SGN February 27, 2015 - Section 1

Celebrating 41 Years!

Issue 9 Volume 43

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Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

SGN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW:

City Council member Sally Clark

Community Forum on anti-LGBTQ attacks to be held March 3

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Seattle City Council member and District 3 candidate Kshama Sawant has announced an upcoming forum on LGBTQrelated hate crime on Capitol Hill, March 3 at 7 p.m. in Broadway’s All Pilgrims Church (500 Broadway E at E. Republican St. According to the Town Hall description posted on www.Seattle.gov:

City Council member Sally Clark will not seek re-election – FLICKRR/GREGG PHIPPS

Clark and her City Council colleague Tom Rasmussen, who is also stepping down, were the openly LGBT members of the Council, and their retirement leaves a void Sally Clark is the third veteran Seattle in city government that may be hard to fill.

City Council member to announce she will “I hope we see some compelling LGBT not seek reelection.

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

see clark page 4

“There has been a surge in hate crimes on Capitol Hill. This is outrageous! Our community has long been a bastion of the LGBTQ struggle – not a place where we can’t even feel safe walking home at night.

We need real, concrete solutions. This could mean increased support for community patrols and better access to neighborhood services. It could also mean addressing gentrification and skyrocketing rents.

Join Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant at a community meeting.

We’ll hear testimony from those directly affected on the Hill, and bring LGBTQ activists together with human service providers, housing justice advocates, and public safety representatives.

Let’s find bold and lasting solutions to

address this crisis. Join the struggle!”

The Seattle Gay News has endorsed this community forum alongside several other LGBTQ organizations, neighborhood business chambers and other supporters that believe more needs to be done to stop the rise in anti-LGBTQ sentiment and attacks on the Hill.

One of those organizations is Social Outreach Seattle (SOSea), of which I am founder and president. SOSea was born out of the marriage equality fight in Washington state and has since grown to produce the annual Latin LGBTQ Pride festival Orgullo, plan and co-produce the annual Art Music Dance Entertainment Fashion (AMDEF) showcase, and more. We work, primarily, on issues that impact the Capitol Hill neighborhood directly. In particular, since December of 2012, we’ve been a leader in the anticrime movement in the neighborhood.

We believe that “Our Neighborhood Belongs to Us, Not Crime!”

The problems that plague Capitol Hill aren’t as simple as some would have you believe. However, they are not as difficult either. Criminals can be apprehended and see Communit y page 4

New support for same- Historic labor forum on Trans workers’ rights sex families Feds and City expand family leave rights

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Seattle’s same-sex families got a double dose of good news as both the federal government and the City of Seattle announced new family leave rules.

Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez announced on February 24 that the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) would now apply to people in “legal, same-sex marriages, regardless of where they live,” so that samesex spouses “will have the same rights as those in opposite-sex marriages to care for a spouse.”

The Department of Labor will now apply what is called a “place of celebration” rule

– if you got married in a state where samesex marriage is legal, but now reside in one where it’s not, the Labor department will still recognize your marriage.

That means, among other things, that you would qualify under FMLA to take time off to care for a new child or a sick partner.

Under FMLA, public and private sector employees are entitled to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in any 12-month period.

After the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down DOMA, Perez explained in a statement, President Obama directed all federal agencies “to identify every law, rule, policy and practice in which marital status is a relevant consideration, expunge the discriminatory effects of DOMA and ensure that committed and loving married couples throughout the country receive equal treatment by the federal government.”

Accordingly, Perez said, the Labor department has revised its rules to give samesex spouses the same rights as opposite-sex spouses, regardless of their place of residence. With the new rule change, the Social Security Administration remains the only major federal agency that still applies the “place of residence” rule denying benefits to couples who live in states where same-sex marriage is not recognized. see FMLA page 12

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

“What we’re doing will change lives – guaranteed!” Ingersoll Gender Center founder Marsha Botzer told a gathering of labor activists on February 12. “It will change lives – it might even save a life.”

Botzer was speaking at a first-of-its-kind forum on Transgender workers’ rights, hosted by the Washington State Labor Council at its new Jackson Street headquarters.

Sixty labor leaders and rank and file activists came together for a presentation by Botzer and Ingersoll board member and SEIU 775 staffer Heather Villanueva, followed by discussion.

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray kicked off the evening with a statement of support and a story about fighting for Transgender protections in his LGBT civil rights legislation, which ultimately passed in 2006.

More still needs to be done, Murray added.

“This is the side of the mountain,” the Mayor said. “The view is incredible, we’ve come a long way, but it’s not the top of the mountain.”

Botzer shared her experience transitioning as a member of the Plumbers and Pipefitters Union. “My union brothers and sisters were there for me, they supported me,” she said, “so this labor forum is very personal.”

In their presentation, Botzer and Vil-

lanueva highlighted the challenges faced by Trans workers: • 72% report harassment on the job.

• 21% report being fired because of their status.

• 10% say they have been evicted from their homes because of their gender identity.

• 14% of Trans people are unemployed, double the rate for the general population.

• 28% of Trans people of color are unemployed.

Nevertheless, 78% of all Transgender workers report feeling more comfortable at work after coming out.

The challenge for organized labor is to protect Trans workers after they do come out, and that will require appropriate contract language and an understanding of how to resolve problems in a way that makes Trans workers feel safe and supported on the job.

