SGN September 15, 2017 - Section 1

Celebrating 43 Years!

Issue 37 Volume 45

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‘A Fall Queernaissance’ with Allyship SEC 2 PG 1

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Seattle Gay News

Ed out, Bruce Harrell Capitol Hill Housing in…at least temporarily to develop Seattle’s first LGBTQ-affirming affordable senior housing CHH hosting Sept. 21 event to help identify community needs and priorities

Ed Murray – Photo by Jason Redmond/AFP/Getty Images

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Seattle Mayor Ed Murray resigned September 12 in the wake of the fifth accusation of sexual abuse of a minor, this time leveled by his cousin, Joseph Dyer, who said Murray forced him to have oral sex when Dyer was 13 and Murray was in his twenties.

Murray’s office announced he would

resign three hours after the Seattle Times broke Dyer’s story. Murray was once thought to be a shoo-in for re-election, but his campaign began to unravel in April, when the Times published a story accusing the mayor of having molested three boys in the 1980s, one of whom was suing him.

A fourth accuser came forward in May, and Dyer surfaced only days ago.

On September 13, City Council Presi-

Rainbow crosswalk on Capitol Hill - Photo Courtesy of Capitol Hill Housing

see ED OUT page 4

see CHH SENIORS page 5

LGBT rights pioneer LGBTQ and Allied Edie Windsor dies at 88 Gray Harbor community Plaintiff in historic USA v. Windsor ruling protest Hoquiam bar

Black Pearl Tavern – Photo courtesy of dailyworld.com Edie Windsor – Photo by Jewel Samad, AFP/Getty Images

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Edie Windsor, the plaintiff in the landmark case USA v. Windsor, in which the US Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), died September 12. She was 88.

Windsor was survived by her second wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor, whom

she married in 2016, but it was her first marriage that made legal history.

Windsor first met Thea Spyer in 1963 at Portofino, a restaurant in Greenwich Village, but both women were already in relationships, so they maintained a casual friendship. In 1965 they began dating, and in 1967 Speyer asked Windsor to marry her.

see EDIE WINDSOR page 3

by Shaun Knittel SGN A&E Writer Over the weekend members of the LGBTQ and Allied Grays Harbor community held a rally and peaceful protest in response to what they say has been a summer filled with threats, anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, a smear campaign of the community based on lies, and more.

If you have not been following the news about what is going on in Hoquiam let me catch you up. Basically, a tavern owner in

Hoquiam accused the LGBTQ community of Grays Harbor of falsely accusing him of homophobia after he denied them access to his facility, The Black Pearl Tavern, as a stage for a drag show. Of course, community leaders tell Seattle Gay News that the salacious allegations are untrue and it is the bar owner, Johnny Gallego, who is the one playing games and threatening folks.

In fact, Gallego allegedly went as far as to tell community members who joined in a

see GRAYS HARBOR page 5

Join us for an Open House Thursday, Sept. 21 from 1 to 6 p.m.

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Our specially trained providers and staff members are proud to provide skilled and compassionate health care services for transgender and gender non-conforming patients in a welcoming and supportive environment. Our goal is to partner with patients to assure they receive the best primary and transgender-related care for all their needs, including many skilled surgical services.

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For more information, please visit VirginiaMason.org/Transgender-Health

2 Seattle Gay News

September 15, 2017

Celebrating 43 Years!

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OBITUARY

EDIE WINDSOR continued from cover

Windsor agreed, and six months later the couple moved into an apartment in Greenwich Village. In 1968, they purchased a small vacation house on Long Island together. Although they originally concealed their relationship, Speyer and Windsor grew more open about their status as a couple, inviting friends over to their Manhattan apartment to celebrate their anniversaries.

In 1977, Spyer was diagnosed with progressive multiple sclerosis, which caused a gradual but ever-increasing paralysis. Windsor took an early retirement to become a full-time caregiver for Spyer.

Windsor and Spyer entered a domestic partnership in New York City in 1993, registering on the first day it became legal to do so.

Spyer suffered a heart attack in 2002 and was diagnosed with aortic stenosis.

In 2007, her doctors told her she had less than a year to live. The couple then traveled to Toronto, Canada, the closest place they could legally marry. The ceremony was conducted by Canada’s first openly Gay judge, Harvey Brownstone.

Speyer outlasted her doctor’s prediction but ultimately died on February 5, 2009.

Because the US government refused to recognize her marriage to Speyer, Windsor was hit with $363,053 in federal estate taxes.

Had DOMA, which withheld federal recognition of same-sex marriages, not been in place, she would have qualified for the unlimited spousal deduction that opposite-sex couples get.

In 2010, Windsor sued the US government, charging that DOMA violated the equal protection clause of the Fifth Amendment because it deprived her of the same spousal rights that would be due to an opposite-sex spouse.

Soon after the suit was filed, Obama-era Attorney General Eric Holder announced that he could not defend the constitutionality of DOMA. When a federal district court ruled in 2012 that the law was, indeed,

Visit us online www.sgn.org

Edie Windsor among the grand marshals during the annual gay pride march in New York, June 30, 2013.- Photo by James Estrin/The New York Times

unconstitutional, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives set up a special legal commission to defend DOMA on appeal.

Ultimately the US Supreme Court ruled in 2013, declaring DOMA unconstitutional and clearing the way for federal recognition of same-sex marriages in the 13 states that, along with the District of Columbia, then allowed it.

The majority opinion by Justice Anthony Kennedy foreshadowed the arguments Kennedy would use two years later in Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

Windsor eventually remarried, but – largely due to her lawsuit – without the legal drama that surrounded her first marriage.

Her second wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor, remembered her as a freedom fighter in a statement to the New York Times.

“The world lost a tiny but tough-as-nails fighter for freedom, justice, and equality,” Kasen-Windsor said.

“Edie was the light of my life. She will always be the light for the LGBTQ community, which she loved so much and which loved her right back.”

Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton also paid tribute to Windsor.

“America’s long journey towards equality has been guided by countless small acts of persistence and fueled by the stubborn willingness of quiet heroes to speak out for what’s right,” Obama said in a statement.

