SF Weekly: Chron Hardly
'Outed' Prop 8 Judge

The writers and editors at the SF Weekly have made no effort to hide their overall disdain for my blogging and advocacy efforts over the years, so I'm in a bit of shock that they've gone out of their way to give me credit for something.

The alt weekly's Snitch blog takes note today of the SF Chronicle reporting on the gay orientation of the judge in the Prop 8 trial, and questions if the paper actually outed him, when this blog had raised the issue of the judge's gayness back in July.

From the Snitch item, written by Lauren Smiley, to whom I say, thank you:

Same-sex marriage advocates are chagrined by Chronicle columnists Matier and Ross' piece yesterday that "outed" U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker -- the federal decision-maker in the same-sex marriage case. [...]

If nothing else, Matier and Ross' column brings up an interesting koan for the 21st century: Can you "out" someone who isn't in the closet? [...]

In fact, all the way back in July of last year, local gay blogger Michael Petrelis penned an article titled "Gay Judge for Bois/Olson Prop 8 Lawsuit?" Within this entry, Petrelis noted that, upon viewing a photo of Walker's dapper visage, "my gaydar's bells and whistles went off." After watching walker preside at an earlier hearing on the same-sex marriage case, Petrelis wrote: "I was convinced the judge was a gay man."

Petrelis went on to note that Walker's "chipper demeanor, and low-key humor that several times set off loud laughter from lawyers and spectators, gave me the feeling Walker would make an excellent entertainer at a gay piano bar for refined mature gentlemen." The blogger also remarked that the fact an earlier story about the judge in the Chron had no mention of a wife "raised rainbow flags." Plus two "LGBT community reporters" told him they that Walker "was considered 'family.'" Petrelis' blog was picked up by the popular gay blog Queerty three days later. [...]

Matier and Ross made no mention of the aforementioned rumblings in the blogosphere about the judge's sexual orientation in their column, merely noting it was an "open secret." [...]

I'm sure the Chronicle's political gossip columnists hated getting the call from the SF Weekly, asking about this blog's role in bringing attention to Walker being a member of the gay family. This isn't the first time those gossips have failed to credit this blog.

In December, Eve Batey, the editor at the SFAppeal.com site, wrote a piece on how Matier and Ross didn't mention my exclusive reporting on a meeting where a sex tent idea for the Folsom Street Fair was discussed. The Chronicle gossips were not at that meeting, a fact they blithely omitted.

And though I'm happy an alt publication that has been critical of me lays off with their usual snark directed at me, I suspect they'll soon be back to getting on my case about something.

But for now, I take great pleasure in seeing my critics at the SF Weekly reminding their readers that before the old-fashioned mainstream media got around to reporting on Judge Walker being gay, this blog and Queerty.com had reported that fact months ago.

PACHA's Dr. Gayle on PWA Members;
Where's Obama's AIDS Strategy?

Dr. Helene Gayle, the head of the President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA), responded to my concerns regarding a news release about new council members, and the omission of identifying persons with AIDS (PWAs) serving on it. From Dr. Gayle:

Thanks for that. There are several members who are PWA. We can figure out how to make that more evident. [...] BTW, about a third of the members are PWAs. In one of the releases, I believe that was noted.

I've seen only this release from Health & Human Services, which does mention that persons living with HIV are PACHA members, and this is stated in the opening paragraph, but none of the PWA members of PACHA are identified as such in their short bios.

In my reply to Dr. Gayle I explained that there would be much more buy-in for the council's work and decisions from PWAs, a crucial constituency, if it were clearly spelled out by HHS who is a person living with HIV on PACHA. I'm hopeful that she and HHS will soon make moves to address this oversight.

Also in response to my post yesterday, I was reminded by friends that President Obama's director of the Office of National AIDS Policy, Jeff Crowley, according to a story in the Bay Area Reporter, made a public promise in August about when he would produce a plan:

[H]e has begun work on developing a national HIV/AIDS strategy, due by the end of the year.

