The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper: Slog: Homo

Slog Tipper Damon Asks...

Dominic Holden — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:42:50 -0700

"When Pope Francis says there's a 'gay lobby' within the church, do you think it looks something like this?"

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Dan on Last Night's Colbert Report

David Schmader — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 10:05:15 -0700

Enjoy!

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Jerick Hoffer Had the Crowd Roaring Last Night

Christopher Frizzelle — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 16:17:43 -0700

Richard Andriessen as the piano-playing Dr. Dan Von Dandy and Jerick Hoffer as Kitty Witless.

Seattle's hardest working showbiz star Jerick Hoffer, best known to TV and Twitter fans as Jinkx Monsoon, got roaring standing ovation after roaring standing ovation last night at Cornish Playhouse for The Vaudevillians, which is centered around yet another fucking brilliant drag creation of Hoffer's, an old-time gal named Kitty Witless who's recently been unfrozen from an accident involving an avalanche and a lot of cocaine.

Much like the beloved and defunct New York City drag act Kiki & Herb, The Vaudevillians features hilarious reinterpretations of pop hits. (After introducing the next number as "a song about immigration," Hoffer began singing, "I fly like paper, I get high like planes. When you catch me at the border I've got visas in my name…") Unlike Kiki & Herb, The Vaudevillians featured Hoffer doing a handstand in the lap of an audience member. After the first of two shows last night—yes, two shows in a single night—Hoffer was seen backstage hugging his brother, his mother, his aunt, and his grandmother and telling them, "I have to go to Akron, Ohio in the morning." It's the start of the Absolut Drag Race Tour. After the Absolut tour, he'll frantically race home to do a concert version of Hairspray at 5th Avenue Theater and Freedom Fantasia at the Triple Door before flying across the country again to make his New York City debut in a 17-show run of The Vaudevillians. Get on those tickets, New York—most of the run is sold out. And: Fair travels, Mr. Hoffer. Please don't die from exhaustion!

This post has been updated since it was first published, thanks to Michael Strangeways.

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NFL's Adrian Peterson Comes Out

Dominic Holden — Tue, 28 May 2013 09:46:34 -0700

To oppose gay marriage:

When the Vikings cut former punter Chris Kluwe in early May, there was widespread belief that part of the reason he was let go was because the team viewed him as a distraction. Kluwe is an outspoken supporter of gay marriage.

Even though Kluwe's now gone, the distractions might not be for the Vikings.

Reigning NFL MVP Adrian Peterson weighed in on the hot topic of gay marriage during a radio interview on Sunday, and his opinion on the subject is the opposite of Kluwe's. "I have relatives who are gay," Peterson said on Sirius/XM NFL radio, via NESN. "I'm not biased towards them. I still treat them the same. I love 'em. But again, I'm not with that. That's not something I believe in. But to each his own."

Petersen might have said "to each his own," but he doesn't really mean it. Marriage requires government's approval—the public's approval—and without that approval, each can't marry his own (boyfriend). So how can Petersen, a citizen in a democracy, both believe in someone making his own choices while supporting a position that prevents someone from making his own choices? If Petersen truly believed "to each his own," then he'd believe in gay marriage. If he doesn't believe in that, then he believes "to each his own" only applies to straight dudes.

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The Catholic Argument Against That Bigot Florist

Dominic Holden — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:32:57 -0700

Joel Connelly doesn't call her a bigot—because he's Catholic, and he's a nice man—but he makes the case that refusing to sell flowers to a couple just because they're gay isn't very Christian at all.

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Bigot Florist Files Countersuit

Dominic Holden — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:36:27 -0700

She's suing the state. Here's the Tri-City Herald with details:

A florist facing lawsuits from the Washington attorney general and the American Civil Liberties Union for refusing to provide flowers for a same-sex wedding has filed her own lawsuit against the state for violating her religious beliefs.

Attorneys for Alliance Defending Freedom, a legal ministry that advocates for people's religious rights, filed the suit against the state in Benton County Superior Court on Thursday on behalf of Barronelle Stutzman of Arlene's Flowers. It argues state Attorney General Bob Ferguson's suit is attempting to force Stutzman to act contrary to her religious convictions in violation of her constitutional freedoms.

(Here's another article on the lawsuit... warning: Grab your red pencils.)

UPDATE: The countersuit is posted here. It makes many of the same arguments her attorneys made last month, which I reported here.

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It Doesn't Matter if You're Black or Gay; It Doesn't Matter if You're at a Lunch Counter or a Bakery

Dominic Holden — Wed, 15 May 2013 11:54:14 -0700

Bigotry is bigotry and discrimination is illegal:

Yet another Oregon bakery has refused to bake a cake for a gay couple’s wedding, violating the state’s anti-discrimination consumer protection laws yet again.

Erin Hanson and Katie Pugh asked Pam Regentin of Fleur Cakes to provide the cake for their Mount Hood wedding, but were turned away after Regentin realized they were gay, as Pugh told KATU News: “I mentioned Erin in passing, and said a ‘she’ in passing too, in the email. A few days later she called back … and verified it was a same-sex wedding.”

Shortly after, Regentin told the couple she would not bake the cake.

In the middle of the last century, I'm sure lots of people explained that black people didn't need coffee at the lunch counter—there were other lunch counters they could go to—and why would they want to sit at the front of the bus anyway? Those people lost the fight over civil rights.

Now the civil rights fight is about refusing service for gay weddings. This incident at Fleur Cakes is the second case like this in Oregon, and Washington State has a similar case involving Arlene's Flowers & Gifts refusing to sell flowers for a gay couple's wedding. Christian activists are trying to divide moderates and liberals by braying about their individual expression, claiming that religious liberty grants them a right to refuse service. They are arguing, essentially, that they deserve special rights to ignore anti-discrimination laws.

But as I said recently when supporting lawsuits against the florist in Eastern Washington, this isn't about products: "It's actually about the Christian right seeing how far they can push this envelope. The line between trivial product and necessary service is an impossibly broad gray area. But if you believe same-sex marriage is a right, then consider the products and services that society defines as essential to that wedding. It's not a seat on the bus or a seat at the lunch counter—but it's just as important. It is a reception hall, a dress, a tux, a bouquet. And if you believe gay people can be denied those things by anyone hiding behind a Bible, then gay weddings are second-class weddings."

