SGN January 6, 2017 - Section 1

Celebrating 43 Years!

Issue 1 Volume 45

Tom Hewitt in Finding Neverland

Pizza Klatch with Rufus Wainwright

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SEC 2 PG 1

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Tough words from Democratic Womxn’s March on Seattle Senate leader Chuck Schumer: in support of equity & social We’ll fight Trump “tooth & nail” justice to be held Jan. 21

Senator Chuck Schumer – Photo courtesy of newsweek.com

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer In his first speech as Democratic leader in the US Senate, Chuck Schumer prom-

ised not to “be a rubber stamp” for Donald Trump.

Schumer was chosen by his Democratic see CHUCK SCHUMER page 18

Six arrested in NAACP sit-in in Jeff Sessions’ office

Cornell William Brooks – Photo courtesy of cnn.com

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Six people – including NAACP President Cornell William Brooks – were ar-

rested in a January 3 sit-in at the Mobile, Alabama, office of Sen. Jeff Sessions.

The NAACP called the demonstration see NAACP page 18

Image courtesy of eventbrite.com

The Womxn’s March on Seattle, in conjunction with the Women’s March on Washington (DC), will take place on January 21 at 10am. The starting point will be in the International District and concludes

at Seattle Center. There will be companion marches in Bellingham, Olympia, Spokane and Whidbey Island. see WOMXN’S MARCH page 6

Orlando soccer stadium dedicates 49 rainbowcolored seats to Pulse victims

Rainbow seats dedicated to the 49 victims of Pulse Nightclub – Photo courtesy of trbimg.com

by Albert Rodriguez SGN Staff Writer When the Orlando City SC Lions play its first soccer match this season in a brand

new stadium, some fans will sit in specially designed seats that honor the victims of last year’s Pulse Nightclub tragedy. 49 of the see STADIUM SEATS page 18

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Celebrating 41 Years!

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January 6, 2017

Celebrating 41 Years!

Lesbian author Sarah Schulman at Seattle Central Library on Jan. 17

by Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore Special to the SGN SARAH SCHULMAN CONFLICT IS NOT ABUSE: OVERSTATING HARM, COMMUNITY RESPONSIBILITY, AND THE DUTY TO REPAIR IN CONVERSATION WITH MATTILDA BERNSTEIN SYCAMORE SEATTLE CENTRAL LIBRARY January 17 I’m writing because I’m teaming up with the Seattle Central Library to bring Sarah Schulman here on January 17 (Seattle Central Library, 1000 4th Ave., Microsoft Auditorium; doors at 6:30pm, event at 7pm) to talk about her new book, Conflict Is Not Abuse: Overstating Harm, Community Responsibility, and the Duty of Repair.

I’m sure you’re familiar with Sarah’s work over the last several decades as a nationally-renowned writer and AIDS activist, one of the first journalists to write about AIDS in the 1980s, as well as the co-director of the ACT UP Oral History Project, co-producer of United in Anger: A History of ACT UP, and the widely-respected author of 18 books. This will be Sarah’s first reading in Seattle in well over a decade, and it’s about time! (This event is FREE.) Described by bell hooks as “a vision of mutual recognition and accountability that liberates,” Conflict Is Not Abuse is a searing rejection of the cultural phenomena of blame, cruelty, and scapegoating. Schulman examines the moment where discomfort leads to overreaction in personal relations, in group dynamics, between governments and civilians, and between nations.

She addresses police brutality, the anti-violence movement, HIV criminalization, the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and many

Visit us online www.sgn.org

Author Sarah Schulman – Photo by Drew Stevens

other hot-button issues, exposing the tragic trajectory from oppressed to oppressor, in order to illuminate a path toward de-escalation of conflict. While the book starts by scrutinizing the dynamics of intimate relationships, it is ultimately about saving lives.

Claudia Rankine says, “It’s impossible to be invested in the world and not be invested in this groundbreaking and challenging book.”

Hope to see you there!

BIOS: Sarah Schulman is the author of eighteen books: the novels The Cosmopolitans; The Mere Future; The Child; Rat Bohemia; Shimmer; Empathy; After Delores; People In Trouble; Girls, Visions and Everything; and The Sophie Horowitz Story; the nonfiction works Conflict Is Not Abuse: Overstating Harm, Community Responsibility, and the Duty of Repair; The Gentrification of the Mind: Witness To a Lost Imagination;

January 6, 2017

Israel/Palestine and the Queer International; Ties That Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences; Stagestruck: Theater, AIDS and the Marketing of Gay America and My American History: Lesbian and Gay Life During the Reagan/Bush Years; and the plays Mercy and Carson McCullers. She is co-author with Cheryl Dunye of the movies The Owls and Mommy is Coming, and co-producer with Jim Hubbard of the feature United in Anger: A History of ACT UP. She is co-director of the ACT UP Oral History Project. Her awards include the 2009 Kessler Award for “Sustained Contribution to LGBT Studies” from the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies, a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Fulbright Fellowship, and two American Library Association Book Awards, and she was a Finalist for the Prix de Rome. She lives in New York, where she is Distinguished Professor of English at City University of New York (College of Staten Island) and a Fellow at the New York Institute for the Humanities at NYU. Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore is the author of a memoir and two novels, and the editor of five nonfiction anthologies. Her latest title, The End of San Francisco, won a Lambda Literary Award, and her most recent anthology, Why Are Faggots So Afraid of Faggots?: Flaming Challenges to Masculinity, Objectification, and the Desire to Conform, was an American Library Association Stonewall Honor Book. She recently finished a third novel, Sketchtasy, and is the host of “Contagious Exchanges: Queer Writers in Conversation,” a monthly reading series at Hugo House on first Wednesdays.

