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queerVOICE
Say No To Arlen Specter
James Duggan
copyright 2010
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"I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going
to take this any more," (inspired by the classic film, "Network") ran through
my mind when I read a quote from Arlen Specter where he accepted the "statewide
endorsement of the LGBT community with pride."
My second thought was-wow--what
hyperbole used to deceive the queer citizens of Pennsylvania and our allies! Specter
has yet to receive the endorsement from any local or statewide queer organization
as far as I know.
Now what he is calling a "statewide
endorsement" is a handful of queer friends and allies who came out to endorse
him. In no way does this constitute a "statewide endorsement" even if the
individuals live across the State of Pennsylvania.
So why the hyperbole? Because
Arlen Specter is currently doing a political spin to have us believe that he is
the second coming of Harvey Milk when it comes to championing our
equality. But this writer will not be fooled.
Specter, the Republican, has a long
history of supporting individuals who are opposed to queer equality. He
believed that Rick Santorum was a better choice for Senate than Bob Casey. He
believed Sarah Palin and John McCain were a better choice for President
than Barak Obama and Joe Biden! He thought Clarence Thomas, Antony Scalia,
John Roberts and Samuel Alito were all good candidates for the Supreme Court.
And he twice supported the election of George W. Bush as President.
I realize that some might argue that
such support was acceptable then because he was a Republican and was simply
doing what was expected of him, not because he really believed all that stuff .
. . yeah right!
Specter's supporters in the queer
community would like us to believe that this man has always been a supporter of
queer rights. They like to point to the
first time he switched parties, from Democrat to Republican, because the
democrats were allowing the police to harass patrons of gay bars. Well,
where has he been for the last 40 years?
We know that in 1984 he picketed
outside of Giovanni's Room, Philadelphia's
only queer bookstore, because of an "objectionable book" and called for the
closing of the store.
Since then, Specter has not been seen
in the gayborhood or at any queer festival until June of 2009 when he showed up
at Philly Pride Fest where the "re-branding" of the candidate began.
But, along the way to re-branding, some
stumbling has definitely occurred.
In September 2009, Specter sent an
email to a constituent where he states he supports "traditional marriage as
defined in DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act)," and that he "appreciate[s] the goal
of the proposed [Federal Marriage] Amendment."
Opps! Did Specter forget that he
was now a loyal supporter of our equality?
One also needs to ask that if Specter
were such a loyal supporter of equality--why then did the Human Rights Campaign
(HRC) give Specter only a 70% rating during the 110th Congress
(2007-2009)?
Our community must reject the queer
hero spin that is currently surrounding Arlen Specter as pure hyperbole.
This career Republican
politician, turned Democrat, to save his political career, is trying to rewrite
history and sell us a bill of goods that we would best run away from.
I think that we must reject outright
Arlen Specter as a creditable candidate to represent our equality and lead our
cause in the United States Senate, representing the Keystone State.
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What It Looks Like From Here
Thom Cardwell
copyright 2010 |
Though it may not be big news to the queer seasoned
traveler that many countries, especially in Southeast Asia, are becoming more queer-friendly, having discovered
the queer dollar and the fact that so many people in this lucrative niche
market are both passionate globetrotters and savvy (even daring pioneer)
consumers, the bigger news is that--it's refreshing to discover that there are
new destinations opening up and welcoming queer travelers from around the world
in places like Siem Reap, Angkor Wat,
Cambodia, as recently reported in the travel section of The New York Times, March 21, 2010.
Pool side in Siem Reap  | "Homosexual acts are not outlawed in Cambodia as
they are in a few Southeast Asia countries, but outward displays of affection
and untraditional lifestyles are rare," writes Naomi Lindt, "Yet in Siem Reap, a small town that gets a million
tourists a year, gay visitors and locals are carving out a little haven."
Lindt continues: "In the last few years, a small flurry of gay-friendly bars,
restaurants and hotels has opened up in the city's center and beyond, with
wink-wink names like the Golden Banana
and Cockatoo."
Not surprisingly, the Internet has also played a
leading role in the development of Siem Reap with queer travelers, according to
Lindt, with web sites like Cambodia Out,
("believed to be the first commercial site in the country devoted to the gay
community"); Utopia, and Sticky Rice,
that allocates a city profile of Siem Reap on a site that's devoted to queer
travelers interested in all of Southeast Asia.
