Columnist Bud Kennedy of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has followed up on my recent story about an anti-gay e-mail sent to Log Cabin Republicans by the president of the Grand Prairie Republican Club. Kennedy reports that the author of the e-mail, 38-year-old Cylynda Caviness, is married to the Rev. Bobby Caviness, a 70-year-old retired Baptist pastor who once hosted a TV show called “Bible for Dummies.” One can’t help but wonder whether the show was inspired by his wife.
Cylynda Caviness married to host of 'Bible for Dummies'
Dixie new ’do: Natalie Maines, looking butch
From TMZ, photographed yesterday in Venice.
Owner of Oak Lawn restaurant facing charges
The owner of Bob’s Steak & Chop House on Lemmon Avenue, an Oak Lawn fixture, has been indicted for allegedly stealing $300,000 from an investor, The Dallas Morning News reports here.
Bromance: Oscar-winner Adrien walked by me at NorthPark
AFI Dallas 2009 kicked off last night at AMC NorthPark with a screening of “The Brothers Bloom,” starring Adrien Brody, above, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel Weisz.
Brody showed up, walked the red carpet by the NorthPark escalators and was honored with AFI’s “Dallas Star award.”
“Brothers Bloom” is a comedy about grifters — like a cute, modern version of “Paper Moon.” The adorable Weisz gave the strongest performance as Penelope, the kooky millionaire who’s smarter than the brothers who are trying to swindle her.
News from Delaware
The Delaware state Senate on Thursday defeated a proposed amendment to the state constitution seeking to define marriage as between a man and a woman. The vote was 9 to 11, with one senator not voting; 14 votes were necessary for the Senate to advance the amendment. Thursday’s vote means the amendment is dead for this legislative session.
Letters • March 27, 2009
You can’t keep everyone happy
With all the controversy going on about the article on the infamous "CoH Trio" ("Trio takes on Cathedral," Dallas Voice, March 20), I just wanted to thank Dallas Voice for the nice write-up in the Metro section of the Readers Voice Awards.
I find it ironic that we are hailed as the "Best Place of Worship" by Voice readers in the same issue as the article about the three unhappy men. But hey, I guess that is a classic example of how you can’t keep everyone happy all the time! Thanks again for including us and giving Voice readers a nice bit of CoH history.
Paul W. Taylor, director of communications
Cathedral of Hope UCC
‘Trio’ hurting Body of Christ
I have been a member of the Cathedral of Hope since 2001. I lived through the 2003 schism cited in the Dallas Voice article ("Trio takes on Cathedral," Dallas Voice, March 20). Blake Ashlock’s comment that, "This has nothing to do with the congregation," is yet another illogical statement that attests to the wrong-headed thinking exhibited by these three men in the way they handled their perceived grievances.
In point of fact, spreading rumors and lies about the CoH leadership, and then taking those grievances to the media in attempt to undermine those same church leaders when you don’t get your way does unequivocal harm to the congregation.
Those of us who support CoH looked on in dismay in 2003 as tens of thousands of dollars in church funds were diverted to pay for unnecessary legal and accounting fees to refute illogical and spiteful charges brought by a few disgruntled church members. This did in fact damage the congregation, which is the Body of Christ, and they also damaged the community as a whole by usurping money that could have been used to support the good work for which CoH is known locally and nationally.
If I had concerns about the fitness of church leadership that were not addressed to my satisfaction, I would take my time and my money to another church. To use these resources to mount an ill-thought-out attempt to further damage the church is neither loving nor supporting of the congregation, despite Mr. Ashlock’s contention to the contrary. I commend our board and church leadership for protecting our church home against yet another spiteful attack.
Rob Rowntree
Dallas
Dallas
‘Trio’ just making things worse
When will it all end ("Trio takes on Cathedral," Dallas Voice, March 20)? While I am sure the three men making these accusations truly believe they are trying to save their church, the only thing they are doing is making things worse — worse for them, for our church leaders, for our church community of faith and our community at large.