“Few were as small in stature as Edie Windsor — and few made as big a difference to America.”

Bill Clinton tweeted that “in standing up for herself, Edie also stood up for millions of Americans and their rights.”

September 15, 2017

Seattle Gay News 3

ED OUT

continued from cover dent Bruce Harrell was sworn in as mayor, in accordance with the city charter.

Harrell was accompanied by several of his City Council colleagues, City Attorney Pete Holmes, and other officials at his inauguration, held in the City Hall conference room.

“I’m joined by many cabinet members, elected officials, friends, family,” Harrell said. “And their presence should signal to the people of Seattle that our duties to be leaders and public servants, our duties transcend a person or office.”

According to the City Charter, Harrell now has five days in which to decide whether he wants to remain mayor until the November election, or step down and let the City Council elect another Council member as mayor.

If Harrell decides to remain as mayor, he’ll serve until November 28, when the results of the November 7 mayoral election between Jenny Durkan and Cary Moon are certified.

If Harrell declines, he’ll become mayor pro tem and the council will have 20 days to choose another of its members to serve into November, City Attorney Pete Holmes said.

“The overall logic of the charter is to make sure there’s complete continuity,” Holmes said. “There’s no period of time without a mayor or a mayor pro tem.”

The catch is that whoever serves out the remainder of Murray’s term can’t return to their City Council seat, Holmes added.

There would have to be a special election to fill the vacant seat.

Harrell promised to make a decision by 5 p.m. on September 15 on whether to serve as mayor or step down and call for the City Council to choose a new mayor.

The decision would have “nothing to do with my personal agenda,” he said, but would depend on “the needs of the city.”

One of the duties that would have been handled by Murray but will now devolve to the new mayor will be to send a new budget to the City Council. This would be “our highest priority,” Harrell said.

Ironically Harrell ran for mayor against Murray in 2013 but was knocked out in the primary. He then endorsed Murray, the eventual winner, over incumbent Mike McGinn.

Political insiders speculated that Harrell would probably choose to remain on the City Council, while Councilmember Tim Burgess would be a logical choice for mayor through November. Burgess, after all, is retiring from the City Council and doesn’t intend to keep his seat anyway.

Lorena González is also considered a possible candidate for short-term mayor, since she is running for re-election this year. She could step down from her seat to serve as mayor, and then be re-elected to the seat in the November election, Holmes said.

In November, either Jenny Durkan or Cary Moon will be elected mayor, becoming Seattle’s first woman mayor since Bertha Knight Landes in 1926-1928.

Ed Murray – Photo by Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

Civil rights groups pay tribute to Edie Windsor From NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell: We are deeply saddened by the loss of Edie Windsor, a hero and icon for the LGBT rights movement. Many of us feel the personal loss of a tremendous friend and mentor, whom we will never forget. She fought for dignity and laid the foundation for marriage equality. Her legacy will live on in history and be felt in the lives of our community for many years to come.

Edie Windsor - Courtesy of vogue.com

From the ACLU: Today, we lost one of this country’s great civil rights pioneers, Edie Windsor. The wheels of progress turn forward because of people like Edie who are willing to stand up in the face of injustice. One simply cannot write the history of the gay rights movement without reserving immense credit and gratitude for Edie Windsor. We were proud to stand with Edie when she took her fight on behalf of same-sex couples everywhere to the Supreme Court. We mourn her today, as do all whom she touched in her incredible life. Edie always urged others not to “postpone joy.” So even as we mourn this terrible loss, we also celebrate Edie, who set an example for all of us to follow.

From the Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin: Edie Windsor is a hero and civil rights icon who pushed our country closer to the promise of a more perfect union. Future generations will learn how she faced down discrimination with courage and defiance, and boldly challenged the United States government to treat her marriage to Thea Spyer equally under the law – as our Constitution guarantees. After Edie Windsor succeeded in defeating the Defense of Marriage Act, she continued to push forward, galvanizing the support of hundreds of thousands of Americans in support of the Obergefell case before the United States Supreme Court in 2015. We join millions across the nation in mourning the loss of Edie Windsor, and share our deepest condolences with her wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor.

4 Seattle Gay News

September 15, 2017

From Lambda Legal: Our hearts are with Edie’s wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor, their family and friends, and all whose lives were changed because Edie so fearlessly stood up for herself and her community. She called for the respect and dignity denied to same-sex spouses, and the Supreme Court heard her plea.

Because of Edie, we are a more perfect union. She left an indelible mark on all who knew her story, and all whose love is now recognized and protected because of the victory she helped secure for LGBT people.

Thank you, Edie. You will be remembered with deep respect and gratitude. We will miss you.

From GLAAD: Edie Windsor is a legend who changed the course of history for the better. She touched countless lives, and we at GLAAD are deeply saddened by her passing, but her kindness, compassion, and legacy will endure. LGBTQ advocates and organizations are planning a vigil for Edie outside of the Stonewall Inn in New York City tonight.

From PFLAG: We’ve lost a lesbian national treasure, someone who committed to love and never stopped pushing for change and justice.

Edie had such joy for life, and gave our community so much. I hope she felt our love for her, and that we gave back to her in the same way she gave to all of us.

From the Civil and Human Rights Coalition: Edie Windsor was unafraid to stand up when she knew she was being discriminated against, and ultimately the Supreme Court agreed. Because of her bravery, the nation saw a significant leap forward for LGBTQ equality. While much work remains, the actions of courageous individuals like Edie have helped move us forward as we work toward a more perfect union.

We extend our sympathies to her wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor, and all those who were touched by this amazing woman.

From People for the American Way: PFAW is deeply saddened by the loss of Edith Windsor, and our thoughts are with her family and friends. Ms. Windsor was a trailblazer who helped lead the charge for LGBTQ equality. Her landmark Supreme Court case, which granted same-sex married couples federal recognition and benefits for the first time, paved the way for nationwide marriage equality. We are grateful for her perseverance and tenacity, and she will be forever remembered as an iconic symbol of love and equality.

