Watermark Issue 25.13: Mother Knows Best

ISSuE 25.13 • JuNE 28 - JuLy 11, 2018

WatermarkOnline.com

Florida’s

DRAG FAMILIES

prove Mum’s the word

PULSE SURVIVOR PUTS DISNEY

ON BLAST

DAyTONA bEACH • ORLANDO • TAMp • ST. pETERSbuRg • CLEARWATER • SARASOTA

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watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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JULY 3RD HOUSE OF BLUES PURCHASE TICKETS AT HOUSEOFBLUES.COM/ORLANDO ALL TICKETMASTER OUTLETS & THE HOUSE OF BLUES BOX OFFICE. ALL DATES, ACTS,AND TICKET PRICES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. HOUSE OF BLUES ORLANDO / 1490 EAST BUENA VISTA DRIVE, LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL 32830 PHONE: 407- 934-2583 / WWW.HOUSEOFBLUES.COM/ORLANDO

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

dePartmentS 7 // bureau chief’S deSK

PAGE

25

8 // central florida newS 10 // tamPa bay newS

We decided to put on a show in the living room alone, being costumed only in pieces of fabrics, throw rugs and whatever else we could get our hands on. Basically, anything on [Gidget’s] bedroom floor... Needless to say, we were two drunk, out of breath queens with one hell of a mess to clean up.

—DrAg MOM KAtHrYN NeVets ON Her bOND WItH DrAg DAugHter gIDget gALOre OVer tHeIr MutuAL LOVe OF COMeDY.

12 // State newS 13 // nation & world newS 19 // talKing PointS 35 // community calendar 37 // tamPa bay out + about 39 // orlando out + about 40 // tamPa bay marKetPlace 42 // central florida marKetPlace 45 // wedding bellS/ announcementS

on the cover

PAGE world gone wild:

PAGE MOTHER KNOWS

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BEST: From the

Gulf coast to the Atlantic, Florida’s drag families prove Mum’s the word.

Photo by Dylan Todd

Scan Qr code for

watermarKonline.com

33

Erasure heads to The Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg and the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando with their World Be Gone Tour.

watermarK i SSue 25.13 // J une 28 - J uly 11, 2018

Pride flagS

community care

the other Side of life rePairing humanity

PAGE Rainbow flags at a College Park cafe and at the Osceola County admin building are vandalized.

PAGE AIDS Healthcare Foundation opens a new St. Petersburg healthcare center next to Out of the Closet.

PAGE

Read It Online!

In addition to a Web site with daily LGBTQ updates, a digital version of each issue of the publication is made available on WatermarkOnline.com

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In honor of the July 4th celebration, Jason LeClerc talks about America and her independence.

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PAGE

Political commentator Sally Kohn looks at owning your hate in her new book, “The Opposite of Hate.”

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contributorS

TAMpA bAy

buREAu CHIEf’S

Ryan Williams-Jent Tb buREAu CHIEf

Ryan@WatermarkOnline.com

Y

deSK

Ou CAN AsK ANY OF MY FrIeNDs Or family, here at Watermark or otherwise, and they’ll tell you it’s no secret that I love drag.

I don’t do it myself, given my penchant for facial hair and the amount of foam it would take to give me a proper backside, but it’s something I’ve respected for most of my life. It’s a love and respect that began in 1996.

I was serving my best Ohio pre-teen realness, likely clad in an “X-Men” tee, husky jeans and my (free with the VHS) “Free Willy 2” necklace, when I discovered “The RuPaul Show” on VH1. At 12 years old, I’d found the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.

I was conflicted for quite some time, given that I was already in love with Zack Morris from “Saved by the Bell” and I didn’t want to upset him. I was already competing with Kelly Kapowski

and that was hard enough. Young and naive, it wasn’t until later that I realized the glamazon before me was actually in drag and that I could continue writing “Ryan Morris” in all of my notebooks.

At the time, RuPaul was one of the first openly gay talk show hosts. Whatever your feelings are on the entertainer, the cultural phenomenon of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” or drag in general, that’s an important part of our history and I’ll always love him. He introduced me to an unapologetic love and openness that spoke to me in ways I didn’t yet understand, opening a door for me to a wonderful and important side of the LGBTQ community that I now hold so dear.

watermarK Staff Founder and Guiding Light: Tom Dyer Tom@WatermarkOnline.com Owner & Publisher: Rick Claggett • Ext. 110 Rick@WatermarkOnline.com Business Manager: Kathleen Harper • Ext. 101 Kathleen@WatermarkOnline.com

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While the list of LGBTQ icons that have impacted our community before and after RuPaul is as extensive as it is fabulous, the fact that a drag queen played such an integral part of my introduction to it kick-started my affinity and respect for the art form.

Queens have played a pivotal role in our shared LGBTQ experience, from Stonewall on, and they continue to play a key part in my own journey.

I have quite a few friends who perform in drag, be it casually or professionally, and their advocacy and dedication to the LGBTQ community is unparalleled.

They’re always on the front lines, ready to fight for what is right and looking fabulous while they’re at it.

Oh, and my husband does drag.

So there’s that.

He’d mentioned while we were dating that he’d always wanted to try it before turning 30, something I never put much stock in or cared about. You only live once and like I said, I loved drag and I love him, so to each their own.

It wasn’t until after we were married that he tried it for the first time, something I often joke he only did after I put a ring on it. He did it for charity, and still does, but the most interesting thing that’s come out of it to me is the first question that I always get about it: “How does it make you feel?”

Does it matter? Most folks don’t ask to be rude, and some ask to be funny. But he’s my husband, he’s advocating for charities across Tampa Bay— almost always for free—and it makes him happy. Who cares how

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I feel? Besides, he looks great and people buy him drinks, so in reality my wallet’s winning.

Which is nice, given how expensive drag is. We used to have a second bedroom, now a large walk-in closet. Our eventual house will have to have a third room just for Miss Dixie.

My husband doing drag has also afforded me the opportunity to get to know multiple queens throughout Tampa Bay in a way I hadn’t before. I see their kindness and dedication up close, and I know what they go

Oh, and my husband does drag. so there’s that.

through to perform and look as amazing as they do. I’ve never respected it more.

In this issue, we take a look at some of those queens, both here in Tampa Bay and over in Central Florida as we examine the relationship between drag mothers and daughters. In Arts and Entertainment, we check in with political commentator Sally Kohn about her new book and vocalist Andy Bell about his work with Erasure.

In news, we celebrate the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the AIDS Health Foundation’s new healthcare center and the raising of the Pride flag in St. Pete. On the flip side, we examine a Pride flag’s vandalism in Central Florida and review a Pulse survivor’s concerns about Disney.

We strive to bring you a variety of stories, your stories. I hope you enjoy this latest issue.

orlando office 414 N. Ferncreek Ave. Orlando, FL 32803 TEL: 407-481-2243 FAX: 407-481-2246

tamPa bay office 2529 Central Ave. St. Petersburg, FL 33713 TEL: 813-655-9890 FAX: 813-849-2986

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

JAsON LeCLerC

is a near lifelong resident of the I-4 corridor, currently in South Tampa. He publishes poetry online at PoetEconomist. blogspot.com. His first book, Momentitiousness, was published in 2014. His book, Black Kettle, was published in 2016. Page 15

steVe bLANCHArD

is a former Watermark editor turned media relations coordinator at Moffitt Cancer Center. He returns with his viewpoint column, Fit to Print. Page 17

DIVINe grACe

is an Orlandobased trouble maker with a forked tongue and all the charm you can imagine. Page 21

Sabrina ambra, Scottie camPbell, miguel fuller, divine grace, KirK hartlage, Samuel JohnSon, JaSon leclerc, StePhen miller, maia monet, david moran, greg Stemm, dr. Steve yacovelli, michael wanZie

PhotograPhy brian becnel, nicK cardello, bruce hardin, traviS moore, chriS StePhenSon, lee vandergrift, tinKerfluff

diStribution lvnlif2 diStributing, liSa Jordan, vaneSSa mareSca-cruZ, Ken carraway CONTENTS of WATERMARK are protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced in whole or part without the permission of the publisher.

Unsolicited article submissions will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Although WATERMARK is supported by many fine advertisers, we cannot accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers.

Publication of the name or photograph of any person or organization in articles, advertising, or listing in WATERMARK is not to be construed as any indication of the sexual orientation of such persons or members of such organizations.

WATERMARK is published every second Thursday. Subscription rate is $55 (1st class) and $26 (standard mail).

The official views of WATERMARK are expressed only in editorials. Opinions offered in signed columns, letters and articles are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the newspaper’s owner or management. We reserve the right to edit or reject any material submitted for publication.

WATERMARK is not responsible for damages due to typographical errors, except for the cost of replacing ads created by WATERMARK that have such errors.

Watermark publishing group Inc.

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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CENTRAL fLORIDA

buREAu CHIEf’S

Jeremy Williams CfL buREAu CHIEf

Jeremy@WatermarkOnline.com

g

deSK

rOWINg uP tHere Were A LOt

of things I wanted to do with my life. I remember my mom telling me stories about when I was a kid telling her I was going to be the President of the United States. Well that didn’t happen, and at this point I don’t think I would want that office.

I developed a passion for writing not long after that. When I was a young teen that passion for writing turned into a passion for journalism after I saw the movie “All The President’s Men” on HBO. If I couldn’t be President, maybe I could be one of the guys who brought one down.

One thing I was certain I would be when I grew up was a parent. I have many nieces and nephews who I enjoyed watching grow from small, drooling piles of neediness to independent,

talented little adults. Nothing in this world makes you feel prouder, or closer to death, than being there when a person comes into this world and then — in what feels like the blink of an eye — seeing them drive a car, graduate high school and join the workforce.

I am not a dad yet, but that’s ok. As I have gotten older I have realized I not only love being able to help mold young minds, but I also like being able to give them back when I need some me

watermarK Staff Founder and Guiding Light: Tom Dyer Tom@WatermarkOnline.com Owner & Publisher: Rick Claggett • Ext. 110 Rick@WatermarkOnline.com Business Manager: Kathleen Harper • Ext. 101 Kathleen@WatermarkOnline.com

CFL Bureau Chief: Jeremy Williams • Ext. 106 Jeremy@WatermarkOnline.com Tampa Bay Bureau Chief: Ryan Williams-Jent • Ext. 302 Ryan@WatermarkOnline.com Proofreading: Ed Blaisdell Multimedia Assistant: Melody Maia Monet • Ext. 100 Maia@WatermarkOnline.com

time. With the help of Watermark, I am able to be a father figure to groups of University of Central Florida journalism interns.

My predecessor, Jamie Hyman, created Watermark’s internship program with UCF several years ago and I have carried it on, helping to birth new baby journalists into the world. This semester we have four bright-eyed, bushy-tailed reporters scurrying about Central Florida to bring you the LGBTQ headlines, so I thought I would introduce you all to them.

Colton Adkins is a fantastic writer who loves fashion and “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”

“This has been my first Pride month going out,” he told me. “My favorite memories this month were seeing Alaska, Aquaria, the Vixen and Miz Cracker with my boyfriend at Parliament House for Gay Days.”

Jeremy Brener is the “Sporty Spice” of our little intern group, so please direct all sports-related questions to him. Also, because he is such a good intern, I am now pulling for Argentina in the World Cup. Like many of us, Jeremy struggled with being gay, but this Pride month helped solidify that coming out was the best decision he could have made.

