June 2008 Archives
Perez Hilton: Bitter, UnSexed, Conservative.By on June 30, 2008 7:35 PM | No Comments
My friend Bonnie had the "honor" of interviewing the insipid / divisive gossip blogger Perez Hilton at the premier of Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild! -- in which he had a cameo appearance (see my review here). She's just posted the interview as part of her vlog -- "Getting it on With Bonnie" -- which features her interviewing various folks about sexuality-related topics. You should check it out.
While I was watching, I realized something so terribly obvious that I should have taken note of long ago: Perez Hilton is an awful sex-negative moralizing motherfucker. I mean, how could I not see it so blatantly? I read his blog all the time (can I stop, please God?), scrolling through pictures of scantily clad women with cum graffiti'd on their face and the word "slut" emblazoned below it.
I've got news for all his readers out there: Perez Hilton is a force for conservative sex politics. When it comes to sex, he might as well be a badly disguised James Dobson, subtly arguing for Americans to keep chaste and warmly clothed. We can add him to the list of a long line of famous anti-sex, moralizing gay men: Dan Savage, Michelangelo Signorile, and Larry Kramer, to name just a few. Does any famous gay actually support / encourage / celebrate gay men's penchant for pushing our culture's boundaries around sex?
Harlem Shake Burlesque @ Juanita More's Pride PartyBy on June 30, 2008 6:08 PM | No Comments
As promised, here's the video from yesterday's performance!
"Harlem Shake" Burlesque @ Juanita More's 2008 PRIDE Party
By on June 30, 2008 3:07 PM | 1 Comment | 1 TrackBack
Every year, San Francisco's Latina drag sensation -- Juanita More -- throws one of the most amazing parties in the city over Pride Weekend. In fact, it's consistently the best party I've ever been to -- each year just keeps getting better! This year's fiesta was *ridiculous*! Jackson, Mitchel, Danny, Kara, and two of Jackson's friends visiting from Boston arrived at the Hotel Phoenix around 2:45 PM. We didn't get in until 4:00 PM, but the party was WELL worth the wait.
The Phoenix is an 50s-style hotel, with two floors of rooms whose open-air entrances all face a courtyard in the middle with a large pool. By 5 o'clock, the place was packed with queers of all shapes and sizes. And that's what truly makes this party great -- no queer left unrepresented. There's trannies, hipsters, muscle queens, fags, lesbians, bears, drag queens -- you name a kind of queer, they were there. It's really pretty amazing, and it unfortunately almost never happens. It really feels almost mythical -- like something out a movie made about the lavish parties in 1950s Hollywood.
Usually Juanita books a few drag queens to perform poolside once the sun begins to set, but this year More booked a SPECTACULAR show featuring back-to-back performances from burlesque troops Harlem Shake (featuring Allota Boutt�) and the Diamond Daggers. Fat burlesque has become quite a movement over the past decade or so, particularly here in San Francisco. Click here to watch a video on the topic produced by the National Sexuality Resource Center featuring my friend Cookie (pictured in the pool below) and Allota Boutt� from Harlem Shake. I'll post a video I shot of Harlem Shake performing at the party soon -- it's taking forever to convert!
But what really blew the audience away was an AMAZING performance from the Cougar Cadet Corps from Alameda, CA. The Cougars -- from Chipman Middle School -- are "an after school program designed to teach respect and discipline through marching, drumbeats and dance/step routines." These youngsters turned it *out* and had the crowd going fucking nuts. I shot this video of a piece of their lengthy and wonderful performance. Apologies for the shaky camera work - but I was having trouble standing still without dancing! They were SO GOOD!
SF Cougar Cadet Corps @ Juanita More's Pride Party
Fuck they're amazing. If you have a chance to see them (they travel all over the place), definitely make it a point to do so!
Here are some more photos from the party! It was so much fun!
Cookie and Joey making a splash!
jackson and Kara, adorable as per usual.
Juanita More being honored by State Senator Mark Leno
Two of the performers from the Diamond Daggers
What's a party without karaoke?
Chilling out! Actually, we were warming up. It got COLD outside!
By on June 30, 2008 2:19 PM | No Comments
You learn something new every day. Nearly one million formerly felonious Floridians (say that ten times fast!) -- nearly 10% of the population -- are banned from the voting booth under the current Byzantine legal regime there. In the map above (with 2004 data via The Sentencing Project), you can see how Florida shapes up in comparison with other states on this issue. The New York Times has an editorial today arguing for that ban's repeal:
In most states, inmates win back their voting rights as soon as they are released from prison or when they complete parole or probation. One big reason that does not happen in Florida is that state law requires felons to first make restitution to their victims. And until their voting rights are restored, former prisoners are barred from scores of state-regulated occupations for which the restoration of voting rights is listed as a condition of employment.
Sounds like an open and shut case to me!
Frameline 32: "Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild!"By on June 29, 2008 2:37 AM | No Comments
"ANOTHER GAY SEQUEL: GAYS GONE WILD!"
Director: Todd Stephens
Trevor's Rating: 2.5 / 5 Stars
Perez Hilton on the Set:
Okay -- so apologies for having to post Perez's video, but a trailer has yet to be posted! And I'm not surprised, how to market a sequel of a flick in which only one of the four actors playing the main characters returns? If you saw the original Another Gay Movie (2006), you'll remember it's nasty / sloppy / assholeriffic sense of humor -- which is back in full blast in this follow-up. Sadly, though, what made the first movie shine was the original cast, particularly Michael Carbonaro playing Andy -- what a cutie! But the film opens with Nico (played again by the wonderful Jonah Blechman) waking up from a bad dream (the original film) to find his mother comforting him -- while making a quip about how some nasty agents won't let their talent appear in two gay movies in a row (lest audiences think the actors are -- gasp! -- actually gay!). It's cute.
But the film takes a nose dive pretty quickly. The casting here is pretty awful, which is a real disappointment as their timing and queer sensibilities are crucial to pulling off the slapstick script. After seeing a short featuring Aaron Michael Davies earlier in the festival ("Lloyd Neck"), I was excited to see if Davies could pull a feature length gaytastic film off. But despite his pretty face, he mostly just looks uncomfortable most of the time, clearly not prepared for the film in which he was cast.
The script was clearly written with the original actors in mind. Jake Mosser, who plays Andy this time around, attempts to pull off the goofy-cute lines that made Carbonaro's performance so incredible in the last film -- but Mosser has none of the perverse boyish charm necessary for the task. The same is true for the forgettable Jimmy Clabots playing Jarod. He's a pretty muscle boy, but clearly not an actor.
When Stephens realized that 75% of the original cast wasn't returning, he should have scrapped the project and written an entirely different movie. It would have been SO easy! In the last film, the boys were graduating high school and off to college for new adventures. The film could have easily picked up with Nico and his new group of college friends -- done and done! Instead, Stephens cast a few pretty faces and tried to squeeze them into characters built by other actors. The result is just a disaster.
And I just have to say, Perez Hilton is a blogger -- not an actor. Though he's credited with a "special appearance," he keeps popping up throughout the film in all his painful glory. He has no on-screen sensibility or comic timing. A cameo could have been funny, but plugging him into at least five scenes was an unfortunate decision. Future gay filmmakers of America, I beg of you: make cameos short and sweet, and don't hire Perez Hilton.
Okay, so with the bad news out of the way, let me just talk a bit about the glory that is Jonah Blechman. In the first film, I have to admit, some of his homages to black and white film divas fell awkwardly flat -- but this time around, he's perfected the concept. In what has to be the best scene in the movie, Nico has a tap-dancing dream sequence in which he sings of the glories of watersports, complete with a yellow umbrella. It's a deliciously perverse nod to "Singing in the Rain," and it works. It's funny. It's queer. It's kind of revolting. Which is exactly the recipe that drives the humor behind this series.
I went into this film expecting it to be pretty bad. But I wasn't prepared for just how bad it was at times. There are a few gems to be found. Twink pornstar Brent Corrigan, playing a merman who appears to Nico several times in the film, is just a little box of cuteness! You just want to squeeze him! And Amanda Lepore does a fabulous turn as a cunty stewardess on "Trans America" airlines. But cameos should add sparkle to a film, not provide its most memorable moments. Despite a few laughs, this film just plain sucked.
Trans March '08By on June 28, 2008 1:24 AM | No Comments
Wew-hew! It's PRIDE weekend and me and the trannies kicked it off right with the annual Trans March. Despite the wind, it was a lovely time in Dolores Park. I have to run to a party, but here are some photos of our fun! Enjoy! xoxox
Julie Applying Ethan's Lovely Eyelashes
A Michigan Reunion in SF! Isabel / Me / Cookie / Mira!