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SGN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW:

Daniel Dawes, author of 150 Years of Obamacare: The History and Future of the Affordable Care Act

ties and Health Reform.

In that capacity he worked directly with the ACA’s prime sponsor, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, and other congressional leaders to craft the law.

The provocative title, 150 Years of Obamacare, refers back to the Freedman’s

Bureau Act of 1865, which provided – among other things – for government-sponsored health care for newly freed slaves and poor whites displaced by the Civil War. Unfortunately, the law was repealed when the federal government shut down post–Civil War reconstruction in an effort to reconcile with Southern whites.

“The Freedman’s Bureau was only allowed to exist seven years,” Dawes pointed out. “Ironically we’re coming up on the seventh anniversary of the ACA, and Republicans want to repeal that too. It’s eerie how history repeats itself.”

The ACA is important, Dawes says, not just because it provides health insurance for an unprecedented number of Americans, but even more because of its nondiscrimination provisions.

“Section 1557 [of the ACA] explicitly protects LGBT individuals,” Dawes says.

“It expands federal civil rights laws by including LGBT individuals.”

Ironically, the same day the SGN interviewed Dawes, a conservative federal judge in Texas blocked enforcement of Section 1557.

The disputed section of the ACA “addresses health disparities that affect LGBT community,” Dawes explains.

“For example, the pre-existing conditions piece in the ACA. It’s not just about HIV. We know that LGBT individuals are also at greater risk for cancer [and] obesity, and that they’re more likely to experience

violence in their daily lives.

“And it includes mental health reforms.

LGBT people are two and a half times more likely to need mental health services.

“It also mandates data collection. Previous research often excludes LGBT individuals. Now they are considered a minority group, and the government is required to count them and track their needs.

“Section 1557 is a major, major civil rights protection,” Dawes continued. “It provides a private right of action. In other words, if you’re not being served by the system, you can sue for redress.”

Now, Dawes warns, all the benefits of the ACA are under attack.

“No one thought Trump would win,” he says. “Now we’re where we’re at. The Republicans are not blowing smoke. They see health equity as ‘socialist.’ They mean to repeal [the ACA].”

Asked what SGN readers could do to preserve the law, Dawes urged people to contact their congressmembers.

“We need folks to call their representatives and let them know this is something they care about,” he replied. “[Washington Sen.] Patty Murray – I want to sing her praises – she’s been a leader on health care. We need to let her know we have her back.”

Tickets for Dawes’ event in Mercer Island can be purchased at www.sjcc.org. His book is available at the event or through Barnes & Noble and Amazon.

about participating organizations. Entrance

This is a silent march. Marchers are en-

donations to continue their vital work. The

ers along the 3.5-mile route; seated areas will be available at the beginning and end of the march for people wishing to attend but not physically march. The march route will be announced in its entirety on our website and social media shortly before January 21.

Tens of thousands of individuals will be coming together in support of equity and social justice.

chanting or singing until the very end of the march. The march is organized as a silent march in the rich tradition of the American Civil Rights Era. It is a statement of solidarity and unity and a rebuke of anger and violence.

Local representatives from social justice organizations will be available to answer questions, add marchers to their communications lists, sign-up marchers to volunteer with their organizations, and take

ized and non-motorized mobility devices and marchers are encouraged to bring their children and families.

Information and resources for the march, including discounts on transportation and lodging, carpools, home stays, and merchandise, can be found at the official website: womxnsmarchseattle.wordpress.com.

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Daniel Dawes, an attorney and medical school administrator, has been in the middle of the fight for a national health care policy for many years.

On Sunday, January 8, Dawes will visit Seattle to introduce his new book, 150 Years of Obamacare: The History and Future of the Affordable Care Act. Dawes will speak at the Stroum Jewish Community Center, 3801 E. Mercer Way, Mercer Island, at 4:00 p.m.

Dawes also spoke with the SGN to discuss the book and his work passing and defending the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or Obamacare).

“Remember that conversation between President Obama and Vice President Biden?” he recalled. “The vice president leans over and says, ‘This is a big fucking deal!’ Well, it’s an even bigger deal for people like us: marginalized communities, people of color, LGBT folks.

“It’s way more sweeping than any of us understand. The Affordable Care Act is the most inclusive law ever developed by Congress.”

Dawes is uniquely qualified to speak on the ACA. Now the Executive Director of Government Relations, Policy & External Affairs at Morehouse School of Medicine, Dawes was the founder and chair of the National Working Group on Health Dispari-

Daniel Dawes – Photo courtesy of nsunews.nova.edu

WOMXN’S MARCH and exit points will be available to march- couraged to walk quietly and refrain from march route is accessible to both motorcontinued from cover

What to expect on January 21: Community activist Charmaine Slye is Mistress of Ceremonies and will kick off the event at Judkins Park (2150 S Norman St). Along the route community advocates and social justice leaders will recite poetry, give a short speech, or share information

Courtesy of the Womxn’s March on Seattle

Gates Foundation to invest in “PrEP pump” Tiny device could hold a year’s supply of meds

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will invest up to $140 million in what is being described as a “PrEP pump.”

The tiny device is designed to be implanted in patients and deliver a steady supply of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) meds over a 6- or 12-month period. A similar device loaded with the diabetes drug exenatide already has been developed.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the device is now being developed by Intarcia Therapuetics Inc., based in Boston.

