Gary Carnivele

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Equality California Updates Its Mission to Reflect Evolving Priorities

Equality California, the largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization in California, today announced that it has updated its mission statement to more fully reflect the organization’s current and future focus.

While Equality California has historically focused the bulk of its efforts on achieving full equality for LGBT Californians by working for state level civil rights and pro-equality legislation and electing state-level, pro-equality candidates in California, the successes in achieving LGBT civil rights and protections in California allow the organization to focus on new priorities for the California’s LGBT community.

“As we successfully close the remaining gaps in our civil rights protections in California, our work is naturally evolving,” said Rick Zbur, EQCA executive director. “Going forward, we will use Equality California’s significant advocacy, education and mobilization capacity – along with its public policy and legislative expertise — to fight discrimination wherever it exists and advocate at all levels of government for programs that address the needs of the LGBT community.”

Equality California’s new mission reflects growth in three key areas: expanding the organization’s work on achieving full equality and acceptance for LGBT people to those outside of California as well as inside the state; ensuring the health and well being of LGBT Californians; and working for a fair and just society for everyone.

The most successful LGBT legislative advocacy organization in the nation, EQCA has sponsored and advanced more than 100 pieces of pro-equality legislation in the last 16 years. Partnering with social justice advocates, the faith community, businesses, grassroots supporters and legislative leaders, Equality California has strategically moved California from a state with extremely limited legal protections for LGBT people to the state with some of the most comprehensive human rights protections in the nation.

Building on this success, Equality California will use its unmatched effectiveness and expertise in legislative advocacy to work toward full and lasting equality for LGBT people both in California and across the nation. While most of the organization’s work has been within California, it has already begun to work for the full equality of LGBT people outside of California as well, from helping to turn back anti-LGBT legislation in Arizona, to advocating a boycott of the Dorchester Hotel Group, to successfully lobbying California’s pension fund, CalPERS, to divest from companies supporting torture of Russian LGBT youth.

This dovetails with Equality California’s ability to mobilize the power of California’s LGBT and ally communities to advance equality for LGBT people beyond California’s borders. Last month, EQCA successfully sponsored Assembly Joint Resolution 50, authored by Assemblymember Richard Bloom, which called on the Department of Health and Human Services and the Food and Drug Administration to end its discriminatory ban on blood donations from men who have sex with men. It will also be launching a mobilization program and petition drive aimed at ending this discriminatory ban.

Second, recognizing that LGBT Californians continue to suffer from disproportionate rates of poverty, suicide, homelessness, lack of insurance, and violence, EQCA will dedicate more resources to ensuring the health and well being of California’s LGBT community.

Through generous grants from the California Endowment, EQCA Institute already operates the highly effective Health Happens With Equality program, which helps the LGBT community’s most underserved and vulnerable members, including young people of color, homeless persons, undocumented persons and the transgender population, to sign up for health insurance. Going forward, EQCA will consult with leaders of LGBT and HIV/AIDS organizations to identify and prioritize key community needs and then deploy EQCA’s lobbying resources to ensure that programs receive adequate focus and funding in Sacramento.

Finally, Equality California believes in the core tenet of all civil rights movements, as articulated by Martin Luther King Jr.: Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Equality California recognizes its intersectional role as part of the broader civil rights movement and will work to ensure a fair and just California for everyone.

One of EQCA’s first priorities in this area will be working with allies and partners to call for comprehensive immigration reform. This addresses an issue that is critical to the well-being of many of the most vulnerable members of the LGBT community, including recent immigrants and their families.

The revised mission statement was approved at the September 20 meeting of the boards of directors of Equality California and Equality California Institute, EQCA’s educational affiliate.

“Equality California is evolving to meet the needs of California’s LGBT community,” said Andreas Meyer and Joyce Rowland, board presidents of EQCA and EQCA Institute respectively. “We’re excited that the boards of directors have adopted a new mission statement for the organization that reflects its priorities — specifically to achieve full and lasting equality for LGBT people both inside and outside of California, to ensure the health and well being of the LGBT community in California and to advocate for a fair and just society for all people.”

Equality California’s complete revised mission statement is available on its website.

Equality California is California’s premier statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization focused on creating a fair and just society. Our mission is to achieve and maintain full and lasting equality, acceptance, and social justice for all people in our diverse LGBT communities, inside and outside of California. Our mission includes advancing the health and well being of LGBT Californians through direct healthcare service advocacy and education. Through electoral, advocacy, education and mobilization programs, we strive to create a broad and diverse alliance of LGBT people, educators, government officials, communities of color and faith, labor, business, and social justice communities to achieve our goals. www.eqca.org

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Harvest of New Releases Yields a Musical Feast

Recently I was watching an episode of “The Goldbergs” entitled Mixtape. It made me think back to a time before the term “Mixtape.” I remember copying my mother’s records on to 8-Track Tapes for her to listen to her favorite songs in her car. I was a young teen then and luckily my mother appreciated new music as well as old stuff which only enhanced my music appreciation. Every once in a while I’d make her a tape of her old stuff and throw in something new of mine every third song. She is now passed but I kept that tradition going through the next format Cassettes and then CDs. I still do it today, mixing the old with the new. I’m the type that gets bored easily so I require variety to keep my interest flowing. I recently made myself a Mixtape from some new and well seasoned artists that I thought that our readers may delight in.

