New Mexico

Community Voice







Volume # 1 Issue # 12
December, 2011
New Mexico News
LAS CRUCES GLBTQ CENTER CELEBRATES DECEMBER
New Mexico GLBTQ Centers' Las Cruces location is celebrating the holiday season the entire month of
December. All events will be at the Las Cruces GLBTQ Center at 1210 N. Main St. in Las Cruces.
The festivities kick off with Family Fun Night on December 2
nd
at 7:00 PM when we will have a Tree
Trimming Party to decorate the center for the holidays. Everyone is asked to bring a decoration to share
and their creativity. The center will provide holiday refreshments and music.
Next up is a special Holiday Pride Cinema with holiday goodies and the film Make the Yuletide
Gay. Pride Cinema is Friday December 16
th
at 7:00 PM at the Las Cruces GLBTQ Center at
1210 N. Main St.
Gunn is totally at ease with his sexuality when it comes to everyday life. But going home to
spend the holidays with his well-meaning Midwestern parents -- who have no idea he's gay -- is
a little different. Of course, his closeted charade seems to be working fine until his mom and
dad try to set him up with an old flame (Hallee Hirsh) -- and his current boyfriend (Adamo
Ruggiero) shows up unannounced.
December 23
rd
Stonewall Coffeehouse and Open Mic Night will have A Stonewall Christmas at 7:00 PM
featuring carols, cookies, coffee and nog.
The Las Cruces GLBTQ Center will be closed December 24, 25 and 26 so our hardworking, dedicated
volunteers can spend time with family and friends.



WELCOME TO RISING SUN MINISTRIES
Rising Sun Ministries is a non-denominational Christian ministry that seeks to affirm and
share God's unconditional love for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.
In this light, we seek to bridge the relationship between Christian faith communities and
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender people, proclaiming a message of God's love
and acceptance for ALL people, and promoting a welcoming and affirming environment
within church congregations.
Rising Sun sponsors several events throughout the year and we would be honored if you
would join us at one, or many of them. Recently, we sponsored an LGBT Christian
Networking Event where our guests viewed the documentary "For the Bible Tells Me So.
The film lovingly conveys the experiences of five very normal, Christian families of faith and
how they handle the realization of having a gay child. The film offers healing, clarity and
understanding to anyone caught in the conflict of scripture and homosexuality.
We also offer a Bible and Homosexuality workshop during which we present and discuss the truth about
the passages of Scripture that have traditionally been used to condemn homosexuality such as Leviticus
18:22 "Do not lie with a man as with a woman, it is an abomination. You will gain a deeper understanding
of the meaning of this, and you will find this workshop informative and enjoyable. Cont'd on page 2










New Mexico
Community Voice







WELCOME, cont'd from page 1
n addition to these events, we provide information on a number of useful resources to affirm God's
love for ALL people. Please visit our website often for future dates and times of additional events and
for information on how to support our mission through volunteer opportunities or financial support:
www.rsministries.com or call Vangie Chavez at 505-898-0908.

PFLAG TAOS MEMBER ATTENDS THE 2011 PFLAG NATIONAL CONVENTION IN
WASHINGTON DC
Taos A member of PFLAG Taos, Barbara Sheppard, geared up to travel to Washington,
DC for the 2011 PFLAG National Convention which kicked off oh Thursday, November 3,
2011. The activities during the four-day event include lobbying U.S. Senators and
Representatives to support and advance the Safe Schools Improvement Act and the
Students Non-Discrimination Act, federal legislation that will help build safer schools for
their lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) loved ones.
In addition to a day of advocacy on Capitol Hill, our PFLAG Taos member joined
hundreds of other PFLAGers from around the country, networking and attending
workshops and plenary sessions on a wide array of topics, including building safer
schools, fundraising strategies, dialoguing about LGBT people in faith communities, and
more. Scheduled for Saturday night was an awards dinner, where long-time PFLAGer
Betty DeGeneres (mother of comedienne Ellen DeGeneres) will receive the Betty
DeGeneres Advocate Award and talk about her work as a straight ally and her life as a
mom to a lesbian daughter.
PFLAG Taos President, Annouk Ellis noted, "For a young chapter like ours, it is a wonderful opportunity
to network with other chapters of our Southwest region and to make personal contacts with PFLAG
National who is ready to help us with our Safe Schools and Diversity Outreach projects. Barbara
Sheppard will present her new knowledge at our December 6, 2011 meeting, please come and hear
firsthand about her experience on the Hill where she is bringing over 200 signatures to support the
Safe Schools Improvement Act and the Student Non-Discrimination Act.
PFLAG Taos meets once a month, mostly the first Sunday, at 1335 Gusdorf Road, Taos from 5:00-
7:00 pm. Please check our website calendar for more detail: www.pflagtaos.org














Page 2
New Mexico
Community Voice







Dear friends,
The 2012 legislative session is fast approaching, and Equality New Mexico wants to know
what issues are most important to you and your family.
Make no mistake, the threat of a Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)-type amendment to our
state constitution is more real now than ever before.
Equality New Mexico will be on the front lines in Santa Fe to make sure that DOMA and other
discriminatory laws never see the light of day in New Mexico.
While we are committed to defeating bad legislation, we must also continue our work to
advance the civil rights, wellbeing and dignity of the LGBT community. The road will be long,
and the challenges many, but I remain confident in our collective ability to build a better and
more equal New Mexico.
Listening to you
Throughout the month of November, Equality New Mexico invited members of the community to help
shape our legislative agenda by taking an online legislative issues survey. Over the coming weeks,
we will release the results of this survey, information on Equality New Mexico's 2012 legislative
priorities and ways you can engage in the legislative process.
Equality New Mexico will also host community meetings across New Mexico during the month of
January to provide the community another opportunity to inform our legislative work, and to learn
more about the issues that will be on the table when the legislature is gaveled into session on
January 17
th
.
f you haven't already, encourage each of you to join our mailing list at www.eqnm.org to stay
engaged with our legislative and other programmatic work.
Thanks for all you do to win equality in New Mexico!
As always,
Jacob
Jacob R. Candelaria
Equality New Mexico
President/CEO


















Page 3
Jacob Candelaria
New Mexico
Community Voice







EQUALITY NEW MEXICO AND THE TRANSGENDER RESOURCE CENTER OF NEW
MEXICO APPLAUD END OF DISCRIMINATORY, UNNECESSARY FEDERAL
NOTIFICATIONS ABOUT GENDER
Practice had led to job loss and outing of Transgender workers

Albuquerque Equality New Mexico and the Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico today
applauded the end of the discriminatory and unnecessary federal practice of sending notifications to
employers about the gender of their employees, a practice that had
led to job loss and the outing of transgender workers.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has confirmed that it has ended the practice
of allowing gender to be matched in its Social Security Number Verification System
(SSNVS). This will result in the immediate cessation of SSA sending notifications that
alert employers when the gender marker on an employee's W--2 does not match
Social Security records.

"n 2010 alone, the SSA sent out over 700,000 gender notification letters, said Jacob
Candelaria, President/CEO of Equality New Mexico. "This practice was unnecessary,
and it directly endangered the jobs and workplace safety of transgender people who
still face significant disrespect, discrimination and violence in the workplace,
continued Candelaria. "At the end of the day, this change is consistent with the
American belief that government has no business prying intolet alone publicizing
the most personal details of our lives, concluded Candelaria

The Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico joined Equality New Mexico in
applauding this move by the Obama administration towards addressing workplace
discrimination against the transgender community. "Today the administration
recognized that no person should lose their job simply because the SSA outs them at
a job where someone may face prejudice or violence for being transgender, said
Adrien Lawyer, Executive Director of the Transgender Resource Center of New
Mexico.

ON THE ROAD: "Pride in Aging" and THREE TOWN HALL
MEETINGS THROUGHOUT NEW MEXICO
by Jordon Johnson
Greetings Everyone!

I meet with Lisa Schatz-Vance, from the Senior Citizens Law Office,
yesterday about her project called "Pride in Aging" and becoming a All
Families Matter coalition partner. I am pleased to inform you that they are
a new coalition partner. The Senior Citizens' Law Office, with support
from the McCune Foundation and the Con Alma Health Foundation, has
established the "Pride in Aging" Project. The purpose of the project is
two-fold: To raise awareness about the concerns of LGBT elders and
about the unique barriers they encounter in gaining access to housing,
healthcare, long-term care and other needed services.
I also wanted to pass along information about a training Lisa offers to
raise awareness about LGBT Elders in New Mexico: Cont'd on page 5









Adrien Lawyer
Page 4
New Mexico
Community Voice







ALL FAMILIES MATTER Cont'd from page 4
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging is offering to train agencies in New Mexico free-
of-charge on LGBT cultural competency. The trainings are designed to help agencies create
an inclusive, safe and welcoming environment for LGBT older adults.

