QSaltLake Magazine - Issue 323 - May 2021

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4 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | FROM THE EDITOR

first word

The strength of Utah’s LGBTQ community lies in its creativity

BY MICHAEL AARON

When Utah

was facing a constitutional amendment that was inevitable to pass, our LGBTQ leaders got creative and mostly moved the election. Though not able to defeat the amendment, our community changed the messaging that it “Goes Too Far.” The message resonated and, while conventional wisdom said the amendment would pass with an 80 percent majority, that number was whittled down to 67 percent — considered by many as a huge victory.

Then there was the time our community wanted to be included in anti-discrimination protections.

All sides were brought to the table, and the outcome was a law that protected LGBTQ people in employment and housing but carved out protections for religions and their schools. Now called “The Utah Way,” it changed how legislation involving our community is done, including the recent attempts to limit transgender athletes.

And when one community leader got fed up with being treated as a second-class citizen in Utah’s marriage laws, he successfully sued the state, launching an avalanche of positive rulings across the country.

Last year, as a pandemic swept across the globe, our leaders found a way to have a Pride that still involved coming together and parading. Organizations across the country are now using the Pride Rally concept.

This year, Pride leaders wanted to get even closer together as vaccinations began happening and the numbers started to come down. While still being safe and sane, they found a way to meet on Washington Square, come together in social-distanced groups, and appreciate how to find out more about the community, its past, and its future.

While necessity is the mother of invention, it is our creativity that sets us apart from other parts of the country and world and makes Utah’s LGBTQ community a beacon to admire. Q

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staffbox

publisher/editor Michael Aaron

ASSISTANT editor Tony Hobday NATIONAL NEWS editor Craig Ogan designer Christian Allred sales Tony Hobday, 801-997-9763 x1 sales@qsaltlake.com Rivendell Media, 908-232-2021 ext 200 sales@rivendellmedia.com contributors Joshua Adamson Pickett, Diane Anderson-Minshall, Chris Azzopardi, Paul Berge, Jeff Berry, Paul Campbell, Laurie Bennett-Cook, Roger Cox, Stephen Dark, Jennifer Dobner, Mikki Enoch, Jack Fertig, Greg Fox, Oriol Gutierrez Jr., Tony Hobday, Ashley Hoyle, Joshua Jones, Christopher Katis, Rock Magen, Sam Mills, Craig Ogan, Mikey Rox, Terri Schlichenmeyer, Gregg Shapiro, Petunia Pap Smear, Steven Petrow, Ed Sikov, JoSelle Vanderhooft, Ben ­Williams, D’Anne ­Witkowski distribution Roger Cox publisher

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JUNE 1-7, 2021

A week of thought-provoking, fun and a-maze-ing COVID-safe events and activities

Pride Story Garden

Our History, Our Stories, Our Communities

Rainbow March & Rally Raise Our Voices

Pride Month Proclamations and Flag Raisings Pride Interfaith Service

Limited Tickets Available Online Now at

utahpridecenter.org

8 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | NEWS

news The top national and world news since last issue you should know

BY CRAIG OGAN

State Legislature action Arkansas: Legislators overrode a veto by Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) of a bill that barred doctors from providing medically necessary treatment for transgender children. His veto message said the law constituted “Vast government overreach,” which would “Put the state as the definitive oracle of medical care, overriding parents, patients and health care experts.” The House voted 72-12, and the Senate 25-8 vote to override.

NORTH CAROLINA: Legislation was introduced banning gender-affirming health care for anyone under the age of 21, banning state and local governments from taking any action against conversion therapy, and forcing state employees (mostly law enforcement, teachers, and social workers) to out transgender youth to their parents. The law would fine health care professionals who “facilitate the minor’s desire to present or appear in a manner that is inconsistent with the minor’s sex” and threaten their licenses to practice medicine if they provide gender-affirming care for transgender youth. The bill also defines sex as “based on sex organs, chromosomes, and endogenous hormone profiles” and bans a specific list of procedures. The bill exempts doctors treating intersex minors.

Qsaltlake.com | ISSUE 323 | MAY, 2021

VIRGINIA: A ban on the “gay and transgender panic-defense” is now law in Virginia, the 12th state to ban the legal tactic. The panic defense is often used by defendants who are accused of violent crimes.

They claim that the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity made them panic.

MONTANA: Religious Freedom Restoration Act was passed by the Montana legislature and signed by Gov. Greg Gianforte (R). The law is similar to the one adopted in Indiana in 2015, which was revised to eliminate broad implications allowing for general anti-LGBTQ discrimination. The Montana law allows exemption from state non-discrimination laws if people claim their religious liberties are “substantially burdened.”

TENNESSEE: Good news, despite the support of Gov. Bill Lee (R), a bill to allow only cis-gendered girls to compete in high school sports was removed from the Education Committee’s calendar. The bad news, the legislature is debating a ban on teaching materials that contain LGBTQ+ content. The proposal reads, in part, “Local Education Agencies and public charter schools shall not locally adopt or use in the public schools of this state, textbooks, and instructional materials or supplemental instructional materials that promote, normalize, support, or address lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender issues or lifestyle.” There is also legislation to make the Christian Bible the official state book.

TEXAS: Texas Senate Bill 1646 was introduced that would brand the parents of transgender children as “child abusers” if they support their kids in receiving gender-affirming medical or psychological services. Parents could face jail

time and have their children taken away. Texas medical group Doctors for Change already decried the bill, pointing out that the bill flies in the face of medical research and standards of care. The bill had one of three readings in the Texas Senate. Supporters testified to lawmakers that gender changes are, “Part of a fad that is amplified by social media.” The bill would not stop adults from proceeding with gender confirmation surgery.

FLORIDA: The State House of Representatives passed the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, which would ban transgender athletes from playing on girls’ or women’s school sports teams. The legislation mandates K-12 and collegiate sports teams in the state to be solely for “biological” women and girls. A similar bill is being considered in Florida’s State Senate. It’s unclear if Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) would sign the legislation into law as it contains the same poison pill of regulating collegiate sports which caused South Dakota’s governor to veto (overridden by the legislature) a simil-ar law there.

WEST VIRGINIA: Gov. Jim Justice (R) will sign a new bill banning transgender boys and girls from participating in sports in West Virginia middle and high schools. In as good an example of the garbled syntax, as can be found, he said, “Personally I feel that absolutely, I just can’t get through my head that it is the right thing for us at a middle school level or a high school level in our state for me not to support the bill.” County school districts will “confirm the sex of participants at the time of their birth” before participation in single-sex interscholastic athletic events by providing an original birth certificate and a signed doc-

tor’s statement.

Cartoon Characters Outed Ellen Degeneres dropped an anvil on straight people when she publicly revealed all the cartoon characters she thinks are gay or lesbian. Degeneres outed Velma Dinkley from “Scooby-Doo,” calling her the Rachel Maddow of cartoons; Charlie Brown’s friend Peppermint Patty, citing the character wears Birkenstocks and everyone calls her “Sir”; Spongebob from “Spongebob Square Pants” was an easy pick as HBO tweeted out “Bob’s” picture on “Coming-out Day,” said Degeneres, and he has a pet snail. She also thinks Elsa from “Frozen” is a lesbian, but that’s just a feeling. She says there are cartoon characters who are gay or lesbian but, “Straight people may not have figured out (they) were.” She mentioned Snagglepuss, Ursula, He-Man, Yogi and Boo-Boo, Flounder, four of the seven dwarfs, and Jiminy Cricket.

The candlestick from “Beauty and the Beast,” according to Degeneres, “French or gay, same thing.” Ellen reminded everyone, “these are cartoon characters so no one should care.”

HIV Vaccine Promising A potential HIV vaccine is showing promising results in early human trials. The findings were presented by Scripps Research and IAVI, a nonprofit research organization, at the International AIDS Society HIV Research for Prevention conference.

The vaccine stimulates the production of rare immune cells that generate HIV-resistant antibodies, a result found in 97 percent of human participants. The results are from a small sample; the next step will be more widespread

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clinical trials.

Gay Island, A Fantasy George Langdon, a Republican member of the Albany County Legislature in New York, at a conference ironically titled “A Return to Liberty Under the Constitution,“ declared the constitutionally guaranteed concept of separation of church and state is “bogus.” He also conjectured that homosexuality could be eliminated in 40 years if gay and lesbian people were imprisoned on an island.

Not constitutional if you are asking. He thinks the island dwellers wouldn’t reproduce, so in 40 years, poof, no more poofters. He resigned from the Albany County Legislature saying, “It was never my intention to single-out or

target anyone. I truly believe every individual should have the right to life and liberty in their pursuit of happiness.”

Gay leader at U.S. Customs and Border Protection Tucson, Arizona Police Chief Chris Magnus has been appointed the U.S. Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection. He was a strong critic of border and immigration policies of the previous administration and supported and attended BLM demonstrations in San Francisco in 2014 when he was chief in Richmond, California. He also served as chief in Fargo, North Dakota. Magnus is married to a man who served as chief of staff to Richmond, Virginia’s mayor.

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“Queer as Folk” second reboot First it was Manchester, England for a 1990s gritty take, then rebooted in 2000 portraying Pittsburg as a sort-of fantasy island, and now rebooting in New Orleans, the groundbreaking gay television show “Queer as Folk” is coming back to TV. NBC’s streaming service, Peacock, has greenlighted eight episodes to “explore a diverse

group of friends in New Orleans whose lives are transformed in the aftermath of a tragedy.”

Stephen Dunn, the showrunner said, “The show originally aired was so provocative that I felt I could only watch ‘Queer as Folk’ in secret. But so much has changed in the last 20 years.”

Dunn said the series locale will feature more people of color, transgender, and female characters than earlier iterations (and better food). Q

10 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | NEWS

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Cache Valley student cuts down LGBTQ flag from a school’s Diversity Week display; community rallies to support LGBTQ students A video of a Cache Valley student cutting a gay pride flag down from a diversity week display to the cheers of students below went viral, casting a negative light on the school. Days later, students and parents rallied on the sidewalk outside in support of LGBTQ students.

The pride flag was placed by a teacher over the top of a Cuban flag, and students throughout the day were flipping the rainbow flag over the railing and out of the way of the Cuban flag, followed by someone else flipping it back. The cutting incident came after one of those exchanges.

Ridgeline High School Principal Brittany Foster explained that a rainbow flag originally ordered as part of the display didn’t work out and the school purchased a new one, but only after the other flags had been placed.

