tableD gsa vote - Watermark Online

DAYTONA BEACH • ORLANDO • TAMPA • ST. PETERSBURG • SARASOTA • Issue 20.09 • April 25 - May 8, 2013 • WatermarkOnline.com
your lgbt life.
Spelling Bee
lands outside in
St. Petersburg
Anger
follows
Small
rally
protests
Hillsborough
DPR decision
tabled
GSA vote
in Lake
County
Banned
4Life
When Blake Lynch was
prohibited from donating
blood to his friend, he began a
campaign to overturn the FDA’s
ban on gay blood donors
Copyright Benson 2013. All Rights Reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced.
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watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
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60615 • VSPC - Culture-GLBT Watermark Ad - 4/25/13 issue • 9.875” w x 10.375” h TRIM • 4C • gew • V1-4/16/13; V2-4/18/13; TO BLUEFIN-4/19/13
3
Until every parent and young person have the same opportunity to serve,
departments
mills50.org
the Boy Scouts will continue to
page see a decline in both membership
17 and donations.
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12 // Tampa Bay News
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54 // Gallery W
F
O
O
R
P
—Rich Ferraro of GLAAD
On the cover
page Blake Lynch of Orlando
Banned4Life to
08 created
fight the FDA’s ban on
blood donations by gay men after he
was told he couldn’t donate blood
directly to his classmate Emmy
Derisbrun.
Preview
page
29
Under the Spell:
American Stage returns to Demens Landing in downtown St.
Petersburg with The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee—and audiences may be
surprised at how clearly it speaks to the LGBT community.
Watermark I s s u e 20 . 0 9 // A p ril 25 - M ay 8 , 20 13
Orlando News
Tampa Bay News
page When the Lake County
page A small but dedicated
Prairie Bitch
Gallery W
Photo courtesy Brett Donnelley
Read
it online!
scan
qr code for
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08
School Board delayed
its vote on a Gay/
Straight Alliance, tempers flared;
An LGBT activist and writer filed
a lawsuit against the University of
Central Florida concerning access
to a research paper; more.
12
group rallied near the
Hillsborough County
Commission chambers to demand a
domestic partner registry; Tampa’s
Bill Kanouff will use his new running
leg at The Red Ribbon Run; Polk
students want a GSA; more.
page For years Alison Angrim
34
played the hateful Nellie
Oleson on Little House on
the Prairie. Now, four decades later, the
actress is telling her story and offers a
glimpse into the life of a “Prairie Bitch.“
Her one-woman show arrives at the
Footlight Theater in Orlando in May.
page The Tampa International Gay
Lesbian Film Festival
54 and
screened a film about the
life of Divine at Centro Ybor’s Muvico
this month, and the attendance was
one of the highest ever. As true fans
always do, these attendees dressed
the part and celebrated the life of an
actor who died before his time.
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watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
5
letters to the editor
EDDIE FISHER
First Vice President, Investments · Financial Advisor
407.415.3486
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Where’s the
enforcement?
W
hy isn’t federal
law being enforced?
My late lover and I lived
right here in Orlando in
2001 and had Durable
Powers of Attorney, Health
Care Surrogates and Living
Wills. When he entered
Florida South Hospital, I
was consulted on every
stage of his care and had
to give permission over his
family. Of course they were
involved in every aspect as
they loved me and still do.
Over the three months
of intensive care, nursing
homes, and hospitalization,
I had the final say. The night
he died I was called and
told they were transferring
him to the hospital as he
had gone into respiratory
distress. I said “no”
(breaking my heart) as he
had suffered enough as he
had lost all capability to
communicate and no longer
could blink his eyes “yes”
and “no.” I held him in my
arms for two hours while
he struggled to breathe
and finally took his last
breath. I hope I never have
to make that decision again
but if I do, I can.
My current lover and
I have the same sets of
paperwork as no gay couple
should be without it. If
“We keep copies of
paperwork in large manila
envelopes in both cars in the
event neither one of us is able
to communicate as the result
of a car wreck.”
editor’s
—Erwin Crawford
they don’t have it, they are
crazy and/or stupid. As a
side note, we keep copies
of all of this paperwork
in large manila envelopes
in both cars in the event
neither one of us is able
to communicate as the
result of a car wreck.
Just a word of advice.
Erwin Crawford
Orlando
Unbearable wait
W
hile I’m excited
about the
marriage
equality cases that
went before the US
Supreme Court in March,
I also feel like a kid waiting
for Christmas to arrive
in the middle of summer.
Knowing that the court
will release its findings
in June is exciting, but
also terrifying. There’s
always that “What if?” in
the back of my mind.
The many outcomes
outlined in the recent
issue of Watermark [Issue
20.08] seem to indicate
that marriage equality will
win, at least in some small
part. But waiting to see how
far reaching the decision
will be is torturous.
Here’s hoping that
Pride Month will have
an even bigger reason
to celebrate this June. I
know many of my friends
and I are keeping our
fingers crossed for the best
news concerning LGBT
equality in decades!
Peter Hughes
Largo
Steve Blanchard
EDITOR
[email protected]
W
Desk
hen I saw the events
following the Boston Marathon
unfolding on cable news April 15,
horror, anger and sadness were soon replaced
with an urge to help. But the easiest way in which
I could help—donating blood—isn’t available to
me. Why? Because I’m gay.
The important, easy act is not
possible for me, and that means
somewhere, someone who needs
what flows in my veins is suffering.
When I was a sophomore in
high school I donated blood for the
first time. The familiar gymnasium
where I played basketball games
and discovered my first awkward
feelings for other boys during gym
class was transformed into what
could only be described as a happy
MASH unit. Reclining deck chairs
were readily attended to by men
watermark staff
and women in white scrubs and Red
Cross volunteer T-shirts.
I admit I was apprehensive about
donating. I always avoided needles
when I could and the thought of
willingly draining part of myself into
a plastic bag disturbed me. But a
few friends who had donated before
convinced me it was the right thing
to do, and the reward of orange
juice, free sugar cookies and a free
pass from part of a class made the
pain of a needle in my arm for a few
minutes bearable.
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I soon found myself seated with
a clipboard-wielding volunteer who
whipped through a questionnaire
at record speed. She seemed to
anticipate every single answer
and frantically marked down my
responses to move me through the
line. Admittedly, the only question
I really remember was when she
asked me if I had ever had sex
with another male.
I am sure my face registered the
shock I felt at the question and I
know I laughed when I answered
with a forceful, “No.”
My answer was true—at that
point in my life I
hadn’t experienced
sex with anyone—
but the questions
burned in my
head as I sat in the
recliner, squeezed
a stress ball and
watched the blood
trickle down an
IV tube and into a
clear plastic bag.
Was the question
another sign that
the feelings I was
battling so hard
were wrong? If I
ever acted on the
attractions I had toward my male
classmates, would I immediately
be shunned by the medical
community?
The message I heard was loud
and clear—same-sex attraction
was unhealthy, both physically and
mentally. As an impressionable teen,
it scared me.
Ever since the AIDS epidemic
of the 1980s, the FDA has banned
men who have sex with men from
donating blood. The precaution was
necessary, and even prudent, in the
early days of the disease’s discovery.
But times have changed, and
medical technology and research
have advanced to the point that the
ban is antiquated.
I continued to donate blood
to the Red Cross whenever the
volunteers would show up at the
school—typically twice a year—and
did so through my first two years
of college. Besides the benefit of a
sugar rush and missed class time,
I realized by donating I actually
helped a stranger somewhere who
needed something of which I had
plenty. My blood would help save a
life. My blood would keep someone’s
loved one on this planet for awhile
longer. And I knew my body could
always make more to replace what I
was able to give.
During my junior year of college,
I finally acted on my same-sex
attraction. Like so many, it came
after months of
internal debate,
and one of the
things I knew I
would lose was
my ability to help
others through
blood donation.
When the Red
Cross returned
to my college
campus, my
regular enthusiasm
was missed by
my friends. Since
very few people
knew of my
sexuality, I shared that I just didn’t
have time to donate.
That was 15 years ago, and I
haven’t been able to donate since.
I haven’t thought about the ban
much over the years. It was just
something I accepted. But the cover
story in this issue of Watermark
reminded me of the pride I had
when I did donate, and I hope that in
the near future, I’ll be able to do so
again—whether we’re faced with a
national tragedy or not. | l |
Questions burned
in my head as I
sat in the recliner,
squeezed a stress
ball and watched
the blood trickle
down an IV tube
and into a clear
plastic bag.
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contributors
David
Moran
is the LGBTQ
Services Graduate
Coordinator at
the University of
Central Florida, where he studied
Emerging Media. Page 8
Zach Caruso
is a musician and
journalist from
New Jersey who
now lives in St.
Petersburg. He has
a bachelor’s degree in Journalism
and an MA in writing. Page 12
Abby Dees
is a civil rights
attorney-turnedauthor who has
been in the LGBT
rights trenches
for 25-plus years. She lives in Los
Angeles and Nashville. Page 23
Greg Burton, Erik Caban,
Scottie Campbell, Amy Dees,
Kirk Hartlage, Rev. Phyllis Hunt,
Joseph Kissel, Ken Kundis,
Mary Meeks, Stephen Miller,
David Moran, Anthony Paull,
Greg Stemm, Brett Stout,
Louanne Walters, Stephen Warne
photography
Nick Cardello, Angie Folks,
Tom Eckert, Julie Milford, Travis Moore,
Chris Stephenson, Lee Vandergrift, Tinkerfluff
distribution
Debbie Oliver, Phil Garris, Ken Caraway
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watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
7
news
orlando
LEGALPERSON
cover story
Unhappy encounter: School board member Bill
Mathias (left) and a gay, former Lake County student, Adam
Mathias (no relation). argue after the board’s decision to table
a vote that would have allowed GSA in the districts’ middle
schools. Photo by David Moran
Lake County School Board
tables GSA vote
David Moran
[email protected]
T
averes | Applause and booing filled the
Lake County School Board chamber when
its members voted 4-1 to table discussion
on whether or not to allow 14-year old Bayli
Silberstein to form a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) at
her middle school. More than 300 people showed
up at the meeting, many donning the color red in
support of Silberstein.
She and her family left the meeting in a somber
mood after the vote got tabled.
“I’m disappointed. I am really angry…I’m going to
keep fighting,” said Silberstein.
Silberstein’s mom, Erica, called the School Board
“bullies” for tabling the issue.
“I wish that I could tell her that everything
is fine,” Erica Silberstein said. “This is what is
needed and they are going to do it, but I can’t and
it makes me mad.”
The delay was sparked by a recent change
Senate Bill 1076, which will go into effect July 1
and potentially no longer requires Florida middle
schools to adhere to the federal Equal Access Act,
which protects student’s rights to organize clubs
in secondary schools. Governor Rick Scott signed
the bill into law on April 22, the same day of the
school board meeting.
Two Lake County school board members, Bill
Matthias and Todd Howard, have admitted to
lobbying for that law change.
Continued on page 10 | uu |
8
watermark Your lgbt life.
ASHLEY FILIMON P.A.
[email protected]
www.legalperson.com
Banned together: Blake Lynch created Banned4Life to fight the FDA’s ban on blood donations by gay men. He was
turned away from donating blood directly to his friend Emmy Derisbrun.
Photo courtesy Brett Donnelley
Banned For Life
An Orlando nursing student fights the
ban on gay men donating blood
Shannon Scheidell
[email protected]
O
rlando | All Blake Lynch
wanted to do was help his
friend. But he was quickly
denied the opportunity, just
because he’s gay.
When Lynch, a nursing student,
learned his classmate Emmy
Derisbrun needed regular blood
transfusions to battle sickle cell
anemia, he knew there was one
simple way he could help—donate
blood directly to her.
“When I heard about her
sickle cell I started looking up
places to donate,” Lynch said. He
completed a 54-question screening
application and was surprised
when the nurse asked him if he was
sure about one of his answers—
the one asking about sexual
encounters with other men.
“When I went to donate, they
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
actually turned me away,” Lynch said.
The experience motivated
Lynch to battle the Food and Drug
Administration’s ban on gay men
donating blood, which has been
in place since 1983. That ban,
along with a ban on donations by
those who have received a tattoo
within a year of the donation
date, was imposed in response to
the AIDS epidemic.
Lynch started the non-profit
Banned4Life, a movement to
remove the ban on blood donations
by MSM (Men who have Sex with
Men). The ban on gay male donors
is antiquated, Lynch said, and
blood shortages are so low that
the ban causes more harm than
good. It prevents others from
donating as well.
“Banned4Life is not only about
encouraging the FDA to revise
the blood donation policy on gay
men,” said Derisbrun. “We want to
encourage those who are healthy
watermarkonline.com
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• Divorce
37 N. Orange Ave. Ste. 500 Orlando, FL 32801
and able to donate blood.”
Lynch, 21, believes that blood
donation is an issue for his
generation. A 2006 study by the Red
Cross, which supports removing the
FDA-imposed ban, showed that only
38% of the nation is eligible to give
blood, yet 5 million people require
transfusions each year.
“Especially after the Boston
tragedy, there is such an extreme
shortage of blood, we need all the
help we can get,” said Lynch.
In 1983 there were no adequate
tests to detect whether HIV was
present in donated blood, and HIV
found its way into the nation’s
blood supply. Hemophiliacs
receiving blood transfusions
showed symptoms of AIDS. What
scientists also knew was that a
disproportionate number of gay men
were affected by the virus.
