DOMA Ruled Unconstitutional Des Moines SCOTUS Rally by Donna Red Wing
Senator Matt McCoy. Photo courtesy of Daniel Hoffman-Zinnel
Almost four hundred people came to the Supreme Court Rally at the State House in Des Moines on June 26th. Waving rainbow flags, carrying signs, some wore the new Ray-Gun shirt that proclaimed: “07-26-2013, today the federal government is as gay as Iowa.” Speakers included: State Senator Matt McCoy, Senator Harkin staffer Benjamin Williams, PFLAG Mom Susan Huber, married couple Melanie Muth and Tammy Steinwandt, Rev Mark Stringer (UUA), Jeff Angelo from Iowan Republicans for Freedom, Rabbi Edelman Blank, the ACLU’s Ben Stone, Donna Red Wing (One Iowa) and the fabulous Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus who sang “The Star Spangled Banner” and “We Shall Overcome”. Ted Coppock, PFLAG Dad shaded the podium with his giant rainbow umbrella. The crowd celebrated. Speakers were cheered as we
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Photo courtesy of Matty Smith.
What’s Inside:
Section 1: News & Politics
Giving Gay Soldiers ACCESSline Celebrates Kyle’s Bed & Breakfast our Respect by Angela Geno-Stumme
This July Americans will be celebrating our country with fireworks, food, and family. But don’t forget that our country would be nothing without the men and women who have fought to create and protect it. These soldiers are in every community, including the LGBT community and understanding their part in our nation is one way we can give them respect for their service. Dan Wetherell and Angel Velez share their military experience and views of the repeal of DADT.
Dan Wetherell
Dan Wetherell enlisted in the Army in 2005 when he was twenty-eight, he served four years on active duty and then four with the National Guard. He served at Fort Lee, Virginia; Quyarrah, (Forward Operating Base Q-West) Iraq and Camp Dubs located on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan. And has been attached to a National Guard unit based here in Northwest Iowa.
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interview by Arthur Breur
Article continuation from ACCESSline’s June 2013 Volume, 27, Issue No. 6. Is the building in Kyle’s Bed and Breakfast a fixed floorplan? Oh, absolutely. The first book actually has the blueprints of the entire house in the back of the book. All four floors and everything. [laughs] So I really do lay it all out exactly the way it’s supposed to be. It was challenging to figure that out. When I first started doing the strip it was kind of like, “Oh, I’ve got five characters, and they all live here,” but since then I’ve brought on additional characters. There are ten bedrooms in this Bed and Breakfast, and if there are any more than ten characters, I can’t have them all living there at the same time. It’s a good excuse for me—it’s a limiting factor: if a character’s not working for me, then it’s time to send them off on a business trip to London or something, [laughs] because I just don’t have the room for them. People love to criticize things, so what criticisms have you gotten about your strips? I have to say, I’ve gotten so many good words that when
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Letter from the Editor Advertising rates Capital City Pride 2013 Des Moines, IA From the Heartland by Donna Red Wing Remarkables by Jonathan Wilson Iowan Advocacy by Tami Haught Meta-data and Privacy by Tony Dillon-Hansen Shrink Rap by Loren A Olson MD Boy Scouts of America by Warren J. Blumenfeld Just Sayin’ by Beau Fodor Despite Repeal, Obstacles Remain by D. Wetherell PFLAG - Des Moines Chapter Meeting New GOglbt Business Referral Group Minor Details: Pride by Robert Minor GLSEN Student Ambassador Black Pride by Rev. Irene Monroe Creep of the Week by D’Anne Witkowski
Section 2: Fun Guide
3 3 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 8 9 9 10 10
Entertainment Picks for the Month 11 Chi Chi Larue at Club CO2 interview by Arthur Breur 11 Inside Out: My Tribe by Ellen Krug 12 Wired This Way by Rachel Eliason 13 Which Foods Burn the Most Calories? by Davey Wavey 13 I.C. Kings Celebrate Pride in Iowa City! 16 New Kings on the Block show their talent 21 The Bookworm Sez by Terri Schlichenmeyer 22 Comics and Crossword Puzzle 22-23 Hiring a wedding planner by Scott Stevens 24
Section 3: Community
FFBC: Dr. Jason Glass by Bruce Carr 25 Prime Timers of Central Iowa 25 PITCH Calendar 2013 25 From the Pastor’s Pen by Rev. Page 26 Ask Lambda Legal By Dru Levasseur 26 Iowa NRCS Earth Team 27 Business Owners to Support Local Artists by J. Schaefer 27 LGBTQ Patient & Family Education and Support Groups 27 Business Directory 28-29 QC Pridefest celebrates Living Out Loud 30 DSM Gay Men’s Chorus at Capital City Pride Parade 31 University of Iowa LGBT S&F Association 32 CRPrideFest 2013: Shades of Pride Cedar Rapids, IA 34 ALPHAS 34
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Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
PUBLICATION INFORMATION
Letter from the Editor
time, especially in the 18 months since I moved with my husband to Portland, Oregon. She encouraged me to continue my involvement with the paper despite that thousand-mile separation, and I’m very thankful that she did. But the fact of that physical distance has often frustrated me, preventing me from directly interacting with the people, places, and events that are the focus of this long-running community paper.
Copyright © 2013, All rights reserved. ACCESSline
P.O. Box 396
Des Moines, IA 50302-0396 (712) 560-1807
www.ACCESSlineAMERICA.com editor@ACCESSlineIOWA.com
ACCESSline is a monthly publication by
FIRESPIKE LLC. The paper was founded in 1986 by the non-profit organization ACCESS (A Concerned
Community for Education,
Safer-sex and Support) in Northeast Iowa.
Arthur Breur, Editor in Chief Angela Geno-Stumme, Managing Editor
Publication of the name, photograph or
likeness of any person, business or organization in ACCESSline is not to be construed as
any indication of sexual orientation. Opinions expressed by columnists do not necessarily
ACCESSline Page 3
From the start, Angela has eagerly added far more than asked for in her efforts to improve and expand the paper, and has pursued stories and interviews that consistently delight and surprise the ACCESSline’s readers, myself included. I will continue to support Angela, and will be acting as Publisher of The ACCESSline as well as continuing to provide editorial, graphic design, and strategic support.
Editor-in-Chief, Arthur Breur Time passes on and all things change. This is a particularly difficult precept for me to accept, personally. I don’t like to let go of things that I’ve enjoyed, and I am a bit of a control freak. One good change that I am pleased to announce is that Angela Geno-Stumme— who has been the ACCESSline’s Managing Editor for the past two and a half years—is now stepping into the offical role of the paper’s Editor in Chief. To give full credit where it is due, Angela has been doing the lioness’s share of the work for at least half that
reflect the opinions of ACCESSline or the LGBT+ community. Letters to the editor may
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Angela Geno-Stumme and Sarah Headrick at ACCESSline’s booth at Des Moines Pride. Courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
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Please send us information on any of the following: Corrections to articles • Stories of LGBT or HIV+ interest • Letters to the editor Editorials or opinion pieces • Engagement and wedding ceremony announcements or photos Questions on any topic we print • Photos and writeups about shows, events, pageants, and fundraisers Please email us at Editor@ACCESSlineIOWA.com. You may also contact us at our regular address, ACCESSline, P.O. Box 396, Des Moines, IA 50302-0396 ACCESSline reserves the right to print letters to the editor and other feedback at the editor’s discretion.
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ACCESSline Page 4
Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
Capital City Pride 2013 Des Moines, IA
Courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
Courtesy of Gregory Gilgen
Courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
Courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
DMGMC. Courtesy of Gregory Gilgen
SScontinued from page 1
SCOTUS spoke of our victory. And they went silent as we remembered the folks we knew and loved who did not live to see this day. There seemed to be great energy around the future and the need to continue to organize and mobilize. Similar celebration rallies took place in Quad Cities, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Cedar Falls, Sioux City, Mason City and Ames.
Speech by Donna Red Wing
We have a great deal to celebrate. The United States Supreme Court confirmed the rights and the equality of all loving and committed married couples. The ruling on Proposition 8, while a move in the right direction, was a modest
gain. We celebrate with and for samegender couples in California. And, we work towards the day when all fifty states will enjoy marriage equality. As we celebrate the rulings and what the future can be, I hope that we will thank every person and organization that has brought us to this place. Every member of the clergy, every policy maker, every attorney, every activist, every PFLAG Mom or Dad. I hope that we will remember, that we will remember, why courts do matter. I’d like to say a special Thank you to Sharon Malheiro, and to Matt McCoy, and One Iowa, and Lambda Legal, thank you. If you are here tonight, you probably did something to get us here. You came out. You made a donation. You told your story. You did what needed to be done. You are a
Courtesy of Gregory Gilgen
Courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
part of this historic moment…you own this historic moment and I thank you for that. Tonight, as we celebrate, let’s send up a prayer of gratitude to the women and men who came before us, those twilight lovers of years gone by, for their extraordinary courage. Let us raise up our voices to our friends who never got to see this day. We will remember them. Here, in Iowa, we still have a great deal of work to do. Our opponents are not celebrating. They are opening their playbook and they are turning the page. We know that we will hear from Bob Vander Plaats and the Family Leader tonight and tomorrow and the day after that and the day after that. We know that they will not simply walk away from this battle. Now, more than ever, we need to orga-
nize and mobilize. Please, take a moment and talk to our canvassers. Commit to our next chapter in this movement for equality. We need you! As we work to protect our children; as we protect the kid that gets bullied, how do we help stop kids from becoming bullies? Can we make sure that our aging community is treated with respect and with kindness? Do we continue to work towards our families’ legal rights; from birth certificates to death certificates? How do we support our transgender community? And will we finally decriminalize AIDS/HIV in the state of Iowa? Together, my friends, we have made history. Today belongs to each of you. My question tonight is this…what will you do tomorrow? I hope that we will do all that we can, all that we can, to make Iowa truly One Iowa.
If you are here tonight, you probably did something to get us here.
Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
ACCESSline Page 5
From the Heartland by Donna Red Wing, Executive Director One Iowa A place of moderation
Eighteen years ago a group of Lesbian Avengers from San Francisco went to the headquarters of Exodus International, an organization with a mission to cure homosexuality through ‘conversion therapy’. The Lesbian Avengers carried signs and chanted. Some climbed onto the reception desk and shouted, “We don’t need to be cured!” And then the Avengers released 1,000 locusts. Swarms of insects crawled across the Exodus floor. The police were called and told that “There are lesbians here and they have bugs!” By the time law enforcement understood that the call was not a hoax, the Avengers were long gone. The Plague of Locusts demonstration was one of the more creative attacks on a radical right organization that promoted ‘freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ’ and believed that it could ‘cure’ LGBT people, or make them ‘straight’ through conversion therapy and prayer. Today Exodus is moving away from its past practices and dissociating itself from the reparative therapies. The organization has come to the realization that it just doesn’t work. The organization still believes that any sexual activity, gay or straight, outside of a heterosexual marriage is sinful. But it will no longer engage in politics, in the cultural war
against homosexuality. As its president, Alan Chambers, said this week: “I think it’s time for us in the church to move on from that fight.” In a related move, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has proclaimed: “With love and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, including our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters.” An openly gay Mormon was recently “called” to serve as a leader in an LDS congregation in San Francisco. Church members marched in the Utah Pride parade. And the church said that even though the Boy Scouts of America has lifted its ban on openly gay Scouts, it would continue its long-time association with the organization. Excuse me while I check to see if Hell has actually frozen over. I am pleased to see some of our most active opponents coming to a place of, at least, moderation. Exodus is walking away from the barbaric practices of conversion therapy. Mormons are finding loving and civil avenues of communication. This did not happen overnight. I believe that it is the culmination of decades of civil conversations; of people coming out; of people of faith really looking within and asking and answering very tough questions. This is a movement towards justice and anyone can join. Many of these conversations were sparked and sustained by LGBT people of
faith. For a very long time we have tried to reconcile who we were with what we believed. And even in the most painful of places, some of us were able to find resolution. And then there were those faith leaders who have been on their own extraordinary journeys. Reverend Dr. C. Welton Gaddy is one of those heroic leaders. He is both President of Interfaith Alliance and Pastor for Preaching and Worship at Northminster (Baptist) Church in Monroe, Louisiana. He is past president of the Alliance of Baptists and is a member of the Commission of Christian Ethics of the Baptist World Alliance. Reverend Gaddy was once a member of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee. I tell you his Baptist credentials because they are so important to his work in support of the LGBT community. Reverend Gaddy has written an extraordinary paper “Same-Gender Marriage and Religious Freedom: A Call to Quiet Conversations and Public Debates.” He presented this paper to one hundred Mormon leaders in Salt Lake City. And they heard him. He has debated Maggie Gallagher at the National Organization for Marriage. He has taken his ideas on religious liberty and marriage equality across the nation in private and public venues. He has spoken to bishops and rabbis, priests and politicians. He has addressed congregations and conventions. As marriage becomes the norm, his work, and all of the work that extends a hand even to those who have opposed us, will
The other reported that the Roman Catholic archdiocese in Madrid, Spain, says it needs more exorcists to help some of its faithful cope with the devil. It claimed to have only one exorcist priest available and was considering a plan to train more. Apparently, according to the Roman Catholic Church, only a priest authorized by a bishop can perform an exorcism and the brief rite involves blessings with “holy” water, prayers, and an interrogation of the devil by the exorcist during which the demon is asked to leave the victim.
There you have it. In the 21st Century we live in a conflicted world still debating elementary principles of fiction over fact. Debating science over mythology. Debating whether or not the Earth is flat or the center of the Universe. Whether or not all of God’s children are straight and the “gay” ones are simply straight ones misbehaving. Debating whether up is down. Debating whether or not illness is the product of demon possession. It’s a testament to the failure of public education. When education is available, ignorance is a choice. And prideful ignorance is the foundation of bigotry. Informed, enlightened, wise folks are dying every day. More ignorant, unenlightened, and foolish folks are being born every day. The Roman Catholic Church has managed to institutionalize ignorance, unenlightenment, and foolishness. It seeks to perpetuate all three to the detriment of Brandon Schaible in Philadelphia whose brother Kent died similarly in 2009. Coincidence that those two articles appeared virtually together in the newspaper? I don’t think so. Thanks to The Des Moines Register. It tells me the magnitude of the task before us. It reminds me that education is not a destination, but a relay race from one generation to another. It confirms for me that the judge was right to
The police were called and told that “There are lesbians here and they have bugs!”
Remarkables by Jonathan Wilson Coincidence? I Don’t Think So.
In The Des Moines Register on May 25, 2013 (page 2A), there appeared together two brief articles in the Nation & World Watch section within inches of each other. One reported that a Philadelphia judge ordered that a couple who believe in faith healing over medicine be held without bail on third-degree murder charges arising out of the death of their 8-month-old son, Brandon. Prosecutors said the couple prayed over their sick child for two weeks before he died, and never called a doctor. The judge said they were a flight risk because there could be a community of like-minded people out there who might harbor them.
Donna Red Wing is the Executive Director of One Iowa. She served as Executive Director of Grassroots Leadership, as Chief of Staff at Interfaith Alliance, she was a member of the Obama’s kitchen cabinet on LGBT concerns, and was Howard Dean’s outreach liaison to the LGBT communities. Red Wing was the first recipient of the Walter Cronkite Award for Faith & Freedom. Red Wing serves on the national board of the Velvet Foundation, which is building the national LGBT museum in Washington, DC. Contact Donna at OneIowa.org or donna@oneiowa.org. become more and more crucial. As we see our opponents move to more moderate places I think it is important to remind ourselves how and why this is happening, and then, to think about how we move forward. We don’t need to release locusts any more. I think we do, however, need to find people where they are, wherever they are, and invite them in.
Debating whether or not the Earth is flat or the center of the Universe. Whether or not all of God’s children are straight and the “gay” ones are simply straight ones misbehaving.
Jonathan Wilson is an attorney at the Davis Brown Law Firm in Des Moines, and chairs the First Friday Breakfast Club (ffbciowa.org), an educational, non-profit corporation for gay men in Iowa who gather on the first Friday of every month to provide mutual support, to be educated on community affairs, and to further educate community opinion leaders with more positive images of gay men. It is the largest breakfast club in the state of Iowa. He can be contacted at JonathanWilson@DavisBrownLaw.com. deny bail; that community of like-minded people who might harbor those homicidal parents could be as close as the nearest Roman Catholic Church.
ACCESSline Page 6
Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
Iowan Advocacy by Tami Haught Doing what it takes… everyday
I have been living with HIV for 28 years in a small town in Iowa. I was diagnosed in 1985. I was diagnosed when every-one assumed you had to be gay or an injection drug user. I was a single mother working two jobs to keep the bills paid. I started dating a man and everything was great for a while. Then trouble started. One day he cornered me in my apartment and said if I broke up with him he would tell my employer, insurance company, and worst of all the threats of my son’s school. Even though my son is negative, those days some schools were kicking kids out just for having an HIV positive family member. I was lucky. I got him out of my house and my life, but I was always worried I would get a call from my son’s school, get fired, and lose my insurance. I never felt more like I had lost control of my life. I would do anything to protect my son, so ever since that incident I don’t tell anyone I am positive. I just can’t be sure that when I share such personal information it won’t be told to someone I don’t trust to know. Living with this secret is not easy, but it’s what I have to live with to feel safe.