MELISSA ETHERIDGE – THIS IS M.E. – 10 SPOT MUSIC
I found it unbelievable that on her thirteenth release Melissa Etheridge sounds as crisp as her first release back in 1988. Even more surprising was the arena-rock content found throughout the set. Imagine numerous “I’m the Only One” inspired songs rolled into one package and that’s what you will enjoy in “This Is M.E.” Even though it’s a rocking piece her touch for the emotional ballad is not forgotten as the closing track “Who Are You Waiting For” revisits the tender side she captures equally as well.

BROKEN BELLS – AFTER THE DISCO – COLUMBIA MUSIC
The Broken Bells are pure ‘Electro-Heaven.’ After teasing the public with the single “Holding On For Life,” their second Album “After The Disco” contains many well crafted tracks which prevent repeating the same sound and expanding on that original idea. A morphed group with The Shins (James Mercer) and Danger Mouse Producer (Brian Burton) they remind me very much of the Finn Brothers old Split Enz group. Their first self titled outing from 2010 was strong on emotion and lyric, but After The Disco brings a slice of happy into the fold and the result is overwhelming satisfaction.

CHICAGO – NOW XXXVII – FRONTIERS MUSIC
Thinking about long forgotten sounds, the legendary band Chicago definitely comes to mind. Very few bands consistently carry the feel of “summer” in their catalog throughout the decades. “Now” is a return to the Chicago sound of the 70’s with brassy arrangements and their brand of jazz fused pop like only they can deliver. Gone are those high fructose Peter Cetera love crafted ballads of Lite FM Land. Yes, they had their place but that direction certainly stalled the groups’ output creatively. This new release has the remaining original members back on track showcasing what they originally planned; bringing horns into the rock showcase with complex melodies that give a new light to the average top 40 sound.

SAM SMITH – IN THE LONELY HOUR – CAPITOL MUSIC
Each year an artist emerges that simply takes your breath away. Some fade away to obscurity and some continue to amaze the public with each release. Sam Smith is one of those artists that will be heading into that playground in the coming years. White Boy soul singers are a dime a dozen but certain ones you just can’t shake. Classic contenders like Van Morrison, Steve Winwood, or Daryl Hall certainly fit the bill. Sam Smith has a very good start with his Gospel-influenced track “Stay With Me.” Even though it’s just a little under 3 minutes, it undoubtedly packs a punch that is unforgettable. “In The Lonely Hour,” as a whole, is nothing less than outstanding with many moods, but oddly the weakest moments are the upbeat tracks as they tend to come off sounding like predictable filler with each listen. Mr. Smith’s voice is his true instrument as he unswervingly drips with unbridled passion in a ballad. I hope he finds a way to carry that essence into a buoyant format as with conquering both formats the possibilities for him are endless.

TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS – HYPNOTIC EYE – WARNER BROTHERS MUSIC
There was a time when Tom Petty was considered underground. Looking back I can’t understand that classic rock singles like “Breakdown” and “American Girl” didn’t even make it on to Billboard Hot 100 Chart when released. Petty was unique in the beginning riding the fine line of Southern Rock and Alternative Rock in the later 70’s. His carefree vocal delivery and the slight blues feel of his guitar set him apart from others at the time. In the 80’s Music Videos shot him through the roof. Slick and clever production combined with his rawness became the ticket to making his mark in the industry. Future collaborations only strengthened that hold. Hypnotic Eye is return to that basic gruff he started with and has unpredicted results. His tone is a little lower but the strength in his delivery is ever present.

THE BLEACHERS – STRANGE DESIRE – RCA MUSIC
Jack Antonoff (Steel Train & Fun) has learned a lot of what works today with this new band. Shades of the 80’s Big Country, The Alarm, A-Ha and even U2 are layered throughout this synth-pop adventure and it sure helps to have Depeche Mode’s Vince Clark on board for credibility. The alternative landscape these days is all about energy. Aside from remixes the natural version of the song needs to be powerful for it to really work and The Bleachers have harnessed that moment here

TONY BENNETT & LADY GAGA – CHEEK TO CHEEK – STREAMLINE MUSIC
First I thought, such an odd paring, but it works in a sentimental way. Bennett is timeless and GaGa is surprisingly slick in this trip through torch and swing standards. The key to a project like this is having strong vocals and emotion that bursts uncontrollably with excitement. Tony Bennett is remarkable in this recording. Especially on the track “Firefly,” Bennett belts his lines like it was 1954. Compared to his smooth duets album with KD Lang, “Cheek To Cheek” let’s the man out of the box and shines a new light on Lady GaGa’s capabilities.

HOZIER – SELF TITLED – COLUMBIA MUSIC
Sometimes you stumble across a new artist that has a sound that can only be described as “epic.” When I say “epic” I mean Cecil B DeMille Technicolor Cinema-Scope Epic. Hozier is Andrew Hozier-Byrne, from Ireland, and he breaks into each track like a Twister with no place to land. Like Sam Smith, reviewed prior, the artist reaches into his soul with each chord, but what differs between the two is Hozier‘s music equals his powerful voice. Such intensity is forced to be shown, which is well displayed with the video against gay discrimination in Russia, for the song “Take Me To Church.“ You can view this on YouTube with the following link; http://youtu.be/MYSVMgRr6pw

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BLONDIE – GHOSTS OF DOWNLOAD – NOBLE ID MUSIC
It’s hard to distinguish a Blondie record from a Debbie Harry record, but in my book any new recording from this legend is a gift. The poster girl for early new wave is back with her band to celebrate their 40 years together even though they were mostly apart. In a special package you can get the new album  ‘Ghosts Of Download ‘ along with a Greatest Hits collection and an early DVD performance. Beware however the “Hits Package” are new re-recordings and the nicest thing I can say about that is some things are better left alone. As for the new songs there are 16 to choose from and with any Blondie album they are a mix of styles and some collaborations and generally good, but nothing landmark this time around. The one thing that differs is an odd remake of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s “Relax.” Most of the song is done in a ballad/harmony form, then morphs into a dance track. This really caught my attention and left me wanting more. It’s surely time for a Blondie/Debbie Harry album of covers.

