March 25, 2015
Issue 1574
Phoenix trans woman Granddaughter: Elizabeth Taylor lobbies UN on sex workers would be ‘horrified’ at HIV rates issues, is in Geneva making her case to the United Nations.
among gays
OBSERVER STAFF The UN Human Rights Council is preparing a report on civil rights in the United States. Jones, who got the charges her Phoenix’s Monica Jones (left) visits with a g a i n s t a United Nations counselor in Geneva, dismissed after Switzerland. a legal fight that lasted a year and a half, was found OBSERVER STAFF guilty by a local judge based GENEVA, Switzerland on a previous conviction, but -- Monica Jones, the Arizona the appeals court declared a State University student mistrial because the decision whose May 2013 arrest under wasn’t based on evidence in a “manifesting prostitution” the current case. ordinance turned into an Court records indicate that international forum for transgender and sex-worker Continued on page 6 Photo: Best Practices Policy Project
Wingspan Senior Pride changes its name, invites everyone Special to potluck opportunities for
Inside
a special event: Treasures for TIHAN benefit auction!
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The anti-gay ‘Christian’ backlash already facing its own backlash Page 15
Killing Obamacare won’t just keep the poor from insurance -- it’ll rob taxpayers Page 4
Good gawd, Mary! Marc Almond’s back Page 11 Teaching kids about gender shouldn’t be controversial Page 3
TUCSON – Wingspan Senior Pride announced in an email Monday that it changed its name to Southern Arizona Senior Pride. SASP’s continuing mission is to celebrate, support and unite Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Seniors in Southern Arizona. To help accomplish this SASP holds general meetings the second Tuesday of each month at 2 p.m. at the Himmel Park Library, 1035 N. Treat Ave. (Library phone: 520-5945305.) Everyone is welcome to attend the Senior Pride Potluck held on the fourth Saturday of each month from 12 to 2 p.m. at Cornerstone Fellowship, 2902 N. Geronimo Ave. Contact Lee Roden at 520-3986826 if you are interested in attending March 28 or April 25.
The granddaughter of the late actress and AIDS activist Elizabeth Taylor has said Taylor would be “horrified” if she could see today’s rates of HIV infection among gay men. Taylor was an early and outspoken champion of HIV/ AIDS charities from the earliest days of what was first called “the gay cancer.” She founded the American Foundation for AIDS Research in 1985 and The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation in 1991. Naomi deLuce Wilding, granddaughter of the multiple Oscar winner who died in 2011, told the Telegraph that Taylor Continued on page 12
Elizabeth Taylor was an early and strident advocate for AIDS research.
Arpaio admits to contempt of court OBSERVER STAFF PHOENIX -- Lawyers for Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio filed papers in U.S. District Court last week admitting the sheriff is guilty of civil contempt of court charges -- in an attempt to avoid having him face trial on criminal contempt charges. The civil charges carry only fines; criminal charges could include jail time as well as fines. Arpaio’s hearing is set for next month. Last week’s filing admits a “failure to abide by and apprise ... deputies of the terms of the
court’s preliminary injunction,” failure to disclose audio and video recordings made by
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GLAAD Media Awards honor Los Tigres del Norte
winners and six-time Latin Grammy winners and recently honored with a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame, the band is now being hailed for “Era Diferente” -- a song about a lesbian teenager falling in love with her best friend -- on its latest album, “Realidades.”
To contact SASP call 520704-5830 or send emails to wingspanseniorpride@gmail. com. If you’d like to receive SASP’s newsletter, Senior Forum, in the mail or on-line contact: deapipecarrier@gmail. com or 520-704-5830.
deputies and relating to the office’s Human Smuggling Unit;
OBSERVER STAFF Longtime mega-selling norteno band Los Tigres del Norte received a special
recognition (Spanish language) award at the 26th annual GLAAD Media Awards. Already six-time Grammy
The song’s title translates as “She Was Different.” Lead singer and accordion player Jorge Hernandez sings, “They make bets for her affection, but none of them win her love. . . . She was so different from the other girls because she was never interested in a boy’s love.” Continued on page 10
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Australian diner finds 6-foot snake in corn-flakes box SYDNEY, Australia -- Jarred Smith of Sydney was sitting down to eat one day last week when he noticed something peculiar: A 6-and-a-half-foot python was curled inside his box of corn flakes. "It was super-weird," Smith told the Daily Telegraph. Ummm ... possibly more than that, we're thinking. "I peeked in the box, saw its head pop out, and that's when I dropped my food on the counter and bolted for the door," he added. Smith called the New South Wales Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service. WIRES member Chris McGreal came to the rescue and was as stunned as Smith. "The python was over 2 meters long and I couldn't believe it was jammed into this small cereal box," McGreal said. "When I got there, I actually had to tear the box to get it out -- that's how tightly squeezed in it was."
Bisexual governor signs first automatic voter registration SALEM, Ore. -- The first openly bisexual governor in U.S. history signed the nation's first automatic voter registration law last week. Under the measure signed by Gov. Kate Brown, any adult citizen who has interacted with the Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division since 2013 but hasn't registered to vote will receive a ballot in the mail at least 20 days before the next statewide election.
OBSERVER Mississippi already has a law authorizing religious discrimination, and Indiana is in the process of adopting one. Tennessee and Arkansas both have laws banning local gay-rights laws; a similar measure adopted by Colorado in 1992 was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1996.
Three more states consider banning 'ex-gay' counseling Legislation to ban "ex-gay" therapy on minors has advanced in three more states -- Oregon, Iowa and Colorado. The ban seems most likely to become law in Oregon, where The Oregonian reported last week that the House of Representatives approved a bill to prohibit state-licensed mental-health professionals from subjecting people under age 18 to "counseling" aimed at changing sexual orientation or gender identity. Seven Republicans joined Democrats in supporting the measure. Also last week, the Iowa Senate approved a similar bill by 26-24, with all Democrats in favor and all Republicans opposed. The GOP controls the Iowa House, so the bill is now dead for all practical purposes. In Colorado, the legislative makeup is just the opposite: The Democraticcontrolled House approved the ban, but a GOP-dominated Senate isn't likely to go for it. Such bans are in place in California, New Jersey and Washington, D.C.
Puerto Rico won't defend its ban on marriage equality
Citizens were already separated from other legal residents based on the documentation they present in getting a driver's license.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Puerto Rico's justice minister said last week that the commonwealth will stop defending its ban on same-sex marriage.
The new law is expected to add about 300,000 potential voters to the rolls and was, of course, opposed by Republicans. Oregon already has one of the highest voter-registration rates in the country (73 percent) and had a 70 percent turnout in the 2014 general election.
"Because of sexual orientation, Puerto Rico has denied rights that others enjoy," Cesar Miranda said at a press conference. "This is not correct."
Oregon has used mail-only elections for 17 years -- the only state so far to do so. Minnesota passed such a law in 2009, but it was vetoed by Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Three anti-gay bills in West Virginia die without any action CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Three anti-gay bills died in West Virginia last week with the end of the legislative session. Two of the bills would have authorized religious discrimination under the guise of religious freedom and one would have banned cities and counties from enacting or enforcing laws protecting the rights of LGBT citizens, according to the Human Rights Campaign. With the spread of marriage equality, several states are scrambling for ways to allow religious discrimination -- primarily aimed at denying weddingrelated goods and services to samesex couples.
Puerto Rico's equality ban was upheld by a federal court and is on appeal with the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals, but the administration of Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla filed a brief with the 1st Circuit saying it can no longer justify the ban. Puerto Rico native Ricky Martin tweeted his gratitude to Padilla for demonstrating leadership on the issue. California, Nevada, Oregon and Pennsylvania also declined to defend their marriage bans in court.
