SGN December 4, 2015 - Section 1

Celebrating 41 Years!

Issue 49 Volume 43

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SGN exclusive interview with Niki Trumbo

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Seattle Gay News

Pride Foundation has invested over $7.5 million to support LGBTQ people in 2015

SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Northwest Hammerskins planning Seattle White Power march on Capitol Hill, Sunday, Dec. 6 Rose City Antifa and allies call for peaceful counter protest

Announces 66 Northwest organizations receiving community grants

Cal Anderson Park fountain – activerain.com Pride Foundation recently announced families throughout the Northwest. that it has invested over $7.5 million this “2015 represented another important by Shaun Knittel Skinheads. Neo-Nazis. Terror group. year to expand opportunities and advance milestone for our community,” said Kris SGN Associate Editor Nobody wants these people in their city or full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans- Hermanns, Executive Director of Pride neighborhood. But if reports of a planned gender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals and see hammerskins page 5 see pride foundation page 8

More than 400 people 43rd District Rep. Brady Walkinshaw to run attend 12th Annual Stronger Together World for Congress – Challenges Jim McDermott AIDS Day Breakfast

State Rep. Brady Walkinshaw to challenge Jim McDermott – vimeo.com / bradywalkinshaw.com

George Bakan receiving HIV/AIDS Service Award – Photo by Shaun Knittel

by Shaun Knittel Walkinshaw was appointed to fill the va- SGN Associate Editor

by Mike Andrew cancy in the 43rd Legislative District created SGN Staff Writer On Monday, December 1, five Seattle when Jamie Pedersen went to the State Sennon-profit AIDS services providers joined State Rep. Brady Walkinshaw announced ate, replacing Ed Murray who was elected together in a powerful collaboration: the on December 3 that he would challenge U.S. mayor of Seattle in 2013. Walkinshaw was 12th Annual Stronger Together World AIDS Rep. Jim McDermott in next year’s primary then elected on his own in 2014.

Day Breakfast. election. see walkinshaw page 5

The annual December 1 breakfast was held at the Washington State Convention Center (800 Convention Place) from 7:30 to 9 a.m., and although it was free to attend, each attendee is encouraged to donate a minimum of $150. The largest benefit of its kind in the Northwest, the breakfast is a see aids day page 5

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December 4, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

Seattle City Councilmember-elect M. Lorena González was sworn into office on November 24, 2015 at City Hall. Following is the speech she gave following the formal administration of the Oath of Office.

Mayor Murray, Council President Bur- was slopping what appeared to be meat into earn my bachelor’s degree – and then law gess, [other elected officials], friends, fam- a taco shell at Taco Bell or folding sheets at school – by working in a food plant, a bank, ily, sisters and brothers, I stand before you a hotel or standing in front of a judge advo- a retail store, a fast food chain, a daycare today with sincere appreciation for the op- cating for workers or a victim of the abuse and a hotel.

This much about my background you portunity I have to represent our communi- of power, my father believed all work merty in the state’s largest city as the first Latina ited respect and pride. I will carry that with might’ve known. me every day in this hall of power.

But what you don’t know is growing up sworn into the Seattle City Council.

My mom, mi ama, que se enseno como as a migrant farm worker outside of Yakima I’ve recognized other elected officials here today but I want to take a moment to escribir, lear, y hacer la matematica, who also meant that my family and I traveled recognize another group of important peo- taught herself how to write, read and do between camps, and witnessed countless acts of injustice, and expeple in the room – my family. rienced a few, too.

Not all of them could I remember vividly being be here today but this mojust 8 years old and sliiiiiment is as much there’s as iding my school I.D. across it is mine – whether they’re the counter at the office of here or not. Amongst my an orchard. I was there to two sisters and three brothget out into the fields and ers, we are a lawyer, a pharpick cherries. I could barely macist, a locomotive engisee over the counter, but I neer, a grocery store worker was ready to work – someand an aspiring lineman. times two or three hours Each of us made sacrifices before the school day startto get to where we are toed. Often in an environday. But no one made a sacment where I was sprayed rifice greater than my mom with pesticides, or working and dad. without access to a bathMake no mistake: I am room or water… the child of immigrants.

But I didn’t know any Not just any kind of immibetter. It’s what my engrants but undocumented tire family had to do just. immigrants from Mexico. to.survive.

My parents with courage It’s these formative moand vision to provide greatLorena González being sworn in to office at Seattle City Hall – twitter.com ments and experiences that er opportunity to their yet unborn children left their family and the only math, it was your unfailing support that inspired me to want to be an advocate, a country they knew to pursue the American helped me – to achieve the dream that is champion, for those people who I see myself in – even to this day – and especially for dream. This historic moment is more theirs unfolding here tonight.

Gracias. Thank you. those who haven’t had a strong voice in govthan mine.

I don’t have the background of a typi- ernment.

You were the hardest of workers. You beThey live in the shadows, and I did too – lieved the American dream was achievable cal politician. Mine is a lived experience rooted in the reality of overcoming poverty until I saw a path and, with the help of my – and for us it was.

I am eternally grateful for the sacrifices and injustice. I am living proof that access family and community, climbed my way to opportunity, coupled with hard work, is a out. I now have a seat at the proverbial “tayou made. ble” and by virtue of that so have others that My dad, Emigdio Gonzalez Berber, who recipe for success.

I graduated high school in the face of are still living in the shadows. This is also died 5 years ago in Mexico, is not here but he is represented in me, each of my siblings overwhelming odds. I worked several jobs your moment. and my nieces and nephews. He taught me to enroll in community college and relied work ethic and pride of work. Whether I on scholarships and need-based grants to see gonzÁlez page 4

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December 4, 2015

Seattle Gay News 3

gonzÁlez

continued from page 3 Tonight I’m reminded that a life, like all things, is built day-by-day, choice-bychoice, with diligence, hard work and opportunity. It’s so easy to feel lost and doubtful and even despair.

Many in Seattle might be currently feeling this doubt and despair amidst so much economic growth. Indeed, we are living in a city where the rich are becoming richer and the poor are becoming poorer.

In a single year, we saw that our homeless population grew by 20%. We’ve also seen that the wealth gap has become increasingly wider between the 1% and the rest of us, impacting communities of color and immigrants even more profoundly than others.

So what will we do about these growing disparities?

Cesar Chavez, a civil rights leader and founder of the United Farmworkers Union once said, “It’s amazing how people can get so excited about a rocket to the moon and not give a damn about smog, oil leaks, the devastation of the environment with pesti-

cides, hunger, disease. When the poor share some of the power that the affluent now monopolize, we will give a damn.”

Tonight, I give a damn. We give a damn.

And, together we will stand up for the poor.

We will stand up for the underrepresented.

Together, we will change the face of the table that represents power.

There remains a great deal of work ahead. Hard work.

My first order of business is going to be digging into issues of affordability and growth.

In the year ahead, this Council will continue to work to ensure that no family is on the streets at night, in our otherwise rich city, without decent shelter for them and their children.

Our city has some of the lowest unemployment in the nation – but not for all Seattle residents.

We need to not only create more jobs, we need to create jobs for Seattle residents – particularly from the high number of unemployed youth in our communities of color and other underrepresented communities.

We can agree that growth and prosperity are good but the market alone will not

provide prosperity for everyone.

I want to turn my attention now to my constituents – to the thousands who voted for me, and to the hundreds of you who worked tirelessly on our campaign, I thank you. Thank you for placing your trust in me.

To you, I pledge that I will do my utmost to represent the underrepresented, the poor and the oppressed.

And to my Council colleagues, my word is my deed.

It’s right here, in *these* chambers that – together – we will discuss, sometimes debate, amend, and tackle local issues, with national significance. (That’s what we get for living in and governing on behalf of The Most Progressive City in America.)

Together, we will continue the hard work on which you’ve embarked already, and to make sacrifices, knowing that they likely pale in comparison to those that so many Seattle residents make each and every day.

I have dedicated my life’s work to defending workers’ rights and will continue this fight – in the name of wage theft on behalf of a cook, or defending men and women against retribution in all its forms. I’ll continue my quest to stand up for dignity in

the work place, and in my work here at City Hall on behalf of workers.

