QSaltLake Magazine - April 16, 2009

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A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 5

Q World

BY REX WOCKNER

Vermont Legalizes Same-sex Marriage

Iowa Weddings Will Begin April 27 Gay couples can begin applying for marriage licenses in Iowa on April 27.

Some weddings likely will take place that day among couples who spend $5 to obtain a waiver of the three-day waiting period between applying for a license and receiving it.

Demands by anti-gay activists and lawmakers that the Legislature begin the lengthy process of attempting to amend the state constitution to re-ban same-sex marriage have gone nowhere, with the leadership of both the House and the Senate vocally opposed to the idea.

In addition, Gov. Chet Culver expressed disapproval of the idea April 7, writing: “The Supreme Court of Iowa, in a unanimous decision, has clearly stated that the Constitution of our state, which guarantees equal protection of the law to all Iowans, requires the State of Iowa to recognize the civil marriage contract of two people of the same gender. The Court also concluded that the denial of this right constitutes discrimination.

Therefore, after careful consideration and a thorough reading of the Court’s

Vermont’s legislature overrode Gov. Jim Douglas’ veto of a bill legalizing same-sex marriage April 7.

The Senate vote to override was 23-5 and the House vote was 100-49, the exact number of House votes needed.

The law takes effect Sept. 1.

“The struggle for equal rights is never easy,” said Vermont Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin. “I was proud to be president of the Senate nine years ago when Vermont created civil unions [and] I have never felt more proud of Vermont as we become the first state in the country to enact marriage equality not as the result of a court order, but because it is the right thing to do.”

Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, called the override “a significant turning point in the struggle for the equal treatment of our relationships.”

“Vermont is once again making history,” Carey said. “Nine years ago it did Furious online sparring over the Naso when it became the first state to grant tional Organization for Marriage’s new legal recognition of same-sex relation- TV ad against same-sex marriage led to ships through its civil unions law; today, a copyright complaint by NOM against it became the first state ... to pass and en- the Human Rights Campaign.

The spooky ad, “Gathering Storm,” act a marriage equality measure.

“The enactment of this bill affirms used actors to portray various Amerithat only marriage can provide the cans who supposedly are profoundly protections, dignity and respect that alarmed at the notion of gays marrying the institution bestows. This vote also each other. To view the ad: tinyurl.com/ recognizes that civil unions simply fall br8ym4.

HRC somehow got its hands on the short in ensuring same-sex couples are audition tapes for the ad and uploaded treated equally under the law.”

Same-sex marriage also is legal in Con- them to YouTube.

NOM apparently was not amused and, necticut, Iowa (starting April 27) and Massachusetts, as well as in Belgium, according to HRC Deputy CommunicaCanada, the Netherlands, Norway, South tions Director Trevor Thomas, “filed a copyright violation notice with YouAfrica, Spain and Sweden (May 1).

California’s Legislature has twice Tube” on April 9.

YouTube then deleted the videos, but passed bills legalizing same-sex marriage but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed not before MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow them. Later, the state Supreme Court le- snagged them and broadcast them on galized same-sex marriage, with a ruling her show.

NOM later got that clip from Madthat took effect in June 2008. Approximately 18,000 same-sex couples were dow’s show banned from YouTube as married prior to Nov. 4, 2008, when vot- well, YouTube reported.

On April 10, Wired.com said “internet ers passed Proposition 8, which amended the state constitution to re-ban same-sex rebels are reportedly saving the videos marriage. The constitutionality of Prop with keepvid.com, and then uploading 8 and the status of the 18,000 marriages them back to YouTube when they’re are now before the state Supreme Court, pulled.”

Meanwhile, also on April 10, Maddow with a ruling required by June 3.

Shannon Minter, legal director of the broadcast another segment tweaking National Center for Lesbian Rights called NOM, which is calling its new campaign the override “yet another indication that against same-sex marriage “2M4M,” Proposition 8 is out of step with our na- which stands for “2 Million for Marriage.” NOM perhaps was unaware of tion’s movement toward equality.”

“If the Calif. Supreme Court upholds the longstanding use of “M4M” in the Proposition 8, California will be an out- gay online-cruising world.

Said Maddow: “Have you ever read lier in the ongoing history of equality that is now exemplified by Vermont, personals ads? Have you ever just Connecticut, Iowa and Massachusetts,” browsed through Craigslist? Ever, I don’t know, googled ‘M4M’? For the antiMinter said.

6 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

decision, I am reluctant to support amending the Iowa Constitution to add a provision that our Supreme Court has said is unlawful and discriminatory. As Governor, I must respect the authority of the Iowa Supreme Court, and have a duty to uphold the Constitution of the State of Iowa. I also fully respect the right of all Iowans to live under the full protection of Iowa’s Constitution.”

Gay couples also can marry in Connecticut and Massachusetts. Starting Sept. 1, same-sex marriage also will be legal in Vermont, where the Legislature on April 7 overrode the governor’s veto of a bill legalizing same-sex marriage.

Same-sex marriage could become legal again in California no later than June 3, the deadline for the state Supreme Court’s decision on the constitutionality of Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment passed by voters last November that re-banned same-sex marriage in the state.

None of the states that have legalized same-sex marriage has a residency requirement for marriage.

National Organization for Marriage Hits HRC with Copyright Complaint Over ‘Gathering Storm’ Ad gay-marriage group? If you don’t know what the abbreviation M4M stands for, I do not want to spoil your googling fun, but here’s a hint: The related search that Google suggests is for the Web site Manhunt. You know, maybe these folks should just join up with the teabaggers.”

See tinyurl.com/djfwy9.

Maddow broadcast segments on April 9 and 10 about a new anti-tax movement called “teabagging” — founded, Maddow assumes, by people who didn’t know about the term’s sexual meaning (placing one’s testicles in another’s mouth).

The April 9 Maddow clip, which became an online sensation, is at tinyurl. com/ddmj2k.

New GOP Gay Group Forms A new national Republican gay group has been formed by people who think the Log Cabin Republicans group has become too liberal.

Among the founders of GOPROUD is former LCR Political Director Christopher Barron, who told Politico.com, “Log Cabin ... has simply moved way too far to the left and is Christopher Barron basically indistinguishable from any other gay left organization.”

“If your main issue is hate crimes or (ENDA) or marriage, you’re probably not a Republican,” Barron said.

Quips & Quotes ❝ ❝What are he and his near-unanimous customers

afraid of? That a few straights will pollute their bar? It’s not a temple with secret passwords.”

—Matthew Rush questioning Trapp owner Joe Redburn’s decision to keep the gay club ‘members-only’ in a letter to the Salt Lake Tribune.

❝ ❝John had never in his life thought it possible to

marry the man he loved, but I always thought I would. … Under a trellis of scarlet bougainvillea, we locked hands and declared our love would forever be real.”

—Salt Lake City resident Geoffrey Clark writing about his September 2008 marriage to John Clapp.

❝ ❝Anyway, bravo, Iowa.

You deserve a musical of

your own, now.”

—City Weekly blogger Brandon Burt congratulating Iowa’s Supreme Court for overturning its gay marriage ban.

❝ ❝The impact of this decision coming from Iowa

is going to be big mainly because of stereotypes about the Midwest. Iowa tends to be more socially liberal than you might imagine — like other upper midwestern states, it has a long tradition of Progressivism.

Iowans, like all Americans, are basically fair-minded.”

—Utah blogger Glenden Brown writing about the Iowa marriage ruling at oneutah.org.

❝ ❝‘When you look at all the cases of child abuse in

our state’ explained Sen. Ty Tass, the bill’s primary sponsor, ‘it is clear that heterosexuals have a pretty poor track record.’ He cited recent instances of a 19-year-old Orem man who was arrested in connection with the sexual abuse of the 4-year-old daughter of the woman with whom he had been living, the alleged rape of a male student by two of his female teachers, both mothers, and a former corrections officer. ‘It’s in the best interests of the children,’ Tass asserted.”

—April Fool’s day post by “Dana” at the blog Mombian: Sustenance for Lesbian Moms, reporting that Utah will place all children with gay and lesbian parents.

“Defense of Marriage Act” Costs Taxpayers Billions of Dollars As millions of Americans file their income taxes, a coalition of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender advocacy groups call attention to the tax inequities facing same-sex couples as a result of state and federal laws that refuse to recognize or extend civil marriage protections to samesex couples. Marriage Equality USA, Join the Impact and the Human Rights Campaign have collectively organized a series of events at U.S. Post Offices across the nation to highlight the ongoing moral and financial costs of denying marriage equality to same-sex couples, as well as the consequences paid by all Americans as a result of these discriminatory state and federal laws.

“Each tax season, same-sex couples sit at their dining room tables and are forced to live a legal lie by checking ‘single’ despite their decades together and then arbitrarily dividing up their joint household’s income, expenses and dependents,” said Molly McKay, Marriage Equality USA media director. “Then we write checks to the IRS for social security taxes, knowing that when we die our families will not even have access to any of the family ‘safety net’ benefits provided in the form of social security survivor benefits, estate tax deferral and other programs that we help fund through our tax dollars, and that only heterosexual couples and their children will enjoy.”

“The tax inequities faced by loving, committed same-sex couples make them less able to care for each other and their families,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. “Even same-sex couples in states that do legally recognize their unions are penalized by the federal government simply for building a family with the person they love.

This is an injustice that can and must end.”

“Whether couples are married, civil unioned or have no state protections under state law, all samesex couples in the United States are treated as ‘single’ under federal law.

The U.S. Census has declared they will not recognize married same-sex couples as “married” in the 2010 Census.

We cannot allow our community to be erased,” said Amy Balliett, co-founder of Join the Impact. “Tax season is yet another time when

same-sex couples are reminded that despite abiding by the requirements of American citizenship by paying our taxes, we are still treated as second class citizens.”

A study produced by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) debunks the myth that granting same-sex couples the freedom to marry would cost the government money. In fact, it would save taxpayer dollars. Samesex couples are not the only ones paying for marriage discrimination — all taxpayers fund this discrimination, which amounts to as much as $1 billion nationwide.

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A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 7

Q Utah Monson: ‘Hold Ground on Marriage’

Despite nationwide backlash against the LDS Church for its support of a ballot measure that re-banned gay marriage in California, mention of the church’s Proposition 8 campaign was minimal at April’s General Conference.

Held twice a year in April and October, General Conference brings Mormons together (largely through television) for prayer and instruction from church leaders on topics effecting them spiritually, politically and socially.

During the gathering (held April 4 and 5), church president Thomas Monson made only one remark touching on gay marriage and Proposition 8, which the church urged Mormons in California to support as early as last June.

Overall, Mormons raised some $20 million on campaigning to pass the constitutional amendment.

“The moral footings of society continue to slip, while those who attempt to safeguard those footings are often ridiculed and, at times, picketed and persecuted,” Monson said on the conference’s second day.

On the same day, Apostle Dallin H. Oaks also praised Mormons for opposing gay marriage in his speech on sacrifice.

“In recent elections, Latter-day Saints have united with other like-minded persons in defense of marriage efforts,” said Oaks, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. “For some, that service has involved great sacrifice and continuing personal pain.”

Other topics discussed by church leaders included the troubled world economy, the dangers of online pornography and the centrality of Jesus Christ to Mormon faith.

Despite its opposition to gay marriage, the LDS Church released a statement after the passage of Proposition 8 saying that it was not anti-gay and did not oppose certain non-marriage rights for same-sex couples including hospital visitation, workplace and housing protections, and probate and inheritance rights. Taking the church at its word, statewide gay rights group Equality Utah penned four pieces of legislation and one policy change that would have granted these protections to gay and transgender Utahns. Three bills failed to make it to the Senate and House floors for debate.

The fourth and arguably most controversial bill, which would have struck a part of Utah’s constitutional gay marriage ban prohibiting legal recognition of any marriage-like relationship, was withdrawn by its sponsor to give the other bills a better shot at passing.

The LDS Church made no comment on the bills, collectively called the Common Ground Initiative.

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Easter Brings Community Service Projects Despite a rescheduling due to a snowy spring, General Service Weekend went off without a hitch on Easter weekend, April 11 and 12. As its name suggests, the project was initially scheduled during LDS General Conference on April 4 and 5.

Organizer Jacob Whipple wanted the service project on the same weekend as LDS Conference to turn anger at the LDS Church’s support for Proposition 8, which re-banned gay marriage in California, into “something positive.”

“You have one segment of our community in General Conference learning about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and another segment of our community out performing the Gospel,” he told QSaltLake in March “[The weekend] reaffirms the need for Christian acts of kindness in our society.”

In total, approximately 50 people in Salt Lake City performed over 500 hours of service sorting medical supplies, cleaning parks and even helping a refugee family move into a new apartment. Although Whipple said he would have liked to have seen a bigger turn out, he felt that the project had “really good participation and everything got done.”

Over the weekend, volunteers visited the homes of five refugee families from Bhutan, Iraq, Liberia and Nepal to as16, 2009

sess their needs and to deliver them basic supplies such as quilts and toiletries.

“The main goal with doing that is that way they’re not wasting their money on toothpaste, towels and soap and such, and can spend their money on food and rent,” said Whipple, noting that refugees must work for their government money and are only paid $2.15 an hour.

“They have it really hard,” he continued. “Three of the families we visited had their houses up for sale.”

One such family, headed by an elderly woman waiting for a liver and kidney transplant, needed help moving their belongings to an apartment fifty yards away in the same complex. Volunteers, said Whipple, obliged.

A number of volunteers also assisted Utah G.A.R.D.E.N.S., Inc., a sustainable community gardens project which is geared towards helping families produce their own food and become self-reliant. They assisted with such activities as creating a weed barrier on one of the organization’s plots. Other volunteers drove to a warehouse owned by Globus International Resource Corp. where they sorted packaged medical supplies for use during natural disasters.

Volunteers also picked up trash in Dimple Dell and Wasatch Parks.

“It was a really nice walk in the park,

basically,” said Whipple. “Both days were pretty sunny and warm so coats weren’t necessary.” While the parks were mainly clean already, Whipple said that volunteers were able to clean up debris around campfires and some temporary encampments built by homeless people.

Volunteers in Ogden also participated in park clean-up and built a wheelchair ramp for the Weber Housing Authority.

When asked if General Service Weekend would continue, Whipple said one could be planned for September or October.

“It was a lot of work to put together, so I think it would just be a bi-annual event,” he added. “Doing it any more often would just be a little too much effort for the limited outcome.”

Whipple added that gay and transgender people should help better the broader communities in which they live at every chance.

“I think it’s necessary that we as a community try and find ways in our every day lives to show society that we can be a positive and productive component,” he said. “Whether it be organized or us doing something in our spare time I think it’s necessary in order for us to sway public opinion and win [equal rights] in the end.”

Poll: Utahns Agree with Buttars’ Senate Censure A recent poll has found that a majority of Utahns — 63 percent — agree with the censuring of a state senator for anti-gay remarks he made during the 2009 legislative session.

Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, made the controversial remarks in February during an interview with documentary filmmaker Reed Cowan to be included in his new film about the LDS Church and Proposition 8, the controversial constitutional amendment which re-banned gay marriage in California and which many Mormons supported. In the interview, Buttars said gays lack morals, engage in “pig sex,” and he compared them to terrorists as “the biggest threat to America going down.”

When Cowan released the interview to the press, Buttars received nationwide attention and criticism.

Shortly after that, senate Republicans removed Buttars from his chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Judicial Confirmation Committee. Many Utahns, however, did not think the censure went far enough, and even criticized senate leaders for stating that they agreed with “some” of Buttars’ comments.

Despite calls for his resignation,

Buttars wrote on the Senate majority’s blog that he would not resign and would continue defending marriage from “an increasingly vocal and radical segment of the homosexual community.”

The poll, conducted for the Deseret News and KSL TV by Utah-based market and public opinion research group Dan Jones & Associates, showed 63 percent of Utahns supported Buttars’ censure. Thirty-one percent opposed it. The poll was conducted in March and surveyed 400 Utahns statewide. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percent.

Senate president Michael Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, told the Deseret News that the poll was an attack on Buttars, whom he described as “intelligent” and convicted.

“All you’re going to do is make it nasty again for someone who doesn’t deserve it,” he said.

Will Carlson, manager of public policy for statewide gay rights group Equality Utah, said, however, that he was pleased with the poll’s results.

“Utahns are fair minded as a rule, and Sen. Buttars is not,” he said. “So I think it’s no surprise that Utahns want to distinguish their position from Sen. Buttars.”

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 9

U of U Holds Ally Week

Once again the University of Utah LGBT Resource Center will hold its annual Ally Awareness Week, to increase awareness of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender members of the university community and the many ways straight people can support them.