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Two Simple Things HHS Can Do to Improve Health of LGBT People

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 In the last five years, the federal government has taken significant steps toward recognizing and addressing health disparities that affect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. These include increasing data collection about sexual orientation and gender identity; establishing new nondiscrimination provisions that cover sexual orientation and gender identity; and increasing research and prevention services targeting LGBT health.

But there are two more things that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services can do that will make an even bigger impact on closing the gap in healthcare disparities that exist among LGBT people and the general population: designate LGBT people as a medically underserved population (MUP) and as a Health Professional Shortage Area population (HPSA).

If HHS makes these designations, community health centers and other safety net providers will get access to desperately needed federal funding to reach out to LGBT people and provide them with culturally competent and affirming preventive care.

Currently, the LGBT population experiences health disparities that are significant both from a clinical and a public health perspective. Lesbians are more likely than heterosexual and bisexual women to be overweight and obese, which increases their risk for cardiovascular disease, lipid abnormalities, glucose intolerance, and morbidity related to inactivity. While lesbians and bisexual women experience cervical cancer at the same rate as heterosexual women, they are much less likely to get routine Pap tests to screen for cervical cancer. As a group, LGBT people are 1.5 to 2.5 times more likely than other Americans to smoke. Gay and bisexual men and transgender women experience high rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections, as well as high rates of violence victimization, minority stress, and mental health burden.

LGBT people experience barriers to accessing primary care. These barriers include a lack of providers trained to address the specific health care needs of LGBT people; low rates of health insurance coverage for same-sex couples and LGBT individuals, especially Black transgender people; and a lack of access to culturally appropriate health care, including preventive services such as mammography and other cancer screenings. Most importantly, LGBT people report widespread discrimination in health care. A recent national survey by Lambda Legal found that more than half of LGB respondents and 70% of transgender respondents report experiencing discrimination. A survey of 452 Massachusetts transgender residents that the Fenway Institute and the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition published this summer found that one in four transgender people did not seek routine health care, and one in five did not seek emergency care, due to prior experiences of discrimination in a health care setting.

All of this should qualify the LGBT population as both medically underserved and one for which there is a shortage of providers. Indeed, the Negotiated Rule Making Committee―which was convened under the Affordable Care Act in order to update methodologies to make MUP and HPSA designations–recommended overwhelmingly in October, 2011 that the Secretary of Health and Human Services designate LGBT people as an MUP and HPSA population group.

This fall, HHS Secretary Sylvia Matthews Burwell is considering making additional MUP and HPSA designations. A policy brief published last month by The Fenway Institute, the Center for American Progress, the Human Rights Campaign, and GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality urged HHS to make these designations. Implementation of the recommendations made in 2011 by the Negotiated Rule Making Committee will dramatically increase access to culturally and clinically competent health care for LGBT people, and could play a critical role in addressing persistent disparities in health care access and outcomes.

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Free Speech Demonstrators Subjected to Intimidation, Threats of Violence, and Homophobic Taunts

A successful protest, where several dozen people rallied in favor of free speech, was marred on Saturday, when a belligerent group of counter protesters, including two from what appeared to be a motorcycle gang, crashed the demonstration and threatened those in attendance, including a 14-year old boy arrested for “desecrating” a Jesus statue and Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. Incredibly, there was not a single police officer on-hand to prevent potential violence and this left the protesters vulnerable to thugs and forced them to fend for themselves.

“The Bedford police placed us directly in harms way and their inaction nearly caused a full-blown melee,” said Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “This is the first time in two decades of protesting that I’ve been put directly in harm’s way by town officials. We call on Bedford to immediately review its policies for protecting the free speech rights of those who demonstrate in their town.”

From the moment event organizers –Truth Wins Out, American Atheists, and Pennsylvania Nonbelievers – arrived in Bedford, PA, they were greeted by hostile counterdemonstrators. This included homophobic epithets lobbed at American Atheists President David Silverman. (9:12 and 9:25 on a You Tube video). A military veteran who was participating in our protest was called a “disgrace” to his country. (9:40)

Unfortunately, the local media covered a sanitized version of our protest – without highlighting the harassment. Check out a television report HERE and a newspaper report HERE. Given how menacing the bikers were, it is possible that media representatives were cowed by their glowering presence.

The fourteen year-old teenager, at the center of the controversy, joined our event with his mother. There was an attempt to accost him by the counterdemonstrator’s lead instigator. To protect the young man, Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director, Wayne Besen, stood between one of the black-clad motor bikers and the teenager. This led to a near fistfight, where Besen and the thug were standing toe to toe with the biker repeatedly challenging Besen to “take your best shot ‘slick,'” which was an apparent reference to the fact Besen was from Chicago. Pennsylvania Nonbelievers President Brian Fields soon joined and helped Besen block the hooligan from bullying the teen and his mother.

