2/5/14 V5i6

DID TRANS TEEN DESERVE BATTERY CHARGE? • 11

BOYNTON ARTS DISTRICT DEVASTATED BY FLOODING • 10

local name, global coverage

february 5, 2014 // vol. 5 // issue 6

Special 12-Page Olympics Features

DANGER IN SOCHI?

Gay Olympians Past & Present, pages 20 & 28 • Beware: Danger in Sochi? page18 A Look Back on Anti-Gay Climate in Russia, page 24 • LGBT Viewer Guide, page 26 And More!

ANNUAL GAY CHILI COOK OFF RETURNS • 13

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GLAAD’S MEDIA AWARDS ANNOUNCED • 9

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WELLS FARGO UNVEILS GAY MURAL • 8

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FEBRUARY 5, 2014 • VOLUME 5 • ISSUE 6 2520 N. DIXIE HIGHWAY • WILTON MANORS, FL 33305

Last week’s hottest items couldn’t wait to be printed...

Compiled by John McDonald

Seattle Gay Club Burned Seattle police say they have arrested a 30-yearold man suspected of starting a fire at a crowded Seattle gay nightclub on New Year’s Eve. In a press release, police say they found the man on Saturday near Seattle en route to the airport.

There were 750 people celebrating inside Neighbours, Seattle’s longest running gay club, when an arsonist poured gasoline on a carpeted stairway and set it ablaze. No one was hurt.

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Detectives from SPD’s Arson/Bomb Squad, along with members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force, have been investigating the case.

Police said they received tips from the public.

They interviewed the man after the arrest and booked him into the King County Jail. No other information has been released.

Latinos Salud Celebrates Five Years

Photo: Facebook

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A Wilton Manors based non-profit providing HIV prevention, testing, counseling and linkage services, celebrated its fifth anniversary in January.

Latinos Salud opened its doors in January 2009 with its SOMOS program, which provides HIV prevention education for Latino gay men 18 to 30 years old.

“The state had released a report showing that new HIV infections among gay Latinos had increased 185 percent, and most of that increase hit the younger age brackets,” said Rafaelé Narváez, Director of Health Programs,

and the agency’s co-founder. “So there was an urgent need to serve this community, especially reaching those who emigrated to the U.S. from countries that have little safer sex education.”

Since Broward’s HIV rates are also high among older Latinos, in 2010 the agency expanded its services to Latino guys of all ages through its JUNTOS program.

“JUNTOS teaches guys to take a leadership role, and talk with their peers about HIV and STDs,” Narváez said..

Christian Rapper Makes Anti-Gay Version of “Same Love” An anti-gay cover of Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ Grammy Award-winning marriage equality song “Same Love” was released this week by Christian rapper Bizzle, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Bizzle, who is more known for an e-fight with Jay Z than the merits of his music, offered his response to “Same Love.”

Some choice lyrics (via Hip Hop DX): “You rather fight God than fight sin / The Bible is alright until it calls what you like sin / And I feel so disrespected that you were so desperate / You would compare your sexual

habits to my skin / Calling it ’the new black?’

Tell me, where they do that? / They hung us like tree ornaments, where were you at? / They burned us for entertainment, you go through that?”

In response, Nathaniel Frank, a blogger for Slate.com, wrote this: “Bizzle’s lyrics are a textbook case of homophobic narcissism. He suggests same-sex desire is a “syndrome” and a “defect,” and he compares it to pedophilia, retardation, and extramarital sex (a rich accusation, since Bizzle opposes allowing gay sex to ever occur within a marriage).”

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“DANGER IN SOCHI?” THE 2014 WINTER OLYMPICS IN SOCHI, RUSSIA BY DAVE GRIFFITHS

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.

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3

News Briefs

Compiled by John McDonald

Steroid Use Rising Among Gay, Bi Boys Gay and bisexual teen boys use illicit steroids at a rate almost six times higher than do straight kids, a “dramatic disparity” that points up a need to reach out to this group, researchers say.

Reasons for the differences are unclear.

The study authors said it’s possible gay and bi boys feel more pressure to achieve a bulked-up “ideal” male physique, or that they think muscle-building steroids will help them fend off bullies.

Overall, 21 percent of gay or bisexual boys said they used steroids, versus four percent of straight boys. The difference was similar among those who reported moderate use — taking steroid pills or injections up to 40 times: eight percent of gay or bi teens reported that amount, versus less than two percent of straight boys. The heaviest use — 40 or more times — was reported by four percent of gays or bi boys, compared with less than one percent of straight teens.

The study is billed as the first to examine the problem; previous research has found similar disparities for other

U

tah attorney general backs Nevada’s gay marriage ban

Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes and top law officers from other states are fighting a lawsuit challenging Nevada’s gay marriage ban, arguing no fundamental right to same-sex marriage exists.

The attorneys general, in a newly filed amicus brief in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, claim allowing such unions will lead to “any group of adults” seeking that status and the “tragic deconstruction” of marriage.

“If public affirmation of anyone and everyone’s personal love and commitment is the single purpose of civil marriage, a limitless number of rights claims could be set up that evacuate the term `marriage’ of any meaning,” the brief states.

Once “natural limits (are gone), it follows that any group of adults would have an equal claim to marriage.”

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and South Carolina also signed the document, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval is urging the appeals court to uphold U.S. District Judge Robert Jones’ 2012 decision in favor of his state’s voter-approved ban on gay marriage. Eight same-sex couples are appealing the ruling.

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substance abuse.

“It’s a bit sad that we saw such a large health disparity,” especially among the most frequent steroid users, said coauthor Aaron Blashill, a psychologist and scientist with the Fenway Institute, the research arm of a Boston health center that treats gays and lesbians.

“Given the dramatic disparity ... it would seem that this is a population in which greater attention is needed,” the authors said.

Their research was released Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

At the same time, Utah is appealing U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby’s December ruling overturning its voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. More than 1,000 gay couples rushed to wed before the U.S. Supreme Court granted the state’s request to halt the weddings in January.

G

ay Vietnamese Americans march again

After being sidelined from last year’s Lunar New Year parade in Westminster, Calif., gay Vietnamese Americans marched with pride on Saturday in this year’s event.

At least 70 people marched under the banner of gay and lesbian group Viet Rainbow of Orange County at the annual Tet parade in Little Saigon, said Hieu Nguyen, the organization’s co-chair.

Participants showed their Vietnamese heritage by wearing traditional dress and riding bicycles, and their sexual orientation and gender identity by carrying the rainbow flag.

Spectators showed their support by waving both the rainbow flag and the redstriped flag of South Vietnam.

“We’re trying to tap into the memories and the hearts of the spectators and let them know we are Vietnamese American and we are LGBT as well,’’ Nguyen said.

About 12,000 spectators turned out for the parade that cut straight through the

soflagaynews //

Philadelphia Prison Commissioner Defends Transgender Policy Philadelphia prison commissioner Louis R. Giorla says the department’s new transgender policy may not be perfect, but it’s a work in progress and he’s fully committed to the humane treatment of transgender inmates.

The policy, which went into effect earlier this month, reflects recent federal regulations that implement the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003.

“It’s our intention to be fully compliant with the federal regulations,” Giorla told the Philadelphia Gay News.

“Anybody who becomes incarcerated in one of our facilities — and their family members — can be assured that we’re committed to their safety, which includes their physical health and wellbeing.”

The new policy, transgender activists note, does not specify that, in some circumstances, it’s appropriate to house a pre-operative female in a female prison or a pre-operative male in a male prison.

But Giorla said that omission doesn’t mean housing decisions are made solely on the basis of an inmate’s genital status.

“Potentially, we can house them anywhere, depending on what we feel is right for their safety and our operational needs,” he explained.

Gioral cited the example of a postoperative transgender male who was housed in a female facility, largely due to the inmate’s request.

heart of the county’s Vietnamese immigrant enclave in Westminster. The event also featured historical performances, marching bands, school groups and more than 30 floats.

For years, gay Vietnamese-Americans marched in the city-run parade but were barred from participating in 2013 when a community group began sponsoring the event to mark the Vietnamese Lunar New Year celebration known as Tet. After prodding from city officials and community members, the Vietnamese American Federation of Southern California reversed course for 2014.

“It was a hard-won battle and I’m happy that they can be included this year,” spectator Mark Davis, of Garden Grove, told KABC-TV.

M

N Lawmakers Who Voted for Gay Marriage Raised More Cash

Minnesota lawmakers who took a political risk by supporting same-sex marriages have seen big increases in their campaign coffers.

The Star Tribune analyzed reports made public Saturday and found that House

SouthFloridaGayNews

Giorla said prison officials take into account an inmate’s own perceptions of their vulnerability, but many other factors are considered.

“I’m going to talk to the psychologist and the doctor. What’s the best situation? It has to be a case-by-case basis,” Giorla said. “We don’t want to deprive anybody of their rights. It’s all about the safety and the good order of the facility.”

The new policy sets forth the rights of post-operative transgender inmates to gender-appropriate housing.

members whose 2013 votes went against most in their party took in as much as quadruple the cash they raised in 2011.

The influx of cash could be helpful if these lawmakers face strong challengers or backlash for their votes.

Richard Carlbom, a spokesman for Minnesota United, which lobbied for samesex marriages, said his group and its allies helped raise $500,000 to support officials who voted for same-sex marriage. The new reports show that some lawmakers saw a clear impact.

When comparing all funds raised by House members in 2011 with those in 2013, the numbers double.

But 13 lawmakers who voted for samesex marriage in Republican districts or in districts where voters didn’t approve of legalizing gay marriage brought in 2½ times as much in 2013 as they did in 2011.

For example, Rep. Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington, supported same-sex marriage against the majority of his district.

He took in nearly $54,000 last year — four times what he raised in 2011.

The cash could help against a potential challenger, he said, and could also help other Republicans as the GOP tries to take majority in the House this year.

news highlight Florida Mayors Urge Putin to End Discrimination Against LGBT People John McDonald

jeanmichaelmcdonald@gmail.com

As the Winter Olympics gets underway this week in Sochi, mayors from three of Florida’s most important cities have joined together to call on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end discrimination against LGBT citizens.

The mayors of Tallahassee, Orlando and St. Petersburg, whose cities have Sister or Friendship City relationships with cities in Russia, co-signed a letter to Putin criticizing the anti-gay laws and violence in the country.

Tallahassee Mayor John Marks, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Saint Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman each has urged the Russian government to repeal the nation’s controversial “anti-gay” law.

The letter states, in part: “As mayors of Florida cities with Russian sister city counterparts, we are writing to address a matter of great importance that affects the lives of millions of Americans and Russians alike. In June 2013 you signed into law a measure that enforces a ban upon homosexual ‘propaganda’ in Russia. Thus, it appears that citizens and visitors to Russia that identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgender (LGBT) will

be subject to discrimination, fines, and potential incarceration. This law represents a disconcerting violation of basic human and civil rights and does not reflect the ideals or beliefs of our citizens, nor do we believe that it reflects the values of the citizens of our Russian sister city counterparts.”

Equality Florida, the state’s largest civil rights organization, initiated the letter and praised the mayors for taking action against injustice by releasing the following statement: “Last year Equality Florida wrote a letter to all Florida cities that have partnerships with Russian cities, calling on elected leaders to speak up in the face of Russia’s persecution and violence against the LGBT community.

We are pleased to see strong mayors in our state speak out and hope it will inspire others across the country to take action as well.”

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news bites

GOP Rep. Slams Clay Aiken

Russia Bans Gay Hook-up App

Dozens Arrested in Idaho

Houston Mayor Marries Longtime Partner

A North Carolina Republican representative is reacting to rumors that “American Idol” star Clay Aiken will run for Congress, Raleigh’s NewsObserver.com reports.

Rep. Renee Ellmers told North Carolina radio station 105.9 WMAL recently her thoughts on Aiken’s alleged political endeavors.

“Apparently, his performing career is not going so well. He’s very bored. I’ll tell you, I’m a little hurt. I think he has an incredible voice and he’s incredibly talented, and I’d rather have his support,” she said. “As we know, he didn’t really fare all that well. He was runner-up. He also didn’t win on [“Celebrity Apprentice”].. so I guess the next step is Congress. You know, we don’t have a very high approval rating so I guess the bar’s been lowered for him.”

Police in Boise, Idaho have arrested dozens of gay rights activists, saying their protest blocked entrances to the Idaho Senate chambers for more than two hours.

Idaho State Police say they took 43 people into custody Monday after the demonstrators stood shoulder to shoulder and prevented lawmakers from getting past.

Former state senator Nicole LeFavour, the Idaho Legislature’s first openly gay lawmaker and an organizer of the protest, had said the group would block the entrances until lawmakers agreed to take up a bill adding protections for gay and transgender people to the Idaho Human Rights Act.

Photo: Facebook

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by John McDonald

SouthFloridaGayNews

Dmitry T., founder of Hunters, the most popular Russian gay hook-up app, says his creation has been comprised. Dmitry posted on his Facebook page that sometime around February 1, a hacker attacked the app which, consequently, affected all its users in the Russian Federation. Once in Sochi, the app was completely shut down.

“I can’t believe it! Last night Hunters was hacked. This attack affected over 72,000 users in Russia, while in Sochi the app was completely blocked.

The Hunters app, with over 1.2M users worldwide, enables gay guys not only to hookup but to also find homes, friends and jobs, which is particularly important for gay people in Russia and around the world.

‘I am privileged to now be the wife of the woman I have loved for more than two decades.

I couldn’t be happier.’ Houston Mayor Annise Parker said about her wedding to her longtime partner Kathy Hubbard.

She’s the first openly gay mayor of a major U.S. city. “We have had to wait a very long time to formalize our commitment to each other.

Kathy has been by my side for more than two decades, helping to raise a family, nurture my political career and all of the other ups and down and life events that come with a committed relationship.”

Same-sex marriage in not legal in Texas.

news local

Wells Fargo Shows Support for LGBT Community

Bank unveils mural inside Wilton Manors location John McDonald jeanmichelmcdonald@gmail.com

W

ells Fargo at 5 Points unveils the Harvey Milk LGBT mural

Wells Fargo, one of the nation’s leading financial institutions, is paying tribute to the LGBT community with a new mural inside its Wilton Manors banking store.

Unveiled during a Tuesday evening soiree, the 10-foot (width) by 7-foot (height) mural depicts historical views of Wilton Manors along with images relevant to the city’s LGBT community.

“Wells Fargo is not just a company that talks about diversity and inclusion, but actually acts on it,” said Scott Coble, Lead Region President of the bank’s Florida operations.

Wilton Manors joins New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. banks with an LGBT themed mural. Located at the “Five Points” intersection in the island city of Wilton Manors (2525 N. Dixie Hwy.), Wells Fargo was full of movers, shakers and sharply dressed business professionals at Tuesday night’s unveiling.

One of the attendees was Stuart Milk, the nephew of the late civil rights leader Harvey Milk who is depicted in the mural.

Stuart Milk, who lives in Wilton Manors, said the mural is a “tremendous moment for inclusion with organizations like Wells Fargo hugging us. My uncle knew this day was coming.”

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SouthFloridaGayNews

Submitted Photos

In the South Florida market, Wells Fargo is the leading bank by deposits, said company spokeswoman Michelle Palomino. Wells Fargo has 147 locations in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties and the City of Boca Raton in Palm Beach County.

