need to defend Tracey Eide, Steve Hobbs, and Nathan

Schlicher. WILL LGBT PROGRESS RESUME? In 2012, with majorities in both chambers, Democrats led the fight to make our legislature the first in the country to repeal a state “defense of marriage” act. In 2013, with Republicans in charge of the Senate, there was no opportunity for progress on issues such as protecting Gay youth from fraudulent and dangerous “conversion therapy.” Allowing the standoff to continue past 2014 will also make it harder for Gov. Jay Inslee to accumulate the record he will need for re-election in 2016, said officials. For that reason and many others, it’s not too early to begin focusing on what you can do to help bring both houses under progressive control next year.

more “hard” money to support the legislature’s Democratic caucuses than any other fundraiser. Funds raised by Fighting for the Majority go to directly support the election of Democratic legislators in swing districts via the House Democratic Campaign Committee and the Washington Senate Democratic Campaign (HDCC and WSDC). “Armed with electoral expertise, research, and polling, the WSDC and HDCC dynamically target our funds to the swing districts where they are most needed,” say officials on the group’s official website (http://fightingforthemajority.com). “This means, of course, Democratic legislative candidates who don’t necessarily have a large or obvious LGBT constituency in their districts nevertheless will receive LGBT support. This raises the awareness that the LGBT community is an important constituency for all Democrats in the Legislature.” Fighting for the Majority is one of simplest fundraisers ever. Volunteers serve on the organizing committee, and they help get the word out. Individuals can sponsor the event starting at the $150 level, and couples may sponsor starting at $300. Sponsors who made their donation by October 4 were recognized on the printed invitation to the sponsorship recognition event. The expense of the event is minimal, so nearly all the funds raised go directly to support the retention of a Democratic majority in the Legislature. LGBT issues have been a priority of the Democratic caucus for years. “While we are grateful for the Republicans who’ve supported bills we care about, unfortunately, none of the legislative progress made for the LGBT community in Washington would

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Seattle Gay News

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Unplug yourself at CAMP

Christmas party.

Q-Squared offers men community, personal growth, and fun barry johnson

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer Q-Squared, a local men’s organization, is working to “raise community to the power of you.” It does this primarily through its annual camping getaway. And it’s no small affair – this year’s CAMP, which took place over Labor Day weekend, brought out 90 people. CAMP is an acronym that reflects its nature and goal: Come and Meet People. CAMP is a four-day weekend in the woods, intended to “create an atmosphere, a place, and the time to sit around and get to know people on a deeper level,” said Barry Johnson, who serves as vice-president of QSquared’s board and has been involved with CAMP since 2000.

ammiano

continued from cover against me …” At the October 28 forum, Ammiano was able to laugh about the hard feelings generated by San Francisco’s living-wage law. One evening he walked into a bar, he said, and the manager informed him he was not welcome there. “I told him, ‘All I want is a Manhattan,’” Ammiano recalled. “He still said I wasn’t welcome. Finally I threw up my hands and said, ‘Well, if a girl can’t get a drink in this town, what the hell did Harvey [Milk] fight for?’” FOUR DECADES OF ACTIVISM Ammiano has never shied away from controversy. In 1975 he became the first openly Gay public school teacher in the San Francisco Unified School District. Two years later, he founded the successful “No on 6” campaign to defeat the so-called Briggs Initiative, which sought to ban Gays and Lesbians from teaching. Ammiano then ran for the school board three times, finally winning election in 1990. He was elected president of the board in 1992. He was then elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1993 and remained there till 2008, when he was elected to the state legislature. In 1999, Ammiano challenged incumbent San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, an opponent of many of Ammiano’s policies. That bruising campaign, which Brown ultimately won, is the subject of the documentary film See How They Run. He came to Seattle to talk about his experience fighting for higher wages for working people because he believes San Francisco and Seattle have much in common, he told SGN.

NO EMAIL ALLOWED Q-Squared’s CAMP is an alcohol, drug, and email-free event, which features activities such as dances, workshops on various topics, and sports to foster cohesiveness within the large group, which usually ranges from about 80 to 130 people. The event draws men from all backgrounds, including regional, socioeconomic, race/ethnic, and age. Transmen are also welcome. “Anybody who identifies as a man,” Johnson told SGN. “We’re about as diverse a group as I think you can get.” Originally a program of Gay City Health Project, Q-Squared was born in 2006, from the need of CAMP to become a yearlong, ongoing community-building organization. “The primary people involved with CAMP believed it needed more attention than the Gay City board provided at the WORKERS NEED A BOOST “Real estate prices are very high, and that means rents are soaring,” he noted. “Many of the jobs are in service industries where the wages are low and there are no benefits. That means working people will never get out of the economic position they’re in – not unless we do something at the local level.” In addition to raising San Francisco’s minimum wage above the California state level by city ordinance, Ammiano also helped create the “Healthy San Francisco” project. “It’s not health insurance,” he explained, “but it offers universal access to health care,” the first such program in the country. Some 90,000 San Franciscans now use the program, Ammiano said. California Gov. Jerry Brown signed new minimum wage legislation in September, which will raise California’s minimum to $10 an hour by 2016. Asked if he thought $15 an hour was a realistic demand, Ammiano laughed. “You know, in California, we use you as a political argument,” he said. “We point to Seattle and say, ‘At least we’re not asking for $15!’ but I think it’s a realistic assessment.” Some compromise steps might be necessary along the way, Ammiano added, such as carve-outs for small businesses, or phased-in increases, which the California law provides. “A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do,” he laughed. UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES? Asked if he thought that business owners might cut working hours to compensate themselves for having to pay higher wages, Ammiano acknowledged that was a problem.

