9/23/15 V6i38 by South Florida Gay News

local name global coverage

September 23, 2015 vol. 6 // issue 38

s o u t h

f l o r i d a

g a y

n e w s

a good man Pope Francis comes to America

Pages 22 - 23

Pride Center to build playground, Page 14 • RentBoy coalition forms, Page 18 • How gay is Burning Man? Page 29

SOUTHFLORIDAGAYNEWS

SOFLAGAYNEWS

SFGN.COM

ThE oPENiNg liNE Photos: Facebook.

Caitlyn Jenner Clears Up Support of Same-Sex Marriage Elthon Wolffemann deCastillo – I dont care.....im not the type of person who says if you did something i disagreed before youre doomed. No, im the type of person who says if you change for the better later in life, you know what? Go for it! Im not part of the imbecile groups of america. I open to people who learns their mistakes and now fights to change whats wrong about something. You go Caitlyn! Lets make a change and font listen to these morons.

maurice r mizrahi – Too late. No support from me. You were an asshole as a man and you are an asshole as a woman.

Comments from sFgN’s

online outlets

Compiled by John McDonald

CiTy oF WilToN maNors BrEaks EvEN oN sToNEWall sTrEET FEsTival

SEPTEMBER 23, 2015 • VOLUME 6 • ISSUE 38 2520 N. DIXIE HIGHWAY • WILTON MANORS, FL 33305 PHONE: 954-530-4970 FAX: 954-530-7943

PUBLISHER • NORM KENT NORM.KENT@SFGN.COM

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER • PIER ANGELO GUIDUGLI

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER / EXECUTIVE EDITOR • JASON PARSLEY JASON.PARSLEY@SFGN.COM

Editorial

Bill krauter –

ART DIRECTOR • BRENDON LIES ARTWORK@SFGN.COM DESIGNER • MARTIN GOULD FOCALIZENOW@GMAIL.COM DESIGNER • CHARLES PRATT INTERNET DIRECTOR • DENNIS JOZEFOWICZ DENNIS.JOZEFOWICZ@SFGN.COM EDITORIAL ASSISTANT • JILLIAN MELERO JILLIANMELERO@GMAIL.COM ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR • JW ARNOLD JW@PRDCONLINE.COM NEWS EDITOR • JOHN MCDONALD JOHN.MCDONALD@SFGN.COM

entertainment was lacking though.... if that improves next time the crowd will walk away so much more happy... dig into the community and let them guide you for who would be better... but it was a fun event overall... Wicked Manors is next... the one, that everyone I know, likes more.. we can’t wait for it!!!!

Senior Features Correspondents

JESSE MONTEAGUDO • TONY ADAMS

Food/Travel Editor RICK KARLIN

stephen devine – More like no one stole embezzled money this year. That’s progress.

steve Johnson – it was fun and well worth it for the city

Correspondents

DORI ZINN • ANDREA RICHARD • DONALD CAVANAUGH CHRISTIANA LILLY • DENISE ROYAL • SEAN MCSHEE GARY KRAMER • DAVID-ELIJAH NAHMOD

Contributing Columnists

BRIAN MCNAUGHT • DANA RUDOLPH • WAYNE BESEN RIC REILY • STEVE SILER • BIL BROWNING TERRI SCHLICHENMEYER

Ed gillis – Too careful, too calculating, and too late. Self-centered phony interested only in ratings and revenue. And there’s a certain bitchy tone from her that I’m not aware she’s quite yet earned. Diva wannabe.

SouthFloridaGayNews.com

hedge Funder Buys rights To aids drug Raises Purchase Price Through The Roof larry Prasse – Such a sad individual ... Certainly is not a Christian, but probably is a Republican!!! MEMBER

stephen J. Pulley – Proof of two things: health care should not be for-profit; and the “investor economy” is pure evil

Sales & Marketing

DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING • MIKE TROTTIER MIKE.TROTTIER@SFGN.COM SALES MANAGER • JUSTIN WYSE JUSTIN.WYSE@SFGN.COM ADVERTISING SALES ASSOCIATE • EDWIN NEIMANN EDWIN.NEIMANN@SFGN.COM ADVERTISING SALES ASSOCIATE • CINDY CURTIS CINDY.CURTIS@SFGN.COM ADVERTISING SALES ASSOCIATE • JIM ALBRIGHT JIM.ALBRIGHT@SFGN.COM SALES ASSISTANT • DEVON WOODS DEVON.WOODS@SFGN.COM DISTRIBUTION SERVICES • BRIAN SWINFORD NATIONAL ADVERTISING RIVENDELL MEDIA 212-242-6863 SALES@RIVENDELLMEDIA.COM

scott Caetano – Karma will get the little bitch! Greedy bastard.

Staff Photographers

J.R. DAVIS • POMPANO BILL • STEVEN SHIRES

MEMBER

ACCOUNTING SERVICES BY CG BOOKKEEPING

Cover: Pope Francis makes an appearance in the U.S.

Photo: Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service.

Out Now! PiCK UP YoUR CoPY oN A STANd NEAR YoU! THEMiRRoRMAg.CoM 2

MEMBER

Associated Press

South Florida Gay News is published weekly. The opinions expressed in columns, stories, and letters to the editor do not represent the opinions of SFGN, or the Publisher. You should not presume the sexual orientation of individuals based on their names or pictorial representations. Furthermore the word “gay” in SFGN should be interpreted to be inclusive of the entire LGBT community. All of the material/columns that appears in print and online, including articles used in conjunction with the AP, is protected under federal copyright and intellectual property laws, and is jealously guarded by the newspaper. Nothing published may be reprinted in whole or part without getting written consent from the Publisher, at his law ofﬁce, at Norm@NormKent.com. SFGN, as a private corporation, reserves the right to enforce its own standards regarding the suitability of advertising copy, illustrations and photographs. Copyright © 2015 South Florida Gay News.com, Inc.

• 9.23.2015

MEMBER

news highlight

TraNsgENdEr CoNFErENCE arrivEs NEXT WEEk John McDonald

reater Fort Lauderdale is demonstrating how progressive and open-minded the area is by hosting a transgender conference next week. The Southern Comfort Conference is celebrating its silver anniversary beginning Sept. 29. The conference, an annual gathering of transgender people and their supporters, is being held in Broward County for the first time ever. Richard Gray, LGBT market manager for the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, gave an interview to the New York Times, explaining the bureau’s decision to target the transgender market. “It’s really the forgotten T,” Gray told the Times. “I realized I knew nothing about transgender travelers, and, as a gay man, I knew nothing about the transgender community. I researched and saw they had this conference that had been in Atlanta for 24 years, and I contacted their president, Lexi Dee. No one had ever courted them or paid them any attention before.”

Dee, a New Jersey native, is delighted to be attending this year’s conference. She spoke to SFGN via telephone this week about her transition from male to female. “The last five or six years there’s been a whole lot of info come out about [being] transgender,” Dee said. “This spotlight has helped, but the general public still does not understand a lot of our issues.” In South Florida, transgender people have options for help. One of those options is SunServe, a nonprofit social services agency. Atticus Ranck directs the agency’s transgender department. “Raising awareness,” Ranck said is one of the conference’s key components. “It’s a chance for transgender people to see each other, connect and join support groups,” Ranck said. “Some of the attendees are coming from isolated areas where they feel they cannot express their true identity.” SunServe is joining the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau as participants at the conference. Gray tells the

New York Times, Southern Comfort organizers “liked our commitment of raising the bar for trans inclusion.” In the Times interview, Gray reveals how he was able to land the silver anniversary of Southern Comfort. “I organized a round-table discussion with some national leaders and also met with the research firm Community Marketing & Insights to put a transgender travel study together, because there had never been one.” Results of the survey, Gray added, were surprising. “We found that 62 percent of transgender people travel alone, many because they’re “stealth” — often they have a partner who has no idea they’re transgender. The Southern Comfort Conference is mostly male to female

and that’s what we’ve looked at. Female to male blend easier; male to female often don’t. By far their biggest concerns were physical and verbal violence and a lack of genderneutral restrooms. Unlike the gay market, trans travelers are more in line with budget travelers, without a lot of disposable income.” Easing financial burdens is where SunServe comes in. The agency, Ranck said, has the tools to connect transgender people to an array of services. “We advocate doctors, help with access to hormones, and work with immigration attorneys,” Ranck said, listing some of the ways SunServe helps its clients. For attendees like Dee, a 62-year-old married trans woman, the conference is essential. “It changed my life,” she said.

The Southern Comfort Conference (SCC) will be held at Bonaventure Resort and Spa, 250 Racquet Club Rd, Weston, from Sept. 29 to Oct. 3. For more information, visit SouthernComfortConference.org.

9.23.2015 •

Compiled by Jillian Melero

New housing gives lgBT students safer Place to Call home (AP) For the first time, the University of North Florida is offering its students the housing designed to accommodate transgender students, who may not fall into traditional gender norms. “When you’re living with others, it can get very awkward, very quickly,” said Dei Allard, associate director of UNF Housing and Residential Life. “So making sure that we created an environment that was safe and welcoming for them was the goal.” The university estimates about 10 percent of its students identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender based on data from its latest survey of campus climate. Currently, about 200 colleges and universities across the country offer gender-inclusive housing to students, according to national college LGBT advocacy group Campus Pride. UNF is the fourth college in Florida to offer the option,

MPULSE Hosts Unwrapped at Colony Theater

(IMPULSE) Saturday, September 26, IMPULSESOFL invites you to Unwrapped. A gameshow-style event hosted by Athena Dion at the Colony Theater on Lincoln Road in Miami Beach. Audience participation will be everything as we randomly call you on stage to test your knowledge on sex, safe or otherwise. Winners go home with a variety of prizes from killer Impulse Swag, Aneros Sex Toys, Portable Speakers, Gift Cards for Ca-rio-ca Swimwear, Apple/iTunes and more. The evening starts out with the show’s first game, where you bring us proof of testing from the night of the event or from any day in the month of September and you’re automatically entered into a raﬄe to win an AppleWatch. The more times you’ve been tested the more chances you have to win. You can even get tested the night of at our mobile testing unit. Reception with open bar starts at 7pm, game goes live at 8:30pm. Admission is free. Reception immediately after at the Gaythering Hotel.

ctor Leslie Jordan to Host Miami gala

(TheTaskForce) The National LGBTQ Task Force has announced that Emmy Award-winning actor and comedian Leslie Jordan — best known for his role as Beverley Leslie on “Will and Grace” — will serve as the master of ceremonies at this year’s National LGBTQ Task Force Gala – Miami. Now in its 19th year, the annual fundraising gala is set to take place at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel on Saturday, October 24. “We are thrilled to have the hilarious and always memorable Leslie Jordan emcee this year’s Miami gala,” said Russell Roybal, deputy executive director, National LGBTQ Task Force. “Leslie is not only an accomplished performer but also a passionate advocate for equality, which makes him the perfect host for the occasion. The annual gala, along with the Winter Party Festival, support the National LGBTQ Task Force and South Florida organizations’ work to secure full freedom, justice and equality for LGBTQ people and their families.” In addition to his work as a performer and entertainer, Jordan is also an activist dedicated to equal rights. Attorney Mary L. Bonauto, one of the leading architects of the U.S. Supreme Court marriage equality victory, and local community leader Juan Bosco Talavera will be honored at this year’s gala. The event includes a cocktail reception, silent auction, sit-down dinner, awards ceremony, and dancing. Tickets to the gala are $450 and can be purchased online. (http://thetaskforcegala.org/) Video highlights from last year’s gala are available here. (http://bit.ly/1QrQo9A )

ay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce Plans Cuban Excursion

Photo: Facebook.

according to the organization, joining Stetson University, Ringling College of Art and Design and Eckerd College. The new housing option also marks the 10th anniversary of UNF’s LGBT Resource Center. According to the latest UNF poll of LGBT students about the campus climate - taken in 2010 - about half report experiencing at least one incident of bias or harassment due to sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. Those incidents range from verbal insults to physical assault. Many of those who reported the most severe cases identified as transgender. In the city as a whole, the debate over expanding protections against discrimination to the LGBT community - a hot-button issue of this year’s election - has not yet returned to City Hall, but the city is expected to make the decision later this fall. A new UNF poll of LGBT students is expected this fall.

Billed as a historic and exclusive journey to Cuba, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce has room for 25 travelers, but you must act now. Scheduled for an Oct. 14 departure from Miami International Airport, the four-day, three-night package features five-star • 9.23.2015

hotel accommodations, guided tours, meals, roundtrip airfare and an opportunity to experience Cuba before commercialized sets in. “Things are really opening up and the island is changing dramatically,” said Sandy Lay, spokesman for Choice Air, the aviation company contracted for the trip. “Now is the time to come to Cuba before it becomes old news.” The recent normalization of relations between the United States and Cuba has generated much interest in tourism to the Caribbean island nation. Keith Blackburn, President and CEO for the Greater Fort Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, said there is room for 25 people to make this journey. “It’s a unique experience,” Blackburn said. “It’s better to do it now before things change.” The excursion package carries an all-inclusive price of $2,300 for chamber members and $2,495 for future members. Those interested should act quick as a security deposit is required by Sept. 27. For more information, visit gogayfortlauderdale.com

News Briefs

(AP) Before they strut down the red carpet at the Emmys, Jeffrey Tambor and Laverne Cox were among the honorees at the first-ever Television Industry Advocacy Awards. Tambor and Cox were recognized Friday at the Creative Coalition event for their efforts in bringing attention to the transgender community. “The opportunity to play a trans character as a trans actress has changed my life and also changed the lives of so many people who have seen me,” said Cox, the “Orange is the New Black” costar who was the first transgender actress to be nominated for an Emmy last year. Tambor is up for the outstanding lead actor in a comedy series trophy at Sunday’s Emmys for his role as a patriarch who opens up to his family about his struggles with gender identity in Amazon’s “Transparent.” “(‘Transparent’ creator) Jill Soloway gave me the responsibility and privilege of a lifetime,” Tambor said. “I think my award should really be the Luckiest Guy in the Room Award.” Alfre Woodard was honored for her work with the Turnaround Arts initiative as part of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities. She was brought to tears when presented with her trophy by Ron Gubitz, principal of the ReNEW Cultural Arts Academy in New Orleans. “Arts in education makes it a complete education,” said Woodard, who has volunteered at ReNEW and other schools. “Arts in society is imperative to have a civil society.” Other honorees at Friday’s ceremony included “Entourage” co-star Constance Zimmer, “black-ish” actor Anthony Anderson, “Under the Dome” executive producer Neal Baer, “2 Broke Girls” co-star Beth Behrs, “Desperate Housewives” star Eva Longoria and “The Shawshank Redemption” actor Tim Robbins.

Laverne Cox. Photo: Facebook.

ambor, Cox Honored for Advocacy Ahead of Emmys

Continued

labama Court Won’t Recognize Lesbian Mother’s Adoption

(AP) The Alabama Supreme Court refused Friday to recognize a lesbian woman’s adoptions of her ex-partner’s children that were granted in Georgia. The Alabama justices said a Georgia court was wrong to allow the adoptions, arguing that Georgia law doesn’t allow such second-parent adoptions. The woman in 2007 adopted the three children that her female partner gave birth to during their 16-year relationship. However, Alabama’s high court overturned an Alabama family court decision that recognized the Georgia adoption and granted the woman, who now lives in Alabama, visitation rights. The Alabama justices said “Georgia law makes no provision for a non-spouse to adopt a child without first terminating the parental rights of the current parents.” The justices said since the children’s biological mother maintained her parental rights, the Georgia court “was not empowered to enter the Georgia judgment declaring (her) to be an adoptive parent of the children.” The women, referred to in the court opinion only by their initials, V.L. and E.L., were a couple for 16 years and planned to have children together, according to court documents. The latter woman gave birth to a child in 2002 and twins in 2004. The couple primarily lived in Hoover, Ala. but for a time rented a home in Alpharetta, Ga. after being advised by friends that courts in Atlanta were friendlier to same-sex couple’s adoption requests. The Georgia court approved the adoption petition in 2007, and a new birth certificate was issued listing both women as parents. After the couple ended their relationship, the biological mother argued the Georgia adoption was invalid. She said they weren’t residents of Georgia and only stayed in Georgia home two nights as they tried to get the adoption approved.