Child of lesbians: Same-sex couples harm their children A woman who was raised by two lesbians has written a column for a conservative website stating that children raised by same-sex couples are harmed by the experience. Heather Barwick's column ran at The Federalist, whose website identifies her as a former advocate of samesex marriage who switched to become a "children's rights activist." Barwick's mother was divorced by her father after coming out, and Bar-
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wick was raised by her mother and another woman. "My dad wasn't a great guy, and after she left him he didn't bother coming around anymore," Barwick wrote. Barwick frankly notes that her mom's partner "treated me as if I was her own daughter," but still she's decided that the family environment harmed her. In the column, she doesn't say how. "My father's absence created a huge hole in me, and I ached every day for a dad. I loved my mom's partner, but another mom could never have replaced the father I lost," she wrote. In other words, she missed her dad. That's understandable, but it's not clear what it has to do with same-sex parenting or how she wouldn't have missed him no matter what her mother did. Maybe Barwick will write another column addressing that.
San Fran church drops celibacy bias for LGBT members SAN FRANCISCO -- A letter sent to members of City Church in San Francisco last week announced that the church's two congregations would no longer require celibacy of its LGBT members. It became the third major urbancentered evangelical church to make that change in the past three months. In January, GracePointe Church in Nashville and EastLake Community Church in Seattle both reversed their celibacy policy. In the letter to City Church members, senior pastor Fred Harrell Sr. and board members wrote that the celibacy requirement "is simply not working and people are being hurt." Membership reaction was mixed, but City Church's communications coordinator, Laura Turner, told Religion News Service: "Churches are slowly coming to recognize that if God is bringing people to them who are LGBT, they have to meet them where they are and not demand that they change. Telling LGBT people they have to change before they can become Christians is leading to depression, suicide and addiction, and we won't do that anymore."
Chipotle's dropping pork is equal to anti-gay bias??? WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Two GOP lawmakers claimed last week in an oped column that the right of Chipotle's restaurants to stop using pork because a major supplier violated animal welfare standards is based on the same freedom as business owners' refusal to serve the LGBT community. The very idea slaps logic right in the pork chops, but that's what the duo claims. In the column, in the Washington Examiner, Sen. James Lankford, ROkla., and Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va., don't specifically denigrate the LGBT community, but their argument in favor of religious discrimination mislabeled as religious freedom has become a dog-whistle for "keeping the queers in their place." Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold
March 25, 2015 told The Huffington Post that the congresscritters' logic leaks like a messy burrito. "It's a pretty ridiculous comparison," Arnold said. "Our decision not to serve pork that doesn't meet our standards isn't discriminating against any customers or group of customers."
Komen founder joins 303 conservatives' pro-marriage brief The founder of the Susan G. Komen Foundation is among the 303 conservatives signing a friend-of-the-court brief supporting equality in the samesex marriage cases now before the U.S. Supreme Court. Nancy G. Brinker, who started the organization named for her sister, has long been a supporter of marriage equality because of her gay son. She was forced to step down as head of Komen when her right-wing politics got in the way, though she still holds a leadership position. She resigned as head after a furor when the breast-cancer foundation refused to continue funding any Planned Parenthood offices. She also serves as the World Health Organization's "goodwill ambasContinued on next page
1830 E Broadway Blvd #124-215 Tucson, AZ 85719 www.observerweekly.com info@observerweekly.com Voice Mail 520-812-0909 Editor-In-Chief Bob Ellis Executive Editor Nicholas K. M. Pafford Senior Editor Greg Miller Assistant Editor Christine Beall Assistant Editor Christopher L. Pankratz Phoenix Area Distribution T-Media Promotion Send Classifieds, Inquiry Letters, etc to: info@observerweekly.com Publication of names or photos of any person or organization in the Observer Weekly is not to be construed as indication of the sexual orientation of such person, organization or advertisers or any employees thereof. Opinions expressed by contributors, advertisers or in PSA’s are not necessarily those of the Observer, its staff or advertisers. The Observer assumes responsibility for its own editorial policy only. Š 2014 by Observer Publications Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted or archived in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Observer Publications Inc.
March 25, 2015 Continued from previous page sador for cancer control." She is married to Norman Brinker, found of the Steak and Ale, Bennigan's and Chili's restaurant chain.
'All Right Now' co-writer dies at 62; had cancer, AIDS The out bassist for classic British rock band Free and co-writer of its 1970 anthem "All Right Now" died last week at the age of 62. Cause of death was not announced, but Andy Fraser had been suffering from cancer and AIDS for some time. Fraser said he didn't admit to himself that he was gay until his mid-30s, by which time he was married with two daughters. He didn't come out publicly until 2005, when he was 53. "I'm a late bloomer," he told The Advocate at that time. "It took up until now to pluck up the nerve." He also disclosed that he had been HIV-positive since the early 1990s. Fraser's big hit with Free quickly shot to No. 4 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart. Afterward, he concentrated on writing, and wrote hits for Chaka Khan, Robert Palmer and Rod Stewart among many others.
Ohio couple sets off bias discussion after wedding-film refusal BEXLEY, Ohio -- A lesbian Ohio couple have accused a videographer of anti-LGBT discrimination for refusing to film their upcoming wedding, but Ohio has no law barring such discrimination. Jerra Kincely and Jenn Moffitt said they were surprised by the email denial of services from a hometown business, Next Door Stories, when they asked about a wedding video. "It's a small business, and I thought this was a tight-knit community," Moffitt told CNN. "We wanted to support local commerce, and to get that kind of response was astounding." The response from the rest of Bexley certainly has been different. The Bexley Area Chamber of Commerce even vowed to revise its policy to prohibit members "from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, gender, gender expression, age, ancestry, disability, marital status, sex-
OBSERVER ual orientation or military status." Bexley Mayor Ben Kessler also posted a statement on Facebook expressing concern about Next Door's action, stating that Bexley welcomes everyone. Several other Bexley residents also posted messages of support. The email statement to the couple from Courtney Schmackers, the business owner, stated bluntly, "Unfortunately, at this time I do not offer services for same-sex weddings."
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OP-ED
Teaching kids about gender shouldn’t be controversial
Presbyterians' OK on marriage equality stirs church ripples The Presbyterian Church (USA) may have ratified its acceptance of same-sex marriage last week, but some congregations are expected to refuse to go along. The denomination's General Assembly voted on the issue in 2014; its presbyteries (regional governing bodies) acted on the new policy last week. It does allow for individual congregations and ministers to opt out without having to leave the group. Congregations in Charlotte, N.C., demonstrated the split. The Rev. Jim Szeyller, pastor of the conservative Carmel Presbyterian Church, posted in his blog: "It's tempting to rant and rave, to condemn and judge. It is easy to circle the wagons and trumpet spiritual superiority or take our ball and go home in a fit of self-righteousness ... [But] the outbursts do little to advance the Kingdom." The Rev. John Cleghorn of Caldwell Presbyterian, on the other hand, heads a congregation that was way ahead on the issue, already having celebrated three same-sex weddings. "These couples, all members, had been together 35, 30 and 28 years," Cleghorn said last month. "We celebrate these couples as models of fidelity, loyalty and commitment." This is the largest Presbyterian body in the United States, with 1.7 million members. There are at least 17 other sizable U.S. Presbyterian denominations, some of them considerably more fundamentalist in outlook.
All parents have a responsibility to teach their children tolerance and respect, instead of hiding from the world’s diversity.
By Nicole Sachs THE ADVOCATE Tonight, I am uncomfortable. It’s so difficult to be uncomfortable, and simply let ourselves remain uncomfortable, isn’t it? The more living I do on this planet, the more I realize that escaping our discomfort is responsible for no less than the fall of mankind. Too often it feels easier to find an excuse to be quiet, or to be a clown, or to be bossy and indignant. In fact, the hardest thing any human being can do might simply be to sit in the murky cesspool of discomfort long enough to actually feel it, without numbing our senses in fear. I challenge myself tonight to calmly, and with thoughtful intention, do the next right thing. Recently, I wrote a letter to the director of elementary education and superintendent of Cape Henlopen School District in Rehoboth, Delaware. I wanted to be an advocate for a parent and student in crisis, and express my disappointment in the school for allowing parents to opt out of their firstgrade childrens’ participation in a lesson on acceptance and diversity.