The theme of the five-day event is Together We Can — an appropriate theme, given that the week, like last year’s, will highlight a department or school office that has worked closely with the center and designated itself as a “safe zone” for gay and transgender students and employees. This year, the resource center will honor the Department of Psychology.

The week’s events run April 13–17, with several scheduled for each day, said Cathy Martinez, the LGBT Resource Center’s director.

On April 13, activities begin with a screening of the documentary Speak Up! Improving the Lives of GLBT Youth at 7:30 p.m. in the Olpin Student Union Theater. The short documentary will be followed by a panel discussion (lead by the Utah Pride Center) with gay and transgender youth.

“They will talk to people attending the screening about the support they need from adults in the community in order to thrive and feel like they can be themselves,” said Martinez. “And, there’s free popcorn.”

On the 14th, Sugar House boutique Ten Thousand Villages, 941 S 1100 E, will hold a community shopping night from 4–7 p.m. Twenty percent of all purchases at this fair trade shop will go to the LGBT Resource Center.

The following day, the resource center hosts a panel of U of U employees and members of the broader Salt Lake City community that will address the importance of straight allies to gay

10 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril

Qmmunity Town Hall Meeting

and transgender people. This panel, held from 1–3 p.m. in the Fine Arts Auditorium, features U professors Gerda Saunders (Gender Studies) and Lisa Diamond (Psychology), along with Sy Maestas (student), Ryan Randall (Coordinator of Outreach Services), therapist Jerry Buie of Pride Counseling and Alex Moya, a Hispanic outreach specialist for the Utah AIDS Foundation.

The members of the panel, said Martinez, “primarily identify as LGBTQ” and will address “why we need allies to get the work done we need to get done.”

“For [U of U] Pride week and even for the rallies that were held throughout the city during the Prop. 8 stuff, we had a lot of allies at those events, so we want to acknowledge the importance of allies and how people can be allies in the community, and why it’s so valuable that we have allies,” she said.

The Ally Social will be held April 16 from 3–5 p.m. in the Olpin Student Union’s Parlor A, and all are invited to attend. At this social, the resource center honors the Department of Psychology. A light buffet will be served.

The week will culminate in the Day of Silence on April 17. On this day students across the nation refrain from speaking in order to draw attention to anti-gay and anti-transgender harassment, violence and discrimination in educational settings and in society at large. Participating students will maintain their silence from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., at which time they will meet on the Olpin Union Building’s patio to discuss what the day means to them. Martinez said she will likely speak, and that the floor will be open to anyone who would like to say something.

Also on The Day of Silence is ‘safe zone’ training in the union building’s Room 161 from 2–5 p.m. This training, which the LGBT Resource Center provides yearlong to university departments and employees, includes gay and transgender history, terminology and the ways that straight people can be 16, 2009

an ally. At the end of training, participants receive a ‘safe zone’ sign to put in their cubicle or office. Entire university departments that receive the training may put their sign up in their entry way. The sign, said Martinez, indicates that whoever displays has “agreed to be someone” to whom a gay or transgender person may safely speak about issues that relate specifically to their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Martinez said the resource center conducted 25 sessions around campus and anticipates doing “many more” in 2009.

Ally week will end with the annual Silence is a Drag Show at Club Sound, a private club for members, 579 W 200 S, 6–8 p.m. The drag show is a fundraiser for the U’s Queer Student Union and will include student performers. Those who want to participate must bring their own music and must email QSU at utahqsu@ gmail.com with intention to participate

by April 15.

A donation of $5 is suggested, which will cover food during the show, non-alcoholic drinks and re-entry to the club after 9 p.m.

Last year, said Martinez, a raffle at the drag show raised about $350 for QSU. Raising money through fundraisers, she added, is particularly important this year when the resource center and other student groups are looking for “innovative ways to get money” thanks to the dismal U.S. economy and school-wide budget cuts.

Along with Ten Thousand Villages, Mark Miller Subaru (located at 3734 State St.) will donate $150 from the purchase of each new or used car in its lot to the LGBT Resource Center if the purchaser requests.

The resource center and other gay and transgender-friendly U of U student groups will have information tables on the union building’s first floor (near the pool tables) throughout the week. Q To learn more about the LGBT Resource Center visit sa.utah.edu/lgbt.

As decided during last December’s LGBT Town Hall Meeting, such meetings will be held on a quarterly basis. Once again, representatives from a number of gay or gayaffirmative groups including ALCU Utah, Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons, Equality Utah, HRC, Log Cabin Republicans, PFLAG, Pride Interfaith Council, Proud People of Color Network, Reconciliation, Stonewall Democrats, TRANSaction and the Utah Pride Center will meet to discuss the progress they have made in the past three months and what they plan to do between now and the 2009 Utah Pride Festival.

A question and answer period will follow.

When: April 22, 6–8 p.m.

Where: Salt Lake County North Building: Council Chambers, 2100 S. State St. Info: (801)918-6906 or AllForOneInitiative@yahoo.com

Tie One On Lesbian social and civic organization sWerve will hold its annual social Tie One On at Club Jam on April 25. As per the social’s name, women who attend are asked to wear ties. The evening includes speed dating, a cash bar and hors d’oeuvres, a tie contest and dancing. DJ Tidy will provide music. The event is co-sponsored by the Utah Pride Center, sWerve, Salt Lake Women in Action, NUWROC and the Women’s Redrock Music Festival.

Please pre-register for speed dating by emailing Jennifer Nuttall at Jennifer@utahpridecenter.org.

When: April 25, beginning at 6 p.m.

Where: Club Jam, 751 N 300 W Info: Jennifer@utahpridecenter.org

sWerve Scholarship sWerve is also accepting applications for its 2010 scholarship. The $1,5000 scholarship is given each year to help a woman in the community who exemplifies sWerve’s values pursue her education. These values include: promoting positive images and experiences of queer, lesbian, bisexual and transgender women in Utah; building community among women; supporting and creating women-safe spaces; and engaging in community service, educational outreach and civic action.

Info: swerveutah.com/scholar.html

Utah Pride Needs You The 2009 Utah Pride Festival is seeking volunteers. To sign up visit utahpridefestival.org.

So Excited for Queer Prom ’09 Bonnie Owens is excited for Queer Prom 2009.

“Think of a prom, and think of really excited, really fun kids and you’ll have it — kids being themselves and not being afraid, just dancing and partying and eating a lot of food,” said Owens, the Utah Pride Center youth program coordinator.

Excitement, after all, is the theme of Queer Prom 2009: So Excited. As its name implies, the annual dance allows gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and otherwise queeridentified youth age 14 to 20 to dance the night away alone or with friends, a date, or multiple dates of their choice without fear of discrimination because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Straight allies are also welcome.

“We consider allies an important part of our community, so they’re not only welcome but encouraged to come,” said Owens.

On the night of April 18, the large breezeway, called the Urban Room, of the Salt Lake City Public Library, 210 E 400 S, will be transformed for the dance, with splashes of bold colors to offset the library’s high windows and ultra-modern design.

“We’re focusing on bold shapes and bright colors, it’s going to be very neon and bright with things like glow sticks,” said Owens.

Since its start, Queer Prom has drawn more and more attendees each year capping off at approximately 750-800 youth last year. Owens said she hopes to pack the library with 1,000 partiers this year.

So far, she said, about one-tenth of the

tickets have been sold.

“But historically with this event, 90 percent of sales are at the door,” she said, adding that tickets are cheaper if purchased before the day of the dance.

Early bird tickets (available at the Utah Pride Center, 361 N 300 W) are $5 while tickets at the door are $10.

Along with food, fun and dancing, Queer Prom 2009 will feature a number of activities including free HIV testing on the library’s lower floor and prom photographs (packages of which cost between $5 and $15). X96 DJ Portia Early will emcee the evening, and will include a special performance by youth volunteers of a local HIV prevention program for gay and bisexual men. Owens would not divulge further details, except to say that attendees would be delighted.

On the day before Queer Prom, students across the nation will observe the Day of Silence, during which gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and allied youth remain silent throughout the day to draw attention to anti-gay and anti-transgender violence, discrimination and harassment in schools and society at large. Queer and allied youth are invited to attend Night of Noise at the Utah Pride Center where they can share their experiences of the day with like-minded youth. The night will include a vegan-friendly barbecue and other activities.

‘We consider allies an important part of our community, so they’re not only welcome but encouraged to come’

For more information call Bonnie Owens at (801) 539-8800 ext. 22. Queer Prom 2009 is a joint effort of the Utah Pride Center and the Tolerant Intelligent Network for Teens.

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 11

Q Utah Cowboy Kick-Off Will Raise Funds for Summit The Village, the Utah AIDS Foundation’s HIV-prevention program for gay and bisexual men, will hold its second annual Cowboy Kick-off this May to raise money for the Village Summit, their annual health seminar for gay and bisexual men.

This year’s theme will be Castrostyle, to commemorate slain gay leader Harvey Milk. A cash bar will be available and prizes will be given for the best cowboy outfit.

When: May 9, 6–11 p.m.

Where: The residence of Ron Thurber, 2215 E. Aspenwood Way (9760 S) Info: Contact Carl at (801)487-2323 or ­thevillage@utahaids.org Cost: Suggested donation of $15.

Palm Springs Group Calls for Boycott Against Garff Dealerships A Palm Springs, Calif. gay group has declared a boycott against Ken Garff Auto Groups, which owns several dealerships in Southern Califorina because of a $100,000 donation Katherine Garff made to the group which passed Calif. Proposition 8.

In a statement, the group said, “when Katherine Garff, matriarch of a Utahbased family that owns numerous automobile dealerships in Utah, donated $100,000 in support of Proposition 8, she probably thought little of the four dealerships her family recently bought in the Coachella Valley. Proposition 8, which took away the ‘fundamental right’ of gays and lesbians to marry in California, narrowly won by 52 percent of the vote with much financial support from those outside of California.

The Desert Stonewall Democratic Club called for the boycott on four dealerships — Toyota, Honda, and Acura of the Desert in Cathedral City and Ken Garff Cadillac-Chevrolet in La Quinta.

“This is America. Katherine Garff has every right to spend her money as she wishes,” said Roger Tansey, vicechair of DSD and self-delcared former

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customer of Toyota of the Desert. “And I have every right to take my Prius elsewhere so that Ms. Garff doesn’t turn around and spend my money in California to take away my rights.”

Donald W. Grimm, co-chair of DSD’s Media Relations Committee and former customer of Acura of the Desert, said, “The $100,000 donation from a family whose businesses depend on gay and lesbian customers is fundamentally abhorent. My husband and I call on all right-thinking people to avoid the four Garff dealerships in our Coachella Valley and urge others to spend their money where it will not later be spent on hate.”

The group is planning a public protest of the dealerships.

Californians Against Hate also called for a boycott against the Garff dealerships, but pulled the call after meeting with Garff representatives when the company said they hav a “new understanding” of gay issues.

“That’s nice,” said Tansey. “But other than ‘a new understanding,’ what did they get for ending their boycott? The damage was done here, in California,

and not in Utah. Thanks in part to Garff money, my right to marry was taken away, not Mr. Bastian’s. But you’d really have to ask them why they were comfortable ending their boycott.”

Ken Garff Automotive has supported the Human Rights Campaign fundraisers held at the Bruce Bastian estate in Orem, Utah, since their inception.

John Garff, CEO of Garff Automotive Group, told The Desert Sun, “I really think in reality what has happened is many people believe in the LGBT community that my mother is a stockholder in the company. Just because they believe it doesn’t make it true.”

“I don’t know if you manage your mom’s checkbook, I don’t manage mine. I don’t tell her how to spend her money,” John Garff said.

“The general managers of the local dealerships have said that Katherine Garff owns 1 percent of the local dealerships,” said Tansey. “Do the Garffs contend that the matriarch of their clan has made or received no money from their dealerships?

Emperor to Run for Treasurer Alan Anderson is, perhaps, best known as Emperor VIII of the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire, under whose reign (alongside Empress VIII Auntie De) Utah saw the creation of its first gay and lesbian community center and its first Pride celebration. Since 1981 he has served the Court as its board of directors’ president and treasurer.

This month, Anderson hopes he can serve another organization just as faithfully: as treasurer of the Salt Lake County Democratic Party.

As a legislative chair for House District 45 (which encompasses Sandy, Midvale and Cottonwood Heights), Anderson has had plenty of political experience. But when he received an e-mail about upcoming intra-party elections, he decided to throw his hat into the ring.

“I love working with numbers, and I wanted to help the Democratic Party,” said Anderson, who studied math and business and currently works for an insurance agency.

“I was very encouraged with what happened in Utah with this past election,” he explained, noting that Democrats won a majority in the Salt Lake County Council and that Laura Black beat out Republican Mark Walker in his district. “It’s going so that the Democrats are doing better.”

Why the Democrats?

“I think the Democrats protect the marginalized people in the world, the people who don’t have as much, they look out for them more than the Republicans do, where I think Republicans seem to be more, ‘I want to be rich, and I don’t

care what happens to other people,’” he explained.

And helping people has always been one of the most important things in Anderson’s life.

“I’ve always been involved with causes that I believe in,” he said. “When I first moved to Utah 31 years ago, the Royal Court was the game in town. It dealt with gay issues and helping gay people, and I think it’s always been important to help my fellow man.”

Before his run for office, Anderson helped his fellow man as treasurer for a number of organizations. As a college student in Nebraska he handled the funds of his fraternity. Since his move to Utah he has been the treasurer of the RCGSE and the International Court Council — a position he currently holds.

“I’m at a good time in my life to offer my services to the Democrats more than I have in the past,” said Anderson.

If he wins his bid, he said that he will become a member of the Salt Lake County Democratic Party’s executive committee which meets twice a month.

Along with taking care of the party’s funds, paying for convention space and other administrative needs, Anderson would help plan the party’s local conventions and caucuses, and help the state party in getting candidates for different offices.

If elected, Anderson would be the second gay person in the Salt Lake County Democratic Party. Head chairman Weston Clark is also gay.

As this is an odd-numbered year, the only elections taking place are those for individual party office.

Utah for Gay Marriage in 2013?

In 2013, Utah will be the second to last Western state to vote down a gay marriage ban.

It will be preceded by Nevada (2009), Colorado and Montana (2010), Arizona, Idaho and Wyoming (2011). New Mexico’s voters will turn against such a ban in 2014.

At least according to FiveThirtyEight.com, a Web site that gathers and analyzes political data to give readers “the best possible objective assessment of the likely outcome” of election and voting results. The site, founded in 2008 and named for the number of electors in the electoral college, accurately predicted election results in nearly every county across the country.

Site owner and researcher Nate Silver made the post about gay marriage on April 3, the same day the Iowa Supreme Court struck down the state’s ban on the practice. He noted that Iowa voters would not be able to weigh in on a constitutional gay marriage ban until 2012 due to the need for two consecutive legislative sessions to approve a constitutional amendment.

“This is good news for defenders of marriage equity, because while you might not know it from Proposition 8’s victory last year, voter initiatives to ban gay marriage are becoming harder and harder to pass every year,” Silver wrote.

Silver also wrote he had studied 30 attempts by states to pass constitutional gay marriage bans (including Arizona’s in 2006 and 2008). He then predicted the percentage of voters who would favor the amendment based on a number of variables.

“It turns out that you can build a very effective model by including just three variables,” wrote Silver: the year the amendment appeared on the ballot, the percentage of adults who identify religion as an important part of their life; and the percentage of white evangelical Christians in the individual state.

The more a state’s population identified with being religious, Silver wrote, the more likely its voters were to ban gay marriage — particularly in states with a large percentage of white evangelicals.

Other variables such as voter age, race and party affiliation were negligible, said Silver. ”These variables collectively account for about three-quarters of the variance in the performance of marriage bans in different states,” wrote Silver, noting that the model showed a gay marriage ban in California in 2008 would have passed by 52.1 percent of the vote.

Proposition 8, the ban in question, was approved by exactly that number on Nov. 4.

Silver added, however, that gay marriage bans are “losing ground” by about two points each year. In other words, if a state passed a marriage ban with 70

percent of the vote in 2008, it would pass in 2009 with only 68 percent of voter support.

Commenters to the blog post, however, raised an important question: How had Silver factored in Mormons, who outweigh evangelicals in Utah and in parts of Idaho?

“Nate, does your model count Mormons as ‘evangelicals,’ or otherwise adjust for them?” asked commenter “Eugenian.”

“I can’t possibly imagine that Utah wouldn’t be the one of the last, if not THE last, state to finally allow gay marriage,” wrote commenter “markdash.” “They may not have a high level of ‘evangelicals,’ assuming Mormons aren’t counted in this lot, but that particular Christian sect is extremely gung-ho about denying gays the right to marry.”

