SGN January 22, 2010 - Section 1

Celebrating 37 Years!

Issue 04 Volume 38

out to quit p. 4

glsen CONFERENCE p. 9

city council p. 18 & 19

Seattle Gay News

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SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Thousands turn out for New Hampshire repeal effort Seattle’s MLK March three weeks after Gay marriage

james whitely

Thousands turn out to celebrate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer On January 18, thousands of people gathered at Seattle’s Garfield High School (400 23rd Ave.) for the 27th annual Martin Luther King, Jr., Rally and March. The Seattle Martin Luther King, Jr. March is the biggest in the nation.

The workshops and march were organized by the local Martin Luther

King, Jr. Celebration Committee.

The morning started off with various workshops about topics such as civil rights, President Barack Obama, and military counterrecruiting, a workshop organized by local members of Veterans for Peace.

The rally, inside the Garfield see mLK March page 17

Three weeks after New Hampshire legalized Gay marriage, opponents are pressing lawmakers to limit marriage to heterosexual unions by repealing the law granting marital status to same-sex couples.

On January 20, supporters of Gay marriage pleaded with the House Judiciary Committee not to listen to those who would repeal the law, or to those who want to change the New Hampshire State Constitution to ban same-sex unions. The committee was holding hearings on the two measures, which the House is expected to reject when they are brought to the floor in the next few weeks.

Gay marriage opponents argued the unions defy nature since samegender couples can’t reproduce.

“I’m here today about Adam and Eve,” New Hampshire State Rep. Alfred Baldasaro told the House Judiciary Committee. Baldasaro, a Republican, is the prime sponsor of the legislation that would repeal the Gay marriage law.

“A man and a woman together create a family, where individuals of the same gender cannot create a

AP Photo/Jim Cole

by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer

Republican New Hampshire Rep. David Bates announces his plans to challenge New Hampshire’s new Gay marriage law during a news conference in Concord, N.H., Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2010

family,” said State Rep. Jordan Ulery, a Republican.

Gay couples countered their marriages hurt no one and strengthen society.

“Marriage is an incredible ac-

knowledgement of our equality.

Please don’t take it away after so shortly having given us the opsee new hampshire page 17

San Diego Mayor Sanders supports “The vote that will kill Gay marriage at SFO Prop. 8 trial the healthcare bill” file photo

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders

San Diego, California Mayor Jerry Sanders opposed Gay marriage – until he learned his daughter was a Lesbian in a committed relationship.

Sanders, the mayor of California’s second-largest city, testified on January 19 during a federal trial

on California’s same-sex marriage ban, best known as Proposition 8.

The trial, now in its second week, is the first in a federal court to examine whether denying Gay and Lesbians the right to wed violates their constitutional rights.

Throughout the trial, backers of Proposition 8 have tried to show the ballot measure was not motivated by entrenched prejudice

proud to Be Different

We are conveniently located on-site at Lifelong AIDS Alliance below the Thrift Store.

file photo

by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer

Republican wins in Massachusetts

towards Gays. Such a display of animosity would make it more difficult for the measure to pass conin a special elecstitutional muster. tion for the MasSanders, a Republican and forsachusetts Senate mer San Diego police chief, told seat recently held the court that when his daughter, by the late Ted Lisa, now 26, was in college, she Kennedy. told him she was a Lesbian. He The margin said that while he expressed his was convincing. “overwhelming love” for her, he Brown won 52% had concerns she would face disof the vote to crimination.

Coakley’s 47%.

Sanders said his change of heart Two minor party was a defining moment in his percandidates split sonal life and his political career. the rest.

He said he lost support within his For the Demoparty and had to work harder to be crats, it was a re-elected after he opposed Propostunning defeat. sition 8. The backlash was so great The seat had that Sanders said that GOP leadbeen held by ers in San Diego were thinking of Democrats since withdrawing their endorsement.

John F. Kennedy Lawyers for the challengers of won it in 1953.

Proposition 8 played a video of It is currently Sanders crying as he told a news occupied by an conference he had changed his interim appointNewly elected Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown mind about Gay marriage. ment, Democrat Sanders testified that he was by Mike Andrew Paul Kirk. emotional because he had come SGN Staff Writer Brown’s victory throws the fuso close to sending a message that ture of the Obama administration’s Republican State Senator Scott Brown defeated Democratic State see prop 8 page 17 Attorney General Martha Coakley see massachusetts page 16

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What’s the work like? You conduct interviews with your neighbors, explain the purpose of the census, ask questions from the census form and record answers. The Census Bureau offers flexible hours, paid training, reimbursement for authorized travel expenses AND it’s a great way for you to help your community!

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Bilingual applicants are encouraged to apply.

Tokyo skyscrapers. German men. kona waves. we like ThinGs biG. 2

Seattle Gay News

January 22, 2010

Seattl e Gay N ewS trave l edit ioN Febru ary 19 Celebrating 37 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

January 22, 2010

Seattle Gay News

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Seattle Gay News FOUNDED 1973

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2010

Deadlines Classifieds - Thursday at noon Calendar - Tuesday 6pm Display Ads: Space Reservation - Monday 5pm Ad copy (non-camera ready) - Tues. 5pm Ad copy (camera ready) - Wed. 5pm letters to the Editor - Tuesday 5pm Obituaries - Call the SGN office All others - Tuesday 5pm

Editor In Chief George Bakan Associate Editor Tom Flint (retired) Editorial Assistant Nick Ardizzone Production William Creswell Calender Editors Mike Andrew and Rick Mckinnon Travel Editor George Bakan Advertising Manager Marty Weisbrod Advertising Department Maggie Bloodstone Executive Assistant Mike Andrew Staff Writers George Bakan, Albert S. Rodriguez, Nick Ardizzone, Shaun knittel Miryam Gordon, James Whitely, Tim Peter

Contributing Writers

Rev. Barbara Allen, Mike Andrew, Eric Andrews-katz, Madelyn Arnold, Maggie Bloodstone, Beau Burriola, Jessica Davis, Ron Anders, Jessica Price, Milton W. Hamlin, Nevin Jefferson, keen News Service, Jason A. Miller, liz Meyer, Rod Parke, Don Paulson, Scott Rice, leslie Robinson, Richard kennedy, Romeo San Vicente, Rex Wockner

Classifieds Mike Andrew and Rick Mckinnon Photographers Nick Ardizzone, Joseph P. Herron, Shaun knittel, James Whitely National Advertising Rep. Rivendell Media (212) 242-6863 Website Designer Barry Thorsness/Digital Team Works Seattle Gay News is published weekly by JT&A, Inc. © 2010, JT&A, Inc., all rights reserved. Reprints by permission.

Publication of names, photographs or likenesses of any person, organization, event or business in this publication cannot be taken as any indication of the sexual orientation of the person, organization, event or business.

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in loving Memory Of Steve Foiles, Scott Roger Alpert, Cookie Andrews-Hunt, James leland Moore, Randy Peters, lee Richeson, Shaun Shelton, Jim Tully, James Arnold

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Seattle Gay News

Going through “The Program” – Week 3

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer I had just extinguished a cigarette when I ran into Lark and Dan, two coordinators of the program, as I was walking down Pike St. towards Gay City for my third weekly meeting. We talked casually, and it seemed they hadn’t notice me dispose of my cigarette.

At first, I thought it may have been a lucky break, but now I almost wish they had seen me and called me out.

Before I go into the more-stressful-thanusual meeting we had, I’d like to talk about the STAND worksheet from last week. Let’s just say I fell off the wagon – hard.

Last weekend was extremely busy and extremely stressful for me. I didn’t record my weekend cigarettes, but from Tuesday (the night of the last meeting) to Friday at 6:28 p.m., I recorded every cigarette: 22 in total in just over three days. Here are the numbers:

27.3% cigarettes smoked while at work.

4.5 % cigarettes smoked while elsewhere.

63.6% cigarettes smoked while in the presence of others.

36.4% cigarettes smoked while alone.

Some of these totals surprised me. I had figured that I smoked more at work than at home. Clearly, this wasn’t at all the case.

My mood fluctuations also took me by surprise. Generally speaking, I don’t get sad that often, but like I said, the last week was pretty stressful for me, and I’m sure that had something to do with it.

We opened up the meeting by talking about our STAND worksheets. I soon discovered that I wasn’t the only one that hadn’t completed it. In fact, only one person in the group had done the momentous task, but like me, could only record each individual cigarette rather than each craving.

One member of the group, who was al63.6% cigarettes smoked while in a ready down to two cigarettes a day the “good” mood. week prior, reported back that they had not 18.2% cigarettes smoked while in an smoked at all since the last meeting, and was “OK” mood. met with an ovation and friendly smiles.

18.2% cigarettes smoked while in a “sad We were given a fact sheet about what we or depressed” mood. can look forward to when we quit. Here are a few highlights: 68.2% cigarettes smoked while at home.

After 20 minutes, blood pressure drops back to normal. After eight hours, the carbon monoxide levels in the blood stream drop by half, and oxygen levels return to normal. After 48 hours, all nicotine will have left the body and senses of taste and smell return to normal. After two weeks, circulation begins to steadily increase, and will continue to improve for 10 weeks. After one year, risk of heart attack drops by half.

After 10 years, risk of lung cancer returns to that of a non-smoker. These are only a few examples.

These really do give me something to look forward to. I’d love to have my circulation and lung capacity back. In high

January 22, 2010

school, before I started smoking, I ran a 4:39 mile – my mile time now is something like seven minutes, and I have no excuse for this failure. This brings me to the theme of Tuesday’s meeting: what it is we don’t like about smoking. It was the polar opposite of last week’s theme, when we sat around the table discussing how wonderful tobacco made us feel.

We were asked to make collages from various magazines about what we look forward to about quitting, or what we don’t like about smoking. Lark supplied two porno mags in addition to copies of Out, Time, and The Economist. As soon as the porn hit the table, we began in a fit of creative excitement.

I was impressed with all the collages from my fellow group members. They were wellthought-out and revealed quite a bit. One member of the group, who has already quit using tobacco, used his collage to symbolize that he wanted to add more years to his life. Some collages featured transitional themes – half of the piece symbolizing life as a smoker, the other half as a non-smoker.

Money was a common theme in most of the collages, as well.

