Sunday, 6 October 2013 – 5:19 PM
| Comments Off on A long-overdue Bent Alaska update — October 2013
Bent Alaska’s blog will continue in hiatus indefinitely; but the Bent Alaska Facebook Group on Facebook is thriving — join us! A long-overdue update from Bent Alaska’s editor.
Thursday, 7 October 2010 – 7:26 AM
| Comments Off on McAdams is keynote speaker at Alaska Pride Conference, Oct 9
The Alaska Pride Conference theme this year is “Equal” and we have structured the conference around this. The keynote speaker will be US Senate candidate Scott McAdams speaking on how we can move forward for Equality for LGBT Alaskans. (Please note that all senate candidates were invited to speak). Senator Mark Begich’s office will give a “State of the State” report on LGBT Equality.
With 17 workshops, 11 vendors, 4 guest speakers, free rapid HIV testing, a drag king performance, door prizes, gift certificates, food and friends, you don’t want to miss the Pride Conference!
AK Pride Conference 2010 is being held in the Carr-Gottstein Building at APU on Sat. Oct 9th from 8a.m. to 4:30p.m.
Guest Speakers and Panelists
· Scott McAdams: Scott is the mayor of Sitka and is the Democratic Candidate for the US Senate representing Alaska. He is here today to give his take on how Alaskans can move forward in achieving full equality.
· Kim Mack: At Gay Pride this year, Kim gave an impromptu thank-you speech for the benefits she has received as the result of activism by others. She is here today to tell her story.
· Panel: “Opportunities for Activism in Alaska”: Our panelist will speak on ways we can move forward in the fight for Equality in Alaska. Our Panelists include:
– Shelby Carpenter works with Equality Works. Equality Works is a coalition of organizations and individuals working to protect Anchorage citizens from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in matters of employment, housing and public accommodations.
– Elias Rojas is the President of Alaskans Together for Equality. Alaskans Together for Equality, Inc. is a political nonprofit incorporated in the State of Alaska. Its mission is to advance civil equality for all Alaskans through grass roots organizing and advocacy.
– Edie Bailey is a Board Member of the Anchorage Equal Rights Commission (AERC). Established in the Anchorage Charter in 1975, the AERC is the Municipal law enforcement agency charged to eliminate and prevent unlawful discrimination under Title 5 of the Municipal Code within the geographic boundaries of the Municipality. (Sexual orientation/gender identity is not covered under Title 5).
We have three streams of workshops: Activism, Community, and Relationships. Workshop details, the full conference schedule, and registration forms are available at Identity, Inc. – Conference. Register before the conference and save $5!
We will have door prizes, raffles, entertainment and delicious food catered by The Last Frontier Men’s Club.
In conjunction with the Alaska premier of the filmsI Can’t Think Straight and The World Unseen, AK Pride Conference will be holding a post-conference Brunch on Sunday morning at 10:00a.m. at Out North Theater.
Join us at APU on Sat. Oct 9th for the Alaska Pride Conference 2010!
Monday, 14 June 2010 – 10:38 PM
| Comments Off on Juneau adds Film Night to Pride Picnic and Hike
Juneau’s Pride events for June and July include a new LGBT Film Night benefit for Alaskans Together featuring the award-wining film Out in the Silence, along with a Pride Picnic at Skater’s Cabin, a hike at West Glacier, a drag show benefit for Four A’s, and local events for HIV Testing Week.
The First Annual Alaskans Together for Equality LGBT Film Fun-Raiser is on Thursday, June 17 at the Gold Town Nickelodeon Theater, 171 Shattuck Way. Doors open at 5:45 p.m. and the film schedule is below. Come for one segment or stay for the whole evening. Finger foods and refreshments will be available. Bring your checkbook and cash for the donation baskets. Membership in Alaskans Together for Equality, Inc. is available at all levels, from $10 up.
