PGN Dec. 4 -10, 2015 by The Philadelphia Gay News

Family Portrait: Ian Morrison on drag and Mummery PAGE 31

Anti-gay harassment continues for gay couple PAGE 2

Gift suggestions for those who like to slip between the covers PAGE 27 Dec. 4-10, 2015

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PGN Philadelphia Gay News HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM

Vol. 39 No. 49

Philly activists ask governor to pledge to end AIDS By Paige Cooperstein paige@epgn.com

ACTION ON AIDS: Former Congressman Joe Sestak met with staff, supporters and clients of ActionAIDS Tuesday at the agency for a World AIDS Day event. Sestak spoke about HIV awareness and the obstacles that must be overcome to ensure full equality for the LGBT community. “LGBT rights are one of the most pressing social issues of our time, requiring us to be relentless in our fight for equality,” Sestak told the crowd. Sestak is running for the Democratic nomination for Senate next year, under the theme of walking in the shoes of Pennsylvanians. “By electing leaders who walk in the shoes of their LGBT constituents, we will continue to fulfill the founding fathers’ dream of a nation that always strives to create a more perfect union,” he said. Photo: Scott A. Drake

MontCo marriage dispute resolved By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com A settlement has been reached in a dispute involving about 120 same-sex marriage licenses issued by Montgomery County Register of Wills D. Bruce Hanes. The state Department of Health has agreed to accept the actual marriage-ceremony dates of about 120 same-sex couples who received marriage licenses from Hanes in 2013. “It’s all been resolved,” Hanes said. “I’m very pleased with this outcome and I don’t anticipate any future issues. I’m really happy it’s worked out well for everyone. I’m also gratified that I helped further LGBT progress, because it meant so much to so many people.” On Dec. 1, Hanes submitted a memorandum to Montgomery County Orphans Court Judge Lois E. Murphy, informing her of the agreement. The Department of Health issued a statement to PGN noting that it filed a

joint application with Hanes to discontinue his appeal to the state Supreme Court of the ruling prohibiting him from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. “In resolving this matter, the parties have agreed that Mr. Hanes will record as valid the date of the actual marriage ceremony of these couples, which the Department of Health will not challenge,” the department said. Hanes issued the licenses in the summer of 2013, even though marriage equality wasn’t enacted in Pennsylvania until the following year, due to the Whitewood ruling. As a result, some same-sex couples who received marriage licenses from Hanes couldn’t receive employer-based health benefits, nor file joint tax returns. About two years ago, Hanes filed an appeal in state Supreme Court, seeking a judicial order recognizing the actual marriage-ceremony dates of the same-sex PAGE 14 couples who received

Dozens of activists from ACT UP Philadelphia boarded a bus Tuesday on World AIDS Day for the two-hour drive to Harrisburg. They were on their way to hear Dr. Rachel Levine, physician general of Pennsylvania, speak on the state Health Department’s policy goals for HIV. The activists want Wolf to commit to ending AIDS in Pennsylvania by 2020, a pledge that governors in New York and Washington made for their states last year. Jeff Sheridan, Wolf’s press secretary, told PGN he couldn’t offer a timeline for if or when the governor might commit to a pledge. He said the administration views Levine’s speech “as a way to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS in Pennsylvania and continue the conversation as we move into the New Year.” “This is something that’s hugely important to the governor,” Sheridan said. Levine discussed issues that affect people living with HIV that Wolf has tackled since taking office, including eliminating the asset test to determine eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, called SNAP, and increasing funding for the housing trust fund.

ACT UP organizers said they do not anticipate Wolf making any formal commitment regarding HIV/AIDS until the Republicancontrolled legislature resolves issues over the state budget with Democrats and the governor. Still, they noted the importance of Levine’s speech in Harrisburg on World AIDS Day.

“It finally means we have a governor that takes HIV and AIDS seriously,” said Jose de Marco, longtime organizer with ACT UP Philadelphia. “All people’s lives are valuable. This is a public-health issue.” De Marco said the state should help health-care professionals prioritize screening patients for those who may be at risk PAGE 14 of contracting HIV, espe-

LGBT director re-appointed By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com Mayor-elect Jim Kenney this week announced Nellie Fitzpatrick will remain at the helm of the Office of LGBT Affairs. Kenney announced the appointment at a press conference at City Hall Wednesday. Fitzpatrick was appointed to the position by outgoing Mayor Michael Nutter in January 2015. She succeeded Gloria Casarez, inaugural director since 2008. Casarez died in October 2014 from complications of cancer. Fitzpatrick previously was the LGBT liaison in the District Attorney’s Office, where she served as an assistant district attorney and prosecutor in the Family Violence and Sexual Assault Unit.

Fitzpatrick said she took over the office with two primary goals, which guided her first year of work. “I wanted to institutionalize the work that has been done so it can be built upon going forward and also to close the gap between the ‘L,’ ‘G’ and ‘T’ and, PAGE 14

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

LOCAL PGN

Couple plagued by antilocations in Philadelphia gay harassment

CENTER CITY — AROUND THE GAYBORHOOD

12th Street Gym, 204 S. 12th St. • 13th Street Gourmet Pizza, 209 S. 13th St. • AACO, 1101 Market St., 9th floor • Action AIDS, 1216 Arch St. • Apt. & Townhouse Rentals, 304 S. 12th St. • The Bike Stop, 206 S. Quince St. • Bioscript Pharmacy, 1227 Locust St. • Boxers PHL, 1330 Walnut St. • Cafe Twelve, 212 S. 12th St. • Charlie Salon, 203 S. 12th St. • Charlie was a Sinner, 131 S. 13th St. • City Hall NE Entrance • Club Body Center, 1220 Chancellor St. • Com-Har Living Room, 101 S. Broad St., 14th floor • Criminal Justice Center, 1301 Filbert St. • Cut Salon, 204 S. 13th St. • Danny’s Bookstore 133 S. 13th St. • Dignity/St. Lukes, 330 S. 13th St. • Dirty Frank’s Bar, 13th & Pine sts. • The Foodery, 10th & Pine sts. • GALAEI, 1207 Chestnut St. • ICandy, 254 S. 12th St. • Independent Hotel, 13th & Locust sts. • John C. Anderson Apts., 249 S. 13th St. • Mazzoni Clinic, 809 Locust St. • Midtown II, 122 S. 11th St. • More Than Just Ice Cream, 1119 Locust St. • Nationality Service Center, 1216 Arch St. • Optimal Gym, 1315 Walnut St. • Paolo Pizzeria, 1336 Pine St. • PAT@Giovanni’s Room, 345 S. 12th St. • Phila. FIGHT/ Aids Library, 1233 Locust St., 2nd floor • Planned Parenthood, 1144 Locust St. • Reading Terminal Market, 12th & Filbert sts. • Salon K, 1216 Locust St. • Scorpio Books, 205 S. Juniper St. • Spruce Street Video, 252 S. 12th St. • Square One, 249 S. 13th St. • Tabu, 200 S. 12th St. • Toast, 12th & Spruce sts. • Triangle Medicine, 253 S. 10th St., 1st floor • U Bar, 1220 Locust St. • Valanni, 1229 Spruce St. • Venture Inn, 255 S. Camac St. • William Way LGBT Community Center, 1325 Spruce St. • Woody’s, 202 S. 13th St. •

CENTER CITY OTHER — EAST OF BROAD

Bean Café, 615 South St. • Best Western Independence Park Hotel lobby, 215 Chestnut St. • Bodhi Coffee, 410 S. 2nd St. • Bridgeview Place, 315 New St. • Cedrone’s Flowers, 800 Lombard St. • Class Act Auto Repair, 2042 S. Bancroft St. • Copabanana, 342 South St. • Dane Décor, 315 Arch St. • Filter Coffee Co., 331 Race St. • Hopkinson House, 604 S. Washington Sq. • Hyatt Regency Hotel lobby, 201 S. Columbus Blvd. • Independence Place Condos, 241 S. Sixth St., lobby in both towers • Independence Visitors Center, 6th & Market sts. • Modish Hair Salon, 640B South St. • PGN offices, 505 S. Fourth St. • Philadelphia Java Co., 518 S. Fourth St. • Reading Terminal Market, 12th & Filbert sts. • Strands Salon, 25 N. Third St. • Two Independence Place, 233 S. 6th St. •Ultimo Coffee, 1900 S. 15th St. • Wireworks, 301 Race St. •

CENTER CITY OTHER — WEST OF BROAD

Adonis Cinema, 2026 Sansom St. • Art Institute, 1622 Chestnut St. • Art Institute, 2300 Market St. • The Attic Youth Center, 255 S. 16th St. • Bob & Barbara’s, 1509 South St. • Dan Tobey R/E, 1401 Walnut St., 8th floor • Dr. Wakefield’s Office, 255 S. 17th St., Suite 2306 • Drucker & Scaccetti, 1600 Market St., Suite 3300 • Drexel Partnership, 1427 Vine St., 3rd floor • Latimer Deli, 255 S. 15th St. • MANNA, 12 S. 23rd St. • Marine Club Condos lobby, Broad St. & Washington Ave. • Metropolitan, 115 N. 15th St. • PA Law Project, 2122 Chestnut St., Suite 1600 • Phila. Daily News, 801 Market St. • Safeguards Lobby, 1700 Market St., 18th floor • Sansom St. Gym, 2020 Sansom St. • South Square Market, 2221 South St. • Stir, 1705 Chancellor St. • U Do It Laundry, 15th & Spruce sts. • Westminster Arch Apts., Vine St., 3rd floor •

PHILADELPHIA NEIGHBORHOODS — OTHER

Almost Paradise, 742 Frankford Ave. • Awbry Aboretum, 1 Awbry Rd. • Caribbean Pharmacy, 3825 N. 5th St. •Elfant Wissahickon Realty, 8962 Ridge Ave. • Fantasy Island Books, 7363 State Road • Harry’s Natural Foods, 1805 Cottman Ave. • Infinity Jewelers, 3528 Cottman+ Ave. • Infusion Salon, 7133 Germantown Ave. • Morris House, 5537 Woodland Ave. • One Day At A Time, 2532 N. Broad St. • Philadelphia University KANBAR Center, 4201 Henry Ave. • Philly Pharmacy, 9475 Roosevelt Blvd. • WCAU TV lobby, City Line Ave. & Monument Road • Weaver’s Way, 559 Carpenter Lane • Welker Real Estate, 2311 Fairmount Ave. • WPVI TV lobby, City Line Ave. & Monument Road •

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By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com Javel Saudades and Daniel Hallacy say they’ve experienced intermittent antigay harassment from neighbors since 2001, and it shows no signs of abating. The Norris Square couple says several of their neighbors routinely refer to them as “faggots” when they walk by, and blast rap music with offensive lyrics in their direction. “Blasting the music is a calculated but safer way for them to intimidate us,” said Hallacy, 39. “As long as they have someone to hate, they feel great.” Since 2001, the couple has called 911 for police assistance more than 100 times, they said, but the torment persists. Saudades’ 81-year-old mother lives with the couple, and she’s also affected by the harassment. “We are all nervous wrecks,” said Saudades, 59. “We have been terrorized. These [neighbors] are brewing. At any moment it can explode.” Acts of harassment by neighbors include spray-painting “faggot” on the couple’s front door, depositing a metal object shaped as a penis on their doorstep and trashing a Zen garden created by Saudades. The couple’s van was vandalized so frequently that they had a friend tow it away several years ago. “We went through 15 sets of tires,” Saudades said. Added Hallacy: “We’re reduced to being pedestrians. We walk everywhere. It limits our contact with people we wish to see. And, unfortunately, it also brings us into closer contact with our tormentors.”

In 2006, the couple was physically assaulted by a group of neighbors. They emphasized that they don’t want to go through a similar experience in the future. A few years ago, Hallacy took refuge by moving to his parents’ home in North Carolina. “I had to leave,” he said. “I couldn’t focus on my life or my priorities.” But now he’s back, and facing his tormentors once again. “Nothing has changed,” Hallacy said. “It feels like I’m living in a morally degenerate atmosphere. But when we complain to authorities, their response is, ‘That’s the way it is in Philadelphia.’” A Philadelphia police spokesperson had no comment for this story. Saudades said living in a state of terror has become a way of life. “ We haven’t felt safe for 14 years. We live under terroristic threats every day.” Last month, a neighbor vandalized a 20-inch stove belonging to the couple, they said. Hallacy said the vandalism prompted a new round of calls to police, who came out to investigate on three separation occasions. “It wasn’t an adequate response by police,” Saudades said, noting that loud music, harassment, drug activity and terrorism continue. “There is no resolution,” Saudades said. “We would love a resolution. We’ve been surviving here, not living.” Saudades said he doesn’t have financial resources to move to another area. “My mother and I made United States our home, and we don’t have the means to move from here,” he said. “And it’s outrageous to think that we would have to move because of terrorism.” n

Bebashi anniversary event sold out By Paige Cooperstein paige@epgn.com Bebashi, an HIV/AIDS organization focusing on people of color, has sold all 400 tickets to its 30th-anniversary gala, set to take place next weekend. “It feels wonderful because it’s a rare occurrence,” said Gary J. Bell, executive director of Bebashi. “It’s a testament to the realization in the community that this work is important.” To celebrate three decades of health services, gala organizers have planned a silent auction, along with performances by musicians El DeBarge, Howard Hewett and Mozaic Flow. Local comedian TuRae Gordon will host the event. Bebashi also plans to honor 30 people for their accomplishments in the community throughout the organization’s history. Bell, a licensed clinical social worker, took the reins at Bebashi in 1996. He said he feels proudest that the organization has expanded its focus to other health disparities for people of color, like Hepatitis C, breast health and hunger. As Bebashi grows, Bell noted that staff and volunteers have to become creative to keep people energized around HIV, especially as treatment becomes more effective. “It’s always been a tough sell to get people to pay attention and change their behavior,” Bell said. “The virus is still prevalent. Just because it’s a chronic illness doesn’t mean you want to contract it.” n

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Weekly features

News&Opinion 7 — News Briefing 8 — Wedding 10 — Creep of the Week Editorial 11 — Letters/Feedback Mark My Words Street Talk 19 — Crime Watch Media Trail 24 — International

Comfortable surroundings are part of the new Walnut Psychotherapy service, which caters to the LGBT community.

JOINED IN PRAYER: Philadelphia FIGHT’s seventh-annual World AIDS Day Prayer Breakfast brought together faith leaders from across the region to discuss the faith community’s role in ending the epidemic. Held Dec. 1 at the DoubleTree by Hilton, the event featured an address by guest preacher the Rev. Dr. Wayne E. Croft., Sr. pastor of St. Paul’s Baptist Church in West Chester. Photo: Scott A. Drake

29 31 34 36 38

C o l u m n s

— — — — —

Scene in Philly Family Portrait Out & About Comics Q Puzzle

14 — Out Law: What’s in a name? 30 — Get Out and Play: Football pics and rugby picks

Classifieds 37 — Real Estate 41 — Personals 43 — Bulletin Board

Next week Out Money Thinking Queerly

Two weeks Gettin’ On Outward Bound

This week in PGN The Greater Philadelphia Flag Football League recognized members at a recent end-of-year gathering.

6 — PGN files appeal for Morris tapes 8 — A wedding 40 years in the making 27 — Arts & Culture cover story: Books for fun, inspiration, mystery and more 32 — Cynthia Nixon and her role as Gail White 33 — Philly filmmakers go “Driving”

We in the United States already elected a former actor as president; are we now ready to elect a reality star, or a fired, and failed, CEO?

~ Mark My Words, page 11

PGN 505 S. Fourth St. Philadelphia, PA 19147-1506 Phone: 215-625-8501 Fax: 215-925-6437 E-mail: pgn@epgn.com Web: www.epgn.com

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Editor

Jen Colletta (ext. 206) jen@epgn.com Staff Writers Paige Cooperstein (ext. 215) paige@epgn.com Larry Nichols (ext. 213) larry@epgn.com Writer-at-Large Timothy Cwiek (ext. 208) timothy@epgn.com

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An art exhibition highlighting the industry of Philadelphia is coming to The Athenaeum.