From GLAD Civil Rights Project Director Mary L. Bonauto All of us at GLAD are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Edie Windsor.

We extend our deepest condolences to her surviving spouse, Judith Kasen-Windsor, and to their community of family and friends. Edie was a true warrior for love and justice, and she lived life with an irrepressible joy. By generously and fearlessly sharing the story of her 40+-year love for Thea Spyer, she helped the nation and the Supreme Court see the humanity in the relationships of same-sex couples. In refusing to accept anything less than full legal respect of their marriage, she changed the lives of many. We can honor Edie’s legacy by continuing the fight for equality, and by living life to the fullest, as she always did.

Celebrating 43 Years!

Photo courtesy of Capitol Hill Housing

CHH SENIORS continued from cover

SEATTLE – [On September 13] Capitol Hill Housing (CHH) announced plans to develop Seattle’s first affordable senior housing development, designed to be an affirming environment for LGBTQ elders and the greater LGBTQ community.

The project comes at a pivotal time.

King County’s elderly LGBTQ population is expected to double by 2030, and LGBTQ seniors are listed as a priority population for the Seattle Housing Levy, as they face demonstrated health, economic, and social disparities compared to their peers.

CHH is planning to create a mixeduse building on 14th and Union on Capitol Hill, redeveloping a parking lot adjacent to the Helen V Apartments. The Helen V is a 38-unit building that CHH has owned for 16 years, and which serves low-income seniors and individuals with permanent disabilities. The project would include renovations to the existing Helen V apartments but would not displace any current tenants.

The initial concept calls for a building

GRAYS HARBOR continued from cover

to the unfair treatment of a Transgender person who was asked to leave the business and referred to as “it”, that they would leave the tavern in “body bags” if they showed up at his business on Fridays and Saturdays.

There is more to the accusations, but frankly, it isn’t worth the copy space to repeat the juvenile words of a bully.

Never one to back down from anyone or anything, drag king performer and LGBTQ activist, Ceasar Hart, alongside several other community members in Grays Harbor, organized a peaceful protest and rally to counter the hate.

And wouldn’t you know it? It turns out that Gallego isn’t as innocent as he would like people to believe. As the group of LGBTQ community members and their supporters conducted a rally and then march through parts of Hoquiam on Sunday morning, ending it with a silent walk across the street from The Black Pearl Tavern, Gallego and some of his regulars mocked the group by standing outside the tavern wearing t-shirts that read: “Straight and Proud.” Gallego told local Hoquiam newspaper The Daily World that he had sold about 150 of the t-shirts.

If you are thinking, “Here we go again with the Straight Pride B.S.,” you aren’t alone. What Gallego and his ilk fail to understand is that LGBTQ Pride events and Pride month, as well as just plain being

Houston, Philadelphia, and San Diego all have affordable housing affirming of LGBTQ elders, but Seattle, despite its long history of LGBTQ advocacy and acceptance, has yet to develop any.

“LGBTQ individuals face a host of challenges, which can get magnified as they age,” said Fredriksen-Goldsen, who also serves as board co-chair of Seattle’s Generations Aging with Pride. “An affordable and affirming place to live can address the isolation, discrimination, and health challenges LGBTQ older adults often face.”

As part of a growing process of community engagement, CHH is hosting a gathering at Gay City’s Calamus Auditorium on Capitol Hill on September 21 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The event will feature more information and conversation about the project, art, music, and a presentation of initial interviews conducted with LGBTQ seniors.

Many interviewees have expressed hope that the project could help bolster Capitol Hill’s LGBTQ identity. “There was a time when Capitol Hill was the gay mecca. And there are a lot of people who are decrying that it’s becoming more gentrified and more mainstream. But I think with people of our age it remains a gay city,” said Dan Edminster, a longtime Capitol Hill resident and interviewee.

The total development cost of the project is anticipated to be $25 million. This project will be financed with Low Income Housing Tax Credits, public funds, and bank financing. [The timing] of the development will not be confirmed until all financing is secured. CHH has an agreement with Environmental Works to serve as architect for the project.

that will be between five and seven stories and have between 44 and 66 apartments.

The final height and unit count of the building will depend on the outcome of the city’s zoning changes under the Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) program.

Apartments would be affordable to lowincome seniors 55 years or older. Anyone meeting age and income qualifications would be eligible to live in the building.

The first floor will include just under 4,000 square feet of commercial space for local businesses or community organizations.

CHH is in the early stages of engaging the community to solicit input on how to create a welcoming space for the neighborhood, including partnerships and programming that could support LGBTQ elders and make the building a hub for the LGBTQ community.

“As a community-based organization with deep roots on Capitol Hill, we’re proud to bring this project to the neighborhood,” said Christopher Persons, CEO of CHH. “It all starts with bringing folks to the table and setting a shared vision.”

CHH has hosted initial meetings with an informal advisory committee, which includes over a dozen leaders from community organizations and government enti-

ties, including Bailey-Boushay House, the City of Seattle, Entre Hermanos, Gay City, Generations Aging with Pride, the King County HIV/AIDS Planning Council, LGBTQ Allyship, Lifelong, POCAAN (formerly known as People of Color Against AIDS Network), Seattle Counseling Services, the Seattle Foundation, and Virginia Mason Hospital. CHH is working with the advisory committee to explore how [the] design, social support, and health interventions can be leveraged in the project to support LGBTQ elders.

“Affordable housing is essential,” said Fred Swanson, executive director of Gay City. “But this project also offers the opportunity to bring the whole community together to think creatively about how to support the needs of LGBTQ elders in the community.”

A survey of over 200 LGBTQ older adults in King County conducted by Professor Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen at the University of Washington School of Social Work, one of the nation’s leading researchers on LGBTQ aging, found that 45% of respondents live alone and are at high risk of social isolation. Over one-quarter live below 200% of the federal poverty line.

