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04.30.10
NEWS
OUTSPOKENIN THEIR OWN WORDS
Should Atlanta spend millions on an “There are half a million kids in foster care in America.
LGBT community center? Page 4
To have public officials deem homosexuals unworthy
At least five gay candidates run for Ga. of parenting is disastrous for the nation, for equality
legislature. Page 8
and for humanity and, Mike, for Christianity.”
Derrick Martin attends prom with
boyfriend in rural Ga. Page 9 — Lesbian comedian and talk show host Rosie O’Donnell in an April 24 chat with
former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee on her Sirius radio show. Huckabee, who ran
Fred Phelps’ anti-gay church coming to for president in 2008 and may run in 2012, criticized gay adoption last month by
Atlanta. Page 9 saying that “children are not puppies.” (New York Daily News, April 24)
Obama heckled by protesters, repeats
DADT promises. Page 11 “What I’m saying
National news briefs. Page 11 is that I think the

Photo via mikehuckabee.com

VOICES ideal environment
for children is in a
From the publisher: Let’s talk about the
elephant. Page 12
relationship that
has both a mother
Speaking out: Readers react to Fred
Phelps, Nancy Schaefer. Page 13 and a father.”
— Mike Huckabee, attempting to explain his remarks
A&E to Rosie O’Donnell. (New York Daily News, April 24)

Q-100’s Melissa Carter on road to

“The staff genuinely believed
Publicity photo

motherhood. Page 14
Books: Yolo Akili’s poetry transcends
that Nudge was an ordinary pet
sexual identity. Page 16 dog which had been desexed to
become a gay dog.”

POP QUIZ
Music: DJ Mike Pope brings the beats

BY THE NUMBERS

WITH JZ
to the South. Page 17 — The owners of Adelaide’s Thai Spice, telling South
Australia’s Equal Opportunity Tribunal why they
Sports: Atlanta Beat readies for refused to let a blind man and his guide dog enter.

2
inaugural season. Page 18 Maximum number of heterosexual players The staff apparently misunderstood “guide dog”
Events: Stage icons raise funds for allowed on teams in the North American Gay for “gay dog.” They will pay a fine for disability
Amateur Athletic Alliance discrimination. (Agence France Press, April 24)
local theaters, Anthony Williams’ on
a new runway. Page 19

COMMUNITY
$75,000
Photo by Joan Marcus/LaCage.com
Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence pray for
Atlanta. Page 21 Damages requested by three bisexual players
Milestones: Joan Sherwood & suing the Gay Softball World Series for
Debbie Fraker. Page 21 disqualifying them in 2008 as “non gay”

Readers share stories of their

202
outstanding moms. Page 22
Georgia spotlight: MEGA Family Project,
First City Network. Page 23 “My take on homosexual, hetero-
CHERI CHURCH
U.S. House co-sponsors for the
CALENDAR sexual, transgender relationships,
Photo via Facebook

Employment Non-Discrimination Act,

Pages 24-26 which would ban job bias based on Atlanta Women’s Bu
siness Networking Group
interracial relationships, it’s all up
sexual orientation and gender identity to you and the person you love,
View the full interv

2
theGAVOICE.com iew and frankly I’ve never thought
• Breaking news as it happens
t h e GAVO IC E .co mat that politics and marriage mixed
• Calendar and daily event highlights in any way.”
• Photo albums and video galleries ENDA co-sponsors out of Georgia’s
• Share ‘Your News’ and ‘Your Voice’ 13-member House delegation “No, I have a tool box. A — Actor Kelsey Grammer, who is starring as a
gay nightclub owner in the new Broadway version
facebook.com/thegavoice
(Reps. Hank Johnson and John Lewis)
belt tends to wear me of “La Cage aux Folles,” at the same time as he
helps launch RightNetwork, a conservative TV
twitter.com/thegavoice -- Compiled by Laura Douglas-Brown
Sources: Seattle Weekly, April 21; Library of Congress down and I don’t like that.” channel. (Wall Street Journal, April 23)
 4 GA Voice April 30, 2010 News
Is it time for Atlanta to have a world-class LGBT community center?
Renewed effort underway to make long-time dream a reality
By Dyana Bagby
dbagby@thegavoice.com
Duncan Teague remembers working for the
Lambda Center in the early 1990s with fellow
LGBT activists, trying to raise enough money
for the facility to have its own building.
“I was part of the first group of community
people trying to put it together — that must
have been 1991 or 1992 — and what I am most
proud about is that we were as inclusive as pos-
sible,” Teague said this week.
Providing space for meetings and events
was a key goal at the time, Teague said.
“That was the biggest issue and still is,” he
said.
“When I went around asking people for
$1,000 and $5,000, people came up with it. I
wasn’t with [the Lambda Center] when they
decided to take the seed money and opened on
West Peachtree on the same floor as Positive Im-
pact and AIDS Survival Project,” he recalled.
Atlanta has seen several attempts at an
LGBT community center, some more success-
ful than others. Now a new group of activists
is debating whether to attempt what the others
never achieved: a large-scale, state-of-the art
facility that could become the hallmark of the
local LGBT community, but would also cost
millions of dollars to create and run.
Before the Lambda Center opened, there was
the Atlanta Gay Center, founded in 1976. The
Gay Center, which eventually became the Atlan-
ta Gay & Lesbian Community Center, provided
support groups, a health clinic and a newsletter,
but always remained relatively small.
At one time the Gay Center was located on
12th Street. It later moved to 159 Ralph McGill
Blvd., where several HIV/AIDS service orga-
nizations, including Positive Impact and AIDS
Survival Project, were located. The Lambda
Center also located there, and the two efforts
joined forces.
But the “159 Center” broke up when that
space became too expensive, and in February
2003, the Gay & Lesbian Center moved to a
house located at 170 11th St. The center closed
soon afterwards in the wake of a lawsuit from a
former employee.
Positive Impact and the AIDS Alliance for
Faith & Health are now located at 139 Ralph
McGill Blvd.
Despite the troubles Atlanta has had main-
taining an LGBT community center, there is no
excuse for the city to not have one, Teague said.
“[A community center] is never not needed,”
he said. “We have one of the largest gay com-
munities in America and we don’t have a home.
Some grassroots activists are choking on a $10
million cost, but I’d like to see us move forward
without worrying about the numbers.
“When I go to the doctor’s office, I sit in a
The Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center’s headquar-
ters features 44,000 square feet and cost $7 million to
purchase and renovate. (Courtesy photo)
beautiful space. There is no reason for us not to
go to a beautiful space,” he added.
Exploring the possibilities
At an April 22 meeting at the gay bar Mixx
on Piedmont Avenue, about 20 activists gath-
ered to discuss the idea of building or renovat-
ing a current building for an LGBT community
center similar to the large facilities in New York,
Chicago and San Francisco.
Attendees expressed support for the concept
of a world-class center in Atlanta, but stressed
there is also the need to support the Phillip Rush
Center that already provides space and resourc-
es to numerous LGBT organizations. The Rush
Center, located on DeKalb Avenue, is named
for gay community activist Phillip Rush, who
died last April.
Realtor Barb Rowland organized the April
22 meeting with Justin Ziegler, executive direc-
tor of the Atlanta Executive Network.
With MEGA Family Project, which rents
space at the Rush Center, and other non-profits
including Atlanta Pride struggling to meet their
L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center
1625 N. Schrader Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028
www.lagaycenter.org
• Year founded: 1971
• Year opened in current location: 1992
• Approximate square footage: 44,000
(also has three other locations)
• Approximate cost for main location:
$7 million (purchase, renovation, capital
campaign expenses)
• Was any money used to procure cur-
rent location from government funding?
$1.25 million loan from City of Los Ange-
les Community Redevelopment Agency,
will be forgiven over time as long as
Center provides social services
• Total annual operating revenue: $48.5
million (FY 2008)
• Amount of annual operating revenue from
government funding: $11.1 million in govern-
ment grants; $26.7 million in AIDS Drug
Assistance Program and program fees
• Services offered: Free HIV/AIDS care
and medications for those most in need;
housing, food, clothing and support
for homeless LGBT youth; support and
advocacy services for LGBT seniors and
LGBT-parented families.
annual budgets, some attendees felt that money
should be funneled to these groups already in
existence rather than start a capital campaign
for a new facility.
“Look at the criticism HRC [the Human
Rights Campaign] gets because of its fancy build-
ing [in Washington, D.C.] — a lot of people are
angry because so much money goes to the build-
ing rather than to resources,” said Kathy Kelly,
executive director of MEGA Family Project.
Please see CENTER on Page 6
www.theGAVoice.com
Center on Halsted
3656 N. Halsted, Chicago, IL 60640
www.centeronhalsted.org
• Year founded: 1973
• Year opened in current location: 2007
• Approximate square footage: 65,000
for agency (175,000 total includes park-
ing and retail client Whole Foods)
• Approximate cost for location: $25
million capital campaign
• Was any money used to procure current
location from government funding? 34 per-
cent from federal, state and local funding
• Current annual budget: $4 million
• Amount of annual budget from govern-
ment funding: 40 percent
• Services offered: Mental health ser-
