pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976
Philly AIDS Thrift @ Giovanni’s Room renews lease PAGE 2
Vol. 40 No. 42 Oct. 14-20, 2016 Family Portrait: Cecilia Garnier laces her gloves to help knock out cancer
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HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM
Community forum on racism held at William Way
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LGBT History Month: Exploring trans history and another preStonewall uprising
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Same-sex marriage dating to 1990 recognized by court By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com
OUT TOGETHER: A group of OutFest revelers paused their celebration for a photo near 13th and Locust streets Sunday. Despite a rainy start to the day, the weather cleared just in time for the start of the annual National Coming Out Day festivities. More than 160 vendors lined the streets of the Gayborhood, offering merchandise and resources, and partiers took in live entertainment on the main stage as well as games and activities throughout the area. For more OutFest photos, see pages 19 and 31. Photo: Scott A. Drake
Rain not much of a damper on Trans* March, OutFest By Paige Cooperstein paige@epgn.com A steady drizzle Saturday afternoon and wind gusts reaching 30 miles per hour Sunday morning in Philadelphia didn’t deter people from participating in a full weekend of LGBT activities. More than 50 people gathered Oct. 8 near City Hall for the sixth-annual Trans* March, organized by the TransHealth Information Project at GALAEI, a queer Latinx social-justice organization. “We want to make sure that every building, every neighbor, every person on the sidewalk knows that we are marching for trans lives because trans lives matter,” said Nikki López, execu-
tive director of GALAEI. She encouraged folks to hashtag the march on social media to share the work with an even wider audience. Later, López said, “I want to hear your voices powerful because we are a resilient community. Our history is resilient, and if it was not for black and brown trans women there would be no LGBTQrights movement.” The march also featured a new song by Grammy-nominated artist Andra Day called “Rise Up,” which represented this year’s theme. After a stormy morning Oct. 9, the sun came out for OutFest in the late afternoon. Attendance appeared only slightly lower than average. PAGE 6
John D. Roberts will receive the Social Security benefits of his late husband, Bernard O. Wilkerson, after a ruling last month by a Philadelphia judge. On Sept. 28, Orphans’ Court Judge George W. Overton ruled that the couple was in a common-law marriage dating back to July 4, 1990. The men lived together for about 25 years, and were perceived to be spouses during that time period, according to court papers. Even though they weren’t officially married until September 2015, the couple was in a committed relationship since July 1990, Overton ruled. Overton’s ruling is believed to render Roberts’ marriage to Wilkerson the lengthiest same-sex marriage in America recognized by a judge, and the first same-sex common-law marriage in Philadelphia recognized by a judge.
Wilkerson died in December 2015, three months after the men obtained a marriage certificate. The U.S. Social Security Administration denied Roberts’ application for widower’s benefits, on the basis that the couple hadn’t been married for at least nine months. Roberts pursued his case in Philadelphia Orphans’ Court, where he sought to have his common-law marriage with Wilkerson legally recognized. On Sept. 26, Overton presided over a hearing in the matter. Two days later, the judge ruled in Roberts’ favor. As a result, Roberts will receive Social Security benefits generated by Wilkerson. Roberts, 63, had no comment for this story. For about 130 years, Pennsylvania recognized common-law marriages between a man and a woman. In 2005, the state legislature abolished common-law marriage, but specifically allowed the recognition of such marriages that occurred on or before Jan. 1, PAGE 20 2005.
Anti-racism protest interrupts flag-raising ceremony By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com Mayor Jim Kenney and Director of LGBT Affairs Nellie Fitzpatrick came under fire this past weekend for their handling of racism in the LGBT community. A handful of anti-racism activists approached the podium in the Mayor’s Reception Room at City Hall Sunday morning, following remarks from Kenney and Fitzpatrick during the annual rainbow flag-raising ceremony to mark LGBT History Month. The ceremony was moved indoors because of inclement weather. The activists represented Black & Brown Workers Collective, Black Lives
Matter Philly, ACT UP Philly, Coalition for REAL Justice, The Gran Varones and the Womanist Working Collective. The group held signs with phrases such as #ByeNellie and “Anti-Blackness Anywhere is Anti-Blackness Everywhere.” The group continued to call for Fitzpatrick to step down, which she told PGN last week she will not do. Kenney and Fitzpatrick left the room shortly after the protestors began their demonstration, and the activists took to the podium to address the remaining crowd. Allegations of racism in the Gayborhood have persisted for years, and reached a head last month with the publication of a PAGE 13 video showing ICandy
Out & About Thinking Queerly Dining Out Film Reviews Street Talk Day in the Life of ... Crossword Queer Faith Get Out and Play Mombian Gayborhood Crime Watch Gettin’ On 40 Years Ago News Briefing Mark My Words Out Money Scene In Philly Family Portrait Editorial Which parts of PGN are your favorites? Answer our survey from Oct. 7-Dec. 7 and you could win a $100 gift card! PAGE 15