washingtonblade.com, volume 46, issue 9, february 27, 2015

8/9/2019 Washingtonblade.com, Volume 46, Issue 9, February 27, 2015

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Signs of ‘pick-up’ killing instabbing death of married man

By LOU CHIBBARO [email protected]

The mystery surrounding the murder of 30-year-oldD.C. attorney David Messerschmitt, who was foundstabbed to death on Feb. 10 in a downtown hotelroom hours after his wife reported him missing, has

captured the attention of activists who monitor anti-LGBT violence.

D.C. police have yet to disclose whether they knowhow Messerschmitt met the person who killed him orthe motive of the crime. Last week police said theydidn’t know why Messerschmitt, who lived on CapitolHill with his wife, checked into a room at the upscale

Donovan Hotel near Thomas Circle shortly before hewas found dead.

A public document in support of a police searchwarrant for the hotel room led in D.C. Superior Courtshows that the case has some of the similarities of a“pick-up” murder.

Among the items found in the hotel room,according to the search warrant document, were acondom and lubricant, an enema, a wallet with creditcards, a computer and cell phone. The document saysMesserschmitt was found lying face down on the oor

with stab wounds to his back.“Apparent blood was observed on the oor

throughout the room, the walls of the hotel room,the door of the hotel room, and on the body of thedecedent,” a police affi davit in support of the search

State lawmakers targetgay rights from West Va. to Texas

By CHRIS [email protected]

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson allowed an anti-LGBT billto become law on Monday, raising fears among advocatesthat the measure is an omen of more attacks on gay rights tocome in other states.

Senate Bill 202, approved by the new Republican majoritiesin the state legislature, bars municipalities from enacting non-discrimination ordinances for classes of people not alreadyprotected under state law. Although sexual orientationand gender identity aren’t explicitly mentioned in the new law,

it’s a thinly veiled attempt at targeting LGBT non-discriminationordinances in cities like Little Rock and Eureka Springs.

Amid court victories advancing marriage rights throughoutthe country, the Arkansas law was one amongseveral measures pending in state legislatures aimed rollingback rights for LGBT people. Many of these bills are knownas Religious Freedom Restoration Acts and would enableindividuals and businesses to refuse service to LGBT peopleand allow clerks to opt out of issuing marriage licenses tosame-sex couples.

Hutchinson had declared he would allow the measure tobecome law through inaction, but LGBT advocates attemptedto convince him to veto the bill.

Efforts to combat the measure included a website,

F E B R U A R Y 2 7 2 0 1 5 V O L U M E 4 6 I S S U E 0 9 • A M E R I C A ’ S G A Y N E W S S O U R C E • W A S H I N G T O N B L A D E . C O M

HONORING MAME

Locals mourn death of longtime drag starMame Dennis at age 74.

PAGE 8 PAGE 20

BEHIND THE MUSIC

Gay hit maker leavespop for drag, dishes ondrama of working with Gaga.

OFF THE STREETS

Gay man talks aboutbeing homeless in D.C.,dreams for the future.

PAGE 23

DAVID MESSERSCHMITT was found stabbed to death atthe Donovan Hotel on Feb. 10.

PHOTO COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

Arkansas Gov. ASA HUTCHINSON (R)allowed a new anti-LGBT bill to becomelaw this week.

Lawyer’s murder sparks

concern among D.C. activists

CONTINUES ON PAGE 15

CONTINUES ON PAGE 14


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Nadya survived 3 brutalattacks in homelandbefore eeing

By MICHAEL K. [email protected]

BALTIMORE — Nadya, a 31-year-old

lesbian from Russia, and her girlfriend ofnearly six years were talking at a coffeeshop in Northwest Baltimore early in theevening of Feb. 20.

The temperature outside was a bitterlycold 12 degrees as the two women satalong the window that overlooked theparking lot of the Shops at Quarry Lake.Nadya and her girlfriend continuedtalking about their homeland, theirrelationship and the life they hope tobuild in the United States.

“We dream about having a house,children and dogs,” Nadya told theWashington Blade.

Nadya and her girlfriend moved toBaltimore from Moscow in late October.They are among the growing number ofLGBT Russians who have ed to the UnitedStates to escape what they describe asincreased anti-LGBT discrimination andpersecution in their homeland.

Nadya declined to be photographedand asked the Blade only to publish herrst name.

Her girlfriend declined to take part inthe interview, but she agreed to translateNadya’s answers to the Blade’s questionsfrom Russian into English.

“I’m a little bit afraid actually,” said Nadya.Nadya grew up outside of Rossoch, a

city near the Ukrainian border. She andher girlfriend met 16 years ago when theywere in high school.

Nadya told the Blade she realized shewas a lesbian when she was 13, eventhough she “liked girls” since she was ayoung child.

She said she tried to tell her mom,but it wasn’t “something like ‘Mom, I’m a

lesbian.’” Nadya told the Blade that hermother threatened to nd a doctor whowould “cure her” of her sexual orientationif she were a lesbian after she foundletters that a friend had written to her.

“I convinced her that I wasn’t,” she saidin English.

Face like ‘jelly’ after attackNadya told the Blade she was violently

attacked three times because of hersexual orientation.

The rst incident took place in October2001 when she was a member of hercollege’s volleyball team.

She told the Blade that she had comeout to one of her teammates with whomshe had become friends. Nadya said the

woman proceeded to tell her boyfriendthat she was a lesbian.

He attacked her with a baseball batwhile she was sitting on a bench.

“It was terrible because I was bleedingand I had injuries on my head,” saidNadya, speaking Russian as her girlfriendinterpreted. “She had told him everythingabout me and he decided just to teach

me and show me I’m a freak.”Nadya said a group of six men attackedher in 2005 as she left an LGBT party inthe city of Voronezh.

She told the Blade that her assailantsfollowed her as she walked toward ataxi she had called. Nadya said the menknocked her to the ground and begankicking her in the face and shoulders.

She said her left eye was nearly swollen shutand her face was like “jelly” after the attack.

“I was trying to hide my head with myarms,” said Nadya. “The taxi left becausenobody wants to get in trouble.”

Nadya told the Blade she suffered a brokennose during Moscow Pride in May 2012.

Russian police detained more thanthree-dozen people — Nikolai Alekseevand other LGBT rights advocates anda handful of Orthodox Christians whoconfronted them during the event thatdescended into violence. A Moscow courta few weeks later upheld local authorities’decision to ban the gathering from t akingplace for 100 years.

“When you go to such prides, youstill have hope,” Nadya told the Blade,discussing the attack and the police whoarrested those who took part in the event.“The government not only sees it actually,but they pretend that everything’s neand that nobody is harmed and nobody isassaulted and things are just ne as theyare and we are not human beings. We arepeople who are just second-class (citizens.)”

‘Honor to kill LGBTpeople’ in Russia

Russia’s LGBT rights record came

under increased scrutiny in 2013 whenPresident Vladimir Putin signed into lawa bill that banned the promotion of so-called gay propaganda to minors.

Putin sought to downplay criticismsover the propaganda law ahead of the2014 Winter Olympics that took placelast February in the Black Sea resortcity of Sochi. The arrest of more than adozen LGBT rights advocates who stagedprotests in Moscow and St. Petersburg onthe same day the games opened sparkedfurther outrage.

A Russian judge last month convictedthe founder of a website for LGBT youthof violating the country’s propaganda law.Police a few months earlier detained eightpeople who staged a National Coming OutDay protest outside Moscow’s Sokolniki Park.

Russia decriminalized homosexuality in1993.

Nadya told the Blade she feels anti-LGBTattitudes persist, in part, because peopleremain afraid of the prison sentences thatgay men received during the Soviet era. Shesaid Russian politicians and religious offi cials“provoke people just to be anti-gay.”

“Everybody should be against gaypeople,” she said in Russian as she spokeabout Putin’s LGBT rights record. “It’ssome kind of honor to kill LGBT people.”

The Obama administration in March2014 froze the American assets of YelenaMizulina, a state Duma deputy whosponsored the propaganda bill, and six

other Russian offi cials over the annexat ionof Crimea during the ongoing war betweenUkraine and pro-Russian separatists in theeastern part of the country.

Some, including gay journalist JamieKirchick and Spectrum Human Rights, a groupthat advocates on behalf of LGBT Russians,have urged the Obama administration touse a 2012 law — the Magnitsky Act — thatfreezes the assets of Russian citizens andoffi cials directly responsible for human rightsviolations and bans them from entering theU.S. to punish those behind the country’santi-gay crackdown.

� CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

Gay student loses bid forGeorgetown class president

Tim Rosenberger, an out gay student who serves as secretary of GeorgetownUniversity’s LGBT campus group, GU Pride, lost his race for student president atGeorgetown on Feb. 19, nishing last in a ve-candidate race.