LGBT Film Fun-Raiser Schedule – June 17
6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Dramatic Narrative Shorts
Coming to Terms – College student deals with coming out by phone
The Manual – Sent to psychiatric institution as a boy, Sonny tries to help niece avoid similar treatment
The Call – Lesbian women interact with their sperm donor
Two Encounters – Hidden cameras reveal difference in treatment of blacks and whites in gay bars
7:15 – 8:15 p.m. Main Feature
Out in the Silence – Challenges of coming out and living in small towns and rural America
The film will be followed by an optional discussion in a breakout room led by Juneau Assembly member Jonathan Anderson
8:30 – 9:30 p.m. Humor & Love Shorts
Hi Maya – Mature women strike up relationship in hair salon
Float – Male love in the Bahamas
Hummer – Dinner party brings surprises for women participants
For further information or to help with the event, email Kelli or Marsha.
Watch the trailer for Out in the Silence:
Juneau’s other LGBT events for June and July include the Mendenhall hike, the Pride Picnic, the Friday social, a drag show fundraiser for Four A’s, and free testing during National HIV Testing Week.
Mendenhall Journey: June 19, 2010. Meet at 9:30 AM at the trail head of West Glacier Trail. Round trip is 5-6 hours, distance is 3.4 miles one-way, bring a lunch and water to drink, trail mix would also be wise, good footwear is mandatory. The hike departs promptly at 10 AM. Do not be late! Access directions: take Montana Creek Road from the Mendenhall Loop road, and follow the signs to the campground. Go past the campground entrance, and Skater’s cabin to the parking area at the end of the road. This trail is rated “more difficult” by the Juneau hiking trail guide. There is some rock scrambling/climbing involved to reach the ice caves.
Annual Pride Picnic with SEAGLA and PFLAG: July 17, 2010 at Skater’s Cabin from 4-8PM. Please plan to be there. Bring a salad and whatever you would like to drink, glass is not allowed. Firewood might be good depending on weather. Volunteers are requested to help with set up, breakdown, music, and a BBQ grill. SEAGLA will provide paper plates, cups and plastic ware that we already have. Also we will provide some burgers both meat and non-meat as well as hot dogs, and soft drinks. But if you can bring a salad or bake some cookies or a cake that would be great.
Friday Social: June 18, June 25, 2010. Each Friday after work from 6-8 PM, community members and their friends, both men and women are invited to get together. Drop by the Jaded Lounge in the Goldbelt Hotel, downtown Juneau to unwind from the work week. If you are over 21, you are invited to join us. Please try it out this Friday, or another Friday in the future. Come on out, and make a new friend today! Visit SEAGLA for future locations.
Drag Queen and King show: July 9, 2010 at the Rendezvous Bar. Marguerite the recently appointed Duchess of Juneau is planning a local Drag Queen and King show and recycled flogger making party as a fundraiser for Four A’s, at the Rendezvous Bar on Friday July 9th, and she’s looking for help. Donations of time, supplies, ideas and funds are welcome. Please email Marguerite.
National HIV Testing Week is an annual campaign coordinated by the National Association of People with AIDS to encourage people of all ages to “Take the Test, Take Control.” National HIV Testing Week is June 21-27, 2010. The Four A’s will be providing free testing (Oral Swab, results in 20 minutes) at closed and public locations for the whole week in Juneau. The public locations:
Tuesday, June 22: 7-10 p.m. at Rendezvous
Wednesday, June: 23 11-4 p.m. at Blaze and 4-8 p.m. at Four A’s
Thursday, June 24: 8:30 a.m.– 3:30 p.m. Free blood draws at Juneau Public Health (no appointment necessary) and 8-11 p.m. at Alaskan Bar
Friday, June 25: 4-8 p.m. at Four A’s
Free HIV Testing also available at Four A’s (174 S Franklin Street, #207/Above Heritage Coffee) during business hours, call 586-6089 for an appointment.
