PGN May 31- June 6, 2019 by The Philadelphia Gay News

pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976

Vol. 43 No. 22 May 31-June 6, 2019

Family Portrait: Anne Geary supports a Golden Crown PAGE 47

HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM The Road to Stonewall: Kiyoshi Kuromiya from the internment camps to GLF

Philly gay-rights activism in 1906? PAGE 2

HIV Prevention and Education Summit

PAGE 13

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Vigil commemorates transwoman and activist Local LGBTQ orgs

join national lawsuit to protect medical rights

Michelle “Tamika” Washington, founder of a trans support group at Mazzoni Center, was murdered in North Philadelphia May 19.

By Laura Smythe laura@epgn.com

By Laura Smythe laura@epgn.com When Michelle “Tamika” Washington’s younger sister, Crystal Davis, was sad she couldn’t visit the aquarium as a kid, Washington brought her a stuffed white and purple penguin — her sibling’s favorite color. Mikal Woods regularly talked on the phone with Washington, who he called his chosen mother in the LGBTQ community, for hours at a time just to hear her voice. For Donna Kinley, Washington’s aunt, the best memories with her niece involve cooking together and constantly joking around. “She was really wonderful,” said Kinley, 67. “She kept me laughing and she would do anything for you. Tamika was just that type of person. She would go above and beyond.” Davis, Woods and Kinley joined about 70 people May 23 at a vigil for Washington, 40, at the recently opened Gloria Casarez Residence, Pennsylvania’s first LGBTQfriendly youth-housing facility. Washington’s friends, family members and allies of the gay community gathered amid handmade signs displaying messages like “Trans lives matter” and “Say her name, Tamika” to share stories

MEMORIAL FOR MICHELLE “TAMIKA” WASHINGTON and commemorate Washington with a candlelit moment of silence. Washington, a transwoman of color and LGBTQ activist, was shot to death May 19 in North Philadelphia’s Franklinville neighborhood. Police have arraigned Philadelphia man Troy Bailey, 28, in her murder. Nationally, Washington is one of three transwomen to be murdered in a recent one-week span. Muhlaysia Booker, 23, was fatally shot in Dallas on May 18, while Cleveland resident Claire Legato died May 14 from injuries sustained in an April shooting. They were all women of color. In Philadelphia, at least six transwomen of color have been murdered in the last six years. They include Shantee Tucker, 30, who Woods

Photo: Laura Smythe

described as a “great friend, [like an] aunt,” and Keisha Jenkins, 22, Woods’ “first gay mother.” Woods said transwomen, particularly those of color, are experiencing a “witch hunt” — and that a law protecting them is necessary. “I’m tired of going to funerals,” he added. “I’ve been to more funerals than I’ve been to graduations, birthdays, celebrations, anything. I’m tired of going away crying and weeping because people are getting killed for senseless murders.” Washington helped found Sisterly L.O.V.E., a support and education group for transwomen at LGBTQ healthcare hub Mazzoni Center, which organized the May 23 vigil. Mazzoni staff presented Washington’s family with a certificate for heroism that PAGE 18

A national smattering of LGBTQ health centers and other medical organizations are taking the Trump administration’s “Denial of Care Rule” to bat in district court. The action calls for striking down the federal ruling that would allow healthcare workers to refuse to perform medical procedures, like abortion and gender-affirming surgery, that violate their religion or “conscience.” The Mazzoni Center and Allentown’s Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center are joining plaintiffs from cities including Seattle, Chicago and Los Angeles in County of Santa Clara v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a lawsuit filed Tuesday. HHS, headed by former pharmaceutical executive Alex Azar, released its final 440page ruling earlier this month. The decision, which has been in the works since January 2018, will be effective July 22 — unless complainants have their say. “This rule that invites discrimination by those trusted to provide care for our bodies and for our lives will worsen health outcomes for the LGBT community, worsen health disparities and lead to lower-quality care,” said Adrian Shanker, executive director of Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center. “Then, some peoPAGE 17

Supreme Court declines to hear Boyertown case By Tim Cwiek tim@epgn.com

The U.S. Supreme Court this week declined to hear an appeal filed by students at Boyertown Area Senior High School who object to transgender students using restrooms and locker rooms that correspond to their gender identity. Alliance Defending Freedom, an Arizonabased anti-LGBT group, filed the appeal Nov.

19 on behalf of two current and four former Boyertown High students. The Supreme Court announced May 28 that it won’t hear the case, without elaborating. Michael I. Levin, an attorney for the Boyertown Area School District, said district officials are happy with the decision. “We are very pleased that the court saw there was no need to consider the case further,” Levin told PGN. “This is great news for trans students

throughout Pennsylvania,” added Jason Landau Goodman, executive director of Pennsylvania Youth Congress. “The U.S. Supreme Court evaluated the case and decided that the lower-court rulings for trans-student inclusion should stand.” Ria Tabacco Mar, senior staff attorney with the ACLU LGBT and HIV Project, also praised the decision. “This is an enormous victory for transgender students across the country,” Mar said in

a statement. “Boyertown’s schools chose to be inclusive and welcoming of transgender students in 2016, a decision the courts have affirmed again and again. This lawsuit sought to reverse that hard-won progress by excluding transgender students from school facilities that other students use. That would have increased the stigma and discrimination that transgender students already face. “But our work is far from over,” added Mar. “We will continue PAGE 19

PGN LOCAL

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

Resource listings Legal resources • ACLU of Pennsylvania: 215-592-1513; aclupa.org • AIDS Law Project of PA: 215-587-9377; aidslawpa.org • AIDS Law Project of South Jersey: 856-784-8532; aidslawsnj.org/ • Equality PA: equalitypa. org; 215-731-1447

• Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations — Rue Landau: 215-686-4670 • Philadelphia Police Liaison Committee: 215-7603686; ppd.lgbt@gmail.com • SPARC — Statewide Pennsylvania Rights Coalition: 717-920-9537

• Office of LGBT Affairs — Amber Hikes: 215-686-0330; amber.hikes@phila.gov

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. • LGBT Center at the University of Pennsylvania; 3907 Spruce

St.; 215-898-5044, center@dolphin.upenn.edu.

• 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.

• William Way LGBT Community Center 1315 Spruce St.; 215-732-2220, www.waygay.org.

Health and HIV testing • Action Wellness: 1216 Arch St.; 215981-0088, actionwellness.org • AIDS Healthcare Foundation: 1211 Chestnut St. #405 215971-2804; HIVcare.org • AIDS Library: 1233 Locust St.; aidslibrary.org/ • AIDS Treatment Fact line: 800-6626080 • Bebashi-Transition to Hope: 1235

Spring Garden St.; 215769-3561; bebashi.org • COLOURS: coloursorganization.org, 215832-0100 • Congreso de Latinos Unidos; 216 W. Somerset St.; 215-7638870 • GALAEI: 149 W. Susquehanna Ave.; 267-457-3912, galaei. org. Spanish/English • Health Center No. 2: 1720 S. Broad St.; 215-685-1821

• Mazzoni Center: 1348 Bainbridge St.; 215-563-0652, mazzonicenter.org • Philadelphia FIGHT: 1233 Locust St.; 215-985-4448, fight.org • Washington West Project of Mazzoni Center: 1201 Locust St.; 215985-9206 • Transgender Health Action Coalition: 215-732-1207

Other • Independence Branch Library Barbara Gittings Gay and Lesbian Collection: 215-685-1633 • Independence Business Alliance; 215-557-0190, IndependenceBusinessAlliance.com

• LGBT Peer Counseling Services: 215-732-TALK • PFLAG: Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (Philadelphia): 215-572-1833 • Philly Pride Presents: 215-875-9288

Evidence of first LGBTQ activist found in Queen Village By Laura Smythe laura@epgn.com

ument in the historical society’s archives that detailed the meeting of some of the city’s Presbyterian church officials. Jonathan Katz’s participation in a gay The minutes outline Presbytery memliberation organization during the 1970s bers dubbing Schlegel guilty of defending spurred his passion for researching LGBTQ “the lawfulness and naturalness of the condition, and in some cases of the actual history. A native of New York City’s Greenwich practice of homo-sexualism, Sodomy, or Village, Katz joined the Gay Activists Uranism.” Alliance in 1971. He then wrote the doc- “Uranism” was an iteration of a 19th-cenumentary play “Coming Out!” which was tury German term for a man sexually interperformed the following year at the group’s ested in other men, according to Katz’s findings. Schlegel was quoted as advocatfirehouse. Katz’s interest fueled his recent discovery ing for “the same laws” for “homosexuals, at Philadelphia’s Presbyterian Historical heterosexuals, bisexuals, [and] asexuals” Society. There, the LGBTQ historian found — introducing terminology that was still new evidence supporting the theory that considered innovative at the turn of the Rev. Carl Schlegel, a German immigrant 21st-century. to the United States, publicly defended gay “The recovery of the early history of rights in New Orleans in 1906-07 — mak- activism about homosexuality, of the prosing him the earliest-known gay rights activ- elytizing for law reforms in the U.S. and England and other countries is especially ist in the country, Katz said. important to “I love the recover because detective work it’s an inspiraof doing histortion to today’s ical research, activists,” Katz and I love trysaid. “To know ing to figure that people were out what it all striving long, means,” Katz long ago...to said. “Not only do something the recovering that people only of the docuachieved many ments, but lookyears later.” ing at the lanKatz has guage, the parauthored four ticular words books on the that Schlegel history of sexused. ...It’s a uality and his way I feel conown memoir, nected to other “Coming of Age people, other in Greenwich researchers.” Village.” He has Schlegel, a taught a class on Presbyterian sexual history at minister, was Yale University, known for as well as advocating for courses at New the LGBTQ York University community in and The New the early-20th Photo: Courtesy of Jonathan Katz School, and century and disheaded faculty tributing publications by the Scientific-Humanitarian discussion groups at Princeton University. Committee, a historic Berlin-based gay Katz has also spoken at a conference on rights organization. The group later inspired LGBTQ history at Harvard University. fellow pioneering LGBTQ activist Henry While Katz determined Schlegel’s “valGerber to found the Society for Human iant and daring” activism appeared to have Rights in Chicago, the country’s first gay no lasting societal impact, there’s still much to be learned from him, Katz said. liberation organization, in 1924. A New York church fired Schlegel from “It’s not that he was successful in changits ministry in 1905, likely for promoting ing peoples’ minds, but he tried,” Katz ideas of gay acceptance and LGBTQ lit- said. “Lots of good work is not recognized erature, Katz found. He was sent to New or not successful, but it’s worthy to devote Orleans where members of the Presbytery your life to, whether or not you are sucof New Orleans voted him guilty of “sin” cessful. Hopefully, you will help to create a and fired him in 1907 for similar offenses. slightly better world through your activity, Katz’s findings came from “The Minutes a slightly freer world, a slightly more pleaof the Presbytery of New Orleans,” a doc- surable world.” n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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Mazzoni Center affirms commitment to transgender, gender nonconforming and nonbinary folks By Victoria A. Brownworth PGN Contributor

Healthcare for transgender, gender nonconforming and nonbinary people is increasingly under threat from the Trump Administration. Philadelphia’s Mazzoni Center wants TGNCNB folks to know their Gender Affirming Services program welcomes all TGNCNB people, with services designed to provide both the best care and environment for the TGNCNB community. Mazzoni Director of Communications Larry Benjamin told PGN the Center’s policy utilized inclusive hiring and staffing practices and focuses on making all members of the LGBTQplus community feel welcome. " T h i s has always been our policy and we are reaffirming that it’s our policy," he said. M a z z o n i Center is Philadelphia’s health center focused on the needs of the region’s LGBTQ community. Currently Mazzoni Center provides care and services to more than 35,000 patients and clients annually. Since July 2003, Mazzoni has been providing care to transgender, gender nonconforming, nonbinary and genderqueer-identified clients including adults, youth and children. Mazzoni is a national leader in care for TGNCNB clients. The Center’s annual Trans Wellness Conference is the largest in the world. This year the conference will take place July 25-27 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The Philadelphia Trans Wellness Conference was created to educate and empower trans, gender nonconforming and nonbinary individuals on issues of health and well being; to educate and inform allies as well as health service providers; and facilitate networking and community building. In March Mazzoni changed the name of its Trans Care Services program to Gender Affirming Services to further underscore the Center’s commitment to the TGNCNB community.

Gender Affirming Services Manager Anna Kiesnowski explained, "This name change is an opportunity for us to fortify our commitment to affirm all genders and to continue modeling inclusion." In addition to providing gender affirming primary care, Kiesnowski said Mazzoni Center’s gender affirming services program "offers supportive counseling, education, and medical, legal, and social support." Mazzoni's gender affirming services include: primary medical care, HIV medical care, hormone therapy and monitoring, laser hair removal, family planning and pregnancy-related services, an onsite p h a r m a cy, breast and chest health care, gynecological services and cervical cancer screenings, pediatric and adolescent comprehensive transgender services, social support and community activities for trans youth and their families, referrals to trans-friendly providers and community resources and staff social workers. Legal services and support groups for trans individuals and their loved ones are also available. "Mazzoni Center was among the first providers of trans healthcare to adopt an informed consent model, which differs from the WPATH [World Professional Association for Transgender Health] Standards of Care that approaches transgender care through a narrow diagnostic lens," said Alecia Manley COO and a member of Mazzoni’s leadership team. "We adopted the informed consent model to enable our staff to provide trans affirmative services that meet each client and patient where they were in their journey," she added. According to Manley, there are "more than 4,000 TGNC current patients, and 750 new patients coming to Mazzoni for gender affirming services each year.” “We remain committed to continually learning, improving and changing to meet the needs of our communities," she said. n Mazzoni Center is located at 1348 Bainbridge St.; 215-563-0652..

