2012 09 20

Meet Oakland’s City Attorney Barbara Parker Page 14

Finding an LGBTFriendly Campus Pages 11-13

Bay Times’ Gary Kramer Talks with Ezra Miller Page 17

www.sfbaytimes.com

September 20-October 3, 2012 | www.sfbaytimes.com

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Still Frustrated and Fed-up

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WHITE HOUSE PHOTO BY CHUCK K ENNEDY

A Year of Military Firsts

Zoe Dunning, left, standing by as President Obama signs the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

By Zoe Dunning

PHOTO BY MAR K HEYBO

Thursday, September 20, marks the one-year anniversary of the repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell law prohibiting gays and lesbians from serving in uniform. For me and for our community, it was a historic day. After literally centuries of military gay bans in one form or another, our government finally allowed qualified, patriotic young men and women to serve regardless of their sexual orientation.

Supporters of the Occupy Wall Street movement in San Francisco took to the streets to observe their first year anniversary. Many share the frustration over the sagging economy, a weak job market, housing problems and related issues.

LGBT History Is American History

Proposal May Ban Public Nudity in SF

By Senator Mark Leno

These significant events are not just victories for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

They are also important milestones in American and California history.

But until recently, schools in our state had no requirement to include LGBT accomplishments in social sciences instruction or history textbooks.

Last year I introduced legislation that ends this selective exclusion of the LGBT community. Senate Bill 48, better known as the FAIR (Fair, Accurate, Inclusive and Respectful) Education Act, ensures that instruc-

PHOTO BY RINK

During the past year, we have been fortunate to witness some amazing achievements in LGBT history.

America’s men and women in the armed forces won the right to serve openly and proudly in the military.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Proposition 8, which prohibits same-sex couples from marrying in California, is unconstitutional.

And just four months ago, President Barack Obama announced that he believes all couples should have the freedom to marry.

tional materials in our public schools include historical information about the LGBT movement and LGBT leaders. The bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown, was cosponsored by Equality California and the Gay-Straight Alliance Network.

For far too long, our history lessons have left out the contributions of many groups. Over time, we have updated our educational standards to (continued on page 3)

Tourists pose with and photograph a local nudist

Public nudity is allowed in San Francisco, so long as the individual is not visibly sexually aroused. It’s therefore OK to parade around letting it all hang out, as long as you’re not enjoying it too much. One has to wonder about cold days, when blood naturally flows to certain areas, but we’ll put aside that thought for now.

Cock rings seem to be de rigueur in the male nudist scene these days. Instinct magazine and other publications

have even dubbed the Castro “Cock Ring Row.” It’s perhaps no wonder that school parents are now complaining about tours that may expose kids to the display. (See page 2.)

District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener is now considering a legislative proposal to ban or further restrict public nudity. Openly gay SF police Sergeant Chuck Limbert has indicated that he would likely support such legislation, (continued on page 19)

This past year has led to many firsts in the military – the first same sex wedding ceremony in which a service member wore their uniform, the first on base same-sex proposal (captured on camera, at least!), and the first actively serving openly gay flag officer in the U.S. military. Yes, you heard me right. While being promoted to brigadier general on August 12, 2012, Tammy Smith openly acknowledged her homosexuality by having her wife, Tracy Hepner, pin her star to her uniform. I have to admit, after working on the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell for so many years, I am not sure I thought I would ever see such a sight.

Congratulations to BGEN Smith and Tracy – here is hoping for many more years of service and of love!

I want to take a moment to discuss an amazing organization that I support - Emerge CA. It trains Democratic women to run for public office. I went through their training in 2010 and found the experience transformative.

Not only was I given the tools and training to successfully run for a seat on the San Francisco County Democratic Central Committee (DCCC), but I also made lifelong friendships and relationships. The program must work because more and more graduates are successfully winning their campaigns and serving in elected off ice. Noteworthy San Francisco alumnae include Malia Cohen, the San Francisco District 10 Supervisor; Emily Murase and Rachel Norton, who serve on the San Francisco Board of Education; and Leah Pimentel and Alix Rosenthal, who both serve with me on the DCCC. Now we have four other Emerge graduates running for (continued on page 3)

Ghosts of Elections Past Allow me to go all partisan on your posteriors here.

It’s time, y’all! It’s time to shake off our mid-term disillusionment, set fire to our ennui and get our president reelected. The election is only a few weeks away, and the outcome is balanced on the proverbial razor’s edge.

With the Middle East on fire, several polls show the Democratic National Convention bounce is history. The latest map showing likely electoral votes has big chunks of the country colored purple, which looks all queer fabulous until you realize the election’s a sickening tossup.

There are, of course, all kinds of reasons why it’s been hard to get fired up this election. Recent stats show the economy on Obama’s watch registers dishwater gray on the color spectrum, and our collective national mood rings are following suit. Given the amount of cleanup left to Obama after the Bush-era feeding frenzy, it’s no surprise that dishwater’s looking a little ugly. It’s also not surprising employment numbers are low when Republicans refuse to pass any jobs legislation, openly admitting their priority is tanking Obama’s presidency. We know that, but still the campaign slogan “Be Patient, We’re Not There Yet” doesn’t bring crowds to their feet the way “Throw the Bastard Out!” does. And crowds that don’t get to their feet don’t walk into voting booths.

So I thought it’s a good time to visit a few Ghosts of Elections Past to look at the lessons they teach, while there’s still time to change our Election Future.

Ghost of 2008: “We’re ahead in the polls; voters eventually d raw the r ight conclusion.”

Remember that little number from 2008 when we believed that there was no way Proposition 8 could pass in California? All polls showed the nasty ballot initiative would be voted down handily and it seemed like the

expression of just a few conservative fanatics. In the 11th hour, several intolerant groups, most conspicuously the Mormon Church, bankrolled a flood of scare-mongering ads implying same-sex marriages would lead to preschoolers being taught gay sex acts in school.

In the wake of this drivel, we watched our numbers drop below water. Election night 2008, I stood watching the rest of the country celebrate Obama’s win while county by county, the State of California voted away our right to marry. The next morning there was a lot of finger pointing in the media about why we weren’t better prepared.

Four years later, we’re still fighting to overturn that surprise attack once and for all.

This election, the Republican Party is not only putting forward a billionaire as its candidate, it is bankrolled by many more. These donors’ contributions are now legally limitless thanks to the Supreme Court striking down campaign finance restrictions. We’ve just begun to see the negative attack ads and they do move voters. We can’t be complacent about any kind of lead polls may show on a given day.

Ghost of 2000: “The two parties are the same; it doesn’t matter who gets elected.” That little ditty was popularized by a man ironically known for championing truth in advertising. In 2000, Ralph Nader ran on that slogan as the Green Party’s presidential candidate, split the Democratic vote, and the election was ultimately called for George W. by the Supreme Court. The two candidates who supposedly represented the same values? Al Gore, the champion of environmental causes, education and technological innovation, versus the W., who lied us into a war, gutted Federal regulations and handed public coffers over to big business cronies like Halliburton until the whole mess came down in the worldwide financial meltdown that continues to this day.

Brass Tacks Heidi Beeler The d if ference bet ween Barack Obama and Mitt Romney is no less profound. Obama stands for science, education and informed policy, for building a strong middle class, for treating LGBT citizens and women with dignity. Romney believes global warming isn’t proved, in tax cuts for himself… er, the wealthy, and would reverse every civil right gain we’ve made in recent history. Political progress may be imperfect and frustratingly slow, but don’t kid yourself that it doesn’t matter who’s in the White House.

Ghost of 1848: “In a state as blue as California, my participation doesn’t matter.” I don’t know what election originated that idea, but I know discouraging voter participation has been fostered in every possible way by the Republican party, which has added voter registration rules and reduced voting hours in more than a dozen states. Again, we can’t be complacent that the election is won here. We must vote and persuade others to participate. You can volunteer for voter registration and phone bank drives to reach folks locally and beyond the borders of our big blue state. It does matter. At this point, the win will go to the team that gets its players on the field. Get involved at barackobama.com.

Castro Tour Angers Some Town School Student Parents tion, anxiety, and confusion concerning the field trip. The complex array of sentiments ranged from disapproval of teachers who told students that the word gay means “happy,” to fears that the Castro community would be unwelcoming to children.

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Don't Call It Frisco Stu Smith “Parents outraged! Is the Castro an appropriate destination for a secondgrade field trip?”

I caught this teaser headline while checking out a recent SF Gate story and got a good laugh. But then I started considering how my community, we LGBT’s, are perceived in the human incubator I’m so thankful to call home.

The Town School, a highly rated and uber expensive private boy’s school here in Oz is considered inclusive and open minded, but apparently some parents who can afford to send their kids to this prestigious “prep” school are offended that the school took several dozen 7 & 8-year-old boys on a guided, purposeful tour of the Castro.

A handful of parents expressed concern about the appropriateness of taking young boys on a tour like this.

One parent, in particular, reached out to SFGate and expressed frustra-

I bet this parent and the others are well intended, scared and even embarrassed that they are afraid of their offspring being exposed to what they’re probably already used to seeing in every form of media on a daily basis. I know I’d be protective of my children if I had them. I certainly am when taking my nephews and nieces on various trips to The Russian River or even to local street fairs. But I doubt I’d try and hide my kids from exposure to human beings who are different than me.

One of the greatest traumas of my childhood was when I was 13, and an 18-year-old college student at Stanford asked me to go out for a burger with him. My mother chose to have him arrested for possibly being a child molester. His life was ruined, and my sexuality was compromised for decades due to shame and fear of myself being arrested and becoming a card-carrying sex offender.

The man leading the Town Hall students’ tour took the boys by The Pink Triangle Memorial Park, where pylons rise above the ground in remembrance of the estimated 15,000 gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders who were persecuted, imprisoned and killed during and after the Nazi regime. A few other stops on (continued on page 10)

HIV/AIDS News The National AIDS Memorial Grove announced the expansion of its Young Leaders Scholarship Program, making available $1,000 to $2,500 scholarships to young leaders.

The purpose of the scholarship is to recognize, support and encourage the educational efforts of young people committed to active roles of public service and leadership in the f ight against HIV/AIDS. Sponsored by UnitedHealthcare, the program will expand the number of scholarships awarded in 2012 and accept applications from both collegebound high school seniors and college undergraduates. Applicants are asked to write an essay describing their leadership goals and experiences related to HIV/AIDS, and are encouraged to participate in HIV/AIDS-related community service projects.

“This scholarship program is designed to deepen our younger generation’s awareness of the AIDS epidemic and promote leadership in the ongoing fight against it,” said John Cunningham, Executive Director of the National AIDS Memorial Grove.

“Today’s young people have been raised in a world in which AIDS has always existed. Our intention is that these scholarships will help to shape a future leadership that understands the challenges faced by those who came before them.”

“UnitedHealthcare is honored to have a role in encouraging young

leaders in the f ight against HIV/ AIDS,” said Dan Rosenthal, Executive Vice President of UnitedHealthcare. “This scholarship program helps to honor yesterday’s leaders as we continue to search for a cure and work to improve the quality of life for those living with the disease.”

The scholarships are open to current high-school seniors and college undergraduates who have demonstrated an active commitment to fighting AIDS. Applications and personal statements are due by October 5, 2012 and essays must be received

by October 22, 2012. Awardees will be recognized at a ceremony on December 1, 2012, which is World AIDS Day. Applicants must provide proof of current academic status and HIV/ AIDS-related community service.

A panel of community leaders will judge the applications. Essays must be 1,000 words and address the following three areas: 1) How the applicant’s life has been affected by HIV/AIDS and its influence on their educational pursuits and career path 2) How discrimination and stigma fuel misconceptions and stereotypes that perpetuate high-risk behaviors; changes brought about by early AIDS activists and community leaders; challenges facing 21st Century activists, and potential solutions

(HISTORY continued from page 1) 3) The role of the National AIDS Memorial Grove and how it might continue to play a vital and relevant role in promoting public awareness about HIV/AIDS Scholarship recipients will be eligible to apply for ongoing scholarship support connected to both their chosen field of study and related community work, thereby strengthening and furthering effective activities in the area of HIV/AIDS prevention, education and treatment. Through a reapplication and qualification process for second-year scholarship applicants, the National AIDS Memorial Grove and its funding partners will have the opportunity to follow these individuals in their ongoing roles as leaders in the fight against AIDS. The Young Leaders Scholarship Program challenges youth to consider how their career paths may be influenced by a fuller appreciation of the realities of the AIDS crisis. As they engage in course and related community work, leadership skills will develop, enabling them to become more active and visible in the fight against AIDS. Further information and applications are available at w w w.a id smemo r ia l.org or by cont act i ng Steve Sagaser at (415) 765-0497 or ssagaser@aidsmemorial.org.

be more factual and inclusive of the roles of women and members of other racial, ethnic and cultural groups.

The FAIR Education Act adds people with disabilities and the LGBT community to this list and it also prevents schools from adopting learning materials that have a discriminatory or stereotypical bias based solely on a person’s sexual orientation or disability.

In a classroom setting this means that high school students who now learn about African-American civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. and farmworker advocate Cesar Chavez will also discover Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man elected to public office in California. History students will not only learn about the policies that President Franklin D. Roosevelt initiated to help the U.S. through the Great Depression, but also that President Roosevelt spent decades in a wheelchair. They will learn that the Holocaust in Nazi Germany targeted not only millions of Jews, but also LGBT people and people with disabilities. They might also learn that Sally Ride, the first woman in space, just happened to have a loving relationship with another woman.