9.23.2015 •

Compiled by Jillian Melero

Continued

Tenn. lawmakers Create anti-gay marriage Bill despite sCoTus ruling (EDGE) Two Republican lawmakers from Tennessee are challenging the Supreme Court’s June ruling legalizing same-sex marriage in all 50 states by creating a new controversial bill, the Tennessean reports. Rep. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) and Sen, Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet), announced the bill, called “Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act,” Thursday that they believe will veto the high court’s ruling on marriage equality, by defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman under Tennessee law. “Natural marriage between one (1) man and one (1) woman as recognized by the people of Tennessee remains the law in Tennessee, regardless of any court decision to the contrary,” the bill reads. “Any court decision purporting to strike down natural marriage, including (a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision), is unauthoritative, void, and of no effect.” The lawmakers filed the bill the same day about

enezuelan Film Flourishing as Society Becomes More Censored

(AP) A new wave of cinema is emerging from the chaos and violence of modern Venezuela that focuses on highly personal tales of gay love affairs and little boys who want to wear party dresses. Following the tradition of 1990s gay Cuban cinema, Venezuelan directors are finding creative ways to produce films that explore and criticize society despite increasing government control of TV and other media. And they’re doing it with state funding. The debut feature “From Afar,” by a little-known Venezuelan director, won top honors last week at the Venice Film Festival, one of the industry’s top events. The film is about an affair between a wealthy middle-aged man and

a teenage thug set against a background of poverty and violence. Like the prize-winning film “Bad Hair,” about a poor Venezuelan boy grappling with his sexual identity, and “My Straight Son,” in which a teenager goes to live with his gay father, “From Afar” was made possible by government grants. Venezuela has never had a strong filmmaking tradition, but the South American country’s 16-year-old socialist revolution has pushed to create a state-sponsored national cinema like the ones that produced Cuban and Soviet classics. The National Center for Cinematography sends filmmakers abroad to learn about filmmaking and provides seed money for projects. It also supports a new film school run by President Nicolas Maduro’s 24-year-old son. The number of films produced in Venezuela has quadrupled since 2005 to about 20 a year, still far short of the average of 50 produced in Argentina. Venezuela’s state-sponsored films avoid overtly political topics, but issues shaping daily life peek through, including rising poverty and some of the world’s highest crime rates.

Conservative Ruling Party Spain’s Leaders Attend gay Wedding

Director Lorenzo Vigas. Photo: Twitter.

400 people attended a “Religious Liberty Rally” at the Nashville State Capitol this week. “Marriage is between a man and a woman in Tennessee,” Pody told the crowd. “We’re going to tell the attorney general, he will defend marriage in Tennessee as it is written on our constitution,” Beavers added. The Tennessean writes, that it’s “unlikely the bill would be found constitutional if passed.” Though the state’s governor, Bill Haslam, and Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery, both disagreed with the Supreme Court’s gay marriage ruling, they said Tennessee would follow the decision and have every county clerk issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. If the bill does get passed, the Tennessean writes it’s unclear if it would impact the marriage licenses already obtained by same-sex couples.

(AP) The top brass of Spain’s ruling conservative Popular Party including Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy have attended the same-sex marriage of their deputy secretary-general, giving tacit approval to a law they once bitterly opposed. Javier Maroto exchanged vows with Josema Rodriguez late Friday at a ceremony in the northern city of Vitoria attended by Rajoy, Secretary-general Maria Dolores Cospedal and other party dignitaries, the party said in a statement. • 9.23.2015

Nashville.

“In Spain, the right to marriage is for everyone and we all share that message today,” Maroto said afterward. “Parties evolve,” he added. “Now my party and the government join in backing that right.” Maroto and Rodriguez have been partners in a same-sex relationship for 19 years. Apart from being a senior leader in the Popular Party, Maroto is a former mayor of Vitoria. Parliament legalized gay marriage in 2005 under a Socialist government, angering conservatives in once-staunchly Roman Catholic Spain. The Popular Party then challenged the law but Spain’s Constitutional Court - the highest in the land - upheld its legality. Now, a decade after voicing strong opposition to gay marriage, photographs at the ceremony that ended early Saturday showed Rajoy with other party leaders smiling broadly as they posed beside the two grooms.

Make Stonewall inn Lawmakers: a National Park

(AP) Two New York legislators are leading a campaign to designate Stonewall Inn as the first national park honoring LGBT history. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler made their announcement Sunday in front of the Greenwich Village tavern that was the scene of a 1969 uprising at a key moment for the nascent gay rights movement. The two Democrats were joined by other elected officials and members of the National Parks Conservation Association. National parks can only be created by an act of Congress. They include sites of cultural or historic importance. Gillibrand says she and Nadler are first asking President Barack Obama to declare Stonewall a monument. A congressional vote on park status would come later. Stonewall would be the first park representing the LGBT community.

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

Need a Quickie? We offer Same Day Service In by 9 out by 5 • Monday-Saturday

News Briefs

Continued

ueer Festival of Russia Returns for Seventh Year

Two Convenient locations: 2117 N. Andrews Wilton Manors, FL 33311 (954) 561-3585

$1.79

LAUNDERED BUSINESS SHIRTS with any dry cleaning

1100 E. Oakland Park Blvd. Oakland Park, FL 33334 (954) 564-0042

10% OFF ANY DRY CLEANING

(QueerFest) September 17-26 will see the return on the Queer Festival of Russia. Last year QueerFest experienced an attack, (http:// bit.ly/1V4Uon1 ) with fake bomb threats, police pressures, and attacks by thugs disrupting the events and endangering the participants. The central topic of this year’s festival is Identity. For 10 days, St. Petersburg will host projects by artists and activists from the Netherlands, USA, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and of course Russia. Boris Dittrich (Advocacy Director of the LGBT Rights Program at the Human Rights Watch), Mads Nissen (winner of the World Press Photo 2015 Contest for his photograph of a gay couple in St. Petersburg), Wolfgang Tillmans (recipient of the Turner Prize, the Hasselblad Award and a member of the Royal Academy of Arts), Sarah Deragon with the Identity Project, Moto Boy (the Cardigans),

• 9.23.2015

The Festival’s program can be found here, (http://queerfest.ru/en/ ) Follow festival’s events online, on Twitter (@QueerFest), Facebook (qfestspb), or Instagram (comingoutspb).

yrgyzstan to Vote on ‘Homosexual Propaganda’ Law Next Month

(EDGE) In a new report from the Daily Beast, (http://thebea.st/1F8KTwg ) members of Kyrgyzstan’s parliament will vote on an anti-gay measure next month that the newspaper says is even “harsher” than Russia’s highly controversial “homosexual propaganda” law that was approved by President Vladimir Putin in 2013. If Kyrgyzstan’s lawmakers do approve the anti-gay bill, it would make LGBT life in the Central Asian country virtually illegal and, according to the Daily Beast, create “calamitous effects on the already besieged LGBT population of this country of just under 6 million.” The website writes that the bill is likely to pass as it was easily approved in its first reading with a 70-to-7 vote and a second vote of 90-to-2. Kyrgyz law states a bill must pass three readings before the president signs it into law. But the Daily Beast notes President Almazbek Atambayev will likely

and many others will help create a new universe - interactive, experimental, frank, queer, and open to all. “Our greatest weapon is that we don’t give up. We come back year after year, with our positive message of solidarity, freedom, and diversity. We believe that we are on the right side of history, and that will make us stronger than our opponents who are driven by ignorance and hatred,” says Polina Andrianova, activist of “Coming Out” LGBT group, the festival’s organizer.

sign the measure as he has Kyrgyzstan and Russia have close relations in recent years. According to Human Rights First, an international human-rights watchdog group, the bill would “ban the existence of LGBT organizations, shutter gay clubs, and most notably, could result in one-year prison sentences for those found guilty of propagating non-traditional sexual relations.” The bill would also criminalize all “public expression and events that contain information about ‘non-traditional sexual relations.’” Public life for LGBT people would be extremely diminished if the bill is approved. The Kyrgyz Ministry of Justice urged the bill be withdrawn from parliament in June as it violates the country’s constitution, which protects freedom of expression and assembly. But members of parliament ignored the recommendation.

news local

alBrighT JoiNs sFgN salEs TEam John McDonald Jim Albright, an experienced advertising sales associate, has joined the staff at the SFGN. Albright, a native of Ohio, brings many years of expertise to the position. “We’re thrilled to have Jimmy join our family here at SFGN,” said Mike Trottier, Director of Sales and Marketing. “I worked with Jimmy for many years at HotSpots. I know he is dedicated to his clients and their products.” Albright said he is eager to hit the ground running in South Florida, returning recently to the state from San Diego. He lives in Pompano Beach with his partner, Karlo Calderon. “I want to build the already successful SFGN through my past experiences,” Albright said. “I will use my professional skills to accomplish this.” Albright holds a political science degree from Kent State University in Ohio. While living in Ohio, Albright was an office holder and county chairman for Bill Clinton’s first U.S. Presidential campaign. An avid sports

fan, Albright enjoys following the Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns. “I take a ribbing for being loyal to my Cleveland teams,” he says. In South Florida, Albright says he wants to help his clients grow their business while becoming active in local charitable organizations and non-profits. The eighth of nine children, Albright said family is important to him.

Photo: POOL.

oNE WEEk lEFT iN sFgN's SFGN Staff BEsT oF CoNTEsT!

FGN is giving away tons of prizes to SFGN readers who enter its 2015 Best Of contest. All you need is a valid email address to be included in the upcoming drawing. Visit SFGN.com/BestOF to vote today. SFGN chose the categories, but you choose the winners! This year the contest is split up by county, so make sure you vote in each one!

Place to Workout; Best City to Live; Best Movie Theater; Best Live Theater; Best Beach; Best Place to Shop; Best Non-Profit; and Best LGBT Event of the Year. Contest ends Sept. 30 at midnight.

Below are some of the categories: Best Restaurant; Best Pizza; Best Burger; Best Drag Show; Best Drag Queen; Best Bar; Best Place to Dance; Best Coffee Shop; Best Guest House; Best Business Group; Best 9.23.2015 •

lgbt bites

Compiled by Jillian Melero

Gay

Lesbian Ellen Calls comedian Tig Notaro Fearless

Obama Pick for Army Would Be First Openly Gay Service Chief

(SFGN) Tig Notaro is a comedian, writer, and cancer survivor. In her HBO stand-up special, “Boyish Girl Interrupted”, Notaro -- the recipient of a double mastectomy— performs with her top off. “I’ve done it three times, “says Notaro on Ellen. “The first time I did it, I was like ‘Oh my gosh, my shirt’s off.’ And I could feel a little bit of nerves about it. But then I did it again in New York at the comedy festival, and at that point I was just like ‘yeah, my shirt’s off’ and then I just decided I’d do it for my HBO special…I remember one person saying ‘I’m scared it might come across as some sort of stunt.’ And I was like, ‘oh yeah, it is. – make

(AP) President Barack Obama said Friday that he will nominate longtime Pentagon official Eric Fanning to be the Army’s new secretary. If confirmed, Fanning would be the nation’s first openly gay leader of a military service. “Eric brings many years of proven experience and exceptional leadership to this new role,” Obama said in a written statement. “I am grateful for his commitment to our men and women in uniform, and I am confident he will help lead America’s soldiers with distinction. I look forward to working with Eric to keep our Army the very best in the world.” Fanning has been acting undersecretary of the Army since June. He has served as special assistant to Defense Secretary Ash Carter and held senior positions in the Air Force, including undersecretary from 2013 to 2015. The nomination comes as the Obama administration works to eliminate barriers to military service based on sexuality or gender. Army secretary is a civilian position.

Watch the 6-minute video here: http://bit. ly/1gxmx3l

DS, CANDY, GREETING CARLTIES, GIFTS, BASKETS, NOVE RIIGGIN OR N A

AL C

D SE

5 R1

OVE

E OR ST

WILT ON

AND SO MUCH MORE

,0 D

• Over 100 types of great tasting sugar free candy • Sweets & snacks from over 90 countries

TO RE NT ITE MS

• Over 40 ﬂavors of soda (made with cane sugar) in glass bottles

To the Moon

2205 Wilton Drive, Wilton Manors, FL 33305

(954) 564-2987

ToTheMoonMarketplace.com 10

• 9.23.2015

Fanning’s nomination must be confirmed by the Senate. He would replace John McHugh, who has said he plans to step down no later than Nov. 1.

Photo: Eric Fanning.

Photo: Shawn Robbins/Kata Rokkar.

no mistake.’ I want people to talk about my comedy and talk about cancer. ” DeGeneres praises Notaro’s fearlessness not only for her physical performance, but in her timing and delivery, her slow pacing and deliberate silences. Since coming to her attention at a GLAAD event, DeGeneres says that she has become a huge fan and supporter of Notaro’s, going so far as to apologize for not supporting her sooner. “I found it very kind and also amusing that you thought you owed me an apology… It kinda felt like I was getting a phone call from Oprah saying ‘I know you’ve probably heard I had a dinner party the other night, and I want to apologize for not inviting you.’ – I wasn’t waiting for this you know, but of course I’m thrilled to be here.” Notaro is engaged to Stephanie Allynne, with plans to marry in October. At the end of the interview, DeGeneres surprised Notaro by presenting her with everything from their Williams-Sonoma wedding registry.

lgbt bites

continued

Bisexual

Transgender TransLatina Coalition Starts Fort Lauderdale Chapter

(HRC) Human Rights Campaign’s research brief published Thursday underscores a dangerous but largely hidden crisis--the striking physical, mental and sexual health disparities bisexual people face. The Health Disparities Among Bisexual People report, (http://thebea.st/1F8KTwg) based on the most recent and reliable data available on bisexual health and released in partnership with the Bisexual Resource Center, BiNet USA, and the Bisexual Organizing Project, reveals a troubling chasm between the health outcomes of bisexual people and those of the rest of the population - including gay men and lesbians. Studies show that bisexuals face elevated rates of poor health outcomes ranging from cancer and heart disease, to obesity, sexually-transmitted infections and mental health issues. The report highlights research showing that: • Bisexual women have higher rates of cancer than the general population of women, higher rates of heart disease and obesity than heterosexual women, and are more likely than all other women to suffer from mental and emotional stress; • Bisexual adults have double the rate of

(TransLatina Coalition) The TransLatina Coalition, a national transgender advocacy group, has started its first Florida chapter in Fort Lauderdale. The group plans to provide a wide range of services for the transgender community, including a safe space for trans women who are victims of domestic violence. Arianna Lint is a transgender woman and president of the Fort Lauderdale TransLatina Coalition chapter. She said it’s important to have transgender-led organizations. “There’s a lot of misunderstanding in our community,” she said. “They don’t understand what our needs are.” Some of those needs are access to knowledgeable healthcare providers and transgender inclusion in the workplace. Lint is also helping to build other TransLatina chapters in the Southeast including in Georgia, North Carolina and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit http://bit. ly/1gxmx3l .

depression than heterosexual adults, higher rates of binge drinking, and are more likely to engage in self-harming behavior, including attempting suicide; • Bisexual men are less likely than gay or heterosexual men to get tested for HIV, leading them to be disproportionately affected by the infection; and bisexual people are less likely to be screened for the human papilloma virus (HPV), which can increase the risk of cancer in both men and women. “Healthcare providers sometimes make assumptions about patients’ identities based on their current or recent partners, and bisexual people often face outright discrimination when they come out in healthcare settings,” said Tari Hanneman, Deputy Director of the Health and Aging Program at the HRC Foundation. “That can lead bisexual people to delay or avoid seeking care, or not disclose their identities to their providers. This can mean that medical professionals are not getting an accurate picture of what that patient’s sexual health needs are, or the mental or physical health concerns for which they may face heightened risk.”

Photo: Facebook.

Bi Adults at Higher Risk for Cancer, STDs and Depression

9.23.2015 •

Photos: CNN.

politics white house watch

Hillary Clinton (left) and Carly Fiorina.

Carly Trumps Trump; Hillary Makes Comeback Jason Parsley

n the Republican front another GOP debate; another Donald Trump show. However, this time around, businesswoman Carly Fiorina stormed the stage and stopped Trump in his tracks. Despite not being a politician she was able to deftly handle Trump’s attacks. Most pundits agree she won the debate and the post debate polls reflect that. The latest CNN poll has her surging to second place with 15 percent, while Trump has fallen from 32 percent to 24. Before the debate Fiorina was at a paltry 3 percent. But with Fiorina now in second place her career as the CEO of Hewlett Packard is coming under renewed scrutiny. Her business experience is an integral part of her campaign. Trump focused his attacks of her on her career at the debate. And the media is turning their attention to it as well. Third place goes to Dr. Ben Carson who has taken some heat this week for saying he’d never vote for a Muslim for president. After the backlash ensued, he later clarified his remarks by saying he would vote for a Muslim if they denounced Sharia law. “I could never support a candidate for President of the United States that was Muslim and had not renounced the central tenant of Islam: Sharia Law,” he wrote on

• 9.23.2015

Facebook. “I know that there are many peaceful Muslims who do not adhere to these beliefs. But until these tenants are fully renounced...I cannot advocate any Muslim candidate for President. As for the rest of the field former Texas Gov. Rick Perry ended his campaign before the debate and Scott Walker literally bottomed out after the debate. CNN’s post debate poll had him at zero percent. He dropped out of the race the next day. On the Democratic front Vice President Joe Biden has no officially missed his end of summer deadline of deciding whether or not to run for president. Hillary Clinton has rebounded CNN’s latest poll. Most polls over the last month have shown her steadily declining. Clinton is on top with 42 percent compared to independent-turneddemocrat Bernie Sanders’ 24 percent. Biden is at 22 percent and former Gov. Martin O’Malley barely registers at 1 percent. The last poll at Sander closing in on Clinton with 27 percent compared to Clinton’s 37 percent. Taking Biden out of the latest poll gives Clinton even better numbers. In that scenario she tops the field with 57 percent to Sanders’ 28 percent and O’Malley’s 2 percent.

politics out on the trail

Photo: Facebook.