vices, youth program, rapid HIV testing/
State of Illinois HIV/STD Hotline, legal
services, the Anti-Violence Project, elder
services, cultural programming, social
programming, gym, fitness classes,
rental space, and more.
San Francisco Lesbian Gay Bisexual
Transgender Community Center
1800 Market St., San Francisco, CA 94102
www.sfcenter.org
• Year founded: 1996
• Year opened in current location: 2002
• Approximate square footage: 35,000
• Approximate cost for location: $13.7
million (purchase and construction)
• Was any money used to procure cur-
rent location from government funding?
Approximately half from city/state/
federal grants
• Current annual budget: $1.85 million
• Amount of annual budget from govern-
ment funding: 39 percent from govern-
ment contracts
• Services offered: Economic develop-
ment, Children, Youth & Families; Health
and Wellness (HIV prevention); Arts &
Culture (visual art exhibits, performing
arts & cultural events); Community De-
velopment; 300-plus events each month,
cybercenter, reading room, childcare,
non-profit tenants
Democratic Party candidate Tom Stubbs tackled the issue of discrimination
against gay people in a column he wrote in April 2005 as president of the
DeKalb Bar Association: “That issue is the bigotry perpetuated in our laws
against same-sex couples. By virtue of their sex, or, more accurately, the sex
of one of them, same-sex couples are denied, among other things, the right
to inherit by intestacy, to adopt children and to benefit from laws providing
that employer-provided health insurance (and other fringe benefits) be made
available to a spouse. ... [T]hese laws cannot be reconciled with the equal
protection and other rights we enjoy under our Constitution.”
Tom Stubbs is also a:
Longtime member of Stonewall Bar Association.
Longtime supporter of Lambda Legal.
Tom has walked the walk for LGBT rights not quietly and not for just the
past few months, but publicly and for years. That proven dedication to
these causes, coupled with his unmatched policy and political experi-
ence, make Tom Stubbs the strongest advocate and best candidate for
the LGBT community.
 6 GA Voice April 30, 2010 News
Needs survey is first step to Atlanta LGBT center
CENTER, continued from Page 4
Rowland said she had spoken with wealthy
local residents who wanted to invest in a gay
community center similar to ones in Chicago,
New York and San Francisco. A proposed bud-
get for such a new facility in Atlanta is up to
$22 million, she said.
“The saying, ‘Build it and they will come’ —
there is some truth to that,” Rowland said. “There
are some very monied people here who want to
invest in something to make a big splash.”
Nearly everyone agreed a community center
to house organizations and programs and pro-
vide services to LGBT Atlantans is a great idea.
How to do that, however, remains to be seen.
Anne Barr, founder of the Decatur Women’s
Sports League, said she would love to see a
large community center in Atlanta.
“We have to be the leaders of the South,”
she said.
A community center would attract more
LGBT people to Atlanta and to Georgia and
provide a safe space for those people who don’t
feel safe elsewhere, she added.
“I think we’re paying all this money in all
these different directions to rent facilities, if we
could put it together we could own it. I’m ex-
cited,” Barr said after the meeting.
Building bridges
Others brought up the fact that Atlanta’s LGBT
community is divided into different groups. If
there was a large community center where every-
one could congregate and come together, bridges
could be built between different groups.
But the idea of building a community center
in Atlanta is one that has been attempted before
several times and never worked out, pointed
out Rev. Paul Turner of Gentle Spirit Christian
Church of Atlanta.
“To be honest, this is the third or fourth
meeting I’ve been to where we’ve taken a shot
at this,” said Turner, who has lived in Atlanta
for 15 years.
“I think before long it gets to push and shove
because the leadership really doesn’t know
what the community wants and needs,” he add-
ed. “Sometimes we don’t utilize the resources
we have. I think we have to be intentional of
literally going out to the community and asking
what they need.”
Kiki Carr, founder of MondoHomo Queer
Fest, pointed out that no people of color were
at the meeting and it would be important to get
feedback from various communities on what
and if a community center is needed.
“We need to ask people what they want.
When I hear ‘first class,’ I hear something in
Midtown for rich, white gay men,” Carr said.
Teague believes Atlanta has needed a true
LGBT community center for a long time, but it will
take work for such an idea to come to fruition.
Barb Rowland, an organizer behind a potential gay
community center in Atlanta, says it’s time to assess
support for such a facility . (Photo by Dyana Bagby)
“This community has enough creativity and
energy to do it. We need a center. We needed a
center 10-20 years ago,” he said.
But to do so, there will have to be even more
bridge building.
“There will have to be collaboration and
compromise between groups that have never
spoken to each other,” Teague said.
“It’s time we joined other major urban cen-
ters for gays, lesbians and queers and open
something we can be proud of.”
‘Incubator’ at Rush Center
Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia
Equality, and Linda Ellis, executive director of
the Atlanta Lesbian Health Initiative, discussed
what they are attempting to do at the Rush Cen-
ter. It is the office space for their organizations
and MEGA Family Project, but it also provides
meeting space for dozens of other organizations
and groups, such as the Black Lesbians Can-
cer Survivors Group, Weight Watchers, AID
Atlanta’s Evolution Program and the Atlanta
Pride Committee.
When the Rush Center was opened last year,
it was intentionally not called a community cen-
ter but rather is described as an “incubator.” Plans
are in the works to expand the center if possible
when new space comes open in the building.
The facility currently has 2,500 square feet
and is nearly at capacity, Graham said. Another
space may come open in the building soon,
which could add another approximate 1,000
square feet to the center. But rent for that space
would be approximately $1,500 a month and
The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual &
Transgender Community Center
208 West 13th St., New York, NY 10011
www.gaycenter.org
• Year founded: 1983
• Year opened in current location: 1984
• Approximate cost for location: $1.5
million (in 1983)
• Current annual budget: FY 2008 ex-
penses $9,326,971; revenue $9,226,153
• Amount of annual budget from govern-
ment funding: Grants make up 52.46
percent of annual revenue ($4,840,338)
– not broken down in annual report in
percent from government sources
• Services offered: Meeting space, health
services, youth services, support groups,
library, history archive, numerous com-
munity and cultural events
Graham said the goal is to have at least nine
months of funding secured before expanding,
or about $15,000.
Graham said this week it was nice to see
some enthusiasm people had at the meeting for
raising funds for a world-class center and he re-
mains hopeful people will come together.
“I do think it is important to point out that
this kind of project will take years at the very
least,” he said.
“It’s also nice to see the meeting organizers
acknowledge the Rush Center and that it could
serve as an incubator and possible model,” Gra-
ham added.
Needs assessment
Ziegler suggested that the community try to
raise $100,000 – enough to fund the Rush Cen-
ter expansion for five years at a cost of about
$90,000, with $10,000 to spend on assessing
whether a larger scale center is needed, and
what people would want from such a center.
www.theGAVoice.com
Photo by David Shankbone (Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 license)
The LGBT Center in New York cost $1.5 million in
1983. Grants make up about 52 percent of the cen-
ter’s revenue, which in 2008 topped $9 million.
A mission of any community center is to
bridge gaps and bring people from different
communities together. Graham and Ellis said
the Rush Center is doing that organically and
right now they hope to be able to add a cultural
space for such events as small art shows.
Rowland said the vision of the donors she
has talked to is very different than the ideas of
those behind the Rush Center, however.
“I could go to 10 different fundraisers this
weekend, but there is no focus to it,” she said.
“But if we have the money go toward a gay
community center, there is a focus. But we need
to do it from a groundswell of support.”
Kelly said asking non-profit groups to raise
funds for a community center when the econo-
my is down is not likely to happen.
“Most nonprofits can barely keep their doors
open. There is no way they can divert their at-
tention to fundraise for this,” Kelly said.
Kelly also noted that she worked on the
campaign to fight the state constitutional
amendment to ban gay marriage in 2004 and
only $100,000 was raised. Most of that money,
she added, came from the straight community.
“And this was the biggest attack our com-
munity faced,” she said.
Rowland said after the meeting that while
she hoped for a more definitive plan of action,
she is optimistic the community will rally be-
hind a professional needs assessment to be
taken to gauge what the entire Atlanta LGBT
community wants.
“It’s time for us to do that,” she said.
— Laura Douglas-Brown contributed
HRC AND ERIC ALVA
ARE FIGHTING TO REPEAL
“DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL.”
Eric Alva was the first U.S. service member wounded
in Iraq. He lost his right leg to a land mine. He is a
proud Marine and a gay man.