These clashes will keep happening until business proprietors are convicted or anti-discrimination laws are struck down.

If anti-discrimination laws mean anything, I believe they apply in these cases. And if the court strikes them down—if it finds that bakers and florists and banquet facilities can refuse service to a gay wedding—then they better strike down all the anti-discrimination laws that go with them. That would mean a hotel could refuse a room to an elderly woman because she's Christian, a restaurant could refuse dinner to a man because he's Asian, and a bank could refuse an account to a customer just because she's a woman. The Christian right is calling for nothing less.

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Attention, Jinkx Monsoon Fan Club: You Missed Quite a Show Last Night!

Adrian Ryan — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:08:37 -0700

Courtesy of James Knapp
Comedian and cutesy-pants Nick Sahoya (left) cutely serenaded Jinkx Monsoon (right) with a Justin Beiber tune and his uke.

The air was electric with draggy magic last night as the best and brightest haircuts in Seattle gathered from every dusty corner to pay alcoholic homage to Seattle's AMERICA's premier narcoleptic Jewish drag queen, RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon.

From the red carpet to the rear wall, Julia's on Broadway was alive with cabaret performers, burlesque artists, designers, dancers, singers, fanboys in dresses, ukulele players, stylish carriers-on, and balloons. I was right up front, close and personal with the action. BenDeLaCreme was a dazzling hostess—and she yelled at me to get off my iPhone! (It’s an Android. Whatever. Swoon!)

The woman of the hour lit up the room in a sequined gold gown. She claimed that she was exhausted, then hit us with ten million volts of Evita. (Liar.) And if she really were exhausted, it would be from carrying around that huge honkin' crown. (It's bigger than she is. Not as sparkly.) Comedian and cutesy-pants Nick Sahoya cutely serenaded Jinkx with a Justin Beiber tune and his uke. (And told us the story of how he got his snazzy stretchy leggings—on a shopping excursion with Sharon Needles and Alaska Thunderfuck’s mom!)

There were so many other guests, too—Jamie Von Stratton, Lou Henry Hoover, Kitten La Rue, the luminous Pariah, the amazing Chedronna Shinatra (who basically flung her limbs from her body in the most athletic and aerobic dance solo the world has ever seen)—but one of the best moments involved a fan of Jinkx's in the crowd. The lovely young artist Jami Moravetz (who was wearing a Prada pirate’s patch!) painted four colorful action shots of Jinkx's one memorable "lip synch for your life," and at the end of the show, she bashfully let herself be shooed up onstage to present them to her glittery idol. She seemed starstruck. It was adorable.

And after last night's glitzy glamour (and booze), it's clearly all downhill from here for Jinkx Monsoon, as she has nothing lined up but a sold-out run of a show called The Vaudevillians in New York City next month, two performances of The Vaudevillians here in town on June 2 that you can go see (if you get on it!) before she departs for that NYC run, a $1,000-per-person cruise, a concert version of Hairspray at the Fifth Avenue, at least 50 pride events all over the country… I'm too exhausted to even finish this sentence.

Congratulations, Jinkxy!

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Let the Tuesday Afternoon Jinkx Monsoon Fan Club Once Again Commence!!

Christopher Frizzelle — Tue, 07 May 2013 12:00:27 -0700

Watch RuPaul's Drag Race Full Episodes - RuPaul - Logo TV

Get More:
Watch RuPaul's Drag Race Full Episodes, RuPaul, Logo TV

Now all I want to do is go watch Death Becomes Her for millionth time. ("Could you just not breathe?")

Anyway, to read about the hometown reaction to this news last night at Julia's, click here.

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America's Next Drag Superstar Is...

Christopher Frizzelle — Mon, 06 May 2013 23:15:11 -0700

...after the jump.

(The episode is not online yet.)

WHOA!!!!!!!! WHOA WHOA WHOA!! "Ladies and gentlemen, you heard it here first if you don't own the internet," BenDeLaCreme bellowed a few moments ago at Julia's. "Jinkx Monsoon is America's next drag superstar!"

When RuPaul said Jinkx's name, the crowd exploded. Two expertly timed confetti canons exploded, too. People were dancing, people were hugging, people were shrieking. On TV, the coronation felt a bit rushed, almost tacked on there at the end, with barely any time given to Jinkx's reaction to the news, but at Julia's, where it was sweltering, the moment didn't come a second too soon. At the outset of the evening, BenDeLaCreme and Major Scales, pretending not to know what was going to happen, were joking: "We've exorcised Facebook from the room." And then BenDeLaCreme added, "Is there anybody here who doesn't honest-to-god know what happens tonight?" And then, to BenDeLaCreme's surprise, a bunch of not-knowers raised their hands.

During one of the commercial breaks in the (interminable) build up to the finale, BenDeLaCreme asked Major Scales what it's like to be Jinkx Monsoon's roommate here in Seattle, and Major Scales said, "She's a ghost. Every time Jinkx comes home it's more like a cloud of smoke in the shape of her, trailed by dollar bills."

BenDeLaCreme noted that what Jinkx was wearing was "a Lady Von Stratton original"—and then Lady Von Stratton, who was in the house, stood up for a round of applause. Then it was back to sniping about Roxxxy Andrews, "the most beautiful Thundercat on RuPaul's Drag Race," BenDeLaCreme said acerbically. Both the hosts and the crowd said a great many not nice things about Roxxxy this evening ("Jinkx isn't here, so 'water off a duck's back' doesn't apply," said Major Scales, and BenDeLaCreme added, "Yes, we can be as bitchy as we want to be")... but who cares about Roxxxy. It was Jinkx's night. Jinkx earned this thing. Jinkx is genius. Even though Jerick Hoffer, Jinkx's creator, is only 25, he's an unbelievably gifted performer who's figured out how to be hilarious without being mean, which is no easy thing. And he's figured out how to turn his life story into art, which is even harder. And he can sing. And he can dance. And he can act. And the guy put himself through art school at Cornish by being the fucking janitor.