If you are interested in requesting a training, please submit your request to
www.lgbtagingcenter.org.
Over the last few weeks, we hosted, along with local coalition partners, three town hall
meetings that started in Las Cruces, followed by Espanola, and ending in Albuquerque.
The town halls were an opportunity for the local community to learn more about the campaign
and become engaged in building critical support for the LGBT community in their region.

We were delighted with the turnout at all three town hall meetings. In Las Cruces, we had over
20 people in attendance that included community members, elected officials, and future
organizational partners. Espanola was a smaller gathering of people, yet there are committed
community members ready to engage in the campaign and assist in raising the visibility around
LGBT families in their area. Albuquerque had our largest turn out of approximately 35 people
in attendance. We were able to capture crucial insight about the local areas, continued to build
our presence in the region and gathered community input for the development our campaign
so it is relevant for their region.

I was pleased to hear and learn about the efforts already happening for LGBT families in
Southern New Mexico as well as the emerging networks being established in Espanola. I am
looking forward to working more closely with both these regions regarding our public education
efforts.

We were honored to have Kate Kendell, the Executive Director for the National Center for
Lesbian Rights, join us for the Espanola and Albuquerque town hall meetings. It was wonderful
to have Kate share her perspective about what is taking place on a national level and how it is
critical to be talking to your neighbors, coworkers, friends and family about LGBT families now
when there is no crisis in our state. A crucial moment in moving people to become supporters
or deepening their support for LGBT issues is now. People are more likely to hear stories, gain
a better understanding about LGBT issues, and move to a place of being solid advocates for
LGBT families when there is no major oppositional campaign or issue at stake.

The three town halls were a significant component in the development of our broader
campaign plan. We asked people to walk away from these town halls and start talking to
people about the campaign to at least 5 people.

Who have you talked to today about supporting LGBT families? A simple conversation can
make a significant difference for LGBT families in New Mexico.

For more information, please visit: www.allfamiliesmatternewmexico.org or find us on
Facebook at All Families Matter New Mexico.

In Solidarity,

Jordon
All Families Matter.
Love. Commitment. Family.
www.allfamiliesmatternewmexico.org


















Page 5
Jordan Johnson
New Mexico
Community Voice















from Lisa Schatz-
Vance, Senior Citizens
Law Office's "Pride in
Aging" Project
The Area Agency on
Aging (AAA) will be
conducting our second
public hearing on
Thursday, December
15, 2011 for the delivery
of senior services within
Bernalillo County.
These series of public
hearings will assist the
AAA in developing its
four year Area Plan that
drives services offered
under the Older
Americans Act for July
1, 2012 to June 20,
2016. (Ed. Note: This is
an opportunity for our
community's voice to be
heard regarding
servicesor lack of
servicesspecifically
for the LGBT
community.)

Page 6
New Mexico
Community Voice







NEW MEXICO GAY MEN'S CHORUS SCARES UP A HALLOWEEN
CONCERT
Albuquerque-The black walled Effex Night Club provided the unusual venue for
the New Mexico Gay Men's Chorus Halloween Cabaret. Donned in a ghoulishly
delicious array of costumes with make-up to match, the men sang their hearts out in
a collection of songs that represented the classical repertoire, Broadway, Tin Pan
Alley, and Rock.
The concert was introduced by the chorus' suitably attired artistic director, Aaron
Howe, complete with his skeleton make up, skeletal tee-shirt and bony gloved hands.
He moved as if he was a refugee from Michael Jackson's "Thriller video as he
drooled over the audience in several introductions when he wasn't leading the group
in the wide ranging selection of music.
The two act concert began each section with audience grabbing opening numbers, "This s
Halloween from "The Nightmare before Christmas and Gilbert and Sullivan's "When the Night
Wind Howls from "Riddigore. The latter involved a soloist garbed in a raincoat and nothing
more (?!) while the chorus surrounded him, reaching out as he sang more intensely. It was a
terrific moment.
The concert was filled with many such moments. One of the two selections from "The Rocky
Horror Picture Show brought several audience members to their feet as they joined in dancing
the "Time Warp. And "Riders in The Sky brought out the cowboy yelps of other audience
members before artistic director Howe led the full audience into the song's final chorus. n a
complete contrast, "Mad World, the creepy soft rock song from the movie "Donnie Darko, was
sung by a very sad soloist while the large, eerie rabbit from the movie stood near-by, joining in
a one-word chorus. Together they captured the strange quality of the moment.
A soloist in a muscle tee-shirt and a 1950's Sinatra hat roamed the audience while singing
"Witchcraft and later a chorus member in a wild drag outfit growled out "Sweet Transvestite
from "Rocky Horror as he also played the audience. Broadway was well represented as
another soloist sang " Need to Know from "Jeckyll and Hyde before drinking the potion that
would bring disaster into his life. And then there was the Phantom of the Opera singing "Music
of the Night, another beautiful melody that would not lead to a happy ending for the mad
composer. The chorus ended with "Move toward the Darkness from "The Addams Family
Musical in an arrangement specially written for the chorus by the musical's composer, Andrew
Lippa.
In a concert filled with high points, including a piano rendition of Camille Saint-Saens' Danse
Macabre, arguably the best was saved for the encore when a chorus member in a sequined hat
and a white glove sang an outstanding rendition of "Thriller. Added to this were Howe's
skeletal movements with his bony hands waving in the air, the singer's growing intensity, the
chorus' backup singing and the reading of a scary poem in counter-point which combined in a
crescendo that brought the house down. It raises the question: If they could make Halloween
this much fun, what will the New Mexico Gay Men's Chorus do with Christmas?


















Page 7
New Mexico
Community Voice







from newswise.com
LGBT SENIORS FACE HARDER OLD AGE, NATIONAL STUDY FINDS
Aging and health issues facing lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender baby boomers
have been largely ignored by services, policies and research. These seniors face
higher rates of disability, physical and mental distress and a lack of access to
services, according to the first study on aging and health in these communities.

The study, released Nov. 16 and led by Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen and colleagues at
the University of Washington's School of Social Work, indicates that prevention and
intervention strategies must be developed to address the unique needs of these
seniors, whose numbers are expected to double to more than 4 million by 2030.

"The higher rates of aging and health disparities among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender older adults is a major concern for public health, said Fredriksen-
Goldsen, a UW professor of social work and director of UW's nstitute for
Multigenerational Health. "The health disparities reflect the historical and social
context of their lives, and the serious adversity they have encountered can
jeopardize their health and willingness to seek services in old age.

She presented some of the study's key findings last week during a congressional briefing.

The study highlights how these adults have unique circumstances, such as fear of
discrimination and often the lack of children to help them. Senior housing, transportation,
legal services, support groups and social events were the most commonly cited services
needed in the LGBT community, according to the study.

Fredriksen-Goldsen and her co-authors surveyed 2,560 lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender adults aged 50-95 across the United States. The researchers found that the
study participants had greater rates of disability, depression and loneliness and increased
likeliness to smoke and binge-drink compared with heterosexuals of similar ages. Cont'd on
page 9

NEW MEXICO GAY MEN'S CHORUS ANNOUNCES HOLIDAY CONCERT
The New Mexico Gay Men's Chorus announces it will present its annual Holiday Concert
under the direction of Aaron Howe, Artistic Director.

The Holiday Concert consists of four sections. The first is songs that are familiar and
specific to our American culture of Christmas. The second includes Holiday songs from
foreign countries. The third is songs of long ago that are still with us. The final section
consists of songs of now done in a new way.

On Friday and Saturday, December 9th & 10th the concerts will be at Immanuel
Presbyterian Church at 114 Carlisle in Albuquerque, at 7:30 PM. On Sunday, December
11
th
, the concert will be at First Presbyterian Church of Santa Fe at 208 Grant Ave. in Santa
Fe. at 3 PM. Tickets are $20 general admission and $15 for students and seniors. Tickets
may be purchased from nmgmc.org or at the door.










National News
Aaron Howe
Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen
Page 8
New Mexico
Community Voice







LGBT SENIORS FACE HARDER OLD AGE Cont'd from page 8
Those seniors are also at greater risk for social isolation, which is
"linked to poor mental and physical health, cognitive impairment,
chronic illness and premature death, Fredriksen-Goldsen said.
Study participants were more likely to live alone and less likely to
be partnered or married than heterosexuals, which may result in
less social support and financial security as they age.