The LDS Church received nationwide attention in 2008 when leaders called on California Mormons to support efforts to pass an amendment that would reban gay marriage in the state. Overall, Mormons contributed over $20 million to pro-Proposition 8 efforts.

The state of California is currently investigating the LDS Church on the charge that leaders did not disclose non-financial contributions to these efforts.

Silver did not reply to these comments or clarify the post to explain how — or if — he had factored Mormons into his predictions. He had not answered a request by QSaltLake for clarification by press time.

Based on conversations with Utahns who brought the post to his attention, Will Carlson, public policy manager for statewide gay rights group Equality Utah, said he was “very confident” that Silver had not included Mormons in his calculations.

“I think he was trying to set up something that was a national formula,” noted Carlson, who added that he agreed “with [the post’s] ultimate conclusion, but might dispute where Utah falls on that scale.”

Still, Carlson said that the trend towards more acceptance of gay marriage was “good news.”

“I’d love to believe [the prediction],” he said.

Lagoon Day Set for August 16 The annual QSaltLake Day at Lagoon has been set for Sunday, Aug. 16. In past years, hundreds of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and other readers of QSaltLake have participated.

Revelers wear red T-shirts so they are readily identifiable and come together at a set time in the afternoon for a group photo. Discount coupons will be available in June.

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 13

Warm Weather is Coming!

ROOTED IN YOUR Center Seeks Nominations for Pride 2009 Awards COMMUNITY, HARVESTED FOR YOUR TABLE Community Supported Agriculture connects local community members to locally-grown food.

Support local farmers and find out where your food comes from in Utah by becoming a shareholder in your local farm.

For more information go to: www.csautah.org or phone (801) 524-4254 SPONSORED BY THE GREAT SALT LAKE RC&D COUNCIL, INC.

1 4 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

The Utah Pride Center is seeking nominations for the Dr. Kristen Ries Community Service Award and the Pete Suazo Political Action Award, two annual community awards which will be presented at the Utah Pride Festival’s Grand Marshal Reception and Awards Celebration, June 5.

Established in 1987 and named for a Utah doctor who was among the first to respond to the AIDS crisis, the Dr. Kristen Ries Community Service Award recognizes outstanding service to Utah’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. It is given to individuals who exemplify compassion, leadership and courage, much as its namesake did during the early days of AIDS. Past winners of the award choose each year’s recipient. Recent winners include Utah AIDS Foundation Director Stan Penfold, openly lesbian Rep. Jackie Biskupski, Doug Fadel, Doug Wrotham, Luci Malin, and Jane and Tami Marquardt.

The Pete Suazo Political Action Award was established in 2002 and named for the late state senator who spent much of his career trying to pass hate crimes legislation and attempting to bring diversity to Utah politics. The award in his name honors a politician who has demonstrated exceptional

commitment to the cause of gay and transgender equality within the state through legislation, declaration or policy. Past recipients have included former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, Rep. David Litvak (who succeeded in passing the hate crimes legislation started by Suazo), Sen. Karen Hale, Rep. Paula Julander, Rep. Carol Spackman-Moss and Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. Winners are chosen by a committee that includes members of the Utah Pride Center, the Utah chapter of the Human Rights Campaign, statewide gay rights group Equality Utah, and members of Utah Stonewall Democrats and Log Cabin Republicans.

Nominations for both awards are due April 30 at 5 p.m. They should include the name and contact information of the individual making the nomination, the nominee’s name and the award she or he is being nominated for, and a narrative of more than 100 words explaining the nomination. This information should be e-mailed to nominations@ utahpridecenter.org or sent to: Utah Pride Center Attn: 2009 Utah Pride Festival Awards 355 N 300 W, First Floor Salt Lake City, UT 84103

PWACU to Bring ‘Fabulous Fashions for Everyone’

Tickets to the show are $75 and may be purchased through PWACU’s Web site, pwacu.org. Purchase includes a complementary $50 La Caille gift certificate. The show will be held from 2–6 p.m. on May 17 and will include high tea and brunch catered by La Caille.

The day’s silent auction and raffle will close at 5:30 p.m.

La Caille regularly features a fourcourse menu with such delicacies as escargot, foie gras and venison, as well as a selection of 850 wines and a long list of liquors.

This spring, the People with AIDS Coalition of Utah will hold its second annual benefit fashion show.

From Your Home to Our Store: Fabulous Fashions for Everyone will feature fashions donated to the organization’s thrift store, Our Store: Your Thrift Alternative. This year it will be held in the garden of chic French restaurant La Caille, an 18th Century chateau and garden complex located at the base of Little Cottonwood Canyon, 9565 Wasatch Blvd.

For more information, see their Web site at pwacu.org

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 15

Q Views Letters Stick to Your Guns, Whipple Editor, Brother Whipple, stick to your guns.

You are doing the right thing. If you opt out of participating in General Conference, I cannot think of a better alternative way to contribute to society than by doing your beautification projects [“Open Letter to Jacob Whipple,” Letters, QSaltLake, April 2, 2009]. With all the destructive elements in society, such as the rampant graffitists who ruin the looks of everything for the rest of us, I have the upmost respect for anyone who actively practices the teaching of Alma: when you are in the service of your fellow man, you are only in the service of God. I’d be participating in your campaign if I were not attending Conference.

In criticizing and attempting to advise you, Mr. Wallace ignores the fact that the LDS church is not run by men but my God through men by revelation. I believe in my heart that you are well aware of this. Therefore, his advise to hurl a stone between the eyes of church leaders makes as much sense as arguing with a train with a Nissan Sentra.

Mr. Wallace also fails to mention the civil rights groundwork lain by such black notables as the Tuskeegee Airmen, George Washington Carver and Harriet Tubman, all of whom garnered respect for their people that Dr. King and his like added upon later. One cannot compare leverage used in connection toward a man-made government and the Church of Jesus Christ.

The church did not cave into public pressure in 1978, it had always been church doctrine that the black people would receive the full Priesthood blessings at some time. This was known by inspiration to many in Africa who organized entire wards in anticipation of the lifting of the ban. When it was lifted, those congregants were all ready fir baptism and priesthood blessings, which they received en masse. When the time was right, it happened.

As a gay active Mormon, I can affirm that I am accepted, loved and fellowshipped in the church just as any straight man would be. I have been out to my last 5 bishops, all of whom have given me nothing but encouragement and to a point, even helped me come out. I am well-liked by my fellow ward members to the point of being repeatedly told that Sunday School is

just not the same without me and my humor. They also leave little gifts for me on my porch during the Christmas season. My newest bishop told me that sexuality and love were God-given gifts whether homosexual or heterosexual but reminded me that I need to follow the boundaries with them that the Lord has set in the scriptures. He encouraged me to work on coming back to the temple.

I met homosexuals in the church in San Francisco where I joined 37 years ago and I have met homosexuals in the temple.

Yes, the church supports the institution of marriage as being between a man and a woman and that will not change. This is scriptural, not bigotry on the part of the church. As I stated in a previous letter, President Monson cannot override scripture or the will of the God he serves.

There are laws on the part of civil governments that do need to change.

We all know that, but God does not forbid love. He encourages it. To that end, you have Drew who enhances your life and brings you happiness. Le Chaim!

Keep up the good work, Jacob. There are also other social causes society needs good men like you to support.

Grow into those too, and may good luck follow you.

As for Mr. Wallace, I would not want to be on his train. I won’t say where it is headed but I guarantee it’s not Vladivostok.

Ivan R. Petrov West Valley City

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Bullshit Mormonism Editor, First of all, thank you (and all) to ­Michael Aaron, editor of QSaltLake.

I am indeed relieved and reassured that there are today people like Doug Wallace who will not stop fighting for integrity and truth and will stand up for all human beings to be equally treated with respect [“Open Letter to Jacob Whipple,” Letters, QSaltLake, April 2, 2009].

I, too, cannot stand the deceitful ‘cover-up’ of any kind to promote evil dominance of bullshit Mormonism, who are experts at presenting their ‘stories’ in a repetitive-hypnotic and tell-tale manner with an ‘enduring calmness’ to fool the world. To be in the midst of such activity for YEARS (not willingly on my part) is hell, itself.

I am grateful, also, to all of the LGBT community, including Troy Williams for always ‘telling it like it is’. It helps me to know that I am not alone on my journey.

Moy Chin Orem

Third Fridays Editor, Just a quick note to express my appreciation to Ruby Ridge and her clan for hosting Third Friday Bingo at the First Baptist Church. I loved being able to have a great time, spend a few bucks, and help a family be reunited.

Charles Buck Taylorsville

QSaltLake Welcomes Letters from Our Readers Love a story written in this issue? Hate one? Did a columnist piss you off or tickle your funny bone? Want to say something to the world?

Send a letter to the editor — we love feedback! Please keep your letter under 300 words and email it to letters@qsaltlake.com.

Your letter, if published, may possibly be edited for length, suitability or libel.

No one wants to go to court.

Queer Gnosis Queer Nation Utah

by Troy Williams

A

reading Richard Goldstein’s Homocons: The Rise of the Gay Right, I was struck by how little I really knew about gay history. I was intrigued to read about the work of Harry Hay, who, as a member of the Communist Party, was the first person to start organizing homosexuals in 1948. He was the first to identify queers as an oppressed minority.

Goldstein documents how early gayorganizing was accomplished by Marxists who had a radical social agenda.

What a thought. Queers are where we are today because of the pioneer work of “pinko commie fags.” Gay history is filled with radicals who took to the streets without fear of public perception. In 1990 we saw the rise of Queer Nation. The group was known for its “in-your-face” activism that pushed queer visibility out in the open. Queer Nation quickly spread across the country and even landed in Utah. Here it made headlines by protesting Mormon General Conference, staging kiss-ins at local shopping malls — and even throwing down with the local skinheads.

During a recent RadioActive show, I spoke with three of those local QN activists: Curtis Jensen, Matthew Landis and historian Ben Williams. fter

Troy Williams: Talk about the events that created Queer Nation in New York City.

Ben Williams: The main thing in the gay community was the AIDS epidemic. It was striking the heart of the community and sapping our strength. We also had a major setback in the decision of Georgia vs. Hardwick, where the privacy of sex in your bedroom was not upheld by the Supreme Court. We had a march on Washington to protest that in 1987. It was a movement where not only were people sick, they were sick and tired.

The movement was especially strong among young people who had more energy to lash back against the abuse they were taking. When I attended a QN meeting in Boston, the flyers boldly read, “I Hate Straights.” We needed to separate. We were going to be a “queer nation” where we could have our rights and take care of one another. Prior to QN, there was ACT UP, which was very in your face. QN was more than a fashion statement — but you could always tell QN by how they dressed.

TW: Describe the uniform.

Curtis Jensen: The Caesar haircut was ubiquitous among the men. We wore

shorts that were rolled up and cuffed.

Always black boots. And T-shirts that screamed who we were. It was a time when the gay community was reclaiming the world “queer” for ourselves.

Prior to QN, using that word did not happen. It was an ugly word that was only used against us. The same with the words “faggot” and dyke.” During that period we were wearing shirts that said, “I’m Queer,” “Big Fag,” “Dyke.”

You need the radical fringe so the conservatives have someone to speak to — and that’s the moderates TW: And of course the famous quote, “We’re here. We’re queer. Get used to it.”

CJ: That was the chant for every Queer Nation gathering in America. Here in Salt Lake, we were all frustrated with the fact that there didn’t seem to be any gay activism that was about being gay.

Everything was focused on AIDS. There was a realization that we weren’t going to all die and we were really looking for a way to express that. Melanie Bailey and Connell “Rocky” O’Donnovan decided that they wanted to start a group here. We had a dinner at The Other Place, where we talked about forming a QN chapter in Salt Lake. That was late 1990.

TW: QN was considered radical in New York City. What made you think it would work here?

CJ: In 1990 there was almost no coverage of gay issues in any of the media in Utah. If there was a story in the papers, it was buried deep and never covered on the television stations. We saw a necessity to be really radical. To do something that was really attentiongrabbing. Without media coverage you don’t exist in the United States.

TW: What attracted you to QN? Matthew Landis: I was 20, so for me it

was a coming-of-age. It was liberating.

Not only was it radical and crazy, it was so much fun. And it felt so good to just be queer and to scream it and put on that red lipstick. It was me demanding my place in the Universe.

TW: Talk about the first action.

CJ: Our big premiere was Mormon General Conference. Boyd K. Packer had made a speech declaring that the three great evils of the world being homosexuals, feminists and intellectuals. Them were fighting words!

ML: It was us, the neo-Nazis and the Southern Baptists.

TW: The Mormon Church just brings people together.

CJ: We made our signs. The big slogans were “Paul Dunn Exaggerates But Packer Lies” and “Every Tenth Saint is a Queer.” Church security thought we were going to set off a bomb. But even though we were radical, we were very peaceful. Everything was non-violent.

TW: Does there still need to be a radical queer voice today?

ML: I think in any movement you need to have both radicals and conservatives. You have to have the people who are angry and you have to have the people who are nice. I get tired of being nice. After Prop. 8, we heard people say, “We have to be more like Martin Luther King, Jr. and not Malcolm X.” Screw that! You have to have both.

CJ: What happened in the wake of Prop.

8 showed us the value of being out in the street and not just relying on fundraising dinners and the gay lobbying establishment. We had ceded all of our activist energy to them. Prior to last fall there was very little grassroots gay activism in this country. It was sad.

Everything had gotten so slick and professional. If you wanted to be involved in HRC, the best you could be is volunteer receptionist.

BW: You need the radical fringe so the conservatives have someone to speak to — and that’s the moderates. QN was so scary that conservatives were willing to talk to sensible gay Democrats. They wouldn’t be talking to any of us if there weren’t organizations like QN. CJ: When we were finished with QN, gay people were part of Utah. The media covered our events and have ever since. We were enormously successful.

Today it’s important to take ownership in this battle and not cede responsibility to people who we think know how to do the fight better. It is our fight and it’s winnable. And this fight is so much more than marriage. Our community is suffering because all of our activism is focused on marriage equality. That is a cherry on the cake issue — but the cake of basic equality hasn’t even been baked yet. Fight for everything. Q Podcast the entire interview at queergnosis. com.

Calling all

Utah County Homos Come meet new people over coffee at Juice & Java in Provo, 280 West 100 North, at 7pm on Wednesdays beginning March 25.

Call or text James Bunker at 801‑735‑8965 for info.

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 17

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Ruth Twice Fooled, Thrice Shy

by Ruth Hackford-Peer

R

iley is the perfect age for April

Foolin’, so Kim and I did some plannin’.

We took orange Kool Aid, screwed open the faucets in the bathroom and the kitchen and poured — straight up — the fluorescent powder inside. Then we cut holes in both of the boys’ straws and slit holes in the sides of the plastic cups they were to drink from.

The boys were playing downstairs when I hollered that it was time to wash their hands for dinner. They ran into the bathroom, and the next thing we heard was: “Holy crap! Moms, you had better come here now!” We ran downstairs and found the rust colored water pouring from the drain.

Kim, who wouldn’t win an Oscar, announced, “Oh drat. I think we have rusty pipes. I guess we will need to call a plumber after dinner.” She then muttered under her breath, “Like we can afford that!”

I told the boys they’d have to wash upstairs tonight and they bounded upstairs to do so.

Of course, they found the same Kool Aid rust draining from the upstairs pipes.

When we finally sat down for dinner, Riley couldn’t keep still. “Mamma, can we drink our water? What are we to do?

When are you calling the plumber? If you need to borrow my birthday money, you can. I want to make sure our water is safe.”

Kim’s “April Fools!” pronouncement was a bit premature given our plans. But it was clear that Riley’s anxiety wouldn’t let us move on until he was assured that life as he knows it wouldn’t change because one day he turned on the water to find it dripping orange.

His anxiety quickly turned to laughter, though: “You got me. You got me good.”

I know that it is April, and I know that you cannot get married in Iowa.

We settled into dinner. The boys kept trying to drink their water out of their straws, but to no avail. Neither kid said anything; they just kept fiddling with their cups and straws. Finally, Kim asked if they were having a problem with their straws. They said yes and Kim took the lids off and told them to drink their water without a straw.

When they tried, of course, water poured out of the holes we slit into the cups’ sides.

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“Do you boys have holes in your chins?”

Riley was rolling with laughter.

“April Fools. You got me twice.” Casey just looked at us like we were from a different planet.

It was time to eat their stir fry. “I’m afraid to touch it. There might be an April Fools joke in it.” We assured them that the tricks were over for the night and they could eat.

