SGN August 24, 2012 - Section 1

Celebrating 39 Years!

Issue 34 Volume 40

FRIDAY August 24, 2012 FREE! 25¢ in bookstores & newsstands

pink-nic p. 4

velo p. 25

syphilis & porn p. 8

Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Inferno, Strokes win! SGN Exclusive Interview Triquetra Productions

Seattle Inferno boys at the Minneapolis GSWS 2012 Opening Party

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor This year, the Emerald City Softball Association (ECSA) sent seven teams to the 2012 Gay Softball World Series (GSWS) in Minneapolis to represent the city of Seattle, and two of them won

championship titles.

The ECSA is one of the biggest Gay softball leagues in the nation.

Its reach into the LGBTQ and allied communities is impressive, with players coming from every corner of the city to play on one of see ecsa page 19

nate gowdy / Seattle gay news

Two ECSA teams victorious Jay Inslee, Democrat for Governor at 2012 Gay Softball World Series by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer SGN spoke with Democratic candidate for governor Jay Inslee the day after a very successful fundraiser featuring Minnesota Sen. Al Franken. Inslee was even more upbeat than usual.

“We raised $40,000 in seven days,” he grinned. “I’m very excited.”

Inslee talked with SGN at the Organizing for America headquarters on Rainier Avenue. The building is festooned with campaign signs for Democratic candidates – from President Obama to Inslee to Bob Ferguson, the party’s candidate for attorney general.

Inslee’s campaign seems to be on a roll after a primary in which he beat Republican candidate Rob McKenna by four points, despite lagging behind in early polling.

“It was a very good showing,” Inslee said of his primary results.

“I’m very happy about it, to be ahead by four [points] when the other guy is a statewide officesee inslee page 21

Gubernatorial candidate Jay Inslee (l) and Minnesota Senator Al Franken

jeff roberson / ap

Local Catholics talk When the rape debate hits home marriage equality Sister Grammick discusses why the faithful should be our allies james whitely / seattle gay news

Francis DeBernardo (l) and Sister Jeannine Gramick

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer On Wednesday, August 22, about 60 local Catholics gathered at St. Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral to hear from two longtime Catholic friends of the LGBT community, who are unequivocal supporters of marriage equality. Sister Jeannine Gramick and Francis

DeBernardo of New Ways Ministry spoke on why Catholics should (and mostly do) support marriage equality and offered some historical perspective on the issue.

“We are committed to give a progressive Catholic witness on issues like marriage equality and others where we believe our hierarchy is out of touch,” said Betty, a local Catholic, introducing the two

nationally renowned speakers.

THE NUMBERS “Catholics are more supportive of marriage equality than any other denomination in the country,” said DeBernardo, “while public opinion seems to reflect the opposite.”

Citing polls from the Public Religion Research Institute, DeBernardo said only 22% of Catholics oppose same-sex marriage and 71% are in favor of same-sex civil marriage. According to DeBernardo, the reason these numbers are surprising to many people is because the leadership of the Catholic Church is so outspokenly against marriage equality.

DeBernardo reported that about one-fourth of the Catholics he’s spoken with say they regularly hear some sort of message about Gays and Lesbians in church, and two-thirds of that group say those messages are negative.

“That’s what’s causing that perception problem,” said DeBersee catholics page 20

Recent remarks by Senator Todd Akin have fueled anger and debate about rape.

by Mark Segal Publisher, Philadelphia Gay News Many years ago, my friend Jan was raped. The trauma was so great that she ended up taking her own life. This week I’ve watched the “debate” about rape unfold in the news thanks to a mindless, ignorant, ideological congressman from Missouri. And do you know what? I’m angry. I’m really angry. I’m not angry at him – I’m

proud to Be Different

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

angry at those who allowed this hate speech. Rape has one definition. Anyone who has been raped or knows someone who has been raped understands one thing: There is no such thing as “forcibly raped” or “legitimately raped.”

It is only one word: rape. And it is horrific. You can’t repackage it: It is simply rape. There’s no reason for me to elaborate on what a special person Jan was. Rape kills, see rape page 6

Call us at 206.568.2486

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August 24, 2012

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Celebrating 39 Years!

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August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News

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Editor In Chief George Bakan Associate Editor Shaun Knittel Production William Creswell Calendar Editors Mike Andrew and Rick McKinnon Travel Editor George Bakan Advertising Manager Marty Weisbrod Advertising Department Maggie Bloodstone Executive Assistant Mike Andrew Staff Writers

Out & Equal’s Pinknic event boosts marriage campaign, workplace awareness Out and Equal

Mike Andrew, Miryam Gordon, Anthony Greer, Shaun Knittel, Albert Rodriguez, James Whitely

Pink: the new color of money

riage means family in a way that no other word can, and that same-sex couples want to marry for the same reasons as anyone – as a public vow and lifetime commitment to the person they love.

Contributing Writers

Rev. Barbara Allen, Eric Andrews-Katz, Madelyn Arnold, Maggie Bloodstone, Beau Burriola, Jessica Davis, Ron Anders, Jessica Price, Milton W. Hamlin, Scott Wittet, Nevin Jefferson, Jason A. Miller, Liz Meyer, Rod Parke, Don Paulson, Scott Rice, Leslie Robinson, Richard Kennedy, Rex Wockner

Classifieds Mike Andrew and Rick McKinnon Photographers

Nate Gowdy, 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 Frogs and Ink, Inc. © 2012, 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.

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In Loving Memory Of

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Seattle Gay News

Local drag entertainer, community advocate and organizer Aleksa Manila (center) hosted PINKnic, the annual networking/social event of all the major LGBTQ Employee Resource Groups in the Metro Seattle area, like Amazon.com, Starbucks, Boeing, Microsoft and more.

by Aleksa Manila Special to the SGN All shades of pink from fuchsia to raspberry were certainly everywhere at Pinknic on August 18. This second annual social networking event produced by Out & Equal Seattle, committed to ending employment discrimination for LGBT employees, was held at Amazon’s downtown Seattle campus. Amazon is home to one of Out & Equal’s Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), a network of LGBT workplace advocacy committees. ERGs have also been established at Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air, AT&T, Bank of America, Best Buy, Boeing, Disney, Expedia, Google, Hyatt Hotels, Microsoft, Perkins Coie LLP, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Starbucks, and many other companies nationwide.

August 24, 2012

In addition to the social aspect of the event, with raffle prizes, music, and entertainment, the event chose to support and advocate for the Pride Foundation’s Why Marriage Matters campaign, for which it raised over $5,000. The event highlighted an ask spearheaded by Michael Mattmiller, former chair of Out & Equal, which raised over $2,000 alone from participants donating in the hundreds – mostly from Starbucks, which matched their donations.

The campaign, a series of on-camera interviews, is part of an ongoing public education effort in partnership with several community-based organizations. The interviews, which feature same-sex couples, opposite-sex couples, and local community leaders, offer compelling stories and personal testimonies about why marriage matters to us all. The foundation believes that mar-

CREATING SAFE WORKPLACES Judah Travis, programming chair for Out & Equal and law student recruiting manager at Perkins Coie, says, “Supporting marriage equality means that I work toward creating the vision of how I feel my life should turn out, according to the picture I’ve always had in my head – married, happy, equal to others, and living a beautiful life.” Travis coyly adds, “With a hot husband.”

Travis, who was stage-shy at the event, was the lead event coordinator for Pinknic’s success. He is involved with Out & Equal because, he says, “there’s so much work to be done – bringing people together, educating others (both GLBT and straight allies), providing a sense of community and connection. When much is given, much will be asked. It’s a responsibility to be active.”

For many LGBT employees, safe space is a key element of professional success and well-being. Out & Equal believes that people should be judged by the work they do, not by their sexual orientation or gender identity. The organization works to protect and empower employees to be productive and successful, so they can support themselves and their families and contribute to achieving a world free of discrimination.

This is not true for everyone. Travis remarks, “Not everyone needs to be out. Each person has his or her own timeline to come out – either they are not ready to share that, or they may not work in a culture where they would be safe or successful.”

He asserts, however, that “I want each person who is considering coming out at work to know that others have been where they are now and stand with them and for them, and they have the help of organizations like Out & Equal to educate managers, executives, and co-workers to come out safely and constructively.”

Out & Equal is dedicated to equal policies and benefits, talent management and professional development, workplace climate, community commitment, advocacy, and corporate responsibility. Travis trusts that “by being involved, men and women in the Puget Sound can make new contacts and seek new employment opportunities with organizations that will not only encourage them to be out, but celebrate with them.”

For more information about Out & Equal, visit www.outandequal.org/seattle. To learn more about, or donate to, the Why Marriage Matters campaign, go to www.pridefoundation.org/whymarriagematterswa/.

Aleksa Manila is the host of Pinknic.

Celebrating 39 Years!

courtesy q

New Capitol Hill nightclub finishing interior Q is set to open September 8 that Pike and Pine were in trouble. The spin cycle went on forever, it seemed. And, well, I don’t think we need to go into what hapQ, a new Seattle nightclub featuring pened and how the excitable members of electronic dance music and creative cock- our nightlife community were way off the tails located in the heart of the Capitol Hill mark. neighborhood (between Pike and Union at A NEW ATTITUDE 1426 Broadway), is set to open September 8 Which brings me to the point: Smith and with a preview party September 7.

More information will be available soon Schmitt have not been nauseating in their posturing, have not been publicly venomat www.QCapitolHill.com.

On August 22, owner C. Scott Smith, ous to already existing LGBTQ-owned and alongside general manager Ryan Schmitt operated businesses on the Hill, and have and PR specialist Kirsten Graham, gave really put a lot of work into Q. Isn’t it amazmembers of the local LGBTQ and main- ing how a business owner and manager can stream media tours of the impressive actually accomplish something when they 12,000-square-foot converted auto-rebuild aren’t worried about everyone else?