In closing, I’m truly humbled. In my career as a trial lawyer, police-reform advocate and former mayoral adviser, I’ve applied my core values of hard work and justice. On the Council, I will not back down from tackling tough issues or seeking solutions that build a stronger community.

And we will not waste time: tomorrow I officially embark on my career at City Hall. We’ll begin with a community-wide open house, and next week we’ll tie up loose ends, and then turn our attention to the New Year.

But tonight, as the first person of Latino descent to hold elected office in Seattle, let’s enjoy this moment – together, we are on the precipice of history.

Together, we were elected to this body to help people. So, let’s work together towards compromise, civility and compassion.

Together we were able to make history, and together we can continue building a City that works for all.

Together, we can do great things for the people – all people – of Seattle.

Thank you.

Seattle LGBT Community Center EDITOR: Great to read that the Seattle City Council, as well as many within the gay community, are working on establishing a gay and lesbian community center.

Toward that end, I’d propose that a metro area survey be taken to determine: • In what parts of the city do lesbians, gay men and transgender people live?

• What services does the LGBT population want and need?

• Does this population have wheels, or does it depend on public transit?

• Would a 24/7 live hotline be useful? Or just an automated information line and or Web site?

• Should the community center offer counseling, entertainment, referrals, books, rainbow flags?

Surveys are good at determining what actions to take, as long as an extensive outreach is made via newspapers, Web sites, and leaving surveys with the scores of our lesbian and gay organizations, as well as at gay-friendly businesses.

A survey could determine, for in-

stance, that the gay population is spread out throughout the metro area, and a community center would not need to be established in the very expensive, parking space deficient, Capitol Hill area. While there are a concentration of gay-friendly bars on the Hill, it is not the center of the gay and lesbian universe.

Surveys have already shown that more than 50 percent of the lesbian and gay community is in a relationship. We can also assume that many are now legally married.

This profile would suggest different needs than a population of singles.

For three years, I worked on Dr. Ruhland’s proposal to have a free and low cost

natural healing clinic at the now unused Fire Station #6 in the Central District.

While that clinic has yet to materialize, such a space could be shared by multiple organizations. Seattle likely has more abandoned facilities that could also house and fund multiple community endeavors.

Demian ec: Seattle City Council, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray Dr. Demian is director of Partners Task Force for Gay & Lesbian Couples, founded 1995. http://buddybuddy.com

Pike QFC shooting report released, no arrests made

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor No arrests have been made by Seattle Police in the ongoing investigation into the early morning November 22 drive-by shooting that resulted in four people suffering gunshot wounds and a fifth person injured by flying glass outside of the Harvard Market / Broadway and East Pike Street QFC. The police report from the incident was released to the public on Wednesday. Although no details have emerged about the alleged argument that the shooter was involved in before the drive-by occurred, the report does offer a look into what police encountered when they responded to hearing the gunshots early that morning.

SPD Officers Shepard and Akiyama were investigating a disturbance call on the corner of 10th Avenue and East Pike Street when Shepard reports that he heard “Ten to fifteen shots fired in rapid succession in the area of Broadway and East Pike Street.”

The two officers ran towards the gunfire and Shepard wrote in the report that they determined the crime scene was at the QFC because there “was a victim lying on the sidewalk in front of the doors at the Broadway entrance.”

Officers stayed with the victim as Shepard and Akiyama went up the stairs on the Broadway side of the QFC to the back park-

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No arrests have been made in connection with the Pike Blvd. QFC shooting – q13fox.com

ing lot to further secure the scene. “We did not know if there were more victims upstairs, and a witness downstairs was pointing up toward the parking lot as if the suspects had gone that way,” he said.

While the officers were in the Bartell’s parking lot “a second victim walked up the stairs and sat down near the elevators.”

According to the report the victim, who had not realized that he had been shot at first, suffered a single gunshot after being shot while he was standing in front of the QFC at the Broadway entrance. Police say the victim never saw who shot him.

December 4, 2015

A witness told police that the suspect vehicle was “possibly a silver, four door [redacted] (unknown year) with damage to the driver side, side view mirror (mirror hanging from the door).”

The witness stated the driver was a light skinned black male and the passenger that was shooting out of the front passenger side window was a light skinned black male with a full beard. Another witness however, said that a black female was driving the vehicle and that the black male passenger that was shooting out of the front passenger window had a goatee.

Also announced that the weekend, the normally 24-hour Harvard Market QFC will start closing its doors during weekend nights as part of an ongoing effort to address security concerns on the corner of Broadway and E. Pike, a company spokesperson told Seattle Gay News. A sign was posted on the store’s front door notifying customers that it would close from 1 a.m. 4 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

“Since that (timeframe) is when there are a lot of people coming out of the bars in the area, we determined that it might help eliminate a gathering space if we closed the store during that time,” said Fred Meyer/ QFC spokesperson Melinda Merrill.

Merrill says the new hours of operation are not a direct result of the shooting, but part of an ongoing analysis of the store’s security procedures.

Additionally announced this week, the president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild has gone to the media alleging a cover-up of a staffing study that shows SPD needs to hire 300-400 more officers and that Seattle is currently under-policed for a city of its size.

In an update on the guild’s Facebook page, Ron Smith wrote, “The City of Seattle has a moral obligation to safely staff the patrol ranks of SPD. Sadly this isn’t the case.

We will be turning up the heat higher on those who the responsibility falls upon their feet.”

Celebrating 41 Years!

walkinshaw continued from cover

While in Olympia, Walkinshaw compiled a progressive voting record, earning a 100% rating from the Washington State Labor Council.

His term will be up in 2016, but instead of running for a second term in the State House, Walkinshaw will run for the 7th Congressional District seat held by McDermott since 1988.

McDermott was a political fixture in Seattle before Walkinshaw was born. Elected to the State House for the 43rd District in 1970, McDermott ran for Governor in 1972, and then for the State Senate in 1974.

After serving four terms in the Senate,

aids day

continued from cover fundraiser for Gay City Health Project, Seattle Counseling Service, and CareTeams a Program of Samaritan Center, with support from Inspire Youth Project and CMCH (Center for Multi-Cultural Health).

The breakfast is an opportunity for donors to make the strongest impact possible by supporting the entire network of AIDS service providers in Seattle.

“Last year the event brought in more than $100,000 for the combined agencies, which provides care, support and most importantly – hope to those living with HIV/ AIDS,” Stronger Together World AIDS Day Breakfast officials report.

The total amount raised at this year’s well-attended breakfast has not yet been finalized.

At the breakfast, each year, attendees honor those we’ve lost, commit to help those who are living with HIV/AIDS, and celebrate the power of our community in making a difference.

“Your support will help change lives,” promise officials.

On Monday, Entrance Music was played on the piano by local Gay piano man and vocalist Victor Janusz, who also opened the morning program with the song “Somewhere (There’s a Place for Us)” from West Side Story.

The Emcee for the event was Molly Shen, KOMO 4 News anchor, weekdays at 11 a.m. and at 5 p.m. Shen talked about the difference in how the media reports HIV/ AIDS stories now, versus 30 years ago.

Seattle Gay News Publisher George Bakan and Health Educator Vanessa

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white power concert in the Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood and a march through Capitol Hill are true, then Seattle residents could be dealing with more than 300 skinheads from the white power group Northwest Hammerskins on Sunday, Dec. 6.

According to the Institute for Research & Education on Human Rights, Hammerskins has declared an escalation of activities in the Puget Sound region.

“The events are scheduled to celebrate what white nationalists have dubbed ‘Martyr’s Day’ – when they mark the death of Robert Mathews, the leader of the neo-Nazi terror group, The Order,” IREHR officials report on the organization’s official website www.irehr.org alerting the public of the event. “The group had previously commemorated the event on land near the site of Mathew’s death on Whidbey Island.”

Thirty-one years ago, Robert J. Mathews, who founded a band of white supremacist terrorists’ intent on starting a race war

he was elected to Congress in 1988, when Walkinshaw was four years old.