News & Opinion “In short, if it’s triggering for cisgender students to be around trans students, the trans students must be removed. ” ~ New Trump administration policy analysis, page 9

10 — Creep of the Week Editorial 11 — Mark My Words Street Talk

Columns

14 — Positive Thoughts

Arts & Culture

25 — Feature: Queer Films at Philadelphia Latino Film Fest 26 29 31 33 34

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Casey consults LGBTQ seniors in Philly

SENATOR BOB CASEY (D-PA) LISTENS TO A GROUP OF LGBT SENIORS AT THE JOHN ANDERSON APARTMENTS. Photo: Gary L. Day By Gary L. Day PGN Contributor Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) attended a roundtable discussion this week with a group of LGBTQ seniors at the John C. Anderson Apartments. The roundtable, held May 28, was conducted r to receive feedback on issues impacting LGBTQ seniors that could inform the senator’s efforts to pass the recently-introduced Inclusive Aging Act. Casey and two principle co-sponsors, Michael Bennett (D-CO) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), introduced the Inclusive Aging Act into the United States Senate earlier this year. The bill is intended to increase access to programs and resources targeted to meet the special needs of LGBTQ seniors. The bill establishes an Office of Inclusivity and Sexual Health in the federal Administration on Aging, and would designate older LGBTQ Americans as a population of “greatest social need,” among other initiatives. In his opening remarks, Casey explained the need for the Inclusive Aging Act and how it would address some of the specific concerns of seniors. As was explained in a prepared statement, “Through the Older Americans Act, the federal government has directed millions of dollars and significant resources to help address the needs of older Americans. Unfortunately, there is still limited investment in addressing sexual health care for older Americans and the diverse needs of older LGBT Americans.” Casey sought feedback from members of

the community that will be most impacted by the bill’s provisions. He said he hopes this feedback will provide insights that could facilitate the bill’s passage. A panel of seven LGBTQ seniors living at the John C. Anderson Apartments — Tyrone Smith, Katherine Allen, Ben Shuler, Elizabeth Caffey Williams, Roosevelt Adams, Karen Smith and John James — were invited to participate. Most had an extensive resume of activism and advocacy within the community. Chris Bartlett, executive director of the William Way LGBT Community Center, moderated the roundtable. Bartlett posed a number of questions to the panelists, most of which had to do with the common issues facing LGBTQ seniors, allowing them to provide suggestions and insights based on their personal experiences. Smith shared a perspective that was echoed by many of the other panelists. “We’re all in the same boat,” he said and emphasized that common issues and concerns must unite those of differing backgrounds if progress is to be achieved. “The question is now — how do we heal?” “There needs to be more and better training within the different agencies,” Allen said, noting unfamiliarity with different cultural norms within the LGBTQ community often impedes agencies’ effectiveness at attempting to provide services. In addition to the panelists, the roundtable was open to any member of the public who wanted to attend. After the formal session, Casey mingled with the attendees, so anyone could offer him feedback. n

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HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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Education conference to inform public on HIV, AIDS By Laura Smythe laura@epgn.com At 114 cases per 100,000, Philadelphians are living with HIV at five times the national average rate. Currently, 19,199 residents are living with HIV, according to a Department of Health report on the most recent data. Youth ages 13-24 accounted for more than 26 percent of new diagnoses in 2017. To help combat the high rate of infection, health services nonprofit Philadelphia FIGHT Community Health Centers will hold the HIV Prevention and Education Summit on June 11 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The conference, part of the organization’s 25th-annual AIDS Education Month event series, aims to inform people about the disease and issues those living with it experience. Attendees can learn about the latest treatment options, research, prevention and outreach strategies. They can also explore how HIV and AIDS intersect with other societal issues, including substance use, spirituality and sex work. “It’s a plethora of information that’s offered at this summit, so that people walk away feeling informed but also empowered and hopeful about the trajectory of the research and what’s happening in the world

of HIV and AIDS,” said Tashina Okorie, Okorie said it is especially important FIGHT’s program director of professional for youth in Philadelphia to receive sexand community training. ual health education given the city’s high The conference is organized by FIGHT’s rate of HIV infection in the age group. Community Health Training Alliance, a “Sometimes parents may opt to not talk professional and community training ini- about it, or the kids may learn from their tiative launched in January 2018. The proj- friends or in their communities and it ect organizes workmight not always be shops, webinars, symthe correct informaposiums and other tion,” Okorie said. events to educate peo“We wanted to ple on public health create a safe space topics like the opioid at the summit where epidemic, Hepatitis C, youth can come and trauma-informed care receive the educaand HIV and AIDS. tion that they need Naina Khanna, around different topexecutive director of ics like sexting... the Positive Women’s body autonomy and Network, a national body safety,” she membership organizaadded. tion for women living This year’s with HIV and their summit will be the allies, will be the sum- NAINA KHANNA OF THE POSITIVE most interactive its mit’s keynote speaker. WOMEN’S NETWORK ever been, Okorie Khanna has worked said. It will feature in the HIV field since a research lab, pre2005, following her own 2002 diagnosis. sentations from those working in the field This will be the first year the nonprofit and opportunities to learn about conwill offer a youth-specific educational track sent forms, lesser-known, disease-related at the event, Okorie said. It will feature a vocabulary and other hands-on learning series of workshops for those ages 13-18. opportunities.

Gay and bisexual men are the population most affected by HIV, according to HIV.gov, a website run by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. These groups made up 66 percent of all new diagnoses in 2017 and 82 percent of diagnoses among men. While the stigma around HIV and AIDS has lessened over time, particularly within the LGBTQ community, there is still more to be done, said Kyle Chvasta, public programs associate at FIGHT. “We’re coming up into a time when we’re approaching a possible cure and research is going into that,” he said. “Folks who have lost loved ones or friends, they feel a sense of survivor’s guilt.” To address this, the LGBT Elder Initiative will present an educational track on HIV and aging at the summit. Chvasta said he hopes people attending the summit leave knowing something about HIV and AIDS they were previously unaware of. “Oftentimes, we speak in an echo chamber or we preach to the choir, but what we’re able to do at this summit is be able to provide new and exciting intervention methods,” he said, “be it research findings or community-based programs that people haven’t heard of to provide vital health information that they didn’t know before.” n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

NATIONAL PGN

Trump administration to deny trans people access to homeless shelters

By Victoria A. Brownworth PGN Contributor

In a new attack on the transgender community, the Trump administration has announced a plan to deny trans people equal access to the homeless shelter system. The plan would put vulnerable transpersons experiencing violence and/or homelessness under continued threat. The proposed change is based on the Obama-era Equal Access Rule, which ensures shelters and programs do not discriminate against LGBTQ people. HUD Secretary Ben Carson will alter those protections for transgender people seeking access to HUD programs. Secretary Carson told a House committee May 21 that he had no plans to revise this rule, stating, “I’m not going to say what we will do in the future about anything. I’m not currently anticipating changing the rule.” The announcement of the change was made 24 hours later. Under the HUD change, homeless shelter operators could create a policy to consider “an individual’s sex for the purposes of determining accommodation within such shelters and for purposes of determining sex for admission to any facility or portion thereof.” If a person’s legal identification did not match their presenting gender, as is often the case, particularly for young transpersons, they could be denied access to a shelter. Trans, gender nonconforming and nonbinary people already face disproportionate levels of discrimination at shelters, putting them at higher risk for harassment, violence and illness. The proposed change closes the shelter doors to those among the most vulnerable in the LGBTQ community. The National Center for Transgender Equality took to Twitter after the announcement Wednesday night, noting that Secretary Carson lied in his testimony. “In short, he lied. This had to be in the works for a long time,” the @ TransEquality verified account stated. The factors that shelter operators can consider to determine someone’s sex include “privacy, safety, practical concerns, religious beliefs,” the proposed rule says, and “the individual’s sex as reflected in official government documents.” The Obama administration first passed an Equal Access rule for HUD programs in 2012, and in 2016 moved to ensure transgender and gender nonconforming people get services in accordance with their gender identity. Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, said the rollback proposal contradicts the mission of the department. “This is a heartless attack on some of

the most vulnerable people in our society,” Keisling said in a statement. “The programs impacted by this rule are life-saving for transgender people, particularly youth rejected by their families, and a lack of stable housing fuels the violence and abuse that takes the lives of many transgender people of color across the country.” Charlotte Clymer, press secretary for rapid response at HRC, is a veteran and an out transwoman. Clymer also maintains a blog for HRC. She tweeted, “Donald Trump and Mike Pence are leading an all-out attack on transgender people. They don’t just want to discriminate against us. They want to see us harmed. They want to see us die. That is not hyperbole. The world needs to wake up and take notice of this.” Journalist Ashlee Marie Preston told her own story on Twitter, highlighting the risks for young transwomen especially. She wrote, “At 19 I was fired from my job for being trans and became homeless. Women’s shelters rejected me because of my assigned gender at birth. Men’s shelters denied me for reading female. I ended up on the streets and encountered several near death experiences. Trump knows what he’s doing.” Adrian Shanker, Executive Director of Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center in Allentown released a statement on the proposed change, noting that HUD is “taking steps to remove vital protections for those who are already most marginalized — low income LGBT people living in shelters. This unconscionable decision by HUD Secretary Carson and the Trump Administration will worsen housing discrimination and increase the numbers of LGBT people living on the streets. Already 4 in 10 homeless people in the United States are LGBT-identified. This rule will make it worse. This rule will mean that LGBT people can be turned away from housing shelters just because of who they are. The Trump Administration is willfully rolling back the hard-fought civil rights the LGBT community has achieved through decades of activism. We must all stand strong against this blatantly harmful rule.” In a recent series on poverty in the LGBTQ community, PGN reported that trans and gender nonconforming people were the most likely to face violence and LGBTQ people rejected by their families of origin often end up on the streets, at risk of violence as well as at risk of being forced into sex for survival that can lead to HIV transmission, injury and even death. The American Civil Liberties Union said the proposal was more than just a discriminatory move against transgender people — that it was an attempt to justify it with religion. “When shelters are PAGE 17

NATIONAL PGN

Trump administration attacks transgender healthcare By Victoria A. Brownworth PGN Contributor The Trump Administration has announced that it is planning to roll back an important regulation in the Health Care Rights Law (HCRL), the critical part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that protects transgender people from discrimination in health care and insurance coverage. The proposed rule, written by the Department of Health and Human Services, also permits providers to discriminate against women who seek care after obtaining an abortion. The HCRL is Section 1557 of the ACA (also known as Obamacare), which prohibits discrimination in health coverage and care. It bans discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age and disability in health programs and activities that receive federal funding. This includes most health facilities, like hospitals or doctors’ offices and most health insurance companies. Federal courts have consistently agreed, in discrimination lawsuits, that the law covers transgender people. What the HHS proposal stipulates is that the Health Care Rights Law be restricted so that trans persons are no longer covered by those protections. That provision bars health care providers and insurance companies from discriminating against patients on the basis of sex. It also incorporates the definition of sex discrimination used in Title IX of the Civil Rights Act. According to HHS, which Trump has populated with religious extremists like people from the anti-gay Family Research Council, sex discrimination does not include discrimination against people who identify with a gender outside of that which is assigned at birth. Dr. Marcus Sandling, a physician at the Mazzoni Center, said the proposal puts trans people at risk. “Transgender people already face routine discrimination in the health care system, which we know puts transgender people at greater risk. This plan would harm transgender people and make it harder for them to seek health care.” Charlotte Clymer, press secretary for rapid response at HRC and an out trans woman said, “This is the latest effort in a consistent, multi-pronged campaign by the Trump-Pence White House over the past two years to undermine the rights and welfare of LGBTQ people.” The Trump administration has long promoted religious freedom bills and activities that often assert non-LGBTQ people have the right to deny services of any kind to LGBTQ people based on their religious beliefs. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against LGBTQ people in several discrimination lawsuits brought by lesbian and gay couples, finding in favor of religious free-

dom plaintiffs. This latest move by the administration is a threat to the health and safety of transgender, gender nonconforming and nonbinary people. It means a trans person could have their insurance deny them coverage for gender-related care or even refuse to treat them at an urgent care center for something like a twisted ankle or severe bronchitis. A secondary element to the proposal, which has gotten little attention, is that the proposed ruling also addresses Title IX with regard to education. In this part of the ruling HHS claims, “Policies of covered entities that result in unwelcome exposure to, or by, persons of the opposite biological sex, where either party may be in a state of undress — such as in changing rooms, shared living quarters, showers, or other shared intimate facilities — may trigger hostile environment concerns under Title IX.” In short, if it’s triggering for cisgender students to be around trans students, the trans students must be removed. For now, the focus is on the healthcare aspects of the proposed ruling, although the education clauses may be examined more closely as the fall semester at schools looms. The National Center for Transgender Equality, in a FAQ for transgender people and their families and allies, explained, that “the Health Care Rights Law is the law of the land, and most courts have said it protects transgender people. Only Congress has the power to change the law by repealing the ACA.” But the group warned, “However, the Trump Administration’s actions will likely cause confusion for many patients, providers and insurance companies, and it could lead to more anti-transgender discrimination.” While it’s true that the law is still in place, it is equally true that Trump’s proposal means HHS will no longer investigate discrimination complaints filed by trans folks against health care providers. The protections under the HCRL can be enforced by people who experience discrimination suing in court or by people filing a complaint to HHS and asking the department to investigate. HHS will not investigate complaints of anti-transgender discrimination while the new proposal is in place, but transgender people can still file lawsuits themselves. Transgender people who have faced discrimination by a health care provider, insurance company or another health program are advised by NCTE to reach out to an LGBTQ-friendly legal organization to get help. The NCTE provides a list on their website. If the Equality Act passed, it would finally add clear, comprehensive non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people to existing civil rights laws, vitiating proposals like this one from the Trump Administration. That bill is pending in the Senate. n

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

EDITORIAL PGN EDITORIAL

Creep of the Week

D’Anne Witkowski

James Dobson

Editorial

Let’s Talk About Age Stonewall 50 is a celebration most folks in the LGBTQIA-plus community are embracing. At a time when hope is running thin, we can see the historical gains those before us were able to make in a short time. Among other things, this might give our community a chance to explore the intersection of ageism through a queer lens. Older LGBTQ folks face the same challenges as those in the community at large, but often at a higher level. Many are cut off from their families of origin and less likely to have children, therefore becoming more likely to depend on families of choice. It’s important to remember that many LGTBQ folks aging now grew up in a completely different historical moment — witnessing the first-ever Pride parade (not one corporately sponsored), experiencing police brutality, living through the AIDS crisis. They saw firsthand a time when second-parent gay adoption didn’t exist, fertility treatments for same-sex couples were not available and getting a job was even more of a challenge. In Philadelphia, we have amazing organizations that are alleviating some of the stress, such as SAGE and the Anderson House, among others. But if young people invest in history during this monumental time, it’s a great opportunity to invest in those who created that history. We have an opportunity to inter-

generationally educate one another, offer companionship and destigmatize the process of aging. We aren’t doing enough. We can organize with inclusion, target aging populations in social-media groups and within intersectional spaces, and depend on those 65 and older to attend protests and help brainstorm the best way to achieve an ethical protest. Along with systemic challenges, the LGBTQ population is, like larger society, appearance-obsessed. While it may take different forms, like perfecting the queer cut, wearing Docs and patches and sporting bartered stick-and-poke tattoos, we rarely admit to this societal downfall — which can leave a discussion about the aging body behind, as well as other bodies. Let’s start having difficult internal conversations and be sure to include the aging bodies in those conversations — the role that we, as an often-progressive community, can be leaders in the fight against ageism. Intersectionality has been a focus in our community lately, and while sometimes or often we fall short, younger folks have shown attentiveness to the ways race, class and neurodiversity impact the work we do. Let Stonewall 50 be a springboard for age inclusion and an opportunity to grow as individuals and as a community — and to have difficult internal conversations that are both honest and compassionate. n