“Wells Fargo has helped to change hearts and minds,” said Stuart Milk, who also cautioned that LGBT Americans should not take their growing and new found rights for granted.

“It’s the best of times in the U.S. and the worst of times across the world,” Milk said.

“One-sixth of the world’s population was recently re-criminalized by the Supreme Court in India.”

In December the high court in India reinstated a ban on same-sex relationships.

With more than 1.2 billion people, India is the second most populated nation in the world.

Also at Tuesday’s mural unveiling, Wells Fargo presented the Pride Center at Equality Park with a $10,000 donation check.

“I’m honored to work for a company that recognizes the diverse backgrounds of its management, team members and customers,” said Mitch Bloom, Wells Fargo’s District Manager in Fort Lauderdale.

GLAAD’s Media Awards Announced

news national

Lady Gaga, Anderson Cooper, ‘Dallas Buyers Club,’ among nominees Daniel Alvarez In case you were wondering what were the most important LGBT media stories and events were this year (and who wasn’t, honestly?), look no further: the nominees for the 25th Annual GLAAD Media awards have been named. The GLAAD Media Awards recognize and honor positive portrayals and representations of the LGBT community in all forms of media, from journalism to film to television entertainment.

“Since its inception 25 years ago, the GLAAD Media Awards have reshaped the news and entertainment industries, inspiring thoughtful and inclusive characters and plotlines that have driven equality forward,” said GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis in a prepared statement. “This year has brought momentous progress for LGBT people and families – and our nominees have created images and stories that continue to challenge misconceptions, shatter stereotypes, and change hearts and minds of millions all across the globe.”

Nominated in the Outstanding Film – Wide Release: Oscar-nominated “Philomena,” “Blue Is the Warmest Color,” “Dallas Buyers Club,” “Kill Your Darlings,” and “The Mortal

Instruments: City of Bones” Outstanding Film – Limited Release: “Concussion,” “Geography Club,” “Out in the Dark,” “Reaching for the Moon,” and “Yossi,” a sequel to the GLAAD Media Award-winning film “Yossi & Jagger” (2003).

Outstanding Comedy Series – “Glee,” “Modern Family,” and first-time nominees “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Orange is the New Black,” and “Please Like Me.” Outstanding Drama Series – “Pretty Little Liars,” “Shameless,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Fosters,” and “Orphan Black,” represent a diverse range of characters and storylines.

Outstanding Music Artist – Lady Gaga is nominated alongside Elton John, Tegan and Sara, Vampire Weekend, and Goldfrapp.

Goldfrapp released a powerful music video for “Annabel” about a child escaping to the woods to explore their gender, while Tegan and Sara’s critically acclaimed Heartthrob was the duo’s best-selling album to date.

Outstanding Documentary – “Call Me Kuchu” and “God Loves Uganda,” which was recently short-listed for an Oscar nomination.

Other nominees include “Bridegroom,” “The New Black,” and “Valentine Road.”

Among the journalism nominees, “The Last Word” with Lawrence O’Donnell is nominated for Outstanding TV Journalism Segment for the “Scouts Dishonor,” interview with Zach Wahls, founder of Scouts for Equality and Daniel Hernandez. Al Jazeera’s The Stream received a nod for a segment on India’s hijra community a portrait of Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) attorney Mary Bonauto by Buzzfeed’s Chris Geidner was nominated for Outstanding Digital Journalism Article, while a series in the Juneau Empire about Juneau, Alaska’s LGBT community received a nomination for Outstanding Newspaper Article. Other journalism nominees include MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry, PBS’ To the Contrary, The New York Times, Black Enterprise and HuffPost Live.

“Project Runway,” “Days of Our Lives,” “Drop Dead Diva,” “Anderson Cooper 360,” ESPN The Magazine, Black Enterprise, “Batwoman,”

Home Owners

and “Young Avengers” also received nominations.

Several Spanish-language nominees include the Univision novella “Amores Verdaderos,” which included the wedding of a gay couple, Al Punto for its coverage of the Supreme Court ruling on DOMA, and Sábado Gigante for its interview with Karina Hermosillo, the first openly gay beauty pageant contestant on Nuestra Belleza Latina.

To receive the latest updates on the GLAAD Media Awards, follow @glaad on Twitter and use the hashtag #glaadawards.

The GLAAD Media Awards, presented by Ketel One Vodka, Wells Fargo, and Hilton Worldwide, will be held on Saturday, April 12 and The Beverly Hilton and in New York City on May 3 at the Waldorf Astoria New York.

Hurricane

Flood

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news local

Boynton Arts District Damaged by Floods

Gay director struggles to rebuild; needs help Donald Cavanaugh

F

looding from recent rains caused $50,000 in damages

As readers will recall, an unprecedented amount of rain fell on South Florida in early January. On Jan. 10, more than 22 inches fell in the Delray Beach, Boynton Beach area, flooding locations west of I-95 that no one had anticipated including the Boynton Beach Art District at 404-422 West Industrial Ave. “It was an unbelievable mess,” said Art District mover and shaker, Rolando Barrero.

“There were about 14 inches of standing water inside and outside all 11 studios.”

“I lost about $50,000 in art work,” said Richard Beau Lieu, sculptor and art appraiser who opened his studio in the district in 1986. “We’ve never had water before,” he continued. “So people never worried about storing archival material on lower shelves.

Who would have guessed?”

According to Beau Lieu flood gates in a nearby canal were not opened during the heavy rains and this may have contributed to the water accumulation on the grounds.

Beau Lieu said he had written to the city but thinks the canals might be the responsibility of the county.

“My losses were in excess of $50,000,” Barrero said. In addition to my damaged artwork that can’t be sold, I had all the electronic equipment that supported our projects. My computers were flooded as were sound boards, speakers, lighting fixtures.

What a mess.”

“Worse,” Barrero said, “We’d been chosen to be the VIP Satellite Exhibit for ArtPalmBeach which started on Jan. 23.

Thirteen days to dig out of the mess. And we did it.”

Barrero attributes much of the success to

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SouthFloridaGayNews

the artists and their friends and colleagues as well as buyers, agents and local volunteers who came off the street to help put things back together.

Graffiti artists arrived and touched up the parts of their murals that had been soaked.

Local neighbors brought food and encouragement.

The volunteers stripped out wet and molding walls, pressure cleaned with bleach and soap and installed new walls. They rented tables and other supplies and were ready on time to welcome some five hundred art lovers to enjoy the work of the district as part of ArtPalmBeach.

“It looks great,” Barrero said. “But it’s all superficial and now comes the task of rebuilding two and a half years of infrastructure that was wiped out in about a day.”

Barrero expressed gratitude to the readers of South Florida Gay News who drove up from Fort Lauderdale to help. “We’d run a full-page ad in the paper and when people in Broward heard about the flood, many of them came to help. It was amazing,” Barrero said.

“We lost the organic garden,” he said. We managed to save most of the soil but we can’t call it organic anymore. We’ll be installing a lot more decorative plants than in the past.

But what can you do?”

According to Barrero, some of the loss is covered with insurance; a lot is not, and he needs an immediate $2,500 to replace some of the damaged electronics.

For more information on how you can help visit http://bit.ly/LmrfBW

news national

Trans Teen Charged With Battery, But Did She Deserve It? David-Elijah Nahmod

When Jewlyes Gutierrez came out as transgender, her family stood by her. But things didn’t go as well in Hercules High School in California, where Jewlyes attends class.

According to a number of news sources, the teenager was charged with battery after an altercation between herself and several other students. None of the other students have been charged.

Gutierrez is being bullied again, by the DA, who should know better.”

“Since when aren’t we allowed to defend ourselves?” asks Donna James of Coal Valley, Illinois.

Many of the signers identified themselves as transgender, saying that they too had been subjected to bullying and abuse.

The petition has drawn support in high

Many have cried foul, pointing out that Gutierrez was merely defending herself after months of being on the receiving end of bullying. Her requests for help had been ignored by teachers and school administrators.

Dan Cabral, a senior deputy for the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s office, defended the decision to charge Jewlyes.

“I can tell you that the juvenile justice system is very different from the criminal justice system,” Cabral said to SFGN. “In the juvenile system the goal is to provide care and treatment consistent with what is in the best interest of the minor while also holding them accountable.”

Cabral did not address why the other students weren’t being charged. Nor did he discuss the details of the case against Gutierrez.

“The case involves juveniles,” he said. “These matters are considered confidential pursuant to California Welfare and Institutions Code 827.”

Since the charges were brought though there has been significant community outrage. A Change.org petition, posted by Gutierrez’ sister Valerie Poquiz, calls upon Cabral to drop the charges.

“Jewlyes defended herself against three girls who were tormenting and then physically attacked her,” Poquiz writes. “This was captured on video and you can see Jewlyes trying to run away. One of the girls who attacked Jewlyes repeatedly bullied her, even spitting gum in her face.”

As of January 27, the petition received 196,758 signatures.

“We must teach tolerance to our children and eradicate bullying,” posted petition signer Avery Leinova of Portland Oregon. “Bullies must be firmly dealt with, and this should include sensitivity training. In this case, Jewlyes

places. Trans advocate and GLSEN (Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network) are among the organizations standing behind it. The Transgender Law Center issued a statement in support of Jewlyes on it’s website.

“Gutierrez has been the victim of severe bullying,” the statement reads in part. “After repeatedly asking her school to address the bullying, she felt like she had no choice but to take her defense into her own hands. In a recent survey conducted by GLSEN found that 89% of transgender students were harassed at school.

Half reported having attempted suicide.”

California Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla of the 14th District, where Jewlyes lives, wrote a letter to the District Attorney urging that the charges against Gutierrez be dropped. Bonilla shared that letter with SFGN. “Violence towards transgender and queer youth is a serious problem,” writes Bonilla.

“I believe that we all need to work together to create educational programs and resources to create safe spaces, teach tolerance, and implement effective bullying prevention practices. I believe that prosecuting Ms. Gutierrez would demonstrate to her peers and our community that intolerance, bullying and discriminating against others because they are different is acceptable.”

Kaylie Simon of the Contra Costa County Public Defender’s Office told SFGN that the family is not speaking to the press at this time.

Simon said that Gutierrez was doing OK. “By filing charges against Jewlyes, the victimization of her continues,” Simon said.

“She was and continues to be harassed at school. I think it is important for the community to share with the district attorney their support for Jewlyes.” soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

11

news national

The New Bareback Porn

State Department Releases “We Are All Athletes” Video

Studio digitally removes condoms

Daniel Alvarez

At the 2014 Winter Olympics (February 7-23) and Paralympics (March 7-16) at Sochi, Russia, Team USA represents our country not just by being the best in their athletic field, but by being as diverse as the American people.

To honor them and to promote the peaceful ideas of teamwork, as well as the similarities we all share, and the differences that make us unique, the U.S. Department of State has produced a one-minute video, “We Are All Athletes,” showcasing what makes Team USA,

Daniel Alvarez

and the country they represent, true winners.

“We Are All Athletes” highlights U.S. Olympians, Paralympians, and recreational athletes of many different backgrounds, including gender, race and ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and abilities.

The English version of the video can be viewed at: http://goo.gl/C4qpzR. Cheer on Team USA to bring home the gold by sharing the video and discussing it via the hashtags #Sochi2014 and #TeamUSA.

When it comes to porn, people often forget that they are viewing a sort of illusion, not taking into consideration the amount of behind-the-scenes work.

Now, gay film producer Falcon Studios is using new tech skills to further create an idealized version of sex: advanced Photoshop to digitally remove condoms from the final cut.

While Falcon Studios’ upcoming release, “California Dreamin,” was shot with the actors using condoms, the end result appears as if they are going condom-less, commonly known as bareback.

The new creative direction stems from two trends in the porn industry: consumer demands that want their porn sanscondoms, while satisfying state regulatory agencies that have fined adult film producers for going without.

Falcon itself has used condoms in all its features since the late 80s. In an interview

with the consumer-facing blog, GPB, director Tony Dimarco described it as “a throwback to the classic, pre-condom Falcon poolside movies from the 70’s and 80’s.”

“With this movie I really wanted to capture the essence of that time, when life seemed more carefree and spontaneous. In keeping with this concept, I felt that condoms need to be addressed. I wanted to give the impression of a precondom movie, but use condoms as we do in every scene we film. I found a way to film the movie safely and effectively, while giving the experience that I had intended and using the hottest modern stars.”

Given recent events where several porn actors have tested positive for HIV, the bareback ban is in place for the safety and health of the actors; but now, thanks to the magic of Photoshop and editing, Falcon Studios can keep both their fans and feds satisfied.

Help Poverello be voted #1.

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And Vote Every day!

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all items over $1.00

Saturday & Sunday February 8th & 9th Poverello Thrift Store Mon-Sat 10-7; Sun Noon-5 2056 N. Dixie Hwy • Wilton Manors • FL 33305 (954) 561-3663 • www.poverello.org soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews

news local

Dust Off Those Cowboy Hats!

Second annual gay chili cook-off promises to be a spicy good time Andrea Richard Penny Johnson is having a party and says you and your fabulous cowboys and cowgirls are invited. This Sunday, join her for a country good ole time at the second annual Gay Chili Cook-Off. All the fun and madness will go down at her venue, Penny’s at the Duke, a bar occupying the former Duke Lounge off Dixie Highway.

Johnson took over the Duke Lounge and renovated it, making it the only lesbian owned bar in Lake Worth.

As the event name suggests, there will be chili, lots of soulful comforting goodness to

fill up your bowl. Attendees can vote for their favorite chili or take the reins as the chef and vie for a chance to win the next Top Chili Chef Award. Now that’s a spoonful.

This happening is a prime reason to dust off your cowboy boots or perhaps buy a pair.

Be sure to hit the dance floor for some line dancing action. Don’t be shy. DJ Q will spin country tunes to get those feet moving.

A five-dollar cover is suggested to attend.

All proceeds will benefit Compass Youth Group, an organization that supports LGBTQ kids and teens ages 6 to 17 years old.

Headquartered in Lake Worth, Compass offers a youth a center to hang out in, work on homework, and meet new people in a safe environment.

Last year’s event raised $3,000 for the Compass Youth Group. Cooks are from area venues such as H.G. Rooster’s, The Mad Hatter, and various LGBT and straight allied community groups.

The second annual Gay Chili Cook-Off

takes place from 1 to 7 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 9 at Penny’s at the Duke, 902 N. Dixie Highway, Lantana.

Visit Facebook.com/PennysAtTheDuke or call 561-318-7359. Cover is a $5 suggested donation.

White Out the New World Symphony Joshua Gersen, conductor Laura of Miami, DJ FEB 21 @ 9:00 PM New World Center www.nws.edu/pulse soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

13

opinion publisher’s editorial

Coke is the Gay Thing

Backlash felt over ‘It’s Beautiful’ commercial Norm Kent

norm.kent@sfgn.com

During Sunday’s 2014 Super Bowl between the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos, Coca-Cola aired a 60-second commercial titled “It’s Beautiful,” a portion of which briefly highlighted two men that appeared to be gay fathers. The ad shows two dads rollerskating with their daughter.

The move comes on the heels of CocaCola facing a backlash for the company’s sponsorship of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics in the wake of Russia’s crackdown on members of the LGBT community.