There is no doubt about it: Q looks good. space. The remodel, designed by the firm of Bohlin Cywinski Jackson (whose past There is a warm feeling to its design – the projects include Seattle City Hall and the whole place seems to hug you because the Apple stores in New York and London), is a designers eschewed hard angles and dramatwelcome respite from what we normally see ic turns. The space has a surprisingly natural built, opened, and in some cases (e.g., EVO flow to it. One thing that might stand out as Tapas Kitchen & Cabaret) close because the odd or different is that there is no traditional, product, décor, and/or service just couldn’t square stage for performances. However, I would urge everyone (i.e., drag queens) to live up to the hype.

I could go on and on about how beautiful remain calm and not lose your shit, because the place looks. But I’m not going to, be- the space is not designed to be square. It has cause Q already has been Facebook-posted, smaller, rounder, and – I’ll say it – smarter tweeted about, and blogged about to death. raised areas on the main floor where people The nightclub hasn’t yet even opened its can sit or dance, and where guest entertaindoors, but I feel as though it has because ers can perform.

What I have seen so far, after talking to hysterical queens (who apparently will suffocate if they don’t have a shiny new venue Smith face-to-face, is that he is a man of his promising to change their life) have talked word. He has said, from the beginning, “Q this place up to a level that no club could will give Seattle a space that gets back to the basics of what a club should be about. We possibly achieve.

Are we seeing a pattern, Capitol Hill? want to avoid the elitist attitudes of upscale I remember the – what was it? – a year, lounges with separate VIP areas and instead maybe more, of media, socialites, and shit- provide our customers with a cohesive, imstarters blasting social networks and blogs mediate relationship to the DJ, music, peowith predictions that The Social was going ple, and the club itself.” to change nightlife on the Hill forever, and

by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor

Artist rendering of the finished bar at Q on Seattle’s Capitol Hill

SIGHT AND SOUND Smith has lived in Seattle since 2003, but is originally from Kentucky where his family has deep bourbon ties – which would explain The Bourbon Bar and why it is featured so prominently in Q. The space can be set up as either a semi-private or private area and can accommodate up to 25 people.

The sound is as good as advertised.

They’ve installed a custom system from Funktion One and lighting design by SJ Lighting. It is the best-looking and sounding dance floor on the Hill – possibly even the city at this moment. Serious music-heads and dancers will want to check out Q for that reason alone.

Everything else remains to be seen – only time will tell. SGN will save the real review until the club has been open for a few weeks because, as we’ve seen before more often

than not, service often begins to slip, the place begins to tatter and fade, and before you know it, it’s gone. I have high hopes for Q. In my opinion they are starting out right. No one has been pushed out – everyone seems to have been brought to the table.

They are not calling the place a Gay bar, because, c’mon, it’s 2012. Another breath of fresh air is the announcement that bigname DJs and national entertainers will be booked. And they are approaching the use of drag queens from a less-is-more standpoint – not for any other reason than that Q is a nightclub where they want people to dance, drink, and then dance and drink some more.

There’s nothing wrong with that.

Seattle Gay News would like to wish the ownership and management of Q all the best. Welcome to the neighborhood. If you treat her well, she will love you back.

Seattle Prime Timers celebrate 20 years

Group for mature Gay men is a warm and welcoming social organization

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer Seattle’s chapter of Prime Timers (SPT), an organization for mature Gay men and their younger admirers, is celebrating its 20th anniversary next month. For two decades the organization has served not just as a social club, but also as a source of community and family for its members.

“SPT has been a warm and welcoming social organization since the outset – a kind of refuge for Gay men,” wrote Gregry Loomis, secretary and chairman of SPT, in his most recent monthly chairman’s address.

Prime Timers offers an opportunity for older Gay men to meet each other in social settings other than bars. Loomis said that while hookups might happen as a result, Prime Timers is really more of a social club.

“It’s not necessarily a sex club,” Loomis told SGN. “For many men our age we’ve kind of been there, done that.”

CHANGING WITH THE TIMES Over it’s 20-year history here in Seattle, some things have changed significantly within the organization, primarily because

society itself has changed.

When SPT was first conceived, it wasn’t uncommon for members to be closeted, married, or divorced.

“I remember in the past, some members wouldn’t want to give their birth date or street address, or have their picture taken at events,” Loomis told SGN. Loomis also notes that for these kinds of members, back then, the opportunity to hook up was much more present in the minds of people looking into joining the organization. But nowadays, because society at large has become more accepting of the LGBT community and people are coming out earlier in their lives than they were 20 years ago, that need has already been met for many people.

Still, Loomis said, sometimes people join the club expecting casual hookups and are disappointed when they realize it’s not really what the club is for.

And while a larger percentage of SPT members are out than in the past, Loomis said that at least a third of the current members came out later in life, after marrying and having kids.

What hasn’t changed at all, though, is that

those men can feel at home in Prime Timers.

“You don’t find that everywhere – especially in Gay groups, especially in Gay FRIENDS BECOME FAMILY bars,” Loomis told SGN. “We’ve been Over the years SPT has lost members for blessed with some very mature men who various reasons. When a member passes have good hearts.” away, it’s usually a pretty somber moment Java Talk started just after the release of for the tightly knit group. the 2005 film Brokeback Mountain.

“Friends become your family when “Many of us were moved and wanted to you’re older, especially if you’re Gay, be- talk about [the film],” said Loomis. “It was cause most of us don’t have children,” said such a success that we decided to keep doLoomis. “When members go to the hospi- ing it.” tal, often other members will go and visit SPT will celebrate its 20th anniversary on them.”

September 16 at its monthly potluck. The One of SPT’s signature events is their organization currently has about 50 memmonthly “Java Talk,” which is exactly what bers, the oldest of whom is 86. Anyone over it sounds like – a monthly event where 18 is welcome, although most members are members simply get together over coffee to over 40. For more information on SPT, visit chat about whatever is on their minds. www.seattleprimetimers.org.

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

August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News

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Fewer circumcisions means higher risk of STDs, new study says

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The decline in circumcisions means a higher risk for sexually transmitted diseases, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins University researchers. The report was published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

About 55% of the two million males born in the U.S. every year are circumcised, a dramatic decrease from 79% in the 1980s.

Because bacteria and viruses can accumulate under the foreskin, circumcision is believed to lower the risk of STDs like HIV/ AIDS, herpes, genital warts, and genital cancers.

As a result, circumcision has been promoted as a low-cost, low-risk preventive measure in Africa and other Third World areas, where sexually transmitted infections have reached epidemic proportions. It has gotten less attention in the U.S., where 18 state Medicare programs have dropped coverage of the procedure and private insurers have followed, researchers said.

“States’ efforts to reduce current costs by eliminating Medicaid coverage for male circumcision are penny-wise and poundfoolish,” Arleen Leibowitz and Katherine Desmond of UCLA’s Center for HIV Identification, Prevention, and Treatment Services wrote in an editorial accompanying the Johns Hopkins study.

“Investing today in a relatively lowcost procedure will avert greater future treatment costs for cancer, HIV, and other STIs,” they wrote, calling on the federal government to reclassify the procedure as a mandatory service.

“Indeed, the groups that Medicaid covers are precisely those that experience the greatest prevalence of HIV and other STIs, which male circumcision can effectively avert,” Leibowitz and Desmond wrote.

CULTURAL BARRIERS REMAIN “If there were a vaccine that reduced HIV infection, genital herpes and warts, penile cancer, cervical cancer, and bacterial vaginosis, it would be promoted as a game-changing intervention and all physicians would encourage their patients to get it,” Johns Hopkins epidemiologist Aaron Tobian said.

“The difference is this is a surgery with very minor complications, and it also has a cultural tone to it.”

Johns Hopkins health economists said U.S. health care costs might increase by $4.4 billion in the next decade if U.S. circumcision rates plunge to the level of Europe, where only 10% of boys are circumcised.

Every time a circumcision is avoided, $313 is added in direct illness-related expenses, not counting the cost of the procedure, Tobian said.

“All state Medicaid and private insurers should cover male circumcision and we should eliminate all of the current barriers.

Families should discuss the risks and benefits of the procedure with their physicians and decide what is best for them,” he recommended.

Tobian criticized the American Academy of Pediatrics, which is currently reviewing its policy on circumcision. The academy does not recognize any of the health benefits linked to the procedure, despite overwhelming evidence, he said.

rape

I wonder why those same people don’t use the phrase “sanctity of our borders” against those who are pro-immigration?

I’m not going to debate any of the three issues I just raised, but I will raise the name of the Tea Party here. That band of creatures thinks they are fighting to take their country back. Back from whom? From us? Theirs is truly a holier-than-thou attitude.

Mitt Romney, you bent over backward to please this group. I hope you’re proud of how you’ve empowered your party. Paul Ryan, you were already a Tea Party guy before there was a Tea Party. You helped coin the phrase “forcibly raped” thanks to your co-sponsorship of legislation with that ignorant congressman from Missouri. Between now and Election Day, I’ll be reminding people of who you are and the ideas you espouse. If there ever were a time to encourage people to vote, now is it. I’ll remember my friend Jan. For you, readers, think of yourselves and your sisters, nieces, mothers, and daughters during debates about rape and abortion.

continued from cover

rape destroys. Not only the person raped, but the family’s life as well.

About five percent of women who are raped get pregnant. For some of them, the horrific, violent way they became pregnant is something that they can’t live with for nine months. Although my friend Jan did not get pregnant, I couldn’t imagine asking her about what it would be like to relive those moments of violence for nine months and then look at her child and try to think of anything else but that incident.

And yet there are still people out there who try and control what women do with their bodies. And while I didn’t want to have this personal column become partisan, as I write this I hear on the TV in the background that the Republican Party platform committee has approved language that opposes abortion on any grounds, including rape or incest. Then I hear a party spokesperson give the reason, and I hear the words “sanctity of life.” And it makes me angrier. These Mark Segal can be reached at mark@ are the same people who use “sanctity of marriage” against Gay marriage supporters. epgn.com.

Neil James Headland

Neil passed away on August 4, 2012, in Seattle from complications of liver disease. He was preceded in death by his mother, father, stepfather, and beloved dog. He is survived by his cat Hector, one brother in Canada, and by a group of the most wonderful friends and extended family of choice, whose love and strength car-

ried him through his final months. It is their love and strength that made it possible for him to reach the stairs to heaven.