It's now well into the new year and Crowley has not delivered that strategy. In a November interview for the Black AIDS Institute's newsletter, Crowley revised when his report would see the light of gay:

A report summarizing major themes across the community discussions, both at the official and unofficial town-hall meetings, and the online Call to Action will be released on the Office of National AIDS Policy website in early 2010.

Here we are with February quickly passing, and still no strategy from Crowley and the White House, and no word on when that strategy is coming out. How much longer must we wait for the Obama administration's blueprint for dealing with AIDS in America?

If a Democratic administration is not ready to put forward a workable national plan for AIDS, after 13 months in office, something is amiss.

Obama's PACHA, AIDS Inc
Kill PWA Empowerment

(Members of PACHA flank Kathleen Sebelius and Helene Gayle, front row, third and fourth persons from the left. Photo credit: Science Speaks.)

Let the record show that empowerment for persons with AIDS officially died this week. It was killed by the Obama administration, greatly aided and abetted by AIDS Inc.

The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA), under the leadership of CARE's CEO Dr. Helene Gayle, on Wednesday in a press release from HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced the names of the 24 new members of the council. Not a single member of PACHA is publicly identified as a person with AIDS.

There are a number of previously out persons with AIDS on PACHA, starting with Cornelius Baker, the former executive director of the National Association of People With AIDS. Of course, NAPWA, the federal government's lapdog, has said nothing about lack of PWAs on PACHA.

Another out PWA advising PACHA is the longtime Southern California gay black AIDS advocate Phill Wilson. Allow me to digress and quote from a July 2004 LA Times article on his lack of management expertise:

Federal auditors are calling for USC to pay back more than $1 million in government funds because of the university's lapses in managing a program to train HIV/AIDS counselors for minority communities. [...]

That official, identified by the university as Phill Wilson, managed the effort for USC while he also headed an AIDS awareness organization that was a subcontractor to the program, the auditors found. [...]

In other cases, the auditors found that padded or inadequately documented expense claims were submitted for such things as wages, travel, consulting services, public relations, and Internet and video services. [...]

The auditors contended that the apparent conflict of interest opened the door for money to be diverted to other activities of Wilson's organization. Those included soliciting sponsors for an AIDS march and conducting town hall meetings in various states to spur political action related to HIV issues. [...]

Looking over the other names of who is now on PACHA, it's riddled with AIDS Inc executives, people from universities, and Douglas Michels. He's the handsomely compensated CEO of OraSure, the corporation that owns and markets rapid HIV testing kits.

Where are the PWAs and advocates unaffiliated with AIDS Inc on the panel? There really aren't any such folks on PACHA.

If the Obama administration were to apply the methods that brought us this PACHA panel to a council, say, on automobile safety and fuel efficiency, they'd set something up with Toyota and ExxonMobil executives.

What's disturbing about HHS's failure to point out that people with AIDS are on the council, putting aside for a moment the fact that they have AIDS Inc ties which may influence their PACHA decisions, is that there hasn't been a peep of protest from the PWAs about being shoved back into the HIV closet.

The lack of full disclosure about people with AIDS sitting on PACHA contributes to the stigma persons living with the syndrome face. IMHO, PWA empower was killed this week.

If all these smart folks -- Secretary Sebelius, Dr. Gayle who once was head of CDC's HIV prevention programs before directing the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, PACHA members -- can't be honest and inform America about PWAs serving on the council, I don't expect they'll do all that much to forthrightly address current HIV issues.

Reggae Singer's Humboldt Concert Canceled;
Where's GLAAD?

I've received word from Mitch Trachtenberg, who operates the Humboldt Against Hate blog, that homo-hating reggae singer Capleton's concert at the Mazzotti's club in Arcata has been canceled. After some pressure by local activists, the owner of the venue, Joe Mazzotti sent this cancellation notice to Trachtenberg:

Thank you for your inquiry in regards to Capleton! We were unaware that He had been So aggressive in his actions, It was my understanding that Numerous well known artists had been listed and that he was one of them but had signed an RCA Agreement and so we were assured by the promoters who rents the room that he was all good now!

