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Q-Notes 15.
Seepages
inside for more
historical news.
The Carolinas’ Most Comprehensive Gay & Lesbian Newspaper
www.q-notes.com
Published Every Two Weeks On Recycled Paper • Volume 16, Number 6 • August 4, 2001 • FREE
The New Brass Rail moves over to temporary digs
eiBTs in We miUitan/in Israel
are an accepteil norm. See more
about WIs anti oWer Issues
regariling GtBTIIte in Israel on
page 24.
Whats inside...
Transgender gain
protection, need
understanding pages
HRC and Rep. RIcliard
Gephardt speak out
oniaith-based
discrimination page 16
CRN Crown Awards
announced page4
ACIU says couple
related through Vermont
union page 12
Outdoor-social club
makes its debut in
Charlotte page 25
Strub steps down as
bead ol POZ page 19
See these eah mere news,
ettlterialsaiih features
when reu step fttslUe!
See the Imfexea page B.
TaHettw latest
Q-MI:
Have yen experfenced any
discrimination based upon
your sexuai orientation in a
faith communityP
Yes, most deflniteiy
No, I never have
On occasion
Never noticed
To participate in our QPoii,
access www.Q-notes.com
See our iatest poil resuits on
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by Leah Sepsenwol
Q-Notes Staff
X New Brass Rail, Charlotte’s Levi
and Leather legend, has been forced to sell
the land out from under its longtime lo
cation on Wilkinson Boulevard. The new
Rail is not closing — it’s just moving —
temporarily to Moore’s Chapel Loop; and,
then, ultimately to its permanent place
on Freedom Drive.
Put the rumors to rest. The move resulted
from the Planning Commission’s aim to im
prove the what-will-people-think Wilkinson
corridor, a main strip (or used to be) entrance
to Uptown Charlotte from the Charlotte-
Douglas airport. “We had to move. The City
of Charlotte bought the property,” said Greg
Braeford, Brass Rail manager since 1985.
The Rail is situated on part of a 40-acre
parcel west of “Uptown” which is slated for
urban renewal. Once the city purchased the
land, the bar had to vacate by Friday, August
3,2001.
The deadline-driven search for suitable per
manent., space has been hampered by
Charlotte’s restrictive zoning requirements for
bars and adult entertainment establishments.
That, coupled with reticent real estate brokers
uncomfortable with the unique culture the Rail
brings to the neighborhood, the search has been
very difFtcult.
The Charlotte’s City Planning Commis
sion — responsible for issuing the vacate or
der — has been helping the Brass Rail in its
search for property which meets both zoning
criteria and The Brass Rail’s desire for a good,
visible location. The vacate deadline loomed
while details for the Freedom Drive spot were
(and still are) being finalized.
The need for an interim place became ap
parent. The temporary shelter at 10031
Moore’s Chapel
Loop will be the
Brass Rail address
for three to six
months. “It’s not top
notch,” Braeford
was quick to note.
“But, we have
very loyal custom
ers. We appreciate
them. It’s important
to us they have a Mow Bmss Rail
place to meet during
this ‘hiatus’ between old place and new place.”
The Brass Rail earned landmark-status —
primarily given its ongoing presence on
Wilkinson Boulevard since 1974, when Don
Robertson first opened the doors at number
3100. Don died 18 years ago, but his legacy
continued. In 1984, ten years after opening,
the bar added “new” to its name and moved to
it’s time-honored-now-vacant spot at 3707
Wilkinson.
The Rail is everything you’d expect in a
levi/leather bar — and more, which you may
find surprising: everyone is welcome and wel
comed. And then it’s home to a fraternal or
der of men committed to community involve
ment — the Tradesmen — whose fundraising
efforts on behalf of House of Mercy, an AIDS
hospice in Belmont, NC, are reknown and
award-winning.
This year the New Brass Rail was voted
“Best Local Nightspot” in the 2001 GLBT
Crown Awards. And its resident group. The
Tradesmen, garnered several awards: “Best
Local Organization,” for its ongoing support
of the House of Mercy; “Best Local
Fundraiser,” for “An
Officers Ball;” and
Honorable Mention
for “Best Local Web
Site.”
