LGBTQI History: A Sonoma County Timeline 1947-2000
Wednesdays 1:30-3pm. Online via Zoom through SRJC
LifeLong Learning. On Wednesday, March 6, our topic will be SoCo
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The government of Nepal should urgently create a clear, simple, and rights-respecting procedure that would allow transgender and third gender people to obtain official documents in accordance with their gender identity, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. While Nepali policy allows in principle for transgender to people to obtain documents marked “other,” implementation is piecemeal and those who want “male” or “female” as their legal gender are forced to undergo invasive and unnecessary medical interventions and examinations.
The 67-page report, “‘We Have to Beg So Many People’: Human Rights Violations in Nepal’s Legal Gender Recognition Practices,” documents the significant policy gaps that remain in the implementation of Nepal’s legal recognition for transgender people, despite global recognition of Nepal’s progress. Nepal’s pioneering recognition of a third gender “other” category based on self-identification garnered widespread praise and made Nepal an important touchpoint for the rights of sexual and gender minorities. But Nepal has no explicit legal option to change a gender marker to “male” or “female,” and even the procedure for the third gender option is unclear and ad hoc. Interactions between transgender people and the state have become particularly fraught with discriminatory, ill-informed, and requirements for harmful medical practices.
“We began the fight for our dignity in 2001 and we secured a major victory at the Supreme Court in 2007, but the government has not yet implemented the order to recognize us based on our identities,” said Manisha Dhakal, executive director at the Blue Diamond Society, an LGBT rights organization.“Generations of transgender and third gender Nepalis have faced barriers and humiliation because of policy gaps, and we need real change now.”
In 2007, the first Supreme Court judgment on sexual orientation and gender identity ordered the government to take three steps: audit all laws and scrap those that discriminated on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity; form a committee to study same-sex marriage policy options; and legally recognize a third gender category based on an individual’s own self-identification. The judgment in Pant et al. v. Nepal (2007) has been cited by courts around the world, including the Supreme Court of India, courts in the United States considering gender on passports, and the European Court of Human Rights, as a positive example. However, Nepali authorities continue to lag in carrying out the court’s order to recognize gender identity on the basis of self-identification.
Human Rights Watch found that some people – including people pursuing documents that list them as “third gender” or “other” – have been denied documents changing their gender or wrongly told they must undergo surgery to be eligible. A small number of people have been able to change their documents from “male” to “female,” but doing so invariably involves an invasive and humiliating physical exam in a medical setting, an experience that is rife with human rights violations.
“Trans women are women and trans men are men, and Nepal needs to match its reputation as a so-called beacon of hope for sexual and gender minorities with comprehensive policy change to respect our rights,” said Rukshana Kapali, chief executive officer at Queer Youth Group Nepal. “Nepal got a lot of credit for instituting the third gender option on citizenship certificates, but it is not implemented consistently, and it does not uphold the rights of people who identify as women and men.”
Human Rights Watch conducted the research for this report between August 2022 and December 2023. A researcher interviewed 18 transgender people and 1 intersex person who had attempted to change their legal gender or had not undertaken the process due to various barriers, as well as activists who help others undertake the legal gender recognition process, and government officials.
International human rights law and global medical standards of care support the complete separation of medical and legal processes with regard to gender transition. People seeking transition-related medical interventions should not face legal barriers, and people attempting to change their legal gender and name should not be required to undergo any medical procedures. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health, an international, multidisciplinary professional association, “opposes all medical requirements that act as barriers to those wishing to change legal sex or gender markers on documents.” The organization stated that “[m]edical and other barriers to gender recognition for transgender individuals may harm physical and mental health.”
The Yogyakarta Principles – drafted and signed in 2006 by a group of experts, including a former Nepal parliament member, Sunil Babu Pant – state that each person’s self-defined sexual orientation and gender identity is “integral to their personality” and is a basic aspect of identity, personal autonomy, dignity, and freedom. The principles are clear that gender recognition may involve, “if freely chosen, modification of bodily appearance or function by medical, surgical or other means.” Put simply, the process for legal recognition should be separate from any medical interventions. But if an individual’s personal transition process requires medical support, those services should be available and accessible.
Based on the Yogyakarta Principles, the Supreme Court in 2007 said that “self-feeling” is central to securing the rights of transgender people. Subsequent court decisions have further emphasized this principle. Nepal authorities should consistently apply this principle, and its application should not allow medical practitioners or bureaucrats to confirm or deny an applicant’s self-declared gender identity, Human Rights Watch said.
