Frakkin' A, Cincinnati Enquirer!

Seriously, as if the last round wasn't bad enough with the Chadea Thrasher case -- accused and now convicted and sentenced of sexually touching a patient at University of Cincinnati. Ms. Thrasher is trans, a fact that the Enquirer has delighted in reporting over and over and over again for no apparent reason. Despite the fact that what Thrasher did was very, very wrong, the Enquirer's ongoing inability to cover LGBTQ issues with any level of propriety and dignity is galling.

For example, from the story on the conviction on today's Cincinnati.com:

Two weeks ago when Thrasher was convicted of sexually touching a patient at University Hospital – where Thrasher was a working as a phlebotomist – he was wearing a woman’s wig with long hair, necklace, heels and carrying a purse.

Today, the female impersonator – who lives as a woman and uses the name Chadea Thrasher – was wearing the black-and-white stripes of an inmate. That’s the same outfit Thrasher will have to wear for the next 18 months after Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Robert Ruehlman sent Thrasher to prison for that amount of time.

"Female impersonator?" Oh, is that the term we're using now. As of my posting (noon), there was only one brilliant comment: "Doesn't UC Hospital do background checks of the people that they hire? I am sure they would not have hired a female impersonator, if they had known that in advance!!! Good grief!!!" Be sure to check back and find out just how intelligent anonymous commentators can be on a newspaper site.

Brother Micah Protest

I had the opportunity to run up the street this afternoon and check out the UC protest of Brother Micah, the incendiary fire-and-brimstone preacher that visits college campuses to stir up trouble preach.

The event was well attended. Brother Micah (abbreviated "BM" from here on out) was cordoned off for his own safety and for his own free speech, as was the group of activists that organized the counter protest. According to Lt. Ken Lewis, the reason for the physical separation was because technically they were two events. Because of the nature of the two events, they thought it was best to provide some physical separation, but only enough so that they could shout back and forth to each other. However, if you were not on the "counter protest" side, you had to mostly stay quiet unless you were engaging BM in meaningful dialogue.

The protestors, with rainbow flags and signs, were not there for meaningful dialogue.

No single group on campus organized the event, but was, instead, organized from the ground up by local activists. The UC groups assisted in promotion but it was no one person's baby. The crowd grew and shrunk as college students passed by between classes, and I would say that there was probably, at the largest point while I was there, a good 250-300 total individuals listening, and probably a good 100-150 counter protestors. There were some in the listening group that were there against BM, but they had to keep quiet.

I had a chance to speak to Kevin Wallen, a freshman at UC who is a devout Methodist and a reformed atheist, who was against BM. Why? "Because he preaches out of context to make it sound like Jesus is not accepting."

"It's blasphemous," freshman Mike Butler, freshman and Catholic, added. It was Butler's cross necklace that drove me to ask them their thoughts. They are, for the record, very much against the work of BM simply because of his judgmental nature and his blanket statements telling people they are going to hell. "You cannot say you are without sin," Butler added, moments before BM started quoting Matthew 7 -- "Judge not, that ye be not judged." Ironic, perhaps.

For their part, the "homoclub," as BM called them, were loud and raucous. They shouted jokes and taunts to the streetside preacher. I wonder, though, how helpful some of their ongoing commentary was -- asking BM when the last time he "fucked his wife in her ass" probably doesn't sit well with a loving and open movement. Nor do jokes about Jesus, for the record. The crowd did cheer everytime he said the word "homosexual," and they began chanting "No more hate" near the end of my time. BM responded, "BOOOOORING!"

Oh, Brother Micah? 

It was an interesting experience, there on the campus, and I left feeling uncertain and unsure. The attendance was strong, the crowd was engaged, it seemed like a lot of fun, and there were some great signs and protestors... but, I wonder if there wasn't a better way to handle it. I bristled when the obscenities flew because I felt like it wasn't the best method. However, for their part, the UC students rocked it out today and I have to give 'em credit...

...they sure did give BM the hell he deserved. 

For the full flickr set, click here.

Ohioans Don't Support Same-Sex Marriage

...but it's not as bad as you think.

In a poll released by UC's Institute for Policy Research, 46% of Ohioan's "Strongly Oppose" legalizing same-sex marriage. It goes on to say that 11% "Somewhat Oppose," 18% "Favor Somewhat," and 21% "Strongly Favor." 

Those numbers aren't terrible, IMHO, for Ohio as a whole. My guess is that, if you polled the urban areas, the numbers would shift in our favor. And 39% in favor... with 11% more swayable, and 3% unsure... well, I think that shows a teachable distinction, yea?

Other findings include a majority in favor of gambling and medical marijuana. 

As far as I know, this the only recent poll on the issue since Issue 1 in 2004.