It's Monsoon Season. Officially.
— Jinkx Monsoon (@JinkxMonsoon) May 7, 2013

Condragulations, superstar.

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Gay Men Are Rebelling Against Nothing

Charles Mudede — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 08:00:21 -0700

The fall of Tebow and the rise of a gay NBA player means that yesterday was a particularly tough day for Christian sport fans...

ESPN reporter Chris Broussard on Monday insisted that gay NBA player Jason Collins was not a Christian and was “walking in open rebellion to God.”

After Collins announced he was gay in a column for Sports Illustrated on Monday, ESPN’s Outside The Lines asked Broussard how he felt about the NBA player’s claim that he was a Christian.

But God does not exist. An ape did not create this universe. An ape is the product of evolution. The cells that make up an ape are just super-social descendants of bacteria. God is nothing more than a product of the human imagination. To rebel against God is to rebel against some ideas in an animal's head and some words in an animal's mouth. This animal has only been around for some 250,000 years. Bacterial life forms have been around for 3.5 billion years. The universe is just a set of accidental values. And so on and so on.

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Owner of Village Green Nursery Regrets Friday's Michelle Shocked Performance

Derek Erdman — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:50:30 -0700

Derek Erdman
Huh?

Read the juicy deets over yonder on Line Out.

The First Openly Gay Athlete Playing in a Major American Team Is...

Charles Mudede — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:24:18 -0700

NBA center Jason Collins:

"I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay."

Next!

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Have One More Drink at the Broadway Grill

Dominic Holden — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 11:02:36 -0700

Hellomosexuals! It is Sunday, the Lord's day, the last day that Seattle's beloved, feared, and very gay Broadway Grill will exist. I pre-eulogized about it over here, reminiscing about its years as a cultural anchor when "gay people needed a safe place for a date, when flamin' waiters needed a place to be flamin', and when drunk homos needed eggs at 2 a.m." Tonight I'll be going for one farewell martini (I never took after those Dag Daddies...) and one final piss on those ice cubes.

Also, the Bus Stop is closing at the end of the month. Christ almighty. We can stumble down there for a final drink, too. See y'all tonight, homos.

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You Know That Totally Bigoted Bill That Isn't About Gay People?

Dominic Holden — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 17:33:56 -0700

You know the one: The bill that's not about allowing businesses to discriminate against gay people? The bill completely unrelated to the florist who allegedly broke the law when she refused to serve a gay wedding? The bill that says nothing about flowers or gay people?

That one—SB 5927.

Yes, that bill—which is supremely unrelated to all that gay stuff and exclusively all about Jesus-y stuff. Well, this afternoon, the bill's sponsors coincidentally and unrelatedly received identical yellow bouquets on their desks:

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Sen Ed Murray Calls Shameless, Bigoted Republicans Out for Being Shameless, Bigoted Republicans

Cienna Madrid — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 13:49:20 -0700

Here's Sen. Ed Murray's (D-Seattle), statement on SB 5927, the bill that would give business owners the right to deny service to gay customers because of their religious beliefs:

“This bill represents a pathetic attempt to undo basic civil rights protections that were enshrined in law well before the gay and lesbian movement even started.

“We as a society have evolved far beyond finding it acceptable to say who can sit at the lunch counter and who cannot sit at the lunch counter. The whole notion that a business should have the right to discriminate against its customers is abhorrent to us as Americans, and was settled decades ago. The history books are closed on this issue.

“At the beginning of session, Republicans said that all social issues were off the table because the budget was their priority. It takes someone truly shameless to say that in January and then, with three days left in session and without a deal on an operating, capital or transportation budget anywhere in sight, to introduce a bill that goes into our civil rights laws and decides who gets served and who doesn’t get served. Truly shameless.”

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Something Something Jinkx Monsoon Something Something RuPaul's Drag Race!

Christopher Frizzelle — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 16:09:34 -0700

Last Tuesday's Drag Race post here on Slog mentioned in a celebratory headline that Jinkx Monsoon made it into the top three, and commenters were very, very not happy. So... so as not to spoil anyone's alerts, I'm not saying nada until after the jump. No, I am saying nada. Anyway, please do go down into the jump so we can talk about whatever it was that may or may not have happened last night! Allegedly! Also, your urgent attention is needed! I will explain.

Plus! Jinkx Monsoon's alter-ego Jerick Hoffer was at Julia's last night, interviewed by BenDeLaCreme, and many hilarious and insightful things were said, the best of which are after the jump. See you down there.

WHAT. THE. HELL.

First thing's first: Go to this Facebook page and vote for Jinkx Monsoon. Then go to this World of Wonder post and vote there too. Then go on Twitter and send a tweet that says "@RuPaulsDragRace Jinkx Monsoon #dragrace." Among Stranger staff, Dan Savage has voted, Cienna Madrid has voted, David Schmader has voted, and I have voted. If you don't have Twitter, just freakin' get it already, and make Savage and Cienna and Schmader and me the first people you follow. Again, you wanna tweet "@RuPaulsDragRace Jinkx Monsoon #dragrace."

Have you done it yet?

You're good?

Good.

ANYWAY, as promised above, there was a viewing party at Julia's on Broadway last night, and even though Jinkx Monsoon could not make it, thanks to a wrinkle in time/space Jerick Hoffer could. (He had to race straight to Julia's from the airport—he's been performing around the country.) As usual, when the commercials came on, BenDeLaCreme and Jerick Hoffer got to talking. Some of what was said:

"Jinkx and I are very good friends but I've only ever seen you on TV!"
—BenDeLaCreme to Jerick Hoffer, when he came out in pants and a top hat (with bunny ears)

"I was so miserable."
—Jerick Hoffer on the humidity in Florida, where he just was

"This is Seattle bronzed. You've got that three-hours-of-sunlight glow."
—BenDeLaCreme complimenting Jerick Hoffer on a non-existent tan

"Alaska, Detox, and I ended up in a jacuzzi tub together. There were bubbles. Discretion bubbles."
—Jerick Hoffer on seeing his fellow drag stars recently

"Ke$ha delivered a very interesting performance."
—Jerick Hoffer on getting to go to the NewNowNext Awards in LA

"If there's one thing a person with ADD and narcolepsy shouldn't do, it's painstakingly glue things to a corset."
—Jerick Hoffer discussing his difficulty with the candy-inspired clothing challenge two episodes ago

"The true entertainers, who wow you—you don't care about what they're wearing. My favorite entertainers—I don't remember what they were wearing, I remember their performances."
—Jerick Hoffer on his antipathy toward clothes, sewing, fashion, etc.