Nepal’s lack of a clear procedure for self-declaration of gender identity has led to decisions in individual cases based on government officials’ perceptions rather than the person’s “self-feeling.” Trans people who approach different administrative offices are given different advice and instructions, which sometimes contradicts what their peers are told for the same process elsewhere. One trans woman interviewed said: “The state just throwing in medical steps is a way they think they’re stabilizing something that was confusing, whereas we experience it as yet another barrier and yet another way in which we have to beg for our rights.”
“Forcing our community to undergo medical procedures that are expensive, unavailable, and in many cases unwanted by the individuals themselves, is a violation of our rights,” said Simran Sherchan, executive director at the Federation of Sexual and Gender Minorities-Nepal. “International consensus is that medical procedures for transitioning and legal procedures for transitioning need to be completely separated, and Nepal needs to make that clear.”
The 2022 election cycle saw a record 141 Black out LGBTQ+ people run for office in the U.S. — but these candidates still face enormous obstacles, says a new report.
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The obstacles include not only racism, homophobia, and transphobia but also financial challenges, a lack of role models, unfair media coverage, and more, according to the report, “When We Run: The Campaign Trail Experiences of Black LGBTQ+ Candidates,” released Tuesday. It comes from the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute and Loyola Marymount University’s LGBTQ+ Politics Research Initiative.
It analyzes data from a larger study by the two groups, 2023’s “When We Run: The Motivations, Experiences and Challenges of LGBTQ+ Candidates in the United States.” For that study, they surveyed LGBTQ+ people who ran for office in the U.S. between 2018 and 2022. With 470 respondents, it was the largest survey ever of LGBTQ+ candidates. Forty-seven of the respondents identified as Black and LGBTQ+ — about the same as the proportion of Black office-seekers among LGBTQ+ candidates overall during that period.
It looks at the responses from those 47 Black LGBTQ+ candidates and other Victory Institute data to explore the state of Black LGBTQ+ representation in the U.S.; the challenges Black LGBTQ+ candidates face when running for office; priority issues and the importance of LGBTQ+ identity on the campaign trail; and steps to confront racism, homophobia, and transphobia in political institutions and environments.
“Black LGBTQ+ people remain severely underrepresented in elected office — in part because of the obstacles cited in this report — with devastating consequences for Black LGBTQ+ people and all Americans,” the study notes. “Not having Black LGBTQ+ people fairly represented in the halls of power often leads to a lack of focus on, or outright opposition toward, policies that can positively impact their lives. It also contributes to a larger threat to American democracy, as Black LGBTQ+ people may disengage from running or voting without their voices represented.”
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There are 142 out LGBTQ+ Black people in elected office in the U.S., just 0.03 percent of all officeholders, when Black LGBTQ+ people account for 0.5 percent of the U.S. adult population. “To achieve equitable elected representation … 2,453 more Black LGBTQ+ people would need to be elected to office in the U.S.,” the report says.
Concerning challenges, 36 percent of respondents cited racism as one of the top challenges in their campaign, while 31.9 percent mentioned homophobia and 10.6 percent cited transphobia. “Every endorsing political organization I encountered demanded respectability politics,” one respondent said. “At each instance I encountered thinly veiled anti-Black racism or homophobia.” Many encountered homophobic or transphobic harassment while campaigning.
Other challenges included lack of support from political organizations; difficulty in fundraising; lack of role models; and double standards in media coverage.
Respondents to the report remained anonymous, but some Black LGBTQ+ officeholders have spoken about these challenges on the record. Rhode Islandstate Sen. Tiara Mack, the first out queer Black person in the legislature, told The Advocate she’s encountered intense homophobia during her campaigns and while in office. “I have been called a pedophile; I have been called a groomer,” she said, adding that few people defended her when that happened.
Mack, who is in her second term, found that when she first ran for office at age 25 in 2020, she found that some people didn’t take her seriously — they didn’t think a young queer Black person had the skills to be a lawmaker. She has proved she has the skills, but she hasn’t always gotten credit from media outlets, which were more interested in covering her twerking in a video than reporting on bills she’d gotten passed — sealing eviction records and making Juneteenth a paid state holiday, among others.
