The 'Out'port by Ryan Crocker

St. John’s LGBT Guide/Lifestyle Magazine

THE ‘OUT’PORT

! n o i s r e v d Extende

ASK DORIS!

BACK TO SCHOOL

Darren Young Comes Out!

GAY IN SPORTS

LGBT IN TODAY’S SOCIETY September/October Edition 2013

www.theoutport.com

|DJ Fabian’s Top 10|

7. Blurred Lines |Robin Thicke| (Ranny & Komes mixes)

8. Live For the Night |Krewalla|

4. Wake me Up |Avicii feat Aloe Blacc| (Original mix)

6. Wrecking Balll |Miley Cyrus| (Craig Welsh Wreck me mix)

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September October

LGBT Events- Provided by SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

September 20, 2013 Neon Nights Wear Neon, bring glow sticks (we’ll have some provided) and have a blast! $7 Cover Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

September 27, 2013 Divas After Dark A brand new once a month Drag show event “DIVAS AFTER DARK!” Each month a different local drag queen will take on hosting duties with a special contest, special guests and a special musical theme! $7 Cover Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

October 4, 2013 Velvet Club & Lounge 245 beer & Highballs until 12:30 Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

October 11, 2013 Velvet Club & Lounge 245 beer & Highballs until 12:30 Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

September 21, 2013

LGBTQ and Allies Hike

CapeSpear to Maddox Cove. It is about 10 km long, rated moderate. Gathering place and time: 12 noon Churchill Square from which we will arrange carpooling. If you miss us, join us in Cape Spear about 45 minutes later!

Velvet Club & Lounge Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

September 28 2013 DJ Androgynous DJ Androgynous spinning all night! $8 Cover Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

October5, 2013 Velvet Club & Lounge Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

October 12, 2013 Velvet Club & Lounge Doors open 11pm – 3am Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water Street

Events are subject to change. Visit www.stjohnsscene.com to see the latest events

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Specialty Cakes and Desserts|3||3|

September August September October

www.haveyourcaketoo.com www.facebook.com/haveyourcaketoo haveyourcaketoo@hotmail.com *This Issue Only

|School, Sexuality, and Safe Sex| It’s

back to school season and, for many of our readers, this is their first time living away from home in a city with a seemingly endless supply of potential sexual partners. While it’s completely natural for you to want to explore your sexuality and have a whole lot of fun, it’s important to remember to be safe.

Although

St. John’s is a fun and friendly place to get it on, rest assured that all of the various Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) you don’t want to catch - including the HIV virus that causes AIDS-do, in fact, exist here.

It’s

impossible to overstate the importance of wearing condoms and using other forms of protection. For more information, visit:

Planned Parenthood Newfoundland and Labrador Sexual Health Centre

203 Merrymeeting Road?St. John’s, NL A1C 2W6 Phone: (709) 579-1009 Email: info@nlsexualhealthcentre.org Planned Parenthood Newfoundland and Labrador is a CFSH member organization that offers a wide range of sexual health services.

Eastern Health - STI Clinic

760 Topsail Road Mount Pearl, NL A1N 3N4 Phone: (709) 752-4737 Eastern Health STI Clinic provides a range of sexual health services. -Ryan Crocker

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|Ask Doris!| Doris Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/DorisAnitaDouche Doris Twitter: @OfficialDoris E-Mail Doris: AskDorisAnitaDouche@Gmail.com “White Trash Glamorous” available on iTunes

Make sure you have an affair with at least two of your teachers - they are for sure to give you a few extra marks to insure that you keep offering your services. Don’t be TOO good at what you do, because they will want to fail you to keep you around longer. Making friends is easy! There will be parties your classmates have to get to know their fellow classmates and you want to make sure all of them know who you are. Become the party’s Hoover (Suck, blow, get laid in the closet) and slip a business card with your phone number and old MySpace account into their pocket! They will contact you for future deeds, or for an answer after their latest STI test…

Hello kittens! After my brief stint in rehab for sex addiction, there was something I realized I missed the most… Sex! Now, I know most of you are going back to school, or attending university for the first time, and you are nervous about your teachers, classes and making new friends. I’ve had a few similar questions about how to deal with going back to school, how to make friends and keep your grades up. Don’t fret! I have all the answers you need with Doris’ Back To School Guide! Going back to school can be tough, you want to make sure you are on top of your game with school work while interacting socially and making sure you balance homework and fun. Therefore you need to be… The Campus Slut!