The Gates Foundation said it will buy a $50 million equity stake in Intarcia and invest as much $90 million more toward development of the device.

The Gates Foundation funding will help Intarcia adapt its Medici technology program to deliver a steady stream of PrEP meds to healthy patients over an extended period of time. The matchstick-sized device would free patients from the necessity of taking a daily pill.

The Gates Foundation has made 50

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Intarcia CEO Kurt Graves – Photo courtesy of prnewswire.com

January 6, 2017

similar investments since 2009, the newspaper added.

“The ultimate goal is developing an HIV prophylaxis device that will save lives in the developing world,” Andrew Farnum, the Gates Foundation’s director of programrelated investments, told the newspaper.

“There’s a vital need for an HIV/AIDS intervention that allows those at risk to incorporate prevention more easily into their daily lives,” foundation CEO Sue Desmond-Hellmann said in a statement to the Boston Globe.

“Thanks to tremendous financing progress, an even stronger shareholder base, our recent NDA [new drug application] submission in type 2 diabetes, and now a groundbreaking relationship with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Intarcia is poised to open up a totally new category of important once- or twice-yearly treatment and prevention therapies for some of the world’s most serious chronic diseases − including those that disproportionately affect people with some of the greatest unmet needs,” Intarcia CEO Kurt Graves said in a December 29 statement.

Intarcia will most likely roll out its device in the US and other relatively wealthy countries, the Wall Street Journal said, but the long-term goal is to bring the technology to parts of the developing world, like sub-Saharan Africa, where HIV is endemic.

The Intarcia pump is only one of a number of HIV-prevention initiatives announced in 2016.

In November, for example, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases announced a global, 4,500-patient clinical trial to test whether injections of an experimental HIV drug administered every eight weeks could prevent HIV infection. The medication, cabotegravir, is available from UK-based ViiV Healthcare.

Also in November, the first study of an HIV vaccine in seven years was begun in South Africa.

This is “one of the most exciting years ever in HIV prevention,” said Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC, a global HIV advocacy organization supported by the Gates Foundation.

Celebrating 41 Years!

Sen. Patty Murray denounces GOP plans to gut health care system On January 4, US Sen. Patty Murray of Washington joined Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, and fellow Democrats for a press conference to discuss Republican attempts to dismantle Medicare and Medicaid, as well as the Affordable Care Act. At the press event, Sen. Murray made the following remarks: “You know, Republicans have made all kinds of empty promises about how ripping apart the health care system – with no plan to replace it – somehow won’t hurt anyone. But I’d like to focus on just one promise Republicans made: that if they repeal the Affordable Care Act, privatize Medicare, and cap Medicaid, families will magically be better off.

“Republican leaders said exactly this.

In fact, three days after his election, President-elect Trump even said he’d deliver better health care for ‘much less money.’

Well, President-elect Trump might be able to make that kind of promise from his tower – but workers and families can’t take it to the bank.

“Studies show that if Republicans in Congress rush to dismantle our health care system, people across the country will pay more. Premiums will skyrocket. Prescrip-

From left: US Senator Patty Murray, State Democratic Leader Chuck Shumer and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi – Photos courtesy of politico.com, huffpost.com and lifenews.com

tion drug costs will increase. Out-of-pocket costs will rise. And the Republican plan to unravel the guaranteed benefit of Medicare would leave seniors vulnerable when they can least afford it.

“All that will do is make America sick again – and it shouldn’t have to be said, but that’s the wrong direction for families and for our economy.

“If Republicans think causing chaos in our health care system, heightening economic uncertainty, and burdening seniors and families with higher health care costs somehow makes our country stronger, they’ve got another thing coming. They should step back from the brink, stop putting politics ahead of families’ health care, and agree to join together on efforts to

make our health care system work better for families – instead of destroying it, and before it is too late.”

The press conference was held following Senate and House Democrats’ meeting with President Barack Obama.

Courtesy of Sen. Patty Murray’s office

Pramila Jayapal sworn into the 115th Congress WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Representative Pramila Jayapal was sworn in to the 115th Congress, representing Washington’s seventh district.

Representative Jayapal is the first Indian American woman in the U.S. House of Representatives. She is also the first person of color in the state’s Democratic delegation, and the first woman to represent the seventh Congressional District.

The district encompasses most of Seattle, as well as Vashon Island and portions of Shoreline, Lake Forest Park, Edmonds, Mountlake Terrace, Burien and Normandy Park.

Pramila Jayapal – Photo courtesy of ydwa.org

“Today is not about me. It’s about we,” said Jayapal. “It’s about the movement of hundreds of thousands of people in Washington’s seventh Congressional District, a diverse coalition of people from all walks of life, who want to ensure we continue to provide opportunity for all.

“In Congress, I pledge to draw on my experiences as a woman of color, as an immigrant, and as a Washingtonian to speak out against injustice, even when it is not popular, to push for creative solutions to people’s everyday problems, and to find common ground where it can be found.

“I thank Congressman Jim McDermott

for his years of service, and look forward to building on his progressive legacy of fighting for every person in the seventh district.”

Representative Jayapal is one of only twenty-three Members of Congress born in another country.

Courtesy of U. S. Representative Pramila Jayapal’s office

36th annual GSBA Business & Humanitarian Awards Dinner awardees announced

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor The 36th annual Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA) Business & Humanitarian Awards Dinner, “Building Bridges,” is scheduled for February 16, at the Seattle Waterfront Marriott (2100 Alaskan Way). At the dinner, the GSBA honors businesses and business leaders who are successful, exemplify the highest standards of the profession, promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace, demonstrate leadership, and invest time and resources into their community.