Thursday, 13 May 2010 – 11:16 AM
| Comments Off on Hater Alert: Sound Aviation
A Bent Alaska reader asked the owner of Sound Aviation – a flight-seeing company based in Anchorage – a few questions about his scenic tours and got a long homophobic rant in reply. Why? The reader’s email had a signature line supporting Alaskans Together for Equality, the statewide LGBT advocacy group, and Sound Aviation’s owner Bill Marsan felt compelled to tell a potential customer that gays can be cured – and pilot Bill can show us how:
God has created man to have fellowship with Him and gave man and women the desire to be fruitful and multiply—have children so that they too could enter into fellowship with God… He made sure that man knew why He had made him and gave him a book to instruct him. The Bible. This same Bible tells us that it is wrong and unnatural for men to burn with lust for other men and women to burn for other women. It is a crime against nature and the whole purpose and reason He made us. It is not loving but rather sinful. God has made a way for sinful man to be forgiven instead of being judged in the end. Since everything He asks man to submit to is right, just and loving —to do other than that is unloving and causes hurt, pain and misery to a society. The way to be forgiven is to stop sinning and submit to God’s rule of love which will bless all people you come in contact with. We are cleansed as we believe in the Lord Jesus and what He did on the cross—He came to allow a way for the law of God to be upheld and yet allow Him to forgive sinful man based on their faith in His substitutionary death on the cross–By faith in Him our pending doom can be canceled and we may begin a relationship with Him—It is really amazing to see how God deals with man–such patience with the wicked—waiting for them to turn to Him and His design for the universe. You to may enter into this amazing relationship TODAY—if you wish more information I would be happy to provide you with more. Homosexuality is NOT a civil rights issue —It is a SIN issue.
All that (and much more – this quote is only the second half of his reply) in response to a few questions about scenic tours.
We don’t have to support business owners who force their anti-gay religious bigotry on us! Spend your ‘gay dollars’ on gay-positive businesses, like those in the LGBT-Friendly Business Lists linked in the right-hand column of the blog. ➨
Please spread the word about Marsan, so that no gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender visitor to our beautiful state becomes a captive audience to this hater and has to sit through a whole flight of his ugliness.
Tuesday, 11 May 2010 – 10:32 AM
| Comments Off on TODAY: Veterans Lobby Day on DADT
All hands on deck! Today is Veterans Lobby Day for ending Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell, the military’s gay ban. Hundreds of veterans are gathered in DC to ask Congress and the President to repeal DADT this year, and supporters around the country are doing a national call-in.
Nearly 14,000 Americans have been abruptly fired from the U.S. military because of Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell – including more than 800 mission critical specialists, and Jene Newsome, an Alaskan stationed in South Dakota.
Please give your voice to those who must be silent. Get the repeal of Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell over the finish line in 2010.
1. Call the Congressional switchboard at 202-224-3121, tell them where you live, and ask them to connect you to your Representative’s office. Tell the staffer who picks up: your name, where you’re calling from, and that you’re “calling to support the Veteran’s Lobby Day and urging Congress to repeal ‘Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell’ this year.”
2. Call the Congressional switchboard 2 more times asking for your Senators, and leave the same message.
3. Then call the White House switchboard at (202) 456-1111 and urge the President to lead the way this year by adding the “Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell” repeal to his current defense budget, which is being written this month.
This lobby day is one of our last chances to speak out before Congress takes action on the National Defense Authorization Act, the bill that should contain the “Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell” repeal language.
That means it’s crunch time. Whether you’re a veteran, a friend or relative of a service member, or simply someone who believes in equality, make that call and add your voice to our fight to end “Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell.”
If you are a veteran in Alaska who supports the repeal and are willing to speak out, please contact Alaskans Together, a co-sponsor of Veterans Lobby Day.
Saturday, 8 May 2010 – 9:50 AM
| Comments Off on Alice and LuLu in Fairbanks, Frontrunners in Anchorage
Gay AK – News and notes for LGBT Alaska
Happy Mothers Day to all moms – lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and straight!
“Alice in the Underground” in Fairbanks
The Street Outreach and Advocacy Program (SOAP) of Fairbanks Counseling and Adoption (FCA) is proud to present Alice in the Underground, a fundraiser play about the realities of life for at-risk and homeless teens in Fairbanks. Teens at the downtown drop-in center worked with local theater professionals to create the play, resulting in a unique retelling of Lewis Carroll’s classic tale.