“A friend of mine that I met during Pride said something that put everything in perspective. He said, ‘Who knew that what you once hated most about yourself could be the one thing that would eventually bring you the most love,’” Jeremy says.

Layla Ferris is my Lois Lane-in-training. She is eager to prove herself and isn’t afraid to go get a story or let the boss know when he got something wrong (in a professional manner, of course).

She keeps me on my toes and is already a damn fine journalist.

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watermark Your LGBTQ life.

“I love having the opportunity to meet new people and be trusted to tell their stories in an honest and engaging way,” Layla says on why she wants to be a journalist.

Kathy Ruiz already has a jump on the competition, even before starting her internship.

Kathy started QCF, UCF’s LGBTQ magazine under the Pride Student Association.

“There was no cohesive place for UCF’s queer community to find LGBTQ resources and events on campus,” Kathy says. “So since there wasn’t anything like it yet I decided to do it.”

These kids make me a proud

If I couldn’t be president, maybe I could be one of the guys who brought one down.

papa every day and have already made a difference here in the community. I can’t wait to see what else they do.

Speaking of proud parents, in this issue we look at drag families in Central Florida and Tampa Bay in our in-depth section. In Arts & Entertainment, Scottie Campbell speaks with author Sally Kohn about her new book and Gregg Shapiro has a one-on-one with Erasure vocalist Andy Bell. In Central Florida news, Pulse survivor Brandon Wolf calls out Disney’s support of Adam Putnam. In Tampa Bay news, AIDS Healthcare Foundation opens a new health center in St. Pete.

orlando office 414 N. Ferncreek Ave. Orlando, FL 32803 TEL: 407-481-2243 FAX: 407-481-2246

tamPa bay office 2529 Central Ave. St. Petersburg, FL 33713 TEL: 813-655-9890 FAX: 813-849-2986

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

contributorS JAsON LeCLerC

is a near lifelong resident of the I-4 corridor, currently in South Tampa. He publishes poetry online at PoetEconomist. blogspot.com. His first book, Momentitiousness, was published in 2014. His book, Black Kettle, was published in 2016. Page 15

steVe bLANCHArD

is a former Watermark editor turned media relations coordinator at Moffitt Cancer Center. He returns with his viewpoint column, Fit to Print. Page 17

DIVINe grACe

is an Orlandobased trouble maker with a forked tongue and all the charm you can imagine. Page 21

Sabrina ambra, Scottie camPbell, miguel fuller, divine grace, KirK hartlage, Samuel JohnSon, JaSon leclerc, StePhen miller, maia monet, david moran, greg Stemm, dr. Steve yacovelli, michael wanZie

PhotograPhy brian becnel, nicK cardello, bruce hardin, traviS moore, chriS StePhenSon, lee vandergrift, tinKerfluff

diStribution lvnlif2 diStributing, liSa Jordan, vaneSSa mareSca-cruZ, Ken carraway CONTENTS of WATERMARK are protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced in whole or part without the permission of the publisher.

Unsolicited article submissions will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Although WATERMARK is supported by many fine advertisers, we cannot accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers.

Publication of the name or photograph of any person or organization in articles, advertising, or listing in WATERMARK is not to be construed as any indication of the sexual orientation of such persons or members of such organizations.

WATERMARK is published every second Thursday. Subscription rate is $55 (1st class) and $26 (standard mail).

The official views of WATERMARK are expressed only in editorials. Opinions offered in signed columns, letters and articles are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the newspaper’s owner or management. We reserve the right to edit or reject any material submitted for publication.

WATERMARK is not responsible for damages due to typographical errors, except for the cost of replacing ads created by WATERMARK that have such errors.

Watermark publishing group Inc.

7

central florida news

rainbow flag at college ParK cafe, oSceola county admin building vandaliZed Jeremy Williams

O

rLANDO | A new LGBTQ-owned business in College Park has been welcomed to the neighborhood by an act of anti-gay vandalism.

Cafe Linger, a coffee shop/restaurant/dessert bar located at the former home of NYPD Pizza at 2912 Edgewater Dr., opened on May 19.

The new business wanted to show its support for the LGBTQ community and to celebrate this time of the year with a rainbow flag posted outside the cafe.

“We put [the flag] up the first day of the month for Pride month,” says Michael Brito, co-owner and managing partner of Cafe Linger.

Brito, who is openly gay, received a notification June 18 through the neighborhood social network app Nextdoor that a bicyclist was tampering with private property in the area.

“So I just went [on Nextdoor] to see what was going on,” Brito says. “I noticed that the incident was at Cafe Linger.”

The post was from a neighbor to Cafe Linger by the name of Mackenzie. Mackenzie’s post on the app described the situation — which is corroborated by a Cafe Linger security camera that caught the incident — of a man in his mid-50s coming by on a bicycle, grabbing the rainbow flag by the pole, ripping it up and throwing it on the ground. The man then walks away with his bike.

Mackenzie contacted the police after seeing the incident and Cafe Linger has filed a report.

“The police came by and took a statement, they took the video and they said that it looks like misdemeanor vandalism,” Brito says.

While Brito does not recognize the person who ripped up the rainbow flag, he did say that someone on the Nextdoor app says he has seen the individual riding his bike around the neighborhood before.

This isn’t the first incident in Central Florida of a rainbow flag being vandalized this Pride month. Elizabeth McCarthy, the Florida LGBTA Democratic Caucus legislative director, posted to Facebook June 15 that Section 35 of the Sea-To-Sea Rainbow Flag that hung from the Osceola County Administration building for Pride Month was ripped down in the middle of the night.

“Police report was filed and a full investigation is on.

Hate crimes will not win on this one, #LOVEISLOVE she will be fixed and hung next year,” McCarthy wrote along with pictures of the damaged flag.

As for Cafe Linger, Brito isn’t letting one act of ignorance deter him.

“I thanked everyone for their support and let them know that the flag is going to go back up and that everything is fine. We’re not going to let it affect us,” he says.

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WOLF PACt:

Brandon Wolf calls on Disney to reject NRA supporter Adam Putnam in his NowThis video.

SCREENSHOT FROM WOLF’S NOWTHIS OP-ED VIDEO

Public Shame Pulse survivor challenges Disney to cease support for NRA-friendly gubernatorial candidate Layla ferris

O

rLANDO | Pulse nightclub shooting survivor Brandon Wolf is calling for Walt Disney World to “stop supporting NRA sellouts” such as Adam Putnam, a Republican running for Florida governor in the 2018 election.

Wolf denounced Disney’s contributions to Putnam’s campaign in a video released with media company NowThis on June 12, two years after the Pulse nightclub shooting.

From the time Putnam publicly launched his campaign in May 2017, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. and Disney Worldwide Services, Inc., contributed nearly half a million dollars to Putnam’s campaign, according to Putnam’s Florida Grown political committee contributions sheet.

The NowThis video states Putnam is one of several candidates Disney is funding.

Putnam recently came under fire for his July 2017 tweet in which Putnam calls himself a “proud NRA sellout” and his role in

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

the approval of tens of thousands of concealed weapons permits that weren’t fully vetted.

With more than $19 million in contributions, Putnam’s gubernatorial campaign funding has surpassed that of the other candidates running alongside him. Florida Grown has received sizeable contributions from The Walt Disney Company, Publix, Florida Power and Light and U.S. Sugar. But Wolf says Disney was personal. “[Disney] actually [has] volunteers onsite at the Pulse memorial to help guide folks through the new memorial site and all of the features that we have there, and for that reason— because I consider Disney a friend to the community—I think it’s our responsibility, sometimes, to call our friends on the carpet and ask them to stop doing things that are harmful to us,” Wolf says.

Putnam responded to the concealed carry permit issue in a statement released June 6, saying 365 applicants should have been vetted further and 291 permits were revoked due to non-criminal

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

disqualifying factors such as drug abuse or mental illness.

While non-criminal disqualifying offenses weren’t checked, the state did conduct background checks using the Florida Crime Information Center database and the National Crime Information Center database during that time.

Watermark reached out to Putnam for comment on this story and received a response referring us to Putnam’s comments as they appeared in the Orlando Sentinel.

“The state of Florida is better off because of corporate citizens like Disney [and Publix],” Putnam said to the Sentinel. “I hope that for political purposes people don’t try to tear down some of the best corporate citizens not just in Florida but in this country.”

While Wolf hasn’t heard back from Disney, he says he’s excited about the possibility of sitting down with community leaders and Disney leaders to discuss how to move forward.

“I’m confident that Disney will do the right thing,” Wolf says. “I am confident that they will reconsider their support of Adam Putnam especially after the news that he was negligent, and potentially criminally negligent, in processing background checks for those concealed carry permits for a year.”

Disney was contacted for this story. At press time they have not responded back.

Additional reporting by Jeremy Williams.

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11

tampa bay news

St. Petersburg raises Pride flag for 5th consecutive year Ryan Williams-Jent

S

t. Petersburg | The city of St. Petersburg raised the Pride flag above City Hall for the fifth consecutive year June 21.

Community leaders and advocates gathered for a short ceremony ahead of the 16th annual St. Pete Pride, led by Mayor Rick Kriseman. “This is the fifth time that we have raised the rainbow flag above City Hall,” he began, “and each time that we have done so has been special.”

Kriseman noted that this year’s ceremony felt “a little extra special,” however, citing his re-election last year. “One of the reasons that I fought so hard,” he said, “and that we all fought so hard, was that I was determined to keep this new tradition going and to ensure that Pride weekend remained both a successful event and an event that was fully embraced by both sides of City Hall.”

The mayor then introduced St. Pete Pride Executive Director Luke Blankenship to discuss this year’s St. Pete Pride, who thanked the community for their attendance and involvement. “Without the support of everybody here, whether you’re media or you’re just a member of our community… without you, this event would not be possible,” he said. “There are few events that bring together groups of different ages, ethnicities, sexual orientations or gender identities like Pride.”

Kriseman thanked the St. Petersburg Police Department’s LGBT liaison Markus Hughee and the city’s LGBTQ liaison Jim Nixon, also in attendance, and noted that as a part of the annual ceremony, he sometimes speaks “to relevant and often horrific events that are unfolding in this country.”

“In 2015, it was the Charleston church shooting.

In 2016, it was the massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando,” he noted. “This year, as we raise this flag, thousands of aspiring American citizens have been forcibly separated from their children while their children are forced to sleep in cages or tents.

“I understand the president now intends to keep such families together, but the damage has been done to these families, to these children and to America’s good name and standing in the world,” Kriseman said.

He then advised that the “ignorance, fear and hatred leading to the persecution of these immigrant families” was not unlike what many minority groups have faced throughout history.

“The Trump administration’s actions are evil, but they are neither innovative nor groundbreaking,” he advised, turning to the events of Stonewall. “Nearly 50 years ago, LGBT Americans were the victims of a raid… it wasn’t the first time they were harassed and targeted, and it wasn’t the last time, but it was a significant milestone. It triggered the beginning of a movement.

“Progress has been made and there is cause for celebrations,” Kriseman concluded, “but we must keep fighting, we must keep advocating and keep voting to ensure we never, ever go backwards.”

12

HEALING HANDS: The

AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s senior leadership and community representatives gather to open the organization’s new healthcare center June 25.

