Philadelphia Gay News Vol. 34 No. 33
Honesty Integrity Professionalism
Aug. 13 - 19, 2010
Casey introduces anti-bullying measure
Eagles player tweets homophobia A member of the Philadelphia Eagles, evidently upset that the latest episode of popular HBO vampire series “True Blood” included a gay-male sex scene, vented his opinions on a social-networking site this week. Eagles offensive lineman Todd Herremans posted a message on Twitter Tuesday morning describing his disapproval of Sunday night’s episode, which included a sex scene between characters Eric and Talbot. Herremans’ Tweet read: “So.. caught up on Trueblood las nite.. Not a fan of how they get u hooked with the 1st 2 seasons then bring on a barrage of homosexuality..” The message was posted shortly before 9 a.m. Aug. 10 but was deleted by 11:30 a.m., replaced by an apology: “After speaking with Eagles management, I realize that my tweet earlier was insensitive and tasteless, and for this, I deeply apologize.” Several minutes later, Herremans also tweeted: “It was not my intention to offend or hurt anyone.” Philadelphia Inquirer columnist John Gonzalez spotted the original tweet and contacted Herremans through Twitter, asking for an on-the-record explanation. Gonzalez reported in his column that Herremans wrote him: “I have no issues with homosesxuality, to each his/her own...Its just not for me..#jussayin.” Shortly after, the exchange with Gonzalez and the original tweet were deleted, replaced with the apology. P a m e l a B r ow n e r White, senior vice president of public affairs and government relations for the Eagles, said the football club’s “response was clear TODD HERREMANS and decisive and was AP Photo/Matt Slocum reflected in Herremans’ follow-up tweet.” When contacted by PGN on Tuesday, an HBO media-relations representative hadn’t yet heard about the tweets. “True Blood” has often been thought to provide a social commentary on the oppression of LGBT individuals — with signs such as “God Hates Fangs” appearing in the opening credits for the show. “True Blood” creator Alan Ball is gay, and star Anna Paquin came out as bisexual earlier this year. One of the show’s regular characters, Lafayette, is gay, and actor Evan Rachel Wood plays a lesbian vampire queen. One scene last season depicted Wood performing oral sex on a female character. ■ — Jen Colletta
By Jen Colletta PGN Staff Writer
case, and they want a judge to toss out the portion it won as meritless. The city also wants the troupe out of 231-251 N. 22nd St. because it won’t permit gay participants or, in the alternative, pay fair-market rent. Council officials say the city colluded with LGBT activists to target them for punishment because they disagreed with the BSA’s antigay leadership policy. Jurors rejected much of that scenario, ruling that the city didn’t commit viewpoint discrimination against the council, nor did it violate the council’s equal-protection rights. But jurors also ruled that the
U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania Robert Casey Jr. (D) introduced a bill last week that seeks to mandate federal regulations for school bullying, including banning harassment against LGBT youth. Casey introduced the Safe Schools Improvement Act Aug. 5, along with 10 cosponsors. The bill would require that any public schools that receive federal funding develop anti-bullying policies that specifically prohibit bullying motivated by certain characteristics, including sexual orientation and gender identity. The measure would also mandate that schools and districts have effective prevention strategies in place to combat classroom harassment and would compel states to compile data on incidence of bullying and report the statistics to the U.S. Department of Education. Congresswoman Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.) introduced the companion bill in the House last year. Casey said the alarming statistics about school bullying motivated him to lead the fight for the bill in the Senate. He noted that while students from any background can be subject to bullying, LGBT youth are particular targets, with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network citing that nine out of 10 gay youth have reported classroom harassment. “It’s bad enough if it was one or two out of 10, but a number that high is just disCASEY PGN file photo turbing,” he said. “I think people are sick and tired of reading about incidents after they’ve happened. For a student to be harassed to the point of suicide or where he can’t function or is subject to violence, it’s just wrong. And there are larger numbers of kids that we don’t hear about, those who skip school because they’re afraid.” Casey asserted that the lack of a federal anti-bullying mandate exposes too many youth to dangerous circumstances, which he said can be quelled through his bill. “In the end, it’s about one word: betrayal. Public officials say over and over again that they care about the kids and that they want to invest more dollars in schools, and I’m all for that, but all the dollars in the world can’t prevent a child from the horrific nightmare many face when they’re afraid to go to school,” he said. “I’ve never had that experience, I never was threatened or felt like someone was going to do me harm, so it’s hard for me to even
See SCOUTS, Page 19
See CASEY, Page 14
DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH: Kevin Armstrong (left) and Frank Farmer, hoisting Tavern on Camac’s trophy, work a fundraising table Aug. 7 in front of the team’s namesake. The money raised will offset the team’s expenses to go to the 2011 North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance World Series in Chicago. Photo: Scott A. Drake
Scouts’ law firm seeks $963K from city By Timothy Cwiek PGN Writer-at-Large Attorneys for a local Boy Scouts of America council say they vindicated the group’s constitutional right to exclude gays from a city-owned building, and now they want nearly $1 million in legal fees from the city. Citing a federal law allowing a victorious party in a civilrights dispute to seek legal fees from the losing party, the Center City law firm Drinker Biddle & Reath is seeking $963,575.07 from the city. At press time, the city hadn’t responded to the firm’s request for compensation. In prior filings, however, city attorneys content the BSA Cradle of Liberty Council lost most of its