A Free Publication
www.ACCESSlineIOWA.com
National Hate 200,000 March on Washington Grassroots, Netroots, Stonewall 2.0 Crimes Act Activists Demand Equality, Formalize Passed Split With Activist Establishment
Paula Poundstone to perform at the Englert in Iowa City, Nov. 14. Interview, page 11.
Philanthropist may have embezzled the funds she donated to local causes Phyllis Stevens was arrested in Las Vegas on September 25, 2009 on charges of committing wire fraud, money laundering, computer fraud, embezzlement of nearly $6 million, and aggravated identity theft while employed at Aviva USA. She was indicted by grand jury on October 21 and pleaded innocent to all charges on October 23. In addition to purchasing two Des Moines homes with allegedly embezzled money, Phyllis Stevens and her wife Marla Stevens also contributed large amounts to numerous local progressive causes and elections. Marla Stevens is included in a civil case filed by Aviva USA, as benefitting from “the conversion of funds.”
Iowa News Page 3
On Thursday, October 22, 2009, the US Senate approved the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act by a vote of 68-29. President Obama has stated his support of the bill and is expected to sign it promptly. (President George W. Bush was against the bill and had intended to veto it if it was presented to him.) The bill expands existing federal hate crimes law, which was passed forty years ago and included crimes motivated by the victim’s race, skin color, religion, or national origin, The expanded law will include crimes motivated by the victim’s perceived or actual gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.
Opposition from social conservatives and religious groups
The bill passed despite opposition from social conservatives and religious groups (the latter of which are already included in the list of those protected by hate crime law), claiming that the bill would criminalize the mere expression of religious objections to homosexual behavior. These objections were presented despite the clear protections provided by the First Amendment—note that white supremacists are still allowed to give speeches, for example—and despite the following provision in the Matthew Shepard Act: “Nothing in this Act … shall be construed to prohibit any expressive conduct protected from legal prohibition by, or any activities protected by the free speech or free exercise clauses of, the First Amendment to the Constitution.” Furthermore, as noted by Wikipedia, the U.S. Supreme Court “unanimously found that penalty-enhancement hate crime statutes do not conflict with free speech rights because they do not punish an individual for exercising freedom of expression; rather, they allow courts to consider motive when sentencing a criminal for conduct which is not protected by the First Amendment. (However, freedom of religion and expression of one’s beliefs are. … )”
US News Page 5
by Rex Wockner WASHINGTON -- The Stonewall 2.0 generation descended on the nation’s capital Oct. 11 to demand “equal protection in all matters governed by civil law in all 50 states.” National Equality March lead organizer Cleve Jones estimated the turnout at 200,000 to 250,000. Towleroad.com’s Andy Towle said police gave him the same figure. Mainstream media reports pegged the turnout at “tens of thousands.” But, as Towle noted, “There were 10 times as many people still on Pennsylvania Avenue when the area in front of the stage had filled,” an assertion that is backed up by video Towle posted on his site. The 2.3-mile march ended at the Capitol with hours of speeches, including by popmusic sensation Lady Gaga. “I have seen and witnessed so many things over the past two years and I can say with such certainty that this is the single most important moment of my career,” Gaga said. “The younger generation, my generation, we are the ones coming up in the world, and we must continue to push this movement forward and close the gap. We must demand full equality for all. They say that this country is free and they say that this country is equal, but it is not equal if it’s (only) sometimes (equal).” “Obama, I know that you’re listening. ARE YOU LISTENING?! We will continue to push you and your administration to bring your words of promise to a reality. We need change now. We demand action now.”
World News Page 6
Extreme Right Watch Page 8
The night before the march, President Barack Obama addressed 3,000 people at the Human Rights Campaign’s national dinner. He promised to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, but gave no timeline for doing so. “I’m working with the Pentagon, its leadership and the members of the House and the Senate on ending this policy,” he said. “I will end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. That’s my commitment to you.” The gay blogosphere reacted very negatively, complaining that the speech added little or nothing to what Obama had said on gay issues during the presidential campaign. But the speech was nonetheless remarkable for its comprehensive embrace of the gay activist agenda and its sometimes moving rhetoric, the likes of which has never been uttered by a U.S. president. “While progress may be taking longer than you’d like as a result of all that we face -- and that’s the truth -- do not doubt the direction we are headed and the destination we will reach,” the president said. “My expectation is that when you look back on these years, you will see a time in which we put a stop to discrimination against gays and lesbians, whether in the office or on the battlefield. You will see a time in which we as a nation finally recognize relationships between two men or two women as just as real and admirable as relationships between a man and a woman.” But many activists wanted more. They wanted Obama to speak against the Nov. 3
TTMARCH continued page 4
Entertainment Page 11
ACCESSline Page 2
Section 1: News & Politics
November 2009
November 2009
PUBLICATION INFORMATION Copyright © 2009 ACCESS in Northeast Iowa P.O. Box 2666 Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-2666 (319) 550-0957 www.ACCESSlineIOWA.com ACCESSline is a monthly publication by ACCESS (A Concerned Community for Education, Safer-sex and Support) in Northeast Iowa, a registered non-profit organization in the State of Iowa and a federal non-profit organization under Section 501(c)3 of the IRS Code.
Arthur Breur, Editor in Chief Q Syndicate Rex Wockner News Service Contributors: Joshua Dagon; Beau Fodor; Jennifer Merriman, One Iowa; Lisa Schreihart (a.k.a IowaLisa); Brett Edward Stout Justin Uebelhor, One Iowa
All rights reserved. Original material printed in ACCESSline (with the exception of information from other sources) may be “lifted” for use in other publications so long as proper credit is given. Publication of the name, photograph or likeness of any person, business or organization in ACCESSline is not to be construed as any indication of sexual orientation. Opinions expressed by columnists do not necessarily reflect the opinions of ACCESSline, ACCESS or the gay and lesbian community. Letters to the editor may be published. We cannot be responsible for errors in advertising copy. We welcome the submission of original materials, including line drawings and cartoons, news stories, poems, essays. They should be clearly labeled with author/artist name, address, and phone number. We reserve the right to edit letters and other material for reasons of profanity, space, or clarity. Materials will not be returned. A writer’s guide is available for those wishing to submit original work. Advertising rates and deadlines are available at ACCESSlineIOWA.com. All ads must be approved by ACCESSline’s editorial board.
Section 1: News & Politics What’s Inside: Section 1: News & Politics Iowa News..............................................3 US News.................................................4 World News ..........................................5 Creep of the Week, with bonus creeps.. 6 P1=-P2 by Brett Edward Stout.............7 Joshua Dagon ........................................8 Extreme Right Watch...........................9 Sharon Malheiro honored.....................9
Section 2: Community All Iowa AIDS Benefit.........................27 The CENTER Seeks Sponsors...........27 Finance, Shaken not Stirred..................28 HIV and Health....................................29 Morals and Values................................30 Report: Retirement Disadvantages....31 Chef deJon............................................31 IowaLisa’s List: Recurring Events.......32 Business Directory........................ 33-34
ACCESSline’s
“Fun Guide” Theater Ads Civic Center of Greater Des Moines: DIXIE Waterloo Community Playhouse Paula Poundstone................................11 Our Picks for October........................11 Outfield.................................................12 IowaLisa’s List......................................13 Cocktail Chatter..................................14 Deep Inside Hollywood.......................15 The Gay Wedding Planner..................16 Book Review.........................................20 Out of Town: Brussels, Belgium..........21 Comics and Crossword Puzzle...........24
A Pull-Out Section to Keep!
ACCESSline Wants To Hear From You!
Send in photos and reports of your events... especially benefits and conferences. Please send us information on any of the following: • Corrections to articles • Stories of LGBT interest, both in and outside of Iowa • Letters to the editor • Editorials or opinion pieces • Engagement and wedding ceremony announcements or photos • Questions on any topic we print • Photos and writeups about shows, events, pageants, and fundraisers Please email us at Editor@ACCESSlineIOWA.com. You may also contact us at our regular address: ACCESSline PO Box 2666 Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-2666
ACCESSline reserves the right to print letters to the editor and other feedback at the editor’s discretion.
ACCESSline Page 3
IOWA NEWS
Fallout and Fallacies Surround the Phyllis Stevens Case It was inevitable that opponents of LGBT rights would point to the Phyllis Stevens case in attempts to use the propaganda technique known as “transfer” or “association” (as in “guilt by association”). When one person involved in a cause appears to be disreputable, this propaganda method is used to paint the entire cause as therefore suspect. Brian S. Brown, executive director of the anti-equality organization “National Organization for Marriage”, referenced the Stevens’ political and charitable contributions in a blog post: “A brief Iowa update we thought you would want to know: … an Iowa woman who once represented Marriage Equality USA was just arrested on fraud and moneylaundering charges.” Furthermore, citing no actual evidence to support an accusation of wrongdoing, the Iowa Republican published a blog entry on September 29 with the suggestive title, “Is an Iowa Gay Marriage Group in the Middle of a $5.9 Million Embezzlement Case?” The entry furthermore includes a large representation of the One Iowa logo, thus visually associating One Iowa with the full amount of the embezzlement case. To make the connection, the entry
points out that Marla Stevens—who is the wife of Phyllis Stevens, but who herself is only accused in an accompanying civil case filed by Aviva USA as having received benefit from the alleged embezzlement—is the public policy director of the “LGBT Fairness Fund”. The article then incorrectly claims that the “LGBT Fairness Fund” political action committee (or “PAC”) associated with Marla Stevens is the same entity as the One Iowa Fairness Fund PAC. Justin Uebelhor, Director of Development for One Iowa, responded to references to the Iowa Republican blog entry with this statement: “The Iowa Republican blog post … is wholly inaccurate. Their main contention is false: the LGBT Fairness Fund is not affiliated with One Iowa or our PAC in any way. “The LGBT Fairness Fund appears to be a federal PAC based in Indiana that can give to federal candidates. The Fairness Fund PAC (the political arm of One Iowa) is an Iowa registered state PAC that can only give to candidates for state office. There is no connection between our PACs, nor has Marla ever been employed by our PAC.” Despite this correction by Uebelhor, the blog post remains online in its original wording.
“While progress may be taking longer than you’d like as a result of all that we face—and that’s the truth—do not doubt the direction we are headed and the destination we will reach. My expectation is that when you look back on these years you will see a time in which we put a stop to discrimination against gays and lesbians, whether in the office or on the battlefield. You will see a time in which we as a nation finally recognize relationships between two men or two women as just as real and admirable as relationships between a man and a woman.” — Barack Obama at the Human Rights Campaign’s national dinner in Washington, D.C., Oct 10. The address was carried live on CNN.
Subscribe to ACCESSline
We are celebrating our 23rd year of publishing ACCESSline, Iowa’s only statewide, monthly LGBT newspaper. Our goal continues to be to keep the community informed about gay organizations, events, HIV/ AIDS news, politics, national and international news, and other critical issues. Don’t miss this limited-offer $24 (12 issue) annual rate for ACCESSline! Subscribe at: ACCESSlineIOWA.com or… Send this completed ad with $24 for a one year subscription (12 issues). Send to ACCESSline, PO Box 2666, Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-2666 and we’ll send you ACCESSline in a plain brown envelope!
Good for special $24 annual rate! Name:________________________________________________ Address:_ _____________________________________________ City:______________________ State:_____ Zip:___________
ACCESSline Page 4
Section 1: News & Politics
US NEWS by Rex Wockner
Milk settled in San Francisco’s Castro district in 1972 and opened a camera store. He went on to pioneer a populist gay rights movement in the city and, in 1977, was elected to the Board of Supervisors, becoming the fourth openly gay American elected to public office, and the first in California. Milk and Mayor George Moscone were shot to death inside City Hall on Nov. 27, The San Francisco Examiner reports Harvey Milk’s 1978, by then recently assassination on Nov. 27, 1978. resigned city Supervisor Dan White, who was angry that Moscone wouldn’t let him un-resign and that Milk had lobbied Moscone not to reappoint White. White’s lenient sentence for the killings (seven years and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger eight months with parole) led to the famed signed a bill Oct. 12 making May 22 “Harvey White Night Riots in San Francisco on May Milk Day.” 21, 1979. According to Equality California, the move “marks the first time in the nation’s history that a state will officially recognize and celebrate the contributions of an openly LGBT person with an annual ‘day of special significance.’” A bill signed Oct. 12 by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the bill despite a sustained campaign against it by anti-gay Schwarzenegger recognizes as fully married activists who don’t want schoolchildren to any gay couple in California who got married be taught about Milk. The law encourages between April 1, 2001, and Nov. 5, 2008, in California public schools and educational a country or state where same-sex marriage institutions to remember Milk, recognize is legal. On April 1, 2001, the Netherlands his accomplishments and teach about his became the first place in the world where contributions to the state. Schwarzenegger vetoed the same bill same-sex couples could marry. The new law last year, saying Milk’s “contributions should also recognizes same-sex marriages that continue to be recognized at the local level took place in Massachusetts, Canada, Spain, (in San Francisco) by those who were most Belgium and South Africa prior to Nov. 5, 2008, when California voters amended their impacted by his contributions.” But that was before the movie “Milk” hit constitution to re-ban same-sex marriage, theaters and before President Barack Obama which had been legal for 4 1/2 months. The state Supreme Court later ruled gave Milk a posthumous Presidential Medal that the new ban, Proposition 8, cannot of Freedom. “Californians will now learn about be applied retroactively, and declared that Harvey’s amazing contributions to the 18,000 gay couples who married in Califoradvancement of civil rights for decades to nia while it was legal remain married. The come,” said EQCA Executive Director Geoff new law affirms that such recognition also Kors. “He is a role model to millions, and extends to gay couples who got married this legislation will help ensure his legacy anywhere else before Prop 8 passed. The law also extends all state marriage lives on forever.” rights -- except the right to call their marriage a “marriage” -- to same-sex couples who got married anywhere in the world after Nov. 5, 2008, or who do so in the future. California’s domestic-partnership law grants same-sex couples every state-level right and obligation of marriage except the right to call their union “marriage.” Since Nov. 5, 2008, same-sex marriage also has become legal in Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, Norway and Sweden. “We are grateful that the governor has signed this critical bill, which provides muchneeded protections for same-sex couples who have legally married out of state, or will California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in the future, and who deserve to be treated signed a bill Oct. 12 making like any other married couple,” said EqualMay 22 “Harvey Milk Day.” ity California Executive Director Geoff Kors. Photo by Rex Wockner “This bill will allow same-sex couples to get
Schwarzenegger signs Harvey Milk Day bill
California recognizes 7½ years of gay marriages from elsewhere
November 2009 SScontinued from page 1
MARCH married in other states and countries and ensure they are treated equally under the law when they return to California. Ultimately, however, restoring the freedom to marry is the only way to ensure that all Californians receive the dignity and respect that comes with marriage.”
Obama opposes Maine, Washington referenda
Prodded by The Advocate, the White House issued a statement Oct. 16 opposing the Nov. 3 referendum in Maine that would repeal the same-sex marriage law passed by the Legislature and signed by the governor. The law has not yet taken effect pending the referendum’s outcome. The statement also opposes the referendum in Washington state that would undo the “all but marriage” domestic-partnership law that has been delayed from coming into force by a Nov. 3 referendum. The White House statement does not specifically name the two states, although The Advocate’s query did. The statement says: “The President has long opposed divisive and discriminatory efforts to deny rights and benefits to same-sex couples, and as he said at the Human Rights Campaign dinner, he believes ‘strongly in stopping laws designed to take rights away.’ Also at the dinner, he said he supports, ‘ensuring that committed gay couples have the same rights and responsibilities afforded to any married couple in this country.’” Same-sex marriage is legal in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont, and becomes legal in New Hampshire in January. It will become legal in Maine on Nov. 4 if the “Question 1” referendum fails. Same-sex couples also can marry in Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Spain and Sweden. Assistance: Bill Kelley
“I could not discern anything new. It felt like a reiteration of the pledges he made during the campaign, it felt like a campaign speech. It was wellwritten, it was beautifully delivered— the man has the gift—but, you know, I hope this is not true but, we need to keep reminding ourselves and the young people who were not present during the Clinton administration that this is very similar. This is déjà vu all over again. The beautiful speeches, the flowery proclamations, the willingness to attend our parties, and the list of well-connected people who get great jobs. I’m sorry, but appointing a gay man ambassador to New Zealand is not a very bold step. ... We’ve got to keep doing the work to push him to do the right thing.” — National Equality March lead organizer Cleve Jones responding to President Obama’s Oct. 10 speech to the Human Rights Campaign, to this column, Oct. 11.
referendum in Maine that would repeal the state’s law legalizing same-sex marriage, and against a similar initiative in Washington state that would repeal the “all but marriage” domestic-partnership law. They wanted to know when Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell will be repealed, when the Defense of Marriage Act will be repealed, and when the Employment Non-Discrimination Act will be passed. Obama offered no “whens.” “I could not discern anything new,” Cleve Jones said in an interview. “It felt like a reiteration of the pledges he made during the campaign, it felt like a campaign speech. It was well-written, it was beautifully delivered -- the man has the gift -- but, you know, I hope this is not true, but, we need to keep reminding ourselves and the young people who were not present during the Clinton administration that this is very similar. This is déjà vu all over again. The beautiful speeches, the flowery proclamations, the willingness to attend our parties, and the list of well-connected people who get great jobs. I’m sorry, but appointing a gay man ambassador to New Zealand is not a very bold step. ... We’ve got to keep doing the work to push him to do the right thing.” March Co-Director Robin McGehee was even less impressed. “I was totally disappointed,” McGehee said in an interview. “Our community let him off and we did not force him by coming to that dinner to (announce) substantial change. All we got was another ‘Please wait.’ He got an A-plus on the Cliff Notes version of our rights that we’re denied, but a C-minus on what he’s actually doing to take care of it.” Inside the HRC dinner, however, Obama was treated to repeated outbursts of raucous cheering, and Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese called it “a historic night when we felt the full embrace and commitment of the president of the United States.” “It’s simply unprecedented,” Solmonese said. “President Obama told LGBT Americans that his commitment to ending discrimination in the military, in the workplace and for loving couples and their families is ‘unwavering.’ He made it crystal clear that he is our strongest ally in this fight, that he understands and, in fact, encourages our activism and our voice even when we’re impatient with the pace of change. But these remarks weren’t just for us, they were directed to all Americans who share his dream and ours of a country where ‘no one is denied their basic rights, in which all of us are free to live and love as we see fit.’” The praise for Obama inside HRC’s fancy dinner and the denunciations of Obama in the streets of D.C. seemed to unequivocally confirm the split that’s emerged in the gay community in the aftermath of the passage of Proposition 8 in California. On one side, the grassroots, the netroots, many younger GLBT people and the Stonewall 2.0 folks, who are pissed off, mad as hell and aren’t gonna take it anymore. On the other side, the gay activist establishment, which seems to believe that business-as-usual “slow and steady” is still the way to go. About halfway through the National Equality March, when it became clear that the turnout was big enough for the march to be deemed a huge success, a reporter said to Cleve Jones, “You realize you just split the gay movement in two.” Jones nodded and grinned.
November 2009
Section 1: News & Politics
ACCESSline Page 5
World News by Rex Wockner
free holidays to places we have never heard of,” he wrote to fellow activists. “Luckily, we have been able to sell a fridge to pay for the water and the phone bill and our new funding cycle with HIVOS (Holland’s Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation) is set to start in the first week of November. We are all very sorry indeed for the long silence.”
Key Zimbabwean gay leader Keith Goddard died Oct. 9.
Zimbabwean gay leader dies Key Zimbabwean gay leader Keith Goddard, director of Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe, died Oct. 9 from pneumonia. He was 49. “Keith dedicated his life to the advancement of LGBT rights, human rights and his passion for music,” the group said in a statement. “The struggle for LGBT rights is a difficult struggle and in many instances in the history of GALZ Keith stood gallantly in the frontline. He dared where most men would not go.” Scott Long, director of Human Rights Watch’s LGBT Rights Division, said Goddard “oversaw (GALZ’s) transition from a group representing the urban white elite to one rooted in the majority population and its urgent needs.” “He could on many occasions have left Zimbabwe and settled into the comparative comforts of armchair activism abroad,” Long said. “He didn’t. He stayed -- even when he was framed on ludicrous charges of assault that hung over him for years. He faced, and overcame, oppression and opprobrium that the rest of us could not even imagine. Whenever I visited GALZ, Keith was always, amid swirling fears and social chaos, imperturbable -- a rock.” Leading British gay activist Peter Tatchell said Goddard “risked his liberty and life many times, speaking out against homophobia and transphobia, even though this marked him as a potential target for state and vigilante violence. The danger of kidnapping, arrest, imprisonment, torture and murder never deterred him. Keith will be remembered as a pioneer and hero of the LGBT liberation struggle in Africa.” Leading Indian gay activist Vikram Doctor said: “It could have been so easy for him to have left, emigrating to Europe like so many white Zimbabweans did, fleeing to refugee camps in South Africa like so many black Zimbabweans were forced to. But Keith stuck it out and kept going with GALZ until his untimely death. I know Keith would probably have laughed at the idea of being considered a hero, but more than most people I know, he was.” In 2001, GALZ ran out of money and its phone (and dialup Internet) was cut off for three months. When he finally got back online, Goddard encountered 1,566 e-mails. “Not all of them were junk mail trying to sell us Chinese chemicals or offering us
Russian Web site and reality show contestant settle lawsuit
Russian reality-show contestant Vasily Pechen, who was on Big Brother, and the Web site Gay.ru have settled a legal case stemming from Gay.ru’s having alleged that Pechen is gay and accepted money for sex, according to a report on GayRussia.ru. Gay.ru will pay Pechen $5,077 and retract its story, GayRussia.ru said. Pechen claimed that the reporting and certain photos that accompanied it damaged his career and stressed his mother, contributing to her death. He had originally asked for about $68,000 in damages. A separate lawsuit against the newspaper Express Gazeta, over its publication of similar information, is ongoing.
Boyzone’s Stephen Gately dies
Openly gay Irish singer Stephen Gately, who achieved fame as lead singer of the boy band Boyzone, died Oct. 10 in Spain of acute pulmonary edema. He was 33. Officials attributed the death to natural causes and said it “had nothing to do with consumption of alcohol or drugs.” Gately had been on vacation in Majorca with his partner, Andy Cowles.
Homophobic Moscow mayor unveils statue of Walt Whitman
Anti-gay Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton unveiled a statue of presumably gay poet Walt Whitman at Moscow State University on Oct. 14. Luzhkov has banned gay pride events for the past four years in Moscow, sent riot police to violently arrest people who violated the bans, and called gay parades “satanic” and “weapons of mass destruction.” Moscow Pride organizer Nikolai Alekseev unsuccessfully had called on Clinton “to publicly express her position on gay rights to one of the top homophobic politicians in Europe.” “I think that no one would understand her silence on the breach of fundamental rights of LGBT people in Russia (on) the day she inaugurates the monument to a gay poet together with the homophobic mayor of Moscow,” he said. Last June, in her gay pride month statement, Clinton vowed: “Gays and lesbians in many parts of the world live under constant threat of arrest, violence, even torture. The persecution of gays and lesbians is a violation of human rights and an affront to human decency, and it must end. As Secre-
Russian gay leader Nikolai Alekseev hoped U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would talk about gay rights Oct. 14 when she unveiled a statue of poet Walt Whitman at Moscow State University. GayRussia.ru photo. tary of State, I will advance a comprehensive human rights agenda that includes the elimination of violence and discrimination against people based on sexual orientation or gender identity.”