The proposed — and apparently controversial — lesson included accepting those who deviate from gender norms. In response to my complaint, I received a call back from one of the recipients of my letter. Continued on page 5
March 25, 2015 OBSERVER WEEKLY Killing Obamacare won’t just Court: After 22 years on keep the poor from insurance death row, Debra Milke -- it’ll rob taxpayers can’t be tried again
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Debra Milke OBSERVER STAFF PHOENIX -- The Arizona Supreme Court last week rejected a bid to retry Debra Milke after she spent 22 years on death row for the killing of her 4-yearold son, one of the most talked-about Arizona cases of modern times. Prosecutors still must dismiss the case before Milke is formally cleared, but Michael Kimerer, one of her attorneys, said the high court’s decision essentially means she is cleared. The office of Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery hadn’t announced as of the weekend whether it plans another appeal. Milke’s conviction was overturned in a lower court because prosecutors knew and failed to disclose a history of misconduct and lying on the part of the case investigator, Phoenix police detective Armando Saldate.
Saldate testified that Milke confessed to him that she was involved in her son’s death but that he neither recorded nor took notes on the confession. The case against Milke basically rested on his testimony. Prosecutors alleged that Milke dressed her son for a trip to see Santa Claus in a mall and then turned him over to two men who are still in prison for taking the boy into the desert and shooting him. They also alleged that she no longer wanted her son but didn’t want the boy to live with his father. Milke, now age 51, has been free on bond since September 2013. She filed a lawsuit last week against the city of Phoenix, the county, and numerous individuals. Her lawsuit claims malicious prosecution and denial of a fair trial.
By R.D. Smith GUEST COLUMNIST I guess you’re hearing that Republican legislators are having sphincter spasms over the possibility of killing Obamacare in Arizona. Oh wait -- we’re not allowed to call it Obamacare. Let me rephrase that. Legislators are anxious to kill “the Medicaid expansion that we’re not allowed to call Obamacare but which is Obamacare wherever sane people reside.” How’s that sound? Formally known as HB 2463, this is just one among countless pieces of risible flotsam that are likely to pass in the Legislature and Gov. Doozey can’t wait to sign. To everyone who voted for these misogynist clowns, pppfffffftttttTTTTTTTT!!!! When the talk turns to getting rid of Obamacare, though, GOPers will try to act as if it only affects the people who are able to get insurance because of the subsidies provided. Au contraire, O brainless asshat! When it comes to health care for the poor, taxpayers are going to pay whatever gets paid -- one day in our system can cost several years’ income for working-class people. Every region has hospitals that are required to treat the public, and treating thousands of people via Medicaid through doctors’ offices obviously costs less than treating the same thousands of people via emergency room. Anyone who has visited an emergency room can’t have much trouble figuring out that it’s more expensive. People who have insurance also are more likely to seek care for a problem before it becomes an emergency, so many small-town hospitals welcomed Obamacare as a godsend and some as
a way to keep the doors open. Republicans, of course, are all about good management and saving money ... until it comes to making a political point. Laurie Roberts of the Arizona Republic described a recent committee vote on the bill that would slay Obamacare: “The panel ... voted 4-0 to pass bills. Democrats didn’t even bother to show up. Can’t say I blame them, given that they were going to have precisely no impact on getting Republicans to stand down. This, after all, is war and war is hell. Especially on babies needing immunizations and citizens hoping to prevent an outbreak of disease that constitutes a health hazard to us all.” The real kick in the shins about Obamacare is that it’s the biggest piece of legislation in ages that actually RESPECTS the fictional states’ rights argument. Or did you forget? States were given the option of forming their own insurance exchanges or not. Of course, the U.S. Constitution guarantees equal access to federal services, so federal exchanges were set up to serve the states that opted out. Which, of course, has resulted in 26 states controlled by Republicans now suing to stop the federal government from helping their citizens get insurance. Or helping their rural hospitals survive -- whichever way you want to phrase it. Yes, I know I vehemently opposed Obamacare before it was passed. The reason: It should have been single-pay to begin with rather than a means of funneling more billions into insurance companies. Now it’s the old half-a-loaf-is-betterthan-none thing. We don’t have what we should have had, but it makes no sense to stop what we did get as long as idiocy rules in Congress and we’re not likely to get anything better. But hell, you can’t let the public good interfere with making a political point.
March 25, 2015
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Texas attorney general aims to ‘nullify’ federal benefit for same-sex couples OBSERVER STAFF AUSTIN, Texas -- The Texas state attorney general filed a lawsuit last week intending to block the Obama administration’s new rule applying the Family and Medical Leave Act to all married couples regardless of where they live.
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Ready your bookmarkers there’s a huge book sale in April TUCSON -- Friends of the Pima County Public Library is having a book sale April 24-27 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Book Barn on 2230 N. Country Club Rd. Check out thousands of used books and DVDs at great prices.
Equal protection clause, anybody? The rule is set to take effect March
The theme for April is World Religions and seniors (over 55) get a 25 percent discount on Saturday. Sunday is half-price day and Monday is a friend’s bag day -- $10 per bag of books.
27. Attorney General Ken Paxton, on the other hand, wants the 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave (that’s UNPAID, mind you) for same-sex couples limited to those who live in certain states -- his not included. His reasoning is simple: The U.S. Supreme Court decision on the Defense of Marriage Act didn’t deal with the subject of same-sex marriages being recognized from state to state (because that wasn’t part of the case), and Texas doesn’t have to recognize the federal regulation until someone pays to adjudicate it. Paxton’s cohort, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has introduced a bill in Congress to stop federal recognition of
Engagement announced -- oh wait . . . Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (left) with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, fellow homophobes who swear they will never marry one another.
same-sex marriages in the 12 states that don’t yet perform them. With Cruz’s announcement of a presidential run this week, he probably won’t have time to shepherd that bill through the Senate -- but some other right-wing chupacabra is bound to be willing.
As for the family leave, employers having more than 50 workers are required to provide it (and it’s 26 weeks for military personnel injured in the line of duty), and the fact that it might benefit same-sex couples just like everybody else causes sphincter palpitations in people like Paxton.
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Gift certificates and memberships are available for the teacher or avid reader in your circle. The Friends of the Public Library is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization which redistributes recently discarded library books and gently-used donated books to provide funding for Tucson library projects. Help promote literacy and support Tucson’s public libraries. For more information contact Libby Stone at info@pimafriends.com or 520795-3763.
Teaching kids about gender shouldn’t be controversial Continued from page 3 Personally, my natural tendency is to avoid conflict. My survival as a child was rooted in the art of avoidance, for fear I’d otherwise get excluded or ignored. This is essential to explain for context, because I know myself well enough by now to be sure that I can only rock the boat with confidence if I’m being truthful and communicate with integrity, and that includes letting you know that this type of conflict makes me totally freaking uncomfortable. Having said that, conflict in this case feels much more true to myself than laying down, which only lets fear and ignorance win. The woman I spoke with could not have been more polite or kind. She thanked me for my letter, and expressed her concerns about keeping children safe and dedicating district efforts to create some kind of curriculum around acceptance and diversity. As I expressed in my letter, I’ve really had tremendous respect for our district in the past, and have had no reason to quarrel with decisions they’ve made regarding my children. But, the district has spoken: Administrators will not be retracting their
decision to let children be pulled from the classroom by their parents, should they want to shield kids from stories on accepting others who might not conform to traditional gender roles. Here’s the rub: My children are not involved this time, but far more vulnerable children are. And I know these kids, well. During the 1999-2000 school year in the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, I spent many months in the Youth Homeless Shelters of the area. Not just any homeless shelters — LGBT homeless shelters. Why the need for such a distinction? Because some queer children originally placed in inclusive shelters were almost beaten to death. Their heads were shoved in toilets. Their hair was cut in their sleep; their eyebrows shaved off while being held down by strangers. Girls were raped for not liking boys. Boys were tortured for being too feminine. God forbid you identified as transgender. I wrote my master’s thesis on homeless gay kids. Why were they homeless? Because their families had banished them. These kids were some of the kindest, sweetest people I’d ever met, yet they were suffering. I’ve never been so moved as to know them, and hear their stories.