Unfortunately, while most union contracts protect sexual orientation, many do not explicitly protect Trans workers. Nevertheless, union leaders expressed a desire to address the needs of their Trans members at work and in the larger society. This forum for union leaders was designed to begin a conversation about how to do that.

It was attended by WSLC President Jeff Johnson and WSLC Secretary-Treasurer Lynne Dodson, as well as officers and staff of a number of local unions. Several participants expressed a desire to host similar events for their locals.

2 Seattle Gay News

February 27, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

Barronelle Stutzman’s action is sheer arrogance To the Editor: There’s nothing humble about civil defendant Barronelle Stutzman, owner of Arlene’s Flowers, in Richland, WA. Her failed civil disobedience to Washington’s civil rights statutes, in refusing to do business with a Richland Gay couple, who were planning their lawful wedding, is sheer arrogance, under color of religion.

The Seattle Times editorial quoted from a 1878 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Reynolds v. United States. Let me quote from a much more contemporary Supreme Court decision, Employment Div., Dept. of Human Services of Oregon v. Smith (1990), where Justice Scalia wrote, for a unanimous (9-0) Court, “We have never held that an individual’s beliefs excuse him from compliance with an otherwise valid law prohibiting conduct that the State is free to regulate. ...the record of more than a century of our free exercise jurisprudence contradicts that

“NOT GIVING A SHIT”

by Michael Raitt SGN Contributing Writer “I excel at not giving a shit!” This is one of my favorite quotes (from the pilot of the series, “Dead Like Me”). It reminds me that, by changing our perspective, we can change the effects that judgments have on us.

We are subjected to judgments all day long and we started being judged from almost the moment we were born. We are judged at work, by strangers we pass, our families and friends judge us, and we judge ourselves. A fundamental component of popular reality shows is how people are judged. We cannot get around judgment, yet we do have to be aware of how judgment impacts us.

A common pattern that I have noticed in most people is their fear of being judged by others. In the GLBTQ community, some men and women stay in the closet for years because they fear being judged by their families and communities. It is common for a number of adults to feel as though they are being judged when they go into a social situation so this fear keeps them at home.

Most of us have experienced the “fear of

Visit us online www.sgn.org

proposition. ...the right of free exercise does not relieve an individual of the obligation to comply with a ‘valid and neutral law of general applicability on the ground that the law proscribes (or prescribes) conduct that his religion prescribes (or proscribes).’”

Ms. Stutzman is not fighting for freedom of religion. She’s advocating license of religion. The latter is sheer arrogance.

Sincerely, Steven L. Kendall Seattle

rejection” – nothing more than the fear of judgment in the specific context of showing your interest to another. For certain individuals, the experience of being judged by others can create anxiety and depression.

Anxiety and depression is fueled also when an individual judges him or herself.

People who judge themselves are hyperaware of everything they say and do. They critique themselves ruthlessly and these harsh critiques start to form how people see themselves. For example, if you are worried about saying the wrong thing, you may say little. You become aware that you are saying little and begin to think you are a “loser” because you are too nervous to speak. Seeing yourself as a loser is a component of depression and your anxiety is high because of your worry.

My experience says that one of the best ways to combat the impact of judgments is to become aware of how judgments impact you and then combat this impact by caring less about these judgments. If we put a high value on what others think of us, their judgments will have greater impact on us. Likewise, when we “care-less,” we are impacted less.

We all know people who have the “careless” perspective. We see them go out with their own style and an air of confidence.

We see them walk up to people and introduce themselves to others. My “care-less” perspective is active when I go out to res-

taurants by myself. Many people I know say they would never go eat in a restaurant alone because they would be afraid of what others would think seeing them there eating at a table by themselves. I could care-less. I eat out at restaurants by myself all the time because I enjoy it (and I’d starve to death otherwise as I’m a terrible cook)! I am not judging myself nor am I allowing the real or perceived judgments of others to negatively impact me.

Having a “care-less” attitude does not mean you don’t care at all. It means literally what it says – to care less. It is appropriate to put some weight on what others think in certain circumstances. When you decide how and when you are impacted by judgments (of your own or by others), you will likely find that some of the anxiety and depression you are feeling will decrease.

“Not giving a shit” embodies the sentiment of caring less. Practice that perspective. See what happens in your life and how you feel when you are in charge of the value you put on the judgments you experience.

February 27, 2015

Seattle Gay News 3

Michael Raitt, MA LMHC, is a therapist and a contributing writer to the SGN. If you would like to comment on this column, have a question you’d like him to write about, or would like to suggest another topic of interest, please contact him at Michael.Raitt@comcast.net.

clark

continued from cover candidates emerge,” Clark told SGN. “I don’t know about this year, but by 2017, or even 2019. It’s not too soon to be working on a run in 2019.”

Clark warned that potential LGBT candidates should be prepared for the rigors of politics.

“You have to make some sacrifices to run, and more if you’re elected. What you say will be scrutinized more. Your brain will still be busy with City business when you’re at home with your family.

“Some folks – it’s just not for them. But it’s really important to have our voices out there.”

In any case, Clark adds, LGBT activists are already engaged in local politics, whether they are in office or not.

“So many of our activists are from the LGBT community. Not just for strictly LGBT issues, but people who are advocates for housing, or human services, or transportation. Or geeky stuff like smart services.”

Clark says it’s hard to foresee what the City Council will look like next year, with three veterans gone and Council members now representing districts rather the whole City.

