July 15, 2015 :: Marriage Equality

ALLOWING SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IS PROPER OR INDEED ESSENTIAL, WHETHER AS A MATTER OF RELIGIOUS CONVICTION OR SECULAR BELIEF, MAY ENGAGE THOSE WHO DISAGREE WITH THEIR VIEW IN AN OPEN AND SEARCHING DEBATE. THE CONSTITUTION, HOWEVER, DOES NOT PERMIT THE STATE TO BAR SAME-SEX COUPLES FROM MARRIAGE ON THE SAME TERMS AS ACCORDED TO COUPLES OF THE OPPOSITE SEX. NO UNION IS MORE PROFOUND THAN MARRIAGE, FOR IT EMBODIES THE HIGHEST IDEALS OF LOVE, FIDELITY, DEVOTION, SACRIFICE, AND FAMILY. IN FORMING A MARITAL UNION, TWO PEOPLE BECOME SOMETHING GREATER THAN ONCE THEY WERE. AS SOME OF THE PETITIONERS IN THESE CASES DEMONSTRATE, MARRIAGE EMBODIES A LOVE THAT MAY ENDURE EVEN PAST DEATH. IT WOULD MISUNDERSTAND THESE MEN AND WOMEN TO SAY THEY DISRESPECT THE IDEA OF MARRIAGE. THEIR PLEA IS THAT THEY DO RESPECT IT, RESPECT IT SO DEEPLY THAT THEY SEEK TO FIND ITS FULFILLMENT FOR THEMSELVES. THEIR HOPE IS NOT TO BE CONDEMNED TO LIVE IN LONELINESS, EXCLUDED FROM ONE OF CIVILIZATION’S OLDEST INSTITUTIONS. THEY ASK FOR EQUAL DIGNITY IN THE EYES OF THE LAW. THE CONSTITUTION GRANTS THEM THAT RIGHT. J U LY 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 OUTFRONTONLINE .COM FREE

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CONTENTS JULY 15, 2015 VOL39 NO8

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06 A LETTER FROM THE EDITOR 10 OBAMA HECKLER RUFFLES FEATHERS 18 ONE EXPENSIVE CAKE 24 HAPPY CAMPERS

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THE BELLY OF THE BEAST

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32 A PLAYED OUT PSALM IN NEED OF A REMIX

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GAY MEN, MISOGYNY, AND THE MISUNDERSTOOD ‘B’ 38 CALENDAR 40 I GOT THE GAY WEDDING BELL BLUES 44 CINEMA Q: DESERT MIGRATION 48 BAR TAB 54 THE MADNESS (AND THE MAGIC) OF THE MIRROR 58 BACKWORDS

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SERVING THE LGBT COMMUNITY OF THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS SINCE 1976 3535 Walnut Street, Denver, Colorado 80205 PHONE 303-477-4000 • FAX 303-325-2642 WEB OutFrontOnline.com FACEBOOK facebook.com/OutFrontColorado TWITTER @OutFrontCO INSTAGRAM /OutFrontColorado Out Front is published by Q Publishing, Ltd., a Colorado corporation and is a member of: Denver Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and Denver Drama Critics Circle.

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F RO M T H E E D I TO R

WHAT’S NEXT? EVEN BEFORE SCOTUS KICKED DOWN the barriers that held

our community back from marriage equality last month, organizations that fight for equal rights for LGBT citizens and members of “the big gay media” have been inundated with the question: “After gay marriage, then what?”

It’s an understandable question — to a degree. It’s understandable in that same-sex marriage has been at the forefront of many discussions that revolve around basic civil rights for the LGBT community. As well, marriage equality is something a majority of Americans (bless our allies) have long wanted to see become the law of the land. The part where it becomes a head-scratcher is the implication that LGBT community (and its allies) have only been talking about and fighting for gay marriage. That simply isn’t true. For years now, we’ve worked toward changing legislation that held us back from housing, healthcare, workplace freedoms, immigration equality, adoption rights, the donating of blood, youth protections, and beyond. But we can do better.

CONNECT WITH BERLIN

Reach our editor by email at berlin@ outfrontonline.com, or by phone at 303477-4000 ext. 712

We will do better.

Going forward, our readership should know that we’ll be focusing on legal and sociopolitical issues that aim to bring our community out of secondclass citizenry. Our editorial values, in no particular order, are as follows:

BEING MINDFUL OF THE BACKLASH There’s going to be a backlash in a big way, so we want to stay vigilant. We can’t let the bad information and patent falsehoods coming out of our detractors dominate the conversation. We will speak out and fight back. The majority of the legal pushback is going to come in the form of “religious liberty/freedom.” It’s a ruse, of course. No one who’s actually read the Bible thinks it says anything about marriage being solely between one man and one woman.

It doesn’t even mention gay people getting married. They’ll try it, and many will buy it. We’d like to brush up on our scripture by reaching out to our Christian brethren (both LGBT and non) and making sure their voices are heard. If we’re in for a culture war on religious grounds, we need our Christian warriors to adequately and passionately remind (or teach) us what the gospel really says.

BEING MINDFUL OF OUR OWN TRANSITION It’s a fair criticism to say that most of us in the media and LGB news/political organizations have devoted a fraction of our efforts toward trans issues and awareness. This is going to change. In fact, it’s already begun, but again: We must stay vigilant of the backlash. For every Laverne Cox, we’ve got parents at school board meetings losing their minds over a kid who just wants to pee comfortably at school. For every Showtime’s Transparent, you’ve got a South American woman getting her face kicked 6

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in while she languishes in the wrong jailhouse. For every Caitlyn Jenner, you’ve got someone denied basic healthcare coverage because healthcare facilities and insurance companies aren’t educated on, concerned about, or required to ensure proper care to someone who isn’t cisgender. Let’s throw a flag on that play. Be aware: The right isn’t just apathetic — they’re livid about trans rights and (in many cases) just plain terrified. We all know what fear and hatred do to even the best of nations. Fight back on the wave of bad info we’re about to experience.

HIV/AIDS Though we’re making strides in stymying the transmission of HIV (think PrEP/Truvada), far too many new HIV/AIDS cases still occur on a daily basis. We have to keep the education and the message strong, lest we become ignorant and/or apathetic to the virus’ transmission, new treatments for living longer and more comfortably with the disease, and other advances that need and deserve just as much mic-time as our fights for equality do.

KEEPING THE FOCUS ON FULL EQUALITY We haven’t won the war until we have the exact same rights that our straight pals do. Housing, our workplaces, healthcare, and beyond — protections are important and they’re a part of the American experience. We must stay vigilant in our fight for equality.

SUPPORTING OUR ALLIES Remember, again, to thank your friends and family who proudly call themselves allies. They’re arm in arm with us, having to listen to the hatred, dispel the rumors, cut the jerks from their lives, let the name-calling try not to hurt them, and ... well, you know how it is. “LGBT rights are important to me,” our operations manager Maggie Phillips said recently. “If it hurts someone I love, it hurts me, too.” Thank these people. Love them back. We owe them so much for their part in this struggle.

So as we pump our fists in victory for marriage equality — and make no mistake: It’s about damn time we get to do that! — let’s stay on our toes for the many facets of injustice that we as a community will be dealing with on the daily henceforth. What I’ve outlined isn’t, of course, the be-all/end-all of our struggle (think anti-bullying and exploring what it means to be genderqueer, for example), but I certainly hope we at Out Front can tell the stories that help advance full equality for every single letter of our sassy little alphabet soup. This is our unshakable mission going forward.

It is so ordered.

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its stamina in the Senate. Those who oppose the bill feel there’s a good chance it might lead to “frivolous litigation and cost American jobs.”

There’s also the fact that, much like we heard with gay marriage, many feel the decision should ultimately be up to individual states. Thankfully, corporate America has already taken steps to end workplace discrimination against gay, lesbian, and transgender employees by including sexual orientation and gender identity in their non-discrimination policies.

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ENDA AN ERA WHILE THE SUPREME COURT LEGALIZING gay marriage

in ever y state is undoubtedly a victor y, we’ve still got a long way to go in the jour ney of LGBT equality. Just as you can say “I do” to the same-sex love of your life, your employer can say “I don’t” when it comes to having gay employees on the staff . While there are laws that prohibit workplace discrimination against race, gender, religion, disability, and age, no such laws regarding gay employees have been federally proposed. Until the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, otherwise known as ENDA. O’Brian Gunn

A LONG TIME COMING AND GOING While legislation regarding prohibiting employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of their gender identity or sexual orientation has been proposed since 1974, ENDA wasn’t legally conceived and introduced to Congress until 1994. Since then, the bill has run into all manner of roadblocks and opposition, like many other LGBT equality measures. Even though House Speaker John

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Boehner was asked to permit a vote of the bill last year, the House Rules Committee voted against adding the bill as an amendment to the 2015 defense authorization bill.

BESIEGED FROM EVERY SIDE Surprisingly, there are several House Republicans who support ENDA, including Rep. Charlie Dent in 2013. In 2007, 35 Republicans voted in favor of ENDA, but it unfortunately lost

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There are even some LGBT groups that oppose the ENDA bill, including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and the Transgender Law Center. The main reason for their opposition is that the current form of the bill still allows for religious exemption, meaning that employers still have the right to use their religious beliefs to justify their reasoning for firing a lesbian, transgender, or gay employee.

One well-known example of a religious exemption law is Arizona’s infamous SB 1062 law, which, if passed, would’ve made it legal for business owners to discriminate not only in who they hire, but also in who they serve on the basis of their religious beliefs. Another example is owners of the arts and crafts company Hobby Lobby refusing to pay for female contraceptives on the basis that they’re tantamount to abortion.

BUT IN THE MEANTIME ...

Currently, ENDA is another bill waiting patiently on Capitol Hill. Even if it manages to be successfully introduced to the 114th Congress, there’s no guarantee it will be passed if it still permits religious exemption or leaves employees vulnerable to termination based on their gender identity.

Now that the iron is hot, it’s time to strike. It seems that no matter how much and how hard we keep fighting, there’s always another round, another opponent, another barrage of blows.

It’s time for the LGBT community to put in some serious overtime, even if we’re no longer welcome in the office.

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immigrant community remain blurred.

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The blurred freedoms Gutiérrez referenced in her White House outburst and in statements published thereafter refer to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s discrepancies when caring for the transgendered population.

“The White House gets to make the decision whether it keeps us safe,” explains Gutiérrez.

“If the President wants to celebrate with us, he should release the LGBTQ immigrants locked up in detention centers immediately.”

OBAMA HECKLER RUFFLES FEATHERS POLITICS AND PUBLIC PUSHBACK ARE known to go hand-

in-hand. Jennicet Gutiérrez took on the role of rebel on June 24 speaking out against an otherwise prideful tone that filled the East Room of the White House.

In an attempt to mitigate Gutiérrez’s outbursts, President Obama quickly replied, “You’re in my

RECORDBREAKING UPTICK IN DENVER COUNTY MARRIAGES Mica Ward

THE DENVER CLERK & RECORDER’S Office issued a record-breaking 848 marriage licenses in June!

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Recognizing that uniformity in government personnel managing the custody environments could mean uniformity in treatment, ICE also announced the creation of new positions for LGBT-oriented treatment. Along with a national Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender, and Intersex (LGBTI) Coordinator, each Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations will add an LGBTI Field Liaison to their staff.

house,” which caused an aftershock almost equal to that of Gutiérrez’s transgender advocacy in the news coverage following the speech.

In the wake of the interchange between President Obama and Gutiérrez, which led to Gutiérrez’s removal from the premises, social media harbored a diverse response from the masses. Gutiérrez’s own Twitter account has hosted a follow-up conversation of sorts to her White House appearance with a host of entries rooted in activism.

As an undocumented transgender woman and social justice advocate, Gutiérrez stated she felt she could not take part in celebrating knowing that the freedoms within the transgender

Though her interruption itself had the brevity of a tweet, it could prove to be the icebreaker of a longer dialogue on the ethics of transgender immigration.