Also, Black candidates often don’t have access to the financial resources that white people do. She’s been asked why she can’t ask family members for $1,000, the maximum individual campaign contribution in Rhode Island, but most of her relatives couldn’t afford that, she pointed out.
Langston Bowen
To improve the situation for Black LGBTQ+ candidates, she suggested upping support from the larger community and making these candidates more visible. The report from Victory Institute and Loyola Marymount echoes that, recommending that political parties and endorsing organizations make more resources available, both financial and otherwise; offer networking opportunities; increase diversity in staff and leadership; and identify and fight racism, homophobia, and transphobia.
Mississippi Rep. Fabian Nelson, a Black gay man who’s the first member of the LGBTQ+ community in that state’s legislature, said that simply showing people who he is and his commitment to advocating for policies that benefit all were factors that helped him overcome challenges.
In his campaign for office last year, he emphasized economic development, Medicaid expansion, and full funding for education. There has already been progress in the legislature on two of those issues — the state has funded two of the largest economic development projects in its history, and a Medicaid expansion bill is coming to the floor this week. He’s still working on education, he noted.
He has embraced some other projects as well, such as sponsoring a bill establishing a Purple Alert, similar to an Amber Alert, for when people with cognitive issues, such as autism, go missing, and making sure that law enforcement response is appropriate. It passed the Mississippi House unanimously and will come up in the Senate soon.
“I see so many of our politicians dropping the ball — I think I can do a better job than they’re doing,” he said.
Black LGBTQ+ Americans have much to offer regarding a variety of issues, the report notes. “Black LGBTQ+ candidates often mentioned housing, healthcare and employment as issues central in their campaigns — and often emphasized how these issues disproportionately affect Black and Brown LGBTQ+ people,” the document says.
“Our experiences are vital,” Mack added. Black LGBTQ+ people, she pointed out, are often experts on homelessness, gun safety, wealth inequality, and many other concerns, and it’s to everyone’s benefit when their stories are included in the political discourse.
“It’s hard to say how monumental that is” to have people with diverse experiences making public policy, Nelson remarked. “When you have a person who’s walked in those shoes, it hits differently.”
“Black LGBTQ+ leaders must be in the halls of power to ensure their unique perspectives are considered in policies that impact LGBTQ+ and Black people,” the report concludes. “When in office, their presence restores a belief in democracy, as others see themselves reflected in government. It encourages more people to participate by running themselves, campaigning for candidates and showing up at the ballot box. And when in office, Black LGBTQ+ leaders change the hearts and minds of colleagues and transform the legislative and policy debates, leading to more inclusive legislation and a better democracy.”
Less than two months into 2024, lawmakers in at least 13 states have introduced legislation that could disrupt libraries’ services and censor their materials. The new wave of bills follows a historic year of book challenges, mainly affecting titles centered on the topics of race, gender identity or sexual orientation.
“The American Library Association condemns in the strongest terms possible legislation in more than a dozen states that would threaten librarians and other educators with criminal prosecution for doing their jobs,” said Deborah Caldwell-Stone, the director of the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, in a statement. “This is not a culture war; it’s a threat to our democracy.”
Caldwell-Stone added, “Nowhere have we witnessed attacks on education like those currently proposed in Wisconsin.”
The Wisconsin Legislature is considering a bill to take away protections from library employees being prosecuted on charges of possessing “obscene” materials by removing public, private and tribal schools from the list of institutions exempt from prosecution for obscene materials violations.
“Those who would prosecute librarians and teachers would divert precious education resources to defending frivolous lawsuits and policing our nation’s most trusted institutions and community anchors: libraries and schools,” Caldwell-Stone said.
In Idaho, a bill proposes to prohibit librarians from making materials that include sexual conduct available to minors. Homosexuality is included in that category alongside sexual intercourse and masturbation.
Caldwell-Stone said the American Library Association is familiar with “attempts to rewrite obscenity statutes” to encompass specific books and topics, and she said she considers it a form of discrimination.
Obscenity laws in the majority of the states provide exemptions and are designed to prevent legal action against school, museum and library employees, who typically provide access to a breadth of materials.
Revoking those exemptions would mean schools and libraries would have to spend more time and resources on defense against scrutiny, Caldwell-Stone said.
She added that making cases for published resources to be considered obscene must be conducted by judges and juries with evidence brought forward by prosecutors.
