<< Community News
12 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 23-29, 2012
<<
Transmissions
From page 6
such as Matt Rice in 1999, Thomas Beatie in 2008, Yuval Topper in 2011 and an undisclosed man in the U.K. this year. Yet Sweden chose the conservative path, siding with their conservative Christian Democrats party government and the nationalist Sweden Democrats party, deciding to retain the sterilization requirement. Many cried foul, given that Swedish law is only reviewed every 40 years – meaning it would take that much more time until it could be re-
<<
Down Under
From page 8
or Uluru plan to take extra days to travel. The closest LGBT life in the Outback near Uluru is about a six and a half hour drive. There aren’t any LGBT-owned lodging or businesses closer to Uluru, according to experts. The largest gay resort destination that is close to the great outdoors, but still has a bit of civilization, is the Great Barrier Reef. There are a variety of LGBT accommodations – including a gay male-only resort – that make up Queensland’s resort life in the towns on the edge of the Great Barrier Reef and rainforests.
Brisbane Brisbane, the third largest city in Australia, was the highlight of our urban adventures. The river city is charming, with the Brisbane River snaking through it. Restaurants and shops line the RiverWalk that runs a little more than 12 miles on both the north and south banks, laced together by bridges. At one end of the south bank stood the Brisbane Ferris wheel, a gigantic 196-feet tall attraction that can carry up to 336 people, and the other end Kangaroo Point, where the Koala Sanctuary resides. The north side starts at the University of Queensland Campus at St. Lucia and ends at Teneriffe. We were sad to learn soon after we left Brisbane that the River Walk was washed out by fierce flooding. Not to worry, the city council was already shaping up plans to reconstruct a bigger and better River Walk announced in November 2011, according to media reports. Brisbane has an active LGBT
<<
Prop 8
From page 1
“ordinarily will not be ordered” unless there is a need to “secure or maintain uniformity of the court’s decisions” or the case raises “a question of exceptional importance.” In their 61-page request with the court, Prop 8’s attorneys contend that “the panel majority’s decision conflicts with decisions of the United States Supreme Court” as well as the 9th Circuit. They also contend that an important question is raised by the case: if the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits a state from limiting marriage to oppositesex couples. “The panel majority’s holding that California must recognize same-sex relationships as marriages conflicts not only with the binding authority cited above, but also with the decisions of every other state and federal appellate court to address this question,” states the petition for review. It goes on to state that, “The panel majority erred in breaking with the uniform and binding precedent upholding the constitutionality of laws adopting the traditional definition of marriage, and the Court, sitting en banc, should rehear this profoundly important case.” They also say the lawsuit, known as Perry v. Brown, raises another
▼
considered. Who knows, by 2052, we may again see the rise of Earth shoes and 8-track tapes. A petition was distributed, eventually delivering 77,000 signatures to the Swedish prime minister. Thomas Hammarberg, the Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, noted that forcing people to undergo unwanted medical interventions to change their legal status was a breach of human rights. The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe said much the same. In response to all this, Sweden – so far ahead of the curve in 1972 and so far behind the curve in 2012 –
blinked. Christian Democrats party leadership reversed course, calling instead for the removal of the sterilization requirement. Yet things are not perfect. While this is a good move, the rest of the law remains as is. Other requirements remain in place, including the rule that in order to be legally recognized, you must be unmarried. This, in a country that already allows same-sex marriage. More than this, Sweden is not alone in having a sterilization requirement. Though it is not entirely clear how many do require it, Transgender Europe reports that
Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, and Spain require some genital reassignment and/or sterilization in order to legally recognize a transperson’s gender. There are still places in our country, too, that require it – heck, there are places that won’t change your birth certificate regardless of surgical procedures. The world is continuing to change, and with it, the very nature of gender. What was progressive 40 years ago is regressive today. It will be quaint, at best, tomorrow. In 40 years, will Sweden finally change its laws? Will it even matter
then, or will this law and its requirements read like an outdated San Francisco law against piling horse manure more than six feet high on a street corner? Something so far out of step with the times as to be instantly ignored, a relic from a long bygone age. Let’s make for that tomorrow, and see laws like that in Sweden – and closer to home – reflect our needs now and in the future.▼
nightlife with a variety of queer bars and parties happening on any given night in the Spring Hill and the Valley neighborhoods. The most recent lesbian offering is Mascara, run by lesbian couple Sarah Booker and Tara Rae, who launched the monthly party six months ago. It became an instant hit alongside some of the other queer women parties, such as Vu Du (Vu-Du) promoted by DJ D’Lux. The ladies aren’t outdoing the boys. Nightlife for the guys is thriving, with a plethora of parties of their own and mixed clubs. Gay men head out to Brisbane’s popular clubs Fluffy and Klub Kruise: Men’s Cruise Club, to name two. Brisbane’s gayborhood was an easy 20-minute stroll from our hotel. We walked over and stopped off for a drink at the Wickham Hotel, a popular gay bar, after a day of sightseeing and shopping, and my girlfriend hit the casino. She was excited to find out that Australia has casino stands, called “pokies,” all over the place, as well as casinos in Brisbane and Melbourne. We were pleased to learn that all venues, casinos and bars included, were nonsmoking. As pleasant as Brisbane was, from what our group could tell tourists have barely discovered its charms. Sydney and Melbourne continue to capture non-Australian travelers’ imaginations.