According to Georgetown’s student newspaper, The Hoya, the winningcandidate, Joe Luther, and his vice presidential running mate, Connor Rohan,ran an unprecedented satirical campaign that mocked the Georgetown StudentGovernment Association as being unresponsive to the needs of the students.

Rosenberger told the Blade he saw no signs of anti-gay sentiment in thecampaign or in the unorthodox statements and positions taken by Luther, whoreceived 1,080 votes or 30 percent of the rst round vote in an instant runoffvoting system, according to gures reported by The Hoya.

The Luther-Rohan ticket received a nal vote count of 1,693 votes, or 54percent, after three additional rounds of adjusted counting as part of the runoff.

Rosenberger, a junior majoring in English, and his vice presidential runningmate, Reno Verghese, who’s straight, received 154 votes, or 4.3 percent, of thevote in the rst round before being eliminated from contention.

“The two guys that won are good guys,” Rosenberger said. “I didn’t see thatcoming, but I’m not unhappy about it,” he said. “Actually, out of all the ticketsthey may be the second best qualied to do good things for the gay communityat Georgetown.”

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

04 • FEBRUARY 27, 2015 LOCAL NEWS

Russian LGBT rights advocates in October held a protest in Moscow to commemorate NationalComing Out Day. Police offi cers later detained them.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NIKOLAI BAEV

Russian lesbian nds refuge in Baltimore


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WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

FEBRUARY 27, 2015 • 06 ADVERTORIAL

By JOEY NEWSOME

Those who attended the 1894 Weimarpremière of Richard Strauss’s rst opera,Guntram , likely surmised that they werehearing the work of a talented discipleof Richard Wagner but might never havesuspected that they were witnessingthe artistic birth of, as he introducedhimself to the American liberators of hisbeloved Garmisch in 1945, der Komponistvon Rosenkavalier —the composer of DerRosenkavalier . With his rst great tonepoem, Tod und Verklärung , behind him,the young Strauss’s development as acomposer was at a crossroads at the timeof his work on Guntram . Having discardedthe ethics of Schopenhauer in favor of thephilosophical grandiloquence of Nietzsche,the not-yet-thirty-year-old Strauss infusedhis score for Guntram with thematic ideasthat would recur four years later in themonumental tone poem Ein Heldenleben .Despite the near-disastrous reception thatthe opera received in 1894, the composer’slingering affection for his freshman effortfor the stage was conrmed by his returnto Guntram in 1940, when he substantiallyrevised and shortened the score. Thelingering suspicion of the score amongTwenty-First-Century musicians andaudiences was revealed by its inexplicableabsence from celebrations of thesesquicentennial of Strauss’s birth in 2014:among countless productions of the familiaroperas, the seldom-performed Feuersnotand Intermezzo received performancesand recordings, but Guntram continued to

hide in the shadows cast by his Straussiansiblings, represented by only three concertperformances at Dresden’s Semperoper.That omission will be rectied in part on1 March 2015, when Washington ConcertOpera will present a concert performanceof Guntram in Lisner Auditorium onthe campus of The George WashingtonUniversity. Fielding a superb cast of singerslauded for combining vocal power with tonalbeauty under the experienced baton of thecompany’s Artistic Director Antony Walker,Washington Concert Opera again offers

District-area audiences an opportunity tomake the acquaintance of a neglected scoreand, in this case, gives attentive ears thechance to listen for the seeds that ultimatelyowered in Der Rosenkavalier, Ariadne aufNaxos, and Die Frau ohne Schatten .

Washington Concert Opera’sperformance will utilize Strauss’s 1940edition of the score, which also served asthe basis for the opera’s only other knownperformance in the United States, a 1983concert performance in Carnegie Hall bythe Opera Orchestra of New York featuringGerman tenor Reiner Goldberg in the titlerôle and Hungarian soprano Ilona Tokody,with whom OONY’s Music Director EveQueler also made a studio recording ofGuntram for Sony/CBS Masterworks. Whilepreferring Strauss’s later, tightened version

of the score, Maestro Walker is sensitiveto the demands that Guntram makes onconductor, cast, orchestra, and audience.‘One of the biggest challenges in conductingGuntram is that although it is veryWagnerian in language in many passages,Strauss’s use of the orchestra to accompanythe singers is less transparent and heavierthan Wagner’s writing,’ he says. ‘I will have tobe very careful with balancing the orchestrawith the singers. Fortunately, in concert thesingers are in front of the orchestra, and inLisner the orchestra is seated behind theproscenium. The combination of both thesefacts makes the balance between singersand orchestra a little easier!’

Likewise, Maestro Walker is attentivenot only to the signicance of Guntram inStrauss’s artistic evolution but to the opera’splace in the transition of large-scaledmusical forms from the lush tonalism ofthe Nineteenth Century to the more sinewyidioms of the Twentieth Century. ‘ Guntramis an intensely lyrical work, with sweepingvocal lines and beautiful orchestral textures,’the conductor muses. ‘I hope our audiencefalls in love Strauss’s luscious and luxuriousvocal and orchestral lines: a languagethat is the fullest expression of late 19thCentury Romanticism and on the cusp ofthe modernism of the early 20th Century. Asone experiences Guntram ,’ he suggests, ‘onecan listen for Wagnerian inuences, echoesof Strauss’s early tone poems Macbeth ,Don Juan and Death and Transguration ,as well as [reminding] oneself that thiswork was [introduced] in 1894, the sameyear as Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi

d’un faun , Massenet’s Thaïs, Mahler’s 2ndSymphony , and a year after Verdi’s Falstaff ,Humperdinck’s Hänsel and Gretel , andPuccini’s Manon Lescaut —a fascinatingperiod of transition in Classical Music!’

As is typical of Washington Concert Operaperformances, the company’s Guntram will benet from the participation of a castof singers ideally-chosen for their parts:Kansas-born tenor Robert Dean Smith inthe title rôle, soprano Marjorie Owens—arecent Metropolitan Opera débutante—asFreihild, acclaimed Wagnerian baritone Tom

Fox as Der alte Herzog, Annapolis nativebaritone Zachary Nelson as Herzog Robert,and Chinese bass Wei Wu as Friedhold.

One of America’s most celebrated singersof the punishing Wagner and Straussrepertories for tenor, Robert Dean Smithrecently garnered praise for his singing ofanother of opera’s most daunting tenorparts, the title rôle in Verdi’s Otello, in aperformance recorded by NAXOS [reviewedhere]. In contemplating his preparations tosing Guntram , Mr. Smith is quick to dismissthe notion suggested by tenors of the pastthat singing Verdi’s Otello is, in vocal terms,a game-changer. ‘In no way does singingOtello alter my “approach” to Guntram —orany other rôle, for that matter,’ he says. ‘Itdoes give me another unique experiencethat affects ALL of the rôles I sing. Every rôle

has specic vocal demands necessitating theapplication of a correct singing techniqueso that Verdi will sound like Verdi, Wagnerlike Wagner, and so on. With each new rôle,with each performance, and also with eachrehearsal, I have a mindset for wanting todevelop artistically and vocally, improving theability for expression and communication ofthe music.’ This mindset is especially crucialin approaching Strauss’s Guntram , he feels,owing to the character’s innate musicality,a quality that surely inspired the composer,perhaps even in a covertly autobiographicalsense. ‘ Guntram is a singer, like Tannhäuserand, to some extent, Walther in Meistersinger ,’Mr. Smith states. ‘I always nd it a pleasantchallenge to “sing” as a character on stage.Guntram is one of the good guys, althoughhe does kill, albeit in self-defense. His love ofnature, his generosity, and sense of duty arethe positive qualities I would like to bring outas much as possible.’

Like Mr. Smith, Tom Fox chooses to focusprimarily not on the musical pedigree ofhis rôle in Guntram , Der alte Herzog, but onthe character’s dramatic specicity. ‘Well,certainly [he] is not patterned after Alberich[a rôle in which Mr. Fox has excelled at theMetropolitan Opera, both in Siegfried and inGötterdämmerung ] or Klingsor, [but there]could be a tad of Telramund in there,’ hecondes, ‘but those are all Wagner Böserôles. I feel [that] Strauss was nearing KingMarke in Tristan with the alte Herzog. Therôle of Robert seems more along the sametype as Alberich, but Strauss was too youngwhen he composed this piece to grasp thepsychology of Wagner’s tremendous vocal

writing for those rôles. Certainly—for me,at least—Strauss later followed his ownpath in his vocal writing, acknowledging theinuence of Wagner along the way.’ Mr. Fox,whose Vodník in North Carolina Opera’ssemi-staged performance of Dvořák’sRusalka [reviewed here] was a marvel ofintelligent, understated characterization,is keenly aware of the inconsistencies inStrauss’s depiction of the alte Herzog andthe resulting diffi culties in making thecharacter one with whom an audience cansympathize. ‘Actually nding and settling

on an interpretation [means] not giving toomuch weight to the lack of dramaturgy inStrauss’s libretto,’ he remarks. ‘I don’t ndany sympathy for Robert in the story, sowhy is the alte Herzog so embittered at thedeath of an abusive son-in-law?’ Thinkingfurther about his insightful understandingof the rôle, Mr. Fox adds, ‘That being said,I let Strauss’s composition guide me. Hisorchestration in the Funeral Aria exhibitstremendous pathos for the old man andhis falling-apart empire—hence “becomethe old man suffering loss and equatingeverything with his supposed glorious past.”This helps motivate the rage that I feel thepart demands at the end. The beginningof the rôle shows the Herzog’s love forhis daughter and his acceptance of theMinnesinger Guntram .’

