pgn Philadelphia Gay News LGBT NEWS SINCE 1976
Vol. 42 No. 51 Dec. 21-27, 2018
Family Portrait: Eric Jaffe dresses to success PAGE 25
School district spends $2 million in bullying lawsuits PAGE 5
HONESTY • INTEGRITY • PROFESSIONALISM Holidelic will help you get funked up this holiday season PAGE 26
Upscale Cancun resort rejects same-sex wedding
New Congress member joins push for LGBT equality By Adriana Fraser adriana@epgn.com
U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon fulfilled the promises she made while campaigning to fight for LGBTQ equality: She recently joined the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus and signed on as a cosponsor of the Equality Act — moves that have local LGBTQ-rights advocates looking to other elected officials to make good on their promises. Scanlon, a Democrat, was sworn into office to represent Pennsylvania’s Seventh Congressional District on Nov. 13, filling the vacancy created by the resignation of Rep. Pat Meehan over a sexual-harassment scandal. Scanlon will be sworn in as the member representing Pennsylvania’s Fifth District on Jan. 3. The change in district is the result of a state Supreme Court ruling requiring Pennsylvania to redraw its congressional map. The new Fifth District, which encompasses Delaware County, is comprised of parts of the former First, Second and Seventh districts. “Now more than ever, allies must stand strong with the community,” Scanlon said in a statement released Dec. 13. “Members of the LGBTQ community deserve the same rights, protections, and opportunities as any other American. While the fight for equality has seen rapid progress in the past decade, we are still a long way from full legal and social equality for LGBTQ people.” Adrian Shanker, executive director of the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center in Allentown, located in the Fifth District, said Scanlon’s push to “fight for [the LGBTQ community] in Washington” is crucial, but that he would like to see “more members of Congress who are from Pennsylvania join the Equality Caucus.” Shanker, who serves as a commissioner on Gov. Tom Wolf’s Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs, questioned whether other candidates who were successful in November’s election will take action in supporting the LGBTQ community. “Pennsylvania needs more representation in the caucus, especially from those who ran on pro-LGBT initiatives during their campaigns,” Shanker said. “It reminds people here in Pennsylvania that we still have work PAGE 14 to do to pass our own
Last minute tax deductible gift ideas PAGE 8
By Kristen Demilio kristen@epgn.com
THRIFTY SANTA: Santa made his annual visit to Philly AIDS Thrift on Dec. 15 at the main store on Fifth Street. His helpers this year were the elves Kirkland (left) and Kathleen. Santa sat for about three hours listening to Christmas wishes, having his photo taken with guests and handing out small gifts. Philly AIDS Thrift (PAT) and PAT@Giovanni’s Room are closed Christmas and New Year’s Day. Photo: Scott A. Drake
Trenton ‘gayborhood’ finds new lease on life By Adriana Fraser adriana@epgn.com Mill Hill, once considered a drug-ridden, rundown slum in Trenton, N.J., is now an upscale residential neighborhood that’s attracting more artists, big-city professionals and, now, more LGBTQ couples and families to the area. The sixblock neighborhood — about 35 minutes north of Philadelphia — is a burgeoning community “that offers more than meets the eye,” said Gregory Rollins, a recent Mill Hill transplant. Rollins, a content manager for Verizon, moved into his three-story, single-family home on Jackson Street with his partner last August. Within days of moving in, he was greeted by a handful of neighbors who welcomed the couple to the neighborhood, an experience he said he didn’t have while living in his previous home in Princeton, N.J. “I lived in Princeton for seven years and I only knew one of my neighbors. Now, I’m friends with mostly everyone on my block and the adjacent blocks and
I’ve been in more neighbors’ houses than I can count,” Rollins said. “This neighborhood is made up of artists, theater folks, urban professionals, retired people, even young couples who are starting their lives together — you have the whole gamut here. You’ll find a bit of everything in Mill Hill.” Jennifer Williams, who lives across the street from Rollins, has lived in Mill Hill for more than a decade with her wife and son. “Diversity is becoming a strong component of why Mill Hill is flourishing. It’s a welcoming place for anyone looking to build community. There’s always been a steady number of LGBT couples who have lived in the neighborhood, but now we’re seeing more people from the community migrating to Mill Hill,” Williams said. Earlier this year, Trenton elected its first openly gay mayor, W. Reed Gusciora. The Democrat told PGN that currently, the city has no nondiscrimination policies in place to protect LGBT residents PAGE 15 but “we’re working to
When Giulia Umile and her fiancée, Jess, got engaged earlier this fall, Umile knew just the place to hold the wedding. A world traveler, the COO of Slice Communications in Old City said that one particular vacation she took in Mexico stood out “as one of the most beautiful and pleasant vacations of my life — I literally did not want for a single thing. The service was spectacular, the resort is gorgeous and I always thought that if I got married, this would be a phenomenal place to do it.” The Le Blanc Spa Resort is one of 10 AAA Five-Diamond-awarded oceanfront properties belonging to Cancun-based Palace Resorts, regularly featured in celebrity magazines for the sheer volume of famous people who vacation at the resorts, most of which are in Cancun but also in Los Cabos and Jamaica. Ellen DeGeneres has more than once given vacations to her entire studio audience to at least two Palace Resorts.
GIULIA UMILE (LEFT) AND FIANCÉE
So, Umile immediately contacted Le Blanc and filled out the form requesting a sunset wedding ceremony on the beach for Nov. 9, 2019. More than 30 guests would stay at the spa resort for one week, with a price starting at around $800 per night. A destination wedding made sense for Umile, a Fishtown resident. “We’re older, our friends are more established and financially secure — with enough notice, they can come.” The sales coordinator for weddings, Laura Jimenez, responded the same day Umile PAGE 6 contacted Le Blanc, on