SGN May 13, 2011 - Section 1

Issue 19 Volume 39

Celebrating 38 Years!

ACTIVIST MURDERED p. 16

QUEER $$$ p. 17

doric wilson p. 18

Seattle Gay News

FRIDAY May 13, 2011 FREE! 25¢ in bookstores & news stands

SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Seattle City Council moves forward to provide Trans health care equality

On May 11, Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell, chair of the Energy, Technology and Civil Rights Committee, sent a letter to the Health Care Committee to encourage them to consider removing the exclusion of coverage for the city’s Tr a n s g e n d e r employees.

Seattle Gay News was provided a copy of the letter by Harrell’s office. In the letter, Harrell clearly outlines his support, and the support of Councilmembers Sally Clark and Tom Rasmussen, for the Health Care Committee (HC2) to “consider removing such exclusions as discussions, negotiations, and policy considerations are made relative to

the finalization of the benefits contained in our current four medical plans.”

“As we all know, the health coverage offered to City employees is critically important,” wrote Harrell. “As we continue to contain our costs of health coverage, we believe it is equally important to consider the values, purpose, and actions contemplated by our city’s commitment to social justice and fairness to all employees.”

He said it has long been recognized in our city that individuals who identify as part of the Transgender community are respected and productive employees.

“We believe that our support for all employees should not be based on whether an individual has iden-

all photos courtesy seattle.gov

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor

“I applaud the Commission for bringing this issue to the forefront.”

(l to r) Seattle Councilmembers Tom Rasmussen, Sally Clark, and Bruce Harrell

tified themselves as a member of the Transgender community. Our actions as a city, including the negotiation of benefits in health coverage packages, should recognize this important commitment,” said Harrell.

“It is one of the City Council’s goals to pass laws and implement policies that protect the rights, legal benefits, and privileges of all people, irrespective of gender identity and expression,” he said.

“This commitment extends it-

self to full access to employment, housing, and education, as well as health care.”

In addition, Harrell said the City Council has made it clear that it see trans health page 20

Equal Rights Washington Navy changes gala is a resounding success course on same-

sex marriage

shaUn knittel

make laws “that affect our community more fair.”

“The outpouring of support and participation by so many – from sponsors and contributors to LGBT community and political leaders – truly reflects how far we’ve come as an organization, both within the LGBT community and the eyes of the public at large,” said Thomas Pitchford, ERW development and outreach director. “This is the fifth anniversary for this event, and for that reason is a milestone in its own right, but beyond that, the event also reached new heights in so many ways – from dollars raised to such extensive involvement from peer organizations and community leaders – this goes beyond the usual time milestone in terms of its significance.”

This legislative session, ERW worked on the passage of three major LGBT civil rights bills.

“While the out-of-state marriage Chief of Navy Chaplains recognition bill is very straightforRear Admiral Mark Tidd ward, the anti-bullying bill and the Executive director for Equal Rights Washington Josh Friedes Uniform Parentage Act will take by Mike Andrew

by Shaun Knittel biggest event ever, bringing in a great deal of work to make sure SGN Staff Writer SGN Associate Editor over $130,000 from a sold-out, they are implemented correctly,” On May 11, Chief of Navy 300-person crowd at the W Hotel said Josh Friedes, executive director for ERW. “The legislature is Chaplains Rear Admiral Mark Equal Rights Washington in downtown Seattle.

Tidd announced that any consider(ERW) announced this week that ERW officials say the commuation of Navy chaplains performtheir Fifth Annual Gala Dinner nity can rest assured that the do& Auction on May 7 was their nation dollars are put to work to see erw page 20 ing same-sex marriages would be

proud to Be Different

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

suspended “until further notice pending additional legal and policy review and inter-Departmental coordination.”

The May 11 announcement reversed a previous memo from Tidd suggesting that Navy chaplains could marry same-sex couples if the Navy personnel in question were stationed in states that allowed same-sex marriage.

Tidd wrote on April 13 that repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” required revision of the Navy’s policies and training manual for its chaplains, specifically as they related to same-sex marriage.

According to Tidd’s April memo, he submitted the question to the Navy’s legal department and “legal counsel has concluded that generally speaking base facility use is sexual orientasee navy page 21

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Celebrating 38 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

May 13, 2011

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Seattle Gay News

May 13, 2011

Celebrating 38 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

May 13, 2011

Seattle Gay News

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Seattle Gay News FOUNDED 1973

1605 12th Ave., Ste. 31 Seattle, WA 98122

Phone: (206) 324-4297 Fax: (206) 322-7188

MEMBER

e-mail: sgn2@sgn.org internet: www.sgn.org

2011

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 Shaun Knittel

WA state Republicans love pizza, hate Gays pensacolavoice.com

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, 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, Nate Gowdy, Joseph P. Herron, Shaun Knittel National Advertising Rep. Rivendell Media (212) 242-6863 Website Designer Barry Thorsness/Digital Team Works Seattle Gay News is published weekly by Frogs and Ink, Inc. © 2011, Frogs and Ink, 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.

Opinions expressed in bylined articles, columns, and letters are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff or management of this paper.

Seattle Gay News welcomes unsolicited material, including letters to the editor, but reserves the right to edit or reject material. All rights revert to authors upon publication.

We assume no liability for loss or damage of materials, solicited or not. We invite feedback, please write.

And please play safe.

It is our policy that no money shall be refunded if you choose to cancel your subscription or ad. However, credit towards any size ad will be given for the balance owed. No exceptions.

Herman Cain, former pizza executive, GOP presidential hopeful

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer A presidential straw poll taken at a Washington state GOP fundraising dinner on May 6 shows Republicans leaning to former pizza executive Herman Cain.

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

May 13, 2011

Cain got 54 votes at the Republican event, or 15.13% of the attendees.

His nearest competitors were former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney with 52 votes (14.57%) of those attending, and Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels with 51 votes (14.29%).

For those not familiar with Republican presidential hopefuls, Cain is the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, former CEO of

the National Restaurant Association, member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, and a radio talk show host.

Cain is also a friend of the anti-Gay Family Research Council, a group now listed as a “hate group” by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The FRC was founded by arch-homophobe James Dodson in 1981, and is currently led by Tony Perkins.

Cain includes them on his list of “Intelligent Thinkers Allies.”

Cain currently has only an exploratory committee, meaning he is actively planning for a run and will probably jump into the race officially if he finds financial backers.

Romney, a retread from the 2008 GOP race, has shifted far to the right since his days as governor of Massachusetts.

In 1994, running for U.S. Senate against incumbent Ted Kennedy, Romney told the Log Cabin Republicans he would be a better advocate for LGBT rights than Kennedy.

Lately he has re-branded himself as a supporter of state constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage. He also opposed repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

Daniels made headlines last year when he called for a “truce” in the culture wars, saying that Republicans should campaign on fiscal issues, not abortion or Gay rights.

Nevertheless, he has also made clear that as a self-identified Christian, he is opposed to reproductive choice and marriage equality.

Cain, Romney, and Daniels ended up within a few votes of each other in the straw poll. After that, there is a steep drop-off in support for the next tier of candidates – New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (39 votes), former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty (28), and Ohio Congressman Paul “Medicare Vouchers” Ryan (22).