In 2014 McDermott was once again reelected to Congress, with 81% of the vote.

McDermott has been one of the most progressive and pro-LGBT members of Congress. In 1990 he was the prime sponsor of the Housing Opportunities for People With AIDS Act (HOPWA), which provided federal assistance for AIDS patients to secure decent housing.

McDermott was also one of the few congressmembers to oppose the U.S. invasion of Iraq from the beginning.

Walkinshaw said that while he and McDermott agree on many issues, it was time for “new kinds of leaders” to emerge.

“I believe our region is at a pivotal mo-

ment,” Walkinshaw said in a statement.

“As I’ve listened to people throughout our region, almost everyone is dissatisfied with the direction of Congress. Our region, in the central Puget Sound, can be a stronger part of getting this country back on track. I’m running for Congress to offer a fresh start. We cannot expect a change in Washington D.C. unless we are willing to elect new kinds of leaders from Washington state. That’s why I’m proud to announce my candidacy for Congress today to represent my home in Washington’s Seventh Congressional District.”

In an interview with the Seattle Times, McDermott brushed off Walkinshaw’s challenge.

“Around here, we’ve had a lot of people

come in with no experience, and you see the good luck we’ve got,” McDermott said.

“You wouldn’t give a Maserati to a 15-year-old,” he added. “This is the government that runs the world.”

Walkinshaw has been endorsed by a number of state legislators, including State Sens. Cyrus Habib and Marko Liias, and State Reps. Jessyn Farrell, Cindy Ryu, Lillian Ortiz-Self, Strom Peterson, June Robinson, Joan McBride, Steve Bergquist, Laurie Jinkins, David Sawyer, and Mia Gregerson.

He has not been endorsed by his 43rd District colleagues Sen. Jamie Pedersen and House Speaker Frank Chopp, however.

Grandberry from the Center for Multi- South Africa; Barcelona, Spain; Bangkok, Cultural Health were the recipients of this Thailand; and Toronto, Canada. year’s HIV/AIDS Service Awards, presentWilson was the co-founder of the Naed by Seattle City Councilmember Tom tional Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Rasmussen.

Forum and the National Task Force on Keynote Speaker this year was Phill Wil- AIDS Prevention. He has been involved in son, President and Chief Executive Officer the founding of a number of other AIDS serof the Black AIDS Institute. Prior to found- vice organizations and community-based ing the Institute, Wilson served as the AIDS organizations, including the Chris BrownCoordinalie Hospice, tor for the the AIDS City of Los Healthcare Angeles Foundafrom 1990 tion, the to 1993, the National Director of MinorPolicy and ity AIDS Planning Council, at AIDS the Los AnProject Los geles CounAngeles ty Gay Men from 1993 of Color to 1996.

ConsorHe was cotium, and chair of the the CAEAR Los AngeCoalition. les County HIV Health The Ford CommisFoundasion from tion named 1990 to Wilson one 1995, and of the 20 Phill Wilson – lgbtweekly.com was an apaward repointee to the HRSA AIDS Advisory Com- cipients for the Leadership for a Changing mittee from 1995 to 1998.

World, in 2001. He was a member of the Wilson was the coordinator of the In- U.S. delegation to the 1994 World AIDS ternational Community Treatment and Summit in Paris, and has worked extensiveScience Workshop at the 12th, 13th, 14th, ly on HIV/AIDS policy, research, preven15th, and 16th International AIDS Con- tion, and treatment issues in Russia, Latvia, ferences in Geneva, Switzerland; Durban, the Ukraine, the UK, Holland, Germany,

France, Mexico, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, India, and Botswana.

He has published articles in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, LA Weekly, Essence, Ebony, Vibe, Jet, POZ, HIV+ and other periodicals.

In his World AIDS Day Breakfast speech Wilson reminded everyone that the HIV/ AIDS epidemic cannot be defeated in just one zip code; AIDS is not contained to a single city or country. In addition, he spoke about his support for PrEP, or Truvada, and the fact that viral suppression is keeping others from becoming infected. More education is needed to keep young black men from getting and spreading HIV/AIDS, too, said Wilson.

Following Wilson’s speech, a video presentation by Yoyostring Creative Media featuring the executive directors from the benefiting nonprofit organizations played while attendees filled out donor cards.

The 12th Annual Stronger Together World AIDS Day Breakfast was presented

by Wells Fargo. The December 1 breakfast marked the third year Wells Fargo returned as presenting sponsor of the event.

This year’s Diamond Sponsor was MCW Events; Gold Sponsors: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Fred Hutch, Gilead Sciences, Macy’s; Silver Sponsors: Adams Insurance Agency, Community: A Walgreens Pharmacy, Dignity Memorial, Goodwill, Kelley-Ross Pharmacy, Pride Foundation, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Steamworks Baths, Valant and Community Sponsors: 1st Security Bank, Group Health, Pacific Continental Bank, United Reprographics.

called The Order had fled to Whidbey Island after a gun battle days earlier with FBI agents at a motel in Portland, Oregon. At a cabin, Mathews refused to surrender to the FBI, which later fired flares into the building to force him out. Matthews refused to leave, and died in an inferno when the cabin caught fire.

Because of Mathews’ unwillingness to surrender, he is widely regarded now as a martyr for white nationalists and racists, who annually visit Whidbey Island as part of a pilgrimage of sorts.

Details about the 2015 Martyr’s Day event are sketchy at best. However, information posted to the white nationalist website Stormfront says, “Just got word from those putting on the Martyr’s Day 2015 event and it is something you will NOT [sic] want to miss! Join us Sunday, Dec. 6th in Ballard, WA. We will be meeting up at an undisclosed location in Ballard (actual address will be given the day of).”

According to Stormfront the event will “present five white power bands including Ironwill and Beer Hall Putsch and a couple

“A number of its members have been convicted of harassing, beating or murdering minorities,” say officials. “Many popular racist rock bands are affiliated with the Hammerskin Nation, and the group regularly sponsors concerts. Though internal dissension and a civil lawsuit currently threaten its continued strength, the Hammerskin Nation remains active and dangerous.”

The first Hammerskin group, the Confederate Hammerskins, formed in Dallas, Texas, in the late 1980s. Since then, dozens of local and regional Hammerskin groups have appeared, including the Eastern Hammerskins, the Northern Hammerskins and the Arizona Hammerskins. These groups have been united under the umbrella of the Hammerskin Nation for more than a decade.

Anti-Defamation League reports the Hammerskin Nation Web site lists 19 chapters across America. However, they do point out that Hammerskin has not subsequently updated this information since

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others making their NW debuts. Comrades and crews from across the country will be in attendance and about 300 people are to be expected for a day of camaraderie, music, hailing our heroes and good ol’ goosestepping. Food and drinks will also be provided.”

“After the bands and a traditional cross burning we will be marching through Capitol Hill in Seattle to show these liberals, anarchists antifa and fags that we are here and here to stay,” Stormfront reports. “This will be the biggest event in NW history as of yet so let’s put the beautiful Pacific Northwest back on the map and make Robert Mathews proud.”

The Northwestern Hammerskin Chapter represents the Northwestern United States of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota.

A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reports Hammerskin Nation as the most violent and best-organized neo-Nazi skinhead group in the United States.

December 4, 2015

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Seattle Gay News 5

hammerskins continued from page 5

2001. In addition, the site lists ten chapters outside of the United States: one each in Canada, England, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand as well as two in Germany; given the multinational nature of the skinhead movement, such widespread foreign participation is not surprising.

According to imprisoned Hammerskin Jimmy Matchette, international unity is an important Hammerskin goal. “Our mission has drawn all of us from the four corners of the earth,” he said. “The winds of destiny have drawn us and have carried us across geographical boundaries and from various ethnic branches of the White Aryan race to graft us into one Nation.”

RECRUITING THROUGH MUSIC Hate music and The Hammerskin Nation go hand in hand. In fact, ADL officials say that one of the major elements binding skinheads from different cultures or geographical areas together is white power music.