“That’s when the decision was made to quickly hang the flag even though there wasn’t a spot for it, and so the teacher ran out and hurried and put it up,” Foster

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told the Herald-Journal. “Unfortunately, she decided to put it up over another flag since she didn’t have scissors to cut the other one down and move it, and so she left the pride flag hanging over the Cuban flag.”

The teacher, Foster said, got busy and neglected to move the Cuban flag.

Foster said the student who cut down the flag was not at school the following day, but faces “some consequences” for his action.

School faculty moved all of the flags to a location not accessible to students and included the pride flag in that location.

“From there, they put up everyone’s flag, no one was covering any other (flag), and there were still kids threatening to take it and rip it down and burn it and trash it,” a Gay-Straight Alliance student member told the Herald-Journal. “So that was really worrying today.”

In fact, several LGBTQ students did not show up for school the day after the incident out of safety fears.

After the videos went viral, some Ridgeline students urged LGBTQ sympathizers to go to school in their “Sunday best” as a way of showing support, while parents and other community members organized a rally outside.

About 75 parents and supporters gathered near the school’s north doors with rainbow flags as classes ended for the day. None of the students leaving the

school offered anything but support for the crowd.

The Cache County School District issued a statement addressing the incident: “The Cache County School District is aware of an incident at Ridgeline High School which occurred at the end of the day on April 13, when a Pride flag was hung over the top of a country flag during a GSA event in the student commons. This flag was subsequently cut down by a student who was not part of the event. Neither the school nor the school district condones the insensitive and disrespectful removal of the flag, which was done without permission. In fact, this took place during Ridgeline’s Diversity Week, which is held to create awareness and celebrate the diversity of students, as well as increase inclusion among the Ridgeline student body. This type of incident reminds us of the importance of continually educating students, not just during a Diversity Week, on the importance of respecting one another and the right to attend school, participate in events, and learn in a safe and respectful school environment.”

District spokesman Tim Smith said he hopes something positive will result from the controversy. “These types of incidents are always helpful to further educate students,” Smith said. “It’s an unfortunate event, but also, we can make lemonade out of lemons.” Q

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Students and faculty light up Utah State’s Old Main in rainbow colors in support of LGBTQ BYU students Over 150 tudents and faculty at Utah State University stood in 30-mph winds April 13 to light Old Main in rainbow colors to show support of LGBTQ students at Brigham Young University. The Queer Student Alliance coordinated the event, giving each person in attendance a piece of colored cellophane to tape over the flashlights on their phones and shine toward the iconic building. Organizers were emotional, as they expected about 25 people to show. The crowd chanted “BYU, we stand with you.”

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12 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | NEWS

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Park City students blocked from LGBTQ searches Students in a current issues class at Park City High School were surprised when they searched for “gay rights in Poland,” only to find they were restricted from viewing the results by recently updated filtering software. They also found the terms gay, lesbian, queer, and same-sex marriage were blocked.

“It is incredibly difficult to effectively educate and inform when we are prevented from doing further research of our own,” junior Summer McGuire, president of the PCHS Gay-Straight Alliance wrote in an email to principal Roger Arbabi.

Arbabi replied, “The new filter system that is in place will need to be adjusted to accommodate the needs of our community. I was in touch with the Director of Technology at PCSD and have been granted access to topics related to LGBTQ+.”

Texas company Lightspeed Systems is the service provider of the content filtering system used at Park City High School. In 2011, the American Civil Liberties Union sent a demand letter to the company advising them to remove LGBT-related terms from being filtered.

The company agreed.

Lightspeed’s filtering software in 2011 included a category called “education lifestyles” that blocked access to educational LGBT-related information that was not sexually explicit. The ACLU discovered that public schools across the country had barred access to sites such as the Gay-Straight Alliance Network; the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, and the official website for the annual Day of Silence to protest anti-LGBT bullying. Many schools activated the filter in the mistaken belief that it blocked sexually explicit content.

“Lightspeed Systems should be commended for responding quickly and responsibly to fix a problem that we have seen in school districts across the county,” ACLU staff attorney Joshua Block said at the time. “Websites should not be singled out for special treatment by public schools simply because they contain LGBT content. Educational websites addressing LGBT history should be treated similarly to other history websites, and websites urging support for the rights of

LGBT people should be treated similarly to other political websites. Lightspeed’s new categories will ensure that all public school students have viewpoint-neutral access to important online resources.”

The school’s chief information officer, Andrew Frink, told the Associated Press that the recent blocks on LGBTQ terms were mistakenly implemented as part of a software upgrade.

“This new version has a much-improved ability to do search term blocking, which is an important tool in the complex work of filtering,” Frink told AP. “To set this up, we had to come up with a set of search terms to look for. As this is a massive and complex list and not something provided by the vendor, we chose to use a list created by other professionals in the field. It was this list that inadvertent-

ly blocked the LGBTQ search terms.”

Lightspeed provided a long list of suggested terms to filter, including many vulgarities and phrases such as “buy gun,” “blow up school,” “I hate myself,” and “naked pics.” Frink said the list included the terms blocked earlier and that he immediately removed them at the request of the principal.

The GSA at the school has been active since 2003 and won a national award for their work in 2014.

Salt Lake needs a ‘queer little bookstore’ Calling it the scariest thing she’s ever done, Kaitlyn Mahoney set up an Indiegogo fundraiser to start Under the Umbrella: A Queer Little Bookstore.

“Salt Lake City is one of the ten queerest cities in America, but we have hardly any queer-specific spaces and even fewer that are accessible to all ages,” Mahoney wrote in the fundraiser description. “Having spaces available for queer youth to feel safe and validated is especially important … and we all deserve a space where we can be ourselves and build community.’

“One bookstore isn’t going to change the world, but one bookstore can be a place of refuge, a place of validation and celebration, and a place to learn more about yourself and discover that you are not alone,” Mahoney continued.

Mahoney, who calls herself a queer book enthusiast, points out that over 95 percent of the publishing industry is cisgender and 81 percent straight.

“When you walk into Under the Umbrella, you know that the books and other items you’ll find there are queer,” Mahoney said. “Books will be clearly labeled based on the representation found in the books, as far as is possible, so individuals have the opportunity to see themselves represented in stories or learn more about other identities within the community.

Every product will offer a way to connect deeper with yourself and the community at large.”

Mahoney also sees the store as a queer space.

“Under the Umbrella will serve as a community hub for connection between LGBTQIA+ folks. We are working to establish relationships and programs with Drag Queen Story Hour, LGBTQ Books to Prisoners, and Black & Pink, as well as other queer groups to offer ways for us to build connections beyond the books we read. Our plan is to offer book clubs, poetry readings, letter writing activities, and a space for groups to congregate (once it is safe to do so).”

Queer employment is also important to Mahoney.

“We plan to hire queer booksellers and other staff members as our budget increases. We are dedicated to providing a minimum $15/hour wage, which means it may take us a little while before we are able to hire additional staff. In the meantime, we will offer consignment for local queer authors to sell their work in the store, and we plan to offer sideline items (candles, stickers, pins, socks, art, etc.) made exclusively by LGBTQIA+ individuals. Q The Indiegogo fundraiser is at bit.ly/queerbookstore.

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Utah Pride Center recognizes race intersectionality with logo change In September of 2020, six months ago, the Utah Pride Center changed its logo in a small, but powerful way.

“We knew that it was time to change the logo to one that recognizes the intersec-

tionality of race within our communities,” leaders said in a statement. “The intent is for those Queer Black, Indigenous, People of Color in our communities who have historically been erased, silenced and made invisible in many queer spaces, including at the Utah Pride Center, see themselves represented on this logo.”

The symbolism of the black and brown letters supporting and holding the word “PRIDE,” is also important, they say.

“It visibly recognizes that Queer and Trans BIPOC individuals have not only grounded the work in our communities, but also paved the way for so many,” they said. “We feel the need to raise our voice in solidarity with other communities to once again proclaim that Black Lives Matter.”

They said the logo change will remind and guide them in their mission to be a place that “unites, empowers and celebrates Utah’s diverse LGBTQ+ communities.”

“We also hope that as people see our new symbol and logo, that they too are reminded that the Utah Pride Center is a space for all.” Q

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14 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | NEWS

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Gay GOP leader Dave Robinson accused of sexual harassment, body shaming Dave Robinson, the openly gay communications director for the Salt Lake County Republican Party, said the seven women accusing him of harassment are part of an “orchestrated” attack against him, and comments linked to him were taken out of context.

“I have a lot of women friends,” Robinson told KUTV News in an interview.

“Those who know me, my relationship with women is a little different than if you’re hetero. They come to me with a critical eye, and I don’t belittle them. It is a matter of what do we do to take them to the next level.”

He said he essentially told the women, who were running for political office, “Get your shit together; we’ve got a race to run.”

Salt Lake County Council member Laurie Stringham told The Salt Lake Tribune that Robinson was toxic to her during her campaign.

Stringham recalled a campaign video she produced that said, “when Mayor [Jenny] Wilson says ‘more, more, more,’ we can say ‘no, no, no.’ She says Robinson called her, saying, “You sound like you’re having an orgasm!”

“He tells me if I want to ‘whore myself out,’ that is my choice,” Stringham said.

She then said that Robinson threatened her, saying he will make sure she never gets elected and that the party would nev-

er work with her if she didn’t continue to work through him.

Several women told the Tribune they experienced body-shaming and scrutiny of their appearance and that he called men and women, but mostly women, degrading nicknames and refused to stop when asked.

Erin Preston, who ran as a Republican for Salt Lake County Recorder, said Robinson referred to women in the party as “bitch, whore, sexy, slut, tits, ass, fatty, sloppy seconds, etc.”

Some said he withheld important campaign resources until they wrote opinion pieces about his pet issues.

Initially, Salt Lake County Republican Party Chair Mike Miller was dismissive of the allegations. Later, though, he resigned from his position.

“I made a mistake with how I handled the complaints lodged by Republican women and my recent communications [director]. I am sorry,” he wrote in a resignation email.

Miller also came to Robinson’s defense in 2018 when Robinson said that Utah’s LGBT community had a high suicide rate because they all had thousands of sex partners. There were calls for Robinson’s removal then, but Miller chose to keep him on as communications director.

Robinson has demanded an investigation into the current matter, but so far,

no movement has been made on that, apparently since Robinson is no longer in the position.

“I offered up my computer, my text messages, and I have always been ready, willing, and able to be put under oath,” Robinson wrote to the party board. “I want the truth about these allegations, good and bad, to come out. However, it seems you are not interested in such.” Q

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God loves you. And we think you’re fabulous, too.

Utah Dems hire Joshua Rush as communications director The Utah Democratic Party has named actor Joshua Rush, 19, as their communications director.