CHAIN Link News
Iowa Code 709C interferes with positive
public health measures to test and treat HIV Community HIV/Hepatitis Advocates Iowa of Network continues their efforts to modernize Iowa’s Public health laws, increase public safety, build public awareness and fight discrimination, stigma, rejection, criminalization, and fear. Our hope is to stimulate conversations about the Iowa law that criminalizes HIV and why it is so bad for public health goals and people living with HIV/AIDS. The Problem: The current Iowa law, 709c is based on outdated beliefs, how people acquire HIV, who acquires HIV, and the medical risks associated with it. The Solution: Modernize the current law to create a tiered system which addresses the intentional transmission of any contagious or infectious disease. Iowa must reform its current law that criminalizes people living with HIV/AIDS. Here’s why: With advancements in medicine and public health, HIV can be managed like other chronic infectious diseases. • Treatment of HIV has come a long way in the last 30 years, and is no longer a “death sentence.” • Studies have shown that someone diagnosed at age 25 has nearly the same life expectancy as an unaffected person. • We have come a long way in the treatment and care for people living with HIV. Our laws need to reflect that progress. The current law—Iowa Code 709C—
undermines public health goals by discouraging testing and treatment of HIV, as well as making disclosure of HIV status more risky. • 709C discourages testing and disclosure because of the severe penalties associated with simply knowing your status. The current law reads that if the person knows his or her HIV status is positive, he or she risks criminal prosecution. • Iowa has one of the highest rates of late testers of any state in the nation (47 percent). • Half of people who acquire HIV do so from a partner who is unaware of their positive HIV status. The goal in this column is to provide current information of advocacy efforts in Iowa; to keep you informed and to ask for your help. Over the course of the next few issues of ACCESSline, information will be shared about why CHAIN feels the law should be changed, stories from Iowans living with HIV and situations of stigma, discrimination, hate, and fear they have experienced after disclosure. We hope that with more information individuals will join our efforts and contact legislators asking for their help to join us in modernizing Iowa’s law. If you would like to join our efforts, please contact Tami Haught, CHAIN Community Organizer at tami.haught2012@gmail.com. If you would like to make a donation to help our education and advocacy efforts, please send donation to: Attn: CHAIN, C/O Primary
A majority of people polled do not feel threatened by the NSA surveillance program because apparently this data “about data” is supposedly without content. Also, people want to be safe from the growing terrorist threats. Perhaps, people feel safer because they can stock up on AR-15s and ammunition while Congress is willing to send young soldiers to die in some foreign land in the “cause of freedom.” So we want government to stay out of our lives and out of our bedrooms, but we are willing to give a blank license for them to collect and to survey data about us without feeling spooked. Let me give you an example of what is conceivable. A spouse learns that the other spouse has been spending time with a couple individuals in quiet conversation. This spouse also learns the times and places of a couple encounters and discussions. Upon learning this information, the spouse may naturally approach the questionable nature of the actions with a sense of betrayal, distrust, anger or fear. Then, this spouse decides to confront the other person with an idea that the apparent shenanigans need to stop. At the revelation, the other spouse is horrified by an unexpected confrontation and subsequently reveals
that the encounters of question were to prepare a surprise vacation for the couple as a gift to the offended spouse. Now, one can question or judge whether the one spouse was correct for planning a surprise vacation or if the one spouse is correct in questioning or concluding those plans. The point here is that this mistake may be resolved between the couple as how to communicate between each other and the levels of trust between them. Yet, the government, via the NSA and law enforcement, is cataloging data about the “circumstances” of discussions and encounters without supposedly listening to the actual conversation. The government is, by definition, not trusting when it is looking. The question then becomes whether the government will realize when they have made errors of judgment and how will they correct them. For instance, if a U.S. citizen gets accused of terrorism or plotting for a mass attack by talking to friends in South Korea where the citizen was only planning to meet with longtime associates for collaboration on research and education. (South Korea is almost North Korea right?) Of course, under current enemy combatant statutes, you, as the U.S. Citizen, may find yourself exceptionally interested in the prison conditions at Guantanamo Bay. We know that some government officials may decide to continue prosecutions regardless of facts, and McCarthy’s Red Scare can tell you exactly how that has been done in the past and how wrongly that can be pursued. People are too eager to trade freedom and liberty away, and thus, they ignore that an individual responsibility of having freedom is to also ensure that freedom endures despite external or internal attacks. We must ensure that freedom is respected or we may find
Meta-data and Privacy by Tony Dillon-Hansen Meta-data is data that describes data without supposedly knowing the content of the data (describing the object without actually telling you what the object is). Information technology has been using data and meta-data for years to determine things such things like buying habits, various user systems, location of the user and more, without even asking your name. The question today becomes how good are the inferences based upon that information and should the government be in the business of scanning this. Then, we find that the government has been taking it upon themselves to review similar type of data about phone calls, emails, and other contact mechanisms. Further, they have been using a secret court to gain justification and authorization for the wiretapping where only the judge can challenge government suspicions.
So we want government to stay out of our lives and out of our bedrooms, but we are willing to give a blank license for them to collect and to survey data about us without feeling spooked.
Tami Haught has been living with HIV for almost 20 years. She is the CHAIN Community Organizer, President for PITCH, and new member of the SERO Project Board of Directors. Tami started speaking out about her HIV status when her son started school hoping that providing education and facts would make life easier for her son, by fighting the stigma, discrimination, isolation, and criminalization people living with HIV/AIDS face daily. Contact info: tami. haught2012@gmail.com website: www.pitchiowa.com Health Care, 9943 Hickman Rd. Suite 105, Urbandale, Iowa 50322. Also, I am looking for education forum opportunities so if you lead a group and would like more information please contact me.
Tony E Dillon-Hansen is a web developer, organizer, researcher, writer, martial artist, and vocalist from Des Moines. For more information go to tigersnapdragons.com. ourselves at the end of a baton or rifle for some comedic remark. Expect no good will from unwarranted seizures as they will find something to use. As well, a good agent of the government may not want to waste the taxpayer money on a misguided lead, and we have seen where those people may be out to prove something that does not exist to save face or some other false based story. They, the trusted government, may even find a way to use a portion of code to justify smearing a group of people. Even more, people around the world look to the United States as an example of liberty and individual rights. When the U.S. government starts secretly investigating the press, spying on citizens, or killing suspects without
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Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
ACCESSline Page 7
Shrink Rap by Loren A Olson MD Dr. Olson, Life has become a burden. What can I do about it? Bernie Bernie, Your question is timely. The Centers for Disease Control has just released a rather startling statistic: From 1999 to 2010 the suicide rate among persons aged 35–64 years increased by 28.4%. Research has clearly established that the most stressful time in our lives is between the ages of forty and sixty. It is a time when careers plateau, our parents age, health issues appear, and there is some decline in sexual functioning. Those with children may be caught in dual care giving responsibilities (children and aging parents). The Buddha said, “Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.” “Pain” are those things in life that happen to us over which we have no control (aging, being gay). Suffering is how we deal with those issues, and we do have control over our response to life’s inevitable pain. And not dealing with the pain has its own consequences. American culture is based on what has been called “the emptiness of striving.” Winning is everything. Everything is done
for the sake of doing something else as we search for the next higher mountain to climb. Even play often has the ambitious purpose of striving to attain our “personal best.” Enough is never enough; big food is better than good food. People are seen as a means to an end rather than an end in themselves. This emptiness of striving even colors our sexuality. We feel compelled to try and seduce every attractive person. For men, we feel we must be always ready sexually, always successful–as defined by a stiff erection and a huge load–and we must be certain our partner is “successful” and preferably at the same time. We’ve set the bar very high–or perhaps, are we really trying to jump over the wrong bar. For men, performance trumps pleasure. Younger and younger men are using testosterone replacement therapy and pills to give them firmer erections. The first signs of sexual decline lead immediately to a sense of failure. Young men can take a lesson from older men who understand that diminished sexual drive, weaker erections and lower ejaculatory volume do not necessarily lead to diminished pleasure. Older men who understand their evolving sexuality, learn to
have sex in slow time, enjoying the journey, not just the destination. Sexual intimacy must be refocused on greater emotional intimacy that accompanies the physical aspects of sex. But older men need to stop thinking of themselves as the trolls we’re sometimes called by younger gay men. Do younger men who are attracted to older men see in older men something they don’t see in themselves? I think so. What younger men tell me about their attraction is that they see men who accept themselves in spite of having made some serious mistakes, men who have gained wisdom through experiences following difficult choices. They see men who can enjoy their companions without wanting something from them. They see men who like to cuddle as much as they like to cum. They don’t see wrinkles and sags but instead they see a seasoned face filled with the beauty of a life well lived. Young or old, time is limited and diminishing. We lose the joy of each moment when we worry endlessly about the future of can’t stop regretting the past. People should be more than just a step up the ladder. Perhaps we should stop always striving for our personal best and focus on our personal good enough. So, Bernie, life can be burdensome, but
in thought, word, and deed….” So why, after its reiteration of the ban just last year, did the National Executive Board even consider a reversal? Quite simply, the Board’s policies have placed the Boy Scouts of America on the endangered organizations list. Since its reaffirmation of its ban last year, major corporate donors have either pulled out completely or have severely reduced financial support. Such corporations include the Intel Foundation, UPS, United Way, and Merck Company Foundation. Over 70,000 people signed a petition asking BSA’s National Executive Board to drop its discriminatory policy. In addition, around 65,000 scouts turned in their uniforms during the last two years in reaction to the ban, bringing down the total
membership below 2.7 million. Since 2000, the organization has lost approximately 21% of its membership. On the other side of the coin, the bad news is that these same BSA delegates failed to take a vote on lifting its long-standing prohibition of gay and bisexual scout leaders, thereby leaving the ban firmly in place. Just last year, for example, the BSA demanded that Jennifer Tyrrill, lesbian mom and scout leader of her son Cruz’s den, leave her post because as reported, she did not “meet the high standards of membership that the Boy Scouts of America seeks.” What “high standards” has Tyrrill not met? While serving as den leader, the cubs in her den volunteered at a local soup kitchen, collected canned goods for neighboring churches to distribute in food baskets, and performed a conservation project at a state park. The Girl Scouts of America and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America organizations proudly welcome and appreciate members and leaders of all sexual and gender identities. The Girl Scouts, for example, has, indeed, fulfilled its own written promises and laws “to be Honest and Fair, Friendly and Helpful, Considerate and Caring, Courageous and Strong, and Responsible.” But how can a boy scout or scout leader truly adhere to the Boy Scout Law of being “trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent” when the BSA still clings to its blatantly prejudicial, discriminatory, and quite frankly, offensive inherent policy on issues of sexual identity?
American culture is based on what has been called “the emptiness of striving.” Winning is everything.
Boy Scouts of America by Warren J. Blumenfeld The Good, the Bad, and the (Still) Highly Discriminatory
Without justice, there can be no peace. Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. The good news is now well known: last month, approximately 61 percent of the fourteen hundred members representing the Boy Scouts of America’s (BSA) National Council of delegates from across the country met in Grapevine, Texas and voted to lift its century-old ban against gay and bisexual scouts. The decision will go into effect January 1, 2014. According to its past position on homosexuality: “Boy Scouts of America believes that homosexual conduct is inconsistent with the obligations in the Scout Oath and Scout Law to be morally straight and clean
Since 2000, the organization has lost approximately 21% of its membership.
Loren A. Olson MD is a board certified psychiatrist in the clinical practice of psychiatry for over 35 years. Dr. Olson has conducted research on mature gay and bisexual men for his book, Finally Out: Letting Go of Living Straight, a Psychiatrist’s Own Story. He has presented on this subject at conferences across the United States and Internationally. His blog, MagneticFire. com, has a strong following among mature gay and bisexual men. He established Prime Timers of Central Iowa, a social organization for mature gay/bisexual men. For more information go to FinallyOutBook.com or contact him on Facebook.com. surely not all of it is. Refocus your thoughts on what you have left rather than what you have lost. Use your mind and your time well. And remember, it is more important to choose with whom you eat dinner than what is on the menu.
Warren J. Blumenfeld is author of Warren’s Words: Smart Commentary on Social Justice (Purple Press); editor of Homophobia: How We All Pay the Price (Beacon Press), and co-editor of Readings for Diversity and Social Justice (Routledge) and Investigating Christian Privilege and Religious Oppression in the United States (Sense). In addition to potential gay and bisexual scout leaders, no atheist or agnostic need apply either since the Boy Scouts of America “Anthem” proclaims: “The Boy Scouts of America maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God….The recognition of God as the ruling and leading power in the universe and the grateful acknowledgment of His favors and blessings are necessary to the best type of citizenship and are wholesome precepts in the education of the growing members.” No one is advocating same-sex sexual conduct between scouts or between scout leaders and scouts. BSA’s continuing ban on gay and bisexual leaders, however, confuses conduct with identity since the organization continues to reject leaders in terms of identity. The BSA policy could be considered as its “Tell, because we will ask, and if you don’t tell, we will pursue” policy.
ACCESSline Page 8
Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
Just Sayin’ by Beau Fodor Undercurrent of Homophobia
After spending this morning with a California-based film crew, working on a documentary about Marriage Equality, and how far we’ve come already here in the Midwest, well, I find myself feeling humbled and grateful to still be part of this journey. The Pride events I’ve attended across the state remind me of the continuing growth and new leadership of our community. I was asked to march again this year in the Capitol City Pride parade, and I took my Grandmother along with me. At one point an Associated Press reporter pulled us out of the line-up and asked my Grandmother why “she” was marching, and she actually said, “Well, I am tired of defending my Grandson’s place at the table... and want him to be considered an equal while he is seated there, instead of being fodder for conversation.” Later that day, as we crossed the river
on the Locust Street Bridge to go home from an epic experience, a parade float passed by and screamed faggots out loud. The bridge was packed with tourists and I can only imagine what they thought. As far as myself and Gram, well, both of us laughed... because they knew me, (and I knew they were just giving a shout-out), but, she said “Dear Boy, when will people stop the hate they seem to have for your community?” And I really didn’t know what to say. For some reason I was extremely embarrassed, but I quickly explained to her we’ve come a long way, and now 30-somethings use that verbiage as a term of endearment(yes, it was a stretch, but I wanted to make her feel better) and to make her think it was all really o.k. now in 2013. I decided to let it go and we went out for a nice dinner, and then got ice cream. But, this morning while filming, I got to
reflect and talk about that moment. I didn’t realize until today how angry it made me, and how this behavior from within our own community is unhealthy for continuing the progress we’ve made. Part of me is sad, that this 83 year-old woman worries about my safety and wellbeing, but that isn’t the worst part. What saddens me the most is the division in our community between demographics from within our community. Why do we put so much pressure on ourselves? I’m honestly fascinated by the deep undercurrent of homophobia that runs rapid through our tribe. Young teens are taking their lives all the time over bullying, and their peers making them feel ashamed for being whom they are. I get it, it can be terrifying to be different because we know what an a**hole society can be. However, we need to stop perpetuating
It still seems near impossible to believe that nearly two years ago I was sitting on a dusty Army base in Afghanistan listening to my commander deliver the Department of Defense mandated briefing on the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. The September 2011 repeal was something I certainly did not expect to see in my lifetime, much less my military career. After all our military has a long history of institutional discrimination against members of the LGBT community. As early as 1787 a Continental Army Lieutenant was discharged for “attempted sodomy”. In fact in the ensuing years thousands of personnel have been discharged for their sexual orientation. Even recently between the implementation of DADT in 1994 and its repeal nearly fourteen thousand people were separated from military service. The repeal was in many ways to me not just an important victory for the LGBT community but a personal victory as well. Like many gay, lesbian and bisexual members of the armed forces I enlisted while the ban was in effect and during the entirety of my service remained closeted to my fellow soldiers. The repeal meant I no longer had to hide an important part
of who I am as a person. There was no longer the perception that me and homosexuals like me were in some way flawed or incapable of being an effective member of the military. I sat there thinking about our homecoming a few months away and realized that unlike when I returned from Iraq I could be greeted by a significant other without fear that display of affection would reveal my secret. I could bring a boyfriend to company functions and they could, if they so chose, attend events for the families of service members. Of course I remained concerned that despite Department of Defense protections for homosexuals, if I were out I could fall victim to the cultural bias against homosexuals which remains engrained in military culture. As it turns out though I need not have worried. For most the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was quite simply a non-issue. It seems that the military, like society in general had over the years come to realize that homosexuality is not a medical defect or moral flaw. I personally have never experienced an instance of anti-homosexual behavior and have talked to a good many LGB men and women who have had similar experiences. The fact remains though that while
the repeal was a great victory, there remains many stumbling blocks which must be removed before true equality can be reached. For example while the repeal of DADT has legalized lesbians, gays and bisexuals serving openly in the military by virtue of a regulation related to fitness for service the transgendered remain banned from serving in the armed forces. Similarly Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice which bans the practice of sodomy remains in effect. While it is seldom if ever used the fact that it remains in effect is of concern to a great many lesbian, gay and bisexual service members who fear it could be used if the ban on serving openly should ever be re-enacted. The biggest problem though is not as the result of Department of Defense policy but the Defense of Marriage Act which prohibits the recognition of samesex marriage by entities of the federal government. The Department of Defense has made great strides in offering as many benefits as possible to same-sex couples. Earlier this year for example the Secretary of Defense ordered extension of benefits which they could, “lawfully provide” to same-sex couples and their children. There are several important items which are not offered because to do so would violate DOMA. First and foremost among those is that for the purposes of base allowance for housing which is based on marital status even those LGB service
members who are legally married are still considered single. Another major item, which is excluded, is that medical benefits are not offered to same-sex partners. Other issues such as on-base housing and burial remain under legal review. To be sure, homosexual soldiers like me owe a great deal of thanks to the LGBT community for their efforts to date. Without the prodding and agitating by the community DADT would never have been repealed. However, there remains a great deal of work to be done, and I know that many like me are not only willing to do our part but grateful that we are now able to do so openly.
The Des Moines Chapter of Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays (PFLAG) will meet at 6:30 pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 1800 Bell Avenue Des Moines, IA 50315 on the third Tuesday of every month. The meeting begins with a short business meeting followed by an educa-
tional presentation, and a social and support session. All are welcome! Made up of parents, families, friends, and straight allies uniting with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, PFLAG is committed to advancing equality through its mission of support, education and advocacy.
GOglbt is starting a new group of GLBT business owners or business professionals to meet twice monthly to support each other’s businesses by providing referrals. They will meet every other Thursday from 7:30am-8:30am at a TBD Wells Fargo sponsored location. Refreshments
will be provided. Once they secure the location the meetings will start. Membership Fee is $50.00 and will include a business listing on the GOglbt.com website. To sign up to be a part of this group please call Tom Luke at 402-650-2917, or email him at tom@lukedirectmarketing.com.
“Dear Boy, when will people stop the hate they seem to have for your community?” And I really didn’t know what to say.
Beau Fodor is the owner of PANACHE, an Iowa event and wedding planner who focuses specifically on weddings for the LGBT community. He can be reached at his blog www.panachepoints.com. Photo courtesy of Toby Schuh Photography. the self-hate because it’s just making it more difficult for people to be comfortable with the idea of homosexuality being more prevalent.
Despite Repeal, Obstacles Remain by D. Raymond Wetherell
There was no longer the perception that me and homosexuals like me were in some way flawed or incapable of being an effective member of the military.
D. Raymond Wetherell is a former member of the United States Army, a current member of the Army National Guard and a veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan. The views expressed in this article are his and his alone and in no way, shape or form represent the views of the Department of Defense, Department of the Army, the Iowa Army National Guard or any component thereof.
PFLAG - Des Moines Chapter Meeting New GOglbt Business Referral Group
Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
ACCESSline Page 9
Minor Details by Robert Minor Surprised that There’s So Much Rape in the Military?