Kara + Jackson. Cute as Buttons!
By on June 27, 2008 5:27 AM | 3 Comments
Via Joe.My.God.:
Under the headline "Gay Men Arrested For Gay Sex On Gay Island", Radar Online's Choire Sicha reports that for the last two weekends police have made unprecedented arrests for public sex in Fire Island's famed Meatrack, the notoriously cruisy area between the towns of Cherry Grove and The Pines.
Read more about this fucked up turn of events here.
It's Been Two YearsBy on June 26, 2008 10:31 PM | No Comments
Chris Bartlett just called to chat briefly today, this second anniversary of Eric Rofes' death. Just two years have passed! It seems like much longer since I last saw him. I still regret not making it to the last Gay Men's Health Leadership Academy he presented, which he encouraged me to attend. If you haven't looked at his final, uncompleted manuscrupt ("THRIVING: Gay Men's Health in the 21st Century") which several friends took time to edit and publish online, definitely check it out.
Here's a letter to the Bay Area Reporter editor that I wrote the day he passed away. My feelings haven't changed:
With the untimely and unexpected death of longtime gay activist Eric Rofes, San Francisco has lost a truly wonderful activist, organizer, researcher, and a dear friend ["Author, activist Eric Rofes dies," June 29].In my own life, Eric was a mentor and role model. He was, without a doubt, one of the most influential thinkers in my life. Eric was one of the few gay male voices in America speaking progressive values to action. He was an unabashed feminist. His book, Dry Bones Breathe: Gay Men Creating Post-AIDS Identities and Cultures, changed the way I thought about HIV/AIDS and gay men. He never settled for simple answers. He always demanded complexity. He always challenged me to think more deeply in my own work and research on HIV/AIDS and gay men. For all that he did for me, for all that he did for gay men, and for all he did for HIV-positive people, we will all be forever indebted to him. His death leaves a great void in our community.
I will miss him dearly.
And I do miss him. Dearly.
CDC: HIV Up 8.6% Among Homos, 2001-2006By on June 26, 2008 8:48 PM | 3 Comments
A new Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) article states that new HIV infections among MSM are up from 2001-2006.
Who writes these god awful articles in MMWR? They're entirely unreadable! It's like the purposefully make their language so painful obtuse as to prevent any American from understanding their meaning. As in this section of complicated abbreviations and statistics:
Of 214,379 HIV/AIDS diagnoses in 33 states during 2001--2006, a total of 97,577 (46%) were among MSM. Decreases in diagnoses were observed in all transmission categories except MSM (excluding MSM and IDU) (Figure 1). Among males, MSM accounted for 97,577 (63%) of cases. Men aged 25--44 years accounted for 64% of cases among MSM (Table). Among MSM, the number of diagnoses increased from 16,081 (CI = 15,784--16,377) in 2001 to 17,465 (CI = 16,938--17,992) in 2006; (EAPC = 1.5) (Figure 1).
Let me help translate that into English. You see, when the CDC reports statistics -- or for that matter when anyone reports a statistics -- there are key phrase to watch out for. "Among MSM," for instance, is telling you that the statistics they're reporting is from JUST the sample of MSM -- or "men who have sex with men" (a sanitized public health term). The rest of the data is basically thrown out. Like in the sentence, "Men aged 25--44 years accounted for 64% of cases among MSM." This is a mess of a statement, basically trying to tell you that JUST in their sample of new HIV infections among MSM, almost two-thirds of those cases are from guys who are 25 to 44 years old. Translation: CDC data indicates that young / middle-aged guys are making up the vast majority of new HIV infections among gay, bi, and queer men diagnosed between 2001 and 2006.
But it gets even more complicated, because this trend among older guys is not consistent through all the different demographic "slices" in the date. For instance:
From 2001 to 2006, a 12.4% (EAPC = 1.9) increase in the number of HIV/AIDS diagnoses among all black MSM was observed; however, an increase of 93.1% (EAPC = 14.9) was observed among black MSM aged 13--24 years (Figure 2). During 2001--2006, approximately twice as many (7,658) diagnoses occurred in black MSM aged 13--24 years as in their white counterparts (3,221).
So, let's go through this piece by piece. What we're learning here in the first sentence is that between the years 2001 and 2006 -- in their sample of JUST black MSM -- new HIV infections rose 12.4%. Translation: new HIV infections in black MSM jumped 12.4% between 2001 and 2006. But wait, there's more. When you look again at JUST young black MSM between the ages of 13 and 24 (youth), you find that in that subpopulation new infections REALLY took off, jumping 93.1%. Translation: The number of black gay / bi / queer youth testing HIV positive almost DOUBLED in FIVE years, between 2001 and 2006.
The next bit of information is even more complicated, because the writers don't actually tell you the significance of the data. "During 2001--2006, approximately twice as many (7,658) diagnoses occurred in black MSM aged 13--24 years as in their white counterparts (3,221)." That sounds pretty bad, but just how bad is it? Well, lets dig a bit deeper. The 2007 Census estimates reveal that there are about 3.3 million black men between the ages of 15 and 24, while there are about 16.9 million white men in that age group.
If new HIV infections weren't correlated with race at, then, we would expect that infections among young white MSM would outnumber young black MSM, nearly 6:1. But the reverse is happening -- young black MSM are greatly outnumbering white guys. Translation: Something REALLY fucked up is happening in America right now.
By on June 26, 2008 6:03 PM | No Comments
Still feeling a bit low from last week's breakup, my friend Nat in the UK sent me a little message from Gloria Gaynor to lift my spirits:
Thanks, Nat!
Some Progress on Capital PunishmentBy on June 25, 2008 1:46 PM | No Comments
SCOTUS ruled today that capital punishment was reserved for murderers:
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Wednesday that child rapists cannot be executed, concluding capital punishment is reserved for murderers. Patrick Kennedy, 43, was on Louisiana's death row after being convicted of raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter.Patrick Kennedy, 43, was on Louisiana's death row after being convicted of raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter.
The ruling stemmed from the case of Patrick Kennedy, who appealed the 2003 death sentence he received in Louisiana after being convicted of raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote in the majority opinion that "evolving standards of decency" in the United States forbid capital punishment for any crime other than murder.
Better that they eliminate this Byzantine practice altogether, but the less executions, the better!
Frameline 32: "XXY"By on June 25, 2008 3:19 AM | No Comments
"XXY"
Director: Lucía Puenzo
Trevor's Rating: 4.75 / 5 Stars
Okay, so I know giving it 4.75 stars is kind of ridiculous. This film was really pretty amazing! The movie opens with a husband (Ramiro), wife (Erika), and son (Alvaro) coming to visit another couple -- a scientist and conservationist who studies turtles (Kraken), his wife (Suli), and their daughter, Alex, in Uruguay. The relationship between these folks isn't made entirely clear, but we learn very quickly that Ramiro is a surgeon, and that Alex isn't your average young girl.
Indeed, we find out that Alex is intersex, and the family is struggling as she rebels against her medical interventions to prevent her body from "masculinizing" -- that is, to prevent her from growing facial hair and other secondary sex characteristics. Unbeknownst to her husband Kraken, Suri has invited the couple down to talk to Alex about the potential surgical interventions she could have to remove her penis.
Well, drama of course ensues. Alex and Alvaro flirt from the start, in a kind of love-hate, caustic way. It's cute teenage confusion and angst in full bloom, and both actors do a tremendous job. To the audience in the Castro theatre's surprise, when they finally end up making out and getting naked, Alex flips Alvaro over and fucks him. Holy canoli! I have to say, whenever I see people just "stick it in" in movies without lube or prep, I chuckle. Please! As if it were so easy. But in any case, the scene is hot -- until Alex's father walks in and catches his daughter fucking a boy. Talk about a mindbender.
This film is touching and beautifully done. The acting is superb. The cinematography is fabulous. It's a real gem. I deduct 1/4 of a star mostly because I was a bit put off by the overt political jockeying done to make the surgeon look like a demon. It's a bit over the top. In a beautifully acted scene with his son (played by a wonderfully talented Martín Piroyansky), Alvaro tearfully asks his father if he thinks he has any talent. His father replies, simply, "No." Alavro goes on, asking if "One day you think I could" - but his father cuts him off, saying "No, No. I don't." This just after his son tells his dad "I would kill to have your talent." I mean, really! It was awful, and clearly included in the story to paint the father as malicious and callous as possible. I wasn't impressed.
Again, my friends were upset by the brief inclusion of a scene in which a group of boys sexually harass and almost rape Alex. My friend Jackson was particularly peeved, complaining that it seemed like any film made about genderqueer folks was seemingly obliged to include the sexual violence trope. And it certainly is a trope that filmmakers can use to pull at certain strings, and to tap into a dominant cultural narrative on what it means to be gendered or sexed differently.