Just a couple of nights later we all gathered for dinner and sat down for “squeezes.” We each get a moment to talk about what we are thankful for, the best part of our day, or whatever is on our mind. Then we hold hands and give each other a good, hard squeeze.

When it was Kim’s turn, she talked about how she was thankful that samesex couples could now marry in Iowa. Because Riley was staring at her with awe written all over his face, she went on. She told him how the court had — that very day — decided that it wasn’t fair for gay people not to be able to marry.

“In Iowa?” he asked. This was technically a violation of squeezes since you aren’t supposed to interrupt unless it is your turn.

But Kim ignored the violation. “Yes, sweetie. Today. In Iowa.”

Riley just grinned. “No, Mamma. You aren’t going to fool me three times. I know that it is April, and I know that you cannot get married in Iowa.”

Dinner was interrupted by a quick trip to Google, which confirmed that Kim wasn’t just fooling him.

He was stunned. Iowa. But as understanding settled in, the grin spread across his face. “I can’t believe it. Wow. Maybe you’ll be able to get married in Utah someday. Or at least, maybe someday you’ll be human.”

He had no idea how insightful his words sounded to me. Maybe someday in Utah I’ll be human. I think he’s right.

After all, I can marry in Iowa. Q

Snaps & Slaps SNAP: America Forever Just when you thought Utah’s favorite misspelling and gayhating group had tired of throwing tantrums now that the legislative session is over, America Forever proves that it is more resilient than yarrow. A few weeks before Vermont’s legislature voted to strike down Gov. Jim Douglas’ gay marriage veto, America Forever fired up its fax machine and spammed several Vermont businesses with anti-gay fliers, presumably so they would urge their legislators to uphold the veto. We have to hand it to AF founders Sandra Rodrigues and Jonas Filho: few anti-gay leaders have their talent for annoying people into supporting the opposition. We can’t help but wonder how their unsolicited faxes would play in California, or any other state where the battle for gay marriage is raging.

But we’ll gladly mock the results should they try.

SLAP: FiveThirtyEight.com OK, we like FiveThirtyEight.com. We think founder Nate Silver is a good statistician. And we’d honestly be thrilled if his prediction that the majority of Utahns will support gay marriage in 2013 came true. But we’ve got to rap Silver’s knuckles for making one crucial oversight in his prognostications: Mormonism.

In the April 3 post to the site, Silver said he based his predictions on three factors: the year in which the state voted on a constitutional amendment regarding marriage; the percentage of adults who identified religion as an important part of their lives; and the percentage of white evangelical Christians in the state. As any Utahn can tell you, the number of white evangelicals in our state is small when compared to the number of Mormons, whose church is just as opposed to gay marriage.

It’s an important detail, and its exclusion has probably skewed Silver’s predictions not just for Utah, but for much of the West.

SNAP: Utahns for Sanctioning Buttars Speaking of numbers and figures, a recent poll by KSL-TV/the Deseret News concluded that 63 percent of Utahns favor sanctioning Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, for anti-gay remarks he made to a documentary filmmaker during this year’s legislative session. We’ve got to ask, though: Does the other 37 percent live in Senate District 10?

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A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 19

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Ruby ‘Milk’ & Comment

by Ruby Ridge

A

lright i admit, petals, i am sooo

behind the curve when it comes to watching new movies. Then, when I do rent DVDs, I have an appalling sense of taste that mortifies most of my urbane highbrow friends.

Case in point: I giggled my ass off watching the Technicolor hemorrhage that was Speed Racer. According to reviews and box office receipts I must have been the only person on Earth over the age of 6 that enjoyed that movie.

Anyway cherubs, I mention that as a prelude because this weekend I rented Slumdog Millionaire and Milk just to catch up on the Academy Awards heavy hitters. I enjoyed Slumdog Millionaire for the cinematography and the kids were just so amazing and compelling. OK, I have to say the scene with the outhouse and the helicopter was a bit hard to watch, and the blinding of the orphan kids really shook me up. But it was a beautifully constructed film and well worth its accolades. Despite my trailer park sensibilities can I make a film recommendation, pumpkins? Danny Boyles film Millions, which is just charming (considering this guy gave us the bleak heroin flick Trainspotting) and an Aussie film called Rabbit Proof Fence (I bawled my eyes out watching this film which really stays with you).

Anyway kittens, the big ticket was Gus Van Sant’s film biopic about San Francisco’s Harvey Milk. Sean Penn was amazing, as was the entire ensemble cast. But the highlight for me was watching the film with Mr. Ridge who lived in San Francisco during the Moscone/Milk years and was there during the assassination and its aftermath.

It was like having a super-personalized director’s narrative on the DVD. I was always under the false impression that San Francisco was this super groovy bastion of flower power, beat poets, and gay tolerance and acceptance. Not so, Mr. Ridge informed me. The San Francisco of the ’60s and ’70s had a rough, sleazy side complete with crime, drugs,

police violence and homelessness. It was chaotic, turbulent and, in some ways, scary. (He also had some interesting recollections about the San Francisco connection to the People’s Temple and the Jonestown Massacre, but that’s a different story.)

Mr. Ridge was one of the many thousands of people who had walked down Market Street for the candlelight vigil after Harvey Milk was killed. He recalled that every drug store in the neighborhood had sold out of candles so people were using any kind of candles they could find. He also mentioned something not shown in the film — the tensions on the street were so angry and volatile that the city was on the verge of erupting. He recalled how folk singer/activist Joan Baez, of all people, calmed the crowd down and redirected their anger into political action.

Apparently she was the main reason San Francisco didn’t burn that night. So big belated kudos to Joan.

My tiny tenuous link to the Harvey Milk story happened many moons ago in Park City. My buddy Flint and I were at the Sundance Film Festival sitting on the floor of a theater lobby with two other random guys waiting for standby tickets. It works out one of them was Rob Epstein, who made the documentary The Life and Times of Harvey Milk.

Who knew his made-on-a-shoestring documentary would be the foundation for such a mainstream hit like Milk?

With all of the buzz surrounding the film Milk and the déjà vu political moments of California’s Prop 8 campaign, it’s going to be a thrill having Cleve Jones in town for Pride this year! Ciao Babies. Q

It was like having a superpersonalized director’s narrative on the dVd

You can see Ruby Ridge live and in person at 3rd Friday Bingo (every Third Friday of the Month at 7PM) at First Baptist Church, 777 S. 1300 East. You can check out her appearances and schedule at www.thirdfridaybingo.com.

This month’s bingo charity is the Alternative Gardening Club, so you can safely wear your Easter Bonnet and matching pumps and no one will mock you ... much.

20 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

Creep of the Week Antonin Scalia

tary

By D’Anne Witkowski

W

hat’s

wrong

with

this

country when Barney Frank can’t call Antonin Scalia a homophobe without folks getting bent out of shape? In an interview with 365Gay.com, Frank, the openly gay congressman from Massachusetts, was discussing the Defense of Marriage Act. “I wouldn’t want it to go to the United States Supreme Court now because that homophobe Antonin Scalia has too many votes on this current court,” Frank said.

True. But for whatever reason, Frank spent the next few days “clarifying” his comment as if he’d said something wrong.

“What a ‘homophobe’ means is

someone who has prejudice about gay people” and that Scalia “makes it very clear that he’s angry, frankly, about the existence of gay people,” Frank said according to 365Gay.com.

Frank even released a statement about it: “The point is that Justice Scalia goes far beyond simply denying that there is a constitutional right here and makes clear his support for the discriminatory policies based on his condemnation of homosexuality.”

Indeed he does. And the proof is in the opinions. Frank points to two in particular to justify his outrageous “homophobe” claim. The first case was Lawrence vs. Texas, the Supreme Court case that struck down the gays-only Texas sodomy law.

Scalia’s dissent was scathing. “It is clear from this that the Court has taken sides in the culture war,” he wrote.

“Many Americans do not want persons who openly engage in homosexual conduct as partners in their business, as scoutmasters for their children, as teachers in their children’s schools, or as boarders in their home. They view this as protecting themselves and their families from a lifestyle that they believe to be immoral and destructive.”

He also blasted the court for being “imbued ... with the law profession’s anti-anti-homosexual culture.”

The second case was Romer v. Evans, where the Court smacked down an amendment to the Colorado state constitution that basically outlawed any kind of protection from discrimination for LGBT people. The fight over this issue was ugly and full of hate. The amendment itself is a shining example of homophobia.

“The Court’s opinion contains grim, disapproving hints that Coloradans have been guilty of ‘animus’ or ‘animosity’ toward homosexuality, as though that has been established as un-American,” Scalia wrote in his dissent. “I had thought that one could consider certain conduct reprehensible — murder, for example, or polygamy, or cruelty to animals — and could exhibit even ‘animus’ toward such conduct.”

So according to Scalia, murder and homosexuality go hand-in-hand and homophobia is totally American, God bless it.

He went on to write, “But though Coloradans are, as I say, entitled to be hostile toward homosexual conduct, the fact is that the degree of hostility reflected by Amendment 2 is the smallest conceivable.”

In other words, Scalia believes that amending a state constitution to essentially kick LGBT people out of the purview of the law is totally OK. Besides, considering how horrible homosexuality is, the people of Colorado were being totally restrained! It’s not like they were stringing gays up by their nuts.

Yet. Keep in mind that Frank isn’t apologizing for calling Scalia a homophobe.

But the fact that he has to explain why he did when Scalia’s record speaks for itself means that people aren’t paying enough attention. It also means that “homophobe” is becoming a terrible thing to be called rather than a terrible thing to be. And that’s just how the antigay folks want it.

D’Anne Witkowski has been gay for pay since 2003. She’s a freelance writer and poet (believe it!). When she’s not taking on the creeps of the world she reviews rock and roll shows in Detroit with her twin sister and teaches writing at the University of Michigan.

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A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 21

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Lambda Lore Greetings, You are Hereby Ordered to Report ...

by Ben Williams

I

april 1969, shortly after my 18th birthday, I drove down to the Selective Service Board in Santa Ana, Calif. and registered for the draft.

I had no choice; it was the law.

Checking off the boxes on the medical forms, I froze in my tracks when I read this question: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do you have any homosexual tendencies?â&#x20AC;? I was in love with a boy. Did that count?

By 1969 the United Statesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; involvement in the war in Southeast Asia was at its peak. Three and a half million men were serving in uniform, and about a third of those were conscripts.

The 1968 Tet Offensive had forced Lyndon Baines Johnson to not seek a second term as President of the United States. Meanwhile, Americans, who had been told the war was nearly won, realized they had been deceived by the military. General Westmoreland â&#x20AC;&#x201D; to n

calm an anxious nation â&#x20AC;&#x201D; called for 300,000 additional troops to turn back the Viet Congâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Liberation Front and to secure Saigon.

In physical education class, the boys at my high school were being trained for boot camp as much as they were being trained for basketball camp. When we ran laps, we carried each other on our backs. We sweated to strenuous calisthenics, including jumping jacks, push ups, set ups, pull ups and throw ups. The coaches thought they were doing us a favor. They knew where many of us would be heading, since they saw few divinity students, sons of politicians and even college-bound material among us middle-class Southern California seniors. Of course, it also never even occurred to them that there might be sissies or queers in our gung-ho group. Yep, a Vietnam rice paddy was the future for most of the

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Class of â&#x20AC;&#x2122;69 at Rancho Alamitos.

Even my senior year counselor, more or less, told me that I should just up and enlist so that I could pick the branch of the armed services I wanted rather then wait to be drafted. He looked at my grades and laughed when I asked about college. Damn him.

The draft was a big deal in 1969.

During the 1968 presidential election, Richard Milhous Nixon had campaigned on a promise to end the draft.

Well, the last conscripted men reported for duty in Vietnam in June 1973, which was of little consequence to me my senior year.

Now, I had been opposed to the Vietnam War for most of my high school days, which put me at odds with my World War II navy veteran dad.

Ever since my older sister had started dating navy guys, I was a pacifist. My sisterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dates often brought their lonely buddies to my dadâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home for supper and sometimes for a place to sleep. My dad, being a navy guy, never turned anyone away, so we were kind of the USO for my street.

I could not stand the thought of these handsome young men being shipped off to war. I am also sure that my ardent opposition to the war came from the fact that frequently some of these young sailors were assigned to my full-size bed when the living roomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pull-out couch was full.

Young men in navy skivvies. Oh, the sacrifices I made for the war effort, having to share my teenage bed with 19-year-old seamen.

However, by April 1969 I was not infatuated with lonely sailor boys, but in love with John Cunningham. Nevertheless, there was no way was I going to check the box that I had homosexual tendencies on the selective service official government form. Besides, I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t a homosexual. I was just in love with John and we would never have sex. Hell, John didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even know that I loved him, so why should I tell the draft board? Ultimately I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t.

Later, I would learn from others that even if I would have checked the box stating I had homosexual tendencies, the draft board would have demanded proof before considering me for a 4-F deferment.

I had no clue at the time that many straight men who wanted to avoid the draft were claiming to be gay. The

radical anti-war magazine Realist, at the time, told draft dodgers that the best way out of the draft was to be a â&#x20AC;&#x153;hoaxusexual.â&#x20AC;? A movie made in 1969 called The Gay Deceivers documented this phenomenon, detailing the exploits of two straight guys who had to pretend to be homosexuals to avoid the draft.

After turning in my paperwork I was issued my draft card, which gave me a temporary student deferment because I was still in high school. The card came with a warning that I had to have it on my person at all times, subject to legal penalties. Congress, in 1965, had made it a crime to â&#x20AC;&#x153;knowingly destroyâ&#x20AC;? or â&#x20AC;&#x153;knowingly mutilateâ&#x20AC;? the selective service card.

In 1968 the Supreme Court upheld the conviction of a draft card burner who had been sentenced to six years in prison. I was even informed that any police officer could stop me at any time and ask to see my draft card; so the paper card became a constant reminder that my body was not my own.

After registering for the draft I began to attend a Let Us Vote (LUV) Club, a meeting of politically-minded students at Rancho who thought that 18-year-olds should be allowed to vote. The opinion was that if we were old enough to die for our country, we should be allowed to vote for those who sent us off to war. Even though I thought the LUV Club views were â&#x20AC;&#x153;right on,â&#x20AC;? I actually joined because John Cunningham was a member.

At one of the weekly meetings I asked to see Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s draft card to compare it to mine. When he flippantly mentioned that he hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t registered yet I nearly flipped out. His birthday was January and it was near the end of April, and he hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t registered. The law said that one had to register within two weeks of oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 18th birthday, and John had gone almost 12 weeks.

The next day I convinced John that he had to register before he got into serious trouble. I drove him down to the Draft Board in my blue 1963 Ford Galaxy. As I waited for him to fill out his paperwork, listening to the Spiral Staircaseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;I Love You More Today then Yesterdayâ&#x20AC;? on the AM car radio, I wondered how he felt about the question â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do you have homosexual tendencies?â&#x20AC;? I was afraid I knew the answer. Q

of course, it also never even occurred to them that there might be sissies or queers in our gung-ho group.

22 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

Gay Geeks Esca-Baloney

by JoSelle Vanderhooft

I

made an interesting discovery

last week while cleaning out my closet.

Apparently, back in the day, I purchased a collector’s VHS box set of Escaflowne, a fairly famous anime involving mechas, high school girls in love, chivalrous samurai (who really are more like medieval knights), mechas, annoying cat girls, mechas, Tarot cards and mechas. By “back in the day,” I mean, of course, the early 2000s before DVD players became bigger than Jesus or The Beatles and successfully killed both video and the radio star. Which means that this anime was new and exciting in, oh, 1998 or so.

Yes, go on, commence laughing. I am, after all, further behind on my anime viewing than is fashionable to admit.

In some ways. How many of you have watched all 2,430,248,028,402 episodes of Sgt. Frog or Bleach?

Yeah, I didn’t think so.

But back to Escaflowne. I really expected to like this, geeky ones. I really did. I mean, my track record with sho¯jo (the typically romantic anime marketed to girls) is pretty good, and this one also had robots and lots of explosions.

Plus, I’m also embarrassingly easy to please.

By about episode 9 I took a break and I haven’t picked it back up.

See, the explosions and the giant robots were awesome, but everything else just felt so ... well, bland. For example, there are a number of tropes that appear in a lot of sho¯jo anime series. Basically: 1. A shy, awkward junior high or high school girl; 2. Who is somewhat obsessed with a cute, popular boy; 3. And/or with the idea of falling in love; 4. Who gets transported to a magical world; 5. Populated by elves/orcs/wizards/ fairies/lizard people/other magical things; 6. Which therefore feels like an interminable and really boring D & D campaign run by your Tolkien-obsessed little brother; 7. And then obtains either a harem of men; 8. Or a love interest; 9. Or a love triangle; 10. Alongside whom she must fight to save the kingdom/the planet/the universe as the mystical savior from another world.