time,” said Johnson. This, he said, wasn’t Gay City’s fault. It was more that those involved saw its potential, which Gay City simply couldn’t provide enough assistance in fulfilling, given its other roles in the community. The first CAMP took place over Labor Day weekend of 1996. Gay City envisioned it as an event where Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender men could remove themselves from the daily stresses of urban life and build a sense of community. “The event itself hasn’t changed,” Johnson told SGN. Q-Squared exists simply to expand upon the benefits that CAMP provides, by bringing the values of CAMP to the urban LGBT community. It does this though monthly get-togethers and holiday events like the upcoming Thanksgiving potluck and

A LABOR OF LOVE All of these events, including CAMP, are volunteer-driven. The whole organization is. One of Q-Squared’s tenets is that “community building and diversity can best be achieved through a volunteer-driven organization.” “Our leadership, the people that have emerged as the leaders in the organization, have all come from within the group, people who said, ‘I’ll step up and put in my best effort,’ Johnson told SGN. “It brings growth and leadership opportunities to people who may not have had that opportunity otherwise.” “It’s what’s really kept the event going for 18 years now,” Johnson added. One of Q-Squared’s best additions is “QSpring,” a smaller, more intimate getaway weekend whicwh began in 2008. Q-Spring is shorter than CAMP, and has a max attendance allotment of 36. It’s more focused on workshops than CAMP, and is aimed towards personal growth and development as well as community. “It’s more inward-focused,” said Johnson. “There are spiritual workshops, discussions about relationships – last year we had a discussion about marriage.” Next year’s Q-Spring will take place April 25-27. Q-Squared is a nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to improving the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health of sexual minority men by building a stronger sense of community, increasing individual responsibility, and improving self-esteem through CAMP and related community-based activities. Learn more at www.qsquared.org. “I met my now-husband there. My close circle of friends I met at CAMP,” said Johnson. “It’s given me confidence. It’s greatly improved my ability to lead and speak in front of bigger groups. It’s given me confidence to state my opinions and know that those opinions are respected.”

“Some people are already doing that, to avoid Obamacare,” he replied. “And that’s a bit of an issue. But you can minimize that – there are ways to broker that. It depends on how you interpret state and city laws, and you can negotiate with employers. Businesses are not monolithic.”

The Town Hall forum featured Ammiano, Simon Fraser University professor Peter Hall, and Bob Brownstein, policy director at Working Partnerships USA. Among the sponsors was SEIU (Service Employees International Union) 775NW, a key backer of SeaTac Proposition 1.

hawaii

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN Ironically, Hawaii was the state that touched off the national debate on marriage equality in 1993, when its Supreme Court ruled that it was discriminatory to prevent same-sex couples from marrying. In response, Republicans in Congress introduced the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and passed it with bipartisan support in 1996. In 1998, Hawaiian voters approved a state constitutional amendment that allowed the legislature to limit marriage to opposite-sex couples. In 2010 and 2011 the state legislature approved civil unions bills that recognized same-sex relationships, but did not grant them the status of marriages. Abercrombie told reporters he decided to push the marriage bill through the legislature because of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last June striking down the key sections of DOMA. “The bill primarily is in response to the recent Supreme Court decisions and legal action that was taken in our state with regard to equality issues that we think the bill will resolve,” the governor said. Recent polls have consistently found majority support for marriage equality among Hawaiians. A January 2013 Honolulu Civil Beat poll found that 55% of Hawaii voters were in favor of same-sex marriage while 37% were opposed. An August 2013 QMark Research poll found that 54% of Hawaii residents favored same-sex marriage, with 31% against.

continued from cover America on October 28 that he expected final passage “within a week or so.” Abercrombie said that, at the latest, he hopes the bill will be passed before January, so that married same-sex couples can enjoy benefits including but “not exclusive to taxes.” “If it’s a question of people being able to have equality with regard to rights and benefits and so on, there is no justification for delaying them the capacity to exercise those rights and gain those benefits,” he said. The governor has promised to sign the bill into law once it reaches his desk. Abercrombie, who served more than two decades in the U.S. House of Representatives before running for governor in 2010, signed a same-sex civil unions bill into law two years ago and has since been a vocal supporter of equal marriage rights for Gay and Lesbian couples. His predecessor, Republican Linda Lingle, vetoed a civil unions bill in 2010. In the Senate vote, two Democrats defected to join the body’s lone Republican in voting against equality. Democrats outnumber Republicans in the House 44 to 7, and the marriage bill is expected to pass there as well, making Hawaii the 15th state where same-sex marriage is legal. The District of Columbia and seven Native American nations also allow same-sex marriage.

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Missouri Supreme Court denies partner benefits suit Glossip and the patrolman were of the same sex. The statute discriminates solely on the basis of marital status, not sexual orientaIn what could be described as a classic tion.” “Catch-22,” the Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that the same-sex partner of a MisA ‘BLEMISH’ ON HISTORY souri Highway Patrol officer killed in the In a statement, PROMO of St. Louis, a line of duty is not entitled to survivor ben- statewide LGBT rights group, said it was efits because the two weren’t married. disappointed in the ruling. Highway Patrol Corporal Dennis Engel“The Missouri Supreme Court decided hard was killed on Christmas Day 2005, on narrow grounds to deny survivor benwhen he was struck by an out-of-control car efits because Kelly Glossip and Cpl. Dennis while assisting another stranded driver. Englehard were not married in a jurisdiction His partner of 15 years, Kelly Glossip, ap- where marriage is legally recognized,” says plied for and was denied survivor benefits. the statement. Glossip then sued, saying the law restrict“The Supreme Court ruling was a disaping benefits to married spouses was discrim- pointment for Kelly Glossip and their son. inatory because under Missouri state law he The ruling denies a true recognition for the was prevented from marrying Engelhard. commitment of the couple and their family. In a 5-2 opinion issued October 29, the They exchanged rings on Christmas Day, state’s Supreme Court ruled that Glossip several years before the passing of Engelwas not entitled to benefits. The law dis- hard.” criminates on the basis of marriage, the A.J. Bockelman, executive director of court said, not sexual orientation. PROMO, also had harsh words for the “Glossip was denied survivor benefits be- court’s opinion. cause he and the patrolman were not mar“With the wave of lawsuits and marriage ried, not because of his sexual orientation,” cases going forward around the country, this the court’s opinion stated. statement is an embarrassment to justice, “If Glossip and the patrolman had been equality, and will be go down in history as a of different sexes, Glossip would have still blemish,” Bockelman said. been denied benefits no matter how long or “Make no mistake, equality and justice close their relationship had been. The result will prevail, and the fight will continue.” cannot be any different here simply because by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