“In four domestic locations, Hammerskin Nation contact points are maintained by hate rock bands: The Brawlers in Wichita, Kansas; Max Resist in Rochester, Michigan; Intimidation One in Clackamas, Oregon; and Dying Breed (now known as H8Machine) in Harrison, New Jersey,” reports the ADL. One popular hate rock band, Bound for Glory, is led by Ed Wolbank, past director of the Northern Hammerskins in St. Paul, Minnesota. According to Wolbank, “Music is number 1. It’s the best way to reach people. Through music people can start getting into the scene, then you can start educating them. Politics through music.”

How dangerous can white power music be? In June, Dylann Roof, 21, walked into a Charleston church and joined a Bible study group. Then, during the study session, Roof began to shoot attendees, killing nine people before going on the run. After his arrest, Roof confessed to the murders and told investigators he was inspired by the white nationalist movement; fueled by white power music.

Scott Roof, Dylann Roof ’s cousin, told media that “Dylann was normal until he started listening to that white power music stuff.”

According to the Institute for Research & Education on Human Rights, white power music has provided the ideological ammunition for numerous acts of racist terror.

In 2012, Wade Michael Page, a white power musician walked into another place of worship, a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, pulled out a nine-millimeter pistol and fatally shot six people and wounded four others before shooting him-

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self.

“For decades now, white power music has become both a leading recruiting tool and a significant revenue stream for white nationalists,” say IREHR officials. “Today white power music comes in a multitude of genres, from National Socialist Black Metal to Ku Klux Klan Country ballads. It may be packaged differently, but the message is the same: hatred of people of color, Jews, Muslims, immigrants, and the LGBT community; exhortations to violence and even glorification of genocide.”

HAMMERSMITH CRIME Violence is a fundamental part of the skinhead subculture. Racist skinheads have committed an enormous number of violent hate crimes across the United States during the past two decades, ranging from brutal beatings to outright murder.

“As one of the most prominent white power skinhead groups in the country, the Hammerskins have frequently shocked the communities in which they are active with the violence of some of their activities,” say Anti-Defamation League officials.

For a quarter century Hammerskins have been terrorizing minorities across America.

In the summer of 1988, Sean Tarrant, Jon Jordan, Michael Lawrence, Christopher Greer and Daniel Wood chased and beat blacks and Hispanics in an effort to keep them out of Robert E. Lee Park in Dallas.

During that summer and into the fall, the Hammerskins vandalized a synagogue and a Jewish community center by shooting out windows, smashing doors and spray painting anti-Semitic slogans and swastikas.

Michael Lawrence also committed violent crimes with skinheads Christopher Jones, Daniel Roush and Forrest Hyde in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the following year. The Tulsa group firebombed a minority-owned nightclub and assaulted its nonwhite patrons.

In June 1991, Arlington, Texas, three 16-year-old members of the Confederate Hammerskins murdered an African American, Donald Thomas, while he sat on the back of a truck with two white friends.

Also in 1991, Jimmy “Soda Pop” Miller, an Arizona Hammerskin, firebombed a residence he mistakenly thought was occupied by rival skinheads. Miller also defaced a synagogue. That same year, in Birmingham, Alabama, Hammerskin Louis Oddo and his colleague Adam Galleon murdered a 50-year-old black homeless man on Christmas Eve. In the summer and fall of 1993, members of the New Dawn Hammerskins defaced two synagogues, harassed black patrons of a local bookstore and assaulted two black girls in Brockton and Randolph, Massachusetts.

In July 1994, these Hammerskins were charged with conspiring to intimidate and

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interfere with the rights of black and Jewish citizens.

On March 17, 1999, in an open field near Temecula, California. Six Western Hammerskins (Travis Miskam, Daniel Butler, Alan Yantis, Gregory McDaniel, Jesse Douglas and Jason McCully) allegedly attacked a 23-year-old African American, Randy Bowen. They apparently chose to attack him simply because he was black, approaching him without provocation at an unplanned youth gathering. Miskam reportedly hit Bowen over the head with a beer bottle. They cut and stabbed Bowen on his head and back before he escaped to a stranger’s home. Witnesses indicated that after attacking Bowen, the Hammerskins started goose-stepping, giving Nazi salutes and singing German songs. On August 16, 1999, a grand jury indicted the four adult Hammerskins involved in the attack (Miskam, Butler, Yantis and McDaniel) on charges of attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder with enhancements for gang affiliation and commission of a hate crime.

Over the last decade and a half the Hammerkins have been investigated for domestic terrorism on more than one occasion.

One of those investigations, in May 2012, led a joint terrorism task force in Florida to arrest more than a dozen members of another racist skinhead organization called American Front. The group was led by former Hammerskins member Marcus Faella.

Investigators said American Front was experimenting with the creation of the toxin ricin, plotting attacks on rival groups and wanted to cause some sort of “disturbance” at Orlando City Hall.

A LEADERLESS GROUP One of the things that makes the Hammerskins so dangerous is that nobody – not even leaders within the white power community – can get the angry young men to stop committing crimes.

Hammerskins officials post on the group’s website www.hammerskins.net, “The Hammerskin Nation is a leaderless group of men and women who have adopted the White Power Skinhead lifestyle. We are blue-collar workers, white-collar professionals, college students, entrepreneurs, fathers and mothers. The Hammerskin brotherhood is a way of achieving goals which we have all set for ourselves. These goals are many but can be summed up with one phrase consisting of 14 words: We must secure the existence of our people and a future for White Children.”

Michael Reynolds compiled an intelligence report for the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) in which he states, “The hard-nosed, beer-swilling Skinheads weren’t much interested in rallying around a platform full of elder “Aryans” droning on about a white revolution somewhere in the

vague future. They needed action. Immediately.”

“For them, it was far more satisfying to discharge violence helter-skelter – not only on minorities, Gays and anti-racists, but on each other as well,” said Reynolds.

According to SPLC, Aryan Nations’ Richard Butler, The Church of the Creator’s Ben Klassen, and White Aryan Resistance’s Dennis Mahon all tried to reign in the Skinheads. All of them failed.

“Mahon learned the hard way when a handful of Skins stabbed him and beat him senseless at a Georgia get-together,” reports Reynolds.

At first the Skinheads were an easy target for police. But over the last two and a half decades the Hammerskins have adapted, reporting, “Camouflaged in society and rooted deep into the system, we’re no longer an easy target, but a revolutionary force.”

NO KNOWN THREAT FOR SEATTLE Aside from the obvious underlying menace that looms whenever Neo-Nazis are near, there is no known threat to Seattle residents in regards to the Hammerskin concert and march on Sunday.

Seattle Police Department officials told Seattle Gay News they don’t have any additional information aside from what is already known about the proposed concert in Ballard and march on Capitol Hill – which is very little at this point.

It is important to note however, that that does not mean that the Hammerskin event won’t happen. It could mean that Hammerskin officials are just being tight-lipped about their plans in an effort to head off any opposition they might encounter.

Rose City Antifa and allies are calling for antifascists in the Pacific Northwest to turn out December 6 to Cal Anderson Park “to show the Northwestern Hammerskins that we stand united against fascism and racism.”

In a December 2 blog post on www. itsgoingdown.org, Rose City Antifa said, “This year the NWHS have boasted a larger planned attendance and have announced a more public appearance, which represents a dangerous escalation of tactics. We must not allow them to be further emboldened.

Particularly in light of the recent upswell of fascist violence regionally and across the nation, we must vigorously oppose any effort by fascists to claim space and spread fear.”

Rose City Antifa says they will gather at the north end of Cal Anderson Park a 5 p.m. on Sunday, December 6.

“Please bring flags and banners so that it is clear that we are antifascists opposing the neo-Nazis,” said officials.

Celebrating 41 Years!