The rôle of Freihild was originatedby soprano Pauline de Ahna, who fourmonths after the rst performance ofGuntram became Frau Strauss. WashingtonConcert Opera’s performance will featureone of the very few sopranos in the worldwith experience in Strauss’s rst opera.Having sung Freihild in the three Dresdenperformances in 2014, Marjorie Owenscomes to Washington after having rung in2015 with her Metropolitan Opera début asVerdi’s Aida [in which role she alternated,incidentally, with another WashingtonConcert Opera alumna, Tamara Wilson].She was, in fact, the Strauss soprano parexcellence at the Semperoper in 2014, hercelebration of the 150th anniversary of thecomposer’s birth having encompassed,in addition to Freihild in Guntram ,performances of the title rôles in Ariadneauf Naxos , which she also sang with greatdistinction in Fort Worth in 2013, andDaphne . Another great Straussian, DameGwyneth Jones, paid homage to Pauline deAhna in a performance piece entitled DieFrau im Schatten (The Woman in the Shadow) ,noting that the soprano’s inuence over herhusband was more heard than seen by thepublic. Her inuence was extraordinary,however, and the quality of Strauss’s musicfor Freihild is indicative of the power thatthe soprano exerted over the composer.Mr. Smith likened Strauss’s characterizationof Guntram to Wagner’s portrayal of thetitle character in Wagner’s Tannhäuser , andcomparisons between Elisabeth in the sameopera and Elsa in Lohengrin with Strauss’sFreihild are similarly apt. Elisabeth is another

part in which Ms. Owens has excelled inDresden, solidifying her qualication to singFreihild with unimpeachable musical anddramatic authority.

It seems that virtually every importantGerman-speaking composer of operahas to his credit at least one score thatlanguishes in obscurity. Even amidst theincreased scrutiny of the Baroque revivalof recent decades, infrequently-performedHändel operas are numerous. BeyondSalzburg, how many audiences have heardMozart’s Apollo et Hyacinthus, Ascanio in

Alba, or La nta semplice ? Having only oneplayer in the game spares Beethoven fromneglect in the world’s opera houses, butWagner’s legacy seldom extends to modernperformances of Die Feen, Das Liebesverbot ,and Rienzi . Perhaps even more than anyof these scores, Richard Strauss’s Guntram has much to offer the Twenty-First-Centurylistener. Maestro Antony Walker andWashington Concert Opera have repeatedlyproved wonderfully adept at conveying thesingular passion and pageantry of opera onthe concert stage. Their Guntram is poisedto establish our nation’s capital anew as oneof the world’s foremost operatic capitals.

To learn more about WashingtonConcert Opera’s performance of Guntram ,please visit the company’s website orphone 202.364.5826 to purchase tickets.

ARTS IN ACTION: Washington Concert Opera

reviving Richard Strauss rarity GUNTRAM


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WITH FULL ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS

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LGBT Black History Monthevents highlight ‘family love’

The sometimes unrecognized love for LGBT people withinblack families and the growing number of young LGBT l eaderswho are black emerged as themes in the nal week of theD.C.-area celebration of Black History Month, according to anoffi cial with the National Black Justice Coalition.

Isaiah Wilson, NBJC’s external affairs manager, said a townhall event Sunday night at the Human Rights Campaignbuilding co-sponsored by several LGBT supportive groups,focused on “This Is Luv,” a multi-media campaign “highlightingaffi rming LGBT love in black communities and families.”

Among those appearing at the event were gay former NBAplayer Jason Collins and E.J. Johnson, son of famed NBA starMagic Johnson.

“There is a dominant and pervasive narrative withinthe U.S. and internationally that the black community isoverwhelmingly more homophobic than other groups,but we know that this biased assumption is unfounded,” astatement released by the campaign says.

“Too many people within the black LGBT communitybelieve this myth and never allow themselves to be lovedby their families,” said LGBT sports advocate Wade Davis ina statement promoting the town hall event. “Our goal is tomake it known that love for black LGBT people exists in ourcommunity.”

Wilson said NBJC planned to release toward the endof the week a list of “100 Emerging Black LGBTQ LeadersUnder Age 30” to show that an emerging generation of blackLGBT leaders in many different elds and professions arebecoming involved in civic affairs, including LGBT rights.

Although he knew of no additional LGBT specic BlackHistory Month activities this week in the D.C. area, Wilsonsaid many of these events would be of interest to LGBTcommunity members: culturecapital.com/feature/132/black-history-month-february-2015-in-metro-dc.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

LGBT issues addressed atChinese New Year events Bystanders on H Street, N.W. in Chinatown on Sunday

cheered as the annual Chinese New Year Parade, includingthe traditional dance performed by young men in a dragoncostume, wound its way under the Chinatown archway.

David Do, the openly gay director of the D.C. Offi ce ofAsian and Pacic Islander Affairs, said he had the opportunityto speak about LGBT-related issues, among other topics, inspeeches he gave at several indoor events on Sunday relatedto Chinese New Year.

Among them were events sponsored by the city’s ChineseConsolidated Benevolent Association and the Taiwan culturaland economic offi ce, which serves as Taiwan’s unoffi cialembassy to the U.S.

“In my speeches throughout the day I talked aboutexpanding the LGBT connections that the Offi ce of Asian andPacic Islander Affairs will have throughout the District ofColumbia and region to help provide more information andhelp gain acceptance for LGBT in the AAPI community,” Dotold the Blade in an email.

“The Asian and Pacic Islander LGBT community facesmany cultural and religious burdens in the AAPI community,”he said.

As an LGBT member of that community, Do said he“understands the struggles of coming out to his family andthe stigma associated with it.” He said his vision is to makesure “there is a strong relationship between the LGBTcommunity and the AAPI” community.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

D.C. drag legend rememberedAs Mame, Rizzi led Academy for decades

By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO [email protected]

Carl Rizzi, who performed as his drag alter ego Mame Dennis for decades as president of the Academyof Washington, died Monday according to friends. He was 74.

Rizzi had been in the hospital for about two weeks, initially because of a urinary tract infection. Althoughthe cause of death was not immediately known, friends said Rizzi’s health was complicated by a blood clotin the leg and pneumonia.

Rizzi was born in Nashua, N.H., on June 22, 1940, according to the Rainbow History Project, which did anextensive interview with him in 2000. He was the only child of Guido Rizzi and Mildred Fisher Rizzi. Upon

leaving the Navy, Rizzi settled in Washington and was employed at the U.S. Postal Service where he workeduntil he retired in 1995. In retirement, Rizzi worked part time for All American Pest Control in Arlington,Va., for 15 years.

Rizzi came out in 1963 and enjoyed the Chicken Hut, a gay bar on H Street, N.W.“Somehow because I was crazy and I was loud and I was amboyant, they called me Auntie Mame,” he

told Rainbow History Project. “And the name stuck though the Auntie dropped off.”Rizzi rst did drag in 1965 for Halloween. He performed in drag soon after. Within a few years several

groups of local drag families had formed including the Oscars, Beekman Place and Henry Street. Theyunited in 1973 and as Dennis, Rizzi became president of the Academy as it is now known. Over the nextfour-plus decades, Rizzi presided over the group that had several annual events including Miss GayeUniverse D.C. and Miss Gaye America D.C., its own version of the Academy Awards in which “Golden Boy”trophies were presented a la Oscars, and in which best actor and best actress prizes were given to theorganization’s most dedicated members. Rizzi himself made the selections.

The group was also known for its philanthropic efforts giving money to Whitman-Walker, Brother HelpThyself and many other organizations. Academy members sometimes received aid through its Helping OurOwn People (HOOP) Awards. Rizzi was pleased to present a check to Frank Kameny a few years ago for hismany years of activism.

Rizzi told the Blade in 2011 on the Academy’s 50th anniversary that the group was founded to “mold anelite group of people whose social life would center around drag. By creating parties and activities, I knewthat I would always be surrounded by people wanting to attend them.”