Of course I’m kidding with the advice, what do you expect from someone who just returned from rehab for sex addiction? You are entering a year of self-discovery, knowledge and fun to plan for your future. You’ll make friends along the way, learn life skills and have stories that no one will want to hear about until your reunion later down the road. Just focus on your goals, do hard work, but don’t forget to have fun. Have a good year Students! Make Mama Doris proud!

To be a TCS you need to know where and who to polish the knob to get where you want to be to make this year fly by! You need homework done last minute? Offer your services to a nerd who would meet in a private stall for a quick exchange! He gets you the B, while you S the D! It also works at the campus gym, or swimming areas.

-Doris |5|

September October

|Hot Sp NIGHTLIFE

1. Velvet Club & Lounge 208 Water St.

2. Grapevine 206 Water St. 3. Liquid Nightclub 186 Water St. 4. Martini Bar George St. 5. Club V George St.

RESTAURANTS 6. AQUA Kitchen|Bar 310 Water St. 7. The Sprout 364 Duckworth St. 8.Happy Hummus Hut 208 Duckworth St.

pot Map|

COFFEE SHOPS 9.The Rocket Bakery 272 Water St. 10. Hava Java 258 Water St. 11. Coffee & Company 204 Water St. 12. Fixed Coffee & Baking 183 Duckworth St. 13. Coffee Matters 1 Millitary Rd.

Accomodations 14. Gower House 180 Gower St. 15. Abba Inn 36 Queen’s Rd 16. Balmoral House 25 Queen’s Rd. 17. The Ryan Mansion 21 Rennie’s Mill Rd. 18. Banberry House 116 Millitary Rd. 19. Winterholme 79 Rennie’s Mill Rd.

STORES 20. Our Pleasure Duckworth Street 21. Weare Junk 302 Water St.

|Hot Spot Review| The Rooms

By Ryan Crocker

even overheard epending on who you ask, it’s either a beauti- io wonder aloud if ful addition to our city’s skyline or a hideous giant garden sheds scar inflicted upon the otherwise picturesque city’s snow-clearing mer months. face of our capital.

I’m talking, of course, about The Rooms.

The

prominent building was designed to resemble traditional Newfoundland fishing rooms, which it does quite well and literally. The problem is almost all tourists have no idea what fishing rooms are or what they’re supposed to look like - so the symbolism is lost on just about everyone.

one tourist from Ontarthey were supposed to be and, perhaps, housed the equipment during the sum-

reality, The Rooms is the most important cultural institution in the city, housing the archives that chronicle our history, from colony, to nation, to province. It also boasts our most prestigious art gallery, an extensive museum, and a cafe with one of the best views in the city.

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September October

The various activities it offers, includ-

ing traveling shows that would likely have skipped St. John’s entirely had the facility not been built, are now a mainstay of the St. John’s arts scene.

The

controversial exterior aside, The Rooms has received near-universal praise for its beautiful and towering interior. There are few places in North America where art and artifacts, from Mary Pratt’s paintings to designer American shoes from the 1920s, can be so spectacularly displayed.

exhibition about the roots of Irish Newfoundlanders is particularly well done with a wealth of information about exactly where they came from, what their lives in early Newfoundland were like, and how one of them came to be the first Prime Minister of a fully independent Newfoundland (which happened, by the way, in 1855 - more than a decade before Canada achieved its independence in 1867).