Kelly Glossip (seated) and Corporal Dennis Engelhard

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Oy vey! Will soy turn you Gay? Rabbi says soybean ‘hormones’ could have unbiblical side effects by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer And now, conclusive proof that the Catholic Church has no monopoly on silly religious dogma. The Hasidic Rebbe of Gur has told the estimated 13,000 families who follow him that their boys must not eat soy products, because that might lead to “unwanted sexual arousal.” According to a report in the Israeli news-

paper HaMevasser, Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter issued the ruling because he believes that “hormones” in soy products could cause boys to become effeminate. If these boys became more like girls, Alter said, then teachers and older students in their yeshiva would become attracted to them, and who knows where that would lead? The rabbi is also concerned soy will cause girl students to become sexually mature faster than normal.

Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter

A MODICUM OF TRUTH Soy products do contain chemicals known as isoflavones that mimic estrogen, but a male would have to consume a huge amount to have any noticeable effect. It has not been connected to sexual orientation at all. Alter is the seventh Rebbe in the Gur dynasty, having succeeded his uncle in 1992. He is also the leader of the Agudat Yisrael party in the Israeli Knesset. Agudat Yisrael represents the Haredim, the most traditionalist of the Orthodox Jewish sects. Alter is also one of Israel’s richest citi-

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zens, with an estimated net worth of more than $200 million. The Gur dynasty of Rebbes was founded in 1859 in the Polish town of Gora Kalwaria, known as Gur, or Ger, in Yiddish. Before the Holocaust, the line of Rebbes had perhaps 100,000 followers. Today most Gur followers live in Israel, but there are also communities in Brooklyn and London. Jewish historians say that the Haredi movement grew in reaction to the 19th-century “Jewish Enlightenment,” which gave rise to modernist Reform Judaism.

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Grindr or meat grinder? Too many men let unexamined prejudice dictate their dating behavior

New to the Gay community, Bennett says he was confused. “What the hell is an ‘otter’?” he wondered, adding, “Why in the world are you abbreviating the term ‘masculine?’ Is this a thing?” Bennett claims this was his virtual introduction to the “categorical homogenization of Pittsburgh’s homosexual community.” It wasn’t rainbows. There were no hugs. Just a group of guys jumping to label me as a certain type of Gay male.” Indeed, he found that by pressing the orange box, thumbnail images of torsos on Grindr, height/weight statistics, and “petty ramblings on personal preferences appear on your screen. As empty and dense as it was, this was initially the most convenient way for me to interact with other Gay men.”

rican American community and hindered by white privilege, feel pressure to pass as the very race that degrades them. • Tops are idealized. Bottoms are degraded. Gym regimens are requested. Heightweight proportions are mandatory. WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS? You might think that perhaps Bennett is overreacting a bit. I mean, aren’t each of us allowed to be attracted to whomever we’re attracted to without having to explain, or be made to feel racist if we don’t date someone of the opposite race? Consider the number of labels or types and preferences that exist in the LGBT world. Some might strike out on Grindr for being old, fat, or Bisexual. Preferences are

“The Gay community should ... step forward to put a stop to its own alienating habits. Why should we ask straight men to stop degrading femininity if we can’t follow our own demands?”

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor

say they knew all along. Some would simply congratulate me. Then, there would be the embrace. I would be welcomed into the Gay community, a world full of rainbows and hugs and all that jazz. “This all happened, to an extent,” he explained. “But really, the first thing I vividly remember about joining the Gay community was a series of messages on Grindr.” Grindr is a location-based smartphone application that displays the closest Gay/Bi/ closeted/married men based on their proximity. Bennett admits, “Grindr was not best place to start.”

A growing number of Gay men, particularly Gay men of color, are speaking out against something they say has been bothering them since the beginning of online dating. These men claim that some men who use mobile hookup apps like Grindr are racist. And the problem, they say, is only getting worse. Michael Bennett, a well-known commentator on hip-hop, race relations, and American culture on his blog www.poeticjustice. me, recently said, “When I began to conA RUSH TO LABEL sider the possibility of coming out as a Gay Once his Grindr profile was up and runmale, I imagined the announcement would trigger a series of predictable phases. First, ning, he was shocked to read, “Sorry, not there would be a bit of a shock. A handful into chest hair.” And also, “You look real of friends would be surprised. Some would masc.” And finally, “’Sup, otter?”

