SGN April 13, 2018 - Section 1

Celebrating 44 Years!

Issue 15 Volume 46

Seattle comic book fan and gay author Bill Schelly

Emotionally austere Pete a heartbreaking inspiration

SEC 2 PG 1

SEC 2 PG 1

Seattle Gay News

FRIDAY April 13, 2018 FREE!

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25¢ in bookstores & newsstands

Lesbian mom has parental April defeat of Anchorage rights to nonbiological anti-Trangender Prop. 1 “Overwhelmed with joy” says Lillian child, Mississippi Lennon, Anchorage activist Supreme Court says

Chris Strickland (l) with attorney Beth Littrell – Photo by Rogelio V. Solis / AP

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled on April 5 that a Lesbian has parental rights

to the nonbiological child of her former marriage. The decision gives same-sex couples the same rights as opposite-sex parents.

see MISSISSIPPI page 13

by Tim Peter SGN Contributing Writer On April 3, voters in Anchorage, Alaska, overwhelmingly rejected by a vote of

53.7 per cent to 47.3 per cent, an attempt by the religious right to prevent Transgender people from using the restrooms and locker

see ANCHORAGE page 6

Interview with King Co. Transgender citizens flee Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht Kyrgyzstan for Russia

Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht – Photo courtesy of Unite Seattle

by Miryam Gordon SGN Staff Writer Our new Sheriff seems to be part of Team Social Justice. Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht has been on the job since her swearing in on January 2nd, 2018, and her

priorities and focus for her department are beginning to take shape. She spoke to SGN recently about her 33-year career in King County law enforcement and her plans now that she has been elected to the highest law enforcement position in King County.

see SHERIFF page 4

Members of Russia’s LGBT community wave rainbow flags at a May Day rally.

– Photo courtesy of BBC / Getty

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Imagine being so afraid and so oppressed as a Trans person in your own country that you would flee to Russia for refuge.

That’s exactly the fate of Trans people in Kyrgyzstan, according to BBC reporter Katie Arnold.

In 2014, Kyrgyzstan – a former Soviet

see KYRGYZSTAN page 13

2 Seattle Gay News

April 13, 2018

Celebrating 44 Years!

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2018

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OBITUARY

IN MEMORIAM – John Eric Rolfstad June 6, 1958 – April 4, 2018

by Scott Larsen Special to the SGN Long time West Seattle resident John Eric Rolfstad died at the University of Washington Hospital on April 4 after a short illness. He was 59.

Because “John wanted a green burial” wrote his brother on Facebook, “he had to be buried quickly” on April 6 at the Meadows Natural Burial Grounds in Ferndale, WA. While John Eric was a big guy, his heart was even bigger, as well as his zest for life.

No one could mistake John’s booming, hearty laugh.

Born in North Dakota, he attended the University of Jamestown in Jamestown, ND; University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, ND; and the University of Washington, Seattle, obtaining business, law, and social work degrees respectively.

His ties to the Seattle community were numerous. From once singing in the Seattle Men’s Chorus to serving on boards like Companis Seattle, Green Burial Council, Extraordinary Lutherans Ministry, and ReconcilingWorks (formerly known as Lutherans Concerned). Only this past January did John Eric join the board of trustees of his alma mater, University of Jamestown.

Rolfstad became known across Washington state giving interviews after becoming executive director at End of Life Washington. The organization was instrumental in getting Initiative 1000 on the ballot in 2008. The so-called Death With Dignity Act, which was passed into law by voters.

Later, John Eric became executive director of People’s Memorial Association, a funeral education and advocacy group in Seattle. While there, he was instrumental in the society setting up its own funeral business.

“When I was just beginning work with AIDS CareTeams in Seattle, he was the first social worker to refer his clients to me,”

Visit us online www.sgn.org

wrote Trudy James on Facebook. “He was always real, exuberant, funny, and caring.”

John Eric loved to boat, hike, and camp and nothing could widen his smile more than to be out on Lake Washington or Lake Chelan with friends in his boat or sharing a meal together.

He was a long time social worker in Seattle, working at Providence Health & Services, case manager at Harborview Medical Center, and oncology social worker at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

For a number of years, John Eric organized a weekend retreat for Lutherans

Concerned, the LGBT ministry, at the Lutheran retreat center in Holden, WA, located high in the Cascade Mountains.