We got into a lengthy heated conversation about the politics of representation, and more generally the problems that come when you make a political argument from a victimized position. By simply representing or claiming that victimhood, you are in a way reinscribing that violence and making it difficult for people in your social group to become anything other than victims. This is an age old question when it comes to identity politics (see Wendy Brown's dense essay on this, "Wounded Attachments"), and I'm not sure there's a good answer. I complained similarly about last year's Frameline flick, "Holding Trevor," which featured a woman contracting HIV after one sexual encounter after a party. Highly improbable. Possible? Sure. Probable? No.
What is the solution to this problem? One the one hand, tropes and common narratives exist because they reflect many of our experiences. On the other hand, they limit the stories that are culturally legible, obscuring experiences that do not fit this mold. In the end, I felt like "XXY" made some daring moves in its storyline (Alvaro not only lets Alex fuck him, but he enjoys it and wants more!). I don't particularly blame the director for including the violent scene, but I understand Jackson's frustrations.
In any case, I can't recommend this film enough. It's beautiful. Make it a point to go out and see it!
Gay Men's Health: What's Next?By on June 24, 2008 4:12 PM | 1 Comment
My friend Stewart Landers has an excellent piece over at Lifelube calling for the development of a communal voice for gay / bi / trans men's health. He notes that:
Now that we are two years into the post-Eric Rofes period of the gay men’s health movement, it is a good time think about what we know, what we need to know and how we can continue the only grassroots movement dedicated to thinking about, working for and advancing our collective health.The development of a clear, communal voice for the gay men’s health movement continues to be our single greatest challenge. There is no voice in this country speaking on behalf of gay men’s health. However, this is not the same thing as a lack of leadership. In fact, due to Eric’s work and the work of many movement activists, there are many leaders in gay men’s health around the country including researchers, activists, executive directors, public health practitioners, trainers, and writers working in this area. Yet, there isn’t a consistent voice or source for information when the media seek a response to the latest “gay men are spreading such-and-such now” report. I propose that the gay men’s health summit leadership bite the bullet and form the National Gay Men’s Health Collaborative, find some grant money, have a high-end designer create some snazzy letterhead and establish a formal national presence.
I couldn't agree more -- although I also think that we need to take heed to make sure that it is a "collective" organization, and not a corporatized, Executive Director-style organization. We -- we being several of my fellow gay men's health organizers -- have been talking about this for the past year. Chris Bartlett in particular, as well as others, have been asking around about the idea of creating a formal web presence, particularly as a gateway for the media to find smart / sex positive GMH advocates. As I told Chris last time he was in town, in the 21st century, if it doesn't have a website, it doesn't exist. The GMH movement desperately needs such a website, at minimum to declare our existence and our activities.
At the last mini-Gay Men's Health Leadership Academy a few weeks ago here in San Francisco, Michael Scarce was talking about building a wiki for GMH. This is a good idea, but I think it is a separate kind of project from what Stewart and others are calling for. Let's make a website. Let's develop a vision. The Gay Men's Health Summit is in October in Seattle. Working group, anyone?
Frameline 32: "Be Like Others"By on June 24, 2008 1:57 AM | No Comments | 1 TrackBack
"BE LIKE OTHERS"
Director:Tanaz Eshaghian
Trevor's Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
Clip (Skip to 5:00 Mark):
Phew. What an emotional screening. This film was super intense. The film documents men and women who are seeking sex reassignment surgery in Iran, a country where homosexuality is punishable by death, but that legally sanctions SRS under Islamic law. There are a number of characters here, among them a trans-woman named Vida who basically plays "trans-mom" to a number of people considering having the surgery. She counsels them, and even agrees to allow one of them to stay at her house while she recuperates from the surgery. She scolds trans-women who dress in anything but the acceptable hijab, encouraging them to lead a life as a "normal" woman in Iran would -- lest they give her people "a bad name."
Several of the trans-women admit that they would not undergo the surgery unless it was required under Islamic law. Without the operation, they would be legally considered men, and thus criminally engaging in homosexuality. There is so much here. The filmmaker follows up with one woman a year after she has the operation to find out that she has been totally cut off from her family. She now has to work as a sex worker in Tehran, saying that she's in the "business." In a heartbreaking scene, she tells the filmmaker that she has "killed" her ability to love, saying that if someone says to her "I love you," she asks if they have any money.
The other primary interviewee who is followed pre and post-surgery, Anahita, faces very different complications. In the beginning of the film, we meet her boyfriend, Ali, who seems to be very encouraging of her operation. He's a svelte, fashionable hairstylist, and would "read" as gay to Western eyes. He says before the operation that he could not be with her if she chose not to have it, because it would be a sin. Yet, in the follow up interview a year later, he has grown distant and called off their engagement -- though they continued to date. My friends and I talked at length about this couple, and we were torn as to how to understand the situation. We all wanted to read it as Ali was "gay" (that is to say, he liked boys) but knew that under Islamic law leading a gay life would be impossible -- thus dating and marrying trans-woman would be the closest way to legally conduct himself.
In the end, we agreed that we could not make any assumptions about these people's "true" desires or intentions, but that we agreed that -- in general -- it seemed clear that homosexuals were forced into SRS under Iran's regime. The doctor in the film who performs the surgeries claims that he believed homosexuals would run away scared after he described the surgery to potential patients, and that only "true" transgender people would still be interested after his grisly depiction of things. But this is clearly false -- if you are faced with a choice between constantly living in fear of being executed by the state, or undergoing SRS, many people will probably choose the latter.
You can find clips of the film on the official website and at the Sundance Film Festival website.
The Gayest Podcast in Michigan - Episode 2a: Troy WoodBy on June 23, 2008 6:48 PM | 1 Comment
Finally, episode 2 is up! Hop on over to The Gayest Podcast in Michigan homepage to check out the first part of a two-part interview with my dear friend Troy Wood, featuring his reflections on gay life in North Carolina, moving to San Francisco, and about building communities and friendships with gay men. It's fabulous. Download the shit out of it. Or subscribe on iTunes!
Goldi-CocksBy on June 23, 2008 12:58 PM | No Comments
Some guy got fed up with all the debating over the ideal penis size, and concocted this lovely table alleging to document women's preferences over penis size. How he came up with this data, I have no idea. But it brought me a chuckle.
But really -- only nine potential penises get a grade of A? That would be penises that range from 7.25 to 8.25 inches in length, and 6.25 to 6.5 in girth. I can't help but imagine how such a chart for gay men would look. Something tells me that they'd give A's to a lot more cock!
Click the chart to make it bigger (no pun intended, really):
By on June 23, 2008 12:20 PM | No Comments
This is incredibly sad news. While most psychotherapists make my blood curdle -- particularly when it comes to sex politics -- Shernoff was one of the good guys. He worked hard and asked difficult questions since the very beginning of the AIDS epidemic. Sadly, he was diagnosed in March 2006 with pancreatic cancer, and lost his battle with the disease last Tuesday.
If you're unfamiliar with his work, see this interview he did with The Advocate in 2006 about his last book, Without Condoms. I love this quote from that interview, which sums up his approach to "risky sex" and gay men:
It’s important for me to meet patients where they are at. Good therapy provides curative emotional experiences. I don’t need to act like a nonapproving parent. With patients who have developed drug problems, I needed to advocate a harm-reduction approach if the patient in question wasn’t ready to stop using. I decided to apply that same approach to men who engage in unsafe sexual behavior so that I wouldn’t run the risk of alienating them or driving them away from my office. If I shake my finger at them and try to tell them what to do, the patient feels judged and infantilized. A harm-reduction approach doesn’t eliminate harm all together, but it can help the individual make certain choices that reduce the risk to himself and to the broader community should he choose not to use condoms during sex.
Losing another good guy from his generation is.... :(
Frameline 32: "Transtastic"By on June 23, 2008 3:27 AM | No Comments | 1 TrackBack
"BEND IT"
Director: Jules Nurrish
Trevor's Rating: 3 / 5 Stars
This was a very short, three minute whimsical film out of London featuring a performance art piece with two female-bodied performers -- chests bound by a kind of black duct tape -- dancing to a song by bending back and forth. It read to me as a celebration of the ability to move our bodies freely and whimsically, without care. It was good natured fun.
"THE BOND"
Director: Michael T. Connell
Trevor's Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
What a charming little film! Basically, this short six minute piece features a father's reminiscing about his daughter's transition from male to female. I think his frank and honest commentary may have made some trans folks in the audience uncomfortable -- he talked a bit about mourning the loss of his son -- but I appreciated his candid disclosure. Before she transitioned, she served in the army, married, and had two kids! Oy vey! It was lovely to have the father and daughter both at the screening (and at the trans-filled afterparty). Very cute!
