Washingtonblade.com, Volume 48, Issue 47, November 24, 2017

NOVEMBER 24,

2017

VOLUME 48

ISSUE 47

•

AMERICA’S LGBTQ NEWS SOURCE

•

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

Meet couple at center of Masterpiece Cakeshop case Colorado residents sued anti-gay baker for violating state law

By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com Charlie Craig and David Mullins didn’t expect to be the new face of the LGBT rights movement, but that responsibility will be thrust upon them in a matter of weeks as the U.S. Supreme Court hears their case over being denied a wedding cake in Colorado at Masterpiece Cakeshop.

The two are key figures in the case challenging Colorado’s nondiscrimination law, which bars discrimination in public accommodations CHARLIE CRAIG and DAVID MULLINS were denied service by the Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado.

on the basis of sexual orientation.

Jack Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, refused to make a wedding cake for the Denver-based couple on the basis that it would violate his religious beliefs as a Christian.

In an exclusive interview with the Washington Blade, Craig, 37, and Mullins, 33, said they’ve been anticipating the oral arguments in the case — set for Dec. 5 — with intense emotions.

Mullins said he’s been filled with “trepidation and excitement” since the Supreme Court agreed to hear the lawsuit in June.

“I will definitely say I don’t think anyone in the country is prepared to hear that a case they are party to is going to be argued before the Supreme Court,” Mullins said.

“That was definitely a hard thing for us to CONTINUES ON PAGE 12

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ACLU

Protester disrupts Trans Day of Remembrance Activist Ashley Love objects to presence of police chief

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com Organizers and participants of the city’s annual Transgender Day of Remembrance on Monday night said they believe the event succeeded in honoring transgender people who lost their lives to violence despite the disruption of the proceedings by a single protester who demanded that D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham leave.

With nearly 200 people looking on at the Metropolitan Community Church of Washington,

Activist ASHLEY LOVE shouted at Police Chief Peter Newsham to get off the stage, saying the Transgender Day of Remembrance was not a ‘prop for the police department.’

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

where the event was held, activist Ashley Love, who describes herself as a transsexual and intersex journalist, began shouting at Newsham to get off the stage, saying the event was not a “prop for the police department.”

The atmosphere became tense when Love walked on stage, where Newsham was sitting beside D.C. Council member David Grosso (I-At-Large), and got into a brief scuffle with the church’s pastor, Rev. Elder Dwayne Johnson, when she grabbed a microphone from his hands and continued shouting for Newsham to CONTINUES ON PAGE 04

TRUE COLORS

BLACK FRIDAY

BIBLE LESSON

Former intern for Rep. Wilson caught using racial epithets on Grindr.

Our annual Gift Guide has ideas for everyone on your holiday list.

Controversial Bible museum opens with a neutral stance on LGBT-related issues.

PAGE 14

PAGES 22-23

PAGE 27

0 2 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

W A SH I N G T O N BLA D E . CO M

BLACK FRIDAY EVENT

THE AREA'S LARGEST SELECTION OF MOST CUSTOMIZABLE FURNITURE BRANDS SAVE up to

$400 $4,368 3PC ITALIAN LEATHER SECTIONAL WITH 2X POWER RECLINERS & ADJUSTABLE HEADRESTS

on select Stressless® styles.

Also available in sofa and other configurations

MSRP $8,599

TAKE 30-45% OFF* SPECIAL ORDER OR IN-STOCK MERCHANDISE FALLS CHURCH 703.820.8000

CHANTILLY 703.766.8000

* Cannot be combined with other promotions. Does not apply to any Stressless® products.

TYSONS

703.556.3900

49

$

Delivery available

call for appointment T 301.762.6301

retail locations 5258 river road bethesda, MD 20816 T 301.656.3311

7405 river road bethesda, MD 20817 T 301.469.7690

301.881.3900

HamiltonsSofaGallery.com

classic Fraser fir 7-8’

landscape design | build | maintain

ROCKVILLE

americanplant.net

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 0 3

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

0 4 • N O VEMB ER 24, 2017

LO CA L N E W S

Protester objects to police chief’s presence at TDOR CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

leave the stage.

Gay D.C. Police Lt. Brett Parson and Sgt. Jessica Hawkins, who’s transgender, rushed to the stage and stood in front of Newsham, appearing to act as a shield as Love continued to shout at him. Members of the audience, including several trans activists, shouted at Love to stop the disruption.

The commotion subsided to some degree when Newsham left the church through a stage door and Love returned to her seat. Newsham had been scheduled to speak at the event, but he did not return to do so.

Mayor Muriel Bowser arrived at the ceremony minutes after Newsome’s departure. In her remarks at the event she praised both Newsham and the police department for what Bowser said was their strong commitment to combat violence in the city, especially violence targeting the transgender community.

“Today is a day I wish we didn’t have to have,” she said.

As she spoke, Love shouted from her seat that police continue to harass and mistreat transgender people. She cited the monetary settlement earlier this year that the city awarded trans activist Lourdes Ashley Hunter.

Hunter sued the city with the assistance of the ACLU for a false arrest stemming from a noise complaint by neighbors at the apartment building where Hunter lives.

“I think it’s important that we recognize that our police department has come a long way in working with the community, the transgender community included,” Bowser told the Washington Blade. “We always have to be vigilant to do more. But I think Chief Newsham and the record of MPD should be commended,” she said.

The tension and drama surrounding Love’s protest intensified minutes after things appeared to have calmed down when veteran transgender activist Earline Budd, the lead organizer of D.C.’s annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, became ill while sitting on stage and nearly fainted. Paramedics that were outside the church as part of their normal duty for appearances by the mayor and police chief were called to assist Budd.

They escorted Budd off the stage and outside the church, where an ambulance was waiting. About a half hour later, much to the relief of the event’s organizers and participants, Budd returned to her seat on the stage. She later told the Blade the excitement over the disruption caused her blood pressure to rise, weakening her and bringing on a fainting spell.

She received a standing ovation upon her return to her seat.

Transgender Day of Remembrance, which has become an international event, was founded in 1998 by transgender activist

Gwendolyn Ann Smith to memorialize the murder of Rita Hester, a trans woman who lived in Allston, Mass., according to a writeup by D.C. organizers of this year’s event.

What initially began as a webbased project has since grown into an international day of action held each year on Nov. 20 in more than 200 cities worldwide. Among other things, the event commemorates transgender people who have been murdered in the previous year.

As of this month, there have been 265 reported murders of transgender people throughout the world in 2017, organizers said. That figure includes 25 murders of transgender people in the United States.

So far this year there have not been any trans murders in the District of Columbia, according to D.C. police.

Monday night’s event in D.C. highlighted the murders of 12 transgender women in D.C. dating back to 2000. Of those 12 cases, eight remain unsolved.

“We continue to urge the D.C. MPD and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to bring some of these cold cases back to the community for information,” the write-up by organizers says.

Monday’s event followed by three days the release by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation and the Trans People of Color Coalition of a report detailing the trans murders this year called “At Time to Act: Fatal Violence Against Transgender People in America in 2017.”

“The unique and tragic stories featured in this report reflect the obstacles that many transgender Americans – especially trans women of color – face in their daily lives,” the two groups said in a statement.

During Monday’s ceremony in D.C. participants read the names of those murdered in D.C. and some other cities as Rev. Dyan Abena McCray-Peters, pastor of the city’s Unity Fellowship Church, chanted prayers and recited the word “ashay,” which comes from an African tradition of honoring the dead.

Bowser delivered a mayoral declaration denoting the day as Transgender Day of Remembrance in the District of Columbia.

Grosso presented a similar declaration passed unanimously by the City Council.

David Meadows, chief of staff for D.C. Council member Anita Bonds (D-AtLarge) read a letter from Bonds honoring the event and expressing support for the transgender community.

Among those speaking were family members of four transgender women murdered in D.C. in past years. Among them were Judean Jones and Alvin Bethea, the mother and father of Deeniquia “Dee Dee” Dodds, who was stabbed to death at a city bus stop in 2012.

Since their daughter’s death Jones and Bethea have emerged as outspoken advocates for transgender rights. They

D.C.’s annual Transgender Day of Remembrance was held Monday night.

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

told the gathering on Monday night they were grateful for the strong support they received from the LGBT community at the time of Dodds’ death. Bethea praised D.C. police for an aggressive investigation that led to the arrest of the person charged with the murder a short time later.

Newsham told the Blade after the event that he decided to leave because he wanted to bring the disruption to an end.

“There’s a lot of frustration in the transgender community with the police across the country,” he said. “I think that here in Washington, D.C. we do a much better job than in some other places. But when somebody stands up like that and they’re voicing that kind of frustration I empathize with that,” he continued.

“I understand it. I’m not going to blame that person for being upset and being passionate about that.”

Newsham said that had he spoke he would have pointed out that he isn’t so naïve to think D.C. police are perfect and don’t have a ways to go to improve their interaction with the transgender community. “But I did want people to know I’m willing to move us forward in that direction.”

At least three prominent transgender activists attending the Trans Day of Remembrance event took strong exception to Love’s claim that D.C. police as a force are hostile and threatening to transgender people. D.C. trans activists Dee Curry and Jeri Hughes joined Budd in calling D.C. police as a whole highly supportive to the transgender community.

Trans activist Ruby Corado, founder and executive director of the LGBT community services center Casa Ruby, said she agreed with Love’s concerns. She said a part of the transgender community struggling to survive due to an inability to find gainful employment and who are forced into “survival sex work” continue to be targeted by D.C. police through anti-prostitution crackdowns.

Hughes, who said the community can’t expect the police to exempt transgender people from existing prostitution laws,

said the answer is channeling those forced into sex work into employment training programs, some of which the city provides.

“We must call it like it is,” Curry said in remarks at the event. “We know that there are some police among us that are of a different culture and they discriminate.

But in Washington, D.C., to be fair and to be honest, we have come a long way and this police department is not that. And we need to acknowledge that.”

Love responded by calling out from her seat that Curry was wrong and that D.C. police continue to harass and threaten trans women of color in the city.

“You had your time,” Curry replied.

“Everybody heard you. We want to move on with the proceedings.”

In a statement she sent to the Washington Blade Tuesday morning, Love said, “2017 saw three trans people killed by U.S. police, Kiwi Herring, Sean Hake and Scout Shultz.”

She added, “D.C. police recently paid a $40,000 settlement to the ACLU after unjustly arresting black trans leader Lourdes Hunter, so understandably most trans people of color find it revolting for the D.C. police to usurp and degrade the sacred TDOR and why attendees loudly applauded the removal of controversial Chief Newsham from our ceremony stage, for we came to honor our sisters and brothers tragically stolen by violence, not to be co-opted by those in uniform whose brutality we find unacceptable.”

Participants supportive of Newsham’s appearance said those applauding did so because the disruption appeared to have ended, not because Newsham left the stage and the church.

“Ashley Love is a professional provocateur who revels in invading others’ spaces to promote herself,” said longtime D.C.-area trans advocate Dana Beyer. “The progress our community has made with our allies over the past decade is a testament to the long, hard work of many, and the general ineffectiveness of the tactics of solo disruption,” Beyer said.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 0 5

Everything on Sale

A LL F URNITURE , A CCESSORIES , L IGHTING & R UGS 30% OFF MSRP U NTIL D ECEMBER 11

GEORGETOWN

Cady’s Alley 3328 M Street NW Washington, DC 20007

TYSONS

Tysons Galleria 1825 Galleria at Tysons II 3rd Floor McLean, VA 22102

calligaris.us

ITALIAN SMART DESIGN SINCE 1923

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

0 6 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

Comings & Goings Zongker lands at Library of Congress; honors for Morrison

By PETER ROSENSTEIN The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at comingsandgoings@washblade.com.

Congratulations to Brett Zongker who is now with the public affairs office in the Library of Congress.

Brett joined the public affairs team at the Library of Congress to oversee communications on exhibitions, new collections and literary programs, among other public programs. In addition he will continue to teach in the School of Communication at American University, where he has been an adjunct professor since 2012.

Upon taking the position at the Library, Zongker said, “I’m thrilled to be returning to the world of Washington’s BRETT ZONGKER fantastic cultural institutions, and the Library of Congress PHOTO COURTESY OF ZONGKER has an amazing collection. I feel very lucky to be able to help tell stories from the Library’s vast archives and share more of the collection with the public.” Zongker has previously covered the arts, culture and museums during more than 11 years as a staff writer and multimedia journalist with the Associated Press.

Before joining the Library at the end of October, Zongker most recently served as senior associate director of media relations at George Washington University where he led media strategy, editorial planning and communications for the university’s WES MORRISON PHOTO COURTESY OF MORRISON academic and research programs. He worked closely with the GW Program on Extremism, the George Washington University Museum and the Textile Museum, the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, and other schools and programs.

Congratulations also to Wes Morrison on receiving the AARP DC 2017 Andrus Award for Community Service. This annual award recognizes those who make a powerful difference in their community.

Morrison certainly meets all those criteria. AARP DC will donate $1,000 to Mary’s House for Older Adults on behalf of Morrison, in honor of this recognition.

This charity was selected by Morrison to support Mary’s House vision of “independent, communal housing for older adults that eliminates the intense isolation experienced due to aging, subtle and not so subtle discrimination and intolerance based on one’s sexual/gender identity or orientation.”

Morrison worked for a major television network for 32 years before he was unexpectedly laid off in 2009. At the age of 64, not ready to retire, he wanted to be of service, especially to those in the LGBTQ community. Having personally lost nearly 100 friends from AIDS and other illnesses Morrison recognized that he and others in the LGBTQ community faced challenges in the areas of social and civic inclusion.

Then Morrison met Carol Page, a former AARP DC staff member, who invited him to march with AARP in the Capital Pride parade. It wasn’t long before he was volunteering with AARP on a regular basis. Morrison said, “I began to do presentations for AARP, which allowed me to engage with people and participate fully in living. Having people smile and say, ‘Thank you I didn’t know this program existed,’ fulfills my need to help improve their well being. We live in a world now where everyone is connected by technology, but it can still be isolating. The great thing about volunteering is the connectivity to people in the community.”

In addition to AARP, Morrison volunteers with the DC Office on Aging and AgeFriendly DC; contributes to the Cleveland & Woodley Park Village; and serves as an assistant coordinator at a school for English as a second language. He is a member of the Citizens Advisory Group at Iona Senior Services. Morrison participates in various groups advocating for LGBTQ seniors including: Whitman-Walker Health Aging Coalition, Mary’s House for Older Adults, Iona Senior Services LGBTQ Live Well Academy seminars, Capital Pride Parade and Festival, and Sibley Memorial Hospital transgender program.

LO CA L N E W S

Delaware schools anti-bias proposal under fire

Rehoboth LGBT group urges supporters to submit comments by Dec. 4

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com

A conservative group that opposes LGBT rights has launched a campaign to kill a proposal by Delaware Gov. John Carney that calls on the state’s school districts to “work with students and families on providing access to locker rooms and bathrooms that correspond to the students’ gender identity or gender expression.”

The group, Delaware Family Council, has circulated an online petition denouncing the proposed policy. It’s also calling on its supporters to submit comments Delaware Gov. JOHN CARNEY is calling on the opposing the proposal to a special state’s school districts to accommodate trans email address set up by the state to students in locker rooms and restrooms. obtain the views of state residents during a public comment period that ends on Dec. 4.

At Carney’s request, the Delaware Department of Education developed a draft model nondiscrimination policy for the state’s public and charter schools that includes strong protections for LGBT students.

In the area of team sports, the proposed policy states, “A student shall have the opportunity to participate on the team that is consistent with the student’s gender identity regardless of the student’s assigned sex at birth.”

The Rehoboth Beach LGBT advocacy community services group CAMP Rehoboth last week issued an email alert urging LGBT Delaware residents and their supporters to submit comments backing the policy to the same state email address: DOEregulations. comment@doe.k12.de.us.

“CAMP Rehoboth’s LGBTQ Council of Elders, which has been working to improve anti-discrimination efforts in the school districts in Sussex County, has reviewed the regulation and the model non-discrimination policy proposed by the Delaware Department of Education and generally supports them and encourages their immediate adoption,” the group says in its alert statement.

“The proposed regulation is an excellent first step to ensure a safe and affirming school environment for all students, free from discrimination,” the statement says.

In a posting on its website, DelawareFamilies.org, the Delaware Family Policy Council points to a section of the proposed regulation, called Education Regulation 225, that it says would allow students to “self-identify” their gender at their school without their parents’ knowledge or consent. The statement also denounces the proposed regulation’s call for school districts to work with parents and others to provide access to school locker rooms and bathrooms that are consistent with students’ gender identity.

“No student should ever be pressured to undress, shower, or share overnight accommodations with individuals of the opposite sex, yet these are exactly the kind of situations Regulation 225 promotes,” the statement says.

Alison May, a spokesperson for the state Department of Education, told the Washington Blade in October that Carney’s intent is to ask local school boards to adopt the proposed policy and regulation in a way that meets the needs of their local schools.

“Neither the draft regulation nor the draft model policy require that students be allowed to use a locker room or bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity,” she told the Blade in an email. � CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

N A T I O NA L NEW S

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 0 7

Rep. JOE KENNEDY III (D-Mass.) and Rep. KEITH ELLISON (D-Minn.) denounced anti-trans violence.

WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTOS BY MICHAEL KEY

Lawmakers observe Trans Day of Remembrance As the nation observes the deadliest recorded year ever for transgender people on the Transgender Day of Remembrance, members of Congress are lending their voices to raise attention to anti-trans violence.

Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.), chair of the Congressional Transgender Task Force, introduced a resolution in the U.S. House on Monday to recognize violence against transgender people.

“Our nation has lost too many transgender Americans to targeted, bigoted violence in our communities,” Kennedy said. “With this resolution recognizing Transgender Day of Remembrance, Congress can commit to confronting these tragedies and protecting all of our citizens.”

In addition to recognizing the Transgender Day of Remembrance, the resolution calls for enhanced federal data collection of anti-trans violence and encourages federal and state governments “to study, respond to, and prevent violence against transgender people.”

The original co-sponsors of the resolution are Reps. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), Donald McEachin (D-Va.), Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) as well as Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.).

At least 25 transgender people were killed throughout the United States in 2017, making it the deadliest in history for anti-trans violence since those numbers were recorded starting in 2013. According to a report for the Human Rights Campaign, 84 percent of the transgender people killed this year were people of color and 80 percent were women.

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), the first Muslim in Congress, had already introduced a resolution in September against anti-trans violence, specifically noting violence against transgender women of color.

Ellison said in a statement Monday the Transgender Day of Remembrance “takes on even more significance” in 2017 as a result of the significant rate of violence against transgender people.

“We also recognize that the victims of this violence are almost all transgender women and transgender women of color,” Ellison said. “This is an important day, but we should not consider our jobs done because we’ve observed this one day. Instead, we must commit ourselves to the principle of liberty and justice for all and ensure everyone is safe to live and thrive in their community.”

CHRIS JOHNSON

Gay nominee confirmed to Federal Labor Relations Authority The U.S. Senate last week unanimously confirmed James Abbott to the Federal Labor Relations Authority, making him the second openly gay nominee confirmed during the Trump administration.