A formal funeral/celebration of life will take place on June 2 at Seattle’s First Baptist Church, 1111 Harvard Ave., and another one in his hometown of Williston, North Dakota on August 12.

Survivors include his brother Thomas Rolfstad of Mesa, Arizona; sister Dorothy Rolfstad, aunt Dora Rolfstad, a niece and nephew, all of North Dakota.

April 13, 2018

Seattle Gay News 3

SHERIFF

continued from cover Her bio on the website says: “Born and raised in King County, Mitzi Johanknecht has served her community for 33 years and is an experienced, progressive law enforcement leader. She began her law enforcement career when she joined the King County Sheriff’s Office on January 8th, 1985. Through her history of dedication and hard work, along with a strong sense of honor and respect, she worked her way up through the ranks and was elected to the position of Sheriff on November 7, 2017.

“Mitzi started as a deputy in the North Precinct and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant before having ten years on with the department. A quick four years later she was promoted to the rank of Captain.

She has served in leadership roles in every division and location in the Sheriff’s Office.

As a deputy, she was the first to work with a multi-disciplinary team in King County housing. She collaborated with other agencies, community groups and residents to build relationships and trust, promoting public safety. Mitzi was the first woman to command TAC-30, the King County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team.

“Mitzi and her wife, Maureen, live in West Seattle. She volunteers on the board of Companis, a local non-profit, and does production assistant work for the Seattle Men’s and Women’s Choruses. Their adult daughter, Sydni, and son-in-law Scott live in New York City.” [http://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/sheriff/about-us/biographies.aspx] My first question was “Why did she want to do law enforcement? Why sheriff and not city-type policing?” She describes how she found out about jobs in the Sheriff’s Department.

“I went to university at UW to play basketball and got a great education out of it. I continued [my schooling] at WWU [toward] a BA in Education to become a teacher. I didn’t finish my BA. It wasn’t required to join the Sheriff’s Office. As I was finishing, I had a softball coach who was the first woman to be a field officer in the Dept. of Corrections in Washington state. She suggested I look at going into law enforcement as a career.

“At that time I had friends I’d played sports with and one of my dear friends worked for the King County Sheriff’s office. I went on a ride along with her. Six months later, I was in the police academy – WA State Criminal Justice Training Center (which provides all training for basic police academy work for everyone except the State Patrol). The reason for the Sheriff’s office in particular relates to the type of work.

Within the Sheriff’s Office, you’re serving anywhere from urban to rural to the mountains and so you have more autonomy and you have more time to do community related things. “Social justice” or as it’s known now, community policing.

“I’ve worked in every division and in every precinct in a lot of different jobs. My favorite job? Aside from being Sheriff, I got to work as the first King County deputy to work in public housing as their community officer. I was the officer for two different housing complexes and those were in my district and I worked hand-in-hand with youth up through the more seasoned residents. That was a fun experience.

“I’ve been allowed to do so many things from search and rescue and operations to criminal investigations division where I oversaw the drug unit and court protection (including court houses and members who come to court and/or work inside).”

Now that she’s Sheriff, having seen how the whole department works from just about every angle, Johanknecht clearly has plans to change, refine, and focus aspects of department function. So, from what she spoke about on the campaign trail to digging in and making actual plans, what were some

4 Seattle Gay News

Photo courtesy of King County Sheriff Department

of those issues that she campaigned on and how is that going?

“There were things I talked about while campaigning and some of those promises are starting to be able to deliver,” Sheriff Johanknecht says. She speaks about her perception that the department had suffered in certain ways under the prior administration and that “the department is healing as we start coming together and folks are feeling safer to do their work rather than come under unfair investigations.” She emphasizes that she wants to ensure that her administration treats people with “dignity and respect.” So, clearly, having said that, she feels that the prior Sheriff did not do this for the department. However, that’s all the specifics I got.

Sheriff Johanknecht did get into some very specific actions she is taking right this minute to roll out change in ways big and small.

She says, “We’re just about ready to train our folks on the use of naloxone and get that information out to all our operations so we can save people’s lives.” Public health officials and studies from around the country have pointed to the use of naloxone and the readiness to have a shot available can mean the difference between life and death to someone having an overdose reaction.