It really doesn’t matter if you’re from

Newfoundland or not, you can’t visit The Rooms and walk away without having learned something special, be it grand or small.

my latest visit, I overheard a conversation between two more tourists - one of whom was wearing a Texas t-shirt and both of whom had the accent to match. I later learned they’d just driven across the country from Vancouver.

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“It says here that this place only joined Canada in 1949, my God, I was already 10 or 11 years old!” one said, to which the other, wide-eyed, replied, “Well that explains it then! You couldn’t figure out why it was so different from the rest. There you have it.”

Different

can be such a complimentary word. Just like The Rooms itself. The Rooms seems to have a personality of its own moreso than most museums I’ve visited in North America, and comparable to some of the most interesting museums in Europe. It cradles its contents lovingly and seems excited to share them - in the same way the hills of St. John’s hold the city, like hands cupped to carry something precious and show it off; in same way we, as a people, famously embrace and welcome our visitors from other provinces and countries. In that way, it’s a perfect fit for our colourful, vibrant city. If you’ve never been, or haven’t in a while, it’s time to check out The Rooms.

|LGBT in Today’s Society| One Man’s View on Being LGBT in Today’s Society I never came out to my parents.

One day, the phone rang and, when I answered, it was my mother. “It’s Mum,” she said. “Your father is on the line too. We just wanted to tell you that... we know. We know, or, at least, we’re fairly certain that you’re gay. If it’s true, we don’t want you to have to worry about telling us, or how to tell us, or whatever else. We know, and it’s a non-issue. We could not care less about it. We love you and we’re as proud of you as ever.”

It’s a lesson that, I believe, we can all learn from - one that will certainly become the norm for future generations raised in an even more accepting world than the one we enjoy.

Although we’re all part of the LGBT

community, we’re also part of the St. John’s community as a whole. As important as it is for us to connect with and support each other, it’s equally important for us to nurture and expand our lives and connections with the community at large.

It was an incredibly liberating experience especially knowing that, despite how tolerant our city may be, not every family is as accepting of its LGBT members. Looking back now, a decade later, I can see the profound impact it had on my sense of self and the trajectory of my life. I moved back home, went back to college, and became who I am today.

ter and potentially offensive when I misunderstood some advice my mother gave me in passing. I’ve noticed since moving back to St. John’s that the LGBT community is far more integrated in exactly that regard than I experienced in many other, far larger mainland Canadian cities.

very time I go to George Street, I see men That meant I was free to be a man who EI know are gay with large groups of male happened to be gay, that my sexuality was simply one aspect of my being, not its totality. She was simply saying I could be a happy and successful man, and my being gay was a small part of that, something that didn’t need to be the cornerstone of how I viewed myself and interacted with the world.

the World section featured a profile of gay life in Peru and Chile, One of the most striking things about it to me was just how insanely cool the LGBT nightlife is in South America. Then I learned why: the clubs are the full extent of LGBT life. There’s nowhere else they can really, safely be themselves.

That’s not true for us. In St. John’s, we can

live as openly as we choose. We get to live with exactly the sort of freedom those who fought for our rights and acceptance envisioned. That’s awesome. As a man in his 30s, that’s what I hope the newest and youngest members of our LGBT community, especially those joining us at Memorial University and College of the North Atlantic, realize. It used to be that you had to make a choice: you could be LGBT, or you could be a normal member of society. If you chose the former, you could expect to be completely ostracized by the latter.

That’s why it struck me as so out of charac-

“You don’t have to be just a gay man these days,” she said. I didn’t realize it at the time, but what she meant was that the majority of our struggles - for equal rights, for public acceptance - had been won, at least to the extent that we could live our lives openly.

A few editions ago, The ‘Out’port’s Around

and female heterosexual friends. I see gay couples dancing together without a care in the world at bars with a predominantly heterosexual clientelle. Every time I stroll downtown in the afternoon, I see LGBT couples who may not go clubbing but enjoy the city with their pets and even children.