A Lot Coming Out of UC These Days

I have to say that I'm so glad StuffQueerPeopleNeedtoKnow is around -- she's keeping me on my toes!!!

Anyways, I said yesterday that I likely left something off the Community Pride's events. A whole lot somethings -- you know, like UC Pride/Visibility Week events. Silly homo. :-)

All the events have been added, but check out the SQPNTK posting on them for descriptions.

Massive Community Calendar Update

An update is way overdo, so I'll try to cover as much as possible -- sorry if I leave someone out, just shoot me an email: queercincinnati@gmail.com


Julia Serano Lecture
April 22nd, 7pm at the University of Cincinnati
Serano, an Oakland-based writer, spoken word performer, trans-activist, and biologist, will be giving a talk at UC in Swift 500 on entitled "Transsexual and Trans Feminine Perspectives on Sexism." Serano published Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity in 2007. (TransOhio post.)



cincYPac and the Cast of MTV's "Take the Stage"
April 23rd, 6pm-8pm, Cadillac Ranch
cincYPac -- Cincinnati's Young Professional Political Action Committee -- is hosting a night where you can meet the cast of MTV's hit reality show, "Take the Stage," that is hosted right here in Cincinnati. Check out their Facebook event for more information -- the event costs $15 (and $5 for students).



Pride Night with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
April 24th, 8pm+
The CSO will be welcoming the LGBT community for the 6th year in a row to a fabulous evening of music, followed by a cocktail party at Corbett Tower. Tickets are $40, includes both events. Check out the CSO website for information on the promo code and how to order your ticket.



PrideLove Sexy Singles Party
April 24th, 8pm-11pm, Below Zero Lounge
The wonderful ladies and gentlemen of PrideLove invite you to a hot little singles party at Below Zero lounge, hosted by darling Penny Tration, including a Sexy Singles Auction. (Formerly featured on QueerCincinnati.com.)



CAC's Contempory Fridays: SPIN
April 24th, 9pm-1am, Contemporary Arts Center
The CAC continues its highly successful parties with "The Price is Light," along with Northside Nick and Chris Collins. The one I went to -- months ago, now -- was actually a lot of fun. Check out their Facebook event.



First Friday with HRC
May 1st, 8pm, Golden Lion's Lounge
HRC's second First Friday cocktail hour will be held at the Golden Lion's Lounge in Clifton -- per the Facebook invite, you can be sure to check out their event (and you actually can, considering the times -- well done, HRC) before you head off to...



Cincinnati Guerilla Queer Bar -- Month 3
May 1st -- TBA
Even I don't know where it's going to be, guys, but I've been told to make sure that everyone saves the date!



Lucky Ladies Speeddate
May 3rd, 3pm-6pm, Yadda Club (Covington)
Check PrideLove's flyer for the upcoming event for all of our fabulous single ladies out there.



stop) aids Guest Bartending Night
May 3rd, 6pm-10pm, Below Zero Lounge
I will feature this more later because I think it's going to be an awesome night. But, the education team of STOP AIDS (all of them true hotties) will be behind the bar, and every dollar you give goes to stopping AIDS right here in Cincinnati. (Facebook event)



Judy Shepard Speaks
May 5, 7pm, Great Hall of the Tangeman Center on UC's Campus
After her last speech was cancelled due to illness, Judy Shepard comes to speak at the University of Cincinnati. She's worth watching, folks; I would go.



Ethan Philbrick's Cello Recital
May 9, 8pm, St. John's Unitarian Church
Check out his Facebook event. (Ethan is both a fellow blogger and the organizer of CGQB -- and then he got cutie-patootie Jeff of centsinnati to sweettalk me into posting it, so another fellow blogger -- so I'm posting this "personal event" based on their status as bloggers. But Ethan's an amazing cellist and worth checking out, I think.)



Making Beautiful MUSIC Together
May 9th, 7pm-10pm, the DOCK Complex
The ISQCCBE and the Cincinnati Men's Chorus will be hosting a special charity event at the DOCK to support local charities... and each other. Check out their Facebook event.



Queen City, Music City
May 30th at 8:07pm, May 31st at 3:07pm, National Underground Railroad Museum
The next Cicninnati Men's Chorus show will focus on music straight out Nashville -- including tunes with hints of country, gospel, jazz, and bluegrass. The 30th and 31st will be their Pride shows, with a special musical nod to the LGBT movers and shakers in music. Check out their website for more information.



Miami U. LGBT Alumni Reunion
June 18-21, Oxford, Ohio
As part of the bicentennial celebration, 1809 LGBT Alumni are calling all alums to come and support the association, as well as join them in special events like a reception with Pres. Hodge and a special viewing of Freeheld (2008 Academy Award short documentary winner, produced by MU alums).

