Philadelphia Gay News Honesty Integrity Professionalism
Vol. 33 No. 10
Bill prohibiting discrimination introduced in Pennsylvania House
Federal lawsuit challenges DOMA
Mar. 6 - 12, 2009
By Jen Colletta PGN Staff Writer Pennsylvania Rep. Dan Frankel (D-23rd Dist.) introduced a bill this week that would ban discrimination against LGBT people in the state. HB 300 would prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in public accommodations, housing and employment. Fourteen municipalities across the state, including Philadelphia, currently employ such laws, but nearly 75 percent of the state’s residents are not covered under this legislation. This is the fourth time that an LGBT nondiscrimination bill has been introduced in the state House. Frankel introduced the bill March 4 and it was referred to the House State Government Committee. “It’s time for us in the legislature to take a stand against this kind of discrimination,” Frankel said. “The passage of House Bill 300 would bring our state in line with several of our neighbors who already offer these basic protections to their citizens, and it would establish Pennsylvania as a just, fair and competitive place to live and work.” The legislation was introduced with 79 cosponsors,
the highest level of support a pro-LGBT bill has ever been introduced with. Andy Hoover, legislative director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, noted that his agency is “very encouraged by the record number of legislators who have signed on as cosponsors of this bill and think it is a good sign for future progress.” Frankel introduced the same legislation, HB 1400, in June 2007 with 70 cosponsors, and it eventually garnered 79 cosponsors over the 15 months it was in consideration in the House. The House State Government Committee held a series of public hearings on HB 1400, and Jake Kaskey, policy and outreach coordinator at Equality Advocates Pennsylvania, said individuals across the state have expressed support for extending the state’s nondiscrimination bill to the LGBT community. “This legislation is critical to thousands of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Pennsylvanians who are trying to work and have a roof over their heads, and it enjoys substantial support from Pennsylvanians from every corner of the commonwealth,” Kaskey said. “At See DISCRIMINATION, Page 16
Biden discusses green economy By Jen Colletta PGN Staff Writer Vice President Joe Biden was in town last week to discuss how environmentally friendly jobs can help the country’s middle class emerge successfully from the economic crisis. The White House Middle Class Task Force, which Biden chairs, held its first meeting at the University of Pennsylvania on Feb. 27. The committee, which is also comprised of top-level administrators such as the secretaries of labor, health and human services, education and commerce, is charged with evaluating the issues faced by middle-class Americans and working with federal agencies to create viable solutions. Joining the vast array of lawmakers and politicians in the audience was a collection of invited business leaders, such as Kate Karasmeighan, chief of staff and director of affiliate relations at the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. Karasmeighan and Bill Gehrman, president of local LGBT chamber of commerce the Independence
PHILLY GOES GREEN: Vice President Joe Biden (fourth from left) welcomes attendees on Feb. 27 to the first meeting of the White House Middle Class Task Force at the University of Pennsylvania. Biden was joined by task-force members Secretary of Energy Steven Chu (from left); Secretary of Education Arne Duncan; Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis; Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood; Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack; and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, as well as local lawmakers U.S. Reps. Chaka Fattah (from right) and Bob Brady and U.S. Sens. Bob Casey and Arlen Specter. Kate Karasmeighan (inset, left), chief of staff and director of affiliate relations at the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, and Bill Gehrman, president of Philadelphia’s LGBT chamber of commerce the Independence Business Alliance, were See BIDEN, Page 16 among the invited guests. Photos: Scott A. Drake
By Denise Lavoie The Associated Press BOSTON — Gay-rights activists are suing the U.S. government, claiming a federal act that forbids recognition of gay marriage is unconstitutional because it denies access to federal benefits that other married couples receive, such as pensions, health insurance and tax benefits. Gay marriage is legal in Massachusetts and Connecticut, but the federal Defense of Marriage Act forbids U.S. government recognition of same-sex married couples, which makes them, for instance, ineligible to file joint tax returns. There are about a dozen plaintiffs, including the widower of former U.S. Rep. Gerry Studds, the first openly gay member of the House of Representatives. In the case of plaintiff Mary Ritchie, of Massachusetts, she and her spouse say they have paid nearly $15,000 more in taxes than they would have if they had been See DOMA, Page 17
DEFENDING THEIR MARRIAGE: In this May 2004 photo, the late U.S. Rep. Gerry Studds (DMass., left), is seen with Dean Hara on their wedding day in Boston, along with their dog Bonnie. Hara is part of a federal lawsuit challenging the Defense of Marriage Act, which prevented him from collecting any of Studds’ pension. AP Photo: Dean Hara
Porn star testifies in murder trial By Jen Colletta PGN Staff Writer Jurors in the murder trial of a Pennsylvania gay-porn producer heard last week from the porn star investigators say was at the center of the defendant’s motive. Sean Lockhart, who goes by the name Brent Corrigan in porn films, testified Feb. 27 during the murder trial of Harlow Cuadra, 27, accused of killing Bryan Kocis, the Dallas Township owner of Cobra Video, on Jan. 24, 2007. Prosecutors allege that Cuadra stabbed Kocis nearly 30 times and then set his house on fire to cover the evidence. If convicted, Cuadra could face the death penalty. Cuadra’s partner, Joseph Kerekes, 35, was also arrested for the murder, but pleaded guilty in December and
is serving a life sentence. Prosecutors argued that Cuadra and Kerekes plotted to kill Kocis so they could obtain the rights to work with Lockhart, who was locked in a legal battle with Cobra over the trademark of the Corrigan name. During the fourth day of the trial, Lockhart, 22, told the jury, and a standing-room-only crowd in the courtroom, that Cuadra and Kerekes repeatedly pressured him to work for their company. Lockhart testified that he and his romantic and business partner, Grant Roy, invited Kerekes and Cuadra to the Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas in January 2007. Lockhart said that during dinner, the four were discussing the legal See TRIAL, Page 17