11. Oh, and a cat girl may or may not be involved.

Now, despite what a few confused denizens of TVTropes.com might think, tropes are not clichés, and not necessarily a bad thing. They are simply common components of stories that appear time and time again. Largely, it is what you do with them that makes your story interesting.

And oh, what Escaflowne doesn’t do with its tropes. In a lot of ways, the show really does feel like your little brother wrote it as part of his dorky campaign. From Hitomi, the rather shy, romance-obsessed heroine to Allen, the pretty and chivalrous but not much else knight in a shining mechasuit, to Merle, the annoying cat girl I’ve mentioned, nearly every character is so paper-thin, a strong wind could eviscerate them. There really just is nothing more going on with Hitomi other than she’s kind of awkward and crushing on Allen or with Vaan, a young, recently crowned king of a devastated city, other than he’s young and angry and wants to kill the people who devastated his city. The only one who is remotely interesting is Folken, Vaan’s treacherous older brother who has a nifty mechanical arm. But mostly, I just feel sorry for him for being surrounded by a bunch of dweebs.

As far as Escaflowne’s world building goes ... well, tell me if this sounds familiar. A world with a bunch of little kingdoms, populated by humans and some (albeit nifty) non-humans, which is being threatened by an evil empire which is sort of ... just evil and mean because it’s evil and mean.

Seriously, I’m beginning to wonder if the explosions and the mechas were the only reasons anybody liked this anime.

I know that this show is, at least in the oft-recycled world that is anime, older than God. I know that far better shows have come along since 1998. But I’m picking on Escaflowne because it’s just the most recent example of storytelling fail I’ve seen. As a writer myself, I know how tempting — and easy — relying on time-tested formulas and characters can be, especially when the reward for doing so is often having your work see the light of day and acquire a huge fan following. But I also know that it is much more fun to break those timetested formulas.

Here’s what would have made Escaflowne (or really, any anime that follows familiar tropes) stand out for me.

Instead of the list above, what if it had done something like this: 1. A shy, awkward junior high or

high school girl who is nonetheless awesome at playing the harp; 2. Who has an on again/off again relationship with a cute, popular boy; 3. And is nonetheless a hopeless romantic; 4. Who gets transported to a magical world; 5. Populated by fire-breathing unicorns/syphilitic lizards/gigantic burning angels/an evil empire that sees itself as the only force for good in the world; 6. Which therefore cannot be credited to your dorky little brother; 7. And then obtains a harem of women and men; 8. Or a transgender love interest; 9. Or a love triangle; 10. Alongside whom she must fight to save the kingdom/the planet/the universe as the mystical savior from another world. While, of course, learning how to hone her harp skills.

11. Oh, and the cat girl is also a cat boy.

I don’t wish to be impudent, or to suggest that all Escaflowne or any sho¯jo-clone needs is a few good homos.

Plenty of stories that include gay and transgender characters and love triangles also screw things up by writing queers as stereotypes or confused heterosexuals (Nuriko from iFushigi Yuugi, I am so looking at you!). Still, heterosexual, cisgender romance plots are kind of overdone, and a properly written gay or transgender character can often make a story more interesting.

Well, that and making your characters real human beings and not walking clichés, or characters from your brother’s dorky campaign.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some hot, new anime to watch that will hopefully have 50 percent more explosions and mechas and not 50 percent more eye-rolling genericness. Q

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A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 23

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Continued on Page 24

F R I D AY, A P R I L 1 7 , 7 P M

Walking Across the U.S. for a Dream

by JoSelle Vanderhooft

S

o far,

2009 has been a bleak year for homeless youth in Utah, and particularly homeless youth who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.

According to Jude McNeil, the Utah Pride Center’s youth program director, 42 percent of the state’s homeless youth population identifies as gay, lesbian or bisexual, while one percent identifies as transgender — trends, she added, that reflect those across the nation, which currently has 1.3 homeless youth. Of such youth, 75 percent have gone through youth placement programs (including foster care) before ending up on the streets.

As if these numbers aren’t troubling enough, McNeil notes that gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth make up “only about 3 to 8 percent of the youth population.”

“Something’s not matching up here,” she says.

“LGBT people are coming out younger and younger, and our systems of care and schools are having a hard time keeping up and [finding out] how to serve LGBT youth.” Social taboos about youth sexuality, she notes, may be part of the reason.

28 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

“Our schools and youth-centered environments are often uncomfortable addressing issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, so our youth are falling through the cracks,” she says.

And falling through the cracks entails not only homelessness but many of the things that accompany it: drug use, attempted and successful suicide, self-mutilation and even pregnancy. Despite their sexual orientation, McNeil says that queer female homeless youth are “three times more likely to get pregnant” than their straight peers, thanks to internalized homophobia.

“They are at higher risk for riskier behavior if they don’t have a supportive adult,” says McNeil.

Thankfully for Utah and the nation’s population of queer homeless youth, there are two such adults in Chloe Noble and Jill Hardman. In May, the two Salt Lake women will embark on a 3,000-mile crosscountry trek that will take them from Seattle to Washington, D.C., and then by bus to New Orleans and Austin, Tex. On their way, they will speak at a number of gay and transgender community centers on the struggles and needs of queer homeless youth. To show the urgency of their cause the two

will also live homeless and film hours of footage of gay and transgender homeless youth. They will also be blogging as they travel, and even giving up to the moment updates through the Web site Twitter. They have named their journey the Homeless Youth Pride Walk 2009.

McNeil and the Utah Pride Center are helping Noble and Hardman, who have never undertaken such an effort, with media contacts and with connecting them to organizations across the country who may be interested in their walk.

“In general, whenever they have questions or need help, I’m able to give them information and help them out,” says McNeil.

“Now is my time to shine”

In March, Noble told QSaltLake she is interested in helping homeless queer youth in part because she had spent periods of her 20s on the streets. Youth often end up there, she says, because being homeless is often safer than staying with family who are physically, emotionally or sexually abusive when a youth comes out as gay or transgender.

Noble, who came out at age 20, says her devout Mormon parents could not accept her sexuality or her interest in “bending gender norms.”

“So to leave home was an empowered choice, but not entirely,” Noble wrote in a March 20 blog post on the walk’s Web site, pridewalk2009.org. “For I had no where else to go but the streets. Inside of me lived a fire that was determined to shine against all odds. I would do whatever it took to make it on my own. But who would I turn too [sic] when I needed safety and appropriate guidance? How would I get my own basic needs met? There were no adequate youth centers to provide any form of information or support. Needless to say, I lost my clarity and fell back into old patterns just to survive. I became a statistic again in a different environment.”

Fifteen years later, Noble has a partner, Jenny, and is a small-business owner. She is at a good place in her life, she says, and feels that it is now time to give back to the community.

“Now is the moment for me to reach out to help those less fortunate in our community, in our nation and in our world,” she wrote. “Now is my time to shine for those children who are seemingly trapped in a prison without walls ... that it may inspire them to overcome incredible odds and to stand in triumph as they share their profound experiences. I want to be there as they rise from adversity and help to support them as they discover who they really are.”

Noble agrees with McNeil that schools and child welfare systems are currently not doing enough to help at-risk queer youth, in part because of antigay and anti-transgender bias. Without help, Noble notes that these youth are at risk for physical abuse, rape and sexual exploitation, mental illness, drug abuse and even death.

“Parents of LGBTQ youth and child welfare systems sometimes have biases and misconceptions that are not investigated,” Noble explains. “Many of these youth have spent time in a child welfare placement where they have suffered discrimination and further harm for being queer. At this point in time, our systems of care are not given effective tools to work with LGBTQ youth, so these youth end up homeless. Our society in general and our systems of care have a duty to serve these youth and to make sure they are protected inside and outside of the home.”

“We are walking because we believe that our youth should not have to live on the streets, sleeping in the cold, wondering where their next meal is going to come from,” she said.

Like her partner, Hardman also grew up Mormon and learning there was only one way to live.

“Attend church regularly, get a proper education, find an appropriate job, get married to a worthy man, have a family, and make lots of money,” Hardman wrote in a speech she will give at the walk’s launch. “These are the values of my family.

This is my family’s American dream. But this was not my dream.”

Being told by her family that her own dreams were unworthy and that her sexuality was the result of hanging out with “the wrong people” left a lasting impression on Hardman, who says she often considered taking her own life as a youth. These experiences, she says, have made her sympathetic to the struggles of queer homeless youth.

“I relate to their feelings of self-doubt, anger, abandonment and fear. I understand what it feels

like to be overlooked, misunderstood, devalued and unfairly judged, because of my sexual orientation, unique spirituality and desire to live my life according to my own standards,” she says. “I want their story to be heard and I want to be part of their recovery. This is my dream.”

profit organization before they leave. The foundation will be named the Noble Echoes Foundation.

The women have also brought on Matt Rouse as their media relations director to help with the high volume of e-mails, telephone calls and other messages they are receiving from across the country.

Community Support

May Launch and the Future

Since Noble and Hardman announced their walk in March, they have received an outpouring of support, both locally and nationally. Utah organizations supporting their walk include the Utah Pride Center, Volunteers of America Utah, The Inclusion Center and the Homeless Youth Resource Center.

Nationally, they are being supported by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, gay publications including the Philadelphia Gay News and Web-based GayTwoGather.com, a number of homeless youth activists, authors and filmmakers and several Metropolitan Community Churches, at which the women will speak.

But support for their walk is coming not just in media attention. When Noble and Hardman realized they would need extra hard drives and a laptop to store their footage, Noble says they nearly had to cancel the walk because they couldn’t afford to buy $4,000 of equipment. Happily, an anonymous donor from Ogden gave them the money they need to purchase seven portable hard drives, four desktop hard drives and a new iMac laptop.

Additionally, Provo resident John Rasmussen donated all of the supplies the women need for their trip, including sleeping bags, backpacks and other gear. McNeil also gave them $600 worth of handmade wristbands to use, says Noble, as “street currency” and to give to the homeless youth they meet.

“Many local and national organizations and private citizens, have also donated their time, talent, energy and education to make Homeless Youth Pride Walk 2009 possible,” says Noble.

In fact, interest in the walk has been so great that Noble and Hardman are now able to set up a non-

Because the Utah Pride Center serves a large number of queer youth (many of whom are homeless), McNeil says the center is the perfect place to launch the Homeless Youth Pride Walk. She also says the center will work with Noble and Hardman upon their return to Salt Lake City. The two have plans not only to turn their footage into a documentary and public service announcements, but to implement a program at the center that would let queer youth help homeless queer youth get back on their feet.

“It is our intention to unify LGBTQ youth through artistic expression, and to teach them how to become mutual mentors in a process of self-awareness and collective healing,” Noble told QSaltLake in March. “It’s an opportunity for empowered youth in the LGBTQ community to [help] at-risk youth, whether in creating an event or a PSA that will help ... build a bridge between at-risk and empowered youth.”

Ultimately, Noble and Hardman hope they can help put Salt Lake City on the map as a truly progressive city when it comes to helping homeless queer youth. Although Utah has received much negative attention in the past few months due to the LDS Church’s campaign to re-ban gay marriage, Noble says that this negative attention can be turned into something good.

“It’s a hot zone right now and we want to use that hot zone to do something positive,” she says.

To contact Noble and Hardman, e-mail Matt Rouse at matt@pridewalk2009.org. For more information and to read their blog posts visit pridewalk2009.org.

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 29

Q A&E

Save the Date Major Events of the Community

Gay Agenda Soon, The End of Our Privates

april 17, 2009 Day of Silence ­ dayofsilence.org april 18, 2009 Queer Prom ­ utahpridecenter.org april 24, 2009 Rock the Folk OUT Tour, myspace.com/

by Tony Hobday

CORRECTION: In the April 2 issue I accidentally used the wrong ‘courtesy title’ in reference to a sweettart ... um, sweetheart. I referred to her as Miss Ross instead of Ms. Ross, which is apparently the correct title, but in reality it should be Mz. Ross, as is “courteous” for all geriatric fly girls.

Anyhoo Ms. Ross, I do apologize for the faux pas, would you like my fashionable fake-fur hoodie as a peace offering?

16

thursDAY — Rounding out the UofU LGBT Resource Center’s Ally Awareness Week are the Ally Social — 3–5pm today at the UofU Union Building — and the Queer Student Union’s Silence Is A Drag Show on the ‘Day of Silence,’ doors open at 6pm, Club Sound, a private club for members, located at 579 W 200 South.

For full schedule of events, visit sa.utah.edu/ lgbt.

QQ The gay Salt Lake nightlife continues to expand with Crush Girl Club, a weekly Thursday night woo-hoo for all the sexy lesbians in our fair city.

Tonight, don’t miss out on I Candy &

rockthefolkout May 22–25, 2009

Lady Lick Mix — need I say more? Lap it up girls!

9pm, Bliss Nightlife, a private club for members, 404 S. West Temple.

For more info, visit myspace.com/ crushgirlclub or 801-897-8898.

17

FRIDAY — The Salt City Kings — those fabulous, hot drag guys — are closing out the season with their annual Fight Out the Night.

The evening’s performances are “powerful, inspirational.” The night is about encouraging victimized people to be survivors. Proceeds benefit the Rape Recovery Center.

9pm, Paper Moon, a private club for members, 3737 S. State St. Tickets $6, 801-7130678 or myspace.com/saltcitykings.

QQ Encaustic painting is a process which involves heating beeswax to a molten state, and then adding pigment and damar resin. The resulting paint is then applied to a surface in layers which are fused together with a heat gun or torch. Check out the works of three of the leading encaustic artists: Chris Reilly, Michelle Haglund, and Will Pope — the experience will make you all sticky!

6–9pm opening reception, exhibit runs 3-4 weeks, Meyer Gallery, 350 S. 200 East, Ste 100. Free, for gallery hours and additional info, 801-363-0993 or meyergallery.com.

18

SATURDAY — Well, Chippy says happy anniversary to Jesse, you poor bastard, and to Gene, the Spelling Bee champ.

In honor of their 11 years together, Gene and Jesse are fusing Underwear Night and ’80s Night at Try-Angles.

Hey Ms. Ross, I’ll be in fake-fur briefs just for you!

9pm, Club Try-Angles, a private club for members, 251 W 900 South. Free to members, 801-364-3203 or clubtry-angles.com.

QQ Trans model/entertainer Amanda Lepore brings her Nadya Sulemanlips, her Dolly Parton-breasts, her Christina Aguilera-hair and her hilarious offbeat personality to the Salt Lake City nightlife. She’s got more

30 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

RCGSE Coronation ­ rcgse.org June 5–7, 2009 Utah Pride ­ utahpride.org June 20, 2009

unusual skills than MacGyver ... you don’t want to miss it.

10pm, Babylon at Bliss, a private club for members, 404 S. West Temple. For more info, call 801-860-1083 or visit myspace. com/therealbabylon.

HRC Utah Gala ­

QQ It’s that time of year again for the younger generation of GLBTs to get dolled up in that fabulous gown from Modest by Design or that retro blue tuxedo and dickey. Damn, how I miss proms. Anyhoo, Queer Prom 2009: so excited will be an “exciting” night for gay and gay-friendly youth, ages 14-20.

8pm–midnight, City Library, 210 E. 400 South. Tickets $5/advance–$10/door, 801539-8800 ext. 22 or utahpridecenter.org.

July 24–26, 2009

19

SUNDAY — The new Pride

Community Softball League season has nearly doubled in the number of teams from last year — I guess this league has made a reputation for itself, due in majority part to Team QSaltLake because of our fabulosity. Anyhoo, come support your favorite team this summer. Oh, and QSaltLake’s cheerleaders, The Pussy Posse, are recruiting; so if you can spread your legs, come be part of the fun.

9am–6pm, Sundays through end of August, Jordan Park, 1060 S. 900 West. Free, prideleague.com.

22

WEDNESDAY — Environmental activism really began with the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, and precipitated an unexpected and galvanizing effect on the national psyche. Told through the eyes of nine divergent witnesses, including Stewart Udall, Paul Ehrlich, Pete McCloskey and Rusty Schweickart, the film EARTH

hrcutah.org June 25–28, 2009 Utah Arts Festival ­ uaf.org Utah Bear Ruckus utahbears.com July 31–August 2, 2009 Utah Rebellion utahrebellion.com August 1–2, 2009 Park City Arts Festival kimball-art.org August 7–8, 2009 Redrock Women’s Music Festival, Torrey redrockwomensfest.com August 16, 2009 QSaltLake Lagoon Day, qsaltlake.com August 19, 2009 Equality Utah Allies Dinner, equalityutah.org August 30, 2009 Center’s Golf Classic ­ utahpridecenter.org October 10, 2009 National Coming Out Day Celebration ­ utahpridecenter.org October 17–21, 2009 PWACU Living with AIDS Conference pwacu.org

Email arts@­qsaltlake.com for consideration to be included in Save the Date.

