October 07, 2015
Inaugural Black & White Ball TORCHes Tucson
TUCSON -- The inaugural Tucson LGBT Black & White Ball benefiting the Tucson LGBT Freedom Day Parade Committee and Power Source, recognized community leaders and organizations in the Old Pueblo with the Tucson Organization Recognizing Community Help awards. TORCH awards were given to folks who have made
Inside Walking in memory of the uncle I never knew
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Treasuring our #MomentsThatMatter Page 8
Coming Out Week Events Schedule Page 6
Carly Fiorina may set a new standard for lying liars among presidential candidates Page 4
Do I have boobs now? Page 3
Nearly half of HIV-positive Americans aren’t on medication Page 9
Issue 1602
Hillary Clinton promotes gay rights as pillar of 2016 bid
a difference in the LGBTQ community. The black tie affair celebrated – with people dressed to the nines – with food, prizes, a silent auction and dancing. Power Source is an empowerment program designed to provide resources, support and care for women living with HIV/AIDS in Tucson. To contact Power Source call 520-366-3455.
The Old Pueblo celebrates its 38th annual Pride Oct. 17 TUCSON -- This year Tucson Pride will celebrate its 38th consecutive Pride. It’s one of the oldest Pride events in the nation and the first LGBT organization in the state of Arizona. Tucson’s Pride history began with a tragedy -- the killing of a young gay man, Richard Heakin in 1976. Tucson Pride began in 1977, after the mayor and city council voted unanimously to approve a city ordinance Feb. 7, 1977.
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Obama’s initiative hopes to reduce HIV rates 40 percent among girls and young women in 10 subSaharan African nations by the end of 2017.
Obama admin earmarks $300 million to fight HIV among African women
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Man tries to convince girlfriend that ‘all guys’ use Grindr OBSERVER STAFF LONDON, UK -- They say men are gods -- erm, dogs. They’re always looking to get themselves a little sumptonsumpton. And some guys don’t care on which side of the fence they find it.
The first ordinance of its kind in the U.S. reads in-part, “to eliminate prejudice, and discrimination due to sexual orientation in places of public gatherings, in employment and in housing.”
A London woman took to a relationship forum last week to ask if it was “normal” for her boyfriend to be using the gay dating app Grindr.
The first Tucson Pride was attended by 61 people, four dogs, a two foot python and a parrot at Himmel Park. Attendees played guitars, conga drums and ate donated Kentucky Fried Chicken. From this humble beginning Tucson Pride evolved into what we know today. Pride In The Desert is Oct. 17 at Kino Sports Complex.
After finding the app on her long-term boyfriend’s phone, the young woman said that she confronted him and asked why it was on his phone.
A YouGov survey found that almost half of young people in the UK do not define themselves as 100 percent straight.
Her boyfriend told her that it was normal to have the app – and that “all straight guys download it” to “just to see what the app is like.” Continued on page 9
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Drunken passenger pees on neighbors, but then apologizes PORTLAND, Ore. -- "I'm sorry if I got you wet," the drunken airline passenger reportedly said after suddenly waking up, peeing between the seats onto the passengers in front of him, and then toppling backward -- spraying urine over the seats, luggage and passengers within firing range.
OBSERVER “You go with this to the police, they can close his business,” one man tells them. Most of the translators find it impossible to tell the oblivious couple what is written, with many on the verge of tears. Thought up by Spain’s State Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Transsexuals and Bisexuals, the video is part of a campaign calling on people to report homophobic, biphobic and transphobic threats, insults or attacks.
The Associated Press reports that Jeff Rubin, 27, of Gresham, Ore., faces charges of second-degree criminal mischief and "offensive littering" (eeeew!), but hey -- he's famous and his fellow passengers will #NeverForget.
Gay teen disowned, donates money to LGBT youth shelter
Scallywag & Vagabond, which prides itself on being "A dissection of popular culture, arts, fashion, manners, etiquette and the stimulants that accompany them") even described Rubin as a "preferred hawt bixch."
KENNESAW, Ga. -- Daniel AshleyPierce, who captured a candid video of his family disowning him last year, received $95k to start his new life after the video went viral.
Combined with the photo of Rubin accompanying the various versions of this story, we think that means he's a hottie who was lucky to get his pecker put away before he was sexually assaulted midflight.
The video has been seen over 8 million times on YouTube and people came to his aid, donating $95,000 on GoFundMe, giving him a huge amount to start his new life.
If interested: Next time you're anticipating a long, boring flight from Anchorage down to the Lower 48, see if you can get someone to check the passenger list and find out if Rubin has scheduled a repeat performance. Umbrella optional, but we're saying it could be a good idea.
‘PRIDE’ screening at The Loft sponsored by SASP, Wingspan TUCSON – Southern Arizona Senior Pride will co-sponsor a screening of “PRIDE” at The Loft Oct. 12 at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $5. Presented by the Wingspan MultiFaith Working Group this film is based on a true story of the 1984 Welsh coal miners’ strike. A nearby Gay Pride group votes to raise money in support of the miners. The film depicts the evolution of the relationship between these two very different groups.