“She will be remembered as a tireless and very dedicated leader of the Academy of Washington,” saidAndre Hopfer, who performs as Tula. “This organization was everything to her and her favorite man washer ‘Oscar.’ She loved to carry him onto the stage and frequently brought him along to other Academyevents.”

“When I think of words to describe her, I think pioneer, legend, trailblazer and friend,” said DanielHays, who performs as Muffy Blake Stephyns. “Without her noble deeds … I would never have had theopportunity to perform and grow as a performer in D.C. I will cherish every minute we had together.”

“She paved the way for many a drag queen to come and be who you wanted to be i n the Academy andeveryone was a star in her eyes,” said Leon Hargraves, who as Chris Monroe, was Dennis’s drag daughter.“She was an icon to the drag community.”

No information on a funeral or memorial service was immediately available.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

08 • FEBRUARY 27, 2015 LOCAL NEWS

MAME DENNIS died this week at age 74.WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY


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10/40

Randy Berry to promoteequality around the globe

By MICHAEL K. [email protected]

The State Department this weekannounced it has named Randy Berry as itsspecial envoy to promote global LGBT rights.

Berry, who is openly gay, has been the

consul general at the U.S. Consulate inAmsterdam since August 2012.

He was the consul general at the U.S.Consulate in Auckland, New Zealand, from2009-2012 and the deputy chief of mission atthe U.S. Embassy in Nepal from 2007-2009.Berry during his State Department careerhas also been posted in D.C., Bangladesh,Egypt, Uganda and South Africa.

“Randy’s a leader,” said Secretary ofState John Kerry in a statement to theWashington Blade. “He’s a motivator.But most importantly for this effort, he’s

got vision. Wherever he’s served — fromNepal to New Zealand, from Uganda toBangladesh, from Egypt to South Africa,and most recently as consul general inAmsterdam — Randy has excelled. He’s avoice of clarity and conviction on humanrights. And I’m condent that Randy’sleadership as our new special envoy willsignicantly advance efforts underway tomove towards a world free from violenceand discrimination against LGBT persons.”

A State Department offi cial told theBlade earlier this month the envoy wouldbe an “openly gay Foreign Servi ce offi cer.”

“It’s been long in the making becausethe secretary insisted the envoy be acareer Foreign Service offi cer from insidethe institution, someone who is part ofthe fabric of the institution, a diplomat by

training,” said the offi cial.Kerry in his statement to the Blade

highlighted the State Department’s GlobalEquality Fund that seeks to promote LGBTrights around the world. He also notedhomosexuality remains criminalized inmore than 70 countries.

“At the same time, and often with ourhelp, governments and other institutions,including those representing all religions,are taking steps to reaffi rm the universal

human rights of all persons, regardlessof sexual orientation or gender identity,”said Kerry. “So while this ght is not yetwon, this is no time to get discouraged.It’s time to stay active. It’s time to assertthe equality and dignity of all persons, nomatter their sexual orientation or genderidentity. And with Randy helping to leadour efforts, I am condent that’s exactlywhat we can and will do.”

Jessica Stern, executive director of theInternational Lesbian and Gay HumanRights Commission, welcomed Berry’s

appointment.“The U.S. envoy can contribute toa new era in which the conscience ofgovernments everywhere can be focusedon the destabilizing impact of prejudiceand abuse that inicts suffering onmillions worldwide,” said Stern in astatement. “Human rights should be apriority for every government in bothdomestic and foreign policy.”

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) last yearintroduced a bill — the InternationalHuman Rights Defense Act — that wouldhave created an LGBT envoy within theState Department’s Bureau of Democracy,Human Rights and Labor.

Markey and California CongressmanAlan Lowenthal reintroduced theproposal last month.

Michael Sam to compete on dance show

LOS ANGELES — The rst openly gay man drafted into the National FootballLeague will compete on the upcoming season of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.”

Grammy Award-winning singer Patti LaBelle and Olympic gymnast NastiaLiukin are among the celebrities who will compete against Michael Sam on theshow.

Sam, a former University of Missouri defensive end, last February came outduring a series of interviews with the New York Times and ESPN.

The St. Louis Rams in May 2014 picked Sam during the seventh round ofthe draft, but released him before the start of the regular season. The DallasCowboys in October cut Sam from the team’s practice squad.

Not guilty plea in Marine murder case

OLONGAPO CITY, Philippines — A Philippine court on Feb. 23 entered a notguilty plea for a U.S. Marine who allegedly murdered a transgender woman.

The Associated Press reported that Marine Pfc. Joseph Pemberton refused toenter a plea during a brief court appearance in Olongapo City outside of Manila,the Philippine capital.

Local prosecutors contend Pemberton met Jennifer Laude, 26, at a nightclubon Oct. 11, 2014, while the USS Peleliu was docked at the Subic Bay Freeport,

which is adjacent to Olongapo City on the Philippines’ main island of Luzon.Laude’s naked body was later found in a motel bathroom.

The trans woman’s death sparked widespread outrage among PhilippineLGBT rights advocates. Laude’s murder also highlighted opposition to the U.S.military presence in the country.

“Jennifer has become our martyr, the symbol of our suffering as a community,”Angie Umbac, president of the Rainbow Rights Project, a Philippine LGBTadvocacy group, told the Washington Blade shortly after Laude’s death.

The Associated Press reported that lawyers who are representing Laude’sfamily said Pemberton’s trial is expected to begin next month.

Lawsuit led on behalf of Ga. trans inmate

MACON, Ga. — The Southern Poverty Law Center last week led a federallawsuit against the Georgia Department of Corrections on behalf of a transgenderwoman who claims she has been denied medical care and sexually assaulted byinmates at a men’s prison where she is serving her sentence.

The Alabama-based organization in a press release said that Ashley Diamond,who is serving a sentence for a non-violent crime at Valdosta State Prison, hadreceived hormone therapy for 17 years before her incarceration. The SouthernPoverty Law Center said the Georgia Department of Corrections denied itsrequest to allow Diamond to receive the aforementioned treatment.

Chinyere Ezie, a lawyer for the Southern Poverty Law Center, said Diamondhas also experienced “no less than seven brutal sexual assaults” since she beganserving her sentence three years ago.

Diamond spoke about her case in a video she secretly recorded from insidethe prison.

“It’s amazing how a minor brush with the law has turned into a death sentence,”said Diamond. “This is more than just about hormone treatment. This is aboutgross human rights violations. Three years of torture is enough.”

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

10 • FEBRUARY 27, 2015 NATIONAL NEWS

State Department

names rst LGBT envoy

Former NFL player MICHAEL SAM will compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars.’

PHOTO BY MARCUS QWERTYUS; COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA

RANDY BERRY previously served as consul general at the U.S. Consulate in Amsterdam.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT


11/40

Policy makes spouseseligible regardlessof residence

By CHRIS JOHNSON

[email protected] same-sex couples will soon be

eligible for benets under the Family &Medical Leave Act even if they live in a statethat doesn’t recognize their union, theLabor Department announced Monday.

In a statement, Labor SecretaryThomas Perez said a new rule is set to benal that will ensure individuals in same-sex marriages have access to federallyprotected leave from work to care forspouses with serious medical conditions.

“The basic promise of the FMLA is thatno one should have to choose between the

job and income they need, and caring fora loved one,” Perez said. “With our actiontoday, we extend that promise so that nomatter who you love, you will receive the

same rights and protections as everyoneelse. All eligible employees in legal same-sex marriages, regardless of where theylive, can now deal with a serious medicaland family situation like all families —without the threat of job loss.”

According to a Q&A accompanying the

announcement, the nal rule changingexisting policy under the Family &Medical Leave Act is set for publication onWednesday and will take effect on March 27.

The rule change is consistent withthe Obama administration’s stated goalof extending the federal benets ofmarriage to the greatest extent possibleto same-sex couples, regardless of theirstate of residence, in the aftermath ofthe U.S. Supreme Court’s 2013 decisionagainst the Defense of Marriage Act.

The Obama administration has grantedcertain benets to married same-sex couples— such as immigration, tax, federal employeeand employer-provided pension benets —regardless of whether or not these coupleslive in a state with marriage equality.

But benets under the Family & Medical

Leave Act were previously unavailable tomarried same-sex couples living in oneof the remaining 13 states that prohibitsrecognition of their unions. Regulationslooked to the state of residence, notthe state of celebration, to determinewhether a couple is married.

Emily Hecht-McGowan, director ofpublic policy for Family Equality Council,said the rule change is essential for same-sex couples who need access to benetsunder the Family & Medical Leave Act.