Elton John AIDS Foundation commemorates World AIDS Day Founder Elton John and Chairman David Furnish urge more education, increased access to healthcare, and compassion in fight to end HIV/AIDS

NEW YORK, NY (December 1, 2015) ­ The Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF), – a global leader in the fight to end AIDS, commemorates World AIDS Day 2015 by standing in solidarity with the estimated 34 million people around the world currently living with HIV or AIDS and by honoring the lives of the estimated 35 million people who have succumbed to the virus. The Foundation is also calling for more education, increased access to healthcare around the world, and deeper compassion for people living with or affected by HIV and AIDS. “Since the first World AIDS Day in 1988, we have made significant progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Today, we now know how to prevent the spread of HIV and, thanks to scientific advancements, how to treat it,” said Elton John, founder of EJAF. “But there’s still more work to be done. Millions of people living with the virus either don’t know it or lack access to the healthcare they need to treat it. Furthermore, discrimination and stigma in our healthcare system and society often keeps people who are aware of their HIV-status from seeking treatment. This must end if we want to end AIDS in our lifetime.”

EJAF, through its innovative and strategic grantmaking, has been at the forefront

of the global fight against HIV and AIDS. The foundation has raised more than $349 million for organizations fighting the epidemic. This year alone the foundation will invest more than $8 million in organizations across the Americas, half of which is earmarked for initiatives in the U.S. South and the Caribbean.

“In order to end AIDS in our lifetime, it is crucial to fund HIV advocacy organizations, to urge people to get tested, and to increase access to healthcare for people living with HIV/AIDS and those at risk of contracting the virus,” said David Furnish, chairman of EJAF. “We also think it’s important to support the communities and people most affected by the epidemic, including LGBT people of color, low-income people, and people in the criminal justice

system. It’s important to remember that everyone, regardless of their race, geography, sexual orientation, gender identity or criminal background, should have access to life-saving medicines. It’s the right thing to do and it’s largely what World AIDS Day is all about.”

This World AIDS Day, show your support for EJAF by visiting EJAF.org/donate.

ABOUT EJAF At the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) we believe that AIDS can be beaten.

We act on that belief by raising funds for effective programs and policies, and also by speaking out with honesty and compassion about the realities of people’s lives. Sir Elton John created EJAF over twenty years ago, first in the United States in 1992 and then

in the United Kingdom in 1993. Through hard work and with the help of our network of kind, amazing, creative, and generous friends and supporters, the two foundations together have raised more than $349 million over the past two decades to combat stigma, prevent infections, provide treatment and services, and motivate governments to end AIDS. The U.S. foundation focuses its efforts on programs in the United States, the Americas, and the Caribbean, while the U.K. foundation funds HIV-related work in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Join us in speaking out, taking action, and contributing to our efforts to achieve a world without AIDS. For more information, please visit www.ejaf.org.

Feds allow 27 colleges to discriminate against LGBT students and staff Plans underway to expel Trans students

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Twenty-seven US colleges and universities have legal permission to discriminate against LGBT students and staff, due to a loophole in Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and some of them are actively planning to expel Transgender students.

Perhaps best known as the legal foundation for women’s college sports, Title IX forbids colleges and universities that receive federal funds from excluding anyone from programs and activities because of their sex.

The language is currently being interpreted to protect LGBT individuals as well as women of any sexual orientation.

However, a loophole in the law allows any institution that is “controlled by a religious organization” to ignore Title IX if the nondiscrimination provisions are not “consistent with the religious tenets of such organization.”

That loophole has allowed 27 religious schools to get federal funds even though they refuse to comply with Title IX’s nondiscrimination language. In all, the schools receive some $130 million in federal research grants and student aid while reserving the right to discriminate against their students and staff.

None of the schools are in Washington state, but two are in Portland: one is run by the Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends –

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 allows some colleges to discriminate – www.heffins.com

a breakaway Quaker group – and one is a nondenominational Christian school.

Title IX waivers allowing religious schools to receive federal funds while still discriminating against students and staff were relatively rare until last year.

Only a handful were requested in the 1980s and 1990s, many by religious schools who wanted to ensure they could prevent women from being hired in leadership roles without running afoul of discrimination laws.

That changed in 2014 when the Obama administration issued guidance that the Title IX protection “extends to claims of discrimination based on gender identity or

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failure to conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity.”

This year the administration went even further and ruled that Title IX also protects sexual orientation.

According to documents obtained by the LGBT media organization The Column, several of the schools are drawing up plans to expel Transgender students.

Entire denominations are issuing resolutions in order to keep LGBT students out of their affiliated colleges and universities, The Column found. The Baptist General Convention of Texas, for example, adopted a resolution in February on the so-called “Transgender agenda.” That resolution was

December 4, 2015

aimed directly at justifying Title IX exemptions for Baptist schools.

“The trend of religiously affiliated, but publicly financed, colleges receiving exemptions from the U.S. Department of Education in order to discriminate against LGBTQ students and employees is disturbing,” attorney Paul Southwick told The Column. “While we are seeing increased protections for transgender, intersex and LGB students through Title IX, we are also seeing the protections of Title IX gutted at the very institutions where students need those protections the most.”

Southwick has represented students who have filed action against Christian schools after having been expelled for being LGBT. “Discrimination is never OK,” Shane Windmeyer, Executive Director of Campus Pride, said.

“For these schools to espouse that their religion sanctions discrimination against any young person is careless and life-threatening. This list needs to be made public every time a school files for a Title IX exemption. It is shameful and wrong.

“If a college receives public funding,” he added, “it should have to follow public laws.

The government would be perfectly within its rights to make taxpayer-funded aid to these colleges contingent on compliance with generally applicable nondiscrimination laws.”

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U.S. marine guilty in murder of Philippines Trans woman

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A U.S. marine was found guilty of killing a Transgender woman by a Philippine court on December 1.

Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton was sentenced to up to 12 years in prison.

Jennifer Laude was found naked and strangled to death with her head in a toilet in an Olongapo, Philippines, hotel room shortly after midnight on October 12, 2014,

police said.

Witnesses told police that Pemberton was with Laude at a local disco before the two checked into a hotel on the night of October 11, according to documents quoted

by CNN. Pemberton was also identified as Laude’s companion by a bellboy at the hotel.

Pemberton told police that he had choked Laude, but then tried to revive her. He said he had been unaware she was Transgender and was overcome with “Trans panic” when he discovered her penis, according to police.

Pemberton was initially held by the U.S.

Navy aboard a ship in Subic Bay port, until U.S. officials turned him over to their Filipino counterparts for trial. U.S. officials also agreed that if convicted Pemberton would be sent to a Filipino jail rather than an American one.

In 2006 another U.S. marine was convicted of raping a Filipina, but was held in U.S. custody and was eventually released and allowed to return to the United States after a Philippine appeals court reversed his conviction.

Only months before Laude’s murder, the U.S. and Filipino governments signed

a new defense agreement allowing for an expanded American military presence in the island country. The agreement was unpopular with many Filipinos, and the sensational circumstances of the Laude killing led to anti-U.S. demonstrations in the Philippines.

Although Pemberton’s conviction satisfied Filipino authorities, Laude’s mother, Marilou Laude, was unhappy with the sentence.

“I’m not contented with 6-12 years ... but what’s important is he will be sent to jail,” she told CNN Philippines.

Why elections matter:

New Louisiana governor will protect LGBT employees from discrimination

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Louisiana Governor-elect John Bel Edwards announced on December 2 that once in office he will issue an executive order protecting LGBT state employees and employees of state contactors from discrimination.

Edwards’ directive would cover state workers and government contractors in agencies and departments he oversees, but executive orders are not binding on government agencies outside the governor’s control, such as the judiciary.

Edwards, a Democrat, was elected on November 21 with more 56% of the vote, defeating Republican David Vitter, currently a U.S. senator. He will take office on January 11, 2016.

Edwards will replace Republican governor and former presidential candidate Bobby Jindal, who is term-limited out of office.

Unlike his Democratic predecessor, Kathleen Blanco, Jindal refused to protect LGBT employees from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Edwards said during the campaign that he opposed same-sex marriage, but that he favored nondiscrimination laws protecting LGBT residents of Louisiana.

pride foundation continued from cover

Foundation. “Despite the setbacks and losses we faced locally and nationally, we continue to make progress so that one day all LGBTQ people are able to be who they are, where they are. Our recent investments give me hope that when we join together, we can chart a future filled with opportunity and promise for each of us.”