“There are some really eager and smart people running,” she says. “The new people will be focused on what policy means for their districts…

“But if you want a bigger thing done you have to look beyond your district boundaries. That’s what takes time and effort – talking to people and figuring out what you have in common and how you can move forward.

“Let’s say you’re interested in public transportation. Can you meet with people in Kirkland and figure out how to design bus service that will benefit the whole region?”

Appointed to fill a vacant seat when Jim Compton resigned in 2006, Clark was elected for full four-year terms in 2007 and 2011.

Asked what accomplishments she’s most proud of in her nine-year career, Clark looks

thoughtful.

“Tom [Rasmussen] and I were on the Board of Health – Tom’s no longer there, but now it’s chaired by [openly Gay County Council member] Joe McDermott – and we worked hard to ensure that the LGBT community got access to quality services.

“That health care providers met cultural competency standards. That there was outreach for HIV education and prevention.

That Transgender healthcare coverage is appropriately addressed. That we have allgender restrooms in City facilities.

“Housing affordability,” Clark continues.

“I’ve worked a lot on that.”

Asked if she saw so-called “apodments” as a realistic solution to affordability problems when they typically cost more per square foot than standard size apartments, Clark replies that “square foot cost is interesting but not compelling.

“The question is – does the unit match the occupant’s life? And apparently they do match people’s life choices because they’re clearly not going empty. Five years from now will they still match people’s needs?

Maybe not…

“What we need is an array of choices.

The really hard thing to find is an affordable two-bedroom unit. As far as the wood frame single-family home – and this is not going to be popular in a lot of meetings – they’re going to continue to vanish, at least in the urban center.

“Another urban center issue is tenant parking – ooh boy! There’s another fight.”

Asked about criticism that she’s a goalong-get-along politician who tries to avoid fights – even necessary ones – Clark looks perplexed.

“People who talk like that aren’t really paying attention to city politics,” she replies.

“I led the Council in revising the multifamily code – that was in ’07, ’08,’09 – and it’s continuing to play out. I led on the expansion of incentive zoning to create affordable housing outside the central zone. I spearheaded permits for food trucks and outdoor cafes…”

Despite the many nine to nothing votes

community

“And last year Ed [Murray] passed his universal pre-K initiative. Which is awesome – but how do you actually do it?

“The business climate is also very important. We need [businesses] to be successful because they actually do hire people.

“But look, Amazon, for example, is astonishingly successful – but at the same time we have very high unemployment numbers.

I’d like to see the Council fund training programs for people who historically don’t get access to those jobs.”

Clark says that although she started her reelection campaign and “it was going great,” her decision to retire at the end of her term was actually more than a year in the making.

“My partner and I talked about it last year,” she says. “And we already made the decision. Twelve years [on the City Council] would be sufficient. So if I ran, I was faced with this choice: would I say the day after I win that I’m not running again?

“That just didn’t seem realistic.”

Sally Clark and Tom Rasmussen – Photo by Steve Shay

and although foot patrols were stepped up late last year, they have since disappeared and once again, people that call with a legitimate 911 call, are left wondering when the police will arrive – if at all.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing about all of this is the fact that very few real conversations about what can be done to make the neighborhood more safe happen in public and are often stalled because the climate in which these things are addressed rests in academia instead of real talk. Capitol Hill is so “progressive” it is full of people just waiting to be offended.

Tell people that you have seen an increase in gang activity and you could be labeled a racist. Ask why people still continue to walk alone after midnight and with a pocket full of money and personal electronics visible to any would-be mugger and you are said to be “victimizing the victim.” I could go on but you get the point.

Capitol Hill is a unique place for sure.

It is a known progressive neighborhood where, especially when the sun goes down, freaks flock together and everyone else is either a voyeur or tourist to the freak show.

Drag queens, drag kings, dancers, party people and more dress up, act out, and go out to any number of Gay owned or operated nightclubs and bars – as well as allied businesses, too. The LGBTQ community is a peaceful lot. But sometimes visitors are not.

Artists like local poster (and tattoo) artist John Criscitello and the #CapHillpsa group make that known. They plaster the Hill with posters that say things like “NO Faggots better Look at me!” or the now famous “Wooo!!” Girls poster. Still, although the Wooo Girls and the Bro’s are annoying, they aren’t committing anti-LGBTQ crimes or robbing and beating people. Their crime is more of a social annoyance. But it is not

continued from cover

some sense of normalcy can return to Seattle’s neighborhood known to be home for the city’s thriving LGBTQ community. But the politics that are at play are what really hurts progress on the matter.

IT’S COMPLICATED Whenever you talk about anti-LGBTQ hate crimes or attacks, you must first understand that many of these attacks go unreported. This is, of course, even more prevalent in the Transgender community. Traditionally, the Transgender community does not trust the police due to actual or perceived anti-Trans bias from the cops, and the well documented incidents of Transgender people being treated badly by officers; sometimes suffering from violent interactions at the hands of a cop. So if asked, most Transgender folks would tell you that they do not think an increase in police is a good thing. In fact, they see it as being opposite of good or in some cases, downright dangerous for them.

The Transgender community is not alone in this belief. There are plenty of Gays and Lesbians that feel the same way. Add to that number some people of color, so-called anarchists, and others and you can see that the Seattle Police Department doesn’t have the best reputation in the neighborhood and with incidents like the wrongful arrest of a black senior citizen using a golf club as a walking stick by a white officer fresh in the minds of everyone, it won’t get any easier any time soon.