Rush is best known for playing the role of Cyrus Goodman, a gay jewish teenager, on the Disney Channel series “Andi Mack.” He has since come out as bisexual.

Rush started a weekly news series on social media in 2018, titled “News in a Rush,” covering politics and current events in minute-long videos aimed to make younger viewers understand certain topics.He volunteered for the 2018 congressional campaigns of Beto O’Rourke and Ben McAdams.

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16 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | QMMUNITY

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Q mmunity Help Project Rainbow make and stake Pride and transgender flags Project Rainbow is asking for volunteers to help make the rainbow flag stakes that are put up around the state in celebration of regional Prides and transgender awareness days. Helpers will affix flags to PVC poles.

The fun event will take place from noon to 7 p.m. on Monday, May 3, and Tuesday, May 4 at 34 S Rio Grande St. at The Gateway.

Volunteers are also needed to stake the poles right before Pride and other events and to take them down the following week.

You can sign up to volunteer or to get a flag staked at your home or business at projectrainbowutah.org. Neighborhood liaisons gather flag orders on their street and stake and remove the flags, earning them a free flag for their own yard.

All proceeds benefit local LGBTQ charities. This event is also on Facebook at fb.me/events/141580437843010/

Utah Arts Festival announces 2021 dates The Utah Arts Festival has announced that their annual event will take place August 27–29 at Washington and Library Squares in downtown Salt Lake City. More information at uaf.org

Stonewall Sports Summer Kickball Season signups are open now Stonewall Sports SLC announced the kickball season will take place this year beginning June 20 at Sugar House Park. Registration is now open and early bird pricing goes through April 30.

Eight weeks of one-hour game play will take place on Sundays between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. You can sign up as an individual (free agent or captain) or if your captain is already signed up, you can join as a team. If you sign up as a free agent the league will put you on a random team. If you would like to play with one, two, three, or four people, put them in your registration. There will be a question when you register of who you would like to play with.

This is an all-inclusive league and people of all skill levels can play.

Special Stonewall events during the season include Spirit Day, team mixers, Mx Stonewall Competition, pool party, and awards ceremony Registration and more information is at stonewallsportsslc.org

Fashion Fluid clothing boutique Project Rainbow will host its annual Fashion Fluid Event, a free clothing boutique for LGTBQ Youth. This is a place where youth may “shop” in a comfortable, accepting, and affirming safe space.

Clothing, shoes, and accessories were received from donations and community

contributions. This event is from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. May 5 through 9 at 34 S. Rio Grande St. at the Gateway.

Utah LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce announces annual Economic Summit date The Utah LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce set the date for their annual Economic Summit for September 23. Further details will be made available on their website, utahlgbtqchamber.org. The Summit offers LGBTQ businesses tools and guidance on furthering their businesses and allows for mingling with other business owners.

Equality Utah sets Allies Gala date

Know who WANTS your business and will treat you with the DIGNITY and RESPECT you deserve

Equality Utah, Utah’s LGBTQ political organization, has announced that Covid-willing, they are returning this fall to the Eccles Theater to celebrate 20 Years. The Allies Gala is scheduled for October 2.Tickets and more details will be released this summer.

More info will be announced at equalityutah.org/allies. Q Want to get your organization’s events in QMmunity?

Email the who/what/where/when/why/how to editor@ qsaltlake.com.

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2020 IN REVIEW | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 17

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Qsaltlake.com | ISSUE 323 | MAY, 2021

quotes “It is hard to really love our neighbors when we are fighting with them over whose rights are more important. This country can accommodate both civil liberties for LGBT individuals and religious freedom.”

— Rep. Christ Stewart about the Equality Act

“We could support legislation that provides protection for LGBT persons as well as people and institutions of faith. Both are possible and clearly required in a just society.”

— Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in a statement

“As both the Equality Act and the Fairness for All Act are debated in Congress, it is essential that people of good will come together to seek common ground. Utah is a better state today because people from both sides worked together to pass our historic non-discrimination law. We have shown the world that the LGBTQ community can coexist with people of faith.”

— Equality Utah’s Troy Williams

“We oppose it as it stands today. The insidious nature of the extreme changes it will make would irreparably harm America and all of the accomplishments we’ve worked so hard for over the last few decades.”

— Charles Moran, managing director for Log Cabin Republicans

MAY, 2021 | ISSUE 323 | Qsaltlake.com

guest editorial

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State of Our Center

BY DR. ROB MOOLMAN

Our Utah

Pride Center has been through many difficult times and had some hard years in its almost 30-year history. I believe that 2020 will go down as one of those years that tested our Center, but that ultimately showed our resilience and the importance of this space and the work we do. 2020 has shown once again that the Center has a role as the heart of our community. In 2020, the Utah Pride Center and the team working in it rose to every challenge before them and continued to ensure that our Utah LGBTQ+ were provided crucial resources, were care for, and were seen.

It is difficult thinking back to October of 2019 and the hope and excitement we all had when we presented our 2019/20 budget to the board. After my second year as executive director, it was wonderful to see the new initiatives, processes, and programs that we had begun starting to blossom and take root at the Center. We were bursting at the seams, and our Center really felt like the “center” of LGBTQ+ work in Utah.

And then, on the very day that we were due to launch our 2018/19 Annual Report, we had to close our doors. Even as those doors closed, our teams sprang into action and moved everything online. Although our doors closed to the public, our services and programs did not. Our SAGE program, our Youth and Family Program, and our Mental Health program went ‘virtual’ and continued serving our communities in need. The brand-new Suicide Prevention and Resources program became a crucial part of our work through COVID-19 — never more timely — and our work took on an even more important role as we strove to work intersectionally throughout all of the communities affected by the pandemic.

I am incredibly humbled and proud of the team of people we had at the Center through this year, who, despite pandemics, earthquakes, restructures, and hurricanes, kept our community’s health and wellbeing at the very core of what they are doing. At a time when our marginalized, frightened, and at-risk communities called out to the Center for help, we were there, and we answered the call.

As a result, they are thriving, and at a time when it could be devastatingly the opposite.

I cannot help but think about how we have grown and become stronger as a Pride Center. As the executive director, I believe that I have four key responsibilities that I am accountable for — ensuring our work is community-focused and lives up to the mission and vision of the Center; to make sure we recruit, retain, and develop the staff in the Center; to ensure the financial stability of the Center; and finally, to develop the foundational processes and procedures that ensure we can fulfill our work effectively, and that the Center is strong and sound enough for its next level of growth. This year has tested all of us, but I believe in considering these four imperatives, that the State of our Center is stronger, more prepared, and more resilient than ever.

As we look forward to 2021 and beyond, we are all very excited about opening our doors to our community once more, returning the “heart and soul” to our Center — the people we serve every day. Our programs, services, and resources are thriving, and we are now starting a new Rainbow Wellness program that will build connection and provide a space for preventative care. I am also excited to announce that to ensure the longevity of the Center; we will soon be formally launching our Endowment Fund. And finally, using our pandemic

measures, we will continue to grow and expand our online services and resources throughout Utah, thereby turning this challenge into UPC expansion and support for LGBTQ+ throughout all Utah communities.

On a personal note, I want to thank everyone who has worked so hard to support our mission and vision these past few months — our UPC team, the board of directors, donors, volunteers, and supporters who have contributed to ensuring our continued survival of this space. I am proud to be a part of the Utah Pride Center. A Center that withstood crisis and pandemic, and most importantly, continued to be strong and responsive for the Queer Community of Utah through 2020 and beyond. Q Dr. Rob Moolman is executive director of the Utah Pride Center.

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creep of the month

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ISSUE 323 |

MAY, 2021

Republicans using trans kids as political pawns while a pandemic rages on

BY D’ANNE WITKOWSKI

Greetings

from a pandemic that is still ongoing and getting worse in places. Here is a public service announcement: you don’t need to eat inside restaurants right now, even if your state says it’s OK. It is a bad idea!

Other bad ideas include a laser focus on harming transgender kids by Republicans across the nation. Having decided that COVID-19 is a hoax and that Trump is still the president, Republicans are dealing with the real threat: gender nonconformity.

If it becomes impossible to tell the difference between males and females, then what if a heterosexual man hits on another man because they thought they were a woman? And can’t a guy even grab a hot broad’s ass anymore without worrying about turning gay?

Earlier this month, North Carolina jumped on the desperate grasp to hold up the patriarchy wagon with Republicans introducing the Youth Health Protection Act, which is actually not concerned about protecting heath at all!

According to The Hill, the act “focuses on prohibiting minors from accessing various gender-affirming treatments, ranging from hormone blockers to sex reassignment surgeries.”

The reasoning behind this whole thing is that maybe transgender kids are just going through a phase, and this is something they just wanted to try out, like longboarding or drama club.

To be honest, this is a fair concern to have! Gender-affirming treatments on minors make a lot of people nervous. I mean, what if it were legal for minors to get tattoos? So many bad decisions would be made!

Of course, comparing gender identity to getting inked with “Space Jam”-era Bugs Bunny is, well, a bad comparison and disrespectful to boot. Gender identity isn’t, after all, a quick decision made impulsively and without thought to the future.

Most importantly, the idea that a minor is going to “go trans” and then be trapped forever in that choice is based on a misconception, at best. The results of hormone blockers, for example, are not permanent.

According to the Mayo Clinic, hormone blockers pause puberty, “providing time to determine if a child’s gender identity is long-lasting. It also gives children and their families time to think about or plan for the psychological, medical, developmental, social and legal issues ahead.”

In other words, the treatment for transgender kids isn’t just some wild and crazy experiment that doctors are doing for kicks. This treatment was developed by thoughtful and intelligent professionals who care about kids, unlike the people who put their names on these anti-trans bills.

An especially alarming part of the North Carolina bill says that “government and school employees, among other professionals, are mandated to report to a child’s parents in writing if their child is exhibiting any symptoms of gender dysphoria or gender nonconformity,” according to The Hill.

Got that? If your kid exhibits “gender nonconformity” then their teachers have to write you a letter to tell you. They are mandated. Just like they are mandated to report suspected child abuse.

This is, clearly, nonsense. Literally, no good can come from this. If a parent gets word from the school that their child has broken the sacred gender conformity pact, then maybe that parent will shrug and tell the school to go kick rocks, or maybe that parent will force their child into therapy to “cure” them.

Furthermore, what are the criteria for what counts as “gender nonconformity,” anyway? We live in a country where women were once not allowed to wear pants, FFS. Of course, I am well aware that a girl wearing baggy jeans isn’t what extremist Republicans are worried about

here. They fear gender nonconformity most when it comes from someone they see as male, not adhering to the strict and narrow definition of what is “manly.”

