The return of a not-to-be-missed “Saigon”
Professional Portrait: Rick Piper
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Philadelphia FIGHT expands AIDS Education Month activities.
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May 27 - June 2, 2011
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Vol. 35 No. 21
Glassman resigns as PHRC head The highest-ranking openly gay state official announced this week that he is stepping down to take a CEO position at a nonprofit in Pittsburgh. By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com Stephen Glassman, chair of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, handed in his resignation letter Monday. Glassman has accepted a position as the president and CEO of Community Design Center of Pittsburgh starting June 13, but will maintain his home in Philadelphia. The CDCP is a nonprofit agency that offers design assistance through funding, technical assistance and education. Glassman will be leaving the PHRC after eight years at the helm, but will remain a commissioner. “I felt that I had accomplished a great deal of my original intentions and that, after almost nine years. It was time to move on to another challenge and offer this opportunity to someone who might be more effective at working with a Republican governor and Republican legislature,” he said, noting the CDCP position is an “ideal marriage” of his architecture skills and public policy work. Former Gov. Mark Schweiker appointed Glassman to the commission in 2002, and he was unanimously confirmed by the Senate, making him the first out individual in the state to receive a Senate-approved gubernatorial appointment. One year after his confirmation, then-Gov. Ed Rendell appointed Glassman as commission chair. In addition to overseeing the agency’s investigation into discrimination complaints, Glassman has been a strong advocate for the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity into both state and local laws, testifying at hearings across the state for municipal LGBT ordinances, as well as backing efforts to expand the state’s Human Relations Act to make it LGBT-inclusive. Glassman, a graduate of Brown and Yale universities and Harvard University’s JFK School of Government program for senior executives, owned an architectural firm for 25 years prior to coming to PHRC. Glassman has accrued a litany of awards, including the Humanitarian Award from Shomrim of Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, the local Jewish police association, which will be handed down June 1. ■
THE DOCTOR’S IN: Sex guru Dr. Ruth Westheimer was the guest of honor at Mazzoni Center’s Elixir May 20. The annual gala, held at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel, drew a crowd of about 150, who listened to the famed Dr. Ruth take on the audience’s tough sex questions. Mazzoni also honored state Sen. Vincent Hughes and his wife Sheryl Lee Ralph, along with The Trevor Project, with the night raising more than $60,000 to support Mazzoni’s programming. Photo: Scott A. Drake
AN APPLE A DAY: Guests at the Pennsylvania Ballet’s “Shut Up & Dance” benefit for the Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutritional Alliance May 21 donated to the agency through apples emblazoned with different monetary values, like those held by Don D’Orazio (from left), Karen Dieterie, MANNA executive chef Keith Lucas, MANNA volunteer services and community outreach manager Rob Saxon, Walter Williams and MANNA executive director Richard Keaveney. The annual fundraising performance drew a crowd of 1,000, who together brought in $80,000 for MANNA, which provides nutritional meals to those with life-threatening illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS. Photo: Scott A. Drake
Not-guilty plea in Clementi case Tyler Clementi’s former Rutgers University roommate pleaded not guilty this week to charges he faces in connection with the webcam scandal that may have led to the gay teen’s suicide last fall. Dharun Ravi was in a New Jersey courtroom Monday for an arraignment in which he pleaded not guilty to invasion-of-privacy, bias and evidence-tampering charges. Ravi allegedly tapped into his webcam in his dormroom in September and broadcast Clementi’s sexual encounter with a man. A few days afterward, Clementi jumped from the George Washington Bridge. A grand jury last month handed down a 15-count indictment against Ravi, including second- and third-degree bias intimidation.
In a statement, Clementi’s father, Joseph, said Monday the family is “eager to see the criminal-justice process move forward.” Ravi is free on $25,000 bail. A pre-trial hearing will be held July 25; a trial date has not been set. Ravi’s attorney noted during the arraignment that prosecutors have amassed 1,600 pages of evidence and lined up 125 individuals to testify. Former Rutgers student Molly Wei, who investigators say allowed Ravi to use her computer, reached a deal with the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office that will clear her of invasion-of-privacy charges if she completes a community-service program and testifies against Ravi. ■ — Jen Colletta
Gay Men’s Chorus gets $35K grant By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com The Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus’ 30th-anniversary season got a big boost this month, with the awarding of its largest grant ever. The chorus was one of 26 agencies throughout the region selected to benefit from the PNC Arts Alive Initiative, a $5million five-year proPAGE 17
Trans-Health Conference marks 10th year By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com A record number of attendees are expected to turn out for the milestone 10th anniversary of the Philadelphia TransHealth Conference next week. The conference, themed “Looking Back, Looking Forward” in honor of the anniversary, will run June 2-4 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, 13th and Arch streets. While the event has PAGE 7