“We’re seeing attempts by advocacy groups to file criminal charges against librarians and educators for books that they would like to see out of the library, and over and over again, these prosecutors decline to prosecute because there is absolutely no evidence that the books meet the most minimal standards for obscenity under the Miller Test,” she said.
The Miller Test is the U.S. Supreme Court’s legal test to determine what works are obscene. A book, a picture or a film is classified as obscene if it “describes or shows sexual conduct in a patently offensive way” or “lacks serious literary, artistic, political, educational, or scientific value.”
On Feb. 9, the Utah Senate Education Committee advanced a bill to amend provisions to identify and remove ”indecent material.” Another bill would allow public school employees in the state to be charged if “objectively sensitive” materials were made available to students.
“To open the door to the prosecution of librarians and educators for doing the work we ask them to do is to allow one individual or one group to dictate what our students learn according to their personal beliefs, regardless of the beliefs and choices of other families in the community,” Caldwell-Stone said.
The material that would be most affected includes information about puberty, reproductive health, gender identity and sexual orientation, Caldwell-Stone said.
“These books touch on topics that don’t match the values or tastes of some groups but are absolutely wanted and needed by other members of the community, and they should be able to find those books in a publicly funded library,” she said.
In addition to changing obscenity laws, some states are moving ahead with legislation that would make library board elections more frequent and create committees to process requests to move materials.
Some states are considering legislation that could target drag performers. Iowa state Sen. Sandy Salmon introduced a bill in January that could make it a crime for someone involved in a similar event at a public library to expose minors to an “obscene performance,” defined as one that includes sexual acts or “appeals to the prurient interest and is patently offensive.”
“These efforts are simply an attempt to intimidate and chill librarians and educators from serving everyone in their community,” Caldwell-Stone said.
Other state legislatures are considering changes to obscenity laws this year, including Wyoming’s, Nebraska’s and Indiana’s. Caldwell-Stone said that it is still early in legislative sessions and that initial hearings and cost concerns could affect whether the bills pass.
Ghana’s parliament passed legislation on Wednesday that intensifies a crackdown on the rights of LGBTQ people and those promoting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer identities in the West African country.
Gay sex was already punishable by up to three years in prison. The bill now also imposes a prison sentence of up to five years for the “wilful promotion, sponsorship, or support of LGBTQ+ activities.”
The bill, one of the harshest of its kind in Africa, still needs presidential assent to come into force. President Nana Akufo-Addo has not confirmed if he will sign the bill into law.
A coalition of Christian, Muslim, and Ghanaian traditional leaders sponsored the legislation.
| Join the Sonoma County Library for events throughout the month of March, from live music to college scholarship workshops. All events are free and you don’t need a library card to attend; registration is required for select events. See some of our March events below! |
| All Ages |
| Join local artists Erica Ambrin, Kayatta, and Eki Shola at the Petaluma Library on Saturday, March 2, at 2:00 pm for POWERSOUL! This performance weaves together music and conversation to amplify Black artists in Sonoma County, and is made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. |
| Caro Pierotto: SambalismoEnjoy the vocal stylings of Brazilian singer Caro Pierotto! From original songs to covers in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, prepare to be captivated. At three libraries: Guerneville, Sebastopol, and Rincon Valley. |
| Kids |
| Seeds and Reads: Saving WildflowersLearn about the importance of wildflowers to our ecosystem and receive your own flower press to practice the art of preserving flowers. For grades K-6. At six libraries: Healdsburg, Windsor, Northwest Santa Rosa, Roseland, Sonoma Valley, and Petaluma. |
| Ancestral Sounds of MesoamericaJoin Jesus Bravo for an exploration of hand carved Mesoamerican instruments. Jesus will explain how the instruments were created and used, and play some music! For grades K-6. At three libraries: Northwest Santa Rosa, Cloverdale, and Central Santa Rosa. |
| Teens |
| Celebrate Women’s History Month with your library! Join us for a discussion featuring author Janna Barkin and panelists sharing their experience and perspectives as transgender women. For teens and adults. At the Central Santa Rosa Library on Wednesday, March 6, at 6:00 pm. |