The company also recently landed in hot water when a new social media campaign related to the Olympics allegedly prevented users from typing the word “gay” on a customizable Coke can, but allowed the use of the word “straight.”

In wake of the backlash surrounding CocaCola’s involvement in these previous two events, some prominent LGBT leaders took to social media to express their opinions about the company’s inclusion of the two gay fathers in the Super Bowl commercial.

On Twitter, my friend Mike Signorile, an author and radio talk show host, posted : “If @CocaCola thinks including gay family in Super Bowl ad excuses sponsoring #Sochi they’ve been drinkin’ too much cola.”

Dan Savage, featured in SFGN’s Mirror magazine, and a columnist often seen on television with Bill Maher, wrote: “Now, @CocaCola?

Put a pair of Russian gay dads in an ad that you run in Russia — during the Olympics.”

Chris Johnson, the talented Washington Blade reporter, remarked, that at first he was snarky about the ad, “but now that I see the hateful reaction,

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I commend them for boldness of airing it during the SuperBowl.”

GLAAD, an LGBT rights advocacy group, praised the spot in a statement and noted that it marks the first Super Bowl ad to feature a gay family. Conservative and family groups were not so happy, though. The right-leaning news outlet Breitbart.com reported Sunday night that the Coca-Cola ad sparked “outrage from some viewers” because, among other perceived offenses, it “featured a gay family.”

If she were alive, I am guessing the author of the anthem might be a little bit perturbed about that. You see, she was a lesbian. Yes, in fact. Katharine Lee Bates, who first drafted the words to ‘America the Beautiful’ in 1893, lived in Wellesley, Mass., for 25 years with Katharine Coman. She loved America despite the homophobia of its forefathers and foremothers.

The reality is that anyone from 9 to 90 years old can open a Twitter account and post moronic, mindless and myopic slurs. And they

soflagaynews //

do. So the social media site was populated with toxic and poisoned posts after the ad ran.

What that says to me and what it should say to you is that the LGBT community still has not won over Americans of all ages. We have a ways to go yet, don’t we?

Dan Savage is right, of course. We should air the ad in Sochi. But it reminds me of the line about get the log out of your own ear before you stick a pine cone in mine. Or something like that. In fact, Vladimir Putin pointed that out to remind us all is not perfect here in the states. For example, while we have politicians debating the safety of the Sochi Olympics, we have police cleaning up bodies in American shopping malls every weekend.

It was not only the homophobia that came out of the closet with this ad. Not surprisingly, the ad also provoked a storm of haters tweeting that all the non-English speaking voices in the ad should ‘Speak American.’

“Speak English or go home,” said one commenter on one Twitter account. Another

SouthFloridaGayNews

commented, “Screwed up a beautiful song.

No Coke for my family.” Thousands more commented, and so many of the remarks were just ugly.

Of the song, SFGN would say that we should be grateful it was presented in many languages.

From our earliest days on Ellis Island, we have welcomed foreigners to our shore, and made those cultures and customs our own. Diversity is the essence of a pluralistic society. That is what a melting pot is all about.

It’s 2014, and we are emerging, slowly in stages, from an Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 to a Civil Rights Act in 1964, to an African American president in 2014. That African American endorsed LGBT equality in his inaugural address last year, when he said, from “Seneca Falls to Selma to Stonewall,” we are all equal.

Folks, the LGBT community is on the right side of history, and we will get to that rainbow one day. But before the rainbow there are storms we must weather, currents and tides that you have to sail. Whether it was last year’s Super Bowl controversy on marriage equality or this year’s discussion of gay rights in Sochi, the important thing is to be heard; to stand naked before the cannon, if necessary.

It was in 1968 that two African American athletes won an Olympic Medal and shocked America by raising a black-gloved fist in a Black Power salute during the national anthem. I promise you this; in the next week, some gay athlete, or gay supportive athlete, will medal in the Olympics. When the national anthem, written by a lesbian, is played, they will raise a gay flag in their honor. And we will have won again. But no one promised us a rose garden, and even they have thorns. The battle goes on.

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soflagaynews //

15 5/10/2013 5:40:28 SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 // PM

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When the holiday season comes to an end and all the festivities are over, you are left with a new year. It can be a time to set in place all the things you wished you would have done in 2013. I know I am taking full advantage of the New Year by ensuring that the youth we serve at Compass have access to the resources, technology and opportunities that they deserve.

Our goals for 2014 are to further the potential of our youth by providing them with opportunities that nurture their talents, enhance their cultural exploration activities and link them with positive peer role models. Our youth are some of the brightest and most actively involved in South Florida. They are already leaders in their community and school.

As future leaders we’re providing scholarships for them to visit our state capitol for Legislative Education Advocacy Days in March, hosting Compass Youth’s 2nd Annual Equality Prom in May, expanding Cultural Exploration activities throughout the year and recently sent some of them to the 26th Annual National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Creating Change Conference in Houston.

We are fortunate to have individual support and community partners like Integrity – Palm

SouthFloridaGayNews

Beach at St. Andrews Episcopal Church and Penny’s at the Duke who support the efforts we strive to achieve this year by hosting annual fundraisers. Integrity – Palm Beach at St. Andrews Episcopal Church is a longtime supporter of Compass Youth Program and is hosting a Mardi Gras fundraiser Feb. 8 at 6 p.m.

Last year, Penny’s at The Duke created South Florida’s only Gay Chili Cook-off and they are bringing it back! You do not want to miss out on this event. Roll up your sleeves, slip into those Daisy Dukes, break out the Cowboy boots and come hungry!

On Feb. 9 at 1 p.m. there will be celebrity performers with DJ Q spinning the best country music, a 50/50 raffle, and prizes for the fan-favorite chili. The best part is, all entry proceeds and half of the 50/50 raffle support fantastic opportunities for Compass Youth to reach their goal for 2014.

If you are just like me and want to start the New Year off on my best pair heels, it is the perfect time to come out to support your community and give back to the next generation of leaders. With your support and participation we can make our youth goals a reality.

Julia Murphy is the Youth Program Director.

She can be contacted at Julie@compassglcc. com

soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

17

COVER STORY

Beware: Danger in Sochi Winter Olympics is fraught with drama, controversy, threats and more Associated Press The countdown to Sochi was supposed be joyous, a celebration of all things Russian and the Olympics, too.

Instead it’s been nothing but a grim reminder that Olympic of�icials had no idea what they were getting when they bought into Vladimir Putin’s visions of surf and snow and handed him a Winter Olympics to call his own.

Every day seems to bring a new threat or another warning. Every day strains the nerves more, to the point where some athletes are telling family and friends it’s not worth the risk to go, even for the most important moment of their lives.

Suicide bombings a few hundred miles away. Threats of more to come in Sochi itself. A hardened militant group nearby with an immense hatred of Putin and Russia and little regard for human life.

And a general uneasiness that no matter how many billions they’ve spent, the Russians really aren’t ready for this at all.

If the latest news that three so-called “black widows” intent on carrying out suicide bombings are believed to already be in Sochi isn’t enough to put a damper on the fun and games, consider this: The same Islamic militants who assassinated the Russian-backed leader of Chechnya - the father of the current president - in 2004 have not only have declared their intention to attack the games but demonstrated with his death that they have the creativity and means to do just that.

“There is precedence to this,” warned Lt. Col. Robert Schaefer, a Green Beret who literally wrote the book about the brutal con�lict in the North Caucasus region. “It’s important to think about how (Chechen president Ramzan) Kadyrov’s father was killed at a stadium rally. During construction at the stadium they buried two 155 mm artillery shells in the concrete below the VIP bleachers.

Then they waited until the elder Kadyrov attended and they detonated it.”

Think about that as you watch the opening ceremonies unfold in all their grandeur on television. Or when Shaun White attempts some �lips, and the worst

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SouthFloridaGayNews

thing that seems possible is that he wipes out at the top of the half pipe.

Yes, Olympics have been a target of terrorists ever since the 1972 massacre of Israeli athletes and team members in Munich. A lone wolf bombing in Atlanta killed one person in 1996, and the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City were clouded by fears of the 9/11 attacks that had taken place just months earlier.

But never have the threats seemed so real as they do in Putin’s playground by the Black Sea, just on the other side of the mountains from an area steeped in blood and years of con�lict that include two recent wars between Russia and Chechnya unmatched for the brutality on both sides.

Already, militants have claimed responsibility for two bombings that killed 34 people in a train station and on a bus in Volgograd, about 400 miles from Sochi. One of their top leaders has called for his followers to “do their utmost to derail” the games, describing them as “satanic dances on the bones of our ancestors.”

These aren’t people used to making idle boasts. They’ve been �ighting Russians for generations and are blamed for some of the most savage terrorism attacks in recent years, including a Moscow theater takeover in 2002 that ended in 170 deaths and a school siege two years later in North Caucasus where more than 300 died, many of them children, when Russian troops stormed the building.

And they roam not far from venues where the world’s best ice and snow athletes will perform in front of television cameras beaming it all to hundreds of millions of people around the world.

“It doesn’t take an expert to look at that region and say the Olympics will be such a large target that insurgents will not try to do something,” said Schaefer, who will be in Sochi as a security analyst for NBC. “There has been an average of 10 to 15 attacks in North Caucasus every month in recent years. It’s just now the press is paying more attention to it.”

That’s more than can be said about the IOC delegates who decide where every

Olympics will go. They were won over in 2007 by a personal appearance by Putin, voting for his Olympics over Pyeongchang, South Korea, and Salzburg, Austria, after being assured that the coastal area of Sochi and the snow-capped mountains behind it would provide a spectacular backdrop for the games.

Apparently, the delegates never read the history books about a region long in turmoil. Or maybe they just were too busy having cocktails and getting picture taken with Putin they forgot to look at a map that shows Dagestan, now the most volatile part of the area, just 300 miles east of Sochi.

What was supposed to be a troublefree Olympics built at a cost of $12 billion is now a bloated games costing more than $50 billion - with one IOC of�icial saying a third went to bribes, kickbacks and other corruption. Hundreds, if not thousands, of residents were displaced from their homes for Olympic construction, and an AP reporter just this month visited residents without running water and using outhouses less than 2 miles away from the main Olympic cluster.

Add into that the uproar over Russia’s new anti-gay law, Putin’s recent clumsy effort that seemed to equate gays with pedophiles, and the fact a third of the tickets have gone unsold as foreigners for the most part are staying away.

But it’s the danger of terrorism that is most worrisome, despite an exclusion

zone spreading out miles around Sochi and the tens of thousands of police, troops and other security personnel that will be on patrol in Sochi and the surrounding area.

Schaefer said one of his biggest concerns is that construction workers – many of them foreigners – could have taken bribes to look the other way while explosives were buried or caches of weapons stored in the frenzied buildup of facilities over the last few years. Another is that the railway bringing in almost all the spectators is a prime target stretching hundreds of miles that is incredibly hard to completely defend.

“The Russians are de�initely pulling out all the stops,” said Schaefer, author of the 2011 book “The Insurgency in Chechnya and the North Caucasus: From Gazavat to Jihad.” ’’I have people in the country now saying they have roadblocks completely around Sochi four hours out and people are not getting in unless they demonstrate they have good reason. But we’re talking about a committed group of people, and even the best security in the world may not be able to stop everything. We had great security at the Boston Marathon as well.”

Ultimately, Schaefer said, the best chance these games may have to be safe will be because of the same man who brought them to the doorstop of his vacation home in the area. Putin, he said, came to power because he was a strong �igure at the time of the second Chechen war, and he wants to show in his second tenure as president that he has put down the rebellion.

“What could sell the world more than anything else is he’s the guy who �inally did what all Russian Czars couldn’t he tamed the Caucasus,” he said. “You have a large Olympics and you pull it off without incident, then you demonstrate to everybody that I’ve beaten them.”

The best hope for an Olympics that never should have been in Sochi to begin with is that this is one more time Putin gets what he wants.

No cheesy taglines, just results.

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SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

19

PEOPLE

What Would Brian Boitano Do?

A homage to gay Olympic figure skaters David-Elijah Nahmod

10

It’s a running joke that all male figure skaters are gay. Obviously that’s not true. However, here are Olympian figure skaters that really are gay.

% Photos: Wikipedia

Brian Boitano The incredibly handsome Boitano placed second in the 1984 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, which earned him a spot in the Winter Olympics that same year. He placed fifth.

Boitano continued to compet in skating championships for the next four years, returning to the Olympics in 1988. He competed against fellow champion Brian Orser in what was called the ‘Battle of the Brians.’ Though Boitano placed second, he went on to win many championships.

Since his retirement, Boitano won an Emmy for Carmen on Ice. His many projects include ‘What Would Brian Boitano Make?,’ a Food Network series. The show’s title is a nod to the running gag “What Would Brian Boitano Do?” on the Comedy Central animated series “South Park.”

He’s also hosted The Brian Boitano Project on HGTV and has published a cookbook.

In December 2013, President Barack Obama named Boitano to the U.S. Delagation at the Sochi Winter Olympics. Boitano immediate came out as gay in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent signing of anti-gay laws.

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SouthFloridaGayNews

Photo: Olympic.org

John Curry

(1949-1994)

British figure skater won a Gold Medal at the 1976 Olympics, the year he retired from the sport. He was named by the BBC as Sports Personality of the Year, also in 1976.

After his retirement from competition, Curry founded a touring skating performance troupe, performing on Broadway in 1978. Two years later, he returned to Broadway in a revival of the classic musical Brigadoon.

Curry tested positive for HIV in 1987.

He spoke to the press about his disease, and his sexual orientation. He died of an AIDS related heart attack in 1994 at the young age of 44.

Johnny Weir Weir has competed in many skating championships. He placed 5th at the 2006 Olympics and 6th at the 2010 Olympics.

His outrageously flamboyant appearance caused speculation about his sexual identity for years but Weir didn’t come out until his 2011 autobiography.

Weir, an admitted fan of Russian culture, has been hired by NBC to be a commentator at the 2014 Sochi Games. He was immediately condemned by Catholic News Agency columnist Louie Verrecchio, who called Weir a “flamboyant, cross dressing, homosexual man.” Weir has also been condemned by the LGBT community for his participation in Sochi. His husband is of Russian decent.

Photo: Wikipedia

KELLER WILLIAMS

Brian Orser Brian Boitano’s competitor won Silver Medals at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics.

He was outed in 1998 when his former partner sued him for Palimony. He has since embraced the support he got from other skaters and the public.

Orser is currently the head instructor at the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club.

Photo: Wikipedia

Matthew Savoie

Photo: GreginHollywood.com

Savoie placed seventh at the 2006 Olympics.

The following year he began a fouryear term as the athlete representative to the Single and Pair Technical Skating Committee for the International Skating Union. In 2002 he graduated summa cum laude from Bradley University, with a major in political science and a minor in biology.

After the Olympics he attended law school at Cornell University where he served as secretary of the LAMBDA LGBT Law Students Association. Currently an associate at a law firm, he married attorney Brian Boyle in Massachusetts in 2012.

Ronald Robertson (1937–2000)

Robertson was an American figure skater who was best known for his spinning ability.

He won the silver medal at the 1956 Winter Olympics.

American film star Tab Hunter detailed his relationship with Robertson in his autobiography “Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star” where Hunter also came out of the closet.