"DONNY AND GINGER"
Director: Jon Bush
Trevor's Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
Trailer for HBO SHOUT Short Film Contest:
My friends hated this movie. I wasn't quite as offended as they were by its somewhat cliche story, but I'm getting ahead of myself. This film won HBO's LGBT "SHOUT" short film competition, giving director Jon Bush $15,000 to produce the flick (see trailer above). So in comparison to many of the other low-fi films included in this collection, it was fairly polished and professional looking. My friends took issue with the 10 minute movie's plot, which opens with a transgender sex worker asking a cop for a ride. There's clearly more to this relationship than meets the eye, as the burly male cop winds up taking the woman to breakfast. It turns out that the cop is the woman's father, and bitter estranged family dialogue ensues. My friends were upset that the only film directed by a non-trans person in this collection of shorts about trans people was the most stereotypical of the batch. It's a fair criticism. But taken out of the context of this screening, I think the film is fairly solid, if perhaps a bit stale.
"FELICIA"
Director: Tim O'Hara
Trevor's Rating: 4.5 / 5 Stars
What a charmer! This film was a delight. In eight minutes, it opened up a window into the life of Felicia Elizondo, a transgender woman facing the reality of aging alone. The film opens with her talking about her pets, a 17 year-old dog, a 18 month year old dog, and a 9 year-old cockatoo. Every morning when she wakes up, she makes sure to give the older dog and the cockatoo a good shake "to make sure they're still alive." Funny stuff. Felicia's been HIV-positive for many years, and has lost many of her friends to the disease. But she still has a group of friends that she makes sure to keep in touch with regularly, calling them every day or every other day. She's a gem, and I loved hearing her story. I'm glad this film was made.
"FOREVER'S GONNA START TONIGHT"
Director: Michelle Lawler
Trevor's Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
71 year-old Vicki Marlane is the oldest living, continuously performing drag performer in the world. She performs to this day over at Aunt Charlie's Lounge here in San Francisco, every Friday and Saturday night. I've actually seen Vicki perform before, and she's a real treat. This nine minute short documentary was BRILLIANT. I loved every second of it. Vicki is a trip and a half, hamming it up for the camera at every turn. She used to perform in carnival acts in the 1950s, sometimes filling in as "two of the four legs of the four-legged woman." She has many on stage stories to tell, many involving her "usual cocktail" of a stiff drink and sleeping pills. But hands down my favorite part had to be when she reveals her make-up secret: applying two pieces of clear tape to her forehead to stretch away a few years. Wow. Despite living with HIV for many years, Vicki still has the spirit of a 22 year old on stage. That resilient spirit shines here in this fabulous film. Get your hands on it if you can.
"THE ROLE I WAS BORN TO PLAY"
Director: Lukas Blakk
Trevor's Rating: 2.5 / 5 Stars
This short film wasn't short enough. Using nine minutes of clips from the movies She's the Man, Boy's Don't Cry, and Just One of the Guys, Blakk attempts to piece together a kind of personal gender monologue -- but the film is just a mess. Boy's Don't Cry is nothing light to throw around, and one scene flashes the movie's most violent scene, interspersed with a kind of inner monologue about why the narrator never hooks up with people he's not out to as trans. Using clips from other movies in this way is an interesting idea -- certainly many of us look to cinematic portraits of queer life to help us understand our lives and worlds -- but it's not executed particularly well at any point.
"THORN IN YOUR SIDE"
Director: Dean Hamer
Trevor's Rating: 3 / 5 Stars
I understood this making of this film to be almost about producing a historical record of a small piece of the transgender movement here in San Francisco, the Trans March. And basically, that's what you get here -- a glimpse at the March's activities and spirit. It's innocuous, very cute.
"TRANSFORMING HEALTHCARE"
Director: Derek Brockett, Ann McNair, Ethan Suniewick
Trevor's Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
Okay, I'm a bit biased. Ethan Suniewick, the film's creator and primary director, is one of my best pals here in the city (my BFF Jackson is also featured here). Like Johanna's film that I blogged about yesterday, Ethan worked on this film over his second year at SF State for his Masters thesis project. But his film really is fabulously important. What I love about Ethan's film is that it has an applied practical purpose -- it's a short, 18 minute training video for health care providers. How cool is that? There's no jargon here, just real stories about trans people's experiences with providers, and suggestions for how providers can take steps to improve their trans-competency. One of the most troubling stories, for instance, comes from a transgender woman who works in a clinic in the city who went to the ER with a fever and bronchitis. Despite this, she found herself being hoisted into stirrups under a spotlight while a group of doctors looked at her vagina. Enraging! But the film is quite touching. Very smart, straight the point. Bravo, Ethan! We're so proud!
"UNCA TRANS"
Director: Allyson Mitchell, Christina Zeidler
Trevor's Rating: 2.5 / 5 Stars
This film was cute, if a bit silly. A transgender puppet living in the 2040's reminisces about life back in the early 2000's, before he moved back to "the land" to take over his family's farm. The agro-politics here are just a bit outrageous, but hey, it's always good to think about what we want our future to look like. So I appreciate this film's commitment to imagining it, however whimsically.
Frottage as Prevention?By on June 22, 2008 4:55 PM | No Comments
I ran across this nutty article from UK while surfing around the web doing some Googling on barebacking. He argues that the best way to promote safer sex / reduce new infections is to promote other kinds of gay sexuality other than anal sex. This is actually not a bad idea, but unfortunately he kind of makes a right turn towards nuttyville:
The only way to stop unsafe sex then is to debunk anal and destroy its mystique.That's why on this Heroic Homosex site we tell the truth about anal: that it's dirty -- because there's always fecal material present in the anus and rectum; dangerous -- because of the almost innumerable STIs, more than one potentially fatal, which are transmitted anally; and demeaning -- because it turns one man into a pseudo-woman and makes his partner his oppressor.
Frot (phallus-against-phallus sex), in contrast, offers men true skin-on-skin genital-to-genital contact, free of dirt, disease, and degradation. It's far less dangerous and far more pleasurable than anal, and in time it will become the majority practice, even among so-called gay men.
Blah blah blah. Sigh. Another good idea ruined by blind radicalism.
When Will Mugabe's Reign End?By on June 22, 2008 12:18 PM | No Comments
This is sad:
Robert Mugabe apparently retained his presidential post Sunday after the opposition candidate dropped out of this week's runoff because, he said, asking Zimbabweans to vote was asking them to risk their lives."The courageous people of Zimbabwe, of this country, and the people of the MDC have done everything humanly and democratically possible to deliver a new Zimbabwe and new government," candidate Morgan Tsvangirai said after a closed-door meeting of his Movement for Democratic Change.
Tsvangirai was the first hope for change in Zimbabwe in many, many years. Mugabe is a disgusting dictator whose human rights violations are well documented. Tsvangirai's campaign has been the victim of these attacks as well:
There have been numerous reports from the opposition and from Zimbabwean church groups of kidnappings, torture and other violence, including the deaths of opposition party members. They say the violence targets opponents of Mugabe and his Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front, or ZANU-PF.Frameline 32: Cthulhu
By on June 22, 2008 5:27 AM | No Comments
"CTHULHU"
Director: Daniel Gildark
Trevor's Rating: 4 / 5 Stars
Trailer:
Cthulhu, I've learned after coming home from this bizarre feature length movie (90 minutes), is apparently a mythical creature dreamed up in the works of science fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft. I wasn't expecting the movie I sat down to watch, the description in the film festival info guide was mysterious -- perhaps because the movie was a bit of a mess. I think I actually probably bought tickets because Tori Spelling was in the cast (yes, I'm that gay). Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the first 3/4 of this film. It was thrilling (though it lagged in parts), and it wasn't afraid to make a few non-cheesy jokes along the way. Apparently this is Daniel Gildark's first feature film, which is impressive considering the talent he's pulled together here. The cinematography and color is really tremendous, as is the makeup and general "look" of the film. The story is that of an acclaimed historian, Russ, (played by Jason Cottle) who returns home to his estranged family when his mother dies. The father's a religious nut who laments his son's homosexuality, but luckily we're didn't suffer through too many awkward family dinners. He reconnects with a hunky (straight) childhood flame whose recently divorced and happy to hop into bed again.