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” keeps patriotic women and

men like Eric from serving openly. He is working
with the Human Rights Campaign to repeal this law.
Join us and help to repeal it now.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

Over the past months, we have worked nationwide to

repeal DADT, focusing on 103 priority congressional districts.
Our efforts include:

★ More than 300,000 phone calls and e-mails to members of Congress.

★ 275 HRC members lobbied on Capitol Hill to repeal DADT and

pass ENDA and other key legislation.

★ Beyond the Beltway, our members conducted more than

250 in-district lobby visits.

★ In 41 cities, we held events that highlighted military veterans

opposed to DADT, and over the next several months we
will conduct dozens more.

★ On May 11, we will send hundreds of veterans to

Capitol Hill to lobby for repeal.

Join HRC and Eric to repeal DADT

Visit www.hrc.org/RepealDADT
 8 GA Voice April 30, 2010 News
At least five gay candidates run for Ga. legislature
Gay-friendly Republicans
face challengers as
races shape up
By Matt Schafer & Laura Douglas-Brown
lbrown@thegavoice.com
The week of April 26-30 proved intense at
the Georgia General Assembly, as the end of
the annual 40-day legislative session coincided
with the official five-day qualifying period for
major party candidates for this year’s elections,
in which every seat in the Gold Dome will be
up for grabs.
At Georgia Voice press time April 27, at
least five openly gay candidates had announced
plans to run for the state House and Senate.
Party primaries are slated for July 20 and the
general election is Nov. 2.
State Rep. Karla Drenner (D-Avondale Es-
tates), Georgia’s first openly gay state lawmak-
er, qualified April 26 to run for her sixth term.
State Rep. Simone Bell (D-Atlanta), the first
openly lesbian African-American state legisla-
tor in the nation, qualified April 27 to run for
her first full term after winning a special elec-
tion last fall to finish the term of Robin Shipp,
who resigned the seat when it conflicted with
her employment.
Neither Bell nor Drenner, who was unop-
posed in her last election in 2008, had drawn a
challenger by press time. Visit www.thegavoice.
com for updates after qualifying ends April 30.
Meanwhile, at least three gay candidates
hope to join Drenner and Bell under the Gold
Dome, where they would be the first openly
gay men to serve in the General Assembly.
Two — House District 80 candidate Keith
Gross and Senate District 47 hopeful Tim Riley
– are seeking rematches after unsuccessful bids
in 2008, while the third, House District 59 can-
didate Brad Ploeger, is running as a Libertarian
and therefore must qualify for the ballot via pe-
tition rather than the party primary system.
Riley, a gay mental health counselor who
lives in Athens, had not filed qualifying papers
by Tuesday afternoon, but announced his can-
didacy via a press release on April 21.
Riley, a Democrat, ran for the same seat
in 2008, losing to Republican Ralph Hudgens
in the general election. Riley received 25,172
votes, or 35.2 percent of votes cast, compared
to 46,257 votes, or 64.8 percent, for Hudgens.
Hudgens is running for state insurance com-
missioner. At press time two Republicans had
qualified to face off in the GOP primary: Shane
Coley, a software consultant from Statham, and
Kelley Gary, a business owner from Hoschton.
In a press release about his new bid, Riley
said that he first ran for state Senate in 1988,
and noted the dramatic changes for an openly
gay candidate in the span of 20 years.
“It was a different time when I won the nomi-
nation in 1988, I had death threats and many vile
remarks back then,” he said. “In 2008 some 20
years later it was more low-key and issue orient-
ed. Georgia is growing up and we are all taking
seats at the table now, even in rural Georgia.”
State Senate District 47 includes parts of
Barrow, Clarke, Elbert, Jackson, Madison and
Oglethorpe counties.
Ploeger was nominated to run for Atlanta-
based House District 59 at the Libertarian Party
state convention on April 24. He is challenging
gay-friendly Rep. Margaret Kaiser (D-Atlanta)
for House District 59. Ploeger, who is gay, is an
attorney and lives in Grant Park with his partner.
According to the Libertarian Party, Ploeger
must collect 1,600 signatures to qualify.
“This state needs leadership and a clear pur-
pose of vision. We the people have only been
given bread, circuses and scandals,” Ploeger
said in a press release.
GOP allies draw opponents
Two of the most publicly gay-friendly Re-
publicans in the Georgia House are facing
challenges from Democrats offering to be even
stronger allies on gay and transgender issues.
Rep. Mike Jacobs (R-Atlanta) will face a
Democratic challenger for the first time since
leaving that party in 2007. Gay business owner
Keith Gross hopes to be the name on the ballot
with Jacobs in November, but will first face com-
puter consultant Sandy Murray and any other
Democrats who qualify in the July 20 primary.
Gross attempted to run against Jacobs in
2008, but was pulled off the ballot after a court
challenge determined that Gross did not meet
the residency requirements. The Democrats
were unable to get a candidate on the ballot and
Jacobs easily beat an independent candidate.
Gross did not return calls from Georgia
Voice, but wrote on his website that he had re-
ceived bad legal advice. “I ran for this seat in
2008 because of my disappointment that Mike
lied to all of us and switched from Democrat
to Republican (after lying long enough to get
elected),” Gross said on the site. “Just like you,
I was surprised when I was kicked off the ballot
through a clever legal maneuver, which I inad-
equately defended.”
Jacobs said he welcomed a challenger and was
confident the voters will approve of his records.
“I’m not worried about it. I’m going to run
a strong campaign, and feel that I’m known
quality within my district, but I feel that’s for
the voters to decide,” said Jacobs, who has been
endorsed by Georgia Equality and the gay Log
Cabin Republicans in past races.
During this legislative session, Jacobs has
been the lead sponsor of a bill to curb bullying
in schools. While the language of the bill does
not single out sexual orientation, it is strongly
backed by Georgia Equality.
State Reps. Karla Drenner and Simone Bell, the two openly gay lawmakers currently serving in the General As-
sembly, both qualified to run for re-election this week. (File photos)
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
• Will lesbian incumbents face challengers?
How many LGBT candidates will be on the bal-
lot? See our update on state legislative races
after qualifying ends April 30.
• Status of bullying legislation as
General Assembly adjourns
At press time, it was uncertain whether
the bill would pass before the General As-
sembly adjourned.
Neighboring House District 81, also located
in northeast of Atlanta, should prove interesting
for gay voters as well, although no openly gay
candidate is on the ballot.
Rep. Jill Chambers (R-Atlanta), the only
Republican to vote against the 2004 constitu-
tional amendment banning gay marriage, will
face her fourth Democratic challenger.
Elena Parent is already drawing gay support,
with a March 31 “Celebrate Equality” fundrais-
er that featured lesbian Q100 radio personality
Melissa Carter and featured several gay politi-
cal activists on the host committee.
“(Chambers) has to tread carefully, and gay
issues is not an area where she will, or has ever,
proactively gone to bat for the issues that the
gay community cares about,” Parent said. “She
was able that one time six years ago to play de-
fense, but I can play offense and be a voice for
GLBT equality every day.”
Chambers said she is seeking re-election be-
cause she is now in the position to carry signifi-
cant legislation such as the “Hustler Bill,” that
would bar police from releasing nude pictures
of murder victims.
Chambers said her track record shows her to
be an ally to the gay voters in her district, and
most of her work is fiscal, not social in nature.
“My voters, whether they’re gay or
straight, don’t want me to run on gay issues,
www.theGAVoice.com
Rematch in
Senate District 42
In a race closely watched by LGBT political
group Georgia Equality, Democrats Jason
Carter and Tom Stubbs, Independent Steve
Patrick and Libertarian David Montane face
off May 11 in a special election to fill the state
Senate District 42 seat.
The seat was left vacant when David Adel-
man left the Senate to become U.S. ambas-
sador to Singapore. Georgia Equality endorsed
Carter, grandson of Jimmy Carter, based on his
support for LGBT issues and outreach to gay
voters. Stubbs also competed for the group’s
support, has lobbied on gay issues, and is a
member of the Atlanta Stonewall Democrats.
Whoever wins May 11, it appears Carter and
Stubbs are headed for a rematch. Both have
qualified to run for the seat and will face off in
the Democratic primary on July 20.
they want me to run on fiscally conservative
issues,” she said.
House Districts 80 and 81 are both trending
Democratic, creating an interesting question for
gay voters who will choose between a proven
ally or a new voice.
Jason Cecil is president of the Georgia Young
Democrats and Georgia Stonewall Democrats.
“District 81 should have been in Democratic
hands and it should have been for a long time.
It’s not about strictly GLBT issues,” Cecil said.
“It’s going to be a hard road to how to get
back into power alone, much less pass any gay-
friendly legislation.”
Jamie Ensley, president of the Georgia Log
Cabin Republicans, said that gays are better
served by having Republicans who can lobby
for gay issues.
“Republicans are going to be in power for
a while, and if we don’t have any allies in that
party then we really don’t have a voice,” Ens-
ley said. “And Mike and Jill are the strongest
friends we have.”
www.theGAVoice.com
‘God Hates Fags’ church coming to Atlanta Derrick Martin has a
Members of Fred Phelps’ Westboro Baptist
Church are headed to Atlanta this week to pro-
test a variety of sites, including Jewish events
and three local high schools.
The church, based in Topeka, Kan., routinely
pickets around the nation. Its “God Hates Fags”
mantra made national headlines when church
members, who are mostly Phelps and his fam-
ily, picketed the funeral of slain gay Wyoming
college student Matthew Shepard.
Since then, the Phelps clan has also made
news for picketing the funerals of soldiers
killed in Iraq, claiming that the United States is
a sinful nation.
Students at Atlanta’s Grady High School,
one of the targets of Phelps’ protest, are already
planning their response.
The Grady counter-protest is set for 3:15
p.m. until 6 p.m. on May 6. The students say
they plan to collect donations for AID Atlanta
and the Human Rights Campaign during the
protest.
When Phelps recently protested a same-sex
marriage forum at Drake University in Des
Moines, Iowa, his contingent of six was met by
more than 500 counter-protesters, according to
the Des Moines Register.
On May 5, Westboro Baptist Church is
scheduled to protest at the Atlanta Marriott
Marquis, Douglass High School, the Jewish
Georgian, the Marcus Jewish Community Cen-
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MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
• Visit www.thegavoice.com and follow us at
Twitter.com/thegavoice for live coverage of
Phelps’ protest
ter of Atlanta and a Cinco de Mayo party and
concert at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre.
In addition to protesting at Grady High
School on May 6, the church is slated to pro-
test Druid Hills High School, Emory University
Hillel and the Selig Center (Jewish Federation
of Atlanta).
— Laura Douglas-Brown
‘blast’ at prom in rural
Ga. with boyfriend
Derrick Martin and his boyfriend, Richard
Goodman, attended Martin’s prom in rural
Cochran, Ga., on April 17 and had “a blast.”
Although there was security present,
there were no incidents at Bleckley County
High School, where Martin attends. Good-
man lives in Tifton, Ga.
After the prom, Martin surprised Good-
man with a weekend trip to Savannah.
“It was a blast,” Martin said.
Martin made international headlines af-
ter receiving permission to attend his senior
prom with his boyfriend. Despite protests in
the city, officials said they had no authority to
deny Martin’s request.
Although Martin received support from
across the world, his parents said he could no
longer live with them after his story became
public. His father is a teacher at BCHS.
As part of the BCHS prom, couples take
part in a “walk through” where their names
are announced and they walk into the prom.
Martin shared his memory of that moment
on his Facebook page on April 25.
“The whole town turned out this year, and
we were both making ourselves sick think-
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fla-keys.com/gaykeywest ~ 1-888-524-4915
Key West rated “Favorite Gay Resort Town” - Out Traveler
News April 30, 2010 GA Voice 9
Derrick Martin (right) and Richard Good-
man. (Photo courtesy Arturo Beéche)
ing of all the outcomes … All eyes were on
us as we walked to the podium, and the start
of the ‘red carpet.’ … I braced myself for an
onslaught of hate and shouting, but what we
were greeted with surprised me more than I
ever could have imagined …
“People I didn’t even know were there just
cheering for us, smiling and telling us things
like, ‘be true’ and ‘keep on baby.’ I couldn’t
even believe it. All this time I had considered
all of the bad things that could have happened,
but I never gave a second thought to the night
actually going perfectly,” he wrote.
Martin did say he missed his parents be-
ing there.
“When I looked out on all those people,
all I could think was, I wish my parents were
there cheering with them …” he wrote.
— Dyana Bagby
10 GA Voice April 30, 2010 www.theGAVoice.com