| Paying for College with ScholarshipsJoin scholarships advisor Becca Lippman for three interactive workshops that teach students and parents how to find, apply for, and manage scholarships. For grades 9-12. At two libraries: Northwest Santa Rosa* and Rincon Valley. *Spanish interpretation available. |
| Adults |
| UC Master GardenersLearn about home gardening, pest management, water conservation practices, and more! At four libraries: Sebastopol, Cloverdale, Windsor, and Rincon Valley. And don’t miss the succulent swap on March 30 at the Petaluma Library! |
| Tortillas and Salsa Making Workshops Salome Arenas returns to guide you in making handmade tortillas and preparing salsa in a molcajete. The class will use tortilla pressers and induction cooktops; recommended for ages 13 and up. At three libraries: Cloverdale, Northwest Santa Rosa, and Rincon Valley. |
| Looking for more? Explore the full calendar! Explore the Calendar |
| Thank you for being a member of the Sonoma County Library community. Visit us online or in person at one of our branches. Be sure to check out open jobs at Sonoma County Library here. Questions? Please call your local library branch or click here to send us a message. Eventos en marzo Únete a la Biblioteca del Condado de Sonoma para eventosdurante todo el mes de marzo, desde música en vivo hasta talleres de becas universitarias. Todos los eventos son gratuitos y no necesitas una tarjeta de la biblioteca para asistir; es necesario registrarse para eventos seleccionados. ¡Echa un vistazo a nuestros eventos de marzo a continuación! |
| Todas las edades |
| ¡Únete a los artistas locales Erica Ambrin, Kayatta y Eki Shola en la Biblioteca de Petaluma el sábado 2 de marzo a las 2:00 pm para POWERSOUL! Esta actuación combina música y conversación para amplificar a los artistas negros en el condado de Sonoma y es posible en parte por el Instituto de Servicios de Museos y Bibliotecas. |
| Caro Pierotto: Sambalismo¡Disfruta de los estilos vocales de la cantante brasileña Caro Pierotto! Desde canciones originales hasta versiones en portugués, español e inglés, prepárate para ser cautivado. En tres bibliotecas: Guerneville, Sebastopol y Rincon Valley. |
| Niños |
| Semillas y libros: Salvando las flores silvestresAprende sobre la importancia de las flores silvestres para nuestro ecosistema y recibe tu propia prensa para practicar el arte de preservar las flores. Para los grados K-6. En seis bibliotecas: Healdsburg, Windsor, Northwest, Roseland, Sonoma Valley y Petaluma. |
Detectives from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, West Hollywood Station, are reaching out to the public for help in identifying a suspect involved in an assault with a deadly weapon incident. The victim was identified as a West Hollywood Security Ambassador.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday, February 15th, 2024, at around 1:20 a.m., within the 7300 block of Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood. According to reports, two suspects confronted the victim, resulting in an assault during a verbal argument.
Prompt response from West Hollywood Station Deputies led to the apprehension of one suspect, who was arrested in connection with the assault. However, the second suspect remains at large, and authorities are seeking assistance in identifying this individual.
The outstanding suspect is described as a male adult, aged approximately 30-40 years old, standing at 5’10” and weighing around 190 lbs.
Authorities have provided video footage of the incident, available for viewing at this link: LASD Video Portal.
The investigation remains ongoing, and anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact Detective J. Morales at (310) 358-4058 or via email at jjmorale@lasd.org.For those who wish to remain anonymous, Crime Stoppers can be reached at (800) 222-8477 or online at www.p3tips.com.
A 16-year-old boy is recovering after he was stabbed and beaten by a group of attackers yelling racist and antigay slurs on a popular Southern California beach. Video of the attack has been circulating among local high schools, and the victim’s mother is reaching out for help.
The attack took place on Saturday, February 10, at Dockweiler Beach just west of Los Angeles International Airport and directly under the flight path of departing planes.
The victim’s mother, identified only as Frankie, told local CW affiliate KTLA that her son was attending a party promoted on social media when a friend was attacked by a group of five to six teens.
“My son was helping a friend,” the mother explained. “He helped get her up off the ground and then a guy just asked him to stop and then my son just wanted to help his friend. The guy asked him if he wanted to fight, and my son didn’t want to fight him.”
The group attacked her son, beating and kicking him, and stabbing him three times in the back while yelling racist and antigay slurs.
The attack was caught on a disturbing video that shows the victim lying on the ground trying to protect his head and chest as he is repeatedly punched and kicked by the group of teens. The group can be heard yelling and taunting the teen throughout the attack.