Neil remembers his co-workers from the Food and Nutrition Department at Northwest Hospital in Seattle, where Neil was the executive chef. Special thanks to Kathy Heffernan, Chaplin at Northwest, for her spiritual guidance, which gave him spiritual strength, as well as the nursing staff at UW Medical Center for their loving care while he was at that hospital.

“Do not look for me, for I am not there.

I am now the whisper on the wind, the ripple on a wave, the babble of a mountain stream. I have not gone, for I live on in your heats, a memory, or a smile. Drink a cup of tea, and I will be there. See me in a sunset. Hear me in a song.”

Remembrances to PAWS and Employee Helping Hands of Northwest Hospital and Medical Center.

Neil will always be remembered as The Great Pharaoh Nook-Nack Nellie!

A Celebration Service is planned for September 30, 2012. Please visit Facebook for details:http://tinyurl.com/Neil-RSVP1.

Rich Full-Bodied Cafes Savory Homestyle Soups & Sandwiches 6

Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

Celebrating 39 Years!

glaad

Fourth DOMA case appealed to Supreme Court Plaintiffs in Pedersen v. OPM hope to bypass appeals court

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer GLAD (Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders) has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review Pedersen v. OPM, one of several cases challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act. GLAD filed its petition for a writ of certiorari – the legal document indicating the Supreme Court will take the case – on August 21. It is the fourth DOMA case the Supreme Court has been asked to review.

At issue is the constitutionality of Section 3 of DOMA, which states that “the word ‘marriage’ means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word ‘spouse’ refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife.”

Federal District Judge Vanessa Bryant ruled in the Pedersen case on July 31 that Section 3 violated the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution because “no conceivable rational basis exists for the provision.”

Pedersen was filed by GLAD in November 2010 on behalf of six same-sex married couples and one widower, all of whom claim they were denied federal benefits they would have received had they been opposite-sex married couples.

Lead plaintiff Joanne Pedersen is a federal retiree who was not allowed to cover her spouse, Ann Meitzen, under her employerprovided health insurance. Meitzen, as a result, has to use more than half of her Social Security benefits to pay for her own coverage.

EXPEDITED RULING SOUGHT Having been decided in a U.S. District Court, the case would usually go on appeal to a U.S. Circuit Court – in this case, the Second Circuit. GLAD’s petition to the Supreme Court is intended to expedite hearings on DOMA. GLAD’s petition is the fourth to reach the Supreme Court on the constitutionality of DOMA. The Obama administration has asked the Supreme Court to hear Gill v.

OPM and Golinski v. OPM. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is the U.S. government agency responsible for administering federal benefit plans, which is why it is the named defendant in these suits. The House Republican leadership, through its so-called Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG), is asking the Supreme Court to reverse the First Circuit Court in Gill.

The ACLU has also asked the court to hear Windsor v. United States, another DOMA case.

Gill has already been heard by the First Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld a district court ruling that DOMA is unconstitutional. In the other cases, DOMA was found unconstitutional by district courts, and the appeal to the Supreme Court is intended – as in Pedersen – to get final disposition more quickly.

In its petition to the Supreme Court, GLAD outlined its legal criticism of DOMA. “DOMA compels all federal agencies to disregard the lawful marriages entered into by each of the Petitioners, who married af-

Janet Geller and Joanne Marquis are two of the plaintiffs named in Pedersen v. OPM.

ter long and dedicated relationships to each other,” GLAD said.

DOMA, the petition continues, “makes the Petitioners feel ‘singled out for disrespect’ and ‘like second-class citizens’ with marriages that are ‘not respected and

valued,’ and that don’t ‘mean what [they] should, or what other people’s marriages mean.’ It ‘artificially divides [their] family’ and conveys to their children ‘that our marriage and family … don’t count’ in the eyes of their government.”

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Brittney Leon checked into Spring Valley Hospital in Las Vegas on July 20 with complications in her pregnancy. She and her domestic partner, Terri-Ann Simonelli, both assumed that Simonelli could make any medical decisions for her.

Under Nevada’s constitution, only opposite-sex couples can get married, but a 2009 law established domestic partnerships for same-sex couples.

Nevertheless, the hospital’s admissions officer told Simonelli she would be able to make medical decisions for her partner only if she had power of attorney.

Simonelli offered to go home and retrieve their certificate of domestic partnership, which the couple keeps framed on their wall. Not good enough, the hospital staffer said. Hospital policy insisted on power of attorney.

Leon was in serious condition, and the couple, distraught over her medical problems and upset over the hospital’s policy, felt they were in no position to fight about the issue.

Although the couple said they were treated well by doctors and nurses at the hospital, Leon ended up losing her baby.

Simonelli told the Las Vegas ReviewJournal that the doctor knew the couple

and took the time to update her periodically while Leon was in surgery. There was, however, a 90-minute period when the doctor had to attend to another patient, and Simonelli was kept in the dark.

She finally asked a nurse and was told her partner was already in the recovery room.

The couple questioned whether an oppositesex spouse would have had to wait that long before finding out what happened to his or her spouse.

“If a straight couple says ‘This is my husband,’ no one questions it. I shouldn’t have to prove who I am,” Leon said.

“I am usually a big fighter. But I was so emotionally upset. It was a very bad day for us,” Simonelli said. “We went there thinking we had the state’s backing, and then we were told we were wrong. It didn’t matter that we were registered domestic partners. It should matter.”

‘EQUIVALENT OF MARRIAGE’?

Nevada’s domestic partnership law, like Washington’s, says domestic partnership is essentially the equivalent of marriage.

“Domestic partners have the same rights, protections and benefits, and are subject to the same responsibilities, obligations and duties under law, whether derived from statutes, administrative regulations, court rules, government policies, common law or any other provisions or sources of law, as are

David Becker/Las Vegas Review-Journal

Nevada hospital incident shows importance of marriage equality

Brittney Leon (l) and Terri-Ann Simonelli

granted to and imposed upon spouses,” the law says.

It also provides that “Domestic partners have the same right to nondiscriminatory treatment as that provided to spouses.”

But when the law goes on to enumerate specific rights and responsibilities of domestic partners, the ability to make medical decisions for each other is not mentioned.

There is also no penalty specified for discriminating against same-sex domestic partners.

Same-sex couples may file a complaint with the Nevada Equal Rights Commission, which will then investigate and seek some resolution of the dispute.

Commission administrator Shelley Chinchilla told the Review-Journal she knows of

only one complaint filed by domestic partners accusing a business of violating the law.

Spring Valley Hospital declined to comment on the case when contacted by SGN. A hospital spokesperson reportedly hung up on a Review-Journal reporter who asked about compliance with the state’s domestic partnership law.

Nevada Assemblyman Tick Segerblom said he might propose a bill next year that would put more “teeth” in laws designed to stop discrimination against Gay and Transgender people. Segerblom suggested a “private right of action” for those who believe they are victims of discrimination. That would allow them to sue an offending business for damages.

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

August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News

7

Reputed Stonewall Inn owner dies

Mobster Matty Ianniello once controlled a large swath of NYC’s liquor trade

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer

A VICE EMPIRE At that time, Ianniello was a capo in the Genovese crime family, ruling over a Mafia fiefdom that included Gay bars, control over Teamsters locals that drove the liquor trucks, and an underground liquor distribution network with booze procured from truck hijackings.

Because the New York State Liquor Authority had ruled that Gay bars promoted “disorderly behavior” and therefore were not entitled to liquor licenses, the Mafia happily moved in to run illegal clubs, and just as happily paid off police to look the other way.

Gay patrons, who had no other bars where they were welcomed, then paid – happily or not – inflated prices for watered-down drinks made with stolen liquor.

It was only some years after the Stonewall riots in 1969 that openly Gay owners began to get liquor licenses, for bars such as The Ballroom and Reno Sweeney, and the Mafia

ap

Mafia capo Matthew “Matty the Horse” Ianniello, reportedly the owner of the Stonewall Inn and several other New York City Gay bars in the 1960s and ’70s, passed away on August 15 at his home in Old Westbury, Long Island. He was 92.

Unlike many of his mob colleagues, Ianniello died of natural causes.

Ianniello’s mastery of what an MBA would call vertical integration – control of both bars and liquor distribution – made him a powerhouse in New York’s bar industry.

Tony Lauria, the legal owner of the Stonewall – ground zero for the modern Gay Liberation Movement – was said to be a front man for Ianniello.

Ianniello also owned the notorious hustler bar The Hay Market, in Times Square; the Gilded Grape, which catered to crossdressers, just down the street from The Hay Market; and the world-famous Peppermint Lounge, later reincarnated as Hollywood and G.G. Barnum’s Room. He also owned most of Manhattan’s straight topless bars.

“If you want to open a bar-and-grill or sex establishment in midtown Manhattan but don’t have the cash or have some other

problem, you go see Matty Ianniello,” New York Times crime reporter Selwyn Raab was told by a police detective.

“You don’t run a bar-and-grill or sex establishment between 34th and 59th streets from Fifth Avenue to the Hudson River without Matty having a piece of the action,” the detective added.

clubs, Ianniello also owned Umberto’s Clam House in New York’s Little Italy neighborhood, where mobster “Crazy Joe” Gallo was gunned down in 1972. Some people accused Ianniello of tipping off Gallo’s rivals that he was in the restaurant, thus giving them the opportunity to murder him, but Ianniello always denied it.

“He later told the cops he wouldn’t bump off Gallo in his own restaurant,” Raab wrote.

A decorated World War II veteran, Ianniello was reportedly sponsored into the Genovese crime family

by Frank “Funzi” Tieri in the early 1960s. He was indicted at least five times on various racketeering, extortion, and loan-sharking charges, and served several prison terms.

He was last released from prison in 2009 after serving 18 months for collecting unlawful payments from some officials of Local 1181 of the Amalgamated Transit Workers Union and obstructing a grand jury investigation into the relationship between Local 1181 and the Genovese family.

Ianniello is said to have made millions of dollars from his various businesses.

