Philadelphia Gay News Vol. 33 No. 24
Honesty Integrity Professionalism
June 12 - 18, 2009
City funding crisis almost derails Pride parade By Jen Colletta PGN Staff Writer
GOING UP: The William Way LGBT Community Center unveiled its long-awaited elevator during its annual Building Bash June 6. Center executive director ’Dolph Ward Goldenburg (front, left) gathered in front of the new elevator with supporters Gloria Casarez, the city’s director of LGBT affairs (above, clockwise); center board co-chairs Emilie Carr and David Michelson; PGN publisher Mark Segal; Lee Chudzinski from Allied Construction Services; state Sen. Larry Farnese (D-1st Dist.); attorney Janelle Fulton; state Rep. Babette Josephs (D-182nd Dist.); and state Sen. Christine Tartaglione (D-Second Dist.). The fundraiser drew a crowd of about 125 and raised more than $10,500. Goldenburg said proceeds from the event will go to support the construction of the elevator. Photo: Scott A. Drake
With only four days to go until this weekend’s Pride parade, organizers of the event were still unsure if the parade would be held as scheduled. Philly Pride Presents, which stages the annual Pride celebration, was notified earlier this month — less than two weeks before the event — that it would have to pay the city $20,200 for police presence at Sunday’s parade, a service the city has always provided free of charge for community events such as Pride, but has since revoked in light of the city’s budget crisis. The organization applied for its permits in March, but was notified by e-mail June 3 that it would not receive the permit for the parade until it paid the police fee. In a meeting Wednesday, Pride representatives agreed to shorten the parade route in order to get the price tag cut in half. “We had to talk to the city to see how we could still make this parade happen, because the original price was outrageous and we couldn’t afford it, especially at
Court rejects challenge to military ban
See MILITARY, Page 20
See PARADE, Page 32
Marriage-equality bill introduced in PA Senate By Jen Colletta PGN Staff Writer
By Lara Jakes The Associated Press The Supreme Court on Monday agreed with the Obama administration and upheld Pentagon policy barring gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military. The court said it will not hear an appeal from former Army Capt. James Pietrangelo II, who was dismissed under the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. The federal appeals court in Boston earlier threw out a lawsuit filed by Pietrangelo and 11 other veterans. He was the only member of that group who asked the high court to rule that the Clinton-era policy is unconstitutional. During last year’s campaign, President Barack Obama indicated he supported the eventual repeal of the policy, but he has made no
the last minute,” said Philly Pride Presents executive director Franny Price. Price, Philly Pride Presents senior advisor Chuck Volz and the agency’s attorney, as well as president of the Philadelphia Gay Tourism Caucus Tami Sortman and chair of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission Stephen Glassman, met with city deputy managing director Jazelle Jones, managing director chief of staff Steve Kennebeck, city representative Erica Atwood and two police officers to discuss the fee. Price said the initial $20,000-plus charge would have paid for 40 police officers and several lieutenants to direct traffic and control the crowds. She said she didn’t feel this number of officers was necessary for the 1.5-mile parade, which lasts between one-and-a-half and two hours, but negotiated with the city officials to shorten the route, and thus lessen the number of officers needed, to lower the cost. There will now be 25 officers present during the parade, which will kick off as planned from 13th and
2ND CELEBRATION OF CULTURE: The second-annual Latino Pride Festival June 6 drew more than 2,500 LGBT and ally individuals to North Philadelphia, a 25-percent increase in attendance from last year’s inaugural festival. The event, which had a special emphasis on raising awareness of breast and prostate cancer, brought together leaders such as keynote speaker Gloria Casarez, the city’s director of LGBT affairs; state Reps. Tony Payton (D-179th Dist.) and Curtis Thomas (D-181st Dist.); City Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez (D-7th Dist.); and Common Pleas Judge Angeles Roca. Brenda Torres, who organized the festival with her partner Iris Melendez — both of whom co-own LGBT nightclub Rainbow Eye at 1449 N. Fifth St. — called the event “very, very, very successful. It was very festive, very fun.” Next year’s Latino Pride Festival is set for June 5. Photo: Scott A. Drake
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
See page 10
State Sen. Daylin Leach (D-17th Dist.) introduced a bill last week to legalize same-sex marriage in Pennsylvania. Senate Bill 935 was introduced June 5 and referred to the Judiciary Committee. The bill would repeal the ban on same-sex marriage that the legislature approved in 1996, and would amend the definition of marriage in Title 23 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes to read as “a civil contract between two people who enter into matrimony.” The law currently defines marriage as “a civil contract by which one man and one woman take each other for husband and wife.” The legislation further clarifies that the adoption of marriage equality should not be “construed to compel a religious sect to perform same-sex marriage” and
proposes that all marriages legally performed outside of Pennsylvania should be considered legal in the state. Leach said he’s realistic that the bill will face tough opposition in the Republican-controlled Senate, but that he’s trying to look further down the road. “Short-term, it’s going to be a very tough fight, but in the long term, it’s inevitable. My goal right now is to speed up the day when there’s marriage equality in Pennsylvania,” Leach said. “It’s going to happen for so many reasons eventually, and my goal this year is to get the conversation started, maybe have some hearings on the bill. Public support for marriage equality is growing in part due to people’s exposure to the idea, so that’s what we’re trying to do now — get people exposed to it, and if they have some discomfort they can work through it. Right now, I want to accelerate what I consider See MARRIAGE, Page 32