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CAROLIN
Q-Uving:
Yoko Ono talks about
same-sex marriage
noted . notable . noteworthy GLBT issues
Calif. Govmor
Schwarzenegger signs first
gay-supportive law 23
Log Cabin witholds
Bush endorsement 19
Mafia orders hit on
gay mayor in Sicily 23
OutBiz:LGBT business
news in the Carolinas 27
North and South
Carottna
NC: HRC announces youth
scholarships 12
SC: SCEC to hold second
annual forum on LGBT
issues in Charleston 14
M do you think is 0ie
' most important issue
facing voters in the,
I'S. ■ next election? »f;
i, curbing terrorism
civil rights .healthcare
. the economy
. withdrawal from Iraq
VOLUME ±9 . ISSUE ±0
SINCE 1.98«
WWW. Q-NOTES. COM
September 2s . 2004
John Kerry talks to the LGBT press
Dem Presidential candidate directly
addresses LGBT issues
by Lisa Keen
DES MOINES. Iowa — No major j^arty
presidential nominee has ever granted the gay
media an interview during the general election
campaign. But, on Sept. 9, U.S. Sen. John
Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee,
agreed to two separate face-to-face interviews
with the gay media. One, for this newspaper
and others around the country, was conducted
by this reporter, a veteran gay journalist and
independent freelancer based in the Boston
area. The other, for The Advocate, was conduct
ed by the magazine’s news editor Chad
Graham. Both interviews were conducted sep
arately and were strictly limited to 15 minutes,
with only one other person in the room (Kerry
spokesperson Stephanie Cutter sat next to the
reporter, taking notes and marking time).
The interview took place at a campaign
stop in Des Moines, Iowa, just after the sen
ator spoke to an audience about healthcare.
Q; The gay community knows your record,
generally, and the Human Rights Campaign
has described it as stellar. But I don’t think
many of us know exactly what inspired you
back in 1985, in your first term, to author the
gay civil rights bill. Can you recall who or
what —
Sen. Kerry: I just think it’s an important mat
ter of fundamental fairness. I think, you
know, all Americans ought to be treated fair
ly. And the equal rights clause and the equal
protection clause mean something to me.
And I think you have to take on some tough
fights sometimes. And as president, I hope to
pass ENDA, I hope to pass hate crimes
legislation. I hope to be able to advance
the understanding in America of the dif
ficulties people face in some of the
choices in life and we have to be a
country that’s open and embracing
people, period. I mean 1 just don’t know
how we’re America if we don’t live up to
those ideals.
Q; / thought maybe you had a gay friend
or gay family member that inspired you to
take up that mantle.
Sen. Kerry: Well, I’ve had friends, obvi
ously, and I’ve had supporters in my
races and people I’ve cared about. But I
just never spent a lot of time thinking
about people as, you know, different. I
mean, each to their own. People choose
or don’t choose — they are who they are.
You are who you are. And that’s who we are
in America — a country that’s understanding
and recognizes that. We obviously have
some distance to travel. We’re still fighting
discrimination over color and religion and a
lot of hurdles to go.
Q; ...including DOMA and the Federal
Marriage Amendment. You voted against the
Defense of Marriage Act and you’ve spoken
out against the Federal Marriage
Amendment. In both cases you described it as
“gay bashing for political gain.” Many of us
feel that the constitutional amendments to ban
same-sex marriage in Massachusetts and
Missouri also constitute gay bashing for polit
ical gain. I’m curious why you haven’t spoken
out against those two?
Sen. Kerry: Well, I think there’s a distinction.
I don’t think that’s gay bashing. It’s, obvious-
John Kerry is the first major party presidential
nominee to grant an interview with LGBT media
during a campaign.
ly, a position that people in the GLBT com
munity disagree with — i understand that.
But I think that, historically, the definition of
marriage and the application of marriage
laws has always been state defined. It is up
to the states, not the federal government.
That’s why 1 viewed the federal efforts, as
specifically targeted, as gay bashing, because
they were usurping into a territory that they
didn’t belong. There was no need to do that.
Under the Constitution, no state has to rec
ognize another state’s decision, and it’s up to
the states. [Note: Under the Constitution,
states must give “full faith and credit” to the
“public acts, records, and judicial proceed
ings and acts of all other states."
Constitutional law Professor Chai Feldblum
says, “the Supreme Court has never directly
ruled that, under the Constitution, states
seePRESIDENTIALonlS
Pride returns to the
Carolinas
Annual LGBT parade and
celebration in Durham expected to attract record turnout
by David Moore
Q-Notes staff
North Carolina’s annual LGBT
Pride celebration may be kicking
off a little later in the season than
in previous years, but the excite
ment and enthusiasm surround
ing the event is as solid as ever.
“We’re celebrating 20 years of
marching, struggle, love and
pride,” beams organizer John
Short.
As the event celebrates its 20th
year,' it is also sharing the occa
sion with The Front Page — N.C.’s
oldest
LGBT publication will celebrate their 25th see RALEIGH on 6
This year's Pride Parade Grand
Marshall is Bo Dean of
Wilmington.
Charlotte LGBT Center
hires new director
New Executive Director Kevin
Ferguson former Center board
member, volunteer for RAIN
by David Moore
Q-Notes staff
The newly-hired executive director of
Charlotte’s Gay and Lesbian Community
Center doesn’t live in Charlotte. In fact, he '
doesn’t even live in North Carolina.
He lives just across the state line in the
York County jail.
That might raise a few eyebrows until
you hear the rest of the story.
York is essentially a suburb of
Charlotte and more than just a handful of
the South Carolina townspeople work and socialize in nearby
Charlotte.
As for his jailhouse residence, Kevin
Ferguson isn’t on a work release program.
Kevin Ferguson is the
new executive director
of Charlotte's LGBT
Community Center.
see CENTER on 4