This year’s keynote speaker will be Jonathan Capehart, a member of the Washington Post editorial board and a regular contributor to MSNBC. Special remarks will be made by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Seattle Mayor Ed Murray. Gary Tucker will emcee the event.

From 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. the GSBA will

Johnathan Capehart – Photo courtesy of npl.org

host an honoree reception. Then, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. there will be a registration and champagne reception, with dinner and the program beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Visit us online www.sgn.org

This year the GSBA will give the following awards: Business of the Year: Zippy Dogs, coowners Elise Lindborg and Kelli Henderson Business Leader of the Year: Ann Paris, Paris Insurance Services Corporate Leader of the Year: John Zmolek, President & CEO, Verity Credit Union Community Leaders of the Year: David Breland MD, MPH, and Aidan Key, Gender Diversity New Business of the Year: 701 Coffee, co-owners Rachel Brereton and Sara Mae Brereton Nonprofit of the Year: YouthCare, President & CEO Melinda Giovengo, PhD Special Recognition, Voice of Economic Justice: King County Executive Dow Constantine The sponsors are Wells Fargo (Title Sponsor); Vulcan Inc. (Presenting Sponsor); Carter Subaru, Nyhus Communica-

tions, RBC Wealth Management, Seattle Goodwill, and UW Medicine (Event Sponsors); BECU and the Pride Foundation (Award Sponsors); Girlie Press and Sal Floral Design (Supporting Sponsors); and Pacific Publishing and the Seattle Gay News (Media Sponsors).

“Never has the theme of ‘Building Bridges’ been more relevant,” said GSBA officials in an online message to ticket buyers. “If we are to flourish as a community, we must value our local and independent businesses, support our nonprofits that must stretch to meet the needs of those who may no longer get government support, provide safety for our most vulnerable, and come together to recognize, value, and celebrate the strength we have when we all work together.”

Tickets for the event are available for $150. VIP Tickets are $200, a table of 10 is $1,500, and a VIP table of 10 is $2,000.

For tickets go to https://www.thegsba.org/ events/register/1696.

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Seattle Gay News 7

Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce director welcomes 2017

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Seattle’s Capitol Hill, the city’s neighborhood with the most LGBTQ community services, nightlife locations, and nonprofit organizations in one area, has had some growing pains over the past few years. Not only has the cost of living (particularly rent) skyrocketed but the influx of new people moving into the thousands of condos for sale or rent on the Hill has left the neighborhood with somewhat of an identity crisis.

Still, as the LGBTQ community digs its heels in, local nonprofits renew leases, and rainbows are painted at crosswalks, the fact remains that the community is stuck with Capitol Hill and the neighborhood is stuck with us. Now what?

Offering some insight into what she sees as a way forward, Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Sierra Hansen recently reached out to supporters of the neighborhood business chamber, saying, “Capitol Hill will continue to grow, and looking to the future, the Chamber will work to implement new programs and ideas to harness this energy and vitality to address ongoing and new challenges, in

Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Sierra Hansen – Photo by Alex Garland

partnership with our members, community organizations, and residents.”

“Change is the best word to define the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce in 2016,” said Hansen, who is Lesbian. “We welcomed more than 20 new members

from throughout the neighborhood; hosted an exciting series of activation, networking, and community-building events; and advocated for a clean, safe, and vibrant business district.”

“As our region continues to grow,

Capitol Hill remains the coolest place to eat amazing food, drink perfectly crafted cocktails, buy amazing books and clothes, and earn a degree,” she reminds us.

“Inevitably, growth leads to challenges, and Capitol Hill neighbors, visitors, employees, and property owners frequently contact us to share their concerns, such as public safety and reduced mobility,” said Hansen. “Currently, the Chamber leads a monthly Clean and Safe Committee meeting the third Wednesday of the month at 4 p.m. to work on a range of neighborhood issues, and we host monthly events to give folks a chance to meet their neighbors and colleagues.”

Additionally, Hansen says the Chamber partners with social workers, “helping folks in need, and we work with the Capitol Hill Community Council to ensure programs benefit all who call Capitol Hill home.”

Hansen concludes, “If you have ideas or concerns, please share them with us at office@caphillchamber.org or visit our website to consider joining one of our committee meetings or attend an upcoming event.”

The Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce office is located in Suite 204 of the 12th Avenue Arts Building (1620 12th Avenue).

All-gender restrooms to come to Cal Anderson Park this year

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Seattle Parks and Recreation officials will oversee the construction of all-gender, all-ability restrooms at Cal Anderson Park on Capitol Hill. The project, they say, will be a model for the implementation of such restrooms throughout Seattle parks.

The plans to redo the park’s bathrooms as an all-gender and mobility-friendly facility are awaiting approval from the city’s Department of Construction and Inspections. Parks officials say the project will be paired with infrastructure upgrades to Cal Anderson’s fountain.

The restroom plans describe them as four single-occupancy, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)–compliant restrooms with doors opening from the exterior into each individual restroom.

According to the parks department, direct-entry stalls are the safest, most inclusive option.

“This configuration, with the door opening from the exterior directly into the restroom as well as other best-practices concepts, has been determined to provide a more safe and welcoming private use of public restroom for the transgender and gender-nonconforming community, as well as serving caretakers of different genders and family use,” said Young Architecture, the firm hired by the parks department for the project.