Never mind that toxic masculinity hurts everyone. We have an entire political party dedicated to supporting the ugliest aspects of our culture.

This bill also bans medical professionals from providing treatment that would “facilitate a transgender person’s desire to present themselves or appear in a way that is inconsistent with their biological sex,” which includes hormone treatment, puberty blockers, or surgery, according to NBC News. If they don’t comply, they could lose their licenses and face big fines.

In a statement, Campaign for Southern Equality Executive Director The Rev. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara said, “Transgender youth have the best chance to thrive when they are supported and affirmed, not singled out and denied critical care that is backed by virtually every leading health authority.”

In other words, maybe the people making decisions about care for transgender youth are doctors and not extremist politicians who claim that government should stay out of people’s lives but don’t seem to mind the government getting into people’s underpants? Q D’Anne Witkowski is a poet, writer, and comedian living in Michigan with her wife and son. She has been writing about LGBTQ politics for over a decade. Follow her on Twitter @MamaDWitkowski.

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who’s your daddy

Gay bacon CHRISTOPHER KATIS

I’ve always

argued that Pride is more than a weekend celebration. It’s more than a month of the rainbow flag flying from public buildings or public service announcements on TV encouraging viewers to learn about LGBTQ+ trailblazers like Harvey Milk or Audre Lorde.

Pride grows and evolves with every person, every single day.

As gay fathers, Kelly and I have entered a new stage: we’re the fathers of an adult man. Gus is 18. On the one hand, nothing much has changed — we still support him financially, he lives in our home, he’s covered on our insurance. On the other hand, everything has changed.

I’m proud of how, over the course of his life, my now-adult son has made me a

better gay man. Just by being our son, he’s forced his parents to be prouder gay men.

Since the moment he came into our lives, Gus has made us come out to people we otherwise wouldn’t have a reason to tell we’re gay.

Suddenly we found ourselves thrust into the middle of playdates, parent-teacher conferences, and youth sports leagues, sharing our personal information with total strangers. A plus for us and hopefully other gay parents.

I admire his service as an amazing ambassador for gay families. Whether they like it or not, the kids of gay parents have to come out too. They need to share the fact they have two dads or moms with a whole host of kids and adults alike. My kid

has always done so in such a matter-of-fact manner that he’s “normalized” our family to dozens if not, hundreds of people.

His confidence and nonchalance have served as a guide for his little brother as well. The way Gus effortlessly explained he had two dads removed any stigma Niko might have had. That, in turn, led to even more kids and their parents learning that gay parent families are remarkably uninteresting.

This is a bit odd, but I’m proud of his sense of humor. No, not just because he and his younger brother are genuinely funny people, but because he sees the humor in life and doesn’t take everything too seriously. His Scoutmaster called once to share a concern: the troop was making a shopping list for an upcoming camping trip which included Airheads Extreme — a long, flat, rainbow-colored sour candy, which the kids had dubbed “gay bacon.”

Scoutmaster Bob was worried that the joke might have offended Gus. Bob’s gesture deeply touched me, but instead of being offended, Gus told me he thought the name was hysterical. Then he explained why they called it “gay bacon” — you know, in case it wasn’t obvious enough to his gay vegetarian dad.

Seeing my kids thrive as individuals has been the most rewarding aspect of parenthood. It has helped me understand what’s really important in life. Every day, for the past 18 years, Gus has served as an example to me. He reminds me that being a kind and decent human is the greatest success a man can achieve.

Having my sons in my life has changed me so much as a person and as a gay man, mostly for the better. I’m really proud of the evolution I’ve seen in myself and in Kelly. To me, that’s what Pride is really all about — being proud of who you are and who you have become. Pride is about our personal journeys as LGBTQ+ people.

Mine just happens to have been made better by a couple of kids, one of whom isn’t a kid anymore. Q

VIEWS | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 21

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ISSUE 323 |

MAY, 2021

Thursday, June 3 – Monday, June 7

Utah Pride 2021 Preview

BY MICHAEL AARON

This year’s

Utah Pride is promised to be

“A-Maze-Ing.” Like all events on the scale of the Utah Pride Festival, Pride will look a bit different this year. But different also means one-of-a-kind and, as it turns out, grander than ever.

“Oddly, with the limitations on Pride because of the Coronavirus, Pride will be bigger and grander than it has ever been,” said Rob Moolman, executive director of the Utah Pride Center. “The event will be a full seven days long, and will range from a massive Washington Square event to fireworks to a longer Pride March than has ever taken place.”

Tickets are already on sale for the event. Because of the pandemic, each participant will need to reserve a time that they will arrive. Those who want to go in groups will need to register together so they can enter at the same time.

Volunteer applications are also online.

Here are he scheduled events as we know them today:

Tuesday June 1

Utah Pride has invited the state, counties, and cities to issue proclamations of Utah Pride Month and will celebrate those that come through during a FLAG-RAISING at the Salt Lake City-County Building.

The PRIDE STORY GARDEN opens on Washington Square.

This original, one-time Pride Story Garden is an interactive outdoor exhibit curated with national and local partners.

A limited number of guests will be allowed access at any one time to roam and find their way through this “a-maze-ing” exhibit that will tell “Our History, Our Stories, Our Communities.”

To ensure the safety of guests and volunteers, date- and time-specific tickets will allow a limited number of attendees to enter the Story Garden at any one time. All tickets must be purchase online and will not be available for purchase on-site.

The Garden will be open each day through Monday, June 7 from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Discount tickets are available during weekdays. Friends and families of four through 20 can come together and save with Pride Packages. All funds raised will be used to make 2021’s unique Pride Week Celebration possible and support the year-round lifesaving programs and services of the Utah Pride Center.

There are 20 unique gardens available to guests, each with their own theme to highlight “Our History, Our Stories, Our Communities.” Gardens will include educational, artistic, informational, and interactive elements with limited physical contact.

Guests will also have an option to purchase the “Garden Games Gift Bag,” which will include toys and tools to enhance the Pride Garden experience and participate in all interactive elements.

The Gardens are as follows:

UTAH QUEER HISTORY

Wednesday, June 2 The annual PRIDE INTERFAITH SERVICE will involve faiths from around the state to participate. From Pagan to Jewish, Baptist to Buddhist, Unitarian to Sikh, Muslim to metaphysical, each sect will show their welcome, their support, and their love of the LGBTQ community.

Displays of the people, organizations, and events that shaped the history of Utah’s LGBTQ community will be memorialized in the Utah Queer History Garden.

Among the exhibits, QSaltLake Magazine will show enlargements of 18 of the most interesting covers from its 18 years of publishing Utah’s LGBTQ publication.

WALK-THRU CIVIL RIGHTS TIMELINE A special exhibit courtesy of the Stonewall National Museum & Archives will take you through the national and world timeline of the LGBTQ civil rights movement.

The Stonewall National Museum and

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Archives is one of the largest gay archives and libraries in the United States, now almost 50 years old. They have granted Utah Pride with their exhibits to help make this the grandest event Utah’s LGBTQ community has ever produced.

of Utah’s LGBTQ+ community with inspirational and compelling stories of people who are currently alive and have impacted our lives and helped to shape “Our History, Our Stories, Our Communities.” Selected tributes may be printed and displayed within the 2021 Pride Story Garden and beyond.

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT GARDENS Utah’s LGBTQ community has a rich arts and entertainment involvement. This garden will celebrate the queer arts.

COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS GARDEN

Oh, and wondering what the cover if this issue is all about? In 1977, Florida’s “Sunshine Queen,” Anita Bryant, went on a rampage against LGBTQ teachers in public schools. She was rewarded at one national televised press conference with a pie in the face.

“At least it’s a fruit pie,” she said.

Organizers hope to have an exhibit where you can throw pies in the face of a rotating group of anti-LGBTQ activists.

TRIBUTE GARDEN The Tribute Garden will memorialize local heroes in Utah’s LGBTQ history.

Nominations from the community are being solicited for a diverse representation

Come meet the organizations and businesses that enrich our community. From sports to political organizations, and businesses who support us through their involvement in our community.

STONEWALL ARCHIVES GARDENS Local historians have been archiving the Utah LGBTQ community’s history for decades and will present some of the most interesting stories of our community through the years.

UTAH QUEENDOM GARDEN “Oh look, Donald, drag queens!”

Okay, a reference to a very obscure queer film from 2001. Sue me. It’s one of my favorites.

Drag enthusiasts will enjoy the superstars of Utah’s drag queen community in this garden.

UTAH PRIDE PREVIEW | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 23

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24 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | UTAH PRIDE PREVIEW

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MAY, 2021

PRIDE RAINBOW The rainbow was first brought to our community by Gilbert Baker for the Gay Freedom Day Parade in 1978. Each color of the rainbow represented, to Baker, a special part of the gay experience, from sex to life to healing to spirit. Come understand the meaning of the Pride Rainbow.

CENTER ZONE GARDENS

STUDIO 54 DANCE PARTY GARDEN

Come see the life-saving programs of the Utah Pride Center in these gardens. Find what programs are the best fit for you to participate in or support through the year.

The impact of queer music will be felt in the Studio 54 Dance Party Garden. Don the wigs and outfits of the 70s disco era and dance your ass off.

TRANSGENDER GARDEN

Nominations are being taken for the Memory Garden — a place where you can memorialize LGBTQ friends and family who have passed on.

Utah’s transgender community is among the best organized in the country. Come learn more about how you can understand, support, and appreciate Utah’s T community,

MEMORY GARDEN

LIVING LGBTQ+ AROUND THE WORLD Not all countries are as accepting and supporting of elements of the United States’ LGBTQ community. Come learn about the uniqueness and challenges of LGBTQ communities around the world.

“It’s a world of laughter, a world of tears,” “It’s a queer world after all.”

Sorry — no boat rides will be presented.

Sunday, June 6 THE RAINBOW MARCH AND RALLY

LGBTQ+ PEOPLE OF COLOR Learn to appreciate the different experiences that LGBTQ people of color experience in the state and across the nation. BIPOC and other organizations will participate in exhibits meant to help understand and appreciate different outlooks on life from minority populations.

SANCTUARY SECRET GARDEN For those needing a bit of a respite from the event, the Sanctuary Secret Garden will provide a quiet, zen space to reflect and rest.

LGBTQIAA FLAGS / IDENTITIES What do all the letters and colors of our community mean? There are a zillion flags, what do each represent? The letters — how do we understand them? This garden will walk you through the many vast and fabulous parts of our community.