Matty Ianniello

began to lose control of the business.

The mob did not go quietly, however, and over the next 15 years it used threats, violence, and even murder in an attempt to maintain its market share. Between 1970 and 1985, a string of bar owners, employees, truckers, and vending machine operators were shot dead. None of those murders were ever solved.

Besides his string of Gay bars and strip

by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Adult movie studios in Los Angeles, the center of the U.S. porn industry, have shut down for the third time in three years, after an actor was diagnosed with syphilis. The previous shutdowns, in 2010 and 2011, involved actors who tested positive for HIV. According to porn talent agents Shy Love and Derek Hay, the male actor (whose name has not been released) tested positive for syphilis in July, but continued to work for three weeks with a phony test result.

Love told XBIZ News that she cut the actor from her roster on August 16, after he admitted he had syphilis.

“Our first instinct was the safety of the

talent,” Love said. “We’re not going to hide something because the talent happens to be on our roster. It’s important to make talent aware that there is one positive performer and they should get tested because there is a potential risk right now.”

According to Love, the actor shot three scenes while knowing he had syphilis, one of them with a female performer represented by Hay’s agency.

Hay said that the actor’s health status was discovered August 7, when the film’s producer noticed irregularities in the scene paperwork, which includes reports on the actors’ STD tests.

“He realized that the syphilis portion of the test result was missing, and that is what triggered the in-depth analysis,” Hay ex-

Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times

Syphilis case shuts down LA porn industry

AIDS Healthcare Foundation protesters shown here picketing last year have been advocating for mandatory condom use during porn film shoots.

plained.

“That producer contacted me to see if there was another test on the same performer to compare a version of the test to see if there was a difference.”

The comparison revealed the truth about the actor’s status, and he then agreed to cooperate with investigators. He reportedly told Love and Hay that he plans to report all the information about his three scenes so they can notify everyone who may have been infected.

The producer who recognized the discrepancy on the test is also involved with identifying potential performers affected, the agents said.

NO WRONGDOING ALLEGED Talent Testing Service, which tests for syphilis as part of its regular STD panel, did nothing wrong with its handling of the performer’s test result, both Love and Hay said.

The actor told Hay he was feeling ill in mid-July and underwent tests with his personal physician, who diagnosed syphilis and prescribed medication.

8

Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

He was tested again on July 21, approximately a week later, at Talent Testing Service, which also identified the performer as positive for syphilis. Because of privacy standards, TTS did not notify his agent, Love, of the positive test.

The porn industry has been severely criticized for failing to enforce adequate health and safety standards to prevent actors with HIV or other STDs from infecting other performers. In January the L.A. City Council made condom use mandatory for porn actors performing inside city limits, and in November, L.A. County voters will consider an initiative to do the same in unincorporated areas of the county.

Roughly 20,000 pornographic scenes are shot per year in the Los Angeles area. Bigger companies tend to produce four or five films per month, allowing them to stockpile releases.

The industry as a whole is thought to generate $14 billion in revenue per year, but income from porn films has been shrinking lately, analysts say, due to illegal copying and to an abundance of free content on the Internet.

Celebrating 39 Years!

NORTHWEST

NEWS

compiled by Rick McKinnon SGN Staff Writer

REGISTER TO VOTE Register to vote at myvote.wa.gov.

Mail-in voter registration forms can also be obtained in person at city and county public libraries and county election offices around the state. For more information on the 2012 election, visit www.vote.wa.gov.

The deadline for online and mail-in voter registration as well as CHANGES OF ADDRESS and other updates is Monday, October 8. (Because Monday, October 8, is a federal holiday, if you are planning to mail in your voter registration, you are advised to mail it in no later than Saturday, October 6, before the last mailbox pick up time that day, because the post office will not be processing mail on October 8.)

Because Washington State has a voteby-mail system, it is important to submit changes of address to ensure you receive your ballot in the mail. If you have not submitted a change of address by October 8, you can still vote, but you will need to pick up your ballot from your previous address or contact your county elections office for information on other voting options.)

The FINAL deadline for NEW (in person only) Washington State voter registration is Monday, October 29. After October 8, the only option to register to vote in Washington State is to go in person to your county elections office. The King County Elections Office is located at 919 SW Grady Way, Renton, WA 98057. The Snohomish County Elections Office is located at 3000 Rockefeller Ave. #505, Everett, WA 98201. The Pierce County Elections Office is located at 2501 S. 35th St., Tacoma, WA 98409. For other county locations contact the Washington State Elections Office, 360902-4180.

The 18-day mail-in voting period for the 2012 General Election is October 19-November 6.

Ballots must be postmarked no later than Tuesday, November 6. If you mail your ballot on Tuesday, November 6, be sure to put your ballot in the mail box before that mail box’s last scheduled pick up of the day so that it is postmarked November 6. (Earlier voting is recommended.) Your county elections office can also provide you with locations where you can drop off your ballot in person.

The November 6 General Election has several important candidates and issues on the ballot – including President of the United States, Governor of the State of Washington, Attorney General of the State of Washington, Referendum 74 to APPROVE Marriage Equality (LGBTQ Marriage) in Washington State, and Initiative 502 to Decriminalize Marijuana in Washington State.

For more information, contact the Washington State Elections Office, 360-9024180; 800-448-4881 (voter hotline).

NATE GOWDY – PHOTO EXHIBITS AROUND TOWN Celebrated SGN photographer Nate Gowdy is displaying and selling his photographs around town at two locations in August! His work can be seen at The Grill on Broadway (314 Broadway E.) and Frame Central (901 E. Pike St.) in the upstairs gallery. His work “Elderly Drag Queen” was recently selected to be published in the leading juried photography annual in North America. For inquiries regarding Nate’s event and wedding photo services, contact nate.gowdy@gmail.com or 206-992-5857.

BORDER RIDERS MOTORCYCLE CLUB SUMMER CAMPING The Border Riders Motorcycle Club is the largest and one of the oldest Gay motorcycle clubs in North America. Founded in 1969, BRMC currently has over 70 members primarily from Washington, Oregon and British Columbia. The club provides social and educational opportunities for our members and guests interested in recreational mo-

torcycle touring. Our diverse, international membership is composed of both seasoned riders and beginners, and we come from all walks of life and professions.

Border Riders hosts a short monthly Meet and Greet gathering on the Wednesday before the third weekend of each month at 7 p.m., at The Cuff Complex (1533 13th Ave.). The next Meet and Greet will be held on Wednesday, September 13.

From May through October, BRMC hosts monthly weekend camping trips – May 1821, June 15-17, July 20-22, August 24-26, September 21-23, and October 19-21. www.borderriders.com.

“ALL THINGS JAPANESE SALE!” – JAPANESE CULTURAL & COMMUNITY CENTER OF WA – “ALL THINGS JAPANESE SALE!” On Saturday and Sunday, August 25-26, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of WA (1414 S. Weller St., at Rainier Ave. S.), presents their annual “All Things Japanese Sale!”

Not your average rummage sale, this event features an eclectic variety of new and used quality Japanese antiques, collectibles, and more, including kimono, records, CDs, DVDs, kitchen and cooking items, ornaments and giftware, ikebana, tea ceremony, tableware, pottery, toys and dolls, tools, furnishings, art, textiles, books. All proceeds benefit JCCCW. Free admission. www. jcccw.org.

NOTE: A special sneak preview night will be held on Friday, August 24, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Sneak preview admission: $25 members; $50 nonmembers.

SISTERS OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE – CRAPTACULAR RUMMAGE SALE On Saturday, August 25, from 11 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sunday, August 26, from noon-6 p.m., at All Pilgrims Church (Broadway E. & E. Republican St.) the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the Abbey of St. Joan, host their annual Craptacular Rummage Sale to benefit All Pilgrims Church and the Sisters Granting Fund.

MR. & MISS NEIGHBOURS PAGEANT 2012 On Sunday, August 26, doors at 7 p.m., pageant at 8 p.m., at Neighbours Nightclub (1509 Broadway, entrance in alley off E. Pike St.), join hosts Gaysha Starr and Ebony La Face with special guest performers and Mr. & Miss Neighbours 2011, Ceasar Hart and Bianca Starr, for the 2012 Mr. & Miss Neighbours Pageant. Donations to benefit Washington United for Marriage/Approve Referendum 74 campaign.

SEATTLE GAY & LESBIAN BOOK CLUB – GOODBYE TO BERLIN The Seattle Gay & Lesbian Book Club meets every Wednesday from 6-7:15 p.m., at Seattle Area Support Groups Community Center (303 17th Ave. E. at E. Thomas St.).

August selection is Christopher Isherwood’s Goodbye to Berlin.

All GLBTQ folks are welcome to participate in this free book club. For more information email nickdimartin@earthlink.net, visit http://faculty.washington.edu/swittet/ SGLBookClub/ or contact SASG at 206322-2437; www.sasgcc.org. For discount on cost of books, email Nick.

BLACK NAIL KARAOKE AT JULIA’S ON BROADWAY WEDNESDAY EVENINGS Black Nail Karaoke is now hosting karaoke on Wednesday evenings, 9 p.m.-1 a.m., at Julia’s on Broadway (Broadway E. & E. Thomas St.).

CHRISTIANS AND JEWS SUPPORT MARRIAGE EQUALITY On Monday, August 30, from 7-8:30 p.m., at Queen Anne United Methodist Church

Visit us online www.sgn.org

(1606 5th Ave. W.), join The Well with special guests Rep. Jamie Pedersen, the Pride Foundation, Rev. Stephen Crippen, and Rabbi Olivier BenHaim at a forum on marriage equality.

Do you belong to a church or synagogue and support marriage equality? When people ask how you as a person of faith can support marriage equality, what do you say?

Come and learn some language to help you explain how your scriptures and traditions actually help you support marriage equality.

Are you LGBTQI and tired of hearing religion used against you? Attend the forum and see that people of faith – straight and Gay – support equal rights.

XL WEEKEND – A NEW SEATTLE BEAR RUN AUGUST 30-SEPTEMBER 3 www.XLWeekend.com.

www.camptrc.org or on Facebook.