She clarifies that “there are about 40 deputies already trained” in using naloxone, but she is determined to making it part of the standard kit or issue that every deputy first-responder has – expanding to about 300 more, including, for instance, court marshals. Any uniformed personnel who are in first responder roles would be included.

Another effort underway is to complete acquisition on “less lethal shotguns so less lethal options can be used in the field.” Sheriff Johanknecht says, “We’ve purchased about 80 shotguns and people are being trained to use them. We have other tools: pepper spray, Tasers and those are the two less lethal weapons before our firearm. This is another tool that can be used before lethal force to allow us to deal from a distance with people in crisis. Tasers are close in and if they don’t work, you start to run out of options. These shotguns shoot a bean bag round. It hurts and is distracting for pain compliance, but typically does not penetrate

April 13, 2018

the skin.”

People may disagree about the idea of adding a less lethal firearm being a form of de-escalation, but most of the people in this county might like the idea that our deputies have more options to prevent killing folks when they’re acting out. There are logistics regarding how many pieces of equipment one deputy can successfully carry and manage, so that might be a concern.

As for the big plans, the main direction the Sheriff is going is toward developing a strategic, multifaceted plan for the near term. She says that the Sheriff’s Office does not have one. She indicated that there wasn’t one in place from the past administration, so she’s basically starting from scratch and thinks it will take six to nine months to fully develop. The scope is comprehensive. “[One of the areas] we’re looking at [is] officer and deputy wellness and being thoughtful about types of uniforms and vehicles so they’re providing good officer safety and are healthier, reducing costs for health care,” Sheriff says. “An example is: we have taller and taller people [as deputies] and fitting them into some department cars makes it tough for a 6’ 4” or 6’ 9” person getting into and out of cars [that have] limited seat areas with consoles in the middle.

When the officers have to get out quickly, it can be difficult [bumping knees or straining backs or hitting heads]. So, good work spaces for deputies in cars. “[Similarly, there is] the gear we ask them to carry on their gun belts and taking care of officers backs. Also, professional staff in the office – we’re looking at sit-stand desks for people, for instance, in our communication center. [We’re focused on] longer term employee health. We have an aging workforce and when people are working later into their lives you want to take care of people’s health.”

That’s one way to focus on long-term strategy. The other major area the Sheriff is working on is implementing the Executive Equity and Social Justice strategic plan. This is a plan that already existed but she says that the Sheriff’s Office wasn’t engaged into that process, which is apparently a Countygovernment-wide effort to bring it into the Sheriff’s Department.

Asked about the fact that she is an Out

and married Lesbian and if that would make any specific difference to her work or to the Sheriff’s Department, Sheriff Johanknecht is clear that making sure the department treats everyone with respect is a top priority.

She says, “I think we need to continuously work on making it safer for protected classes and immigrant populations to report to the police. They should want to report to the police and we should thoroughly investigate their concerns. I don’t have specific numbers, it’s not data you ask or collect, but I have heard stories and also hear about fear of reporting. How do you capture that data if people don’t report [crimes to the police] in the first place?

“We’re working on staffing a new section – instead of a general focus, we’ll have a section that will actually have that community engagement, including relations, recruiting, encouraging LGBTQ folks to become members of the Sheriff’s Office and having a community liaison approved in a supplemental budget to add staff to the Sheriff’s Office. That is just an initial staffing up and it will be overseen by my chief of staff, Liz Rocca. That’s a priority for me.”

[The] Sheriff’s plan is to apply for funding to add two additional members to the media relations office, currently a staff of one – a community liaison officer in charge of equity and social justice strategic planning and doing community outreach, and a recruiter, who would also focus on recruiting from diverse and less-represented communities for staff jobs.

I asked about the perception that some police out there are reluctant to admit they might have implicit biases or that those biases might impact the way they do their jobs.

Sheriff Johanknecht immediately responded. “When I got into office oversight, I had all our upper command attend a threehour overview from a gentleman who does implicit bias training all over the United State. We are working to expand that training and bring him back to train the entire department on implicit bias.