DAYS is a visually stunning chronicle of watershed events and consciousness-changing realizations that prompted a new awareness.

7pm, Tower Theater, 876 E. 900 South.

Free, 801-746-7000 or slcfilmcenter.org.

23

THURSDAY — RirieWoodbury Dance Company’s 45th season ends with Surfaces, three works by compelling contemporary choreographers: A new commission by award-winning New York choreographer Susan Marshall; Doug Varone’s musical and witty 1994 work “Strict Love,” which shows a world from which certainty and uncompromised strength have vanished; Wayne McGregor’s physically engaging “Series I,” which pushes one’s perception of space in surprising and imaginative ways.

7:30pm, through Saturday, Jeanne Wagner Theatre, Rose Wagner Center, 138 W. Broadway. Tickets $15–30, 801-355-ARTS or arttix.org.

24

FRIDAY — This tour debuted late 2008. Three twentysomething gay singer/songwriters took the East Coast by storm. Stewart Lewis, Jake Walden and Tom Goss are similar enough in style and original enough in sound to make the Rock the Folk Out tour a fabulous evening of indie/ folk/rock/pop music from three sensational and good-looking artists.

For more details on the concert and artists, see article on page XXX. 6–9pm, Utah Pride Center, 361 N. 300 West.

Tickets $10, 801-539-8800.

QQ Dubbed a “queer cabaret fantasy,” the University of Utah LGBT Resource Center’s Gaybutante Ball is a ball for “magnificent creatures.”

It’s a semi-formal costume affair ... that sounds fun. Pibs Exchange and Farina’s Costumes are offering 20 percent discounts for those attending the ball. The Slippery Kittens Burlesque perform. Be your magnificent self in a costume!

8–11pm, Gallivan Center Auditorium, 239 S. Main Street. Donations $5, visit the Facebook page for more info.

25

SATURDAY — sWerve calls it “the lesbian social event of the year;” Tie One On is your chance to be debonair.

Ladies ... lots of ladies ... all in ties. Butches, femmes, lady dykes, lezzies — come one come all, but most importantly, tie one on. The evening includes speed dating, dancing with DJ Tidy and prizes for the best tie.

6pm, Club Jam, 751 N. 300 West. Tickets $10 at door, 801-539-8800 or utahpridecenter. org.

UPCOMING EVENTS JUN. 20 B-52s, Peppermill Concert Hall, Wendover JUL. 13 Joan Baez, Ed Kenley Amphitheatre AUG. 25 Depeche Mode, E Center SEP. 01 Dave Matthews Band, USANA NOV. 20 Elton John & Billy Joel, ESA

Red Butte Gardens Announces their Summer Concert Series All nine of their concerts sold out last summer, so officials at Red Butte Garden announced a summer season of 15 concerts this year — more then they have ever offered in the past.

The concerts range from jazz with Diana Krall and soul with Etta James to world music with Femi Kuti and Toumani Diabete, and rock with David Byrne.

Tickets range from $20 to $63 and are discounted for Gardens members. Tickets go on sale to Red Butte Garden members on April 20. Memberships cost $30 per person, $40 for couples, and $55 for families.

Tickets go on sale to the public on May 4. Tickets for children are generally $5 to $10 less than member prices. Day-ofshow tickets are generally $2 more than public prices. Visit www.redbuttegarden.org or call 801-585-0556. Tickets for the June 19 Smokey Robinson concert,

a Red Butte garden fundraiser, are currently the only ones on sale.

May 31 Neko Case

with Joey & John of Calexico June 4 Etta James & The Roots Band June 14 Femi Kuti

with Bela Fleck & Toumani Diabate June 19 Smokey Robinson June 21 David Byrne July 7 Indigo Girls July 13 Death Cab For Cutie

With Andrew Bird & Ra Ra Riot July 19 The Wallflowers July 31 Diana Krall August 4 Chicago August 14 Chris Isaak August 19 Los Lobos & Los Lonely Boys

The Brotherhood Tour August 25 The Avett Brothers Sept. 1 Bonnie Raitt & Taj Mahal

BonTaj Roulet – Alone & Together Sept. 3 Booker T. & The DBT’s

(The Drive-By Truckers)

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 3 1

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SUMMER IS COMING Time to finally join us Campouts / Barbecues Hikes / Parties umen.org

Review

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;End Daysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

by Tony Hobday

P R E S E N T S

â&#x20AC;Śand una mujer Named Maria!

May 6ÄĽ16

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by Dolores Prida & David Coffman Directed by Richard Scott

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Que Viva! Que Bueno! Ole!â&#x20AC;?

Chita Rivera

LIMITED ENGAGEMENT!

Featuring some of the most evocative Latin music ever written, and brimming with the zest of life intrinsic to the Latin Culture!

Ă&#x2030;step ahead.

approach to the Rapture through an apparition of Steven Hawking (also Nick Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Donnell), a British theoretical physicist. (In 2007, Hawking, a victim of Lou Gherigâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Disease, took a zerogravity spaceflight, and of which he stated: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I believe that life on Earth is at an ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster such as sudden nuclear war, a genetically engineered virus, or other dangers. I think the human race has no future if it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go into space.â&#x20AC;?)

Hell, it could be wiped out by North Korea.

End Days doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t preach, as some may assume, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t try to debunk religion or faith. At the core, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hopeful, and at its best, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s comical â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Colleen Baum is well-cast as the bible-thumping, god-fearing, praise-jesus mother. Her comedic timing is perfectly tuned, which makes her character less teeth-gritting. Nick Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Donnellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dual performance as real persons ... maybe, is realistic ... maybe.

Marin and Danielâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s performances are adequate, but lack real depth, as do many young actors.

Director Kirstie Rosenfield precisely draws out the comedic relief in both acts, disallowing them to get too serious. As the family, and Nelson, wait for â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;the endâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to come in a family-homeevening way, the audience is subjected to various human behaviors â&#x20AC;&#x201D; all of which could be relatable, if â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;the endâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was to come.

All-in-all, the play seems like The Wonder Years meets The Addams Family meets Touched by an Angel. If the Rapture befalls the Earth, we could all take a lesson here on our history, our strange family dynamic and our faith ... or lack there of.

i was a bit hesitant in seeing Salt Lake Acting Companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s End Days; though my job is to be open to all ideas, beliefs, opinions shared through artistic interpretation, it sometimes can be difficult. A biblethumping, god-fearing, praise-jesus play about the Rapture â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the end of existence â&#x20AC;&#x201D; is certainly not easy for an agnostic to sit through in its entirety.

But also admittedly, playwright Deborah Zoe Lauferâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s post-9/11 nuclear family present faith sensibility with much-needed humor.

Sylvia Stein (Colleen Baum) is at wits-end with her out-of-work husband, Arthur (Paul Kiernan), and her despising teenage goth daughter, Rachel (Marin Kohler). Arthur, whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s suffering acute depression, forgets to do the grocery shopping and sleeps all day. Rachel wants to be left alone and swears incessantly. So Sylvia finds refuge in Nick Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Donnell (the embodiment of Jesus), and through some misguided direction, she diligently strives to save her family from the impending Rapture.

Sylviaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s task of redemption becomes more difficult â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or perhaps easier â&#x20AC;&#x201D; when an unusual Jewish boy, Nelson Steinberg (Daniel Lara), develops puppy love for Rachel. His recurring presence in a bejeweled Elvis jumpsuit leads to ridicule and daily beatings by his classmates. And initially, his bouyant optimism and naivety further infuriates Rachel, further tires Arthur and â&#x20AC;&#x153;End Daysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; runs until the Rapture, April further encourages Sylvia.

26, Salt Lake Acting Company, 168 W. In what I can only guess, Laufer pres- 500 North. Tickets $13â&#x20AC;&#x201C;34, 363-7522 or ents a medium of sorts to the scientific saltlakeactingcompany.org.

32 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

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Cabaret Gets a Hand

by Brad Di Iorio

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Utahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s theatrical singers go between performances?

Piano man Kevin Christensen and local thespian Jacob Johnson hope they will consider participating in a new cabaret evening called Cast Party SLC, which is currently holding court in Salt Lake Acting Companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Chapel Theatre. Christensen is the music guy while Johnson is handling the business side of the venture. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Salt Lake doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have a cabaret culture,â&#x20AC;? said Christensen, who is known around Salt Lake as the Piano Man SLC. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Cabaret is its own beast. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s neither theatre and not jazz, but it is both.â&#x20AC;?

Originating in Paris in the 1880s, cabaret blossomed in many European cities.

Eventually it made its way to the United States in 1910 and became popular in New Yorkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s entertainment cafĂŠs and dinner hotspots. Cabaret is typically held in the evening in a cafĂŠ setting complete with food and libations. Talent usually performs among the tables and patrons, interacting with the audience.

Cabaret may be familiar to many because of Bob Fosseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s acclaimed Academy Award-winning film of the same name. The movie, which starred Liza Minnelli, depicted a 1932 Berlin cabaret, with performers presenting torch songs, satirical sketches and transvestite acts throughout the film.

In fact, cabaret has a long history of cross dressing. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A drag show is kind of like cabaret.

Maybe that is why the community is attracted to this form of entertainment,â&#x20AC;? said Christensen.

Christensen and Johnson are not sure how this cabaret night will work out.

But if past Saturday nights are any indication, future performances could be very successful. After asking performers they personally knew to participate, the two came up with an impressive line up: local actress Ginger Bess Simons performed; Sam Wessels sang from his new musical called Cancer; accordionist Brian Hubrich did musical comedy; here do

and Elsbeth Gugi donned a top hat and tuxedo for a performance reminiscent of cabaret icon Marlene Dietrich. Cast Party SLC plans on two more Saturday night shows in April, and then two in May. After that, they will determine if there is enough interest to continue. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Salt Lake City is not on the cabaret circuit, but one exists,â&#x20AC;? said Christensen, who hopes they will be able to attract performers on this circuit. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I thought we might have people beating down the doors, but that hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been the case,â&#x20AC;? said Johnson. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I want it to be open to anyone who wants to perform.

Anyone interested meets with Kevin and he makes the final decision on who performs.â&#x20AC;?

Both Christensen and Johnson have years of experience in musical theater and performance arts.

Johnsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s parents were actors, as well as theater and arts instructors. His father, Ron Johnson, has performed in 33 productions at Hale Center Theatre alone; his mother had a role on the long-running television show Touched by an Angel, which was filmed largely in Utah.

Originally from Grantsville, Utah, Johnson studied theatre at the University of Utah and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where he joined Actorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Equity, the labor union representing actors and stage managers. Not landing much work in Los Angeles, Johnson returned to Salt Lake City and has since been working steadily. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I tried out for Saturdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Voyeur and didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think I had made it,â&#x20AC;? said Johnson, who will be making his fourth appearance in this seasonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s production of SLACâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s iconic comedy and musical stage production. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was surprised when they called me after a couple of weeks.â&#x20AC;?

Johnson has also been in Hale Center, Pioneer Theatre and Off Broadway Theatre productions, and has developed and taught a drama program at Montessori schools of Salt Lake City. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And I still have to have another job to help pay the bills,â&#x20AC;? he added.

Christensen moved to Utah in the â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s, after living in Portland, Ore. where he says he was involved in the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;evangelical movementâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and was cabaret, Portlandstyle. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We had a classical guitarist, a comedian, a baritone and some Broadway singers who traveled around the Northwest with the show,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I eventually spun off and created a country rock band.â&#x20AC;?

Locally, Christensen has been playing the piano for Pioneer Theatre and doing receptions at Ballet West. He is also the permanent â&#x20AC;&#x153;subâ&#x20AC;? at the Embassy Suites and has played at Marriott Hotel for five years. He was featured at Zaccheoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Italian Restaurant for 11 years. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I can do thousands of songs,â&#x20AC;? said Christensen. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I also did one theater production in Portland called Mormon American Princess with Steven Fales.â&#x20AC;?

Christensen and Johnson have modeled their cabaret night on the highly successful, monthly Upright Cabaret at Markâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant in West Hollywood, Calif. Both have visited famed Birdland Jazz Club in New York City, and hope to create an atmosphere in Salt Lake City like the atmosphere in that club. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My original idea was to hire a pianist, charge $5, and pay the pianist,â&#x20AC;? said Johnson. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But as it is, we are just able to pay for operating expenses. We are in the process of purchasing the piano Kevin is using.â&#x20AC;?

Christensen and Johnson hope to attract Utah theater performers, up-andcoming talent, and young performance artists with unique talents and voices. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is an inexpensive way to experience Utahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s burgeoning vocal and performance talent,â&#x20AC;? noted Christensen.

And a great way to experience a Saturday night in Salt Lake City.

Cast Party SLC will partner with Voodoo Darlings Burlesque Troupe for a fundraiser benefitting the Make-A-Wish Foundation on May 9. It will also present shows at Salt Lake Acting Company, 168 W 500 N, on Saturday nights, April 18 and 25, and May 2 and 9.

For auditions and info: castpartyslc@gmail.com

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â&#x20AC;&#x201A; A pril 16 , 20 09â&#x20AC;&#x201A; |â&#x20AC;&#x201A; issue 126â&#x20AC;&#x201A; |â&#x20AC;&#x201A; QSa lt L a k eâ&#x20AC;&#x201A; |â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 33

Cedars of Food Lebanon Au Naturale

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Bambara Restaurant New American Bistro menu w/ a â&#x20AC;&#x153;World of Flavorsâ&#x20AC;?

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Cafe Med Best casual Greek/ Mediterranean dining in town 420 E 3300 South

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Cedars of Lebanon Authentic Lebanese, Armenian, Israeli, Moroccan, huka 152 E 200 S, SLC 801-364-4096

Market Street Grill Salt Lakeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finest seafood restaurant with a great brunch.

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Mestizo Coffeehouse Coffee, art, jam sessions, free gallery West Side 631 W North Temple Suite 700, SLC 801-596-0500

The New Yorker The â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;grand patriarch of Downtown SLC restaurantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; - Zagat 60 Market St, SLC 363-0166

Red Iguana Best home-made moles and chile verdes in town 736 W North Temple, SLC 801-322-1489

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Sage’s Cafe Organic vegetarian, locally grown, fresh 473 E 300 South Salt Lake City 801-322-3790

Squatter’s Pub Brewery Utah’s favorite microbrewery, great pub menu 147 W 300 S Salt Lake City 801-363-2739

Squatters Roadhouse Grill 1900 Park Ave Park City 435-649-9868

Tin Angel Cafe Mediterranean bistro style 365 W 400 South Salt Lake City 801-328-4155

Trolley Wings Company Wings and beer Trolley Square under the water tower 801-538-0745

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Fabulous People Laurie Mecham’s Coming Home

by JoSelle Vanderhooft

R

laurie Mecham’s hilarious columns about Utah life in previous issues of QSaltLake might not be surprised to learn that the now Oregonbased writer once did stand-up comedy.

But they might be surprised to learn she’s now helping a Utah actor perfect his one-person show.

Currently, Mecham is flying back and forth between her home in Portland and Salt Lake City to direct The Passion of Sister Dottie S. Dixon, a play about KRCL’s infamous Mormon mother and unlikely gay rights activist by radio host Troy Williams and actor Charles Frost, who plays Dottie.

Mecham says she was a little surprised when Williams, Frost and producer Fran Pruyn e-mailed with the offer.

“They said, ‘We know that you’re in Portland and we’re doing this play in Salt Lake and it won’t really make sense, but how about this proposal?’” she recalls. “I said, ‘If you’re willing to be responsible for choosing me, I’ll be willing to do it. It sounds like fun.’”

Mecham assumes the three chose her because she had once created a eaders who remember

Q doku

Each Sudoku puzzle has a unique solution which can be reached logically without guessing. Enter digits 1 through 9 into the blank spaces. Every row must contain one of each digit, as must each column and each 3x3 square. Qdoku is actually five seperate, but connected, Sudoku puzzles.

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character very much like Sister Dottie.

Years before lovable Dottie took to the airwaves with tales of her gay son and colorful ward members, Sister Fonda ala Mode performed for Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons, a group of former and current Latter-day Saints coming to terms with their sexuality and Mormon upbringing.

There are some key differences between the two characters, however.