Carlos Guillermo Smith.

guillErmo-smiTh sECurEs rEPuBliCaN BaCkiNg John McDonald

e begin in Tallahassee this week where Florida House candidate Carlos guillermo Smith is doing some effective lobbying. Smith, an openly gay man running in District 49, reports he has secured the backing from Representative Patrick Rooney, Jr. (R-Palm Beach Gardens) for the Florida Competitive Workplace Act. “We need bipartisan support to pass this bill in the House and finally ban anti-LGBT discrimination,” said Smith, a Democrat from Orlando. Fighting to end discrimination in the workplace, housing and public accommodations is a central part of Smith’s campaign to unseat the District 49 Representative, Rene “Coach” Plasencia (R-Orlando). The Equality Florida operative announced he is coming to Broward County for a fundraising reception Nov. 7 at the L’hermitage Condominum in Fort Lauderdale. For details, visit CarlosGuillermoSmith.com Meanwhile, Florida Governor Rick Scott’s office appointed Miami councilwoman Mimi Planas to the state’s commission on the status of women. Planas is a three-time president of the Miami chapter of Log Cabin Republicans, an LGBT inclusive group. Planas, a conservative Hispanic lesbian, has steadfastly defended the Scott administration in Tallahassee as well as Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s agenda. She spoke with SFGN Monday afternoon via telephone.

“I am very excited about the appointment,” Planas said. “I think this shows that I am a strong woman and a strong gay woman and I am honored the Governor put his trust in me.” Planas said she represents district 10 in Miami-Dade County, an area west of Miami International Airport known as Westchester. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 85 percent of Westchester’s population identifies as Hispanic or Latino. Planas speaks fluent Spanish and English. She said equal compensation in the workplace is a “constant struggle.” “We must keep the focus on until women are treated equal,” Planas said. “Women are still paid 70 cents on the dollar compared to men. I see this.” Furthermore, Planas says women can do the job men do “in any arena.” When asked who she was supporting in the U.S. Republican Presidential Primary Election, Planas said she was 90 percent close to a decision. The Miami Log Cabin Republicans President said she was “very impressed” with former Hewlett-Packard Chief Executive Officer, Carly Fiorina, adding she is “capable” and “smart enough” to be the party nominee. Planas also mentioned Florida’s junior U.S. Senator, Marco Rubio as a favorite to win the GOP nomination. “He did a fantastic job on foreign policy,” Planas said of Rubio’s performance at last week’s debate at the Ronald Wilson Reagan Presidential Library in Simi, California.

GREAT PRICES, LOCATION AND FINISHES THE NEW WAVE OF URBAN LIVING

WALK TO FORT LAUDERALE BEACH, GALLERIA MALL & RESTAURANTS

FROM THE MID $500s

LOW H OA

FEES

VISIT OUR SALES CENTER OR CONTACT US AT 844.325.6345 sales@GalleriaLoftsFL.com 1005 N Federal Hwy Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33304 Mon-Fri: 9am-7pm

Sat: 10am-5pm • Sun: 12pm-5pm

VIEW FLOORPLANS AND GALLERY: GALLERIALOFTSFL.COM Exclusively Offered by

Plans, elevations, specifications, features, colors, designs, dimensions and materials are all subject to availability, and to change or substitution at any time and without notice. SobelCo expressly reserves the right to make modification, revisions and changes as may be required for lot fit or by governmental bodies and law, or other reasons as set forth in the Purchase Agreement. Illustrations of elevations and plans are artist’s depictions only. Plans are only for illustrative and conceptional purposes, are not to scale, and may be the reverse (mirror image) of those shown. The drawings and floor plans in this brochure should not be relied upon, express or implied, for the final detail, feature or dimensions of any home. All measurements, including, but not limited to, room dimensions, balconies, porches and ceiling and wall heights are approximate and may vary from those shown as a result of, among other things, (i) the elevation and home-site selected, and/or (ii) construction materials, construction practices, field conditions and flooring thickness. Square footages are approximate and are measured from the outside of exterior walls. In production, plans and elevations may vary in precise details and dimensions, and may not actually be constructed as shown. The fixture shapes shown are graphical in nature and are not necessarily indicative of a particular style or model. In addition, some features shown in the model homes may not be included in the purchase price of the home as quoted. Please consult your sales representative and refer to the Purchase Agreement in order to determine which features, specifications and elevations are included in any home you may purchase. Stock photography includes stock images and is used to depict the spirit of lifestyle and not for specific references. Map is for illustration purposes, not to scale and for approximate location only. For exact locations consult a sales representative. CBC017578

9.23.2015 •

Submitted photo.

news local

PridE CENTEr To Build FirsT iN ThE NaTioN lgBT PlaygrouNd Nicole Wiesenthal

arents in Fort Lauderdale will soon ongoing project of the center for the past have an LGBT-safe place to take their few years after members of the board of children to play. directors realized the need for a safe space On October 16, the Pride Center at for parents and children on campus. Equality Park in Wilton Manors will At the end of this summer, Fegenbush become the first LGBT said, the Pride Center campus in the U.S. with found out they’d be a playground, offering receiving a grant from “I think too parents a place to Kaboom and that Jet often in South connect and share tips, Blue had chosen them to and children, a space to be a corporate sponsor, Florida, LGBT grow and have fun. the first time Jet Blue parents and families The Pride Center has or Kaboom will be launched a $75,000 working with an LGBT have not received fundraising challenge organization. This gave the attention and is seeking them the opportunity or resources volunteers to help to make the playground build the interactive a reality. or support playground, which will The project also theydeserve.” be about half the size calls for help from the of an NBA basketball community though, court. he said. It calls for at - Kristofer Fegenbush “It’s going to take least $30,000 for site COO of the Pride Center at a village and for preparation and the Equality Park everyone to get on actual build and an board,” said Kristofer additional $45,000 for Fegenbush, COO of the Pride Center at features including shade, fencing, drinking Equality Park. “I think too often in South fountains, maintenance and programming. Florida, LGBT parents and families have On October 14 and 15, 40 volunteers will not received the attention or resources or be needed to prepare for the build, and on support they deserve.” October 16, approximately 150 people will He said the playground had been an be needed to build the playground.

• 9.23.2015

“In the morning, there will be no playground. In the afternoon there will be a playground,” he said. “To pull off something like this, it becomes a community project.” The Pride Center hosted a Design Day on August 18 during which local children got to illustrate their dream playgrounds to help with design. Rob Lamarche, 43, said he looks forward to seeing his daughter, 7, have part of her design put into the playground. “I could say, ‘Look, girlie. You were part of bringing this here. You helped put this place here for our community,’” he said. “It’s a really cool lesson for the children involved to see that they’ll have a positive impact on the community.” Michael Gagne, 45, has two children, Joshuah, 9, and Michael Jr., 8, who he will be taking to the playground. He said it will make the area feel more inclusive and like home. “There are probably hundreds of straight people that drive by and say, ‘There’s nothing for me,’” Gagne, chair of the food committee, said. “There will be something for them. We won’t be catering just to the gay and lesbian community, but the whole community.” Gagne will be organizing the seniors in the SAGE group on the prep and build days

who will be serving snacks and lunch. Lamarche said he anticipates having the opportunity to meet other parents, share parenting advice and organize play dates for the children. “We do run into some different issues in the world as GLBT parents,” he said, “and it’s just going to be nice to have those folks here.” Fegenbush said he’s been encouraged by the amount of people who have already agreed to volunteer and have donated. “I think for a lot of donors we heard from, it’s been more than a playground,” he said. “It’s been a symbol to the families in the future that you matter, you’re embraced and we’re going to support you and your significant other.” Heidi Siegel, 43, co-chair of the construction committee, said the park is an important symbol. “I think it sends a strong message that we’re one big community regardless of our family structure,” the mother said. Fegenbush agrees. “To watch that many people come together for a common cause,” he said, “we represent the ability to pull people together to do something bigger than themselves.” If you’re interested in volunteering or donating, visit PrideCenterFlorida.org.

LGBT CRUISES & TOUR EVENTS

15TH ANNUAL 6 Nights HALLOWEEN CRUISE Royal Caribbean - Oasis of the Seas Ft. Lauderdale roundtrip , Nassau, Cozumel, and Costa Maya

Private Group Event Includes: - $1,000 in Costume Prizes - Top GLBT Entertainment - Private Gay Disco with DJ Michael Kessler - Group Dining - Optional Beach Party - Nightly Shows & Gatherings & much, much more...

More Aquafest Travel Opportunities:

from $599

Alaska, Caribbean, Cuba, France, India, Mediterranean

www.AquafestCruises.com CALL TODAY: (800) 592-9058

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

news health

The Updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy Sean McShee

An Analysis

HIV test result (a diagnosis of HIV infection), In July, the Office of National AIDS Policy released its updated National HIV/AIDS that person cannot know when HIV first gains Strategy. This strategy updates the National a foothold in their body (HIV infection). Data about the results of HIV testing already exists. HIV/AIDS Strategy of 2010. It has fourteen Data about HIV infection does not. Second, indicators to measure progress. successful treatment of an HIV infection no These indicators provide a way to judge progress. While nine indicators met their goals longer consists of keeping someone alive. for the most recent data, one lacked sufficient Success now consists in suppressing their HIV viral load to maintain their health and data, and four failed to meet their goals. Three of those four failing indicators had even slid minimize transmission risk. Disparities refer to excessive disease backwards. They were now further from their burdens in populations. The third goal 2020 goals than they were in 2010. Those three indicators involve reducing involves reducing HIV-related disparities in four populations: gay bi men, homelessness among the HIV young Black gay bi men, Black infected, reducing high rates females, and people in the U.S. of HIV infection among gay bi South. The strategy challenges men in general, and reducing No one can social determinants of HIV the extremely high rates of fix problems risk, such as stigma. Stigma HIV infection among young includes not only HIV related Black gay bi men, in particular. in 2015 that stigma but also other forms of The strategy’s first goal prejudice and discrimination, involves the prevention of HIV occurred in including biases against drug infection. As HIV infection is 2013. A twousers and sex workers. It also concentrated in key groups, implicitly calls for a review of prevention efforts should be year time lag HIV criminalization laws. concentrated in these key A working group developed and overlapping groups: gay fails to lead fourteen indicators to measure bi men, Blacks, Latinos, drug progress. Each indicator injectors, youth, people in the to data based consists of a verbal description U.S. South, and transgender decisionof a measurement of progress women. The strategy and a related numeric measure identifies the following making. for the target year of 2020. The activities as critical for HIV working group then calculated prevention: comprehensive for each indicator a projected sex education, needle exchange programs, Pre Exposure Prophylaxis intermediate target for each year from the baseline year of 2010 to the target year of (PrEP), and treatment as prevention. The second goal focuses on treatment, but 2020. They assumed less change in the first involves two major changes in how people few years. In later years, they assumed more understand treatment. First, HIV infections change. The working group compared the most recent data for each indicator with the differ from HIV diagnoses. While someone projected intermediate target goal for that year. will know when they obtain their first positive

• 9.23.2015

Unfortunately, the most “recent” years with adequate data were 2012 and 2013. Accountability requires “real time data.” No one can fix problems in 2015 that occurred in 2013. A two-year time lag fails to lead to data based decision-making. Data must be collected and reported more rapidly to have utility. While this strategy has many advantages, its technocratic language obscures and ignores the political conflicts that have permeated HIV work from the start of the epidemic. The updated National HIV/AIDS strategy has some serious challenges, but it does provide

a way to measure progress. Unfortunately, the indicators reveal three major areas that are regressing - homelessness, and reducing new HIV cases in gay bi men and in Black gay bi men, in particular. To read the complete updated strategy visit WhiteHouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/ national_hiv_aids_strategy_update_2020.pdf For the fact sheet, visit WhiteHouse.gov/ the-press-office/2015/07/30/fact-sheet-nationalhivaids-strategy-updated-2020

news health

Sept. is National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month Dr. Ishai Ross

What is the prostate and what does it do?

What are the risk factors for developing prostate cancer?

How do I know whether I have prostate cancer?

• The prostate gland is found only in males. It is just below the bladder and in front of the rectum. • The prostate contains cells that make some of the fluid that protects and nourishes sperm. How common is prostate cancer? • Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men. • Approximately 1 out of every 7 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime. • Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer. • In 2015 the American Cancer Society estimates that there will be 220,800 new cases of prostate cancer and 27,540 deaths from prostate cancer.

• Age: Prostate cancer occurs mainly in older men, the average age at the time of diagnosis is about 66. • Race: African-American men are more likely to get prostate cancer. • Family history: Men with close family members who have had prostate cancer are more likely to get it. • Diet: Men who eat a lot of red meat or high-fat dairy products seem to be at greater risk. • Obesity: Some studies have found that obese men may be at greater risk for more advanced prostate cancer and of dying from prostate cancer.

• Early prostate cancer usually causes no symptoms, so most are found nowadays through screening by your doctor. • Advanced prostate cancers can sometimes cause symptoms, such as problems urinating, blood in the urine, erectile dysfunction or pain in the hips, back, and chest due to cancer spread to bones.

What can be done to prevent prostate cancer? • The exact cause of prostate cancer is not known, so it isn’t possible to prevent most cases of the disease. • Some studies found a connection between diet, obesity and prostate cancer, so eating healthy, being physically active and staying at a healthy weight may lower your risk of developing the disease.

What is prostate cancer screening? • A prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test and a digital rectal exam (DRE) may help to diagnose prostate cancer in its asymptomatic, early stages. • Screening is typically started between the ages of 50 and 55, but may be performed at a younger age in patients who are at higher risk for the disease. Is prostate cancer treatable? • Yes, in fact most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. • More than 2.9 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point are still alive today.

Additional resources American Cancer Society Toll-free number: 1-800-227-2345 Website: www.cancer.org Urology Care Foundation Toll-free number: 1-800-828-7866 Website: www.urologyhealth.org National Cancer Institute Toll-free number: 1-800-422-6237 Website: www.cancer.gov Prostate Cancer Foundation Toll-free number: 1-800-757-2873 Website: www.pcf.org

Office information: Ishai S. Ross, M.D. 4725 North Federal Highway Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33308 Tel.: (954) 267-6780 Fax: (954) 267-6779

9.23.2015 •

community announcement

National Advocacy Group for Rent Boys Founded NCORB An association of rent boys and their supporters has organized a national advocacy group in response to the Homeland Security and NYPD raid on Rentboy.com in New York city, August 25, 2015. The National Coalition of Rent Boys & Allies (www.ncorb.com) was created as a not for profit corporation in Florida by Fort Lauderdale attorney Norm Kent, a well known First Amendment advocate. Along with Kent, the initial incorporators include an internationally known rent boy, who is now a law student at Hastings School of Law in San Francisco, and Pamela Dore (mr. Pam) a California based activist and ally who has spoken out frequently on behalf of sex workers. The group will also include a national advisory board, to be announced in the coming weeks.Interested advocates should send a note to norm@ncorb.com expressing their interest and experience in the industry. One of the initial members will be Fab Scout Entertainment’s Howard Andrew of South Florida, who books many of the advertisers with the largest adult film studios in the country. Stated Kent, “The Department of Homeland Security has initiated a questionable legal action which has terrorized thousands of men who were lawfully trading their time and companionship for legitimate compensation. There is a need for these men to have a collective voice and open forum to speak out against the raid and for their rights.”’ On its website, NCORB has created a media outpost for news articles, columns, reactions and information about the Rentboy raid. The website, created by Denver-based Envie Media, includes the organization’s statement of purposes and goals, with a promise to “become a national voice and advocacy group for men who independently contract with other consenting adults to sell their time and

• 9.23.2015

companionship, while speaking out for the decriminalization of sex workers...” “Our website will organize base of rent boys and their allies,” Kent said, “fostering a global coalition speaking out on their behalf. To paraphrase a recent presidential candidate, the response to our endeavor has been huge. Huge!” The site will not only feature cost-sensitive memberships for participants, but also provide unfettered access to legal advisories and ‘know your rights’ forums for rent boys remaining in the industry. Rent boys can register for as little as $100 a year, securing a t-shirt with the NCORB logo, a gold shield. It will also include regular updates on the status of the federal case against the principals of the Rent boy prosecution. Kent noted that the “criticism of the Homeland Security raid has been resounding and national, with protests from coast to coast, and editorial boards from the New York Times to LGBT newspapers rightfully censuring the government.” “Public pressure may not stop the prosecution, but it will certainly let the US attorney know where the LGBT community stands on targeting our population and our partners. We have over 100 members and have not even publicly launched until today,” Kent concluded. Added Mr. Ferris, long an activist for HIV causes, “Like persons living with HIV, our society for too long has wrongly stigmatized and unfairly treated male escorts and sex workers. It’s overdue for us to have a proud and positive voice articulating our concerns and advancing our interests.” Echoing that sentiment, mr. Pam asserted that “we need to move from prosecuting and jailing ‘rent boys’ to protecting them and decriminalizing their work; from locking people up to licensing; from raiding to regulating.”

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

feature two spirit

Submitted photo.

Photo credit: Jimmy Thomas, Flickr.

Two Spirit Society of Denver.

David Webb.

ThEA history risE oF ThE TWo-sPiriTs and culture once wiped away is making a comeback Nicole Wiesenthal

f you’re familiar with the full LGBTQQIP2SAA acronym, you might know that 2S stands for two spirit. But what exactly does that mean? Here’s an inside look into the two-spirit identity and the comeback it’s making in native tribes.