In 2012, 26,000 women and men reported sexual assault in the American military. We have no record of how much remains unreported. That’s only one year of victimization in what military brass admitted before Congress was a “cancer.” If it weren’t for the seven women on the Senate Armed Services Committee, I’d expect such reports to be buried. Hearing so many of the old Congressmen respond to this with stupidity, sexism, and pseudo-science, even surprised those of us who expect so little out of right-wing politicians. And blaming the existence of women in the military ignores the fact that 14,000 of those victims were men. That’s 6.1% of the women in the military and 1.2% of the men. And 98% of the reported sexual assaults on men were committed by other men. In one of the most insightful analyses of this epidemic, Ana Marie Cox of The Guardian concludes: “it’s something about being in the military today, at this moment in history, fighting the kinds of wars we’re fighting with the kinds of troops we have.” [“The Real Roots of the US Military’s
Epidemic of Sexual Assaults”] “It’s a truism among feminists–if not senators–that rape is a crime of violence, not of sexual attraction….Could it be that the real crisis in today’s military is tied to not who these soldiers are, but the nature of what we’re asking them to do?” Today’s military with a growing number of soldiers and veterans diagnosed with mental illness and chemical dependency, with the tactics of modern warfare and the length of troop service, exacerbates what we’ve taught our men culturally and our military men in particular. It starts with what we teach our boys as they enter puberty about what manly sex is. In Scared Straight I called that conditioning, the “Nine Layers of Getting Laid,” a paradigm that continues to dominate junior high and high school male gender roles idealized in the studs of contemporary media. This cultural conditioning is often excused as the male sex drive. Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss said in the Senate hearings: “Gee whiz, the hormone level created by nature sets in place the possibility for these types of things to occur.” But the third of those layers is that “Getting Laid” for high school boys is impersonal. “It is best if a boy isn’t otherwise acquainted with, or a friend of, the
A key goal of the military’s basic training is turning recruits into warriors who’ll be ready to kill others if called to do so.
sexual object. One does not marry the girl who is the best lay….Getting laid, therefore, is not about the person.” The more that this impersonal layer is internalized–the more it’s felt that the sex isn’t done to a person but an object–the easier it is to deny that there’s violence involved. One isn’t really hurting another person. Add to this the seventh layer–that “Getting Laid” is self-centered, that it’s done to someone on the agenda of a real man - and the sexual act becomes an act of power over another. One can see this in the raping of men by men who identify as heterosexual in our prisons–a situation that’s often made into a joke. Now, most of our boys know that something like this conditioning is there in their teen years but they fight it silently, internally and seemingly alone because men don’t talk about their deviations from “manhood.” But what happens when we add the conditioning men encounter in the military? A key goal of the military’s basic training is turning recruits into warriors who’ll be ready to kill others if called to do so. But a man can’t do this if he thinks of the enemy personally. That’s why enemies must be turned into stereotypes and described with phrases such as: “human life isn’t valuable to them.” The face of the enemy must be inhuman or it would be hard to destroy it. Military conditioning thereby adds another layer to thinking impersonally of others. Other human beings are objects, not living, loving human beings who are sons and daughters of real people. But it also de-humanizes the warrior himself. His own value comes to be understood as contingent upon not only is ability to kill others but his willingness to be killed defending the system. Violence to others becomes even easier. And violence against oneself as a just a killing machine who’s been put further out of touch with his own, caring, feeling humanity also becomes easier. A true warrior expects violence. He could even use its presence to finally provide value for his own insecure manly self-worth. He can earn a medal from real men at the top for killing another man, after all, but be killed for loving one. Valuing oneself for such violence turned inward
Robert N. Minor, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at the University of Kansas, is author of When Religion Is an Addiction; Scared Straight: Why It’s So Hard to Accept Gay People and Why It’s So Hard to Be Human and Gay & Healthy in a Sick Society. Contact him at www.FairnessProject.org. has spurred a record level of suicides among those who serve and veterans, so that in the past twelve years more have died by their own hand than by enemy fire. What’s actually surprising is that these figures aren’t much higher. The conditioning is doing everything it can to encourage sexual assault as an act of power and violence over some object so as to assert one’s manhood and worth. But they’re not, because men aren’t inherently like this. They’re not naturally driven by testosterone and hormones, no matter how we might use these as excuses. It’s not that “boys will be boys,” for a lot of abusive manhood conditioning software has to be installed in our little naturally loving, caring, feeling boys to make them killers and sexual assaulters. And enforcing that is the fear that if they don’t act tough, hard, cold, and objectoriented enough, they’ll be put down as girly and fags. Add to this their impression that society has given up on men. It’s not challenging their conditioning but sending them to anger management, drugging them, or finally throwing them away in prison. Conditioning is all learned, and what is learned can be unlearned. But do we have the courage to lead that charge?
GLSEN Student Ambassador Matt Shankles is a shining example of how students really can make a difference. A native of Marion, Iowa, Matt faced his own set of challenges at school when he came out as LGBT. He experienced name-calling, bullying and harassment from his peers simply for being himself. Matt chose to take action. He looked for ways to change his school climate. He began a Twitter campaign to tweet encouragement to students who had been bullied. Matt also participated in GLSEN’s Safe Schools Advocacy Summit in Washington where he met with lawmakers to push for the Safe Schools Improvement Act (SSIA)
and the Student Non-Discrimination Act (SNDA). But Matt’s work didn’t stop there. He joined GLSEN’s Student Ambassadors team. He spoke on a cyberbullying panel hosted by Iowa’s Governor. He also went on to testify at a Senate committee hearing in Iowa chaired by Senator Tom Harkin to discuss the need for safer schools. Just a couple of weeks ago, Senator Harkin introduced an education bill that included provisions from both SSIA and SNDA. For more information go to GLSEN.org.
ACCESSline Page 10
Section 1: News & Politics
JULY 2013
Black Pride by Rev. Irene Monroe Distinct and Emblematic
Black Pride reaffirms our identity. And it dances to a different beat. What started out in Washington D.C. in 1990 as the only Black Gay Pride event in the country has grown to over 35 gatherings nationwide. Each year celebrations start in April and continue to October. Over 300,000 LGBTQ people of African descent rev up for a weekend of social and cultural events celebrating their queer uniqueness. In 2007 alone over 350,000 attended Black Gay Pride events throughout the U.S. The largest events are held in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Atlanta, and smaller Black Pride events (like Boston’s) provide an important sense of identity and cultural heritage. Sunday gospel brunches, Saturday night Poetry slams, Friday evening fashion shows, bid whist tournaments, house parties, the smell of soul food and Caribbean cuisine, and the beautiful display of African art and clothing are just a few of the cultural markers that make Black Pride distinct from the dominant queer culture. Just like in the mainstream of American society, cultural acceptance and inclusion of LGBTQ communities of color in larger Pride events is hard to come by. Many can experience social exclusion and invisibility in the big events. Segments of our population will attend separate Black, Asian, and Latino Gay Pride events in search of the unity that is the hallmark of Pride.
The themes and focus of Black, Asian, and Latino Pride events are different from the larger Pride events. Prides of communities of color focus on issues not solely pertaining to the LGBTQ community, but rather on social, economic, and health issues impacting their entire community. The growing distance between our larger and white LGBTQ community and these LGBTQ communities of color is shown by how, for an example, a health issue like HIV/AIDS that was once an entire LGBTQ community problem is now predominately a challenge for communities of color. Also, with advances such as hate crime laws, the repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the legalization of same-sex marriage in many states, and with homophobia viewed as a national concern, the LGBTQ movement has come a long way since the first Pride marches four plus decades ago. Many note the perceived distance the LGBTQ community has traveled in such a short historic time—from a disenfranchised group on the fringe of America’s mainstream to a community now on the verge of equality. But not all members of our community have crossed the finish line. Some are waving the cautionary finger that within our community to note that not all are equal. Pride events can be public displays of those disparities. Mainstream Prides have themes focused on marriage equality for the larger
community where Prides organized by and for LGBTQ people of African descent have focused not only on HIV/AIDS but also unemployment, housing, gang violence, and LGBTQ youth homelessness. After decades of Pride events where many LGBTQ people of African descent asked to be included and weren’t, Boston Black Pride was born. Boston Black Pride this year will neither be a formal gathering of folks nor will there be a display of scheduled festivities. But it will groove on as it always has for the community, with more individual and impromptu events. By 1999 Black Pride events have grown into the International Federation of Black Prides, Inc. (IFBP). The IFBP is a coalition of twenty-nine Black Pride organizations across the country. It formed to promote an African diasporic multicultural and multinational network of LGBTQ/ Same Gender Loving Pride events and community based organizations dedicated to building solidarity, health, and wellness and promoting unity throughout our communities. Also in understanding the need to network and build coalitions beyond its immediate communities, IFBP created the formation of the Black/Brown Coalition. Black Pride is an invitation for community. Like the larger Pride events that go on during the month of June throughout the country, Black Pride need not be viewed as either a political statement or a senseless non-stop orgy of drinking, drugging and sex. Such an “either-or” viewpoint creates a dichotomy, which lessens our understanding of the integral connection of political action and celebratory acts of songs and dance for
Fischer Tweeted. “Mark my words.” Get it? Because gays are all about the butt sex and letting gay kids be Boy Scouts, instead of ostracizing them like God intended, means that the entire organization is basically going to be a big rape party. No longer will Boy Scouts make pinewood derby cars or learn how to build campfires. The BSA in Fischer’s twisted fantasy is all anal-penetration all the time. “Mark my words” is a nice touch, too. As if Fischer is gleefully waiting to be proven right, as if this is actually what he wants to see happen. But perhaps Fischer is just speaking out of unhinged anger after being proven wrong. “[T]he ban on homosexual Scout masters and homosexual participants, that ban is going to be upheld. It’s going to be defended,” Fischer ranted on Focal Point, his radio show, in February. “It’s the end of the game. This is game over. This is the Super Bowl and the good guys have won. Make no mistake about this, this is a huge win for the pro-family movement; it is a big, big, big setback for Big Gay.” Oops. Granted, you could say he was half right since, after all, gay grown-ups are still banned, but Fischer was adamant that BSA would never happen. He had no contingency plan. It never dawned on him that
BSA would adopt a more humane policy toward gays of any age. Of course, now that they’ve done it, Fischer is sure he knows why. He Tweeted, “Boy Scouts have sold their soul for a mess of corporate pottage. They will wind up with lots of money and no scouts.” That’s right. It’s all about the Benjamins. Just a bunch of greedy bastards in neckerchiefs up in the BSA. No doubt money is going to start pouring in now that the queers are here. And with cash in hand, the gay BSA take-over will be complete. Before you know it Dan Savage will get
Caribbean cuisine, and the beautiful display of African art and clothing…
Creep of the Week by D’Anne Witkowski Bryan Fischer
Did you hear the news? It’s now okay to be a gay Boy Scout. But you still can’t be a gay Man Scout. Because as we all know, the second a gay male turns 18 he turns from a child into a child predator. At least on the planet inhabited by the anti-gay right. On May 23, the Boy Scouts of America’s National Council voted to end the longstanding ban on gay Scouts, but to keep the ban on gay Troop leaders in place. Gay rights folks are only half impressed. Unsurprisingly, the anti-gay right is going berserk. A lot of nastiness erupted on Twitter after the announcement. Peter LaBarbera, founder and president of the ironically named Americans for Truth about Homosexuality, sputtered, “Boy Scouts dug own grave,” and warned of an anti-gay splinter group. Liberty Counsel’s Matt Barber Tweeted, “Boy Scouts of America: Born February 8, 1910 | Died, May 23, 2013 #RIP,” as if death notices don’t deserve at least a phone call. But by far the nastiest comments came from the American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer. “BSA now stands for Boy Sodomizers of America, because that’s what will happen,”
BSA now stands for Boy Sodomizers of America, because that’s what will happen.
Rev. Irene Monroe is a graduate from Wellesley College and Union Theological Seminary at Columbia University, and she has served as a pastor at an AfricanAmerican church before coming to Harvard Divinity School for her doctorate as Ford Fellow. She is a syndicated queer religion columnist who tries to inform the public of the role religion plays in discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. Her website is irenemonroe.com. our fight for our civil rights. While Pride events are still fraught with divisions, they, nonetheless, bind us to a common struggle for LGBTQ equality. Black Pride contributes to that struggle for equality, demonstrating an African diasporic aspect of joy and celebration that symbolizes not only our uniqueness, but it also affirms our commonality as an expression of LGBTQ life in America. Happy Pride!
a fleur-de-lis tattoo on his forehead and Elton John will perform, “Can You Feel the Cubs Tonight” at the next National Scout Jamboree. Or, in all likelihood, nothing much will happen except some gay kids who previously felt excluded may join. Some kids who are freaked out (or, more likely, whose parents are freaked out) may quit. And gay kids who are already members will take comfort in knowing that an organization that requires a serious level of dedication doesn’t officially forsake them. Mark my words.
ACCESSline’s fun guide
Our Picks for July 6/28-7/20, Theatre Cedar Rapids, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Spring Awakening, TheatreCR.org 7/6, Club Privileged, Davenport, Iowa, New Show in Town, Facebook.com/Privilegednightclub 7/11-7/14, Lincoln, Nebraska, Star City Pride 2013: No Labels, StarCityPride.org 7/11-7/14, NIACC Auditorium, Mason City, Iowa, The Sound of Music, TheMusicManSquare.org 7/12-7/14, Clear Lake, Iowa, Bicycle, Blues & BBQ, BicycleBluesBBQ.com 7/12, Blazing Saddle, Des Moines, Iowa,
Chi Chi Larue at Club CO2 interview by Arthur Breur
The LBGT hosting Little Miss & Mr. Des Moines Pageant, TheBlazingSaddle.com
7/12-7/27, Waterloo Community Playhouse, Waterloo, Iowa, 9 to 5: The Musical, WCPBHCT.org 7/12-8/4, Des Moines Playhouse, Des Moines, Iowa, Legally Blonde, DMPlayhouse.com 7/13, Fireside Winery, Marengo, Iowa, Firefly Festival, FireSideWinery.com 7/19, African American Museum of Iowa, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Uganda Children’s Choir, BlackIowa.org 7/19-28, Fairfield Arts & Convention Center, Fairfield, Iowa, Annie Get Your Gun, FairfieldACC.com 7/20, McElroy Auditorium, Waterloo, Iowa, Brawlers vs. BrewCity, CVDerbyDivas.com 7/21-7/27, Iowa, RAGBRAI XLI, Ragbrai.com 7/24-8/4, Civic Center, Des Moines, Iowa, Jersey Boys, DesMoinesPerformingArts.org 7/25-7/27, Dowtown, Decorah, Iowa, Nordic Fest, Nordicfest.com 7/26-7/27, Corning Center for the Fine Arts, Corning, Iowa, En Plein Air, RetireTheRedRaider.com 7/26-8/3, National Balloon Classic Balloon Field, Indianola, Iowa, National Balloon Classic, NationalBalloonClassic.com 7/26-8/4, Grand Opera House, Dubuque, Iowa, Les Miserables, TheGrandOperaHouse.com
...and August
8/17, McKennan Park, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Sioux Falls Pride, Facebook.com/SiouxFallsPride 8/24, Downtown, Waterloo, Iowa, Cedar Valley Pridefest 2013, CedarValleyPride.com
Chi Chi Larue. Courtesy of Chi Chi Larue Chi Chi Larue is best known as an adult Tell us about your DJing. film director, producing films for the past Well, I’ve always been a music junkie, twenty-five years. In addition to her direct- every kind of music, and I’m also a control ing, this famous drag persona has been DJing freak. [Laughs.] So that makes for a good and touring with her video stars since 2005, DJing experience. I got tired of going to clubs performing to sold out clubs around the and not hearing the music that I wanted to world. She will be performing at Club CO2 hear, and as all DJs do, I believe that the music in Cedar Rapids on July 12th and 13th, 2013. that I want to hear is what everybody wants to In anticipation of that event, ACCESSline hear. And what it turned out to be was that I editor Arthur Breur took a moment to chat was a little more right than some other DJs. with Chi Chi (pronounced “She She”), long I play happy gay music, ala Britney Spears, distance, about topics Miley Cyrus, you know, both serious and lightwhatever is Top 40 hearted, while she was dance mixed with a in London attending the tiny bit of hip-hop and 2013 HotRod British classics—80s, 90s, Porn Awards (at which etc. I would consider she won both Best Director and the Lifetime “Bootylicious” by Destiny’s Child a classic. Achievement Award). That’s what people like to hear in most cases You’ll be at Club CO2 in Cedar Rapids in clubs. I don’t ever let myself get booked in on June 12th and 13th. How do your live a place that doesn’t want that kind of music. appearances at clubs work, where you DJ Like if it’s a place that plays the late-night, and have your guys with you? circuity, giant dance venue kind of music, I Well, we’re going to have three porn don’t book myself in places like that or get boys—three really great guys. Two that booked in places like that. I don’t know how tied for best performer of the year this to do that kind of music. year at the GRABBY awards—which is the What’s been your favorite experience gay adult video awards that are held every spinning so far? year in Chicago: Jimmy Durano and Trenton Probably DJing at the birthday party for Ducati both won best performer of the year. Elton John’s husband, David. It was really And we’ve got a brand new boy that just fun. It was a surreal experience to have started doing movies, named Damian Taylor, Victoria Beckham and Lulu dancing to my who’s fabulous, and if there was a “best a**” music! Yeah! category in any award show, he’d definitely On a timely topic, what do you think be a contender. He’s got one of those butts about the Supreme Court rulings on that you can set a drink on! marriage? I’ll be DJing and the boys will be enterI’m glad it happened, but I’m really not taining. We’ll all be entertaining, I hope! TTCHI CHI LARUE cont’d page 31
Damian Taylor…He’s got one of those butts that you can set a drink on!
The Fun Guide
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Inside Out by Ellen Krug The White Knight Dear Gentle Readers: my apologies for again writing about biking—one of my passions—two columns in a row. Thanks for your indulgence. The night before a mid-June morning, I set the alarm for 4:45. No matter—I was wide-eyed at four, triggered by panic that I’d missed an exit ramp in some Sonatainduced dream. Seconds before, I had slammed on the imaginary brake in my imaginary convertible, only for my right foot to hit against my bed’s steel footboard, snapping me awake. My window was open to murmured city sounds. At that hour, the whisper of daylight pushed against the heavy grain of night, setting songbirds on their morning chorus. It was a good sign; maybe it wouldn’t be another rainy, dreary day in what has become the worst of the worst springs. I laid for twenty minutes, mustering resolve and energy. You need to ride, I told myself. Finally, I pulled from the bed and went to the window. The gray city street two stories below was dry, a good sign. The black ink night sky was cloudless, even better. At ten to five, I was on The White Knight, my beautiful eighteen speed wonder on which I limit myself to just six variations of fast. I bought The WK—yes, a white Specialized—last summer at a bike shop where the manager never seemed to mind that I’m trans. I had insisted on a “real woman’s bike” as a new-life, second chance substitute to a man-Raleigh, which had been a gift from my ex-wife in 1982. In case you don’t want to do the math, 1982 was more than a quarter century— and for me a gender—ago. I pushed off at the condo front door with a brilliant pulsating white light on the front bars and funky red flasher on The WK’s back frame. A minute later, I was on the Stone Arch Bridge, a Minneapolis icon which spans the Mississippi. It’s just
a hairbreadth downstream from the St. Anthony Falls, which at 5 a.m. makes for a pretty cool scene. Menthol cool morning air condensed on my side view mirror. In no time, my body felt sparks of heat, which soon spawned sweat droplets down the small of my back. Still, I pedaled on and on, along a trail that back-sided Target Stadium and led to a field of wildflowers. By then, the stage was set—dewy plants, creeping sunlight flickers, and the fragrance of lilacs (late bloomers with the late spring) emptying onto the blacktop trail. In a word, it was glorious. And so unexpected. I’m one of those intermediate bike riders, good for twenty or thirty miles while riding at a nice clip, but don’t ask me to race other bikers or engage in a fund-raising marathon. On the other hand, I have no patience for people who plod along. Life is too short to go slow. Plus there’s always way too much territory to cover in too little time. Two years ago, while on a sabbatical, I vowed that I’d do 54 good rides—each to be 15 miles or more—to match my age. I put a big yellow “X” on my calendar for each ride. By October, I counted 66. Not bad for an old lady, I thought. Early one evening last summer, I took The White Knight on the Greenway (a bike trail through Minneapolis on what had been a railroad right of way) and came upon a woman riding—no, make that plodding—on a lime green-colored bike. I’m a courteous rider most of the time, and I shouted out, “Coming on your left, Greenie.” When I got next to the woman, she laughed. I thought it a bit odd, but kept going. Five minutes later, I stopped and parked The White Knight to listen to a band that was playing along the Greenway. As I sat on a ledge rocking out to a Van Morrison cover, a bike-helmeted woman
By then, the stage was set—dewy plants, creeping sunlight flickers, and the fragrance of lilacs (late bloomers with the late spring) emptying onto the blacktop trail.
came up to me. She asked, “Are you Ellie Krug?” I had never seen this woman before and consequently was a bit hesitant to answer. Still, I nodded and asked, “Do I know you?” The woman shook her head. “No,” she responded. “I follow your columns,” she explained. “I’ve wanted to meet you for some time.” She identified herself as the person on the lime green bike that I had passed a half mile back. Because of my writing, she knew that I presented with a deep voice. She also knew that I look pretty feminine with blonde hair. Thus, when she heard a man’s voice (oh, how I hate to write that!) announce “Coming on your left,” only to then see a woman ride past, she concluded that she’d stumbled upon Ellie Krug. Frankly, I thought it was pretty brilliant deduction on her part. At that point, we bought a couple beers and got to know each other. It was one of my few celebrity moments, so I soaked it up. Call me a narcissist. The broader point? I never know what I’ll encounter on The White Knight. Back now on this June morning, I made my way to the tranquility of Lake Calhoun, the only rider in sight. Daylight was taking hold and I paused to flick off front and back lights. The ride resumed, I pedaled to the far end of the lake and slowed for a good look at the glass and
JULY 2013
Ellie Krug is a columnist and the author of Getting to Ellen: A Memoir about Love, Honesty and Gender Change. She resides in Minneapolis and welcomes your comments at ellenkrugwriter@gmail.com. Visit her blog at www.gettingtoellen.com. steel of downtown Minneapolis. On the horizon behind the cityscape, I saw the first glimpse of Mr. Sun—more brilliance! I left the lake and made my way to the Greenway. Three miles later, I rounded a curve and found sun-soaked sparkly haze, the kind that lasts for only a few minutes. I paused just long enough to know that I’ll remember those sparkles forever—like death-bed forever. Soon I was home. It was just a ride. And so much more.