I was young, 27 years old. Life had been challenging for me, but I had never tasted adversity of this flavor. The kind of battered humanity that lived within the walls of these shelters was ripe with pain, but also with strength. Some as young as 15 years old, these children were beacons of hope as they navigated life without familial support or financial stability. We have much to learn from their struggles. The district’s view of this issue is kind, but it is lacking. When I asked this school official if she would consider the fact that without stepping out of our comfort zones, we probably would never have achieved racial desegregation, rights for the handicapped, or women’s suffrage, she listened, but still upheld her policy. When she asked me to kindly pull my letter from Facebook and other social networking sites, I upheld my belief as well. I pondered aloud that if the district was proud to offer up this letter with its integrity intact, then it would have to own it. I am prepared to own mine. I have two children in middle school who have shared with me the treacherous ground upon which (even suspected) LGBT kids have to tread every day. I’m sure that our district is not unique in this; perhaps it’s better than most, but that is not good enough if
children are still being shamed, abused, and left to contemplate suicide. I bring this up to make a very simple point: The only way to safeguard against this type of bullying in older grades is to start young. First-graders have very little God-given malice. My daughter, having been raised in a two-mom household and exposed to the concepts that spawned books like “I Am Jazz” and “Jacob’s New Dress,” wouldn’t blink twice if a boy she knew wore a pink sweater, or purple knee socks. Maybe she would think it odd if a child she knew to be a boy showed up in a dress, but all the more reason to let her know that it’s OK. I will certainly be making an effort to do so more, now that I’m reminded. I’m not sure what will come of all this, and I’m a little scared of making people mad. But I am reminded of the ageless quote by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich: “Well behaved women seldom make history,” and I am comforted that in conceiving of such she conjured the lives of Rosa Parks, Christine de Pizan, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Harriet Tubman, and Virginia Woolf. Shall we sit quietly while others suffer? I think not. Shall I move past my own discomfort to confront a polite society that chooses to sidestep people’s toes in order to proceed down the path of least resistance? For me, today, the answer is Yes.
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Dear Dolce and Gabbana: Yes, you stepped in it, but the fuss will blow over By R.D. Smith GUEST COLUMNIST You can sum up the Dolce and Gabbana public-relations catastrophe in one sentence: They say it was fine for them to make derogatory comments about gay families and about babies conceived through in vitro fertilization, but it’s not OK for other people to openly disagree with them -- especially if it starts costing them money.
Led by the UA’s Southwest Institute for Research on Women, the newly launched Accessible Network for Coordinated Housing Opportunities and Resilience Project’s partners are CODAC Behavioral Health Services and the Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation. The project is being funded at nearly $400,000 in its first year.
“We love gay couple. We are gay,” Gabbana said at another point in the interview. “We love gay couple. We love gay adoption. We love everything. It’s just an express of my private point of view.”
Personally, I think customers have every right to know what kind of politics their dollars support. That way, if you want to go ahead and enrich Chik-fil-A and anti-gay campaigns, you can at least be an informed benefactor. D&G (the persons) certainly weren’t compelled to air their personal opinions. If their business erodes before their eyes, who is responsible for this fearsome fecal firestorm? Also personally, I’m betting there are plenty of rich Tea Party types now
literally a-panting to pay whatever it takes for D&G pants -- there will still be plenty of business, it just won’t be the “cool” people anymore. Sunnyvie Brydum wrote for The Advocate: “While Gabbana admitted to CNN that the pair ‘could have expressed themselves better’ to Italian-language magazine Panorama, which last week published the controversial comments, he was apparently surprised by the force of the media backlash.” You bet your ass he was surprised -- shocked, even. It’s obvious he thought he was one of the “entitled” . . . THEY
are D&G, youknowwhatI’msayin’, and YOU are one of the little people. Surprise! Freedom of speech is a two-way avenue. And in fact, most of the world seems to be rapidly changing its attitude about who gets to be “entitled” -- the state of LGBT rights is a good indicator of how much we’ve changed on that score. One thing that’s still awaiting an explanation: Gabbana told Vanity Fair in 2006 that he and a female friend had a surrogacy agreement under which Continued on page 10
Phoenix trans woman lobbies UN on sex workers Continued from page 1 the arresting officer testified he singled out Jones for the arrest because she was in a neighborhood “known for prostitution” and was wearing a “black, form-fitting dress.” The appeals court didn’t buy the argument that being in a certain neighborhood wearing a tight black dress was grounds for a conviction on any charge.
New project for LGBTQ youth launched by UA, community partners, open house tonight TUCSON -- To expand support for young adults who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer, the University of Arizona has been awarded a new Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration contract.
“Boycott Dolce & Gabbana for what?” asked Stefano Gabbana in a CNN interview, allegedly trying for damage control. “They don’t think like you? This is correct? This is not correct. We are in 2015. This is like medieval. It’s not correct.”
All I can say is “Time to zip it, your highness.”
March 25, 2015
to Truthout before she left for Geneva. “If we decriminalize sex work, not only does it stop the harassment of sex workers in general, it stops the wrongful arrest of people living their everyday lives.”
But the appeals court declined to rule on Phoenix’s law against manifesting the “intent” to engage in prostitution, and that’s where Jones is aiming her efforts at the UN.
J.M. Kirby, who is in Geneva with Jones on behalf of the Best Practices Policy Project, added that “Transgender women of color are just constantly being profiled as sex workers, and police use these anti-sex-work, anti-soliciting and anti-prostitution laws as another tool to really harass these communities. They are kind of a way for police to marginalize already-vulnerable communities.”
“It bleeds into everyone’s life, these outrageous laws that police use to target trans women, women of color and people who live in poverty,” Jones said
A 2012 study of Los Angeles transgender Latina women found that 42 percent reported being solicited for sex by cops and 24 reported sexual abuse.
“As long as the police can target my community using these anti-sexwork laws, we will never be safe from violence, including the violence of incarceration,” Jones said. U.S. law enforcement officials generally take the position that they need the authority to arrest such people in order to provide testimony against suspected human traffickers. Kirby says that’s bunk. “They don’t arrest farm workers in order to testify [against traffickers],” Kirby said. “There is a weird sort of patriarchal sentiment that people who may have been trafficked as sex workers are unable to advocate for their own needs.”
ANCHOR targets unstably housed LGBTQ adults aged 18 through 26 who can benefit from various supportive and affirming services. The UA-led project team will support and facilitate activities that encourage healthy decisionmaking, housing stability, community involvement and educational success. Overall, the three-year project exists to provide a trauma-informed system of care to ensure that LGBTQ young adults are supported in their efforts to make empowered choices, increasing the likelihood that they are able to lead healthy and successful lives. “In Tucson SIROW has been working with LGBTQ youth for over a decade and, from our own research, we know that these collaborative projects are effective not only in helping to save lives, but building infrastructure within agencies and strengthening the local system of care supporting these young people,” said Ian Ellasante, the ANCHOR Project’s program coordinator. Tonight’s open house, called “Get to Know Your ANCHOR,” staff will share information about the project with prospective participants and members of the general public. The event runs from 4-7 p.m. at 2801 E. Broadway Blvd. contact Ian Ellasante at 520-909-0754 or ellasante@email.arizona.edu for more information.