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an individual choice. We all have them, and some are simple, like what color car you want to drive, or which genre of music you enjoy. Some preferences are more complex, like our relationships, the people we call friends, and the politics we vote on. Still others are in-between, like whether or not a hookup or potential boyfriend is cut/uncut, Gay/Bi, etc. Shouldn’t Bennett just be the person he is, and accept that not everyone will like him or want him sexually and get on with living? He doesn’t think so. In fact, he presents a pretty good argument as to how and why this type of behavior might take place on Grindr, and why it’s problematic. “Perhaps, if more men are encouraged to be open about their sexuality, we can take more steps to break down the homogenization that hinders a community that should be united in establishing a welcoming, anti-discriminatory environment for its own members,” he says. “Moreover, we can view this desire to homogenize the Gay community as a product of childhood bullying. Growing up surrounded by straight boys who degrade femininity – whether it be women or Gay men – has imprinted the masculine, muscular white man as an ideal image to the homosexual male. And now, Gay men can’t help but pass on the detestation.” Bennett says that a part of himself wants to blame it all on the heterosexual community caught up in the traditional masculine/ feminine gender roles. “But as much as they can be held responsible, and should realize that their bullying destroys thousands of lives, the Gay community should also step forward to put a stop to its own alienating habits.” SOME EXAMPLES “Why should we ask straight men to stop According to Bennett, Grindr is a virtual world of avatars, most of whom strive to degrading femininity if we can’t follow our project that they possess the qualities of the own demands?” he asks. ideal, desirable Gay man. In other words, TAKE A STAND Grindr is a place where: But it isn’t all doom and gloom. Bennett • Black men lighten their picture in an attells his readers, “If you’re reading this and tempt to pass as white. • Gay men claim to be straight, or debating whether to come out of the closet, “straight-acting,” to attract other Gay men. don’t let this scare you. Coming out is as re• Femininity is masked and degraded, and lieving as it is terrifying. Just be prepared to take a stand against discrimination, and emmasculinity is cherished and sought after. • Overweight men either embrace obesity brace your own identity.” “If you’re a straight male, hopefully to align with a “bear” or “cub” identity, or you’ve learned a little about how you might are told to lose weight. • Young Gay men are told to identify as have unknowingly contributed to discrimitop or bottom, white or Black, jock or bear, nation in a community other than your own,” he said. “Stop bullying, and start altwink or otter, masc or fem. • Men who spent the entirety of their lying.” “If you’re an out and proud Gay male, do childhood being bullied by straight guys are being told that if they “act straight,” they’ll your part to fight the norm,” Bennett conbe more sought-after in the Gay community. cludes. “You can advertise your sexual pref• Black men, who spent their whole lives erence without making others feel alienated terrified behind the closeted doors of the Af- or unwanted.” After performing as a straight male for upwards of 20 years, he said he suddenly had higher standards for body image, speech, and fashion than he had ever experienced in the heterosexual community. “Was I in good enough shape? What is it, exactly, that makes someone masculine? I had this urge to mold my identity into this projected ideal image of a Gay man. Why? So that someone’s thumbnail image of a torso would talk to me,” he said. “I was getting a glimpse into the societal pressures that heterosexual women feel every day, forced to live up to the body image standards of men.” In the long run, Bennett claims, he’s had it easier than others. “I wasn’t being labeled a bear or cub, or being blocked because of my skin color, or being called names like queen, fairy, or fem,” he said. “There are plenty of people who suffer from body-image issues far worse than mine. Who wake up every day thinking they’re inadequate or undesirable because some anonymous profile deemed them as such. Who are driven to the same suicidal thoughts that they attempted to extinguish by coming out in the first place.” As much as we can’t let Grindr represent the entire Gay community, in some ways it acts as a fairly candid microcosm for the scope of homosexual categories, social behaviors, and desires, perhaps presenting an even more brutal honesty than the porn industry, thinks Bennett. “There are plenty of Gay men who don’t associate with Grindr, but many who do contribute to a terrifying introduction to the world of Gay social interaction,” he said.

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EARSHOT JAZZ FESTIVAL 25 THRU NOVEMBER 17 www.earshot.org

