PGN May 8-11, 2017

pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976

Vol. 41 No. 18 May 5-11, 2017 Family Portrait: Spotlight on Samy el-Noury

PA Supreme Court says SEPTA not bound by Philly antidiscrimination laws

PAGE 37

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HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM Celebrations of Philly Black Pride

Fellowship awarded to GALAEI youth-program leader PAGE 8

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State agency: We’ll accept LGBT antibias complaints

Exclusive: Brian Sims target of state ethics investigation

By Jeremy Rodriguez jeremy@epgn.com

By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com Under proposed guidance posted on its website April 28, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission will investigate LGBTQ-related antibias complaints, despite the lack of an LGBTQ-inclusive statewide antibias law.

The guidance notes that Pennsylvania’s antibias law covers sex discrimination, and multiple courts have ruled that anti-LGBTQ discrimination is a form of sex discrimination.

However, neither the U.S. Supreme Court nor the Pennsylvania Supreme PAGE 28

FINAL BOW: At the April 29 “Shut Up & Dance” performance, longtime producing director Ian Hussey announced he was passing the baton for next year’s show to Alexandra Hughes. The annual Pennsylvania Ballet production raised more than $161,000 for MANNA, which provides nutritional meals to the ill. Nearly 1,400 people packed Forrest Theatre for the 25th-anniversary performance. Photo: Scott A. Drake

D.A. candidates address crime, corruption, community The race for Philadelphia’s next district attorney is wide open.

Seven Democratic contenders will vie for the nomination May 16, with one Republican running unopposed.

The primary comes just weeks after current District Attorney Seth Williams was federally indicted on corruption and bribery charges.

PGN spoke with all of the candidates about their vision for the District Attorney’s Office, and how the local LGBT community can be incorporated into those plans.

Larry Krasner Throughout his candidacy for district attorney, Larry Krasner has spoken about resisting the Trump administration, ending mass incarceration and standing up for civil-rights. During his 30 years as an attorney, he stood up for organizations such as ACT UP, Black Lives Matter and other organizations relating to LGBT rights, disabled people and immigrants.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

LK: If and when there are incidents, I will have my supervisors and my prosecutors take those charges incredibly seriously. When I see violence involving a trans victim, to me, a red flag goes up immediately to see if this is a hate crime. I have been there when this Philadelphia Police Department wouldn’t take hate crimes seriously and, to me, that’s unacceptable.

You have to have a police department that treats everybody equally and cares about everybody’s issues and that doesn’t consider certain people to be less than human. I think by using the office as a bully pulpit, being as serious as possible about properly prosecuting these cases, working with the police commissioner to

do police trainings around this issue or to make sure the trainings are adequate, I believe we could make a difference and make the situation better for trans people.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

LK: The short answer is yes. I am a great believer in providing information to the press. However, when you ask a candidate what will you do when you are in office and that candidate doesn’t have all of the information, you’re basically inviting a candidate to make promises that may or may not be appropriate.

Every bit of my instincts favors transparency but if I were to find something in the file that the mother or the father of Nizah Morris didn’t want revealed, then that is something I would have to look at. Assuming that the family of Nizah Morris wanted the information revealed and assuming the law permitted it, I would like there to be the maximum amount of transparency and I would like to assist in getting all information out PAGE 19 about that incident.

!

By Jeremy Rodriguez jeremy@epgn.com

According to documents PGN exclusively obtained, a state commission is investigating Rep. Brian Sims following scrutiny about his travel reimbursements and speaking fees.

PGN obtained a copy of an Ethics Complaint Form from a source whose identity we are withholding. The individual filed the complaint with the State Ethics Commission, contending Sims, the first LGBT person elected to the state legislature, violated the state Ethics Act. According to the Ethics Act, “No public official or public employee shall accept an honorarium.”

A March 31 letter from the Ethics Commission, signed by Executive Director Robert P. Caruso, that was given to PGN states: “The Investigative Division of the State Ethics Commission has initiated a full investigation in relation to the complaint” that the individual filed.

Caruso told PGN he was not permitted to comment on the investigation or the complaint.

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Endorsements

District Attorney: Larry Krasner City Controller: Alan Butkovitz Superior Court Maria McLaughlin Carolyn Nichols H. Geoffrey Moulton, Jr. Commonwealth Court Ellen Ceisler Todd Eagan

Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Lucretia Clemons Mark Cohen Leon Goodman Shanese Johnson Vikki Kristiansson Zac Shaffer Henry Sias Dan Sulman Stella Tsai Philadelphia Municipal Court Marissa Brumbach George Twardy

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

PGN LOCAL

Equality Act re-intro’d with 240 cosponsors

By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com Legislation to federally prohibit LGBT discrimination was re-introduced to Congress on Tuesday.

The Equality Act was submitted to both the House and Senate with 240 cosponsors. The bill, first proposed in 2015, would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, public accommodations, housing, credit, education, jury service and federally funded programs. It is an expanded version of the long-stalled Employment Nondiscrimination Act. The list of cosponsors was not immediately available, but the 165 House lawmakers who signed onto the previous session’s measure included Pennsylvania Congressmen Brendan Boyle (D-13th Dist.), Matt Cartwright (D-17th Dist.), Michael Doyle (14th Dist.) and Bob Brady (First Dist.). New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker was among the lead sponsors of the Senate version, to which Pennsylvania Sen. Bob

Casey signed on after a delay.

Pennsylvania is among the 31 states that lacks discrimination protections for LGBT individuals.

“No person’s fundamental rights should be determined by which side of a state line they live on,” Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said in a statement Tuesday. “The Equality Act will once and for all end the unacceptable patchwork of nondiscrimination laws across this country that leaves LGBTQ people at risk. Every American should have a fair chance to earn a living, provide for their families and live their lives without fear of discrimination. And at its core, that’s what the Equality Act is all about.”

Rea Carey, executive director of the National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund, cited the importance of the legislation in our current political climate.

“Everyone, regardless of who they are or the person they love, deserves equal protection under the law. Despite the significant progress we’ve made toward equality in the last decade, the Trump

U.S. SEN. TAMMY BALDWIN IS AGAIN AMONG THE LEAD CO-SPONSORS OF THE EQUALITY ACT. THE OUT SENATOR FROM WISCONSIN SPOKE ABOUT THE NEED FOR LGBT NONDISCRIMINATION PROTECTIONS AT A D.C. PRESS CONFERENCE TUESDAY Photo: Patsy Lynch

administration’s attacks on LGBTQ people shows just how swiftly many of these hard-fought changes can be rolled back,”

Carey said. “That is why we need strong federal nondiscrimination legislation for LGBTQ people.” n

Court: SEPTA isn’t governed by city’s antibias laws

By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com In a 4-3 decision, the state Supreme Court this week said SEPTA isn’t under the authority of the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, which enforces the city’s LGBT-inclusive Fair Practices Ordinance.

SEPTA is the region’s mass-transit system, serving more than 650,000 riders daily in Philadelphia, four surrounding counties and parts of New Jersey and Delaware. Since 2009, SEPTA has challenged the authority of the city’s Human Relations Commission to accept and investigate antibias complaints involving SEPTA. The dispute wound its way through the courts until April 26, when the state Supreme Court sided with SEPTA. Justices Sallie U. Mundy, Thomas G. Saylor and Max Baer filed the prevailing opinion, with Justice David N. Wecht filing a concurring opinion.

“This decision finally resolves the matter,” said Gino Benedetti, SEPTA’s general counsel. “This is all about a legal, jurisdictional issue. It’s not about SEPTA not caring about the LGBT community. Nothing could be further from the truth. SEPTA has —

and will continue — to entertain complaints from any of its passengers and employees on any basis, including sexual orientation, gender identity or any other protected class.”

In its decision, the high court noted that the state’s Human Relations Act doesn’t specifically protect the LGBT community.

“The court found that the city did not have the authority to apply the Fair Practices Ordinance to SEPTA or other state agencies,” Benedetti said. “The court also found that sovereign immunity precludes the city from applying the Fair Practices Ordinance to SEPTA.” Benedetti added: “SEPTA is subject to the federal and commonwealth laws against discrimination, and always cooperates with those authorities in any investigation. SEPTA also has a broad policy against discrimination of any kind, including discrimination against the LGBT community.”

Justices Christine Donahue, Debra McCloskey Todd and Kevin M. Dougherty filed a dissenting opinion.

“The aim of the Fair Practices Ordinance is not to protect some — but rather all — Philadelphians from the types of discrimination identified in the ordinance.

Exempting SEPTA from the jurisdiction of the Philadelphia Commission and compliance with the FPO will interfere with the accomplishment of this purpose,” the justices wrote in the dissenting opinion.

The high court held oral argu-

Chirls issued this statement: “The opinion of the three justices turns on technical issues of sovereign immunity, and Justice Mundy acknowledges that the court is not considering the impact of its decision on the LGBT people who ride SEPTA.

“The aim of the Fair Practices Ordinance is not to protect some — but rather all — Philadelphians from the types of discrimination identified in the ordinance.

Exempting SEPTA from the jurisdiction of the Philadelphia Commission and compliance with the FPO will interfere with the accomplishment of this purpose,” ments in September. City attorneys urged the court to overturn a lower-court ruling favorable to SEPTA’s position.

City attorneys also argued that it’s in the public interest for SEPTA to be subjected to the LGBT provisions of the city’s Fair Practices Ordinance.

Andrew A. Chirls served as an attorney for the ACLU of Pennsylvania and Mazzoni Center, which supported the city’s position.

The concurring opinion of Justice Wecht gets to the very important point that the Pennsylvania legislature has failed to protect Pennsylvanians from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Justice Wecht’s view is that the court does not have the power to substitute its judgment for the legislature’s inaction. So when we get to the question of ‘Where do we go from here?’ the answer is ‘the State House in Harrisburg.’”

Chirls added: “There’s also a growing trend that anti-LGBT discrimination is covered under existing laws that bar sex discrimination. So that gives victims of LGBT discrimination a reason to pursue their claims in federal and state forums.”

Rue Landau, executive director of the city’s Human Relations Commission, issued this statement: “We are extremely disappointed in the PA Supreme Court’s decision that SEPTA is not subject to the city’s Fair Practices Ordinance. The court’s ruling leaves thousands of SEPTA passengers and employees in Philadelphia without certain protections from discrimination — particularly claims based on sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as domestic and sexual violence victim status, ethnicity and marital status.

“SEPTA has spent nine years litigating this case to avoid protecting people from discrimination based on Philadelphia’s expansive civil-rights laws.

SEPTA owes it to the people of Philadelphia to immediately issue and promote inclusive employment and public accommodations nondiscrimination policies that protect ALL Philadelphians.” n

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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Our Visit Bucks County Issue is May 12.

Find out what’s hot and happening this spring with our northern neighbors!

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News & Opinion

10 — Creep of the Week Editorial 11 — Letters/Feedback

Mark My Words

Street Talk 12 — News Briefing

Columns

9 — Out Law: Chechen

violence ignored 12 — Body U: Pushing

past the plateau

Arts & Culture 31

33 37 38 42 43

— Feature: Second season Sense8tion — Scene in Philly — Family Portrait — Out & About — Q Puzzle — Comics

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Obituary: AJ Irvin, Jr., a popular Gayborhood bartender.

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Staff Writers Jeremy Rodriguez (ext. 215) jeremy@epgn.com Larry Nichols (ext. 213) larry@epgn.com Writer-at-Large Timothy Cwiek (ext. 208) timothy@epgn.com

~ Matthew S. Wolf, on the policeabuse case ruling in favor of a N.J. trans man, page 6

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C r e e p o f t h e We e k : R a n d y Thomasson, who thinks transgender people are the number-one AIDS transmitters.

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“This case should be a warning that if the police in Philadelphia are hostile toward people in custody on the basis of their gender identity, then they are open to a lawsuit under Philadelphia regulations.”

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“What I am trying to achieve is to be what I am to the fullest – Black to the fullest, a musician to the fullest, a homosexual to the fullest.”

Copyright © 1976 - 2017 Copyright(s) in all materials in these pages are either owned or licensed by Masco Communications Inc. or its subsidiaries or affiliate companies (Philadelphia Gay News, PGN, and it’s WWW sites.) All other reproduction, distribution, retransmission, modification, public display, and public performance of our materials is prohibited without the prior written consent of Masco Communications. To obtain such consent, email pgn@epgn.com Published by Masco Communications Inc. © 1976-2017 Masco Communications Inc. ISSN-0742-5155

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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GALAEI will celebrate queer Latinx resistance with DARLA honorees

By Jeremy Rodriguez jeremy@epgn.com A local queer Latinx social-justice organization recently announced the honorees for its annual leadership awards ceremony.

GALAEI will honor Gabriela Sanchez, Valentina Rosario and the Black & Brown Workers Collective at the eighth-annual David Acosta Revolutionary Leadership Awards (DARLA) next week.

GALAEI Executive Director Nikki López noted this year’s theme, “Celebrating Queer Latinx Resistance.”

“Queer Latinx folks have sort of always known that our lives are an act of resistance every day,” López said, adding that, “Despite the violent political climate that we’re in, which is heavily oppressive and violent toward queer Latinx people,” the community is still “surviving.”

“When we think about resistance, sometimes we think about the fight and struggle,” she added. “We really wanted a place where individuals in our communities, our collaborative partners, our allies and ourselves can be in a space to celebrate our various acts of resistance and within each other in this place of radical love.”

Gabriela Sanchez Sanchez is the founder and managing

director of Power Street Theatre Company.

She is a queer Latina actress and has produced plays, script readings, open-mic events and art.

In selecting honorees, López said GALAEI considered the different ways resistance manifests itself, and one of those ways is through the arts. She added that Sanchez’s work centers on the lives of women of color.

“Her body of work that she’s done, with not only founding the Power Street Theater Company but also the plays that she has written and the plays that she’s been an actress in as well, are confronting issues of resistance like resisting against heteronormativity, resisting against patriarchy [and] resisting against the issues and the stereotypes that come with our identity.” “[When it comes to] acts of resistance, we automatically think about people on the street, community organizers or activism,” López added. “[Sanchez is] the example of how resistance can also look like theater and art.”

Black & Brown Workers Collective López said she once heard the BBWC referred to as a “small core of activists,” who were criticized for their efforts.

“They epitomized what consistent resistance and power of the people looked like,” López said. “The BBWC has been at the

MAY14/21

Celebrating Our River of Rainbows

forefront for addressing the racism within the Gayborhood. They have been at the forefront of protests.”

The BBWC’s website states the organization’s mission is to “actively challenge, resist and dismantle systems of oppression that adversely impact the black and brown worker.”

López said the group made the public aware of “horrendous practices that were happening at the Mazzoni Center,” including allegations of sexual impropriety by former medical director Dr. Robert Winn.

Winn and Mazzoni CEO Nurit Shein have since resigned from their positions.

“If you can find the word ‘resistance’ in the dictionary, you would find the BBWC there,” López said. “They showcase how power of the people are able to address the institutional systemic oppression that happens within our community.”

Valentina Rosario Lopez said Rosario “showcases resistance” by being herself, a queer trans Latina.

“Recently, she did this amazing presentation at her school where she talked about her life as a trans woman of color and the barriers she faces,” López said. “She exemplifies utilizing her own life and her authentic self and how she is able to survive every day as a trans woman of color.”

The El Centro de Estudiante senior has been a part of GALAEI’s youth program since 2011 and has educated her school and community on trans issues and trans visibility. Additionally, she started Butterflies, an empowerment group for trans youth, through GALAEI. According to a statement from GALAEI, Rosario’s “biggest dream is to open a trans youth shelter.”

“She may not realize it but she’s changing the landscape of her school and she’s changing the landscape of her classmates in just being her authentic self,” Lopez said. “She exemplifies that type of resistance that happens every single day.”

Transforming the landscape López noted that GALAEI has always been an organization that is “by the people, for the people.”

“DARLA is the one place we’ll be able to centralize all of our community members and even our allies to see that we’re doing some amazing work, that the community is doing amazing work and that we’re literally changing and transforming the landscape within Philadelphia,” she said. n The eighth-annual DARLA ceremony will be held 7-10 p.m. May 12 at Taller Puertorriqueño, 2600 N. Fifth Street. Tickets can be purchased at www.eventbrite. com/e/8th-annual-darla-awards-ceremony-celebrating-queer-latinx-resistance-tickets-33316539667.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

LOCAL PGN

New Jersey trans man’s police-abuse case reinstated A panel of the N.J. Superior Court overturned a lower court’s dismissal of a case filed by a transgender man, who said police threatened and abused him.

By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com

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Civil-rights attorneys are praising last month’s court ruling in New Jersey that reinstated a transgender man’s police-abuse lawsuit.

In 2012, Shakeem M. Holmes was arrested in Jersey City for allegedly shoplifting, then threatened and verbally abused by local police during his detainment. One officer threatened to put his fist down Holmes’ throat “like a fucking man,” according to court records.

In 2014, Holmes filed a lawsuit alleging abuse by the Jersey City Police Department.

But the following year, Hudson County Superior Court Judge Joseph A. Turula dismissed the suit.

On April 27, a three-judge panel of the New Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division reinstated Holmes’ suit. The judges on the panel are Susan Reisner, Ellen Koblitz and Thomas W. Sumners.

They wrote that Holmes “was in a uniquely vulnerable position, that the individuals making the hostile comments were police officers, who wielded tremendous power over arrestees, and that the comments included a physical threat.”

The judges also said Jersey City officials presented no evidence there was a need to “threaten, demean or humiliate prisoners on the basis of their gender affiliation or membership in any other protected class.

In fact, such conduct may encourage prisoners to attack the harassment victim, thus undermining the orderly operation of the police lock-up as well as the safety of the transgender prisoner.”

Kevin M. Costello, an attorney for Holmes, expressed approval of the ruling.

“We’re obviously thrilled that New Jersey’s courts have reiterated the proposition that under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, transgender people have the right — even when they’re being arrested and processed by law enforcement — not to be belittled or abused because of their transgender status,” Costello told PGN. “Even if police are correctly arresting and correctly processing someone, they should do so by treating the person with dignity and respect, as the Law Against Discrimination requires. We now look forward to a jury trial.”

Justin F. Robinette, a civil-rights attorney who didn’t handle the Holmes case, also praised the ruling.

“It’s another tool we can use to fight antiLGBT bias,” Robinette told PGN. “The ruling may not be binding precedent in Philadelphia but it’s certainly persuasive

authority. What Mr. Holmes allegedly experienced was horrendous. But I’m very gratified to hear that he’ll finally have his day in court. The three-judge panel got it right.

Their ruling sends a clear message that this type of alleged police misconduct against LGBT people will not be tolerated.”

Robinette expressed hope that the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations will accept for investigation all valid police-abuse complaints in light of the Holmes ruling.

“This case should be a warning to the Philadelphia Police Department not to mistreat LGBT people under their watch, in light of the city’s LGBT-inclusive Fair Practices Ordinance. And the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations should take note. This ruling paves the way for future complaints to be filed with the PCHR, to fight bias by the police. We now have another piece of ammunition in our arsenal to fight anti-LGBT police abuse.”

Matthew S. Wolf, another civil-rights attorney, also praised the ruling.

“The police should not demean anyone,” Wolf told PGN. “In New Jersey and Philadelphia, demeaning a detainee in the police station could cost the police money.

New Jersey law specifically protects LGBT individuals in police stations since they are defined under New Jersey law to be places of ‘public accommodation’ that must be free from hostility based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The regulations of the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations have a similar definition for ‘public accommodations’ that would include Philadelphia police departments. So under facts similar to the New Jersey case, in Philadelphia a claim could be made against the police. This case should be a warning that if the police in Philadelphia are hostile toward people in custody on the basis of their gender identity, then they are open to a lawsuit under Philadelphia regulations.

Since these are fee-shifting cases, it could be an expensive proposition for the police to mock a detainee’s gender identity.”

Jury selection in the Holmes case is scheduled to begin 9 a.m. July 17 at the William J. Brennan Courthouse in Jersey City. A judge and courtroom haven’t been selected.

PCHR Executive Director Rue Landau issued this statement: “The Philadelphia Police Department is subject to the public accommodations/delivery of city services provisions of the Fair Practices Ordinance.

If an individual believes they have experienced discrimination based upon their protected class, they should contact our office.” n

LOCAL PGN

Obituary AJ Irvin, Jr.: actor and Gayborhood bartender, 46

By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com Albert J. “AJ” Irvin, Jr., a local actor and bartender at The Bike Stop, died April 25 of sepsis. He was 46.

Irvin was a native of Mahanoy City, Pa. He graduated from Mahanoy Area High School in 1989 and went on to graduate from Muhlenberg College in 1993, where he honed his passion for the stage as a drama and theater-arts major.

Irvin performed in musicals with Muhlenberg Summer Music Theatre, Civic Theatre of Allentown and the Pennsylvania Stage Company. He went on to regional and national tours, including as Santa Claus alongside the Rockettes in a tour of the “Radio City Christmas Spectacular.”