Tourists get warm reaction after asking locals to translate homophobic letter A real test of someone’s character is how they act when they think no one’s watching. This is exactly why hidden camera social experiments are so poignant. In a video a young American gay couple asks for help translating homophobic directions to their hostel in Spain as they don’t speak Spanish. However, the letter given to the young couple by the landlord is full of violent homophobic threats – leading to many of the local people struggling to tell the couple what it really says. There is a threat to “punch their f**king face” if they are seen kissing, holding hands or being affectionate in the hostel. “It’s better if you go to another hostel, because this one is not very good,” one girl says, unable to tell them what the letter actually says.
Now one year later, Ashley-Pierce was able to find a full time job as a legal assistant, a place to rent, and pay for his medical bills (including the cost of hearing aids) since his parents dropped him from their insurance plan. He also donated thousands to Lost-n-Found Youth, a shelter for homeless LGBTI children. He also began volunteering; working to help kids who find themselves abandoned by the people they thought would look after them. Ashley-Pierce has not seen his family since the night he filmed that video. He says he doesn’t regret that at all.
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part of the story, but my client suffers from obesity, which is covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act,” Clem’s lawyer, David Koller, told The Huffington Post.
Hundreds rescued from South Carolina’s ‘record’ rainfall CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Persistent torrential rainfall in South Carolina caused major flooding on Sunday, turning some suburbs of the city of Charleston into lakes and forcing hundreds of rescues across the state. “This is record. There’s never been a rainfall like this in the city’s history,” Charleston Mayor Joe Riley, told reporters on Sunday morning. Overnight rains flooded highways along the South Carolina coast between Charleston and Georgetown, the National Weather Service said. President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency in South Carolina on Saturday, making federal emergency funds available. More than 17 inches of rain fell the area within 48 hours and more was expected, forecasters said. “We’re recommending that people stay home, but at the same time be very ready to act on calls from emergency officials,” South Carolina Emergency Management Division spokesman Thom Berry said. Inland flooding also hit the state capital, Columbia, as well as Richland and Lexington counties, and areas upstate around Greenville, according to Berry.
Pennsylvania man Four Calif. students allegedly fired arrested for plotting for farting too much mass shooting
TRENTON, N.J. -- Richard Clem is in a stinky situation: His wife filed a lawsuit last month against their former employer who allegedly fired him for farting too much. Clem and his wife, Louann, both worked at Case Pork Roll Company of Trenton, New Jersey. He was fired in Feb, 2014. Louann claims in a court filing that her husband’s termination was a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The suit alleges Dolan made Richard Clem work at home and said things like, “We cannot run an office and have visitors with the odor in the office,” and “Tell Rich we are having complaints from people who have problems with the odors.” “When the suit was filed, I didn’t know it would go viral,” Clem told The Huffington Post. “I was very surprised.” At the time of his hire, Clem weighed about 420 pounds, but underwent gastric bypass surgery in October 2010, to get rid of his own porky belly. Clem lost about 120 pounds. He’s also suffered some side effects, including “extreme gas and uncontrollable diarrhea.” “Flatulence and farting is the sexy
TUOLUMNE, Calif. -- Four northern California students have been arrested for plotting to carry out a shooting at a high school, authorities said. Authorities took four unidentified students into custody after they uncovered their plan to shoot and kill faculty members and students at Summerville High School, the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office said on Oct 3. “The suspects’ plan was very detailed in nature and included names of would be victims, locations and the methods in which the plan was to be carried out,” the sheriff’s department said in a Facebook post. High school officials reported to authorities that three students were planning to carry out an attack. During their investigation, detectives learned that a fourth student was involved in the plot, the sheriff’s office said. The announcement of the arrests came two days after a heavily armed gunman killed nine people at a community college in Oregon, ranking it among the deadliest of dozens of U.S. mass shootings in the past two years. Summerville High School is located in Tuolumne, California, about 140 miles east of San Francisco.
October 07, 2015
Alabama judges use segregation-era law to refuse issuing gay marriage licenses Some judges in Alabama are reportedly using a long-forgotten amendment written in 1961 to prevent mixed-race marriages to get out of the marriage business altogether rather than risk issuing even one wedding license to gays or lesbians. The 54-year-old provision says “Marriage licenses may be issued by the judges of probate of the several counties.” Judges who oppose same-sex marriage say the word “may” as opposed to “shall” gives them an option whether to issue a license or not, the Associated Press explains. Judges in at least nine of Alabama’s 67 counties have quit issuing any marriage licenses to anyone straight or gay since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex unions in June. Judges in three adjoining counties in southwestern Alabama have stopped issuing licenses effectively creating a Continued on next page
1830 E Broadway Blvd #124-215 Tucson, AZ 85719 www.observerweekly.com info@observerweekly.com Voice Mail 520-812-0909 Editor-In-Chief Bob Ellis Executive Editor Nicholas K. M. Pafford Senior Editor Greg Miller Assistant Editor Christine Beall Assistant Editor Christopher L. Pankratz Phoenix Area Distribution T-Media Promotion Send Classifieds, Inquiry Letters, etc to: info@observerweekly.com Publication of names or photos of any person or organization in the Observer Weekly is not to be construed as indication of the sexual orientation of such person, organization or advertisers or any employees thereof. Opinions expressed by contributors, advertisers or in PSA’s are not necessarily those of the Observer, its staff or advertisers. The Observer assumes responsibility for its own editorial policy only. © 2014 by Observer Publications Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted or archived in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Observer Publications Inc.