Histories of victimization and discrimination because of sexual
orientation or gender identity also contribute to poor health.

The study showed that 80 percent had been victimized at least
once during their lifetimes, including verbal and physical assaults,
threats of physical violence and being "outed, and damaged
property. Twenty-one percent of respondents said they were fired
from a job because of their perceived sexual orientation or gender
identity. Nearly four out of 10 had considered suicide at some
point.

Twenty-one percent of those surveyed did not tell their
doctors about their sexual orientation or gender identity
out of fear of receiving inferior health care or being turned
away for services, which 13 percent of respondents had
endured. As one respondent, a 67-year-old gay man, put
it, " was advised by my primary care doctor to not get my
HIV tested there, but rather do it anonymously, because
he knew they were discriminating.

Lack of openness about sexuality "prevents discussions
about sexual health, risk of breast or prostate cancer,
hepatitis, HV risk, hormone therapy or other risk factors,
Fredriksen-Goldsen said.


The good news? "LGBT older adults are resilient and living their lives and building their
communities, Fredriksen-Goldsen said. Of the study's respondents, 91 percent reported using
wellness activities such as meditation and 82 percent said they regularly exercised. Nearly all
90 percent felt good about belonging to their communities. And 38 percent stated that they
attended spiritual or religious services, indicating a promising social outlet.

Social connections are key, the study noted because, unlike their heterosexual counterparts,
most lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender seniors rely heavily on partners and friends of
similar age to provide assistance as they age. While social ties are critical, there may be limits
to the ability of those older adults to "provide care over the long-term, especially if decision-
making is required for the older adult receiving care, Fredriksen-Goldsen said.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute on Aging.

















Page 9
New Mexico
Community Voice







from equalitymatters.org
CHICK-FIL-A DONATED NEARLY $2 MILLION TO ANTI-GAY GROUPS IN 2009
Earlier in 2011, Chick-fil-A became embroiled in a controversy surrounding its
donations to anti-gay groups. Though Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy denied
having an "agenda against anyone, an Equality Matters investigation discovered
that Chick-fil-A donated more than $1 million to anti-gay causes between 2003
and 2008. Now, new IRS 990 forms reveal that the company donated nearly two
million dollars to anti-gay groups in 2009 alone, the most recent year for which
public records are available.
The WinShape Foundation is Chick-fil-A's charitable arm, created by Chick-fil-A founder and
chairman S. Truett Cathy in 1984. WinShape has received a substantial amount of funding from
Chick-fil-A: in 2009 alone, WinShape received $7,814,788 from Chick-fil-A Inc.]
WinShape Gave Over $1.7 Million To Anti-Gay Groups
In 2009 alone, WinShape donated $1,733,699 to multiple anti-gay groups:
x Marriage & Family Legacy Fund: $994,199
x Fellowship Of Christian Athletes: $480,000
x National Christian Foundation: $240,000
x Focus On The Family: $12,500
x Eagle Forum: $5,000
x Exodus International: $1,000
x Family Research Council: $1,000
Chick-fil-A's Marriage and FamiIy Legacy Fund
Donald "Bubba"Cathy, Chick-fil-A's senior vice president, helped launched the Marriage and Family
Legacy Fund (MFLF), which "pool[s]funds for a national marriage media campaign and provide
start-up grants for local initiatives to promote stable, lasting marriages. The MFLF was created to
be the "implementation and funding arm for the Marriage CoMission, a coalition of groups formed
in response to the "downward spiral of marriage and the traditional family in America. WinShape
donated $994,199 to the MFLF in 2009.
Clearly, the company's president was lying when he denied having an "agenda against anyone.
Chick-fil-A has a $2 million agenda against the LGBTQ community. All this leads to the obvious
question: Why would anyone in the LGBTQ community spend one penny at a Chick-fil-A? Part of
your purchase price will go to oppose your equal rights. Think about that the next time you go to a
Chick-fil-A.and then spend your money with preferably a local business that at least doesn't fight
against your equal rights.


















Page 10
New Mexico
Community Voice







from news.cincinnati.com
Cincinnati--A Downtown gathering and march in support of same-sex marriage on Saturday
could attract a crowd from across Ohio and possibly as far as Texas, organizers say.
Behind it all is Adam Hoover, 17, a Harrison High School senior who dreamed up the event after
attending Cincinnati's Gay Pride Parade in July.
While Hoover can't say how many people will attend, about 2,500 people have sent him an
RSVP email, including a group of 25 people from Texas and another group from New York.
"I am gay," Hoover said when asked why he wanted to organize the protest. "I wanted to start
something."
With help from a number of supporters, including Nicholas David Wymer, a junior at Walnut Hills
High School, Hoover began promoting the event about four months ago.
Early on, he contacted Equality Ohio, a statewide advocacy group for the lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transsexual community.
"That happens fairly often, but it's less often that it's a 17-year-old kid who is not part of any
organization," said Ed Mullen, the group's executive director. "And even when it is, it doesn't get
the type of attention this has gotten."
Mullen said Hoover has used social networking and online videos to create buzz for the event. It
is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. on Fountain Square, march to the Underground Railroad
Freedom Center at noon, stop for a few speakers - including gay Cincinnati City Council
candidate Chris Seelbach - and then continue to march around town until 6 p.m.
Mullen, who is in his 40s, has been an activist for decades. He said Hoover was smart to invite
groups like the Reformed Catholic Church. Equality Ohio supporters from Toledo and Cleveland
have also pledged to come, Mullen said.
"I think it's a generational change we're seeing," Mullen said. "When I was a teenager, there was
no Ellen Degeneres ... or Lady Gaga. It was a much lonelier existence,... and you had much
lower expectations. You didn't think you'd get married or have kids.
"But now (gay kids) have grown up seeing what's possible and are coming out much younger,
with higher expectations and demands from society and particularly from lawmakers."

from Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, hrc.org, advocate.com & thinkprogress.org
NATIONAL SURVEY SHOWS INEVITABLE ACCEPTANCE

A recent national survey of 900 adults shows a nation moving inexorably toward equality for
lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. On basic civil rights issues such as employment
and housing, huge majorities support protections for this community. Moreover, a majority of
Americans support marriage for same-sex couples, a sea of change from just a few years ago.
Perhaps most notable is the rising social equality for LGBT people. A 77 percent majority of
men say they "could be close friends with a gay man and 57 percent say it would not bother
them if their child or grandchild was gay. Cont'd on page 12
















Page 11
Adam Hoover (left)
& his boyfriend, Tyler Folke
New Mexico
Community Voice






NATIONAL SURVEY Cont'd from page 11
Young people lead this change, but the evolution is not limited to this generation. A third of
seniors describe themselves as more accepting of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
people. The movement is also national in character, not limited to the coasts. To be sure, there
some parts of the country are more conservative than others, and while people in the South and
the Midwest support rights for the LGBT community on a range of issues, they lag other regions
of the country.

While the country is moving toward equality, it is not there yet. Nearly half the country still
opposes marriage equality. The nation divides evenly on whether people are "born gay, is
conflicted on whether or not they have things in common with gay people, and an alarming
number of people still find anti-gay jokes acceptable.
There is more work to do.
HRC's new poll conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research found Americans widely
support LGBT equality issues but more work remains to be done particularly in the South and
Midwest where support lags other regions. The poll shows support for equal marriage at 51
percent (43 percent in the Midwest and South), in line with other national polls on the issue.
Support for non-discrimination protections for LGBT people in employment, housing and public
accommodations is strong nationally at 79 percent, as is support for protections against bullying
in schools at 73 percent. Respondents also overwhelmingly say anti-gay discrimination is a
problem (79 percent) and anti-transgender discrimination is a problem (74 percent).
Research released Monday on national attitudes regarding LGBT rights finds a slim majority in
favor of marriage equality, yet a solid consensus on employment protections and adoption
rights.

People in areas of the country with the least LGBT protections also appear to be more
progressive than their elected officials, according to the recent survey, conducted by Anna
Greenberg of Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and commissioned by the Human Rights
Campaign. Seventy-three percent of respondents in the South, for example, said they support
employment protections for LGBT people, even though the vast majority of the region lacks
state statutes banning such discrimination (78% of Midwest residents polled also support
employment protections).

The national survey of 900 adults found 51% support for marriage rights; 58% further favor
extending equal federal benefits to same-sex couples who have married in states where it's
legal to do so. (Click here for a poll summary.)

Perhaps most topical, given recent news on the 2012 presidential campaign trail, the survey
found that only 24% of those polled believed that prayer-focused "reparative therapy" could
change a person's sexual orientation.

