THE VOICE OF CHICAGO’S GAY, LESBIAN, BI AND TRANS COMMUNITY SINCE 1985 July 9, 2008 • vol 23 no 43 www.WindyCityMediaGroup.com Longtime LGBT foe Jesse Helms dies Black BY BOB ROEHR Pride The arch-nemesis of the gay community in the United States Senate in the 1980s and 1990s Weekend page 20 died on July 4. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., 86, served in that body from 1973 until his retirement in 2002. He “did not have overarching and consistent principles; he had likes and dislikes. He was a bundle of prejudices,” wrote political observer Jonathan Rauch when Helms retired. Helms began his political career as a Demo- crat, trading upon racism in the still-segregated South. He would continue to play the race card throughout his career. He became a Republican in 1970 and was soon elected the first Republi- can senator from North Carolina since the post- Schaffer Civil War Reconstruction. One of his first efforts in the Senate was to and Dixon prohibit use of U.S. foreign assistance dollars for Wed page 6 anything to “provide or promote” abortion. The National Endowment for the Arts took it on the chin for grants to provocative artists, in- cluding Robert Mapplethorpe’s homoerotic pho- tographs. Helms was one of the earliest and loudest cul- tural warriors against the emerging gay-rights movement. He once said, “Nothing positive happened to Sodom and Gomorrah and nothing positive is likely to happen to America if our people succumb to the drumbeats of support for the homosexual lifestyle.” When AIDS appeared on the scene, he led opposition to research funding at the National A 1989 Danny Sotomayor cartoon features longtime anti-LGBT activist/politician Jesse Helms conversing with Adolf Hitler. Image from the archives of Lori Cannon Paula Turn to page 4 Cole page 16 Cook Co. passes same-sex measure July 9, 2008 #952 BY AMY WOOTEN Cook County and receive domestic-partner ben- He hopes that in the future, steps to provide efits. equality will be no big deal. “I’m hoping my kids Cook County commissioners just approved a The approval follows a recent California deci- will wonder what all the fuss was about,” Quig- measure that changes a county ordinance to sion legalizing gay marraige. Since June 17, gay ley said. nightspots benefit same-sex couples that get married in and lesbian couples across the U.S., including But the recent decision, passed with little n another state. couples from Cook County, have flocked to Cali- dissent and debate, may be a mark of the sig- In A Queer Tale-spin pick it up The Cook County State’s Attorney Office told fornia to tie the knot. nificant strides made in the past decade. Summer means A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Queer Tale is back for more. inSIDE page 22 Come along for the Crabs you’ll wanna get at Black Pride ride. Halfshell. Windy City Times that the measure, spearheaded Quigley told Windy City Times that the Califor- “We’re winning by bigger majorities than we page 20-21 page 12 take it home by Cook County Commissioner Mike Quigley, was nia decision sparked the idea for this measure, did before,” Quigley said, referring to when the passed July 1. Two commissioners—Liz Doody- which goes into effect immediately. original ordinance only passed by a 9-6 vote af- Gorman and Gregg Goslin—voted against the “Obviously, there is a lot of interest with our ter a heated debate nine years ago. At the time, measure, which changed the ordinance so that folks going to California,” he said. As the spon- the decision was very controversial. same-sex couples who work for the county won’t sor of the original measure that was passed After the vote, Quigley; Board President Todd lose their benefits if they are married else- in 1999, Quigley said it was his duty to make Stroger; Kelly Cassidy of the Cook County State’s where. sure the ordinance went through any necessary Turn to page 5 www.WindyCityQueercast.com If the measure didn’t pass, couples would not changes in order to continue to protect county have been allowed to remain registered with employees. Download full issues of Windy City Times and Nightspots each week at www.WindyCityMediaGroup.com Sal-E and JoJo Baby are thGiving Good Face inSIDE e subjects of Bernard Colber t’s photo show “Getting Into No prouder Marys than Face” those at Bobby Love’s page 14 page 20 Durrrrty Pictures at Mar Ranch’s Polaroid Mondaystini page 8 2 July 9, 2008 July 9, 2008 3 index News Calif. wedding update 4 Jesse Helms dies 4 Out & Proud out in Sept. 4 La Pat memorial info 4 Black Pride author reception 5 County’s