October 07, 2015 Continued from previous page region in which marriage licenses aren’t available for 78,000 people. An earlier Al Jazeera report published in July this year says at least 17 probate judges have refused to issue same sex marriage licenses despite an order by U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. Granade to do so. The AP notes that no legal action has been initiated against the probate judges.
Joe Biden declares support for trans people in military Vice President Joe Biden praised the LGBT community and declared his support for trans people serving openly in the U.S. military. His supporters say his speech echoed his early endorsement of marriage equality in 2012 – before that of Obama and possible presidential rival Hillary Clinton. Although the White House says Obama supports a Pentagon review aimed at ending the trans ban, neither the president nor the military has confirmed that the policy will be changed.
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GUEST COLUMN
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Do I have boobs now? By Courtney Demone MASHABLE
I’m going to make this awkward for both of us: A few weeks ago, my nipples started to ache. They told me it would hurt, but that didn’t prepare me for the constant dull throbbing and occasional burning sensation I feel when my shirt rubs across my chest the wrong way. As a trans woman on hormone replacement therapy, I’m starting to grow breasts. Despite the pain it causes, it is exciting. I’m going to have boobs! All the changes HRT is having on my body are confirming my identity in ways I never thought possible. I’m starting to feel comfortable in my body in ways I’ve only prayed for and dreamed about. My excitement often bleeds into confusion. Shortly after coming out as a woman and before I had started HRT, I was sunbathing topless in my yard when a roommate asked, “Since you’re a girl now, does that mean I’m not allowed to look at you shirtless anymore?” Though he said it jokingly, that thought stuck with me. The next day I went swimming and left a top on, because as a woman I feel ashamed when my nipples are showing, regardless whether the world sees them as a problem.
“No longer is there any question transgender people are able to serve in the United States military,” Biden told a crowd of 3,000 gay rights activists at the Human Rights Campaign’s annual gala dinner.
When people start to consistently see me as a woman, my privilege to be comfortably topless in public will be gone for good.
Biden – who has yet to announce whether he will run in the 2016 election – went on to declare trans rights to be “the civil rights issue of our time” as he delivered the keynote speech.
People treat you much differently when they see you as a trans woman instead of as a cis man. I already have a long list of privileges lost in transition.
We can challenge that.
Don’t get me wrong, I am remarkably privileged for a trans person: I live in the liberal city of Victoria, BC, Canada; my friends and family have been exceptionally accepting; I have access to resources that make the various expenses of transitioning financially viable (HRT alone can cost up to $150 per month); and my appearance and age (24) mean that I’m already starting to pass as cisgender. On top of that, I’m white, able-bodied and have had access to education. All those privileges will remain intact. Since coming out as a woman, though, I’ve slowly watched my cisgender male privilege evaporate. While having drinks one night, a guy friend told me, “If you really want to be a girl, you should really have a purse. Oh, and your armpit hair is getting a little long.” Before coming out, no one told me
Courtney Demone asks social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, “I’m a trans woman starting hormones -- are you going to censor me?”
how I should look. Hello, image policing. After changing my OKCupid profile picture to a particularly flattering photo, I came home to a few messages. “Can I lick your feet?” said one. “I’d hit it, probably,” said another. One guy actually sent a really nice message, but I didn’t respond because my profile clearly said I wasn’t interested in men. A few days later, he followed up this message: “fucking bitch.” In my years of Internet dating before coming out, I never received messages like this. Goodbye, privilege to not be frequently sexually harassed by strangers. Hello, expectation to engage with every man who approaches me. While walking downtown alone one night, a strange man shouted at me, “Hey baby! Bring that this way!” I ignored him, but eventually he caught up with me. “Where you going? Hey, what the f*ck?! You’re a dude! You ain’t fooling anyone, faggot.” This situation plays out almost every weekend, and the more feminine I appear, the more frequent and threatening the abuse. Goodbye, privilege to feel safe in public spaces. Prior to coming out as a woman, I probably felt legitimately threatened or disrespected a handful of times in my life. Now, it happens almost every time I leave the house.
way too loud in my rental car. I still treat others with the same care and respect I always have. I haven’t changed much, but society’s perception of me has changed immensely. I didn’t lose my ability to walk around at night feeling safe once I started identifying as a woman. It happened at some arbitrary point when men found me attractive enough at a distance to approach me. It’s my femininity, not my being transgender, that has brought about much of this privilege loss, and it’s misogyny that robs women of these privileges. After all of this loss of privilege, not being able to be comfortably topless in public might not seem important. While it certainly doesn’t have as big an effect on my life as overt harassment, it’s a clear example of the sexism that comes with living in a female body. So at what point in my breast development do I need to start covering my nipples? I already feel shameful about them being visible, but at what point does society say it’s unacceptable for them to be out? To give me some idea, I have my good friends Facebook and Instagram to help answer that question.