buffet dinner, so please come hungry! The family-friendly entertainment will include traditional Mexican music, and also performances from some of the community’s amazing drag queens. SECULAR HUMANISTIC Tickets: $40 are available at www.brownJEWISH COMMUNITY papertickets.com/event/477544. SHABBAT RITUAL Entre Hermanos promotes the health and & POTLUCK DINNER well-being of the Latino LGBTQ commuWITH GUEST SPEAKER nity through education, outreach, advocacy THE HON. ANNE LEVINSON On Friday, November 1, from 6:30-9:30 and referrals. www.entrehermanos.org p.m., in the Wallingford neighborhood (call SEATTLE GAY & LESBIAN or email for location), join Seattle’s only BOOK CLUB – Secular Humanistic Jewish Community for ROUGH MUSIC a Shabbat Gathering featuring the HonorThe Seattle Gay & Lesbian Book Club able Anne Levinson on the topic of Jewish roots and Social Engagement. Judge meets every Wednesday from 6-7:15 p.m., Levinson will speak about how her Jewish at Seattle Area Support Groups Community heritage is reflected in her working to save Center (303 17th Ave. E. at E. Thomas St.). In November, the club will discuss The the Seattle Storm women’s basketball team, working on the Referendum 74 campaign, Two Hotel Francforts, a new novel by Daand many other experiences working on is- vid Leavitt. In 250 pages, it presents a persues related to social justice and social wel- fect story, perfectly told. A moral riddle of fare. Judge Levinson currently serves as an misunderstanding, it’s a minefield of clevindependent advisor to the City of Seattle erly concealed set-ups and startling surwith regard to police accountability. She has prises, told by a likeable guy about the week previously been a Seattle Municipal Court that changed his life. It’s about the way we Judge, where she founded and then presided come to the wrong conclusions about other over one of the nation’s first mental health people. All GLBTQ folks are welcome to parcourts, designed to divert mentally ill individuals out of the criminal justice system ticipate in this FREE book club. For more and instead connect them with treatment information, visit http://faculty.washington. and services. She is also among Washington edu/swittet/SGLBookClub/. state’s first out public officials. Non-memADVENTURE TV – ber suggested donation: $10. For more in2013 PRIDE PARADE & formation and location, call 206-528-1944 PRIDE FEST FOOTAGE or email info@secularjewishcircle.org. The 2013 Pride Parade and Pride Fest footage shot by T.J. Williamson, Producer GEEKS OUT PRESENTS and Host for Adventure TV, will begin air“THE GAMERS: ing/streaming on Saturday, November 2, HANDS OF FATE!” – at 10 p.m., repeating the following Tuesday, AN ALTERNATIVE TO November 5, at 11 a.m. and Wednesday, “ENDER’S GAME” On Friday, November 1, from 7-8 p.m., November 6, at 1 a.m. Parts 2, 3 and 4 folat Gay City’s Calamus Auditorium (517 low on Saturdays, November 9, 16 and 23, E. Pike St.), Seattle Geeks OUT presents a at 10 p.m. (repeating Tuesdays, November screening of “The Gamers: Hands of Fate!,” 12, 19 and 26 at 11 a.m. and Wednesdays, a fantasy comedy by local production com- November 13, 20 and 27 at 1 a.m.). The pany Zombie Orpheus Entertainment and a episodes will air on Comcast Cable channel sequel to “The Gamers: Dorkness Rising.” 77 (Wave 23) and simultaneously stream For more information, visit http://watchthe- at http://seattlecommunityunitymedia.org. gamers.com/. There may also be some spe- Also, the 2011 and 2012 Pride Parade and Pride Fest footage is archived at http://secial surprises in store. This event is being organized in opposi- attlecommunitymedia.org/node/12374/ tion to Orson Scott Card, the virulently ho- list-shows. If you have any questions, email mophobic writer and producer of the film adventuretv@yahoo.com. “Ender’s Game,” which is opening this PROJECT NEON AFTER DARK same evening. For details about this alterEROTIC POETRY NIGHT native event protest, visit www.skipenderOn Thursday, November 7, at 8 p.m., at sgame.com, where you can also sign a petition pledging not to see “Ender’s Game.” Black Coffee Co-op (501 E. Pike St.), ProjSeveral cities around the country are host- ect NEON hosts their first annual Erotic ing similar such events, all hosted by Geeks Poetry Night featuring consensual, non-violent, sex-positive, health-affirming poetry/ OUT. Suggested donation for this evening’s spoken word that also promotes safer sex. “The Gamers: Hands of Fate!” event is $10 FREE. www.projectneon.org. and all proceeds will go to Gay City Health TULALIP RESORT CASINO – Project. www.gaycity.org. “TASTE OF TULALIP” NOVEMBER 8 & 9 GREEN SEATTLE DAY On Friday and Saturday, November On Saturday, November 2, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., join your neighbors around Se- 8 and 9, the Tulalip Resort Casino (10200 attle for the 8th Annual Green Seattle Day at Quil Ceda Boulevard, Tulalip) hosts their the West Duwamish Greenbelt and 16 local 5th annual “Taste of Tulalip” weekend. forested parks across the city. For details, Over 2,000 attendees will sip, savor and indulge during this two-day celebration of visit www.greenseattle.org. wine, food and tradition. The weekend begins with the Friday evening Celebration ENTRE HERMANOS – Dinner, featuring a 6-course meal of excepDIA DE LOS MUERTOS/ tional food and wine pairings. Saturday’s DAY OF THE DEAD Grand Taste features wine from over 120 GALA CELEBRATION On Saturday, November 2, at 6 p.m., at Washington, California, Oregon, French the Northwest African American Museum and Spanish wineries and a poolside Craft (2300 S. Massachusetts St.) join Entre Her- Beer Garden, alongside an abundant array manos for their annual gala event, which of food prepared by the Tulalip resort’s cuthis year coincides with the traditional holi- linary team. NOTE: Friday, November 8’s Celebraday Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Featuring a special performance by Miss tion Dinner is SOLD OUT. Grand Taste Gay Seattle 2013 Isabella De La Rosa, this Passes for the Saturday, November 9, Grand event will feature food and entertainment, Taste event are still available at $95 and a chance to hear about Entre Hermanos’ Private Magnum Party is still available at recent work, and an opportunity to support $295 (includes entrance to the Grand Taste). the work Entre Hermanos does in the Latino www.tasteoftulalip.com. LGBTQ community. Upon arrival, guests will have a chance to mix and mingle, with a cash bar available. Then enjoy a beautiful catered Mexican

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GAY CITY ARTS – “EVERYTHING EVERYTHING EVERYTHING” On Friday and Saturday, November 8 and 9, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, November 10, at 2 p.m., Gay City Arts, at Calamus Auditorium (517 E. Pike St.), presents “Everything, Everything, Everything,” a multidisciplinary comedy about the time a Lesbian woman and a straight guy fell in love with the same incredible heartbreaker. Written and performed by Wesley K. Andrews and ilvs strauss. This innovative multi-media project combines spoken word, music, and visual art in the form of a Kodak slideshow to create an immersive audience experience like none other. Fans of NPR, thoughtful stand-up comedy, bookstore readings, and indie music will feel right at home. Tickets: $18-general admission; $12 students/seniors (ID required). www.gaycity.org RAINBOW HEALTH EXPRESS – WOMEN’S HEALTH SCREENING On Saturday, November 9, from 9-3 p.m., at The Wildrose (1021 E. Pike St.), the YWCA Rainbow Health Express hosts a no-cost day-long health screening event featuring breast exams, pap tests and mammograms for income eligible, uninsured or underinsured. (People with insurance are welcome.) To schedule an appointment, call 206-461-4493. Insurance enrollment available. SEATTLE CENTER FESTAL – HMONG NEW YEAR CELEBRATION On Saturday, November 9, from 11 a.m.-6 p.m., at the Seattle Center Armory, explore and experience the cultural roots and contemporary influences of the Hmong people from the hilltops of China, Laos, and Thailand, through live performances, visual arts, hands-on activities, games, and a lively marketplace. Gain insights into the customary courtship ritual of ball tossing and participate in flower cloth sessions. The Hmong New Year Celebration helps to preserve the unique traditions and creativity of this Southeast Asian highland culture that originates in the mountains of China. The Lunar New Year is a time for the Hmong people to reflect on the past year and seek out new beginnings. FREE. www. hmongassociationofwa.org. IMPERIAL COURT OF SEATTLE – “LIFE IS A CARNIVAL” – THE 50TH MR. & MISS GAY SEATTLE PAGEANT On Saturday, November 9, doors at 6 p.m., pageant at 7 p.m., at Neighbours Nightclub (1509 Broadway, entrance in alley between Broadway and Harvard Ave. off E. Pike St.), join the Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle & the Olympic and Rainier Empire for “Life is a Carnival,” the 50th Mr. & Miss Gay Seattle Pageant. $20 suggested donation. www.imperialcourtofseattle.com; www.facebook.com/ISCSORE