Hello LGBTQ Americans! Are you ready to enslave “people of faith throughout these United States of America?” Because the U.S. House just passed the Equality Act and, according to James Dobson, that’s our job now. I don’t know about you, but I’m not prepared. Also, full disclosure, I’m not interested. The “people of faith” Dobson is talking about have done a fine job subjugating themselves by living in fear of two men kissing or a woman in control of her own uterus. Also, note that I didn’t use the word “enslaved” because let’s not just throw that word around like hundreds of years of that shit didn’t happen in this country and foster the deeply entrenched racism black and brown people are still dealing with. Dobson, however, is particularly tone deaf on this topic. “In the history of our nation, there have been times when evil was so apparent — and so heinous — that they stand in infamy decades later,” he wrote for Charisma News. “They include the Dred Scott Decision on slavery in 1857 and the Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion in 1973. Now, we are faced with another such tragic moment in American history.” Dred Scott, you’ll recall, affirmed the rights of slaveholders and was horrible. Roe v. Wade legalized a medical procedure. Not horrible. I get that Dobson thinks it is, but it isn’t. And now Dobson is comparing the Equality Act, which would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect LGBTQ people, to slavery and the thing he thinks is the worst thing ever: abortion. According to the Human Rights Campaign, “The Equality Act would provide consistent and explicit non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people across key areas of life, including employment, housing, credit, education, public spaces and services, federally funded programs and jury service.” This sounds perfectly reasonable. And, in fact, the majority of Americans think LGBTQ people should be protected from discrimination. But if you only asked people who don’t think that LGBTQ people are actual human beings, I suspect that number would drop by a lot. And no doubt Dobson is in that category. Why is Dobson so afraid of the Equality Act? Because civil rights laws give LGBTQ people a legitimacy that he wants to continue to deny. Dobson calls the Equality Act “breathtaking in its scope” and he’s not wrong. It’s pretty momentous. The HRC explains, “Decades of civil rights history show that civil rights laws are effective in decreasing discrimination because they provide strong federal remedies targeted to specific vulnerable groups. By explicitly including sexual orientation

and gender identity in these fundamental laws, LGBTQ people will finally be afforded the exact same protections as other covered characteristics under federal law.” Why, if this passes the Senate (it won’t. Mitch McConnell is a ghoul), then bakers might have to make cakes for same-sex couples and employers can’t just fire someone for being trans and landlords can’t kick you out of your home for being gay! According to Dobson, “This legislation will represent one of the most egregious assaults on religious liberty ever foisted on the people of this great nation. It therein imposes a thinly veiled death-sentence to the First Amendment to the Constitution.” Wow. That’s some hyperbolic shit right there. A “thinly veiled death-sentence to the First Amendment?” Can someone please let Dobson know that the First Amendment isn’t “Freedom to use your religion as a weapon against people you don’t like?” Dobson continues, “We must not remain silent as our historic liberties are gutted by Democrats and their friends in the LGBT movement. They will enslave us if they prevail. We must let our voices be heard, first in the U.S. Senate, and then to the world.” Okay, first of all, just about every rightwing conservative Christian has his or her own radio show so I don’t know what he means by this “remain silent” business. Also, a blanket right to discriminate is a “historic” liberty only in that it belongs in the past. With slavery. Dobson ends with, “Viva biblical values and beliefs.” I know what you’re thinking: isn’t “viva” Spanish? Yes! It is. And after vowing to continue to make life as miserable as possible for LGBTQ Americans, Dobson launches into an impassioned plea that we stop ripping Spanish-speaking children from their parents at the border and putting them in cages because it is unchristian. Just kidding. He did not. That would require some sort of moral code that cared about other people. Somebody should send Dobson a pamphlet or something about Jesus. n 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

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

My road to Stonewall I’ve already started what I’m calling immediately turned to GLF 1969, along my “Stonewall 50 Tour,” which includes with strong memories. more than 20 speaking gigs, interviews, One of the first items that GLF tackled exhibit openings, parades and conferwas identity. We took our identity away ences. It culminates on June from society along with their 30, when I share the honor of labels for us. Now, we would being Grand Marshal of New self-identify. York’s World Pride/Stonewall To do that, we examined 50 parade with my fellow masculinity and femininity, sisters and brothers of Gay which was strongly debated Liberation Front New York each week and sometimes got 1969-71. I want to share this out of hand. But we were in journey with you; so, here are new territory. Never before had a few of the things that have our community demanded to happened thus far. self-identify, including across Two weeks ago, Jason and gender lines. We were deterI traveled to Ft. Lauderdale to mined to be inclusive even if address a couple of fundraiswe did not totally appreciate ers for The Stonewall National or understand others’ views. Museum and Archives. On the On top of it all, we had differway to the airport, our Lyft Mark Segal ent political views, and it was driver was very talkative and a dysfunctional organization. asked what I did for a living. But it was also magic, and Simple answer: Publish a newspaper for these conversations and debates created the LGBT community. That seemed to the LGBT community we have today. surprise him and he then asked if gays So, here is what I think of the Lyft could marry each other. I answered: driver’s question, through the lens of “Yes, and we are married.” GLF membership. The core of the question is very personal. It asks about our Then he asked — I did tell you he was talkative — of the two of us, “Who is the sex life, and it’s totally inappropriate. man and who is the wife?” My thoughts Maybe I should have asked him who’s

Mark My Words

Out Struggles

the top in his marriage. It shows how some still think of us — in only sexual terms. A couple of answers come to mind when I think of the question asked to my husband and me that day. Maybe, “What do you and your wife do in bed?” Or, if being polite, “That’s a personal question. One I wouldn’t ask you.” This journey to Stonewall has held many experiences. The question from the Lyft driver was only one of many. Last week, filming for BBC and BBC America outside of Stonewall, a couple of men were a little impatient when we took a break from filming and said, “Stop hogging the site. Who do you think you are?” The BBC crew and I smiled at one another and the host came over and said to me, “Without what you and your friends did here 50 years ago, they wouldn’t be here for a picture.” We moved out of the way and watched them take their picture — two men cuddling in front of a neon Stonewall sign. It really was cute. n Mark Segal, PGN publisher, is the nation’s most-award-winning commentator in LGBT media. You can follow him on Facebook at www. facebook.com/MarkSegalPGN or Twitter at https://twitter.com/PhilaGayNews.

Sandra Pilla

An account of trans homelessness: What can we do? For 17 years, Traci Marie Curtis lived in an apartment at Fifth and Carpenter streets. She rescued countless homeless cats, taking in a few and accommodating the rest in outdoor shelters after having them neutered or spayed. Curtis was a friend to the elderly — they often experience abandonment and loneliness, she noted. She put out her own money to help the needy, human or animal. To make ends meet, she took on various jobs, which she described as “menial” — even “cleaning latrines.” She wasn’t afraid of hard work. Estranged from her own family, she created a new one in her gentrifying Queen Village neighborhood. She was also engaged to “a wonderful man” — who, suddenly and sadly, died before they could make it official. Her landlord never had a problem with the four cats sharing her residence until about two months ago, she said, when they became the reason, at least on paper, that he evicted her. Curtis, 66, is now living in literal weeds with two of her cats. She’s not far from her former neighbors — a few of whom check on her and bring her food and clothing. She challenged her eviction in court and was permitted to stay in her former resi-

dence for another month. During that time, she made arrangements with a friend to move into a low-rent facility that accepted pets in Pottsville. Curtis quickly learned that “low-rent,” in this case, was a condemned building with no running water and a foul odor. After 20 days, she hastened back to the city and took up residence in a lot. Curtis is certain that money motivated her eviction: Her landlord could get double the rent in the quickly developing neighborhood, she said. And while her gender identity and age may not have been an issue, these factors — along with her cats — haven’t made it easy to find new housing or, in the aftermath of a recent accident on a SEPTA bus, to get medical care. One in five transgender people in this nation experiences housing discrimination and homelessness, and at least one in 10 has been evicted because of gender identity, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Despite that, the national Fair Housing Act prohibits such discrimination. Our states and cities generally lack legislation with strong, explicit language — the kind of language that makes it clear that a landlord can’t toss out a human being because of her/his/their gender identity or sexual preference, among the other factors.

Another of those factors is age. The statistics are clear for LGBTQ young people: Of more than 1.6-million homeless youth in this nation, an estimated 40 percent identify as LGBTQ. The numbers of “T” in that acronym are murkier — and even more so for older trans people. Several nearby residents have banded together to help Curtis, and even they are finding that most viable housing options are targeted to young adults — and that few are pet-friendly, a deal-breaker for Curtis. Despite the current administration’s attempts to usurp equal rights, especially for transgender people, Philadelphia remains a terra firma for all identities. Yet, in this city of top-ranked LGBTQ “friendliness,” home to an estimated 4,500 transgender individuals, whose antidiscrimination laws have included gender identity for 17 years despite the lack of protective state and national legislation, where a transgender Pride flag is flown alongside the rainbow flag at City Hall during special events … Someone like Curtis — a transgender woman who already endured decades of discrimination, harassment, tragedy and just plain bad luck, but who always had a secure roof over her head — can end up living in overgrown weeds with her faithful furry companions. PAGE 15

Street Talk What would you like to see added to Pride? “I look forward to holding the queer pride festival and dance party at Milkboy’s Chestnut location. It’s Chris Beyer on June 9 He/him from 12-9, South Washington and I like that it’s a daytime deal. Icon Ebony Fierce will be hosting the event.”

“My girlfriend and I just opened a shop, South Street Art Mart, so this year I look forward to having the Nicole Krecicki store open She/her with a pride Queen Village window and letting everyone know we are here and that it’s a place where everyone is welcome.”

“I would love to see more inclusive conversations surrounding gender and sexuality. I recently moved Tara Booth back here She/her from PortFishtown land, and I felt that the queer community was more vocal there in many ways.”

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

PGN

BE PART OF STONEWALL BE PART OF THE LEGACY — HERE IN PHILADELPHIA

You are invited to write messages on rainbow ribbons that will decorate the Philadelphia Pioneers on the Road to Stonewall float heading to the Philly Pride Parade, June 9; NYC Pride March, June 30; and Philly’s Independence Day Parade, July 4. Your words of love and gratitude will accompany pioneers of the LGBTQ rights movement who will be riding on the float. This opportunity is free — and not to be missed.

WHEN: Saturday June 8, from 12-3 p.m. WHERE: Cherry Street Pier, 121 N. Columbus Boulevard

#IAMSTONEWALL

PGN LOCAL

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

Road to Stonewall: Kiyoshi Kuromiya

By Victoria A. Brownworth PGN Contributor

Few figures in the Philadelphia LGBTQ community are more evocative of the words “road to Stonewall” than Kiyoshi Kuromiya. Born in the Heart Mountain Relocation Camp for Japanese Americans in Wyoming in 1943, Kuromiya would later tell gay historian Marc Stein in an interview, “I don’t remember a thing about Heart Mountain, although in 1983 my mother and I visited the site of this concentration camp, which the government called a relocation center for Japanese Americans during World War II, two-thirds of whom were American citizens.” In 1992, Kuromiya received his $20,000 reparations check from the United States government for that atrocity. Kuromiya told Stein, “I am fascinated with that part of history and I’m sure it affected my own activism and my own attitudes toward our government, war and racial issues.” Kuromiya moved to Philadelphia from his family’s home in suburban Los Angeles in 1961 to attend the University of Pennsylvania. He was on a full scholarship and studied architecture. He worked with the renowned Buckminster Fuller and

would go on to co-author a book with him. He also immersed himself in first the black civil rights movement, then the antiwar and gay liberation movements. Before dying from cancer in 2000 at only 57, Kuromiya would become one of the premier AIDS activists in the U.S. and a face of AIDS activism in Philadelphia. At Penn, Kuromiya protested the draft and Vietnam War and became romantically involved with other men. He would later describe those early years in Philadelphia as formative of both his activism and opportunity to live openly as a gay man. He was a co-founder of Gay Liberation Front Philadelphia and a member of Students for a Democratic Society.

Kuromiya participated in the first “homosexual” rights action in front of Independence Hall on July 4, 1965. The same year, Kuromiya marched with Dr.

Photo: Rafu Shimpo

Martin Luther King, Jr. at Selma. He described his relationship with King as one of a close confidant, and Kurmiya was a caretaker for King’s children, Martin Jr.

and Dexter, after King’s 1968 assassination. On March 13, 1965, Kuromiya led a group of high-school students in a march to the state capital building in Montgomery, Alabama. There were attacks on the marchers by Alabama state troopers and Kuromiya was hit with billy clubs. In a Life magazine profile, Kuromiya described his experience: “I was in the South during the spring and summer of 1965. After Reverend James Reeb was killed, we marched and I was clubbed down and hospitalized.” Kuromiya said the experience illuminated his perspective on oppression, asserting, “When you get treated this way, you suddenly know what it is like to be a black in Mississippi or a peasant in Vietnam. You learn something about going through channels then, too. I gave my story to an FBI agent in the hospital. He took seven pages of notes, but I remember thinking at the time it was probably just about as effective as relaying information to the ACLU via the House Un-American Activities Committee. Nothing ever came of it, at any rate.” To protest the use of napalm in the Vietnam war in 1968, Kuromiya sent out flyers saying a dog would be burned alive in front of Penn’s Van Pelt Library. Thousands turned up to protest, only to find a message from Kuromiya: PAGE 15