In 2016 Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, based on recommendations from the city’s LGBT Task Force, signed an executive order to commission a study of Cal Anderson’s facilities, with the possibility of implementing all-gender restrooms in mind. The task force, which was convened for LGBT safety recommendations, advised the mayor’s office that making the restrooms all-gender would better serve Seattle’s robust Transgender community, as well as cut down on crime, such as the illegal drug consumption that takes place in and around the facilities on a daily basis.

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Cal Anderson Park on Capitol Hill – photo courtesy of capitolhillseattle.com

The study found that Transgender and gender-nonconforming people face harassment, verbal attacks, crime, and violence in gendered restrooms. In addition, data show that semi-private spaces increase stress and that segregated restrooms make it difficult for Transgender folks to participate in society.

The Transgender community was consulted along the way, as were other groups

January 6, 2017

throughout Seattle and other cities, to reach the recommendation to remodel the multistall gendered restrooms into four separate direct-entry restrooms with sinks and toilets that also meet ADA requirements.

Other improvements – including changes to the community meeting building’s exterior and the lighting right outside of the building – are likely to happen too, say officials. And if funding allows, the parks

department will widen the path from E. Olive St. to the park’s wading pool to make it ADA accessible as well. Parks officials say that that portion of the project would require approval from the Landmarks Preservation Board.

The only downside to all of is that construction could mean another summer of fences blocking off portions of the park.

Celebrating 41 Years!

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Celebrating 41 Years!

We’re in your neighborhood!

Swedish proudly supports the LGBTQ community Mill Creek Campus

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Celebrating 41 Years!

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January 6, 2017

Seattle Gay News 13

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Celebrating 41 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

January 6, 2017

Seattle Gay News 15

WEEKLY PETS: Adoption Center

BONNIE

Sunday – Wednesday | 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Thursday – Saturday | 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Phone: (425) 649-7563 Email: adoption@seattlehumane.org

Introducing Bonnie, a 2-year-old German Shepherd with a heart of gold! Bonnie is a well mannered lady and oh-so lovely! She is an active girl who would love a running and hiking partner to keep her days busy. But after a walk, Bonnie absolutely loves leaning against your leg and giving sweet affection. Meet Bonnie today at Seattle Humane!

As with all of our dogs, Bonnie has been spayed, micro-chipped, and vaccinated. She will go home with a certificate for an examination by a King County veterinarian and an identification tag. PLUS, most dog adoptions include 30 days of pet insurance from Trupanion and a training rebate when you complete a dog behavior course - a great way to start off on the right paw!

Introduce to children 16 years and older. Bonnie will need to be the only pet in the home.

SONIA

Meet Sonia, a 12-year-old petite and sweet kitty! Sonia is a friendly girl who can’t wait to get cozy at home with you. A nice window in the sun and a lap to curl up in are her wish list items. Come find Sonia today at PetSmart in Bellevue, a Seattle Humane satellite location and welcome her into your heart and home-- you’ll be glad you did!

As with all of our cats, Sonia is spayed, microchipped and vaccinated. All of our cats have been tested for Feline Leukemia/FIV and go home with a certificate for an examination by a King County veterinarian and their very own identification tag and collar. PLUS, most cat adoptions include 30 days of pet insurance from Trupanion – a great way to start off on the right paw!

PROMOTION Pet-A-Day Challenge: A Resolution You Can Keep!

Follow Seattle Humane on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to see an adoptable pet each day in January who needs a loving family. Seattle Humane challenges you to share and retweet each post this month to get these pets as much exposure as possible! There’s a special surprise for the adopter of the featured pet if they mention the Pet-A-Day Challenge.

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January 6, 2017

Celebrating 41 Years!

Gender Justice League and partners hosts name and gender marker change legal clinic Gender Justice League in partnership with Q-Law Legal Foundation, Teller and Associates, U.T.O.P.I.A., and King County Bar Association will be holding a name and gender marker change legal clinic on January 15 prior to the presidential inauguration. The clinic is in response to requests by hundreds of Transgender community members who have expressed concerns about the incoming administration making access to accurate identification and changes in gender markers or names more difficult.

The purpose of this clinic is to provide expedited legal services for the 4 out of 5 trans and gender-diverse people without accurate identification documentation. The

clinic provides access to volunteer attorneys who will help fill out and understand the necessary paperwork and medical providers who will consult with patients and write same-day-letters at no cost for gender marker changes. People who meet the income guidelines will receive financial assistance with their applications.

The clinic will be held at The Cloud Room, 1424 11th Ave. in Capitol Hill, Seattle from 10am-1pm. The building is ADA accessible. The clinic is also providing Spanish language and ASL interpretation.

To RSVP for the upcoming clinic, contact the Gender Justice League via email at info@genderjusticeleague.org or visit

http://www.genderjusticeleague.org/.

Gender Justice League aims to raise $40,000 by January 20th in order to provide financial assistance to those who cannot afford the fees associated with changing one’s identity documents. Services provided include assistance with name change in King County, driver’s license changes, immigration document changes, social security changes, birth certificate changes, and passport changes. Costs for changes range from $20.00 for name changes on birth certificates to $171.00 for a King County name change. Together, the average cost is nearly $500 per person. Additionally, the clinic will be taking on-site passport photos.

Gender Justice League and its partners believe that having legal and up-to-date identification documentation is a vital step in protecting the trans and gender-diverse community’s safety in a time of increasing hate-crimes against the LQBTQIA community. Many in the trans community fear that the incoming federal administration will make gender marker changes on ID significantly more difficult. Without upto-date ID documentation, the trans and gender-diverse community faces increased chances of housing, employment, travel, and education challenges.