"Do you just get Grindr messages like "Roxxxy sucks!'?"
—BenDeLaCreme asking about the loss of anonymity that comes with the visibility of a national TV show

"I can't pick out an onion at without someone going, 'Yeah, Jinkx, get that onion!'"
—Jerick Hoffer on what it's like to go to the grocery store these days

"It's weird that this nationally aired drag show of queens fighting for a crown would bring my family together, but I'll take it."
—Jerick Hoffer on members of his family who hadn't been speaking with each other who are now speaking with each other

OK, now, some housekeeping: Next week's RuPaul's Drag Race is thought to be most likely a "clips show" looking back on everything that's happened but with a bunch of new material, including all the material that would have gone into an Untucked last night (as there was no Untucked last night). Jinkx Monsoon will not be at Julia's next week because she will be filming the reunion show, wherein all the drag queens from the season reunite and learn who the winner is. The week after that, the reunion show airs, and Jinkx Monsoon has to be in New York City for a viewing party there, so she will not be at Julia's when the reunion show airs either. BenDeLaCreme and other guests hosts will be at Julia's for the next two weeks' worth of parties though. Then, on May 13, Jinkx Monsoon will be back at Julia's for a big celebratory to-do that is sure to sell out, if it's not sold out already. Whether she wins or loses Drag Race, she has plenty of reason to celebrate.

Once again: Vote early! Vote often! Tell your friends!

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The Broadway Grill Is Closing

Dominic Holden — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:03:42 -0700

Like all gay things over 22, the Broadway Grill would like to announce its death:

With great sadness, The Walsh Creative Group, the current owners of the iconic 22 year old Capitol Hill bar, restaurant and show venue, The Grill on Broadway will close its doors this Sunday night, April 28, 2013 and cease business operations. Despite a recent upturn in business and community awareness, due to improved food, service and entertainment options, severe financial obligations imposed by previously un-discovered mechanical, structural and operational issues associated with the business, prior to The Walsh Creative Group's takeover in 2010, have resulted in additional, unforeseen expenses that have totaled into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The Broadway Grill—later renamed the Grill on Broadway—was a shamelessly proud anchor for Seattle's gay culture in the 1990s. It had a racy menu of grilled chicken with whipped yams, a glass chandelier that looked like Carmen Miranda's headgear on steroids, and a plastic clientele that looked like Carmen Miranda's backup dancers on Social Security. It played that role when gay people needed a safe place for a date, when flamin' waiters needed a place to be flamin', and when drunk homos needed eggs at 2 a.m. But the Broadway Grill seemed stuck in a time warp years after the Seattle scene needed a designated safe LGBT space. Us fags could date anywhere, work anywhere, live anywhere, and meet online. The place had become a relic of gay culture. Also, ordering at the Broadway Grill for a couple years there felt like playing Wheel of Fortune and hoping it didn't land on salmonella.

But the Grill was unmatched in Seattle in its day—and for that many of us fags are grateful. Thanks for all the super fun, super faggy times, Broadway Grill. And thanks to Matthew Walsh, who owned it and ran it well through in its last incarnation. See y'all for one last drink there this Sunday night. We should pack the place.

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After an Ultimatum, Gay Couple Sues Florist for Discrimination

Dominic Holden — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 09:00:50 -0700

Via the ACLU of Washington
Ingersoll, Freed, and their three Jack Russell terriers

Curt Freed and Robert Ingersoll say they're done pondering their options, done waiting for a response, and done reading blog comments.

Today the Eastern Washington couple is following through with a threat they made last week to a florist who cited her "relationship with Jesus" as reason to refuse service to their same-sex wedding. Freed and Ingersoll had given an ultimatum to Baronelle Stutzman, owner of Arlene's Flowers & Gifts, that said she could settle the issue by apologizing in the local newspaper, promising to never discriminate again, and paying $5,000 to an LGBT youth center (in lieu of attorney's fees). But Stutzman's deadline passed yesterday—and she'd said nothing—so they are suing her this morning in Benton County Superior Court.

(I've posted a copy of the lawsuit here.)

Stutzman violated the Washington Law Against Discrimination, which prohibits businesses from denying goods or services on the basis of sexual orientation, and the Consumer Protection Act, says the suit, filed with the backing of cooperating lawyers at the ACLU of Washington. The couple is asking a judge to bar Stutzman from future acts of discrimination, paying for unspecified damages, and covering their attorney’s fees.

It’s not a decision they came to lightly.

I spoke to Freed and Ingersoll on the phone last night to discuss plans for a case that has already become national news and what is quickly becoming the country’s highest-profile clash between gay rights and religious liberty. (The case escalated after the State of Washington took the unusual step of filing a consumer protection lawsuit against Stutzman, as The Stranger first reported.)

“We’re on the sofa with three dogs, so if you hear someone moaning, it’s not us,” joked Freed on speaker phone. He explained that since Stutzman refused to sell flowers in early March, “We were asked questions about why we hadn’t done something sooner.”

“We did a lot of soul-searching through the process,” Freed continued. “It wasn’t arrived at without a lot of internal questions. When it comes down to it, we deeply feel that she has done to us is wrong, and we don’t want it to happen to other people." The couple explained that they volunteer for the Vista Youth Center, an LGBT community organization that helps at-risk kids, and they said thinking of those kids motivated them to file the lawsuit. As an established couple (Freed, 43, is a faculty member at Columbia Basin College, and Ingersoll, 42, is a manager at Goodwill), they felt securely positioned enough to take on a legal battle for all the people who couldn't. “Thinking about those kids who live a fragile life… something like this happening to them might question whether they should continue to live. We hate to think about a situation like this happening to them. If they have new fruitful love, they get engaged, and then have these doors close on them, it just seems really unfair.”