Then there are members of the community that believe the police department has not done enough to keep us safe. The fact of the matter is, the police are poorly staffed on Capitol Hill (especially on the weekend)

4 Seattle Gay News

on the City Council, “legislation is not consensus-driven,” Clark insists.

“Eighty percent of what we do is legal stuff the City has to do,” she explains. “On other stuff, stuff we don’t have to do, like minimum wage or parental leave, yes, it was nine to nothing, and I love to have the nine votes. But I only need five votes. I try to get more, but I only need five.”

Asked what unfinished business she is leaving to her successors, Clark says quickly “Affordability.”

“The economy and development pressures have had a real impact on renters,” she explains. “Council members Licata and O’Brien have introduced a tenant protection measure to give renters more time to adapt to rent increases, or when their building is sold.

“Foreclosure protection – it’s turned out to be more difficult than I thought. Council member Licata and I introduced an idea for a rescue fund to help people avoid foreclosures, modeled on something they have in Oregon, but more ambitious.

February 27, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

GSBA honors Space Needle executive: Why Space Needle workers aren’t celebrating

At their February 24 awards dinner, the GSBA honored Karen Olson, the Space Needle’s Marketing Vice President, as their Corporate Leader of the Year.

Space Needle employees are not celebrating, however. They say owners of the iconic Seattle landmark have engaged in a systematic campaign of abuse and intimidation against employees who have been fighting for three years to get a new union contract.

The NLRB (National Labor Relations Board), the federal agency charged with resolving disputes between workers and their employers, agrees. On January 30, the NLRB found the Space Needle guilty of multiple unfair labor practices.

Among other violations, the NLRB found that Space Needle management fired pro-union workers and then refused to reinstate them, made coercive statements to pro-union workers, encouraged workers

to quit the union, and reneged on a written agreement to resume payroll deductions for employees’ union dues.

Space Needle workers first brought charges against the Space Needle in 2013.

They won an initial legal victory in 2014 when an administrative law judge found for their claims, but management appealed the ruling. The Space Needle has also appealed the NLRB ruling and the case will ultimately be heard by the Ninth Circuit Court.

Julia Dube, one of the workers who complained to the NLRB, said she was disappointed by the GSBA’s decision to honor someone from Space Needle management.

“The contributions of one individual may be noteworthy,” she told SGN, “but I’d expect a community organization to look at the big picture.”

Dube, who describes herself as “a vocal union participant,” says she was fired in retaliation for her activism. The NLRB found in her favor, and ordered that she be reinstated with back pay, including full tips and benefits.

She became active in the union, she explains, because she was dating someone who was also fired in retaliation for union activism.

“He chose not to pursue a complaint,” she says, “but it caused me to be concerned about my job security. I thought that if someone didn’t speak up about the union, management would gain the upper hand.

And that’s exactly what they tried to do.”

Dube was terminated in 2013, but says she is “excited” to go back to work at the Needle, now that her “federally protected right” to support her union has been upheld by the NLRB. Jessica Severance, who has worked five years in the Space Needle’s elevators and is on the union committee, works in a highstress job with very little support from managers.

“We move 20 people at time, every 3 minutes,” she tells SGN. “A lot of tourists. A lot of face time. It’s so hard to manage stress levels. If someone says something rude to you it can have a snowball effect.”

“We’re pretty much without support from managers,” she adds. When they do show up at her work site, “they just micromanage everything,” she says. “They intimidate people with threats of write-ups.”

One particularly galling part of her job is hauling Space Needle owners Jeff Wright and Howard S. Wright III up and down the elevators.

“They bring their friends up for dinner and drinks and put it all on the company tab,” Severance says. “I haven’t had a raise in four years! It makes me want to say

illegal and it does not make us unsafe.

The problem comes from the junkietypes that mug people or break into homes to get money to fuel their addictions. The problem also is the number of street gang members that have figured out that Capitol Hill is full of easy targets, the police don’t respond to 911 calls fast enough to catch them, and that everyone’s attention is focused in the wrong direction. I beg of people – read the police reports. Night after night it is the same thing – victim walking alone after dark, approached or blindsided, hit or threatened first, one or two suspects intimidating them or assaulting them, the brandishing of a gun, and a getaway car. But none of that is happening because of sexual orientation or gender identity. This type of criminal looks for an easy target.

So what of the anti-LGBTQ attacks that are supposedly on the rise? Well, there aren’t many police reports that will prove there is a rise at all. Perhaps it is because there were several in a row over the last few weeks that got people thinking more about this issue or maybe it is because an elected official took interest in them that attention has been brought to the subject. But we all know it is happening. And we all know that it will only get worse as the weather gets warmer. Remember, not everyone that has been attacked reports the attack to the police and even still, there are times when the report does not reflect what the victim has said took place.

And then there is the even bigger issue of how some of these cases are prosecuted.

It has been made known to Seattle Gay News that the City Attorney’s office rarely processes any hate crime charges, allowing criminals to admit to an attack or assault through a plea bargain without being fully charged for the crime they actually committed.

Here’s one example that went largely underreported after the fact. Initially, the fact that the incident took place was widely reported. However, as with most cases, the public is never really made aware of what happened after charges are filed.