To eliminate risk, the FDA added
a screening question to the federal
guidelines. Blood banks were
instructed to ask male donors if
they had had sex with a man, even
once, since 1977. The FDA regards
1977 as the beginning of the AIDS
epidemic in the United States. If the
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
9
orlando
news
| uu | Lake County GSA from pg.8
Matthias, who represents District 1 in Lake
County, has been a vocal opponent of a countywide policy permitting Silberstein to form a GSA at
Carver Middle School.
“What we are talking about is an open club
policy…It never for me was about a Gay-Straight
Alliance, it is looking at what is an open club policy.
I wasn’t for it in the middle school, period. Never
was,” said Matthias. “There are too many other types
of clubs that can come in [such as] Louis Farrakhan’s
Nation of Islam which appears to be faith-based
but is really about hate. There is the Sons of the
Confederacy, which is about traditions in the South
but can be perceived as hate.”
He said an open club policy for extracurricular
clubs in middle schools would serve as a distraction
to middle school students, who he is concerned do
not have the same critical thinking skills as high
school students.
Matthias accused the ACLU of “hitching their
wagon” to the GSA issue because of a political
agenda, not out of concern for Silberstein’s plea
for School Board support due to school bullying
and other issues LGBT students are up against
in Lake County.
ACLU Mid-Florida Regional Director Joyce
Hamilton Henry dismissed Matthias’ concerns as the
wrong reason to deny Silberstein and other LGBT
youth in Lake County the right to assemble.
“Our constitution protects all groups. The first
amendment gives all groups the right to assemble.
The [School Board] should make this decision on the
basis of Bayli and other students [who want to form
a GSA], not on the basis of their fears and biases,”
said Hamilton Henry. “They need to deal with those
situations as they come up. Right now, we want
them to make a decision regarding Bayli. They have
waited too long already.”
Matthias said he has not reached out to
Silberstein or other students to listen to
their concerns.
Lake School Board attorney Steve Johnson
advised School Board members that the change in
state law will no longer specifically define secondary
schools as 6-12th grade, leaving the definition up
to local school districts. According to Johnson, the
federal law gives discretion to each state to define
what a secondary school is.
“The bottom line is that I cannot tell you with
certainty anymore that the ‘Equal Access Law’
applies anymore,” said Johnson.
Johnson told the School Board that the legal
change in how the state defines a secondary school
may allow them to have a different policy for
extracurricular clubs in middle schools and high
schools. The School Board has initially considered
banning all extra-curricular clubs versus allowing an
open club policy that would permit LGBT and allied
students like Silberstein to start a GSA.
The School Board will take the issue back to
another series of workshops to reexamine the
policy under the new law. They are expected begin
next month. | l |
To stay updated on this story, visit watermarkonline.com.
10
watermark Your lgbt life.
LGBT Activist Sues UCF
Staff report
O
rlando | An LGBT activist
and writer filed a lawsuit
against the University of
Central Florida’s Board of Trustees
and President Dr. John C. Hitt last
week in an effort to gain access to a
controversial research paper.
The paper, titled “New Family
Structures Study,” was cited in
briefs and at oral arguments before
the Supreme Court last month.
It suggests gay marriage could
| uu | Banned4Life
from pg.8
potential donor responded “yes,” he
would automatically be removed
from the donor pool for life.
The United Kingdom had a
similar ban, until 2011. It’s newer
guidelines on donation consider
sexual behavior, rather than
sexual orientation.
The decision followed a review of
the ban by the Advisory Committee
on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and
Organs (SaBTO) which studied the
latest details on relevant sexual
contact in relation to the safety of
donating blood. The committee
looked at the risk of infection
being transmitted in blood as
well as improvements in testing
donated blood for diseases before
reaching their conclusion to
change the guidelines.
Finding support
Though changes to the FDA’s
policies have been stalled in the
past, the movement is gathering
momentum. Banned4Life has
already gathered 2,600 signatures,
with a goal of 100,000 signatures
for the petition to give people of
any sexual orientation the right
to donate blood.
“We’ve already been in touch
with major universities throughout
the nation, and they’re on board
with Banned4Life,” Lynch said.
On Saturday, May 18, the club
DRIP in Orlando will host a benefit
for Banned4Life. The bar will
donate $10 of every ticket sold to
the organization, and admission
includes red body paint and
access to red beer.
Banned4Life isn’t the first
organization to plead with the FDA
to remove the ban. Since 2005,
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
have negative effects on children.
Becker said he made a public
records request for a copy of the
paper, which was denied by UCF.
That led him to file suit in circuit
court in Orlando.
“My interest in filing this
Sunshine Law Request is to discover
the truth about the peer review and
publishing of the paper, which is
unknown at this point,” Becker said
in a media release. “Finding the truth
is additionally important because
the paper was prominently cited last
month by opponents of same-sex
The American Blood Centers has
petitioned for a change to the
policy, event taking the issue to
Washington, D.C. With no response
from elected officials, however,
the movement has seen very little
movement at the national level.
Pat Michaels, spokesperson
for One Blood, which was formed
after Florida Blood Service and
Community Blood Center merged,
said organizations don’t have
a choice in the matter, when it
comes to turning away healthy, gay
male blood donors.
“The FDA set the guidelines
and we just have to follow,”
Michaels explained.
In June 2012, a group of 64 U.S.
legislators led by Rep. Mike Quigley,
a Democrat from Illinois, and John
Kerry of Massachusetts sent a letter
marriage in briefs and arguments
before the Supreme Court.”
UCF Professor James Wright is
the editor of Social Science Research
journal, which published the paper
at issue. Many of the records relating
to the matter are being held on
servers at UCF, according to Becker.
“Our policy is to comply with
Florida’s important open records
laws,” Grant Heston, Associate
Vice President, Communications
& Public Affairs, told the Central
Florida Future. “In this instance,
these emails are not related to
university business and therefore
are not public documents subject to
disclosure. At this time, UCF has not
been served with a lawsuit.” | l |
death and we are turning away
over 50,000 healthy men who
want to donate blood,” Quigley
said. “A straight person who has
unsafe sex with multiple partners
can give blood, and that creates a
greater risk than a gay person in a
monogamous relationship.”
Trumpeting social media
A lot has changed socially and
technologically since the FDA issued
the ban on gay donors in the 1980s.
AIDS and HIV are more understood,
testing is more accurate and safe-sex
practices are more common.
Those wanting to lift the ban also
have the benefit of social media to
spread their message.
“We want to spread awareness,”
Lynch said. “We’re trying to be
more proactive and positive. We’re
trying to make blood
donating fun. We
want to get everybody
involved in the cause
for all of society to go
—Blake Lynch, Banned4Life founder
out there and donate.”
And word is
spreading. Banned4Life was on
to the Department of Health and
FOX 35 TV in Orlando and the
Human Services encouraging it to
organization’s Twitter, Facebook
study the ban, in hopes of ending it.
and Instagram accounts have large
“We remain concerned that a
numbers of dedicated followers.
blanket deferral of MSM for any
Lynch’s YouTube video discussing
length of time both perpetuates the
the ban resulted in a story in the
unwarranted discrimination against
the bisexual and gay community and Orlando Sentinel.
Lynch also has strength in
prevents healthy men from donating
numbers. He said that 100 of
blood without a definitive finding
his classmates now have black
of added benefit to the safety of the
Banned4Life T-shirts fitted with
blood supply,” the letter said.
a red X over the heart in support
The letter was in direct response
to a massive blackout in the Midwest of the movement. The shirts are
available to purchase and help fund
and East, which limited blood
the movement to repeal the ban on
donations in those areas.
gay blood donors.
In a 2012 interview with
For more information
CNN, Quigley said the ban didn’t
or to sign the petition, visit
make sense.
Banned4Life.org. | l |
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Celebrating 7 Years in Belleair Bluffs
R
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
“[Commissioner]
Al Higginbotham wants his
rights and doesn’t want to
give them to us.”
OF COM
watermark Your lgbt life.
T
ampa | There were
only 20 or so people
gathered at Joe Chillura
Courthouse Square across
from the Hillsborough County
Commission chambers on April
16, but they had plenty to say.
The small rally organized by
the ACLU and GetEqual, was
in response to the County
Commission’s ongoing refusal
to adopt a domestic partnership
registry granting a handful of
rights to unmarried couples.
Jarrod Scarbrough, State
Lead with GetEqual, said he was
happy with the turnout, even
though numbers weren’t as
large as he had hoped.
“I think it’s the time of day,” he
said of the 4 p.m. gathering. “We
weren’t expecting a large crowd
to begin with but I feel good
about who was here.”
Scarbrough spoke to the
R
Continued on page 14 | uu |
[email protected]
“Al Higginbotham wants his
rights and doesn’t want to give
them to us,” said Ed Lally of
Equality Florida. “We are tired of
waiting for equality.”
gathered crowd and also
The crowd showed a small
introduced several speakers,
sample of the diversity of the
among them Renee Warmack,
county. Representing the younger
Commissioner Kevin Beckner’s
generation was Lindsay Betros, an
legislative aide, who explained
intern with the ACLU.
that Beckner was unable to attend.
“College students are aware
of this and see it
as hindering their
rights,” she said.
“Those I’ve talked
to can’t believe the
commissioners would
vote against something
that is written into
our constitution.”
—Ed Lally of Equality Florida
Pastor Joe
Parramore of New
“Commissioner Beckner ...
Journey Fellowship and Ministries
supports the establishment of a
in Tampa is hopeful that someday
Hillsborough County domestic
the Hillsborough County
partnership registry,” Warmack
Commission will follow the lead
said. “This is an issue of fairness
of so many other counties. But he
and basic human rights that
admits it will be a battle.
transcends political boundaries.”
“This DPR is very real to me
Beckner was the only
and my partner of 24 years and I
commissioner to send a
are entitled to the protections it
representative to the rally.
grants us,” Parramore said. | l |
He wasn’t, however, the only
commissioner mentioned.
Continued on page 14 | uu |
ER
T
12
Small but enthusiastic crowd rallies for
Hillsborough domestic partner registry
Steve Blanchard
ampa | Bill Kanouff is on the run.
Quite often, actually.
“I’ve been running two or three times a day for
several weeks now, and it feels great to run and to get
that intense cardio again,” he said.
Kanouff has been a well-known activist and volunteer
in the LGBT community for many years, and since
injuries sustained in a 2011 motorcycle accident resulted
in the amputation of his right leg, he has served as an
inspiration, as well.
Speaking to Watermark at the end of 2012 about his
accident and recovery, Kanouff said he returned to his
local gym a mere two weeks after being released from
the hospital. However, one aspect he hadn’t been able to
add back into his workouts was running. Until now.
“My regular everyday prosthetic isn’t good for
running,” he said in an April 17 interview. “But I recently
got a grant for a running leg called ‘The J Leg,’ and now
I’ve been doing my normal routine at the gym, and in
addition, going out and running several times a day.”
And he is running with a purpose. On April 28,
Kanouff will take part in the 2013 Tampa Bay Red
Ribbon Run, an annual fundraiser to support the HIV/
AIDS education, advocacy, prevention and treatment
$2500
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Kanouff to tackle Red
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Tampa on April 16 to continue the fight for a Hillsborough County domestic partner registry. Photo by Steve Blanchard
MAGE
Gene Biller at the screening of a documentary on Divine April
11, will run in the Red Ribbon Run benefitting Metro Wellness
and Community Centers on April 28. Photo by Nick Cardello
Continuing the fight: Jarrod Scarbrough addresses a small crowd at Joe Chillura Courthouse Square in downtown
ER
On the run: Bill Kanouff, left and pictured with partner
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
13
tampa bay
news
14
A day for
| uu | Bill Kanouff Red Ribbon Run from pg.12
programs of Metro Wellness & Community Centers and
The AIDS Institute.
“Kathie Michaels, who is coordinating the event, is an
old friend of mine and asked if I would run in it,” Kanouff
said. “She knows that with my having worked with other
HIV relief groups, it was something near and dear to my
heart. So it’s something I felt I really needed to do.”
Kanouff explained that his preparation for the event
did come with a slight learning curve when using
his new prosthetic.
“There are two types of prosthetics for running—the
J Leg and the Running Blade,” he explains. “The J Leg is
actually designed for people who are above-the-knee
amputees, and the Running Blade is for those who have
full upper leg intact.”
“So because it [The J Leg] has no knee or ankle, it
takes a whole different body motion to run with it, so
there’s a learning curve. One of my biggest issues with
learning to run with it was that I was concentrating so
much on the running motion that I wasn’t concentrating
at all on my breathing, so you can end up short of oxygen
really fast,” he said with a laugh.
However, Kanouff was able to get comfortable with
the new motion very quickly.
“48 hours and I was fine,” he said. “The only thing I
didn’t get down right away was the breathing, but as for
the actual running aspect, I got that pretty quickly.”
He is excited to be a part of the upcoming Red
Ribbon Run, not only because of the cause he will be
supporting, but because of the way in which he will
be supporting it.
“I have done charity runs like this in the past, but
this will be the first since I’ve gotten the running leg. It’s
going to be a whole new experience,” he said. “Any time
you can do something very healthy and physical to help
a charity or non-profit, it’s a good combination.”
And Kanouff knows the importance of maintaining
one’s health, as he has seen the benefits first-hand.