Kyle Thornburg

During President Obama’s speech, intended to celebrate Pride month and LGBT rights, Gutiérrez interrupted by shouting, “President Obama, release all LGBTQ immigrants from detention and stop all deportations!”

As a possible answer to their time in the public hot seat, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement released new standards of practice on June 29. (Rumor has it from our friends in DC that this was already in the works.) Regardless, focused on the welfare of transgender immigrants, the new practices are meant to remedy issues of housing, record keeping, and identification based on the needs of the individual on a more case-by-case basis.

“This is a sign of a healthy city,” says Denver Clerk and Recorder Debra Johnson. “We continue to see a growing trend of marriages here in Denver County. One of my favorite parts of my job is getting to witness loving marriages.”

Last year, they set their previous record in July, issuing 833 licenses. That was the month Clerk Johnson began issuing same-sex marriage licenses prior to Colorado courts issuing a stay.

Last Friday, June 26, following SCOTUS’ decision on marriage equality, their office issued 64 marriage licenses. Fun fact: More marriage licenses are issued on Friday than any other day of the week, and the average for the previous three Fridays was 54.

The Denver Clerk and Recorder’s Office issued 7126 marriage licenses last year — the most ever.

Since the legalization of same-sex marriages, civil unions have dropped significantly. In 2013, they issued 761 civil union licenses; 223 were issued in 2014. To date this year, only four civil union licenses have been issued.

And while June may be the traditional month for weddings, in Denver, August seems to be the preference, at least for seven of the last 11 years.

Feelin’ the itch to hitch? The Denver Clerk and Recorder’s office is open Monday through Friday from 8am to 4:30pm. So get in there and break some records, you happy couples!

SOCIAL MEDIA REACTS ... and some of it ain’t pretty, child. Take a look at some of the smash and the trash after SCOTUS rocked the house.

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THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT CU DENVER STUDY FINDS NO DISADVANTAGES FOR CHILDREN OF SAME-SEX COUPLES

REGARDING THE COUNTERARGUMENTS FOR SAME-SEX

marriage, protests have waxed constitutional and religious. For many Americans, however, addressing same-sex marriage is a family matter.

Kyle Thornburg

According to a recent study from the University of Colorado Denver, decades of scientific evidence reveal that children of same-sex parents are afforded equal social and behavioral opportunities in life when compared to children of single or heterosexual parents. The study was led by Jimi Adams, associate professor in the Department of Health and Behavioral Sciences at CU Denver and was co-authored by Ryan Light, assistant professor at the University of Oregon.

Published with serendipitous timing in June 2015 edition of Social Science Research, the study titled “Scientific consensus, the law, and same sex parenting outcomes” arrived on the eve of the US Supreme Court’s nationwide legalization of same-sex marriage. According to Adams, it was the Supreme Court that initiated the study, as well.

In 2013, Justice Antonin Scalia claimed that the topic of children raised by same-sex couples was a complete gray area in social science. Referencing this claim by Justice Scalia, Adams drafted a hypothesis of his own.

“I was pretty sure there wasn’t any such disagreement, and I knew of this approach that had just been developed to assess just that question,” Adams says. “And as you are aware, we found that Justice Scalia’s claim was wrong — there is consensus, and that consensus is that kids to same-sex parents aren’t disadvantaged.”

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Decades of scientific evidence reveal that children of same-sex parents are afforded equal social & behavioral opportunities in life when compared to children of single or heterosexual parents.

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Approaching the study from an empirical standpoint, Adams and Light analyzed peer-reviewed articles from the early 1970s to early 2013, all the while taking note of patterns that arose in citations from the research.

Although scientific research can often be rooted in the search for what Adams refers to as the “expert opinion,” this method of research allowed a more objective approach with reliance on studies that pre-dated their own.

It was this level of detachment crucial not only in the socially ethical sense, but for the larger legal battle taking place in concert with Adams’ research.

Parallel to the social climate changes that surrounded same-sex marriage from decade to decade, Adams admits there was a similar “maturing” in the field of research. Early analysis of same-sex marriage was concerned with the child’s sexual orientation as influenced by same-sex parents.

Over time, however, research turned to the more broad concern of developmental and social implications for children of same-sex parents.

As the feat for same-sex marriage reverberates throughout the nation, the work of Adams and Light provides scientific solace for the counterargument on family.

“If [the Supreme Court’s] decision can be followed by similar advances in reduced discrimination, things should continue moving in even better directions for kids of same-parents.”

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BALLOT INITIATIVES AIM TO ROLL BACK COLORADO LGBT RIGHTS THE ANTI-SAME-SEX MARRIAGE INITIATIVES ARE COMING

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GENE STRAUB AND D’ARCY STRAUB filed two ballot measures early this month — barely a week after the Supreme Court’s historic ruling that made same-sex marriage the law of the land.

Nat Stein

The first initiative aims to revert all same-sex marriages to civil unions in Colorado, and the second has to do with whether private businesses can refuse service to same-sex couples.

same-sex wedding. The couple filed a discrimination claim that was affirmed by an administrative law judge and reaffirmed in 2014 by the state civil rights commission. That case is now in appeal.

The first measure states, “A marriage is recognized as a form of religious expression of the people of Colorado that shall not be abridged through the state prescribing or recognizing any law that implicitly or explicitly defines a marriage in opposition or agreement with any particular religious belief.”

Earlier this year, a customer filed a discrimination complaint against a baker, this time in Denver, for refusing to ice the message “God Hates Gays” on a cake. Marjorie Silva, owner of Azucar on South Broadway, offered the customer a bag of frosting to do it himself.

And while that’s ambiguous enough on its own, legal director of the Colorado ACLU Mark Silverstein said the real kicker is that all marriages predating the measure or done out of state would become civil unions. “All marriages. Any marriages. Same sex, opposite sex, done in church or not.”

The other ballot measure D’Arcy and Gene Straub proposed would protect a private business owner’s religious freedom to discriminate against same-sex couples when it comes to providing goods and services. This issue mostly comes up in the wedding business.

In 2012, a Lakewood baker refused to bake a cake for a

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Incidents such as these inspired unsuccessful bills in the General Assembly last session aimed at protecting business owners’ religious freedom to discriminate against same-sex couples. Both bills — one sponsored by Rep. Patrick Neville, R-Castle Rock and one

by Rep. Gordon Klingenschmitt, R-Colorado Springs — were killed in committee.

Each of the proposed measures will need 98,492 signatures to get on the November ballot, and the Straubs are scheduled to meet with the state Legislative Council about the measure’s language later this month.

Our thanks to the team at ColoradoIndependent.com for permission to publish their story.

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P O L IT I CS

A VOICE FOR THE UNDERDOG ROCHELLE GALINDO IS RUNNING FOR her first public

office as a city council member in Greeley, CO 50 miles due nor th of Denver. Through hard work and with crossed fingers, Rochelle is seeking a progressive win in a historically conser vative area.

Stefanie Cochrane

She was born and raised in the once small town of Greeley, a place that’s now nearing 100,000 residents and steadily climbing. The city is situated just outside the Rockies, making it an ideal spot for sprawling farms and cattle ranches. It’s home to the University of Northern Colorado and a bustling downtown area, beautifully crafted and filled with colorful street art and a farmer’s market every Wednesday and Saturday.

There is a lot of love in this town. But beneath the tree-lined streets, growing industry, and friendly faces of Greeley, there is a long-standing cultural division in the community that’s in need of rectification. Unemployment and difficult working conditions in available jobs continue to plague Latinos in the area. In 2006, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement raided Swift & Company, a meat-packing plant and the area’s largest employer. 273 workers were arrested after ICE federal agents swept through the factory. The raids came after an investigation into fraudulent SSN numbers that were allegedly purchased by undocumented immigrants so they might find employment.

Latino neighborhoods and families were torn apart by the arrests and the many subsequent deportations. The memories are branded onto 16

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the hearts of those affected by the hot iron of social injustice. Though the success of Swift and other such plants has been built on the backs of immigrants, the punishment falls on these workers’ drive to provide for their families. Some residents applauded the raids as a necessary road-block to illegal immigration, while others characterized the events as catastrophic to their city. The raids showed a lack of compassion for Greeley workers, and began an important discussion into securing the safety of citizen identity, as well as holding to accountability the working conditions and practices implemented by corporate employers.

The fallout? A precedent of distrust and discrimination against the Latino community that still lingers, however quietly.

Nearly forty percent of the population identifies as Latino, though there are only two city council members that represent this demographic’s needs. A lack of communication with the local government and a lack in the accessibility of resources for the Spanish-speaking community disengages them from actively participating in Greeley’s development.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement raided a meatpacking plant, the area’s largest employer — 273 workers were arrested.

”

underrepresented groups in Greeley. “In the past, people have been very prejudiced at times, especially toward Latinos, but obviously toward the gay community as well,” she tells us. “When I first came out in high school, I was the only out person there. It wasn’t easy.”

Rochelle began her road to public service after hearing the distress and complaints of her peers. In her teen years, when most of us could be found joy-riding or (let’s be honest) ditching school, Rochelle joined the Greeley Youth Commission at her high school and led the group’s first Diversity Conference. She became a field organizer in Barack Obama’s successful reelection campaign and learned firsthand the ins and outs of campaigning for change. Through her and hundreds of volunteers’ grassroots efforts, Weld County showed a record 94 percent voter turnout. Since 2012, Rochelle has been active in area politics, serving on statewide committees and working under Colorado representatives to initiate community building and outreach to Latinos in our state. She recently received the Community Leadership Award from the Hispanic Women of Weld County for her consistent efforts in moving toward a more unified city.

This percentage needs a voice.

It’s people like Rochelle Galindo who fight this good fight. It’s about honoring what makes Greeley such a beloved hometown while guiding the community into a more accepting and inclusive place for all.

As a Latino and openly gay woman, Rochelle is committed to serving the needs of

“If you want change,” Rochelle advocates, “You need to be a part of that change.”

LEGAL DIRECTORY

“NO LONGER MAY THIS LIBERTY BE DENIED” Sara M. Cates

June 26, 2015 was a day that marked the turn of a new era when the Supreme Court of the United States handed down the momentous decision granting marriage equality to all. Although Colorado granted such equality to couples eight months prior to this historic ruling, the effect of this ruling nonetheless raises questions as to how it will affect the rights already granted by Colorado. For example, now that marriage is legally recognized, does this also mean that common law marriage will be recognized?

What about the availability of federal benefits to same-sex spouses, has that door been opened with this ruling? Will my marriage in Colorado be recognized in every state?

The Supreme Court’s ruling recognizing same-sex marriage means that the same rights provided to one couple are the same rights provided to every couple, regardless of sexual orientation. Same-sex couples will now be able to file federal taxes jointly to receive the benefit of the marital deduction, which they were not able to do even after marriage

equality passed in Colorado. Same-sex marriages in Colorado will now be recognized in every state, just as Colorado will recognize marriages from all other states. In contrast however, although Colorado may now recognize common law marriage of same-sex couples, other states may not recognize such marriages, albeit not because of the couples’ sexual orientation, but rather because they simply do not recognize common-law marriage. Divorced spouses of a same-sex marriage may now share in the federal benefits that were just recently denied to them such as COBRA benefits, the ability to request Social Security benefits as a former spouse (so long as the other necessary factors are satisfied), and their former spouse’s federal retirement benefits.

Obviously this remarkable ruling will create more questions as others are answered, such as whether long-term relationships will be given retroactive marriage recognition, but it is nonetheless amazing to be able to witness the evolution of our laws based on something so beautiful. Love.

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The opinions expressed in this article are general in nature. For specific legal advice about your particular situation, please contact an attorney.