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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Doctors aren’t offering young people PrEP. That has to change. As a young person who identifies X clinics, like Planned Parenthood, as nonbinary, accessing pre-exposure provide cost-effective and confidential prophylaxis (PrEP) was a challenging options, but the Trump Administration quest. PrEP is a once-daily pill regiis intent on shutting them down, withmen that supports people in remaining out regard for the vital services they HIV negative. Although I have been provide young people. an organizer and advocate in support A huge gap in comprehensive sex of LGBTQ youth for over five years education also exists. Today, fewer in Philadelphia, I have only been than half of all states mandate mediaware of PrEP for about two years. cally accurate sex and HIV education. PrEP is extremely effective at preIn Pennsylvania, schools are required venting HIV transmission. only to provide education So why is no one talking on HIV and AIDS, with a about it to young people? focus on abstinence. The In 2016, 21 percent of Philadelphia School District people newly diagnosed (where I live) provides with HIV were age 24 or teachers with additional younger (about 40 percent information on contracepof HIV diagnoses are in tion and dating violence but people under 30), and yet fails to require any specific people under 25 were only curriculum. Unfortunately, 15 percent of all people what students learn can on PrEP. There have only vary greatly depending on been approximately 27,000 the teacher. It’s unforgivprescriptions issued to this able that most students get group since 2012. A recent through school without report from the Centers learning that there is a medfor Disease Control and that can help them Tyunique ication Prevention on how PrEP is remain HIV negative. Nelson I’m asking everyone prescribed found black and to take the steps they can to Hispanic/Latinx people are ensure young people have access to most likely to benefit from PrEP, but PrEP. In hospital and clinic settings, least likely to be prescribed it. Truvada (FTC/tenofovir disoproxil sexually transmitted infection screenfumarate) for PrEP was first approved ings have to go beyond the standard as an HIV prevention method in 2012, of offering condoms, lubrication and dental dams after a person is tested. but only for individuals age 18 and Information about PrEP and older. In 2018, the Food and Drug Administration expanded the approval post-exposure prophylaxis should be publicly promoted in health care enviof PrEP to include adolescents. But there are still too many logistical, eco- ronments and spaces that LGBTQ youth, people that identify as nonbinomic and cultural barriers to young people receiving this vital medication. nary, and black cis and transgender One key barrier and area of missed women occupy. Sex education needs opportunity is the doctor’s office. to be honest and comprehensive, and Unfortunately, like many LGBTQ it needs to address real solutions and people, until recently, I never felt like skills. We, young people, need to take my doctor’s office was a safe place the initiative and ask our health care to openly talk about my sexual health providers about PrEP. and experiences. I often felt like I It was only after I met an affirming was being slut-shamed or othered for nurse at Planned Parenthood, who my identity and the partners I had. I happened to be queer, that I became answered the standard questions about comfortable discussing my sexual sexual behavior, but these didn’t crehealth and HIV prevention needs, ate an opportunity to ask about PrEP. including PrEP. When young people No one offered it to me, and I wasn’t are educated about PrEP, when staff and physicians are knowledgeable sure if it was my job to ask for it. I’d about LGBTQ-competent services go to my appointments and end up and provide equitable and affordable leaving without a PrEP prescription because I was afraid to ask my doctor care, we are empowered to take our about it. sexual health into our own hands. Then there’s the price tag. Without Help us protect our futures and lay the insurance, PrEP can cost up to $2,000 groundwork for a lifetime of sexual per month. A young person on their health. n parents’ insurance pays far less but Tyunique Nelson is a contributing writer for TheBody faces the risk of their parents finding and a program associate at the Mazzoni Center. This out they’re on PrEP if an explanation column is a project of Plus, Positively Aware, POZ, of benefits goes to their parents. Title TheBody and Q Syndicate, the LGBT wire service.

Positive Thoughts

PGN KUROMIYA from page 13

“Congratulations on your anti-napalm protest. You saved the life of a dog. Now, how about saving the lives of tens of thousands of people in Vietnam?” Kuromiya also served as an openly-gay delegate to the Black Panther’s Revolutionary People’s Constitutional Convention, held in Philadelphia in 1970, at which he presented a workshop on gay rights. Kuromiya would say later, “The white middle-class outlook of the earlier [homophile] groups, which thought that everything in America would be fine if people only treated homosexuals better, wasn’t what we were all about. …We wanted to stand with the poor, with women, with people of color, with the antiwar people, to bring the whole corrupt thing down.” In the mid-1970s, Kuromiya survived a battle with lung cancer and soon after began touring the country with Buckminster Fuller through 1983 when Fuller died. Kuromiya collaborated on six books with Fuller. As Kuromiya told Stein, “I really believe that activism is therapeutic.” The 1980s led Kuromiya into AIDS activism as the founder of the Philadelphia chapter of the direct action activist organization, ACT UP (the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power). In 1989, Kuromiya was diagnosed with AIDS, which intensified his activism. He repeatedly said, “Information is power, “ and founded the Critical Path Project, an HIV/AIDS resource organization that provided information and a 24-hour hotline for the Philadelphia gay community. The Critical Path newsletter, one of the earliest and most comprehensive sources of HIV treatment information, was mailed to thousands of people living with HIV worldwide. Kuromiya also sent newsletters to hundreds of incarcerated individuals to ensure their access to up-to-date treatment information. Kuromiya was a pioneer of national and international AIDS research advocacy, and his loving and compassionate mentoring

TRANS HOMELESS from page 11

She spent a couple nights in the city’s shelters — which, according to Curtis and numerous other local homeless individuals, are often more threatening than the open streets. Former shelter inhabitants talk of rampant drug use, theft and sometimes violence, including sexual violence. Curtis described the shelter system as “overwhelmed,” with a lack of social workers and facilities, and offering only a very-temporary solution. Barbara Morrison, a nearby resident who has been Curtis’ angel, has hosted her new friend at her place, bought her clothing and even set up a tent as a shelter from the elements — a tent that a random angry man tore down last week as he harassed and threatened Curtis, calling her a “faggot,” among other names. Morrison was in tears when she learned of Curtis’ plight. “When I found her sitting surrounded

and care for hundreds of people living with HIV was world-renowned. Kiyoshi was the editor of the ACT UP Standard of Care, the first standard of care for people living with HIV produced by PWAs. During the 1990s, he was involved in several impact litigation cases: a successful lawsuit against the Communications Decency Act to maintain the right of free speech on the internet and Kuromiya vs. The United States of America, a Supreme Court case in which he argued for the legalization of marijuana for medical use by people with AIDS. In 1993, Kuromiya was arrested after protesting at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. and at the White House on behalf of people with AIDS. “I’m in the back of the police van on the way to the police station from the White House. We were mostly people with AIDS in that van and one of the plastic handcuffs were on too tight and was cutting off circulation and this person was scared, so of course I slipped out of my handcuffs. And of course, everyone thought I was Houdini at the time. I said, ‘No, I’m used to this. I know exactly what positions to put my hands in as they’re putting them on, and I can get out of it.’ I borrowed someone’s nail clippers and got everyone else’s off.” Philadelphia author, activist and archivist, Tommi Avicolli Mecca was a close friend of Kuromiya’s. He summed up Kuromiya’s activism succinctly. “Kiyoshi was a lifelong activist who saw the intersectionality of issues, cofounding Philadelphia GLF, going south on the freedom rides, marching with King in Selma, opposing the war in Vietnam and all war, and, of course, fighting against AIDS in the 80s and 90s.” Avicolli Mecca added that Kuromiya’s work was broad, encompassing and fundamentally queer, “Kiyoshi wasn’t about assimilating into the dominant heterosexual culture. He was about changing a system that oppresses so many people that put profits over human needs. That will always be his legacy.” n

by weeds on a piece of wooden board … my heart started to race and my mind was saying, How did this happen? …As we started to talk, I realized that, through her sweetness and down-to-earth conversation, I must do everything possible to get her and her two cats out of this horrible situation.” Arrangements were made for two of Curtis’ four beloved felines. Baby and Jimmy remain with her — and rarely stray from her side. She has established a fundraiser — something she never thought she’d have to do — to which an anonymous donor recently gave $2,500. Despite the donations and a trio of dedicated helpers, it remains a challenge to find a roof for Curtis and her kitties — and many other trans folks face the same challenge, today and on many other days. n To donate to Traci Marie Curtis, go to bit.ly/tracimariecurtis.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

PGN

PGN LAWSUIT from page 1

ple won’t seek care at all.” Other plaintiffs include the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists, nonprofit Medical Students for Choice, Hartford GYN Center and Trust Women Seattle. The Center for Reproductive Rights, Santa Clara County, Lambda Legal and Americans United for Separation of Church and State are leading the charge. Representatives from seven of the involved parties held a teleconference Tuesday to discuss the case and how the ruling would impact their clinics and patients. The lawsuit argues the federal rule violates the First Amendment by advancing specific religious beliefs and infringing on patients’ rights to free speech and expression. It also alleges the decision would encroach on the Fifth Amendment by harming patient rights to privacy, liberty and equal dignity. “The breadth of the harm this new rule will cause is impossible to exaggerate and opens up yet another front in the Trump administration’s assault on civil rights of minorities and already-marginalized, vulnerable populations,” stated Jamie Gliksberg, senior attorney at Lambda Legal. “This almost-limitless invitation to discriminate will inevitably result in women, LGBT people and religious minorities facing hostile healthcare workers and denials of medical care at moments of greatest need, where any delay could be fatal.” At the Bradbury-Sullivan Center, the staff administers an annual statewide LGBT health assessment, which measures wellness disparities within the gay community. Last year’s evaluation found that more than 50 percent of LGBT Pennsylvanians and 75 percent of transgender residents fear seeking medical care because of negative past experiences that resulted from being LGBTQ, Shanker said. Such discrimination in the healthcare system “can be a matter of life or death,” stated Nancy Northup, president and CEO of The Center for Reproductive Rights. “This new policy could threaten anyone seeking medical care in this country, but will fall particularly hard on women and LGBTQ patients,” she added. “The Trump administration is skirting Congressional approval to push through this extreme and dangerous policy. It’s a glaring violaHOUSING from page 8

allowed to turn transgender people away — a policy that is sanctioned by a government that continues to push the lie that the mere existence of trans people threatens the privacy and safety of others — deadly violence against the trans community on the streets will rise,” said Ian Thompson, a senior legislative representative for the union.” The Trump administration has already banned trans people from serving in the military and has

tion of patients’ right to equal treatment.” The federal ruling will particularly impose barriers to healthcare access on underserved or rural communities, like Lehigh Valley, Shanker said. This could cause LGBTQ health-service options to become extremely limited, so patients would need to find transportation, take time off work and commute for hours to access medical care, he added. The American Civil Liberties Union also has weighed in. “Once again, this administration shows itself to be determined to use religious liberty to harm communities it deems less worthy of equal treatment under the law,” stated Louise Melling, ACLU deputy legal director. “This rule threatens to prevent people from accessing critical medical care and may endanger people’s lives. Religious liberty is a fundamental right, but it doesn’t include the right to discriminate or harm others. Medical standards, not religious belief, should guide medical care.” In announcing the final rule May 2, the Department of Health and Human Services stated it “fulfills President Trump’s promise to promote and protect the fundamental and unalienable rights of conscience and religious liberty.” “Finally, laws prohibiting government-funded discrimination against conscience and religious freedom will be enforced like every other civil-rights law,” stated Roger Severino, director of the Office for Civil Rights within Health and Human Services. “This rule ensures that healthcare entities and professionals won’t be bullied out of the healthcare field because they decline to participate in actions that violate their conscience, including the taking of human life. Protecting conscience and religious freedom not only fosters greater diversity in healthcare, it’s the law.” The Bradbury-Sullivan Center joined the lawsuit, Shanker said, because “this rule is just too significant, too harmful. It’s yet another attack on the LGBT community and it’s an attack on a place that hurts all of us, which is accessing the care that we need to survive.” “The Trump administration is wrong about LGBT health and we’re going to stand up for the LGBT community’s healthcare needs,” he added, “especially for our community here in the Lehigh Valley. But this rule will affect all Americans in a negative way.” n issued edicts through the Department of Justice disallowing LGBTQ people from filing discrimination lawsuits based on sexual orientation or gender identity and using the Civil Rights Act as basis for those suits. On May 17 the House passed the Equality Act, which would make actions like this HUD proposal illegal. The Equality Act is set to go before the Senate and if passed, to the desk of President Trump to be signed into law. n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

VIGIL from page 1

recognized her contributions to Philadelphia’s gay community. “I would always see her downtown, and it didn’t matter if I was on the other side of the street, she would make her way to acknowledge my presence and to say hello and check in with me,” said Tatyana Woodard, Mazzoni’s communityhealth engagement coordinator. “Being a transwoman of color is not easy and a lot of us don’t get along, so I always appreciated the fact that she would come over and check on me. …I looked at her as a sister.” Family members attending the vigil described Washington as bubbly, smart, sassy, kind, opinionated, helpful and secure in her identity. “She was proud of who she was,” said Lauren Hughes, 54, Washington’s cousin. “She didn’t try to hide it, even when she was a little girl.” Cedric Deveaux, 29, knew Washington since he came out at age 15. Hesaid she was a loving person and was hopeful vigil participants gained a sense of unity. “It could be anybody’s family members,” Deveaux added. “At a time like this, we should

PGN

19]. Let us use this just stick together moment to make and become one these long-overdue and love everyone.” changes without Wa s h i n g t o n ’s further delay.” death has resoJere Mahaffey, nated througha member of the out the state. Gov. Pennsylvania Tom Wolf released Commission a statement May on LGBTQ 21 denouncing a Affairs, attended national uptick in Wa s h i n g t o n ’ s violence against vigil. LGBTQ people “To my knowland urging legisla- MIKAL WOODS AT VIGIL Photo: Laura Smythe edge, this is the tion to protect the first publicly released statement from the gay community. “The trend of violence against transwomen governor’s office on violence against tranof color is disturbing, but this violence is not swomen of color,” Mahaffey said.In 2017, new and we’ve watched as it has escalated,” the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Wolf said. “We owe it to our citizens to provide Programs determined 27 hate-related homithem the protections that ensure their safety. cides of transgender and nonconformWe mourn the loss of Michelle ‘Tamika’ ing people occurred in the United States. Washington, a black transwoman and long- Transwomen of color accounted for 22 of time advocate for the transgender commu- these incidents. This represented a 42-percent nity, who was senselessly murdered [May increase in such crimes from the 19 reported

incidents in 2016. At least 26 transpeople were violently killed across the country in 2018, according to the Human Rights Campaign. At the vigil, Woods urged members of the LGBTQ community to come together in Washington’s death. “I just hope we can move forward as a community and as a whole to come to a better understanding that we are a community and we cannot allow other people to divide us,” he said. “We have to protect our sisters and our brothers and, as people are coming into the community, we educate them, and people who are not in the community, educate them,” he added, explaining that ignorance plays a role in murders of LGBTQ people. Washington’s family members said she fully lived her life, until she couldn’t. “I hope that people know she’s not a transgender woman, she’s a woman. She’s a person,” Hughes said. “Her life matters, and you have to respect and love life. You don’t have to agree with the lifestyle, but her life mattered and she had loved ones.” n

