pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976
Vol. 42 No. 31 Aug. 3-9, 2018
Family Portrait: Deborah Cox PAGE 23
HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM
Men of All Colors Together looks to rebrand PAGE 5
Look to the ladies for summer CDs
The COLOURS organization opens North Philly testing site
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Delaware law bans Appeals court denies CSS request for conversion therapy ongoing foster referral for minors CSS asked the Third Circuit to Services, came to the public’s By Timothy Cwiek By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com LGBT advocates in Delaware are praising last week’s passage of a bill that penalizes clinical professionals who practice conversion therapy on minors within the state. SB 65 was signed into law by Delaware Gov. John Carney on July 23. It calls for revoking the license of any mental-health, social-work or medical professional who practices conversion therapy on a child, and prohibits the referral of a child to another state for conversion therapy. Numerous LGBT advocates attended the bill-signing ceremony in Wilmington. Carney gave the pens used during the ceremony to Delaware Equality, a statewide LGBT group that lobbied for the measure, and Joseph F. Cozza, one of the LGBT advocates who spearheaded the initiative. Lisa Goodman, president of Delaware Equality, praised state officials for enacting the law. “The Delaware General Assembly has once again stood up and said the LGBT citizens of Delaware are entitled to the same legal protections — be it from discrimination or harmful medical practices — as any other Delawarean,” Goodman told PGN. “It was a great occasion to have all the advocates who had worked on that bill come together to celebrate an important step forward for protecting LGBT youth,” she added. Cozza, a former aide to state Sen. Harris B. McDowell, said Delaware is the 14th state, along with the District of Columbia, to ban conversion therapy for minors through the legislative process. New York banned conversion therapy for minors through a gubernatorial executive order, he said. SB 65 passed the Delaware Senate in May 2017 in a 12-3 vote and the House of Representatives in June in a 24-14 vote. There were two public hearings, during which opponents claimed the bill would infringe upon parental rights. Delaware state Rep. Richard G. Collins (R-Millsboro), an outspoken opponent of the measure, blasted the bill as “meddling” into private matters. PAGE 12 In a statement, Collins
timothy@epgn.com
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has denied an emergency request by Catholic Social Services for the immediate resumption of foster-child referrals to the agency while it appeals an unfavorable lower-court ruling. CSS provides foster-care services for about 100 children in city custody. But in March, the city stopped referring additional children to CSS after learning the agency won’t certify same-sex couples as foster parents. CSS claims its foster-care program will be phased out within the next few months if it doesn’t receive additional referrals from the city. On July 13, in a 64-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Petrese B. Tucker declined to issue an injunction requiring the city to resume its referrals to CSS. Three days later,
order the immediate resumption of foster-child referrals. But on July 27, Third Circuit Judges Michael A. Chagares, Julio M. Fuentes and Joseph A. Greenaway Jr. denied CSS’ emergency request. Their onepage ruling wasn’t accompanied by an explanatory opinion. In response to the judges’ denial, attorneys for CSS requested an expedited appellate process. “On a traditional appellate schedule, it is likely that [CSS] will have no choice but to close its doors before this court can even decide [CSS’] appeal,” the July 27 request states. “Such dire consequences make this an ‘exceptional’ case.” As of presstime, the court hadn’t responded to CSS’ most recent request. A standard appellate process could stretch out for several months. The controversy involving CSS and another foster-care provider, Bethany Christian
attention in March, after the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Bethany turned away a lesbian couple who wanted to be foster parents. The news coverage prompted an investigation by city officials, resulting in a freeze on foster-care child referrals to Bethany and CSS. In court papers, attorneys for CSS maintain that the city is violating its free-speech and religious-freedom rights. But city officials say they’re simply asking CSS to comply with the city’s Fair Practices Ordinance, which bans LGBT bias in the provision of city services. “The city is in a strong position and I hope it prevails,” said local civil-rights attorney Justin F. Robinette. “I have great respect for CSS and the work it does. But for too long, discriminators have used religious-freedom and free-speech arguments to justify their behavior. A victory
for the city in this case will be a victory for the LGBT community.” Even if the Third Circuit approves an expedited-briefing schedule, Robinette said he’s still confident the city will prevail. “Judge Tucker issued a very well-reasoned opinion and I don’t see the Third Circuit overturning it,” he said. The city resumed referring foster-care children to Bethany in June after the agency adopted an antibias policy that covers the LGBT PAGE 12 community.
Pop-up market makes veganism local, accessible to all By Adriana Fraser adriana@epgn.com A local vegan market is highlighting the “different faces of veganism” with monthly pop-up events, including an upcoming one featuring LGBTQ vegan-business owners. Philly Vegan Pop Flea hosts more than 30 local vegan and vegetable-friendly businesses. The market’s organizers set up one-day-only pop-up markets in locations throughout the city. In an effort to uplift marginalized communities, the events have recently featured vendors of color, women and, on Aug. 11, Philly Vegan will host its first Queerly Vegan Market at Repair the World in West Philadelphia. “We wanted to home in our focus and
shine some light on marginalized communities in the vegan world,” said Carlo Giardina, co-organizer of Philly Vegan. “Veganism isn’t just about saving the animals. It’s about the people too, especially the people who many wouldn’t even consider to be a part of our community.” The market is changing the way people see and think about veganism, he said. “The faces of veganism are changing. We come in all different colors, shapes and sizes — from different walks of life and orientations.” Giardina, who will open a vegan convenience store called V Marks the Shop in South Philadelphia next month, has been a vegan for eight years. In college, he became a vegetarian after seeing a poster explaining the contents of a hot dog. He explored veganism after revert-
ing to an omnivorous diet. He said he realized his own misconceptions of what veganism was after reading books on the topic. “Most people think that vegans are these really skinny salad-eaters who are only concerned about saving the animals. That may be true in some instances, but that’s not always the case. I’m far from that. I’m a bigger guy who doesn’t look at all like the ‘typical’ vegan,” Giardina said. “Those misconceptions are the reasons why the marketplace exists. Everyone is coming together to recognize that veganism isn’t some one-note way of life for a select, privileged few.” Giardina and his co-organizer, Carmella Lanni-Giardina, launched the pop-up PAGE 12 markets in 2016,