Past History When European invaders came to Turtle Island (North America), they did not approve of the people they found there. The Europeans saw the natives, not as people, but as savages, barbaric in every sense. Sade Heart of the Hawk Ali described what it was like. “They brought with them their ideology and puritanism and concept of what is right and wrong,” she said. “We were always wrong and always savage, and ones to be feared, and ones seen as lacking a soul so they created schools to take the savage out of us.” Sade Ali’s own mother had been a student at one of the schools. Ali said the people in charge of the school brutalized, raped and starved her mother. With colonization, men no longer dressed as women and women no longer dressed as men. Each person knew their

• 9.23.2015

correct gender and place in society, she spirit person because they believed they said. had one spirit in the physical world and one Before the Europeans came to North in the spiritual world. America, tribes respected and sometimes But they lost all of that with the new even revered people who had a different culture and invaders, said David Webb, a gender identity or preference, said Tuscarora and Meherrin Indian of Iroquois Houston Cypress, a two heritage. spirit Miccosukee native. Webb gives the example He described a ceremony of the Lakota term, winkte, “It’s about being called the basket and which originally had a the bowl during which positive connotation in an LGBT native, but children chose their roles society for people who did also respecting and identity in society. not fit in with others of their our spirit. Being Ali said two spirit born gender. two spirit is people were respected “Out west with the honoring more of and an important part in Lakotas, winkte was a very what I am as a traditional society. special term for a person “When you found who had a balance of male complete human out your child had the and female power,” he being, not about tendency to function in said. “When they became what I do in the another role, you were seen Christianized, it became bedroom.” as blessed,” she said. “They the equivalent of faggot, a thought it had a closer derogatory term.” connection to the creator, For years, berdache, a - Houston Cypress the ability to mediate European term meaning disputes, the ability to to wound or strike a seized conduct ceremony in a very prisoner, came to describe serious way.” two spirit individuals, and the two spirit Ali said when the elder council couldn’t identity all but disappeared from its place solve a problem, they would ask the two- within the native tribes.

Defining the Two Spirit Identity Today So what does it mean to be two spirit and where did the term come from? Well, in the 1990s, at an international gathering in Winnipeg, Canada, Native American and First Nation people met to develop the concept that they hoped would get them recognized as part of the larger LGBT community, Ali said. The term has no set meaning, and anyone can identify as two spirit within native communities, Ali said. Everyone has a different definition and way of understanding their identity. “I describe two spirit as like a river,” Ali said. “Rivers flow, and they touch different things, and they land at that bank, and they move on. Instead of being constrained by the letters LGBTQ and all of the rest of the alphabet that they use, we are all of those and none of those.” Cyrpus said it related to spirituality. “It’s about being an LGBT native, but also respecting our spirit,” he said. “Being two spirit is honoring more of what I am as a complete human being, not about what I do in the bedroom.” Webb agrees.

feature two spirit “The terms gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender can be a little bit limiting in not really describing the whole person,” he said. “With the term two spirit for Native Americans, it’s unique because it’s something that we can use to talk about our spiritual and world view so it’s a very different world view from just saying LGBT.” Will Davis, 68, said that what defines him as a two spirit is his social, spiritual and personal responsibility.

Finding One’s Place in Society Because the term’s revival is so new, many people don’t realize they’re two spirit until later in their lives. Davis said he had never really been interested in or attracted to other people when he was younger. Instead, he felt a strong attraction to nature.

He came out as gay when he was younger, but he didn’t feel like he belonged in that community. After high school, he joined the military and met other native men. “One of them told me his grandpa was a Medicine Man, and he thought that I was probably a Two Spirit person,” he said. “I met this man later, and he explained that although I was gay, I was also a Two Spirit.” Davis said he didn’t understand the difference. “He explained that being Two Spirit carried with it a responsibility,” he said. “It was sometimes a spiritual path that some are called to. He explained that’s why I felt different and was connected to the spirit world.” Cypress and Webb both identified as gay until they found out about two spirit people in the books they read. Even though two spirits were once revered, now being different came with a cost.

“I describe two spirit as like a river. Rivers flow, and they touch different things, and they land at that bank, and they move on. Instead of being constrained by the letters LGBTQ and all of the rest of the alphabet that they use, we are all of those and none of those.” - Sade Heart of the Hawk Ali

Two Spirit Problems Today

Sade Heart of the Hawk Ali.

Two spirit people are subject to hate crimes and neglect, Webb said. He remembers a time when four men attacked him and beat him so badly he had to be hospitalized. “I’m nervous in my tribe,” he said. “I don’t like it there because I’m scared. I would love nothing more than to live with my own people, but it’s not a safe and accepting environment. There’s a sense of otherness when you’re around people that aren’t accepting of you.” Ali said it’s a tough battle within and outside of the community. “We still have our own people who don’t treat us well, who don’t understand us, who don’t admit that we’re even there,” she said. Webb remembers a time when he was younger, when a young girl was dismissed from a powwow because she wanted to dance traditionally men’s style. “I saw an elder who kicked her out for trying to go in men’s clothing, and I was so shocked,” he said. “How can you be so angry at this girl who is being so natural for her?” Ali said it’s difficult for two spirit children because the suicide rate for native children is already great, and when you add the concept of two spirit, or otherness, it gets even higher. According to a report by the University of Calgary in 2011, aboriginal LBGT youth face a higher risk of suicide than both LGBT white youth and aboriginal youth as a whole. Aboriginal youth are 2.5 more times likely to commit suicide than their white counterparts, according to the study. Two spirit identifying aboriginal males are also two times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual counterparts, the study found.

We’wha, a two-spirit of the Zuni (1871-1896)

A Rising Two-Spirit Nation Ali said awareness will help solve the issue. The winkte term has been restored to a meaning of honor, and two spirit people have been invited to the White House. Ali works for the East Coast Two Spirit Society, which provides resources and support for two spirit people in eastern United States. She said parents will often come into the center with their children looking for guidance and understanding. “When the kids understand who they are and the history within the native community, they experience a feeling of peace, relief and acceptance in the community,” she said. It helps that tribes are becoming more accepting and empowered by their traditional backgrounds, said Webb, but he said it’s difficult to break the older members. “For instance, my grandparents, they’re Christian, but they’ll go to the pagan ceremonies, and they don’t fully understand all of the tradition,” he said. “They just kind of ride on the fence sometimes.” Ali understands. “I think that one of the biggest problems is

how do we talk to people that are set in their beliefs,” she said. “Maybe their beliefs are political or learnt. How do we talk to people set in their beliefs and demonstrate that in being more inclusive and respectful that we have a society that is thriving, creative and hopeful?” Still, two spirit people are starting to form their own community and bring back their own culture. “There’s more and more of us who are coming together every day,” Ali said. “There’s two spirit societies all over the country and Canada.” She said young people and elders like herself are spreading their teachings and guiding the young people, helping to reduce suicide, spreading a sense of pride and reducing a sense of fear. Ali said two spirit people are gathering to have powwows and socials. Additionally, two spirit people have been in various pride parades like the New York City and Rochester Pride Parades. “The more we can get the information out, the more we can get rid of the fear,” Ali said. The weekend of June 20, Davis hosted the first South Eastern Two Spirit gathering. “We all understand our place within society and the greater society,” he said. “I’m honored that I could be the one to host.” Davis said he wished people understood that two spirit people are really no different than anybody else except for the role they play within society. Webb said it’s important for people to understand that everyone’s way of identifying as two spirit is different. “It’s an entire spectrum,” he said. “Within LGBT you have labels, and within two spirit you have any number of labels. By designation, it’s a culturally and spiritually connected term.” Ali describes two spirit people like the phoenix. “We’re struggling to come up out of the ashes like the phoenix and reclaim our victory and place in the circle,” she said. “Let people know, ‘Yes, we’re here. Yes, we’re part of the rainbow culture. We want to be accepted as brothers and sisters in the larger gay community.’”

9.23.2015 •

Quality & Service Since 1956 Voted No. 1 Dry Cleaners in South Florida

Photo Credit: Edgar Jiménez from Porto, Portugal.

column publisher`s editorial

10% off dry cleaning

with ad Expires Oct. 15, 2015

Free Pick Up & Delivery (Home / Office) Gown Cleaning & Preservation Leather & Suede Cleaning Tailoring • All Other Specialty Items

954.566.4314

A Pope Like No Other

2600 North Dixie Highway Wilton Manors, FL 33305

Norm Kent

norm.kent@sfgn.com

e has this way about him. Pope Francis is special, for his humility, his love, his unyielding compassion. At the age of 78, he prepares for each day with the enthusiasm of a schoolboy. He wakes at 4:30 a.m. every morning and works till 10:30 p.m. Every night. He can do so because he is obviously joyful in his job. There is a smile in his heart and a song on his lips. Pope Francis is bringing to us ‘the year of mercy.’ He reaches out to the poor, the destitute. The homeless, and the helpless. But he inspires universal passion and global respect. His message is inclusion, not exclusivity. Whether you are a gay man, or a straight divorced woman, the pope wants you as a partner. He condemns you not. He welcomes you in. Pope Francis is scholarly, well-read and immensely thoughtful. He seems to understand we all have a lot more in common than we do apart. He bridges the human divide, fostering outreach and partnerships rather than infighting and paternalism. Pope Francis has created a papacy without

• 9.23.2015

Francis the one and only

pomp and circumstance, and by so doing clerks in Kentucky but to every courtroom, he has exalted himself further in the eyes government offices and church in our fifty of the world than those states. gilded red slippers would By visiting prisons and ever have taken him. This hospitals, he is reminding us of is a man who does not our duty to promote redemption represent the institution and healing. The Pope is letting By visiting of Religion. He simply us know that beyond our prisons and exudes goodness. shining mountains and the glory His disarming our American Plains, there hospitals, he of comments, his simple are steep hills and massive pains sentiments, inviting within our cities and across is reminding homosexuals into our country. Pope Francis is the church have teaching us every day we are all us of our rippled through seven brothers and sisters in a global duty to continents, creating community, with much still to goodwill towards gay accomplish. promote and lesbian populations As the American poet Robert within the Christian Frost once wrote, ‘there are redemption community. By saying miles to go before we sleep.’ of homosexuals, ‘who Pope Francis is taking us on a and healing. am I to judge,’ he sends journey, which reminds us we a message to millions of can all do better- and that we so others that nor should desperately need to. For a few they. short days in America, he is reminding us of By meeting with gay citizens and couples the world that could be; that should be. Let’s in Washington, D.C., as the pontiff, he hope we all take it to heart. sends a signal of equality not only to

Photo Credit: CNN iReport / Joel Camaya

column tony`s talks

PoPE FraNCis is NoT your FriENd Tony Adams

lthough I can walk from my kitchen into Central Park before my morning mug of coffee cools, I did not bother to enter the lottery for the one of the 80,000 tickets needed to get close to Pope Francis when he leads a procession there on Sept. 25. I was troubled by my own lack of interest in the visit of the rock star pope who has given hope to many who grew up Catholic and have been ostracized by their religion because of their sexuality, their failed marriages, their reproductive choices and their disgust with the misogyny and abuse of its patriarchy. I wish I felt otherwise. Cynicism is not a becoming garment, and it took a while for me to understand what was at the root of my disdain. This pope is not my friend. He is not even an imaginary friend, as is the Jesus in whom, from an early age, we are instructed by priests and nuns to confide. Francis is an actor pretending to be a shepherd who loves his flock, and wants to save the lost sheep. Would his portrayal as a compassionate shepherd win an Emmy on Broadway? Probably not. He is less the shepherd tending his flock than he is the CEO of a livestock conglomerate releasing statements about the merits of organic feed, humane slaughter, fair pricing, decent wages for farmhands and careful breeding of the flock according to the rules of natural law. He takes no notice of men like me who are his black sheep. His deputies – the cardinals and bishops – have changed their style, but they are still the same wolves in sheep’s clothing who would prefer that I stop being

gay and pretend, as do they, to be something I am not. Two years have passed since Pope Francis gave us heart when he said, “Who am I to judge?” while speaking of gay priests. Now we are disheartened because he has done nothing to bolster those words. Seminaries are still instructed to weed out or bar any man with homosexual tendencies, same-sex marriage is still anathema, women are still treated as second class Catholics, and those abused by priests still meet with resistance in their search for peace. Abortion and divorce make the hierarchy anxious not because they feel like changing the rules of the church in those areas but because they look at the empty pews and collection baskets and wonder how they will support their fancy infrastructure if Catholics continue to turn away from a church that condemns them. I go to Central Park often. It’s my backyard. It’s where I toss the Frisbee with my husband. It’s where we consider the lilies, more radiant in their simplicity than any passing papal spectacle. It’s where I have presided over the marriages of many same-sex couples who have made good on their promises to love, cherish, help and honor each other. For me, Central Park is hallowed ground because of them. More than 80,000 ticketed fans cheering for Pope Francis may trample a few of those lilies, but they will not weaken the vows of the loving same-sex couples I have joined in marriage in Central Park. Rather than walk across the street, I’ll watch his visit on TV, wishing that he had become a better friend and a true shepherd. 9.23.2015 •

column speak out

editorial cartoon

sPEak SFGN Staff

SFgN’s “Speak oUT” is a weekly feature giving a regular voice to South Florida LgBT leaders.

What’s an LGBT story, issue or topic you’d like to highlight this week?

“

The enflamed hostility toward gay people from fundamentalist Christian commentators reveals that the Right Wing is imploding in anger over marriage equality, and is throwing a loud, public tantrum because the majority of Americans don’t agree with their religious views. Those white and black male pastors who are frothing at the mouth as they call for violence are in most cases hateful of their same sex hunger, and angry that no one knows their personal sacrifices."

We SELLING Are. & MARKETING REALTORS

— Brian McNaught, noted columnist, author and LGBT activist

“

This article (“Why it’s time to take the T out of LGBT”) is something that could’ve been included in the news. It stems from the conversation Ellen Denegeres and Caitlyn Jenner had about marriage equality. Is it time to take the T out of LGBT? While trans people have been heavily involved with the LGBT movement, often people connect trans people with sexuality by association. Which is not the case- always. I believe the T is part of what holds together, what may have a negative connotation for many people, the Queer community historically and currently. It’s also fine if anyone doesn’t want to associate themselves with LGB. We’re all human at the end of the day. " — Anthony Cedeno, marketing and communications professional

Our Locations:

401 E Las Olas Blvd, Ft Lauderdale 119 Washington Ave, Miami Beach

“

Here’s a story I would love to see run in SFGN, “Lutheran Minister Preaches A Gospel Of Love To Junkies, Drag Queens And Outsiders” It’s an interview on NPR’s show “Fresh Air” of Pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber, a Lutheran pastor in Denver, CO.” — Rev. Leslie A. Rutland-Tipton, Senior Pastor, Church of the Holy SpiritSong

Henri Vezie, Realtor

• 9.23.2015

Frank Vigliotti, Realtor

sPEak

Visit SFGN.com/SpeakOut to see more of this week’s responses. Send an Email to Jason.Parsley@sfgn.com if you know of a LGBT community leader that should be or wants to be a part of this list.

column seeing in the dark

Sociologist, Author Susan Krieger on Sharing Her Life with a Guide Dog Belo Cipriani We all know that guide dogs provide the blind people they assist with freedom and independence. But what many may not realize is these amazingly smart dogs don’t work their entire lives. Like the rest of us, guide dogs reach a point in their career where the job becomes taxing or less interesting. Thus, they get to retire. Lesbian sociologist and Stanford University professor Susan Krieger’s recent book, Come, Let Me Guide You (Purdue University Press, 2015, $24.95), skillfully captures the experience of retiring a guide dog and receiving a new one. The book, which is a collection of vividly woven memories and reflections, directly places the reader in the center of the bond between a blind person and their guide dog. But unlike other books in this category, the vignettes that make up the relationship between Krieger and her aging guide dog, Teela, are not syrupy, nor is the language cloying. And even when Krieger imagines what Teela may be thinking or feeling -- a personification approach that doesn’t work for all stories -- one can’t help but draw closer to the pair. While the focal story is the relationship between Krieger and her first guide dog, Teela, and, later, her second guide dog, Fresco, the book also touches on issues of personal identity. Krieger dedicates a chapter to feminist and disabilities studies and pulls from her experience in teaching a course on disabled women at Stanford University. “The idea that a disability is a product

of attitudes and institutions that disable, rather than strictly of a physical or medical condition, is new to some of the students,” she writes. “One example they find helpful is that it is not the physiological limitations of a woman in a wheelchair that makes her disabled when crossing a street but the fact that there are curbs.” Another story line that’s carefully stitched throughout the book is the relationship between Krieger and her partner Hannah. “A week ago, after thirty-two years of being together, Hannah and I got married when same-sex marriage became legal in California and in federal law,” Krieger shares. “’Teela will be with us, of course,’ Hannah said to me when we contacted City Hall to reserve the date -- surprising me, again, with her inclusiveness. The day before the ceremony, we went to a flower stand and bought a bunch of white freesia, which I made into a corsage and attached, with gardening wire, to Teela’s harness. She became our bridesmaid, our flower girl, smiling in all the pictures.” Come, Let Me Guide You plays with themes of grief and letting go, but also touches on embracing change. And while these themes are applied to a blind person, they are universal feelings that a general reader can appreciate. The book is available in print, eBook, audio and through bookshare.org for the print disabled. For information on attending Susan Krieger’s book talks, please visit http://susankrieger.stanford.edu.