Equinox Cincinnati
July 3-5
Hold on to your horses, girls, the next big event in the gay social calendar in Cincinnati may be upon us -- meet Equinox Cincinnati (and their Facebook event). I don't have much more information from the organizers yet, but I've been promised the exclusive ASAP. George (of Metronation and of the Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce) is hot on this one, guys, and says he already has busses filling up from people out of state to come party in the 'Nati. I have a feeling this will be huge. Save the date. (And you are reading that right -- this event is cosponsored by Fountain Square.)


Ohio Lesbian Festival
September 19th and 20th, Columbus-ish
Womyn-only event featuring music, art, and community. Check out their website for more information.



GAY PRIDE DATES FOR THE REGION!!!!!
I'm just going to do a list because there are so many to list off:

• June 6th-14th: Indianapolis, "Circle City, IN Pride"
• June 13th and 14th: Cincinnati, "Squealing with Pride"
• June 19th and 20th: Columbus, "Freedom 2009"
• June 19th and 20th: Louisville, "Kentuckiana Pride Festival"
• June 20th: Cleveland, "Equality through Unity"
• June 23rd-28th: Chicago
• Saturday, June 27th: Lexington, "Stonewall Lives"

You know, looking at Columbus's and Cleveland's themes... aren't you kinda glad we have something at least interesting? Seriously.

Seriously, what did I miss? I know I did. Again, email me if you have anything for the list.

UC GAY STUFF: Follow UC's Queer Center on Twitter!

Shameless plug of the day!

The UC LGBTQ Center now has its own Twitter thanks to me, Jack Theurling and my friend Mary Beth!

Stalk the crap outta us!!!

www.twitter.com/queercenter

Me:
www.twitter.com/QCseeker

Mary Beth:
www.twitter.com/pharmkid26

And on a side note: The UC Rally for a Full-Time Staff Person was a decent success. Considering it was as-cold-as-a-corpse's-balls outside we had a good turnout! And front page in the NewsRecord (I'm on the front page again... geeeezus!) but without an article (just a big-ass photo of JAC Stringer and a small blurb... And most of the focus was on JAC's p!nk hair...)

Later lovelies!!!

-Cody
The Seeker

Barry's note: Sorry, Cody, wanted to throw this out there! Make sure you check out the media round up at Stuff Queer People Need to Know for a lot of great follow up to yesterday's UC Rally!

UC Rally

Thanks to our own Cody Globig who sent me pictures and heads up to the post over at Stuff Queer People Need to Know about the protest on UC's campus today against the UC administration not providing equal services to LGBT students. Above is a YouTube video of Jason Bernstein speaking on (and summing up) the whole point of the rally.

And some pictures from the same post...


Note my future husband, Jac Stringer. He's a stud.
Congrats to the UC students who put this together -- WELL DONE!

Judy Shepard at UC

I promised I'd write about this to some of the organizers, and seeing it over at Back2Stonewall.com reminded that I had not done so yet.

Judy Shepard is speaking at the University of Cincinnati on Monday, April 6th at 7p.m. at the Tangeman University Center -- the event is free and open to the public. If you have not seen Miss Shepard speak yet, I am instilling this upon you: it is your good gay duty to do so.

And, if you have, it might be wise to go again.

Matthew Shepard, her son, died over 10 years ago at this point. It made sense that, after a few months of mourning, Miss Shepard would travel the country and talk about hate and violence and crime and the awfulness that brought an end to her son's life. Many many people have written lamentations on Matthew Shepard, and there have been far more eloquent people speak on the tragedy ... many years and years ago. It would also be expected that, after a few years, we would expect Miss Shepard to go into relative obscurity, having become exhausted with the fight.

But she hasn't.

For over ten years, Miss Shepard has fought on, and fought hard. She has been a tireless, fearless, and articulate champion for coming out, fighting the fight in your hometown, ending violence, and a whole host of issues that need to be heard. She has not given up; she has not stopped fighting in honor of the dear son she lost so terribly. And she never had a political motivation, at least one not so sharp as, say, Cindy Sheehan. I saw her speak at Miami University years ago, and I remember this being her greatest political message:

Be out -- all day, everyday.

Such power in five words, enough so to influence me for years to come. Every day, I seek to be out because of what Judy Shepard taught me. Every day, I challenge the people who say that my sexuality and gender expression is "not appropriate" because of what Judy Shepard taught me. Every day, I am only myself, lilting speech and sashaying hips and singing musicals and existing just on this side of femme, because of what Judy Shepard taught me.

Miss Shepard taught me to be fearless and unapologetic in my sexuality and in my gender. I will give it up for no one, and that's caused me problems in the past. I was passed over for a job due to me "*ahem* enthusiasm," and I have been called to task at work over my apparent "obsession with my own sexuality." But those are the battle scars we win, and they are far fewer scars than she carries.