This entire episode was captured on video and uploaded to YouTube at roughly 2:25 PM (EST) on Saturday. Within 10 minutes the video was taken down. A new video that omits this incident was placed online later that evening — in what appears to be a deliberate effort to conceal and cover-up the confrontational words, clear threats, and near violence that occurred as we stood up to protect the teen.

The police were called and they arrived shortly to disperse the escalating confrontation. However, the question remains why they were not at the event from the beginning to keep the protest free of intimidation and violence?

“I am still greatly worried for the safety of the teenage boy and his family,” said Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “The young man was portrayed by the hooligans as a troublemaker, and they made it crystal clear that they intended to harass him or do harm. Additionally, the District Attorney, Bill Higgins, has stigmatized the teen as a ‘troubled young man’ and appears to have a vendetta against him. Make no mistake: If anything happens to this teenager or his family the town of Bedford is to blame and should be held legally accountable.”

Bedford County District Attorney Bill Higgins decided to prosecute the child under an obscure Pennsylvania law which states that “desecration” includes “physically mistreating [objects] in a way that the actor knows will outrage the sensibilities of persons likely to observe or discover the action.”

While Higgins maintains that he is simply an upstanding district attorney who wishes to uphold Pennsylvania law, his own statements on the case undermine that claim. In an interview with local media, Higgins stated:

“This troubled young man offended the sensibilities and morals of our community. His actions constitute a violation of the law, and he will be prosecuted accordingly. If that tends to upset the ‘anti-Christian, ban-school-prayer, war-on-Christmas, oppose-display-of-Ten-Commandments’ crowd, I make no apologies.”

“By making this incendiary statement, it is clear that Higgins is more of a frustrated right-wing ideologue than a responsible district attorney,” said TWO’s Wayne Besen. “Instead of fighting real crime, Higgins is fighting a culture war at the expense of an innocent teenager.”

The youth’s actions may have been in poor taste, but religious freedom does not include the right never to be offended by a teenager’s prank. Moreover, prosecution of this action is a clear violation of the teen’s own First Amendment rights. Additionally, the teenager acknowledged to TWO’s Besen at the event that he “regretted” his actions.

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Equality California Welcomes New Members to Its Board of Directors

Equality California, the largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization in California, announced today the election of 12 new members to its boards of directors.

“We are entering an important time in our organization’s history, and each of these individuals brings unique talents and areas of expertise that will help us meet the needs of California’s LGBT community,” said Rick Zbur, EQCA executive director. “As we move ahead, we will call upon this diverse group of individuals for their leadership and insight.”

Jerry Bloom, Los Angeles, is chair of the energy, project development and project finance group of the law firm of Winston & Strawn, and he serves on the firm’s executive committee. Bloom focuses his practice on the development, finance and operation of domestic and international independent energy projects, electric industry restructuring and privatization, and mergers and acquisitions. He has been recognized in The Best Lawyers In America every year since 2012 and has been named to the “Lawdragon 500: Leading Lawyers in America” list each year from 2007 through 2011. In 2011 the Daily Journal named Bloom among its first-ever top 25 clean tech lawyers in California.

Assemblymember Richard Bloom, Santa Monica, will join the board of Equality California Institute, EQCA’s educational affiliate. Bloom represents the 50th Assembly District, which stretches from Hollywood to Malibu. In the Assembly, Bloom focuses on fostering economic development and job creation, improving public school funding and outcomes, providing services for seniors and the disabled, ending homelessness and protecting California’s environment. A staunch advocate for LGBT equality, Bloom authored the recently passed and EQCA-sponsored Assembly Joint Resolution 50, urging an end to discrimination in blood donor procedures.

Assemblymember Joan Buchanan, Alamo, represents the 16th Assembly District in Northern California and will also join the board of Equality California Institute. A mother of five children, Buchanan is a leader in the assembly on youth, education, finance and technology. She also introduced The Pink Plate Bill to create a specialized license plate promoting breast cancer awareness and prevention.

Roberta Conroy, Los Angeles, returns to the EQCA board after previously serving on the EQCA Institute board from 2004–2006. She was a senior vice president at The Capital Group Companies, Inc. where she focused on Capital’s global institutional investment management business. Among her responsibilities, she served as a trustee of the Capital Group Foundation. She retired after 23 years with Capital and now dedicates significant time to community advocacy and philanthropy. She currently serves as a member of the Founder’s Council of the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, and of the board of directors of Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund. She served two terms as president of the Los Angeles City Retirement System, during which she was awarded a David Bohnett LGBT Leadership Fellowship at Harvard Kennedy School’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program.

Bill Delvac, Los Angeles, is a partner with Armbruster, Goldsmith & Delvac in Los Angeles. Delvac is one of the leading land use lawyers in California. He has worked on important entertainment and cultural venues, and has special expertise in historic preservation law and affordable housing. A committed non-profit and affordable housing advocate, Delvac was the founding president of the Hollywood Community Housing Corporation and Vibiana Arts Projects and has served on the Board of Directors for Partners for Sacred Places, Shelter Partnership and Homeless Health Care of Los Angeles. In 2007, Delvac was named Land Use Lawyer of the Year by California Lawyer Magazine. He was also honored as California Preservationist of the Year in 1996.