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Obama heckled, repeats DADT promise
Protesters arrested
outside White House,
Sen. McCain’s office
By Lisa Keen
Keen News Service
President Obama, appearing at a fundraiser
for U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer in Los Angeles
Monday, April 19, seemed initially irritated when
his speech in support of Boxer’s re-election was
interrupted with shouts that he do more to repeal
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
An Associated Press video of the proceeding
shows him trying, at first, to talk over the protests,
then trying to respond to them, saying “We are
going to do that.” When the protests continue, he
raises his hand and says, “Hey, hold on a second.
Hold on a second. We are going to do that.”
By then, the full audience had begun chant-
ing, “Yes, we can,” drowning out the protesters.
The president stood quietly at the podium until the
crowd began to quiet and then he beckoned them:
“Now, listen. What the young man was talking
about was we need to repeal ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t
Tell’, which I agree with and which we have be-
gun to do.”
“But let me say this,” continued the president,
“when you’ve got an ally like Barbara Boxer and
you’ve got an ally like me who are standing for
the same thing, then you don’t know exactly why
you’ve got to holler, because we already hear you,
all right? I mean, it would have made more sense
to holler that at the people who oppose it.”
President Obama resumed his speech, after
the first protesters were escorted out, but then ad-
COURTS
Elderly Calif. gay man sues
over separation from partner
The National Center for Lesbian Rights
is suing Sonoma County, Calif., on behalf of
an elderly gay man who alleges the county
separated him and his partner of 20 years
after his partner injured himself. His partner
later died.
Clay Greene, 78, represented by NCLR,
says in his civil lawsuit that after his partner,
Harold Scull, 88, injured himself after fall-
ing down some stairs two years ago, Sonoma
County officials admitted him into a hospital
and denied Greene visitation privileges even
though the couple had legal documents nam-
ing each as the other’s spouse, according the
Santa Rosa Press-Democrat.
“Outrageously, the county represented
to the judge that Clay was merely Harold’s
‘roommate.’ The court denied their efforts,
but did grant the county limited access to
National News April 30, 2010 GA Voice 11
Army Lt. Dan Choi (center) and five other LGBT
veterans handcuffed themselves to the White House
fence last week in protest of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’
echoing a similar protest staged one month earlier.
(Photo by Michael Key/DC Agenda)
ditional protesters began to shout, “It’s time for
equality for all Americans!” Obama repeated that
he and Boxer “are supportive of repealing ‘Don’t
Ask, Don’t Tell,’ so I don’t know why you’re hol-
lering.”
Frontiers in LA magazine editor Karen Ocamb
reported the protest was carried out by five activ-
ists with the new LGBT activist group GetEqual.
Meanwhile, on April 20, six uniformed veter-
ans chained themselves to the White House fence
to protest “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” According to
CNN, the protesters included Lt. Dan Choi, who
was arrested last month after chaining himself to
the White House fence in a similar protest.
On April 26, five people were arrested outside
Sen. John McCain’s office in Phoenix after they
requested to talk to the senator and former GOP
presidential candidate about repealing DADT.
In February, McCain, who lost to Obama, said
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” was “imperfect but ef-
fective,” according to the Washington Post.
one of Harold’s bank accounts to pay for his
care,” states NCLR in a press release.
The county then auctioned off the items in
Greene’s and Scull’s home and had Greene
involuntarily admitted into a separate nursing
home from Scull, the suit alleges.
Scull died three months after being admit-
ted into the hospital.
The attorney representing Sonoma County
officials in the suit, set to go to trial July 16
in the Superior Court for the County of Sono-
ma, told the New York Times on April 27 that
county officials acted the way they did because
they believed Greene had abused Scull.
In an email response to the New York
Times asking about Spaulding’s comments,
Shannon Minter, legal director for NCLR,
said the domestic violence charge resulted
from “unsubstantiated suspicions and allega-
tions that the county never followed up on,
because there was no evidence of abuse.”
— Dyana Bagby
12 GA Voice April 30, 2010 Voices
The Georgia Voice
1904 Monroe Dr., Suite 130
Atlanta, GA 30324
404-815-6941
www.thegavoice.com
EDITORIAL
Editor: Laura Douglas-Brown
lbrown@thegavoice.com
Deputy Editor: Dyana Bagby
dbagby@thegavoice.com
Web Manager: Ryan Watkins
rwatkins@thegavoice.com
Art Director: Bo Shell
bshell@thegavoice.com
Contributors: Jim Farmer, Shannon Hames,
Shannon Jenkins, Robin Kemp, Ryan Lee, Mike Ritter, Matt
Schafer, Christopher Seely, Steve Warren, Justin Ziegler
BUSINESS
Publisher: Christina Cash
ccash@thegavoice.com
Business Manager: Tim Boyd
tboyd@thegavoice.com
Sales Executive: Marshall Graham
mgraham@thegavoice.com
National Advertising:
Rivendell Media, 908-232-2021
sales@rivendellmedia.com
BOARD OF ADVISERS
Richard Eldredge, Sandy Malcolm,
Lynn Pasqualetti, Robert Pullen
All material in the Georgia Voice is protected by federal
copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written
consent of the Georgia Voice. The sexual orientation of adver-
tisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published here-
in is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names
or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the
sexual orientation of that person or persons. We also do not
accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers.
Unsolicited editorial material is accepted by the Geor-
gia Voice, but we do not take responsibility for its return.
The editors reserve the right to accept, reject or edit any
submission. Guidelines for freelance contributors are avail-
able upon request.
A single copy of the Georgia Voice is available from au-
thorized distribution points. Multiple copies are available from
the Georgia Voice office only. Call for rates. If you are unable
reach a convenient free distribution point, you may receive a
26-issue mailed subscription for $60 per year. Checks or credit
card orders can be sent to Tim Boyd, tboyd@thegavoice.com
Postmaster: Send address changes to the Georgia Voice,
1904 Monroe Drive, Suite 130, Atlanta, GA 30324. The Georgia
Voice is published every other Friday by The Georgia Voice,
LLC. Individual subscriptions are $60 per year for 26 issues.
Postage paid at Atlanta, GA, and additional mailing offices.
The editorial positions of the Georgia Voice are expressed
in editorials and in editor’s notes. Other opinions are those of
the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinion of
the Georgia Voice and its staff.
To submit a letter or commentary: Letters should be
fewer than 400 words and commentary, for web or print,
should be fewer than 750 words. Submissions may be edited
for content and length, and must include a name, address and
phone number for verification. Email submissions to editor@
thegavoice.com or mail to the address above.
VOICES OPINION & REACTION
Let’s talk about the elephant
Why is there a GA Voice
and a Southern Voice?
Publisher’s Letter
By Chris Cash
For those of you who know the history of
Southern Voice, and my role in that history, I apol-
ogize for any redundancy here. I also ask every-
one’s forgiveness for talking about the small and
often boring world of local LGBT publishing.
There are many topics that could be cov-
ered in this space, anything from Prom King
Derrick Martin to the president’s recent direc-
tive to hospitals to treat LGBT partners the
same as heterosexual partners. But there is
something in our own living room that obvi-
ously needs to be discussed.
You may have seen “Southern Voice” back
on the street in the last couple of weeks. The
first issue came out on April 17. There is a great
deal of confusion about this with both readers
and advertisers. Why is there a Georgia Voice
and a Southern Voice? Which one should I
read? Which one is better for me as an adver-
tiser? What’s going on here?
Here’s the deal.
The original Southern Voice began publish-
ing in March 1988, with me at the helm. One
year later, in March 1989, I incorporated Ryan
Publications, Inc., to own and publish Southern
Voice. I am the founder of the original newspa-
per and my title throughout the almost 10 years
I owned SoVo varied from editor to publisher
and back again.
In August 1997, Ryan Publications, Inc.,
sold Southern Voice to Window Media LLC.
Window Media owned Southern Voice and
several other publications until Window Media
closed its doors on Nov. 16, 2009.
Before Ryan Publications sold Southern
Voice in 1997, I hired Laura Douglas-Brown
as a staff writer. She stayed with SoVo through
the years and in 2006 she was named editor of
the newspaper. Flash forward again to Nov. 16,
2009, when SoVo employees, including Doug-
las-Brown, found the locks changed at their of-
SPEAK UP. SPEAK OUT.
“The short version of
the truth is this:
Georgia Voice has
former Southern Voice
staff and management
but it does not have
the name. The current
incarnation of Southern
Voice has … the name.”
fice and a short note saying the newspaper has
ceased publication.
Laura and I talked on the phone that after-
noon. We expressed our grief and frustration,
and we cried on each other’s shoulders. Then,
we started the discussion that led to the newspa-
per (or web page) you are reading right now.
Let me be 100 percent clear. Georgia Voice
is not Southern Voice, we are not the “new”
Southern Voice, and we are not owned or man-
aged by any of the people who managed South-
ern Voice between August 1997 and the day it
closed forever on Nov. 16, 2009.
So, you might ask, if Southern Voice “closed
down forever,” how is it back on the streets
now? It is on the streets because Gaydar Maga-
zine, Inc. bought the remaining Atlanta assets
of Window Media, including the rights to the
name Southern Voice (along, incidentally, with
the rights to the name David). That corporation
now publishes a newspaper that it has named
Southern Voice. It can do that, because it owns
the name. The owner of Gaydar Magazine,
Inc., was never previously an owner, employee,
manager, or publisher of Southern Voice.
Southern Voice did not “emerge from bank-
ruptcy” as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and
WSB-TV reported a few weeks ago. Instead,
the name Southern Voice was bought, and it is
being used again.
www.theGAVoice.com
The short version of the truth is this: Georgia
Voice has former Southern Voice staff (Laura
Douglas-Brown, Dyana Bagby, Bo Shell, Ryan
Watkins, and Tim Boyd) and management
(Douglas-Brown and me) but it does not have
the name. The current incarnation of Southern
Voice has … the name.
Because six of the seven staff and manag-
ers of Georgia Voice have a history with the old
Southern Voice, people assume Georgia Voice
is a new version of SoVo. We held a community
meeting in December 2009, after Window Me-
dia ceased publishing Southern Voice, in which
the approximately 80 attendees voted to name
our new LGBT media outlet the Georgia Voice.
We then formed a new corporation, The
Georgia Voice, LLC, in January; launched our
website at the beginning of March; and put
out our first print edition March 19. We are a
brand new company that intends to become the
“LGBT media outlet of record in Atlanta and
throughout the state of Georgia.” That is part of
our mission statement. It’s who we are.
So, which should you read? Which should
you trust? Which should you spend your pre-
cious advertising dollars with? Well, obviously,
I think the answer is Georgia Voice. But, also as
obvious, you have to decide.
Read them both. Go to both websites. Deter-
mine what you like and what you don’t — what
information you trust and what you don’t. If you
have any question about anything, send me an e-
mail or send Laura Douglas-Brown an e-mail.
And while you’re at it, please tell us what
you like about Georgia Voice (or what you
don’t). Suggest a story, a writer, a better what-
ever for our website, or anything else you want
to see. Send us your birthday, anniversary, job
promotion, etc. for Milestones. Comment on
our website and Facebook page. Blog for us.
In short, get your voice out there. After all,
that is the voice that matters.
Chris Cash is the publisher of Georgia Voice.
She can be reached at ccash@thegavoice.com.
Editor Laura Douglas-Brown can be reached at
lbrown@thegavoice.com.
Share your Voice!
Email opinion column ideas to editor@thegavoice.com
www.theGAVoice.com
SPEAKING OUT
Better to ignore or oppose
‘God Hates Fags’ church?
Re: ‘God Hates Fags’ church coming to At-
lanta” (thegavoice.com, April 21)
Ignore them. They only want attention.
Let’s hope there are several hundred peace-
ful demonstrators against the six or eight hate-
consumed sociopaths and their fearless, racist,
anti-semitic, homophobic “leader” Fred Phelps.
It is sad that he and his kin are so consumed
with their own hatred of themselves and all
things living that they feel compelled to “pro-
test” life.
Silence is not the answer. I am not sure what
is the correct response, but to be silent while
these assholes spread their hate? It seems like
Atlanta would be saying it’s ok.
At this point silence is complicity.
Many, many places have staged peaceful
counter-protests with silly signs like, “God
Hates Penguins.” I think that is a great idea!
I agree we should ignore these hate mon-
gers, but I feel it’s highly important to support
the people they are protesting — particularly
the students.
I wish these people would get a life. God
does not hate. Jesus shunned or judged no one.
WWJD. He most definitely would not be picket-
ing and preaching all of this hell and damnation.
Last time they were here the local channels
didn’t cover them; they covered the peaceful
counter protests. I think we need to take the same
approach — not giving their message any cover-
age while loudly speaking the good Word.
Disgraceful for Ga. Senate to
honor anti-gay Schaefer
Re: “Georgia Senate honors Nancy
Schaefer” (thegavoice.com, April 20)
I’d rather throw a bucket of water on her to
see if she’d melt!
Nice to know they have time to do this when
they are supposed to be dealing with oh, trans-
portation and the freaking budget.
Good God Almighty! Why don’t they just
go for the gold and honor David Duke. Hitler,
and the KKK while they are at it. I could think
of some others but I’m at a loss for words.
This state turns into a disgrace more and
more every day.
Voices April 30, 2010 GA Voice 13
Westboro Baptist Church (Courtesy photo)
Editor’s note: These comments on Georgia
Voice articles were submitted via our
Facebook page (www.facebook.com/thega-
voice). Want to weigh in? Follow us there or
submit comments on our website.
Obama: Fierce advocate or
moving too slow on LGBT rights?
Re: “Pro-gay hecklers repeatedly interrupt
Obama at DNC fundraiser” (link from realclear-
politics.com posted on thegavoice.com, April 19)
He says he’s a fierce advocate and he says he
hears us — must be a tin ear then Mr. President,
because you sure aren’t acting very fierce!
I am torn. I seriously think that he is biding
his time to do things when he can. The recent
HHS memo seems to be evidence of that to me.
I am not going to act like the right; I believe
President Obama when he says he is an ally and
I believe he will fight for us as he can.
Time is on our side but you have to give
Obama a slight break. It’s difficult repairing
the state of the nation which it took a previous
president eight years to f**k up.
Wondering when he is going to start repair-
ing and quit adding to the previous screw ups.
There are no quick fixes to eight years of
Bush mismanagement. … Before you can do
life-saving surgery, you have to stop the patient
from bleeding. It took eight years to screw this
pooch, it may take two to five at best to fix it
Unfortunately noise is part of the political
process to enact “change.” Before change can
occur you must first become uncomfortable with
the status quo. … While negotiations towards
the repeal will occur behind closed doors, pub-
lic outrage and moderate civil disobedience has
always been part of the process. One must ac-
knowledge the role of these “freedom fighters”
and the potential tarnish they may have placed
on their public records for forwarding a cause.
16 GA Voice April 30, 2010 A&E www.theGAVoice.com