The uncontroversial nomination was confirmed by unanimous consent “en banc” as part of a group of three nominees to the Federal Labor Relations Authority, an independent U.S. agency charged with adjudicating concerns over collective bargaining agreements. Each of the nominees was confirmed to terms of five years.

Gregory Angelo, president of the Log Cabin Republicans, said Abbott “earned this post, pure and simple” based on his qualifications for the position.

“Log Cabin Republicans submitted a letter in support of James’ nomination, he has been a longtime member of our Washington, D.C. chapter, and I was personally in attendance at his hearing, so naturally this is something Log Cabin Republicans across the country are celebrating,” Angelo said.

According to his White House bio, Abbott prior to his confirmation was chief counsel to the Federal Labor Relations Authority since 2007. Before that time, Abbott was deputy general counsel for the Congressional Office of Compliance. Abbott received his law

degree from Temple University and graduated magna cum laude from Malone University.

But Abbott isn’t the first openly gay nominee the U.S. Senate has confirmed during the Trump era.

That distinction belongs to David Glawe, who was unanimously confirmed in August as under secretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security.

Another pending openly gay Trump nominee isn’t likely to enjoy the same unanimous support. Richard Grenell, Trump’s pick as U.S. ambassador to Germany, JAMES ABBOTT was confirmed to the Federal Labor Relations is opposed by Senate Democrats over his history of Authority. sexist comments on Twitter. Grenell deleted those posts years ago and apologized for them.

Grenell’s nomination remains pending before the Senate. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) has said he won’t give up debate time to move forward with the nomination when Senate leadership brings it to the floor.

Despite these gay nominees, President Trump has faced criticism for the lack of diversity in his nominations. Chief among the complaints is the small percentage of women among the choices of U.S. attorneys. According to the Daily Beast, 95 percent of Trump U.S. attorney picks are men, as are 80 percent of his nominees at large.

CHRIS JOHNSON

Puerto Rico AIDS organization still without power An organization that delivers meals to people with HIV/AIDS in hurricaneravaged Puerto Rico has been without electricity for more than two months.

Food and Friends in D.C. has pledged to donate between $30,000-$35,000 from its annual Slice of Life pie sales fundraiser, which ends on Thursday, to the San Juan-based Bill’s Kitchen. Food and Friends spokesperson Abigail Seiler told the Washington Blade on Wednesday in an email the donation will help Bill’s Kitchen purchase a John Deere generator that will power their facility.

Food and Friends Executive Director Craig Shniderman spoke with Bill’s Kitchen Executive Director Sandy Torres on Tuesday night, according to Seiler.

Torres told Shniderman that Bill’s Kitchen has not had electricity since Hurricane Irma brushed Puerto Rico’s northern coast on Sept. 7. Hurricane Maria devastated the U.S. commonwealth on Sept. 20 when it made landfall on the island’s southeast coast with 155 mph winds.

“They have been without electricity for more than 70 days,” Seiler told the Blade, referring to what Torres told Shniderman. “[The] power went out during the first hurricane, Irma, and never came back.”

Statistics from the Puerto Rican government indicate that half of the island remains without power nearly two months after Maria made landfall.

Torres told Shniderman that 25 of the 28 people who work for Bill’s Kitchen “have no electricity at home.” Torres also said the small generator that her organization is using to prepare meals “periodically breaks down” and it “can’t run their (air conditioner) or walk-in (refrigerators) in any case.”

“It’s in the mid- to upper 80’s with high humidity,” Seiler told the Blade. “Their staff are starting to experience significant stress related anxiety and depression.

Clean water is still a serious issue. Their current meal capacity is 20 percent of the pre-hurricane service.”

Torres and other advocates on the island with whom the Blade has spoken in recent weeks have said LGBT Puerto Ricans and people with HIV/AIDS are even more vulnerable after Maria because of the lack of power, food, medicine and other basic services. They are also among those who have sharply criticized the Trump administration’s response to the hurricane.

San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz told the Blade earlier this month during an interview on Capitol Hill that a clinic her city’s Department of Health operates is dispensing medications to people with HIV/AIDS and providing them with food and water. She also said her administration is working with the AIDS Healthcare Foundation to provide generators to people with HIV/AIDS who need them.

Cruz told the Blade that community-based organizations in Puerto Rico are also “canvassing the neighborhoods and ensuring that what (people with HIV/ AIDS) need is solved.”

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

I N T ERNA TI O N A L NEWS

Tillerson acknowledges Trans Day of Remembrance Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Monday issued a statement that acknowledges the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance.

“On Transgender Day of Remembrance, the United States honors the memory of the many transgender individuals who have lost their lives to acts of violence,” said Tillerson.

“Transgender individuals and their advocates, along with lesbian, gay, bisexual and intersex persons, are facing increasing physical attacks and arbitrary arrests in many parts of the world,” he added.

Secretary of State REX TILLERSON “Often these attacks are perpetrated by acknowledged the annual Transgender Day government officials, undermining the of Remembrance this week. rule of law.”

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY Tillerson in his statement stressed trans people “should not be subjected to violence or discrimination, and the human rights they share with all persons should be respected.” He added the U.S. “remains committed to advancing the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all persons. These principles are inherent in our own Constitution and drive the diplomacy of the United States.”

Gwendolyn Ann Smith organized the first Transgender Day of Remembrance as a way to honor Rita Hester, a trans woman murdered inside her Boston apartment in 1998.

Violence based on gender identity remains pervasive in the U.S. and around the world.

This year’s Transgender Day of Remembrance is taking place against the backdrop of widespread criticism over the Trump administration’s trans-specific policies, which includes banning trans people from the military.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Trudeau to apologize for ‘gross indecency’ convictions Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday announced his government will formally apologize to those who were convicted of “gross indecency” before the country decriminalized consensual samesex sexual relations.

He wrote on his Facebook page that his government on Nov. 28 “will offer a formal apology to LGBTQ2 Canadians in the House (of Commons) — for the persecution & injustices they have suffered, and to advance together on the path to equality & inclusion.” The Canadian Broadcasting Canadian Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU on Nov. 28, will formally apologize to Corporation reported Trudeau will also Canadians who were convicted of ‘gross formally apologize to Canadians who were indecency’ and fired from civil service jobs because of their sexual orientation and fired from the Royal Canadian Mounted gender identity.

Police and the country’s military and civil WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL K. LAVERS service because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

MP Randy Boissonnault — who is Trudeau’s advisor on LGBT and intersex issues — in June confirmed to the Washington Blade during an interview at the WorldPride International Human Rights Conference in Madrid that the men who were convicted under the law would have their convictions expunged. Boissonnault did not provide a specific timeline as to when the Canadian government was planning to formally apologize to them.

“It will be an historic day for LGBTQ2 communities and for Canada,” said Boissonnault on his Twitter page after Trudeau made his announcement. “Diversity makes us stronger.”

Egale Canada, a Canadian LGBT and intersex advocacy group, on Sunday said the “long awaited apology” is “one step closer to starting the process of healing.”

Canada is the latest country to formally apologize to men who were convicted under laws that criminalized homosexuality.

A law named after Alan Turing — a gay British mathematician who was convicted of gross indecency in 1952 for having a relationship with another man — that pardoned gay and bisexual men in England and Wales who were charged under a law that

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 1 1

criminalized consensual same-sex sexual acts took effect in January. The governments of Germany, Scotland and New Zealand have also taken similar actions.

Then-Secretary of State John Kerry in January formally apologized to State Department personnel who were fired for “alleged homosexuality” during the so-called “lavender scare” of the 1950s and 1960s. U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) has introduced a bill that would allow those who were fired during the “lavender scare” to have their employment records expunged.

Homosexuality remain criminalized in more than 70 countries around the world. Iran, Saudi Arabia and Mauritania are among the handful of nations in which those who are convicted of engaging in consensual same-sex sexual acts face the death penalty.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Right-wing Piñera wins first round in Chilean election SANTIAGO, Chile — Former Chilean President Sebastián Piñera and Alejandro Guillier on Sunday advanced to the second round of the country’s presidential election that will take place next month.

With more than 99.9 percent of the results in, Piñera and Guillier received the most votes.

Piñera, the most popular right-wing candidate, received 36.64 percent of the votes. Guillier — who is a candidate for President Michelle Bachelet’s center-left Nueva Mayoría coalition — received 22.7 percent of the vote. Neither Piñera nor Guillier received a majority of the votes, so they will face each other in the Dec. 17 runoff.

High voter turnout and support for Beatriz Sánchez of the left-wing Frente Amplio party, who came in third with 20.3 percent of the vote, surprised the media.

In fact, experts say Guillier needs to create a new alliance with Frente Amplio if he hopes to win in December.

Chileans will have to choose between the right-wing candidate with no proposals for the LGBTI community and Guillier, who has said he will continue with efforts to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples and expand protections to transgender Chileans that Bachelet has supported.

Piñera’s campaign manager met with representatives of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation, a national LGBT advocacy group, last month. It is nevertheless likely that Piñera will not moderate his speech about LGBTI-specific matters, especially if he hopes to gain the support of voters who supported radical right-wing candidate José Antonio Kast.

Kast obtained 7.93 percent of the vote, a significant number composed by people who strongly oppose LGBTI rights.

LGBTI advocacy leaders are hopeful.

“The ballot is completely open,” said Juan Enrique Pi, president of Fundación Iguales, another national LGBT advocacy group. “It is clear that Piñera’s choice to turn to the right was a mistake. Chileans want equality and we have said that today: 56 percent of the electorship has voted in favor of a president who supports same-sex marriage.”

Meanwhile, Frente Amplio and Nueva Mayoría candidates gained a surprising majority in House of Deputies with 63 of 155 candidates who were elected.

This increase in the number of leftist members of Congress could bode well for advocates who continue to lobby lawmakers to support same-sex marriage and transgender rights bills. The additional pro-LGBT lawmakers could also challenge Piñera’s opposition to these measures if he wins the presidential election.

“This is historic and tremendous news for all those same-sex couples, gay and lesbian families and trans people who have been denied their rights because of their sexual orientation or gender identity since the beginning of our country,” said Ramón Gómez, president of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation, on Sunday in a statement.

The three openly LGBT congressional candidates — Luis Larraín, Óscar Rementería and Kena Lorenzini — lost their respective campaigns on Sunday.

Larraín, who is the former president of Fundación Iguales, thanked his supporters in a message that he posted to his social media pages. Larraín earlier this year sparked controversy when he aligned himself with a party that supports Piñera.

“The political class has a very low approval rating, a very low perception,” Larraín told the Washington Blade in October during an interview at his Santiago apartment. “I hope that what these new faces (in Chilean politics) are saying on the campaign trail translates into votes for each of them at the ballot boxes.”

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

1 2 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

NATIONAL NEWS

‘Standing up for thousands who are discriminated against’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

wrap our minds around.”

The day of oral arguments for the court on Dec. 5 is actually the anniversary for the first date of the couple seven years ago. (Recognizing the occasion, Craig said “maybe it’s good luck.”)

Craig said the two met through a mutual best friend and were friends for a good year before dating. At a time when samesex marriage was legal in limited places and not in their home state of Colorado, the two nonetheless decided to marry.

Although many couples arrange dramatic engagement proposals, Mullins said the couple had a “cute story” that wasn’t very dramatic.

“In all reality, we were just lying on the couch together one Sunday morning,” Mullins said. “I think it was Charlie who turned me. He was like, ‘You know. I really would marry you.’ And I thought about it and I was like, ‘I would marry you, too.’

And we sort of sat there for a minute and we were like, ‘So should we get married?

And we decided to get married.’ It was a very natural, casual moment, which was really kind of how our relationship was.”

Craig added he later discovered Mullins had been socking away money to buy wedding rings. (The two have a pair of threediamond rings. Craig’s is made of white gold, but Mullins’s is comprised of cobalt because he’s allergic to silver and gold.)

Because same-sex marriage wasn’t yet legal in Colorado, the couple decided to marry in Provincetown, Mass. The Bay State, first in the country with marriage equality, legalized same-sex marriage as a result of a court order by the Massachusetts Supreme Court in 2003.

The two planned to have 30 friends and family members fly up to Massachusetts for the ceremony, and have a hometown reception in Colorado. But then there was the matter of the wedding cake.

Craig said the host for the Denver reception party used Masterpiece Cakeshop for earlier clients and recommended the bakery based on its service and close proximity.

“We looked up the website and were like, yeah, OK, they look like something that we would want,” Craig said.

On the fateful day, July 19, 2012, Mullins and Craig proceeded to Masterpiece Cakeshop and brought along Craig’s mother.

Because she doesn’t live in Denver and was in town for a conference that day, the wedding cake purchase would be her only opportunity to take part in the planning.

Mullins said the three went in “really excited” and Craig came in with a binder of ideas, but “it all went wrong immediately” after they sat down with Phillips.

“He immediately asked us who the cake was for and we said it was for us, and he told us he would not make a cake for a

same-sex wedding,” Mullins said. “And what followed was a horrible pregnant pause. We were just mortified and embarrassed and quickly we just got up and we left.”

When the couple entered the parking lot, Mullins said they became emotional and broke down in tears — a moment they said was all the more “painful and profoundly embarrassing” because Craig’s mother was present.

The couple said they had no idea Phillips sought to operate his business consistent with this Christian beliefs, nor that he had a policy of refusing wedding cakes to same-sex couples.

Craig and Mullins quickly found relief from the LGBT community and supporters after a Facebook post, which quickly went viral worldwide in a couple days.

As a result of the Facebook post, a friend informed the couple that Phillips’ actions were a violation of state law in Colorado — something Mullins said the couple wasn’t aware of previously.

“We actually were unaware that there was a law in Colorado against what happened,” Mullins said. “It actually took a relative of Charlie’s looking something up and connecting us the next day to actually tell us there was an anti-discrimination statute in Colorado that covered public accommodations discrimination.”

Another Colorado shop, Lora’s Donuts & Bakery Shop, offered to provide the wedding cake the couple ultimately used for their celebration. The cake had rainbow layering to represent solidarity with the LGBT community.

But there still was the matter of the discrimination. Mullins said the couple spoke with the LGBT legal group Lambda Legal about their rights under state law, then the American Civil Liberties Union — which represents them in the case — helped them further and filed a complaint on their behalf in 2013.

“Eventually, someone at the ACLU found us and we spoke to them, and we decided to move forward with the complaint,” Mullins said. “They sort of helped us file the paperwork a little bit, and then after that and much discussion on their part, they decided to take up the case.”

Prior to the complaint, the couple hadn’t had significant experience in LGBT advocacy. Craig, an alumnus of University of Wyoming in Laramie, said 15 years ago he was a board member of a student LGBT group that sought to raise awareness for the Matthew Shepard Foundation and HIV testing, and Mullins said he couldn’t recall any instance of prior LGBT work.

“This was kind of my awakening,” Mullins said.

James Esseks, director of the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender & HIV Project, said by filing a complaint, the couple took the lead in the fight to ensure

equal rights for LGBT people.

“No one should ever have to experience the kind of pain and humiliation that Charlie and Dave were put through,” Esseks said. “They’ve shown real courage to stand up for the rights of all of us and we’re proud to stand with them as they take this fight to the Supreme Court. We all deserve the freedom to go out in public without being turned away because of who we are.”

At the state level, the couple had success many times over. In December 2013, an administrative judge ruled the bakery had illegally discriminated against the couple — a decision affirmed by the Colorado Civil Rights Commission.

Masterpiece Cakeshop wasn’t penalized with monetary damages, but required to take remedial measures to comply with the law, institute comprehensive staff training and issue quarterly compliance reports for two years on these corrections in addition to documenting all patrons denied service at the bakery.

Mullins said the litigation “is not about whether or not there’s somewhere else we could get a cake” when asked why the couple is insistent Masterpiece Cakeshop be required to serve wedding cakes to same-sex couples.

“Our case is about basic access to public accommodations,” Mullins added. “We were not turned away from Masterpiece Cakeshop because of any design we asked for, we were turned away because we’re a gay couple, and we pursued this because we didn’t want another couple to go through what we had gone through.”

Mullins said if Masterpiece Cakeshop followed state law “we would have received the same service that any other person would have received, we would have been treated with respect.”

As litigation proceeded, Craig said the couple discovered Masterpiece Cakeshop turned away four or five same-sex couples before them. Although court documents say Phillips had offered the couple any ready-made product in the store in lieu of a wedding cake, Craig said one of these couples had sought cupcakes and were denied service.

In 2015, a three-judge panel on the Colorado Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the commission. Later, the Colorado Supreme Court refused to hear the case upon appeal from Masterpiece Cakeshop.

That seemed like the end of the road for Masterpiece Cakeshop, But in a last ditch effort, the bakery, represented by the anti-LGBT legal firm Alliance Defending Freedom, petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for review, citing issues of freedom of religion and expression.

To the surprise of just about everyone, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to accept the petition in June. (The petition had remained pending before the Supreme Court for some time and was taken up

shortly after confirmation to the bench of U.S. Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch.)

Why did the Supreme Court agree to take up the case? After consistent rulings at the state level in favor of the couple, could justices have in mind overturning those decisions in favor of allowing antiLGBT discrimination?

The answer, Mullins said, is completely in the minds of the Supreme Court justices and no one else — at least until justices render their decision in the case.

“Obviously there have been numerous public accommodations cases that have happened in numerous states, and in my wholly un-legal opinion, I think that maybe the reason they took our case was because there was no disagreement over the facts of how anything went down,” Mullins said. “It’s also possible that they just felt it was time to take up one and ours was the one that was on their desk when they made that decision.”

Mullins and Craig — with Craig’s mother in tow — plan to travel to D.C. to witness the oral arguments firsthand at the Supreme Court on Dec. 5. Mullins expressed excitement about seeing “Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s neckpiece” while hearing the case.

The couple has a busy schedule planned for the time they’re in D.C., which includes three speeches at different rallies. That’s consistent with the nearly 150 media interviews in which the couple has participated, ranging from the LGBT press to the New York Times.

“I think it’s important for people to see us just for the fact of we’re standing up for ourselves,” Craig said. “We experienced discrimination and experienced what it means to follow it through this far.”

During the arguments, the ACLU will represent the couple, another attorney will represent the Colorado Civil Rights Commission in defense of the nondiscrimination and Alliance Defending Freedom will make Masterpiece Cakeshop’s arguments.

But another lawyer from the U.S. Justice Department under U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions may also take part: U.S. Solicitor General Noel Francisco. Francisco sought time to speak before the Supreme Court after the Justice Department filed a friend-ofthe-court brief in favor of Masterpiece Cakeshop.

Mullins said the participation of the Trump administration in the litigation is “definitely notable,” but ultimately the Supreme Court will be making the decision in the case.

“In the end, the Supreme Court is nine justices and nine votes and they will make their decisions, and so, in the end, the buck stops with them,” Mullins said.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 1 3

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

1 4 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

NATIONAL NEWS

Rep. Wilson’s former intern caught on Grindr using racial epithets Incident highlights issue of racism in gay sex apps

By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com At a time of growing concern about racism in gay social media apps, a former campaign intern for Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) was recently caught using racial epithets on Grindr while on Capitol Hill.

Rep. Wilson was widely criticized in 2009 for shouting “You lie!” at former President Obama during the 2009 State of the Union Address.

