<< From the Cover
14 • BAY AREA REPORTER • October 4-10, 2012
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Castro
meeting. “Maybe we will bring a 50foot rooster into the Castro.” There will be some trappings typical of county fairs, such as food stalls and live entertainment to vendor booths and arts and crafts. “We are looking at a petting zoo, but based on our entertainment, it may be more of an adult petting zoo,” joked George Ridgely, the fair’s executive director. The late gay Supervisor Harvey Milk, a Castro resident and merchant, began the street fair to celebrate the then-emerging LGBT population of the district as well as to attract business to the local stores. It continues to carry on that tradition while serving as an enormous LGBT block party for local residents. “The county fair is a tradition for a number of reasons, as is the Castro Street Fair,” wrote Lopez in his president’s welcome for the event’s official guide. “The heart of the matter is bringing neighbors and friends together and celebrating the commu-
nity that we’ve all built together.” An estimated 50,000 people are expected to attend. Fair organizers hope that having Folsom Street Fair a week earlier than normal this year may increase attendance. “Having that week in between may encourage locals to go to the Castro Street Fair. In the past I do know some people are tired out by Folsom,” said Lopez, a fund development associate at Lyon-Martin Health Services and a bartender at the Lone Star Saloon. The fair will raise money for 29 local nonprofits through its beverage booth proceeds and donations at the gate. Beneficiaries this year include local public schools and AIDS service providers and gay athletic clubs and LGBT civic groups. It has given out nearly $80,000 to community groups since its inception. Entertainers include Bay Area musical groups Le Vice, an indie hip-hop and R&B band, indie rockers Roosevelt Radio, and the San Franciscobased quartet French Cassettes. All three are among the line-up playing the community stage at Market and Castro streets, hosted by local gay
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therapists from administering socalled conversion therapy, it will not affect religious groups or ministers.
From page 1
Anti-gay therapy
From page 1
signed the bill Saturday, September 29 – one day before the deadline for him to sign or veto legislation. Numerous LGBT organizations, including Gaylesta, an LGBT psychotherapy organization; the National Center for Lesbian Rights; and Equality California championed the legislation. California becomes the first state in the country to have such a law, which goes into effect January 1. In a brief phone interview Monday, October 1, Lieu said he was “ecstatic” at the bill’s signing. “I think that this was a significant victory, and that it sets a precedent I hope other states will copy,” Lieu said. “I want parents to understand that reparative therapy can do great psychological harm to their children, and it’s my hope that, with the news about this issue, parents will stop sending their children to these therapists,” he added. In a statement, NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell said, “Governor Brown has sent a powerful message of affirmation and support to LGBT youth and their families. This law will ensure that state-licensed therapists can no longer abuse their power to harm LGBT youth and propagate the dangerous and deadly lie that sexual orientation is an illness or disorder that can be ‘cured.’” Anti-gay groups were quick to criticize the bill and vowed a court fight. And while the law bans state-licensed
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Cordileone
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new archbishop comes to see “San Francisco is a very accepting place.” “We certainly keep open the possibility of his coming around on a number of issues facing our community,” Campos said in a phone interview. “We are a city that believes in equal rights and that means the right of people to marry the person they love.” There is a difference, Campos said, between Cordileone holding “a different perspective on same-sex marriage, which we believe strongly, and actually engaging in a campaign to deprive people of that right.” A practicing Catholic “to some extent,” Campos said, “My view of the life of Jesus Christ” is that he is an accepting individual.” Asked if Cordileone’s stated caution against receiving the Eucharist would deter him, Campos said, “No. I would go to communion.” None of the three openly LGBT supervisors said they would be attending Cordileone’s installation. Moreover, Olague said that her schedule permitting, she would join the protesters.▼
Other bills signed Another bill that Brown signed into law is Assembly Bill 1505, authored by Assemblyman Dr. Richard Pan (DSacramento), which is related to the repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” ban on gays serving openly in the military. The legislation reinstates California veterans benefits, rescinded due to a discharge based solely on sexual orientation, automatically when the federal government does the same. The new law also directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide resources from veterans’ legal services organizations that specialize in discharge upgrades and claims representation. “Equality begins with the recognition of individual worth,” Pan said in a statement. “Honoring the great service and sacrifices these veterans have made defending us, their fellow Americans, is fundamental to the principals we stand for as a nation.” Gay Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) saw three LGBTrelated bills signed. AB 401 deletes an obsolete provision from the Carl Washington School Safety and Violence Prevention Act that specifies sexual orientation shall not include pedophilia. Another Ammiano bill, AB 1729, expands the current list of alternatives to suspension and expulsion for superintendents and principals in the state school discipline codes. It also requires schools to document alterna-
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Gay Marine