Cities such as San Francisco, New York

proud every day as out LGBTQ folks, is in no way an attack on straight society. It has absolutely nothing to do with heterosexuals at all actually. But just like many of the misinformed people before him, Gallego actually thinks that he is proving some sort of equality points or “winning” an argument of some sort, by showcasing yet another ill-conceived message that if we, the LGBTQ community have Pride, then they deserve it, too. Well, of course, they do! Again, LGBTQ Pride does not mean that because we are proud you can’t be. It does not mean that because we say we have Pride that we abandoned all forms of government and discipline, step away from our duties as citizens because suddenly saying, displaying, or shouting our Pride means we’ve turned against everyone else.

Hart told SGN that although Gallego and several of his customers (friends?) came outside and snickered and laughed a bit, there weren’t any confrontations, verbal or otherwise, between the two camps. In fact, Hart says, people honked in support of their message, joined in making signs and marching with the group, and really made the LGBTQ community feel welcomed by the citizens of Grays Harbor and its surrounding area.

But that is not to say there weren’t any problems either. Now, although things went smoother than expected at The Black Pearl Tavern, it was a few things that happened while on their way to the bar that stand out.

According to Hoquiam Police Lt. Jeff Salstrom, the only cop on duty at the

time, that after speeches were wrapped up, members of the group carried a Pride sign and took to the streets.

It was along that walk that Miki Cabell, Head of Out and Proud Grays Harbor, reports having to call police dispatch as the group was heading into town. She alleges that a man in the apartments at 530 Emerson was displaying a gun and a Rebel flag (sometimes referred to as the Confederate flag).

It is important to note that she also told police that people in the building shouted slurs at the group.

Driving nearby, Officer Salstrom arrived within 10 seconds of the call.

“It was reported a man was displaying a gun and yelling things. One of the apartments was displaying a Rebel flag out the window, and somebody yelled ‘Queer’ at them,” Salstrom said.. “Members of the group felt threatened, he said, prompting the call.

Salstrom arrived at the apartment building and was met by the man whose apartment was displaying the flag. He said the gun in question was an Airsoft air rifle and was being carried through the house by his son. He denied shouting anything or that the gun was handled in a menacing way, and Salstrom said he offered to take the flag down.

“He said he felt bad and wanted to go over and apologize,” Salstrom told The Daily World. “So I took him over, where he met Miki, shook her hand and said he was sorry” if she felt threatened as that was not

his intention.

“Everyone in the group sounded like they were on good terms afterward,” he added.

Cabell posted this on her Facebook page: “An amazing day of love and equality here on the Harbor. We do not tolerate hate. Diverse opinions welcome; however violence and threats of violence will not be tolerated. Thanks to everyone for coming out today in this show of unity.” She thanked Jen Gillies, co-founder of Out and Proud Grays Harbor and current student adviser for the Grays Harbor College Gay Straight Alliance, for organizing the event.

Caesar Hart filmed the event and posted it on Facebook.

“Sadly, we experienced hate from members in the community during our peaceful rally,” wrote Hart in a message on his Facebook page. “Thankfully our police department was there in a flash and I’ll say de-escalated the situation right away.”

The video shows about 20 in the group carrying signs as they walked silently across the street from The Black Pearl. The end of the video shows the group breaking into cheers right after they walked by the tavern.

Salstrom said when the group started chanting “We’re here, we’re queer, get used to it,” some of the patrons at the bar responded with their own Seahawks chant.

There will be another drag show in town at the Simpson Avenue Bar and Grill Sept.

17, called the “SmallTown, Big Harts Drag Revue: For the Kidz Drag Show.

September 15, 2017

Seattle Gay News 5

Visit us online www.sgn.org

About Capitol Hill Housing Since 1976, Capitol Hill Housing has worked alongside the community to build and preserve apartments affordable to working families and promote the qualities that make Seattle a vibrant and engaged city. Today, we provide secure, affordable homes to over 2,200 of our neighbors in 48 buildings across the city while working to make our neighborhoods safer, healthier, and more equitable through the Capitol Hill EcoDistrict. Learn more at capitolhillhousing.org.

Courtesy of Capitol Hill Housing

Dug Sharpe’s remarks on being inducted into the NAGAAA Hall of Fame

Dug Sharpe - Photos by Stacy Maddux

Last week when Emerald City Softball Association’s Dug Sharpe was inducted into the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Association’s Hall of Fame at the start of the 2017 NAGAAA Gay Softball World Series held in Portland, Oregon, he shared the following remarks: Thank you, Frank. Thank you to the members of the Hall of Fame. Thank you to Rick and Steve, the owners of R place in Seattle, who have been longtime supporters of the Emerald City Softball Association.

Thank you to my husband, Conner Sharpe.

Thanks to my mother, Catherine Sharpe, who are here with me tonight.

In 1995 my best friend Mike Farris, a 320-pound man with no actual softball experience, and I decided to try out for a softball team in Seattle. We went to the tryout, and afterwards we got the phone call. They said, “Dug, we’d like you to play on our team, but we don’t have a place for that fat guy. There’s no room in our league for him.”

Well, we weren’t buying it. So Mike and I created our own team, and we went 0 and 27 that year. Twenty-seven games and we got 10, 20 and 50 run-ruled. (Yes, we actually once lost to the best team 52-4.)

But we kept going. Mike found his confidence. Mike found spirit, and Mike found his voice. He walked around Seattle and told people, “If I can do this, you can do this.” He eventually went on to become the commissioner of our league, and not only did he find places for everyone to play, he went on to be a creator and founder of the Quake rugby team in our city as well. He’s a Hall of Fame member, and he’s found homes and places for people to play organized gay, lesbian, transgender sports in Seattle for hundreds of people.

In 2001, I got an email from a woman from the University of Washington. She emailed and told me that she was on the verge of suicide and she needed a friend, she needed a family, she needed a place to play. We told her that we would find her a place, and we did. Sara Michelle Fetters

was that person. And she’s amazing. That year, she was the MVP of our C Division.