Photo: GayWorld.com soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

21

COLUMN

Looking Beyond Russia’s Anti-Gay Laws

The LGBT community’s plight in Russia is nothing compared to what other minorities have faced Bil Browning

Let’s Be

Blunt.

If you need legal help, We can help.

The Law Offices of Norman Kent & Russell Cormican

American LGBT activists have targeted the Winter Olympics in protest of Russia’s draconian anti-gay laws. Whether it’s pouring bottles of vodka in the gutter, disrupting orchestra performances, protesting outside embassies, or hijacking corporate sponsors’ twitter hashtags, activists and organizations have made Russia’s treatment of queer citizens one of Americans top two concerns about the games.

One popular pro-gay graphic circulating on social media shows the Coca Cola logo from the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin under the Nazi regime beside the modern version plastered all over Sochi.

In an attempt to shame a company that makes a fortune from selling an unhealthy beverage and using loopholes to avoid paying their taxes, organizers are trying to draw a comparison to Coke’s sponsorship of Hitler’s games.

Unfortunately, they manage to completely erase the pain of the Jewish holocaust by exclusively claiming it for our own. While LGBT people were persecuted and killed by the Nazis, it simply doesn’t compare to genocide and only serves to paint us as shallow vapid creatures only concerned with our own self-interests. Russians aren’t exterminating LGBT people en masse; there is simply no comparison.

Worries about the safety and security of both athletes and spectators from terrorist attacks have dovetailed nicely with photos and Facebook memes showing battered and bloody gay Russians beaten by police or attacked by deranged vigilantes. Citing the potential for terrorist attacks, the government has issued a formal safety warning for American visitors and athletes are telling family members to stay home.

The American attention span, however, seems to have glossed over why Sochi would be a target for terrorist attacks. If you spend time on conservative political sites, you’ll learn that the potential attackers are Muslims, but not much more than that. The Russian resort town isn’t in the Middle East and Al Qaeda isn’t involved. Without the known support beams, Americans’ myopia

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SouthFloridaGayNews

allows them to focus on the comfortable trope of the Muslim terrorist while ignoring anything in the bigger picture.

Curiously enough, the Coca Cola graphic could actually be used more appropriately

by Chechen separatists responsible for the terrorist attacks than gay activists. They, like their Circassian neighbors, were slaughtered en masse by the Russian government and the killings have continued into modern times. The then-Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Chechnya in 1999 that killed 150,000-200,000 ethnic Chechens and displaced another 300,000 civilians.

The Circassians were conquered by the Russians in the early 1800s and were used as an example to other Muslim tribes in the area: resist and you will be wiped off the face of the Earth. More than 600,000 deaths later, the Circassians were the first stateless people in modern history. More than three-fourths of the Circassian population was killed and survivors were deported to modern day Turkey. They were shipped across the continent from the port of Sochi.

The wounds are still fresh enough that terrorists under the leadership of the Caucasian Emirate put out a statement last year that read, “We know that on the bones of our ancestors, on the bones of many, many Muslims who died and are buried on our territory along the Black Sea, today they plan to stage the Olympic Games.”

The neighboring Chechens didn’t fare much better. Under Stalin in 1944, the entire Chechen population was rounded up and shipped off to Siberia and the Asian desert in train cattle cars. One-third of the Chechen people died from starvation, disease, exposure, and violence. They started to trickle back to their homeland years later, but remained a target of suspicion and discrimination until the Soviet Union dissolved.

Following other Caucasus nations like the Ukraine, Armenia and Estonia, Chechnya tried to break away from Russia and rebels succeeded briefly in 1996. Putin invaded the country three years later and put it to the torch — burning entire towns and leveling the capital of Grozny. You could see

With relations between the U.S. and Russia at an all time low since the Cold War, presidents Obama and Putin have spent years going back and forth over Syria, Edward Snowden, and Iran among other issues. Are we shocked that American media has shone a giant spotlight on Russia that illuminates a flaw for every ideology?

Are you a liberal? Let’s talk about gay rights.

Conservative? Muslims could blow you to bits over there. Middle of the road? There’s always Edward Snowden and government spying.

The drummed up nationalistic fervor may be subtle, but it’s there nonetheless.

Russia may have dropped off the list of America’s top movie bad guys as Middle Eastern terrorists captured our attention following 9/11, but the cultural zeitgeist is still set to automatically distrust the Russian government. They make the perfect target for activist anger for the continuing mistreatment of their citizens — gay and straight.

Still not sure if cultural bias is playing a role? Consider this. One of America’s allies, India, recently criminalized gay sex in a ruling from the country’s highest court. Where is the outrage? Where is the barrage of memes, boycotts, and corporate shaming?

Ignoring the long history behind discrimination and prejudice doesn’t lead to

understanding or forward momentum.

Overlooking Russia’s role as a historical foil for America, India’s colonial past and how British law and religion led to their ban on homosexuality, and our own past record on LGBT rights is dangerous.

While American gays are justifiably outraged over Russia’s law banning the “propaganda of homosexualism among minors,” we should acknowledge that some of our own states include similar language in their laws. Utah, site of the 2002 Winter Olympics, has a law that bans “the advocacy of homosexuality” to schoolchildren. At the time, Utah law criminalized samegender consensual sex and those convicted faced up to six months in prison.

In a New York Times op-ed, actor Harvey Fierstein writes, "Mr. Putin’s campaign against lesbian, gay and bisexual people is one of distraction, a strategy of demonizing a minority for political gain taken straight from the Nazi playbook. Can we allow this war against human rights to go unanswered? Although Mr. Putin may think he can control his creation, history proves he cannot: his condemnations are permission to commit violence against gays and lesbians.”

Fierstein is shortsighted in his support of the Nazi comparison. Demonization isn’t all that’s required to make genocide acceptable; ignorance of our shared past and a willingness to overlook our own faults is also required. Our pain, both historical and modern, is no more or less traumatic than the anguish of the Chechens, Circassians, Jews, or Gypsies.

When we neglect to see how LGBT rights are interconnected worldwide to the rights of other minority groups, we do a disservice not only to ourselves, but to the lives of all LGBT people. Advocating for the rights of queer Russians is, of course, a worthy pursuit, but we can’t encourage lasting changes in global human rights if we’re wearing blinders to our shared violent and discriminatory past — and how it continues unabated worldwide.

This is bigger than Russia’s treatment of LGBT people and we have a duty to put the recent violence in its proper perspective.

History demands no less of us. Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it.

TS

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F l o r i d a S u n s h i n e C u p . c o m

Chechnya burning from space and America barely paid attention.

The slaughter of the Circassian and Chechen people was genocide of the same scale as the Nazi extermination of Jews, Gypsies, and gays. By expanding our vision beyond our own interests and boundaries we can see how the underpinnings of the Winter Olympics and our common connection isn’t anti-gay sentiment or corporate sponsors. Genocide is what we have in common.

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

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FEATURE

Gay Outrage in Sochi

A chronicle of events leading up this year’s Olympics Jason Parsley This week the Winter Olympics in Sochi kicks off. This year’s event has been fraught with controversy surrounding the anti-gay climate in Russia. So much has happened that’s been hard to keep track of so below is a timeline of events that all started with Russia passing an anti-gay propaganda law back in June, which banned, among other activities, public discussion of gay rights.

June 30, 2013

Russia passes an anti-gay propaganda law, which bans the public discussion of gay rights and relationships anywhere children might hear or see it.

Those found in breach of it can be fined and, if they are foreign, deported. President Vladimir Putin is an enthusiastic supporter.

July 2013

Global protests include boycotting Russian vodka.

Gay activists especially target Stoli, despite the vodka only have a tenuous connection to Russia.

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August 21, 2013

August 8, 2013 August 5, 2013

Eighty-three members of Congress ask U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to take steps to ensure the safety of gay American athletes” in a letter by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY).

August 3, 2013

The U.S. worries that gay American athletes or fans could be arrested, fined and deported. The Russian law says that it is a crime to publicly acknowledge that you are gay, provide information on homosexuality to minors, or publicly support equal rights for gays. The International Olympic Committee releases a statement that is has “received assurances from the highest level of government in Russia that the legislation will not affect those attending or taking part in the Games.”

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Russian Sports Minister Vitali Mutko states, “The law is not intended to limit or violate the rights of citizens of any country, any religion, any preferences. the law is against propaganda among the underage... I was in Sochi yesterday and “all the athletes and organizations should be relaxed, their rights will be protected.”

August 7, 2013

A gay rights petition with 320,000 signatures is presented to Olympic heads in Switzerland over Russia’s anti-gay propaganda laws.

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A gay reporter, James Kirchick, is kicked off a Russian television news broadcast after he vocally protests the country’s anti-gay laws during the middle of a segment. Kirchick is a foreign correspondent, who has written for The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. He was invited as a guest on Russia’s RT network to discuss the Bradley Manning sentencing.

Instead he chose to use the platform to challenge Russia’s anti-gay laws.

August 12, 2013

Russia’s interior ministry confirms anti-gay law will be enforced at Olympics.

September 28, 2013

The IOC says that Russia has not violated the Olympic Charter with their anti-gay law.

August 9, 2013

United States President Barack Obama rejects calls to boycott the 2014 Winter Olympics unless the law is repealed, saying it would hurt American athletes who have trained and sacrificed to make it to the Olympics, saying “If Russia doesn’t have gay or lesbian athletes, then that would probably make their team weaker.”

December

German Pre Gauck announ attend the O makes him t political figure games.

January 15, 2014 December 17, 2013

The U.S. delegation to the Olympics doesn’t the President, Vice President or First Lady.

Some of the former Olympians asked to represent the U.S. are gay, which include tennis player Billie Jean King and ice hockey player Caitlin Cahow.

r 10, 2013

esident Joachim nces he will not Olympics. This the first major e to boycott the

January 7, 2014

Bob Costas says NBC’s Olympics broadcast won’t ignore Russia’s anti-gay laws after some people suggested that he would avoid discussion of the widely condemned law banning gay “propaganda” because of previous statements he had made.

December 19, 2013

A third Olympian apart of the U.S. delegation to the Olympics, figure skater Brian Boitano, comes out of the closet saying “I am many things: a son, a brother, and uncle, a friend, an athlete, a cook, an author, and being gay is just one part of who I am.”

Italian IOC official accuses U.S. of politicizing Olympics by sending gay athletes saying “It’s absurd that a country like that sends four lesbians to Russia just to demonstrate that in their country gay rights have [been established].

The games should not be an occasion and a stage to promote rights that sports support daily.”

January 10, 2014

State Department issues travel alert for gays during Olympics.

January 27, 2014

Sochi Mayor Anatoly Pakhomov tells a BBC reporter gay visitors are welcome as long as they do not “impose their habits on others” and that there are “no gays” living in his city.

January 17, 2014

President Putin tries to calm the furor surrounding his country’s anti-gay views by saying gays are welcome if they ‘leave kids alone’ which only enflames the controversy.

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February 7, 2014

The 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia begin!

January 31, 2014

News reports circulate that Lena Klimova, journalist in Nizhny Tagil, will soon face trial for gay propaganda charges for founding and running an online community called Children-404, which was created on Facebook and the Russian social network vk.com as a community for Russian LGBT teenagers. The site posts letters from LGBT teens, including coming out stories.

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

25

TELEVISION

LGBT Viewer’s Guide to the Olympics Will you be watching this year?

Lisa Keen

Keen News Service

Tensions are high as the 2014 Winter Olympics prepares to get underway Thursday with figure skating and skiing events and then with the globally televised opening ceremony Friday. While there is a tremendous amount of anxiety over the possibility of a terrorist attack against the Games in Sochi, Russia, there is also considerable uncertainty around who might protest the country’s new anti-gay laws and how and when they might do so.

Beyond the expectation that some might wear rainbow pins or hats that include “P6,” a reference to the Olympic charter’s non-discrimination policy, there are hints of bands playing “YMCA” and one skater promising to “rip” into Russian President Vladimir Putin after she’s finished her competition.

There is even more uncertainty about what the Russian government will do to anyone who does protest or violate its laws by expressing some positive message about being gay.

In a conference call with reporters last week, the International Olympic Committee president, Thomas Bach, said athletes would “enjoy freedom of speech” at a press conference but they could be punished if they do so during competition or on a medal podium. But a few days later, the chief executive of the Olympic Games in Russia, Dmitry Chernyshenko, seemed to contradict that statement.

“I don’t think [athletes] are allowed by the [Olympic] Charter to express those views that are not related to the sport at the press conference room,” said Chernyshenko. “What I would call the Sochi ‘speakers’ corner’ has been organized in Sochi city so that everybody can express themselves.”

The so-called “speakers’ corner” is a cordoned off protest area six or seven miles from the site of the Olympics.

Outsports.com, a site devoted to news about LGBT athletes in both professional and amateur sports, says it’s found only six openly gay athletes coming to the Sochi Olympics.

“Either GLBT athletes are uniquely bad at winter sports,” wrote the Outsports, “or dozens — perhaps a hundred or more— must be competing in Sochi while in the closet.”

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By Sunday, the site announced a seventh openly gay competitor: Finnish Olympic swimmer Ari-Pekka Liukkonen, who swims the men’s 50-meter freestyle.

Liukkonen came out on Finnish television and said his family and teammates have taken the news well.

For U.S. television audiences interested in watching the Olympics for signs of LGBT demonstrations or visibility, there are two options: watch a condensed broadcast of the events each evening on NBC, which is covering the events; or watch live webstreams at NBCOlympics.com, keeping in mind that Sochi is nine hours ahead of U.S. east coast time.

delegation to the opening ceremony, and there seems little doubt that cameras will focus on them from time to time. They are tennis legend Billie Jean King and Olympic figure skating medalist Brian Boitano. There are several things to watch for during the opening ceremony: Do individual athletes wear anything or do anything in the procession of athletes to identify themselves as gay or as supporting equal treatment for gay people? Will Russian President Vladimir Putin voice anything about the highly publicized controversy during his remarks to the opening ceremony? And to what degree will NBC, which is covering the Games

The following is a list of specific events at which the potential for LGBT visibility is higher than most: Thursday, Feb. 6: Dutch lesbian Cheryl Maas will be competing in the “Ladies Slopestyle” snowboarding event today.

She has a profile video, Through My Eyes, that talks about her wife and child. She has spoken in the Dutch press about her unhappiness with the IOC choosing Russia for the Olympics given its hostile laws.

Friday, Feb. 7: Two openly gay people are part of the United States’ five-member

globally, report on the controversy?

Saturday, Feb. 8: Speed skating starts today (6:30 a.m.) and three openly lesbian competitors are on the oval track. One of them, Canadian long-track competitor Anatasia Bucsis, who told outsports.com, “I could never promote that message of concealing who you are with all of this going on in Russia. I’m kind of happy that I did it on my own terms.” The other two openly lesbian speedskaters are both from the Netherlands, Ireen Wust (short track) and Sanne van Kerkhof (3000 relay). Their

soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews

presence on the track may be a particularly interesting time to watch. The Washington Post reported that a Dutch brass band Kleintje Pils (“Small Beer”) “always performs at Olympic speed skating ovals” and signaled it might play the iconic gay anthem “YMCA” this year. “We will see if we can get one or two songs into the selection, knowing that in the Netherlands it will be seen as a signal we are thinking of [gays],” said Ruud Bakker, the band’s leader.