He was living in New York about a decade ago and would occasionally visit friends in Philadelphia, often stopping by The Bike Stop while in town.

“We got to know each other watching Eagles games at The Bike Stop,” friend

Jerry Wehr said. “He was a Philly boy at heart.”

Irvin eventually moved to Philadelphia and started working as a bartender at The Bike Stop.

“Everybody loved him,” Wehr said. “He was very personable, gave everybody attention like they were the most important person in the room. His floor was always the busiest because he was so well-liked. And he was a very good bartender too; nobody waited for a drink even when they were busy because he was so good at what he did.”

Irvin, a member of Actors’ Equity Association, continued to pursue his passion for singing and acting.

“He had such a great singing voice,” Wehr said. “He was so talented. And friends would actually tell him he should do voiceover work because he had such a beautiful, deep voice.”

Irvin is survived by his parents, Sarah and Albert; stepmother, Ann; half-brothers Shawn and Daniel; and extended family members and friends. A memorial service will be held 2:30 p.m. May 7 at St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Main and Pine streets in Mahanoy City.

Contributions in Irvin’s name can be made to youth group Active Christian Teens in our Neighborhood, C/O Debbie Walker, 402 E. Pine St., Mahanoy City, Pa. 17948. n

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976

HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM

PGN just received 8 journalism awards from the PA NewsMedia Association!

PA News Media Association

Keystone Press Awards First place, News Photo “Hillary at the DNC” Scott A. Drake Second place, News Photo “Rooting Out Racism” Scott A. Drake Second place, Sports Photo “A Homerun” Scott A. Drake First place, Editorial “No winners, Blood on their hands, What the F*%$” Jen Colletta Second place, Ongoing News Coverage Coverage of Kathryn Knott case, Jen Colletta Honorable Mention, Ongoing News Coverage DNC in Philly, Staff First Place, Special Project DNC in Philly Jen Colletta, Scott A. Drake, Paige Cooperstein, Larry Nichols

BUILDING BLOCKS: Rula Rahmani and Bradley Yoder made block creations last Saturday during a playtime break at the School Fair for LGBTQ Communities. Held at William Way LGBT Community Center, the fair connected LGBT-headed families, LGBT youth and allies with representatives of 20 schools in the region. Information on each school’s LGBT-affirming policies was included in a booklet that will also be distributed at Philadelphia Pride next month. Photo: Scott A. Drake

First Place, Sports/Outdoors Column Get Out and Play Scott A. Drake

PGN is the most award-winning LGBT newspaper in the country.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

LOCAL PGN

GALAEI youth-program leader tapped for national fellowship

By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com A local LGBT and HIV/AIDS advocate focusing on Latinx youth engagement was recently selected for a national leadership-development program.

Francisco Cortes, the youth-program coordinator at GALAEI, is one of 10 people selected for the second class of the HIV 360° Fellowship Program, managed by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational arm of the national LGBT organization. Cortes, 25, has served in his role at GALAEI for about two-and-ahalf years; he has been affiliated with the organization for about five years, having initially served as an intern while earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with an LGBT-studies focus, from Temple University.

The fellowship program, supported by funding from the Elton John AIDS Foundation, launched last year to provide individualized training and support to young professionals working to stem the

tide of HIV/AIDS in hardest-hit communities: gay and bisexual men of color, trans women of color and LGBTs living in the South. Participants will receive leadershipand organizational-development training, nonprofit-management coaching, mentorship and a grant for their respective nonprofit to advance their work.

“Through their dedication, creativity and hard work, these activists are changing lives, expanding opportunity and combatting the stigma and discrimination facing so many people living with and affected by HIV in the U.S.,” said Mary Beth Maxwell, HRC senior vice president for Programs, Research and Training. “We look forward

to working with them over the coming year and into the future as they continue to speak out, act up and bring an end to the HIV and AIDS epidemic once and for all.”

Cortes and the other fellows gathered in Washington, D.C., for their first retreat last month and will reconvene again in June in Atlanta and back in the nation’s capital in December.

T h e first training focused on the fellows getting to know one another, and doing a deep dive into their own work and goals.

“We thought a lot about where we stand as leaders in our agencies and in the community, and then what the needs of our organizations are,” Cortes said. “I’ve

“Through their dedication, creativity and hard work, these activists are changing lives, expanding opportunity and combatting the stigma and discrimination facing so many people living with and affected by HIV in the U.S.”

Visit Bucks County Special Issue May 12

been through a lot of trainings and conferences, but this was definitely the most impactful from the get-go. Going through a worksheet evaluating where I stand as a manager and brainstorming ways I can be more effective in my duties was awesome and definitely something I’m taking back to the organization.”

When asked about his personal and professional goals for the fellowship, Cortes laughed that he hopes to take away “a million things.”

Strategizing how to take GALAEI’s youth program to the next level is chief among them, he said.

“At the end of the day, I want to come back to GALAEI and apply the work and the knowledge I received through this fellowship to grow this program. In the last year, I’ve really been thinking strategically about how we can expand the program because the need is there, and the quality of the work at the organization is there.

So now we’re thinking about how we can build the infrastructure to grow the program.” n

LEGAL PGN

Silence on Chechen violence fact, some officials are calling for ven LGBT equality has been an importgeance against the newspaper that broke ant topic in the United States for the last the story. several years, and the legal strides we’ve The world, however, has responded. made to improve our lives have been Former Vice President Joe Biden called impressive. We still have a way to go in changing laws and minds but in other parts on the White House to raise the issue with Russian leaders, stating, “[T]he United of the world, it’s much, much worse.

Chechnya, a southern republic of Russia, States must lead the way to demand an end to these egregious violations of human has recently drawn international headlines rights.” Two separate Facebook campaigns for its recent uptick in violence against raised more than $100,000 to LGBT people. It all started with help LGBTQ refugees flee a petition for permits to hold Chechnya. The round-up has gay Pride parades; not only been widely condemned by were the permits denied, but the United Nations and other authorities reportedly began a Western governments, with “round up” of more than 100 even conservative Republican gay men. Posing as gay or Marco Rubio condemning the friends of friends, authorities attacks from the floor of the reportedly lured gay Chechen Senate. men to apartments where they But where is the official overpowered them, transported American government statethem to “detainment centers” ment condemning these acts? and tortured them for more People are being killed by their names of gay men.

Angela government in an effort to Chechen leader Ramzan their very existence Kadyrov wants gay men “elimiGiampolo eradicate because they are LGBT, and nated” by the start of Ramadan, President Donald Trump says which begins May 26. nothing? Earlier this month, the Syrian “You cannot arrest or repress people government killed 88 of its citizens with who just don’t exist in the republic,” said chemical weapons. Within two days, the Alvi Karimov, spokesperson for Kadyrov.

United States launched cruise missiles Whether that means gay men have been on targets in Syria in response. But 100 killed or run out of the country, it’s clear gay men are being systematically tortured that the existence of LGBT individuals is and killed in Chechnya, and the president an inherent problem for Chechen leaders. doesn’t even make a statement?

While homosexuality is not illegal in Nikki Haley, the U.S. Ambassador to the Russia, “propaganda” condoning it is, United Nations, said the human-rights viothanks to a law passed in 2014. If you lations in Chechnya “cannot be ignored.” recall, the 2014 Olympics in Sochi were Within hours, the U.S. State Department mired in controversy over the safety of released a statement saying Haley should the visiting LGBT athletes and spectators.

While tensions were high, violence against have cleared her statements with them first, and within days, Trump joked to a LGBTQ people was not widely reported room full of people about firing Haley. during the games.

Chechnya’s gay men need someone to Human Rights Watch recently confight for them, maybe literally, in the face firmed that three Chechen men have been of a government that wants to deny their killed: one during the ongoing torture that existence or, worse, eradicate it.

Chechen leaders deny is taking place, The best thing we can do here in and two after returning to their families.

America is vote. Put people in office who According to The New York Times, the number is likely closer to 20. LGBT-rights won’t tolerate these human-rights violaactivists are scrambling to get as many gay tions, who won’t stand by and say nothing. Educate yourself. Find charities that men out of the area as they can. work internationally and do what you can LGBT Chechens are not the only ones to help in crisis situations, both for peoin danger. One of the two reporters for ple abroad and at home. We have rampant the Novaya Gazeta, the Russian newsLGBT youth-homelessness issues right paper that originally broke the story, has here in the United States because these fled Russia in fear for her life and in the young people were thrown out for being last week, two envelopes filled with an who they are. Donate money if you can. unknown white powder arrived at the And, last but not least, put pressure on newspaper’s offices. The other reporter your leaders. Demand more from them responsible for breaking the story is staybecause we deserve better. n ing put, saying this is part of working for the Novaya Gazeta. And apparently it is; Angela D. Giampolo, principal of Giampolo the publication has said that, in the last 20 Law Group, maintains offices in New Jersey and years, six of its reporters have been killed Pennsylvania and specializes in LGBT law, family “in the line of duty.” law, business law, real-estate law and civil rights. Her A formal government investigation into website is www.giampololaw.com, and she maintains the detention of gay Chechens turned up a blog at www.phillygaylawyer.com. Reach out to “no supporting evidence,” so it’s not likely Angela with your legal questions at 215-645-2415 or angela@giampololaw.com. help will be coming for the men soon. In

Out Law

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

EDITORIAL PGN EDITORIAL

Creep of the Week

D’Anne Witkowski

Randy Thomasson

Editorial

Vote, vote, vote If we learned anything from the 2016 presidential election, it’s the importance of getting out to the polls on Election Day. None of the candidates in the May 16 races are anything like the calamity that got into the White House — far from it, actually, as we are fortunate to have a sea of extremely qualified and, for the most part, very LGBT-friendly folks running for municipal and state offices.

However, we saw in November just how much every single vote counts to putting into office people who can — or cannot — advance the causes of the LGBT community.

Next week, Philadelphians have the opportunity to elect the nation’s first transgender male judge. Henry Sias is running for one of 10 spots on the Court of Common Pleas. Sias comes recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association and with a wealth of experience; his election would be a boon for all Philadelphians who want qualified, fair-minded judges on the bench.

In an age where trans rights seem to be under constant attack, it would also send a powerful message of affirmation to trans communities — and to those

who oppose trans equality. We strongly endorse Sias for Court of Common Pleas.

In the hotly contested District Attorney race, we are backing Larry Krasner. This was a challenging conversation among our editorial board, as several candidates stood out as strong contenders, but we ultimately determined that Krasner has both a solid record of progressive leadership and a solid vision for taking that work to the next level in the District Attorney’s Office. Krasner has been a strong ally to groups like Black Lives Matter, ACT UP and more, and it’s that commitment to community that we need in our city’s top law-enforcement agent.

For City Controller, we endorsed Alan Butkovitz, who has a proven record of standing by LGBT equality.

For a city that is so heavily weighted Democratic, the April primary is the big event to watch when it comes to municipal elections. Even though this Election Day doesn’t have the hype of November’s, it still will have far-reaching implications for all Philadelphians.

Get out May 16 and make your voice heard. n

Tell us what you think Send letters and opinion column submissions to: pgn@epgn.com; PGN, 505 S. Fourth St., Philadelphia, PA 19147; fax: 215-925-6437.

Please include a daytime phone number.

Letters may be edited for clarity, style and space con­sid­er­ations.

Remember when you got your driver’s license and under “gender” you had to choose male, female or AIDS? Of course you don’t, because three gender options don’t exist on a driver’s license form. Yet. But California might change that. A bill in the works since January would allow a third non-binary gender option for official state documents.

According to the Los Angeles Times, “Lawmakers framed the measure as an expansion of rights for transgender, intersex and other people who do not identify as male or female.”

And I know what you’re thinking: “But AIDS isn’t a gender. WTF?” Well, OF COURSE you think that, because you’ve been brainwashed.

But Randy Thomasson knows what’s up and he’s crying foul.

Thomasson, the man behind Save California, a Christian website dedicated to alarmist, anti-LGBTQ stories that claims to be “pro-family,” had plenty to say about California’s gender code when he was a guest on fellow right-wing screwball Gordon Klingenschmitt’s “Pray in Jesus’ Name News” program. “[This bill] would put in a third option on a driver’s license, non-binary,” says Thomasson. “And what that basically means is not male, not female, something else. But non-binary is a catch-all for any sexual anything.”

Woah. Any sexual ANYTHING? That’s, um, pretty broad. Care to clarify?

“University of California Berkley has on their own website a list of all the possible genders, and we’re talking two, three dozens of these made-up genders,” Thomasson continues, “and they haven’t even gotten into those who have relationships with, uh, computers or animals yet. It’s just total anarchy.”

Oh, OK. Thomasson clearly doesn’t understand, and doesn’t care to understand, the difference between gender identity and sexual orientation. Or the difference between a human being and a USB flash drive, for that matter.

“I’m really broken in my heart about the confusion that it would be for children,” Thomasson continues. “A 15-year-old getting a learner’s permit or a 16-year-old getting a driver’s license, going into the DMV in California being asked, ‘Well, do you put yourself down as male, female or

non-binary?’ The basic question is telling children there’s more than two genders and that we’ve got to forget about science and chromosomes.”

Oh, NOW you care about science?

How convenient.

It also takes willful ignorance to think a 15-year-old is going to discover non-binary identity for the first time at the DMV and declare that from now on preferred pronouns are “they/ them.”

Which leads us to the AIDS option.

“It’s a very dangerous thing,” Thomasson says, “because we have to remember even the Centers for Disease Control … website declares that transexuality/cross-dressing is the highest transmitter of HIV/AIDS in our land, and it’s even more dangerous than homosexuality.”

Klingenschmitt jumps in to clarify that it’s “not the clothes that you wear that are transmitting this disease, it’s the behavior where you’re swapping blood and other bodily fluids with people who have AIDS.” “Right,” says Thomasson.

But is it right? Does the CDC really warn that “cross-dressers” have higher AIDS rates? No. But the CDC website does have info about increased risk for transgender men and women, which is not the same as cross-dressers. They present a complex series of obstacles trans people face that may lead to increased risk including “stigma, discrimination, social rejection and exclusion” and “insensitivity to transgender issues by health-care providers.”

It’s not because they just can’t help but swap bodily fluids because they’re especially deviant or predatory.

But that doesn’t fit the right-wing Christian narrative that AIDS is punishment for sin and that trans people are nothing but beacons of sexual depravity. In other words, trans people aren’t human at all. Quite convenient when your aim is to deny them basic human rights. n

“It’s a very dangerous thing because we have to remember even the Centers for Disease Control … website declares that transexuality/cross-dressing is the highest transmitter of HIV/AIDS in our land, and it’s even more dangerous than homosexuality.”

D’Anne Witkowski is a poet, writer and comedian living in Michigan with her wife and son. She has been writing about LGBT politics for over a decade. Follow her on Twitter @MamaDWitkowski.

OP-ED PGN

Hail President Pence As we go to press on Wednesday evehere” about a protester, they applaud. As ning, Human Rights Campaign is sendlong as he does or says anything that looks ing out alerts asking for money to help like it is disturbing the establishment or them fight the so-called “License to progressives, he’s on safe ground with that Discriminate” religious-freedom executive 35-40 percent. He doesn’t have to deliver order that President Pence — excuse me, anything. But Congressional Republicans President Trump — is supposed he needs are beginning to worry to issue this week. This answers about their jobs. several questions that many On Obamacare, his replacehave been asking about this ment plan would have tossed White House. many of his supporters in the First and foremost, it’s Pence toilet, but hey, the media made who’s making White House the point on how bad it was decisions. Religious-freedom and Trump said, “It will be the legislation screams Pence. best.” It didn’t even come up for Even Steve Bannon wouldn’t a vote. go there. But there’s one more Same with taxes; his tax prothing that’s obvious: President posal is stalled while lawmakPence — excuse me, Trump ers negotiate. And that wall?

— is playing to his base with It didn’t get funded. These are play money. See, any executive bright spots since it’s the estabaction he signs can and will be lishment in Congress that is challenged through the courts.

Mark Segal holding up Trump’s plans — Since he can’t really do anyand that means Republicans thing without legislation, he’s putting on a stopped him from getting his funds. Maybe show. after 100 days of Republican presidential Many can’t understand why Trump supinsanity, just maybe the sane Republicans porters continue to stay with him since he’s are beginning to want to get out of the asybreaking every promise he made. It’s not lum. the promises, it’s the language. That 35-40 The point is that religious-freedom execpercent of Americans who embrace Trump utive orders will be taken to court before are rebelling against the last eight years any action can be taken, but Trump can of what many termed “politically correctstill say to his base, “I’m trying to save you ness.” Now, there are a great deal of issues from ‘those people.’” All in code of course wrapped up in that PC term, but those … wink wink. n don’t matter since many of those who support Trump feel they have been lectured by Mark Segal is the nation’s most-award-winning commentator in LGBT media. His memoir, “And Then those who celebrate inclusion and diverI Danced,” is available on Amazon.com, Barnes & sity. So when Trump yells “get ’em outta Noble or at your favorite bookseller.

Mark My Words

Op-Ed

Elicia Gonzales

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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Street Talk Should the Pulse massacre be commemorated on a postage stamp?

"Yes. The LGBT community has very few honors at the federal level.

It would be wonderful to have a stamp.

Krystal Brackett Pulse was retail manager a national Pennsport tragedy of epic proportions. A stamp is good, in my book. And if it gives Donald Trump a kick in the ass, I'm all for it."

"Yes. That's the least the government can do. The incident shouldn't be taken lightly.

People were massacred.

A postage Michael Cooper stamp is student a way of Burlington Twp., N.J. reminding us of something that should never happen again."

"No. It sounds a bit morbid and negative. I'd rather see the LGBT community presented in a more positive Marilyn Hughes light. The jeweler event was Bella Vista horrifically sad. My heart goes out to the victims. But I don't think a stamp is the way to go."

"No. A stamp would trivialize the incident. It seems a little insensitive to the victims.

Think of all the mail that ends up in a Jamie Osman shredder. An program developer event that Queen Village significant shouldn't be subjected to so easily being thrown away.

There are other ways to honor the victims."

Sex as Resistance Sometimes it feels easy to answer the question “What is SEXx?” “It’s community events we do throughout the year on sex and sexuality,” I often reply. But that reply doesn’t fully capture our work.

Let me start from today and journey back. This year, we named ourselves the SEXx Collective, added the brilliant Feminista Jones and proclaimed our vision as: dedicated to ensuring the protection and promotion of sexual freedom as a basic and fundamental right afforded to everyone. Our work is connected to human rights, gender, race, equity, and social and economic justice. We focus on furthering a framework that speaks and lends agency to the complex issues that drive human sexuality. We are deeply rooted in the principles of liberation, pleasure, education and the self-determination of individuals to make informed decisions for their own well-being, as well as that of their communities.

On May 17, we will host SEXx: Sex as Resistance. The current sociopolitical

climate, though intense, is not new. This country is rooted in related systems of oppression, domination and discrimination.

Our society hinders sexual and reproductive justice for people living in the margins.

People of color, LGB and especially T individuals, people living with disabilities, immigrants, folks in the sex trade and people living with HIV continue to face discrimination and violence, and are constantly denied the basic human right to sexual liberation. SEXx: Sex as Resistance will highlight the authentic stories and performances of people whose mere existence is resistance and advance the idea that pleasure is a right, not a privilege.

Now let’s go back. Who am I? I earned a master’s degree in human sexuality and am a licensed social worker in Pennsylvania.

I was the proud director of GALAEI for six years. My purpose in life is supporting individuals and communities to be sexually healthy and whole. One day in 2014, I sat watching a dear friend and

community leader, Chris Bartlett, doing a brilliant TEDx talk. I was so inspired I texted my friend Dr. Timaree Schmit that very moment to ask “Hey, whattya think about doing a ‘TEDx’ event based solely on sex?” “Awesome, let’s do this,” she exclaimed. SEXx was born.

Cut to several weeks later when we hosted our first event at William Way to a standing-room-only audience. We chose to host it in May in honor of National Masturbation Month. Yep. It’s an actual holiday. It started in 1995 by the amazing folks at Good Vibrations in California in response to Dr. Jocelyn Elders, then-U.S. Surgeon General, being fired for merely suggesting masturbation be taught in sex ed. SEXx exists to uplift the voices of those who, like Elders, believe we must do more to ensure youth have access to comprehensive sexuality education. Most of the crowd at that first SEXx stayed the entire three hours to watch the 19 presenters talk on everything from blow jobs to tantric sex.

We were on to something! We invited more sex-positive community leaders to join us so the collective expanded to include Katelyn Regan, David Acosta, Susan DiPronio and Tara Lessard — artists, poets, academics, sexologists and all-around badasses. Our vision expanded too. We have the opportunity and obligation to combat sex negativity by creating spaces for our communities to learn and heal. The three-hour event grew into SEXxInteractive, a four-day conference that spoke to the heart, mind and body, as sexuality is so much more than sexual intercourse. We intentionally centered it on underrepresented communities and were honored the keynote speakers included Jones, Ignacio Rivera and Carlos Decena.