After Ryan, there is another drop-off in support for “The Rest,” including many of the biggest names in the field – Newt Gingrich (14 votes), Mike Huckabee (14), Rudy Giuliani (12), Ron Paul, and Donald Trump (10 votes each).

Among potential women candidates, Michele Bachmann (9 votes) led Sarah Palin (8), although neither was very popular among Republican stalwarts.

State Republican chair Kirby Wilbur said the results show that it is too early to call the race for his party’s presidential nomination.

“The close results demonstrate that the Republican Party does not have a clear frontrunner. Herman Cain has been doing an excellent job getting his name out among Republican voters and his style appeals to many people,” Wilbur said. “As the process moves forward and more individuals enter the race, it will be interesting to see how the perception of the various candidates changes.”

Celebrating 38 Years!

Congressman McDermott introduces single-payer health care bill file photo

Congressman Jim McDermott

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Seattle Congressman Jim McDermott and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders announced on May 10 that they would introduce legislation to extend health care coverage to every resident of the U.S. The American Health Security Act of 2011 would provide health care for every American through a Medicare-style single-

payer system.

McDermott and Sanders said that such a system could provide better care for more patients at a lower cost by eliminating the middleman: the private insurance companies that now take billions of dollars in profits from the U.S. health care system.

The legislation would create a national health care program that requires each participating state to set up and administer comprehensive health care services as an entitlement for all residents.

The program would be progressively financed, including a surcharge on highincome individuals and a tax on securities and other financial transactions.

Benefits would emphasize primary and preventive care, and a free choice of health care providers. Private health insurance sold by for-profit companies would continue in the form of supplemental coverage only.

In a nod to Republican concerns about federal control of health care, the legislation also allows individual states to administer the system under federal guidelines and minimum standards.

“The new health care law made big progress towards covering many more people and finding ways to lower costs,” McDer-

Delaware governor signs civil unions bill

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Delaware Governor Jack Markell signed a civil unions bill into law on May 11.

“Tonight, we say to loving and committed couples across the state who want the law to endorse the promise that they made long ago in their hearts, ‘Your love is equally valid and deserving. Your family is now equal under the law,’” Markell told the cheering crowd which had gathered to witness the signing.

“Tonight, we say to children of Gay and Lesbian parents in committed relationships all over our state – and there are so many wonderful kids, including many here tonight, growing up in those families all over our state – we say to you, ‘It doesn’t matter if your parents are Gay or straight … you are a family.’ And while we’ve known it, and you’ve known it for years, tonight, that equality becomes real under law.”

After decades of organizing by LGBT rights activists, the civil unions bill seemed to fly through the Legislature, moving from its filing date to final passage on April 14 in less than four weeks.

The bill passed by large margins in both houses of Delaware’s legislature – 13-6 in the Senate and 26-15 in the House of Representatives.

Delaware now becomes the eighth state to grant comprehensive same-sex relationship rights through equal marriage laws, civil unions, or domestic partnerships.

Delaware passed a state version of DOMA in 1996, and that law remains in effect. Equality Delaware, the state’s leading LGBT rights organization, sought a civil unions law to avoid a potentially brutal battle over what constitutes a “marriage.”

“We’re saying thank you one more time,”

Lisa Goodman, president of Equality Delaware, told the 600 people gathered for the signing.

“Because, as we tell our children, you can never say it enough. We will have the same protections, obligations, and benefits that all other couples in Delaware are able to enjoy.”

mott said at his and Sanders’ joint May 10 press conference.

“However, I think the best way to reduce costs and guarantee coverage for all is through a single-payer system like Medicare. This bill does just that – it builds on the new health care law by giving states the flexibility they need to go to a single-payer system of their own. It will also reduce costs, and Americans will be healthier.”

“The United States is the only major nation in the industrialized world that does not guarantee health care as a right to its people,” Sanders said at the press conference.

“Meanwhile, we spend about twice as much per capita on health care with worse results than others that spend far less. It is time that we bring about a fundamental transformation of the American health care system. It is time for us to end private, forprofit participation in delivering basic coverage. It is time for the United States to provide a Medicare-for-all single-payer health coverage program.”

The proposed legislation was immediately endorsed by the AFL-CIO. “We in the labor movement have long insisted that health care is a fundamental human right and an important measure of social justice,” said AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Arlene Holt Baker at the May 10 press conference.

“And for more than 100 years, we have fought for universal health care coverage based on a social insurance model, an approach that has proven to be cost-effective and efficient in countries across the globe and in this country to provide health security for seniors.”

Jean Ross, R.N., and co-president of National Nurses United, agreed, saying the bill will “create a more just health care system.”

“The governor’s signature on this legislation moves same-sex couples in Delaware closer to equality. It will help ensure loving, committed couples have access to important rights, protections, and security currently afforded other families,” NGLTF Executive Director Rea Carey said in a statement.

“Let’s be clear, it is not a substitute for full legal marriage, but it provides fundamental security for same-sex couples that will allow them to take care of each other and their families.”

Markell, a Democrat, has championed LGBT rights throughout his public service career. He was elected governor in 2008 with 67.5% of the vote.

Herb Alpert and Lani Hall May 13-15

Touring in Support of their First Studio CD I Feel You

The Taylor Eigsti Quartet with Becca Stevens May 16

Jazz Pianist/Composer and Two-Time Grammy Nominee Celebrates his New CD for Concord Records

Ann Hampton Callaway May 17-18

Jazzy Pop Diva and Platinum Award Winning Songwriter

Rachelle Ferrell May 19-22 One of the Most Dynamic Vocalists in Urban Contemporary Pop Music

SGN UPDATE: Judge reprieves same-sex marriage deportation

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor On May 6, an immigration judge in Newark suspended the deportation of a Venezuelan man who is married to an American man. The reprieve is said to be a response to a signal from the Obama administration that it is exploring legal avenues for recognizing same-sex marriage in immigration cases.

Henry Velandia of Venzuela was legally married to Josh Vandiver in Connecticut last year. Sadly, Velandia was denied legal residency because under the federal DOMA law, immigration authorities do not recognize same-sex marriage.

At the May 6 hearing, the couple waited with trepidation, almost resigned to the fact that they would be split apart, as immigration authorities said that was the final step before deportation.

Unbeknownst to the couple, the previous day, Attorney General Eric Holder intervened in a different immigration case involving a same-sex couple, suspending the deportation of a man from Ireland and send-

ing his case back to the immigration appeals court, asking it to consider several possible grounds on which the man might qualify for legal residency.

Citing Holder’s move, Judge Alberto J. Riefkohl of Newark postponed Velandia’s deportation until December because, he said, he wanted to allow time for the attorney general and the appeals court to work out whether a Gay partner might be able to qualify for residency.

“We know this is just a reprieve,” said Vandiver. “But every day we can have together is invaluable.”

Gay advocacy groups said the recent developments are a sign that the Obama administration is working to bring equality to its policy on same-sex marriage. In February, the White House said DOMA discriminates unconstitutionally against LGBT persons.

Holder said the administration would no longer defend DOMA in court, but would continue to enforce it until the courts reached a decision on whether it was constitutional.