The foundation utilizes a variety of strategies to inspire giving and affect change, including community grants, educational scholarships, and timely initiatives, as well as partnerships with donors through their advised and designated funds.

This year, the foundation’s community grants program awarded a total of $373,500 to 66 organizations in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. This represents a 23 percent increase from last year’s community grant awards, directing muchneeded funds to organizations that are working to increase opportunities for LGBTQ people and communities. Forty percent of this year’s grantees are focused on supporting LGBTQ youth, and 15 percent

8 Seattle Gay News

Louisiana Governor-elect John Bel Edwards – Advocate staff photo by Matthew Hinton

“John Bel Edwards said for months that he would reissue the executive order that already existed under Gov. Blanco but expired under Jindal,” his campaign office told Gay Star News. “He’s said it many times.”

Only New Orleans and Shreveport currently provide LGBT employment protec-

tions for all employees. Lafayette and Jefferson parishes protect LGBT employees in municipal government.

Edwards’ intention to protect LGBT employees was welcomed by local advocacy groups.

“Equality Louisiana welcomes the op-

of funding was awarded to HIV and AIDS prevention and direct services.

Here in Washington, $219,350 was awarded to 39 organizations. Highlights from Pride Foundation’s 2015 community grants in Washington include:

policy, and coalition advocacy work to advance, secure, and enforce LGBTQ rights in Washington state and across the Northwest to ensure that all LGBTQ families are protected in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court marriage equality ruling.

• Old Lesbians Organizing for Change (OLOC) – Puget Sound Chapter (Tacoma, WA): For the Oral Herstories Project, which includes live dramatic readings of oral Herstories, the production of a Herstories video and companion guide, and the distribution of lesbian anthologies to senior centers across the Puget Sound area.

• Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane (Spokane, WA): For the Young Activist Leaders Program (YALP), an intensive nine-month program that builds a movement for justice and equality by developing leadership, skills, analysis, and relationships among LGBTQ and allied young activists.

• River of Life MCC (Kennewick, WA): For A New Start in Life (ANSIL) Hall, a live-in dormitory for up to 15 low-income and homeless LGBTQ young adults ages 18-24. The goal is to reduce and limit homelessness in Tri-Cities and the surrounding

• API Chaya (Seattle, WA): For the Queer Network Program, which engages the Asian, South Asian, and Pacific Islander lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, and questioning community in the greater Seattle area to address and prevent intimate partner violence. The program builds skills among allies and community members, raises visibility, and supports survivors of violence as well as their friends and family.

• Blue Mountain Heart to Heart (Walla Walla, WA): For outreach education and HIV prevention work, focused on people in tribal communities and Latino men who have sex with men (MSM). Funding will help expand current service areas to Lewiston and Clarkston and promote case management services in order to link people to care.

• Legal Voice (Seattle, WA): For legal,

December 4, 2015

portunity to work with Gov.-elect Edwards’ administration to ensure that appropriate and inclusive policies are established for state employees soon after his inauguration, and we’ll continue our work at the Legislature to advocate for LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination laws extending to the private sector as well,” Matthew C. Patterson, Research and Policy Coordinator for Equality Louisiana, said in a statement.

The gubernatorial campaign was bitter, with Edwards dredging up Vitter’s past associations with prostitutes in brutal TV ad.

“The choice for governor couldn’t be more clear,” the ad voiceover said. “John Bel Edwards, who answered his country’s call and served as a ranger in the 82nd Airborne Division, or David Vitter, who answered a prostitute’s call minutes after he skipped a vote honoring 28 soldiers who gave their lives in defense of our freedom.

“David Vitter chose prostitutes over patriots. Now, the choice is yours.”

In spite of the sex scandal, Vitter was re-elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010, but he faced an uphill climb in the gubernatorial race. Edwards was helped by incumbent Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal’s low approval ratings. Only 38% of Louisiana voters said Jindal was doing a good job in a poll taken just before the election, with 60% saying he was not.

community, while providing stability and resources.

You can read the full list of Pride Foundation’s community grant partners at: http://www.pridefoundation.org/pridefoundation-announces-2015-2016-community-grants-awards.

“While we have made incredible progress in recent years, we know there are still too many LGBTQ people who are vulnerable to discrimination, violence, and injustice,” said Hermanns. “Now, more than ever, we need to invest greater resources to translate legal equality into the opportunity we all deserve: to thrive within – and be celebrated and embraced by – the communities we call home.”

Pride Foundation is a regional community foundation that inspires giving to expand opportunities and advance full equality for LGBTQ people across the Northwest. Learn more at www.pridefoundation.org.

Courtesy of Pride Foundation

Celebrating 41 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

December 4, 2015

Seattle Gay News 9

10 Seattle Gay News

December 4, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

December 4, 2015

Seattle Gay News 11

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December 4, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

The man behind the plan:

Cincinnati’s first openly Gay councilmember Chris Seelbach sees bright future for his city

Chris Seelbach – City of Cincinnati

by Albert Rodriguez SGN Staff Writer Cincinnati is a place that doesn’t come up in conversation often. It sits on the perimeter of the Midwest, quietly going about its business and occasionally gets called to the spotlight, like when one of its major sports teams – such as this season’s 9-2 Bengals – is a serious contender for a football championship, or when a TV sitcom about a radio station with witty disc jockeys is set there. Cincy, as the locals call it, can’t compare in size to New York or Chicago, and without the typical vacation draws – beaches, poshy resorts, national landmarks – it doesn’t woo tourists as other urban destinations do. But, it’s changing – for the better.

A huge redevelopment plan is tranforming the downtown area and old neighborhoods – from Over The Rhine (OTR) to Northside – into affordable, diverse, and attractive places for residents to eat, sleep, and play. It’s a hopeful future that will ultimately make Cincinnati a more appealing city to visit and to live in, and a safe, tolerant place for those within the LGBT community to call home.

Enter Chris Seelbach, the first openly Gay person to serve on the Cincinnati City Council, elected city-wide for a second term two years ago. The 36 year-old, who completed his undergraduate studies at one of Cincy’s major colleges, Xavier University, and earned a law degree from the University of Dayton, is part of the change happening in “The City of Seven Hills.” A resident of the OTR district with his partner Craig Schultz, he’s involved in many aspects of the planning and re-shaping that is happening now, but Seelbach is also a direct link between the LGBT community and city government.

I met Chris Seelbach in person, over lunch at a casual restaurant called Senate,

when I visited in August, and then re-connected with him a few weeks ago by phone.

This is what the Cincinnati City Councilmember shared with Seattle Gay News.

Albert Rodriguez: When were you elected to your position?

Chris Seelbach: I was first elected in 2011, so I was sworn in December 1, 2011.

Rodriguez: Is it a 2-year or 4-year post?

Seelbach: When I was first elected in 2011, it was for a 2-year term. But the voters changed our system in 2012 and council terms are now 4 years, so when I was reelected in 2013 I was re-elected to a 4-year term.

Rodriguez: Was this the first city government position you ran for?

Seelbach: Yes, I had worked for the former Vice Mayor David Crowley for several years in his office, but this was my first run for public office.

Rodriguez: Is there a history of running for office in high school or college? Were you involved with politics while in school?

Seelbach: It’s interesting; my grandfather was a city councilmember in his hometown, in Kentucky. So, definitely politics was talked about growing up and when I was in college I ran for our student senate, so I was on our student senate, but that was the only position I held.

Rodriguez: How long have you lived in Cincinnati all together?

Seelbach: I’ve lived here for 17 years, a little over 17 years.

Rodriguez: Before that?

Seelbach: Before that I was in Louisville, Kentucky. That’s where I was born and raised.

Rodriguez: When did you come out?

What was that experience like for you?

