SGN December 11, 2015 - Section 1

Celebrating 41 Years!

Issue 50 Volume 43

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Seattle Gay News

George Zander dies at 71

SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Capitol Hill death of teen under investigation amid speculation of murder, not suicide

George Zander – frontiersmedia.com

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer George Zander, once chair of Seattle’s Dorian group and later chair of King County Democrats, died December 10. He was 71.

Zander’s husband, Chris Zander, shared the news on Facebook, but did not disclose the cause of Zander’s death.

“My husband George Zander passed away this morning in loving arms and in very little pain,” he wrote. “His passion and strength has paved the road for many of us to follow, and build from. His legacy will live on forever. I love this man more than I love SPD still investigating Capitol Hill death – www.seattle.gov life itself, I can only assume that is what true

by Shaun Knittel Hamza Warsame, a 16-year-old Seattle love is.”

Central College student, died December The couple had been assaulted Novem- SGN Associate Editor see george zander page 3

see spd investigation page 6

Cincinnati City Council End PrEP profiteering, bans conversion activists say therapy

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The Cincinnati City Council voted to ban conversion therapy for minors on December 9. The vote was 7-2.

The new law prohibits therapy that claims to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of minors and imposes a $200 per day fine on violators. Cincinnati is only the second city in the country to do so, following Washington, D.C. California, Illinois, New Jersey, and Oregon also bar the practice.

“This is about saving the lives of LGBT people,” said openly Gay Councilmember Chris Seelbach, who sponsored the legislation.

Seelbach invoked the memory of Leelah Alcorn, a Transgender teenager who killed herself last December. Her suicide note cited the conversion therapy to which she had been subjected.

“She challenged us to make her death matter, and we’re doing just that,” Seelbach said.

Twenty-one pastors lined up to speak

against the measure, calling it a violation of First Amendment free speech and freedom of religion protections, but constitutional attorney and Gay activist Scott Greenwood said the law would withstand constitutional scrutiny.

“The people who referred to this as free speech or freedom of religion are misguided, because if it’s therapy, then it’s medical therapy,” Greenwood said. “By definition, that is not speech and not free exercise of religion.

“So, there is no problem regulating this.

There is no First Amendment angle to this.

It’s misguided to favor this totally debunked junk science and claim that it is somehow protected as religious expression.”

The American Psychological Association has labeled conversion therapy as not useful and possibly harmful to patients.

The one person speaking on behalf of the law, John Boggess, the board chairman of Equality Ohio, said that banning conversion therapy “is a matter of public safety.”

In April, President Barack Obama condemned conversion therapy, also mentioning Alcorn.

HIV/AIDS activists meet in the same apartment where the Gay Men’s Health Crisis was formed 33 years ago – www.out.com

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Meeting in the same apartment where Gay Men’s Health Crisis was formed 33 years ago – before AIDS even had a name – five of the country’s most prominent HIV/ AIDS activists met to discuss the state of HIV health care and the need for access to antiretroviral medications.

Larry Kramer, Jim Eigo, Peter Staley, Matt Ebert, and James Krellenstein then issued a statement on December 8, denounc-

ing the “abusive pricing” and “profiteering” which continue to put the cost of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) beyond the means of much of the world.

“We – AIDS activists, new and old, aged 24 to 80 – have just broken bread in the same apartment where GMHC was formed, coming together for a lively discussion on how to reduce HIV infections among gay men and trans women,” the statement said.

“Although we may not see eye-to-eye on every issue we debated tonight, we all agree that Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) is see Prep page 6

2 Seattle Gay News

December 11, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

Statement from King County Councilmember Joe McDermott on the death of George Zander I express my deepest sympathies to his husband Chris Zander and our entire community on the death of George Zander.

I first met George in 1989 working on a campaign in the City of Seattle. At the time I came to know him as a passionate member of the 36th District Democrats and strong progressive political voice throughout Seattle.

Before he retired from AAA, he often made sure I had a travel guide to any city I would be visiting. But he expanded my horizons in more ways than that. George was a leader in the LGBT community long before I was out, making coming out, being active in politics, and even running for office easier for me and so many others.

In business, political, civic, and civil rights, George demonstrated activism and achievement.

Together we must all carry on this work.

Again, my condolences to Chris and all of George’s family and friends.