That is now known to be Very Untrue! for this reason the show has been Canceled!

Mazzotti's has and always will support any persons right(s) to live happily, healthy and free of the kind of Violent acts this Hater espouses!

We hope that this "DOES NOT" Cause you to reconsider any future involvement with Mazzotti's on the Plaza!

I called the club to thank the owner for his action, but didn't get a live person on the line. The voice mail system picked up and the outgoing message said the Capleton concert was canceled. Nice of the owner to inform callers of this development.

While this is good news, unfortunately this hateful singer has added concerts in California, Nevada and Florida. Here is the latest info on Capleton's performances this month:

San Diego, CA, on Monday, February 15, at the San Diego Sports Arena.

San Luis Osbispo, CA, on Wednesday, February 17, at the Downtown Brewing Company.

Crystal Bay, Nevada, on Thursday, February 18, at the Tahoe Biltmore.

Oakland, CA, on Saturday, February 20, at the Fox Theatre.

Long Beach, CA, on Sunday, February 21, at the Long Beach Arena.

Miami, FL, on Saturday, February 27, at Bayfront Park.

I've sent emails to the executive director and director of public relations, Jarrett Barrios and Richard Ferraro, of GLAAD, asking if they're planning any protests over Capleton's tour. So far, I've not received a reply and can't find anything posted on the GLAAD site about the latest homo-hating Jamaican performer to hit America's shore for profit.

If GLAAD's leaders decide to take on demonstrating against Capleton, I'll share that info.

BAR Slams FTM's Wolfson, NGLTF:
Let The Sunshine In

Rare is the occasion when Bay Area Reporter news editor Cynthia Laird uses her editorial space to publicly spank a community organization or leader. Memory says when she has editorialized thus, it's been over a transparency or accountability issue. Part of Laird's editorial today raps a recent anti-sunshine decisions and should be of concern to all of us.

This BAR column must be seen in the larger context of Gay Inc's collective failure to regularly provide open, on-the-record, unfiltered community engagement. Consider these examples of less-than-transparent ways of organizing:

The Human Rights Campaign's Joe Solmonese doesn't hold town halls. After the Prop 8 loss, it took four long frustrating months to convince the No on 8 leaders to hold an accountability forum in San Francisco. Not one public anyone-can-attend meeting was held for the Equality Across America rally in DC on October 11.

The May 2009 weekend meeting in Texas for the Dallas Principles was invitation-only. That example was repeated in January when a few dozen LGBT activists met at a secret retreat in Tennessee.

Here are my two suggestions to overcome our leadership's fear of sunshine and some community organizers' methods of limiting their invitation lists just to their cool friends.

First, let's establish Queer Question Time at HRC. Our largest political organization, and the community it purports to serve, would greatly benefit from unscripted public forums, streamed on the web, where anyone can pose a question to HRC leaders.

Second, with all the hollow talk about a new ACT UP coming to life after the secret Dallas and Tennessee get-togethers, the organizers should heed this lesson that made ACT UP the force it was to change the world: Open meetings = power. Start with open doors in the organizing process, and avoid the automatic criticism of elitism.

Here are excerpts from Laird's BAR editorial today:

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's annual Creating Change conference – taking place this week in Dallas – is one that many grassroots activists and organizers look forward to. Long considered the more progressive national LGBT organization, the Task Force, while not funded to the level of the Human Rights Campaign, plays a key role in the ground game for full equality toward which the LGBT community is working.

It was, therefore, deeply disappointing to learn that a marriage institute session being presented at the conference by Freedom to Marry's Evan Wolfson is closed to the media. This decision is reminiscent of a similar effort last year by members of both the Courage Campaign and Meet in the Middle to kick reporters out of a leadership summit because so-called secret polling results on same-sex marriage (that reporters already had) were going to be discussed.

Such moves are counterproductive and only serve to make many people in the community even more distrustful of what they see as a top-down approach to community organizing.

In an e-mail, Wolfson defended his decision. He pointed out that the marriage institute isn't closed to the press, rather, it is off the record. To us, that is a fine distinction that hardly results in unfettered reporting from that session. [...]