Art Director/ Photographer

Scott A. Drake (ext. 210) scott@epgn.com 267-736-6743 Graphic Artist Sean Dorn (ext. 211) sean@epgn.com

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Five honored at Red Ribbon Awards for HIV/AIDS work By Paige Cooperstein paige@epgn.com When Terrie Hawkins took to the podium in Philadelphia City Hall Tuesday night, she called her son and daughter up with her. The 15-year veteran of AIDS Fund wanted to share her D. Rick Britt Red Ribbon Award with her children, who earned the same recognition last year. Hawkins thanked the HIV/ AIDS organizations in the city that work together. In addition to her work with AIDS Fund, Hawkins provides HIV and Hepatitis C testing and counseling to people at Prevention Point Philadelphia, and assists with the organization’s shelter program and needle exchange. Four others received Red Ribbon Awards for HIV/AIDS work: Dr. Marné Castillo for research, Pearl Gould for faith leadership, Dr. Helena Kwakwa for community leadership and Ann Ricksecker for policy-making. Their peers in the field nominated them for the honor. About 100 people attended the 12th-annual, three-hour award ceremony in Conversation Hall,

held each year to commemorate World AIDS Day. Most Red Ribbon recipients had an emotional connection to their work. Gould had a close friend whose son was diagnosed with the virus in the 1990s. She traveled to California to help care for him and noticed that people viewed the disease as a kind of “leprosy” that was associated almost exclusively with the gay community. Patients often felt isolated and didn’t receive visitors in the hospital, she said. When Gould returned to Philadelphia, she established a 24-hour hotline out of her house. People with HIV were encouraged to call any time they wanted someone to talk to. “People weren’t feeling upset and alone just between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.,” Gould said. “And people did call at all hours.” She also established the HIV/AIDS Caring and Sharing Ministry at Mount Carmel Baptist Church in West Philadelphia, considered a bold initiative among black churches at the time. Dr. Michael Blank with the Center for AIDS Research at the University of Pennsylvania,

GUESTS AT THE 12TH-ANNUAL RED RIBBON AWARDS, HELD DEC. 1 AT CITY HALL Photo: Scott A. Drake

which presents the Red Ribbon Awards, told PGN it’s important for the community and scientists to have a strong relationship. “The community informs us as far as what research we should be pursuing and how to make it relevant to Philadelphia,” Blank said. Keynote speaker Dr. David Holtgrave serves as vice-chair of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. He noted only a third of the 1.2-million HIVpositive Americans have access to proper care. Holtgrave shared

with attendees highlights from the updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy, which was released in July and runs through 2020. The first strategy came out in 2010. Holtgrave said the updated strategy highlights four goals: reducing new HIV infections; increasing access to care and improving the health of people living with HIV; reducing HIVrelated disparities and health inequities; and creating a more coordinated national response. To achieve these goals, the

strategy focuses on widespread HIV testing; support for people living with HIV to remain in comprehensive care that supports adherence to treatment; universal viral suppression to prevent people with HIV from transmitting it; and broad access to pre-exposure prophylaxis, called PrEP, and related services. “It’s a policy document, not an appropriation document,” Holtgrave said, noting it is important for advocates to come up with cost estimates for executing each strategy and push for funding. Dr. Ron Collman also addressed the crowd. He took over as the director of the Penn Center for AIDS Research on World AIDS Day, after serving as co-director. “As a gay man, I saw this virus devastate entire communities,” said Collman, who does molecular work with HIV. But he said his mind never wanders far from the people affected by his research. “We have to keep in mind that our goal is ultimately to improve the lives of people affected by this epidemic,” Collman said. n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

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PGN files appeal for Morris 911 recordings By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com PGN has filed an appeal with the state Office of Open Records, requesting that the District Attorney’s Office be ordered to provide a certified copy of its 911 recordings pertaining to the Nizah Morris incident. Morris was a transgender woman found with a fatal head wound in 2002, shortly after a “courtesy ride” from Philadelphia police. Her homicide remains unsolved. On Nov. 12, PGN asked the D.A.’s Office for a certified copy of all Morris 911 recordings in its possession. A week later, the office provided a non-certified copy of a transcript of partial 911 recordings that it received from PGN five years ago. PGN gave the D.A.’s Office the partial transcript in 2010, in order to help the agency locate key 911 recordings believed to be in the D.A.’s possession. Computer-assisted dispatch records show the missing recordings existed in 2002, but local officials haven’t explained what happened to them. If the D.A.’s Office can’t locate the missing recordings, it should certify that under

penalty of perjury, according to PGN’s Nov. 30 appeal. “If the D.A.’s Office doesn’t have additional Morris 911 recordings, the Right-toKnow law places the burden on the D.A.’s Office to demonstrate that fact under penalty of perjury,” PGN’s appeal states. “For several years, the D.A.’s Office has studiously avoided doing so. This stonewalling must come to an end. Regurgitating the transcript [PGN] shared doesn’t absolve the DAO of its burden.” Also this week, the paper asked the OOR to hold a public hearing in the matter. “For almost 13 years, the missing 911 recordings — which are key to understanding the Morris incident — have been a source of grave concern,” the appeal states. “Local officials refuse to account for them, though computer-assisted dispatch records clearly show they existed in 2002. The DAO’s vague, deceptive and unreasonable response to [PGN’s open-records] request reinforces the public perception of a cover-up. Isn’t more than a decade of official obfuscation and game-playing long enough?” At presstime, PGN’s appeal and request for a public hearing remained pending. n

Lehigh University student charged in hate crime By Paige Cooperstien paige@epgn.com One Lehigh University student and two other individuals were charged this month with harassment and ethnic intimidation, considered a hate crime, in connection with uttering an antigay slur toward a student and pushing him to the ground. The incident took place just after 2 a.m. Nov. 21 on the campus of the Bethlehem university. According to university officials, a male Lehigh student and a male non-student were walking near campus housing in the southern part of campus when three males approached them. One of them was a Lehigh student and the other two were not; none of the individuals has been publicly identified. Officials said one of three men uttered an antigay slur to the other Lehigh stu-

dent. A verbal exchange began and the confrontation escalated into a physical one, which resulted in the Lehigh student being pushed to the ground. The student suffered a minor head injury, officials said, and he was treated at St. Luke’s Hospital, just outside Bethlehem. Lori Friedman, a Lehigh University spokeswoman, told PGN that incidents involving student conduct are referred to the university’s Office of Student Conduct and Community Expectations, which has the authority to investigate incidents and determine whether a student has violated the code of conduct. She added the dean of students has the authority to implement temporary measures in an emergency or to protect the safety of a student while the conduct case is investigated. Friedman said federal law concerning the privacy of student records prevents the university from releasing further information. n

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LOCAL PGN

News Briefing Officer terminated from job Haddon Township Police Officer Jason DeMent has been officially terminated from the township’s police force, effective Oct. 28. DeMent contends his termination is in retaliation for rejecting the sexual advances of Haddon Township Police Chief Mark Cavallo. He’s filed a federal lawsuit against Cavallo and the township, which remains pending. On Nov. 25, DeMent received a letter from the township, explaining that his termination was effective Oct. 28, and that his health benefits would expire Nov. 30. DeMent had previously requested a one-year extension of his health-care coverage, while he pursued treatment for a vision impairment. He also sought to continue working as a township police officer during that time, but the township refused his request. “We were disappointed to learn that Haddon Township denied Mr. DeMent’s request for continued health coverage and immediately terminated Mr. DeMent,” said Zachary R. Wall, an attorney for DeMent. “We believe that the shameful decision was a further act of retaliation for Mr. DeMent’s blowing the whistle on the rampant sexual harassment within the department.” Eric J. Riso, a solicitor for the township, had no comment for this update.

Trans-inclusion forum scheduled A public forum that aims to increase transgender and non-binary inclusion within the local Jewish communities will be held this month. The event, entitled “Synagogues Supporting Trans Communities,” is scheduled for 1-3 p.m. Dec. 13 at Or Hadash Synagogue, 190 Camp Hill Road in Fort Washington. “Join us for a conversation about how we can create safe and inclusive Jewish spaces for transgender, non-binary and gender-nonconforming individuals and communities,” said Phoenix Schneider, director of the LGBTQ Initiative at Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia. Schneider added: “We’re really encouraging rabbis, cantors and all Jewish leaders to attend. It’s critical for them to be part of this conversation, so we can look at how we can collectively support trans and non-binary Jews in the Greater Philadelphia area.” The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served. If you plan to attend, RSVP Schneider at pschneider@jfcsphilly.org

Kane appoints special prosecutor Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane this week appointed Douglas F. Gansler to lead a team of special prosecutors tasked with investigating

thousands of pornographic emails exchanged by judges and law-enforcement officials. The team “will review racist, misogynistic, homophobic and religiously offensive emails. The team will be tasked with identifying any violations of the criminal, civil or ethics laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” according to Kane. Kane announced Gansler’s appointment at the National Convention Center in Center City on Dec. 1. Three local prosecutors — Frank G. Fina, Patrick J. Blessington and E. Marc Costanzo — participated in the email exchange. The local chapter of the National Organization for Women, along with numerous public officials, are urging District Attorney Seth Williams to dismiss the prosecutors. But Williams refuses to do so, noting the prosecutors have received sensitivity training. Gansler has served as attorney general of Maryland. He’s currently an attorney in private practice in Washington, D.C.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

HEALTH AND WELLNESS DIRECTORY

Advocacy groups to participate in trans hearing A federal judge last month granted permission for six LGBT-advocacy groups to participate in oral arguments in the Kate Blatt antibias case. The groups are Gay and Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, Mazzoni Center, National Center for Lesbian Rights, National Center for Transgender Equality, National LGBTQ Task Force and Transgender Law Center. On Nov. 25, U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Leeson Jr. also said the advocacy groups had until Dec. 1 to file a legal brief in support of Blatt. Oral arguments are scheduled for 2 p.m. Dec. 10 at the Edward N. Cahn Federal Courthouse in Allentown. Blatt, a Pottsville trans woman, is suing Cabela’s Retail Inc. for job discrimination. She claims Cabela’s discriminated against her on the basis of her disability — gender dysphoria — by denying her access to a female restroom and a female name tag. Blatt also challenges the Americans with Disabilities Act’s exclusion of gender-identity disorder as a protected disability. She claims the GID exclusion violates her constitutional right to equal protection under the law. Cabela’s is located in Hamburg and specializes in outdoor sports items. Blatt worked there as a seasonal stocker between September 2006 and March 2007. Cabela’s denies any wrongdoing in the matter. The ADA protects those with disabilities from discrimination in private employment, public accommodations and governmental services. — Timothy Cwiek

William Way to host free film screening The William Way LGBT Community Center, with the support of John Alchin and Hal Marryatt, will host a free screening of “The Year We Thought About Love,” 7:30 p.m. Dec. 8 at PAGE 13 National Constitution Center,

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Wedding Larry Dobbins and Anthony Kaney By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com It was a wedding nearly 40 years in the making last month at City Hall. Anthony “Tony” Kaney and Larry Dobbins tied the knot Nov. 23. The couple met in 1976 at a Center City bar. “He was very sweet, and we seemed very compatible,” Kaney, 75, said of their first meeting. “He was also very smart.” “It was so natural,” added Dobbins, 84. “He was so easy to get along with.” Both are transplants to the Philly area — Dobbins from Alabama and Kaney from Illinois — who moved here for work. Dobbins retired from his career as an electrical engineer at General Electric in the early 1990s and Kaney from his position as a biology professor at Bryn Mawr College in 2007. The couple dated for about a year before moving in together.

Dobbins had two children from a previous marriage, and they quickly accepted Kaney into their family, Dobbins said. Over the years, their shared interests in such hobbies as classical music and opera blossomed. “We enjoy doing the same things together,” Kaney said, adding that Dobbins’ easygoing nature made navigating rough spots in life a bit easier. “He’s tolerant and open-minded. His nature is just that he doesn’t get mad about the simple things. He’s very easy to get along with.” The same holds true for Kaney, Dobbins noted. “We don’t worry about petty arguments,” he said. “I’m very lucky to have found him.” As they are getting on in age, the couple began talking more seriously about marriage, to ensure one another’s rights would be protected as they age and after one passes. “We’d talked about [marriage] theoretically but it hadn’t

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ever been possible so we didn’t seriously consider it,” Kaney said. “And then once it did become possible, we thought, We’ve been together 40 years, what would it prove by getting married? But more recently, we have some relatives, straight couples, who’ve been together for a long time and never mar-

ried and started thinking about it because financial advisors and health professionals advised them it could make their lives easier as they get older.” The King of Prussia couple ultimately traveled to Philly to be wed by out Court of Common Pleas Judge Ann Butchart.

“Judge Butchart really made the occasion a memorable one,” Kaney said. “She arranged for us to be married in this beautiful courtroom in City Hall, and it was really lovely. Larry’s two children and the grandchildren were there. It was a lovely family gathering, just a terrific occasion.” Kaney noted the couple is still adjusting to their new status as a married couple. “We’ve been calling each other ‘husband.’ I’m sure we won’t keep that up for too much longer,” he laughed. “I don’t know whether we’ll feel any different but I think it was important to state these things formally in a setting with legalistic overtones, in the presence of family members.” Their new wedding rings, Dobbins added, are reinforcing the vows they took. “It’s a reminder every time I look at it that this is something new. But the relationship itself is the same; it’s as totally natural as it always has been.” n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

National Praise For MARK SEGAL’s Best Selling Memoir

AND THEN I DANCED TRAVELING THE ROAD TO LGBT EQUALITY

“Mark Segal’s work for LGBT equality is historic and significant. The fact that he is still connecting our community is a testament to the passion which he shares in this memoir.” --Billie Jean King “Mark Segal is a beloved and respected activist for the LGBT movement, and he’s a pivotal voice to tell our story,” --The Advocate “Mark Segal made national news on December 11, 1973 when he interrupted a live broadcast of the CBS Evening News by yelling ‘Gays protest CBS prejudice!’ at none other than Walter Cronkite. He was wrestled to the floor on live national television, an incident often credited as the beginning of the end of LGBTQ invisibility. In his new memoir, Segal looks back on that defining moment in history, as well as the many battles that followed.” --Queerty “If it happened in the gay rights movement, Mark Segal was probably there.” --ABC-TV “Mark Segal is one of the major actors in the struggle for LGBT equality in the U.S....A life as eventful as Segal’s demands that a book be written about it.” --South Florida Gay News “Segal’s And Then I Danced harkens back to the glory days of the gay liberation era. Current activists could learn a lot of useful lessons from reading this memoir, and any American who reads it will learn about some interesting chapters in our nation’s ongoing struggle to form a more perfect union.” --David Carter, Author of Stonewall, The Riots that Sparked the Gay Revolution “Because of activists like Mark Segal, whose life work is dramatically detailed in this poignant and important memoir, today there are openly LGBT people working in the White House and throughout corporate America.” --Philly Chit Chat “Read Mark Segal’s memoir and you’ll get the inside story of how and why he interrupted a live broadcast of The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. What happened afterward will surprise you. It’s one of many surprises in this must-read first-person account of LGBT history as it unfolded after Stonewall. Segal was a witness to that history, and he made some of it happen, changing our country and our lives for the better.” —Louis Wiley, Jr., executive editor, Frontline (PBS)

“I have read about Segal in other places but nothing is like reading about it as he tells it....Because of Segal and others we have openly LGBT people working in the White House and throughout corporate America. He has helped make it possible for an entire community of gay world citizens to finding the voice that they need to become visible.” --Reviews by Amos Lassen “Segal’s writing style is engrossing and never ponderous....And Then I Danced is highly recommended for all LGBT history collections and especially for readers with interest in Pennsylvania/Philadelphia politics.” --American Library Association’s GLBT Round Table “And Then I Danced is a fascinating page-turner that prompted my tears, laughter, envy, and astonishment--but most of all left me feeling very proud of what our community has accomplished and grateful to Mark for sharing his intimate memoir. While there are many who have witnessed the extraordinary history of the LGBT community, few have played as major a role in creating it as has Mark. It is no exaggeration to say that there is no person alive today who has been a more central participant in as much of the contemporary LGBT rights struggle than Mark Segal.” --Sean Strub, author of Body Counts: A Memoir of Politics, Sex, AIDS, and Survival “Mark Segal has for decades been a pathfinder for LGBT journalists of all stripes. We’re indebted to him for his years of radical activism, helping to foster a movement for change that has had a dramatic and positive impact for millions.” --Michelangelo Signorile, author of It’s Not Over: Getting Beyond Tolerance, Defeating Homophobia, and Winning True Equality “Real change never comes without real guts and real vision and real leaders. Mark Segal is the real deal.” --Robert Moore, cofounder of Dallas Voice “Mark Segal’s ideas run from the alpha to the omega. Sometimes I think there’s got to be more than one Mark Segal: he has done way too much for one lifetime. I highly recommend this book. If you can’t get to meet Mark in person, this is the next best thing!” --Michael Luongo, author of Gay Travels in the Muslim World “Before there was Ellen, Will, Grace, Rosie, Andy, and Anderson, Mark Segal was the squeaky gay wheel of American television, pulling stunts that forced the medium to open its closet door. If Walter Cronkite were still alive, he’d say: Not HIM again! And that’s the way it is. And was. Read all about it.” --Bruce Vilanch, Six-Time Emmy Award Winner “Mark Segal has taken the LGBT aging world by storm, and in the process has made a remarkable difference for our community’s courageous pioneers. We’ve all learned so much from him.” --Michael Adams, executive director, Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders “With gentle humor and the slightest touch of sardonicism….Segal lets readers into his personal life: his loves, losses, and (spoiler alert!) a very happy ending. “Drama seems to follow me,” he writes, and readers will be glad for it.” --Washington Blade