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That’s not the case anymore, not that it ever really was in St. John’s. You can be whoever and whatever you want, and do whoever and whatever you want, and you’re still part of a community that’s bigger than our LGBT allies.

We are well and truly a part of regular so-

ciety. So feel free to be yourself, your true and whole self, to whatever extent you’re comfortable. It’s your choice, and you’re free to make it. -Ryan Crocker

Show NL Pride & LGBT Pride

Buy a Pride NL Flag For more information e-mail proudnl@outlook.com

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Pop on The Rock As many of you may know, there will be significantly fewer LGBT characters on network television this fall than prior years. Several shows featuring prominent gay characters – including Smash, Happy Endings, The New Normal, Partners and Southland – won’t be returning this year. For this issue, I will break down all of the LGBT happenings on fall TV this year and a brief synopsis of the gay storyline. All of the episodes are listed in chronological order (by premier date and time) and with their airings in Newfoundland time. This isn’t an all-encompassing list of shows featuring gay characters, I have instead focused on shows featuring LGBT characters as main/regular cast members with prominent story lines.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox) – Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 10. This ensemble comedy stars Andy Samberg as a laid-back NYPD detective who must grow up and “respect the badge” by his strict new boss, openly-gay Captain Ray Holt (Andre Braugher).

Chicago Fire (NBC) – Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 11:30 Last season, Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) agreed to donate sperm to lesbian paramedic Leslie Shay (Lauren German) until his ex-girlfriend (Sarah Shahi) returned from Spain and announced she is pregnant and Severide’s the father. According to season 2 spoilers, the plot will be wrapped up with a ‘surprising twist’ that will have an impact on Severide’s relationship with Shay and his relationship with his ex.

Modern Family (ABC) – Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 10:30. With Proposition 8 having been struck down in California, and promos for this season heavily suggesting there’s a wedding in store for Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitch (Jesse Tyler Ferguson), this season’s one to watch!

Nashville (ABC) – Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 11:30. Recurring character Will Lexington (Chris Carmack), Scarlett and Gunnar’s new neighbour, has been promoted to series regular as of this season. Last season Will tied to kiss Gunnar and admitted to being confused. Hopefully his sexuality will be explored this season.

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Glee (Fox) – Thursday, Sept. 26 at 10:30. Kicking off the season with their much-hyped Beatles-themed episode and a much-speculated potential proposal in store for gay couple Blaine (Darren Criss) and Kurt (Chris Colfer), Glee is returning with a bang. Demi Lovato will guest star as a love interest for Santana and Alex Newell, who plays transgender teen Unique, has been promoted to a series regular. Many will also be tuning in to watch how the show treats series’ star Cory Monteith’s death.

Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) - Thursday, Sept. 26 at 10:30. In season 10, fan-favourite lesbian couple Callie (Sara Ramirez) and Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) will deal with the fallout from Arizona’s affair with Lauren Boswell (Hilarie Burton).

Two and a Half Men (CBS) – Thursday, Sept. 26 at 11. Amber Tamblyn (Joan of Arcadia) joins the cast as the long-lost, lesbian daughter of Charlie Harper. Original half-man Angus T. Jones is not returning to the show as a series regular, but it is not yet clear if Tamblyn’s character is meant to be his replacement.

Sean Saves the World (NBC) – Thursday, Oct. 3 at 10:30. Sean Hayes (Will and Grace) stars as a divorced, gay days whose 14-year-old daughter moves in with him full-time. Megan Hilty (Smash) will also star as Sean’s best friend.

Scandal (ABC) – Oct. 3 at 11:30. White House Chief of Staff Cyrus Rutherford Beene (Jeff Perry) is fiercely loyal and full of boundless ambition. Many cannot make up their mind if he’s a good guy or a bad buy (he once hired someone to kill his husband). Spoilers reveal Cyrus and James’ relationship will be the healthiest on the show in the coming season, which infers this one will be a doozey.