Things begin to get wacky around town as Russ unravels the mystery of his father's religious cult that worships the sea. And about 2/3 of the way in, things get a little too wonky for my tastes. I like that the director knows the scare value of that which we do not see; so much of today's horror films rub the blood and guts in our face, but Gildark leaves some things here to our imagination. This includes a rather terrifying scene where Russ is left slowly meandering through a cavernous basement with nothing but a disposable camera's flash to intermittently light the way. The audience takes Russ' point of view, and most of the sequence is him breathing in darkness, with the sound of the flash charging and bursting into quick flashes of creepy dungeon-like surroundings. Eek!
The director and producer took the stage before it all began, and informed us that we were the "lucky" last audience to ever see the original cut of the film before it gets released in theaters in August. The joke's on us though, as they both believed the edited cut will be tighter and generally better. I have a feeling the gay sex scene will hit the cutting room floor, but I wouldn't be too upset if it came along with some of the meandering madness -- and perhaps a revised ending. In general, this was an *incredible* first stab at film-making for Director Daniel Gildark. Even Tori Spelling does a stellar job here (yes, and it's not even because she's Tori Spelling and I'm a homosexual). The cast is terrific. It's a beautiful and terrifying film. Bravo!
Frameline 32: "Working On It"By on June 22, 2008 4:43 AM | No Comments
"A COMPLICATED QUEERNESS: LIVING FEMME IN A DYKE COMMUNITY"
Director: Johanna Buchignani, Emily Hillman
Trevor's Rating: 4 / 5 Stars
Okay, so admittedly I'm a bit biased with this flick -- this was my friend Johanna's (who attended SF State with me in the Human Sexuality Studies MA program) Masters thesis project. I've also seen the film before, since she screened it when we graduated. With that out of the way, this film raises some very poignant questions about gender, sexuality, and "lived" feminist politics (that is to say, the politics that play out in a politicized, queer community). I'm particularly interested in the very queer complications that arise in traditionally lesbian, women's communities when many of the community members transition to become men. This short film -- 17 minutes -- aims to tackle questions of a slightly different ilk: what's it like for dykes who like to dye their hair, put on makeup, and paint their nails (not to reduce femininity to superficiality, but of course these are some of the ways that many women "perform" femme). Here in San Francisco, however, those two questions are deeply intertwined. Hence why there is a significant chunk of time in the film paid to the inclusion of transmen in communities of female-bodied people. When she screened the film at our graduation, I was somewhat put off by the segment on transmen, which begins with a picture of a syringe and then a transman injecting testosterone. I think this tends to biomedicalize their identities and also seems to allude to a kind of artificial-ness. These qualms aside, Johanna is brilliant, and she's raised some important questions here. I hope she continues to explore them, in film or in writing.
"WORKING ON IT"
Director: Sabina Baumann, Karin Michalski
Trevor's Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
This relatively short documentary (50 minutes) is obviously German -- and I'm not just referring here to the subtitles. The few pieces of German queer cinema that I've been exposed to have often tended to push the boundaries of genre, and are generally interested in exposing the film's artificialness. Last year at Frameline for instance, I saw a German flick in which the main characters paused the film and edited the storyline by deleting objects or even people on screen. This documentary shared an urge to remind viewers that what we were seeing was indeed a construction of a filmmaker, in this case by showing the participants (not sure what to call them, they were far more than just interviewees) setting up viewing areas where participants watched taped footage of other participants. How meta! This is all of course connected to the film's subject matter, which is an exploration of participant's stories and theories on how gender and sexuality are constantly constructed and renegotiated. It's very theory-heavy, without being particularly laborious. In one scene, a participant tries to explain her idea of sexual-labor using a lot of jargon that was even harder to understand in the translated subtitles. The person sitting next to her asked if that made sense, and the filmmaker replies "No, not at all." Chuckle. It also felt dated -- a kind of queer theory-driven extravaganza that would have made more sense in the late 1990's. It culminates in a kind of music video / art performance that, while vaguely interesting, didn't seem to move any of their arguments about gender / sexuality forward. I'll be frank: I wanted to hate this film. It rubs up against a kind of narcissistic psychobabble that spewed forth in the name of "queer theory," which many people mistook for an opportunity to self-indulge their egos. In short, I give "Working On It" 3.5 stars for its creative spirit, not for its insight.
Andre + Me = Cute!By on June 21, 2008 8:32 PM | No Comments
My friend from Michigan, Andre, just posted this lovely little photo on Facebook. How cute are we!!!! This was a few months ago -- we were still trying to keep warm from the crazy cold outside!!! Miss you, 'Dre! xoxox
By on June 21, 2008 6:29 AM | No Comments
"THE GAY BED AND BREAKFAST OF TERROR"
Director: Jaymes Thompson
Trevor's Rating: 4 / 5 Stars
Trailer:
My friends and I had been excited about this screening for weeks -- a slasher flick with drag queens? Rock! So we were particularly randy tonight by the time the reel started rolling. We arrived at the Castro theatre a full hour ahead of time -- we were first in line! One of the film's stars, local drag sensation Precious Moments, rolled up in a black limo, attempting to stir up applause from generally confused passersby. Priceless.
I liked a lot about this film. There was camp. There was good bloody gore. There was even a bit of anti-Bush politics thrown in for good measure. We learn for instance that, after being gang banged by 100 Republicans, the crazy innkeeper Helen (played by a deliciously creepy Mari Marks) gives birth to a homicidal, worm-like quasi-human child. That's pretty fucking amazing. But I felt that there was a bit too much back story at times -- it had a tendency to get a bit tedious. And -- although I'll refrain from blowing the movie's ending -- I thought it was pretty lackluster. It seemed as though they kind of just threw the last 20 minutes together without much thought, which is a shame because the rest of the film is generally good popcorn-munchin' entertainment. In any case, the film's been picked up for DVD release -- so do make a point to check it out!
Frameline 32: "The Young and Evil"By on June 20, 2008 9:25 PM | 2 Comments
Let the film reviewing begin!
"The Young and Evil"
Collection of Eight Short Films
"ALONSO'S DEADLINE"
Director: Mario Galarreta
Trevor's Rating: 3 / 5 Stars
Trailer:
Alonso's Deadline was a bit strange. A six minute short, the film was about a young janitor's (Elias) infatuation with a professor at a university (Dr. Alonso). Although he didn't star in the picture, there was a HOT latino actor, Pedro (I forget his last name), who sat just a few rows ahead of us for the feature. He was delicious! Sadly, he didn't get much air time. In general, it was so-so.
"BAGGAGE"
Director: Maxime Desmons
Trevor's Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
What a quirky little short. Eleven minutes in total, it begins a bit Hitchcock-ean, with the main character, Martin, being chased around his office by a mysterious suitcase -- his baggage that he must reckon with. It's cute, although perhaps a bit contrived at times. But the opening few minutes, with the bag appearing mysteriously around corners, is hilarious -- very entertaining. I didn't find the ending particularly satisfactory. But hey, it was eleven minutes. Good fun.
"THE COUSIN"
Director: Nick Oceano
Trevor's Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
What a treat! This is really a wonderful short film -- I was engrossed from the start. Clocking in at 16 minutes, this delightful short tells the story of a budding Latino teenager, Mark, who pays a visit to his older cousin Luis' house. Their parents go out, the boys smoke a joint, and head out for a night on the town. Luis is intent on corrupting his straight-laced (and potentially homosexual) younger relative, and so he winds up paying a woman to have sex with him (after he had sex with her first, of course). The actor playing the main character (Daniel Marin), a young, chubby-cheeked cutie, did an outstanding job bringing everyone in the audience back to akward moments from their adolescence. Similarly, the actor playing the older cousin Luis (Manny Montana) pulls off a kind of tough / aggressive / yet slightly sensitive masculinity that is easily (and often) played unconvincingly on screen. It's beautiful, very touching.
"DOLLS"
Director: Randy Caspersen
Trevor's Rating: 4 / 5 Stars
This was a beautiful short, although at times the cinematography / color was a bit lackluster. The story here is of a young boy growing up, yet finding himself not quite ready to part with his Ken dolls when his mother has a garage sale. Although at times it felt a bit like it belonged on Lifetime, I really enjoyed the main actor's (Joshua Brail) performance that was always incredibly subtle. It would be easy to have made his character overly bratty and petulant when his mom tries to take his dolls away, but he instead reads vaguely hurt (while obviously scheming to get his dolls back in the back of his mind). I enjoyed this flick!
UPDATE: Director Randy Caspersen e-mailed to say: "Thanks for the nice things you said about my short film, 'DOLLS', that you reviewed on your blog. You said: 'At times the cinematography / color was a bit lackluster.' I'll say. Frameline struck a print of my film from the Digibeta master and the it looks like the color got screwed up in the transfer. There was even some digital artifacting. The cinematography (much crisper than the version you saw) and color are lovely in the original." And there you have it!