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O P I NI ON

ONE EXPENSIVE CAKE A SAME-SEX COUPLE’S FIGHT FOR EQUALITY IN LOVE AND DESSERT

A PORTLAND-AREA BAKERY WAS RECENTLY ordered to

pay $135,000 in damages to a lesbian couple that were refused a cake for their 2013 nuptials. Sweet Cakes by Melissa denied a wedding cake to Laurel and Rachel Bowman-Cr yer on the grounds of the owners’ right to religious liber ty. The couple filed a complaint with the Bureau of Labor and Industr y, which in tur n brought charges against the baker y owners in Januar y of 2014. This case has been a key discussion in the current litigious cage match of religious freedom vs. discriminator y behavior against the LGBT community. Many have rallied behind the baker y in suppor t for not only religious rights, but the rights umbrellaed under the First Amendment — freedom of speech, specifically.

Stefanie Cochrane

As every talking head or human with two thumbs (read: people who have internet access) will tell you, this wades through a murky jungle of contradiction and complication. However offensive the original cake refusal may be, is it also offensive to deny the bakery the right to flex their convictions’ muscle? It could be argued yes.* It could also be argued that the bakery used discriminatory practices to intentionally hurt two members of not only their would-be clientele, but members of their own community.

Either way you cut the cake, Oregon has ruled in favor of the Bowman-Cryers and has awarded the couple monetary compensation for the emotional damages they faced due to Sweet 18

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Cakes by Melissa’s intolerance. The Oregon Labor Commissioner handed down the verdict on July 2, stating: “This case is not about a wedding cake or a marriage. It is about a business’s refusal to serve someone because of their sexual orientation.

Under Oregon law, that is illegal.”

The six-figure fine may seem a bit steep, but the bakery is clearly being made an example of.

Proprietors of the bakery, Aaron and Melissa Klein, have claimed to face a number of hardships due to the lawsuit, but continue to fight for their platform of prejudicial practices.

The Klein’s posted a message on Facebook after the verdict: “We will NOT give up this fight, and we will NOT be silenced. We stand for God’s truth,

The bakery’s doors have closed.

(Discrimination is bad for business.)

”

God’s word and freedom for ALL americans.

We are here to obey God not man, and we will not conform to this world. If we were to lose everything it would be totally worth it for our Lord who gave his one and only son, Jesus, for us! God will win this fight!”

Eat it up and notice how the almighty “ALL Americans” explicitly excludes ALL of the LGBT community. If this doesn’t make you gnash your teeth, nothing will. The bakery’s doors have closed after business and collaborations with photographers and florists decreased.

(Discrimination is bad for business.) This verdict is an important decision as it furthers the fair treatment for all LGBT people as well as reveals the deep-seated prejudices grounded in establishments around the country. The case against Sweet Cakes is just one of many lawsuits that have been popping up in the past few years.

In our own Denver suburb of Lakewood, a civil rights commission ruled that a local bakery could not refuse a same-sex couple service. The outcomes of such cases are a sweet victory for the LGBT community and for freedoms at large.

It is not a freedom to cause harm to others (even if it were, why would you want to?)

And so it is written … Everybody deserves a piece of cake. *It could also be argued that Katherine Hiegl is the greatest actress of our generation, but I’m certainly not about to go down that road.

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O P I NI ON

CRAZY UNCLE HUCKABEE ON JULY 2, PRESDENTIAL DOUBTFUL Mike Huckabee

published an op-ed on FoxNews.com detailing his commitment to creating a safer space for Christians in this countr y. Because, as histor y has shown, they are cer tainly the ones that need the most protection.

The piece, entitled ‘Surrender to judicial tyranny? I will protect religious liber ty, not retreat,’ (it sure does gird the loins, doesn’t it?) outlines his plans to restore religious freedoms should he be elected our next head of state.

Stefanie Cochrane

After the June 26 Supreme Court decision to ban bans (yes, yes!) against same-sex marriage, some have called the ruling detrimental to the very ideals of freedom and liberty that this country is built on. Huckabee has been one such outspoken critic. Let us pray. And shake our heads.

case centers around the US Constitution’s First Amendment in terms of its protection of freedoms, religion included. As you know, the amendment reads: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

His essay opens: “America didn’t fight a revolution against the tyranny of one unelected monarch so we could surrender our religious liberty to the tyranny of five unelected lawyers. The Supreme Court is not the Supreme Being, and the Court can no more repeal the laws of nature and nature’s God on marriage than they can the laws of gravity.” The Supreme Court is not attempting to walk on water here, but it is dishing out the long-awaited equal treatment for all Americans that all Americans are deserving of. Huckabee’s

Huckabee cites these words as not only the backbone of arguably the most American amendment, but also uses them as a means to justify the systematic discrimination used by some (not all) religious groups against the LGBT community. He calls toward the heavens to find this ultimate law, but fails to recognize that not all are governed by Huckabee’s God. One’s faith is directly proportional to the way they live their life, but not the way that others must live theirs.

By adducing the laws of nature with a tinge of

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Everyone should have the freedom to participate in whatever they do believe in.

Love. Disco. Gay marriage. Iced coffees.

”

religiosity, Huckabee tears down the very point he is trying to make. If we have freedom to practice our chosen religion, we also have freedom from it.

No one is saying that Huckabee and his brothers and sisters under the Big JC aren’t entitled to their opinion, however ignorant it may be. What is up for discussion is the dangerous line between participating in one’s own belief system and using it to devalue the beliefs or lifestyle of another person. Though the Constitution makes no direct reference to the separation of church and state, the First Amendment ensures that the two entities do not intermesh.

Same-sex marriage is not a religious issue — it’s a human one. One’s bed and partners therein are no business of anyone except those tucked under the sheets. That includes you, Uncle Mike. If you don’t like gay marriage, don’t get gay married.

Not everyone believes that marriage is strictly defined as being between as a man and a woman.

Not everyone believes in that God, a God, or whoever she is. So everyone should then have the freedom to participate in whatever they do believe in. Love. Disco. Iced coffees. The First Amendment protects the believer’s right to DO. Why wouldn’t it shield those that DON’T, as well?

Discrimination is not a policy, it’s a weakness. In the wise words of the late, great George Carlin, there is a law that we all can abide by: “Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself.”

SOCIAL MEDIA REACTS ... and some of it ain’t pretty, child. Take a look at some of the smash and the trash after SCOTUS rocked the house.

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O P I NI ON

WE TRANS PEEPS ARE JUST LIKE YOU CIS PEEPS NOW THAT OUR RIGHT-WING OPPONENTS have lost their

war on marriage equality, I expect them to shift their time, effor t, and prodigious funding to attacking the transgender community’s humanity and human rights on a full time basis.

Monica Roberts

It’s the historical nature of conservatism to find an enemy to organize and rally their troops to hate.

Once their enemy du jour grows strong enough to fight back and repeatedly win against them, they move on like the bullies they are to pick on somebody else they perceive to be politically and numerically weaker than them for the sole goal of oppression.

But despite the upturned volume of the Right Wing Noise Machine — and their increasing efforts via FOX Noise and right-wing hate radio to demonize trans people — what Americans and the world are beginning to understand is that we trans peeps are part of the diverse mosaic of human life just like cisgender people are.

The right wing will also find out as they engage with us and attempt to halt our human rights progress that we have allies, family, and friends who will stand shoulder to shoulder with us to help us fight back against the oppression they wish to impose on us.

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We trans people have the same characteristics and personality traits as many of you homosapiens. We come in all shapes, sizes, and ethnic backgrounds. We live on every inhabited continent on Planet Earth. We are people who love and wish to be loved by others. We are gay, bisexual, pansexual, straight, and every other sexual orientation possible in our species.

We are beautiful, intelligent, funny, thoughtful, and multitalented. We are writers, doctors, lawyers, athletes, models, teachers, politicians, and parents raising kids. We are proud of the communities and nations we inhabit, and we transpeeps want the best for our kids that we raise. We want to live our lives to the best of our ability in careers that we love. We want to be able to fully participate in the political systems of our nations and create the laws that govern us. We want to contribute our talents to building our societies. We want to work, pay our fair share of taxes, join a union, and get paid a fair wage while doing so.

We transpeople want to be able to worship a higher power in the manner we choose — or not attend a church at all — without being falsely labeled by demagoguing religious leaders as ‘dangers to mankind.’

And speaking of bearing false witness against trans people, frankly we are tired of rightwing adherents of all denominations pushing transphobia from the pulpit and it needs to stop.

We trans people want affordable trans culturally competent healthcare that not only features medical practitioners who treat us with dignity and respect, but also realizes that sometimes we come to the doctor to be treated for other medical issues besides trans-oriented ones.

And yes, just like in CisWorld, TransWorld has people in it who are selfish jerks, mean azzholes, jealous, vindictive, you get the drift. Just as you don’t want us broad-brush judging you for being transphobes based on the actions of a few nekulturny (google it) individuals, we demand the same level of respect from you.

Don’t start no drama with us, won’t be no drama in return.

The bottom line is that trans peeps are just like cis peeps in terms of just wanting to be the best people we can be while we are spending whatever time we have on this space rock.

And what we want in TransWorld is for you in CisWorld to acknowledge our common humanity, accept our right to exist, respect our human rights across the globe, and be left alone by you folks who irrationally hate on us so we can get to the daily business of being the men and women of trans experience we are.

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FASHION FOR ALL YOUR CAMPING NEEDS

happy campers STEFANIE COCHRANE

Having to take a number two in the woods doesn’t mean you have to look like sh*t. We may be city folks, but we know how to get down in the great outdoors. Enjoy some stylish and practical picks to jazz up your site and yourself this summer.

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1.FieldCandy Tents are the man buns of the sporting gear world. They’re versatile, tough, and oh yeah, kinda sexy. This British company’s tents are lightweight, rain resistant, and have plenty of room for two. There’s also a porch for storage. You can customize your tent to scream YOU as loudly as possible. We like the circus option because, well, we’re a bunch of clowns when it comes to camping. This helps. FieldCandy Big Top Tent $445 FieldCandy.com // 2.This boot is waterproof, durable, and pretty damn attractive. Native Shoes are anti-microbial and are easily washed with a hose down, so they’re ready to step into anything. Any. Thing. They come in a variety of colors to fit your camping mood. Fitzsimmons Print $80 NativeShoes.com // 3.Ohhhh gahhhd. I don’t even care that this dog outfit costs more than anything I own. I would sit in the RAIN so my dog could keep this on. I would traverse ANY landscape, knowing my pup would stay dry. I would ... look for matching rain booties. (See what I mean? Ultimate cuteness.) WagWear Dog Raincoat $48 UrbanOutfitters.com // 4. SLPY, the Snuggie’s more durable and cooler older cousin! This sweet little number will serve as a towel after jumping into cold mountain waters, a picnic blanket (and napkin) after all-you-can-eat beans, and a cozy spot to lay under the stars in. The bag has zippered detachments so you can be as snuggled up or free as you like. Free the toes! SLPY Onesie $158 SLPY.com // 5.I like a little country by the fireside. Think Patsy Cline, NOT Taylor Swift. This t-shirt goes well with the grit and soul of a night warbling with a guitar under the stars. Depending on where you are, maybe it’ll even help you catch a cowboy of your own. Please Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys Unisex Crew $52 ShopMidnightRider.com // 6.Shield that beautiful face of yours with a wide bill hat. This classic style will bring

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an element of the big city to your humble campfire. If you just happen to throw it through the air in sheer bliss, it’s bright enough that you’ll be able to find it. Or a bear will … Poetic Weirdos Snapback Hat $26 Shop.RadIsRad.com // 7.This has got you covered — for the most part. It’ll keep your little (or big) ladies under wraps while still looking like a boss on the hiking trails. Crisscross Back Sports Bra $11 Forever21.com // 8.If you’ve ever set foot in Colorado, you know this to be true: It’s all about the layers. One minute we’re sweating and the next we’re three feet under fresh pow, brah. Be prepared with a cute cotton sweatshirt, essential for dipping temps at high altitudes. Carpe Sweater $33 Rad.co/Us // 9.Very Jennifer Beals dancing on a chair in a strobe light in the middle of the woods. Also pairs well with a cut-off sweatshirt and s’mores ingredients. Onzie Track Legging $63 Onzie.com // 10.This backpack has all kinds of bells and whistles to carry your gear to the camp site. It’s also got a padded sleeve that can be used for laptop-heavy work days, or as a water reservoir on sunny Sats and Suns in the mountains. Duality, guys. Breathe it in. Mt. DVSN Rucksack $65 KarmaLoop.com // 11.This short will have you leaping like a stylish and stripey deer. Dare we say frolic-worthy? They dry quick and fit slim to be suited for any adventure you find yourself in. Sediment Short $65 Prana.com // Okay, okay. These probably aren’t the most practical camping shoes, but they are f*cking awesome! Just look at that heel! It’s a time-honored silhouette, but updated for a fresh and stylish look that goes anywhere. Works for sidewalks and dirt roads alike. Nirvana Boot $83 NastyGal.com

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sure that transgender Coloradans are able to access the healthcare they need, making it easier for transgender Coloradans to update the gender on their birth certificate, and continuing to tell the stories of transgender people until we end the harmful stereotypes and misconceptions that have resulted in transgender Coloradans facing high rates of discrimination, harassment, and violence.