same-sex measure 5 Citywide Pride forum 6 Dixon, Schaffer wed 6 Chicago Gay History: D’Emilio 7 Nat’l, world roundups 8 Perspective: Baim 9 In cities across India on June 29, Quotelines 9 thousands of people staged Pride Views: McDaniel; letters 10 marches. Read more on page 8. eNTeRTAINMeNT Dancin’ Feats 11 Bangalore photo by Curt Gambetta via Wockner News Theater 12 Knight at the Movies 15 Pop Making Sense 16 Paula Cole interview 16 George Michael profile 16 Divas at Taste of Chicago 17 Former porn star Bobby Blake 18 Queer Prom pics 19 Black prides: pics 20 AUGUST 7 AUGUST 8 Back Lot Bash photos 21 Buy tickets at JAMUSA.COM • All Ticketmaster Outlets OUTLINeS 312-559-1212 • online at ticketmaster.com ® Real estate 18 WCT reviews Ain’t Misbehavin’ (above), or The Chicago Theatre Box Office currently running at the Goodman Theatre. MELISSAETHERIDGE.COM Classifieds 19 6_18_08_windy_city:05_28_08 6/10/08 4:47 PM Page 1 Calendar 21 See page 14. Sports: Girlz, v-ball 23 “STAYCATION” This week’s online-only WHERE YOUR DOLLAR GOES FURTHER THAN YOU’LL HAVE TO www. features include: Windy —Media Watch —Cirque du Soleil WHERE THE BOYS ARE! City rehearsal roundup (right) AN EVENING WITH with Kat Fitzgerald JUL Media THE BEACH BOYS —Theater review: The 14 Group Hourglass and the Poisoned Pen .com BROTHERHOOD TOUR: FEATURING AUG Extended online LOS LONELY BOYS & 08 features include: LOS LOBOS —George Michael Photo by Kat Fitzgerald BACKSTREET BOYS AUG 24 FEIST www.WindyCityQueercast.com JUL JUL HOOTIE & 11 25 THE BLOWFISH AUG AUG IN A QUeeR TALe-SPIN 22 30 Summer means that A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Queer Tale is back 23 FRESH FROM AMERICAN IIDOL for more. nightspotsn Photo by Adam Veness TONY BENNETT DONNA SUMMER WWW.RAVINIA.ORG • 847-266-5100 4 July 9, 2008 more history was made and documented, both in Out and Proud words and images. The book brings this story up to the present day, looking at Chicago’s contem- available in porary LGBT world and its prospects for a flour- ishing future. Debra Peevey (left) Sept. Tracy Baim is co-founder of Windy City Times and Candy Cox. Photo Out and Proud in Chicago (Agate Surrey, 978- and is publisher and executive editor of Windy courtesy of Lisa Keen 1-57284-100-0; 224 pages; $30; edited by Tracy City Media Group. As a journalist, she has cov- Baim)—the first published full-length history of ered the Chicago gay and lesbian community the LGBT community in Chicago—will be out in since 1984. Baim has received numerous honors, bookstores this September. including the Studs Terkel Award and induction Lavishly illustrated with almost 400 histori- into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. cal color and black-and-white photographs, and drawing on the scholarly, historical and journal- istic contributions of a breadth of authorities on Chicago’s LGBT culture and scene, this is a first-ever, one-of-a-kind overview of Chicago’s Joe LGBT community and its history. Published as a La Pat. companion to the WTTW public television docu- Photo by mentary of the same name, and to the Web site Hal Baim that sermon. “And slowly but surely, you all be- www.ChicagoGayHistory.org, the book is orga- California came a part of it, too.” Peevey was speaking to nized into a few main chronological sections: her family and friends, but she said they were —Prairie Settlement to 1949 also “a microcosm of America.” —1950s to 1960s: The Seeds of Change dreamin’: “All over the United States,” she said, “this —1970s: The We Decade La Pat memorial has been happening.” —1980s: Silence = Death July 26 Same-sex “This,” the civil rights movement, has been —1990s: Taking Charge A public memorial will be held for Chicagoan happening all over America. But only in Mas- —2000s: Prospects for the Future Joseph F. La Pat on Saturday, July 26, 12-3 sachusetts, beginning in May 2004, and in Cali- Out & Proud in Chicago begins the work of marriage p.m. at Misericordia Heart of Mercy, 6300 N. BY Lisa KEEN fornia, beginning June 16 of this year, has that capturing a history that often has been hid- Ridge, Chicago. A private memorial will be KEEN NEWS SERVICE movement included the right to obtain a mar- den, or at least elusive. As Tracy Baim writes held July 12 in his native Racine, Wis. riage license for same-sex couples. in her introduction, “A few brave people did try La Pat died of heart failure on Pride Sunday, On a high bluff overlooking a vast span of Pa- Finding out how many licenses have been is- to document our community, either as major July 29, in the early morning hours.