Euro Commission tells EU applicant nations to respect GLBT rights
GLBT rights are a prominent topic in the European Commission’s Oct. 14 progress reports on the seven countries that are planning to join the European Union: Croatia, the
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia and Kosovo. The reports recommend that the nations adopt GLBT antidiscrimination laws and policies that meet EU requirements and, in the two nations that have passed such laws -- Croatia and Serbia -- that GLBT people be protected against discrimination “in practice.” The commission was particularly critical of Serbia, where the Belgrade gay pride parade was canceled Sept. 19 after the prime minister told organizers that police could not protect marchers from violent anti-gay hooligans who planned to attack the event. The commission also criticized Turkey for violating gay activists’ rights to freedom of expression and association. “The commission’s progress reports are one of the most important tools at hand for the EU in influencing the human rights situation in candidate and potential candidate countries,” said Lilit Poghosyan, programs and policy officer for the European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (aka ILGA-Europe). “The gradually wider and more selfevident inclusion of LGBT human rights in the commission’s monitoring system and in the progress reports shows that LGBT rights are recognized within the European Union and that it is expected and demanded of the future members that they comply with the European values.” Assistance: Bill Kelley
ACCESSline Page 6
Section 1: News & Politics
November 2009
Creep of the Week by D’Anne Witkowski Carrie Prejean
Oh, Carrie Prejean. Give it up. There was a time I felt sorry for Miss Prejean. It sucked that when she was asked about gay marriage at the Miss USA pageant— by Perez Hilton, no less—she choked and she sounded, well, kind of dumb. Prejean said, “Well I think it’s great that Americans are able to choose one or the other. We live in a land that you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. And, you know what? In my country, in my family, I think that I believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised and that’s how I think it should be between a man and a woman.” She’s entitled to her opinion. And last time I checked, Miss USA wasn’t in charge of marriage laws. As I understand Miss USA’s duties, she’s supposed to cry when she wins, hug people and not show her titties or her Miss V-A-G. So when folks like Hilton went ape shit, I thought they were being ridiculous and overly nasty. And it’s, in part, because of this uproar that Prejean became the pretty pretty princess of the anti-gay right. Creatures like Maggie Gallagher were more than happy to wipe the mascara off Prejean’s cheeks and protect her from the big, bad homos. So it’s not surprising that Prejean spoke at this year’s Values Voter Summit, a sort of anti-gay right orgy of political activism. Standing in front of a background emblazoned with the names and logos of rabidly
anti-gay groups like the American Family Association and Family Research Council, Prejean milks it. “I always thought of pageants as doing better for the world,” she says. She saw Miss America winners as “women who were going to go out there and save the world.” You know, like Jesus in a bikini. “I knew ... as soon as I didn’t give the politically correct answer, that there was no way that I would be Miss USA,” she says. “But ... I am so proud of the stance that I took. I am so proud of the answer that I gave. And God chose me for that moment because he knew that I would not only be the one to stick up for him” (as she says this she points to the ceiling) “and for the truth, but also he knew that I am strong enough to get through all of the junk that I have been through.” And the crowd goes wild. Honey, you didn’t lose because you weren’t “politically correct.” No offense to anybody out there, but I think that I believe you can blame “opposite marriage.” Had you been on “American Idol,” maybe you would’ve scored points with Paula Abdul, who once made a video about her tumultuous “opposite” relationship with MC Skat Kat. But you were in the Miss USA pageant and typically winners are people who can articulate a coherent thought. “I am not a hater of anyone. I’m not. This is not a matter of me hating any particular group. Or me being a bigot,” she says. “It’s just I was a woman who stood up for the truth.” That’s right. Carrie Prejean is basically the Rosa Parks of the anti-gay right.
Do I smell a Sarah Palin running mate for 2012?
Matt Barber
Watch out homos, because the religious right is going to take the gloves off and punch you in your icky gay face. What would Jesus do? He would cage match the sin out of you is what. According to People for the American Way’s Right Wing Watch, that was more or less the message of a workshop led by Liberty Counsel’s Matt Barber and other anti-gay stalwarts at the How to Take Back America conference. The workshop, titled “How to Counter the Homosexual Extremist Movement,” was held Friday, Sept. 25 from 3:30-4:30 p.m., which meant that conference-goers had to choose between it and other workshops, including “How To Defend America Vs. Missile Attack.” While some folks might have felt conflicted (only God can be in two different places at the same time), the choice for true Christians was obvious. After all, the missiles that pose the greatest threat to America can be found in the underwear of gay men. “Christ wasn’t about being nice,” Barber said at the workshop. Yeah, that’s right! Jesus was a total dick. Always making the sick sicker, blinding people, stoning adulterers to death, stealing all the fish and bread and stuffing his face like a total glutton. Not to mention that whole walking on water thing. Dude, get your feet out of the water. Gross. Barber and his crew “urged people to be loud rabble-rousers when opposing the teaching of tolerance or sex ed in public schools. They said not to worry about being nice or polite or liked, but to push God’s antigay agenda forcefully,” according to Right Wing Watch. It shouldn’t come as any surprise that the drown-out-and-conquer tactics used by the right to address health care and President Barack Obama’s legitimacy as president should transfer to the anti-gay agenda, too. After all, the squeaky wheel gets the grease – and by “grease” I mean Fox News coverage. The revolution will be televised, my friends, especially if the revolution includes shouting down a woman in a wheelchair who dared to ask a question at a health care town hall. That’s the level we’re at, folks. Apparently the right doesn’t believe it’s been wrong about gays all of these years even though so many of their claims have been widely discredited. They’ve come to the conclusion that they just haven’t been loud enough. If saying something repeatedly doesn’t make it true, YELLING SOMETHING REPEATEDLY MUST. According to Right Wing Watch, “There was some small disagreement (during the workshop) about how much people should rely on religious arguments in the public sphere, with Matt Barber urging people to focus on the ‘ick’ factor around gay sex and on claims that homosexuality is a health threat, which he called the movement’s ‘Achilles heel.’” In other words, Barber believes that a bunch of hairy leather daddies in ass-less chaps tongue kissing each other is a much stronger argument against homosexual-
ity than, say, Leviticus. He’s banking on the average Joe’s homophobia more than the average Joe’s allegiance to the Bible. There’s no room for wishy-washy “love the sinner, hate the sin” sentiment. It just proves that the holier-than-thou attitude of the anti-gay right is all for show. This so-called culture war isn’t based on Christian principles at all, but rather it’s based on the complete disregard of gay people as human beings. Barber thinks Jesus would be fine with that.
Steve King
Remember when gays were at fault for everything? Gays caused 9/11. Gays caused Hurricane Katrina. Gays caused Perez Hilton. No matter what went wrong in the world, right-wingers were always quick to pin the blame on gays. But there’s a new scapegoat darling in town: socialism. Yes, socialism, the economic/political specter that dare not speak its name. In the minds of many Americans, the thought of universal health care is far more terrifying than the thought of two dudes saying “I do.” Alas, the respite was brief. The super astute Rep. Steve King, a Republican from Iowa, has uncovered the big fat gay socialist marriage agenda and blabbed all about it during a Sept. 23 interview on the WorldNetDaily radio show. “If there’s a push for a socialist society, a society where the foundations of individual rights and liberties are undermined and everybody is thrown together, living collectively off of one pot of resources earned by everyone,” he said, “that is, this is one of the goals they have to go to is same-sex marriage because it has to plow through marriage in order to get to their goal.” That’s right. Just as socialism is a precursor to communism, gay marriage is a precursor to socialism. Karl Marx laid the whole thing out in his little known work “Das Homosexuelle.” First there was feudalism, then capitalism, then gay marriage, then socialism. Granted, Marx tried to couch the whole gay marriage thing preferring euphemisms like “worker revolts,” but gays always got the wink-wink, nudge-nudge of it all. “They want public affirmation,” he continued. “They want access to public funds and resources. Eventually all those resources will be pooled because that’s the direction we’re going. And not only is it a radical social idea, it is a purely socialist concept in the final analysis.” It certainly is a radical idea, but hey, the gays want what the gays want. And basically they aren’t going to be happy until their Crate and Barrel wedding registries are subsidized with tax dollars. King also gave a shout-out to his man Rick Santorum. “And I just would extend that rationale and argue this, that if marriage is something other than union between one man and one woman … if there’s a right to samesex marriage, if that right exists then that means Rick Santorum was right. The right also exists for any other relationship that one might argue. Then there would exist no ban, no rational foundation to prohibit incest, for example, between father and a son or a
TTCREEPS continued page 10
November 2009
Section 1: News & Politics
ACCESSline Page 7
P1=-P2 : Visibility and Clarity by Brett Edward Stout The title of Brett Edward Stout’s monthly column P1=-P2 is a reference to Newton’s third law of motion summarized as: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The words themselves have then been translated into the language of physics to the above mathematical expression. Physics is something by which we are all bound, regardless of our knowledge or perception of it. The purpose of the column is to explore the actions and reactions we have to the decisions and questions raised in our ever-adapting world. The reactions stated here are intended to stimulate debate in the hope that through it, we can better see what unites us in the face of our differences. On October 11th, 2009 approximately 100,000 people, myself included, took to the streets of Washington D.C. in an effort to march for equality. In an age when a rally in Iowa can be seen by as wide an audience as one in Manhattan, what is the purpose of such a protest? The obvious answer is that a protest is a symbol. So, how do we assess the effectiveness of a symbol? A great mind once told me that if you have to ask what something symbolized, it didn’t symbolize anything. While a rally in Iowa may get seen with confusion, tens of thousands standing on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Building is universally understood. But, what reaction should we have to the actions taken at the Equality March in D.C.? To really answer that question I think we need to analyze the effects and impact of what happened at the event itself. Marching side by side with my fellow service members from Iraq Veterans Against the War, I was surprised at the attitudes and multitude of people walking in solidarity down Pennsylvania Avenue. Far from a call to militarism, it was a plea for empathy. It was impossible not to be moved by the spectacle of seeing all sides of the movement lend their efforts to one another. From marriage equality, to job protection, to adoption rights, to ending the ban on gays in the military, the calls were the same. “Look at us, we are you.” While the LGBT community has had
made tremendous progress towards being in the spotlight, little of that attention has percolated into legal results. To many, the movement seems new; a call for help that harkens back to the darkest days of the AIDS epidemic. The truth is that the movement goes back much further. At the risk of patronizing, I think it’s relevant to point out some of the major contributions of an organized movement that is now more than a half-century old. I find it relevant because there is much of our history that, if we are to consider ourselves unified at all, we must know. The gay rights movement in the United States first took foothold in 1950 when Harry Hay founded the country’s first gay organization, The Mattachine Society. 19 years later the Stonewall Riots resulted in what is considered the first gay rights legislation, it would take another 4 years for homosexuality to be removed from the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (or “DSM”) as a mental illness. Another three years after that, a decorated war hero, Tech-Sergeant Matlovich fought his discharge for homosexual conduct and won. It took more than a decade more before spousal rights, marriage, adoption, or hate crimes were even seriously discussed. The problem becomes how to speak coherently about a movement with such a broad scope. The tragedy is that more than
half a century after Harry Hay and four decades after rioters took to the streets of the West Village, the scope shouldn’t be as broad today as it was then. It sadly is. Far too many “whys” that should have been answered long ago still stand in our way. Questions like why, after Harvey Milk defeated the ban on gay teachers in 1978, are we Writer, filmmaker, and photographer Brett Edward Stout still seeking job protecis a Cedar Rapids native and recent graduate of the University of Iowa. tion? Why, when TSgt He spent five years in the US Marine Corps as a Russian linguist. His Matlovich successfully first novel Sugar-baby Bridge was published in 2008. He is currently sued the Air Force for working on his second novel, entitled The Lives Between. reinstatement in 1976, are we still discussing the legality of gays It means elaborating on the stress of what serving openly in the military? And why, when it was like to sit silently while the men who state courts continue to take action on behalf I’d give my life for talked about their friendof minority rights, do we continue to allow ships, their weekends, their romances, and majority votes to deny those rights? their heartbreaks. As I took each step from If pragmatically, both sides concede to the White House to the Capitol Building by the inevitable result, then the opposition the side of Martin Smith, with whom I served must adequately explain what we are waiting together for five years, the significance of for. Thus far, the wait seems to have been what we endured came deeper and deeper provided in order to allow enough time for into focus. Many who we served with didn’t the opposition to conceive of a reasonable even know we were friends; we avoided counter-argument. However, their failure one another on base for fear that should to do so is an insufficient justification for one of us be caught we might implicate the inaction. other. Consider the impact for a moment of For years we have struggled for visibility, never being able to tell men who’d die for to be part of the greater civil rights discussion, you even the simplest details of what you and to be seen as more than a fringe popula- did last weekend. Now imagine maintaining tion in pursuit of special privilege. The goal that silence for 5 years, 8 years, or a lifetime. of our movement has and must continue to Consider for a moment that no honor or medal change from visibility at any cost to clarity at you could receive in combat could outweigh every chance. The priority today should be the destructive force revealing who you love to clarify the fundamental inequalities that would do to your career. In addition to the march itself, it was stand between where we are today and the principles we all stand for as Americans. We profoundly moving for me to stand with need to come to terms with our personal other gay veterans at a ceremony at the relationships with those we know who are Congressional Cemetery while we were told ready to understand us. We need to be asking of the valor, the courage, and the tragedy of ourselves why are there so many “I didn’t one of our bravest brothers. Organizers were knows” and “I didn’t understands.” We need to making an effort to turn the grave-site of have the courage to confront our own actions TSgt Matlovich into a monument to gays who even if that means dealing with what we might served in the military. After the ceremony, I was moved nearly to tears at the site of his personally be doing wrong. Harvey Milk pointed out poignantly that tombstone, which reads, “When I was in the because too many of us live clandestine lives military they gave me a medal for killing two we fail to be seen as real people. He said that if men and a discharge for loving one.” The truth everyone came out from their closets it would can so often be stated simply. As I do here now with these words, so do more for gay rights than any election ever could. Coming Out Day from this moment must we all work to do; perhaps not every forward should be more than just a moment day but at least some days. Marches in D.C. for disclosure of sexual interests but also are effective at gaining attention but they our social intentions. Even those of us who do little more than create visibility to our are out of the closet too often set aside our struggle. This is not a bad thing, but it is only deeper concerns to take on the trivial woes part of what is needed at this stage of the of those around us. We need to make clear game. It is our new obligation to those who to those closest to our sphere of influence have struggled, fallen, and will continue to that we are hurt, we are worthy, and we are fight, to make what happened in D.C. personal. equal. We need to keep our sights set beyond The overwhelming lesson of this most recent visibly and strive for clarity; clarity not just demonstration is that we need to reach out abstractly of what we want, but of how we in a broader way to those who care for us. as individuals are affected by the policies We need to stand by them and confide just as much in them as they often do in us. And, that govern us. For me personally, that means talking most importantly, we need to tell them why openly about how “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” we hurt, and tell them that together we have affected me and my fellow service members. both the power and the know-how to fix it.
ACCESSline Page 8
Section 1: News & Politics
November 2009
Mischievous Mayhem Motivates Malcontent Monks by Joshua Dagon During lively conversations with both friends and acquaintances—by “lively” I of course mean to say “...on the verge of, but not yet actually employing, automatic weapons”—the topic of religious persecution toward homosexuals has often been discussed ad nauseam. [Ad nauseam: the state at which one or more conversation participants are not able to avoid repeatedly vomiting.1] “Just a few hundred years ago,” I was recently told by a friend, “you would have been dragged outside and stoned to death, maybe even tied to a tree then burned alive.” Thankfully, such a barbaric practice is no longer in use, of course, due to the magnificent efforts of the American Woodland Alliance, who have enthusiastically protested the wanton destruction of trees. And who says the Church isn’t progressive? I must admit, however, that the historical mistreatment of homosexuals is essentially true. However, a few hundred years ago, although I am certainly gay, I would not necessarily have been barbequed simply for that aspect alone. No, I would have been made a human shish-kebob due to a far more horrible component of my nature: Yes, you guessed it—I am left-handed. As you are undoubtedly aware, the left hand has been identified for millenniums beyond count as the decisive instrument of the devil. Seriously. It’s in the Bible. “...and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.”—Matthew 25:33 (ASV) “Goats,” in this biblical context, is a metaphor referring to those people who are wicked, or in direct reference to demons. Since it is documented in scripture then, I suppose, we have to believe it. I mean, it’s in the Bible. We have to believe it, don’t we? It’s the Bible, goddamn it! I’m not talking about the firkin’ dictionary, man! It’s in the Bible! Dare we find fault with the Bible itself? I think we daren’t. [Of course, I don’t quite understand why we daren’t, seeing as some of us are going to burn for being lefthanded anyway.] (The real irony is that, considering, let’s call it a “habitual practice,” it would with little exception be my right hand that should be considered wicked.) Yup, simply due to my being left-handed, should I have lived during the Inquisition,
or during the Reformation or possibly the Constipation, I would surely have been publically executed. Historically, theocracies have always been a tad funny that way. So, yeah, undoubtedly, a bit of progress has been made in that area, with the possible exception of the policies in Afghanistan, where I’m told one might still be stoned to death for improper nose hair grooming. It’s not as though I’m completely without empathy on the subject of precipitate executions. On the contrary, I’ve seen quite a few people around town whose choice of public ensemble alone clearly justifies any instinctual compulsion to set them on fire; for some reason, a good number of tourists insist on wearing flip-flops despite the fact that wild rhinos have far more attractive feet. Keep in mind, however, that this is the twenty-first century and, while it is perfectly acceptable to feel specific behaviors and/or public spectacles are unappealing, it is no longer customary to detain such individuals in holding areas that also house carnivorous circus animals. I am obviously not referring to wearers of denim cut-offs, heavily penciled eyebrows, and press-on finger nails. Those people are continually fed to hordes of ravenous gerbils, which—I think we can all agree—is perfectly reasonable. Where was I? Oh, yeah! Despite its relatively tolerated social standing throughout the Classical Era and well into the Middle Ages, homosexuality eventually drew unwanted attention, censure, and disapproval.2 At first, repercussions for homosexual behavior were somewhat mild, consisting primarily of one or more pants-down spankings. Unfortunately, punishment of that nature did very little to thwart the undesired behavior. Even so, examples of such an antediluvian practice can still be found today, as documented by my own comprehensive and continuing research. According to the late historian and Yale University professor John Boswell, the demonization of homosexual behavior did not become widely accepted until the primary epoch of Christian monasticism. Let’s ponder that assertion, shall we? It is incontestable that, since the earliest establishments of civilization, homosexuality has not only been tolerated but, in some cases, even venerated—Spartan culture is one
famous example, as is that of Macedonia, Athens, Crete, Chalcis, and Thebes. But then, beginning in the fourth century, monasteries began popping up like Starbucks. Generally, pre-industrial monasteries only accepted male members (pun intended). As a result, they had a propensity to merely feature two types of monks: old, fat, malodorous, bald monks, and teenage novices who resembled Zac Efron only prettier3. That being the case, it wasn’t long before the, let’s call them, “more mature” members of the monastic orders began making libidinous advances on the, let’s call them, “irresistibly screwable” acolytes. As the sight of fleeing monastic acolytes with their robes half torn off tended to generate negative publicity for the Church, homosexuality was consequently prohibited. Then, with nothing but other old, fat, malodorous, bald monks with whom to spend their time, various monks endeavored to create doctrine prohibiting sexual activity as a whole, even going so far as to suggest that heterosexual couples only engage in carnal activities for the exclusive purpose of procreation. Clinging to this ideology, it was widely preached that having fun during sexual intercourse was strictly forbidden, and such behavior was punishable by excommunication. This is evidenced by the penchant for medieval men to marry spectacularly ugly women and instead spend the majority of their time among the sheep. As for the young, gorgeous, tempting male acolytes, they were often arrested, imprisoned for months or even years, and tortured until they were hideously disfigured. It was not until the Church satisfied their just punishment of young, gorgeous, tempting male acolytes that they were able to offer absolution for the reprehensible sins of these youths. Sometimes, if they were lucky, the disfigured youths were eventually allowed to spend the rest of their days happily residing in cathedral bell towers where they were able to make friends with cockroaches and imaginary talking gargoyles. This, of course, demonstrated God’s abundant rewards for the righteous. Halleluiah! Saints be praised! Today, on the other hand, I believe a more traditional method of discipline be re-established in regard to homosexual
Novelist Joshua Dagon is the author of Into the Mouth of the Wolf, The Fallen, and Demon Tears. For more information, please go to www.joshuadagon.com. To contact Mr. Dagon, please e-mail him at jd@joshuadagon.com.
behavior. After all, there’s nothing like a good spanking to secure the religious adherence of the young4. At the very least, further study is undoubtedly warranted. I’ll bring the paddle.
Study Questions
A) Do you ever use the word “daren’t?” If so, how often are you severely beaten for it? B) What is an “antediluvian” and why is it so difficult for them to breed in captivity? C) Is a paddle made of oak or pine more likely to sting? Should riding crops be used during elementary education? Why the hell not?
Works Cited
Herlsilot, Ralph. The American Journal of Stuff That Makes You Barf. Splatterfield: Retchen Publications, 2006 2 Crossey, Hipa. Homosexuality, Christianity, and Clearly Closeted Clergy. Ville de Troll: Undadabrige Printing, 1914 3 de Molesta, Chester. Twink Chasers from the Fourth to the Fourteenth Century. Penitentiary Press, 1989 4 Smacem, Ben D. N. Persuasion Through Pink Cheeks: Prohibitive or Preponderant? Los Angeles: Blubunz Inc, 2002 1
“I don’t like when people use God or Jesus Christ in this whole (gay) debate, if you could even call it a debate. Jesus Christ, to me, is probably the most compassionate and revolutionary thinker of all time. Look at his teachings. Look at what he preached. He would not endorse any type of inequality, this type of inhumanity. He would not be on board with that. So please, spare me that argument and saying that hey, the Bible says that it ain’t right, or hey, Jesus Christ wouldn’t buy into this kind of thing. Don’t give me that. That’s not even an argument.” — New Orleans Saints linebacker Scott Fujita to the Huffington Post, Oct. 7.
November 2009
Section 1: News & Politics
ACCESSline Page 9
Extreme Right Watch by Jennifer Merriman, One Iowa
Chuck Hurley, president of the antimarriage-equality Iowa Family Policy Center, with Iowa-Nebraska NAAPC president, Rev. Keith Ratliff Sr.