THE FREEDOM TO MARRY IS NOT THE FINAL STOP ON THE ROAD TO FULL LGBT EQUALITY AT THE END OF JUNE, the Supreme Cour t finally

recognized that the freedom to marr y is a precious, fundamental right that belongs to all. After decades of tireless work from members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community, same-sex couples now have equal respect for their marriages across America and many are asking if this means that our work for legal equality is over. While the Cour t’s decision is cause for tremendous celebration, we still have a lot of work to do to make sure our families can live openly and honestly no matter their zip code.

Dave Montez, Executive Director of One Colorado

Some of the very same LGBT Americans who can now legally marry a same-sex partner may still feel unable to do so. Why? Because a majority of states do not have nondiscrimination laws protecting LGBT people and their families from being unfairly fired or kicked out of their home.

We are lucky that Colorado banned housing and employment discrimination against LGBT people in 2008, but now it is crucial that the rest of the country join us. It is time for Congress to update existing federal law, so that it protects

people from discrimination based on their sexual orientation and gender identity.

Even though our state is ahead of the curve when it comes to nondiscrimination laws, we still have a long way to go until we achieve full equality. The LGBT community must harness the momentum from the marriage conversation to make sure we finally put an end to the overwhelming discrimination that transgender people face in every aspect of their lives. That means making

We still have work to do to make sure every single young person in Colorado lives in a community where they feel safe, welcome, and empowered to make change. Even now, 35 percent of Colorado’s school districts do not have policies that protect LGBT students from being bullied. Until every single school district bans bullying and discrimination against LGBT students — and enforces those policies — we cannot stop working. It is also time to ban the dangerous and discredited practice of conversion therapy on minors, so that no more young people are forced into trying to change their sexual orientation or gender identity.

And while we move the ball forward on all these issues, we will simultaneously have to stand up to attacks by anti-equality forces determined to roll back our hard-earned victories. Just a week after the historic marriage equality decision, two ballot measures were filed in Colorado to overturn the Court’s ruling as well as allow businesses to claim their religion gives them permission to ignore laws they don’t like — including laws that ban discrimination against LGBT people. We can’t afford to live in a Colorado where individuals can pick and choose which laws to follow. The only way to protect our victories is to remain vigilant, stand up to these attacks, and make it clear that our families deserve the same protections that are afforded to all other Coloradans.

As the state’s largest advocacy organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Coloradans and their families, One Colorado is leading the fight on these issues with our allies.

Now that the Supreme Court has recognized the freedom to marry for all, we invite you to join us in working to move our state forward until every LGBT person in Colorado can live the life that they want.

When speaking at Tracks on Saturday night, Out Front Publisher Jerry Cunningham said the rally on the west steps of the Capitol on Friday night was a momentous event that will go down in history, but that the following night’s crowd at Tracks was also something to remember. He took a pic to memorialize the evening.

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A FAR E W E L L

LIVE LIKE ELLIS THE FIRST TIME I MET Ellis McFadden was around 2007, after

seeing a local speaker at the Tattered Cover when they still rented the second f loor downtown. He was an unsuspecting, bright man who exchanged Colorado histor y barbs with me for a few minutes. I knew who he was by reputation. I heard his name in Project Angel Hear t circles, from the Colorado AIDS Project, spoken among historians, beloved by Aurarian students, and revered by so many others. I researched his collection of materials at Denver Public Librar y.

David Duffield

I felt his footprints before I really knew him.

A few years later, I ran into Ellis when I did some volunteer work with One Colorado for Lobby Day. We marched up a cold and wet February morning to argue for undocumented workers’ rights, women’s rights, and of course for same-sex civil unions. He corrected me on some facts about Brown’s bluff and the State Capitol.

He told me a few stories about the history of the capitol and of Denver — and left me speechless.

I chatted with him over Facebook from time to time and about a year ago started speaking with him about the Colorado LGBT History Project. We met for coffee, went over the project, and he nodded.

“Well that’s needed,” he said. Ellis spoke patiently, humbly, truthfully, and forthrightly — it was his nature.

In the fall of 2014, he agreed to do an oral history, and help me with some introductions. I met him in January of 2015. I walked into his apartment, which was warm at twilight. Award upon award decorated his walls, collections of glass, boxes of materials, and a view of Mount Evans out the window kept us further company. We sat, drank tea, and completed the pre-interview.

Oral history is unique in many respects, but people often describe their past like ink layers, like fingerprints. Some describe where they lived, who they loved, what they did. In Ellis’ case, it was where he volunteered, and most importantly what he did for other people. So we followed that pattern in the interview. One of the last quotes that stuck with me was when he responded to a question about what he 28

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wanted to see in the community. He wanted young people to do more.

“You gotta do something, people,” he urged.

Throughout all the stories from standing on many cold nights on a corner gathering hat-in-hand cash donations for the Symphony; paying for the Center’s second phone line; fighting against the Anita Bryant campaign; being in CAP’s Buddies program; delivering for Project Angel Heart; serving in countless political campaigns; in making Mountain Bell more LGBT friendly; battling for our right to civil unions, or on and on … I realized that here was a man with a hand in everything.

When I asked him why so much volunteering: “I was always an overachiever. I hate being left out. I’m just good at doing.” A self-accused “eternal optimist,” his voice only broke in the interview at recollecting the shock of Amendment 2, HIV/AIDS, and civil unions.

I saw him a couple more times in the intervening months. I was told only recently he had cancer, days before I had a meeting at CAP, and there on the wall was a big picture of Ellis.

Ellis’ collection at DPL includes great files on nearly every group he volunteered with and countless buttons. It’s free and open to the public and, along with his oral history, make a great legacy and heritage.

Yet his life meant so much more.

I saw Ellis on July 3 of this year. I went to his hospice. The bright sunny day filtered into Ellis’ comfortable, quiet, twilight room. The front desk nurse told me “he has a parade of people.” The visit lasted a minute. I knocked, entered, stood stunned

a moment to a body thinned and struggling to speak. I took his hand, told him I was glad to see him, he nodded.

“On dresser.” He pointed to a Colorado flag that flew over the state capitol. “Open top drawer.” Two awards. One was from the Colorado Assembly thanking him for his volunteerism, tours at the Capitol, and contribution to democracy. Another was a proclamation from the Governor listing his accomplishments, and declaring July 2 Ellis McFadden Day. I was stunned. As I left I saw I was the fifteenth person to visit him in two days.

I’m still struggling to make meaning. I’ve shed tears. Honor and memory, however, just seem more useful.

I take much comfort in the fact that Ellis lived to see nationwide marriage equality. It just seems fitting.

‘You gotta do something, people,’ Ellis McFadden urged.

”

Ellis McFadden’s life is one worth emulating. Marcus Aurelius wrote in Meditations: “Death smiles at us all, all a man can do is smile back.” Ellis’ honored memory — his life — is in equal parts legacy, heritage, and prophecy. To live like Ellis is an aspiration to be loved and remembered.

“Do something, people.” Live for others.

Ellis McFadden Aug. 24, 1949 – July 5, 2015

LGBT COMMUNITY ACTIVIST ELLIS MCFADDEN PASSES AWAY Ellis McFadden, a selfless and valued member of Denver’s LGBT community passed away on July 5. Ellis was a giving person who helped hundreds of AIDS patients for more than three decades and spent countless hours volunteering for the Colorado AIDS Project and Project Angel Heart.

He worked tirelessly supporting numerous LGBTfriendly candidates by going door-to-door, talking to people in support of their campaigns. Just last week, Governor John Hickenlooper signed a proclamation proclaiming July 2, 2015, as Ellis McFadden Day. A memorial is planned at Project Angel Heart. Details are still pending.

Photo by Charles Broshous

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A Gay Liberal Attends Denver’s Western Conservative Summit Rick Kitzman

“HEY, YOU WANNA WIN A GUN?” Those were the first words I heard as an attendee of the annual Western Conservative Summit held the last weekend in June at Denver’s Colorado Convention Center. Sponsored by the Colorado Christian University (CCU) and its think tank, The Centennial Institute, the conference has become a national spotlight on causes dear to conservatives’ hearts and anyone interested in funding their run for the Republican presidential nomination.

After three days of being verbally pummeled for being gay, for supporting gun license background checks, for thinking Americans deserve healthcare, for believing in climate change, for knowing war is antithetical to literal Christian tenets by speaker after speaker, hour after hour, I was agog with disbelief, amused by the inmates running their asylum, infuriated, disgusted, depressed. Mostly, my heart was heavy.

I’m a member and former Practitioner (a kind of spiritual coach) of Mile Hi Church, located ironically next door to CCU’s Lakewood campus. Prior to the convention, I met with my own Practitioner. After our discussion and yes, prayers, I decided to attend as an observer. If I engaged with anyone, the watch-word was ‘respond,’ not ‘react. I wanted to attend with an open mind, civility, and respect for different ways of thinking. I was willing to walk my talk knowing we all wear the face of God — no exceptions.

Arriving at the cavernous center Friday afternoon, I descended one long flight of stairs, walked the length of a football field, rode down a two-story escalator,and walked into the three-story Mile High Ballroom that seated thousands of people whose beliefs are diametrically opposed to mine. Lit only with enormous ceiling circles of beguiling twinkle lights, the giant, dark box displayed giant screens with giant mouths spewing giant gobs of verbal gunk. Turns out, I’d followed a circuitous path to one of Dante’s unmentioned rings of hell, the one marked “Abandon all hope of finding common ground with yonder rabid religious Republicans, ye liberals who enter here.”

After thirty minutes, I had to get out, outside into a cloudless, sunny Colorado day with a canopy of blue, a glorious shade like nowhere else in the world. And I breathed. And I opened my bag of goodies picked up at registration, and what do I pull out first? The Top Ten Myths About Homosexuality. (Are you effing kidding me!)

This 50-page brochure, published in 2010 by the Family Research Council, listed the following examples: Myth #1: People are born gay; Myth #2: Sexual

“When Fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in The Flag and will carry The Cross.”

— Sinclair Lewis, American novelist, 1885–1951

orientation can never change; Myth #8: Homosexuals are no more likely to molest children than heterosexuals. Other myths concerned the healthy nature of same-sex relationships and of children raised by same-sex parents, our lack of psychological disorders, even the myth that our conduct is not harmful to our physical health. (I’ve been gay since the age of four — I can’t change my orientation, I’ve never molested anyone, and I feel pretty good.

But what do I know?) A plethora of outdated, footnoted, and annotated scientific studies from the 1980s to 2009 supported the counter arguments.

Once more, unto the breach.

Flanking the entrance to the area reserved for exhibitors, Colorado Hispanic Republicans and Librè Initiative greeted every visitor. This calculated placement screamed: “Look how diverse we are!”