Courtesy of Gender Justice League

Federal judge blocks Obamacare nondiscrimination protections Trans healthcare and reproductive choice at stake “Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act is critical to ensuring that individuals, including some of our most vulnerable populations, do not suffer discrimination in the health care and health coverage they receive.”

Connolly did insist that the reminder of the ACA’s nondiscrimination protections remain in effect and would be enforced.

“We will continue to enforce the law – including its important protections against discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, or disability and its provisions aimed at enhancing language assistance for people with limited English proficiency, as well as other sex discrimination provisions – to the full extent consistent with the court’s order,” she said.

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A federal judge in Texas has blocked enforcement of the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or Obamacare) nondiscrimination provisions that protect Transgender health care and reproductive choice.

Only 24 hours before the regulations would go into effect, on December 31, US District Judge Reed O’Connor issued an injunction preventing the administration from carrying them out.

O’Connor ruled in a lawsuit brought by Texas and several other states under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) that challenged the Obama administration’s interpretation of the ACA’s ban on discrimination based on sex.

At stake are the administrative rules developed to implement Section 1557 of the ACA, the part that prohibits discrimination in provision of health care services.

Like other executive departments, Health and Human Services (HHS) issued rules saying that the ban on sex discrimination also “forbids discriminating on the basis of ‘gender identity’ and ‘termination of pregnancy’” under Obamacare.

Texas and the other parties to the lawsuit alleged that the regulation violates the RFRA and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), which defines the process for federal government rule-making.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argued that the administration’s rules constituted a “striking example of federal overreach” and warned that the provisions “would force many doctors, hospitals, and other health care providers in Texas to participate in sex-reassignment surgeries and treatments, even if it violates their best medical judgment or their religious beliefs.”

O’Connor agreed with Paxton’s assertions.

“Plaintiffs claim the Rule’s interpretation of sex discrimination pressures doctors to deliver health care in a manner that violates their religious freedom and thwarts their independent medical judgment and

Judge Reed-O’Connor – Photo courtesy of sonorannews.com

will require burdensome changes to their health insurance plans on January 1, 2017,” O’Connor wrote in his opinion.

O’Connor found that the plaintiffs had standing to bring the lawsuit despite the fact that they, themselves, do not provide health care services, because they “have presented concrete evidence to support their fears that they will be subject to enforcement under the [Obama administration’s] Rule.”

O’Connor found that “numerous” other options were available to the government for “expand[ing] access to transition and abortion procedures,” and therefore the administration’s rules are not the “least restrictive means” of advancing that interest – as required by RFRA. O’Connor also questioned whether the Obama administration even showed that it “advances a compelling interest,” as required by RFRA. Finally, because the rule affects “almost all licensed physicians” and one of the nonprofit groups – the Christian Medical & Dental Associations – has members across the country, O’Connor found that a nationwide injunction halting enforcement of the Transgender- and abortion-related provi-

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sions in the rule was appropriate.

White House response In a December 31 statement the White House defended the administration’s policies.

“Today’s decision is a setback, but hopefully a temporary one, since all Americans – regardless of their sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation – should have access to quality, affordable health care free from discrimination,” White House spokesperson Katie Hill told BuzzFeed News.

The next steps from the administration could include appealing the injunction or asking O’Connor to limit his order to the plaintiffs in the case, although the administration now has less than three weeks left in office.

HHS spokesperson Marjorie Connolly, in a statement to BuzzFeed News, did not provide any specific next steps to protect Transgender or reproductive care.

“We are disappointed by the court’s decision to preliminarily enjoin certain important protections against unlawful sex discrimination in our health care system,” she said.

January 6, 2017

Judge also blocked restroom access for Trans students O’Connor is the same federal judge who blocked enforcement of the Obama administration’s guidelines on restroom access for Transgender students.

In August he issued another nationwide injunction striking down Education Department guidance stating that the Title IX ban on sex discrimination also protected gender identity. O’Connor’s ruling came in a lawsuit also led by Texas.

O’Connor held in the Title IX case that the administration exceeded its constitutional authority by making rules not contemplated by the underlying legislation.

In March of 2015, he also sought to block Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) rights for legally married samesex couples despite the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Windsor.

In that case, O’Connor argued that the Supreme Court decision did not invalidate state laws against same-sex marriage.

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CHUCK SCHUMER continued from cover

colleagues to succeed outgoing leader Harry Reid, who did not run for re-election. Reid had been Democratic leader since 2005.

In a 20-minute speech on the Senate floor soon after the new 115th Congress was sworn in, Schumer promised to work with Trump when he could but “fight him tooth and nail” when he had to.

“It is our job to do what’s best for the American people, the middle class, and those struggling to get there. If the president-elect proposes legislation that achieves that … we will work in good faith to perfect and, potentially, enact it,” Schumer said.

“When he doesn’t, we will resist,” he added.

“We’ll fight him tooth and nail when he appeals to the baser instincts that have too often plagued this country … and that had too often plagued his campaign.”

Senate Democrats would insist on accountability and resist a “Twitter presidency,” he warned.

Chuck Schumer – Photo courtesy of thedailybeast.com

“This will be an ‘accountability Congress.’ And we will be a caucus that works to make sure the president-elect

keeps his commitment to truly make America great, in its finest sense and tradition,” Schumer said.

NAACP

continued from cover to protest Sessions’ nomination as attorney general in the soon-to-be Trump administration. The protesters vowed in continue their sit-in until Sessions withdrew from consideration or they were arrested.