Belo Cipriani is a freelance journalist, the award-winning author of Blind: A Memoir and Midday Dreams, and a spokesperson for Guide Dogs for the Blind. He was voted “Best Disability Advocate” in the Bay Area in 2015 by SF Weekly. Learn more at BeloCipriani.com. 9.23.2015 •

Submitted photo.

sports volleyball

April Ross, an American player, will be competing in the tournament as a wild card. She was one of 42 athletes who signed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court showing their support for gay marriage.

maJor vollEyBall TourNamENT ComEs To ForT laudErdalE Christiana Lilly

olleyball players from around the world are going to be hitting the sand for the Swatch FIVB World Tour Finals in Fort Lauderdale. The tournament will have 16 two-person men and women’s teams, as well as four wild card teams, with the winning duo raking in $100,000. “It’s a great place for beach volleyball -the audience is knowledgeable and they’ll cheer loud,” said April Ross, a wild card player for the U.S. team. “They’re going to get a great show.” The teams hail from the U.S., Brazil, the Netherlands, Austria, Canada, and more. With such a large Brazilian fan base in South Florida, those games are expected to be heavily attended. According to a press release from the tournament staff, about 30,000 spectators are expected to show up for the games. The final men’s and women’s matches will be broadcasted live on Oct. 4 on NBC. “South Florida is known all over the world,” Hannes Jagerhofer, Beach Majors CEO, said for why Fort Lauderdale was chosen to host the finals. “Everything is a perfect fit.”

ouT PlayEr ProFilE:

larissa FraNÇa maEsTriNi Hailing from Fortaleza, Brazil, the 33-year-old volleyball player hit the professional beach volleyball scene in 2001 after playing indoor volleyball for a number of years. She won a bronze medal in the Pan American Games in 2003 and also won a bronze medal at the Olympic Games in 2012 with her partner. In 2005, she and her then-volleyball partner, Juliana Felisberta Silva, set a record for the highest single season earnings when they won $409,750 in winnings. An openly out player, Franca Mestrini married her partner, Liliane Maestrini, also a beach volleyball player, in 2013. The two had come out as a couple -- and lesbian -- just a month prior. In Brazil, gay marriage has been legal since 2004. “It is important to ﬁght for what do you want,” she told SFGN. “Being a winner at the beach volleyball is not as easy as being one in life. But if you do just things that you like, it can be a little easier.”

iF you go: WHAT: Swatch FIVB World Tour Finals WHERE: Fort Lauderdale Beach Park, 1100 Seabreeze Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale WHEN: Sept. 29 to Oct. 4 MORE INFORMATION: us.SwatchMajorSeries.com. 26

• 9.23.2015

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

column jesses journal

Florida maN #1: gEorgE ZimmErmaN Jesse Monteagudo

lorida Man is an Internet meme that links news stories about unusual or strange stories out of Florida, particularly those where the subject is referred to as “Florida Man.” Featured on Twitter (@_FloridaMan), Reddit (reddit.com/r/FloridaMan) and Tumblr (floridamanandwoman.tumblr.com), Florida Man showcases the crimes, follies and misfortunes of the Sunshine State’s most unique characters. I discussed “FloriDUH’s” status as the Weird Capital of America in a previous column; and made reference to the blog of the same name (sun-sentinel.com/news/strange/floriduhblog). Another blog, FloriDum.com, collects similar stories. One Florida Man who makes repeat appearances in the blogosphere is George Zimmerman. The son of a Peruvian mother and a German-American father, Zimmerman is a more typical Floridian than myself. Zimmerman is most (in)famous for the shooting death, on February 26, 2012, of Trayvon Martin, a 17-year old AfricanAmerican who was visiting family members in Sanford. Zimmerman, who was doing neighborhood watch for his gated community, claimed he acted in self-defense, and invoked Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” gun law. On July 13, 2013, a jury acquitted Zimmerman of second-degree murder and manslaughter charges. If Zimmerman had any sense, he would try to live the rest of his life quietly and without publicity, like Casey Anthony did after she was acquitted of the murder of her daughter, Caylee. But Zimmerman has an almost unique capacity for getting into trouble. On September 9, 2013 police in Lake Mary answered a 911 call from Zimmerman’s estranged wife, who said Zimmerman threatened her and her father with a gun and punched her father in the face. Zimmerman was arrested but his wife declined to press charges. On November 18, 2013, Zimmerman’s then-girlfriend called the cops to her home in Apopka and alleged that Zimmerman pointed a gun at her and broke some of her belongings. Zimmerman was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and domestic violence battery, but later the girlfriend refused to press charges.

On January 8, 2015, Zimmerman was arrested by Lake Mary police after he allegedly threw a wine bottle at another ex-girlfriend. (How does he get them?) Here again, the victim refused to press charges. Meanwhile, Zimmerman was involved in a couple of road rage incidents with Matthew Apperson, which led to Apperson shooting Zimmerman on a street in Lake Mary. In all fairness, in this case Apperson was at fault. As his record makes clear, Zimmerman loves guns. All of his public appearances that do not involve the police have Zimmerman visiting gun shops or gun factories in the Central Florida area. Recently Zimmerman befriended Andy Hallinan, the owner of Florida Gun Supply in Inverness and himself a bona fide Florida Man. Hallinan got in trouble when he declared his store to be a “Muslim-free zone” and was sued by the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Zimmerman, who apparently dabbles in painting, produced prints of one of his works as a fundraiser. Zimmerman’s painting, of the Confederate battle flag (of course), includes the inscription “The 2nd [Amendment] protects our 1st.” The prints go for $50 each; and one lucky person will win the original painting. The proceeds will be split between Zimmerman and Hallinan, to help pay for their hefty legal bills, and an unspecified portion will go to the Boys and Girls Club. Zimmerman and Hallinan are two peas in a pod. Both are young men - George is 31 and Andy is 28 - which does not speak well for the future of the “Gunshine State.” The duo posted a ten-minute mini documentary on YouTube, where they detailed their views on the Confederate flag, guns, the media, President Obama, and the Second Amendment. Both men are “patriots” (they say) fighting against a multitude of evils. Most Florida Men (and Florida Women) make one public appearance and then disappear into oblivion (or jail). George Zimmerman is the gift that keeps on giving. For that reason, even though it is only 2015, I name George Zimmerman the Florida Man of the Decade. I doubt anyone else will show up before 2020 who would amaze or appall us the way this man does, again and again.

Jesse Monteagudo is a freelance writer and journalist. He has been an active member of South Florida’s LGBT community for more than four decades and has served in various community organizations.

• 9.23.2015

Burning Man. Photo Credit: Tony Adams.

lifestyle tony`s talks

BurNiNg maN is vEry gay Tony Adams

f you call yourself gay, but spend your days that the festival should depart the desert having working, fretting, fussing and setting an left behind not a single sequin or feather of alarm clock, you should get your ass to evidence. LGBTQ burners constitute a large segment Burning Man in 2016. It’s an oasis of delight in our deserts of routine. of a festival that celebrates polyamory, sexual Is this annual art/music festival gay? Its own fluidity and sex-positivity. According to its survey of last year’s attendance shows it to be own Burning Man 2014 census, burners are mostly people who own up to a largely straight, white, young, higher than usual (30%) sexual aﬄuent, and West coastal, but fluidity. Much older than most, rest assured that if you are none For gay folks, I would add that burners – gay of those, “burners” are above or not - make a serious effort all else playful, welcoming, Burning Man is to set aside the prejudices and inclusive and desirous of where bears, cautions and social boundaries sharing a lot more than their that often ostracize people. water bottle with you! twinks and Sexual playfulness at Burning A larger than usual number every other Man very often includes folks describe themselves as sexually of every description and fluid, and this is where they go variation of the orientation whose overlapping to let it spill. LGBTQ community demonstrations of physical Nevada’s Black Rock Desert affection are refreshing. I is about as inhospitable a place and its friends experienced kaleidoscopic as can be imagined. Blazing sun, happily mingle combinations of folks in hot dry air, blinding dust storms large meeting tents, or more and night temps that approach and celebrate intimate couplings in smaller freezing will challenge even the yurts, tents and RVs. Burner most seasoned camper. each other. orgasms are often followed by Why then did I join the the question, “Why can’t it be 70,000 “burners” who like this all the time and everywhere?” congregate there for an annual week of Having said that, I must swiftly add that swarming bicycles, outlandish outfits or nudity, sex, drugs, booze, fellowship, careful hydration Burning Man is about you and what you make of it. The instant anyone attempts to define it - as and cringe-inducing porta-potties? did I just now - a chorus of protest will dismantle I did it because, until you’ve been to Burning Man, you just haven’t quite completed yourself, that definition. I camped with a group of men including some who are in recovery (There are and you’ve missed a bus that takes you back to your playful and childlike self. For almost plenty of AA meetings and events) and some 30 years, the annual Burning Man festival, who are in monogamous marriages. They were culminating in the ritual burning of the 100-foot equally at home, while having an experience of tall wooden Man that towers over the circular the week that was vastly different from mine. I “Playa,” entirely vanishes at the conclusion of its cannot think of anyone who ought to avoid or would not enjoy Burning Man except for those week, honoring one of its ten basic principles,

with serious physical limitations or health issues. For gay folks, Burning Man is where bears, twinks and every other variation of the LGBTQ community and its friends happily mingle and celebrate each other. It’s a pity that we have to go deep into the desert to experience the love and respect we constantly talk about and work diligently to protect through our activism. I camped in Burning Man’s gayborhood and spent much time at four of its largest groups, “Comfort And Joy,” “The DownLow Camp,” “Celestial Bodies” and “Glamcocks,” each constantly offering a wide variety of music, art, events, drinks, food, parties and performances, all of which are free to anyone who wandered into their space. (Another of the ten basic principles of Burning Man is decommodification. Gifting is mandatory. For example, at the popular Celestial Bodies bar, all drinks including their cosmos and beer were free. This is true also of the hundreds of other camps offering free food and drink.) As you cycle through Burning Man (a bike with lights is a necessity) you need only wear anything (or nothing) that truly expresses your soul. Don’t be afraid of the tutu or the silk scarf or the majorette outfit, the splendiferous tights, the oversized bling or the feathered hat. The most remarkable ensemble I saw was a man wearing a platinum Doris Day wig and a brocade cocktail dress with a white satin portrait collar. He carried a large cocktail in one hand and dragged a vacuum cleaner with the other as he staggered across the Playa feigning bitter disillusionment. I stood and cheered. He never broke character. Just remember that whatever you wear has to allow for a breathing mask and goggles for the frequent sudden dust storms and has to be coupled with sensible boots to keep your feet protected. You will also always travel

with a cup clipped to your belt or bag to receive the beverage offered by the next camp into which you tumble. What did I see and hear and do? Time allows you to experience only a small amount of what happens at Burning Man. Your experience may be vastly different from mine. I went to a Motown disco where I showed the kids on the dance floor how to move like the Temptations. I went a week without a shower (but went through hundreds of wet wipes) and the men still got frisky on me! I had my misfortune read by a laughing man drenched in rubies. He said tomorrow would suck, but that I might like it. As I walked through the temple watching the silent tearful reverence of folks honoring their dead with written messages and little altars of mementoes, I learned that young people have not lost the need for ritual, but must reinvent what organized religion has trashed. I learned that I am less of a princess than I had presumed, and am able to rough it with the toughest. I learned that I could give up control over what was happening around me, and that it was okay to wake up from a nap covered with a thick layer of dust and draped with some new friends. As Burning Man came to an end, and as I watched the RVs and tents and campers all around me disappear in succession, leaving only empty trapezoids of flat sunburnt desert where there had been flamboyant merriment, I learned to embrace my extremely tiny place and moment in the universe. Because life passes in the twinkling of an eye, we need to spend it singing and laughing and in gorgeous colors and loving each other in all ways imaginable. If you can handle that possibility, and if you can direct your personal behavior safely, go to Burning Man next year. Such great fun, I might do it again. 9.23.2015 •

lifestyle cars D R I V E N

2016

All Mazda 6s are powered by a 184-hp four-cylinder.

Photos: Mazda.

2016 Mazda

Base Price: $22,315–$31,015 Power: turbocharged 2.5-liter four-

cylinder (184 hp, 185 lb-ft of torque)

Transmission: 6-speed manual or 6-speed automatic Fuel Economy, city/hwy mpg (EPA est): 25–28/37–40

2016 maZda 6 graNd TouriNg The Best Just Got Better

Steve Siler

wo years ago, Mazda came out with a gorgeous, fuel-efficient, and sweet-driving new 6 sedan that absolutely shamed the market’s best and most popular mid-size sedans—namely the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry or Volkswagen Passat. Now, for 2016, Mazda gave it an early facelift that made it even better looking, and upgraded its interior nearly to Audi levels of design and refinement. In other words, they made the best even better. Even though the 6 hardly looked old, Mazda went ahead and updated it anyway, revising its LED driving lights and adding a backlit strip of light that underscores the grille of Grand Touring models at night. Some attention was paid to the backside, too—always a good thing in my book—in the form of new taillamps joined by a tasteful chrome garnish. Unchanged are the elegantly sculpted body sides, swept-back windshield and big, 19inch wheels that come standard on Touring and the Grand Touring models. The cabin received a massive upgrade, incorporating a new stand-up center info screen nestled top-dead-center in the dashboard, a la BMW 3-Series, that is controlled by a gizmo called the “Commander Switch,” which resembles BMW’s iDrive and Audi’s MMI knob.

Other highlights include supremely comfortable cobra-wing front seats, cool white instrument illumination, and a design-ey, high-contrast parchment-over-black interior treatment on Grand Touring models. If that’s too much, a tidy, all-black interior is also available. All Mazda 6s are powered by a 184-hp four-cylinder that both sounds good and revs happily while serving up fuel economy that rivals smaller cars—the auto-equipped Grand Touring model’s 40-mpg highway rating is better than a Smart car!—and if you prefer one of the more basically equipped Sport or Touring models, you can also choose a six-speed manual transmission that would feel right at home in a Miata. And alas, what no numbers can tell you is how naturally this featherweight car steers and brakes. Hands down, this is the best-driving family sedan in the world. With a base price of $22,315, the Mazda 6 is priced right on top of the segment’s more popular, if less alluring leaders. And yes, I’ll be reviewing some of those other cars soon (Accord, you’re next) but if it was my money, guys, I’d go straight— er, gaily forward—to the Mazda store and not look back.

Even though the 6 hardly looked old, Mazda went ahead and updated it anyway.

• 9.23.2015

oR YoU CoULd BUY:

Honda Accord Toyota Camry Volkswagen Passat

Renowned automotive journalist Steve Siler pioneered automotive writing for the GLBT community in 1998 and currently contributes auto news and reviews to Car and Driver Magazine, Yahoo Autos, The New York Daily News, Autoblog, Details, and many more. You can follow his adventures on Twitter/Instagram: @silerroad.

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

lifestyle history The castrato Carlo Scalzi, by Joseph Flipart, c. 1737

Homo History 101 History was never as straight as we are told. Recording our history means reporting the truth. Pier Angelo

n the last few years transgender issues have been very much on the forefront of our culture and transgender people are, correctly so, demanding the right to have their bodies, lives, identities, recognized and accepted, by society at large. Conservatives and religious institutions are struggling to come to terms with the transgender movement since they are barely reconciled with the strides made by gays, lesbians and bisexuals. The Catholic Church has a gift for putting its foot straight into its mouth. We have seen it with the rampant sexual-abuse scandals perpetrated by its priests while at the same time going out of its way to discriminate against LGB people. Now theologians in the Catholic Church claim that God’s intentions have always been to place each person in a specific body for a reason. One is either male or female, nothing in between and any attempt to alter gender roles is seen as the denial of God’s will and design. If that is the case what should we make of the castrati? Castrati first appeared in Italy in the mid-16th century. The Catholic Church believed that the New Testament prohibition of women speaking in churches (Corinthians 14:34) extended to singing and therefore the soprano parts in sacred music had to be sung by young boys. Boy sopranos had short careers because puberty changed the timbre of their voices hence the castration of boys became common practice. Snatched from their families at the tender ages between six and nine they quickly became staple of church choirs in Italy and in the Papal States.

At the time women were also not allowed to appear on stage and castrati played male and female roles in opera productions. They had a hybrid status in European society, they were biologically male but weren’t considered men, some had more feminine features and were often accused of leading honest men into homosexuality with their ambiguity. The association with homosexuality and effeminacy meant the castrati were viewed as freakish and degenerate. A few castrati achieved what today would be called rock stardom fame, with devoted fans across Europe. The most famous were Farinelli (1705-1782) and Caffarelli (1710-1783), stage names for Carlo Broschi and Gaetano Majorano. When the Papal States were absorbed into Italy in 1870 the new Republic imposed its law against castration bringing the practice to a merciful end. The last castrato to leave the Sistine Chapel Choir was Alessandro Mareschi in 1902. Once again hypocrisy raises its ugly head inside the Church. If for centuries, Popes, Cardinals and Bishops, didn’t have a problem in fostering castration, which is a modification and alteration of the genitals, why are they now so adamant against those who want or need to alter their genitals because they are transgender? At least a transgender person decides of his/her own volition and free will whether to change gender, something that the castrati were never allowed to do. Slowly but surely the transgender community is beginning to get the respect and recognition those unfortunate boys never received from their own societies.