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

EDITORIAL PGN

Creep of the Week

D’Anne Witkowski

James Dobson

Editorial

Power of giving Tuesday marked two important occasions for our community, and their confluence was significant. The first of December always serves to commemorate World AIDS Day, an opportunity for people around the globe to raise awareness about the HIV/AIDS epidemic. This year, the day coincided with Giving Tuesday, a pseudo-holiday conceived of a few years ago — in response to the over-commercialization of the holiday season — to encourage philanthropy. Throughout the day, supporters of both efforts were out, literally and figuratively, in full force. Institutions across the city opened their doors for people to learn about the history of the epidemic through panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt. From City Hall to college campuses and everywhere in between, events were held to pay tribute to people who have been lost to the disease, and to the progress that has been made to eradicate it. Supporters of HIV/AIDS and LGBT organizations took to the streets and to social media to encourage backers to use Giving Tuesday to give back to the groups that have given our community so much. One of the most inspiring elements of the day was the prevalence of ally support in this work. For an epidemic that at one time was once considered a “gay men’s” disease, it was heartening to see the diversity of supporters handing out PGN and ActionAIDS’ World AIDS Day Supplements, and to the melting pot of people taking them. The Red Ribbon Awards ceremony at City Hall was not only packed with people across the LGBT spectrum, but from all walks of life. Local news stations also did their part to shed light on World AIDS Day activities, and on some of the local groups deserving of support on Giving Tuesday. All in all, Tuesday was a day that demonstrated the power of community — and of welcoming supporters from outside of our community into our work. n

During a recent episode of James “I just read an Dobson’s “Family Talk” radio program, example of a case Dobson and his guests discussed the evils where a girl was in of trans-inclusive antidiscrimination laws. the bathroom and Such laws have been dubbed “bathroom the whole football bills” by the anti-LGBT right because team came in and they’d allow people to use bathrooms. took pictures, you Let me repeat that: The anti-LGBT right know, selfies, if is upset about people using bathrooms. you will, over the The problem is that they are pretty nartop, of her in the row-minded when it comes to who counts bathroom,” Dobson as a person. says. “I mean, have One of Dobson’s guests was Tim we gone absolutely nuts?” LeFever, who is on the executive board of LeFever responds, “I doubt that all the Privacy for All, a California-based group members of that football team were sufferthat “exists to protect privacy in restrooms, ing from gender-identity issues. They were showers, locker rooms and changing rooms gaming the system.” … by asserting that individuals should use I agree with Dobson that such a thing these facilities in accordance with their would be pretty nuts, even if he doesn’t biological sex, rather than their gender understand what a selfie is. identity.” I also agree with LeFever that this wasn’t In other words, it’s all based on whether an issue of gender dysphoria. I doubt the or not you’re born with a penis or a vagina. football team declared, “We’re girls right The opposition to trans-inclusive legisnow!” and rushed into the bathroom with lation hinges on a fundamental misundertheir iPhones. They weren’t gaming the standing of what gender identity is. When system, they were being sexist, dumb folks like LeFever and Dobson picture a fucks. We have plenty of evidence that transgender woman, for young men are capaexample, all they see is ble of doing terrible a man in a dress, specif- “The way you perthings to young women ically a pervert looking (Steubenville, anyone?). ceive yourself can to harm children. When What Dobson’s story change every six your understanding of doesn’t prove is that this gender identity is so nar- months! You can be a incident was made posrow and paranoid, it’s no sible by an antidiscrimiboy at one time and nation ordinance. wonder this issue gets your panties in a bunch. a girl at the next time The right’s obses According to LeFever, sion with bathrooms bathrooms are “sex-sep- and it’s not based on is just weird. Yes, peoarated because of our ple should feel safe in any biology.” physical bodies.” places where they are I’m not sure what that most vulnerable, and means. I mean, it’s true that you don’t find that includes toilets and locker rooms. But urinals in the ladies’ room because they’re the idea that there is this Great Pervert very hard to sit on. But that doesn’t seem Conspiracy to let bad guys put on a dress like a good enough reason to freak out. so they can watch women pee is totally Dobson says gender identity isn’t a real insane. thing. It’s all just based on a whim. Now that the right has lost the mar “The way you perceive yourself can riage-equality battle, their priorities are, change every six months!” declares quite literally, going down the toilet. Let’s Dobson. “You can be a boy at one time and hope they get plenty of shit for it. n a girl at the next time and it’s not based on D’Anne Witkowski has been gay for pay since any biology.” 2003. She’s a freelance writer and poet (believe I’m not sure who Dobson is speakit!). When she’s not taking on the creeps of ing for, but I doubt he’s declaring that he the world, she reviews rock and roll shows in changes from male to female every six Detroit with her twin sister and teaches writing months. He’s actually saying, “I’m an at the University of Michigan. ignorant ass.”

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Mob mentality

Street Talk

Let me ask you, readers, if you feel I’m serious issue and I’d like some answers. going a little far when I suggest that I’m Instead, every reporter has allowed the frightened that some people running for the candidate to change the subject. And then highest office in the land are encouraging when the next issue pops up, they always mob action like it has not be seen since 1938 say, “Gee, we reporters all thought it was the Europe? last issue that would send him sliding in the To justify that statement, polls.” I’d refer you to the recent As to the other incident I refattack at the Colorado Planned erenced: Ms. Fiorina, did your Parenthood and the suspect words at the debate inspire this in that violent incident, who attack? Will you tone down your allegedly stated during his arrest, attacks on Planned Parenthood? “No more baby parts.” That Now that you have disavowed line of thinking about Planned this act, will you tell your folParenthood’s services of course lowers that promoting misincame from presidential candidate formation is equal to violence? Carly Fiorina. And will you admit that you Then there was the man who were misinformed about Planned was literally attacked by a mob Parenthood? at a Donald Trump rally when Again, we need reporters and he disrupted the speaker over the journalists who do their homeissue of the Black Lives Matter work, and then follow through. A campaign. The candidate did Mark Segal good reporter does not allow the nothing to stop it, and it has been subject to decide where an intersuggested that his security was even part of view goes, especially when answers of this the mob. The following day, that candidate import are at issue. blamed the victim, saying “Maybe he should Recently, one of those Sunday-morning have been roughed up.” political shows actually did this. “Meet The Press” with Chuck Todd actually followed This worries me, since it seems America the issue with a panel discussion, while all is not noticing this wave of violence conthe others, especially ABC, gave the same nected to political campaigns. Now I must admit I’m sensitive to this issue: I’m Jewish, drivel coverage, or worse, allow the candidate to dictate the image their campaigns and a similar wave of attacks happened on a desired. much larger scale in Germany when a certain man was running for office, a name I’m We need to stop taking this as a joke. We told you shouldn’t invoke — which leads in the United States already elected a former me to ask, Are we censoring the accounts of actor as president; are we now ready to elect these outrageous, violent and un-American a reality star, or a fired, and failed, CEO? behaviors? One is currently at the top of the Republican Of course the media have reported them, polls, the other at the bottom. And those in but most outlets would rather interview the between? That prospect frightens me. candidates in the hopes of getting a news Yes, I’m a Democrat, and you can say story rather than focusing on the incidents some bad things about the Democratic canthemselves. As journalists, we cannot didates, but at least they don’t inspire mob allow these candidates off the hook. Let me justice, mass deportations, religious disexplore how we can keep the pressure on crimination and closing houses of worship. them. Do those issues sound familiar? They were Mr. Trump, why was a man attacked at used by that little man whose name I can’t your rally? Why didn’t you try to stop it? invoke. n Why did you encourage it? Why did you say it might have been justified? Is it justified Mark Segal, PGN publisher, is the nation’s mostwhen anyone disagrees with you? Would award-winning commentator in LGBT media. You you act the same in the future? He at some can follow him on Facebook at www.facebook. com/MarkSegalPGN or Twitter at https://twitter. point will try to change subjects, but the reporter should be clear: Mr. Trump, this is a com/PhilaGayNews.

Mark My Words

Letters and Feedback In response to “Last call for Venture Inn,” Nov. 25: The Venture Inn was there from the beginning for me. It was open when I first started going out and was a “go-to” place throughout. Makes me sad to think of what’s going to happen to it. We might only hope a new owner takes it over

and makes some sort of an attempt to restore it to its former glory. — Truth Be Told Again Awful news. — Mike SnowBallz Just so, so sad. We go there every time we are in town.

Should Kathryn Knott's anti-LGBT tweets be presented to jurors at her upcoming trial? "Yes. They show she's bigoted in her views and inclined to physically assault a gay couple, if she feels bold enough. Kelly Dzioba I'm not studio manager saying she South Philadelphia walks around assaulting gay men, but she certainly didn't seem to be provoked. She was emboldened by her friends."

"No, I don't think that's fair. There was a significant time differential between her tweets and the incident. Kyle Kellam And we student sometimes North Philadelphia say things off the top of our heads, without thinking, that we don't really mean. That kind of information shouldn't be used against us if we're on trial."

"Yes. What she did was wrong. She never should have put anti-LGBT slurs on social media. It harms people and Dara Peou contributes store clerk to suicides. South Philadelphia She needs to suffer the consequences. And she needs to apologize for what she did."

"No. Things we say in the past don't necessarily represent who we are in the present. I'm not justifying what she Megan Smith did, by any social worker means. But Gayborhood the incident is complicated. Using her tweets might confuse rather than clarify. It would be better to rely on clearer evidence."

tomers were helping put me through college. Thank you, Philadelphia! — Gordon

Both Jeff and I are going to miss the ol’ girl very much, not to mention the staff. Especially Bob (aka Sandy Beach). Just so sad. — Michael I worked at the Venture for many years. I was very proud that while working there as a waiter, the cus-

So sad. Great place and one of the great sponsors of softball. — Ray Dunn The Venture was like family for me when I lived in the city. Many fond memories will stay with me. — Denise Szekely

In response to “Government: Gender dysphoria has physical cause,” Nov. 20-26:

Of course they deny all this.

Of course they will say they acted according to business concerns the entire time. Could you imagine losing your business because you told the truth?

In response to “Obituary: Frankie Morelli, Voyeur bartender and ‘Gayborhood royalty,’ 51,” Nov. 6-12:

— Willowann Christi Marie Of course. Any agreement where they come up with evidence of discrimination would make them sueable.

— Clarissa Harings

One of the “truly nicest guys” I ever met, inside and out. He stayed “true to himself and to others.” Philadelphia is going to miss you. — Drjjsmythe927

LOCAL PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Walnut Psychotherapy focuses on affordable long-term support By Paige Cooperstein paige@epgn.com Therapists at Walnut Psychotherapy Center are more likely to diagnose society before their clients, said Danna Bodenheimer, founder and director of the new Center City practice. “We understand that the oppression of transphobia and homophobia can manifest itself in something that looks like mental illness, but is in fact somebody trying to survive being in the world,” she said. Bodenheimer opened the doors of her psychodynamic practice at 15th and Walnut streets in October. She said the practice is not exclusively a queer space, “but it’s where our highest level of competency lies.” Seven practitioners work in the office, serving everyone from people dealing with substance abuse or chronic illnesses to groups of kids who are transgender or dealing with other identity conflicts. “A lot of it has to do with precision around language and really understanding how language can liberate or oppress a community,” Bodenheimer said. “We’re really up-to-date on how the community thinks of and talks about itself.” Bodenheimer is a lesbian and her wife works as a nurse practitioner, providing

OB-GYN services to oftentimes queer-identified Latinas, she said. She noted she and her wife saw an absence in affordable wellness options for queer people in Philadelphia. Walnut Psychotherapy created a therapy scholarship program, meaning that people who make less than $27,000 a year will pay no more than $25 per session. Twenty-four scholarship slots are currently filled. Bodenheimer and her staff are working on ways to move peoTHERAPIST MICHAEL TYLER RAMOS (FROM LEFT), ple through the waiting WALNUT PSYCHOTHERAPY DIRECTOR DANNA list. She anticipates hirBODENHEIMER AND CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR JAKEY ing an intern from a local GREENBERG college in January to help manage the therapy “Therapy is open-ended,” said Michael scholarships. Tyler Ramos, a therapist who also speaks Anyone who makes more than $27,000 Spanish. He deals most frequently with goes on a sliding scale for payment, which substance abuse at Walnut Psychotherapy starts at $50 or higher per session. The fee and is trained in eye-movement desensiis based on a person’s income. tization and reprocessing therapy, called Sessions are not limited to one-hour EMDR, which is used to treat trauma like increments. Bodenheimer said clients and sexual, physical or emotional abuse. their therapists figure out what amount of “Everyone is different,” Ramos said. “It time is appropriate each session. goes back to looking at earlier relation-

ships and really focusing on what a person’s resiliency and coping skills are. Even though most people have endured some level of stress, they’re still functioning to some capacity. I personally look at past relationships and how they mirror existing relationships. I really explore that.” Bodenheimer noted that’s a founding principle of psychodynamic therapy: the idea that the past makes itself known in the present. She said treatment lies in providing clients with at least one positive attachment when they come to therapy. She also said there’s no pressure to “cure” people. “Nobody stops a yoga practice because they’ve learned everything about yoga,” Bodenheimer said. “I think of therapy as exactly the same as that. If it’s a practice for you and that feels important to maintaining your functionality, then you should keep doing it.” Sarah Pulver, another practitioner at Walnut Psychotherapy, thinks that focus helps her deal with patients who have chronic illnesses and adults who have experienced complex childhood trauma. “To be doing long-term, very supportive caring and complex work with people, that was what really drew me here,” she said. For more information, visit www.walnutpsychotherapycenter.com. n

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

NEWS BRIEFING from page 7

525 Arch St. The documentary film follows Boston LGBTQ troupe True Colors: OUT Youth Theater as its members create a new play about love. Prior to the screening, at 6:30 p.m., William Way archivist Bob Skiba will lead a tour of the “Speaking OUT” LGBT-history exhibit at NCC. The tour and screening are free, but RSVPs are requested at http://bit.ly/ WWCCAboutLove. — Jen Colletta

Court date again postponed for murder defendant The preliminary hearing for a man charged with murder and related offenses in the October killing of a transgender woman in Logan was continued for the second time. Pedro Redding, 24, was scheduled for a hearing Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving, to determine if his case would move to trial. The new date for his preliminary hearing is Feb. 3 at 9 a.m. in Room 306 of the Criminal Justice Center, 1301 Filbert St. Redding, of the 4500 block of North 13th Street, was denied bail and is being held at the Philadelphia Detention Center. He faces charges of murder, conspiracy and weapons offences. Redding was arrested in connection with the Oct. 6 fatal shooting of Kiesha Jenkins at 13th and Wingohocking streets. Jenkins, 22, was assaulted by several men around 2:30 a.m. and shot twice in the back. Police said the motive was robbery and that Jenkins was not targeted for being transgender. Police do not believe Redding was the shooter. No further arrests have been made.