OW
Where God's love for all is the good news!
In March -- messages focus on healthy communication
March 25, 2015
OBSERVER
WEEKLY
Page 7
Community Voices
Special opportunities for a special event: Treasures for TIHAN benefit auction! support) to cover the costs of our event, allowing all the money we raise to go straight to support our programs. Sponsorship levels begin at $500, and each level offers you a host of benefits, including free tickets, publicity, and great karma! Join a list of caring businesses, organizations, and people who sponsor this event — come on board and help us make this another grand event! To become a sponsor or for more information, contact me at 520299-6647 ext. 202 or scott@tihan.org
By Scott Blades Executive Director TIHAN Special events are an important part of raising funds for nonprofits in our community. Events are a lot of work, but they are also a fun and exciting way to engage volunteers and donors and introduce your cause and your program to the community. We’re hoping you will get involved with a special event that is near and dear to my heart. Our Treasures for TIHAN auction benefit is set for May 30 at the Tucson Marriott University Park Hotel.
SELL: TIHAN is also raffling off a prize of $1,000 cash! Tickets are $5 each, 5 tickets for $20, or 15 tickets for $50. If you’d like to take some tickets and sell them for us to your friends and family that would be great. All proceeds for the raffle and the auction will help TIHAN continue to serve people living with HIV/ AIDS.
“Treasures for TIHAN” is the largest event that funds the programs and services provided by the Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network, and it’s a blast. It is the signature fundraising event for the programs and services of TIHAN, with this being our 18th annual event. It’s a great evening of music, food, fun, and wonderful auction items — trips, artwork, textiles, dining gift certificates, furniture, sports and event tickets, and pottery, rugs, and other items. Treasures is one of the most important nights of the year for hundreds of Tucsonans who count on TIHAN for support services! And our team of volunteers are looking forward to the fun of the evening, and donors too. We hope you will join us and have some
ATTEND: fun and help make this a successful fundraising event for our programs and services for people living with HIV. There are several ways you can get involved and participate: DONATE: We’re seeking donations from supportive businesses and artists for our event, one of the largest auctions in Southern Arizona! It’s for a great cause, and its great marketing — getting
They couldn’t hold it in any longer: G3’s April venue leaked TUCSON – Usually, G3 event locations are kept under wraps until the first of the month, but planners just had to let everyone in the Old Pueblo know about this one!
your name and/or product/services in front of hundreds of caring members of our community. You can donate and add your name to the list of caring and generous people and businesses that support a healthy and strong community where everyone is valued, included, supported, and celebrated. We’re collecting donations of auction items — trips, gift certificates, antiques, services, textiles, and more — by April 15. You can drop off your donation at the TIHAN office (2660 N. First Ave.,) or we can pick up your donation if you’d like. Some people and businesses that do not have a tangible product or service to donate to be auctioned sometimes purchase a gift certificate from one of their favorite businesses (restaurant, shop, spa, etc.) and donate that for our auction. You will be listed as the donor, so your business get publicity from TIHAN, and your customer gets visibility and support too! SPONSOR:
G3 is partnering with The University of Arizona to bring you “The Wildcat G3” at the Viscount Suite Hotel. Presented by the Institute for LGBT Studies, G3’s April 10 happy hour will run from 5 to 9 p.m. at 4855 E. Broadway Rd. This college-bowl-sized G3 will be the first in midtown and will take place in the hotel’s grand four-story-high atrium. Lit up in vibrant reds and blues, it will feature a nacho bar so long they’re going need to put a goal post at the end! There is plenty of free parking and just $5 at the door includes your first drink and hors d’oeuvres. Everyone is encouraged to show some school spirit and wear your school colors -- even if you went to ASU. Information regarding a special G3 room rate package will be available on the G3 website this week.
Individuals or businesses can become an event sponsor. Sponsors provide underwriting (cash, or event
Tickets are available in advance for $65 (or $75 on the day of the event) and can be purchased by calling 520-2996647. These are just a few of the ways you can get involved. Check back in next week’s column to see even more ways to get involved. Please consider helping to make this benefit a huge success — last year it helped TIHAN support more than 300 people living with HIV, helping them to live as well as possible. Already, we’ve received many donations from supportive artists, businesses, and individuals for “Treasures for TIHAN,” so please consider joining the cause! If you or your business or group would like to participate and support this benefit event to raise funds for HIV awareness and support services for people living with HIV, please call us at 520-299-6647 or email me at scott@ tihan.org. Thank you for supporting our programs, our fundraising event, and our compassionate response to HIV!
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OBSERVER
WEEKLY
March 25, 2015
March 25, 2015
OBSERVER WEEKLY
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Page 10
Fireside Chat
By Wendell Hicks Executive Director SAAF
OBSERVER
WEEKLY
March 25, 2015
Looking toward the future
As we celebrate our 30 year anniversary at the Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation, we are looking forward to the changes we will make as we step into the future of HIV/AIDS work in Southern Arizona. SAAF has never been exclusively an AIDS Service Organization; with prevention programming around substance use, suicide, and life skill building (just to name a few) we have always served a wide range of people. Our goal, past, present, and future has been to eliminate stigma because stigma is at the heart of why people feel they can’t get tested, treated, or even discuss HIV/AIDS. Stigma is at the root of why LGBT people feel shame around their identity. In my opinion, stigma and shame endangers and even kills people. This is why we recently chose to change our mission to reflect our goal to cultivate a healthy and stigma-free society through transformative action. We envision a healthy community, free of stigma, and we are looking forward to someday achieving that goal through our multi-service programming. We will honor the grassroots activism of People with AIDS Coalition of Tucson, Shanti Foundation, and The Tucson AIDS Project by serving people living with HIV/AIDS and preventing the spread of new HIV infections while continuing to build on programs and services that support our community at large. Thank you for supporting SAAF as we grow and change to meet the needs of, and work to end stigma in, our community!
Carlos, seen here at the Healthy Habits Fair, is a key part of SAAF’s social media campaign to end stigma and shame.
GLAAD Media Awards to Dear Dolce and Gabbana: honor Los Tigres del Norte Yes, you stepped in it, but the fuss will blow over
Continued from page 1
For a group that has sold 37 million albums, Hernandez said band members didn’t expect “Era Diferente” to gain widespread publicity -- it was just something they did because of requests from their LGBT fans. “I thought that no one would notice this song,” he added. “When GLAAD called me, I thought it was very important that we are sending a message to the LGBT community.” He said that as far as he knows, it’s the first gay love song in the history of norteno music, the “northerner” blend of traditional Mexico and U.S. musical influences. Band members have lived since the 1960s in the suburbs of San Jose, Calif., where they immigrated from Mexico. One of their well-known songs is “Mis Dos Patrias,” about their dual MexicanU.S. identities. “Era Diferente” may be all the more remarkable because the men in Los
Tigres -- mostly in their 60s -- come from a generation that often projects an image of machismo and anti-gay bias.
“Sometimes in the Latino community we see machismo and problems with acceptance,” Hernandez said, “but this is an area where acceptance is the most important because this is such a large community and we must accept people who love each other and live normal, happy lives.” Hernandez wrote the lyrics to “Era Diferente” and his brothers wrote the music. Chon Noriega, a professor in the UCLA department of film, television and digital media, said the song is important because of the influence of norteno in the Spanish-speaking community. “They [norteno bands] are singing about things that are impacting people’s day-to-day lives,” Noriega said. “For them to take a song like this as they have is really significant.”