“Dottie’s really feisty and has strong political ideals, and Fonda was so naive,” says Mecham. “She used a lot of malapropisms and misspoke a lot. In an attempt to say the right thing in the right way, she put her foot in her mouth a lot. But the thing they have in common is they’re very devout Mormon women who have hearts of gold. Just loving people.” “[Fonda] was sort of a healing laughter kind of thing,” Mecham continues. “I think that’s what Dottie is, and I think this play [The Passion of Sister Dottie S. Dixon] will be a wonderful vehicle for people to laugh at common experiences.

I think they’ll have a lot of fun with it.

There’s a lot to laugh at, but there’s a real deep vein of pain and trauma that people are going to relate to, that you

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3 6 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

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need to laugh about.”

In fact, it was that undercurrent of pain that Mecham says she found missing in the script when she first flew out to help Williams and Frost shape the play earlier this year. Mecham says she liked the jokes and the broad ideas the two men had sketched out, but she felt they needed to go further.

“I said, ‘Come on, you guys have been there!’” Mecham says. “[Based on] my friendships and people I know, I think so many men have had just such a big crisis when they’ve had to come out to their families. They’ve struggled and realized this [being gay] is true. Their parents [have been] devastated and [have had] to choose between their church and their child sometimes.”

She should know, she adds. After she came out she and her father did not speak for three years.

Mecham says she was astounded at how fast Williams could flesh out her suggestions. Often, she says, he would leave the room to write while she and Frost worked on something else and return shortly with a draft of a new scene.

“I’m really happy with what we’ve got. They’ve just come up with some lovely gems,” she says.

Mecham returned in April to help Frost with blocking and refining his performance. She will also come back a week before opening night to do some last minute touch-ups.

“I mean I can’t really direct the play in the traditional sense because a director does all the tech things and harnesses all the production staff and makes a lot of decisions about the look and feel of the

Cocktail Chatter

play and I’m only peripherally involved in a lot of that,” she says, noting that things such as putting together sound effects are handled by Frost and Pruyn.

“There are things that have happened that Charles and Fran have largely put into place,” she says. “It’s a collaborative thing.”

Returning to Salt Lake has brought back memories for Mecham. Despite Utah’s flaws, she says she misses the sense of community she had here.

“Portland is a really cool place, I really do like Portland, but I don’t have a community here. That’s something that takes a long time to develop,” she says.

While in Utah, she notes that she could try out acting, creating characters like Fonda ala Mode and writing for Salt Lake Metro while feeling supported by the gays and lesbians here.

“I’m not like yearning for Zion. It’s not like I sit and miss it, but it was sure nice to have a community,” she says.

And whether directing plays about eccentric Mormon women or talking with people from Portland, Mecham says she doesn’t miss an opportunity to “let people know how great Salt Lake is.”

“There’s just so much to do. It made it easy to write a column,” she laughs.

“All you had to do was open a newspaper, especially if the legislature was in session. Nobody cares if you’re gay here in Portland. It’s like OK great, see you next time.”

The Passion of Sister Dottie S. Dixon will run May 1–16 at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center, 138 W 300 S. Tickets may be purchased at pygmalionproductions.org/tickets.

history goes back to 1920 or 1939 (or some other date) depending on whose story you believe.

Like most of the famous cocktails of today, its Building A Better Bloody Mary origin is in dispute. It may have been created in France; maybe New York. It may have originally

by Camper English been made with vodka, or maybe with gin.

You can tell a lot about a person by his or her Today some call the gin version a Red choice in a Bloody Mary. Some people try a little Snapper; the tequila version a Bloody Maria; too hard to butch up the drink with seven kinds sake in the Bloody Geisha, and so on. No matter of hot sauce. Others are all about flair, bedazwhat you call it, there are plenty of ways to zling the drink with enough garnish to decorate Carmen Miranda’s hat. And a certain segment of adjust the recipe to your personal taste. Within the vodka family, flavored or infused vodkas go the population just likes drinking at breakfast. great in this drink — citrus flavors like lemon and I suppose my style of Bloody Mary reveals even lime can work, and you can sometimes find both trust and control issues. I don’t trust the bartender to make the drink for me most places; special edition chipotle-flavored vodka, or the I’d prefer to control the process at the make-your- more readily available pepper (Peppar) flavor.

Speaking of spicy, I love wasabi paste, own Bloody Mary bar. I want the drink to have horseradish, and muddled jalapeno and red a perfect combination of savory flavors, with a dash of olive brine and the tiniest pinch of celery bell peppers in the drink. You can also infuse salt. I don’t like the saltiness of a Dirty Martini or them in vodka overnight — I’ve tried them all, and they are each differently delicious. Ethnic even olives in the drink (“Can I get those on the side?” I’ll ask,) but when you add savory tomato hot sauces for Asian and Latin cuisine are great juice to the situation then all my issues are going in the drink, as are savory soy, Worcestershire, and steak sauces. Outside the glass, I say the to come out. more the merrier — more olives, pickled green These days savory cocktails are all the rage beans, celery stalks, lemon wedges, cucumbers, in experimental bars. I’ve consumed drinks tomolives, etc. I even like salt and pepper and with carrot juice, cucumbers, yogurt, and even more celery salt around the rim. Bring it on. mustard — but those weren’t Bloody Marys.

Now that I see my Bloody Mary drink preferSavory additions to that drink mostly involve ences all written down — hot and savory and a mixing meat into it, with beef bullion and clam whole salad as garnish — it’s clear I don’t have juice inside the cocktail and bacon and shrimp on top as garnish. Some bartenders are infusing control issues at all. I think I’m just a big old glutton. vodka with bacon, though that often leads to gloppy vodka.

Camper English is a cocktails and spirits writer and But that’s all recent history. The Bloody Mary’s publisher of Alcademics.com.

CLUB

18 L I R P A , Y A D R SATU

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DRAFTS 1 $ S Y A D S E EENIES U TU , $1 DRAFTS W S Y A D N O & WEENIES U M FRIDAYS DJ BOY TOY/DJ D NCE ALL NIGHT S T F A R D 1 $ S SUNDAY URNAMENTS U NOONS, DANCE-DANCE-DA TO L O O P S arly! e Y A R e E iv T F r A r A A D .

N ll E WEDNESD u R f B en we are h w JUKEBOX WITH s t S h Y A ig n D R y a U T d OPEN DAILY AT 2PM A r S Satu & y a id r F n o s 251 W 900 S 801-364-3203 line E BAR Avoid the long OUR SCREENS THROUGHOUT TH 1/2 BLOCK FROM 9th S TRAX STATION ON WWW.CLUBTRY-ANGLES.COM A PRIVATE CLUB FOR MEMBERS SHY? TEXT HIM A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 3 7 U

U

New Club Offers Lesbians Dancing, Fun, Wet Pussies Ladies, grab your lipstick. There’s a new lesbian club in town. But you’d better hurry; Crush only appears once a week on Thursday nights at the Club Bliss building.

Did we mention that the club was founded in part by a gay man?

A few months ago, publicity specialist David Atkinson had a meeting with Lotus Management Group, the owners of such clubs as Bliss Nightlife, Elevate, The Hotel and Lumpy’s Downtown. Like many people, Atkinson had an idea for a club.

“I told them — and there were probably eight guys in the meeting — that we should have a lesbian night [at the Bliss building],” said Atkinson.

When the men dismissed his idea by referring to the Paper Moon, Utah’s then-only lesbian bar, Atkinson explained that wasn’t what he meant. The Moon, he said, was more of a sports bar, but his club would be for lipstick lesbians — that is, lesbians whose taste in clothing, makeup and appearance is more typically feminine. When the men asked if there were lesbians like that in Utah, Atkinson said he laughed.

“Oh my gosh, there’s a ton of them,” he recounted saying. “A lot of them are my friends, and they don’t dislike the Moon, but they’re not comfortable there.”

His arguments convinced the management group, and the Bliss building on 404 S West Temple opened the lipstick lesbian club on March 19.

Atkinson is quick to point out that he is one of the only men involved in the club. Crush is co-owned by Cami Carter and Alex Wilson of Hype Media designed the club’s logo, t-shirts and advertisements, and the club’s management panel and staff are enWEEKLY E VENTS

1. AREA 51

SUNDAYS

tirely female, from head of security Kirsten Thomas to the dancers who perform on stage to Mogley, the head bartender. Even the house deejay, DJ Lux, is a woman.

“All the girls love her,” said Mogley. “She plays some dance and techno, and some remixes of the hot songs so our dance floor is full the whole time.”

Because Mogley worked at Paper Moon for five and a half years, and because Crush is now the second lesbian club in Salt Lake City (Mo Diggity’s, a lesbian sports bar, closed its doors in 2008), comparisons to Paper Moon may be inevitable. But Mogley and Atkinson are quick to stress they don’t want to compete with the popular club.

“I just think Salt Lake is big enough to have two lesbian bars,” said Atkinson. “From the very beginning we’ve said this isn’t a competition with the Moon. We don’t have anything to say against them, we’re very complimentary of what [owner] Toni [Fitzgerald] has done.”

The club’s environment is also much different from that of the Moon, added Atkinson. From its large fireplaces, red leather furniture and hardwood floors to its lounge area where guests can escape the music to converse, the club, his reminiscent of those you might find in New York or Los Angeles.

Also, the club’s atmosphere changes every night to match the club’s theme. For Easter week, employees made their own bunny ears and tails for Sexy Bunny Tails Night.

“I didn’t really wear the ears,” Mogley admitted. “They slip off your head when you’re bartending.”

The week before that, the club held MONDAYS

348 W. 500 South • D P T X 801-534-0819 • area51slc.com

TUESDAYS

WEDNESDAYS

spring break night featuring bikiniclad women; a week before that, the intriguingly-named Dump Your Husband Night.

Although the night was tonguein-cheek in the “leave the loser at home!” sense, Mogley said the night drew a lot of women who were figuring out their sexuality, or who had been to a lesbian bar previously but weren’t sure if that particular scene was for them.

Interestingly, the club has also drawn a good cross section of Utahns, from lipstick/chapstick lesbians and bisexual women, to butch lesbians and even some men.

“It’s very inclusive,” said Atkinson. “We’ve had probably, I would dare say 20 percent of the audience be gay men and about 5 percent straight men who are friends of ours and just want to come support us.”

The club also draws women in their 20s, 30s and 40s. And while some want to dress up and flirt, others, said Atkinson, just want to go out and dance with their friends.

“I can’t tell you how many women have come up and hugged me and said thank you so much for doing this,” he said.

Although the club has had some ups and downs like any news business, Mogley notes that it is always unusually full for a club on a Thursday night.

“We’re gonna have nights we’re not busy because this is a hard night to have a bar open, but I’ve been shocked that we’ve been busy every week,” she said. “They want this new place to go and have been really enjoying it.”

“I think a lot of it is people are curious,” she continued. “Since we’re downtown we get a lot of travelers who aren’t sure what’s going on because the bar changes nightly, so they come in and see it’s the lesbian night. They may be wary for a second and then they have a good time.”

THURSDAYS

FRIDAYS

2. BABYLON at BLISS

404 S. West Temple • D M P 801-860-1083 • myspace.com/babylonslc

3. CLUB TRY-ANGLES 251 W. 900 South • D M N P Beer-Soaked 801-364-3203 • clubtry-angles.com Weenies

Wii, Pool Beer-soaked $1 drafts Tournament weenies

4. CRUSH GIRL CLUB 404 S. West Temple • D M P 801-897-8898 • myspace.com/crushgirlclub

579 W. 200 South • D M P T X 801-328-0255 • myspace.com/gossipslc 751 N. 300 W • D M P N 801-328-0255 • jamslc.com

Torture at Jam $1 drafts dj Mike Babbitt

7. PAPER MOON

3737 S State St • D K L P 801-713-0678 • thepapermoon.info

Free pool all day Closed $1 Drafts

Karaoke 8pm $1 Drafts

Superstar Karaoke with Travis

$1 drafts, DJ D or BoyToy Bear Jam last Fri

$1 drafts 201 E. 300 South • K P X Karaoke 801-519-8800 • tavernacle.com 9p

9. W LOUNGE

358 S. West Temple • D F N P X 801-359-0637 • myspace.com/wlounge

Dance, Dance, Dance!

House Exchange with Big City House

Fix at Jam DJ:K Top 40 mash-up

$1 Drafts Country 8-10p Top 40 Dance Free pool all day Sassy Kitty’s Karaoke DJ Rach DJ Iris 10p, $1 Drafts

3 8 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

An anagram is a word or phrase that can be made using the letters from another word or phrase.

The theme of this UofU April 24 event is Thump at Jam DJ Tidy Indie, Top 40 Women, Women, Women!

2 Dance Floors 3 Bars VIP room

$1 drafts $1 drafts Oldies Karaoke Dueling pianos Dueling pianos Dueling pianos Dueling pianos Night 9p 9p 9p 9p 9p

Closed for private parties Dance Party Call 801-359-0637 Hip hop, House, Indie House to reserve yours

Anagram

Rearrange the letters below to answer: Dance!

Nova’s Platinum Pussy Review

5. RAGE at THE DEPOT 13 N 400 West • D M P T X 801-671-1154 • myspace.com/rageslc 8. TAVERNACLE

Gay Night

Lipstick Lesbians in a sensual sinful indulgence

5. GOSSIP @ SOUND 6. JAM

SATURDAYS

Gay 80s

Both Mogley and Atkinson expect business to pick up even more as the summer approaches. In May, the club will open its patio and its pool, and the club will celebrate both Karnival and ’80s prom night — a sendup of all that was tacky about the big hair decade.

Mogley is also promising some “really cool shit” for Utah Pride in June. In the meantime, she said that she will gladly make anyone her signature drink, the Mogey (a tropical fruit concoction), a Wet Pussy (rum, strawberries and cream) or a Sweet Areola (another tangy drink). For those who don’t like fruity drinks (or cheeky puns), Crush also offers $3 tequila shots, $5 jager shots and $2 beer drafts.

In the future, Atkinson said he hopes the club will also open on Sundays after 3:00 p.m. for the softball crowd. Q

Indie Disco! Biggest & longest-running electro night

‘We Are All Magnificent Creatures.’

lately bang tuba __________

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Tuesday – $1 drafts with DJ Mike Babbitt Wednesday – SUPERSTAR Karaoke with Travis Thursday – LIVE@JAM with Big City House spinning after Friday FIX with DJ:K Saturday THUMP with DJ TiDY 751 North 300 West Open Tues – Saturday at 5pm

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 39

SL: Yes, love is that ever-present emotion that we strive toward. I write about love, but I also write about hope, forgiveness and pain — all things that are born out of love.

TH: As a gay artist, how has the road been in your music career, difficult or bumpy? Supportive or encouraging?

3 Gay Musicians

Rock The Folk OUT Interview by Tony Hobday

R

Media, in partnership with here! Tunes and Out magazine presented the inaugural tour of Rock the Folk OUT last December along the East Coast. The tour was a huge success, and now has been opened up to a 19-night tour throughout the western United States.

Together, the same three singer/ songwriters return to the road: Stewart Lewis (first to sign to here! Tunes label), Tom Goss and Jake Walden. These contemporary folk artists share insights on their rising success, their music and future goals. egent

TONY HOBDAY: Let’s begin with your musical and educational backgrounds.

Stewart LEWIS: I grew up with parents who moonlighted in a bluegrass band.

There was always three-part harmony in my living room — it was very Partridge Family. When I was 4, somebody threw me a tambourine. I’ve never had music lessons, as it was basically in my

blood. I play through my heart, not my head.

TOM GOSS: I received a guitar for my high school graduation. I’ve never had any formal training. I was pretty obsessed with Dave Matthews Band so I was focused on learning his [Dave’s} songs so I could try to imitate what he was doing. Through that, I learned a love for the guitar and started to find my own voice.

TH: ‘Love’ is a universal theme or inspiration to music, but it also comes from deep within each artist. Do you agree? What deep feelings, motives or beliefs inspire your lyrics?

JAKE WALDEN: I believe when we love we lose nothing at all. I’ve always found in my heart and my work that there is an ache that resides within the hope I carry. Love, in all it’s forms is a risk ... it hurts and it also gives us something unlike any other experience in this life: Connection — exposing who we really are, overcoming our fears.

4 0 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

JW: What I write about has nothing to do with this fact [of being gay], and yet if I were to hide it, the purpose and message of what I am trying to create would be tainted ... that’s what I think at least.

Honestly, I rarely talk about this, as I believe it’s a musicians job to paint a picture for each person to see differently, and the more detail of yourself you engrave in stone onto the music, the less personal it becomes to the listener.

All three of us on the tour are interested not in being gay artists ... boring. But we sure do love gay people, however they come, in every package and in all the ways they are human.