Lionel Loueke Trio May 23

West-African Jazz Guitarist Blending World and Fusion

Bucky Pizzarelli Trio May 24-25 Legendary Jazz Guitarist and Banjoist

Come meet Tim and Matt and join the family.

Go 1605 12th Avenue at Pine, Seattle (In liquor store parking garage.) Seattle Storm!

206-838-6027 or 206-898-4306 Visit us online www.sgn.org

May 13, 2011

Seattle Gay News

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SGN CONGRATULATES MADISON PUB ON 25 YEARS courtesy Madison Pub

In May of 1986, a small tavern on Madison St. was bought by Chet Herald, remodeled, and turned into a Gay bar. As the downtown Gay bar scene changed later that year, Michael Lull was hired, and he quickly set the example of what a bartender at the Madison Pub should be. After many years, Mikey stepped down from the day-to-day operation of the bar in 2005, and Roland took over management. Roland purchased the bar from Mikey in January of this year.

On May 14, the Madison Pub will celebrate its 25th anniversary. Congratulations on reaching another milestone!

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Seattle Gay News

May 13, 2011

Celebrating 38 Years!

NORTHWEST

NEWS

compiled by Rick McKinnon SGN Staff Writer

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR SEATTLE PRIDE PARADE www.seattlepride.org

the center of the art world. As an example of how two Gay lovers can influence each other, the film is almost unparalleled. And in its 72 minutes, your eyes will feast on dozens of gorgeous turn-of-the-century photographs rescued from obscurity and honored now in the Getty collection by Sam Wagstaff, one of the character’s in this month’s book.

For more information, email nickdimartin@earthlink.net or contact Dunshee House at 206-322-2437.

the transformation (the Court can help find someone for you, if needed), 3) you have one hour to be transformed (all make-up, hair, etc. must be applied at the event), 4) TRANSLATIONS: contestants will be judged on transformaSEATTLE TENNIS ALLIANCE SEATTLE TRANSGENDER tion, presentation, and poise. The winner MEET AND GREET FILM FESTIVAL will be crowned 2011 Closet Ball Queen and On Wednesday, May 18, 5:30-7:30 p.m., MAY 12-15 the winning Drag Mother will be crowned Three Dollar Bill Cinema presents “Trans- Mother of the Year. $5 donation at the door – at The Elite (1520 E. Olive Way), Seattle lations: The Seattle Transgender Film Festi- contestants and Drag Mothers FREE. www. Tennis Alliance is hosting an informal happy hour meet and greet to talk about tennis. val.” This groundbreaking festival is one of imperialcourtofseattle.org.

Drop in to find out more about tennis activonly a very few Transgender film festivals ity in Seattle’s LGBT community or visit in the world. The eleven programs and films “WE’RE WITH YOU JAPAN” – www.SeattleTennisAlliance.org. that make up this year’s slate tell unique and CONCERT BENEFITING fascinating stories that are poignant, witty, JAPAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF DIFFA SEATTLE tragic, comic and inspirational.

On Saturday, May 14, at 7 p.m., at NiPRESENTS GLAM 6 The Chaz Bono documentary, Becom- sei Veterans Memorial Hall (1212 S. King WITH SPECIAL GUEST ing Chaz, will be shown on Friday, May 13 St.), the Japan Young Professionals Group THOM FILICIA (Opening Night), at the AMC Pacific Place (JYPG) and Earshot Jazz present vocalOn Thursday, May 19, 6-9 p.m., at Ma(600 Pine St.) at 7 p.m., with a reception fol- ist Aiko Shimada, Burnlist (Cuong Vu, lowing at the Sixth Avenue Inn (2000 6th Greg Sinibaldi, Chris Icasiano, and Aaron sins (220 2nd Ave. S.), Design Industries Ave.). Chaz Bono grew up right before our Otheim) and Chemical Clock in a special Foundation Fighting AIDS (DIFFA) Seattle eyes as Sonny and Cher’s adorable golden- concert in support of Japan earthquake relief presents Glam 6, a celebration of high-style haired daughter, Chastity, but in a body he via Peace Winds America, a participant in design, furnishings, fashion and fabulous jewels, with hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and felt wasn’t his own. Becoming Chaz takes Seattle Japan Relief. us on Chaz’s remarkable and brave journey JYPG works closely with the Japan Amer- wine bar, luxury silent auction of fashion acof transformation as he undertakes gender ica Society of the State of Washington to cessories, home décor items, hotel and dinreassignment. Intimate and nakedly honest, create opportunities for young profession- ing packages, DJ Wendell, and special guest the film reveals the humanity and courage als in Puget Sound to connect with their TV celebrity and House & Garden top 100 it takes for Chaz to embrace his true self all like-minded interests in Japan. The benefit designer, Thom Filicia, a DIFFA national the while putting a face on an intensely mis- concert features a musical focus along with trustee. Tickets: $40 general admission; $75 understood issue. networking over refreshments and Japanese VIP welcome and pre-party (5 p.m.) with Festival pass is $50, $10 advance/$11 at green tea. For more information, call 206- special guest, Thom Filicia. Tickets: www. the door for Opening Night (May 13) (in- 322-1122 or visit the JYPG online at www. diffa.org/seattle. Information: 206-763cludes post-screening reception), $8 ad- jassw.org/jypg.html. Tickets: $10-students 8885. Proceeds benefit local AIDS service vance/$9 at the door for single tickets, $6 (ID required), $15-advance; $20 at the door. and education providers. advance/$7 at the door for Three Dollar Bill www.brownpapertickets.com GSBA SCHOLARSHIP Cinema members, $5 for youth (21 and unAWARDS BANQUET der) and seniors (65 and over) available at SEATTLE PRIDE IDOL On Friday, May 20, 5:30-6:30 p.m. (rethe door only, ID required.

On Sundays through June 19, doors at 6 For complete schedule, a synopsis of films p.m., competition at 7 p.m., at Neighbours ception and hors d’oeuvres) and 6:30-9:30 and advance tickets, visit www.threedollar- (1509 Broadway. entrance in alley off E. p.m. (dinner and awards), at the Hyatt at Olbillcinema.org.

Pike St. between Broadway and Harvard), ive 8 (1635 8th Ave.), join GSBA members join Seattle Out and Proud (SO&P) for Se- and friends for an evening celebrating this GAY CITY UNIVERSITY attle’s Pride Idol talent competition to see year’s GSBA scholarship award recipients On Saturday, May 14, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., at who will represent Seattle Out & Proud on with emcee J.J. McKay and keynote speaker Antioch University Seattle (2326 6th Ave.), the Pride Idol Float in the Seattle Pride Pa- Washington State Representative Marko head back to school this spring for another rade on Sunday, June 26. For complete de- Liias. Tickets: $100. 206-363-9188; www. thegsba.org. The GSBA (Greater Seattle fabulous edition of GCU. Now in it’s 16th tails, visit www.seattlepride.com.

Business Association) is the Greater Seattle year, this fantastic day of fun and learning area’s LGBT Chamber of Commerce. for Gay, Bi and Trans men offers a variety SYTTENDE GAY 2011 of classes and workshops. Cost is just $20, On Wednesday, May 17, 5 p.m.-8 p.m., at MISS INDIGO BLUE’S including lunch. For more information and The BalMar (5449 Ballard Ave. NW, at NW ACADEMY OF BURLESQUE – to register, visit www.gaycity.org.