Susan Frank, Silicon Valley, is president and chief operating officer of The Better World Group and is known throughout California for her expertise in public policy development, coalition management, communications, lobbying and advocacy. From 1999 to 2007, Frank served in a variety of roles for the Bay Area-based Steven and Michele Kirsch Foundation including as president and CEO, and vice president of public policy. Prior to joining the Kirsh Foundation, she served as president and CEO of the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce in Palo Alto, California. Frank was recognized as a 2011 Woman of Influence in Silicon Valley by Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal. A dedicated leader in environmental protection and public health, she serves on the boards of a number of non-profit organizations including the California League of Conservation Voters, Communities for a New California and the International Green Industry Hall of Fame.

Mayor Robert Garcia, Long Beach, became the first openly gay and first Latino mayor of Long Beach in July. As a result of his election, Long Beach is the largest city in California with an openly LGBT mayor and the largest city in the U.S. with an openly LGBT mayor of color. Previously, as councilmember for Long Beach’s First District, Garcia supported public safety services, increased park space and helped reinvigorate downtown with events and support for new businesses. An immigrant from Lima, Peru, Garcia received EQCA’s Vanguard Leadership Award last Saturday, and was named one of the “40 Under 40” by The Advocate Magazine and one of Instinct Magazine’s Leading Men.

Julie Haddon, Silicon Valley, is the vice president of marketing at Scribd. Haddon is a marketing entrepreneur with 20 years experience at both startup and global consumer brands. As the founder of The Marketing Farm, a marketing strategy and advisory consulting business, her clients have included Twitter, LucasFilm, Disney and Google. At Scribd, Haddon is responsible for brand strategy, product marketing, communications and customer acquisition. Prior to Scribd, she served as head of social media at Zynga and senior director of social media at eBay, where she led product innovation, marketing and customer support. She also ran marketing and business development for the DreamWorks Animation unit that produced the Academy Award-winning film Shrek. She has taught social media marketing at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz School of Management in Pittsburgh.

Deanna Johnston, Sacramento, who joined the EQCA Board in April, is a legislative and community advocate for the California Nurses Association in Sacramento. She is a legislative expert and skilled coalition builder. Previously, she worked as a legislative staff member for Senator Alex Padilla and Senator Richard Alarcon.

Doug Moreland, Los Angeles, is a real estate professional with more than 30 years experience and expertise in public-private partnership negotiations, feasibility studies, acquisitions, entitlements, master planning, finance, development and construction management. He has led development teams on major projects including Hollywood Park, the Playa Vista planned community, the Disneyland Resort and the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort. He is currently a member of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation Board.

Supervisor Dave Roberts, Solana Beach, represents San Diego’s Third Supervisorial District and he joined the EQCA Board in April. Previously, he served as an appointed health policy advisor to President Obama and former President George W. Bush, where he earned national recognition for reducing costs and improving the delivery of Medicare, Medicaid and children’s health insurance coverage. Roberts lives in Solana Beach with his husband and has five adopted children.

Nancy Sutley, Los Angeles, is the chief sustainability officer for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Previously, Sutley served as chair of the Council on Environmental Quality from January 2009 to February 2014. Under Sutley, the CEQ has played a central role in shepherding the Obama Administration’s signature environmental accomplishments, working closely with federal agencies. Prior to her appointment as the chair of the CEQ, Sutley was the deputy mayor for energy and the environment for the City of Los Angeles. She represented Los Angeles on the board of directors for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. She served on the California State Water Resources Control Board from 2003-2005. Sutley was also energy advisor for California Governor Gray Davis, and deputy secretary for policy and intergovernmental relations at the California EPA from 1999-2003. During the administration of President Clinton, Sutley worked for the U.S. EPA as a senior policy advisor to the regional administrator in San Francisco and special assistant to the administrator in Washington, D.C.

“We welcome our new fellow board members, who bring diverse backgrounds and experience to EQCA that will only help to enrich us,” said Andreas Meyer and Joyce Rowland, board presidents of EQCA and EQCA Institute respectively. “As Equality California looks ahead, these new board members will help us to achieve our reinvigorated vision.”

Equality California is California’s premier statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization focused on creating a fair and just society. Our mission is to achieve and maintain full and lasting equality, acceptance, and social justice for all people in our diverse LGBT communities, inside and outside of California. Our mission includes advancing the health and well being of LGBT Californians through direct healthcare service advocacy and education. Through electoral, advocacy, education and mobilization programs, we strive to create a broad and diverse alliance of LGBT people, educators, government officials, communities of color and faith, labor, business, and social justice communities to achieve our goals. www.eqca.org

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“Dream Property” in Santa Rosa Will House Homeless Youth

Sutter Health last week transferred ownership of the former Warrack Hospital in east Santa Rosa to an organization with plans to convert it into transitional housing for disadvantaged young adults.

Sutter, which closed the Summerfield Road hospital in 2008, completed the donation of the property, valued at $9.5 million, at no cost to Social Advocates for Youth.

The social service organization plans to convert the building into up to 63 units of affordable housing and other services for 18- to 24-year-olds who are former foster children or at risk of homelessness.

The project, dubbed the Dream Center, sparked fierce opposition from some neighbors but enjoyed strong support from city and community leaders.

Matt Martin, executive director of SAY, said the organization had a lot of work to do behind the scenes to make sure the property transfer went smoothly.

“It’s a really valuable gift, so we just wanted to make sure it was done right,” Martin said.