As I was completing mine, we were given a pink and purple packet of papers entitled “My Quit Plan.” I immediately started freaking out, and I wanted a cigarette right then and there.

A heated debate ensued in the group as to deciding our quit date, and the decision was tabled until next week. As far as this week goes, I requested another STAND worksheet and I plan to document cigarettes for the purpose of beginning to cut down. That’s right, three weeks in, and now I’m going to attempt cutting down. Frankly, the idea in itself stresses me out, and you already know what I tend to do when I’m stressed.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about how fortunate I am for having only been a smoker for two years. It’s likely that it will be easier for me to quit than other members of my group. I’ve been thinking about other reasons I want to quit, too. I cough during sex, and hate myself for it. I hate waking up in the mornings with my lungs still full of smoke. I also think of my mother, who’s been in and out of the hospital for the last two years with heart problems, and I see my future in her.

Now, I love cigarettes, but I owe it to not only the people I love, but to myself, to quit them. I’m a war veteran, I’ve climbed a 19,334-foot mountain, I’ve led marches of hundreds of people in the streets, I’ve crafted a loving relationship with a wonderful girl, I make awesome stir-fry, and I can almost always find Waldo. I know I’m better than cigarettes, and now is the time to prove it.

This column took zero cigarettes to write.

Celebrating 37 Years!

SEATTLEOUTPROTEST DEBATES PRIDE PARADE THEME To the Board of Seattle Out and Proud (SOAP), SeattleOUTprotest Coalition recently learned that your proposed theme for this year’s Seattle Pride Parade is “We Are All Americans.”

We strongly urge you to change the theme to one that truly reflects the many nationalities and incredible diversity in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community.

It is still early in the year and there is time to remedy what we assume was an unintentional blunder. Perhaps you meant to convey inclusivity, but unfortunately the effect

is just the opposite.

When our coalition discussed the theme we had two major concerns. First, we feel the current theme is a slap in the face to the many immigrants in our Queer community, which includes members of SeattleOUTprotest Coalition. It is especially insensitive to use such language now when similar-sounding slogans are being used by rightwing hatemongers, such as the Minutemen, who are actively organizing in this state against civil rights for immigrants. Not coincidentally, the Minutemen and other xenophobic organizations with which they are affiliated also gathered signatures to put Referendum 71 on the ballot and campaigned against domestic partnership.

Honduras must investigate murder of Gay activist, US State Department says

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The US State Department has called on the Honduran government to investigate the murder of Gay activist Walter Trochez, US Embassy officials in Tegucigalpa told SGN on January 13.

Speaking with SGN by phone on condition of anonymity, an embassy official said, “The United States believes a thorough investigation into the killing of Walter Trochez and an investigation by the de facto regime of all allegations of human rights violations are important steps to achieving the goal of a return to democratic order in Honduras.”

The US government has refused to recognize the government installed after a military coup overthrew the democratically elected President Manuel Zelaya on June 28, 2009, and US officials will only refer to it as “the de facto regime.”

As reported in SGN (December 18), Gay activist Walter Trochez was shot dead in the streets of the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa on December 13, 2009. At the time of his death, he was documenting attacks on the Honduran LGBT community by forces associated with the June 28 coup.

In an article published on November 16, 2009, Trochez named nine people murdered since the June 28 coup, most of them Transgender people. Other Honduran activists subsequently identified six more victims, again mostly Transgender.

Trochez was also an active member of the National Resistance Front opposing the coup, and it is widely believed in Honduras that he was assassinated by the regime.

International organizations – including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Organization of American States Inter-American Commission on Human Rights – have documented many cases

Police shut down Mr. Gay China Pageant

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Only an hour before the Mr. Gay China Pageant was scheduled to begin on January 15, Chinese police shut it down. The pageant was to select China’s entry in the Worldwide Mr. Gay contest in Oslo, Norway.

Pageant organizers said that eight police officers raided the upscale nightclub in central Beijing where the event was set to take place.

“They said the content, meaning homosexuality, there’s nothing wrong with that, but you did not do things according to procedures,” pageant organizer Ben Zhang said.

Police told him he needed an official permit for events that included performances, in this case a stage show.

“I kind of saw that coming,” Zhang said.

Zhang is a co-founder and managing director of Gayographic, China’s only Gay events management company. Like many other LGBT Chinese, he uses a Western first name because he is not out to his family.

“The authorities said we did not have the proper permit to do a show involving performances,” said Ryan Dutcher, co-founder and communications director of Gayographic.

However, Dutcher said they filled out all the relevant paperwork many days in advance.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a step back, but it’s definitely not a step forward,” Dutcher said.

After the raid, Gayographic decided not to send a contestant to Oslo this year, and announced its regrets in a letter on its website.

“Dear all,” it said. “We are saddened that Mr. Gay China pageant has been canceled.

Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience that has caused you and your friends. After a group discussion, the organizers and candidates all decided not to send a delegate to represent China this year. On behalf of all of our contestants, thank you all for your support.”

“I feel really sad. This was going to be a very good event to show a positive image of Gay people,” said Wei Xiaogang, a pageant judge and host of Queer Comrades, a popular internet talk show on Gay issues.

“I’m a little bit sad,” said Jay, a 29-yearold contestant from Tianjin, near Beijing. “I encouraged myself to do this, but now it’s canceled.”

“I tried to use this competition to come out,” Jay added. “But now I’ll wait another few years until I find my Mr. Right.”

“I’m a bit disappointed, but I can also relax now. I don’t have to be on a diet anymore,” contestant Emilio Liu joked.

Someone had scribbled on the black backdrop behind the stage, “The revolution has not succeeded. Comrades need to work harder.”

“Comrade” is Chinese slang for Gay.

Finally, the fight for Queer equality has spread like wildfire across the globe. Rather than celebrating the many international victories, “We Are All Americans” comes off as arrogant and nationalistic, especially given that Queers in the U.S. remain secondclass citizens. By contrast, same-sex marriage is already a reality for our neighbors to the north and was legalized in Mexico City just this month. Perhaps you could consider “Viva Equality” as a theme choice.

We urge you to pick a slogan that will unite, not divide, our community, so that we can move ahead on planning a truly fabulous and inclusive parade. We look forward to your response.

SeattleOUTprotest Coalition LEGISLATORS DEMANDING PRIVACY WOULD BE LAUGHED OUT OF COURT The Secretary of State’s Office is spot-on

in its assertion that voters act in substitution for state legislators when sponsoring or signing initiative and referendum petitions.

Why should they get a privilege state legislators don’t? If Washington legislators sued in federal court for a First Amendment right to conceal, from the public, their votes on all legislation, there would be public outrage and they’d be laughed out of court.

If the Supreme Court holds a constitutional right to withhold the names and addresses of signers from publication, it will only be the beginning. Within 10 years, the Supreme Court will rule there’s a First Amendment to withhold from publication the names and addresses of all contributors to local, state, and federal campaigns for public office and ballot issues. There is neither absolute rights under the First Amendment nor privacy, and there’s a compelling state interest in letting voters know who’s promoting ballot issues and donating money to political campaigns.

Steven L. Kendall

of human rights violations by the Honduran regime, including murder of opponents.

US embassy officials also revealed to the SGN that the US ambassador in Honduras has had frequent contacts with the Honduran LGBT community, both before and after the Trochez murder.

“Ambassador [Hugo] Llorens met on December 17 with members of the Gay community to express his concern about the killing of Mr. Trochez and the U.S. Embassy has expressed concern about the Trochez murder and other human rights violations to the special prosecutor for Human Rights and to the Honduran police,” an embassy official said.

“Over the past several years, the U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa has maintained a strong and supportive dialogue with the Honduran LGBT community and on a number of occasions has discussed the community’s concerns with the Honduran authorities,” the official added.

Embassy officials clarified that they do not maintain contact with what they call “the de facto regime” because the US Government recognizes Pres. Zelaya as the legitimate head of state of Honduras. The embassy does, however, speak with the special prosecutor for Human Rights, since that office is independent of the Honduran executive branch.

A new Honduran president, Porfirio Lobo Sosa, was elected on November 29, 2009, and is due to take office on January 27. Zelaya and his supporters have refused to recognize the legitimacy of the election, but the US has indicated it will recognize the Lobo government.

After initial skepticism of the Honduran election, the US State Department indicated that it would support the new Lobo government because the November election was held under the terms of the so-called San Jose Accord – an agreement reached by representatives of Pres. Zelaya and the regime that replaced him.

Lobo is a conservative Catholic businessman who lost to Zelaya in the 2005 presidential election. It remains to be seen whether he will pursue investigation of human rights abuses under the June 28 regime.

On January 7, the Honduran Attorney General issued arrest warrants for several high-ranking military officers for their role in the coup that ousted Zelaya. They are charged with “abuse of authority.”

Zelaya dismissed the action as a ruse to allow the coup leaders to escape with only minor charges.

No one has yet been charged in the murder of Trochez, or the 15 other LGBT Hondurans killed since June 28, or with any human rights violations associated with the coup.

hai’s Pride Parade last June, for example – have been blocked by authorities.

“It totally has to do with moral standards and culture,” said contestant Liu. “If most people can’t accept it, then the government won’t let it happen.”

In the wake of the raid, other restrictions on LGBT organizations and their activities were announced.

The weekly Gay night at the Beijing nightclub hosting Mr. Gay China was immediately cancelled until further notice.

Less than 24 hours later, AIDS NGO Aizhixing Institute confirmed that police cancelled their 16th anniversary celebration and meetings. The organization specifically targets patients in the Gay community and aims to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS

issues.

“We don’t know exactly why, and we did not really ask,” said Wan Yanhai, one of China’s most prominent AIDS activists and founder of the Aizhixing Institute. “The government might not believe in what we are doing. We hoped we could operate more openly in society. But it seems that the government will not accept this.”

A state-sponsored and UN-supported radio talk show dealing with HIV issues was also postponed, according to Zhang Wei, a spokesperson for the UN Development Program.

The program, Positive Talks, was schedsee china page 20

MORE SHUTDOWNS Chinese police frequently cite permit issues to shut down gatherings that are deemed to be politically sensitive. Though the pageant did not have an overt political agenda, similar events in the past – Shang-

Visit us online www.sgn.org

January 22, 2010

Seattle Gay News

5

NEWS

Utah state rep carrying baby for Gay friends Utah Lesbian state Rep. Christine Johnson (D-Salt Lake City) is pregnant with the sperm of one-half of a Gay couple who are close friends of hers, and she will give them the child when it is born around June 21.

