Issue 23 Volume 37
Celebrating 36 Years!
FRIDAY June 5, 2009 FREE! 25¢ in bookstores & news stands
pride events p. 3
decline to sign p. 14
mike webb p. 4
Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
New Hampshire Gov. signs samesex marriage bill
Cal Anderson dollar supports Capitol Hill merchants
by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer
by Shaun Knittel SGN Staff Writer
in the day in favor of the bill. The house followed later in the afternoon, voting 198-176. Grouped The New Hampshire State with two previous pieces of legisHouse and Senate passed legisla- lation aimed at advancing the freetion to recognize marriage equality for same-sex couples on June 3. The Senate voted 14-10 earlier see new hampshire page 7
The Capitol Hill Community Council (CHCC) formally unveiled the new Capitol Hill Discount Dollar, featuring beloved Seattle politician Cal Anderson, the night of June 1st. Cal Anderson was Washington State’s first openly Gay legislator and is the namesake for a Capitol Hill park. Each month, the CHCC, a state non-profit corporation organized for the purpose of preserving and improving the neighborhood in accordance with the wishes of the community, will unveil a new
coupon with a different historical figure or importance to the area. Participating business owners take 10% off purchases when presented with the coupon. Alcohol and tobacco are excluded. “We chose Cal Anderson because we thought it would be fitting for June, which is LGBT Pride month,” said Capitol Hill Community Council Vice President Charlette Lefevre. “Anderson was our Harvey Milk.” Lefevre said the Capitol Hill Discount Dollars are intended to urge Capitol Hill residents and tourists to frequent neighborhood businesses. The theme printed on
the dollar is “In Each Other We Trust.” So far, nearly 20 local business owners participate in the discount program. “Our wish is for people to shop or dine at the local businesses,” she said. “Capitol Hill is the heartbeat of the LGBT community in Seattle.” There are two ways of knowing if a business participates, Lefevre explained. “You can either look in the window of a business – if you see one of the dollars posted then they are participating in the 10% see dollar page 13
SGN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: SGN exclusive interview: City Attorney candidate Seattle City Attorney Tom Carr Peter Holmes
Accountability (OPA), overseeing the conduct of Seattle police, the two clashed over OPA reports critical of police conduct. At issue was legal indemnity for OPA members from potential claims by officers or their union, the Police Guild. “We asked Tom Carr for opinions on the OPA reports,” Holmes recalls. “We were concerned that we’d lose the right to indemnity, in fact we might have to indemnify the City.” Carr refused to issue an opinion supporting the OPA, citing the confidentiality agreement OPA members must sign. “The reports did not name a single officer and did not disclose a single piece of confidential information,” Holmes says, “but the law department would not give us a ‘comfort letter’ [indicating that the City Attorney agreed seattle courant
ap photo
law-and-order guy,” Carr continued. “That’s just the way it goes. If I’m in the news, it’s because I’m prosecuting someone. People don’t see everything else that we do. I am a law-and-order guy, but that’s not all.” Carr is perhaps best know to SGN readers for his recent suit against Seattle Out and Proud (SOAP), to collect debts to Seattle Center resulting from SOAP’s financially disastrous 2006 Pride Festival. SOAP no longer operates the festival, and its annual Pride Parade has run in the black every year. “Seattle Center hung me out to dry,” Carr says. “It was the Center that made the decision to go forward [with the suit], as you know from exploring the facts.” As previously reported in SGN, Seattle Center Productions Director John Merner worked with SOAP to orSeattle City Attorney Tom Carr ganize 2006 Pride Festival at the by Mike Andrew an exclusive interview this week. Center, and subsequently instructCarr is running for a third term as ed Carr to sue SOAP to collect the SGN Staff Writer Seattle City Attorney. His oppo- debt remaining from the event. “I believe I’m one of the most nent, Peter Holmes, was also interprogressive prosecutors in the viewed for this week’s SGN. “There’s a perception of me as a country,” Tom Carr told SGN in see tom carr page 17
Peter Holmes
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Peter Holmes has tangled with Tom Carr before. “‘Tangled’ is definitely the right word,” Holmes says. This year, Holmes is running against incumbent Carr for Seattle City Attorney. Two years ago, when Holmes was Chair of the Office of Professional
see peter holmes page 13