Political IQ: The ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Wimp Out
By Diane Silver Aaron Belkin, Nathaniel Frank, Gregory Herek, Elizabeth Hillman, Diane Mazur and Bridget Wilson took Barack Obama's last excuse away. The two law professors, one attorney and assorted other academics penned a study [...]
Creep of the Week: Harry Jackson
His name ain't Baby, it's Harry. Mr. Jackson if you're nasty. And just like Janet, Harry has got his eye out for nasty boys. Specifically, boys who get nasty with each other and want their [...]
Parting Glances: Fairy tale for Pride 2009
Once upon a time there was a genie just let out of a confining lamp. How long he had been trapped inside, he couldn't say. The lamp had lain wedged between a smooth rock and [...]
The ‘Real’ Deal
Some of Vanessa Williams' sweetest days were spent on top of the Billboard charts. Her trademark tune, "Save the Best for Last," was released 17 years ago, showing that the do-it-all diva was more than [...]
She … Amanda Lepore
Amanda Lepore is pretty. Really pretty. And she has no qualms about pouting her lips or pouring out her cleavage enough times so you know it. The "My Pussy" singer's been plasticized into something of [...]
A2CT stages ‘Kiss Me Kate’
Ann Arbor Civic Theatre presents the rollicking musical-comedy "Kiss Me Kate," directed by Edmond Reynolds, June 11-14 at the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre. "Kiss Me Kate," with music by Cole Porter, is the classic play-within-a-play about [...]
Book Marks
by Richard Labonte "At Least In the City Someone Would Hear Me Scream: Misadventures in Search of the Simple Life," by Wade Rouse. Harmony Books, 272 pages, $23.95 hardcover. You can take the boy out [...]
Letting It Out
Paul Lekakis might be the biggest tease you know, but sex-talk, ambiguity and big, superhero arms were the stud's recipe for late '80s success. As long as you'd come back to his place he'd "love [...]
Living the ‘Dream’
Sometimes out artists won't give interviews to LGBT press like us because they don't want the "gay" or "lesbian" label to interfere with their art. "American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert, who still won't confirm or [...]
From ‘Band Fag’ to ‘Drama Queer’
NEW YORK - Lightning can strike twice - or at least it did May 26 with the release of "Drama Queers!," the second novel by Hazel Park native Frank Anthony Polito that explores gay teen [...]
What are we looking at?
By Rev. Deb Dysert In my Connection Group at MCC Detroit, we're studying a book that has been on the best-seller list for quite some time, "The Shack" by William Paul Young. It's a thought-provoking [...]
Vodka, Now Available in Juniper Flavor
By Camper English Cocktail Chatter I like to think of "bathtub gin" as "Martinis by the pool," but that's not where the expression originated. It came about during Prohibition when people would "make" their own [...]
Deep Inside Hollywood
By Romeo San Vicente 'Milk' screenwriter to direct Neeson and Connelly When young, gay writer Dustin Lance Black snagged a Best Original Screenplay Oscar this year for "Milk," it was pretty much inevitable that he [...]
You’re a political dynamo, Cancer!
By Jack Fertig Q Scopes Mars just entered Taurus, shifting everyone into more careful, determined methods. He's now trine Pluto pushing us to push harder toward our own goals, making cooperation more difficult, but absolutely [...]
Damaged Goodies
Q Puzzle Across 1 Vowels of Sappho 5 City where they sing "Hello, Dalai"? 10 Razor feature 14 Blackball 15 Made easier to bear 16 Province of Spain 17 Antifur org. 18 Bikini not just [...]
Between Ourselves
by Jessica Carreras Dave Wait, like many others in the LGBT community, took on a huge job - for no pay. The 49-year-old Whitmore Lake resident is this year's Chair of Motor City Pride, in [...]
Grassroots activism takes off in Michigan
A Facebook message sent out last week notified members of the LGBT community that grassroots discussions about LGBT rights in Michigan will begin shortly. The first meeting will be hosted by organizers of the Day [...]
Kurzawa (and exhibit) bare it all
by Jessica Carreras FERNDALE - Visitors to Affirmations over the next few weeks - including during Motor City Pride - will be surprised to see what's on the walls. On May 28, the center's Pittmann-Puckett [...]
Same-sex marriage advocates call for 2012 equality push
by BTL Staff LANSING - A crowd of nearly 100 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their supporters protested on the steps of the Michigan Capitol on the night of May 26 in opposition [...]
Lansing Police arrest two, seek a third in sex sting operation
LANSING - Undercover officers from the Lansing Police Department conducted an undercover sting operation in Lansing's Fenner Aboretum and Nature Center on May 22. The operation resulted in the arrest of two men on charges [...]