“We’re always cycling through antiharassment, anti-discrimination [issues and trainings], but this was given a thumbs up by all the staff because it was done differently than other trainings. We’re also looking forward to [the changes required by the passage of] Initiative 940 and what training will be required and what changes will happen at the police academy. We want to stay current in any trainings that help break down distance between communities and the Sheriff’s Office.

“Part of that is going [out] to listen to the communities and we’re starting to set up listening sessions to try to break down barriers that members of the community point to.

[We’re looking at] everything from coordinated efforts in working with other county department or the County Council where they’ve already planned to go out and have these sessions, or the Sheriff’s Office going out to learn. I don’t want to talk at people; I want to listen to people.”

I couldn’t resist asking for a personal “How did you meet?” story! Apparently, the Seattle Choruses (the Seattle Men’s Chorus and Seattle Women’s Chorus) became matchmakers! The Sheriff has volunteered for the Choruses for years now, and many people might guess that it’s because her wife, Maureen, has been a long time singer.

It appears it’s the other way around – the Sheriff was already a Chorus supporter. “[Maureen and I] met at the Chorus Auction on 3/17/01. I was there as a guest and so was she. Little did we know that people who hosted our table were deliberately setting us up to meet each other. So it was a semi-blind date. And we’re still together after all these years!”

SGN celebrates the election of Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht and her focus on strengthening social justice in our County!

We look forward to the fruition of her plans and applaud her focus on these needed changes.

Celebrating 44 Years!

2018 Washington State Leather Emerald Awards Brunch

Lainy Spock and Panther Berg – Photo courtesy of Andrew Villeneuve

On Sunday March 25th, Purr Cocktail Lounge was the host venue for the 2018 Washington State Leather Emerald Wards with Emcees Lainy Spock & Panther Berg.

The Washington State Leather Community was represented by groups, organizations and clubs including the Bellingham Sex Positive Center, Everett Leather Alli-

ance, Wolf Pack Leather Clan, Leather Azimuth of Yakima, South Sound Leather Alliance, Leather Archives of Chicago, WSMLO, SML, SWOL, Sbol, Sgol, SeaPah & the Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle to name a few.

Julia Kaplan – Photo courtesy of Andrew Villeneuve

2018 Leather Emerald Award Recipient Julia Kaplan Julia Kaplan has been involved in the Seattle Leather scene since the late ’80s.

She is a founding member of Outer Limits, the long-running Seattle Leatherdyke club; a founding member and co-originator of

Powersurge, the first International Leatherdyke conference, which was held in Seattle; owner of Venus, a Seattle alternative clothing store; and she ran S, a Leatherdyke bar and club in Seattle.

Courtesy of the Washington State Mr. & Ms. Leather Organization

“Talk Gender to Me” What is gender considerate language in the workplace?

Capitol Hill restaurants commit to LGBTQ safety and welcomeness in using gender considerate language On Thursday April 19, LGBTQ Allyship is kicking-off their Talk Gender to Me project designed to educate and support Seattle restaurant workers to utilize gender considerate language with co-workers, managers, restaurant owners and customers. Tito’s Handmade Vodka is supporting the Talk Gender to Me Kick-Off and Coastal Kitchen (429 15th Ave. E.) from 3pm-6pm, the Wildrose Bar (1021 E. Pike) from 4pm-8pm and Bar Vacilando (405 15th Ave. E.) from 4pm-6pm are all hosting a “Talk Gender to Me” Happy Hour on Thursday, April 19.

This project is geared towards Seattle restaurant workers as a professional development opportunity that encourages respecting all workers and customers around their gender identity, gender expression and gender.

All too often LGBTQ customers are unintentionally misgendered at restaurants, which can be a jarring experience. Redwolf Painter, a mixed blood trans resident says, “I am often misgendered in restaurants and don’t feel safe correcting folks. I leave angry and vowing to not return to that establishment. I’m so grateful to Allyship for starting this dialogue and training to restaurant staff! I love the idea of restaurants taking the “Talk Gender to Me” pledge and I look forward to places I can eat or drink without worry.”