Naturally, Stutzman is the one who thinks this is a really unfair.

When asked for her reaction earlier this week, Stutzman told me she was feeling "peachy keen," but she deferred to her legal team for comments on the lawsuit.

Snohomish County lawyer JD Bristol is leading a dozen attorneys and six organizations to represent Stutzman (which may include the National Organization for Marriage and the Family Policy Institute of Washington). Reached Tuesday, Bristol said he plans to litigate against the state's lawsuit and is prepared to fight the couple in court, calling their settlement offer "extortion." Bristol insisted the flower shop "loves their gay customers," as proven by the fact that they served the couple before the wedding, and "now it's the homosexual groups forcing their values on others."

Bristol argued that his client was not discriminating against the couple's sexual orientation—rather, she was exercising her religious conscience by refusing to take part in an event, a gay wedding. If a Christian is legally required to make bouquets for a gay wedding, Bristol contended, "A Jewish web designer would have to design a website promoting jihad." Or in the case of events, Bristol asked, "Should an African American caterer be required to do that catering for a KKK event?"

Sarah Dunne, the legal director of the ACLU of Washington, dismissed that hypothetical analogy. "I would question whether the KKK would actually hire an African American," she said. Dunne also said that paying $5,000 toward the LGBT center isn't "extortion." In fact, paying attorney's fees to the lawyers at Hillis, Clark, Martin, and Petersen representing the couple could cost far more.

Most of all, though, the ACLU doesn't buy Stutzman's legal argument. Just because this is an event, florists don't possess some religious-liberty escape hatch.

"I find that specious," Dunne says. "It is a dubious distinction that doesn’t hold up under the law. She sells flowers. It would be a different story if she said she wouldn't sell wedding flowers to anyone. She instead is saying, 'I sell flowers for all different kinds of event, but for gay people I only sell flowers for birthdays, housewarmings, and ceremonies, but I wont sell flowers for same-sex weddings, but for straight people I will.'"

Freed also says Stutzman wouldn't "participate" in the wedding at all. "The flowers end up having very little to do with her," Freed fired back. "Because, in fact, we would have picked up the flowers and she wouldn't have seen the venue and probably wouldn't see us on the day of the wedding. We had no plans for her to walk one of us down the aisle, had no plans to invite her to the wedding. She chose not to sell them to us because we are gay and getting married."

The couple has been taking the backlash from both sides; conservatives have threatened a legal fight while progressives have said this is the wrong test case of discrimination laws. "We have been a little surprised to see that gays or liberals have been against what we are doing," Freed said, adding that "what we are doing may have a different meaning for them than why we are pursuing this. We don’t want this to happen to other people."

"Rob keeps telling me to stop reading the comments," Freed said.

Ingersoll jumped in: "I am going to take his computer away from him."

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Ohio Teacher Reportedly Fired from Catholic School for Mentioning Her Partner in an Obituary

Cienna Madrid — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 15:33:45 -0700

As I've written in the past, employees of religious institutions in Washington state and elsewhere are often exempt from state and federal anti-discrimination laws, which means they can be fired at will for things like getting pregnant or contracting HIV.

Or, as Slog tipper Stephen points out, for mentioning their same-sex partner in an obituary:

Students and others are rallying behind a teacher who they say was fired from a Catholic school in Clintonville after listing her female partner’s name in her mother’s obituary.

A petition posted yesterday on change.org seeks the reinstatement of Bishop Watterson High School physical-education teacher Carla Hale. It has gained about 2,600 signatures.

... According to a contract between the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus and the Central Ohio Association of Catholic Educators, teachers can be terminated for “immorality” or “serious unethical conduct.” Messages left for a diocese spokesman were not immediately returned this morning.

Lindsey Perkins of Dublin, a 2001 Watterson graduate, said Hale is a family friend who taught at the school for 19 years and was fired after a parent complained to the diocese about the obit, which was published in The Dispatch.

Following up on The Dispatch's reporting, I tried calling Bishop Watterson High School and the diocese to confirm Hale's termination and get their official explanation for why the 19-year veteran teacher was fired, but was shuffled off to voicemail in both instances. I'll update the post if I hear anything back.

You can sign the change.org petition—which now has over 4,000 supporters, for what it's worth—or feel free to send your own polite inquiries about Hale's reported termination to Bishop Watterson High School administration right here.

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Jinkx Monsoon Ekes Into the Top Three While Crazy-Jealous Men Dressed as Women Try to Throw Her Under the Bus!

Christopher Frizzelle — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 10:04:36 -0700

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Photos From the 'Mo-Wave Queer Arts and Music Fest

Kelly O — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 19:31:17 -0700

Need a break from feeling just awful about Boston? If you want to look at some photos from the 'Mo-Wave Festival this past weekend, they are here and here.

Yes, Liberals, We Should Sue That Anti-Gay Florist

Dominic Holden — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:36:22 -0700

I was prepared for religious conservatives to start thrashing back when Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a consumer protection lawsuit Tuesday against a florist who refused to sell a gay couple flowers for their wedding. Right on cue, the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) tried to canonize Baronelle Stutzman, who owns Arlene's Flowers & Gifts in Richland, Washington, by saying she's "being forced out of the public square." Then the Family Policy Institute of Washington jumped in to decry the state's anti-discrimination law, which is used as the basis for the lawsuit and was passed in 2006, as "bad then... bad now." The group, naturally, is trying to help Stutzman's legal defense.

I also expected a backlash against Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed, who were turned away on March 1 due to Stutzman's "relationship with Jesus," for threatening to file their own lawsuit. Ingersoll and Freed announced Wednesday that Stutzman must choose between apologizing, promising to never discriminate again, and paying $5,000 to an LGBT youth center or facing a civil rights lawsuit. As the ACLU, the state's attorney general, and lots of other lawyers have argued, the couple is entitled to bring an anti-discrimination case for being denied service based on their sexual orientation in a place of public accommodation (the same way a business can't deny service based on a client's race, religion, or gender). But NOM cited one of my recent posts about the couple's potential suit to make the point "whenever marriage is redefined, it’s the end of full religious liberty."