All students benefit when we provide them with an education that is factual and ref lects the diversity of the human experience. When a history student learns about LGBT heroes and figures like Harvey Milk and Sally Ride, in addition to Martin Luther King Jr., and Cesar Chavez, he or

she better understands the differences among us. That, in turn, helps destroy negative stereotypes that lead to violence, bullying and suicide. These same students will also find positive role models in the many historical f igures they discover, empowering them to embrace their uniqueness and overcome whatever unique challenges they may be facing.

Despite the positive outcomes we know the FAIR Education Act will have on California, the bill has faced several challenges. Anti-gay organizations have twice attempted to repeal SB 48 through the initiative process. Both attempts failed to gather enough signatures to put the issue on the ballot box. In addition, state budget cuts and a moratorium on revising the state’s social studies standards and textbooks have delayed the full implementation of the FAIR Education Act, which became law on January 1.

Still, many schools are incorporating LGBT history into the classroom using the resources they have available, and we know many more will continue to do so. Certainly, our students are depending on it.

Senator Mark Leno represents the Third Senate District of California, which includes portions of San Francisco and Sonoma Counties and all of Marin County. www.sen.ca.gov/Leno

(ANNIVERSARY continued from page 1) San Francisco office this November – Dr. Amy Bacharach for City College Board, Gladys Soto for Board of Education, and London Breed and Thea Selby are running for the District 5 Supervisor seat. I encourage you to get to know these incredible women and support them as they work to

bring a woman’s voice to the city’s policy decisions.

If you are interested in going through this training, the application period is open right now for the coming year’s class. We need to continue to create a pipeline of Lesbian, Bi and Transgender women leaders willing to run

for office because, as Missouri State Senator (and open lesbian) Jolie Justus says, “if you don’t have a seat at the table, you’re probably on the menu!”

Find out more at www.emergeca.org.

Finally, I want to encourage all of you reading this to get involved in the fall campaign. If you are a Democrat, the

new Obama for America, California Democratic Party, and San Francisco Democratic Party joint campaign headquarters is now open at 2278 Market St. (the former Tower Records space). I will be there this Saturday and hope you can come help phone bank or go out and register new voters. See you then!

Zoe Dunning is a retired Navy Commander and was a lead activist in the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. She currently serves as the 1st Vice Chair of the San Francisco Democratic Party and lives in Noe Valley with her wife, Pam, two cats and their golden retriever rescue – how lesbian!

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National News Briefs compiled by Dennis McMillan

Seattle, WA - Campaign Airs Ad Urging Voters to Approve Referendum 74 - 9.12 Washington United for Marriage, the broad coalition working to defend Washington State’s freedom to marr y law, has beg un its statew ide T V ad campaign, urg ing residents to vote “Approve” on Referendum 74. The f irst ad features Robin and Steve Boehler of Mercer Island, WA, who talk about their wish for their lesbian daughter, Sara, to be able to share in the same freedom to marry as their other children. “I don’t want something less for Sara than I want for Lindsay and Emily,” Robin says. “I want her to have the same kind of joy that Robin and I have had,” adds Steve.

Portland, ME - Religious Speak Out For and Against Marriage Equality - 9.11 Same-sex marriage supporters talked up their religious reasons for backing the “Yes on 1” campaign when nearly 500 people turned out at Portland City Hall.

The event occurred after the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland organized a series of outreach meetings across the state in an ef fort to energize voters against the Nov. 6 referendum to legalize same-sex marriages in Maine. “I worship a God of inclusion, not exclusion,” the Rev. Michael Gray of the Old Orchard Beach United Methodist Church told the cheering Portland crowd.

“A s we approach E lect ion Day, telev ision spot s l i ke t hese ca n make the dif ference for Washington voters who have not yet heard about why marriage matters to lov ing and committed same-sex couples and their families,” said Thomas Wheatley, director of organizing for Freedom to Marr y. “Washington became the seventh state to pass a marriage bill because thousands of people shared their stories and made the case to state legislators. It’s these personal stories that will ensure that Washington voters approve the freedom to marry in November.”

“I’m very proud to be a member of Catholics for Marriage Equality, and I’m certain that this Nov. 6, Catholics and people of all faiths are going to join together to make sure we pass this referendum to allow ever ybody the right to marr y,” said Portland Mayor Michael Brennan.

Retired Episcopal Priest Will Brewster told about when his youngest son, a captain in the US Army who led a platoon in Iraq, announced to his parents he was gay. “I couldn’t understand why, if my son was willing to risk his life to f ight for our freedoms, he couldn’t come back home and have the same freedom to marr y the person he loves, just like his brother and sister,” Brewster said. Opponents of the referendum from Protect Marriage Maine reiterated their tired argument that children are best raised when they have the benef it of both male and female parental inf luences.

Washington United for Marriage Campaign Manager Zach Silk said, “We’ve been having thousands of conversations across the state with voters about why marriage matters and why it’s important to approve Referendum 74. Persona l stor ies resonate w ith people because everyone understands that marriage means something special not only to the couple, but also to their family and friends.” So true.

Source: BangorDailyNews.com

Source: Freedom to Marry.org

Minneapolis, MN - Vikings Punter Scores Points for Equality - 9.10

Hershey, PA - Sweet Victory in Chocolate-ville - 9.12

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo spoke in favor of a Maryland ballot initiative to legalize same-sex marriage. Maryland state delegate Emmett C. Burns Jr. wrote to the Ravens owner urging him to “inhibit such expressions from your employee.” Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe responded to Burns (edited for length):

After denying a 13-year-old student admission last year because of his HIV status, Milton Hershey School - a private boarding school founded by the chocolate tycoon to support lower income and socially disadvantaged youth - is reversing its decision. The school is now offering admission to HIVpositive students as well as updating their policies to be more sensitive to HIV-related issues.

“Your vitriolic hatred and bigotry make me ashamed and disgusted to think you are in any way responsible for shaping policy at any level. It baffles me that a man such as yourself, who relies on that same First Amendment to pursue your own religious studies without fear of persecution from the state, could somehow justify stifling another person’s right to speech. Why do you hate the fact that other people want a chance to live their lives and be happy, even though they may believe in something different than you, or act different than you? How does gay marriage, in any way, affect your life? If gay marriage becomes legal, are you worried that all of a sudden you’ll start thinking about penis?”

“I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won’t come into your house and steal your children. They won’t magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster. They won’t even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population.”

Touchdown!

Source: Deadspin.com

The school denied admission to the boy, who has lived with HIV all his life, based on concerns about “chronic communicable diseases that pose a direct threat to the health and safety of others.” The student’s parents filed a lawsuit on his behalf, alleging the school violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by denying entrance to their son.

Milton Hershey School President Anthony Colistra said that, after consultations with the Justice Department (kudos to DOJ!), the school has changed its mind. Colistra also pledged his support for a broader effort to accommodate HIV-positive individuals at the school by developing and providing mandatory training for staff and students on HIV issues and expanding current training on Universal Precautions (steps to prevent HIV infection).

The case inspired national protests against the school as activists pushed for an end to institutional discrimination against HIV-positive individuals. Some protesters carried a clever, huge brown banner representing a Hershey chocolate bar with the words: “No Kisses for Hershey! End HIV Stigma!” One has to reply to this triumph: “Sweeeet!”

Albany, NY - Republicans Use Dirty Tactics Against Pro-Equality Republican - 9.10 A blistering piece attacking a Republican New York state senator who was the decisive vote in the state’s historic gay marriage legislation last year has been circulating over email and as direct mail - accusing him of being a “political whore” and asking “How far will a politician go to get in your pants?” The piece includes a very suggestive photo of a young boy on his knees below bellybutton level, about to pull down the underwear of another bare-chested young man. On the back photo, the boys are locked in homoerotic embrace with the words: “Make sure your Son [sic] says, ‘Thank you, Mark Grisanti.’”

The piece says it was paid for by the Committee to Save the Erie County Republican Party. It refers to state Sen. Mark Grisanti, a Buffalo-area Republican who switched his vote to support gay marriage at the last minute last year.

“I cannot legally come up with an argument against same-sex marriage,” Grisanti said as the bill was being debated in Albany. “Who am I to say that someone does not have the same rights that I have with my wife, whom I love, or to have the 1,300-plus rights that I share with her.”

Grisanti and three other Republican senators who backed the state’s same-sex marriage legislation were expected to face challenges over the votes, as are other candidates who have supported same-sex marriage elsewhere in the country. Who knew some Republicans could be so fair-minded, and others could have such dirty minds?!

Source: Politico.com

Source: ThinkProgress.org

Local News Briefs Demonstration Against Archbishop Cordileone Planned

Marriage for Gay Couples Could Come to California in Matter of Weeks

Thursday October 4, 1:30 - 6:30 pm in front of Saint Mary’s Cathedral, 1111 Gough Street there will be a huge demonstration against Salvatore Cordileone as Archbishop of San Francisco. Protesters plan to oppose and disrupt the Installation Ceremony because of apparent hatred for queers. In 2008, Cordileone raised $1.5 million, gave $6,000 out of his own pocket, and organized major evangelist figures, such as James Dobson, into activism to pass Prop 8, banning gay marriage in California. Two years later he was named Chairman of the Promotion & Defense of Marriage Subcommittee to outlaw marriage benefits to same-sex couples everywhere.

Very soon, the US Supreme Court will decide whether or not to hear the Perry case - the suit challenging California’s ban on marriage for gay and lesbian couples known as Proposition 8. If the court decides not to hear the case, the appeals court ruling will stand, striking down Prop 8 as unconstitutional, and the state will begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples again. The court will also consider whether to review a number of cases challenging the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which bars the federal government from recognizing married same-sex couples, even in states that legally recognize their union.

His actions have also targeted abortion freedom of choice. At the beginning of his appointment to Bishop of Oakland in 2009, Cordileone trained hundreds of high school youth to fight for the anti-abortion agenda at “Pro-Life Boot Camps.” In 2010, he spearheaded resistance to abortion aid in Obama’s healthcare plan. This year, he is working hard to get Catholics together to vote and pass an initiative in California to mandate parental consent for minors who need abortion care.

But he seems to have sympathy for rapists. Cordileone was appointed Bishop of San Diego in 2002; he left in 2007 as they were filing for bankruptcy protection in response to 150 claims from sexual abuse victims. Since then, he refuses to release a list of names of the 26 priests in Oakland who have sexual abuse allegations against them to the non-profits that help abuse survivors. Cordileone does NOT represent San Francisco values.

These milestones, along with the four states deciding marriage-related issues on the ballot in November, make these next few weeks critical to the future of marriage equality in this country.

The Human Rights Campaign held a national press briefing on the status of the marriage cases in front of the Supreme Court. In Maryland and Washington, voters will be asked whether or not to uphold legislatively enacted marriage equality laws in their respective states. In Maine, advocates have gone to the ballot for the first time proactively in order to enact marriage equality. Minnesotans will be asked whether or not to approve an amendment to the state constitution that bans marriages for same-sex couples.

Story by Dennis McMillan

Story by Dennis McMillan

BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 9

Professional Services

Overcoming the Fear of Failure

Examined Life Tom Moon, MFT We’ve all experienced dread at the thought of failing, but for some this fear is so paralyzing that it’s a complete obstacle to personal success.

Motivational speakers and coaches try to get people to overcome their terror of risking failure with anecdotes showing that a successful life inevitably involves failure. They remind people, for instance that Babe Ruth, who for many years held the homerun record, also held the record for the most strikeouts; or that Thomas Edison’s attempts to make a light bulb failed hundreds of times before he finally succeeded.

In Edison’s case, he succeeded because he saw his failures as information, not as commentaries on his personal worth. But some people are more accustomed to thinking, “I failed at this task, therefore I am a failure.” This kind of thinking makes it more likely for some to continue compulsive patterns of smoking, drinking, or eating; avoid people they’re attracted to or romantically interested in; or avoid pursuing jobs they’d love to have -rather than face the presumed shame that they believe will follow any unsuccessful attempt to make their lives better. When we mix up experiences of failure with our sense of our worth and dignity as human beings, then failure inevitably becomes humiliating, and humiliation is so painful that many of us will avoid it at any cost.

That’s one of the reasons we become “risk averse,” which is also why we become stuck, bored, and unfulfilled in our lives.

The key to overcoming this fear is to learn to think of failure as a kind of experience, not a kind of person.

As self discipline teacher Theodore Bryant puts it (in Self Discipline in 10 Days), “…there is no such animal as a failure; no zoo in the world has a

caged specimen. Sure, a person can fail at a particular task or project. But a person cannot be a failure. Moreover, a person can fail at the same task numerous times yet not be a failure as a person. The fictitious horrors of failure that are etched into our brains subvert our ability to exercise self-discipline in many of life’s arenas.” Many readers will be skeptical of this idea, because it’s not an idea that many of us are accustomed to thinking.

If the fear of failure is caused by our ideas about what it means, not by failure itself, then the tools of cognitive therapy should be of great help in overcoming it. Fortunately, the cognitive therapy techniques for changing thinking patterns are so simple that some people can learn them from selfhelp manuals. One way to explore this option is to pick up a copy of David Burns’ book Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy and do the written exercises for changing cognitive distortions. As far as I know, this is the only self-help manual whose effectiveness has been scientifically demonstrated in five separate studies.

Tom Moon is a psychotherapist in San Francisco. His website is tommmon.net.

Catherine Tuerk Puts Love and Pride into Action

By Will Fellows Editor’s Note: Catherine Tuerk will speak on Tuesday, October 2, at a book event cosponsored by Congregation Zha’ar Zahav and PFLAG-SF, 7:00 PM, at the Synagogue, 290 Dolores Street (corner of 16th Street) in San Francisco.

In one sense, Catherine Tuerk’s story is not so remarkable: Soon after her son went away to college, he told her he was gay. “When my son came out to me,” she writes, “I was deeply fearful that he could never be happy.