The Grindr user messaged D.C. resident Rashad Humphries, who’s black, on Nov. 9 from a profile named “TGIF” with the words “sup nigga” and two photos of a youthful, white male — one near a river apparently with a male friend, the other with two females at a graduation ceremony. The user followed up with another message, “Fuck me nigga.”

Humphries did not express interest in the request for sexual intercourse.

“Bro you think using nigga in any context would make a black person want to fuck you?” Humphries responded. “Get the fuck outta here with that racist shit.”

The Grindr user responded, “Nigger.”

Humphries, a 27-year-old former Marine who’s now an administrative specialist for the U.S. government, told the Washington Blade the exchange was an “unfortunate situation” and he wanted to make it public because it was “the last straw” in being subjected to racism in the LGBT community.

“I became upset, more so annoyed,” Humphries said. “I wanted to find out who he was because the communication between me and him was obviously negative at best.”

A Grindr screenshot reveals “TGIF” messaged Humphries from less than 500 feet away, which indicates the user was in the Capitol Hill area where Humphries lives.

After the exchange, Humphries alerted his boyfriend, Joel Garcia, and his friend, Matt Curtis. Garcia, a 27-year-old teacher, said he had a different reaction than Humphries over the exchange and was more “upset and like ticked off” than his boyfriend.

“It becomes personal and I don’t experience that that often, so just seeing that from an outsider’s perspective really hit a chord with me,” Garcia said.

Both Garcia and Curtis took it upon themselves to uncover the identity of “TGIF.” Under the false pretense of arranging sexual encounters, Garcia, who’s Latino, and Curtis, who’s white, both exchanged messages with “TGIF” on the same day. The two obtained different photos than Humphries and had exchanges that were markedly dissimilar

A former campaign intern for Rep. JOE WILSON (R-S.C.) was caught using racial epithets on Grindr.

from their friend’s.

Curtis, a 39-year-old information technology official for the Defense Department, said he was “livid” when he found out about the exchange, but cooled down to win the user over in his messaging, bringing up topics like sports.

“I reached out to him and basically... pretended to be like someone who wanted to meet up and hook up with him,” Curtis said. “My sole motive was try to find out who this person is. That person had a totally opposite conversation with me. It was very nice.”

In a screenshot of one of the exchanges, “TGIF” asserted he came to D.C. from California for a “job offer bro,” prompting Curtis to comment, “That’s one good thing about D.C.” The user replied, “Yeah, Ha ha.”

Curtis said “TGIF” initially identified himself with the name “Alex,” but later said that name wasn’t right and provided a different name. Curtis persuaded “TGIF” to send his cell phone number and a friend request via Facebook in anticipation of a sexual encounter.

A screenshot of the Facebook profile viewed by the Blade shows pictures that were consistent with Curtis’ exchange on Grindr and subsequent name “TGIF” offered. The profile, Curtis said, also revealed “TGIF” is a Republican and a Trump supporter.

Instead of proceeding to meet for the sexual encounter, Curtis immediately sent the photos and identity to Humphries, who posted the information on Facebook alerting others to the exchange of hate speech on Grindr and the identity of “TGIF.” It appears “TGIF” has undertaken racist exchanges before. After Humphries made his Facebook post, he said a fellow gay veteran told him he received a similar message from the same user. That gay veteran, Humphries said, doesn’t have evidence of the exchange because “TGIF”

blocked him shortly afterward.

“Keep in mind I never messaged him, he messaged me directly first,” Humphries said. “It seems as though the reason why he used these fake pictures, fake profile, totally different information [is] either he gets a kick out of it, he thinks it’s funny, or I don’t know what his motive is.”

Humphries said “TGIF” was alerted to the Facebook post when someone he knew tagged him in it. The Grindr user sent text messages to Curtis, which were shown to the Blade. Curtis also said “TGIF” attempted to call about 10 times.

In apparent alarm, “TGIF” urged that the post be deleted because he wasn’t open about his sexual orientation.

“Look man, I truly apologize,” the Grindr user writes in one text. “I truly apologize. I’m just now coming to terms with who I am.”

In a subsequent text, “TGIF” says, “I’m fucking crying.” And in a subsequent text, he writes, “Please tell him to delete the post.”

Although “TGIF” blocked Curtis’ number, Curtis said he was able to continue texting him through an app that hid his phone number.

“He immediately responded back, was like, ‘Who is this?’ ‘Tell him I’m sorry.’

Tell him to take the post down. I’m conservative. I grew up in a conservative environment. He shouldn’t be posting stuff like that.”

Curtis said he hopes the fallout of making the exchange public will make people “start to think before they send these messages.”

“He kind of felt that Grindr was protecting him and he could act a certain way anonymously and not be held accountable...a total disregard for the other person’s feelings on the side of it,” Curtis said. “And all because of someone’s skin tone. To me, that is absolutely wrong and I feel like people shouldn’t be able to get away with that. It’s 2017.”

It’s unclear whether “TGIF” is in fact closeted about his sexual orientation.

The Blade has more information about his identity — including his name and photos — but has decided to withhold that information from this article.

Humphries said the racist epithets to which he was subjected aren’t unusual.

Since he left the Marine Corps, Humphries said he “encountered more moments of racism than I ever did in the military.”

“Specifically in the Marine Corps, they always teach you, no matter what your race...in the Marine Corps, everyone’s green essentially,” Humphries said. “We’re all fighting on the same team, on the same mission. Race should never be an issue.”

Humphries said he’s been subjected to less overt racism at other times within the LGBT community, but acknowledged the exchange on Grindr was more direct.

“It’s usually the idea that, ‘I don’t talk

to black guys’,” Humphries said. “People who don’t talk to black guys because they’re scared or they just don’t hang out with black people...even within the gay community in which we shouldn’t have that issue since we’re already marginalized as it is.”

That was the end of the exchange between the individuals and “TGIF,” who appears to have deleted his Facebook page.

But something remains online that sheds additional light on him: A Google search reveals a now deleted LinkedIn profile of someone with the same name who had an internship with Rep. Wilson, one of the most anti-LGBT lawmakers in Congress. The entry for the now deleted page indicates “TGIF” has been an intern for Wilson for more than a year.

A Wilson staffer reached by phone this week confirmed someone by the Grindr user’s name worked as an intern on Wilson’s 2016 reelection campaign, but said he had no role as a staff member or intern in Wilson’s congressional office. It’s unclear what role, if any, “TGIF” now has on Capitol Hill even though the Grindr messages from his profile were sent from that location.

The Human Rights Campaign has consistently awarded Wilson a score of “0” in its congressional scorecard assessing lawmakers’ positions on LGBT issues. Among the nine-term member’s votes were in favor of denying transitionrelated heath care for transgender service members as well as votes against hate crimes legislation, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal and a version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. As a high-ranking member of the House Armed Service Committee, Wilson was a major opponent of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal and convened a congressional hearing in 2011 to assess whether the implementation of openly gay service was happening too quickly in the U.S. military.

(Pentagon officials testified the change would happen by the middle of summer.

It ended up being at the end of the year.)

The South Carolina lawmaker is better known for shouting “You lie!” at Obama during his first State of the Union address in 2009, which many observers, including former President Jimmy Carter, said amounted to racism.

A Wilson spokesperson didn’t respond to repeated requests from the Blade to comment on whether the lawmaker would repudiate the use of racist epithets used by “TGIF.” The Blade has also tried to reach “TGIF” through the number he provided to Curtis, but he didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Humphries said Wilson’s apparent employment of “TGIF” is significant because it reflects the “political climate that we’re in today.”

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 1 5

Keep your promise to protect each other.

Spirit of the

Season2017 D.A.R. Constitution Hall 1776 D St., N.W. Washington, D.C.

Wills & Trusts Powers of Attorney • Living Wills Partnership & Prenuptial Agreements

(240) 778-2330 • (703) 536-0220 www.PartnerPlanning.com

Serving the LGBT Community in DC/MD/VA since 1983 Lawrence S. Jacobs/McMillan Metro, PC

ADVERTISING

PROOF #1

Serving Our Community for 35 years

ISSUE DATE: 10.26.12

SALES REPRESENTATIVE: BRIAN PITTS (bpitts@washblade.com)

REVIEW AD FOR COPY AND DESIGN ACCURACY. Revisions must be submitted within 24 hours of the date of

will e bed considered a d v i proof.

C e Proof • m i a t ifinal o and N will • beLsubmitted i t i Gforapublication t i o Nif revision • a isPnot P submitted e a L Swithin • 24 Chours o LofL a B o r a t i o N the date of proof. Revisions will not be accepted after 12:01 pm wednesday, the week of publication.Brown naff pitts REVISIONS omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) is not responsible for the content and/or design of your ad. Advertiser is responsible for any legal liability arising out of or relating to the advertisement, and/or any material to which users REDESIGN can link through the advertisement. Advertiser represents that its advertisement will not violate any criminal laws or TEXT REVISIONS any rgihts of third parties, including, but not limited to, such violations as infringement or misapporpriation of any copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, music, image, or other proprietary or propety right, false advertising, unfair IMAGE/LOGO REVISIONS competition, defamation, invasion of privacy or rights of celebrity, violation of anti-discrimination law or regulation, or any other right of any person or entity. Advertiser agrees to idemnify brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the ADVERTISER SIGNATURE NO REVISIONS washington blade) and to hold brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) harmless from any and all By signing this proof you are agreeing to your contr

Saturday, Dec. 9 at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Sunday, Dec. 10 at 3 p.m. for FREE tickets, visit: www.usafband.eventbrite.com

w w w. us a f b a n d . a f . m i l

liability, loss, damages, claims, or causes of action, including reasonable legal fees and expenses that may be incurred by brown naff pitts omnimedia llc, arising out of or related to advertiser’s breach of any of the foregoing representations and warranties.

washington blade newspaper. This includes but is no payment and insertion schedule.

FamiLY | eState PLaNNiNG | emPLoYmeNt | immiGratioN ComPLeX LitiGatioN | CiviL riGHtS | LGBt | adoPtioN | BuSiNeSS

Silber, Perlman, Sigman & Tilev, P.A.

at tor N e YS at L aw • d C | m d | va

3 0 1 . 8 9 1 . 2 2 0 0 • S P - L aw. C o m

6 9 3 0 C a r r o L L av e , S u i t e 6 1 0 • ta k o m a Pa r k m d

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

16 • N OV E M B E R 24, 201 7

prep for all occasions The PrEP Clinic at Andromeda can help you decide if PrEP is right for you.

202.743.7942 • www.andromedaprep.org • 1400 decatur Street nw • waShington, dc 20011

SPEAK WITH OUR PREPLANNING ADVISOR, JAMIE ARTHURS AT (202) 966-6400 OR EMAIL JAMIE.ARTHURS@DIGNITYMEMORIAL.COM

H E A LT H N E W S

Chinese group seeks end to ‘conversion’ therapy HONG KONG — Human Rights Watch, a New York-based agency, released a report this week calling for the Chinese government to stop subjecting LGBT residents here to “conversion” therapy, the Associated Press reports.

The report was based on interviews with 17 people who’d been subjected to such efforts.

Homosexuality was removed from China’s official list of mental illnesses more than 15 years ago, but stories of families enrolling relatives in treatments seeking to change their sexual orientation remain common.

Yang Teng, a Chinese gay rights activist, said a staff member at a private clinic in the southwestern city of Chongqing administered an electric shock to his finger as he was told to think about a time he had had sex with a man, the AP reports.

“The experience had left a deep psychological impact on me,” Yang, who was not involved in the Human Rights Watch report, said in an interview Tuesday. He said one session at a clinic in the southwestern city of Chongqing in 2014 cost him 500 Chinese yuan ($75).

The rights group’s report says many victims of conversion therapy were forcibly brought to hospitals by their families, which became the subject of a groundbreaking lawsuit earlier this year. The hospitals locked patients in their rooms to prevent escapes, the AP reports.

According to the report’s findings, patients were verbally harassed by doctors, called “sick,” ‘’pervert” and “dirty,” and some had to undergo “aversion therapy,” where patients were forced to take nausea-inducing medication while watching gay pornography, so that they would associate sexual arousal with nausea, the AP reports.

Chinese society continues to strongly favor children who can pass on their family name, and since same-sex marriage is not legal and same-sex couples may not adopt jointly, gay and lesbian people feel compelled to enter heterosexual marriages and have children, the AP reports.

China also has no laws protecting people from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, which deters victims of conversion therapy from seeking justice out of fear that their sexual orientation will be made public.

The scope of public activism by LGBT rights groups is restricted and the depiction of gay people on television and popular web streaming services is banned.

Conversion therapy is also a profitable business; doctors and clinics can charge up to 30,000 yuan ($4,500) for “treatment,” said Boris Dittrich, advocacy director of the Human Rights Watch LGBT Rights Program, the AP reports.

HIV rates dropping for U.K. gay men

LONDON — While several recent reports have shown that new HIV diagnoses have been falling in U.K. gay men, what really matters is the actual number of new HIV infections, regardless of whether people are diagnosed or not, AIDSmap reports.

This is HIV incidence and Public Health England (PHE) said this week that, according to their current estimates, incidence among gay and bisexual men in England has been falling since 2012. In previous years, PHE has always believed that incidence was stable.

5130 Wisconsin Ave. NW • DC • (202) 966-6400 • www.JosephGawlers.com As HIV incidence includes new infections that have not yet been diagnosed, it is inherently difficult to estimate. The method PHE uses is based on the CD4 A D V E R T I S I counts N G P of R Omen O F diagnosed with HIV — for example, a man diagnosed with HIV ISSUE DATE: 171020 SALES REPRESENTATIVE: at a CD4 count of 400 is likely to have acquired HIV about four years ago. So new diagnosis data collected this year helps refine the estimates of incidence in REVIEW AD FOR COPY AND DESIGN ACCURACY. Revisions must be submitted within 24 hours of the date of proof. Proof will be considered final and will be submitted for publication if revision is not submitted within 24 hours of previous years, AIDSmap reports. the date of proof.

Revisions will not be accepted after 12:01 pm wednesday, the week of publication.Brown naff pitts NS omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) is not responsible for the content and/or design of your ad. Advertiser is According to the new estimates, infections in gay and bisexual men have been responsible for any legal liability arising out of or relating to the advertisement, and/or any material to which users IGN can link through the advertisement. Advertiser represents that its advertisement will not violate any criminal laws or EVISIONS any rgihts of third parties, including, but not limited to, such violations as infringement or misapporpriation of any steadily falling for five years: 2,800 infections in 2012, 2100 infections in 2014 copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, music, image, or other proprietary or propety right, false advertising, unfair /LOGO REVISIONS competition, defamation, invasion of privacy or rights of celebrity, violation of anti-discrimination law or regulation, or any other right of any person or entity. Advertiser agrees to idemnify brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the ADVERTISER SIGNATURE and 1,700 infections in 2016, AIDSmap reports.

SIONS washington blade) and to hold brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) harmless from any and all By signing this proof you are agreeing to your contract obligations with the liability, loss, damages, claims, or causes of action, including reasonable legal fees and expenses that may be incurred figures appear in PHE’s annual surveillance report, issued this week. While washington blade newspaper. This includes but The is not limited to placement, by brown naff pitts omnimedia llc, arising out of or related to advertiser’s breach of any of the foregoing representations payment and insertion schedule. and warranties. most of the key findings have already been reported by AIDSmap in the last few months, some interesting extra details are provided. And there is a great deal of new data on HIV testing, covered in another article.

The estimated figures for people with undiagnosed HIV have been falling, bringing England close to meeting the United Nations 90-90-90 targets. It is estimated that 88 percent of people living with HIV have been diagnosed, 96 percent of those diagnosed are taking treatment and 97 percent of those treated have an undetectable viral load.

An estimated 10,400 people living with HIV have not been diagnosed, AIDSmap reports. The full report is available online.

~ 202.319.8541 • www.lgbtc.com • Se habla espanol

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 1 7

“

I love wandering through Smithsonian museums, eating on H Street with friends, and going to shows at Howard Theatre.

I’m a transgender woman and I’m part of DC. Please treat me the way any woman would want to be treated: with courtesy and respect.

Discrimination based on gender identity and expression is illegal in the District of Columbia.

If you think you’ve been the target of discrimination, visit www.ohr.dc.gov or call (202) 727-4559.

OFFICE OF

GLBT AFFAIRS

Show your support! Spread word of the #TransRespect campaign by photographing this ad and sharing on Twitter.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

18 • N OV E M B E R 24, 201 7

F I T N E SS

Rest and recover Pushing too hard at the gym day after day is counterproductive Many people put a great deal of effort into healthy living because they want to take proactive steps forward with their fitness. Day in and day out they train and eat right.

They put together what they believe is a solid routine. But the one element often ignored is rest.

DAVID MAGIDA is founder of Elevate Interval FitProviding yourself with proper ness, a member of the Reebok Spartan Race Pro Team and author of “The Essentials of Obstacle rest is one of the essential elements Racing: A Beginner’s Guide.” You can catch a class of your fitness routine. It can with him at Elevate on 14th Street or at its new location in the Mosaic District in Fairfax, Va. prevent injury, improve the quality of your workouts and help you assemble a more sustainable routine long term. Rest doesn’t exclusively refer to days off, but also to active recovery workouts and your sleep schedule.

No matter whom you are, at least one day of complete rest is recommended as part of your routine. For many, two or even three days of recovery is even better. These recovery days can prevent injuries by allowing your muscles and bones to regenerate and allow the inflammation in your joints to subside.

If you’d like, you can make one of those days active recovery. Active recovery refers to light, low-impact workouts like swimming, cycling, yoga or light jogging to loosen up your muscles while simultaneously continuing to improve your fitness and provide another physical outlet that will keep your mind engaged and prevent boredom from setting in.

The recovery days also provide a great deal of value by improving the quality of your workouts. If you were to train hard for four or five consecutive days, you don’t just suffer from soreness. The quality of your workouts decreases.

It’s a typical case of diminishing returns, where you feel like you’re giving your all in your training sessions but you’re no longer getting quality work because you’re just too fatigued. Your body will lack the energy to put in a solid workout and if you’ve been training with adequate effort, your muscles will probably feel tight and heavy.

If your goal is to train for high intensity, speed or power or you have other goals of improvement, it’s difficult to do so when you’re completely drained. So build appropriate rest days into your routine to give yourself that extra edge you need.

In addition to the physiological benefits, rest days provide a psychological benefit of preventing burnout. When you over train, it’s not just your body that fights back, your mind also resists. The mental fatigue can quickly turn to burnout, which leaves you unmotivated, even dreading your workouts. This leads to cutting sessions short and a diminished drive to push yourself each day. Taking days off allows your mind to recover and it can keep you excited and hungry to keep training hard.

The other key element of recovery that may seem obvious, but often gets overlooked, is sleep. Getting enough sleep is essential to moving forward with your training. You cannot improve if you aren’t rebuilding and the majority of the repair that happens to your muscles, bones and joints occurs while you sleep.

Your energy levels also receive a boost by getting quality sleep.

You should aim for seven or eight hours of sleep per night. And when you sleep, aim for uninterrupted sleep and a consistent sleeping schedule. Changing your bedtime and wakeup routines sporadically makes it difficult for you to sleep well consistently at night. Poor sleep can lead to diminished energy levels and potentially even injuries, so figuring out a sleep schedule that works for you and prioritizing it can keep you healthy and keep your fitness gains on an upward trajectory.

