Dear Jody: Leave me alone!
Q: I was sitting in my class and this guy behind me started whispering something that I couldn't initially understand. It was distracting, and I couldn't hear the professor. Finally, I figured out what the [...]
Queeries: Come Out, Come Out Wherever You Are
By Steven Petrow â¨â¨â¨ How do I come out at work (and keep my job)?â¨â¨Q: I've worked at a fairly conservative firm for years and have always brought opposite-sex "dates" to parties. But now that [...]
Ferndale hot-spot, Club 9, changes business owners
It's time for Tom Pearlman, the former business owner of Ferndale's Club 9, to move on. He's passed on the gay party place at the corner of Nine Mile Road and Woodward to Kiana Dennis [...]
Cocktail Chatter: All About Absinthe
By Camper English Despite sampling nearly every brand of absinthe available for sale in the United States, I have yet to see any green fairies outside of the LGBT contingent at the annual St. Patrick's [...]
The ‘Lions’ Queen
By Gregg Shapiro The first new album of all-original material in four years from out jazz-rock-folk musician Erin McKeown - "Hundreds of Lions" - is cause for roaring. The plucked strings and woodwinds of "To [...]
Jill Sobule’s ‘Years’ fly by
Jill Sobule kissed a girl first. Then when Katy Perry did, the couple-hit wonder showed her who's boss by calling the pop lesbian-poser a "little slut" to cultural online-pub The Rumpus. Smart move, Sobule: It [...]
Deep Inside Hollywood: Ewan McGregor, Daniel Radcliffe
By Romeo San Vicente Ewan McGregor to star in a gay movie ... again Romeo's still waiting for the long-delayed homo romantic comedy "I Love You, Philip Morris" to finally open in U.S. theaters, but [...]
Slow and easy does it, Taurus!
By Jack Fertig Q Scopes Saturn leaving Virgo should offer some relief to the economy (despite still much larger problems!). But in Libra he brings three years of greater social conservatism, including stronger formalization of [...]
Hear Me Out: Tegan and Sara make heaven out of hell, Backstreet Boys bomb
Tegan and Sara, 'Sainthood' "My misery's so addictive," Tegan Quin speed-sings on the hyper-rocker "Northshore." No crap - whatever the direction this Canadian-twin duo takes with their angsty indie-pop, they never forget to plug in [...]
Late for a Date
Across 1 Mabius of "The L Word" 5 Controversial path for same-sex partners 10 Tennessee Williams' _"Summer and Smoke" heroine 14 Ani DiFranco's "___ Pretty Girl" 15 Fly cry 16 Retreat for D.H. Lawrence 17 [...]
The OutField: Rounding third, heading home
By Dan Woog Straight readers say that it takes them about 80 pages before realizing that the two high school players at the heart of "Rounding Third" are attracted to each other. Gay readers figure [...]
Controversial ‘Dutchman’ confronts race
By Jenn McKee Inevitably, staging Amiri Baraka's "Dutchman" is a risk - as evidenced by the audience of only 10 at the Magenta Giraffe Theatre Company's production on Saturday night. Why? Because the 1964 play [...]
Creepy fun from The Abreact’s all stars
By D. A. Blackburn What are theater administrators to do when their annual Halloween production meets the axe at the hands of space and scheduling conflicts? If said theater administrators happen to be Chuck Reynolds [...]
The Box: Sophomore show lacks laughs
Relax. Take a deep breath. Slow down. And have fun! That's what kept running through my mind during the opening night performance of the Neil Simon comedy "I Ought to be in Pictures" at The [...]
B-movie makes grade A musical at Ringwald
By D. A. Blackburn The question had an ominous tone to it. I'd just arrived at Ferndale's Ringwald Theatre for the opening of "Evil Dead: The Musical," and Jamie Richards was gesturing toward a sign [...]
Brussels, Belgium
By Andrew Collins Out of Town As the headquarters of NATO and the European Union, Brussels ranks among the most international and sophisticated cities in the world. Though founded in the seventh century, Brussels is [...]
Michigan ACLU to host annual dinner
The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan is celebrating its 50th anniversary and will commemorate this milestone during its 2009 Annual Dinner on Saturday, Nov. 7. It will be held at the Westin Book Cadillac, [...]
Between Ourselves
by Jessica Carreras Monica Bowman is the owner of Ferndale art gallery The Butcher's Daughter. Situated in the LGBT-friendly city, Bowman seeks to explore issues such as gender and creativity through the contemporary art shown [...]
Going ‘Beyond Intolerance’
KALAMAZOO - For years there has been a sense that youth are emotionally effected by the reactions of their families when they come out as gay or trans, but never before has there been hard [...]
The Duel is on
In what has been dubbed "the cooking event showdown of the season," from 6-10 p.m. on Nov. 7, Affirmations LGBT community center and the Triangle Foundation will battle it out - with pots, pans, utensils [...]
Full Truth in big trouble
by Jessica Carreras Things are quite cold - literally and figuratively - at the Full Truth Fellowship of Christ Church of Detroit. The heat is off due to an outstanding bill of over $4,000, and [...]