I do not doubt their passion for their convictions, but I disagree wholeheartedly with how they are going about this. I am a very faithful member of Cathedral of Hope and quite proud of this. I attend every Sunday, beginning my week with words of inspiration and hope that carry me forth.
Just about every friend I have in my life at this time, I have met at CoH. My story is not different from others in our congregation. I arrived angry and broken, but in time came to see that God does still love me and always has, just as I am. No other church in my years has ever told me this. CoH has always given me hope, fellowship and support. Never was I promised a perfect relationship with God or with anyone for that matter. That is not the world we live in.
One of my favorite moments in church, and I have lots of them, is when I am sitting in my pew after communion. At that moment, I look around the room and see I am part of something greater than myself. I am part of a community that longs to make this world a better place — better than what we had in our own childhoods and better for the children of future generations. We do not strive for this as a lofty goal. We do it now. Today! Isn’t that what we are really trying to do in praising God? I will continue to try, and to do!
Jason Shockley
Dallas
Dallas
CoH leaders make good things happen
Say what you wish about the clergy and staff of Cathedral of Hope. But without the drive and vision of the leaders many good things would not happen.
Hundreds of homeless would not be fed every Saturday morning through BACH (Breakfast At Cathedral of Hope). Thousands of area families would not have had meals to celebrate Christmas, Easter or Thanksgiving over the past several years. Hundreds, possibly thousands of children would not have Christmas. There are other programs and services that would not exist without those leaders, like the food wall at CoH that has assisted hundreds who are looking for their next meal. Hundreds have benefited from the annual health fairs the church sponsors and many who are suffering and in need of spiritual guidance would have gone without the support of those leaders, who spent countless hours with them.
Say what you wish. But I would put the great deeds of CoH up against any church in the area.
James Zackey
Dallas
Dallas
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 27, 2009.
Finding a job in a fair workplace in hard times
Resource Center of Dallas working with GLBT Chamber to offer job fair featuring employers who value diversity in the workplace
Imagine working at a job for six years with exceptional performance reviews. A new boss comes in, and in the space of three weeks you lose your job — because you are gay.
It happens every day, in just about every industry you can think of — because it’s all perfectly legal.
This is what happened to one of my colleagues at Resource Center of Dallas at a previous employer. Sadly, it could happen to just about any member of the gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender community.
We have no federal protections, unlike other protected classes such as race, gender, disability, religion, country of origin and age. On top of that, Texas does not have any state protections for its GLBT residents, although there are efforts in Austin to change that. Except for a few federal exceptions, you can be harassed at work or fired just for whom you love. Although there are employers who offer nondiscrimination policies for sexual orientation and gender identity, there’s sometimes a disconnect between what’s on paper and what actually happens in the workplace.
In a 2007 survey conducted by the Williams Institute at UCLA’s School of Law, between 1985 and 1995 as many as 68 percent of LGB employees reported employment discrimination at some point in their working lives. More than four out of 10 reported workplace discrimination ranging from harassment in the workplace, verbal or physical assaults, vandalism of property to denial of employment or termination.
The numbers are equally shocking for the transgender community. The same survey showed one out of two transgender individuals were either fired or denied employment based on their gender identity.
On top of all this, the federal benefits system is unjust. We pay the same taxes as everyone, but GLBT citizens aren’t entitled to the 1,138 federal benefits given to other Americans. Those benefits include Social Security survivor benefits and joint income tax filing.
Finally, the workforce itself is going through tremendous change. Every 10 minutes, a member of the "baby boomer" generation is retiring, according to Fortune Magazine. Two years from now two out of five members of the workforce will either be retired or eligible to do so.
That’s why diversity and inclusion are important in the 21st-century global workplace. When the best and brightest employees enjoy working for places where they feel secure, this translates into increased recruitment and retention rates. For GLBT employees, inclusion translates into fairness at work.
It’s not special rights, as some would claim. All we want is a level playing field.
This is why Resource Center of Dallas established a GLBT Job Expo several years ago, in cojunction with the North Texas GLBT Chamber. We wanted to serve as a bridge between GLBT jobseekers and those companies which not only embrace diversity and inclusion, they make it part of their workplace culture.