studies. His work as an instructor-trainer for Men

BOOKS by ROBIN KEMP Stopping Violence and as a yoga instructor also

Poetry beyond the binaries

Yolo Akili’s ‘Purple Galaxy’ transcends sexual identity
Poet Yolo Akili’s new CD, “Purple Gal- orientation as identity, the poems challenge
axy,” is a spoken-word meditation on tran- false binaries of all kinds.
scending sexual identity. In it, he imagines “Duality is itself an illusion, albeit a persistent
an erotic utopia, free of shame and labels and one in the cultural imagination,” says Akili, who
driven by pure pleasure: recently moved to New York from Atlanta.
Akili performs May 8 at Kat’s Cafe as part of
this place most folks are too repressed the Brown Sugar Vibe. He performs and signs
or afraid to engage copies of “Purple Galaxy” at Outwrite Books
this place is the space that I call my home on May 14. Although the album was more than
my own purple galaxy a decade in the making, Akili’s writing process
my erogenous zone isn’t one of strict discipline.
tell me... “Some of the tracks go as far back as ‘95.
do you think you have what it takes to come? Some, like the title track, are a lot more recent.
Poetry for me is not something I often think much
It’s a world where “a dick is not a weapon / about,” he says. “It normally just comes out of me
but a sensual extension / meant to ride rock and when I need to express or convey something to
stroke / not to bang hit or cut,” where “black page, to release. Some poems were prompted by
women/ bare breasted / dancing / with honey trauma, others by desire.”
almond dildos strapped to their laps. . . / mount The title track, “Purple Galaxy,” introduces an
/ male bodies / enter mounds of jasper / sweaty otherworldly sexual utopia: “in this dimension /
cinnamon, / black.” gender binaries fall / sexual orientation / it don’t
It is the Yolo dimension, where, he says, mean shit at all,” Akili writes.
“we would have entirely different understand- “I believe that all people are essentially bi-
ings of our bodies and be able to separate sen- sexual, but that attraction is not always physical,”
sation from attraction.” Transcending sexual Akili explains. “We are pulled to different people
Poet Yolo Akili envisions an erotic utopia where
sexuality isn’t bound by categories of male / female
and gay / straight. (Photo via Facebook)
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
Yolo Akili & ‘Purple Galaxy’
Saturday, May 8, 8 p.m.
Kat’s Cafe
970 Piedmont Ave., Atlanta GA 30309
Friday, May 14, 7:30 p.m.
Outwrite Bookstore & Coffeehouse
991 Piedmont Ave., Atlanta, GA 30309
www.outwritebooks.com
in many different ways that are not sexual in just
the physical sense.”
Akili graduated from Georgia State, where
he majored in African-American and women’s
clearly informs his work as a poet.
“The narrow categories that we have in the
West don’t leave room for the fact that some
people move and shift. It also doesn’t take into ac-
count that many of us express only certain aspects
of ourselves because of fear or trauma,” Akili
says. “In ‘Purple Galaxy,’ I try to envision what
a world would look like where sexual oppression
doesn’t exist — and then, by virtue of that, none
of the -isms could ever exist.”
But Akili’s world also has a dark side. The
track “They Will Hunt Us” describes queer sur-
vival in an actively homophobic world:
they will seek us out like wolves in the evening
search sidewalks and streetcorners for a whiff
of our scent
our maleswinging hips will incite them to rage
a woman’s jaunty swagger will give them
psychotic fits
and they will reach for their guns and their blades
conjoin their five fingers to a fist and take aim
Even under siege, even at the point of the
blade, Akili sees the true enemy: “for we are the
projections of their own fears / we are the faces
of their own unexpressed pain / they will hunt us
until they heal.”
To hear these and other poems from the album
in their entirety, visit www. yolothepoet.com. For
our full interview, visit www.thegavoice.com.

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www.theGAVoice.com
MUSIC by MATT SCHAFER
The man behind the music NO SHOES, NO SHIRT,
DJ Mike Pope brings the
beats to some of the
South’s largest gay events
DJ Mike Pope keeps rooms filled with hun-
dreds of gyrating dancers moving to the beats
thumping from his booth, but he likes the at-
tention focused on his music, not himself.
“I’m not the sort of ‘giving a speech in front
of people’ person, or that sort of thing,” Pope
says. “People are like, ‘You’re a DJ, and so
you’re good in front of a mike,’ and I’m like,
‘No, I’ll turn it on for you and hand it to you,’
but I don’t like talking in front of people.”
Pope, 38, a resident of Brookhaven, has
been expanding his reach beyond his adopted
home recently. In April, he marked his second
appearance as the headlining DJ for Rites of
Spring, a major HIV benefit in Birmingham,
Ala., and in June he will travel to Orlando for
the first time to spin for some of the large par-
ties for Gay Days.
Pope’s also busy around town as the resi-
dent DJ for Joining Hearts, where he spun for
last weekend’s Change of Seasons tea dance,
and he has spun for official Pride and Pearl
Day parties.
But Pope was a late bloomer and might not
have gotten into music if not for WETBar, a
now-defunct but much-missed Atlanta gay bar.
“When I finally started, and I waited far too
long to get into DJing, it was a combination of
three individuals: DJ Kim Crawford and Gregg
Dean who was the DJ at WETBar… and of the
course the person who really gave me a kick in
the butt was Tony Moran,” Pope says.
Moran, a recognized DJ and songwriter
from New York, has remixed songs from Ma-
donna, Beyoncé, Britney Spears, and Rihanna,
and saw talent in Pope.
“He was really the one who said I should
be out there doing this,” Pope says.
Pope works in multi-media presentations.
He currently is a manager in the audio-visual
department at the Art Institute of Atlanta, and
began to see hints that he was developing as a
DJ while working on presentations.
“There were things that were kind of hint-
ing to me back then, like beats and progres-
sions, but there is a big difference from doing
things for bands to doing things for hundreds
of people,” he says.
Branching out
Pope began playing in front of people in
the mid ‘90s while he was living in Florida,
before moving to Atlanta in 1997.
“Whenever I hung out with friends I al-
ways had an iPod going or brought CDs, and I
A&E April 30, 2010 GA Voice 17
SPRING BREAK AT PIEDMONT BARK
FULL-SERVICE! ³0LOHV\HDUROG
After spinning at Joining Hearts’ ‘Change of Sea-
sons’ party on April 25, DJ Mike Pope is also slated
to appear at Gay Days at Disney in June. (Photo YAPPY HOUR MAY 2, 2010: PROUDLY PRESENTING
THE 2010 PET COTILLION
courtesy Pope)
remember for this one party I had this stack
of CDs, not mixing them, just playing the OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK • 404-873-5400 • MIDTOWN ATLANTA, AMSTERDAM WALK, 501 AMSTERDAM AVE, ATLANTA, GA 30306
tracks,” Pope says. “It was a big house party
and people started really responding to it and
I thought now is when I need to have my own
equipment.”
After investing in mixing equipment Pope
began playing around with beats and tempos in
ways he hadn’t before. His official debut came at
WETBar, the massive dance club that once ca-
tered to a gay crowd before becoming Primal in
2008, which has a primarily straight clientele.
One night he was asked to fill in for DJ
Kim Crawford for a few songs. “It was just
a few songs and I barely wanted to give the
headphones back I was feeling it so much.”
WETBar led him to more shifts in club DJ
booths and soon he garnered a growing fan
base, both gay and straight, spinning at Opera,
Jungle, Primal, Amsterdam, Whiskey Park,
Bellissima, Artistry, Beleza, STEEL, The Fox
Theater, Front Page News and Shout.
Pope has also offered his skills to a grow-
ing list of non-profits, most famously Joining
Hearts, the massive summer pool party in
Piedmont Park that benefits housing for peo-
ple with HIV.
“I’m privileged [to have Joining Hearts]
call me their resident DJ and that’s normally
something that’s reserved for clubs,” he says.
“I’m honored that they consider me that.”
Pope is enjoying the out of town gigs that
he’s starting to land, but Atlanta will always
be his home.
“I love Atlanta and I’ll always try to take
gigs there first, but it’s exciting to start branch-
ing out,” he says.
18
2 GA Voice April 30, 2010 A&E
by Laura Douglas-Brown
SPORTS
The Atlanta Beat is back
For out goalkeeper Brett Maron,
new Atlanta pro women’s soccer
team is a dream come true
Brett Maron’s fifth grade yearbook listed
her top two choices for what she wanted to
be when she grew up: a professional soccer
player, or a doctor.
“By the time I was 18, it was pretty appar-
ent that I was closer to being a professional
soccer player,” Maron laughs.
Now 23, Maron has fulfilled her childhood
dream. She’ll take the field as goalkeeper on
May 9 when the Atlanta Beat, the city’s new
professional women’s soccer team, plays its
home opener against Sky Blue FC at its state-
of-the-art field at Kennesaw State University.
The Beat’s inaugural season has gotten off
to a slightly rocky start, to be expected for a
new team. Their April 11 debut ended in a 0-0
tie with the Philadelphia Independence. They
have since lost two close games, and face Phil-
adelphia again May 1 before heading back to
Atlanta for their first home game.
“Everything is going very well for us; it’s
just the little things aren’t falling together for
us right now,” says Maron, who moved to At-
lanta from Boston. “But once the little things
are clicking, we will be unstoppable.”
“Unstoppable” could apply to Maron herself.
Women’s professional soccer wasn’t really on
the horizon when she was a small child, but she
never doubted she could achieve her dream.
“I was fortunate to have strong women
around me growing up who made me believe
I was powerful enough to do whatever I want-
ed,” she says. “So there wasn’t a thought in
my head that it wasn’t a possibility.”
Coming out also didn’t limit Maron’s options.
Homophobia, once rampant in women’s
sports, has kept many athletes in the closet. Les-
bian athletes may be pressured to keep their sexu-
ality secret in order to avoid reinforcing the stereo-
type that all female athletes are gay.
“I can only speak from my perspective, but I
have been openly gay since I was a teenager,
and I have never had an inkling of a problem or
anything that was homophobic,” Maron says.
“I’m either lucky or things are changing.”
Maron says she has “never been pressured
to stay in the closet.”
“Especially with the Beat, everyone is so ac-
The Atlanta Beat. Goalkeeper Brett Maron is on
the far right, at the end of the bottom row.
(Photo courtesy Atlanta Beat)
cepting of everyone — not just sexuality,” she
says. “They are just all around good people.”
The team’s management agrees.
“WPS [Women’s Professional Soccer] is
100 percent inclusive of all people no matter
what their orientation may be,” says Christa
Mann, media relations manager for the Beat.
“We embrace both teams and fans from all
backgrounds, beliefs, and interests.”
The Beat, now in its second incarnation in
Atlanta, also hopes to be embraced in return.
The former Atlanta Beat, which played from
2001 to 2003, was part of the Women’s Unit-
ed Soccer Association. The team reached the
www.theGAVoice.com
championship game twice in three years, but
ended when the league fell apart.
Women’s Professional Soccer, a new
league, launched in 2009, and the Atlanta
team is debuting for the 2010 season.
Head coach Gareth O’Sullivan says fans
can expect an exciting experience.
“The strength of the team is made up of
the different characters we have and the high-
level of technical play,” he says.
Maron was goalkeeper for Fairfield Uni-
versity, and then played for two international
teams — Kristianstad FF (Swedish Women’s
Premier League) and Afturelding FC (Icelan-
dic Women’s Premier League).
Now, she’s excited to be back in the United
States, helping soccer gain the notoriety and
respect here that it enjoys in other countries.
She also wants to send a message to other
young girls, to let them know that their dreams,
like her own, can come true.
“I think it is unbelievably important that
young girls know they can do anything they
want, especially now,” Maron says. “If they
want to play soccer, they can.”
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
Atlanta Beat
Home opener vs. Sky Blue FC (NY/NJ)
May 9, 7 p.m. at KSU Soccer Stadium
3200 George Busbee Parkway, Kennesaw, GA 30144
678-298-4778, womensprosoccer.com/atlanta
www.theGAVoice.com
EVENTS by JIM FARMER
Star power
Beloved by gay fans, stage
icons help raise funds for
local theaters
Broadway sensation Chita Rivera comes to
town next week in a fundraiser for Atlanta Lyric
Theatre. Brandt Blocker, artistic director of the
company, had the chance to work with the gay
icon a number of years back in New Orleans
and remembers her professionalism.
“She was gracious and a great teach-
er,” Blocker says. “I always wanted to
do something with her again.”
Flash forward to Lyric’s 30th anni-
versary this year and it seemed a given
to try to get Rivera for the theater’s an-
nual fundraising event.
“We wanted to do something differ-
ent – we wanted a big star – and Chita
was able to work it into her schedule,”
he says. “As a local company dedicated
to musical theater, we are honored to be
able to have her here.”
Blocker calls Rivera a true legend.
“Her characters have stood the test of time,”
he says. “When I ask folks about her, even some
of the younger ones who might not know her
name know her shows. She originated so many
roles. She was in ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ and she was
in ‘West Side Story’ and of course ‘Chicago.”
She was also in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman.’
Gay men who know musical theater have al-
ways known and loved her.”
Rivera will be performing her acclaimed
“Chita Rivera: My Broadway,” which she has
been taking across the country of late, featur-
ing numbers such as “Nowadays” and “All the
Jazz” from “Chicago” and “Big Spender” from
“Sweet Charity.”
Ticketholders will get a chance to meet Ri-
vera as well at the event.
Chita Rivera is not the only celebrated diva/
gay icon coming to Atlanta. Tony winner Elaine
Stritch will be in town this weekend in a benefit
for the Alliance Theatre titled “A Tony Evening.”
Stritch will perform numbers from her re-
cent show “Elaine Stritch Performing Sond-
heim: One Song at a Time.” The revue origi-
nated at New York’s Café Carlyle and was
scheduled for a short run but was extended due
to its popularity.
Stritch is a Broadway legend herself, per-
haps best known for her role in Sondheim’s
“Company,” where she belted out the immortal
“Ladies Who Lunch.”
At age 85, she has been performing for
decades, finally winning a Tony for her one-
woman show “Elaine Stritch at Liberty” after a
lifetime of lauded performances. She also won
an Emmy award for a guest appearance on “30
Rock” and was seen as Jane Fonda’s mother in
“Monster-in-Law.”
Elaine Stritch (above) and Chita Rivera head to
the Atlanta stage for two events benefting local
theaters. (Publicity photos)
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
‘Chita Rivera: My Broadway’
Friday, May 7, 8 p.m.
Earl Smith Strand Theatre
117 North Park Square, Marietta, GA 30060
404-377-9948
www.atlantalyrictheatre.com
‘A Tony Evening’
with Elaine Stritch
Saturday, May 1, 7 p.m.
Loew’s Hotel Midtown
1065 Peachtree St., Atlanta, GA 30309
404-733-4618
www.alliancetheatre.org
“A Tony Evening” is the second annual gala
to benefit the Alliance and its children’s pro-
gramming. Tickets are not cheap – individual
tickets start at $250 – but do include cocktails, a
gourmet dinner, a silent auction and the show.
A&E April 30, 2010 GA Voice 19
Williams hits a
different ‘Runway’
For a few months, Anthony Williams was judged
weekly for his fashion designs on the reality show
“Project Runway.” This weekend he will actually be
one of the judges himself for the Simon Fashion
Bow Wow, part of the Simon Fashion Now weekend
event at Lenox.
The Bow Wow is a design competition featuring
six students from Bauder College’s fashion design
program. The six students will design clothing for
local media celebrities as well as adoptable dogs
from Atlanta Pet Rescue, a non-profit, no-kill ani-
mal shelter.
Williams is excited about serving as a celebrity
judge for the runway show, especially so soon after
the conclusion of “Project Runway,” where the quick-
witted contestant – eliminated but then given the
chance to return — finished fifth in the series.
The openly gay Williams is proud to be an At-
lantan and says when he was asked to participate
in Bow Wow, he jumped at the opportunity.
“I live in Atlanta, and that is where I want to
be,” he says. “I am looking forward to doing this.”
Williams admits he enjoyed being part of “Run-
way” and loves meeting fans at functions such as
these. The event is free and open to the public.
Publicity Photo
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
Simon Fashion Bow Wow
Friday, April 30, 7:30 p.m.
Lenox Square
3393 Peachtree Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30326
404-233-7575, www.simon.com
www.thegavoice.com
Our interview with Anthony Williams
and tour of his Atlanta loft
20
2 GA Voice April 30, 2010 A&E www.theGAVoice.com