Iowa NAACP leader endorses anti-gay Vander Plaats Rev. Keith Ratliff Sr., registered Democrat and president of the Iowa-Nebraska chapter of the NAACP announced his support for antigay Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats on Monday. If elected, Vander Plaats has pledged to pass an executive order to halt the freedom to marry in Iowa, thereby disobeying Iowa law and operating beyond the powers of the Governor. Ratliff’s ties to Chuck Hurley and the extremist Iowa Family Policy Center are well documented, including their efforts to fund the Joshua Christian Academy, a private Christian school in Des Moines. Just three months ago, President Obama addressed the NAACP calling for an end to discrimination, specifically mentioning his support for LGBT equality: “On the 45th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, discrimination cannot stand. Not on account of color or gender, how you worship or who you love. Prejudice has no place in the United States of America. That’s what the NAACP stands for. That’s what the NAACP will continue to fight for as long as it takes.” Just last weekend, NAACP board chair Julian Bond spoke at the National Equality March in Washington, D.C. saying he was proud to stand with gay and lesbian citizens in their quest for equal rights: “Rights for gays and lesbians aren’t special rights in any way. It isn’t special to be free from discrimination, that is a universal entitlement of citizenship,” Bond said. “That many had to struggle to gain these rights makes them precious. It does not make them special. ... When others gain their rights, my rights are not diminished in any way. My rights are not diluted when my neighbor enjoys protection from discrimination. He or she becomes my ally in defending the rights we all share.”
Vander Plaats lands cover of Focus on the Family magazine
Iowa gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats is November cover boy for Citizen magazine, the publication of James Dobson’s Focus on the Family. Citizen columnist John Pailton says what makes Vander Plaats even more anti-equality than others seeking the Republican nomina-
tion is his plan for destroying the freedom to marry as soon as he’s elected. Other candidates are just anti-marriage without a purely symbolic and completely ineffective plan for taking away the rights of Iowans. Pailton goes on to compare Vander Plaats desire to destroy equal rights to Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and rejection of the Dred Scott decision. The editor of The Iowa Republican, Craig Robinson, says nabbing the cover of Citizen will give Vander Plaats more credibility and help him raise campaign funds.
Sharon Malheiro honored One Iowa’s Board Chair Sharon Malheiro honored by the Friends of Iowa Civil Rights for her contributions to Iowa’s history.
November’s Citizen also has a story about Iowa State Representative Kent Sorenson. In a phone call to Robinson, Sorenson said: “It’s people like Tim Gill who have brought the issue of gay marriage to the forefront in Iowa, not Republicans who continue to fight for traditional marriage.” But then Robinson goes on to say, “Rep. Sorenson has decided to not seek re-election to his house seat next fall. Instead, Sorenson will challenge State Senator Staci Appel, the wife of an Iowa Supreme court justice, next fall. The Sorenson race is bound to be ground zero for the fight to protect traditional marriage.” Robinson fails to make clear how changing houses to oppose a supporter of equality simply because it will be ground zero for the fight is not being obsessed with gay marriage. Maybe that’s covered next month.
Sharon Malheiro played a key role in the historic Varnum v. Brien case that led to this year’s Iowa Supreme Court decision granting the freedom to marry to gay and lesbian Iowans. Sharon has been a longstanding advocate for the LGBT community and has dedicated much of her life to promoting civil rights in Iowa as a respected attorney in Des Moines. Well before Varnum v. Brien was filed, Sharon was working with staff at Lambda Legal to lay the groundwork for a challenge to Iowa’s Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which denied marriage to committed gay and lesbian couples. Sharon and Lambda Legal’s Camilla Taylor, lead staff attorney for the Varnum v. Brien case, worked hard to make the case for a challenge to Iowa’s DOMA. While much of the attention of the national LGBT rights movement was focused narrowly on the East and West Coasts, the two lobbied hard to open a new front in the fight for equality in the Heartland. As an Iowa native, Sharon is well versed
in the history of the Iowa Supreme Court and Iowa’s historic civil rights leadership. Armed with this information, Lambda Legal filed a challenge to Iowa’s DOMA in December 2005, representing six Iowa same-sex couples who wanted the freedom to marry. On August 30, 2007, a district court ruled in favor of the six couples, elevating the case to the Supreme Court. On April 3, 2009, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled Iowa’s DOMA unconstitutional and cleared the way for marriage equality in Iowa. On April 27, 2009, hundreds of same-sex couples applied for marriage licenses across the state on the first day these licenses were granted. While the decision came as a surprise to many across the state and nationally, Sharon saw the ruling as a natural continuance of Iowa’s commitment to civil rights. At a time when national LGBT activists were reeling with the passage of California’s Proposition 8, Iowa’s ruling sparked renewed momentum. In the months following Iowa’s decision, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire all passed legislation in favor of marriage equality. As the struggle for equal rights continues, people like Sharon are invaluable helping us make LGBT history an integral part of our country’s legacy.
“I think for me (the National Equality March) was a cause that I truly believe in. By and large in this country the issue of gay rights and equality should be past the point of debate. Really, there should be no debate anymore. For me, in my small platform as a professional football player, I understand that my time in the spotlight is probably limited. The more times you have to lend your name to a cause you believe in, you should do that.” — New Orleans Saints linebacker Scott Fujita to the Huffington Post, Oct. 7.
ACCESSline Page 10 SScontinued from page 6
CREEPS daughter or a mother and a son or daughter, for example, or brothers and sisters.” So if two consenting adults of the same sex can legally marry then the gloves are off for parents to rape their children? Wow. You can’t argue with logic like that. The National Logic Society is totally going to give King their award for having the Best Looking Ass While Wearing Logic Pants. This year’s judge? Rick Santorum. Ten bucks says King cries during his acceptance speech.
Protect Marriage Washington
It’s October, folks, and you know what’s just around the corner? Election Day. And what Election Day would be complete without a gay-related ballot measures? One state keeping the tradition alive is Washington with Referendum 71, a proposal to keep the state’s domestic partnership law for same-sex couples and senior citizens on the books. In short, the legislature passed the law, the anti-gay folks freaked out and collected signatures to get it on the ballot hoping that they could then overturn it and marriage would be the safe and sound and secure institution it was before homos got involved. Of course, R-71 is not a bill to legalize same-sex marriage as Protect Marriage Washington, the group against R-71, claims. The language voters will see on the
Section 1: News & Politics ballot even makes that clear: “The legislature passed Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5688 concerning rights and responsibilities of state-registered domestic partners and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill. This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities and obligations accorded state-registered same-sex and senior domestic partners to be equivalent to those of married spouses, except that a domestic partnership is not a marriage.” If R-71 passes, then Washington’s domestic partnership law, which is, I repeat, already on the books, stays in place. Nothing changes. But if you take Protect Marriage Washington’s word for it, passage of R-71 is tantamount to open sodomy in the streets and gays tearing heterosexual marriages asunder. In other words, PMW’s argument is the “same-old, same-old”: scare tactics, distortions and outright lies. One of their more insidious claims is that should R-71 pass, “public schools K-12 will likely be forced to teach that same-sex ‘marriage’ and homosexuality are perfectly normal.” And to Protect Marriage Washington, homos are anything but normal. And God forbid children be taught otherwise. Of course, what PMW is really trying to do it to paint some kind of horrific future scenario where homosexuality is not only acknowledged in schools, but where children are also taught to be gay, right down to daily recitations of “I’m Coming Out” by Diana Ross and Indigo Girls sing-a-longs. This is, needless to say, not the aim of R-71 supporters or any other sentient being on the planet. Protect Marriage Washington is also
claiming that passage of R-71 means that people of faith will be bound and gagged, forbidden to state their beliefs about homosexuality and forced to trade their Bibles for the complete works of Dan Savage. In reality, the only folks who stand to have something taken away are the couples protected under the domestic partnership law Protect Marriage Washington wants so feverishly to do away with. “This is extraordinarily personal,” said a volunteer with Washington Families Standing Together, a coalition of R-17 supporters, at an Oct. 12 community forum. “It will be 200 rights and responsibilities my partner and I will benefit from” that will be lost if R-17 is rejected. Oh, and R-17 doesn’t just grant rights to gay couples. According to Inlander.com,
November 2009
“Senior citizens in committed relationships who want to preserve certain benefits often cannot remarry after a spouse as died. But the rights afforded to them as domestic partners under the new law would give them access to each other’s disability and unemployment benefits, as well as let them use sick leave to care for each other.” And we all know what that is (cough, cough, socialism, cough). For more information visit www. ApproveReferendum71.org. D’Anne Witkowski has been gay for pay since 2003. She’s a freelance writer and poet (believe it!). When she’s not taking on the creeps of the world she reviews rock and roll shows in Detroit with her twin sister and teaches writing at the University of Michigan.
ACCESSline’s fun guide Our Picks for November
Paula Poundstone Talks About Her Non-traditional Family, Twitter, and… Ping Pong? Interview by Arthur Breur Your last performance in Iowa was April 3rd, which was a momentous day in Iowa for gays and lesbians— Yes! Congratulations! Yeah, “congratulations” was the first thing you said that night in April, and you then responded to someone in the audience who said they were not for [gay marriage] by pointing out it was not “compulsory”, and then you ran with that line of humor for a while. How do you handle it when things are so “off the cuff”? Well, you know, when my act is good— and I think it is ninety-something percent of the time, I’ve certainly had bad shows—when my act is good it’s a conversation. It’s like going to a cocktail party. When you arrive you complain about how hard it was to park; somebody says, “Oh, tell that story you told one time,” so you tell an old one; then you talk to people about current events; then somebody spills a drink on the other side of the room and you mock them—as well one should. So it has a kind of life of its own. I have a big giant rolodex of material in my head. I’m not as unprepared as I may appear,
only because I’ve been doing this for so many years. And I have the events of the day and the news as much at my disposal as anybody else there. I love interacting with the crowd. My favorite part of the night is just talking to the audience, in the time-honored way from “what do you do for a living?” I am not in favor—and nobody in my crowd would ever be like this—but I am saddened by the shouting out at the events as of late. People don’t do that to me. Every once in a blue moon I’ll get somebody who’s, you know, kind of drunk or something, it’s a small fraction of the time it’s a problem. Generally speaking, even if it’s somebody who’s really, really drunk. You know what? I’ve been really, really drunk before, and so has the majority of the audience, so I’m usually fairly patient with them. Oh, on April 3rd it wasn’t a healthcare town hall meeting type of shout out, it was more along the lines of the kind of interaction that normally happens in your shows. No, I love that. And in truth, I brought it up! And by the way, I’m not always right. I feel that—and I do talk about my opinion on
• 11/7 8pm, Holland Performing Arts Center, Omaha, NE: Itzhak Perlman
stage, and sometimes vehemently—my main job is to entertain. I really want to be funny, but I do that using the “palette”, as it were, of current events, and of my opinion, and of politics, sometimes (not always but sometimes). It doesn’t mean I’m right. It means, gee, that’s what I think. And someone may well think something different. I don’t feel the need to convert, you know what I mean? So I like it that people say “oh, I think this” and “oh, I think that”. It happens to be that I’m the one on stage with the microphone so my turn gets to be the last turn. (Laughs.) But I do love just talking with the crowd, getting a sense of where I am.
TTPOUNDSTONE continued page 20
• 11/10-11/15, Civic Center of Greater Des Moines: RENT
• 11/14 8pm The Englert, Iowa City: Paula Poundstone • 11/15 1pm, FIGGE Art Museum, Davenport: QCAD Film Festival • 11/30, 7:30pm, The Orpheum, Sioux City: The Wizard of Oz – Broadway at the Orpheum
ACCESSline Page 12
the fun guide
November 2009
The Outfield by Dan Woog Out and under the radar In 2000, a Bloomsburg University football teammate asked Brian Sims a question he’d half-expected for years: “Are you gay?” Yes, the 6-foot, 260-pound defensive tackle replied. The result was … nothing. Well, that’s not completely true. Several teammates wanted to make sure Sims felt OK emotionally. As the word of Sims’ sexuality spread, a 6-foot-3-inch, 350-pound teammate sobbed, worried that at some point in the past he offended Sims. And when some players, drinking at a bar, heard someone else deriding “two fags on a date”—Sims and his boyfriend were eating nearby—they tossed the guy out the door. But that was it. There were no team meetings. There was no publicity. Life continued as usual at the state school in north-central Pennsylvania. No, that’s not completely true either. The 2000 season was a bit unusual. The Huskies went 12-2, and reached the final game of the NCAA Division II national championship. It was a season to remember. But players and fans remember it today because of what the team accomplished on the field—not because of who dated whom off it. Nearly a decade later, Sims has moved on with his life. He’s gaining notice as a lawyer. He’s a leader in the battle to add sexual orientation to Pennsylvania’s hate crimes legislation. Athletically, he’s moved from the gridiron to running marathons. Recently, he completed his first ultramarathon: 50 miles in 24 hours. Recalling the moment his teammate asked that portentous question, Sims says: “I wasn’t completely oblivious to the fact that the guys I lived with, and knew so well, would put the pieces together. I was never frightened of ‘the question.’ I knew someday I’d have to face it, but I’d never practiced what I would say. The first time I was asked, it was the first time I thought about how I’d answer.” His teammates, he says, handled the revelation “much better than I’d given them credit for. In hindsight, I realize they were ready to be supportive.” In hindsight too he wishes he’d come out earlier. However, he says, “I have no regrets. I have a great coming out story, in an area of the country people may not expect it.” Interestingly, though, Sims thinks that being on a very good football team, in a football-crazy state, may explain the low-key, positive reaction. “That’s what a team is all about: supporting everyone on it,” he explains. “I’d be lying if I didn’t say that part of the reason (for his teammates’ quick acceptance) was because I was good—a three-year starter, a leader.
great. I’m proud of it, and so are my 125 teammates. But I get plenty of e-mails from people who can’t be out. It’s still a problem for gay athletes. “At some point, though, it won’t be,” he promises. “And it will happen sooner than most people think.”
Brian Sims “But everyone knew me well too. They knew I was a liberal, a Democrat, a feminist—my mother’s a colonel in the army, how could I not be a feminist?! They knew I believed in the importance of tolerance and diversity, long before I came out. “Despite our differences, we’d been through a lot together. Going through football camp is like pledging a fraternity every year. We had a lot in common, so this just wasn’t a big deal.” Sims never asked anyone to be quiet about his sexuality, but the team was making its championship bid, so what might have been big news elsewhere faded into the background. After graduation, Sims headed to Michigan State University and law school. He practiced disability insurance law and started his own firm. Today, though, he’s following his true passion. Sims has a high-level job with the Philadelphia Bar Association—and is also chair of Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia, president of Equality Advocates of Pennsylvania and a fellow at the Center for Progressive Leadership. Thanks in part to his positive experience at Bloomsburg, he is a positive advocate for change. “I don’t have a chip on my shoulder,” he notes. “I’m able to use the collaborative action that worked so well in football to get various organizations to come together to try to make progress.” His leadership in the gay rights arena has helped him make important contacts— and led to intriguing offers. This summer he was asked to throw out the first pitch at a Phillies game. “I can’t throw a baseball to save my life,” Sims laughs. “But I practiced, and I got it across the plate. I was more nervous for that than I was for the bar exam.” But when the talk turns toward gay civil rights—or gay athletes—Sims turns serious. Asked to describe his legacy, Sims counters: “I’m 30 years old. That’s way too young to have a legacy. Ask me in 20 years. “Being an out football player was
intersect both lyrically and ominously, with twists and turns seldom found in a typical baseball novel. Meyer has constructed a complex and compelling tale, in part because he knows the territory. Growing up in suburban Pittsburgh, he was—like his fictional character Rob Wardell—small and often picked on. Like Rob, he rode the baseball bench. Like Rob too, he had crushes on teammates. “I always wondered how people would have reacted if I did something about it,” Meyer says. “What if…” Unlike Rob, he did nothing about it. Rob does, and both he and pitcher Josh Schlagel pay dearly. “Parts of me are very visible in Rob,” Meyer says. “But I was never as noble or brave as he is. He’s an idealized version of me.” Meyer handles his characters’ attractions with an intriguing combination of gentleness and ferocity. There are no graphic sex scenes—but the intensity of the teenagers’ feelings is never far from the surface. At the same time, he does not shy away from describing the Walter G. Meyer. Photo by Jos Panwitz. violence that those feelings— some perhaps shared by supposedly straight boys—arouse in others. He knows those reactions well. He witnessed some of them, years ago as a Straight readers say that it takes them about 80 pages before realizing that the two boy. He has researched more recent ones— high school players at the heart of Rounding beatings of teammates suspected of being gay, the indifference of adults to intervene, Third are attracted to each other. Gay readers figure it out in the first few the inexplicable rejection of gay children by too many parents—and weaves them all paragraphs. If anyone needs proof that, even in into his narrative. Some readers may think 2009, Americans view sports and athletes the scenes of violence are overdone. Meyer differently depending on their sexuality, assures them that those scenes are all too Walter G. Meyer’s recently published book commonplace—and real. Yet Rounding Third also shows heroism. offers it. The story follows two 17-year-olds in Baseball coach Hudson emerges as a powera small Ohio town. One is a benchwarmer; ful, if surprising, voice for gay youth. the other, a star pitcher. But their lives TTROUNDING continued page 13
Rounding third, heading home
November 2009
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 13
IowaLisa’s List by Lisa Schreihart Howdy folks! This is a list of Iowa’s live music, arts, social events and culture for, by, featuring, and of interest to women, GLBT folks, and friends for November. To submit events and announcements, or to sign up a friend to receive this list by e-mail, e-mail iowalisa@ juno.com. Visit me on Facebook at www. facebook.com/iowalisa or on MySpace at www.myspace.com/iowalisa. I’m on Twitter too (@iowalisa)!
LET ME DIRECT YOUR ATTENTION…
The events list follows, but let me first direct your attention to Out and Equal Workplace Advocates at www.outandequal.org. This organization is working to get LGBT equality in workplaces around the United States. Places like Rockwell Collins, where I work, are looking for ways to attract and retain GLBT employees by improving awareness and understanding in the work environment and offering supportive services. RC is currently starting up our first-ever corporate-wide Pride Employee Network for LGBT people and their advocates. It’s an exciting time at RC and there is a lot of very meaningful work to do. Out and Equal is helping us to figure out what we need to do to get everyone in the company fully onboard to build a friendly, accepting workplace for “out” GLBT people. Our Pride Employee Network leadership attended the Out and Equal Workplace
Summit, October 5-9 in Orlando, where we came together with 2000+ corporate people (many gay but also many straight allies, including HR people and CEOs!) to talk about LGBT issues in the workplace and to share best practices. It was one of the most empowering experiences I’ve had in a long, long while. It was amazing to see the diversity there and to hear about the journeys other companies have made or are currently on. Coming to the realization that American corporations abound with GLBT people was not only enlightening, but it was wholly inspiring! I would recommend anyone who works for a corporation to check out Out and Equal Workplace Advocates. Hopefully we all can meet next year at the Summit and work together to improve our workplaces for LGBT diversity! Check out www.outandequal.org. In next month’s ACCESSline, I hope to expound on some of the lessons we learned at the Summit. Keep your eyes peeled.
ONE-TIME EVENTS:
Tuesday, November 3, 7-9 p.m., CONNECTIONS FORUM: It’s a TRANSlucent World, at hotelVetro Conference Center, 2nd floor, downtown Iowa City. This Forum panel features members of the transgender community who will discuss various topics, including the role of gender in the greater GLBT community and the unique obstacles trans people face in coming out to families, work, and friends. The panel will include Linda Chandler, an Iowa City therapist who
regularly treats gender identity patients. Come join us for an evening of enlightenment. Our customary light snacks will be courtesy of the Krug Law Firm. Thursday-Saturday, November 5-7, DANCE GALA 2009: SYNERGY at Space Place Theater, 101 North Hall, University of Iowa, Iowa City. The exciting lineup of dance ranges from contemporary to classical. Order tickets on-line at www.hancher.uiowa.edu/tickets or call 1-800-HANCHER. Friday, November 6, JOAN RIVERS at the Diamond Jo Casino’s Mississippi Moon Bar, at the Port of Dubuque. For more info and tix, go to www.diamondjo.com. Friday, November 6, 9 p.m., 80’s LADIES NIGHT at Hamburger Mary’s, 222 Glenbrook Dr., Cedar Rapids (behind Taco John’s off of 1st Ave. SE), featuring JODIE FOSTER CONNECTION and a night of drag kings! Friday-Saturday, November 6-7, 5 p.m.-2 a.m., CAAP (Community AIDS Assistance Project) ANNUAL BENEFIT at Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center, 205 W. 4th St. and Kings and Queens Tap, Waterloo. For more info, e-mail caap1@yahoo.com. Friday features the Pre-Benefit Party and Show at Kings and Queens Tap, 304 W. 4th St., Waterloo, with doors opening at 5 p.m. The Benefit Talent Show is on Saturday, with doors at 6 p.m., featuring local and state-wide talent at the Convention Center. $15 cover goes to CAAP. An after party on Saturday follows at Kings and Queens tap. Saturday, November 7, 8 p.m., ZOE
SScontinued from page 12
ROUNDING “He was always that person,” Meyer explains. “But no one had ever challenged him to be an advocate before. It’s just like war: No one knows whether he’ll turn and run, or stay and fight, before the bullets start to fly.” The lack of action by adults in the face of anti-gay rhetoric and violence—there is no mention in the book of school law, or of supportive organizations like the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network— surprises some readers. Meyer—who now lives in San Diego, where he writes on a broad range of topics and volunteers at a GLBT youth center— counters: “In large parts of the country, what is natural for us does not exist. In my own hometown in Pennsylvania, the school board is so out of touch about things much less radical than this, that I can’t imagine going to them about any gay issue. Most kids in Ohio wouldn’t know what a Gay-Straight Alliance is. We like to think we’ve come a lot farther as a country than we have.” Even in Southern California, he notes, a high school student was recently prohibited from giving a report on Harvey Milk. The book has been out for only a few weeks, but Meyer is heartened by the reactions he’s heard. One reader commented: “I feel like you followed me around when I was in high school. You captured my life.” Meyer’s hometown library heard about the book and asked him to speak. He did not immediately accept the invitation. “I told the librarian to read the book first,” Meyer says. “We’ll see how this works out after she reads it.” In the high school he
LEWIS in concert at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, 4501 Walnut, Kansas City, MO. Ok, it’s not in Iowa, but if you are having Zoe Lewis withdrawal, it’s close enough! $18 adv/$21 at the door. For tix, visit www.brownpapertickets.com/ event/80527. Originally from England, Zoë now resides in Provincetown, Cape Cod. She plays jazz, jump jive, Latin grooves, swing, international folk, funk originals on anything from the piano to the spoons! She describes her blend of music as WORLDBEAT-VAUDEVILLE. Produced by Willow Productions, friends of the Iowa Women’s Music Festival. Sunday, November 8, 6-10 p.m., ALLIOWA AIDS BENEFIT, at Embassy Suites on the River, Des Moines. Join Congressman Leonard Boswell, WHO/TV news anchor Sonya Heitshusen, event planner Anthony Marinaro, and world-class female impersonator Dena Cass for a night of Broadway themed entertainment! Admission is $20 at the door, or tickets are available in advance by contacting The Project at 515-284-0245 or aiab@aidsprojectci.org. A cash bar and hors d’oeuvres will be offered. Tuesday-Sunday, November 10-15, RENT at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines. For more info or tickets, visit www.civiccenter.org. Wednesday, November 11, 6:30-9:30 p.m., JUMP, JIVE & JAVA, sponsored by HIV Outreach & Awareness for Men, at Mars Café, 2318 University Ave., Des Moines. There
TTLISA’S LIST continued page 26
graduated from, he knows of only one openly gay student. The total population is 2,000. Some readers wonder about the title. “What does a baseball player do when he ‘rounds third’?” Meyer asks. “He heads for home—and tries to get there safe. This book is about finding your way home, safely.” It is also a book about freedom. One character tells his father: “You went to Vietnam to fight for our freedom. But we’re not even free to walk down the halls of our high school.” “I grew up in the shadow of Vietnam,” Meyer says. “America has always talked a good game about bringing freedom to others. We’re doing the same thing today in Iraq. But gay people in America are still not free to marry. We’ve still got a long way to go.” (Rounding Third is published by MaxM Ltd) Dan Woog is a journalist, educator, soccer coach, gay activist, and author of the “Jocks” series of books on gay male athletes. Visit his Web site at www.danwoog.com. He can be reached care of this publication or at OutField@qsyndicate.com.