Widespread dismissal of the controversial form of therapy tracks consensus in the medical and
mental health establishments: The American Psychological Association, for example, passed a
2009 resolution advising mental health professionals to avoid telling clients that sexual
orientation can be changed through therapeutic methods.
The survey kicked off an HRC 17-city tour beginning August 12 in Salt Lake City and continuing
through states with some of the least protections for LGBT people in the nation.
Cont'd on page 13























Page 12
New Mexico
Community Voice







from gothamist.com & nypost.com
PERFECT: LGBT GROUP MOVES IN BUILDING FUNDED BY SUPER ANTI-GAY POL
RUBEN DIAZ SR.
Bronx State Senator Ruben Diaz Jr. has not been shy about his crusade against gay
marriage. The Democrat state senator from the Bronx who's been a vocal opponent of LGBT
progress in New York since at least 1994 when he tried to keep the Gay Games from his city.
The Games would spread AIDS, he said, and queerify New York's impressionable youth.
Since then, Diaz has campaigned harder and longer than any other New York Democrat
against marriage equality, leading a crowd of thousands in protest against gay marriage this
summer. In fact, he tried to use his lesbian granddaughter as a prop in his anti-gay marriage
rally. Though his out-and-proud granddaughter Erica Diaz was on the scene for her own
counter-protest, she eventually joined her grandfather for a photo-op, allowing him to call out
to an approving crowd: "This is my granddaughter. love her. love her. love her. respect
her decisions. She does what she wants. If you think that in our family, there is hatred, and
there is no love, you are wrong. Because love my granddaughter. Of course, if his
granddaughter married another woman, Diaz said, "I would not go to the wedding." Cont'd on
page

NATIONAL SURVEY Cont'd from page 12
HRC spokesman Michael Cole-Schwartz said the bus tour will focus on what LGBT individuals
can do to protect themselves and their families, such as drafting medical decision documents,
advocating for domestic-partner benefits with an employer, and lobbying for antibullying
curriculum in schools. LGBT experts involved in the tour will include Family Acceptance Project
director Caitlin Ryan, who will participate in Salt Lake City and Omaha events.

"We are in the midst of a cultural tipping point on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues,
and our job is to push the scale as far and as fast as we can toward fairness, HRC president
Joe Solmonese said Monday of the tour, which ended October 30 in Orlando, Fla.

Multiple mainstream polls have indicated that cultural tipping point on marriage equality in the
past year. According to an ABC News/Washington Post survey in March, 53% of Americans said
that gays should have the right to marry a double-digit shift in support from an identical poll in
2006.
Aside from policy questions, 57 percent of respondents say they would not be bothered if their
child or grandchild was gay. Seventy-seven percent of men say they could be close friends with
a gay man and 81 percent of women say they could be close friends with a lesbian. Overall, 64
percent say they could be close friends with someone who is transgender. Relating to the
current debate over so-called "pray the gay away therapies, only 24 percent of people think gay
people can be made straight through psychotherapy or prayer.
A new poll from the Human Rights Campaign and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research (PDF)
finds that only 24 percent of people polled believe that ex-gay therapy works. While it's good to
see that so few support such quackery, the poll found that 31 percent of youth believe in ex-gay
therapy. That young people are more susceptible to the idea that people can (and thus, should)
change their sexual orientation speaks to how harmful the ideas of ex-gay therapy truly are.


from salon.com
Ive read stories from people who say they always knew they were
attracted to the same sex, or that they figured it out at a young
age. Im not one of them. I had practically no idea until one night
in my sophomore year of high school. I was at a basketball game,
and the guys around me started pointing out cheerleaders from the
other team they thought were hot. I began to wonder: Why wasnt
I looking at the cheerleaders that way? And why was I sometimes
noticing the other teams players instead? My heart rate quickened
and my mind spun until a thought surfaced: This is what it means
to be gay.
--Steve Kornacki,
Salons news editor
To read Kornackis coming out article, go to
http://www.salon.com/2011/11/16/the_coming_out_story_i_never_thought_id_
write/



















Page 13
New Mexico
Community Voice







from gothamist.com & nypost.com
PERFECT: LGBT GROUP MOVES IN BUILDING FUNDED BY SUPER ANTI-GAY POL
RUBEN DIAZ SR.
Bronx--Bronx State Senator Ruben Diaz Jr. has not been shy about his crusade against gay
marriage. The Democrat state senator from the Bronx who's been a vocal opponent of LGBT
progress in New York since at least 1994, when he tried to keep the Gay Games from his
city. The Games would spread AIDS, he said, and queerify New York's impressionable
youth.
Since then, Diaz has campaigned harder and longer than
any other New York Democrat against marriage equality,
leading a crowd of thousands in protest against gay
marriage this summer. In fact, he tried to use his lesbian
granddaughter as a prop in his anti-gay marriage rally.
Though his out-and-proud granddaughter Erica Diaz was on
the scene for her own counter-protest, she eventually joined
her grandfather for a photo-op, allowing him to call out to an
approving crowd: "This is my granddaughter. love her.
love her. I love her. I respect her decisions. She does what
she wants. If you think that in our family, there is hatred, and
there is no love, you are wrong. Because I love my
granddaughter. Of course, if his granddaughter married
another woman, Diaz said, "I would not go to the wedding."
So it is wonderfully fitting that the Bronx's largest gay rights
group, Bronx Pride, is moving into new offices in a building
funded by, and named after, the city's No. 1 gay-marriage
opponent, state Sen. Ruben Diaz. The Bronx's largest gay-
rights group unfurled its rainbow flag last month at its new
headquarters. t's left Diaz, who's also an ordained minister,
hot and bothered, sources said. " hope people say, 'Wow,
they're reclaiming this building for the LGBT community!'
laughed Executive Director Dirk McCall. "We're very
excited.
Diaz's namesake 111-unit building on Kelly Street and Westchester Avenue opened two
years ago, funded by the city Housing and Development Corp. and backed by the
lawmaker's nonprofit. It has apartments, retail and office space. The 68-year-old official is far
from happy about the new tenants, Bronx political sources said, especially after losing the
same-sex marriage battle in Albany this year. "He's furious, a source said. "t's such a direct
shot at him.
McCall claims it's just a funny coincidence but doesn't deny the elegance of the situation. "t
[just] happens to be entertaining that the building's named after someone who opposes
marriage for us."
By the way, besides his lesbian granddaughter Diaz has two brothers who are gay. It must
run in the family.
Ed Note: While this is a great publicity stunt, in the end it means that Bronx Pride is paying
Senator Diaz monthly rent.












Sen. Ruben Diaz corrals his lesbian
granddaughter to promote his anti-marriage
equality message. (Doesn't she look happy?)
Page 14
New Mexico
Community Voice







from thegavoice.com
WHY LGBT PEOPLE ARE THE 99 PERCENT, TOO
by Laura Douglas-Brown
Atlanta--As LGBT people, we are unfortunately used to living in the minority. But as economic
protest movements spread from Wall Street to Atlanta and around the world, we are firmly in
the majority: We, too, are the 99 percent.
The slogan of the Occupy Wall Street movement comes, of course,
from staggering statistics about the divide between the richest 1
percent of Americans and the rest of us.
According to Think Progress, this richest 1 percent owns 40 percent of
the nation's wealth, takes home 24 percent of national income, owns 50
percent of stocks, bonds and mutual funds; has only 5 percent of the
nation's personal debt; and their share of national income is higher now
than at any other time except the 1920s.
Whether you agree with the "occupy tactic to call attention to the
problem, the rapid swell of support for the grassroots protests in cities
around the world, plus widespread identification with blogs like "We are
the 99 Percent, shows that the sentiment behind the movement isn't as
radical as critics would have us believe.
The Great Recession left many Americans feeling vulnerable. This includes many LGBT
people, as discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity has dire economic
consequences that leave us particularly at risk.
More discrimination, fewer safety nets
Transgender people face some of the worst economic discrimination. Lesbians face anti-gay
job bias as well as the sexism that still sees women earning less than men for similar work.
Even gay men, often thought of as particularly privileged due to the increase in disposable
income that comes from being less likely to have children, face quantifiable job discrimination.
A study published in the American Journal of Sociology last
month used two fictitious resumes of recent college grads to
apply for a variety jobs in seven states. To show that the
applicant had financial experience, one set stated that he had
served as treasurer of a college progressive group. The other
outed the applicant as gay by stating that he was treasurer of a
college LGBT group.
Overall, the straight applicant received 1.5 times more calls for
an interview. In Texas, one of the more conservative states in
the survey, the gap doubled to 3 times more likely to get an
interview.
Research compiled by the Williams Institute shows 27.1 percent of LGB people report
discrimination at work, and 7.1 percent report losing a job because of it.
Another study showed 78 percent of transgender people report some form of workplace
mistreatment; 47 percent reported discrimination in hiring, promotion or job retention.
Cont'd on page 16


