“We are asking the senator to withdraw his name for consideration as attorney general or for the president-elect, Donald Trump, to withdraw the nomination,” NAACP President Cornell William Brooks told CNN. The NAACP identified the arrested protesters as Brooks, Devon Crawford, Stephen A. Green, Joe Keffer, Lizzetta McConnell, and Bernard Simelton. Most serve in leadership roles for the civil rights organization on the local, state, or national level.

“We are here; we are all well aware of the laws of trespass,” Brooks said to police officers on the scene. “We are engaging in a voluntary act of civil disobedience. We try to conduct ourselves in a peaceful manner, a nonviolent manner.”

He assured the officers they would leave Sessions’ office as they found it and thanked the staff for their hospitality.

“We are in fact going to be arrested,” Brooks said a short while later, as the protesters began handing their IDs to the officers. Before being led out of the office, the group knelt down to pray.

“Eternal God, we thank you for this opportunity to serve you,” they said. “Thank you for the ability to push this nation closer to its moral center. Thank you for the opportunity in the NAACP for standing up for the voices for those who are marginalized,

STADIUM SEATS continued from cover

25,500 seats at Orlando City Stadium, which broke ground in 2014 and cost an estimated $155 million, were dedicated to those who died in the June 12 mass shooting.

“Just over six months ago on June the 12th, there was the senseless loss of 49 lives

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NAACP protestors sitting in at Jeff Session’s office – Photo courtesy Cornell William Brooks/Twitter

for those who have been left out, for those who have been cast out on the side.”

The arrestees face charges of seconddegree criminal trespass, according to the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office. They were arrested shortly before 8 p.m. local time and released from jail around 9:30 p.m., a sheriff’s spokeswoman said.

Many civil rights groups have objected to Sessions’ nomination to head the Department of Justice, saying that racially inflammatory remarks Sessions made throughout

his career disqualify him from serving in a post that requires him to enforce federal civil rights laws.

Sessions is an old foe of the NAACP, which he once described as “un-American” and “Communist-inspired.”

That statement came to light during US Senate hearings on Sessions’ nomination for a federal judgeship in 1986. Justice Department lawyer J. Gerald Hebert testified that as a US attorney, Sessions had denounced both the NAACP and the ACLU.

at the Pulse Nigthclub,” said soccer club president Phil Rawlins during a private dedication ceremony this week. “And as a sports, as a community, as a soccer club, we responded to that tragedy in the very best possible way.”

He further stated, “And it was my belief, I know it’s your belief as a club, that this sport can lift up a community and help to heal a community. And that’s what we did on that Saturday following the Pulse tragedy. We made a commitment on that day

that, which is that we would commemorate, forever, in the new stadium a memory of the 49 victims that lost their lives that day.

And today we’re here to do that. We’re here to commemorate and unveil the 49 rainbow seats that will sit permanently in section 12 of our new stadium as a constant reminder of the senseless acts of June 12.”

The rainbow-colored seats are in a prominent location inside the stadium and will be sold to season ticket holders, ensuring that they will be occupied for

January 6, 2017

“We will hold your feet to the fire every time you abandon your pledges,” Schumer said.

In spite of the tough language, Schumer and Trump have known each other for decades and reportedly like each other.

Trump has donated thousands of dollars to Schumer’s campaigns for his House (1981–1999) and Senate (1999–present) spots, and has praised the Democratic leader in past tweets.

On November 20, for example, Trump tweeted that he “always had a good relationship with Chuck Schumer.”

“He is far smarter than Harry R and has the ability to get things done,” Trump tweeted then.

Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, said last month that Trump might even have a lot more in common with his fellow New Yorker than he does with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, especially when it comes to their shared desire for increased infrastructure spending.

Sessions’ former deputy US attorney, Thomas Figures, an African-American, sent an open letter to the Senate saying his boss made racist remarks, at times directly to him.

Figures said Sessions told him to be careful about what he said “to white folks” after Figures got into a heated argument with a white colleague. Figures added that Sessions called him “boy” on multiple occasions.

Figures also said Sessions had joked about the Ku Klux Klan, saying he thought its members were “OK” until he learned that they “smoked marijuana.”

On the same day as the NAACP protest, a group of more than 1,100 law school professors from across the country sent a letter to Congress urging the Senate to reject the nomination of Sessions.

As of January 4, the letter was signed by professors from 176 law schools in 49 states – all except Alaska, which has no law school.

“We are convinced that Jeff Sessions will not fairly enforce our nation’s laws and promote justice and equality in the United States,” stated the letter.

“Nothing in Sen. Sessions’ public life since 1986 has convinced us that he is a different man than the 39-year-old attorney who was deemed too racially insensitive to be a federal district court judge,” the letter added.

Among other legal scholars, the letter was signed by Laurence H. Tribe of Harvard Law School, Geoffrey R. Stone of the University of Chicago Law School, Pamela S. Karlan of Stanford Law School, and Erwin Chemerinsky of the University of California at Irvine School of Law.

every home game throughout the season, which kicks off March 5 against New York City FC. If you’re planning to visit Orlando in the near future and would like to attend a Lions soccer match, go to orlandocitysc.com for ticket information.

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New York issues first-in-nation Intersex birth certificate

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The state of New York has issued what is apparently the first birth certificate in the country to include “Intersex” as a gender designation.

The certificate was issued to 55-year-old Sara Kelly Keenan at her request.