Eating right and working out are critical to reaching your fitness goals. This is undeniable. But what’s also undeniable is the importance of recovering correctly.

Think about yourself as an athlete. Eat, train and rest like an athlete. Take days off so your body can bounce back and you can continue to train hard. Get a good night’s sleep every single night. And don’t be afraid to mix it up with some crosstraining active recovery. Your routine will improve in quality and become more sustainable long term.

Frequency, consistency and intensity are the keys to success. Your rest allows you to improve in each of those areas as you work to reach your goals.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 1 9

A DIFFERENT WAY TO STAY At Kimpton, it’s personal. Your stay starts with the most genuine of smiles and ends with a promise to “see you next time.” Because to us, it’s all about making your experience memorable. Discover a different way to stay with our 10 uniquely styled boutique hotels in Washington, DC. We’ll be waiting for you. · · · · ·

Kimpton Mason & Rook Hotel Kimpton Hotel Monaco Washington D.C. Kimpton George Hotel Kimpton Hotel Palomar Washington D.C. Kimpton Carlyle Hotel Dupont Circle

1 (800) KIMPTON KimptonHotels.com/CapitalRegion

· · · · ·

Kimpton Glover Park Hotel Kimpton Donovan Hotel Kimpton Hotel Madera Kimpton Rouge Hotel Kimpton Topaz Hotel

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

2 0 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

C OM MU N I KA T E

Masterpiece Cakeshop is not about religious freedom It’s about discrimination — let’s discuss over Thanksgiving dinner

KATE CLINTON is a longtime humorist. She writes regularly for the Blade.

For Halloween, I tried go as Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ left eyebrow. Scary. But my prosthetics guy, an artist I’ve worked with for years, complained her face was so constantly two, three, four and more faced, that he could not get a single still photo to make a model. He said, “Sarah cannot physically actually do a resting bitch face. Restless Face Syndrome. Even Derma-Grip couldn’t help.”

Sometimes I like to play WWSH-SD? What would Sarah Huckabee Sanders do?

I picture her in various historical press rooms. Whipping those eyebrow-as-semaphores as she says, “The Visigoths are no threat to our great lands.” Side-mouthing, “Come on guys, there is nothing in that

Trojan horse.” Asymetrically deadpanning, “Regarding what happened in Charlottesville, the president has looked at both crowds now.” Oh wait, that happened.

What if Sarah were spokesman for Marie-Antoinette during the French Revolution? When told her starving subjects had no bread, the queen is quoted as saying, “Let them eat cake.” Sarah would have handled that with the flick of her arching left eyebrow. “The queen actually said, in that French language, ‘Qu’ils mangent de la brioche.’ It was a brioche not cake. C’est faux nouvelle.” (tr: “That is fake news”.)

There’s more fake news about cake. On Dec. 5, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. In July 2012, Charlie Craig and David Mullins visited the aforementioned cake shop to buy a wedding cake. When shop owner Jack Phillips realized it was for a same-sex couple, he refused to sell it to them based on his religious beliefs.

While the Colorado Civil Rights Commission and the state courts agree that the Cakeshop’s refusal violated Colorado’s Anti-Discrimination Act, the Cakeshop disagrees and argues that discrimination based on religious convictions should be constitutionally protected.

E DIT OR IA L C A R T OON

You can thank Hobby Lobby for expanding the scope of religious liberty protections. Prior to that case, courts had never recognized corporations as having any right to “religious freedom.”

The Alliance Defending Freedom argues that ruling against the Cakeshop is a violation of free speech. The bakery and its defenders have been speaking freely, endlessly, about the freedom of religion.

The Christian is understood.

Imagine my lesbian-pantheist knitting group, Pussy-Crafters, Ltd, at a holiday pop-up store in the mall. That damnable Little Drummer Boy song is on an endless loop. It sounds like, “Ta-rump-pum-pumTrump”. “I’m dreaming of a White Supremacist Christmas.” That loop causes one of the sister-vendors to lose her shit.

Based on her sincerely held, pantheist beliefs, she refuses to sell one of our pink products to the cocky alt-right guy in the red MAGA hat.

You can only imagine it. Because our case would never make it out of the mall lost and found.

The Masterpiece Cakeshop case is not about religious freedom.

It is about using religion to justify discrimination. It is about privileging religion over the law of the land. That law says the Cakeshop is free to sell whatever it wants.

It is not free to decide who to sell it to.

Sanctioning LGBT discrimination would of course set back years of progress for civil rights. If the court recognizes a constitutional right to discriminate, businesses can turn away people of color, single mothers, unmarried cohabitants, Muslims, Jews, interfaith couples and a host of others.

Presumably you’ve re-friended some family members since last year’s awkward, seething Thanksgiving dinner. Over pumpkin pie, bring up the Cakeshop case and discuss what it’s really about.

If there’s time, discuss the Armageddonout-of-here Tax bill. Then cue up Donna Summer and her eight-and-a-half-minute disco-fied version of MacArthur Park.

Scream along with Donna: “Someone left the rainbow cake out in the rain. I don’t think that I can take it, cause it took so long to bake it, and I’ll never have that recipe again.”

Good news: We do actually have a recipe. We saw it in this year’s election. Discuss electoralizing the resistance on your I-can’t-believe-I-ate-the-whole-thing after dinner walk. Next Thanksgiving, we’re serving up the mid-terms!

VOLUME

48

ISSUE

47

ADDRESS

PO Box 53352 Washington DC 20009 PHONE

202-747-2077 E-MAIL news@washblade.com INTERNET washingtonblade.com PUBLISHED BY Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. PUBLISHER LYNNE J. BROWN lbrown@washblade.com ext. 8075 EDITORIAL EDITOR KEVIN NAFF knaff@washblade.com ext. 8088 FEATURES EDITOR JOEY DIGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com ext. 8081 SR. NEWS REPORTER LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com ext. 8079 NEWS REPORTER CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com ext. 8083 REPORTER & INTERNATIONAL NEWS EDITOR MICHAEL K. LAVERS mlavers@washblade.com POP CULTURE REPORTER MARIAH COOPER PHOTO EDITOR MICHAEL KEY mkey@washblade.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS PETER ROSENSTEIN, MARK LEE, LATEEFAH WILLIAMS, KATE CLINTON, KATHI WOLFE, RICHARD J. ROSENDALL, HELEN PARSHALL, ERNESTO VALLE, NICOLÁS LEVY, BUNMI JOHNSON CREATIVE DESIGN/PRODUCTION AZERCREATIVE.COM SALES & ADMINISTRATION DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING STEPHEN RUTGERS srutgers@washblade.com ext. 8077 SR. ACCT. EXECUTIVE BRIAN PITTS bpitts@washblade.com ext. 8089 ACCT. EXECUTIVE JOE HICKLING jhickling@washblade.com ext. 8094 CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION PHILLIP G. ROCKSTROH prockstroh@washblade.com ext. 8092 NATIONAL ADVERTISING RIVENDELL MEDIA 212-242-6863; sales@rivendellmedia.com For distribution, contact Lynne Brown at 202-747-2077, ext. 8075. Distributed by MediaPoint, LLC All material in the Washington Blade is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the Washington Blade. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that person or persons. Although the Washington Blade is supported by many fine advertisers, we cannot accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Unsolicited editorial material is accepted by the Washington Blade, but the paper cannot take responsibility for its return. The editors reserve the right to accept, reject or edit any submission. A single copy of the Washington Blade is available from authorized distribution points, to any individual within a 50-mile radius of Washington, D.C. Multiple copies are available from the Washington Blade office only. Call for rates. If you are unable to get to a convenient free distribution point, you may receive a 52-week mailed subscription for $195 per year or $5.00 per single issue. Checks or credit card orders can be sent to Phil Rockstroh at prockstroh@washblade.com. Postmaster: Send address changes to the Washington Blade, PO BOX 53352 Washington, DC 20009. The Washington Blade is published weekly, on Friday, by Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. Individual Subscriptions are $195 per year for 52 issues (only $3.75 per issue mailed to you USPS). Rates for businesses/institutions are $450 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and additional mailing offices. Editorial positions of the Washington Blade are expressed in editorials and in editors’ notes as determined by the paper’s editors. Other opinions are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Washington Blade or its staff. To submit a letter or commentary: Letters should be fewer than 400 words; commentaries should be fewer than 750 words. Submissions may be edited for content and length, and must include a name, address and phone number for verification.

Send submissions by e-mail to knaff@washblade.com.

©2017 BROWN NAFF PITTS OMNIMEDIA, INC.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

I N S I DE LGB T W A S HING TON

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 2 1

Franken should stay, Moore should be defeated Assessing consequences for the men accused of abuse

PETER ROSENSTEIN is a D.C.-based LGBT rights and Democratic Party activist. He writes regularly for the Blade.

I have great respect for the women who are now coming forth and accusing various men of inappropriate behavior. We know men can be pigs. Many of these women have suffered for years in silence and it has impacted their lives in many ways.

But it is also time for us to determine how we differentiate what the consequences should be for the men being accused. They must be based on what they did. Not all their actions and transgressions are the same. Each incident, and each man, should be viewed separately.

There are some men who have been serial abusers and others who did something wrong once. Even if all the actions a man has been accused of may have been wrong the repercussions may be different. It may be appropriate to give some of the men a chance to make apologies and not have their lives destroyed.

In the case of Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) some suggest we don’t know the full story. What we know is from a picture as well as from what the woman involved said.

So we can respect her and also respect the senator’s apology when combining it with the fact she has said she accepts his apology. Why wouldn’t that be enough for the rest of us to accept it?

Then there is the case of Judge Roy Moore running for the Senate in Alabama.

Among other offenses he is accused of is pedophilia and people say they believe his victim. According to the law pedophilia is not only an offense to the individual victim but an offense to society. There are some heinous acts that fall into that category, including rape or attempted rape and I am sure there are others.

The point I’m trying to make is there are differences in some of the offences and inappropriate actions men have been accused of toward women. Recently, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) in a New York Times interview said she thought Bill Clinton should have resigned over the Lewinsky scandal. But as many pointed out, while what Bill Clinton did with Lewinsky was wrong, Lewinsky was a 22-year-old woman who has often said her relationship with him was consensual. Let’s also remember Clinton was punished. He was impeached, though not convicted, and was stripped of his license to practice law.

He has also been appropriately labeled a sleaze for the rest of his life.

So some legitimately question why Gillibrand brought this up now and was she the right person to do it. To many it seems she made a political calculation as the writer of the column also reports, “In previous years Ms. Gillibrand has also noted Mr. Clinton’s support for her own run for office. “I was lucky enough to receive guidance and mentorship from Hillary during that run, and was truly honored

that President Bill Clinton campaigned for me in my first run for Congress in 2006.”

If it was for political reasons I think it might have backfired on her. Attacking someone you claimed to respect and used to help advance your career can only make your motives questioned. The senator claims it was to make a point on what is happening today. But she is a very smart woman and there are many other ways to make the points she tried to make.

What is clear are the allegations against Harvey Weinstein and others including those against our current president have opened up a floodgate of memories for many women. Many of the men accused had the power to impact their lives and careers. If this new courage women are showing finally brings us to a more equal playing field it will be a great step forward for our society.

Maybe this new recognition of women’s power will finally give us the impetus needed to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. It is past time to include women officially in the Constitution, which is something the American people have been unwilling to do up to now.

O U R B USI NES S MATTERS

Will D.C. campaigns go ‘on the dole’ with tax dollars?

Legislators should halt consideration until reforming city’s closed primaries

MARK LEE is a long-time entrepreneur and community business advocate. Follow on Twitter: @MarkLeeDC. Reach him at OurBusinessMatters@gmail.com.

It is possible D.C. politicians will approve a plan to allocate an estimated $20 million and likely more every four-year election cycle, and additional millions in government administrative costs, for their re-election campaigns and those of other candidates.

Previous proposals to provide campaign financing with tax dollars went nowhere in 2013 and 2015. A new attempt introduced earlier this year, however, is sponsored by a majority of legislators who may put District politicians on the public dole in financing their campaigns.

Most astoundingly audacious about

this effort is the prospect that officials may approve taxpayer funding of campaigns for elections in which a sizable percentage of registered voters are barred from voting.

If public funds are to be distributed to candidates for their personal campaigns, the public must be allowed to fully participate in the election process. Current D.C. law, unlike surrounding states and across the country, does not allow independents, self-enrolled as “No Party,” to vote in primary elections restricted to those registered with an individual party.

Nearly one-in-five on the voter rolls citywide, and in some areas comprising fully or nearly one-quarter of those registered, are prohibited from participating in primaries. In the District, the eventual winner is almost always determined in advance of the general election due to single party domination.

Before considering this self-aggrandizing scheme, reforming the city’s increasingly archaic “closed primary” system must first occur. There are a variety of options for correcting this anomaly – whether utilizing open primary, non-partisan primary, proportional voting, run-off election, other models or a combination.

Until the city’s outlier election set-up is revised, D.C. Council members should be shamed from benefiting themselves with

public funds.

Perversely, by encouraging potentially larger numbers of candidates, a touted goal of distributing public monies to candidates, the current D.C. election system will produce winners accruing an even smaller minority of votes among an expanded multiplicity of contenders.

The reality is incumbents greatly benefit from public financing, as they are most competent and capable of raising voluminous donations for which matching funds of up to 600 percent would be bestowed under the proposed law.

When examining jurisdictions with public funding, the actual effect is notably nominal – most incumbents are reelected and the voting patterns of elected officials do not change. Sure, a socialist or two may win an election here or there, and there are arguable merits to public financing of campaigns, yet the benefits are vastly overstated and don’t alter the political landscape as hoped-for by selfinterested proponent groups and candidates eager for funding.

Independent PACs also proliferate, while labor unions and small special interest policy groups manipulate the rules, and carve-outs, for outsized influence.

What is most jaw-dropping is the suggestion that a city election board incapable of enforcing existing rules governing

campaign finances will suddenly acquire the ability to administer a massive new public funding program without merely replacing one set of abuses for another.

Rather than eliminating the perception of “pay to play” politics, achievable by simpler means and enactment of both improved transparency and competent enforcement of existing regulations, a range of new problems are created.

Based on past performance, government will prove incapable of ferreting out fraud and preventing criminality. The minority of states and few cities with public financing are plagued with fraud, abuse, and new forms of corruption as candidates game the system or conspire to illegally acquire taxpayer monies.

There’s also outrage when candidates espousing unpopular positions are fueled by the tax dollars of disapproving residents.

In New York City this year a Council candidate campaigning against “greedy Jewish landlords” qualified for $100,000 in public funds. Will LGBT taxpayers countenance giving tax monies to anti-gay candidates, those opposing transgender protections or attempting to weaken equality measures?

Public financing will only further expose and exacerbate an indefensible voting process in the nation’s capital. The D.C. Council should abandon public funding until they fix the city’s election system.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

2 2 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

GIFT GUIDE

Pop culture Christmas JUICY CELEB BIOS, LAVISH BOX SETS AND MORE MAKE GREAT GAY GIFTS — FOR OTHERS OR YOURSELF!

By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com

“RuPaul’s Drag Race Paper Doll Book” features 10 punch-out paper dolls of winners from the first eight seasons plus All Stars. 74 pages, $18.95

“Joan Rivers Confidential: the Unseen Scrapbooks, Joke Cards, Personal Files and Photos of a Very Funny Woman Who Kept Everything” by Melissa Rivers. 336 pages, $25

“Santa’s Husband” by Daniel Kibblesmith; illustrations by AP Quach.

Black Santa lives with white hubby in the North Pole. For ages 4-8; 32 pages, $16.99

“TOM” by Silvia Prada features “drawings in conversation” with Tom of Finland’s personal collages and archives. 44 pages, $25

George Michael “Listen Without Prejudice”/“MTV Unplugged.” Available as three CDs/1 DVD, two-CDs, digital or 180-gram vinyl. Sony Music, prices vary.

“Supremes Ultimate Merry Christmas” features stereo and mono mixes along with outtakes and alternate vocal takes of this 1965 album. Fifty tracks on two CDs, 16 of which are previously unreleased and 21 new to CD. $24.99

“Gold Dust Woman: the Biography of Stevie Nicks” by Stephen Davis (352 pages, $27.99) and “Reckless Daughter: a Portrait of Joni Mitchell” by David Yaffe (448 pages, $28)

CONTINUES ON PAGE 23

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

G I F T GUI DE

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 2 3

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 22

Mariah Carey “All I Want for Christmas is You” original motion picture soundtrack features new song “Lil Snowman” and several Mariah holiday classics. $10 Gwen Stefani “You Make it Feel Like Christmas.”

First-ever holiday album from the No Doubt front woman. $16

“Classic Lady Day” by Billie Holiday and “The Divine Miss Dinah Washington” are five-disc box sets from Verve containing five of the artists’ most popular and enduring albums remastered on either CD or 180-gram vinyl. $42.74 on CD or $112 on vinyl.

Alison Arngrim’s hilarious memoirs “Confessions of a Prairie Bitch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated” is now out in an unabridged audio book read by the author. $25

“One Day at a Time” complete series gathers all nine seasons of the classic Norman Lear sitcom for the first time on 27 discs. $103.99.

Also relive bare-chested John Schneider and Tom Wopat in their prime with all seven seasons of “The Dukes of Hazzard,” gathered for the first time in one set. $175

“Leonard Bernstein Remastered” gives the gay composer/ conductor the super-deluxe treatment — 100 discs with original album sleeves and a hardcover book to coincide with his 2018 centennial. Sony Classical, $139.99

Monopoly Golden Girls Edition lets you go around the board with Dorothy, Sophia, Rose and Blanche. $39.95

2 4 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

W A SH I N G T O N BLA D E . CO M

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 2 5

2 6 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

W A SH I N G T O N BLA D E . CO M

AD PT A SPECIES. While one of the Zoo’s pandas won’t fit under your tree this holiday, an Adopt a Species panda package certainly will. Show the animal lover in your life how big your heart is with the gift that supports animal care and conservation around the world—and delivers a cuddly friend. With options to adopt pandas, tigers, orangutans, and other species—including the opportunity to add a private meet-a-keeper tour—we have the perfect present for everyone on your list. Order today at fonz.org/giftadopt. #ListChecked

GIVE THE GIFT OF MUSIC ALL YEAR LONG

Blade_Adopt_9.75x5.625.indd 1

Apply for Discounts on Your Utility Bills

11/20/17 6:27 PM

Discounts are Subject to Income Eligibility Requirements

- Apply for Discounted Rates on Telephone

Lifeline Program (Economy II)

Annual discount on one land line service per household.

Natural Gas

Residential Essential Service (RES) Program

GIFT CERTIFICATES AND MEMBERSHIPS MAKE THE PERFECT HOLIDAY GIFT Wolf Trap members receive exclusive benefits including access to tickets before the public, VIP lounge and parking, and invitations to private events.

BENEFITS VARY BY MEMBERSHIP LEVEL

WOLFTRAP.ORG/GIFT 703.255.1900

Potential savings up to $276 during the winter heating season.