We have more than two dozen employers at this year’s Job Expo, from banking and insurance to education and government. All of them are seeking the best and brightest employees to join their workforce.
This year’s expo will also include a series of classes to help GLBT jobseekers. Do you need to brush up your interviewing skills? Is your resume as effective as it could be? Are you using your social networks to network about job openings? How do you stay motivated in my job search when every day you hear bad news about the economy? How can you start your own job and be your own boss?
We have classes that can help you find the answers to all those questions.
Yes, the economy is challenging, which makes it critically important that employers hire the best possible candidates. Their presence at the GLBT Job Expo sends a strong signal that they value and appreciate diversity in the workplace. Now, more than ever, we can help connect jobseekers with employers. Join us!
The 2009 GLBT Job Expo will be held Wednesday, April 1, at the Fincher Building of SMU’s Cox School of Business, 6212 Bishop Blvd., from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Free parking will be available for expo attendees along Bishop Boulevard.
It will be followed by a GLBT Chamber mixer at SMU’s Collins Executive Education Center from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Cece Cox is associate executive director GLBT community services at the Resource Center of Dallas.
E-mail ccox@rcdallas.org
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 27, 2009.
SXSW NOTEBOOK • Queer sounds at South-By
Austin’s steroided-out music fest keeps it wildly weird
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| LESBIANS LOVE IT: Twisted drag queen Rebecca Havemeyer (in the black wig) tears it up at Gay Bi Gay Gay. DANIEL A. KUSNER/Dallas Voice |
AUSTIN — You only need two things to survive the music conferences at South by Southwest: earplugs and a bicycle. Thank God, I strapped my mountain bike onto the trunk of my car before I headed to the Texas capital. Even while peddling up Austin’s steepest hills, it was better than being trapped in the eternal gridlock that blanketed the tiny city, which was like a four-day Lollapalooza on steroids.
Almost every downtown corner featured a showcase. With a wristband, you could literally walk down a Sixth Street alley and discover a labyrinth of tents that were turned into high-volume venues for speedmetal, British homeboy emcees and artsy Jewish synth-princesses.
Thursday, March 19
Why does everyone look like they’re … homeless? I’ve never seen so many unflattering fashion choices: crazy-affected Joaquin Phoenix beards and red-frame Buddy Holly glasses. While everyone at these showcases looks penniless, those iPhones are a dead giveaway.
Wearing cutoffs and a crummy oversized T-shirt, the girl bassist for noise-punk act Tyvek looks like she just cleaned her garage. What the three-piece Detroit band lacks in stage glam, they compensate for with punishing, ear-bleeding guitars — in a good way, actually. Between songs, lead man Kevin Boyer offhandedly thanks "the Republicans and homosexuals," addressing the small crowd gathered at the foot of the Emo’s Jr. stage.
Looking at my schedule, I realize Juliette Lewis’ new band played the Emo’s mainstage at 11 p.m. — on the previous night. Crud.
Before heading out, I whip by Rusty Spurs on Seventh Street, which is supposed to be a gay venue. There, Philadelphia’s Drink Up Buttercup blends the sound of Tom Waits’ crashing garbage-lids with sophisticated harmonies of The Beach Boys. Drink Up’s sweat-drenched singer James Harvey belts out his lyrics like he’s hanging onto a cliff and yelling for help.
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| QUEENS OF SXSW: Perez Hilton (pink hat) with Little Boots and Kid Cudi. DANIEL A. KUSNER/Dallas Voice |
Friday, March 20
At End of an Ear record store on South First Street, geezer punks The Homosexuals perform a quickie set at 5 p.m. Between songs, British fifty-something singer Bruno tells both George W. Bush and the pope, "To fuck off! When you kill one person in the name of religion, you kill a nation!"
The Homosexuals’ bouncy ditty "Simple Slam" explodes into chaos when the bassist crawls on the saltillo-tiled floor and slams Bruno’s mike against his strings.