The staple “TEDx” presentations were joined by dance parties, an art exhibit, live performance art, lectures and hands-on workshops.

In 2016, we hosted a “TEDx”-style event PAGE 12 where, similar to previ-

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PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

Thinking Queerly

News Briefing

Kristina Furia

Gov. Wolf to join LCDC fundraiser Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf will be among the guests at Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club’s pre-election fundraiser.

The event will take place at 7 p.m. May 11 at Stir Lounge, 1705 Chancellor St. Early-bird tickets are $40, or $50 at the door. Senior, student and young-professional tickets are available for $30.

For more information or advanced tickets, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/o/ liberty-city-democrats-13586805513.

Thinking Queerly explores the psychological and social experiences of being LGBT in America and sheds light on the importance of LGBT community members prioritizing their mental health.

MACT to celebrate anniversary Men of All Colors Together will mark its 36th anniversary with an event this weekend.

The organization will host a banquet, awards ceremony and silent auction from 6-9 p.m. May 5 at JNA Institute of Culinary Arts, 1212 S. Broad St. MACT will present its Community Service Award to state Rep. Dwight Evans, the Founders Award to LGBTQ Home for Hope’s Deja Lynn Alvarez and Sakina Dean and the Gerald Mallon Resisting Racism Award to Asa Khalif of Black Lives Matter.

The group will also gather for brunch at noon May 7 at IHOP, 1320 Walnut St. n — Jen Colletta OP-ED from page 11

Only in Online and in print every second Friday.

ous years, presentations showed sexuality as complex, important and beautiful.

SEXx creates spaces for communities to talk and learn from the real, lived experiences of people who claim that everyone has the right to healthy and pleasurable sexuality regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, HIV status, immigration status, class, age or ability. Last fall, we also hosted an intimate gathering with two women who survived breast cancer: SEXx member Susan DiPronio, who is dedicated to giving voice to the unique life experiences of women, transgender and genderqueer individuals; and Ericka Hart, who is a self-proclaimed kinky, poly, cancer-warrior, activist, sexuality educator and performer.

The SEXx Collective will continue working to create spaces where our communities can grow, heal and resist. Read more at www.sexxinteractive.com. n SEXx: Sex as Resistance takes place May 17 at William Way LGBT Community Center and Franky Bradley’s. Tickets at: https://sexx-sexasresistance. eventbrite.com.

Exercise progressions: How to overcome plateaus Have you found yourself not progressing No, your muscles do not think, but when in your exercise regimen? This can include you try to do a set of 10 with the weight not being able to increase your weights you’ve been struggling with, it will be properly or not hitting a certain running easy. Also, working out in your 80 percent time. Maybe you stopped losing weight and above RM range will promote hyperand haven’t changed anything about with trophy. Hypertrophy is when your muscles your regimen. This is what the fitness grow. It is important to “switch it up.” industry calls a plateau, which

Loading your weights is a state of little or no change may be more appropriand is a very common situation ate for bulking season or for many people. Luckily, it can strength-building, when your be fixed with the right strategy. caloric intake is higher. It all When starting an exercise depends on what you’re trying routine, it is important to have to do. Some people like lifta plan leading to your main ing heavier so that they look goal to prevent plateauing. This pumped up for their evening plan includes the progression in outing. Considering it is almost volume, or the product of sets the summertime and cutting and reps, for each exercise. It season for many, lifting in the also depends on your intensity, 10-15-repetition range may be which is measured by your more ideal. Lifting in higher Megan Nino repetitions promotes muscular maximum rep (RM). The concept I am describing is called endurance and muscle strength, periodization and is commonly used by allowing you to tone instead of building a athletes. However, studies have shown that certain aesthetic. periodization training is also effective for Periodization also works for aerobic athnon-athletes as it prevents overtraining, letes such as runners and cyclists. If you injury and plateauing. For example, if you run or cycle, it is important to plan your want to lean out by the summertime, your training regimen as described above; howexercise regimen should change at the end ever, your “RM” is your maximum heart of the winter, beginning of spring. This rate (MHR) instead of your maximum also means you should be realistic in your repetition. Your weeks should be divided time frames. by high-intensity and high-volume days.

If you are already plateaued, first take a High-intensity workouts include sprinting, week off, without splurging, to rest. Then, time trials, etc., and should be performed increase the amount you’re lifting and do at almost your MHR. High-volume days less repetitions or lower your weights and are days that you perform at a distance. do higher repetitions. Taking a week off It is also important to include resistance helps you recover properly. As mentioned training into your regimen using the above, overtraining is not good for your high-repetition strategy. body in long periods. Rest is really import- For maximum results, speak with a ant to make those gains you’ve been trainfitness professional about developing ing for. When you rest, your muscles begin a periodized program. Make sure they to rebuild and your joints and connective implement appropriate lifting transitions tissues have time to recuperate from the between high repetition and low repetiimpact. There is a misconception that tion that are influenced by your maximum rest will make you lose your results. This repetition, and get appropriate rest time to is false! Even your favorite athletes rest recover. Whether you lift weights, run or strategically. Keep in mind a rest period work out at home, you should be making doesn’t mean you should slack off. You progressions on a month-to-month basis need to continue your eating regimen and while using a periodized program. n instead of exercising, implement stretching Megan Niño is a kinesiologist and personal trainer or a different mode of exercise like cardio who trains out of 12th Street Gym. She is an energetic versus resistance training or vice versa.

Increasing your weights and doing fewer and positive person, who prides herself on teaching others to find empowerment in their lives through fitrepetitions will “trick” your muscles. ness.

Body U

PGN

PRIDE AND PAGEANTRY: Nearly 30 events were held last weekend to mark Philadelphia Black Pride. On April 27, The Attic Youth Center hosted a Kiki House Party (top) catering to ages 14-23. The following day, Commission on LGBT Affairs Chair Sharron Cooks (left) and Director of LGBT Affairs Amber Hikes (center) were among the guests celebrating an official city proclamation about Black Pride at the African American Museum of Philadelphia. On April 27, Miss LGBT Philadelphia Pride was crowned at Bob & Barbara’s. Photos: Scott A. Drake

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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ELECTION PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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City Controller Alan Butkovitz During Alan Butkovitz’s three terms, the City Controller’s Office won several national awards, realized more than $800 million of revenue and savings, enforced minority-participation standards and uncovered corruption.

PGN: What would you say are some of your most notable accomplishments since you were re-elected in 2013?

AB: Certainly, the Mayor’s Fund for Philadelphia; the beefing up of the county corruption rule of the office; the work that our policy unit has done on analyzing the impact of tax credits; the unmasking of the facts in inspections and inactivity regarding demolitions; [and] the award-winning analysis that we did on brownouts and rotations of the fire department.

PGN: What is your overall outlook on the city’s current financial position?

AB: There is a lot of vibrancy that’s indicated by rising tax collections in the real-estate and sales areas but there’s precariousness mostly because of the financial situation in the schools.

Rebecca Rhynhart The challenger to incumbent City Controller Alan Butkovitz, Rebecca Rhynhart has never run for political office. Rhynhart served as Mayor Jim Kenney’s chief administrative officer prior to running for this position.

Additionally, her 15 years of financial experience includes positions as treasurer and budget director for the city.

PGN: Can you describe the positions and work you’ve been involved in that you feel makes you qualified to be city controller?

RR: I have 15 years of financial experience, which makes me — in recent history — the most-qualified to run for City Controller. I spent the last nine years working for the city in different capacities. In 2008, I became the city treasurer. Then I was the budget director for five years after that. Then, when Mayor Kenney took office, we had a good relationship from his time as a councilperson and he kept me on as part of his cabinet to be the chief administrative officer and oversee the modernization of some of his support functions of government. I’ve had a variety of leadership positions, largely financial, in the city for the last nine years. I really wanted to have a greater impact and running for office is the way to do that. The city controller position is one that can be done better and I bring 15 years of financial experience

PGN: How have you, or how do you plan to, increase transparency in the City Controller’s Office?

AB: Everything that we do is online. You can even contact us with a complaint through our WatchDog app. You can take photos of conditions like abandoned trash and send that to us without even giving us the name of the street.

We can track it down. I think we do a good job of trying to make complicated stuff easily understandable to laymen. I think it’s going to be a matter of doing that on a broader basis and the accumulation of more facts about more functions of the city government.

PGN: Many people are concerned about the trickle-down effect of decisions by the Trump administration. What role do you see local governments, in particular the City Controller’s Office, playing in that process?

AB: I think the city and the school district have risked a federal grant cutoff because they’ve taken a “so what” attitude toward grant compliance. We’re going to have to be extremely diligent now so that Trump doesn’t get the slightest pretext to cut off grants.

A few years ago, there was a finding in the school district that they misused money that was dedicated for school lunches and the federal education department came in and assessed a penalty of $50 million, which the Obama administration did not require the schools to pay. I think with the Trump to that.

PGN: What is your overall outlook on the city’s current financial position?

RR: The city is facing a lot of financial challenges. There’s a lot of positive momentum that is going on in the city but at the same time, there’s a lot of challenges. Financially, the city’s pension fund is a major problem.

The city is always running on a pretty tight budget. I think it’s important more than ever to have the city run the best possible way it can. I think, as city controller, that I can fund a minimum of $10 million a year and that’s money through moving the city toward modernization. Through moving the city forward, we can save money that can be put toward other uses for the city — schools, parks, rec centers, other needs that we have. I think the city could do a better job financially.

PGN: If elected, how would you increase transparency in the City Controller’s Office?

RR: Transparency is very important to me.

One of the things I’m fully committed to, if elected, is to increase transparency throughout the city. On a financial basis, that means pushing to release the city’s expenditure data. Right now, the city doesn’t release what the money is actually spent on. It releases the budget but not the actual expense data and that’s something I think absolutely should be released. Whenever any information can be released, it should be. Openness and transparency are important in all decision-making and in hiring as well. We need to have an open transparent process.

PGN: Many people are concerned about

administration, they are not going to bend over backwards to forgive us or let us go on things like that. I don’t believe they will illegally win things like the sanctuary city withholding. They will try to accomplish it by being extremely strict in their interpretation of grants. That’s why the city has to take our grant reviews much more seriously, be timely and be very careful that the money is used for the assigned purpose so that we do not give Trump an excuse to cut off up to $300 million in federal funds.

PGN: What have you, or what will you, do to ensure funding equality for LGBT groups/ citizens?

AB: It will depend on whether there’s a specific complaint raised about the impact of city policies on that front. Generally, we just look to make sure there’s no stealing going on and that things are within program guidelines but if there’s an issue that is asserted by any of the nonprofits or groups, if there’s a discriminatory intent or impact, then we will measure it.

PGN: What actions have you taken to further equality for the LGBT community, either in a personal or professional setting?

AB: Our office, from day one in 2006, made sure people had full rights regardless of orientation. In fact, our top deputy [and our top PR person were] gay. We actually had to withstand a revolt in the office where there was some antigay activity taken and we took an extremely aggressive approach in that we did an intensive investigation to try to identify the malefactor and we created a sensitivity training program that all employees have to participate [in]. Since then, I believe we’ve increased — and we don’t talk about it [laughs] — the number of gays in the office.

Other than that incident, there hasn’t been anything that’s risen to attention as a problem[atic] work environment.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

AB: I’ve recreated that office. We are national award-winners. We are cutting-edge. Auditors and offices around the country take our findings and our procedures and implement them.

Particularly with the concentration of gays in Center City and among the very highly educated and sophisticated portion of the city, I think they want a progressive, scientific, factbased and evidence-based government. We have been providing it and I’ve been standing up to the powers-that-be, resisting attempts to deflect critical audits or to avoid the real evaluation of programs. I think that community really appreciates telling truth to power and standing up to the powers-that-be and not be[ing] steamrolled. n

the trickle-down effect of decisions by the Trump administration. What role do you see local governments, in particular the City Controller’s Office, playing in that process?

RR: I see the city controller being able to play a big role. The Trump administration, as well as the Republican-controlled state legislature here in Pennsylvania — both do not bode well for the city of Philadelphia.

We’re facing significant cuts and I think now more than ever it’s important that we run the city well. I’ve never run for political office before. I think that as city controller, that will free me up to make tough decisions and to challenge those in power to save money in order to lessen the pain that these cuts might have on the city of Philadelphia. For example, the Parking Authority has not been audited since 2009 by the city controller and that’s something I would do right away.

We’ve all heard about the things going on there [such as] sexual harassment. There needs to be much better oversight of the Parking Authority and that’s millions of dollars that should be going to the school district.

that I would evaluate throughout the city and departments [is to] see how inclusive the city is being to all people, including the LGBT community. I think full equality, no matter who you are or who you love, is good for the community and is the right thing to do.

I’m a strong advocate of LGBT rights. On a personal level, I’ve always grown up with the belief that everyone should be accepted and that a diverse and inclusive community in society makes for a stronger city.

PGN: What actions have you taken to further equality for the LGBT community, either in a personal or professional setting?

RR: One of the things I worked on for Mayor Kenney was — as chief administrative officer — to establish best practices in hiring, to have the most diverse and inclusive workforce. Those best practices involve creating an inclusive environment in the workplace. That’s something that’s very important to me and as city controller. Some things

For more information on Alan Butkovitz, visit www. alanbutkovitz.com.

PGN: If elected, what will you do to ensure funding equality for LGBT groups/citizens?

RR: Funding decisions are about priorities.

LGBT groups are very important to the city.

[I] was just in a meeting the other day with Malcolm Kenyatta about, “How do we move this city forward?” Budget decisions are about priorities and I would prioritize the LGBT community in any way I could.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

RR: I think I bring a fresh perspective and an independent, progressive voice to the role of city controller. I’ve never run for office before. I will make tough choices and be independent of the political establishment. I really believe in openness and transparency and I’ll bring a fresh, progressive voice to the office. That, coupled with my 15 years of financial experience, make me the best candidate and the best choice for city controller. n For more information about Rebecca Rhynhart, visit www.rebeccaforphiladelphia.com.

ELECTION PGN D.A. from page 1

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentencing processes?

LK: There’s [a New York-based] organization called Vera [Institute of Justice] that looks — among other things — at what district attorneys do. One of the first things I would do would be to invite that kind of outside agency or nonprofit to come in and do a study of institutional racism and use that as a basis for how to address it. Those careful reviews and comparisons are crucial for a prosecutor who is serious about eliminating deliberate and institutional racism in their processes. That’s one part of it but there’s another part of it: Police enforcement occurs in poor neighborhoods.

When you have a system where all the kids in Chestnut Hill can walk around with weed in their back pocket and all of the kids in West Philly are going to get busted for it, that’s a racist system. Part of the district attorney’s job is to try to persuade the police and also use discretion to push back and refuse cases when there seems to be a selective and racist pattern of arrests, searches and seizures.

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

LK: It’s heinous. I am fluent in the Spanish language. I have represented a ton of people who are Spanish-speaking and effectively monolingual over the years, many of them without status for an extensive period of time. This issue is near and dear to my heart. The District Attorney’s Office has less of a role than I would like because a mechanism is set up where once fingerprints are entered into a system, ICE is notified. A district attorney can’t really play a role in that. It just goes around the District Attorney’s Office. However, the

District Attorney’s Office does have a couple of other roles. It has an important vote, which I would exercise in favor of remaining a sanctuary city.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current District Attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

LK: Issue one is pretty straightforward: Don’t take gifts. There has to be careful scrutiny to make sure that none of the district attorneys are engaging in corrupt behavior. There hasn’t generally been a significant problem. What has been a significant problem is district attorneys looking the other way to issues of police corruption. I’m unafraid to go after police corruption. Based on my record, it should be clear that I really don’t have an interest in trips and gifted tickets and any of that nonsense.

PGN: Some organizations have called for the release of data on the number of people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

LK: Yes. Based on the information I have at this time, absolutely. If these groups were to come forward and say, “We don’t want you to do that,” if the NAACP and Black Lives Matter were to say, “No, we don’t want you to do that,” then that is something we would have to discuss. But if the consensus of groups who speak for people of color was that they want this released, I would absolutely be in favor of that.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

LK: I’d like to eliminate it. I believe the system that they have in the District of Columbia, which is decades old, [is] remarkable and successful. I’m tired of watching the city rip off more people.

PGN: What is your position on the death

Teresa Carr Deni

gory of a hate crime.

Teresa Carr Deni served in numerous leadership positions in the field of law prior to running for district attorney. This includes membership in the Brehon Law Society, the Justinian Society, the Pennsylvania Prison Society and the Criminal Justice Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association, where she was chairperson. For more than 20 years, Deni served as a judge in the Municipal Court of Philadelphia, where she worked on almost 100,000 civil and criminal cases.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

TCD: When I am elected, I will review this case.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

TCD: [Suspects] would be prosecuted and it would possibly come under the cate-

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentencing processes?

TCD: One of my plans has been to make sure that the office has greater diversity.

One of the things I have been pointing out is that there are twice as many men as women working in the office [and] twice as many whites as minorities. I want to hire as many people as possible who are multilingual because the city is becoming so diverse and people are really at a disadvantage. There is nobody [minorities] can talk to almost immediately. They are the people I will be looking to hire in the District Attorney’s Office.

PGN: What is your position on the cur-

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

penalty?

LK: I am the only candidate who has been clear that I would not pursue it. Period.

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

LK: Having been someone who repeatedly filed lawsuits on behalf of people who were beaten viciously, shot by police under circumstances where it was not justified, I take those cases incredibly seriously. There needs to be much more transparency about the circumstances surrounding brutality or violence toward people of color by police.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015.

Is this a position you would resurrect?

LK: The short answer is yes unless people from that community did not want it. I think it makes a lot of sense.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

LK: District attorneys don’t pass laws but they do have a bully pulpit and they have the ability to speak out on issues that go even beyond what they do. I would be happy to use that bully pulpit to stand up on those kinds of issues.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

LK: Yes. Again, it’s a bully pulpit and we are coming from a city that has been a powerhouse in terms of pushing gay rights.

I would probably go back to the many clients and organizations I have worked with for years, ask for their support and work together with them to lobby, to do press [and] to advocate in favor of it.

19

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hate-crimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

LK: What you need to do is really dig in an investigative way and if the police haven’t done it, then the District Attorney’s Office has to fill that gap. You have to look at social media. You have to look at all of the connections among people involved.

You have to try to determine any number of ways whether the motivation is actually hate or whether it’s simply a situation in which there has been a crime against a person who happens to be a member of a particular group.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

LK: The LGBTQ community should vote for me because I have stood with the LGBTQ community since 1989. That is when, as a young public defender, ACT UP identified me as a person they wanted to be their representative when Mayor Goode was investigating what was effectively a riot against AIDS activists, the vast majority of whom were gay and many of whom were HIV-positive. I have represented groups that were important to the gay community or leaders within the gay community. Some of them are now the heads of significant organizations. I put so much time into it even though it was unpaid and unpopular at the time. It is easy to talk. It is more difficult to do and, unfortunately, when it comes to elections, people are willing to say pretty much anything to get elected. I would respectfully suggest to the gay community to look at what I’ve done, not what any of us say. Just look at what I’ve done. n For more information on Larry Krasner, visit https:// krasnerforda.com.

rent immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

TCD: The most prominent role is dealing with whether or not people are held for ICE if they come into police custody. I support the mayor and the sanctuary city unless it’s a very serious crime.

people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

TCD: If we’re already collecting the data, I see no reason to hide it. I’m not aware if it’s collected that way but I imagine that it is. If the information exists, I have no problem releasing it.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current district attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

TCD: I don’t know that there is corruption within the office. First of all, he’s been accused. He hasn’t been convicted.

I’m not aware of other accusations being made against anybody else in that office.

You can keep your eye on things but I wouldn’t go searching for it in the sense that I think it’s rampant. There’s a lot of very good people working in that office.

They shouldn’t be painted with a broad brush.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

TCD: Cash bail is keeping too many people in prison just because they don’t have the money, not because they committed a serious crime. We cannot have all of these people imprisoned for minor offenses.

First of all, we cannot afford to incarcerate all of these people but, most importantly, it’s not necessary.

PGN: Some organizations have called for the release of data on the number of

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

TCD: I think it should be reserved for the most serious cases. If an incident happened in Philadelphia like what happened in Florida with somebody shooting up a nightclub, I would go for it. Believe me.

PAGE 20

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D.A. from page 19

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

TCD: I think the situation is improving, not that it doesn’t exist. There has been some improvement in it but there’s always the rotten apple or sometimes, things get out of hand. It happens and it won’t be ignored.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015.

Is this a position you would resurrect?

Tariq El-Shabbaz Tariq El-Shabbaz hopes to return to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, where he previously served as assistant district attorney for five years. El-Shabbaz currently runs a private-law practice with Richard Harris. Throughout his career, El-Shabbaz led defenses for political figures and workers on both the federal and state levels.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

TE: What we need to do in the D.A.’s Office and what I will do in the D.A.’s Office is have diversity in the office that is representative of everyone in the community. I believe that’s important because everyone needs to be able to identify with representatives in the office. We haven’t taken the necessary steps to inform and educate individuals and prioritize homicides. No homicide against any member of our community will be overlooked, no matter what their sexual orientation, their race or country that they came from. We are going to attack all of them the same. We are going to highlight all of them the same.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

TE: I think it’s important to have transparency in this office. That’s one of the goals of this candidacy and one of the goals of this office. I not only think we should look at opening the records but I think we should open the case, investigate [and] get some fresh eyes on it. I don’t have a problem with it. The only way I would not agree to opening all of the records is if it would compromise the investigation going on now.

