Rev. Schaefer reaches celebrity status PAGE 63
A Victorian weekend in historic Cape May
Family Portrait: Marcy Boroff is a crafty owner PAGE 18
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An executive order on trans discrimination is on the horizon
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July 4-10, 2014
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Vol. 38 No. 27
Out health commissioner steps down
Fate of Giovanni’s Room still pending By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com Giovanni’s Room owner Ed Hermance told PGN this week that plans are still pending on the sale of the oldest LGBT bookstore in the country. Hermance announced his plans to sell the business and also the buildings it inhabits late last year. But the store closed up shop May 17 after negotiations with a potential buyer fell through. In the spring, Hermance announced that an LGBT-affiliated organization was considering purchasing the bookstore, but he would not disclose the name of the group. Hermance told PGN this week that he is hoping to have a definitive answer from the organization next week. “We are still working with the people on the other side and they are trying to get together a lease. I have to look over it before I sign anything,” he said. “It will be at least a couple of days before I know of anything, so I am hoping next week we will have everything together.” Giovanni’s Room remains closed until a decision is reached. ■
By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com
BEST FOOT FORWARD: Members of Men on Tap, a local LGBT tap-dance company associated with Philadelphia Voices of Pride, performed their signature piece, “Light in the Loafers,” June 30 at William Way LGBT Community Center. The performance was part of a PVOP concert staged in conjunction with the Library Company of Philadelphia in celebration of its “That’s So Gay: Outing Early America” exhibit, which traces LGBT history through literature. The event featured songs and poems celebrating early LGBT culture, including recitations of works by Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman, and an appearance by Oscar Wilde, played by Sean Hanrahan. Photo: Scott A. Drake
After prison, one-half of ‘gay-porn twins’ speaks out By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com This is the first of a two-part series.
HISTORY IN FLIGHT: The local LGBT-rights movement is being illuminated through a new pictorial and audio exhibit, unveiled July 2 at the Philadelphia International Airport to mark the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. “Civil Rights in Philadelphia” celebrates the anniversary by exploring the city’s storied history, from William Penn’s work to preserve religious freedom to Barbara Gittings’ activism on behalf of the LGBT community. Mayor Michael Nutter was on hand for Wednesday’s unveiling. The 55 photographs in the exhibit are on display in Terminal A-East and are accessible only to ticketed passengers. Photo: Tina McCarthy
After more than six years at the helm of the city’s health department, openly gay health commissioner Donald Schwarz is stepping down. Mayor Michael Nutter announced Schwarz’s departure in a June 27 press conference. Schwarz was appointed health commissioner and deputy mayor for health and opportunity in 2008 after a career in pediatric medicine at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Schwarz will leave the department July 15 to join the staff of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, where he will direct the foundation’s Catalyzing Demand for Healthy Places and Practices portfolio. Schwarz’s previous positions include vice chairman of the department of pediatrics at the University PAGE 57
“Your self-respect is priceless. I know, I’m fighting like hell to get mine back.” For years, Taleon Goffney placed value, above all else, in money. He was motivated by getting as much of it as he could — however he could. His quest for cash took him from the drug circles of Camden to the rooves of Philadelphia businesses — and into the center of a multistate, multi-agency manhunt. Goffney, 32, and his twin brother, Keyontyli, made international headlines in 2008 after they were arrested for a daring burglary spree that netted them more than a half-million dollars. But it was the brothers’past involvement in the gay-porn industry that earned
them even more notoriety than their crimes. Goffney spent the last six years behind bars, an experience he said put him back in touch with the young man he was before his life took a dark turn — and that convinced him to help keep others from following in his former footsteps. A troubled childhood Goffney’s path wasn’t always pointed toward prison. From a young age, the twins exhibited an aptitude for physicality. Goffney won awards and trophies — some taller than he was — for karate, while his brother excelled at gymnastics. In school, Keyontyli, who is gay, was often picked on by classmates for not being “manly” enough. Goffney said he stepped in frequently to defend his twin. He was
the only one Keyontyli confided in about his sexual orientation. “I fought his bullies,” Goffney said. “I’d be in school and close my locker door and there’d be three guys standing there wanting to fight me because of him. But I’d always fight his bullies. He’s my brother.” While the twins had a strong connection, their home life lacked stability. Their mother gave birth to them when she was just 15, and they grew up in poverty in Camden. “My mom did what she could with twins at 15,” Goffney said. “But we ended up learning from all the wrong people.” When he was 18, Goffney had his first major run-in with the law. He and a friend were accused of robbing someone with a starter pistol. Goffney said the incident was a joke, but it was one that landed him more than PAGE 22