Many restaurants on Capitol Hill serve LGBTQ customers and are committed to preserving an LGBTQ friendly culture on the Hill. Co-owners Shelley Brothers and Martha Manning of the Wildrose Bar state,

Store in SODO, 2960 4th Ave. Tito’s Homemade Vodka has generously provided the venue. The training will include professional development on gender considerate best practices in the industry and information on the 6 Labor Standards in Seattle.

Addressing gender and workers’ rights in the workplace is important for LGBTQ staff and all restaurant staff.

“Talk Gender to Me” is also sponsored

by Restaurant Opportunities Center Seattle (ROC – Seattle), Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA), Entre Hermanos, POCAAN, Capitol Hill Eco District Committee and Seattle Area Support Groups (SASG).

For more information, please visit our website at http://www.lgbtallyship.org, or contact Debbie Carlsen at 206-930-6668 or debbie@allyship.org.

“We have seen a lot of changes over the years. The hill has become less welcoming to the LGBTQ community, but many LGBTQ individuals still come here to drink, eat, seek community and be visible. Being gender considerate in your establishment is respectful, inclusive and builds your customer base. We hope more restaurants commit to taking the “Talk Gender to Me” pledge.”

General Manager, Christine Kennerly, at Coastal Kitchen sums up their commitment to “Talk Gender to Me,” “We at Coastal Kitchen are a safe place for the LGBTQ community and want everyone to feel

Visit us online www.sgn.org

comfortable; this includes not misgendering – but we admit we’re far from the goal on this as it’s purely habitual for a server to greet with “Hi ladies, etc.” We’ve had situations arise when misgendering a guest has caused upset for both staff and guest. This is a bummer for all involved. We desire to give exceptional food and beverage experience – regardless of gender – so it’s time we educate our team and make the stance.”

The “Talk Gender to Me” Kick-Off also includes a free hospitality training on April 16th from 1pm-3pm for restaurant staff and managers at Youngs Market Express

April 13, 2018

About LGBTQ Allyship LGBTQ Allyship is a social and economic justice organization in the Puget Sound area. We serve over 3000 individuals and work on access to affordable housing, economic equity, and eliminating youth and senior homelessness in the LGBTQ community through education, advocacy, research and community organizing. For more information go to LGBTQAllyship.org.

Courtesy of LGBTQ Allyship

Seattle Gay News 5

Lillian Lennon, a Transgender teenager, was a field organizer who helped defeat the bill before Anchorage voters. – Photo by Mark Thiessen / AP

Lennon working the phone banks at Fair Anchorage to get Anchorage voters to vote “no” on Proposition 1. – Photo courtesy of Fair Anchorage

MoHagani Magnetek speaks to other opponents of Proposition 1 who gathered at Williwaw on April 3, 2018. – Marc Lester / Anchorage Daily News

ANCHORAGE continued from cover

rooms based on their own gender perceptions.

This fight began after Anchorage City Council passed a broad non-discrimination ordinance in 2015, which protected LGBT people. In January 2016, Alaska Family Council created a ballot initiative for the City of Anchorage hoping to overturn protections for Transgender people. The campaign, entitled Yes on One – Protect Our Privacy, wanted voters to believe that allowing people to use the restrooms of their own choosing would be harmful to

6 Seattle Gay News

the public, particularly children. The reality is that there are very few, if any, reports of LGBT persons doing anything against others in public facilities; meanwhile many LGBT people have been attacked, beaten and murdered simply because of who they are and whom they love.

“Our opponents thought it was not about Transgender people when in fact it was a direct attack against us,” said Lillian Lennon, Field Organizer for Fair Anchorage, the organization opposing Prop 1.

“A lot of our work had to do with voter outreach and educating about this important issue. We made sure to stay visible.

Before the campaign, many people in Anchorage and Alaska didn’t know Trans-

April 13, 2018

Lennon and Col Lockard, a Transgender teen who was featured in one of the ads opposing Proposition 1, celebrate the historic win in Anchorage. – Photo courtesy of Fair Anchorage

gender people. We were able to change that, to show the horrible effects that it would have on the community.”

“I was nervous about winning,” she added, “yet very confident in what we were doing. No matter the outcome, we’d done something big. We organized the community of Transgender people, their families and business leaders. When I heard the preliminary results on election night, I was overwhelmed with joy! The Anchorage community came together to make this happen.”