Because of what Judy Shepard taught me, I am stronger, better, smarter, sharper.

Ten years later, I suppose there will be the homosexuals amongst us that say: "Been there done that." Or, "Is she still puttering around the country?" Or, "Seen her a hundred times." Or, "That's a tired old line, the Matthew Shepard bit." Ten years later, Miss Shepard could have given up...

...instead she is fighting harder than 99% of any LGBT person I know.

Miss Shepard is legend, she is royalty, she is life. On April 6th, at 7pm, on UC's campus, it will be worth it to you to go back and see why her tired old lines ring truer every day.

On a more personal note, there is a second lesson she tried to impress on us -- "Don't let anyone live rent-free in your head" -- that I am still attempting to live up to everyday.

Also: From our friends at the local PFLAG:

HOWEVER, the amazing guys at the ISQCCBE (Cincinnati's incredibly drag queen society) is putting on a show this Sunday, April 4th 5th at 8 p.m. Location: On Broadway Bar, 817 Broadway Street, downtown Cincinnati. Proceeds to go to PFLAG.

I (Lynne Lefebvre, President of PFLAG Cincinnati) have had my arm severely twisted and will be doing one number!!!

So, if I have to squeeze into a tight little dress and risk embarrassing myself, maybe you would like to join us for the fun.

For those who have never been to a drag show, this is something you might want to try. Certainly would give some contrast to the Easter dinner you wolfed down ealier in the day.

Community Events

I have a lot to cover today, so I'll try to make it through it all. I'm also updating my events calendar (to the right of your screen) to reflect these changes:

April 6th-10th, Miami University Awareness Week
Spectrum's (MU's LGBTQ Alliance) week-long series of talks, events, and concerts. I don't have the details on it -- sorry! -- oh, but they do :-). The only note is that there has been the addition of the Pride Parade and the Drag Show has been moved to the 17th of April.


March 26-29
Xavier's theater department will be doing a four show run of the internationally renowned showed, Angels in America. No invitation for me to review though :-(. It's ok. I'm busy. LOL.

Tuesday, April 7, 12:30pm
UC Rally for a full time LGBTQ Coordinator on campus, from their Facebook event: "The University of Cincinnati LGBTQ Students have been told by the Administration that they support All Kinds of Diversity. We have yet to see this support because while we have been given a “permanent” space it is very small and is not adequate for our needs. Also we have not received funding for a full time staff person. It is time to show the administration the support that we have for our community and show them that we need THEIR support for us." I think I'll talk about this in greater detail later.


Friday, March 27, 9:00pm
The Contemporary Arts Center is putting on one of their fabulous parties -- this one entitled spin -- from their Facebook event: "Join us as the CAC finishes the Final Friday circuit! The hottest ticket in town will be the CAC’s Contemporary Fridays re-imagined. On the final Friday of each month* the CAC will cater to this city’s vibrant population of art and night life enthusiasts. With both the Store and the galleries remaining open until 9 pm, downtown devotees can shop and stroll to their hearts’ content. Those with energy to spare can stay for the after party starting at 9pm when the CAC’s Kaplan Hall turns into Cincinnati’s hippest club. This month it is hosted by PROJECMILL**! PROJECTMILL orchestrates amazing multi-sensory dance parties at the Northside Tavern every month as part of their DMF series. Who knows what to expect when they bring their creative energy to the CAC?! —the party won’t stop until 1 am."


Friday, April 10th, 8:00pm
I actually got an email from darling Jori C. on this one, though I lost it so I have to default back to their Facebook event: "The Coochie Chronicles comes in the tradition of the Vagina Monologues. The Coochie Chronicles is a frank, melodic, exploration into the sexuality, lives, politics, stereotypes, and realities of women of color." I am as yet undecided on my attendance, but I think I might actually go!


Saturday, July 11, 6:00pm
Darling Montgomery's next public showing at Scott Knox's foyer at 6:00pm. Again, defaulting to the Facebook event. Sorry, the information is so much more concise!!

And I really want to make sure you all remember two major events supporting two very important organizations in the Cincy area coming up very soon...

• Saturday, March 28th, 7:00pm -- Swoon, to benefit PFLAG-Cincinnati (my blog post) (Facebook event) (Rainbow Cincinnati post) (PFLAG website)
• Saturday, April 18th, 7:00pm -- GLSEN Prom! (my blog post) (Facebook invite) (GLSEN Prom website)

Also: next Pride Meeting is on 4/14 at 7:00pm at the New Spirit MCC. 

If you have an event you would like posted/pimped -- clearly I'm not talking about them much any more, as they are coming in so quickly -- just shoot me an email at queercincinnati@gmail.com or send me a Facebook invite.

Charged Dropped Down

Thanks to Stuff Queer People Need to Know...

