On "Gay Inc" And Free Speech

In a piece titled Does 'Gay Inc' Believe In Free Speech? today Village Voice reporter Steven Thrasher looks at GLAAD, HRC, and the NYC LGBT Center. There's way too much in his lengthy article to properly frame it with an excerpt, so I'll just give a few keywords: Occupy, pinkwashing, JC Penney, Starbucks.

The Village Voice Asks Matt Heinz About Possible Three-Way With Sheriff Babeu

I mentioned it here on Saturday and Village Voice reporter Steven Thrasher took the question right to Heinz' Facebook page. One week prior to the "sleepover," Heinz had been one of only two Democrats to approve a $5M grant to Babeu's office. That amount was later reduced to $1.7M.

Volunteer Flower Girls

This Village Voice photo by Steven Thrasher made my grinchy heart grow two sizes: "That's Steve Landis and Julie Irwin, who brought their 4-year-old twins Emily and Sophie to Brooklyn Borough Hall this morning to be flower girls for whoever might need them. They don't even know anyone getting married today! Aw."

The Bizarro Logic Of NY Sen. Ruben Diaz

From a just-published interview with Steven Thrasher at the Village Voice:

All right, let me ask you about this. You believe marriage is between one man and one woman, yes?

Yes [laughing] So? Why are you asking me this? You know that, you know what I believe. Why are you calling me? Marriage is between a man and a woman.

But you yourself have been married twice, and are divorced.

Yes. So?

So do you believe it is alright to be divorced?

No. Divorce is wrong. Gay marriage is wrong.

You think you are wrong, then?

When I got divorced, I was wrong, yes. Why are you asking me this?

But you believe that gay marriage is wrong and divorce is wrong, but that you should be allowed to get divorced and remarried, and gay people shouldn't be able to marry at all.

When I got divorced, it was wrong, but marriage is between a man and a woman.

So is being divorced OK with your religion?

No, it is not OK. Gay marriage is still wrong. This is what I believe.

You may recall that Sen. "Reverend" Diaz once grandiosely declared, "I am the the church AND the state."

Erica Diaz At The Bronx Hate Rally

Yesterday Village Voice reporter Steven Thrasher spoke to Sen. Ruben Diaz' 22 year-old lesbian granddaughter, Erica Diaz, about her expulsion from the military under DADT and her relationship with the elder Diaz. Erica is facing strong criticism across the LGBT blogosphere today for her decision to join Sen. Diaz on the rally's stage. Hit the above link for Thrasher's excellent break-down of the entire day.

Lt. Dan Choi: The Bad Lieutenant

This week's Village Voice cover story is an exhaustive look at the life and activism career of Lt. Dan Choi, whom author Steven Thrasher describes as personifying "the growing rift between gay-rights activists who want to cooperate with lobbyists and elected officials, and those who demand direct action." An excerpt:

There's no doubt that when Choi came out last March on MSNBC as a gay soldier, he helped take the movement to a whole new level. "When he appeared on the Rachel Maddow Show, he was very buttoned-down, very conservative, very professional—and clear as a bell," says Rick Jacobs, leader of a group fighting California's anti-gay Proposition 8, The Courage Campaign. But Choi isn't buttoned-down anymore. There are many across the political spectrum who wish the lieutenant would be quiet once in a while. He angered the right by appearing as the grand marshal at last year's San Francisco and New York Gay Pride parades, where, as he puts it, he was gleefully "breaking 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' all up and down the street!" (In uniform.) He has angered the left by not being lockstep antiwar enough at times, and by warmly welcoming Ken Mehlman, Bush's campaign manager, to the gayborhood when he came out. In a movement awash with political correctness, Choi decidedly isn't.

Read Steven Thrasher's entire piece, it's worth the time.

October 18th In NYC: The 14th Annual Anti-Violence Project Courage Awards

Hosted once again by Law & Order's BD Wong, this year's Anti-Violence Project Courage Awards honorees are the Paul Rapoport Foundation, Gay City News journalist Duncan Osborne, and Village Voice columnist Steven Thrasher. Get tickets here. AVP executive director Sharon Stapel raves about Thrasher to the Village Voice:

"Your work at the Village Voice, particularly your coverage of proposed state funding cuts for domestic violence, has been exemplary. In recognition of your work as a community activist, advocate and journalist, we would like to honor you with a 2010 Courage Award. In accepting this award, you will join the distinguished company of past awardees including: progressive LGBTQ bloggers -- Bill Browning, Joe Jervis, Pam Spaulding and Andy Towle, Tony Kushner, Emil Wilbekin and George C. Wolfe to name but a few."

The NYC Anti-Violence Project is the city's primary civilian organization dedicated to immediate responses to incidents of violence against the LGBT community. Please consider supporting their vital work.

The Man Behind Hiram Monserrate's Anti-Gay Campaign

Village Voice writer Steven Thrasher has interviewed Rev. Ricardo Reyes, former NY Sen. Hiram Monserrate's "spiritual advisor." Reyes is the man presumably behind Monserrate's new tactic of making his return to the Senate a defacto marriage equality referendum. The interview takes an interesting turn when Reyes pulls in Jorge, a supposedly gay employee to speak. It turns out, people become gay in order to make money.

JORGE: When a person is gay, the only way he can be changed is through Jesus. Because, the people who are gay, are not happy. It is an instrument for them to gain money.

To gain money?

REYES: Yes. Because, when you have a partner, or relationship, everything is for one objective. They live a life that is a lie, but when they are alone, they are truly not happy.

But do you think you can be gay, and Christian -- and happy? And still be gay?

JORGE: I am either a homosexual, or a Christian.

Which are you?

JORGE: I am Christian. I love Jesus, because Jesus changed my life.

And you're no longer gay?

JORGE: No more.

REYES: I work plenty with a lot of gays like that. When they discover they don't have to keep being gay, they choose life, and they're happy. They have Christ's life.

Read the entire interview, it's kind of priceless.