Page 15
New Mexico
Community Voice







WHY LGBT PEOPLE ARE THE 99 PERCENT, TOO Contd from page 15
When we do suffer unemployment or under-employment, we also have fewer safety nets.
Homophobia from family members may make us less able to lean on them
for support. Marriage discrimination makes us unable to be covered as
spouses on our partners' health insurance, if they are lucky enough to
have a job that offers health benefits. And if we are luckier still and our
partners' health insurance covers domestic partners, that benefit is taxed
as income even though it isn't for straight spouses.
Marriage discrimination also leaves us economically vulnerable if one
partner dies. We can't receive Social Security spouse benefits despite
paying the same amount in Social Security taxes as other Americans. We
can't inherit their property unless we have proactively drawn up wills
(which can still be contested), unlike the automatic inheritance rights
afforded to spouses.
A key component of the fight for LGBT equality, then, is economic equality. And that's exactly what the
"99 percent movement in all of its messy, diverse glory is all about.
Hope for change
The "Occupy movement may not ultimately be the solution to our nation's economic problems, and
many are frustrated that the protests have not yet articulated a specific set of demands that would lead
them to decamp.
But at this point, that may be just fine. Their mere existence has sparked discussions about economic
realities among a much wider audience, and that may be enough to start the ball rolling to social
change.
If nothing else, we can hope the broader frustration they have tapped will lead politicians to be more
reluctant to take huge corporate and lobbying group donations; companies to be less likely to lay off
workers while doling out huge bonuses to top executives; and all of us to be a bit more conscious about
the economic struggles we share, perhaps forging bonds and even coalitions among people who
previously thought we were more different than alike.
f any of that happens, the "Occupy movement will have been a success, regardless of whether
activists continue camping.
We, as LGBT people, are among the 99 percent who stand to gain from such change.

from publicreligion.org
STRONG MAJORITIES FAVOR RIGHTS & LEGAL PROTECTIONS FOR
TRANSGENDER PEOPLE
Americans have Solid Understanding of Transgender Identity
Washington, D.C. Overwhelming majorities of Americans, across
the political and religious spectrum, believe that transgender people
should have the same general rights and legal protections as other
people, a new survey finds. Cont'd on page 17



















Page 16
New Mexico
Community Voice







STRONG MAJORITIES FAVOR RIGHTS & LEGAL PROTECTIONS Cont'd from page 16
The August and September Religion and Politics Tracking Surveys were conducted by Public
Religion Research Institute and released amid the increased attention towards transgender issues
following Chaz Bono's appearance on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. The combined surveys
constitute one of the first independent studies of attitudes on transgender issues and Americans'
knowledge of transgender identity.
"Three out of four Americans say Congress should pass employment nondiscrimination laws that
protect transgender people, said Dr. Robert P. Jones, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute.
"This strong support is also broad, persisting across party lines and the religious spectrum.
Approximately three-quarters (74%) of Americans also favor Congress' recent expansion of hate
crimes legislation to protect transgender people. Additionally, the survey found that roughly two-thirds
of Americans both report being well informed about transgender people and issues, and generally
understand what the term "transgender means, the new survey finds.
"To explore whether Americans know what the term 'transgender' means, we allowed them to define
'transgender' in their own words, said Daniel Cox, PRRI Research Director. "More than two-thirds of
Americans were able to give an essentially accurate definition of the term 'transgender' without any
assistance.
Among the Findings:
Overwhelming majorities of Americans agree that transgender people should have the same general
rights and legal protections as others.
x Approximately 9-in-10 (89%) Americansincluding strong majorities of all religious and
partisan groupsagree that transgender people deserve the same rights and protections as
other Americans.
Approximately three-quarters of Americans both say Congress should pass employment
nondiscrimination laws to protect transgender people, and favor Congress's recent expansion of hate
crimes legislation to protect transgender people.
x Three-quarters (75%) of Americans agree that Congress should pass laws to protect
transgender people from job discrimination. This support persists across the political and
religious spectrum.
x Approximately three-quarters (74%) of Americans also favor Congress' recent expansion of
federal hate crime laws to include crimes committed on the basis of the victim's gender,
sexual orientation or gender identity, compared to only 22% who oppose.
Approximately two-thirds of Americans both report being well informed about transgender people and
issues, and generally understand what the term "transgender means.
x Two-thirds of Americans agree that they feel well informed about transgender persons and
issues, while 3-in-10 disagree.
x In order to determine whether Americans understood the term "transgender, PRR
conducted a follow-up survey in September 2011 that asked respondents to report what the
term "transgender meant to them in their own words. Among the 91% of Americans who
report that they have heard of the term transgender, 76% give an essentially accurate
definition. Thus, overall, more than two-thirds (69%) of Americans are able to identify what
the term "transgender means without any assistance.























Page 17
New Mexico
Community Voice







from cnn.com
PARENTS URGED TO SUPPORT, SAFEGUARD CHILDREN AS THEY EXPLORE GENDER
by Phil Gast

At first, Felisha Archuleta thought her young son's affinity for wearing
dresses, primping his hair and playing with Barbies and Bratz dolls
indicated he was going through a stage. But Bobby Montoya's interest
in "girl stuff" has not been short-lived: He's grown his hair out and has
dressed as a girl when he can for much of his 7 years. Bobby's been
"outspoken" about his gender identity, said Archuleta.

The Denver, Colorado, family's recent attempt to sign up Bobby with
Girl Scouts, however, left him in tears, his mother said. A leader said
he could not join because of his "boy parts," Archuleta told CNN
affiliate 9News.

The Girl Scouts of Colorado has since said it was an "inclusive"
organization and "if a child lives life as a girl" he or she is welcome to
join. "When a family requests membership for their daughter, we do not
require proof of gender. We respect the decisions of families."

Archuleta doesn't label her son, who has been bullied and taunted. "I
consider Bobby to be born in the wrong body."

The Colorado case has brought to light questions about labels and the rapidly evolving
discussion about gender non-conforming children. "A person is going to be who they are going
to be," said Boston-based family therapist Terry Real. "These children are operating in a hostile
environment. As a parent, you are navigating a child in two poles -- authentic to their feelings,
the other being on the brunt end of ill treatment."

Gender, Sex and Sexual Orientation

Despite the uphill battle, psychologists and therapists speak of a "sea change" toward growing
acceptance of children who don't meet long-held cultural norms. And, they point out, families
have more resources to learn about gender variance, including websites and peer and support
groups.

It can be a complicated discussion, especially when terms like tom-girl, gender fluid or
transgender are bandied about. The terms sex and gender are often used
interchangeably, particularly on official forms, but sociologists say they are not the
same thing. Sex refers to biological and physiological characteristics that define men
and women. Gender refers to socially constructed roles and behaviors society
considers appropriate for men and women.

Gender identity and sexual orientation also are different. Sexual orientation refers to an
individual's enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction to another person,
whereas gender identity refers to one's internal sense of being male, female, or
something else, according to the American Psychological Association.

Transgender children and adults are "people who are being assigned one gender but
affirm that they are the other," said Diane Ehrensaft, a San Francisco Bay Area
developmental and clinical psychologist and author of "Gender Born, Gender Made."
Cont'd on page 19

Diane Ehrensaft








Bobby Montoya
Page 18
New Mexico
Community Voice






PARENTS URGED TO SUPPORT Cont'd from page 18
What's A Parent to Do?

There is little consistent advice for parents, because robust data and studies about
transgender children are rare. The rates of people who are transgender vary from 1
in 30,000 to 1 in 1,000, depending on various international studies.

Gender non-conforming children who do not receive support from their families are
at higher risk for mental health issues, attempted suicide and drug use, said Real,
citing research at the Family Acceptance Project. In some cases, parents should
strongly consider working with a gender-sensitive therapist, he said "They have
experience in helping a child and parent with difficult decisions," Real added. "Things
like disclosure, how do you talk about it, do you wear your hair long. ... It is the
responsibility of the parent to deal with the needs of this child. There are minute-to-
minute questions."