They were biologically male but weren’t considered men.

• 9.23.2015

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

music bata’s beats

John Bata

Jamie XX In Colour

hen was the last time you heard a realize that sometimes it’s better to stay for steal drum and thought “Oh My the music and go home by yourself. A subtle Gosh” -- pun intended, “This is the clever little breakup song, but still it feels future of music?” Blame Jamie XX through uplifting. his band The XX and now Listening to the LP is his solo work for changing akin to scrolling quickly the way we will forever through radio stations in the think of that instrument. As Caribbean. The beats are a “Far Nearer” with the steel drum, Jamie mix of breaks, house, and XX is the future of music. jungle. “Gosh” has a rhythm makes ample Oh, and rectangles are the similar to “The Firestarter” by use of the new triangle. The Prodigy and what sounds Standout track “Sleep like vocals by Jazzie B from steel drum Sounds” utilizes an the now defunct Soul to Soul. understated Beach Boys “Far Nearer” makes ample and adds an type acapella, creating good use of the steel drum and upbeat happy vibrations that recall distant adds an upbeat happy feel to summers at the beach. the record. feel to the Worthy first single “Loud You don’t have to leave Places” features, Romy your apartment, home or record. (XX Bandmate) -- a shorter the car you are sleeping in modern day Tracy Thorne. to feel like you have gone She knows how to push our somewhere else after taking buttons while pointing out longingly that, in the sights and sounds of “In Colour” a “you go to loud places to find someone to mostly downtempo collage – pushing us take you home.”. By the end or the track you forward in a spectrum of sound. John Bata is from Denver, Colorado and a local resident of Fort Lauderdale since 2013. He is a published poet and music aficionado. Currently he DJ’s at Ramrod on Thursdays and has been a DJ since 1992 in Washington, DC, New York City and Fort Lauderdale. One of his passions is to spotlight the latest in indie and underground dance music.

• 9.23.2015

9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

lifestyle food

Photo: Facebook.

Dapur.

Rick Karlin

ThE BruNCh BuNCh

daPur 1620 N. Federal Ft. Lauderdale 954-306-2663 DapurKitchen.com

runch buffets are usually a case of quantity over quality. That’s not the case at Dapur, where the recently inaugurated Sunday brunch manages both quantity and quality, while delivering more exotic fare than you’ll usually see on a brunch buffet. Known for innovative panAsian tapas with an emphasis on Indonesian and Malaysian cuisine, Dapur knocks it out of the park with this weekend staple. The $23.95 prix fixe ($14 more if you want to partake of the unlimited Bloody Mary, mimosa and sangria bar and you will) is one of the best deals and meals in town. Sushi chefs prepare beautiful displays of maki rolls at the same station where you can load up on buttery smoked salmon (mini bagels and cream cheese would be a nice addition, though) and a variety of salads, including mixed greens, fruit, green papaya and the Indonesian specialty, Rudjak; a refreshing combination of pickled and raw veggies and greens. The hot food station, located in the bar area, showcases a variety of Asian specialties. On the day of our visit, the options included; tom kha mussels (with Thai herbs in a coconut based broth), rich and chewy Korean-style short ribs and crispy chicken breast with sweet chili sauce. Alongside the chicken were vegetable fritters that would have benefited from being kept a little warmer. Starch options included vegetable pad thai, chicken fried rice and congee; a jasmine rice porridge with ginger, scallions and flecks of chicken. If you prefer more traditional breakfast fare, there is another station in the bar area with a chef preparing omelets, a make your own waﬄe station (double back and grab some of that fried chicken for a Southern/Asian fusion entrée), smoked meats and cheeses. There are also assorted pastries and breads available. A recent addition to Dapur’s brunch offering is a dim sum

• 9.23.2015

cart offering shrimp, chicken and vegetable dumplings, shrimp siu mai, chicken and red bean buns, steamed tofu and sweet sesame balls filled with red bean paste. The dim sum is not as successful as it could be. The baskets on the cart were stacked too high and the top layers weren’t as hot as they should be. That’s especially risky with so much seafood being offered. That’s an easy fix, and one that, combined with the attention from our adorable server, Rueben, made Dapur’s brunch close to perfection.

oThEr BruNCh BuFFET oPTioNs iNCludE:

TroPiCs 2000 Wilton Dr. Wilton Manors 954-537-6000 TropicsWM.com The $20 Sunday brunch includes two complimentary brunch cocktails. In addition to a variety of breakfast items and an omelet station, there is a carving station and dinner entrée offerings such as fish and chips, beef stew, etc. The pastry buffet is the ultimate in decadence.

hoBo’s @ rumors 2426 N. Wilton Dr. Wilton Manors 954-565-8851 RumorsBarWiltonManors.com While not the most elegant dining option (it’s a lot like eating on your Mom’s patio, if her patio was in a parking lot), service is friendly and the food is well prepared, if unimaginative (your standard, eggs, taters, meats, etc). But, you’d be hard pressed to find a cheaper brunch; the $16 tab also includes your first cocktail.

ThE Bull markET/ChoW 210 SW. 2nd St. Fort Lauderdale 954-523-1213 BullMarketbar.com The $24 all you can eat affair really tests your ability. It includes prime rib, crab legs, shrimp and unlimited sushi along with waﬄes, biscuits and gravy, bacon, eggs and made to order omelets. Since there’re two restaurants in one, you’ll also find a lot of Asian fare on the buffet. The unlimited bloody Mary bar and mimosa special is $15 per person, but I find it unfair that women get it for free. Then again, it’s aggressively hetero, so maybe save it for when your parents come to visit.

doWNToWNEr salooN 10 S. New River Dr. Fort Lauderdale 954-463-9800 DownTownerSaloon.com This place is open early for those who prefer a plated meal, after 11, it’s $14 for the buffet, which includes; scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, hash brown potatoes, biscuits & gravy, grits, a create your own omelet station, eggs Benedict, yogurt, fresh cut fruit, waﬄes, and toast. It’s a little touristy, but snag a seat along the river and your out-of-town guests will be enchanted. Savor Our City Wilton Manors returns October1! The culinary tour of Wilton Manors, with light bites and drinks at each stop, takes in six locations. Sample goodies from of the Island City’s top foodie destinations and learn a little about Wilton Manors history along the way. I will lead the next tour on Thursday, October 1 and hope you can join me. Go to www.SavorOurCity.com for more information.

Men’s Night! EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT 2 for 1 dinners* and drink specials all night long *with drink purchase

$34.95 PRIX-FIXE THREE COURSE MENU ALL SUMMER (MON - SUN) Santa Lucia Ristorante 2701 E Oakland Park Blvd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306

(954) 396-0930

SantaLuciaRistorante.com

9.23.2015 •

F O R

T H E

J.W. Arnold

SFGNiTES

jw@prdconline.com

THU

TELEViSioN

W E E K

O F

S E P T E M B E R

2 4

S E P T E M B E R

2 9 ,

2 0 1 5

W W W. S F G N . C O M

9/24

The fall television season really gets underway tonight with two highly anticipated debuts: “Heroes” proved to be ratings gold for NBC a decade ago. Tonight, the series gets a reboot with new, younger superpower-endowed do-gooders in “Heroes Reborn.” Last season, “How to Get Away with Murder” was a hit for ABC and featured network TV’s hottest openly gay character, law student Connor (Jack Falahee.) Season 2 kicks off tonight. Check local listings for stations and show times.

FRi

NigHTLiFE

9/25

Compass, the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Palm Beach County, hosts its third annual White Party tonight at 8 p.m. at Penny’s at The Duke, 902 N. Dixie Highway in Lantana. The legendary party is a fundraiser for World AIDS Day and will feature performances by Rae Jean Cox, Ricky Rollick and India Malone. DJ Q will be spinning in the booth. Enjoy complimentary hors d’oeuvres until 9 p.m. and don’t forget to pick up some 50/50 raffle tickets. For more information, go to CompassGLCC.com.

SAT

THEATER

• 9.23.2015

Photo Credit: ABC.

9/26 SUN

Andrews Living Arts (ALA) brings Tracy Letts’ edgy, award-winning play, “Killer Joe,” to its downtown FAT Village black box theater, 23 NW 5th St. in Fort Lauderdale, for a limited engagement beginning this weekend. David Wayne Scism makes his ALA directorial debut with the gritty play, set in Dallas and dubbed a theatrical “Pulp Fiction.” Thursday – Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. through Oct. 11. General admission tickets are $15 at AndrewsLivingArts.org.

Jack Falahee, left, plays a hot and bothered gay law student learning “How to get Away with Murder,” in the second season debut Thursday night of the hit ABC series.

CoNCERT

9/27 MoN

Man, has Nick Jonas grown up! He’s always been a talented singer, but Jonas has really been steaming up the airwaves as the steamy, sexually ambiguous boxer he plays on “Kingdom.” See him live tonight at The Fillmore at the Jackie Gleason Theater in Miami Beach. He’ll be performing his hits, “Levels,” “Chains,” Jealous,” “Numb,” “Wilderness” and more. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the show scheduled to begin with Bebe Rexha at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $29.50 at Ticketmaster.com.

CABARET

9/28 TUE

Singer Jennifer McClain’s “Cast Party” has moved to Georgie’s Alibi/Monkey Bar in the Shoppes of Wilton Manors. You never know who her guest artists will be—she frequently recruits performers from touring Broadway musicals and regional theater productions— but she always offers up an entertaining evening of show tunes and comedy. What else are you going to do, watch NFL football? Well, maybe, but afterwards come on down. For more information, go to AlibiWiltonManors.com.

TELEViSioN

9/29

TV hunk John Stamos has inspired more than his share of gay fantasies over the past 30 years. He’s come a long way from a bit part on “General Hospital” and eight seasons as Uncle Jessie on “Full House.” Tonight, his new sitcom, “Grandfathered,” premieres on Fox, with Stamos portraying a confirmed bachelor who discovers he’s not only a father, but a grandfather. We can already tell where this one is going, so get ready for the diaper jokes! Check local listings for stations and show times.

Presents the Theatrical Event of the Century...

Created by Broadway Director & Cirque Dreams Founder NEIL GOLDBERG

S AT U R DAY, O C TO B E R 3 , 2 0 1 5

Broward Center for the Performing Arts | 201 SW 5th Ave, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312 Tickets at BrowardCenter.org | AutoNation Box Office | Ticketmaster | 954-462-0222

Broward100.org

#Broward100 9.23.2015 â&#x20AC;¢

Photo: Philippe Bosse / Roadside Attractions.

a&e film

Stonewall Film Doesn’t Write Out Trans Folks, Drag Queens or People of Color Controversy surrounding film is unwarranted

David-Elijah Nahmod

oland Emmerich is a Hollywood A-lister best known for big-budget blockbusters like “The Day After Tomorrow” and “Independence Day.” With the soon to be released Stonewall, the openly gay filmmaker looks back upon his community’s past--the legendary Stonewall Riots. On a hot June night in 1969, patrons of the Stonewall Inn, a popular gay bar in New York City’s Greenwich Village, rioted for several nights because they were tired of being harassed by a homophobic police department. The Stonewall Riots are now credited with launching the LGBT equality movement. Stonewall runs approximately 130 minutes. Based on a two minute trailer, many in the current LGBT community are calling for a boycott of the film, claiming it “whitewashes” history by making the film’s protagonist a cisgender gay white male. Trans people of color, the protesters say, were a big part of the Stonewall story and have been excluded from the film. So are the accusations true? A press screener of the film was made available to SFGN. Now that we’ve seen the complete film, we can happily say that the film indeed includes drag queens and trans people of color, as it should. With Stonewall, Emmerich did what James Cameron did when he made the epic blockbuster Titanic (1997). Both filmmakers placed fictional characters in the middle of actual historical incidents as a means of telling a story. Danny Winters (Jeremy Irvine) is a sweet, pretty farm boy who comes to New York after being thrown out of his home for being gay. Danny is forced to grow up fast — as he’s mentored on the streets of Manhattan by Ray, sometimes Ramona (Jonny Beauchamp), a Latin drag queen who might be trans. They become best friends — Ray/Ramona is the second billed character in the film. Ray/Ramona is a prostitute, a profession many who live on the streets are forced into as a means of survival. Though Danny is forced to turn a few tricks early on, Stonewall’s script (by

• 9.23.2015

Jon Robin Baitz) makes a very powerful point: Danny has a way out. Because he’s white and can “pass” for straight, if needed, he’s able to get a job and go to school. Ray, and real life African American Stonewall survivor Marsha P. Johnson (Otoja Abit) aren’t so lucky. Neither are white, both are effeminate and could never “pass.” Their race and effeminate natures brands them for life and shuts them out of society. Stonewall does not shy away from this most inconvenient truth. Beauchamp, recently seen on Showtime’s Penny Dreadful, is sensational as the embittered, lonely but kind-hearted Ray. The actor chews the scenery as he desperately wages a losing battle against getting off the streets. Beauchamp deserves an Oscar nomination for his amazing work in this film. Irvine is good as Danny, who turns out to be much smarter than his pretty looks might suggest. After he has a brief fling with conservative gay activist Trevor (Jonathan Rhys Meyers), Danny quickly learns who his real friends are. He returns to Ray, Marsha and the Queens on the street. The Stonewall Riots are recreated in an intense, extended and unforgettable sequence, which includes a cheer-inducing scene in which Marsha P. Johnson, in full drag, punches Ed Murphy (Ron Perlman), a big, burly gay mafia goon who’s been terrorizing the neighborhood for years. Murphy is another real life character. Is Stonewall perfect? No. For instance lesbians were part of the Stonewall riots as well. Lesbians are seen in the film, but their appearances feel like a brief, underwritten after-thought. No lesbian character is developed or given a backstory. Also excluded from Stonewall is Brenda Howard, a bisexual woman who took part in the riots and played a major role in organizing New York’s first Pride Parade soon after. The solution, I feel, is to support Stonewall. There are many more Stonewall stories to be told. In showing Hollywood that there’s an audience for these stories, perhaps those other stories can be told as well.

Members of Fushu Daiko Japanese drummers rehearse at the Cirque studios in Pompano Beach.

Photo Credit: Andy Royston.

a&e theater

CirQuE CrEaTor hElPs BroWard CElEBraTE CENTENNial

ow does a county like Broward, with a diverse population of more than 1.8 million, celebrate its 100th birthday in a couple hours? That’s the challenge Neil Goldberg, creator of the international hit, “Cirque Dreams,” accepted more than a year ago. “2015 was supposed to be a bit of a break for me,” he recalled. “Then I began reading and seeing things about Broward 100 and the theme, ‘The Art of Community.’ That was fascinating to me.” For more than 25 years, Goldberg has lived with his partner and worked in a non-descript studio in Pompano Beach, mounting dazzling productions that have played Broadway and toured the globe, thrilling millions. But, 95 percent of his work, he estimated, was performed outside the state of Florida. “I choose to live here,” he said. “But this was a real opportunity to finally connect with my community.” Intrigued with the possibilities, Goldberg approached the Broward County Cultural Division and volunteered to produce a show that would not only capture the history and evolution of the county, but also showcase the talents of its residents. “They embraced me with open arms,” he said, and the hard work began. More than 3000 performers showed up at open auditions at the Broward Center, “quite the cattle call,” Goldberg described it, “from the aspiring to the retiring, but it added fuel to my fire and the passion I had for the project.” He discovered talented bands of Caribbean, African and Daiko drummers, Irish dancers, folk singers and more. Not all were professionals. Many were businesspeople and government employees, parents and professors, leading Goldberg to the story of “We.” “We quickly realized this show was much greater than any individual entertainer or the

anniversary itself,” he explained. “The word, ‘we,’ started to come up everywhere.” Goldberg and his creative team wrote a story about a series of couples beginning in 2015. After an opening number with more than 50 people on the Au Rene Theater stage, a pair of adults would walk into the sunset, only to transport the audience back in time, where other couples would reveal the unfolding milestones in the history of Broward County. These couples also reflect the diversity of the county’s residents from teenagers and twentysomethings to a gay couple from Wilton Manors. Goldberg said, “We tried to touch on as many different aspects of life here in Broward County and each couple brings a unique skill or talent.” More than 250 performers, craftsmen and technicians have been diligently working on the production and, on Saturday, Oct. 3, they will be joined on the stage by Grammy Award-winning recording artist Jon Secada and Broadway legend Linda Eder for one performance only. But when the curtain goes down on that historic show, Goldberg hopes its legacy will be far-reaching, extending beyond the actual centennial festivities. “From the onset, when I met with the folks from Broward County, the goal was to be a launching pad for things to come. That was one of the most exciting aspects—to unturn a couple of stones and reveal to our community the depth of talent living next door to each of us,” he explained. And he hopes the magic won’t be limited to just the performing arts, also inspiring artists of all kinds, from sculptors to writers, to share their talents in creative ways with their neighbors. Ultimately, he said, “It’s not what you have, but what you do with it. We have a lot of ‘haves’ in our community and with just a little bit of passion and hard work, we can make something that is amazing.” That’s the story of “WE.”