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentencing processes?

PGN ELECTION

TCD: I would. I think it’s appropriate to have somebody in the office who is that go-to person.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

TCD: Yes. I would promote it with the Pennsylvania D.A.’s Association to engender more support around the state.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

TCD: Yes. We can let our legislators TE: It starts again with diversity. The lack of diversity doesn’t allow representatives of the community we represent to feel comfortable. In order to have a fresh look at how people are arrested, convicted and how victims are treated, we have to have people who speak the same language [or] come from the same areas. Secondly, clean out the office of anyone that has any type of homophobic, transphobic or racist prejudice. We have to make positive steps in hiring, training and weeding out those [prejudices] that exist in that office. I have to have people in the office who want to correct it and who want to inform me of it.

If the correct action isn’t taken as swiftly as I want them to, that person can’t work for me.

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

TE: The position of me as the chief prosecuting officer of Philadelphia would be as a bully pulpit. I have the ability to align myself with the mayor, attorney general and City Council for sanctuary cities but also to push legislative action to protect individuals that are here legally and are here seeking to be here legally.

They should not be abused or imprisoned just because they come from a country Trump doesn’t like. In order to protect our citizens federally, we will have to do it locally. I will absolutely be a voice against any discrimination. I am marginalized and I understand how that feels. I know it affected my family. I’m not going to allow that under my administration to let that marginalization happen to anybody.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current district attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

TE: The first thing is from the day I walk in after the inauguration, I am going to put the first policy out and that is going to be zero tolerance for every gift. Even a cup of coffee will be prohibited. Once we are in a position, we can affect change and people’s lives. We have to not be beholden to someone because of a gift or anything you can give them. Secondly, make sure we have ethics training.

PGN: Some organizations have called for

know that we support it and work through Pennsylvania D.A.’s Association. I don’t think anybody in the D.A.’s Office would be against it.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

TCD: The District Attorney’s Office and the police should collaborate on tracking via police reports and prosecutorial investigation when this factor is suspected in any criminal activity. the release of data on the number of people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

TE: I support it from the standpoint that we need to study it. The only time we are going to figure out if we are treating people fairly is to study. It’s OK if we study sometimes and when we study statistics, we can correct it. That’s the whole purpose of doing the study. How can you correct a problem you don’t even acknowledge? So I’m absolutely for having the study.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

TE: I am for it. Our studies have shown that there are systems that are working.

Everybody cites the D.C. system but the D.C. system is federally funded. It strives on social services. We [can] duplicate that in Philadelphia based upon our financial ability to do it. If we’re not treating the root of the problem, then all we are doing is sending people back into society to again try to feed their habits.

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

TE: I’m against it. There are two things that we know from the death penalty so far and the application thereof: 1. It’s disproportionately applied to African-American black and brown people. 2. We have determined and found scientific evidence that sometimes as human beings, we make mistakes.

Sometimes, there can be someone who is convicted of homicide and sentenced to death mistakenly. If that person is put to death, how do you rectify it? You can’t. It hasn’t deterred a crime at all.

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

TE: I think it’s an issue around the country and absolutely an issue in Philadelphia and it’s a systemic issue. The only way we are going to combat it is through Commissioner [Richard] Ross, myself as D.A., the Public Defender’s Office and all of our partners working together to weed out the bad police. Prosecute them to the full extent of the law.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015.

Is this a position you would resurrect?

TE: Absolutely. The D.A.’s Office has to

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

TCD: I have 21 years on the bench and 10 years before that as a criminal defense lawyer. I’ve been in criminal justice for over 30 years. I’ve seen all of the D.A.s who are working at that office pass through one of my courtrooms at one time or another. I have such a familiarity with all of them. I know who does their job with passion and who is going through the motions. I have a history of leadership, service and also community activism. n For more information about Teresa Carr Deni, visit deniforda2017.com.

represent the community of the citizens of Philadelphia — every community. If we’re not representative of the LGBT community, then we are not servicing all Philadelphians and that’s a problem.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

TE: I support any nondiscrimination bill.

What I will do is enforce an environment in the District Attorney’s Office that is nondiscriminatory. People are not going to be judged based upon their belief system, race, gender, country of origin or whether they are a member of the LGBT community. If I find out that occurred in the office, it will be rectified anywhere from suspension to firing.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

TE: I support it and I want to take it a little further. One of the problems with the current hate-crimes bill is that it’s too weak. It requires certain things to occur in order to even institute it. I think we have to strengthen it even more so with Donald Trump in office. We have to look at how far we go now and how far we need to go to ensure the safety of everyone against hate.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

TE: It has to be based upon community relationships and working together. If you have a stake in the District Attorney’s Office, then you and I should be able to communicate. You guys have to work with me and I have to work with you. We have to talk to one another. I have to trust you and you have to trust me. In order to keep the statistics, we have to first communicate because there may be things that are underreported. If it’s underreported, how can I keep track of when the [crime] occurs? If it is reported and we are seeing an up-spike, we can rally the law enforcement that we need to protect the community.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

TE: I understand transparency and I under-

PGN ELECTION

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

21

stand the importance of the community knowing exactly what’s going on in that office, exactly what went on with a particular case and why the D.A. made a particular decision. But I also understand that things need to be improved and it can only be improved through reform. It can only

happen with someone who understands the workings of that office. There are a lot of people who talk about going there but have no clue how it runs. There’s only one candidate who knows how to manage that office from day one and that’s Tariq El-Shabbaz. The first step we need to lead

the D.A.’s Office is to reform the D.A.’s Office with common-sense reform, to keep people safe, to make sure our elderly are protected and our children are protected, to make sure that anyone is treated fairly despite their religion, country of origin, ethnicity, if they’re a member of the LGBT

community, despite anything that makes us different from one another — even though we’re all the same. n

Beth Grossman

tencing processes?

BG: I think that better training with regards to sentencing, and charging to a degree, needs to be done with new prosecutors because, in many ways, you’re so focused upon the victim, proving your cases or “Are my witnesses here?”

Sometimes, you need to look across the aisle and see that there’s a human being there. Maybe it’s time to truly read the probation report, mental-health report or presentencing report to say, “What does this person really need?” Jail sentences should not be a feather in your cap. It’s time to look at things more holistically and that comes from immediate training with the prosecutors who come in. We can try a different approach and maybe that will keep people from coming back as recidivists.

convicted or plead guilty to corruption charges. What breaks my heart the most is District Attorney Seth Williams. As a Philadelphia Republican, I am not bound to our one-party system. I am not bound to our Democratic machine. I have no problem with rooting out and prosecuting public officials of crimes. And I’m not saying all Democrats are corrupt. When either party is in power for so long, it leads to complacency, which leads to corruption, and we just need more political balance in Philadelphia.

LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015. Is this a position you would resurrect?

BG: Absolutely, without question. There has to be a direct line of communication for so many issues. We serve the public and people need answers right away. You need a liaison between the D.A.’s Office, community, police and other community stakeholders without a question.

Prior to becoming chief of staff at the Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections, Beth Grossman, the only Republican in the D.A.’s race, worked on criminal cases, municipal corruption and civil rights as an assistant district attorney. In the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, she served on the Investigations, Juvenile, Law, Narcotics and Trial divisions. Additionally, she held numerous leadership positions where she trained new prosecutors and worked in the community.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

BG: There has to be an absolute connection between the D.A.’s Office, the Philadelphia Police Department and the community, without question. No one deserves to be treated like a throwaway victim. Period. It goes to basic respect, from properly identifying the individual the way he or she identifies themselves and the fact that every bit of resource has to be put into this. No one should be subject to a homicide but this is an extremely vulnerable community that hasn’t been treated too well in the past. I think there needs to be [continued improvement of relationships] between the LGBT community and the police. It’s scary enough providing information to the police about a homicide but if you have not been treated well by the police, then you’re not going to want to come forward. If there’s better interaction based on respect back and forth, then maybe that will contribute to that person feeling comfortable enough to courageously step up.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

BG: I would be happy to look at everything that has been filed with regard to this open-records litigation and I would be happy and obligated to look at whatever files are available — from the police department to the D.A.’s Office — to take a long hard look at this. My heart aches for Ms. Morris and her family.

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sen-

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

BG: It certainly is in no way, shape or form the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office [job] to enforce any immigration policies. The role is to protect everyone and that includes undocumented residents who are living here in the city and county in Philadelphia. No one should be victimized of crime. I have grave concerns because I don’t want somebody who is undocumented here to be victimized twice by being afraid to report something to the police department. But to say that the D.A.’s Office cannot share information with ICE regarding violent offenders who are about to be cut loose and probably go back to a community where — more often than not — an undocumented, convicted defendant probably returns to the place where he [will likely be victimized] again … To me, not sharing that information to protect the public — that’s where my concern comes in. That’s where the core mission of the D.A.’s Office comes in.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current district attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

BG: I was a Democrat until 2013. I’m 49 years old. When the Democratic public officials in Philadelphia began getting investigated, I thought I took my oath as a public servant very seriously and proudly.

I was proud to be a D.A. Those who take an oath of office should be held to a higher standard because you are a public servant. The public is your employer, essentially. I decided this was not the party for me, so I switched. Since that time, we’ve had six state representative Democrats

PGN: Some organizations have called for the release of data on the number of people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

BG: Absolutely. If there’s something wrong, then we all have an obligation to look at it. If something is broken, let’s try and fix it.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

BG: Making it more equitable or conceivably eliminate it for lower-level crime, I don’t have a problem with that. But for violent offenders and those who are truly dangerous to the community … For example, if somebody has five convictions for DUI, which is a misdemeanor, then more likely than not, he or she is going to get in that car again and something bad can conceivably happen. You have to look at each [case].

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

BG: I think in Pennsylvania, economically, it makes no sense. I’m not going to issue a blanket statement that I’m never going to seek the death penalty — only in extreme cases where it’s a child or torture was involved or a police officer or first responder was executed. I think we have to really look at this and see if this is the best use of our resources.

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

BG: I would like to think it’s improving. I have a lot of confidence in Commissioner [Richard] Ross because with community-based policing, I think it works toward establishing trust. There are very valuable positions like community-relations officers who provide a link to folks but if there is police brutality against neighborhoods, including people of color, then those cases need to be investigated and prosecuted properly.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an

For more information about Tariq El-Shabbaz, visit www.tariqforjustice.com/.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

BG: Absolutely. Nobody should be discriminated [against] in any way, shape or form, including in the workplace. I think we should do what we can to support it.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

BG: I would be happy to advocate with the legislature to include LGBTQ individuals in our hate-crimes statute.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

BG: Sometimes if you get out into the community, you gain more information to figure out the issue. Community outreach is incredibly important. I would actually like a representative from the D.A.’s Office to track it. The more we know, the more it can lead to preventative measures or making sure crimes don’t get committed. I think with technology, there is no reason why we can’t track crimes in this day and age.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

BG: I devoted my entire career to being a public servant in Philadelphia. I love this city. I love the people in it. Nobody asks to be a victim of crime. Nobody should be a target for a victim of crime.

I understand the label that I wear but I want the community to understand that I am a prosecutor at heart who has taken her oath seriously, who is not obligated to any outside source or group to prosecute — including those of public corruption.

I’m also incredibly focused on how vulnerable the LGBTQ juveniles and youth are, especially the runaways and the issues with human trafficking. It is such a marginalized, vulnerable community so if I were elected D.A., that’s something I would focus on. n For more information about Beth Grossman, visit www.bethgrossman4da.com.

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PGN ELECTION

D.A. from page 21

Joe Khan After fighting corruption and crime at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Joe Khan left behind his position to run for district attorney. Khan began his career as a prosecutor in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, where he specialized in cases related to sexual assault, child abuse and domestic violence.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

JK: People from the LGBT community in general, particularly transgender individuals, are disproportionately represented as victims in those cases.

For all of the cases that I prosecuted in court, there were countless cases that never made it to my desk because those victims never came forward. I will do everything in my power to make it clear that the District Attorney’s Office will be a champion for all victims and to make it clear that no one should suffer in silence. We are going to be a voice for the voiceless.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

JK: As a general matter, I am completely committed to making sure the D.A.’s Office is more transparent and is not afraid to look back on decisions and revisit them.

In the Morris case, there is absolutely no dispute. The way in which that case was handled was a travesty on every level. In any case where there are questions raised about how evidence was kept and how individuals — particularly people in law enforcement — conducted themselves, I will not turn a blind eye to that conduct. I am going to make it clear to everyone in my office that the culture of the office is going to be about seeking justice and making sure that we do things the right way. To the extent that the D.A.’s Office has failed to be transparent in many cases, including this one, I am committed to making sure the office is letting people know what it’s doing.

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentenc-

ing processes?

JK: There is a number of ways that we’ll do this. [We will] look at policing processes and making sure we are fearless in asking questions that may make people uncomfortable about whether or not the policies that are being pursued have a disparate impact on communities of color.

[Second], we have to make sure the people we’re hiring reflect the rich diversity in all forms in the city. That is something we achieve through hiring. If we don’t see the resumes coming in, then we have to be proactive in recruiting attorneys and staff members across identity groups throughout Philadelphia to make sure we achieve that.

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

JK: When I stepped out and took a pledge to defend Philadelphia’s status as a sanctuary city, I took that pledge not just as a son of a Muslim immigrant but also as a career prosecutor. As district attorney, I will fight with every fiber of my being.

I will not cooperate in any way with Donald Trump’s racist, bigoted, hateful immigration agenda. I will not share files with his administration in terms of him trying to pursue his deportation agenda, which strikes me as cruel and unfair. I will not do the bidding or in any way set up the Philadelphia police to do the bidding of Donald Trump’s deportation force.

I will be a strong champion of victims in all of Philadelphia.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current District Attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

JK: Clearly, one of the many problems we saw with the current D.A. was his deals for receiving gifts, particularly from people who wanted something from the D.A.’s Office. That is completely unacceptable. [Also], the current district attorney has done almost nothing to deal with the issue of police corruption.

My background as a corruption fighter — someone who has taken on corrupt politicians, CEOs and police officers who have crossed the line — makes me uniquely qualified to make sure that we have a robust program for dealing with corruption. I am the only candidate who has called for independent review of police-misconduct cases so we are being aggressive about prosecuting corruption.

PGN: Some organizations have called

for the release of data on the number of people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

JK: To the extent that that information is being tracked, I am in favor of being as transparent as possible. We need to be fearless about sharing the truth.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

JK: I’ve called for the abolishment of our current broken cash-bail system. No one should sit in a prison cell because they can’t afford to make bail and unfortunately in Philadelphia, so many people do.

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

JK: It’s amoral to use the death penalty as a bargaining chip for a better plea deal and I also think it’s unconscionable to use the death penalty as a way to strike people from the jury because they would not impose the death penalty.

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

JK: I have been so passionate about calling for a District Attorney’s Office not being so cozy with the police or our partners in building great cases that we’re looking the other way or failing to root this out. The fact that a person has a badge or wears a uniform will not protect them from prosecution when I’m district attorney.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015. Is this a position you would resurrect?

JK: The fact that you just pointed out is a disgrace. I will guarantee when I’m district attorney, there will be a wealth of talented, dynamic, dedicated and passionate attorneys who happen to be members of the LGBT community and I will recruit one of them to be a liaison to that community. Outreach to all communities, particularly the LGBT community, needs to be a top priority for the district attorney.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

JK: I am fully committed. We need to embrace all reforms and this is especially true in the age of Donald Trump. It’s more important now than ever for solutions to be happening at the local and statewide level. I fully embrace any and all efforts that we can make to provide more protec-

tion to members of the community who need it now more than ever.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

JK: As a district attorney, [I hope to] persuade others in the [Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association] to support this. We need to be as expansive as we can to use these laws to protect our constituents. By having buy-in from the PDAA, that is the best chance to help get Republicans on board, which is what we are going to need to do to get that bill passed. I will use the full weight of my office to support those measures.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

JK: One of the things that I want to do regardless of what the statute says is to make sure that because of that additional emotional trauma that victims suffer by being victims of hate crimes, that we select those cases to receive extra attention. We are seeing, anecdotally, a rise in hate crimes across the country, and by pointing out that hate crimes are on the rise in Philadelphia, that’s our best way to get the information out there and lead the way for change.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

JK: I’m going to be the progressive prosecutor that Philadelphia needs in the D.A.’s Office. I have a bold, broad vision for the city. I have deeply held progressive values and I have the prosecutorial experience to take on the tough fights to implement my values and vision. Right now, we have a D.A. who is more focused on scoring easy wins than doing the right thing. That’s going to end on my watch. I’m going to bring generational change to our city and our party and I am going to pave the way for other progressive reformers who are not afraid of tough fights. I have spent my entire life and career embracing the most vulnerable among us. I have been an advocate for marginalized communities. I have been and will continue to be as strong of an ally as I can to the LGBT community. I will not rest until we have a D.A.’s Office that reflects, represents and champions people from every community in the city, especially my brothers and sisters in the LGBT community. n For more information about Joe Khan, visit joeforphilly.com.

pgn Philadelphia Gay News

LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976

HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM

ELECTION PGN

Rich Negrin

all of city government.

Rich Negrin was 13 when he witnessed his father gunned down by assassins. Since then, he has not lost sight of combatting gun violence. After a brief career with the NFL, Negrin worked at the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office where he prosecuted violent crimes, including hate crimes.

His other leadership positions included vice chair of the independent Philadelphia Board of Ethics, city managing director and overseeing PhillyRising.

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

RN: Philadelphia is different and I am profoundly offended and angry with the tone and the tenor of this administration.

I think D.A.s and attorneys general are going to be the front line of defense on much of the nonsense that is coming out of Washington. Philadelphia needs to be ground zero for how we protect those values. As the son of immigrants who still believes in the American dream and still believes in bringing our families together, I’m ready to fight today.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

RN: I think one of the things we need to do is increase awareness and sensitivity around the challenges and why these things are happening. It is inexcusable. That level of intolerance offends me profoundly. We need to get not more sensitive but more aggressive around ensuring the rights of all of us.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

RN: This is bizarre. I would need to know more (for example, whether the disclosure would compromise an ongoing investigation). On its face, I don’t see a valid legal basis to refuse this open-records request. As city managing director, I hired the city’s first chief open-data officer.

We released hundreds of data sets as part of our effort to have open government, including one of the largest public-safety data sets ever released. We should always bend toward transparency and disclosure, especially when it is in the public interest.

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentencing processes?

RN: I want to do implicit-bias training. I want to do some data collection on how we charge, dispose of and sentence individuals in Philadelphia. I want to bring in a third party. I want a validator, someone who is an HR professional on diversity issues, and actually collect data around how we’re doing those things to ensure that our system is not treating people in disparate ways and that the pursuit of justice is truly a search for equal justice.

Part of it is the programs and training and emphasis. Part of it is diversity itself. The D.A.’s Office should reflect the city that it serves and helping to drive those things.

Bringing a wide variety of perspectives [will] help inform all of our decisions.

That culture needs to make its way not just through the D.A.’s Office but through

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current district attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

RN: That starts on day one. I come in with a very different background. I was appointed by Mayor [John F.] Street to serve on the ethics board here. After we had over 20 indictments in city government way back in the day, I was part of that independent board of ethics to help clean up city government, provide training and create and enforce our ethics rules here in Philadelphia. During my six years as managing director, not one of my folks, not one of my direct reports and certainly not me in my 11 years of public service, was there ever a lawsuit, an investigation or a subpoena [of us]. I bring a record of ethical leadership and integrity that goes beyond just being a good person. I actually implemented ethics programs and hired ethics officers and engaged them in training and systems that have helped change the culture of government. I’ll bring the same thing to the D.A.’s Office.

We are going to have an ethics officer who is beyond reproach, who has an incredibly strong reputation. Ethics goes far beyond just the common-sense stuff like not accepting any gifts or dinners or vacations or cars. It’s so much more than that. It’s about doing your job with the highest level of ethical conduct and setting a new standard for integrity.

PGN: Some organizations have called for the release of data on the number of people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

RN: I think we should go beyond that. I think we should release data across the board, not just [on] people of color. I think we should look at what we’re doing, how we’re doing it and how those people are treated. It’s not just about the number of folks. It’s also about: Are they being treated disparately and are their sentences unfair? Are their dispositions unfair? Are we sentencing them more aggressively?