sonata for violin and piano by the audacious Erwin Schulhoff will be performed. Tickets: $40. 206-365-7770; www.musicofremembrance.org GAY CITY ARTS – “FLAWED/DIGITAL WEAVINGS” BY SYNVIA WHITNEY Through November 11, Gay City Arts (517 E. Pike St.) presents “FLAWED/digital weavings” by Syniva Whitney. “FLAWED” started with taking digital images of moles, wrinkles and aberrations of the internal and external bodies of the artist and friends and family. Then woven by hand along with disposable party ribbons, cheap holiday tinsel, industrial plastics, VHS tape, soft cottons, wire and wool. Relationships develop between the microscopic and the macroscopic, the constructive and destructive, the party and the day after. These pieces tell stories, threaten health, and define identities. They are part of a whole, and yet can be exploded by their role in a person’s body: a mark that invokes a sexual power, a scar that is a reminder of a violent past, or a cluster of interior cells that slowly takes over, a presence as hard to imagine as the far reaches of the universe.... “FLAWED” is presented in conjunction with Gay City Arts, through which Gay City collaborates with local LGBT artists to galvanize an audience for Queer arts, foster the development of LGBT artists, and facilitate artistic excellence across a wide range of disciplines, including theater, music, dance, film, spoken word, literary and visual arts. www.gaycity.org. THE BUSH SCHOOL – SCREENING & DISCUSSION OF “DADDY & PAPA” On Thursday, November 14, at 6 p.m., at The Bush School (3400 E. Harrison St.), join The Bush School Sexuality and Gender Alliance for a screening and discussion of “Daddy & Papa” (2002), an award-winning film about the personal, cultural, and political impact of Gay men raising kids. The film premiered at Sundance, won more than 15 major festival awards, aired nationally on PBS’ Independent Lens, and received a national Emmy nomination for Best Documentary. Film director Johnny Symons is an alumnus of The Bush School. RSVP to Svetland.Beggs@bush.edu or call 206-3267777. Seating is limited.

SEATTLE SEA DAWGS ICE HOCKEY TEAM The Seattle Sea Dawgs is a new ice hockey team that is forming open to Gay, Bi, Lesbian, Transgender and straight ally adult players. The Sea Dawgs mission is to provide a relaxed, friendly team environment for GLBTA hockey players to play hockey, socialize and support the greater GLBT community. The Sea Dawgs will play locally and organize for competitions in the U.S. and abroad. Interested players at all skill levels are encouraged to contact the Sea Dawgs for additional information or to exMUSIC OF REMEMBRANCE – press interest. The Sea Dawgs are especially FALL CONCERT: looking for experienced players and a goalie “UNTIL WHEN?” at this time. Please email skateseadawgs@ On Sunday, November 10, at 7 p.m. gmail.com for additional information and to (with Pre-Concert “Meet the Artists” Talk express your interest. Also, visit Seattle Sea at 6:15 p.m.), at Illsley Ball Nordstrom Re- Dawgs on Facebook. cital Hall (3rd Ave. & Union St.), Music of Remembrance adds a rich new dimension WINTER PRIDE – to Israeli composer Betty Olivero’s suite GAY SKI/SNOWBOARD WEEK Zeks Yiddishe Lider un Tantz with the world WHISTLER, BC premiere of an original dance score by CorJAN. 26 – FEB. 2, 2014 nish College choreographer Pat Hon. The One of the largest and most popular Gay concert also features works by two other Is- Ski/Snowboard weeks in the world. Plus top raeli composers – March Lavry and Eugene flight guest DJs. Levitas. Levitas’ song cycle Until When? From $115 per person per night – book by sets Hungarian Holocaust survivor Yaa- November 15. 866-787-1966; www.gaykov Barzilai’s intense poetry to powerful whistler.com. music, sung in the original Hebrew with a dramatic reading in English by Kurt Beattie, Artistic Director of ACT Theatre. Lavry’s Suite Concertante exemplifies the distinctive Israeli style that the composer helped establish after escaping to Palestine from Nazi-controlled Europe. In addition, Ernest Block’s soulful Nigun, and a jazz-inflected

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Seattle Gay News 17

international news

Thousands march with Pride in Taipei by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Tens of thousands of LGBT people and their friends and allies rallied in Taipei October 28 in celebration of Pride and support of marriage equality in Taiwan. The Taiwanese legislature began debating legislation October 27 that would bring marriage equality to the island nation. The proposed law enjoys the support of 53 percent of the public, according to Reuters. This year’s Pride Parade was the 11th to

be held in Taipei. Reuters noted that while Taiwan still holds some traditional Chinese family values, the nation includes LGBT people in its nondiscrimination protections and students receive LGBT-inclusive sex education in primary schools. “Compared to other Asian countries, we’re more open,” said Meico Tsai, a spokeswoman for the annual celebration, told Reuters. “But we still have a long way to go.”

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AIDS: Still no easy answers Study suggests finding a cure might be harder than we thought by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A new study released October 24 shows that reserves of dormant HIV “hidden” in infected T cells may be much higher than previously thought. The findings cast doubt on the effectiveness of so-called “shack and kill” AIDS cures. The journal Cell published the study, which was done by scientists at Johns Hopkins University. It is the most comprehensive study to date of HIV proviruses, or dormant forms of the virus. According to the research, potentially active, dormant forms of HIV hiding in infected immune T cells may be as much as 60 times greater than previously believed. UNEXPECTED RESILIENCE The hidden HIV, researchers say, acts as a latent reservoir of functional proviruses that may remain in a person’s body long after antiretroviral drug therapy has successfully brought viral replication to a standstill.