PHOTO BY DYLAN TODD

Community Care AIDS Healthcare Foundation opens new St. Petersburg healthcare center Ryan Williams-Jent

S

t. Petersburg | The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) opened its newest health care center June 25 in St. Petersburg to combat Florida’s growing HIV/ AIDS epidemic.

The Los Angeles-based AHF is a global nonprofit organization and the nation’s largest provider of HIV/ AIDS medical care. Its new healthcare center will provide services to patients regardless of their ability to pay and is located in the organization’s local flagship facility in the Skyway Marina District, first opened in May 2017. The facility also houses AHF’s pharmacy and their fundraising thrift store Out of the Closet, chosen as organization grand marshal for the 2018 St. Pete Pride parade.

“The need for medical care and services for HIV/AIDS patients in St. Petersburg remains significant, with both Florida and St. Petersburg repeatedly landing at the top of HIV and/or AIDS incidence and rates nationally,” AHF Tampa Bay Medical Director Dr. Jeanette Cancel shared ahead of the official opening. “I am

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honored to partner with AHF as we expand the reach in delivering quality care and medical services to HIV/AIDS patients at this new, state-of-the-art facility in St. Petersburg.”

AHF hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate their St. Petersburg expansion, where Cancel was joined at the podium by AHF President Michael Weinstein, Southern Bureau Chief Michael Kahane and other AHF leadership.

St. Petersburg Police Department LGBT liaison Markus Hughee, city LGBTQ liaison Jim Nixon, Pinellas County Commissioner Kenneth T. Welch and other community leaders also spoke, thanking AHF for their commitment to St. Petersburg.

“Many people don’t realize, if you look at the landscape of HIV in the world… numbers of new infections are either going down or they’re stable,” Weinstein said at the ceremony. “One of the few places in this country where the numbers continue to go up is in Florida. We are standing at the epicenter of HIV in North America.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Southern states account for approximately 44 percent of all

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

U.S. citizens living with an HIV diagnosis, and Florida ranks No. 1 in newly diagnosed cases nationwide.

In 2015, the agency determined that St. Petersburg ranked No. 15 nationally in terms of cities with cases of a new HIV diagnosis.

“I believe that if you always do what you’ve always done then you’ll always get what you’ve always got,” Weinstein said. “The reality is that what we’re doing now in Florida isn’t enough, and unless we come up with some new strategies and devote some new resources, we’re going to continue to see the growth of HIV in Florida and in St. Pete.”

Weinstein added that part of AHF’s strategy to combat the epidemic is to “bring services as close to the people as possible,” noting that no patient seeking care would be turned away.

“At this center we talk about the circle of care. What that means is we do prevention… we have HIV testing, we have STD testing, we have HIV primary care and we have a pharmacy.

So you can get all your needs met in one place.

“I hope that if I return here two years from now, five years from now, this place is bustling with client health,” Weinstein concluded. “We’re going to be here as long as we are needed and it’s a privilege to be a part of this community.”

AHF’s new healthcare center is located at 3404 26th Street in St. Petersburg and is open Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 727-318-6880.

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

13

state news

florida bar in the ProceSS of creating gender-neutral divorce documentS colton adkins

O

rLANDO | The Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage document in Florida is changing to reflect the needs of same-sex couples.

After the 2015 marriage equality ruling by the state of Florida and the U.S. Supreme Court, marriage applications and most divorce forms were adjusted to include same-sex couples. However, Central Florida attorney Barry Miller discovered the form still referred to couples as “Husband” and “Wife.”

Chairman of the Florida Bar’s Family Law Rules Committee Robert Merlin says that the Bar and other committees are currently working on changing these forms.

The timeline for these documents changing remains ambiguous, but Merlin assures that the documents will change.

“It’s taking time because there’s a lot of work that has to be done, but it is absolutely being done,” he says.

gaineSville School reSource officer fired over facebooK PoStS Wire Report

g

AINesVILLe, Fla. | A Florida city fired a school resource officer for social media posts the police department deemed “offensive, insulting, and derogatory.”

The Gainesville Sun reports Jason King is appealing his April firing from the Gainesville Police Department.

King was a resource officer at an elementary school. An internal affairs report said King’s Facebook posts about President Barack Obama and gays and lesbians were on a page that neither showed his name nor his employer.

King told investigators he realized many posts were “taboo” but he was “creating an opportunity to have dialogue.” King also faced disciplinary action last year for his social media activity.

“I realize that the topics that I present are taboo and could have a negative effect on all of the classes and the members that I am actually a part of,” King said according to a GPD Internal Affairs Division report. “I’m creating an opportunity to have dialogue, to have discussion...I could be an asset.”

In one Facebook post, King called Obama a “coon.” In another, King shared the picture of a young woman claiming to have converted from lesbian to straight with the caption, “It’s not about gay to straight; it’s about lost to saved.”

“Officer King states this post references the biblical principles of living a lifestyle of homosexuality and receiving Christ as your savior, being redeemed and saved, which is the concept of salvation,” the report states. “He went on to say that he supports

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

this post because it celebrates the opposite perspective of celebrating someone who is openly gay and homosexual.”

Investigators said King’s posts made “offensive, insulting and derogatory statements” that undermined trust among officers and within the community.

“The above post/comments will not maintain camaraderie among officers and would not build trust within the community,” the report states. “And furthermore the above post whether done on or off the job would tend to affect Officer King’s relationship to his job, fellow workers’ reputations or goodwill in the community.”

King’s attorney, Catherine Gleason, said he believes he was terminated without just cause.

nation+world news

US withdraws from UN Human Rights Council Michael K. Lavers of The Washington Blade courtesy of the National LGBT Media Association

W

ASHINGTON | The U.S. announced on June 19 it has withdrawn from the U.N. Human Rights Council.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley told reporters during a press conference at the State Department that Cuba, Venezuela, China, the Democratic Republic of Congo and other countries “with unambiguous and abhorrent human rights records” are members of the council. She also accused the council of having a “chronic bias against” Israel.

“America has a proud legacy as a champion of human rights, a proud legacy as the world’s largest provider of humanitarian aid, and a proud legacy of liberating oppressed people and defeating tyranny throughout the world,” said Haley. “While we do not

seek to impose the American system on anyone else, we do support the rights of all people to have freedoms bestowed on them by their creator.

That is why we are withdrawing from the U.N. Human Rights Council, an organization that is not worthy of its name.”

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also spoke to reporters.

“We have no doubt that there was once a noble vision for this council,” he said. “But today, we need to be honest – the Human Rights Council is a poor defender of human rights.”

Pompeo added the council “has become an exercise in shameless hypocrisy — with many of the world’s worst human rights abuses going ignored, and some of the world’s most serious offenders sitting on the council itself.”

The U.N. created the council in 2006. The U.S. joined the council in 2009 after former President Obama took office. The council over the last decade has become an increasingly vocal champion of LGBTI rights.

The council in 2011 narrowly approved an LGBTI rights resolution.

It adopted a resolution against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in 2014.

The council in 2016 approved the creation of the U.N.’s first-ever position to combat anti-LGBTI violence and discrimination. Cuba and Venezuela are among the countries that voted for the resolution.

The U.S. last September voted against a council resolution that includes a provision condemning the death penalty for those found guilty of committing consensual same-sex sexual acts.

The Human Rights Campaign and the Council for Global Equality are among the organizations that told Pompeo in a letter they are “deeply disappointed” with the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw the U.S. from the council.

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Young people tell the Vatican to start discussing LGBT issues Wire Report

V

ATCAN CITY | Young people have told the Vatican in a survey that they want the church to concretely discuss sexual orientation and gender identity issues.

The Vatican solicited input from the young regardless of their religious views to help prepare for a gathering of bishops in Rome in October. The month-long gathering will be held to better understand how to pastorally care for Catholic youths among its worldwide flock. The Holy See presented the survey’s findings June 19.

The document uses the term LGBT, a first in an official Vatican document. Prior Vatican documents have always referred to gay people as “persons with homosexual tendencies.”

The Vatican has also invited an LGBT-friendly priest to speak at the October conference.

Young people in the survey said the church should “face in a concrete way controversial topics like homosexuality and gender issues,” noting that they discuss them “without taboos.”

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

viewpoint

Jason leclerc

the other Side

Of LIfE Independence Day

A

s HOLIDAYs gO,

Independence Day is my favorite of the secular American celebrations. Other holidays, equally important in their own ways, like Veterans Day and Memorial Day are patriotic derivatives: without a nation, we wouldn’t have the heroes to honor.

Without that Declaration on July 4, 1776, we wouldn’t have a nation. Situated perfectly in the middle of the year, bookending Yuletides, we as a people are reminded that, like long summer days, the sun doesn’t want to set on our celebration of independence. America is not merely a “City on a hill” but, as Ronald Reagan reminded us, “shining” so: a beacon of hope to the world.

Our celebration on July Fourth is not about pride, it’s about independence.

America started with a bold assertion in the Age of Reason that, “…in the course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another…” and that self-evidently we are all “created equal.” Joined in our collected independence, we look skyward with neighbors, making our own firelight when necessary—even as night falls—binding us through revelry into the dawn’s early breaking. Our independence, in 2018 as much as in 1776, is as interwoven with optimism as red with white and blue. Each Fourth of July reminds us that the spirit of independence, though born of 18th-century Enlightenment, lives on today. Imperfect executions of timeless liberal ideals are venerated in the institutions of Federalism and rule-of-law, codified and ensured by the Constitution. These institutions daily enliven individual and externalized tensions: we are independent together.

Besides sparklers and Roman candles, how do we honor our core independence, wrought and honed in the founding Declaration? How do we, in the present, dissolve outdated political connections and affirm equality?

We must fight assaults upon our independence with the ferocity of musket-armed minutemen.

The Democratic and Republican parties stand as a joint veneer before our venerable (and, yes, sometimes bloated) American institutions. Parties fight for allegiances. They mean to rob us of our independence and lull us into complacency.

We all want to take the easy route, to take well-trod paths and to deny the bravery lived by Dawes-Revere and heartened by Frost: to hide our independence in the safety of numbers—in cults of personality.

If Trump has taught us anything—for all the divisive bluster, and at the same time thanks to it—we are enjoined to constantly reassert independence.

Trump—however much we may dislike his version of it— has embodied an independent spirit. After co-opting the Republican Party, he’s unapologetically undermined basic conservative ideals like small government, human dignity and fiscal responsibility. His abandonment of ideals in exchange for pragmatism (what he calls, “winning”) should serve as an example (the independence, not the megalomania) for us to do the same: an opportunity to question orthodoxy, an opportunity to think independently again.

We are challenged, in this age of Trump, to assert our independence of thought. Whether we call it bipartisanship, compromise or Radical Centrism, we are at a historical juncture where the last four-score years of factional alliances stand ready for reappraisal. Assertions of our independence can be as small and targeted as questioning images put

forth by the media, engaging in rational discourse that cuts through the narratives promulgated by partisans, or simply voting our independent consciences instead of our party lines. Democrats no longer hold a monopoly on LGBTQ issues and climate change. Republicans no

Meacham calls, “The Battle for our Better Angels.”

And yet, we sacrifice our independence in exchange for how we personally rank America’s institutions which are in constant, beautiful tension. We are granted the freedom to think independently as we measure

reconstructed. After two years of Trump, we must begin reorganizing our allegiances.