Continued from page 6 he would produce a child. . . . Now he considers using a “rented uterus” to produce a “synthetic” child somehow verboten? Oopsie. Madonna, a former Dolce & Gabbana model, squawked on Instagram: “There is nothing synthetic about a soul!! So how can we dismiss IVF and surrogacy?” Then there’s the boycott sired by Elton John and quickly joined by Madonna, Courtney Love, Victoria Beckham, Ricky Martin and other celebs. New York Magazine contributor Alex Carp said the boycott is a legitimate means of voicing an opinion, but: “Protesting the asinine and ignorant public statements of high-end fashion designers by refusing to go shopping for their products is not exactly like, say, a hunger strike to protest apartheid.” For a minute there, it appeared we
might see a major meltdown. Giuliano Federico, the creative director of D&G’s online fashion/lifestyle magazine, Swide, quit in disagreement with his bosses’ philosophy. Katie Hopkins, an English “personality” who seems mainly famous for controversial remarks (and I had to look her up to learn that much), quickly stepped in to say that if people were tolerant, they wouldn’t be criticizing poor D&G. WTF? Mind you, I don’t have any advice about how to apologize for saying something that couldn’t possibly be more wrong-footed considering the audience D&G would normally suck up to. But once you’ve said it and people start responding, I know that accusing your critics of being the ignorant bigots probably isn’t the way to quiet things down. D&G have certainly reminded us all that multiple millions can’t buy one’s way out of a gigantic faux pas -- once that gas is out, the fragrance lingers.
March 25, 2015
OBSERVER WEEKLY
Good gawd, Mary! Marc Almond’s back
Page 11
Arpaio admits to contempt of court
Continued from page 1 and failure to cooperate with the court’s May 14, 2014, oral request concerning the collection of recordings in the possession of patrol deputies. The motion also states that Arpaio doesn’t intend to dispute these allegations in court.
OBSERVER STAFF
Victorian woman’s love offering of fruit.
Marc Almond’s release last month of the album “The Velvet Trail” (described by one critic simply as “gorgeous”) quickly landed him on the British Top 40 chart for the first time in years.
Oh, did we mention that prominently involves a fish tank?
Trying to define Almond to a new generation of fans would require a vocabulary not available to ordinary mortals, so the Marc-curious will just have to explore some dark alleyways and one-night stands to discover him in their own way. He and keyboardist Dave Ball exploded onto the music scene as the synth-pop act Soft Cell in 1980 (thirtyfive friggin’ years ago?), and right from his first big hit, he was an original. Soft Cell’s biggest splash, “Tainted Love” in 1981, took a little-known ‘60s song recorded by Gloria Jones and turned it into a dance track not quite like anything heard before. In the original video, Almond appears dressed as a Roman emperor angrily serenading a little girl while repeatedly refusing a
it
Apparently, old fans are welcoming “Scar,” the first single off the new album, and Almond is picking up some new fans as well.
Arpaio offers to make a personal donation of $100,000 “to a civil rights organization based in Maricopa County approved by the court which, among other services, has, as one of its missions, a commitment to protecting the constitutional and civil rights of the Hispanic community.”
“Tainted Love” set a record at the time for most weeks at No. 1 in the U.S. The irony is that Almond didn’t write that one, so the fact that his version is still played to this day doesn’t direct any royalties his way.
In a welcome-back interview with The Advocate, Almond said of the new album: “It’s a return to the kind of pop that I’m most known for outside my hard-core fan base -- big, tearful ballads and catchy electro-pop songs.”
Furthermore, if his request for settlement is approved, he agrees to ask Maricopa County for $350,000 to cover damages but will ask for more if the court orders it.
The 1981 album, “Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret,” presented a world completely at odds with the sanitized music of the day -- it included songs that grew out of Almond’s college days working in London’s red-light district. It was also just before the AIDS hysteria began.
When asked why he has covered so many songs written by so many different people when he’s an accomplished songwriter himself, Almond replied:
Judge G. Murray Snow previously said a settlement would be acceptable only if it covers both civil and criminal contempt allegations.
“I acknowledge that people have written much better songs than I, told stories and conveyed emotions often better than I can in my own songs.
Federal prosecutors declined a request from Arpaio’s attorneys to participate in settlement talks, saying it’s inappropriate for them to get involved before investigation of criminal contempt actually begins.
Soft Cell only lasted four years, and then Almond embarked on a solo career that led fans just about everywhere -- electronica, traditional torch songs, French ballads, Russian folk music and ... er ... a homoerotic spoken-word recording, along the way collaborating with such LGBT faves as Siouxsie Sioux and Beth Ditto.
“There are so many great unknown or little-known songs. I love to bring them to my fans, get inside them, and make them my own. For a long time, many people thought ‘Tainted Love’ was a Soft Cell song. I get more joy sometimes out of singing others’ songs.”
One of Arpaio’s co-defendants, his former Chief Deputy Brian Sands, has indicated he’s willing to talk freely at the April hearing and will not invoke the Fifth Amendment. Three other former and current Arpaio aides also are named as defendants in the case, Melendres v. Arpaio. It’s already been widely speculated that Arpaio’s admission of guilt will hurt his 2106 re-election campaign, but previously, years of questionable escapades and tens of millions in taxpayer payments over lost lawsuits haven’t hurt him with his core voters.
Spooky is something of an enigma around. Once, she was a feral kitty, never letting us near; now, she’s loving, adorable and loves to polish our ankles as we’re walking around! She is sweet and loves ear scratches—and that’s before you get the catnip out! Spooky is nine years old, and would be suited for a quieter home, as long as there is a lot of love and catnip, she’ll be content to rub your ankles for years to come!
Spooky
Wingspan Anti-Violence Project 520-624-0348 1-800-553-9387
&
keep your friends employed
Page 12
As Clark Saw It
March 25, 2015 OBSERVER WEEKLY By Gary Clark Granddaughter: Elizabeth Taylor would be ‘horrified’ at HIV rates among gays Continued from page 1 “was a very intuitive woman and when she saw that people, friends of hers and fellow actors, were being stigmatized, she recognized an opportunity to use her voice and fame to speak up for those who were being discriminated against.” Asked if she thought her grandmother would be proud of the progress to this point, Wilding said, “Ultimately, I don’t think so. If she were to hear that the highest rate of infection is still in young people aged between 24 and 35, and particularly among young gay men even in this country, she would be horrified.” Among Taylor’s closest friends from her young days were such actors as Rock Hudson, who died of AIDS complications, and Montgomery Clift, who was openly gay. Wilding continues fund-raising efforts for The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation.
Zoe’s World
By Zoe
Two states consider new anti-LGBT adoption proposals Legislation to allow state-contracted adoption agencies to practice religious discrimination against same-sex couples and LGBT citizens advanced last week in Michigan and Florida. In Michigan, the state House passed a bill last week to allow statefunded adoption agencies to refuse to serve families that conflict with the organization's "sincerely held religious beliefs contained in a written policy," The Huffington Post reported. Rep. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, pointed out that the bill, which now goes to the Senate, is "not just a license to discriminate. It's actually writing a check
for the discrimination," since taxpayerfunded agencies are involved. The Florida bill was approved 12-6 in the House Health and Human Services Committee with all Democrats opposed, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida. This move is to allow religious discrimination to negate last week's action in which the House voted to abolish Florida's ban on adoption by same-sex couples or individual gays and lesbians.
Pope plans lunch with inmates, some LGBT and HIV+ POGGIOREALE, Italy -- Pope Francis is scheduled to have lunch this weekend with 90 inmates at a prison in this town near Naples, Religion News Service reported. At least 10 of the 90 will be inmates known to be LGBT and/or HIV-positive. "Francis has made an outreach to detainees a signature part of his ministry to the 'marginalized,' " the news service said. The plan includes time to meet with each prisoner individually. The inmates are from three nearby prisons, including the Giuseppe Salvia Detention Center that will host the meal. Attendees were chosen by lottery from among 1,900 prisoners.
