The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine) articles from April 2009

The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine) archives from April 2009

Editor's letter.
April 1, 2009... SPRING HAS ALWAYS BEEN MY FAVORITE SEASON. That's not to say that it doesn't have plenty of competition: Summer, when I'm lucky, means time with friends on Fire Island; in autumn I get to drag my favorite sweaters out of storage; and winter...

The fate of Prop. 8.(THIS MONTH ON ADVOCATE.COM)(same sex marriage)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Advocate.com's coverage of Proposition 8 continues as the California supreme court begins to hear oral arguments and determines the fate of marriage equality in the Golden State.

More kings of the hill.(THIS MONTH ON ADVOCATE.COM)(David Medina and Alison Nathan)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Coverage of the openly gay members of the Obama administration continues online with profiles of the rest of the team, including David Medina--deputy chief of staff, Office of the First Lady--and Alison Nathan of the White House Counsel's...

Top five stories on advocate.com.(THIS MONTH ON ADVOCATE.COM)(Matthew Mitcham, Jason Wu, and Nike Inc.'s homophobic advertisement)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... January 10-February 10 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 1. Matt's Next Act The Advocate sits down with Olympic gold-medal diver Matthew Mitcham--plus photos, videos, and outtakes from his exclusive photo shoot. 2. Michelle Goes Gay Dressing...

Our hero.(Feedback)(Letter to the editor)
April 1, 2009... Thanks so much for your gorgeous feature on Matthew Mitcham ["Matt's Next Act," March] (what took you so long?). The day Matt won the gold was the best Olympics moment of my life. How about all you gay companies step up to the plate and endorse...

Wandamania.(Feedback)(Letter to the editor)
April 1, 2009... I love Wanda Sykes ["Black and Gay Like Me," March]! Wanda, you are an inspiration. You are saving lives, minds, and hearts. Go on, girl! TONY CONDE New York, N.Y. My hero before, my goddess now! Wanda, if you spy this, I love...

A place for anger.(Feedback)(Letter to the editor)
April 1, 2009... James Kirchick makes relevant points about how the LGBT community can engage the "moderate majority of Americans," but I think there is a place for anger in our agenda for equality ["Play Nice, Folks," March]. But it's only one piece of a...

Not on the same page.(Feedback)(Letter to the editor)
April 1, 2009... While Bishop Robinson may be correct to a certain degree regarding gays in the church, all dioceses are not in agreement ["Divide and Conquer," March]. While in certain dioceses gays are welcome, that is not true for some. As a gay man I was...

Prepping for PrEP.(Feedback)(Letter to the editor)
April 1, 2009... "The Next Condom Conundrum" [February] focused important attention on research into pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection, but also misrepresented how men who have sex with men are responding to this possible new HIV...

Correction.(Feedback)(Correction notice)
April 1, 2009... Correction: Our March story "Frank's New Face" should have indicated that Rep. Barney Frank plans to sponsor a revision to the U.S. Census allowing people to identify as same-sex couples, not transgender.

Are you--or is someone you know--using PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis)?(ONLINE POLL)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] I use it 1% I use it, and I know others who do too 1% I don't use it, but I know others who do 8% I've never even heard of this 90% How readers responded to the Advocate.com poll question featured in...

Class structure: how's this for progress: A gay man is appointed to lead the Chicago public school system and hardly anybody says a word--not about his sexual orientation, anyway.(ADVANCE)(Ron Huberman)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] RON HUBERMAN'S APPOINTMENT as head of the Chicago public school system--the nation's third largest--generated criticism, but not because he's gay. Instead, the 37-year-old is drawing more heat for being brand-new to...

Fear and loathing in Gainesville: a campaign to kill trans and gay protections in a Florida city heads straight to the toilet.(ADVANCE)
April 1, 2009... When Rachael Valentine exited the ladies' room of a Perkins Restaurant in Gainesville, Fla., a few years ago, she was greeted on the other side of the door by a shrieking woman. The stranger lunged at the transgender Valentine, furious over her...

Happy ending.(ADVANCE)(Telstra Corporation Ltd. and Matthew Mitcham's contract for endorsement)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A week after a bong sullied the future sponsorship prospects of Michael Phelps in late January, Australia's Olympic hero Matthew Mitcham struck gold. Telstra, an Australian telecommunications company, signed the...

Gays of state.(ADVANCE)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] OPENLY GAY POLITICIANS fill parliamentary and city council seats worldwide, but there's only one openly gay head of government: Iceland's new prime minister, Johanna Sigurdardottir, who was installed by the...

Gaydar.(ADVANCE)(Lily Allen and Kelly Clarkson)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... "I find him quite annoying... as a gay man you should be championing young girls that are going out there and doing their own thing and not slamming them for owning their sexuality and calling them sluts." [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] LILY...

On its last logs? An infusion of cash just saved the Log Cabin Republicans, but a power vacuum may do the group in.(ADVANCE)(gay republican group's fund raising)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... TEN WEEKS BEFORE the Log Cabin Republicans National Convention in mid April, the group's president, Patrick Sammon, packed up his office. The week prior, the group's only other full-time staffer, communications director Scott Tucker, quit too....

Friends in high places.(ADVANCE)(politicians who support same sex marriage)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND--Hillary Clinton's Senate replacement from the state of New York--has a 100% positive rating by the National Rifle Association. This 42-year-old mother of two also publicly supports same-sex marriage. Of the 99 senators in...

Work it out.(QUEERIES)(Brief article)(Column)
April 1, 2009... When the ex is a coworker, where's the line between business and revenge? Ethical pro STEPHEN MILIOTI explains. Q: I dated a coworker for two years, but we split up a few months ago, and we're still tense around each other. My boss is a...

Debauchery springs eternal.(ADVANCE: Civil Survey)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] IT'S A COMPLICATED RELATIONSHIP between the residents of Palm Springs, Calif., and the tens of thousands of gay party animals who descend on the town every April. The raucous White Party circuit event first stormed...

Ignorance [not equal to] bliss.(ADVANCE: Talking Points)(John Maynard Keynes )(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Our president's economic strategy is influenced by the theories of economist John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946). Keynes was an unabashed queen and had a long relationship with the painter Duncan Grant. Sadly, he was also a bigot who probably would...

Abraham Lincoln.(ADVANCE: Talking Points)(gay rumor)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... The phrase "queer as a $3 bill" existed long before "queer" was a synonym for "gay." However, Abraham Lincoln, who appears on the $5 bill, was reportedly queer, having shared his bed with at least two men over the course of his life.

Mad money.(ADVANCE: Talking Points)(John Nash)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Despite his denials, reports of gay affairs persist about economist and nut job John Nash. He was arrested in a Santa Monica, Calif., men's room in 1954 for indecent exposure. Russell Crowe, who played Nash in A...

Suze Orman.(ADVANCE: Talking Points)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Suze Orman, the no-nonsense financial guru mid lesbian, ends each show with the phrase "people first, then money, then the." She's obviously never had to wrestle the last remaining Thorn Browne jacket out of...

That makes no cents.(ADVANCE: Talking Points)(Lawrence Summers)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... One of Obama's chief economic advisers, Lawrence Summers, retired from the presidency of Harvard University after several controversies, including statements he made implying girls aren't good at math and science. From the looks of Summers,...

Rubber & glue.(ADVANCE: Talking Points)(Barney Frank and Dick Armey)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Gay congressman Barney Frank is chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. Former House majority leader Dick Armey once nicknamed him "Barney Fag," apparently because Dick Armey didn't realize how faggy his...