This doesn’t mean turning our back on independence, but internalizing it and letting it drive us, optimistically forward to reclaim our Shining City on a Hill.

As we say we can see—

longer hold a monopoly on small government and family values. Both seem to have jettisoned free speech and free press. Regardless of our faith-centers, we can engage in just-heresies against established factions.

We are ripe, as Americans, for acts of independent bravery: what JFK called “Profiles in Courage,” and what contemporary historian John

such natural tensions: nation, state, religion, media, speech, POTUS, SCOTUS, Congress, Armed Forces, labor— expected and accounted for constitutionally—that have provided guide rails for our nation. But even independence has its limits lest it devolve into anarchy. After a decade of loose confederacy, the states united under the Constitution. After five years of Civil War, America

together—this Independence Day, by the dawn’s earliest light, from the twilight’s last gleaming, and o’er ramparts remembered, let’s also look inward to the truths we carry within our own independent souls. Let’s shine outward; let’s serve as beacons of hope for our neighbors—friends and enemies alike—in daily declarations of our cherished, Creator-ordained, collected independence.

Democrats no longer hold a monopoly on lGBTQ issues and climate change. Republicans no longer hold a monopoly on small government and family values.

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

viewpoint

steve Blanchard

fit for Print The warm familiarity of the rainbow �lag

R

eCeNtLY, AND FOr tHe

first time in my life, I traveled to another country. My husband and I spent two weeks in Ireland, where we toured historic sites, drank plenty of Guinness and mingled with the locals in several of the country’s beautiful cities and towns. It was truly the trip of a lifetime and one I would do again in a heartbeat.

Ireland is a welcoming country and was the first country to legalize same-sex marriage by a popular vote back in 2015. Knowing that marriage equality was voted into place by the citizens of the country, I knew that we would be welcomed and respected as a couple. In fact, we didn’t see or hear any negativity toward the LGBTQ community during our travels.

One interaction in particular stands out to me. We were seated in a small restaurant in a rural town in southern Ireland when our server, who also happened to be the owner of the establishment, greeted us, took our orders and then inquired about our visit.

Neither of us have an Irish accent; it was obvious we were a couple. When we shared our story she jokingly called herself “Sherlock” for having deduced we were two gay boys from the United States on holiday even before we had a chance to introduce ourselves.

Our conversation covered everything from her time living in California with a boyfriend eight years ago to the current political climate in the United States (which she described for those living outside of the U.S. as watching a “slow-motion car crash with the driver purposely acting a fool”).

After our meal, she even delivered two glasses of complimentary champagne to our table.

I can’t think of a nicer way of welcoming travelers from another country.

Toward the end of our trip, we spent several days in the capital city of Dublin, which was preparing for its annual Pride festival.

As we walked past City Hall, we saw not one, but two same-sex couples celebrating their recent vows. Two beautiful women in wedding dresses crossed the street hand-in-hand in front of us with a throng of cheerful family members and friends behind them.

Just two or three minutes later, two men dressed in suits exited City Hall and repeated the ritual.

All of this unfolded underneath several rainbow Pride flags that had been raised above the city earlier in the month. I have been to many Pride festivals both locally and in other parts of the United States. It was fascinating to observe Pride from a new perspective.

I saw it from a global scale.

As we explored the city, we saw those same colors everywhere. They were displayed outside pubs, above the doors of cafes, on top of taxis and even emblazoned along the entire length of a commuter train passing through downtown.

With very little text, all of these signaled one thing: “everyone is welcome in this city.” We even found Pride-specific clothing in several different shops and we walked away with “Dublin Pride” shirts, even though we left the country before the big event.

Of course, we have cities that do similar acts of Pride in the States. St. Pete throws down the rainbow carpet every June in honor of National LGBTQ Pride Month and St. Pete Pride.

Tampa also celebrates with Pride flags, particularly in the fabulously gay friendly

using unfamiliar currency, I took great comfort in seeing the familiar symbol of equality in the rainbow flag.

Pride is global.

It may sound hokey to some, but every time I saw the Pride flag I smiled. It made me feel incredibly safe and very welcomed. I admit

everything else around you is unfamiliar.

We just wrapped up Pride Month, and I’m sure there were plenty of people talking about how they don’t need to wave a rainbow flag to celebrate who they are.

That may be true, and I don’t always have a rainbow

section of Ybor City. In October, downtown Orlando becomes awash in rainbow colors. Of course, large metropolitan areas are also known for their acceptance; San Francisco and New York come to mind as examples.

But traveling out of the country, navigating narrow streets (while driving on the left, I must add) and

that there are times when I take the familiar symbol of the LGBTQ community for granted. Rainbow flags used to just mean I was in an LGBTQ-friendly bar. As I get older and experience more of what life has to offer, I have developed a stronger understanding of its history and what it can mean when

flag readily available in my daily life.

But it’s important to remember what the flag represents and how a glimpse of it can change one person’s perspective on not only an individual or a business, but on an entire city or country.

When we shared our story she jokingly called herself ‘Sherlock’ for having deduced we were two gay boys from the united states on holiday even before we had a chance to introduce ourselves.

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

talking points

% 28

The continual process of unlearning heteronormativity and internalized homophobia can be difficult, but one of the biggest blessings lies in the magic that comes from having to understand love outside the confines of learned heterosexual roles.

—“HuNger gAMes” ACtress AMANDLA steNberg COMINg Out As LesbIAN IN AN INterVIeW WItH WONDerLAND MAgAZINe.

Of

LGBTQ ADULTS

IN FLORIDA

DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH

MONEY fOR

FOOD COMpARED TO

19

%

OF NON-LGBT ADULTS. SIMILARLy, 26% Of LgbTq ADuLTS IN fLORIDA DO NOT HAVE ENOugH MONEy TO MEET THEIR HEALTHCARE NEEDS COMpARED TO 20% Of NON-LgbT ADuLTS. —A rePOrt bY tHe WILLIAMs INstItute At uCLA

“JuRASSIC WORLD 2” CuTS LESbIAN REVEAL SCENE fROM fILM

“J

urAssIC WOrLD: FALLeN KINgDOM” Cut A KeY sCeNe from the film that revealed paleo-veterinarian Dr. Zia Rodriguez (Daniella Pineda) is a lesbian. Pineda shared in an interview that her character was meant to comment on her sexuality in an offhand comment about fellow star Chris Pratt’s character Owen. “I look at Chris and I’m like: ‘Yeah, square jaw, good bone structure, tall, muscles,’” Pineda says. “‘I don’t date men, but if I did, it would be you. It would gross me out, but I’d do it.’ I love that I’m looking at Chris Pratt, the hottest guy in the world, and I’m like, ‘It would gross me out, but I guess I would do it!’

It was also cool, because it was a little insight into my character. But they cut it.” According to Pineda, the scene was cut “for the sake of time” and because it “wasn’t relevant to the story.” “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” hit theaters June 22.

“LOVE, SIMON” WINS bEST KISS AT MTV MOVIE & TV AWARDS

T

LEAH REMINI CAST AS CONSERVATIVE LESbIAN IN fOX COMEDy pILOT

he Ferris wheel kiss between Simon (played by Nick Robinson) and Bram (played

by Keiynan Lonsdale) in the film “Love, Simon” took home the award for Best Kiss at the 2018 MTV Movie and TV Awards. That marks two consecutive years that a same-sex kiss won the award. Last year’s winner was the nighttime beach kiss between teens Chiron and Kevin (played by Ashton Sanders and Jharrel Jerome, respectively) from the Oscar-winning film “Moonlight.” Lonsdale, who came out as bisexual during filming for the film, expressed his gratitude saying, “I just want to say to every kid, you can love your dreams and wear dresses…you can live your dreams and you can be yourself.”

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

L

eah Remini has been cast as a conservative lesbian for an upcoming Fox comedy pilot. According to Entertainment Weekly, Remini will play Jean, a conservative lesbian “who loves her country and firmly believes in everyone’s right to be left alone.”

She is raising her two children with her wife and her ex-husband who lives in the garage. The still-untitled series will come from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” creator Rob McElhenney and executive producer Rob Rosell. ”It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” co-creator Glenn Howerton, star Charlie Day and Executive Producer Nick Frenkel will also executive produce the series. Howerton, Day and Frenkel are expected to make on-screen appearances.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

NEW SEASON Of “bIg bROTHER” TO fEATuRE TWO LgbTq CONTESTANTS

“b

ig Brother” announced the new 16 contestants for Season 20 of the show, and two of the members are proud members of the LGBTQ community.

Kaycee Clark, a 30-year-old professional football player from San Diego, joked in an interview that for romance, “I’m open to anything, unless it’s being with a guy.” Originally from Miami and now in West Hollywood, 27-year-old dancer JC Mounduix proudly stands as the shortest housemate in “Big Brother” history at 4 feet 8 inches.

Mounduix’s strategy to win the game is to “be the sweetest small guy that everyone would want to hug and kiss.” Season 20 premieres June 27 on CBS.

21

22

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

MOTHER

LADYbOY LOVe:

Current reigning “Miss Continental” Shantell D’Marco sees the sensitivity and star power in “Ladyboys” member Milan D’Marco.

KNOWS

PHOTO BY JEREMY WILLIAMS

BEST Florida’s

DRAG FAMILIES prove Mum’s the word Ryan Williams-Jent, divine Grace

D

rAg CuLture Is INtrINsICALLY

tied to the LGBTQ community, from Stonewall to the life-dependent lip-syncs now featured weekly on VH1. Now more than ever it borders on the mainstream, with the art form highlighted (and contoured) on televisions worldwide and available now on iTunes.

As drag paints itself even further into the history of pop culture, it can be easy to forget that it has its detractors, often found in the safe spaces drag performers share. It can lead to camaraderie amongst entertainers as they gravitate toward one another for belonging and assistance, creating both a sense of family and of home.

CONTINuED ON pg. 25 | uu |

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

st. Pete strONg: Kori Stevens (center) never wanted to be a drag mother, but “Kori’s Kids” like Jaeda Fuentes (left) and Nate Taylor (right) changed that entirely. PHOTO BY DYLAN TODD

| uu | Mother Knows Best fROM pg.23

Drag Houses were born over 50 years ago in the ballroom community of New York City’s drag scene, both out of necessity and as a form of sorority.

With those families came drag mothers: those more experienced in the culture who were willing to grab a fledgling goddess and teach their newfound daughters the tricks of the trade.

The houses began within the LGBTQ community as a series of counterculture events, like those

You have to look out for their well-being and you have to kind of guide them in the right direction… not only in drag but also in life, period.

—KOrI steVeNs detailed in Jenni Livingston’s acclaimed documentary “Paris is Burning.” The film showcases the culture and many of the scene’s drag families, including the Houses of Aviance, Ninja, Xtravaganza and LaBeija, all of which are still thriving.

You don’t need to go much further than your favorite LGBTQ hotspot, however, to see some of the brightest houses in the United States. From Central Florida to Tampa Bay, drag culture and families remain a vital part of the community—and Watermark spoke

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with some of the Sunshine State’s most fabulous.

KATHRyN NEVETS & gIDgET gALORE

T

ampa Bay entertainer and Lakeland’s “Princess of Polk County” Kathryn

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

Nevets is an accomplished celebrity impersonator and an incredible original in her own right. As 2014’s “Miss National Comedy Queen,” Nevets credits her own drag mother for teaching her to “Be You! Do YOU! And don’t hold back!”