Sincerely, Joe McDermott

george zander continued from cover

ber 1 near Palm Springs, and Zander was hospitalized with a broken hip. It is not known whether that injury contributed to his death.

Desert Stonewall Democrats Chairwoman Ruth Debra said Zander was rushed to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs early Thursday, December 10, and he died sometime between 7 and 7:30 a.m.

“This was sudden. This was unexpected,” she said. “All of us who are his friends are very sad and a little angry.”

Visit us online www.sgn.org

Joe McDermott – seattletimes.com

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray acknowledged Zander’s passing on Twitter.

“George Zander was a powerful voice for change and a dear friend,” Murray said.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with his husband, Chris, his family & friends.”

Zander, who lived in Palm Springs for more than two decades, was regional field manager for Equality California.

“This is really a complete surprise and terrible loss for Equality California and the entire LGBT community and the entire community of Palm Springs,” Equality California Executive Director Rick Zbur said.

Palm Springs Councilman Geoff Kors

spent nearly a decade as Equality California’s executive director and hired Zander as a field organizer in 2009. Zander also helped with Kors’ campaign for a council seat this year.

Zander coordinated Equality California’s local volunteer efforts, running phone banks and door-to-door campaigns on issues such as same-sex marriage and health care access.

“And he did an amazing job,” Kors said.

“He’s just an amazing human being, a passionate activist. He’ll be sorely missed by so many people.”

December 11, 2015

Seattle Gay News 3

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December 11, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

GSBA 2015 Business and Humanitarian Award winners announced

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor The Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA) announced their 2015 Business and Humanitarian Award recipients at the organization’s Annual Meeting on December 9.

The GSBA Business and Humanitarian Awards honor top businesses and business leaders each year, recognizing business performance and contributions to the community.

According to GSBA Director of Marketing & Communications, Jason Dittmer, GSBA will honor seven individuals and businesses at their annual Business and Humanitarian Awards dinner, February 23, 2016 at the Seattle Marriott Waterfront (2100 Alaskan Way).

The keynote speaker will be Gina Grahame, VP of GaymerX. “Grahame is a highly successful professional and a member of and an advocate for the Transgender Community,” Dittmer said. “She will talk about rising above obstacles and being true to who you are or, as she says, ‘getting past your past.’”

“Being recognized for business success is not new, but being honored for understanding that success in the 21st century must also include a commitment to equality, philanthropy, and sustainable business practices, is definitely unique,” said Louise

Chernin, GSBA President and CEO. “For 35 years, GSBA has stood out among business organizations, often as the lone voice for its commitment to advancing equality in business. Over 80% of GSBA members are small businesses, but the important role they play in keeping our local economy strong is huge. They are employers committed to equality, volunteers, and philanthropists, often using the limited resources they have to give back to their community.”

Chernin continued, “The impact of GSBA’s work has never been more evident as a growing number of businesses strive to create inclusive work places in order to attract diverse talent and a changing customer base.”

The 2015 Business and Humanitarian

Award recipients are: • New Business of the Year: Bulk Fr8, Wayne Levinson, Owner • Business of the Year: Tuxedos & Tennis Shoes, David Meckstroth and David Haggarty, Co-Owners • Business Leader of the Year: Mona Smith, Attorney At Law • Corporate Leader of the Year: Kevin Baldwin, Northwest Managing Partner, PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) • Community Leader of the Year: Tamara Murphy/Linda Di Lello Morton, Terra Plata • Non-Profit of the Year: Ventures (formerly Community Alliance for Self-Help CASH), Beto Yarce, Executive Director • Special Recognition – Voice for Social Justice: Ana Mari Cauce, President of Uni-

versity of Washington Established in 1981, the Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA) is the largest LGBT and allied chamber of commerce in North America, with over 1,100 members.

GSBA is widely known throughout the Puget Sound region for its work on business development, connecting community through business, advocacy on both civil rights and business and promoting LGBT tourism through its Travel Gay Seattle initiative. GSBA invests in the next generation of leaders by sponsoring a Scholarship Fund, which has given out over $2.1 million in scholarships. For more information, visit www.TheGSBA.org.