March 25, 2015
'Kill-the-gays' plan may be good to go gathering signatures SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The California attorney general "may not have any choice" but to allow the collection of signatures on a "kill-the-gays" petition registered with her office last month. Although such a law would be "clearly unconstitutional," Kamala Harris may be required to forward the issue to the secretary of state to oversee collection of signatures, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Harris has 100 days, or until May 4, to formulate a summary of the proposal in 100 words or less, to be used on the petitions. Submitted by attorney Matt McLaughlin, who uses a Huntington Beach mail drop as an address, the petition would require more than 365,000 in order to quality for the ballot and go before voters. Since signers would have to furnish a real name and address in order for signatures to be validated, it's doubtful that people would flock to sign up.
Idaho Repubs vote to impeach judges for marriage rulings BOISE, Idaho -- The Idaho House of Representatives voted 44-25 last week to recommend the impeachment of any federal judge who overturns a state marriage ban.
OBSERVER WEEKLY Of course, it's a big mystery what this resolution has to do with anything: States don't get to run federal courts. More than 60 judges (some state, some federal) would get bounced out if somehow Idaho Republicans could wave a magic wand and make it happen. In the meantime, it's good to know that Idaho doesn't have any real business that needs attention, so the Legislature is free to spend time on fantasy bills.
Bob Jones sorry for 'kill-the-gays' talk 35 years ago GREENVILLE, S.C. -- A controversial evangelical preacher apologized last week for his statement at the White House 35 years ago that gays should be stoned to death. Bob Jones III, chancellor of Bob Jones University and president of the school when he made the remarks, posted a statement on the university's website saying, "Upon now reading these long-forgotten words, they seem to me as words belonging to a total stranger -- were my name not attached. "I cannot erase them, but wish I could, because they do not represent the belief of my heart or the content of my preaching. Neither before, nor since, that event in 1980 have I ever advocated the stoning of sinners." While delivering a petition to President Jimmy Carter opposing the exten-
sion of the Civil Rights Act to include homosexuals, Jones had said, "I guarantee it would solve the problem posthaste if homosexuals were stoned, if murderers were immediately killed as the Bible commands." The apology came after a Change. org petition started by a group supporting LGBT students at Bob Jones University began gaining momentum. The university was founded in 1927 by Jones' grandfather, also named Bob Jones, and once was known mainly as a pillar of racial segregation.
Page 13 me that they don't believe in gay marriage . the first thing that I say is please don't let anybody try to get you to vote against your own best interests by feeding you messages of hate. "And then I say, you know people used to say stuff like that about you and your love. And if we let the government start to legislate love in our lifetime, who do you think is next?" she said as the audience leaped to its feet with thunderous applause.
Actress gets ovation with remarks at GLAAD awards LOS ANGELES -- "Scandal" actress Kerry Washington brought the audience to its feet last weekend at the GLAAD Media Awards' presentation of the first half of its annual honorees. "There are people in this world who have the full rights of citizenship in our communities, our countries and around the world, and then there are those of us who, to varying degrees, do not. We don't have equal access to education, to health care, and some other basic liberties - like marriage, a fair voting process, fair hiring practices. "Now you would think that those of us who are kept from our full rights of citizenship would band together and fight the good fight. But history tells us that, no, often we don't," she said. "So when black people today tell
Remember to send in your wedding announcements and photos to info@observerweekly.com so we can print them here for all the world to see. Donations accepted.
To volunteer, call Mark Rosenbaum For support services, call a Link Specialist For more information, events, or to donate, visit www.tihan.org
Monday BRODIES TAVERN - Service Industry Night 7 p.m.- 2 a.m. $2.50 House Well, Long Islands, Margaritas on Tap, $3 16 oz. BudBud Light-Mic Ultra Cans, Fireball Shots. IBT’s 11a.m.-2a.m. Taking Back Mondays hosted by Diva featuring *3-4-1 Well Vodkas (Regular, Grape & Cherry) 9 - Close. Karaoke Inside or Lounge on the Patio 9 p.m. VENTURE-N Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.
Friday BRODIES TAVERN - Get the Party Started Friday 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. $3 Malibu Rum Black-House Long Islands-Pucker Vodka, Margaritas on tap-XX Pints IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., Flawless Fridays featuring “Absolutely Flawless” Drag Show hosted by China Collins @ 9 p.m. DJ Import Inside after the show, Million$DJ on the Patio 9pm. GoGo Boys @11p.m. LOOKS - 6 p.m. to Close, Karaoke 8-12, $3.50 Absolute Lemon Drops, $5 Jamesons VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
BRODIES TAVERN - Two Buck Tuesday 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. $ 2 House Well, Fire Eater Shots, $2 Margaritas on Tap, $2 Long Islands IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m.; Taco Tuesdays. $1 Tacos. Drink Specials 9-Close: Mix-n-Match Mexican Beer Special, Tequila Specials (Patron $6, Milagro $4.50, Hornitos $4, Cuervo $3.50), Million$DJ Inside 9 p.m. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.
BRODIES TAVERN - Whiskey Wednesday 7-2 a.m. $3.25 Jack-Jim Beam-JamesonFireball-Makers Mark-Johnny Walker Red IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., “Viva La Diva” Drag Show Hosted by Diva at 9. “Whiskey Breath” Drink Special Every Wednesday 9-Close. $2 Well, $3 Call, $4 Select Top Shelf Whiskey and Scotch Blend Whiskies. Million$DJ Inside after the drag show. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm.Dave’s $3.50 Margaritas and Long Island Iced Teas
BRODIES TAVERN - Customer Appreciation 7-2 a.m. Two-for-One Well-Domestic Bottles, Margaritas on Tap House Kasiz Shots IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m. Therapy every Thursday. All Day *2-4-1 Drink Specials (excludes top shelf, wine & draft). Million$DJ Inside at 9 p.m., DJ Sid the Kid on the Patio 9 p.m. GoGo Boys @11 p.m. LOOKS - 6 p.m. to Close, Happy Hour 6-8, $3 Southern Comforts, $5 Long Islands VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi 2 for 1 Original Everything Happy Hour 5-6 pm. 4.00 Titos/Absolut, Cosmos/Martis from Dan G
Saturday BRODIES TAVERN - Back Pocket Sabado Latino 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. $3 Magaritas on tap-Corona Bottles, $3.25 Latin Beers-XX Micheladas, $1 Tequila Shots-Corona Ritas IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., Karaoke on the Patio 5 - 8 p.m., “Saturday Night Starlettes” drag show Hosted by Janee Starr 9pm, Million$DJ on the Patio 9 p.m., DJ Import Inside after the drag show. LOOKS - 6 p.m. to Close, $3 Flaming Shots From Hell, $5 Bombay Saphires VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi
Monday 12-3 p.m. 4-5:30 p.m.
4:30-6:30 p.m.
6:30-7:30 p.m.
7-9 p.m.
7-10 p.m.
7-8:30 p.m. 7-9 p.m. 6 p.m.
sources
Mah Jongg Mondays Himmel Park Library. Ages 50+, 1035 N. Treat. In Our Own Voices, Women’s therapy group for survivors of sexual trauma, SACSA, 1600 N. Country Club, 520.327.1171 Cancer Support Group for LGBT People, Arizona Cancer Center at UMC-North, Rm 1127, 3838 N. Campbell Ave. 520.694.0347 Regardless of… NA LGBT Meeting, Trinity Presbyterian Church, 400 E. University Blvd. SAGA General for trans forlks and allies 1st Monday SAGA Desert Girlz for trans Femanine folks 2nd Monday Reveille Men’s Chorus Open Rehearsal, Rincon Congregational Church, 122 N. Craycroft Tucson Women’s Chorus rehearsal.Call for details: 520.743.0991 Desert Girlz meeting at Wingspan PFLAG en Español Meets the 1st Monday of each month at Fortin de las Flores: 243 W. 33rd St.
4 p.m.
LGBTQA Support Group. LGBTQ Affairs Office, UA Student Union level four. SAGA Desert Boyz for trans masculine folks 3rd Tuesdays
7-9 p.m.