Market St.), Kwanchai presents Syttende “GET THEM TO LAS VEGAS!” Gay 2011, an event celebrating Nordic culA BENEFIT FOR THE SEATTLE CHEESE FESTIVAL ture and diversity on Norway’s Constitution BURLESQUE HALL OF FAME On Saturday, May 14, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Day (Syttende Mai). Enjoy the Norwegian On Friday, May 20, doors at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, May 15, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., cheese- Constitution Day Parade at 6 p.m. $7 VIP makers from around the world will show- pass (21+ with ID) includes exclusive ac- show at 8 p.m., at the Academy of Burleque, case their finest cheeses to thousands of cess to upper VIP level with panoramic West Hall, OddFellows Building (915 E. attendees on the cobblestone street at Pike view of the parade. 10% off Nordic-inspired Pine St.), local burlesque legends Eartha Place Market (1st Ave. & Pike St.). FREE. food and cocktails. Music by DJ RXMX. Quake and Velvet Ice take the stage along www.seattlecheesefestival.com.

Proceeds from pass and raffle sales to Youth with a bevy of local performers who are Suicide Prevention Program. www.kwan- competing, performing, or have previously competed at the Burlesque Hall of Fame “BLACK TIE & TALES” – chai.net; www.YSPP.org.

Weekend! Don’t miss this chance to cheer SEATTLE MEN’S CHORUS & on the amazing collection of talent who will SEATTLE WOMEN’S CHORUS’ SEATTLE GAY & LESBIAN DINNER, DANCE & AUCTION BOOK CLUB AT DUNSHEE HOUSE be representing the Northwest in Las Vegas, On Saturday, May 14, doors at 5:30 p.m., The Seattle Gay & Lesbian Book Club June 2-5.

Miss Indigo Blue and Lily Verlaine (up at Fremont Studios (155 N 35th St.), join meets every Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Dunthe Seattle Men’s Chorus and the Seattle shee House (303 17th Ave. E., at E. Thomas for Reigning Queen of Burlesque ’11), RanWomen’s Chorus for a gala dinner, dance St.). All GLBTQ folks in the community are di Rascal & Iva Handful (up for Best Debut and auction fundraiser. Enjoy a gourmet, welcome to participate in this FREE book ’11), Waxie Moon (Opening Night Showcase), The Heavenly Spies (Best Duet ’07), seated dinner, live entertainment by Chorus club. members and guests, silent and live auction The book for May is JUST KIDS, by Patti Inga Ingenue (Miss Exotic World Competiitems, and then dance the night away. Tick- Smith, a portrait of her friendship with con- tor ’08 AND Reigning Miss Viva Las Vegas ets: $195-patron, $250-benefactor. 206-388- troversial Gay photographer, Robert Map- 2011!), and hosted by Syndi Deveraux (Best 1400; www.flyinghouse.org. plethorpe. It is a quick, compelling read Debut Competitor ’10)! All proceeds go to about a friendship between two artistic ge- the Burlesque Hall of Fame and the travel expenses for Eartha Quake and Velvet Ice! CLOSET BALL 2011 – niuses.

Tickets: $25-VIP advance, $30-at the “RELEASE YOUR INNER DIVA” On May 25, the book club will show the On Saturday, May 14, at 6:30 p.m., at R superb documentary, Black, White and door; $15-general advance, $20-at the www.brownpapertickets.com/ Place (Boylston Ave. & E. Pine St.), join Gray, which brings Patti Smith and Robert door. the Imperial Court of Seattle for Closet Ball Mapplethorpe to life through their inter- event/174501. Must be 21+ with ID. 2011. The rules are simple: 1) you haven’t section with Mapplethorpe’s lover, Sam done drag before (except on Halloween), Wagstaff, the older man who almost single2) you have a “Drag Mother” to perform handedly brought the art of photography to

Visit us online www.sgn.org

May 13, 2011

“RED LIGHT DISTRICT” – SEATTLE EROTIC ART FESTIVAL On Friday, May 20, through Sunday, May 22, at Fremont Studios (155 N. 35th St.), the Seattle Erotic Art Festival presents “Red Light District,” an immersive weekend of visual art, film, performances, literary art, interactive installations, after-parties, workshops, and museum-quality festival store.

Hours: Friday/Saturday, noon-2 a.m.; Sunday, 11a.m.-8 p.m. Tickets: Friday/Saturday, $30-advance, $36-at the door, $10 day pass (noon-6 p.m.), $10 after-party (11 p.m.-2 a.m.); Sunday, $10 suggested donation. Full weekend pass: $55-advance, $65 at the door.

Age Restriction: 18+ Friday/Saturday until 6 p.m. (21+ after 6 p.m.) and all day Sunday.

For more information: www.seattle-erotic. org.

“A GLIMPSE OF CHINA – CHINESE CULTURE & ARTS FESTIVAL” On Saturday, May 21, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., at Seattle Center’s Center House, learn Chinese folk dances, create delicate artworks and share in cultural traditions covering 5,000 years of Chinese history. Over 15 Chinese groups will showcase Chinese music, dance, Wushu (martial arts), Taiqi (Tai Chi) and puppet arts. The festival also offers interactive Chinese calligraphy and painting for children and Chinese arts and crafts booths. Additionally, Washington State Confucius Institute will give guidance on Chinese language learning.

Special to the festival this year, Dragon Art Studio of Portland, OR, the only professional Chinese puppet theater in the United States, will perform spectacular puppet shows dramatizing more than 1,000 years of history. The art of puppetry, combining artistic expression and traditional Chinese Opera movements and music, began as a culural ritual and later became a form of entertainment to the royal family and common public. Beautifully engineered mechanical puppet parts and Western technology tell stories packed with humor, elegance and great theatricality.

For full event schedule, visit www.chinaartandculture.com.

GLSEN/WA GSA RECEPTION, AWARDS & AUCTION On Sunday, May 22, from 5-8:30 p.m., at the Maritime Event Center at Bell Harbor, Pier 66 (2211 Alaskan Way) join GLSEN/ WA board members, GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) students and advisors, emcee Q13 FOX News anchor Lily Jang, keynote speaker Washington State Representative Marko Liias, and friends and supporters for GLSEN/WA’s (Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network) 6th annual GSA reception, awards presentation, and silent and live auction. Build you own tacos at the taco bar and enjoy a delicious ice cream bar for dessert.

Auction items include: Field-level Mariners game seats for June 29th game vs. the Atlanta Braves, dinners at Poppy and at Teatro ZinZanni, tickets to the 5th Avenue Theatre, holiday reception at the Governor’s Mansion with tour of the mansion and photo with Governor Gregoire, and more. Tickets: $35-general admission, $20-youth/student, and can be purchased in advance at www. brownpapertickets.com/event/154346. www.glsenwa.org.

LA FEMME MAGNIFIQUE WASHINGTON PAGEANT On Sunday, May 22, doors at 6 p.m., pageant at 7 p.m., at Neighbours (1509 Broadway) (entrance in alley between Broadway and Harvard off E. Pike St.), join Gaysha Starr and the reigning La Femme Magnifique and La Femme Magnifique Plus for the exciting La Femme Magnifique Washington Pageant. Tickets: $15 in advance and at the door. Partial proceeds to beneft GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network) WA. For contestant information or tickets, email gaysha@gayshastarr.com.