And I felt profound sorrow, almost as though he had died.”

What sets Tuerk’s story apart is that her son’s coming out marked the wrenching beginning of something extraordinary: His mother’s commitment to breaking the silence, educating herself and others about gay people. Tuerk became a leader in PFLAG, enjoying a successful and award-winning stint as president of the Metro DC chapter. She wrote articles for varied publications and appeared on many television and radio shows, sometimes in the company of her son, with the aim of dispelling homophobia and promoting prideinspired advocacy.

Eventually Tuerk and her husband went international. On frequent vacation trips abroad – in Europe, South America, Africa, and Asia – the intrepid couple served as pro-gay ambassadors, going out of their way to get to know gay people and their parents in other cultures.

Concerned that the unique realities of gay and transgender children are often overlooked or ignored, Tuerk was instrumental in establishing the Gender and Sexuality Advocacy and Education Program at the Children’s National Medical Center. The pioneering program supports and affirms gender-nonconforming children and their families.

Catherine Tuerk has been writing candidly about her journey all along

the way. Her recently published book, “Mom Knows: Ref lections on Love, Gay Pride, and Taking Action,” is a selection from her writings of two decades.

“My hope for this book is that LGBT people will read it and find the perfect essays to help their parents become more accepting,” Tuerk says. “And that parents who love and accept their LGBT children, but uneasily, will read ‘Mom Knows’ as part of their parenting homework.”

Selections from “Mom Knows” The power of PFLAG: “When my son came out to me … he said, ‘Go to PFLAG. If you don’t, we will always be on a different page.’ It took me a while. It wasn’t easy. I cried a lot. I blamed a lot. But I didn’t have the luxury of staying away, because my son would not let me or his father off the hook.”

Her son’s childhood: “Attending support groups for parents and gay people became my monthly fare, searching for the relief that I knew was possible. When it came, the sadness was replaced with anger and a new kind of sad realization. I realized that my son had suffered needlessly and he suffered totally alone. My love for him never reached into the most painful part of his secret life.”

“Good gay” vs. “bad gay”: “Other parents take a second direction. They may say, ‘Tommy is fine, but all those other gay people are bad.’ Their child becomes the ‘immaculate exception.’”

Feeling different: “Recently, I spoke at an orientation program for school nurses. ... Squeezed between the ‘Inoculation record- keeping’ and ‘How to handle stomach aches,’ I was able to talk about the pain of being gay that begins with the very early feelings of being different. This feeling of being different can be apparent in the feminine interests of some gay boys.

Sometimes these little boys need spe-

cial support, even as early as nursery school.”

Gay children: “People were reluctant to face the fact that all human sexuality begins in childhood, and they certainly did not want to think about gay children. They much preferred the idea that some awful parenting style, or sexual abuse, was turning teenagers gay.”

Learning about gay sex: “‘How did you have your first sexual encounter?’

I asked my good friend, a gay man.

I was doing my home- work. I knew that if I were ever going to be able to be fully affirming of gay culture, I had to get over my hang-ups about gay sex.”

What our kids want: “Our kids are the way they are from the very beginning – not better, not worse, just a little different. When they fall in love, everything is exactly the same. All they want is a normal life. They want life partners. They want to nurture like the rest of us. They also might want to dance.”

(Originally published in the Wisconsin Gazette/Used by permission)

(PARENTS continued from page 2)

Read more @ www.sfbaytimes.com 10 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

the tour included the wildly colored Hope for the World Cure Mural, a pictorial depiction of the AIDS epidemic; the Human Rights Campaign Action Center, local headquarters for a civil rights organization promoting fairness for LGBT Americans; and Harvey Milk’s camera shop, which the former gay activist and pioneering politician once lived above.

I’m troubled by anyone who exhibits prejudice or discrimination, and yet demands anonymity for those opinions and viewpoints that ultimately harm others. That having been said, a lot of my friends have put their kids in Town School, and it’s an amazing place for any young boy to find himself. It’s full of great teachers, resources, programs, and even offers

financial aid. The prestigious school is almost a direct path to the best universities in the world.

The question, however, must be asked: Do parents have a right, under the veil of anonymity, to publicly criticize a school tour of the Castro, denigrating the school for posing a threat to the moral fiber of their kids?

Use the News Education Program

PHOTO BY KRISTY DENSMORE

Finding an LGBT-Friendly Campus…or Not Colleges and universities located in California often appear on national rankings of the most LGBT-friendly schools. Those located in the Bay Area are more likely to receive high rankings.

of LGBT centers and “Safe Space” locations, Pr ide groups, support and mentoring programs, designated gender neutral residence areas, and credit-granting courses including individual classes or workshops and Bay Times looked at rankings from numerous sources, in some cases minors and majors in LGBT or gender including The Princeton Review, Campus Pride, College studies.

Express, The Advocate and others.

Based on our f indings, we present our own composite There are a var iet y of ways LGBT-fr iendliness can list of those located in the Bay A rea and beyond in be gauged. Among these are the presence on campus California.

Stanford University T h e L G B T C o m mu n i t y R e s o u r c e s C e nt e r, l o c a t e d i n t h e F i r e Tr u c k House at Stanford, prov ides welcomi n g s pa c e a nd c on ne c t s st udent s t o ca mpus resou rces t h rough t he Community Academic Support and Adv ising (CASA) program. Queer Awareness Days (QuA D) are conducted to nurture st udent-, facu lt y- a nd st a f f-i n it iated programs. The CASA Week ly Lunch Series is a series of lunch workshops coordinated by mentors on selected topics. The SOSAS (Safe and Open Spaces at St a n ford) prog ra m of fer s st udentrun outreach and diversit y workshops for c l a s ses , fa c u lt y a nd st a f f tea m s , ad m in ist rators a nd st udent residences. More than 20 af f iliated groups are act ive for underg raduate or g raduate level students.

Q ueer Volu nteer St udent Org a n i zations (QVSOs) include the Green L i-

bra r y L GB St ud ies Resea rch Gu ide, B i ver s it y, Q ue er- S t r a i g ht A l l i a nc e, Queer & A sia n, BlaQs, L a Fa m i l ia r, Indigenous Queers, Stanford Students for Queer L iberat ion, Nat iona l Marr i a g e B oycot t , Q ueer S pi r it , Jew i s h Q ue er s , G r a d Q , L GB T Me d s , O utLaw, Out4Biz and School’s Out. Campus Pa r t ner s i nclude St a n ford P r ide A lumni, Feminist/Queer Studies, Sexual Health Peer Resource Center, Vaden Hea lt h Center GL BT Resources, Queer Straight A lliance, Queer Studies Coalition and others.

University of California, Berkeley The Department of Gender & Women’s Studies of fers an innovative interdisciplinary undergraduate minor program in LGBT Studies. The Gender Equity R e s ou r c e C e nt e r ov e r s e e s on - c a m pus LGBT t hemed organizat ions and groups and maintains a coordinator of LGBT Programs and Services.

There are a number of LGBT-themed g roups for g raduate and underg raduate students, faculty and staf f. Among these are the Boalt Hall Queer Caucus (law students and their friends, families and allies); Cal Queer & Asian; Gamma R ho L ambda soror it y; K hush: Sout h Asian Queer, Questioning and LGBT S pa ce; Q @ H a a s , Q ueer A l l i a nce & Resource Center, Queer Cont inuum,

the LGBT Community at Cal is a standing committee reporting to the Chancellor and comprised of staf f, facult y, graduate and undergraduate students.

T he Un iversit y of Ca l ifor n ia LGBT I A ssociat ion ex ists for t he pur pose of supporting and promoting at the system wide level the University of California community with respect to diverse sexual and/or gender orientations.

Queer Diversions, Queer Grads, Queer People of Color, Queer Straight A l liance, Queer Womyn @ Berkeley, Sigma Epsilon Omega Fraternity, Student Coalition for Marriage Equality, T-Cal: A Transgender & Gender Non-Conf irmi ng Space, Young Queer s Un ited for Empowerment; Zawadi: Black GL BT Com mu n it y at Ca l; a nd Queer A l l iance and Resource Center.

The Lavender Cal Staff & Faculty Network is an organizat ion for LGBTQI staf f and faculty at UC Berkeley. The Chancel lor’s Adv isor y Committee on

University of California, Santa Cruz UC Santa Cruz is noted as a pioneering school for its positive environment, programs, ser v ices and student coalit ion s . C o or d i n ated f r om t he L ione l Cantu Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Intersex Resource Center, UCSC of fers on-going act iv it ies for students i nc lud i ng GL BT “ hol id ay s” a nd t he R a i nbow Graduat ion Ceremony. UC Santa Cruz wil host the 2013 Western Reg iona l LGBTQI A Col lege Conference, February 15-17.

(continued on page 12) BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 11

Use the News Education Program (COLLEGES continued from page 11) Humboldt State University – Arcata Humboldt State University is noted for its Safe Space program of fering information and activities on campus. The Eric Rofes Multicultural Queer Resource Center produces L GBT-focused a c t iv it ie s , i nc lud i n g National Coming Out D a y, Q u e e r C o m mun it y Recept ion, HomoComing, Trans Week of Remembrance, K INK on Campus, National Day of Silence and Night of Noise. The campus includes a gender neutral housing area and of fers the Critical Race, Gender and Sexuality Studies (CRGS) undergraduate program.

San Diego State University In January 2012, San Diego State became the second col lege or u n iver sit y i n Nor t h A mer ica to have a major in LGBT Studies. A minor in LGBT studies has been of fered since 2009.

SDSU has a number of events throughout the year that promote unity, education, awareness and visibility in the LGBT community on and of f campus. Program opportunities range from lectures, workshops, social activities, and training sessions which facilitate a proactive campus climate while celebrating the cultures of a rich and diverse community.

rooms. The Peer Connections is an online peer chat and mentoring program. Tuesday Talks are hosted gatherings facilitated at the LGBT Resource Center.

A ser ies of “A nnua l Trad it ions” events g ives an on-going schedule of sig nature celebrations such as the Fall Welcome, Q-Camp, Trans Remeberance Day, Dragalicious Drag Ball, Coming Out Monologues, Pride Prom, Lambda Celebrations and Regional Conferences.

The Topics & Resources Library makes available f ilms, books and magazines, and a well-developed awards program presents awards, scholarships, internships and f inancial aid. A minor is LGBTIT Studies is available as are student organizations, and housing needs are addressed through services at Stonewall Hall.

University of California, Santa Barbara The Department of Feminist Studies of fers a minor in LGBTQ Studies. A mong resources ava i lable at t he Dav id son L ibr a r y i s a re search guide supporting scholars doing LG BTQ related research. The Librar y’s Andelson Collection A lso on campus, located in the Student Resource Building, is the Resource Center for Sexual & Gender Diversity where students, staf f and faculty can gather in the “Rainbow Lounge.” The David Bohnett Cyber Center is hosed in the Resource Center providing Internet access.

Annual activities include Welcome Week LGBT Reception, Safe Zones A lly Training, Big Gay BBQ , A IDS Walk, Rainbow Flag Raising, LGBT College Fair, San Diego Pride Parade and Lavender Graduation.

An e-mail list and events calendar are maintained and used to inform LGBTQ students of upcoming events. The Safe Zone project provides training and signs to post outside of f ices and other relevant spaces. A Rainbow Housing program, of fering gender inclusive residential space.

LGBTQ organizations include the LGBT Student Union, Gamma R ho Lambda Soroity and the Pride Action Committee.

University of Southern California

San Francisco State University The National Centers on Sexualit y ( NCS) at SFSU includes three collaborat ive organizations: Center for Research on Gender and Sexua lit y, Depar tment of Sexua lit y Stud ies and National Sexuality Resource Center.

The Center for Research on Gender and Sexuality opened in 2004 coinciding with the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Kinsey’s book on women’s sexuality. CRGS fosters innovative approaches to the study of sexuality embracing a model of sexuality as an anticipated, healthy developmental process of the human condition.

San Francisco State is the home of the nationally recognized Family Acceptance Project which conducts research and helps parents and careg ivers support their LGBT children, to reduce their risk for depression, suicide, substance abuse and HIV infection and to promote their well-being.

Pride at SF State is a committee of faculty, staf f and students that is committed to making San Francisco State University a safe and welcoming community for people of all sexualities and gender identities. Price activities include National Coming Out Week, Queer Yo Mind at SF State, and the Pride Prom at SFSU. Student organizations include EGAY (Everything Great About You), an LGBT and ally network; and Queer A lliance, a safe place and outlet for students of all genders, sexualities and identities. Pride also coordinates scholarships for LGBT students.

T h is L GBT Resou rce Center s ( L GBT RC ), established in 20 05, sponsors A l ly Or ientat ion and Introduct ion Session for USC students, faculty and staf f members. Participants learn appropriate resources to assist students with their personal development that includes the coming out process and self-identif ication within the LGBT community. In addition to resources, pa r t icipa nt s ex plore t he a n x ieties, frustrations and hardships students deal with as they come to terms with their sexuality and/or gender identity. Participants receive a safe zone sticker to display in their workplace identify ing their A lly identit y and af f iliation w ith the LGBT community. Food and refreshments are provided.

At USC, LGBT-related organizations include LGBTQ Facult y & Staf f A lliance, Facult y & Staf f A lly prog ram, Lambda LGBT A lumni A ssociat ion, LGBT Peer Mentoring Program, University Rap, Generation Queer and more.

Undergraduate student organizations include Queer & A lly Student Assembly, A lly A lliance, Freshman Advocacy Board, Genesis 9?13, Jewish A lliances for GLBT’s & Straights, OUTreach, Rainbow Scholars and Trojans for Equailty. For graduate students, organizations include the Marshall School of Business Gay & Lesbian Association (GA L A), Medical Gay & Lesbian Organization ( MedGLO), School of Social Work Rainbow A lliance Caucus, OUTLaw, Educators for Queer A lliance (EQuA L) and Queer Cuts for students in the School of Cinematic Arts.