Sunday, Feb. 16: The Women’s Cross Snowboarding is today and Australian Belle Brockhoff, the only openly gay person on Australia’s Olympic team, has told home country papers she plans to wear a “P6” logo and make her unhappiness about the anti-gay laws in Russia known. “The Australian Olympic Committee has been really supportive and they want me to be safe. They don’t recommend me waving a [rainbow] flag around which I won’t do,” said Brockhoff, in an interview published January 23 in the Courier-Mail. “The most I’ll do is hold up six fingers to represent Principle Six. Possibly I’ll do it on camera here or there, and maybe after the heats of my event.” After her event, Brockhoff said she plans to speak freely about her thoughts. “After I compete, I’m willing to rip on his ass,” she said. “I’m not happy and there’s a bunch of other Olympians who are not happy either.” Also on the 16th, the Australian Men’s Bobsled team will carry “Principle 6” logo down the track on their two-man bobsled. Team captain Heath Spence has spoken out against discrimination of gay and lesbian athletes. He’ll be competing in both twoman and four-man sleds.

Sunday, Feb. 23: Closing Ceremony: The five-member delegation representing the United States at the Closing Ceremony will include openly lesbian Olympic silver medalist hockey player Caitlin Cahow.

Any athlete who might want to make a show of protest could save their plans for the closing ceremony so as not to risk jeopardizing their competition and medals. © 2014 Keen News Service. All rights reserved.

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SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

27

PEOPLE

Gay Olympians Past & Present

Billie Jean King From 1968 until her retirement in 1983, King was perhaps the best known tennis player in the world. She won numerous medals, and remains a goodwill ambassador for the sport. She has served as Captain of the United States Fed Cup Team and has coached its Olympic tennis squad.

King was outed in 1981 when former partner Marilyn Barnett sued her for palimony. She has since said that her very public outing was traumatic, and that people should be allowed to come out on their own terms.

In 2009, King was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

Now 70 years old, King will be part of the delegation representing the U.S. at the Sochi Games.

David-Elijah Nahmod As the 2014 Sochi Games commence in Russia, there’s been much outrage over the recently passed anti-gay laws signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who says he’s not homophobic. There’s also concern for the safety of the six openly gay athletes who will compete in this years games.

We at SFGN salute their courage, and tip our hats to Gay Olympians, past and present.

Photo: Raphael Bieber, Flickr

Caitlin Cahow

Photos: Wikipedia

Greg Louganis Incredibly handsome Greg Louganis won a silver medal after competing as a diver in the 1976 Montreal Games, when he was 16 years old. He went on to win two gold medals at the 1984 Los Angeles games and two more in 1988 at the Seoul competition.

In 1988, he tested positive for HIV. There was much controversy when his status was announced. During the 1988 Games, he injured his head during a dive, and bled in the water. It was stated that he posed no risk to other divers, as the chlorine in the water kills HIV. Louganis came out publicly as gay and HIV positive during a 1995 Oprah Winfrey interview. The appearance was to promote his just published autobiography, “Breaking the Surface.” The book was a New York Times best seller, and was filmed by Showtime the following year. Mario Lopez got good reviews for his portrayal of Louganis.

Louganis today remains in good health and is an outspoken supporter of gay rights. He married his partner in October 2013.

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Openly lesbian hockey player Cahow joins Billie Jean King as part of the U.S. Delegation at Sochi.

The Connecticut native holds a degree in anthropology from Harvard University.

She won a Bronze medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics and was a Silver Medalist at the 2010 Winter Games.

Cahow was a team captain last year for the Boston Blades in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL).

Matthew Mitcham Sexy Australian diver Matthew Mitcham might be friendly competition for Louganis in the looks department. The buffed Australian won a gold medal in 2008.

SouthFloridaGayNews

Photo: Wikipedia

feature cover story COVER STORY

Photos: Wikipedia

Judith Arndt Openly lesbian cyclist Arndt won a Bronze Medal in 2000 and a Silver Medal in 2004. She lives in Germany with her partner, fellow cyclist Petra Rossner.

Photo: Wikimedia

And a special nod to some of the out lesbians who are courageously competing in the Sochi Games:

Seimone Augustus The Baton Rouge, Louisiana native currently plays for the Minnesota Lynx, a WNBA women’s basketball team.

She won a Gold Medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, and again at the 2012 London Games. Augustus is planning to marry her partner.

Cheryl Maas (and wife Stine Brun Kjeldaas):

Photo: Snowboarding.wordpress.com

The Dutch snowboarder competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics, where she finished in 11th place. After qualifying for the Sochi Games, she publicly criticized the Olympic Committee for hosting the games in gay un-friendly Russia.

Maas is married to Stine Brun Kjeldaas, a Norwegian snowboarder who won a Silver Medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Japan. Kjeldaas was part of the BBC commentary team for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Belle Brockhoff Australian snowboarder came out as a lesbian in 2013. In recent interviews she promised that she would “rip on Putin’s ass” when she gives Sochi interviews. Brockhoff said that the games are “a perfect opportunity to send a message.”

She said that she was advised not to waive a rainbow flag, and probably wouldn’t.

On her website, BelleBrockhoff.com, she refers to herself as an “ambassador of equality.”

Photo: Wikimedia

Barbara Jezersek Openly gay Slovenian cross-country skier has competed since 2003. She finished 14th at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Photo: BelleBrockhoff.com soflagaynews //

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29

NEWS

GLAAD Shines Light on Plight of Russia’s GLBT Community As Olympic athletes and journalists from around the world descend on Sochi, Russia for the 2014 Olympic Games, GLAAD, the nation’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender media advocacy organization, wants the world to pay attention to Russia’s LGBT community.

GLAAD is out with its 2014 Winter Olympics Playbook, a resource guide for journalists and spokespeople covering the Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. It provides story ideas and profiles of LGBT Russians to speak about Russia’s laws.

Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin said gay people have nothing to fear in Russia as long as they leave children alone.

During a question-and-answer session, one volunteer asked him about Russia’s attitudes toward gays, a subject that has provoked worldwide controversy, and Putin offered what apparently was meant to be a reassuring answer for visitors to the Olympics. “One can feel calm and at ease,”

$150

he said. “Just leave kids alone.”

Recently during an interview with BBC, Mayor Anatoly Pakhomov of Sochi said of gay people: “We do not have them in our city.”

GLAAD is working alongside international LGBT organizations and athletes to secure media coverage and spark a global dialogue about the stories of LGBT Russians.

“As all eyes turn to Sochi, it is critical that the media shine light not only on the anti-LGBT Russian policies, but on the real stories of the horrific persecution facing LGBT people and families in Russia. These families cannot be kept invisible any longer,” said GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis

in a prepared statement.

For several months, GLAAD has also been working with gay, lesbian and transgender

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SouthFloridaGayNews

Russians as well as U.S.based Russian LGBT advocacy organization RUSA LGBT, to ensure that the stories of LGBT Russians are prominently featured across mainstream media outlets.

George Takei, Melissa Etheridge and Dustin Lance Black are among the celebrities GLAAD is making available as potential interviews. There are also several former Russian journalists and TV personalities who were fired or who are currently seeking asylum in the U.S. because of the harsh and unfair treatment of gays and lesbians in Russia.

For more information about GLAAD’s ongoing work to build support for equality in Russia and abroad, visit http://glaad.org/ russia.

feature valentine’s day

Skip the Flowers

Humlan Instead check out these 2 Urbanears: Machine washable headphone superior sound and style. tech savvy gifts for V-Day delivers Easily removable headband and ear

Denise Royal

This Valentine’s Day, you may want to skip the roses and the candy and get your sweetheart something that will last. For less than $100, there are some cool gadgets to express your affection for that special someone in your life.

1

Satechi: AirBass Active Bluetooth Speakers These compact desktop or bookshelf speakers deliver wireless, room-filling sound. Features Acoustic AirBass technology which produces deep bass and dynamic mids and highs for crisp sound. Ideal for watching movies, streaming music and enhancing audio on laptop or desktop computers and has an optional subwoofer connection to enhance bass. Available in a sleek, glossy white or black finish to match any room aesthetic at Satechi.net & Amazon.com. Price: $99.99

cushions are machine washer safe.

ZoundPlug allows users share music with a friend by having them plug another pair of headphones in via the 3.5mm outlet on the ear cap. Features tangle-resistant fabric and TPE cord ideal for on-the-go use and remote and mic lets users pick up calls and allows for hands-free talking.

Available in 10 seasonal colors at UrbanEars.com. Price: $49

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Felix: SmallHands Slim travel stand the clips and holds your smartphone in horizontal or portrait landscapes.

It clips and holds with just one squeeze to secure your smartphone in horizontal or portrait modes for comfortable multimedia viewing. Slim profile allows you to store away in a purse or pocket for on-the-go use. Developed from aluminum, plastic and silicone for a sleek look and durability and compatible with most mobile phones. Available for $14.99 in several colors from FelixBrand.com.

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ThinkGeek: I Heart Cake Pan This unique mold serves up six slices of heart-shaped cake and is great for cake lovers, anniversaries or Valentine’s day. Made of Silicone, it is dishwasher, oven, microwave and freezer safe and holds up to 4 pints of cake batter. Available for $19.99 at ThinkGeek.com.

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id America: Wall St Genuine Leather Case Ultra-slim case delivers convenience with classic style to your mobile device (Galaxy S4, iPhone 4, 4S, 5, 5S and 5C). Slim, leather casing and suede interior offer protection against impact and scratches and is constructed with premium genuine leather. Features an integrated slot for convenient storage while on-the-go. For $34.95, you have several colors to choose from at IDAmericany.com.

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

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lifestyle gay history This Week in Gay History February 5 – February 12 Quistapp.com

Feb 5, 2005 — IRIN Report “Iraq: Male homosexuality still a taboo” Issued

The Integrated Regional Information Networks, based in Kenya, states that “honor killings” by Iraqis against gay family members are common and given some legal protection.

The article also states that the 2001 amendment to the criminal code stipulating the death penalty for homosexuality “has not been changed,” despite Paul Bremer’s clear order that the criminal code to go back to its 1980s edition.

Feb. 6, 1979 — First Gay Person Elected to Public Office in Italy

Angelo Pezzana is elected as a member of Parliament. He has written several books, including “Dentro e fuori - Una autobiografia omosessuale” (1996) about the gay liberation movement in Italy.

Feb. 7, 2012 — Court Ruled Prop 8 Unconstitutional

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel rules 2–1 that the ban on same-sex marriage in California is unconstitutional. “Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples,” writes Judge Stephen Reinhardt in the decision.

Feb. 8, 1990 — U.S. Senate Passed Hate Crime Statistics Act

The bill requires that the federal government compile statistics on hate crimes against gays and lesbians. It is the first law to extend federal recognition to homosexuals.

Feb. 9, 2011 — Canadian House Passed Law Protecting Gender Expression Rights

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A bill protecting the rights to freedom of gender expression and gender identity passes in the House of Commons, amending the Canada Human Rights Code. This bill is intended to protect gender-variant individuals from discrimination. Offenses against gender-variant individuals will be punished to the same extent as raciallymotivated crimes.

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soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews

A

nita Bryant had a pie in her face long before anyone got glitter bombed!

Photo: Wikimedia

Feb. 10, 1916 — Vardaman Appeared in Burlesque Show

The Logansport Journal-Tribune promises on February 6 that “Vardaman ‘The Gay Deceiver’ will deceive you as he has deceived thousands before you.” Mansel Vardaman Boyle was a famous and successful female impersonator of the day.

Feb. 11, 1977 — First Save Our Children Press Conf.

Anita Bryant, founder of Save Our Children, gives her first press conference on behalf of the foundation. She claims she has proof that that homosexuals are “trying to recruit our children to homosexuality.”

Feb. 12, 2004 — San Fran Mayor Ordered that Marriage Licenses Be Granted to Gay Couples

Gavin Newsom makes the order to the City and County of San Francisco despite the lack of legal recognition by the state of California or the United States. Del Martin and Phyllis Lyons are issued a marriage license on this day.

All of the information above has been reprinted with permission from Quist, an LGBT mobile history app that can be found on iOS and Android devices. Visit QuistApp.com for more information. The app was created by Sarah Prager and launched in July of 2013.

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SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

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outeats

Special Advertising Section

Tee-Jay Thai Sushi on The Drive Bobby Calhoun

Tee-Jay Thai Sushi is a delectable and exotic dining experience in Wilton Manors. Tee-Jay has infused its atmosphere with a tantalizing scene that stirs the senses and delicious dishes that dance on your taste buds.

The menu features a creatively inspired and ever changing daily special such as fresh prepared Sushi, Thai cuisine and vegetarian dishes than can accommodate even the most finicky eater. Tee-Jay also offers a lunch menu with smaller portions of the regular dinner meals. A popular choice is a side salad with a peanut sauce that is both healthy and delicious. Make sure you try any of their soups, such as the miso soup, which offers a harmonious balance between a light broth, tofu, seaweed and scallions that is tasteful to the last drop.

The appetizer section has many great choices. A personal favorite of mine is the Spicy Ocean dish. Consisting of conch, octopus or red clam with a delectable spicy

kimchee sauce carefully drizzled on top.

After tasting excellent primers, the menu boasts unique and flavorful dinner. Ordering the Sushi “Party Boat� is a great choice, as it has been carefully prepared by chef with hand selected meats, spices, and sauces. The dish is arranged in a magnificent presentation that would astonish any sushi enthusiast and make you want to take a picture.

Besides the great atmosphere and wonderful tasting food, Tee-Jays also has excellent service that is beyond expectations.

Their team works in unity to make you feel at home, well taken care of, and like a special guest. They are also able to accommodate large parties or for those seeking an evening at home, take-out is available.

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Photos: Tee-Jay Thai Sushi

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J.W. Arnold

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THUR Exhibit

2/6

Find out just how far ahead of her time Abigail Van Buren — best known for her nationally syndicated advice column, “Dear Abby” — was on issues of LGBT compassion and understanding. An exhibit, “Dear Abby: Letters and Advice on Homosexuality” is currently on display at the Stonewall National Museum & Archives, 1300 E. Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale, through Feb. 22. With a daily readership in the millions, Van Buren’s wisdom did much to promote civil public discourse and acceptance. For more information, go to Stonewall-Museum.org.

FRI

Television

C

hristophe Paou (left) and Perre Deladonchamps star in “Strangers by the Lake,” a dark sexual thriller set at a gay beach outside Paris. The film is currently screening at the Classic Gateway Theater in Fort Lauderdale.

2/7

There are no gays in Sochi — at least that’s what the Russian city’s mayor insists — but we’re betting there’s more than a little homosexual magic behind the show stopping opening ceremonies broadcast tonight to kick off the biennial sports extravaganza. Be sure to cheer for the LGBT delegates (figure skater Brian Boitano and tennis pro Billie Jean King, among others) and the impromptu expressions of solidarity that are inevitably going to pop up as the world turns its eyes to this remote resort on the Black Sea. Check local listings for more information.