Seattle Gay News

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10 Seattle Gay News

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Celebrating 38 Years!

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xiii Visit us online www.sgn.org

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May 13, 2011

Seattle Gay News 15

Seattle LGBT Commission Gay activist murdered releases preliminary by stoning in Mexico findings from major survey The Seattle LGBT Commission released a preliminary report this week of the results from a six-week online survey to assess the needs of Seattle’s LGBT community on issues including housing, education, health, public safety, and community involvement.

The preliminary report can be viewed at the Commission’s website (www.seattle.gov/lgbt) along with contact information.

Nearly 1,600 people participated in the survey from June 18 through July 31, 2010. The survey questions evaluated the experiences and opinions of LGBT individuals living, working, and playing in Seattle. The survey, which was developed in collaboration with community organizations, asked survey respondents a variety of multiple-choice and open-ended questions to assess their experiences as an LGBT person or straight ally in Seattle.

“We undertook the project because there was a real lack of reliable data about the needs of LGBT people in Seattle,” said Brad Hoover, co-chair of the Commission. “Our hope is that with this research in hand, we can help our government and community organizations make better informed policy and funding decisions to serve the LGBT population.”

One survey question asked people to evaluate the top three issues needing attention within the LGBT community in Seattle.

Choosing from a multiple-choice list of an-

swers, participants’ top three responses were marriage equality (55.5%); hate crime violence/harassment (39.0%); and healthcare (32.0%). The survey also asked respondents about the biggest issues impacting them personally. Healthcare (51.6%), marriage equality (49.0%), and lack of jobs in this economy (43.4%) were the most popular responses.

“We had such an overwhelming response to the survey, and it’s inspiring that 1,600 people took time to participate,” said Eleazar JuárezDíaz, co-chair of the Seattle LGBT Commission.

“We’re excited now to conduct outreach with these results and gather recommendations from organizations, individuals, and community leaders about how we can make Seattle a better place for LGBT people.”

The Commission will hold a community forum for communities who are underrepresented in the survey on May 31 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Seattle Counseling Service’s Rainbow Room (1216 Pine St., Suite 300) in Capitol Hill. The event is free and open to the public. The final report will be delivered to the mayor and City Council in June.

The Seattle LGBT Commission advises the mayor, council, and departments about sexual minority issues and recommends policies and legislation, bringing the LGBT communities and the larger Seattle community together through long-range projects and ensuring that City departments fairly and equitably address LGBT concerns as individuals and as a protected class.

“We undertook the project because there was a real lack of reliable data about the needs of LGBT people in Seattle.”

emiliano garcia arzeta

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor

Angel Aguirre. International supporters can sign the petition at Change.org.

The petition says that there is a “widespread climate of harassment and criminalization of the work of defenders of human rights in Mexico and the cruelty and brutality of the murder presents evidence of a homophobic hate crime.”

It also demands a prompt, independent, comprehensive, effective, and impartial investigation into Herrera’s murder, an end to all forms of harassment against LGBT people, and respect for international human rights and the work of advocates in Mexico.

A separate letter to the governor, the attorney general, and the media said that “the state and its institutions” had been complicit in “this and other attacks against homosexuals.”

Murdered Mexican Gay activist Leija Herrera An LGBT leader from the nearby city of Zihuatanejo, Ramiro Sotelo Rizo,

by Mike Andrew expressed his outrage against the murder.

SGN Staff Writer Sotelo said that he felt “very sad” that there are still hate crimes, because fighting The body of Gay activist Leija Herrera for the rights of the Gay community has was discovered on May 4, near the center of been peaceful.

Chilpancingo, Guerrero, Mexico.

“It’s very sad for us to know these facts, as According to La Jornada Guerrero newswe have worked in a peaceful way, and evpaper, the body was covered with bruises. erything we have done with effort, what we Mexican authorities suggested Herrera was ask for is respect, and it is unfortunate these stoned to death.

Herrera was the director of el Centro de crimes continue,” he said.

Sotelo added that in many investigations Estudios y Proyectos para el Desarrollo Huof hate crimes, they are “always said to be mano Integral (CEPRODEHI), the Center for Studies and Integral Human Develop- from other causes, when in fact they are homophobic, and not given follow-up investiment Projects.

He had participated in many demonstra- gations.”

“We’re going to keep fighting and keep tions, lobbied for civil unions in his state, and reported killings, discrimination, and asking for justice,” he added.

Sotelo also said that Herrera’s murder was attacks against LGBT people to Guerrero’s only one example of pervasive discriminaattorney general. tion against LGBT Mexicans.

Local activists are collecting signatures “There has been discrimination in emon a petition to Guerrero State Governor ployment, as was the case with a fellow who worked in a restaurant and a customer came and told the owner ‘I do not want a Gay to serve me.’ The owner spoke to the fellow and told him he had nothing against the Gay community, but it was his business and he was not going to lose customers, so the fellow lost his job,” Sotelo explained.

Same-sex relations have been legal in Mexico since 1871, but public decency laws have often been used to harass the LGBT community.

In 2001 the federal constitution was amended to protect “sexual preferences.”

In 2003, a federal anti-discrimination law also banned discrimination on the basis of “sexual preferences.”

Mexico City legalized same-sex marriages and adoption by same-sex couples in March 2010, and the federal Supreme Court ruled in August 2010 that marriages performed there must be recognized throughout the country.

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206-838-6027 or 206-898-4306 16 Seattle Gay News

May 13, 2011

Celebrating 38 Years!

LGBT cash flowing to 2012 Obama campaign

community and especially those with great resources.”

“Any reservations that a significant number of donors might sit this out have been answered by Donald Trump and the fools in the Republican Party,” said Mixner. “They have become so vehemently anti-Gay.” LGBT support is particularly important to Obama this year.

His 2008 campaign raised huge sums from the very rich, just as it did from smaller donors. Now, some key supporters are reportedly disenchanted with the president’s performance.

Liberal mega-donors, including George Soros, are said to see Obama as hopelessly compromised and have lost their enthusiasm for him.

Some Wall Street executives resent the increase in federal regulation resulting from the recent financial scandals, and have

switched sides to support the GOP. Some pro-Israel Jewish donors, a mainstay of Bill Clinton’s fundraising, dislike Obama’s pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to freeze West Bank settlement construction.

On the other hand, politically active Gay men in particular are less likely to have children who would consume their disposable income, and have long been key to Democratic Party fundraising.

Howard Dean’s 2004 ascendancy, for example, has been attributed to his early blockbuster fundraising from Gay donors who appreciated his support for civil unions, then a cutting-edge policy.

“There’s much more receptivity and openness toward the president now,” said Jeff Soref, a wealthy Gay donor and activist. “It stands to reason that the Gay money will be committed to the president’s reelection.”

file photo

President Barack Obama

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Only a year ago, the LGBT community was seething with discontent over the perception that President Obama was dragging his feet on Gay rights issues. Today community money is flowing to Obama’s re-election campaign.