Last October, police were called after a man trying to enter R Place was turned away at the door. According to employees of the popular Gay dance club, the man called for all Gay people to be killed and made threats of returning with a gun.

“He made some threats, made some gestures that he had a gun, stated that he was going to shoot people from the Gay community,” Assistant Chief Nick Metz told City Council members during a briefing on bias crime investigations last October.

The man was never charged for hate crimes or malicious harassment. See the problem? It’s a big problem and something that needs to be addressed. What does it take to be charged with malicious harassment or a hate crime?

According to the latest data, detectives received 60 hate crime reports in the first half of 2014. Of those, 20 rose to the level of malicious harassment. Another 30 crimes had elements of bias.

Detectives said the most likely victims come from Seattle’s Gay community.

But what percentage of those were actually prosecuted as such? SGN is working on finding an answer to the question of accountability when it comes to this issue. It would seem that members of the LGBTQ community are reporting these crimes and in some cases, arrests are made, but when prosecuted, the criminal is not being held accountable for the bias in which they committed the crime. I am outraged.

In fact, in 2014, 35 percent of all incidents of the total number of bias crimes were reported by a member of the LGBTQ

community.

Whatever the case may be – bias police, lack of reporting, plea bargains, anti-LGBTQ hate – the Hill is under siege from criminals that come to our neighborhood and do as they please without any regard City Council Member Kshama Sawant – for the citicourtesy of Seattle City Council Communications zens whose lives they terrorize every night of the week. our very first SOSea Summer Safety Festival Council member Sawant has asked people and we will hold the 2015 event in August. to step forward and bring real ideas and an- Please consider attending the community nounce real projects or programs that will forum on Tuesday to hear about all of these help solve the problem. SOSea has a few ideas from SOSea and other members of the that we will announce on Tuesday. We are community. rolling out plans for a safety shuttle to move Above all, it must be noted that a great people around the Hill at night; especially many of the homeless people that are on bar and nightclub employees. We are com- the Hill or people that suffer from severe mitted to hosting once per month self-de- mental illness are not going to get help or fense classes that are open to all ages, gen- go away because the Hill becomes Gayer der identities and sexual orientations. In than ever or more police are added to the addition, we are going to continue to attend East Precinct roster. The fact of the matter LGBTQ advisory council meetings for SPD is that social services have got to be funded and much more. We continue to advocate and Mayor Ed Murray is on the right track. for more resources for the police depart- Please continue to support the efforts to get ment so that 911 calls can be answered in a resources to these folks. timely manner and we also want to see a rise in LGBTQ visibility. Last year we launched

Space Needle – media.komonews.com

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

Visit us online www.sgn.org

February 27, 2015

‘We make you all this money so you can do all this for your friends.’ I find it very hard to interact with those people.”

Even worse, Space Needle management recently offered employees a webinar on “how to live on less.”

“It was offensive to see that,” Severance tells SGN. “They want to show us how to be fiscally responsible and they won’t give us a raise! Costs keep going up. My rent just went up $100. In fact, [the union committee] went to see the CEO to ask for raises and they refused to see us. They wouldn’t even let us make an appointment. It’s just unacceptable the way they’re treating workers.”

Severance added that she was surprised that GSBA would honor a Space Needle executive.

“You remember the flag issue,” she said, recalling Space Needle management’s refusal to fly the Rainbow Flag at Pride 2011.

“They really dragged their feet on that. I was so disappointed.”

UNITE HERE Local 8, in contrast, has been one of the city’s most LGBT-friendly unions, endorsing marriage equality as far back as the Andersen Supreme Court case in 2006. The first hotel contract in the country to explicitly protect Transgender workers was negotiated by Local 8 at the Westin in 2007. Since then, the groundbreaking contract language has become standard for all UNITE HERE 8’s labor agreements.

The GSBA was invited to comment for this article, but GSBA President and CEO Louise Chernin was unavailable.

Seattle Gay News 5

LGBT labor group challenges new U.S. special envoy No trade treaties with anti-Gay countries, Pride At Work says

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Pride At Work, an LGBT labor organization affiliated with the AFL-CIO, has issued a challenge for the new U.S. Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBT Persons: take Malaysia and Brunei out of the trade treaty the U.S. is negotiating with Pacific Rim countries.

Randy Barry was appointed to the Special Envoy position on February 23. He is charged with representing U.S. human rights policy, especially in regards to actions against LGBT people by foreign governments.

Pride At Work Executive Director Jerame Davis said the timing of Barry’s appointment opened up possibilities for action on the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) now being negotiated.

“The timing of this appointment could not be more critical,” Davis said in a state-

ment. “The first test of this position’s power and reach is happening right now as the President is wrapping up negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and Congress is close to introducing Fast Track legislation to push it through to approval.”

TPP includes the United States and several other Pacific Rim countries, including Malaysia and Brunei which apply severe sharia law penalties to their LGBT citizens.

The Sultan of Brunei – one of the world’s richest men – is the target of an ongoing LGBT boycott of his Beverly Hills Hotel.

“Our nation should not be negotiating, let alone signing, privileged trade deals with countries that jail or stone to death their LGBT citizens,” Davis continued. “What better way for this new Special Envoy to carry out the mission of his position than by preventing these two countries from being included in the agreement?”

“Fast Track” is a special provision that would allow the administration to negotiate the terms of the treaty and then present it to the U.S. Senate for an up or down vote without an opportunity for amendments.