Because, you know, any shopkeeper in America should be able to use the Bible as their sole justification for turning away gays. That's the same way they tried to use the Bible to bar women from voting booths and mixed-race couples from wedding chapels. Even though they lost those fights, this—flowers for gay people—this is the end of all religious liberty.

I'm used to this brand of crazy.

But I wasn't expecting so many murmurs from other people—gay people and liberal people—who are tsk-tsking Attorney General Ferguson and the couple. These critics are prolific in social media and comment threads saying that legal action against Stutzman will just fulfill the bigots' prophesies, or that gay-rights activists are playing into NOM's hand by making Stutzman a martyr. They say this is the wrong lawsuit over a non-essential transaction. They say it's a mistake.

"This is just becoming the stupidest thing ever," one commenter writes on Slog. "Why couldn't they just go to another florist and give the rest of us a heads up to boycott this joint? You want a written apology? Really? Instead this crap is going to be dragged to the courts, and get all the other anti-gay nut jobs all worked up about the threat we pose to their freedom of blah blah blah."

And another one wrote: "If this plays out poorly—and let's face it, how else is forcing a poor grandma to violate her church instead of buying flowers from the shop next door going to play out?—then we'll set back the culture war at least ten years."

As a friend of mine also wrote to me about the couple's lawsuit, "Let's not pretend this is in the same ball park as a segregated lunch counter. This is just piling it on, perpetuating the 'Christian victim' meme."

Then there's another person who said that even though the "florist is a bigot," the strategy should be to "Embarrass her. Boycott her. Vote with your wallet. But speaking only for myself, I'd rather we save the legal, financial, and cultural resources that we've amassed for bigger battles than this. I'd rather we sue the bastards who fire us for being gay."

I'm sorry, but mal-fucking-arkey.

The Christian right may have set up that stupid political framing—"We'll be denied our precious right to discriminate!!"—but it doesn't mean they actually get to discriminate. It also doesn't mean progressives should roll out the red carpet the first time some hateful Bible thumper turns away gay customers. Activists and lawmakers hustled their butts for over a decade to include sexual orientation in our state's anti-discrimination statute. We went to the mat to pass gay marriage. What's the point of those victories if we're willing to give up what we've just won? Who are those laws for if we turn our backs on the people being refused service? We didn't pass those laws as feelgood keepsakes for gay-ol' Seattle, where we don't need 'em. Those laws are essential for the gays toughing it out in the hateful hinterlands. Failing to sue would set a precedent that the anti-discrimination law—which Senator Cal Anderson fought his entire career to pass, it bears mentioning—isn't worth shit because the gays are too fucking cowardly to enforce it.

Still, some fags are mewling that lawsuits aren't the the way to win the war of public opinion, that we should be fighting bigger battles. One of my friends said we should consider public accommodations to be necessities, like hospital visitation or lunch, but not flowers.

But this isn't about flowers.

It's actually about the Christian right seeing how far they can push this envelope. The line between trivial product and necessary service is an impossibly broad gray area. But if you believe same-sex marriage is a right, then consider the products and services that society defines as essential to that wedding. It's not a seat on the bus or a seat at the lunch counter—but it's just as important. It is a reception hall, a dress, a tux, a bouquet. And if you believe gay people can be denied those things by anyone hiding behind a Bible, then gay weddings are second-class weddings.

Where would you draw the line? Flowers, rental cars, gas pumps, motel rooms, hospital beds. We as a society wouldn't stand idly by if a stock broker refused to take an investor because she's a woman, if a bowling alley refused to rent shoes to a man because he's too short, a gourmet delicatessen turned away a shopper because she was Catholic. The coffee at those lunch counters is also non-essential. Gays don't deserve a lower standard or a wider gray area.

The liberal apologists say the Christian right is going to rally around this case just as they have before—such as the New Mexico photographer sued for refusing to work at a gay wedding or the baker who could have been sued for refusing a cake—but, excuse me, all that rallying around their martyrs doesn't seem to be hurting gay marriage. Four states voted by popular election for the first time ever in favor of gay marriage last fall. If anything, the more those people complain, the stronger the gay marriage movement seems to become.

Others argue it's too soon to uphold the law with a high-profile legal case because we may lose the support we've got. But Loving v. Virginia made interracial marriage the law of the land decades before most Americans agreed and Roe v. Wade made women's contraception the law despite a nonstop backlash (and in both cases, mixed-race couples have been happier and women have had access to safe abortions). I don't mean to say those fights are over—they're not—but those legal cases were better fought and won than never fought at all.

When gay marriage was on the ballot, a lot of people said human rights shouldn't be put up to a vote, because the rights of a gay couple shouldn't be subject to the whims of public opinion. If you agree with that, you also agree that anti-gay discrimination laws shouldn't be put up to a test of public opinion, shouldn't be subject to the results of a focus group or a poll or a marketing agency, but a test of Constitutional fairness and of law. Even if it's unpopular, it's the right thing to do.

So I'm glad that the straight people who run the ACLU and our straight attorney general (and the gay couple) have the guts to take this to a judge. When there is a good law, we should enforce it. And where there isn't a law, we should not tolerate a hateful culture (hello, pro sports!). Racism used to be tolerated at lunch counters and on buses and sports fields, too, until we said it wasn't anymore. (It may exist, true, but it's officially condemned.) The alternative is accepting these bigoted standards forever. There will be growing pains. There will be backlash. Bigots will try to deny us service and tell gay football players to stay in the closet, but so what?

AG Ferguson put it simply when he was talking about his decision to file the case: "Right now she's getting away with it, and that sends the wrong message to all the businesses around the state."

Suing Stutzman sends the right message: You can't get away with this. But backing down as a short-term calculation that this isn't the right strategy sends another message: keep discriminating against gay couples. Keep telling gays to stay in the closet. Keep bullying gay teenagers. We won't stop you. That's absolutely the wrong message.

So bring on the lawsuits.

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Where Is the Branch Rickey for Gay Athletes?