This change happened slowly, proportional to my perceived femininity. First, Facebook started showing me ads for estheticians instead of Dollar Shave Club, then I stopped being “buddy” and started being “hun,” and now I’m starting to get regularly harassed on the streets.
With the #FreeTheNipple campaign, women all over social media have been flooding Facebook and Instagram with topless photos, photoshopping men’s nipples onto their own and wearing swimsuits with images of bare breasts on the outside, all to protest the censorship of women’s bodies on social media.
Sure, I put on makeup and different clothes now, and my body and voice is changing slightly, but most everything else about me has stayed very much the same. I’m still a designer, writer and activist. I still bump Kendrick Lamar
#FreeTheNipple has demonstrated the sexism, hypersexualization and absurdity behind society’s scandalization of women’s nipples in a way everyone can clearly observe and understand. Continued on page 5
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Carly Fiorina may set a new standard for lying liars among presidential candidates
WEEKLY
October 07, 2015
Obama admin earmarks $300 million to fight HIV among African women
Fiorina insists she's known the world over as a management whiz. What's actually known is that HP shed 30,000 employees and shrank considerably while she was in charge, and Compaq didn't fare a whole lot better.
By R.D. Smith GUEST COLUMNIST Carly Fiorina, lately posing as the angriest of the Republican prezidunces, bases her campaign on hating Planned Parenthood while the group that controls her Fiorina Foundation has donated nearly half a million dollars to Planned Parenthood in the past four years. Except that the Fiorina Foundation isn't registered with the state of California nor with the IRS, which means if the Fiorina Foundation actually exists, it does so illegally. Oopsie. Not that this is a bigger fraud than the 15 or so other phlegm-wads claiming to be GOP presidential material. And this lying is aside from Fiorina's insistence that a patched-up video proves criminal activity on the part of Planned Parenthood, even after the people who faked the video admitted it has nothing to do with PP. But about the "foundation": The San Francisco Chronicale discovered five years ago, during Fiorina's flop of a U.S. Senate race against Barbara Boxer, that the foundation didn't really exist. Olivia Nuzzi of The Daily Beast wrote this week that she contacted Fiorina's presidential campaign to ask what had happened with the foundation in the past five years and got the response, "What foundation?" Oopsie. The least you can do, if you're managing somebody's presidential campaign, is find out what lies she told in her last campaign and be prepared to deflect questions about them. With Fiorina, that could be a project. In the Senate campaign, her website described her as "one of the most recognized business leaders in the world and an opinion leader" (an assessment nobody not on her payroll
seems foolhardy enough to agree with) who "believes in giving back" as "chairman of the Fiorina Foundation," an entity of whose existence no evidence seems to exist -- even five years later. What the "Fiorina Foundation" is, Nuzzi reported, is the name on a "donor-advised fund" account that Fiorina and her husband have with The Ayco Charitable Foundation, through which they distribute undisclosed sums to undisclosed recipients at undisclosed times. In other words, they may or may not be contributing to charities through the account. A "donor-advised fund" is a place to park money that's earmarked for donation at some point in the future, while you get to claim the tax deduction in the present. The assets could remain there for generations without anyone knowing, since these funds are not publicly accountable. They also don't have a "chairman" -- they're managed by the entity that oversees them. The Ayco outfit, which oversees Fiorina's, is a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs ... where "charity" is not exactly their middle name. But Ayco isn't even Fiorina's closest brush with abortion funding. She reportedly was (as in REALLY was) the chair of Good360 from 2012 to 2015, and BuzzFeed has reported that in 2013, Good360 donated $18,022 to the Abortion Access Network of Arizona, part of the National Network of Abortion Funds. But, you see, while she was chairing Good360, Fiorina wasn't running for president in a party that ran off the rails 10 years ago and hasn't found its way back. Pre-campaign was a different world. It's no exaggeration to say we don't know what the hell she's likely to say before this is over.
OBSERVER STAFF WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Obama administration has announced it is establishing a $300 million ambitious program to slash the rate of infection among African women 15 to 24 years old by 25 percent before the end of 2016, and by 40 percent by the end of 2017. “No greater action is needed right now than empowering adolescent girls and young women to defeat HIV/AIDS,” National Security Adviser Susan Rice said in a written statement. These aggressive new targets represent the next phase for the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, a program originally launched by President George W. Bush but expanded under Obama’s administration. To date, PEPFAR is credited with saving millions of lives in Africa. The current goals were released ahead of a U.N. summit on development
goals for ending poverty around the world. According to the administration, more than 1,000 adolescent girls and young women become HIV-positive every day — that’s 380,000 every year. The HIV prevention efforts targeting young woman will focus on 10 countries that have accounted for nearly half of all new HIV infections among girls and young women in 2014. Those nations are Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Funds for the program had already been allocated to PEPFAR but are reportedly being repurposed. The administration also announced new treatment targets, including the goal of getting nearly 13 million people on antiretroviral treatment by the end of 2017.