If antiretroviral therapy is stopped or interrupted, some proviruses can reactivate. Study results showed that among 213 HIV proviruses isolated from the reservoirs of eight patients and initially unresponsive to highly potent biological stimuli, some 12% could still become active at a later date. These proviruses were capable of replicating their genetic material and transmitting infection to other cells. According to senior researcher Robert Siliciano, all of these unresponsive proviruses had previously been thought to be defective, with no possible ability to restart the disease. Most did, in fact, turn out to be defective, Siliciano said, but not all. That means the new findings pose a serious problem for AIDS cures based on the so-called “shock and kill” strategy. “Shock and kill” means forcing dormant proviruses to “turn back on,” making them “visible” and vulnerable to the immune system’s cytolytic, or “killer,” T cells, and then eliminating every last infected cell from the body while antiretroviral drugs prevent any

new cells from becoming infected.

A TRUER PICTURE Lead researcher Ya-Chi Ho said the team’s investigation of “the true size” of the dormant reservoir was prompted by a large discrepancy between two different techniques for measuring how much provirus is in immune system cells. The initial approach of counting only reactivated proviruses yielded numbers that were 300-fold lower than her team’s DNAbased technique used to gauge how many total proviral copies, both dormant and reactivated, are present, she said. “If medical researchers are ever going to lure out and reactivate latent HIV, then we need to better understand exactly how much of it is really there,” Ho said. In the latest study, researchers sequenced, or spelled out, the entire genetic code of HIV proviruses that reactivated as well as those that could not be induced to do so. While 88% of the proviruses that could not be reactivated were defective and would never replicate, the remainder had fully intact genomes and could become active in the future. Further lab experiments on the cloned proviruses showed that the intact but still dormant proviruses could be reconstructed to produce active virus, which in turn could

replicate in human immune cells, restarting the HIV infection. Statistical modeling later showed these figures equated to a 60-fold increase in the dormant HIV reservoir when compared to the old method of counting only reactivated viruses. Additional experiments showed that repeated chemical stimuli could reactivate proviruses that failed to respond to initial attempts at reactivation. BENEFITS OF STUDY Ho says the study results, although discouraging, will energize HIV researchers to refine and improve methods for detecting proviruses capable of reactivation. Siliciano said the new data could also cause scientists to look for alternative approaches to a cure, including renewed efforts to develop a therapeutic vaccine to stimulate immune system cells that attack and kill all HIV. “Our study results certainly show that finding a cure for HIV disease is going to be much harder than we had thought and hoped for,” he said. Siliciano is helping to organize a November conference in San Francisco, jointly sponsored by Cell and The Lancet, entitled “What Will It Take to Achieve an AIDSFree World?”

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el, we have the Florida GLBT Democratic cans.) Even worse, our critics say, we Dems Caucus (http://floridaglbtdemocrats.org), do not have a farm team – a set of ambitious led by Michael Rajner and other LGBT and/ young politicians who start at the bottom or AIDS activists. According to its mission and move up the ranks the way the GOP’s statement, “the Florida GLBT Democratic Marco Rubio did. If the best we can do is Caucus represents the Gay, Lesbian, Bi- recycle a Republican like Charlie Crist, we sexual, and Transgender community to the are in big trouble. Florida Democratic Party.” It is “a voice that seeks to instill awareness of the freedoms of YOUTH, MINORITIES KEY a democratic society, educate future leaders, Much of the Florida GOP’s success can support the community at large, and main- be attributed to gerrymandering, which, tain an ongoing rapport and increasing vis- despite the passage of the Fair Districts ibility with political entities.” There are also Amendment in 2010, continues to flourDemocratic clubs on the local level. Here ish. And Republicans outvote Democrats, in Broward County, which has Florida’s especially in non-presidential elections. So largest number of Democrats, the Dolphin the first thing we need to do is energize our Democrats (www.dolphindems.org) repre- base, especially youth and minorities who sent our interests. The mission of the Dol- only vote when Barack Obama is on the phin Club is “to foster good will between ballot. Fortunately, the recent government is closest to my heart – the movement for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender shutdown has created a backlash against LGBT rights and equality. While I respect and appreciate the work that my Log Cabin We who live in Broward are fortunate to live in a county Republican friends are doing to make their party more LGBT-friendly, the fact remains that welcomes us and respects our rights. And we are that the GOP is currently controlled by social conservatives and Tea Party activists lucky to have an active Democratic Party that helps us who oppose LGBT rights, South Florida achieve and maintain those rights. Unfortunately, this Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen to the contrary. In the state of Florida, there are several good fortune does not extend to the entire state. groups that work on behalf of LGBT people within the Democratic Party. On a state lev(GLBT) members of the Democratic Party the GOP and the Tea Party that controls and the community at large.” (Disclosure: I it (though the disastrous debut of the Afam a board member of the Dolphin Demo- fordable Care Act’s website may yet lead crats.) public opinion in the other direction). Another hopeful sign is Democrat Amanda REPUBLICAN HEGEMONY Murphy’s victory in a special election for We who live in Broward are fortunate to the State Legislature (District 36). Though live in a county that welcomes us and re- Murphy, who won with LGBT support, only spects our rights. And we are lucky to have received 300 more votes than her opponent an active Democratic Party that helps us and poses no challenge to the GOP’s vast achieve and maintain those rights. Unfortu- majority in Tallahassee, her victory is a step nately, this good fortune does not extend to in the right direction. the entire state. While many parts of Florida What Florida Democrats need to do are LGBT-friendly, our state government – besides bringing out the vote and raisis very conservative and LGBT-unfriendly. ing lots of money – is to encourage young For over a decade, all three branches of the Democrats to run for office. (Charlie Crist state government have been controlled by and Bill Nelson are not going to be around conservative Republicans who are extreme forever, and Bob Graham is retired.) Here even by GOP standards. Though most of again, there is hope on the horizon. Here in the party’s success can be attributed to our Broward County we have two young, Gay state’s innate conservatism, the fact remains Democrats, both active members of our that Republicans are better political players Dolphin Club, who are running for the State than Democrats are. Legislature and who, I believe, will help For years political pundits have criticized shape the future of our party. They are Scott Florida’s Democratic Party for not getting Herman (a former Republican!), who is runits act together. They quote the late Will ning in District 93, and John Paul Alvarez, Rogers, who famously said, “I belong to running in District 100. If they are elected, no organized party. I’m a Democrat.” Crit- they will join Democratic State Reps. David ics, such as Miami TV host Michael Putney Richardson (District 113) and Joe Saunders and BrowardBeat.com’s Buddy Nevins, (District 49) to form a small but vocal Gay argue that Democrats don’t unite like Re- caucus. Along with Dolphin Christopher publicans, don’t have a common theme like Warnig, who is running for the Broward Republicans, and can’t raise money like County Commission, they will be part of a Republicans. (In short, we are not Republi- Florida Democratic revival.