She took that mantra and passed it on to her own drag daughters, including Orlando’s Gidget Galore. “All three of my daughters are amazing people and I’m so very proud to be their friend,” Nevets says.

CONTINuED ON pg. 27 | uu |

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Nevets and Galore met in 1996.

“It just kind of evolved after being friends. She wanted to get into drag and so [we] put her in it all.

She looked just like Sierrah Fox,” she says. Nevets notes that Galore was so young at the time that the hardest part about training her young protege was getting her past the doorman.

“We had many mutual friends,” Galore adds. “I used to ‘gal pal’ around with Kathryn at Wylde’s Bar in Orlando and she showed me the necessary basics and how to get started.” With a smile, she recalls that Nevets “taught me how to properly paint eyebrows,” noting with a laugh that her “first attempts looked like literal upside down check marks!”

With a mutual love for comedy as a bond between them, the mother and daughter recall evenings at Galore’s home as some of their favorites together.

“We were drinking and decided to put on the ‘Cirque du Soleil’ soundtrack [that] had just come out,” Nevets says.

“We decided to put on a show in the living room, alone, costumed only in pieces of fabrics, throw rugs and whatever else we could get our hands on,” she continues. “Basically, anything on her bedroom floor. So we had to run up the stairs, come up with an outfit and run back down before the other completed her number.

Needless to say, we were two drunk, out of breath queens with one hell of a mess to clean up.”

“We would put anything on our heads and bodies and diva out,” Galore says. “No lampshade was safe from our creative and twisted minds.”

The relationship between them was better for it; Galore holds her mother close. “Even though we are sometimes far apart in distance, I know I could always call Kathryn for advice or just to chat,” she says. “Bonds of friendship that mean so much are why we choose to call our closest friends family. I LOVE YOU, MAMA KATHRYN!”

ALEXIS & VICTORIA S. MATEO

A

lexis Mateo took Tampa Bay by storm years before appearing on the third season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and Season 2 of its “All Stars” spin-off. Since then, she’s

would be made up in the living room… there were just so many creative ideas flowing.”

“I was sitting on my sofa and we were having a house pageant at 3 o’clock in the morning and I was like, ‘oh, you guys have to make a gown now in an hour,’ and I realized how good everybody was,” Alexis says.

“And that’s when I was like, I’m just gonna go ahead and call this my Mateo Empire and put you guys into competitions.

We’re gonna make sure that everything is perfection.”

For Victoria, that desire for perfection has strengthened her resolve. “Alexis is not a ‘yes’ person,” she says. “He definitely has read me to the floor as far as makeup, aesthetic, costuming and then built me back up.”

She says Alexis “taught me what looked well for my body, what looked well for my face, and really just helped shape me by not letting me feel that everything I did was amazing.

He helps me be the best I can be at whoever I want to be.”

I just kinda felt like she was my mother and then bam! I was born.

She has since and always been focused on not just helping me grow N as an entertainer but as a human being.

SHANTELL & MILAN D’MARCO

—MILAN D’MARCO

formed her self-described Mateo Empire, which includes Season 10’s viral sensation Vanessa “Miss Vanjie” Mateo and her fellow Hamburger Mary’s Brandon cast member Victoria S. Mateo.

“I had been so busy with ‘Drag Race’ and my own journey that I didn’t realize how talented my best friends were,” Mateo recalls, noting now that “the Empire has taken over.” In part, she credits her daughter Victoria.

“Victoria and I have a different connection from everyone else,” she says. “Her personality’s so quiet so I get to be more connected with her. I see her going to big, big places when it comes to drag. I would not be surprised if she’s the next girl from my empire that will be on ‘Drag Race.’”

“We started off friends before drag,” Victoria adds. “I feel like that’s pretty much typically the case with all of the Mateo

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

Empire. In some form or fashion we were all friends before a drag family. I think that always creates a stronger bond.”

Much of the bond was cemented during late night pageant sessions at Alexis’ home.

“Instead of watching movies like a regular person we would sit there and watch pageants,” Victoria says, “and from there we would get inspired to do different things.

Dancing routines would be made up in the living room, concepts

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ational title holder and current reigning “Miss Continental” Shantell D’Marco has been grooming a burgeoning star in Milan.

The younger D’Marco is a costume designer, an artist for “Boylesque” and member of The Peekaboo Lounge’s “Ladyboys” in Orlando.

“I was 18 and started dancing at the Parliament House,” Milan says about his beginnings with the House of D’Marco. He recalls that he had “a few talent shows under my belt” and had been approached to join multiple houses, “but I never felt they would be a good fit.”

Until he met Shantell, he adds. “I just kinda felt like she was my mother and then bam!

I was born. She has since and always been focused on not just helping me grow as an entertainer but as a human being, all the while encouraging me to be the artist.”

“I didn’t actually have a drag mother,” Shantell recalls.

“I started on my own, though there were queens who helped tremendously in the beginning.”

Even so, she saw something special in Milan, quickly coming

Continued on pg. 29 | uu |

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| uu | Mother Knows Best from pg.27

to see him as a family member within her inner circle.

“Milan’s a great performer, and his strengths as a costumer are strong, creative and formidable,” she says. “Much of his talent lies in his sensitivity.”

She says it’s that sensitivity that leads to Milan’s “very tender heart,” something she notes could easily be taken advantage of in the drag scene.

“So I am quite protective of that, but it is one of his strongest assets.”

For Milan, it’s “a mutual respect for the beautiful things in life, the desire to live a life fulfilled in the outside world, and always love,” that drove the two together. In addition, he says with a smile that “neither of us have ever met a mirror we didn’t like.” And honestly, a mirror never disliked either of them.

KORI STEVENS & JAEDA FUENTES

T

ampa Bay mainstay Kori Stevens never wanted to be a drag mother. “I wanted no part of it whatsoever,” she says. “I never thought that I was even worthy of being called a drag mom or a mentor or anything like that, because I’ve always just been me. Then it got to the point where somebody asked me to help them the first time, I gave them the advice I could give them, and it just kept coming back and kept coming back and kept coming back.”

Stevens has mentored many entertainers throughout the area, affectionately called “Kori’s Kids,” something she’s done to watch out for them.

“You have to look out for their well-being and you have to kind of guide them in the right direction… not only in drag but also in life, period.”

One beneficiary of Stevens’ guidance is Tampa Bay’s Jaeda Fuentes. “We had a whole young group of Kori’s kids. We were all really good friends and started going out together,” Fuentes recalls. “We were always going to Georgie’s Alibi because of Kori.”

Fuentes soon joined Alibi’s cast of entertainers, leading to an even closer mother-daughter bond. “It turned into Kori being

COMEDY QUEENS: Kathryn Nevets and Gidget Galore bring the

mother-daughter cheer to 2015’s National Miss Comedy Queen pageant at Parliament House. PHOTO COURTESY KATHRYN NEVETS

a really big mentor for me and everything I was trying to do in my artistry on stage,” she says.

“It was more than her being a seamstress, more than her making clothes for us. Most important was everything she taught us as people, the humbleness that we needed to have offstage and on, and how we needed to be active in our community.”

The two have shared many milestones throughout the years, but none are sweeter for Stevens than when Fuentes won Miss St. Pete Pride in 2011. “I crowned her because I was stepping down,” Stevens recalls warmly.

During the pageant, Fuentes had been tasked to answer a question chosen at random and submitted by the community.

She’d unknowingly chosen Stevens’ entry, in which she was tasked to define a friend and answer if she had found one.

“When she answered,” Stevens remembers with tears, “she gave her definition as somebody that will stick by you and be there for you always.

She said she’d found several since she moved to the area, but one person in particular stuck out like a sore thumb.

She didn’t say my name, but she gave a description and everybody knew exactly who she was talking about.

“And I cried and cried and cried in the corner, and she didn’t see me,” Stevens continues, “and then when she won the pageant and I put the crown on her head I think I cried more than she did.”

“It was an unforgettable moment,” Fuentes adds. “Kori is a great role model and mentor for me and for the community. What she does in the community is something we can all strive for.”

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

EMPIRE STATE OF MIND: Alexis Mateo and daughter Victoria S. Mateo bring the Mateo Empire to this year’s RuPaul’s DragCon Los Angeles. PHOTO COURTESY VICTORIA S. MATEO

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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

A

scottie campbell

stOrY OF buLLYINg FrAMes

Sally Kohn’s book “The Opposite of Hate: A Field Guide to Repairing Humanity.”

Vicky was a young girl in Kohn’s fifth grade class who was bullied in school by her peers, her teachers and even Kohn herself.

Humanity REPAIRING

political commentator SALLY KOHN looks at owning your hate in her new book

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

Now because of Kohn’s ability to have levelheaded discussions as a liberal political commentator — first for Fox News, and currently for CNN — the self-professed “lefty lesbian” has developed a reputation for being “nice.” Yet in the aftermath of the 2016 election, Kohn was surprised by her quickness to anger, and the memory of her treatment of Vicky began to haunt her.

“Everyone tends to agree [hate] is a problem and no one actually thinks it’s their problem. No one thinks they are the one who is doing it,” Kohn says. “Rather everyone, pretty much, is casting blame at some other group, some other side, you name it. And that, to me, was a dynamic that needed both surfacing and addressing.”

In her book—released April 10 by Algonquin Books—Kohn compiles scholarly studies and interviews with colleagues, a neo-Nazi-turned-Buddhist and people on different sides of the Rwandan genocide. In addition, she also offers ways to navigate these discussions and the emotions that go along with it. Ian McKellen—via Instagram, pictured reading the book with chum Patrick Stewart, naturally— deemed the result, “An important book for the times.”

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Watermark spoke with Kohn about her debut novel by phone from her home in New York City.

WATERMARK: I’D CALL

THIS TOpIC A HypERObJECT, SOMETHINg THAT’S SO LARgE IT’S HARD TO WRAp yOuR MIND AROuND, yET yOu TACKLED IT IN A bIg WAy. HOW DID yOu EVEN COME up WITH A pLAN fOR HOW TO AppROACH THIS?

SALLy KOHN: I sort of let my own curiosity and my own desire to understand the phenomenon in myself within the phenomenon of hate drive where I went. So obviously looking at all the different aspects of science, social science, etc. and, when it came to where to travel and who to talk with, there were certain colloquial assumptions I had and I figured others did as well. Alright, the most hateful of the hateful are the neo-Nazis and the terrorists and people who participated in genocide, and those would be the right places to start. Through process of researching, I talked to people who led me to realize there are people in those worlds who’ve left hate behind. That just stunned me and I figured I wouldn’t be the only one.

CONTINuED ON pg. 33 | uu |

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If all you want to do is have a fight where everybody leaves feeling attacked and angry and worked up and just more dug in—including you and them—then great, you know how to do that. But if you want to actually engage in the kinds of conversations and interactions that create possibilities for change, then you’re going to need some new techniques.

| uu | Repairing Humanity fROM pg.31

ORLANDO’S JuNE 12, 2016 SHOOTINg IS CITED IN THE bOOK. ORLANDOANS gENERALLy CONSIDER IT A HATE CRIME, THOugH THERE IS EVIDENCE THAT pERHApS IT WASN’T HOMOpHObICALLy MOTIVATED. DO yOu THINK IT MATTERS?