EVENTS Photos by Jon Arge | www.argeart.com

WigOut for Mondo Homo

WigOut, held April 24 at the Atlanta Eagle,
raised funds for Mondo Homo. The queer
arts festival is slated for May 27-31.
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
• More photos from WigOut and other
community events.

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www.theGAVoice.com
COMMUNITY LOCAL LIFE
Amen, Sisters
Atlanta’s Sisters of Perpetual
Indulgence ‘promulgate
universal joy’ by giving back
By Dyana Bagby
dbagby@thegavoice.com
When a bearded nun in whiteface wearing
glitter makeup puts a condom in your pocket,
you notice. And that’s the point.
“When I walk in somewhere as Rick West-
brook, gay activist, nobody pays much attention.
But when we walk in as Rapture or Fiddle D. Dee,
people pay attention. It’s an interesting little cul-
ture shock,” says Westbrook, a.k.a Rapture Divine
Cox. “I tell everyone we’re the gay Shriners.”
Atlanta’s fledgling order of the Sisters of Per-
petual Indulgence — fittingly known as the Flam-
ing Sugarbakers in a nod to “Designing Women”
and their Georgia heritage — is living up to the
mission of the Sisters to give back to the commu-
nity in a way that is entertaining and interesting.
The mission of the Sisters is to “promulgate
universal joy and expiate stigmatic guilt,” ex-
plains Gunza Blazin, who declined to give his
real name. “We want to banish the guilt church-
es have put on you in the past.”
Formed in 1979 by a small group of men
in San Francisco, the Sisters of Perpetual In-
The Atlanta Sisters known as the Order of the Flaming Sugarbakers are, from left, Ivanna Pokeahotass,
Gunza Blazin, Fiddle D. Dee and Rapture Divine Cox. (Photo by Dyana Bagby)
dulgence intentionally flew in the face of Ca-
tholicism to fight against the tyranny the church
tried to impose against the surge of gay people
living in the Castro.
Soon after the San Francisco Order was
formed, houses started popping up across the
U.S. and around the globe, in countries includ-
ing Colombia, Germany and Scotland. And
while the San Francisco House is considered
the “Mother House,” each Order is autonomous
and comes up with its own look, culture and
rules based on the environment they live in.
But all Houses must do one thing: give back
to their community.
Recently, the Atlanta Sisters — they are
considered Novice Sisters right now — helped
raise $4,200 for the Susan G. Komen Founda-
tion by playing in the Bats-n-Rouge softball
fundraiser at Piedmont Park. They also made
quite an impression at the April 24 Wig Out
party at the Atlanta Eagle, a fundraiser for queer
arts and music fest MondoHomo.
“We go wherever help is needed,” says Fiddle
D. Dee, otherwise known as Eddie Townson.
They’re just like super heroes, except in-
stead of capes they’re wearing a wimple (those
would be the bonnets on their heads), glittery
makeup and rhinestones glued to their fore-
heads and cheeks.
“Martha Stewart has fabulous glitter … she
probably never thought it’d be used for this,”
says Fiddle D. Dee with a laugh.
“The glitter isn’t supposed to be used on your
face, but whatever works,” adds Gunza Blazin.
But don’t confuse them with drag queens.
“What we do is more of a service rather
than a performance,” says Ivanna Pokeahotass,
a.k.a. Wesley Sumpter.
Steps to sisterhood
The Atlanta Sisters were formed in late 2009
by Gunza Blazin, Ivana Pocahotass and Fiddle
D. Dee. Atlanta Pride in October was their com-
ing out party. When Westbrook, a longtime per-
former in the popular East Point Possums drag
show, saw them marching in the parade, he says
he almost fell to the ground he was so thrilled.
He joined in January as a founding member.
Four specific steps must be taken to become
a Sister of Perpetual Indulgence and the process
typically takes about one year. And anyone —
man, woman, transgender or gender-bender —
can become a Sister, although most across the
world are men.
The first step is Aspirant, a time when a per-
son declares in a general membership meeting
their intention to join. As an Aspirant, one is re-
quired to take time to get to know the Sisters,
Community April 30, 2010 GA Voice 21
Your Milestones
Joan Sherwood and Debbie Fraker
celebrated their sixth wedding anniver-
sary and 19 years together on April 19.
They were married in Toronto, Ontario, in
2004 with the Honourable Justice Harvey
Brownstone performing the ceremony.
Celebrating a MILESTONE? Share your engage-
ments, weddings, births, adoptions, anniversaries,
birthdays and other events! Announcements can be up
to 200 words and can include a photo. E-mail editor@
thegavoice.com with your milestone and contact info
to see your name in print!
participate in events and watch to see how com-
munity work is done. No whiteface or wimple
is allowed at this stage.
If it’s agreed upon by the Sisters that enough
work has been done as an Aspirant, a person is
elevated to Postulant.
In Atlanta, Postulants are members of the Or-
der and can begin “manifesting” — painting their
faces and also wearing a grey veil. However, they
can only paint their eyes and not their lips.
The next step is Novice Sister, when a Sis-
ter can paint her lips and speak out about who
and what the Sisters are. They also can wear the
signature wimple with a white veil. The Atlanta
wimple, a tribute to Civil War bonnets, was de-
signed by Gunza Blazin, who also sewed them
for the others.
After about six months of being Novice Sis-
ters, a ceremony called an “exequator” is held
and the Novice Sisters trade in their white veils
and are “black veiled.” Atlanta’s exequator is
set to be held sometime this fall.
The Flaming Sugarbakers currently includes
four Novice Sisters, four Postulants and four As-
pirants. The group also includes guards — those
who protect the Sisters, take care of the money at
events and do whatever else the Sisters ask.
“I wanted to give back to my community. I used
to live in Seattle and saw the joy and good the Sis-
ters did there and thought it was time for Atlanta to
have its own Sisters,” Gunza Blazin says.
MORE INFO www.theGAVoice.com
Atlanta Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence
www.atlsisters.org
22 GA Voice Community April 30, 2010
Quiet support from
an exceptional mom
(plus the real reason Obama was elected)
By Maggie López
Growing up, I didn’t think my mother was
special, just different. Mom was older than my
friends’ mothers; she had me at 40. She didn’t
speak English, having arrived in the U.S. as an
exile fresh from Castro’s Cuba in her forties,
too busy with young children and a struggling
husband to learn the language.
Having grown up in a privileged house-
hold, she dutifully earned a university degree
to become suitable marriage material, yet never
worked outside the home like my friends’
younger, working moms. Having had a driver
and cooks in Cuba, she never mastered either
skill, which explains my own penchant for cabs
and restaurant food.
Due to culture, class and circumstance, she
displayed a genteel passivity that masked her
own rebellious streak, which would occasion-
ally manifest itself in support of her often-chal-
lenging teenage daughter.
My mother always knew how to keep the
peace at home, yet foster my creative, progres-
sive bent. Like the time my conservative father
gave me considerable grief for showing up at
the dinner table wearing an Afrocentric dashiki
top, for him a sure sign I had joined the Black
Panther movement. To our astonishment, my
mom greeted us at the dinner table the next
evening sporting one herself, having taken two
buses and crossing neighborhood color lines
which then still existed in Miami, to purchase
one in my support.
In a much later act of defiance, my mother
would cross the family’s staunch political party
lines and vote for — gasp — Bill Clinton, an act
for which my father solely credited the election’s
outcome and the fall of civilization itself.
A product of her generation, we never had
candid discussions about my own lifestyle, yet
she nursed me through a devastating breakup
with a long-term partner. For the next decade,
she worried that I would remain, as best as she
could articulate it, “companionless.”
She stopped worrying the day she met my
partner Patt. Immediately taken with each oth-
er, they engaged in an implausible discussion
given neither spoke the other’s language, over
the recent presidential elections and the impor-
tance of the vote.
When Patt asked whom she had voted for,
Mom smiled mischievously, raised one finger
to her lips and whispered, “It’s a secret ballot.”
Right then, somewhere between heaven and
purgatory, my father realized just how Presi-
dent Obama had won the election.
Last June, I had the dubious privilege of
seeing my mother breathe her last breath. I real-
ized she wasn’t really different after all — she
was exceptional.
A mother’s
Readers celebrate unconditional love for Mother’s Day
Mom’s ‘double duty’
on Mother’s Day
By Kevin Moss
My twin brother and I are
both gay men, and fully sup-
ported by our mother. Our birth-
day is always around Mother’s
Day, sometimes even on Moth-
er’s Day (about every nine years
or so).
On our 23rd birthday a couple
years ago, it was on Mother’s
Day. So to celebrate, our mother
decided to go to a gay owned/op-
erated restaurant (a popular one in
Atlanta called Joe’s on Juniper) to
celebrate both Mother’s Day and
her gay twin sons’ birthday.
She’s ultra inclusive, a staunch letter-
writer (to voice her opinion to public fig-
ures), and more gay-friendly than gay
people themselves. She welcomes any boy-
friend my twin or I bring home to her. She
deserves recognition for doing double gay
duty as a mother.
When my big sister tried to make a gay
My best friend since coming out via AOL
By William Duffee-Braun
This Mother’s Day will mean more to me
than any other because of the countless hours
my mother has recently contributed to my life.
Let’s back up for a moment and let me tell you
a little more about who she is and what she has
done to make my life so extraordinary.
The most amazing example was the way
she handled herself when I decided it was time
to come out of the closet … at 14 years old …
via AOL 2.0 … sent to her work email address.
Oh, the coward I was! But it worked out well:
She went to work, checked her email, learned
that her very young son was gay (which she
claims she knew all along) and came home
and embraced my lifestyle. Go mom for being
an open-minded angel in the midst of creepy
closed-minded Mississippi!
Another great instance of her amazing sup-
heart
Kevin’s mom on Mother’s Day 1985 –
the day before her twin sons were born.
rights non-profit group (she’s
a supporter of my twin and I),
she needed money to finance
copyright and trademark filings. My mother
financed my sister’s endeavor. Not only does
my mom openly support and join her gay
sons, she also forked out a few hundred dol-
lars she didn’t really have to help my LGBT-
supportive sister start up “DHHIL” (Don’t
Hate How I Love).
My mother truly is an LGBT Mother of
the Year to so many of my friends.
port came when I was about to graduate from
college. She surprised me with airfare and
lodging in New York City so I could look for an
internship. This may not seem like much, but
she is a single mother, supporting three kids.
Money was often pretty scarce.
But recently I ctould not thank her enough for
her time and effort. I am currently in the midst
of producing the new LGBT lifestyle magazine,
Fenuxe, for the Atlanta community. She spent
her entire spring break in Atlanta working to
help us get this publication off the ground.
She put our racks together. She created,
edited and deleted content for our first issue.
She organized our office so that we could work
faster and more efficiently. All from a place of
wanting/encouraging her gay son to succeed.
All from a place so that this fine city will have
an inspirational glossy LGBT publication.
She is my best friend, my angel, my mother.
www.theGAVoice.com
I wish everyone could
have a mom like mine
By Laurie Pizzano
My mother so loves my wife, she believes
it is only natural for us to be married. Trust me,
if Lori and I broke up, the first thing out of my
mother’s mouth would be, “What did you do?
She was the best thing that has ever happened
to you, you idiot! Now fix it!”
That’s my mom. I wish everyone could
have this much love and support because the
world would be a better place.
Acceptance for daughter —
and ‘daughter in love’
By Chance Claar-Pressley
Well, my mom is Samantha Claar. She’s a
pretty cool lady. She drew the line at funky hair
dye and tattoos as a teenager, but was totally
behind me running a LGB (no T at the time)
youth group when I was a young, queer youth.
Now, she loves my partner of 16 years (who
she calls her daughter-in-love) and her two
grandbabies the same way. That’s pretty cool.
Editors’ note: Samantha Claar is a long-
time lesbian activist and was a grand marshal
of last year’s Atlanta Pride parade.
Ring-shopping with Mom
By Shawn-Marie Clements
My mom is incredible and special for many
reasons! She loves and accepts me for who I
am. In fact, she went with my future wife ring
shopping — shh, I’m not supposed to know!
She has been through so much, but came
out of it all to teach me to be strong and work
hard through everything. Even through all of
our arguing and bickering when I was growing
up, she is still, and always has been, my shelter
I go to in times of need or peace. She is always
there and always forgiving.
She, to me, is the best mom I could have!
She’s the greatest.
In honor of Mother’s Day, May 9, we asked
readers to share stories of the love and accep-
tance they have received from their mothers.
Some made us laugh, others made us cry, and
Maggie Lopez’ essay on her “exceptional” mom
managed to do both.
With Lopez out of the running since she
admittedly exceeded our word limit (though her
story is well worth it), Kevin Moss wins our $50
gift certificate to steakhouse Parker’s On Ponce.
Enjoy these stories, and look for more
reader submission contests in the future.
And if you are in need of resources to help
your mom be this supportive, visit www.pflag.org
www.theGAVoice.com Community April 30, 2010 GA Voice 23