She took a team to the World Series. The next year she was the Rookie of the Year of our B Division. She has coached tons of teams in our league. She has been a pioneer, she has been an inspiration and she’s in our Hall of Fame – and she’s currently still playing 16 years later in the B Division here at this World Series. [applause] In 2006 Frank Pichinini called me and asked if I’d be part of the board to help bring the gay softball World Series to Seattle. Now Frank and I had always been adversaries before this. We came at things from very different sides of what softball was. I came from “everyone should have a place to play. There should be a place for everyone.” Frank came from more of a strategic place, a more competitive place than I ever was. And during the two years where we built the World Series to come to Seattle, he taught me how to get along with people who don’t share my vision.

He taught me how to be better person, as

an individual; he taught me to be a better professional at my job.

So tonight, it is an honor to be inducted into this Hall of Fame. However, I will tell you that the true honor is to be part of an organization, an international community, an international family, where I can be friends, colleagues, and part of a family with people like Mike Farris and Sara Fetters and Frank Pichinini and know that every single one of our cities and local organizations has a Mike and a Sara and a Frank [applause] and we know that THEY are the real reason for our greatness.

So I thank you for this honor, and I’m honored and privileged to be part of this excellent community, sportsmanship, and acceptance. Thank you very much.

Congratulations, Dug, on being recognized for your leadership, sportsmanship and team spirit!

Who’s your daddy? That’s my boy!

SML Seattle Leather Daddy and Daddy’s boy contest

Seattle Men in Leather (SML) is sponsoring the 29th Annual Seattle Leather Daddy and Daddy’s boy Contest Saturday,

6 Seattle Gay News

October 7, at 7pm at The Cuff Complex, 1533 13th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98122. The Cuff Complex’s doors open for the contest at 6pm.

SML will also host a Meet and Greet on Friday, October 6, from 7-10pm at The Cuff Complex, 1533 13th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98122 and a Victory Brunch on Sunday, October 8, 2-5pm at Diesel, 1413 14th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122.

Seattle Leather Daddy and Daddy’s boy contestants are scored by a panel of six judges on their Interview, Physical Image

September 15, 2017

and Attitude, Impromptu Question, Formal Leather Image, and Audience Vote.

SML membership is required to be a contestant.

SML contest winners are expected to promote the men’s Leather, denim, and uniform lifestyles to the greater community, sponsor three fundraising events, and help Seattle Men in Leather further its goals throughout their title year.

Seattle Men in Leather is a gay men’s social group consisting of individuals who seek or live the Leather/Uniform/Rubber/

etc. lifestyle, providing opportunities for friendship, mentoring, education, and support of the community.

The 2017/18 Club Charity is Seattle Area Support Groups (SASG) – http://www.sasgcc.org/.

More information about Seattle Men in Leather, contest information, and a contestant application form can be obtained at http://www.seattlemeninleather.org Courtesy of Seattle Men in Leather

Celebrating 43 Years!

Aging with Pride

Activities for LGBTQ Adults 50+

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Celebrating 43 Years!

ACLU asks for a preliminary injunction to stop Trump’s Trans ban

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The ACLU has asked a federal court for a preliminary injunction to halt Donald Trump’s ban on Transgender people serving in the US military.

In its September 14 filing, the ACLU says that there will be “irreparable harm” to the service members it represents if the ban is allowed to go forward.

“Without a preliminary injunction to preserve the status quo, plaintiffs’ health and careers – and the health and careers of thousands of other transgender service members

and qualified individuals who wish to serve – will be irreparably harmed,” the motion said.

“The transgender service member ban is unconstitutional and invalid on its face, and the court should enter a preliminary injunction prohibiting Defendants from implementing or enforcing it.”

On August 28, the ACLU filed suit against Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense James Mattis on behalf of six Transgender service members, arguing the ban violates their equal protection and due process rights.

The preliminary injunction would allow Trans people to serve in the military until the suit is litigated.

The ACLU’s suit is one of four against the ban. The others are from the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), OutServe-SLDN and Lambda Legal, and Equality California. The NCLR and GLAD have also asked for a preliminary injunction in their lawsuit.

“Transgender people are not pawns in a political game,” the ACLU said in a statement announcing its request for an injunction. “Our lives, our health care, our work cannot be erased with a tweet. We will not let that happen, and we are heading to court to stop it.”

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Nearly 70,000 LGBT people in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming lack statewide protections from ongoing discrimination

Adding sexual orientation and gender identity to existing non-discrimination laws would protect LGBT residents and would not be costly or burdensome to enforce

Map by Ken Campbell

LOS ANGELES – Approximately 69,200 LGBT people in the mountain states of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming are vulnerable to discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, according to a new report by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law. In a new series of state discrimination reports, authors Christy Mallory, State & Local Policy Director, and Brad Sears, David Sanders Distinguished Scholar, found that a only a fraction of the population in each state are covered by local nondiscrimination laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in areas such as employment, housing, and public accommodations. These three reports (Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming) are part of the Williams Institute’s ongoing examination of the 28 US states that do not include sexual orientation and gender identity in their statewide nondiscrimination laws.

Currently, statewide nondiscrimination laws in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming protect people from discrimination based on race, sex, disability, and other personal characteristics but do not include sexual orientation or gender identity. Without

statewide laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, LGBT people are vulnerable to discrimination and experience economic disparities.

“Adding sexual orientation and gender identity to these states’ nondiscrimination laws would protect tens of thousands of LGBT people from discrimination without burdening the courts or state agencies,” said Mallory. “Our research indicates that there would be only a handful of new complaints each year in these states, and existing enforcement systems could absorb these complaints without the need for additional staff or resources.”

Key findings from the reports include the following: LGBT people in all three states report discrimination and harassment in employment, housing, public accommodations, and other settings.

• In a 2003 survey of more than 1,100 LGBT people in Idaho, over half of the respondents said they felt they were expected to deny or hide their sexual orientation or gender identity at work, and almost 60% said they had been asked to do so by

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their employer. Almost a quarter of those surveyed reported that they believed they had been fired from a job, not promoted, or had not received compensation or a raise as a result of anti-gay attitudes in their workplace.