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

RN: Its time has come, clearly. We need significant bail reform. My hesitancy to throw it out is I want to do that in partner-

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

ship with the Public Defenders Office and the judges. I want to look at other jurisdictions. I want to meet with our stakeholders and look at what’s the best solution for Philadelphia. It’s inappropriate for someone to be held in custody because they can’t make bail. In essence, what you’re doing is criminalizing poverty, especially someone who has not been convicted and awaits trial in custody for a longer period of time than they probably would have been sentenced to begin with. That’s an injustice and the D.A.’s Office can’t be in the business of injustice. The D.A.’s Office needs to be the steward of integrity in the criminal-justice system. I’m going to take that seriously.

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

RN: I was on the board of the Pennsylvania Innocence Project and we had over 60 exonerations in Pennsylvania over the last 15 years of folks who have been wrongly convicted and on death row.

If we were executing people relatively quickly, some of those folks would have lost their lives. That’s unacceptable to me.

I support Gov. [Tom] Wolf’s moratorium and I would not seek the death penalty.

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

RN: It’s an issue everywhere. I think it’s important to say the majority of our officers are great law-abiding folks who play by the rules and do a good job. But there are always going to be those officers who cross that line and either use poor judgment or flat-out engage in police misconduct because it’s racially motivated or they’re just a bully with a badge. The way to deal with that is holding police officers accountable. I’m a huge proponent of body cameras. It’s not just an important tool for officers’ safety but to document interactions. Cameras are an incredibly important tool to make sure police are held accountable and to protect officers who are playing by the rules and doing a good job.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015.

Is this a position you would resurrect?

RN: We’ve got an incredibly rich diverse community here in Philadelphia and that includes the Gayborhood. We should have liaisons for all of them. I want our D.A.s to be big brothers and big sisters. I want to aggressively reach out to communities that have not had a voice or representation and to give them a contact and a friend in the D.A.’s Office who can be an important partner.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

RN: Yeah, it’s ridiculous that in 2017 that you can still be fired because you’re gay. I stood there with leaders of the community

23

[for marriage equality]. I hope to stand there again when there is a law that prohibits discrimination in any form, for any reason. I support that wholeheartedly. I’m going to champion diversity across the board as I have throughout my career.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

RN: I do. Hate crimes are not just a crime against an individual. They are a crime against an entire community and it’s really an act of domestic terrorism, trying to terrorize an entire people with one single act and that’s very different than just committing an assault. That is a hate crime and we would treat it that way. We will call it what it is and sentence it that way.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

RN: Hate crimes aren’t reported that openly. There’s no hate-crimes task force here in Philadelphia. I think hate crimes specifically are ripe for task forces, partnerships and working with the Attorney General’s Office and hopefully U.S. attorneys that are reasonable, thoughtful and willing to make a difference, especially when they see an uptick and respond accordingly. I think the community needs to play an important role here and I think the community often learns of the nature of the crime before the police do. I think police officers or local law-enforcement officials in rural areas are not as sensitive to those issues and aren’t trained to report them that way. I think the community has a really important role to play not just with law enforcement but with stakeholders and public officials as well.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

RN: I’ve been a champion of the community my entire career. I’ve committed my life to public service. I’m sympathetic to a community that is targeted and victimized. I lost my dad to a homicide when I was 13 years old. That gave me the empathy and desire to seek equal justice and fairness. That’s why I think I’m the best candidate, not just because of my professional experience, which I think exceeds all of the other candidates. I think I have the most significant leadership and management experience that’s ready to lead an office today and start safeguarding our values. This is not time for on-thejob training. No other candidate has the record of integrity, the record of management and the record of the community that I have. I’m going to hit the ground running on day one. I’ll be ready to lead and safeguard our values. That’s why I’m the best choice for D.A. n For more information about Rich Negrin, visit www. richnegrin.com.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

D.A. from page 23

Jack O’Neill

Jack O’Neill prosecuted more than 100 cases involving homicide, rape and domestic violence. Before going into private practice, the district attorney candidate worked in the Juvenile Unit in the D.A.’s Office, where he represented thousands of survivors of violence and sexual assault.

His victories include the high-profile sexual-assault case against Charles Finch and the Kensington rapist’s prosecution.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

JO: Something I have said since I started running is the first position I will appoint as the new D.A. is deputy of fair practices and equality, whose job will be to be a liaison with the LGBT community in Philadelphia.

I think that will be a very effective way to address the violence that is obviously disproportionately focused on members of the LGBTQ community. The liaison would be a very effective person to start to heal the wounds and fix the lack of trust that often exists between the LGBT community — especially people who are black and brown in that community — and law enforcement. The liaison can be a direct person with a tremendous amount of power who can immediately start to address the issues. It can also make sure their DAs are not only trained and knowledgeable so they can address those issues but also stay on top of the issues to make sure they are being more proactive in places where people have felt disadvantaged and disenfranchised by law enforcement previously.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

JO: Absolutely. I will do it very early on in my time as district attorney. I never understood why it wasn’t turned over. I never heard a cogent or a rational explanation as to why the records haven’t been opened up especially to PGN, who I know led the charge in trying to get answers as to what’s going on there. As much as I followed that case and as much as I read about it, I’ve never heard a rational explanation as to why that information hasn’t been made available to you guys.

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentencing processes?

JO: Both can start to fix the problems with effective training. There is a deputy of training already and they would be in

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charge of making sure that happens. So would the deputy of fair practices and equality — to make sure the training is informed and is very in-depth as to what the causes of the racial disparity in prosecution, in arrest and sentencing are, understanding, of course, that one of the causes is the subconscious racism that exists in America, that’s often reinforced by things like the media. Training would be in-depth in addressing those issues.

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

JO: I’m absolutely against the Trump administration crackdown. I think it is xenophobic, racist and prejudice and fear mongering in a way that I hope we would never see in my lifetime. The D.A.’s Office can’t do everything to address the problems of the Trump administration but what they can do is stand up against the Trump administration. I fully support that we are a sanctuary city. One of the things that the Trump administration is trying to do is identify anyone who is suspected of being an illegal immigrant. I would do the exact opposite. I would absolutely not unless there was a threat to the community based on this person’s status. In other words, unless the person also is suspected of committing murders somewhere or suspected of something that is dangerous to people, then there is no way we would identify them to the federal government as someone who is suspected of [being] here illegally.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current district attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

JO: We would have an absolute no-gift policy. We would certainly have supervisors to keep an eye out and make sure no one is receiving gifts. There would be an absolute no-tolerance policy and if there were any gifts given, we would identify that person and punish them right away.

I do think it’s important to also say that I don’t believe the acts of Seth Williams, whatever they were, should be seen to reflect on the assistant district attorneys under him. That’s not my observation of what was occurring. I think he and his personal problems are very separate from people who work for him.

PGN: Some organizations have called for the release of data on the number of people of color convicted in Philadelphia each year. Is this something you would support?

JO: Absolutely. Any data at the D.A.’s Office should absolutely be released.

The things you don’t release are things that are unfair to victims and survivors.

For example, I wouldn’t release personal information on victims of sexual assault.

You wouldn’t release personal information on a witness to a homicide if you thought they were going to be in danger. As far as statistical information being gathered, not only would I release it to the media, I

would release it to special-interest groups that are doing studies on them.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

JO: Cash bail should be reformed. It should be a policy of the D.A.’s Office that the D.A., at arraignment, recommends that there should be a zero-cash requirement for anybody who is not a violent offender.

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

JO: I’m against it in almost every case. I do, however, see a limited exception and that very-limited exception is where there’s a person who is endeavoring to kill more people as a form of retribution to prevent prosecution and where there is no other solution other than seeking the death penalty for that person.

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

JO: There’s no question that it is. You have to have a D.A. who is able to separate themselves entirely from political pressure.

You also have to collect data and turn it over so the community feels free to look at where police violence seems to be most prevalent and to communicate effectively with the D.A.’s Office. So every time there is a complaint of police violence, data from that is collected — and has been for a long time. Internal Affairs collects it and has certified records of every single police officer. What I would do that would be different is where there’s a police officer that seems to have a lot of complaints, we would investigate that thoroughly. If there were any cases where police violence were found, we would prosecute them.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015.

You answered this question earlier but can you talk more about possibly resurrecting the position?

JO: As I said, I would actually make it a deputy position. The powers need to be bigger than liaison only. I think enforcing the Fair Practices Act is important. I think that pursuing equality inside the D.A.’s Office and outside the D.A.’s Office is important. Inside the D.A.’s Office, we had people feeling like they weren’t safely represented. Specifically, there were allegations of people who sent emails that were chauvinist, racist and homophobic and there were questions about whether those things were being addressed. It wouldn’t just be a liaison. It would be a deputy position with a tremendous amount of power to make sure that we would address issues in the city and inside the D.A.’s Office.

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

JO: It’s a bill that has a lot of facets to it but wherever the D.A.’s Office is failing to enforce things like fair practices, the deputy’s job would be to make sure it was caught immediately and that, whether there

are complaints [involving] police officers, whether there are complaints inside the D.A.’s Office or just complaints in courts where there’s violations, that they are addressed immediately.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

JO: I do. Hate crimes make up an interesting legal issue. We need D.A.s who are trained from the very moment the D.A.’s Office receives a case. They need to know how to look at cases and figure out if there is a hate crime — because sometimes it’s not readily identifiable — and then ask for sentencing aggregators based on it being a hate crime. Where the motive for crime is a person’s hate — whether for their race, gender, sexual preferences, whatever it may be — absolutely should be an aggregator. If you have a person who has hate, we can all understand the rationale.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

JO: The number-one thing is that the D.A.’s Office has to be much better at showing that it’s going to be a partner, advocate and effective communicator with the LGBTQ community. So when a person experiences a threat, harassment and — God forbid — violence, they know when the police show up, they can identify the act as a hate crime right away. I know from my work as DA for a decade that there’s a lack of respect often when police are investigating crimes involving people who are members of the LGBTQ community. It needs to be immediately fixed so that a person knows that they can contact the D.A.’s Office and say whether or not they received the same respect that they would receive if they were not a member of the community; that they can identify a hate crime immediately; and if they do complain about a lack of respect or a lack of serious consideration for a hate crime, something will be done.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

JO: I have a long track record of standing up for the LGBT community. I, in [the Special Victims Unit], represented countless survivors of domestic assault and sexual assault. I always did so with the utmost effort to be educated on what I need to be educated on, to be understanding about everything. I always fought extremely hard for those survivors. I also advocated policies that were more effective and that were stronger in terms of addressing the issues faced by the LGBT community and the people in the LGBT community who are black and brown, and for other reasons, disadvantaged. As you know, often members of the transgender community are also members of our impoverished community in Philadelphia. These are things I take so seriously. I have since advocated for a deputy-level position whose sole purpose is to

PGN ELECTION

address these issues. No other candidate has taken a step that strong or anything close to it. My record of what I’ve done as a D.A. and also my platform as a candidate shows I would be the best ally for the LGBT community if I were elected D.A. n For more information about Jack O’Neill, visit www. oneillforda.com.

Michael Untermeyer Prior to his run for district attorney, Michael Untermeyer served positions in the District Attorney’s Office and the Philadelphia Office of the Attorney General, specializing in financial cases at the latter. Additionally, he volunteered at the American Red Cross and conducted pro-bono work for several organizations.

PGN: There have already been nine transgender women of color murdered across the nation this year. If elected, what will your office do to combat violence against transgender individuals in Philadelphia, specifically women of color?

MU: As district attorney, I want to be an advocate for fairness for every Philadelphian. This is a really serious concern. I think first, we have to have more training and education of police officers and prosecutors. These cases should be taken very seriously and they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent possible under the law.

PGN: If elected, will you assist PGN in our ongoing efforts to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records?

MU: Yes, I would assist PGN in their efforts to obtain to settle all open-records litigation for access to Nizah Morris records. I think the District Attorney’s Office needs to be more transparent. That means being more open about publishing statistics and information online, but it also means being more responsive to requests for information. I think that, as long as information doesn’t jeopardize an investigation, it should be released as quickly and comprehensively as possible.

PGN: How would you approach racial disparities in both the charging and sentencing processes?

MU: This is something that’s pervasive throughout the criminal-justice system.

As an advocate for fairness and equity, I would change the way we do stop-andfrisk. It starts in the street. Then you have the charging. Sometimes charging is racially affected and racism shouldn’t play a part in it. When a case comes in the District Attorney’s Office, a police officer prepares the charges. The district attorney has the ability to approve or decline a particular charge. [If] I see cases motivated

not because of criminality but because of someone’s predisposition, I can simply decline the case from the get-go or filter the case so that the real charge is placed against somebody. The next step is when bail is set. The bail system we have now is discriminatory [both] racially and economically. The third thing is when a case simply is tried. One’s race should have no impact on how a case is handled during the trial phase. As district attorney, I want to fight for fairness.

PGN: What is your position on the current immigration crackdown being led by the Trump administration? What role does the D.A.’s Office play in this process?

MU: I support the mayor’s position in Philadelphia being a sanctuary city. I think low-level crimes [involving] individuals regardless of their status in this country should be treated like everyone else and be given a second chance.

PGN: In light of the bribery charges facing our current district attorney, what would you do to root out corruption within the office?

MU: As district attorney, I will not take gifts under any circumstances. In terms of possible corruption by other individuals in the office, I think all cases and claims made of corruption have to be investigated and prosecuted.

PGN: What is your position on cash bail?

MU: Cash bail, very simply, should be eliminated. Those with limited means suffer the consequences simply for not having enough money. I want a system that is not based on money whatsoever.

If Joe Smith is charged with a crime, we will look at his criminal history, his risk of flight and his risk of danger for the community. Based on those factors, we will simply make a decision whether he’s kept in custody or released conditionally until the time of his or her trial. We have 1,000 people in jail in Philadelphia where their bail is less than $1,000. For half of the people in the city, it takes an average of three days for them to come up with the funds to make even $500 of bail. It’s an unfair system and it’s unacceptable.

PGN: What is your position on the death penalty?

MU: As a policy, I do not believe in the death penalty. I don’t think it acts as a deterrent. I would say under extraordinary circumstances, I would consider it [such as the Charleston church shootings or the bombing of the Boston Marathon].

PGN: Do you think that police violence, specifically against communities of color, is an issue in Philadelphia? If so, what would you do to combat it?

MU: I do think it’s an issue. There should be a separate unit, not only administratively but geographically and physically, where both the investigators and the prosecutors do not interact with other office staff. The people in the separate unit will be charged with investigating and prose-

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

cuting any crimes involving police abuse.

PGN: The D.A.’s Office has not had an LGBT liaison since the beginning of 2015. Is this a position you would resurrect?

MU: More than having a liaison, I would like to assign a district attorney specifically for the LGBTQ community. There are 300 lawyers in this office and I believe in having a community-based prosecutor’s office, meaning that every lawyer in this office should be assigned to a specific community in the neighborhood. Part of his or her job will be to interact with their community on a consistent, weekly basis.

In this particular case, I think the individual should be a member of the LGBTQ community and that will be part of his or her job.

Gettin’ On

PGN: Do you support the statewide LGBT nondiscrimination bill? If yes, what would you do to advance it?

MU: Yes. In the District Attorney’s Office, I would try to hire a staff that is reflective of the community that we’re in.

PGN: Do you support the statewide hatecrimes bill? If yes, what would you do to advance this measure?

MU: Yes, I definitely support that. If it involves criminal acts, I can certainly make the enforcement and the prosecution of those acts a priority in the office. I also think we have to have advocacy for the LGBT community and as the Philadelphia district attorney, I would have somebody on my staff participate in those lobbying efforts.

PGN: Until an LGBT-inclusive hatecrimes law is adopted, what do you think can be done to better track and report hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity?

MU: The District Attorney’s Office has to be much more transparent. You have to be able to see what’s going on. The statistics have to be reported and whatever goes on in that office should be open to the public.

PGN: Why should the LGBT community vote for you?

MU: Most importantly, I am a strong and unwavering ally of the LGBT community. There is a significant LGBT community in the city and that community should be reflected in the makeup of the District Attorney’s Office. For too long now, the District Attorney’s Office really hasn’t been listening to the people of Philadelphia. We simply need a district attorney that will [be] an advocate for fairness and public safety for every Philadelphian. I also want to stress the fact that I think I will be truly independent in the work that I do in the District Attorney’s Office. This isn’t a stepping stone for me to another office. I really want to serve the people of Philadelphia in this office and that’s why I’m running. n For more information about Michael Untermeyer, visit www.michaelforphiladelphia.com.

We’re all getting older. For LGBT seniors, being out in the golden years can pose a whole new set of challenges. Each month, Gettin’ On brings you insights on aging, from legal issues to sexual health.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

ELECTION PGN

Former state rep, LGBT ally pursues judgeship

By Jeremy Rodriguez jeremy@epgn.com Former State Rep. Mark Cohen said he “strongly supported” LGBT rights since he was first sworn into the legislature in 1974.

That support included introducing two bills that would amend the public-school code and expand health-care coverage, respectively, for transgender individuals — the first-ever trans-rights measures in the state legislature.

Now, Cohen is running for a judgeship on the Court of Common Pleas in the May 16 primary, a path where he hopes to continue to be a “champion” for LGBT people. He said his legislative experience helped prepare him for a career in the judiciary.

“My legislative experience has made me an expert in credibility, witnesses and in dealing with people,” Cohen said.

“I have presided over thousands of legislative meetings and I have learned to be fair to ANTIBIAS from page 1

Court has issued a definitive ruling on the subject.

The commission investigates antibias in employment, housing, public accommodations, commercial property and education. If complaints aren’t settled at the commission level, they sometimes proceed to state or federal courts for adjudication.

The proposed guidance states: “Federal courts and federal administrative agencies have held that discrimination claims filed by LGBT individuals may be taken, investigated and analyzed as sex-discrimination claims.

The gist of these claims is that LGBTQ individuals do not comply with sexual stereotypes and that adverse action(s) against an LGBTQ individual due to that person’s failure to comply with sexual stereotypes amounts to discrimination based on sex. Accordingly, it is the position of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission that it will take and SIMS from page 1

“Confidentiality requirements in the law preclude me or any members of the commission or commission staff either confirming or denying the existence of an investigation or if we even received a complaint,” he said.

The complaint that individual filed listed five news stories published this past fall that raised questions about Sims’ travel reimbursements; a PGN story from October, entitled “Sims scrutinized for travel expenses and speaking fees,” was among the stories listed as evidence supporting the allegations.

The media coverage stemmed from a City & State story, which was cited in the complaint; that report contended that “Sims failed to properly report thousands of dollars in travel reimbursements [in 2015] while collecting more than $42,000 in speaking fees since his election in 2012.” A sixth article outlined a speaking engagement Sims conducted at Penn State University about “his career as a legislator” and on his “current legislation before the House.”

everybody, including Republicans — which for me is the most difficult,” Cohen laughed.

“I’ll be fair to all Republicans, whose views I strongly oppose. I’ll be fair to all witnesses, counsel and all parties in the case.”

Cohen noted people in his personal life who made him aware of LGBT visibility, including his sister, former City Council candidate Sherrie Cohen.

“I had been well aware of the problems, needs and the essential humanity of the LGBT community for many years,” Cohen said. “One of my college friends came out as gay shortly after graduation and explained to me in detail what led him to do that. And my sister, about the same time, came out as a lesbian. So by the early 1970s, I was well aware that people were not going to be in the closet anymore and they were the same human beings before they [came out].”

Cohen said he once came to the defense of Secretary of the Commonwealth Ethel Allen, then a closeted lesbian. When Republican

and Democratic leaders tried to censor Allen after she submitted a resolution proclaiming Gay Pride Week, Cohen was one of 13 House members who voted against the censorship.

Cohen represented the 202nd District in the House for 32 years; he was defeated in last spring’s primary by challenger Jared Solomon. Throughout his tenure, he sponsored LGBT-rights measures like inclusive nondiscrimination and hate-crimes bills.

Inclusion is a priority he would bring to the bench if elected, Cohen said.

He noted that some judges think their work is “limited to the courtroom,” which he said is “not the whole job.”

“I think the judges have to be aware of making the court system responsive to the needs of every Philadelphian,” he said.

“That includes the LGBT community. That includes the transgender community, specifically. That includes many other communities that are small in population but import-

ant for the overall cause of advancing human dignity. I think we have to make certain that the police and the community as a whole sense the needs of transgender individuals.”

To meet the needs of the transgender community, Cohen said he backs the creation of a judicial committee to address trans rights.

He recommended that Henry Sias, who, if elected to the Court of Common Pleas, would become the first transgender male judge in the nation, should chair such a committee. Cohen said he “would be honored to serve on that committee.”

Cohen noted he would bring his decades of legislative advocacy to the judiciary.

“I intend to be a more public figure than most judges. I intend to be more policy-oriented in terms of systemic change. I will push for meaningful changes in how the system operates to benefit the people.” n

investigate sex-stereotyping claims filed by LGBTQ individuals.”

The guidance also emphasizes that LGBTQ complaints will be treated on a case-by-case basis.

Additionally, the guidance notes that the commission continues to support legislation that would expand the state’s Human Relations Act to specifically cover antiLGBTQ discrimination.