“To watch them get emotional when we look at the ultrasound and we see their baby, it is so gratifying for me to know I’m helping them become a family,” Johnson told The Salt Lake Tribune. “They are, in concert, just going to be perfect parents.”

“Not only am I a single mother who’s pregnant, but I’m also a Lesbian mother who is pregnant and having a baby for two Gay men. That might be startling to some,” she acknowledged.

Gay weddings to start in D.C. March 5 Gay marriages will start in the District of Columbia, the latest locality to legalize same-sex marriage, on March 5.

That’s when the bill passed by the Council and signed by the mayor will have completed its mandated congressional review period and any couples who obtained a license on the first day possible, March 2, will have made it through the mandatory three-day waiting period between getting a license and getting married.

Same-sex marriage is legal in Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Spain and Sweden; in Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego province; and in the U.S. states of Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts,

by Rex Wockner SGN Contributing Writer New Hampshire and Vermont. It will become legal in Portugal in April.

Bozeman protects Gays and Transgenders The City Commission in Bozeman, Montana, on January 11 added “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to a policy that protects city employees from discrimination. The vote was 3-0.

The policy also will officially extend spousal benefits to employees’ same-sex partners.

San Diego Pride organization implodes San Diego LGBT Pride seemingly selfdestructed in early January, with the firing of the executive director, the resignations of half of the full-time staff, the resignations of all but three board members, and calls for the remaining board members to step down.

What actually happened depends on what story one believes.

It began when the Pride board waived the organization’s bylaws and gave volunteer board chair Philip Princetta a $5,000 cash gift for his service to the organization.

Executive Director Ron deHarte objected to the payment as improper, and says he was fired when he refused to back down.

Under pressure from the community, the remaining members of the board later apologized for the $5,000 “indiscretion” and said Princetta returned the money.

The board members also claimed that deHarte’s firing was unrelated to the $5,000

INTERNATIONAL

NEWS

Major Moscow Gay club shut down Moscow’s oldest Gay dance club has been indirectly shut down by the city, GayRussia. ru reported December 31.

Club Body & Soul had been targeted by Moscow Northern District Prefect Oleg Mitvol, who claimed it brought drug trafficking, prostitution, public sex and moral degradation to the neighborhood.

The club’s lease was canceled by its landlord, the Society of Blind People, which said it acted after being threatened with a loss of city subsidies if it didn’t evict the club.

The society’s vice president, State Duma Deputy Oleg Smolin, is a political rival of Mitvol.

Club management has filed suit over the eviction and vowed to pursue the case as far as the European Court of Human Rights.

Leading Gay activist Nikolai Alekseev alleged that the shutdown was another example of government corruption that he said has burdened nongovernmental organizations and Gay businesses.

Body & Soul had been in operation since 2003 and attracted around 2,000 patrons on weekend nights. Its closure leaves Moscow, which has 10.5 million residents, with one large Gay dance bar.

HRW: Release Malawi lovers Malawi’s government should drop all charges against a Gay couple who are facing up to 14 years in prison, Human Rights Watch said January 12 in a letter to justice and home affairs officials.

On December 26, Steven Monjeza, 26, and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, 20, held a traditional engagement ceremony in the city of Blantyre. After newspapers reported on the event, police arrested the couple at their home December 28, charging them with “unnatural offenses” and “indecent practices between males” under sections 153 and 156 of Malawi’s criminal code.

A judge denied the couple bail, and on January 6 they were taken to Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, where Chimbalanga was examined for “evidence” he has had 6

Seattle Gay News

Rex Wockner

NATIONAL

by Rex Wockner SGN Contributing Writer Gay sex. The following day, both men were subjected to psychiatric testing, also without their consent.

“Prosecuting two adults just because they affirm their love is a terrible injustice,” said Dipika Nath of HRW’s LGBT rights program. “To subject individuals to spurious medical examinations against their will shows grave disregard for their fundamental human rights as well as for the public welfare.”

The couple headed to trial on January 15 but the proceedings were immediately adjourned after Chimbalanga vomited and collapsed in court. His lawyers said he is suffering from severe malaria. London’s Times said that no one came to Chimbalanga’s aid.

He eventually managed to get back up on his own, after which he was made to get a mop and bucket and clean up his vomit, the Times said.

Monjeza and Chimbalanga remain jailed in Chichiri Prison in Blantyre. Their lawyers told HRW the couple is being verbally abused and possibly beaten, and that they are not receiving adequate food and other necessities.

If found guilty of all charges, the men face up to 14 years in prison with hard labor.

“These arrests create a climate of fear in Malawi and intimidate human rights advocates, negating the progress made in the National AIDS Strategy to stem the spread of HIV and AIDS [via] outreach efforts [aimed] at men who have sex with men,” the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission said January 12.

Ron deHarte, executive director of San Diego LGBT Pride, was fired January 5 after objecting to the board of directors’ giving its volunteer chair a $5,000 cash gift.

misstep and instead flowed from a “disparity or tension” between the board and deHarte regarding “transparency of information.”

The board further alleged, in an open letter, that a plan was or is afoot “to remove the current governing body of this organization and ‘take it over,’ plain and simple.”

In an interview, deHarte said “any sane person” would reject the board’s narrative.

He said board members entered his office January 5, told him they were there regarding a letter he wrote about the $5,000, and informed him that his services were no longer needed.

DeHarte had been in the job for four years, during which the Pride organization and events seemingly thrived even as the board of directors dropped to half its former size.

Overall, some 11 people left the board during deHarte’s tenure.

DeHarte hopes he and the two staff members who quit after he was fired can get their jobs back.

On January 10, the public was given a chance to vent over the meltdown in an open meeting at the Gay community center.

and Zimbabwe.

The report, “How Ideology Trumped Science: Why PEPFAR Has Failed to Meet Its Potential,” outlines multiple ways in which conservative ideology allegedly has distorted PEPFAR’s reach and impact.

“These include inadequate attention to the needs of men who have sex with men, failure to address laws that have impeded outreach to underserved LGBT communities, exclusion of programs targeting commercial sex workers and injecting drug users, and inadequate attention to sex education, particularly the correct usage of condoms,” the organizations said.

“These and other shortfalls detailed in the report have undermined the science-based approach needed to win the fight against HIV and AIDS,” they said.

The report, available at globalequality. org, was authored by Scott Evertz, who was director of the Office of National AIDS Policy during U.S. President George W. Bush’s first term.

“Mr. Evertz’ observations of what went wrong with PEPFAR are firsthand,” said CGE senior advisor Michael Guest, the openly Gay former U.S. ambassador to Romania. “His specific recommendations to improve the program reflect both an expert’s knowledge of HIV/AIDS problems facing LGBT communities abroad as well as the political shoals on which a sciencebased approach to HIV/AIDS prevention has foundered.”

The Council for Global Equality is an alliance of 18 prominent U.S. LGBT and human rights organizations working to increase U.S. government efforts to secure fair treatment and equal rights for LGBT people at home and abroad.

a public discussion titled “Gay and Lesbian moments in domestic film” was attended by actresses Ana Franic and Lena Bogdanovic, actor Aleksandar Lazic and directors Mladen Dordevic and Zelimir Zilnik.

The audience award, called “Dorothy’s Shoe,” was given to Canadian Bruce LaBruce’s Gay zombie film Otto; or, Up with Dead People.

The festival is named after the late Transgender actress Vjeran Miladinovic (“Merlinka”) who starred in Zilnik’s film Marble Ass. Supporters of the festival included the French Cultural Center, the British Council, the Goethe Institute and the Center for Nonviolent Action.

Trans prison to open in Italy About 30 inmates will be moved to a prison near Florence, Italy, that will house only Transgender prisoners, local media reported Report criticizes January 12. The facility in the town of PozPEPFAR program The Council for Global Equality and the zale is nearly vacant at present, holding two Center for American Progress issued a re- female inmates. port January 13 criticizing numerous pracSerbian Gay film festival tices of the President’s Emergency Plan for deemed a “success” AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a U.S. government Serbian LGBT activists say the nation’s program that operates in Botswana, Cambodia, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Guyana, first International Queer Film Festival, Haiti, India, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, “Merlinka,” staged in December in BelNamibia, Nigeria, Russia, Rwanda, South grade, was a “success.”

Ten films were shown over four days, and Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Vietnam, Zambia

January 22, 2010

With assistance from Bill Kelley

Cross-dressers arrested in Bahrain Gulf News reported January 4 that nine cross-dressers were arrested at a hotel discothèque in Manama, Bahrain, on New Year’s Eve and charged with public debauchery.

The report said the men were of differing Arab nationalities.

Gulf News also reported that two journalists in Cairo have been jailed for a year for outing three celebrities. Al-Balagh AlGadid Editor-in-Chief Abdou el-Maghrabi and reporter Ehab al-Agami reportedly filed a story claiming that three actors had been caught in a compromising homosexual situation at a hotel.

Iranian Transgenders reclassified Iran’s military will no longer classify Transgender people as “mentally disturbed,” said Hasan Mousavi Chelk, who heads the Socially Vulnerable Groups section of the State Agency for National Well-Being.

Chelk said January 6 that putting such a determination on Transgender people’s military discharge papers creates problems for them.

From now on, Transgender people being separated from the military will be labeled as “diabetics” or “people with a hormonal imbalance,” he said.

In reality, Chelk said, Iran’s 4,000 selfidentified Transgender people have a “sexual identity disorder.” They are citizens, he said, and the government views them “favorably.”

With assistance from Bill Kelley

Celebrating 37 Years!

NORTHWEST

NEWS

compiled by Rick McKinnon SGN Staff Writer

SAFE SCHOOLS COALITION Topics are: January 10, Part I: “Once More LGBT SCHOLARSHIP RESOURCES on the Coming Civil War… and Repolarizawww.safeschoolscoalition.org/RG-schol- tion for Revolution;” January 17, Part II: arships.html “(Some Observations on) The International Movement;” January 24, Part III: “The New FREE RÉSUMÉ AND Synthesis and the Woman Question: The JOB SEARCH WORKSHOPS Emancipation of Women and the CommuSouth Seattle Community College’s nist Revolution – Further Leaps and Radical WorkSource Center is partnering with the Ruptures.”