Besides rewarding anti-Gay governments, the TPP has been criticized by labor organizations because it would weaken workplace health and safety laws and banking and investment regulations in the name of “free trade.” Many also fear that environmental protections will be overturned. Fast Track would prevent the Senate from addressing these concerns.

So far there has been no response from

Barry or the Obama administration.

Other LGBT organizations congratulated Barry without bringing up controversial issues like TPP. “The appointment of Randy Berry as a special diplomatic envoy brings to a pinnacle the historic trend, first put in motion by the 2011 Presidential Memorandum, of integrating the rights of LGBT people into U.S. foreign policy,” IGLHRC said in a statement.

“Having long advocated for this step forward, we at the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission celebrate its arrival and congratulate Mr. Berry on his new role. The U.S. envoy can contribute to a new era in which the conscience of governments everywhere can be focused on the destabilizing impact of prejudice and abuse that inflicts suffering on millions worldwide. Human rights should be a priority for every government in both domestic and foreign policy.”

“At a moment when many LGBT people around the world are facing persecution and daily violence, this unprecedented appointment shows a historic commitment to the principle that LGBT rights are human rights,” HRC President Chad Griffin said.

“President Obama and Secretary Kerry have shown tremendous leadership in championing the rights of LGBT people abroad. Now, working closely with this new envoy, we’ve got to work harder than

ever to create new allies, push back on human rights violators, and support the brave leaders and organizations that fight for LGBT rights around the world.”

U.S. Special Envoy Randy Barry – diplopundit.net

It’s official: Sun revolves around Earth, Saudi cleric rules poised by a teacher, it is the Sun which rotates around the Earth, and not the other way around: “Question 3: In a science class I teach: The Earth rotates around the Sun and since I have heard from Sheikh Abu Bakr Al Jazaeri that the sun is the one which rotates around the Earth, those who teach this subject should fear Allah. This is a danger to his faith as this matter makes him an apostate. I explained this to my students after teaching the class. Is this correct or am I wrong in this? Please let me know, may Allah reward you.

Answer 3: What Sheikh Abu Bakr has said is correct. The Earth is stationary and it is the Sun that rotates around it.”

Naifco was, however, ridiculed by many of his readers.

Akram Wadidi was surprised that people on Twitter defended al-Khaibari’s statement.

“What is strange is that there are people defending the cleric who said that Earth is stationary and doesn’t rotate. Not one or two … a lot of people,” Wadidi wrote.

Hazza Al Marri of Dubai added that “Earth is stationary and does not rotate around the Sun and whoever says anything other than this is ‘a rational man, no one pays attention to’!!”

On the other hand, Musfer ben Ali of Riyadh, the Saudi capital, explains that “For your information, the official Shariacompliant opinion of Saudi Arabia is that the Earth does not spin. This man just repeated what he was taught.”

Sheikh Bandar al-Khaibari explains the rotation of the sun – i.dailymail.co.uk

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A prominent Saudi cleric has issued a fatwa – a binding religious ruling – that the Sun rotates around the Earth.

In a video of a lecture released February 16, Sheikh Bandar al-Khaibari explains how he came to his conclusion: “We have a brain as Muslims. First of all, where are we? If we go to Sharjah Airport and want to go to China Airport, in an airplane – is this clear? I want you to focus with me…

“This is the Earth [holding an object in his hand], if you claim that it rotates, if we leave Sharjah Airport on an international flight to the China Airport, and the Earth is rotating, right? So if the plane stops in the sky, won’t China come to it? Right or

wrong? If it rotates, will China come or not?

“If the Earth rotated like this, and the airplane is flying, you will never reach China, because China is rotating and you are rotating. How will you ever reach China?”

Saudi-owned Al Arabiya TV, ran the story after it went viral on Arab social media. Translations are from Al Arabiya.

The video also stirred up a controversy on Twitter, under the hashtag #cleric_rejects_Earth_rotation.

One blogger, Naifco from Saudi Arabia, noted that al-Khaibari was simply repeating a previous fatwa from the Fatwa Permanent General Secretariat of Saudi Arabia – the government office charged with documenting religious rulings.

“According to the fatwa,” Naifco says, “which comes in response to a question

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The Earth, Moon, and Sun – www.newsfan.it

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Llamas immune to HIV Antibodies might lead to vaccine percent of HIV strains.” Human HIV antibodies, in contrast, seem to be completely ineffective at halting the virus they have evolved to target.

T h e discovery was made af ter three llamas Researchers come closer to finding a vaccine for AIDS – www.medical- were innewstoday.com jected with a

by Mike Andrew portion of the AIDS virus. After SGN Staff Writer the antibodies were given a chance to develop, the animals’ blood was Llamas seem to be immune to HIV, a then extracted and examined. study by an international team of research- While the quantity of HIV that was ers says, and more study of llama antibodies injected into the llama subjects was may lead to new HIV vaccines. not enough for the animals to actuThe study, published in PLOS Pathogens ally contract the disease, it did almagazine, was conducted by scientists at low them to develop immunity to it.

University College London, Harvard MediUnlike human antibodies, llama cal School, and Argentina’s Center of Ani- antibodies have a single chain of mal Virology. proteins, which allows them to acThe scientists discovered that one llama curately aim at specific viruses. Huantibody, which develops in response to man antibodies, on the other hand, HIV, “potently neutralizes more than 95 have a short and a long chain and

tend to use a scatter-gun approach, attacking all foreign viruses they find.