How about yes and no? Murder is murder; killing is killing. In that sense, no. Look, I took a lot of flack for saying this right after Orlando but connecting the ideology of homophobia or the worldview of homophobia to that act more broadly, I’m not saying that homophobes pulled the trigger in Orlando, but if we’re saying homophobia was a motivating variable, then it’s fair to scrutinize homophobia in all of its forms. Not to say that they’re all equally bad or gruesome or what have you, but to scrutinize them in all their forms.

Acts of violence, and honestly acts of terrorism, can have multiple motivations. If hate is a motivation, we should face it head on and that should be a call to action for all of us to root out hate, in all of its forms.

To say that’s the most extreme form we give a pass to any lesser form—no, it does not, it should not, work that way.

DO yOu THINK WHAT yOu EXpERIENCED IN RWANDA gIVES uS SOME HOpE WHEN IT COMES TO THIS EpIDEMIC Of MASS SHOOTINgS WE’RE EXpERIENCINg?

I think any window into hate of any kind helps understand hate in all kinds. What I took away from Rwanda is it’s a different kind of influence. It’s very important to understand the difference between a single-shooter event versus what is systematically linked to acts of group hatred—whether it’s a genocide or terrorism. Whether it’s some group motivation, some ideology, some collective behind it. Whether that’s violent Muslim extremists or violent right wing extremists in the United States. More broadly, what I learned in Rwanda is best encapsulated by something a philosopher said to me that really took my breath away.

We don’t have mass incidents, mass atrocities, because a handful of psychopaths do them; there weren’t enough psychopaths in Germany or Rwanda or Serbia. We have these mass atrocities because masses of people do them. That’s hard to wrap your head around. It’s easier to think that acts of terrorism, acts of hate, acts of genocide are acts of

yOuR bOOK TOuCHES ON THE 1990S gAy gENE RESEARCH AND gAy “CHOICE VERSuS bIOLOgy.” I MAKE MySELf uNpOpuLAR WITH fRIENDS bECAuSE I’M Of THE OpINION THERE IS A CHOICE TO IT.

It does help to not actually believe the other side are assholes. The trick is to try to believe in the goodness of all people. To believe that nobody is the worst thing they’ve done or said or even thought. nobody is just who they voted for in 2016. nobody is just the viewpoint you’re arguing with them about. And to try and create the space for people to be their best selves, which generally means you have to be your best self.

—sALLY KOHN

craziness, and of course they are crazy. What is harder to recognize is the beliefs, the history, the habit, the culture, the ideas, the ideology that is coursing through all of us that can manifest in this extreme way. It is hard to reckon with the fact that what happened in Rwanda can happen anywhere. It’s hard to reckon with the fact that anyone could potentially be a member of a hate group, that it’s not just outlying crazy people necessarily, or only.

When we really grapple with that both individually and as a society, I think that’s pretty profound.

I LOVE THE AbC—AffIRM, bRIDgE, CONVINCE—DEVICE fOR

DISCuSSIONS yOu WALK READERS THROugH [fROM THE bOOK “COMpELLINg pEOpLE” by MATT KOHuT AND JOHN NEffINgER].

It’s important to understand that compassion isn’t the same thing as agreement. You’re not necessarily saying I agree with how you feel about issue X, Y or Z. You’re not premising your conversation on wholly invalidating what the other person believes so they feel in that moment, in order to even listen to you, they have to be completely wrong and wiped out in terms of their beliefs and identity. That just shuts down people’s ability to listen and to be persuaded.

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

AND THIS IS RELATED TO “EMOTIONAL CORRECTNESS” WHICH yOu’VE SpOKEN AbOuT. IS THERE A TECHNIquE TO EMOTIONAL CORRECTNESS OTHER THAN JuST KEEpINg A COOL HEAD?

It does help to not actually believe the other side are assholes. The trick is to try to believe in the goodness of all people. To believe that nobody is the worst thing they’ve done or said or even thought. Nobody is just who they voted for in 2016. Nobody is just the viewpoint you’re arguing with them about. And to try and create the space for people to be their best selves, which generally means you have to be your best self.

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What I tend to think is it should be able to be a choice. In other words, we should get to a point as a society where you can choose to be gay because it is socially, morally and politically equal. I also don’t think on a practical level it matters.

Let’s say it’s 5 percent biological, 10 percent biological, 20 percent biological—who cares? What seems to be more driving is the container of society and family and upbringing that we’re all put into and how that allows us to express ourselves, in whatever form that takes. To me, it’s more helpful to think about society being a positive environment for all people, regardless of whatever biological piece we want to harp.

The other thing is every time we’ve thought something was biologically significant, science has eventually evolved to prove us otherwise. So, you know, give it a break.

I WANT READERS TO fIND OuT ON THEIR OWN WHAT HAppENED WITH yOu AND VICKy IN yOuR puRSuIT Of HER fORgIVENESS, buT I WAS WONDERINg If yOu fORgIVE yOuRSELf fOR WHAT yOu DID TO HER?

Wow. That’s interesting. You’re the first person to ask that, which suddenly surprises me. Do I forgive myself? Well, I guess if I have to struggle to think about it, probably not, right? I think that I feel a peace about it that I didn’t before, that’s for sure, but that’s more about trying to make up for it in the world and do good things, make amends. I’m not even sure it is up to me to forgive myself. I’m at peace but I still have a lot of regret, a significant amount of regret, so I suppose in that sense no.

That’s a great question.

THANK yOu fOR yOuR HONESTy.

Jeez Louise, now you have me thinking for the rest of the day.

What the heck.

WELL, THAT’S ALRIgHT, yOu HAVE ME THINKINg, SO fAIR IS fAIR.

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music

Above and Beyond

Erasure vocalist Andy Bell talks about going acoustic, the new tour and being embraced by LGBTQ fans I was hemming and hawing. I couldn’t come up with any ideas. Once Vince and I got together…we had three writing sessions: one in London, one in Miami and one in New York. Each time we met up, all of a sudden, my confidence came. I was singing into the mic. It was almost like I needed Vince there, as my muse, for the songs [laughs]. He’s kind of a confidence booster. When I first heard the music, I thought, “Oh, wow, the music is so good, it doesn’t really need any vocals [laughs].” It sounded like a film soundtrack. It took me a while for the songs to settle in. I think I get a bit nervous when I first hear the music. I kind of don’t know what to do.

You have to leave it for a while. You can listen to it, but the trick is not to listen to it too much. Otherwise you can kind of OD on the music.

(above)

GONE TOURING:

Erasure will kick off their multi-city U.S. tour with three shows in Florida starting July 6.

Photo by Doran Gild

I

With the exception of switching the placement of the songs “Love You To The Sky” and “Oh What A World,” both albums are essentially mirror images in terms of the track listings. Why were those songs switched in the order?

Gregg Shapiro

t’s been 30 years since the release

of Erasure’s third album “The Innocents,” the disc that aided the duo of gay vocalist Andy Bell and synthesizer mastermind Vince Clarke into crossing over into mainstream success with songs such as “A Little Respect” and “Chains of Love.”

Of course, the gays (and the cool kids) had been dancing to them for a couple of years by then. Since the release of “The Innocents,” Erasure has put out more than a dozen studio discs.

Bell has even released a handful of solo albums.

An interesting musical experiment if ever there was one, Erasure’s “World Beyond” is a “classical reworking” of the 10 tracks from its 2017 album “World Be Gone.” Given the subject matter of the album and the current chaotic political mood, the chamber music setting backed by Echo Collective is quite fitting. Several “World Be Gone” tracks actually benefit from being reworked, but it’s “Still It’s Not Over,”

Erasure’s queerest and most overtly political statement, that is sure to have the greatest impact on LGBTQ listeners.

Watermark spoke with Andy Bell ahead of Erasure’s World Be Gone Tour, which brings the duo to The Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg July 7 and the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando July 8.

When the 10 songs that appear on both “World Be Gone” and “World Beyond” were originally written, did they begin in electronic or acoustic arrangements?

They were written electronically. Vince had sent me the musical parts and chord arrangements. It was done over a period of six months. I was sitting on the songs for probably three months.

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

The running order worked itself out on the electronic version. It was almost like a DJ list. It’s not like you’re telling a narrative all the way through. Each one finds its own place. When I redid the vocals for the orchestral version, I felt like “Oh What A World” was so strong.

I think it had been a bit overlooked on the first version. Rather than overlooking it again, we should put it first so people notice it.

Can you please say something about what was involved in the decision process to re-record the songs on “World Be Gone” with the Echo Collective and transform them into what they are on “World Beyond?”

I think it was an idea that was sparked

by Daniel [Miller of Mute Records] and Vince having dinner together. I think it was because I had been working on this “Torsten” project, which was two theatrical albums (“Torsten the Bareback Saint” and “Torsten the Beautiful Libertine”), and there’s a third part to come. It was a thing of letting me

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

explore my vocals more. When you’re singing with electronic instruments, they tend to soak up a lot of the nuances in your vocals. I feel like I have to add backing vocals just to emphasize the choruses and things like that on the electronic versions. On the orchestral versions, I think it’s much more about the character of the voice. It was kind of a bit of an experiment to maybe bring the “Torsten” project closer to Erasure.

“Still It’s Not Over” is one of the most overtly queer and political songs Erasure has ever recorded. The arrangement on the song really brings out the emotional power of the song.

It’s about my love affair with San Francisco and New York City. Being out from the very beginning of my career, going to San Francisco was very hard.

We were embraced by the city, by the LGBT community. At the same time, you felt the ghosts of all the people who had gone before us, especially in the U.S., who had fought to get HIV medicines and such. It’s about those polar opposites. I remember coming across an ACT UP demonstration in New York City. It was very exciting, but at the same time quite scary [laughs], because of all the things tied in with it. Especially being HIV+ myself, you kind of felt a bit like a wild animal. It’s difficult to explain it. I think the song was a nod to that and a thank you to all of the people who have helped us.

I know it’s tough – the amount of times we’ve been bashed literally to the ground, physically and emotionally. The amount of times we had to get up again, pick up our stuff and start from scratch.

The new Erasure U.S. tour begins in Miami July 6. Is this a nod to your fans in one of your home bases?

It is now. We never used to play in Florida. We didn’t have the fan-base down there. I think it’s a natural progression because we’ve played there now a number of times. The gay community is so strong and it’s building back up again, especially in Miami Beach. You feel like you’re a homecoming queen [laughs] in those kinds of places. You’re almost adopted by the place. It’s a thrill for me to go and play there. You’re in your home territory.

Erasure’s World Be Gone Tour comes to The Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg July 7 at 8 p.m., tickets start at $39.50 and are available at Tickets.

TheMahaffey.com, and the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando July 8 at 8 p.m., tickets start at $34.50 and are available at Tickets.DrPhillipsCenter.org.

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community calendar

EVENT pLANNER

artS+entertainment

CENTRAL fLORIDA

CENTRAL fLORIDA

Big Gay Prom sAturDAY, JuNe 30, 8-10 P.M. PArLIAMeNt HOuse, OrLANDO

Bring It! Live, June 29, Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Orlando.