Keenan was born with XY chromosomes – but with female genitalia and mixed reproductive organs – and was assigned female gender at birth.

Keenan, who uses “she” pronouns, was unaware she was Intersex until 2012 but struggled with her gender throughout her childhood.

“I always knew I was something other than what the boys were and something other than what the girls were, but I didn’t know what that was,” she said. “And I thought I was alone in the world with whatever it was.”

Keenan won the right to be designated

Sara Kelly Keenan – Photo courtesy of Sara Kelly Keenan

as “non-binary” in California, but the state of New York requires that birth certificate gender markers be biologically based.

Therefore, they rejected the description “non-binary” but allowed “Intersex.”

Keenan said she hoped that future gender designations can go beyond the constraints of male, female, and Intersex.

“New York has opened the door, and I don’t think they’ll be able to shut it again,” she said.

Keenan is also working as a paralegal with the Intersex and Genderqueer Recognition Project to push for a change in gender recognition.

“In bringing this change, all the Intersex children born now and yet to be born are my children because I can bring change for them,” she said. “I don’t have a biological piece of the future, but I have a heart piece of the future through those children because I can help them and give them a better experience.”

We don’t condone Milo, but we will give him $250K, Simon & Schuster says

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Responding to outrage over its $250,000 book deal with Gay neo-fascist Milo Yiannopoulos, publishing giant Simon & Schuster issued a defensive non-apology on December 30.

“We do not and never have condoned discrimination or hate speech in any form,” the company said.

“At Simon & Schuster we have always published books by a wide range of authors with greatly varying, and frequently controversial opinions, and appealing to many different audiences of readers. While we are cognizant that many may disagree vehemently with the books we publish, we note that the opinions expressed therein belong to our authors and do not reflect either a corporate viewpoint or the views of our employees.”

Yiannopoulos, an editor at the alt-right website Breitbart News, has made a career

(l) Gay neo-fascist Milo Yiannopoulos and actress and comedian Leslie Jones – Photos courtesy of huffpost.com and bet.com

out of snotty racist and sexist pronouncements. Simon & Schuster’s Threshold subsidiary will publish Yiannopoulos’s latest output, to be titled Dangerous.

The publishing house’s boilerplate statement prompted actress and comedian Leslie Jones – who was the target of a series of racist tweets from Yiannopoulos after

she starred in the new Ghostbusters movie – to write a caustic response on Twitter: “Yea but you still help them spread their hate to even more people,” she said.

Jones added that she “literally wants to put hands to a jaw right now.”

Author Danielle Henderson, whose memoir will be published by Simon & Schuster in 2018, tweeted that she felt like canceling her contract with the publisher.

“I’m looking at my @simonschuster contract, and unfortunately there’s no clause for ‘what if we decide to publish a white nationalist,’” she wrote.

The next day, after Yiannopoulos fans had inundated her Twitter account with insults, Henderson announced she had made her account private “so I can get drunk w/ friends instead of blocking trolls all night.”

As of January 3, pre-sales of Yiannopoulos’s book put it at #4 on Amazon’s best-sellers list after spending two days at #1.

Allied spies plotted to “feminize” Hitler, secret files show

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Allied spies plotted to dose Adolf Hitler with estrogen, hoping to feminize him, newly declassified files reveal.

Cardiff University Professor Brian Ford came across the files while doing research for his book Secret Weapons: Technology, Science, and the Race to Win World War II. British and American intelligence agents seriously considered the plan to discredit Hitler by drugging his food with the hormone estrogen and “feminizing” his appearance.

Poison could have been detected by German food tasters, the British spies feared, but adding hormones to Hitler’s meals was “entirely possible” due to their slow-acting effects.

Doses of estrogen would make the leader less aggressive, they believed, as well as humiliating him by altering his appearance, causing his trademark mustache to fall out and his breasts to grow.

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Professor Brian Ford – Photo courtesy of brianjford.com

January 6, 2017

Speaking on Netflix’s “White Rabbit Project,” Ford explained: “The Americans put it rather well. They said, ‘take away his moustache and give him breasts.’

“This was actually considered…In the 1930s, it was believed chemicals in the body controlled everything so it seemed fairly logical.

“Give it to Hitler and he’ll stop being an aggressive man and turn into a gentle and mild-mannered woman. Instead of going to war he might just turn his back on the whole idea.”

But “the whole idea from the top to bottom was just silly,” Ford concluded.

The idea that men would be “aggressive” and women “mild-mannered” is clearly a byproduct of the mid-20th century construction of gender roles, but even the science behind the secret plan is questionable.

Unlike hormone therapy designed to aid gender reassignment, uncontrolled dosages of estrogen without medical supervision would have had unpredictable results.

“If it would have had any effect at all, it

would have been to upset his hormone balance – and that could have made him far more angry, not less,” Ford explained.

While the idea of surreptitiously drugging a foreign leader sounds far-fetched, the CIA considered similar plots against Fidel Castro in the 1960s.

According to declassified CIA documents, the US spy agency collaborated with Mafia boss Sam Giancana to poison Castro.

After several unsuccessful attempts to add poison pills to Castro’s food, the Mafia associate assigned to the mission abruptly quit.

Other reported plots against Castro featured an exploding cigar and a booby-trapped conch shell that was placed in an area where Castro was believed to be skin diving.

Some plots were aimed at humiliating the Cuban leader rather than murdering him.

For example, the CIA wanted to introduce a powerful depilatory into his clothes to make his beard fall out. Another scheme involved dosing him with LSD before a major speech, hoping to render him incoherent.

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