After politely declining the offer to “win a gun” from the National Association for Gun Rights, I stopped by Party of Choice. A blaring cartoon video called “I Freakin’ Love Fracking” grabbed my attention. On the table littered with material was a stack of bumper stickers I thought had to do with pet control: “Too many are born, we can’t feed them all. Please spay or neuter your liberal today!” I chatted with the two women behind the table. Topics ranged from biblical verses to child-bearing. I learned that the verses in Timothy I (2:9-15) that admonish women not to wear elaborate hairstyles or gold or “to assume authority over man, but should learn in full submission and be quiet” because woman was deceived (not Adam) and she can only be saved by childbearing — yeah, those verses — had more to do with the fact that women couldn’t hear the sermons in the segregated temples of the time. (Hey, it was like talking to a Stepford wife!) I was informed that because Christ died for our sins, he took care of all those dietary restrictions in Leviticus and those other “wacky” laws that if broken decreed a death sentence by stoning. Oh how the three of us chuckled, good times, good times! So it’s ok now to eat shellfish. But lying with a man like one lies with a woman? Turns out there are some restrictions that Christ didn’t die for. On the subject of abortion, when one of the women found out she was pregnant, she immediately fell in love with her child. Ahhh! She and her husband conceived the right way.

I said, “I don’t think it matters what your politics are, everyone conceives the same way.” The woman responded, “No, my husband and I got married before we got pregnant.” Ah, the Right way, indeed.

Other partner organizations or exhibitors included: Heritage Action for America; John Jay Institute (he was the first Supreme Court Chief); NRA; Americans for Prosperity; The Heritage Foundation; Forged from Honor; HonorBell.org (a veterans group); Reagan Club; Jeffco Prays; Lincoln Club of Conservatives; Citizens of Life; and the Faith and Freedom Coalition.

What galls me is how these organizations use words every patriot of every stripe can claim, and yet their definition belies the truth behind the purpose of their organization. Along with the two Hispanic groups mentioned earlier were the Christians United for Israel, Colorado Jewish Republican Coalition, and the American Conservatives of Color. “Look how diverse we are!”

A cardboard cutout of Hillary Clinton stood in front of the Colorado Women’s Alliance stall. Two horns, fashioned from red foil, had been taped to the top of her head. Opposite her was a cutout of Margaret Thatcher.

When I stopped, a man chuckled and said, “My wife’s responsible for that!”

I asked, “So why do people hate Hillary?”

“Because she lies.”

My turn to chuckle. “What politician doesn’t?”

“And she steals money.”

My turn to chuckle again. “What politician doesn’t?”

“Ted Cruz.”

I remembered my intention and moved away.

The Supreme Court decision regarding same-sex marriage fired up the attendees with an apoplectic passion to fight the decision made by godless

(CONTINUED ON PAGE 34)

A PLAYED OUT PSALM IN NEED OF A REMIX WHAT ARE SOME ACTUAL ISSUES THE GAY-FIX ATED RELIGIOUS RIGHT CAN FOCUS ON? O’Brian Gunn

The LGBT community is like a celebrity the Christian paparazzi just can’t get enough of, only in this case we’re blinded and hemmed in by flashing scriptures and the press of persecution.

So is Christianity all about damning homosexuals, or is there something else God would rather see His children doing? After all, Jesus did more than sit around all day turning water into wine. Here are a few topics Christians can use to round out their religious resumes.

SOCIAL MEDIA REACTS ... and some of it ain’t pretty, child. Take a look at some of the smash and the trash after SCOTUS rocked the house.

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HEALTH & NUTRITION The South is known as the Bible Belt, but it also has one of the highest rates of obesity in the entire country. I guess if someone can choose to be gay they can also choose to eat unhealthy foods and neglect to exercise on a regular basis. Rather than denying someone the right to marry, why not use all of that righteous fury demanding to know why healthy food isn’t more affordable or in the gym getting in an aggressive workout? In many ways, the gay community is more appreciative of the bodies God gave them than many of the Bible thumpers in the South. This isn’t to say that everyone in the South is overweight, no matter their religious or spiritual affiliation, simply that it seems as though God would want you to live a long and healthy life spreading His word instead of suffering from preventable health issues or dying from them.

ENVIRONMENTALISM Protecting the planet that God made is something else Christians can focus on. They’re quick to remind us about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, but they’re not so quick to point out the devastation and extinction of God’s natural creations, such as the Amazon rainforest, the West African Black Rhino, and the Appalachian mountain system due to coal mining. It seems as though many Christians couldn’t care less about saving the planet or learning what they can do to save the planet. But ask them what they think about Caitlyn Jenner and they’re sure to have an opinion, no matter how uninformed.

MENTAL HEALTH The Bible says all sins are equal in the eyes of God, but that doesn’t change the fact that a gun-toting,

psychopathic murderer is more dangerous than a stable lesbian who just wants to live in peace.

Unlike homosexuality, mental health is something that can and should be treated. How many shootings, rapes, suicides, and murders could have been prevented if more attention was given to improving mental health? Many Christians hold on to condemning the gay community like a dog with a bone but only say a quick prayer for the victims of a shooting before they go back to bashing the LGBT community. Why put more focus on love and less on depression, feelings of inadequacy, and other mental health issues?

LEARNING FROM THE GAY COMMUNITY There’s a lot of division and differentiation in the gay community, including sub-cultures and even racism, but there’s no denying there’s also a lot of acceptance in the community. We know what it’s like to be shunned and made to feel as if you’re a defect of the human race, which is one reason you can wear whatever you want, love however you want, and be who you naturally are with love and acceptance under the rainbow flag. Love without compromise. Sounds more like the core message of Christianity, right? So why is the LGBT community better at adhering to the teachings of Jesus Christ than his followers?

No matter how much you love a song, you’ll get tired of listening to it after playing it hundreds of times in a row. If a majority of Christians would add a few new songs to their life’s playlist, we’re sure they’d be dancing just as much as we do.

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33

men and women for damned men and women. They sincerely believe God’s displeasure with America will rain ruin upon the nation and its citizens.

Those of us who supported the victory with an exuberant passion celebrated the decision made by just men and women for loving men and women. We sincerely believe long-withheld justice will finally be available to all American citizens and make us a finer nation. And celebrate we must and should. But quickly dust off the confetti; do not rest easy — this is just the beginning.

With no number clicker in hand, I estimated that out of the reported 4000 participants, less than 5 percent were noticeably a minority, and I’m being generous. Yet, time after time and disproportionately, minorities introduced speakers, provided debates, and were the subjects of propaganda videos about their local and foreign fights for freedom. “Look how diverse we are!”

In the big black box, Summit Sessions provided the forum for prayers, entertainers, mock (and mocking) debates with liberals, video testimonials, and scheduled speakers. After the first prayer that opened the session, John Anderson, founder of the Centennial Institute said, “We’re not here to support one party or another or tell you how to vote.” I about choked on my cantaloupe. (A fabulous breakfast was provided!) As an eyewitness, I can Turns out, tell you falser words were never spoken.

I sat way in the back. It afforded me the luxury to remain silent, still, and seated as wave after wave of cheering and clapping and standing ovations for presenters and comments poured from the audience. It nauseated me. Here’s what I heard or read from brochures picked up at exhibitors’ tables: Carly Fiorina, who supported same-sex couple benefits during her tenure at Hewlett Packard: “Marriage means something very specific. I don’t think five people, unelected and unaccountable, to think in their hubris, that they have the power to change that.” I don’t think five people in the audience knew what hubris means. I’d pay good money to witness her and Hillary debate … or mud wrestle.

Rick Santorum: “We have been bullied into silence.” It’s about time you shut your pie-hole because I’ve been listening to your brand of bullying for more than 50 years.

Ben Carson: “Marriage is a religious service.” Hello, anybody home? Not always, not to everyone.

Rick Perry, handsome, presidential, incoherent: “Ronald Reagan gave us hope, the Colorado Club, and the jelly-bean-guessing contest.” What Reagan didn’t give gay men was the time of day as deaths from the plague decimated our communities. For three years!

Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute: “Whining is the liberal short end of the stick in liberal media.” Oh yeah, well, I’m rubber, you’re glue; whatever you say sticks on you. The Right won’t stop whining until Pat Robertson is president.

Tony Perkins, fearing retaliation and abandoning true conservative values: “Some want to be on the right side of history. I want to be on the right side of the one who will write the final chapter.” Did he mean Stephen King or God? Please, please rapture out!

Warren Smith, veep of World News Group, whined about NPR’s $120M-dollar budget compared to his paltry $10M and unashamedly asked for support. He also talked about the lost art of storytelling. “The liberal media tells false stories. The Harvey Milk story is largely false.”

If only the part where Milk was murdered was false ...

Mike Huckabee was introduced as “insightful, funny, interesting, likable.”

(That got a laugh.) He ranted about “disgusting judicial decisions and J U LY 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

I never once heard any complaints about the SCOTUS decisions on Citizens United nor Hobby Lobby. Of course, that court was just and enlightened.

During one session, Melanie Sturm, writer of a bi-monthly column for the Aspen Times, said their principles (right-leaning) are big hearted, and ours (left-leaning) are black hearted, and, AND, wait for it, wait for it: “We have a morally superior plan for humanity.” Suddenly, a picture came to me. Substitute the cross with the swastika, God for der Führer, gays for Jews, Huckabee, Santorum, Fiorina for Himmler, Speer, Eva Braun, Denver for Berlin, 2015 for the 1930s. Hyperbole? Fearing thought police would soon drop a net over me, I almost ran from the center.

Attention religious Right Republicans: There is no war on Christianity!

There is, however, a war on your ignorance, your arrogance, your hypocrisy, your perverted dogma of power and control based on one of the most loving I’d followed a souls — whom you deem your personal savior — ever to visit Earth. Liberals — frankly, any fair-minded path to one of Dante’s individual — won a major battle with the success of unmentioned rings of Obergefell v. Hodges, but the real war is far from won.

My America, your America, their America will never be hell, the one marked the same. The reason I felt heavy-hearted many times ‘Abandon all hope at this convention was because I wished for a future when America will be our America. The last time I of finding common remember an America this divided was during the ground with yonder Vietnam war, a national, soul-gutting travesty of injustice rabid religious Republto a country, and then to the vets who fought it. (If you want a historical perspective, read One Nation Under icans, ye liberals who God: How Corporate America Invented Christian enter here.’

America by Kevin M. Kruse, emphasis on invented.)

Former Colorado Senator Bill Armstrong, now president of CCU, regarding the Log Cabin Republicans: “I don’t think they’re a good fit with our group.”

34

judicial tyranny, an extreme court who rewrites the laws of nature and the laws of God,” and about an “imperial court.” Was he referencing our wonderful, drag organization that has raised tens of thousands of dollars for charity? Or was he channeling J. Edgar Hoover?

”

But who will decide what the future of America will look like? The young, and the minorities. The aging party of white, male evangelicals knows this is its last chance to embed its dogma within the national psyche. During the hours spent listening to speakers, mostly middle-aged white males, the conference leaders trotted up teenage or millennial boys and girls to introduce the next speaker. Civic and academic leaders, God-fearing and freshly scrubbed, the youth spouted the tenets of their pastors and parents. When I spoke several times to young attendees, I got a different picture.

Three young teenagers, all blond and of varying height like Russian nesting dolls, each wearing a polo shirt of pink, green, or tan color, paced the long corridor with clipboards in hand engaging passersby.

“Hey guys, what are you doing?” I asked.

“We’re taking a poll.”

I answered their questions and said, “I saw you yesterday. I call you the Spumoni gang.”

Uncomfortable giggles. They had no idea what I meant. “You know that ice cream that’s strawberry, mint, and chocolate?” More giggles as they understood my gag.

I asked them what they thought about the conference. They were so bright and cheery and optimistic. The planet needs our help. Healthcare was important.