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Do I have Walking in memory of the uncle I never knew boobs now? Fireside Chat
By Wendell Hicks Executive Director SAAF
Continued from page 3 However, #FreeTheNipple has failed to show the diverse ways in which people with differing bodies are sexualized, fetishized, and shamed. It has also failed to recognize that baring her nipples doesn’t mean freedom for every woman. To further explore those ideas and examine these same issues through the experiences of people with different bodies, #FreeTheNipple needs to be pushed beyond narrow definitions of femininity.
AIDSWALK Tucson is celebrating its 27th anniversary on Oct. 11. Over the next few weeks, I will feature first-person accounts from participants about why they Walk. AIDSWALK is the Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation’s flagship event and largest annual fundraising initiative. To learn more about this year’s Walk, to register, or to support a Walker, please visit www.aidswalktucson.com By Anna Jean White For me, AIDSWALK is more than just another fundraiser. AIDSWALK is so important to me because my Uncle Louis died of AIDS in 1992 at age 35, a decade before I was born. My uncle is an inspiration to me to this day even though I never met him. Like me, he was a ballet dancer and he performed in New York City. My mom tells me that dance was my uncle’s joy in life, and just like me, my uncle Louis felt free when he was dancing. Louis is the main reason that I walk; to honor him, to remember him, and to be part of a community of people who care about those affected by this disease. I don’t just walk to honor and remember my uncle. I walk to change people’s lives. I know that SAAF helps the people in need with HIV/AIDS that are right here in southern Arizona. All the money that I raise, that all the Walkers raise, goes straight to the people in need. I have been walking and raising money for SAAF since I was four years old so this is my 10th year of walking and supporting SAAF. I love walking and being part of a community of people who care. I love the day of the walk, the positive energy, the tremendous amount of people who show up to support those affected by HIV/AIDS. I still remember my first Walk. I was only four years old. At that age I didn’t
Above: Anna Jean White stretches in preparation to last year’s AIDSWALK. Inset: Anna with Anna Pavlova, that she adopted from the Humane Society and is named after one of her Uncle Louis’ favorite ballerinas.
fully understand what AIDS was or how exactly this disease happened. The only thing I knew was that it had taken my uncle and I didn’t want anyone else to be taken by this disease. So at four years old, I got up early, tied my little shoelaces and went walking down to the university campus. For me, everything was very exciting, the crowds, the balloons, the camera crews -- it was all pretty amazing. I knew these were all people who cared about helping save lives and not letting people die from the same thing my Uncle Louis had died from and that’s all that mattered to me. Through the years I went on to open the ceremonial quilts and one year my Uncle Louis’ quilt was even featured. I also was a speaker at the age of ten during the opening ceremony. I wrote my speech and then rehearsed it nonstop for about a month before the Walk. Standing in front of the crowd gave me a rush of happiness, I felt like I was making a difference and it was an amazing honor. AIDSWALK has been
a way for me to stay connected to an uncle I never met, a way for me to help save lives. I am so excited for this year’s AIDSWALK as I will be bringing my new dog, Anna Pavlova, that I adopted from the Humane Society. She is named after one of my Uncle Louis’ favorite ballerinas. Ballet is a large part of my life and I would be so happy if my uncle were here to see me dance. But he is gone because of AIDS and that is why I Walk -- because I don’t want anyone else to have to wonder what it would be like if they hadn’t lost an uncle, brother, sister, parent, child, grandparent, friend, partner or any loved one to AIDS. I Walk because I want to save lives in southern Arizona and by doing this I am honoring the uncle that I never met, my Uncle Louis, my dance inspiration. To support Anna Jean’s Walk directly, visit: www.firstgiving.com/ fundraiser/annajean-white/aidswalktucson-2015
In the coming months, I’ll be posting topless photos of myself on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms using the hashtag #DoIHaveBoobsNow until those networks decide that my breasts have developed enough to be sexualized and worthy of censorship. (If they change their policies in the meantime, even better!) At the same time, I will be writing monthly articles on Mashable to talk about my own experiences as my femininity is increasingly recognized by society. Since experiencing sexualization and misogyny is new to me, my friend and co-author Cynthia Williams will help deconstruct society’s changing attitude toward me and my body. We want to hear your stories, too. Whether you are transgender, have had a mastectomy, are bigger-bodied, are breastfeeding, have a disability, have scarring, are a person of color, or have a unique view from a unique body, we want you to help challenge oppressive censorship policies and share your experiences of your own body. Using the #DoIHaveBoobsNow or #FreeAllBodies tag, write about your own experiences and/or post your own photos, topless or not. You can check out our Facebook and Tumblr pages where we will be sharing our own stories and the stories we receive from you. Our bodies and our stories are unique and amazing. Let’s celebrate them and free them from unwanted sexualization and shame!