Electric

Residential Aid Discount (RAD) Program

Potential savings are between $300-$475 annually.

Water

Customer Assistance Program (CAP)

Potential discount could be over $450 annually.

For more info call 311 or visit doee.dc.gov/udp

To apply for the telephone Lifeline Service (Economy II), call 800-253-0846.

These programs are for DC residents only.

ARTS

AND

ENTERTAINMENT

•

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

•

VOLUME

48

•

ISSUE

47

•

NOVEMBER

24,

2017

•

PAGE

27

The entrance to Museum of the Bible on 4th Street in Southwest Washington.

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY JOEY DIGUGLIELMO

The B-I-B-L-E — is that the book for me?

Evangelical billionaires open new Bible museum amid criticism, controversy

By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com The team behind the new Museum of the Bible, which opened last weekend in Washington, said all along they wouldn’t “mention homosexuality, abortion or any other political commentary” and they’ve stayed true to their word.

The controversial museum — housed in a massive, 430,000-square-foot building three blocks from the U.S. Capitol in Southwest Washington — was established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2010. In 2012, museum personnel purchased the former Washington Design Center for $50 million and spent years having it converted into an eight-story structure with two basement levels and two new floors added to the existing rooftop at a total cost of more

than $500 million.

All the effort and expense shows. This is no amateur endeavor despite the bumps in the road the billionaires behind it — it’s been largely funded by the Green family, owners of Hobby Lobby — have encountered along the way.

During a media preview last week, a few finishing touches were still being applied.

Ladders and cans of paint were seen in several corridors much like they were during media previews for the National Museum of African-American History and Culture that opened last year. The museum’s communications team didn’t hesitate in including the Blade. The Blade has also learned of at least one openly

LGBT person on staff at the museum.

Steve Green is president of Hobby Lobby and chair of the Museum of the Bible board. He told media at the museum on Nov. 15 that the purpose of the museum was “not about us espousing our faith.”

“The example I primarily use is in the Bible, it says, ‘In the beginning God created …,’ so we tell that story on the narrative floor but it’s not our position to tell you when God created, so we don’t take a position on whether that’s true or not. We just say, ‘Here’s the Bible story,’ and then you can decide what you do with it.”

Another recurring theme from staff is that the museum is “non-sectarian” and they’ve gone to great lengths to take

an ecumenical approach. One exhibit features items on loan from the Vatican and the museum boasts what it claims is the world’s largest private collection of retired Torah scrolls and the secondlargest private collection of Dead Sea Scroll fragments, the earliest-surviving manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible.

“Obviously we’re trying to be inclusive,” Green said. “We have the Israel Antiquity Authority, we have the Vatican having space in here, so it’s not about a faith tradition. We have a love for the Bible and we want to include everyone. We want atheists to feel comfortable coming CONTINUES ON PAGE 40

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

2 8 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

Q U E E RY : 2 0 Q U E ST I O N S F O R RO B SCH E E R

ROB SCHEER national disgrace and we need to come together to rebuild it from the bottom up. On any given day, there are nearly half a million children in foster care in the United States. Even worse, many of these children eventually “age out” of the foster system and find themselves homeless and alone at age 18. That’s exactly what happened to me.

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com Rob Scheer and husband Reece Scheer founded Comfort Cases in 2013 out of frustration.

In the ‘70s, Rob Scheer himself was in the foster care system and aged out of it at 18. He’s never forgotten the indignities that went with it.

“I remember feeling terrified as I walked to the door of my first foster family carrying everything I owned in a large, black trash bag,” says the 51-year-old D.C.-area native.

He remembers his foster parents going through his items while he went to take a shower.

“I was a stranger in their home and had to shower with someone else’s bar of soap and change into someone else’s hand-me-down clothes. It was embarrassing, demeaning and demoralizing.”

Upon welcoming two foster kids of their own, the Scheers founded Comfort Cases with the mission to “bring comfort and dignity to people entering the foster care system.” Comfort Cases provides each foster child with a new backpack or duffel bag with personal items such as pajamas, a blanket, stuffed animal, toiletries, books and other items. The organization has been featured on “Ellen” and on Saturday, Nov. 25, Mrs. Kasha Davis and Tatianna from “RuPaul’s Drag Race” will headline a benefit for the organization. Tickets are $50 for the 8 p.m. event. Details at comfortcase.org.

Rob Scheer works by day as a chief strategy officer for Landmark Network, Inc., a California-based financial services and real estate appraisal firm. The Scheer family, including Amaya (13), Greyson (10), Makai (10) and Tristan (8), lives on a farm in Darnestown, Md.

How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?

I came out when I was 22. I’d say the hardest person to tell was myself. It was a challenging period in my life and it took a lot for me to finally be honest with myself.

Once I did, there was no looking back.

Who’s your LGBT hero?

Ellen DeGeneres is a big hero of mine.

She’s shown such tremendous courage in her life. I’ve always admired how she maintains her values and doesn’t compromise herself even when the pressure was unbelievably high.

What’s Washington’s best nightspot, past or present?

Town is a fixture in the LGBT community and they’ve been so generous in hosting our Cocktails, Queens, & Comfort Cases fundraiser this weekend. I’m sad that Town will be closing this summer and really hoping that they will find a new home.

Describe your dream wedding.

That’s easy because I had my dream wedding. Me, my husband and our kids by our side. It was exactly what I wanted and I will never forget that special day.

What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about?

Supporting kids experiencing the foster care system. Our system is a

What historical outcome would you change?

The deterioration of our nation’s foster care system and the impact that system has on our kids.

What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime?

I’ll never forget when Princess Diana died. It was such a sad moment and such a loss for the world. She was a special person and a great humanitarian. What struck me the most about that time was how the world came together with love and appreciation for her life and her legacy. I found it very moving.

On what do you insist?

Accountability. I don’t have patience of people that blame the bad things in their lives on others or on their circumstances. I believe we all have a responsibility to ourselves to create the change we need to be successful.

What was your last Facebook post or Tweet?

I posted a message promoting this fundraiser and encouraging all of my friends to show their support!

If your life were a book, what would the title be?

It’s funny you ask this question because I’m actually working on a book right now. It’s scheduled to come out late next year and you’ll have to wait and see what the title is.

If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do?

Nothing. I’m proud of who I am and know that my life would be completely different if I weren’t this person. I wouldn’t trade my life — all the good and the bad — for anything in the world.

What do you believe in beyond the physical world?

I believe in a God that is the full

realization of love. I have too many blessings in my life to believe otherwise.

What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders?

I tell everyone who will listen that the best thing they can do is to lead by example. I believe working hard to change the things that need changing and fix the things that need fixing is the only way things get done. Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” I try to live by that motto.

What would you walk across hot coals for?

To get to my husband and my kids faster. I travel so much for work, the charity and speaking engagements that I treasure every second with them.

What LGBT stereotype annoys you most?

That we do not like sports!

What’s your favorite LGBT movie?

“Milk.” A great reminder of what we can all accomplish if we get involved and fight for change.

What’s the most overrated social custom?

Saying, “How are you?” to people in passing, when we’re really just being polite. I’m a people person so I like to get to know people, talk to them and hear their story. When I say, “How are you?” I really want to know.

What trophy or prize do you most covet?

I’ve got all the reward I need with my husband and my kids.

What do you wish you’d known at 18?

At 18, I was homeless, having aged out of the foster care system, and I was alone. I didn’t believe I would ever amount to anything and I was on the verge of giving up. I made the decision to not become a statistic and I made a personal commitment to make something of myself. I wish 18-year-old me knew then how much love and joy I would find in my life.

Why Washington?

Washington is my home and always has been. This is where I feel the most accepted and loved.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 2 9

YOUR ROAD MAP TO A GREAT HOLIDAY! You’re gonna love our deals.

N

❆ ❆

370

❆

355

❆

❆

❆

❆

❆

270

❆

Washington DC

Maryland

495

❆ 495

❆

95

❆

1

❆ ❆

295 495

❆

❆

❆

Virginia

❆ 395 495

DARCARS Toyota Scion of Baltimore

6007 Eastern Ave. Baltimore, MD 21224 410-633-2200

DARCARStoyotaofbaltimore.com

DARCARS Toyota Scion of Frederick

DARCARS Chrysler Jeep DARCARS Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram of Marlow Hgts. of Waldorf

5060 Auth Way Marlow Heights, MD 20746

11755 Business Park Dr. Waldorf, MD 20601

301-423-5111

301-843-5200

DARCARScjdrofmarlowheights.com waldorfchryslerjeep.net DARCARS Chrysler Jeep Orange Park Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram of New Carrollton Dodge Ram

5293 Buckeystown Pike (Route 85) 8100 Annapolis Rd. Frederick, MD 21704 New Carrollton, MD 20784

7233 Blanding Blvd.

Jacksonville, FL 32244

301-696-6300

301-459-6800

DARCARS 355 Toyota Scion of Rockville

DARCARS Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram of Rockville

DARCARStoyotaoffrederick.com

15625 Frederick Rd. Rockville, MD 20855

301-340-0900

355toyota.com

DARCARScjdrofnewcarrollton.com 755 Rockville Pike Rockville, MD 20852

DARCARS Ford

9020 Lanham Severn Rd. Lanham, MD 20706 DARCARSford.com

301-424-1700

DARCARScjdrofrockville.com

DARCARS Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram of Silver Spring

301-622-0300

301-622-0010

DARCARStoyota.com

orangeparkdodgeflorida.com

301-459-1100

DARCARS Toyota Scion of Silver Spring

12210 Cherry Hill Rd. Silver Spring, MD 20904

904-777-5500

12511 Prosperity Dr. Silver Spring, MD 20904

DARCARScjdrofsilverspring.com

DARCARS Honda of Bowie

4

❆ DARCARS Lanham Kia

5

9020 Lanham Severn Rd. Lanham, MD 20706 301-459-1100

DARCARSlanhamkia.com

DARCARS Kia of Temple Hills

4700 Branch Ave, Temple Hills, MD 20748

DARCARS Nissan of Rockville

15911 Indianola Dr. Rockville, MD 20855

3110 Automobile Boulevard Silver Spring, MD 20904

DARCARSnissan.com

DARCARSpreownedoutlet.com

301-309-2200

Rockville, MD 20855

301-309-3900

Lexus of Silver Spring

DARCARS Volkswagen of Silver Spring

2505 Prosperity Terrace Silver Spring, MD 20904

301-680-0400

lexusofsilverspring.com

DARCARS Nissan of College Park

DARCARSvolvo.com 12511 Prosperity Dr. Silver Spring, MD 20904

301-622-0010

DARCARSvw.com

DARCARS Used Car Center of Frederick

2260 Crain Highway Bowie, MD 20716

9330 Baltimore Ave. College Park, MD 20740

DARCARShonda.com

DARCARSnissanofcollegepark.com 301-696-6300 DARCARSusedcarcenter.com

301-218-3100

301-441-8000

DARCARS.com

301.679.1300

DARCARS Volvo of Rockville DARCARS Pre-Owned of Fairfax 15401 Frederick Rd.

301-899-1100

DARCARSkiaoftemplehills.com

DARCARS Pre-Owned Outlet of Silver Spring

1040 W. Patrick St (Route 40) Frederick, MD 21704

10620 Fairfax Boulevard Fairfax, VA 22030

703.385.0500

DARCARSoffairfax.com

DARCARS Pre-Owned of Westside

1665 Cassat Avenue Jacksonville, FL 32210 904.384.6561

DARCARSwestside.com

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

3 0 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

A RT S & CU LT U RE

This Week in the Arts provided by CultureCapital.com DANCE Kansas City Ballet: The Nutcracker.

Thru Nov 26. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

The Nutcracker. Nov 30-Dec 3.

BalletNova. Kenmore Middle School.

BalletNova.org.

MUSIC

Mean Girls Thru Dec 3. National Theatre. thenationaldc.org.

Full of razor-sharp wit and remarkable insight, Mean Girls takes a look at friendships — and human nature — through a ferociously funny lens. Be the first to see this world premiere musical featuring a book by Tina Fey, original music by Jeff Richmond, and lyrics by Nell Benjamin.

Gobsmacked!

Nov 24-26. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

Featuring reigning world champion beatboxer Ball-Zee and an international cast of vocalists, Gobsmacked! weaves stories through all forms of a cappella, guaranteeing audiences will leave with a song in their hearts and smiles on their faces.

A Short Series of Disagreements Presented Here in Chronological Order.

Thru Nov 25. Studio Theatre. studiotheatre.org.

A brand-new story told entirely through the peripheries and pivot points of an as-yet undetermined number of debates, wrangles, quarrels, arguments, discussions, tiffs, altercations, contretemps, and squabbles.

Atlas of Beer Nov 30. National Geographic. nglive.org.

MUSEUMS

Go on a geographical journey with the world’s foremost experts on beer.

Gain insights from renowned “beer doctors” Nancy Hoalst-Pullen and Mark Patterson, while James Beard Award–winning brewmaster Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery leads a guided tasting with food pairings.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NATIONAL THEATRE

THEATRE An Act of God. Thru Nov 26. Crazy For You. Thru Jan 14. Signature Theatre. sigtheatre.org.

Curve of Departure. Nov 29-Jan 7.

Studio Theatre. studiotheatre.org.

Horton Foote’s A Coffin in Egypt.

Thru Dec 16. Conor McPherson’s St Nicholas. Thru Dec 17. Quotidian Theatre Company. The Writer’s Center. quotidiantheatre.org.

The Last Night of Ballyhoo. Nov 29Dec 31. Theater J. theaterj.org.

The Second City Presents Nothing to Lose (But Our Chains). Thru Dec 31.

Woolly Mammoth. woollymammoth.net.

Brady Rymer & The Little Band That Could. Nov 26. Fresh Air. Nov 29.

AMP. ampbystrathmore.com.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets™ in Concert. Nov 24-Nov 26.

NSO: Yuja Wang plays Prokofiev / Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances.

Nov 30-Dec 2. Renée Fleming VOICES: Angélique Kidjo. Nov 30. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

A Chanticleer Christmas. Nov 25.

GMU Center for the Arts. cfa.gmu.edu.

Farah Siraj. Nov 30. Embassy Series.

Embassy of Jordan. embassyseries.org.

Newmyer Flyer: The Songs of Burt Bacharach & Hal David. Nov 25.

An Evening with David Crosby & Friends. Nov 28-Nov 29. Loudon Wainwright III with Lucy Wainwright Roche. Nov 30. Wolf Trap. The Barns. wolftrap.org.

New Music at Maryland Concert.

Nov 28. The Clarice. theclarice.umd.edu.

DakhaBrakha. Nov 26. Reston Community Center. CenterStage at RCC. restoncommunitycenter.com.

A Christmas Carol. Thru Dec 31.

Ford’s Theatre. fords.org.

Top Girls. Thru Dec 2. Keegan Theatre. keegantheatre.com.

Shear Madness. Thru Nov 26.

Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

A Christmas Carol. Nov 24-Dec 24.

Annie. Thru Dec 31. Olney Theatre. olneytheatre.org.

Vicuña & The American Epilogue.

Thru Nov 26. The Real Americans.

Thru Dec 22. Mosaic Theater Company.

Atlas. mosaictheater.org.

WIT: Road Show! Nov 24-Nov 25. The Book of Merman. Thru Dec 8. DC Arts Center (DCAC). dcartscenter.org.

Folger Shakespeare Library. Painting Shakespeare. Thru Feb 11. folger.edu.

Library of Congress. Echoes of the Great War: American Experiences of World War I. Thru Jan 1. loc.gov.

National Archives. Remembering Vietnam. Thru Jan 6. archivesfoundation.org.

National Gallery of Art. Matthias Mansen: Configurations. Thru Dec 13.

Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry.

Thru Jan 21. Edvard Munch: Color in Context. Thru Jan 28. nga.gov.

National Geographic. Wild: Michael Nichols. Thru Jan 12. Tomb of Christ.

Thru Aug 15. nglive.org.

National Museum of Women in the Arts. Inside the Dinner Party Studio.

Thru Jan 5. Magnetic Fields: Expanding American Abstraction, 1960s to Today.

Thru Jan 21. nmwa.org.

National Portrait Gallery. Antebellum Portraits by Mathew Brady. Thru Jun 3. The Sweat of Their Face: Portraying American Workers. Thru Sep 3.

Celebrating Fifty Years. Thru Jan 6. npg.si.edu.

Dumbarton Oaks. Highlights from the Dumbarton Oaks Rare Book Collection.

Thru Jan 1. Ancient Textiles. Thru Mar 31. Women in Art. Thru Mar 31.

Ancient Bronzes. Thru Mar 31. doaks.org.

Kennedy Center. Exhibit: Fantasy in Japan Blue. Thru Dec 3. kennedycenter.org.

Woodrow Wilson House. The Ghost Fleet of Mallows Bay. Thru Feb 28. woodrowwilsonhouse.org.

GALLERIES The Art League. Home Sweet Home: On the Move. Thru Dec 3. theartleague.org.

Waverly Street Gallery. Tom Kenyon.

Thru Dec 2. waverlystreetgallery.com.

Zenith Sculpture Space. Black Artists of Today: Reinventing Tomorrow! Thru Jan 6. zenithgallery.com.

Bender JCC. Adi Shani. Thru Dec 17. benderjccgw.org. gallery Neptune & Brown. Wolf Kahn.

Nov 24-Jan 6. galleryneptunebrown.com.

Glen Echo Park. Holiday Art Show and Sale. Nov 24-Jan 7. glenechopark.org.

Hill Center. Karin Edgett. Thru Dec 30.

Michael Ford. Thru Dec 30. Joanathan Bessaci. Thru Dec 30. hillcenterdc.org.

ISAAG. Visual Metaphors - Anne-Lise Large & Alejandro Gutierrez. Thru Nov 29. idbstaffassociationartgallery.org.

JCCNV. Ronni Jolles. Thru Nov 28.

Charitable Art. Thru Jan 25. jccnv.org.

AND MORE...

District Architecture Center. Post Occupancy Evaluations – How, Why, and When. Nov 28. aiadac.com.

National Archives. The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America.

Nov 29. archivesfoundation.org.

Alliance Française of Washington, D.C. Jouons ! A French Game Night.

Nov 27. francedc.org.

Arlington Cultural Affairs. Through The Lens of Frank Hallam Day and Anne Rowland. Nov 28. Courthouse Plaza. arlingtonarts.org.

Hill Center. All Politics is Local with Tom Sherwood & Mark Segraves: Doreen Gentzler. Nov 28. The Life of a Poet: Conversations with Ron Charles – Rae Armantrout. Nov 29. hillcenterdc.org.

Strathmore. Deepak Chopra. Nov 28. strathmore.org.

National Portrait Gallery. Film Screening: The Blue Angel. Nov 30. npg.si.edu.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

BOOKS

N OV E M B E R 24, 2017 • 31

琀栀攀

Barbie vs. Bratz Doll design wars recounted in compelling new book

一䄀䬀䔀䐀 夀伀䜀䄀 䴀漀渀搀愀礀猀Ⰰ 眀攀搀渀攀猀搀愀礀猀 ☀ 䘀爀椀搀愀礀猀

㘀㨀㌀ 倀䴀

琀甀攀猀搀愀 礀猀 ㄀⼀㈀ 瀀爀椀挀攀 氀漀挀欀攀爀猀 ☀ 爀漀漀洀猀

TERRI SCHLICHENMEYER has been reading since she was 3 years old. She lives in Wisconsin with two dogs and 12,000 books. Reach her at bookwormsez@yahoo.com.