Where the House Was A Documentary Film About Richard Hugo House Located at 1634 11th Avenue, literary center Richard Hugo House is scheduled for demolition in 2016 to make room for mixed-use apartments. In the face of the tear-down, our documentary Where the House Was will create a collective memory of the building, along with the neighborhood where writers, actors, artists, neighbors and activists have been gathering for years. Led by writer and Hugo House co-founder, Frances McCue, Team Demo Hugo – a collective of writers, geographers, designers, and filmmakers – is making a documentary that will follow the demolition.

Hugo House is being given a home in the new building-to-be and the film will seek to answer some of the big questions: Can this case teach us how and what to preserve in Seattle, one of the fastest growing cities in the United States? More importantly, can it teach us how the soul of a neighborhood can thrive within new physical structures?

This project is being launched under the sponsorship of Seattle’s 501(c)(3) non-profit arts collective, LoveCityLove, and funds are currently being raised via crowdfunding website Indiegogo. The team has already raised 50% of its initial campaign goal of $22,000 in order to produce this film. Ad-

ditionally, a $25,000 grant from Lucky Seven Foundation has been acquired and will count towards the film’s overall budget of

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approximately $100,000 – the rest of which will come from other foundations, grants, and donors. The ultimate film will be cre-

December 11, 2015

ated by our award-winning cinematographer, Ryan Adams, whose previous work has landed at Sundance.

Where the House Was is providing the neighborhood with opportunities to become engaged with changes happening all around them. A successful gathering took place at Sole Repair Shop on November 21 with highlights including news about the project, food, activities, and the Northwest poet, Jan Wallace, as a special literary guest.

Our crowdfunding campaign – which has just over 10 days remaining – has already been featured in local media outlets including the Capitol Hill Times and The Daily at the University of Washington. Urban change is not new to Capitol Hill, but this time we’re poised to note how the community adapts and takes stock beforehand of just what ground the neighborhood’s already covered.

To learn more about the project, please contact: Tyler DeFriece, Crowdfunding and Social Media. Email: teamdemohugo@ gmail.com | Phone: 302-668-4555 | Website: www.teamdemohugo.co | Indiegogo campaign: www.igg.me/at/wherethehousewas

Seattle Gay News 5

spd investigation about the teen’s death – or what some peocontinued from cover

5 following a 60-foot fall from a building near Summit and Thomas in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, according to Seattle Fire.

Seattle Fire was called to the 300 block of Summit Ave. E. after a 911 caller reported the incident Saturday afternoon just before 4 p.m. say officials. As of Monday morning, a Seattle Police spokesperson said the death was not being investigated as a homicide. However, since that time public outcry

ple are calling a lack of transparent information about the incident – has reached a fever pitch and resulted in several protests, candlelight vigils, and more. On Tuesday, SPD released a statement to the media saying, “The department is aware of community concerns about the case and Assistant Chief Robert Merner is personally supervising the matter. As with all death investigations, we ask the community to be patient and avoid jumping to conclusions while detectives conduct their work.”

Warsame was a Rainier Beach High

School student starting his first quarter at Seattle Central under the college’s Running Start program, which allows high school juniors and seniors to take college-level classes for high school and college credit.

According to his sister, Ikram Warsame, after obtaining his associates degree, Hamza wanted to attend MIT in Boston to study computer science.

“He was interested in technology, he was a game fanatic,” she told Capitol Hill Seattle (CHS) Blog.

Ikram Warsame, an 18-year-old UW Bothell student, says she does not believe

her brother’s death was accidental and says he would not commit suicide. She told CHS Blog that she has “become increasingly frustrated with the lack of information on the investigation.”

“I want the police to bring justice to my brother, to find out what happened to him,” she said.

King County Medical Examiner’s Office officials say its investigation into Hamza’s death was on hold while police continue to work on the case.

Holiday Cheer Vol. 3 CD release party and concert to benefit LGBTQ homeless youth

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor

Soto); The Emerald City Tenors; headliner and recording artist Michael Cagle; Kiara T’kyrah; Lizzie Claus and more.

Co-hosting the show this year with me will be Jeffrey Robert, The Gay Uncle Time comedian and local personality, who also recorded a spoken word track for Holiday Cheer Vol. 3. In addition, SOSea will live auction some Christmas trees with proceeds to benefit their project FROM THE HEART. With the money that we raise at the concert, SOSea will be able to feed and clothe LGBTQ homeless youth on Christmas morning during our biggest outreach of the year. Volunteers and members of the SOSea board will set out Christmas morning with more than 100 Christmas cards, winter coats, knit caps, gloves, scarfs, personal hygiene kits, a sack lunch and more. If you can’t make it to the show, but would like to donate towards this effort, go to www.SocialOutreachSeattle.com and click on the “Donate” tab and follow the prompts to a safe and secure donation.