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Wired This Way by Rachel Eliason
I’ll be less sensitive when you’re less entitled
Amanda Bynes has recently joined the unfortunately long list of celebs that have dropped a homophobic slur on Twitter. The whole hubbub started with People magazine and what she perceived as a misrepresentation of her current situation. Instead of writing a letter to the editor, like a normal person might or contacting her agent like a good celeb probably should, she tweeted at them. After an all caps rant (which is considered shouting according the common internet etiquette) she suggested that they follow her on twitter. Then she called them F****ts, because nothing gets you lots of Twitter followers like a gay slur. The Hubbub ended with a classic smackdown from gay icon Rupaul. “Derogatory slurs are ALWAYS an outward projection of a person’s own poisonous self-loathing.” She later deleted the offensive post. Amanda Bynes can now put the incident behind her, along with all the other signs of an imminent celeb meltdown. Or perhaps she can’t. Only time will tell. For the LGBT community it’s another story. We sigh and move on. We know all too well that the next slur word scandal is just around the corner. In fact it’s already here. Rapper J. Cole’s new song “Born Sinner” uses f****t as well. He goes on to say “no disrespect” and “don’t be sensitive” so it’s okay right? He ends that particular verse with “just a little joke to show how homophobic you are.” See, he’s only joking. It’s not just gay slurs either. There are lots of trans related slurs out there as well. Jenna Elfman got into a minor tiff with a fan
on Twitter after she tweeted about mannish looking woman at the nail salon who was “probably a tranny”. Which is nothing to row that erupted over Suzanne Moore’s statement that beauty industry’s ideal body shape was “that of a Brazilian transsexual.” (I have to say that I found the original piece more ironic than offensive. Those “Brazilian transsexual” she is referring to are just trying to emulate women after all.) The real uproar had less to do with the piece than how Moore handled criticism of the piece, once again on Twitter. She was quickly inundated with angry responses to her tweets and had to shut her account down for a time period. Her longtime friend and fellow journalist Julie Burchill entered the fray and took it to a whole new level, writing a piece for the conservative UK paper The Observer that was so laden with transphobic slurs that their parent paper, the Guardian eventually called for its retraction. It’s mostly disappeared from the internet now but I recall one line where she called trans people “dicks in chicks’ clothing.”
I am not breaking in your door and stealing your printing press.
Don’t be so sensitive
Burchill’s defense was two-fold. The first was the trans people needed to stop being so sensitive. The second was freedom of speech. She has a right to her opinion and those criticising her for making use of it are attacking that fundamental right. Both defenses are part of almost every conversation surrounding offensive language. Don’t be so sensitive? How about—Don’t get me started. The scandals I have highlighted are only the tip of the iceberg. That’s the first thing these people need to understand. I haven’t talked about MMA fighter Nate
Diaz’s Twitter rant or a thousand others that occur almost daily. I haven’t brought up Tracy Morgan’s homophobic onstage rant. I haven’t talked about the hashtag #signsyosonisgay, and all the stereotyped and homophobic responses that it got. Before telling an LGBT person to stop being so sensitive you need to stop and look around the internet. Slur words are everywhere. Maybe “you didn’t mean anything” by it. Maybe “it’s just the way people talk where I am from.” (That was Nate’s lame defense of his slur.) None of that makes it right and frankly we are tired of hearing it. And we are tired of hearing the same old slurs. What about freedom of speech. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, right? Here’s my response: I’ll stop being so sensitive when you stop being so entitled. Freedom of speech is a constitutionally guaranteed right. In fact it’s the first one. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press are in the first amendment right along with freedom of religion and the right to gather peacefully. So yes, you are entitled to your opinion. But guess what? I am not the U.S. Government. I am not breaking in your door and stealing your printing press. So don’t bother with the freedom of speech defense. Julie Burchill is entitled to her opinion about trans women. What she is not entitled to is to have her opinions published in The Observer. Whether an article or opinion piece gets published or pulled is up to the editors of that journal. If the owner or editor thinks the piece is too controversial they can pull it. Don’t come crying to me about how I took away your freedom of speech. I didn’t make the editor do that, I merely complained that I didn’t like the piece. It was his or her choice. Twitter is not in the constitution either. Maybe someday, but not now. So your Twitter
Rachel Eliason is a forty two year old Transsexual woman. She was given her first computer, a Commodore Vic-20 when she was twelve and she has been fascinated by technology ever since. In the thirty years since that first computer she has watched in awe as the Internet has transformed the LGBT community. In addition to her column, Rachel has published a collection of short stories, Tales the Wind Told Me and is currently working on her debut novel, Run, Clarissa, Run. Rachel can be found all over the web, including on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Goodreads. account is not a right. Twitter allows anyone to sign up and create an account as long as they abide by the terms of service. I know this might be a hard pill for celebrities like Amanda Bynes and J. Cole to swallow but an “ordinary” person like myself has just as much right to a Twitter account as they do. I also have just as much right to post my opinions. If you want to use your freedom of speech to post derogatory or offensive slurs on your Twitter account, go ahead. But don’t act surprised when I use my freedom of speech to call you out on it. If you don’t like it, that’s too bad. I am done with “not being so sensitive”.
Which Foods Burn the Most Calories? by Davey Wavey Foods rich in protein–like the fish–tend to burn more calories than foods rich in carbohydrates or fats. I get a lot of questions asking which foods burn the most calories. What these questions are really asking about is the
thermic effect of food and how it can be manipulated to help achieve fat loss goals. The thermic effect of food refers to the amount of energy (i.e. calories) that the body expends to process, use and store the foods we eat. In general, it’s estimated that
The Project of the Quad Cities
Founded in 1986, The Project of the Quad Cities is a non-profit HIV/STI/AIDS Service Organization that provides support to persons living with HIV/STI/AIDS as well as their families and friends in Iowa and Illinois. www.apqc4life.org Symptom Management Group—Every Wednesday from 1-2:30 pm Life Skills Group—Every other Wednesday from 10-11:30 am Coffee Hour—10-11:30 am on Wednesdays when the Life Skills Group does not meet; A relaxed and casual atmosphere Groups meet at our Moline office. We also offer free HIV testing Monday through Thursday from 9 am to 4 pm. For more information call Susie or Mollie at 309-762-5433
Transformations Iowa Meeting
Transformations meets every Wednesday at 7 PM, the second Saturday of each month at 1 PM, One Iowa, 419 SW 8th St, Des Moines, IA 50309. Transformations Iowa is a Transgender support group. It is open to all ranges of the gender
spectrum, male to female, female to male, cross dressers, drag queens, gender queer, questioning, as well as friends, significant others and allies. For more information email sophia.transformations@gmail. com or call 515-288-4019 x200.
most people will burn about 10% of their daily caloric intake through this process. In other words, a person eating 2,000 calories per day will probably burn off about 200 of them through the thermic effect of food. But, as it turns out, this number can be manipulated simply by shifting the composition of the foods we eat. For fats and carbohydrates, somewhere between 5% and 15% of the calories are
Dieters can expect to benefit from an increased calorie burn due to the thermic effect of food.
burned off due to the thermic effect of food. For proteins, that number is somewhere between 20% and 35%. Using this math, you might expect to burn 25–75 calories from a hypothetical 500 calorie meal of pure fat or carbs. But for a pure protein meal of 500 calories, the number could be as high as 175. Simply by shifting to foods richer in protein, dieters can expect to benefit from an increased calorie burn due to the thermic
Davey Wavey is an AFPA certified personal trainer shares his passion for and knowledge of fitness, exercise, health and nutrition with the world. For more information go to DaveyWaveyFitness.com. effect of food. Of course, the benefit is still relatively small–but every calorie counts! In general, I’d encourage dieters to spend more time and energy on creating a calorie deficit (more calories out than in) through a smarter diet (more plants, less fatty meats, appropriate portions, whole grains, etc.) and increased physical activity…and not getting too caught up in consuming foods that burn more calories.
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I.C. Kings Celebrate Pride in Iowa City! “There are so many things I love about Pride. It’s a time to celebrate being exactly who you are, have fun with friends and family, meet new people, support equal rights and diversity. It’s heartwarming to not only see people from all parts of the LGBTQ community, but to also see so many allies. All Pride events are wonderful, but Iowa City Pride will always be extra special for me, because of the amazing people and energy”. - Franky D. Lover
J.T. Amore, Max E. Mum, Julius Fever, Franky D. Lover, and Miss Kitty. Photo courtesy of Tomeka McGregor
“Being queer in Iowa City means being part of a family that’s large, loving and accepting. The I.C. Kings are grateful for having such a wonderful supportive community!” - Julius Fever
Franky D. Lover. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett.
“It’s great to see such a large portion of the community come out to not only support but also to celebrate LGBTQA diversity. Iowa City Pride always feels like a safe, fun escape while we wait for the rest of the population to catch up concerning equality.” - Hugh Jindapants J.T. Amore. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett.
Max E. Mum. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett.
Chaz E. Burger, Julius Fever, and Miss Kitty. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett.
Hugh Jindapants and Max E. Mum. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett.
I.C. Kings float with Max E. Mum. Photo courtesy of Tomeka McGregor
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New Kings on the Block show their talent The New Kings on the Block performed three times in June starting with Cedar Rapids Pridefest on June 1, their monthly show at home bar Club CO2 on June 14, and then the group travelled to Dubuque to perform at 920 Main on June 21. New Kings on the Block founder Jill Kennedy said: “Cedar Rapids Pridefest was an excellent opportunity for underage performers to join the group as well as show the community how great of a talent pool Cedar Rapids has for drag king performers.” Olly Wood, Nick James, and Aiden James all performed on June 1st at Greene Square Park in Cedar Rapids in addition to NKOTB regulars Justin Cider, Tatem Trick, Ryder
Gently, Jayden Knight, Star E. Knight, Brave Crow, and Landin Laydeez. While there were threats of rain and bad weather on June 1st, NKOTB Videographer Eva Hinrichsen said “We were worried and prepared for rain but instead we just got nice temperatures and a rainbow.” Many people stopped by to check out Alana Hyatt’s artwork at Cedar Rapids Pridefest and many new friends and fans were gained after the afternoon in the park. Tatem Trick went on to perform at Belle’s Basix after the Cedar Rapids Pride activities ended for the evening. The NKOTB show at club CO2 on June 14 featured a merchandise booth with jewelry handcrafted by Dovesland Creations and custom made wallets and purses by
NKOB June 14th performance. Photo courtesy of Alana Hyatt.
NKOB June 14th performance. Photo courtesy of Alana Hyatt.
Amanda Jean Comic Book Wallets. Heywood Jablowmi and Justin Beaver also performed at the June 14th show. Justin Beaver hasn’t performed since Hamburger Mary’s in Cedar Rapids closed. The New Kings on the Block can be
seen again on July 19th at Club CO2. Starting in August they will go back to their usual performance at CO2 on the second Friday of the month. For more information go to www.Facebook.com/NewKingsCR
NKOB June 14th performance. Photo courtesy of Alana Hyatt.
NKOB June 14th performance. Photo courtesy of Alana Hyatt.
NKOB June 14th performance. Photo courtesy of Alana Hyatt.
American values really did win. With the erasing of the Proposition 8, same-sex couples in the state of California started getting married on Friday. And now that DOMA has been erased from the books thanks to that historic decision, those couples across the country who are legally married, their relationships and their families will be recognized as such. ~Chad Griffin, head of Human Rights Campaign on SCOTUS DOMA ruling.
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The Bookworm Sez by Terri Schlichenmeyer
“American Savage” by Dan Savage
c.2013, Dutton, $26.95 / $28.50 Canada, 301 pages You can’t talk about it to anyone. You’ve got this sticky issue, a little problem, a thing you need help with but you aren’t sure you can trust anybody. Your sister is a big-mouth, your mom won’t understand, and your BFF, well… no. You need help in the form of advice. You need it straight-up, no bull, all honest. And when you read “American Savage,” the new memoir-advice book by Dan Savage, that’s what you get. As a young boy growing up in Chicago, Dan Savage was steeped in Catholicism. His father, a cop by profession, was an ordained permanent diaconate. His mother was a lay minister. Savage himself was an altar boy but when he realized he was gay and that the Church had a few things to say about it (none positive), he left the fold. Still, he says, “… I was never abused by a priest. I was saved by one” who came out to Savage’s mother to calm her fears for her son. And though the Church “got sex wrong,” and though he’s an “agnosthatheist,” Savage says he “aches” for the loss of religious comfort. But that’s not all he has on his mind in this book. As the creator of Savage Love, a sex-andrelationship column, Savage is fierce about making sure his readers get sensible advice. He says that cheating, for instance, isn’t okay except when it is. He advocates being
monogamish, being GGG, and being willing to at least try something before condemning it as “too kinky.” Speaking of condemning, Savage takes on politicians, especially those who are right-wing, conservative, and Christian; in particular, he quotes evidence to dispute the anti-gay bigotry that often comes from that side of politics. As a married “different kind of fag” and the father of a teen who “came out… a few years ago—as straight,” Savage has a stake in quashing that kind of hate. In this book, Savage also writes about adoption, Halloween (the straight people’s version of pride parades), “basic civil rights protection,” God, and respecting older gay men. As founder of the It Gets Better Project, he goes to bat for LGBT teens. He writes about sex, a certain politician’s “Google problem,” and he offers a challenge to those who believe being gay is a “choice.” Want a book that’s going to make you say, “Heck, yes!” just about every
third page? Yep, that pretty well describes “American Savage.” It’ll be hard to remain seated while you’re reading, in fact, because author Dan Savage makes you want to stand and applaud at his common-sense words. Savage rants—but he’s hilarious while he’s doing so, which will make you want to phone friends so you can share. He’s profound and profane, thoughtful and thought-provoking, and his personal stories will bring tears to your eyes. I truly enjoyed this book. I liked it for its truth, for its snark, and for its not-so-goodnatured poking at politicos—and I think you’ll like it too, because “American Savage” is a book worth talking about.
1 Memo start 5 Three-men-in-a-tub event 9 Sex toy for the butt 13 Prince’s purple precipitation 14 Kazan, whose desire was a streetcar 15 Glinda portrayer in The Wiz 16 Help with the heist 17 Trust, with “on” 18 Mournful cry 19 City of the team of 36-Across 22 Vardalos of My Big Fat Greek Wedding 23 R.E.M. frontman Michael 24 Riddler of old 26 Fabric name ending 27 Wet hole 31 McDowall of Planet of the Apes 32 Wolfe or Woolf, e.g. (abbr.) 34 Fiddle around with it 36 The first active openly gay male athlete to compete in a U.S. professional team sport 40 Tea or glory hole cry? 41 Himalayan legend 43 Traps for suckers 46 Org. that has never been to Uranus 48 Seminary subject 49 Eton alum 51 Erected 53 Unmannerly man 54 Position of 36-Across 58 “Ta ta!” 60 Marsh material 61 Skirt for Nureyev’s partner
62 Woman’s name embraced by hermaphrodites? 63 “She” to Rimbaud 64 Peanuts oath 65 Silence for Bernstein 66 It may be grand, to Glenn Burke
67 Scores
Want a book that’s going to make you say, “Heck, yes!” just about every third page?
Across
Q-PUZZLE: Flaming Star in the Galaxy
Down
1 Shrinking Asian body 2 One who may screw with your equip-
ment 3 Connects with 4 Coming soon 5 It made people go down on the Titanic 6 On the calm side 7 Cash cache 8 Sean of Will & Grace 9 Try to seduce (with liquor, e.g.) 10 Soviet leader Brezhnev 11 Relax after a hard day 12 Team of 36-Across 20 Just out 21 Shoot off a larger branch 25 Hive product 28 Like some twins 29 Rest atop 30 Doone of fiction 33 Mushroom source? 35 Woody pile 37 It’s a bust 38 Lingering 39 Drag queen’s high heel, perhaps 42 Under guardianship 43 Sport of 36-Across 44 Trisha Todd’s _ __ of the Moon 45 Role played by a man named Julia 47 Follower of Jim Buchanan 50 “Blow me down!” 52 Part of UHF 55 Woody valley 56 Eleanor’s pooch 57 Bit from Michael Musto 59 Granola lesbian’s bit
• SOLUTION ON PAGE 38
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Under Construction : ACCESSline’s Heartland Recurring Events List
ACCESSline’s Recurring Events List is and has been provided by ACCESSline readers. With the added communities of ACCESSline’s Heartland Newspaper, the list is need of a large overhaul. We need readers to continue to help and update the list. Please submit recurring ManagingEditor@ACCESSlineIowa.com.
events
Iowa City Pride 2013 Iowa City, IA
I.C. Kings booth. Photo courtesy of Tomeka McGregor
Sissy’s Sircus performance. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett
Crystal Belle’s performance. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett
Sissy’s Sircus performance. Photo courtesy of Kate Jett
to
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Hiring a wedding planner by Scott Stevens Midwest Pride Events Planning a wedding is a scary undertaking, especially when you’re not sure where to start. Your wedding is one of the biggest milestones in your life, and it is also one of the most stressful events to plan. People hire professionals to do a plethora of tasks every day, and a wedding planner should be no exception. The best part is, a good wedding planner will save you money in the long run and get you the best people in the business! One way a great wedding planner can save you money is through his business relationships. A wedding planner has relationships with their business partners that can offer them discounts and special advantages that would not be open to just anyone. However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask questions. The big question I hear from everyone gay or straight is…how do you find a trustworthy wedding planner that won’t flake out when times get tough? I was expecting Jennifer Lopez in The Wedding Planner… but I ended up with this smooth talking guy who thinks he is one of the Plastics from Mean Girls. Just remember your wedding day is about you, not your wedding planner. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you are interviewing your wedding planner. 1) You need someone you can trust! Can you leave $100 bill on the table and walk away trusting this person won’t take the money and run? 2) Can you connect with this person? You will need to work with this person for 6 months to a year. 3) Can your planner see your vision?