Lennon added that this was a coalition effort with help from many sponsors, big and small. Some of those sponsors included Human Rights Campaign, ACLU of Alas-

ka, Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest and Hawaiian Islands (PPGNHI), Alaska Airlines. The campaign also relied on support from Identity, Inc., the LGBT community support center in Anchorage.

Fair Anchorage out spent Prop. 1 supporters $800,000 to $123,000, according to the Anchorage Daily News.

“We all came together to fight for equality in Alaska,” Lennon said. “Of course, it was local to the Anchorage community, yet it will having lasting effects throughout the state of Alaska and across the United States.”

Celebrating 44 Years!

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April 13, 2018

Seattle Gay News 7

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8 Seattle Gay News

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April 13, 2018

Celebrating 44 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

April 13, 2018

Seattle Gay News 9

S E A T T L E B A S K E T B A L L C L U B You are invited to join the LGBTQ & Friends

Spring '18 League Games Start Sunday April 15th - 6pm to 9pm $85 for 8 week season It's time to play 5 on 5 basketball again! Teams will be created by draft based upon skill levels. Register early limited spots are available.

All Skill Levels Welcome All Genders Welcome All Ages Welcome Register at www.SeattleBasketballClub.org Location: The Lair Courts 3405 Lind Ave SW Renton, WA 98057

We are a social and recreational club primarily focused on promoting basketball activities for Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) communities of Greater Seattle and welcome our friends and allies.

www.facebook.com/seattlebasketballclub

REGISTER TO VOTE

W W W.VOTE .GOV 10 Seattle Gay News

April 13, 2018

Celebrating 44 Years!

Tasveer presents the 4th South Asian International DocuFest Includes screening of documentary film I Am Bonnie

I am writing from Tasveer on behalf of the 4th South Asian International DocuFest (SAID), the only South Asian documentary festival in the country! SAID offers thought-provoking documentaries that

shed light on a number of issues relevant to South Asia and its diaspora.

We would like to invite your organization to be a community partner for the 4th SAID. This is a free opportunity to promote

your organization and the festival all at the same time! One of the movies that we will feature at SAID is I Am Bonnie, a documentary film about a transgender man - the titular Bonnie - living in India attempting

to live in dignity within society.

The full schedule and tickets are available at said.tasveer.org Courtesy of Tasveer

LGBTQ+ basketball returns to Seattle!

Dear All – I’m really excited to share with you all that LGBTQ+ and friends basketball is returning to Seattle. We have re-united and established a board of directors with the mission of building a sustainable LGBTQ+ and friends basketball organization. We plan to hold league play yearround complemented with fun tournaments and social gatherings. We want to be more than just a basketball league, we want to build community and provide for safe and welcoming space for folks to get active,

meet new people, and enjoy basketball.

As Seattle has continued to grow over the past few years, obtaining gym space had become a barrier for LGBTQ sports organizations. When the Asian Resource Center changed ownership and closed the gym to us, we were left without a place to play. Several attempts at using community centers and local schools failed as other organizations and leagues took precedent on the schedule.

That all changed when a new facility in Renton opened and invited us to be an anchor tenant with a permanent time slot

on Sunday’s from 6pm to 9pm. The Lair Courts (3405 Lind Ave SW, Renton) is a 30,000 sq ft sporting facility that has up to 6 volleyball courts or up to 4 basketball courts. Our sister organization – The Seattle Volleyball Club ran into the same issue with gym space and they are now holding their league play Friday nights and their numerous tournaments at The Lair Courts.

We welcome players from all walks of life and playing ability. We’ll help you learn the game of basketball and get you on the court in a fun, competitive way.

Spring League begins this Sunday,

April 15, 6pm-9pm, at The Lair Courts (3405 Lind Ave SW, Renton). Registration is now open (and filling up fast)! For more information on joining one of our leagues or our special events, visit http://www.seattlebasketballclub.org.

Cheers, Ted Hanson Seattle Basketball Club

Welcome to Gay Kickball – Seattle!

Join the 1,000’s playing with GayKickball.com around the country! We will be starting our First Season in Seattle on May 5th! Feel free to come to our Welcome All pick-up game on April 14th at Bobby Morris Playfield (11th Ave & E Pine St.) at 2pm. For complete information visit www.gaykickball.com.