Rainbow Floor, established in 1997, is a special interest residential community for LGBT students and their supportive A llies.

University of California, Los Angeles

City College of San Francisco:

T he L GB T C a m pu s R e s ou r c e C e nt e r a t UCL A prov ides a va r iet y of resources a nd ser v ices, and coordinates student, facult y & staf f and alumni organizations. The Center began in 1995, but traces its or ig ins to t he 1950s and 60s. In 1974 the f irst Gay Awarene s s Week w a s he ld a nd i n 1976 UC L A’s Cha ncel lor issued a d i rect ion t hat depa r tments and programs would not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.

In 1989, Cit y College of San Francisco revolutionized LGBT and queer studies when Jack Collins established America’s very f irst department promot i ng t he i nchoate f ield. Founded upon Dan A llen’s pioneer ing 1972 gay literature course taught in the English department, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Studies Department really wowed students, teachers, and administrators when it launched, attract ing hundreds of enrollees for some of its courses. Because the school sits in one of the world’s most LGBT-friendly cities, the classes beneath the organization’s umbrella often benef it from the surrounding communities’ participation and input. (Source: Gay Men’s Health Crisis)

LGBT student organizations include the Queer A lliance, Cornerstone, Delta Lambda Ph i Frater n it y, Ga m ma R ho L a mbda S oror it y, OutWr ite News M ag a zi ne, TransUP, UCL A Lambda Graduate Student Network, Out@ Anderson School of Management, OUTLaw, MedGLO, Library & Archive OUTreach, Social Welfare LGBTQA Caucus and Queers for Public Health.

Greek Chat is a conf idential support group for out, closeted and questioning students in Fraternities and Sororities. The UCL A Library maintains an LGBT Studies Research Guide with information on catalogs, major databases and other resrouces.

University of California, Riverside UC Riverside provides a state-of-the-art online LGBT Resource Center. It’s facilities include the David Bohnett CybreCenter which is a “Safe Space” for UCR students to gather and network. Through the COR E (Community OUTreach Educators) peer education is prov ided by t ra i ned volunteer s. A net work of supportive students, facult y and staf f are visible on campus through display of “A LLY placa rd s” out side of f ices a nd resident ha l l

SOURCE: GMHC

(continued on page 13) 12 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

Princeton Review’s List of LGBT-Unfriendly Campuses

Other US Colleges Frequently Ranked as LGBTFriendly

1. Grove City College, Grove City, PA

Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA

2. Hampden-Sydney College, Hampden-Sydney, VA 3. College of the Ozarks, Point Lookout, MO 4. Wheaton College, Wheaton College, IL 5. Notre Dame University, Notre Dame, IN 6. Catholic University of America, Washington, D 7. Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 8. Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 9. University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI 10.Baylor University, Waco, TX 11. C alvin College, Grand Rapids, MI 12.Brigham Young University, Utah 13.Boston College, Chestnut Hill, M A 14.Thomas Aquinas College, Santa Paula, CA

Emerson College, Boston, M A Indiana University-Bloomington Mills College, Oakland, CA Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, M A New York University, New York City Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH Penn State University Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, N Y Smith College, Northampton, M A University of Massachusetts-Amherst University of Pennsylvania, University Park, PA Wellesley College, Wellesley, M A

15.University of Dallas, Irving, TX 16.University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 17. I ndiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, PA

O t h e r Ca l i f o r n i a S c h o o l s R a n ke d by Ca m p u s Pride

18.Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, MI

California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

19.Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA 20.University of Wyoming, Laramie, W Y

California State University, Long Beach California State University, East Bay California State University, San Marcos Claremont Colleges, Pomona & Scripps Napa Valley College, Napa San Jose State University Sierra College, Rocklin UC Hastings College of the Law University of California, Davis University of California, Irvine University of California, Merced University of California, San Diego University of San Diego University of the Pacif ic, Stockton

SOURCE: USC

Some LGBT- Related Groups to Know About 1. Campus Pride - A national organization for student leaders and campus groups working to create a safer college environment for LGBT students. Founded in the Fall of 2001, the organization maintains an index (LGBTFriendly Campus Climate Index) considered to be the most comprehensive national benchmarking tool for colleges and universities to become more L GBT-f r iend ly. A n a n nua l ranking of the Top LGBT-Friendly Colleges is the most frequent ly cited source of rankings.

2. The Point Foundation -A resource organization for LGBT students, Point promotes change through education, mentorship, leadership development and communit y ser v ice training, and provides its scholars with the f inancial ability to attend the nation’s foremost higher educational institutions.

3. GLSE N - GL SE N, t he Gay, L esbia n & Straight Educat ion Net work, is t he lead ing nat ional educat ion organizat ion focused on ensuring safe schools for all students. Established in 1990, GLSEN envisions a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. www.glsen.org 4. Gay Straight Alliance Network - A nat iona l net work organ izat ion of st udent-r un clubs in high schools or middle schools that bring together LGBTQ and straight students to support each other, provide a safe place to socialize and create a platform for activ ism to f ight homophobia and transphobia. www. gsanetwork.org 5. PFL AG – Parents, Fr iends and Fami lies of Lesbians and Gays - Now in its 40th A nniversar y, PF L AG is comprised of members includ ing parents, families, fr iends straight allies and LGBT people. The organization has local chapters, regional aff iliates and a staffed national off ice. The organization’s mission is to provide support, education and advocacy. www.pf lag.org

LGBT Scholarship Providers Generation Equality Scholarships League Foundation at AT&T LGBT Scholarship Live Out Loud Foundation Scholarship Malyon-Smith Scholarship Award for Graduate psycholog y Students National Association of Social Workers Lesbian Studies Scholarship National Gay & Lesbian Journalism Scholarship National Gay Pilot’s Association Scholarship Pride Foundation

Back-to-School Kit Giveaway San Francisco Recreat ion and Pa rk Depa r t ment ( R PD) i n partnership w ith Active 20 -30 Club (Active 20 -30 Club of San Francisco #4) and Gay-Straight A l l i a nce Net work (G S A) w i l l be hosting a back-to-school kit giveaway event at Youth Space, a SF Rec and Park’s special community hub for LGBT youth at Eureka Valley Recreation Center. T he event w i l l t a ke place on Friday, September 21, starting from 5:00PM. SF Rec and Park w ill also present cook ing demonstrations as well as dodge ba l l t r a i n i ng s a nd g a mes. SF Rec and Park’s Youth Space is a place designed for queer youth ages 24 and under living in San Francisco and surrounding areas. Its mission is to serve queer youth by of fer ing recreat iona l programs and support ser vices such a s cook i ng, creat ive expression, special events, workshops and more.

T he b a c k- t o - s c ho ol k it s w i l l be separated by age group and each kit will include a backpack with all the essential items that t he st udent s need i n order to

be successful in school. Inside the backpack, there will be paper, binders, pencils, markers, crayons, erasers, folders, rulers and more. Some of the kits will also include items like calculators and lunch boxes, which are more expensive and that some families may not be able to afford. In addition, there will be an age-appropriate book in each bag for the kids. Each backpack w i l l a lso have a ha nd-w r it ten note from the GSA students to t he you nger st udent s w ish i ng them a successful school year.

This is the f irst annual service project , “ Ha nd s On @ Yout h Space,” co-hosted by the three pa r t ner s. T he bac k-to - school k it g iveaway event benef itt ing children and families from Our Fami ly Coa lit ion is funded by Active 20 -30 from its 2012 Gay Bachelor Auction. The event is also supported by Gay-Straight A lliance clubs of San Francisco that are comprised of local high school and m idd le school st udents who w ill ser ve as volunteers to prepare and organ ize the giveaway.

A s a s t r o n g p a r t n e r for t he LGBT communit y, Act ive 20 30 Club was founded i n 1926 and re-chartered in 2011 as the Active 20 -30 Club of San Francisco #4. The organization provides young women with an opportunity for personal growth, fr iendships and leadership development while improving the quality of life for their community. SF Rec and Park is proud t o h ave pa r t ner s l i ke A c t i ve 20 -3 0 C lub of Sa n Fr a nc i sco #4 and Gay- Straight A l liance Net work . Toget her, t he pa r tnersh ips create prog ra ms a nd events ser v ing LGBT youth in San Francisco.

Karla Rosales is SF Recreation and Park Department ’s Recreation S uper visor for Adult and Alter native Recreation. For more than 20 years, Karla ha s advocated and provided recreat i on al se r v i ces for ch il dre n , youth and adults. She is also a leader in organizing SF Rec and Park’s Youth S pace se r v ing L GBT youth at Eureka Valley Recreation Center.

Karla lives with her Domestic Partner in the San Francisco Bay Area.

SOURCE: SF PARK AND RECREATION DEPT.

By Karla Rosales

The Point Foundation – LGBT Scholars Program

BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 13

Meeting Our Community’s Housing Needs: Prop C As a city and a community, we have a responsibility to create affordable housing opportunities for people. We have an opportunity this November with Proposition C – the Housing Trust Fund ballot measure – to move in that direction. Prop C creates a 30-year housing fund totaling nearly $1.5 billion. The fund will come mostly from funding that would have gone to the Redevelopment Agency, which was abolished as a result of changes in state law. The Redevelopment Agency was the City’s primary source of affordable housing funding, and the Housing Trust Fund will recapture this funding and ensure that we don’t stop investing in our housing needs. The fund will also include other revenue sources that are dedicated to affordable housing.

Kim Corsaro Publisher 1981-2011

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Supervisor Scott Wiener We have a housing affordability crisis in San Francisco, and the LGBT community has been hit hard. Rents are through the roof, and we all know people who are hanging on by their fingernails, knowing that if they lose their apartment they may not be able to stay here. People have lost their homes in foreclosure, and others are at risk of doing so. Our LGBT seniors, even if they have stable housing, may not be able to stay in those homes because they can’t get up the stairs. They need different housing, but where? And, our queer youth often have nowhere to go, despite the great work of organizations like Larkin Street.

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The Housing Trust Fund will fund various affordable housing needs in our community, including senior housing, housing for transition-age youth,

Prop C also acknowledges that although public investment in housing is important, it’s only part of the solution. We have a housing supply problem in San Francisco. We produce far below what we need to stabilize housing prices. We need to build various kinds of housing, including smaller units, family housing, rental housing, and housing for purchase. Prop C provides incentives for the market to produce more housing than we’ve produced in the past. San Francisco makes it extremely expensive to build housing in the City, and by providing a degree of fee relief, we can ensure that more housing is built.

Prop C has broad support in the community, among housing advocates, and in both the business and labor communities. We need to ensure its passage.

Scott Wiener represents District 8 on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. More information at www. scottwiener.com. You can contact Supervisor Wiener at (415) 554-6968 or scott.wiener@sfgov.org.

Breaking into the Lab through Diversity

CONTRIBUTORS Rink, Sister Dana Van Iquity, Ann Rostow, Linda Ayres-Frederick, Annette Lust, Kirsten Kruse, Teddy Witherington, David Grabstald, Kate Kendell, Pollo del Mar, Linda Kay Silva, Heidi Beeler, Jeanie Smith, K. Cole, Gary M. Kramer, Dennis McMillan, Tom Moon, Paul E. Pratt, Terry Baum, Gypsy Rose, Karen Williams, Gary Virginia, Shar Rednour, Stu Smith, Zoe Dunning, Kathleen Archambeau, Robert Fuggiti

The Housing Trust Fund will build thousands of permanently affordable units to serve the needs of both lower income and moderate income San Franciscans. It will double the size of our down payment assistance loan program, which helps moderate income residents afford to purchase homes. And, the Trust Fund contains a stabilization fund to help residents facing foreclosure and other housing challenges.

and housing for those who contribute to our economy but who struggle to find stable housing. It will benefit the LGBT community and other communities as well.

Guest Commentary Dr. Sue Rosser As President Obama has emphasized, the U.S. needs to increase the percentages of Americans graduating from college overall and the numbers of scientists and engineers it graduates to compete economically in the global market. To achieve this, the U.S. scientific workforce will change from being predominately white and male to reflect the diversity of the demographics of the population as a whole. Individuals from groups currently underrepresented in the science, engineering, technology, and mathematics (STEM) workforce will not only reap the benef its of the relatively good salaries obtained by scientists and engineers. Increasing the diversity in the STEM workforce may also lead to benefits for science and engineering itself, since people from different backgrounds and experience may bring diverse approaches

During the last three decades, the overall percentage of women receiving degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics has increased dramatically. In the United States, women currently earn more of the bachelors and masters degrees than men. According to the 2012 data from the National Science Foundation, in 2009, women earned 57.3% of the bachelor’s degrees in all fields and 60.4% of all master’s degrees. Beginning in 2000, women also earned more of the bachelor’s degrees in science and engineering, although they earned only 45.4% of the master’s degrees in science and engineering in 2009. In 2009, women earned 61.8% of the PhDs in nonscience and engineering fields, but only 41.1% of the PhDs in science and engineering received by U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

The aggregated data mask the wide variance of women’s participation among fields in STEM. Major gender differences occur across the disciplines. Overall, at the bachelor’s level, women earn the majority of the degrees in the non-science and engineering fields such as humanities, education, and fine arts, and in the science and engineering fields of psychology, the social sciences, and biological sciences. Men earn

most of the degrees in the physical sciences, earth, atmospheric, and ocean sciences, mathematics and statistics, computer sciences and engineering. At the level of the master’s degree, women earned the majority of degrees in 2009 not only in nonscience and engineering fields, but also in biological sciences, psychology, and the social sciences. Women still earned less than half of the science and engineering Ph.D. degrees in 2009 in all fields except psychology and a few social sciences such as anthropology, linguistics, and sociology. Women earned 52.4% of the PhDs in biological sciences.