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look back. It is why I feel so strongly that I want to engage with people about this,” he said. “I want people in the military who are gay or lesbian to know it is not as bad as they think to come out.” Since he decided to be honest not only with himself but others about his sexual orientation, Langley said he feels less anxiety and more comfortable at work. “I no longer have to hide it or be in a false relationship,” said Langley, who since June has been dating an accountant whose father is a retired Marine. Since arriving at Camp Pendleton earlier this year Langley has had a crash course in handling media events. On his second day in the job he assisted with Vice President Joe Biden’s visit. In July he worked with the media on coverage of gay and lesbian Marines marching in the San Diego Pride Parade for the first time in their uniforms. “It was a proud moment,” recalled Langley of seeing his coworker, Marine Corporal Jennifer Pirante, be
Rick Gerharter
Cookie Dough and the Monster Show performed at the 2010 Castro Street Fair; Cookie Dough will be back at this year’s event.
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dance Saloon are both back. As is the World of Wonderment, the fair’s version of a midway with amusements like the Pin the Mustache on the Drag King, Come Corn-Holin’ with the Pleasure Pigz, and Ask a Whore Advice Booth. The Bay Area Reporter will have a presence at the fair with its own booth and raffle contest. Two lucky winners will walk away with either a one-year lease for a 2013 Volkswagen Jetta courtesy of Royal Automotive Group or a four-night stay at the Maui Sunseeker Resort, the largest LGBT property in the Hawaiian Islands, and round trip airfare for two via Alaska Airlines. The GLBT Historical Society’s museum space at 4127 18th Street will be open free of charge the day of the fair thanks to Starbucks, which is seeking support to open a new coffee shop on Market Street at Sanchez. The Castro Street Fair takes place from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, October 7. There is a sliding scale suggested donation of $5 to $10 at the gate. For more information visit www.castrostreetfair.org.▼
comic Casey Lee. Reprising their roles as co-hosts of the Red Rock Stage, located at 18th and Collingwood streets, are local drag queen Cookie Dough and Drew Droege, whose online video sendups of actress Chloe Sevigny have brought him national acclaim. Performers at
the stage this year include glam rockers Rubber Side Down; singer/songwriter Darius Lux; and queer synth rock band Corpus Hideous. The popular dance stage – featuring DJs Twist, Ellen Ferrato, Jim Hopkins, and Guy Ruben – and the country music stage hosted by Sun-
tive means of correction taken prior to suspension or expulsion. Finding alternatives to suspension and expulsion have been seen as a way to address bullying of LGBT students. “The bill is designed to correct the root causes of the pupil’s misbehavior, account for any individualized educational plans, and the age of the student,” a news release put out by Ammiano’s office in May states. Finally, Ammiano’s AB 1856 requires the training for an administrator of a group home facility, licensed foster parent, and relative or nonrelative extended family member caregiver, to also include instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity relating to, and best practices for, providing adequate care to LGBT youth in out-of-home care. Another gay lawmaker, Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), saw success with a proposal that Brown had previously vetoed. SB 1140 specifies that no priest, minister, rabbi, or authorized person of any religious denomination is required to solemnize a marriage that is contrary to the tenets of his or her faith. Refusal to solemnize a marriage under that provision won’t affect the tax-exempt status of any entity. Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) authored AB 2356, which ensures that women in samesex relationships can access fertility services on the same terms as women in opposite-sex relationships. One of AB 2356’s sponsors was the statewide LGBT lobbying group Equality California, which also saw a
number of other bills it had backed signed into law in September. “The decisions regarding building a family are a core freedom in California,” EQCA board President Clarissa Filgioun said in a statement. “Same-sex couples have faced many barriers in forming families, including unequal access to fertility health care. This unequal treatment has, heartbreakingly, denied many couples the opportunity to conceive a child of their own. Signing AB 2356 works to remedy that disparity, putting the joy of having a child and building a family within the reach of all loving families.” Another new law, Assemblywoman Betsy Butler’s (D-Marina Del Rey) AB 1700, is designed to keep LGBTs from losing their homes when a partner dies. The bill excludes a transfer of co-tenancy interest in a principal residence from property tax reassessment if two people owned the principal residence and it was transferred to one of them when the other died, and the survivor obtains sole ownership. AB 1960, by Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, (D-Sacramento) requires the state Department of General Services to report on the participation levels of LGBT businesses in state contracts that has been voluntarily reported as of January 1, 2013. Another bill signed by the governor, SB 987, involves same-sex couples. The new law, authored by state Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-Chino) changes sections of the government code administered by the California Public Employees’ Retirement Board, including code sections
governing the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, among other systems. Provisions include clarifying references to “spouse,” “surviving spouse,” and “marriage” apply equally to a registered domestic partner, or partnership, to the extent provided by the domestic partnership provisions in the state family code. As with SB 1172, all the bills go into effect January 1.