Same-sex marriage? Weeeeell, not really a big deal, but not quite sure.

Logan, a Washington State college student and a young Zac Efron, wasn’t quite sure about same-sex marriage either. He wanted to read all he could before he “made a bold statement.” Fair enough.

Matt, a potential Randy Blue star with his buzzed sides and pompadour haircut, tended the Tea Party table. I tried to engage him about the Supreme Court decision, noting that I’d heard the attorney general for Georgia,

his home state, was the first to declare the decision the law of land and had made its county offices available for same-sex marriage licenses. He really wished he could chat but as long as the line was behind the table, he couldn’t. I chuckled and said, “So come over to my side of the table.”

He laughed and declined, but I sensed he was supportive.

I stopped off at the Log Cabin Republicans booth, graciously shared with the Colorado Republicans. I spoke to Andy and Travis. Of course, they were elated with the SCOTUS decision. Their reception by people who stopped by was respectful and mostly out of curiosity. The guys felt they were putting a face to homosexuality to people who might not know any and how they share many conservative values. I congratulated them and a member of the other group. I mentioned the brouhaha over their application for their own table being denied. “Shameful!” said Barbara. Ok, Barbara. “This group supported my son when he ran for state attorney general. They’re wonderful and deserved their own table. If you really want to talk to an extreme group, go to the Eagle Forum. That’s Phyllis Schlafly’s group.”

Remembering Schlafley’s extreme positions, I thought I’d better not. I’d maintained my civility and respect so far, but didn’t want to push it.

A surprise meeting with a former colleague of mine led to our chat about the conference. He’s a type of chief-of-staff for a local politician. I was encouraged that this brilliant conservative was very disappointed about what he was hearing at the conference and from his boss. “Can’t we just move on to important issues?” Apparently not.

If you need proof the war wages on, on July 4th The Denver Post reported that two new measures have been introduced to the Colorado legislature.

If passed, one redefines the relationship between any same-sex couple married in Colorado or in another state as a civil union, not a marriage.

The other, resulting from several bakery-related incidents, allows weddingrelated businesses opposed to gay marriage to hire a contractor to serve the couples from a list of willing businesses maintained by the state. This opening salvo by conservatives portends the war will continue. What a waste of time, energy, resources.

Stupefied every day from the effects of being a stranger in the strangest land, I had to get back to reality, my reality. Friday, I went to Lannie’s Clocktower to watch a Dame Edna impersonator, and enjoy my kind of standing ovation for the announcement of the same-sex ruling. Saturday, at a murder-mystery dinner sponsored by members of an Episcopalian church, I played Nico Rodriguez, a pro-baseball wanna-be and chick magnet in love with Maria — and a prime suspect in her brutal murder.

We made love in a coffin. She turns out to be my half sister. Only time I’ve ever been a chick magnet, yet that was more realistic than my day at the conference. Sunday, I watched Edward II, Derek Jarmon’s 1991 modern film of Christopher Marlowe’s Elizabethan play, starring a stunning Tilda Swinton. Brilliant Jarmon died of AIDS in 1994. The gay king died with a hot poker up his ass, the metal kind. Committed in the name of God and country — like so much of what I’d heard the past three days — the regicide seemed a fitting diversion. The story is actually about corruption, power, riches, and control — like so much of what I’d heard the past three days.

Another hero of mine who died too early from AIDS is Paul Monette, author of Borrowed Time and Becoming a Man, winner of the 1992 National Book Award for Nonfiction, both chronicles of being gay and fights against AIDS. He wrote, “Go without hate, but not without rage. Heal the world.”

As a survivor of the plague years, I feel his words challenging me. I don’t hate the attendees, never did. I still know they all wear the face of God. Yes, I raged against their world views. But the jury is still out about whether or not I will help heal the world.

Leaving Sunday afternoon, after talking with the young men, I felt hopeful which was light years from what I’d felt the past three days. And I thanked God for my lighter heart. In the parking lot, a rusting, diesel pick-up displayed a Romney for President bumper sticker and another with these words: Tolerance is the virtue of a man without convictions. I took out my Sharpie and scratched out the letters ‘o-u-t.’ Always the good boy and so unlike me, at the time, I feared the owner would catch me. Then I prayed (if caught) that he or she didn’t win the lottery for a gun.

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GAY MEN, MISOGYNY, ANDTHE MISUNDERSTOOD ‘B’ Ripley Grey

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED THE year I tur ned 24: I discovered I felt (quite naturally) attracted to women. Not in the sense that I felt they made wonderful shopping buddies and confidants, but in the sense that I felt they made a wonderful addition to my sex life.

No, really.

men would (quite literally) get beaten for — and they get away with

Really.

it. Especially in gay clubs.

It wasn’t the first time I’d felt that way, and I knew it wouldn’t be the last, but a persistent voice in my head told me to put a lid on the urge. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll shut up and stay quiet about this whole thing,” the voice told me.

With startling regularity, it isn’t merely okay for the GBF (gay best

What was this late-blooming affection for women, anyway? I’m nearly 24. Shouldn’t my sexuality be fully informed by now? My inner gay man — the well-adjusted and accepted one — considered the whole thing fashionably late. Throw some glitter on the whole mess and call it an entrance. The rest of my (rattled) psyche wondered if maybe a few wires hadn’t crossed upstairs. It was all eerily reminiscent of that tearful grade-school conversation I’d had with my mother: coming out.

powerful female, tend to degrade the “ordinary” ones doing their

The whole idea of a “second coming” was terrifying. Wasn’t the first time difficult enough? It felt like that rock I’d been pushing up the hill my entire life had rolled right over me. I sat on my thoughts for some time. Otherwise completely confident in every area of my life, I was mostly perturbed by this inclination to conceal any piece of myself. What gives? What’s the big deal? Who really cares, anyway?

As it happens, a lot of people care (and everyone has their opinion). Bisexuals, like unicorns, are given the same treatment as folklore or urban legends. Gay men will give you side-eye, drag queens will give you side-eye, and women will wonder if you’re capable of committing to anything beyond a cell-phone plan. (Actually, no, I’m month-to-month, thank you.)

friend) to fondle the nearest pair of breasts, he’s also berating how women around him look, what they’re wearing, and how much “work” they need to look more beautiful. Gay men, who typically honor the best to make it day by day.

Ironically, women tend to extol the ease of being in a gay bar. “I never feel like I’m going to get harassed here! It’s so much better than going to my local bar,” she’ll say. In a single sentence, a woman can neutralize male sexuality while simultaneously making it impossible for men to approach her without betraying that sense of safety.

Worse than a fear of rejection, bisexuals confront the risk of total sexual marginalization. “You’re just confused! It’s fine, go find a cute guy and say hello,” someone will (inevitably) suggest. Yet that isn’t really the way it works, is it? Can’t a person

Bisexual men have a suicide rate twice as high as gay men, and increased anxiety, substance abuse, and depression when compared to their gay counterparts.

In fact, during a recent conversation with some friends, more than one brandished their air quotes. You know, “bisexual.” On the path to full sexual liberation, more than one gay man has claimed to be bisexual to escape the full wrath of family and friends.

On that note, it’s also interesting how many male celebrities cite their bisexuality trying to make their star shine a little brighter in the public eye (or perhaps when it isn’t shining as brightly as it once did).

”

conceivably enjoy men, enjoy women, or enjoy both (and call it a great weekend)?

I’m certainly not confused, and I’d hope the vast majority of other men and women out there aren’t either. Even so, people who progress to heterosexual relationships will have merely “gone through a phase” while people who wind up in same-sex relationships were “gay all along.”

Most at risk seems to be one’s masculinity.

Why do so many men, gay and straight, look down on bisexual men? I’d like to suggest it’s poor understanding on behalf of both parties: Heterosexual men will never understand attraction to another man, while gay men will never understand a man’s attraction to another woman. As

for the ladies, do women think less of bisexual men, or is it one of their biggest fantasies? Our friends at PornHub tell us the number one thing women search for is (you got it) gay porn.

Still, the need to unbox my feelings was almost stifling. Having felt normalized for years in my identity, I suddenly felt typecast in my own life. There was this upwelling need to correct people who sort of offhandedly bemoaned, “Gosh, what a pity you’re only into guys.”

Whoa. Hold the phone, how do you know me so well? Yet, that’s part of the whole equation, the ease of assuming some (or all) of a person’s identity by their sexual orientation and public presentation.

Finally, a bright spot.

The truth of the matter is, most gay men act like four year olds when discussing women. They scrunch up their faces and wrinkle their noses talking about roast-beef, fish, and the need for more tartar sauce at the clambake. Personally, the majority of gay men I’ve met are more misogynistic than any heterosexual guy could ever reasonably be. They say, and do, things to women that heterosexual

When we think about all the alphabet soup we’ve concocted over

If we take away anything from all of this, it’s that the mental health of bisexual men and women is deeply affected by all these (very confusing) feelings. Bisexual men (specifically), have a suicide rate twice as high as gay men, and increased incidence of anxiety, substance abuse, and depression when compared to their gay counterparts. the years, it’s vitally important we never overlook (or marginalize) the ‘B’ in LGBT. It’s a real thing.

No, really.

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37

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J U LY 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

We’re all familiar with the story of a hot, rich Daddy and his younger, supersexy escort, right? (Not the story of your early 20s, boo — Julia Roberts actually got paid.) Join the Out Front team as we kick it at Red Rocks and watch the 1990 classic starring Richard Gere and Julia Whatserface. Don’t miss out. It’d be a big mistake. Huge! Film.RedRocksOnline.com/fotr

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39

I’VE GOT THE GAY WEDDING BELL BLUES WHILE EVERYONE WAS CELEBRATING THE Supreme

Cour t’s decision to legalize gay marriage ever ywhere in the US, I dropped to my knees in the middle of the pouring rain and let loose a full-throated yell like someone had just killed my kung fu master. It was already hard enough being a single gay man in the 21st centur y, and now the Supremes (not the Motown singing group) have made it even more difficult.

O’Brian Gunn

“SO HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT MARRIAGE?” Dating has always felt a bit like a final boss battle in an RPG: You’ve got to level up your character, gather the right armor and weapons, and you might have to die a few thousand times before you hear that sweet victory fanfare (you Final Fantasy fans know the one). Now that marriage has revealed itself as the final final boss, I’m almost tempted to fling the controller across the room … except it’s too expensive to buy a new one.

We all know that as we get older, there’s more pressure to get married.

Before, being asked when you were going to tie the noose — I mean, knot — was almost exclusive to the heterosexual community. Even if you lived in a state where gay marriage was legal, that marriage might not be recognized if you and your spouse were to move to another state (until recently). Now there’s a chance I might have to endure the same line of questioning as my straight brothers and sisters. Thanks a lot, Supremes.

Your fruit basket’s on the way.

LAWYER UP, COWBOY! Divorce lawyers are probably rubbing their soft, well-moisturized hands together in anticipation and glee at the thought of the new luxury cars they’ll buy with the help of soon-to-be gay divorcees. And a few of them probably almost stroked out when they remembered all of the disposable income the gay community has. Heated, buttery-soft leather seats, baby!

Don’t think the Supreme Court didn’t take this into consideration when they made their decision. It’s not about human rights, it’s about gay couples

M A RQU EE

40

J U LY 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

Move over Judge Judy — Gay Divorce Court is about to snatch out your viewership like a bad weave!

”

fighting over who gets the Keurig coffeemaker while their twinklingtoothed lawyer dives into piles of money like Scrooge McDuck. And I wouldn’t doubt a gay divorce TV show is already in the works. Move over Judge Judy — Gay Divorce Court is about to snatch out your viewership like a bad weave.