Each year Social Outreach Seattle (SOSea) records a Christmas music CD, Holiday Cheer, to raise money for LGBTQ homeless youth outreach. This year’s CD, Holiday Cheer Vol. 3, is the best yet!

On Sunday, December 13, the artists that lent their time and talent to the project will come together to perform all of the songs on the album at the Holiday Cheer Vol. 3 CD Release Party and Concert at Neighbours Nightclub (1509 Broadway), Doors 5 p.m., Show 6-8 p.m. For $10 guests get the CD and a show. You won’t want to miss out on being a part of this local holiday tradition!

The artists appearing on Holiday Cheer Vol. 3 include the recording engineer and producer for the project, Peruvian recording artist and SOSea founder member Jack Mozie; Eric Martin, front man for Eric Blu and the Soul Revue; Jon Noble, local singer/ songwriter and member of the Soul Revue; local drag queen and vocalist Andrew Scott; Latina recording artist LatinRose (Ruth

Dim Sum Dialogue with Pride ASIA at SAAM

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor

Pride ASIA, in collaboration with The Seattle Public Library and the Seattle Asian Art Museum will host something the LGBTQ and Allied Asian and Pacific Islander advocacy and art organization calls Dim Sum Dialogue on Saturday, December 19, from 6:30 p.m.-10 p.m. The Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) is located at Volun-

prep

continued from cover highly effective at protecting a person from HIV infection. While PrEP isn’t for everyone, any individual who thinks they are at risk of getting HIV should have easy access to it, without judgment.

“We are fed up with Gilead’s abusive pricing of its near-monopolies in drugs that treat and prevent HIV. Truvada as PrEP was not their idea and came to market based on

6 Seattle Gay News

teer Park, 1400 E. Prospect St. “Join the Library for a night of music, art, dancing, and community building among Queer people of color and allies through an API (Asian & Pacific Islander) lens,” announce Pride ASIA officials.

“Come listen and share stories to celebrate and convene Queer communities of color.”

Community partners for this event include Seattle U.T.O.P.I.A. (United Territo-

ries of Pacific Islanders Alliance) and Lifelong AIDS Alliance HEYO program. In addition, Social Outreach Seattle (SOSea) will provide support as well.

“Dim Sum Dialogue will feature an evening of sass and social justice,” say The Seattle Public Library officials.

Dim Sum Dialogue is hosted by local drag icon and Pride ASIA founder Aleksa Manila with music by JK POP!, DJ Rever-

end Dollars and DJ Moist Towelette.

Throughout the evening guests will enjoy interactive performances by Amaya, Kince, Nic Masangkay, U.T.O.P.I.A and more!

As the name implies, dim sum snacks will be available at the event. Dim Sum Dialogue is free to attend and is all ages appropriate. A full bar is available for attendees who are 21 or older with a valid ID.

research they didn’t pay for. Gilead’s PrEP profiteering must end. Full access to lifesaving drugs has been a hallmark of our movement, and we will join with AIDS activists across America and around the world to double down on this push for health equity.

“PrEP, along with condoms, TasP (Treatment as Prevention), and better access to health care, are now essential public health tools in lowering HIV infections among gay men and trans women. We must use every tool necessary to help them – and to help all

those at risk – stop this virus, once and for all. ACT UP, Fight Back, Fight AIDS.” Kramer is in many ways the godfather of HIV/AIDS activism, having founded Gay Men’s Health Crisis in 1982, and then – dissatisfied with what he believed was the group’s conservative approach – going on to create ACT UP five years later.

Eigo was also founding member of ACT UP, and Staley too joined the group after founding TAG, the Treatment Action Group. Ebert is a journalist, actor, artist,

and activist, and Krellerstein is a biophysics student and public health activist.

Under the Affordable Care Act, most private insurance plans now cover PrEP, but for those without insurance the annual cost of Truvada can run from $8,000 to $14,000.

Although the World Health Organization recommends PrEP medication for all men who have sex with men, it is not widely available in many countries.