“I would say the Mormon Tabernacle.” — Lesbian comedian Wanda Sykes in Passport magazine’s November issue when asked, “Where should gay people visit as both a vacation destination and a political act?”
ACCESSline Page 14
the fun guide
November 2009
Cocktail Chatter by Camper English from a table-top fountain onto a sugar cube family after drinking two glasses of absinthe resting atop a slotted spoon above a glass of in 1905. His lawyers argued that the man absinthe, slowly sweetening and diluting the suffered from absinthe madness, but he had spirit. Eventually the liquid turns cloudy as also consumed nearly twenty other glasses of oils in the alcohol come out of solution. It is alcohol that day. Regardless, soon thereafter more like a teatime ritual than a thirty second many countries around the world banned the run to Starbucks for an espresso shot. production and sale of absinthe. Absinthe’s hallucinogenic hype is Fast-forward about ninety years and based on one of its ingredients—the grand absinthe is back on shelves as the US governwormwood plant that contains the chemical ment allowed bottles with a legally negligible thujone. Thujone quantity in absinthe is now and safe amount of thujone from grand regulated, but probably it wasn’t the problem wormwood to be sold as absinthe again. in the first place. Interestingly, new chemical analysis of old Most absinthe is nearly two-thirds absinthes suggest there wasn’t that much Gay bars: cuter bartenders—simpler drinks? stronger than vodka and other spirits on the more thujone in absinthe of the 1800’s than market- and the high is allowed by law now. It’s the real thing, alcohol content is likely baby. the cause of the erratic As absinthe has been illegal for most of behavior associated the past hundred years, most of us don’t know Though I spend what many would with it. Absinthe was how it is supposed to taste. The short answer consider an inordinate amount of time in thought to be addictive is: like black jelly beans. Most absinthe is bars, less and less of this time is spent in gay and it was certainly flavored with the trinity of bitter grand bars. My issue is not with the gays, of course, being abused by alco- wormwood and soothing fennel and anise. nor even with gay bars per se. Between dance holics in a time when It can be herbaceous, creamy-sweet, spicy, bars, biker bars, piano bars, cruise bars, rockpeople drank a lot of or bitter, but most brands of absinthe have and-roll bars, bear bars, drag bars, sports everything, so a social a dominant anise quality. If you like ouzo or bars, and neighborhood bars, I think you can backlash and temper- pastis, chances are you’ll like absinthe. usually find the gay bar that suits your mood ance movement formed If not, please do not force feed it to at any time of the week. What you can’t find, with absinthe as the yourself with the expectation that you will however, is a decent cocktail. main target. hallucinate. You won’t, and that’s not classy. You can find a decent mixed drink in a The c a t a ly s t If you want to see a green fairy, just pour gay bar—don’t get me wrong—but compliKylie Minogue as absinthe’s “little green fairy” in required for its outright yourself you usual drink, dress appropriately, cated cocktails are another story. The simple Moulin Rouge fro Twentieth Century Fox banning came in the form and look in the mirror. mixed drinks like vodka cranberry, vodka of a sensational court case Camper English is a cocktails and spirits tonic, vodka soda, and the like when they’re served in gay bars tend to be stronger in untested. Maybe if we asked the bartenders involving a Swiss man who murdered his writer and publisher of Alcademics.com. alcohol content, less expensive, and served (nicely) for more complicated and delicious faster by better looking bartenders than in cocktails they would learn to make them for us. We’ll have to do this at times when straight bars. This part I like very much. The part I don’t like so much is that the bar isn’t very busy so the bartenders usually the only cocktails beyond a Martini have the time to indulge us, but maybe if and (sometimes) Manhattan that gay bar we start bringing in relatively simple, new bartenders seem to be able to make is the cocktail recipes they’ll learn to make these Cosmopolitan and the Apple Martini. Those drinks for us. At worst we’ll be rebuffed and this plan drinks were fine for a time but after six or seven hundred of them one’s tongue may will fail, but at best we’ll slowly improve want to wander towards something different the qualities of cocktails in gay bars, one or new or at least something invented within bartender at a time. Wells Fargo Bank Private Client Service the last decade. We are in a new golden era of cocktails and QCAD invite you to a free seminar made with fresh ingredients, homemade Despite samling nearly every brand on life planning. bitters, spicy syrups, and floral liqueurs, yet of absinthe available for sale in the United the drinks being served in gay bars became States, I have yet to see any green fairies popular when Sex in the City was still a tele- outside of the LGBT contingent at the annual When: November 5, 2009 at 6:30pm vision series rather than a series of movies. St. Patrick’s Day parade. This much maligned Where: QCAD – 1608 Second Avenue Rock Island. The only good news is that the cocktails are spirit has many unique qualities, but the so dated that soon they’ll be retro. rumored instant dementia is just not one RSVP Ph. 309-786-2580 or To be fair, the vast majority of bars in of them. email: QCAD.outforgood@gmail.com America aren’t making the couture cocktails In the late 1800’s in Europe when of my dreams with hand-carved ice cubes, absinthe was extremely popular, people Presenter: Mrs. Dale R. Farland, Vice President rare Indonesian rum, and fresh-picked were largely not running around in circles Certified Trust and Financial Advisor, kumquats either. But I still hold out hope screaming either. The absinthe serving ritual Wealth Specialist that my gay sisters and brothers will hop on was and is a way to relax over a slow drink the haute cocktail bandwagon sooner rather with a long preparation. Cold water drips • How to Plan For and Enjoy Retirement
Gay Bars versus Great Cocktails
than later. We’re supposed to be a trendy people. Another trend is the prevalence of competitive cooking reality shows, and those are just chock full of gays. Who knew there were so many queer chefs? I suppose it’s the same with gay mixologists. They do exist, and there are more than a few of them, but they just don’t work in gay bars where their talent would be wasted. Perhaps that’s my fault and yours too, leaving the gay bar talent
All About Absinthe
“Some of the next generation of LGBT opinion leaders think more boldly than the preceding generation. We grew up in a different environment than people who grew up in the 1960s or the 1970s. The new generation grew up in a post-AIDS-crisis world. I don’t know anybody who died of AIDS, and for a gay man 20 years ago, that would have been a shocking statement. But most of my peers don’t either. We’re not characterized by being survivors.” — Gay U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., to The Washington Post, Oct. 9. He is 34 years old.
• Long Term Health Care planning • Tilting of Assets at Death
• Protecting partners/spouses and self during incapacity • Charitable gifting
Light refreshments will be provided.
November 2009
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 15
Deep Inside Hollywood by Romeo San Vicente Jackson to rock 30 Rock
may now be the triple digits. No information about his character, how long he’ll be around, when he’ll surface—because just when you think you’ve seen the last of Liz Lemon’s pager-salesman ex, even he pops up again—or when his episodes will hit your TiVo, but he’s reported to be shooting now, so hold tight.
Sci-fi guys have perfect Timing
Cheyenne Jackson. Photo by Miranda Penn Turin. Cheyenne Jackson may be Broadway’s reigning it-boy, but he’s made the leap to the big screen before in United 93 and to TV with guest spots on The Mentalist and Ugly Betty. So it was just a matter of time before people who don’t have matinee tickets to Xanadu found out about the talented actor, and it looks like that time may be now. Word is that Jackson is about to take on a role at 30 Rock, bringing that show’s total number of ensemble players into what
Attention gay nerds who never got over their fixation with the canceled sci-fi series Firefly and its subsequent film Serenity (Romeo attended Comic-Con once, so he knows this isn’t a made-up demographic): Sean Maher is about to play gay in the film Timing. The indie co-stars another sci-fi leading man, Eureka’s Colin Ferguson, and both actors have gay projects on their resumes already, as Maher was featured in the TV movie Wedding Wars and Ferguson appeared in More Tales of the City. The drama is set to shoot in early 2010, and the plot concerns two men whose relationship is tested when one of them discovers he has a teenage son he never knew. Sounds heavy—wonder if they work it out?
Liza to serenade the City
Is there such a thing as too much concentrated gayness happening in one spot? That’s the scientific experiment the Sex and the City sequel is planning when it hits theaters next year and Liza Minnelli
makes a cameo. At a gay wedding scene. Performing Beyonce’s “Single Ladies.” If it sounds like a crazy rumor, it’s not. Liza loves making an entrance—and this sounds like one for the record books. And Minnelli isn’t the only planned cameo. Apparently Miley Cyrus is going to show up, too, but doing what? No one seems to know just yet. Maybe she’s going to play Big’s long-lost love child or an arch-nemesis competing for young men with Samantha. And of course, as more insane news leaks about 2010’s queerest film event, you’ll be kept in the loop here. Romeo is waiting for reports of a fantasy sequence featuring ultimate fighter/Dancing With the Stars contestant Chuck Liddell.
Oompa Loompas to take Manhattan
The idea of a stage musical version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory isn’t so far-fetched when you remember that even Roald Dahl’s original book featured morals-heavy song lyrics sung by the Oompa Loompas after each naughty child’s retribution took effect. And the everlasting gobstopper-like popularity of the various film versions more or less demanded a new incarnation. So now comes the Broadway musical, in development with Warner Bros., director Sam Mendes (American Beauty) and songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Whitman (Hairspray). No word yet on how many, if any, of the original songs from the book
or first film starring Gene Wilder will be used—though Shaiman and Whitman’s songs are always witty fun—or about casting. But wouldn’t it be cool to see a singing, dancing Johnny Depp hit the Broadway stage? Romeo San Vicente knows he’s a Golden Ticket prize. He can be reached care of this publication or at DeepInsideHollywood@ qsyndicate.com.
“I don’t call what I do outing, I call it reporting—and I’d never report on the private life of a private person. Celebrities, politicians and professional athletes, on the other hand, made a choice to live their lives in the public eye for their careers. They need to be prepared for the public talking about their private life.” —Gay blogger Perez Hilton to the Oregon gay newspaper Just Out, Sept. 18.
ACCESSline Page 16
the fun guide
November 2009
The Gay Wedding Planner: Delighted Recipients by Beau Fodor Wedding (and all other) “Thank You” notes can seem overwhelming, begin to pile up and then become an insurmountable task… until you start to think about and remember the friend or family member spent considerably more time selecting that gift than it takes to express the pleasure (in some cases, for years to come) of their thoughtfulness… Etiquette requires more than an-email, Facebook post, phone call, or some three month old packaged “thank you” note, which seems like an after-thought… to me, anyway. (I’ll admit I’m just hand polished white trash from New Jersey, just like Martha Stewart, but we both loved Jackie
Kennedy for bringing etiquette to the masses…) Gifts will start to arrive as soon as you announce your engagement. Literally write the sender’s info on the box it came in!!! You have NO idea how helpful this will be six months to a year from now… If you followed the “stylishly-simple” concept I’ve been writing/blogging about for these past six months, you’ll have “thank yous” in your wedding stationery collection, and in an evening with your spouse, hopefully, you can get them all out. And… hopefully within that first or second month of wedded bliss. I sometime hate rules, but especially after six months of “Gay Weddings With
Photos from the Miranda-Dallas wedding ceremony, October 17, 2009
Photos courtesy of GayWeddingsWithPanache.com.
“I have seen and witnessed so many things over the past two years and I can say with such certainty that this is the single most important moment of my career. ... The younger generation, my generation, we are the ones coming up in the world, and we must continue to push this movement forward and close the gap. We must demand full equality for all. They say that this country is free and they say that this country is equal, but it is not equal if it’s (only) sometimes (equal). Obama, I know that you’re listening. ARE YOU LISTENING?! We will continue to push you and your administration to bring your words of promise to a reality. We need change now. We demand action now.” — Lady Gaga at the National Equality March in Washington, D.C., Oct. 11.
Panache” and soon-to-be 14 weddings planned and executed, well, the rules of etiquette are a perfect “game plan”. Straightup (no pun, intended). I’ve become quite trusting in and of them. Especially with all the options and styles, not to mention thousands of reliable references out there. As I’ve blogged (panachepoints.blogspot.com) about all the gay weddings this past season, I continue to believe whatever you choose, as long as it’s personalized, it’s FABULOUS. Whatever style you want to feature, whether classic, contemporary, embellished, or my personal favorite, stamped and embossed (think monogram), as long as you hand-write the actual words and sign your names… well, Jackie Kennedy, Emily Post, Martha, the Queen (Cher) and even our local Miss Manners of Iowa would approve. And if you add a snapshot, especially if it’s a picture of the note’s recipient at the wedding… well, you can write your own etiquette book!!! A point to ponder when writing your note: why is this gift meaningful? And mention it, too. (“Darling, the twelve Ralph Lauren Home Collection dessert plates are to die for… and we’ll use them every holiday!” is a wonderful example…) Whatever the gift, even a returned one, it needs to be acknowledged and gracefully accepted, especially if you care anything about the giver. Finally, your “sign off” delivers the
Beau Fodor degree of intimacy: the least being “Sincerely,” then some variation of “With Affection” or “Fondly”, and, then, “LOVE,” which always is appropriate… and is what this is all about, ANYWAY!!!
November 2009
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 17
ACCESSline Page 18
the fun guide
“Shattering Silence” by Iowa artist James Illwanger commemorates Iowa’s history of promoting equality and justice, and was dedicated at the Iowa State Capital grounds in Des Moines, October 22, 2009. Photo by Rich Eychaner.
Autumn graces almost every Iowa street with a blaze of colors. Photo by Arthur Breur.
November 2009
November 2009
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 19
ACCESSline Page 20 SScontinued from page 11
POUNDSTONE I loved working in Iowa, ‘cause Iowa’s a big surprise. You have a fairly famous non-traditional family. How do you feel about what makes a family? Oh, man, I was talking to this friend of mine last night, and was telling me that has these friends who are trying to adopt. They wanted to get like a perfectly healthy child, and they were concerned that via adoption they might get someone with some sort of disability or some sort of “issue”, and he said, “Well, you would know about that.” I said I had no idea what the hell I was getting into. I’m really proud that I made a family where there was none. I have three kids from three different backgrounds, and, you know, we’re hackin’ through the jungle with a big machete like everybody else. We’re not any different. All three have really distinctly different needs, but that would have been the case if I had birthed them as well: Lord knows, my sisters and me have virtually nothing in common. You seem to be in a new city or new state almost every other day. How do you handle that? Well, it’s not quite that frequent, but it’s pretty frequent. I have the same puzzle to solve every week as do most working parents. Trying to figure out how to balance raising my kids and doing my job. I think I have a pretty good arrangement as it goes. I’m usually out a couple nights a week. This week I’m not out at all. Last week I was out two nights, the week before I was out three. So it bounces around a little bit. We’ve followed you on Twitter since your last performance in Iowa. You seem to enjoy that short message format, but you also claim to be “technologically challenged”. Tell us more about that? Well, you have no idea how long it takes me to put each one of those up! It’s a challenge! It was at a meet, in Bakersfield in fact, when another mother had, first of all, an iPod, iPhone thing which I had never seen—well, never seen close up, never understood that it got the Internet wherever it went. First of all she had that gizmo, and second of all she said, “Let me show you this thing” and she showed me the Twitter thing. And I fell in love. I was just like, I must do this, and so I have been enthusiastically twittering ever since. I just bumped into [them] the other day and they were laughing at how I had taken to it and proud that they were the one to introduce me. I love to write jokes, I love to think of funny stuff. I love the challenge of assembling a puzzle, taking a topic that I think is important and trying to generate something funny from it. Which sometimes I do well… I think yesterday was a pretty good day. Sometimes I do it pretty well, sometimes not so well. And I go back and forth with things in my life that we all have in common. One of the great things about having an audience, like an online audience—well, whether it’s a Twitter audience or a regular audience—when I come up with one of those things, and I happen to have OCD, when I come up with one of those things that’s going to haunt me, like, well, like who played the warden in Cool Hand Luke? That could ruin a whole day for me! And I’ve been able to say, in recent years, well, I’ll ask the audience
the fun guide tonight. Somebody out there always knows. And I can tell my difficulties on stage, and people find it funny and so do I. In fact, each time I have some sort of struggle, I think, “Well, I’ll tell the audience about it,” and at least I have that. So you have comedy as therapy? I do. I think everyone does. That’s how we cope. You mentioned puzzling through important issues. Something important that you support is public libraries. I DO! I DO! I mean, what’s not to support? You know, like, I’ve never had to cross a picket line as a result. Particularly now when obviously funding for everything is cut way back. Libraries are different than when people my age were kids. It’s no longer a haven of “bun-toting shushers”. It’s alive in a way I think that it didn’t used to be. You know I’m not crazy about the kids with the computers thing, necessarily, but that’s there. In most libraries they have a wonderful collection of books on tape, which are one of my favorite ways to take in literature. And boy, you know, a good reader, when you get them on tape, a good reader is just such a thing of beauty. I read my own book, you know, to put it on tape. It was a daunting experience because I knew what good readers sounded like, and I had a vague suspicion that I was not one of them. Wouldn’t it be an odd thing for somebody else to be reading (narrating) your book? Well, yeah, I think that it would be. But it’s really hard. I’m listening now in my car to Thank You, Jeeves [narrated by Jonathan Cecil]. Oh, my god, but the guy is good. He does all the characters and does them so well, and of course the gold standard is to do that. One last question: What is your favorite thing to do in the world? My favorite thing to do? [She pauses.] We have ping pong parties about four or five times a year, and that’s probably my favorite thing to do. All my kids are delighted by it. We have not much social life, you know other than car to school, and gymnastics, and music, and blah blah blah, so we really do not have much of a social life outside of those parties. We play doubles tournaments where people put their names in a hat (and quite frankly in the past several tournaments I have sort of “genetically engineered” the teams—I don’t usually tell that to people). And I have—I ought to photograph it someday and show it to the audience, actually—I have an antique scoreboard, old, anyway, like you would have seen in a high school basketball gym years ago, that has each individual light bulb, it’s not LEDs, but each individual light bulb. And somebody keeps score on all the games, so that everybody, whether you’re playing or whether you’re over somewhere talking or doing something else, you can always glance over and see what the score is in the game that’s going on. And eventually toward the end of the night when the tournament nears the end and the games get better and better, all my friends are spectators to the games and they cheer the good points, you know. It is spectacular. So I would say that that’s my favorite thing to do. My second favorite thing I don’t get to do any more, which was rock my son with a book and his pacifier. (By the way, I held the book, he had the pacifier.)
November 2009
Book Review
Subsurdity: Vignettes from Jasper Lane by Eric Arvin Review by Joshua Dagon
“We‘ve got quite a group of characters on this street, huh?” To say the very least. The street in question is Jasper Lane, the fictional avenue on which Eric Arvin’s second novel, Subsurdity: Vignettes from Jasper Lane, is set. The neighborhood is as manicured as a Disney theme park; the lane is shaded by trees along its entire length and bordered by immaculate lawns and uppermiddle-class, southern-style homes. It is a place where, during the splendid summer in which the story unfolds, the birds sing, the bees buzz, and the hot UPS guys “saunter.” Everyone seems to know everyone else that lives and socializes on this street in a middle-size town residential dynamic (circa 1985). It is a superficially suburban environment that, judging by its excessive goings-on, could very easily be located in West Hollywood—if West Hollywood were in Indiana. The setting is an unfortunately brittle façade, barely concealing foibles and vices severe enough to debase most prostitutes. Despite its town council and copious zoos—one of which is inhabited by animals as markedly randy as the novel’s human characters—the town containing Jasper Lane is evidently progressive enough that gay men feel completely comfortable sitting outside in lawn furniture drinking margaritas, sunbathing, gawking, moaning, cackling, and panting at their shirtless, jogging neighbors. Almost all of the men have sculpted, athletic bodies, which is fortunate, since they also share an arguably neurotic aversion to clothing. Even the heterosexual residents attend summer block parties in togas and loincloths where they dance on buffet tables—apparently steel-reinforced—while singing karaoke. Rick Cooper is one of Jasper Lane’s newest residents, although he is a bit on the meek side compared to his housemates—the poor boy must not only wear an eye patch but also drives a Festiva. Rick’s ex-boyfriend—Coby, who was quite an ass, along with also, presumably, having one— instigated a bar fight in which Rick lost his eye to a wayward pool-cue. No worries, though: Arvin deftly heads off the “one-eyed monster” association almost before the reader can make it.
The neighborhood’s other newest resident is James Tucker, a muscular— duh—army veteran in his late twenties who plays the guitar on the porch of the house he inherited from his gay uncle, recently deceased due to a severe allergy to pussies— er..., uh, cats, that is. James and Rick’s budding romance is soon troubled by an old army chum the reader just knows is going to be trouble— the guy’s parents saw fit to name him “Ballser.” Ballser, though, is actually Jasper Lane’s most modest issue. To say the neighborhood’s more senior residents have skeletons in their closets would be...well, too telling. There is the Gold family, Frank and Melinda, their seventeenyear-old son, Patrick—a striking sophisticate for his age who uses appellations like “grand dame”—and Melinda’s mother, Nanna, a crotchety, noxious endorsement for geriatric euthanasia. There is the Bloom household, of whom only Cassie remains, a wise, worldly matron who feels a “maternal affection” for the neighborhood “boys.” And, of course, what upper-middle-class neighborhood would be complete without the Jones’s? Don’t try to keep up with them, though. It would be a severe pain in the ass, at least the first couple of times. Jasper Lane’s most significant home is owned by David, a writer for (I am not making this up) Hot Gay Men’s Fitness Magazine, his new roomie, Rick (as noted above), as well as the shaven-headed, artistic, and less-than-macho Terrance. David’s steroidenhanced, porn star boyfriend, Cliff, is a very frequent guest. Arvin’s novel is a collage of moments that can be quaint, silly, subtle, and charming. He reveals something of a straight-guy fetish—as well as a pronounced celebration of porn stars. The book asserts some solid sagacity, though, aphorisms of timeless, if simple, truth: “Find experiences that make you cackle and shriek and ooh and ah. Find the beauty in humanity, in its variety and surprises.” Of course, Arvin’s Jasper Lane could not really exist anywhere but through the looking glass; the author delights in staggering contradictions and jack-in-thebox surprises. In fact, the work presents a scene or two that pushes the boundaries of even fiction’s possible improbabilities right over the edge. Even so, the story hits all of the right notes; the reader longs for contented resolutions and the happiness of the characters. Arvin communicates emotion and romantic turmoil that is as genuine as it is familiar and as ubiquitous as it is touching. If I was anything but a hunkered-in, firmly-conditioned city boy now, I would be more than happy to find a place even a little bit like Jasper Lane—and retire for good.