PHOTO BY FRANK OCKENFELS | ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST

J.W. Arnold

ON SALE NOW!

TICKETS STARTING AT $35!

OCTOBER 6-18 • BROWARD CENTER BrowardCenter.org • 954.462.0222 For Groups of 10+: 954.660.6307

“WE: The Passion & Rhythm of the People,” created by Neil Goldberg, will be presented on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 8 p.m. at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets are $25 – 85 at BrowardCenter.org. 9.23.2015 •

a&e comedy

Photo Credit: TheAnt.com.

Gay comedian Ant returns to South Florida this week to host the Pink Flamingo Awards at Jungle Island.

Comedian Ant Returns to Miami for Awards Ceremony J.W. Arnold

nt is back! The hyper, irreverent gay comedian is returning to Miami on Thursday, Sept. 24 to host the Pink Flamingo Awards, a benefit for the LGBT Visitor Center, and he has plenty to say to the audience at the show. Actually, Ant—Anthony Steven Kalloniatis— is rarely at a loss for words, although all he would promise in a phone conversation last week was “some hilarity.” He just returned from an extended vacation with his mother to the family home on the Greek island of Lesbos, noting he is a gay man who can also legitimately claim to be a Lesbian. “Three weeks in Europe with my mother…. and I didn’t kill her,” he exclaimed, pointing out that on the other side of the island thousands of Syrian refugees were escaping unbelievable horrors in their homeland. “Actually, it was one of the most magical times of my life. My mom is getting older and it’s a memory that will last forever,” he added. Ant then Ant immediately jumped into a Shady Pines joke from “The Golden Girls,” noting “I’m that guy,” who can quote every episode verbatim. “I have the five season DVD set. I love that show. When you feel bad about life, it says, ‘Thank you for being a friend’.” Ant, 48, also noted he’s quickly “turning into” his mother, a sentiment many gay men of a certain age often share. “Please, I have hair coming out of parts of my body that I’m sure God didn’t intend for it to come from. Twenty years ago, my friends and I were talking about getting laid. Now, it’s Medicare, creams and ointments. We show each other spots on our bodies,” he admitted. “The other day I went to bed at 7 p.m.”

Now, Ant may have been exaggerating, but he seems to find the wry humor in just about any subject. Take politics, for example: “I’m a registered Republican. Not so I can throw the vote, but so they can send me all their literature. If everybody did that, we could make them go broke. We could bankrupt them, but nobody listens to me. That’s what happens when you tell dick jokes for a living, nobody takes me seriously,” he said. Ant will be throwing his support behind Donald Trump in the primary race because a vote for “The Donald” is really a vote for Hillary Clinton. The only Republican candidate Ant won’t accept is Jeb Bush. “I believe Hillary Clinton is a shoe in. She will win. I ’m really pushing for Donald Trump. He will make our job easier,” his political sense tells him, even though he believes “any bozo on the (Republican) bus” might get the nomination. No matter who wins, Ant is glad to be in control of his career. The “Last Comic Standing” alum has already hosted his own series, “U.S. of Ant” on Logo, made an appearance at the White House and has plenty of offers coming in. He just wrapped taping of “Comics Unleashed,” a nationally syndicated show. “I’m in a very comfortable place. I’ve achieved every goal I’ve ever had,” he said, seriously. “I’m starting to understand that happiness isn’t coming from Chase Manhattan Bank at the bottom of a bank account, it comes from spending time with my family and friends and my dog.” Ant can afford to be picky and that’s exactly why he’ll be coming to Miami this week. “It’s the highlight of my year,” he concluded.

The third annual Pink Flamingo Awards, hosted by Ant, will be held on Thursday, Sept. 24 at Jungle Island in Miami. Tickets for the event, including Bacardi open bar and three-course dinner, are $75 at PinkFlamingoAwards.com.

• 9.23.2015

STARTING OUR 10TH YEAR

ASPIRE TO BE SMOOTH AT SILK. Starting our 10th year Specials Botox- $10 a unit (25 unit min) Voluma - purchase 2 get a Juvederm for $10 Radiesse - purchase 2 get a 3rd for $10 Perfect 10 Silk Liquid Lift: 2 Radiesse, 1 Belotero, 1 area of Xeomin - $1500 Belotero: purchase 1 get 2nd for $10 (great for under eye hollows!) Exp. 9/30/15

Celebrating our 6th Year on Wilton Drive!

New Patients

$69 ($295 Value)

Comprehensive Exam, Digital X-Rays & Cleaning*

Your smile should leave a great impression!

General & Cosmetic Dentistry New, State of the Art Facilities•Most Insurances Accepted Always Plenty of Free Parking•Located Conveniently on Wilton

954-565-7666 Dr. David K. Warner, DDS, FAGD Fellow, Academy of General Dentistry

1946 Wilton Drive •Wilton Manors • FL 33305 www.IslandCitySmiles.com *In the absense of gum disease. Not applicable to insurance benefits.

9.23.2015 •

PEACE PIPE Over 1,000 SQ FT. GLASSROOM!

LOWEST PRICES • LARGEST SELECTION GUARANTEED • YOUR ONE STOP SHOP FOR ALL YOUR VAPOR NEEDS!

LARGEST SELECTION

HOOKAHS • SHISHA • ROLLING PAPERS • VAPORIZERS • ELECTRIC CIGARETTES • ELIQUIDS • ZIPPOS • TOBACCO ACCESSORIES

DIESEL • LEFT COAST • MEDICALI • ROOR • GRAV LABS • SILIKA • PULSE • TSUNAMI & MORE!

INCENSE + CANDLES + TAPESTRIES • ASHTRAYS • TORCH LIGHTERS • FLASKS • BODY JEWELRY • GAMES • ROLLING TOBACCO • POSTERS • STATUES • FIGURINES • T-SHIRTS • LOTS MORE!

OPEN MON - SAT: 10AM - 9PM • SUN: 12 - 6 PM EVERYTHING YOU NEED! MORE THAN YOU EXPECT! The Best Since 1996 15 Minutes From The Beach or I-95

954-267-9005

4800 N. DIXIE HIGHWAY, FORT LAUDERDALE JUST SOUTH OF COMMERCIAL BLVD

Two Locations!

FACEBOOK.COM/PEACEPIPEFL

754-779-7007

821 N. FEDERAL HWY., FORT LAUDERDALE JUST SOUTH OF SEARS TOWN NEXT TO CUBBY HOLE @PEACEPIPEFORTLAUDERDALE

datebook

Theater Christiana Lilly

Calendar@SFGN.com

Top

Picks

The Pot

Sept. 25 to Oct. 18 at Main Street Playhouse, 6766 Main St. in Miami Lakes. Tensions rise in a household when the biracial Nathan -- adopted into a white family -- wonders about his past. Then, his sister brings home an undocumented Mexican immigrant, stirring the pot on immigration and race. Tickets $18 to $25. Call 305-5583737 or visit MainStreetPlayers.com.

Karina iglesias

Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. at ArtsGarage, 180 NE First St. in Delray Beach. Iglesias, who got her start on “The Voice,” puts on an intimate show with sultry tunes. Tickets $30 to $35. Call 561-450-6357 or visit ArtsGarage.org.

Collective Soul

Oct. 1 at 7 p.m.at Revolution Live, 100 SW Third Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. Breaking out in the middle of the grunge scene, they’ve put out hits such as “Shine,” “Gel,” “Run,” and more. Tickets $30.50 in advance, $33 day of the show. Call 954-449-1025 or visit JointheRevolution.net. * denotes New Listing

broward county * Xtreme Conference

Christian

Music

Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. at the BB&T Center, One Panther Parkway in Sunrise. Performances by Lecrae, Mercyme, Jeremy Camp, Israel & New Breed, and more. Tickets $29 to $199. Call 954-835-7000 or visit TheBBTCenter. com.

* indian Ragas on Piano

Sept. 26 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the NSU Art Museum, One E. Las Olas Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Utsav Lal on piano is joined by Rajesh Bhandari on the tabla. Tickets $15 to $50. Visit APAIArt.com.

palm beach county * Bridget Kelly Band

Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. at ArtsGarage, 180 NE First St. in Delray Beach. Middleground opens for the Bridget Kelly Band, a group inspired by the blues and classics. Tickets $25 to $35. Call 561-450-6357 or visit ArtsGarage.org.

• 9.23.2015

* The oddball Comedy & Curiosity Festival: Aziz Ansari and Amy Schumer

Oct. 2 at 5 p.m. at Perfect Vodka Amphitheatre, 601-7 Sansburys Way in West Palm Beach. The comedians have never shied away from telling a raunchy joke, and for one night they share the stage. Tickets $59 and up. Call 561-795-8883 or visit CruzanAmphitheatre.net.

Free Friday Concerts

Fridays at 7:30 p.m. at the Delray Beach Center for the Arts, 51 N. Swinton Ave. in Delray Beach. Enjoy live music from the comfort of your picnic blanket or lawn chair every week, for free! Call 561-243-7922 or visit DelrayArts.org.

miami-dade county * An Evening at the Copacabana

Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. at the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, 3385 NE 188th St. in Aventura. A night of Latin flavor while performing songs from Celia Cruz, Frank Sinatra, Carmen Miranda, Desi Arnaz, Sammy Davis, Jr. and other greats. Tickets $45 to $50. Call 305-466-8002 or visit AventuraCenter.org.

* Marc Anthony

Oct. 2 and 3 at 8 p.m. at the AmericanAirlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. Due to popular demand, Anthony has added a second show to his Miami stop. Tickets $61 to $201. Call 786-777-1000 or visit AAArena. com.

PAMM outdoor Music Series

Third Thursdays at the Perez Art Museum Miami, 101 W. Flagler St. in Miami. Come out for live music from DJs and musicians by the bay. Drink specials available. Free with museum admission. Call 305-375-3000 or visit PAMM.org.

The Big Show

Fridays and Saturdays at 9 p.m. at Just the Funny Theater, 3119 Coral Way in Miami. A collection of comedy mixing the likes of improvisation and sketches. Tickets $12. Call 305-693-8669 or visit JustTheFunny. com.

SFGN_Florida_House3.pdf 1 4/9/2015 1:03:28 PM

Where People Get Better DAOUD’S FINE JEWELRY IS NOT AN AUTHORIZED ROLEX DEALER

We Buy and Sell Rolex

We treat the chemical dependency and the underlying issues that contribute to drug and alcohol addiction. Whether you are a professional, a parent, or a student, now you can get better. All calls are 100% conﬁdential. Detox

Residential

OutpatientPM

Aftercare

MODERN & VINTAGE JEWELRY EST.1895

Daoud’s 954.565.2734

www.daouds.com Florida’s Oldest and Highest Rated Jeweler

2473 EAST SUNRISE BOULEVARD | FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33304 (across from the Galleria Mall)

IN BUSINESS FOR 120 YEARS!!!

CMY

800.778.6792 www.FHErehab.com

100% CONFIDENTIAL All calls are confidential. Your treatment may be covered 100% by insurance. Nationally Accredited Treatment Center

9.23.2015 •

Datebook

Community Christiana Lilly Calendar@SFGN.com

Top Picks namasdAY

Sept. 24 at exhale Downtown Miami, 270 S. Biscayne Blvd. in Miami and exhale South Beach, 1601 Collins Ave. in Miami Beach. Celebrate National Yoga Month with a day of free evening yoga classes, live music, trunk shows, mini spa therapies, and other relaxing fun. Free. Visit info.exhalespa.com/ namasday.

Southern Comfort Conference

Sept. 29 to Oct. 3 at the Bonaventure Resort and Spa, 250 Racquet Club Road in Weston. In its 25th year, the conference is one of the largest gatherings on the transgender community. Visit SouthernComfortConference.org.

Voices of Pride Auditions

Mondays through Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. at Compass GLCC, 201 N. Dixie Highway in Lake Worth. Come to a rehearsal and audition to join the Voices of Pride. Free. Call 561-247-4554, email info@voicesofpride.org, or visit VoicesOfPride. org.

Broward Social Services SunServe Youth Group Tuesdays and Thursdays in Fort Lauderdale, Southwest Ranches, Coral Springs and Hollywood. A support group and night of fun for LGBT youth 13 to 21. Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com for dates and times.

Survivor Support

First and third Wednesdays, 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Broward Health Imperial Point Hospital cafeteria, 6401 N. Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale. Find support from counselors and peers who have lost loved ones to suicide. Call the Florida Initiative for Suicide Prevention at 954384-0344 or visit FISPOnline.org.

GayWrites Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. at the Stonewall Library, 1300 E. Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Come join us and write your memoir, poem, blog, novel or short story. Free. Email garri1@earthlink.net

Gender Bender Youth Group Mondays from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at SunServe Campus, 1480 SW Ninth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. A group for LGBT youth 13 to 21 to discuss gender, gender expression, binary systems, friendship, family and whatever else comes up! Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com

palm beach county

PFLAG Tuesdays in Fort Lauderdale, Coral Springs and Southwest Ranches. A support group for parents of LGBT youth 13 to 21. Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com for dates and locations.

broward county * SunSentinel Career Fair

Sept. 24 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at War Memorial Auditorium, 800 NE Eighth St. in Fort Lauderdale. Come armed with business cards and a resume for a job fair, aided by Catalyst Career Group to help with recruiting and job hunting. Free. Call 815-308-5426 or email info@ catalystcareergroup.com.

* Celebration of Life

Sept. 26 from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Stonewall National Museum and Archives, 1300 E. Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. GayRights and friends invite the public to celebrate the life of J. Warren Day. Free. Contact Professor Tom Sluberski at 954-895-7034 or sluberski@ aol.com.

* Breast Fest

Oct. 1 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Pride Center, 2040 N. Dixie Highway in Wilton Manors. Kicking off Breast Cancer Awareness Month, come on out for vendors, live entertainment by DJ Citizen Jane, raﬄes, snacks and sips, and more. Proceeds benefit the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk. Free. Call 954-4639005, ext. 108 or visit PrideCenterFlorida.org.

Congregation Etz Chaim The place to be on

Sukkot at Equality Park BYO Potluck Supper in the Sukkah September 29 - October 3, 5PM-8PM Call to reserve your seat Please bring canned goods for the Food Pantry

• 9.23.2015

Through Jan. 30, 2016 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Bayfront Park, 1075 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. Fridays and Saturdays will be transformed into La Feria del Mercada de San Miguel, a traditional market in Spain, fit with food-related activities every time. Free. Visit BayfrontParkMiami.com.

Yoga in the Park

Mondays and Wednesdays at 6 p.m. and Saturdays at 9 a.m. at Bayfront Park’s Tina Hills Pavilion, 1075 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. Yogis 18 and older are invited to a yoga session taught by a certified teacher. Classes will be moved indoors in the event of rain. Bring your own mag, water, and towel. Free. Call 305-358-7550 or visit BayfrontParkMiami.com/Yoga.html

* denotes New Listing

Laser hair removal a safe, fast effective alternative forisdealing withand

alternative for dealing with - Freeeffective patch test unwanted hair.consultation and trial session! No obligation. unwanted hair. - Free patchmedical test consultation and trial - Experienced staff - We skinobligations. tones and hair colors. session! No -treat Freeallpatch test consultation and trial

- Experienced medical staff session! No obligation.

- the effective hair removal option -cost Experienced medical staff - We treat all skin tones and hair colors. with a clear price for the area you want - We treat all skin tones and hair colors. treated - the cost effective hair removal option

with a clear for the you want - the costprice effective hairarea removal option vaughan medical LLC treated with a clear price for the area you want treated Manors Wilton www.vmedical.us vaughan Buy a package of m sixedical treatmentsLand LC one will be complementary with this t – Wilton 954 9advertisement 99 M0anors 657

Rewind and renew joy in the Torah, October 4, 7PM

Mercado de San Miguel

Laser hair removal is a safe, fast and effective alternative for dealing with unwanted hair.removal is a safe, fast and Laser hair

Simchat Torah at Etz Chaim

Congregation Etz Chaim 1501 NE 26th St., Wilton Manors (954) 564-9232

miami-dade county

Men Women Men aand nd W omen

Dance the night away October 10, 7PM-?? Catered by Pomperdale NY-Style Deli

Day of rest, day of peace, every Friday at 8 PM

Sept. 26 from noon to 5 p.m. at the Norton Museum of Art, 1451 S. Olive Ave. in West Palm Beach. A Chinese celebration of the moon with art demonstrations, workshops, tea tastings, Chinese mooncakes, and a concert by Liu Fang. Museum admission $12, Palm Beach residents free. Call 561-832-5196 or visit Norton.org.