Terry Kuseske runs for Kalamazoo City Commission
Past and present affiliations, in part: Cass County Commissioner (1978-1982), Kalamazoo Public Safety Review Board (2001-2003), City of Kalamazoo Planning Commission, Michigan Equality Board of Directors, Kalamazoo Alliance for Equality, One Kalamazoo Steering Committee What [...]
Out for office
by Jessica Carreras For the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, it seems that every year is a record year. The national organization, which specializes in supporting and training LGBT leaders running for all levels of [...]
Greg Pawlica runs for Ferndale City Council
Past and present affiliations, in part: Ford Motor Company GLOBE, Police and Fire Board, Ferndale Community Foundation, Steppin' Out Board of Directors, Ferndale Elks Club, Sierra Club What made you decide to run? After the [...]
Obituary: Douglas Pizzala
Doug Pizzala of Pleasant Ridge died on Monday, Oct. 26 at Henry Ford Hospital. Mr. Pizzala was the longtime companion of Ken Pape, HIV/AIDS coordinator for the State of Michigan Department of Human Services. Pizzala [...]
Pugh under fire
DETROIT - "I've been through a lot worse, and I'll get through this," said media personality and current Detroit City Council candidate Charles Pugh, speaking Sunday to supporters at a fundraiser organized by the Billionaire [...]
A legacy continued
by Jessica Carreras DETROIT - The Ruth Ellis Center celebrated its 10th anniversary on Oct. 22 with a gala at the Scarab Club in Detroit, where local dignitaries and longtime supporters of the center gathered [...]
Jim Rasor runs for Royal Oak City Commission
Past and present affiliations, in part: Royal Oak Zoning Board of Appeals, lawyer, Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce, Steppin' Out AIDS Walk What made you decide to run? Being a lawyer and a fan of [...]
Federal hate crimes bill to become law this week
By Lisa Keen On Oct. 11, Judy Shepard and her husband were honored at the Human Rights Campaign's national dinner in Washington, DC for the work they have done educating the public about the need [...]
Treated equally?
It's hard to trust Detroit politicians. With the constant scandal and history of falsehoods being told to the city's constituents, even the most honest and worthy candidate can get caught up in Detroit's bad image [...]
Creep of the Week: Ken Cuccinelli
Looking for a good Halloween costume? Why not go as Ken Cuccinelli, Republican candidate for Virginia Attorney General. As Joe Sudbay of America Blog puts it, "He's very scary." Why is he so scary? Well, [...]
Parting Glances: Ghosts on parade
For five dynamic years - 1940 to 1945 - Detroit was the Arsenal of Democracy, a vital source of war material. First for England's defense. Later, for our own. Automotive factories focused on round-the-clock, nonstop [...]
S/he said: Peter Tatchell, Bangor Daily News, Dr. Torres
"LGBT people have made great progress in Britain, especially in the last decade. But in large parts of the world, homophobic and transphobic oppression remains rife. What is happening in Jamaica is symptomatic of a [...]
The Gay Moralist: The homosexual agenda
John Corvino Gay marriage opponents claim that we gay folk are trying to influence your children. In one sense, they are quite right. We are not trying to "recruit" your children, if by that you [...]
Anti-gay Reject 71 campaign looses in federal court
SEATTLE - The Approve 71 campaign won an important victory, Oct. 27 in federal court when Federal District Court Judge Ronald Leighton turned down an effort by the Reject 71 campaign to eviscerate Washington's voter-approved [...]
When we act out of love
by Beverly Davidson "Love is a relationship founded on the realization that we are all connected, that everyone matters, that every single person is precious. True love does not stop at feeling; it cannot stop [...]
Obama ends last vestige of HIV travel ban
By Lisa Keen Friday, Oct. 30 - President Obama announced today that his administration will end the long-standing policy at Health and Human Services that banned immigration by people with HIV infection. He announced the [...]
President signs Hate Crimes bill into law
By Lisa Keen Keen News Service Saying "no one in America should ever be afraid to walk down the street holding the hands of the person they love," President Obama on Wednesday announced his signing [...]
Victory in Kalamazoo
by Jessica Carreras KALAMAZOO - There was much to celebrate in Kalamazoo on Nov. 3. In local government, Mayor Bobby Hopewell will be holding his spot for a second two-year term, while incumbents staying on [...]
President Pugh
DETROIT - Change has come. Five new faces will grace the council table in Detroit next year. Voters elected newcomers to the top three spots and placed an openly gay man at the head of [...]
Rasor wins council seat in Royal Oak
ROYAL OAK - Attorney Jim Rasor was elected to one of three open seats on the Royal Oak Commission, becoming the second openly gay man to win a seat on that city's commission. Gary Lelito, [...]
Ferndale split on gay candidates
FERNDALE - The first time Ferndale Mayor Craig Covey ran for City Council in 1995 he came in dead last in a race among four candidates. But he did not let the disappointment stop him [...]