Wednesday 3-8 p.m.
SAAF’s MSHAPE Lounge offers mens health resources
12-1 p.m.
Pink Triangle AA Meeting, 439 N. Sixth Ave. Everyday. Gender Spectrum support Group. UA Campus Health Service Building Room C312. $5 TMC Hospice LGBTQ Grief Support Group. 1st and 3rd Wednesdays, Peppi’s House Chapel, 2715 N. Wyatt Drive. RSVP at: 520-324-2438. Wednesday Night Christian Bible Study, Cornerstone Fellowship Social Hall, 2902 N. Geronimo Ave. Weekly Bears Coffee at Crave, 4530 E. Broadway Blvd.
3-4:30 p.m.
4:30-6 p.m.
6:30-7:30 p.m.
7-9 p.m.
BRODIES TAVERN - Funday 7 p.m. - 2 p.m. $2.50 House Well, $3 House Long Islands, Tap Magaritas, $1 House Kasiz Shots, $1.75 Domestic Pints IBT’s - 11a.m.-2a.m., Karaoke 4-8:30 p.m. “Cheap Ass Sunday’s” 9-Close feat. 2-4-1 Drinks and Bottle Beer (exclude top shelf, wine & draft), Karaoke Inside 9pm; DJ Sid the Kid on the patio 9 p.m. VENTURE-N - Open Noon-2am. Free Music. Free WiFi
Two Spirit support group. African American Student Affairs MLK Center, 1322 E. 1st Street. 6 p.m. Write Now! a writer’s group open to all at Revolutionary Grounds 606 N. 4th 6:30-7:30 p.m. Regardless of… NA LGBT Meeting, Trinity Presbyterian Church, 400 E. University Blvd. 7 p.m. Weekly Meditation Classes in Central Tucson, cost: $10, Kadam Meditation Center Arizona 1701 E. Miles St. 7-9 p.m. SAGA Desert Partnerz for cis-gendered 4th Thursday 7-10 p.m. Triangle Tribe, Men’s Support Group. Call 520-398-6826
3-8 p.m.
SAAF’s MSHAPE Lounge offers mens health resources
4-5:30 p.m.
Support Group for Transgender Survivors of Sexual Trauma, SACSA, 1600 N. Country Club Queer People of Color &
5:30-6:30 p.m.
Ajia Simone, Owner 426 E. Ninth St. 520.624.8400
10-11.30 a.m.
10-12 p.m.
2-5 p.m. 2:45 p.m.
Friday 4 p.m.
5:30-6:30 p.m. 6:30 p.m.
Wingspan’s Eon Youth Program New Youth Orientation Fridays at 4p.m. Youth Center Open M-F Oasis LGBT Social Group. Email oasis.wingspan@gmail.com Bingo at MCC Every Friday call John 975-3166.
2nd Saturdays
Bears of the Old Pueblo Potluch 2nd Saturdays 520.444.2275 Transparents For parents of trans kids. RSVP SAGA to attend.
Sunday 9-11 a.m.
Co-ed Softball, all abilities welcome. Oury Park, 600 W.St. Mary’s
Advice For Life & Prayers for World Peace. Bud dha’s teachings, Kadampa Meditation Cen ter Arizona 1701 E. Miles St. LGBT Buddhist Medita tion Group meets every Sunday at The Three Jewels, 314 E. 6th St. in Tucson. Meditation sessions with readings, recordings, and discussion. Welcoming to all.For info call Jim at 520-884-4218. Mamasitas! Men’s Sports club at Menlo Park The New Men’s Massage Group. Sept 21 at 4 pm. Call Marc at 881-4582 to sign up. Or email bleu55@gmail. com in advance. It’s a great place to meet men. Safe, non-sexual but very sensual and a little erotic. Donation.
3-5p.m.
Men’s Social Network “H” Club open to entire LGBTQ community. This is a fun discussion, learning and participation group meeting for discussions on major words beginning with the letter “H.” Doesn’t meet the 1st Sunday of the month.
5:30 p.m.
Puertas Abiertas Latin/ Hispanic LBGTQ/Ally support group meeting at Wingspan 430 E 7th St – every 3rd Sunday of the month at 5:30pm.
Saturday
Thursday
SAAF’s MSHAPE Lounge offers mens health re-
Sunday
2:30-4:30p.m.
Tuesday 3-8 p.m.
March 25, 2015
OBSERVER WEEKLY
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March 25, 2015
OBSERVER
WEEKLY
The anti-gay ‘Christian’ backlash already facing its own backlash
Page 15
Ga. superintendent comes out, alleging bullying by media FORSYTH, Ga. -- The superintendent of the Monroe County School District has confirmed publicly that he is gay, and he alleges media bullying forced him into it. According to The Georgia Voice, Anthony Pack and his attorney, David Doer, were responding to rumors that he used school computers to "access and correspond on" Grindr and other adult-oriented social media. Dyana Bagby of The Voice reported that even though he is under investigation, "Pack insists he has violated no board of education policies or misused taxpayer money, and instead this matter is a personal one that has been made public in an intrusive and embarrassing way to him and his family." Pack and his wife are going through what he described as being up to now a quiet divorce. Bagby identified the journalist in Pack's statement as the editor and publisher of the local Monroe County Reporter. Both the newspaper and WMAZ-TV reportedly received an anonymous tip that Pack allegedly exchanged photos and texts with another man on Grindr.
By R.D. Smith GUEST COLUMNIST
heavens, what’s the point in even having a religious freedom religious discrimination law in the first place?
That clapping sound you’re starting to hear isn’t applause -- it’s the sound of right-wing sphincters spasming in outrage.
Michigan, which anticipates another attempt at legislating religious bigotry this year, already has a bill similar to Virgin’s Oklahoma giant-killer.
It’s seldom that a maneuver by a young legislator from Oklahoma leaves me slack-jawed with its genius. (Often slack-jawed, yes -- but more like being astounded at sheer ignorance.)
I’m betting that pretty much every state legislator from now on who introduces a religious freedom religious discrimination bill will set off the same backlash anti-backlash.
I’m talking about the recent introduction of a bill by Democratic state Rep. Emily Virgin. She simply reasoned that if the Legislature is going to authorize religious discrimination against LGBTs (or blacks, women, Muslims -- whoever you claim God told you to punish), then it’s only fair that those businesses be required to put up a notice on their premises so people know to avoid them. “This would save same-sex couples the trouble and embarrassment of going into that business just to be turned away,” Virgin wrote on Facebook. OMG! As if by magic, Virgin’s Republican peers stopped “debating” their “religious freedom” religious discrimination bill and haven’t yet bothered to say why. If Cathi Herrod and her Center for Arizona Policy convince our own legislators to repeat last year’s antigay religious travesty bill, I expect some adventurous Democrat here to copy Virgin’s proposal. I mean, seriously: If bigots are denied the powertrip of refusing service to same-sex couples face-toface PLUS being outed to their neighbors as people who believe allowing a cake to attend a certain wedding will affect their relationship with God . . . well, good
People were fooled at first because the trolls labeled their bills “religious freedom” -- and who isn’t in favor of that? But when people see huge corporations like Hobby Lobby denying benefits to employees and calling it “religion,” Roman Catholic hospitals refusing to allow visits from same-sex partners, hotels turning away Jews ... If we have to let ‘em, let ‘em. But require them to be honest about it and post a sign! Problem solved, I betcha.
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OBSERVER WEEKLY
March 25, 2015
Artists adopt the power of the poster to raise awareness for LGBT immigration reform
Yo Existo by undocuqueer activist Julio Salgado.Â
Stop Detention linoleum print by Chucha Marquez, part of the Carving Through Borders project commissioned by CultureStrike.
Keep Our Families Together poster by Melanie Cervantes, one of five posters created for a global migrant conference commissioned by collective screenprinting studio Taller Tupac Amaru.