“It’s ironic – a year ago there was no constituency more unhappy. There was a sea change,” said veteran Gay activist David Mixner. “You not only will see a united community that will contribute to Obama, but they will work their asses off.”

Mixner said that White House actions during the past year, especially the all-out push to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, had won over restive Gay donors.

According to Politico’s Ben Smith, Obama campaign officials are surprised by the level of LGBT support.

The campaign has also recruited LGBT staffers to help capitalize on the change in opinion. In 2008, Obama’s finance committee included one Gay man. There are 15 this year, a source said.

The Obama campaign’s finance director, Rufus Gifford, was a top California Gay fundraiser; the DNC treasurer, Andrew Tobias, is Gay; and the White House social secretary – traditionally a key, if unofficial, fundraising job – is also a Gay man, Gifford’s partner Jeremy Bernard.

A series of policy shifts in 2010 was reportedly the hook for increased LGBT enthusiasm and support.

Along with the high-profile repeal of

DADT, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder recently announced that the president had concluded DOMA is unconstitutional and his department would no longer defend it in court.

The administration has also taken a number of smaller steps – recognizing same-sex domestic partners of federal employees, for example, and making it easier for Trans people to get correct gender ID on passports.

These administrative changes are concrete and important steps that simply were not made during the Bush administration.

“He’s coming back up in the estimation of the Gay community pretty rapidly, and I think justifiably,” said Ethan Geto, a New York lobbyist and key figure in Howard Dean’s 2004 fundraising campaign.

Geto said many LGBT supporters had assumed DADT would be repealed during the president’s first year in office.

“When things didn’t happen in [that] time frame and on the track that Obama had held out hope for, people got very disillusioned,” said Geto. “This was the time to strike.”

While the Obama administration has been producing solid – if somewhat delayed – results, Republicans have taken an increasingly hostile line on LGBT rights, making many fearful of losing the gains that have been made.

“Our community has tasted change, and it’s hard to conceive of going backward,” said HRC communications chief Fred Sainz. “It’s hard to conceive of that coming to a screeching halt or reversing, and so it’s a subject of great energy for members of my

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Seattle Gay News 17

Doric Wilson, noted playwright and Gay activist, dies at 72 file photo

anti-war activist, Stonewall rioter, and champion of Gay rights, died May 7.

He was 72.

Born in Los Angeles on February 24, 1939, and raised on his grandfather’s ranch at Plymouth, Washington, Wilson studied drama briefly at the University of Washington and apprenticed with the Richland Players in eastern Washington.

He moved to New York in 1959, where he had a brief career as an actor before turning to playwriting.

Wilson was one of the first resident playwrights at the legDoric Wilson endary Caffe Cino in

by Mike Andrew Greenwich Village where his comedy And He Made A Her opened in 1961.

SGN Staff Writer The success of that play and the three that Doric Wilson, one of the founding fathers followed – Pretty People, Babel Babel Little of New York’s Off-Off-Broadway scene, Tower, and Now She Dances! – helped establish Joe Cino’s hole-in-the-wall cafe as a theatrical powerhouse.

Later in the 1960s, Wilson was one of the first playwrights invited to join the Barr/ Wilder/Albee Playwright’s Unit. With fellow Cino alum Lanford Wilson (1937-2011) he also joined Circle Repertory Theatre.

Well-known Doric Wilson plays from the Circle Rep period include In Absence, Turnabout, The West Street Gang, A Perfect Relationship, and Forever After.

Wilson was on the scene on June 28, 1969, when the famous riot broke out at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village.

Already an active participant in the antiwar and civil rights movements, Wilson joined Sylvia Rivera’s Gay Activist Alliance.

Later, as a “star” bartender, he helped open post-Stonewall Gay bars like the Spike, TY’s and Brothers & Sisters Cabaret.

In 1974, along with Billy Blackwell, Peter del Valle, and John McSpadden, Wilson formed TOSOS (The Other Side of Silence), the first professional theater company to deal openly and honestly with the Gay experience.

The company produced both original plays and revivals by Noel Coward, Joe Orton, Terrence McNally, and Lanford Wil-

son.

“I was involved with Circle Rep at the time,” Wilson later recalled, “when it suddenly occurred to me that I could use the Cino experience to combine my talents with my politics. I could focus my life and abilities to promote a theater dedicated ‘to an honest and open exploration of the GLBT life experience and cultural sensibility.’”

In June 2001 Wilson and directors Mark Finley and Barry Childs resurrected the company as TOSOS II. In 2004, Wilson was selected as one of the grand marshals of the 35th Anniversary Pride Day Parade in New York City. He was also featured in the documentary film Stonewall Uprising (2010).

Syphilis increase continues in 2011

New local education campaign launched to increase awareness and testing Courtesy of Public Health Seattle & King County Syphilis cases continue to increase dramatically in King County. After reaching a 30-year high in syphilis cases in 2010, the period of January through March of 2011 has seen 101 cases of syphilis – about twice as many as during the first three months of 2010.

This week, Public Health – Seattle & King County is launching a new syphilis education campaign focusing on men who have sex with men, the highest-risk population.

In 2011, similar to 2010, about 90% of the syphilis cases have been among men who have sex with men.

The new education campaign aims to increase awareness about syphilis, promote recognition of symptoms, and encourage testing and prompt treatment. The campaign also highlights the risks and efficiency of transmission via oral sex. The campaign will be featured in media and venues that target Gay and Bisexual men.

“We are making a call to action to our community. We urge men who have sex with men to use condoms, to test for STDs often, and to immediately seek medical at-

tention if they develop a sore in their mouths or genital area or any kind of new rash,” said Dr. Matthew Golden, director of the Public Health- Seattle & King County HIV/STD Program.

Public Health officials do not fully understand what is causing the upswing in cases, but are actively working to investigate possible causes, increase syphilis testing, speed up treatment, and improve partner notification. Rates of syphilis in Gay and Bisexual men also appear to be increasing in other areas of the U.S. Syphilis causes a broad range of symptoms that can make it hard to diagnose, particularly for providers who don’t see a lot of patients with syphilis. Importantly, syphilis is caused by a bacterial infection and is curable with antibiotics. Without treatment it can progress to vision loss, hearing loss, and other serious complications.

STD testing is available in primary care medical providers’ offices, at Gay City Health Project, the King County STD Clinic, and other public health clinics.

For more information, please visit www. syphilisrising.com or the Public Health – Seattle & King County HIV/STD Program website at www.kingcounty.gov/health/std.

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May 13, 2011

Celebrating 38 Years!

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Gay theater legend Arthur Laurents dies at 93 Blacklisted in 1950s, he won Tony Awards in 1968 and 1984

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Playwright, librettist, and director Arthur Laurents died on May 5 from complications of pneumonia. He was 93.

The next day, marquees of theaters in New York were dimmed for one minute in the traditional tribute to the memory of a giant Broadway figure.

Blacklisted during the McCarthy period, Laurents bounced back to win Tony Awards for the book to Hallelujah, Baby! in 1968, and for his direction of La Cage Aux Folles in 1984.

While never a member of the Communist Party, Laurents was what was known to post-war rightists as a “fellow traveler” – someone who was sympathetic to world peace, organized labor, and civil rights for African Americans.