“The Family and Medical Leave Act is theonly federal law helping Americans balancethe demands of both work and family,”Hecht-McGowan said. “Since its passagein 1993, FMLA leave has been used morethan 200 million times but until today, itwas not fully accessible to LGBTQ workers.The Department of Labor has done anoutstanding job of ensuring full and fairimplementation of the Windsor decisionand this nal rule is a critical step in ensuringLGBTQ workers can care for themselvesand their spouses – regardless of where inthe country they live – without jeopardizing

their jobs or economic security.”The rule change from the Labor

Department was expected. One yearafter the DOMA decision in June, theLabor Department announced it waspreparing the change in regulation toensure married same-sex couples have

access to the Family & Medical Leave Actregardless of where they live.Other issues for same-sex couples

living in non-marriage equality statesremain in the wake of the SupremeCourt’s decision. Access to spousalveterans benets, Social Security benetsand copyright ownership is still deniedbecause U.S. code looks to the state ofresidence, not the state of celebration, todetermine whether a couple is married.

On its face, those can’t be changed aseasily because the prohibitions are in federallaw, not regulation. But LGBT advocates,including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.),have said blocking spousal veterans andSocial Security benets to same-sex couplesin non-marriage equality states violates thespirit of the DOMA decision.

New rule to grant gay couples access to FMLA

Findings said to conrmeffectiveness of PrEPfor gay men


A study evaluating the effectiveness oflimiting the dose of the pre-exposure HIVprophylaxis drug Truvada to between twoand 24 hours before sex and for two daysafter sex showed that gay and bisexual menwho followed this regimen reduced their riskof HIV infection by an average of 86 percent.

The ndings of this and a separatestudy also yielding an 86 percent riskreduction rate for HIV by taking Truvadaas a pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP ona daily basis were presented on Tuesdaybefore the Conference on Retrovirusesand Opportunistic Infections in Seattle.

“These ndings together provideadditional evidence of the power of PrEPto reduce the risk of HIV infection,” theU.S. Centers for Disease Control andPrevention said in a statement.

CDC offi cials expressed caution,however, that the rst-of-its-kind studyby researchers in France of a ‘before-and-after-sex” regimen of Truvada mightbe most effective for men who havefrequent sexual encounters with multiplepartners. Participants in the study, whichwas conducted in France and Canada,

had a median of 10 sex acts per monthand eight partners every two months,according to the CDC analysis.

With that many instances of sexualencounters, those participating in thestudy were taking PrEP on an average ofthree to four times per week, suggestingthat a buildup of Truvada in their bodiesgave them a level of protection closer tothose taking PrEP on a daily basis.

“CDC cautions that researchers do notyet know if this regimen will work amongMSM who have sex less frequently andwould therefore be taking PrEP less often,”the CDC analysis says. “CDC continues torecommend daily dosing of PrEP and urgespeople at substantial risk for HIV infectionand their health care providers to continue

to follow current CDC guidelines.”Those guidelines along with

recommendations by other healthexperts call for MSM and others tocontinue to use condoms when engagingin sex, in part, because PrEP does notprotect against other sexually transmitteddiseases, including hepatitis.

The second study analyzed by the CDCconsisted of gay and “other men whohave sex with men” who were clients atsexual health clinics in England.

“Participants incorporated PrEP intoexisting risk reduction strategies, whichincluded condom use,” says a write-up byorganizers of the study, who have namedthe study PROUD. “There was no differencein the number of men diagnosed with othersexually transmitted infections betweenthose on PrEP and those not on PrEP,” thewrite-up says.

That nding is considered signicantbecause critics of PrEP have expressedconcern that men taking PrEP would nolonger be motivated to use condoms,placing them at risk of other sexuallytransmitted diseases.

A third study presented at the Seattleconference, which was conducted by CDCresearchers and published in the Journalof the American Medical Association,used statistical modeling to show how therate of new HIV infections would changeif more people with HIV became virallysuppressed through treatment.

“More than 90 percent of new HIV

infections in the United States could beaverted by diagnosing people living withHIV and ensuring they receive prompt,ongoing treatment,” a CDC statementsays the study shows.

The statement says the study for therst time developed estimates of thenumber of HIV transmissions causedby people in different stages of care,including those who are unaware theyare infected, those who are retainedin care, and those who have their virusunder control through treatment.

“By quantifying where HIVtransmissions occur at each state ofcare, we can identify when and for whomprevention and treatment efforts willhave the most impact,” said JonathanMermin, director of the CDC’s NationalCenter for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD,and TB Prevention.

“We could prevent the vast majority ofnew infections tomorrow by improvingthe health of people living with HIVtoday,” he said.

“People who were successfully keepingthe virus under control through treatmentwere 94 percent less likely than thosewho do not know they are infected totransmit their virus,” a CDC statementsays the study shows. “However, previousnational estimates have indicated that

just 30 percent of people with HIV havereached this critical step in care.”


WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

NATIONAL NEWS FEBRUARY 27, 2015 • 11

Study weighs use of HIV drug ‘before-after’ sex

MICHAEL WEINSTEIN, president of the AIDSHealthcare Foundation, said condom use isthe best way for gay men to protect theirsexual health.

WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY


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Seeks applicants foroutreach post


Members of the Democratic NationalCommittee’s 36-member LGBT Caucusmet in Washington on Feb. 21 to discussplans for LGBT involvement in next year’spresidential election, including efforts tohelp elect LGBT delegates to the 2016Democratic National Convention.

The caucus met on the nal day of the DNC’sannual winter meetings, which took place atthe Hyatt Regency Hotel on Capitol Hill.

“It was a good meeting,” said LGBTCaucus Chair Earl Fowlkes, who alsoserves as president of D.C.’s GertrudeStein Democratic Club, the city’s largestlocal LGBT political group.

“We talked about issues of diversity,”Fowlkes said. “We talked about theconvention. We talked about delegateselection. I think these are all very important

issues for the caucus to consider.”Others attending the meeting,

including gay DNC member Rick Stafford,the LGBT Caucus’s former chair, said thecaucus will have to step in to do much ofthe delegate selection organizing that theNational Stonewall Democrats did for the

2012 Democratic Convention.NSD, an LGBT Democratic Partyorganization, was founded in 1998 by gayformer U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.). Itceased operating in January 2013 becauseof a budget shortfall and an inability toraise suffi cient funds to stay in business.

Offi cials with the group said at the timethey expected the shutdown or “hiatus”to be temporary and they were hopefulthe group would resume operations thefollowing year.

But that never happened, and Fowlkestold the Washington Blade following theLGBT Caucus meeting on Feb. 21 that he sawno signs of NSD coming back in time for thestart of the planning process for delegateselection this year and early next year.

“That means this caucus will really have

to step up to the plate in terms of ndingLGBT delegates,” Stafford told fellowcaucus members.

DNC offi cial Regina Thomas toldthe caucus meeting that the DNC hasapproved hiring a director of the DNC LGBTOutreach Desk. The position has remained

unlled since September 2013, when gayDemocratic activist Jeff Marootian, whoheld the post since 2011, resigned to takea job as White House liaison to the U.S.Department of Transportation.

Thomas said a large number ofenthusiastic applicants have submittedresumes for the job but she saidmost don’t have the type of campaignexperience needed for the position. Sheurged LGBT Caucus members to inviteothers to apply for the post.

During an LGBT Caucus meeting inWashington last March, caucus membersand LGBT Democratic activists urged theDNC to ll the position in time for the2014 congressional mid-term elections.

With the National Stonewall Democratsout of the picture, the caucus members

and activists said the outreach deskdirector was needed to help as manyas 100 local and state LGBT DemocraticClubs coordinate LGBT get-out-the-vote efforts to help elect and re-electDemocrats to Congress.

DNC Regional Press Secretary Ian Sams

said at the time that he and others in theDNC’s communications division wouldconduct LGBT outreach work until areplacement for Marootian was hired.

Democrats took a beating in the 2014mid-term elections, losing control ofthe Senate and seeing their numbersdecrease in the House, where theyalready were in the minority.

Amy Stacey, the DNC’s chief executiveoffi cer, told LGBT Caucus members at theFeb. 21 meeting that the party will needthe help of all of its diverse constituencies,including LGBT Democrats, to help elect aDemocrat to the White House in 2016. Staceyis the former head of Emily’s List, a nationalgroup that helps elect women to public offi ce.


DNC LGBT Caucus maps plans for 2016

Press sec’y unaware ofanti-gay Arkansas law

By CHRIS [email protected]

White House Press Secretary JoshEarnest endorsed this week commentsfrom the new Pentagon chief that werefavorable to open transgender service inthe U.S. military, saying President Obamashares those views.

“I can tell you the president agrees withthe sentiment that all Americans whoare qualied to serve should be able toserve, and for that reason, we here atthe White House welcome the commentsof the secretary of defense,” Earnestsaid in response to a question from theWashington Blade.

Earnest’s remarks come just one dayafter newly sworn-in Defense SecretaryAshton Carter expressed an openness totransgender service at a military town hallin Kandahar, Afghanistan.