December 11, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

December 11, 2015

Seattle Gay News 7

8 Seattle Gay News

December 11, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

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Seattle Gay News 9

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December 11, 2015

Celebrating 41 Years!

Ban Trump! Florida mayor says

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The mayor of a Florida city says he will ban Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in the wake of Trump’s comments about banning Muslims from entering the United States.

Mayor Rick Kriseman of St. Petersburg, Fla., said he would bar Trump from entering his city.

“I am hereby barring Donald Trump from entering St. Petersburg until we fully understand the dangerous threat posed by all Trumps,” Kriseman tweeted.

Kriseman’s tweet came only hours after Trump read a formal statement calling for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on.”

“That’s obviously not something I would try to do,” Kriseman told the Tampa Bay Times later. “But his statement was kind of ridiculous, so I thought that it deserved an equal response.”

Other mayors agreed with Kriseman.

“If I had the power, the only banning

that would be done is that I would ban that asshole from Philadelphia,” said that city’s Mayor Michael Nutter the next day. “We don’t have any room for that kind of stupidity here.”

Braddock, Pa., Mayor John Fetterman also chimed in, calling Trump a “jagoff.”

Fetterman explained that “jagoff ” is Pennsylvania coal country slang for “stupid.”

A petition to ban Trump from entering the United Kingdom has gathered more than 230,000 signatures.

“The UK has banned entry to many individuals for hate speech. The same principles should apply to everyone who wishes to enter the UK,” the petition reads.

Twenty-four members of Parliament have also petitioned the British government to bar Trump.

Meanwhile, other Republicans tried to distance themselves from Trump’s remarks, with even hardline former Vice President Dick Cheney saying Trump had gone too far.

“I think this whole notion that somehow we can just say no more Muslims, just ban a whole religion, goes against everything we stand for and believe in,” Cheney said in a

Donald Trump – theodysseyonline.com

radio interview. “I mean, religious freedom has been a very important part of our history and where we came from. A lot of people, my ancestors got here, because they were Puritans.”

Even Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – certainly no apologist for Muslims – criticized Trump.

“The prime minister rejects the recent

comments by Donald Trump with regard to Muslims. Israel respects all religions and diligently guards the rights of all its citizens,” a statement from Netanyahu’s office said.

Donald Trump announced on December 10 that he would cancel his planned trip to Israel, after Netanyahu criticized his plan to bar Muslims from entering the US.

Ted Cruz doesn’t hate you, his campaign says…

But yes, he does!

Ted Cruz – Photo by Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The campaign of Republican presidential hopeful Ted Cruz has taken the unusual step of denying that he hates Gays.

The statement came in the wake of a socalled “religious freedom” conference attended by Cruz and Republican rivals Mike Huckabee and Bobby Jindal, at which their host, notorious anti-Gay preacher Kevin Swanson, delivered a hysterical rant on the Biblical death penalty for Gays.

MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow dubbed the event a “Kill the Gays Conference.”

In response, an unnamed Cruz staffer told the right-wing Washington Examiner that Cruz would not “acknowledge or take their bait.”

“We’ve seen their follow-up attempts and accusations to place Cruz into their definition of gay bashers, but that’s not even close to who he is,” the staffer was quoted as saying in a December 4 article. “You have to look at his record and history, not what the Left wants him to be.”

On the other hand, Cruz himself seems to be doing a good job convincing people that he is, in fact, a Gay basher, at least verbally.

His most recent foray into hate speech came on December 8, when he declared that he could not support Trans-inclusive nondiscrimination laws because he feared that Trans people would molest his daughters in their school bathrooms.

“You know, I’m the father of two little girls,” Cruz said in a TV interview. “Caro-

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line and Catherine are seven and five. I don’t want my daughters taking showers with little boys – I don’t want them when they’re in junior high or high school.

“And it’s absurd, no parents do. And these [Trans rights advocates] are zealots.”

Less than two weeks earlier, Cruz had suggested that Robert Dear, the shooter in an attack on a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, was a Transgender activist.

“It’s also been reported that he was registered as an independent and a woman and transgendered leftist activist, if that’s what he is,” Cruz said to reporters.

“We know that he was a man who was registered to vote as a woman,” Cruz said, referring to what was apparently a typo in Dear’s voter registration forms that listed him as “F” instead of “M.” “The media promptly wants to blame him on the pro-life moment when at this point there is very little evidence to suggest that.”