Past Utah Pride Festivals have hosted and organized the “Dyke March,” “Trans March,” and the “Pride March and Rally,” to provide a space and opportunity to celebrate, recognize and give voice to our lesbian, dyke, trans, bi, pansexual, queer, BIPOC and non-binary communities.

Join the event at the Utah State Capitol for the Rainbow March and Rally, on Sunday, June 6 beginning at 10 am. This year the Rainbow Rally and March will be even more of a focal point of the week.

We will “Raise Our Voices” in support of all of these communities again, as we, Utah’s LGBTQ+ community once again, engage in our protest roots and history.”

Starting near the Utah State Capitol building at 300 North State St., marchers

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will carry the 300’ rainbow flag and the first balloon arch.

The flag and balloon arch will march down State Street and meet the next balloon arch, and then the next balloon arch and the next until all have joined together to create a massive balloon arch of over 1000 balloons as the march reaches Harvey Milk Boulevard and Sixth East at Liberty Park.

Protest and rally wear is encouraged, as well as posters and signs to “raise your voices.”

The event is free and open to the public. Masks and social distancing will be required.

As you can see, this event is truly a unique opportunity to connect and celebrate with our community in a way that only a time requiring creative thinking can bring.

Other events Other organizations will be hosting events alongside Pride, including the Utah Film Cenetr, which will screen the documentary “Cured,” about the effort to have the American Psychiatric Association remove the term homosexuality from its manual of mental illnesses.

A Pride T-Dance will be held at Sky on Pierpont Ave. on June 6 from 5pm to closing as a fundraiser for the Utah Pride Center.

Emmy nominee DJ Tony Moran will perform, along with GSP, Nikki Valentine, and Alle Reich.

Tickets to the event are available separately at queen. ticketspice.com/pride. Q More information and tickets are available at utahpridecenter.org.

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It’s Pride All Year at Native #LOVEISLOVE

Fabby Winner “Best Florist”

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ISSUE 323 |

MAY, 2021

LOCAL COLOR closes Plan-B Theatre’s 30th anniversary, COVID-19-aware, Zoomrehearsed, audio-only, fully virtual season

Local Color

is comprised of four short plays by members of Plan-B’s Theatre Artists of Color Writing Workshop: “DoLs” by Dee-Dee Darby-Duffin (a comedy about becoming friends in the most awkward situation imaginable); “Guise” by Chris Curlett (a dramedy about [re]defining masculinity); “Organic” by Tito Livas (a dark comedy about love, perception and Grindr); and “Suicide Box” by Tatiana Christian (an even darker comedy about the deadly side of customer service).

The Theatre Artists of Color Writing Workshop supports and centers the voices of first-time playwrights of color. Plan-B Artistic Director Jerry Rapier chatted with playwrights Tito Livas and Dee-Dee Darby-Duffin about their Queer-themed plays “Organic” and “DoLs.”

Tito, what inspired you to try your hand at playwriting? I’m not really sure if I can point to one specific thing that inspired me. In part, it’s because there’s a lack of BIPOC playwrights. I wanted to make it known that we have stories to tell and are quite capable of creating them. And if we’re creating the stories, we are in charge of the characters involved and, as there aren’t a lot of BIPOC characters being created accurately by white playwrights, I wanted to create characters for us, played by us, to bring more representation to the stage furthering my agenda for equality.

But also, I’ve always had stories going on in my head. Typically, I’ll get an idea and just make a note of it in my phone, and as I think more on it I’ll add to the note, but that’s as far as it usually gets. So when the opportunity came up to workshop playwriting with Julie Jensen I jumped at the opportunity as a way to sort of force myself into taking the ideas in my phone and turning them into something more.

How about you, Dee-Dee? I was invited to the meeting that Plan-B hosted in 2017 for Theatre Artists of Color in Salt Lake City. I remember one of the artists saying, “I don’t want to write stories about Black people; I want to write stories about all people. It was an aha moment for me.

I thought if white people write stories

about Black people that are rooted in our trauma, and Black artists don’t only want to write about Black people, who is going to be my voice? I have spent countless hours as an actor honing my skills so that I could interpret the stories of writers and make their characters relatable to anyone. I felt that now was the time to be very specific. I wanted to hear and see authentic versions of myself, and I knew I was going to have to step up.

Tito Livas

Tito, is “Organic” informed by your real life? It’s pretty much an exact rip-off.

A married, interracial, gay couple that composts, one of whom is full of fire and another who is the water that puts out the fire but still leaves a little bit of a smolder, and a closeted gay man who tried way too hard to prove he wasn’t gay.

Dee-Dee, how did you determine that “DoLs” would be your first play? There was no specific moment. I think I was just very vocal about POC telling their own stories. It was the squeaky-wheel adage at play. I was given a deadline and procrastinated got my game plan together. I remembered that someone once said, write what you know, so I drew on my own young adult experiences.

“DoLs” isn’t autobiographical, but it has pieces of my life intertwined. “DoLs” stands for “Daughters of Lesbians,” which is a real group I found myself part of as a teen in Baltimore. It felt cathartic to put it on paper. It was almost like writing in my journal, which I haven’t done for years but hope to get back to someday.

Tito how does being a Queer Latino artist inform your writing? I don’t want being a Queer Latino to be something that defines my writing, but obviously, there are times when it comes into play, like with “Organic.” But my other works have nothing to do with my Queer Latino experience and are simply stories written by someone who identifies as such. So, I guess it informs my writing when it’s necessary to have that perspective in order to get an idea across, but not really any other time. Or maybe it’s informing my writing all of the time, and I’m just not aware of it. But I don’t think about it when I’m writing, I just

Dee-Dee Darby-Duffin

write what’s in my head, and it comes out how it comes out.

Dee-Dee: How does being a Black artist and a Queer ally inform your writing? I don’t remember NOT being a queer ally.

I didn’t know as a young person what ally meant. I just had amazing people in my life who were larger than life. I loved them, and they loved me. They had my back, and I had there’s. If people said or did things out-of-pocket, we stood up for each other. Period. These stories were watershed moments in my life and provided for me practical experience for how to love unconditionally.

Being a Black artist informs everything I do. I am a Black Woman. That is my lens, my reference and my North Star. My Blackness is tethered to my art. I can’t be anything else. I don’t want to be anything else. I am amazing. If people don’t agree with that, or if my Blackness makes you uncomfortable, then I am not for you, and I am okay with that. Q The audio stream of LOCAL COLOR premieres June 3–13 during Pride Month as part of the National New Play Network’s Bridge Program and the State of Utah’s Thrive 125 Statehood Celebration. Pay-what-you-can tickets ($0 - ?) are available at PlanBTheatre.org.

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A&E | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 27

It’s Pride All Year at Native #LOVEISLOVE

‘Queer Eye’s Tan France and husband are expecting their first child “Queer Eye” fashion guru Tan France is about to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a dad.

France shared a tongue-incheek ultrasound photo on his Instagram page to announce that he and husband Rob France are expecting their first child via a surrogate later this year.

“So happy to finally share that WE’RE HAVING A BABY!!

“No, I’m not pregnant, despite this VERY realistic pic.

“With the greatest gift/ help of the most wonderful surrogate, Rob and I are lucky enough to be on our way to being parents, this Summer.

“Something we’ve wanted for SOooo many years. Our hearts are so full right now. I cannot wait to hold this baby, and to show him so much love.”

Husband Rob, an artist, presented an illustration of his own on Istagram.

“I’ve wanted children since I was 19, 20,” he told NPR’s Terry Gross in 2019. “If I’d had a stable relationship at that time, I would have desperately tried to have children.”

Noting that “surrogacy for gay men costs a heck of a lot,” he added, “Crazily, I still want six.

I don’t know if that’s going to happen, but yeah, I still want six children.”

France isn’t the only “Queer Eye” star to mark a personal milestone recently. In late December, co-star Jonathan Van Ness revealed he and his “best friend” Mark Peacock had gotten married last year.

The sixth season of “Queer Eye” set in Austin, Texas is due out on Netflix later this year. Q

Fabby Winner “Best Florist”

28 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | A&E

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deep inside hollywood

BY ROMEO SAN VICENTE

A new ‘Queer as Folk’ is coming to Peacock After a couple of years of rumbling maybes, there’s a new “Queer as Folk” on the way, with an eight-episode, straightto-series order from NBC’s streaming service Peacock. The “reimagining” is from “Little America” creator Stephen Dunn, who’ll set the update among a diverse group of queer friends in New Orleans (the original UK series was set in Manchester; the US version in Pittsburgh). We’re hopeful that this iteration will take that diversity seriously because, unlike the first wave of LGBT scripted dramas for television — the UK and American “QaF” included — that were almost entirely centered on white, cisgender characters, we now live with a

ISSUE 323 |

MAY, 2021

TV landscape that includes a revived “L Word” and “Pose,” programs that deliver a much more inclusive vision of the queer family. No cast yet (“Pose” is ending, though; so casting directors, take note, some wonderful actors are available). And no air date. Just good news.

Uzo Aduba runs the ‘Low Country’ We’re always up for more from the great Uzo Aduba. The Emmy Award winner impresses every time she blesses a new project with her talent (we’re still high on her portrayal of Shirley Chisholm on “Mrs. America,” if you can’t tell). So it’s very good news, indeed, to learn that she’ll be first on the call sheet for the new television drama “Low Country.” Aduba will star as a lesbian deputy sheriff in South Carolina’s low country. Black

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and queer in a conservative white community, she’s tasked with taking on a wealthy white crime family with a reputation for instilling fear in their enemies. Aduba will also executive produce the series, which is from Michelle King and Robert King (“The Good Wife”) and written

by Dewayne Jones (“Your Honor”). That’s a solid lineage and a very long way from the days of stuff like the Suzanne Somers sitcom “She’s the Sheriff.” That’s the one where the joke was that a woman would do a job that only a man should do. Remember it? No? It’s OK; your life will be fine without it. Look for this one on CBS in the near future.

A transgender opera diva and ‘The Sound of Identity’ March 31 was the International Transgender Day of Visibility and, though the new documentary from Shout! Studios, “The Sound of Identity,” didn’t drop on that day, it’ll arrive just in time for Pride month.

The film profiles transgender opera singer Lucia Lucas and her historic 2018 performance at the Tulsa Opera, where she was the first trans woman to take on a principal role in opera history. This was nothing less than a career-defining risk, but Lucas collaborated with composer and mentor Tobias Picker to bring her acclaimed baritone voice to the role of Don Giovanni in Mozart’s opera of the same name. The film, directed by James Kick-

lighter (“Angel of Anywhere”), won the 2020 OUTshine Film Festival Programmers Award of Excellence for its thoughtful exploration of voice, gender, and performance. Don’t miss it when it begins streaming on June 1.