“I don’t think anything but theirsuitability for service should precludethem,” Carter said in response toa question from Jesse Ehrenfeld, alieutenant commander with U.S. NavyMedical Care.

For months, the White House has beendodging questions about whether itsupports the idea of allowing transgenderpeople to serve openly in the military.Prior to Carter’s conrmation hearing last

month, Earnest deferred to the Pentagonwhen asked by the Blade whether theWhite House thinks the U.S. military couldimplement open service.

The end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 2011enabled openly gay people to serve inthe U.S. military, but openly transgenderpeople are still unable to serve. Unlike with“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the administration atany time could lift the ban on transgenderservice because it’s not a law, but rather amedical regulation.

Although the White House hasendorsed Carter’s comments, Earnest

noted the Pentagon should handlefurther details on implementing opentransgender service.

Asked by the Blade whether the WhiteHouse is coordinating with the Pentagonon next steps to lift the ban, Earnestdeferred to the Defense Department andwas non-commital about any change.

“To talk about what those next stepsmight be, I’d refer you to the Departmentof Defense,” Earnest said.

Lt. Cmdr. Nathan Christensen, aPentagon spokesperson, said Mondayhe has nothing more to add to Carter’scomments and conrmed no specicreview of the ban on transgender serviceis ongoing.

However, Christensen said thePentagon has undertaken a routinereview of its medical accession policythat’s expected to last 12 to 18 months,although the review isn’t specic to theban on transgender service. The last suchreview was conducted in 2011 and left themedical regulation barring transgenderservice in place.

Ashley Broadway-Mack, president ofthe LGBT military group known as theAmerican Military Partner Association,said Earnest’s remarks demonstrateboth the commander-in-chief and thedefense secretary are supporting openlytransgender service.

“So now is the time for action - actionto end the outdated ban harming ourbrave transgender service members andtheir families,” Broadway-Mack said. “All

qualied Americans - regardless of theirgender identity - deserve to be able toserve our nation openly and honestly.”

Allyson Robinson, public policy directorfor the LGBT military group SPARTA, said thePentagon should heed Obama and moveforward with open transgender service.

“To those familiar with how themilitary chain of command works, thecommander-in-chief’s intent couldnot be clearer: President Obama hasdone more to ensure transgenderAmericans are treated fairly and withrespect than all those who’ve previouslyheld the offi ce combined,” Robinsonsaid. “Good subordinate leaders taketheir commander’s intent and execute– they get the job done. That’s whatSPARTA’s transgender members, theircommanders, and their families arelooking to Secretary Carter to do now.”

Stephen Peters, spokesperson for theHuman Rights Campaign, commendedthe White House for the remarks, but saidit’s time to follow up with action.

“Considering both the president andthe Secretary of Defense believe that allwho are qualied to serve should be ableto, it’s far past time for this discriminationagainst transgender service members toend,” Peters said. “Let’s put action to thesewords and nally change the outdatedregulations that still prevent somequalied Americans from serving openlybased solely on their gender identity.”


WASHINGTONBLADE.COM


White House endorses Carter remarks on trans service

White House Press Secretary JOSH EARNEST said President Obama backs Ashton Carter’sviews on transgender service.

WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY


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vetosb202.com, set up by New York-basedLGBT rights advocate Scott Wooledgeto generate social media responsesagainst the measure. In a joint statementon Friday, a team of LGBT legal groupsconsisting of the American Civil LibertiesUnion, the ACLU of Arkansas, Gay &Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, LambdaLegal and National Center for LesbianRights said the measure amounts to “agiant, ashing ‘Gays Stay Away’ sign.”

“It will block sincere local efforts toshow that Arkansas communities arewelcoming places beckoning talent,innovation and workforce diversity,” thestatement says.

Also on Friday, Chad Griffi n, anArkansas native and president of theHuman Rights Campaign, wrote an essayin the Arkansas Times urging a vetoof SB 202 as well as a halt to HB 1228,

a religious carve-out bill pending in theArkansas Legislature that would enablediscrimination against LGBT people.

“I’m proud to call Arkansas my homestate — the place where my entireextended family has lived for years,”Griffi n writes. “I know these bi lls do notreect the Arkansas values. They certainlydo not reect this state’s commitmentto growing a 21st Century economythat attracts good paying jobs—and toguaranteeing a business climate thatwelcomes everyone who is willing to

work hard and build a better future forthemselves and for their community.”One surprise voice in opposition to SB

202 came from gay icon Cher, who tookto Twitter to criticize Hutchinson. Cherwrote, “Why am I not surprised That AsaHutchinson, Gov of Arkansas,is hangingLBGT community out to dry!?”

On the day that the measure was setto become law, J.R. Davis, a spokespersonfor Hutchinson, was succinct inresponse to the Arkansas Times, whenasked whether such opposition hadinuenced Hutchinson’s decision. “Thegovernor’s position will not change,”Davis was quoted as saying.

But, as reported last week, a number ofvoices remained silent on SB 202, or didn’tspeak out until the 11th hour just as themeasure was poised to become law.

Walmart, which is based in Arkansasand is the largest private employer inthe state, said nothing during the weekbefore SB 202 became law despite callsfrom LGBT advocates. But in an articlefrom the Associated Press on Mondayreporting the measure had alreadybecome part of state code, a Walmartspokesperson said the companyopposes the measure.

“Every day, in our stores, we seersthand the benets diversity and

inclusion have on our associates,customers and communities we serve.It all starts with the core basic beliefof respect for the individual. And thatmeans understanding and respectingdifferences and being inclusive of all

people,” said Walmart spokesmanLorenzo Lopez. “We feel this legislation iscounter to this core basic belief and sendsthe wrong message about Arkansas.”

White House Press Secretary JoshEarnest said he wasn’t aware of SB 202on Monday and declined to say whetherPresident Obama thought a veto was theright course of action.

“I’m not aware of that specic pieceof legislation,” Earnest said. “You know,ultimately, you know, governors have tomake these kinds of decisions for themselves.

So, I wouldn’t weigh in at this point.”Also not speaking out against thelegislation were former President BillClinton and likely 2016 Democraticpresidential candidate Hillary Clinton,despite the fact they occupied thegovernor’s mansion in Arkansas asgovernor and rst lady before moving tothe White House in 1993.

Even though Griffi n penned theeditorial criticizing the bill, MichelangeloSignorile, a gay New York-based advocateand radio host, criticized Griffi n and theHuman Rights Campaign in an essay andon Twitter for not being visible enoughin the ght against SB 202. SignorileTweeted, “#ItsNotOver Our supposed,leaders, @ChadHGriffi n, let hate happenin Arkansas, staying silent. Not even atweet in recent days. Pathetic.”

Wooledge said passage of the measureshould serve as a wake-up call for theLGBT movement to be prepared to ghtagainst similar anti-LGBT measures inother states.

“Our opponents are well organizedand have concrete plans to use statelegislatures to chip away at LGBTvictories with legislation that punishesand demonizes gay people,” Wooledgesaid. “As a community we have beenreactive to non-marriage laws with mixed

success. We need to do a better jobgetting ahead of the game.”

Wooledge also faulted Walmart for notspeaking out sooner, saying its statementagainst SB 202 came far too late.

“We were a day late and a dollar short

rallying business in Arkansas,” Wooledgesaid. “Walmart’s announcement mightvery well have been an SB 202 game-changer a week ago. But it arrived toolate to do any good.”

It remains to be seen whetheropponents will le a lawsuit seekingto overturn SB 202. The law seems tocontradict the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1996decision in Romer v. Evans, but that rulingagainst Colorado’s Amendment 2 struckdown a measure that explicitly targetedgay people. In a case brought against a

law in Tennessee similar to SB 202, a statecourt threw out the lawsuit on appeal.Holly Dickson, a staff attorney with the

ACLU of Arkansas, said a lawsuit againstSB 202 is under consideration.

“We are certainly considering litigationbecause the bill is discriminatory inintent, targets the LGBT community, andis unconstitutional,” Dickson said.

Laura Phillips, an Arkansas LGBTactivist and board member of theFayetteville-based NWA Center forEquality, said the ght in Arkansas is nowfocused on stopping HB 1228, which hasbeen passed by the House and is nowpending before the Senate.

“HB 1228 is another monsteraltogether,” Phillips said. “I hope that wehear more from our faith leaders bothin and out of state. I hope that businessleaders speak out against this. I hope thatpeople are vocal in calling and speakingagainst this. We are better than this. I’m

just really disheartened today.”Meanwhile, other anti-LGBT bills,

including Religious Freedom RestorationActs, continue to percolate in statelegislatures, and new efforts are underwayto keep them from becoming law.