“WILL YOU MARRY ME? AND WHAT’S YOUR NAME AGAIN?” Did anyone else hear that sonic boom when the news broke? That was the sound of gay women and men rushing out to find “the one.” The thirst is upon us, ladies and gentlemen, and it’s almost worse than the barbarism of Black Friday. For those of us who are single and 30 or above, the thirst is especially palpable. Even if you’re like me, someone who can see himself in a marriage but doesn’t want to rush it, you can’t help but seriously start evaluating your life, your career, and your prospects to get a solid idea of the perfect age of marriage … even though there really isn’t one. We know that marriage and relationships can’t be penciled into our schedules, but we also know that the heart is the most foolish of all the organs.

Now I guess single gay men and women across the US will be turning to their straight and bisexual friends asking how to navigate the marriage minefield. At least now we have something else to bring us closer together.

And another reason for me to throw back another bourbon and ginger.

Here’s to you, Supreme Disappointment.

MARY POPPINS May 16 th to September 5 th, 2015 5501 Arapahoe Ave. • Boulder BDTStage.com

BUCKLEY AFB OBSERVES PRIDE Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora closed out Pride Month with a National LGBT Pride Observance at the 140th Wing Headquarters Building on June 29. This year’s keynote speakers were Lieutenant Colonel Cynthia Clefisch and her wife Karissa Arnett. Lieutenant Colonel Clefisch is the new 480th Civil Engineer Commander at Buckley AFB. Approximately 70 people attended the observance including representatives from American Veterans for Equal Rights, the Human Rights Campaign, and One Colorado.

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C I N E MA Q

DESERT MIGRATION BEING DIAGNOSED WITH HIV ISN’T the death sentence

it used to be. With moder n medications, persons infected with the virus are living longer than ever expected. For the older generation who watched their friends die around them as they waited to become another statistic, it’s something they never thought they would see. In Daniel F. Cardone’s documentar y Desert Migration, we get a glimpse of 13 men’s stories, triumphs, trials, and lives living in Palm Springs, a deser t city 100 miles west of Los Angeles and an oasis for older men living with HIV.

The film does a phenomenal job of educating both young and old generations on the affects HIV has on the body, soul, and bank account during a time when HIV is easily controlled.

”

Desert Migration shows at 4:15pm on Sunday, July 26. For more details, check out this issue’s Cinema Q insert.

Ryan Howe

Desert Migration fills in a missing gap. The film does a phenomenal job of educating both young and old generations on the affects HIV has on the body, soul, and bank account during a time when HIV is easily controlled.

After all, how bad is it really to take one or two pills a day?

What they need to realize is that research has shown that older HIV-infected individuals face a higher risk for developing cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and neurological problems like dementia. Meanwhile, more than half of the 1.1 million HIV patients in the US have neurocognitive disorders that may affect concentration, memory, decision making, coordination, and motor skills, as well as language and sensory perception. So those one or two pills a day quickly turns into handfuls.

Cardone does a phenomenal job of showing this issue, alongside many others, with shots of these men’s lives. Viewers see Steve Barkel talk about getting surgery done to counteract the aggressive aging process, Will Grant talk about the Kaposi’s Sarcoma lesions on his back that deter him from being intimate with anyone, and Bill Fauber post reminders around his house to make sure he remembers basic daily functions.

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“I might remember something now, and in five seconds I will forget,” Fauber, 66, says in the film.

The film not only touches on health deterioration, but also social prejudices and financial troubles. Erik Janke talks about dating, and how one young man grew angry after learning he was on a date with a poz man. Steve Henderson discusses living paycheck to paycheck, sometimes foregoing meals, and the possibility of living out of his car. Barkel speaks about losing his disability based on how well he looks on Facebook, as opposed to his minimal T-cell count.

The film is equal parts educational, inspirational, and heartbreaking. The cinematography adds to the mood of the documentary, with the 13 men telling their stories in voiceovers as we see them go about their daily lives of working out, taking medications, and interacting with people. Although it seems slow at times, the desire to turn my attention to something else never arose.

Cardone delivered a film with an important message. Watch this film as soon as possible.

COLORADO SQUID Out Front caught up with about two-dozen members of the Colorado SQUID Swim Team at the La Alma Recreation Center pool in La Alma Lincoln Park on June 27th. Swimming Queers United in Denver was founded in 1992 by a group of athletes preparing for the 1994 Gay Games.

More than 80 members now participate in their swimming program. Their members include competitive, open water and recreational swimmers. All are welcome regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Photo by Charles Broshous

OUTFRONTONLINE.COM

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C I N E MA Q

THE REELS OF THE GAME JOSH KIM’S HOW TO WIN AT CHECKERS is a different kind

of gay film, one that focuses less on love and more on what we do because of love. Our narrator, Oat, is a young boy who lives in Bangkok with his brother, aunt, and niece, and acts as the audience’s introduction to what it takes to sur vive the game of checkers and the game of life. The film opens on an adult Oat dreaming about his brother Ek twisting and bur ning in an alley with a bottle in his hand. From there, we go back to when Oat was younger and unschooled in the lessons of life.

No matter what you’re playing, the game piece is always money.

”

How to Win at Checkers shows at 2:20pm on Saturday, July 25. For more details, check out this issue’s Cinema Q insert.

O’Brian Gunn

Oat and Ek’s father died as the result of a construction accident, and we’re never told what became of their mother. The catalyst of the film is whether Ek will be drafted into the military and forced to leave his family and boyfriend Jai. Oat learns that just as there are two colors in checkers, there are also two colors in life: the clinging black of the poverty he and his brother live in, and the pristine white of privilege in which Jai resides.

Oddly enough, it’s their differences that make the relationship between Ek and Jai work.

boss threatens to cut off Oat’s thumb for stealing from him and punishes Ek, who is also one of his employees.

But it’s also what tears them apart.

One day, while playing video games over Jai’s house, Oat witnesses a meeting between Jai’s father and the local black market boss who seems to have his finger in every illegal pie in town, including fixing the draft lottery. It’s here that Oat receives his first lesson in what it takes to win and stack the odds in your favor. He also learns that no matter what game you’re playing, the game piece is always money.

Kim shuffles the deck near the end of the movie and takes the audience deeper into the game when he reveals what Ek does to support his family and what he’s willing to do to provide for his brother. One can’t help but wonder if he’s doing it for Oat or simply because he’s given up on any chance of winning. The final scenes of the film reveal Ek’s fate and rubber band back to the older and more hard-bitten Oat we were introduced to at the beginning.

Where Ek seems to have already accepted the fact that he’ll be drafted into the military, Oat resorts to smashing the black market boss’s car window and stealing the money Jai’s father originally gave him. From there, he mirrors the move he witnessed earlier and attempts to buy his brother’s freedom. Here, Oat learns his second lesson: The house always wins. The

How to Win at Checkers advances at a gradual pace, like a game of chess.

There are several players and stories being shuffled across the board, each with their own part to play. While some members of the audience may not be impressed with how the final score turns out, they can at least enjoy the fact they learned a new way to play an old game.

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It’s at this point in the film that the light of love dims enough that Ek and Jai start to see that even though neither of them have become soldiers, they’re still standing on opposite sides of the battlefield. After the draft lottery, both Oat and the audience start to see what kind of player Ek truly is and how he chooses to play the hand life has dealt him.

C I N EM A Q

ATTEMPTED PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL MONOGAMIST O’Brian Gunn

DIRECTORS JOHN MITCHELL AND CHRISTINA Zeidler make an honest effort creating a film that examines the life of a serial monogamist through a lesbian’s eyes, but Portrait of a Serial Monogamist offers up a partial image that doesn’t quite come into focus.

The film’s opening introduces us to Elsie, a Toronto resident who’s sitting down with her girlfriend Robyn to a home-cooked meal served up with a surprise side of confusion delicately flavored with a breakup that leaves Robyn’s stomach churning. Elsie exits before the fog clears when a friend “unexpectedly” stops by with wine, leaving her to help Robyn swallow the bitter brew while Elsie dips out through the front door and smacks into the fourth wall to explain her rules for breaking up with a girlfriend directly to us.

Rather than taking some time to be alone or talk with a friend, Elsie instead heads to a bar where she shows a Wolverine-level healing factor and restarts the fire of love with a Lolli, a DJ/barista/photographer. It’s here that we get our first peek at Elsie’s need for companionship that borders on raw desperation. Is Elsie afraid of being alone, or does she feel she does better in a relationship?

Unfortunately, the movie never really sits still long enough for us to get an answer to this question.

If Elsie isn’t getting advice about being single from her friend, she’s at work handling a potential takeover, dealing with a Jewish mother who doesn’t listen to her, or making a drunken bet with a friend to be single for five months. Mitchell and Zeidler have all of the makings of a great exploratory film laced with comedy, the tender buds of love, the sour taste of a relationship that’s passed its expiration date, and commentary regarding marriage and relationships. Everyone RSVPed to the party, but only a few actually showed up.

While I enjoyed the fact that Elsie physically addressed the audience, I feel there were several missed opportunities for her to tell us exactly what’s going on in her head and the explanation behind her major decisions. Since we’re never directly told what Elsie does for a living, we’re left to guess that it has something to do with journalism and something she doesn’t care very much about, because she doesn’t seem overly concerned with the fact that big company changes are on the horizon.

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The film also lacks many of the subtle and well-placed elements that help the audience to connect and care for Elsie and what happens to her. I’m not asking for her life story, just a sprinkling of personal details that help fill out the image of who she is, what she likes, what makes her want to Hulk out in rage, and what makes her cry. This particular character portrait lacks the nuance, shading, careful brushstrokes, and angles that make you want to stare at an image for hours on end turning it over and over in your head.

Portrait of a Serial Monogamist isn’t a bad film by any means. Just as Elsie makes her girlfriends think it’s them who want to break up, she makes the audience think it’s going to get to know her, why she loves the way she does, and why she treats her relationships more like plasticwear and less like the finest of china. Rather than breaking the fourth wall, all she really does is knock. And we never really learn who’s there.

OUTFRONTONLINE.COM

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LOVE WINS RALLY On June 26, 2015 the United States Supreme Court ruled in a 5 to 4 decision, that same-sex marriage is legal in all fifty states and U.S. territories. Approximately 1000 people gathered on the west steps of the Colorado State Capitol to celebrate “Love Wins” with Equality Colorado and One Colorado. Featured speakers included, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, U.S. Senator Michael Bennett, Congresswoman Diana DeGette, and a number of state and local politicians.

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WHAT’S MARRIAGE GOT TO DO WITH MONEY? (HINT: A LOT!)

SCOTUS’ RULING OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE changes the financial dynamics for same-sex couples who chose to marry. I’m a financial advisor who’s counseled many same-sex couples who were unable to be “legally” married until the landmark June 26 ruling. The new law now opens doors to financial planning strategies to help same-sex married couples. (Previously these strategies were only reserved for heterosexual married couples.)

Suzanne Charrin

So what are they? Here are a few critical financial planning areas that should be addressed immediately when same-sex couples are considering marriage.

PROTECT HIM BY STAYING IN HIV CARE. When it comes to talking about HIV status, things can get awkward. But letting your partner know you’re in treatment and undetectable is good for your health and his health. Isn’t it time you got the conversation started?

D E N V E R B R I N G S I T U P. O R G

Income taxes Same-sex married spouses can now file a joint federal income tax return. Filing jointly doesn’t always result in a tax savings; for extremely high-earning married couples, it can be a bad idea. Right now, single tax filers can earn up to $413,000 before entering the 39.6 percent tax bracket; a married couple will enter it when their combined incomes surpass $464,000. Still, same-sex couples are welcoming the option. However, by virtue of being married, certain investment income will be subject to an additional 3.8 percent surtax, which was enacted as part of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.

Now that the chance to file jointly is available, could married samesex couples get a federal tax refund by filing amended 1040s for the past three years of returns?

It may be worth consulting a CPA that is well-seasoned in this area of knowledge to find out.

Social Security Social Security is often the largest benefit that married couples will receive in retirement and needs to be managed properly. Samesex couples now have more than 81 ways to take Social Security benefits. Now, surviving spouses can collect a deceased spouse’s federal or military pension. Seeking out financial advice is a must in this area. Don’t rely on the folks at the Social Security office to advise you of your best financial options!