"LLOYD NECK"
Director: Benedict Campbell
Trevor's Rating: 4 / 5 Stars
Interview with director Ben Campbell:
This film was beautifully shot (it premiered at Sundance) -- the color and cinematography is all incredibly well done and appropriate. Named after a small town in NY, the colors in this flick are all a bit overexposed, giving it a kind of nostalgic feel that serves the film well. In 16 minutes, it introduces us to a young girl, her brother, and her brother's possible boyfriend. It's all very lovely and touching, and all the performances here are solid. I'm not sure exactly why this film was put under the header "Young and Evil," it's actually quite cute / innocent / fresh -- almost like an extended ad for a new cologne. Nonetheless, it was quite good, and incredibly well made.
Via iTunes and Sundance, you can purchase the film for viewing for $1.99 here.
"MARS"
Director: Jim Martin
Trevor's Rating: 2 / 5 Stars
Okay, so I feel bad for giving a film that was self-made by a (I think) 16 year old on his home computer, but really, it was pretty trite. The film is a meandering attempt at poetry, a boy's lamenting over the stigma overshadowing his desires for other boys. It's cut with imagery from Fred Phelps' "God Hates Fags" so-called "ministry," which just comes off as a bit over the top. I applaud this young man's attempt at queer cinema, and hope he continues to make films. But this film -- his first effort -- just isn't that good. And hey, who can blame him for it? He's not even out of high school!
"SOULJAH"
Director: Rikki Beadle-Blair
Trevor's Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
Wow! Holy canoli! This film was almost missed by half the audience, as we began filing out before it began thinking the previous film was the last one. But thank goodness we caught it, because it really was tremendously powerful. It tells the story of a young black gay man named Stanlake (played by who loves Diana Ross and enjoys putting on glittery drag make-up, who lives with his mother in a working class apartment complex in England. A group of thugs hang out at the playground in the middle of the complex, terrorizing anyone who crosses their path, including Stanlake's mother. After being harrassed -- and after they rip his mother's dress -- the boy snaps, applies make up, and goes outside to meet the boys face to face. He kicks the crap out of them, in an intensely violent scene that's interspersed with his memories of the army coming to his former home in Africa (country not named). Apparently, Stanlake was a former child soldier and knew a thing or two about how to inflect pain. The army forced his family out of their home at gunpoint, and made Stanlake kill his own father. Oof. It was intense. A must see. Really poignant.
"THE YOUNG AND EVIL"
Director: Julian Breece
Trevor's Rating: 4.5 / 5 Stars
Trailer:
This film was super intense. It's probably the reason I attended the short collection, as it dealt explicitly with HIV and gay men. The movie opens with an AMAZING scene in which the main character, played by a ridiculously svelt, gorgeous young Black actor, is confronted by a group of older, "thuggish" Black guys (who it looked like were training a dog for dog fights -- too soon?). The actor is sucking a red candy sucker, which he drops when one of the guys calls him a faggot. He turns around, and starts masturbating while oggling the guys' chests. AMAZING. This really was an amazingly well done scene. The remainder of the film is provocative, but left me wanting more (which is a good thing, I suppose). It's the story of this young Black gay man's efforts to contract HIV, and his unabashed desires for "risky," drug-laced bareback sex. It's intense. Definitely a must see.
Frameline 32 Begins TODAY!By on June 19, 2008 2:55 PM | No Comments
Frameline starts today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YEA!! For the unaware, Frameline is San Francisco gigantic LGBT film festival. I have a fetish for it. Last year I saw eleven films at the festival and this year I'm seeing thirteen!!!! I can't help myself! I'm going to be doing my damnedest to write reviews about all the new ones (two of them are part of the Michael Lumpkin retrospective -- like Bound -- and thus need no reviewing). But I'll be attending the following thirteen films. Drop by and say hello!
The Young and Evil (Friday, June 20, 4:15 PM):
The Gay Bed and Breakfast of Terror (Friday, June 20, 11:45 PM)
Working On It (Saturday, June 21, 8:00 PM)
Cthulhu (Saturday, June 21, 11:15 PM)
Transtastic (Sunday, June 22, 6:15 PM)
All My Life (Sunday, June 22, 8:30 PM)
Be Like Others (Monday, June 23, 7:00 PM)
Bound (Tuesday, June 24, 3:00 PM)
XXY (Tuesday, June 24, 7:00 PM)
Otto; Or, Up With Dead People (Friday, June 27, 11:00 PM)
Yes Nurse! No Nurse! (Saturday, June 28, 11:00 AM)
Sordid Lives (Saturday, June 28, 1:15 PM)
Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild! (Saturday, June 28, 8:30 PM)
Wew-hew! Can't wait!
Obama Opts Out of Public FinancingBy on June 19, 2008 2:41 PM | No Comments
On Thursday, Sen. Barack Obama announced that he was opting out of the public financing system, in the process forgoing "more than $80 million in public funds" for the more bountiful loot that could await him later.As a result, Obama will become the first modern presidential candidate to run a race solely on the back of private funds. The move risks sullying his reformist credentials; Obama had promised last year to try to reach a deal with the GOP nominee to accept public financing. His decision to forgo public funds -- which he said came after a refusal to compromise by McCain campaign officials -- was quickly lambasted by his Republican opponent.
It seems like a smart decision to me. Here's Obama's video message about it:
Tennesee Transgender Woman Beaten by PoliceBy on June 19, 2008 2:11 PM | 1 Comment
This made the front page of CNN this morning:
Police video that was recorded on Feb. 12 shows transsexual Duanna Johnson in the booking area at the Memphis Police Department after an arrest on prostitution charges.Surveillance video shows an officer walk over and hit her in the face several times.
The policeman was heckling Johnson, calling her "he/she" and a "faggot," and she replied by telling him that "that wasn't my name. My mother didn't name me a faggot or a he/she." Basically, she doesn't take any flack from the police -- good for her. But it turned sour when the policeman came around the desk and started beating her. A jail nurse apparently walked past Johnson after she was beaten without offering her help. There's video footage (warning: obviously violent) posted on the news article.
Repercussions were swift but mild at the start. The officer, James Swain, was fired. Another officer was put on desk duty. An "internal investigation" has begun. But does anything ever come from internal investigations post-police brutality? Call me cynical, but we've all seen too many cases of fucked up treatment like this by the police -- even *murder* -- without so much as a slap on the wrist. Let's hope that this case is different.
Sadly, transgender women of color -- particularly those that are homeless and/or engage in sex work -- are often the target of violence today. It wasn't long ago that the body of Ruby Rodriguez was found near a freeway off-ramp in San Francisco. No arrests were ever made in the case, as far as I know. And before that, of course, there was Gwen Araujo.
I remember first realizing this kind of targeted violence while attending the LGBT youth group in my hometown of Charlotte, NC. A transgender woman named Cocoa attended regularly, and she had a large scar that ran across her neck. I found out later that a client slit her throat and left her for dead. Luckily -- miraculously -- she survived the attack.
As long as they are viewed as being less than human, we can expect these kind of horrific attacks to continue.
Dumped.By on June 19, 2008 4:53 AM | 3 Comments
So a few things that sucked about my day:
1) Anthony dumped me.
2) I had to get on a plane back to San Francisco right afterwards.
3) My flight to Chicago was my birthday present from my parents (oh, the bitter irony).
4) I'm single. Again.
Bah humbug.
On the upswing, I was able to get an earlier flight back to SF, which meant an evening of my friends coddling me with wine and cheering up.
Gay Men's Brains Look Like Straight Ladies' BrainsBy on June 18, 2008 10:59 AM | No Comments
From Time:
Scientists at the Karolinska Institute studied brain scans of 90 gay and straight men and women, and found that the size of the two symmetrical halves of the brains of gay men more closely resembled those of straight women than they did straight men. In heterosexual women, the two halves of the brain are more or less the same size. In heterosexual men, the right hemisphere is slightly larger. Scans of the brains of gay men in the study, however, showed that their hemispheres were relatively symmetrical, like those of straight women, while the brains of homosexual women were asymmetrical like those of straight men. The number of nerves connecting the two sides of the brains of gay men were also more like the number in heterosexual women than in straight men.
The doctor in the study writes that "For the first time, in this study it looks like there are regions of the brain not directly involved in sexuality that seem to be feminized in gay males." I used to cringe at this kind of research -- because I'm really uninterested in "proving" the biological nature of homosexual desire. I think desire is much too complicated to be linked to one gene or hormone exposure. That is to say, for many people, these things shift over time and aren't as set in stone (although, fair to say, that for many of us, desire does stay somewhat static over the life course -- at least in terms of gender).