As a kid, what was your favorite toy?

You can probably remember it instantly: the thing you couldn’t bear to leave at home, the doll you spent hours with, the toy truck that road-tripped your imagination. Just thinking of it gives you a warm feeling and a wistful smile but in “You Don’t Own Me” by Orly Lobel, you’ll read about two toy companies that weren’t playin’.

Years after it happened, Carter Bryant couldn’t tell you what spurred him to think the way he did that sunny afternoon.

Maybe it was dissatisfaction with his on-again,-off-again job at Mattel. Maybe it was a recent, nasty break-up with his on-again,-off-again boyfriend. Or maybe it was a quirk in his impressively creative mind that made him notice three teenagers as they left their small-townMissouri school, and that made Bryant think of his huge idea.

All his life, he’d been an artist and dreamed of designing clothes. After graduating from fashion school, he landed a job at Mattel to work with Barbie but Mattel had no tolerance for spontaneous creativity, says Lobel, and that was something Bryant couldn’t abide. And so, as he moved from Los Angeles to his parents’ home in Missouri then back to Mattel a few times, Bryant obsessed about three hip teenage dolls, drawing and re-drawing, putting them away and revisiting them, creating their fictitious lives, rounding them out and making them real.

In August 2000, a friend and former Mattel co-worker introduced Bryant to two people who would change his life; both were executives at Mattel rival MGA. And both were excited to see what Bryant had been calling his “Bratz.”

For many years, Isaac Larian, a JewishIranian immigrant and the owner-founder of toy company MGA, had been looking for a blockbuster toy. He wanted to own it, not

㠀 愀洀 ⴀ 洀椀搀渀椀最栀琀

猀愀 琀甀爀搀愀 礀猀 最爀愀戀 愀 ␀㔀 漀昀昀 挀愀爀搀 愀琀 吀刀䄀䐀䔀 COURTESY W.W. NORTON

just distribute it, and he was “no stranger to litigation.” That was a good thing because, after many attempts to get Barbie back on her molded feet to fight against Larian and MGA’s newly purchased Bratz fashion-doll line, Mattel got mad.

And in 2004, it filed the first lawsuit.

Do you own the ideas you concoct on your own time? Or can your employer take them for free? Those are just two of the intriguing questions in “You Don’t Own Me.” Of course, in the case of Mattel vs. MGA, many arguments were made and author Orly Lobel recounts them here. While there’s some lean in the narrative and well-considered author opinion, Lobel also presents a nice full background of both companies as well as biographies, to allow for better understanding before she launches her subtle argumentstarters. Mixed with the story, Lobel looks at gender and the nature of play, which lends a nostalgic tone to a book that’s highly readable, even if you’re not in business.

This book ends on an uneasy note; absolutely, it’ll give inventors pause and businesspeople a reason for eagle-eyed vigilance. For sure, “You Don’t Own Me” shows that the ownership of ideas is nothing to toy with.

‘YOU DON’T OWN ME: HOW MATTEL V. MGA ENTERTAINMENT EXPOSED BARBIE’S DARK SIDE’

By Orly Lobel W.W.Norton $27.95 304 pages

昀愀挀攀戀漀漀欀⸀挀漀洀⼀琀栀攀挀爀攀眀挀氀甀戀

㄀㌀㈀㄀ ㄀㐀琀栀 猀琀 一圀

DentalBug.com Cosmetic, Implants, Sleep Apnea, Sedation CALL TODAY • WEEKEND HOURS • MULTILINGUAL

“We believe we can make the dental experience better.”

DentalBug Staff 2016-2017

Handyman Masters, LLC 20+ years Exp

*Kitchens *Masonry

Jeanette Suh DMD

*Bathrooms *Concrete

Maria Hodas DDS

John Tsaknis DDS

Indra Mustapha DDS, MS

202-528-4600 HandymanMastersllc.com A+ Rated w/BBB 10+ years

1221 Mass. Ave, NW • 202.628.7979 • (Free Parking) 703 D Street, NW • 202.628.1288 L’Enfant Plaza,SW • Promenade #325 • 202.628.2177

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

3 2 • N O VEMB ER 24, 2017

CA LE N D A R community. Older LGBT adults can come and enjoy complimentary coffee and conversation with other community members. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Us Helping Us (3636 Georgia Ave., N.W.) holds a support group for gay black men to discuss topics that affect them, share perspectives and have meaningful conversations. For details, visit uhupil.org.

E-mail calendar items to calendars@washblade. com two weeks prior to your event. Space is limited so priority is given to LGBT-specific events or those with LGBT participants. Recurring events must be re-submitted each time.

TODAY Legendary R&B singer Chaka Khan performs at the Warner Theatre (513 13th St., N.W.) tonight at 8 p.m. Doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets range from $69-90.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit warnertheatredc.com.

Brother Help Thyself hosts its Back to Our Roots bar night at the D.C. Eagle (371 Benning Rd., N.E.) tonight from 10 p.m.-2 a.m. The group will be selling draft beers and shots to raise money for their organization. For more details, visit facebook.com/brotherhelpthyself.

Green Lantern (1335 Green Ct., N.W.) hosts Uncut, a gay dance party, tonight from 10 p.m.-3:30 a.m. Johny Vasquez and Sylvanna Duvel host the party.

Admission is free before 11 p.m. Cover is $10 afterwards. For more information, visit greenlanterndc.com.

Gamma D.C., a support group for men in mixed-orientation relationships, meets at Luther Place Memorial Church (1226 Vermont Ave., N.W.) today from 7:309:30 p.m. The group is for men who are attracted to men but are currently, or were at one point, in relationships with women.

Meeting locations are in private residences.

For more information about the group and location, visit gammaindc.org.

TUESDAY, NOV. 28 Genderqueer D.C. holds a discussion group at the D.C. Center (13181 U St., N.W.) at 7 p.m. tonight. The group is for anyone who identifies outside of the gender binary as bigender, agender, genderfluid or any label outside of cisgender. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Republic (6939 Laurel Ave., Takoma Park, Md.) hosts Alegre Happy Hour, an LGBT happy hour, today from 5-7 p.m. For more information, visit republictakoma.com.

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 29

SATURDAY, NOV. 25 DJ Basscamp hosts Backstreet Boys vs. Spice Girls at the Rock and Roll Hotel (1353 H St., N.E.) tonight at 10 p.m. Music from hit boy bands and girl groups will be played all night. Tickets are $13. For more information, visit rockandrollhoteldc.com.

Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) hosts Church Night tonight from 9-11 p.m.

Guest comedians Brooke Arnold and Sara Armour will perform. Trump Beatles will play music. Cherie Nuit will host the event. Doors open at 9 p.m. Show starts at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $12. For more details, visit blackcatdc.com.

CityCenterDC (825 10th St., N.W.) hosts its holiday tree lighting this evening from 6- p.m. The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington and the Cardinal Shehan School Choir will perform. NBC4’s Eun Yang will emcee the lighting ceremony and countdown. There will be face painters, balloon artists and other holiday activities. For more information, visit facebook.com/citycenterdc.

The Capital Area Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce hosts Small Business Saturday at the D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) today from noon-5 p.m. LGBT small businesses and LGBTfriendly small businesses will be selling their products. There will also be door

PHOTO COURTESY 9:30 CLUB

FARRAH MOAN is one of the cast of ‘A Drag Queen Christmas.’

prizes, music and snacks. Participating businesses include Clack That Fan, City Dogs, Sage Masters Wellness, Bodies Adapt, Bon Vegan Eats, D.C. Homos, Team Rayceen, Toppings by Taye and more. For more details, visit thedccenter.org.

SUNDAY, NOV. 26 Murray & Peter present “A Drag Queen Christmas: the Naughty Tour” at the Lincoln Theatre (1215 U St., N.W.) tonight at 8 p.m. “RuPaul’s Drag Race” alums Shea Coulee, Kim Chi, Latrice Royale, Farrah Moan, Naomi Smalls, Chi Chi DeVayne and Eureka O’Hara will perform. Roxxxy Andrews hosts the show. Tickets range from $20-150. Meet-and-greet packages are available and start at 6 p.m. General admission entry is at 7 p.m. For more details, visit thelincolndc.com.

Rainbow Families, GLOE and Comfort Cases present Drag Story Hour with former “RuPaul’s Drag Race” contestant Mrs. Kasha Davis at Edlavitch D.C.-JCC (1529 16th St., N.W.) today from 10:3011:30 a.m. Davis will read children’s stories in a campy style followed by a

dance party and craft activity. Guests are encouraged to bring a book to donate to Comfort Case, which will be provided to children in foster care. Admission is free but RSVP is required. For more information, visit washingtondcjcc.org.

The Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) presents “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” by NSO Pops today at 2 p.m.. The orchestra will perform the entire “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” soundtrack by John Williams. Tickets range from $2999. This performance is sensory-friendly and is ideal for children with autism or other sensory sensitivities. For more information, visit kennedy-center.org.

MONDAY, NOV. 27 St. Vincent performs at the Anthem (901 Wharf St., S.W.) tonight at 8 p.m.

Tickets range from $44-149. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit theanthemdc.com.

The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W..) hosts coffee drop-in hours this morning from 10 a.m.-noon for the senior LGBT

Capital Pride and Capital Trans Pride host a pride volunteer production interest meeting at the D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) tonight from 6:30-9:30 p.m. The meeting will cover volunteer opportunities and upcoming events.

Meet and greet starts at 6:30 followed by the meeting at 7. RSVP is required. For more information, visit capitalpride.org/ volunteer.

Landmark’s West End Cinema (2301 M St., N.W.) presents the 1939 Joan Crawford classic “The Women” as part of its Capital Classics series today at 1:30., 4:30 and 7:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $10. Children and senior tickets are $9.50. For more details, visit facebook. com/landmarktheatreswestendcinema.

The Lambda Bridge Club meets at 7:30 p.m. at the Dignity Center (721 8th St., S.E.) for duplicate bridge. No reservations required and new comers welcome. If you need a partner, call 703-407-6540.

THURSDAY, NOV. 30 LGBTHC, a weekly LGBT-friendly cannabis event, is at Vita Lounge (1318 9th St., N.W.) tonight at 8 p.m. There will be food, a full bar and vendors. The drag show starts at 9:30 p.m. For more details, visit facebook.com/lgbthc.

Friends of the National Zoo host BrewLights at the National Zoo (3001 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) today from 6-9 p.m.

There will be unlimited beer tastings, snack stations and access to BrewLights event sites including the Cheetah Conservation Station, Gorilla Grove and Great Cats Circle.

Tickets are $45 for members and $55 for non-members. Proceeds will benefit the National Zoo’s species preservation and animal care. For more information, visit facebook.com/fonznationalzoo.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 3 3

STORM LARGE: HOLIDAY ORDEAL

SAT, DEC 9, 8pm • SIXTH & I The holidays get hot and bothered as singer Storm Large (known for her work with Pink Martini) lights up Sixth & I with her commanding voice and bawdy humor.

Make it a BIG Holiday Ordeal! Use the code HOLIDAY when you purchase for access to the post-performance Young Professionals party at Silo. Don your best holiday apparel (creative cocktail attire encouraged) for an evening of festive fun.

Parental advisory: This program includes mature themes and language.

Special thanks: The Abramson Family Foundation

TICKETS: (202) 785-9727 • WashingtonPerformingArts.org

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

34 • NOV E M B E R 24, 2017

FRIDAY NOV

O U T & A BO U T

By MARIAH COOPER

24

ALL GOOD PRESENTS

SCYTHIAN W/ FORLORN STRANGERS SATURDAY NOV

25

SUN, NOV 26

3:00PM & 6:30PM A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS WITH

ERIC BYRD TRIO TUES, NOV 28

SLATE PRESENTS

THE GIST PODCAST LIVE: PESCA ON THE POTOMAC THURS, NOV 30

AN ACOUSTIC EVENING WITH

JOHN ANDERSON SUN, DEC 10

AN INTIMATE EVENING WITH

EMMYLOU HARRIS BENEFITING BONAPARTE’S RETREAT

BLADE FILE PHOTO PHOTO COURTESY STRATHMORE

Miss Pixie’s Holiday Market returns Miss Pixie’s (1626 14th St., N.W.) hosts its fifth annual Holiday Market on Friday, Dec. 1 from 5-8 p.m.

Participating vendors will include the Lemon Collective D.C., Typecase Industries, Sill Life, Handmade Habitat, Black Pepper Paperie Co. and more.

There will be tastings from Barcelona 14th Street, Cork Wine Bar, D.C. Brau Brewing Company and Shinola Cola. Miss Pixie’s will also offer a 20 percent off sale. Bitter Dose Combo will play music for the evening. Guests can participate in a raffle for prizes with proceeds benefitting Casa Ruby.

For more information, visit facebook.com/misspixies.

W/ SPECIAL GUESTS LARRY CAMPBELL & TERESA WILLIAMS THURS, DEC 21

AN EVENING WITH

THE BSTREETBAND YELLOW DUBMARINE W/ THE LOVING PAUPERS SAT, DEC 23

VIRGINIA COALITION

W/ JUSTIN TRAWICK & THE COMMON GOOD TUES, DEC 26

AN EVENING WITH

LIVE AT THE FILLMORE:

THE DEFINITIVE TRIBUTE TO THE ORIGINAL ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND WED, DEC 27

START MAKING SENSE

BLADE FILE PHOTO COURTESY SHI-QUEETA

A TRIBUTE TO TALKING HEADS THURS, DEC 28

BEN WILLIAMS PRESENTS HIS 6TH ANNUAL BIRTHDAY BASH

A HOLIDAY MUSICAL EXTRAVAGANZA

THEHAMILTONDC.COM

Jazz saxophonist Dave Koz brings his 20th anniversary Christmas tour to the Music Center at Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Ln., Bethesda, Md.) on Monday, Dec. 4 at 8 p.m.

Special guests David Benoit, Rick Braun, Peter White and Selina Albright will also perform. Tickets range from $44-88. A VIP experience is available which includes a pre-show Q&A with Koz, premium seats, a photograph and an autographed VIP laminate.

For more details and to purchase tickets, visit stathmore.org.

World AIDS Day events planned

FRI, DEC 22

AN EVENING WITH

Koz Xmas tour to visit Strathmore

Shi-Queeta’s ‘Drag Salute’ comes to Chateau Remix Shi-Queeta-Lee’s “Salute to the Divas” comes to Chateau Remix (3439 Benning Rd., N.E.) on Sunday, Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m.

Doors open at 6 p.m. with dinner being served. Show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Admission is $30. VIP tickets are $45 and include 5:30 p.m. entry and a drag waitress to serve the table. There will be a cash bar. Guests must be 21 and over.

For more details, visit facebook.com/salutetodivas.

Two events are planned for the coming days to honor World AIDS Day in Washington.

Whitman-Walker Health will hold a community gathering at Rise Demonstration Center (2730 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., S.E.) on Friday, Dec. 1 from 8:45-10:30 a.m. The program will include a light breakfast, art-making, storytelling and reflection to honor those lost to HIV/AIDS. All are welcome.

Admission is free. For more details, visit facebook.com/whitmanwalker.

Us Helping Us (3635 Georgia Ave., N.W.) hosts “A Passion for Living: a Celebratory Night of Giving” on Saturday, Dec. 2 from 6:30-11 p.m. The event will raise funds for HIV/AIDS education, testing, treatment and more. There will be a cocktail reception from 6:30-8 p.m. followed by dinner from 8-9 p.m. The evening concludes with a main program from 9-10 p.m. A silent auction will take place throughout the night. Tickets range from $125-2,500. For more information, visit facebook.com/uhupilorg.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

T H E A TE R

N OV E M B E R 24, 2017 • 35

2018 D.C. Lottery

Give the

‘Mean Girls’ redux Hit 2004 film inspires Broadway-bound musical

WINNIN G

By PATRICK FOLLIARD “Mean Girls” was the sleeper hit of 2004.

A smart, girl empowering comedy written

by Tina Fey with a star-making performance

by Lindsay Lohan, the smallish film about a high school girl who’s drawn into a ruthless A-list teen scene made a lot of money and gained cult status especially among a millennial demographic.

Now “Mean Girls” is back as a high energy, Broadway-bound musical making its world premiere at National Theatre.

Featuring a funny book by Fey, the sametitled show brings a lot of what’s best from the movie to the stage and proves there’s little this writer/actor can’t do.

The film’s Netflix synopsis reads, “After growing up abroad, brainy teen Cady Heron moves to Chicago and haphazardly joins her new high school’s most powerful clique. But there’s hell to pay when the exboyfriend of the clique’s menacing shows interest in being Cady’s guy.”

The musical’s plot remains the same and thankfully all the same characters are back. There’s Cady (Erika Henningsen) and her first two new school friends, cynical outsider Janis Sarkisian (Barret Wilbert Weed) and her entertaining overweight gay pal Damian Hubbard (Grey Henson); the Plastics — alpha mean teen Regina George (Taylor Louderman) and her minions including anxious Gretchen Wieners (Ashley Park) and dim but likable Karen Smith (Kate Rockwell); and Cady’s good-looking crush Aaron Samuels (Kyle Selig). Cady’s unlucky AP calculus teacher Ms. Norbury (Fey’s role in the film) is played by Kerry Butler.

The show comes with a built-in audience.

A young guy to my left anticipated familiar lines from the film (“Too gay to function,” “You can’t just ask people why they’re white” and “I can’t help it if I’ve got a heavy flow and a wide-set vagina.”) and laughed appreciatively. During intermission he shared that when the film came out he was sophomore in high school. His English teacher assigned the class to read the nonfiction self-help book “Queen Bees and Wannabes” (the nonfiction self-help book that inspired Fey’s screenplay) followed by a field trip to see the film.

But there are surprises too. Regina’s seemingly one-dimensional superficial, “cool mom” (also played Butler) gets a sweet song titled “Call Your Mother.”

Song and dance open new opportunities for hilarity. Karen’s lazy ribbon dance is an instant classic. And the action is backed by a curvilinear screen that expertly displays both snowy suburban streets and nasty social media posts (set

GIFT OF

this

PHOTO BY JOAN MARCUS

From left are BARRETT WILBERT WEED, ERIKA HENNINGSEN and GREY HENSON in ‘Mean Girls.’

Holiday Season

PLAY THESE GAMES AT YOUR LOCAL DC LOTTERY RETAILER!

in 2017, North Shore High School is now appropriately smart phone obsessed).

The score by Fey’s husband Jeff Richmond (music) and Nell Benjamin who supplies fun lyrics like “My friends are kinda squeaky and I’ve forgotten my Swahili” is an amalgam of old and new Broadway, hip hop and lots of rock.

Tony Award-winning Casey Nicholaw’s choreography performed by a freakishly energetic and talented ensemble is athletic and daring with nods to the past.

A song about high school cliques titled “Where Do You Belong?” breaks out into a big splashy cafeteria-set number involving lunch trays. Nicholaw also directs.

There are swell performances too.