Iowa
Cedar Valley Pridefest
300 block of West 4th Street, Downtown, Waterloo, Iowa Saturday, August 24th, noon-midnight
Minnesota
Scott Stevens I grew up in a small town in Wyoming and in 1998 I moved to Iowa go go to college. I graduated from Buena Vista University with a degree in Marketing and a minor in art and communications. I am have been an active Member of Metro Arts Alliance for over 10 years. I am currently the Vise President and the incoming president in 2014. I was the Director of Development for One Iowa when marriage was legalized in Iowa! In 2009 my friend Ben developed a website to help same sex couples get married in Iowa. In 2010 I purchased the website and have had the pleasure with working with newly weds all over the country. You don’t want your wedding to look like the last 5 weddings this person did. 4) Make sure your planner can give you a clear budget and set solid expectations. 5) Interview wedding planners until you find just the right fit!
Rochester Minnesota Pridefest Peace Plaza, Downtown Rochester, Minnesota Monday, July 15th-Sunday, July 21st
Mankato PrideFest Riverfront Park, Mankato, Minnesota Friday, September 6th, 7 p.m. Saturday, September 7th, 11a.m.-Midnight
St. Cloud Pridefest St. Cloud, Minnesota Thursday, September 19th-Sunday, September 22nd
Nebraska
Star City Pride
Lincoln, Nebraska Thursday, July 11th-Sunday, July 14th
South Dakota
2013 LGBT Pride
Rapid City, South Dakota Location TBA July 12th-13th
Sioux Falls Pride
Covell Lake Park, Sioux Falls, South Dakota Saturday, August 17th, noon-6 p.m.
AIDS Walk
Pasley Park, Sioux Falls, South Dakota Saturday, September, 21st
Wisconsin Capitol Pride
Madison, Wisconsin Saturday, August 17th-Sunday, August 18th
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FFBC: Dr. Jason Glass by Bruce Carr Prime Timers of Central Iowa
Dr. Jason Glass Our guest speaker on Friday, June 7, was Dr. Jason Glass, outgoing director of the Iowa Department of Education. Dr. Glass was appointed director in 2010; under his leadership the Department has focused on the values of demonstrating courageous leadership, promoting innovation in education, and acting as a servant to schools and communities in Iowa. Dr. Glass’s presentation outlined his efforts to move the state toward Governor Branstad’s vision of a high-performing system, supporting initiatives to restore the state’s tradition as a national leader in education and to lead transformative change. Key to this restoration and leadership, he said, was a focus on improving the educator workforce through increased compensation and raising the reputation and integrity of the profession, making the pool of available educators wide and deep enough to allow school districts to be selective—choosy—about the men and women to whom they will entrust Iowa’s
students. This means supporting professional autonomy, promoting teamwork and mentoring plans, and creating professional pathways that will encourage the best teachers to continue their careers in direct classroom contact with students. Better attention must be paid, Glass noted, to the highest possible standards in curriculum and methods, so that they are aligned toward the best outcomes—at the same time personalizing goals to individuals: where students are starting from and where they are headed. Glass took particular pride in moving these expensive plans through a divided Legislature (and in the political calculation and compromise that allowed successful passage), and gave a special nod to FFBC’s scholarship program for recognizing and furthering Iowa’s important educational goals.
Born and raised in a family of educators, and married to a teacher, Jason Glass has served in a variety of roles in diverse education settings across several states. After teaching at the high school and university levels in Kentucky, he worked for the Colorado Department of Education to ensure a quality education for students with disabilities. He served as vice president for Qualistar Early Learning in Denver, where he helped develop an early childhood education quality rating system and raised funds to help providers make needed improvements. He was the director of human resources for Eagle County Schools in Colorado, a pioneering district in innovative human resources strategies, including performance-based compensation. Glass is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, where he received a bachelor’s degree and two master’s degrees, and he holds a doctorate in education from Seton Hall University.
PITCH Calendar 2013
Positive Iowans Taking Charge (PITCH) is a volunteer-run non-profit organization, founded in 2007, their goal is to provide social networking and support to Iowans living with, or affected by, HIV/AIDS. Their mission is to create an atmosphere where HIV+ people can unite, advocate, and assist other HIV+ people for better health and wellness. More information can be found at pitchiowa.org or call Tami Haught at 641-715-4182. All of our meetings are open to the public at large. To hear what’s going on, please check out our calendar to see when the next PITCH meeting will be held. For more information go to www.PitchIowa.org.
Groups Des Moines Open Support Group 5pm-6pm (Wednesdays) Thursday Group 2pm-3pm (Thursdays) Waterloo PITCH Support Group 6pm-8pm (Every other week) Wednesday Evening Group 5:30pm-6:30pm (Every other week)
Support Group Meeting Conference Call Positive Iowans Taking Charge will be having a Conference Call Support Group meeting, June 24th at 7 PM. This Support Group Meeting is open to those outside of Iowa. The meeting is to provide emotional, social, and educational opportunities for Iowans across the state. The Agenda is as follows: welcome and introduction from 7-7:30 PM, topic discussion from 7:30-8
PM, non-topic time for everyone to share how they are doing from 8-8:30 PM. Times are adjusted depending on the needs of the people on the call. The number to call is 949-812-4500 and the Pin number is 684713 that everyone will use the same code. For more information go to pitchiowa.org or find them on facebook.
Prime Timers of Central Iowa, the Iowa chapter of Prime Timers World Wide, continues to grow and has expanded across Iowa and even across our borders. It has now launched its website: www.primetimersww.com/centraliowa/ Attendance at our monthly dinners has grown to fill our current space. Summer activities planned include attending an Iowa Cubs game, a pontoon boat party on Saylorville Lake, and a country barbeque. Some members will be joining
the St. Louis Prime Timers chapter for their 4th of July celebration. Mature gay/bi men are welcome to broaden their relationships with other men through a variety of activities. A monthly newsletter with a schedule of activities is available. For more information contact: PrimeTimersIowa@ gmail.com. Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PrimeTimersOfCentralIowa
Prime Timers of Central Iowa marching in the Capital City Pride 2013 parade. Photo courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
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Section 3: Community
JULY 2013
From the Pastor’s Pen by Rev. Jonathan Page Last month I wrote about a shocker: Christians have a problem with sexual desire. I know that caught you off guard, but it was meant to surprise “traditional” Christians even more. There is the persistent and false assumption that the historical Christian ideal praises sexual desire within marriage. Not true for the early church. Not even true for Martin Luther, father of six children and passionate defender of marriage. Luther wrote, “Intercourse is never without Sin; but God excuses it by his grace because the estate of marriage is his work.” Sexual desire is bad. That view has its roots in 1st century Judaism, even though many Jews of Jesus’ day lauded sexual desire. Greek Stoic and Neo-Platonic philosophy only reinforced this negativity towards sexual desire. The question is, given that Protestant Christians today of all stripes do not uphold historical Christian views on sexual desire, what should we do about sex? The most common conservative Protestant response is to cherry pick biblical texts that support their views on marriage. Celibacy gets no attention. Then, ignoring the evidence from the early church, they cite the command in Genesis 1 to “be fruitful and multiply” as evidence for the blessing of sexual desire. Conservative Christians then have the gall to proclaim that their views are the only authentically Christian position. Gay Christians could just as easily do the same thing, and many do. Queer readings of the Bible proliferate. The Queer Bible Commentary and Take Back the Word are two excellent collections that do just that. The problem with queer readings of scripture is that most straight Christians I know find them deeply unsatisfying. For those not used to such methods of literary
criticism, these post-structuralist readings seem out of place and inauthentic. While I would argue that they are just as authentic as any other reading, I am deeply sympathetic to the fact that queer interpretations often do not sell to straight audiences. Thankfully, there is another approach. In 2005, I decided to come out of the closet in my final sermon as an intern at Wapping Community Church in South Windsor, CT. Looking through the Bible, the best text I could find that spoke to my experience was a lament of Jeremiah. I wanted to convey the level of self-loathing that is so characteristic leading to the point when someone comes out. Jeremiah nailed it: Cursed be the day on which I was born! The day when my mother bore me, let it not be blessed! Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, saying, ‘A child is born to you, a son,’ making him very glad. Let that man be like the cities that the LORD overthrew without pity; let him hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon, because he did not kill me in the womb; so my mother would have been my grave, and her womb forever great. Why did I come forth from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame? When I shared the passage and the accompanying sermon with one of my colleagues, she replied, “You’re not seriously going to preach this, are you? There has to be more good news in your sermon.” My colleague was right, of course. It did not
make a very good sermon. But it did convey a key point too often lost in debates over scripture. How you characterize desire—and gay sexual desire in particular—has major implications beyond sex. When gays and lesbians disproportionately kill themselves for the discrimination against who they are, the stakes are changed. Sex and sexual desire are about justice as much as sex. Once you acknowledge that the biblical ethic of sexual desire is not relevant to our current context, it opens up the possibility of using other ethical guidelines to talk about sex. We do not share first century assumptions about the body, desire, marriage, procreation, or sex itself. I know of no Christian who honestly advocates that we return to a sex ethic of the first century. Unlike in those times, relationships today are based on love, mutuality, and are in a context where intimacy can happen without the risk of pregnancy. We are in desperate need of new ways of thinking through a faithful approach to sex. The most convincing contemporary Christian treatment of sexual ethics that I have read is Margaret Farley’s Just Love. Farley argues that justice should be the key concept in healthy, Christian relationships. That means not harming the other person physically or emotionally. It means free consent of both parties and mutuality. Honesty, commitment, equality and, finally, social justice round out Farley’s criteria for Christian sexual ethics. Farley’s approach has big implications
This can happen in schools, places of public accommodation like restaurants, and places of employment. If this happens again, stay calm so that you can read the situation—and figure out whether or not you’re safe. You can always leave the scene if you feel threatened and come back later with a friend to file a complaint. If you feel safe, report the incident to a manager, owner or someone in charge. Explain to them that you are using the right bathroom. If you are
still denied access to the appropriate bathroom, you can file a complaint with your local or state anti-discrimination agency. Denial of access to the appropriate bathroom for transgender people could be considered sex discrimination under the law. You may also live in one of the dozen or so states or over 125 cities and counties where there are specific protections against discrimination on the basis of gender identity. Gender neutral bathrooms are increasingly common in places of public accommodation and places of employment and some transgender people report that access to these bathrooms allows them to not worry about being harassed. If you think it’s possible, try and advocate for a gender neutral bathroom where you work. Transgender people should be able to use the restroom that corresponds to their gender identity and should not be singled out as the only people using any particular restroom, gender neutral or otherwise. The medical community (and increasingly, employers, schools and courts) recognize that it is essential to the health and wellbeing of transgender people for them to be able to live in accordance with their internal
The problem with queer readings of scripture is that most straight Christians I know find them deeply unsatisfying.
Ask Lambda Legal By Dru Levasseur Bathroom Access for Transgender People
Q: I’m a transgender person and was recently questioned by an employee of a local restaurant when I went to use the bathroom. What should I do if this happens again? A: There is no law that says a person must look a certain way to use a certain restroom, but unfortunately, this type of “gender policing” is very common. Lambda Legal’s help desk often gets calls from people who wanted to use a restroom that matches their gender identity, but because they don’t fit someone else’s standards for what a certain gender should look like, they were questioned or denied access to that restroom.
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DILLON-HANSEN trial, we, by example, provide legitimacy and authorization for dictators in other countries to continue “crackdowns” on their people. This cannot be the continued legacy of the United States, that to teach the world’s tyrants on how to ignore individual rights. Privacy is a critical part of our freedoms and has been defended at length before and by the U.S. courts. Privacy is part of the Bill of Rights. To suddenly excuse an administration of circumventing privacy rules for some apparent security reason is to be subject to
FFBC member Jonathan Page is senior pastor of the Ames United Church of Christ, 217 6th Street, Ames, Iowa. Sunday service at 10:45. He can be reached at jon@Amesucc.org. for gay sexual ethics. As my coming out sermon showed, we who are gay suffer tremendously for our sexual desire. We are told our sexual desire is bad, sinful, and we hate ourselves for it. The most just and loving thing to do is to jettison the first century conception of sexual desire and focus on justice and love instead. Once we say that gay sexual desire is good, we can begin to focus on being better in relationships with others. What if we took Farley seriously? What if the focus in gay sex was on honesty, mutuality, and seeking fruitful relationships, of any duration? Gay men, and young gay men in particular, can be shockingly cruel to one another. Gay sexual ethics matter and Christianity, properly interpreted, can have a lot of important things to say.
Denial of access to the appropriate bathroom for transgender people could be considered sex discrimination under the law.
unwarranted search and seizures (even an unlawful intrusion) by the government at any time and for any reason. Whether you “trust” the administration (whether Bush, Obama, or even consider if Romney was elected), what happens when an administration attempts to find and then begins to jail opposing viewpoints using these same methods? Will we know the difference from actual terrorism versus strong political conversation based upon what the government is telling us? Who guards the guards? When such intrusion is allowed to continue unchallenged, the whole of liberty in society is rendered a myth. The future and the foundation of this republic is at question.
M. Dru Levasseur is the Transgender Rights Project Director for Lambda Legal. Levasseur focuses his work on impact litigation, advocacy and community education to advance the civil rights of transgender people nationwide. gender identity in all aspects of life-and that restroom usage is a necessary part of that experience. If you’d like more information on your rights related to bathroom use, see our “FAQ About Restrooms & What to Do If You’re Hassled” here: http://www.lambdalegal.org/ know-your-rights/transgender/restroom-faq If you have any questions, or feel you have been discriminated against because of your gender identity/expression, please contact our help desk at 1-866-542-8336 or visit www. lambdalegal.org/help
Section 3: Community
JULY 2013
Iowa NRCS Earth Team The Earth Team is the volunteer workforce of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the Federal Government’s lead agency for conserving natural resources on private lands. The primary purpose of the Earth Team is to expand NRCS services by using volunteer time, talent and energy to help accomplish the NRCS mission. The Earth Team uses a variety of people with a variety of skills and talents. Individuals must be 14 years of age or older and have an interest in conserving natural resources. As an Earth Team volunteer they join professional conservationists as they work directly with local farmers and ranchers in putting conservation practices on the land, providing conservation education to students, doing community outreach, improve water quality and erosion control projects, write newspaper and magazine articles, speak to community groups,
develop conservation tours and exhibits, perform office work and computer data entry, etc. The Earth Team offers outstanding and exciting opportunities for people who are willing to commit to help people conserve, maintain and improve our natural resources and environment. Visit our website at www.nrcs.usda.gov. For additional information contact your local NRCS office or Shelly Grimmius, State Volunteer Coordinator in Iowa at shelly.grimmius@ia.usda.gov. NRCS is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and enforces federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, marital or family status, political beliefs, parental status, protected genetic information, or reprisal (retaliation) for prior EEO activity.
LGBTQ Patient & Family Education and Support Groups
Come join the UI LGBTQ Clinic providers and other health professionals to learn about various health and wellness topics and have the opportunity to meet new people! Hours: Thursday evenings 5:30-7:00pm Location: University Capitol Center (USS), Located in Old Capitol Town Center 201 S. Clinton St., Iowa City IA RM 2520B Contact: meagan-schorr@uiowa.edu or www.uihealthcare.org/lgbt/
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Local Business Owners Pair Up to Support Local Artists by Julia Schaefer
Meet Artist Megan Bishop Fair Grounds Coffeehouse is a liberal bent coffee shop that is so much more! The owner, Steve Pernetti, has a drive to support the community, specifically the arts, hosting events from poetry readings to a drum circle. The most recent addition to the coffeehouse is a monthly or bi-monthly showing of local artists’ works on their walls. Starting with Megan Bishop’s art opening on August 1st, from 6-9pm. Fair Grounds Coffeehouse is primarily a vegetarian cafe located in Iowa City just south of the Sheraton Hotel. They have added meat so that both carnivores and omnivores can dine together in one place. They serve breakfast, lunch, and light dinner daily. I recommend the apple and corn waffle, as it is a pure taste of Iowa. They also have recently added a full bar to their twenty one varieties of fair trade organic coffee, with small batch limited roasts, and smoothies made from real fruit. You can come enjoy some snacks, drinks, shopping and Megan Bishop’s art at Fair Grounds Coffeehouse. Meet Megan Bishop, buy her art and enjoy some wine. That’s right; Fair Grounds will be offering a $10 bottomless glass of wine all night long! Bishop says of her work,
“I like communicating and connecting with people through art. I find myself able to express my feelings through creation. I can always find the right colors to show my emotions even when I can’t express them with words. I have always felt a drive to create and I have been very fortunate to have a group of family and friends who support me in what I choose to do”. The Tool Box owner, Julia Schaefer, hosted a show for Bishop at The Tool Box in downtown Iowa City last March of 2012. The show was a huge success, and the majority of Bishop’s art selling that night. Schaefer has been wanted to host another show, and with her transition to Fair Grounds Artist Curator, Bishop was a natural pick for the first art show. “The highlight of my career as an artist was sharing my passion for art with my Grandfather and re-awakening his creative side. He passed away almost 2 years ago but he lives on through his art. We have quite a portfolio of shared work along with our individual accomplishments”, says Bishop. Fair Grounds Coffeehouse is located at 345 S. Dubuque Street in Iowa City. The art opening for Megan Bishop with The Tool Box will be on Thursday, August 1st from 6-9pm. Bishop’s work will be on display at Fair Grounds through the month of August.
CRPrideFest P.O. Box 1643 Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-1643 info@crpridefest.com, http://www.crpridefest.com
CRPrideFest Thanks You All!
By Kelly S. Gassman Where do we start when thanking each and every one of you for helping us five CRPrideFest Board of Directors throw the celebration of Pride this year? Let us start with volunteers and supporters: GE Capital provided much-needed help this year, along with Chelsea Joy Lob, Jazmine Fritz, Jill Kennedy, Alana Hyatt, DJ Lady J., McDonnell Photography and Design, Anthony Brown and all the people that helped in great and lesser ways on Saturday, June 1st and the weeks and months up to the event. Without business and corporate sponsorship we could not have held this event. Being a nonprofit entity whose sole purpose is to fundraise, organize and hold this event this year, it would be virtually impossible to provide this always-free event to the Cedar Rapids area community each year with costs in the thousands of dollars range without our business and corporate sponsors: Quaker Oats and General Mills (the two local cereal giants), NextEra Energy - Duane Arnold, and Allegra Printing are once again this year, are all the pillars that hold us up financially, and allow us to continue with their support again this year. Local GLBT Bars Club Basix, and Club CO2 offered and gave support during the year and during the event by providing many things including entertainment by both bars show cast members and special guests. Entertainment for the day included: Gayla Drake, local Cedar Rapids Drag King ensemble New Kings on the Block, both CR Clubs Drag Queens, and The Brazilian 2Wins kept the crowd regaled. Guest speakers from One Iowa and music from DJ Lady J filled in between-time to seamlessly make the event a high-quality production. But most of all we want to thank you! The members of the community, friends, supporters, advocates and others who came out Saturday, June 1st, to Green Square Park in Cedar Rapids, braving the chances of rain and passing storms only to find that someone up there smiles on us, and made the weather near-perfect that day. Thank you for celebrating with us, and we are sure to do it again bigger, and better next year! Like us on Facebook, visit our webpage at www.crpridefest.com because even though our mission is staying the same, we are planning some changes in the coming months! Sincerely, CRPrideFest Board of Directors: Ben Nielsen-President Clint Gassman-Vice-President Kelly Gassman-Secretary/Public Relations Cory Canfield-Volunteer Coordinator Jen Rowray-Archival Records/Publications
ACCESSline Page 28 DIRECTORY NOTICE
The ACCESSline community directory is updated each issue. LISTINGS ARE FREE but are limited by space. Free online listings are available at www.ACCESSlineAMERICA.com. Information about new listings must contain a phone number for publication and a contact (e-mail address, land address, or website) for our records. For more information or to provide corrections, please contact Editor@ACCESSlineAMERICA.com or call (712) 560-1807.