DIFFA/SEATTLE & MASIN’S “GLAM TABLESCAPES” – WINE + DINE + DESIGN Taking inspiration from DIFFA’s national “Dining by Design” event, this year Masin’s and DIFFA/Seattle present “GLAM: Tablescapes,” a two-day extravaganza celebrating wine, entertaining and design at Masin’s in Bellevue (10708 Main St., Bellevue.

On Friday, September 7, at 6 p.m., enjoy a tablehop party with couture hors d’oeuvres, wine bar and specialty cocktails, DJ entertainment and luxury silent auction. Tickets: $45-$75 at diffaseattle.org.

On Saturday, September 8, at 2 p.m., enjoy spirited, informative presentations by a panel of design and entertaining experts at a FREE Tabletalk Design Seminar that is open the public.

“EQUINOX 2012” – MR. PLANET ADONIS CONTEST SEATTLE MEN IN LEATHER’S On Friday, August 31, 7 p.m. silent aucANNUAL LEATHER WEEKEND tion, 8 p.m. fashion show, Planet Adonis SEPTEMBER 7-9 presents the Mr. Planet Adonis Contest at www.SeattleMeninLeather.org the Filapino Community Center’s Grand Ballroom (5740 Martin Luther King, Jr. KENT PRIDE 2012 Way). Party with the models after the conSEPTEMBER 8-9 test. Tickets: $15-general; $25 VIP. Dress The City of Kent, WA is having its own code: Semi-Formal. Applications for the contest are still being accepted. For reserva- Pride event in September! On Saturday, tions and applications, call 206-458-1782. September 8, come down to the Long Dog Portion of the proceeds will benefit Pamilya. Tavern (209 E. Meeker St.) for an evening kick-off get together at 8 p.m. Come in drag, BUMBERSHOOT come anyway you like, bring friends! The AUGUST 31-SEPTEMBER 3 next day, from 2-5 p.m., join us at the Gawww.bumbershoot.org zebo Stage located at the Burlington Green Park, just off Railroad and E. Meeker St. BOYZ IN THE WOODS Guests include Mayor Suzette Cooke, Kent Q-SQUARED CAMP City Council President Dennis Higgins, LABOR DAY WEEKEND State Representative Dave Upthegrove, and A weekend for Gay, Bisexual and Trans- many more to speak about the importance of gender men, 8/31-9/3. Cost: $195. www. getting the word out to vote in November. qcamp.org.

Come show your support for the LGBTQ community and rally for our rights! This NORTHWEST LEATHER event is endorsed and sponsored by the Kent WEEKEND Downtown Partnership and Long Dog TavAUGUST 31-SEPTEMBER 3 ern.

Generic Leather Productions of WA presents Northwest Leather Weekend 2012.

IMPERIAL COURT OF SEATTLE – Friday, August 31, 7-10 p.m., Meet & Greet KING & QUEEN OF HEARTS Cigar Social at Doghouse Leathers (1312 E. PAGEANT Pike St.). Saturday, September 1, 1-3 p.m., On Saturday, September 8, door at 6 p.m., Whips in The Park at NE Corner of Cal An- show at 7 p.m., at R Place (619 E. Pine St.), derson Park (11th Ave. & E. Denny Way); join the Imperial Court of Seattle for the 6-9 p.m., Burlesque Leather Show at The King & Queen of Hearts Pageant. $7 donaCuff Complex (13th Ave. & E. Pine St.); tion. starting at 8 p.m., Blood, Sweat & Queer Play Party with demonstrations at 8:30 p.m.

“RUGBY IS A DRAG” at Center for Sex Positive Culture (1602 FUNDRAISER 15th Ave. W.) Sunday, September 2, 10:30 TO APPROVE REFERENDUM 74 a.m.-1 p.m., Brunch at C.C. Attle’s (1701 E. On Sunday, September 9, door at 7 p.m., Olive Way); 2-5 p.m., Argosy Cruise with show at 8 p.m., join hostess Gaysha Starr MC Tony Buff; starting at 6 p.m. After Care and Seattle Quake Rugby at Neighbours Party at C.C. Attle’s (1701 E. Olive Way). (1509 Broadway, entrance in alley off E. Cost: $10-show, $25 demo and party, $10 Pike St.) for a special “Rugby is a Drag” brunch, $69 cruise. See website for dis- fundraising benefit for Washington United counts and more information. All profits for Marriage’s campaign to Approve Referfrom the weekend will be donated to the endum 74. $5 cover.

Leather Leadership Conference 2013 Fund.

SING JAZZ! www.NWLeatherWeekend.org BlueStreet Jazz Voices will be holding auditions on Monday, September 10 and FESTIVAL OF THE BABES by appointment. Visit www.bluestreetSOCCER TOURNAMENT voices.com for audition information. Email IN SEATTLE bluestreetjazz@hotmail.com.

LABOR DAY WEEKEND Festival of the Babes is a soccer tourna“INTERLUDE GATHER & ment for Lesbians, and those willing to be GIVE BREAKFAST” – mistaken for one! Register a team of up to WITH KEYNOTE SPEAKER 15 ladies, register as a single player or get LESLIE JORDAN – into all the events for FREE by volunteerIN SUPPORT OF ing.

SEATTLE MEN’S CHORUS & Opening Party and Registration on FriSEATTLE WOMEN’S CHORUS day, August 31, from 7 p.m.-2 a.m., at The On Thursday, September 13, from 7:30-9 Lobby Bar (916 E. Pike St.). Soccer Tournament on Saturday and Sunday, September a.m., at Herban Feast – Sodo Park (3200 1st 1 and 2, all day, at the play fields at 4801 Ave. S.), join the Seattle Men’s Chorus and Corson Ave. S. Dance Party on Saturday, Seattle Women’s Chorus for their “Interlude September 1, from 8 p.m.-2 a.m., at Melrose Gather & Give Breakfast” with keynote Market Studios (1532 Minor Ave.). Clos- speaker, the always witty and wonderful, ing Party on Sunday, September 2, 7 p.m.-2 Leslie Jordan.

Breakfast will include a delicious locally a.m., at Cowgirls, Inc. (421 1st Ave. S.) harvested spread by Herban Feast, includhttp://festivalofthebabes.com. ing sweet and savory treats. While there is no fee to attend, a request for your generTRIANGLE RECREATION CAMP ous support will be part of the morning’s AT BENDER CREEK – program. Because space is limited, kindly “MARDI GRAS WEEKEND” Triangle Recreation Camp at Bender RSVP to events@flyinghouse.org or by Creek hosts LGBTQ camping all summer mail (Flying House Productions, 319 12th long. Labor Day Weekend, August 31-Sep- Ave.) no later than Friday, September 7. tember 3, TRC hosts Mardi Gras Weekend. www.flyinghouse.org.

August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News

9

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10 Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

Celebrating 39 Years!

Visit us online www.sgn.org

August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News 11

 Broadway 

Farmers Market 12 Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

Broadway & E. Pine at Seattle Central Community College Sundays, 11am - 3pm, April 22 - Dec 23.

Celebrating 39 Years!

The Sisters Of Perpetual Indulgence® Abbey Of St. Joan cordially request the honour of your presence at our 2012

Support the Sisters, Washington United For Marriage, and buy fabulous crap at the same time!

Cake and punch to be served in the Fellowship Hall.)

All Pilgrim’s Church, 500 Broadway E., on these days: Sat., August 25, 11 am- 6pm Sun., August 26, Noon- 6pm Proceeds to benefit All Pilgrim’s and the Sisters’ Granting Fund.

Visit us online www.sgn.org

August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News 13

14 Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

Celebrating 39 Years!

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Visit us online www.sgn.org

August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News 15

NEWS

RUSSIAN HOMOPHOBES SUE MADONNA When Madonna performed in St. Petersburg last week she ignored a local law against pro-Gay statements, distributed pink wristbands to her fans, and urged them to “show your love and appreciation to the Gay community.”

She added: “We want to fight for the right to be free.”

“Do we live in fear?” she asked and was met with a resounding “No!” Now 10 anti-Gay Russian activists want to make her pay, filing a $10 million lawsuit

stebbisveins

INTERNATIONAL

by Scott Wittet SGN Contributing Writer Alexei Kolotkov, another activist, said, “Maybe someone does not see the link but after Madonna’s concert maybe some boy becomes Gay, some girl becomes Lesbian, fewer children are born as a result, and this big country cannot defend its borders – for me it causes moral suffering.”

The St. Petersburg “Gay propaganda law” is the model for a bill that has been submitted to the national parliament but has not yet faced a vote. Critics say they fear it could be used to clamp down on the city’s LGBT community by, for example, barring rights demonstrations. courtesy ILGA

Reykjavik, Iceland’s Mayor Jon Gnarr in drag at the city’s Gay Pride festival

sentences, saying: “I protest the conviction and sentencing of Pussy Riot to a penal colony for two years for a 40-second performance extolling their political opinions.

“Even if one disagrees with the location or how they chose to express themselves, the sentence is too harsh and in fact is inhumane.

“I call on all those who love freedom to condemn this unjust punishment.

Human rights groups condemned the trial, with Amnesty International calling it politically motivated.

Others artists who have given their support to Pussy Riot include Paul McCartney, Tanzanian Gay activist Maurice Mjomba’s death has been ruled a homicide.

Sting, Jarvis Cocker, and Neil Tennant.

During an earlier concert in Moscow, Main a St. Petersburg court against the singer.

Search YouTube for “pussy riot punk They claim that she insulted their feelings, donna also made comments in support of prayer” to see the video. and that her actions endanger Russia’s the punk band Pussy Riot, whose members had been arrested for making a music video youth and future security.

REYKJAVIK MAYOR ‘DRAGS UP’ “She [Madonna] had been warned … and critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin TO SUPPORT PUSSY RIOT she ignored it. So we will speak in the lan- and of Russian anti-Gay policies. The three A week before the verdict in the Russian guage of money,” one of the activists, Darya members of Pussy Riot recently were each Pussy Riot trial, the mayor of Reykjavik, sentenced to two years in prison.