Called to testify before the House UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC), he explained his political views without

“naming names” – in other words, without implicating others in suspect activities.

In 1949, a review of the film Home of the Brave, based on a 1946 play by Laurents, was published in the Communist Party newspaper The Daily Worker.

Later that year, Paramount Studios contracted to do a film version of Laurents’ play Look Ma, I’m Dancin’!, but only on the condition that Laurents was not involved in the production. At that point, Laurents realized he had been blacklisted.

Deciding to move to Paris, he found that his passport had been cancelled by the State Department. He wrote the State Department a long letter outlining his political views, which officials found so idiosyncratic they were, at last, convinced he could not have been a member of any organized subversive group.

Laurents was perhaps best known for his collaborations with Stephen Sondheim, including West Side Story (1957) and Gypsy (1959) – earning Tony nominations for

Besides his Broadway shows, Laurents worked on many film classics.

In 1948 he worked with Alfred Hitchcock on Rope, which starred his then-boyfriend Farley Granger.

Later Hitchcock asked him to script both Torn Curtain (1966) and Topaz (1969), but Laurents declined, because he was unenthusiastic about the material.

Laurents also scripted The Way We Were (1973), in which he incorporated many of his own experiences, particularly those with HUAC. In 1977 Laurents earned an Oscar nomination for the screenplay to The Turning Point, starring Anne Bancroft and Shirley MacLaine.

In 1954 Gore Vidal introduced Laurents to aspiring actor Tom Hatcher. The two hit it off, and remained together for 52 years.

Hatcher died in 2006, and Laurents later said he intended his 2008 revival of Gypsy and his 2009 revival of West Side Story as tributes to his longtime companion.

Granger died in March of this year.

Laurents left a memoir, Original Story By Arthur Laurents: A Memoir of Broadway and Hollywood, published in 2000. In it, he discusses his lengthy career and his many Gay relationships, including those with Granger and Hatcher.

Arthur Laurents

both – Anyone Can Whistle (1964), and Do I Hear a Waltz (1965).

Laurents directed the 1975, 1989, and 2008 revivals of Gypsy, each of which earned Tony Awards for its respective leading ladies, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, and Patti LuPone.

He also directed the 2009 Broadway revival of West Side Story.

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May 13, 2011

Seattle Gay News 19

After landmark lawsuit, Maj. Witt to retire with benefits

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor Major Margaret Witt, a decorated Air Force flight nurse who had been dismissed under the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy, has reached a final settlement in her landmark lawsuit, the ACLU of Washington announced May 10.

Witt will retire with full benefits, the government will drop its appeal of the federal court ruling in her favor, and the unlawful discharge will be removed from her military service record.

The ACLU-WA has represented Witt directly since 2006 in a lawsuit challenging her discharge.

“I am proud to have played a role in bringing about the repeal of DADT. I am so pleased that the tens of thousands of Lesbians and Gays who have served their country honorably will be able to serve openly,” said Witt at a May 10 press conference.

On December 22, 2010, President Obama signed legislation passed by Congress repealing DADT. Witt attended the signing ceremony in Washington, D.C. “For the past seven years, I have been fighting for my rights and the rights of other Lesbians and Gays in the military. I wish I

could have spent that time serving with my peers. Now, with the lawsuit completed, I’m ready to start a new chapter in my life,” Witt said.

She has begun a doctorate program and works as a rehab coordinator at the Veterans Administration hospital in Spokane.

In 2008, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Air Force had to prove discharging Major Witt was necessary for purposes of military readiness. Although the ruling left in place the military’s DADT policy, it sent the case back to the trial court, saying that before discharging a soldier under the policy, the military must prove that the individual’s conduct actually hurts morale and unit cohesion. This requirement became known as the “Witt Standard.” In September 2010, after a six-day trial, the U.S. District Court in Tacoma found that Major Witt’s sexual orientation did not negatively impact unit morale or cohesion, and ordered the Air Force to reinstate her.

ACLU-WA Legal Director Sarah Dunne said, “The U.S. military integrated different races and women over the last 50 years.

As we’ve seen over the past six months, the military is now in the process of successfully integrating openly Lesbian and Gay soldiers. DADT was a failed policy that per-

Legal Services

petuated unlawful discrimination for far too long. We are pleased that Gay and Lesbian U.S. servicemembers no longer have to hide their sexual orientation and compromise their integrity.”

trans health continued from cover

opposes “all forms of public and private discrimination when such discrimination is based on the actual or perceived gender identity and expression of individuals.”

“That being the case, we believe that the request to consider the removal of Transgender-specific insurance plan exclusions for our employees is a topic that should be considered and evaluated during your ongoing discussions,” he concluded.

The Health Care Committee meets monthly, and the LGBT Commission hopes that this issue will be on the table for the next meeting, although nothing has been set in stone yet.

COMMISSION APPLAUDED FOR RAISING IMPORTANT ISSUE Last week, when Seattle Gay News broke the story that the LGBT Commission would meet with Harrell to recommend that the City of Seattle include its Transgender employees in all health care afforded to all of its other employees, many of our readers, local politicians, and even some members of the Transgender community were in shock.

Many wondered how a progressive city like Seattle could exclude Transgender employees from health care coverage. The answer, say Transgender advocates, is simple: Boilerplate language.

Almost immediately Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn and some councilmembers declared their support for inclusion in place of exclusion.

McGinn said the issue was something the city should be working to improve on, adding that inclusion is fundamental to a person’s physical and emotional wellbeing.

McGinn, one of many politicians surprised by the exclusion, said that compared to the significant issue of health care cost for the city as a whole, what the LGBT Commission is asking for is modest.

The city currently provides health insurance to approximately 10,000 employees. It is unknown how many of those employees are Transgender.

City councilmember and out Lesbian Sally Clark says she was also taken by surprise.

She said that when the council began to look into the problem, they found out that the boilerplate language had been in the city’s healthcare coverage for years. “The LGBT Commission called this into question,” she said, “and that is good.”

“I want to change this,” she continued. “A lot of us do. Unfortunately it is not quite as easy as myself or Mayor McGinn standing up and waving a magic wand to just make something happen. But we are committed to seeing this move forward.”

Ryan Blackhawke, a volunteer at Ingersoll

Gender Center, says it is not uncommon for the average citizen – be they Gay or straight, politician or service industry worker – to simply be unaware of such an exclusion.

It’s just not on most people’s radar, he told SGN. “This sort of thing is part and parcel with any insurance package,” he said. Ryan identifies as a Bisexual Transgender man and has worked with the (now defunct) LGBT Center as well as Sensible Washington and Hands Off Washington, as well as Ingersoll. “Every job I ever had always excluded Transgender employees from their healthcare plan. Unless someone brought it up, the City of Seattle wasn’t going to just look into it.”

Ryan says he “applauds the Commission for bringing this issue to the forefront.”

This has been a long time coming, he said. “It’s a shame it’s taken so long. Unless somebody raises the issue, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. I think people will get behind this and want to see this change. Seattle is one of the most progressive places to live for Transgender people.”