For some as yet to be determined reason, that has stopped them from effectively attacking the AIDS virus.

Alpacas share the characteristic with llamas.

Doctors at Peru’s Alexander von Humboldt Institute of Tropical Medicine are already researching the potential to prevent or treat the liver disease Hepatitis B using alpaca antibodies.

Institute Director Eduardo Gotuzzo, who was not involved in the HIV study,

gave a cautious welcome to its findings.

“It has only been carried out with three llamas so far, and the effect has only been seen in vitro [in other words, in a lab, using cells taken from a living animal],” he said.

“So, there is a long way to go before we can really see how significant this is, but it is certainly a very interesting discovery. It is an open door, and here in Peru there are five institutions that are now researching this aspect of alpaca and llama antibodies [and its potential against various diseases].”

Lamas may play a key role in fighting the HIV strain – 0.static.wix.com

PrEP is “game changer” two European studies agree but preliminary data from the study shows that condom usage among participants remained about the same both before and during the trial.

Two new studies, one British, one “The study shows two important things,” French, agree that PrEP is a potential “game Gold added. “One, that PrEP is highly efchanger” in the fight against HIV/AIDS. fective in preventing HIV and two, that gay The British study, released February 24 men won’t just throw away the condoms as shows that Truvada can be 86% effective in soon as they start taking PrEP.” preventing new HIV infections when taken “PrEP is, quite simply, a game-changer,” daily. according to Dr. Michael Brady, Medical The PROUD study, carried out at Uni- Director at Terrence Higgins Trust, an HIV versity College London (UCL) and Public prevention and treatment foundation.

Health England, was launched in 2012. It “We know that most gay men use confollowed 545 men who have sex with men at doms most of the time, and that this has pre13 different sexual health clinics in the UK. vented tens of thousands of HIV infections A total of 276 participants received PrEP since the epidemic began in the UK. Howevimmediately, while 269 began taking the er, we also know that condomless sex vastly drug after a period of 12 months, which increases the risk of HIV being transmitted. allowed the researchers to compare the This research shows just how effective PrEP groups. can be in preventing transmission of the “During the study period there were 19 virus in groups at greatest risk; offering anHIV infections in the group not taking PrEP. other line of defense alongside condoms and If we can stop people getting HIV by giving regular testing. them PrEP, we have an ethical duty to do so,” “We urge the Government, [National Deborah Gold, chief executive of Britain’s Health Service] England and Local AuthoriNational AIDS Trust, told Gay Star News. ties to make PrEP a key priority in the fight “Furthermore, over the course of their against HIV.” lifetime the treatment of those 19 men will Sheena McCormack, Professor of Clinicost the NHS nearly £7 million. So the fi- cal Epidemiology at UCL, and Chief Investinancial argument is clear, as is the ethical gator of the PROUD study, called the results one. PrEP needs to be available on the [Na- “extremely exciting.” tional Health Service] as soon as possible for “Concerns that PrEP would not work so all those who need it.” well in the real world were unfounded,” she Some HIV activists – the AIDS Health- said. “These results show there is a need for care Foundation in the U.S., for example PrEP, and offer hope of reversing the epi– have worried that promotion of PrEP demic among men who have sex with men would lead Gay men to abandon condoms, in this country.”

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

Visit us online www.sgn.org

French study: “On demand” PrEP pressed reservations about the French study.

“Since available data suggest that men in equally effective A French study, released at the same this study were taking PrEP an average of time as the UCL research, shows that PrEP three to four days per week, CDC cautions is equally effective when taken “on demand” that researchers do not yet know if this regi– in other words, just before and just after men will work among MSM who have sex less frequently and would therefore be takhaving unprotected sex.

In this study too, Truvada was shown to ing PrEP less often,” the agency said.

“It is not known whether the regimen be 86% effective in preventing HIV infecwill work if taken only a few hours or days tions.

The study was conducted by the French before sex, without any buildup of the drug national HIV research agency and involved from prior use. Studies suggest that it may men who have sex with men in both France take days, depending on the type of sexual exposure, for the active drug in PrEP to and Quebec.

Researchers gave their subjects either build up to an optimal level for preventing Truvada or a placebo, and told them to take HIV infection.”

The CDC also warned that the study two pills from two to 24 hours before sex, a third pill 24 hours later, and a fourth pill did not survey how PrEP would work on 48 hours after the first dose. The men also straight men, women, or IV drug users.

“CDC continues to recommend only were given condoms and disease prevention daily use of PrEP, as approved by the FDA,” counseling.

Subjects who took the Truvada were 86% the agency concluded. less likely to become infected with HIV than the control group.

While this method of PrEP use is commonly called “on demand” it does require some planning to be effective. For example, it requires an individual to foresee having sex within the next 24 hours, and it requires the individual to adhere to the post-sex dosage sequence.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and PrevenTruvada is the key component in PrEP – tion) in the United States exactuplondon.files.wordpress.com

February 27, 2015

Seattle Gay News 11

FMLA

continued from cover City employees would qualify for the new benefits six months after hire.

“Implementation of this new policy will be negotiated with the city’s labor partners, many of whom have already demonstrated their support for this benefit,” Murray said in a statement.

Like the new federal rules, the City’s plan will apply to same-sex married couples, but with the addition of paid time off. Federal leave under FMLA is unpaid.