Steppin’ Out to host several upcoming events
Steppin' Out, organizers of the annual AIDS Walk Detroit in Royal Oak, are hosting a slew of events in June and July to raise funds for their cause. First, all during the month of June, [...]
White heads to Affirmations
HIV/AIDS activist Jeanne White Ginder is in the midst of a national tour of public speaking engagements and is making a stop at Affirmations community center in Ferndale. White Ginder will be speaking at the [...]
Australian benefits agency recognizes gay de facto couples
by Rex Wockner International News Briefs Centrelink, the Australian government's social-benefits agency, will treat gay de facto couples as married for benefits purposes starting July 1. While the move increases equality, it also will result [...]
Church of Scotland OKs partnered gay minister
by Rex Wockner International News Briefs The General Assembly of the Church of Scotland voted 326-267 on May 24 to uphold the appointment of a partnered gay minister at a parish in Aberdeen. The Rev. [...]
Colombian policeman added to partner’s health insurance
by Rex Wockner International News Briefs The Board of Health of Colombia's National Police granted health insurance benefits to the partner of a gay officer May 14. The extension of coverage to Fabian Mauricio Chibcha [...]
Peru gay police ban less stringent than reported
by Rex Wockner International News Briefs Peruvian Interior Minister Mercedes Cabanillas says recent news reports that gays have been banned from being police officers were not quite right. Mid-May reports said cops who have sex [...]
Quebec to launch strategy against homophobia
by Rex Wockner International News Briefs Quebec Justice Minister Kathleen Weil has announced the Canadian province will implement a comprehensive strategy against homophobia before the end of the year. She broke the news at a [...]
Advancing, or hurting the cause?
By Lisa Keen In a move gay groups say could be detrimental to the cause of equal rights, one of the nation's best known conservative attorneys, and a U.S. Solicitor General under President George W. [...]
New Hampshire expected to be pass marriage bill
By Lisa Keen After two aborted take-offs, same-sex marriage in New Hampshire is once again poised at the top of the runway. On June 3, the state legislature is expected to pass its third version [...]
Michigan sets a date for marriage
The May 26 rally and protest at the Lansing Capitol Building was a special night. It wasn't because we were speaking out against the injustice of the decision of the California Supreme Court to uphold [...]
2009 Pride Calendar
Looking forward to a boring summer? A lack of funds doesn't have to mean a lack of fun. From Motor City Pride all the way to Windsor Pride, every month is bursting with LGBT-friendly things [...]
To Love, Honor and Be Recognized
FERNDALE - For the past five years, gay and lesbian couples have been affirming their love with a mass wedding ceremony as part of the events leading to the annual Motor City Pride Celebration in [...]
Pre-Pride Beach Bash
Looking for a little fun - but can't wait for Pride? The 20-Somethings group at Affirmations knows how you feel. The group, begun by the center's freshest batch of LGBT young adults, are hosting their [...]
Pride Movie Night
Scot's a little different. Come see why at the Grand Rapids Pride Movie Night, showing the Canadian gay comedy "Breakfast with Scot" at the Urban Institute of Contemporary Arts in downtown Grand Rapids on June [...]
A ‘rainbow’ of possibilities
by Jessica Carreras Symbols are as much a part of society as language. And like language, symbols and their meanings differ depending on the group, region or community that is using them. A rainbow flag. [...]
40 years, 40 events
by Jessica Carreras June 28, 1969 Police raid the Stonewall Inn of New York City, causing the infamous uprising of LGBT protestors in the Stonewall Riots. 1969 The Advocate, first published as local newsletter The [...]
White Party
One ticket, four bars and a whole night of fun. Michigan Pride is hosting its first ever White Party as part of their annual Pride celebration. Four bars in Lansing's Old Town will be participating, [...]
Yet another Wilde year in the theater
By BTL Staff As the nation's economy sputtered and tanked, Michigan's professional theater community proved once again that when times get tough, thespians get creative. So what could have been a disastrous 2008-09 season was [...]
Williamston delivers one for the boys
By D. A. Blackburn It's been a year since Williamston Theatre unveiled the first installment of its "Voices From The Midwest" series, but the second work of this trilogy, "Flyover USA: Voices from Men of [...]
A silly habit at Meadow Brook Theatre
I have a confession to make. After surviving 15 years of Catholic school education - I went "public" for kindergarten and my first year of college - I've developed a soft spot for Dan Goggin's [...]
WWC?’s ‘Trainspotting’ comes off the rails
By D. A. Blackburn This season has seen some tremendous strides by Who Wants Cake? Theatre. Productions like "Love and Human Remains" and "Killer Joe" have shown audiences that they're every bit as capable of [...]