Seattle Public Library to offer résumé and job search workshops at the downtown THE ELITE HOSTS Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., Room FREE ASL LESSONS 4 on Level 4. The one-hour workshops are FOR BEGINNERS conveniently scheduled on weekdays and Have you ever wanted to learn basic Saturdays. No registration is required, but American Sign Language? If so, you can seating may be limited. For more informa- get some beginning ASL instruction at the tion, contact the Seattle Public Library at Elite, 1520 E. Olive Way. The FREE lessons 206-386-4636, www.spl.org, or South Se- will be held every Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the attle Community College WorkSource at loft.

206-764-5304, www.southseattle.edu.

“HELP FOR HAITI” KNIGHTS OF MALTA CLASSICAL MUSIC HOSTS BENEFIT CONCERT BEGGARS FEAST 2010 On Tuesday, January 26, at 7 p.m., Happy On Saturday, January 23 – 5 p.m. doors, 6 Hour Concerts and Gethsemane Lutheran p.m. feast – the Knights of Malta, Jet Chap- Church invite you to a special benefit conter presents the K of M Beggars Feast 2010 cert at Gethsemane Lutheran Church, 911 – “The Renaissance Knight” – at Russian Stewart St., to raise money to aid the vicHall, 704 19th Ave. E., featuring a tradi- tims of the earthquake in Haiti. Many of tional five-course meal plus refreshments. Seattle’s finest performing ensembles have The menu will feature Vatican Meatball been invited to participate. Gifts will be forSoup, Queen Maud’s Salad with Fennel and warded to the Evangelical Lutheran Church Orange Shrimp, Sir Lance-A-Lot Chicken in America (ELCA) International Disaster Breast, with veggies and bread, Drawn- Response to provide immediate and effecand-Quartered Pork Ribs, with potatoes and tive support to communities in need. ELCA bread, and Jester’s Delight Cheesecake, plus International Disaster Response is already beverages. The cost of the feast is $35. For working through longstanding partnerships more information and to RSVP, visit http:// on the ground to provide emergency food, jetchapterkofm.com. water, shelter and medical supplies. 100% of your gift will be used to bring life-susGAYSHA STARR taining support to this crisis. Admission is PRESENTS “BEDAZZLED” free, suggested donation of $25 per person AT NEIGHBOURS – any gift welcome. Checks can be made TO BENEFIT GLSEN WA out to Gethsemane Lutheran (Memo: “Haiti On Saturday, January 23 – doors at 6 p.m., Earthquake Relief”) or ELCA Disaster Recabaret at 7 p.m. – Gaysha Starr, one of Se- sponse (Memo: “Haiti Earthquake Relief”). attle’s premier drag entertainers, presents Gethsame is an open and affirming church.

“Bedazzled,” at Neighbours, 1509 Broadway – entrance in the alley off E. Pike St. SEATTLE GAY & LESBIAN Over 15 of Seattle’s finest drag entertainBOOK CLUB AT DUNSHEE HOUSE ers will be appearing on one stage for one The Seattle Gay & Lesbian Book Club night to dazzle and delight you with their meets every Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Dunextraordinary talent at this benefit for GLS- shee House, 303 17th Ave. E. at E. Thomas EN Washington State, the Gay, Lesbian and St. The club is pleased to announce the folStraight Education Network. A minimum $5 lowing titles to be discussed in their ongoing donation will be requested at the door at this reading and discussion series: January – The 21-and-over event. Enjoy a special auction Immoralist by Andre Gide; February – A and raffle and a special BIRTHDAY CEL- Single Man by Christopher Isherwood. All EBRATION for Gaysha Starr this evening! GLBTQ folks in the community are welwww.gayshstarr.com; www.glsenwa.org. come to participate in this free book club.

The reading list is chosen and the discussion WA DOMESTIC facilitated by Nick DiMartino, published PARTNERSHIP LAW: novelist and playwright, currently a book WHAT COUPLES SHOULD KNOW reviewer for ShelfAwareness.com, and a 30On Sunday, January 24, from 1:30-3:30 year employee of University Book Store. p.m., and on Saturday, January 30, from For more information, email nickdimartin@ 5:30-7:30 p.m., at the Bainbridge Public earthlink.net or contact Dunshee House at Library, 1270 Madison Ave. N., Bainbridge 206-322-2437.

Island, Bainbridge attorney Elizabeth M. Dronkert, will discuss, from a legal perspecCOUNTRY DOCTOR tive, the personal and property implications COMMUNITY HEALTH CLINIC of being registered as Washington Domestic OFFERS HEALTH CARE NIGHT Partners, the immediate legal effect of regisFOR LGBTQ COMMUNITY tering or being registered given Referendum Spectrum Natural Health at Country Doc71’s passage, and what crucial self-help ac- tor Community Health Clinic, 500 19th Ave. tions couples might take either proactively E., offers primary and naturopathic care for or, if registered, retroactively to compensate the LGBTQ community every Thursday, for shortcomings in the state’s boilerplate from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Providers have registration forms. Time will also be al- been serving the LGBTQ community for lowed for question. This event is FREE and many years. Cost is sliding scale – no one open to the public. For more information, turned away for lack of funds. For informacall 206-780-4455. tion and to make an appointment, call 206299-1600.

SUNDAY DISCUSSION SERIES AT REVOLUTION BOOKS EAST PRECINCT Revolution Books, 89 S. Washington St., CRIME PREVENTION COALITION will host a three-part Sunday discussion seOn Thursday, January 28, the East Preries, January 10, 17 and 24, from 3-5 p.m., cinct Crime Prevention Coalition will meet on a new talk by Bob Avakian, Chairman of from 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Seattle Vocathe Revolutionary Communist Party, USA, tional Institute, 2120 S. Jackson St., Room titled: “Unresolved Contradictions, Driving 401, to address community concerns, preForces for Revolution,” available to read at cinct updates, and meet with Seattle’s new www.revcom.us. city attorney, Pete Holmes. Volunteers are also needed for the Safe School Zones

Visit us online www.sgn.org

neighborhood walking project. For more information, email sita@sngi.org or call 206322-9330.

SISTERS ORGANIZE FOR SURVIVAL WORKING TO SAVE WA STATE BASIC HEALTH PLAN Sisters Organize for Survival is working on a campaign to save the WA State Basic Health Plan. Upcoming meetings are scheduled for Thursdays, January 28, February 4, and February 25 at 7 p.m., at New Freeway Hall, 5018 Rainier Ave. S. Everyone welcome. Wheelchair accessible. For more information, call 206-722-6057 or email rwseattle@mindspring.com.

“BLAZING HABITS” – A SISTER HOEDOWN TO BENEFIT NW NETWORK On Friday, January 29, from 8-11 p.m., join the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the Abbey of St. Joan, and the Rain Country Dance Association, for a “goll-durn kneeslappin’, two-steppin’ hoedown” at The Cuff Complex, 1533 13th Ave., at E. Pine St., to “rustle up a fistful of dollars for the Northwest Network of Bi, Trans, Lesbian and Gay Survivors of Abuse. “It’s pesos for prancin’, sawbucks for swingin’ and dollars for dancin’ with your favorite fillies.” Plus a fundraising raffle. www.theabbey.org; www.nwnetwork.org.

MISS INDIGO BLUE’S ACADEMY OF BURLESQUE – INAUGURAL ALUMNI SPECTACULAR On Friday, January 29, at 9 p.m., at West Hall, OddFellows Building, 915 E. Pine St., 2nd Fl., Miss Indigo Blue’s Academy of Burlesque presents a new monthly event: The Alumni Spectacular! The academy has produced a bevy of talent over the years, and this event will showcase a sampling of graduates. From nubile newbies to seasoned starlets, there’s a little something for everyone!

The inaugural show will star The Shanghai Pearl, Polly Wood, and Waxie Moon, and feature talented grads: Verilee Faux, VaGina Velvet, Honey Moon, Ultra Vixen, Bella Bijoux, Lolita “Tatas” Valentino and Hottie McNaughty. The inaugural event will be hosted by the academy’s headmistress, Miss Indigo Blue. Tickets are $10 if purchased from a performer, $12 advance at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/95862, $15 at the door.

3RD ANNUAL INCLEMENT SPRINT 5K RUN/WALK AT GREEN LAKE TO BENEFIT SAFE SCHOOLS COALITION & DELTA LAMBDA PHI On Sunday, January 31, Safe Schools Coalition and Delta Lambda Phi (the University of Washington’s Psi Chapter) hosts a 5K run/walk at Greenlake, 7:45-8:45 a.m. registration; 9 a.m. run/walk, starting at the southwest corner of Green Lake behind the crew stadium, to benefit their organizations. $10 registration fee. www.inclementsprint. com; www.safeschoolscoalition.org; www. dlp.org. Delta Lambda Phi is the national fraternity of Gay, Bisexual, and progressive men.

PRIDE FOUNDATION & GSBA OFFERING $300,000 IN SCHOLARSHIPS FOR 2010-11 Pride Foundation and the Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA) are accepting applications for 2010-11 scholarships to eligible LGBT students and straight allies. Currently, $300,000 in scholarship money is available during this cycle. Pride Foundation along with the GSBA offers 50 different scholarships, all through a single streamlined application. For more information on previous scholars, the scholarship process, or how to start a scholarship fund, visit www.pridefoundation.org/scholarships/ or www.PrideFoundationScholar.org or thegsbascholarship.org. Applications must be submitted by January 31, 2010 at 5 p.m. PST.

January 22, 2010

GAY CITY SEEKS VOLUNTEERS FOR RESOURCE & REFERRAL LINE AND LGBT LIBRARY Gay City Health Project’s newest program needs your help! They have taken charge of the 323-LGBT community resource line and need your help to make it successful! Some duties include answering phones, connecting people to resources, updating material for their records, checking out books and reshelving. If you are interested, please contact Susan at 206-388-1707 or email her at susan@gaycity.org.

2010 SPRING SEATTLE POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMUNITY POLICE ACADEMY The Community Police Academy is a 10-week program designed to educate the public in the operations of the Seattle Police Department, while also giving the Department a chance to obtain valuable feedback from the community. The purpose of the Community Police Academy is to increase understanding between the Seattle Police Department and the community members of Seattle through education and interaction.