SAT

Exhibition

2/8 SUN

Chocolaty confections will abound, much to the delight of science-lovers and chocoholics at the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium’s 9th annual Science of Chocolate event on Saturday, Feb. 8 and Sunday, Feb.9, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Visitors will experience instant chemistry with a variety of interactive chocolate experiments, including armpit fudge, chocolate playdough, senses of chocolate station, chocolate Olympic torches, a liquid nitrogen ice cream demonstration and a never-ending chocolate fountain. Activities are free with a paid admission ($15 for adults). For more information, go to SFScienceCenter.org.

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Photo Courtesy of Strand Releasing

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Theater

2/9 MON Film

Critics are raving about Slow Burn Theatre’s production of the historical musical, “Parade.”

Based on a dark era in the South when antisemitism was as prevalent as racism, “Parade” triumphantly chronicles the tragic case of Leo Frank, who was unjustly tried for the murder of a young woman and later killed by a violent lynch mob. This is your last weekend to catch the show, Thursday – Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m., at West Boca High School, 12811 W. Glades Rd. in Boca Raton. Tickets are $40 at SlowBurnTheatre.org.

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2/10 TUE

The Gateway Classic Theater, 1820 E. Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale, is screening the South Florida premiere of Alain Guiraudie’s sexy, smart and dark thriller, “Stranger by the Lake.” Set in a gay cruising area by a remote lake, the film explores the emotions of Franck (Pierre Deladonchamps), who witnesses his romantic interest, the mysterious Michel (Christophe Paou), drowning another man. There’s plenty of nudity and some explicit sex scenes to heat up the onscreen intrigue, also. French, with English subtitles. For show times and tickets, go to ClassicGateway.com.

SouthFloridaGayNews

Music

2/11

Maestro James Brooks-Bruzzese conducts the Symphony of the Americas in “Songs for a Desert Island” tonight at 8:15 p.m. in the Broward Center’s Amaturo Theatre. The program features music considered so iconic, when people were asked which classical pieces they would want to have with them if they were stranded on a desert island, these were among the most popular: Sergei Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in c minor and Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto in e minor. Tickets are $60-80 and available at BrowardCenter.org.

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a&e music SoFla Symphony Counters Winter Weather with Fiery Performances J.W. Arnold

Snow, ice and subzero temperatures across the country complicated the travel plans for many of the musicians headed to the region for the South Florida Symphony’s concerts last weekend in Key West, Fort Lauderdale, Delray Beach and Aventura. But, they made it.

Piano soloist Christopher Taylor, scheduled to perform the Piano Concerto #3 in C Major

by Serge Prokofiev (1891-1953), almost didn’t.

He was stranded in the Atlanta airport for two days before snagging a flight to West Palm Beach and hitching a ride with the Symphony’s board chair to Key West for a quick run through before taking the stage for the first performance. As if that wasn’t enough pressure, Taylor was shadowed by FBI agents because he witnessed the heist of a priceless Stradivarius violin in Milwaukee the weekend before.

Most performers might have let the circumstances get the better of them, but not Taylor. With one concert with the Symphony and Maestra Sebrina Maria Alfonso under his belt, Taylor dazzled audiences at Fort Lauderdale’s Broward Center for Performing Arts on Friday, Jan. 31.

The concerto, one of the most widely performed 20th century works in the repertoire, is at times both virtuosic and understated, lyrical and percussive, impetuous and captivating, spotlighting the soloist and the orchestra equally.

Partners in the performance, Taylor and Alfonso seamlessly handed off melodic and accompaniment passages, accentuated by dissonant chromatic arpeggiations and mixed meter rhythms. The audience acknowledged the collaborative contributions of both with repeated ovations.

For a time, Dmitri Shostakovich (19061975) was the darling of a communist Soviet government that controlled every aspect of its citizens’ lives, but following the triumph of his Fourth Symphony, the composer quickly fell into disfavor among the party elite. Josef Stalin was rumored to have himself written the reviews in “Pravda” that banished Shostakovich to a cultural gulag.

Months after Stalin’s death in 1953, Shostakovich returned to popular acclaim with his Tenth Symphony, widely believed

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to include a musical portrait of the departed dictator. The first movement is clearly cathartic, a melancholy, drawn out 25-minute long sonata form. The fiery second movement is a vicious, raw portrait of Stalin. The third movement makes use of a melodic motif meant to “spell” out the initials of Shostakovich and the name of his love interest, while the fourth movement proclaims victory over Stalin’s memory.

A l f o n s o attacked the work, matching the changing moods measure-bymeasure, beat-bybeat. While the symphony was clearly challenging for the strings — rhythmic pizzicato passages were not always precise — it was the winds and percussion who provided the gravitas throughout: clarinets, oboes and bassoons in the first movement and horns and piccolos in the third providing the signature motifs, all punctuated by driving percussion rhythms.

In a program titled, “Hiddenspeak and Double Meanings,” an appropriate opening was Franz Liszt’s “Hamlet” – Symphonic Poem #10. Liszt (1811-1893) was one of the undisputed piano virtuosos of his generation, a well-regarded critic and teacher. He was also a composer of several timeless works and many others that could only aspire to greater recognition.

“Hamlet” is one of those works—not particularly great music, but a solid example of the composer’s colorful, programmatic approach. Rather than a literal interpretation of the story that inspired Shakespeare, this psychological portrait explores the inner conflicts that permeate Hamlet’s consciousness and the unspoken yearning for Ophelia. The work concludes with a funeral march incorporating Hamlet’s themes.

Concertmistress Whitney LaGrange fearlessly led the orchestra through Liszt’s endless chromatic metamorphoses, but also distinguished herself during the lyrical solo passages that marked Ophelia’s theme.

The South Florida Symphony next performs, “A Summons to Life,” including music by Mozart, Zwilich and Schumann and featuring pianist Jeffrey Biegel, March 27 – 31 in Key West, Fort Lauderdale, Delray Beach and Aventura. For more information and tickets, go to SouthFloridaSymphony.org.

a&e theater

Zoetic Stage Hits Target with ‘Assassins’ J.W. Arnold

On Broadway, timing can be everything and some shows are simply ahead of their time.

This was certainly the case with Kander and Ebb’s “Chicago.” While the current revival, launched in 1996 is Broadway’s thirdlongest running musical, it was only a modest success when it debuted in 1975, playing 936 performances through 1977. Two decades later, a cynical public, mesmerized by the endless tabloid coverage of the O.J. Simpson murder trial embraced the Prohibition-era courtroom drama.

The 1990 musical from Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman, “Assassins,” currently offered by Zoetic Stage at the Arsht Center, similarly benefits from a couple of decades of poisonous political rhetoric, epitomized by the hateful backlash to the election of America’s first African-American president. The sight of protestors at anti-Obama rallies carrying semiautomatic weapons and characterizing the president as a socialist dictator of the likes of Hitler and Idi Amin vividly remind us that cold-blooded murder can be justified by a radical mind.

Sondheim and Weidman’s show presents the stories of an assemblage of historical Presidential assassins — some successful, others bumbling wannabees. John Wilkes Booth (Lincoln), Charles Guiteau (Garfield) and Leon Czolgosz (McKinley) are joined onstage

by Giuseppe Gongora, Samuel Byck, Sara Jane Moore and Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, who unsuccessfully attempted to assassinate Franklin Roosevelt, Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, respectively. (Gongora’s ill-fated attempt took place in Miami at nearby Bayfront Park.)

Set in a carnival shooting gallery and presided by a nameless proprietor who sells each character with the weapon of his or her choice, “Assassins” introduces each, in turn, to musically share their motivations — some

IF YOU G What

“Assassins”

Where

Zoetic Stage at the Arsht Center Carnival Studio Theater, Miami

When

Wednesday – Saturday, 7:30pm; Sunday, 4pm Through Feb. 23

More Info.

Tickets $45 at ArshtCenter.org

“noble,” others just plain crazy —to commit such heinous acts. Ironically, they must work together to convince a reluctant Lee Harvey Oswald that his destiny is to kill John F. Kennedy, rather than putting a bullet in his own skull.

There are no weak performances in the large cast of 13 — the largest assembled by Zoetic — including eight Actors Equity members and thanks to deft stage direction from Stuart Meltzer.

Shane Tanner, always a strong leading man, sets the stage as the mysterious Proprietor.

Nick Duckart offers a booming voice to the anarchist Czolgosz, while Gabriel Zenone’s Guiteau is daft, on a mission from God, and eager to sell copies of his book. Clay Cartland is always excellent at playing disturbed characters and his John Hinckley is certifiable.

Some of the show’s funniest moments come during the interactions between Irene Adjan and Lindsey Forgey as Sara Jane Moore and Charles Manson’s acolyte, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme. Let’s just say a doobie, a .38 and a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken play prominent roles in the scenes.

But it is Nicholas Richberg as the actor John Wilkes Booth who stands above all, not only because the other characters revere him as their role model. Richberg’s Booth is both noble in his convictions and tortured by the critics, seeking the ultimate “part” to serve as the pinnacle of a middling career.

Sondheim’s score is whimsical, invoking images of the carnival midway while incorporating the sounds of vaudeville, gospel choruses, folk tunes, snippets of Sousa marches and, of course, the eponymous fanfare, “Hail to the Chief,” often distorted in dissonant chords that evoke the characters’ distaste.

Musical director Caryl Ginsburg Fantel capably leads a small off-stage ensemble including Andrea Gilbert, woodwinds; Greg Chance, guitar, bass, banjo; and Roy Fantel, drums/percussion. Sondheim’s music is notoriously difficult, shifting time and key signatures frequently, and Fantel and her band navigate the score flawlessly.

Michael McKeever’s flexible shooting gallery set evokes the farcical qualities of the show’s premise, accentuated by carnival lighting and dramatic effects from Ron Burns. Alberto Arroyo’s clever costume design not only helps to define each character, but allows the cast to quickly shift characters during ensemble numbers like “Something Just Broke,” the lone opportunity for societal commentary on the assassins’ acts.

T

he cast of Zoetic Stage’s production of “Assassins,” currently playing at the Arsht Center’s Carnival Studio Theatre in Miami.

In its first three seasons, Zoetic has served primarily as a vehicle to premiere new works by two of its founders, McKeever and Chris Demos-Brown, as well as showcase quirky new works. Tackling “Assassins” presented

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Photo: Justin Namon

a challenge with a quirky show, challenging musical score and large cast, but big risks offer big rewards and this production now cements Zoetic’s place as one of the preeminent theater companies in South Florida.

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T

Old Times

heater

Through March 2 at the Don & Ann Brown Theatre, 201 Clematis St. in West Palm Beach. Kate is surprised when her friend, Anna, visits after 20 years. Tickets $60. Call 561-514-4042 or visit PalmBeachDramaworks.org.

Datebook

Christiana Lilly, Calendar@SFGN.com

The Sounds of Simon

Through March 9 at the Delray Square Performing Arts, 4809 W. Atlantic Ave. in Delray Beach. A revivla of the hit South Florida musical featuring the music and lyrics of Paul Simon. Tickets $35. Visit DelraySquareArts.com or SoundsofSimon.com.

* Denotes New Listing

Broward County Nabucco

Free Friday Concerts

Feb. 6 and 8 at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. Verdi chronicled the plight of the Jews in Babylonia in this opera, performed by the Florida Grand Opera. Tickets $21 to $200. Call 954-462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

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.

Jeff Berlin Trio

Miami-Dade County

Feb. 8 at 8 p.m. at the Miniaci Performing Arts Center, 3100 Ray Ferrero Jr. Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Jeff Berlin was heralded by Jaco Pastorius as being a better bass soloist than he. Tickets $40. Call 954-262-5480 or visit SouthFloridaJazz.org.

Once

Feb. 4 to 9 at the Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. An Irish musician and a Czech immigrant meet and bond through music. Call 305-949-6722 or visit ArshtCenter.org.

* Pops on Parade

Feb. 9 at 2 p.m. at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. The Symphony of the Americas present a tribute to the Big Band era.

Tickets $20 to $37.50. Call 954-462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

*Mandy Patinkin in Concert: Dress Casual

Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. The actor and singer shows off his multifaceted talent with Broadway and classical performances. Tickets $35 to $105. Call 954462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

Secrets of the Trade

Through Feb. 9 at the Empire Stage, 1140 N. Flagler Drive in Fort Lauderdale. A kid whose dream is to make it big on Broadway encounters his hero, who may or may not be his ticket to fame. Tickets $30. Call 954-519-2533 or visit IslandCityStage.org.

*Songs for a Desert Island

Feb. 11 at 8:15 p.m. at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. Sergei Rachmaninov and Ciro Fodere perform together on the piano and cello. Tickets $60 to $80. Call 954-462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

*Freddy Cole Quartet

Feb. 12 at 7:45 p.m. at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. The group performs pieces from “Love Songs from the Great American Songbook.” Tickets $40. Call 954-462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

* Making Porn

Feb. 13 to March 16 at Empire Stage, 11540 N. Flagler Drive in Fort Lauderdale. Jack, a straight actor looking for work, is hired by a gay porn producer. Tickets $30.

Call 954-678-1496 or visit EmpireStage.com.

Laffing Matterz: With a Vengeance...

Through March 22 at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. Hailed as the best dinner theatre by local critics, night after night this gang of performers will have you cracking up. Tickets $63 to $69. Call 954-462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

Queens of the Stone Age

Palm Beach County Mandy Patinkin in Concert: Dress Casual

Feb. 5 at 8 p.m. at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The actor and singer shows off his multifaceted talent with Broadway and classical performances. Tickets $25 to $125. Call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

Casablanca Radio Theatre

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Feb. 8 and 10 at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The orchestra is led by conductor JoAnn Falletta. Tickets $25 to $80. Call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

* Raul Di Blasio

Feb. 11 at 8 p.m. at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The Argentine pianist plays romantic Latin tunes. Tickets $80 to $100. Call 561832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

Feb. 5 and 6 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Arts Garage, 180 NE First St. in Delray Beach. Go back to the old days of radio theatre as the studio audience during a dramatic reading of “Casablanca.” Tickets $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Call 561-450-6357 or visit ArtsGarage.org.

* Out of My Hands

The Dinner

* War Horse

Feb. 6 at 1:30 p.m. at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. Two Dutch couples, siblings, meet for dinner that goes from friendly conversation to a furious outburst. Tickets $25. Call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

Kenny Loggins

Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The “Danger Zone” singer is also known for his songs in “Caddyshack,” “Footloose” and more. Tickets $25 to $100. Call 561832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

* Big Bang XVII

Feb. 7 and 8 at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The hip hop dance troupe explores all forms of hip hop, jazz and contemporary styles. Tickets $15 to $28. Call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

* Jay Leno

Feb. 8 at 8 p.m. at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The late night funnyman presents a night of family friendly laughs. Tickets from $25. Call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

For links to each of these venues, visit SFGN.com/datebook 40

* Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra

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Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The NPR host and pianist performs pieces by REM, Portishead, Pink Floyd, and other unique bands. Tickets $30. Call 561832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

Feb. 12 to 16 at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. The story that has captured audiences, a boy’s horse is used World War I in the play using life-size puppets. Tickets $25 to $69. Call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org.

* Two Gentlemen of Verona

Feb. 14 to 23 at FAU’s Studio One Theater, 777 Glades Road in Boca Raton. Shakespeare’s earliest play, Valentine and his friend, the married Proteus, fall in love with the same woman while on a trip to Milan.

Tickets $20. Call 1-800-564-9539 or visit them online at FAUEvents.com.