“For me, cardio and working out, it’s all a big part of
my health and fitness,” he said. “I like to maintain myself
and keep myself strong, and I honestly think that’s one
of the only reasons I survived the accident was because
I had maintained myself and kept myself strong. So I
need to continue that, and I want to continue that.”
In addition, he wants to use this new opportunity
to continue being an activist, a volunteer, and, perhaps
most importantly, an inspiration.
“I want to do more of these charity runs now that
I have the running leg because if anyone ever has an
excuse not to participate,” Kanouff said, “they can look
at a 55 year-old man with one leg running in the event,
and there’s not much of an excuse you can have that
would trump that.”
The Tampa Bay Red Ribbon Run is Sunday, April
28, at Al Lopez Park, 4810 N. Himes Ave., in Tampa.
Participants can run in the 5K or 1-Mile Fun Run.
There’s also a 1-Mile Walk.
Check-in begins at 7 a.m. with opening ceremonies at
7:30. The run starts at 8 a.m.
For more information on the 2013
Tampa Bay Red Ribbon Run, or to register/donate, visit
TampaBayRedRibbonRun.org. | l |
watermark Your lgbt life.
equality:
St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster
reads a proclamation during the
Equality Florida Pinellas Gala at
the Salvador Dali Museum April 20
while Todd Richardson and Katee
Tully look on. More than 500 people
attended the gala, the largest ever in
the state, and brought in more than
$223,000 to Equality Florida. For the
full story, visit WatermarkOnline.com.
Offices in Tampa and Palm Harbor
Tampa
813.228.6800
www.VerrasLaw.com Palm Harbor
727.493.2900
Photo by Steve Blanchard
42 couples register in first week of Pinellas DPR
Steve Blanchard
[email protected]
C
learwater | A week after
Pinellas County opened its
domestic partner registry, 42
couples had signed on to receive a
handful of protections offered on a
county-wide level.
According to the Pinellas County
Clerk of Courts, 30 of those couples
were gay or lesbian and 12 were
heterosexual, unmarried couples.
The day the registry opened,
April 15, only one couple had
signed up for the registry by noon,
which surprised county officers,
who had scheduled extra workers
in the morning to assist with
the expected rush.
The countywide registry granting
a handful of rights to couples—gay
and straight—who are not married
opened exactly three months after
the county voted 6-1 to approve it
on Jan. 15. Several cities within the
county—St. Petersburg, Gulfport and
Clearwater—approved registries
last year. Those heavily LGBTpopulated areas saw a surge in
registrants when they first offered
them. Those who have already
registered within their respective
cities can also register with the
county, for a reduced fee.
Couples taking advantage of
the Pinellas County DPR can do
so at a number of locations— the
Clearwater Courthouse, both the
North County and St. Petersburg
branch offices, and the
Tyrone Branch office.
Both parties must be present at
the time of registration and a fee of
$50 is due at the time of registration.
Those who have previously
registered in one of the cities
within Pinellas County may pay a
reduced fee. It is recommended that
previously-registered applicants
bring their certificate from the
appropriate city.
The only commissioner to
vote against the registry in
January was Norm Roche.
The new ordinance will not
protect couples who are in counties
that do not recognize domestic
partnerships, but it will cover all of
Pinellas County. A statewide registry,
which advanced out of committee
in Tallahassee, is needed in order
to protect partners across the
Sunshine State. | l |
according to the ACLU. “The bullying has been really
tough at our school, and having
this club would give kids a safe
place to be themselves and it would
put a stop to a lot of the bullying,”
Pelland said in a media release. Rory
said they’re “really disappointed”
that their school hasn’t answered
the request yet. “With the end of the year coming
up, we didn’t want to have to wait
until next year to have the club
meet to make KHS safer,” she said
in a media release. “We started
doing research and found out
that the ACLU had helped a GSA a
few counties over.”
She’s referring to the
situation involving 14-year-old
Bayli Silberstein’s request to
create a GSA at Carver Middle
School in Lake County.
“Brenna and Rory have a clearlyestablished right to create a GSA and
to start working to make Kathleen
High School a safer and more
welcoming place for all students,”
stated ACLU of Florida LGBT Policy
Strategist Daniel Tilley. “We hope
that school administrators recognize
that, and that they give the GSA the
same status and treatment as any
other student club.” | l |
Polk students fight for GSA
Staff Report
Lakeland | The American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU) is taking
up the battle of two more students
fighting for a Gay-Straight Alliance
(GSA) in their school. On April 18, the ACLU sent a
letter to the superintendent of
the Polk County School Board on
behalf of Rory Teal and Brenna
Pelland, two 17-year-old 11th
graders at Kathleen High School. The
students have worked to establish
a GSA since November 2012, but
were blocked by school officials,
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
15
Staff Report
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16
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
Florida also encouraged people
to show up to the city meeting in
protest of the decision.
“Councilman Scott Galvin has
been the lone vote opposing the
city’s endorsement and financial
support of this event, and he
needs us to stand with him,” read a
statement from Equality Florida.
Though the vote passed, the
city can change its position. The
council dedicated a portion of the
discussion of the item at the request
of Councilman Michael Blynn.
Hakimian, for his part, defended
the city’s decision.
“The National Day of Prayer is
something that’s happened since
George Washington,” Hakimian told
the city council during its April 9
meeting. “We recognize as citizens
that God has placed you guys as
stewards, but really the city belongs
to the religious, the non-religious,
the Jew, the gentile, the atheist, the
theist. The city belongs to us.”
On April 22, in an email titled
“Councilman lies concerning cost of
city resources,” Hakimian said that
the actual cost for his Day of Prayer
event will be just below $600, not
the $5,000 estimated by Galvin.
Equality Florida encouraged the
community to do all it could, even
if not attending.
“While the First Amendment
gives each of us the right to
speak our minds, it does not
compel the City of North Miami
to legitimize that voice or to use
taxpayer resources to give hatred
a megaphone,” Equality Florida
said in a statement.
Editor’s note: This story is from the
South Florida Gay News and is used
with permission. | l |
Group protests North Miami’s appointment of anti-gay pastor
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Gay Days Orlando 2013 Watermark Ad_9-875x10-375.indd 1
under the influence in the parking
lot of a carwash in the middle of the
night. His car was badly damaged.
While Lowe apologized in
statements issued by his campaign,
he did not answer questions about
the arrest. Interestingly, Braddy had
his own DUI arrest in 2006.
In 2010, Lowe gained national
attention while seeking—and
eventually winning—the mayoral
position, thanks in part to the antigay attacks lodged by the Dove
World Outreach Center. That church,
headed by Pastor Terry Jones, who
has made his own headlines for
threatening to burn piles of Korans,
campaigned heavily against Lowe
because of his sexuality.
During the 2010 campaign,
the church had this to say about
Lowe on its website:
“What is homosexuality?
Detestable, indecent, wicked,
offensive, perverted, shameful,
unnatural, degrading, impure, futile,
foolish, godless, dishonorable, a
lie...,” the site read. “We protest
sexual perversion because the Bible
protests it. Family, community and
national leaders should also protest
it, stay away from it, flee from it.”
Lowe won that campaign handily.
The church was quieter during
the 2013 campaign.
Braddy will be sworn
in as Gainesville’s new
mayor on May 23. | l |
4/22/13 12:16 PM
A group of people wearing red
shirts flooded the chambers of the
North Miami City Council meeting
April 23 to protest the council’s
decision to allow anti-gay pastor
Jack Hakimian the use of city
property for a prayer vigil on May 2.
The red “represents love,”
according to Scott Galvin, who
organized the protest. On April 9, the
council voted 4-1 in favor of letting
Hakimain use the city’s facilities for
the vigil, which coincides with the
National Day of Prayer.
Hakimian told SFGN that he’s
not anti-gay, but he does preach
that homosexuality is a sin
that can be undone.
Alongside Galvin, Equality
Florida teen free
to mark Day of Silence
Staff report
A
rcadia | An openly gay 16-year-old student
was able to take her vow of silence April 19,
during the National Day of Silence, without
interference from DeSoto High School administrators.
Amber Hatcher of Fort Myers was suspended last
year for wearing a T-shirt that read “DOS April 20,
2012: Shhhhh” and refusing to speak as part of an
annual event to bring attention to the silencing effect
of bullying. The nonprofit Lambda Legal filed a federal
lawsuit on her behalf and sought a judicial declaration
that the school violated Hatcher’s constitutional
rights, with an injunction to prevent her from being
stymied this year.
U.S. District Judge John Steele refused to give her
the injunction, but continued the First Amendment
claims stating that her rights included the right not to
speak. Steele found there was a good likelihood the
claims would be upheld with further litigation. The
judge declined the request for the injunction after the
school assured the court it would not interfere with
her silent protest. A trial date has not been set.
Hatcher communicated with teachers and peers
last year by dry erase board. The DOS on Hatcher’s
T-shirt referred to the abbreviation for “Day of
Silence,” the annual observance that began in 1996
to protest the bullying and harassment of LGBT
teens. It was created by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight
Education Network and takes place every April. | l |
state
G
ainesville | Gainesville
Mayor Craig Lowe, the city’s
first openly gay mayor, lost his
re-election bid April 16 to former
City Commissioner Ed Braddy.
Braddy will be sworn in on May 23.
Though Democrats outnumber
Republicans by a two-to-one margin
in Gainesville, the Republican
Braddy defeated the Democrat Lowe
by almost 10% of the vote. Lowe,
who served on the city commission
before his 42-vote victory to become
mayor in 2010, released a statement
thanking his supporters and
congratulating Braddy, according to
the Gainesville Sun.
“While we disagreed on many
of the issues confronting our city
during this election, I hope that
we will maintain an open line of
communication as he assumes his
duties as mayor and look forward
to a city government that continues
to take all viewpoints into account,”
Lowe said in the statement.
Braddy attributed his victory
to a campaign message of making
the city affordable to residents
and businesses. He also attributed
victory to a network of supporters
from across party lines.
“Our campaign, the entire thing,
was the building of a coalition where
people of many diverse backgrounds
could come together with a common
cause,” Braddy said. “I intend to
lead the same way. The burden is
on the other commissioners who
have already publicly declared that
they are not open to other points of
view. It seems to me what the people
of Gainesville have said very firmly
is that on these difficult issues we
have, they want multiple viewpoints
brought to bear so that we can
actually do the work of the people.”
In Gainesville’s weak mayoral
system, the mayor is just one of
seven votes on setting policy.
City Commissioner Thomas
Hawkins said the election result
was not a mandate from voters
for the commission majority to
change its goals.
“I think that the City Commission
has a lot of important work to do to
make Gainesville a better city and
I didn’t hear Mr. Braddy talk about
those things in a positive light during
the campaign,” Hawkins said.
Hawkins said those issues include
long-term plans to develop a bus
rapid transit system, a long-term
investment in the development
of the parks system and the
management of the city utility.
Lowe’s runoff campaign was
marred by a March 21 DUI arrest
and the resulting controversy. Two
days after he advanced to face
Braddy in the runoff, Lowe was
arrested on a charge of driving
news
Gainesville’s first gay mayor loses re-election
in other news
18-year-old equality
advocate resigns post
Florida’s youngest city official has resigned his position after
his mother alerted city officials that he was no longer eligible
to serve. Tyler Morrison, 18, was unanimously appointed
to Boca Raton’s Community Relations Board in December.
Morrison’s mother, Andrea Riggin, complained to city
officials that her son was unduly influenced by the president
of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, and used
as a pawn in his fight for gay rights in the city.
Fort Lauderdale mayor won’t
sign on for marriage equality
Fort Lauderdale’s mayor supports civil unions, but won’t
take a position on gay marriage because he doesn’t believe
in “hypothetical issues.” Mayor John P. “Jack” Seiler, who is
generally supportive of the LGBT community, told the Miami
Herald he’ll only take a position if he’s in a place to influence
the outcome. Mayors for the Freedom to Marry campaign
is asking mayors nationwide to sign a pledge in support
of marriage equality. Seiler said that the reason he didn’t
sign onto the Mayors for Marriage campaign is because he
doesn’t sign petitions unless he is the organizer.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
17
18
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
19
nation+world
news
in other news
Judge rules lesbian immigrant
can challenge DOMA
U.S. District Judge Consuelo Marshall ruled April 19 that a
lesbian couple has standing to challenge the federal Defense
of Marriage Act because it violates the constitutional rights
of immigrants in same-sex marriages. The lawsuit, filed
last year in Los Angeles on behalf of Philippines citizen
Jane DeLeon and her spouse Irma Rodriguez, claims that
DeLeon was eligible to obtain a U.S. green card, but was
unable to obtain residency because the U.S. government
doesn’t recognize her same-sex marriage to an American.
Father of gay Oregon teen
begins nationwide walk
The father of Jadin Bell, a gay Oregon 15-year-old who
hanged himself in January, began walking across the United
States April 20 to spread his message against bullying. Joe
Bell says it’ll take two years and 5,000 miles to make it from
Oregon to the East Coast. Bell has set up a foundation,
Faces For Change, to promote anti-bullying programs.
2 plead guilty to hate crime
in beating of Atlanta man
Two Atlanta men have pleaded guilty to beating a man
because of his sexual orientation as he left a grocery store
in February 2012. Federal prosecutors say Christopher Cain
and Dorian Moragne pleaded guilty April 18 to targeting the
victim because he is gay. Prosecutors say it was the first case
in Georgia to charge a violation of the sexual orientation
section of the federal hate crimes law.
