What Doesn’t Kill You (Makes You Stronger)
By Anthony Paull My god Becky! The new "it" boy in the neighborhood is a serial rapist. He's the hottest thing since those hideous lawn globes. He's in all the papers. I want him. I [...]
The Real Mike Ruiz
A child imagines life outside reality by creating a wild, monster-inhabited world of escapism in "Pan's Labyrinth," a stylistic fantasy-art film released in 2006 from Guillermo del Toro. That world, or at least a version [...]
Opera singer finds ‘fame’
By Michael H. Margolin LONDON - When he was 16, Noah Stewart, an American tenor, met legendary soprano Leontyne Price when she was autographing records in a New York store. He said he wanted to [...]
Deep Inside Hollywood
By Romeo San Vicente Tom Hardy as gay rugby star. Yes, we buy it. It wasn't bad news to hear that Mickey Rourke wanted to play Welsh gay rubgy star Gareth Thomas in a new [...]
Think ahead, Aquarius!
By Jack Fertig Q Scopes Mars is finally turning direct on the 13th! As he starts moving forward, heal recent blow-ups and resentments. He's opposing Neptune, so over-eagerness and hypersensitivity may aggravate raw wounds. Time [...]
Hear Me Out: Madonna fights to keep up with the kids
Madonna, 'MDNA' No one can replace Madonna. We get it. And should we not, the queen of pop's latest electro-romp and eighth No. 1-charting album, "MDNA," reminds us that, despite other "reductive"-sounding acts, she's still... [...]
Let’s All Act Up
Across 1 Decide not to swallow 5 Lollipop cop 10 Lustful one, informally 14 Mary topper 15 Toughen up 16 Gillette razor product 17 Bit from Ted Casablanca 18 Newsgroup messages 19 P's for Socrates [...]
A stunning exploration of primal themes
By John Quinn As the Lakota tell the tale, during a time of drought and famine, White Buffalo Calf Woman came among them. She brought them the buffalo, and taught her people many rituals and [...]
Hilberry asks: ‘What price salvation now?’
By John Quinn While every playwright infuses his or her work with their personal philosophy, few attack the social order with the intensity of George Bernard Shaw. His 1905 play, "Major Barbara," being staged by [...]
The rebirth of Broderick Tower
For over 30 years, Broderick Tower, at 10 Witherell in Detroit, stood empty and deteriorating. The 34-story skyscraper, built in 1928 as Eaton Tower, was once full of tiny offices and scores of small business [...]
Fooding around
Using food to bring people together is natural for Kevin Piotrowski. His fondest memories since childhood happened over eating with family and friends. Once a week, he invites guests into his kitchen through his online [...]
The Detroit Boom
Lots of talk lately has centered on young people moving to the city of Detroit against the odds, bringing creative ideas, fresh energy and investments with them. There's a buzz around town about this revival, [...]
Michigan Farm Markets
There is nothing more delightful, than visiting the farm markets in Michigan. Agriculture has always been one of Michigan's major industries, and Michigan is still the leader in producing delicious cherries and blueberries. Visit on [...]
Yummy ‘Taste and Tour’ of Old Town Lansing
Old Town Commercial Association is hosting its fifth annual Taste & Tour of Old Town, a progressive food sampler and exclusive loft tour. The sampler gives visitors a chance to taste a variety of Old [...]
‘Happiness’ for the home
By Andrea Poteet Shopping centers and strip malls are crammed with stores offering an array of furniture, decorations and other items for your home. But for Mary Liz Curtin, co-owner of Clawson-based Leon and Lulu, [...]
Restoring the Park
Renaissance. Resurgence. Revitalization. These are words bursting with hope and ambition and, in the past decade or two, have been bandied about in reference to just about every part of the city of Detroit you [...]
GIFT gives a welcoming sign
By Crystal Proxmire "Gay Christian? Yes!" That's the messaging drivers on U.S. 131 near Burton Street in Grand Rapids will get now through the end of April thanks to a new campaign dedicated to bridging [...]