Laser Hair Removal Laser Hair free onsultation Laser H air cR emoval Removal Men a nd W omen consultation free free consultation

Deli and Dance at Sunshine Cathedral

Shabbat at Etz Chaim

* Moon Festival

www.vmedical.us t – 954 9medical 99 0657 vaughan LLC Wilton Manors www.vmedical.us t — 954 999 0657

porn pulse

Atlanta Mourns Death of Kb Love

Hunter Houston

he death of a young gay man has many in Atlanta asking questions of the adult entertainment business. Mehran “Ron” Chestnut, 25, of Douglasville, Ga., was pronounced dead by the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office on Sept. 4. Chestnut appeared in scenes for several adult film studios, most notably Raging Stallion and Next Door Ebony, and was known to work as a stripper and entertainer for Atlanta based clubs, sources say. On Facebook, Chestnut identified as “Kb Love” and his passing generated an outpouring of emotional online comments and tributes. On the website Project Q, commentator Reggie Dunbar II wrote, “We (the community at large) must train, educate and guide our younger citizens into real and less challenging employment and businesses so that they can care for themselves as all humans should.” An Atlanta Police report states Chestnut was found unconscious inside a hotel room at the Hyatt Midtown. According to the incident report, he was unresponsive and clinging to a bottle of Black Max poppers. Chestnut, allegedly, met another man at the hotel through a mobile gay “hookup” app. The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office is

awaiting a toxicology report to determine the cause of death. Ebony World Media, an Atlanta based adult entertainment company, posted the following condolences to Chestnut’s Facebook page: SAD NEWS: Our hearts go out to the friends and family of Kb Love with this tragic news of his passing from this world to the next. In the world of exotic dance and adult entertainment, there are many people with huge egos and attitudes that are often outsized and unwarranted. But KB never once exhibited any of those things. Yes, he was gorgeous to look at, but his soul was — is — kind, easy going and genuine. For projects, he professional and courteous on set and off and a genuine pleasure to work with. We will miss him and our deepest sympathies and condolences go out to all who cared for and loved him. — J. Bernard Jones aka “Christopher Ford,” Future Productions/EbonyWorld Media/ NubianStrippers Entertainment Chestnut gained a following outside of the adult business for his role in a 2013 documentary “Tha Life Atlanta” which revealed his story of battling homelessness and poverty on the streets of Georgia’s capital city.

9.23.2015 •

Business Directory health

dental LANE & ERiKS dENTAL ASSoCiATES 1831 NE 45th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308 954.771.3331 Laneanderiksdental.com oAKLANd PARK dENTAL 3047 N Federal Hwy, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306 954.566.9812 Oaklandparkdental.com ANdREWS dENTAL CARE 2654 N Andrews Ave, Wilton Manors, FL 33311 954.567.3311 Andrewsdentalcare.com WiLToN MANoRS dENTAL 2517 NE 9th Ave, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-564-4746 Wiltonmanorsdental.com

AMERiCAN PAiN EXPERTS 6333 N. Federal Hwy, Ste. 250, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 954-678-1074 Americanpainexperts.com SiMPLY MEN’S HEALTH 5405 Okeechobee Blvd #205, West Palm Beach, FL 561.459.5356 Simplymenshealth.com NATURA dERMAToLogY 1120 Bayview Dr, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 754.333.4886 Coolsculptingnaturadermatology.com MARK ENgEBRETSoN Palm Beach & Boca Raton 561.400.9297 heartofthemystery.com

legal LAW RoBiN 2550 N Federal Hwy #20, Fort Lauderdale, FL 954.630.2707 Lawrobin.com

JiMENEZ LAW 100 SE 3rd Ave #1514, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33394 954.848.3111 Jimenezlawoffices.com

professional services

2505 N. Dixie Hwy, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-566-7621 Kalismcintee.com

health EMERALd ELiTE 2301 Wilton Drive, Suite 3, Wilton Manors, FL 954.629.1377 Emeraldelitehomehealth.com

dR. ToRY SULLiVAN 2500 N Federal Hwy #301, Fort Lauderdale, FL 954.533.1520 Torysullivanmd.com THE FLoRidA HoUSE EXPERiENCE 505 S Federal Hwy, Deerfield Beach, FL 33441 800.778.6792 Fherehab.com

legal SELZER & WEiSS 1515 NE 25th St, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.567.4444 Selzerandweiss.com SHAWN NEWMAN 710 NE 26th St, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.563.9160 Shawnnewman.com LAW gC 707 NE 3rd Ave #300, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 954.573.1444 Lawgc.com

gREgoRY KABEL 1 East Broward Blvd #700, Fort Lauderdale, 33301 954.761.7770 gwkesq@bellsouth.net

8/17/15

1:56 PM

Page 1

SFGN.com

restaurants

SToRKS BAKERY 2505 NE 15th Ave, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.567.3220 Storksbakery.com THE FLoRidiAN RESTAURANT 1410 E Las Olas Blvd Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 954.463.4041

NAKEd gRAPE 2163 Wilton Drive, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.563.5631 Nakedgrapewinebar.com BEEFCAKE’S 1721 N Andrews Ave, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 954.463.6969 Boardwalkbar.com

Have you made your wishes known? We’re here to help. 1-800-343-5400

www.levitt-weinstein.com

Pre-Arrangement Discounts For All Our LGBT Friends 48

• 9.23.2015

J. MARK’S 1245 N Federal Hwy, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 (954) 390-0770 Jmarksrestaurant.com SANTA LUCiA RiSToRANTE 2701 E. Oakland Park Blvd, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 954-396-0930 Santaluciaristorante.com

BUY THiS SPACE FoR

retail

KALiS-MCiNTEE FUNERAL & CREMATioN CENTER

investments

restaurants

$250 A YEAR

BARToN & MiLLER CLEANERS 2600 N. Dixie Hwy Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-566-4314

iSLANd CiTY dENTAL 1700 NE 26th Street, Ste. 2, Fort Lauderdale, FL AMERiCAN TAXPublication & iNSURANCE :Newspaper Ad Cont. Levitt Small Ad Gay 954-564-7121 2929 E Comm. Blvd, 8th Floor Penthouse D, Fort Lauderdale, FL Islandcitydental.com 954.302.3228 Americantaxandinsurance.com iSLANd CiTY SMiLES 1946 Wilton Drive, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-565-7666 Islandcitysmiles.com

To place an ad in the Business Directory, call our sales team at 954.530.4970

PEACE PiPE 4800 N Dixie Hwy, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334 954.267.9005 Facebook.com/peacepipefl dAoUd’S 2473 E Sunrise Blvd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 954.928.2437 Daouds.com NATURAL SLEEP 3040 N 29th Ave, Hollywood, FL 33020 954.951.2678 Naturalsleepfd.com

PoVERELLo THRiFT SToRE 2056 N Dixie Hwy, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.561.3663 Poverello.org ModERN HoME 2 go 4000 N Federal Hwy, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308 954.530.5650 Mh2go.com ESTATE AUCTioN Co. 6 South Federal Hwy, Dania Beach, FL 33304 954-921-2828 Estateauctionco.com

MASTER HYPNOTHERAPIST AND LIFE COACH ADDICTIONS • SMOKING • WEIGHT LOSS • INSOMNIA • STRESS REDUCTION • ROAD RAGE • ANGER MANAGEMENT • PAST LIFE ANALYSIS • RELATIONSHIP COACHING Coach Bill For Life

WWW.COACHBILLFORLIFE.COM

954.641.8315

retail ESTATE AUCTioN Co. 6 South Federal Hwy, Dania Beach, FL 33304 954-921-2828 Estateauctionco.com

realty

HENRi FRANK gRoUP 401 E Las Olas Blvd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 954.604.9999 Henrifrank.com

travel / leisure

theaters FT LAUdERdALE gAY MEN'S CHoRUS PO Box 9772, Ft Lauderdale, FL 33310-9772 954-832-0060 www.theftlgmc.org ANdREWS LiViNg ARTS STUdio 23 NW 5th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 954.530.1879 Classcreations.com KRAViS CENTER 701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach, FL (561) 832-7469 Kravis.org

theaters AdRiENNE ARSHT CENTER 1300 Biscayne Blvd, Miami, FL 33132 305.949.6722 Arshtcenter.org gAY MEN’S CHoRUS oF SoUTH FLoRidA PO Box 39617, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33339 954-763-2266 Gaymenschorusofsouthflorida.org

veterinarian dR. PiERRE B. BLANd, dVM 3225 N. Andrews Avenue, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 954-673-8579 Doctorblandvet.com

Advertise here for

$550 a year •HONEST •RELIABLE •LICENSED

(754)-422-6288

Free Vaccines for Life Enroll your pet in the Free Vaccines for Life Program and get the yearly core vaccinations free for the life of your pet.* Core Vaccines for Dogs and Pups DHLPPC, Borditella, and Rabies

Core Vaccines for Cats and Kittens FVRCP, Feline Leukemia, Rabies

For details, pricing, and appointments call 954 673-8579 Facebook.com/doctorblandvet doctorblandvet.com * Core Vaccines and vaccinaton schedules determined by American Veterinary Medical Association Reccomendations Free Vaccines for Life Program requires a yearly regular price physical exam and excludes rabies tags, lab testing, flea and heartworm preventative, medical services, and prescription medications. Registration in the program is non transferable and other restrictions apply.

Pierre B. Bland DVM

Companion Animal Medicine and Surgery Office Calls and House Calls By Appointment

3225 N Andrews Avenue Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309

954 673-8579

9.23.2015 •

SFgN Classified$ attorney

electrical ToP dog ELECTRiC-QUALiTY CRAFTSMANSHiP AT A FAiR PRiCE - Any and all types of electrical work performed by craftsmen who care about their work. 954-533-5005 guy@ topdogelectricfl.com www.TopDogElectricFL.com Lic# 97-CME-1724-X

To place a Classified Ad, call Cindy Curtis at 954.530.4970 or email at cindy.curtis@sfgn.com

home & garden

POOL SERVICE Mention this ad and receive your ﬁrst month

FREE! some restrictions apply

Place an ad in SFgN’s Classifieds

954.530.4970 employment - full time

counselor

Serving Broward Since 1999

Call for a free estimate: 954-367-7007

licensed massage iNCREdiBLY AWESoME BodYWoRK iN WPB In-calls at a private studio 15 minutes west of PBIA. Intuitive, experienced licensed massage therapist offers affordable rates 7 days, early to late. ASK ABOUT WEEKLY SPECIALS!Calls only 561-2548065 for the very best massage experience you can get HANDS DOWN! #MA51008 AFFoRdABLE AWESoME MASSAgE BY JiM Offering Swedish, Deep Tissue, Sports and LomiLomi Massage for Men; in a very comfortable, relaxed and Private Massage Studio, NOW conveniently located in Wilton Manors on NE 26th Street, with plenty of free parking. Same Day appointments are welcome; please call Jim, 954-600-5843 email: info@ massagebyjim.com or visit my website for testimonials, rates and more. GREAT OPENING SPECIAL NOW AVAILABLE! www.massagebyjim.com Licensed and Certified MM22293

Web: www.skimmerspools.com Email: skimmerspoolservice@gmail.com

SEEKiNg FRoNT dESK PERSoN FoR dENTAL oFFiCE - Looking to hire full time 8-5 front desk person for receptionist, answering phones, filing, making appts. Full time position with benefits and fun, relaxed working atmosphere for the right person. No previous dental experience needed. Willing to train if you have good attitude and work ethic. Call 954-566-9812 or email opdentalung@aol.com HiRiNg NoW TEMPoRARY FULL TiME Retail experience is a must. Costume and makeup experience a plus but not necessary. Deerfield Beach location on Federal Hwy. May become permanent for the right person. Call 954-428-6266 or come by 950 S.Fed Hwy, Deerfield Bch between 10 and 6, Mon thru Sat.

home & garden cleaning services entertainment/dj's LiVE JAZZ FoR YoUR NEXT PARTY oR SPECiAL EVENT - Have your next special occassion be extra special with live jazz. Jazz vocalist with over 30 years experience performing in South Florida.No tapes or tracks.I work with South Florida's finest jazz musicians to make your special affair one to remember. Reasonable rates. Call Cindy at 954-298-8158 www.myspace.com/cindycurtisandcompany.

music lessons

CLEAN iT RigHT! - The best cleaning for your buck. 1BD $60, 2BD $70, 3BD $80 and up. Excellent rates & references. 10 years in business. Serving Broward, North Miami-Dade & S. Palm Beach. Call Manny 954-560-4443.

home and garden painting gREgg'S PAiNTiNg - Interior/exterior,great rates, friendliness, reliability, neatness. No job too small. Call Gregg at 617-306-5694 or 954-8705972.

WANT To LEARN HoW To PLAY THE PiANo? - Learn from an experienced teacher. All levels and ages welcome. Learn to play classical, popular, jazz, or, show tunes. Visit www.edwinchad.com or call 954-826-9555 for more information.

Place an ad in SFgN’s Classifieds

pets/supplies

954.530.4970

LiVE JAZZ FoR YoUR NEXT PARTY oR SPECiAL EVENT - Have your next special occasion be extra special with live jazz. Jazz vocalist with over 30 years experience performing in South Florida. Can work as a duo, trio or more. No tapes or tracks. I work with South Florida's finest jazz musicians to make your special affair one to remember. Reasonable rates. Call Cindy at 954-298-8158 www.myspace.com/ cindycurtisandcompany

electrician HARRY’S ELECTRiC RESidENTiAL & CoMMERCiAL - Additions, renovations, service upgrades, breaker panels,FPL undergrounds, code violations, A/C wiring, ceiling fans, recessed, security & landscaping, lighting, pools, pumps, Jacuzzis, water heaters, FREE PHONE ESTIMATES 954-522-3357 Lic & Ins. www. harryelectrician.com

• 9.23.2015

for sale PoMPANo CoTTAgE FoR SALE - Cozy 2/1 on a large lot E. of Dixie Hwy,mature trees, new kitchen/bath. Roof 7 years old. Needs finishing touches.$125k as is, owner (954) 254-7827.

piano WANT TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY THE PIANO? Learn from an experienced teacher. All levels and ages welcome. Learn to play classical, popular, jazz, or show tunes. Visit www.edwinchad. com or call 954-826-9555 for more information.

professional services other PROVEN METHOD TO INCREASE YOUR FANTASY 5 LOTTO WINNINGS - Let us help you increase your odds several times for winning some money in the Florida Fantasy 5 Lottery. Our analysis can help you win. Limited memberships available. Check out our website at www.lotteryhelpersclub. com.

real estate for sale

CONDO FOR SALE IN VIZCAYA TOWERS @ PALM AIRE - 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 2600 sf. New kitchen 2014. Original AC replaced. Porcelain floors, carpeting, crown moldings. Jacuzzi, double sink and double walk-in closet in Master Suite. Dining room. 3 enclosed sunrooms. Laundry room. Front gate security, heated swimming pool, party room, locker room, sauna, gym. Unfurnished. Buyers welcome with or without broker. $299,900. 954-972-8230. VICTORIA PARK 1 BR/1 BA - Beautiful updated 1 BR/1 BA with private fenced patio;small complex; gorgeous open beamed ceilings;tile floor; next to Holiday Park tennis courts;W/D; small dog ok; $925/ month; 954-729-1936. 2 BR 2 BA REMODELED CONDO - Tile floors, kitchen has granite, stainless upgraded appliances, & cherry cabinets. Amenities include: secure building; elevator; laundry rooms; pool,clubhouse and ample parking. In Wilton Manors, near shopping, restaurants and nightlife. Condo financials good with fully funded reserves. Price $190k. Call 318-461-1634.

rentals fort lauderdale 1414 NE 5TH Ter. HUGE 1 BR/1 BA - Condo Quality, Open gourmet kitchen w/smooth-top stove, D/W, crisp white cabinets.Tile floors, CenAir, Designer Bath,onsite laundry,$1000/mo. F/S. Pet Deposit. Owner/Licensee (954)448-9811 EAST OAKLAND PARK 2BD/1 BA HOUSE CLOSE TO WILTON MANORS - Private yard/ pool/laundry room. New kitchen,DW/disp,Central A/C, GM renter(s)Cable T.V./internet split;Electric extra.water,yardcare incl.$1300.1st, l/last/security. security negotiable. Call 954-993-8830.

rentals MIKE THE RENTAL GUY NE Lauderdale/Wilton Manors/Oakland/Victoria Park-1/1 from $885 2/1 from $1090. Credit & Income Requirements-Pets okay with restrictions. Call for Details Mike 561703-5533

rentals vacation rentals

“FILL THE VACANCY RATES” SUNDAYTHURSDAY - Need a last minute room? Take advantage of our $69 dollar rates at the NEW Calypso Inn, Wilton Manors. Not good for reservations. Good for one night only. Valid major credit card required. Phone Wes Leigh at 954605-3561 to see if there is a vacancy.

Place an ad in SFGN’s Classifieds

954.530.4970

classified advertising works! Place an ad in SFGN’s Classifieds

954.530.4970

furnished housing rentals *PERFECT RELOCATION RENTALS 4 WEEK+ SPECIAL FROM $395/WEEK Intimate 7 unit Liberty Garden Suites offering all the comforts of home. for your Vacation or Temporary Housing Needs. Beautifully Furnished & Full Equipped Studio & One BR Apts. with Full Kitchens, in lush tropical Gay Resort setting. 5 Min. south of Airport in Dania Beach. Central to Haulover Nude Beach & Wilton Manors. Incl. Wi-Fi, laundry, private parking, utilities, cable, tel. Gay Owned & Operated. Pets Always Welcome. Celebrating Our 18th Year Call Joe or Jack at (954) 927-0090 or visit www.LibertySuites.com

real estate agents FLORIDA’S TOP GAY REALTORS - Instant FREE Access to Florida and the Nation’s Top Gay Realtors. Free Buyers Representation! On-line: www.GayRealEstate.com or Toll Free 1-888-420MOVE (6683)

Place an ad in SFGN’s Classifieds

954.530.4970 9.23.2015 •