The Family Acceptance Project, based at San Francisco State University, has produced
videos to support families of transgender children. Research has shown that a high
proportion of lesbians, gays and bisexuals are gender non-conforming, said Caitlin Ryan,
director of the center. People can be gender non-conforming and heterosexual, she adds.
Ryan said parents of non-conforming children should learn more about neighborhood
schools. "Parents need to find out what the school policies are," Ryan said. "Do the teachers
have training? Is the school environment overall supportive?"

But experts also said parents must be prudent. "In some cultures it may not be safe to send
your boy to a school in a dress. You can work with schools," said Ehrensaft. '"Support would
be to tell the child it is an unfair world and there may be some places it is not safe to be who
you want to be. It is not your fault, it is their fault."

Sarah Hoffman, a writer and activist in the Bay Area, blogs about "parenting a boy who is
different." The writer, who said she uses a pseudonym to protect the safety of her family,
said her son, Sam, 9, represents the gender spectrum -- one foot in the masculine world,
one foot in the feminine. For that, she said, her son has endured bullying.

Sam sees himself as a boy but has liked tiaras and dresses, Hoffman
said. While he has long hair, Sam now usually wears masculine clothes.
"He is just a mix," Hoffman told CNN. "The problem is not our kids,"
Hoffman said. "The problem is our culture not accepting kids."

Hoffman said some readers have called her a weak parent for letting
Sam express himself. Ehrensaft said she has received e-mails from
critics telling her to read the Bible and "see God's way." Ehrensaft and
Ryan said they have assisted people who are socially and religiously
conservative. "We help them balance their beliefs with what is happening
with their child," said Ryan.

In general, fathers have a harder time accepting gender variance than
mothers, experts say. And the culture more often raises eyebrows when
a boy dresses as a girl than when a girl looks masculine. "Girls have
more license to express a range of gender presentations until they get
into junior high," said Ryan. By then, they are expected to be interested
in boys. Cont'd on page 20


Terry Real
Caitlin Ryan











Page 19
New Mexico
Community Voice







PARENTS URGED TO SUPPORT Cont'd from page 19
The researcher and others stress the importance of parents paying close attention to children
showing gender non-conformity. "They know what feels right to them. They know what clothes they
want to wear," Ryan said. "They very clearly know who they are."

Advice for Parents: Wait & See, Support & Love

Parents need to be careful not to rush to a diagnosis and predict a child's eventual sexual orientation
or gender identity, experts said. For example, a child dressed in drag may be depressed and looking
for attention -- but not have a gender issue. "You have to live in a state of not knowing for a while,"
said Ryan. "They are exploring their gender. The most important thing is to give them space for
exploration. If you categorize them at age 3, that could be a big mistake."

Families also should be aware of what may lie ahead, Real said. There could be discussion of
delayed puberty and hormone therapy to decrease certain anatomical attributes. Joel Baum, director
of education and training at Gender Spectrum, which promotes an "inclusive environment," said
"more and more families are seeing their children express themselves a little differently from what
others believe. They are kind of saying, 'I am going to see where this goes.'" "We don't talk about the
damage we do when we don't allow a kid to explore this aspect of self," Baum said.

Not everyone is happy with that approach. Regina Griggs, executive director of Parents and Friends
of Ex-Gays & Gays, a group that works with people who no longer practice gay, lesbian or
transgender lifestyles, said of transgender individuals: "If they aren't helped to celebrate their true
gender they will be confused." Gender confusion can be sign of a treatable mental disorder,
according to Griggs.

The American Psychiatric Association is reviewing its current definition of gender identity disorder.
Whether a person has a disorder is dependent on how much mental distress it causes, according to
the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, composed of doctors, psychologists and
others professionals. Simply dressing in a non-traditional way does not mean the person has a
disorder.

Ehrensaft stressed parents need to become resilient to critics. "I'm not letting my child do
something," parents might state, she says. "I am listening to who my child is."

Felisha Archuleta, who has two older children, said Bobby
is still interested in joining the Girl Scouts, but not the
same unit he first came in contact with.

The Girl Scouts of Colorado is taking such situations "on a
case by case basis," said spokesperson Rachelle Trujillo.
"This is a pretty new thing for us."

"I have absolutely heard of many situations of transgender
kids who are absolutely living as a girl. Girl Scouts
shouldn't be any different for them," she said.

Archuleta said her son doesn't need counseling and does
not dress the way he does because of his environment. "I
know it's going to be a really hard road for Bobby,"
Archuleta said. "I feel if we are there for him, we will get
through it together."























Page 20
New Mexico
Community Voice







from npr.org
UNLIKELY ADVOCATES FIGHT FOR GAY RIGHTS IN MICH. CITY
by Lindsey Smith
Last June, the city council in Holland, Mich., voted
against adding sexual orientation and gender
identity to its local anti-discrimination laws. Now an
unlikely coalition is pressuring the city council to
change that vote.
On Wednesday nights, Pastor Bill Freeman turns
the podium of the city council meeting into a pulpit.
He wants Holland to adopt local laws that would
protect people from getting fired or kicked out of
their homes because they are gay, bisexual or
transgender.
Federal and Michigan laws protect residents from
discrimination in housing and employment, but not
based on a person's sexuality or gender identity,
and Holland's city council rejected modifying the
local anti-discrimination law with those
specifications. Freeman, married and a father of
two, has appeared before the council several times
since, urging the council to revisit that decision.
"I think the only thing that might get [the council members] to change their mind is national attention.
Not the kind of attention that the City of Holland would like to have when holidays come up and
Tulip Time comes up," Freeman says, referring to the city's annual tulip festival.
Holland is a summer tourist town on the shores of Lake Michigan. It's a community known for
having a church on almost every corner and sending some of the most conservative lawmakers to
Washington. Yet it's some of the town's religious leaders and conservatives who are leading the
fight for gay rights.
Whose Right To Decide?
A number of the council members who voted against the changes back in June explain the vote by
saying the controversial decision shouldn't rest with the council.
"We can do that with resurfacing, or bridges, but this is really a social issue," says council member
Nancy DeBoer, who voted no. "It really involves differences in faith, business ownership, property
ownership ... and the social norms."
In the debates leading up to the vote, DeBoer says, she heard compelling, passionate stories and
perspectives she would have never otherwise heard. Cont'd on page 22














Page 21
The Rev. Bill Freeman reads from a copy of the U.S. Constitution
during a public hearing before the Holland City Council in June.
Despite appeals from Freeman and others, the council decided not
to expand its anti-discrimination laws to include gay, bisexual and
transgender people.
New Mexico
Community Voice







UNLIKELY ADVOCATES Cont'd from page 21
Several Holland business owners have said they don't want to hire someone who is gay or
transgender, much the same as they wouldn't want to hire someone covered with tattoos.
"The fact of the matter is, as a land owner, as a business owner, you also have rights," says
Polly Cohen, a landlord in Holland. "I have the right to say, 'I don't want a smoker living in my
duplex.' "
Cohen's sentiment doesn't surprise Pat Eldean. She and her husband have lived in Holland for
close to 40 years. She's a Republican and a business owner and she's put up a sign in front
of her restaurant showing her support for changing the anti-discrimination law. She's not worried
about driving away customers.
"I think we lose business for various reasons, and if I did, so be it," she says, "but this is how I
believe. This is my core value, is equality."
The Piper Restaurant even hosted a fundraising gala in October for a new organization that's
pushing city council members to change their vote. The group, known as Until Love Is Equal,
was founded by Erin Wilson. He lives in Grand Rapids with his wife and three kids.
"There are economic concerns for West Michigan, like attracting and retaining youth, customers
coming here and feeling good about spending their money here," he says. "So we've got an
image problem, and it traces back to a very small number of people who've got loud voices, who
are clouding and murking up the water for the rest of us, and that's why we're here."
Coalition Building
Western Michigan could be considered the Bible Belt of the Midwest, but Wilson points out that
Grand Rapids 30 miles east of Holland passed the same anti-discrimination laws back in
1994, the same year as San Francisco. Plus, Saugatuck, Douglas and Kalamazoo all cities
less than an hour away from Holland have passed them, too.
Until Love Is Equal is compiling a list of businesses like The Piper Restaurant that support the
anti-discrimination law. The list includes some of Holland's top employers, like furniture makers
Haworth and Herman Miller.
Meanwhile, Freeman faces a $500 fine and up to 90 days in the county jail because he refused
to leave Holland City Hall after a council meeting in October.
"I'm an eternal optimist. I mean, I stay around to the end of these meetings hoping somebody
will say, 'You know, Freeman makes a good point. I'll change my vote,'" he says. "Whether I'll
be giving up more than just my Wednesday evenings will be up to the judge, I suppose."
Freeman's attorney advised him against saying whether he plans to hold another sit-in at
Holland City Hall. He says if he does, this time he won't be alone.
