Community participants will become familiar with various facets of the Seattle Police Department and gain insight into law enforcement’s role in the criminal justice system and the daily work of police employees. With increased understanding, Seattle’s community and police can work together and achieve realistic solutions to neighborhood problems relating to crime, fear of crime, and neighborhood decay. It is hoped that increasing community awareness will respond to some of the myths and images of law enforcement and provide a realistic view of police procedures.

If you are interested in applying, please visit www.cityofseattle.net/police/programs/policeacademy/default.htm and scroll down for the application and mailing instructions. Be sure to include a copy of your Driver’s License. Space is limited and applications are processed on a first come, first served basis. The application deadline is Friday, February 5. If you have any questions, please contact Tony Ramsey at 206-684-5758 or Margaret Olsen at 206684-8672 or email Margaret.olsen@seattle. gov.

IMPERIAL COURT OF SEATTLE PRESENTS CORONATION 2010 – “THE PRESIDENT’S BALL: A STAR-SPANGLED AFFAIR” The Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle presents Coronation 2010 – “The President’s Ball: A Star-Spangled Affair” on Saturday, February 13. The gala affair, which includes a complete dinner, will be held at the Seattle Renaissance Hotel, 515 Madison St., starting at 5 p.m. Tickets for the Coronation Ball are $55.

As a prelude to Coronation, on Thursday, February 11, the Court presents the Denver/ Salt Lake Show, 7 p.m., at Neighbours, 1509 Broadway, entrance in alley off E. Pike St., with fine drag entertainment performed by visiting dignitaries from the Imperial Courts of Denver and Salt Lake City, in town for Coronation.

On Friday, February 12, the Court presents the Out of Town Show, 7 p.m., at Neighbours, with fine drag entertainment performed by visiting dignitaries from Imperial Courts in the Northwest region outside of Seattle.

A Victory Brunch, celebrating Seattle’s new reigning monarchs, will be held on Sunday, February 14, at 10:30 a.m., at the Seattle Renaissance Hotel.

For more information, visit www.imperialcourtofseattle.com.

CALLING ALL QUEER AND TRANS YOUTH: QUEER YOUTH SPACE IN SEATTLE – HELP MAKE IT HAPPEN! On Saturday, February 20, from 3-6 p.m, come imagine and shape Queer Youth Space in Seattle at the “Queer Youth Mutiny” meeting at Seattle Central Community College, 1701 Broadway, Room BE1110. Bring your voice, your politics, and your perspective and help create a space or spaces for Queer youth, led by youth. www. queeryouthspace.com.

Seattle Gay News

7

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer On January 18, the Triangle Club at Seattle Central Community College put on a “Speed Social,” a fundraising event for Lambert House. Hosted by local drag chanteuse Phoebe Fondue, the event, modeled on speed dating, raised $210 for Lambert House.

Fondue stood near the door and beckoned people in off the streets on top of her emcee duties. Altogether, the social brought in 2530 people, who met and discussed various topics prepared for them on note cards. Each participant was also asked to describe themselves in one minute.

The Triangle Club at Seattle Central has gone through some changes over the last few quarters. They’ve moved from a threechair structure to just a single chair, and have made it a club priority to put on fundraising events not just for themselves, but for their school and the LGBT community at large.

“To be honest, [the event] was really difficult. … I had to learn a lot of things along the way,” said Jon Morada, chair of the Triangle Club at Seattle Central and primary organizer of the Speed Social. This was the first community event of this caliber that Morada has organized since he was elected.

“You’ve gotta do a lot of begging. A lot

of it depends on people you know. You’ve gotta really network, and that’s what I did,” Morada told SGN. Now, after the club’s successful social, the Triangle Club and Morada have much more planned. More socials are in the works, including the upcoming “Punk Rock Prom,” which will go to benefit Seattle Central Community College. Morada is already thinking about what he’s going to do to get more support from local businesses for future events.

Morada, a Lambert House youth himself, went to the Lambert House regularly with Quyen Luu, the owner of Café Metropolitain. “He would always show me the ropes,” said Morada, reminiscing about Luu. “I just reconnected with him this summer. We talked over the summer about doing something like this.”

According to their website, the mission of the Triangle Club is “to establish a strong GLBTQ presence at SCCC; to provide outreach to not only our membership but the general student body in an effort to educate and support folks on the wide and varying nature of gender and sexuality issues.”

The Triangle Club meets weekly on Tuesdays at 3 p.m. in the SCCC Student Leadership conference room. The club is open to all students of Seattle Central Community College.

Chefs’ Dinner fundraiser for Bailey/Boushay raises a record $304,000

by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer

course Chefs’ Dinner to benefit BaileyBoushay House, a skilled nursing facility operated by Virginia Mason Medical Center On January 17, over 300 community that cares for people living with HIV/AIDS and corporate leaders gathered for a multi- and other complex, life-threatening diseas-

Hot

james whitely

SCCC Triangle Club presents “Speed Social”

Local drag chanteuse Phoebe Fondue hosts the Speed Social

es. Preceding the dinner, an additional 150 guests participated in an hors d’oeuvres reception and silent auction.

Bailey-Boushay house officials report that the event raised record-breaking funds of $304,000, making it the most successful Chefs’ Dinner to date.

According to a January 20 Bailey-Boushay House press release, the increase of revenue was due to the tremendous generosity of host Bell Harbor International Conference Center and Columbia Hospitality; the 13 chefs who donated their time, talent and food to the cause; and to the hundreds of participants and volunteers who opened their hearts and pocketbooks for BaileyBoushay House.

“Year after year, supporters of the Chefs’ Dinner amaze us with their generosity and willingness to give larger gifts to BaileyBoushay House. This year far exceeded even our best hopes,” said Brian Knowles, executive director of Bailey-Boushay House. “We owe many thanks to these culinary masters for putting on such a wonderful celebration.

Their support means hundreds of clients will get the nutrition and support they need.”

Media personality Dick Foley was emcee of the event, and Safeco Insurance Foundation was the event presenter.

This year’s honoree was Betsy Lieberman, executive director of Building Changes. Lieberman was recognized for her vision and leadership in helping create BaileyBoushay House. In 1988, Lieberman start-

ed AIDS Housing of Washington to build Bailey-Boushay House. Since then, she has spearheaded the planning and development of more than 160 units of supportive housing in the Seattle and King County area. Nationally, Lieberman seeks to raise public awareness about the value of supportive housing and the prevention of homelessness.

The appetizers and seven-course dinner were prepared by 13 celebrated area chefs, including chefs Daniel Molina of BaileyBoushay House, Jay Bartelson of Bell Harbor, Mike Davis of Barrio, Jason Stratton of Cascina Spinasse, Dalis Chea of Fresh Bistro by Herban Feast, Joseba Jimenez de Jimenez of The Harvest Vine and Txori, Jason Bray of Ivar’s, James Drohman of Le Pichet and Café Presse, Rich Coffey of Madison Park Café, Peter Birk of Ray’s Boathouse, Adam Federoff of Rosebud Restaurant and Bar, and Craig Hetherington and Lucy Damkoehler of TASTE. Bailey-Boushay House, opened in 1992, is America’s first skilled nursing facility planned, funded, built and staffed to meet the needs of people living with HIV/AIDS. The nationally recognized facility provides care for people living with HIV/AIDS and other complex, life-threatening diseases, promoting their health, well-being and functional independence. Bailey-Boushay House is operated by Virginia Mason Medical Center. For more information, visit the organization online at www.Bailey-Boushay.org.

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Seattle Gay News

January 22, 2010

Celebrating 37 Years!

by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer

Milk & Cookies January 14 Allen Auditorium Students Organizing for LGBTQ Equality (SOLE) held a screening of Milk – Gus Van Sant’s award-winning 2009 film about the life, political career, and assassination of Gay rights hero Harvey Milk – at the University of Washington’s Allen Auditorium on January 14. The event, titled “Milk & Cookies,” featured the movie screening, homemade cookies, and a safe space for LGBTQ youth to meet and discuss topics of interest.

SOLE consists of a group of students and supporters from the University of Washington that advocates for solving LGBTQ issues.

“We wanted to get people excited about activism and to have a night where we could all get together,” SOLE member and Milk & Cookies organizer Mario Lemafa told SGN. “The core of this event was to inspire, reinvigorate, and remind ourselves to keep pushing and doing activist work. Plus, it’s always wonderful to eat homemade cookies.”

Lemafa said SOLE filled the room to capacity with nearly 70 people in attendance.

“It was a very cozy event,” he said. “Emily Juhre, Ethan Boyles, Caitlin Donelly, Daniel Newcomb, and Adam Quillian helped to plan this hugely successful SOLE event.

Also, Sarah Henderson and Jeniffer Gibbons baked around 400 cookies for us!”

The first time Lemafa saw Milk, he left the theater inspired to become actively involved in the Gay community. Looking at the audi-

Adam Quillian

Milk & Cookies screening event at UW a sweet success ence at the Milk & Cookies event, he realized that many in attendance were watching the movie for the first time. “At the end of the event, there was not a dry eye in the auditorium,” Lemafa told SGN. “Events like Milk & Cookies strengthen our communities, our love for each other, our work, and most of all, our resolve.”

“We are Harvey Milk’s legacy. We are the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jane Addams, and the thousands of people who marched for their rights,” he said. “We need to remember that.”

SOLE is a new organization. According to Lemafa, there had never been a UW LGBTQ activist organization before SOLE came along in the fall of 2009. They have consistently worked on projects and events ever since.

Along with the Milk & Cookies event, SOLE staged a kiss-in at UW in support of Referendum 71; held a candlelight vigil for the murders of Gay youths Jorge Mercado and Jason Mattison, Jr.; tabled on UW campus to get students to approve Referendum 71; endorsed, volunteered and marched in the National Equality March in Seattle as a contingent of Seattle OUTprotest; and is currently working to organize a forum in Seattle about the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. “We hope to continue the vision of equality for all by doing activist work on campus that seeks to foster the talent and potential of new activists, while also bringing together seasoned veterans to make great changes for the community at large,” Lemafa told SGN. The group isn’t just for students, either. “We have a Facebook page, and all are welcome to join.”