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PGN BOYERTON from page 8

to defend the transgender community from attacks in the courts, the legislatures and the White House.” Mary Catherine Roper, deputy legal director for the ACLU of Pennsylvania, echoed Mar’s sentiments. “The decision from the Third Circuit protects schools that want to enact trans-positive policies and practices. That is great news,” Roper told PGN. “It should not be a surprise to anyone that schools can protect trans students without infringing other students’ rights. But it is important that we have a strong court decision from the Third Circuit that says that.” Aidan DeStefano, a recent graduate of Boyertown High who is transgender, issued a statement in support of the decision. “By the time I graduated high school, I was using the boys’ bathroom and participating on the boys’ cross-country team. I felt like I belonged and had the confidence I needed to continue with my education,” he said. “I’m glad the Supreme Court is allowing schools like mine to continue supporting transgender students.” Boyertown is a borough in Berks County with a population of about 4,000, located 37 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The high school has 1,650 students from grades 10-12. The cisgender students initiated the litigation in March 2017, claiming Boyertown school district’s trans-friendly policy violated their privacy rights and created a “hostile environment” for them. The plaintiffs wanted U.S. District Judge Edward G. Smith to issue a preliminary injunction halting implementation of the pol-

icy, but Smith declined to do so. In August 2017, Smith ruled that the trans-friendly policy didn’t violate the privacy rights of cisgender students. Ten months later, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Smith’s ruling. “Transgender students face extraordinary social, psychological and medical risks and the school district clearly had a compelling state interest in shielding them from discrimination,” a three-judge panel of the Third Circuit wrote. The circuit judges also noted that cisgender students who feel uncomfortable sharing a restroom or locker room with their transgender classmates can use single-occupant restrooms or alternate locker rooms available at the high school. Forcing transgender students to use facilities not consistent with their gender identity “would very publicly brand all transgender students with a scarlet ‘T,’ and they should not have to endure that as the price of attending their public school,” the judges wrote. Additionally, the panel found that the cisgender litigants have unreasonable privacy expectations. “Appellants are claiming a very broad right of personal privacy in a space that is, by definition and common usage, just not that private. There is simply nothing inappropriate about transgender students using the restrooms or locker rooms that correspond to their gender identity under the policy the [school district] has initiated. And we reject appellants’ attempt to argue that there is.” In their appeal, the plaintiffs emphasized what they said was a need for the Supreme Court to intervene.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

“It is untenable that the Third Circuit Court of Appeals made students’ right to bodily privacy contingent on what others believe about their own gender. This court’s immediate intervention is sorely needed,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys wrote in their 32-page appeal. Cisgender students testified during a lower-court proceeding in July 2017 about “how uncomfortable they were finding themselves with members of the opposite sex when undressed in the locker room or when in the restroom, all because of Boyertown’s policy,” the appeal stated. Dr. Dana T. Bedden, superintendent of Boyertown Area School District, issued a statement emphasizing acceptance and inclusivity. “I hope that we will have an opportunity to move forward with healing and acceptance of differences in an inclusive manner. Inclusive education for students, staff and the community can only be successful when the Boyertown Area School District community feels that each person is genuinely a part of the school district,” Bedden stated. “Creating a place where everyone feels welcome will require an open and honest discussion about differences where everyone has a voice, and institutional respect for people of all backgrounds and abilities. In inclusive schools, the establishment of such a climate benefits everyone by fostering an environment where our students and their families are valued.” John Bursch, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, issued a statement emphasizing privacy rights. “Students struggling with their beliefs about gender need compassionate support.

But sound reasons based on common sense have always existed for schools to separate male and female teenagers in showers, restrooms and locker rooms. No student’s recognized right to bodily privacy should be made contingent on what other students believe about their own gender,” Bursch wrote. “Because the Third Circuit’s decision made a mess of bodily privacy and Title IX principles, we believe the Supreme Court should have reviewed it. But we hope the court will take up a similar case in the future to bring much-needed clarity to how the lower courts should handle violations of well-established student privacy rights.” Randall L. Wenger, another attorney for the cisgender students, couldn’t be reached for comment. He wrote in a Nov. 21, 2018, email: “The evidence is that students change [clothes] in the locker rooms and the restrooms, sometimes completely removing their clothes. It’s this context, where bodily anatomy is exposed, that bodily privacy matters. If anatomical differences didn’t matter, there would be no need for separate spaces.” Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equity, said in a Nov. 26, 2018, email: “[Plaintiffs] claim the mere existence of transgender youth is somehow a violation of privacy for other students, which is untrue and profoundly harmful to hundreds of thousands of families across the country. This petition to the Supreme Court is a ludicrous attempt to justify blatant prejudice. But the Alliance Defending Freedom clearly believe they’ll have a friendly audience for their hateful arguments in a Supreme Court with two Trump nominees joining the bench.” n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

PGN INTERNATIONAL

International Kenyan author, LGBT activist Binyavanga Wainaina dies at 48 A colleague and friend of Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina says he has died at age 48. Tom Maliti, the chairman of the Kwani Trust which Wainaina founded, says the author died May 21 at night in Nairobi after an illness. Wainaina was one of Africa’s bestknown authors and will be remembered as a key figure in the artistic community. He won the 2002 Caine Prize for African Writing. His trust has helped produce literary works and promote local writers. Wainaina also helped to create tolerance for the LGBT community by coming out publicly as gay in a country where laws still criminalize homosexual behavior. He also revealed he was HIVpositive.

Brazil’s supreme court votes to make homophobia a crime A majority in Brazil’s supreme court has voted to make homophobia and transphobia crimes like racism, a decision coming amid fears the country’s far-right president will roll back LGBT social and legislative gains. Six of the Supreme Federal Tribunal’s 11 judges have voted in favor of the measure. The five other judges will vote in a court session on June 5, but the result will not be modified. The measure will take effect after all the justices have voted. Racism was made a crime in Brazil in 1989 with prison sentences of up to five years. The court’s judges ruled that homophobia should be framed within the racism law until the country’s congress approves legislation specifically dealing with LGBT discrimination. Brazil’s senate is dealing with a bill to criminalize discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender with sentences of up to five years. “Racism is a crime against flesh and blood, whether it is a member of the LGBT community, a Jew or an Afrodescendant,” justice Luiz Fux said May 23. The court’s judges said the ruling was to address an omission that had left the LGBT community legally unprotected. While same-sex marriage is legal in

Brazil, it is still a dangerous country for members of the LGBT community and has a large evangelical movement often critical of gay rights. According to the rights group the Grupo Gay da Bahia, 420 LGBT people were killed in Brazil in 2018, while at least 141 have been killed so far this year. President Jair Bolsonaro, a former army captain who assumed office on Jan. 1, has a history of making offensive comments about LGBTQ folks, the black population, and other minorities, openly acknowledging he is a homophobe. He has said he would rather have a dead son than a gay son. The ruling “comes at a very good moment, when we have a head of state who is LGBT-phobic,” said Bruna Benevides, president of the Niteroi Diversity group. “The Supreme Court assumed the responsibility to protect us.”

Same-sex couples start registering marriages in Taiwan Hundreds of same-sex couples in Taiwan rushed to get married on the first day a landmark decision to legalize same-sex marriage took effect. One household registration office in Taipei was packed May 24 as couples seized the earliest opportunity to tie the knot. Taiwan became the first place in Asia to allow same-sex marriage recently in a legislative vote, a cause that LGBT rights activists on the island have championed for two decades. A Taipei resident who identified himself only by a nickname said he and his partner feel lucky that they are able to tell everyone that they have gotten married. Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior said about 300 same-sex couples are expected to register May 24.

Kenyan court upholds laws criminalizing same sex relations A three-judge panel of Kenya’s High Court has upheld sections of the country’s penal code that criminalize samesex relations. The judges’ unanimous ruling on May 24 disappointed Kenya’s vibrant gay community, as many had hoped the court would make history by scrapping the colonial-era laws. Activists argue that the laws criminalizing consensual same-sex relations between adults are in breach of the constitution because they deny basic rights. The laws prescribe up to 14 years in prison for people convicted of homosexual acts. n

PGN NATIONAL

Media Trail University ends United Methodist affiliation over LGBT bans A university in Ohio has ended its affiliation with the United Methodist Church over the denomination’s renewed bans on LGBT clergy and same-sex marriage reported The Canton Repository. The University of Mount Union president says the board of trustees considered the issue for months before voting recently to end the affiliation of more than 150 years. University President W. Richard Merriman Jr. says the school wants a diverse campus. He says it became difficult to see how the denomination’s recent actions could be reconciled with the university’s values. The General Conference of the United Methodist Church in February voted to continue prohibiting ordination of gays and lesbians and barring its clergy from presiding at same-sex weddings. The university in Alliance says ending the affiliation won’t affect its curriculum.

Utah County commissioner comes out as gay A Republican lawmaker in an area of Utah where many residents are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has publicly come out as gay. The Washington Post reported Utah County Commissioner Nathan Ivie said May 22 his announcement was inspired in part by his work with families who have lost gay children to suicide. He said he is a member of the church but declined to discuss his faith. The religion opposes same-sex relationships. Utah County is south of Salt Lake City and includes the church-owned Brigham Young University. The 40-year-old Ivie shared the news in a video posted to Facebook in which he describes wrestling with his sexual orientation since he was a boy and surviving a suicide attempt at age 22. Ivie said he and his wife of 13 years will be separating.

Alabama Public Television won’t run ‘Arthur’ wedding AL.com reported Alabama Public Television has chosen not to air an episode of the PBS children’s show “Arthur” because it included a same-sex wedding. The episode ``Mr. Ratburn and the

Special Someone’’ aired nationally on May 13, showing Arthur attending the wedding of his teacher and partner. APT showed a re-run instead. APT director of programming Mike Mckenzie defended the decision by saying parents trust that their children can watch the station without supervision. The station had previously pulled an episode of “Arthur’’ in 2005 when a character had two mothers. Misty Souder, a substitute teacher from McCalla, Alabama, said she’s disappointed. She said she’s using this to teach her 9-year-old daughter about the importance of standing up for minority groups.

Police look at whether transgender women’s deaths connected San Antonio Express-News reports police in Dallas say they are investigating whether the killings of two transgender women and an assault on a third are connected. Maj. Vincent Weddington said May 21 during a news conference that there are similarities in the three cases. No arrests have been made. The most recent killing occurred over the weekend. Twenty-three-year-old Muhlaysia Booker was found shot to death May 18. Her death came a month after a cellphone video showed her being brutally beaten in a separate incident. Police said the first killing, which was also a fatal shooting, occurred last October. They said the assault happened in April and the victim was stabbed repeatedly.

Proposed LGBTQ health organization clears Connecticut House Legislation aimed at better matching members of Connecticut’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community with health and other services has cleared a key vote reports WFUV.org. The House of Representatives voted 130-6 May 20 in favor of a bill that creates a new organization that recommends to state officials ways to build safer and healthier environments for the LGBTQ community. The Department of Public Health would provide funds to help the network develop a statewide needs assessment and ultimately help coordinate care with nonprofit agencies. Democratic Rep. Raghib Allie-Brennan of Bethel said, “This is a population that hasn’t been served well.” The Connecticut TransAdvocacy Coalition supports the bill. Executive Director Diana Lombardi recently told lawmakers how not all Connecticut primary-care physicians will treat transgender patients. The bill awaits senate action. n

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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The Philadelphia Gay News won eight Keystone Press Awards this year, an honor that recognizes professional excellence and journalism that “consistently provides

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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FEATURE PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

THEATRE OF LOVE AND LOSS PAGE 28 Q PUZZLE: PAGE 26

FAMILY PORTRAIT: PAGE 31

FILM REVIEW: PAGE 29

COMICS: PAGE 34

ENTERTAINMENT LISTINGS: PAGE 28

Queer films screen at Philadelphia Latino Film Festival By Gary M. Kramer PGN Contributor With dozens of features, documentaries and shorts, as well as panels and parties to celebrate Latinx cinema and culture, the Philadelphia Latino Film Festival is also LGBTQIA-plus-inclusive. Three films with LGBTQ themes and characters are being screened at the festival, hosted at University of the Arts through Sunday. “José” is a poignant and erotic drama about a poor, gay teenager (Enrique Salanic) eking out a life with his mother (Ana Cecilia Mota) in Guatemala City. When José is not working as a food runner at a restaurant, he meets men on the sly for sex. He soon develops a deep intimacy with Luis (Manolo Herrera), a construction worker. The scenes of the men in bed are tender and loving, as is the moment when the two embrace while riding a motorcycle. “José” generates drama when the title character must choose whether to stay with his mother, for whom he cares, or follow his heart and be with Luis. The film, directed by Li Cheng in an almost-documentary style, is achingly beautiful. Audiences feel every

emotion as the lens centers on José’s world, observing his routines. Cheng also captures the grittiness of Guatemala City, the sweat of the men’s bodies and the palpable sense of despair, as José must make his heartbreaking decision. A rich, involving film, “José” is not to be missed. Another realistic drama is the Venezuelan import “Yo Imposible” (“Being Impossible”). The sophomore feature by cowriter and director Patricia Ortega opens with Ariel (Lucía Bedoya) losing her virginity. It’s a difficult scene, not just because of the discomfort Ariel experiences, but also because of the oblique, fragmented way Ortega films it. As the story progresses, viewers come to learn more about Ariel. She is employee of the month in the factory where she works sewing garments, and her mother (María Elena Duque) is suffering from a terminal illness in the hospital. The interactions between mother and daughter are mostly tender, but when Ariel says she is having belly pain, her mother is adamant that she only visit Dr. Clemencia. The doctor explains that Ariel has vaginal stenosis and gives her a device to treat the issue. However, Ariel has more pain and bleeding using the product. She even-

MARÍA ELENA DUQUE AND LUCÍA BEDOYA AS MOTHER AND DAUGHTER IN “YO IMPOSIBLE”

ENRIQUE SALANIC AND MANOLO HERRERA IN “JOSÉ” tually learns that she was born intersex and had a series of corrective surgeries. In addition to her physical pain, Ariel’s emotional situation is complicated by the arrival of a new woman at work (Belkis Avilladares). Ariel must train her, and a rumor circulates that the two women are lovers. They eventually do become more intimate, particularly after an episode of bullying occurs at the factory. “Yo Imposible” is a slow-burn film, but it takes an interesting approach to addressing the issue of being intersex. Video testimonials, peppered throughout the film, testify to the shame and resilience of other intersex people (and their relatives). These scenes put Ariel’s story in bold relief and drive home the point that what people do with their genitals should be their own decision. “Yo Imposible” is full of symbols and rituals that play with gender roles — from sewing to farming — and Ariel comes to exert agency in many of her interactions. Ortega’s artsy drama proves quite provocative. Closing out the festival is a fabulous documentary, “Cartas de Amor Para Una Ícona” (“Letters of Love for an Icon”). This hourlong film features rabid fans of famed Puerto Rican singer Lucecita Benítez recounting their infectious affection for the performer with the powerful voice. One fan, Roberto, has an extraordinary collection of Benítez’s clothes;

Photo: YQ Studio

another, a lesbian, describes how the singer inspired her to come out and “be who I am.” A fan named Gilo is a drag performer who started to portray Benítez in his act. The film, nimbly directed by Gisela Rosario Ramos, features scrapbooks and clips of Benítez performing on “The Ed Sullivan Show” to exhibit her popularity in her heyday, while also discussing the reasons her music was banned in her home country. (She started her own label as a result.) “Cartas de Amor” addresses Benítez’s progressive ideologies and political views that appealed to her fanbase. She was true to herself, and her bold fashion sense — she sported an afro and pants in an era when such a look was forbidden — was ingratiating. Ramos’ film may have more impact for viewers familiar with Benítez’s recordings, but it features enough of her music to generate a whole new legion of fans. n Showtimes: • “José,” 2:15 p.m. Saturday • “Yo Imposible,” 4 p.m. Saturday • “Cartas de Amor Para Una Ícona,” 8 p.m. Sunday Philadelphia Latino Film Festival is held at Caplan Center for the Performing Arts at University of the Arts, 211 South Broad Street. For full schedule, tickets and more information, visit phlaff.org.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

Q PUZZLE PGN

Out Philly songster heads to ‘Songland’ By A.D. Amorosi PGN Contributor Musician and songwriter Tyler James Bellinger has it all. He fronts a band, KNGDAVD, that has nearly 5-million plays on Spotify. He has a single, “Blood on Our Hands,” featured in Guinness’ 200th-anniversary commercials and trailers for the film “The Public.” Another single, “You Never Know,” was featured in Marvel’s “Cloak and Dagger,” and “Say My Name” was prepared for Netflix’s “Lucifer.” While band life is great, Bellinger is dropping a new solo EP this month, and its lead single and video, “Feel Like Home,” discusses the real-life peril of LGBTQ homeless youth and the adversity transwomen of color face. Plus, he’s a contestant on NBC’s brand-new series “Songland,” featuring fellow Philadelphian John Legend as one of the show’s judge-mentors. Somehow, we were able to catch up with Bellinger amid all of this business.