Washington florist sued for
refusing service to gay couple
The ACLU in Washington state filed a lawsuit April 18 on
behalf of a Kennewick gay couple denied service at a flower
shop for their upcoming wedding. The lawsuit is in response
to a March 1 incident in which Barronelle Stutzman refused
to provide flowers for Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed’s
wedding, despite the two men being longtime patrons of
her shop. Under a 2006 state law, it is illegal for businesses
to refuse to sell goods, merchandise and services to any
person because of their sexual orientation.
Montana decriminalizes gay sex
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock has signed a bill into law that
removes obsolete language from state code deeming gay
sex as deviant and criminal. The Democratic governor
signed Senate Bill 107 at an April 19 ceremony amid cheers
from legislators and gay rights activists. Both the House and
the Senate showed bi-partisan support for the measure,
but some conservatives say that Republican support for the
decriminalization bill is a one-time deal and they will continue
to vote against other gay rights measures.
West Hollywood officials
warn of meningitis
Officials warned sexually active gay men on April 12 to
beware of a potentially deadly health threat after a case of
bacterial meningitis was detected in Los Angeles County.
Tests were being done to see if the strain of illness is similar
to the meningococcal infections that circulated among gay
men in New York City and infected 22 people, resulting in
seven fatalities, since 2010. “We don’t want to panic people,’’
said West Hollywood Councilmember John Duran, ``but
we learned 30 years ago the consequences of delay in the
response to AIDS.’’
20
watermark Your lgbt life.
France legalizes same-sex marriage after volatile debate
Wire Report
P
aris | France became the
14th country to legalize
same-sex marriage April 23
after a wrenching national debate
and protests that flooded the
streets of Paris. Legions of officers
and water cannons stood ready
near France’s National Assembly
ahead of the final vote, bracing for
possible violence on an issue that
galvanized the country’s faltering
conservative movement.
The measure passed easily in the
Socialist-majority Assembly, 331225, just minutes after the president
of the legislative body expelled a
disruptive protester dressed in
pink, the color adopted by French
opponents of gay marriage.
“Only those who love democracy
are here,” Claude Bartelone, the
Assembly president, said angrily.
In recent weeks, violent attacks
against gay couples have spiked
and some legislators have received
threats—including Bartelone,
who received a gunpowder-filled
envelope the day before the vote.
One of the biggest protests
against same-sex marriage drew
hundreds of thousands of people
and ended in blasts of tear gas, as
right-wing rabble-rousers led the
charge against police, damaging
cars along the Champs-Elysees
avenue and making a break for the
presidential palace.
Justice Minister Christiane
Taubira told lawmakers that the first
weddings could be as soon as June.
When President Francois
Hollande promised in 2012 to
legalize same-sex marriage, it was
seen as relatively uncontroversial.
But the issue has become a
touchstone as his popularity has
sunk to unprecedented lows.
French civil unions, allowed
since 1999, are at least as popular
among heterosexuals as among gay
and lesbian couples. But that law
has no provisions for adoption, and
the strongest opposition in France
as far as same-sex couples goes
comes when children are involved.
According to recent polls, just
over half of French are opposed to
adoption by same-sex couples—
about the same number who said
they favored same-sex marriage. | l |
says no youth may be denied
membership in the Scouts “on
the basis of sexual orientation or
preference alone.’’ A ban would
continue on leadership roles for
adults who are openly gay or lesbian.
Gay-rights groups, which
had demanded a complete
lifting of the ban, criticized the
proposal as inadequate.
“Until every parent and young
person have the same opportunity to
serve, the Boy Scouts will continue
to see a decline in both membership
and donations,’’ said Rich Ferraro,
a spokesman for the gay-rights
watchdog group GLAAD.
Some conservative groups
assailed the proposal from the
opposite direction, saying the ban
should be kept in its entirety.
“The policy is incoherent,’’ said
Tony Perkins, president of the
Family Research Council. “The
proposal says, in essence, that
homosexuality is morally acceptable
until a boy turns 18—then, when
he comes of age, he’s removed
from the Scouts.’’
The BSA said it changed course
in part because respondents to a
survey sent in February to about 1
million members of the Scouting
community supported the BSA’s
current policy of excluding gays by a
margin of 61 percent to 34 percent,
but a majority of younger parents
and teens opposed the policy. | l |
singing the New Zealand love
song “Pokarekare Ana’’ in the
indigenous Maori language.
In one of several speeches
that ended in a standing ovation,
bill sponsor Louisa Wall told
lawmakers the change was “our road
toward healing.’’
“In our society, the meaning
of marriage is universal—it’s a
declaration of love and commitment
to a special person,’’ she said. She
added that “nothing could make me
more proud to be a New Zealander
than passing this bill.’’
Most political party leaders had
encouraged lawmakers to vote by
their conscience rather than along
party lines. Although Wall is from
the opposition Labour Party, the bill
also was supported by center-right
Prime Minister John Key.
“In my view, marriage is a
very personal thing between two
individuals,’’ Key said. ``And, in
the end, this is part of equality in
modern-day New Zealand.’’
New Zealand has had civil unions
since 2005. The new law will allow
gay couples to jointly adopt children
for the first time and will also allow
their marriages to be recognized in
other countries. The law will take
effect in late August. | l |
Boy Scouts propose to lift gay ban for youth
Wire Report
New York, N.Y. | Searching for
compromise on a divisive issue,
the Boy Scouts of America (BSA)
is proposing to partially lift its
long-standing exclusion of gays—
allowing them as youth members
but continuing to bar them
as adult leaders.
The proposal, unveiled April 19
after weeks of private leadership
deliberations, was submitted to
the roughly 1,400 voting members
of the BSA’s National Council
during the week of April 20 at a
meeting in Texas.
The key part of the resolution
Kiwis welcome marriage equality to Asia-Pacific
Wire Report
Wellington, N.Z. | Hundreds
of jubilant gay-rights advocates
celebrated at New Zealand’s
Parliament as the country became
the 13th in the world and the first
in the Asia-Pacific region to legalize
same-sex marriage.
Lawmakers voted 77 to 44 in
favor of the gay-marriage bill on
its third and final reading April 17.
People watching from the public
gallery and some lawmakers
immediately broke into song
after the result was announced,
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
21
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(727) 733-1175
www.allaboutsmiles.org
Straightening Up
At The Boy Scouts
Of America
S
Abby Dees
[email protected]
ometime in the ‘20s my
grandfather became the thenyoungest Boy Scout to obtain
the top rank of Eagle Scout. When he
died he was as proud of that as he
was of piloting ships into Tokyo Bay
at the end of the war.
He was a classic Scout too. The epitome of honor
and resourcefulness, he whistled while he worked
and did everything he could think of to make life
better for the people in his world.
I never talked
about the gay
scouting ban with
my grandfather.
Maybe I didn’t give
the 97-year-old
guy enough credit,
but I thought that
conversation would
be too awkward.
I’d have to explain
things that we just
didn’t talk about
together, like the difference between plain old sex
and sexual orientation. And I worried he’d think I
was criticizing him personally, so I cut us both some
slack. You get to do that with family sometimes.
I’m not cutting the Boy Scouts of America (or
“BSA”) any slack right now, though. They have
It’s clear to me that the
new policy proposal in no
way seeks to challenge
the idea that gay people,
by definition, cannot be
“morally straight.”
22
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
to look forward to.
Where in this is the idea of
strength and honesty that is all
over the Boy Scout Handbook?
I get that the BSA is a private
organization and free to set its
policy, but that doesn’t stop me
from calling them out for causing
harm to young people. With the
mission of building character and
honesty in our next generation
of men, they are instead teaching
that self-respect and respect for
others is too fragile to withstand
human difference and variety.
(Interestingly, some individual
chapters flout the ignorant
directives from above and are
thriving, of course.)
This isn’t my grandfather’s Boy
Scouts. He would have struggled to
understand what it meant to be gay
and probably gotten it wrong in
parts, but he would have measured
the man, or the boy, by his actions.
As a good Scout, he certainly
wouldn’t have singled anyone
out based on archaic stereotypes.
BSA, check your own traditions
and try again. | l |
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announced a proposed policy
change: The BSA might admit
gay Scouts—but definitely
not gay leaders.
So why even try? The stated
basis for the ban has always
been that homosexuality violates
the Scout’s oath to be “morally
straight.” Here’s what they mean
by that: “[Y]our relationships
with others should be honest and
open. You should respect and
defend the rights of all people. Be
clean in your speech and actions,
and remain faithful in your
religious beliefs. (from the Boy
Scout Oath and Law).
In other words, being gay
is inconsistent with these
characteristics. I’m not sure if it’s
the honest and open part or the
faith part, or whatever. I’m not
privy to the bizarre conversation
that must repeatedly transpire
among BSA leadership every time
they review and reaffirm the ban,
but it’s clear to me that the new
policy proposal in no way seeks
to challenge the idea that gay
people, by definition, cannot be
“morally straight.”
But wait, there’s more! They’ve
also stated, “We allow youth to live
as children and enjoy Scouting and
its diversity without immersing
them in the politics of the day …
The Boy Scouts of America has
always reflected the expectations
that Scouting families have had
for the organization. We do not
believe that homosexuals provide
a role model consistent with
these expectations.”
Nonetheless, the BSA may feel
comfortable now allowing gay boys
to join their ranks even though
they have officially labeled gays
unworthy of admiration. This is
no compromise, but a twisted
update on “don’t ask don’t tell,”
and children will pay the price
for adult cowardice. I can’t think
of a worse way of virtually
dunking kids into “the
politics of the day”
than forcing them to
parse this hypocrisy.
Imagine what this
might feel like to a gay
Scout. He’s allowed
to join, presumably
because he can’t help
himself, poor thing.
But the BSA can still
provide a bulwark
that keeps other, still-unsullied
straight boys from looking up to
a gay Scout leader and getting
ideas. He’d learn that people like
him, once they grow up, can’t be
trusted to behave. What a thing
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
23
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watermark Your lgbt life.
(407) 704-8615
710 N Mills Ave.
Orlando, FL 32803
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
W W W. A R T E F I L L . C O M
Member of
watermarkonline.com
I said goodbye to my brave, handsome, wonderful
little buddy last week. Duncan was just ten—not
old for a Pembroke Welsh Corgi. But just before
Thanksgiving he hopped up
on my bed to wake me and his
breath smelled funny, even
alarming. I took him to see
our vet, Dr. Jim Martin at Loch
Haven Veterinary Hospital,
expecting a quick fix.
Jim speculated that it might
be an abscessed tooth or sinus
infection, but under anesthesia
he discovered that Duncan’s left upper gum was so
rotted that the back teeth came out with a light tug. A
few days later, biopsy results confirmed what Jim feared:
a cancerous spindle cell tumor.
The diagnosis came as a shock because Duncan had
always been a robustly healthy dog. We met when he
and his seven siblings were just eight weeks old; a pile
of Corgi cuteness sleeping on their breeder’s kitchen
floor. I stepped over a barrier and sat on the floor
watching them. After a few minutes the one with big
ears, four white paws and a beautiful white sweater
woke up and sleepily crawled across the floor and
into my lap. When his brothers and
sisters roused, a serious puppy growl
warned them away.
I took him home with me, even
though I had no idea what came next.
I’d never owned a dog.
We got off to a rocky start because I
didn’t know how to train him. In time
I bought a guide book and learned
that I was doing everything wrong.
Within a week my smart little puppy
was potty trained and had stopped
chewing furniture.
And at first I resented working
twice-daily walks into my alwaysrunning-late schedule. Duncan’s care
forced me to slow down, to my great
benefit. Our walks became my favorite
part of the day: a chance to reflect,
plan, or just check out as I watched
my dog blissfully sniff every marker in
the neighborhood.
Duncan was willful. He showed
me his canine teeth regularly (which
in time just made me laugh). But by
six months we were a happy pair; me
the master with a light touch, him the
stubborn but enthusiastic companion.
For the next ten years he traveled
with me to St. Pete, and often joined
me at work. Neighbors, clients,
and Watermark staff came to
love him dearly.
And at every turn he greeted me
with expectant, devoted eyes that
followed me everywhere—always
ready to play, always happy to wait.
When I needed comfort I’d lie down
next to him, nuzzle his neck and
wait for our breathing to slow and
then synch. That profound, loving
connection is the closest thing to a
spiritual experience I’ve known.
To determine treatment options
for the cancer, I scheduled a CT scan
at Bluepearl Veterinary Partners in
Tampa with Dr. Jen Coyle—one of
the few veterinary oncologists in the
area. I dropped Duncan off, spent four
hours at a nearby Starbucks trying
not to think about
him, and then
returned for
the results.
As Jen led me
to her office
she warned,
“This is brutal.”
The ghostlike CT scan, in quarter-inch vertical
sections, showed cancer beginning just
past Duncan’s snout and continuing
into his left nasal cavity, down to his
mouth and up to his brain, breaking
through the skull at some places. It
was so pervasive I couldn’t believe
my little soldier hadn’t shown any
symptoms until two weeks prior.
Fighting tears, I asked about
treatment. Jen, also tearing, shook
her head sideways.
“Radiation is the only thing that
could work, but the tumor is too big
and too close to his eye and his brain,”
she said. “He’s a happy dog right now.