• In a survey of Montana State University students, 26% of LGBTQ students said they had been harassed in classrooms, and 53% felt that they had to conceal their sexual orientation or gender identity to avoid harassment or discrimination.

• A survey of LGB people in Wyoming found that 29% of respondents reported that they had been discriminated against in employment opportunities, 20% reported that they had been terminated from a job, and 17% reported they had experienced housing discrimination because of their sexual orientation.

• Reports of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the three states have been documented in administrative complaints, lawsuits, reports to community-based organizations, and the media.

LGBT people in all three states experience socioeconomic disparities.

• In Idaho, 30% of LGBT adults reported having a household income below $24,000 compared to 22% of non-LGBT adults. Over one-third of LGBT adults reported not having enough money for food compared to 16% of non-LGBT adults.

• In Montana, 37% of LGBT adults reported having an annual household income below $24,000 compared to 21% of non-LGBT adults. Thirty-nine percent of LGBT adults reported not having enough money for food compared to 13% of nonLGBT adults.

• In Wyoming, nearly one-third of LGBT adults (32%) reported having an annual household income below $24,000 compared to 18% of non-LGBT adults.

Efforts have been made to prevent discrimination and harassment, but coverage is incomplete.

• Executive branches, local governments, private employers, and public universities have enacted policies to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation

September 15, 2017

or gender identity. However, these policies are limited in scope and do not provide the same enforcement mechanisms as statewide nondiscrimination laws.

• In Idaho, only 30% of residents are protected from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity by local laws.

• In Montana, only 26% of workers are protected from employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity under executive orders and local laws.

• In Wyoming, only 7% of residents are protected from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity under local laws.

Public opinion in all three states supports nondiscrimination protections for LGBT people.

• In a 2011 statewide poll of Idaho voters, 78% of respondents said they favored legal protections from discrimination for LGBT people, and 93% of respondents thought that skill and ability should be the basis of a person’s employment, not sexual orientation or gender identity.

• In a 2011 national poll, 76% of Montana respondents said Congress should pass a federal law to prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

• In a statewide 2014 poll of Wyoming residents, 62% of respondents said they were in favor of adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the state’s employment nondiscrimination law.

Statewide laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity would not be administratively burdensome or costly to enforce.

• Adding sexual orientation and gender identity to these states’ nondiscrimination laws would result in few additional complaints filed, and the cost of handling the additional complaints could likely be absorbed into the existing enforcement systems with no need for additional staff or financial resources.

Courtesy of the Williams Institute

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New HRC report highlights Trump-Pence’s stealth attacks on democracy and the LGBTQ community

Photo Courtesy of nbcnews.com

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) civil rights organization, released a new report, “Trump’s Administrative Abuse and the LGBTQ Community,” highlighting the Trump-Pence administration’s highly unusual and abusive efforts to quietly roll back critical protections, programs, and services for the LGBTQ community by bypassing long-standing administrative policies and customs for instituting such changes.

“Under the Trump-Pence administration, federal agencies have ignored longstanding guidelines for engaging the public in policy changes specifically targeting the LGBTQ community and in some instances have failed to report changes all together,” said HRC Associate Legal Director Robin Maril. “This stealth effort by Trump-Pence to disregard the legal safeguards in place to promote consistency and public accountability is undermining public trust and fostering an atmosphere of anxiety and skepticism.”

The new HRC report details the Trump-

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September 15, 2017

Pence administration’s concerted effort to ignore long-standing policy and customs – including those calling for 30- to 90-day public comment periods for most rulemaking. The administration has released a series of complex, high-impact rules with appallingly brief public comment periods – some allowing just days for interested and affected parties to weigh in.

In March, for example, the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Administration for Community Living (ALC) failed to announce it had removed a crucial question about sexual orientation from the National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP), an annual national survey of recipients of select services under the Older Americans Act (OAA). Following an outcry from advocates including HRC, HHS finally issued an announcement correction – but refused to extend the public comment period.

Additionally, the Trump administration has been pushing major and controversial regulation changes affecting LGBTQ people though interim final rules (IFRs), which allow changes to become effective immediately, without public comment.

Before Trump was elected, this process was reserved for urgent changes and was rarely used for complex or controversial regulations except in emergencies. In May, Trump proposed an IFR that could strip millions of women and LGBTQ people of access to critical contraceptive care previously guaranteed under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Vox reported on a leaked draft of

the proposal that would allow employers – including for-profit companies – to refuse to provide insurance coverage of birth control on the basis of religious or moral objections.

Also detailed in the HRC report is Trump’s reliance on social media platforms like Twitter to announce presidential intent, reflecting not only disrespect for the process and the people affected by his pronouncements, but also a dangerous misunderstanding of the limits of his own power. Trump’s unconscionable tweets asserting his intention to bar qualified transgender people from serving their country in the US military are a prime example of this undemocratic power grab.

Tweets can’t make policy. They don’t carry the force of law, and, as we have seen by Trump’s recent actions, they do not provide federal agencies and their staff with the vision and guidance required to implement policy. Unfortunately, what tweets can do is incite anxiety, undermine the real and valuable daily work of the federal government, and contribute to a corrosive and divisive political atmosphere.

Read the full report, “Trump’s Administrative Abuse and the LGBTQ Community,” at http://hrc-assets.s3-websiteus-east-1.amazonaws.com//files/assets/ resources/HRC-Trump-AdministrativeAbuse-Sept2017.pdf.

Courtesy of HRC

Celebrating 43 Years!

Discriminatory ban already harming Transgender troops and the US military, Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN tell court LGBT legal rights organizations ask federal court to halt immediately all efforts to implement dangerous and discriminatory ban

is based on the Constitution’s guarantees of equal protection, due process, and free speech for all.

The government-commissioned RAND study released in May 2016 determined that the cost of providing transition-related care is exceedingly small relative to the US armed forces’ overall health care expenditures, that there are no readiness implications that prevent transgender members from serving openly, and that numerous foreign militaries have successfully permitted open service without a negative effect on effectiveness, readiness, or unit cohesion. Based on that study, the Pentagon lifted the ban on open service by transgender men and women in July 2016.