Frankie said her son suffered a punctured lung, a concussion, severe bruising around the face, and internal bleeding that left him in intensive care.
Frankie said video of the attack has been circulating on social media and shared amongst students at local high school. She believes her son’s attackers are students at one of the schools, and she now wants to relocate her family out of fear for her son’s safety.
Police told KTLA they are aware of the video and investigating, but have yet to confirm if the incident is being treated as a hate crime.
A GoFundMe page has been created to help defray the family’s medical and other related expenses at @c4dw9w-donta. The page has currently raised $10,000 of a $50,000 goal.
An independent non-profit think tank based in the US has created an interactive map to show which states in the US are safest for LGBTQ+ people to live and work – and which are not.
The Movement Advancement Project (MAP) has tracked LGBTQ+ laws and policies across the country, including relationship and parental recognition, nondiscrimination, religious exemptions, LGBTQ+ youth, health care, criminal justice, and accessing identity documents.
It has then scored each state based on those laws and policies – the higher the score, the more protective its laws are towards LGBTQ+ people while the lower the score a state receives, the more harmful its policies are towards LGBTQ+ people. The states are then put into five categories: High, Medium, Fair, Low, and Negative.
States must score between 75 to 100% of possible points to end up in the High category, between 50 to 74.9% for the Medium category, between 25 to 49.9% for the Fair category, 0 to 24.9% for the Low category, and less than zero to be placed in the Negative category.
The interactive map is colour-coded, with states highlighted in red being places where LGBTQ+ people have barely any protection under the law or are actively stopped from living freely as an LGBTQ person and thus have scored negatively on MAP’s criteria. This includes Texas, Arkansa, Oklahoma, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Montana, South Dakota, Missouri, Indiana, Tennessee, South Caroline, and Louisiana.
By comparison, states who score in the highest category are highlighted in green on the map are considered places where LGBTQ+ people are safest and offered the most amount of protection under the law.
This includes states like California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, New York, Vermont, Illinois, Minnesota, Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Maryland, and Washington D.C.
MAP is keen to stress that their map only reflects existing laws and policies that are already in place and not does include bills currently under consideration by the state legislature nor does it look at how each state enforces these laws.
“These scores are an excellent measure of the current LGBTQ policy landscape across a wide range of issues, but the scores do not necessarily reflect the entire political or social landscape for LGBTQ people,” it writes.
According to the organisation’s research, 27% of the overall LGBTQ+ population in the US currently live in states with low scores while 44% of the overall LGBTQ+ population live in states with high scores.
The think tank was founded in 2006 with the mission to “create a thriving, inclusive, and equitable America where all people have a fair chance to pursue health and happiness, earn a living, take care of the ones they love, be safe in their communities, and participate in civic life”.
The first man was found dead in the driver’s seat of his car on March 20. He’d been shot twice — once in the head and once in the back. He’d been led to the area, north of downtown Phoenix, for what authorities described as a sexual encounter with another man.
The second victim, who family members have said was openly gay, was discovered in a park eight months later, in November. He’d been shot and mutilated in a manner that a cousin said reminded her of a horror movie.
Last month, three people were charged with various crimes in the November killing of Bernardo “Bernie” Pantaleon, 30. A fourth suspect was arrested and later released after prosecutors asked police to continue investigating.
One of the suspects, Leonardo Santiago, 21, later confessed to the March killing of Osvaldo Hernandez Castillo, 20, officials said, and he has since been indicted on first-degree murder charges in both cases. He has pleaded not guilty. No one else has been charged in Hernandez Castillo’s death.
Authorities have not accused the suspects of targeting gay men — despite calls from Pantaleon’s family to charge them with hate crimes in connection with his killing.
Law enforcement documents allege Santiago initially told authorities he killed Bernie over an “unwanted advance.” The documents also suggest there was a sexual relationship between Santiago and Hernandez Castillo.
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Juan Pantaleon said a conversation days after the November death leaves little doubt as to why his cousin was killed.
In the online conversation, which occurred in a group chat and was included in a probable cause statement from the Phoenix Police Department, some of the suspects made “derogatory remarks regarding the victim’s sexuality and a derogatory statement about homosexuals not being allowed in the northside” of Phoenix.
“There’s more than enough evidence here,” Juan said. “It’s clear as day to everybody who sees this — he was targeted for being gay.”