The show runs May 7th, 8th, 14th, and 15th at the Empress Theater downtown in the Co-op Building on Second Avenue. All performances are at 7:30 and tickets are $20 for general admission; $15 for students, seniors, and military; and Free for youth under 18.
Please come and help FCA continue its outreach and advocacy for the youth of Fairbanks, including LGBT youth. Email Alice in the Undergroundand check out their Facebook page.
Kentucky Derby party brings new members to Alaskans Together
On Saturday May 1, ATE held a Kentucky Derby Fundraiser in Fairbanks. We had about 30 people, raised $607 and signed up several new members. Everyone had a lot of fun. More fundraisers for Alaskans Together are being planned for Anchorage and Juneau this year, and we’ll let you know about them as soon as we have the details.
LuLu Small and the Small Band 5/14 & 5/15 in the Interior
Dance to Alaska’s premiere all-woman all-rock-&-roll band in Fairbanks and North Pole. The Lulu Small Band (Lulu, Marilyn, Merley) with special guest Trish Ham perform in the Interior: Friday, May 14 at The Marlin (non-smoking) in Fairbanks, and Saturday May 15 at The Badger Den in North Pole.
Run/Walk with Anchorage Frontrunners every Tuesday, 6:00 p.m.
Anchorage Frontrunners are starting to meet again officially this week. Some of us started a few weeks ago, but we usually run May through October. Tuesdays 6:00p.m. meet at Westchester Lagoon. A nice group of happy runners. Email Peter or check the Anchorage Frontrunners site.
Prom for Queer Teens, Guideline of Rights for LGBT Youth
The ACLU receives calls every year from students all over the country who have been told they cannot attend prom with their partners of choice or cannot dress in non-traditional gender clothing. In response, they posted a letter to principals and superintendents that students can use if their school tries to stop them from bringing a same-sex date to the Prom, and a letter for girl students who are being prevented from wearing a tuxedo to school dances. The letters and other resources are available at the ACLU’s Prom Resources for LGBT Students.
Wednesday, 5 May 2010 – 5:02 PM
| Comments Off on Repeal DADT: Veterans Lobby Day & Stories from the Frontlines
Veterans from across the nation will meet with members of Congress to demand repeal of the military gay ban on “Veterans Lobby Day on Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell” May 10-11. Alaskans Together for Equality has joined the coalition and is looking for LGBT service members and veterans in Alaska.
Nearly 14,000 Americans have been abruptly fired from the U.S. military because of Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell – including more than 800 mission critical specialists, and Jene Newsome, an Alaskan stationed in South Dakota.
Alaskans Together is looking for other LGBT service members and veterans in Alaska willing to talk to the media. If you are able to join this effort, please Email Tim Stallard.
The national Veterans Lobby Day on DADT will bring hundreds of gay and lesbian veterans and their straight veteran allies to Washington with the support of a pro-repeal and pro-military coalition. They will demand to have the DADT repeal attached to the Defense Authorization bill. Supporters back home are encouraged to call their members of Congress on Veterans Lobby Day.
The video for Veterans Lobby Day on DADT:
Both the House and Senate Armed Services Committees are expected to markup the Defense Authorization bill in May. The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) writes:
“We are urging the President to include repeal in the Administration’s defense budget recommendations, but also to voice his support as we work to muster the 15 critical votes needed on the Senate Armed Services Committee to include repeal. The Defense Authorization bill represents the best legislative vehicle to bring repeal to the president’s desk. It also was the same vehicle used to pass DADT in 1993. By working together, we can help build momentum to get the votes!”
Meanwhile, SLDN is continuing to post a letter each weekday from people directly effected by this discriminatory law in “Stories from the Frontlines: Letters to President Barack Obama.” The military personnel include men and women from the Navy, Air Force, Army, Marines, and a Military Chaplain. This touching letter is from the Chaplain:
Dear Mr. President,
As an active-duty military chaplain who just returned from a 15-month deployment in Iraq, this is my appeal for justice:
Over the years some of us have buried our closest friends — officers and enlisted, African American, Latinos, Native Americans, Asians, Whites, rich, poor, Protestants, Catholics, Muslims and Jews. They had the courage to make the supreme sacrifice in order for us to reap the bounties of freedom. We owe them a debt of gratitude which can never be repaid.