The lawsuit is Karnoski v. Trump.

Read a copy of the Motion for Preliminary Injunction [at https://www.lambdalegal. org/in-court/cases/karnoski-v-trump].

Read more about the case [at https://www. lambdalegal.org/in-court/legal-docs/ ka r nosk i _wa _ 20170914_ motion-forpreliminary-injunction].

The Lambda Legal attorneys working on the case are: Peter Renn, Jon W. Davidson, Camilla B. Taylor, Tara Borelli, Natalie Nardecchia, Sasha Buchert, Kara Ingelhart, and Carl Charles. They are joined by co-counsel Peter Perkowski of OutServeSLDN. Also on the legal team are pro bono co-counsel at Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Newman Du Wors LLP. Capt. Jennifer Peace holds a flag as she stands for a photo near her home in Spanaway, WA - Photo by Drew Perine/The News Tribune via AP

SEATTLE – Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN today asked a federal court to halt immediately all steps taken to implement the Trump administration’s discriminatory plan to ban transgender individuals from serving openly in the US armed services.

“Before the President’s vicious attack on transgender Americans, transgender service members had been serving openly and proudly in every branch of the US military for more than a year,” Lambda Legal Senior Attorney Peter Renn said. “Since the President’s tweets, and his mandate for the Pentagon to implement his ban, those same service members have been branded as unfit to serve – to do the jobs they have been doing successfully – simply because they are transgender. That harm is real, it is palpable, and it is discriminatory.”

“It is unacceptable to destroy the careers of patriotic and courageous members of the US military,” said Peter Perkowski, legal director for OutServe-SLDN. “This ban must be stopped dead in its tracks before it goes any further so that these brave men and women can focus on their real jobs – protecting and serving the country they love.”

Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN filed a motion for a preliminary injunction on Thursday in the US District Court for the Western District of Washington.

The motion asks the court to preliminarily enjoin the government from taking actions inconsistent with the military policy that existed prior to July 26, 2017, under which transgender service members were allowed to serve openly, and transgender Americans seeking to join the military had a path forward for doing so.

In the lawsuit, Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN are now representing nine

individual plaintiffs, all of whom are transgender, and three organizational plaintiffs – the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the Seattle-based Gender Justice League, and the American Military Partner Association (AMPA).

The individual plaintiffs are six current service members and three individuals who wish to enlist. The current service members are: Staff Sergeant Cathrine (“Katie”) Schmid, a 33-year-old woman and 12-year member of the US Army currently serving in Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, who has applied to become an Army Warrant Officer; Petty Officer Terece Lewis, a 33-year-old woman and 14-year member of the US Navy serving on the USS John C. Stennis out of Bremerton, Washington; Lindsey Muller, a 35-yearold woman and 17-year member of the US Army serving in Seoul, South Korea; Phillip Stephens, a 29-year-old man and five-year member of the US Navy serving at Eglin Air Force Base near Valparaiso, Florida; Megan Winters, a 29-year-old woman and five-year member of the US Navy serving in the Office of Naval Intelligence in Washington, DC; and a sixth individual who remains anonymous. The three plaintiffs who seek to join the military are: Ryan Karnoski, a 22-year-old Seattle man who currently works as a social worker and wishes to become an officer doing social work for the military; Conner Callahan, a 29-year-old man who currently works in law enforcement in North Carolina; and Drew Layne, a high school student from Corpus Christi, Texas, who is 17 years old and, with parental support, wants to join the Air Force.

“It is impossible to overstate how important it was when the Pentagon lifted the ban on open service, when I and other trans-

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gender service members were finally able to live and serve as our true and authentic selves,” Phillip Stephens said. “To read those tweets, to have the rug pulled out from under us, to be branded unfit to serve was devastating, not just for me but really for the US military and military readiness as a whole.”

Background On July 26, President Trump posted a series of tweets in the early morning hours announcing that “the United States Government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the US Military.” The tweeted ban was swiftly and widely condemned by more than 56 retired generals and admirals and a large percentage of Republican and Democratic US senators and representatives.

Despite that criticism, the White House proceeded to issue a memorandum directing the military to continue the ban on enlistment by those they learn are transgender, even though our armed forces currently are facing recruitment challenges, including in high-demand positions like linguists, health care providers, social workers, and aviators. The enlistment ban also bars transgender members of the military currently serving openly, such as Staff Sergeant Schmid, from obtaining appointments as officers.

The memorandum further orders the return to past anti-transgender policies affecting the continued service and medical care of those known to be transgender after the development of an implementation plan by the Secretary of Defense. The Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN lawsuit against President Trump, the United States of America, Secretary of Defense James Mattis, and the US Department of Defense

September 15, 2017

Statements from Organizational Plaintiffs “The thousands of transgender troops currently serving their country deserve immediate clarity and protection from the discriminatory whims of this president,” said HRC National Press Secretary Sarah McBride. “No service member should be forced to fear for their future for one more day due to Donald Trump’s unconstitutional order. We hope the court will recognize the urgency and severity of the situation and ensure that the promise made to these service members – that if they are willing and able to serve, they will be allowed to do so – is protected.”

AMPA President Ashley BroadwayMack said: “After the Defense Department assured transgender service members it was safe to come out and serve openly, President Trump is now singling them out for blatant discrimination. This shameful assault threatens the service member and his or her entire military family. As the nation’s largest organization of LGBT military families, we are proud to be represented by Lambda Legal and Outserve-SLDN in our lawsuit challenging this unpatriotic and shameful transgender military ban.

Any qualified American, regardless of their gender identity, should be able to serve their country.”

“We know from our members about the fear and uncertainty created first by President Trump’s tweets and now the memo,” said Danni Askini, executive director of the Gender Justice League. “Current transgender service members and those wanting to enlist are now in a constant state of limbo as the result of a hateful and counterproductive policy. We are hopeful the courts will uphold their duty to our ideals and halt this policy by granting the requested injunction.”