If the session had been about hate crime victims, or victims of sex abuse, we could see the rationale about keeping discussion off the record. [...]

And for goodness' sake, if progressive activists and others can't articulate their views in a public forum, how are they ever going to accomplish the hard, on-the-ground work of talking to people – in public and private settings?

The Task Force blew it when it acquiesced to Wolfson's request, and we, the greater LGBT community, are poorer for it.

Queerty: The Stick Up HRC's Ass

Since November I've been like the gay Maytag repairman, the loneliest guy in the gay blogosphere. My calls for some genuine transparency and actual community engagement from HRC didn't echo widely at all. The lone gay blogger to take note was Andrew Sullivan.

I've kept up this losing campaign of pressuring HRC to come out of its closet and lead with sunshine guiding their path, because gays deserve much more from this Democratic org. Tonight, for all my troubles on this, the boys at the Queerty site have christened me a fellow stick up the ass of HRC. Quite an honor, I accept with due humbleness.

Queerty has simply been on the rag about the very-less-than-inspiring Joe Solmonese lately, bringing the number of gay blogs calling for actual transparency and expanded accountabilty at HRC. Let's hope the three gay Maytag repairmen can force this org to change.

From Queerty:

In November, after it was clear Obama and the Democrats would not be our fierce advocates, a smattering of gay bloggers and activists launched a boycott of the Democratic National Committee and their various affiliates. And when the Human Rights Campaign opted not to support the boycott outright (and instead issued statement avoiding an official position), we wondered aloud, Why the hell not? As if we didn't know the answer then, we know it now: Because Joe Solmonese & Co. remain best buds with Democratic political leaders. So much so that they went on their "winter retreat" last month.

Somonese and HRC's and Allison Herwitt were among the guests (list here, PDF) for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee's January event, where well-connected civilians (read: moneybags from McDonald's, Altria, Home Depot, and Merck) got to hob nob with senators including Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Carl Levin, Robert Menendez (DSCC's chairman), and Claire McCaskill (who we identified as the star of today's hearings).

If you query HRC, they'll tell you that HRC's involvement in DSCC invents, and the Democrat party in general, is crucial to their efforts in lobbying lawmakers to pass gay rights legislation. That is partly true. To us, however, it sounds like more of the Gay Inc. organization's business-as-usual M.O., where the group's annual budget is devoted to Solmonese making nice with lawmakers in exchange for inaction, platitudes, and delays.

Notes Michael Petrelis, a fellow stick up HRC's ass and the vocal blogger calling for more transparency from HRC: "What did Solmonese and Herwitt do at the Democratic Party retreat? How did they advance the national gay agenda? Did HRC spend $30,000 to be there? What was the cost to HRC? Answers are not posted at the HRC site." [...]

Tatchell: Anti-Gay Reggae Singer
Capleton Coming to CA

(Homo-hating Jamaica musician Caplteton.)

From across the pond, my friend and veteran global gay campaigner Peter Tatchell wrote to me recently about another homophobic singer from Jamaica, coming to my state to earn some American dollars. Peter wants pressure exerted against the concert promoters, but I can't take on this task.

However, I promised him I'd at least spread his call to action, and at least blog about Capleton's homo-hate music and concerts:

Murder music singer Capleton is coming to Southern California, including the SF Bay Area. See venue details below.

In 2004, reggae dancehall singer Capleton had concerts scheduled in West Hollywood, Santa Cruz and San Francisco cancelled because of hate lyrics that advocated the killing of gays and lesbians.

After a global uproar caused concert cancellations worldwide, Capleton and others signed a "Reggae Compassion Act" in 2007, promising to no longer sing and promote the offensive songs. Unfortunately, he violated this agreement, causing Swiss and French activists to get his concerts canceled in 2008.

Concert promoters have booked Capleton to headline major reggae festivals in February in San Diego, Long Beach and the SF Bay Area!

Here's the background: The 2004 community response in California, and here's proof that he violated the terms of the 2007 agreement. Here are the details and contacts for the upcoming festivals.