But I'm a bit more open to this kind of data now -- as long as it is carefully applied and analyzed. It's no surprise that there might be biological differences among some gay men and other folks. While as a sociologist I believe that much of our differences come from culture, they surely may also have roots in our biology. One of these differences that sticks out in my mind is gay men's tendency -- as a group -- towards non-violence. We just aren't very violent people. Lesbians are more violent, and so are straight men. This is the kind of stuff that Dave Nimmons talks about in his book, The Soul Beneath the Skin. Is this related to our brains? In the end, we'll probably never know. But it sure does getcha thinking!
92% of Software Developers Ignoring Windows VistaBy on June 17, 2008 12:37 PM | No Comments
From CNET:
And to think Microsoft used to be popular with the developer crowd...Not anymore. A recent report from Evans Data shows fewer than one in 10 software developers writing applications for Windows Vista this year. Eight percent. This is perhaps made even worse by the corresponding data that shows 49 percent of developers writing applications for Windows XP.
Such appreciation for history is not likely to warm the cockles of Microsoft's heart, especially when Linux is getting lots of love from developers (13 percent writing apps for it this year and 15.5 percent in 2009). The Mac? I don't have any equivalent data via Evans Data. But the Mac OS has rocketed by 380 percent as a targeted development platform, Evans Data told Computerworld.
The numbers don't get much better for Vista in 2009: 24 percent (compared with 29 percent for XP). That's a big step up from 8 percent, but is it a sign of momentum to come or just a temporary stopgap while developers wait until Windows 7?
I installed Vista on my desktop computer, and have regretted doing it ever since. My laptop's still on XP, and it's what I use 99% of the time. Vista's pretty awful. Microsoft needs a new OS fast or people will continue to jump to Linux and (more importantly) Mac. I'm pretty close to making the Mac leap... my next computer?
Dior's $26,000 Cell Phone -- No, SeriouslyBy on June 17, 2008 12:28 PM | No Comments
Consumerist has the 411 on Dior's latest grotesque accessory for your everyday needs: a Swarovski crystal-encrusted, $26,000 cell phone. That's right, $26,000.
Too rich for your blood? Then downgrade to the "basic" version -- it's only $5,000. What a steal!
Ban on HIV-Poz Immigration DebatedBy on June 17, 2008 11:58 AM | 1 Comment
It's about time that this country had a serious conversation about our nation's prohibition on HIV-positive people from entering the United States. Andrew Sullivan -- who is British by birth and unable to apply for US residency because he's poz -- just wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post arguing for the repeal of this ban. Sullivan writes:
It seems unthinkable that the country that has been the most generous in helping people with HIV should legally ban all non-Americans who are HIV-positive. But it's true: The leading center of public and private HIV research discriminates against those with HIV.HIV is the only medical condition permanently designated in law -- in the Immigration and Nationality Act -- as grounds for inadmissibility to the United States. Even leprosy and tuberculosis are left to the discretion of the secretary of health and human services.
Last week, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for countries with restrictive measures to eliminate these travel restrictions on Poz folks. He said:
Six decades after the [Universal Declaration of Human Rights] was adopted, it is shocking that there should still be discrimination against those at high risk, such stigma attached to individuals living with HIV. This not only drives the virus underground, where it can spread in the dark; as important, it is an affront to our common humanity.One of my most moving experiences as Secretary-General has been my meetings with the UN's own group of HIV-positive staff, UN Plus. They are wonderfully courageous and motivated people. I am determined to make the UN a model workplace in embracing them, and all our staff living with HIV.
In the world as a whole, I call for a change in laws that uphold stigma and discrimination – including restrictions on travel for people living with HIV.
As Sullivan and Greenwald point out, there are only TWELVE countries that prohibit entry to HIV positive folks: Armenia, Colombia, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Sudan, the United States and Yemen. Yes, that's right, we're on a very short list with those bastions of the human rights community, Saudi Arabia and Russia.
Time for change, folks! Glenn Greenwald has a nice blog entry linking this ban on poz travelers to the State Department's hypocritical critiques of violations of human rights in Russia and Zimbabwe.
Chicago or Bust!By on June 13, 2008 2:15 PM | No Comments
Wew-hew! I'm leaving on a jet plane this afternoon for a lovely weekend with Anthony in Chicago. We'll be trying to getting in as much QT as possible - after this trip, we won't see each other for over two months!!! Ack!!
We've got a fair amount planned. Tomorrow we're off to the Chicago Zoo, which is supposed to be quite nice. Very excited!
Rebecca Walker Spews VenomBy on June 13, 2008 12:58 PM | No Comments
I didn't post about this for a few days, mostly because I was pretty saddened by the whole affair. Rebecca Walker -- daughter of famed feminist author Alice Walker (who penned The Color Purple, among other things) -- has written a nasty letter in the UK's Mail ripping her mum to shreds for being largely absent in her upbringing. She basically accuses Walker senior of not living up to her feminist ideals, and abandoning her when she became pregnant:
"My mother's feminist principles coloured every aspect of my life. As a little girl, I wasn't even allowed to play with dolls or stuffed toys in case they brought out a maternal instinct. It was drummed into me that being a mother, raising children and running a home were a form of slavery. Having a career, travelling the world and being independent were what really mattered according to her.I love my mother very much, but I haven't seen her or spoken to her since I became pregnant. She has never seen my son - her only grandchild. My crime? Daring to question her ideology.
This seems a little outrageous coming from a daughter who elected to ditch her father's name (Leventhal) in favor of her mother's (Walker) when she grew up. Career making move indeed.
But really it all just seems pretty tacky and depressing. I was interviewing my friend for an upcoming episode of "The Gayest Podcast in Michigan" (whew-hew!), and he said some things about his relationship with his mom that were pretty rough. We talked about it later and both agreed to keep those comments out of the podcast. Because nobody knows what will happen in a few years -- will they patch up that relationship? Will she pass away and he be forever regretful? Perhaps nothing would change, but we agreed that there was always some hope, and no reason to air all that laundry in the interview. What good does that bring?
Walker is clearly trying to inflict hurt here, and I'm sure she "succeeds." But it reminds me here of feminist "Oppression Olympics" over who is more oppressed than who. You know, the whole "No I'm a lesbian AND Black AND 84 and therefore have had a harder life than anyone else here." Okay... so what does that get you? Nothing but a slice of pity pie -- if you're lucky.
Could it be that Rebecca Walker is just trying to sell more copies of her book on parenting that was released last year? Is it really that painfully shallow?
Salon.com has more analysis here. Read more if you like. Frankly I found the whole thing gave me indigestion.
UPDATE: Walker responds to Salon.com's piece with a bizarre series of accusations -- and basically by stepping back from the piece:
Chesler wants to draw in the personal differences I have with my mother. This appears to be opportunistic and ill-conceived, because the fact is the piece to which she refers is an inaccurate tabloidization of an interview I gave. No matter how much she would like to see the piece as factual and however sensational the article may appear, my father is not a descendant of Holocaust survivors, I never used the word fanatical to describe my mother's views, and so on.Chelser's zeal to make comment is undermined by the fact that she did not take time to fact-check the so-called "essay" to which she refers. She has unwittingly used tabloid sensationalism to make an all too personal assessment of a situation with little bearing on the major national issues we should all be deeply concerned about.
Um... what??
Crispin on Salon.com!By on June 12, 2008 2:36 AM | No Comments
My friend Crispin Hollings is plastered all over a Salon.com article titled "Kiss my ass." Yea, Crispin!!! Such a sexy San Franciscan!
I'm a bit too tipsy to actually bother to read the article, but Crispin looks good! For those not in the know, Crispin was the late Eric Rofes' partner before he passed away in 2006. Curiously, it seems that photo was taken exactly three years before Eric passed away -- which was on June 26, 2003 -- my brother's birthday and the day the Supreme Court struck down Bowers v Hardwick in their historic ruling, Lawrence v. Texas. Oh yea, and that asshole Strom Thurmond died that day too! What a busy / crazy / historic / sad day in history!
You've Got to Be Fucking Kidding MeBy on June 12, 2008 2:27 AM | No Comments
I was idly cruising CNN when I arrived home from a lovely drunken evening with friends, when I stumbled upon what I *thought* was a joke: an ad for a campaign to make the Parrot the state bird of California, replacing the Quail. And I stumbled upon this website.
I've seen some stupid bullshit in my day -- particularly in my time in California with the never-ending prop's and voter referendums -- but this is SOME BULLSHIT. Millions of dollars are probably being spent on this ridiculous, outrageous, pathetic campaign. Shame on them, for wasting our time and money! Shame!