Keep him that way and enjoy him for
as long as you can.”
During the long rush-hour drive
home, Duncan was still sleepy from
the anesthesia and put his head on the
armrest between us. Looking down at
him, it was hard to believe the cancer
was so advanced. A few weeks later I went to a
late movie by myself, and as I left
the theater I started sobbing. It
was almost 2 a.m. I didn’t expect to
encounter anyone, but a homeless
guy tucked under a walkway lifted
his head as I walked by. It was
brutally cold, and I fetched him an old
blanket from my car.
He thanked me and told me he’d
seen me crying. I told him my dog had
cancer and didn’t have long to live.
“That’s too bad,” he said gently.
“But you know what? Your dog
doesn’t know that.”
And in fact as the tumor grew,
eventually blocking his vision and
filling his mouth, Duncan never
seemed to take notice. Mercifully, I
stopped seeing the tumor, too.
It turns out we had five mostly
wonderful months left together. Jim
started Duncan on pain medication.
He was playful, ornery, and always
my very good boy. But eventually the
tumor grew and started to bleed, often
uncontrollably. A round of chemo
didn’t help. I covered the carpet
with sheets and towels. Always selfsufficient, Duncan tried his best to
keep himself clean with his tongue
and front paws.
Toward the end Duncan stopped
eating—even the chopped chicken
livers I made for him. He cut walks
short, turning back toward home after
a half-block. The twinkle left his eye.
My best friend, Ed, was Duncan’s
second dad. We said goodbye to him
on a beautiful Friday afternoon at
Mead Gardens. Jim had agreed to meet
us there, and when he wrapped him in
a blanket and carried him away there
was only the sound of the birds and the
squirrels and the wind in the trees.
I miss Duncan—terribly. It’s a
saturated sadness, born of the richness
of life. It’s a pain I can bear, grateful to
have loved so deeply and unselfishly.
I can even look forward to
experiencing the whole cycle again,
with another dog. Until that happens
I continue to take walks, by myself,
talking to Duncan.
To see pictures of Duncan, visit
Watermarkonline.com. | l |
I took him home with
me, even though I had
no idea what came next.
I’d never owned a dog.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
25
Talking Points
Mad Cow Theatre Presents
Music by Henry Krieger
Lyrics and Book by Tom Eyen
Until the leadership of the RNC is willing to
confront and denounce bigotry in its own
ranks, they will continue to lose elections.
—Jimmy LaSalvia, GOProud founder, referring to the RNC’s approval of its anti-marriage equality resolution.
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search terms in Iran,
where homosexuality is punishable by death,
are gay-related, including “daddy love”
and “hotel businessman.”
—According to an interactive survey by PornMd
Is Out list
Sponsored by
O
ut Magazine is taking a beating
after releasing its 50 Power
Players list this month. Readers
complain that there are only four people of color
on the list—and no transgender nods! There
also seems to be a deficient number of lesbians
this year, according to some comments on the
magazine’s website.
Some other surprises on the list: FOX anchor
Shepard Smith, who has not publicly come out, is
given the No. 8 slot, just ahead of lesbian senator
Tammy Baldwin. And RuPaul barely made the list,
squeezing in at No. 50, just behind Perez Hilton. | l |
n early April, a man
in China’s Guangdong
Province arrived at
the hospital after a live
eel he had placed up his
rectum chewed through his
colon and slithered into his body
cavity. The man told doctors he
was recreating a scene he saw in
a pornographic movie.
The 20-inch long Asian
Swamp Eel was removed—still
alive—from the man during an
emergency surgery. However,
On the Ohio teacher fired
after being outed in
mother’s obituary:
she never would’ve lasted that long
there in the first place. It is not a secret
how the higher-ups in the church feel
about us so why would you want them
to be your employer in the first place?”
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watermark Your lgbt life.
54 W. ChurCh STreeT
THE HARRIETT
Mad Cow TheaTre
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
N. MILLS AVE.
VIRGINIA DR.
MONTANA ST.
E. COLONIAL DR.
watermarkonline.com
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1227 N. Mills Ave.
Orlando, FL 32803
407-894-1808
www.YummiSandwiches.com
“Boy, those Catholics sure have a weird
definition of “kindness, compassion and
sensitivity.”
—Steve Watson
“It is horrible but you have to know when
you work for a Catholic school that this
could come up as an issue. I’m sure she
hid this for the past 19 years, otherwise
—Tanya Blasingame
On Bill Kanouff preparing
for the Red Ribbon Run, 18
months after losing his leg:
“I’ve known Bill a long time, I was a huge
supporter of Tomes and Treasures when
I
t took more than 60 years, but DC
Comics finally has its first transgender
character. Batgirl #19 introduced fans to Alysia
Yeoh, who is the transgender roommate of the title
character, when it was released in early April.
The character is also bisexual, which writer Gail Simone
told Wired, is a way to represent “not just humanity, but
also our own loyal audience.” Several characters have
disclosed their homosexuality in recent years, including
Bat Woman and Green Lantern. Alysia Yeoh could be the
first of several transgender characters, Simone hinted. | l |
Watermarkonline.com poll
the creature died soon after.
The unidentified man is
expected to make a full recovery,
but he could face animal
cruelty charges. | l |
people are talking at Watermarkonline.com
Bánh Mi • Sandwiches • Vietnamese Iced Coffee
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bisexual roommate
transphobic?
He put an eel where?
I
Opening June 7, 2013
Batgirl gets transgender,
I lived in Tampa. I wish him the best in
this race, so glad he is doing so well.”
—Michael J. Kelly
On 4.11.13 Editor’s Desk on
anti-gay publications:
“We used to read “The Tablet” to find out
which movies were condemned, and
then the entire (Catholic) neighborhood
would stampede to the Fortway Theatre
to watch sure-fire box office smashes.”
There have been lots of rumors about a gay NFL player
coming out, but no one has actually come forward so far.
Will we see it happen?
Yes, but not for
a long, long time.
33% Yes, any day now.
12%
It will never happen —
sports culture is still too anti-gay.
11%
I don’t think there
are any gay NFL players.
—Jim Crescitelli
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
27
Practice
and Pressure
arts &
entertainment
Putnam County Spelling Bee uses au dience participation, ad-libbing.
LETTER PEOPLE:
Matthew McGee, left of
the trophy, plays a stuffy,
conservative administrator
and Caitlin Longstreet,
center, plays the child of two
gay men in American Stage
in the Park’s The 25th Annual
Putnam County Spelling Bee
at Demens Landing.
Photo courtesy American Stage
28
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
Steve Blanchard [email protected]
S
t. Petersburg | Before heading
to Demens Landing to watch American
Stage in the Park’s The 25th Annual
Putnam County Spelling Bee, you may want to
brush up on your own vocabulary words.
The musical comedy is
mostly scripted, but has plenty
of ad-libbing and audience
participation to produce an
entirely new show each night.
Several members of the audience
get pulled into the spelling bee
within the production—and
that’s a big part of what makes
the hit Broadway play such a
perfect fit for the outdoor theater
along St. Petersburg’s waterfront.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
The show runs through May 26.
“People say they’ve heard
of Spelling Bee, but they don’t
know details,” says Steven Flaa,
the director of the production.
“Musical theater people know
it well, though. There is a lot of
improv and a lot of comedy.”
And Flaa, who is gay, says
the show speaks to a number
Continued on page 38 | uu |
watermark Your lgbt life.
29
Chadwick Boseman as Jackie Robinson in 42.
ANNOUNCE IT.
RENT IT.
SELL IT.
POST IT.
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Raymond James Pops
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Kid heavy: Patrick Huard finds out he has 533 kids in Starbuck.
Screened Out
movie reviews
A CLASSIC POPS
HIT PARADE
Accidental Heroes
SERIES FINALE!
STRAZ CENTER
FOR THE
PERFORMING ARTS
© Thomas Bruce Studio
Sat, May 4, 8 pm
PROGRESS ENERGY CENTER
MAHAFFEY THEATER
FOR THE
ARTS
Sun, May 5, 7:30 pm
RUTH ECKERD HALL
Sponsored by:
Tickets $15, $30 & $45
727.892.3337 or www.FloridaOrchestra.org
30
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
TFO-Watermark-4-25.indd 1
watermarkonline.com
4/4/2013 11:51:49 AM
Starring Patrick Huard,
Antoine Bertrand,
Julie La Breton
C
French Canadian film; a buffoon sperm
donor accidentally fathers 533 kids. Now,
144 of them are old enough to want to know their
dad’s identity. The only information they have is
his youthful alias, “Starbuck.”
This plot could have
birthed sheer Adam
Sandler stupidity. In fact,
I’m worried—there’s going
to be an American remake
with Vince Vaughn. Why,
when this one is so good?
Because it’s French? Are American
audiences that shallow?
Starbuck begins with a well-drawn,
lovable idiot (Huard). He may grow pot in
his crappy apartment. He may tool around
town in his dad’s meat truck. He may owe mobsters
$80,000. But, Starbuck has a gigantic heart.
So, it’s not surprising—especially since Starbuck
has accidentally gotten girlfriend La Breton
Stephen Miller
Fri, May 3, 8 pm
Starbuck
[email protected]
It’s a sizzling celebration of the great
American symphonic pops tradition with
everyone’s favorites…from Ravel’s Bolero
and Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture to highenergy waltzes, polkas, marches and more…
all showcasing your Florida Orchestra
musicians as both a stellar ensemble and as
individual virtuosos. Steven Reineke conducts.
onsider the premise of this
pregnant—that he’d try to sneakily get to know
some of his offspring. Yes, he’s a bumbling moron
who wants to be a hero, a guardian angel, to his
unsuspecting kids. We’re not even surprised when
it’s revealed how sweet, kind Starbuck used all that
money from donating sperm over 600 times.
Some people would call this film mushy, soft
and preposterous. Those are often just other
terms for a “crowd-pleaser.” With its crowd of
interesting kids and lovable dad, that’s exactly what
Starbuck achieves.
Does the mobster angle seem flaccid? Yes. Are
there some questions about how things transpire?
Sure. But it’s nothing that halts the successful
delivery of this foreign charmer. | l |
James McAvoy puts us in a Trance.
42
Trance
Starring Chadwick Boseman,
Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie
Starring James McAvoy, Rosario
Dawson, Vincent Cassel
D
irector Danny Boyle is
eautiful, self-important 42
known for his kinetic
feels the need to tell you
style (Slumdog Millionaire,
it’s based on a true story.
This means, apparently, whole
127 Hours, Trainspotting). He always
populations don’t know about Jackie
makes films that are alternately
Robinson (Boseman)—number 42—the
wonderful, gory, humorous and
first black man in major league baseball.
shocking—filled with memorable
Branch Rickey (Ford) hired Robinson to
images. However, all that frenetic
play for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.
work can be a distraction if the story
Robinson faced terrible discrimination
is already convoluted.
on his team, in the stands and in the
McAvoy is an art auctioneer who
press. He, his wife, and newborn son
helps some master thieves led by
had death threats.
Cassel to steal a famous
This is all grand stuff,
painting. At the last minute,
which is what obviously
ratings guide McAvoy pulls a double switch.
drew writer/director Brian
Cassel bangs McAvoy on the
Helgeland (L.A. Confidential).
head and the auctioneer
It also was his downfall. 42 is
forgets where he hid the
See it now! Buy
a bit square, full of bravado,
painting. In order to jog his
the DVD! Quote
replete with sepia-toned
memory, the thieves hire
lines at parties!
photography, slow-motion
hypnotist Dawson to help.
shots, and a booming score by
Already—by the plot
Definitely worth
Mark Isham. Characters are
description—Trance sounds
the price of
big and two-dimensional. Ford
like a stylish but light caper.
admission
chews scenery along with his
The gimmick is that the
cigar, and Boseman remains
injury and the hypnotist are
It’s useful as a
upstanding and strong.
screwing with McAvoy’s head.
distraction
This isn’t really a
So, this gives director Boyle
complicated film. It’s a museum
a long leash to screw around
piece for the Baseball Hall
with the timeline, the visuals
Maybe if someone
else pays and you
of Fame. It’s a beautiful,
and other aspects.
need a nap
uncomplicated history
None of this really helps
lesson for 12-year-olds. It’s a
tell a concise story. However,
feel-good panacea.
I think the goal here is to
Slightly worse
Hollywood almost always
confuse us, to keep up in the
than eternal
does this when it makes a film
dark. The problem is that
damnation
about racism —like Oscarwe’re misled over and over.
winner Crash or that abysmal Tuskegee
Characters act wildly inconsistent,
Airmen film Red Tails. Racism is more
and very smart people who hate each
complex and sneakier than 42, and I
other—who know they’d be better off
suspect the real Robinson and Rickey
without each other—do stupid things
In the end, Trance is not a
were more interesting, too.
masterpiece but a small pop trifle.
Maybe this film means to fool us into
It’s watchable because the actors are
thinking we’ve finally conquered racism.
committed and Boyle is interesting.
Rendering our heroes so large and broad,
Otherwise, it’d be downright
however, is actually another form of
forgettable. | l |
stereotyping. We’re all smarter about
racism than 42 thinks we are. | l |
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
31
32
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
33
Famous bitch: Almost 40 years after she first entered American Pop Culture as Nellie Oleson on Little House on the Prairie,
Alison Arngrim is touring with her one-woman show about her experiences on the series.