The project is moving forward despite a lawsuit brought by neighbors who claim the environmental analysis of the project was flawed, Martin said.

Homelessness disproportionately effects LGBTQI youth, many of who are rejected by their families.  SAY is aware of this problem and tries to refer those who identify as LGBTQI to groups that may provide additional support,

The next steps are to get permit approval from the city and launch a fundraising campaign, he said.

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El Barrio to Open in Guerneville

Guerneville’s food and drink renaissance continues with the soon-to-open El Barrio cocktail lounge on September 27, 2014.  It’s the next in a series of food and drink projects by Crista Luedtke, who also owns big bottom market, boon eat+drink and boon hotel+spa.

The “Mexican modern cocktail lounge” will focus on spirits–bourbon, tequila and mezcal–rather than food, with a robust drink program developed by SF bartender and consultant Christina Cabrera (Novela, Range, Marlow, Michael Mina). Luedtke says the name, which translates as ‘the neighborhood’ is also a play on words “bar” and “rio”, or river bar.

The lounge replaces  Whitetail Winebar, and the revamped interior includes custom made Talavera tile and a graffiti wall installation by ‘the Apexer’, a SF based artists.

More details in the next couple weeks.

El Barrio, 16230 Main St., Guerneville, www.elbarriobar.com

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Christian Group at Sonoma State Runs Afoul of Anti-discrimination Policy

A newly enforced anti-discrimination policy at Sonoma State University has caused a Christian organization to lose its campus recognition and potentially thousands of dollars that come with being an officially sanctioned club.

The InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, a national student organization that has operated at SSU since 1962, was stripped of its campus recognition at the beginning of this school year as the California State University system began enforcing a three-year-old policy that prevents clubs from discriminating on the basis of race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, color, age, gender, marital status, citizenship, sexual orientation or disability.

InterVarsity accepts all members, but leaders of the group must be Christian and agree with doctrinal beliefs, said Jenny Klouse, the group’s area director.

“We agree with CSU that anyone can become a member,” she said. “Where we differ is at the leadership level. As a religious organization, it is important that our leaders have that faith, otherwise we’d cease to be a group founded on faith.”

The policy applies to some 160 organizations and clubs at SSU, said Heather Howard Martin, director of the Center for Student Leadership, Involvement and Service. Only fraternities and sororities are granted an exemption, in their case for gender.

All other student groups have complied with the policy, except the 190-member InterVarsity and the much smaller Christian group Athletes in Action, Howard Martin said. This includes other religious groups of Catholic, Jewish and Baha’i students.

“InterVarsity requires its leaders to sign a statement affirming their faith,” she said. “Groups can’t have requirements that limit the organization’s leaders based on faith.”

Enforcement of the anti-discrimination policy comes in the wake of a campus controversy last year, when a university employee asked a student, who was giving campus tours to prospective students, to remove a cross on a necklace she was wearing. The university, which was widely criticized after the incident, later apologized to the student.

Howard Martin said SSU’s latest action is meant to comply with an executive order from the chancellor of the CSU system.

“CSU has an all-comers policy of non-discrimination,” she said.

InterVarsity operates on 616 campuses nationally, including many public universities, and has only run into this issue at CSU, according to Greg Jao, InterVarsity’s national field director. Public institutions such as the Ohio State University, the University of Texas and the University of Florida have non-discrimination policies for campus organizations, but have exemptions for leaders of religious clubs such as InterVarsity, he said.

“The leaders should reflect the values of the group,” he said. “Groups should be able to say ‘We have been founded for a purpose.’ ”

Jao said InterVarsity will continue to work with the university, and is seeking an amendment to the policy that includes an exemption for leaders of religious organizations.

InterVarsity’s refusal to change its constitution to comply with the policy means it could lose out on access to student activity fees, which amount to a few thousand dollars per year, Klouse said. More costly, the group also can no longer reserve campus meeting space for free and can’t set up recruitment booths at university events.

The organization still meets on campus, at a cost of $1,000 per week, Klouse said. Students hold fundraisers to help pay for on-campus activities, service projects, leadership retreats and Bible study groups, and the national InterVarsity organization is helping with costs, she said.

Without booths at university events, the organization has had to get creative with recruitment, using social media and even guerrilla marketing to spread its message. At the school’s first event of the year, the Big Nite welcome back festival, InterVarsity members walked around with mobile banner stands — backpacks with signs attached to poles meant to spark conversations with other students.

Jenna Lehman, an InterVarsity team leader, said the techniques have actually helped with recruitment.

“It was good publicity,” she said.

“Our outreach is a little different this year, but we’ve been pretty present on campus. We’ve learned to adjust, and people are responding well. We are going to continue doing what we were called to do, which is spreading God’s message.”

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Criminalization of LGBT People and Those Living With HIV Threatens Global Progress Against AIDS

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When Uganda President Yoweri Museveni visited the White House during the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit last month, a high court had just overturned his country’s widely reviled “Anti-Homosexuality Law” which penalized “aggravated homosexuality” with life in prison, and criminalized the provision of services and support to gay people, threatening progress in that country’s long battle against HIV.
The elimination of the law, which President Barack Obama had warned Museveni would “complicate” the relationship between their two countries, allowed Museveni to focus on the summit, centered around growth, economic development, and the theme of “investing in the next generation.” In many sub-Saharan African countries, no greater threat to growth exists than the impact of HIV on human resources, development and income.

