pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976
Vol. 41 No. 3
Jan. 20-26, 2017
HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM
Arrest made in robberies of trans women, murder of man By Jeremy Rodriguez jeremy@epgn.com
police say White attempted to rob a transgender woman, whose ad he also responded to on Backpage. Police say the woman’s friend, An arrest was made this week in connec- Barry Jones, 32, heard the commotion and attempted to confront White, who tion with robberies of transgender allegedly shot Jones in the head. women and the murder of a man last Jones later died. week. Police said White fled on foot On Jan. 15, Philadelphia police after stealing cash and a cell phone arrested Matthew White, 32, and from the woman. charged him with murder, aggravated “I am very grateful for the tireassault, possession of a firearm, robless effort of the Philadelphia bery and other related offenses. Police Department to arrest the perIn two separate occurrences, White allegedly responded to a trans womMATTHEW son responsible for these crimes,” an’s personal ad on classifieds-adverWHITE said Nellie Fitzpatrick, director of the Office of LGBT Affairs. “The tising website Backpage. During the Jan. 8 incident, police say White efforts to engage the public for assistance robbed three transgender women of cash and were successful in this case. This arrest does a cell phone in the Kingsessing area. White not bring back the life lost or erase the trauma fled the scene on foot and allegedly fired one inflicted upon the survivors, but one can hope shot from a handgun after one of the women it will bring a sense of peace and justice to those individuals and communities impacted.” attempted to follow him. The following night, 19th District Police A preliminary hearing for White is schedresponded to a call about a shooting in the uled for 9 a.m. Feb. 1 in Room 306 of the 5400 block of Girard Avenue. In this incident, Criminal Justice Center, 1301 Filbert St. n
THE RESISTANCE: Equality Pennsylvania executive director Ted Martin and GALAEI executive director Nikki López were among local and national leaders who spoke out against the nomination of Jeff Sessions as U.S. Attorney General during a press conference Wednesday at Marriott Downtown, where up to 4,000 people are participating in National LGBTQ Task Force’s Creating Change Conference. The speakers urged U.S. Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania to vote against the confirmation of Sessions, who has a record of opposing LGBT rights, as well as equality for people of color, Muslims and other communities. Casey announced later that day he would vote against Sessions and other Donald Trump nominees. Photo: Scott A. Drake
Philly lawmakers to boycott Expansion plans move ahead at Mazzoni Trump inauguration
By Jeremy Rodriguez jeremy@epgn.com
By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com Philadelphia’s Congressional delegation is breaking with tradition and sitting out this week’s presidential inauguration. U.S. Reps. Bob Brady, Brendan Boyle and Dwight Evans, who represent Philadelphia, and Rep. Mike Doyle of Pittsburgh are among a growing number of federal lawmakers boycotting Donald Turmp’s inauguration ceremony Jan. 20. As of presstime, nearly 60 members of the U.S. House have said they won’t attend, a movement that gained speed after Trump took to Twitter to insult civil-rights icon Congressman John Lewis. After Lewis remarked that Trump’s presidency was not legitimate, Trump wrote on social media that Lewis was “all talk, talk, talk — no action or results.” He also criticized Lewis’ Georgia district as “crime-infested” in a series of tweets that came shortly before Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Lewis is a longtime civil-rights activist who was an original Freedom Rider. He was also a lead organizer of the March on Washington, during which King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. “I had been considering [not going] but the John Lewis thing did absolutely tip me,” Brady told PGN. This is the first presidential inauPAGE 2 guration Brady is sitting out.
New Year, New You!
Philadelphia’s LGBT health facility celebrated a $1.5-million investment at a press conference Tuesday. The Mazzoni Center received its largest one-time gift back in November through the state’s R e d ev e l o p m e n t A s s i s t a n c e Capital Program. The funds will support Mazzoni Center’s purchase of a new building at 1328-38 Bainbridge St., where all services will be combined this summer. Its Washington West Project will remain in the Gayborhood. MILESTONE MOVE: Michael Tambon shared his story of how State Sen. Larry Farnese, who Mazzoni Center helped him through his HIV/AIDS diagnosis at a championed the RACP application press conference unveiling the center’s future site Tuesday. Mazzoni in the Senate, and State Rep. Brian CEO Nurit Shein (from left) was joined by a number of lawmakers for Sims, who publicly supported the the event, including state Sens. Anthony Williams and Larry Farnese, grant request, were on hand to celstate Reps. Brian Sims and Maria Donatucci and City Councilmember ebrate the milestone. Bill Greenlee. Mazzoni will consolidate its services and programs at “I am really so, so proud to PAGE 2 1328-38 Bainbridge St. this summer. Photo: Scott A. Drake stand here
Business of bodywork PAGE 15
Healthier hair PAGE 14 Body U PAGE 15
Sports therapy PAGE 18
Beat the winter blues PAGE 17 Sticking to your resolutions PAGE 17
Addressing substance abuse PAGE 19