Little Bitch on the Prairie
theater
Little House on the Prairie’s
Alison Arngrim Tells All
M
Erik R. Caban [email protected]
any grew up watching Alison
Angrim heckle the children of Walnut
Grove during her reign of terror as
Nellie Oleson on the long running hit television
show Little House on the Prairie, which will
celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2014.
In addition to her seven years on
Little House, Arngrim guest-starred
on The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, the
NBC movie of the week, I Married
Wyatt Earp, as well as a number of
stage performances and a successful
stand-up comedy career.
Since the mid 1980s, Arngrim has
devoted much of her time to AIDS
awareness. One of her inspirations
34
for her charity work is the memory
of her friend and fellow actor Steve
Tracy, who played the role of Nellie
Oleson’s husband, Percival Dalton,
on Little House on the Prairie. Openly
gay, Tracy died from complications
from AIDS in 1986.
In 2010, Alison turned her onewoman comedy show, Confessions
of a Prairie Bitch: How I Survived
watermark Your lgbt life.
Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love
Being Hated, into a New York Times
Best Seller. The witty, poignant and
sometimes hilarious tale details the
childhood sexual abuse she suffered
at the hands of her brother, and
relates how she was hated by Little
House fans on the screen and off.
The author, actress, and advocate
spoke with Watermark before her
May 11-12 stint at Parliament
House’s Footlight Theater to discuss
life on the prairie, life as an author,
and her return to Orlando for the
first time since 1974.
WATERMARK: Can you tell
me about the show and
what fans can expect?
ALISON ARNGRIM: Confessions
of Prairie Bitch is a one-woman
extravaganza! There will be a
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
question and answer segment.
The audience is given cards at the
beginning of the show that say “Ask
Alison Anything.” And I’m serious.
It’s one of my favorite parts of the
show because I answer them live
and have no idea what anybody
is going to ask.
I have insane stories from my
life with photos and videos to back
it up. I talk about what it’s been like
to have people call me “Bitch” to my
face every day since I was 11 years
old. It’s a very strange way to grow
up. [Laughs.] Having all these people
afraid of me when that’s so not “me.”
I had to adjust to the idea that, if
that’s how I’m going to be treated, I
can work with this.
I talk about growing up in
Hollywood and my gay dad; my
mother being the voice of “Casper,
the Friendly Ghost” and the mother
on Davey and Goliath; Liberace;
and all the icons I had growing up,
people like Eartha Kitt and Carol
Channing, who’s a friend of mine.
She’s fabulous.
I saw that you were just in
France for your tour. Do you
have a big following in Europe?
It’s crazy. Little House on the
Prairie shows in 140 countries. In
some places, they’re just obsessed
with it. I need to go to Argentina
apparently. They’re completely out
of control for it. The French love it—
and the Japanese as
well. I go to France
twice a year and do
two different shows.
Christians, drag queens. You have
people who unplug their TV because
they feel like it’s become too
immoral and awful and they’ll only
watch their Little House DVDs.
There are people who dress up
as “Nellie Oleson” and do vodka
Jello shots during the show. There
are episodes that people are very
sentimental about and they’d
never make fun of, and then there
are others that people mock and
then they send them up and laugh
at them. I’ve never seen anything
like it, where the feelings are so
strong in both directions. People
will make fun of Little House—like
the fact that Michael Landon never
wore underwear or how “Nellie”
was such a bitch or how Barry was
such a snitch always ratting on
Laura. It’s crazy; people will pick on
it but then they’ll put on a certain
episode and they’ll start sobbing,
“Aw, I miss Michael Landon. I
wish he was my pa.”
You’ve been acting since you
were a child and surely worked
with a lot of LGBT people,
including your on-screen
husband. Is it safe to say you
have a close relationship
with LGBT community?
Oh, gosh, yes! I was raised in
West Hollywood. My father was bisexual and worked for Liberace as
his manager through the ‘60s and
‘70s. I was completely raised in “Gay
Land.” [Laughs.] I got
involved with AIDS
activism in the late
‘80s after Steve Tracy,
my on-screen husband
Will this be
“Percival,” got sick.
your first
He was very public
time in Florida?
about it at a time when
This will be
people were not. I tried
the premiere of
to do stuff to help other
Confessions of
people, like working
a Prairie Bitch
on the California AIDS
in Florida. But
Hotline. That was
sometime in the late
actually how I met my
80s, I did stand-up
husband, Bob, who was
at an AIDS benefit
—Alison Arngrim
running the Hotline.
there. I actually
Since the early
filmed my first movie, Throw Out the
2000s,
I’ve
been
on the board for
Anchor, in Orlando. [Laughs.] God, it
was awful. I was 10 years old and we PROTECT, lobbying and changing
lives to protect children from abuse.
got to go Disney World when it first
“Stay the hell
away from
reality TV—
that shit isn’t
good for you.
It’s the crack
cocaine of
television.”
opened. So, this will, in effect, be my
triumphant return, 40 freaking years
later! [Laughs.]
Have you performed in
a gay bar before?
That’s usually where I wind up.
[Laughs.] That’s true even with my
following in France. Little House on
the Prairie is one of those shows that
truly unites everybody. Everybody
likes it—old ladies, kids, born again
watermarkonline.com
In addition to being an actress,
writer and advocate, you have a
career as a stand-up comic. You
touch on it in the book, but
in a bit more detail, when and
why did you start performing? I started doing stand-up when
I was 15 in L.A. My father was a
manager for a number of stand-up
comics at the time. I would hang out
at the club and heckle the comics
and one night I was dared to try it.
And it just seemed to work and really
suited my personality. In 2002, instead
of doing my regular act, I started
telling true stories from my life. Boy, it
really took off! That’s how my whole
one-woman show Confessions of A
Prairie Bitch started.
Do you have a charity
foundation you are especially
passionate about?
AIDS Project Los Angeles, where
I started, but I try to work with a lot
of the smaller organizations around
the country who can’t afford to get
Madonna to perform to help raise
money. [Laughs.] The folks up in Seattle
at Lifelong AIDS Alliance are really cool.
I did their AIDS Walk a few years back.
In your book you talk about
the abuse you suffered as a
child. Has your celebrity helped
your role as an advocate?
Rightly or wrongly, people listen
to what celebs have to say. The media
will let them on the TV and blabber
about things. Like George Clooney
when he spoke about the Sudan Relief
and Elizabeth Taylor and her work
with AIDS, celebrities are really able
to throw attention toward causes. The
problem is, sometimes you have to give
the celebrity spokesperson cue cards so
they don’t screw it up. [Laughs.]
I think if someone with the following
of—good lord—say Paris Hilton, would
use her celebrity, think of the things
she could do. Tell people to recycle
or save a tree. [Laughs.] I’m shocked
that a lot don’t do more with their
celebrity. There are thousands of people
in Hollywood making movies and on
television shows and you just never
know who’s going to catch on and
become these icons.
When I started on Little House,
I could never have predicted the
longevity of the series—none of us
would have. I didn’t think I’d be getting
mobbed in Paris, getting fan mail from
China and Ecuador. I never thought
“Nellie Oleson” would have struck such
a nerve where I’d see people dressing
up as her in bars. So, I think when you
get struck by lightning, you should say
something worthwhile.
When Steve [Tracy] got sick, my
phone rang off the hook with stupid
questions like, “Do you have AIDS? You
kissed him on the show.” I could’ve
hidden but I was like, “Hey, I’ve got this
opportunity.” The media was literally
shoving microphones in my face and
saying “We’re going to run what you
say.” I was like, “They’re letting me talk,
I should say something useful.”
I used the opportunity to help
people who were sick or depressed. I’m
just amazed more famous people don’t.
Love to hate: In the 1970s, Alison
Arngrim rose to international fame as the hateful
Nellie Oleson who harassed heroine Laura Ingels
on Little House on the Prairie.
Being in the business for so long,
what advice would you offer
to your younger colleagues?
A lot of kids want to get into the
business—even more so now than
when I was a kid. There’s a lot of young
people who see shows like The Voice or
American Idol and think, “If I sing in the
shower, I can go on this show and get a
career.” Then, there are the reality stars.
That’s not how it works; you become
famous for doing something. This
famous for being famous thing, it’s not
really good for people.
There was a report that came out of
England that reported that the suicide
rate of those involved in reality shows
is really high. So, my advice is to stay
the hell away from reality TV—that shit
isn’t good for you. It’s the crack cocaine
of television. If you’re on a show as a
kid, save your money. Make sure your
parents aren’t stealing from you. Keep
your pants on. [Laughs.]
In summary: no drugs, save your
money, keeps the pants on and say “no”
to reality TV. That’s my advice.
Bevel
David Yurman
Dior
Gold & Wood
Gucci
ic! berlin
Italee
What’s next?
Everything and anything. After
touring with this show, I’ll be working
on a second book. There’s a fabulous
web series called Child of the 70s, which
I’m going to be doing. I also just did
a pilot called Living the Dream. It’s
about a young man who wants to be an
actor. I play his very sweet but totally
overbearing, out-of-control mother. | l |
more information
WHAT: Wanzie Presents...
Confessions of a Prairie Bitch
WHERE: The Footlight Theater
WHEN: May 11, 7:30 p.m., May 12, 3 p.m.
TICKETS: Wanzie.com
J.F. Rey
L.A. Eyeworks
Lafont
Smart, Stylish,
Patient Centered Care
407. 447. 7739
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EOLA EYES
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519 North Mills Avenue
Orlando, FL 32803
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
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watermark Your lgbt life.
37
| uu | Putnam County
SF: One tells her that “God
hates losers. Losers don’t
know how to win.’
MM: That’s a horrible thing
to say to a child!
Spelling Bee from pg.29
of audience types, but especially
to the LGBT community. It
also doesn’t hurt that one of
the main characters, a child
named Logainne “Schwartzy”
Schwartzandgrubenierre, played
by Caitlin Longstreet, is parented
by two dads. The show also stars
local favorite Matthew McGee,
who received rave reviews as Dr.
Frank-N-Furter during last year’s
Rocky Horror Show.
Watermark sat down with Flaa,
Longstreet and McGee before
a rehearsal at Demens Landing
to talk about the production, its
characters and its LGBT appeal:
Even with all the gay elements,
is there mass appeal here too?
WATERMARK: One thing
fans will notice is that
Matthew McGee isn’t in a
dress for this production.
MATTHEW MCGEE: (Laughs.) In
fact, I’m playing Douglas Panch, a
character that I see as an uptight
conservative Republican, which
is more of a drag than anything
else! It’s totally different and I
love it. It’s wearing a wig, which is
still a funny thing to do outside in
Florida in April or May.
It’s a great role. He’s uptight and
stuffy and totally in love with the
hostess of the spelling bee. By
the end he has a nice heartfelt
moment, but since I was cast I
have been embracing the things
I’ve read online about how
frustrated teachers and educators
get with the education system. I
now realize why so many people
in the education profession are
frustrated, and so is he. And that’s
so much fun to play.
STEVEN FLAA: Matthew has
certain moments where he can do
his thing. There are open things
he can change. In one part his
character explains why he had a
breakdown. Matthew decided that
since his character is Republican,
that he was a Romney supporter
and still hasn’t recovered.
It sounds like every
production of Spelling Bee
is different than the last.
MM: There is a lot of room
to ad-lib. It’s a sweet story and
people have heard about it. But it
works so well because it’s sweet.
But there’s a strange sense of,
“What will happen next?” There’s
uncertainty because we bring
spellers from the audience on
stage. One word I’ve found is
‘mamase mamasa mamakusa.’
38
head of the class: The characters in American Stage in the Park’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
represent students we all knew in elementary school. Photo Courtesy American STage
I play a character I see as an uptight
conservative Republican, which is
more of a drag than anything else!
—Matthew McGee
[Made famous by a chant in
Michael Jackson’s hit “Wanna Be
Startin’ Somethin’”].
That’s just mean.
MM: My job is to eliminate
spellers. If we get great spellers up
there we’re in trouble. (Laughs.)
Watching audience members
spelling like cast members is fun.
SF: We tell the volunteers to really
try and spell the words. At certain
times in the show Matthew has to
keep up with how many spellers
we’re supposed to have left.
Is it scary bringing audience
members on stage?
SF: There’s an element of
surprise and danger.
MM: I’m looking forward to it.
I think that’s when I’ll relax the
most and be ready to go.
SF: Matthew is different than most
actors in that regard.
Tell our readers a little
bit about the LGBT
connection in Spelling Bee.
MM: To me it’s strangely even
more accessible than Rocky
watermark Your lgbt life.
Horror was last year. The show
has insights into the way families
work and kids grow up. Sexuality
is included and one character
has two dads. So you see all of
this. The role I play was played
by Mo Rocca and Jesse Tyler
Ferguson on Broadway. For a lot
of this play, it helps when you’re
a student of pop culture and
politics and a lot of people in our
community are savvy like that.
This show has a slant and appeal
for a gay audience.
SF: The concept of outsiders
and people who are different
will appeal to LGBT audiences.
All of the kids have these weird
quirks and don’t fit in with the
other kids. We’re talking about
feelings of isolation and being
different. Obviously that’s very
prevalent in LGBT youth.
Is it difficult playing a child?
CAITLIN LONGSTREET: It’s
surprisingly easier than you think
to play a child. It is a lot of fun
because you let inhibitions go.
Children don’t have the barriers
adults tend to have. So it’s not as
difficult as you’d think to just let
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
whatever happen.