North Carolina Governor's School CensorshipBy on June 10, 2008 2:43 AM | 1 Comment
I was deeply saddened to come home to find a notice from a former staffer at Governor's School in North Carolina about alleged homophobia and bullying on the staff there. Governor's School is a summer program for advanced high school students that I graduated from in 2000 for the Natural Sciences.
Tonya Olson, who served on staff from 2002-2007 (after I attended), has posted an open letter alleging that the program's leadership caved to political pressure from an Arizona-based right wing organization. They first prohibited a few movie screenings and book assignments, and then things began to escalate:
In 2006, I was told I would not be allowed to offer the Human Sexuality Film Series at all. It was not a matter of the topics, the lectures, or the appropriateness of the films. In fact, I was assured, the film series was exactly the sort of thing that GSE should be offering students: an introduction to contemporary academic work presented in the proper format. I was also asked to censor the novels I would be teaching in my Area I class and told to remove any reference to sex they contained. I was assured these actions would be taken for this summer only, that the ADF had threatened to watch us closely this summer and would file a lawsuit if they felt we were including any material that was inappropriate, including any work that presented homosexuality as anything other than immoral. This they felt, violated North Carolina’s abstinence-only sex education policy. I did not offer the film series, censored the books, and discussed with students what it felt like to be a teacher taking actions that were homophobic and violated basic tenets of academic freedom. Our students that year also offered several thoughtful, reflective explorations and responses of what it meant to be students under such a system.
Olson's referring to the Alliance Defense Fund, an organization based in Arizona that has a history of bullying academic institutions into complacency.
I've written an open letter here to Tom Winton (DPI Director of Governor's School, twinton@dpi.state.nc.us) and Mary Watson (Director of Exceptional Children, which houses Governor's School, mwatson@dpi.state.nc.us). Email them if, like me, you're outraged by this!!!!
Tom and Mary:I was deeply disheartened to read of recent troubles at the Governor's School Program. As an alumni of the program (GSE Class of 2000 in Natural Science), I remember an experience that was incredibly moving and important for me as a young gay man. I was 17 at the time, and still struggling to find a place in North Carolina as an openly gay person.
In particular, I remember seeing the film "Ma Vie En Rose" at the event, which wholly transformed my ideas about sexuality and gender. The film is brilliant, if you haven't had the chance to see it, and I remember other students being challenged and informed by the beautiful and touching story.
This is why I was particularly troubled to read an open letter from Tonya Olson, who joined the faculty in 2002 and was -- it seems -- fired in 2007 without much comment, apparently the result of Olson's commitment to showing such provocative material.
This is unacceptable. Governor's School was a chance for students to engage new ideas. First and foremost, I remember constantly being asked to broaden my understandings of any subject at hand. Music, science, the arts -- whatever. The point is to push boundaries.
The Pope Foundation (who it seems helped to spark the charge for conformity at Governor's School) has a long history of bullying academic institutions into complacency. When I was a student at UNC Chapel Hill, they were well known for hiring students to "monitor" allegedly "suspicious" professors and the classes they taught. This is outrageous. It's not just mean-spirited, it's outright disgusting and anti-intellectual.
You and your organization should take a stand for what Governor's School was -- and what it was meant to be. As a doctoral student at the University of Michigan and a future professor, I understand better than ever the mission and goals of Governor's School. Don't let that vision be tarnished by an ultra-right wing bully organization.
I do hope that you will take better care of this program in the future. It has the potential to do great things, and to nurture great minds. Please keep that in mind when making decisions about its future.
Sincerely,
Trevor Hoppe
Graduate Student
Joint PhD Program
Sociology and Women's Studies
University of Michigan
Thanks to Jenna (fellow GSE alum) for the 411!
My Life as a Hermit CrabBy on June 9, 2008 4:47 AM | 2 Comments
This is how I feel right now! I'm laying in my bed in San Fran, tossing and turning -- and thinking about all the crazy places I've been. I realized I've lived (for at least 3 months) in 12 different homes in 7 different cities:
Columbia, SC: 1983 - 1993
Charlotte, NC: 1993 - 2001
Chapel Hill, NC: 2001 - 2002
Durham, NC: 2002 - 2003
Boston, MA: Summer, 2003
Chapel Hill, NC: 2003 - 2005
San Francisco, CA: 2005 - 2007
Ann Arbor, MI: 2007 - 2008
San Francisco, CA: Summer, 2008
Do I ever get to stay in one place? Or by signing up for academia, am I destined to keep hopping? I hate moving!!!!
A Friend's Song About Homophobia in SchoolsBy on June 9, 2008 3:48 AM | No Comments
So one of the authors for Beyond Masculinity, Brent Calderwood, has recorded a beautiful / touching song called "They Will Never Know" for a scholarship contest. Vote for his entry here -- or below!
By on June 5, 2008 2:16 PM | 2 Comments
Apparently, kissing your date at a Mariners game could get you in trouble:
As the Mariners played the Boston Red Sox on May 26, Sirbrina Guerrero and her date were approached in the third inning by an usher who told them their kissing was inappropriate, Guerrero said.The usher, Guerrero said, told them he had received a complaint from a woman nearby who said that there were kids in the crowd of nearly 36,000 and that parents would have to explain why two women were kissing.
Kids! As if kids are really that dumb. Kids get used in this battle all the time -- "don't let the children see!" Really, the kids are just pawns in their parents game -- or better yet, even in the game of someone who 1) has no children; and, 2) sees no children in a 2 mile radius. "But the children! THE CHILDREN!!!!!"
Get the fuck over it.
1,000,000 Homes in ForeclosureBy on June 5, 2008 2:07 PM | No Comments
Terrifying. Absolutely terrifying:
More than one million homes are now in foreclosure, the highest rate ever recorded, according to a trade group which warned Thursday that number will continue to climb.Obama Secures Nomination... Now What?The Mortgage Bankers Association's first quarter report showed that a record 2.5% of all loans being serviced by its members are now in foreclosure, which works out to about 1.1 million homes. That's up from the 2% of loans, or about 938,000 homes, that were in foreclosure at the end of 2007.
By on June 3, 2008 9:24 PM | No Comments
It's finally over, folks. Now the big question on everyone's mind: who will be his VP pick? Edwards doesn't really shore up his weakness on being perceived as too young. Clinton might be too difficult to reign in as a VP -- she could very well overshadow him along the way. Richardson is Latino, and while having a totally non-white ticket is certainly incredibly progressive, I doubt his strategists will be interested in making Obama seem even more lefty. So then, the question is: does he need an old white guy to be read as legitimate?
Made My NightBy on June 3, 2008 3:30 AM | No Comments
Before I hit the hay, I checked the comments over at Beyond Masculinity. A transgender woman from the Philippines left this very sweet comment on my essay, "The Making of a Southern Faggot."
beautiful essay.I'm an MTF transsexual, and I live in the Philippines, so I can't say that I identify 100% with the experiences that you'e described. Still, the article is touching, and it is scarily illuminating: much of the gay culture that I've come into contact with seems all to eager to shun minorities within the subgroup that are "embarassing" or "contrary to the cause".
I loved it, keep up the good work : )
:) Aww. Thanks "Proud Mary"!
Also, the editor of Q Magazine in Australia sent me a tear sheet proof for their Beyond Masculinity shout-out in their upcoming July issue. Yay! Here's a lil' screen shot. I'll post a link when it's officially up! Thanks to Brett and everyone over at Q Magazine for helping spread the word!
By on June 2, 2008 3:07 PM | No Comments
Clearly the Gods have been reading my blog. In my review of the movie version of SATC, I hoped and prayed that Samantha would get her own movie / TV series. And it appears that HBO agrees with me -- well, sort of. While Samantha isn't getting her own show, Kim Cattrall is! It's reportedly called "Sensitive Skin," and it's about "a middle-aged wife and mother (Cattrall) in New York who rediscovers her sexuality and begins to question her place in the world and the choices she has made in life."
God I hope it's good!
Fun Times @ Mitchel's Birthday Party!By on June 1, 2008 8:09 PM | No Comments
Hot strawberries! My San Francisco friend Mitchel rang in his birthday last night with plenty of debauchery to spare. I believe there was a ball-sizing contest at one point (see picture #1 below), which was preceded by ample amounts of champagne and assorted sundries. The contest was a tie, really. One had bigger testicles, but the other had a bigger sac. Technicalities!
Needless to say, it was a fab time. Enjoy the photos. I feel like my blog has been reduced to nothing but a photo album of my adventures these past few weeks, but I'm just too exhausted to do much more than that. There will come a day when my brain returns!!! I promise. More adventures should be coming soon, as we all made plans to scheme up a Russian River getaway sometime in June!!!
Every gay's favorite pass-time: "Whose balls are bigger?"