Page 22
New Mexico
Community Voice






from 10news.com (San Diego)
LESBIAN STUDENT CROWNED HOMECOMING KING AT LOCAL HS
Haileigh Adams, Rebeca Arellano Nominated For Homecoming Court At Patrick Henry HS
San Diego -- A lesbian student has been crowned homecoming king at a local high school.
During a pep rally at Patrick Henry High School Friday, senior Rebeca Arellano was announced
as the school's homecoming king. "They were chanting my name and it was one of the most
amazing experiences I've ever had," said Rebeca.
During an interview with 10News, cars full of people drove by shouting out things like, "You guys
are an amazing couple!" Rebeca's girlfriend and fellow student, Haileigh Adams, was nominated
to be homecoming queen. (Ed. Note: She was elected queen.) The winner will be announced at
the upcoming dance.

Haileigh and Rebeca started dating in their sophomore year, which was the year Rebeca came
out. "She's really funny and, of course, beautiful, and she's just perfect to me," said Haileigh.

"It is crazy to think that a few years later I am being nominated as king,"
Rebeca told 10News on Thursday. The girls said they've received an
abundance of support from family, friends and most everyone at the
school. The couple said they were not planning to run. "Any of the guys
are not happy about me running because I'm taking a guy's place, but if
there was any other way to do it and have two lesbians that are a couple
win, I would," Rebeca said.

Their nominations have made a difference for many students at Patrick
Henry High School. "The fact that other people are feeling more
confident about themselves or feeling like they might have a chance at
doing this, it's opening doors," Haileigh said.

It may be opening doors and minds. A fellow student named Gladys
doesn't know the girls personally but said she knows of them. "I'm
actually bi [sexual] myself," Gladys said. "It makes me think that you can
be more open and stuff, and the way the school's reacting to it, like,
positively . t makes you more comfortable in the school, and in your
environment."

"We don't know if we're going to win," Haileigh said Thursday. "We're not sure, but if we do, it
would be an amazing gesture to the LGBT community and everything that we stand for."

Many who used to go to Patrick Henry High, including 1998 graduate Ben Cartwright, thought this
day would never come but always hoped it would. "Patrick Henry [High School] has always sort
of been a little ahead of the curve, but I could not imagine this happening then," said Cartwright,
an LGBT rights activist.
Cartwright said he kept his sexual preference a secret while in school, and he told 10News,
"You're afraid that you'll lose friends, you're afraid you'll be rejected, you're afraid you'll be outcast
. went to homecoming dance with a girl, and also went to prom with a girl when actually had
a boyfriend who was very angry with me that I did not take him, but I just did not feel comfortable.
I was not ready to take that step, so I think it's incredible that these two ladies are going to be
able to just go to homecoming and enjoy each other and be happy."

Cartwright told 10News Rebeca's win will help shatter stereotypes. "Another student that's also a
lesbian, she said, 'We won', which was what I wanted," said Rebeca. "I love Patrick Henry for
supporting me." Cont'd on page 24

















Rebeca Arellano (left)
& Haileigh Adams
Page 23
New Mexico
Community Voice







LESBIAN STUDENT CROWNED Cont'd from page 23

UPDATE:
from the huffingtonpost.com

Despite waves of support from the school and the couple's friends and family, the couple has
recently been met with hateful phone calls and emails, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Superintendent Bill Kowba told the publication that the harassment is "demonstrating such a
lack of tolerance and are presenting such a negative role model for children with their hateful
comments."
In a report by NBC San Diego, Kowba goes one step further, calling the adults behind the
harassment "bullies." He added, according to the station, that any students behind threats or
harassment will be met with disciplinary action.


from latimes.com
BARBARA GRIER DIES AT 78; CO-FOUNDER OF LESBIAN PUBLISHING
HOUSE
Grier, who wanted to provide lesbian readers with stories that could help them lead happier
lives, and her longtime partner, Donna McBride, launched Naiad Press in 1973 and built it into
a $1-million business.
by Elaine Woo
Barbara Grier, a pathbreaking publisher who challenged mainstream prejudices to make
literature by and about lesbians widely available in the United States and abroad, has died. She
was 78.
Grier, a founder of Naiad Press, died of lung cancer Thursday in Tallahassee, Fla., said her
longtime partner, Donna McBride.
Grier and McBride launched Naiad Press in 1973 with a $2,000 loan and built it into a $1-
million business. By the time it folded in 2003, it had published more than 500 titles by authors
such as Rita Mae Brown, Katherine V. Forrest, Jane Rule and Sheila Ortiz Taylor.
"She created Naiad Press because the mainstream would not publish any of our books,"
Forrest, whose career was launched by Naiad in 1983 with the publication of her novel
"Curious Wine," told The Times on Friday. "Her accomplishments are just monumental, given
the obstacles she faced. There was such virulent homophobia. Barbara was nothing if not
fearless."
Before she and McBride, a former librarian, started Naiad, lesbian literature consisted primarily
of pulp fiction written by men whose protagonists generally ended up one of three ways: They
married a man, went crazy or killed themselves.
Grier wanted to provide lesbian readers with stories that could help them lead happier lives."I
have always believed that the best thing I might leave behind is a world in which any woman,
anywhere, might say to herself 'I am a lesbian' and be able to go to a nearby store or library
and find a book that will say to her, 'Yes, you are a lesbian, and you are wonderful,' " she told
gay historian Jim Kepner some years ago. Cont'd on page 25

















Barbara Grier
Page 24
New Mexico
Community Voice







BARBARA GRIER DIES AT 78 Cont'd from page 24
Naiad published primarily romances and mysteries, but its top-selling book was the nonfiction
"Lesbian Nuns: Breaking Silence" (1985) by Rosemary Curb and Nancy Manahan, which
presented the accounts of 51 women, most of whom had been Roman Catholic nuns. It sold
500,000 copies and gave Naiad Press a national profile.
Born in Cincinnati on Nov. 4, 1933, and reared in Detroit, Grier was aware of her sexual
orientation as a girl. When she was 12, she told her mother she was a homosexual a word she
learned from her physician-father's medical books.
Her mother, who came from a theatrical family, took an enlightened view of her daughter's
declaration.
"Because Mother and I were always open with each other, I told her immediately," Grier said in
the book "Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context" by Vern L.
Bullough. "Mother said since I was a woman, I wasn't a homosexual, I was a lesbian. She also
said that since I was 12 I was a little young to make this decision and we should wait six months
to tell the newspapers."
When Grier was 18, she entered a long-term relationship with a woman 20 years her senior. They
moved to Denver and later to Kansas City, Kan., where they both worked for the public library.
In 1957, Grier began writing a column for the pioneering lesbian magazine The Ladder. She
became its editor in 1968 and publisher in 1970. When she tried to give the magazine a more
feminist orientation, its benefactor withdrew funding and the publication closed in 1972.
She met McBride in 1971 and soon after ended her relationship with the older woman. They
launched Naiad Press two years later with financing from a retired attorney, Anyda Marchant, and
Marchant's partner, Muriel Crawford. The first book they published was a romance novel
Marchant wrote under the pseudonym Sarah Aldridge called "Latecomer."
Forrest, who worked as Naiad's supervising editor from 1984 to 1994, said Grier and McBride
overcame many obstacles, including homophobic printers and cover artists who refused to work
for a lesbian press. But it gradually established itself as a major force, creating a market for
lesbian writing, including Rule's classic "Outlander," a collection of stories and essays about the
lives of lesbians.
Other specialized presses and bookstores emerged in the wake of Naiad's success, including
Bella Books, the Tallahassee press that took over Naiad's inventory and authors when Grier and
McBride retired eight years ago.
In addition to McBride, Grier is survived by two sisters, Diane Grier of Willard, Mo., and Penni
Martin of Denton, Texas.

























Page 25
New Mexico
Community Voice







Community Voice is a
monthly newsletter
whose editor takes no
responsibility for the
accuracy of the
information that appears
herein.
If you wish to submit an
article, want to be listed
in the Regular Meetings
around the State, have
an upcoming event, or
have a comment, please
send your submission to:
newslettereditor@
nmcommunityvoice.info.
In order to appear in the
following month's
newsletter, all articles
and lisitings must be
submitted no later than
the 15
th
of the previous
month. All submissions
must include a contact
person and phone
number and/or email
address for verification
purposes. Please include
date, time, location and
contact information for all
upcoming events and
activities.
ABQmen on Facebook: A gay men's social group in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, largely
the guys who wouldn't normally go out to the bars. 60-90 guys come out each month for
the events. We meet 3rd Thursday of the month 6-9PM, and 1st Sunday for brunch
11AM-1PM at various locations. Check out the ABQmen Facebook page to see what
we're all about. Contact info is ABQmen@gmail.com.