Justin F. Robinette, a Berwyn-based civil-rights attorney, intends to submit written comments regarding the guidance. He urged that the commission’s complaint-intake form be revised to clarify that the commission considers sexual-orientation discrimination to be a form of sex discrimination.

“At least it puts discriminators on notice that the commission has some interest in protecting the LGBTQ community,” he said.

“Time will tell whether the commission handles our community’s complaints in a compe-

tent manner.”

Stephen A. Glassman served as chairperson of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission from 2002-11. He issued this statement about the proposed guidance: “I am hopeful that bringing attention to the discrimination that exists against LGBTQ people will encourage the legislature to finally pass an amendment to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act that adds these protected classes to the existing non-discrimination laws in Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, we’ll all be watching the commission closely with regard to how it actually processes LGBTQ complaints.”

The commission is accepting public comments about the proposed guidance through May 26. Comments may be emailed to Christina Reese, communications director for the commission, at chreese@pa.gov or phoned in at 717-783-8266.

As of presstime, Reese didn’t have a com-

ment on whether the commission’s complaint-intake form will be revised to clarify that sexual-orientation discrimination is a form of sex discrimination.

PHRC chairperson M. Joel Bolstein issued this statement: “PHRC has a statutory duty to protect the citizens of the commonwealth from acts of unlawful discrimination. The commission is requesting public comment on its draft guidance documents, which allows LGBTQ individuals to have their claims investigated as sex-discrimination claims. Taking this action affords people a remedy to unlawful discrimination that has already been made available by federal courts and federal administrative agencies who interpret statutes similar to the ones enforced by PHRC. We would urge anyone who believes that this issue is important to submit comments to PHRC by May 26, 2017.

All comments will be reviewed by the commission prior to voting on whether to adopt the proposed guidance documents as final.” n

“I would like an investigation to be conducted on all of his speaking engagements to ensure that there was no inappropriate acceptance of honoraria and no inappropriate content of his speeches,” the complaint read, noting that “inappropriate” referred to violations of the Ethics Act. In a statement sent to PGN Wednesday, Sims said his “office learned recently that a complaint had been lodged against me, presumably for the civil rights and equality lecturing that I perform. Transparency and ethics have always been at the forefront of my work and every term I have served, I have sought and received advice from House legal counsel that my lectures are ethical and legal based on the State Ethics Commission’s 91-004 Baker Opinion and established precedent.”

The 1991 commission finding determined that then-state Sen. Earl Baker did not violate the state ethics law by accepting a $500 speaking fee. In a 4-3 decision, the commission found that “a senator who has degrees in

political science, publishes works and speaks on subjects of political science is not prohibited from receiving a fee for speaking on the subject of legislative priorities for local government because such would be nonpublic occupational or professional in nature and not a honorarium.”

“I can’t stop my political opponents from wanting this to be an issue but the continuity of the work I began before taking office to foster understanding and tolerance is moral, legal and ethical,” Sims said. “It is the state’s duty to ensure the integrity of our government and a review of this work, and the transparency with which I’ve approached it, will make that clear.”After the City & State story published last year, Sims issued a statement to the publication that the university speaking engagements he conducted were about his coming out and LGBT-rights work and were “not tied to my work as a legislator.”

Though declining to comment on this particular case, Caruso spoke to PGN about the

general process for an Ethics Commission investigation.

He said the commission receives “roughly 500 complaints” each year and conducts a 60-day investigation on anywhere between 125-150 of the complaints. The investigation allows the commission to “establish if there is reasonable cause or reasonable belief that the complaint that was filed contains sufficient allegations that a certain public official violated the [Ethics Act].”

If there is enough evidence, the subject of the complaint will receive a target letter advising him or her about the complaint and that the commission is conducting an inquiry.

“If the commission determines there was a violation, they can direct the public official to remove themselves from the conflict,” Caruso said. “The commission can direct that the public official repay any amount of gain that they received.”

Caruso said investigations usually include interviews, subpoenas and review of financial documents. n

For more information about Mark Cohen, visit www.facebook.com/Mark-Cohen-forJudge-377525135936297/.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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FEATURE PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

Family Portrait Out & About Q Puzzle Scene in Philly

Page Page Page Page

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PAGE 39

CELEBR8: Miguel Ángel Silvestre as Lito kisses his boyfriend Hernando at a Pride celebration in Mexico City in season two.

‘Sense8’ returns for a second season

By Larry Nichols larry@epgn.com

“Sense8,” the science-fiction drama series created and written by transgender filmmakers Lana and Lilly Wachowski, along with writer and director J. Michael Straczynski, is returning for its hotly anticipated second season, which will be available May 5 on Netflix.

The highly stylized series features a multi-national cast portraying eight strangers from different countries and cultures who suddenly become “sensates,” human beings who are mentally and emotionally linked to each other. As a result, they can experience each other’s lives and draw upon one another’s talents and abilities.

Aside from going through their own personal struggles, the group as a whole is being pursued by a shadowy organization led by another mysterious sensate, Whispers, who is hunting them and tapping into their psychic link.

Two of the main characters are queer.

Nomi (played by trans actor Jamie Clayton)

is a trans woman and hacker activist living in San Francisco with her girlfriend Freema.

Lito (played by Miguel Ángel Silvestre) is a closeted gay actor and action-film star living in Mexico City with his boyfriend Hernando.

Season one found Nomi narrowly escaping her parents, who had her involuntarily hospitalized where she was almost subjected to a lobotomy as part of some horrific conversion therapy. Meanwhile, Lito’s secret was found out by his movie co-star, Daniela, who immediately became fast friends with Lito and Hernando and moved in with them to escape her abusive, possessive boyfriend.

The latter then threated to out Lito with pictures he found on Daniela’s phone, forcing a confrontation between the two in which Lito bested him in a fistfight.

Season two kicked off with a holiday-themed episode released late last year that caught us up with the main characters.

Nomi is on the run from the law while using her hacker skills to find out more about Whispers. Daniela’s ex makes good on his threat to out Lito, leaking photos of

him and Hernando having sex to the tabloids. His agents and handlers want him to deny the leaked pictures and stay in the closet but he refuses, which in the short term costs him his place to live and results in an intense public and media backlash. Amid all their personal battles, the group is also trying to figure out how to go on the offensive against Whispers and his associates while also evading them.

Silvestre, who is straight, said he is excited to see how season two turns out.

“It was a long shoot, almost nine months in 19 different cities,” he said about the new season. “I can’t wait to see the results, even though I know more or less what I’m going to get to see. In the first season, it caught me by surprise when I saw the first episode for the first time. The editing is very alive so there are many changes. So I’m wondering how it’s going to be and where it’s going to land.”

Silvestre said that Lito’s struggle with trying to figure out what to do with his life while his career is unraveling is going to be a significant part of the new season.

“It’s part of a story that Lana wanted to tell,” he said. “She wanted to be fair with reality. She told me, ‘Sometimes I’m going to ask you, Miguel, not to portray reality and I’m going to ask you to portray it in a precise way because I’m not portraying LGBT people as tormented people; I don’t want to give that to the audience. So sometimes I’m going to ask you for precise things because that is what I want to show to people.’ It’s her way to change the way our generation looks about something.”

Wachowski pointed Silvestre to Kerry James Marshall, a black painter from Chicago.

“He portrays black people in an only positive atmosphere,” Silvestre said. “[Wachowski] wanted to be real in that Lito is living through incredible things because he is honest with who he is. But at the same time, in reality, he is going to struggle work-wise and he’s going to be judged. But [Wachowski] is also going to have some surprises for him by the end of the season because she wanted to say that some cultures will judge PAGE 32

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FEATURE PGN

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SENSE8 from page 31

you for that but other cultures will not. That’s her way to speak about diversity, how some cultures are different but when we gather together we become better. She wanted to be fair and say, ‘OK, not everything is going to be a path of roses for Lito right now.’”

Silvestre said the fan reactions he has encountered regarding his character have been enthusiastic.

“When they talk to me, it’s all positive. When I go to the supermarket or I’m in the street, some LGBT people will come [up to me] and I get to see that they are very thankful of Lana’s commitment through our characters. They are thankful for the show. They can see that it speaks about themselves. And some of the people that are not LGBT, they get way more empathetic about a cause that maybe isn’t theirs. They get to see how close they are to their cause. I love the way Lana puts it: these eight characters, who may not get along in real life, when they are vulnerable they are closer than they thought. That’s what the audience gets to see and feel. Many people feel thankful because of Lana and what she is writing and how committed she is.”

One of the great things about Lito’s character is what he brings to the table for the other sensates. While almost all of them have physical or technical talents that the others can draw upon, Lito often find himself using his acting chops to help the others charm their way around the obstacles they encounter in a social setting.

Silvestre said he likes exploring his character’s situational bravado.

“It’s something that I enjoy a lot as an actor because I can laugh about myself a

NOMI AND FREEMA bit,” he said. “When I get to see me performing, I get to see all my tricks and habits that you get with years. With Lito, I can exaggerate that a bit more and laugh a bit about myself. And Lito is not a good actor; when he does these social things and overacts, those are the scenes that I have the most fun with. Everyone has a gift and Lito knows how to deal with people and reality. I think the way Latin culture is portrayed sometimes is too passionate. So I have so much fun doing those scenes.”

However, Lito often struggles with his own social confrontations. Silvestre said the character is going to be more assured of himself and his own life by the end of the season.

“He’s going to surrender to who he is and he’s going to accept it for real,” he said.

“There was so much struggling because of his environment. He didn’t want to be who he really is, which is such a pity. Nomi says to Lito, ‘The violence is the one that you do to yourself.’ I guess I think that it’s nice to see that in reality. He’s a beautiful human being when he’s really who he is.” n The second season of “Sense8” premieres May 5 on Netflix. For more information, visit https://www.netflix.com/title/80025744.

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PGN

MUSIC PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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Concerts, exhibit explore contributions of late classical musician

By Ray Simon PGN Contributor From May 4-28, Philadelphians can immerse themselves in the music and life of Julius Eastman, a composer and performer whose work was beautiful, challenging and unapologetically queer.

“Julius Eastman: That Which Is Fundamental” is a retrospective that includes four concerts and an accompanying exhibit.

It is presented by Bowerbird, a local arts organization whose mission is showcasing experimental music, in collaboration with The Rotunda and the Slought Foundation.

Eastman, who died in 1990, may not be a household name, but among people interested in contemporary classical music, his renown is growing.

Born in 1940, Eastman studied composition at Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute, then migrated to Buffalo, N.Y., to participate in the Creative Associates program, which co-curator Dustin Hurt, the director of Bowerbird, described as “a sort of new music utopia that existed in the ’60s and ’70s.”

Eastman was an accomplished pianist and an in-demand baritone. His portrayal of George III in Peter Maxwell Davies’s “Eight Songs for a Mad King,” for example, earned him a Grammy nomination.

But Eastman began to grow dissatisfied.

In a 1976 interview, he told Renate Strauss, “What I am trying to achieve is to be what I am to the fullest — Black to the fullest, a musician to the fullest, a homosexual to the fullest.”

Moving to Manhattan, Eastman still occasionally performed orchestras, but he was increasingly drawn to the downtown scene, where genres and ideas mixed freely.

Always principled and sometimes provocative, his career began to derail in the 1980s, a situation exacerbated by personal problems. Even before Eastman died in 1990, his possessions, including his scores, were scattered or lost outright.

The current retrospective is just one effort to draw attention to Eastman’s work.

According to Hurt, it “is like the culmination of a pretty long research project.”

Hurt first encountered Eastman in 2007, while researching other composers.

Intrigued, he tried to learn more, only to find out that details of Eastman’s life were sketchy and recordings of his work were rare. Eventually, he found others who were

trying to preserve Eastman’s work, like the composer Mary Jane Leach and the librarian John Bewley. It wasn’t until 2014, though, that work on the retrospective began in earnest.

will be performed May 19.

One goal of the retrospective, Hurt said, is “to present a much wider view of Eastman as an artist, to show a broader range of his musical talents and musical interests.”

JULIUS EASTMAN COMPOSING C. 1969.

“One of the things that’s interestingly happened in that time is Julius Eastman has become kind of a composer flavor of the moment,” Hurt said.

In just the past year, Eastman has been the subject of appreciative articles in The New Yorker and The New York Times.

The record label Frozen Reeds released the premier recording of an early work, “Femenine.” There is also now a collection of critical essays about him called “Gay Guerrilla: Julius Eastman and His Music.”

The retrospective’s first concert takes place May 5 at the Rotunda. The program includes “Femenine” and “Stay on It,” two early pieces.

According to Hurt, “The music that Eastman has become known for is a type of minimalist music that has a unique combination of pop-music influences in terms of harmonies and a use of improvisation.”

Those elements, he added, give Eastman’s music a looser, more vital feel than the work of other minimalists.

Eastman also challenged audiences with pieces that were political and, sometimes, provocative. That’s the case with pieces like “Crazy Nigger” and “Gay Guerrilla,” which

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To flesh out Eastman’s life, the retrospective’s two exhibits, “A Recollection” and “Predicated,” should help. Both were

put together by co-curator Tiona Nekkia McClodden, a filmmaker and visual artist whose work explores black queer history.

“A Recollection” includes artifacts and ephemera associated with Eastman. He didn’t actively archive his own work and what he did save was largely lost, so the bulk of this material was gathered from his family, friends and lovers. In “Predicated,” 10 contemporary artists, all people of color, engage with Eastman’s work.

To McClodden, Eastman’s work is inspirational and relevant. “We’re living in transgressive times but at the same time very conservative times,” she said. “So it’s refreshing, I think, to be able to look at someone who was really pushing it at a time where people thought that wasn’t happening and bring that current where we want it to happen.”

Eastman was a complex, contradictory person whose life included artistic accomplishments and painful setbacks. It would be a mistake, however, to view him as tragic.

“When you’re an artist, you’re confronted with these spaces of partitioning yourself, and I see Eastman as someone who refused it,” McClodden said. “That’s something that I try to refuse every day, so he gives me courage.” n

To learn more about Eastman, visit www. thatwhichisfundamental.com.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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1412 Chestnut stReet • PhiladelPhia, Pa 19102

PrinceTheater.org/TheRRazzRoom • 215-422-4580 May 20

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CHuCK SWEEnEy

VICKIE SHaW

JUNE 16

Pop, Jazz & Blues Singer/Entertainer

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Anything Could Happen

1412 Chestnut stReet • PhiladelPhia, Pa 19102 6426 lOweR YORk ROad • new hOPe, Pa 18938

PrinceTheater.org/TheRRazzRoom • 215-422-4580 www.TheRRazzRoom.com • 888-596-1027

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PROFILE PGN

Family Portrait

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

37

Suzi Nash

Samy el-Noury: Taking flight on stage Samy el-Noury is a renaissance man. A well-respected actor, Noury is also a musician, a brown belt in Shaolin Kung Fu, does pretty well on a trapeze, speaks a smattering of French, Arabic and Spanish, is fluent in Japanese and knows his way around a puppet. Not bad for someone who hasn’t turned 30 yet.

Noury is currently starring in Inis Nua Theatre Company’s premier of “Swallow,” a beautiful, character-driven show running through May 14.

PGN: Where do you hail from?

SeN: I was born in Silver Spring, Md., so I grew up in that area for most of my life.

PGN: Tell me about the fam. Any siblings?

SeN: I’m the second-oldest; I’m one of four. Mom and Dad both present. They both worked often when I was growing up so I spent a lot of time with my grandparents on my mother’s side. They lived in Puerto Rico but there were periods of time when they would come stay here to help take care of us. My paternal grandparents were in Lebanon, so it would have been a little hard for them to babysit.

PGN: What’s a fun memory with your siblings?

SeN: Oh God, well this is silly but in the county where I grew up they have this little light festival each year in Watkins Park.

As children, it was tradition that we would go every year. My older sister especially loved it because Thanksgiving is her favorite holiday, but as we got older we kind of let it go until one year when my sister reinstated the tradition. As adults, we realized that it was kind of cheesy; they weren’t even real Christmas lights and there were things like dinosaurs with Christmas hats stuck on them. It was just really ridiculous but that kind of endeared it to us and we still try to go each year.

PGN: What were you like as a kid?

SeN: [Laughs] It depends on who you ask! I wish I was sportier than I actually was. My parents would tell you I was a stubborn kid. I sometimes feel like I’ve aged in reverse. I definitely had a more serious mindset when I was a kid. I was more withdrawn and introverted but the older I got the more open and sillier I’ve become. I have friends who start panicking as they hit 30 and I’m like, This is great!

I’m now getting to have all the fun I didn’t get to have before.

PGN: Why so serious?

SeN: There were a lot of things. Though we get along now, I didn’t have the best relationship with some of my family members, so my childhood was a bit fraught.

A lot of it was not being comfortable with myself and my identity and body and as a

result I was also bullied a lot. I think the first time I went to therapy was in fourth grade. I was bullied and depressed and it almost never seemed to stop.

PGN: At school?

SeN: Largely at school but I didn’t find the support and relief from it at home that I needed. I’d come home from having horrible things happen and not be able to seek comfort at home because they just didn’t understand, and as a child I didn’t have the language to express what I felt about my gender identity. And when I did find language for who I was, most representations of trans people in the media were the jokes, the punch lines. The first time I ever heard a trans reference it was being used as an insult, so I thought, Well, I think that’s what I am, but I guess it’s a bad thing. I realized that if I expressed how I felt inside, it would invite more bullying and more ridicule.

PGN: I presume as a child you were presenting female; what was the bullying about? Were you a tomboy?

SeN: For some reason I got teased because they thought I looked like Prince!

PGN: What was your first inkling that you were different? And did you realize that it had to do with gender identity or did you, like a lot of people, go through a lesbian phase first?

SeN: I did! In hindsight, I think it’s because that’s what a lot of people labeled me, so I thought, Well this must be it.

Which is interesting because now I’m primarily attracted to men, I’m not not attracted to women — I’m fairly fluid in my sexuality — but in the beginning I’d think, Well, everyone thinks I’m a lesbian, so I guess I am. And I found a lot of solace in the lesbian community. As an androgynous individual, I found acceptance there so it was very painful for me when I finally came out as transgender; a lot of people stopped talking to me, which was sad.

PGN: What was the first clue?

SeN: I’d heard and read a little about gender identity but the first person I ever met face-to-face that openly identified as a trans person was in college, my freshman

PGN: [Laughs] OK, that’s not what I was expecting!

SeN: I know! I had short, really curly hair, mainly because at one point I decided that I hated having long hair, so I cut it myself. It really pissed my mom off because I did such a bad job of it. So she took me to a salon to fix it and everyone was like, “You look like Prince! That’s so gay.” It was considered a big insult until I got older and realized that Prince was awesome! But the flip side was, when I hit puberty, I developed pretty quickly and boys started sexually harassing me at a pretty young age, like 9. So it was like, OK, you made fun of me because I looked androgynous but now you’re going to objectify me for the ways that I do look feminine? It felt like there was no relief.

PGN: That sounds like the Neneh Cherry song “Kisses on the Wind,” which is about a girl entering puberty.

SeN: Yeah, I know that song! You’re right.

PGN: So what kinds of things were you into?

SeN: I was really into reading and illustrating. I wasn’t very verbally articulate.

I was very withdrawn, so if you asked me how I felt I wouldn’t be able to tell you but I could draw it. Art became an outlet for me. I loved reading so much that I was the only kid who would assign myself reading projects! It was such a retreat for me. I even thought about becoming a librarian at one point.

year. It was a real wake-up call because it wasn’t like what you see on TV; it was a real live person with a full life. But I immediately asked all the questions that you’re not supposed to ask, “So, do you have a penis or a vagina? How do you have sex? What bathroom do you use? But you don’t look the way I thought a trans person would look!” All the questions I get now. But they really took me to task and explained why it was offensive and straightened out the misconceptions I had.

It was shock and awe but they were great about taking the time to educate me and I realized how much the narrative of their life identified with my own. It prompted me to start reading about the subject again with a different lens and I began to realize that it all resonated with me, everything clicked. It was a very liberating but also sad and terrifying moment.

PGN: How long ago did you start your transition?

SeN: Five years this February.

PGN: When did you come out to the family?

SeN: Well, I’ve done it three times now!

The first time was when I was 13 and I came out as gay. They didn’t get it at all so I buried it until I was 18 when I first mentioned that perhaps I was trans and that was even worse; they were definitely not happy with that. Then when I was about 23 I had a job that gave me the security to live on my own, in case they kicked me out. I then legally changed my name and informed them that I was going through with everything. They didn’t kick me out, but I did move just because it was time. Though I remember when I told them, “I need to do this so that I can finally and truly love who I am,” my father said, “Yes, but what if we don’t love who you are?”

PGN: Ouch!

SeN: True. It hurt but it was good because that was the moment when I realized that I needed to stop trying to find validation in other people. I hate to tell that story because now he’s “Pride Dad” and so supportive. He hates to even think or talk about the time when he was less-accepting. But I’m so proud of the leaps and bounds both he and my mom have made. I do a lot of outreach work with kids and they’re often afraid of the reaction they’ll get and my story gives them hope. If my parents could come around, then so can theirs!

