Penalties hound service members expelled under ‘Don’t Ask’
By CHRIS JOHNSONcjohnson@washblade.com
For Sara Isaacson, separation from the University of NorthCarolina’s Army ROTC program because of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”comes with a price tag of $79,265.Isaacson told the Washington Blade she understands the U.S.military wants to protect its investment in training her, but she hopesto repay her debt by serving in the armed forces as opposed topaying the expenses out of pocket.“I have always said the goal is still to serve my country and I wantto be able to fulfill my commitment by serving in uniform,” she said.“The military right now is not allowing me to do that, so I don’t thinkit’s fair that they’re asking for the tuition back.”Isaacson, 22 and a lesbian, said she hasn’t yet graduated from college and doesn’t know how shecould pay the money that the U.S. military is seeking.“I’m a few classes away from graduating and I don’t have $80,000 to repay the military,” she said.
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Immigration reformtalks spark hopethat UAFA will advancein new Congress.
PAGE 8
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Friends, colleaguesremember activist andgov’t worker Jeff Coudriet,who lost battle with cancer.
PAGE 6
the lgbtq community news source
washingtonblade.com • vol. 42, issue 06 • february 11, 2011 • Still sharp after 40 years
Opponents invoke pedophilia,incest while denouncing bill
By LOU CHIBBARO JR.lchibbaro@washblade.com
As many as 300 supporters and opponents of a bill to legalizesame-sex marriage in Maryland packed the halls of a State Senateoffice building in Annapolis Tuesday while several dozen witnessestestified on both sides of the issue.The Democratic-controlled Judicial Proceedings Committee, whichconducted a hearing on the bill, was expected to approve the mea-sure and send it to the full Senate within the next week or two.A majority of the members of the 11-person committee are co-spon-sors or supporters of the bill, the Religious Freedom and Civil MarriageProtection Act.Most political observers believe supporters have the votes to passthe bill in the Senate and the House of Delegates. Gov. Martin O’Malleyhas said he would sign the bill.But opponents, led by Maggie Gallagher, chair of the NationalOrganization for Marriage, said they remain hopeful that supporterswould fall short of obtaining the 24 votes needed to pass the bill in theSenate or the 29 votes needed to stop a Senate filibuster.“Marriage is the union of husband and wife for a reason,” Gallaghersaid in her testimony. “These are the only unions that can make new
Kicked out and $79,000 in debt
Ugly testimony at Md. marriage hearing
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Our gift guide helps you shop locally for your Valentine.
PAGE 18 Continues on page 14 Continues on page 12
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PAGE 23
Leroy Swales
, an Oxon Hill, Md., resident who testified last year against the D.C. same-sex marriage bill, said approvalof the marriage bill would result in Maryland’s elementary schools using the book ‘Heather Has Two Mommies,’ whichhe called a ‘pedophile book,’ as a teaching aid for students.
Washington Blade photo by Michael Key
Sara Isaacson
was kicked out ofan Army ROTC program for beinggay. The military is now asking thecollege student to repay $79,265.
Photo courtesy of Isaasson
Pappas is pastadviser to U.S.Surgeon General
By LOU CHIBBARO JR.lchibbaro@washblade.com
D.C. Mayor VincentGray last week announcedthe appointment o veteranpublic health and AIDS phy-sician Gregory Pappas asdirector o the city’s HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, SexuallyTransmitted Disease and Tu-berculosis Administration(HAHSTA).Pappas, who is gay, hasheld a wide range o AIDSand public health-relatedpositions over the past 25years, including a post asadviser to U.S. SurgeonGeneral David Satcher dur-ing the Clinton administra-tion. He served as contrib-uting author to the strategicplan or U.S. internationalemergency relie or AIDS indeveloping countries duringthe Bush administration.In his most recent positionas a global health consul-tant, he has served, amongother things, as medicaladviser to the Silver Spring,Md.-based National Asso-ciation o People with AIDS(NAPWA).“I think this is the best ap-pointment in the agency’shistory,” said Frank Oldham,NAPWA’s executive director,who served as head o theD.C. AIDS oice rom 1993-1994, when it was called theAgency or HIV/AIDS.“With his medical exper-tise and certainly his HIV/AIDS expertise, he under-stands the various popula-tions – people o color, gaymen o all colors, and thehuge issue o AIDS amongArican-American women,”Oldham said. “This is a phe-nomenal appointment, andI really think we’re going tosee a huge dierence in sav-ing lives rom AIDS and adecrease in HIV inections inthe District.”Pappas, a longtime D.C.resident, served as an assis-tant to Dr. Mohammed Akter,Gray’s appointee as directoro the Department o Health,when Akter served as theD.C. Commissioner o PublicHealth rom 1991-1994.Akter held that positionduring the administrationo then-Mayor Sharon PrattKelly and reported directlyto Gray, who then headedthe D.C. Department o Hu-man Services. At the time,the human services depart-ment had jurisdiction overhealth issues.HAHSTA is currently anarm o the Department oHealth and its director re-ports to the DOH director.Pappas will replace Dr.Nnemdi Kamanu Elias, whohas served as acting direc-tor o HAHSTA since May-or Adrian Fenty named herto the post last July. Fentyappointed Elias to the posi-tion ater Dr. Shannon Hader,who held the director’s jobor more than three years,abruptly resigned.According to biographi-cal inormation released bythe mayor’s oice, Pappasserved recently as a con-sultant or the U.S. Agencyor International Develop-ment on mental health andHIV programs. He has alsoworked with the NationalMedical Association to im-prove Arican-American phy-sicians’ ability to serve pa-tients who are men who havesex with men.His international heathwork includes service aschair o the Departmento Community Health Sci-ences at Aga Khan Univer-sity in Karachi, Pakistan. Inhis work with the President’sEmergency Plan or AIDSRelie (PEPFAR), Pappas de-signed monitoring and eval-uation plans or anti-retrovi-ral programs in nine Aricancountries and countries inthe Caribbean.He received a degree inmedicine and a Ph.D. in an-thropology rom Case West-ern Reserve University inCleveland. Among the jobshe held upon moving to D.C.was the post o aculty mem-ber at Howard UniversityMedical School.