Record turnout for 7th Annual GLSEN Conference

by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer

“We felt that the GSA Leadership Summit was a great way to kickoff the exciteThe Gay, Lesbian and Straight Educa- ment of the new year,” he said. “Many tion Network (GLSEN) of Washingparticipants gained new ideas to imton State held their 7th Annual plement in their schools. SevGay-Straight Student Allieral others felt connected to ance (GSA) Leadership other people in the comSummit on January munity because many 18, at the Kirkland students didn’t realTeen Union Buildize that other GSA ing in Kirkland, clubs were so close Washington. by.”

According to During the dayGLSEN Washinglong workshop, ton State Interim Bento says that Director Joseph R. LGBT community Bento, this year’s leaders are presentleadership summit ers. “Getting resources saw a record turnout, and information is such with approximately 150 an important part of bepeople from all over the state, ing a GSA leader,” said Bento. making it the most successful GSA “By participating in this event, it was Leadership Summit to date. Bento told SGN a good way to get lots of information at GLSEN hosted students, teachers, advisors, once.” presenters, and volunteers from Aberdeen, Bellingham, Port Townsend, Yakima, Vancouver, and Tri-Cities as well as many others from Pierce, King, Snohomish and Kitsap Counties.

“The GSA Leadership Summit is designed to give students an opportunity to network with other youth throughout the state and gain knowledge to bring back to their school and community,” Bento told SGN. “The summit provides breakout sessions on a variety of subjects designed for and by youth.”

In addition, Bento says educators have workshops and presentations on topics related to addressing the needs of LGBT students and the GSA groups on campus.

“We love our volunteers! We had lots of ‘people power’ behind this project.”

Visit us online www.sgn.org

The educational event was helpful to GSA advisors, as well, said GLSEN Washington State officials. Advisors were given important information about ways to connect with other people who do the same job as they do, and were able to gain knowledge so they can help their club leaders. Bento said, “Advisors need to network, too.”

Originally, this event was slated to be canceled due to program cuts. According to Bento, the economic hardship in our community has really devastated the GLSEN budget and sunk donations. When GLSEN announced the leadership summit cancellation, several students and advisors expressed interest in continuing the workshops. Due to popular demand, Bento says they were quick to bring back the program.

“This year’s summit was awesome,” Bento told SGN. “We got great feedback based on our end-of-summit evaluations.”

Bento said that events like these allow the community to know that GLSEN is continuing to do great work within the community. “LGBTQ students and their allies, teachers, and GSA advisors need resources to help foster a safe environment for all students, regardless of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression.”

According to Bento, the GSA Leadership Summit would be impossible without the volunteers that help make the event a

January 22, 2010

success. “We love our volunteers! We had lots of ‘people power’ behind this project,” he said. “We asked students and advisors what they wanted to see at this summit. The result was the workshops and presentations that we featured.”

“We believe, as an organization, we do not have all the answers,” said Bento. “We have our area of expertise, but other people bring great ideas to the table. Our volunteers, the students we work with, community groups, teachers, GSA advisors, and board members all gave input on what became our highly successful 7th Annual GSA Leadership Summit.”

GLSEN is an education organization dedicated to creating safe schools for all LGBT students. GLSEN envisions a future in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity and expression.

GLSEN Washington State can be reached at www.glsenwa.org.

Bedazzled, a drag show cabaret benefit for GLSEN Washington State, hosted

by Gaysha Starr, will be held on Saturday, January 23, at Neighbours Nightclub, 1509 Broadway, entrance in alley off E. Pike St., door at 6 p.m., cabaret at 7 p.m. A $5 minimum donation will be requested for this 21+ event.

Seattle Gay News

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Celebrating 37 Years!

Saturday January 23rd

bedazzled presents

a benefit with some of Seattle's Best Drag Entertainers on one stage for one night.

Whitley Lexington Coco Vaughn Divonne Lexington Fendi Glamazonia Jada Lumpia Jenuwine Beaute Kristara

LaTrina Bidet Lily Armani Nina Maxwell Paloma Rosita Shaka Kwan Teriyaki Temple and more!

Proceeds to benefit GLSEN Seattle (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network)

NEIGHBOURS NIGHTCLUB 1509 Broadway · Entrance in Alley DOOR AT 6:00 & CABARET AT 7:00 $5.00 Minimum Donation

21 and over Special auction and raffle prizes and a birthday celebration for Gaysha Starr!

Photography—Eric Gregory Design—John Fulton Design

WWW.GAYSHASTARR.COM Visit us online www.sgn.org

January 22, 2010

Seattle Gay News 11

12 Seattle Gay News

January 22, 2010

Celebrating 37 Years!

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Seattle Gay News 13

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14 Seattle Gay News

The GLBT Bar Association Foundation of Washington and the King County Bar Association Neighborhood Legal Clinics are proud to sponsor the

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Seattle Gay News 15

Cuba performing state-sponsored sex-change surgery

by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer Cuba has begun performing state-sponsored sex-change operations after the government lifted the longtime ban on the procedure in 2007, President Raul Castro’s daughter said on January 19.

A sexologist and Gay rights advocate, Mariela Castro runs the Center of Sex Education, which prepares Transgendered people for sex-change operations.

On January 19, Mariela told reporters during the Fifth Cuban Conference on Sexual Education, Orientation and Therapy that surgeries began in 2008, but would not specify exactly how many have been performed or how much they cost the government.

She said Cuban doctors, working with Belgian counterparts, have gotten to “less than half” of the 30 islanders approved to undergo the procedure.

Massachusetts continued from cover

In 1979, Cuba identified 122 people who wanted to have sex changes. Nine years later, Cuban doctors performed the first successful operation, but subsequent sexchange procedures were prohibited.

Cuba is a developing country with economic problems. According to Mariela, the operations are covered by Cuba’s universal health care system, even though some have protested that decision because of general opposition to the procedure or due to its high cost.

“We schedule a certain number per year based on economic circumstances,” she said, adding that sex changes are not offered to foreigners who travel to Cuba for medical care due to budget constraints.

Mariela says she plans to prepare a letter to the leadership of Cuba’s Communist Party which urges authorities to draft a measure directing that homosexuals not be barred from joining the party.

The decree would be similar to one approved in the 1990s which expressly allowed Cubans of all religious affiliations to join the party.

Although Gays are not technically banned from the Communist Party, Mariela believes such a measure which embraces them would help to cement their role in politics.

In addition, Mariela said her center would continue to push the single-party government to rewrite civil codes and recognize same-sex unions, but not Gay marriage.

However, she said the group has stopped pushing for same-sex couples to be allowed to adopt children, saying that Cuba’s legal code provides no means for such a move.

healthcare legislation into question.

Some conservative Democrats, who were unenthusiastic about healthcare reform to begin with, are reportedly taking Brown’s victory as permission to rethink the whole process.

According to veteran Sen. Chris Dodd (DConn.), “healthcare is hanging by a thread.”

Brown campaigned as “the vote that will kill the healthcare bill.” He made a practice of signing autographs “Scott Brown 41,” meaning that he would be the 41st – and decisive – Senate vote to sustain a Republican filibuster that would doom the healthcare bill.

A Senate bill and a much different House bill are now in conference committee, where the differences are supposed to be resolved.

The compromise bill that will be reported out of conference needs to go back to both houses of Congress for a final vote.

Senate rules require that 60 members agree to close debate and bring the measure to the floor for an up or down vote. Brown’s victory now makes this highly unlikely.

HEALTHCARE OPTIONS Democratic Congressional leaders may have only two options to rescue the healthcare bill, neither of them politically attractive.

They could rush the healthcare bill to a vote before Brown is seated, while they still have the necessary 60 votes to end debate.

This option seems to have been foreclosed on election night, when Sen. Jim Webb (DVa.) stated flatly, “I believe it would only be fair and prudent that we suspend further votes on health care legislation until Senator-elect Brown is seated.”

The day after the election, President Obama came to the same conclusion.

“The Senate certainly shouldn’t try to

jam anything through until Scott Brown is seated,” he said. “The people of Massachusetts spoke. He has got to be part of that process.”

The other option for Democrats would be for the House to pass the Senate bill wordfor-word. In that case, the legislation would return to the Senate for a final vote with only 51 votes necessary to pass it.

House Democrats have generally been critical of the Senate bill, however, and are skeptical that they will be able to return to the issue in the future, if they pass the Senate bill now.

Most House Democrats oppose a tax on so-called “Cadillac insurance plans” in the Senate bill that unions see as a direct hit on their members.

Conservative Democrats, on the other hand, say the Senate bill does not go far enough in restricting taxpayer dollars for abortion.

“If you ran that Senate bill right now on the House floor, I’ll bet you would not get 100 votes for it,” said Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), the author of a controversial amendment to the House bill that restricted insurance coverage of abortions.

Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.), one of the champions of single payer healthcare, called for caution.

“If there isn’t any recognition that we got the message and we are trying to recalibrate and do things differently, we are not only going to risk looking ignorant but arrogant,” he warned.

BAD NEWS FOR ENDA? The healthcare bill is not the only legislation put at risk by Brown’s election.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) has faced an uphill battle in the Senate, and Brown’s victory does not help.

ENDA would expand federal civil rights laws – which already prohibit workplace discrimination based on race, gender, and religion – to include similar protections for

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Even before Brown’s election, ENDA’s House of Representatives prime sponsor Barney Frank (D-Mass.) declared that “getting the 60 votes for it [in the Senate] is going to be tough.…” Now it will be tougher.

According to the wiki whip count site ActOnPrinciple.org, ENDA has 43 co-sponsors in the Senate, nine additional Senators committed to vote Yes, and 10 Senators “leaning Yes.” A “whip count” is a running tally of legislators who have committed to vote for or against a particular piece of legislation.

If the count is accurate, ENDA gets a maximum of 62 votes.

Both of Washington’s senators, Democrats Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray, are co-sponsors of ENDA. But one of ENDA’s Senate co-sponsors is Paul Kirk, who Brown will replace. That brings the Yes total down to 61, only one more than the 60 minimum needed to get an up or down vote on ENDA. Under the circumstances, ENDA supporters must pick up every one of the “leaning Yes” votes to be confident of victory.

LGBT insiders are already talking about a “Coakley effect” – a Democratic pivot away from social issues and towards economic recovery.