What is remarkable about these Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Coastguardsmen is they understood the personal risk when they answered the highest calling of our nation. What could be a nobler act then to give one’s life to one’s country, knowing that in their lives many freedoms would be denied them?
And when their story is told a significant piece of their life would be missing.
As they sleep under the crosses, the stars of David and the crescents there is no bigotry. There is no prejudice. There is no hatred. And within the sacred confines of their resting place there is no law of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.” There is only purest democracy.
When the final cross has been placed in the last cemetery, will it only be then that we as a nation acknowledge our gay brothers and sisters who took the risks of life and truth to answer their nation’s highest calling? How many of these brave men and women lie in military graves and still hide in death?
They are among the unknown soldiers.
There are only a few who know the truth of those who lie in these graves. There are only a few who know the suffering and sorrow of those who mourn them in silence and fear. The nation remains silent and owes no allegiance to who they truly were nor does it honor their loved ones. What does that say of our sacred values?
If one gay person was killed in defense of America, issues such as the destruction of unit morale or the fear of people not wanting to join the military devalue their sacrifice. This is not about appeasing the uncomfortable feelings of a minority; this is a universal and transcendent matter of justice. America was built on the common Jewish and Christian heritage of justice when the Bible commands: “Justice, justice you shall pursue” (Deuteronomy 16:20).
It is easy for those who do not live in fear of being ‘outed’ to say: ‘We must wait and examine this law further.’ But when you have to watch what you say, where you go, and who you talk to, this erodes the human person. When you live in fear that the wrong pronoun slips through your lips, or a co-worker see you in public with your life long partner and you respond ‘this is just a friend’, this degrades your human self worth.
Gays and lesbians wait not for justice, for them justice is denied, but they wait for the ‘knock on the door.’ They are haunted daily waiting ‘to be found out.’
We went to foreign lands to wage war to liberate people so they would not have to live in the fear of waiting. But citizens of our own land who served nobly, who died to secure freedoms which they would never profit from, must live in fear waiting for justice.
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is an unjust law. It degrades the human soul because it forces those who willingly serve to live in shameful humiliation because of deceit and fear. It undermines the very principles and values of what it means to be an American. Living the façade of a life goes against the Core Values of every Armed Service. How much longer is justice going to be denied? There comes a time when despair and fear must end.
Mr. President, we depend on your sense of justice and fairness to help end this gross injustice so we, as a nation, do not have to wait for the final marker to be placed in the last cemetery.
We ask you to lead the way in repealing this unjust law and replace it with a policy of non-discrimination that advances open and honest service. A law that is consistent with true American values and honors the sacrifices of so many who have served – and died — in silence.
With deepest respect,
A military chaplain
(The writer is currently serving and unable to identify himself publicly.)
Read all of the letters HERE, and contact Alaskans Together to support the local effort.
Friday, 30 April 2010 – 2:16 PM
| Comments Off on Talk Derby to Me
You are invited to join the Fairbanks LGBTA community on May 1 for an afternoon of Kentucky Derby, mint juleps, a little touch of Southern fabulousness and horse racing, all for a good cause.
We’ll have mimosas and two different types of mint juleps, plus snack food. Everything else is bring your own. We also have contests: wear the most fabulous hat imaginable and win a prize. Every attendee will have $100 of “play money” to bet on the actual horse race. The Derby will be on at 2 p.m. Alaska time, and we’ll have a TV set on so we can watch the action. Whoever wins the most money wins the fabulous Kentucky Derby pie generously donated by Erica Iseri. Of course, for those who lose the most, we have our traditional bottle of Kentucky Bourbon as a consolation prize.
The Kentucky Derby Party is a fund raiser for Alaskans Together for Equality, Inc., Alaska’s only statewise LGBTQ civil rights organization. There is a suggested donation at the door of $10-$25, and we will also be offering a 50-50 raffle, among other things, to raise money for this worthwhile cause. The suggested donation is not a requirement to get in. There will be plenty of information about Alaskans Together at the party.