In short, in many of the social sciences and the life sciences, women have reached parity in the percentages of degrees received. In other areas such as the geosciences, as well as mathematics and physical sciences, the percentages of women continue to increase, although they have not approached parity. In contrast, in engineering and computer sciences, the percentages of women have reached a plateau or dropped during the last decade. Unfortunately, these STEM areas, particularly computer science and engineering where women earn less than 20% of bachelor’s degrees, represent the fast-growing areas with the greatest workforce demand in our increasingly technological society.

Academia continues to improve for women, who represent more than 30% of STEM faculty at four-year

institutions. Although the percentage drops precipitously at elite research institutions, particularly at the rank of full professor (about 10%), a 2009 report from the National Academy of Sciences found improving opportunities nationally for women in tenure-track positions at those institutions. Because of Title VII and Title IX, virtually all institutions have articulated policies banning discrimination in hiring and prohibiting sexual harassment as well as gender discrimination.

Many institutions now have policies or practices that facilitate balancing career and family during especially critical family transitions. Although old issues remain with new facets and faces, there is progress in cultivating women scientists and changing institutional structures.

Successful senior women scientists serve as a prime source of leadership for top academic administrative positions. Having women in key decision-making positions in the scientific and technological workforce is critical for the future of our society.

The importance of the leadership of women in science has been illustrated in other areas such as health; not until a substantial number of women had entered the professions of biology and medicine were biases from androcentrism exposed. Once the possibility of androcentric bias was discovered, the potential for distortion on a variety of levels of research and theory was recognized: the (continued on page 22)

Person of the Week: Barbara Parker

CALENDAR Calendar performers, clubs, individuals or groups who want to list events should mail, e-mail or fax notices so that they reach us by 5 p.m. the Thursday prior to publication. Please e-mail items to be considered for the Calendar to calendar@sfbaytimes.com. We cannot take listings by phone.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR If you would like to write a letter to the editor with comment on an article or suggestions for the Bay Times, email us at editor@sfbaytimes.com. © 2012 Bay Times Media Co, Inc. Co-owned by Betty L. Sullivan & Jennifer L. Viegas Reprints by permission only.

14 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

Oak land City Attorney Barbara Parker brings to her position tremendous integrity, dedication, strong respected leadership, and an empathetic understanding of common, shared issues affecting many of us, not just in the city of Oakland. Now facing an election to maintain her City Council appointment, Parker needs our support.

Parker’s mother came from a sharecropping family and her father was from a poor farming family. They escaped the brutalities of legalized oppression and sharecropping in the rural, segregated South by moving to Seattle, where Parker grew up. Her parents instilled in her a fierce commitment to education and a determination to strive for equal opportunity and equal rights for everyone regard-

less of race, gender, sexual orientation or religious status.

After graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in economics, Parker became one of the very few African American women accepted at Harvard Law School in the early 1970’s. Now, her awardwinning legal career spans almost four decades, which includes serving as an Assistant US Attorney for the Northern District of California and 20 years in the Oakland City Attorney’s Office.

During a time of seemingly insurmountable challenges facing the city, Parker has worked to keep Oakland in the strongest possible legal standing, helping to save millions of dollars for essential services like public safety, senior programs and librar-

ies. Outside of this work, she serves as President of the Black Adoption Placement and Research Center, an organization that finds permanent, loving and supportive homes for waiting children, many of whom are in the foster care system. She is also co‐ President of Sankofa Holistic Healing Institute (supporting holistic health and healing for cancer and depression) and volunteers as a mentor for the East Bay College Fund.

For her tenacity and hard-earned experience that helped to hold the city of Oakland together during extremely challenging times, for her lifelong advocacy of civil rights, women’s empowerment, lgbt and children’s issues, Parker earns our Person of the Week honor.

The Week in Review Mark Your Calendars

BY ANN ROSTOW This is a critical week in the life of our vibrant and colorful LGBTLMNOP community. On Monday, the justices of the Supreme Court reconvene to consider their upcoming docket. On their list, they will find the several challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act, cases that they will almost certainly accept in some form or another.

They may take them all, even though only one of them has been reviewed by a federal appellate court. Or they may take just one. Or they may take some combination. Hell, I don’t know.

By the way, I think of myself as well versed in grammatical structures. I graduated from college and have been writing this column for nearly twenty years. So why haven’t I figured out when to use “which” and when to use “that?” I’m almost tempted to look up the difference but the little editors in my word processing program are happy enough to correct me, so I don’t have to bother. Maybe my English teacher wife will explain it if I ask nicely.

So, you might ask, if everyone expects the High Court to review DOMA this year, why is this week so critical?

It’s critical because the Court will also announce whether or not they will take the challenge to Prop 8.

Cross your f ingers and hope the Court declines review. Once again, marriage will be legal in the country’s most populous state. And we will not have to spend the coming year in constant anxiety, worrying that the Court will limit marriage rights with either an antigay or a muddled plurality ruling.

The bottom line is that the Court is likely to strike DOMA, but unlikely to rule that marriage rights are fundamental for same sex couples. Ergo, we want them to accept the DOMA cases, but we want them to avoid the generic fight for marriage inherent in the Prop 8 litigation.

Oh, oh, I hear some of you saying.

Why shouldn’t we go for the whole ball of wax? Why should marriage rights be denied our brothers and sisters in Montana and Georgia? The answer is that ours is a strategic legal war for equality. Striking DOMA and re-legalizing marriage in California represent two giant steps forward. Winning marriage rights at the ballot box in November (in Washington, Maine or Maryland) would advance us even further. Banking this progress will put national marriage rights within our grasp. Going for broke prematurely, by contrast, could easily break us for a generation. ________ The Undecided Let me digress to presidential politics for a moment and confess that the current wave of bad news for Mitt Romney is making me very nervous.

Obama’s numbers have been declining for the last week or so in Nate Silver’s statistical model. The Mitten seems to have survived his foreign policy stumble with little damage. He might even survive the fund raising video as well, even though many of the liberal pundits have called it a fatal gaffe. I see a lot of chickens about to hatch, but I’m afraid to count.

Given that the President didn’t suffer from last month’s job numbers, it’s tempting to embrace the common wisdom that all but a few voters have unshakeable views that won’t be swayed by political ripples. We’ll see.

But it’s actually a little worrisome to think that the election might be decided by those people who, even now, are “undecided.”

Undecided? If you bothered to register to vote, how could you be undecided at this point in time? Sometimes you see these insufferable people in-

terviewed in some focus group, running through their confused thought processes with a self-satisf ied air about them, and revealing a vast ignorance about the issues.

“Um, I just think Obama could have done more t hings for t he middle class.”

“I guess I’m leaning towards Romney because he knows how to fix the economy.”

Get these dimwits off the air! If television producers want to give us a sense of the voters’ esprit, then pick three conf ident Obama supporters and three informed Romney supporters and ask them what they think. The last people we should be listening to are the morons who can’t make up their minds between two starkly different campaigns.

By the way, did you hear that the guy who hosted that Boca Raton Romney fundraiser is a private equity partner who was known for throwing orgy like summer parties at his house in the Hamptons? Not that there’s anything wrong with that! ________ Justice is Bustin’ Out All Over!

Back to the law for a moment, it’s worth noting that our gay rights lawsuits have begun to diversify. Not so long ago, our marriage suits were cookie cutter cases. We’d get a bunch of admirable same-sex couples, pick a state to the left of center and file a state court claim for marriage. Our losses did not penalize us by setting a federal precedent, and our victories won us marriage footholds in states like Massachusetts, Iowa, Connecticut and elsewhere.

Now, we’ve mostly exhausted the easy marriage states, although we have state marriage cases still going on in New Jersey, Minnesota and Illinois. There might be others that have slipped under my radar.

Obviously, we have a slew of DOMA challenges. At least half a dozen, even though the entire question will soon be answered by the High Court as mentioned earlier.

Significantly, we have filed two federal marriage suits in states that fall under the jurisdiction of the Ninth Circuit. In Nevada and in Hawaii, we argue that the federal constitution does not allow the state government to discriminate against gay couples.

The Hawaii litigation, which we lost thanks to a Neanderthal judge, is now under appeal to the Ninth Circuit.

And the governor is on our side, for the record.

The hope, of course, is that the Ninth Circuit’s Prop 8 ruling will oblige the appellate court to uphold marriage rights throughout the western states, although the Prop 8 opinion was written in such a narrow fashion that its legal reach beyond California is unclear.

Finally, now that we have opened the door to federal lawsuits, we are no longer hesitant to advocate for gay rights outside the marriage arena.

In Arizona, where the legislature reversed domestic partner benefits for state employees, we went to federal court on behalf of the gay state staff and managed to win an injunction against the law from the Ninth Circuit. That ruling has been appealed to the Supreme Court by the lovely and talented Jan Brewer, but no one expects the Court to accept review.

An injunction is not a ruling on the merits of the case so it would be premature for the justices to interfere.

So there you have it! Now, aren’t you glad you read that whole recap? Hold the presses. The news scroll under MSNBC is telling me that a former Yale student is under arrest for posting something about killing children on an ESPN website. And my ques-

Professional Services tion is: Who cares where this psychopath went to college? ________ Dumb and Dumber In news tidbits this week, we learn that the French government will send a marriage bill to lawmakers on October 24. Vive les socialists! On the other hand, Australian politicians defeated a marriage equality bill, as was expected. Still, it’s irritating. Thanks for nothing, Mates.

I also read that Chick-fil-A has circulated an internal memo, pledging to enforce a nondiscrimination policy for gay staff and swearing off antigay political donations. The memo was reported by the Chicago-based group, The Civil Rights Agenda.

Clint Eastwood appeared on the Ellen Show and said the Republicans were “dumb” to schedule his unscripted ramble on prime time. He also said he supports same-sex marriage based on his libertarian views.

Thanks Clint, but my interest in your political attitudes has waned in the last several weeks. I also find myself repelled by the ads for Clint’s new movie. Just seeing his face annoys me, and not because he was so inane. The man was crude, dismissive and ideologically superficial.

And finally, I’m sure you read that Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobat was suspended for three games after writing “Tu Eras Maricon” under his eyes for unknown reasons.

So I guess it means “you are a fag,” although it could mean “you are a wimp.” What an idiot. And who was he writing to?

The suspension is another sign that while professional sports may be one of the last bastions of homophobia, even the strongest redoubts are beginning to give way.

Meanwhile, there’s still much work to be done in this arena. I gather that the entire European continent is breathless about the anonymous gay soccer player who gave an online interview in Germany. Angela Merkel urged the man to come out of the closet, telling him “you need not fear.” The athlete said that the price he pays to play for Bundesliga is high.

“I have to be an actor every day and go into self denial.” ________ Be Prepared For Pedophiles So we learned this week that the Boy Scouts have covered up numerous instances of pedophilia, preferring to quietly oust offenders rather than call police and report the crime. Are we surprised? The craven indifference to damaged kids by institutions that care only for their public image has got to stop.

The Boy Scouts aren’t directly responsible for sex abuse. The Catholic Church isn’t directly to blame for child rape. Jerry Sandusky is one man, not an entire university. But when these organizations look the other way they become almost as culpable as the pedophiles they protect.

And they sink to this level in order to protect their reputations? What would you think if the Boy Scouts called law enforcement and got a child molester off the street and behind bars? Would you think, oh no, a pedophile in Boy Scouts! Or would you think, good for them. They’ve got their eyes on the ground. I’d guess the latter.

Where are kids, there are pedophiles, period. Willie Sutton robbed banks because that’s where the money was. It’s logical to assume that the Boy Scouts would attract sexual criminals.

It’s also important to point out that pedophiles are not openly gay men. (continued on page 19)

Read more @www.sfbaytimes.com and check us out on Twitter and Facebook.

BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 15

Courageously Charge Forward Now ARIES (March 21 – April 19) Allowing relationships to define who you are can lead to drastic disappointment, Aries. Those who “complete” you could also deplete you. Revitalize your self-image from the inside out.

LEO (July 23 – August 22) New perspectives on life and love are actively stirring within you now, Leo. Open yourself to the unconventional influences characterized by this learning cycle. A little leniency can be liberating.

better.

Astrology Gypsy Love Steering ourselves among life’s vast assortment of choices is fundamentally like shopping at the local produce market. We’re conditioned to reach for perfect shapes, immaculate colors, and glossy finishes. Yet, the tastiest pickings are lumpy with ripeness, bruised with soft spots, and weathered with fragrant maturity. The Universe compels us to courageously charge forward now – flaws and all. Don’t bother striving to be the prettiest fruit.

Be the sweetest.

TAURUS (April 20 – May 20) This is a terrific time to tidy up your to-do list, Taurus. By conquering tasks that have burdened your past, you’ll feel like a winner and even make new friends.

VIRGO (August 23 – September 22) Material comforts extend from spiritual values, Virgo. If you feel you cannot live without something, it’s probably attached to you soulfully.

Re-prioritize possessions according to what money can’t buy.

GEMINI (May 21 – June 20) Take pride in your creative impulses, Gemini. As your mind bubbles with increased spontaneity and innovation, seek stable supporters who can help produce platforms for your self expression to flourish.

LIBRA (September 23 – October 22) You must renew your self-image to reflect new developments surrounding your personal sense of purpose. Assert yourself, Libra. Bountiful new beginnings beckon you now. Be brave, and be yourself.

CANCER (June 21 – July 22) When it comes to domestic matters, Cancers are famous for ruling the roost. Interestingly, skills at home can also apply to current career dealings.