one of three out enlisted Marines march in the parade. When he first enlisted in 2007, Langley did so while the anti-gay policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” was in full effect. He still has the documents he signed declaring that he was not a homosexual. Congress and President Barack Obama repealed the ban on gay and lesbian service members serving openly in December 2010. The homophobic policy was officially lifted last September just weeks prior to the 2011 Fleet Week observance in San Francisco. This year there are no official events designed specifically for those gay, lesbian or bisexual military men and women in town for Fleet Week (a ban against transgender service members is still in effect). Nonetheless, Langley has been fielding requests from out colleagues about what to do or where to go while in town. “A lot of Marines who know I am gay have come forward and asked me since I am the public affairs person what sort of interaction is going on in the Castro, and if I am planning anything. Despite not person-
ally planning a function, I want to at least ensure they all come to the Castro in uniform and be proud of their service to our country,” he told the Bay Area Reporter. Langley plans to visit the city’s gay Castro district while wearing his liberty or leave uniform comprised of a khaki shirt and dress blue pants. The experience he expects will be a “momentous” one for him and the handful of fellow gay Marines who are also in town for Fleet Week. “For gay Marines and sailors it is not just an opportunity to participate in some unique events but to take pride in being an out sailor or Marine,” said Langley. “Fleet Week is an opportunity for me to be home in the Bay Area in my hometown being a gay Marine and being completely comfortable about it.” More than 2,500 Marines and sailors aboard the USS Makin Island are participating in the 31st annual Fleet Week this year. In addition to Langley’s unit, members of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Combat Logistics Regiment 1 and the 1st Marine Division Band are participating. “Fleet Week is a San Francisco
tradition and we take this opportunity to salute the men and women in uniform serving and protecting our country,” stated Mayor Ed Lee. While the weekend aerial maneuvers of the Blue Angels are the biggest draw for the public, there are multiple events happening over the course of the week. There are band concerts, weapon displays, demos on the Marine’s humanitarian assistance, meet and greets with military K9 units, and tours of the USS Malkin, the first U.S. military hybrid vessel. For a complete list of activities visit www.fleetweek.us.▼
Bill vetoed Brown vetoed Leno’s SB 1476, which would have provided that a child may have a parent and child relationship with more than two parents. The legislation, which would have clarified existing law, would have applied in cases involving both same-sex and straight parents. In a veto message dated Sunday, September 30, Brown said, “I am sympathetic to the author’s interest in protecting children. But I am troubled by the fact that some family law specialists believe the bill’s ambiguities may have unintended consequences. I would like to take more time to consider all of the implications of this change.” Asked in a brief phone interview Monday whether he’d try again with the bill, Leno said, “I certainly will be in conversation with the administration to better understand what their concern and objection was, because I am committed to giving our family courts the authority in that bill. I think it will keep children from unnecessarily finding their way into our foster care system.”▼
On the web Online content this week includes the Bay Area Reporter’s online columns, Political Notes and Wedding Bell Blues; the Jock Talk, Transmissions, and Out in the World columns; more news briefs; and photos of Robyn Few’s memorial, GLOBE’s party, and the America’s Cup World Series. www.ebar.com.