Seelbach: I came out when I was 18. The day after I graduated high school, my parents brought me downstairs after I woke up

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and basically said, “We just want you to tell us you’re not gay” and I’d never told anyone, so that’s when I came out and told them the truth. Unfortunately, they sent me then – that summer between high school and college – to a form of reparative therapy, but once I moved to Cincinnati to go to college we didn’t really talk for almost 11 years. It was not a very good coming out. But, about 6 years ago we rekindled our relationship and we have a really strong relationship now, they’re 100% supportive of me and my partner, but it took a long time, over a decade.

Rodriguez: As the only openly Gay council member, does that put pressure on you to introduce bills or city ordinances that effect the LGBT community?

Seelbach: Yeah, anytime there’s one of a different type of person there is extra pressure that you are supposed to represent the entire community. I feel extra pressure, but it’s a part of what I wanted to do on the council anyway. I care about LGBT issues, so I’ve been happy to take those on. We’ve passed almost every LGBT policy through that we probably could have, but we actually just realized there’s more we can do, so in two weeks we’re going to be passing – this will be the first city in Ohio to do this – a ban on reparative therapy for people under 18 years old. That’s something we’re going to do in Cincinnati that no longer can kids be sent to reparative therapy to try and change who they are.

Rodriguez: Reparative therapy, is that specific to LGBT teens, or all teens battling problems like addictions?

Seelbach: It would be just for LGBT people. It will no longer be legal for licensed health care providers to try to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of people under 18.

Rodriguez: Ohio was a state that didn’t legalize same-sex marriage before the Su-

preme Court ruling, so that combined with this reparative therapy bill – do you think the people of Cincinnati are ready for this?

Seelbach: I do. Surprisingly, what I thought would be the most controversial of the things that I’ve done, we became the third city in the country, and the first in the Midwest, to extend inclusive-transgender health care for all city employees, which basically means that if you’re a city employee and your doctor deems it medically necessary to have a gender reassignment surgery then your health care provider will pay for that. I thought it would be wildly controversial, but you know, it wasn’t. Most major companies already do it and it wasn’t going to cost us any more, and we got very, very minimal negative feedback. So I expect the reparative therapy ban to be very similar; I don’t think people will be much in arms about it.

Rodriguez: Your term runs through 2017. Have you given any thought beyond that, whether you want to stay on the city council, or is this a stepping stone to something else?

Seelbach: I haven’t made any definite decisions, but there will be other people who will run for mayor in 2017 that I would consider working with or running with as Vice Mayor. But then I’m also considering in 2018 – there’s statewide elections for the state of Ohio – so I’m considering a possibility of running state-wide. The Democratic party often makes sure that the state-wide ticket – usually Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Auditor, and Treasurer – has a diverse slate of people running as Democrats that include women and people of color and come from different parts of the state and people with different views as Democrats, and we always count on the votes and money of the LGBT people, but we’ve never had an open-

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see seelbach page 14

seelbach

continued from page 13 ly LGBT person run state-wide, so that’s something I’m also considering for 2018.

Rodriguez: For those not familiar with how city government works, describe your day-to-day duties. What does a city councilmember do?

Seelbach: We have committee meetings Mondays and Tuesdays, so everything from budget finance to public safety to development to human services. That’s where the legislation really gets discussed and voted on, and on Wednesdays we have our full council meetings where we vote on any legislation that’s come out of committee. That’s the nuts and bolts of what I do, but most of it, most of what I do is meeting with dozens of people every week to talk about future legislation, to talk about ideas that I have and want to implement that I need support on, or people that have ideas for me. Then there’s tons of committee business, so today I’m doing a tour of the Interfaith Hospitality Network, a non-profit organization here in Cincinnati, and then tonight I’m speaking at a Sierra Club sustainability event, so it’s a combination of the meetings, where we are voting on legislation, the meetings where we’re actually working on and developing legislation, and then a lot of just attending events in the community and getting to know people.

Rodriguez: What would be a good reason for LGBT people to visit, or even consider moving, to Cincinnati?

Seelbach: First of all, there’s a lot of great job opportunities here. We have the headquarters of Proctor & Gamble, Macy’s,

and Krogers, and all of those are incredibly LGBT-friendly companies. So the possibility of finding a job with a company that is a leader on LGBT issues is very good. Then, we’re a city that was built in the late 1800s and we have these incredibly historic buildings that are on a great system, which makes for very walkable neighborhoods that we’re renovating, we’re bringing back to life. So, it’s an historic, beautiful, walkable city that a lot of LGBT people would enjoy. Our city, policy-wise, earned 100 on the Human Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index, so we’ve batted every single ball that we can to make our city LGBT-inclusive.

Jim Obergefell, who got marriage equality for all of us from the Supreme Court, lives here just a few blocks away from me, and I think we do have that interesting, thriving restaurant-bar-entertainment scene that a lot of LGBT people would enjoy.

Rodriguez: How long do you think this upswing will last? Some cities go through major redevelopment and then become very attractive to outsiders, who swarm in and raise the home market value so that it’s no longer affordable. Will Cincinnati get too big for its britches in 15 or 20 years?

Seelbach: I hope not. It’s one of the things that I’m working on, as a city legislator, to make sure that our neighborhoods stay mixed income. We don’t want Over The Rhine or downtown to be a place where only wealthy people can afford to live, so we’re being very systematic in making sure we have affordable housing throughout our entire city. I think we’ve been showing that so far, at the height of Over The Rhine there were 50,000 people living in this neighborhood; now only 6,000 do, so there is room

for growth where people can move here that are more wealthy, but we can also make sure that there is housing and amenities for people who do live below the median average. It’s very possible, not unlikely, that we’ll continue to be a place where all people can afford to live.

Rodriguez: If LGBT visitors come to Cincinnati, for leisure or business, what are a few things you’d recommend they see or do while they’re in town?

Seelbach: I think an evening walking on Vine Street and checking out the bars, restaurants, and stores – they actually have a lot of cool men’s clothing stores, and women’s as well. I would spend some time on The Banks, which is the riverfront. We have an incredible park system down there called Smale Riverfront Park, which is in between both of our stadiums, the Bengals stadium and Cincinnati Reds stadium, so that’s a must-see. And there’s all kinds of restaurants there as well. Fountain Square is the center point of our city, where there are live concerts, or DJs, all in this public square every night. Washington Park is our kind of Central Park of Cincinnati, and there’s everything from a dog park to a kid’s park to a grand lawn, where there’s nightly programming of movies or bands or yoga on Saturdays. Those are some of the things that come to mind. And, of course, Cincinnati is known for its chili all year-round, so Skyline Chili is scattered around the city.

Though I’m a vegetarian, most people say you should try Skyline.

Rodriguez: I caved in and tried it, and it was really good!. What are the holidays like in Cincinnati – is there snow, does the city light up?

Seelbach: It’s pretty amazing. We have a huge tree on Fountain Square that’s lit, I think the weekend after Thanksgiving, and we’re a German city, a lot of German immigrants settled here and we still embrace those roots, so we have this German Christmas market that is out on Fountain Square with food and people selling all kinds of Christmas gifts and things like that, so that’s a lot of fun. Of course, our biggest holiday in Cincinnati is Opening Day, so we have the first professional baseball game every year with the Cincinnati Reds, which was the first baseball team ever in the country, so Opening Day is an incredible celebration, everyone takes off work, we have a huge parade through downtown and The Banks and Over The Rhine that leads to the baseball game. That’s probably our biggest day specific to Cincinnati; even when I think about the holidays, there’s no other holiday that people get more excited or organized about.

Rodriguez: And how will you spend the holidays?

Seelbach: We actually have our big Christmas party on December 12 with all of our friends, and then on Christmas Eve I go to Louisville and Craig stays here, and on Christmas Day we both come back and just spend it together here in Cincinnati. So, we spend it with family, either in Louisville or Cincinnati, and Christmas spent with friends two weeks before. New Year’s, we don’t have plans. We tend to like to not plan New Year’s; it’s maybe just having dinner at our house, then walking around Over The Rhine and popping into a bar, or something like that, but we don’t usually like to do a big gala or something.

amfAR announces new Institute for HIV Cure Research

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, announced on November 30 that it is funding a new Institute for HIV Cure Research to be based in San Francisco.