Visit us online www.sgn.org

April 13, 2018

Seattle Gay News 11

Army Chief of Staff testimony contradicts Pentagon report on Transgender troops General Milley: “Precisely zero reports of issues of cohesion, discipline, morale”

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley – Photo by Carolyn Kaster / AP

SAN FRANCSICO – Army Chief of Staff General Mark Milley today called into question a key claim of the Defense Department’s recent report on transgender military service: that allowing transgender service risks undermining cohesion, privacy, fairness and safety.

Asked by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand if he had heard of any problems with unit cohesion arising from open transgender service, Gen. Milley responded, “I have received precisely zero reports of issues of cohesion, discipline, morale, and all those sorts of things.”

Palm Center Director Aaron Belkin called Gen. Milley’s remarks significant.

“It is telling for the Army Chief of Staff to acknowledge there have been ‘zero’ problems with cohesion, discipline, or morale just weeks after a DoD report, ostensibly based on months of research, insisted that transgender troops pose a risk to cohesion, discipline, and morale.”

The Defense Department report called into question the medical fitness of transgender troops, but the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and retired US surgeons general have stated that the Pentagon’s medical data and reasoning are misleading and unpersuasive.

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April 13, 2018

Below is an excerpt of the exchange between Sen. Gillibrand and Gen. Milley: Sen. Gillibrand: Are you aware of any problems with unit cohesion arising... Have you [heard] anything about how transgender service members are harming unit cohesion?

Gen. Milley: No, not at all. We have a finite number. We know who they are, and it is monitored very closely because I am concerned about that and want to make sure that they are in fact treated with dignity and respect, and no, I have received precisely zero reports of issues of cohesion, discipline, morale, and all those sorts of things.

No.

The Palm Center is an independent research institute committed to sponsoring state-of-the-art scholarship to enhance the quality of public dialogue about critical and controversial issues of the day. Its research has been published in leading social science journals and extensively consulted and cited by US military leaders. The Palm Center seeks to be a resource for scholars, policymakers, journalists, opinion leaders, students, and the public at large. For more information, visit www.palmcenter.org.

Courtesy of the Palm Center

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MISSISSIPPI continued from cover

The ruling established Chris Strickland’s rights to continue to parent her son Zayden, in spite of the objections of her former spouse, Kimberly Day. Both Strickland and Day are residents of Mississippi.

The former couple began dating in 1999 and soon decided to start a family together despite Mississippi’s ban on marriage and adoption by same-sex couples.

Because of the adoption ban, they decided that Day alone would adopt their first son. The couple married in Massachusetts in 2009 and then began planning to expand their family, this time using reproductive technology. They agreed that Day would carry the child, and she became pregnant in 2010 using an anonymous donor.

When their second son, Zayden, was born, Strickland was the first to hold him.

Because the state did not recognize their marriage, only Day was listed on the birth certificate, but the baby boy was given Chris’ last name.

Both women are named as his parents on his birth announcement. They raised their two children together, and for the first year of his life, Strickland was Zayden’s primary caretaker. The boys call Day “mom” and Strickland “mama.”

When the couple separated in 2013, Strickland continued to parent their boys,

Photo by Rogelio V. Solis / AP

visiting with and providing support for both children until Day abruptly decided to cut all contact in August 2015.

Day married her current spouse, a man, on August 13, 2015, in Mississippi, causing Strickland to file for divorce on August 31.

In October 2016, in the divorce final judgment, Day’s husband was blocked from adopting the children and Strickland was awarded visitation rights and ordered to pay child support for both children.

However, the court also ruled that

Strickland was not the legal parent to her second son because the anonymous sperm donor’s rights as a father supersede her rights as his nonbiological parent.

Last year, Mississippi Chancery Judge John Grant denied Strickland’s request to be listed as Zayden’s legal parent due to the lack of biological ties, despite the fact that she’d raised the boy since birth.

The Mississippi Supreme Court reversed Grant’s ruling, in a decision relying on the US Supreme Court ruling in

Obergefell, which afforded equal rights to same-sex and opposite-sex couples.