SF: Actors by breed are childlike.
Not childish, but child-like
in that they have to be open
and accessible and able to
absorb these things.
CL: We’re trained to suppress
emotions. Adults don’t want
to have others see what they
are thinking. When your job
is to portray those emotions
anyway, you find a way to let
them out. So playing a child
isn’t as big as a stretch if you let
those barriers fall.
And your character is the
child of a gay couple...
MM: She does a nice job and
shows the pressure this individual
is under. It’s interesting because
she has pressure from two dads,
and one is extremely controlling.
The two dads who push her do it
too much. It shows that gay people
aren’t necessarily great parents
either—they’re normal.
CL: They do care about her
and want her to succeed. But
they are overbearing and don’t
always listen to her.
watermarkonline.com
MM: As I’m sitting there between
my moments and getting my
words ready, I’m gleaning what’s
happening; I’m able to watch it
around me. It’s so different for me
and I’m able to relate to this show
in so many different ways.
SF: Everyone has parents.
MM: Everyone
was an awkward kid.
SF: One character notices
a fellow speller’s younger
sister in the crowd and has an
unfortunate erection.
MM: That’s very relatable.
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MM: The woman playing ‘Rona,’
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charm to it. We’ve already been
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SF: The hero is different for
different people. We’ve all been
these kids and everyone will
find the person they want to
root for. That’s what makes this
show so great—it has a different
connection for every different
person watching it. | l |
more information
WHAT: The 25th Annual Putnam
County Spelling Bee
WHERE: Demens Landing,
St. Petersburg
WHEN: Through May 26
TICKETS: AmericanStage.org
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
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watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
May 4
The Club at Treasure Island
727-367-4511
theclubti.com
Tampa
War Horse
April 30-May 5
Straz Center
813-229-7827
StrazCenter.org
For more events or to
submit your upcoming show,
concert or performance, visit
watermarkonline.com.
entertainment
Event planner
The
50 Shades
Parody
quick Picks
eyeglasses
contacts
sunglasses
arts &
S
tampa/orlando
PANK! The Fifty Shades Parody is the hilarious new musical produced
by Mills Entertainment that puts its
own clever and comedic take on the risqué,
record-breaking book, Fifty Shades of Grey.
The book we’ve all heard
about but none of us has
read (yeah, right) swept
the world last year with its
T
hot narrative about a sexy,
kinky hero and his influence
on the woman he bedded.
This take on that story is
a musical mixed with sexy
striptease performances
from a devilishly
handsome leading man.
While the story is hetero,
LGBTs will enjoy the skin
and humor in this parody,
which lands at the Straz
Center in Tampa on April 2527 and Plaza Live Orlando
on Sunday, April 28.
For tickets, visit
StrazCenter.org or
PlazaLiveOrlando.com. | l |
orlando/lakeland
Celtic Woman
he beautiful and
talented women of
Celtic Woman will
bring their latest show to
Orlando’s Bob Carr Peforming
Arts Center on Saturday, May
4, and Polk County’s Lakeland
Center on Tuesday, May 7.
Under the distinct
musical direction of Emmynominated music producer
David Downes, this musical
experience features Celtic
Woman performing classic
Irish tunes like “The Water is
Wide,” “The Parting Glass” and
pop anthems like “Bridge Over
Troubled Water” and “Sailing.”
The singing divas also
perform inspirational songs
and mix in traditional Irish
dances—so there’s plenty of
eye candy on stage.
For tickets and details,
visit TicketMaster.com or
TheLakelandCenter.com. | l |
largo
Forbidden
Broadway Volume II
W
e all have
our favorite
Broadway show
and our can’t-live-without
Broadway anthem we deem as
sacred. But nothing is sacred in
Forbidden Broadway Volume
II, which lampoons classic and
contemporary Broadway hits.
The long-running OffBroadway hit musical revue is
where the Great White Way’s
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
greatest musical legends meet
Broadway’s greatest satirist
in a tribute of shows, stars
and songwriters.
Eight O’Clock Theatre will
lampoon Annie with “I’m 30
Years Old, Tomorrow,” Hairspray
with “You Can’t Stop the Camp”
and Les Miserables with “On My
Phone,” May 3-19.
For tickets, visit
EightOclockTheatre.com. | l |
watermark Your lgbt life.
41
ShotonSite
Tampa Bay
4
1
5.18.13
1- Staying cool: (L-R) Jacob Hamm, Chris Rudisill, Eric Hutton
and Michael Smith enjoy the cool evening April 20 outside the Dali
Museum. Photo by Steve Blanchard
2- Enthusiastic gathering: A small but enthusiastic group
attended a rally in downtown Tampa April 16 in response to Hillsborough County Commission’s failure to create a domestic partner
registry. Photo by Steve Blanchard
2
5
3
3- On record: Pastor Joe Parramore is recorded by an ABC Action News videographer as he speaks at a small rally across from the
Hillsborough County Commission office in downtown Tampa April 16
addressing the county’s failure to create a domestic partner registry.
Photo by Steve Blanchard
4- Puppy Love: Hillsborough County Commissioner Kevin Beckner
took part in the 11th Annual Tuxes and Tails fundraiser benefitting the
Humane Society of Tampa Bay at the Marriott Waterside in Tampa
April 20. Photo courtesy Krista Sparkman
5- Last call: Jake Frerichs stands behind the bar of The Garage
on Central Avenue in St. Petersburg one last time April 12 before
starting his new job with Times Square Properties. Photo by Steve
Blanchard
6- Honored guests: (L-R) Allegra Kartha, Lorraine Langlois,
Julie Mastry Janssen and Trevor Burgess were honored by Equality
Florida at the Dali Museum April 20 at the Dali Museum. Photo by
Steve Blanchard
7- Like it Hot: Hostess Arica Love channels her inner Marilyn
Monroe during a Three Olives Vodka promotion night theme party at
the Ivory Lounge in Sarasota April 18. Photo courtesy Ivory Lounge
6
7
8
8- To the nines: (L-R) Kathie Michaels, Renee Cossette and Jay
Aller chat during the Equality Florida Pinellas Gala at the Dali Museum
April 20. Photo by Steve Blanchard
Overheard
Frerichs’ last call
C
• Heavy Hors d’oeuvres by Timpano Italian Chophouse
• Dessert & Coffee Lounge by Piquant Hyde Park
• Signature Cocktails, Craft Brews, Imported Spanish Wines & Cava
• Surprise Entertainment • Full Gallery Access
• Annual Museum Membership
Presenting Sponsor
$75 per person before May 5 $85 per person after May 5
Tickets and information: prideandpassion.org
@PridePassionTPA #GORG #fabulous
42
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
Pride & Passion
watermarkonline.com
ountless bar patrons
in St. Petersburg have
chatted up, drooled
over and conversed with
Jake Frerichs, the dark haired,
handsome bartender at The
Garage on Central over the last
few years. But Frerichs is hanging
up his bar towel for a new career
with Times Square Properties, a
real estate company in downtown
St. Petersburg, and he poured his
last drink as a full time bartender
on April 12. The handsome,
straight ally worked the bars at The
Flamingo Resort and at Beak’s Old
Florida restaurant before landing
at The Garage. He has also been
an active participant in St. Pete
Pride—riding on or marching
as part of various floats—and a
fundraising walker in AIDS Walk
Tampa Bay. His new position as
property manager will put Frerichs
in charge of maintenance and
leasing at the downtown property.
But that doesn’t mean he’ll never
tend bar again. Frerichs said he
will return to The Garage during
large events, such as St. Pete Pride
or themed nights.
Equality Florida
honors locals
A
mid all of the hustle
and bustle of the
Equality Florida
Pinellas Gala on April 20
held within the Salvador
Dali Museum, five individuals
were recognized for their ongoing
commitment to LGBT equality
and activism. Hostess Katee
Tully introduced the crowd to
Metro Wellness and Community
Centers CEO Lorraine Langlois,
C1 Bank CEO Trevor Burgess,
educator and former Pinellas
Schools Superintendent Julie
Mastry Janssen and 16-year-old
philanthropist Allegra Kartha
during a small ceremony at the
beginning of the annual gala.
Kartha, Tully explained, held a yard
sale earlier this year and raised
nearly $3,000, which she donated to
Equality Florida. Also on hand that
evening was St. Petersburg Mayor
Bill Foster, who read a proclamation
declaring April 20 Equality Florida
Day in St. Petersburg.
Nae Nae Dominatrix
named comedy
Queen 2013
A
packed house crowded
the Honey Pot in Ybor
City for the annual
Miss Comedy Queen 2013
pageant on April 14. Judges
and the audience chose Miss Nae
Nae Dominatrix to represent
Tampa Bay for the next year.
Several former winners made
special appearances at the show,
including The Minx, April Fresh,
Chi Chi La Lique, Ginger Minj, Nicky
Monet, Kathryn Nevets and Melanie
Minyon. Nae Nae Dominatrix
received $500 along with her crown
and paid entry into the National
Comedy Queen pageant.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
SSL elects officers
T
he Suncoast Softball
League held its annual
elections during the
games held on Sunday, April
21, giving teams several hours to
cast ballots for commissioners and
other officers. The organization
announced its new elected officers
the following day. Kevin Hansen
was elected League Commissioner
and Jim Michener was named
B Assistant Commissioner. Ed
Levesque and Eric Bickerstaff
were elected C and D Assistant
Commissioners, respectively. The
league elected Drew Drosinos as
secretary, Scott Lenker as treasurer,
Andrew Mason as Parliamentarian
and Kyle Streng as the NAGAAA
Representative. | l |
watermark Your lgbt life.
43
ShotonSite
Get Ready For The Gayest Week of the Year!
1
2
3
ORLANDO
1- LGBT ABCs: MBA corporate development director Jason Holstein
moderates a panel titled “The ABCs of LGBT ERGs” at The Florida Diversity Conference at the Rosen Plaza Hotel on April 11. Photo courtesy
Michael Farmer
2- Getting Stoned: Professor Thomas Ouellette, left, emceed
“An Evening with Oliver Stone” at Rollins College April 18. Photo by
Tom Dyer
3- Tale as old as time: The cast of Stained Glass Windows rehearses in preparation for this year’s Orlando Fringe Festival, May 15-28
at Loch Haven Park. Photo courtesy Kathryn Huey
7
4- Priscilla Prepped: (L-R) Nicholas Olivieri, Eddie Nickell,
Alicia Markstone and CoCo Markstone attend opening night of Priscilla,
Queen of the Desert at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre. Photo by
Tom Dyer
5- Victory!: On April 16, Bob Poe, second from left, hosted a reception for Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund president and CEO, Chuck Wolfe,
second from right. Also pictured is Watermark publisher Tom Dyer,
Elizabeth McCarthy and Center director Randy Stephens.
4
6- Proud Papas: Nick Russo (left) and Joe Gonzales prepare to
leave the hospital with their one-day-old daughter, Madeline, on April
16. Photo courtesy Nick Russo
7- Breaking ground: On April 19, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer (in
tan) helped break ground for the Central Florida Veterans Memorial at the
VA Medical Center in Lake Nona. Photo courtesy the City of Orlando.
CLUB ORLANDO
8- Weinerfied: Ivanhoe Village executive director Scottie Campbell
hangs out with hotdogger (seriously, that’s her title) “Lots-of-Ketchup
Lisa” during an Oscar Mayer Weinermobile stop in Orlando on April 11.
COME OUT TO PLAY!
Photo by Jamie Hyman
5
Gyms come and go……
6
Club Orlando’s Gym has been here
for 14 years and is still going strong!
We Offer Monthly and Annual
Memberships. Stop in for a tour and
a complimentary work out.
8
$
4 HOUR LOCKERS
M – F • 10AM – 2PM
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(407) 425-5005
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44
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
8
Overheard
Out Candidate on
National Ticket?
T
oo soon to talk 2016?
Not for Gay & Lesbian
Victory Fund president
and CEO Chuck Wolfe, who was
the guest of honor at an April 16
reception hosted by Bob Poe, who
sits on the organization’s board.
Wolfe touted the organization’s
accomplishments, including almost
doubling LGBT representation
in Congress from four to seven,
and electing the first out U.S.
Senator, Tammy Baldwin from
Wisconsin. And he noted that out
state legislators were elected for
the first time in several states,
including Florida. Wolfe said his
immediate goal is helping elect the
first out mayor of New York City,
Christine Quinn. But he couldn’t
resist biting at a question about
the 2016 ticket. His projection: Jeb
Bush backed by John Huntsman
for the Republicans, and Hillary
Clinton and Gavin Newsome for
the Democrats. And Wolfe went
even further, projecting that
an out candidate will be on the
national ticket by 2032.
Garden Tour Gays
T
here were “gays for
days” traversing
the streets of
Eola Heights on Sunday
afternoon, April 21. A steady
rain didn’t stop hundreds from
visiting ten varied and wonderful
backyards during the 6th tour
of the “Private Gardens of Lake
Eola Heights.” Stops included the
beautiful homes of Kelly Brock and
Reid Pasternak, John Guerts and
Robert Stolt, Dr. Andrew Summers,
and LGBT allies Judge Bob Leblanc
and his wife, Joan. The iphones
were out in force, recording ideas
for future projects. Overheard by
one attendee: “I could do this… if I
had a yard crew of six!”