The foundation will give a five-year $20 million grant to the new research group to study ways to cure HIV. The research institute will “support teams of scientists working across the research continuum,” through collaborations with the Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology (GIVI) and Blood Systems Research Institute, as well as Oregon

14 Seattle Gay News

Health & Science University; the University of California, Berkeley; Gilead Sciences; and the Infectious Disease Research Institute in Seattle.

“We intend to quicken the pace of cure research by supporting a collaborative community of leading HIV researchers in one cohesive enterprise,” amfAR Chief Executive Officer Kevin Robert Frost said in a statement.

“The institute will allow them to conduct the science, share ideas, and test and evaluate new technologies and potential therapies in a state-of-the-art environment.

And I can think of no better base for such an enterprise than the San Francisco Bay

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Area, the crucible of technological innovation in America.”

“Furthermore, establishing an institute dedicated to finding a cure for HIV in a city that was once considered ground zero of the AIDS epidemic brings full circle the outstanding work that UCSF’s researchers have been doing over the past 30 years,”

Frost added.

“The San Francisco area has a higher concentration of scientific thought leaders in HIV than anywhere else in the world,” said amfAR Vice President and Director of Research Dr. Rowena Johnston. “The Bay Area has consistently led the way in developing and implementing scientific advances in HIV prevention and treatment, and the potential for this team of researchers to develop a cure is unparalleled.”

The new institute will be headquartered in UCSF’s Global Health and Clinical Sciences Building at Mission Bay, and will house teams of researchers working across institutions and disciplines.

There is general consensus among the scientific community that the principal barrier to a cure is the reservoirs, or pockets, of virus that remain in a patient even after antiretroviral therapy has reduced the viral load to “undetectable” levels of HIV. amfAR intends for the new research group to address four key challenges to creating an effective cure for HIV: • pinpointing the precise locations of the latent reservoirs of virus; • determining how they are formed and persist; • quantifying the amount of virus in them; • and finally, eradicating the reservoirs from the body.

“For those of us who watched helplessly as thousands died, the opportunity to try to develop an HIV cure is truly amazing,” said Paul Volberding, MD, a UCSF professor of medicine who will direct the new amfAR Institute. “We are proud to have been chosen by amfAR as the only amfAR HIV Cure Institute in the nation. We’re ready to end this epidemic.”

“This exciting new initiative will bring together the scientific, technological, and team-building expertise of amfAR and its Institute partners,” Johnston added. “We are confident that this new combination approach will enable us to rapidly advance the science around a cure for HIV.”

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Cyprus passes civil partnerships

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The parliament of Cyprus has passed a same-sex civil partnership bill that will allow Gay and Lesbian couples almost all the rights of civil marriage. The vote on the measure was 39-12, with three legislators abstaining.

The new law will apply in the southern two-thirds of the island nation where the legal government of Cyprus has authority.

In the northern third of the country, occupied by Turkey since 1974, same-sex re-

lations are illegal and no accommodations are made for same-sex couples.

“ILGA-Europe are very pleased that the bill has finally been approved,” the International LGBTI Association (ILGA) said in a statement. “We congratulate all the civil society groups, political leaders and allies involved in this lengthy campaign for their persistence and dedication to equality.”

ILGA is a federation of 750 LGBT rights and service organizations.

“Same-sex couples and their families are just as deserving of protection as their heterosexual friends and neighbors. This is not about giving one group ‘special rights’ but

about recognizing the wonderful diversity of families that live in Europe,” said ILGAEurope Executive Director Evelyne Paradis.

Of the 28 members of the European Union (EU), 12 have legalized same-sex marriage: Belgium, Denmark, Finland (effective in 2017), France, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia (effective date pending), Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland).

Civil unions are legal in eight EU countries: Austria, Croatia, Cyprus (effective date pending), the Czech Republic, Estonia (effective in 2016), Germany, Hungary, and

Malta.

The Greek government has proposed civil partnership legislation, which is still pending in its parliament.

No partnership recognitions exist in seven EU states: Bulgaria, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia.

Non-EU members Norway and Iceland legalized same-sex marriage in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Non-EU member Switzerland legalized registered partnerships in 2007.

Dominican Cardinal insults U.S. Ambassador: “Let him focus on housework since he’s the wife to a man”

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Roman Catholic Cardinal Nicolás de Jesús López Rodríguez, archbishop of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, got into a very public spat with U.S. Ambassador James “Wally” Brewster over remarks the ambassador made about corruption in the Dominican Republic.

“That man needs to go back to his embassy,” López said at a December 2 press conference. “Let him focus on housework, since he’s the wife to a man.”

The archbishop’s outburst came about a week after Brewster accused Dominican police officers of assaulting and robbing several U.S. investors who were attending a conference in Santo Domingo.

“Imagine the horror I felt when I got a call from one of them, telling me they had been stopped by a uniformed police officer, that they had a weapon pointed at them,

and that they were forced to turn over their wallets,” Brewster said last week.

In response, López accused the ambassador of interfering in Dominican affairs to promote a “gay rights agenda.”

Brewster, in turn, said that if Dominicans thought the U.S. embassy had too much influence in Dominican affairs, they could return their U.S. visas, a prized possession of the Dominican upper classes.

“I couldn’t care less,” López shot back.

“I’m not interested in traveling.”

López and Brewster have clashed before.

In June 2014, after the U.S. embassy released a Pride Month video featuring Brewster and his husband, Bob Satawake. López called a press conference, where he demanded that Brewster “take his Pride elsewhere.”

“Diplomacy is not for that sort of thing,” the archbishop said, “an absolutely negative propaganda.”

A year earlier, when Brewster was first appointed to the ambassador’s post, López

Cardinal Nicolás de Jesús López insert – Wikimedia Commons by Starus

joined a group of conservative religious officials protesting the appointment, and he

publicly referred to Brewster as a maricón, the Spanish equivalent of “faggot.”

Stop asking me about HIV and condoms, Pope says

Pope Francis addresses journalists on his flight back from Africa Nov. 30, 2015 – Photo by Daniel Dal Zennaro/Pool Photo via AP

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Pope Francis brushed off a question about HIV and condoms on November 30, on his way home after a tour of Africa.

Asked by a German reporter if the Cath-

olic Church might change its stand against condoms if they are used to prevent HIV infection, the Pope was visibly annoyed.

The question is “too small, partial,” he replied.

“I don’t like getting into questions or reflections that are so technical when people die because they don’t have water or food or

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housing,” Francis said.

Once Africa can solve more important problems, the Pope added, then it will make sense to discuss HIV prevention.

Some 22 million Africans are now living with HIV, and AIDS is a leading cause of death in a number of African countries.

The Pope admitted that HIV prevention was “morally complicated for the Church,” and that condoms were “one of the methods” that could prevent new HIV infections.

The Catholic Church has opposed condom use because condoms can be used for contraception as well as HIV prevention and consequently can separate sex from procreation, thereby making it sinful. And, according to Church doctrine, same-sex encounters are sinful in themselves and should not be encouraged, condoms or no condoms.

In 2010, Francis’s predecessor Benedict XVI said that male prostitutes who use condoms to prevent the spread of STIs might be acting responsibly. The remark, made to a German journalist, caused a furor among Catholic officials, and Benedict subsequently issued a clarification saying

that condoms were not “a moral solution” to HIV – the “moral” solution, in his view, being to limit sex to heterosexual married couples who want to conceive children.

In 2009, Benedict had specifically ruled out condoms as a way to control HIV infections in Africa, saying that condom use “increases the problem” because it encourages promiscuity.

Pope Francis also disappointed human rights advocates when he visited Uganda, making no mention at all of that country’s new law allowing the government to shut down NGOs that serve LGBT people or HIV patients.

One clause in the new legislation forbids organizations from engaging “in any activity which is … contrary to the dignity of the people of Uganda.”

The law also allows groups to be disbanded “where it is in the public interest to refuse to register the organization, or … for any other reason that the [government’s NGO] Board may deem relevant.”

Human rights activists – in Uganda and outside it – said the law would be used to crack down on LGBT and HIV activists.

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