Louderman’s lead Plastic Regina is scarily soulless and vacuous Karen is endlessly amusing. As openly gay junior Damian with is collection of carefully curated T-shirts featuring Cher, Liza and Bianca Del Rio, Henson leaves us wanting more.

Weed’s Janis is more subdued than her film counterpart but her powerhouse singing packs a wallop. Hemmingsen gives a terrific performance even though her Cady is flintier than Lohan’s and as of yet not as fully realized.

What’s missing here is Cady’s intimate, first-person narration that featured prominently in the film. A genuinely nice home-schooled only child brought up in Africa by American zoologist parents, Cady is suddenly dropped into an upper middle class high-school world where she navigates a scary course of revenge. She might as well have landed on the moon. Her observations and perspective are key. The musical’s narration comes from the Janis and Damian.

It sets the story but little else.

There’s still time to find what’s lacking before the show opens on Broadway in the spring.

‘MEAN GIRLS’ Through Dec. 3 The National Theatre 1321 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W. $48-108 202-628-6161 Nationaldc.org

dclottery.com

DC Scratcher games may continue to be sold even when all the top prizes have been claimed DCL1551 | Holiday Bundler | Washington Blade | 1/2 Pg Vertical | 4.75 x 11.5” | 4C

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

3 6 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

F I LM

Holiday film guide 2017 Another ‘Star Wars’ installment, ‘Greatest Showman’ among seasonal highlights

By BRIAN T. CARNEY When it’s time to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, head to the movies. There will be some great releases waiting for you.

With the sexual harassment scandal still rocking Hollywood, this year’s holiday film schedule has even more moving pieces than usual. Be sure to confirm times and dates before heading to the theater.

For example, the movie “I Love You, Daddy,” directed by Louis C.K., was pulled from distribution hours before its release. The prestige film “The Current Wars,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Thomas Edison and Michael Shannon as George Westinghouse, has had its release postponed until things settle down over at the Weinstein Company.

And director Ridley Scott is removing actor Kevin Spacey from “All the Money in the World” and digitally replacing him with Christopher Plummer. The movie is still scheduled to be released on Dec. 22; Plummer’s name has already replaced Spacey’s on the grisly poster.

Some of fall’s great releases are still lingering on area screens. If you’re lucky, you can still catch the queer indies “My Friend Dahmer” about the high school experiences of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and “BPM” the dazzling film about the early days of ACT UP Paris. “Lady Bird,” the outstanding directoral debut of Greta Gerwig, also includes a gay twist, but it’s a plot spoiler.

The magnificent “Mudbound” is premiering both on Netflix and in theaters. Under the leadership of the openly lesbian director Dee Rees (“Pariah” and “Bessie”), the film takes a close look at race and class in rural Mississippi after World War II. Frances McDormand’s amazing performance as a grieving mother anchors the excellent “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” and Willem Dafoe is the solid center of “The Florida Project” by Sean Baker (“Tangerine”).

“Thor” and the members of “The Justice League” will still be saving cinemas until the New Year, and the “Bad Moms” will be trying to reclaim Christmas from their overpowering mothers until the sequel is released. “A Bad Moms Christmas” features Justin Hartley (“This Is Us”), who was the highlight of the film’s outrageous restricted trailer and who helps fine tune the amazing balance between comedy, sentiment and raunch.

The flurry of holiday releases starts with “The Man Who Invented Christmas” (Nov. 22). Directed by Bhahat Nalluri, the movie stars Dan Stevens (“Downton Abbey”) as Charles Dickens. Also opening Thanksgiving week is Pixar’s “Coco,” a stunning animated tale inspired by the Mexican holiday commemorating the dead.

Reel Affirmations will commemorate Worlds AIDS Day (Dec. 1) with a screening of “After Louie.” Directed by Vincent Gagliostro, the movie stars Alan Cumming as an artist and activist coming to terms with the toll that AIDS has taken on his life and his community. The deeplymoving film also features performances by the legendary Everett Quinton, Wilson Cruz and David Drake (“The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me).

Other queer movies opening in December include the extraordinary “Thelma” (Dec. 1) about a young student who discovers the power of love as she explores her sexuality and discovers her own superpowers; “Tom of Finland” (Dec. 8), about the legendary gay illustrator; and the highly anticipated “Call Be By Your Name” (Dec. 15).

Impatient fans can also see “Tom of Finland” from Nov. 24-30 with the Maryland Film Festival at the inventively restored SNF Parkway. For more information on this and other great programming, go to mdfilmfest.com.

Surprisingly, one of the queerest releases of 2017 may be Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape of Water” (Dec. 8). Inspired by the paranoid monster movies of the Cold War era, the visual masterpiece tells the story of a brave gang of outsiders who band together to save an aquatic creature who is being tortured in a government research lab.

Sally Hawkins stars as Elisa Esposito, a mute who communicates through sign language and dance. Richard Jenkins is Giles, her gay next-door neighbor. The cast of this beautiful adult fairy tale is rounded out by Octavia Spencer, Michael Sheen and Michael Stuhlbarg.

Other December openings include James Franco as “The Disaster Artist” (Dec. 1), the animated feature “Ferdinand” with John Cena providing the voice of the gentle bull, Woody Allen’s “Wonder Wheel” (Dec. 8) featuring Justin Timberlake, and “The Post” (Dec. 22) starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks as the publisher and editor of the venerable D.C. newspaper.

As always, AFI Silver in downtown Silver Spring is ready to celebrate the holidays with style and humor. There are seasonal classics like “Meet Me in St. Louis,” “It’s A Wonderful Life” and “Miracle on 34th Street.” There’s “The Bishop’s Wife” with David Niven, Loretta Young and

PHOTO COURTESY STX

JUSTIN HARTLEY as a Santa stripper in ‘A Bad Moms Christmas.’

PHOTO COURTESY 20TH CENTURY FOX

HUGH JACKMAN and MICHELLE WILLIAMS in ‘The Greatest Showman,’ one of this holiday season’s hotly anticipated releases.

Cary Grant and “The Preacher’s Wife” with Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston.

There’s “A Muppet Christmas Carol” with Michael Caine and Kermit the Frog, as well as the classic 1951 version of the story with Alastair Sis. Finally, the annual AFI holiday screening of “Die Hard.”

With a more continental flair, AFI is also dedicating December to its annual European Union Film Showcase. This year’s offerings include “The Workshop” with a script by Robin Campillo (“BPM”); Vanessa Redgrave’s directoral debut “Sea Sorrow” and “The Young Karl Marx,” written and directed by Raoul Peck (“I Am Not Your Negro”). For more information on these and other fine films, go to afi.com/silver.

Finally, the two big holiday blockbusters will appear. “Star Wars:

The Last Jedi” lands in DC theaters on Dec. 15. The eighth film in the multigenerational space opera brings back Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe) and Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), along with the Wookie, the droids and the old warriors Luke (Mark Hamill) and Leia (Carrie Fisher, who died shortly after filming was wrapped). There’s no official word yet on whether or not Poe and Finn will finally get to consummate their relationship in Episode Nine.

“The Greatest Showman” arrives in D.C. on Dec. 22. Hugh Jackman plays showman and politician Phineas Taylor Barnum and sings songs by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. The high-flying cast also includes Michelle Williams, Zac Efron, Zendaya and Rebecca Ferguson.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 3 7

Welcoming The Holiday Season!

Champagne B runch Weekends Unlimited Champagne by the Glass Saturdays – A-La-Carte $29.95 Sunday – Buffet $38.95 Voted 2016 “TOP TEN” Best Brunches

***

Holiday Steak Dinner $18.95

Served Nightly* – November 1 Thru December 30 Caesar or House Salad, 10oz. NY Steak and Fries *Excluding Thanksgiving

***

Under $10 - Daily Lunch Specials Choice of Entrées, Pastas, Salads or Burgers ***

Happy Hour $3-$4-$5-$6-$7 Appetizers, Martinis & Drinks - 4PM-7PM ***

Thanksgiving Day Dinner Celebration $35.95 Adults/$16.95 Children 13 and under Includes Champagne - Served Noon to 8:00PM

202-872-1126 • www.BBGWDC.com • 17th & Rhode Island Ave. NW Holiday Events – Great Choices, Holiday Menus With Something For Everyone

LOGAN 14 SALON SPA/MED SPA haircuts, body waxing, laser hair removal

ORUS H C S ’ N G AY M E C E H T H WIT GTON, D N I H S A AT R E OF W OLN THE 1314B 14th St. NW WDC 20005 • 202.506.6868 • Logan14salonspa.com

LINC S E eet NW C N A M 12 15 U S tr PERFOR 8pm DEC. 9 at 8pm rg TICKETS 3pm & t a 6 | g m c w.o 1 .

9 C 4 8 DE 9 5 f 10 1 - 8 7 7- 4 3 3pm Groups o & DEC. 17 at s t e k T ic 48 0 2 -2 9 3 -15 2 ll a c e O r AN or mo THEA K r o t c e ir A r t is t ic D o you by Br ought t ponsor YA L A s ent ing S F e r P N I T S JU D ir e c t o r E x e c u t iv e

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

3 8 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

P H O T O S BY MI CH A E L KE Y

The National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce held its annual National Dinner on Friday, Nov. 17 at the National Building Museum. NGLCC celebrated the organization’s 15th year.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 3 9

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

4 0 • NO VE MB ER 2 4, 2017

A RT S & E N T E RT A I N ME N T

New Bible museum claims neutral stance on LGBT issues CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

in here because they’ll know, in essence, we’re not pushing our agenda. We’re just trying to educate them on a book. If you wanna believe this book is a novel, fine.

Just be educated on what you believe and that’s what we wanna do.”

The scope alone is impressive. Museum personnel claim to read every placard, see every artifact and experience every activity in the museum, it would take nine days at eight hours per day.

And while some have expressed relief that the museum has taken a vastly more academic approach than, say, the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Ky., which presents the Genesis account of creation as literally true, the Museum of the Bible is still wildly controversial.

The museum has come under intense criticism — the Washington Post’s coverage has been especially tough — for several issues. Among them are: • what some consider the Green family’s baggage from their 2014 fight against mandatory employer-provided birth control that resulted in a Supreme Court ruling that struck down the contraceptive mandate part of the Affordable Care Act requiring employers to cover certain contraceptives for female employees. The Greens have paid for newspaper ads espousing the “real meaning” of Christmas and have donated $70 million to Oral Roberts University and other evangelical institutions that lean toward the fundamentalist end of the religious spectrum according to Vox and other outlets.

• a $3 million fine imposed by the Department of Justice in a civil action suit that said the Greens, who started collecting in 2009, had obtained thousands of Iraqi artifacts they obtained without the necessary clearances in 2010 and 2011. The Greens said the seized artifacts were never part of the museum collection and said they’ve “engaged the leading experts in abiding the highest standards of museum guidelines (from the Association of Art Museum Directors) and other organizations. Those are the policies that we will adhere to here at the museum,” Green said last week.

• accusations that Hobby Lobby owners neglected to do their due diligence in acquiring the artifacts that got them in trouble. At the time, they said, “the company was new to the world of acquiring these items and did not fully appreciate the complexities of the acquisitions process. This resulted in some regrettable mistakes. The company imprudently relied on dealers and shippers who, in hindsight, did not understand the correct way to document and ship these items.”

According to museum tax records cited by the Washington Post, Hobby Lobby donated about $201 million in artifacts to

One of many historical Bibles displayed at the new Museum of the Bible in Washington.

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY JOEY DIGUGLIELMO

the museum, about 2,800 of the Greens’ 40,000-piece collection.

• a sense that the museum’s mission has shifted from inception to fruition.

Perhaps, some would argue, for the better, yet it casts doubts on the owners’ intentions. According to Vox, in 2011, the museum’s nonprofit tax filings stated its purpose was “to bring to life the living Word of God, to tell its compelling story of preservation and to inspire confidence in the absolute authority and reliability of the Bible.” By 2013, the wording said simply that “we exist to invite all people to engage with the Bible.” “It felt in the last few years like they were moving from running in the primary to running in the general election,” says Matthew Vines, a prominent gay evangelical writer. “Now you’re going to focus on reaching the center and not just activating the base anymore. Now it feels more like a normal, general-election campaign.”

• the role of the National Christian Foundation, a Georgia-based organization with a mission to “advance God’s kingdom,” that has given millions of dollars annually to churches and civic groups, many of which, according to the Washington Post, are “engaged in court fights against same-sex marriage, abortion rights and other social policies.”

The foundation directed about $163 million to the museum between 20132015 according to the Post, which cited tax returns for its information. While the museum touts that 50,000 donors have given money to the museum, which does not charge admission and is registered as a public charity, 89 percent of 2016 donations came from the National Christian Foundation; it was 96 percent in 2015, Museum President Cary Summers confirmed to the Post.

• several claims of dubious action made

by Candida R. Moss, a theology professor

at the University of Birmingham, and Joel S. Baden, a professor of Hebrew Bible at Yale Divinity School, in their new book “Bible Nation: the United States of Hobby Lobby” in which, according to the Post, they claim the Greens have “exploited taxexempt rules to financially benefit from their acquisitions” and “have probably purchased forgeries, items of questionable provenance and possibly even looted antiquities.” The book also claims the Green Scholars Initiative has hired a disproportionate number of scholars with similar evangelical backgrounds and that while they maintain the Greens are wellintentioned, they accuse them of dumbing down on biblical scholarship. That they “believe it is possible to tell the story of the Bible without interpretation betrays not only their Protestant roots and bias,” the authors write, “but also their fundamentally anti-intellectual orientation.”

It’s a concern echoed by some LGBT believers as well. Because the museum just opened and few have had a chance to experience it directly, some were hesitant to say much although concerns were expressed.

Fred Davies, vice president of Union Theological Seminary, said the Bible is not a simple book.

“The way these ancient texts have been put together and then blessed by various religious bodies is very, very complicated,” Davies, who’s gay, said.

“We have to be careful because most believers’ understanding of scripture in my experience is pretty much at a very basic, almost Sunday school level. … The Bible as we know it has been used to do lots of bad things to God’s creation, both creatures and flora and fauna throughout history — everything from enslaving people to denigrating women and relegating them to a lesser roles to all forms of oppression against LGBT folks.”

Davies said he’s been encouraged by media accounts he’s read that state the museum staff has attempted to be nonpartisan and ecumenical, but also said the whole concept of a museum such as this could be problematic.

“You want to try to give them credit for making scripture accessible to large numbers of people and to make it popular … but it is very complex and to attempt to present the museum as an amusement is fraught with pitfalls. If they have tried to be balanced, you know, God bless them, but what I worry about is that it will simply reinforce a Sunday school, simplistic notion of scripture.”

Davies says faulty and overly simplistic interpretations of scripture historically have been used to marginalize many such as African Americans, women and gays.

To approach the museum as a vehicle for entertainment, he says, could backfire with similar consequences.

Despite the curators’ claims that they aren’t getting into controversial issues such as homosexuality and abortion, the museum doesn’t tiptoe around all controversy. The second floor is devoted to the “impact of the Bible” and the “Bible in America” and goes from the book’s role in the formation of the United States culminating with “Civil Rights and beyond: equality and religious freedom.”

So why did curators delve into the issue of the Civil Rights Movement but avoid LGBT rights? The museum has exhibits devoted to topics one might not expect such as the Bible in fashion, the Bible in pop culture and others.

Seth Pollinger, director of museum content, said deciding what to include and what to leave out is an ongoing challenge for any museum, especially a new one. His role is to work as a liaison between the designers and scholars and curators. He said the team worked hard to assemble content that is “authentic and sincere and on track with reliability and constructive to the overall message of how everything fits together.”

As for possible LGBT issues in the future, Pollinger said, “I think we’re working on it.”

“I think these are the kinds of discussions that we hope to have and areas we hope to grow in in the future,” he said.

Was there a sense that some topics such as LGBT rights and the Bible might be easier to avoid because they’re so divisive?

Pollinger said yes and cites how the Bible historically was used both to justify and condemn slavery, though no pro-slavery items or exhibits are in the museum.

■ CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM MUSEUM OF THE BIBLE 400 4th St., S.W. Free admission museumofthebible.org

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 4 1

THERE’S A MOMENT WHEN YOU CHOOSE.

NS GI 29 BE V NO

Felix travels to his estranged father’s funeral as he and his boyfriend face the families they’ve come from, the families they’ve chosen, and the future they hope to make together.

202.332.3300 | STUDIOTHEATRE.ORG

Your Flooring Professionals since 1985 MHIC #41515

.tsal seilppus elihw stcudorp llA* .sliated dna noitceles rof erots eeS .tcudorp eht fo noitatneserper tcaxe eb ton yam dna ylno sesoprup noitartsulli rof era nwohs segami tcudorP*

For a limited time ONLY!

40% off *

HoLiDaY OpEn HoUsE

BATHROOM REMODELING

N OV E M B E R 2 4, 2 5 & 26 at a l l t h r e e s t o res

Explore our unique ornaments, fresh cut trees and greens, hand-crafted wreaths and bows, and gifts for everyone on your list.

*Product images shown are for illustration purposes only and may not be exact representation of the product. See store for selection and details. *All products while supplies last.

N. Bethesda

Laurel

5268 Nicholson Ln.

13380 Mid Atlantic Blvd.

(Next to Shoppers & HomeGoods)

(Rt. 1 & Contee Rd.)

(301) 881-0969

(301) 206-2200

Germantown

Aspen Hill

Columbia

20650 Seneca Meadows Pkwy.

13629 Connecticut Ave

8221 Gateway Overlook Dr.

(Next to Wegmans)

(Aspen Hill Shopping Center)

(Next to Costco)

(301) 528-6400

(301) 460-4100

(410) 872-1129

WWW.FLOORMAX.US.COM

merrifieldgardencenter.com

Carpet | Hardwood | Ceramic | Laminate | Vinyl | Stair Rails | Fireplace Surrounds | Sand & Finish | Bathroom Remodeling

4 2 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

W A SH I N G T O N BLA D E . CO M

New menswear shop now ashore in Rehoboth Beach Youthful new retail entrepreneur helms his lifelong destiny M.G.T. & Co.

By MARK LEE Two summers ago, following a July 4th celebratory evening out at various Rehoboth Beach, Del., eateries and drinkeries, gay entrepreneur Michael Gabriel Thanner found himself a bit sozzled and languishing late-night with a long-time female friend on the stoop in front of 39 Baltimore Avenue, a block from the residential town and resort destination boardwalk.

“I’m going to have this store some day,” the visiting Maryland native declared. The casual comment was emblematic of Thanner’s easygoing manner and light-hearted, engaging disposition, as energetically adventurous as it is engagingly confident.

Early in October, Thanner’s ambitious assertion became an abstemious reality with the opening of M.G.T. & Co. Mens Toggery Shop on the high-profile street.

The prominent commercial spot is anchored by surrounding and nearby retail businesses and restaurant venues. The former residential home and prior commercial storefront is adjacent to local landmarks the Blue Moon restaurant-bar and the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center.

This fall, alongside his one-year-old golden retriever and in-store companion Gracie, Thanner launched his men’s specialty clothing shop on his 27th birthday.

The Oct. 10 birthday commencement of the retail enterprise is also symbolized in the easy-to-remember mnemonic time he opens the door each day, at 10:10 a.m.