Matthew Kafagolis and Ethan Kirkwood, the alleged perpetrators in the anti-gay hate crime that took place on or near University of Cincinnati’s campus, are now being charged with two counts of misdemeanor assault each, according to the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts’ Web site. The charges were refiled as misdemeanors against the alleged perpetrators on March 19, and March 20, respectively. The original charges these individuals faced were felonious assault. The maximum penalty for a misdemeanor charge is less than a year in jail.

Both have been charged with two counts of: "ASSLT-KNOWINGLY,VICTIM HRMD M1 2903-13A ORCN." I don't know what that means. I think it's just describing where in the legal code the court is charging them under.

Media Round Up

Picture from the Enquirer Story
So far, I've only hunted down a few bits, but I'll add to this as more become available. Tell me if you see anything else:

• Pre Protest: WCPO Video and Story
• Pre Protest: Enquirer
• Post Protest: Enquirer

Also, check out Bilerico.com -- JereKeys and I guest blogged the build up and the event. Thanks much to Bil for letting us write!!!!

The whole point was to draw attention to the crime, so let's see how far we got with this!!! I'm glad to see that both WCPO and the Enquirer are talking it for what it was -- a hate crime. Media was our goal, and, by golly, I think the Cincinnati organizers did a damn good job.

Pictures from Today's Protest

Our own, Cody, aka "The Seeker."










These guys were lined up on the UC sign, and they all had signs that said "I'm straight" (or shirts). There were there as supporters :-).

Don't have my pictures from my camera up and running yet, but I promise I will in the next 24 hours and I'll post them. But I wanted to share these from my TwitPic Feed real quick.

Fantastic turnout, 250 or so, and great local media there. I haven't had a chance to really assess the media coverage, but I'll be sure to update you as it comes along. Other points of note, keep an eye on StuffQueerPeopleNeedtoKnow, Guerilla Queer Bar, Montgomery Maxton, and Dancing in Public Spaces for more updates.

WCPO Coverage of Hate Crime

This is a continuation of the ongoing coverage of the UC Hate Crime that, apparently, was going to be swept quietly under the rug in the city. Let's keep this going shall we. (Protest Post 3/18, Follow Up 3/17, Original Post 3/16). And we will have a twitter feed of the event as it happens including TwitPics as we can get them going from various people -- follow me on Twitter for tomorrow's protest live coverage.

Finally! A news source has picked up the story, here on WCPO:

Police at the University of Cincinnati believe a recent attack near the campus happened because one of the victims is gay.

Police say two people were attacked on March 6 along Clifton Avenue.

Police say one of the victims knew one of the suspects, who attacked both of them when he found out one of them is gay.

Police are still looking for three suspects.

...which is strange, because we don't know who these three suspects are. Anyways, here's the (brief) news story on video, I hope it works this time :-):

As yet, no other news.

My bad, this is the text from WLWT that appeared on the news on 3/11 on the 5:30pm news that never had any online follow up:

A 19 YEAR OLD MAN...
IN COURT TODAY...
ACCUSED OF ATTACKING A MAN BECAUSE HE'S GAY.
ETHAN
KIRKWOOD...
IS FACING TWO COUNTS OF FELONY ASSAULT FOR THE BEATING THAT HAPPENED ON CLIFTON AVENUE LAST WEEK.
POLICE SAY
KIRKWOOD ALSO BEAT UP A FRIEND OF THE VICTIM WHO TRIED TO DEFEND HIM.

So two news stories so far? I'll be curious to see if we hear anything today about the protests.

Hate Crime Update and PROTEST

For background, here's our most recent post, and here's our first post.

So, so, so much has happened and I have exactly 12 minutes before my shift to get all the information I can possible get together on one post.

I'll start with the most pressing.

The founders of Guerilla Queer Bar, all UC students, have called a protest tomorrow (3/19) at 5:30pm. I'll let them tell you the full story:

Dear Members of the Cincinnati LGBTQ and Allied Community,

As you may or may not know, there was a serious hate crime on UC's campus the night of March 6th. If you have not yet read the message that was sent to the UC community, it's at the bottom of this email. We need to take a stand for our community and show the beauty and validity of our identities and sexualities!

In response to this incident, we will hold a demonstration TOMORROW (Thursday, the 19th) starting at 5:30 pm at the corner of CLIFTON and CALHOUN. We will congregate on the UC Law School side of the street and then walk as a group down to the corner of MLK and CLIFTON.

Bring a hand made sign that states your identity-- "I am Gay" or "I am a Lesbian" or "I am Queer" or "I am Bisexual" or "I am Trans" or "I am an Ally". Be proud! There will also be a big communal sign that states the reason for the demonstration.

Cancel whatever you had planned, make a sign, get all your friends to come, and get your butt to CLIFTON and CALHOUN at 5:30 tomorrow evening! This is important. Stand up for our community and make our voices heard!