The ACCESSline is expanding our resource directory to include heartland resources outside of Iowa. Please bear with us as we continue improving our resource directory. NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Breur Media Corporation : Website Consultation, Design, Programming, and Hosting. HIV and STD Testing Sites near You, including places where you can get tested for free: hivtest.org/ Crisis or Suicide National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: suicidepreventionlifeline.org Information on Mental Health National Alliance on Mental Illness: nami.org Counseling, Information and Resources about Sexual Orientation GLBT National Help Center: glnh.org or 1-888-843-4564 Information on Mental Health for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender nami.org Information on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Health, cdc.gov Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund 1133 15th Street NW, Suite 350, Washington, DC 20005, victoryfund.org 202-VICTORY [842-8679] Human Rights Campaign, National political organization, lobbies congress for lesbian & gay issues, political training state and local, hrc.org, 1-800-777HRCF[4723] Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund I I E. Adams, Suite 1008, Chicago, IL 60603 lambdalegal.org, 312-663-4413 National Gay & Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) - ngltf.org - taskforce.org 1325 Massachusetts Ave NW, Ste 600, Washington, DC, 20005 National Organization for Women (NOW) 733 15th ST NW, 2nd Floor Washington, DC 20005, now.org 202-628-8669 PFLAG National Offices 1133 15th Street NW, Suite 350, Washington, DC 20005, info@pflag.org - pflag.org, 202467-8180 The Trevor Lifeline |Crisis and suicide prevention lifeline for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. (866) 4-U-TREVOR - (866) 488-7386 Open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. All calls are toll-free and confidential - thetrevorproject.org/
IOWA ORGANIZATIONS
Equality Iowa P.O. Box 18, Indianola, IA 50125, equalityiowa.org - 515-537-3126 Faithful Voices Interfaith Alliance of Iowa’s marriage equality project. faithfulvoices.org Imperial Court of Iowa Non-profit fundraising & social, statewide organization with members from across the State of Iowa. PO Box 1491, Des Moines, IA 50306-1491 imperialcourtofiowa.org Iowa Chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW) Janis Bowden, President, IA NOW janleebow@aol.com PO Box 41114, Des Moines, IA 503111 Iowa Gay Rodeo Association (IAGRA) 921 Diagonal Rd, Malcom, IA 50157 polebender60@yahoo.com 641-990-1411
Section 3: Community Iowa PFLAG (Parents, Families & Friends of Lesbians and Gay) State Council, PO Box 18, Indianola, IA 50125 http://community.pflag.org/Page. aspx?pid=194&srcid=-2 515-537-3126 or 641-583-2024 Iowa Pride Network 777 Third Street, Suite 312, Des Moines, Iowa 50309 - Iowapridenetwork.org, Executive Director: 515-471-8062, Outreach Coordinator: 515-471-8063 LGBT Youth in Iowa Schools Task Force PO Box 1997, Des Moines, 50306 515-243-1221 One Iowa 500 East Locust St, Ste 300, Des Moines, IA 50309 - 515-288-4019 - OneIowa.org The Quire Eastern Iowa’s GLBT chorus, thequire.org
NEBRASKA ORGANIZATIONS (LIST IN PROGRESS)
Citizens For Equal Protection-402-398-3027 1105 Howard St, Suite #2, Omaha, NE 68102. cfep-ne.org - info@cfep-ne.org The Imperial Court of Nebraska Meets the third Monday of Every month at the Rainbow Outreach Resource Center at 17th and Leavenworth in Omaha, NE. Meetings start at 6pm and are open to the public. PO Box 3772, Omaha, NE 68103 Nebraska AIDS Project Omaha Office (Home Office) 250 South 77th Street Suite A Omaha, NE 68114 (402) 552-9260 - Email us: info@nap.org (also serving Southwest Iowa)
AMES, IOWA
First United Methodist Church 516 Kellogg Ave, Ames, IA 50010, Contemporary worship Sat 5:30; Sun 8:30 & 11am acswebnetworks.com/firstunitedmcames/ 515-232-2750 ISU LGBTA Alliance GLBT Support, Activism, Social Events, Newsletter - 515-344-4478 L East Student Office Space,2229 Lincoln Way, Ames, IA 50014-7163, alliance@iastate. edu - alliance.stuorg.iastate.edu Living with HIV Program 226 SE 16th Street, Ames, IA 50010, Ask for Janelle (Coordinator), 515-956-3312 ext 106 or 800-890-8230 Lord of Life Lutheran - 515-233-2350 2126 Gable Lane, Ames 50014, Services Sundays at 9:00a.m.; Wed. 7:00pm. PFLAG Ames Youth and Shelter Services Offices, 2328 Bristol Drive, Ames, IA 5001, 2nd Tuesday, 7pm - pflagames.org 515-291-3607 Romantics Pleasure Palace 117 Kellogg Street, Ames, IA 50010-3315 romantixonline.com 515-232-7717 United Church of Christ-Congregational 217 6th Street, Ames, Iowa, 50010, Sunday Continental Breakfast, 9:00am; Sunday School, 9:30am; Worship 10:45am. office@ amesucc.org 515-232-9323 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ames 1015 Hyland Ave. Summer services: 10:00 am, Sunday. Services 10 a.m. for the rest of the summer. Contact uufa@uufames.org and www.uufames.org or call 515-231-8150. Also, the email and website are uufa@ uufames.org and www.uufames.org Unity Church of Ames - unityofames.com 226 9th St, Ames, IA 50010-6210, Sunday service and Sunday school 10:30am. Wednesday mediation 6:30pm Daily dial-a-blessing 515-233-1613
ARNOLDS PARK, OKOBOJI, SPENCER, SPIRIT LAKE, IOWA
The Royal Wedding Chapel 504 Church Street, Royal, IA 51357 712-933-2223 TheRoyalWeddingChapel.com Wilson Resource Center An Iowa Great Lakes area gay-owned, nonprofit community based organization. PO Box 486, 597 W. Okoboji Rd., Arnolds Park IA 51331-0486 - 712-332-5043 F.JosephWilson@aol.com. wilsonresource. org
BURLINGTON, IOWA
Arrowhead Motel - arrowheadia.com 2520 Mount Pleasant St, Burlington, IA 52601-2118 - 319-752-6353 Faith Lutheran Church E L C A 3109 Sunnyside Ave, Burlington, IA 52601 HIV/AIDS Screening @ Des Moines County Health Department in Burlington, 522 N 3rd By appointment between 8:00am to 4:30 319-753-8217 Confidential
RISQUES IV (adult store) 421 Dry Creek Ave, West Burlington, IA 52601 (319) 753-5455, Sun - Wed 8am-Midnight Thurs - Sat Open 24 Hours, LoversPlayground.com Steve’s Place 852 Washington St, Burlington, 319-7545868 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Services start at 10:30 am, 625 N 6th St, Burlington, IA 52601-5032, (319) 753-1895 uuburlington.org
CEDAR FALLS - WATERLOO, IOWA
Adult Cinema 315 E 4th St, Waterloo, IA 50703-4703, (319) 234-7459 Black Hawk Co. Health Department Free HIV testing (donations accepted); MW, 1:00pm to 3:00pm; Thurs, 1:00pm to 4:45pm 1407 Independence Ave. (5th fl), Waterloo 50703 319-291 -2413 Cedar AIDS Support System (CASS) Service, support groups & trained volunteers for persons with HIV/AIDS in Waterloo/CF call Elizabeth or Karla, 319-272-AIDS(2437). cvhospice@forbin.net Cedar Valley Counseling Services Promoting personal growth and development in a strengths-based environment, Joan E. Farstad, MA, Director. 319-240-4615, cvcounseling.com farstd@cvcounseling.com. Cedar Valley Episcopal Campus Ministry. In Lutheran Center, 2616 College St, Cedar Falls, IA - 319-415-5747, mcdinoiwa@aol. com, episcopalcampus.org Community AIDS Assistance Project (CAAP) - PO Box 36, Waterloo, IA 50704 LGBTA Support Group at Hawkeye Community College, Call Carol at 319-296-4014 or carol.hedberg@hawkeyecollege.edu Iowa Legal Aid Free civil legal service available to low income persons who qualify under income/asset guidelines. 607 Sycamore, #206, Waterloo, IA 50703 1-800-772-0039 or 319-235-7008 Kings & Queens 304 W. 4th St, Waterloo, IA, 319-232-3001 Romantix Waterloo (Adult Emporium) 1507 La Porte Rd, Waterloo, IA 50702 319-234-9340, romantixonline.com Stellas Guesthouse 324 Summit Ave, Waterloo, IA Private B&B, Overnight accommodations for adults only. 319-232-2122 St. Lukes Episcopal Church - 319-277-8520 2410 Melrose Dr, Cedar Falls, IA 50613 Services: Sunday 8:00 & 10:15, Thurs 11:30 st-lukes-episcopal.org St. Timothys United Methodist Church 3220 Terrace Drive, Cedar Falls, 50613 sttims-umc.org, 319-266-0464, info@sttimsumc-org, “Welcome of all persons, including those of all sexual orientations and gender identities.” Together For Youth 233 Vold Dr, Waterloo, IA 50703, TogetherForYouth.net 319-274-6768 UNI-LGBTA Alliance-Student Organization, 244A Bartlet Hall, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls 50613 - lgbta@uni.edu 319-222-0003 United Church of Christ Cedar Falls 9204 University Avenue, Cedar Falls 319-366-9686 Unitarian Universalist Society of Black Hawk County - 319-266-5640 3912 Cedar Heights Dr, Cedar Falls, IA
CEDAR RAPIDS/MARION, IOWA
Adult Shop 630 66th Ave SW, 319-362-4939 Adult Shop North 5539 Crane Lane, 319-294-5360 CRPrideFest (formerly Cedar Rapids Unity) Social activities, non-profit Pride festival organization. PO Box 1643 Cedar Rapids 52406-1643 - CRPrideFest.com Christ Episcopal Church “We have a place for you.” 220 40th Street NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404, 319-363-2029 ChristEpiscopal.org Belle’s Basix - 319-363-3194 Open 5pm to 2am M-F, Sat & Sun 3pm-2am 3916 1st Ave NE, Cedar Rapids Club CO2, A GLBTQA Nightclub, 616 2nd Ave SE, 319-365-0225, Open 7 days a week 4PM-2AM, Happy hour from 4-8 pm, clubco2.com
Coe Alliance GLBTQ and straight students, staff and people from the community. Coe College, 1220 First Ave NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402. coealliance@coe.edu or Erica Geers, faculty advisor at 319-8616025 Community Health Free Clinic 947 14th Avenue SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401 - 319-363-0416 - communityhfc.org Free Medical Services provided for the uninsured and underserved patients of Cedar Rapids, Marion and the surrounding areas in Eastern Iowa. CSPS Legion Arts Contemporary Arts Center - 319-364-1580 1103 3rd St. SE, info@legionarts.org Diversity Focus, 222 2nd Street SE, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401, 319-363-3707, DiversityFocus.org, Lead in the promotion of diversity, cultural awareness, and inclusion in the Corridor community. Eden United Church of Christ 351 8th Ave SW, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52404 (319) 362-7805 Sunday School 9am - Worship 10:15am Foundation 2 Crisis Counseling 24-hour telephone crisis counseling. f2crisis@aol.com or www.f2online.org 1540 2nd Ave. SE Cedar Rapids, IA 319-362-2174 or 800-332-4224 Linn County Public Health 501 13th NW, Free confidential HIV testing, 319-892-6000 Linn County Stonewall Democrats For more info, contact linnstonewall@ gmail. com People’s Church Unitarian Universalist A welcoming congregation. 4980 Gordon Ave NW, Cedar Rapids, IA, 11am Sunday. 319362-9827 - peoplesuu.org PFLAG CR, Linn Co and Beyond Support Group meets on the 4th Thursday at 7pm except for Nov Dec - call for details. 319-431-0673, pflaglcb@gmail.com The Linn County Stonewall Democrats Meet 2nd Wednesdays, Blue Strawberry, 118 2nd St SE in Cedar Rapids, IA. Contact Harvey S. Ross, HRoss007@aol.com. Tri-ess, Iota Kappa Phi Chapter P.O. Box 8605, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52408 We are a transgendered organization supporting crossdressers, their families, and friends. - ri-ess.org, 319-390-6376, georgia523@ yahoo.com - marlenemarschel@yahoo.com Unity Center of Cedar Rapids “A center of positive, practical Christianity.” 4980 Gordon NE, Cedar Rapids unitycr.org - (319) 393-5422
CLINTON, IOWA
18 and Beyond (aka ABC Books), 135 5th Ave South, 563-242-7687 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Clinton 309 30th Avenue North, Clinton, IA 52732 (563) 242-4972 - uuclinton.org, Sunday services at 10:30 (year-round), Where YOUR spiritual and ethical journey is welcome! Rev. Ruby Nancy, minister
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA
Council Bluffs Community Alliance “…will promote the city of Council Bluffs as a developing gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgender family community, & to assure the equality of all Council Bluffs’ residents.” CouncilBluffsCommunityAlliance.org Council Bluffs NOW PO Box 3325, Omaha, NE 68103-0325 Romantix Council Bluffs (North) (Adult Emporium) 3216 1st Ave, Council Bluffs, IA 51501-3353-romantixonline.com515-955-9756 Romantix Council Bluffs (South) (Romantix After Dark) 50662 189th St, Council Bluffs, IA 51503 romantixonline.com, 712-366-1764
DECORAH, IOWA
Decorah Human Rights Commission Contact: City Clerk, 400 Clairborne Dr, Decorah, 563-382-3651, Meetings: First Tuesdays, 5:30pm Luther College Student Congregation Contact Office for College Ministry 700 College Dr, Decorah, IA 52101, 563-3871040. Luther College PRIDE-Diversity Center, 700 College Dr, Decorah, IA 52101 Contact Charles 563-210-6570 PFLAG Northeast IA (Waukon/Decorah) Meets 4th Monday of the month from 7-8pm; contact Randall Duvall at krey1945@gmail.com
JULY 2013 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Meets alternating Sundays at 10:30am, Decorah Senior Center, 806 River St, Call Bill at 563-382-3458.
DES MOINES, IOWA
AIDS Project of Central Iowa Free HIV testing, prevention supplies, care services, food pantry, information. 711 E. 2nd, Des Moines, IA 50309, 515-284-0245 Blazing Saddle 416 E 5th St, Des Moines, IA theblazingsaddle.com - 515-246-1299 Buddies Corral 418 E 5th St, Des Moines, IA - 515-244-7140 Church of the Holy Spirit-MCC, Interim Pastor Peter Trabaris - Sunday service 11am at the 1st Christian Church, 2500 University (2nd floor chapel), Des Moines, IA, Facebook. com/CHSMCC, chsmccdmia@aol.com, 515-287-9787 Des Moines Diversity Chorus [A gay-friendly mixed chorus] Rehearsals on Mondays at 7 p.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Beaver Ave. at Franklin St., Des Moines. All are welcome, no auditions. PO Box 65312, West Des Moines, IA 50265, Julie Murphy, Artistic Director jahmurphy@hotmail.com, 515-255-3576, desmoinesdiversitychorus.org Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus 515-953-1540, 4126 Ingersoll Ave, Des Moines - administrator@dmgmc.org Des Moines Pride Center @ One Iowa (temporary location) 419 SW, 8th St., Des Moines, IA 50309 Family Practice Center - 515-953-7560 Safe, supportive LGBT health care. 200 Army Post Road, Ste 26, ppgi.org First Friday Breakfast Club Educational breakfast club for gay/bisexual men. Meets first Friday of each month. Contact Jonathan Wilson for meeting topic and place. 515-288-2500 info@ffbciowa.org ffbciowa.org First Unitarian Church 1800 Bell Avenue, Services Sundays at 9:30 & 11am - 515-244-8603, ucdsm.org Franklin Family Practice Dr. Joe Freund, MD 4908 Franklin Ave., Des Moines, IA 50310 515-280-4930, ucsinformation@ucsdsm.org, UCSOnline.org/FranklinFamilyPractice The Gallery (adult store) 1000 Cherry St, Des Moines, IA 50309-4227 - (515) 244-2916 Open 24 Hrs, LoversPlayground.com The Garden 112 SE 4th Des Moines, IA, 515-243-3965 Wed-Sun. 8pm-2am grdn.com Gay & Lesbian AA & AI-Anonymous Mon 7pm; Tue-Thu 6pm; Sat. 5:30pm, at Drake Ministries in Ed. Bldg. 28th & University Gay and Lesbian Issues Committee 4211 Grand Avenue, Level-3, Des Moines, IA 50312 - 515-277-1117 Lavender Victory Fund Financial assistance for women in need for medical emergencies. lavendervf@aol.com Le Boi Bar 508 Indianola Rd, Des Moines, IA Liberty Gifts 333 E. Grand Ave, Loft 105, Des Moines, IA Gay owned specialty clothing, jewelry, home decor. 515-508-0825 MINX Show Palace - 515-266-2744 1510 NE Broadway, Des Moines, IA 50313 North Star Gay Rodeo Association of IGRA, Iowa Division of North Star, NSGRA@ NSGRA.org or 612-82-RODEO Primary Health Care Inc., David Yurdin, 2353 SE 14th St., Des Moines, 503020, Works with GLBT ages 16 to geriatric, 25 years of experience. 515-248-1427 Rainbow Union, Drake University ru@drake.edu PFLAG Des Moines - 515-243-0313 1300 Locust , Des Moines, IA 50312 Plymouth Congregational UCC Church and the Plymouth GLBT Community 4126 Ingersoll Ave. 515-255-3149 Services at 9am & I lam Sunday. PlymouthGLBT.com Polk County Health Department Free STD, HIV, and Hepatitis B & C testing. HIV. Rapid testing also offered. 1907 Carpenter, Des Moines, IA, 515-286-3798. Pride Alliance, AIB College of Business Gay and straight students celebrating diversity. Contact: Mike Smith, Advisor, PrideAlliance@aib.edu - aib.edu/pride Pride Bowling League for GLBT & Supporters - Every Wednesday, 7 PM, Air Lanes Bowling Center 4200 Fleur Drive, Des Moines, IA 50321-2389. Email pridebowlingleague@gmail.com or 515-447-2977.