IBA hosts holiday party Independence Business Alliance plans to celebrate achievements in the LGBT business community at its annual holiday party. It takes place from 6-9 p.m. Dec. 15 at Radisson Blu Warwick Hotel, 220 S. 17th St. Tickets cost $55 for IBA members or $75 for non-members. IBA, Greater Philadelphia’s LGBT chamber of commerce, bills the event as “a chance to meet and be merry” with business owners and corporate and community partners within the LGBT business community. To purchase tickets, visit www.thinkiba. com/event/iba-holiday-party. n — Paige Cooperstein

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

What is in a name? Generally, a name defines an individual. local newspapers of general circulation It is a sense of who you are and how you and, depending on the county, have a hearpresent yourself in the world. However, ing presided over by a judge who asks when a person feels that his or her name questions regarding the intent of the name no longer represents who he change. or she is as a person, one must These requirements come undergo the arduous legal prowith significant obstacles for cess of a name change in order people within the LGBT comto officially correct legal idenmunity, especially transgentity documents, including a der individuals. In addition to driver’s license, passport, marthe emotional toll and length riage certificate and deeds to of the process itself (which is real property. sometimes enough to dissuade Under Pennsylvania law, indiLGBT individuals from comviduals seeking a legal name pleting the process), people change for reasons other than are subject to an excessive cost marriage (which now includes burden. Each name-change LGBT individuals!), divorce approximately $900 in filAngela costs or adoption must file a petition ing fees, judgment searches and Giampolo publication costs. Moreover, if with the Court of Common Pleas for the county in which the individual has lived in any they reside. Accordingly, you must provide other county over the past five years, he fingerprints to process through the FBI or she needs to contact the county clerk in database, submit to a criminal-background that county to obtain judgment searches, check to ensure the name change is not done at a cost of approximately $75 each. to avoid civil or criminal judgments and These costs are assuming that the individa family court-judgment search to ensure ual is a pro se petitioner proceeding withyou are not attempting to avoid paying out an attorney. Having an attorney assist in this process can tack on an additional child support. As if those requirements $500-$750 in fees but, on the flipside, can were not enough, you must also publish save the individual countless hours of frusnotice of the name-change hearing in two

tration. In sum, with the assistance of an attorney, an LGBT individual could pay up to $1,500 in costs for a name change. In addition to the cumbersome financial, emotional and time requirements, there are also significant and paralyzing stigmatic effects that result from the process. The need to publish the name-change petition in two local newspapers poses a problem for most transgender individuals, who are fearful of discrimination and ultimately violence. I always request a waiver of publication for my transgender clients, as the cost is unnecessary and the dangers that come with publishing the name change are not worth it. Those people, like myself, advocating for a major facelift of Pennsylvania’s name-change law suggest that the law should reflect neighboring states’ laws, which have been revised and streamlined. Modifications include:

MONTCO from page 1

FITZPATRICK from page 1

2013 marriage licenses from him. This week, both sides were expected to file an application with the state Supreme Court seeking a discontinuance of Hanes’ appeal. Michael P. Clarke, an attorney for Hanes, praised the settlement. “It took us a while to get here, but we’re glad we did,” Clarke said. “We have an agreement with both sides that’s much better than fighting it out in court.” He said judicial approval of the 2013 marriage-ceremony dates wasn’t necessary. “After reviewing the whole thing with the Department of Health, we don’t feel having a judge determine the actual dates of the marriage ceremonies was necessary,” Clarke said. Clarke said Montgomery County officials expect to formally notify the couples of the settlement. “It’s something that we’re discussing internally as to how we’re going to notify everyone. We haven’t reached a full decision on that yet. But it’s something we’re discussing.” Clarke added: “Mr. Hanes was right all along and our legal theory was right all along. Marriage between two consenting adults is an inherent right that’s always existed.” In September 2014, about 30 same-sex couples who received marriage licenses from Hanes obtained judicial approval to change their marriage-ceremony dates to May 20, 2014, when the Whitewood ruling went into effect. It’s unclear whether any of those couples will be permitted to restore their original marriage-ceremony dates. n

in doing so, bring understanding as well to the ‘B,’ which often goes unrecognized,” she said. A major boon toward the first aim, she noted, was the push for legislation to make permanent the Office of LGBT Affairs; that measure was approved by City Council and subsequently by voters through a ballot question last month. “That was a remarkable moment for the city and nation. It was an incredible thing on Election Day to watch almost 86,000 Philadelphians vote to make this office permanent, especially the same day we witnessed voters in Houston destroying so many rights and protections because of bigoted, biased views,” Fitzpatrick said, referring to the Texas city’s voters rejecting an LGBT nondiscrimination ordinance. “Philadelphia, being our country’s birthplace, again held up the torch of progress, showing that, while some are taking rights away from others and discriminating, here we are ensuring that we’re only moving forward. No moving backwards.” In that vein, Fitzpatrick said she has worked to break down barriers for transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals, through initiatives like a guide she created to identify gender-neutral restrooms, and successful legislation to require gender-neutral language on single-stall restrooms in the city. She has also worked closely with law enforcement to press for appropriate interactions with LGBT individuals and with media to ensure accurate

portrayals. “Seeing homicide detectives not only get it right but actually understand and advocate for a trans-identified individual who is deceased has been remarkable. And then to see the media — who too often gets it wrong — be willing to change and move and grow and understand their responsibility in the information that they’re putting out has been really important,” she said. “And I think over this last year that progress has been swift and effective, and it’s something I couldn’t be more excited about.” Heading into the new administration, Fitzpatrick said she’ll continue to press for initiatives that unify and empower all facets of the LGBT community, with special attention on citywide issues that particularly plague LGBT people, like poverty, youth homelessness and education. Internal education will also be a priority, she said, noting that the recently created Greater Philadelphia Gay Officers Action League is an important step toward that aim. “I’m incredibly honored and humbled to keep this work going,” Fitzpatrick said. “I feel like I stand on shoulders upon shoulders upon shoulders of people who have been moving this work forward. I hope to continue the really great legacy in Philadelphia that LGBT advocates started decades ago. I hope that I can make those who sat at the counter of Dewey’s diner and who marched outside Independence Hall, and those who came before them, proud.” n

Out Law

• Removing the ban on people convicted of certain felonies, or those who are on parole/probation. New Jersey is progressive in that it only requires that, if under indictment or convicted, the petitioner make best efforts to notify the prosecuting attorney.

• Moving the process to Probate Court — as is done in Ohio, Connecticut and Alabama — to make the process faster and less expensive, due to the docket congestion in the Court of Common Pleas. • Removing the publication requirement, as many states do not require this and it greatly enhances the cost. • Removing the fingerprints and judgment-search requirements and replacing them with a bundled civil-criminal background check, as is done in other states. This would both reduce the time burden on the petitioner, as well as the cost. The Pennsylvania name-change law is ripe for an overhaul to bring it up to speed with our present-day technologies and, in turn, do a lot for the LGBT community, which suffers the most prejudice in having to avail themselves to this process to legitimize their true sense of self. n Angela D. Giampolo, principal of Giampolo Law Group, maintains offices in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and specializes in LGBT law, family law, business law, real-estate law and civil rights. Her website is www.giampololaw.com, and she maintains a blog at www. phillygaylawyer.com. Reach out to Angela with your legal questions at 215-645-2415 or angela@giampololaw.com. ACT UP from page 1

cially people of color. He wanted doctors to talk to patients about options like pre-exposure prophylaxis, called PrEP, which has been shown to be effective at preventing HIV. “I’ve been around since the beginning of this epidemic,” de Marco said. “If there was a pill back then like PrEP, we’d all be screaming it from the rooftops. It’s really disappointing how few people know about this.” Max Ray-Riek, an ACT UP volunteer, said people with HIV have benefited in the state’s move to equip all emergency responders with naloxone, a prescription drug that can reverse the effects of an opiate overdose. He said people with HIV are more likely to overdose and naloxone’s availability decreases the stigma for people to receive emergency medical care for drug use. To further combat HIV/AIDS in Pennsylvania, Ray-Riek said he’d like a state plan to focus on making sure people with the virus have stable housing. “Unstable housing is probably the biggest barrier to care,” he said, noting it causes people to focus more on where they will sleep versus how they will maintain their health. ACT UP organizers said they have been in contact with Wolf about HIV/AIDS resources in the state since he was a candidate. During the primaries, the organization asked each candidate to respond to questions about his or her positions on policies that could affect people living with HIV/AIDS. To read Wolf’s responses to ACT UP’s questionnaire, visit http://ow.ly/VgEsy. n

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

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Gayborhood Crime Watch The following incidents in the Midtown Village and Washington Square West areas were reported to the Sixth Police District between Nov. 16-22. Information is courtesy of Sixth District Capt. Brian Korn; Stacy Irving, senior director, Crime Prevention Service; Center City District; the Police Liaison Committee and Midtown Village Merchants Association. To report crime tips, visit www.phillypolice.com or call 215-686-TIPS. INCIDENTS — On Nov. 18, residents of two apartments in a building in the 1100 block of Spruce Street reported items missing. An exterminator had been inside the units. — At 11:20 a.m. Nov. 18, a man reached into the open register of Dunkin’ Donuts, 1105 Chestnut St., and stole $30. He was described as black, in his 30s, 5-foot-10, with facial hair, wearing a gray hoodie, blue jacket and baseball cap. — At 1:30 p.m. Nov. 19, a man selling T-shirts inside the diner at 1101 Sansom St. stole an employee’s purse from a shelf and fled. The suspect was described as black, 35, bald and wearing a bomber jacket with a fur collar and dark pants. — Between 6 p.m. Nov. 20 and 10 a.m. Nov. 21, someone stole four bars from a

Media Trail Wisconsin school nixes trans-book reading The Capital Times reports a southern Wisconsin school district has cancelled plans for elementary-school students to read a children’s book about a transgender girl after a group threatened to sue. The Mount Horeb Area School District released a statement saying it won’t proceed with its planned reading of “I Am Jazz.” Parents were told recently that Mount Horeb Primary Center students would read the book because one student identifies as a girl but was born with male anatomy. A Florida-based group, the Liberty Counsel, threatened to sue, saying concerned parents had reached out to them. The group contended that reading the book would violate parental rights.

security fence outside 1113 Chestnut St. NON-SUMMARY ARRESTS — Between 9:15-11:30 p.m. Nov. 18, members of the Citywide Vice Unit made two arrests for prostitution outside 100 S. 13th St. and 200 S. Juniper St. — On Nov. 21, Sixth District plainclothes officers observed a man offering to sell “coke” to passing pedestrians outside 1310 Drury St. During the investigation, they recovered a plastic bag containing a white powder from a 52-year-old North Philadelphia man, who was charged with possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. SUMMARY ARRESTS — On Nov. 17, Sixth District officers issued citations for summary offenses at 1:45 p.m. outside 201 S. Broad St. and 8:50 p.m. outside 1300 Sansom St. — At 9:25 a.m. Nov. 17, Sixth District officers issued a citation for a summary offense outside 928 Market St. — At midnight Nov. 18, Sixth District officers issued two citations for summary offenses outside 1100 Chestnut St. — On Nov. 20, Sixth District officers issued citations for summary offenses at 4:30 a.m. outside 1200 Clover St. and 10:55 p.m. outside 1310 Walnut St. n The Southern Poverty Law Center classifies the Liberty Counsel as a hate group that advocates for “anti-LGBT discrimination, under the guise of religious liberty.”

Housing for LGBT teens in Baton Rouge The Advocate reports a Baton Rouge nonprofit emergency shelter for young people has opened a new facility specifically geared toward LGBT youth. Youth Oasis’s Diversity House will contain nine fully furnished apartments where homeless people ages 16-21 can live for 12-18 months and receive counseling and life-skills training. The center is expected to open in January. Youth advocates say specialized housing can be especially important for LGBT youth in need because they are over-represented in the homeless population and are more likely to be sexually exploited and dismissed from jobs. The Department of Children and Family Services declined to comment on whether LGBT youth were being denied care from foster families. n — compiled by Larry Nichols

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

‘TIS THE SEASON IN BALTIMORE. From a Christmas village to a monument lighting or taking a spin on the ice, holiday delights are around every corner this season in Baltimore. It’s a Waterfront Life!

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CHRISTMAS VILLAGE IN BALTIMORE

West Shore Park at the Inner Harbor November 26–December 27, 2015 Experience the classic charm of a traditional German Christmas market and a festival tent of unique gift ideas at this indoor/outdoor event. This lively world of European food, mulled wine, art, jewelry and handcrafted ornaments will transport you to another place and time.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

International Activists march in New Delhi parade Hundreds of LGBT-rights activists danced to drum beats and held colorful balloons as they marched in a parade in New Delhi on Nov. 29. Organizers said that while the Pride parade celebrated the gains India’s LGBT community has made in recent years, they also wanted to highlight the continuing discrimination it faces. The Delhi Queer Pride Committee also demanded the repeal of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalizes homosexual acts. Over the past decade, LGBTs have gained a degree of acceptance in parts of deeply conservative India, especially in big cities. Many bars have LGBT nights, and some high-profile Bollywood films have dealt with LGBT issues.

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Still, being LGBT is seen as shameful in most of the country, and many people remain closeted. On Nov. 29, Harsh Aggarwal, who runs a digital-marketing company in New Delhi, said that there has been progress, though it has come slowly. “But it’s happening,” he said. “There are more people who are coming out without masks. Society also is respecting us. That’s the progress,” he said. Activists cheered in 2009 when the New Delhi High Court declared Section 377 of the Penal Code unconstitutional. But the judgment was overturned four years later when India’s Supreme Court decided that amending or repealing Section 377 should be a matter left to Parliament, not the judiciary.

Trans activists say Vietnam law paves way for surgeries Gay and transgender activists in Vietnam say a new law recognizing their rights will pave the way for gender-reassignment surgery in the communist country and reduce discrimination. Vietnam’s National Assembly on Nov. 24 unanimously passed the law, which will take effect in 2017 as part of the revised

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civil code. Huynh Minh Thao of ICS, an LGBT group, says the law will make it legal for hospitals to perform gender-reassignment surgeries. So far, Vietnamese trans people have had to travel to neighboring Thailand for such procedures. There are an estimated 270,000-450,000 transgender people in Vietnam, which has a population of 90 million.

Israel court allows trans woman’s cremation The body of an Israeli transgender woman who took her own life will be cremated, despite her ultra-Orthodox family’s wishes, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled in documents obtained Nov. 25. Before she killed herself, May Peleg wrote in her will that she wanted to be cremated, a practice that Jewish law forbids. Her religious family took the request to court, which sided with Peleg’s representatives. The court balanced Peleg’s wishes against her family’s desire for a Jewish burial, pitting religious law against individual rights and highlighting the contrasts between the country’s Jewish character and its often liberal orientation. Rabbinical

authorities oversee the country’s Jewish burial practices, though a single crematorium is allowed to operate quietly. Peleg, 31, was raised in the deeply conservative ultra-Orthodox community, which shuns gay and transgender people, and was estranged from her family. She was a prominent LGBT activist in Israel and her suicide elicited an outpouring of grief. Peleg said she did not want a Jewish burial because the religion would not recognize her as a woman. “This constitutes a lack of respect and an erasure” of her identity, supporters said. Her will stipulated that she wanted some of her ashes to be buried under a tree, where her two children could come to mourn. Lawyers representing Peleg’s mother, who brought the appeal to the Supreme Court, argued that Peleg was mentally unstable. Lawyer Yitzhak Dahan said the family wanted a Jewish burial so they could have a grave to visit. The court sided with Peleg’s lawyers, who had argued that her individual rights outweighed her family’s desire. “May’s will and wishes prevailed. Human dignity prevailed. The LGBT community prevailed,” a campaign for Peleg wrote on its Facebook page following Tuesday’s decision. n — compiled by Larry Nichols

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

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Gift Guide 2015: LGBT titles to round out your holiday-shopping lists By PGN Staff The holiday season is draped with traditions, and an enjoyable one that PGN undertakes each December is scouring bookshelves for the best of the best of new LGBT lit. From fiction to graphic novels to kids’ books, we’ve spent weeks delving into the pages of the hottest LGBT titles. Here, we give our readers a round-up of the best giftable books. Happy reading! “Bad Kid” By David Crabb Memoir Coming of age as a budding goth and gay teenager is probably hard enough under the best of circumstances. Having to do it in the late 1980s and early ’90s (pre-Internet, pre-iTunes, pre-mainstreaming of alternative music, pre-Columbine) probably didn’t help. Oh, and living in the conservative, sports-worshiping, Bible-thumping, conformity-loving, ammunition-passing confines of rural small-town Texas probably made this transition especially hellish. Somehow, Crabb survived to tell his sometimes-harrowing and oftentimes-humorous autobiographical tale of self-discovery and identity. The pop-culture points of the era, the teenage hijinks and the reckless use of mind-altering substances of varying qualities and effectiveness will dredge up nostalgia for people who lived through that era and hopefully paint a compelling picture for the generations who came after it. “Bad Kid” is an entertaining page-turner that manages to milk some laughs and life lessons out of some uncomfortable circumstances. — Larry Nichols

“Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of an American Family” By Amy Ellis Nutt Nonfiction Philadelphia boasts a connection to Nicole Maines, the young girl whose family won an influential lawsuit against a school district in Maine for not allowing her to use the bathroom that aligned with her gender identity. In July, just before starting college, Nicole traveled to Delaware County Memorial Hospital for her four-hour sex-reassignment surgery. Her twin brother, Jonas, and parents, Kelly and Wayne, came with her. Dr. Kathy Rumer, a nationally recognized transgender surgical specialist, performed the procedure. Nicole “regretted that people who don’t understand what it means to be transgender focus so much on the surgical part of transitioning,” Pulitzer prize-winning journalist Nutt writes in her 279-page book about the Maines family, which came out in October. “It was for her just a final step, but a necessary one, and the chance, finally, to be conscious of her own body in a good way.” Nutt, a health and science reporter for The Washington Post, spent hundreds of hours with the Maines family. Kelly and Wayne adopted their twins in 1998 and heard Nicole, named Wyatt at birth, identify as female since she was 2 years old. It was difficult for her to understand her identity conflict at such a young age.