Voters left out in county politics
Oakland County residents are losing representation as a coordinated Republican effort to gain control of the redistricting process has succeeded. The Commission will be cut from 25 commissioners to 21, and control over drawing the [...]
Rainbow flag leads Chrysler employee down path of empowerment
Sometimes a rainbow sticker can make all the difference in the world. For Bernadette Bennett, a staff advisor working for Chrysler, it gave her the opportunity to ask questions of a fellow employee and opened [...]
Transgender Day of Visibility pairs volunteering with community
SOUTHFIELD - As transgender individuals measured out servings of caramel for Forgotten Harvest, they talked about their experiences and showed the other volunteers at the large food pantry that they are just like most people [...]
Social networking site fills need for lesbians of color
When Nicole Breedlove was looking to connect online with other lesbian women of color, she asked herself, "Where are they?" Out of frustration with websites like MySpace, Facebook, BlackPlanet and DowneLink, she launched OurSistaCircle http://www.oursistacircle.com [...]
Notorious anti-gay group headed for Michigan
LANSING - The Westboro Baptist Church will protest a Lansing public high school and both Michigan State University and Central Michigan University on April 23, a spokesman confirmed in a phone interview. "We have our [...]
What the Affordable Health Care Act offers LGBT Americans
To mark the second anniversary of the federal health care reform law, The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the Center for American Progress held a webinar at the end of March, "Learn Your [...]
Drama unfolds in DOMA challenge
by Lisa Keen and Chuck Colbert The seventh-floor courtroom of the U. S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston was packed to capacity. An overflow room equipped with closed circuit TV was [...]
Santorum bows out
By Lisa Keen Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum was one of the most virulently anti-gay candidates in the large field of Republican presidential wannabes who started out last year. And most political observers said early [...]
Anchorage freezes up on LGBT rights
By Lisa Keen Voters in Anchorage, Alaska, overwhelmingly rejected a ballot measure Tuesday that sought to add "sexual orientation" and "transgender identity" to the city's human rights law. With 102 of 121 precincts counted late [...]
Rep. Steve King (R-IA)
Creep of the Week Oh, Steve King. You are a royal creep, indeed. A longstanding foe of LGBT people and anyone who sees LGBT people as, oh I don't know, human, King has once again [...]
Pages Past Tense #6
Parting Glances I was 19 the summer I graduated from Cass Tech. I flunked courses, staying an extra two-class semester. Once free from studies, living at home, taking time off before job hunting, I was [...]
Marriage, Coming Out
Compiled by Howard Israel S/he Said "I know there will be some who argue that this is not the time, that there's already too much at stake in this year's election. To them, I would [...]
NOM’s Marriage Strategy
By Abby Dees Thinking Out Loud Is anyone really shocked about the revelations from the recently released internal memorandum from the National Organization for Marriage ("NOM")? If you haven't heard yet, this formerly confidential memo [...]
“Bully” victory…? The controversial film is NOW rated PG-13, but at the price of censorship. What do you think?
Hate censorship of any kind but think the message of this movie and the public buzz created by the issue is worth the sacrifice. The original, intended cut will be available at some point too [...]
EXCLUSIVE: Melissa Etheridge Talks Ex, Getting Remarried & New LP
Come to her window, but Melissa Etheridge won't be around. Why? Because she's everywhere else - on tour, stopping by Sound Board at MotorCity Casino Hotel at 7:30 p.m. April 22, and in the studio [...]
Report: Voter ID laws pose unique barriers for transgender voters
LOS ANGELES - Nine states' voter ID laws may create substantial barriers to voting and possible disenfranchisement for over 25,000 transgender voters this November, according to a new study released by the Williams Institute during [...]
Obama’s LGBT political calculation
By Lisa Keen The Obama administration revealed a political calculation last week: Now is not a good time to sign an executive order prohibiting discrimination against LGBT people who work for federal contractors. There has [...]