Chicago Fan — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 10:10:15 -0700

Jonathan Eig, one of the best sportswriters out there, did today what he does best: reframe the question.

The ongoing controversy over whether Manti Te'o is gay, homophobic comments by NFL players, and so on, along with the release of 42, the new movie about Jack Robinson and Branch Rickey integrating MLB, led Eig to ask a new question: not, When will some gay athlete come out while still playing professionally? No, he asks:

What if [some team owners] made it a mission to discover and sign the first openly gay player? What if an owner told his scouting department to find such an athlete, and made it clear to the athlete that he was committed to his success on and off the field, as Rickey did for Robinson?

Would it matter if the owner were motivated in part by the desire to make money? Would it matter if he were trying to broaden his team’s fan base? Would it matter if he were responding to political pressure?

Read the whole thing.

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New Seahawk Allegedly Hurled Anti-Gay Slurs

Dominic Holden — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 17:49:00 -0700

The Seattle Seahwawks reached a deal with Brady Quinn yesterday to serve as their new backup quarterback, just two weeks after Seawhawks defensive end Chris Clemons made headlines for saying gay players should stay in the closet. What's Quinn's history with the gays? Let's look to this mention from 2008 in The Plain Dealer:

Cleveland Browns quarterback Brady Quinn was part of a group of men shouting insults at gay passers-by outside a Columbus bar early on New Year's Day, according to a 9-1-1 call made to police. ... On the 9-1-1 call, Harris said that "Brady Quinn from the Browns" was "trying to cause a fight." Harris told the operator, "I just walked outside and he exchanged many profanities with me and called me a faggot, of course."

Quinn, who is sure to find a buddy in Clemons, also stumped for John McCain when he ran for president.

Welcome to town, bro!

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Gay Couple Makes Florist Choose Between Supporting Gay Rights or Getting Sued

Dominic Holden — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 14:00:18 -0700

After five weeks of biting their tongues, a gay couple in Richland, Washington, is making a loaded offer to a florist who refused to sell them flowers based her biblical belief that "marriage is between a man and a woman."

Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed's lawyers, working with the legal powerhouse at the ACLU of Washington, sent a letter today to Arlene's Flowers owner Baronelle Stutzman saying she has two options: (1) She can vow to never again discriminate in her services for gay people, write an apology letter to be published in the Tri-City Herald, and contribute $5,000 to a local LGBT youth center, or (2) she can get sued for violating the Washington State Civil Rights Act.

That's some offer.

This would be the second lawsuit against Stutzman, who was sued by the state yesterday in Benton County Superior Court for discrimination under the consumer protection act. And given Stutzman's stubbornness thus far, these two cases may be on track to become the country's biggest gay-rights-versus-religious-liberty battle to date.

"Your refusal to sell flowers to Mr. Ingersoll and Mr. Freed for their wedding has hurt them very deeply. It is a disturbing reminder of the history of discrimination and disparate treatment that they and other gay men and women have experienced over the years," write the couple's lawyers at the firm Hillis, Clark, Martin, and Petersen, who then add more sharply, "More to the point of this letter, your conduct was a violation of Washington law."

The legislature prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation in 2006, and the lawyers say that "any person injured by an act in violation of the Washington Civil Rights Law is entitled to bring legal action."

But by all apparent signs, Stutzman will refuse to budge.

Any lawsuit against Stutzman will be met with "an immediate challenge in federal court," according to a letter her lawyers sent to the state's attorney general Monday. Stutzman's lawyers—who indicate thay want to make this a major test of moral conscience legal defenses—contend that she is entitled to exercise her religious convictions and that arranging flowers is an act of personal expression; any demands or limitations on those expressive flower arrangements is a violation of right to free speech.

Ingersoll and Freed's counsel appears to address that argument today, writing in the letter—a powerful letter that I uploaded here and you should read—that "we respect your beliefs and your right to religious freedom. However, we live in a diverse country, and religious beliefs, no matter how sincerely held, may not be used to justify discrimination in the public spheres of commerce and governance. Instances of institutions and individuals claiming a right to discriminate in the name of religion are not new. Religious beliefs have been invoked to justify denying women the right to vote; to prohibit men and women of different races from getting married; and to support segregation in schools, businesses, and other public places. Just as courts have held that those forms of discrimination are not permitted, even on the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs, so is discrimination based on sexual orientation unlawful."

Stutzman could stop this action if she wants, but it seems unlikely she'll comply by an April 17 deadline. She refused to take up Attorney General Bob Ferguson on a far less onerous option yesterday (just promise to never discriminate again). So at this rate, it appears Stutzman will be facing two lawsuits: One from the state as a consumer protection suit and this one by the aggrieved party, represented by lawyers working with the ACLU of Washington, which, it bears mentioning, is very good at winning.

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State Sues Florist Who Refused Service to a Gay Wedding

Dominic Holden — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 16:48:06 -0700

In an unusual legal maneuver, Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a consumer protection lawsuit today against a florist in Richland, Washington, who last month refused to provide flower arrangements for a same-sex wedding because of her "relationship with Jesus."

As The Stranger reported at the time, Arlene's Flowers owner Barronelle Stutzman told Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed that she refused to do business with them—or "participate in the wedding," as she called it—because she believed as a Christian "that marriage is between a man and a woman."

Filed in Benton County Superior Court, the lawsuit (.pdf) alleges that when Stutzman refused to provide goods or services on the basis of sexual orientation in a place of public accommodation, she was violating the state's anti-discrimination law and was, therefore, also violating laws designed to protect consumers. As a business that sells wedding flowers to opposite-sex couples, the AG's office argues, it must provide the same wedding services to gay couples.

The case is set to emerge as the first major test of anti-discrimination protections since Washington State voters legalized same-sex marriage last fall. It is also a rare—if not unprecedented—instance of the government initiating a discrimination suit. With the florist's lawyers apparently itching for a fight, the case seems poised to reach the state supreme court, or even federal courts, as a test of conservative legal defenses in the name of religious liberty and moral conscience.