San Diego on Monday, February 15, at the San Diego Sports Arena.

Oakland on Saturday, February 20, at the Fox Theatre.

Long Beach on Sunday, February 21, at the Long Beach Arena.

Contact info:

Long Beach and SF Bay Area promoter, and the San Diego promoter.

I told Peter I don't have the time and energy to take on this project. Did he think we needed to get the word out and rustle up other community organizers to start talking up pressuring the promoters, concert venues and laying plans for picket lines? He replied:

Yes, send the info re Capleton to other activists who can take it on. The key thing is to press the venues to cancel, on the same basis that they would not host a singer who advocated killing black people. Capleton has clearing violated the RCA. No more deals or negotiations.

Cancellations. Losing money is the only language these homophobes understand.

If anyone reads this and decides to make Capleton's upcoming California concerts a point of contention for the gay community, lemme know. I'll help publicize others activists taking this on.

Only in SF: Patty 'Tania' Hearst Bike Ride

There are three California cities intimately associated with newspaper heiress Patty Hearst and her famous kidnapping saga of the 1970s -- Berkeley, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Over this past weekend, only in San Francisco, naturally, a neighborhood biking group organized the Patty Hearst/Presidio Ride, the point being to showcase local sites associated with her during that time and area parks. If I had known in advance this ride was taking place, I would have gone on it.

Even though I missed out on the opportunity to learn more about radical leftist lore, one of the participants, Michael Helquist, has thoughtfully blogged on the ride and share some great photos.

So what happened during the ride? Here's some of Helquist's report, along with two of his pics:

More than 30 North Panhandle cyclists and their friends gathered around a popular local cafe Sunday morning for the inaugural NOPA VELO ride through the neighborhood, into Golden Gate Park and through the Presidio. "We're excited so many riders turned out," said Patty Hearst...er...Lenore McDonald, one of the organizers who was in full Patty/Tania Hearst attire for the special themed ride. [...]


First stop for NOPA VELO was the site of Patty Hearst's captivity, 1827 Golden Gate Avenue near Baker Street where Lenore McDonald recounted highlights of Hearst's life. [...]


The SLA demanded, and received, more than $2 million from the Hearst family to buy food for the poor. But, during her captivity, Patty was either brainwashed, as she later stated, or radicalized and adopted the name Tania after a protege of Che Guevara, the South American revolutionary. Tania joined SLA members in an armed robberty of a Hibernia Bank branch at 1450 Noriega. She later posed wielding the rifle she used in the hold-up. (Thus the infamous poster of Tania which NOPA VELO's expert designer Rick Helf re-imagined as Tania wielding a threatening ... bicycle).

If there have been comparable biking escapades in either Berkeley or down in Los Angeles, I've not heard about it. Only in SF, kids!

Solmonese Spent How Much at Dem Retreat?;
HRC Omitted from NYT 'DADT' Story

Where in the world was Joe Solmonese, the head of the Human Rights Campaign, this weekend and what was he doing to secure federal protections and equality for gay Americans?

According to a document obtained by Ben Smith at Politico.com, Solmonese and HRC's legislative director Allison Herwitt, were at the Ritz Carlton in Miami Beach, schmoozing with Democratic U.S. Senators. As with too much at HRC, real transparency about the org's leaders and their efforts to change federal policies comes not from HRC, but reporters like Ben Smith, who deserves kudos from gays for this important ray of sunshine.

From today's Politico.com:

Twelve Democratic Senators spent last weekend in Miami Beach raising money from top lobbyists for oil, drug, and other corporate interests that they often decry, according to a guest list for the event obtained by POLITICO.

The guest list for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee's "winter retreat" at the Ritz Carlton South Beach Resort doesn't include the price tag for attendance, but the maximum contribution to the committee, typical for such events, is $30,000. There, to participate in "informal conversations" and other meetings Saturday, were senators includingDSCC Chairman Robert Menendez; Michigan's Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow; Bob Casey of Pennsylvania; Claire McCaskill of Missouri; freshmen Kay Hagan of North Carolina and Mark Begich of Alaska; and even left-leaning Bernie Sanders of Vermont. [...]