* Anne Feeney

Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Boca Raton, 2601 St. Andrews in Boca Raton. A fundraiser for peace action, also featuring Pinkslip and the Raging Grannies. Tickets $15 to $25.

Call Bob Bender at 954-531-1928 or Phyllis Shamis at 305-725-7260.

You Can’t Take it With You

Through Feb 16 at Delray Beach Playhouse, 950 NW Ninth St. in Delray Beach. Martin Vanderhof hasn’t paid taxes in 35 years and when his granddaughter falls in love with a man in New York’s high society, he must find a way to bridge the gap. Tickets $30. Call 561-272-1281 or visit DelrayBeachPlayhouse.com.

SouthFloridaGayNews

Feb. 5 at 8:30 p.m. at the Fillmore Miami Beach, 1700 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach. Get ready to jam out to “No One Knows,” “Little Sister” and more.

Tickets $39.50 to $55. Call 305-673-7300 or visit FillmoreMB.com.

Soweto Gospel Choir

Feb. 5 at 8:30 p.m. at the Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. Kicking off Black History Month as well as paying tribute to Nelson Mandela, the South African choir has performed with the likes of Robert Plant, Aretha Franklin, Bono, John Legend and other musical powerhouses. Tickets $35 to $55. Call 305-949-6722 or visit ArshtCenter.org.

The Second City: Happily Ever Laughter

Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. at the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, 3385 NE 188th St. in Aventura. Hilarious improv and sketch comedy by the troupe that launched the careers of Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, and other big time comedic actors. Tickets $39. Call 305-466-8002 or visit AventuraCenter.org.

* The Spirit of Fado

Feb. 7 at 8 p.m. at the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, 3385 NE 188th St. in Aventura. Portuguese actor turned musician has become the biggest name in modern fado, a mix of Portuguese guitar and vocals. Tickets $35 and $45. Call 305-466-8002 or visit AventuraCenter.org.

Next Fall

Feb. 7 to March 2 at the Main Street Playhouse, 6766 Main St. in Miami Lakes. Adam, an atheist, comes to odds when his his partner, Luke, a Christian actor, goes into a coma and his family comes into the picture.

Tickets $18 to $25. Visit MainStreetPlayers.com.

End of the Rainbow

Through Feb. 9 at Actors’ Playhouse, 280 Miracle Mile in Coral Gables. The stage takes you to 1968 with Judy Garland poised to make a comeback and examines her inner struggles. Tickets $15 to $55. Call 305-4449293 or visit ActorsPlayhouse.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.

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sponsored by

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ommunity Datebook

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Broward County

* “Images of Africa” Opening Reception

Feb. 6 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Pride Center, 2040 N. Dixie Highway in Wilton Manors. Celebrate black gay pride with incredible photography by Lonzo Lowery, on display through Feb. 28. Call 954-775-2310 or email BlackGayPride@gmail.com.

* Fight Time 18 “Guts & Glory”

Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. at War Memorial Auditorium, 800 NE Eighth St. in Fort Lauderdale. World-class professional MMA bouts. Tickets $39 to $89, veteran discount available. Visit FightTimePromotions.com

* Walk for Wishes

Feb. 8 at 7:30 a.m. at Markham Park, 16001 W. State Road 84 in Sunrise. Walk or run 5K to help raise money for the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Southern Florida. Tickets $30 for adults. Visit SFla.Wish.org or call 954-967-9474, ext. 323.

* Gold Coast Derby Grrls

Feb. 8 at 6 p.m. at War Memorial Auditorium, 800 NE Eighth St. in Fort Lauderdale. Cheer on your local derby team as they take on the South Florida Roller Girls.

Tickets $13 to $23. Visit GoldCoastDerbyGrrls.com.

NEW YEAR...

NEW WIN New events, new ideas...

www.womeninnetwork.com Proud to be named 2013’s

BEST SOCIALNETWORK FOR WOMEN in SFGN’s Best of Gay Friendly South Florida

Save the Date!

WIN’s 19th Annual Charity Golf Tournament

Saturday, April 5, 2014 at Inverrary Country Club

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* ArtExplosion 2014 Opening Reception

Feb. 8 from 6 to 9 p.m. at ArtServe, 1350 E. Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. An annual LGBT art exhibit, including music by David Meuleman and drinks by Pink Submarine. Tickets $10 donation to ArtsUnited.

Email artsunitednews@gmail.com.

* Concours South Florida “All Makes” Car Show

Feb. 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Topeekeegee Yugnee Park, 3300 N. Park Road in Hollywood. More than 300 entries of exotic and vintage cars on display.

Free. Visit ConcoursSouthFlorida.org.

Latest Trends in Container Gardens

youth 13 to 21 to discuss gender, gender expression, binary systems, friendship, family and whatever else comes up! Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com

GayWrites

Wednesdays at 6 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

Survivor Support

First and third Wednesdays from 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 954-384-0344 or visit FISPOnline.org.

Palm Beach County * Delray Beach Garlic Fest

Feb. 7 to 9 at the Delray Beach Center for the Arts, 51 N. Swinton Ave. in Delray Beach. A celerbation of garlic with gourmet food by 185 vendors, entertainment, a cooking competition, and fun for the whole family. Tickets $10 to $15. Call 561-2437922 or visit DelrayArts.org.

Gay Chili Cook Off

Feb. 9 at 1 p.m. at Penny’s at the Duke, 902 N. Dixie Highway in Lantana. The second annual cook off benefiting the Compass Youth Group, with line dancing, drag shows, and vote for your favorite chili. $5 minimum donation. Penny Johnson at 954-5947295 or pjsmallchangejohnson@gmail.com.

Prized Possessions

Through Feb. 12 at the Boca Raton Museum of Art, 501 Plaza Real in Boca Raton. Chinese porcelain, pottery and cloisonne. Call 561-392-2500 or visit BocaMuseum.org.

Miami-Dade County * GayBizMiami Networking Breakfast

Feb. 14 at 10 a.m. at the Fort Lauderdale Garden Club, 3109 E. Sunrise Blvd. Designing living walls, edible gardens, and other ideas. Free. Contact Pam Schrimsher at 954-683-3271 or FLGardenClub@gmail.com.

Feb. 6 from 11 a.m. to noon at the LGBT Visitor Center, 1130 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach. Learn more about the Miami-Dade Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, as well as meet other LGBT friendly businesses. Free. RSVP to scott@gaybizmiami.com or 305-673-4440.

Man2Man Discussion

* Pet Adoption & Fundraiser Event

Mondays 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Pride Center, 2040 N. Dixie Highway in Wilton Manors. A weekly informal discussion group among gay men of all backgrounds.

Contact Gerald Hirschtritt at 954-849-6738 or regh46@aol.com. Visit PrideCenterFlorida.org

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.

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.

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 SouthFloridaGayNews

Feb. 8 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Amelia Earhart Park, 401 E. 65th St. in Hialeah. Meet more than 100 animals from Miami-Dade Animal Services in need of homes, as well as vaccinations, microchipping, tags, and free spay/neutering by appointment. Visit AnimalsMiamiDade.gov.

Dinner in Paradise

Feb. 8 at 5 p.m. in Homestead. Enjoy a special Valentine’s Day style farm-to-table dinner from the student chefs at Johnson & Wales. Directions to the farm will be given upon reservation. Tickets $165 per person. Visit ParadiseFarms.net

Miami International Map Fair

Feb. 8 to 9 at HistoryMiami, 101 W. Flagler St. The 21st annual fair, including a marketplace, cocktail reception, lectures, and fun family activities. Call 305-375-1618 or visit HistoryMiami.org.

N

ightlife

Datebook

Christiana Lilly, Calendar@SFGN.com

Broward County

Alibi ★

2266 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Best and longest happy hour; Wednesdays $2 domestics and $1 Schnapps after 9 p.m. Call 954-565-2526 or visit GeorgiesAlibi.com.

Hunter’s Ft. Lauderdale

The people that have brought you Hunters Palm Springs and Hunters Chicago now bring to you Hunters Ft. Lauderdale located at the old BOOM in the Shoppes of Wilton Manors at 2232 Wilton Drive.

Enjoy Latin Fridays with DJ Richie Rich and halfpriced drinks for Happy Hour. For more information call 954-630-3556 or visit HuntersNightclubs.com.

H.G. Roosters

823 Belvedere Road in West Palm Beach. The city’s oldest gay club, with hot male dancer, free BBQ and karaoke. Call 561-832-9119.

Vita Ultra Lounge Saturdays

1225 Belvedere Road in West Palm Beach. LGBT Saturdays with the best drag queens around. Call 561-835-8482 or visit VitaUltraLounge.com.

Miami-Dade County Azucar

2301 SW 32nd Ave. in Miami. Jock night Wednesdays, drag Thursdays, girls night Fridays and more. Call 305-443-7657 or visit AzucarMiami.com

The Club Fort Lauderdale

Club Space

Johnny’s

Discotekka

The Manor

Eros Lounge

Naked Grape Wine Bar & Tapas

Score

110 NW Fifth St. in Fort Lauderdale. A gym oasis with a pool, steam room, hot tub and half-priced rooms on Tuesday nights and half-priced lockers on Thursdays. Call 954-525-3344 or visit TheClubs.com.

1116 W. Broward Blvd in Fort Lauderdale. Sixty hot dancers with drink specials to make it even sweeter.

Call 954-522-5931 or visit JohnnysBarFL.com 2345 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Dance club Friday and Saturday nights. Call 954-626-0082 or visit TheManorComplex.com.

2163 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. A casual, hip bar to try out all sort of wines. Happy Hour all night on Thursdays. Call 954-563-5631 or visit NakedGrapeWineBar.com.

Rumors Bar & Grill

2426 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Come check out Rumors Bar & Grill. Call 954.565.8851 or visit RumorsBarWM.com.

Infinity Lounge

Located in the Gables Complex, this upscale boutique bar offers Martinis and specialty cocktails, featuring fresh fruit concoctions in an intimate, chic, setting with sexy, jazzy, lounge music. For more information, call 754-223-3619 or visit InfinityLoungeFL.com

Sidelines Sports & Video Bar

2031 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Relax with a cold beer for some friendly competition on the pool table.

Call 954-563-8001 or visit SidelinesSports.com.

Swinging Richards

1350 SW 2nd St, Pompano Beach, FL 33069. Fully nude male dancers for the best shows in the South.

Call 954-357-5521 or visit SwingingRichards.com.

Village Pub Wilton Manors

2283 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Never miss out on a happy hour, as the pub is serving up two-forone drinks Mondays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. On Saturdays and Sundays, hit the dance floor with world class VJs. Call 754-200-5244 or visit VillagePubWM.com.

Palm Beach County The Cottage

522 Lucerne Ave. in Lake Worth. Tea Dance Sundays with great service, food and drinks. Call 561-586-0080.

Fort Dix

6205 Georgia Ave. in West Palm Beach. A great place to mingle and relax with DJs on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Call 561-533-5355.

34 NE 11th St. in Miami. Come out for a night at the infamous nightclub known for crazy all-nighters to the best live electronic dance music. Call 305-3501956 or visit ClubSpace.com.

950 NE Second Ave. in Miami. Come on Saturday nights for some of the best DJs around. Call 305-3509084 or visit Discotekka.com.

8201 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. Bingo Tuesdays and Born to be a Drag Fridays. Call 305-754-3444 or visit ErosLoungeMiami.com.

1437 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach. Located in the heart of South Beach with hot male dancers, F#*K’N Classy Thursdays, Filthy Gorgeous parties Fridays, and different DJs and entertainers each Saturday. Call 305-535-1111 or visit ScoreBar.net.

Twist South Beach

1057 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach. Multiple rooms to give you the music you want, muscle boy dancers, and never a cover. Call 305- 538-9478 or visit TwistSoBe.com.

The Palace Bar ★

South Beach’s popular Palace Bar is right in the middle of one of the most fun parts of Miami Beach’s famed Ocean Drive. Its known for their fabulous drag shows and Sunday brunch. Call 305-531-7234 or visit PalaceSouthBeach.com

Key West

801 Girls Cabaret

801 Duval St. in Key West. The island’s only daytime drag show. Call 305-923-9296 or visit 801Girls.com

Bottlecap Groove Lounge

1128 Simonton St. in Key West. Thursday pool tournaments and dance parties Friday and Saturday nights. Tips during Happy Hour on Fridays will benefit a different nonprofit every week. Call 305296-2807 or visit BottlecapKeyWest.com.

Full Charge Bookkeeping Services

The Bourbon St. Pub

724 Duval St. in Key West. Get a taste of New Orleans with the best video bar with live DJs every night. Call 305-296-1992.

Club Aqua

711 Duval St. in Key West. Dueling bartenders on Mondays as they sing, shake and stir their way to victory. Call 305-294-0555 or visit AquaKeyWest.com.

★ A Great Place for Brunch! soflagaynews //

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Classifieds accommodations

attorneys

cleaning services

PERFECT VACATION RENTALS! Winter rates from $99 per night! Award Winning Gay Hotel. Beautiful Studio, 1 & 2 BR Self Catering Apts. with Full Kitchen.Clothing optional heated pool, laundry, private parking.

Central to Wilton Manors & Haulover Nude Beach. Includes Wi-Fi utilities, cable, tel. Gay Owned & Operated. Pets Welcome. Celebrating 16 Years. Call Joe or Jack at (954) 927-0090 or visit www.LibertySuites.com *Four Week+ Relocation Discounts Offered*

BRIAN’S CLEANING SERVICE - Honest, Reliable,Competitive Rates! I have 15 years experience, Retail oriented. Call 954-446-5545 for free estimate!

CLEAN IT RIGHT! The best cleaning for your buck. 1BD $50, 2BD $60, 3BD $70. Excellent rates & references. 10 years in business. Serving Broward, North Miami Dade & S. Palm Beach.

Call Manny 954-560-4443 HOME AND COMMERCIAL CLEANING Residential and Commercial cleaning.

Experienced with references and provide free estimates. Call 305-896-7494 or 214-356-0684

LOOKING FOR LODGIING NEAR SUNLIFE STADIUM? Completely furnished luxury 1/BD/1BA Condo. Easy access to public transportation and major express ways.

Shopping and dining are in walking distance.

Gated Community and private parking.

Reasonably priced @$375 a week or $1,500 a month plus $400 processing and move in fees.

Call 305-793-8650.

computers dentist

air conditioning

HONEST, RELIABLE AIR CONDITIONING & HEATING SERVICES Gay owned and operated company, Eiland Air, Inc. 24 hour service. Reasonable prices.

Licensed & Insured #CAC1817222 Call Mike 786-247-6022

COMPLETE COMPUTER REPAIR FREE ESTIMATES - No extra charge for in-home.

FREE Computer tune-up with any service.

Replacement of laptop screen & key board.

Viruses, spyware, data recovery, lockouts & more. SAME DAY SERVICE - LOWEST PRICE GUARANTEE Call Ernesto: 754-234-5598 HATE WINDOWS 8? We can bring back the look and feel of windows. Same day service.

Call 954-986-1316 www.gaycomputerwiz.com

alarm systems

counseling/psychotherapy *

STATE-OF-THE-ART-DENTISTRY General & Cosmetic Dentistry Sedation Dentistry

LICENSED CHRISTIAN COUNSELOR Dr. Saul Thermidor, FACCT # LCCP 0365011212 Licensed Christian Psychologist provides Christian counseling on LGBT, anger, violence & personal issues. I speak English, French and Creole.