Ferguson acknowledged in an interview with The Stranger today that filing the lawsuit this way is unprecedented; anti-discrimination suits must be brought by the Washington State Human Rights Commission or the aggrieved party. But as of this week, neither had taken action. Ferguson says he has legal authority to file the suit as a consumer protection case because the alleged discrimination occurred "in a consumer setting."

"Right now she's getting away with it, and that sends the wrong message to all the businesses around the state," said Ferguson.

The AG's office had offered to avoid a lawsuit by giving Stutzman an opportunity to sign a contract that, in essence, would agree to "not engage" in the discriminatory practice in the future, according to a letter sent on March 21 (.pdf).

But instead of agreeing to the terms, attorneys for Stutzman fired back their own missive (.pdf) to state lawyers yesterday that appeared to lay out the crux of their legal defense. Stutzman claimed that "discrimination is not the issue," but rather that she is entitled to exercise her religious conscience and that arranging flowers is an act of personal expression, and as such, any restriction on how and where she sells flowers arrangements infringes on her First Amendment right to free speech.

"Although gay 'marriage' may be legal in Washington for the time being, the concept offends the conscious [sic] of Ms. Stutzman and many others in Washington," says the letter from attorney JD Bristol, who is representing Ms. Stutzman.

"Florists are universally engaged in the art of designing floral arrangements as an act of expression," Stutzman's lawyers continue. "Different floral arrangements are created for different events and sentiments, depending on a variety of factors. The florist's job is to create an arrangement that expresses the sentiment of the florist's clients. It is creative expression. If the law requires a florist create an expression of appreciation for gay 'marriage,' or any other matter that offends the conscious of the florist, it is compelled speech in violation of the First Amendment. The state cannot require a florist to express appreciation for, or acceptance of gay 'marriage' any more than the state can require a musician to write a song about it, or an artist to paint a picture."

Stuzman's lawyers said that any lawsuit will be met with "an immediate challenge in federal court," and they have conferred with "a number of national nonprofit organizations that are ready for a fight."

They also contend that Ferguson has no legal authority to file the lawsuit. Ferguson, of course, disagrees. He is asking the court to bar Stutzman from future discrimination and pay $2,000 for any additional violations. He says, "She runs a business, and you can't discriminate when running your business, so it is appropriate for the attorney general to bring a consumer protection action."

Still, Ferguson acknowledges, "We may be in for a lengthy legal battle."

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Let the Tuesday Afternoon Jinkx Monsoon Fan Club Commence

Christopher Frizzelle — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 16:46:53 -0700

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Queer Punk Art and Music Festival 'Mo-Wave Is Already Under Way

Christopher Frizzelle — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 11:30:59 -0700

CHERDONNA AND LOU Stabbed each other. With knives. You missed it.

'Mo-Wave is a queer punk music and art festival organized by Seattle's dirtiest and most discerning culture curators, and if you weren't at Velocity Dancer Center on Sunday for Deviance in Motion, a showcase curated by Pacific Northwest Ballet's Andrew Bartee, you've already missed some of it. Among the deviant delights that were on display: Cherdonna and Lou playing with knives, Matt Drews and Ariana Bird romping around topless and in fishnets, an incesty female duo involving corn syrup, a captivating solo by Velocity star Kate Wallich, and two men calling themselves Salami Bros. in a "slowest naked" contest. (Neither of them had eaten in 24 hours, and under the rules of the performance, they had to be in the act of continuously removing their clothing, the loser being the one who was fully naked first, the winner getting a slice of pizza.)

The rest of 'Mo-Wave is this Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Stranger music editor Emily Nokes sat down with festival organizers and got a hilarious earful about how crappy most queer festivals are, and what sets 'Mo-Wave apart. Representative quote: "Mainstream gay pride parties pretty much offend every sense and sensibility I have." That piece is in tomorrow's paper, but we've published it a day early on our website so you can start planning your weekend.

Oh yeah, and 'Mo-Wave's official schedule is right here. Go!

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The Seahawks Should Lead on LGBT Rights

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 12:12:04 -0700

We are disappointed by the recent comments posted on Twitter by the Seattle Seahawks' defensive end Chris Clemons regarding the prospect of an active NFL player coming out as gay. Clemons's characterization of the act of coming out as "selfish" and of a player's sexual orientation as being something that "should be left at home" is out of step with the diverse community of fans throughout the Pacific Northwest who support the Seattle Seahawks franchise. While Clemons is entitled to express his views, we call on him to reexamine his remarks, particularly in light of the offense they have caused.

We also call on the Seahawks to maintain a strong and visible stance in favor of equality and inclusion in the workplace.

We were encouraged on August 11, 2011 when the Seahawks issued a joint press release with the Seattle Storm, Seattle Sounders FC, and the Seattle Mariners announcing the creation of an “It Gets Better” video by members of each team. The press release declared that inclusiveness, fair play, and diversity are core values shared by each of our city’s pro sports teams, with Peter McLoughlin, president of both the Seahawks and the Sounders, stating that “We believe our role in the community is very important. This video provided an opportunity for all the professional teams to come together and offer a message of hope and encouragement to our young fans.”

Especially after their participation in the It Gets Better Project, we are disappointed that the Seattle Seahawks organization did not act more quickly to distance itself from Clemons' remarks, and to reinforce its commitment as a Washington state employer to providing a workplace that welcomes and supports diversity for its players and other employees. We are pleased by the Seahawks' subsequent statement that they would welcome an openly gay player to the team. We hope they will continue to consistently offer a message of hope, fairness, and inclusion to their fans, players, and other employees beyond a simple online video.

We all know there are gay players in the NFL. The fact that no active NFL player has ever come out is directly related to concerns about how teammates, fans, and team owners will react. Every franchise needs to lead by example and make it clear that openly gay players are welcome and that anti-gay discrimination will not be tolerated.

We are proud that Washington state has some of the strongest workplace protection laws for its LGBT citizens. That said, more needs to be done to educate people about the importance of an inclusive workplace. We were encouraged by the strong support from the business community for Referendum 74, where businesses large and small publicly declared the value of a work environment accepting of all employees regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. We welcome the opportunity to work with the Seahawks—and any other sports team, business, organization or group—to start a meaningful dialog and education regarding workplace equality.

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