407-839-0119; Dr.PhillipsCenter.org Ada Vox, June 30, Parliament House, Orlando. 407-425-7571; ParliamentHouse.com “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” June 29 – 30, the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse, Cocoa. 321-636-5050; CocoaVillagePlayhouse.com Anna Eskamani’s Anniversary Canvass, June 30, CREDO Conduit, Orlando. 321-348-8851; AnnaForFlorida.com Lady Liber-T…T-Dance, July 1, Stonewall Bar, Orlando. 407-373-0888; StonewallOrlando.com Red Hot and Boom, July 3, 150 Cranes Roost Blvd., Altamonte Springs. 407-571-8857; Altamonte.org Fireworks at the Fountain, July 4, Lake Eola Park, Orlando. 407-246-4484; MyCentralFloridaFamily.com Boots & Beards, July 6, Stonewall, Orlando. 407-373-0888; StonewallOrlando.com

gET THRILLED Sam Smith’s The Thrill of It All Tour comes to Orlando’s Amway Center July 11 at 8 p.m. and to the Amalie Arena in Tampa July 13 at 8 p.m. PHOTO COURTESY SAMSMITHWORLD.COM

Erasure: World Be Gone Tour, July 8, Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Orlando. 407-839-0119; DrPhillipsCenter.org

Centered in the Arts, A Summer Workshop Series: Painting and Drawing, July 14, LGBT+ Center Orlando, Orlando. 407-228-8272; TheCenteOrlando.org

Art Stroll and Gallery Walk, July 7, 132 Canal St., New Smyrna Beach. 386-428-1600.

Nsbfla.com

TAMpA bAy

“Vampire Lesbians of Sodom,” July 7-14,Parliament House, Orlando. 407-425-7571; ParliamentHouse.com

Deep Splash House Music Pool Party, July 1, Hollander Hotel, St. Petersburg. 727-873-7900; HollanderHotel.com

Sam Smith, July 11, Amway Center, Orlando. 407-440-7900; AmwayCenter.org

“Real Housewives of New Jersey’s” Teresa Guidance, July 6 – 7, Southern Nights, Orlando.

407-412-5039; Facebook.com/ SouthernNightsOrlando

Upscale Latin Night featuring Lisa M, July 7, Stonewall Bar, Orlando. 407-373-0888; StonewallOrlando.com

Boy George, Culture Club &The B-52s, June 30, USF Sun Dome, Tampa. 813-974-3004; SunDomeArena.com

4th of July Celebration, July 4, Busch Gardens, Tampa. 813-884-4386; BuschGardens.com Clearwater Celebrates America, July 4, Coachman Park, Clearwater.

727-562-4700; MyClearwaterEvents.com

Southern Nights’ 3rd Anniversary with Eureka O’Hara, June 30, Southern Nights, Tampa. 813-559-8625; SouthernNightsTPA.com Drunken Disney, June 30, The Iberian Rooster, St. Petersburg.

727-258-8753; IberianRooster.com 10 Years of Enhanced Tour with Tritonal, June 30, The Ritz Ybor, Tampa. 813-248-4050; TheRitzYbor.com

“Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” July 5-8, Straz Center for the Performing Arts, Tampa. 813-229-7827; StrazCenter.org “Real Housewives of New Jersey’s” Teresa Guidance, July 7, Southern Nights, Tampa. 813-559-8625; SouthernNightsTPA.com

7th Annual TBEC Etsy Craft Party, July 7, St Petersburg Coliseum, St. Petersburg.

727-892-5202; StPete.org/ attractions/coliseum Pink-a-licious Pool Party with The Cheaters!, July 7, Flamingo Resort, St. Petersburg. 727-321-5000; FlamingoFla.com Photo Shoot Fundraiser for Humane Society of Tampa Bay, July 8, 7venth Sun Brewery, Tampa. 813-231-5900; 7venthSun.com Sam Smith, July 13, Amalie Arena, Tampa. 813-301-6500; AmalieArena.com

MBA July Business Connect WeDNesDAY, JuLY 11, 6-8 P.M. DeL FresCO’s DOubLe eAgLe steAK HOuse, OrLANDO Join Orlando’s Metropolitan Business Association for an unforgettable evening of networking and ambiance at Del Fresco’s Double Eagle Steak House, a beautiful two-story restaurant located on I-Drive. The event will feature individualized and speed networking, complimentary hors d’oeuvres, cash bar and much more. Tickets are free to MBA members and $20 for guests. Tickets are available at MBAOrlando.org.

TAMpA bAy

national HIV Testing Day event FrIDAY, JuNe 29, 3-7 P.M. WALgreeNs ON CeNtrAL AVe., st. Petersburg Greater Than AIDS and Walgreens have partnered with health departments and AIDS service organizations like EPIC to provide free HIV testing and counseling at select Walgreens stores across the nation in support of National HIV Testing Day since 2011, with more than 40,000 HIV tests provided at 198 Walgreens locations in 137 U.S. cities. This year, HIV testing will be provided for free between 3pm - 7pm at the Walgreens at 3350 Central Ave. in St. Petersburg.

For more information visit MyEPIC.org.

SARASOTA

Pride Skate Tampa

Youth Pride Party, June 29, ALSO Youth, Sarasota.

941-951-2576; ALSOYouth.org

MONDAY, JuLY 9, 9 P.M.-MIDNIgHt uNIteD sKAtes OF AMerICA, tAMPA

Gay Trivia, July 12, Oasis, Sarasota. 941-922-4066; Facebook.com/Oasis Sarasota

To submit your upcoming event, concert, performance, or fundraiser visit watermarkonline.com.

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

Have a second chance at prom at the Parliament House’s Big Gay Prom hosted by Addison Taylor.

For just $20, you can bring a date (or come single) and take official prom photos, dance to prom music by Brianna Lee with entertainment

by Savannah Westbrooke and watch the Prom King and Queen be crowned. For more information go to ParliamentHouse.com.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

Pride Skate Tampa is launching a monthly LGBTQ skating event at the United Skates of America every second Monday of the month starting July 9. Music provided by DJ Greg Anderson all night. $7 to skate if you bring your own pair of skates, $10 with a skate rental. This event is for 17 and up only. For more information visit PrideSkateTampa.com.

37

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38

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

overheard

TAMpA bAy OuT+AbOuT

STILL McbITTER

S

t. Petersburg busINess OWNer KeVIN MCbrIDe of the “high-end men’s resale shop” McB’s doesn’t have much Pride.

McBride first made waves with the local LGBTQ community with a series of homophobic attacks last year after Mayor Rick Kriseman’s re-election. He opted to do so again during St. Pete Pride June 24. “(Flag or not to Flag?) I didn’t hang any LGBT, or Transgender flags this year. I have 2 american flags up,” McBride shared publicly via social media June 24. “My numbers are down 80% from last year.. While I don’t have any issues with the celebration, or any issues with gays, Does this mean I have to?”

After advising he has “no issue,” McBride subsequently shared his homophobic issues.

“For survival I have to put the rainbow flags up in support of people who bring their sexual preferences to the forefront/public, & exploit our children? Some members of this group try to ruin you if you have a different opinion? Do I have to hang the transgender flag in support of people who were confused about their sexuality, & because society says its OK? They mutilate their bodies to be accepted/approved? Popular?”

The post garnered a plethora of responses, mostly in opposition to McBride. As of press, it has over 200 reactions, over 750 comments and over 100 shares.

JuDgMENTAL (WOuLD-bE) JuDgE

P

INeLLAs-PAsCO CIrCuIt JuDgesHIP CANDIDAte DONALD MCbAtH has ramped up his public and homophobic remarks ahead of his upcoming primary election.

The 61-year-old family law attorney in Wesley Chapel first made headlines in late May when he confirmed his homophobic viewpoints to multiple outlets and reiterated them on his campaign website. Now, in “celebration” of St. Pete Pride, he’s doubled down.

“This weekend, don’t forget to take your little children to St. Petersburg to watch the DRAG QUEEN contest,” McBath shared publicly.

“They opened up a family friendly area so your innocent kids can witness PERVERSION in action, all for the sake of inclusion. Sick!!!!!!”

In another post, McBath shared a screenshot of Tampa Bay entertainer Alexis De La Mer’s profile photo, complete with commentary. “‘Toxic masculinity training’ for young children in public schools will result in more sissy’s [sic] in our society and eventually a national public holiday for queers!” he wrote. “The left continues to go bat poop crazy!!!!”

McBath subsequently advised he is a “PROUD DEPLORABLE,” adding Donald Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America Great Again.”

He will face Pinellas-Pasco prosecutor Doneene Loar in the nonpartisan primary election to replace retiring Circuit Judge Frank Quesada on Aug. 28.

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1

rOOFtOP reALNess: Christopher Ruch (L) and Jared Acuff enjoy the view at the Kimpton Hotel Zamora for the St. Pete Pride rooftop party June 21. PHOTO

BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

2

sPA DAY: Lisa Nadeau (L) and Sandi Hulon enjoy the soft opening of The Woodhouse Day Spa in Downtown Tampa.

PHOTO BY RICK CLAGGETT

3

PrOuD tO be: Dylan,Dalton and Alissia (L-R) work the camera for the fourth annual Polk Pride in Lakeland June 16.

4

5

PHOTO BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

4

rOCKIN’ reCePtION: Raymond Jamison, Jeremy Skidmore and Abe Gadikian (L-R) take in the sights at the Museum of Fine Arts for the St. Pete Pride Stonewall Reception June 20.

PHOTO BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

5

uNDer MY uMbreLLA: Leah Diaz, Jon McGuffey, Letitia Luckett, Raquel Aluisy and Maira Harris (L-R) beat the heat at the inaugural raising of the Pride flag at WellCare in Tampa. PHOTO

BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

6

st. Pete strONg: Team Watermark shares their pride from their float ahead of the St. Pete Pride parade June 24. PHOTO

6

COURTESY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

7

trANstAstIC: Penelope, Simone and Dina (L-R) grab a brew for equality at the Flying Boat Brewing Co. for the inaugural Transtastic TransPride March pre-party June 22. PHOTO

BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

8

Just LIKe A CIrCus: Theresa, Brian, Jordan and Lowes (L-R) celebrate the Quench Pride Carnival on June 16 at Quench Lounge. PHOTO

8

BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

7 watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

39

Reach local LGBT communities across the nation.

Start connecting with over a million loyal readers in print and online across the country.

212-242-6863 info@nationallgbtmediaassociation.com www.nationallgbtmediaassociation.com

Atlanta | Boston | Chicago | Dallas/ Ft Worth | Detroit | Los Angeles | Miami/ Ft Lauderdale | New York | Orlando/Tampa Bay | Philadelphia | San Francisco | Washington DC

40

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

overheard

CENTRAL fLORIDA OuT+AbOuT

THE CENTER Of LgbTq CHILDREN’S bOOKS

T

He Lgbt+ CeNter OrLANDO Is eXPANDINg AgAIN, and this expansion is bringing in something for the kids. The new expansion will include a children’s library complete with LGBTQ children’s books and youth novels. A children’s library will be added into the new Center coming to Kissimmee as well. The libraries will get started with a little help from Teach For America, who donated $500 worth of LGBTQ children’s books. In celebration of the upcoming libraries, The Center is donating a copy of Alex Gino’s children’s book “George” to anyone in the community that wants one. “George” is the story of a 10-year-old transgender girl who is trying to come out and be her authentic self. A free copy of “George” can be picked up at The Center Orlando, located at 942 N. Mills Ave., during The Center’s normal operating hours Mon.-Sat., 9 a.m.-9 p.m., and Sundays 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

2

pROM NIgHT AT THE p HOuSE

1

3

5

6

D

ID YOur FIrst PrOM NOt gO As WeLL As YOu WOuLD LIKe? Did you not even go to your high school prom?!?! Well, the Parliament House wants to fix that and give the LGBTQ community a second chance at it with its first Big Gay Prom on June 30. The Big Gay Prom will take place in the Parliament House Disco from 8-10 p.m. and will bring the full prom experience, including the crowning of Prom King and Queen, decorations, high school-themed performances, music and a professional photographer taking prom pictures. In lieu of being a strictly formal attire event, the Big Gay Prom requires no specific dress code, a rule that coincides with the determination that the event is a place for anyone to be themselves. Orlando drag queen Addison Taylor will host the prom with entertainment from Savannah Westbrooke. With the purchase of a ticket, prom goers can stay after the event to see Ada Vox perform. Tickets can be purchased for $20 at EventsBrite.com.