Q Puzzle I Rise Across

1 Brooklyn dyke neighborhood Park ___ 6 Rubber vessel, perhaps 10 Hand job, for one? 14 “American Idol” judge Callow 15 Falco of “The Sopranos” 16 “I’m ___ your tricks!” 17 Where a queen may rule 18 Mandlikova of tennis 19 Break under strain 20 Start of a quote from Madonna’s “I Rise” 23 Danny to Rosie, for short 24 Garr of “Tootsie” 25 More of the quote 30 Baudelaire’s evil 33 Humerus neighbor 34 Unknown degree 35 Canonized gay guy? 37 Baked, to Buonarroti 39 Skeptical ejaculation 41 Conger hunter 42 Rex Reed, for one 44 Straight line 46 Part used in forking around

47 Ending for lemon or lime 48 More of the quote 51 Starch source 52 Cukor’s “A Life of ___ Own” 53 End of the quote 59 Word before cock 60 Film director Kazan 61 Career option for Jack McFarland 63 Like a slick head 64 Split 65 Garson of Hollywood 66 “Don’t leave me!” 67 Bills stuffed in a stripper’s G-string 68 “Oliver Button Is a ___ “

Down

1 The USA, perhaps, if Trump is reelected 2 Willingly, to Shakespeare 3 Barbra’s “Funny Girl” guy 4 A fireman goes down on it 5 Put on some fishnet stockings? 6 Vacation spot in Delaware 7 Cukor’s rib donor 8 Subject to limitations 9 They help show off your oolong 10 Reagon of the Big Lovely band 11 Girl who goes both

ways? 12 RBI to Glenn Burke 13 Keystone figure 21 Diva Celine 22 Practiced Vidal’s art 25 Desert plant 26 Prayer starter 27 Release from bondage 28 Women’s suffrage leader Carrie 29 She had her hand up Lamb Chop 30 Sasha Obama’s big sister 31 “Looks ___ everything” 32 The Greeks plucked around with them 36 The M in SMU (abbr.)

38 Gillen of “Queer as Folk” 40 Glory hole inserts? 43 Jockey Angel 45 Put an edge on 49 Like undies that scratch your nether parts 50 Hate crimes, for example 51 Bear type 53 Vidal’s “Rocking the ___ “ 54 Scat queen Fitzgerald 55 Baseball number 56 Doctor Zhivago 57 Vein contents 58 Objectifies, sexually 59 Network for “The Ellen Show” 62 Trick’s tail?

TYLER JAMES BELLINGER Photo: Bryan Buttler Media Relations, LLC

PGN: Is it, in 2019, any easier being an out musician than it was five years ago? TJB: I think it’s a bit easier being out now, but I would correlate that with being more comfortable with myself as I’ve gotten older. I definitely had a hard time reconciling my faith and sexuality as a kid, and also thought I wouldn’t be

able to be a successful artist if people knew I was gay. It took me quite a long time to unpack that, honestly. It didn’t help that, as a kid, there weren’t many examples of huge stars that were also gay. Particularly, celebrities that I felt I connected with. I think the visibility of someone like Sam Smith makes it easier for younger artists like Troye Sivan to come up and be honest with their fans about their sexuality, but there still aren’t enough out artists out there at the pinnacle of success. I think it’s pretty shitty that we have less than a handful of truly successful queer artists. I think the LGBTQ community is just beginning to get more representation, but it’d be a bold-faced lie to say that we are anywhere near represented as much as we should be. Particularly, LGBTQ folks of color, who are even less represented.

PGN: With KNGDAVD’s success, why did you decide to do a solo project? TJB: The band has been a labor of love for both myself and Jon (Buscema). We’ve always been honest about the fact that we love working on that project together but that we also love a bunch of music, and we want to work on songs outside of the band. Jon produces songs for a bunch of people, and I’m always writing for projects that I’m not singing on. I have been furiously chipping away at solo songs for quite a while. I just had too much I wanted to say that didn’t fit within the sound, style and appearance of KNGDAVD. Mine is a much more organic sound compared to the band — everything from the tracking to the gospel choir to the way my voice is recorded is way different than what the band would do. PGN: What was the inspiration for “Feel Like Home” and how did Philly’s Ali Forney Center and its LGBTQ homeless mission come into view? TJB: “Feel like Home” was written nearly two years ago with friends in Brooklyn. I wrote the song for my partner, whose family hasn’t been the most wonderful about his being out. It was kind of a love letter to him but also just acknowledging that things are tough. I knew I wanted the video to center around LGBTQ homelessness about a year ago, so the journey to Ali Forney has been a long one. Once the video was finalized, we reached out to Ali Forney to see if they wanted to be included at the end of the video, as a way for people to learn more, and they were down. I’m just thankful to have such a great organization attached, so that people can educate themselves, seek help, donate, etc. It’s such a great foundation, so PAGE 34

INTERVIEW PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

Halston doc is a fabulous portrait of the famed designer By Gary M. Kramer PGN Contributor Out gay filmmaker Frédéric Tcheng has been making documentaries about fashion for more than decade. He had written, directed and/or edited “Valentino: The Last Emperor,” “Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel” and “Dior and I.” Tcheng’s latest film, “Halston,” opening June 7 at the Landmark Ritz at the Bourse, presents the American designer as told through film clips, archival footage and interviews with friends, enemies, and family members. Tcheng’s film has a fictional narrator (Tavi Gevinson) who chronicles the lows and highs of Halston’s career, telling the story of how the Midwesterner became a milliner at Bergdorf Goodman’s — a designer who staged a fashion show at Versailles, and then became a household name with successful launches of perfume and other goods. Halston’s career also involved partying at Studio 54, friendships with Liza Minelli and an entourage of models, as well as a savvy business deal with the Norton Simon empire. Unfortunately, it ran into trouble after a deal with JCPenney, some drug use and other issues best left to be discovered. Featuring nearly 2000 striking photographs, film clips and footage of his life, work and clothing, “Halston” nimbly depicts the designer’s experiences and questions Halston’s hubris. Tcheng spoke with PGN about his fabulous new film.

PGN: What was your opinion of Halston before you made this film? FT: My idea of him was from his Studio 54 years and this image of an almost Hollywood version of what a fashion designer is. I couldn’t relate to it, but when Roland [Ballester, the film’s producer] insisted and I read about him, I discovered the other Halstons — the earlier Halston, and the Halston who lost control of his company in 1983-84. I’m fascinated by Americans who reinvent themselves at every turn. I started peeling the onion making this film. PGN: What was your strategy in creating a narrative of his life through the eyes of others? FT: You have as many Halstons as you have people who talk to you about Halston. I was inspired by “Citizen Kane,” which inherently portrays a person with the knowledge that there is a part of that person you will never be able to explain completely. I try to get the personality of the interviewee to shine in. I liked the ensemble aspect and portraying a group of people — getting the feeling of Karen Bjornson arriving from the Midwest knowing nothing and Pat Cleveland being discovered on the subway. It’s interesting, and it creates a bigger narrative. PGN: The film addresses Halston’s sexuality in various key moments of his life and career. How do you think his sexuality hurt or helped him in the eras when he was popular?

FT: I think it was important, and it helped me understand, especially in the 60s, what might have been in his head — his decision to leave Bergdorf’s and start his own company and what that company would be. There was a glass ceiling for gay people and people not from high society. In the business story [depicted in “Halston,”] there was always a veiled homophobic vibe to what the businessmen were saying — the choice of words: he’s

HALSTON AND LIZA MINELLI Photo: Berry Berenson Perkins “fussy,” or “too Hollywood,” and pinky throws to me were clues of larger worldviews. It’s conservative vs. liberal. There is a political aspect to it. Halston was strange in the way he approached sexuality. He was never “out” out, but it wasn’t something he was actively hiding. He broke new ground in fashion and diversity

and sexuality. It was a generation that didn’t talk about things. There was a tacit understanding. Valentino was the same way. PGN: Your film suggests that it was hubris, greed and ego that caused Halston his downfall. Your film doesn’t judge, so I’m curious to get your observations about his life and career? FT: That’s the rosebud of the story. Who am I to say? Halston could tell us, but he’s not here. At some point, Lesley [Frowick], his niece, said they watched “The Karen Carpenter Story,” and he turned to Lesley and he said, “If I had to do it all over again, I would make some different choices.” Lesley smiled, but didn’t ask what those would be. I’m not the one to suggest what he thought. I just probe and see what the people close to him think. As much as we are all fascinated with the cause of the downfall, I tried to also show in the film that yes there is a downfall, but it was preceded by the highest highs of American fashion history. You can’t dissociate one from the other. He took the risk at every turn. He was great because he did JCPenney. It might not have been a success, but he was reaching into the future and doing things that people take for granted now. I like that about Halston. I don’t want him to be a victim of his own fate. He made conscious decisions that amounted to an incredible life. n Visit annacrusis.org or pgmc.org for more information.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

ENTERTAINMENT PGNLISTINGS

A theatrical composition of love and loss By A.D. Amorosi PGN Contributor Philly actor and 11th Hour Theatre Company cofounder Steve Pacek has a bright face and an easy smile — the type that makes it seem as if all is right with the world. And yet, on May 31 at Norristown’s Theatre Horizon, this young lion of the Philadelphia stage dips into the saddest, not-so-far reaches of his history with the interdisciplinary, nontraditional theater piece, “[Untitled] [Project] #213.” “When we first did [Untitled] at the Fringe Festival in 2010, it involved mime, original music that the actors played live, clowning and dance,” said Pacek. “It immediately became this expressionistic piece, involving all of our skillsets as performers, but focusing on verbal storytelling the least.” Miming, song-strung storytelling and nonverbal cues paint a compelling portrait of pain and loss and what it means to cope for Pacek, even now. At its heart, “[Untitled] [Project] #213” is a story of “learning how to carry on when true love goes missing,” and serves as a love letter to such loss. The person at the center of this story is Jorge Maldonado, a fellow actor and Pacek’s partner of four-plus years, who died in 2007. “He was pretty awesome,” said

STEVE PACEK

Photo: Alex Medvick

Pacek. “He was an amazing performer, and the type of friend who just knew when you needed a great big hug — a genuine, strong, Texas-sized hug. His great talent was equaled by his humanity.” Known for his work in “Grease” at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton and “Man of La Mancha” at Walnut Street Theatre, and a 2003 iteration of Stephen Sondheim’s “Pacific Overtures” at the Arden, where he met Pacek, Maldonado also worked stages Off-Broadway, at the Manhattan Theatre Club and at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. “I lost my first love right before

Christmas of 2007,” Pacek recounted. “It was a tale of having someone here one second and gone the next. There was no reason. The year following that was a blur. I simply don’t remember much. As an artist and as a human, I was struggling.” Slowly, as Pacek came through the fog of that experience, he decided to shake things up “and make fresh choices.” He moved out of his parents’ house in the suburbs. “I had to go there after Jorge died, because I couldn’t bear to be in our apartment alone,” he said. Pacek decided to camp with two Philly friends, Dan Kazemi and Jenn Rose — a composer and a choreographer, respectively, and co-creators of #213 — at their home in Pennsport, where the three hung out, “playing our ukuleles and doing little dances on the couch.” That friendly communion and those “random house creations” helped Pacek find a new way forward as he wrestled through loss. Although “[Untitled] [Project] #213” contains epiphanies and joys, Pacek said it’s not an easy experience to embrace every night. The actor described a moment in the show — “viewed through the magic of theater and the suspension of disbelief” — where the ensemble brings Maldonado to life again for a fleeting minute. “That always gets me the most,” said Pacek. “But it’s nice to feel his presence there. I use words that he once wrote to me in a card, and those words appear through projection so as to bring him to the stage. I call actors ‘emotional warriors’ because we have to be able to fight our way through all sorts of feelings. That’s one of the most beautiful and hard moments to do in ‘[Untitled] [Project] #213.’” The loss of a loved one was a jumping-off point, he added. “The composer, Dan, usually bases his work on mathematics, say, 2-1-3, and wherever that falls on the scale. He made a melody that turned into the show’s theme, and a group of friend-dancers began playing around with Jenn’s ideas. We started an opening scene on a beach, with friends talking about love and loss — could be any loss, be it breakups or people moving apart. Actors speak their poems. Dancers dance their poems. And we blossom forth from there.” n “[Untitled] [Project] #213” is performed through June 2 at Theatre Horizon in Norristown. For tickets and more information, visit theatrehorizon.org.

Theater & Arts Ana Fabrega The comedian seen on “Portlandia” performs 8:30 and 10 p.m. June 1 at Good Good Comedy Theater, 215 N. 11th St.; 215-399-1279. Arte Povera: Homage to Amalfi ’68 Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition recreating one artist’s reactionary exhibition against minimalism and pop art, through July, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215763-8100.

Legally Blonde: The Musical Walnut Street Theatre presents the musical adaptation of the hit comedy film about a SoCal sorority girl who becomes a law student, through July 14, 825 Walnut St.; 215-5743550. Mimi Imfurst Presents Drag Diva Brunch Mimi Imfurst and special guests perform 11 a.m.-2 p.m. June 2 at Punch Line Philly, 33 E. Laurel St.; 215-606-6555. Minors Lantern Theater Company presents a compelling new

We the People: American Prints from Between the World Wars Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition of prints depicting the good times, hard times and wartime experiences of everyday Americans in the 1930-’40s, through July 24, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100. Weeding Out The Stoned The cannabis-infused comedy show wherein the audience tries to figure out which of the performers isn’t stoned, 8:30 p.m. May 31 at Good Good Comedy Theater, 215 N. 11th St.; 215-399-1279.