“Wyatt didn’t know why he and Jonas both looked like boys, but only he felt like a girl,” Nutt writes. “Once, when Wyatt was asked yet again why he had hit his brother, he finally gave an answer: ‘Because he gets to be who he is and I don’t.’” In addition to the family’s story, Nutt devotes at least a third of the book to research and experts in gender development. While a fetus’ sex organs typically develop around six weeks, hormones and other factors that impact gender identity take place much later and across multiple systems in the brain, Nutt writes. The episode of NPR’s “Fresh Air,” in which Terry Gross interviews Nutt and Kelly and Wayne Maines, proves a nice companion piece to expand on conversations started in the book. — Paige Cooperstein “Bohunk’s Big To-Do” By Julian Jones Fiction “Bohunk’s Big To-Do” offers a comical exploration of the intersection of complex relationships — a story that many of us dealing with family chaos at the holidays can relate to. The tale revolves around Bo’s (whose quirky mother christened him with the nickname “Bohunk” in childhood) trip to small-town Kansas to meet with his absent, and now-dying, father. The theme of journeying persists throughout the novel, as Bo sets off to reconcile his past with his present. Along the way, he uncovers family secrets, struggles to cope with ongoing tensions — such as

his mother’s marriage to his boyfriend — and comes to form his own meaning of the word “family.” The novel is a fun coming-of-age story about a young man working to make sense of a past that is catching up to him. Rounded out by an eclectic cast of characters — whose eccentricities make them uniquely loveable — “Bohunk” illustrates the complexities of family ties, and the many ways in which they influence our present and future. — Jen Colletta “City in a Park: A History of Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park System” By James McClelland and Lynn Miller Nonfiction Oh wow, we really have all that in Philadelphia? Unless you have a geek-level knowledge of Philadelphia history or have explored its parks like Indiana Jones searching for the holy grail, there is probably a great deal of information about Fairmount Park contained in this massive tome that you will find fascinating. Whether delving into two centuries of the park system’s origins and history, marveling at the historical architecture of the houses and mansions along the Schuylkill or detailing the many public-art installations that can be found among the many acres, McClelland and Miller deliver this wealth of information with academic precision while keeping it compelling and entertaining. If you want to know more about the park system of Philadelphia but either can’t be bothered to wear out your shoes and bike tires to do so, or want to study PAGE 28

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GIFTS from page 27

up on all the things you should see beforehand, this is an excellent book to add to your library. — L.N. “Eve Arnold: Magnum Legacy” By Janine di Giovanni Photo essay A lavish coffee-table book of photos by and an essay about Philadelphia native Eve Arnold, this handsome volume is the first in the Magnum Legacy series, which is dedicated to celebrating the life of photographers and their work. Chapters discuss her poor childhood, the start of her career, her life in London and her work in China. But it is her photographs that speak thousands of words. Arnold’s pictures of Marilyn Monroe on the set of the film “The Misfits,” a mummified Joan Crawford getting a facial or a shot of gay artist Francis Bacon in his studio are all striking, impressive images. Equally haunting are her pictures from a Haitian insane asylum or a hospital in South Africa. Arnold’s images documenting social justice include a fabulous shot of a member of the order of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the queer transvestite nun activists in San Francisco. “Eve Arnold: Magnum Legacy” is a terrific mix of portraits, from Queen Elizabeth to Mikhail Baryshnikov, as well as her commercial work for Yves Saint Laurent, and documents from Arnold’s extraordinary career. It is a marvelous keepsake. — Gary M. Kramer “Fox Tooth Heart” By John McManus Short stories This collection of short stories has such diversity in character and theme that reading more than one story in a sitting can be psychologically challenging. The best part about McManus’ writing in “Fox Tooth Heart” is that all characters are, while sometimes unsettling, very believable. The stories take leaps of faith, considering settings that at times twist society, history and science. Each story also has its own toe tag — murder, suicide, an accident and natural causes each make an appearance. Consider first a world where pedophiles are kept at bay on the edge of prosecution via a “Gnat Line” that marks the perimeter of every school, and every member of the camp would kill or betray anyone for his or her own safety. Indeed, a murder/suicide around one campfire results in almost no

FEATURE PGN

reaction. “Elephant Sanctuary” is a tale of guilt and reflection by a rock star who has just killed his girlfriend. Sometimes the clinical thought process alone is chilling. And how you could not be grabbed by this opening sentence: “Before the first genetic clone of Thomas Jefferson turned 13, he would puzzle out the steps that had led to his conception, beginning with his mother Marissa’s debt.” You’ll have to read “Gateway to the Ozarks” to find how that works out. There’s also a gripping account of a young man who states right off, “I first met Max on my way home from the Gulp, a bottomless whirlpool in the Everglades where people go to commit suicide.” From there he moves towards the fight to live, and live through exhilaration. But human nature can be challenging, as he finds his life accelerating toward more and more risky behavior, free-climbing El Capitan at the story climax. “Bugaboo” will keep you holding on tight all the way through. To be sure, these are not light, festive, holiday tales. And McManus also nicely works in an LGBT character or situation in most stories without making being gay the focus of them. But as a collection, they are unsettling, amusing, curious and intriguing, and they will hold your mind firmly in their grasp. A couple of them, even as you sleep. — Scott A. Drake “Gay & Lesbian History for Kids: The CenturyLong Struggle for LGBT Rights” By Jerome Pohlen Children’s Young adults can get a crash course in LGBT Rights 101 with “Gay & Lesbian History for Kids,” an engaging book that makes learning fun. The book explores LGBT culture from ancient times through the present day, highlighting modern LGBT-rights milestones and figures. While many young folks today may know out entertainment icons like Ellen DeGeneres, this book does a commendable job of introducing readers to pioneers whose names they should also know, like Magnus Hirschfeld, Alan Turing and Christine Jorgensen. Many of the topics covered in the book could be considered sensitive, but Pohlen expertly translates the events, people and issues he addresses into relatable and age-appropriate reading for young readers. As a bonus, the book contains more than 20 activities to help readers put what they’re learning into practice; for instance, in the section detailing the history of LGBT organizations like the Mattachine Society, it provides a how-to guide for forming a cause-related club. While “Gay & Lesbian History for Kids” is designed for younger audiences, its

neatly packaged abundance of information — supplemented by well-executed illustrations — would make it an engaging read for LGBT and ally audiences of any age. — J.C. “Gay and Catholic: Accepting My Sexuality, Finding Community, Living My Faith” By Eve Tushnet Religion/ Spirituality Tushnet, an openly gay Catholic faithful to the church’s teaching regarding celibacy, has written a complicated book. Part One offers a cursory sketch of her life. Tushnet came out as a lesbian at 13, participated in Washington, D.C.’s, thriving punk scene, and matriculated at Yale. Throughout, she drank too much. In college she met Catholics whose faith impressed her. By her sophomore year, she had converted — much to the dismay of her loving Jewish parents. Part Two functions as a spiritual guide. Tushnet argues for an expanded view of vocation, one offering more opportunities to Catholics who enter the priesthood or marriage. “Spiritual friendship” is one such alternative. In her opinion, it is a vocation uniquely suited to gay Catholics. By “spiritual friendship,” she means a committed, loving, non-sexual bond approaching kinship. “Spiritual friendship,” she emphasizes, is about service, not sacrifice. Clearly, Tushnet’s calling is not for everyone, but she raises issues of community, faith and sexuality that deserve a wider hearing. — Ray Simon “God in Pink” By Hasan Namir Fiction First-time author Namir has penned a gripping and poignant story of two Muslim men coping with life and religion in 2003 war-torn Iraq. Ramy is a young gay man who is being coerced into a mixed-gender marriage by his brother. Ammar closeted his homosexual feelings and followed traditions and religion, shunning his sexuality and marrying a woman, fathering a child. “Pink” is the word that Ramy is told to wait to hear from the sheikh during prayer, signifying an ally to talk to. The story alternates between Ramy and Ammar, each looking for solace in his own way and each struggling with a society that would just as soon kill them for being

“lotee.” How each man reconciles his sexuality within the strict religious teachings is only part of the day-to-day living. They must confront family, friends and members of the community who whisper, pray and threaten their suspected lifestyle — including reacting to outside verbal and physical stimuli, including women. The angel Gabriel appears to each man at times, probing what he considers private thoughts and feelings, and drives each to continue his own self-identification. The encounters are thought-provoking and draw the reader into a personal internal dialogue. The stories run parallel for much of this short, powerful book. When the two finally meet and open up to each other, their encounter stirs thoughts, loins, emotions and trouble. Ramy seeks guidance from Ammar, Ammar stands his personal ground and yet is torn between counseling Ramy religiously versus sympathetically. What to do? Reader alert: There are some very graphic moments in this story. It is, after all, a tale of a group of people who have strong beliefs and feelings and have no qualms about settling affairs through violence — against others or themselves. Ramy finds someone to run away with in school friend Sammy, but they are stopped by a patrol and Ramy is devastated by the encounter, which haunts him. This book should be on everyone’s shelf — religious and non-religious alike. It is a raw, passionate, gritty tale of not only these two men who chose different paths, and are still making choices, but also of the many people around them who make their own life decisions to love, hate, accept, kill, tolerate or repel them. “God in Pink” makes one pause to consider how many other countries and cultures differ in so many ways that sometimes one feels there are only two options: have a loveless marriage or die rather than live a lie. — S.A.D. “I Can Give You Anything But Love” By Gary Indiana Memoir Indiana, an accomplished gay author, turns a gimlet eye on his youth in this anti-memoir, which recalls both his New Hampshire childhood and Manhattan’s downtown scene of the 1980s without nostalgia. But the book’s focus is the years 196976. Dropping out of Berkeley, Indiana joins a commune of druggy aesthetes who talk revolution and make porn films. Unfortunately, he’s raped at their San Francisco pad by a Hells Angel, prompting a breakdown. After recovering, Indiana moves to Los Angeles, where he works at dead-end jobs, engages in emotionless sex and does a lot of speed. L.A.’s arty-punk movement jumpstarts his ambition, but PAGE 34

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Get Out and Play

SPORTS PGN

Scott A. Drake

Giving a gift of Grizzlies or Gryphons Thomas Hormby, of the Nashville Grizzlies gay and inclusive rugby team, emailed me to announce they just released their 2016 fundraising calendar. The Grizzlies host the Bingham Cup, the world championship of gay rugby, in Nashville in May 2016. The tournament is named after Mark Bingham, who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacking and crash of United Flight 93. The Bingham Cup is the biggest tournament in the world for gay and inclusive teams, and this will be the first year it has been hosted in the Southern United States. Hormby said organizers have been playing a number of straight teams the past season for the first time and are working hard to raise money so the tournament is affordable to many. He also said their goal is to “create a safe space for players of all sexual orientations, backgrounds and experience levels to learn about the sport and have fun.” Our own Philadelphia Griffins RFC are also raising money to compete in Nashville next year. You can get more information on how to support the team or sponsor a player at philadelphiagryphons.org/donate. Grizzlies calendars can be

ordered at squareup.com/market/ NashvilleGrizzliesRFC/grizzlies-calendar. n

Short stops • Get Out and Play will be on hiatus the rest of the month, coming back strong Jan. 1, 2016. Have a great holiday, and a safe one also. And whether it stays nice longer this year or turns cold and snowy, remember to get out and play! n Thanks for another great year of sports and recreation. If you want to share a story idea, interview possibility or a fundraiser event where there are shirtless men, contact scott@epgn.com.

HOLIDAY DECORATIONS: Greater Philadelphia Flag Football League recently held its fall-season closing party at The Garage, near Ninth Street and Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia. Commissioner’s awards, team champions, MVP and most-improved players were just some of the many categories for the gorgeous shelf, neck and wall ornaments handed out. Watch for spring updates this winter at phillyflagfootball.com and look for some of the players at the DVLF TOY party Dec. 5 at Fire & Ice. Photos: Scott A. Drake

We put our energy into celebrating pride. At PECO, we’re proud to support the LGBT community. So much so that the Exelon family of companies was recently recognized with the “2014 Corporate Equality Index Best Place to Work for LGBT Employees” award. Not to mention, PECO received the “Best Business” award at the Pride Day LGBT Parade and Festival for the second year in a row. We’re committed to LGBT inclusion and equality because we believe that working with individuals with different perspectives and backgrounds drive some of the most powerful outcomes. It’s what makes us proud to be a part of Exelon and happy to celebrate the power of diversity.

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Family Portrait

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Suzi Nash

Ian Morrison: Donning drag down Broad Street This season is a big drag … as in big, fabulous drag! The fun starts Dec. 5 with GayBINGO! and its Fabulous BINGO Verifying Divas, and ends with Brittany Lynn and her Drag Mafia leading the Mummers Parade to start the New Year. We caught up with Morrison between shows to learn about the man under the wig and his talented alter ego. PGN: So do you and Brittany come from Philadelphia? IM: Yes, the Northeast. I’ve been in South Philly since I was 18. I moved right into town the second I could. PGN: A few words about the family? IM: My mom’s Italian-Catholic and my Dad’s British-Lithuanian-Jewish, so she went from Ottaviano to Goldstein and I went to Catholic school and Hebrew school. They divorced when I was about 4 and I have one brother and a half-sister from when my mother remarried; her name is Brittany Lynn. That’s where I got the name. PGN: What did you want to be when you grew up? IM: I wanted to be an actor, singer, model, dancer. I started trying out for shows at school when I was in the first grade; I started singing solos when I was 6. PGN: Do you remember your first show? IM: In first grade, I was already about 5-feet tall so I played the bear in “The Jungle Book” and sang “The Bear Necessities.” My first paid gig was at the TLA on South Street; I played Frankenfurter in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” And I did children’s theater all through junior and high school in the Northeast. PGN: What did the folks do? IM: My father was a VIP for Window Wizards; he retired and told me he was going to become an actor. I was like, “OK, sure.” He was about 61 at the time and he got in with Heery Casting. He’s now been on a million TV shows and several movies, from “Blue Bloods” to “Men in Black 3.” He’s played an Indian, a pilgrim, a judge — you name it. He’s got a SAG card now and works more as an actor than I do. And we have good genes so he can play from 45-75. I see him on TV all the time. My mom’s semi-retired but she always did accounting, which is funny because I suck at math. PGN: What was an early sign you were gay? IM: We grew up in Parkwood in the ’70s. I remember one night my babysitter couldn’t come so she sent her boyfriend, who had long, feathered hair like Keith Partridge

and I fell head over heels for him. Back then, “Happy Days” was the hot TV show and I remember thinking Anson Williams, who played Potsie, was the hottest thing. I knew as early as 4, when I was into Aquaman! Some people ask if it’s genetic or your surroundings; well, there was nothing gay surrounding me in Parkwood! It’s definitely innate. When I was 12, I was at a football party up the street with my dad. I was wearing a Sergio Valente shirt with my Jordache jeans, comb in the back pocket with feathered hair. I was 13, about to have my bar mitzvah, so I asked if I could have a beer. This woman overheard and said, “Excuse me, did you say bar mitzvah? We all thought you were a pretty girl!” Right in front of all my dad’s football friends! PGN: Oy vey! When did you come out? IM: I came out to my friends when I was 18. I was going to Temple and was president of the Lambda Alliance. I was scared to death to join but I needed to find some gay people. It’s funny, I was living in the Gayborhood and didn’t know it. Never noticed a single gay person or paper. So I joined the Temple group and they needed a leader so, in typical fashion for me, I stepped up even though I knew nothing about the gay community. I’m a dominant Pisces! But I felt like, if I was going to represent my people, I needed to come clean with my family. I always brought guys home for Christmas but no one ever questioned it. So when my mom picked me up from school, as we were in the car stuck in holiday traffic around City Hall, I told her that I was president of the Lambda club and told her what it meant. She just said OK. Three years later, I had to show her pictures of me in drag and that was a whole other story! I actually wrote a letter to my dad — we didn’t have cell phones at that time or I might have texted him! He was fine and a few years later, when I became Brittany Lynn, he gave me a closet in his house for all her clothes. He comes to all my shows and all the girls know him. He’s become a little celebrity in the Gayborhood; all the security and bar people know him. They have a daddy thing for my dad, which is funny. PGN: What was the first gay club you ever went to? IM: Hepburns. I remember there was a popcorn machine and fighting lesbians. [Laughs] Some of the kids from my student group tried to get me to go to The Bike Stop but I wasn’t ready to jump in like that. My weekends were mainly spent doing the Rocky Horror Show, and there were so many gay people there, I didn’t have the time or need to go clubbing. Then someone took me to Woody’s on a Wednesday, underage night. It was like the Abercrombie & Fitch catalog came to life!