Juan said his family has pleaded with local and federal prosecutors to pursue hate crime charges. To their great frustration, he said, they’ve made little headway, prompting the family to call for a reform to the state’s hate crime statute.
In Juan’s view, calling the crime what he believes it is is key to heading off an inaccurate and demeaning portrayal of the murder — “another brown-on-brown gang crime,” Juan said. (Authorities have charged the suspects with assisting in a criminal street gang. Bernie, who worked for a local author and sold e-cigarettes for extra income, was “absolutely” not in a gang, Juan said.)
Another of Bernie’s cousins, Gasdeli Pantaleon, said she hoped the family’s effort might offer a measure of protection to Arizona’s LGBTQ community.
In an email to Juan last month, Jordan Uglietta, a Maricopa County prosecutor trying the case, said the state has no hate crime charge, but that state law allows prosecutors to allege bias against a person’s sexual identity as an “aggravating circumstance” that can help secure a stiffer prison sentence.
“The prosecution will continue to review the evidence obtained through the police investigation of this case and, in consideration of such evidence, determine whether to allege this aggravating circumstance in this case at the proper time,” Uglietta wrote.
A spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office declined to comment, citing the status of the case. A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Phoenix — which could potentially file hate crime charges that are separate from the state’s case — declined to comment. A spokesman for the FBI’s field office said his office is aware of the killing but cited a policy barring the agency from confirming or denying the existence of an investigation.
NBC News could not reach Hernandez Castillo’s family.
Lawyers for Santiago, who is being held in lieu of $4 million bond, either declined to comment or did not respond to a request for comment. Lawyers for Santiago’s alleged accomplices did not respond to requests for comment.
Santiago’s next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 1.
Bernie’s family described him as their “rock.” Gasdeli said Bernie lost much of his childhood to familial obligations: His parents were deported and later died when he was a teenager, she said, so Bernie became the primary caregiver for his younger siblings and grandparents.
“Bernie just thought that he had to care for everybody,” she said. “He was a very caring person.”
The added responsibilities prompted Bernie to drop out of high school, she said. He worked with another cousin doing home remodeling and later began working for the author and selling e-cigarettes, she said.
Bernie had an eye for home organization and interior design, Gasdeli said, and had planned on launching a business. After his death, his family found business cards he’d made for the new venture.
Juan, who now lives in New York but lived in Phoenix as a teenager and was close with Bernie, remembered the moment his cousin came out. Bernie was 15, Juan said, and he and some other cousins were hanging out at a relative’s house.
“He just, like, took a deep breath,” Juan recalled. “He’s like, ‘Guys, I want to tell you something. He’s like, ‘I’m gay.’ And we’re like, yeah, ‘We know.’”
“We saw this weight come off of him,” Juan said. “And then from that point forward, little by little, he started becoming his true self.”
Juan, now 30, moved to New York in his teens, but when he returned to Phoenix for a visit two years ago, he said he and Bernie picked up like he’d never gone.
“When I left he was still wearing polos and closeted in his style,” Juan said. “When I went out there again, he was lashes up and nails on, and I could tell that he was happy.”
During the visit, Juan recalled, he and Bernie talked about their dating lives. At one point, he said, Bernie mentioned a man he was having sex with and showed Juan the man’s dating profile.
When Bernie said the man belonged to a gang, Juan warned his cousin to be careful, he said.
The conversation “echoes in my mind. It just haunts me,” Juan said.
On the morning of Nov. 26, a Sunday, Gasdeli learned that Bernie wasn’t answering his phone and no one had talked to him since Saturday.
Bernie was supposed to go to a bar Saturday night, she said, but the friends he planned to meet up with said he was a no-show. From Bernie’s younger brother, Gasdeli said, she learned someone had been messaging Bernie all Saturday, trying to make a deal for e-cigarettes.
The brother had warned Bernie against it, saying it seemed like a setup, Gasdeli said. But that afternoon, Bernie decided to go. He put on a hoodie and walked to a nearby park, she said.
When Bernie’s family couldn’t find him the next morning, Gasdeli said, they checked the location of his cellphone and discovered it was still at the park. When they drove by the area, she said, it was surrounded by police officers.
Investigators at the scene couldn’t confirm a body that had been discovered was Bernie’s, she said, but when they finally did, the moment left the family “shattering in pieces.”
“My whole family’s crying, screaming,” she said. “We’re trying to find answers.”