A FUNKY FAREWELL: Funk icon and pioneer, George Clinton, pilots the mothership that is Parliament Funkadelic into Philly one last time with his farewell tour, 8 p.m. June 6 at Franklin Music Hall, 421 N. Seventh St. For more information or tickets, call 215-627-1332.

The Impressionist’s Eye Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition featuring the works of Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, Vincent van Gogh and others, through Aug. 18, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100. Indecent Arden Theatre Company presents Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel’s critically acclaimed play, with music, about the creation of the controversial Yiddish play “God of Vengeance,” through June 23, 40 N. Second St.; 215-922-1122. Jimmy O. Yang The comedian seen in “Two Broke Girls” performs June 6-8 at Helium Comedy Club, 2031 Sansom St.; 215-496-9001.

work of musical theater that gives voice to the families who fought back against a corrupt political machine turning children into commodities, through June 30 at St. Stephen’s Theater, 923 Ludlow St.; 215-829-0395. New Chinese Galleries Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition exploring 4,000 years of Chinese art, through summer, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100. Treasure Island Arden Theatre Company presents the swashbuckling pirate tale, through June 2, 40 N. Second St.; https://ardentheatre.org.

Whitman, Alabama Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition bringing Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself” to life through the voices of Alabama residents, through June 9, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100. Yoshitoshi: Spirit and Spectacle Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition featuring the brilliant colors and spirited lines of Yoshitoshi, the last great master of the traditional Japanese woodblock print, through Aug. 18, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100.

ENTERTAINMENT PGN LISTINGS

Music David Gray The British singer-songwriter performs 8 p.m. May 31 at The Met, 858 N. Broad St.; info@TheMetPhilly.com. Pallbearer The hard rock band performs 8:30 p.m. May 31 at Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St.; 215-232-2100. Roots Picnic The Philly-basead hip-hop group hosts its annual festival starting noon June 1 at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts, 5201 Parkside Ave.; 215-546-7900.

The Rainbow Connection: A Tribute to The Muppets “RuPaul’s Drag Race” star Mimi Imfurst presents a drag queen live musical tribute to The Muppets, 8 p.m. June 1 at Franky Bradley’s, 1320 Chancellor St.; 215-735-0735. Comedy Show Gates A variety comedy showcase, 7:30 p.m. June 7 at L’Etage, 624 S. Sixth St.; 215-5920696.

Outta Town Robert Klein The comedian and actor seen on “Will & Grace” performs 8 p.m. May 31 at Bristol Riverside Theatre,

Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610-917-1228. Face 2 Face — Elton John & Billy Joel Tribute The tribute groups perform 8 p.m. June 1 at The Queen, 500 N. Market St., Wilmington, Del.; 202-730-3331. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy The swing band performs 8 p.m. June 6 at Bristol Riverside Theatre, 120 Radcliffe St., Bristol; 215-785-0100. The Celluloid Closet The documentary on the history of LGBTQ Hollywood is screened June 7-8 at The Colonial Theatre, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610-917-1228.

INSIDE EDITION: R&B and hip-hop stars, Bobby Brown and Bell Biv Devoe, are joining forces for an evening of their solo hits and New Edition classics on the Robbie, Bobby, Ricky and Mike Tour, 8 p.m. June 6 at The Met, 858 N. Broad St. For information or tickets, email info@TheMetPhilly.com.

Radio 104.5 Birthday Show The Lumineers, Death Cab For Cutie, Grouplove and more perform, 1 p.m. June 2 at BB&T Pavilion, 1 Harbour Blvd., Camden, N.J.; 856365-1300. Brian McKnight The R&B singer performs 8 p.m. June 7 at Tower Theater, 69th and Ludlow streets, Upper Darby; 610-352-2887.

Nightlife Bev & Miss Troy’s High School Reunion! The drag performers bring their favorite movie to life, 9 p.m. June 1 at Tabu, 254 S. 12th St.; 215-964-9675.

120 Radcliffe St., Bristol; 215-785-0100. Big Gay Motorcycle Weekend Rainbow Mountain hosts the popular annual event, May 31-June 2, 210 Mount Nebo Road, East Stroudsburg; 570-223-8484. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert The classic drag film is screened 7:30 p.m. June 1 at The Colonial Theatre, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610-917-1228. 10,000 Maniacs The alternative-rock band performs 8 p.m. June 1 at The Colonial Theatre, 227

The Warriors The cult-classic action film is screened, 9:45 p.m. June 7 at The Colonial Theatre, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610-917-1228. 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.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

Mesmerizing focus on French gay sex worker By Gary M. Kramer PGN Contributor Writer/director Camille VidalNaquet’s raw, blistering drama, “Sauvage/Wild,” concentrates its energy on the body of Léo (Félix Maritaud), an attractive 22-year-old gay male sex worker. Viewers get an eyeful of this un-selfconscious young man as he gets naked in the pre-title scene. As the film progresses, Léo’s body, which is frequently on display, is used, bruised and abused. Viewers may feel as battered as Léo by the film’s end. Vidal-Naquet follows his subject as if he were shooting a nature documentary. He films a cluster of male sex workers in their native environs, peacocking and often shirtless to attract a client’s attention. He chronicles Léo plying his trade, as well as stealing fruit to eat, washing or drinking water from the street and sleeping wherever he can. How long Léo has been doing this and how he got to this point in his life are not the film’s concern. Léo shyly admits that he enjoys what he does — it may explain why he is willing to kiss his clients — but it may also be his only option. “Sauvage/Wild” wisely does not judge its characters; Vidal-Naquet merely presents them as they are. When Léo is seen sucking cock in one scene and doing drugs the next, he may hustle for a score. When he dances at a nightclub or a party, he may be releasing his pent-up energy or trying to seduce a client. Does Léo want to be rescued from his life on the streets? The film lets viewers decide. Léo is very good at giving affection. He is tender with an old man who hires him but can’t quite consummate sex. He is especially caring toward a disabled man who pays Léo and Ahd (Éric Barnard), a fellow hustler, for a threesome. This may make Léo sympathetic, but he can also be unkind at times. Léo is very much in love with the gayfor-pay Ahd and while Ahd protects Léo, he adamantly does not reciprocate his friend’s desires. Léo’s efforts to change Ahd’s mind result in ugly confrontations and punches. “Sauvage/Wild” is mostly plotless as it follows Léo around the streets of Paris, but it is never boring. Léo’s trysts with various clients are perversely fascinating. He has a particularly intense session with a couple who, tired of oral sex, lube up a rather large butt plug and forcibly insert it in the concerned Léo. In another session, Mihal (Nicolas Dibla), a fellow sex worker, asks Léo to inject a drug into his penis that will knock out their client. Léo accommo-

dates these requests, and his responses to the encounter reveal details about his character and emotions. A touching, candid visit with a sensitive female doctor (Marie Seux) is most illuminating. Léo has serious health and respiratory issues. When he stops mid-examination to hug his doctor, “Sauvage/Wild” is suddenly poignant and moving. For much of the film, Léo’s emotions are calculated. Even when he meets Claude (Philippe Ohrel) — one of those rich older men Ahd repeatedly tells Léo to find in order to exit hustling — Léo is cagey. How he pursues this opportunity gives the film some dramatic tension. Léo’s ineluctable sexiness may be exactly why he is desired by clients and strangers. Maritaud gives a tremendous

FELIX MARITAUD IN “SAUVAGE/ WILD” Courtesy of Strand Releasing performance, capturing Léo’s palpable despair with incredible body language. He displays an innocence under Léo’s jaded exterior. When a client asks him to read something, Léo balks, embarrassed by his illiteracy, and changes the subject. When he gives into his passion to kiss Ahd, he absorbs the shock of Ahd’s slap or punch. Léo is a lost soul, putting on a brave face, and Maritaud allows viewers to know what he is thinking. Moreover, much of what Léo feels is written on his body. He has numerous tattoos that look homemade, and his skin is often marked with bruises. He is palpably filthy. Léo’s grunge might make him appealing at times, but it is almost a relief when someone gives him a clean shirt to wear. Viewers may be anxious to see him shower. (When Léo’s hair is washed and combed in one scene, it may take a moment to recognize him.) As for the copious nudity, Maritaud’s lack of inhibition contributes to his mesmerizing performance and the sympathy he is able to garner for Léo. It is hard not to gasp when the camera follows Léo and he just falls down in the street. “Sauvage/Wild” is compelling and moving — and much of that is because of the magnetic Maritaud. n “Sauvage/Wild” opens May 31 at Ritz at the Bourse, 400 Ranstead St.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

PGN

Queering Philly Loves Beer By A.D. Amorosi PGN Contributor When Philly Loves Beer commences its 10-day Philly Beer Week on May 31 at South Philly’s 2300 Arena, one guy who’ll stand closest to The Hammer of Glory — longtime totem that ceremoniously taps the opening keg — is Brandon Szeker. An out gay man with his own segment on MyNEWPhilly (“Gayborhood TV”) and a member of the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus, Szeker been involved with Philly Beer Week since 2014 as its membership director — helping member-breweries plan and release promotional strategies for the year. Considering beer culture is legendarily a hetero-machismo game, how does Szeker fit into this all, personally and professionally? “Plain and simple,” he said with a laugh, “I don’t fit into it, which is why I love it. I’ve al-

Take a bite out of your Spring

Read PGN’s food reviews every second and fourth week of the month and check out our archive of past reviews on EPGN.COM.

ways been a fan of shaking things up and, of course, there’s no reason why there shouldn’t be a place for others, like me. If anything, it gives [beer professionals] a view into the LGBTQ community they may otherwise not get, and I’m proud to be catalyst of them getting to understand our community better.” It’s not as if Szeker is walking around wearing a badge that reads: Gay man at work. But by being himself in a room full of beer bros, he pushed the notion of his pride being LGBTQ. je said. “They may not get or understand the pride, but the men in this industry have been some of the most accepting people. Of course, you have your bad apples, but they’re more the exception than the case.” Szeker is not alone being out, proud and brew-savvy. “You sure would be surprised at how many men and women in the Philly beer scene identify as LGBTQ,” he said. “We are a mighty bunch wherever we go.” Though he said the platform wasn’t as large as he’d like, he added that “as a whole, [the industry] is very accepting and open to ideas on how to connect better with the community.” Szeker got to all things Philly beer after doing promotions for everyone from the Beasley Group to the DNC, as well as through radio (Wired 96.5, 94WYSP, WJBR). It was, however, while making ends meet as a bartender at the legendarily problematic Farmer’s Cabinet — “Surviving member here, that’s a whole other story” — that Szeker was introduced to an intense beer and cocktail program.

“This is where my interest and knowledge of beer grew exponentially. The restaurant was also a participant of Philly Beer Week at the time and that’s when I learned just how rich the beer culture was here in Philadelphia,” he said. Being Philly Loves Beer’s membership director, Szeker recruits new breweries, brew pubs and bars/restaurants to join the program. “The consumer really looks to Philly Loves Beer and Philly Beer Week as the experts of all things beer — so my job is to connect the business to this super niche consumer looking for exactly what they have: beer!” he exclaimed. “I get to visit breweries, try all types of beer and introduce that beer to our beer-loving audience in effort to help grow the companies’ brands/businesses. We use our social media following to help push messaging from our members to this audience — digital and social marketing. If you’re working with beer, you definitely want to be a part of us.” When Szeker was asked if he thinks that it’s slightly redundant and funny, having a beer fest in Philly when it always seems like a beer fest here, he laughed and said that Philly Beer Week is far from just a fest. “That word actually drives me up a damn wall, because when I hear “Beer Fest,” I think of Troy and his pretzel necklace looking for his girlfriend Brittany who’s puking in the corner. We’re a bit more refined. Philly Beer Week is the first and oldest Beer Week nationally. Since its inception 12 years ago, 77 other beer weeks have spawned since. Philly takes pride in being a city of many firsts, and Philly Beer Week is a part of that list. Philly is often imitated but can never be duplicated, so we should take pride that our city (once again) has set the bar high and blazed a trail.” While there are a lot of events across the 10day PLB, Szeker highlights three of them: 1) Opening Tap - 5/31 - 2300 Arena. “This is the kickoff to our 10-day celebration; 65-plus local and national breweries, all for your sampling. This is a great opportunity to meet some of the big players here in Philly and beyond. It’s a huge celebration of all things beer. This year we’re introducing live band karaoke, so our audience gets to take the spotlight. You know I’ll be on the microphone for a song or two.” 2) Art On Beer - 6/4 - Warehouse On Watts. “This event is one of the coolest. We’re all guilty of choosing wine and beer simply by the label, and this event brings in the designers of beer labels/art together on a panel to discuss how they go about making their art. This event is in its third year and is a huge hit. If you’ve ever wondered how people put beer design together, you’ll definitely want to check this out.” 3) Get Milked - 6/9 - MilkBoy Chestnut. “I’m super excited to be a part of Pride this year. We’re teaming up with MilkBoy to bring you the Get Milked block party celebrating the end of PBW, which falls on Philly Pride Fest, Sunday, June 9. Join us at MilkBoy Chestnut from 12-9 p.m. for a Queer Pride Festival and dance party hosted by Icon Ebony Fierce.” n

PROFILE PGN

Family Portrait

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

Suzi Nash

Anne Geary: Crowning achievements It’s almost summertime — when the livin’ is easy. It’s that time of year when many of us slow down, hit the beach or poolside and, if we’re lucky, forget our troubles and chase our cares away. If slowing down with a good beach read is your style, Anne Geary can help steer you in the right direction. The former Fortune-500 and current Children’s Hospital project manager is a board member of the Golden Crown Literary Society, whose mission is “to increase the visibility and quality of lesbian-themed literature.” PGN: Tell me a little about yourself and the work you do. AG: Well, the Golden Crown is an all-volunteer organization, so that’s not my day job. For that, I work as a project manager at Children’s Hospital Research Institute, and I love it. The Golden Crown Literary Society is something that I got involved with back in 2016. I became a board member a year later. Our biggest event is our annual conference. Last year it was in Las Vegas and this year it will be in Pittsburgh. But I help coordinate local events as well. Most recently I worked on book readings and different events for Women’s Fest in Rehoboth. We brought in 10-15 authors associated with GCLS to do readings and book signings, etc. We’re always looking to connect with the community. PGN: How did you find the organization? AG: There was an author I’d been reading, and I’d checked out her Facebook page and she had a connection to the group. I started checking them out and connecting people who were doing these monthly YouTube book chats, where you’d read a book and then they’d have the author do a book chat. PGN: I love that there’s a group out there lifting up lesbian books. I know I read much more lesbian literature when I was coming out, and this is a good reminder to go back and check it out. AG: Yes, I came out when I was … well, I recognized that I was part of the community when I was in high school but didn’t really come out until college. A lot of my coming-out experience was spent going through the books at Giovanni’s Room trying to connect with characters and stories where I could see myself reflected. Even the romance stories and fiction stories that often aren’t valued as much are still important to me as long as they reflect positively on the LGBT com-

munity. If some young girl in a remote part of the country is able to read one of those stories and feel good about herself, then it should be respected, and I enjoy being part of an organization that helps make that happen. PGN: What were some of the first lesbian books that you read? AG: Rita Mae Brown’s “Ruby Fruit Jungle” was one of the first lesbian books that I read, then also “Patience and Sarah” by Isabelle Miller and anything by Sarah Waters. PGN: I think we all read “Ruby Fruit.” So, you’re from this area? AG: Yes. I went to the High School for Creative and Performing Arts as an artist. Then I went to the West Coast for college, came back and then went to the Midwest — Cleveland, Ohio — for a job, stayed there for 18 years and just moved back to Philly two years ago.