Where God's love for all is the good news!
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Community Voices
October 07, 2015 OBSERVER WEEKLY Hillary Clinton promotes gay rights as pillar of 2016 bid
Treasuring our #MomentsThatMatter
By Lisa Lerer ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON, D.C. — Hillary Rodham Clinton on Saturday delivered the strongest speech in support of gay rights in the 2016 presidential race promising that ending discrimination against gay, lesbian and transgender people would be a central pillar of her administration.
By Scott Blades Executive Director TIHAN Tucson will be celebrating National Latino AIDS Awareness Day on Oct. 15. I’ve invited the chair of NLAAD Tucson to write the Community Voices column this week to tell you about this very important event. By Andrés Cano NLAAD TUCSON, CHAIR For the last 12 years, close to a dozen community partners have come together to commemorate National Latino AIDS Awareness Day on Oct. 15. The need to commemorate this day is great: in Pima County, one in four new cases of HIV affect Latino communities. I’m proud of our committee’s latest endeavor to prevent and treat HIV in southern Arizona’s Latino families. We’re in the second year of our #MomentsThatMatter campaign, encouraging Latinos to reflect on their commitment to their loved ones, and to take ownership of their health by getting tested and treated for HIV. Like most families, Latino families have lots of moments that matter: birthdays, graduations, quinceañeras -the list goes on. In the coming weeks, be on a look out for these moments in our
campaign’s bus benches and shelter displays, targeted advertisements in digital and print media, and listen in for our bilingual radio ads on Tejano 1600AM and iHeartRadio. If you want to share a photo of your #MomentsThatMatter, email us at nlaadtucson@gmail.com. Join us at our free, 13th Annual National Latino AIDS Awareness Day Community Dinner & Conversation on Oct. 15 at the historic Pima County Courthouse, 115 N. Church Ave. The reception hosted by COPE Community Services, Inc. begins at 5:30 p.m. and the dinner and program start at 6:30 p.m. There will be HIV education, traditional Mexican food, aguas frescas, mariachis, and folkorico dancers. It will be a great night, please join us. To RSVP, call (520) 724-8763. The mission of the National Latino AIDS Awareness Day Committee is to live in a world where Latinos talk openly about their sexual health with their families and partners. Community partners include the Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation, Pima County, Pima Community College, Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network, League of United Latin American Citizens, COPE Community Services, Inc., Amistades, Inc., National Community Health Partners, and El Rio Community Health Center.
“I see the injustices and the dangers that you and your families still face,” she told hundreds of gay activists at the annual meeting of the Human Rights Campaign. “I’m running for president to stand up for the fundamental rights of LGBT Americans.” She added: “That’s a promise from one HRC to another.” The statement marked a remarkable evolution for Clinton, who opposed same-sex marriage for more than two decades in public life as first lady, senator and presidential candidate. As recently as this year, Clinton said that while she personally supported gay marriage, the issue was best left for states to decide — a position held by most of the Republican presidential field.
Since then, Clinton has placed equal rights at the forefront of her campaign, in part a reflection of the growing political and financial strength of the gay community in Democratic politics. Vice President Joe Biden, who is considering a 2016 run, gave the keynote address to the group’s star-studded dinner, where he called transgender rights “the civil rights issue of our time” and issued the Obama administration’s most unequivocal statement of support to date for allowing transgender people to serve openly in the U.S military. As he spoke to the crowd of 3,000, he was interrupted by a loud shout of “You should run.” “There’s homophobes still left. Most of them are running for president,” Biden said, in a pointed jab at the Republican White House hopefuls. Clinton, in her appearance, said she has been “fighting alongside you and others for equal rights and I’m just getting warmed up.” As activists chanted her name, she promised to work to pass legislation that would end discrimination, lower costs for HIV treatment and stop funding Continued on page 10
October 07, 2015
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Man tries to convince Nearly half of HIVgirlfriend that ‘all positive Americans guys’ use Grindr aren’t on medication By Jacob Anderson-Minshall HIV PLUS MAGAZINE
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A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics suggests that nearly half of all American adults living with HIV aren’t on antiretroviral medications. It’s these medications that turn HIV from a death sentence into a manageable chronic condition. And not being on antiretroviral therapy doesn’t just harm the person with HIV; studies have shown that those on ART are less likely to pass the virus on to their sexual partners. “Based on what we know nowadays, everyone who’s HIV-positive should be on therapy,” Dr. Carlos del Rio, codirector of the Center for AIDS Research at Emory University told Health Day. The report, authored by Dr. Joseph Woodring and based on a survey of more than 10,000 people between 2007 and 2012, found that 0.39 percent of people aged 18 to 59 living in U.S. households were HIV-positive. Of those, only 52 percent were on antiretroviral medication. “This highlights the challenges we have ahead because we have such an unequal epidemic.” del Rio added. “HIV is a concentrated epidemic, and does not affect people equally.” The study shows HIV infection rates continue to be elevated among people considered to be at higher risk. People with more than 10 sexual partners in their lifetime had a 0.68 percent rate of infection. Men who had sex with other men had a 7.7 percent rate (versus 0.17 percent of men who reported no sexual contact with other men). Men remain more likely to be HIV-positive than women and African Americans continue to have the highest rate of HIV at 1.6 percent; in fact blacks have an HIV rate seven times higher than any other racial or ethnic group. Those numbers reflect “the enormous disparity” in the HIV epidemic, del Rio said. Dr. David Margolis, an HIV specialist at the University of North
“So the other day I found out that my boyfriend of like four years had downloaded Grindr (shamefully I was looking through his phone),” she wrote.