Cruz has repeatedly said that he would push for legislation allowing people to discriminate against same-sex couples. In a lengthy TV interview with Princeton professor Robert P. George, Cruz told the professor that in his first 100 days as president he would push for the passage of the First Amendment Defense Act to allow people to act on their belief that marriage is the union between a man and a woman.

“As you know, I’m an original sponsor of that legislation,” Cruz said. “And when it comes to religious liberty, religious lib-

erty has been a passion for me for decades, and it has been something that I have been fighting to defend for many, many years.”

The anti-LGBT theme is one of Cruz’s favorites and he has turned to it repeatedly during the campaign. In May, for example, he berated a reporter for asking if he had “personal animosity” against LGBT Americans.

“Do you have a personal animosity against Christians, sir?” Cruz sneered.

“Your line of questioning is highly curious.

You seem fixated on a particular subject.

Look, I’m a Christian; scripture commands us to love everybody, and what I have been talking about with respect to same-sex marriage is the Constitution, which is what we should all be focused on.”

In March, Cruz and Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford tried to overturn two laws passed by the District of Columbia Council. The Human Rights Amendment Act of 2014 would apply nondiscrimination laws protecting LGBT people to religiously affiliated educational institutions, and the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Amendment Act of 2014 would prevent faith institutions from taking action against workers who have abortions.

Because Congress has jurisdiction over the District of Columbia, its laws are subject to Congressional oversight. Cruz and Langford have so far failed to overturn the two measures.

December 11, 2015

Seattle Gay News 11

Men of color continue at high risk for HIV, CDC says – New HIV infections down 19% overall

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer There’s good news and bad news in the war on HIV, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a new report released December 7.

The good news is that HIV infections have dropped 19% overall in the last ten years. The bad news is that some demographics actually show increases in HIV infection.

On the plus side, the annual number of HIV diagnoses in the United States declined 19% from 2005 to 2014. The most significant decreases were documented among heterosexuals (down 35%) and IV drug users (down 63%).

Among African-American women, HIV diagnoses declined 42% in the last decade and 25% since 2010.

Among white Gay and Bi men, new HIV

diagnoses declined 18% over the last ten years.

But there’s a problem: over that ten-year period, the number of new HIV cases for Gay and Bi men as a whole increased by about 6% – driven by significant increases among men of color.

Among Gay and Bi African-Americans, for example, HIV diagnoses jumped 22% over the decade, although the rate of increase slowed considerably in the most recent years, going down to only 1%.

Among Latino Gay and Bi men, the number of new HIV diagnoses went up 24% over the ten-year period and 13% since 2010.

To complicate the picture even more, infections among young African-American men (ages 13–24) went up an astonishing 87% over the ten-year period, but the number of diagnoses in that age group actually declined 2% in the last five years of the

study.

According to the CDC, increases in HIV diagnoses are due to increases in new infections and not to improved HIV testing or reporting. HIV testing remained stable or actually increased among the groups reporting declines in diagnoses, the CDC said. Similarly, HIV testing remained stable among Latino Gay and Bi men, who reported increases in HIV infections during this period.

“Although we are encouraged by the recent slowing of the epidemic among black gay and bisexual men – especially young men – they continue to face a disproportionately high HIV burden, and we must address it,” said Jonathan Mermin, director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention.

“Much more must be done to reduce new infections and to reverse the increases among Latino men. There is hope that the

National HIV/AIDS Strategy and other efforts are beginning to pay off, but we can’t rest until we see equal gains for all races and risk groups.”

The CDC attributed the decline in new HIV diagnoses in the most recent five-year period to greater investments in “high-impact” prevention campaigns.

“The recent five-year trends coincide with the launch of the first National HIV/ AIDS Strategy and – now that the investment in high-impact prevention approaches has increased – offer promise for further progress,” said Eugene McCray, MD, director of the CDC’s Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention.

“We have the tools to stop HIV right now. We urgently need to accelerate access to testing, treatment, and new biomedical prevention strategies so that everyone can protect themselves and their partners.”

LGBT Syrian refugees get priority, White House says – but no guaranteed places

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer LGBT refugees from Syria will get “priority” in settlement in the United States, but will not get guaranteed placement.