LGBTQ Al-Anon Meeting-Albuquerque: Every Saturday morning at 10:30am at the
Desert Club, 4305 Mesa Grande SE (Betw. Zuni and Central, one block West of
Washington) For info, call (505) 262-2177 or www.nmal-anon.org.

MPower-Albuquerque: Every night M-F at 7:30pm at 107 Jefferson NE. For info, call
(505) 232-2990. For a monthly calendar, email abqmpower@yahoo.com.

Native GLBT Support Group: Every 2
nd
and 4th Wednesday of the month from 7-9pm at
First Nations Community HealthSource Conference Room, 5608 Zuni Rd., Albuquerque.
For info, call (505) 262-6554.

PFLAG-Albuquerque: 3
rd
Tuesday of the month at 7pm at First Congregational UCC.
2801 Lomas NE. www.pflagabq.org.
PFLAG-Farmington: 3
rd
Sunday at 1 pm at the Unitarian Church, 219 N. Orchard.
PFLAG-Taos: Usually the 1
st
Sunday of every month at 1335 Gusdorf Rd, Suite R, Taos
at 5pm. For info, call (575) 779 7264. www.pflagtaos.org.
Santa Fe HRA and Pride: 1
st
Sunday of the month at 11am. For more info, call (505) 692-
9061. www.santafehra.org

Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico-Albuquerque/Gallup/Las Cruces: For
info, www.tgrcnm.org or contact Adrien Lawyer at (505) 440-3402.
Albuquerque:
Rainbow Friends Support Group 3
rd
Monday, 7-9 PM. Open to all transgender,
transsexual, or gender nonconforming people and their SOFFAs. At Young
Women United, 120 Morningside NE, ABQ
Trans Youth Support Group Every Sunday, 5-7pm. An 18 and Under TG Youth
Group (with possible exceptions being made on a case by case basis). At Young
Women United, 120 Morningside NE, ABQ. For info, contact Seth at
seth@tgrcm.org.
ABQ FTM Group 3
rd
Friday, 6:30 pm. Details are posted on the yahoo group:
ABQ FTM Yahoo Group.
Transgender New Mexico Support Group Every Friday, 7:30pm. For info,
contact Shannon at Shannon@transgendernm.org.

Gallup:
GLBT Support Group of Gallup For info, contact Jeremy at (505) 713-2828.

Las Cruces:
Southern New Mexico Trans Support Group Every 4th Friday, 6:00PM. At the
Las Cruces GLBTQ Center at 1210 N. Main St., Las Cruces.


Regular Meetings around the State







Support

Page 26
New Mexico
Community Voice































UNM Queer-Straight Alliance-Albuquerque: Every Wednesday from 7-9pm in the Acoma
Room of the UNM Student Union Building during the school year. For info, call (505) 277-
6739 M-F from 12-4pm.

Albuquerque Center for Peace and Justice: Please check calendar at
www.abqpeaceandjustice.org
U21 (under 21 only group)-Albuquerque: Every Friday night at 7 PM at Metropolitan
Community Church of Albuquerque, 1103 Texas NE (1 block north of Lomas Blvd & 4
blocks west of Wyoming Blvd.). If you know a GLBTQ person under 21, tell them to sign up
for U/21 emails. Have them contact us at poetoishi@yahoo.com.
Las Cruces GLBTQ Center: The Center is located at 1210 Main St. and offers various
programs. Schedule can change, so call to verify time and day: (575) 635-4902. The
Center will be CLOSED December 24
th
-26
th
for the holidays! www.gaynewmexico.org
SCA Sexual Compulsives Anonymous Every Monday, 7-8pm
Pride on Main Al-Anon Every Tuesday, 5:30-6:30pm
AA-Lambda Group Every Wednesday, 6-7pm
Las Cruces HIV Support Group Every Tuesday, 6:30-8pm
HIV Testing (rapid test) w/NM Dept. of Health 2nd Monday, 2-5pm
Rainbow Writers of the Southwest Writing Group, 2
nd
& 4
th
Saturdays, 1-2:30pm
"I Am Who I Am" - Women's Group - 1st and 3rd Wednesday, 6-7pm
Women's Group 1
st
& 3
rd
Thursdays, 7-8:30pm
Men's Group 1
st
& 3
rd
Wednesday, 7-8pm
GLBTQ Youth Support Group 2
nd
& 4
th
Wednesdays, 6:30-7:30pm
Bisexual Community Circle 2
nd
& 4
th
Thursdays, 7-8:30pm
Rainbow Writers of the Southwest Writing Group 2
nd
& 4
th
Saturdays, 1-2:30pm
Family Fun Night - 1st Friday, 7-9pm
Pride Cinema at The Center 3
rd
Friday, 7-9pm
Family Fun Night 1
st
Friday of each month, 7-9pm
Southern New Mexico Trans Support Group 1
st
& 3
rd
Saturdays, 4-5:30pm
Grupo de apoyo-Familias apoyando al joven gay, lesbiana, bisexual, transgnero, o
queer (GLBTQ)- Cancelled until further notice
Grupo de apoyo para jovenenes gay, lesbiana, bisexual, transgnero, y joven en
duda. (GLBTQ) Grupo de apoyo Cancelled until further notice
Parents of GLBTQ Youth Support Group will be CANCELED indefinitely until
we find a facilitator
Reading Q is cancelled until further notice

SupportFRQWG

Page 27
New Mexico
Community Voice































Metropolitan Community Church-Albuquerque: Every Sunday at 10:30am at
1103 Texas St. NE. For more info, call (505) 268-5252. www.mccabq.com
St. Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church-Albuquerque: Eucharist every
Sunday at 7:30, 9 & 11:15am and 5pm. For more info, call (505) 345-8147.
www.all-angels.com

Religious

Page 28
4 Corners GLAD Happy Hour-Durango, CO: Every Friday at 5:30pm at Lost
Dog Bar and Saloon, 12
th
and Main, Durango, CO. For info, call (970) 385-
7202.

New Mexico Leather League (NMLL)-Albuquerque: General Meeting is
every third Saturday of the month from 2-5 PM at I-Hop, Wyoming and Paseo
Del Norte.

Prime Timers-Albuquerque: 2
nd
Sunday of each month at 2 pm at MCC, 1103
Texas St. NE. For more info, go to http://primetimersww.org/primetimersnm/

U21 (under 21 only group)-Albuquerque: Every Friday night at 7 PM at
Metropolitan Community Church of Albuquerque, 1103 Texas NE (1 block
north of Lomas Blvd & 4 blocks west of Wyoming Blvd.). If you know a
GLBTQ person under 21, tell them to sign up for U/21 emails. Have them
contact us at poetoishi@yahoo.com.
NMLL General Meeting-Albuquerque: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm. Every month on the
third Saturday.
Wilde Bunch Square Dance Club-Albuquerque: NM's only LGBT square
dance club. Free open house, 7-8 pm, the first Monday of every month.
Albuquerque Square Dance Center, 4909-15 Hawkins NE. For info, call Jim
at 232-2140 or visit www.wildebunch.org.
Social

New Mexico
Community Voice






Upcoming Events

NM Gay Men's Chorus:
Holiday Concert: Friday, Dec 9--7:30 PM, Saturday, Dec 10--7:30 PM,
Immanuel Presbyterian Church of Albuquerque, 114 Carlisle Blvd SE,
Albuquerque, NM 87106, & Sunday, Dec 11--3:00 PM, First Presbyterian
Church of Santa Fe, 208 Grant Ave, Santa Fe, NM 87501. $20 General
Admission, $15 Students, $15 Seniors. Tickets are available by going
online at www.nmgmc.org/tickets.

New Mexico FetLifers
"Festivus (for the rest of us)!" Saturday, Dec 10th, 1-5pm, at Evolution
Nightclub, 6132 4
th
St. in Albuquerque. $5/person at the door. 21+.
Vendors, Drag Performances, Bootblacking, and more! Festivus Miracles
will abound as you air your grievances, win kinky raffle prizes, and take in
the Feats of Strength! Join us on www.fetlife.com for more info, or
message Sera Miles at seramiles@gmail.com.
Spring Pan. April 13-15, 2012. Spring Pan is going to be bigger and better
than ever. Watch for details. And keep this date open!


Deadline for January Issue: Dec. 15
th

Community Voice is Your Voice. Use it well and often.



















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