Dedova, told Reuters.

Iceland, Jon Gnarr, put on a pink dress and The pop star released a statement August danced to the band’s music during the city’s Dedova said if her side wins the case, the 18 condemning the conviction and harsh Gay Pride festival. money would be sent to orphanages.

The mayor also sported a balaclava mask like those worn in the controversial video.

The float displayed a banner reading “Free Pussy Riot” and blasted the band’s song “Clear the Cobblestones.”

Last week, Icelandic actress and musician Bjork posted on Facebook in support of Pussy Riot, urging authorities to “let them go home to their families and children.”

AUSTRALIAN PARLIAMENT TO DEBATE MARRIAGE EQUALITY The Australian Parliament is set to begin debating legislation to legalize same-sex marriage this week, reports Gay Star News.

The announcement follows declarations by two Australian states, Tasmania and South Australia, that they would pass their own same-sex marriage laws if the federal government failed to act.

“I think it’s been great to see the states taking the leadership on this and really showing what most Australians want – we want to see marriage equality delivered in Australia,” said the bill’s author, Sen. Sarah Hanson-

16 Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

Young of the Australian Green Party.

Marriage equality advocates welcomed the announcement.

“The strong recommendation from a recent senate inquiry, coupled with high support for reform in the Senate, will give the bill a fighting chance of passing,” Australian Marriage Equality (AME) national convenor Alex Greenwich said.

There are currently 30 Australian senators who have declared support for the reform, 26 undecided, and only 20 opposed.

Greenwich called on opponents to debate the issue in a respectful and mature way.

“We hope those opposed to reform do not waste the Senate’s time to promote fear and misinformation,” Greenwich said.

AUTOPSY: TANZANIAN GAY ACTIVIST MAURICE MJOMBA WAS MURDERED The autopsy report sent to Gay rights group Identity Kenya now confirms that Tanzanian LGBT activist Maurice Mjomba was murdered.

Mjomba’s body was found July 30 when neighbors noticed a foul smell coming from his house. His arms had been tied behind his back and his mouth was taped. Mjomba suffered multiple bruises and injuries and his corpse was mutilated.

The autopsy states that the cause of death was “asphyxia due to homicide.” Reports from witnesses when the body was discovered say that Mjomba appeared to have been strangled.

He was buried last week, with close family members, relatives, and work colleagues in attendance.

Police investigations are ongoing, and no suspect has been arrested. The motive of the murder is not known.

Mjomba was a trained HIV/AIDS coordinator in Tanzania and human rights advocate. His work focused on combating discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS and providing outreach to intravenous drug users.

He also worked with regional organizations to provide sexual health awareness for LGBT populations.

Celebrating 39 Years!

LADY GAGA SINGS ABOUT INDONESIA PROTESTS Bisexual pop star Lady Gaga has revealed that her new song with rapper Kendrick Lamar is about problems she faced in Indonesia.

Gay Star News reports that Gaga will sing on Lamar’s new song “Partynauseous,” and that she has said the collaboration is about anti-Gay, violent protests in Jakarta.

Gaga tweeted: “I wrote ‘PARTYNAUSEOUS’ about Jakarta, and my relationship with that country.

“Wishing I could ‘get high with the enemy’ and make peace.

“Once @kendricklamar + I started talking about life + his forward thinking views about love + hip hop the song became something more.”

Gaga was forced to cancel her “Born This Way Ball” performance in Jakarta on June 3 over security fears.

Several groups, including the Indonesian Islamic Defenders Front, threatened violence, branding her as a “devil’s messenger” who wears only a bra and panties onstage.

The Jakarta police refused to publicly approve the show, and protesters flaunted posters with the words “Lady Gaga – Queen of Demons” and “Lady Gaga – Invite You to Hell.”

Fans were devastated when the pop star had to cancel, prompting dozens to stage a mock funeral for the death of freedom of expression.

Indonesian LGBT rights group OurVoice filed a complaint with the national human rights commission. “[Canceling the concert] is not just about

entertainment but something far more serious than that. This is an indication that we have lost our freedom,” OurVoice secretary general Hartoyo said.

When she canceled, Gaga tweeted: “We had to cancel the concert in Indonesia. I’m so very sorry to the fans & just as devastated as you if not more. You are everything to me.

“I will try to put together something special for you. My love for Indonesia has only grown #GagaSendsLoveToJakarta and all its people.”

“Partynauseous” will be released on September 3. Gaga will release her third studio album, Artpop, next spring.

MAKING MARRIAGE EQUALITY HAPPEN IN VIETNAM Five years ago, the media in Vietnam regularly reported on the “social evil of homosexuality.” But earlier this month the news that Vietnam might become the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage made headlines around the world. Gay Star News spoke with Le Quang Binh, the director of the first LGBT rights organization in Vietnam, and the man who made it happen.

His story starts in 2007 when the Vietnamese Institute for Studies of Society, Economy, and Environment (iSEE), where Le worked, began focusing on promoting ethnic and sexual minority rights in Vietnam.

Their first project was a study of images of Gay men and Lesbians in the media. They studied 500 articles about LGBT issues and found negative and ignorant descriptions of Gay people in almost all of them.

“The Gay and Lesbian community said

mass media is our number-one enemy,” said Le on the phone from his office in Ho Chi Minh City, “because the media were so negative. Articles said homosexuality is a disease; it’s a social evil; Gay men are very, very feminine; and Lesbians are very, very butch. They were portraying wrong knowledge to society.”

After the study, iSEE arranged a workshop for the journalists who had written these stories, along with their editors, professors of journalism, and government officials. Most of the invitees came. At the workshop, iSEE taught them about sexual orientation, gender identity, and the international LGBT rights movement.

“And we brought Gays and Lesbians to the training, because the journalists had never met a Gay or Lesbian person who had told them that they were Gay or Lesbian!”

Le said. “That changed the perception of journalists about the LGBT community.”

By 2009, after more public education workshops, iSEE organized an exhibition of photos taken by Gay people. The media covered it extensively and positively.

“It was so crowded! There were something like 10,000 visitors, mostly students and young people,” said Le. “Then we took the exhibition to a university campus in Hanoi and it was sold out for the whole month.”

Since then iSEE has staged contemporary plays and art exhibitions about LGBT issues and developed strong relationships with journalists. The media coverage is totally different from five years ago.

“We call it a U-turn,” said Le. “It’s completely changed, especially in the mainstream media. In fact in 2011 a talk show

about Gay and Lesbian issues won the golden prize in the national television awards.”

Le says it was this increased visibility of LGBT people in the mass media – for example, the wedding reception of a Gay couple in May, which was covered widely and positively – that led the government to look into same-sex relationships.

“With the visibility of the LGBT community in Vietnam increasing, people think that wow – LGBT people exist!” said Le, adding that the government also is concerned about the legal issues facing Gay couples in Vietnam.

“There have been some cases, for example, of two men living together,” said Le. “They own property together and then they break up and go to court about ownership of the house. The court doesn’t know how to deal with it because legally they are just friends, not a couple.”

In June, the government started a consultation into the legal recognition of same-sex relationships, and in July, Ha Hung Cuong of the Ministry of Justice said, “The state should have legal mechanisms to protect legitimate rights such as legal personality, property ownership, or children (if any) of same sex couples living together.”

Although some government officials, women’s union officials, and university professors have said to Le informally that they are unsure if Vietnam is ready for same-sex marriage, citing the threat to “traditional family values,” no one has spoken out publicly against it.

Vietnam is mainly Buddhist, so it is largely free of the fierce religious opposition to Gay rights typical of countries with Islamic and Christian majorities.

United Church of Canada SpongeBob is Gay, installs first Gay leader Ukrainian government says

by James Whitely SGN Staff Writer An openly Gay man is now head of Canada’s largest Protestant denomination.

On August 18, the United Church of Canada installed Gary Paterson of Vancouver as its new moderator – the presiding officer of the church’s general council and the church’s principal spokesperson. With an estimated active membership of 200,000, the United Church is Canada’s secondlargest Christian body (after Roman Catholicism). Paterson is thought to be the first openly Gay cleric to lead a major Christian denomination anywhere.

“I am so humbled by the trust and the responsibility you have placed in my hands,”

Popular children’s cartoon may be banned from national TV viacom

vancouver sun

Gary Paterson

said Paterson at a news conference, following the announcement of his election on August 16. “Among mainline denominations, as far as I know, this is probably a first.”

Paterson added that he does not want his sexuality to become a distraction.

“I sure hope it is not the central issue of my being a moderator, because I think there are huge issues that we are called to address,” he said at the news conference.

POWER COUPLE The United Church was the first mainstream denomination in the country to allow the ordination of Gay ministers. In 1988 it declared that everyone who “professes SpongeBob SquarePants ... Gay? faith in Christ,” regardless of sexual orientation, is wel- by Mike Andrew come in the church, and all SGN Staff Writer members are “eligible to be SpongeBob SquarePants is a Gay carconsidered for ordered mintoon, Ukraine’s National Expert Commisistry.”

In 1992 the church ordained its first open- sion for Protecting Public Morality said on ly Gay minster, Tim Stevenson, who is now August 16, and therefore it should not be ala member of the Vancouver, B.C., city coun- lowed on Ukrainian national television.

The commission did not reveal how it cil. Stevenson is, coincidentally, Paterson’s husband and partner of 30 years. The two reached this conclusion.

According to a report in the Ukraínskaya were wed when same-sex marriage was lePravda newspaper, the commission has galized in British Columbia in 2003.

Today, the church has many Gay and Les- been studying TV cartoons and has deterbian clergy, and the issue is no longer con- mined that many of them “present a threat tentious for most church members. Paterson to children.”

The report also criticizes The Simpsons, was one of three openly Gay candidates for Family Guy, Pokemon, Teletubbies, and Fumoderator.

Having an openly Gay person as modera- turama, calling them “projects aimed at the tor “is good news,” said Paterson. “I see the destruction of the family and the promotion possibility for so many young people who of drugs and other vices.”