A few days later, on Nov. 30, the apparent answers came in a grim message. Another cousin who was close with Bernie, Roman Pantaleon, said someone sent him graphic and disturbing images of Bernie. There were other people in the images, as well.
One of the images, which were being shared on a messaging platform, showed Bernie’s body, Roman said. Standing over him was a man flipping off the camera, Roman said.
“It makes you really angry,” Roman said. “It enrages you.”
Roman said he shared the pictures with the Phoenix Police Department and then deleted them. Days later, on Dec. 2, three men were arrested in the killing. In the probable cause statement, authorities described the images the family had received — a second picture showed Bernie’s mutilated body — and said they were shared on Instagram. The statement says only that the profile that shared the image belonged to one of Santiago’s co-defendants.
Investigators obtained a warrant for the Instagram profile and discovered a group message that showed a conversation about robbing and killing Bernie, the statement says. A co-defendant was part of the thread, the statement says, where members “repeatedly asked for updates” about the alleged crime and “lamented they were not invited.”
An hour after the slaying, the statement says, Santiago’s co-defendants discussed returning to the scene to mutilate Bernie’s body.
The probable cause statement says that days after the slaying, the thread showed some of the suspects discussing news coverage of Bernardo’s death and making derogatory statements about his sexuality and stating that gay people were not allowed on Phoenix’s north side.
The statement doesn’t say if the suspects learned that Bernie was gay from the coverage or if they already knew.
After his arrest, Santiago told investigators that he’d met Bernie around 6 p.m. on Nov. 25. After an initial denial, Santiago allegedly told investigators that he killed Bernie over an “unwanted advance that made him uncomfortable,” the probable cause statement said.
Santiago later changed his story, the statement said, and said the original plan had been only to rob Bernie. He then blamed a person whom he couldn’t fully identify for the killing, the statement adds, and he blamed others for coming up with the idea to mutilate Bernie — although he acknowledged being there when it happened.
That effort to shift blame was “contradicted by the codefendant during their interview,” the statement says. “A second codefendant provided statements indicating the defendant” — Santiago — “was responsible for killing the victim.”
To Gasdeli, her cousin’s horrific death appeared to reveal a crime that wasn’t just a robbery. He’d been shot multiple times and cut with a sharp-edged object, police said, and had suffered significant injuries to his head, neck and torso.
“It was personal,” Gasdeli said.
Juan rejected the claim that his cousin made an unwanted pass at Santiago and also believes Bernardo’s slaying was personal. He believed he recognized Santiago as the man from the dating profile Bernie showed him two years earlier — the man he warned his cousin about.
A police spokesman declined to comment on how or if Santiago and Bernie knew each other and referred the question to the prosecutor’s office. A spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office declined to comment. Santiago’s lawyer also declined to comment.
After Santiago’s arrest, authorities linked him to a second killing. A man who was arrested in what authorities described as an unrelated investigation on Dec. 4 told officials about a video he’d seen of Santiago fatally shooting a man inside a car, according to a probable cause statement reviewed by NBC News.
Authorities said in the statement they searched Santiago’s phone and found a clip of him fatally shooting Osvaldo Hernandez Castillo in March.
In an interview with investigators, Santiago admitted to the killing, saying he’d been forced by another man to carry out the murder and that he’d done so to be recognized by his gang, the statement says. Santiago also told investigators he’d threatened to rob Hernandez Castillo, according to the statement.
Santiago acknowledged using a Snapchat handle — “IPEEPNIKE10” — to message Hernandez Castillo, and a chat thread between them showed that they’d met up for sexual encounters, the statement says. On March 19, the day before Hernandez Castillo was found dead, the messages showed they’d planned to meet, according to the statement.
The affidavit pointed to evidence at the scene — including an unused condom — as well as interviews with Hernandez Castillo’s family and friends and said: “It is believed the victim was engaged in a sexual encounter with a male at or around the time of his murder.”
The statement does not provide additional information about the relationship.
At Santiago’s initial court appearance Dec. 8, he stood quietly at a lectern wearing an orange jumpsuit. Hernandez Castillo’s mother offered a brief, tearful statement.
Santiago had taken a piece of her, she said through an interpreter, and another man had to die before they found her son’s killer.
Brittany Morris reported from Phoenix. Tim Stelloh reported from Alameda, Calif.