The Derby party is on Saturday, May 1 from 12:30pm-3:30pm at the Cafe Alex building, 310 1st Avenue Fairbanks Alaska. Ages 21 and over only, please (this was a requirement to use the space.)
We hope you can join us – its a great excuse to be a little fabulous on a Saturday afternoon while raising money for a good cause.
SEAGLA Social Fridays (6-8 p.m.) for GLBT people and our friends over 21, at The Imperial Bar.
Fairbanks
ICOAA Pretty ‘n Pink 18+ Prom and show 4/30, doors open at 7 p.m., show at 8 p.m. at Pioneer Park Civic Center, tickets $12 to benefit The Imperial Court.
Kentucky Derby Party and Alaskans Together Fundraiser 5/1, 12:30-3:30 p.m. at the Cafe Alex building, 310 1st Avenue. 21 and over only. Drinks, snacks, contests and prizes, and watching the horses race. $10-$25 suggested donation. RSVP.
Wednesday Social Group, contact Joshua for the location.
Mat-Su Valley
Mat-Su LGBT Community Center in Palmer is open M-F 5-8 p.m. (except 6-8 on Wed.) The social group meets Wednesdays, 5-6 p.m. at Vagabond Blues.
Anchorage
ACLU Open House 4/30, 5-7 p.m. at their new office, 1057 West Fireweed, Suite 207, near the corner of Spenard and Fireweed. Free & no RSVP needed.
Friday Night Diva Show 4/23, 9 p.m. at Mad Myrna’s.
Thursday, 29 April 2010 – 10:39 AM
| Comments Off on Tell Young, Begich and Murkowski to vote YES on ENDA!
ENDA is a federal bill to protect workers from being fired for being gay or trans, and Congress will be voting on it soon. The haters are cranking up their fear machine to stop ENDA, and the vote will be close, especially in the Senate. In a guest post on Alaska Commons, Tonei Glavinic reminds us that it’s time to call our Congress members again.
—
On Wednesday April 21, over 200 LGBT and allied organizations (including our own Alaskans Together for Equality) issued a one-line statement to members of the United States Congress:
Pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act NOW.
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or ENDA (H.R. 3017/S. 1584) is a federal bill that would add sexual orientation and gender identity to existing federal employment non-discrimination laws, making it illegal to treat employees unfairly based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
For the first time since 1994, when this legislation was initially introduced to Congress, federal lawmakers appear ready to pass the law, furthering LGBT equality by establishing workplace protections that hundreds before us have sought.
At this point, only 40% of the U.S. by population has clear laws in place that protect LGBT people from this type of discrimination. The 2009 Out & Equal Workplace Survey, released in October, shows that workplace discrimination persists, with 44 percent of respondents indicating they have faced discrimination on the job, and 18 percent indicating they experienced discrimination in the last 18 months.
The situation is even more dire for transgender people: the preliminary findings of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey (a project of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality) found that 97 percent of respondents reported mistreatment or harassment, and 47 percent had lost their job, been denied a promotion, or were denied a job as a direct result of being transgender. Transgender people also reported twice the national rate of unemployment.
Right now, in most of the country (including Alaska), this happens without recourse. ENDA will change this, but it won’t happen without your help. A vote on ENDA could happen in the next two weeks. Will you take two minutes right now to call Don Young’s office and tell him that you support ENDA?
Call Rep. Young at 202-225-5765. Give your name and your city and then let him know:
“I am calling in support of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (H. R. 3017/S. 1584), which will protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from job discrimination. No one deserves to be fired from their job because of who they are. Please vote Yes for ENDA.”
If you get voicemail instead of a person, feel free to leave a message – the messages are listened to and count just as much as if you reach a staff member. You can call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you’ve called in the past, no problem … call again or write or schedule a visit.