In Georgia, a new prominent voiceagainst pending religious freedom bills,is former Georgia Attorney General Mike

Bowers, who in his capacity as a stateoffi cial in the 1980s successfully defendedhis state’s ban on sodomy before t he U.S.Supreme Courts in Bowers v. Hardwick.

“These bills have the potential toprovide the opportunity for those thatuse them to be a law unto themselves, tosay, ‘I’m not going to follow any given lawbecause it’s against my religion,’ “ Bowerssaid during a news conference, accordingto the Atlanta Business Chronicle. “It’s sobroad, it’s almost impossible to limit.”

Two companion pieces of religiousfreedom legislation are pending beforethe Georgia General Assembly: HB 281,which is pending before the House, and SB129, which is pending before the Senate.

Other anti-LGBT bills are movingforward in various capacities in statelegislatures throughout the country. Here’sa breakdown of action in recent weeks:

KENTUCKY — The Senate EducationCommittee approved on Monday by

an 8-1 vote, according to the LexingtonHerald-Leader without providing muchnotice, SB 76, which would requiretransgender students to use a bathroommatching their biological sex or to seekspecial accommodations, such as aunisex bathroom.

INDIANA — On Monday, the IndianaSenate by a vote of 40-10 passed SB 101,which would allow private businesses,individuals and organizations to discriminateagainst anyone in Indiana on religiousgrounds. All Republicans voted for the bill

and all Democrats voted against it.OKLAHOMA — On Tuesday, theOklahoma House Children, Youth &Family Services Committee approved bya vote of 5-3 without debate legislationprotecting widely discredited “ex-gay”sexual orientation conversion therapy.The legislation, HB 1598, is sponsoredby State Rep. Sally Kern, who once saidgay people posed a greater risk to thecountry than terrorists.

TEXAS — One day after a lesbian couplein Austin obtained a marriage license inTravis County, State Sen. Charles Perrysubmitted legislation on Friday, SB 673, tomake the Texas secretary of state’s offi cethe sole distributor of marriage licenses.

Not all movement on state legislationaffecting the LGBT community wasdamaging to LGBT people. Last week, aWyoming House committee approvedlegislation that would bar discriminationbased on sexual orientation and genderidentity after removing from discussion amember who proposed an amendmentto make the effect date “when hellfreezes over.” But on Tuesday, the fullHouse voted down the measure, 33-26.

WEST VIRGINIA — Just after Arkansas’smeasure became law, a copycat versionwas introduced Monday in the WestVirginia Legislature.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM


Arkansas law tip of a new anti-LGBT iceberg?

HRC President CHAD GRIFFIN , who’s fromArkansas, was criticized by some for notcoming out more forcefully against SB 202.

WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY BLAKE BERGEN


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warrant says. “A wallet was observedlying next to the decedent’s head, withvarious credit cards strewn about.Additional credit cards and identifyingdocuments were observed throughoutthe room,” the affi davit says.

“The fact that they left a wallet with creditcards there is a head scratcher,” said D.C.attorney Dale Edwin Sanders, who practicescriminal law. “You would think this personwould have walked off with them.”

Law enforcement experts have said so-called pickup or hookup murders ofteninvolve someone who targets gay menor straight women by befriending themat a bar or other meeting place, includingonline hookup sites, and persuadingthe victim to invite them to their homeor another place such as a hotel room.The perpetrator then robs, assaults andsometimes kills the unsuspecting victim.

“I would hope that if the police haveany evidence that the person David metwas through a sex line — gay or straight— the public would be informed quicklyso they can be aware of any danger tothem,” said gay activist Peter Rosenstein.

Paul Tupper, chair of the D.C. groupGays and Lesbians Opposing Violence,said police sometimes alert LGBTcommunity groups about instancesof anti-gay violence but police havenot contacted GLOV about the case ofMesserschmitt’s murder.

“I certainly wouldn’t want to impedetheir investigation if it means being ableto nd this killer,” Tupper said. “But if theLGBT community at large is at threat andthey’ve got credible suspicion of that Iwish they would let us know.”

Rick Rosendall, president of the D.C.Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance, said theMesserschmitt case has been the subjectof discussion in gay community circlesin his neighborhood on the 17th Street,N.W., strip where several gay bars andrestaurants are located.

“Of course people should be cautiousin any case and of course the policeshould inform the community about anyongoing risk,” Rosendall said. “What weneed is a thorough and prompt policeinvestigation and not sensationalism.”

D.C. police spokesperson GwendolynCrump noted that police released photosand a video of a person of interest in thecase on the day after Messerschmitt’sbody was found, saying police areappealing to the public for help inidentifying a suspect.

Police are offering a $25,000 rewardfor information leading to the arrest andconviction of the person responsible forMesserschmitt’s murder.

But Crump said police could notcomment on whether they have

determined the case appears to be a gayor straight pickup murder or whether thedepartment’s Gay and Lesbian Liaison

Unit has been called in to help homicidedetectives investigate the case.

“The GLLU is aware of this case,” Crumpsaid. “I cannot comment further as this isan ongoing investigation.”

On the day following the discovery ofMesserschmitt’s body in the hotel roompolice released a video they obtainedfrom the hotel’s security camerasshowing what they said was a “person ofinterest” in the case. The person is shownwearing a hooded jacket while walkingback and forth in the hotel lobby and

later walking up a ight of stairs.It could not be determined from thevideo whether the person of interestis a man or a woman, police have said,and they declined to say why theyhave linked the unidentied person toMesserschmitt’s murder.

The New York-based LGBT Anti-Violence Project has said pick-up murdershave evolved from earlier years when gaymen invited someone they met at a gaybar or other gay meeting place to theirhome for sex and were later killed bythe person. According to AVP executivedirector Sharon Stapel, gay male victimsof pick-up murders have met their killersin recent years mostly through onlinehook-up sites and apps.

Stapel told the Blade in an email thatAVP is working with online social mediasites that cater to a gay male clienteleto help them post safety tips and alertsabout the potential danger of invitinghome someone they meet on such sites.

The popular app Grindr is amongthose cooperating with AVP, saying itbegan posting safety-related messageson its site last November.

According to Stapel, many victims ofpick-up related violence choose not toreport incidents to police because of thestigma associated with meeting people

for sexual trysts or because the victim isin the closet and fears being outed if hereports an incident to police.

Messerschmitt, a native of Cincinnati,worked for the prominent law rm DLAPiper, whose D.C. offi ces are located inChinatown. He specialized in intellectualproperty rights law.

A police report says his wife, Kim Vuong,called police about 1:50 a.m. on Tuesday,Feb. 10, to report him missing. The reportsays she told police “everything seemed

ne” when they spoke by phone andthat he later texted her about 7:30 p.m.Monday, Feb. 9, saying he expected to be

home about an hour later. Co-workers saidhe left his offi ce on Feb. 9 about 5:30 p.m.

“While there is the factor for the familyif David was bi or gay and they didn’tknow and they now have to deal withthat, it shouldn’t change what peoplethink about David and the good things heaccomplished in his life,” Rosenstein said.“All those things are still the same.”

Murder prompts concern among LGBT activists

Log Cabin to speak at CPACGregory Angelo, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans, announced this

week that he’s set to represent his organization in a discussion titled “Putin’sRussia: A New Cold War?” at the annual CPAC conference.

The panel is scheduled to begin at noon on Saturday at the conference, whichis taking place at the Gaylord National Hotel in National Harbor, Md.

“Now is not the time to make the perfect the enemy of the good,” Angelosaid. “Log Cabin Republicans will continue working toward full sponsorship offuture CPACs. In the meantime, I look forward to bringing the gay conservativeperspective to CPAC 2015 on behalf of Log Cabin Republicans, as well as themessage that when conservatives focus on unity rather than division, we win.”

Others set to speak on the panel are neo-conservative writer Seth Cropsey,former Hewlett-Packard CEO and U.S. Senate candidate Carly Fiorina,Foundation for Defense of Democracies Cliff May President, and University ofNorth Carolina-Chapel Hill history professor Amanda Brickell Bellows.

In a statement last week, Log Cabin accused the American Conservative Union,which organizes CPAC, of denying the group the opportunity to co-sponsor theevent. Although Log Cabin said it was told by CPAC organizers the gay groupwasn’t conservative enough, Log Cabin insisted the reason it was rejected isbecause it’s an LGBT organization.

Denying a group co-sponsorship of CPAC for being a gay organization would beconsistent with organizers’ decision in the past to bar from the event GOProud,a now-defunct gay conservative group, despite the organization credentials as aright-leaning organization.

The American Conservative Union responded to the accusation by sayingLog Cabin had never formally applied to co-sponsor the event, but Log Cabinprovided the Washington Blade an email sent to CPAC organizers with anexplicit ask for co-sponsorship.

CHRIS JOHNSON

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

LOCAL NEWS FEBRUARY 27, 2015 • 15

The Metropolitan Police Departmenthas released video images of a person ofinterest in the homicide investigation.