“Oh, easy: The ability to eat as much as I want and not gain weight.” — Gay U.S. Rep. Barney Frank on Sept. 21 when asked by Jay Leno, “If you could have a superpower, any power, what would it be, and why?”
November 2009
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 21
Out of Town: Brussels, Belgium by Andrew Collins As the headquarters of NATO and the European Union, Brussels ranks among the most international and sophisticated cities in the world. Though founded in the seventh century, Brussels is a remarkably modern metropolis, the capital of a progressive, relatively young country (Belgium celebrates its 180th birthday in 2010) that passed gay-marriage legislation in 2003. It’s also a dynamic hub of modern architecture, cuttingedge fashion and fine shopping, and it has a sterling reputation among foodies. Brussels hosts a well-attended Lesbian and Gay Pride celebration each May as well as a first-rate gay and lesbian film festival each January. The city is also home to the International Lesbian and Gay Association. In addition to Flemish and French, English is widely spoken and understood here. And although the euro is currently faring poorly against the U.S. dollar (as of late fall 2009, 1 euro traded at about US$1.50), Brussels is less expensive than many major European capitals. The city is divided into two, Upper Town and Lower Town. The latter begins just east of rue Royale, where a fairly steep slope rises just beyond the city’s 1,000-year-old historic core. Most of the wealthy neighborhoods, fancy shopping and grand hotels are in Upper Town, as are several museums. The neighborhood also has stunning art nouveau architecture – the work of Victor Horta (1861-1947) and his pupils, who designed hundreds of townhouses whose sensuous facades are decorated with the style’s characteristic sinewy ironwork. You can learn more about Horta and the city’s art nouveau legacy by visiting the Horta Museum (set inside his former home) or by logging on to www.brussels-art-nouveau.be. Lower Town is characterized in part by working-class neighborhoods, some of which have undergone major revitalizations in recent years, and in part by one of the best-preserved medieval quarters of any major city in Europe. The main plaza, Grand Place, contains dozens of ancient buildings and narrow lanes, and it buzzes with energy. It’s also near Brussels’ small but vibrant gay district, centered around rue du Marche au Charbon and rue des Pierres, near the Bourse. Facing Grand Place you’ll find see the magnificent Hotel de Ville (City Hall) and many ornate guild halls, all built in the elaborate baroque style of the late 1600s. Also nearby the Museum of Costume and Lace contains a fine collection of beautifully crafted lace, a product for which Belgium is justly celebrated.
also punctuated by verdant squares abloom with flowers. Favorite places to stroll, jog, or simply relax on a bench to soak up the sunshine include Brussels Park, near the Royal Palace, and the sprawling Parc du Cinquantenaire, which is home to some prominent museums. You can maximize your sightseeing value by purchasing a Brussels Card, which costs 19 euros for one day (32 euros for three) and entitles the bearer to free use of public transportation and admission to some 30 museums, plus discounts to numerous attractions and shops. You can purchase this online at www.brusselscard.be. Whatever you’ve heard The Grand Place is the heart of beautiful Brussels, and it’s just a few blocks from the city’s lively and about fine chocolates in friendly gay scene. Photo: Andrew Collins Switzerland and Germany, Belgium arguably produces Just off the square, rue Charles Buls leads to the most sublime chocolates in the world. rue des Brasseurs, where poet Paul Verlaine Brussels in particular is teeming with shot and wounded his lover, fellow poet Arthur purveyors of this addictive treat. Two shops Rimbaud, in 1873. Walk along rue de l’Etuve to worth checking out are Wittamer and Pierre the corner of rue du Chene to see Manneken Marcolini, both of which produce high-end, Pis, a statue of a pudgy little boy peeing into artful truffles and have tony shops along a fountain - this beloved tourist attraction Upper Town’s Grand Sablon. But the relatively and photo op has been a source of curiosity less expensive and ubiquitous Belgian chain, Leonidas, is excellent, too. You should also for centuries. Here it’s a short stroll southeast to the consider a visit to Planete Chocolate, which lower slopes of Upper Town to reach the Royal is steps from the gay district and produces Museum of Fine Arts, which combines two delicious artisanal chocolates. Brussels not only excels in fine French museums – one dedicated to Flemish-Dutch painting traditions, dating from the 15th to fare but also in regional Flemish fare. Classic 19th centuries, and the other to more modern dishes found at many local eateries include works, such as paintings by Belgian surrealists waterzooi (a rich chicken stew), rabbit with James Ensor and Rene Magritte. The museums beer and prunes, and mussels with frites overlook the supremely elegant Place Royale, (French fries). Festive and friendly Au Steka fittingly lavish 18th-century square that acts erlaplatte restaurant turns out astoundingly as gateway to Upper Town’s posh residential delicious and authentic Belgian food. It’s just up a narrow lane in quasi-gentrified Marolles and shopping districts. For the best antiquing and cafe-hopping, District from rue Haute, which has a handful of wander around the streets emanating from the worthy antiques shops and home-furnishings Grand Sablon, another ritzy square. Continue stores. Another great purveyor of traditional toward the monolithic Palais de Justice, and turn left to reach avenue Louise, where you’ll Belgian fare, Le Pre Sale serves up superb traditional Belgian seafood in the St. Catherine discover yet more high-end shopping. Brussels is very much a city of gardens area. If it’s truly a special occasion, book a and parks, and many neighborhoods are table at the acclaimed Comme chez Soi, a temple of haute cuisine that’s garnered three stars from Michelin and serves truly inspired food. Among hip Upper Town haunts, Lola serves pretty, modern food to pretty, modern people – it’s popular with the see-and-be-seen crowd. Brussels is where the fast-growing gourmet coffeehouse and cafe Le Pain Quotidien began, and there are outposts of this inviting spot set throughout the city. You’ll find particularly appealing the branches along avenue Louise, close to high-end shopping and along funky rue Antoine Dansaert. Bar-going in Brussels tends to be sedate, but there’s no shortage of inviting and cozy options. The city’s more up-and-coming nightlife areas, the St. Catherine and St. Gery districts, have dozens of cool, artsy, intellectual bars that pull in a mostly straight crowd, but also plenty of gays and lesbians, too. Some worth poking your head inside include Monk
The Little Black Book Belgium’s country code is 32 -- Au Stekerlaplatte
www.stekerlapatte.be
-- Be Manos
www.bemanos.be
-- Brussels Marriott
www.marriott.com/brudt
-- Le Belgica -- Le Bier Circus -- Box -- Chez Maman
www.lebelgica.be www.bier-circus.be www.boxclub.be www.chezmaman.be
-- Comme chez Soi
www.commechezsoi.be
-- Le Boys Boudoir
www.leboysboudoir.be
-- La Demence
www.lademence.com
-- Le Duquesnoy
www.duquesnoy.com
-- L’Homo Erectus -- Hotel Bloom
www.lhomoerectus.com www.hotelbloom.com
-- Hotel Welcome www.brusselshotel.travel -- Lola -- Macho Sauna -- Metropole
www.restolola.be www.saunamacho.com www.metropolehotel.com
-- Le Pain Quotidien www.lepainquotidien.co -- Planete Chocolate www.planetechocolat.be -- Sauna Spades 4 -- TelsQuels Cafe
www.saunaspades4.be www.telsquels.be
-- Tourism Flanders
www.visitflanders.com
-- Tourism Belgium
www.visitbelgium.com
and de Walvis. In Upper Town, beer lovers should check out Le Bier Circus, which carries a huge selection of this beverage for which the country is known – in fact, Belgium produces some 400 beers. For more on this national preoccupation, visit www.beer2005.be. Only a few blocks from St. Catherine and St. Gery, you will find the city’s mini gay hub. Good bets include Le Belgica, a cozy tavern that draws a mix of women and men, and TelsQuels Cafe, which functions both as a bar and the city’s gay and lesbian community center. Fans of drag shows shouldn’t miss the campy fun at Chez Maman. Le Boys Boudoir is a fun little piano cabaret and restaurant that appeals to guys of all ages, and Le Duquesnoy caters to a rugged leather-and-Levi’s bunch. Laid-back L’Homo Erectus packs them in each night with funky music and a friendly staff. There’s also a very popular gay bathhouse in this area, Macho Sauna, and another with a considerable following not far away called Sauna Spades 4. Brussels may seem more conservative, at least in style, than London or Berlin, but saunas are quite wellattended in this city, and very welcoming toward visitors. There aren’t many full-time gay discos in town, but Box nightclub is always a good bet for dancing into the wee hours. Also, you can count on a few monthly shindigs such as the famed La Demence, held on certain Fridays throughout the year and drawing partiers from all over the region. Several intriguing, hip hotels have opened in Brussels in recent years. Be Manos, just a 15-minute walk south of Grand Place, is very close to Gare du Midi/Brussel-Zuid
TTBRUSSELS continued page 26
ACCESSline Page 22
the fun guide
November 2009
November 2009
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 23
ACCESSline Page 24
the fun guide
November 2009
Hear Me Out by Chris Azzopardi
Mariah Carey, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel
Across 1 Strands, as seamen 8 Dustin Hoffman’s cross-dressing role 15 Biting 16 In advance 17 Leccia, who plays 18-Across 18 One half of a soap opera couple 19 Memo start 20 Response to an online personal 22 A-mew-sing musical 23 Workers under Dr. Torres 25 Boy played by Martin and Duncan 26 Officer, to a soldier 27 “Be prepared” org. 29 AZT allotments 32 One of two ways 35 The other half of a soap opera couple 37 18-Across and 35-Across as a couple in this puzzle’s soap opera 39 Chaplin widow 40 Director Elia 44 Coll. admissions criteria 45 “Try someone else” 47 Love, to Amelie Mauresmo 48 It grows in Brooklyn 49 Race site in Auden’s land 50 Leg, in slang 51 Salad green 52 River of northern France 54 Sappho’s “I” 56 Chappell, who plays 35-Across 59 With 64-Across, soap opera of 72 years that recently ended 63 Fifth-century pope 64 See 59-Across 66 Pull out your shooter
Mariah Carey’s feeling emotions, so on her 12th album—imperfect, and too onedimensional to be a “memoir”—her life is one big romantic-comedy cliché: Love sucks, then love gets good again. Carey coos, whispers and pillow-talk purrs her way through relationship travails, the blues, bitterness and bitchiness of it all—occasionally stamping them with the signature belting and whistle notes that made her Mother of Melisma to so many wannabes. But don’t let the “Vision of Love” curls that Carey’s been sporting on this album’s promo tour fool you: This isn’t exactly Saintess M.C.; that one would never call someone an “f-ing jerk” (the vindictive prologue “Betcha Gon’ Know”) or talk about hitting her soprano ... for reasons other than singing (“More than Just Friends,” one of a few insipid slow-jams). This is metaphorzealot Mimi, who’s as playful as ever, writing
Q-PUZZLE: “Soap on the Ropes”
67 Take home 68 Gov’t security 69 Without a date 70 Jackie’s designer 71 Lusty deity of antiquity 72 Subj. for John Nash
Down 1 Goya’s naked lady 2 They’re good for tricks 3 Straps on a bed, e.g. 4 Bean of Normal, Ohio 5 Alec’s Star Wars character
the corniest quotables of her two-decade career: one about Legos, another about Windex. Rebuilding and cleaning up could’ve benefited The-Dream and Tricky Stewart’s same-y, sometimes-superfluous production, but at least it makes for one of Carey’s more fluid projects. And there’s also a refreshing old-school sound to “Memoirs,” especially during the album’s closing ballad trifecta that includes a classic-like Carey heartbreaker, “Angels Cry,” and a choir-catapulted remake of “I Want to Know What Love Is.” A sweet, sweet fantasy ... come true. Grade: B-
Madonna, Celebration On disco-dance single “Celebration,” a hollow throwback to her Confessions on a Dance Floor days, Madonna whoops: “Let’s get it started, because everybody wants to party with you.” And she’s right—for almost three decades we’ve been looking to her to get us
6 “Well done!” 7 Little rascals 8 Preconcert activity 9 Lesbian character in She’s Gotta Have It 10 Frequently, to Emily Dickinson 11 Chef Des Jardins 12 Special effect for “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me”? 13 “What’s ___ for me?” 14 Cockpit predictions 21 Battery size 24 Star Wars abbr. 26 Grounded fast flier 27 Fraser’s character in Gods and Monsters 28 Single-master 30 Hard woody one 31 Many, many moons 33 Circumcision and more 34 Wet spots on a blanket of sand 36 Getting your rear in gear 38 How to sit on your stallion 41 She played tomb raider Lara 42 Pakistani leader 43 Peter Gomes boss, with “the” 46 Put out 48 Beginning of Hairspray 53 Preserves meat 55 Like the space around Uranus 56 African queen 57 Rupert Everett’s ___ Life 58 Time of Camelot 60 Sporty Camaro 61 Prefix with second 62 “Hollaback Girl” singer Stefani 65 Figured out
• SOLUTION ON PAGE 27
November 2009 into the groove with her pop genius. Over a sprawling 36-song retrospective set—remastered, and including two new songs (the other being the decent synth-pop “Revolver” with Lil Wayne)—Madonna’s chameleonlike evolution, from sweet tart to sex kitten to sociopolitical figure, is almost, if not for the poor sequencing, captured through a comprehensively orgasmic look back over her 27-year career. The heyday hits are here, many recycled from her first best-of package The Immaculate Collection—including gay faves like “Vogue” and “Like a Prayer,” the album version (yay!)—and spread, sorry to say, non-chronologically over two discs. But they sound remarkable. Editing gaffes butcher a few tracks, the cut-up “Express Yourself” being the biggest eff up, but what’s more upsetting are the missing songs gaga fans are still celebrating: “True Blue,” the video to which made the soldseparately DVD, Evita cuts, “Human Nature,” even “This Used to be My Playground.” Instead, we get “Hollywood”? That’s nuts, but that doesn’t mean there’s not a lot to celebrate here. So, party on. Grade: B
Also Out
Rufus Wainwright, Milwaukee at Last!!!
Hearing Rufus croon just isn’t enough. He’s meant to be seen in all his funny and fabulous flamboyancy—and in those ubergay get-ups he likes to show off. His second live album quenches both senses with a DVD and CD that center around his most recent studio LP, “Release the Stars.” Lots of behindthe-scenes access with his boyfriend and the must-see “Get Happy,” featuring Rufus as Judy Garland, totally justify the three exclamation points.
Miranda Lambert, Revolution
First fire, then a pistol. But country music’s hell-raiser evokes feeling this time—on her near-perfect third album— with more than a weapon: Her heart, which finds her wryly and woefully musing on grown-up love, childhood memories and grace. She offers chin-up encouragement (“Virginia Bluebell,” one of her most brilliant recordings) and justifies her drinking habit because Jesus drank wine (“Heart Like Mine”). Revolution is an evolution—and her best album yet. Chris Azzopardi drinks wine without regret. Or Jesus’ permission. Reach him at chris@pridesource.com.
the fun guide
ACCESSline Page 25
ACCESSline Page 26
INSURANCE - IOWA CITY
MASSAGE THERAPIST - QC
the fun guide SScontinued from page 21
BRUSSELS train station. Stylish, sleek rooms on this gay-friendly property are decorated with framed black-and-white photos, and bathrooms have high-end fixtures and products. The on-site restaurants, Be Lella and Kolya, serve very good food to a trendy crowd. The affordable Hotel Bloom is another favorite of artsy types, students and others with a yen for intriguing design. Private parking, proximity to the metro and Gare du Nord and a friendly, helpful staff are additional assets. Across from the St. Catherine metro stop, the aptly named Hotel Welcome ranks among the loveliest small hotels in Brussels. Each of its 15 rooms is themed after a different nation, from the Congo to Morocco to Vietnam. Rooms contain beautiful artwork and decorations, and congenial hosts Michel, Sophie, and staff could not be friendlier and more helpful. A bountiful
SScontinued from page 13
LISA’S LIST
TAXI CAB - CEDAR RAPIDS
WINE - CEDAR RAPIDS
will be music, performances, poetry, storytelling, skits... The current lineup includes Rae of the Honeybees, Prunella DeVille, Susan Jellinger, Stephen Boatwright + GSA friends and more. If you’d like to perform, call Paul at 515-284-0245 or email hoam@aidsprojectci.org, or just show up. Friday, November 13, DAITHI SPROULE and LAURA MACKENZIE play their Celtic stylings at The Englert Theatre, 221 E. Washington St., downtown Iowa City. For tix, call 319-688-2653 or visit www.englert.org. November 13-21, REEFER MADNESS, theatre about the hysteria caused when clean-cut kids fall prey to the evils of marijuana, presented by University of Iowa Theatre, Iowa City. For more info, visit www.uiowa.edu/~theatre, and for tickets, visit www.hancher.uiowa.edu/tickets. Saturday, November 14, SIGHT & SOUND, “Celebrate the Unexpected,” a bi-annual gala supporting the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art and Orchestra Iowa, at the Cedar Rapids Country Club. For more info or to purchase tix, call 319-366-7503. Saturday, November 14, Comedian PAULA POUNDSTONE, at The Englert Theatre, 221 E. Washington St., downtown Iowa City. For tix, call 319-688-2653 or visit www.englert.org. Monday, November 16, 8 p.m., KERI NOBLE at CSPS/ Legion Arts, 1103 3rd St. SE, Cedar Rapids. For more info or tix, call 319-364-1580, e-mail info@legionarts.org or visit www.legionarts.org. Friday, November 20, 9 a.m., ARTS IN CRISIS: A KENNEDY CENTER INITIATIVE at The Temple for Performing Arts, 1011 Locust St., Des Moines. Free to attend. RSVP by Nov. 16 to svp@bravogreaterdesmoines.org. The Iowa Arts Council and BRAVO Greater Des Moines welcome Michael M. Kaiser, president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, to engage in conversation with arts organization leaders about how the arts are faring in this economic crisis. “Arts in Crisis” is open to non-profit 501(c)(3) performing arts organizations and provides free and confidential planning assistance in areas pertinent to maintaining a vital performing arts organization during a troubled economy. Saturday, November 21, 2-5 p.m., GAY THANKSGIVING! Holiday Party, sponsored by the CR GLRC at Unity Center, 3791 Blairsferry Rd. NE, Cedar Rapids. For more info, visit www.crglrc.org. This is a potluck; bring a dish to share. Free to attend, but donations to the CR GLRC are welcome! Saturday, November 21, 8:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m., AROUND THE TABLE, Iowa’s First Annual Summit of LGBT Families and Allies, at the Drake University Olmsted Center, Des Moines. Workshops will include topics relevant to
November 2009 breakfast is included, and rates are highly reasonable. Among larger international hotels, you can’t go wrong with the Brussels Marriott, which opened in 2002 and has an enviable location near the funky Saint Catherine and Saint Gery neighborhoods. Of high-end hotels, Metropole is a restored belle époque beauty that dates to 1895 and is filled with ornate furnishings. It’s also home to a chic, gay-popular cafe of the same name. Spend a little time in Brussels, and you may soon realize that it’s not just a convenient pass-through city on your way to Europe’s gay meccas. Whether to shop, dine, museum-hop or even hobnob in convivial bars, this clean, friendly and reasonably priced city has much to offer. Andrew Collins covers gay travel for the New York Timesowned Web site About.com and is the author of Fodor’s Gay Guide to the USA. He can be reached care of this publication or at OutofTown@qsyndicate.com. participants who want to strengthen Iowa’s LGBT families. A family dinner will be hosted by Family Equality Council on Friday, November 20. For more info on these events or to register, go to www.lambdalegal.org/iowafamilysummit. Or contact Matt Fender at mfender@lambdalegal.org or 515-288-4019 ext. 202. Hosted by Lambda Legal, COLAGE, Drake Rainbow Union, Equality Iowa, Family Equality Council, and One Iowa. Saturday, November 21, 6 p.m., OWLs (Older Wiser Lesbians) POTLUCK in Iowa City. For more info and location, e-mail katharn@xwires.net. The potluck is geared toward lesbians aged 40 or older and their significant others. Saturday, November 21, 7 p.m., CEDAR RAPIDS ROLLERGIRLS Roller Derby at the US Cellular Center, downtown Cedar Rapids. For tickets, go to www.ticketmaster.com. Sunday, November 22, 3 p.m., “THE SOUND OF MUSIC” at the Sunday Night Pictures, at The Englert, 221 E. Washington St., Iowa City. For more info, visit www.englert. org. $5 admission at the door. Yes, this is the film starring JULIE ANDREWS. Monday, November 23, LORIE LINE, An Intimate Christmas, at The Englert Theatre, 221 E. Washington St., downtown Iowa City. For tix, call 319-688-2653 or visit www.englert.org. Friday, November 27, 8 p.m., WINTERBLOOM concert with MEG HUTCHINSON, ANTJE DUVEKOT, ANNE HEATON and NATALIA ZUCKERMAN at CSPS/Legion Arts, 1103 3rd St. SE, Cedar Rapids. For more info or tix, call 319-364-1580, e-mail info@legionarts.org or visit www.legionarts.org. Sunday, November 29, LORIE LINE, An Intimate Christmas, at The Civic Center of Greater Des Moines. For more info or tix, visit www.civiccenter.org. Friday, December 4, 7 p.m., SUSAN WERNER with Tom Kimmel and Christopher Williams at West Des Moines Christian Church, 4501 Mills Civic Parkway, West Des Moines, 515-223-1639, www.wdmcc.org. For tix, visit www.iowatix.com. Thanks for supporting live music, women in the arts, your GLBT community, and diversity! Lisa iowalisa@juno.com
November 2009
Section 3: Community
ACCESSline Page 27
All Iowa AIDS Benefit to be Presented Sunday, Nov. 8 Des Moines, Iowa: The AIDS Project of Central Iowa will present the 23rd Annual All Iowa AIDS Benefit Sunday, November 8 beginning at 5 pm at The Embassy Suites on the River. The variety show and auction benefit the agency’s HIV direct care and prevention services and programs. This year’s Broadway-themed spectacle will feature an entertaining mix of dancers, vocalists and impersonators. Co-emcees and auctioneers will include Congressman Leonard Boswell, WHO/
TV news anchor Sonya Heitshusen, event planner Anthony Marinaro and Dena Cass, world-class female impersonator. Admission is $20. A cash bar and hors d’oeuvres will be available. Tickets are available at the door, or by contacting The Project at 515-284-0245 or aiab@aidsprojectci.org. Pre-show entertainment and a live auction will be held in the lobby of the hotel from 5 to 6 pm prior to the opening of the Grand Ballroom where the main show will be staged. Both venues will be festively
One local charity caught in the fallout of this situation is The CENTER, which had its lease and other expenses covered by ongoing donations from Phyllis Stevens. Sandy Vopalka, director at The CENTER, says that the facility’s leaseholder, Nationwide, has been very supportive during this situation and that employees of Nationwide have met with her to help work through the change in circumstances to help keep The CENTER running. The CENTER is a project of Equality Iowa and opened June 1, 2009. From June 1 to September 1, it served 210 people, received over 1200 donated items and averaged over 100 hours of volunteer time each month (and with that help has been able to increase the number of programs it offers). The CENTER focuses on providing the direct services not provided by other LGBT organizations in Central Iowa. “We have talked at least seven people out of suicide,” says Vopalka, “three people were helped to find new places to live out of abusive or unhealthy situations. “We helped two people to find jobs by working with us, and several others have used The CENTER to job search, work on or fine tune and print their resumes. We helped a woman keep her insurance going so that her cancer would not become a preexisting condition in a new policy. Our Clothes Closet has been used countless times and is becoming better known to those who need it. “We are aware of the other LGBT organizations in Central Iowa, and have worked to provide those direct services they might not, and also provide a space for LGBTQI people to come into and have a truly safe place to be, meet, and spend time with others. “Furthermore, the Central Iowa AIDS Project and the MCC Church have made referrals to The CENTER. We are working in partnership with The Central Iowa AIDS Project, One Iowa, and Planned Parenthood of the Heartland as we all work together in coalition on HOAM [HIV Outreach & Awareness for Men].” The CENTER is currently seeking recurring donations to cover specific items and spaces, such as sponsorships for ongoing group meetings, funds or services to cover Internet access and computer needs, various library items, etc. If you or your company would be interested in supporting the center and at the same time getting recognition for
supporting part of The Center, contact Sandy at: thecenterdm@gmail.com Sponsorships for The CENTER: • LGBT Aging outreach & programming • Minority OutReach (Women of Color, Latino) • PFLAG group & work • Children with LGBT Parents group • Speakers Bureau • Lesbian Coming Out Group • Gay Coming Out Group • Grief Support Group • Transgender programming • SOFFA Group • Youth group/programming • Speakers (Local & National) • Marriage Equality work • Professional Information Area • Snacks for LGBT Aging • Snacks for Coming Out Groups • Snacks for Youth Groups • Snacks for Transgender Groups • Snacks for PFLAG Groups • Snacks for Monthly Social Events • Snacks for Speakers events • Snacks for Movie Nights • Snacks for SOFFA Groups • Snacks for Game Nights • Snacks for The CENTER’s general use • Soda/Pop Water fund for events • Lesbian Movies/DVDs/CDs • Lesbian Books • Gay Movies/DVDs/CDs • Gay Books • Transgender Movies/DVDs/CDs • Transgender Books • Progressive Movies/DVDs/CDs • Progressive Books • Non-Fiction Books • Fiction Books • Children Books • Children Movies/DVDs/CDs • Young Adult Movies/DVDs/CDs • Young Adult Books • General Adult Movies/DVDs/ CDs • One of our Four Computers • One of the Four Computer Cubicles • WIFI • Young Children’s Games • Children’s Games • Young Adult Games • Adult Games • Family Games • Salary for 2 Staff
decorated by event space designer Sayel Nong, owner of Divine Flowers by Saley. The AIDS Project of Central Iowa is the state’s largest independent AIDS Service Organization and has been assisting the women, men and children in Iowa impacted with HIV achieve the highest quality of life available since 1991. It also provides HIV prevention services to thousands of Iowans at-risk for contracting the disease in an effort to reduce the number of new infections. It officially became a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization in 1993.