“Under Mississippi law, an anonymous sperm donor does not possess any parental right,” Justice David Ishee wrote for the high court. “As for Christina’s parental rights…we reverse the chancery court finding that Christina acted in loco parentis but was not an equal parent with parental rights to Z.S. [Zayden].”

The justices then sent the case back to a trial court for final disposition.

Strickland called the decision a “great day.”

“It is a relief that my status as a parent in my son’s life can never be questioned or stripped away,” she said.

Lambda Legal Counsel Beth Littrell, who represented Strickland, praised the decision.

“Today’s ruling is confirmation for thousands of married couples in Mississippi who know that the love, care, and responsibility that comes with being a mom or dad goes far beyond the blood relationship of an anonymous sperm donor,” she said.

“The Court recognized that marriage equality is the law of the land in Mississippi. No matter the gender of your spouse, all married couples and their children now receive the same respect for their parentchild relationships when they bring children into their families through reproductive technology.”

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

An anti-LGBT protest in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan – Photo courtesy of BBC / Getty

KYRGYZSTAN continued from cover

republic in Central Asia – proposed a law forbidding the “promotion of a homosexual lifestyle” in imitation of similar legislation passed in Russia.

While the proposed law is still awaiting final passage in the country’s parliament, the proposal unleashed an epidemic of antiLGBT violence that continues to this day, Arnold reports.

A survey conducted by the LGBT organization Kyrgyz Indigo in 2016 found that 84% of respondents had experienced physical violence during their lifetime, while 35% were victims of sexual violence.

“Corrective rape is common among the LGBT community but especially among the transgender community,” said a source identified only as Rudolph, a social worker at the LGBT shelter run by Kyrgyz Indigo.

Like many of the people Arnold interviewed, he preferred not to give his last name for fear of attack.

“All members of the community will

become a victim at some point; we are looking after someone right now who was a recent victim of gang rape,” Rudolph added.

Most cisgender members of the LGBT community choose to remain deeply closeted, Arnold says.

“But anonymity has proved difficult for the transgender community, the majority of whom find themselves caught up in the sex industry due to discrimination in the workplace,” Arnold writes. “It is against this backdrop of violent transphobia that many members of the community are voluntarily moving to Russia – a country renowned for its hostile attitude towards LGBT people.”

For example, one Trans woman identified as Anna used the internet to hook up with clients. But transphobic gangs often scoured the list of sex workers advertising online, looking for their next victim.

Anna was kidnapped by two such men posing as clients. They laced her beer with a sedative and then drove her deep into the Tian Shan mountains that ring Kyrgyzstan’s capital city, Bishkek. When she came to, her attackers were kicking her head and chest.

“You were born a man, you should be a

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man,” she remembers them shouting.

Paralyzed by the drug and unable to defend herself, Anna begged for them to kill her.

“I was happy to die at that moment,” she says. The two men placed a plastic bag around her bloodied head, put out their cigarettes on her body, and left her for dead.

Anna managed to wrestle herself free of the plastic bag, then found her way back to Bishkek, where she sought refuge in the city’s only LGBT shelter.

“I was usually very good at distinguishing who was who; I honestly did not suspect this guy to be dangerous,” Anna told Arnold.

“I cannot stay in Kyrgyzstan any longer; it is not safe here,” she said. “I am going to live in Russia instead.”

Anna is not alone.

“Lots of transgender women are migrating,” says Roma, a sex worker and outreach officer for a local human rights organization, Tais Plus.

“I’ve met ten who have moved to Moscow in the last few months. The ones I have spoken to since say life is not too bad there.”

Although sex work is also illegal in

Russia, the maximum penalty is a fine of just 2,000 rubles, or $35. According to the Sex Worker Rights Advocacy Network, there is a large and open sex industry in many parts of Russia due to widespread police corruption.

“Transgender people face all kinds of violations in everyday life, more than homosexual or bisexual people,” warns Svetlana Zakharova from the Russian LGBT Network.

“But the problem here is more with society as a whole rather than the police – they do not care if someone is transsexual unless they violate some societal norm by speaking out publicly.”

“I think life will be easier for us in Russia, because even though there is legislation against sex workers, the police will not target us because we are transgender,” Roma added. “Here [in Kyrgyzstan] the police are filming their encounters with us, threatening us with the footage, and then publicly outing us online.”

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