Street view in Siem Reap  | A new wave of tolerance and acceptance of queer
residents as well as travelers is due in large part to Theravada Buddhism, the predominant religion in Cambodia. Still,
"Love between people of the same sex is a very new topic in Cambodia," said
"Who Am I?" director Phoan Phuong Bopha.
But the new open-mindedness comes even from King Norodom Sihamoni who is quoted by
Lindt as proclaiming, in an email from a spokesman for the royal family: "The Cambodian
Royal Family, as a whole, share the same view as the King-Father. We've
always been very tolerant about sexual preferences as some Khmer Royals are/were openly gays/lesbians."
In contrast to the several other parts of the
world, "The religious teachings aren't being used to arrest or persecute people
because they're gay or lesbian," pointed out Caroline Francis of the Cambodia field office of Family Health International.
 Lindt mentioned that some of the gay bars,
restaurants, clubs and hotels have "signaled a newfound openness for gay
Cambodians." She reported that many of
these establishments attract a friendly mixed clientele of locals, Khmer
(Cambodians) and Westerners but that "many of Siem Reap's most visibly gay bars
and hotels are owned by Westerners." These include: Linga Bar,
Miss Wong, Men's Resort & Spa, Viroth's Restaurant, and Golden Banana Boutique Resort.
But things aren't entirely rosy and haven't dramatically
changed for the locals.
Lindt reports:
"Many same-sex couples in Siem Reap still keep their relationship a
secret; some have wives for appearance's sake. Khmer men who visit gay saunas
often conceal their faces behind
motorcycle helmets until they're safely inside. And lesbians remain largely
invisible."
For bargain travel hunters worldwide, prices are relatively inexpensive after
the hefty airfare, starting at $1,500, from the United States East Coast via
Seoul, Korea, to Siem Reap, with hotel accommodations ranging from only $60 to $95
and that's for double occupancy!
Buddhist Monks in front of the Angkor Wat  | Of course, travelers also get to visit the temples
of Angkor Wat that many would argue
are among the longer list of the wonders of the world while being among the
growing queer visitors to Siem Reap.
Hey, everyone, grab
that passport of yours! Next stop: Cambodia!
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News on the Qt
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TOWN HALL ON HEALTH CARE FOR THE LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND
TRANSGENDER COMMUNITY TO BE HELD AT PHILADELPHIA'S
DREXEL UNIVERSITY ON MARCH 31
PHILADELPHIA,
PA - A panel of nationally recognized
experts in medicine, public health and health care policy will address the
specific health care needs of the LGBT community at a town hall meeting to be
held on Wednesday, March 31, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Drexel University
(Geary Auditorium B, 245 North 15th Street) in Philadelphia.
With the recent signing of landmark health care reform legislation into law,
important questions remain about how the new law will impact the LGBT
community, as well as how it will affect individuals living with
HIV/AIDS. Convened by national health care consulting firm Sellers
Dorsey and sponsored by the United States Census 2010, Merck, and Philly
Pharmacy, the town hall event is supported by over 40 local non-profit
organizations includingMazzoni Center. The panelists will be: Rebecca
Fox, Director of the National Coalition for LGBT Health; Ernest Hopkins,
Director of Federal Affairs at San Francisco AIDS Foundation; and Robert Winn,
MD, Medical Director of Philadelphia's Mazzoni Center. The moderator will be Christopher Labonte, Principal at Sellers Dorsey.
"Given all
the attention that's been focused on health care in recent weeks and months,
the timing of this conversation couldn't be better," Labonte explained.
"While much of the discussion has been fairly broad in scope, our goal with the
town hall event is to address key issues affecting the LGBT community, discuss
how national reform will impact the community, and to engage in a dialogue
about the importance of health care for members of the community and for those
living with HIV/AIDS."
"As the leading
provider of LGBT health services in the Philadelphia region, Mazzoni Center has
been closely following the national discussion on health care reform," Nurit
Shein, Executive Director of Mazzoni Center, said. "Three critical
provisions that would have addressed LGBT health care issues were removed from
the legislation before it was passed and signed into law, so it is essential
that we as a community engage in further discussion and hold our policymakers
and politicians accountable to our needs as we go forward."
The town
hall event is being held in conjunction with LGBT Health Awareness Week,
which takes place March 28-April 3, 2010, and seeks to increase awareness of
the specific health disparities affecting the LGBT community, lack of access to
health insurance, including lack of data collection, and an increased risk for
certain cancers.