The CENTER Seeks Specific Sponsorships • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Rent Utilities Insurance Printer & Printer Station Printer Supplies General Office Supplies E-NewsLetter (Coming soon) The Calendar Wall Volunteer Coordinator Training for Groups Leaders Conferences The Transgender/comfy room Sandy’s Office Clothes Closet The Basement The Conference Room Ads on Fallon’s Forum $10 a sq Foot (2600 sq ft)
“Just being out— to your family, to your friends, to the 42nd president of the United States—remains the single most important political action that any gay or lesbian person can take.” — Gay writer Dan Savage, Sept. 25.
ACCESSline Page 28
Section 3: Community
November 2009
Finance, Shaken not Stirred: Savings Strategies by Tracy Freese Dear Tracy, despite my best intentions, I find it very hard to save up so I have a “cash” reserve and I don’t think I can afford retirement savings. What advice can you give on easy and creative ways for building up an emergency fund? Skin-of-My-Teeth, DeWitt, IA Ah, the pull-out method… your mother warned you to do it, your significant other thought it was a good idea, but it just feels so good not to! Of course I am referring to automatic investment plans; get your head out of the gutter! Over and over, you convince yourself that you NEED the money and cannot possibly save a penny, yet I would challenge you to add up all the cash spent each month on your vices such as pop, beer, clothing, and cigarettes… Your argument begins to lose credibility doesn’t it? I will admit a $50 monthly deposit into your 401k account is not nearly as sexy as that lavender cashmere sweater from J. Crew, but in the long run that little spending devil on your left shoulder will be kicked to the curb once you see that comma and extra zeros in your bank account! If you wear it on your ass, my friend, it is not an asset. Believe it or not, your spending adapts to what is available therefore if you sweep that cash before you can even touch it, you won’t remotely notice it is gone. Let me be very specific, the key to establishing that extra pot of money is a simple three-step process: sweep it, forget about it, and then turn a blind eye to it. First things first, answer a couple questions: Does my employer make retirement accounts available to
me? Do I have any idea what all of those initials (401k, IRA, Roth) even mean? Have I been to my bank or investment professional lately to see what saving options are available to me? If any of these questions leave you clueless, it is time to get moving – financial success starts with financial education. Sticking your head in the sand does not a good financial plan make. Start with your employer, if you are self-employed start with your financial advisor, find out what types of accounts are available to you and how much you can stick in them. If your employer matches 4% of your contributions you would be quite foolish not to stick 4% into this account. The exciting thing is that many contributions are pre-tax which means they whittle your earnings down so you don’t have to pay as much in taxes and this concept goes for self-employed individuals as well. For example:
If you get paid $2000 every two weeks and pay 15% in taxes with no retirement contributions, your take-home will be $1700. If we keep everything the same and add a 4% 401k contribution of $80 into the mix, your salary of $2000 will actually become $1920 and your take home will be $1632. So you just stuck $80 into your retirement account, your employer matched it to total $160 but it only cost you $68 since you saved money on your taxes because of that handy pre-tax concept! Duh! What is not to love about this? The next piece of this puzzle is to forget you are even saving and treat it like it is car insurance or any other must-pay bill. If you get paid every other Friday then have your bank set up an automatic transaction to move $50 from your checking to savings and treat it as you do any other bill. Trust me, you would be surprised at how routine this will become. Another great way to make you forget is to establish an account that has some type of limitation on it whether that is time or dollar amount. An add-on IRA certificate of deposit found at any bank makes it easy for you to continue your routine deposits but says you can’t move that money for a specific number of months otherwise you will pay a penalty. If you are stingy like me, you hate the thought of losing any money and won’t touch it. If you are establishing an emergency fund and want to keep your funds relatively liquid in case of need, open a money market savings account that forces you to keep your balance above a certain limit such as $500 otherwise you will pay
a fee. Anything you can do to save yourself from – yourself, is a great idea. Even though I told you not to stick your head in the sand when it comes to planning, once you establish your savings routine, you should turn a blind eye to the account. This means set up your account in a manner that matches your goals i.e. how much risk you are willing to take, and then forget it even exists! Throw away your statements, don’t log into it online, and don’t follow market trends! After at least six months check out your balance and I promise you will be shocked at your progress and just how easily you achieved your goal. Piece of mind is priceless. The first step is walking your Banana Republic-clad self into the bank or your human resource office and filling out the paperwork. The typical metric on how much to save is 10% of your gross income, but don’t let that scare you – anything is better than nothing. There are people out there willing to help you create saving strategies – you just have to utilize them. Whether it is a coffee can filled with change from your laundry or ordering water with lemon instead of lemonade when you dine, creative savings can be successful!
Tracy Freese is a registered financial advisor and can be reached at 319-464-7894 or by email at tfreese@libertybank.com. Registered Representative and Investment Advisor Representative, Securian Financial Services, Inc. Securities Dealer. Member FINRA/SIPC. A Registered Investment Advisor. Securian Financial Services, Inc. is not affiliated with Liberty Bank.
November 2009
Section 3: Community
ICARE recognizes World AIDS Day with Free HIV Testing
December 1 is World AIDS Day, when we remember those who have lost there lives to the disease and celebrate those that are currently living with the disease. World AIDS Day was first observed in 1998 when the world called for social tolerance and greater information. This year’s theme is “Universal Access and Human Rights.” The Iowa Center for AIDS Resources and Education (ICARE) strives to enrich the lives of those affected by offering practical, emotional and financial support as well as prevention education. On Tuesday, December 1, from 10am to 3pm ICARE and Johnson County Public Health will be offering Free Rapid HIV testing at the Iowa City Public Library. This is a quick, pin prick blood test with results in just 20 minutes. Counselors will be available to talk about HIV/AIDS prevention, concerns you may have, and where to get treatment or participate in support groups. Testing is
open to the community and registration is not required. Some people state that HIV is not an issue due to the new medication that has been developed over the years. To some extent this is correct as the medication does help individuals manage the disease better so they can live a healthier lifestyle; however, new HIV diagnoses are occurring every day around the world. In fact, in 2007 approximately 7,000 people were infected every day with HIV. For some places in Iowa this is larger than the town that they live in. Of the new infections in 2007, 50% were age 15 to 25. According to the Iowa Department of Public Health in December 2008, there were 2,045 people living with HIV/AIDS in Iowa, with 108 new cases being diagnosed that year. To learn more about ICARE or FREE HIV Rapid testing please visit www.icareiowa.org or call (319)338-2135.
ACCESSline Page 29
Living with HIV, a guest opinion piece
When I think of how HIV has affected my life, I have to think of it in two parts. I tested positive in the early 1990s and learned my immune system was already in big trouble and went on medication right away. I don’t know when I was infected but it must have been in the early to mid 80s, right after I came out. I’ve had many emotions about HIV over the years. From living in France when Rock Hudson disclosed he had AIDS, and trying to discuss it with my friends in French, to watching a handsome young man die of AIDS soon after celebrating his 30th birthday, to when I had exhausted all the known medications, getting Kaposi Sarcoma and planning my death, to the revolution of HAART in the late 1990s and struggling with thoughts of suicide ever since. The two parts of the experience are marked by the rise, and success of HAART. Before that, it was a matter of holding onto life as long as I could, knowing the clock was ticking much faster for me than for most. I learned the profound importance of medical insurance and getting a job that has it. I gave up a career in the law after getting my HIV diagnosis after law school. I needed a job with health insurance as soon as possible and the job market for freshly
minted attorneys was extremely difficult in the recession of 1991-1992. I remember hearing names of people I knew, and hearing those names from others when talking about people who had died of AIDS. I remember taking Miami’s metrorail plus two buses to get to a support group meeting, only to have that support group spend the entire time arguing about whether or not to allow a straight guy into the discussion or not. I never went back. I remember looking for everything and anything that might help with the chronic diarrhea I was dealing with constantly. But having dealt with the deaths of both my parents, a boyfriend’s suicide, and another boyfriend’s ugly death from AIDS, I never thought about suicide. I even managed to finally quit smoking cigarettes. It wasn’t until I had given up my life in Miami and moved back to Nebraska, to be with my sister while I died, that the second part began. I was on the new triple therapy and noticed I wasn’t napping nearly as often. In a matter of months, I was a new person who didn’t know quite what to do with myself. I needed to work again, to get health insurance again for the new expensive TTLIVING continued page 30
ACCESSline Page 30
Section 3: Community
Morals and Values
Interfaith Alliance Statement on the Passage of the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act
Washington, DC - Interfaith Alliance President, Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, issued the following statement today celebrating the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act’s successful passage by both houses of Congress: With dramatic unanimity the sacred scriptures of diverse religious traditions vehemently condemn hate. Hate is neither a religious nor an American value. These are among the reasons why Interfaith Alliance today celebrates the passage of substantive hate crimes prevention legislation. Not only will this new law provide much-needed help for law enforcement officials and offer long-sought-for protection to vulnerable groups threatened by hate-motivated violence, it will offer a modicum of comfort to all who have lost loved ones because of hate crimes. Passage of this hate crime legislation represents a civil act consistent with the moral foundations of our nation and all
of the religious traditions which are at home within it. Fidelity to the prophetic core of our religions and our American values means that we cannot condemn hate, only to follow it with passivity in the face of behavior that destroys the lives of any group of our fellow citizens. For over a decade, Interfaith Alliance has fought tirelessly to secure the crucial protections provided in this legislation. We urge President Obama to sign the act into law without delay. To be sure, no law alone can remove hatred from our midst. But in an America increasingly rife with uncivil and narrowminded bickering, this new law can serve as a ringing pronouncement of our democracy’s common values – namely, that we utterly reject hate violence and embrace an America in which diverse people are safe as well as free. Interfaith Alliance celebrates religious freedom by championing individual rights, promoting policies that protect both religion and democracy, and uniting diverse voices to challenge extremism. Founded in 1994, Interfaith Alliance has 185,000 members across the country from 75 faith traditions as well as those without a faith tradition. For more information visit www.interfaithalliance.org.
SScontinued from page 29
LIVING medications. I started at a temp agency, and working during the week was fine; it was the Saturday mornings that made me ache, with no place and go and the realization that I was going to live. It got worse when I took a permanent position with the State of Nebraska and found out the hard way that my new insurer, Mutual of Omaha, wouldn’t cover my HIV medications. While starting legal action against them, I was also considering ending my life and went so far as to get a gun permit and shop for guns at the local pawn shop. The guns all looked so cold, and I had heard horror stories of people who survived a suicide attempt only to have an even worse life. When that crisis ended, with a capitulation from Mutual of Omaha, I decided to dedicate myself to HIV prevention, but working for such a conservative State, our best education efforts always got watered down. It’s tough to discuss HIV when you can’t talk about drug use, gay sex, or condoms! I recall feeling suicidal again when I started on the latest wonder drug available at the time, Sustiva. What a wretch I was during that break in period – stronger anti-depressants, and large batches of coffee just to get the energy, after a horrible night of freakish dreams, to lie on the floor and cry. That time I knew it was the medication and would go online to talk to others, including a man in New York City who was still taking the drug even though it made him want to jump off his balcony
November 2009 every single day. It was so strange getting a new lease on life, and finding myself somewhat resentful of it. Not certain if it was a blessing or a curse. At the same time feeling this period was “gravy” and an extra, but where some would relish it, instead I felt if it wasn’t up to my standards I could give it up anyway – after all, I had already prepared to die. I decided to leave the fight for HIV prevention, at least in Nebraska, and move on. I had never considered the concept of gay marriage to very important, but my time in HIV prevention, and the fight in Nebraska over the issue in the year 2000, changed my mind on that. Soon after arriving in Iowa, I wrote a guest opinion for the local paper for World AIDS Day 2007, which I have attached below. I have a cousin in Maine, where they will soon be voting on gay marriage, and I will send him a copy of the opinion to share with others. As much as I still look for things to give some meaning to my life, I still consider when and how my life might end. Would I kill myself if I was homeless? If I went blind? If I went destitute? Life still seems tenuous – not so much now by the physical ailments, but more now by the mental ones. I was only hoping to live to see the year 2000 begin, not planning to get this far in the new century. So far, this new century has not impressed me very much – as the ancient Chinese curse goes, “may you live in interesting times.” But I continue to hang in there. Anonymous
Section 3: Community Report: Same-Sex Couples Chef deJon Face Significant Disadvantages in Retirement
November 2009
New Study Released During National Save for Retirement Week Documents How Lack of Federal Recognition for Same-Sex Couples Reduces Their Retirement Income and Survivor Benefits LOS ANGELES - A new study released today details the inequalities faced by same-sex couples in employer-sponsored retirement plans. Without legal recognition of their relationships under federal law, the report concludes, lesbians and gay men have less retirement income and are disadvantaged in their ability to pass on savings to their families after their death. The study, “The Impact of Inequality for Same-Sex Partners in EmployerSponsored Retirement Plans,” provides the first detailed demographic portrait of older same-sex couples. It was released by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law with funding support from Merrill Lynch in conjunction with National Save for Retirement Week. “The findings show that, in particular, female same-sex couples have far less retirement income than different-sex married couples,” says study author Naomi Goldberg. Key findings of the report include: Female same-sex couples over 65 have almost 20% less income than different-sex married couples. Only 50% of female same-sex couples have at least one member eligible for an employer-sponsored retirement plan. That compares to 56% of different-sex married couples and 79% of male samesex couples. Older female and male same-sex couples receive less income from traditional retirement sources--retirement, survivor, and disability pensions--than older different-sex married couples. Men in same-sex couples earn less than their heterosexual counterparts, but appear to work for more years. The study also analyzes the ways in which elderly lesbians and gay men are disadvantaged when their partner or spouse dies. Upon death, unlike married different-sex couples, 401k balances and
remaining assets cannot be passed taxfree to the surviving same-sex spouse or partner. In particular, these studies conclude: Even in states where same sex couples can marry, private employers can discriminate against same-sex married couples for the purpose of welfare and pension plans because of the reach of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA); thus, same-sex couples typically cannot avail themselves of pension survivor benefits. Surviving same-sex spouses or partners are unable to access social security spousal or survivor benefits. As a result, they lose out on an estimated $5,700 each year in benefits. Because same-sex surviving spouses cannot have the balance of their dead spouse’s 401k transferred directly to them, they must begin making withdrawals immediately- often resulting in a higher tax rate and missing out on potential earnings and the ability to withdraw when they are really needed. “The bulk of these inequalities are a direct result of the Defense of Marriage Act, which forces the federal government to treat same-sex couples differently than married couples when it comes to retirement savings or estate taxes after death,” said Goldberg. “Even without repealing DOMA, Congress could address these inequalities similar to the way it allowed same-sex partners to rollover the balance of their dead spouse’s 401ks in 2006. While not perfect, the Pension Protection Act has at least moved same-sex couples closer to equality in the treatment of their retirement assets.” The full report is available at: www.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute The Williams Institute advances sexual orientation law and public policy through rigorous, independent research and scholarship, and disseminates it to judges, legislators, policymakers, media and the public. A national think tank at UCLA Law, the Williams Institute produces high quality research with real-world relevance.
Planning to cook a Thanksgiving Turkey? One suggestion is to roast only a turkey breast, placing it in a baking pan on top of a mounded layer of your favorite stuffing. Bake covered with a cotton cloth saturated in olive oil. If you cook a whole turkey, here are three recipes for using those turkey leftovers!
TURKEY VEGETABLE SOUP This “leftover turkey soup” is great on a cold day! • 1/2(15 oz) package refrigerated piecrusts (1 sheet) • 1 gallon water • 1/2cup cut green beans • 1/2cup sliced carrots • 1/2cup chopped celery • 1/2cup green peas • 6 cups prepared turkey stock or chicken broth • 3 cups quartered red pottoes • 1/2cup cream • 4 cups shredded cooked turkey • 1 tsp salt • 1 tsp black pepper 1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Unroll piecrust. Cut into 10 wedges and placed on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until golden grown, 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside. 2. In a heavy bottomed stockpot, bring water to boil over high heat. Add green beans, carrots, and celery. Cook for 2 minutes. Ad green peas. Cook for 1 minute. Drain vegetables immediately. Rinse with cold water until vegetables are room temperature. Set aside. 3. In the same pot, bring stock or broth to a boil over medium high heat. Add potatoes to broth and return to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until potatoes are tender. 156 to 20 minutes. 4. In the container of a blender, process potatoes and broth until smooth, working in batches if necessary. Return potato mixture to pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Add cream, stirring to combine. Add cooled vegetables, turkey, salt, and pepper, stirring to combine. 5. Garnish individual servings with piecrust wedges. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.
TURKEY CASSEROLE Great way to use your leftover turkey! • 2 cups sliced mushrooms • 1 cup chopped celery • 1 cup chopped yellow onion • 1/2cup chopped red bell pepper • 1 (10 3/4oz) can cream of mushroom soup • 1 cup sour cream
ACCESSline Page 31
• 6 cups shredded cooked turkey • 1 (6-oz) package long grain and wild rice mix, cooked according to package directions • 2 cups “panko” bread crumbs • 1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese. 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 3 quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spry; set aside. 2. In a large bowl, combine mushrooms, celery, onion, and bell pepper. Add soup and sour cream, stirring well. Add turkey and rice, stirring well. Spoon into prepared baking dish. 3. In a medium bowl, combine bread crumbs and Paremsan cheese. Scatter over top of casserole. 4. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Remove cover and b ake until golden brown, approximately 15 minutes. Yield: 10 to 12 servings.
TURKEY POTPIES Make from leftover turkey and freeze! • 1 small onion, chopped • 1 medium carrot, chopped • 1/2cup diced, peeled potato • 1/4cup chopped celery • 1/4cup butter • 1/3cup all-purpose flour • 1/2tsp salt • 1/2tsp parsley flakes • 1/4tsp rosemary, crushed • 1/4tsp salt • 1/4tsp pepper • 1cup 2% milk • 1 cup chicken broth • 2 cups cubed cooked turkey • 12/2cup frozen peas • 1 sheet refrigerated pie pastry • 4 5-in. pie plates 1. In a large saucepan, sauté the onion, carrot, potato and celery in butter until tender. Add the flour and seasonings until blended; gradually add milk and broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in turkey and peas; divide mixture among four ungreased 5-in. pie plates. 2. Divide pastry into quarters. ON a lightly floured surface, roll each quarter into a 6-in. circle; place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edges; cut slits to vent. Cover and freeze potpies for up to 3 months. 3. To use “fresh” potpies: Bake potpies at. 375 degrees for 18-22 minutes or until golden grown. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. 4. To use frozen potpies: Remove from the freezer 30 minutes before baking. Cover edges of crusts loosely with foil; place on a baking sheet. Bake at 375degrees for 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake 15-20 minutes longer or until golden brown and filling is bubbly. Yield: 4 servings.