I think the kids out today aren’t the boyish jocks they were back then. Now everyone is more gender-fluid. Ha! I sound like my dad: “Back when men were men.” My hair used to be down to my shoulders but once they brought me there, I got a haircut, contacts and got myself into shape. PGN: I read you described yourself as having a build like a linebacker with a voice like Mariah Carey. IM: [Laughs] My voice didn’t change until I was 23 or 24 so I was able to sing a high falsetto. In high school I sang with the sopranos but then like an idiot I started smoking when I was on tour. I can still sing falsetto — I do Barbra Streisand and Julie Andrews in my show. I think it’s some genetic mutation that allows me to sing and hit all those high notes. PGN: What was your favorite toy as a kid? IM: I grew up at a perfect time: the ’70s into ’80s when you had Star Wars, He-Man and all the big collectible toys at the same

time. He-Man came with these female characters like She-Ra and I collected them all. I also had Wonder Woman, the Bionic Man and the Bionic Woman. PGN: Lindsay Wagner! I think she solidified the fact that I was a lesbian. IM: Oh yeah! Love her. I think I had a crush on her too and Jodie Foster, until I found out that she was a girl! I’m a big nerd: I go to ComicCon and all those festivals.

PGN: What did you study at Temple? IM: JPRA: journalism, PR and advertising. I interned for Patti Tihey at PGN and became the associate editor for a few years. I did a column called The Buzz, obituaries and short stories. That woman drilled me! I hated it at first but grew to love it. Though I still have nightmares about using the Quark editing system. After PGN, I got a job with Gay Live, which was a phone-sex line. Back then, there was no Internet so we used chat lines. They were looking for someone to do their PR. I was 22 and they gave me an expense account and put me in charge of seven cities. My job was to hire boy models and throw parties and they flew me from city to city to meet with top promoters. I could write several books about what I saw and got to do in my 20s. It was great fun but also a lot of responsibility and work. After a while I burned out. Brittany was still thriving and paying the bills so I decided to focus on that and also became a bartender. PGN: Best or worst moment on stage? IM: Best? I got to open up for Sandra Bernhard as Brittany Lynn. Worst, in 1993 I had a little crappy studio apartment that my parents paid for, $300 a month (which shows you how long ago it was). But I wanted to make my own money. I got to play Alice in drag in the live-theater version of “The Brady Bunch,” which paid $15 a show. I was in school and, in typical starving-artist fashion, I was waiting tables at TGIFriday’s. Anne B. Davis, who was the original Alice, was in town doing “Funny Girl” at the Forrest Theatre. One day I went to work and my manager said, “I have a special guest in your station” and it was her. Oh my God! She was staying at the attached hotel and ordered the same thing every day: Photo: Suzi Nash filet medallions and a cup of merlot. The first time, I told her that I was a big fan and had studied her work. I said, “I’m almost embarrassed to tell you but I’m performing in ‘The Brady Bunch’ show right now.” She asked me who I played and I told her. I pulled out the playbook and asked if she’d autograph it. Her face just dropped and she said, all offended, “You’re playing me? In drag?” Turns out she was a bornagain Christian and PAGE 38

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PGN LISTINGS

Cynthia Nixon talks new works and roles By Gary M. Kramer PGN Contributor

didn’t triumph, but they learned things that make them richer. They would gladly trade in what they learned to still be alive. I think the film says life is endlessly interesting, compelling, seductive, hard — really hard — and brutal. The best we can do is be honest and do right by the people we love. It’s not a movie about the redemptive power of suffering.

Out actor Cynthia Nixon is having a moment. She is currently receiving raves — she was just nominated for an Independent Spirit Award — for her role as Gail White, the mother of the title character (played by Christopher Abbott) in “James White.” PGN: There is a very powerful The drama, which involves scene in a bathroom between Gail battling stage-four canGail and James that shows how cer, opens Friday at the Ritz they sometimes cope. Can you at the Bourse. talk about that scene? Nixon is also earning CN: I think that when you raise praise for directing Mark CYNTHIA NIXON AND children, you want to be sure Gerrard’s off-Broadway play CHRISTOPHER ABBOTT the lessons you had to convey “Steve,” about five gay men IN “JAMES WHITE” are conveyed. Parents repeat and a lesbian all having midPhoto: Matyas Erdely themselves endlessly with these life crises. This week, another archetypal stories. That scene off-Broadway production, “MotherStruck,” a one-woman show starring in the bathroom is an expression of love, and out poet and performance artist Staceyann Chin what James does is show her that he knows her values and shares them. At their root, Gail and directed by Nixon, begins previews. Nixon chatted — literally while on her way and James are both writers. He’s writing a to the Gotham Awards ceremony — with PGN short story for her, and she, being his teacher, about “James White,” “Steve” and other proj- is also his editor. In that scene, she has a line she wants him to change. It’s a moment of ects. them collaborating together as if they were writing partners. Working with Chris, I threw PGN: What appealed to you about playing him the ball, and he threw the ball back just Gail in “James White”? as hard. CN: I identify with so much of the character — personally as a mother, and as the daughter PGN: Shifting gears, you have received of my own mother. I recognized myself and some very nice notices for “Steve,” playing my mother in Gail. One of the things I like off-Broadway right now. Can you talk about about the film is that, although that it has a disease in it, it is about James’ and Gail’s rela- that project? CN: It’s by Mark Gerard, a first-time playtionship, and his getting away from her intact wright. It has comical and more tragic and honoring her while moving from adolesmoments depicting the mid-life crisis of the cence into adulthood. It was nice to play a LGBT movement. In the wake of all these new mother whose universe doesn’t rise and set on her child. There are happy and unhappy things rights that were ungraspable, now that we’re at the table with them, we have to decide what in her life, such as unfulfilled ambitions. we are going to do with our new options. It’s about the perils of assimilation. You’re gratPGN: How was Gail different from Vivian ified and proud, but you also think about the Bearing, another terminally ill character you loss of community, and not being on the outplayed in “Wit”? side anymore. CN: Vivian Bearing is at the top of her profession. Gail is a failed writer, whose life is PGN: As an out actor, do you have thoughts unsuccessful. But what Gail has done that about taking queer roles? Vivian hasn’t is that she’s had deep, intense CN: I would love to! I tried hard to play a personal relationships with her husband and lesbian character in a Neil LaBute play. I did son. So when Gail looks back on her life, she Eleanor Roosevelt in “Warm Springs,” and has anxiety and concern about her son — if he’s going to be OK without her. She has faith we were going to do a sequel with her and [her relationship with] Lorena Hickok, but that he will, since she’s invested so heavily we never got HBO to produce it. It’s not for in him, even though he is a fractured person. lack of trying. It’s a pleasure to be able to do After years of giving, Gail has to learn to be selfish: “It’s my turn, you have to show up for “Steve,” but [queer content] is not the first thing I look for. The first thing is the part. The me!” She has to assert her own individuality. lesbian parts I’ve been in love with, and tried Vivian is learning to have deep interpersonal to push for, we haven’t pulled off yet. relationships; she’s been selfish all her life. She needs to be vulnerable and fragile and she PGN: You are up for an Independent Spirit needs to connect with another person. Award and there is some Oscar buzz for your PGN: Is it tough, emotionally, physically por- role in “James White.” How do you handle that attention? traying illness on screen (or stage)? CN: What I find as an actor is that you can go CN: You just think it’s really nice that anyone through heavy, painful things if your character thinks it’s a possibility. The idea that anyone is wins or earns something, comes away in some talking about it is nice. That’s something I can take home. n way richer than they started. Gail (and Viv)

DANCING THROUH THE HOLIDAYS: Acclaimed Philadelphia modern-dance company Philadanco gets into the holiday spirit with “X-Mas Philes,” which brings bold, colorful, contemporary dance interpretations to seasonal classics such as “Silent Night,” “Jingle All The Way,” “White Xmas” and much more Dec. 11-13 at Kimmel’s Perelman Theater, 250 S. Broad St. For more information or tickets, call 215-790-5800.

at Forrest Theatre, 1114 Walnut St.; 215-923-1515.

Innovation Studio, 260 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800.

Audubon to Warhol: The Art of American Still Life Philadelphia Museum of Art presents a survey of American still life through Jan. 10, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100.

A Christmas Story, The Musical The holiday musical-comedy tells the beloved story of a boy and his quest for a BB gun through Jan. 10 at Walnut Street Theatre, 825 Walnut St.; 215-574-3550.

Genghis Khan: Bring the Legend to Life The Franklin Institute presents the story of one of the world’s greatest leaders through Jan. 3, 20th Street and the Parkway; www. fi.edu.

Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery A comedy-thriller based on the classic sleuth runs through Dec. 27 at Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St.; 215-985-0420.

The Complete Firebird The Philadelphia Orchestra performs French compositions through Dec. 5 at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 260 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800.

Theater & Arts

Billy Elliot Media Theatre presents the story of one boy’s passion for ballet over the boxing ring through Jan. 3, 104 E. State St., Media; 610891-0100.

Contempra DANCE Theatre’s Philly Nutt Crak-Up The nutty holiday take-off on the classic Nutcracker story, Dec. 11-13 at Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St.; 215-925-9914.

The Book of Mormon The blockbuster musical-comedy about the misadventures of a pair of missionaries, sent halfway across the world to spread the Good Word, runs through Dec. 27

A Drag Queen with a Very Large … Vocabulary The Kimmel Center presents Martha Graham Cracker performing theatrical songs 8 p.m. Dec. 4 at SEI

George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker The Pennsylvania Ballet performs the holiday tradition Dec. 11-31 at Kimmel’s Academy of Music, 250 S. Broad St.; 215-7905800. I’ll Be Home for Christmas Spectacular The Philly Pops perform Christmas classics through Dec. 22 at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 260 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800. James Kaplan The “Vanity Fair” and “Esquire” contributor and author of “Sinatra: The Chairman” hosts a reading 7:30 p.m. Dec. 10 at Central Library, 1901 Vine St.; 215-686-5322.

Judah Friedlander The comedian performs through Dec. 5 at Helium Comedy Club, 2031 Sansom St.; 215-496-9001. Multitude, Solitude: The Photographs of Dave Heath Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition of the acclaimed photographer’s blackand-white pictures through Feb. 21, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100. PGMC Concert: Bells, Brass and the Boys The holiday concert showcases traditional holiday music through Dec. 5 at Lutheran Church of the Holy Communion, 2111 Sansom St.; 215567-3668. Side Show Penn Players present Bill Russel and Henry Kreiger’s story about performing conjoined twins who have opposing dreams for their lives through Dec. 5 at Harold Prince

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PGN LISTINGS

Arch St.; 215922-6888.

Nightlife A Very Martha Stewart Christmas GayBINGO! Holiday BINGO starts 8 p.m. Dec. 5 at Gershman Y, 401 S. Broad St.; 215545-4400.

WISHING YOU A JAZZY CHRISTMAS: World-renowned saxophonist Kenny G. gets into the spirit of the holidays with a concert 8 p.m. Dec. 10 at Keswick Theatre, 291 N. Keswick Ave. For more information or tickets, call 215572-7650.

Theatre, 3680 Walnut St.; 215898-3900. Tammy Pescatelli The comedian performs Dec. 9-12 at Helium Comedy Club, 2031 Sansom St.; 215-496-9001. This Is The Week That Was 1812 Productions brings back the city’s hottest political comedy through Dec. 31 at Plays & Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey St.; 215-592-9560. Work on What You Love: Bruce Mau Rethinking Design Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition of designs by the acclaimed commercial artist through April 3, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-7638100. The Wrath of the Gods: Masterpieces by Rubens, Michelangelo and Titian Philadelphia Museum of Art

presents an exhibition exploring paintings and the creative processes of some of art history’s most important figures through Jan. 10, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100. Yannick Conducts Messiah The Philadelphia Orchestra performs a holiday program Dec. 11-12 at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 260 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800.

Music Justine Skye The R&B singer-songwriter and model performs 8 p.m. Dec. 5 at the Trocadero Theatre, 1003 Arch St.; 215-922-6888. Monica The R&B singer performs 8 p.m. Dec. 8 at TLA, 334 South St.; 215922-1011. Q102 Jingle Ball Pop stars Selena Gomez, Five

Seconds of Summer, Calvin Harris and more perform 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9 at Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St.; 215-389-9543. Vanessa Carlton The singer-songwriter performs 8 p.m. Dec. 9 at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St.; 215-222-1400. Evan Dando The Lemonheads singer performs 11 p.m. Dec. 11 at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St.; 215-222-1400. The Get Up Kids The rock band celebrates its 20th anniversary 8 p.m. Dec. 11 at the Trocadero Theatre, 1003

TOY 2015 The Delaware Valley Legacy Fund’s annual holiday fundraising event, 8 p.m. Dec. 5 at Fire & Ice Lounge, 312 Market St.; 267273-1003. Howard Louis: Intimate and Acoustic The singer-songwriter performs 9 p.m. Dec. 10 at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St.; 215-964-9675.

Outta Town 1964 … The Tribute The Beatles tribute band performs 8 p.m. Dec. 4 at Keswick Theatre, 291 N. Keswick Ave.; 215-5727650. Rare Exports The dark fantasy-holiday film is screened 9:45 p.m. Dec. 4 at The Colonial Theatre, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610917-1228. 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 Dec. 4-10, 2015

Philly filmmakers premiere queer indie By Gary M. Kramer PGN Contributor The micro-budget queer indie film “Driving Not Knowing,” partly set and shot in Philadelphia, will premiere locally at PhilaMOCA, 531 N. 12th St., at 7 p.m. Dec. 6. The semi-improvised drama — about the unrequited feelings between Will, a poet (Dane Mainella), and Lee (Jay Jadick), a musician — was co-directed by the actors with Benjamin R. Davis and Dylan Hansen-Fliedner. At the time of the production, the four filmmakers were all students at the University of Pennsylvania, except Davis, who attended Temple University. Early scenes in the film are set at the Kelly Writers House and the Institute of Contemporary Art on UPenn’s campus, as well as outside PhilaMOCA. Mainella, who is straight, chatted with PGN about making “Driving Not Knowing.” The actor/writer/director said that the semi-autobiographical story was “a natural derivation” of his and Jadick’s lives. “We drew on our own personalities and interests. We were both very interested in music, poetry and the arts, so it was natural for the characters to be artists,” he said. “As far as their romantic relationship, or their conflicted relationship, we drew on our own relationships — not with each other — but with other people in college.” The two actors were freshman-year roommates at Penn. Jadick (along with Hansen-Fliedner) had joined an alternative fraternity, Pilam, and Mainella was in a traditional male fraternity. Mainella eventually reconnected with Jadick after they had a falling out. The film creates sexual and dramatic tension when Jay becomes frustrated with Will and life in Philly, and returns to the Northeastern Pennsylvania town of Tunkhannock. Lee invites Will and his roommate Jo (Emily Rea) to come out for a visit. While in the country, the two men re-examine their lives and relationship. “Driving Not Knowing” unfolds organically, and it was made in an organic style as well. According to Mainella, much of the film was written as they were in production. “It was a movie we wanted to make for ourselves from the onset,” he said. “At the beginning, we tried not to worry about the idea of directors. Jay and I will act and direct ourselves, and Ben and Dylan would be behind the camera.” The filmmakers shared the directing credit because they all did the same amount of work. Mainella explained, “All four of us also edited the film. That put the most strain on things, because it’s hard to make a group cut. It was a good experiment to find our strengths and fig-

ure out what we’ll do in the future. It’s like the nature of the film itself — the roles aren’t defined, and the nature of the characters’ sexuality or artistic endeavors are not fully mapped out.” He added, after a beat, “But that wasn’t conscious. Everything was fluid, and unlabeled, and that is what attracted me to this group.” “Driving Not Knowing” involves the characters mostly hanging out and talking (or not talking) about their emotions. A beautiful scene around a campfire in Tunkhannock captures the lazy rhythm in the characters’ lives as they grapple with their uncertain future. Poetry is read and conversations bleed into one other, creating a hazy experience. Mainella likens it to “getting drunk in a new place.” Likewise, an exchange between Will and Lee at a waterfall creates meaning through the use of silence; the filmmaker said he wanted to capture “the tiredness of going on a hike with your best friend and just thinking about things.” The country scenes have “a mystical quality” to them, Mainella observes, indicating the inspiring natural beauty of the rivers and mountains, and the nostalgia the place has for Jadick and several cast and crew members who are from Tuckhannock. That said, Philadelphia was also very important to the filmmakers, and Mainella himself spent considerable time at the Kelly Writers House, which he called “a haven for writers and poets,” and at the Institute of Contemporary Art, where he worked for two years. Ultimately, Mainella described the feeling he was looking to replicate in the film as “that floating period in a lot of young American lives when college is coming to an end, and they are not really sure what they are passionate about or what they want to do. Will they fall into the temptation of conflicted relationship after conflicted relationship, or direct that energy and conflict in themselves to a more productive lifestyle?” Will and Lee may be unsure if they are in love, and the film deliberately does not provide an answer, asking audiences to fill in the blanks. Mainella said this was precisely the film’s intent. He is “not as concerned with making an overtly political statement as he is in presenting an issue in a manner that is more concerned with aesthetics, and the reality of the situation, and these characters’ lives.” n After the PhilaMOCA screening, there will be a Q&A with all four filmmakers, followed by a live performance by the film’s composer, Charley Ruddell, under the name ScooterJinx x Fouwam. For more information, visit www.philamoca.org or call 267-519-9651.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