An emergency meeting of LGBT major donors and lobbyists reportedly took place last week. Many in the room lamented that the political climate is not good for pushing a pro-equality agenda right now.

“If [Coakley] loses, all bets are off,” said one attendee of the meeting. “The Democrats will stay away from social issues, and focus like a laser beam on jobs.”

BROWN IS NOT OUR FRIEND Brown himself is not a friend of the LGBT community.

While LGBT issues were not central to the campaign, Brown got significant assistance from the anti-Gay group National Organization for Marriage (NOM).

NOM was formed in 2007 to promote Prop 8, the constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage passed in California in 2008. Since its formation, NOM has run anti-Gay media pieces nationwide. It was the largest single contributor to the Maine initiative to strike down the state’s same-sex marriage law.

NOM reportedly financed a series of robocalls for Brown’s campaign.

According to reports, the robo-calls asked voters if they supported same-sex marriage.

Only those who said they opposed same-sex marriage heard the second part of the call, strongly urging them to defeat the “radical” Coakley, a marriage equality supporter.

“It’s important for people to know about the underground right-wing campaign Scott Brown is running,” said Barney Frank before the election. “His plan is to benefit from the support of the most active, extreme conservatives while he falsely portrays himself as a moderate.”

new hampshire continued from cover

portunity to feel the incredibly powerful stamp of access to that word. Marriage is a powerful word,” said State Rep. Ed Butler, a Democrat whose partner sat next to him at the witness table.

In recent weeks, opponents began a grassroots effort to challenge the law indirectly by suggesting New Hampshire’s 400 house members and 24 senators aren’t representative of the people’s wishes. They point out that in the 31 states where voters have had a say, Gay marriage was rejected.

This spring, the grassroots effort will increase as they plan to raise the issue at town hall meetings. They hope to pressure lawmakers to present them with an amendment that defines marriage. In addition, they hope their effort will help elect anti-Gay marriage candidates in November.

State Rep. David Bates, a Republican, is organizing the petition effort to put Gay marriage before town voters. Bates says that as of January 19, petitions have been certified in 108 towns. He expects petitions to be completed by the February 2 deadline in about 150 of New Hampshire’s more than 200 towns that hold meetings each spring.

Petitions must be signed by 25 registered voters in the town to be put on the agenda.

To answer those who argue the public should have a say by voting, Jason Wu, staff attorney for Gay and Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, and other Gay marriage advocates argue the size of New Hampshire’s Legislature makes it one of the most representative democratic bodies in the world.

“New Hampshire realizes it is just wrong to vote on people’s rights,” Wu said.

In fact, Wu says a ballot amendment

would make the state a battlefield similar to other states where groups outside of New Hampshire spend millions of dollars.

New Hampshire’s law legalizing Gay marriage took effect January 1. New Hampshire joined Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont in allowing same-sex marriage.

MLK March continued from cover

High School gym, opened with a prayer.

Larry Gossett, King County councilmember and chair of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Committee, gave a presentation on Martin Luther King, Jr.’s history as well as the history of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Committee. Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn and King County Executive Dow Constantine also made appearances.

Before the march, a youth and adult Capoeira display was put on by local Capoeira group Mestre Curisco Capoeira Malês.

The march left from Garfield High School a little after noon and took Yesler Way towards downtown Seattle, ending at the Federal Building on 2nd Ave. Participants in the march sang “We Shall Overcome” and a happy birthday song to Dr. King.

“This is special. Really special,” Luther Brown, Jr., who has participated in the march for 12 years, told a Seattle Times reporter.

At the end of the march, people gathered on 2nd Avenue to the sounds of Bob Marley and Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” booming over speakers. A spoken-word poet performed, and closing words were shared. The Seattle Police Department estimated that 3,500 people took part in the march.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day marks the birth of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which always falls near Dr. King’s birthday, January 15.

prop 8

continued from cover Gay relationships were inferior to those between heterosexuals. “What hit me was that I had been prejudiced,” he said. “I was absolutely shocked at the depth of the hurt, the depth of the feeling.”

Brian Raum, a lawyer for Proposition 8 sponsors, cross-examined the mayor about his one-time opposition to Gay marriage.

“You don’t believe that you communicated hatred to the Gay and Lesbian community, did you?” he asked.

Sanders said he had not, but “it doesn’t mean that I don’t believe it was grounded in prejudice.”

“You would agree that it’s wrong for people to suffer violence as a result of their political views, would you not?” Raum asked.

“I would,” Sanders agreed, adding he could not verify that supporters of the ban in San Diego experienced widespread harassment.

Raum also pressed Sanders to acknowledge that people could oppose same-sex marriage because they think it’s in the best interests of children to be raised by their biological parents.

Sanders replied that such an ideal vision of heterosexual marriage is misinformed.

“I was a cop for 26 years, and I know there were a lot of children who did not benefit from child abuse, and they were being raised by their biological parents,” he said.

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Seattle Gay News 17

SGN exclusive interview

New City Council member Mike O’Brien

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

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Seattle City Council member Mike O’Brien is a long-time Sierra Club activist, but he is brand-new to city government.

“I’m 21 days old,” he laughs.

He shared his impressions of the job and his political agenda with SGN this week.

“First, I’m thoroughly enjoying it. I didn’t really expect to,” he told SGN. “I gave it a lot of thought before and during the campaign. Is it something I’d be good at, is it something I felt was important to do. I never really thought it would be enjoyable.”

“And second,” he continued, “I’m encouraged by what I’ve learned. I’m encouraged in building relationships with my colleagues … we can have disagreements on policy, but we share the same values.”

You don’t have to look far for policy disagreements. Like new mayor Mike McGinn – but unlike his City Council colleagues – O’Brien was a foe of the deep bore tunnel slated to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

In spite of a unanimous City Council vote to proceed with the tunnel last October, O’Brien still lists “opposing the deep bore tunnel project” as one of his legislative priorities on his City Council web page.

“I don’t think the plan to build the tunnel is completely baked yet,” he explains. “I think there’s still an opportunity to work on it.”

Asked if he saw even a remote possibility of changing minds on the issue, O’Brien replied, “Well, I’m not bringing anything new to the discussion. It’s so hashed out already I can’t bring any new info to the discussion.

People are pretty entrenched.”

“What may change,” he continued, “is the framework in which we talk about the tunnel. The timeline may get extended. Costs may go up. I hope we’ll talk about it before we go ahead and spend the money.”

“On the broader issue of transportation, though, we’re pretty closely aligned,” he says of his City Council colleagues. “We want to invest in transit, not in roads. We want to see people-scale living areas. And global warming. We want to pay attention to what this is doing to the planet we live on.”

Like his new colleague Sally Bagshaw, who was also interviewed by SGN, O’Brien seems to be predicting an era of collaboration in city government.

“An era of mutual respect,” he says, ties – Bellevue, Kirkland, Issaquah – that “where we have vigorous debate, but pro- have a very different approach to transporductive, not mean-spirited. I’m encouraged tation problems.” by what I’ve seen so far.”

Noting that Seattle’s unemployment rate O’Brien continues with an example. is now above 9%, O’Brien also wants to pri“Eight of my colleagues sent a letter to the oritize jobs creation. mayor [questioning his proposal on the “We have a couple of layers we can think seawall] last week. I didn’t sign it. But that about,” he says. “City government has to figdidn’t alter our relationship. No one has ure out how to reorganize so that it doesn’t been mean to me because I didn’t sign.” put roadblocks in the way of people who “A lot of my colhave ideas to create leagues felt like businesses and jobs. it was sprung on We want to encourthem,” he explained. age and foster that.”

“I don’t think that’s “In terms of direct what the mayor incity investment – to tended. There needs the extent we have to be more dialogue funds to invest, and about that.” we don’t have much O’Brien has – we can invest in known the new mayinfrastructure projor for many years, ects,” he adds. far longer than any “Invest in tranother Council memsit,” O’Brien inber. sists. “That creates “I’ve known new jobs, more so Mike McGinn for a than roads projects. number of years,” Studies show you he says. “I worked get more sustained at his law firm, I growth from tranMike O’Brien worked with him sit.” through the Sierra Club, through Great CitO’Brien also says the City can play a posiies. I’ve never known him to be a bully. He’s tive role in facilitating financing for energyalways been open and accessible. He values efficient building projects. open debate.”

“Specifically, energy conservation mea“He has a lot to prove to folks at City sures,” he says. “Green building [is] kind of Hall,” O’Brien adds. “But he’s done a lot a buzzword now, but we can make buildings of outreach. I’m optimistic we’ll see much more energy-efficient, and the energy savmore cooperation between the second floor ings will more than pay back the cost of the [where the City Council has its offices] and investment.” the fifth floor [the mayor’s office].”

“It’s a win-win-win prospect,” he continO’Brien looks forward to a legislative ues. “You create jobs, you reduce energy agenda based on what he believes are the dependence on the Middle East, and you reCouncil members’ shared values. duce the city’s carbon footprint.”

“There’s an alignment of similar values,” In spite of his optimism, O’Brien is rehe says. “How to invest in the city in a way alistic enough to recognize that not all the that’s compatible with the planet we live on. Council’s decisions will be harmonious.

The specific legislation will be very broad.

“We made a tough decision on a text It will involve transportation, jobs, land amendment on South Lake Union to permit use….” a slightly different building form,” he says.

O’Brien believes that transportation isOnly Nick Licata voted against the prosues may be the toughest for the Council to posal to rezone a Vulcan property to allow deal with. up to 40 feet of extra height. Bruce Harrell “On 520, we have the same issues as the disqualified himself. The other seven City tunnel,” he says. “I agree with Ed [Murray] Council members, including O’Brien, voted that replacing 520 is really problematic. You Yes. think the tunnel was challenging. Wait till The decision was protested by the Seattle we get to 520!”

Displacement Coalition and neighborhood O’Brien outlined two factors he believes activists. will make 520 replacement particularly dif“Folks who live in the neighborhood felt ficult. we were short-circuiting the process, the “We have similar problems to the tunnel. neighborhood plans,” O’Brien explains.

But we’re going to drop it in the middle of “And indeed, we were short-circuiting it. It very established neighborhoods,” he says. was not an easy decision, but in this econo“And then throw in the Eastside communi- my, that’s the tradeoff.”

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SGN exclusive interview

New Seattle City Council member Sally Bagshaw

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Seattle City Council member Sally Bagshaw has only been in office since January 1, but she comes to city government with a considerable background in administration.