LOCALNEWS
2 washingtonblade.com • february 11, 2011
Gray names gayphysician headof AIDS office
Gay Catholics honor Catania, Mendelson
The local LGBT Catholic group Dignity Washington presented its annual community service awardSunday night to D.C. Council members David Catania (I-At-Large) and Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) inrecognition o their role in securing passage o the city’s same-sex marriage law.Several same-sex couples whose marriages became possible when the law took eect last Marchjoined Dignity Washington President Allen Rose in presenting the group’s Veronica & Gerald Goler Awardto the two Council members at St. Margaret’s Church near Dupont Circle, where Dignity holds its weeklySunday Mass.Catania wrote and introduced the marriage measure and Mendelson, as chair o the committee withjurisdiction over the bill, managed its progress through the Council’s legislative process. Catania saidhe was pleased that polling data showed that D.C.-area Roman Catholics supported marriage equalityin greater percentages than members o all other Christian denominations, despite the strong opposi-tion to same-sex marriage by the Catholic hierarchy.
LOU CHIBBARO JR.
Whitman-Walker Clinic postsfirst operating gain in 10 years
The Whitman-Walker Clinic announced this week that it posted a our percent operating gain or2010, its frst such positive result in nearly 10 years.“This is a tremendous accomplishment or our entire Whitman-Walker amily especially in light o themany challenges the Clinic has aced in recent years,” said executive director Don Blanchon. “With our2010 results, we have answered longstanding questions in the community about the Clinic’s fnancial vi-ability. But more important than that, we have demonstrated that the Clinic oers high quality care to ourpatients.”The Clinic’s management drew the ire o City Council member David Catania ater posting consecutiveyears o multi-million dollar losses. Blanchon responded with layos and a restructuring plan. The Clinicposted operating losses o more than $4 million in 2007 and 2008. Losses were cut to about $750,000 in2009 and or 2010 the Clinic posted an operating gain o about $890,000 on more than $20 million in rev-enue.“To have such a dramatic turnaround in such a relatively short period o time, particularly given thestate o the economy, is incredible,” Blanchon said.
STAFF REPORTS
Rehoboth’s outdoor bars canstay open until 1 a.m. — for now
REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. — The Rehoboth Beach Board o Commissioners placed a one-yearmoratorium on enorcing a law governing the hours a restaurant patio may stay open, and agreed tohire and train noise enorcement ofcers on how to use noise meters to measure noise levels.The moratorium will allow restaurants with patios to serve ood and drinks until 1 a.m., instead o 10p.m. this summer.The decisions ollowed a series o arrests in September o several business owners, including atestablishments popular with LGBT patrons like Purple Parrot and Aqua, because o late night noiseviolations on their patios. The moves come ater several months o discussions within the commissionwith business and community leaders, as well as a meeting with police ofcials rom Newark, Del.At the meeting last month, Commissioner Bill Sargent suggested that the noise ordinance shouldbe based on noise being plainly audible, with distances o hearing the sounds being closer at night,but gay Commissioner Dennis Barbour suggested that would be a subjective way o determining noiselevels.Commissioner Stan Mills, who Barbour cited as the instigator o the police raids last year, said,“complaints o noise came rom all over the place including rom a residence known as the Arc, whichis directly across Rehoboth Avenue rom Rigby’s.” Rigby’s is another gay-owned establishment.Lesbian Commissioner Pat Coluzzi introduced the resolution to keep the same noise ordinance andhire ofcials to monitor levels.Because the moratorium requires a change in code, hearings must be held beore the commissionmakes it ofcial, but Mills expects that it could be implemented by mid-March.
PETER SCHOTT
Dignity Washington honored D.C. Council members
David Catania
(I-At-Large) and
Phil Mendelson
(D-At-Large) fortheir efforts at passing a marriage equality bill.
Washington Blade photo by Michael Key
february 11, 2011 • washingtonblade.com 3
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Caé Dupont is oering a special 3 course prix fxe dinnermenu or the Valentine’s Weekend. All the dishes are served ina shareable style or two.We also oer a bubbly special. Let us take care o you by sharingthe price o every glass or bottle o bubbly you purchase,meaning you will only pay or hal. (Only applicable i choosingthe prix fx menu)Since this is not enough, we will even share our heart withyou, receive a chocolate heart to take home ater dinner.We also oer our special Valentine’s brunch on Saturday andSunday with mimosa’s and bloody Mary “love hour” or $5.
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Kicked out of military and in debt, Marriage in Maryland, Valentine Gift Guide, Gay News, Gay Arts, Gay Entertainment, Gay Nightlife
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