The marvelous John Waters visits ‘Mrs. Maisel’ Here’s the news: legendary cult filmmaker John Waters (“Hairspray”) will have a role in the upcoming season of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” And even though the new season is currently shooting, all details are under closely guarded wraps. Will he be a one-and-done? Recurring? Minor character? New regular? Who’s he playing? We don’t know and, frankly, it doesn’t matter. But we’re thrilled to see Waters in front of the camera for all sorts of reasons. He’s a queer elder statesman at this point, and for the retro purposes of “Maisel,” he already looks like an early 60s senior dandy. That pencil-thin mustache alone is ready-made period detail.

Meanwhile, Amy Sherman Palladino and Daniel Palladino, the show’s creators, have a fun history of stunt casting going back to their “Gilmore Girls” days where everyone from Carole King to Norman Mailer to Traci Lords to members of Sonic Youth would simply show up in the fictional town of Stars Hollow to mingle with Lorelai and Rory at a pumpkin festival.

Waters is going to fit right in.

MAY, 2021 |

A&E | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 29

ISSUE 323 | Qsaltlake.com

Natalie Morales and Mark Duplass fall into friendship in ‘Language Lessons’ Queer actress Natalie Morales (“Dead to Me,” “Parks and Recreation”) has directed her first feature film, “Language Lessons.” Shot during the pandemic, primarily over Zoom, it stars Morales as a Spanish language tutor and Mark Duplass as a gay man (yes, the queer woman plays hetero and the hetero man plays gay and that’s why it’s called acting).

They connect for what is at first a business transaction, but their connection grows deeper and more intense over time, especially when unexpected tragedy enters the picture. Duplass wrote and produced the film, which recently premiered at South

by Southwest, and its complex approach to human relationships, especially those forged online, is a rarity. Think about it: When was the last movie you saw about the growth, nurturing and fracturing of a platonic friendship? Look for this one sometime later in the coming year, maybe even when arthouse theaters reopen for big screen entertainment again.

Raven-Symoné is coming over to judge your furniture Raven-Symoné got married to her partner Miranda Maday in the middle of the pandemic. And if that weren’t celebratory enough news for the 30-something TV veteran, she’s also got a new series coming to HGTV. If you remember the fashion makeover show “What Not to Wear,” you’ll understand the premise of “What Not to Design.”

(That’s the working title; it’s… fine.) Raven-Symoné and her team of experts, designer Nina Ferrer (“Design Star”)

and craftsman James Worsham, will swoop into badly furnished homes — they’re coming for your wildly overgrown Funko Pop collection, so tremble — and lovingly convince the inhabitants to turn from their bad-taste ways and get a lot of new free furniture in the process. We love a reality show that both punishes and rewards, and we believe in the Raven-Symoné’s inalienable right to entertainment world domination, so this ought to be a lot of fun.

HBO gives Pee-wee Herman the tribute documentary he deserves There is no overestimating the importance of Pee-wee Herman to the cultural landscape of the 1980s. This may sound like hyperbole but it’s not.

Weirdness, queerness and Mr. T Cereal-ness were his love languages, and it’s all because of his real-life alter ego, comic actor Paul Reubens. And because Reubens’ magical character — a persona built on stage with Los Angeles’ Groundlings comedy group — first gained national exposure on an early ’80s HBO special, it’s only fitting that HBO would become the home to a two-part documentary film about Reubens and his career.

To be directed by Matt Wolf (“Spaceship Earth”), the film will be produced by “Uncut Gems” directors Josh and Benny Safdie, Sebastian Bear-McClard and “Joker” producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff. This will be a rare moment in the career of the extremely private Reubens that he allows the outside world to enter his life; longtime fans are going to love it, and probably want to marry it. Q Romeo San Vicente was the real inspiration for Sonic Youth’s “Kool Thing,” if you were wondering.

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30 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | COMICS

Qsaltlake.com | ISSUE 323 | MAY, 2021

PUZZLES | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 31

MAY, 2021 | ISSUE 323 | Qsaltlake.com

Teen Angst

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

Q doku Easy

6

3 5 8 8 6 4 3 9 5 7

1

3

2 7

3

2

2 7 4 8 1 3 1 6 1 6 4 9 2 8 8 4 6 1 4 3 4 2 1 5 3 3 5 2 2 5 6 7 7 4 6 2 5 6 4 1 5 8 6 7 4 8 4 1 7 5 8 3

5

3 9 6

5 3

9 7 6

8

4 1

7 4 8 9 6 3 5 7

2 4 7 1 4 5 1 9 3 8 6 5 6 4 3 1 3 2 8 6 9 2 3 7 4 2 5

3 7

5

3

7

2

6 8

9

6 9

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9 2 1 3 5 8 6 1 9 3 3 5

45 Men’s Gay Chorus section 46 Infant, to Marga ACROSS 1 One of the Three Gomez Bears 47 Rickie portrayer in 5 Puts it to 34-Across 9 Peters out 51 Call from Dave 13 “East of Eden” Pallone brother 54 Personal lubricant 14 Warm to a come-on ingredient 15 Kind of stimulation 55 De novo 16 Go on and on 57 Gomer’s “Encore!”

17 Georgia spread on 58 “___ creature was the screen stirring...”

18 “Climb ___ Moun59 Quote as a reference tain” 60 Pink Triangle Press 19 Angela portrayer in publication 34-Across 61 Madonna’s “Dick 22 Prey for chicken Tracy” character hawks?

62 Coup target 23 “Ed Wood” Best DOWN Supporting Actor 1 “Hairspray” composMartin er Shaiman 27 Supported 2 Sea bordering 30 Chicago Sky’s conKazakhstan ference 3 “Tales of the City” 31 Peter I, for one character 32 Sommer of film 4 Captain Jack Spar33 Pick up row, e.g.

34 TV series of the ‘90s 5 Come about teen angst 6 Herring varieties 38 Gay history mo.

7 “Idol” judge Di39 Etheridge’s “Don’t oGuardi Look ___” 8 Ballet parodied in 40 Persian Gulf land “Funny Girl” 41 Everest guides 9 “Alec Baldwin ___ 43 “Who’s on First?”

Love Me” straight man PUZZLE SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 34

10 “Meet Me in St. Louis” writer Brecher 11 Toreador’s trophy 12 Cunning 20 Theology subj.

21 Made less difficult to bear 24 “Cape Fear” star 25 Top PLO guy 26 Straight 27 Maximum extent 28 Love of Eros 29 Haul ass 30 Vanity Fair alternative 32 Shade trees 35 Italian resort isle 36 Not straight 37 His museum is in Las Vegas 42 Ravenclaw of Harry Potter fame 43 Trojan, but not a condom 44 “Ab Fab” network 46 “Kinky ___” (Ejiofor flick) 48 Gin flavor 49 Body of soldiers 50 ___-Jones of “Chicago” 51 Clinton put it in his mouth 52 Guy under J. Edgar?

53 Christmas tree, often 56 Lube brand

32 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | HEALTH

positive thoughts

Living through dual pandemics

BY ASHLEY INNES

We’re

coming off a historic year in 2020. A year that devastated us and empowered us. A year that tested us and made us stronger. A year that put systemic racism and health disparities front and center for the world to see. It reminded us that there is still much work to be done in the fight for equality and equity yet inspired us to act toward progress.

We are still in the middle of a pandemic that has claimed the lives of over 500,000 Americans, but amid the struggle we are beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel. As the COVID vaccine allows us to feel hope, I reflect on what this feeling must be like for long-term survivors of HIV. Many remember when a new unknown virus emerged that was claiming the lives of their loved ones. A virus that they still live with today.

As we work to manage the current pandemic, many who have been living with HIV for decades once again find themselves losing loved ones. Reliving the past, grateful for what science has brought so quickly, and cautious to not let history repeat itself.

I recently had a conversation with Phill Wilson, founder and former CEO of the Black AIDS Institute. As many know, Phil is a gay Black man who has been living with HIV since 1981. He has been a champion and leader in this work for decades and understands better than anyone the concerns facing people living with HIV and the parallels to COVID, especially in Black commu-nities. He says: “This experience presents both an emotional as well as a physical health risk.

We’re living dual experiences because we’re not yet finished with the HIV pandemic, and we’re now living with COVID. There is kind of a painful déjà vu going on as COVID-19 is manifesting itself in our communities in the way HIV continues to manifest itself in our communities.

Chief among them are the disparities.

Black communities were slow to respond to the HIV/AIDS pandemic while we

were disproportionately impacted, and policymakers were not sufficiently concerned about our needs. That is being replayed with COVID-19 as well.”

It should be very apparent at this point that ending HIV and COVID-19 is about more than just access to medicine and vaccines. It’s about dismantling the systems of oppression that allow these viruses to thrive and recognizing that Black and other marginalized communities have a long history of distrust of the medical system.

Many remain traumatized by the Tuskegee exper-iment, Henrietta Lacks, the experimental procedures performed on enslaved women, and the list goes on.

“Black people have very legitimate reasons to have medical mistrust because the medical commu-nity has not always been responsive to our needs,” Wilson says. “The most dominant way we have been mistreated by the medical community is by them withholding treatment from us.” Tuskegee is an example of that, as the Black men involved received no treatment for syphilis, and Wilson believes that is exactly why we should be fighting for information and access to the vac-cine now.

I wholeheartedly agree with him and at the same time understand that as much as I urge Black communities to get into HIV care, utilize PrEP and take the COVID vaccine, I know it’s not that simple.

Medical racism is real, and the challenge is on America to overcome it. We can urge peo-ple to take this vaccine without shaming them or judging them for being

Qsaltlake.com |

ISSUE 323 |

MAY, 2021

skeptical. It’s not Black people’s fault that they don’t trust the medical system.

America has been medically unethical since the founding of this country. That legacy never goes away.

Therefore, my job and that of everyone who calls themselves an advocate or is a part of the med-ical system in any way is to improve trust by providing equitable care and accurate information that allows people to make informed decisions about their health. We need all of us collectively working together. So many people have already lost their lives. Wilson cautions us to not repeat past mistakes, saying: “These are lessons that we’ve learned and, frankly, the consequences of

screwing up. I’m hoping we can take the lessons of HIV/AIDS, apply them, and come up with more equitable solutions as we fight the pandemic. And one of them is making sure that medicine, vaccines, and prevention tactics and strategies are open and accessible to Black, brown and other marginalized people.”

Simply put, we honor the past by fighting for the now, fighting for the future.

