Issue 49 Volume 37
Celebrating 36 Years!
FRIDAY December 4, 2009 FREE! 25¢ in bookstores & news stands
world aids day p. 5 cal anderson park p. 8 rain city soccer p. 9
Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
Transgender woman New York Senate kills claims discrimination at Seattle Hostess Bakery marriage bill by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer In a stunning defeat for both marriage equality advocates and Gov. David Paterson, the New York State Senate voted down a marriage equality bill on December 2. The vote was 38-24. Later that night some 300 New Yorkers staged an impromptu protest in Times Square. Most of the anger seemed directed at the eight Democrats who voted against the bill with the crowd chanting, “Vote them out! Vote them out!” Pre-vote speculation was that the measure would pass. The New York Assembly passed the bill in July by a margin of 89-52, and again on December 1, 88-51. A Marist College poll released last week found that 51% of New Yorkers questioned favored legalizing same-sex marriage, with only 42% opposed. A June poll by Qunnipiac University poll reported a similar spread of 51% to 41%. Thomas K. Duane, the prime sponsor of the bill and the New York Senate’s only out Gay member, claimed he had lined up enough votes to pass the measure. The Empire State Pride Agenda
andres duque
courtesy Alicia Frenter
Seattle’s Central District neighborhood. The feeling of accomplishment and teamwork she first felt as an employee of the Interstate Bakeries Corporation soon gave way to feelings of sadness and frustration when co-workers began making discriminatory statements regarding her gender identity. Frenter, an American Samoa immigrant living in Seattle since 1990, is a Transgender person who identifies as a woman. “They call me Alicia Frenter names like ‘heby Shaun Knittel she’” an upset Frenter told SGN as she described the verbal abuse she SGN Staff Writer has suffered at the hands of some For a little over two and one-half Hostess Bakery employees. “They years, 47-year-old Alicia Frenter has enjoyed her job as a machine see transgender page 19 operator at the Hostess Bakery in
Times Square rally in protest of New York state Senate vote against marriage equality
(ESPA), the state’s LGBT lobby, had also expressed confidence that a bipartisan majority in the 62-member Senate would vote Yes. Stating emphatically, “I’m not the one who ever lied throughout this entire process,” Duane charged that at least eight of his colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, had broken promises made to him, and said that he felt “betrayed.”
In Times Square, protestors circulated photos of rats labeled with the names of the eight Democratic defectors. Longtime Gay activist David Mixner said, “If they insist on operating on a level of betrayal, then it is time to seriously consider a more civil rights movement apsee NY marriage page 20
Marc Nozell
Hillary Clinton
shaun Knittel
Hill holds fundraiser Hillary Clinton announces Capitol for fallen officer AIDS conference by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer
In a major speech marking World AIDS Day, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denounced international homophobia and revealed plans to host the 2012 International AIDS Conference in Washington DC. In her speech, delivered on December 1, Clinton said: “Obviously, our efforts are hampered whenever discrimination or marginalization of certain populations results in less effective outreach and treatment. So we will work not only to ensure access for all who need it, but also to combat discrimination more broadly. We have to stand against any efforts to marginalize and criminalize and penalize members of the LGBT community worldwide. It is an unacceptable step backwards on behalf of human rights. But it is also a step that undermines the effectiveness of efforts to fight the disease worldwide.” While she did not explicitly mention the government of Ugansee clinton page 20
Bill’s Off Broadway
by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer On December 9, 11 restaurants and bars on Capitol Hill will participate in a fundraiser to benefit the family of their neighborhood’s respected police officer, Timothy Brenton. All participating businesses – Bill’s Off Broadway, Century Ballroom, The Elite, The Garage, The
Honeyhole, Julia’s on Broadway, Bluebird Coffee and Tea, Rosebud, Quinns, Vermillion, and The Cuff Complex – will contribute a portion of their total sales in an effort to raise money for Brenton’s family. According to Don Stevens, owner of Bill’s Off Broadway and one of the organizers, a special bank see fundraiser page 20