GEORGIA SPOTLIGHT

YOU
CAN
First City Network
Despite Atlanta’s reputation as a gay mecca,
MORE INFO
First City Network
PO Box 2442, Savannah, GA 31402
CHANGE
THE
the organization that bills itself as Georgia’s old- 912-236-CITY, www.firstcitynetwork.net
est continuous LGBT group isn’t located in the
state capital. Savannah’s First City Network was a variety of other events like the annual Oyster

founded in 1985, and continues to serve the coast-
al city with a wide variety of services.
First City Network serves as a clearing house
for all things LGBT in the city, with a dynamic
website and monthly printed newsletter that con-
nect Savannah residents with everything from Sa-
vannah Pride to gay and gay-friendly businesses
and religious organizations.
The new Gay & Metropolitan Police Depart-
ment Collaborative allows people who have issues
with the police based on their sexual orientation or
gender identity to report the situation through a
link on the First City Network website.
First City Network hosts a monthly First Sat-
urday Social and Lesbian Potluck, along with
WORLD
Roast each March.
FCN has also served as an incubator of sorts
for other LGBT groups in Savannah. Stand Out
Youth has its roots in a youth support group first
established by FCN in 1994; Stand Out Youth
incorporated as a separate group in 2002.
The Savannah Gay & Lesbian Film Society,
founded in 2008 under the umbrella of FCN, is THE WORLD’S BEST RESEARCH AND CUTTING
now also becoming a separate non-profit group.
“First City Network serves as a forum to share EDGE SCIENCE IS HERE IN ATLANTA.
strengths ... stimulate personal growth and provide LET’S MAKE HIV A THING OF THE PAST.
social activities,” the mission statement says. “We
provide national, state and local information and
referral services for health care, counseling, edu-
cation, advocacy and mutual support.” WE ARE SEEKING MEN WHO HAVE SEX WITH MEN BETWEEN
18 AND 45 YEARS OF AGE WHO DO NOT HAVE HIV TO JOIN

MEGA Family Project MORE INFO

MEGA, or Marriage Equality Georgia, was
founded in the wake of the 2004 state constitu-
tional amendment banning gay marriage. The
group evolved into the MEGA Family Project,
offering a variety of proactive, positive educa-
tional and social events for LGBT families.
“Georgia is home to a very large LGBT
community, and over the last seven years we
have seen a significant increase in the number
of LGBT-headed families living here,” the
group’s website explains.
Led by Executive Director Kathy Kelly,
MEGA offers a packed schedule of monthly
gatherings, plus larger events throughout the
year. May’s schedule includes the MEGA
Cookout Fundraiser on May 8, prospective
parent support group and coming out support
group meetings on May 20, and the informa-
MEGA Family Project
1530 Dekalb Ave. Suite A, Atlanta, GA 30307
404-808-3350, www.megafamilyproject.org
tive Maybe Baby seminar for prospective
LGBT parents on May 26.
MEGA Family Project also just announced
that its annual MEGA Family Vacation,
scheduled for July 23-25, will be held at Lake
Lanier Island Resort after taking place on
Tybee Island in past years.
MEGA Family Project serves hundreds
of families throughout the state, and is in the
midst of a critical fundraising period. The
group accepts tax-deductible donations of all
amounts, and you can become a MEGA Fam-
ily Champion for as little as $10 per month.
— Laura Douglas-Brown
IN OUR QUEST FOR A VACCINE TO COMBAT HIV.
If eligible you will participate in a study to evaluate the safety and the
potential efficacy of an HIV vaccine. The vaccine does not contain HIV.
You will receive $75 per study visit for your time and travel expenses to the
study location in Decatur, Georgia. This study is being conducted by
Dr. Mark Mulligan of the Hope Clinic of the Emory Vaccine Center,
located at 603 Church Street, Decatur, GA 30030.
WWW.HOPECLINIC.EMORY.EDU | VACCINE@EMORY.EDU
HOPE…BE A PART OF IT.
CALL 877-424-HOPE(4673) TO LEARN MORE.
W
200 INNE
8 R
G AG
ANGUARD LCC
EL A IAN
WA
RD
24 GA Voice April 30, 2010 Calendar www.theGAVoice.com

BEST BETS 04.30 - 05.14 Friday, April 30

ADD YOUR EVENT
There are two ways to add your events to
our online and print calendars. Submit your
info to www.theGAVoice.com or e-mail the
details to editor@theGAVoice.com.

SPOTLIGHT Charis holds a going-away party for lesbian

erotica writer Fiona Zedde, who is moving to
Florida. Zedde reads from her ebook, “Kisses
After Midnight,” and will sign her other books
as well. 7-8:30 p.m. at Charis Books & More, 1189
Euclid Ave NE, Atlanta GA 30307, 404-522-9912,
www.chariscircle.org
Lindsey Hinkle performs at 9 p.m. at Bellissima,
560 - B Amsterdam Ave., Atlanta, GA, 30306.
www.myspace.com/bellissima_lounge
The gay Atlanta Stonewall Democrats join
Photo via Myspace

several Young Democrats chapters to host the

Democratic Mixer with candidates who signed
up during the April 26-April 30 qualifying period
to run for office this year. 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. at
Manuel’s Tavern, 602 N. Highland Ave., Atlanta, GA
Friday, April 30 – 30307, www.atlantastonewall.org
Sunday, May 2

Photo by Luis Carle/djtonymoran.com

The second annual OutlantaCon focuses
on LGBT themes in the science fiction,
fantasy and horror genres. Speakers for
the weekend conference include J.A.
Steel, Cecilia Tan, Darieck Scott, Andrew
Greenburg, J.M. McDermott, Eugie Foster,
Kiernan Kelley, Greg Herren, Kayelle
Allen and more. Events at the Holiday
Inn Select – Perimeter, 4386 Chamblee-
Dunwoody Road, Atlanta, GA 30341,
www.outlantacon.org
Photo courtesy Bravo
Gay playwright Topher Payne plays Joan Craw-
ford in the premiere of his “Christina Darling,”
which tells the story of Joan’s daughter Christina
Crawford, author of the scorching memoir “Mom-
mie Dearest.” Through May 8 at Onstage Atlanta,
2597 North Decatur Road, Decatur, GA 30033-6126,
www.theprocesstheatre.org
Saturday, May 1 Heretic. 10 p.m. at 2069 Che
shire
Bear icon Dru Bruin bartends at the Eagle for one Tony Moran spins at the
Popular New York DJ m
om, www.hereticatlanta.co
night only. 306 Ponce de Leon Ave., Atlanta, GA 30324, www.djtonymoran.c
Bridge Road, Atlanta, GA
30308, www.atlantaeagle.com
MORE COMMUNITY EVENTS www.theGAVoice.com
Friday, April 30 – Looking for more events? Visit our website for our extensive daily calendar, including nightlife
Sunday, May 2 schedules and community organization meetings, provided by our friends at ProjectQAtlanta.com.
The sixth annual Women’s Music in the Moun-
tains festival at Swiftwaters brings a packed
the run from Mixx to Blake’s to FROGS Cantina to your favorite furry friend to be crowned Cotillion
slate of musicians to the lesbian-owned women’s
the Eagle; drinking all the way. A cookout follows King or Queen, then enjoy the party with open bar,
campground in Dahlonega. Among the almost
at the Eagle. Registration starts at 1 p.m., step off silent auction and DJ Greg Moseley. 3-6 p.m. at
two-dozen acts are Cell, Renee Mixon, Lives of the