ACCESSline Page 32
IOWALISA’S LIST: RECURRING EVENTS Every Sunday, 5-6 p.m., GLBT AA, First Baptist Church at 500 N. Clinton St., Iowa City. For more info about Intergroup and Alcoholics Anonymous call the 24-Hour Answering Service at 319-338-9111 or visit the AA-IC website: http://aa-ic.org/. Every Sunday, 7 p.m., L WORD LIVES: L NIGHT at the Firewater Saloon, 347 South Gilbert St., Iowa City, 319-321-5895. The night will start with Season 1, Episode 1 of the L Word... because a good thing should never die. FoLLowing the L Word wiLL be a Drag King show at 9:30 p.m. No cover. Every Sunday, 6-8:30 p.m., THE QUIRE: Eastern Iowa’s GLBT Chorus Rehearsals, at Zion Lutheran Church, 310 N. Johnson St, Iowa City. Membership is open to all GLBT folks, as well as allies who support the community. There are no auditions; you only need to be willing to attend rehearsals regularly and learn your music. The Quire prepares two full concerts each year in the winter and spring, and occasionally performs shorter programs at events in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids area. The Quire is a member of Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses (GALA), and has developed a reputation for excellence and variety in its concert programs. For more info, visit http://www.thequire.org/. Every 1st and 3rd Sunday of the month, 3-6 p.m., TANGO LESSONS at CSPS, 1103 3rd St. SE, Cedar Rapids. Cost is $5. Everyone welcome; no partner or experience necessary. For more info, call Elie at 319-363-1818 or e-mail epsa@aol.com. Second and every other Sunday of the month, 3-4 p.m., IOWA CITY PRIDE PLANNING COMMITTEE, Iowa City Public Library, Meeting Room D. Come help plan the 2009 Iowa City Pride Festival (to be held Saturday, June 20). For more info, contact Bridget at malone. bridget@gmail.com. Third Monday of every month, 6 p.m., PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) of Cedar Rapids Metro Area, 6 p.m. (social time), 6:30 p.m. (meeting time), in the Middle Room of Faith United Methodist Church, 1000 30th St, NE, Cedar Rapids. Call 515-537-3126 for more details. Coffee and refreshments will be served before the meeting, beginning at 6 p.m. Everyone is welcome; confidentiality is required. PFLAG promotes the health and well-being of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons, their families and friends through: support, to cope with an adverse society; education, to enlighten an ill-informed public; and advocacy, to end discrimination and to secure equal civil rights. First Monday of the month, 6:30 p.m., Iowa PFLAG Quad Cities Chapter Meeting, at Eldridge United Methodist Church, 604 S. 2nd St., Eldridge. For more info, call 563-285-4173. First/Second Monday (alternating) of the month, 7 p.m., Iowa PFLAG North Iowa Chapter Meeting, at First Presbyterian Church, 100 S. Pierce St., Mason City. For more info, call 641-583-2848. Fourth Monday of the month, 7 p.m., Iowa PFLAG Waukon/Northeast Chapter Meeting, at St. Benedict’s Catholic Church, 309 W. Main St., in the Parish Center, Decorah. For more info, call 563-535-7680. Fifth Monday in August and November, 7-9 p.m., WOMEN’S SINGING CIRCLE: Meet at Lori’s home for a short ritual followed by singing and chanting. Lori will supply lyrics and melodies for many circle songs and chants, but please feel free to bring your own songs to share (preferably with printed lyrics to pass around). However, singing is not required - you can still be involved and contribute by simply being present in the circle. Musicians, feel free to bring drums or other percussion instruments. To RSVP and get directions, e-mail lori-eiserman@uiowa.edu. Every Monday, Wednesday, Thursday at 6 p.m., and every Saturday at 5:30 p.m., GLBT ONLY AA MEETINGS IN DES MOINES, at 945 19th St. (east side of building, south door). Second Tuesday of each month, 7-8:30 p.m., SPIRITUAL SEEKERS, at Trinity Episcopal Church, 320 E. College St, Iowa City. Spiritual Seekers is a group for people of all faiths, or of little faith, who wish to make
Section 3: Community deeper connections between their sexual identities and the spiritual dimension in their lives. Meetings include discussion of specialized topics, telling of pieces of our faith journeys, and occasional prayer and meditation. (On the 4th Tuesday of each month, the group gathers at a local restaurant for food and fellowship.) For more info, contact Tom Stevenson: tbstevenson@mchsi.com or 319.354.1784. Second Tuesday of the month, 6:30-8 p.m., GLRC OF CEDAR RAPIDS BOARD MEETING at 6300 Rockwell Dr, Cedar Rapids. Meetings are open to the general public. For more info, call 319-366-2055 or visit: http://www.crglrc.org/. Second Tuesday of every month, WOMEN FOR PEACE KNITTERS meet for knitting, crocheting, and discussion, 9:30-11 a.m. at Prairiewoods, 120 E. Boyson Rd., Hiawatha. For more info, call 319-377-3252 or go to www.womenforpeace-iowa.org. All ages and levels of needlework skills welcome. Come knit for charities. Second Tuesday of every month, Iowa PFLAG Ames Chapter Meeting, 7 p.m., at the Youth and Shelter Services Offices, 420 Kellogg Ave., 1st Floor, Ames. For more info, call 515-291-3607. Every Tuesday, 7-8:30 p.m., CONNECTIONS INCLUSIVE BALLROOM at Old Brick 26 E. Market St, Iowa City. An equal opportunity social dance workshop/ rehearsal for LGBT people. All skill levels are welcome. American social dance, Latin, a mix of dance from the last 100 years. For more info, contact Mark McCusker at iowadancefest@gmail.com, 319-621-8530 or Nora Garda at 319-400-4695, or visit http://iowadancefest. blogspot.com/. Every Tuesday evening, 7:30-9:30 p.m., ARGENTINE TANGO practice and open dance, at the Iowa City Senior Center, 28 S. Linn St, Iowa City. A donation of $1-2 per person is requested for use of the Senior Center. For more info, contact Karen Jackson at 319-447-1445 or e-mail kljedgewood@msn.com. Every Tuesday evening, 7 p.m., OUT (Our United Truth): A GLBT Support Group meets 7-8:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 3707 Eastern Ave., Davenport. For more info, call 563-359-0816. Every Tuesday at 9 p.m., KARAOKE IDOL at Studio 13, 13 S. Linn St., Iowa City. Drink specials and great competition! Visit www.sthirteen.com. First Wednesday of every month, CEDAR RAPIDS CHARTER CHAPTER OF THE AMERICAN BUSINESS WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION meets. For more info, visit charter-chapter.tripod.com. First Wednesday of the month, 7 p.m., CONNECTIONS’ RAINBOW READING GROUP, Iowa City Public Library Meeting Room B, 123 S. Linn St., Iowa City. For more info, contact Todd at: faunides@yahoo.com. First Wednesday of the month, 6:30-8 p.m., WOMEN’S SACRED CIRCLE at Prairiewoods Franciscan Spirituality Center, 120 E. Boyson Rd., Hiawatha. This group is for women who are interested in gathering for spiritual growth. The direction and activities of the group are determined by participants. $5 per session. For more info, visit www.prairiewoods.org. Second Wednesday of every month, 6:30-8 p.m., STONEWALL DEMOCRATS, the GLBT Caucus of the Democratic Party, meets at Hamburger Mary’s, 222 Glenbrook Dr. SE, behind 2nd Wind off of 1st Ave SE in Cedar Rapids. For more info, contact Harvey Ross at linnstonewall@gmail.com or call 319-389-0093. Every Wednesday, 7-9 p.m., U OF I GAY LESBIAN BISEXUAL TRANSGENDER AND ALLIES UNION MEETINGS in the Penn State Room #337 of the Iowa Memorial Union, U. of Iowa campus, Iowa City. For more info, visit http://www.uiowa.edu/~glbtau/ or e-mail glbtau@ uiowa.edu. These meetings are open to the public. First, third, and fifth Thursdays of each month, 6:30-8:30 p.m., EVENINGS FOR SPIRIT at SpiritHill Retreat, 604 Cedar Valley Road, West Branch. Women gather at SpiritHill to share our spiritual experiences, visions and longings. The evenings include time for sharing and time for silence. Laughter, tears and singing are often shared as well. No specific spiritual practice is followed. This event is always open to newcomers. For more info, call 319-643-2613, or e-mail spirit-hill@ earthlink.net. Second Thursday of the month, 7-9 p.m., OPEN MIC WITH MARY MCADAMS at Ritual Café, on 13th St.
between Locust and Grand, downtown Des Moines. Visit www.ritualcafe.com. For more info, e-mail mary@ marymcadams.com. Second Thursday of the month, 7 p.m. (6:30 p.m. social time), Iowa PFLAG Omaha/Council Bluffs Chapter Meeting, at Mead Hall, First United Methodist Church, 7020 Cass St., Omaha. For more info, call 402-291-6781. Third Thursday of every month, 7-10 p.m., OPEN MIC HOSTED BY KIMBERLI, at the Blue Strawberry Coffee Company (now open after the flood), 118 2nd St. SE, Downtown Cedar Rapids. Signup at 6:30 p.m. or by e-mailing flyingmonkeyscr@aol.com the week prior to the open mic. Third Thursday of every month, 7-9 p.m., CONNECTIONS GAME NIGHT, at Donnelly’s Pub, 110 E. College St., in downtown Iowa City. Third Thursday of every month, 7 p.m., Iowa PFLAG Dubuque/Tri-State Chapter Meeting, at St. John’s Lutheran Church, 1276 White St., Dubuque. For more info, call 563-582-9388. Every 4th Thursday of the month, PROFESSIONAL WOMEN’S NETWORK (PWN) meetings. For more info, visit www.pwn.org, e-mail pwn@pwn.org, or call Shelley Woods at 319-981-9887. Every 4th Thursday of the month, 7:30 p.m., THE GLBT READING GROUP meets in the conference room at Red Cross Building at 6300 Rockwell Dr. NE, Cedar Rapids. The group is open to new members; contact crglbtreadinggroup@yahoo.com for further info. Every Thursday and Friday, 6-10 p.m., SHANNON JANSSEN at The Cedar Grille at the Cedar Rapids Marriott, 1200 Collins Rd. NE, Cedar Rapids. Shannon performs a variety of music including original songs on the Grand Piano in the hotel’s beautiful atrium. No reservations required. First Friday of the month, FAIRFIELD ART WALK. For more info, visit www.FairfieldArtWalk.com. First Friday of every month between February 6 and December 4, 5-8 p.m., DAWN’S COFFEE HOUSE, at Dawn’s Hide and Bead Away, 220 E. Washington St., Iowa City. Music and light snacks are provided. Proceeds from the door are split between the non-profit of the month and the store (to cover the cost of snacks). Any other donations received go 100% to the non-profit. $3 cover. For more info, phone 319-338-1566. First Friday of the month, GUERRILLA QUEER BAR MEETUP! Tired of the same old bars? Crave the idea of bringing your queer and straight friends together in a fun, new environment? We’re descending upon an unsuspecting straight bar and turning it into a gay bar for the night. To join in: join our Facebook group, Google group or Twitter feed. You’ll receive an email the morning of each event with the name of a classically hetero bar and the meeting time. Call your friends, have them call their friends, show up at the bar and watch as it becomes the new “it” gay bar for one night only. Visit http://groups.google.com/group/ iowa-city-guerrilla-queer-bar. Every 2nd and 4th Friday of the each month at 7 p.m., a DRUMMING CIRCLE meets at the Unity Center of Cedar Rapids, 3791 Blairs Ferry Rd. NE, Cedar Rapids.
November 2009 For more info, call 319-431-7550. Third Friday of every month, 8 p.m., OLD-TIME DANCE FOR ALL, a Barn Dance 12 miles east of Iowa City at Scattergood Friends School. Admission is $5.00 per person. Singles and couples, beginners and veterans welcome. The music is live, and all dances are taught and called (that is, prompted while the music is playing). Note: (1) same-sex couples are common at these dances, (2) they’re no-alcohol, no-smoking events, (3) every dance is taught, so beginners are welcome, and (4) people can attend alone or with a partner. People of a variety of ages show up, and the atmosphere is friendly and inclusive. For more info, phone 319-643-7600 or e-mail treadway@netins.net. Every Saturday, noon to 1 p.m., WOMEN FOR PEACE IOWA host Weekly Street Corner Vigils for peace, rain or shine. Meet at the corner of 1st Ave. and Collins Rd. SE (in front of Granite City Brewery), Cedar Rapids. Show your support for our troops by calling for their return from Iraq. For more info, e-mail khall479@aol.com. Third Saturday of every month, 2-4 p.m., QUEER SCRIBBLE FEST at Old Brick on the corner of Market St. and Dubuque St., Iowa City. Different subjects or motifs highlight each month. All are welcome. Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Straight Allies are gathering to scribble, draw, write, talk, or what you will. Bring some music and a snack. It’s FREE but tax-deductible donations are welcome. Donations of papers, pencils, books, and other art materials are also appreciated. For more info, call Mark McCusker at 319621-8530 or e-mail a.c.experiment@gmail.com. Fourth Saturday of every month, 7:30 p.m., TANGOVIA, join area tango dancers at the Wesley Center, 120 N. Dubuque St., Iowa City. Enjoy a candlelit evening of dance, hors d’oeuvres, and conversation in a relaxed atmosphere. Cost is $5. Partner not necessary. Beginners welcome to come at 7 p.m. for an introductory lesson. For more info, call Gail at 319-325-9630, e-mail irelandg@ gmail.com, or visit www.tangovia.com. Fourth Saturday of every month, 7 p.m., THE LESBIAN BOOK CLUB is reading books by or about lesbians. Non-lesbians are welcome to attend. All meetings are held at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 3707 Eastern Ave., Davenport. For more info, call 563-359-0816. Every Saturday, 3:30-5:30 p.m., BAILE LATINO: SALSA, CHA-CHA, MERENGUE AND BACHATA LESSONS taught by Gloria Zmolek, at CSPS, 1103 3rd St. SE, Cedar Rapids. No experience or partner necessary. All ages welcome. No sign-up required. $5 per person requested. For more info, contact Gloria at 319-365-9611 or visit www.crsalsa.org. Hamburger Mary’s Weekly Happenings, at 222 Glenbrook Dr. SE, Cedar Rapids, off of 1st Ave. Tuesdays – Kid’s Night; Wednesdays – Thift Store Bingo at 10 p.m. with Katrina Cass; Thursdays – Mary-oke with Nic from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Fridays – Drag Show at 9 p.m. (all ages) and 11 p.m. (21 and over); Saturdays – Open Mic Night followed by Drag Show at 9 p.m. (all ages) and 11 p.m. (21 and over). For more info, e-mail hamburgermaryscr@mchsi.com or visit www. hamburgermaryscr.com.
November 2009 DIRECTORY NOTICE The ACCESSline directory is updated each issue. The directory may also be found at ACCESSlineIOWA.com. LISTINGS ARE FREE. Information about new groups must contain a phone number for publication and a contact (e-mail address, land address, or website) for our records. For more information or to provide corrections, please contact Editor@ACCESSlineIOWA.com or call (319) 550-0957.
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund 1705 De Sales St NW, Ste 500 Washington, DC, 20036 www.victoryfund.org. 202-VICTORY [842-8679] Human Rights Campaign National political organization, lobbies congress for lesbian & gay issues, political training state and local www.hrc.org 1-800-777-HRCF[4723] Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund I I E. Adams, Suite 1008 Chicago, IL 60603-6303 www.lambdalegal.org 312-663-4413 Fax: 312-663-4307 National Gay & Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) 1325 Massachusetts Ave NW, Ste 600, Washington, DC, 20005 www.ngltf.org / taskforce.org National Organization for Women (NOW) 733 15th ST NW, 2nd Floor Washington, DC 20005 www.now.org 202-628-8669 PFLAG National Offices 1726 M St. NW Suite 400 Washington, DC 20036 info@pflag.org www.pflag.org 202-467-8180
STATE ORGANIZATIONS Equality Iowa P.O. Box 18 Indianola, IA 50125 www.equalityiowa.org 515-537-3126 Faithful Voices Interfaith Alliance of Iowa’s marriage equality project. www.faithfulvoices.org Imperial Court of Iowa Non-profit fundraising & social, statewide organization with members from across the State of Iowa. PO Box 1491, Des Moines, IA 50306-1491 www.imperialcourtofiowa.org Iowa Chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW) David Steward, President, IA NOW 1010 Charlotte Ave. Davenport, IA 52803 Iowa PFLAG (Parents, Families & Friends of Lesbians and Gay) State Council PO Box 18, Indianola, IA 50125 www.equalityiowa.org/PFLAG 515-537-3126 or 641-583-2024 Iowa pridenetwork 3839 Merle Hay Rd, Ste. 285 Des Moines, IA 50310 www.iowapridenetwork.org 515-243-1110 LGBT Youth in Iowa Schools Task Force PO Box 1997, Des Moines, 50306 515-243-1221 One Iowa PO Box 3, Des Moines, IA 50309 Stonewall Democrats of Iowa 5 Creekside Ct Mason City, IA 50401 Contact: Dean Genth figfinesse@yahho.com 641-583-2024
Ames First United Methodist Church 6th & Kellogg Contemporary worship Sat. 5:30; Sun at 8:30 and 11:00am. www.fumcames.org. 515-232-2750 Living with HIV Program 126 S. Kellogg, Suite 1 Ask for Janelle (Coordinator) 515-956-3312 ext 106 or I -800-890-8230
Section 3: Community ISU LGBTA Alliance GLBT Support, Activism, Social Events, Newsletter East Student Office L, Memorial Union, ISU Ames, IA. 50014 alliance@iastate.edu http://www.alliance.stuorg.iastate.edu 515-294-2104 Lord of Life Lutheran 2126 Gable Lane, Ames 50014 Services Sundays at 9:00a.m.; Wed. 7:00pm. 515-233-2350 PFLAG Ames Youth and Shelter Services Offices 420 Kellogg Ave 1st Floor. 2nd Tuesday, 7pm www.pflagames.org 515-291-3607 Romantics Pleasure Palace 117 Kellogg Street Ames, IA 50010-3315 http://www.romantixonline.com 515-232-7717 Stonewall Democrats of Ames tlloman@aol.com goodwinm@istate.edu, or Terry Lowman, 515-292-3279, or Mary Goodwin 515-292-0352 United Church of Christ-Congregational 6th & Kellogg Ames, 50010 Sunday Continental Breakfast, 9:00am; Sunday School, 9:30am; Worship, 10:45am. uccames@midiowa.net. 515-232-9323 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ames 1015 Hyland Ave. Services: 9am and 11am, Sunday uufa@aol.com 515-292-5960 Unity Church of Ames 226 9th St. Sunday service and Sunday school 10:30am. Wednesday mediation 6:30pm, class 7:15pm. www.websyt/unity/ames Daily dial-a-blessing 515-233-1613
Arnolds Park, Okoboji, Spencer, Spirit Lake The Royal Wedding Chapel 504 Church Street Royal, IA 51357 712-933-2223 www.TheRoyalWeddingChapel.com Wilson Resource Center An Iowa Great Lakes area gay-owned nonprofit community based organization. PO Box 486 Arnolds Park IA 51331-0486 F.JosephWilson@aol.com. 712-332-5043
BURLINGTON Arrowhead Motel 2520 Mount Pleasant St Burlington, IA 52601-2118 319-752-6353 - www.arrowheadia.com HIV/AIDS Screening @ Des Moines County Health Department in Burlington 522 N 3rd By appointment between 8:00am to 4:30 319-753-8217 Confidential RISQUES IV (adult store) 421 Dry Creek Avenue West Burlington, IA 52601 (319) 753-5455 Sun - Wed 8am-Midnight Thurs - Sat Open 24 Hours www.LoversPlayground.com Steve’s Place 852 Washington St, Burlington 319-752-9109 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Services start at 10:30 am 625 N 6th St, Burlington, IA 52601-5032 (319) 753-1895 - www.uuburlington.org
Cedar Falls - Waterloo Black Hawk Co. Health Department Free HIV testing (donations accepted); MW, 1:00pm to 3:00pm; Thurs, 1:00pm to 4:45pm 1407 Independence Ave. (5th fl) Waterloo 50703 319-291 -2413 Cedar AIDS Support System (CASS) Service, support groups & trained volunteers for persons with HIV/AIDS in Waterloo/CF call Elizabeth or Karla, 319-272-AIDS(2437). cvhospice@forbin.net Cedar Valley Counseling Services Promoting personal growth and development in a strengths-based environment Joan E. Farstad, MA, Director. 319-240-4615 www.cvcounseling.com farstd@cvcounseling.com. Cedar Valley Episcopal Campus Ministry. In Lutheran Center 2616 College St, Cedar Falls, IA 319-415-5747 mcdinoiwa@aol.com www.episcopalcampus.org All welcome!