Courtesy of HRC

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AHF praises Sen. Bernie Sanders, Senate colleagues on introduction of ‘Medicare for All’ legislation In a show of force, 15 fellow senators co-sponsor the innovative health care bill

Photo Courtesy of money.cnn.com

WASHINGTON – The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) today praised the introduction of legislation that would make all Americans and US residents eligible for Medicare.

US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced the bill today as the prime sponsor along with – and in a show of force –15 co-sponsors: Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Patrick Lahey (D-Vt.) Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Brian

Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). #MedicareForAll “AHF salutes Sen. Sanders for his steadfast leadership in making sure the patients we care for are guaranteed the quality health care they deserve. Unless we address the underlying forces that make our health care system so expensive, such as the enormous administrative overhead of the health insurance industry and obscene drug prices, we will never make progress towards the guarantee of health care as a right,” said Michael Weinstein, president of the AHF. “The United States spends more per capita on health care than any other indus-

trialized country in the world. That’s because the US government allows over 30 percent of health care costs today to go to pay the insurance industry’s administrative overhead,” said AHF General Counsel and Chief of Public Affairs Tom Myers.

The AHF has been on record in support of expanding Medicare to cover all US citizens and residents for some time. See AHF’s previous statement here: https:// www.aidshealth.org/#/archives/29419 “As the largest provider of primary HIV care in the world, the AHF has first-hand experience in providing high-quality medical and pharmacy services regardless of the ability to pay. Operating in 40 countries, we know that the US has the most complicated and expensive health care system in the world,” said AHF Chief of Medicine Dr. Michael Wohlfeiler. “Treatment equals life.

Sen. Sanders’ Medicare for All legislation will make sure that people living with HIV will have access to treatment and not have to pay for exorbitant prices for life-saving antiretroviral medication.”

The US Medicare program, which has a 50-year record of success, is now only available to everyone over 65. This legislation would make tax-funded health care available that is medically necessary, including primary care and prevention, prescription drugs, emergency care, longterm care, mental health services, dental services, and vision care. Like Medicare,

patients would choose from participating physicians and institutions.

US Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) introduced a similar measure, HR 676, called the “Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act” in the US House of Representatives in January.

The program would be funded by taxes replacing insurance premiums. Funds from existing government sources for health care, increasing personal income taxes on the top five percent of income earners, a progressive excise tax on payroll and self-employment income, a tax on unearned income, and a transaction tax on stock and bond purchases would be enacted by the legislation. These taxes would be offset by the elimination of premium payments to health insurance companies. Health insurers would be prohibited from selling health insurance that duplicates benefits provided in the legislation. They may sell insurance for services that are not medically necessary.

“This legislation will help all our patients, and it will eliminate barriers to ending the AIDS epidemic. Everyday support is building in the US for expanding Medicare. The AHF looks forward to the enactment of this bill into law,” said Myers.

Following is a link to Sen. Sanders’ own statement on Medicare For All: https:// www.sanders.senate.gov/ Courtesy of the AHF

Queer groups condemn study claiming computers can tell if you’re Gay from photos

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Can computers have so-called “gaydar”?

Does AI count as a trusted source in reporting who is Gay and who is not?

These questions would’ve seemed a bit “early” one or two years ago, but in 2017 LGBTQ folks are faced with finding answers, because a Stanford University study claims to have used artificial intelligence to help determine a person’s sexuality with remarkable accuracy by looking at their face.

LGBTQ advocacy groups have denounced the study as “dangerous and flawed.”

The study, currently in draft form, has been accepted by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. It reportedly used “deep neural networks to extract features” from more than 35,000 facial images that men and women had posted on an unidentified dating website.

Researchers Michal Kosinski and Yilun Wang said they used an algorithm that could correctly identify Gay men 81% of the time, The Economist reported Friday.

Similarly, they claimed the tool was accurate for 74% of the women it tested.

The obvious critique is that it’s unclear what benefits, if any, the research would provide. So why do it in the first place?

Kosinski and Wang disagree. They say their work is a “preventative measure” that highlights the safety risks many LGBTQ

14 Seattle Gay News

people could face if such technology becomes widely available.

It was with that in mind that they chose not to disclose the dating website used in their research in an effort to discourage copycats.

“Tech companies and government agencies are well aware of the potential of computer vision algorithm tools,” says the study. “In some cases, losing the privacy of one’s sexual orientation can be lifethreatening. The members of the LGBTQ community still suffer physical and psychological abuse at the hands of governments, neighbors, and even their own families.”

The research was first revealed by The Economist, and soon it made global headlines, with Newsweek, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, and other publications each running their own takes.

Officials at GLAAD and the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) quickly condemned the research, noting that the study relied on “myriad flaws” and “had not been peer reviewed.”

It is their argument that Stanford University took online information at face value, and also assumed that one’s sexuality did not differ at all from the sexual activity they choose to engage in.

It is important to note that the study did not look at any non-white individuals.

GLAAD’s Chief Digital Officer Jim Halloran said the technology used in Kosinski and Wang’s study had simply shown that “a small subset of out white gay and lesbian people on dating sites” look similar.

September 15, 2017

Graphic by Ken Campbell

“This research isn’t science or news, but it’s a description of beauty standards on dating sites that ignore huge segments of the LGBTQ community, including people of color, transgender people, older individuals, and other LGBTQ people who don’t want to post photos on dating sites,” he said. “At a time [when] minority groups are being targeted, these reckless findings could serve as weapon to harm both heterosexuals who are inaccurately outed, as well as gay and lesbian people who are in situations where coming out is dangerous.”

Ashland Johnson, HRC’s Director of Public Education and Research, said the

“dangerously bad” research was “likely to be taken out of context” and could potentially “threaten the safety and privacy of LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ people alike.

“Imagine for a moment the potential consequences if this flawed research were used to support a brutal regime’s efforts to identify and/or persecute people they believed to be gay,” he said. “Stanford should distance itself from such junk science rather than lending its name and credibility to research that is dangerously flawed and leaves the world – and this case, millions of people’s lives – worse and less safe than before.”

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