Wield your power in both domains.

www.AstrologyByGypsyLove.com

SCORPIO (October 23 – November 21) As the zodiac’s official ambassador of rebirth, you have a natural inclination toward endings and beginnings. Retreat, reflect, and recharge now, Scorpio. A glorious new transformation is already underway.”

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 – December 21) A full dance card comes with Sagittarian territory, especially nowadays. Utilize this ultra-sociable phase to set progressive goals and rally the right tribe members to help manifest dreams into reality.

CAPRICORN (December 22 – January 19) As current astro-vibes shine a light on your public reputation, remember that certain responsibilities transcend the physical realm, Capricorn. You’ll reach greater success by balancing intellectual accountability with emotional intelligence.

AQUARIUS (January 20 – February 18) You’re itching for an adventure, Aquarius.

Whether your journey is literal or figurative, I strongly recommend you push boundaries, exploring beauty beyond your comfort zone. Trust me on this one.

PISCES (February 19 – March 20) Rejuvenate yourself by digging deep below the surface, Pisces. Confront addictive habits that counteract your cosmic charisma, and release them willingly. In this case, you’ll gain greatly by losing.

Gypsy Love’s astrology readings have helped 1000’s of people attract what they authentically desire.

As Heard on the Street . . .

compiled by Rink

AL L PHOTOS BY RIN K

What is the most gay-friendly college or university in the Bay Area and why?

Katharine Holland

Sister Roma

Debra Walker

David Cannon

Beth Feingold

“San Francisco State, which has a large LGBT staff and student population. There is strength in numbers. They have gay clubs and events, even scholarships.”

“San Francisco State, they have wonderful classes and programs for LGBT students. They invited me out there and it was terrific to see all of the enthusiasm.”

“UC Berkeley, it still stands out as a progressive school.”

“City College, mostly because it is in San Francisco.”

“UC Berkeley, because it is so left — anything goes.”

16 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

Arts&Entertainment ‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower’ Gets Teenage Life Right

Film

Gary M. Kramer Adapting his bestselling young adult novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, writer/director Stephen Chbosky has crafted a beautiful, sensitive, and often heartbreaking film. What makes this impressive coming-of-age drama resonate—for viewers of any age—is that it gets teenage life right. More than deftly capturing the dynamics of cliques and bullies, and the way kids act around parents and teachers, Chbosky accurately presents the way teens, who overdramatize their every emotion, speak. The author turned f ilmmaker also depicts poignantly and without judgment, how teens experiment with drinking and drugs, as well as romantic and sexual desires.

Charlie (Logan Lerman) is about to enter his first day of high school — 1,385 days to graduation, he counts.

He has had a troubled summer, and while he hopes to have something of a fresh start in school, he is inclined to stay as invisible as possible.

Charlie’s loneliness changes, however, when he meets Patrick (Ezra Miller), an outspoken senior taking freshman woodshop. Patrick, who is gay, and having a secret relationship with football player Brad ( Johnny Simmons), takes Charlie under his wing. He introduces Charlie to his stepsister Sam (Emma Watson) and other members of their clique, affectionately dubbed, “the island of misfit toys.” Soon, Charlie is going to midnight shows of Rocky Horror, and each character experiences a personal, often romantic, crisis that tests them and their friendship.

While Perks is Charlie’s story, out actor Ezra Miller gets a juicy supporting role. Miller, who gave a breakthrough performance in We Need to Talk About Kevin, shines in Wallflower. He camps it up as Dr. Frank-n-Furter in the Rocky Horror scenes, and adroitly conveys Patrick’s pain when his character suffers romantic setbacks.

The ingratiating actor spoke to the Bay Times about being queer, playing gay, and the perks of (not) being a wallflower.

GK: You play a gay teen in Wallf lower and you have played a

queer teen before in Every Day. You also just came out publicly.

Do you feel a resonance with taking roles like Patrick?

EM: I don’t think there is any role like Patrick. This felt like an epically rare, once in a lifetime role to play—a person who is that much of a hero, but also a conceivable, real kid. I definitely love to play any character that was written with as much depth and dimension.

GK: Had you read the book before you considered playing Patrick?

EM: Yes, for years before it was a character that could be played! I had this big imaginary story firmly in my head, which was outstanding, and incredibly helpful for molding a part.

I’ve read it seven times between age 14 and when I left high school, rendering the book less necessary. I was cultivating an idea of Patrick in my head, not knowing that I could actually accomplish that vision, or have any say in it.

GK: What did you bring to Patrick that wasn’t on the novel’s page, or in the screenplay?

EM: Hard to know where lines blur, but I thought a lot about Patrick’s origins and what made him become a caretaker. He stuck with his father through the departure of the mother, and tending to a broken father. For a kid, the notion of taking care of a dad going through a divorce can create a pattern of wanting to help/cheer people up. His childhood was making jokes and learning to stand on his own two feet.

GK: What were you like in high school?

EM: I was a failed extrovert. I never had the patience or restraint to keep my head down when it would have been advisable—to avoid getting scapegoated or ostracized. Even the wallf lower tactic—the perks are mostly expendable—you can dodge bullets if you keep your mouth shut— but I can’t.

GK: Were you often called “faggot” as Patrick is in the film?

How did you react?

EM: Constant bombardment! It’s intense to look at the etymology of words like that. At a point I felt “faggot” went from having my feelings hurt to a feeling of condescension. I

became the annoying LGBT police against words like “gay” and “faggot,” asking, “What are you talking about?

Where do you base that word?” Not the best move for avoiding trouble. If someone can have courage to step up to people who use poisonous words, like “faggot” and “gay,” to show the emotional effects of how it hurts you, sometimes gaps of hatred and bigotry can be bridged.

GK: Do you think it’s easier for teens to come out at a younger age now?

EM: Yeah. I think people have been pushing and pushing against a really old and reluctant-to-crumble wall for a really long time. The wall, dammit to hell, still stands, but we have managed to make some cracks, and more people are able to see the light of possibility and acceptance and inclusion.

mind blown open in so many different directions. I’ve gone to f loorshows.

When I got this part, I went to the floorshow in Chelsea and Pittsburgh.

Each communit y is insane, and unique, and amazing. It was great fun for us dorky actors to step into that totally devoted world.

GK: You had some mild kissing scenes—with Johnny and Logan.

Who’s a better kisser, and what kind of guys are your type?

EM: They both have supple lips and yeah, I got to kiss Johnny for a little longer, but it’s hard to have a comparative mind when it comes to two such strapping lads. I’m attracted to people who are comfortable with themselves—not self-obsessed, narcissistic, egomaniacal types.

GK: If we were playing “Truth

GK: In the film, you got to perform the role of Dr. Frank-NFurter in Rocky Horror Picture Show stage show. What can you say about your experience with Rocky Horror?

EM: My older sister showed Rock Horror to us when I was 8 when she was babysitting us. It was like having my

or Dare,” like Patrick and his friends do in the f ilm, what would you dare me to do?

EM: Hmm. [Thinks] I’d dare you to write a really awesome article. I’d double dare you. Ah, that’s a terrible answer. © 2012 Gary M. Kramer

BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 17

Sister Dana Sez Paladini; Marco Middlesex; Mr. New York Leather 2004 Brian Kent; Krewe de Kinque King Tony Leo; and Sister Pat N Leather. Paladini sang “You Raise Me Up” as everyone released red, blue, white, black balloons (the official leather colors) into the heavens and Sister Eve Volution - with us other nuns - blessed the start of the Walk with prose and holy glitter.

By Sister Dana Van Iquity Sister Dana, in honor of Leather Week in SF, advises in rhyme: “Whatever the weather, you’d better wear leather!”

Leather Week officially began with the Raising of the Leather Flag in Harvey Milk Plaza during Sandy “Mama” Reinhardt’s 21st ANNUAL LEATHER WALK, beginning at Harvey Milk Plaza and ending up in several SOMA bars, as a fundraiser for AIDS Emergency Fund and Breast Cancer Emergency Fund.

Senator Mark Leno presented a Senate Certificate of Appreciation to Mama, and commented, “Mama continues this tradition supporting AEF and BCEF for people with life threatening illnesses - with over 90% of money raised going to direct services.” He noted that in the midst of a state budget crisis, we are able to keep our AIDS Drug Assistance Program untouched by any cuts. He urged everyone to vote for Prop 30 to keep vital government services funded.

Mama granted leather community awards to the SFPD (especially Sgt. Chuck Limbert); SF Girls of Leather; Randy Schiller for sound; Daddy Mike of Steel Erections for the sound truck; Travis for ASL signing; the Color Guard; Kok bar; 440 bar; Powerhouse bar; Daddy Vick and Dykes on Bikes; Mama’s Rick for the balloons; Troy Brunet; and the entertainers on the truck: Empress Alexis Miranda; Emperor John John; Raquela; Mark

I know I will see all my fellow leather/ feather/ SM/BD fetish freeeeks on Sunday September 23 for the annual FOLSOM STREET FAIR, 11am to 6pm, on Folsom between 7th and 11th Streets. And please donate as you enter the gates when Sisters and their friends raise big bucks for charities.

LYPSINKA gave us much Mommie Dearest at her fabulous run at the Rrazz Room with Lypsinka: In the Passion of the Crawford by John Epperson. Dripping in rhinestones, she lip-synched a classic, caustic Joan Crawford interview, along with videos of JC screened overhead.

She mourned the loss of “true Hollywood glamour” and her co-stars of the Golden Age. JC reenacted the “Christmas with the Crawfords” special with her adopted, assaulted Christina and Christopher. And she closed with a dramatic reading that had everyone alternately laughing and crying. Lypsinka is truly queen of the lip-synchers!

And speaking of the Rrazz Room, Tom Orr appears there (222 Mason Street) for one performance only, September 21st, 10:30pm in THE DEVIL WEARS NADA, with his always witty, funny, naughty parodies of show tunes and lampooning current events.

Tix and info at TheRrazzRoom.com.

GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) presented the national networking event series for LGBTQ professionals and straight

allies in SF, “Thank GLAAD It’s Friday,” featuring Absolut vodka and Miller beer. We gathered at Rebel bar to support GLAAD’s work.

From standing up for Ellen DeGeneres when anti-gay activists called for her to be fired, to working alongside an Ohio mom to get the Boy Scouts to end its policy banning gay scouts and scout leaders, GLAAD is sharing the stories that move us closer to equality. GLAAD’s Adam Sandel spoke of future fun events, including the fabulous Oct. 27 Halloween fundraiser, “Haunted Broadway,” 7-11pm at Metronome (17th and De Haro).

The AIDS Emergency Fund’s EMPTY YOUR DRAWERS campaign (a part of the Every Penny Counts program) with the Bridgemen group from Stop AIDS and a couple of us nuns managed to raise $1,119.29 on September 8 & 9 for AEF. “This new campaign is about awareness and you really helped with that,” said Lance Brittain, Every Penny Counts coordinator, to the volunteers. People emptied their drawers and pockets, dug under the sofa cushions, and broke open their piggy banks to find elusive loose change or bills.

History lesson: In November 1987, Fred Skau, a bartender on Polk Street, put an empty glass jar on his bar with a sign asking for donations for people with AIDS. In the following month, other bars joined the effort, and over $10,000 in coins was collected. The Every Penny Counts Project was born. Over 500 jars were placed in restaurants, bars, retail stores, and small businesses. Since 1987, Every Penny Counts has raised over $3 million for AEF clients. Please keep putting loose change in those jars in stores everywhere!

TERRIBLE TWOS was a beer bust fundraiser at The Edge bar by Sister Pat N Leather and Sister Eve Volution, celebrating two years of fun and (continued on page 22)

SF Travelers Braved Hurricane for Southern Decadence

By Gary Virginia

For thousands of Labor Day weekend vacationers headed to the annual Southern Decadence (SD) celebration, the painfully slow-moving storm dampened not only the Gulf Coast states, but also travelers’ trips.

With f lights canceled earlier in the week and Louis Armstrong New Orleans Airport closed, many travelers applied for hotel and airfare refunds before realizing doing so prevented them from rescheduling flights on Friday when the airport reopened.

But the intrepid folks who made it to the Big Easy found a virtually untouched French Quarter with fullpowered electricity fueling the buzz of Bourbon Street’s bars, neon and bistros.

It was my f irst time to experience Southern Decadence fully, having been evacuated on a Saturday morning from Hurricane Gustav in 2008. While this year’s attendance was down considerably, it was easier to get into the two hottest venues, Oz and Bourbon Pub & Parade, which were festooned in the official SD colors of purple, white and silver.

Both multilevel bars feature wraparound, wrought iron balconies opposite each other at Bourbon and St. Ann streets, providing a voyeur’s delight of cruising and boozing. To my surprise, this circuit-type weekend does not take on the usual Mardi Gras traditions of “Show Me Some18 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

PHOTO SOUR CE: SOUTHE RN DECA DEN CE

An eerie silence fell over United flight 1430 on August 31 as passengers peered out windows left and right, seeking a glimpse of possible havoc Hurricane Isaac might have inflicted on New Orleans.

Revelers at Southern Decadence in New Orleans

thin’ Mister” flesh flashing and bead tossing. In fact, locals can spot beadwearing SD virgins amid the seasoned partiers who don only shorts and shades.

Unlike white parties and T-dances, SD attracts men of all ages, shapes and sizes. The bears were out in full furry force, and I have never seen so many tattooed revelers in one place, a trend that has now spanned several generations. Overall the vibe is very friendly with the natives setting the tone with Southern hospitality and a love of all things decadent.