A 9 p.m. slot at Ester’s Follies on Fifth Street is a comedy showcase featuring 15-minute sets with Hal Sparks and Margaret Cho. The "Queer as Folk" standup is a no-show. Instead, Janeane Garofalo takes the stage and passes out a huge bottle of hand sanitizer, warning the audience about "conservatism germs" and that we’re in "the end of times." Garofalo rants about fibromyalgia and her ignorance of Twitter, and says she stopped blogging and e-mailing the day that Dubya’s daughter Barbara Bush became her next-door neighbor in Manhattan.
Margaret Cho doesn’t waste a second. She can’t move her neck much, "Because I’ve been sucking so much American Apparel cock!" She launches into tales of performing fellatio on a biggie-sized dude: "But he smokes. I don’t like smoked cum — it’s like barbecue."
Then Cho straps on a six-string, saying, "I started playing guitar because I saw that Madonna could do it. How hard could it be?"
Cho could use two more years of lessons, but she puts it all back into her lyrics: "Your dick is so big / like a harpoon / I could see it from the moon."
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| Cho gets "guitarded." DANIEL A. KUSNER/Dallas Voice |
She closes with "Eat Shit and Die:" "I forgave you faults, forgave your snore / I forgave your interest in tranny whores."
There’s much buzz about The Pains of Being Pure at Heart’s 11 p.m. show at Emo’s Jr. where I spot gay MTV journo John Norris in the crowd. But the New York-based four-piece sounds stuck in college alternative radio, circa 1991. And synth player Peggy’s backup vocals are horrendously off pitch. What a bore-fest.
I bike over to Club de Ville on Ninth Street for the Biz 3 showcase, and catch my first about-to-be-superstar performance of the year: white girl Amanda Blank raps like an assault weapon. With gorgeous brunette tresses, the Philadelphia emcee speed-rhymes her way through an electrifying set. I notice that the crowd is fashionably different here — they’re dressed to get laid. And everyone is dancing!
Sitting beside me is headlining grime-rapper Lady Sovereign, who I make laugh and allows me to snap a FaceBook pic with her. Lady S.O.V. ends a four-song set with "Public Warning," and the crowd becomes a mosh-orgy as some big drunk dude starts palming my ass and petting my arm. Time to go.
Saturday, March 21
Erykah Badu performs a free concert at Auditorium Shores, and it’s the biggest crowd of the weekend. Badu’s gig has received more press than any artist. Thousands turn out, and it takes at least 30 minutes just to get through the gates. She is seriously late. Her band, The Cannabinoids, play an unrehearsed hour-long jam, promising that the Big D diva will soon grace the stage. Erykah finally makes it, and after her second song, she’s done. The set was less than 20 minutes. The huge crowd is shocked. (Later, I discover that her delay was due to a female stalker, who was pepper-sprayed and arrested at Badu’s East Dallas home.)
Perez Hilton’s people finally tell me that I’m on the guest list for his invite-only "One Night in Austin" bash, held at the Dell Lounge on East 11th Street. Because I was at the Badu gig, I miss surprise guests Indigo Girls and Ladyhawke. Perez’s showcase has the best lights and sound of any SXSW venue. The booze is free, and the crowd is thick with gay men.
Canadian rapper ThunderHeist and Seattle pop act Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head wow the crowd with tight sets that sound incredible. Then Beyonce’s little sister Solange takes the stage and kills it — such polish. The baby Knowles sista isn’t afraid to drop F bombs and even hops offstage to sing in the crowd.
Perez gets mad after Lady Sovereign sends a text message that she’s too sick to sing. And backstage, I run into Juliette Lewis.
With her rave-electro hits, Brit-pop princess Little Boots helps everyone find their G spot. And Perez introduces Little Boots singer Victoria Hesketh to Kid Cudi to perform an impromptu duet of Cudi’s "Day ‘N’ Night." Satisfied and exhausted, I head out at 1:30 a.m. — missing Kanye West’s surprise late-nite performance. The next morning, Perez e-mails me and thanks me for coming after he reads my blog recap on Instant Tea.