GIFTS from page 28

even there he remains an outsider. Throughout, that narrative is intercut with present-day reflections written from Havana, where Indiana turns for refuge and for the hustlers. There’s minimal name-dropping — usually other avantgarde artists he admires, like Werner Schroeter — but he’s highly critical of Susan Sontag, whom he knew well. All in all, a flinty, cerebral read. — R.S. “Kyle’s Bed & Breakfast: Without Reservations” By Greg Fox Graphic novel If you’d rather consume your “Kyle’s Bed & Breakfast” comic strips in large quantities instead of having them parceled out to you every two weeks in PGN, good news! The latest volume of the popular gay comic strip has hit the shelves in time for the holidays. Set in the picturesque harbor town of Northport, on the North Shore of Long Island, the titular B&B owner Kyle remains the calm center among the drama, romance, intrigue and sometimes-humorous situations surrounding the colorful cast of characters, including closeted baseball player Brad, businessman Lance, party boy Richard and college student Eduardo. It really does work better telling its stories and fleshing out the characters as a full-color graphic novel instead of a bi-weekly and often black-and-white comic strip in the pages of this newspaper. So curl up and take a virtual weekend getaway this holiday season. — L.N. “Me Being Me is Exactly as Insane as You Being You” By Todd HasakLowy Fiction Early in HasakLowy’s young adult novel, “Me Being Me is Exactly as Insane as You Being You,” Darren finds out his dad is gay. It’s the reason his parents divorced two years ago. In a chapter called “10 significant implications of the new situation Darren considers while staring out of a CTA bus window, which causes him to totally miss his stop and have to walk more than half a mile to get home,” Darren lists every reaction he has, from wondering if he’s gay because his dad is, to thinking of guys his dad could be dating.

FEATURE PGN

The novel came out in March and unfolds entirely in run-on lists. It’s not the kind of prose that obsesses over how gay people think of and talk about themselves. Darren certainly doesn’t worry about saying the right thing as he processes his shock. He mostly wants to avoid his father after the latter comes out during a conversation over chocolate doughnuts. “It’s completely unclear if the whole concept of bisexuality, whatever that means, exactly, would make any of this any better at all,” Darren lists at one point, before adding, “It’s got to feel pretty weird to know you were married to someone for so long who doesn’t (and maybe even didn’t ever really) like your gender, in a sexual way.” Still, the book captures a specific reaction. Darren undertakes the mission of getting to know his dad, possibly for the first time in a real way. The 561-page book is a quick read; all the listing leaves plenty of white space. — P.C. “Not Gay: Sex Between Straight White Men” By Jane Ward Queer Theory/ LGBT Studies Plenty of straight guys have sex with other men while protesting vehemently that they are “not gay.” This provocative book is an attempt to understand that phenomenon. Ward, an unabashed queer, reviews earlier scholarship on tearooms and military-initiation ceremonies. She’s also watched plenty of “fraternity hazing porn.” In her opinion, the construction of heterosexuality actually requires lots of homosexual contact. To rationalize this, the typical “str8 ex frat jock seeking same” found on Craigslist claims that his same-sex encounters were repulsive, experimental or done under duress. Ward labels this “hetero-exceptionalism,” an alibi, essentially, allowing straight men to have gay sex without surrendering their privilege or acknowledging that these hookups are pleasurable. What makes straight men who have sex with other men heterosexual, Ward argues, isn’t what they do in the bedroom. It’s their investment in heteronormative culture, a way of life considered normal and natural, even if it is sustained by homophobia, misogyny and racism. What’s Ward’s antidote? Queer solidarity. — R.S. “Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg” By Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik Biography

When a millennial journalist and a socialmedia-savvy law student get together to tell the story of a newly minted feminist icon, the result is the buzzy “Notorious RBG,” which came out in October. Knizhnik, the law student, started a Tumblr blog in 2013 comparing U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Notorious B.I.G., the East Coast rapper who was murdered in 1997. Carmon, the journalist, has interviewed Ginsburg and others close to the justice. Their 191-page coffee-table book offers a Twitter-friendly life story of Ginsburg, the second female justice on the Supreme Court (Sandra Day O’Connor was the first). Ginsburg became an Internet sensation in recent years in the wake of strong dissents against court opinions that curbed reproductive rights and the Voting Rights Act. She also voted in favor of same-sex marriage nationwide. In her dissent for Shelby County v. Holder, the case that gutted a pivotal portion of the Voting Rights Act, Ginsburg wrote that the decision was “like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.” Carmon described how Ginsburg tempered her zinger with pragmatism: “RBG quoted Martin Luther King directly: ‘The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice,’ she said. But then she added her own words: ‘if there is a steadfast commitment to see the task through to completion.’ Not exactly poetry. But pure RBG. On or off the bench, she has always been steadfast, and when the work is justice, she has every intention to see it to the end.” Carmon wrote the book and culled the images, while Knizhnik helped with reporting. The images help sell the book with illustrated timelines of Ginsburg’s life and court documents from early in her law career. The chapters, named for lyrics from Notorious B.I.G. tracks, can be read in almost any order. The book serves as a celebration of RBG for people who already know and love her, or a broad jumping-off point for people to decide where to read further. — P.C. “The Rise and Fall of the Yellow House” By John Whittier Treat Fiction This debut novel, set in 1983, has Jeff, a history professor, relocating from New York (where his friends are dying of AIDS) to Seattle. He eventually meets Henry, a younger man with a self-de-

structive streak. Meanwhile, Nan buys the titular Yellow House after getting divorced. She opens it up as a meeting place for gay men with addictions. Jeff, a drunk, and Henry, a junkie, eventually move into Nan’s house to try getting clean and sober. Their efforts — and their relationship — are continually tested, and the book is best when they talk candidly about their feelings. Henry is tempted to use by his drug-dealing half-brother Greg, and his ex, Ryan, a Jeff lookalike; Jeff is afraid of AIDS, but has risky trysts in bathhouses and elsewhere. Treat captures the hope and fears of his characters with an authenticity that makes readers care about them — even when they make bad decisions about drinking, drugging and unsafe sex. “The Rise and Fall of the Yellow House” may not be an uplifting novel, but it is a compelling one. — G.M.K. “Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel” By Sara Farizan Fiction This perceptive young-adult novel — written for teens coming to terms with their sexual identity — features Leila, a curvy Persian-American 16-year-old who already feels “different.” As such, she is not quite ready to discuss her lady-love inclinations with her classmates or her conservative family. A junior at Armstead Academy, however, Leila can’t suppress her desire for a glamorous new student, Saskia, who takes her bra shopping, kisses her and also toys with her affections. While Saskia’s behavior is often questionable, Leila finds surprising comfort and support from her childhood friend, Lisa. Farizan captures the voice of teenage angst well as Leila experiences embarrassment, shame, desire and fear in equal measure. Life in high school may be the stuff of high drama, but “Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel” engages as Leila develops her confidence meeting other gay and lesbian students, confiding in an understanding teacher, working on the school play and attending the big dance. Farizan’s book is charming as Leila gets both wisdom and a girlfriend. n — G.M.K.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Out couple chairs industrial art show

DR. SANDRA L. TATMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE ATHENAEUM, AND JOHN SCHMIECHEN, CHAIRMAN OF THE ART EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTING THE INDUSTRY OF PHILADELPHIA By Paige Cooperstein paige@epgn.com After belonging to The Athenaeum for a decade, John Schmiechen and his husband Theodore Lewis decided to organize an art exhibition in the space. Schmiechen, an artist, works in oil on canvas and specializes in Philadelphia cityscapes. The couple started last year by chairing a show featuring historic properties to celebrate the bicentennial of The Athenaeum, a scholarly society in Old City. This year, the theme is industry. Fifty artists from the Philadelphia area were selected to exhibit their work — from photographs and paintings to prints and drawings — in the Dorothy W. & F. Otto Haas Gallery on the main floor. An opening ceremony takes place from 2-4 p.m. Dec. 6. There will be wine and hors d’oeuvres. The exhibition runs through Jan. 2. The jury includes Dr. Sandra L. Tatman, executive director of The Athenaeum; Dr. Danielle Rice, program director of museum leadership at Drexel University; and Cameron J. Mactavish, an architect and founder of Voith & Mactavish Architects. They chose works from more than 200 submissions. Rice and Mactavish will award

top prizes and Tatman will cast the tie-breaking vote if needed. Last year, $30,000 worth of art was sold, Schmiechen said. The money supports The Athenaeum and the artists. “The artists really worked hard on interpreting the theme,” Lewis said, noting the variety of images, from trains and bridges to textiles. “We had talked about the fact that a lot of industry has left the city,” Schmiechen said. “But then we noted there’s a lot of good going on too and we wanted to capitalize on that.” The Navy Yard has experienced a renaissance over the last decade and Urban Outfitters, the site’s largest employer with eight buildings, has committed to renovating more warehouses over the next few years. “I hope people take away a real appreciation of the past and present of this great city’s contribution to industry,” Schmiechen said. Tatman said she laid out the artwork by its themes: trains and bridges, texture, ships, pure industry and women’s work (like sewing and lace-making). She said Jim Carroll, scanning technician at The Athenaeum, added a visual logic to the work in each theme. n For more information, visit www.philaathenaeum.org.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

PORTRAIT from page 31

was not amused. She asked me, “Does [show creator] Sherwood Schwartz know you’re doing this?” I felt like, I’m just an actor getting $15 you old bag, get lost. That Sunday I went in and the cast was sitting around looking grim. It turns out we didn’t have permission and we’d received a cease-anddesist letter from Sherwood Schwartz. [Laughs] In some ways that was cool — having a personal letter from the guy who created “The Brady Bunch” — but it was a bummer because the show had just caught on and was getting full houses. I had my heart in it and she shut us down. When she showed up to eat that night, we did things to her food … I took the grossest, most disgusting, off-the-floor breadstick and shoved it down my pants. I walked around with it and it was all over the place down there. I popped it in the microwave and served it to her as the whole staff looked and laughed. Tip: Never mess with the people who serve your food! [Laughs] I also met Steve Guttenberg and told him that I jerked off while watching him in “Cocoon.” I meet a lot of B- and C-list celebrities. PGN: One of whom was Dennis Rodman … IM: Yes, I was asked to be his bodyguard as Brittany in a Superwoman costume and got to hang out with him and porn vixen Jenna Jameson for two days. It was insane. PGN: Were those the drug days? IM: It’s funny: As Ian, I don’t drink, but Brittany can party. It’s a weird dichotomy. When I first started doing drag, the older ladies like Sandy Beach, my drag mother, introduced me to liquor. I’d started doing Rocky Horror at TLA, which was owned by Electric Factory, and they had anything any rock band might want backstage in the dressing rooms. I tried everything in one summer: acid, mushrooms, pot, hash, cocaine. I can’t imagine it now! But back then, when we were working the clubs on Delaware Avenue, they’d

give out pay envelopes with hits of ecstasy and other drugs in them, just because. But no matter how messed up I was, my brain wouldn’t allow me to make stupid mistakes. For all the things I could have, should have, I always played safe and was either in a monogamous relationship or celibate. PGN: One of your hallmarks as Brittany is that you sing live. IM: Yes, I learned from the old girls, some of the great ones. I’d go to see their shows in New York and not only were they funny, they sang live, and Philly didn’t have that. People lip-synched, so they had to wait for Whitney to make a song and then they’d fight over who got to do it. I wanted to be a comic, but they wouldn’t let me do it as Ian — but the moment I put on that dress, I was in. Singing and doing comedy was what distinguished me from the others; still does. PGN: Last time you kissed under the mistletoe? IM: Ha. I think I kissed my good girlfriend Jim Kenney on the cheek at Mark Segal’s Christmas party last year. PGN: Who would you contact at a séance? IM: When Phyllis Diller was here for Pride, I got to interview her. It was one of my greatest moments ever. She was so sweet. She told me I was great and told me if I ever had any problems to call her agent, Bert something. She’s since passed away and I’d love to speak to her again. She was a hoot. PGN: Ever been in jail, even as a visitor? IM: No, I really am a goody two shoes. Despite all the drugs that have passed through my hands! PGN: Most unusual possession? IM: Position? Oh, possession. For my 40th birthday I did a show at Pro Bar in Atlantic City. Councilman Squilla, Jim Kenney and Scott Brown got together with Jim Julia, president

PROFILE PGN

of the Mummers, and they surprised me with a citation from the city. I was in tears. A gay drag queen being honored by the city! If I could carry it around with me all day I would. I have it framed like wall art in my bedroom. It’s my most treasured possession. PGN: Tell me about the Mummers Parade. IM: In 2012, we had a big meeting to build more inclusion in the Mummers Day Parade. They wanted the community involved and approached me about having a drag brigade. I gathered 10 of my girlfriends and we represented. We got to march at the Convention Center in between the Fancy Brigades. However, they didn’t know what to do with us. In the two minutes while they were cleaning up between the huge Fancy Brigade numbers, one of us came out alone and did a short song. It was the proudest and most uncomfortable moment at once! But it was a first step. The next year they let me co-host on Channel 17 … me, the hot weather guy, Adam [Joseph], Miss Philadelphia and Tony Luke. Go figure. This year, we’re marching at the very front of the parade. [Laughs] It’s early and not many people are up but what a great feeling to have a bunch of drag queens lead the parade — which is the nation’s second-oldest tradition — and feel so welcomed. The first year, we all thought we’d get shot, but now we take pictures with babies and old ladies, policemen … other Mummers leave their areas to come take photos with us and the club houses have really taken us under their wings. I’ve formed a committee with Michael Byrne of GayBINGO! and it’s expanded. It’s pretty incredible, all these old South Philly codgers hanging out with gay and trans men and women. What a great way to start the year. n For more information about Brittany Lynn and the Drag Mafia, visit http:// phillydragmafia.com/brittany-lynn/.