Community AIDS Assistance Project (CAAP) Funding for special personal needs, community projects, and small grants that are AIDS related. PO Box 36, Waterloo, IA 50704 LGBTA Support Group at Hawkeye Community College Call Carol at 319-296-4014 for time & location of meeting chedberg@hawkeyecollege.edu Iowa Legal Aid Free civil legal service available to low income persons who qualify under income/asset guidelines. 607 Sycamore, #708, Waterloo, IA 50703 1-800-772-0039 or 319-235-7008 Kings & Queens Tap 304 W. 4th St, Waterloo, IA www.//myspace.com/kingsandqueensspace 319-232-3001 Romantix Waterloo (Adult Emporium) 1507 La Porte Rd, Waterloo, IA 50702 319-234-9340 http://www.romantixonline.com/ Stellas Guesthouse 324 Summit Ave, Waterloo, IA Private B&B, Overnight accommodations for adults only. 319-232-2122 St. Lukes Episcopal Church 2410 Melrose Dr, Cedar Falls, IA 50613 www.st-lukes-episcopal.org Services: Sunday 8:00 & 10:15, Thurs 11:30 319-277-8520
Linn County Public Health 501 13th NW Free confidential HIV testing, 319-892-6000 Linn County Stonewall Democrats 2nd Wednesday of every month, 6:30-8 p.m. The LGBT Caucus of the Democratic Party, meets at Hamburger Mary’s, 222 Glenbrook Dr. SE, behind 2nd Wind off of 1st Ave SE in Cedar Rapids. For more info, contact linnstonewall@ gmail.com Rapid AIDS Grant Wood Area Red Cross 3600 Rockwell Dr NE Cedar Rapids, 52410 319-393-9579. PFLAG Cedar Rapids 3rd Monday, 6:30pm, 6 social Faith United Methodist Church 1000 30th St, NE 515-537-3126 People’s Church Unitarian Universalist A welcoming congregation. 600 Third Avenue SE 11AM Sunday. 319-362-9827 Stonewall Democrats of Linn County Contact Roy Porterfield royboycr@mchsi.com 319-362-5281
Council Bluffs, Omaha(Ne)
Together For Youth 233 Vold Dr, Waterloo, IA 50703 www.TogetherForYouth.net 319-274-6768
AIDS Interfaith Network 100 N. 62nd Omaha, NE Call Br. Wm. Woeger 402-558-3100
UNI-LGBTA Alliance-Student Organization 244A Bartlet Hall, University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls 50613 lgbta@uni.edu 319-222-0003
Citizens For Equal Protection 1105 Howard St, Suite #2 Omaha, NE 68102 www.cfep-ne.org info@cfep-ne.org 402-398-3027
United Church of Christ Cedar Falls 9204 University Avenue, Cedar Falls 319-266-9686 Unitarian Universalist Society of Black Hawk County 3912 Cedar Heights Dr, Cedar Falls, IA 319-266-5640
Cedar Rapids/marion Adult Shop 630 66th Ave SW, 319-362-4939 Adult Shop North 5539 Grain Lane, 319-294-5360 Club Basix Open 5pm to 2am M-F, Sat & Sun 3pm to 2am 3916 1st Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids www.clubbasix.com 319-363-3194 Coe Alliance Education, activism, & fun for GLBT and straight students, staff, faculty and people from the community. Regular meetings. Coe College 1220 First Ave. NE jchaimov@coe.edu www.public.coe.edu/organizations/Alliance. Call John Chaimov (contact) at 319-399-8594 for details. CSPS Legion Arts Contemporary Arts Center 1103 3rd St. SE info@legionarts.org 319-364-1580 Faith UMC 1000 30th Street NE, Cedar Rapids, 52402 Pastor Kathy Moore Sunday services at 11:00am. www.crfaithumc.org 319-363-8454 Foundation 2 Crisis Counseling 24-hour telephone crisis counseling. f2crisis@aol.com or www.f2online.org 1540 2nd Ave. SE Cedar Rapids, IA 319-362-2174 or 800-332-4224 GLRC of Cedar Rapids Support, social activities lnfo@crglrc.org www.crglrc.org or, write to P.O. Box 1643 Cedar Rapids 52406-1643 Call and leave a message -- all calls will be returned. 319-366-2055 Hamburger Mary’s 222 Glenbrook Dr. Cedar Rapids, IA 52403 319-378-4627 www.hamburgermaryscr.com www.myspace.com/hamburgermaryscr Krug Law Firm 6 Hawkeye Drive, Suite 103 North Liberty, IA 52317 319-626-2076
Council Bluffs NOW Write PO Box 3325 Omaha, NE 68103-0325 DC’s Saloon 610 S. 14th St. Omaha, NE Open everyday 2pm to 1am, western/levi/ leather. 402-344-3103 Diamond Bar 712 S. 16th St. Omaha, NE 10am - 1am, M-Sa, closed Sun 402-342-9595 Front Runners/Front Walkers Walking/jogging club. P.O. Box 4583 Omaha, NE 68104 402-496-3658. Gilligan’s Pub and Grill 1407 Harney Omaha, NE Everyday 4pm-1am. Friday and Sat. After hours 12-4am 402-449-9147 GLBT Rainbow Outreach Omaha Serving GLBT community in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. Excellent message and info. Also office for Imperial court of Nebraska. 1719 Leavenworth St Omaha, NE www.rocc.org 402-341-0330 Heartland Gay Rodeo Association (HGRA) PO Box 3354, Omaha, NE 68103 www.hgra.net 402-203-4680 HGRA serves both Iowa and Nebraska Imperial Court of Nebraska P.O. Box 3772, Omaha, NE 68103 402-556-9907 L.E.O. (Leather Engineers of Omaha) Educational-social group for Gay Men with interest in Leather Lifestyle. Meets 2nd Saturday at Gilligan’s Pub at 7:00pm. L.E.O. PO Box 8101 Omaha, NE 68108. The Max 1417 Jackson at 15th, Omaha, NE 68102 6 bars in 1 402-346-4110. MCC of Omaha 819 South 22nd P.O. Box 3173, Omaha, NE 68103 Sun. 9 & 11 am. Contemporary Worship Service, Sat 7PM 402-345-2563. PFLAG Omaha Mead Hall, First United Methodist Church 7020 Cass St. (Omaha) 2nd Thursday, 7, 6:30 Social time 402-291-6781
ACCESSline Page 33 River City Mixed Chorus Gay/lesbian chorus PO Box 3267 Omaha, NE 68103 Call Stan Brown, marketing 402-341-7464. Romantix Council Bluffs (North) (Adult Emporium) 3216 1st Ave. Council Bluffs, IA 51501-3353 http://www.romantixonline.com 515-955-9756 Romantix Council Bluffs (South) (Romantix After Dark) 50662 189th St, Council Bluffs, Ia 51503 http://www.romantixonline.com 712-366-1764 Youth Support Group for GLBT Youth 13-21, meets twice monthly. Omaha, NE 402-291- 6781.
Decorah Decorah Human Rights Commission Contact: City Clerk 400 Clairborne Drive, Decorah 563-382-3651 Meetings: First Tuesdays, 5:30pm Luther College Student Congregation Contact Office for College Ministry 700 College Dr, Decorah, IA 52101 563-387-1040. PFLAG Northeast IA (Waukon/Decorah) First Lutheran Church 604 W Broadway, Decorah, IA Meetings: 4th Mondays, 7pm-9pm Call Jean @ 563-535-7680 PRIDE Luther College Diversity Center, 700 College Dr, Decorah, IA 52101 Contact Chris at 563-387-2145 or Melanie at 563-387-1273 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Meets alternating Sundays at 10:30am, Decorah Senior Center 806 River St Call Bill at 563-382-3458.
Des Moines AIDS Project of Central Iowa Free HIV testing, prevention supplies, care services, food pantry, information. 711 E. 2nd, Des Moines, IA 50309 515-284-0245 Blazing Saddle 416 E 5th St www.theblazingsaddle.com 515-246-1299 Buddies Corral 418 E 5th St, Des Moines, IA 515-244-7140 The CENTER 1300 Locust; The new LGBT and progressive place to be. thecenterdm@gmail.com Church of the Holy Spirit-MCC Pastor Pat Esperanza Sunday service 10:30am at the 1st Christian Church 2500 University, Des Moines chsmccdmia@aol.com 515-287-9787. Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus 515-953-1540 PO Box 12269, Des Moines, IA 50312 dmgmc@mchsi.com www.dmgmc.org. Family Practice Center Safe, supportive LGBT health care. 200 Army Post Road, Ste 26 www.ppgi.org 515-953-7560 First Friday Breakfast Club Educational breakfast club for gay/bisexual men. Meets first Friday of each month. Contact Jonathan Wilson for meeting topic and place. Jonathanwilson@davisbrownlaw.com 515288-2500 First Unitarian Church 1800 Bell Avenue Services Sundays at 9:30 & 11am 515-244-8603 The Gallery (adult store) 1000 Cherry St Des Moines, IA 50309-4227 (515) 244-2916 Open 24 Hours www.LoversPlayground.com The Garden 112 SE 4th Des Moines, IA 515-243-3965 Wed-Sun. 8pm-2am www.grdn.com Gay & Lesbian AA & AI-Anonymous Mon. 7 pm; Tues. - Thurs. 6 pm; Sat. 5:30 pm at Drake Ministries in Ed. Bldg. 28th & University Gay and Lesbian Issues Committee 4211 Grand Avenue, Level-3 Des Moines, IA 50312 515-277-1117
ACCESSline Page 34
Section 3: Community
Heartland Gay Rodeo Midwest Division of the International Gay Rodeo Association. 402-203-4680
Trinity United Methodist Church 1548 Eighth Street Services Sundays at 10a.m. 515-288-4056
Iowa Affirmation Lesbian/Gay United Methodist Thoreau Center, 35th & Kingman Blvd. Write Affirmation PO Box 1726, Des Moines, IA 50309
Urbandale UCC An open & affirming congregation. 3530 70th St. Urbandale, IA 50322 515-276-0625.
Java Joe’s Gay friendly 214 4th St. 515-288-5282
Walnut Hills UMC Join us at 8:30 or 10:30am for Sunday worship. Sunday classes and group studies are at 9:30am. 12321 Hickman Rd. Urbandale, IA 50323 515-270-9226.
Lavender Victory Fund Financial assistance for women in need for medical emergencies. 700 Rose Ave, Des Moines, IA 50315 Contact Bonnie at 515-244-7946 Liberty Gifts 333 E. Grand Ave., Loft 105 Des Moines, IA Gay owned specialty clothing, jewelry, home decor. Libertygiftsonline.com 515-508-0825 MINX Show Palace 1510 N.E. Broadway Des Moines, IA 50313 Open 9am - 2am, M-Th; 9am - 4am, F-Sat. 10am -9pm Sun. 515-266-2744 National Association of Social Workers (NOW) (Nat’1 Organization of Women in Des Moines) http://www.meetup.com/locale/us/ia/desmoines North Star Gay Rodeo Association of IGRA, Iowa Division of North Star NSGRA@ NSGRA.org or 612-82RODEO Rainbow Union, Drake University Contact Sara Graham ru@drake.edu PFLAG Des Moines 515-537-3126 or write 3520 Grand Ave #51, Des Moines, IA 50312 Plymouth Congregational UCC Church and the Plymouth GLBT Community 4126 Ingersoll Ave. 515-255-3149 Services at 5:30pm Sat, 9am & I lam Sunday. www.PlymouthGLBT.com Polk County Health Department Free STD, HIV, and Hepatitis B & C testing. HIV. Rapid testing also offered. 1907 Carpenter, Des Moines, IA 515-286-3798. Raccoon River Resort Accommodations for men, women, or mixed in campgrounds, lodge, Teepees or Treehouses. Reservations: 515-996-2829 or 515-279-7312 Ramada Des Moines West/Clive 1600 NW 114th St, Des Moines, IA 50325 US ( I80/I35 & Exit 124 ) 515-226-1600 Fax: 515-226-9022 Ritual Café On 13th between Grand and Locust. ritualcafe@aol.com Gay owned great music, awesome food and coffee. 515-288-4872 Romantix North Des Moines Iowa (Bachelor’s Library) 2020 E. Euclid Ave. www.romantixonline.com Des Moines, IA 50317-3668 515-266-7992 Romantix 1401 E. Army Post Rd. Des Moines IA 50320-1809 http://www.romantixonline.com/ 515-256-1102 SOFFA Iowa (Significant Others Family Friends and Allies of people who fall under the Gender Variant umbrella) Monthly meetings held at The CENTER, 1300 Locust contact Jaye at: (515)779-5185 thecentersoffaiowa@gmail.com Spouses of Lesbians & Gays Contact Ruth Schanke, 515-277-3700 St. John’s Lutheran Church 600 6th Ave “A Church for All People.” Services Sat 5pm, Sun 7:45, 8:45 & 11am. See web page for other services. 515-243-7691 www.stjohnsdsm.org TransformationsIOWA Monthly meetings for the female to male, male to female, transgender community, cross dressers, gender queer, questioning, and their significant others. For location and info, email Jayden at thecenterdmtrans@gmail.com or call 515-779-5187
Westminster Presbyterian Church 4114 Allison Ave. www.westpres.org Sunday services 8:45 and 11am. Of note is their Gay Lesbian Straight Affirmation small group ministry. 515-274-1534 Word of God Ministries Join us at 3:30 for Sunday Worship at 3120 E. 24th St, Des Moines, IA Mailing address: PO Box 4396, Des Moines IA 50333 515-276-6614 Women’s Culture Collective (WCC) A lesbian social group. Des Moines, IA www.iowawcc.org Zanzibar’s Coffee Adventure Open daily. Gay-friendly 2723 Ingersoll, Des Moines, IA 515-244-7694.
Dubuque Adult Warehouse 975 Jackson St., Dubuque, IA 563-588-9184. The Q 920 Main Street, Dubuque, IA Open Mon - Sun, 7pm to 2am. www.myspace.com/qbar_dbq 563-557-7375 Dubuque Friends Worship Group (Quakers) Tired of being rejected by your church? Tired of following church pronouncements that smack of homophobia? Join us at an unprogrammed meeting on Sunday at 10am. Open and Affirming St. Mark’s Community Center 1201 Locust Street, Dubuque, Iowa 52001 563-556-3685 for info and directions Dubuque Pride Monthly social group, meeting for meal and conversation. www.dubuquepride.org Dubuque Regional AIDS Coalition Direct services, education. HIV+/AIDS support group and family/friends support group. Contact Kay Auderer or Connie Sprimont, Mercy Health Center. 563-589-9606. PFLAG Dubuque St. John’s Lutheran Church 1276 White St. 3rd Thursday, 7pm 563-582-9388 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Dubuque 1699 Iowa St. Dubuque, IA “The uncommon denomination.” Adult religious education meets Sunday at 9am before general services at 10am. www.uuf-dbq.org. 563-583-9910
Fort Dodge Romantix Fort Dodge (Mini Cinema) 15 N. 5th St, Fort Dodge, IA 50501-3801 http://www.romantixonline.com
Grinnell Saints Ephrem & Macrina Orthodox Mission. Welcoming worship in the Eastern Christian liturgical tradition. Sunday services at 10am. (Affiliated with the Orthodox-Catholic Church of America.) 1226 Broad Street, Grinnell, IA 641-236-0936 Stonewall Resource Center Open 4:30pm to 11:30pm, Sun through Thurs and by Appointment. Grinnell College 1210 Park Street PO Box B-1, Grinnell, IA, 50112 srcenter@grinnell.edu 641-269-3327
INDIANOLA Crossroads United Church of Christ (UCC) An Open & affirming congregation. Services: Sunday 10:30am, Summer worship: June, July, Aug, @ 9:30 am, worshiping in the Lounge at Smith Chapel, Simpson College, corner of Buxton and Clinton. Mailing address: P.O. Box 811, Indianola, IA 50125 515-961-9370.
Iowa City AA (GLBT) Meetings Sundays 5 - 6pm at First Baptist Church, 500 North Clinton Street. For more info, call IC Intergroup Answering Service, 319-338-9111 Congregational Church UCC An Open and Affirming Congregation Sunday Worship 9:15am (July & August) 30 N. Clinton St. (across from Ul Pentacrest) 319-337-4301 - www.uiccic.org Counseling Clinic Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender sensitive and supportive counseling for individuals, couples, families and groups. Sliding Fee. 505 E Washington St. Iowa City, IA 52240 319-354-6238. Counseling and Health Center Client-centered therapy. Les-Bi-Gay-Trans always welcome. 616 Bloomington St, Iowa City, IA 319-337-6998.
U of I Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual Staff & Faculty Association c/o WRAC 130 N. Madison, Iowa City, IA 52242 319-335-1486
Holy Spirit Catholic Faith Community Meets one Sunday per month for Mass at 5:30pm at MCC-QC 3019 N. Harrison St., Davenport For more info, call 563-340-7488
Unitarian Universalist Society of Iowa City Inclusive and free religious community nurturing intellectual and spiritual growth and fostering ethical and social responsibility. 10 S. Gilbert, Iowa City, IA Sunday services: 9am & 10:45am. www.uusic.org 319-337-3443
Mary’s On 2nd 832 W. 2nd St. Davenport, IA 563-884-8014.
United Action for Youth (UAY) A GLBTQA youth group providing support and counseling for teenagers and young adults processing sexual identity issues. Meets Mondays 7-9pm at UAY 410 Iowa Ave. Iowa City, IA 319-338-7518 or Teen Line, 319-338-0559.
Men’s Coming Out/Being Out Group Meets 2nd & 4th Thursdays, 7pm. QCAD.OutForGood@GMail.com 309-786-2580
The Ursine Group Bear Events in the Midwest. P.O. Box 1143, Iowa City, IA 52244-1143 319-338-5810
Crisis Center 1121 Gilbert Court, Iowa City, 52240 319-351-0140.
Vortex Gifts 211 E. Washington, downtown Iowa City 319-337-3434
Emma Goldman Clinic 227 N. Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA 52245 319-337-2111or 1-800-848-7684.
Women’s Resource Action Center (WRAC) Leads & collaborates on projects that serve Uofl & the greater community, offers social & support services, including LGBT Coming Out Group. University of Iowa 130 N. Madison Iowa City, IA 52242 319-335-1486
Faith United Church of Christ 1609 De Forest Street, Iowa City, IA Services Sundays at 9:30 a.m. 319-338-5238 GLBTAU-U of l Student support system and resource center, info, activism, events, and other community involvements. 203 IMU, University of IA Iowa City, IA 52242-1317 glbtau@uiowa.edu 319-335-3251 (voice mail) Hope United Methodist Church Worship Service at 9:30am. 2929 E. Court St., Iowa City, IA Contact Rev. Sherry Lohman. 319-338-9865 ICARE Iowa Center for AIDS Resources & Education Practical and emotional support, youth programs, information, referrals and support groups. 3211 E 1st Iowa City, IA 52240-4703 319-338-2135. Iowa City Free Medical Clinic Free & strictly confidential HIV Testing. 2440 Towncrest Dr Iowa City, Call for appointment 319-337-4459 Iowa City NOW PO Box 2944, Iowa City, IA 52244 for information & meeting times/places Iowa Women’s Music Festival P.O. Box 3411, Iowa City, IA 52244 319-335-1486 Krug Law Firm 6 Hawkeye Drive, Suite 103 North Liberty, IA 52317 319-626-2076
Marshalltown Adult Odyssey [Adult Video] 907 Iowa Ave E 641-752-6550 Domestic Violence Alternatives/Sexual Assault Center, Inc. 24 hour Crisis Line: 641-753-3513 or (instate only) 800-779-3512
MASON CITY Cerro Gordo County Dept. of Public Health 22 N. Georgia Ave, Ste 300 Mason City –Iowa 50401. Free confidential AIDS testing. 641-421-9306 PFLAG North Iowa Chapter 1st Presbyterian Church 100 S. Pierce. 1st/ 2nd Monday (alternating), 7pm 641-583-2848
Mount Vernon Alliance Cornell College 810 Commons Cir # 2035 alliance@cornellcollege.edu www.cornellcollege.edu/alliance contact person: Glynnis 319-895-5874
NEWTON PFLAG Newton UCC Church 308 E 2nd St N 3rd Thursday, 7pm 641-521-7436
New Song Episcopal Church 912 20th Ave Coralville, IA Sunday services at 1Oam. Rev. Elizabeth Coulter, Pastor Rev. John Harper, Associate. 319-351-3577
AIDS Project Quad Cities Info, education & support. Ste 360 1351 Central Park West Davenport, IA 52804 563-421-4266.
Studio 13 13 S. Linn St. (in the Alley) Iowa City, IA Open 7pm ‘til 2am, daily 319-338-7145 Thich Nhat Hanh based “Mindfulness” meditation and study group Iowa City Public Library, Sundays 1 to 2:30pm Usually Room E 319-354-4065
PFLAG Quad Cities Eldridge United Methodist Church 604 S.2nd St., (Eldridge) 1st Monday, 6:30 pm 563-285-4173 Prism (Augustana College) Augustana Gay-Straight Alliance Augustana Library 639 38th St. Rock Island, IL Contact Tom Bengston 309-794-7406. Quad Citians Affirming Diversity (QCAD) Social & support groups for lesbian, bi, and gay teens, adults, friends & families; newsletter. 309-786-2580 Community Center located at 1608 2nd Ave, Rock Island. Quad Cities Pride Chorus. At the MCC Church in D’port, 7pm Wed. qcswede64@aol.com Call Don at 563-324-0215
T.R. Video Adult books & video 3727 Hickory Grove Rd, Davenport, IA 563-386-7914. Venus News (Adult) 902 w. 3rd St, Davenport, IA 563-322-7576
SHENANDOAH PFLAG Shenandoah 712-246-2824
Sioux City Am. Business & Professional Guild. Gay Businessmen. Meets last Sat. of the month; ABPG P. O. BOX 72, Sioux City, 51102 abpguild@yahoo.com Grace United Methodist Church 1735 Morningside Avenue 712-276-3452. Jones Street Station (Bar) 412 Jones St. Nightly 6:00pm to 2:00am. 712-258-6922 Mayflower Congregational Church. 1407 West 18th Street Call 712-258-8278.
Common Ground (Central College) Support group for GLBT students and allies. Contact: Brandyn Woodard, Director of Intercultural Life woodard@central.edu 641-628-5134
Romantix Iowa City (Pleasure Palace I) 315 Kirkwood Ave, Iowa City, IA 52240-4722 http://www.romantixonline.com 319-351-9444
MCC Quad Cities - Svcs Sat 5pm, Sun 11am Bible study Wed. 7 pm 3019 N. Harrison, Davenport, IA 52803 Call 563-324-8281.
Rainbow Gifts www.rainbowgifts.net 309-764-0559
Men Supporting Men HIV prevention program exploring issues that gay/bisexual men deal with on a daily basis. Discussion Groups, Educational Series, Safer Sex Workshops, Book Club. Contact Andy Weigel, email: aweigel@co.johnson.ia.us 319-356-6038, Ext 2
Pride Committee WRAC 130 N. Madison, Iowa City, IA 52242 Bridget Malone 319-338-0512 Charles Howes 319-335-1486.
November 2009
Pella
Quad Cities
Augie’s Tap 313 20th St, Rock Island (IL) Noon - 3am daily. 309-788-7389 Black Hawk College Unity Alliance Serving GLBT community at Black Hawk College. 6600 34th Ave, Rock Island, IL 309-716-0542. Connections Nightclub 822 W 2nd St, Davenport, IA 52802 Phone: (563) 322-1121 DeLaCerda House Provides housing and supportive services, advocacy and referrals for people living with HIV/AIDS. P.O. Box 4551, Rock Island, Il. 61201 309-786-7386. The Hole-In-The-Wall A Private Membership Men’s Club Located 3 miles east of Galesburg, IL just north of I-74 at Exit 51 309-289-2375 www.HoleInTheWallMensClub.org
Morningside College Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual Alliance Contact Professor Gail Dooley, Advisor Morningside College GSA 1501 Morningside Ave. Sioux City, IA 51106-1717 dooley@morningside.edu 712-274-5208 PFLAG Siouxland PO Box 1311, Sioux City, IA 51102 siouxlandPFLAG@aol.com Romantix Sioux City (Adult Emporium) 511 Pearl St, Sioux City, IA 51101-1217 St. Thomas Episcopal Church Service Sun 10:30am 406 12th St, Waverly, IA Rev Mary Christopher 712-258-0141 Western Iowa Tech. GSA widemal@juno.com for info.
Waverly Cedar Valley Episcopal Campus Ministry. 717 W. Bremer, (St. Andrew’s Episcopal) Waverly, IA www.episcoplcampus.org 319-415-5747 Gay, Lesbian Bisexual Student Alliance Wartburg College, Waverly, IA 50677 Contact Susan Vallem 319-352-8250 St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church 717 W. Bremer We welcome all to worship with us on Sunday at 10:30 am. Bible discussion Wed. 6:45pm Rev. Maureen Doherty, Pastor 319-352-1489
November 2009
Section 3: Community
ACCESSline Page 35
ACCESSline Page 36
Section 3: Community
November 2009