The Carrie Diaries (CW) – Friday, Oct. 25 at 9:30. Season 2 of Sex and the City’s origin story will continue to explore Walt’s (Brendan Dooling) coming out story. This year, the audience will be introduced to a young Samantha Jones (Lindsey Gort) and (maybe) Stanford Blatch.

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As usual, feel free to let me know what you would like to read in future Pop on the Rock columns via email at popontherock.outport@gmail.com or Twitter @ReallyCJB.

-Cara Brown

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|On our Gaydar| Dame Ethel Mary Smyth 1858-1944

Dame Ethel Mary Smyth famously

described her sexuality as an “everlasting puzzle”. She was an English composer and a leader of the women’s suffrage movement, pushing to earn women the right to vote. Her famous compositions include everything from chamber music, to orchestral works, to operas. Sadly, she eventually lost her hearing and stopped composing music - but she didn’t stop making profound cultural contributions. She dove into literature and published 10 very successful books. It was her lack of inhibition and often-discussed personal life, however, that has her on our gaydar. Dame Ethel Mary Smyth had several passionate and public relationships with women throughout her life - and only a single, confirmed male lover. It was in a letter to him that she wrote: “I wonder why it is so much easier for me to love my own sex passionately than yours.” She also didn’t shy away from trying her luck with heterosexual women on whom she developed strong crushes, including author Virginia Wolf. Wolf, who was alarmed and amused at being hit on by a then 71-year-old Smyth, quipped that it was like “being caught by a giant crab” - but, as was usually the case with Smyth, the two went on to become great friends.

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|Jumping the Homophobia Hurdle| A Look at Homosexuality in the World of Professional Sports Attitudes towards LBGT individuals have var-

by Bernadine Noonan

WWE

ied during time and place. Coming out may be a controversial decision because not all individuals are accepting of LBGTQ identities. In some places of the world homosexuality has been and still is considered illegal. Some religions consider same-sex love as a sin. Throughout history, LBGT individuals have faced scrutiny from law enforcement and other institutions. The death penalty has even been one way to punish homosexuals. The decision to come out has to be well thought out and made carefully. A LBGT person may be disowned by family members and friends or suffer loss from their career. Sometimes suppressing one’s LBGT self is a safe decision so that dire consequences do not arise.

However, overtime, attitudes toward the LBGT

community have improved. All same sex marriages are declared as legal and valid in Canada. National Gay Pride Week is celebrated each year; National Coming Out Day is internationally recognized on October 11 and there are events to make awareness of transgendered individuals such as Trans Awareness Week and Transgender Day of Remembrance. Acceptance of the LBGT community is relative to factors involving the law, religion, time, place, and individual belief. In first-world nations and especially in Canada where the country boasts diversity and freedom, it may seem like gone are the days where riots broke out into the streets in which homosexuals were battered and beaten. But to think that homosexuals do not have to fight to be accepted would be naïve. Homophobia is still running rampant and recently it is in the sport’s arena that it is the most noticeable.

In the past month, controversy arose around the

decision to hold the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia because of the country’s anti-gay propaganda law. The law bans the dissemination of “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations to minors” which is intended to protect children. This means that anyone wearing a rainbow flag or showing any signs of homosexuality in public could be arrested.

The controversy prompted fear of repercussion

among gay athletes who are set to perform at the Olympics in 2014. Signs of protest have also occurred from countries saying that the Olympics should be boycott. There has been backlash from athletes too; Swedish high jumper Emma Green Tregaro painted her nails in rainbow colours in honor of LBGT pride and even Russian gold medalists Kseniya Ryzhova and Tatyana Firov shared a kiss on the medal stand to protest the discriminatory anti-gay laws. While the vague law has left many in confusion as to how LBGT athletes will be treated when they go to the Olympics, Russian President Vladmir Putin vowed on September 4, 2013 that discrimination against any kind of person would not occur during the Olympics. While the battle for equality of LBGT individuals is an ongoing one, there are many athletes who are able to pave the way for change. Some are trying to put an end to the heteronormative ideals in which sports is synonymous with binary gender roles, where the world of NFL is equated to a testosterone driven one, and where straight people assume that gay people who play sports are constantly taking a peek at everyone in the shower or trying to cop a feel during contact on the field (Yes, unfortunately even in 2013, Neanderthal –like opinions are still a source of truth for some. But I digress).