“The United States is the only developed nation in the world without a statutory Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez – right to paid parental leave,” Sean Gardner/Getty Images Murray said. “The City of Seattle is proud to not only lead The change would impact about 118,000 the region by adding a four week benefit for individuals with same-sex spouses, ac- City employees, but I hope this is yet anothcording to the Williams Institute at UCLA er way Seattle leads the nation.”

“Paid parental leave is good for our School of Law. About 260,000 people are in same-sex marriages, with an employment workers, good for our children and good for rate of 77% among same-sex spouses. About our economy,” Godden added. She is chair 59% of employed people are covered by the of the City Council’s Parks, Seattle Center, Libraries, and Gender Pay Equity CommitFMLA and are eligible for its benefits.

Some 70,200 people in same-sex mar- tee.

“It is an important step towards creating riages are raising children. Among these individuals, 80% are employed, so 33,100 in- a workplace which supports all employees, dividuals are likely eligible for FMLA rights especially women, and is fundamental to the gender equity policies that Seattle – and the under the new rule. nation – have long needed.”

Based on the number of new parents Seattle parental leave Only one day before Perez announced in 2011 and 2012, the new Seattle parenthe new federal rule, on February 23, Seattle tal leave program could cost the City up to Mayor Ed Murray and City Council mem- $1.35 million annually. Legislation will be ber Jean Godden announced a new paid pa- drafted in the next few weeks and presented to the City Council, which is expected to aprental leave plan for City employees.

Murray and Godden will introduce leg- prove it. islation that will provide employees access to four weeks per year of paid parental leave for the birth, adoption, or foster placement of a child or children. This leave would be in addition to other paid leave available to City employees, such as vacation and sick leave.

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LGBTV – The Future is Now

by Jesse Monteagudo SGN Contributing Writer The last time (in 2005) we wrote about the topic, television by or about Lesbians, Gay men, Bisexuals and Trans* people was dominated by LOGO, a basic cable network, and here!, a pay-per-view service. Ten years later, LOGO is a shadow of its former self, with one sure hit (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”) but otherwise dominated by reruns of situation comedies like “The Golden Girls” or “Roseanne.” And while here! seems here to stay (at least for now), its programming is but a fraction of its initial output. Television series about LGBT people have declined from the days of “Queer as Folk” or “The L Word.”

Shows that center around our lives are few and far between; most notably HBO’s “Looking” and Amazon’s “Transparent.”

In spite of all that, LGBT characters are more visible on our television screens than ever before. According to GLAAD’s “Where We Are on TV Report” for 2014, released on October 1, out of 813 prime time broadcast scripted series regulars, 32 (3.9%) are LGBT. On cable, GLAAD counted 64 regular LGBT characters. “Television networks are playing a key role in promoting cultural understanding of LGBT lives around the world, and are now producing some of the best LGBT-inclusive programming we’ve yet seen,” GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in a statement that accompanied this report. “As they move forward with new programs and storylines, networks must also keep an eye toward diversity and strive to include significant Transgender content comparable to those efforts being made by their online competitors, such as Netflix’s ‘Orange is the New Black’ and Amazon’s ‘Transparent.’” Since October, some of the series considered by the GLAAD report have been canceled, while others have taken their place. Even so, the GLAAD report is optimistic about the future of sexual and gender minorities on American television.

As a rule, LGBT characters, like other minorities, are most prevalent in series where they are part of a large cast. Shows like

ABC’s “Modern Family” and Fox’s “Glee” (now in its last season) give us queer characters we can relate to while they appeal to the straight majority. Afternoon soap operas, once the domain of stay at home moms, now feature Lesbian and Gay characters and situations. Meanwhile reality shows, where the whole thing began (1971’s “An American Family,” on PBS) feature LGBT people both negatively and positively, in competition against, or in cooperation with, their straight counterparts.

Ideally, the LGBT content is higher on basic cable than on broadcast television; and higher still on premium channels. Public television, which used to have a higher LGBT content, declined as “In the Life” went off the air and PBS became more dependent on public subsidies and private donations.

Even the most well-meaning broadcast or cable channel is dependent on the programs’ ability to attract advertisers; which among other things forced LOGO to go from an LGBT network to whatever it is now. There is also the possibility of a backlash from outraged heterosexuals; not just from the expected busybody groups but from viewers who will switch the channel if they see something they don’t like. Even Gays were shocked by the sexual aerobics of Connor Walsh, the Gay law student played by Jack Falahee in ABC’s “How To Get Away With Murder.” Though there were complaints, the show got away with sodomy because it’s on at 10 p.m., Connor is cute, and the show is produced by Shonda Rhimes, whom ABC considers to be a goddess. On the whole, Lesbian activity is more acceptable than male homosexuality; as witnessed by the brouhaha caused by man-to-man kisses on Fox’s “Empire,” AMC’s “The Walking Dead” and Starz’s “Black Sails.”

All in all, there is still work to be done.

But I am generally hopeful about the future of television, a medium dominated by the likes of Andy Cohen, Anderson Cooper, Ellen DeGeneres and Neil Patrick Harris. Even “The Flash,” the CW’s new super hero show, has a Gay villain, The Pied Piper, played by the adorable (and openly Bi) Andy Mientus.

Like LGBT people in society at large, LGBT characters are fully integrated into much of American television, and things only promise to get better.

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