PGN: What made you go into acting? To go from being a shy little girl to a leading man?

SeN: Yeah, it’s funny. I’m still a weird contradiction; I love people enjoying my work but if I meet people after a show I’m still uncomfortable with the attention. When I was in PAGE 42

38

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PGN LISTINGS

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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Theater & Arts American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition exploring watercolor painting’s remarkable rise in the United States between 1860-1925, through May 14, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100.

Another Way of Telling: Women Photographers from the Collection Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition featuring exceptional and rare photographs by women exploring identity in and out of the studio through July 16, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100.

Channeling Nature by Design Philadelphia Museum of Art examines how designers of handmade and industrial objects — including furniture, pottery, kitchenware and even a 3-D printed neckpiece — have responded to the beauty and fragility of the natural world through July 16, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100.

Clue: On Stage The comedy/murder mystery based on the classic board game runs through May 20 at Bucks County Playhouse, 70 S. Main St., New Hope; 215-862-2121.

Dick Gregory The pioneering comedian and author performs 8 p.m.

May 10 at Helium Comedy Club, 2031 Sansom St.; 215496-9001.

A LAUGH RIOT: Out comedian and actor Jessica Kirson delivers her live-wire brand of energetic comedy to audiences May 11-13 at the Punch Line Philly, 33 E. Laurel St. For more information or tickets, call 215-606-6555.

Greg Behrendt The comedian and author of “He’s Just Not That Into You” performs May 5-7 at Helium Comedy Club, 2031 Sansom St.; 215496-9001.

Jerry’s Girls Walnut Street Theatre presents Broadway’s electrifying tribute to all-American master of song Jerry Herman through July 2 at Independence Studio on 3, 825 Walnut St.; 215-574-3550.

Julie Budd: Remembering Sinatra The singer performs Frank Sinatra classics 5 p.m. May 7 at The Rrazz Room at The Prince, 1412 Chestnut St.; 267-239-2941.

Lino Tagliapietra: Painting in Glass Philadelphia Museum of Art showcases the artist’s complex glass vessels through July 16, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100.

Marc Maron: The Too Real Tour The comedian performs 8 p.m.

May 12 at Merriam

Theater, 250 S. Broad St.; 215-893-1999.

Paula Poundstone The comedian and author hosts a reading from her new book, “The Totally Unscientific Study of the Search for Human Happiness,” 7:30 p.m.

May 11 at Central Library, 1901 Vine St.; 215-567-4341.

Person of the Crowd: The Contemporary Art of Flânerie The Barnes Foundation presents an exhibition featuring works by 40 international artists making provocative spectacles of themselves through May 22, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway; 215-2787000.

Phulkari: The Embroidered Textiles of Punjab Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition exploring the beauty and cultural significance of phulkari, ornately embroidered textiles from Punjab, a region straddling Pakistan and India, through

July 9, 26th Street and the Pkwy.; 215-7638100.

Pops Rocks The Philly Pops perform the hits that defined the golden musical era of the ’70s and ’80s May 5-7 at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 300 S. Broad St.; 215-893-1999.

Re/Action The Pennsylvania Ballet performs allnew works May 11-14 at Academy of Music, 240 S. Broad St.; 215893-1999.

Sense of Human Koresh Dance Company reprises its repertoire favorites, exploring the perception of reality, self-discovery and the reasons we choose to wear carefully chosen façades, through May 7 at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St.; 215-9850420.

Steve Grand: AllAmerican Boy The out singersongwriter performs 8 p.m. May 6 at The Rrazz Room at The Prince, 1412 Chestnut St.; 267-239-2941.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PGN LISTINGS

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

WHERE AFROMYSTICISM MEETS CABARET AND DISCO MEETS POP! JOMAMA JONES in BLACK LIGHT

May 4 – 6 INTO THE GROOVE: Out singer-songwriter and bassist Meshell Ndegeocello brings her unique blend of neo-soul, funk, rock and R&B music to Philly 8 p.m.

May 6 at Zellerbach Theatre, 3680 Walnut St. For more information or tickets, call 215-898-3900.

Music Lez Zeppelin The all-female Led Zeppelin tribute band performs 8 p.m. May 5 at Sellersville Theater 1894, 24 W. Temple Ave., Sellersville; 215257-5808.

Start Making Sense The Talking Heads tribute band performs 8 p.m.

May 5 at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St.; 215222-1400.

The Damned The punk band performs on its 40th-anniversary tour 8 p.m. May 7 at TLA, 334 South St.; 215-922-1011.

Coheed & Cambria The prog-rock band performs 8 p.m. May 10 at The Fillmore Philadelphia, 29 E. Allen St.; 215625-3681.

Metallica The metal band performs 6 p.m.

May 12 at Lincoln Financial Field, 1020 Pattison Ave.; 215-463-5500.

Future The rapper performs 7 p.m.

May 12 at BB&T Pavilion, 1 Harbour Blvd., Camden, N.J.; 609-3651300.

Nightlife NGBA: Registration Party Join the National Gay Basketball Association for its registration party 7-10 p.m. May 5 at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St.; 215-964-9675.

PGMC Derby Day Street Festival The Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus is turning 35 and is throwing a party to celebrate 2-6:30 p.m. May 6 at Woody’s Bar, 202 S. 13th St.; 215545-1893.

’90s Throwback Swimsuit Foam Party DJ Mimi Imfurst spins your favorite guilty-pleasure music with performances by BEV, 2-6 p.m.

May 7 at Globar, 1300 Walnut St.; 215-545-1893.

CaBEARet Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus and Happy Bear are banding together to bring you a cabaret-style event 4-8 p.m.

May 12 at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St.; 215-964-9675.

Outta Town Steve Grand The singersongwriter

performs 8 p.m.

May 5 at The Rrazz Room, 6426 Lower York Road, New Hope; 888-5961027.

Roque Wilson The comedian performs 7:30 p.m. May 6 at The Rrazz Room, 6426 Lower York Road, New Hope; 888-5961027.

Bruce in the USA The Bruce Springsteen tribute band performs 8 p.m.

May 12 at World Cafe Live at the Queen, 500 N. Market St., Wilmington, Del.; 302-9941400. n

Notices Send notices at least one week in advance to: Out & About Listings, PGN, 505 S. Fourth St., Philadelphia, PA 19147 fax: 215-925-6437; or e-mail: listings@epgn.com.

Notices cannot be taken over the phone.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

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42

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

PORTRAIT from page 37

college I was into illustration but my fellow students were all these rich kids pretending to be the poor bohemian “artiste” and here I was: a queer person of color, and they were kind of, “Oh, we don’t actually want to associate with the real thing …” It was odd, so I switched to history — as a big book nerd, it’s a passion of mine — and graduated from a different university with a degree in Japanese studies. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find something in that field and took an internship at a performing-arts center working in the art gallery and I got to see all their shows.

In 2012, there was a play based on a Japanese playwright going up. I reached out to the production people and said, “I know him! Please, I speak Japanese, let me be a resource for you!” The guy said, “Why don’t you just audition for it?” So I did and I’ve been acting ever since. I’ve gone back and taken courses on the craft of acting and by 2015 I was able to quit my day job and pursue acting full-time.

PGN: It’s funny, I interviewed Chaz Bono and he was saying that he’d done some acting before transitioning and at one point was cast as a lesbian. He thought it would be a good fit because at the time he was identifying as lesbian but he couldn’t get into it at all. It wasn’t until he had to play a male role that everything clicked. Did you start acting before or after your transition?

SeN: Interesting. I was in a Shakespeare company and one time when I was performing as Juliet the guy who cast me said something about the fact that it looked like I was “acting” for the first time. He said, “You’re trying so hard to play this woman, it feels like you’re just playing a role.” I was thinking, Little does he know … I’d started privately transitioning but was still presenting as female. It was a great role, though. I’d love to do it again if they did an all-male “Romeo and Juliet”! I just love what I do.

PGN: Let’s talk about some of the other things you do, like martial arts.

SeN: Yeah, that was one of the few athletic endeavors I was able to participate in. It taught me a lot of discipline, which I like. I’m better at meticulous things. I have trouble just letting go. For instance, I play the piano but I’m best at regulated pieces, I’m no good at jazz or even doing improv when acting, but I’m working on it.

PGN: Tell me about “Swallow,” without giving too much away.

SeN: It’s a three-person show and each person is going through their own personal struggle: One character has locked herself in her apartment and hasn’t left in ages, another has been going through domestic issues and my character goes through his own gender transformation.

PGN

The three of them meet and interact and it’s one of those things where everyone wants to fix someone else because it’s easier than fixing yourself.

PGN: I found it very moving with a good bit of humor as well. Looking at your résumé, most of your roles seem to be traditionally male; was this your first time playing a trans man?

SeN: You know, I think it is! At least for a mainstream role. I’m really excited about it. I think it’s important that the director chose a trans man to play a trans man. I’ve had the debate with people over whether or not we have to have trans actors play trans characters and I fall on the side of yes, because we want those employment opportunities and also because we want to elevate the trans voices in our community. There’s a lot of talent that doesn’t often get a chance to do good roles like this, so I’m excited for the opportunity.

PGN: Your character has a lot to face throughout the course of the show. What did you draw from personally to help you with it?

SeN: Yes, there are some dark parts as well as triumphant ones. The director, Claire, will tell you when we were rehearsing the tough parts, I had to get up and dance when we were through just to lighten it up a little.

PGN: I read that this was a delicate balance because you tried to be very careful to play a fully nuanced character and not just the same story we’ve heard before.

SeN: I fought this at first because there’s a lot already in the media, be it news or TV or films about trans people being victimized. It’s a delicate tightrope because you don’t want to be stereotyped but at the same time, this stuff really happens. It’s happened to me, it happens to a lot of us and I was able to draw from a personal well of experience to do the role. Especially at a time where we have laws being enacted to prevent us from going into bathrooms, the reality is that there are people assaulted for just wanting to pee. I’m really proud to bring this story to light.

PGN: There was a lot packed into the show, from the difficulties of disclosure to the joy of friendship — and all done with an accent to boot!

SeN: Yes, that was a challenge trying to get the Scottish accent down, but it’s a great script. Very poignant. I’m so proud to be a part of this and I hope people will come out and see it! n “Swallow” runs through May 14 at Proscenium Theater at the Drake, 302 S. Hicks St. For more information, visit www.inisnuatheatre.org/swallow.

To suggest a community member for Family Portrait, email portraits05@aol.com.

Q Puzzle Mercurial Success Across

1. Drag queen ___ Lettuce 6. Dawson’s, in teen TV drama 11. Break it on Broadway 15. Oral performances 16. Primary blood carrier 17. Novelist Patricia ___ Warren 18. Out Pentatonix singer 20. Handle a shrew, for Shakespeare 21. Sexy clothing material 22. “Don’t Look ___ That Way” (Cole Porter) 23. Potbelly, and others 25. Endora portrayer 27. Sawbucks 28. Used the Divine Miss M’s name in vain?

31. Jeremy Irons role as a pope 32. Lines at checkout? (abbr.)

33. Medical research monkey

36. For-skin cream ingredient 39. Pentatonix cover of a Freddie Mercury song that went viral 43. Give ___ to (approve) 44. White water site 45. Virginia Woolf ___ Stephen 46. Pulling out of the closet?

49. Rock Hudson’s “Winchester,” et al.

51. Lubricant containers 53. Prefix with vitamin 55. The Spanish one was huge 56. Pound sound 57. De Matteo of “Desperate Housewives” 61. Top target 62. Out Pentatonix singer 65. “___ The Woods” 66. Gung-ho 67. “Amadeus” star Tom 68. One who gazes at crystal balls 69.

“Bewitched” aunt 70. Go lickety-split

Down

1. Top-remover Mia 2. Buffalo’s lake 3. Morse clicks 4. Country houses, to Nureyev 5. It hangs from your butt 6. Montmartre menu 7. Travels aimlessly 8. Highland dialect 9. Heteros, on PlanetOut? 10. “The Gay Metropolis” writer Charles 11. Willa Cather character, and others 12. Go from the bar without a partner 13. Recipient of Bugs’ kisses 14. Sharon of _Queer as Folk_ 19. 1982 biopic with Ian Charleson 24. “Star Trek: ____” 26. Word after wheat, for granola lesbians

27. Singer Reagon 28. OJ portrayer Gooding 29. Second word of fairy tales 30. Bill, to Hilary at Yale 31. Tupperware sound 34. Makes money the old-fashioned way, to John Houseman 35. Unforeseen difficulty 37. River of Hirschfeld’s country 38. Davis pair in “Feud” 40. Cam Tucker, on “Modern Family” 41. Brewer Coors 42. Exam for jrs.

47. Abe

Lincoln’s boy 48. Bad way to come 50. Emulate half of the Odd Couple 51. Wet spot on a blanket of sand 52. Cara of “Fame” 53. Online stat exaggeration?

54. A lot up front?

56. Madonna taught this in “The Next Best Thing” 58. Get under the skin of 59. Suffix with prefer 60. Like finer wine 63. James Dean’s “East of Eden” role 64. Grateful cries for one who satisfies

PGN

The

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

Guide to the Gayborhood

The Philadelphia Gayborhood is roughly centered at Locust and Camac streets. Look for the rainbow street signs at intersections and remember to be aware of your surroundings wherever you go.

Boxers

1330 Walnut St. facebook.com/ boxersphl Sports bar with a dozen huge TVs, pool table, brick pizza oven, sports teams specials

Toasted Walnut

Tabu

Woody’s

1316 Walnut St. 215.546.8888 Festively lit women-owned bar complete with a “beer” pong table

202 S. 13th St. 215.545.1893 woodysbar.com Includes attached Walnut Street bars Rosewood and GloBar

m

m <— Juniper St.

Chancellor St.

m

m

St. James St.

m Locust St.

Manning St.

m

11th St.

r

m

Quince St.

<—

Latimer St.

12th St.

13th St.

Camac St.

m

r

206 S Quince St. 215.627.1662 Old-school men’s bar; pool tables, big-screen sports action; basement has enforced dress code Walnut St.

m

m

The Bike Stop

200 S. 12th St. 215.964.9675 tabuphilly.com Sports bar with light fare and shows upstairs

Spruce St.

m

Cypress St.

William Way LGBT Community Writer’s Block Rehab Center 1342 Cypress St. 267.603.6960 A cozy, comfortable bar and lounge perfect for escaping the norm

1315 Spruce St. 215.732.2220 waygay.org A resource for all things LGBT

<— <— West of Broad Street Stir Lounge

1705 Chancellor St. 215.732.2700 stirphilly.com Fun two-bar lounge, DJ in the back, regular poker games and specials

The Attic Youth Center

255 S. 16th St. 215.545.4331 atticyouthcenter.org Safe space and programs for LGBTs age 16-23 weekday afternoons and evenings

Voyeur

Knock

U Bar

ICandy

1221 St. James St. 215.735.5772 voyeurnightclub.com After-hours private club; membership required

1220 Locust St. 215.546.6660 Relaxing corner bar, easy-going crowd, popular for happy hour and window watching

225 S. 12th St. 215.925.1166 knockphilly.com Fine-dining restaurant and bar, outdoor seating (weather permitting), piano in back room

254 S. 12th St. 267.324.3500 clubicandy.com Three floors with a total of six bars; dance floor, lounge and rootop deck.

Tavern on Camac 255 S. Camac St. 215.545.8731 Piano lounge with upstairs dance floor; Tavern restaurant below is open late.

Pa. bars close at 2 a.m. unless they have a private-club license. Please drink responsibly.

pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976

HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

Classifieds Help Wanted

Real Estate Rent

LANDSCAPING P/T, Bux & Mont Co. No exp. nec. Call Vince 215-639-8512. _____________________________________________41-19 OTR Flatbed, $1200 average weekly income! 46-50 CPM based on experience. Full benefits. Pets allowed. CDL-A, 1-year OTR experience, flatbed experience preferred.

888.626.8247, www.drivechief.com _____________________________________________41-18

RENOVATED SOUTH PHILLY TOWNHOUSES FSBO 2 on Durfor St. off 3rd St., 1 at 4th and Wolf. $199,900 each.

Plus Twin off Lancaster Ave in Haverford PA, $379.9K & $399.9K respectively, Call 215-849-4049. _____________________________________________41-18 2500 BLOCK S. WATTS, S. PHILA. 2 BR. 1 BA. kitchen, DR, LR. small yard. 610-825-0644. _____________________________________________41-21 SOUTHBROOK AREA 3 BR house, just remodeled, all new, too much to list! No smokers or pets. $1300 plus utilities. Call 215-432-0333 ot 215-858-6569. _____________________________________________41-18

Vacation Seasonal Rental OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND Best selection of affordable rentals. Full/ partial weeks. Call for FREE brochure. Open daily. Holiday Resort Services.

1-800-638-2102. Online reservations: www.holidayoc.com ________________________________________41-18

Real Estate Sale VENTNOR, NJ House for sale in Ventnor NJ. 2 story 5 bedroom house, needs some repairs. Priced right. Call 215 468 9166. ________________________________________41-19

Services

Legal Notice

LOSE WEIGHT LIKE CRAZY Nutritional & Weight Management Programs email: steven.jones7160@comcast.net www.goherbalife.com/nutrition4ever ________________________________________41-18 BUG OFF PEST CONTROL Specializing in bed bugs and roaches Dependable, best prices. Phila. area served Retired 20 yr. military man. 717-866-7309 _____________________________________________41-20 AIRLINE MECHANIC TRANING Get FAA certification to fix planes. Approved for military benefits. Financial Aid if qualified. Job placement assistance.

CALL Aviation Institute of Maintenance 877-207-0345. ________________________________________41-18

Court of Common Pleas for the County of Philadelphia, April Term, 2017, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on April 7, 2017, the petition of Sierra Alyn Grago was filed, praying for a decree to change his name to Ryan Greyson Grago.

The Court has fixed May 23, 2017 at 1:00 p.m., in Courtroom No. 691 in Philadelphia City Hall as the time and place for the hearing of said Petition, when and where all persons interested may appear and show cause, if they have any, why the prayer of the said petition should not be granted. ________________________________________41-18

PGN

Adoption Considering Adoption? I’m a loving, stable woman who dreams of adopting a baby. I’d love to talk with you. Call Diane 855-790-9311, Text 917-728-8813, www.dianeadopts.com ________________________________________41-18

For Sale SAWMILLS from only $4397.00 – MAKE & SAVE MONEY with your own bandmill – Cut lumber any dimension. In stock ready to ship! FREE Info/DVD: www.NorwoodSawmills.com 1-800-578-1363 Ext.300N. ________________________________________41-18 KILL BED BUGS! Buy Harris Bed Bug Killers/KIT Complete Treatment System. Available: Hardware Stores, The Home Depot, homedepot.com. Try Harris Guaranteed Roach Killers Too! ________________________________________41-18 KILL ROACHES GUARANTEED! Buy Harris Roach Tablets. Odorless, Effective, Long Lasting. Available: Hardware Stores, The Home Depot, homedepot.com ________________________________________41-18 ANTIQUE LOVERS TAKE NOTE: BRIMFIELD’S Famous Outdoor Antique/Collectibles Show 5,000 Dealers Starts Tuesday, May 9th. Info on 20 Individual Show Openings – www.brimfield.com May 9th-14th, 2017. ________________________________________41-18

Friends Men LOOKING FOR ROMANCE Attractive GWM, warm, sensitive, caring, 48 y.o. with a smooth gymnast build looking for other GWM, 30-50, who is also in good shape. I live in NE Phila. I’m looking for guys who are also sensitive, caring with a fun personality.

If this sounds interesting to you feel free to call me, David, 215-698-0215. ________________________________________41-19 57 y.o. GWM looking for hot guy, 29-57 y.o. I am 8.5 inches looking for Mr. Right. I am sometimes TS and also a top.

Very good at what I do. Also bottom and top at W/S. Call Dennis 717-825-3371. ________________________________________41-18 WM, NE Phila. If you’re looking for hot action, call 215-934-5309. No calls after 11 PM. ________________________________________41-21

Friends Transgender Are you a transgender woman who is fun loving and looking to meet a respectful, kind, patient and secure man for dating/ LTR. I am a single, White Italian man, 50’s, living at the Jersey Shore and looking for his soul mate. Please be full time, respectful, kind, White and pre-op. Call 609-618-5238. ________________________________________41-20

SERVICES & HOME IMPROVEMENT DIRECTORY

FLORIO HOME REMODELING Creating Fabulous Homes for Over 25 Years Remodeling Professionals

Customizable Kitchens and Bathrooms, Specialize in all Crown Molding, Install Windows and Hardwood Floors, Demolition and Home Clean Out Assistance Doors, Sheetrock, Electric & Plumbing

No Job Too Small - Free Estimates - Our Prices Will Not Be Beat

10% OFF with this ad

Financing Options Available

Call/Email John Florio:

267-972-5928

FlorioHomeRemodelingLLC@gmail.com

Sharp Edge Painting Call Danny for Free Estimate

(215) 882-0704 •Interior & Exterior Painting •Deck Paint & Staining •Drywall Repairs •Powerwashing •Flooring and Siding

•Popcorn Ceiling Repairs •Wall Paper Removal •All Handyman Services •3 & 4 Story Cornice Specials

Licensed & Insured #PA116166 OSHA Certified

All major credit cards accepted.