With love,
Ethan Philbrick, Jane Meek, and many more - Please Forward!!!!!!!

That came over the Facebook and is now making the rounds in your email inboxes. This is in response to the note to the UC Community from the UC Police Captain, Karen Patterson:

To: UC Community
From: Karen Patterson, Captain UC Police Department

Cincinnati Police have reported two felonious assaults that occurred on March 6, 2009 at 4:20am in the 2500 block of Clifton Avenue.
The victims were walking home when one of the victims stopped to talk to the suspects, who were friends from high school. Upon hearing that the other victim was a homosexual, the suspects became aggressive and attacked both individuals.
The victims were able to provide the police with the names of several of the suspects in the case. All three suspects were white males with two being described as 18 to 20 years old, 5'10", between 150 and 160 lbs, with brown hair and green eyes.

Karen K. Patterson MEd
Office phone: (513)-556-4906
Email address: karen.patterson@uc.edu

But I really wanted to call attention to the very excellent and extensive information provided to us by Stuff Queer People Need to Know, who did a lot of great research on the hate crime statutes and is intimately involved with the UC LGBT community... and therefore she speaks from a very personal position. God knows, when shit happened at Miami, we were all affected. Much love to the UC LGBTQ community. I know how you're all feeling.

JereKeys said it best:

Barry is hoping to draw attention to a little reported crime at the University of Cincinnati which may have been a hate crime had Ohio passed a law to recognize felony assault as a hate crime (or if the Cincinnati bias crime penalty for misdemeanor assault were applicable) or something. The news organizations who are claiming “neither have been charged with a hate crime, and, therefore, reporting it as such would be illegal” are full of shit. No one had a problem reporting on Matthew Shepard’s murder as a hate crime even though Wyoming had no such provisions in state law. It’s very simple, “Police are investigating an assault on two local college students, an assault that some say should qualify as a hate crime… [begin discussion of the incident, follow-up with information about how Ohio state law (not to mention federal law) doesn't recognize hate crimes based on sexual orientation or gender identity].” It’s a time-honored formula for the media and an opportunity for them to create more false balance by placing a random board member from Equality Cincinnati on the air next to a raving lunatic from CCV for a “debate.” It’s controversial and ratings gold!

IMPACT Cincinnati has put the information out there, and I believe individual members are offering logistical help as best they can.

The grand jury report of the alleged attacker -- Ethan Kirkland -- is on Friday.

I have more stuff, but it will have to wait, for now.

Hate Crime Follow Up

Follow up to previous post on the UC attack against a gay student.

Thanks to Donald over at Cincinnati Blog for the heads up on this one:

From the filings with the Clerk of Courts, it looks like there's two defendants, Ethan Kirkwood, 19, and Matthew Kafagolis, 20. Also looks like there's two alleged victims--let's call them V1 and V2.

V1 says that Kirkwood and Kafagolis "cause[d] or attempt[ed] to cause serious physical harm" to V1 "by kicking and punching him and using slurs against homosexuals." Further, "Victim states that above began assaulting him when it was discovered he was a homosexual by knocking him to the ground and punching and kicking him while calling him a faggot and gay." V2 says that the two defendants assaulted him when he attempted to defend his friend "who was being assaulted for being a homosexual."

Both defendants are charged with felonious assault. That's a second-degree felony; each count carries 2 to 8 years in prison. Both are released on bond (5000 straight for Kirkwood, 10000 at 10% for the other). It looks like neither was arrested at the time of the incident, but were arrested separately a few days later (and not on the same day as each other).

The grand jury report date (the date by which the prosecutor should present the case to a grand jury) is March 20 for Ethan.

And also Jamie over at Stuff Queer People Need to Know, give us this heads up after she went and did some digging:

Amid a swell of rumors here in Cincinnati, there has been word of an alleged hate crime against a young gay man that took place on or near the University of Cincinnati’s campus sometime in the March. Queer Cincinnati reported that in an e-mail promoting the Human Rights Campaign, it was stated that Channel 5 News reported that the alleged assailant’s name is Ethan Kirkwood. Nothing about this story could be found on Channel 5’s Web site. Upon searching the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts records for that name, two charges of felonious assault were filed on March 8, against Kirkwood, a 19-year-old white male. Kirkwood was charged in 2008 with DC - Intoxication, which was dismissed, and underage person liquor offense, which was paid out.

Upon searching for Kirkwood, another entry popped up on the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Web site for Matthew Kafagolis, a 20-year-old white male, that had no mention of Kirkwood. (In the search, Kirkwood’s name comes up next to Kafagolis’ case number, but upon clicking on it, Kirkwood is not mentioned in the case itself.) Kafagolis was also charged with two counts of felonious assault on March 8. Kirkwood’s and Kafagolis’ case numbers are /09/CRA/7109 and /09/CRA/7111 respectively, which leads me to believe they were filed one right after the other. It is not clear if these two individuals knew each other or if their charges are related to each other. It is also unclear if these charges are related to the alleged hate crime incident.