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Superstar Darren Young is breaking down barriers where heterosexuality, male bravado and macho masculinity is infused with being able to give and take a good beating. The first openly gay wrestler communicates to TMZ that being gay is like being straight and does not affect one’s ability to be successful. “We’re all adults and to be honest with you when I come to work I come to work. Business is business. I’m a WWE superstar. I’m there to entertain the WWE universe and that’s what my job is to do and I do it well,” Young tells TMZ after disclosing his sexual orientation. Not only is Young creating public awareness and generating support from the LBGT community, other athletes also have had the courage to disclose their sexual orientation. NBA center Jason Collins and U.S. soccer midfielder Robbie Rogers have recently came out. WNBA’s Sheryl Swoops was the first player signed when the WNBA was created in 1997 and one of the highest-profile athletes in U.S. sports to come out.

Legendary Tennis player Billie Jean King, Ger-

man cyclist Judith Arndt, weight loss guru Jillian Michaels, Tennis player Bill Tilden, and NFL star David Kopay are among the hundreds of athletes who have came out. This information clearly tells you that there is no correlation between sexual orientation and how successful one is in sports.

Non-acceptance of gays and lesbians in profes-

sional sports history is long-established. Discrimination against homosexuals is deeply rooted in Major League Baseball, the NBA, NFL and NHL. Like the U.S. Military “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, many locker rooms in professional sports have also adopted that approach. Take Major League Baseball’s former Dodger’s and A’s outfielder Glenn Burke for example. In 1978, he was openly gay with his team. During his career with the Dodger’s he was allegedly offered to have a honeymoon paid for by General Manager AI Campanis if he agreed to get married. Because Burke declined and was found to be friends with the manager Tommy Lasorda’s gay son, he was later traded to the Oakland A’s. The treatment on the Oakland A’s was not much better which led to his early retirement at age 27.

Coming out of the closet can create a different number of experiences and emotions. To disclose one’s sexual orientation or gender identity outside of dominant heteronormative ideals is a process that involves decision making and risk taking. Coming out may provide a sense of liberation or pride though disclosing LBGT identity may involve repercussions such as discrimination and oppression.

Just as gender is often classified as a binary, so too is the acceptance of gays and lesbians in the sports world. Accepting attitudes and open minds have been able to push for and make progress but work towards equality still needs to continue.

here are many resources to be found for LBGT individuals struggling with their identity. Specifically for those involved in sports, The You Can Play Project is dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation. The NHL was one of the first organizations to form the partnership and now Memorial University proudly pledges their support to the cause.

According to ESPN, “women’s sports have long

accepted lesbians, and men and women in individual sports have been able to come out, but men’s team sports have seemed closed to the possibility.” Still, some females in sports who may appear to be tomboyish are often assumed to be gay. In 1986, Penn State women’s basketball coach Rene Portland was known for not allowing lesbians on the team and was quoted in an interview stating “I will not have it in my program. I bring it up, and the kids are so relieved, and the parents are so relieved.” Portland’s policy backfired on her when player Jennifer Harris filed a suit against Portland claiming to be cut from the team because she was gay. Portland resigned. Certainly gays and lesbians were seen differently in the 70s and 80s than they are now but even in 1999 former NFL Hall of Famer Cris Carter expressed disapproval of being openly gay in the league. In an interview with ESPN, he says “I think it would be tough for a lot of the athletes that I play with to think that, ‘Wow, I am showering, I am performing on the field, I am bleeding, I am fighting with a person that is a homosexual’. I know there would be people definitely taking shots at him. I feel very confident that that would happen.’’

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For more information, visit http://youcanplayproject.org/.

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