Then hang up and call Senators Murkowski and Begich. Murkowski’s number is 202-224-6665; Begich’s is 202-224-3004. I promise you that based on the work I’ve done here in DC and the conversations I’ve had with all three of them that your calls are not a waste of time.
Interested in becoming more involved? Visit the ENDA NOW blog for more ways you can help.
Please pick up the phone and call right now, today – our representatives need to hear that Alaskans support equality.
– Tonei Glavinic is an Alaskan queer activist attending American University in Washington, DC. Zie currently works as a Public Policy and Advocacy intern at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and was recently elected Executive Director of American University Queers and Allies. The opinions expressed here are hir own, and not meant to represent any organization with which zie is affiliated.
Friday, 16 April 2010 – 8:31 PM
| Comments Off on Three Fairbanks parties benefit LGBT groups
Get ready for summer by planning PFLAG’s entries in the Golden Days Parade and Tanana Valley State Fair, then party, party, party to raise money for Fairbanks PFLAG, the Imperial Court, and Alaskans Together.
PFLAG plans for Fair and Parade 4/18, 4 p.m.
This year’s Tanana Valley State Fair theme is “Barn in the USA.” PFLAG will be planning our Golden Days Parade theme and entry for mid-July at our next meeting, on Sunday, April 18 at 4 p.m. Fairbanks PFLAG meets on the third Sunday of the month at 814 6th Ave.
Dance Party, PFLAG fundraiser 4/24, 9 p.m.
DJ White Chocolate/Nicole will once again be spinning your favorites along with new dance music so be ready to shake, shake, shake your booty! The dance party at Jeff’s house is open to GLBT people and our allies 21 or older. It’s also a fundraiser for Fairbanks PFLAG to help pay for the LGBT community’s entry in the Golden Days parade in July and the booth at the Tanana Valley Fair in August. Suggested donation: $5 or more.
Pretty ‘n Pink Prom, Imperial Court fundraiser 4/30, 7 p.m.
It is show time again in Fairbanks! You can be the next Prom King or Prom Queen. Join the ICOAA for a great show and lots of fun hosted by the reigning Grand Duke and Duchess of Fairbanks, Stephen and DixiE Normous. Doors open at 7 pm, show starts at 8 pm. Tickets are $12, and all proceeds benefit the Imperial Court of All Alaska. Open to everyone age 18 and above, must provide proof of age. The Prom and Drag show will take place at the Pioneer Park Civic Center.
Kentucky Derby Party, Alaskans Together fundraiser 5/1, 12:30 p.m.
They’re off! Mint Juleps, mimosas and snacks, contests with prizes, like the most Fabulous Hat contest, as well as Virgin Gambling. Saturday, May 1 from 12:30-3:30 p.m. at the Cafe Alex building in Fairbanks (310 1st Avenue). 21 and over only. The actual Kentucky Derby race will be on at 2 p.m. Alaska time, and we’ll have a TV set on so we can watch the action. There is a suggested donation at the door of $10-$25, and there will also be a 50-50 raffle, with the proceeds going to Alaskans Together for Equality. Hope to see you at the Kentucky Derby Party!
The very real consequences of DADT repeal; seeking survivor benefits for same-sex partner of Alaska shooting victim; waiting on SCOTUS decision about whether it will hear Prop 8 case; and other recent LGBTQ news selected by Sara Boesser in Juneau, Alaska.
In this month’s “Ask Lambda Legal” column, Lambda Legal answers a question about the federal government’s longstanding ban against donations of blood from men who have sex with men (MSM).
Alaska Pride Conference 2012 kicks off on October 5 with a First Friday showing at Tref.Punkt Studio of Love is Love, a photographic exhibit of LGBT couples from across the state.
United for marriage: Light the way to justice. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this Tuesday and Wednesday, March 26–27, in two cases about freedom to marry. Please join us on Tuesday, March 26, at the federal courthouse in Anchorage (7th & C) in a circle united for equality.
Pariah, a critically acclaimed film about a 17-year-old African-American woman embracing her lesbian identity, will screen at UAA on Friday, November 2, and will be followed by a discussion on acceptance in honor of Mya Dale. The event is free and open to the public.