The irony is that by then, Museveni had apparently decided to sign the “HIV Prevention and Control Act,” a new setback to Uganda’s HIV fight. The law criminalizes HIV transmission and “attempted” transmission; forces involuntary testing on survivors of sexual assault, all pregnant women, and anyone who “unreasonably” withholds consent for testing; and encourages medical providers to divulge patients’ HIV status. In addition to promising a further erosion of human rights in Uganda, the law provides a powerful disincentive for Ugandans to risk criminal culpability by getting tested for HIV, or seek medical care at all. United States Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador Deborah Birx, who leads the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), Uganda’s longtime partner and funder in fighting its HIV epidemic , called on the government of Uganda to reject the bill when the parliament passed it in May.

While Museveni’s signature on the law, revealed only after the Washington summit, is dated July 31, 2014, reports say it was backdated, making it likely he signed the law after posting a photo to Twitter of himself between President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama. Either way, he signed it within a few days of meeting with U.S. leaders to discuss ways to foster growth and opportunity in Africa, while being aware that his support for such legislation was in conflict with the goals of PEPFAR, and the U.S. Government.

The latest law raises questions of how many opportunities have been squandered, not just during the week of the U.S.-Africa Leaders’ summit but also during the last decade of the global HIV response, to communicate the importance of human rights and sound public health approaches to “investing in the next generation.” Museveni was representing a country with grave human rights abuses enshrined in law. Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who signed his country’s anti-homosexuality law earlier this year, also attended. Other leaders represented countries that already had HIV criminalization laws, as well as laws abusing the rights of gay people, women, ethnic minorities, immigrants, and migrants, and other important populations to reach if these countries hope to have lasting success in controlling their national HIV epidemics.

To communicate the link between health and human rights, however, the United States has to set a credible example. The ability to do that is challenged by HIV criminalization laws on the books of at least 33 states in this country. It also is challenged by an inconsistency. President Obama rightly issued sanctions in response to Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Law, and those may have factored into the nullification of that law. However, PEPFAR had by then been funding activities for a decade at the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda, an organization that urged the signing of the Anti-Homosexuality Law, and then celebrated when it was signed. When their funding ended in the wake of the new law, the group’s leaders claimed surprise that their stance was held against them, apparently still unaware that homophobic abuse ran counter to the mission they had been enlisted to carry out.

A decade-long public health partnership between the U.S. and African countries should have clarified, by words, actions and example, that human rights are critical to success in stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS throughout the world, particularly in those countries hardest hit by the epidemic. Any new public health partnerships must make this a priority.

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Kenneth Mayer, MD is founder, Co-Chair, and Medical Research Director of The Fenway Institute, the research, training and health policy division of Fenway Health, an ambulatory facility caring for HIV-infected patients. He is also a professor at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health; attending physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston where he serves as director of HIV Prevention Research; and serves as co-chair of the Infectious Diseases Society of America’s Center for Global Health Policy that focuses on the U.S. response to HIV and TB globally.

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HRC Apologizes to Trans Community, Pledges Push for Broad LGBT Bill

In a gracious and surprising move, the president of the nation’s largest LGBT organization offered an apology to the transgender community at the same time he said the group would take a lead in advocating fully comprehensive federal LGBT civil-rights legislation.

“I want to cut right to the chase here today,” said Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin in Atlanta Friday, September 5, addressing several hundred people at the annual Southern Comfort conference, a major gathering for transgender people.

“There’s an elephant in this room, and, well, it’s me,” he said.

“So I am here today, at Southern Comfort, to deliver a message. … HRC has done wrong by the transgender community in the past, and I am here to formally apologize,” said Griffin.

As he explained, “I am sorry for the times when we stood apart when we should have been standing together.

“Even more than that, I am sorry for the times you have been underrepresented or unrepresented by this organization. What happens to trans people is absolutely central to the LGBT struggle. And as the nation’s largest LGBT civil rights organization, HRC has a responsibility to do that struggle justice, or else we are failing at our fundamental mission.”

Griffin’s speech also decried violence against transgender people, calling it a “national crisis.” He listed a number of ways HRC is working toward transgender equality in the workplace and toward raising the visibility of transgender persons through story telling. Griffin asked that both he and HRC be held “accountable.”

He reaffirmed that HRC would continue to press for a fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would ban workplace bias on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

But Griffin also pledged support for broader protections.

In the next Congress, he said, “HRC will lead the campaign for a fully-inclusive, comprehensive, LGBT civil rights bill. A bill with non-discrimination protections that don’t stop at employment, but that finally touch every aspect of our lives – from housing, to public accommodations, to credit, to federal funding, to the education we all need to succeed and thrive.

“And I’m going to keep being honest with you, this is not going to be an easy fight.”

HRC posted the text of Griffin’s 2,400-word speech on the organization’s blog (http://www.hrc.org/blog/entry/speaking-at-southern-comfort-2014).

 

A healing speech

HRC has long had a fraught relationship with the transgender community. Some progress was made by former leader Elizabeth Birch, when in 2003 the organization added the “T” to its goals and ostensibly included the entire LGBT community. But HRC has regularly been criticized for not reaching out to trans groups and not having many trans people on its board. Currently HRC has at least one trans-identified board member, Meghan Stabler of Austin, Texas.

In addressing Southern Comfort, Griffin aimed to heal the most recent rift between HRC and the transgender community, which dates back to 2007. That year Joe Solmonese, then HRC president, told Southern Comfort attendees that the organization would advocate federal employment protections, fully inclusive of sexual orientation and gender identity.