its exquisite botanical and Victorian gardens and some of its religious architecture freely available to the public to enjoy. The center of Melbourne is quite compact, in many ways reminding our group of New Orleans’ French Quarter, with a free train that circles the square. Melbourne is often touted as Australia’s art center, but it’s also just as much a sporty town as it is creative. Melbourne has more than 50 professional and recreational athletic venues throughout the city. Perhaps the athletic nature of the city was amped up due to the hubbub around international cricket matches and the Australian Open, but it definitely had a healthy, sweaty vibe during our visit. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to venture out to explore Melbourne’s LGBT scene, which is spread out throughout the gayfriendly city at a number of hot spots including Chapel Street, Fitzroy, and South Yara, to name a few.
distance to the Darlinghurst neighborhood, Sydney’s gayborhood. On our last night in Australia, we barhopped from the Stonewall Hotel to the Beauchamp (pronounced beacham). We attempted one final nightcap at the Ruby Rabbit, but got there as it was closing.
tiful and easy to use. We rarely took cabs; only when it was pouring rain did we opt for a quick ride back to our hotel.
Melbourne Like Brisbane, Melbourne is also divided by a river, the Yarras, which is lined with restaurants and shops, but it wasn’t as charming. The river was dirty. What the city lacked in a clean water view it made up for in pertinent question: whether Walker should have recused himself from hearing the lawsuit because he is gay and in a committed relationship. Walker never revealed his sexual orientation while overseeing the 2010 trial in the case, though the San Francisco Chronicle outed him months prior to Walker issuing his ruling that August. All three of the appellate panel judges ruled this month that Walker did not have to disclose the information or recuse himself from hearing the case. But Prop 8’s attorneys continue to claim that Walker should not have heard the case because it directly benefits himself and his partner’s ability to marry. “This appeal ought to be resolved without reaching the merits of the constitutional questions it presents, because the district court judge whose judgment is under review was disqualified from presiding. His judgment thus must be vacated and the case remanded to the district court for decision by a new judge,” they contend in their petition for review. Lawyers for the two same-sex couples who filed the lawsuit as well as the San Francisco City Attorney’s office, which is a party to the case, will have a chance to respond to the en banc request prior to the appellate court’s decision to accept it or not.
Sydney Upon our return from Melbourne we finally toured the interior and exterior of the Sydney Opera House. Australia’s most recognizable and celebrated architectural feat with its distinct curved structure symbolizing a lotus blossom took 17 years and $101 million to build. The opera house is made up of three distinct buildings that is home to Sydney’s opera and symphony as well as host to many concerts and theater productions. We took a separate boat tour in Sydney Harbor to circle around the iconic building. Our hotel at the Darling Harbor was once again within walking
Rick Gerharter
Attorney Theodore J. Boutrous Jr.
In a statement issued late Tuesday afternoon, the attorneys made clear they are opposed to the request for review. “We are ready to defend our victory whatever path this case takes,” stated plaintiffs’ attorney Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. “Because our plaintiffs have the right to get married, which both the Federal District Court and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals vindicated, we oppose en banc review and will seek to bring that fundamental right to reality at the earliest possible time for the tens of thousands of Californians who are being denied basic justice, due process and equality.”