IMAGE COURTESY OF D.C. METROPOLITANPOLICE DEPARTMENT YOUTUBE CHANNEL


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B’More Proud summiton tap for March 28

For the second time, UMBC willhost the annual B’More Proud LGBTIALeadership Summit — a conferenceconsisting of LGBTIA students fromarea colleges and universities andallies. This year’s theme is “GrowingOut: Developing Self, Campus,Community.” These summits began in

2010.The 2015 summit, set for March

28, seeks to achieve the leadershipnetworking, and educational goals ofthe B’More Proud Collegiate QueerCoalition with a special focus on thedevelopment of stronger studentleaders, organizations, campuses,and ultimately, the queer communityof Baltimore.

The conference aims to engageparticipants in skill-building, experiential

exposure and knowledge-sharingnetworking opportunities to strengthenthem as individuals.

The summit traditionally consists ofguest speakers, a series of breakoutsessions covering a wide array ofsubjects that involve queer leadershipand relating to the theme for thecurrent year’s summit; a resourcearea where LGBT and LGBT-friendlyorganizations and companies canprovide information; and social

activities that include a dance. In 2014,about 200 attended the summit at

Johns Hopkins Univ ersi ty.This year’s summit takes place

from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at theCommons at UMBC, 1000 HilltopCircle in Baltimore. The planners areseeking volunteers, breakout sessio npresenters as well as registrantsfrom the area colleges.

“The B’More Proud LGBTQIALeadership Summit engages studentsfrom across the Baltimore region,providing opportunities for networkingand meaningful leadership andprofessional development,” said ZachKosinski, graduate coordinator forLGBTQ Programs at UMBC and adviser tothe B’More Proud Planning Committee.“In today’s world where increasinglycomplex issues face our community,cultivating leadership among the youngpeople who will lead us in years to comemust be a priority.”

For more information and to register,visit bmoreproud.org.

‘Revelation of BobbyPritchard’ to debut

Baltimore’s queer theater company,Iron Crow Theatre, presents the worldpremiere of “The Revelation of BobbyPritchard” in the second of its three-show 2014-2015 season. This poignantand lyrical new play from Marylandplaywright Rich Espey, three-timewinner of the Award for Best Play atthe Baltimore Playwrights Festival, is

a contemporary exploration of theclash between religious conviction andmodern LGBT issues contained withinthe tumultuous dynamics of a typicalAmerican family.

Dreams about the late BobbyPritchard compel Marta to return toher home town, a rural and religiouscommunity she fled decades ago todisclose the truth about Bobby’s deathand to marry her partner Cynthiain the church in which she grew up.Now, with her wife at her side, Martaencounters Hank, a brother she barelyknows who must deal with the painfulrevelation about Bobby’s death, andOren, a nephew struggling with hissexuality. Hank makes the choice tosupport his family rather than hiscommunity’s traditions, and shots ringout.

Directed by Iron Crow’s artistic director,Steven J. Satta, “The Revelation of BobbyPritchard” opens on March 13 and willrun through March 28 at the BaltimoreTheatre project, 45 W. Preston St. inBaltimore.

For more information and ticketreservations visit ironcrowtheatre.org orcall 443-637-CROW.

STEVE CHARING

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

16 • FEBRUARY 27, 2015 BALTIMORE NEWS

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Paying those at risk for HIV to take drugs doesn’t workSEATTLE — A major study testing whether Americans would take HIV drugs

daily if they were paid to do so, essentially failed, scientists at an AIDS conferencethis week said according to a New York Times article.

Paying patients in the Bronx and in Washington — where infection rates arehigh among poor blacks and Hispanics — up to $280 a year to take their pillsdaily improved overall adherence rates very little, the study’s authors said.

The hope was that the drugs w ould not only improve the health of the peopletaking them, but help slow the spread of HIV infections. HIV patients who taketheir medicine regularly are about 95 percent less likely to infect others thanpatients who do not. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimatesthat only a quarter of all 1.1 million Americans with HIV are taking their drugsregularly enough to not be infectious.

Paying patients $25 to take HIV tests, and then $100 to return for the resultsand meet a doctor, also failed, the study found.

The failure of the cash-incentives trial was a surprise and a disappointmentto scientists and advocates. It had paid out $2.8 million to 9,000 patients in 39clinics over three years, but the clinics where money was distributed did only 5percent better than those that did not — a statistically insignicant difference,the Times reports.

Some small clinics and those where patients had been doing poorly at the startof the study did improve as much as 13 percent, however, the Times article said.

‘Conversion’ therapy ban considered in Oregon

PORTLAND — Clergy, mental health professionals and LGBT activists in Oregontestied this we ek in favor of a bill aimed at banning “conversion” therapy forgay youth, the Oregonian reports.

Basic Rights Oregon championed the Youth Mental Health Protection Act,which would pre vent licensed mental health care providers in Oregon frompracticing “conversion” therapy, which operates from the stance, rejected by theAmerican Psychiatric Association, that homosexuality is a mental disorder.

California, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. have passed legislation to ban thepractice. Lawmakers in a dozen other states are considering similar legislation.

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

HEALTH NEWS FEBRUARY 27, 2015 • 17

Patients at high risk for HIV who were paid to take meds did no better with medicationadherence than those who were not paid, a new study has found.

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Clashes over genderpolitics test the civil rights

community

Martin Luther King Jr. said, “We are

caught in an inescapable network of mu-tuality, tied in a single garment of desti-ny.” But recent hostilities between radicalfeminists and transgender activists havepulled some loose threads.

For years, some radical feministshave vociferously opposed transgen-der people. An example is Janice Ray-mond, a lesbian ex-nun who wrote inher 1979 book, “The Transsexual Em-pire: The Making of the She-Male,” thattrans women, whom she regarded asmale predators, were the “avant garde

of the patriarchy invading women’sspaces.” As a liberal feminist and a sup-porter of trans equality, I very muchdisagree with Dr. Raymond. Dana Bey-er, executive director of Gender Rights

Maryland, explains, “[G]ender identity(the sex of one’s brain) drives transpersons to transition, regardless ofgenital anatomy.”

For the LGBT advocates with whom Iwork in Washington, D.C., that ship hassailed. We do not sit around discussinggender theory. We take it as a given thattrans people are citizens entitled to equalprotection. We work in coalition to ensurethat the “T” is included in legislation, datagathering, and public services (and D.C.is among the top states in the HumanRights Campaign’s State Equality Index).Science is on our side: the American Psy-chiatric Association declassied transgen-der identity as a disorder in 2012, as it did

homosexuality in 1973.For some, this is not enough. There isa movement to “no-platform” trans-ex-cluding radical feminists (TERFs), that is tobar them from campuses and deny thema platform for their views. This is part ofa broader and distinctly illiberal trendwhereby universities are seen not as cen-ters for the robust exchange of ideas, butas frightening places full of triggers andmicroaggressions. Students are seen asfragile owers who must be protectedfrom views that might offend them. This

is an assault on learning, and those of uswho are not professional victims need toght it.

Enter Peter Tatchell, a British humanrights activist who has supported trans

equality for decades. As an LGBT rightsadvocate he has scaled the wall of Lam-beth Palace to confront the Archbishop ofCanterbury; taken a brick to the head at agay rights march in Moscow; and receiveda savage beating for attempting a citi-zen’s arrest of Zimbabwe President Rob-ert Mugabe. This brave and principledman believes in debating his adversariesrather than silencing them. He wrote onFeb. 17:

“For me, free speech is one of the mostprecious of all human rights. It is thefoundation of a democratic, open society.It should be defended without exception,unless it involves threats, harassment orincitements to violence.”

In line with this, Tatchell recently joineda sign-on letter defending the right of theTERFs he disagrees with to present theirviews. For this he was hit with thousandsof vituperative Twitter messages call-ing him transphobic and even includingdeath threats.

A similar controversy recently engulfedplaywright Eve Ensler, whose award-win-ning play, “The Vagina Monologues,” wascanceled by the student theater boardat Mt. Holyoke College with the chargethat it was “blatantly transphobic.” Ensler

found it necessary to write a reply titled, “INever Dened a Woman as a Person Witha Vagina.”

Beyer writes, “I believe the current P.C.agenda, by demanding purity from its al-lies, is showcasing its inherent weakness.”She is right. We do not advance the causeof justice by censorship or by claiming tobe traumatized by other people’s opin-ions.

Granted, that is easy for me to say assomeone who has not been assaulted,harassed for using public restrooms, ordriven into survival sex by job discrimina-tion. But ring fusillades in 140-characterbursts and blocking those who disagreewith you is no legislative strategy.

Tatchell writes, “The most effective w

washingtonblade.com, volume 46, issue 9, february 27, 2015

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