But when former Representative Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts) said that ENDA with gender identity provisions would not pass in Congress, HRC followed his lead and supported a measure inclusive only of protections for sexual orientation. Many transgender people felt betrayed by HRC’s backing of Frank, and a deep, if not bitter, divide ensued.

Locally, trans leaders attended what they described as an “angry and tense” meeting in January 2008 when Solmonese came to San Francisco to meet with them in an effort to mend fences.

More recently, while ENDA passed the Senate on November 7, 2013 by a 64-32 vote, marking the first time that legislative body approved federal civil rights legislation banning anti-LGBT employment bias, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has said repeatedly that he would not bring ENDA to a vote, claiming the legislation is unnecessary and would lead to frivolous litigation.

Meanwhile, a growing number of national and statewide LGBT organizations, including the Transgender Law Center and National Center for Lesbian Rights, have come out against the proposed ENDA, saying that while it bans workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, the federal law also would allow religious organizations to discriminate against LGBTs even in non-ministerial or pastoral capacities.

Currently, 21 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have laws barring workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation, with 17 states and D.C. also barring discrimination based on gender identity.

 

Transgender activists, leadership pleased

Transgender activists and organizational leaders said they are heartened by Griffin and HRC’s reconciliatory outreach. Those who spoke with the Bay Area Reporter were not at the conference, but all were aware of Griffin’s remarks.

“I believe Griffin’s speech may well prove a milestone in the relationship between HRC and the trans community, if the organization follows through on its promises,” said North Brunswick, New Jersey-based Rebecca Juro, a transgender woman, freelance journalist, and radio talk show host, who has often been critical of HRC.

In email correspondence, she added, “I think the greatest sense of betrayal felt by the trans community about HRC revolves around the organization’s advocacy in the past of legislation that didn’t include gender identity and expression protections. Griffin not only pledged that the organization would only support fully-inclusive legislation, but also announced an effort to pass an omnibus bill that would include protections not only for LGBT people in employment, but also in housing, health care, credit, public accommodations, federal funding, and education. I believe that’s important, particularly because it challenges the notion that the piecemeal approach to LGBT rights we’ve seen thus far at the federal level is the only way to go.”

Transgender activist, blogger, and columnist Autumn Sandeen of San Diego also voiced praise for HRC’s bridge-building gesture.

“Chad Griffin apologizing to trans people, identifying a path to change the relationship between the HRC and trans community, and then asking to hold the HRC and him to account is important,” she said in an email. “That he made the apology where one of the HRC’s most significant breakings of faith toward trans community began as well signals a real sincerity. I’m hopeful – I’m optimistic – that Chad Griffin and the HRC will make good on this Southern Comfort conference delivered promise to trans community.”

Some local trans leaders said the apology was “overdue.”

Masen Davis, executive director of the Transgender Law Center Photo: Courtesy TLC

Masen Davis, executive director of the Oakland-based Transgender Law Center, said in a phone interview that he was “very impressed by the content and what seemed to be the spirit behind the speech at Southern Comfort,” even though “it was in many ways long overdue to approach the transgender community and apologize for what happened in 2007.”

“While that debacle did not happen on Chad’s leadership, I thought it was an important step forward to acknowledge it and pledge to work differently with the transgender community,” Davis added.

With respect to ENDA, Davis said TLC is supportive of “any effort to secure strong [employment] non-discrimination protections for LGBT people at the federal level” provided that the protections “are strong and that they stand the test of time and protect all members of our community, including those who work for religious institutions.”

He also voiced support for Griffin’s call for an omnibus, federal LGBT civil rights measure.

“I am a big believer that we have an important responsibility to ensure that our communities get the protections that they need,” Davis said. “Obviously, employment is so critical, but employment is just one of the many areas that we need to make sure our people are protected.”

Davis cited other areas, including housing discrimination, health care discrimination and discrimination in credit.

“All areas of life where LGBT people run into challenges and to the extent that the federal government has any jurisdiction,” he said.

Davis acknowledged that it will likely take time before a broader LGBT civil rights law is passed in Congress.

“It may take time for that to be crafted and get the champions we need for its passage,” Davis said. “But it wasn’t that long ago that people were concerned that marriage would not get the support it needed, and here we are with a slew of marriage victories. I think we need to set high standards for ourselves and our community and start putting forward the kinds of legal support we need and deserve.”

Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said Griffin’s speech was “an important moment in HRC’s relationship with the transgender community.”

“It took guts for Chad to acknowledge that HRC has made some past mistakes without attempting to gloss over the pain and mistrust those mistakes have caused,” Minter said in an email. “I give him huge credit for stepping up and taking that on, even though he was not at the helm when those mistakes were made. That shows true leadership and foresight. I think his remarks were heartfelt and that he is genuinely committed to including transgender people in HRC’s work, which is essential if we are to continue to make progress.”

Looking beyond Griffin’s Southern Comfort speech, Minter said that “the biggest challenge for HRC and all of the national organizations in doing effective advocacy for transgender people is to find ways to stay in touch with what is happening on the ground and to support local transgender activism and leaders, especially transgender leaders of color who far too often are passed over when it comes to funding, visibility, and credit.”

In his remarks, Griffin mentioned the leadership of Davis and Minter, among others, as an “inspiration” to the LGBT movement and “to me personally,” he said.

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