Getting to and around Australia Australia’s best-known airline is Qantas, but many others also fly to the country. I flew New Zealand Air, stopping over in Auckland, New Zealand before heading to Sydney. The 13-hour flight from San Francisco to Auckland and three and a half hours to Sydney was comfortable and pleasant. I only wish Virgin Australia was as comfortable and clean. Virgin Australia was disappointingly dirty and expensive. Everything, including water, was only available for purchase. It is advised to skip the economy class for a sleeper car when crossing Australia by train for overnight trips. We made the mistake of going economy on our overnight return trip to Sydney from Melbourne. We arrived in Sydney exhausted and sleepless. It was a completely different experience traveling platinum class across the Outback, according to my girlfriend, who shared her sleeper car room with her travel companion. The chairs converted into beds and passengers were catered to by a personal attendant throughout the journey. No matter how luxurious transportation was or where we went cellular and Internet access was difficult to find and expensive. Every city we visited was walkable and public transportation was plenAnd they called the renewed complaints about Walker a “baseless attempt to impugn [his] reputation.” Should the court agree to en banc review, then the names of the judges who will hear the matter would be drawn by the clerk or a deputy clerk of the court in the presence of at least one judge and shall occur on the first working day following the date of the order granting review. After the en banc court is chosen, the judges on the panel then decide whether to conduct another oral argument session or ask for additional briefing. If there is to be oral argument, the chief judge will schedule the date, time, and location. If there is no call for oral argument then the chief judge will schedule a conference of the en banc court. The entire process can take at least six months, meaning a decision could come as early as August. If the appellate court rejects the en banc request, Prop 8’s backers can then ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case. Both sides have repeatedly said they expect that the case will land before the nation’s highest court. The lawsuit stems from the fight over marriage equality that former San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom jump-started in 2004 when he ordered city officials to marry samesex couples. That action paved the way for City Attorney Dennis Her-
Gwen Smith only vaguely remembers 1972. You can find her online at www.gwensmith.com.
Where we slept We stayed at Hiltons for most of the trip, but we were pleasantly surprised by Swiss Hotel in Sydney, which we booked on a whim for one of our nights in the city. Swiss Hotel was swanky. It was a great experience from the atmosphere to the customer service to the spacious rooms. One thing to be aware of and try not to get confused about when visiting Australia is that bars also have “hotel” in their names due to licensing laws. Another slight difference to get used to when checking in at accommodations in Australia is that the bell desk is usually on the first floor and guests have to travel up to the fourth or sixth floors to get to the registration lobby. An added bonus was that hotels allowed us to check in to our rooms no matter what time we arrived. All of the hotels we stayed at were first rate, with comfortable, modern rooms. Internet access wasn’t included and was expensive at all of the hotels, except for the Four Point Sheraton at Darling Harbor, where Internet was free for guests’ use in the lobby. We liked the Sheraton’s unpretentious atmosphere that was very American, making us feel instantaneously right at home. The accessibility of the hotel to everything in Sydney and excellent customer service only added value to our experience.▼ Geena Dabadghav contributed to this article.
rera to file a historic lawsuit against the state seeking marriage rights for LGBT people. The state Supreme Court ruled in May 2008 that California’s anti-gay marriage statutes were unconstitutional, opening up a four-month window that summer and early fall where thousands of same-sex couples tied the knot. Voters by a slim majority overturned that decision at the voting booth that fall, a crushing defeat for the state’s LGBT community. Shortly after the state Supreme Court upheld the voters’ right to pass Prop 8, the group American Foundation for Equal Rights filed the federal lawsuit in the spring of 2009 with the high-profile legal team of Theodore Olson and David Boies. The lawsuit is named after Berkeley resident Kristin Perry, who has been with her partner, Sandra Stier, for 12 years. The other couple is Los Angeles residents Paul Katami and Jeff Zarillo, who have been together 11 years. The 9th Circuit appellate decision is narrow in scope, so if it were upheld, it would only mean that California could once again begin marrying same-sex couples. And presumably it would mean that voters in states covered by the 9th Circuit could not rescind marriage rights for gays and lesbians at the ballot box.▼