“It also ensures that I’m never late,” Thanner jokes.

The shop is currently open seven days a week until 7 p.m., to both acquaint local residents and off-season visitors with Rehoboth’s newest addition to community enterprise and accommodate holiday shopping.

The free-spirited nature of new-proprietor Thanner is captured in the use of the informal, humorous, and British term “toggery” in the shop’s branding. A more casual expression for “haberdashery,” this off-kilter marquee nomenclature is a fitting reflection of the owner’s personality.

The tagline additionally serves to convey the “British-inspired flavor of the shop’s offerings,” explains Thannery, noting that European labels from France, Germany, the Netherlands, and other international locales are also featured alongside American brands. “I carry lines with which people may not be familiar,” he says, “but I strive to always value quality over quantity” in curating the selection of items that will seasonally evolve.

Michael Thanner and Gracie inside the newly opened M.G.T. & Co. Mens Toggery Shop in Rehoboth Beach.

Photo courtesy Thanner

“I specialize in providing an ‘old school’ foundation with a modern and youthful perspective,” says Thanner, “in a range of sizing and with something for everyone. The shop has a casual and personable environment,” he notes, describing the warm interior and attractive displays featuring a full range of merchandise, including everything from resort wear to blazers, scarves, boots, plush cashmere and more.

“I’m selling a lifestyle, not just an item or two,” asserts Thanner, “quality personal items are the foundation of a gentleman.”

Unique and distinctive labels include American purveyors Mizzen+Main dress shirts, Strong Boalt, Castaway, needlepoint belts and wallets from Smather and Branson, F.H. Wadsworth belts, handmade leather loafers by Jay Butler, Southern Proper, as well as Barbour from the United Kingdom, Hommard cashmere from the Netherlands, Armor Lux of France, Seaward and Stearn ties from the U.K., and New Zealand’s Rodd & Gunn.

Frequent solo travels when young and studying at Aix-en-Provence in the south of France influenced Thanner’s appreciation for European style and “knowing how to dress” as a practical part of one’s life. “You never know whom you’re going to run into, or where you’ll end up,” explains Thanner.

“If you look good, you feel good, and can have either $2 or $2 million in your pocket, no one would ever know.” Thanner credits his supportive parents, who encouraged their only child to travel and explore different cultures, for such insights. Growing up around his mother’s multiple retail shops specializing in gifts, accessories and home furnishings, also served as inspiration.

Whether domestic or international, the shop’s clothing is “not tailored,” notes Thanner, “it’s more traditional but with a twist.”

While representing the higher-end of the marketplace, pricing is consumer accessible with a range of price points. Thanner characterizes the shop’s focus as “America’s Ralph Lauren meets London’s Savile Row.”

Hand-produced and bench-made products dominate, the result of a distinctly personal process of acquisition. “I was always well-dressed as a kid, originating with my own inspiration,” explains Thanner. Noted for his distinctive sense of style and attention to detail from a young age “led to requests to assist others with their personal shopping,” he recalls.

It was personal familiarity with noteworthy attire that forged the path for stocking his store. “I simply opened my own closet,” Thanner says, “and began cold-calling companies among the labels in my collection, asking to speak with a wholesale representative.”

“I knew early on that I could never have a standard 9-to-5 job,” Thanner admits, “I simply don’t have the attention span for it. Working for myself has always been in my blood, and I always knew I would have a shop of my own.”

“None of my friends were surprised at all,” says Thanner of his decision to open the shop. “I told several people over dinner one night, and signed a lease two days later. Of course, they think I’m ‘nuts’ for entering storefront retail, but you have to be willing to take risks to achieve success.”

“Opening in retail today is a risk,” acknowledges Thanner, “but you can’t focus on that. You have to jump right in and give it all you’ve got. The market is still there, especially in destination locations like Rehoboth where there is opportunity for specialty commerce.” He credits Murray Archibald, Steve Elkins, and everyone at CAMP Rehoboth for being supportive, and the welcoming attitude from other business owners and local residents.

“I love Rehoboth, the sense of community, the energy, the vibe,” says Thanner, “and the small town charm and progressive environment. It’s a place entering a new era of enterprise, with an influx of new businesses and innovative approaches complementing an existing strong mix of retail.”

Thanner is inviting patrons and the public to an in-store holiday party on Dec. 9 to celebrate the shop’s opening and to “thank the community for their encouragement during the best time of the year to bring people together.”

M.G.T. & Co. Mens Toggery Shop is located in Rehoboth Beach, Del., at 39 Baltimore Ave. The shop is currently open each day of the week from 10:10 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more info, visit M.G.T. & Co. on Facebook and Instagram. (The shop’s website is in development.)

Mark Lee is a long-time entrepreneur and community business advocate. Follow on Twitter: @MarkLeeDC. Reach him at OurBusinessMatters@gmail.com.

Attorneys that are OUTthinking |OUTspoken |OUTdoing ackermanbrown.com

W A sh In gTO nb LAde.c OM

n O V e Mbe R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 4 3

REALESTATE

What is title insurance? And do I need it?

Once you understand it, protection is a no-brainer

By SHERRI ANNE GREEN & DEIRDRE P. BROWN

Sherri Anne: Deirdre, as part of my buyer discussions, I walk through the settlement process. What paperwork to expect, including the closing statement and the costs associated with purchasing a home.

But let’s be honest, the excitement and focus is always on finding the perfect home. Details on closing costs and fees are discussed, but not internalized. When the closing document arrives a few days before settlement, most buyers start taking a closer look.

A home is likely the largest purchase most people make in their lifetime so ensuring that they are spending wisely--on every part of the transaction—is top of mind. When buyers start examining their bottom line, title insurance is something many ask if they can do without.

I’ve heard some horror stories regarding title issues and I know you’ve heard more. So, I thought it might be a great topic for us to discuss.

Deirdre: Of course. It’s important and, you are right, one that usually doesn’t get discussed until I am sitting at the closing.

At that moment, emotions are running

high. The buyer is ready to start their new chapter of life in their new home. That moment just isn’t the right time to be deciding if you should or shouldn’t purchase title insurance. Let’s shed some light on its merits and protection.

Sherri Anne: Great, so let’s start with the basics. What is title insurance?

Deirdre: There are two types: a Lender’s Title Insurance Policy and an Owner’s Title Insurance Policy. The Lender’s policy is required if you are taking out a mortgage loan. The Owner’s policy is optional which is why many ask if they can eliminate it.

In simple terms, title insurance insures against a successful title claim on the property. The Lender’s policy insures the financial investment of the bank or lender as defined by the loan amount and the Owner’s policy insures the buyer—the new owner of the property. The Owner’s policy is paid for with a one-time fee—not an annual payment like home owner’s insurance — and the policy will be in place for as long as the owner owns the property. The Lender’s policy is also a one-time fee, but is re-issued each time the buyer refinances the property.

Sherri Anne: Once I explain that the lender policy is required, their next question is, “If a Lender’s policy is being issued why would a I need an Owner’s Policy?”

Many see that Lender policy and assume

CITY LIGHTS VIEW

TRANSLATION: BEDROOM WINDOW FACES NEON SIGN READING, “GIRLS! GIRLS! GIRLS!.

To be used at the top of collateral:

VALERIE M. BLAKE, Associate Broker, GRI, Director of Education & Mentorship Dupont Circle Office • 202-518-8781 (o) • 202.246.8602 (c) Valerie@DCHomeQuest.com • www.DCHomeQuest.com

To be used at the bottom of collateral:

it is enough coverage. Why shouldn’t a buyer “depend” on the Lender’s policy?

Deirdre: The short answer is that the Lender’s policy covers the lender and not the Owner. The Lender’s interest and the Owner’s interest may not always be the same when an issue comes up. Look at it this way, the Lender’s policy is based on the dollar amount of the loan. It only protects the lender’s interests in the property should a problem with the title arise. Its coverage amount is based on the loan balance on the day of the claim—not the value of the home. This is because the policy amount decreases as you pay down your loan and eventually disappears as the loan is paid off. An Owner’s policy is usually issued in the amount of the real estate purchase, not the loan value. Only an Owner’s policy protects the buyer should a covered title problem arise. Possible hidden title problems can include: errors or omissions in deeds; mistakes in examining records; forgery; undisclosed heirs.

An owner’s policy provides assurance that your title insurance company will stand behind you—monetarily and with legal defense if needed—if a covered title problem arises after you buy your home.

Sherri Anne: All of this sounds great, but sometimes real-world applications help us all understand an issue. Can you share a case where you’ve seen title insur-

ance was needed to correct a problem?

Deirdre: Claims against title happen every day. Even though the title company will conduct a search and resolve any title issues that are seen at the time, problems could arise that threaten the buyer’s ownership rights. For example, forgery. There have been cases where a seller has misrepresented their identity and sold the property only for the real owner to turn up after settlement. The transaction is therefore not valid, because the fake seller had no right to sell.

The most frequent title claims just involve human error. Mis-recorded documents, incorrect legal descriptions, and very old documents that are not available electronically can all lead to title claims in the future.

These things happen enough that your lender wants coverage. Just like any other insurance product, you may never need it, but you will be really happy that you have it if you ever do. n CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM Sherri Anne Green is an award-winning Realtor with coldwell banker Residential brokerage focused on custom, data-driven marketing and client service. Reach her at 202-798-1288, sherri.green@cbmove.com, or www.facebook. com/SherriAnneGreen/, or on Instagram: SherriAnneGreen. Deirdre P. Brown, J.d. is a settlement agent with Mid-Atlantic Settlement services, LLc. Reach her via www.closeWithdee.com.

4 4 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

W A SH I N G T O N BLA D E . CO M

DEADLINES

All Classified Ads - Including Regular & Adult Must Be Received

By Mondays at 5PM So They Can Be Included in That Week’s Edition of Washington Blade and washingtonblade.com

SHARE ADS ARE FREE. Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.* *25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

W A SH I N GTO NB LA DE.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 4 5

BULLETIN BOARD

LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION 2017 ADM 001277 Anne Elizabeth Schneiders, Name of Decedent Ernest C. Raskauskas, Attorney At Law 3109 South Street, NW Washington, DC 20007

PLACE YOUR CLASSIFIEDS ONLINE

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

MASSAGE

2008 KEYSTONE MONTANA M-3500 RL - 5th Wheel Loaded.

Generator, Washer/Dryer Combo, 4 slide outs - 2 Living Room, 1 Kitchen & 1 BR. Separate rear living room, with sliding doors (great for guest room privacy). Dual A/C units, Power Roof Vents w/ rain sensors. $25,000. OBO 2006 F350 with Banks Power also available. rphlipper@aol.com

COUNSELING COUNSELING FOR GAY MEN. Individual/ couple counseling w/ volunteer peer counselor. Gay Men’s Counseling Community since 1973. 202-580-8861. gaymenscounseling. org. No fees, donation requested.

Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs Gregory S. Schneiders, whose address is 6302 30th St. NW, Washington, DC 20015 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Anne Elizabeth Schneiders who died on October 15, 2017 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, NW, 3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20001, on or before May 24, 2018. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before May 24, 2018, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of First Publication: November 24, 2017 Gregory S. Schneiders, Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister, Register of Wills

PLACE YOUR CLASSIFIEDS ONLINE

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

LGBTQ AFFIRMING THERAPY at Dupont Circle Individuals, couples, families, adolescents.

Over 15 years serving the community. Mike Giordano, LICSW. 202/4606384 mike.giordano. msw@gmail.com. www.

WhatIHearYouSaying. com.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

EMPLOYMENT RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY MANAGER SOUGHT for 300-unit cooperative in downtown DC. Customer service background a must. Contact asowers@keenermanagement.com for more info.

STYLIST - COMMISSION OR BOOTH RENTAL Carolina Antenzana@aol. com. 703.243.9622 or 703.350.8421 A2Z Hair Studio 3000 10th St Arlington, VA.

WHOLISTIC SERVICES, INC. seeking Full Time Direct Support Professionals to assist intellectually disabled adolescents & adults with behavioral health issues in group homes & day services throughout DC. Requirements 1 year exp., valid drivers license, able to lift 50-75 lbs, complete training program, become DDS Med Certified within 4 months of hire, ability to pass security background check. Associates degree preferred. For more information, please contact the Human Resources (HR) Department at (202) 347-5334.

LOCKER ROOM ATTENDANTS NEEDED! The Crew Club, a gay men’s naturist gym & sauna, is now hiring Locker Room Attendants. We all scrub toilets & do heavy cleaning. You must be physically able to handle the work & have a great attitude doing it. No drunks/druggies need apply.

Please call David at (202) 319-1333. from 9-5pm, to schedule an interview.

LEGAL SERVICES ADOPTION & ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE Law Attorney Jennifer Fairfax represents clients in DC, MD & VA. interested in adoption or ART matters. 301221-9651, JFairfax@ jenniferfairfax.com.

SIMPLE AFFORDABLE PROVEN RESULTS

Results-Oriented • Affordable

Larry Cohen, LICSW

30 years serving the LGBT community

CALL TODAY TOPLACE YOUR AD

202-244-0903 socialanxietyhelp.com

202.747.2077

See website for NPR story on my work

DAVE LLOYD & ASSOCIATES Top 1% Nationwide NVAR Life Member Top Producder

703-593-3204

WWW.DAVELLOYD.NET ENTHUSIASTICALLY SERVING DC & VIRGINIA

DEADLINES

All Classified Ads - Including Regular & Adult Must Be Received

By Mondays at 5PM So They Can Be Included in That Week’s Edition of Washington Blade and washingtonblade.com

SHARE ADS ARE FREE. Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.* *25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

4 6 • N O VEMB ER 2 4, 2017

W A SH I N G T O N BLA D E . CO M

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.*

DEADLINES

All Classified Ads - Including Regular & Adult Must Be Received

By Mondays at 5PM washingtonblade.com

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.*

Always FREE to listen and reply to ads!

*25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

Playmates or soul mates, you’ll find them on MegaMates

*25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

RENT / DC

TELL ‘EM YOU saw their ad in the Blade classifieds!

ENHANCE YOUR AD WITH OUR UPGRADES PICTURES BOLD TEXT LARGE TEXT COLOR AND MORE CONTACT US AT 202-747-2077 PLACE YOUR CLASSIFIEDS ONLINE

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM FULL SERVICE LAW FIRM Representing the GLBT community for over 35 years. Family adoptions, estate planning, immigration, employment. (301) 891-2200. Silber, Perlman, Sigman & Tilev, P.A. www.

SP-Law. com.

LIMOUSINES KASPER’S LIVERY SERVICE Since 1987.

Gay & Veteran Owner/ Operator. 2016 Luxury BMW 750Li Sedan.

Properly Licensed & Livery Insured in DC. www.KasperLivery.com.

Phone 202-554-2471.

PHOTOGRAPHY STEVE O’TOOLE PHOTOGRAPHY Fine Art Photographer for Portraits & Weddings. Check out my new website - www. steveotoolephotography. com. Specializing in Bears & Big men.

Steve 703-861-4422.

16TH STREET HEIGHTS, $1750.00/ mth+ dep. Newly renovated 1 BR + den. Close to both 16th & 14th St. bus lines. Approximately 850 sq. ft. SS Appliances, Granite Counter.

Utils & cable included. Front & rear entrances, back patio/front garden, sep. laundry w/ full size machines +++. 202-271-7513.

PERSONAL SERVICES FRIENDLY SENIOR SEEKS TRUSTWORTHY nonsmoking intelligent household assistant for help maintaining my house, home office, and yard. I already have housecleaning service and lawn services so don’t need that. Parttime or full-time. Interview required.

Pay commensurate with skills and experience. SeniorSeeksAssistant@ hotmail.com

CLEANING FERNANDO’S CLEANING: Residential & Commercial Cleaning, Reasonable Rates, Free Estimates, Routine, 1-Time, Move-In/ Move-Out. (202) 234-7050, 202-486-6183.

HANDYMAN BRITISH REMODELING HANDYMAN Local licensed company with over 25 years of experience. Specializing in bathrooms, kitchens & all interior/exterior repairs. Drywall, paint, electric & wallpaper.

Trevor 703-303-8699.

MOVERS OUR GUYS AROUND TOWN MOVERS. Professional Moving & Storage. Let ‘Our Guys’ Do The Heavy Lifting. Mention the ‘Blade’ for 10% off of our regular rates. Call today 202.734.3080. www. ourguysatmovers.com.

SALE / WV ENHANCE YOUR AD WITH OUR UPGRADES PICTURES BOLD TEXT LARGE TEXT COLOR AND MORE CONTACT US AT 202-747-2077

GREAT SCOTT MOVING INC. Local & Long Distance, Pianos! A Great Move at a Great Price call (301) 699-2066. Highly` rated by Consumer Check Book, Better Business Bureau, Yelp & Angie’s List. We’ve moved the Blade, let us move you!

PEST CONTROL EJ’S PEST CONTROL

Insect, Rodent, & Critter Control. Effective Experience Detecting & Eliminating All Types of Household Pests including Ants, Bed Bugs, Termites & Rodents.

Schedule your Pest Inspection Today (202) 455-9924. DC, MD, VA, DE.

TREE SERVICE BRANCHES TREE EXPERT Company. Full service certified arborists, pruning, insect & disease diagnosis, treatment & removal.

301-589-6181. www.

BranchesTreeExperts. com. Angie’s List Award Winner.

26 Indian Way, Berkeley Springs, WV: Serenity awaits you in this stunning chalet in desirable Berkeley Springs, WV. Vaulted ceilings with exposed beams, wide plank oak flooring and mountain views. Loaded with upgrades. Offered by EXIT Success Realty, call Shannon Walker at 540-336-2220.

Washington:

(202) 448-0824

www.megamates.com 18+

ENHANCE YOUR AD WITH OUR UPGRADES PICTURES BOLD TEXT LARGE TEXT COLOR AND MORE CONTACT US AT 202-747-2077 BODYWORK

TOP RATED MASSEUR Custom bodywork!

Exceptional deep tissue & sensual bodywork 329 Reymann Drive, Yellow Spring, WV: Luxurious 6,400 square foot Mediterranean style custom home on 32 acres atop Baker Mountain.

20+ mile mountain and river views. Travertine tile, 17foot trey ceilings, sound and lighting system, upgrades galore, 30x60 detached shop.

Offered by EXIT Success Realty, call Howard Kronthal at 703-861-8977.

for total stress relief in private studio both on the Hill & at Farragut Square. Call Erik 202544-5688. In calls only!

No texts! Intro Special $99.00.

THE MAGIC TOUCH: SWEDISH, Massage or Deep Tissue. Appts 202486-6183, Low Rates, 24/7, In-Calls.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

N O V E MBE R 2 4 , 2 0 1 7 • 4 7

Travel with the BEST, we’ll do the rest!

Free Wi-Fi Available Free Water for Everyone Electric Plugs Under Every Seat

AIDS HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION

Dr. Roxanne Cox-lyamu

Dr. Matty Mathivannan

AHF Healthcare Centers • HIVcare.org/DC 2141 K St. NW Ste 606 Washington, DC Now Open Late on Wednesdays Mon - Fri 8:30am - 5:30pm | Wed 10am - 7pm 24/7 HOTLINE (202) 329-7189