Let’s ensure we all survive. Q Ashley Innes is a writer and HIV advocate. Follow her on Twitter @Ash_Innes. This column is a project of TheBody, Plus, Positively Aware, POZ, Q Syndicate, and QSaltLake Magazine. Visit their websites — thebody.com, hivplusmag. com, positivelyaware.com and poz.com — for the latest updates on HIV/AIDS.

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34 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | SEX

Qsaltlake.com | ISSUE 323 | MAY, 2021

sex and salt lake city

Vaxed, waxed, and ready to climax

BY DR. LAURIE BENNETT-COOK

share this with your friends and family. It may be gloating, but having a safer-sex talk about STIs is important.

Keep up with your hygiene Let’s be real for a minute — hopefully, this is something you’re doing anyway. If you want someone to get with you, it’s a good idea to be fresh and groomed. If your body is what you’re inviting someone to enjoy, then make it inviting.

Good hygiene also wards off germs and rates of possible infections. Wash your body, and especially your hands, often.

Think about what you’re putting in your mouth.

This not only applies to shared foods at social events but body parts as well. Our hands are the quickest way to transmit germs. Most of us don’t realize how much we lick our fingers or touch our faces. We use our hands for everything without much thought. And

If you’re vaccinated, you may be feeling a bit invincible

So you want to get with that hottie who isn’t vaxed?

If it’s just a date and or social gathering, consider meeting outside and keeping a bit of physical distance between each other. Throw a frisbee.

Play horseshoes. Go for a bike ride. If it’s sexual fun you want, limit kissing. In fact, you could incorporate your mask-wearing into some

fun. Why not add a blindfold while you’re at it?

I get it, as for the past year, this does feel like a lot of cockand pussy-blocking, but things are looking better. Meanwhile, hold out and practice some variations of physical fun. As for Pride, get out and stay safe and healthy. Q Dr. Laurie Bennett-Cook is a clinical sexologist with a private counseling practice currently seeing all clients virtually. She divides her time between Palm Springs, Calif., and Salt Lake City. She can be reached at DrLaurieBennettCook@gmail.com.

Puzzle Solutions

9 7 3 8 2 4 5 1 6

4 6 2 1 3 5 9 7 8

1 8 5 6 9 7 4 2 3

2 6 1 4 3 9 7 5 8 7 1 9 5 6 3 2 8 4

6 5 8 4 1 2 7 3 9

7 8 5 6 1 2 4 9 3 2 3 4 9 7 8 1 6 5

5 9 7 3 8 1 6 4 2 7 8 9 5 1 3 2 8 6 9 7 4

3 4 1 2 5 6 8 9 7 5 1 3 4 2 6 5 9 7 3 8 1

8 2 6 7 4 9 3 5 1 6 2 4 8 9 7 1 4 3 2 6 5

9 6 8 2 4 7 3 5 1

1 3 4 9 5 6 2 7 8

7 2 5 1 3 8 9 6 4

3 9 2 8 5 1 4 7 6 3 9 5 1 8 2 5 9 7 6 4 3

6 8 4 9 7 2 5 1 3 8 6 2 7 4 9 1 6 3 5 8 2

5 1 7 3 6 4 2 8 9 4 7 1 6 3 5 8 4 2 7 9 1

8 1 3 6 2 9 4 7 5 4 3 8 6 9 7 1 5 2

5 2 6 4 7 1 8 3 9 1 5 9 2 4 3 8 6 7

9 7 4 3 8 5 1 2 6 2 7 6 5 1 8 9 3 4

4 5 1 2 3 8 9 6 7 9 4 3 7 8 5 6 2 1

2 9 8 7 5 6 3 1 4 7 6 5 1 2 9 3 4 8

3 6 7 9 1 4 2 5 8 8 2 1 4 3 6 7 9 5

Currently, caring requires keeping some things just for yourself. Normally I’d encourage the sharing of toys, but unless they’re completely sanitized between partners, it’s not a good idea.

Wash hands, bodies, and toys thoroughly between partners

9 3 4 8 7 5 6 1 2

Yes, sharing is caring

3 7 2 9 5 1 8 4 6

It’s like holding a golden ticket to venture now that anything pre-pandemic feels like an adventure. For those who are vaccinated, the risk of feeling ill has been greatly reduced.

However, it’s possible to infect others with this nasty bug. The best way to play (socially or ) should be between other vaccinated people. I’ve seen several people posting their vax status on dating apps.

Honestly, it’s a good idea to

and users. To stay healthy and cautious now, the opportunity to share later will be greater.

1 4 9 3 6 8 5 2 7

snowing, all I can think about is how Pride is around the corner. I am itching to get out and join all festivities the community feels safe to do this year. I am fully “vaxed” (vaccinated) and waxed and ready to mingle — that is, with other vaccinated folks. While we seem to be leaning into some semblance of normalcy, some real hesitations are going forward.

It’s normal to feel a bit wary. Most of us have been living isolated for so long that socializing can feel overwhelming. I’ve spoken with many who want to socialize again and face some anxiety about it. With the glow of Pride approaching, those feelings to socialize and the angst will increase. Over the past year, I’ve written a lot about and social practices in times of a global pandemic.

Now that so many of us are getting vaccinated, it’s time to revisit a few things.

6 5 8 7 2 4 1 3 9

While it’s

MAY, 2021 | ISSUE 323 | Qsaltlake.com

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36 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | QMMUNITY

Qmmunity Groups BUSINESS

LGBTQ-Affirmative Psycho-therapists Guild of Utah  lgbtqtherapists.com * jim@lgbtqtherapists.com Utah LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce  utahlgbtqchamber.com * info@utahgaychamber.com LGBT & Allied Lawyers of Utah  lgbtutahlawyers.com * lgbtutahlawyers@gmail.com Utah Independent Business Coalition  utahindependentbusiness.org 801-879-4928 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233 YWCA of Salt Lake  ywca.org/saltlakecity 322 E 300 S 801-537-8600 HEALTH & HIV

Utah AIDS Foundation  utahaids.org * mail@utahaids.org

1408 S 1100 E 801-487-2323 Weber-Morgan Health Mon., Weds 1-4:30p 477 23rd St, Ogden Appt 801-399-7250 HOMELESS SVCS

VOA Homeless Youth Resource Ctr, ages 15–21 880 S 400 W 801-364-0744 Transition Homes: Young Men’s 801-433-1713 Young Women’s 801-359-5545

RELIGIOUS

First Baptist Church  firstbaptist-slc.org * office@firstbaptistslc.org 11a Sundays 777 S 1300 E 801-582-4921 Sacred Light of Christ  slcchurch.org 823 S 600 E 801-595-0052 11a Sundays Wasatch Metropolitan Community Church  wasatchmcc.org 801-889-8764 Sundays except the 2nd Sunday, 11:15a at Crone’s Hollow, 3834 S. Main

LEGAL

SOCIAL

Rainbow Law Free Clinic

1 to 5 Club (bisexual)  fb.me/1to5ClubUtah

2nd Thurs 6:30–7:30pm UofU Law School, 383 S University St POLITICAL

Equality Utah  equalityutah.org * info@equalityutah.org

175 W 200 S, Ste 1004 801-355-3479

Peer Support for Mental Illness — PSMI Thurs 7pm, Utah Pride Ctr

Utah Libertarian Party

Planned Parenthood 654 S 900 E 800-230-PLAN

Utah Log Cabin Republicans

Salt Lake County Health Dept HIV/STD Clinic 660 S 200 E, 4th Floor Walk-ins M–F 10a–4p Appts 385-468-4242

Qsaltlake.com | ISSUE 323 | MAY, 2021

6885 S State St #200 888-957-8824

 bit.ly/logcabinutah

801-657-9611 Utah Stonewall Democrats  utahstonewalldemocrats.org  fb.me/ utahstonewalldems

 1to5club@

utahpridecenter.org Alternative Garden Club  bit.ly/altgarden * altgardenclub@gmail.com blackBOARD Men’s Kink/Sex/BDSM education, 1st, 3rd Mons.  blackbootsslc.org blackBOOTS Kink/BDSM Men’s leather/kink/ fetish/BDSM 4th Sats.  blackbootsslc.org Gay Writes writing group, DiverseCity 6:30 pm 2nd, 4th Mondays, Community Writing Ctr, 210 E 400 S Men Who Move  menwhomove.org

OWLS of Utah (Older, Wiser, Lesbian. Sisters)  bit.ly/owlsutah qVinum Wine Tasting  qvinum.com Sage Utah, Seniors  fb.me/sageutah  sageutah@ utahpridecenter.org 801-557-9203 Temple Squares Square Dance Club  templesquares.org 801-449-1293 Utah Bears  utahbears.com  fb.me/utahbears  info@utahbears.com Weds 6pm Raw Bean Coffee, 611 W Temple Utah Male Naturists  umen.org  info@umen.org Utah Pride Center  utahpridecenter.org  info@utahpridecenter.org 1380 S Main St 801-539-8800 Venture OUT Utah  bit.ly/GetOutsideUtah SPORTS

QUAC — Queer Utah Aquatic Club  quacquac.org  questions@ quacquac.org Salt Lake Goodtime Bowling League  bit.ly/slgoodtime Stonewall Sports SLC  fb.me/SLCStonewall  stonewallsaltlakecity. leagueapps.com 385-243-1828 Utah Gay Football League  UtahGayFootballLeague.com  fb.me/UtahGayFootballLeague Venture Out Utah  facebook.com/groups/ Venture.OUT.Utah SUPPORT

umen.org

Alcoholics Anonymous 801-484-7871  utahaa.org LGBT meetings: Sun. 3p Acceptance Group, UPC,1380 S Main

Tues. 8:15p Live & Let Live, Mt Tabor Lutheran, 175 S 700 E Wed. 7p Sober Today, 375 Harrison Blvd, Ogden Fri. 8p Stonewall Group, Mt Tabor Lutheran, 175 S 700 E Crystal Meth Anon  crystalmeth.org Sun. 1:30pm Clean, Sober & Proud LGBTQIA+Straight USARA, 180 E 2100 S LifeRing Secular Recovery 801-608-8146  liferingutah.org Sun. 10am Univ. Neuropsychiatric Institute, 501 Chipeta Way #1566 Thurs. 7pm, USARA, 180 E 2100 S, #100 Sat. 11am, First Baptist Church, 777 S 1300 E Men’s Support Group  utahpridecenter. org/programs/lgbtqadults/  joshuabravo@ utahpridecenter.org Survivors of Suicide Attempt  bit.ly/upc_sosa  sosa@ utahpridecenter.org Trans Adult Support  utahpridecenter.org/ programs/lgbtq-adults/  lanegardinier@ utahpridecenter.org