Psst, want a good deal on advertising?

PGN directory ads are terrific way to get your message out.

Email prab@epgn.com or call 215-625-8501 ext. 212 for more info.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

SERVICES & HOME IMPROVEMENT DIRECTORY Filippone Electrical FOR ALL YOUR ELECTRICAL NEEDS

Spring Special

20% off with this ad (must be presented at time of estimate)

Odds & Ends No Job Too Big or Too Small

• Patching • Interior/ Exterior Paint • Tile • Electric • Carpentry

215-783-3844

215.839.0338 | 609.892.0940

All your contracting needs, no job too small.

FREE ESTIMATES! LICENSED & INSURED Philly lic. # 45244

CALL 856-952-8197

• kitchen & bathrooms • custom tiLe work • trim work • drywaLL & spackLe over • painting • finished basements • masonry & cement work. ask for

20 years experience

Your Call for Complete Home Remodeling! John!

Peter Carlomango & Sons

We also offer a full service Remodeling Company for all your bigger ideas and Projects

LICENSED AND INSURED Philly Lic #18313 • PA. Lic #053919 www.filipponeelectric.com

• Masonry • Shutters • Flower Boxes • Windows • Clean Outs • General Maintenance

J E S S C O R E N O VAT I O N S

FILIPPONE GENERAL CONSTRUCTION, LLC

Roofing Contractor

“The Hard to Find Leak Experts” South Philly’s Most Recommended Roofers

Call Today for a Free Estimate We can help!

215-600-9670

(215) 463-4720

Ask for Joe Bongiovanni

Pete Cell: (267) 252-4900 Pete Jr. Cell: (215) 459-2398

856-320-8783

America’s Best

Hardware Store

We do it all!

Since 1913

No job too big or too small.

Shop Simple • Shop Local

family

OwnED — an d — OpERaTED

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— —

flat rubber roofs • coatings • shingles/metal roofs

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R. RHOADS & SONS ROOFING INC. Over 20 Years Experience - Owner Operated

• Rubber Roofs • Shingles • Sliding • Gutters

• Spouts • Coatings • Repairs • Skylights

Insured and License # 46941

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ê Drain Cleaning ê Free Estimates ê Senior Citizen Discounts ê Emergency Service

Payment Plan:

SENIOR CITIZEN DISCOUNT

POLICE & FIRE DISCOUNT

For All Your Plumbing Needs, No Job Too Small or Too Big

®

CERTIFIED In all TypEs OF ROOFIng

215-922-3493

Family Plumber

seal roofing complete roofing service

Family owned and operated.

Proudly serving Camden County & parts of Gloucester & Burlington Counties.

Hours

615 E. Passyunk Avenue, Just off South St.

Marty the

Drain Cleaning, Leaks Repaired, Bathroom Remodeling, Water Heaters Repaired/Replaced

1/2 Down after completed, Balance due after first rain. anufacturers Warranties *M C ommercial & Residential * White Energy Efficient Coatings * Downspouts & Gutters * * Roof Inspections * Leak Repairs * Sidings

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any new roof installation upto $300 | must present ad | cannot be combined

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any roof/GUtter rePair upto $300 | must present ad | cannot be combined

licensed & insured / / 24-hr. emergency service / / Payment Plans available

Contact us Today for a Consultation and Free Estimate!

2i5.533.4066 www.sealroofing.net

Monday-Thursday Friday

8:00am-4:30pm 8:00am-4:00pm

After hour plumbing emergencies press ‘5’ to be directly connected to a live representative.

www.wrbommer.com

Wake up and smell the coffee, Francine.

PGN directory ads are terrific way to get your message out.

Email prab@epgn.com or call 215-625-8501 ext. 212 for more info.

45

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

ADONIS CINEMA “THE ONLY ALL MALE ADULT THEATER IN THE CITY”

2026 Sansom St (located 3 doors up from Sansom St Gym)

215-557-9319 4 Small Theaters with Video & Dark Room Area

HOURS OF OPERATION: Monday - Thursday

7am-6am

(closed an hour for cleaning)

Friday- Sunday:

Open 24hrs

ADMISSION: $12.00

We now accept all major credit cards.

Plenty of New Things Happening at 2020......

JUST OPENED, “THE SUITES” • 8 NEW Deluxe Rooms “EVERYTHING is LARGER” • New sound system • New custom Slings • A New Video Room with 6 video booths AND A SURPRISE NEW FEATURE ABOUT TO BE INSTALLED SOON LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE...

Come check us out there’s a different vibe going on in every section you walk THRU

ALSO DO NOT FORGET P.A.N.G. (Philadelphia Area Nudist Group)

Sunday, April 23rd, May 21st Time: 3pm- 6pm For More Information On Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/pang

WEEKLY SPECIALS:

TUESDAYS & SUNDAYS

Half Price Rooms & Lockers (6am Sunday till 8am Monday, 12am Tuesday till 8am Wednesday)

ROOMS: Members: $12.50 and Non-Members: $22.50 LOCKERS: Members: $9.00 and Non-Members: $19.00

MONDAY thru FRIDAY: (8am to 4pm) Business Mans Locker Special 4 hour lockers Members: $5.00 and Non-Members: $15.00 WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY NIGHT CRUISE $12 Flat Rate for Locker Admission & Clothing Optional (4pm-12 Midnight)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON DELIGHT 4 Hour Lockers (8am - 4pm) Members: $5.00 and Non-Members: $15.00

Check out our website for our WEEKLY SPECIALS & JOIN OUR e-mail List to get the latest information on upcoming events....

www.sansomstreetgym.com

BIGGER, BETTER & MORE ENTERTAINING EVENTS...

PGN

Men Delco Dudes

A men’s social and support group meets 7-9 p.m. the first and third Wednesday of the month at Unitarian Universalist Church of Delaware County, 145 W. Rose Tree Road in Media; delco. dudes@uucdc.org.

Gay Married Men’s Association

Meets 7-9 p.m. the second and fourth Wednesday of the month at William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St.; www.meetup.com/GAMMAGay-Married-Mens-SupportGroup-in-Philadelphia-PA. Men of All Colors Together

Meets 7:30 p.m. the third Friday of the month, September through June, at William Way; 610-2776595, www.MACTPhila.org.

Men’s Coming Out Group, N.J.

Meets 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays at The Pride Center of New Jersey; njwarrior@aol.com.

Men of Color United

A discussion/support group for gay and bisexual men of color meets 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays at 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-496-0330.

Parents/Families Family & Community Service of Delaware County

Provides comprehensive care serving Delaware County and Philadelphia. Services include behavioral health and addiction counseling; HIV/AIDS medical case management/prevention; housing, food and transportation assistance. Offices in Media and Clifton Heights, the Ralph Moses House in Chester and in other community locations. Insurances accepted. Hours are 8:30 a.m.4 p.m. Monday-Friday, and evenings by appointment; 610566-7540 or www.fcsdc.org.

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays/Bucks County

Meets 7:30 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month at Penns Park United Methodist Church, 2394 Second Street Pike, Penns Park, and hird Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Warminster UCC, 785 Street Road; 215-348-9976.

PFLAG/Chester County

Meets 7 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month at the Unitarian Fellowship of West Chester, 501 S. High St.; 484-354-2448.

PFLAG/Collingswood, N.J.

Meets 6:30-9 p.m. the fourth Monday of the month at Collingswood Public Library, 771 Haddon Ave.; 609-202-4622, pflagcollingswood@yahoo.com.

PFLAG/Media

Meets 7 p.m. the second Tuesday of every month at the Unitarian Universal Church, 145 Rose Tree Rd.; 610-368-2021.

PFLAG/Philadelphia

Meets 2-5 p.m. the third Sunday of the month at the LGBT Center at the University of Pennsylvania, 3907 Spruce St.; 215-572-1833.

PFLAG/Princeton, N.J.

Meets 7:30 p.m. the second Monday of the month in the George Thomas Room at Trinity Church, 33 Mercer St.; 609-6835155.

PFLAG/Wilmington, Del.

Meets 7-9 p.m. the second Thursday of the month at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1502 W. 13th St.; 302654-2995.

Philadelphia Family Pride

Advocacy, support and social network for LGBT families offers play groups, monthly kids and teen talk groups, activities and outings. Planning meetings held monthly; 215-600-2864, info@phillyfamilypride.org, www.phillyfamilypride.org.

Trans

Evolutions

A drop-in support group for anyone on the transgender spectrum meets 6 p.m. Thursdays at 21 S. 12th St., eighth floor; 215-563-0652 ext. 235.

Mazzoni Center Family and Community Medicine

Primary health care and specialized transgender services in a safe, professional, nonjudgmental environment, 809 Locust St.; 215-563-0658.

T-MAN

People-of-color support group for transmen, FTMs, butches, studs, aggressives, bois, genderqueer and all female-born individuals with gender questions meets 7:30-9:30 p.m. Mondays, 1201 Locust St., second floor; 215632-3028, tmanphilly.com.

Transhealth Information Project

Sponsors a weekly drop-in center from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays and and 6:30-8:30 p.m. Fridays at 1207 Chestnut St., fifth floor; 215-851-1822.

Transgender Health Action Coalition

Peer trans health-advocacy organization, 1201 Locust St., fourth floor; 215-732-1207.

Young, Trans and Unified

Support group for transgender and questioning individuals ages 13-23 meets 7:15 p.m. Thursdays at The Attic Youth Center, 255 S. 16th St.; 215-545-4331, www. atticyouthcenter.org.

Women Hanging Out With Lesbians

A group in Central Pennsylvania that organizes concerts, camping, golf, picnics, hikes, plays and game nights in nonsmoking environments; http://groups. yahoo.com/group/howlofpa/.

Lesbian Community of Delaware Valley

Social group meets monthly for activities for gay women of all ages in Delaware, Chester and Montgomery counties; http:// groups.yahoo.com/group/LCDV/.

Lesbian Couples Dining Group of Montgomery County

Meets monthly; 215-542-2899.

Mt. Airy Lesbian Social Club

For lesbians in the Philadelphia area ages 35-plus; www.meetup. com/mtairylesbiansocial/.

Queer Connections

Social group for women in their 20s meets weekly; http:// groups.yahoo.com/group/ queerconnections/.

Sisters United

A social/support group for transwomen of color ages 13-24, with weekly social events, open discusson and monthly movie/ discussions meets 6-8 p.m.

Wednesdays, 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-496-0330.

Women Coming-Out Support Group

Women, ages 18 and over, who consider themselves gay, lesbian, bisexual or questioning and are at any stage of the coming-out process are welcome to meet

7:30 p.m. the first Tuesday and third Thursday of the month at the Pride Center of New Jersey; www.pridecenter.org.

Youth 40 Acres of Change

Discussion group for teen and young adults meets 6-8 p.m.

Thursdays at The COLOURS Organization Inc., 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-851-1975.

GLBT Group of Hunterdon County

Social and support groups for youth, teens and young adults, as well as parents and family members, meet at North County Branch Library, 65 Halstead St. in Clinton, N.J.; schedule at www. glbtofhunterdoncountyofnj.com, 908-300-1058.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

47

Community Bulletin Board Community centers

■ The Attic Youth Center 255 S. 16th St.; 215-545-4331, atticyouthcenter.org. For LGBT and questioning youth and their friends and allies. Groups meet and activities are held 4-7 p.m. Monday-Tuesday and 4-8:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday. Case management, HIV testing and smoking cessation are available Monday-Friday.

■ Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Center at the University of Pennsylvania 3907 Spruce St., 215-898-5044, center@dolphin. upenn.edu. Regular hours: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. MondayThursday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday; noon-6 p.m. Saturday; noon-8 p.m. Sunday. Summer hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

■ Rainbow Room: Bucks County’s LGBTQ and Allies Youth Center Salem UCC Education Building, 181 E. Court St., Doylestown; 215-957-7981 ext.

9065, rainbowroom@ppbucks.org. Activities held 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays.

■ William Way Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center 1315 Spruce St.; 215-732-2220, www.waygay.org.

Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-5 p.m.

Saturdays and Sundays Peer counseling: 6-9 p.m.

Monday-Friday Library: noon-9 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday Volunteers: New Orientation, first Wednesday of the month at 7:30 p.m.

HAVEN

LGBT, intersex, questioning, queer and allied youth ages 14-20 meet 7-9 p.m. Wednesdays at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Lehigh Valley, 424 Center St., Bethlehem; 610-868-2153.

HiTOPS

A safe-space support program for LGBT and questioning youth meets 2:30-4:30 p.m. the first and third Saturdays at 21 Wiggins St., Princeton, N.J.; 609-683-5155, hitops.org.

Main Line Youth Alliance

Meets from 7-9:30 p.m. Fridays at 106 W. Lancaster Ave., Wayne; 610-688-1861, info@myaonline. org.

Project Keeping it Safe

LGBT youth drop-in center offers meetings, HIV and STD prevention and testing, counseling and other services on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 514 Cooper St., Camden, N.J.; 856-963-2432, camden-ahec.org/.

■ Action Wellness: 215-981-0088 ■ AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania: 215-587-9377 ■ AIDS Law Project of Southern New Jersey: 856-933-9500 ext.

221 ■ AIDS Library: 215-985-4851 ■ ACLU of Pennsylvania: 215592-1513 ■ AIDS Treatment Fact line: 800662-6080 ■ Barbara Gittings Gay and Lesbian Collection at the Independence Branch of the Philadelphia Free Library: 215-685-1633

Rainbow Room: Bucks County’s LGBTQ and Allies Youth Center

Youth ages 14-21 meets 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays at Salem UCC Education Building, 181 E. Court St., Doylestown; 215-957-7981 ext. 9065, rainbowroom@ppbucks. org.

Social X Change

Social activity group for LGBT youth of color ages 13-23 meets 6-8 p.m. Tuesdays at 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-8511975.

Space to be Proud, Open, and Together

Open to all LGBTQ queer youth and allies, ages 14-21, the SPOT meets 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursdays at Planned Parenthood of Chester County, 8 S. Wayne St.; 267-6876648.

n The COLOURS Organization Inc.: 215-496-0330 ■ Equality Pennsylvania: 215731-1447; www.equalitypa.org ■ Equality Forum: 215-732-3378 ■ LGBT Peer Counseling Services: 215-732-TALK ■ Mazzoni Center: 215-563-0652; Legal Services: 215-563-0657, 866-LGBT-LAW; Family & Community Medicine: 215-563-0658 ■ Office of LGBT Affairs — Director Amber Hikes: 215-686-0330; amber.hikes@phila.gov

phia): 215-572-1833 ■ Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations: 215-686-4670 ■ Philadelphia Police Department liaison — Deputy Commissioner Kevin Bethel: 215-6863318 ■ Philadelphia Police Liaison Committee: 215-760-3686 (Rick Lombardo); ppd.lgbt@gmail.com ■ Philly Pride Presents: 215875-9288 ■ SPARC — Statewide Pennsylvania Rights Coalition: 717-9209537 ■ Transgender Health Action Coalition: 215-732-1207 (staffed 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays and 6-9 p.m.

Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays)

■ Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (Philadel-

PRYSM Youth Center

Youth ages 14-20 meet 6:30-8:30 p.m Wednesdays at the center, 126 East Baltimore Pike, Media; 610357-9948.

Key numbers

Health

Anonymous, free, confidential HIV testing Spanish/English counselors offer testing 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday at Congreso de Latinos Unidos, 216 W. Somerset St.; 215-763-8870.

ActionAIDS Provides a range of programs for people affected by HIV/ AIDS, including case management, prevention, testing and education services at 1216 Arch St.; 215-981-0088, www. actionaids.org.

GALAEI: A Queer Latin@ Social Justice Organization Free, anonymous HIV testing from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday at 1207 Chestnut St., fifth floor; noon-6 p.m.

Tuesdays at the Washington West Project, 1201 Locust St.; 215-851-1822 or 866-222-3871, www.galaei.org.

Spanish/English HIV treatment Free HIV/AIDS diagnosis and treatment for Philadelphia residents are available from 9 a.m.-noon Mondays (walk-in) and 5-8 p.m. Thursdays (by appointment) at Health Center No. 2, 1720 S. Broad St.; 215685-1821.

HIV health insurance help Access to free medications and confidential HIV testing 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays at 13 S. MacDade Blvd., Suite

108, Collingdale; Medical Office Building, 722 Church Lane, Yeadon; and 630 S. 60th St.; 610-586-9077.

Mazzoni Center LGBTQ counseling and behavioral health services, HIV/ AIDS care and services, case management and support groups; 21 S. 12th St., eighth floor; 215-563-0652, www. mazzonicenter.org.

Mazzoni Center Family & Community Medicine Comprehensive primary health care, preventive health services, gynecology, sexual-health services and chronic-disease management, including comprehensive HIV care, as well as youth drop-in (ages 14-24) 5-7p.m. Wednesdays; 809 Locust St.; 215-563-0658.

Philadelphia FIGHT Comprehensive AIDS service organization providing primary care, consumer education, advocacy and research on potential treatments and vaccines; 1233 Locust St.; 215985-4448; www.fight.org.

Washington West Project of Mazzoni Center Free, rapid HIV testing. Walk-ins welcome 9 a.m.-9 pm.

Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-7 p.m.

Sunday; 1201 Locust St.; 215-985-9206.

Young, Trans and Unified

A support group for transgender and questioning youth ages 13-23 meets 7:15 p.m. Thursdays at The Attic Youth Center; 215-545-4331, www.atticyouthcenter.org.

You’re Not Alone

Sponsored by AIDS Delaware, the group for gay, lesbian and bisexual youth meets during the school year at 100 W. 10th St., Suite 315, Wilmington, Del; 800-810-6776.

Youth Making a Difference

A group for LGBTQ AfricanAmerican and Latino youth ages 14-24 meets 5-7 p.m. Tuesdays at Camden AHEC, 514 Cooper St.; 856-963-2432.

■ Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia Board meetings at 6:30 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month at 100 S. Broad St., Suite 1810; free referral service at 215-6279090, www.galloplaw.org.

■ Independence Business Alliance Greater Philadelphia’s LGBT Chamber of Commerce, providing networking, business development, marketing, educational and advocacy opportunities for LGBT and LGBT-friendly busi-

Professional groups nesses and professionals; 215557-0190, www.IndependenceBusinessAlliance.com.

■ National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association Philadelphia chapter of NLGJA, open to professionals and students, meets for social and networking events; www.nlgja.org/ philly; philly@nlgja.org.

■ Philadelphia Gay Tourism Caucus Regional organization dedicated to promoting LGBT tourism to the Greater Philadelphia region, meetings every other month on the fourth Thursday (January, March, May, July, September and the third Thursday in November), open to the public; 215-8402039, www.philadelphiagaytourism.com.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 5-11, 2017

PGN

THE FUN IS WARMING UP IN BALTIMORE.

Spring welcomes summer as only Baltimore can, with beehive hair, gay pride, visionary filmmakers and the second jewel of the Triple Crown.

MARYLAND FILM FESTIVAL

BALTIMORE PRIDE

The SNF Parkway Film Center May 3–7, 2017

Old Goucher June 17–18, 2017

The brand-new SNF Parkway Film Center in Station North Arts and Entertainment District hosts this year’s showcase of film and video from all over the world.

Screening more than 50 features and 75 shorts of every genre, this is a can’t-miss event for movie buffs.

Let your rainbow flag fly at Baltimore Pride, the block party of peace, love and LGBTQ. This year the festivities have moved to the Old Goucher neighborhood, home of the newly opened Baltimore Eagle, a block away from Station North. Dance in the streets with live entertainment, and flip your wig at the one and only Pride parade.

142ND PREAKNESS STAKES Pimlico Race Course May 20, 2017

This year’s festivities include headliners Sam Hunt and Good Charlotte at InfieldFest, and, of course, the time-honored Pimlico traditions of big hats, Black-Eyed Susans and the always-thrilling running of the Preakness. Down the stretch they come!

HONFEST

The Avenue in Hampden June 10–11, 2017 Hampden doesn’t get more colorful than during Honfest, a two-day street party of leopard prints, cat-eye glasses and family fun, hon. Sign up for the Best Hon Contest, grab a coddie, and wiggle your capri pants at three stages of live entertainment.

THEATER

Bromo Arts District, Downtown, Mount Vernon May/June 2017 This summer, Baltimore’s top theaters are presenting shows for every interest. Take in world premieres like Baltimore Center Stage’s Jazz, based on Toni Morrison’s book; favorites like Noises Off at Everyman Theatre and Finding Neverland at the Hippodrome; a classic like The Tempest at Chesapeake Shakespeare Company; or a contemporary work like BootyCandy at Iron Crow, billed as the city’s “only queer” theater.

Plan your visit today at BALTIMORE.ORG

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