pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976
Vol. 43 No. 8
Family Portrait: Gregory Goodbrod bridges Broadway and Broad St. PAGE 23
Feb. 22-28, 2019
HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM “Marguerite” will be a long-remembered short
Dems move for LGBTinclusive language in tax code
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By A.D. Amorosi PGN Contributor
By Gary L. Day PGN Contributor
LEATHER SASHES: Ms. Philadelphia Leather 2019, Sara without an H (left), and Mr. Philadelphia Leather 2019, Jason Boyask are Philadelphia representatives in the leather community. Boyask is the first transman to hold the title of Mr. Philadelphia Leather. The Feb. 16 event at The Bike Stop was the 30th Mr. Philadelphia Leather and 18th Ms. Philadelphia Leather competition for the city. Photo: Chris Krakora
‘Truth Wins Out’ founder fighting Google, ex-gays in Philly By Lenny Cohen PGN Contributor How powerful is Google? The tech company’s name becoming a verb should answer that. The first sentence of its parent company Alphabet’s code of conduct is “act honorably.” But Wayne Besen, the founder of Truth Wins Out, said that’s not the case [the company acting honorably] and he’s leading a fight against Google and swears he’s going to win — and it’s hard to doubt him with his decades-long track record. Besen founded Truth Wins Out, an organization that targets anti-gay religious extremism – especially the ex-gay movement — and he recently relocated the oper-
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Gay presidential candidate visits Philadelphia
New “unapologetically queer” network comes to Philly Atop the Comcast tower at 17th and 1701 John F Kennedy Blvd last week, final decisions were made regarding how and when Xfinity would connect with the San Francisco-based Revry, Inc., the first global LGBTQ+ streaming network. Revry announced a deal with Comcast that will bring its streaming service — a smart, inclusive and thoroughly curated selection of LGBTQ+ film, series, and originals together with queer-focused libraries of podcasts, albums and music videos currently available in 50 million-plus households in more than 100 countries — to Comcast’s Xfinity X1 platform. “Although this is just one of the many partnerships our streaming network will announce very soon, Revry’s availability on X1 is major, and will push our cumulative reach to over 50 million viewers across those platforms,” said Revry CEO Damian Pelliccione. Jean-Claire Fitschen, the executive director of Multicultural Consumer Services at Comcast, stated that the cable giant has forever had LGBTQ programming in its sights. “Xfinity has grown to have the most complete library of LGBTQ entertainment — now at 1,200plus titles — uniquely curated by both identity and community.” The launch of Comcast’s LGBTQ Film & TV on X1 and Xfinity Stream in 2016 even helped make things easy to find. You could find stories curated by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer experience by simply saying “LGBTQ” or “Pride” with the X1 voice remote. “Our Xfinity customers enjoy browsing LGBTQ entertainment recommendations by community partners such as “The Advocate,” AMPA [American Military Partner Association], Campus Pride, Family Equality Council, GLAAD, GLSEN, NCLR, The National Center for Transgender Equality, OUT, Out & Equal, PFLAG, The Trevor Project and Victory Fund,” said Fitschen, PAGE 6
Philadelphia City Council goes gender-neutral
ation to Philadelphia. He’s worried about a religious organization’s app that “targets 11- and 12-year-old kids (talking about sixth graders) with horrible anti-LGBT messages.” Apple, Microsoft and Amazon removed the app after learning of its hateful contents, but Google still offers it and the company refuses to comment, Besen said. “They better start answering some questions fast because the day is ending when they can claim they’re there for the LGBT community and diversity, and keep an app with such heinous messages,” Besen said. “It’s fundamentally incompatible and undermines the very core of who they say they are.” The Change.org petition he started to get Google to act has more than 136,000
signatures. Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Sims (D-182nd District) told Besen, “I have introduced legislation to ban conversion therapy in Pennsylvania so the Commonwealth can join the 15 states that have done so to protect youth from this abuse that leads to significantly higher rates of depression, substance abuse and suicidal ideation. Google’s continued failure to remove this app demonstrates it is on the wrong side of history, science and medicine.” Florida-born Besen looks younger than you’d think, considering all he has done. Besen came out after high school and studied broadcasting at the University of Florida, but studied the former newspaper PAGE 18 “TWN” after sneak-
Not many mayors make national headlines, and those who do often do for the wrong reasons, as Philadelphia residents who remember Wilson Goode will attest. Pete Buttigieg has so far not been one whose national headlines have been unfortunate. Buttigieg, 35, spoke on Feb. 19 at the Free Library in Philadelphia, ostensibly to promote his new book, “Shortest Way Home.” However, the crowd that packed the Free Library’s almost-400 seat auditorium didn’t come to see the young Democratic mayor of modest South Bend, Ind. They came to see the country’s first openly gay candidate for President of the United States. When he was questioned onstage by a reporter, the focus was not on his book, the presumed reason for his visit. Instead, questions centered primarily on presidential issues, as well as Buttigieg’s life as an openly gay man in politics. PETE BUTTIGIEG When asked why he wanted to run for president, Buttigieg answered with typical midwestern forthrightness and humor. “Well, don’t run for office just because you want it. And a lot of people do that—just look at the current occupant of the White House. You have to have a clear idea of what it is you want to accomplish, what has to be done.” He explained why he decided to run at such an early point in his career. “We all have to decide when your moment in life is, when it’s time to make the big decisions. Some people wait too long, some don’t wait long enough. I just looked at where things were going, and I thought now seems like it could be my moment.” Buttigieg (who likes to be called “Mayor Pete”) came out late in his first term as PAGE 15 mayor. It was a politi-