In spite of the freedom to purchase alcohol 24/7 and take drinks in and out of any establishment, I didn’t see one fight or anyone getting sick anywhere. Cops were everywhere - in cars, on foot and atop well-groomed horses - but their presence felt more safe than intrusive. I was told that many of the LGBT peace officers are assigned to the gay bar areas during

SD, a strategy that is welcomed by both straight & LGBT officers.

Unique to the Bourbon Street vibe is the preponderance of a zillion strip joints and walkup bars featuring every imaginable color of cocktail spinning nonstop in slush machines. With names like Antifreeze and 151 Tropical Storm, the frothy concoctions come in Styrofoam cups or plastic-formed trumpets, hand grenades or neon beakers as long as your arm. With 90% humidity and 90 degrees, it’s important to drink fluids ... and boy did we!

Thankfully, the perfect hangover cure was readily available at Cafe du Monde where I savored thick, chicory coffee, and left covered in powdered sugar from the “pillows from heaven” fried beignets.

This city is as much about food as it is about partying so my friends and (continued on page 22)

Olivia Newton-John Photographed by Steven Underhill

Professional Services

S

inger Olivia Newton-John made a rare concert appearance at the Golden Gate Theatre on September 13. Bay Times photographer Steven Underhill created multiple images during the show. Newton-John recently authored a new cookbook Livwise: Easy Recipes for A Healthy, Happy Life.

(ROSTOW continued from page 15) They’re deviants like the happily married Jerry Sandusky, or emotional dwarfs like the pervert priests. The Scouts are right to be vigilant. But banning gays and lesbians from their ranks diminishes the organization’s soul while doing absolutely nothing to filter out sexual predators. This new revelation just tells us that the Scouts, for all their moralizing, don’t give a damn about kids. ________ Goodnight, Mitt Wow. I just reread this column.

There’s not a lot of levity. Court cas(NUDITY continued from page 1) given the rising number of complaints and the growing practice of genitalenhancing jewelry.

Last year, Wiener introduced a bill requiring nudists to carry a towel or similar item, so that when they sit down, there will be some barrier between their butt and bodily fluids and the seat. It’s one of the more interesting sections of the San Francisco Municipal Code. “Except as provided herein, every person is guilty of an infraction who, (l) while present as a customer in the public eating and drinking areas of an establishment whose primary business is to serve food, exposes his or her genitals, buttocks, or anal region; or (2) sits on any public bench, public steps, or other public seating area without clothing or other separate material as a barrier between his or her genitals, but-

es, pedophiles, politics. Where, you might ask, are the gay serial killers?

Where are the scandalous conservative lawmakers caught with their pants down in the park while their wives and kids finish dinner alone?

Some weeks are like that, I guess. I’m reminded however of a GOP politician who gave a speech this week that included sympathetic remarks for the wives of elected officials. It’s tough, he said, to stay at home and worry about the shopping and cleaning and the children, when your husband is busy making law. I forget who this was, but it was pretty jaw dropping.

These days, even the most hide bound

tocks, or anal region and the public seating.”

Waiters, waitresses and entertainers also may not expose their “genitals, pubic hair, buttocks, natal cleft, perineum, anal region or pubic hair region” and the code goes on.

Even if finding a pubic hair in your salad is a gross out, you might still wonder what the big deal is about public nudity. We are born into the world without clothing, after all. The earliest hominids surely paraded around in the buff for a while. It at first seems like just a moral issue.

That wasn’t always the case. At some point, people decided to wear clothing, and this appears to have happened very early on, around 107,000 years ago and probably far beyond that, since natural materials don’t

traditional campaigners at least give lip service to the notion that not all politicians are men. Not this joker.

Oh, and can you believe Mitt Romney told a talk show host that he likes to sleep in “as little as possible?” You know what? Sleeping in as little as possible means sleeping in the nude.

So the question is, does he sleep in the nude? Or does he sleep in his Mormon underwear?

I really don’t want to contemplate either image. arostow@aol.com

keep well in the archaeological record. In addition to group affiliation, it seems that people were trying to ward off parasites (even though clothing back in the day often held lice), cold, and to protect themselves- especially their privates. It was only later that clothing took on a more moral signif icance, with women binding their breasts, for example.

The earliest clothing then likely emerged due to health and protection concerns that, for the most part, still exist today. Should we de-evolve this wisdom and march around busy, often bacteria-filled, urine-stenched public places uncovered? Clearly the “Cock Ring Row” participants think so and don’t mind the risks. But instead of watching those individuals, we’re more interested in watching what will come of Supervisor Wiener’s predicted forthcoming proposal.

BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 19

See many more Calendar items @ www.sfbaytimes.com

Historically speaking, the Bay Times began in 1979 as a Calendar for the LGBTQ community. The title was Coming Up!

compiled by Robert Fuggiti

GLMA Health Conference – Westin San Francisco. Various Prices. 8 am to 8 pm. (50 3rd St.) www.glma.org. The GLMA hosts the 30th annual conference for health professionals and the LGBT community.

Third Thursdays - Montclair Women’s Cultural Arts Building. $10. 7:30 pm. (1650 Mountain Blvd., Oakland) 510-654-4088. A women’s open mic night with this month’s special guest, Karen Soo Hoo. Underwear After-Party – Powerhouse. $5. 10 pm to 2 am.

(1347 Folsom St.) www.powerhouse-sf.com. An underwear party with a wet undies contest and drink specials.

PopRocks – Lookout. Free. 9 pm to 2 am. (3600 16th St.) www.lookoutsf.com. Sister Roma hosts a Folsom weekend kick-off party with drink specials and go-go studs.

Exiles Pre-Folsom Meet n’ Greet – The Women’s Building. $10. 6 pm to 8 pm. (3543 18th St.) www.theexiles.org. Get to know the Exiles, a non-profit educational group for women, and the San Francisco women’s community.

SF Lesbian /Gay Freedom Band Concert – Ebenezer/herchurch Lutheran. Free. 8 pm. (678 Portola Dr.) www.sflgfb.org. The band performs “The Band Came Back,” a concert featuring new arrangements of American music.

Conducted by Guest Conductor Bradley Connlain.

“Two Sisters After Church” by Louis Grant will be on display a Nude In Body Freedom Beatbox. $30. 10 pm. (314 11th St.) www.beatboxsf.com. A spectacular Demonstration – Jane Warner Plaza. Free. 12 pm. (Jane Warner night of music, men and mayhem Plaza, Castro) www.nude-in. with DJ Pagano. blogspot.com. The 3rd annual nud“Luscious Live!” Live Band ist demonstration celebrates total Dance – Harlot. $15. 5 pm to 11 body freedom. pm. (46 Minna St.) www.bettyslist. com. Dance the night away with live music by Shake It! Booty Band.

Industry Folsom 2012 –

Folsom Street Fair – SOMA. Free. 11 am. (Folsom and 10th St.) www.folsomstreetevents.org. A world renowned street festival celebrating leather and kink. This year also features live musical performances by Little Boots and Ladyhawke.

Aftershock 2012 – Club X. $30.

4 am to 10 am. (715 Harrison St.) www.thediscosf.com. The official afterhours party of Folsom Street Fair weekend.

the George Krevsky Gallery until Legally Blonde: The Musical – Lucie Stern Theater. $32. 8 pm.

(1305 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto) www.paplayers.org. The Palo Alto Players proudly present their rendition of the hit movie “Legally Blonde,” based off the novel by Amanda Brown.

Humpday Happy Hour – Good Vibrations. Free. 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm. (899 Mission St.) www. goodvibes.com. Find out how to choose the right lubricant and safer sex products.

Wine Time! for Men - Jake’s on Market. $15. 6 pm to 8 pm.

(2223 Market St.) www.harveyslist. com. Enjoy a sampling of wines and light appetizers with great company and friends.

October 27.

Booty Call - Q Bar. $4. 10 pm to 2 am. (456 Castro St.) www.qbarsf. com. Juanita More! hosts this weekly party with hot guys, strong drinks and fun dance mash ups.

Oleanna – The Brava Theater. $12-$35. 8 pm. (2781 24th St.) www.brava.org. A college student, Carol, alleges that her professor, John, has sexually harassed her and when the case is brought to the attention of the court an unforeseeable event causes long-term damages to both parties involved.

California: Making History, Changing Lives – Bar Postrio. $150. 6 pm to 8 pm. (545 Post St.) www.glad.org. Mary Bonauto, GLAD’s Civil Rights Project Director, discusses GLAD’s work challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

Tubesteak Connection – Aunt Charlie’s. $4. 10 pm. (133 Turk) www.auntcharlieslounge.com.

Dance the night away to great music and a fun crowd at one of the best SF dive bars in town.

Play Fair! The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Make Sex Safer – GLBT History Museum. $5. 7 pm to 9 pm. www. glbthistory.org. (4127 18th St.) Enjoy the opening reception for the GLBT Museum’s new Corner Gallery exhibit.

Sissy Strut – Underground SF. Free. 10 pm to 2 am. (424 Haight St) www.undergroundsf.com. A dance party playing jams from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s. Happening every fourth Friday.

20 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

PHOTO BY RINK

Napa Cellars winemaker Joe Shirley and colleague Michael Harter pouring for Jeffrey London and Juan Torres at “Wine Time!” for Men at Jake’s.

5 Year Anniversary Party – Lookout. Free. 3:30 pm to 2 am.

(3600 16th St.) www.lookoutsf. com. The Lookout turns 5 years old! Celebrate with happy hour prices all day and night.

Blue – The Brava Theater. $12-$35.

7:30 pm. (2781 24th St.) www. brava.org. Kitka and more than 50 other Bay Area musicians will perform unique interpretations to every track of Joni Mitchell’s album “Blue.”

Fog Women’s Rugby Beer Bust – The Wild Side West. $15. 5 pm to 10 pm. (424 Cortland Ave.) www.wildsidewest.com. All you can drink beer with catered BBQ and waffle fries.

Michelle Visage – The Café. $5.

9:30 pm to 2 am. (2369 Market St.) www.cafesf.com. Michelle Visage of RuPaul’s Drag Race comes to the Café for one night only.

Deepening Into Sacred Love – LoveJourney. $130 individual/$210 couple. 10 am to 6 pm.

(Location upon RSVP) www.lovejourneytantra.com. Tantra expert Evalena Rose guides women in practicing erotic arts and heartcentered exchanges.

Pigs & Wigs Drag Brunch – Rebel. 12 pm to 3 pm. (1760 Market St.) www.rebelsf.com. A weekly brunch with drag queens, Sneaky’s BBQ and $15 bottomless mimosas.

Bear Comedy Night – Deco Lounge. $10. 8 pm to 10 pm. (510 Larkin St.) www.decosf.com.

Charlie Ballard hosts an evening of bear-centric comedy.

Lust for Life Gallery Exhibition – George Krevsky

CLASSIFIEDS Business Opportunities Parenting Graphic & Web Designer www.imagineit-design.com lori.au3@gmail.com

Catering

Gloria Swanson- Personal Chef, Cooking Demonstrations. Call 415.552.3232 to discuss your next menu! www.chefforhiresf.com, glofriasws@aol.com

Dating Service

New Free Dating Website.

SameSexConnections.com

Financing

Is a Reverse Mortgage for You? Are you at least 62 years of age and own your home? Get paid a monthly amount, line of credit or a lump sum payment. You always retain full ownership. Call Lauren Dunlap, Nova Mortgage. (510) 540-7911 / (415) 753-2272.

Insurance

COVER YOUR ASSETS: Insurance for YOUR community. Life, Disability, Final Expense. Aaron Van Arsdale 415-7174984. aaron.insure@gmail.com. Life Agent Lic # 0G10774

Legal Services

You want children, so do I. Let’s talk. For more information about me, visit http:// sites.google.com/site/mike949h/ Gay Man Looking to be a Known Donor for a Lesbian/Couple. 5’10’’, excellent health, HIV neg., with high fertility numbers, educated (Masters), athletic, attractive, and descend from two loving and long-lived Spanish families. www.gayfamilyoptions.com/item/221

Pets

SURF DOG large dog boarding at Ocean Beach. Queer Owned. sfsurfdogs.com.

(415) 637-7717 DOG TRAINING in Your Home Cindy Gehring, Dog Trainer 408-238-1540, DogHelpNow@gmail.com, www.cindygehring.com

Self Defense

Soko Joshi Judo & Self Defense Club for Women. 415-821-0303 phdshelley@sbcglobal.net

Tax Preparation The Lesbian Tax Mom 510-653-4323 taxmomsusan@yahoo.com

Therapy

Experienced Psychologist - LGBTQ Issues - Castro - Sliding Scale - Diana Gray, PhD (PSY10607) 415-309-4729

B. Scott Levine 510-763-2300 bscottlevine@gmail.com

Barbara A. Adler, LMFT. PsychotherapyConsultation- Education- Training. barbaraadlerLMFT.com, 415-990-9137.

Massage

Gay-Latino Fiction

El Cerrito Swedish by Rick www.rickoz2.com 510-932-5478 11-11 Daily

www.BellicoseBoys.com features two Mexican-Americans: An academic Harvard and an athlete Matt-the-jock.

Gallery. Free. 11:30 am to 5:30 pm.

(77 Geary St.) www.georgekrevsky gallery.com. “Lust for Life,” is an exhibition by two artists, Louis Grant, and Arthur K Miller, that speaks to the complexities of personal and public identity. Thru October 27.

Piano Bar 101 – Martuni’s. Free.

9 pm. (4 Valencia St.) www.dragatmartunis.com. Sing along to your favorite songs with friends and patrons.

More News, Stories, and Arts & Entertainment online

@sfbaytimes.com

Find the Bay Times - East Bay - at Mrs. Dalloway’s and Laurel Bookstores, Pacific Center and more locations!