In brief: the two stories tell us the same story, essentially. There were two alleged attacked -- this Kirkwood and this Kafagolis, we believe. Again, this is all alleged. Let me stress that again: all alleged. The arraignments have all ready happened for both of them, and Kirkwood will hear from the Grand Jury tomorrow (3/20) and Kafagolis on the 23rd. I have Sister Cody, aka the Seeker, on the case to find the victims and make sure they are OK.

A snoop inside of one of the news offices gave us this heads up on why it has not been covered: neither have been charged with a hate crime, and, therefore, reporting it as such would be illegal. I'm pretty sure there's no hate crime statute for LGBT folks in this city/state, but I could be very wrong, but the point is that there would be no statute to charge them under. Hence, it's "just another assault." I'll see about putting a little bit of pressure on the news stations tomorrow morning to cover the grand jury report.

As for the news report, I think I can get my hands on the actual report itself that was mentioned in the email, but I'll update you later. There are legal issues, there.

UPDATE: Heard from Sister Cody, aka "The Seeker," who attends UC. He is (indirectly) in contact with one of the victims, who does not want his name published (or, rather, is not letting the word out about who he is). However, he is doing fine. If it's OK with everyone, I sent along the community's love.

Any other information you may have, or if you spot it somewhere, please email me at queercincinnati@gmail.com . THX!

UPDATE, TAKE 2: This is the information given to one of the local news desks about the arraignment that day. It gives little new information, but interesting none the less:

ETHAN KIRKWOOD, 19, OU STUDENT, WAS IN ROOM A.
KIRKWOOD IS OF CINCINNATI. HE IS CHARGED WITH 2 CTS OF FEL ASSAULT.
ON OR ABOUT 3/6/09, ON CLIFTON AVE, KIRKWOOD ATTACKED A MAN FOR BEING A HOMOSEXUAL. KIRKWOOD THEN PUNCHED AND KICKED A FRIEND OF THE VICTIM WHO TRYING TO DEFEND HIM.
HIS BOND IS $5000.

"Room A," btw, is a term for a holding cell before the arraignment. Gives us a little more detail.

Hate Crime on UC's Campus

Buried in an email promoting the HRC (really? really? you use this as a fundraising piece -- regardless, that bit has been eliminated from my quote here), news on a hate crime as yet unreported by any of the major stations:

While doing cardio at the gym - I caught a glimpse of a news story about a hate crime that happened here in Cincinnati just a couple days ago - a young gay man was beaten near the University of Cincinnati campus. The story talked about the court appearance of the assailant. As a victim of a hate crime myself - I was outraged that this was the first thing Id heard about the beating. I was even more upset that there is NOTHING on the channel 5 website or other stations for that matter - about the attack. The only thing I could find out by calling channel 5 was that the attackers name was (allegedly -- QC.com) Ethan Kirkwood (not to be confused with Kirkland that we've heard about that is the alleged attacker of little Esme - the 13 year old girl that was attacked).

I'm sure you, too, can google the alleged attacker's name and find much the same information that I did. I put Cody on the story to find out more information about the story.

Unfortunately, no news that we could find. I even did my own search. Does anyone have any information?

You know, there were hate crimes at Miami. I can remember two or three very clearly, never reported on, never had anything we could do. MU would quietly release a "we're sorry this happened" email to the queer groups, and that's what we had to expect. This says two things to me: hate crimes don't register on the local news circuit (one), and (two) Cincinnati doesn't give a shit about Butler County. Which is why it's funny when people tell me that we have to let Butler County deal with Butler County and not those of us from the big city, when we asked for years for people to be interested in Oxford. In something. But, that's just me, and, as we all know, I'm rarely right about these things.

GAY STUFF - New Holiday Notice, and the Return of Cody!!!

Hello beautiful people!!!

Well, it's been a damn long time, but I'm back! I know ya'll missed me (yeah right... Mother did at least...)!

So I come bearing some news about a new holiday I've recently heard about. Ya see, there's a girl from Toledo who's a friend of a friend, and this girl came up qith a nifty idea: she's starting a Gay Rights Day at Sylvania Southview High School. Apparently there's nothing quite like this holiday (with it's centralized purpose) anywhere around... So the goal for this things is to get it lots of exposure and maybe take the theme and spread it from Toledo to the rest of the world! That's the plan anyway...
So this is my piece in trying to help out... So get on Facebook and find the event!!! There will be adds for it soon as well.
Need help finding it? Friend me on Facebook and tell me in a message you've come from QueerCincinnati.com!!!