Saturday, May 1
The 23rd annual Atlanta Human
Rights Campaign Dinner features
awards for Bravo’s Andy Cohen, state
Rep. Simone Bell and Vandy Beth Glenn,
who is suing the General Assembly
for firing her for being transgender.
Includes silent auction. VIP reception
begins at 5 p.m., silent auction at 6
p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, 265
Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303,
www.atlantahrcdinner.org
Monster Dogs, Lindsey Hinkle and Ronnda Cadle.
Camping and day passes available. Swiftwaters,
830 Swiftwaters Road, Dahlonega, GA 30533,
www.myspace.com/swiftwatersfest
Saturday, May 1
Celebrate the first annual World Fitness Day by
working out with Jane Fonda and her celebrity
friends, including gay favorite Margaret Cho. The
list also features Ludacris, Debbie Allen, Richard
Simmons, The Pointer Sisters and more. Tickets
are $75 to work-out, $25 to watch. Benefits Geor-
gia Campaign for Adolescent Pregnancy Preven-
tion. Doors open at 8:30 a.m. at the Georgia Dome,
1 Georgia Dome Drive, Atlanta, GA 30313,
www.worldfitnessday.org
The Atlanta Bucks, the city’s gay rugby team,
holds its annual Purple Dress Run to benefit the
team and YouthPride. Don your purple dress for
at 2 p.m. at Mixx Atlanta, 1492 Piedmont Ave., Suite
B, Atlanta, GA 30309. purpledressrun.org
Dina Jacobs returns to Atlanta for an 8 p.m. show
at Bellissima, 560 - B Amsterdam Ave., Atlanta, GA,
30306. www.myspace.com/bellissima_lounge
Lesbian guitarist Kaki King brings her unique sound
to the Variety Playhouse. 8:30 p.m. at 1099 Euclid Ave.
NE, Atlanta, GA 30307, www.variety-playhouse.com
Atlanta artist Jon Arge exhibits new works, while DJ
William Roman spins. 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at 1113 Colquitt
Ave. NE, Atlanta, GA 30307. facebook.com/argeart
Sunday, May 2
Piedmont Bark presents the 2010 Pet Cotillion,
a benefit for PALS Atlanta, which helps people
with HIV and other serious health conditions keep
their pets. Vote online at www.palsatlanta.org for
Piedmont Bark, 501 Amsterdam Ave., Atlanta, GA
30306, www.piedmontbark.com
LadyCatcher Productions presents a night of
comedy with comedian Daddy Jane. 7 p.m. at
My Sisters’ Room, 1271 Glenwood Ave., Atlanta, GA
30316, www.mysistersroom.com
Mondo Homo’s Mondo May Day features queer
punk music from Shitty Candy, Romanenko,
Violence Gang, and a dance party with Jeremy
Gloff. 4 p.m. at Eyedrum, 290 MLK Jr. Drive, Suite 8,
Atlanta, GA 30312, www.eyedrum.org
Monday, May 3
Get a head start on Cinco de Mayo with Cinco de
Gayo, a benefit for the AIDS Research Consortium
of Atlanta tonight at Agave. 15 percent of your bill
goes to ARCA. 5 – 10 p.m. at Agave, 242 Boulevard,
Atlanta, GA 30312, www.agaverestaurant.com
www.theGAVoice.com
Tuesday, May 4
LGBT activist Betty Couvertier hosts “Alternative
Perspectives” every Tuesday at 7 p.m. on WRFG,
89.3 FM. www.wrfg.org
Watch “Glee,” then enjoy show tunes with VJ
Vaughn. 9 p.m. at Amsterdam Atlanta, 502 Amster-
dam Ave., Atlanta, GA 30306, www.facebook.com/
amsterdam.atlanta
Wednesday, May 5
Go Out 2 Eat, a new monthly social event hosted
by AID Atlanta’s Gay Men’s Outreach Program.
6:30 p.m. at Amsterdam Atlanta, 502 Amsterdam
Ave., Atlanta, GA 30306, RSVP
steven.igarashi@aidatlanta.org
Enjoy Cinco de Mayo with AID Atlanta LOOP,
the agency’s donor circle. Includes cocktail bar,
food, visits from two Georgia legislators and
the announcement of the new AID Atlanta LOOP
3.0 initiative. 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. at a private
residence. www.aidatlanta.org
Papi’s Cinco de Mayo Parking Lot Fiesta kicks
off at 6 p.m. at Las Margaritas, 1842 Cheshire
Bridge Road, followed by a special Café Con
Leche after party at 10 p.m. at the Heretic, 2069
Cheshire Bridge Road. Shuttle service between
both locations. www.chriscolemanenterprises.com
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with DJs 5 Hour Boner
and Sam Roth Stein in the Honey Pot. 9 p.m. at
Mary’s, 1287 Glenwood Ave., Atlanta, GA 30316, 404-
624-4411, www.marysatlanta.com
New York Times food writer Kim Severson reads
“Spoon Fed,” her memoir of life lessons from
female cooks. 7:15 p.m. at the Decatur Library, 215
Sycamore St., Decatur, GA 30030, outwritebooks.com
Thursday, May 6
Counter protests are planned as Rev. Fred Phelps’
“God Hates Fags” Westboro Baptist Church comes
to Atlanta to protest at several local organizations and
high schools. Students at Grady High School, targeted
by the Phelps clan in part for their Gay-Straight Alli-
ance, and supporters gather from 3:15 – 6 p.m. at Grady,
929 Charles Allen Drive, Atlanta, GA 30309.
The weekly Indulge party brings the boys out. 9 p.m. to
midnight at the W Midtown Atlanta Hotel, 125 10th Street,
Atlanta, GA 30309, chriscolemanenterprises.com
Friday, May 7 –
Sunday, May 9
Atlanta West Fest brings a three days of events
to the Historic West End. Benefit concert on Friday
night at the Wren’s Nest, tour of homes on Saturday
and Sunday, and all-day festival and artist market on
Saturday in Gordon-White Park. atlantawestfest.com
Saturday, May 8
Quick Silver Country Dancers presents a gender-
free Contra Dance, where couples of all gender
combinations enjoy dancing similar to square danc-
Calendar April 30, 2010 GA Voice 25
Photo via MySpace
Friday, May 7
The queer-inclusive band Herman Put Down
the Gun returns from hiatus with a 9 p.m.
show at Kavarna, 707 East Lake Drive, Deca-
tur, GA 30030, hermanputdownthegun.com
ing, performed in long lines so that everyone dances
with everyone else. 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Unitarian
Universalist Congregation of Atlanta, 1911 Cliff Valley
Way NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, www.qcdancers.org
Remember the good old days of Atlanta’s gay 24
nightclub with the latest Backstreet Reunion.
Doors open at 8 p.m. Charlie Brown’s Cabaret
at 9 p.m., DJs Bill Berdeaux and Rob Reum spin.
Jungle, 2115 Faulkner Rd., Atlanta, GA 30324,
www.jungleclubatlanta.com
Catch the Brown Sugar Vibe with Lakara Foster, with
spoken word, musicians and DJ “E.” Theme is “Think
Pink, Wear Pink, & Drink Pink for the Cure”; 10 percent
of proceeds donated to Susan G. Komen Race for
the Cure. 8 – 11 p.m. at Kat’s Café, 970 Piedmont Ave.,
Atlanta, GA 30309. facebook.com/lakarafoster
Saturday, May 8 –
Sunday, May 9
Join DJ Vicki Powell and Bill Kaelin as the popular
Flux party gets wet for Flux Deluxe on the first
Saturday and Sunday of each month. On Saturday
night, the Flux dance party packs the Livingston
Restaurant + Bar at the historic Georgian Terrace
Hotel from 10 p.m to 3 a.m. The music continues
Sunday with brunch specials and music at the roof-
top pool; special hotel rates available for those who
want to stay over. Call Kaelin at 404-396-5750 for
room reservations. 659 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta,
GA 30308, search “FLUX with DJ Vicki Powell” at
www.facebook.com
Monday, May 10
The cast of Broadway’s “Mary Poppins” presents
a special cabaret to benefit Jerusalem House,
which provides housing for people affected by HIV.
8 p.m. at Ansley Park Playhouse, 1545 Peachtree St.,
Atlanta, GA 30309, www.jerusalemhouse.org
CONTINUED
ON PAGE 26
26 GA Voice April 30, 2010 Calendar www.theGAVoice.com

Photo via Facebook

May 12
Wednesday, set to hit theaters May

EVENTS
With the sequel film
theme for this
27, “Sex & the City” is the
go, the pop ular event that
month’s PALS Bin
with HIV and
raises funds to help people
ir pets. Doors
other illnesses care for the
es sta rt at 7:45 p.m. at
open at 6:30 p.m., gam
er Rd. , Atlant a, GA 30324,
Jungle, 2115 Faulkn
ubatlanta.com
404-844-8800, www.junglecl
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

Tuesday, May 11
The new Atlanta Women’s All About Business Net-
working group meets from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Across The
Street, 688 Highland Ave., Atlanta, GA 30312. For more
information, search for the group on meetup.com
UPCOMING
Monday, May 17
Wednesday, May 12 Atlanta joins in the International Day
Fiesta Positiva features Latin popstar Andres Against Homophobia with a full slate
Cuervo to raise money for Positive Impact’s HIV of speakers scheduled from 6-11 p.m. at
outreach programs to the Latino community. 6-8 Virginia Highland Church, 743 Virginia Ave.
p.m. at the Latin American Association of Atlanta, NE, Atlanta, GA 30306,
2750 Buford Highway,Atlanta, GA 30324, atlantahomophobiaday.blogspot.com
www.positiveimpact-atl.org

Dine out at a long list of restaurants in Vir-

ginia Highland this evening, and at least 15 per-
cent of your bill will be donated to Maximillian
Corwell’s campaign for Atlanta Cotillion, the
annual debutante fundraiser for AID Atlanta.
4 p.m. to 10:55 p.m.; list of restaurants online.
Search “Atlanta Cotillion Virginia Highlands
Dineout” on Facebook.com

AID Atlanta’s Gay Men’s Outreach Program

Publicity photo
hosts “Gay, Gray & Ready to Play: A Look
at Aging in the LGBT Community.” 7 p.m. at
AID Atlanta, 1605 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta, GA
30309, steven.igarashi@aidatlanta.org

Thursday, May 13 Tuesday, May 18

The gay Atlanta Executive Network hosts its
monthly Mix & Mingle networking from 6-8 p.m. at
Bellissima, 560 - B Amsterdam Ave., Atlanta, GA, 30306.
www.myspace.com/bellissima_lounge, www.aen.org
AID Atlanta Honors celebrates Jeff Graham, For
the Kid in All of Us, Atlanta Gas Light and Bud
Russell for their contributions in the fight against
HIV. 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. at Schwartz-Goldstein Hall at
The Temple, 1589 Peachtree St., Atlanta, GA 30309,
www.aidatlanta.org
Like “Sesame Street” for grown-ups, the
hilarious, decidedly adult “Avenue Q” comes
to Atlanta May 18-23 at the Cobb Energy
Performing Arts Center, 2800 Cobb Galleria
Parkway, Atlanta, GA 30339. Use the code
“IMPACT” when buying tickets for the May
18 show and a portion of your price will be
donated to Positive Impact, which provides
mental health and other services to people
affected by HIV. www.cobbenergycentre.com,
www.positiveimpact-atl.org
www.theGAVoice.com April 30, 2010 GA Voice 27

770-457-7659
www.deceasedpetcare.com
INDIVIDUAL PET
CREMATIONS AND BURIALS
“Because Your Pet is a
Member of the Family”