Q Puzzle What Utah taught you Across

1. Openly lesbian Jackie Biskupski was just elected mayor here (with 39- and 42-Across) 5. Takes off 10. Balls of queens 14. “Would ___ to you?” 15. Head dog 16. Publisher of same-sex couples’ legal guide 17. “Sin City” star Jessica 18. Sashay 19. Member 20. Start of what Utah taught about a lesbian couple? 23. Contemporary of Schubert 24. ___ B’rith 25. Caesar’s way 28. Really go after 32. Deck foursome 36. It grows on you 38. Diana’s accessory 39. See 1-Across 40. Org. for ending AIDS 42. See 1-Across 43. Tatum of “The Bad News Bears” 45. The Crystals’ “___ Rebel” 46. Greek love 47. Ted Casablanca item 49. Balkan

dweller 51. Vibrator in a mouthpiece 53. Last stop before home 57. More of what Utah taught 63. Off-Broadway prize 64. Like someone blown away 65. Take a risk 66. City of Baudelaire’s land 67. “Our” for Ulrichs 68. La Douce role of Shirley 69. “___ me!” (computer nerd’s taunt?) 70. Wife and wife, for example 71. End of what Utah taught

Down

1. “The King and I” setting 2. Islam’s deity 3. Martina’s sign 4. Wet-eyed 5. TV wife of two gay Dicks 6. Sink problem 7. Recess at St. Peter’s 8. “Dawson’s Creek” network 9. “We are everywhere,” e.g. 10. Precariously situated, especially for Doug Mattis 11. Cheer for the Chicago Sky,

e.g. 12. Pleasure orally 13. Like autoeroticism 21. “The Last King of Scotland” character 22. Having no play 26. A pop 27. Removing the foreskin and more 29. Like my lady, on Broadway 30. “... ___ take arms against ...” (“Hamlet”) 31. Catch them at P-town 32. Loads 33. Permission request 34. Barely made, with “out” 35. South Beach cooler 37. Trojan Horse, e.g. 41. Wife and wife,

e.g. 44. Property right 48. The monotony of monogamy, e.g.? 50. All-natural food no-no 52. Journalist Minkowitz 54. Urvashi Vaid’s birthplace 55. Update the arsenal 56. Skin layer 57. Where orientation is determined, some say 58. Heed a master 59. Fly catcher 60. Witch’s area in “The Wizard of Oz” 61. Popeye’s ___’ Pea 62. “Giant” James

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Classifieds All real-estate advertising is subject to Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), as amended. Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), as amended, prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18), and handicap (disability). PGN will not knowingly accept any realestate advertising that is in violation of any applicable law.

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.

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Happy New Years? If your bar or restaurant has plans for special Holiday meals or a New Years Eve package, its not too soon to start to get the word out.

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(215) 625-8501

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BENT CREEK DRIVE, LITITZ, PA.

This custom, cedar shake, Simeral-built home with 4 bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms is completed by a first floor master bedroom suite, a kitchen with a butler’s pantry, and courtyard surrounded by a custom Walpole fence constructed of Azek material. $895,000.

© MMVI Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Les Bords de l’Epte a Giverny, used with permission. Sotheby’s International Realty® is a licensed trademark to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates, Inc. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated, Except Offices Owned And Operated By NRT Incorporated.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

SERVICES & HOME IMPROVEMENT DIRECTORY Your ad dollars go further when you target your audience This space: only $25 per week when you run for a minimum of 8 weeks.

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Friends Men LOOKING FOR ROMANCE Attractive GWM, warm, sensitive, caring, 48 y.o. with a smooth gymnast build looking for other GWM, 30-50, who is also in good shape. I live in NE Phila. I’m looking for guys who are also sensitive, caring with a fun personality. If this sounds interesting to you feel free to call me, David, 215-698-0215. ________________________________________39-48 WM, NE Phila. If you’re looking for hot action, call 215-934-5309. No calls after 11 PM. ________________________________________39-49

Massage David, 65, 6’, 200 lbs., attentive. 215-569-4949. (24/7) ________________________________________40-07

PGN

ADONIS CINEMA

“THE ONLY ALL MALE ADULT THEATER IN THE CITY”

2026 Sansom St (located 3 doors up from Sansom St Gym)

215-557-9319 4 Small Theaters with Video & Dark Room Area

HOURS OF OPERATION: Monday - Thursday

7am-6am

(closed an hour for cleaning)

1976 - 2 015

Friday- Sunday:

Proud to serve for 39, soon to be 40, years.

ADMISSION:

Open 24hrs $12.00

Eating Out Should Be Fun! Read PGN’s food reviews every second and fourth week of the month - and check out our archive of past reviews on epgn.com.

WEEKLY SPECIALS:

SUNDAY RELIEF

Half Price Rooms & Lockers (6am Sunday till 8am Monday) ROOMS: Members: $12.50 and Non-Members: $22.50 LOCKERS: Members: $9.00 and Non-Members: $19.00

MONDAY thru FRIDAY: (8am to 4pm) Business Mans Locker Special 4 hour lockers Members: $5.00 and Non-Members: $15.00 TUESDAYS

Half Price Rooms (6am till 12 Midnight) Members: $12.50 and Non-Members: $22.50

WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY NIGHT CRUISE $12 Flat Rate for Locker Admission & Clothing Optional (4pm-12 Midnight)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON DELIGHT 4 Hour Lockers (8am - 4pm) Members: $5.00 and Non-Members: $15.00

Check out our website for our WEEKLY SPECIALS & JOIN OUR e-mail List to get the latest information on upcoming events....

www.sansomstreetgym.com

BIGGER, BETTER & MORE ENTERTAINING EVENTS...

PGN

Men Delco Dudes A men’s social and support group meets 7-9 p.m. the first and third Wednesday of the month at Unitarian Universalist Church of Delaware County, 145 W. Rose Tree Road in Media; delco.dudes@ uucdc.org. Gay Married Men’s Association Meets 7-9 p.m. the second and fourth Wednesday of the month at William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St.; www. meetup.com/GAMMA-GayMarried-Mens-Support-Group-inPhiladelphia-PA. Men of All Colors Together Meets 7:30 p.m. the third Friday of the month, September through June, at William Way; 610-277-6595, www.MACTPhila.org. Men’s Coming Out Group, N.J. Meets 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays at The Pride Center of New Jersey; njwarrior@aol.com. Men of Color United A discussion/support group for gay and bisexual men of color meets 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays at 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-496-0330.

Parents/Families Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays/Bucks County Meets 7:30 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month at Penns Park United Methodist Church, 2394 Second Street Pike, Penns Park, and hird Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Warminster UCC, 785 Street Road; 215-348-9976. PFLAG/Chester County Meets 7 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month at the Unitarian Fellowship of West Chester, 501 S. High St.; 484-354-2448. PFLAG/Collingswood, N.J. Meets 6:30-9 p.m. the fourth Monday of the month at Collingswood Public Library, 771 Haddon Ave.; 609-202-4622, pflagcollingswood@yahoo.com. PFLAG/Media Meets 7 p.m. the second Tuesday of every month at the Unitarian Universal Church, 145 Rose Tree Rd.; 610-368-2021. PFLAG/Philadelphia Meets 2-5 p.m. the third Sunday of the month at the LGBT Center at the University of Pennsylvania, 3907 Spruce St.; 215-572-1833. PFLAG/Princeton, N.J. Meets 7:30 p.m. the second Monday of the month in the George Thomas Room at Trinity Church, 33 Mercer St.; 609-6835155. PFLAG/Wilmington, Del. Meets 7-9 p.m. the second Thursday of the month at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1502 W. 13th St.; 302-654-2995. Philadelphia Family Pride Advocacy, support and social network for LGBT families offers play groups, monthly kids and teen talk groups, activities and outings. Planning meetings held monthly; 215-600-2864, info@ phillyfamilypride.org, www. phillyfamilypride.org.

Trans Evolutions A drop-in support group for anyone on the transgender spectrum meets 6 p.m. Thursdays at 21 S. 12th St., eighth floor; 215-563-0652 ext. 235. Mazzoni Center Family and Community Medicine Primary health care and specialized transgender services in a safe, professional, nonjudgmental environment, 809 Locust St.; 215563-0658. T-MAN People-of-color support group for transmen, FTMs, butches, studs, aggressives, bois, genderqueer and all female-born individuals with gender questions meets 7:309:30 p.m. Mondays, 1201 Locust St., second floor; 215-632-3028, tmanphilly.com. Transhealth Information Project Sponsors a weekly drop-in center from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays and and 6:30-8:30 p.m. Fridays at 1207 Chestnut St., fifth floor; 215-8511822. Transgender Health Action Coalition Peer trans health-advocacy organization, 1201 Locust St., fourth floor; 215-732-1207. Young, Trans and Unified Support group for transgender and questioning individuals ages 13-23 meets 7:15 p.m. Thursdays at The Attic Youth Center, 255 S. 16th St.; 215-545-4331, www. atticyouthcenter.org.

Women Hanging Out With Lesbians A group in Central Pennsylvania that organizes concerts, camping, golf, picnics, hikes, plays and game nights in nonsmoking environments; http://groups.yahoo. com/group/howlofpa/. Lesbian Community of Delaware Valley Social group meets monthly for activities for gay women of all ages in Delaware, Chester and Montgomery counties; http:// groups.yahoo.com/group/LCDV/. Lesbian Couples Dining Group of Montgomery County Meets monthly; 215-542-2899. Mt. Airy Lesbian Social Club For lesbians in the Philadelphia area ages 35-plus; www.meetup. com/mtairylesbiansocial/. Queer Connections Social group for women in their 20s meets weekly; http:// groups.yahoo.com/group/ queerconnections/. Sisters United A social/support group for transwomen of color ages 13-24, with weekly social events, open discusson and monthly movie/ discussions meets 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays, 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-496-0330. Women Coming-Out Support Group Women, ages 18 and over, who consider themselves gay, lesbian, bisexual or questioning and are at any stage of the coming-out process are welcome to meet 7:30 p.m. the first Tuesday and third Thursday of the month at the Pride Center of New Jersey; www. pridecenter.org.

Youth 40 Acres of Change Discussion group for teen and young adults meets 6-8 p.m. Thursdays at The COLOURS Organization Inc., 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-851-1975. GLBT Group of Hunterdon County Social and support groups for youth, teens and young adults, as well as parents and family members, meet at North County Branch Library, 65 Halstead St. in Clinton, N.J.; schedule at www. glbtofhunterdoncountyofnj.com, 908-300-1058. HAVEN LGBT, intersex, questioning, queer and allied youth ages 14-20 meet 7-9 p.m. Wednesdays at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Lehigh Valley, 424 Center St., Bethlehem; 610-868-2153. HiTOPS A safe-space support program for LGBT and questioning youth meets 2:30-4:30 p.m. the first and third Saturdays at 21 Wiggins St., Princeton, N.J.; 609-683-5155, hitops.org. Main Line Youth Alliance Meets from 7-9:30 p.m. Fridays at 106 W. Lancaster Ave., Wayne; 610-688-1861, info@myaonline. org. Project Keeping it Safe LGBT youth drop-in center offers meetings, HIV and STD prevention and testing, counseling and other services on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 514 Cooper St., Camden, N.J.; 856963-2432, camden-ahec.org/. PRYSM Youth Center Youth ages 14-20 meet 6:30-8:30 p.m Wednesdays at the center, 126 East Baltimore Pike, Media; 610357-9948. Rainbow Room: Bucks County’s LGBTQ and Allies Youth Center Youth ages 14-21 meets 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays at Salem UCC Education Building, 181 E. Court St., Doylestown; 215-957-7981 ext. 9065, rainbowroom@ppbucks.org. Social X Change Social activity group for LGBT youth of color ages 13-23 meets 6-8 p.m. Tuesdays at 1207 Chestnut St., third floor; 215-851-1975. Space to be Proud, Open, and Together Open to all LGBTQ queer youth and allies, ages 14-21, the SPOT meets 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursdays at Planned Parenthood of Chester County, 8 S. Wayne St.; 267-6876648. Young, Trans and Unified A support group for transgender and questioning youth ages 13-23 meets 7:15 p.m. Thursdays at The Attic Youth Center; 215-545-4331, www.atticyouthcenter.org. You’re Not Alone Sponsored by AIDS Delaware, the group for gay, lesbian and bisexual youth meets during the school year at 100 W. 10th St., Suite 315, Wilmington, Del; 800-810-6776. Youth Making a Difference A group for LGBTQ AfricanAmerican and Latino youth ages 14-24 meets 5-7 p.m. Tuesdays at Camden AHEC, 514 Cooper St.; 856-963-2432.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

Community Bulletin Board 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. Groups meet and activities are held 4-7 p.m. Monday-Tuesday and 4-8:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday. Case management, HIV testing and smoking cessation are available Monday-Friday. ■ Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Center at the University of Pennsylvania 3907 Spruce St., 215-898-5044, center@dolphin. upenn.edu. Regular hours: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. MondayThursday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday; noon-6 p.m. Saturday; noon-8 p.m. Sunday. Summer hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

■ ActionAIDS: 215-981-0088

■ 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. Activities held 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays.

■ William Way Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center 1315 Spruce St.; 215-732-2220, www.waygay.org. Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays Peer counseling: 6-9 p.m. Monday-Friday Library: noon-9 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday Volunteers: New Orientation, first Wednesday of the month at 7:30 p.m.

Key numbers

■ AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania: 215-587-9377

■ Equality Pennsylvania: 215731-1447; www.equalitypa.org

■ AIDS Law Project of Southern New Jersey: 856-933-9500 ext. 221

■ Equality Forum: 215-732-3378

■ AIDS Library: 215-985-4851 ■ ACLU of Pennsylvania: 215592-1513 ■ AIDS Treatment Fact line: 800662-6080 ■ Barbara Gittings Gay and Lesbian Collection at the Independence Branch of the Philadelphia Free Library: 215-685-1633 n The COLOURS Organization Inc.: 215-496-0330

■ LGBT Peer Counseling Services: 215-732-TALK ■ Mazzoni Center: 215-563-0652; Legal Services: 215-563-0657, 866-LGBT-LAW; Family & Community Medicine: 215-563-0658 ■ Office of LGBT Affairs — Director Nellie Fitzpatrick: 215-6860330; helen.fitzpatrick@phila.gov

■ Philadelphia Police Department liaison — Deputy Commissioner Kevin Bethel: 215-6863318 ■ Philadelphia Police Liaison Committee: 215-760-3686 (Rick Lombardo); ppd.lgbt@gmail.com ■ Philly Pride Presents: 215875-9288 ■ SPARC — Statewide Pennsylvania Rights Coalition: 717-9209537 ■ Transgender Health Action Coalition: 215-732-1207 (staffed 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays and 6-9 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays)

■ Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (Philadelphia): 215-572-1833 ■ Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations: 215-686-4670

Health

Anonymous, free, confidential HIV testing Spanish/English counselors offer testing 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday at Congreso de Latinos Unidos, 216 W. Somerset St.; 215-763-8870. ActionAIDS Provides a range of programs for people affected by HIV/ AIDS, including case management, prevention, testing and education services at 1216 Arch St.; 215-981-0088, www. actionaids.org. GALAEI: A Queer Latin@ Social Justice Organization Free, anonymous HIV testing from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday at 1207 Chestnut St., fifth floor; noon-6 p.m. Tuesdays at the Washington West Project, 1201 Locust St.; 215-851-1822 or 866-222-3871, www.galaei.org. Spanish/English HIV treatment Free HIV/AIDS diagnosis and treatment for Philadelphia residents are available from 9 a.m.-noon Mondays (walk-in) and 5-8 p.m. Thursdays (by appointment) at Health Center No. 2, 1720 S. Broad St.; 215685-1821. HIV health insurance help Access to free medications and confidential HIV testing 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays at 13 S. MacDade Blvd., Suite

■ Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia Board meetings at 6:30 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month at 100 S. Broad St., Suite 1810; free referral service at 215-6279090, www.galloplaw.org. ■ Independence Business Alliance Greater Philadelphia’s LGBT Chamber of Commerce, providing networking, business development, marketing, educational and advocacy opportunities for LGBT and LGBT-friendly busi-

108, Collingdale; Medical Office Building, 722 Church Lane, Yeadon; and 630 S. 60th St.; 610-586-9077. Mazzoni Center LGBTQ counseling and behavioral health services, HIV/ AIDS care and services, case management and support groups; 21 S. 12th St., eighth floor; 215-563-0652, www. mazzonicenter.org. Mazzoni Center Family & Community Medicine Comprehensive primary health care, preventive health services, gynecology, sexual-health services and chronic-disease management, including comprehensive HIV care, as well as youth drop-in (ages 14-24) 5-7p.m. Wednesdays; 809 Locust St.; 215-563-0658. Philadelphia FIGHT Comprehensive AIDS service organization providing primary care, consumer education, advocacy and research on potential treatments and vaccines; 1233 Locust St.; 215985-4448; www.fight.org. Washington West Project of Mazzoni Center Free, rapid HIV testing. Walk-ins welcome 9 a.m.-9 pm. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday; 1201 Locust St.; 215-985-9206.

Professional groups nesses and professionals; 215557-0190, www.IndependenceBusinessAlliance.com. ■ National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association Philadelphia chapter of NLGJA, open to professionals and students, meets for social and networking events; www.nlgja.org/ philly; philly@nlgja.org.

■ Philadelphia Gay Tourism Caucus Regional organization dedicated to promoting LGBT tourism to the Greater Philadelphia region, meetings every other month on the fourth Thursday (January, March, May, July, September and the third Thursday in November), open to the public; 215-8402039, www.philadelphiagaytourism.com.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 4-10, 2015

PGN

WE FOCUS ON HIV TO HELP YOU FOCUS ON

TODAY

Ask your doctor if a medicine made by Gilead is right for you.

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