you can’t take the hospital out of the nurse. She was always very caring and, at 82, still volunteers her time and has started doing artwork herself. PGN: Pets? AG: I have a 12-year-old Golden Retriever that I share custody of, so half the time she’s in the country in Ohio with her other mother and then in the city with me. She’s called Samantha, named after the character in “Bewitched,” though she’s more like the neighbor Gladys Kravitz because she’s always looking to see what everyone else is doing. PGN: Were you more sporty or academic as a teen? AG: I took one of those aptitude tests

PGN: What kind of art did you study? AG: A little of everything, but my preferred media was black-and-white sketches. I just took a course this spring at Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts doing portraitures in oil and I really enjoy doing that now. Oddly enough, I never dabbled as a writer, but I’ve always loved to read. PGN: What’s a favorite piece that you’ve created? AG: [Laughing] I’m outing myself as a nerd! I would say a collection of “Star Wars” drawings that I did in high school, Princess Leia with her buns and all. You get inspired to draw things that are close to your heart and for me that was “Star Wars.” PGN: Tell me about the family. AG: I have an older sister who works here in town at Red Cross. My mom is alive and well. One of the reasons I came back was to enjoy my family while everyone’s still around to enjoy. We all have places near each other in Cape May, so we’ll get to spend some time together this summer. We’re very close. Dad was out of the picture by the time I was 4, so I grew up in a very female-centric environment. It was just me and my mom, my sister and my grandmother, though she moved out when we started becoming rambunctious teens. PGN: You and your sister followed altruistic paths: Is that something you got from your mother? AG: Probably. She was a nurse — well, is a nurse, I should say. You can take the nurse out of the hospital, but

once and I was right down the middle. I played some volleyball and softball in the leagues at Wissahickon, at CAPA and in college, but had to drop it to work as a resident assistant since it helped pay for school. [Pulls out her handbag decorated with Phillies logo] As you can see, I’m a huge Philly sports fan. I love the Eagles, the Flyers — I actually wanted to play ice hockey but, at the time, girls weren’t allowed. But I was also into reading and painting and got my MBA, so I have that side too.

PGN: And you’ve put it to good use. I saw your bio and it’s pretty impressive! I’ll quote, “She has held senior-project and program-management positions with research, consulting, global, multinational and Fortune-500 corporations. Her leadership experience comprises leveraging technology to proactively identify and implement leading practices with respect to process and systems. During her tenure as the Global Lead for the LGBTQ Employee Resource Group at her former company, Eaton, Geary supported the introduction of Equality legislation for the state of Ohio and was instrumental in securing the 2017 Corporate Equality Award by the Human Rights Campaign.” Right on, Anne! AG: Thank you. I’ve worked on some pretty large projects but what I’m doing now is kind of new to me. I’ve never worked in research before like this, but I love it. And I’m excited to be back in Philadelphia and I’m starting to feel connected to the community again. I’ve been getting involved with the LGBT group at CHOP as well.

avoided pronouns.

PGN: Have you always been out at work? AG: Yes, I’ve pretty much been out since I started working. Not always as comfortably as I am today, but yeah. I feel like life is too short to not be open about who I am. I’ve never changed or

PGN: When did you come out to the family? AG: Someone who knew my sister innocently said, “Oh, I saw your sister at Pride!” thinking she knew already. She didn’t. It was fine; I was about to come out anyway. PGN: Ever face any discrimination? AG: I went to an evangelical Christian university kind of by accident. My mother married PAGE 34

MUSIC PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

The

Philly LGBTQ Choirs take part in Stonewall anniversary

Guide to the Gayborhood

By Larry Nichols larry@epgn.com

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 TVs, pool table, brick pizza oven, sports specials

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

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

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

m <—

206 S Quince St. 215.627.1662 Levi Leather men’s bar; pool tables, second floor sports; basement has enforced dress code

Chancellor St.

St. James St.

m Locust St.

Manning St.

Quince St.

11th St.

Latimer St.

12th St.

<—

Camac St.

13th St.

The Bike Stop

Walnut St.

Juniper St.

Voyeur

Toasted Walnut Woody’s

Two Philadelphia-based gay and lesbian choruses are lending their voices to the 50th Anniversary of Stonewall and the Gay Rights Movement. ANNA Crusis Women’s Choir and the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus will perform the Philly premiere of “Quiet No More,” a choral-music suite co-commissioned by the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus and the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles.

m Spruce St.

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

Cypress St.

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

Frankie Bradley’s

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

1320 Chancellor St. 215-735-0735 Resaturant, dance club, live performers and entertainment

<—

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

Tavern on Camac

<—

West of Broad Street The Attic Youth 1705 Chancellor St. Center Stir Lounge

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

U Bar

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

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

Knock

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

Tabu

254 S. 12th St. 215.964.9675 tabuphilly.com Three floors with a dance floor,, drag shows, lounge and rootop deck.

Bar X 255 S. Camac St. Bar and dancefloor

The celebration features 20 other LGBTQ choruses from across the country telling the story of the gay-rights movement through song, poetry, pictures and video. Philly’s first taste of “Quiet No More” will be this weekend at the ANNA Crusis spring concerts, “Beyond Boundaries.” The chorus will debut the song “What If Truth Is All We Have?” All the other participating choruses will perform parts of “Quiet No More” in their home cities throughout June. “ANNA’s spring concert is the first weekend in June, so we do have the opportunity to give a sneak peek to the Stonewall show because we are going to do one of the pieces in our regular concert,” said Miriam Davidson, ANNA artistic director. “The Stonewall Concert with [PGMC] is our Pride contribution.” Each city curates its own program, said Joseph J. Buches, PGMC artistic director. “We’re all doing the ‘Quiet No More’ piece but ANNA Crusis is doing a couple pieces. PGMC are doing their own pieces, and then we’re doing another joint piece to wrap it up,” he said. “Everybody is customizing their own concerts with the one main piece that was commissioned.”

ANNA Crusis and PGMC will align for a joint performance June 22 to commemorate Stonewall, and representatives from both choirs will travel to New York for a performance June 27 with members of the other participating choruses at Carnegie Hall. Davidson and Buches said everyone is focused on telling the story of Stonewall and what younger generations can learn from it. “If we had been sitting in a different period of time right now in regards to what is happening politically in the country, perhaps the composers might have taken a slightly different turn,” Davidson said. “But in telling the history, the history is the history. Telling the Stonewall story is a chance for people to think about their own lives. “The riots were a time when people came together to change inequity. In listening to the retelling of this story, it gives people an opportunity to look at their own lives and go, OK, what inequities are we in now and how Photo: Elissa Martel can we use this moment in time to change what is going on for us?” PGMC performs mission-based concerts with messages and others that are lighthearted. “This is focusing on the history of the Stonewall uprising and talking about where we have come as a community and where we need to go,” Buches said. “So, this one is definitely more message-driven. We have a lot of young people in our chorus and some of them don’t even know about the history of Stonewall and where we came from. It’s nice to talk about each moment and what was going on during that time period. As an educator, I felt really satisfied helping to educate and teach people to speak up. The message is still very strong.” n ANNA Crusis Women’s Choir performs its spring concert June 1-2 at the Kurtz Center for the Performing Arts at William Penn Charter School, 3000 W. School House Lane. ANNA Crusis and Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus perform the Stonewall Celebration concert, 7 p.m. June 22 at International House Philadelphia, 3701 Chestnut St. For more information, visit http:// annacrusis.org or http://pgmc.org.

SCENEPGN IN PHILLY

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

GOOD TIMES AT WILLIAM WAY

LGBT COMMUNITY CENTER 1

3 1. DAVID BORGENICHT, MŌNEKA HEWLETT AND BRETT COHEN 2. PSU BLUEPRINT HELPING AT WILLIAM WAY 3. PSU BLUEPRINT HELPING AT WILLIAM WAY 4. ARTIST GABRIEL MARTINEZ ADDRESSES THE CROWD 5. MARQUISE LEE, NATHAN MANSKE AND SANTIAGO GARZA 6. SUSAN ATLAS AND MARY GRACE CELEBRATING THEIR 25TH ANNIVERSARY AT THE “TONIGHT IS FOREVER” OPENING RECEPTION. 7. FROM L TO R: JOE OVELMAN, TARIEM BURROUGHS, MARC MILLER, PAUL BLORE AND CHRIS NEWCOMER 8. FROM L TO R: CELENA MORRISON, ED MILLER, CHRIS BARTLETT, MARSHALL SIEGEL AND CANDICE THOMPSON

PHOTOS BY KELLY BURKHARDT

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

PORTRAIT from page 31

this guy and they were moving out West. I wanted to be close to them so I found a small school nearby. It was OK until the end of my senior year. I wasn’t in a relationship but I was starting to come out to people. My resident director found out and decided to “save” me before I did the deed. He thought being gay didn’t technically count until you’d done the act. He was trying to give me a loophole, but I told him that being a lesbian had nothing to do with what happened in bed, that it was about who you are as a person and who you loved. I decided to step down from my position as an R.A. after that. PGN: What was your favorite book as a kid? AG: It was a collection of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s series “Little House on the Prairie.” I still have the box set with the “These Books Belong To” section where I signed my name. PGN: So you moved back to Philly — AG: And the Eagles won the Super Bowl, which I attribute to all the karma I’d built up as an Eagles fan in Cleveland Browns territory. I cashed it all in when I came home and we won. PGN: Nice! What do you like to do when you’re not reading? AG: I haven’t been able to do it recently because of an injury, but I usually run quite a bit. I was doing at least one half-marathon a year. I even competed in the Gay Games in Paris. I golfed and did all the running events including the half-marathon. It was amazing to see so many LGBT people from all over the world. People from countries where they would have been imprisoned for attending a gay event. Heartbreaking stories but an uplifting and joyous event. PGN: I went to the one at Yankee Stadium in New York. Just looking down from the el and seeing the sea of people was amazing. But back to you and GCLS. AG: We are the only organization solely focused on lesbian-themed literature, and we’re pretty inclusive under that umbrella. We include transwomen and bi-women, anyone who is writing those stories that speak to us. At the conference, you can participate in everything from lectures to open-mic nights to workshops and a ton of panels. PGN: I saw the website. It looks amazing. The sponsor list alone was impressive; I didn’t realize there are that many companies providing LGBT content. AG: Thank you. We also give out over 30 awards and grants. Things like the Trailblazer Award for lifetime achievement, which is being given to Sandra

COMICS PGN

Scoppettone, as well as the Lee Lynch Classic, which is going to Ann Allen Shockley. This is the 15th anniversary so we’re going to have two hosts: one to represent where we’ve been — that will be Lynn Ames, who is a writer and a founder of GCLS — and then a younger woman, Dana Piccoli, who is a media specialist for Bella Books, and she’s highly connected with Clexacon. Have you heard of them? They have a huge conference in Vegas. We had a table there this year. They bring thousands of diverse LGBTQ fans, actors, filmmakers and other content creators from around the world to “celebrate positive representation for LGBTQ women in the media.” She’s so dynamic and really connected to a younger millennial crowd. We’re also doing the premier of the documentary “In Her Words: 20th Century Lesbian Fiction.” It has been in the works for several years and has a lot of the heavy literary hitters in the community on screen for the first time; the women who were writing at the forefront of the movement. It’s really a wonderful experience, to be with hundreds of women who share a joy of learning and reading. PGN: In this day and age when intellect seems to be frowned upon, that must be refreshing. AG: Absolutely. I feel passionate about it because I feel like I’m supporting an organization that is so important; promoting books that will help young girls (and adults too) who are just coming out when a book might be the only means they have to identify who they are. The friendships I’ve made are another benefit. Every year I meet more people and always look forward to going back the next year to see them again at the conference or at Women’s Week in Provincetown, Clexacon or the Women’s Fest in Rehoboth. And if you can’t make it to an event, there’s a lot of great content on the website. n For more information on Golden Crown Literary Society, visit goldencrown.org.

SONGLAND from page 26

I’m thankful to have them a part of “Feel Like Home.” Everyone knew it was very personal to me. PGN: How does going solo feel? TJB: It feels great. I’ve really enjoyed performing live again — something the band hasn’t really done, and that’s a major passion of mine. To get out and sing these songs live is the best feeling. It’s just the start of me getting confidence back again.

PGN: How did you come to appear on “Songland” and how much can you tell us? TJB: “Songland” was such a great experience. It kind of just fell in my lap, and I rode the wave. I submitted some songs and it snowballed from there. I can’t say much about the show aside from that you should definitely tune in to watch. The greatest experience on the show was meeting a ton of other crazy-talented writers. I’m actually at a winery in Temecula, Calif., with a bunch of them now, doing a writing camp. None of this would’ve happened without the show.

PGN: You write songs for yourself, your band and other artists. Are there subtle differences? TJB: Writing songs comes from such an honest place, probably deeply rooted in the fact that my brain is wired a million miles a minute. Whether the song is for myself, the band or another artist, there has to be something about it I identify with. My solo songs are selfishly for me — to get out my ideas, fears, sadness, etc. The band is that voice in my head that tells me I’m a badass and its songs are those to go have fun to. Songs I write for others come about in a different way. Usually the artist is in the room and you’re writing with them or they just love a song and take it. PGN: Are you good at crafting songs on the spot? TJB: In some ways, yes. I have tons of voice memos on my phone that are just little ideas of melodies or little lines. I constantly bring those ideas into sessions, so it makes writing songs much easier. I think writing is like a muscle, so the more you write, the easier it is. n

OVEMENT DIRECTORY PGN

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PGN does not accept advertising that is unlawful, false, misleading, harmful, threatening, abusive, invasive of another’s privacy, harassing, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, hateful or racially or otherwise objectionable, including without limitation material of any kind or nature that encourages conduct that could constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability or otherwise violate any applicable local, state, provincial, national or international law or regulation, or encourage the use of controlled substances.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com May 31-June 6, 2019

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