If recent studies are to be believed, then the boyfriend’s curiosity should hardly come as much of a surprise – especially as the pair is so young.
“He didn’t have a profile or anything but I confronted him and he told me that he looked as a joke and that all guys look up weird stuff like this.”
In August, a YouGov survey found that almost half of young people in the UK do not define themselves as 100 percent straight.
“He said it was ‘just to see what the app was like’ but that he is not gay or curious in any way,” she added.
YouGov asked 1632 people to plot themselves on a Kinsey scale of sexuality, from 0 (exclusively heterosexual) to six (exclusively homosexual).
“Is the whole ‘all guys look at it’ thing true, should I trust him, or should I try to talk to him more about it? Kind of freaking out and really confused.” Carolina at Chapel Hill, told Health Day the findings weren’t surprising; acknowledging there has been “little progress in getting diagnosis and care to enough of the affected populations.” Del Rio said that the fact that 48 percent of HIV-positive people hadn’t taken antiretroviral medications within the last month indicates a huge disparity between reality and the goals of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/ AIDS. The international organization hopes by the year 2020 that 90 percent of those who are HIV-positive know their status, 90 percent of those who have been diagnosed as HIV-positive are on antiretroviral medications, and 90 percent of those on treatment have no detectable viral loads. Eli Rosenberg, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, cautioned that the survey wasn’t all encompassing and relied on a relatively small number of HIV-positive respondents. Still, Rosenberg admited, “What’s clear is that the number of people not receiving effective therapy is high and at levels we should not tolerate as a society that cares about the medical state of its people.”
Understandably, many others on the forum did not believe the boyfriend’s explanation. “A straight man isn’t going to go near that app,” wrote one user. “He is curious at exploring his sexuality. He might have used it, he might not of, but he is curious.” Another was a little more blunt, writing: “All guys who are cruising for dick do it.”
The results showed just 46 percent of young people asked would rank themselves as 0 (exclusively heterosexual) – compared to 49 percent who picked something else. A UK LGBTI website, PinkNews, asked 300 guys on Grindr where they are on the Kinsey scale – and the results were rather surprising. Despite the stigma sometimes attached to bisexual men on the app, more people identified as fives than sixes – with plenty of fours and threes also on the app.
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As Clark Saw It
October 07, 2015 OBSERVER WEEKLY By Gary Clark Hillary Clinton promotes gay rights as pillar of 2016 bid Continued from page 8 child welfare agencies that discriminate against gay parents. She committed to pushing equal rights in the military, including for transgender people. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has said the Pentagon’s current regulations banning transgender individuals from serving in the military are outdated. He has ordered a study aimed at ending one of the last genderor sexuality-based barriers to military service.
Zoe’s World
By Zoe
“I’m really here to say thank you for your hard work and your courage and for insisting that right is right,” she said. “You helped change a lot of minds. Including mine.” Clinton backed her husband’s Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, and said in a Senate speech in 2004 that marriage between a man and a woman was a “fundamental bedrock principle.” In 2007, she dodged when asked whether she agreed with a statement from the then-Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman that homosexuality was immoral.
Clinton’s remarks, particularly on the transgender issue, were some of the strongest in the presidential campaign. “We need to say with one voice that transgender people are valued,” she said. “They are loved and they are us.”
But like much of the Democratic Party and the country, her position shifted in recent years. As secretary of state, Clinton said at a 2011 conference in Geneva that “gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights.”
This summer, her campaign jumped on the U.S. Supreme Court’s watershed same-sex marriage decision, changing Clinton’s red campaign logo to a rainbow colored H, releasing a video of gay wedding ceremonies and sending supportive tweets.
She referenced that statement two years later when she released a video saying she backed gay marriage “personally, and as a matter of policy and law.” In April, her campaign released a statement voicing her support for making gay marriage a constitutional right.
Clinton said Saturday that the court’s decision could be overturned, should a Republican win the White House next year and appoint conservative justices.
But as recently as a year ago, she was still struggling to explain her switch in position.