Over 40
regional and national non-profit organizations are supporting the March 31 town
hall, including: ActionAIDS, Adoptions from the Heart, AIDS Fund, AIDS Law
Project, ASIAC, Attic Youth Center, Blacks Educating Blacks about Sexual Health
Initiatives, Bread & Roses Community Fund, Brothers Network, Calcutta
House, COLOURS, Delaware Valley Legacy Fund, Drexel University's Program for
LGBT Health, Equality Forum, Equality Pennsylvania, GALAEI, Gay and Lesbian
Medical Association, House of Blahnik, Human Rights Campaign-Philadelphia
Region, Independence Business Alliance, Keystone Progress, Lutheran Children
and Family Services (Bethel Community Center), MANNA, Mazzoni Center, National
Center for Transgender Equality, National Coalition for LGBT Health, National
Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Office of LGBT Affairs, City of Philadelphia,
People with Hope, Philadelphia Black Gay Pride Inc.(PBGP), Philadelphia Family Pride,
Philadelphia FIGHT, Queer Philadelphia Asians, Renaissance Transgendered
Association, SafeGuards, SAGE, San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Sapphire Fund, University of Pennsylvania Health
Systems- HIV/AIDS Prevention Research Division, The Womyn's Village, and
William Way Community Center.
The LGBT Health Care Town Hall
will take place at Drexel
University's Geary
Auditorium B, at 245 North 15th
Street.
Registration for the event takes places from 5:00-5:30 p.m.
For more
information and to RSVP to the Town Hall, please contact Blair Sirolli at bsirolli@sellersdorsey.com
comments@QUEERtimes.net
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Thom's Table on the Qt!
Thom Cardwell
copyright 2010
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It seems that many restaurants around Philadelphia and across
the region are now serving lunch. Perhaps the dinner-only restaurant has become
passé or the economic climate is dictating that chefs have to do double duty
and offer additional dining out opportunities.
Whatever the reason, I know that whenever possible
a power business lunch really enhances the meeting with colleagues and clients,
from the first-timers to the veterans.
 So, it's good to report that chef Michael Schulson has recently joined
the lunch bandwagon at Sampan, 122 South 13th Street, the
Asian restaurant in stylish Midtown
Village, with an inviting menu, served only at the restaurant's counter
seating areas, facing the bar and open kitchen, Monday to Friday, from 11:30
a.m. until 5 p.m., with dishes ranging in price from $6 to $9.
"Our variety
of bahn mi sandwiches, noodles and salads are perfect for a fast, affordable
lunch,"
explained Schulson.
The special
lunch menu features:
a selection of Bahn Mi, Vietnamese hoagies served with chips and soda, in
tempting varieties such as Berkshire Pork Belly with cucumber and carrots, tuna
with pickle, cucumber, scallion and Thai basil and meatball with Thai basil,
fish sauce and lettuce; noodles such as shrimp pad Thai with tofu, egg
and peanut and Ramen noodle soup with scallions, BBQ pork and egg; and salads
such as wild mushroom with goat cheese, puffed rice and truffle and chicken Bim
Bim Bop with charred rice, egg and sesame.
For more information, call 215.732.3501; visit restaurantsampan.com.
 Believe it or not, sometimes simple is best, even
when we're talking about chefs, restaurants and all-time favorite dishes. So
it's actually exciting to announce that "the roast chicken for two has returned
on the menu" at Mémé,
2201 Spruce Street,
where the simple, unpretentious whole roasted chicken reign supreme!
But chef/owner David
Katz doesn't even have to be boastful when he's got food writers to cheer
him on! Philadelphia Inquirer
Restaurant Critic Craig LaBan says
he hasn't tasted a better roast chicken in the city and David Snyder of Philadelphia's
City Paper says the dish washed away the burdens of adulthood. How about
that for accolades?
It's undeniable that Katz seems to have mastered
the art of cooking a perfectly golden undeniably flavorful and juicy roast
chicken.
He's got a specific process and approach that will
satisfy the fussiest of eaters. For starters, his birds are organic, free-range Canadian Giannone chicken. Whereas most chickens are
water chilled (this draws out the natural juices and flavor), Giannone chickens
are air-chilled, keeping the bird
hydrated and juicy with a cleaner, more natural
taste.
Then Katz slow poaches the breast for up to four
hours in a sous vide pouch with foie gras fat, garlic and herbs before crisping
them and roasts the legs separately in duck fat.