COME OuT WITH pRIDE IS COMINg OuT fOR A fuLL WEEK

C

OMe Out WItH PrIDe ANNOuNCeD tHeY Are eXPANDINg tHe PrIDe FestIVItIes from Oct. 11-13 to a full week of events in a press release June 18. The 14th annual celebration will now begin Monday, Oct. 8, and concludes, as usual, with the parade and festival taking place Saturday, Oct. 13. COWP also announced it has opened the application for the “Pride Gives Back” initiative early. It is now available at ComeOutWithPride. com/about/Pride-Gives-Back. COWP has been able to donate $60,000 in the past two years to scholarships and grants that help LGBTQ students and organizations who “make significant strides in educating the community and providing services towards acceptance and equal rights.” COWP will announce specific events held throughout the week at a later date. For more information on COWP visit ComeOutWithPride.com.

4

1

REMEMBER tHe 49: QLatinx’s Christopher Cuevas (L) and Lance Bass at the Pulse Annual Remembrance Ceremony at the Pulse Memorial June 12. PHOTO BY MAIA MONET

2

CLub CeNter: (L-R) Pride’s Emily van Egmond, OCSC co-founder Kay Rawlins, OCSC’s Oriol Rosell and Pride’s Alanna Kennedy at The LGBT+ Center Orlando June 15 announcing a collaboration between The Center and Orlando City.

PHOTO BY JEREMY WILLIAMS

3

ACtION FIgures: (L-R) Ida Vishkaee Eskamani, Kristy Weick, Roxanne Khione Robison, Gina Duncan and Ashley Figueroa are a part of the Rally to #HonorThemWithAction at Orlando City Hall June 11.

PHOTO COURTESY DANA NG

4

DressINg rOOM DIVAs: Ms. Darcel Stevens (L) and Syros Green get a selfie in backstage at the Footlight Theatre at the Parliament House June 24. PHOTO COURTESY SYROS GREEN

5

FresH DrAg: (L-R) Trixie Deluxxe, Tora Himan, Divine Grace and April Fresh on stage at the Parliament House Footlight Theatre for April Fresh’s Comedy Broadway Buffet, Father’s Day edition, June 17.

PHOTO BY JEREMY WILLIAMS

6

COMMuNItY CONNeCtION: (L-R) Yasmin Mackenzie, Brittani Acuff and Ricardo J. Negron-Almodovar attend Congressman Darren Soto’s LGBTQ Pride Month Roundtable at the Osceola County Commissioners Administration Building in Kissimmee June 11. PHOTO COURTESY

7

MIXeD Nuts: (clockwise from L) Patty Sheehan, Barry Miller, Joel Strack, Mark Cady-Archilla, Danny Garcia, Jeremy Williams, Heather Wilkie, Ben Johansen, Pinkman, Moira, Michael Wanzie, George Wallace and Sabrina at the June recording of “Moira’s Mixed Company” at iHeartMedia in Maitland June 15. PHOTO COURTESY

7

GEORGE WALLACE

8

bruNCH bOMbsHeLLs: Kasey Sollenberger (L) and Gidget Galore are total fashionistas outside Hamburger Mary’s Orlando for Broadway Brunch June 17. PHOTO COURTESY KASEY SOLLENBERGER

VIVIAN RODRIGUEZ

8 watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

41

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watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

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46

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

announcements

WEDDINg bELLS

Jody and Kevin Summey from Tampa, Florida

May 13, 2015

wedding date:

May 13, 2016

venue:

Yacht Starship Wedding Cruise

colorS:

Yellow and White

wedding Song/ artiSt:

“Shotgun” by Christina aguilera

dJ dave

officiant:

Captain Tom McElroy

caKe/cuPcaKe flavorS:

lemon chiffon with raspberry filling

theme:

Start of Spring

PhotograPher: Crystal Summey, Summey Sisters photography

Southern Nights Tampa celebrates its third year in Ybor City June 30.

local birthdayS

engagement date:

dJ Service:

congratulationS

Hanks Orlando celebrates 31 years in business July 1.

PHOTO BY CRYSTAL SUMMEY, SUMMEY SISTERS PHOTOGRAPHY

J

ODY suMMeY FIrst Met KeVIN

Turner at former G Bar in Ybor in May 2010.

“I drove my Rolls Royce into the parking lot and Kevin was sitting in his little Toyota,” Jody shares. “He was the most handsome man I had ever seen. I pulled up next to him and rolled my window down and said hi. It turns out he was just out of a bad relationship and was trying to build up the courage to walk into the bar. We talked for hours that first night.”

That set the tone for their long-term romance. Now looking back, the two quickly pinpointed specific moments each of them knew the other was the man they would marry.

“I realized I wanted Kevin to be my husband when I had a family emergency with my father in Georgia,” Jody, a Tampa native, says. “He dropped everything and drove all day to get there to comfort me and be by my side.

I realized then how much he loved me and my family.”

“I was bitten by a spider in 2014 and ended up in the emergency

room,” says Kevin, who moved from Searcy, Ark. “The doctor came in and asked if Jody was family, because if he wasn’t, he couldn’t be in the room. He told the doctor he was my boyfriend. The doctor still made him leave. Family only.

Jody was there day and night. He didn’t leave me. And when I got home he took care of me and made me realize that I was worthy of someone loving me.”

Jody popped the question to Kevin. “But Kevin had special matching rings made from silver dollars,” Jody says. “We said that money would never come

between us and these rings symbolized that.”

The two officially tied the knot on May 13, 2016, onboard a Yacht Starship Wedding Cruise. The two walked down the aisle to “When the Right One Comes Along” by Clare Bowen. Kevin baked the wedding cake himself.

“Kevin was the one that 80 percent planned the wedding down to the finest detail,” Jody says. “He made the cake about 10 times before he thought it was perfect. He didn’t get upset or cry or yell at all to anyone. On the day of the ceremony, we were standing together about five minutes before the music was to begin and we would walk down the aisle. Kevin looked at me and said, ‘Is this real?

Are you really here and going to be my husband?’ Then he broke down and cried.”

“I held him for a few minutes.

I am a teddy bear and I cried a few times leading up to the wedding,” Jody laughs. “I also broke down and cried during our vows to each other.”

—Aaron Drake

St. Pete whisperer Thompson Davis Kellett, family woman Arleen Batronie (June 28); O-Town DJ and aspiring MD Chris “Cub” Mendez, edgefacotry visual designer Adam McCabe, former Watermark business manager and current practice manager at Pinero Preventive Mike Ames, musician Todd Wathen (June 29); Flamingo bartender Jerry Watson (June 30); St. Petersburg leather man Matt Wolf, mad Theatre of Tampa’s DJ Holt, former Watermark sales diva Erica Franco, fab photog Dixie Lee Todd (July 1); Tampa philanthropist Matt Bachman, Mons Venus strip club owner Joe Redner, Tampa Bay Metro Charities CEO Lorraine Langlois, Orlando resident and Sawmill performer Sofonda Cox, St. Pete graphic guru Michael O’Connell, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” alum Coco Montrese, Embellish FX costumer Tim Vargas, former Watermark sales representative and former Putnam County Courier Journal editor B.J. Laurie, actor extraordinaire Tommy Wooten, assistant general manager at JJ’s Fusion Grille Sandra Nasrallah (July 2); Tampa Pro Massage owner Cory Jeffries (July 3); Central Florida performer and Mr. Comedy Queen Rob Ward, paint master Abe Gadikian, career coach Tim Durling, Watermark contributor Miguel Fuller’s partner Abe Gadikian (July 4); Tampa Bay performer Kori Stevens, Orlando drag performer Ed Dobski (aka Trixie Deluxe), co-owner of Shelbie Press Debbie Simmons, St. Pete swarmer Christopher Nason, owner of PomPom Teahouse Pom Moongauklang (July 5); Orlando commissioner Patty Sheehan, Balance Tampa Bay’s Steve Watson, owner of John Michael Exquisite Weddings and Catering Michael Thomas, educator Brad Rice, Tampa Bay entertainer Georgia Moore, Tampa Bay entertainer Mya Valentine (July 6); USF IT guru Angel Arcelay, comedian Ronni Radner, Montessori teacher Natasha Kay, Capital man Keith Williams (July 7); co-owner of Hamburger Mary’s Daytona and Jacksonville Brittany Moore, Darden attorney and board member Carole Conroy, Tampa Bay DJ Greg Anderson (July 8); Darden ally Carole Conroy, The Venue’s Jaime Bridges, graphic designer Clo Labelle, co-owner of Shelbie Press Michelle Murray (July 9); Contigo Fund’s program director Marco Antonio Quiroga, Sarasota actor Kenneth Rapczynski, MCC Senior Pastor Jakob Hero-Shaw (July 10); Sawmill GM Justin Pamplin, operations manager of The Ritz Ybor Carla Vaughan, OnePulse Foundation and LGBT+ Center Orlando board member Nikole Parker (July 11).

do you have an announcement? having a birthday or anniverSary? did you get a new Job or Promotion?

See your news in Watermark! Send your announcement to Editor@WatermarkOnline.com or go to WatermarkOnline.com/Submit-a-Transition.

it’S that eaSy!

Do you have an interesting wedding or engagement story you’d like to share with Watermark readers? If so, email the details to Editor@WatermarkOnline.com for consideration as a future feature on this page.

watermark Your LGBTQ life.

June 28 - July 11, 2018 // Issue 25.13

47

E M P LOY M E N T O P P O RT U N I T Y:

MULTIMEDIA ASSISTANT Responsibilities include:

Maintaining watermarkonline.com content Handling all Watermark social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.)

Supporting business manager with administrative duties

Full time entry level position, health insurance benefits & 401K options.

Watermark Publishing Group is the premier media outlet for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in Central and West Florida. Up to 20,000 copies of our biweekly newspaper are distributed every other Thursday throughout Central Florida, Tampa Bay and surrounding communities. Watermark also produces a collection of high-gloss specialty publications, and a web site with a rapidly growing online community.

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Choose your family’s health partner for life.

When you choose an Orlando Health primary care doctor, you choose a healthcare partner for life who treats you like family. Our doctors work with you to create a self-care plan specific to you and your family’s needs. Our goal is to keep your family healthy and happy.

Orlando Health’s network of primary care physicians includes: • Family Medicine • Internal Medicine • Obstetrics & Gynecology • Pediatric Medicine

To browse our physicians, visit OrlandoHealth.com/PrimaryCare or call 321.841.3724.

Online scheduling available.