Sunday, March 22
With my bike strapped onto my Dodge Stratus, I head into bum-fuck East Austin for the Gay Bi Gay Gay showcase, which is held in the backyard of funky ghetto neighborhood. Worried that someone will steal my bike, I catch one performance: "Christeee-nah!" A friend tells me it’s really Austin’s twisted drag-queen Rebecca Havemeyer hamming it up. And does she.
With her gold-tooth, cracked-out interpretation of The Fifth Dimension’s "Up, Up and Away" Christina has the proud lesbians in the crowd in the palmss of her nasty hands. Then she and her backup-dancer strip down to granny panties and bust out an umbrella for a hilarious ball-flapping ditty about "when my pussy rains."
With that indelible, sidesplitting image, I head back to Dallas, loving Austin’s wild weirdness evermore.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 27, 2009.
Kendell: ‘We’re going to lose’
NCLR director says she expects decision upholding Prop 8 to come in late April, early May
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| Kate Kendell, executive director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights, speaks Wednesday, March 25 during the North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce’s 4th Anniversary Dinner and Business Excellence Awards. JOHN WRIGHT/Dallas Voice |
A veteran civil rights attorney who’s closely involved with the case told Dallas Voice this week she thinks there’s a 98 percent chance the California Supreme Court will uphold Proposition 8, the state’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage
"We’re going to lose," said Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, one of the organizations that filed the lawsuit challenging Prop 8.
"I think it was very clear from the oral arguments that the court intends to uphold Prop 8," Kendell added. "I’ve never seen a court so unequivocally telegraph their thinking."
Kendell was in Dallas on Wednesday, March 25 to speak at the North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce’s 4th Anniversary Dinner & Business Excellence Awards.
In an interview afterward, Kendell said she expects the California Supreme Court to issue its ruling in the Prop 8 case by late April or early May.
The court faces a June 3 deadline, 90 days from oral arguments, but Kendell expects the decision to come sooner rather than later.
"They have this case on a very fast trajectory and have from the very beginning," she said.
Kendell also said that she expects the court to affirm the validity of the roughly 18,000 same-sex marriages performed in California before voters approved Prop 8 in November. But she said the decision to affirm the marriages "requires no courage" from the court because the law is clear on that issue.
Predicting court decisions is normally a "risky proposition," Kendell said. However, due to California’s 90-day deadline, which sets it apart from most states, justices frequently make up their minds prior to oral arguments.
"On this issue, with this court, they seem almost to intentionally communicate how they’re planning to rule," Kendell said. "The only way they can get an opinion out in 90 days is if there’s already a draft opinion."
Kendell said the court’s all-but-certain decision to uphold Prop 8 will mean the only way it can be overturned is at the ballot box. She said it would be extremely unwise to pursue a federal appeal given the current makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court.
A U.S. Supreme Court decision saying there’s no federal constitutional right for same-sex couples to marry likely couldn’t be overturned for 20-30 years, and it would make state courts nationwide far less likely to rule in favor of marriage equality, Kendell said: "We certainly don’t want to do greater damage than what Prop 8 has already done."
The only question that remains, according to Kendell, is whether Prop 8 opponents should place a proposed repeal of the measure on the ballot in 2010 or in 2012. She said a vote next year would mean collecting 700,000 signatures this summer and raising another $40 million in a bad economy on the heels of last year’s campaign.
"My suspicion is that 2010 is too ambitious, and we certainly don’t want to be back on the ballot and lose," she said.
About 170 people attended Wednesday’s dinner at the Hilton Dallas Lincoln Centre, according to Tony Vedda, president and CEO of the North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce. Attendees included Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, Dallas City Councilman Dave Neumann and Fort Worth City Councilman Joel Burns.
Neumann read a proclamation in support of the chamber signed by all 15 councilmembers, and Leppert urged members to oppose Proposition 1, a May ballot measure aimed at derailing a proposed city-owned convention center hotel.