Viola! The chicken is served with shiitakes, sweet
onion grits and Madeira.
For more information, call 215.735.4900; visit memerestaurant.com
 Chef/co-owner Peter Woolsey of Bistrot La Minette, 623 South 6th Street,
in Queen Village, is hosting a not-to-be-missed
culinary event of the season with Chefs
Gone Wild, a collaborative dinner, featuring five of the city's "rising
star" chefs, right after the holidays of Passover and Easter, on April 6.
Joining Woolsey, the chef lineup will include David Katz of Mémé, Mike Solomonov of Zahav, Pierre Calmels of Bibou and John Taus of Snakbar, who will create
"modern interpretations of classical French bistrot cuisine" for this special
evening's culinary feast.
Diners will have a choice of two seatings at 6 or 8:30 p.m., for a prix fixe cost of $55 for
five courses; $75 with complementary wine pairings.
For more information, call 215.925.8000; visit bistrotlaminette.com
 These days there are several things happening at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steak House,
1426-28 Chestnut Street,
in the heart of Center City, just off Philadelphia's
Avenue of the Arts.
They celebrated their first anniversary last night
with a benefit party for their favorite, designated nonprofit, Project H.O.ME. I have to say that the
corporate team at Del Frisco's really knows how to throw one helluva of party!
In addition, they are currently introducing the new
general manager of the Philadelphia property, Rich Furino, who replaces Shang Skipper who has been promoted to
regional manager of Sullivan's, with
properties in King of Prussia and Wilmington,
and 19 locations nationwide. And there
are actually eight locations for Del Frisco's across the country, including New York City
and Las Vegas. The restaurant group owns and
operates both Del Frisco's and Sullivan's.
An insider's tip I wanted to share--one of the best
network gatherings in the city, once in a week, is the Thursday Happy Hour, at Del Frisco's, where the power brokers seem to attend in
grooves. I wouldn't exactly bring a resume along with me but I would encourage
you to pass out as many business cards as you can. It's a definite scene all
its own. (I give a minimum of 25 of my business cards alone. No kidding!)
For
more information, call 215.246.0533; visit delfriscos.com
comments@QUEERtimes.net
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What They Said and Did!
Thom Cardwell
copyrighted 2010
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On recounting, in his
memoir, the good old days of queer liberation, pre-AIDS, pre-computers and cell
phones, and "too many men, not enough time" as the classic tee shirt read, in Manhattan:
 "Much of my spare time was devoted to sex--finding it and then doing it.
In those days before online hookups and backroom bars and outdoor sex, when
there weren't even many gay bars, we had to seek out most of our men on the
hoof. Back then people glanced over their shoulders, though few do it now (or
do I say that only because now I'm old and uncruisable?). Then we had to look
back or we'd spend the night alone. The whole city was awash with desire and opportunities
to satisfy it."--Edmund White,
queer literary voice, author of City Boy: My Life in New York During the 1960s
and '70s (Bloomsbury USA,
2009).
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On making his generation
more aware of the current HIV and AIDS crisis:
 "I first thing I learned from
David [Furnish] and Elton [John] is that we need to acknowledge that AIDS is
unacceptable. Viewing it as a disease that's prevalent only in Africa is a very passé way of thinking about it. AIDS is
a 'Here' disease-now, more than ever. A surprisingly high rate of growth is
here in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. HIV doesn't discriminate
socially or economically. It's not a gay disease. Anybody would be remiss to
think that it's not something that can grab them too."-Twenty-four
year old queer actor, Kevin Zegers, of "Transamerica," "Gardens of
the Night," and the forthcoming, "The Story of Bonnie and Clyde."
(A & U Magazine, June 2009)
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On recalling queer
Hollywood "showman" producer/director Allan Carr and one of his many outrageous
and legendary parties, where the rules were no-holds barred:
 "In Allan's world, it [Snow White] was a fabulous number that had Alice
Faye and Dorothy Lamour and Buddy Rogers and Roy Rogers and Dale Evans and Merv
Griffin and the Cocoanut Grove. It was that old Hollywood
glamour. But they were old cheese pieces, and they didn't do what had made them
famous years ago. And the [TV audience] didn't know who they were."-Bruce Vilanch,
queer writer and performer, quoted in Party Animals: A Hollywood Tale of Sex,
Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll, Starring the Fabulous Allan Carr, by Robert Hofler
(Da Capo Press, 2010).
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