Florida Democrats and LGBT Rights

Despite GOP success, there’s reason for optimism in the Sunshine State by Jesse Monteagudo SGN Contributing Writer As regular readers know, this writer is an active member of the Democratic Party. Though I have been critical of Democratic politicians in the past (and will continue to be so), under our country’s two-party system we progressives have no choice but to belong to the party of the New Deal and the Great Society. This is especially true in the case of the progressive cause that

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continued from cover plicant simply because of who they love or how they identify themselves,” Murray told SGN. “That is simply wrong and it has to change. Thankfully, the Senate is now on the cusp of making history. I’m proud our state is a leader in providing employment protections for LGBT Americans, and I am hopeful my colleagues will join me in taking this important step toward extending these protections to every LGBT American.” “Senator Cantwell believes that discrimination of any kind is unacceptable in any American workplace,” Cantwell spokesperson Jared Leopold said. “She first co-sponsored the Employment Non-Discrimination Act as a House member in 1994 and has continued that support since entering the Senate in 2001. She is encouraged that the Senate is moving forward on this important bill. ENDA would ensure that where Americans work and how they are evaluated is based on skills and qualifications, not on sexual orientation.” GETTING TO 60 Another Northwest Democrat, Oregon’s Jeff Merkley, is the bill’s prime sponsor. “I thank Majority Leader Reid for committing to bring ENDA to the floor this work period,” Merkley said in a statement. “Americans understand that it’s time to make sure our LGBT friends and family are treated fairly and have the same opportuni-

ties. Now it’s time for our laws to catch up. People should be judged at work on their ability to do the job, period.” Republicans Susan Collins (R-ME) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) are co-sponsors of the bill, and their Republican colleagues Orin Hatch (R-UT) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) voted for the bill in committee and are considered likely to vote for final passage. That makes 59 Senators who will probably vote to pass ENDA, but Senate rules require 60 votes even to bring a bill to the floor for debate. Reid said on October 30 that he believes he already has them. “I’ve talked with Democrats and Republicans, and I think we’ve got 60 now,” he told reporters after the last Democrat, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, said he was a Yes. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), whose son is Gay and who has endorsed marriage equality, is thought to be the probable 60th vote. He told reporters on October 29 that he is “inclined to back” the measure, but his staff later tried to walk back his comment, saying Portman “agrees with the underlying principle” but wants stronger exemptions for religious institutions. WHITHER McCAIN? Sen. John McCain, once thought to be a possible Yes vote, expressed deep reservations about the bill on October 29. When asked what lingering concerns he had about backing ENDA, McCain replied, “Whether it imposes quotas, whether it has reverse discrimination, whether it has the kinds of provisions that really preserve equal rights for all citizens, or, like, for example, busing. Busing was done in

the name of equality. Busing was a failure. Quotas were a failure. A lot of people thought they were solutions. They weren’t. They bred problems.” McCain’s wife, Cindy, has signed a petition asking him to vote for ENDA, however. McCain’s Arizona colleague Jeff Flake (R-AZ) voted for the 2007 version of ENDA when he was a House member, but said the current version “includes new provisions that will increase the potential for litigation and compliance costs, especially for small businesses. For that reason, I oppose the Senate bill.” Sens. Patrick J. Toomey (R-PA), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), and Dean Heller (R-NV) are also considered possible Yes votes, but as of October 31, their staffs said the Senators are still studying the legislation. HOUSE VOTE UNLIKELY If and when ENDA passes the Senate, it still faces an uncertain future in the Republican-controlled House. Speaker John Boehner would have to agree to schedule committee hearings and then bring the measure to the floor for debate and a vote. This is now considered highly unlikely. Asked about ENDA’s prospects in the House, Reid declined to speculate. “I only run the Senate, I don’t run the House,” he said. Seattle-area Rep. Adam Smith, a co-sponsor of the House version of ENDA, praised Reid for bringing the bill up for a vote in the Senate and said he hoped Boehner would do so as well. “I thank Senator Reid for bringing this critical legislation up for a vote in the Sen-

ate,” Smith told SGN. “There is no room for discrimination in the workplace. It is wrong that a person can be fired or denied a job opportunity simply because they are, or are perceived to be, a Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender individual. The American public, several organizations, and many members of Congress have widely embraced and endorsed ENDA’s goal of nondiscrimination. “Despite having bipartisan support in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, Speaker Boehner has yet to bring ENDA up for a vote over his three years of leadership, and it seems unlikely that he will. I hope House leadership allows for a vote on an all-inclusive ENDA that provides equality for all LGBT people. I’ll continue to work with my colleagues and my constituents in Washington state to push for LGBT equality in the workplace.”

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