TG: The road for any artist, gay or straight, is full of bumps and bruises.

However, I don’t feel I have experienced any additional road blocks because of my sexuality. In most cases people are appreciative of my honest portrayal of my love and experiences, they don’t get caught up on if my love is geared towards a man or woman.

SL: Mostly supportive, as I ended up being signed by a gay label. For a while, I had a management deal in L.A. where I had to “play straight.” I couldn’t accessorize or cross my legs. At one point they just said, “Don’t talk.” I published a book about it called Rockstarlet.

TH: What are your favorite songs of your tour partners, and why?

TG: Stewart’s is “This is Not a Love Song” [off his newest release In Formation] because it’s such an honest portrayal of the early stages of a relationship. It is fun, pop-y and has a real heart at the center. I think we all have similar fond memories. Jake’s is “Be Still” for the exact opposite reasons.

It’s a passionate song about the end of a relationship. Jake’s voice and lyrics can easily capture your soul; it’s never more prevalent then in this song. Simple and beautiful.

JW: My favorite song of Tommy’s is off his new album [Back To Love] called “Lover.” It became a bit of a joke for Stewart and me the last tour as we found ourselves singing backstage every time like 5-year-olds ... it’s such a serious and beautiful song, and yet we couldn’t help but constantly make fun of him for it and put insane harmonies to it. Stewart’s music constantly amazes me ... right now I’m obsessed with “Gravity,” but I also love his single “This is Not a Love Song.” During his sets I’m always mesmerized and never seem to get tired of anything he does.

SL: I like Jake’s song “We Are” because I get to sing backup on it, plus it’s a beautiful song. My favorite of Tom’s is

“Rise” because it has such an infectious guitar line.

TH: In as much detail as you wish to give, tell the readers something about yourself that you’ve never shared before.

SL: I sleep in the nude. I love chocolate and champagne. When I was 5, my family vacationed in Cape Cod and Jackie O. used to jog by and squeeze my cheeks.

My mother says she adored me(!!) I’ve travelled to over 40 countries. In fifth grade I was suspended for streaking in class.

TG: I grew up with a seizure disorder and used to have regular EEGs, and the medication knocked me out like a light. My family used to jump on my bed to wake me up to no avail — pushing, kicking. none of it mattered. Sadly this strong medication was an avenue for a suicide attempt in my early teens. It was a very troubled time in my life.

TH: All three of you are good looking and talented, passionate guys, which obviously is quite attractive. For your fans, are you single and looking or in a relationship?

SL: I am in a relationship with someone I really love and admire. He rubs my feet and treats me like a king. As of [your] press time, I believe Jake is single.

JW: I am very single and looking. There is no greater purpose for me in this life than to find true love and to share it with someone. I am looking to find my witness, you know.

TG: I am madly in love, recently engaged, just bought my first house and I could not be happier.

TH: After the tour ends in May, what’s next for you, i.e. a new CD, a vacation, another tour?

TG: I’m in the beginning of a 50-city tour.

My third CD released April 7. I’m more excited about this album then anything I’ve done in the past. When I leave Jake and Stewart (what a sad day), I’ll keep touring until June and then start the pride and festival circut. I’ll get married in the fall.

SL: I’ll be doing some shows on the East Coast, and working on my third book — I write too, you see. I’ve just got talent coming out of my ears! Seriously though, I just try to create music and books as best I can, and hope they touch people in some way.

JW: Only time will tell, and your paper doesn’t have enough space for all my dreams and aspirations. Ultimately, I just want to get better, to travel and play, and follow up my debut album [Alive & Screaming] with a new opus, a new call to all the dreamers — whether lost or whether found.

Rock the Folk OUT Tour featuring Tom, Stewart and Jake hits Salt Lake City on April 24, 6:00p.m., Utah Pride Center, 361 North 300 West. Visit the artists’ myspace pages or myspace.com/rockthefolkOUT.

Homoscopes

e

arIes (Mar 21–Apr 20)

Don’t think that your best days are behind you, gay Ram. Far from it!

This week, you find ways to leverage your assets and make them pay off in big dividends.

The secret is to make carefully considered decisions and then take action. You find that you have the resources to shop till you drop.

Hey, how much for that little trinket by the bar? Oh why not just treat yourself.

r

taurus (Apr 21–May 21)

This a time of great opportunity and personal advancement. Queer Bulls can turn on the charm with just about anyone and achieve maximum impact. Meet and greet and sway a few opinions in the schmoozing process. But limit your availability, lest you squander your limited and valuable time. Some blockheads are simply not worth the effort. You know who they are....

how far you really want to go.

p

sCorpIo (Oct 24–Nov 22)

Partners are on the top of your mind and at the bottom of your heart this week. This clarity helps you examine what you’re really seeking in a relationship. For those proud Scorps who are dangling their poles, you may decide to commit or cut bait.

For those who are hoping to hook someone special, it’s time to dip your stick into the social pond.

[

sagIttarIus (Nov 23–Dec 22)

All work and no play makes gay Archers rather pleased with themselves. Burn the midnight oil this week and get a few things accomplished on the job.

For those with loftier goals, it may be pos-

sible to delegate most of the really onerous stuff to underlings. Then you can be freed up to rub elbows with those in-the-know. I said rub elbows..... ahem.

]

CaprICorn (Dec 23–Jan 20)

Fun loving gay Caps can make the most out of their week by applying some creative oil to any rusty idea. It is time to express a few of your wilder opinions to a willing crowd. At very worst, they’ll ignore you. At very best, it can catapult you up into a new level of respectability. Knowing you, if you’re really lucky, it will be a descent to a new low. How low can you get? Ah ha.

q

aQueerIus (Jan 21–Feb 19) How happy are you with your home life? This is the week to embrace it,

t

y

CanCer (JUN 22–JUL 23)

Zesty gay Crabs enjoy the company of good friends this week. Be a joiner and a co-joiner in various new groups and organizations. You never know who you can meet and who will figure prominently in your future plans. I hear the gardening club has an opening for a someone who likes to plant a few seeds. But watch where you stick that green thumb, buddy.

u

leo (Jul 24–Aug 23)

The corporate superhighway almost seems manageable. Good. Now is the time to review your cruising speed.

Proud Lions must use this time to roll out their grand scale professional plans, or else become roadkill. Charisma and charm are turned on high and you can position yourself effectively with the powers that be.

Remember us drones on your way up.

i

VIrgo (Aug 24–Sep 23)

Sociable queer Virgins can relax a bit and enjoy seeking and exploring new vistas and valleys. This is a perfect time to plan a grand world tour or expand your overall knowledge through an interesting course of study. Elevate yourself. The sky is the limit. Don’t waste this energy just lounging around unless it’s in a student lounge to find a... ahem... study mate.

o

lIBra (Sep 24–Oct 23)

Red hot proud Libras have their hearts and minds on the same goal; going for the sexual gusto. You’re insatiable now (and will find an appreciative audience).

Blame the eternal flame on your innate charisma. No sooner do you step on the train than you disembark at the next friendly station. How far will you travel? It depends on

w

pIsCes (Feb 20–Mar 20)

Unleash your best ideas in a torrent and create a tidal wave. Then grab your surfboard and hang ten! Guppies harness their plans and express them proud and queer so everyone of note fully understands. Lend a hand to any good gay charitable cause and get involved globally.

The possibilities are endless, if you don’t poop out. Comprendo compadre?

ALL “FAMILY” WELCOME

gemInI (May 22–Jum 21)

A light shines in your dark, dank closet. So what are you waiting for?

Pry it open and empty it Out. Pink Twins feel like a weight has been lifted off their shoulders when the gremlins fade in the light of day. Cart out the trash and burn it to hell; you have nothing to fear but your old, out of date wardrobe. And we’ll attend to that later...

change it or improve it. Aqueerians tackle family issues that have become troublesome. You are more expressive, lucid and compelling. Call it as you see it, with sugar on top. There is no reason to live your life based on someone else’s prototype. Create a new you and then break the mold.

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42 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

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A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 43

DOLLAR DRAFTS Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays OLDIES Mondays DUELING PIANOS Wednesdays through Saturdays

Q Puzzle

Co-Moms Across 1 Merit badge locale for the “morally straight” 5 Sunday service 9 Strap-on for a diver 14 Industry showcase 15 Crude cartel 16 Quotes gay historian George Chauncey, e.g.

17 Neeson of Kinsey 18 Tomato variety 19 Muse for Millay 20 Rita of West Side Story 22 With 24-Across, TV show of 53-Across 24 See 22-Across 26 Haus wife 27 Paul Lynde, on Bewitched 29 Kenneth Turan, for one 33 Stroke it 36 Points at the target 38 “C’est Moi,” in English 39 Dancer Reagan 40 Method used by the co-moms 42 Concern at gfn.com 43 On the ball 45 Switch ending 46 The bottom line 47 Street market 49 Pantywaist 51 ___ Three Lives

53 Food Network comom 57 Co-mom partner of 53-Across 61 Put to sleep 62 Addis ___ 63 Taylor of I Shot Andy Warhol 65 Had too many M&M’s, e.g.

66 Bernstein’s tool 67 Kind of idol 68 Novelist Patricia ___ Warren 69 Makes a wet blanket 70 “And giving ___, up the chimney ...”

71 Ancient European language Down 1 Blair, who kissed Sarah Michelle Gellar in Cruel Intentions 2 Assumed truth 3 You might pick one up in an alley 4 Billy Bean’s fourbagger 5 Leather type 6 Mil. drop site 7 Sweet opening?

8 Eat up, with “down” 9 Outline for Alan Ball 10 Party type 11 State where two women could be in a marriage, formerly

12 Belle’s companion 13 Starting on 21 Anais who went both ways 23 Tolkien beast 25 Kicking partner 28 Islamic leaders 30 Poet ___ Wu 31 Little fairies 32 CD part (abbr.)

33 Sourpuss 34 “Hi” to Lorca 35 Don Juan’s mother 37 Impassive 40 Pasolini and Zeffirelli 41 Cross-dresser in As You Like It 44 Pride flag design 46 The Wizard of Oz event 48 Striped shirt wearer 50 Apt name for a cook 52 Where Old Man River makes his deposits 54 Like a chickenhawk to a chicken 55 Rods’ attachments 56 Discombobulate 57 Sparring pokes 58 Israeli statesman 59 Allies alliance (abbr.)

60 Nice zip 64 Bloom of The Producers answers on p. 47

Cryptogram

A cryptogram is a puzzle where one letter in the puzzle is substituted with another. For example: ECOLVGNCYXW YCR EQYIIRZNBZN YZU PSZ! Has the solution: CRYPTOGRAMS ARE CHALLENGING AND FUN! In the above example Es are all replaced by Cs. The puzzle is solved by recognizing letter patterns in words and successively substituting letters until the solution is reached.

This week’s hint: Y = G Theme: A quote on the passage of same-sex marriage in Iowa by out Iowa state Sen. Matt McCoy.

Kh k tsadtewy Sevkw, S zwev urku akso-lswxdx jdejtd uroebyrebu ebo hukud hbjjeou dibktsun aeo ktt.

__ _ ________ _____, _ ____ ____ ____-______ ______ __________ ___ _____ _______ ________ ___ ___.

4 4 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

Q S a l t LAapkrei l | 1 6 4 ,5 2 0 0 9 | i s s u e 1 2 6 | Q S a l t L a k e | 4 5

4 6 | QSa lt L a k e | issue 126 | A pril 16 , 20 09

Support the Businesses that Support You

Q Tales

These businesses brought you this issue of QSaltLake.

Make sure to thank them with your patronage.

The Proposal

By A.E. Storm

C

hile skins clung to the sides of

the double kitchen sink like little green leeches. Jacin and Jody stood over the sink, latex gloves protecting their hands from capsaicin (the chemical that gives chiles their intensity) as they skinned and seeded fireroasted habenero, cayenne, anaheim and serrano peppers.

“This is always so time-consuming,” Jody commented as she wrestled with her twentieth pepper.

“I know,” agreed Jacin. “It’s a good thing we only make these enchiladas a couple times a year.”

“Sometimes I could kill Eddie’s mom for introducing us to the recipe.”

They both chuckled.

“I wish Eddie didn’t have to go to St. Paul and miss your anniversary,” said Jody.

“He’s the entertainment director, so now what are we going to do to keep ourselves entertained?” Jacin asked rhetorically.

“I don’t know,” replied Jody. “But let’s have a horp off the vodka bottle.”

“OK.” Jacin pulled the Grey Goose from the freezer. “I don’t know why we use the word horp,” he commented. “I think it’s slang for shit, or something like that.”

“Really?” Jody asked as she flipped her twenty-first pepper into a bowl.

“I think so,” he replied.

Suddenly, Hansel and Gretel, the dachsunds, started yapping and pounced

Puzzle Solutions

on the back of the living room couch, rustling the window blinds.

“Ah, our ruthless bodyguards have once again detected danger,” quipped Jacin. “It must be my parents.”

A knock at the front door sent the dogs into a tailspin. “Quiet,” Jacin shouted over the high-octave barking.

He opened the door to his parents. They hugged and exchanged the usual pleasantries — “You look tired honey, are you eating right?”, “You’re dogs are so obnoxious,” “I’m a little constipated today.”

Two hours later Jacin and George’s anniversary dinner was served: stacked green-chili chicken enchiladas with a fried egg on top.

“Here you go, Mom,” said Jacin as he set the hot plate in front of her. “You won’t be constipated much longer.”

“You’ll find out later tonight that ‘fire in the hole’ couldn’t be more accurate,” added George. The entire table roared with laughter.

After dinner, when everybody could once again feel their lips and tongue George made an announcement.

“I’m so glad all of you could join us to celebrate our eighth anniversary,” he started. “It means a great deal to both of us to have each of you in our lives ... to be our family.”

George looked lovingly at Jacin.

“But this is a very special anniversary. One I hope you never forget,” George directed to Jacin with a big smile.

“Jody and Kat,” George then turned to

Cryptogram: As a lifelong Iowan, I know that fair-minded people throughout our state support equality for all.

Anagram: Gaybutante Ball

3 8 5 9 1 4 2 6 7

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Episode 14

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Jacin Tales

them. “Why don’t you go first.”

“OK,” replied Jody.

She slid a large white envelope out of her purse and handed it to Jacin.

He eagerly tore it open and found a brochure for a place called Grandma’s Cabin in Island Park, Idaho, and a confirmation of a four-night stay.

Astonished, Jacin asked, “You rented us a cabin?”

“Well actually it sleeps 13,” Kat answered. “We’re all going.”

“Wow, really.”

“Yeah, and it’s only about 30 miles outside of Yellowstone,” Kat continued.

“Oh my god, thank you so much,” Jacin said enthusiastically. He looked at George, “Did you know about this?”

“No, I had no idea,” George replied with a sly grin Jacin didn’t notice.

“Josh, you’re next.”

Josh also handed Jacin an envelope, but smaller and blue, and said, “This is actually from me and Leticia.”

Jacin ripped into and it and extracted two tickets to the closing night performance of a national tour of Wicked at Capitol Theatre.

“These are for second-row seats,” Jacin said to no one in particular. “On the floor.”

“Leticia and I saw it last night,” Josh said. “It’s fabulous. We decided to get you guys tickets, you’re going to love it.”

“This is too much,” Jacin ordered.

“Trust me, someday we do expect reciprocation of the same caliber,” Leticia joked.

“OK,” George interrupted. “I think your parents have something for you, too.”

Another envelope was given to Jacin.

Inside was a ‘Happy Anniversary’ card and inside that was a tailor’s business card. Jacin looked at the card, confusion set in his eyes. He then turned the card over and a handwritten date and time was scribbled on it.

“What is this?” He asked his parents.

“It’s an appointment,” said Jacin’s dad.

His mother added, “For a tux fitting.”

“A tux,” Jacin’s voice trailed off in uncertainty. “Why would you buy me a tuxedo?”

“We bought both of you tuxedos,” said his mother.

Jacin turned to look at George who was again sitting next to him. George’s right elbow was rested on the table and placed in his opened palm was a black velvet box. He slowly opened the box.

Nestled in it was a platinum and white gold wedding band.

“Will you marry me?” George asked, a tear sliding down his cheek.

Jacin just stared at him in disbelief.

After a moment, George laughed and said, “Come on. Say yes. We’ve already paid for the cabin and we’re allowed to have the ceremony anywhere in Yellowstone we choose.”

Still no response.

George prodded, “And a honeymoon suite in Cancun.”

“I can’t. I’m sorry,” was all Jacin said before rushing from the room. Q

To be continued ...

A pril 16 , 20 09 | issue 126 | QSa lt L a k e | 47

Q

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