Side note: My video-uploading just does not work well, so I'm gonna be holding off on trying those for a while longer. I'll keep everyone posted on the goings on here at UC though... More to come when I'm permitted to speak...

Farewell lovelies! See you at the clubs!

-Cody Globig

No LGBTQ Position @ UC

From Michael Chanak...

The University of Cincinnati is committed to diversity and continues to make it a more integral part of the university experience. Recent modifications to the university mission statement and the non-discrimination policy, in part, speak to this commitment.

I have consulted with the chair of the Diversity Council, Dean Louis D. Bilionis, on this matter. Current efforts to secure "permanent" space for LGBTQ students have been successful. Room 671 in the Steger Student Life Center has been designated for this purpose. However, the dire budget situation has resulted in plans to cut several employees. Thus, we are not in a position, at this time, to provide funds for a full-time LGBTQ staff person. In the interim, current funds that support the part-time LGBTQ coordinator position have been protected to ensure that current levels of service continue to be provided.

Mitchel D. Livingston
Vice President for Student Affairs & Chief Diversity Officer

This came through on February 27th.

A little good news, a little bad. There's been a big fight to get this at UC, so it's a bit of disappointment to hear that there won't be a position over there. I know the last grad assistant ran out the door... sort of ... in a semi-huff over possible homophobia by the administration.

Yea...

Trans-Rights Happening... and fast!!!

There are lots of news stories from the last week of huge jumps the "gender identity and expression" movement has made... so quick run down (I'm doing a lot of Google news searching this evening, can you tell? :-)):

• The University of Cincinnati will add gender protections to their non-discrimination policies! Congratulations to GenderBloc for all of their hard work! (George Washington University is trying to do much the same!)
• The ACLU has filed suit in court to have two women's gender appropriately listed on their birth certificate in Illinois. Apparently there seems to be some question as to whether or not they have gone through the surgery, and a case of bureaucrats selectively deciding when they can and can't do certain things.
• Connecticut is looking to become the next state to protect trans-identified and gender variant individuals. I freaking love the source that you have linked there -- it's a Christianist source, and this is my new favoritest (insane) arguments evar:

  "People who have had sex-change operations; people who are cross-dressers," he offers. "Essentially [it means] people who are confused about their gender, their sexual identity, and think they should have been born the opposite sex from the one that God gave them."
  
  The proposal would bar discrimination based on "gender identity" or "gender expression." Similar laws have been enacted in several states, including California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Oregon.
  
  But one critic in the Connecticut House has expressed concern about the effect the measure could have on the state's public schools, saying it would impact the learning environment. For example, a male elementary school teacher could have surgery and return to classes dressed and acting as a female.
  
  "This is something that's still classified in the medical books to this day as a mental illness," Wolfgang reveals. "These folks want to raise their mental illness to the level of a protected class -- like race or sex." And impose acceptance on the rest of society, he adds.

• Massachusetts, apparently, does not already have a transgender civil rights bill, but it's on the plate for this year.

I would like to point out, too, that Cincinnati does protect people based on their gender identity and expression, and "transgenderism" appears in the Ohio Revised Code in such a way as it could be considered as under "sexual orientation."

In short: we're ahead of Massachusetts?

Was anyone else in the world surprised when they found out Minnesota was the first state to pass gender protections? I'm still flabbergasted.

Really? Minnesota? They can't even decide on a Senator.

Catholics are sexy

From @WLWT (the full story here):

The most powerful Catholic in Cincinnati is outraged over sex education at the University of Cincinnati.

Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk publicly criticized UC for a week-long program known as Sexploration.

The program features speakers and events, as well as condom giveaways and a “Pizza and Porn” night.

Sponsors include the university's Wellness Center and Pure Pleasure Inc., which sells lotions and sex toys.

People connected with the program say it’s a great educational experience for students and can help them make healthy decisions about sex.

Pilarczyk called the week of activities "profoundly disturbing." He issued a statement Wednesday criticizing the university for allowing what he calls "the gross disregard of the moral sensibilities of many in the university community."

A university spokesman said the program responds to student interest in sexual wellness and health. He said the Wellness Center is supported by student fees, not tuition, and that programs focus on issues of interest to students.

A public relations director for Pure Romance released a statement saying that a major component of the event “is to help students understand all the aspects that are important in maintaining healthy relationships.”

UC students have sex? I would never have guessed. 

[meanspirited]To the Archbishop of Cincinnati: get a clue.[/meanspirited]

When Jesus said, "Suffer the little children to come on to unto me" he didn't mean that... Sorry, that was really really really anti-Catholic. But, seriously, fresh out of their child abuse scandal, I'm amazed that the Catholic church has much street cred left on the issue of sex. Let them eat cock, IMHO. 

The UC students, that is, not the abused children or the priests...