Teletubbies, says the report, “deliberately may still be struggling with their orientation being able to look up and see role models.” aims to create subnormal [individuals], who

spend all day in front of the television with their mouths open swallowing all types of information,” allegedly indoctrinating young viewers with the “psychology of losers.”

In addition, Japanese anime series display “a clear example of sexist propaganda,” the report adds.

DAMAGING TO CHILDREN? According to Ukrainian psychologist Irina Medvedeva, children aged between 3 and 5 who have been exposed to cartoon series “pull faces and make jokes in front of adults they don’t know, laugh out loud, and repeat nonsense phrases in a brazen manner.” Presumably, Ukrainian children who do not watch cartoons are more sedate.

Formerly a republic of the Soviet Union, Ukraine became independent in 1991. Since then, political power has shifted back and forth between pro- and anti-Russian factions.

Same-sex relations were decriminalized soon after independence in 1991, and gender reassignment surgery was legalized in 1998. However, the Ukrainian constitution does not protect sexual orientation or gender identity and explicitly defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman.

Ukraine’s first Pride Parade was held in Kiev, the capital, in 2003, but in 2008 authorities prevented public activities marking the International Day Against Homophobia at the request of a coalition of religious groups.

In 2010, Ukrainian Interior Minister Serhiy Holovaty announced that he is Gay. He was followed some months later by a member of Parliament, Oleh Lyashko.

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August 24, 2012

Seattle Gay News 17

Courtesy Cyd Zeigler

LGBT sports reach the summit

Athletic groups form coalition to promote sportsmanship, positive role models

by Dan Woog SGN Contributing Writer

and had been impressed with its LGBT-positive attitude.

A few years ago, no one was talking about LGBT issues in sports. Now, it seems everyone is.

Seemingly all of a sudden, the game that dared not speak its name has turned into a cacophony. Legit sports organizations like the NCAA wanted to address homophobia in athletics. So did Gay groups like GLSEN, GLAAD, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Smaller organizations, specifically concerned with Gays in sports, cropped up.

They had names like Athlete Ally, Our Group, the StandUp Foundation, and You Can Play. You couldn’t tell the players without a scorecard.

Cyd Zeigler covers LGBT sports for a living. Co-founder of the very popular website Outsports, even he was confused. And, he realized, many groups were talking past – if not against – each other. Observing so much duplication of ideas and energy, he wondered what it would take to get a variety of organizations into the same room.

Kirk Walker, head softball coach at Oregon State University, loved the idea. He suggested the perfect host: Nike. Walker had worked with the company in the past

NIKE EXEC: ‘THINK BIG’ Robert Goman, a consumer product manager and head of Nike’s LGBT & Friends Network, was immediately enthusiastic.

With the help of NCLR sports project director Helen Carroll and GLSEN Changing the Game sports director Pat Griffin, the Nike LGBT Sports Summit was born.

The first problem was keeping the June meeting to a manageable size. “We wanted it to be a working group,” Zeigler recalled.

“You can’t do that with 100 people. We kept it to 25 so we could have real conversations.”

Talk they did. Though Nike went all-out as host – covering travel costs and meals, throwing a welcome party and Pride reception at its downtown Portland store, offering meeting space at its suburban headquarters, welcoming Summit participants to march with the Nike contingent in the Portland Pride parade – their real contribution was providing leaders and facilitators.

After two days together, a Nike executive spoke up. “This is great,” she said. “But you’re not thinking big enough.”

Her words were electrifying. “Everyone Cyd Zeigler, co-founder of OutSports.com and a facilitator of the LGBT Sports Coalition realized she was right,” Zeigler said. The group scrapped the rest of the day’s agenda eryone on his or her team.” they didn’t understand or trust them,” Zeiand focused on how they could “really, reThe newly formed LGBTQ Sports Coali- gler said. ally change sports in a big way.” tion vowed to work to achieve several goals: “Trust is a huge part of sports. You have They will engage each of the major Ameri- to trust your teammates. You have to trust WHAT MAKES A CHAMPION? can professional sports leagues to work to- a game plan. I think we really built trust Gradually, participants focused on the ward inclusion. They will try to increase the among the different groups. There’s a much idea of “champion.” Though the word now visibility of out college athletes, coaches, better sense now of knowing when to lead, means an athlete who plays on a winning and allies. They will devise an LGBTQ- and when to follow.” team, Zeigler says that from the time of the inclusive “model policy” for national youth Zeigler added, “The Gay sports moveRomans a champion has been defined not by and adult recreational leagues. And, they ment has been going on for 40 years. But I trophies won, but by actions taken. will promote a new, inclusive definition think this is the beginning of the end of ho“A champion is someone inclusive and of “athletic champion” to young athletes, mophobia in sports.” He predicts that within supportive,” Zeigler noted. “We realized while providing inclusive training resources four years, anti-Gay attitudes in athletics how important it is to drive this idea forward to physical education teachers and coaches. will have faded remarkably.

– that a champion includes and supports ev“Everything we do, it’s ultimately about Why four years? “That’s the length of youth and young athletes,” Zeigler said. high school, or the number of years you “That’s something everyone agreed on.” play in college. It takes four years for each Of course, anytime over a dozen groups group, beginning to end.” get together, there will be contention. At Zeigler used one final sports analogy to the summit, discussions of funding were sum up the good feeling of the men and seldom easy. “Ultimately, there’s a limited women at the Nike LGBT Sports Summit. amount of resources,” said Zeigler. “Groups “Part of winning is playing well together. compete for funding. That came through We’re athletes. We all know how to win.” very clearly.”

Dan Woog is a journalist, educator, socBUILDING TRUST cer coach, Gay activist, and author of the But overriding those discussions was a Jocks series of books on Gay male athletes. more important feeling: trust. “A lot of the Visit his website at www.danwoog.com. He people there had never met each other, or can be reached in care of SGN.

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August 24, 2012

Celebrating 39 Years!

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EcsA

continued from cover the teams in a division based on their skill level. Local businesses – including bars, nightclubs, and restaurants – sponsor a team or teams.

The Seattle Gay community and the ECSA are linked in a way that amazes most out-of-town Gay visitors who play on a league in the town they are from. For many team members SGN has interviewed over the years, the ECSA is what got them acclimated to Seattle after moving here because it was where they developed a bond with their teammates, made friends, and found acceptance.

So when an ECSA team goes to the GSWS, its members know they have to represent the thousands of fans back in Seattle rooting for a win, and they play hard for the teams that didn’t make it.

According to ECSA Commissioner Frank Pichinini, two Seattle teams – the Inferno and the Strokes – won the Gay Softball World Series in D Division and the Masters Division, respectively. And the stories behind those victories make them even more remarkable. SGN spoke with representatives from both championship teams so we could tell their story of winning the biggest tournament of the year and most prestigious title to earn: Gay Softball World Series Champion.

SEATTLE STROKES This year marked the first time the ECSA Open Division has sent a team to the GSWS in the Masters Division. And once you look at the stats, you’ll find the Seattle Strokes to be very deserving of Championship status.

Dug Wehage told SGN, “Both teams deserved their wins with a lot of hard work and dedication.” Wehage serves as the Hall of Fame director on the ECSA board.

According to Wehage, the team boasts the oldest member of the league, who is 61.

Five Strokes players are currently in the ECSA Hall of Fame and two are currently in the National Hall of Fame.

Here is an impressive statistic that I think you’ll find interesting. All players on the team are 50 or older, with one of the players holding the record for most consecutive years in the ECSA. He’s played softball for 32 years in a row.

Two of the team members have been ECSA commissioners. Three players are current members of the ECSA executive board, and at least eight rostered play-

The Inferno and Strokes brought home the championship trophies in their divisions.

ers have played in the league for nearly 10 years.

“The players on the Seattle Strokes have put a lot of years into playing softball and giving back to our league and our community,” said Wehage. “This was a win that many of them have waited years to accomplish.”

SEATTLE INFERNO Going into the World Series, Tighe Copeland says he knew the Inferno was a solid team.

“I’ve been coaching the Inferno for three years, but this year something truly felt special,” he told SGN. “The Inferno was composed of five new players to the league, some to the sport entirely, and four players who’d been on the roster since the very first year the Inferno was created. We also had four pick-up players.”

From the first time they stepped onto the field for practice, the chemistry was strong and everyone wanted to learn, says Copeland. He observed that the players were dedicated and knew how to balance competition and fun.

“From the beginning they told me they wanted to go to the World Series, so I took it upon myself to meet that challenge,” he said. “I practiced them twice a week for three hours a practice. By mid-season, their skills grew tremendously and their cohesion was unmatchable. Making it to the World Series was such an amazing feeling, and it looked like it through the abundance of tears.”

When the Inferno arrived at the GSWS, “family” was the term they used to refer to each other. Which, Copeland maintains, “was the greatest factor in our win.”

“Everyone supported each other so well on and off the field, and you could see it in their playing,” he continued. “When you have that strong bond, trust, friendship, and community amongst the players and coach, your team will succeed.”

According to Copeland, the Inferno played some tough teams and sported some memorable games, including a heartpounding match against Ft. Lauderdale where the Inferno trailed for much of the game, but never gave up.

“The score was 11 to 10 in the last inning,” he said. “We had one out and a runner on first. Our returning original Inferno player – who was a pickup player for the Series – stepped up to bat and wowed everyone with a two-run home run to end the game!”

“That has to go down as one of the most memorable moments as our faith and energy went through the roof,” said Copeland.

“We had a fantastic energy and support see ecsa page 20

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Seattle Gay News 19

ecsa

continued from page 19 from the crowd watching from the stands.”

Someone quoted to Copeland that the game was “one for the movies.”

The Inferno played the Tulsa Razors for the championship. Seattle had the lead 16 to 10 in the final inning, when the Razors batted in five runs to trail by only one, with runners on first and third.

“The final pitch was thrown and you could hear a pin drop as the ball was popped to our right-center fielder,” said Copeland. “When he made the final catch to clinch the game, the cheers and applause erupted tremendously. It was such a surreal moment for us.

Everyone was jumping up and down, crying, and hugging each other.”