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JULY 2013 SScontinued from page 28
DIRECTORY
Raccoon River Resort Accommodations for men, women, or mixed in campgrounds, lodge, Teepees or Treehouses. Reservations: 515-996-2829 or 515-279-7312 Ritual Café - ritualcafe.com On 13th between Grand and Locust. Gay owned, great music, awesome food & coffee. 515-288-4872 ritualcafe@aol.com Romantix North Des Moines Iowa (Bachelor’s Library) 2020 E Euclid Ave, Des Moines, IA 50317, romantixonline.com 515266-7992 Spouses of Lesbians & Gays Support group for spouses of gays and lesbians. 515-277-7754 St. John’s Lutheran Church 600 6th Ave “A Church for All People.” Services Sat 5pm, Sun 7:45, 8:45 & 11am. See web page for other services. 515-243-7691 - StJohnsDSM.org TransformationsIOWA Meets every Wednesday at 7pm, 2nd saturday of each month at 1pm at OneIowa, 419 SW 8th St, Des Moines, IA. For more information email sophia.transformations@gmail.com or call 515-288-4019 x200 Trinity United Methodist Church 1548 Eighth Street - 515-288-4056 Services Sundays 10am, trinityumcdm.org Urbandale UCC - An open & affirming congregation. 3530 70th St., Urbandale, IA 50322, 515-276-0625, urbucc.org Walnut Hills UMC Join us at 8:30 or 10:45am for Sunday worship. Sunday classes & group studies at 9:30am. 515-270-9226, 12321 Hickman Rd, Urbandale, IA 50323, whumc.org Westminster Presbyterian Church 4114 Allison Ave - WestPres.org Sunday services 8:45 and 11am. Of note is their GAY-LESBIAN-STRAIGHT AFFIRMATION GROUP, GLSA 515-274-1534 Women’s Culture Collective (WCC) A lesbian social group. Des Moines, IA iowawcc.org Word of God Ministries, Sunday service: 3:00pm, at 3120 E 24th Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50317, Gay, lesbian & straight affirmation 515-707-5947. Zanzibar’s Coffee Adventure Open daily. Gay-friendly, 515-244-7694 2723 Ingersoll, Des Moines, IA
DUBUQUE, IOWA
920 Main 920 Main St., Dubuque, Iowa 52001, Tue Sat: 8:00 pm - 2:00 am, (563) 583-2121 or dbq.gaybar@hotmail.com Adult Warehouse - 563-588-9814 975 Jackson St, Dubuque, IA Dubuque Friends Worship Group (Quakers) Join us at an unprogrammed worship service on Sunday at 10am. Welcoming and Affirming, 563-582-9388 St. Mark’s Community Center, 1201 White Street, Dubuque, Iowa 52001 Rainbow Pride support and socialization group. For members of the LGBT+ community who want to expand their social circle, get support for LGBT specific issues, & help with advocacy. Meets Mondays at 1pm Hillcrest Wellness Center 225 W 6th St., Dubuque, IA 563-690-1239 PFLAG Dubuque/Tri-State Carnegie Stout Library, 3rd Floor Conference Room, 360 W. 11th St. 3rd Tuesday, 7pm 563-581-4606 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Dubuque - “The uncommon denomination.” general services at 10am. 1699 Iowa St, Dubuque, IA uuf-dbq.org 563-583-9910
ELKADER, IOWA
Bethany Church (ELCA) - 563-245-1856 307 3rd St. NE, Elkader, IA 52043 Inclusive. Welcoming. A ‘ReconcilingWorks’ congregation. www.bethanychurchelkader.org bethanychurch@alpinecom.net Schera’s Restaurant & Bar 107 S Main St, Elkader, IA 52043, Scheras.com, E-mail: info@scheras.com Fine dining featuring Algerian & American Cuisine. 563-245-1992
FORT DODGE, IOWA
Romantix Fort Dodge (Mini Cinema) Sun-Thu 10am-12am, Fri & Sat 10am-2am 15 N. 5th St, Fort Dodge, IA 50501-3801 RomantixOnline.com - 515-955-9756
Section 3: Community GRINNELL, IOWA
Broadviewwildflowerseed.com, Broad View Wildflower Seed, 428 Hamilton Ave., Grinnell, Iowa 50112, Manager/Owner: John C., chicoski7@yahoo.com Saints Ephrem & Macrina Sunday services at 10am. (Affiliated with the Orthodox-Catholic Church of America.) Divine Liturgy is served Sundays during the College academic year 1:30 p.m., Herrick Chapel, Grinnell College Campus, 1226 Broad Street, Grinnell, IA, 641-236-0936 Stonewall Resource Center Open 4:30pm to 11:30pm, Sun through Thurs and by Appointment., Grinnell College, 1210 Park Street PO Box B-1, Grinnell, IA, 50112, srcenter@ grinnell.edu 641-269-3327 United Church of Christ-Congregational, ‘An open and affirming church.’ 902 Broad St, 641-236-3111
INDIANOLA, IOWA
Crossroads United Church of Christ (UCC) An Open & affirming congregation. Services: Sunday 10:30am, Summer worship: June, July, Aug, @ 9:30 am, worshiping in the Lounge at Smith Chapel, Simpson College, corner of Buxton and Clinton. Mailing address: P.O. Box 811, Indianola, IA 50125 515-961-9370. crossroadsucc.org
IOWA CITY, IOWA
AA (GLBT) 319-338-9111 Meetings Sundays 5 - 6pm at First Baptist Church, 500 North Clinton Street. For more info, call IC Intergroup Answering Service, Congregational Church UCC An Open and Affirming Congregation, Sunday Worship 10:15 a.m. 30 N Clinton St (across from Ul Pentacrest) 319-337-4301 - uiccic.org Counseling Clinic 319-354-6238 Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender sensitive and supportive counseling for individuals, couples, families and groups. Sliding Fee. 505 E Washington St., Iowa City, IA 52240 Counseling and Health Center Client-centered therapy. Les-Bi-Gay-Trans always welcome. 616 Bloomington St, Iowa City, IA - 319-337-1679 Crisis Center 319-351-0140 1121 Gilbert Ct, Iowa City, 52240 Emma Goldman Clinic 227 N. Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA 52245 319-337-2111or 1-800-848-7684. Faith United Church of Christ An open and affirming congregation. 1609 Deforest Street, Iowa City, 52240 Sunday Worship 9:30 AM 319-338-5238 bob.faithucc@g.com, faithucciowacity.org GLBTAU-U of lA Student support system and resource center, info, activism, events, and other community involvements. 203 IMU, University of IA, Iowa City, IA 52242-1317 - 319-335-3251 (voice mail) glbtau@uiowa.edu Hope United Methodist Church Worship Service at 9:30am. 2929 E. Court St., Iowa City, IA - Contact Rev. Sherry Lohman. 319-338-9865 Human Rights Commission (City of Iowa City Human Rights Commission) 319-356-5022; 391-356-5015; 319-356-5014 Fax 319-887-6213 humanrights@iowa-city.org ICARE (Iowa Center for AIDS Resources & Education) Practical & emotional support, youth programs, information, referrals and support groups. 319-338-2135 3211 E 1st Iowa City, IA 52240-4703 Iowa City Free Medical Clinic - 319-337-4459 Free & strictly confidential HIV Testing. 2440 Towncrest Dr Iowa City, Call for appointment Iowa City NOW PO Box 2944, Iowa City, IA 52244 Iowa Women’s Music Festival P.O. Box 3411, Iowa City, IA 52244 319-335-1486 Men Supporting Men 319-356-6038, Ext 2 HIV prevention program. Discussion Groups, Educational Series, Safer Sex Workshops, Book Club. Andy Weigel, email: aweigel@ co.johnson.ia.us New Song Episcopal Church 912 20th Ave, Coralville, IA. Sunday services at 10am. Jennifer Masada, Jane Stewart, and John Greve. 319-351-3577 Pride Committee WRAC, 130 N Madison, Iowa City, IA 52242 Bridget Malone - 319-338-0512 Charles Howes - 319-335-1486 Romantix Iowa City - 319-351-9444 (Pleasure Palace I) 315 Kirkwood Ave, Iowa City, IA 52240-4722 - romantixonline.com
Studio 13 13 S. Linn St. (in the Alley) Iowa City, IA Open 7pm ‘til 2am, daily 319-338-7145 U of I Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual Staff & Faculty Association, c/o WRAC, 130 N Madison, Iowa City, IA 52242, 319-335-1486 Unitarian Universalist Society of Iowa City Inclusive & free religious community nurturing intellectual & spiritual growth & fostering ethical & social responsibility. uusic.org 10 S. Gilbert, Iowa City, IA Sunday services: 9:30am & 11:15am. 319-337-3443 United Action for Youth (UAY) A GLBTQA youth group providing support and counseling for teenagers and young adults processing sexual identity issues. Meets Mondays 7-9pm at UAY 410 Iowa Ave. Iowa City, IA. 319-338-7518 or Teen Line, 319-338-0559. The Ursine Group Bear Events in the Midwest. PO Box 1143, Iowa City, IA 52244-1143 - 319-338-5810 Women’s Resource Action Center (WRAC) Leads & collaborates on projects that serve U of l and the greater community, offers social & support services, including LGBT Coming Out Group. University of Iowa, 130 N Madison, Iowa City, IA 52242 - 319-335-1486
MARSHALLTOWN, IOWA
Adult Odyssey (Adult Video Store) 907 Iowa Ave E - 641-752-6550 Domestic Violence Alternatives/ Sexual Assault Center, Inc., 132 W Main St. 24 hour Crisis Line: 641-753-3513 or (instate only) 800-779-3512
MASON CITY, IOWA
Cerro Gordo County Dept. of Public Health 22 N. Georgia Ave, Ste 300 Mason City, IA 50401. Free confidential AIDS testing. 641421-9321 PFLAG North Iowa Chapter 641-583-2848, pflagmcni@yahoo.com, Carlos O’Kelly’s Mexican Cafe @ 7 p.m. Wed.
MOUNT VERNON, IOWA
Alliance Cornell College 810 Commons Cir # 2035 - alliance@cornellcollege.edu - orgs.cornellcollege.edu/alliance/
PELLA, IOWA
Common Ground (Central College) Support group for GLBT students and allies. Contact: Brandyn Woodard, Director of Intercultural Life woodardb@central.edu 641-628-5134
QUAD CITIES, IOWA
AIDS Project Quad Cities Info, education & support. Davenport, IA 52804, www.apqc4life.org 319-762-LIFE Black Hawk College Unity Alliance Serving GLBT community at Black Hawk College. 6600 34th Ave, Rock Island, IL 309-716-0542. Connections Nightclub 563-322-1121 822 W 2nd St, Davenport, IA 52802 DeLaCerda House 309-786-7386 Provides housing & supportive services, advocacy and referrals for people living with HIV/ AIDS. P.O. Box 4551, Rock Island, Il. 61201 Good Samaritan Free Clinic 309-797-4688 Provides free primary medical care to patients age 16-64 who are working but have no medical insurance. gsfc@mchsi.com 602 35th Ave, Moline, IL GoodSamaritanFreeClinic.org The Hole-In-The-Wall 309-289-2375 A Private Membership Men’s Club, Located 3 miles east of Galesburg, IL. just north of I-74 at Exit 51. HoleInTheWallMensClub.org Holy Spirit Catholic Faith Community Meets one weekend a month for mass. Please visit our web site: www.transformationalcatholicchurch.com for more information or call: 309-278-7909. Lucky Shamrock 313 20th St, Rock Island, IL - 309-788-7426 An Irish Pub open to all types. Mary’s On 2nd 563-884-8014 832 W. 2nd St. Davenport, IA MCC Quad Cities - Svcs Sun 11am, Bible study Wed 7pm 563-324-8281, 3019 N Harrison, Davenport, IA 52803 Men’s Coming Out/Being Out Group Meets 2nd & 4th Thursdays, 7pm. QCAD. outforgood@gmail.com 309-786-2580 PFLAG Quad Cities 563-285-4173 Eldridge United Methodist Church 604 S.2nd St., Eldridge 1st Monday, 6:30 pm Prism (Augustana College) 309-794-7406 Augustana Gay-Straight Alliance, Augustana Library - 639 38th St, Rock Island, IL, Contact Tom Bengston
Quad Citians Affirming Diversity (QCAD) Social & support groups for lesbian, bi, and gay teens, adults, friends & families; newsletter. 309-786-2580 - Community Center located at 1608 2nd Ave, Rock Island. Quad Cities Pride Chorus (Call Don at 563324-0215) At the MCC Church in D’port, 7pm Wed. qcswede64@aol.com Rainbow Gifts www.rainbowgifts.net - 309-764-0559 T.R. Video Adult books & video, 3727 Hickory Grove Rd, Davenport, IA. 563-386-7914 Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Quad Cities, Rev Jay Wolin, Sunday Service 11am - 563-359-0816 3707 Eastern Avenue, Davenport, IA 52807 Venus News (Adult) 902 W 3rd St, Davenport, IA. 563-322-7576
RED OAK, IOWA
First Congregational United Church of Christ (open and affirming) - 712-623-2794 608 E Reed St, Red Oak, IA 51566 Rev. Elizabeth Dilley, Pastor uccwebsites.net/firstcongredoakia.html firstconguccredoak@yahoo.com
SHENANDOAH, IOWA
PFLAG Shenandoah 1002 South Elm Street - 712-246-2824
SIOUX CITY, IOWA
Am. Business & Professional Guild. Gay Businessmen. Meets last Sat. of the month; ABPG, P. O. BOX 72, Sioux City, 51102 - abpguild@yahoo.com Grace United Methodist Church 1735 Morningside Avenue - 712-276-3452. Jones Street Station (Bar) 712-258-6922 412 Jones St., Nightly 6:00pm to 2:00am. Mayflower Congregational Church 1407 West 18th St - 712-258-8278. Morningside College Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual Alliance Contact Professor Gail Dooley, Advisor Morningside College GSA. 1501 Morningside Ave, Sioux City, IA 51106-1717 dooley@morningside.edu - 712-274-5208 PFLAG Siouxland PO Box 1311, Sioux City, IA 51102 siouxlandPFLAG@aol.com Romantix Sioux City 712-277-8566 511 Pearl St, Sioux City, IA 51101-1217 St. Thomas Episcopal Church Service Sun 10:30am 406 12th St, Waverly, IA Rev Mary Christopher - 712-258-0141 Western Iowa Tech. GSA widemal@juno.com for info.
SIOUX FALLS, SOUTH DAKOTA
Toppers, 1213 N Cliff Ave, Sioux Falls, SD 57103, (605) 339-7686, Su-Tu 7:00pm - Close : We-Sa 3:00pm - 2:00am, sdtoppers.com Center for Equality, PO box 2009 Sioux Falls, SD 57101-2009, 605-331-1153, centersforequalitysd.org
WAVERLY, IOWA
Cedar Valley Episcopal Campus Ministry. 717 W. Bremer, (St. Andrew’s Episcopal) episcoplcampus.org - 319-415-5747 Gay, Lesbian Bisexual Student Alliance Wartburg College, Waverly, IA 50677. Contact Susan Vallem - 319-352-8250 St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church 717 W. Bremer. We welcome all to worship with us on Sunday at 10:30am. Bible discussion Wed. 6:45pm 319-352-1489 Rev. Maureen Doherty, Pastor
NEBRASKA (CONTENT IN PROGRESS) HASTINGS, NEBRASKA
PFLAG Hastings - pat@datacc.net
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA
Club Q Lincoln - 402-475-2269 226 South 9th St, Lincoln, NE 68508 Indigo Bridge Books The Creamery Building, 701 P St, Ste 102, Lincoln, NE 68508 - 402-477 7770 “Indigo Bridge Books strives to provide a solid, relevant Gender Studies section with a focus on LGBT titles. indigobridgebooks.com Nebraska AIDS Project (Lincoln Office) 1921 South 17th Street, Lincoln, NE 68502 (402) 476-7000 - nap.org OUTLinc - outlinc.org Bringing Lincoln’s LGBT Community Together Panic - 402-435-8764 200 S 18th St, Lincoln, NE 68508
ACCESSline Page 29 PFLAG Cornhusker Chapter PO Box 82034, Lincoln, NE 68501 Meetings 4th Tuesday, Unitarian Church of Lincoln, 6300 A St, 7-9pm pflagcornhusker.org PFLAG Helpline: 402-434-9880 - Confidential Support & Information - We’re Here For You ! Planned Parenthood of the Heartland Sexual and Reproductive Health Care, Transgender Care - (402) 441-3302 2246 O St, Lincoln, NE 68510 The Rainbow Clinic in the UNL Psychological Consultation Center “…a specialty outreach service to the GLBTQ community. Psychological services, including individual, couples & family therapy, are provided within the UNL Psychological Consultation Center by regular PCC staff…open year round; day & evening appointments available. $10 for intake & $25 for therapy sessions. Application can be made for reduced fees based on federal poverty guidelines. 325 Burnett Hall, Lincoln, NE 68588 402-472-2351 unl.edu/psypage/pcc/ Star City Pride starcitypride.org - info@starcitypride.org The Unitarian Church of Lincoln 6300 A Street, Lincoln, NE 68510-5097 (402) 483-2213 - unitarianlincoln.org Sunday from 10am to 11am
OMAHA, NEBRASKA
AIDS Interfaith Network 100 N. 62nd, Omaha, NE Call Br. Wm. Woeger, 402-558-3100 Citizens For Equal Protection-402-398-3027 1105 Howard St, Suite #2, Omaha, NE 68102. cfep-ne.org - info@cfep-ne.org DC’s Saloon - (western/levi/leather) The Midwest’s hottest GLBT Country & Dance Bar! 610 S 14th St, Omaha, NE, Open everyday 2pm-1am Front Runners/Front Walkers Walking/jogging club. P.O. Box 4583, Omaha, NE 68104, 402-804-8720, frontrunners.org GLBT Rainbow Outreach Omaha Serving GLBT community in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. Also office for Imperial court of Nebraska. 1719 Leavenworth St, Omaha, NE, rocc.org - 402-341-0330 Greater Omaha GLBT Network - goglbt.org “…to advance growth & equality for its members, businesses & allies by providing educational, networking & community-building opportunities. Meetings 1st Thursday every month locations at a traveling location to see the community and be seen. For more info or to be included on the e-newsletter list, please email us at info@goglbt.org. Heartland Gay Rodeo Association (HGRA) (Midwest Division of the International Gay Rodeo Association) PO Box 3354, Omaha, NE 68103, hgra.net - 402-203-4680, Serves Iowa and Nebraska Heartland Pride ”…to develop a high impact and relevant cultural festival & events annually that promotes equality & unity for the LGBTQ & Allies Communities of Western Iowa and Greater Nebraska. heartlandpride.org Imperial Court of Nebraska 402-556-9907 P.O. Box 3772, Omaha, NE 68103 Inclusive Life - inclusivelife.org “Religious and Non religious care, services and ceremonies for all!”, 105 S. 49 Street, Suite E, Omaha, NE 68132, (402) 575-7006, The Max 1417 Jackson at 15th, Omaha, NE 68102 6 bars in 1 - 402-346-4110 McLovin 1010 South 10 Street, Omaha, NE, 68108 info@mclovinstore.com, MclovingStore.com 402-915-4002, A store for men. MCC Omaha 819 South 22nd, Omaha, NE 68103, Sun 9:30AM & 11:15 AM. Wednesday “ReCharge” Worship, Wed 7pm - 402-345-2563 PFLAG Omaha Mead Hall, First United Methodist Church, 7020 Cass St. (Omaha), 2nd Thursday, 7, 6:30 Social, 402-291-6781 River City Gender Alliance Peer support, friendship, and understanding for crossdressers, transgenderists, and transsexuals. PO Box 4083 Omaha, NE 68104, 402-291-6781, info@rcga.us - rcga.us River City Mixed Chorus Gay/lesbian chorus, PO Box 3267, Omaha, NE 68103, Call Stan Brown, 402-341-7464 Tri-ess Chapter, Kappa Phi Lambda Chapter, Omaha, NE 68107, Transgendered organization supporting crossdressers, their families, and friends. tri-ess.org, 402-960-9696, Judy marlenemarschel@yahoo.com Youth Support Group for GLBT Youth 13-21, meets twice monthly. Omaha, NE - 402-291- 6781
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Section 3: Community
JULY 2013
QC Pridefest celebrates Living Out Loud
Photo courtesy of QC Pride. Living Out Loud, the theme of the 6th Annual QC Pridefest, was certainly put into action on June 1st and 2nd in downtown Davenport, Iowa. The rainbow theme was definitely evident in the outfits of our guests, the flags waving proudly overhead, and banners welcoming 6500 people to celebrate diversity. The record breaking crowd was treated to twenty hours of nonstop entertainment on our main stage and this year’s second club tent stage. Acts included performances by well-known solo artists, bands, and dancers as the excitement built toward the massive Saturday evening crowd who were treated to the finest in female impersonation followed by a grand finale that included a spectacular fireworks display. The festivities continued on Sunday with the addition of an Interfaith Celebration where the Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Native American and Unitarian traditions collaborated to offer spiritual readings, music and interpretative dance. Following the service,
Davenport’s Mayor Bill Gluba spoke with pride of Iowa’s long tradition of promoting equality and justice for all, a sentiment echoed by US Congressman Dave Loebsack as he mentioned the significance of the US Supreme Court ruling of DOMA, which was met with a standing ovation by the crowd. Illinois State Representative Mike Smiddy expressed disappointment in the failure of the Illinois Assembly to pass the Marriage Equality bill but vowed to personally insure that the bill would receive top priority during the next session. Simultaneously, festival goes were treated to the Zaney Zone at the other end of the festival where dueling burlesque troops won the crowd o v e r with their visual antics, colorful costumes, elaborately painted bodies and risqué routines. The Zaney Zone also featured psychic readings, high heels races, live body art hooping performances, carnival-style games, a vodka oasis, purveyors of adult novelties and a dunk tank to cool off heated attendees. The Zaney Zone, not content to stay in their own area, shared the revelry with the entire festival as members of the burlesque troops and joiners-in wound their way throughout the crowds in a number of spontaneous and exuberant conga lines. Also available to festival goers were 120 vendors offering a variety of cuisine, information booths, crafts, and pridethemed merchandise. Several vendors engaged the guests by offering contests of skill and games, with a number of them raising money for charitable organizations.