In response to questions from the Washington Blade newspaper, White House spokesperson Josh Earnest rejected calls by some LGBT activist to set aside 500 slots for LGBT refugees among the 10,000 the Obama administration has promised to take in.

“When it comes to our refugee resettlement efforts, the United States does not set aside quotas like what you just described,” Earnest said.

“But what the United States does do, in

terms of resettling refugees, is prioritize the cases of those who are deemed to be the most vulnerable – those who have been subjected to acts of torture, those who have been singled out because of their minority status in one way or another.”

Asked by the Blade if the “most vulnerable” would include LGBT people facing persecution, Earnest said LGBT people would be among the groups facing persecution that would meet that definition.

Speaking generally about atrocities reportedly committed by ISIS, Earnest said the tactics of the terrorist group “have shown a callous disregard for basic human rights.”

“And it is certainly no secret that there are a variety of ways in which they offend those basic rights and trample those rights,”

Earnest said. “That’s one of the reasons the president has mobilized such a strong international coalition to destroy them.”

The State Department also insisted that no quota would be set for LGBT Syrian refugees, although cases of extreme persecution would be made a priority.

“The U.S. does not establish quotas or set-asides for refugee applicants based on type of claim (race, religion, membership in a particular social group, etc.),” a State Department spokesperson said.

“Each refugee applicant is considered for U.S. resettlement based upon the merits of his or her individual claim, which could include persecution based on being LGBT.” The Organization for Refuge, Asylum, and Migration (ORAM) has initiated an online petition asking the United States to

set aside 500 slots for LGBT Syrians seeking to escape from ISIS persecution.

Neil Grungras, executive director of ORAM, said he agrees with the White House that the most vulnerable refugees should be a priority, which is why his organization will “continue to advocate” for guaranteed placement of LGBT refugees.

“Living under a constant threat of being thrown from the top of a building or beheaded simply because of your sexual orientation or gender identity is about as extreme a form of persecution as you can imagine,” Grungras said.

“Escaping that threat only to live in constant fear of being killed by other refugees or locals is too much for any human to bear.”

Transgender woman elected to Venezuelan National Assembly

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A Transgender woman has been elected to Venezuela’s National Assembly.

Tamara Adrian is a lawyer and was a candidate for People’s Will, a small socialist party that formed part of the winning opposition bloc, or MUD (Mesa de la Unidad Democratica, or Democratic Unity Roundtable).

The PSUV (Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela, or United Socialist Party of Venezuela), which supports Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, was trounced in the election, losing its majority in the country’s Assembly.

Maduro’s government has been hurt by falling oil prices, which once sustained its

12 Seattle Gay News

socialist economic policies. Spending on social programs has led to skyrocketing inflation and national debt in the absence of oil income.

Maduro also lacks the charisma of his predecessor in the presidency, Hugo Chavez, during whose tenure the PSUV was a seemingly invincible political force.

Although PSUV ran its own LGBT candidates, Adrian accused the Maduro government of stalling legislation for LGBT rights. For example, she told the Washington Blade, she helped draft a marriage equality measure in 2014, but it went nowhere in the PSUV-dominated Assembly.

“Every time we try to get a chance before the National Assembly or whatever, we only receive silence,” Adrian said. “Then suddenly the opposition puts this candida-

December 11, 2015

ture in the mainstream, and they change the game.”

Adrian also charged that the Maduro government had mismanaged the national economy, causing real harm to working class families.

“People are standing in line for hours – eight, nine hours in order to buy a chicken or to buy some meat,” Adrian told the Blade.

“It’s a very difficult environment from an economic point of view and it has to be addressed from the [National Assembly].”

As election results were being announced on December 7, Adrian told Out magazine that Venezuela is in crisis and the country’s politicians have so far failed to respond.

“Venezuela is going through the worst economic, social and cultural crisis ever re-

corded,” she said.

“We have to talk about the rights of couples and families, about the gender identity Act, about the mutilation of intersex children and about discrimination, which includes hate crimes, bullying, workplace harassment, and access to housing and healthcare.”

In spite of opposition charges that his government would interfere in the election to keep its Assembly majority, Maduro has announced he will abide by the results of the vote. He has not said yet whether he will accept legislation passed by the new opposition majority in the Assembly, or if he will veto it.

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