IRA & 401k A surviving spouse in a same-sex marriage can now roll inherited IRA assets into their own IRA (provided they are named sole beneficiary of those assets). This opens the door for stretch IRA strategies among same-sex married couples. Now, a surviving spouse will have the ability to automatically inherit a 401(K) account unless that default beneficiary choice has been declined in writing by the account holder.

So yes: You two are hitching wallets when you’re saying I do. Know your rights!

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The information in this communication is not intended to be legal/financial advice and should not be treated as such. Each individual’s situation is different. You should contact your legal/ financial professional to discuss your personal situation.

© 2015 Denver Public Health

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Provided by courtesy of Suzanne Charrin, MA, RFC, a REGISTERED FINANCIAL CONSULTANT with Life Certain Wealth Strategies, 8400 E. Prentice Ave, #715 Greenwood Village, CO www. lifecertain.com, 303-793-3999. Securities and investment advisory services offered through Woodbury Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA, SIPC and Registered Investment Advisor. Life Certain Wealth Strategies and Woodbury Financial Services are not affiliated entities.

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GAY PRIDE CONTEST Brandi Roberts and Martini Monroe presented the 28th Annual Gay Pride Contest of All Colorado at the Timbers Hotel at I-70 and Peoria on June 27th. This year’s event crowned a new Mister and Miss Gay Pride of All Colorado for 2015-2016. Congratulations to Scot Alexzander and Alexis Savage.

Photo by Charles Broshous

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EXHIBIT M

A LITTLE BIT NAUGHTY AND A WHOLE LOT OF FUN DENVER HAS, FOR THE MOST par t, always been a ‘me, too’

city and when we of-age Denverites are looking for something fun and exciting to do, our choices are typically marked by similarity to the activities and escapades of our fellow rabble-rousers. Whether we are attending or planning our friend’s bachelor or bachelorette par ty, it’s a safe bet that a strip club is likely in our future.

Jerry Cunningham

That was, until now.

Allow me to introduce you to sisters Jessica and Olivia Kunevicius, the producers of Denver’s newest high-energy, sexually charged, and fanciful show: Exhibit M. “I got married last May and Olivia was my Maid of Honor,” Jessica tells us. “I wanted a fun, sexy, and most importantly, special night out with my girlfriends in Denver, without wearing a tiara or drinking from a penis straw.”

Jessica and Olivia were disappointed to learn that Denver lacked diverse adult-entertainment options. “We wanted to find an intelligent and engaging show that was talent-heavy and featured men and their masculine physique, but it just doesn’t exist,” she explains. Then the light bulb went off.

They hired a choreographer and Exhibit M was born.

audience-participation experience where provocative enticement is the headliner. Exhibit M seems anything but tired and resting on the cliches and reputations of the past.

Choreographed by the artful Jacob Mora and showcasing the talents of the chiseled Theo Wilson and exquisite Emily Saunar, this high-energy and super-steamy show includes numbers set to a variety of top songs and genres, not to mention a cast of gorgeous hot bodies and talented performers, nudge nudge.

Hosted at Casselman’s, an unusual event space located just north of Downtown Denver and nestled in the heart of the River North District.

RiNo, as it’s known, includes a remarkable concentration of creative businesses, including architects, art galleries, small-batch breweries, an array of studio spaces, and now Exhibit M at Casselman’s.

Exhibit M, a “reimagined” version of the standard male revue and time-honored burlesque is served-up through raucous conversation, song, and dance. It’s a sexy night out, perfect for date night, Gays’ or Ladies’ Night Out, and bachelor and/or bachelorette parties.

As vivacious and unexpected as it is intimate and alluring, this modern theatre and cabaret-style revue is a physical, high-octane experience that tantalizes as much as it entertains. We would describe this show as Chippendales meets performance art, with a little bit of naughty and whole lot of fun.

Exhibit M is a new and provocative songand-dance show featuring an incredible cast of singers, poets, and dancers; an interactive,

Tickets are $25 and include an after party with a DJ and dancing from 11:30 pm til close.

EnterExhibitM.com

Two shows per night! August 08, 7:30pm & 10pm; September 12, 7:30pm & 10pm Casselman’s 2620 Walnut Street, Denver, CO 80205; Group Sales call: 720-242-8923 OUTFRONTONLINE.COM

53

HEALTH

THE MADNESS (AND THE MAGIC) OF THE MIRROR IT’S CRAZY WHAT A GOOD WORKOUT CAN DO STRESS, ANGER, OR SADNESS — over the years I’ve found these feelings are best dispelled through a long run or yoga session. Afterwards, I can’t help but feel joyful, that ever ything, if only just for an hour or two, is ok in the world. Perhaps I can contribute most of this to the happy quality of the endorphins clouding my mind, but I always find myself leaving a workout in a better mood than when I star ted: happier, calmer, and more confident.

I’m still struggling with these questions, but from what I’ve learned so far is that you are the most important entity to your own happiness — your strongest ally and your worst enemy.

”

Kelsey Lindsey

The last side effect is of particular interest to me. Talking with running buddies and yoga partners over the years, it seems that even the tiniest bit of activity can have intense ramifications on one’s self-perception.

I’ve heard stories — and have experienced it myself — of people looking in the mirror post-workout, and seeing different versions of themselves.

Their abs seem flatter and their arms are bigger, even if their body hasn’t physically changed all that much. Because it’s hard to achieve a 360-degree change in one workout, it seems to me that what’s being altered is less physical and more mental — how we view both ourselves and our bodies once we leave the gym.

This mind-altering effect has a dark side though. After a particularly glutenous meal, I sometimes look in the mirror and see a doughy and bloated Kelsey staring back, an expanded version of my body pre-feast. It usually doesn’t stop there. To everyone else I look the same, but in my head I’ve gained 20 pounds, I’m suddenly unhappy with my hair, and ten new

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sunspots have rapidly appeared on my face in the course of an hour. One negative thought leads to another, and I’m caught in a downward spiral of self-negativity and shame. And while these feelings are common after a greasy meal, I’ve noticed that it’s not unusual for many to catch the wave of discontentment after spotting even the most trivial of “flaws” — that is to say, characteristics that don’t measure up to society’s increasingly high standard of beauty.

Why is it so easy to switch from one extreme to the next? And most importantly, how do we get it to stop? I’m still struggling with these questions, but from what I’ve learned so far is that you are the most important entity to your own happiness — your strongest ally and your worst enemy. The path to self-acceptance doesn’t start with a hundred pushups or a new foundation; it starts with you loving you, in every shape, size, and form.

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O U T BAC K C L ASS I F I E DS Envisioned by Boberto

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57

BAC KWOR DS

THE SCOPES CANCER: What’s up with you lately, Cancer? It’s like you refuse to talk to anyone outside of an occasional text or Facebook message. Yo. Lame.

Cold. Just pick up the damn phone and call your buddies sometime. They miss your laugh.

LEO: Where’s your mind lately, Lionheart? (In a fog, that’s where.) You’ve been indulging a bit too much lately, but that’s all good. You’ve got plenty of brain left. While it’s true that you get your sh*t done, maybe just pump the brakes for a bit and revive those wilted cells, will ya? You’re much more chill without the burnout business.

up on the couch with a thick book and get nerdy with it? (We don’t, either.) You’ve always been on the go, searching for the next (mis)adventure and it’s getting tiresome, Scorpio. How ‘bout kick it solo from time to time? You’re actually due for figuring yourself out.

SAGITTARIUS: Please stop moping over that missed opportunity. Honestly. I know it’s cliche, but things happen for a reason. It’s quite possible that you didn’t get what you wanted because it wasn’t going to bring you the happiness it appeared to promise. But today’s a new one — own it.

VIRGO: You’re normally a headstrong sort, but homie: Calm the hell down. That attitude of yours isn’t going unnoticed by people who you don’t need angry at you. Take a breather and get your moxie back.

CAPRICORN: Good Gawd, Cappy. What’ve you gone and done … and why do you keep doing it?

One of these years, you’ll learn that these types of things are going to burn you every damn time.

But you keep on keepin’ on, I guess.

LIBRA: Why do you refuse to acknowledge that starry-eyed “secret” admirer? Your standards lately have gotten pretty weird. Perhaps instead of bitching that the barista with hella sexy tats isn’t shoutin’ back, pay some mind to the sweetheart who’s clearly into you. Seriously.

AQUARIUS: That same-sex marriage/Facebook business from your conservative “friends” is enough. Will you go ahead and unfollow these people, already? It’s best that you just leave them to their opinions — you’ll never change the way they feel. I’m sorry, but do it for your sanity.

SCORPIO: Remember when you used to curl

PISCES: You know what they say: When it

rains, it pours. Though not huge crises, the little annoyances life’s been throwing you are really starting to add up. The cure: Unplug from work/ people for a solid day, throw on some Netflix, sip your favorite beverage, and count each and every little blessing that lets you enjoy a day of doing absolutely nothing. Go on — you deserve it.

ARIES: You know what you are? You’re the best bodyguard a friend could have. You’re like a quiet, awesome bouncer that makes us feel so protected when you’re around. And not just in an “I’m gonna beat some ass!” sense, but in an emotional way. You have the most soothing things to say when sh*t gets rough. Never change, Aries.

TAURUS: You’re entering a really interesting time in your life where the people around are challenging your worldviews in ways you’ve never quite experienced. It’s a great time for you, Taurus, as you’re a natural thinker who likes more material to ponder. Equally, you’re a great mind who contributes to the big picture with ease. Enjoy, brainiac!

GEMINI: Holy cow, thank GAWD you’re back at the bottom of the zodiac lineup, am I right?

While birthdays are cool and all that, they’re somehow not as amazing as your friends make them out to be. When you were young, it was all good to go nuts on your special day. Now? It’s just unnecessary. Congrats on being able to lay low again, Gem.

I always hear how I shouldn’t eat at certain restaurants or shop at certain stores.

How am I supposed to keep up with who’s anti-LGBT? Signed, CONFUSED CONSUMER Bea: That’s always a tough quandary. It’s always hard to know where to shop at the “right” store. Biggest rule: Eat out locally! (So look across the table from you at your date and chow down baby!)

ASK A SLUT

[WARNING: GRAPHIC]

Dear Cycle Sluts, Have you ever been arrested? What was jail like for a Glittery Goddess?

Signed, TWEETY JAILBIRD Bea: Why, what have you heard? All I can say is that I was young and needed the money! (But was I arrested? NEVER!) Now, I will tell you that I’ve been in the back of many cop cars, and I have the badges to prove it.

LaTexa: That is none of your damn business, but according to public record, yes I did a nickel in the joint and let me tell it was more than 58

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three hots and a cot — prison sex is amazing, Gay porn does not lie: HOT, HOT, HOT! Zoey: I’ve been handcuffed and been the entertainment in the backroom of the policeman’s balls, but I have never been arrested.

My record is as clean as a newly douched ass.

Cookie: Nope. (Not yet.) I am waiting for the right person to go jail with. If I’m gonna go, I want it to be worth the time. I’m sure I’ll have no problems making new and interesting friends.

Hell, we could even start a sister group to the Sluts with all those bearded ladies in the slammer.

LaTexa: You know that every corporation is evil and soulless. So don’t feel so guilty about eating at that chicken place or shopping at Wally World. (Just do it when your friend can’t see you leaving — our dirty little secret.)

Zoey: Next time you go to a restaurant you’re not sure about, just ask the manager if he would rather you go down on him or his food. If he kicks you out, don’t go back.

Cookie: Ah, who can follow who is and who is not. I don’t worry about it because they’ll tell me right off the bat when I walk in. (With as much glitter as I have, they will love me or hate me.) If they love me, then glittery joy for all. If they hate me, then I get to leave my glittery love herpes all over place — even a glitter bomb will stay with them for ever.

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