The Human Rights Campaign made its first presidential endorsement in 1992, backing Bill Clinton, and Hillary Clinton cast herself as a champion for their cause. In 2008, the group stayed out of the primary fight, siding with thenIllinois Sen. Barack Obama a day before Clinton dropped out of the race. Clinton credited the organization with influencing her views.
“You are trying to say that I used to be opposed and now I am in favor and I did it for political reasons,” she said, in a tense exchange last June with NPR’s Terry Gross. “That’s just flat wrong.” Her pivot on the issue may give her primary opponents a chance to broadcast their liberal credentials, allowing them to point out that they came to the right side of history years before Clinton. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a 2016 rival, voted against the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act when he was in the House. His home state was the first to legalize same-sex unions in 2000 and gay marriage through legislative action in 2009 — both efforts Sanders backed. This spring, he told the Washington Blade that he’d make a point to talk about transgender issues during his campaign. “All I can say is I think I have one of the strongest, if not the strongest record, in the United States Congress on LGBT issues,” Sanders said a May interview. “My record speaks for itself, and I will compare it to any candidate who is out there.” Biden won praise by endorsing gay marriage ahead of the 2012 election and became the highest elected official to support what was then a highly charged political issue. Obama followed soon after.
October 07, 2015
Monday BRODIES TAVERN - Service Industry Night 7 p.m.- 2 a.m. $2.50 House Well, Long Islands, Margaritas on Tap, $3 16 oz. BudBud Light-Mic Ultra Cans, Fireball Shots. IBT’s 11a.m.-2a.m. Taking Back Mondays hosted by Diva featuring *3-4-1 Well Vodkas (Regular, Grape & Cherry) 9 - Close. Karaoke Inside or Lounge on the Patio 9 p.m. VENTURE-N Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.
Friday BRODIES TAVERN - Get the Party Started Friday 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. $3 Malibu Rum Black-House Long Islands-Pucker Vodka, Margaritas on tap-XX Pints IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., Flawless Fridays featuring “Absolutely Flawless” Drag Show hosted by China Collins @ 9 p.m. DJ Import Inside after the show, Million$DJ on the Patio 9pm. GoGo Boys @11p.m. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.
OBSERVER WEEKLY
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Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
BRODIES TAVERN - Two Buck Tuesday 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. $ 2 House Well, Fire Eater Shots, $2 Margaritas on Tap, $2 Long Islands IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m.; Taco Tuesdays. $1 Tacos. Drink Specials 9-Close: Mix-n-Match Mexican Beer Special, Tequila Specials (Patron $6, Milagro $4.50, Hornitos $4, Cuervo $3.50), Million$DJ Inside 9 p.m. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.
BRODIES TAVERN - Whiskey Wednesday 7-2 a.m. $3.25 Jack-Jim Beam-JamesonFireball-Makers Mark-Johnny Walker Red IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., “Viva La Diva” Drag Show Hosted by Diva at 9. “Whiskey Breath” Drink Special Every Wednesday 9-Close. $2 Well, $3 Call, $4 Select Top Shelf Whiskey and Scotch Blend Whiskies. Million$DJ Inside after the drag show. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.Dave’s $3.50 Margaritas and Long Island Iced Teas
BRODIES TAVERN - Customer Appreciation 7-2 a.m. Two-for-One Well-Domestic Bottles, Margaritas on Tap House Kasiz Shots IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m. Therapy every Thursday. All Day *2-4-1 Drink Specials (excludes top shelf, wine & draft). Million$DJ Inside at 9 p.m., DJ Sid the Kid on the Patio 9 p.m. GoGo Boys @11 p.m. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm. 4.00 Titos/Absolut, Cosmos/Martis from Dan G
Saturday
Sunday
BRODIES TAVERN - Back Pocket Sabado Latino 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. $3 Magaritas on tap-Corona Bottles, $3.25 Latin Beers-XX Micheladas, $1 Tequila Shots-Corona Ritas IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., Karaoke on the Patio 5 - 8 p.m., “Saturday Night Starlettes” drag show Hosted by Janee Starr 9pm, Million$DJ on the Patio 9 p.m., DJ Import Inside after the drag show. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi
Ajia Simone, Owner 426 E. Ninth St. 520.624.8400
BRODIES TAVERN - Funday 7 p.m. - 2 p.m. $2.50 House Well, $3 House Long Islands, Tap Magaritas, $1 House Kasiz Shots, $1.75 Domestic Pints IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., Karaoke 4-8:30 p.m. “Cheap Ass Sunday’s” 9-Close feat. 2-4-1 Drinks and Bottle Beer (exclude top shelf, wine & draft), Karaoke Inside 9pm; DJ Sid the Kid on the patio 9 p.m. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi
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Classy
OBSERVER
Do you need a sassy ginger lady in your life? Classy is feisty and sweet, calm and playful, gorgeous and affectionate! She’s three years old, and needs to be an only kitty—as this redheaded girl doesn’t want to share. She loves to play, especially with wand toys, and when she’s done, she’ll nap on the highest point, so she can supervise us humans as we go about our day.
WEEKLY
October 07, 2015