Jonathan Palant, artistic director for the Turtle Creek Chorale, served as master of ceremonies, and the dinner included performances by PUMP, an LGBT youth choir affiliated with TCC.
The chamber also announced the formation of its GLBT Leadership Education & Advocacy Program, or LEAP, a nonprofit aimed at supporting youth and nurturing the development of leaders in the community.
Brandon Dowdy, board member for Youth First Texas and development associate for AIDS Arms Inc., received the chamber’s Emerging Leader Award. Jeff Youngblood and Cory Merchant received the Chairman’s Award.
Other award-winners were Thom Dance, Member Service; EDS, an HP Company, Corporate Ally; Gina Menicucci and Susan Amick, Community Service; Christopher Watts, Business Person of the Year; and FASTSIGNS of Irving/Las Colinas, Business of the Year.
E-mail wright@dallasvoice.com
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 27, 2009.
Black Tie taps Judy Shepard for Birch Award
Gay murder victim’s mother has become tireless LGBT advocate
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| Judy Shepard |
Officials with the Dallas-Fort Worth Black Tie Dinner have announced that activist Judy Shepard will be on hand at this year’s dinner, set for Oct. 3, to receive the 2009 Elizabeth Birch Equality Award.
The announcement came Thursday night, March 26, during a Black Tie Dinner reception at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center.
Shepard is the mother of Matthew Shepard, the gay man whose 1998 murder made headlines around the world and focused attention on the issue of anti-gay violence.
Matthew Shepard was 21 and a student at the University of Wyoming in Laramie when he was kidnapped, robbed, tortured and beaten nearly to death by two young men he met at an area bar.
Russell Henderson and Aaron McKinney offered Matthew Shepard a ride, then drove him into the countryside where they robbed and beat him. They tied him, unconscious and barely alive, to a fence and left him there to die.
Matthew Shepard was discovered 18 hours later by a passing bicyclist. He never regained consciousness and died five days later, on Oct. 12.
In court, Henderson and McKinney claimed they had only intended to rob their victim, not kill him, and that they only panicked and lost control when Matthew Shepard made a pass at them.
Henderson eventually pleaded guilty and is serving a life sentence. McKinney was found guilty but escaped the death penalty when Judy Shepard and her husband, Dennis, asked that he not be executed. He is now serving two consecutive life sentences.
Matthew Shepard’s murder made him into a symbol for the LGBT community’s ongoing fight against hate crimes and for the passage of a comprehensive federal hate crimes law. The hate crimes law under consideration in Congress is named in his honor.
His murder, in turn, transformed his parents, and especially his mother, into activists. The two decided to turn their grief into action and have since established the Matthew Shepard Foundation, dedicated not only to combating hate-based violence, but also to the causes their son championed: social justice, diversity awareness and education and LGBT equality.
Black Tie officials said this week that Shepard’s work makes her the embodiment of the theme for the 2009 fundraising dinner: "Courage. Hope. Inspiration."
"Judy’s distinction of being one of the most respected leaders in this country’s civil rights movement clearly makes her a worthy recipient of this award," said Laurie Foley, Black Tie Dinner co-chair.
Dinner Co-chair Ron Guillard added, "Judy Shepard … has successfully drawn the nation’s attention toward and championed the passage of hate crimes legislation that is inclusive of the LGBT community, as well as provided programs and much needed support for LGBTQ youth. For this, we commend her."
The Birch Award, presented each year at the Black Tie Dinner to someone who has made a significant impact nationally on the fight for LGBT equality, is named in honor of former Human Rights Campaign Executive Director Elizabeth Birch. The 2008 winner was Episcopal Bishop V. Gene Robinson.
Black Tie Dinner also presents the Raymond Kuchling Award each year to someone who has had a significant impact locally on LGBT equality.
Black Tie officials announced the names of 19 local beneficiaries last week for 2009.
The 2009 dinner will be held at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel, and individual tickets are $300. Sponsorships are also available.
For more information, go online to www.BlackTie.org or call 972-733-9200.
E-mail nash@dallasvoice.com