The children’s area included crafts, story time, jump houses and a mobile playground provided by Davenport Parks and Recreation. Always a big draw, the Art in Action area featured artisans performing their craft while enlightening patrons to the importance of buying local items that will provide a positive impact on our economy. Shoppers could rest or visit with family and friends in our festival beer garden before moving on to the next adventure. While relaxing in the beer garden and main stage area on Sunday afternoon, guests were introduced to Ms. Brandi Jo Collins, the 2013 QC Pride College Scholarship recipient. For the second year in a row, the scholarship was awarded to an outstanding student leader from St. Ambrose University. Ms. Collins’ outstanding record of academic achievement and her dedication to St. Ambrose’s LGBT group, Students Organized to Unite People, were cited as key factors in the selection process. True to their mission, QC Pride renewed its commitment to Quad City Area nonprofit organizations during the 2013 “Living Out Loud” QC PrideFest. Just as they did during the 2011 and 2012 festivals, Pridefest guests had the opportunity to donate one dollar of every $5.00 festival entrance fee to one of the participating nonprofit organizations in attendance. Canisters representing each organization were available at the gates and guests were given one ticket for each admission which they could deposit into the canister of their choice. A combined total of $3,744 was donated to this year’s eleven
Photo courtesy of QC Pride. participating non-profit organizations. QC Pride board members are already gearing up for next year’s celebration which will be held during the first full weekend of June 2014. Monthly meetings will begin in September and will be listed on the calendar website at www.qcpride.org. Volunteering with QC Pride is an incredibly rewarding experience so plan on attending a future meeting where you will have the opportunity to share your talents and make new friends. Follow QC Pride throughout the year as they plan annual events such as trivia night, a scavenger hunt, the annual semi-formal event held during the month of March, participation in various parades and informative workshops. Vendor, scholarship and sponsorship applications will be updated and available on the website by th August 15 . Join QC Pride as they continue to “Live Out Loud”!
JULY 2013 SScontinued from page 11
CHI CHI LARUE for marriage for anyone, because I think nowadays marriage is kind of a hilarity for gay, straight, or otherwise. But it’ll be really good for divorce lawyers!
Chi Chi Larue It’s been noted that a lot of adult stars have been dying or committing suicide. What do you think contributes to that? I wish I knew, because then I could stop it, but I really don’t know. I think it’s probably a combination of a lot of things. Drugs are a factor. Depression. A lot of reasons. One star had a boyfriend who committed suicide and he decided to take the same path. I can’t really guess or even speculate on what’s going on. But I’m hoping that we won’t see
Section 3: Community another one, ever. You can only do so much for someone. I have my own issues that I’m dealing with, and I’m dealing with them the best I can. You can reach out, but you can only help someone else as much as they want help. About five years ago, you stopped working with Vivid (who produces straight adult videos) because they were filming sex scenes without condoms. How do you feel about that now that five years later, there are a lot more videos being done without condoms? It doesn’t affect me. I don’t really notice. I still practice the same thing that I’ve been talking about for the last twenty-five years, so I don’t let it affect me. The adult film business is not doing well all around. Sales are way down because of piracy. Even in the “barebacking” aspect, nobody’s really doing well. So, I really don’t care to even talk about the barebacking because it really doesn’t affect me or have anything to do with my world. Recently California passed a mandatory condom law, which I think is foolish, because the minute people start making things mandatory, then people start wanting to do it more. I think it should be a choice, and if people make the choice to not use a condom, whether it be in porn or in real life, I just have to do what I feel is right. You have an adult shop in West Hollywood (in which you also promote safe sex) and online at ChiChiLarues.com. What’s new that’s going on with that? Oh, I’m launching a new toy line through my company, a line called “Rascal Toys” and it’s pretty exciting! I get to sell things to people that they can stick in themselves or stick themselves into!
ACCESSline Page 31
Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus at Capital City Pride Parade 2013 Des Moines, IA
Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus. Photos courtesy of Glenn Gordon.
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SOLDIERS What motivated you to join the Army? I think you will find when asking anyone why they joined the military there is no easy answer at least there certainly isn’t in my case. Certainly making my student loans go away was part of my motivation. Really though, if I had to narrow it down to one thing I’d say it was to prove I could do it. I was raised hearing stories about people who fought and died in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. I suppose to an extent I wondered if I had what it took to follow in those foot-steps. Were you out to yourself or others prior to the repeal of DADT? By the time I enlisted in the military I was starting to come around or perhaps beginning to accept the fact I was gay. Certainly for at least my first few years in the military very, very few people knew. After I had been to Iraq and left active duty for the Guard I came out to close friends and family and started embracing the LGBT community. Since the repeal very little has changed other than that more people I know in the military are aware I am gay. How does your present experience in the military compare to when you first entered the service in regards to LGB inclusion? For me the biggest difference is that the military now says, I as a gay man am an equal to the straight men and women who serve. I know it sounds like a little thing and even though I never believed it, the underlying message that I was in some way unsuitable for military service did sometimes get to me. One of my biggest concerns before the repeal of DADT was not getting discharged if I was caught, it was the impression that despite what I had done, despite what I had accomplished, my military service was in some way substandard and I did not belong in uniform. So for me the biggest thing is that I can be out and seen as an equal. What was the reaction from you and your unit with the repeal of DADT? I cannot speak as to a reaction from my unit but for me at least the reaction was shock. Granted it had been talked about for some time but hearing politicians bandy about ideas is one thing. Sitting shoulder to shoulder with other soldiers in Afghanistan while your commander briefs you about the upcoming repeal is a whole other deal. Can you share an experience from your service that really made an impression? First and foremost I’ve learned that no matter where you go in the world and no matter who you meet people are more alike than different. I remember meeting a shopkeeper on our base in Iraq who had a picture of his son playing soccer behind the counter. He came to post every day despite threats against him for trading with the Americans. I met a bar owner in Germany who was running the same bar that his family had founded generations ago. He peppered me with questions about the bar business in America wanting to know how to grow his business. The one thing they had in common was that both were working so that they could prosper
Section 3: Community and build a better life for themselves and their families. I’ve seen the same thing over and over again in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, Germany, Italy, here in the United States and in the dozen or so other countries I’ve been lucky enough to visit. Most people don’t crave a great deal of wealth, power or control. They want to live in a situation where they are free to live as they see fit and hopefully in the process have happy, healthy lives. Pick a few things the military has taught you, that have influenced your life. First and foremost I realized that despite what you hear about the military, it is filled with good, hard working men and women who take both their job and the responsibilities it entails very seriously. Of course like any group that large there will be some bad apples but when the media uses a negative event to paint the military negatively I find it not just offensive but completely inaccurate. Another thing I came to realize is that the majority of people, no matter whether you’re in Afghanistan, Germany or here in the United States just want the same things. Of course there are exceptions but the majority of people just want to be left alone to live, work, worship and possibly raise a family as they see fit. It both amazes and worries me that such a small percentage of the population in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan can undermine this goal so dramatically.
limited and I did not attain the required ASVAB scores to enlist in the US Navy so I enlisted in the US Army instead. What was your reaction to the repeal of DADT? I was ecstatic for those currently serving in the military when the repeal took effect. I believe that many of the personal decisions I made while serving under DADT would probably had been different if that had not been the law of the land. I do understand what it is to serve in fear of losing everything you’ve worked for; the law kept me from being truthful to my family, my friends, and to myself. The repeal also made me revisit my time in the military and presented me with many…pleasurable “what if ” scenarios. How do you think the repeal of DADT has impacted the LGBT community? I believe with time, the repeal will provide LGB personnel with the same benefits that heterosexual couples are currently enjoying. The repeal also removes the fear factor of been outted, providing for a more enjoyable military experience. I spoke with a few friends that are still serving in the military and found that the repeal had a seamless transition and not many people came out after the repeal. How do you think the LGB community will impact the military with the repeal of DADT? I do not believe that an influx of LGB people will enlist in the military, especially now that the military is reducing the size of their ranks. However, I have the conviction that those who are really attracted to military service that happened to be
JULY 2013 LGB will be more likely to enlist. I also believe that many LGB professionals will be willing to take a shot at serving in the military, not just as a civilian but joining the military force. Can you share an experience from your service that really made an impression? An experience that has had a lasting impression in my life was the death of one of my Soldiers. He died in a helicopter accident in Panama and I was supposed to be in that helicopter with him but for logistical reasons I was placed in another helicopter. Since I had served with this particular Soldier for 3 years I was tasked with escorting his remains to the family and serving in his burial. The experience was a painful and rewarding one. Being able to share anecdotes of his life in the military with his loved ones was very rewarding. I really cherish those three days as the most memorable of my 21 year career. Pick three things the military have taught you that have influenced your life. There is an acronym that we use in the US Army that represents the seven basic values–LDRSHIP. It stands for: Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. If I was to choose three things learned in the military that have influenced my life I would have to say that my biggest influencers are Loyalty to the people I call family and friends, Respect to others and their way of thinking, and Integrity in everything I do and I pray that I will continue to have the personal courage to continue to press hard in life in the attainment of my personal goals.
I do understand what it is to serve in fear of losing everything you’ve worked for; the law kept me from being truthful to my family, my friends, and to myself.
University of Iowa LGBT S&F Association Iowa City, Iowa
Angel Velez 1987 at Fort Benning, GA. Courtesy of Angel Velez.
Angel Velez Angel Velez joined the US Army in February 1987 and reported to Fort Benning, GA for basic training on May 13, 1987. Angel served in the Army during DADT and retired in 2008 before the law was stricken down. He was not out while he was in the Army, and retired June 2008 as a First Sergeant (E-8). While serving Angel was stationed in California (Ft. Ord), Panama (Canal Zone), Kentucky (Ft. Campbell), Florida (Miami and Ft Lauderdale), Kentucky (Ft. Knox), Puerto Rico and New York (Ft. Hamilton). What motivated you to join the Army? I believe the biggest influencer for enlisting in the US Army was the movie Top Gun. I guess I should thank Tom Cruise for my 21-year career. I was not able to enlist in the Navy because my English was very
The University of Iowa Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Staff & Faculty Association (the “Association”) was organized in 1990 to support the interests of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender campus community. The Association is open to any University employee—merit staff, professional/ scientific staff, graduate assistant, faculty, administrator or community member. Meetings are held monthly and feature guest presentations as well as discussions of current topics recommended by members. In addition, the Association sponsors other public activities throughout the year ranging from lectures to cultural performances and social events. The Association is governed by the membership-at-large. Business responsibilities are supervised by a volunteer executive board. The Association’s services and activities are open to everyone. 2012-2013 Executive Board Meeting Schedule IMU River Room #1 2nd Thursday of the month, 12:30-1:30 p.m. (all are welcome to attend!) Thursday, Oct 11, 2012 Thursday, Nov 8, 2012 Thursday, Dec 13, 2012 Thursday, Jan 10, 2013 Thursday, Feb 14, 2013 Thursday, Mar 14, 2013 Thursday, Apr 11, 2013 Thursday, May 9, 2013 For more information go to their website at http://www.uiowa.edu/~lgbsfa/
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CRPrideFest 2013: Shades of Pride Cedar Rapids, IA
Brazilian 2wins. Photo courtesy of CRPride Fest.
Alan Hyatt. Photo courtesy of Eva Hinrichsen.
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B&B I get criticism… OK, there are two types of criticism. There’s one where I can say, “Yeah, that’s a valid point,”and I’ll respond to it and maybe I’ll make some changes. But then I get some wacky criticisms that are just completely off the wall. There are some that I just kind of laugh at. How far out do you plan your plotlines? You have these great story arcs. Are they complete in your mind before you start? Do they evolve? How much changes from the time that you start a story to the end? I have a lot of different storyline arcs written, usually about seven to ten episodes long—some are shorter, some are only three or four episodes. Keeping track of them, I have to keep them all notated. I have this master notebook that I use. I literally have over two thousand episodes that I’ve written, and out of those, I really take out the ones that are the best story lines. I have them planned out, but I don’t always have it planned out how they’re going to mesh with the other storylines. Generally, I have one or two, or sometimes three arcs going on at the same time, where they’re kind of weaving in and out of each other. Last summer was the first time I sat down and said, “I’m going to plan from this July to next July, exactly how everything’s going to go, and I’m going to see if I can really stick to that.” Before I would just do two or three months in advance. But this time I really did plan out a year in advance, and I pretty much stuck to it, but at the same time I’ve changed some things. Because some things just come up. You find that storylines are not quite working like you want them to. Everything is written in advance, but it’s not drawn in advance. I’ll have the script written months in advance, and eventually when I start drawing the episodes, certain things come up, different factors, and you realize different things about the story, and you think, “You know, this isn’t looking quite the way I had written it out.” So you make adjustments, either adding more to the story or taking some away from it. There are lots of episodes where a story was supposed to
go on for, say, eight episodes, and I ended up making it just six episodes, because there were two superfluous episodes that didn’t really add to the story and instead just drag it out. That will happen a lot. You have a lot of very deeply touching moments that happen between your characters… Oh, thank you. …Any favorites of those? You know, it’s funny: when I was putting together the second book I realized that storyline with Nick and Dave—one who’s the fire fighter, and the other who is disabled—their story really touched me. Reading back—because sometimes I don’t look at stuff for months or a couple of years, and I won’t see those older episode. That storyline really touched me, how the two of them came together, it made ME really emotional. [Laughs.] At the time that I did that story I got a lot of positive feedback, and people reading it were really touched by it. And you have many very funny storylines. You brought in the character Bryce for one of those… That character kind of surprised me, because I brought him in as a good antagonist, and it ended up I just loved writing that character. He’s so abrasive and completely disdainful. He’s like this frat boy kind of character. He’s just completely oblivious to sensitivity toward other people, but at the same time it’s fascinating to write him, the way he interacts with the other people—I just love writing that character. I mean, I know he’s “hated” by so many readers, the kind of character that you love to hate, I guess. I get emails from people about him, people saying, “I hate him, hate him, hate him,” but that they also think he’s really hot, [laughs] so they want to see more of him. They hate him, but they love him. And I think, “Okay…”
Tatem Trick lifting Eva Nicole. Photo courtesy of Eva Hinrichsen.
The Tool Box with Julia Schaefer. Photo courtesy of Eva Hinrichsen.
That’s a successful character! Any plans for Kyles Bed & Breakfast to turn into a TV series or something like that? I mean, HERE and LOGO are creating programs and always on the lookout for new content, and you’ve got what could probably be 10 or twelve seasons of episodes of a TV show… I would be totally open to it. It’s a frustrating story, because I’ve worked with two different producers about possibly developing something. One of the major problems is so many people who would be interested in doing something with it are in Los Angeles. One guy I worked with for about a year, a producer who was really trying to get it sold, shopping it around to people who he knew with various connections in LA. What I’ve learned from this experience is that any of the entities that would be interested in producing something like this have to get funding—it’s all about funding. That’s when my eyes start to glaze over. I’m just trying to get the next episode out. My primary focus is doing this strip. So I was interested in being involved, at some level, with getting a TV or movie thing—or anything, some sort of live action film going—but when it gets into the funding, I know that’s important, but I don’t
even know how to go about that. Then there’s the matter of who you’re working with. The first producer I was working with had these wacky ideas. He wanted to change things—have it take place in West Hollywood, maybe, which is such a completely different vibe. When I started the strip, I very specifically wanted it not to be in one of the stereotypically gay urban centers. I didn’t want it to be in New York City, I didn’t want it to be in Chelsea or West Hollywood. I wanted it to be in the suburbs, where you don’t see a lot of gay storylines going on. I have seen so many gay movies that are always taking place in New York City or Los Angeles, and I wanted something that was a little more relatable to my life. So I didn’t want to make that kind of change. I felt very disconnected from the process of trying to sell this in Los Angeles when I’m here on the east coast. This guy was having meetings with people giving all these suggestions, and I was so removed from the whole process. I worked with the guy for a year and nothing came from that. And then I did end up working with someone here on the east coast who was also trying to sell it, but again, he had more ideas of making it more… “porn-ish?” What I decided after working with each of these guys—I worked with each of them for about a year—is that if somebody comes to me with a really solid plan, then that’s great. I’d love talk to them about possibly developing something. I want Stephen Spielberg to call me [laughs], and say, “Let’s do this! I’ve got the funding!” Then I’d be like, “Great! Let’s do it!”
I wanted it to be in the suburbs, where you don’t see a lot of gay storylines going on. I have seen so many gay movies that are always taking place in New York City or Los Angeles, and I wanted something that was a little more relatable to my life.
ALPHAs
ALPHAs have a meet and greet every third (3rd) Friday of the month, held at Icon’s Martini Bar located at 124 18th Street in Rock Island. It’s a gathering for members of the LGBT community, supporters and friends to socialize, celebrate and get to know one another over martinis. Events are posted on Facebook at alphaselitecrew@ facebook.com or for more information contact alphaselite@yahoo.com.
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