Youth Survivors of Suicide Attempt  utahpridecenter.org/ programs/youth-familyprograms/  youthsosa@ utahpridecenter.org YOUTH/COLLEGE

Encircle LGBTQ Family and Youth Resource Ctr  encircletogether.org fb.me/encircletogether 91 W 200 S, Provo, 331 S 600 E, SLC Families Like Ours (ages 2-10)  utahpridecenter.org/ programs/youth-familyprograms/ Gay-Straight Alliance Network  gsanetwork.org The OUT Foundation  theout.foundation  fb.me/theOUTfoundation Salt Lake Community College LGBTQ+ 8 slcc.edu/lgbtq/ University of Utah LGBT Resource Center 8 lgbt.utah.edu 200 S Central Campus Dr Rm 409 801-587-7973 USGA at BYU  usgabyu.com  fb.me/UsgaAtByu Utah State Univ. Access & Diversity Ctr  inclusion.usu.edu/ lgbtqa

TransAction  utahpridecenter.org/ programs/transaction/ Sundays 2–3:30pm

Utah Valley Univ Spectrum  facebook.com/ groups/uvuspectrum

Women’s Support Group  utahpridecenter.org/ programs/lgbtq-adults/  mariananibley@ utahpridecenter.org

Weber State University LGBT Resource Center  weber.edu/ lgbtresourcecenter 801-626-7271

Youth Support Group ages 10-14, 14-20

Youth Activity Night ages 10-14, 14-20  utahpridecenter.org/ programs/youth-familyprograms/

 utahpridecenter. org/programs/youthfamily-programs/

BOOK REVIEW | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | 37

MAY, 2021 | ISSUE 323 | Qsaltlake.com

the bookworm sez REVIEW BY TERRI SCHILCHENMEYER

Last Call: A True Story of Love, Lust, and Murder in Queer New York

BY ELON GREEN, C. 2021, CELADON BOOKS, $27

There’s time for one last round.

One for the road, as they say. A tip for the barkeep, a final toast before you go, one more clink before you drink, and, as in the new book “Last Call” by Elon Green, be care-

q scopes MAY

BY SAM KELLEY-MILLS

ARIES March 20–April 19 Someone close to you has been a blessing, and you can’t imagine the world without them.

Find a way to utilize this person while keeping a sense of independence.

There is so much you can learn from them about being happy.

TAURUS Apr 20–May 20 You may be feeling some anxiety about changes coming up. You like things the way they are but realize that good things can come from the most unexpected sources. Simplify your life and make room for the good stuff. It’s exciting.

GEMINI May 21–June 20 Your nerves are shot, a good sign you need a vacation. Take some time to turn off everything and make sure to let everyone know.

While the social butterfly in you likes

ful on your way out the door.

The roadside maintenance worker had worked the area for a while; long enough to know when something seemed unusual. It was May 1991, and the last trash bag the Lancaster County Pennsylvania worker hefted seemed extra heavy. When he poked the bag, he saw freckles. Then he called the state police.

He hadn’t touched anything in the bag, but he was ordered to take an AIDS test because the corpse was Peter Stickney Anderson of Philadelphia — a gay father.

Slightly more than a year later, on an otherwise-lonely stretch of road in New Jersey, two Transportation Department workers discovered another pile of trash bags that seemed “not quite right.” groups, an extreme is a good way to quiet the beast.

CANCER June 21–July 22 A relationship is flourishing in a routine manner. While you don’t want chaos, a little shakeup sounds appealing. Rock the boat carefully, or you risk falling off. In the end, it’s okay to have an edge but be careful not to cut too close.

LEO July 23–August 22 Take charge but don’t forget to submit once in a while. The best way to get things done is by letting others do the job. Make yourself comfortable. Enjoy the ride, but don’t forget that you don’t have to be idle if things aren’t going well.

VIRGO August 23–Sep. 2 Starting over again is fine as long as you remember the process. There is great power in a do-over, especially when it has to do with a personal matter. Someone you once let go of should be given a second chance. Proceed!

Inside the bags were the meticulously dismembered body of Thomas Mulcahy, a detail they knew instantly because the killer left Tom’s ID behind In May of 1993, a street worker named Anthony Marrero was found dismembered in a series of plastic bags identical to Mulcahy.

Officials homed in on a few facts, including the bags had been from a certain store in Staten Island. Also, they had been tied and mutilated in a specific way. Attention seemed low to those outside the gay community.

In his afterword, author Elon Green explains why this story captured his fancy.

Who were these four men?

Were there others? Most importantly, why didn’t this murder spree get the regional

LIBRA Sept 23–October 22 The longer a bad feeling exists, the harder it will be to shake. Do your part and nip issues in the bud. A financial matter should be examined, but don’t forget to pencil in a few fun expenditures. You deserve to be happy with life too.

SCORPIO Oct. 23–Nov. 21 Sleep on a problem before committing to a solution. A shake-up could result in what you decide, but there are few wrong choices. In the end, the work you do is going to matter to others, but it should matter to you as well. Choose wisely.

SAGITTARIUS

Nov. 22–December 20.

You might not see it now, but things are getting better. Get out and see the world, even if it means taking a few safety measures. A family member is there to help, and so are your friends. Take your comfort zone with you if you must.

attention it deserved?

Green answers his own questions in this book but there’s more. There are biographical sketches of four good men here, each rounded out so well that you may wish you’d known these guys. None of them fit a mold — Green captures that clearly — and he subtly, kindly reminds readers that they were someone’s son, friend, or father.

And then, just as it seems like there’s no conclusion to this tale, Green brings in the killer, whom he tantalizingly doesn’t immediately name. In those pages lie someone of the edgiest, most shoulder-clenching, the most psychologically taught chapter you’ll read this year. So lock the doors. Pour a strong one for your “last call.” Q

CAPRICORN Dec 21–Jan 19

Have a bit of fun with someone who wants to help. There is an opportunity to get out and see the world. Even if no one is ready to go full throttle, get the ball rolling on a long-term project. A business venture is in the cards.

AQUARIUS Jan. 20–Feb. 18 It’s a period of creativity!

Good works are coming out of your mind and spirit. Share what you want, but don’t expose yourself until you are ready. The best kind of praise is that which is warranted, and there will be plenty of it.

PISCES Feb 19–Mar 19 It doesn’t feel good to give up on an old friend, but exam a relationship and decide if it still makes sense. Don’t worry if something has changed and embraced the chance to reinvent a dynamic. Let go if it feels right. It’s okay.

38 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | FINAL WORD

Qsaltlake.com | ISSUE 323 | MAY, 2021

the perils of petunia pap smear

The tale of a Fauci-ouchi

BY PETUNIA PAP SMEAR

The road

to Covid-19 immunity is fraught with danger and excitement.

It was a dark, stormy night. I was safely ensconced in the basement of Chateau Pap Smear, listening to the windows rattling from the force of the frigid wind, desperately continuing my several-week-long search online for the availability of a Covid vaccination. Luckily, I had many experiences doing Internet searches for sequins, caftans, and wigs, so searching for “vaccine” was not a stretch for me.

Sadly, I was disappointed at every turn; either being unqualified or absolutely non-vaccine availability. My God, it was worse than trying to score a personal cache of shimmering eye shadow during an Estee Lauder fall clearance sale. It’s not like I could make a simple and inexpensive substitute for the vaccine, such as substituting glitter and Gorilla Glue for glimmering eye shadow.

Fortuitously I happened to have the television on, broadcasting a news story probing a certain company in possession of a large quantity of public vaccination.

I knew then that time was essential.

I hadn’t a moment to adjust my bra strap — which by the way — painfully pinched my breasticles regions.

Immediately, my glittery eyebrows furrowed as my freshly painted fingernails swiftly dribbling the computer keys alike snagging dollar bills off the stage of a drag show.

I opened the website with trepidation, fearing I would not again qualify; yet, low-and-behold, they counted obesity as a pre-existing condition. Viola! I was in.

Who knew that being a substantially gravity-enhanced queen would ever work to my advantage?

I immediately registered for both myself and Mr. Pap Smear. Upon hitting the send key, a message popped up stating that I would shortly receive an e-mail telling me if I qualified and giving me a secret code with which I could schedule

an appointment.

At the crack of the following morning, I checked my e-mail. A positive reply had come to Mr. Pap Smear, but alas, there was not one for me. Damn it! Yet, looking on the bright side, one is better than none.

So, I booked his appointment, clear out in South Jordan. I had to shorten my usual daily public preparations from four hours to a pitiful 30 minutes. Oh, what sacrifices we must make in these desperate times!

So, in a rough-around-the-edges and not-quite-ready-for-prime-time-appearance, we jumped into Queertanic.

Hastily, I became confused and programmed Jordan Commons into the GPS, and off we sped. Alas, we were miles from the appointed destination. So, I cranked the steering wheel to make an emergency U-turn.

Amid a cacophony of honking horns, Queertanic swerved and jumped the median. My spiked heel nearly punched a hole in the floorboard as I stomped on the gas pedal.

We arrived, parked, hurried into the building. When we approached the check-in table, we were greeted by a most adorable specimen of the male variety wearing, of all things, a bright orange safety vest that tended to highlight his swarthy olive complexion.

Out of habit, I immediately glanced at his ring finger to see if he was available.

AND HE WAS! I hurriedly pushed Mr. Pap Smear through the turnstile and went into a serious business of flirting with Mr. Orange Vest. Folk stories claim being asked by the staff if they want a shot, they were let in. It quickly became an urban legend. As I batted my eyelashes and giving my best “come hither look”, he did not extend an invitation.

After the fifteen-minute waiting period, we were excused. We decided to celebrate his vaccination by eating Malibu Chicken at a Sizzler next door. Shortly

later, Mr. Pap Smear went off to work.

So, I swiftly plugged into

the computer to sort through some porn — low and behold there in my in-box was MY e-mail invitation. I gasped out in frustrated exasperation. Apparently, it was time to RINSE AND REPEAT! This story leaves us with several important questions: 1. Would sorting through all the porn on the Internet qualify me for a computer science degree?

2. How long does it take Gorilla Glue to wear off?

3. Did the orange-vest guy have regulation issuing me an invitation, or was he frightened by my blinking lighted breasticles?

4. Should I have at least asked Mr. Orange Vest for his number?

5. Should Malibu Chicken become the vaccination celebration food?

6. Should I spell “I’m Vaxed” in lights on my breasticles?

These and other eternal questions will be answered in future chapters of The Perils of Petunia Pap Smear. Q

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