Mara Keisling, founding executive director of the National Center For Transgender Equality, couldn’t agree more. “In a city as enlightened as Seattle it was only a matter of time before this would get noticed,” she said. “This sort of exclusion language is typical. It comes from old stereotypes mixed with insurance companies who want to get away with covering as little as possible.”

Mara told SGN, “There is no reason not to undo this. It is not as if Transgender employees are ‘up to something’ to get the benefit.

These benefits are being denied on a discriminatory basis, and it’s time to fix that.”

The bottom line, says Mara, is that this issue breaks down to medical necessity.

“Healthcare benefits are only triggered when a doctor says it is medically necessary. That is a decision made by medical professionals, not bureaucrats. I think most Americans understand that.”

The LGBT Commission, Seattle’s mayor, and our city councilmembers certainly understand that. The evidence could be found in Councilmember Harrell’s May 11 letter.

erw

continued from cover now in special session and we are working with our legislative leaders to make sure that there is appropriate funding for HIV/AIDS services and prevention, youth suicide prevention, and many other budget items important to the LGBT community.”

Freides said that now that the regular session is over, ERW will ramp up its marriage education work.

“We are pleased to report that during the regular session, ERW advocates sent over 10,000 emails to our elected officials in support of marriage equality. ERW will be at pride festivals all around the state collecting marriage equality postcards and collecting stories. A big push for us this year will be to ask people to become fans of ERW on Facebook. It’s amazing how Facebook is exploding as an advocacy tool.”

Another issue they are working on along

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20 Seattle Gay News

May 13, 2011

Celebrating 38 Years!

with their partners is to ensure that the City of Seattle provides appropriate healthcare coverage to city employees.

“The city seems very supportive of this idea,” said Friedes. “The problem is that most insurance policies have exclusions.

We can all be good advocates by focusing attention on the need for insurance policies to cover the health needs of Transgender people.”

At the national level, he said ERW would work with their national partners.

“Immigration reform offers an opportunity to help both LGBT individuals and families and others who face unjust treatment,” said Friedes.

“We are so incredibly lucky to have the support of so many in our community.”

ERW officials would like to thank Maryanne Tagney-Jones and David Jones, Margaret Rothschild and George Heidorn, Wrenn Law Group, Legacy Creations, and their newest major donor, Bob Eichler. They are proud to have their first major corporate sponsor in Puget Sound Energy, and look forward to some great opportunities to see that relationship continue to grow. The labor community played a huge role in this year’s event, and ERW would like to thank SEIU 775NW, Washington Federation of State Employees AFSCME, Teamsters Local 117, Joint Council of Teamsters Local 28, SEIU 1199 NW, and their friends at Northwest Stage and Sound, also proud members of IATSE. “We must also thank our amazing community partners for their support – Pride Foundation, GSBA, and HRC-Seattle,” said Friedes. “Finally, there are so many political leaders we need to thank, too many to name here, but some important folks we must recognize for their involvement include Senator Patty Murray, Congressman Jim McDermott, Senator Ed Murray, Reps. Jim Moeller, Laurie Jinkins, and Jamie Pedersen, King County Councilmembers Joe McDermott and Larry Phillips, King County Assessor

Lloyd Hara, and Seattle City Councilmembers Tom Rasmussen, Tim Burgess, Sally Clark, and Sally Bagshaw. Thank you to these and so many others who joined us or supported this event in any way.”

“The success of this event is a reflection of our dedication to the Washington LGBT community,” Friedes said. “We will continue to work hard for the LGBT community and are both humbled and excited to have such tremendous support.”

ERW is a statewide political advocacy organization for the LGBT community of Washington state. ERW has successfully advocated for the Anderson Murray AntiDiscrimination law, the creation of the domestic partnership registry, the further expansion of domestic partnership protections, and the passage of the Healthy Youth Act. ERW works to organize the movement for equality, educate voters, and influence policy makers. We continue to advocate for the expansion of protections available to committed Gay couples and their children while working toward marriage equality. We also work to ensure that healthcare providers meet the needs of an aging LGBT community.

For more information, visit ERW online at www.equalrightswashington.org.

navy

continued from cover tion neutral.”

“If the base is in a state where same-sex marriage is legal,” Tidd concluded, “then base facilities may normally be used to celebrate the marriage.”

Tidd went on to say that no chaplains would be forced to perform same-sex marriages if their religious tradition opposed them.

“This is a change to previous training that stated same-sex marriages are not autho-

rized on federal property,” Tidd said, referring obliquely to DOMA Section 3, which says that the federal government only recognizes opposite-sex marriages.

While Tidd issued this memo in April, it did not become widely known until May 9, when news media picked up the story.

It immediately sparked controversy.

House Republicans – who have hired a lawyer to defend DOMA and are actively considering legislation to reverse DADT repeal – reportedly burned up the Pentagon’s phone lines with calls to protest Tidd’s memo.

“This new guidance from the Navy clearly violates the law,” Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) chairman of the House Armed Services Seapower Subcommittee, said in a May 9 statement.

“While our president may not like [DOMA], it is unbelievable that our Navy would issue guidance that clearly violates this law. While a state may legalize samesex marriage, federal property and federal employees, like Navy chaplains, should not be used to perform marriages that are not recognized by federal law.”

On the other side of the issue, Servicemembers United Executive Director Alexander Nicholson insisted the Navy was within its rights on same-sex marriage policy.

Nicholson said the Pentagon should not be distracted by “pressure from reactionaries.”

“The Navy was right in their analysis last month that nothing stands in the way of operating facilities without discrimination, and further review will no doubt validate that position,” HRC spokesperson Michael Cole-Schwartz agreed.

“While some lawmakers are dragging out scare tactics, there is nothing controversial in allowing facilities to be operated in a nondiscriminatory manner,” he added.

Pentagon spokesman Col. Dave Lapan admitted on May 11 that media coverage and complaints from Republican lawmak-

ers prompted the Pentagon to review Tidd’s guidance.

“That raised the issue, so the [Navy] legal counsel looked at it and determined it needed further review,” Lapan said at a briefing with reporters.

Lapan said Defense Department lawyers would also determine whether policy on same-sex marriages can be left up to each service or whether it requires uniform legal guidance to the entire military.

Meanwhile, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network issued a paper defending Tidd’s April 13 instructions. “[Tidd’s] legal advice to chaplains was prudent and correct,” SLDN Executive Director Aubrey Sarvis wrote on May 10. “[Tidd’s] guidance and Navy legal counsel are wholly consistent with DOMA,” Sarvis added.

“DOMA states that for purposes of federal laws and rules ‘the word marriage means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife.’ Allowing a military chapel to be used for a particular ceremony or permitting a military Chaplain to participate in one does not mean that the federal government is agreeing that the ceremony results in a ‘marriage’ under federal law.”

Early indications from the Defense Department seem to indicate agreement with Sarvis’ reasoning.

“DOMA does not limit the type of religious ceremonies a chaplain may perform in a chapel on a military installation,” Pentagon spokesperson Eileen Lainez said in a statement.

“Chaplains are authorized to perform religious ceremonies consistent with the practices of the chaplain’s faith group in chapels on military installations.”

While Tidd’s April 13 memo may or may not be consistent with DOMA, it would certainly be consistent with President Obama’s conclusion that DOMA Section 3 is unconstitutional.

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