CFSL is Such a Drag
T
he 5th annual Mr. and
Ms. CFSL Pageant was
April 14 at Parliament
House’s Footlight Theater.
Orlando’s Central Florida Softball
League players whipped out duct
tape, wigs and lots of make up
for a competition in hilarity. Mr.
CFSL went to Holly Nichols from
David Dorman Royalty and Ms.
CFSL went to Jerry Graham from
Grindr’s Base Grindrs. The crowd
favorite was Bobby DeSormier from
Hope & Help Impact.
Zebra Coalition Wins
IKEA Challenge
Z
ebra Coalition
received the highest
number of votes for
the IKEA Challenge. The
organization wins $10,000 in
product and design services from
IKEA Orlando. The funds will help
the group’s food and hygeine bank
and fund a lending library for LGBT
youth. Zebra is one of 38 charitable
organizations in the nation
awarded $10,000 in IKEA products,
services and in-kind donations.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
Honoring a Survivor
T
he hoi polloi were out
in force at the 2013
Dinner of Tribute for
the Holocaust Memorial
Resource & Education
Center of Florida at the
Rosen Plaza on April 17. Orange
County Mayor Teresa Jacobs
rubbed elbows with Police Chief
Jerry Demings and his wife, Val
Demings, Florida Blood Centers
chair Rick Walsh, Orlando Ballet
president Ava Doppelt, and many
more. The fundraiser, a tribute
to Holocaust survivor Helen
Greenspun, was co-chaired by
partners Ted Maines and Jeff Miller.
The Orlando Ballet performed. | l |
watermark Your lgbt life.
45
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AW
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Final farewell: Long time political campaigner Gerry Hamilton, who stumped for Barack Obama
[email protected]
35 years experience
change-of-life community announcements
Passings
Congratulations
Gerry Hamilton, 65, of Orlando
died this month following a
long battle with lung cancer.
Hamilton, a former Marine, was
a member of Joy Metropolitan
Community Church, the
Orlando Gay Chorus and
an active participant in the
Rainbow Democratic Club. She
was a regular at Pride events
and often carried the Rainbow
Democratic Club’s banner.
She was also active politically,
campaigning for Barack Obama
in 2008 and for Senator Bill
Nelson in 2010. Services for
Hamilton were held April 20.
Long time St. Petersburg
bartender and straight ally Jake
Frerichs is the new property
manager for Times Square
Properties in downtown St.
Petersburg. Frerichs’ last day
at The Garage was April 12.
He now handles leasing and
delegating maintenance for
the real estate company. Many
in St. Petersburg may also
remember him tending bar at
The Flamingo and Beak’s.
Richard Starner, a pillar
member of the Church of
the Trinity MCC in Sarasota,
died on April 15. He was
influential in the purchase of
the church’s original campus
in 1988. Starner also provided
guidance during the capital
campaign and construction of
the church’s main sanctuary.
He has remained a figure in the
congregation ever since. He is
survived by his partner, David
Fairman.
The Zebra Foundation for
Youth announces its new board
members, Jill Ramsier, a
hospitality industry professional
and Ken Brown, a youth arts
integration instructor.
Anniversaries
Orlando’s Framing of Central
Florida celebrates its 20-year
business anniversary this May.
Orlando partners Fern Fournier
and Elliott Barber CPA celebrate
50 years together on May 6.
Orlando partners Dawn
Rosendahl and Cheryl
Turner celebrate 26 years
together April 28.
Phil Kean and Brad Grosburg
of Orlando celebrated 29 years
together on April 21.
E X T R A O R D I N A R Y
P E O P L E .
E X C E P T I O N A L
C A R E .
Scott Penyak and David
Dorman of Orlando celebrated
10 years together April 19.
Local Birthdays
Parliament House owner Don
Granatstein, Hope & Help events
maven Julie Noda, app whiz
Randy Shepard (April 28); St.
Pete hotel manager Tom Ziri
(April 29); Tampa mental health
counselor Anthony Quaglieri,
UCF’s former GLBSU president
and activist Jessica Osborn
(April 30); vegan and speed
demon Jamie Shaffer (May
2); GaYbor District Coalition
founder Carrie West (May 3);
Tampa Crowbar owner Bonnie
Plumbtree (May 4); Orange
County Tax Collector Scott’s better
half Susannah Randolph (May
5); Talent Quest Florida founder
and legal husband to Watermark
editor Steve Blanchard, Phil
Garris, Chainsaw-wielding
derby girl Chelsea Selby
(May 6); Bradenton resident
and Trinity Charities Program
Coordinator Bruce Fournier,
Wet Nurse drummer Vanessa
Brewster (May 7).
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
47
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[email protected]
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
Mediator #24369F
orlando marketplace
orlando marketplace
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
49
counselor
counselor
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pet sitting
religious
A DIVERSE CONGREGATION
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physician
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Holy Angels
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INDEPENDENT CATHOLIC CHURCH OF THE AMERICAS
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watermark Your lgbt life.
garden/nursery
CIT Y OA SIS
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April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
1214 N. Mills Ave. (17-92)
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(407) 898-8101
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1100 N. Ferncreek Ave.
Peer-to-peer support group and social
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[email protected]
Call 407-481-2243
for more information
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
51
407-481-2243 • Deadline is May 3, at 5:00pm. WatermarkOnline.com for Brand New Listings Every Day!
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Watermark does not knowingly print advertisements for sexual services. Beyond printed content, Watermark does not inquire into the nature of personal or professional services advertising. Payment for sexual services is illegal in the State of Florida, and respondents to
classified advertising should govern themselves accordingly. As required by law (Florida Statute 480.0465), Licensed Massage Therapists include their license number in all advertising.
52
watermark Your lgbt life.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermarkonline.com
Staff Report
B
rittney Griner, the No. 1 pick
in this year’s WNBA draft,
acknowledged April 17 in
interviews that she is gay.
Griner, a 6-foot-8, three-time
All-America center during an
illustrious career at Baylor, said
she has previously talked about
her sexuality, but this appears to be
the first time she’s discussed the
matter publicly. She shared the news
during an interview with the Sports
Illustrated website SI.com.
“Being one that’s out, it’s just
being who you are,” she told the
publication. “Again, like I said, just
be who you are. Don’t worry about
what other people are going to say,
because they’re always going to say
something, but, if you’re just true
to yourself, let that shine through.
Don’t hide who you really are.”
The group interview included
Elena Delle Donne and Skylar
Diggins, the number two and three
picks in the WNBA draft. The women
were asked why coming out in
women’s sports is more accepted
than in male leagues.
“I really couldn’t give an
answer on why that’s so different,”
Griner responded.
Asked about her sexuality
in light of being the top pick,
Briner responded:
“It really wasn’t too difficult,
Wire Report
W
Former Bear: The 6-foot-8-inch Brittney Griner is the No. 1 pick in this year’s
WNBA draft.
I wouldn’t say I was hiding or
anything like that,” she said. “I’ve
always been open about who I am
and my sexuality. So, it wasn’t hard
at all. If I can show that I’m out and
I’m fine and everything’s okay, then
hopefully the younger generation
will definitely feel the same way.”
The Associated Press also
interviewed the three women and
the topic of bullying was part of
the discussion. Griner said she
was “picked on for being different”
while also acknowledging that
she is a lesbian.
“Just being bigger, my sexuality,
everything,” she told the AP.
“I overcame it and got over it.
Definitely something that I am very
passionate about. I want to work
with kids and bring recognition
to the problem, especially with
the LGBT community.”
Griner told USA Today that her
parents encouraged her to be open
about her sexuality during the draft.
“My parents didn’t know at the
time,” Griner told the newspaper.
“I hadn’t come out completely. It
was kind of like, you know... I just
hadn’t said it. My dad and my mom
have always told me, ‘Be who you
are.’ At the time, they probably
weren’t sure what I was interpreting
that as,” she said.
Griner finished her four-year
Baylor career as the second highest
all-time scorer in women’s NCAA
history with 3,283 points. She is the
top shot-blocker ever, shattering
both the men’s and women’s college
marks with 748. She also had a
record 18 dunks—including 11
this season. | l |
to love you regardless. Just let me
know are you or aren’t you gay?’ And
finally he just said, ‘Yes, I am.’”
During the interview, Magic
Johnson shared that the discussion
he had with his son happened in
E.J.’s early teens, and broke the
tension that otherwise would have
haunted E.J.’s teen years.
“He had to have been about 12 or
13 years old,” Magic Johnson said. “I
think it was a hard conversation only
because he was so young and what
do you tell him at that age? “
Magic Johnson went on
to say that by showing his
love and support, he became
his son’s confidant.
“I told him, ‘Hey, I’m good with it.
Just be you,’” Magic Johnson recalled.
“I love E.J. so much. That’s my main
man, so I told him that nothing
has changed. ‘I just want to help
you along the way because a lot of
people are going to be happy for you
and then some won’t understand.
You have to remember that you can
always talk to me or your mother.’”
In an interview posted on the
YouTube.com talk show “Gwissues,”
E.J. Johnson said that he didn’t
feel violated after TMZ recently
revealed that he’s gay.
“I always wanted to come into
the spotlight,” he said. “I always had
dreams and plans of doing my own
thing and creating my own image, so
it came a little sooner than I thought
it would but this is still something I
knew I would be going through and
would have to experience.” | l |
Magic Johnson expresses support for gay son
Staff Report
Los Angeles | During a recent
interview with TMZ, former NBA
superstar Magic Johnson shared that
he always knew his son E.J. was gay
and that he supports him.
E.J. Johnson made headlines last
month when he was filmed casually
walking in Los Angeles speaking
with the cameraman about the
newly renovated Staples Center.
To many, it was obvious that the
younger Johnson was gay.
“We’ve known for a long, long
time that my son E.J. is gay,” Magic
Johnson told TMZ. “It’s interesting
when you’re his parent and we
finally had to sit down and talk
about it. I told him, ‘Look, I’m going
NHL wants to be most
welcoming to LGBT fans, players
ASHINGTON | The National Hockey
League moved April 11 to formalize its
work in support of making the sport
welcoming for LGBT players and fans—the most
comprehensive action taken on the issue by any of the
men’s major leagues.
In announcing a partnership with the You Can Play
Project, a program started by Patrick Burke to fight
homophobia and transphobia in sports, the league and
players’ association are breaking new ground among
piecemeal efforts in several of the men’s major leagues
to make sports more welcoming for LGBT people.
“Our motto is ‘Hockey Is For Everyone,’” NHL
Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement
announcing the news, “and our partnership with
You Can Play certifies that position in a clear and
unequivocal way. While we believe that our actions
in the past have shown our support for the LGBT
community, we are delighted to reaffirm through this
joint venture with the NHL Players’ Association that
the official policy of the NHL is one of inclusion on the
ice, in our locker rooms and in the stands.”
Burke, who started the You Can Play Project in part
to advance the legacy of his brother Brendan, an out
collegiate hockey coach and former player who died in
2009, called the NHL’s move historic.
“I think the most important thing is that we’re
seeing a major professional league and a major
professional players’ association step up and make
an official statement about inclusion. This isn’t, ‘Oh,
we’ll deal with it.’ This isn’t, ‘Oh, we’ll tolerate it,’”
he said. “This is the hockey community saying to the
LGBT community, ‘You are invited. You are welcome.
You are embraced here.’ This is huge. From a sports
perspective, this is historic.”
The news comes at a moment of intense attention
on gay issues, even within the sports world, where
discussion about whether professional football
players are readying to come out has been front and
center this month.
Despite the discussion, no mens’ major league sport
can claim to have had an out gay player still active in
the sport, although several athletes have come out
after retirement. According to the announcement, the
partnership with You Can Play means the group will be
conducting seminars at the NHL’s rookie symposium to
address LGBT issues with new recruits. The National
Basketball Association conducted a similar effort at
its rookie camp this past year in coordination with
Athlete Ally and GLAAD.
The partnership also includes an element focused
specifically on helping players who might be dealing
with questions about whether to come out. As part
of the new partnership, the NHLPA and NHL also will
work with You Can Play to integrate the project into
their Behavioral Health Program, enabling players to
confidentially seek counseling or simply ask questions
regarding matters of sexual orientation. | l |
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
sports
[classifieds]
Baylor’s Brittney Griner says she’s always been out
53
ANNOUNCE IT.
RENT IT.
SELL IT.
POST IT.
watermark
classifieds
Arie
Groen’s
property maintenance
Commercial and Residential Licensed
specializing
in:
■ installation
■ Mulch
of sod
■ Irrigation
■ Ornamentals ■ pressure
■ Trimming
washing
■ Elevating
photography: I Am Divine at Muvico Ybor
Galleryw
Go see more photos at
watermarkonline.com
54
watermark Your lgbt life.
A
near-packed house crowded
the Muvico Ybor theater
on April 11 for the screening of I
Am Divine, a documentary about the
legendary drag performer of John
Waters fame. The movie was shown by
the Tampa International Gay and Lesbian
Film festival as part of its monthly series.
Local favorite Alexis De La Mer made an
appearance dressed as the iconic star.
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
Palms
■ Trees
Photography
by Nick Cardello
C ardelloPhoto.com
watermarkonline.com
s er v i ci n g
or la n d o
&
t am p a
Arie Groen’s Property Maintenance
(727)505-0205 • [email protected]
April 25 - May 8, 2013 // Issue 20.09
watermark Your lgbt life.
55
It’s all about pride!
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[email protected]