“I have 30-plus years of experience as a lawyer and manager,” she tells SGN. Bagshaw managed a team of 60 lawyers as Chief of the Civil Division in the King County Prosecutor’s Office under Norm Maleng.

In that office, she provided legal advice to Executive Ron Sims, Sheriff Sue Rahr, the County Council, Metro Transit, Harborview Medical Center and other county agencies.

Before that, she was head of King County’s Transportation, Natural Resources and Real Property legal team.

Her long stint in public service means she has built relationships with many city political leaders. Retiring City Council member Jan Drago personally approached her to run for the council seat she now holds, and Council member Tim Burgess is an old personal friend.

Arguably, she has far more experience in civil administration than Seattle’s new mayor, Mike McGinn, and far better connections with city insiders. Many observers believe that City Council members like Bagshaw will assert their political independence now that veteran political operator Greg Nickels is out of the picture.

Bagshaw is quick to deny any suggestion of future conflict, however.

“I’m pleased as punch by what I’ve seen from the McGinn administration,” she tells SGN. “I’ve been here less than a month and he’s sent five assistants to meet with me. I’m delighted to see that level of cooperation.

I’m delighted we’re working together.”

Friendly communication between the mayor’s office and the City Council contrasts with standard operating procedure under Nickels. Many City Council members complained privately that Nickels was uncooperative. Some called him a bully.

“That’s a rumor I heard as well,” Bagshaw says. “I saw it with the department heads who would not talk to the [City] Council.”

McGinn, on the other hand, has impressed Bagshaw with a can-do approach.

“Danny Westneat wrote that article in the [Seattle] Times,” she points out, “basically saying the City’s Park and Ride policy is silly. The next day McGinn decides to change the policy. No hand-wringing, it’s just done.”

According to the Seattle Times article (January 9), the City initially prohibited light rail commuter parking in a Safeway parking lot on South Othello Street. Now Safeway has the go-ahead to issue long-term parking permits to commuters.

Is Bagshaw predicting a new era of harmony in city government?

“I’m working towards it,” she chuckles.

Bagshaw, who supports the deep bore tunnel option to replace the Alaskan Way viaduct, believes that in spite of McGinn’s opposition, the mayor and the Council will avoid impasse over the issue.

“Controversy – that’s the nature of the beast,” she says philosophically. “I hope we proceed and don’t go backwards. After 5 or 10 years of analysis, we still have only three options. We can dig a tunnel, we can repair the existing viaduct, or we can do neither.”

“Look, everybody in town has an opinion,” she continues. “Our job is to be responsive. But at some point you need to pull the trigger.”

“What are we trying to accomplish with the city?” she asks. “I worry about all the little things that make life in this city good.”

Asked to name a few of those “little things,” Bagshaw ticks off a list of priority issues.

“A lot of people are unemployed,” she says. “We have to support businesses so they have jobs to provide….”

“Clean energy. The Council approved an amendment for the UW biotech building. We let them go an extra 17 feet over the height limits. There was a lot of handwringing over that….”

“Transportation. Ed Murray is right about 520. The replacement will be very, very

complicated. I see it as a system. 520, Mercer, I-90. We need transit-oriented development….”

“Affordable housing. Greg Nickels was right about a lot of things. We do need a faster permitting process….”

“On affordable housing, increasing supply is the name of the game,” Bagshaw explains. “But how do we do that?”

“We need to get multi-family units built,” she continues. “But do it quickly. Builders should be able to get permits within 90 days.

One thing we’ve been looking at on the Council is the example of Portland. They’ve got a number of designers people found acceptable, and they permit their buildings.”

Portland recently completed an overhaul of its permitting process, resulting in consolidated permitting authority and a faster review process. Solar energy installations are eligible for expedited permitting, as are mural art installations.

“Another option to look at is ‘barista housing,’” Bagshaw continues. “They’re small studio apartments, but they’re affordable.”

“In the end, we want to encourage development that’s friendly to pedestrians, and bicyclists, and encourages people to use public transit,” she says. “And you do that by supporting local businesses, and schools, and neighborhoods.”

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Seattle Gay News 19

When things go bad

by Leslie Robinson SGN Contributing Writer I spent an hour in the dentist’s chair yesterday, getting shots and enduring drills.

I’d rather do that again today than write about Bruce LaVallee-Davidson.

But I feel if I don’t tackle the subject of Bruce, I’ll be hiding my head in the sand.

And sand tastes no better than Novocain.

LaVallee-Davidson, who lives in Maine, is a farmer – not really a profession I associate with sex parties.

LaVallee-Davidson, 50, is also a gun collector, and on an April day of last year he brought along a handgun and a shotgun to the South Portland home of Fred Wilson, 50.

Over a 12-hour period, the two men, along with James Pombriant, 65, used the party drug GBL, huffed aerosol inhalants, smoked pot and had sex in the house’s dungeon.

I guess that’s one way to celebrate the end of a Maine winter.

Three times that night, said LaVallee-Davidson’s lawyers, he checked the revolver to

make sure it wasn’t loaded. When he went to the bathroom, the lawyers maintained, Wilson snuck a bullet into the gun’s chamber.

A surprise from the host. After-dinner mints would’ve been better.

LaVallee-Davidson returned, and Wilson, engaging in a sex act with Pombriant, asked LaVallee-Davidson to place the gun to his head and pull the trigger in order to intensify his pleasure. The first time, there was a click. Again, said Wilson. This time, there was a flash. And it wasn’t a flash of insight.

During LaVallee-Davidson’s trial, both sides agreed he didn’t intend to kill. But, said the prosecutor, “You just don’t hold a gun to someone’s head and pull the trigger without making sure it’s not loaded.” Recently a jury convicted him of manslaughter. He’s looking at a minimum of four years in prison.

The Russian roulette, drugs and three-way sex would be quite enough to capture attention. But the fact is LaVallee-Davidson had already captured attention in Maine. In April

he and his partner, Buck LaVallee-Davidson, testified on behalf of the bill to legalize same-sex marriage.

Bruce testified four days after fatally shooting a man. I wouldn’t have been able to remember how to speak English.

So there you have it: a Gay activist with a raunchy private life. With the drugs, guns and dungeon, this mess is nectar to social conservatives. They owe Bruce LaValleeDavidson a thank-you basket from Harry & David.

Mike Hein of the Christian Civic League of Maine is predicting the sordidness of the case will halt plans for same-sex marriage in Maine. That state, of course, lost Gay marriage in November when voters ditched it, but pro-Gay forces haven’t given up.

I think voters have more sense than to think one seismically stupid man makes a movement. But I know the opposition will use this case as proof that Gays are debauched. That a devoted partner one day is a degenerate the next.

Some Gays sure are. Some straights sure are. Let’s all do the hokey pokey.

On Queerty.com, readers weighing in on the conviction said everything from public figures need to keep their noses clean to it’s always the unattractive ones who are into BDSM. One guy brought up Phil Spector, the oftmarried record producer incarcerated for fatally shooting a woman in the mouth. “The actions of Spector have no more impact on Joe marrying Betty than this dickhead’s actions ought to have on Joe marrying Fred.”

That’s how it ought to be, but it won’t. Minorities and women are held to higher standards, and Gays fighting for full rights need to appear as upstanding as flagpoles.

Sometimes we aren’t upstanding. Let’s own up to it. Perfection is exhausting, anyway.

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“We hope to send out a message to the Chinese public that the Gay community is here and it’s healthy, sexy, trendy,” Ben Zhang told China Daily before the police raid.

Zhang said that the idea for the Mr. Gay China Pageant came from a friend of a friend, who was a producer for the Mr. Gay Hong Kong Pageant.

Convinced of Gayographhic’s ability to organize such a bold event, Zhang began to spread the word among his friends.

One contestant, 26-year-old Emilio Liu, told China Daily reporters he did not think it was possible at first.

“When Ben first asked me about [the pageant], I accepted as a joke,” he said. “I accepted because I never thought something like this would happen in China.”

Zhang said he received about a dozen applications, and had asked some people like Liu because they were friends. The eight finalists, he said, are from all parts of China.

The Mr. Gay China Pageant was to consist of three rounds – the freestyle round, the fashion show, and an underwear Q&A segment. According to Zhang, the freestyle round substituted for a talent segment because he did not want to discourage applicants from applying.

“For the freestyle part they can come and do whatever they want – sing, take off their clothes, dance,” he explained.

There was to be a panel of five judges for the competition. According to Zhang they were to include men, women, Gay, and straight and “represent all walks of life and a little bit of local flavor.”

In the final round, the audience itself was to elect the first Mr. Gay China.

Pageant contestant Liu told reporters he thought it might be 10 years before anyone could successfully organize a Gay pageant in China.

“Cultural change needs time, society isn’t going to change tomorrow,” he said.

continued from page 5 uled to start airing weekly on China National Radio but so far has not received final approval from the government.

Coming less than a week after the government-run China Daily newspaper ran a long feature article on the Mr. Gay China Pageant, and only two days after China Daily ran a front-page story on China’s first – but unofficial – same-sex marriage, the series of shutdowns seems to indicate deep divisions among China’s political leaders over how to deal with sensitive social issues like sexual orientation.

China Daily is an English-language paper owned and operated by the Chinese government, and it is the vehicle they typically use to communicate government policy to the outside world.

Since decriminalizing homosexuality in 1997, China has made real, though occasionally halting progress toward tolerance of its LGBT citizens.

In 2001, China removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders. Beijing’s first Gay bar opened in 2005, and in June last year Shanghai hosted China’s first Pride Festival, although the parade was cancelled by authorities. June 2009 also featured the five-day Beijing Queer Film Festival, an event that police blocked in 2001 and 2005.

CHINA’S GAY COMMUNITY “HEALTHY, SEXY, TRENDY” The Chinese government has also wished to portray their country as a cosmopolitan and sophisticated tourist destination. In December, a government-owned Gay bar opened in the tourist resort of Dali, for example.

Pageant organizers saw the event as a way to showcase China’s LGBT community as part of their country’s glossy new image.

Leslie Robinson will never achieve flagpole status. E-mail her at LesARobinson@ gmail.com.

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20 Seattle Gay News

January 22, 2010

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Seattle Gay News 23