Other guests included lobbyists for two Indian tribes, for McDonalds, for beer and wine sellers, Ford, and a small handful of advocacy groups, including the gay group Human Rights Campaign.

What did Solmonese and Herwitt do at the Democratic Party retreat? How did they advance the national gay agenda? Did HRC spend $30,000 to be there? What was the cost to HRC?

Answers are not posted at the HRC site. You'll recall that last weekend Solmonese made a high-profile appearance at the Sundance film festival, and his web site was devoid of any details on his visit to Utah.

I sure would like to know what Solmonese accomplished at Sundance and down in Miami Beach, but I guess it's asking too much of him and his org to keep the community fully informed at this crucial time about his jet-setting advocacy.

In a related matter, today's front-page New York Times story on the conflict over potentially lifting the Don't Ask/Don't Tell ban on openly gay people serving in the military, omitted HRC. Yes, America's largest political gay advocacy org, which is supposedly integral to the effort to do away with the ban, doesn't merit even a passing reference in the Times piece.

Which gay persons do warrant mentions?

In June [U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand] met with Lt. Dan Choi, a West Point graduate and an Arabic linguist and infantry officer in Iraq in 2006 and 2007. Lieutenant Choi is facing a discharge for announcing to Rachel Maddow on MSNBC in March that he was gay.

Good to see Choi and Maddow referenced, but the HRC omission is quite telling of their seemingly small role in the debate. Can you imagine the the NY Times writing about efforts to allow blacks and women to serve in armed forces, and leaving out the NAACP and NOW? I sure can't.

Healthy Gay Men: SF Town Hall, Feb 10

(Artwork credit: Clinton Fein.)

Back in November, I blogged about my friend Clinton Fein's questions regarding the 2008 media hysteria generated by a University of California at San Francisco study on drug-resistant staph infections and gay men. His concerns generated a frank discussion among gay health advocates and Shane Snowdon, the LGBT advocate for UCSF.

A number of us shared ideas about productive follow up to the hysteria, and Shane organized a series of conference calls. What came of the discussions was the idea for a town hall. One focus of the community forum is to hear from a panel of activists for the first hour, then open up the discussion for comments from the audience.

We're hoping to hear from individuals about how they create wellness for themselves and their circle of friends. It would be great to learn what other gay men think is good and positive about gay health, but there are no restrictions on public comment.

The moderator for the town hall will be Shane, and here is the list of panelists:

Francis Broome, Black Coalition on AIDS;
HIV Educator and Athlete

Clinton Fein, Political Artist;
Community Activist

David Gonzalez, SF LGBT Community Center;
Latino Health Educator

Bill Jesdale, Gay Health Writer;
Community Activist

Michael Scarce, Gay Health Writer;
Community Activist

Come hear what each of these fine activists has to say regarding what's good about and healthy about gay men these days. We will be taping the forum, and it will be available for viewing soon afterward.

Here is the text of our announcement, which I ask you to share on your blog. Come out on February 10 for this town hall and share your thoughts about wellness and the gay community:

HEALTHY GAY MEN:
MESSAGING, MEDIA & MESSES

7pm, Wednesday, February 10

Ceremonial Room, San Francisco LGBT Center, Market at Octavia

Tired of hearing about STD spikes, viral super-infections, drug-resistant bugs, and who is most "high risk"? Two years ago, a series of mishaps around the release of a UCSF study on staph infections and gay men resulted in a rapid and global dissemination of misinformation that was roundly criticized by the community.

This panel will explore the issues surrounding the health and wellness of gay men; the extent to which media coverage, conflicting agendas, and mixed messaging play a critical role; lessons learned; and what steps can be taken to identify and remedy patterns that exacerbate misperceptions around men's health.

Sponsored by UCSF LGBT Resource Center & San Francisco LGBT Center

Contacts: snap@sfcenter.org, lgbt@ucsf.edu or 415-865-5614