Members of the now-World Champion Seattle Inferno made calls to other Inferno teammates who couldn’t make the Series, and screamed happily, “We won!”

Minneapolis hosted a great tournament, Copeland said. He shared the sentiment of

many experienced players that it was one of GSWS, but in the end, the team emerged as the better-organized Series in recent years. respected and well-loved champs. They won undefeated.

Copeland admitted, “I never thought, at MUTUAL SUPPORT One thing has to be said about Seattle, the age of 24, I could coach a team to vicsays Copeland: “I’ve been to the World Se- tory in the Gay Softball World Series. I’m so ries four times now, and our sense of com- proud of my team. I’m definitely not stopmunity and support is unrivaled. We are al- ping now. Inferno will take it up to C Diviways at each other’s games supporting each sion next year, and I say: D.C. [next year’s other and cheering loudly. It’s a great feel- host], here we come!” ing as a player to know you have all these ECSA GSWS STATS people behind you rooting you on, and I The ECSA teams that competed in the feel it even improves your game. I felt that the vast support from our league members 2012 GSWS were: B Division – Dirty Dawgs and Battalion played a vital role in our success.”

C Division – Seawolves and Pilots Copeland said he told the Inferno, “At D Division – Saints and Inferno the end, not only did you play hard on the Masters Division – Strokes field and win this World Series, but you also Two ECSA teams came home as the chamwon the hearts of other cities, and lead as an example of team sportsmanship and dedica- pions of their divisions. The Seattle Inferno went through the winner’s bracket of the D tion.”

“It was a great way to represent Seattle,” Division undefeated. They went 2-and-2 in pool play but once double-elimination play he concluded.

The Inferno went in as an underdog be- started they never lost a game. These are the cause it was their first time making it to the scores of the double-elimination games: Inferno 18, Norfolk Gunners 3 Inferno 10, Rhode Island Bandits 0 Inferno 12, Dallas Demolition Crew 2 Inferno 12, Fort Lauderdale Hurricanes 11 Inferno 14, Knoxville Cyclones 14 Inferno 21, Philadelphia Honey Badgers 16 Inferno 15, Tulsa Razors 15 (Championship Game) The Inferno is coached by Tighe Copeland, who also played with the Seattle Battalion in the B Division of the World Series.

This is the first year that the ECSA sent a team to compete in the Masters Division.

The Seattle Strokes won the Masters Division Championship going through the winners bracket undefeated as well. All players on the Masters Division teams had to be 50 or older. The Strokes went 1-and-4 in pool play but went undefeated in double-elimination play, beating a couple of teams who mercy ruled them in pool play. The scores of their double-elimination games were: Strokes 16, L.A. Gang Grey 9 Strokes 17, Atlanta Leathermen 9 Strokes 28, Chicago Sidetracks 22 (the Strokes were down by 6 runs going into the 7th inning and scored 12 runs to take the lead for good) Strokes 23, L.A. Gang Grey 8 (Championship Game) The Strokes team had (5) ECSA Hall of Fame members on the roster: Don Moritz, Time Time, Greg Bannish, Bruce Caszatt,

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and Frank Pichinini. Time and Frank are also North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance (NAGAAA) Hall of Fame members.

Pichinini coached the Strokes and also coached the Battalion at the World Series.

This is the first time in the history of ECSA that Seattle has won two championships at a World Series. They have won only four championships total in the 34 years of the league.

The Emerald City Softball Association (ECSA) is an established softball league in Seattle and has been operating as such for over 30 years. ECSA not only stands for Emerald City Softball Association but is an acronym that represents aspects of what the league embraces: Excellence, Community, Sportsmanship, and Acceptance. Their focus is to provide a softball league that includes LGBT and non-LGBT members and creates a unique community of excellence, sportsmanship, and acceptance for playing softball. Membership in the ECSA is open to anyone 18 years of age or older. The league has four divisions (A, B, C, and D), which provide a place for everyone from advanced players to those who have never played softball before. The division that a player is allowed to play in is determined by a player rating system established by the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance, of which the ECSA is a member. The ECSA season generally starts in April and runs into June or July of each year. They also have a Fall Ball Season that starts in September and goes into October. For more information, visit www.emeraldcitysoftball.org.

catholics continued from cover

nardo. “The people with the microphones are giving those negative messages, not the people in the pews.”

CATHOLICS WITH FACTS Gramick, a co-founder of New Ways Ministry and member of the Sisters of Loretto, an order of nuns deeply concerned with social justice, gave an overview of the history of Christian-era marriage in relation to the church and society, in an effort to dispel myths and empower the audience to do the same in conversations with other Catholics.

She detailed how marriage evolved from a private affair between families, with no civil or religious significance.

“They [marriages] gradually became civil ceremonies, as civil arrangements were made to define the right and responsibilities that people had in marriage, like to manage property and inheritance,” said Gramick.

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www.sgn.org 20 Seattle Gay News

August 24, 2012

Celebrating 39 Years!

“But it grew from a private family affair.”

“In fact,” Gramick continued, “Some early Christian writers said that the church should not be involved in the institution of marriage at all. ‘Leave it to the state [they said], because it inevitably involves sexual intercourse, and that’s a little dirty.’”

But after the Roman Empire fell, according to Gramick, the church assumed more of a civil role. Naturally, marriage, which had grown into a state affair, then came under the purview of the church as well.

“It moved from the family, to the state, to the church,” said Gramick. “This gradual assumption took a thousand years.”

Gramick then made an effort to dispel some other myths that opponents of samesex marriage typically spread, such as the idea that churches will be forced to perform same-sex marriages and that if they don’t, they could be sued or lose their tax-exempt status.

“The bishops are saying a lot of things that are not true,” said Gramick.

A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE “So why do Catholics support marriage equality?” DeBernardo asked rhetorically.

She said there are seven reasons, and what they all boil down to is that Catholics’ support is “not in spite of being Catholic, but because of being Catholic.”

The seven reasons she cited are: 1) What matters is love, not gender. Love is what makes a family. The quality of a relationship is what Catholics should call moral or immoral.

2) Not supporting same-sex marriage is discriminatory, and the Catholic faith tells its adherents not to discriminate.

3) Catholics want to protect children. All children, regardless of what kind of family

they live in, should have the same support and benefits.

4) Likewise, same-sex couples deserve equal protection, with the same societal and social rights of straight couples.

5) Marriage equality helps develop strong families and thus makes society stronger.

The Catholic faith tells adherents that they should work for the common good of all people and the progressive development of society.

6) The church should not dictate public policy for all people.

7) Even if a Catholic disagrees with homosexuality, Catholics believe in equality and fairness for all.

SEN. MURRAY THANKED DeBernardo, who is New Ways Ministry’s executive director, said he wanted to acknowledge a very special local Catholic in the audience that night – State Sen. Ed Murray, who, along with the state’s Catholic governor, Christine Gregoire, have made same-sex marriage a potential reality here in Washington.

DeBernardo said Murray was “instrumental” in the fight to achieve marriage equality in the state, and that “he is really the hero of this campaign.”

Murray received a standing ovation from everyone in the room.

“Were going to have to show them that enthusiasm in November and all the way through to November,” added DeBernardo after the applause died down.

“No human being has the whole truth.

But we, as the faithful have a responsibility to shape our church,” said Gramick. “In this particular issue the church depends on LGBT people and their allies. We need to speak out.”

inslee

continued from cover holder.

“And the general election is always more blue than the primary,” he added.

Inslee told SGN that his good primary showing would not change his campaign strategy.

“I don’t think it’s different [in the general election],” he said. “On primary night I was talking to a friend and I told him, ‘It doesn’t matter what happens tonight, I’ll get up and do the same thing tomorrow.’”

Inslee was an early supporter of equal marriage rights for Gay and Lesbian couples, even before the legislature passed the Marriage Equality Act. He says his experience talking with voters about marriage confirms favorable polling on the issue.

“Marriage is becoming more mainstream by the day,” Inslee says. “In 10 years people will wonder why we even had this debate.

“I’m the only candidate [for governor] who’s for equality and the right of choice.

I do talk about it in most of the speeches I give. I talk about my personal experience,” he added.

By “personal experience” Inslee means his 40-year marriage to his wife, Trudi, and her contributions to both their family and his campaign.

“Trudi is a strong, resilient, down-toearth person,” he says. “She’s very handson. I can’t overstate what she means to the campaign, and to our family. If she can be as good for the state for four years as she’s been for me for 40, the state will benefit.”

Inslee’s political experience has been all legislative: first in the state legislature,

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then representing two different congressional districts – the Fourth District in eastern Washington and, more recently, the First, north of Seattle.

Asked if he thought voters expect different values or different skills from the state’s chief executive than from a legislator, Inslee paused for a moment.

“I don’t think the values are different,” he replied. “The role of a leader – it’s having a vision and defining the vision in a way everyone gets it, building a team and getting everyone on the team to understand their role. I’ve done that in this campaign. I’ve demonstrated that.”

Interestingly, Inslee knows Congressman Paul Ryan, now Mitt Romney’s running mate, personally.

“Ryan’s a very open, gregarious person,” Inslee says. “We were elected [to Congress] at the same time, 1998. His views set up a clear contrast between the two parties.

Some of his views are consistent with my opponent’s – on health care, and choice.”

Inslee’s good showing in the primary can be attributed, in part, to a series of soft-sell TV spots featuring the candidate talking about his life and work experience.

“I’m still introducing myself to people,” Inslee explained. “I’m the new kid on the block, and I’m still acquainting voters with my vision.

“My story is intertwined with the story of the state,” he added, “which is a story of technological revolution and progress.”

As if to underscore his point, Inslee points to a photo on the wall as he gets up to leave.

“That’s Trudi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing,” he explained. “It was on that trip that I realized the Chinese were determined to dominate the market in lithiumion batteries. I came back knowing that we had to be in that industry.

“We can’t wait to build the industries of the next century. We’ve done this before with aerospace and computers, and we can do it with clean energy technology as well.”

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Celebrating 39 Years!

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Seattle Gay News 23