A Chorus Line – Fox Theatre. $37.50-$57.50. 2 pm. (2215 Broadway St., Redwood City) www.broadwaybythebay.org. The inspiring Tony award-winning story of 18 individuals fighting to find their unique voice among the crowd. Thru October 7.

Catherine Tuerk Book Reading – Congregation Sha’ar Zahav. (290 Dolores St.) catherinetuerk@gmail.com. Catherine shares stories and reads passages from her book “Mom Knows: Reflections on Love, Gay Pride and Taking Action.”

The Bride of Death – The Hypnodrome Theatre. $25. 8 pm.

(575 10th St.) www.thrillpeddlers. com. A mysterious tale of immortal youth set in the mid 1940’s.

Directed by Russell Blackwood.

Thru November 17.

The Normal Heart – American Conservatory Theater. $20-70. 8 pm. www.act-sf.org. (415 Geary St.) A 2011 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play, “The Normal Heart” is an unflinching and unforgettable look at the early days of the AIDS crisis. Thru October 7.

Smart Women – The Bellevue Club. Free members/$15 nonmembers. 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. (535 Bellevue Ave., Oakland) www.bettyslist.com. A women’s networking event with optional dinner reception afterwards.

BINGO – The Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center. $15 to play. 7 pm. (938 Alameda, San Jose) www.defrank.org. Early game starts at 6:30 pm.

When I Grow Up – LGBT Community Center. Free. 2 pm.

(1800 Market St.) www.openhouse-sf.org. Openhouse presents a mixed-media art show featuring the art of local LGBT seniors. Thru October 23.

BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 21

(DIVERSITY continued from page 14)

OCTOBER MAKE CONTACT FREE for Members $20 non-members

Proudly underwritten by :

Become a certified LGBT business. GGBA members can become certified and membership earns you a waiver of the $400 fee. Email president@ ggba.com for more information on certification.

October 2 6-8pm Qi Ultra Lounge 917 Folsom St. (at 5th Street)

OCTOBER MAKE CONTACT October 2 • 6-8pm Qi Ultra Lounge 917 Folsom St. (at 5th Street) FREE for Members, $20 for nonmembers

Proudly underwritten by :

Become a certified LGBT business. GGBA members can become certified and membership earns you a waiver of the $400 fee. Email president@ ggba.com for more information on certification.

2013 Pride Pages Space reservations are being accepted now!

Call Via Media at 415-552-8040 or email president@ggba.com for more info.

Coming Soon

PRIDE PAGES 2013 Plans are underway for the 2013 Edition of The Pride Pages. Be sure your membership is up-to-date to be included in the new edition.

BE SURE YOU’RE BUSINESS IS LISTED FOR 2013 Call Via Media at 415.552.8040 to reserve ad space. Email president@ggba.com for more information and to ensure that your membership is current.

choice and definition of problems to be studied, the exclusion of females as experimental subjects, bias in the methodology used to collect and interpret data, and bias in theories and conclusions drawn from the data.

This realization uncovered gender bias which had distorted some medical research. Women’s health had become synonymous with reproductive health and obstetrics gynecology, which meant that many diseases that occurred in both sexes, such as cardiovascular disease and even breast cancer, had been studied in males only and/or used a male-as-norm approach. Excessive focus on male research subjects and definition of cardiovascular diseases as “male” led to under-diagnosis and under-treatment of the disease in women. Studies demonstrated that women were significantly less likely than men to undergo coronary angioplasty, angiography, or surgery when admitted to the hospital with a diagnosis of myocardial infarction, unstable or stable angina, chronic ischemic heart disease, or chest pain. This significant difference remained even when variables such as race, age, economic sta-

A drop in numbers of U.S. citizens in the STEM workforce not only signals fewer numbers, but a potential loss of ideas. Particularly with the increased emphasis upon translation of basic research into applications in terms of technology transfer and innovation, the presence of diversity in the STEM workforce becomes more critical. More than in basic research, applications for technology and inventions depend upon the experiences and ideas of the designers.

Excessive dominance of one group, such as the overwhelming percentage of males in engineering and the creative decision-making sectors of the technology workforce, may result in bias in the technologies produced.

More women, as well as more diversity in general, in the composition of the STEM workforce not only helps to guard against such bias but may also increase new ideas that will help people in their daily lives and improve society.

Dr. Sue Rosser is Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at San Francisco State University.

(SISTER DANA continued from page 18) over $20,000 raised and given back to various charities. “Great new stars were discovered,” said Sister Pat. “Lasting memories and oh what fun we have had,” added Sister Eve. Sister Dana, door whore collecting the money, invited everyone to join us as we celebrated our monthly shindig at The Edge. It was the draggiest drag revue ever, hosted by 2012 Grand Ducal Candidate, Paloma Volare.

Go-Go boys teased and pleased. The entertainers included BeBe Sweetbriar, Danielle Logan, Mutha Chucka, Jackie O’Nasty, Chastity Belle, Ana Mae Cox, Patty McGroin, Jada, Sasha, Mehela, Tara Wrist, Kenya Fister, Roxy Cotton Candy, Pearl Teese, Paloma Volare, and even Sister Dana braved the stage - dodging f lying fruits and vegetables. Naw, no produce was thrown. Proceeds benefited The Sisters’ re-launch of our Play Fair! safer sex booklet.

THE CALL at the Regency Center, 1290 Sutter at Van Ness, on September 29, 6 to 9pm, is an experience in acknowledgement of the heroes and heroism of the past 30 years of the AIDS epidemic and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. It is an evening (featuring NO speeches) in which all messaging will be done theatrically in a new format of four, short vignettes/ acts offering an evocative retrospective of the experience here in SF of the AIDS pandemic, our response to it, and what came of our response - as well as what yet remains to be done. Organizers promise it will be dramatic and powerful, lyri-

cal and exciting, with plenty of time between Acts for noshing, networking, tweeting, reflecting. Tix at (415) 487-3013 or answerthecall@sfaf.org.

tober 30 & 31, 8 pm at Hypnodrome, 575 10th Street, between Bryant & Division Streets. Tix and more info at Thrillpeddlers.com, (415) 377-4202.

Krewe de Kinque presents our monthly f irst Wednesday FULL MOON CONTEST “where some lucky a-hole wins $100 for the best bare butt.” Krewe de Kinque is a Mardi Gras themed fun and fundraising organization with the leather and feather crowd celebrating N’awlins style, hosted by KdK King I Gary Virginia. The judges are KdK Queen Bebe Sweetbriar, KdK King Tony Leo, and KdK Queen VII Sister Dana. We give points for poise, answers to probing questions, and of course, better buttocks! Last Wednesday’s winner was Turk Mason, with 1st runner-up Leo Forte and 2nd runner-up Levi Ryder. Bebe lip-synched to her own recorded versions of Whitney Houston’s “How Will I Know” and Rihanna’s “We Found Love.”

Next Full Moon Pageant is Wednesday, October 3rd, 9 to midnight at The Edge bar. Come out and show off your assets)!!!

Scott Richard is currently exhibiting his artwork, “RAINBOW SKIN AND THE NEW MONA LISA” at Magnet on 18th and Castro. “My focus on this show is pro-sexual because it’s really quite site specific, and homoerotics is a very fractional part of my overall work,” says Richard. “I love painting the human body, both male and female.” He continues, “As a painter, I am overly passionate about two dimensional concepts of freezing time and the intimacy of graphic details. My work is an effort to counter-balance this gravityenforced natural law of death – the point where something has fallen apart completely.” He enjoys trying to create lasting imagery for the gay community, explaining, “We are a legendary clan. It takes guts and magic to step into our circle. We are known for being powerful and intelligent, injured and deviant. Inside all of these paradigms, it is our love and desire for one another that brings us back. Our basic unification is sexual and relational.”

Thrillpeddlers presents SHOCKTOBERFEST 13: THE BRIDE OF DE AT H, t he 13t h A n nua l Extravaganza of Terror & Titillation including one classic Grand Guignol thriller; two world-premiere One-Act plays; a musical spectacle; and a Lights-Out Spook-Show Finale. September 27 – November 17, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, 8pm), special Halloween performances Oc-

BREAK ING NEWS: Lady Satan has just become the new reigning Faux Queen 2012, drag queen trapped in a bio woman’s body. Details in my next column.

Sister Dana wonders: Is it wrong for me to picture President Obama in a jockstrap and leather chaps?!

(DECADENCE continued from page 18) I scoured reviews and recommendations then hit some of the best kitchens in town. Starting with chargrilled oysters bathed in butter, garlic and Parmesan at Acme Oyster House, we also added inches to our waist at Red Fish Grill, Eat, Oceana, Bourbon House, The Court of Two Sisters and the famed Cochon. You’ll never taste so many variations of gumbo and jambalaya, or fresh oyster preparations, than this centuriesold city has to offer. Standouts for me were Red Fish Grill’s BBQ oysters (f lash fried and tossed with Crystal BBQ sauce, served with blue cheese dressing), and Cochon’s rabbit and dumplings. Someone loosen my belt, please!

Having visited the Big Easy previously during Mardi Gras season, I wasn’t that impressed with the SD parade which was short on f loats and contingents, but big on personality and generous bead tossers.

22 BAY TIM ES SEPTE MB E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 2

tus, and other chronic disease such as diabetes and heart failure were controlled. Similarly, women had angina before myocardial infarction as frequently as, and with more debilitating effects than men, yet women were referred for cardiac catheterization only half as often. These studies led Bernadine Healy, a cardiologist and first woman director of the National Institutes of Health, to characterize the diagnosis of coronary heart disease in women as the Yentl syndrome: “Once a woman showed that she was just like a man, by having coronary artery disease or a myocardial infarction, then she was treated as a man should be” (Healy, 1991, p. 274). The male-as-norm approach in research and diagnosis, unsurprisingly, was translated into bias in treatments for women. Women exhibited higher death rates from angioplasty and coronary bypass surgery because the techniques had been pioneered using male subjects. This provides an important lesson that can be applied to other fields, as increased leadership by women could potentially lead to new breakthroughs and discoveries.

Sunday’s 9th Annual Bourbon Street Extravaganza packed the streets for

to-die-for performances by divas Jeanie Tracey and Mary Griffin. And the nighttime block parties outside of Phoenix bar over the weekend were a nice escape from the smoky bars.

Man cannot live on man alone, so visitors also took in the museums, plentiful galleries featuring local artists, and tours. My buddies loved their swamp tour and got some great photos of alligators (which we also tasted fried on many menus). And on my last day there I was lucky to be the only tourist at Mardi Gras World where decades of Mardi Gras f loats and props were on display alongside artisans sculpting and painting in a huge warehouse year round. Slurping my huge, frozen Jack and Coke, I took a ton of photos while dodging tractors pulling elaborate floats back into the warehouse after their temporary relocation away from the storm’s path.

Yes, Hurricane Isaac cast a shadow of fear and lost revenue on the entire weekend. Everyone from cabbies to cooks shared personal stories com-

paring it to Katrina. For most locals, Isaac was a disaster avoided. But for many on the outskirts, it was worse than Katrina due to flash flooding in unlikely areas. Local news featured President Obama’s visit to St. John Parish, as well as reports on electric outages, relief centers, FEMA lines, school closures and more. Adding insult to injury, on my day of departure a tornado warning came f lashing across the TV. With Hurricanes Katrina, Gustav and Isaac all having visited SD weekend, many folks suggested a date change to perhaps Thanksgiving weekend. All I know is that I’m thankful for all the city of New Orleans has to offer, most importantly its people. Southern Decadence is one more example of how our community takes care of each other in good times and bad. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Round About in Photos

Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, Women’s Buidling cofounder Roma Guy, Ammiano’s granddaughter and Supervisor David Campos at the Tom Ammiano Re-election Party at Rebel Bar. (Photo by Rink) Shanti Project executive director Kaushik Roy with swimmers Chad White, Stephanie Eberlig and Tom Fisher at the 1st Annual Swin-a-Thon Benefit for the Shanti L.I.F.E. program (Photo by Rink)

“Wine Time!” for Women’s featured guest winemaker Barbara Gratta (center) with friends at Jake’s On Market (Photo by Elizabeth Stewart) The Goethe Institut’s Sabine Erlenwein and SF MOMA’s Gina Basso at the Institut’s exhibit of photographs by actress Romy Schneider (Photo by Rink)

Admiring an Avanti at the annual Freewheelers (gay car club) Car Show, “Pride In Education Benefit,” at Everett Middle School. (Photo by Rink)

SF AIDS Foundation’s CEO Neil Giuliano welcomed attendees at the Sero Sorting/Condom Forum at the SF LGBT Community Center (Photo by Rink)

FREE SEMINAR World class athlete Simon Mtuy of Tanzania and his wife Tara, representing Jody Cole and Rainbow African Safaris, were featured guests at the Smart Women/East Bay networking event. (Photo by Phyllis Costa)

Estate Planning for Singles and Domestic Partners October 11 • 6 – 7:30 p.m.

San Francisco LGBT Community Center 1800 Market Street The law provides a default estate plan for every person, but it may not reflect your wishes. Learn to tailor your plan to your priorities, options for your financial and future health care, and estate laws affecting same-sex couples. Attendees receive a free estate planning organizer.

AIDS Emergency Fund volunteers Ivan Holum, Lance Brittan and Aja Monet collecting contributions at Harvey Milk Plaza (Photo by Rink)

Visit hbtb.org for a list of our 2012-13 seminar topics. Attendance is free, and reservations are required.

Author Neil Giuliano signing his new book, The Campaign Within, at the Castro Book’s Inc (Photo by Rink)

Volunteer Kent Denning displays a painting by Lani Tanaka at the annual UCSF Alliance’s Services Art for AIDS benefit (Photo by Rink)

Register at (415) 526-5580 or hbtb.org BAY T IM ES S EPT EM BER 20, 2012 23