Call 305-407-9397 day, evening & weekends!

ArtStrauss@aol.com 6000 South Dixie Highway, Suite B West Palm Beach, FL 33405

antiques/collectables WANTED!!! Stamp Collections and Accumulations. Please call John 954-467-7128 OR 954-614-2562.

MOVIE POSTERS WANTED Private collector buying vintage movie posters, lobby cards, film stills, photography and other old entertainment memorabilia. Call for a free appraisal to find out what your stuff is worth! All calls confidential. Ralph (800) 392-4050 email: sell@ralphdeluca.com

PUPPIES FOR SALE! 44

employment THE PATIENT AND ANY OTHER PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR PAYMENT HAS THE RIGHT TO REFUSE TO PAY, CANCEL PAYMENT OR BE REIMBURSED FOR PAYMENT FOR ANY OTHER SERVICES, EXAMINATION OR TREATMENT WHICH IS PERFORMED AS A RESULT OF AND WITHIN 72 HOURS OF RESPONDING TO THE ADVERTISEMENT FOR THE FREE, DISCOUNTED OR REDUCED SERVICE, EXAMINATION OR TREATMENT.

Cavachin Puppies for Sale! Beautiful breeding of The King Charles Cavalier Spaniel & Japanese Chin.

Puppies are healthy and have 1st shots. $500 each.

Call 937-409-8581 for more information and pictures.

// 2.5.2014 // SFGN.com //

soflagaynews //

ACCOUNT MANAGERS, BOOK KEEPERS AND SALES REPRESENTATIVES Work your own flexible schedule! Pays $1500 to $2000 monthly plus benefits. Must be computer literate, have 2-3 hours access to the internet weekly. We are looking for efficient and dedicated people who are at least 21 years of age. Contact us for more details. If you are interested and need more information, send your resumes to ruthmace7@gmail.com

SouthFloridaGayNews

To place an ad call 954.530.4970 or visit SFGN.com/getlisted employment ENTRY LEVEL SALES EXECUTIVE Full time Sales, Client Services, Direct Marketing, Lead Generation, Telemarketing & Email Services.

Microsoft Word & Excel experience. Competitive Salary plus Commission, Medical/Dental, 401k & Profit Sharing. Email Resume to aleen@lighthouselist.com HANDYMAN NEEDED!!! Part time handyman needed to with building projects. Painting, Tile work, Electrical, Construction. Wages based on experience. Call 954-892-0494 HANDYMAN NEEDED! Seeking Semi retired mature male for an upscale Mobile home community maintenance man in East Fort Lauderdale. 30HRS a week, Monday thru Friday.

The address is 3001 S.W. 18TH Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33315. Call 954-522-7478 for more details.

SWINGING RICHARDS NOW HIRING Quality Male Dancers & Waiters. Full nudity/upscale club environment with great income potential.

Please text (865)385-9568 or email photos/info to roman@swingingrichards.com PERSONAL ASSISTANT & MALE COMPANION SEEKING a part-time job as a personal assistant & male companion in Broward County. Will take you to doctors appointments. Help you w/ your grocery shopping. Refill or pick up medications.

Will drive you to do all your errands & assist w/ daily household chores. Great driving record, honest, professional, reliable, trustworthy, & always willing to help and assist. If you have any further questions please call 954-548-1798 or email Ltn69@yahoo.com Thank you.

EXPERIENCED FULL SERVICE TRAVEL AGENT Agency is located on Wilton Drive. Full time position possible for the right person. Must have good internet and communication skills and be well traveled. Ability to assist clients with airline tickets, hotels, cars and cruises and tour packages. Call 954-565-2345 for an initial phone interview. May consider a sharp administrative/ sales person willing to learn the industry.

COMPANION FOR ELDERLY GENTLEMAN WANTED - In-home care. Patient suffers from mild dementia. Position is part time to start.

Exceptional working environment and conditions.

Must have clean background check, mature, good natured and in good health need apply.

Submit resume with cover letter, including references and pay requirements to: P.O. Box 2213, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33303

flood/fire

interior design

licensed massage

pet care STEVEN JAY’S LOVING WAYS PET CARE! I care for your pet in my home. One client at a time if requested. Multiple pets and all pets welcome! I have a very clean home and low rates! Call Steven Jay at 954-565-1996

furniture repair

landscaping

AAA FURNITURE HOSPITAL We specialize in gluing and clamping of “broken and loose” tables, chairs and occasional pieces. Other services include repair of cigarette burns,perfume stains ,dog bites, water damage,recliner and sofa bed repairs. Free estimates 954-493-5221

IRRIGATION SYSTEM REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE 19 years experience, excellent work, referrals upon request. Call Roberto 954-383-8980

handyman

HUSBAND FOR RENT! Is he procrastinating home repairs? He says he will do it tomorrow?? After the football game?? We fit right in - In the house or the yard, small or big jobs: Tiles, Dry walls, paint, Plumbing, Roof leaks, broken furniture, Irrigation, Fences, wood decks, trash compost bins & more. It doesn’t cost to hassle us to see the work - so why wait? Neat, clean work for reasonable price. Call Haim at 954-398-3676, Sidnalll@yahoo.com

home care HEART TO HEART HOMEMAKER AND COMPANION If you or your loved one are elderly, or temporarily, or chronically disabled, we can help you with home chores (cooking, light-house cleaning, laundry) and be your companion for home or where you need to go.

We will work with you to find the plan that fits your needs. 954-226-4660. Right in the heart of Wilton Manors.

home improvement THINGS YOU NEED TO ACCOMPLISH? Minds at ease, A+ handyman service. Prompt, Reliable & Honest. Call Keldon Keller at 954-551-3127 or email krkeller@aol.com TOP NOTCH CONTRACTING Knows all and does all!! Many years of experience and easy on the eyes! Remodeling, Trimming, Ground molding, Drywall, Painting, Landscaping, Roofing, Tile work, Electrical, Windows, Doors and more. Very reasonable rates and free estimates. Call Shawn 954-549-8243

human resources WE GOT YOU COVERED! Advocates for student needs. Specializing in helping foster students and others transition into responsible, independent Adults. We are here to help find resources and outlets for stable and healthy adult lives. Call 786-793-8650 for more information.

licensed massage

RECESSION RELIEF $40 per 90 MIN - Out calls higher. Swedish, Deep Tissue, Specialty Back, Lower Body & Feet. Couples Discounts.

Seniors Welcome. Delray Beach. 16 years experience. MA18563 Dennis 561-502-2628

Dog Walking: $10.00 starting at Pet Sitting: $40.00 In House Pet Sitting: $45.00 Training: $10.00 starting per visit Pet Taxi (FTL Area): $20.00

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

Dependable • Reliable Service Delivered with Love and Respect

954-297-5336

INCREDIBLY AWESOME BODYWORK in WPB! Incalls @ private studio, 15 min. due west of PBIA. Intuitive, experienced LMT offers affordable rates 7 days, early to late. ASK ABOUT WEEKLY SPECIALS! Calls only, 561-254-8065 for the very best massage experience you can get, HANDS DOWN! WILTON MANORS MASSAGE Swedish, Deep Tissue, Sports. $59 Swedish Hour. Call or text Chris Tunkus at 954-258-8779 1322 NE 4th Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL www.WiltonManorsMassage.com THE BRITISH POUND John Maroussas LMT Sports Massage, Deep Tissue, Neuromuscular, Trigger Point, Swedish, Salt or Sugar Scrubs.

Private Studio w/ Shower. Wilton Manors location near Bill’s. Lic#MA51123 Call 954-999-2240

pool services POOL SERVICE Mention this ad and receive your first month

FREE!

piano lessons 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.

SFGN.com

some restrictions apply

Serving Broward Since 1999

Call for a free estimate: 954-367-7007 Web: www.skimmerspools.com Email: skimmerspoolservice@gmail.com

soflagaynews //

www.greendogpetservices.com

Lic# 11000106488

UNDER Y UR RUFF

EXPERIENCED PET CARE • Free Initial Consultation • Competitive Rates • In-house or Visitation Care

954-214-0841

underyourruff.com

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condo for sale

BUYING? SELLING? RENTING?

MANOR GROVE CONDOS Spacious 2/2 corner unit, w/ wood laminate flooring, new paint throughout & huge master walk-in closet. AC 2006, new water heater & rolladen storm shutter protection. Walking distance to The Drive. Low maint. fee of $316/ mo. Small pet under 20 lbs. okay. Call Jeff Sullivan, EWM Realtors, 954-383-2117 CO OP FOR SALE, CORAL RIDGE TOWERS 2BD /2BA, 2 blocks from the beach, Olympic size pool! Top floor Northview. For sale by owner. Call for more details. 718-624-2976

rent/lease ft. lauderdale

LAKERIDGE FURN. GARDEN STUDIO Central to beach/downtown/Wilton Drive.Clean newly ren. 1 rm and bath. Lg. private fenced courtyard. private entry with parking,laundry onsite, water and electric included. $765/mo. 1st and security with lease. Avail March 1st call 941-548-7989 MIDDLE RIVER TERRACE Remodeled 1 Remodeled 1 BDRM w/ granite/stainless kitchen, updated bath, pool view, & private patio. Small pet okay/ no smoking. Available 1/6/2014 w/ credit/background checks/ assoc. approval. $925/mo., first, last, security, 1 yr. lease. Call Jeff Sullivan, EWM Realtors, 954-383-2117 HUGE 2/2 POOL DUPLEX - POMPANO BEACH Updated, Lushly Landscaped, East of Fed Hwy 1 Mile to Beach, D/R, Sep. Laundry W/D, Fab Lrg Pool, New Central AC, Tile Floors, Small Dog or Cat ok. $1390, Available 2/1/13 Call Tim: 754-235-2911 1BR/1BA Condo Oakland Park Near Wilton Manors. Pet Friendly. Recently remodeled bathroom. Wood and tile floors.

Dixie Hwy. $775/mo. Call 305-304-8405 2BR/2BA MIDDLE RIVER TERRACE Charming 2 Bedroom 2 Bath with Gated Private Back Yard, Front Yard, Tile Floors, Vaulted Ceilings, Washer and Dryer, 2 Private Off Street Parking Spaces and Pet Friendly. Walking distance to Wilton Drive. Centrally located and convenient to downtown, beach/shopping. $1200/mo. move in/$2800 By appt only. Call Mark at 954-614-6603 TWO STORY VILLA – OAKLAND PARK Use as 2/2 or 3/2, Kitchen, Living Room, TV room, Balcony, Sundeck, over 1500 sq. ft. W/D included and pets are ok. 4001 NE 14th Ave $1,800/mo Call 954-485-9440 HOUSE FOR RENT, OAKLAND PARK Beautiful 2200sf, house, 4BR/2BA. Open concept. New kitchen/Laundry/Tile/Central air/ heat. Fenced yard, patio, Mango and Avocado trees $1900. Must see! By appt. 954-629-2884 MIDDLE RIVER TERRACE Remodeled 1 BDRM w/ granite/stainless kitchen, updated bath, pool view, & private patio. Small pet okay/ no smoking. Available 1/6/2014 w/ credit/ background checks/ assoc. approval. $925/mo., first, last, security, 1 yr. lease. Call Jeff Sullivan, EWM Realtors, 954-383-2117 BEAUTIFUL EAST FORT LAUDERDALE Mobile Home Park (not your grandparent’s trailer park) located East of 95, minutes to Wilton Manors and Beaches. Currently has 2 Bedroom 2 bath homes available for purchase starting at $28,000.00 Call Chris at 954-522-7478 or email sblauderlakes@bellsouth.net Please see us on facebook at LauderLakes

SFGN.com

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// 2.5.2014 // SFGN.com //

I CAN HELP!

KEN EUNICE, REALTOR® CALL

770.862.9397

KenEunice.com

rent/lease wilton manors

real estate for sale DAYTONA BEACH Gay rental complex for sale 2br home + 5 detached rental units beach side.

Owner financing real estate, trade or cash down. $420k DaytonaGayComplex.com KEY WEST BUNGALOW - SOUTH MIDDLE RIVER Charming 3/1 sits on lushly landscaped lot just steps from Wilton Drive. Huge screened lanai overlooks garden and 150-foot Royal Palm. Call Peter Cowan Realtor, BH&G FL 1st. 954-234-8365.

Virtual Tour available at Realtor.com – MLS 1266462

spiritual METAPHYSICAL CHAPEL Metaphysical Chapel of South Florida offers Sunday Divine Services, Healing, Psychic fairs & more. 1480 SW 9th Ave, FtLaud. www.MetaphysicalChapel.com

LARGE 2BR/1 BA Beautiful wood floors, private yard, single family home with canvas covered parking, amazing bonus room, washer/ dryer. Quiet neighborhood walking distance to Wilton Drive/restaurants, clubs, etc. Background check/credit check required. Available NOW!!! $1,650month Please call Terri Wright with Sea Island Realty, Inc. at 954-401-4918

rent/lease pompano beach

PALM AIRE Affordable and ready to move in.

Beautiful 1 bedroom King Apt. 1.5 bath, new flooring and freshly painted walls. Can be furnished or unfurnished. A great place to live!!

Call Myron 201-214-3992.

NEWLY RENOVATED 2BR APARTMENT Very private location, all stainless appliances, tile throughout, minutes from beach, small dogs and cats ok, includes gas, water and electric $1300/ mo, first and security. For more information, call Sean at 954-621-7009

roommates

LAUDERLAKES ROOMATE WANTED Share a 2/2 on lake w/ hot tub, private bath, W/D, dishwasher, central a/c and cable. $400/mo includes utilities & internet. Looking for a mature professional. 1st & security deposit. Background check req. Call Gary 954-803-0885 MALE ROOMMATE WANTED Male roommate wanted for 2/1/13. Beautiful WPB 2BD/2BA apt to share $650/Mo. Water, Elect, Waste Mgt included. Deposit + 1st. mo.

Required. Call 561-316-7236 ROOMMATE NEEDED Gay, mature man and 3 cats looking for roommate to share a three bedroom duplex with myself and another roommate. Private room w/shared bath. Full use of house and all utilities incl. Clean, friendly atmosphere. W/D on prem. NO SMOKERS or party animals. Located on north side of Wilton Manors, min from Wilton Dr. Furnished room, but unfurn possible. $475/mo. (dep. Req./installments ok) Avail Now. Call Richard 954-296-5633 or email sedlaki1@comcast.net

rent/lease west palm beach

PB COUNTY - LAKE PARK 2/1 CONDO 2nd Floor Corner - Next to Kelsey Park across from Intracoastal Great Locations. $750 per month • 1 year Lease • No Pets • No Smoking • 1st & Security. Call 561-310-0615

POMPANO BEACH - 2/2 Condo - East of U.S.1, pool, elevator, 2nd fl. end unit, F.L. & Sec., Application/min. 1 yr. lease, $1,100/mo. Call 954-806-8821 soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews

Need a Job?

Contact SFGN’s Associate Publisher Jason Parsley at Jason.Parsley@sfgn.com Florida’s Largest LGBT News Publication 2520 N. Dixie Highway, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-530-4970

soflagaynews //

SouthFloridaGayNews // SFGN.com // 2.5.14 //

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