The last Brass Rail-
on-Wilkinson blast
took place Friday, Au
gust 3, including a
The temporary New Brass Rail
complimentary Sheraton shuttle and special
Sheraton room rates. The event was predicted
to ”.. .blow the roof off the Rail!” So, that ex
plains the explosion on Friday night/early Sat
urday morning, or at least part of it.
Reinventing business is so in (think
Watchoverya / First Union), so exciting!
And now the New Brass Rail is on the road
to becoming the Brand New Brass Rail. All
hail! ▼
Information and map directions are available
on the web:
The Brass Rail: www.newbrassrail.com
The Tradesmen: www.thetradesmen.org
RAIN picked as finalist for leadership award
WASHINGTON,DC — The leadership
team of Rev. Deborah C. Warren, President &
CEO, Rev. Amy E. Brooks, Rev. Stephanie
Speller-Henderson and Rev. Debra K. Kidd,
Program Directors of Regional AIDS Interfaith
Network (RAIN, Inc.) from Charlotte, was
named a national finalist for the Leadership for
a Changing World awards program which was
launched by the Ford Foundation in Septem
ber 2000. RAIN is one of 36 finalists selected
in a highly competitive process from a pool of
over 3000 nominations. RAIN is now eligible
to become one of the twenty national award-
winners who will receive $100,000 each to ad
vance their work, and an additional $30,000
for supporting activities. The final winners will
be announced on September 13, 2001.
By bringing a diverse range of faith-based
institutions together — Protestant, Jewish and
Catholic — the Regional AIDS Interfaith Net
work has created a powerful effort to combat
AIDS and its devastating impacts. Through its
activism, RAIN has brought the AIDS debate
out into the open, while also supporting direct
help for those suffering from AIDS in 11 coun
ties in North and South Carolina. RAIN has
mobilized 2000 volunteers to develop and de
liver more than 700 AIDS prevention programs,
reaching 23,000 individuals, with a particular
focus on high-risk minority communities. At
the same time, RAIN sends teams of congregants
into their communities to care for those with
HIV/AIDS including the largest number of
African American CareTeams in the country.
Leadership for a Changing World is a pro
gram of the Ford Foundation in partnership
with the Washington-based Advocacy Institute,
and the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of
Public Service at New York University. The pro
gram has three goals: to recognize the achieve
ments of outstanding leaders, to provide finan
cial and other support for their continued lead
ership work and to study how leadership is per
ceived, created and sustained. The program is
designed to bring attention to the many re
sourceful leaders who are tackling tough social
problems and bringing about positive change
in communities across the country.
“Good leadership abounds in the United
States,” said Susan V. Berresford, president of
the Ford Foundation. “All over this country
we see resourceful individuals and groups
bringing people together, tackling tough so
cial problems, and getting results. Now this
new Leadership for a Ghanging World awards
program is revealing the dimensions and vari
ety of this leadership. The 3000 nominations
in this first year — and the inspiring work of
the 36 finalists — should make us all more
aware of how many kinds of leaders are mak
ing this a better society.” T
Gay candidate seeks coiucil seat
CHAPEL HILL, NCT- Mark Kleinschmidt
has filed as a candidate for the Chapel Hill Town
Council. Kleinschmidt, a former high school
teacher, is an attorney working for the Center
for Death Penalty Litigation, a nonprofit law
firm that represents death row inmates.
Kleinschmidt‘s reasons for running are de
sire to manage growth, commitment to pro
tecting the environment and interest in im
proving relations between the university and
the town.
“Whether one agrees or disagrees with the
University’s expansion plans,” Kleinschmidt
said, “the town must work to mitigate the nega
tive impact of growth on the quality of life of
all citizens of Chapel Hill.”
Kleinschmidt believes the town must
proactively create plans that protect the quality
of life that makes Chapel Hill a desirable com
munity to live and work.
He is running for town council because he
believes the town must focus on affordable hous
ing, storm water management, reducing traffic
congestion through improved transit service,
protecting creeks and streams and preserving
green ways.
Kleinschmidt has committed to work hard
to develop thoughtful approaches that address
the tensions between the community and the
university. He believes consensus positions can
be developed that benefit will all concerned. “I
believe the damaged relations between UNC
and the town can be repaired,” said
Kleinschmidt. “The interdependence between
the town and the university and the long his
tory between the two tell us that solutions can
be developed locally.”
Kleinschmidt has had significant community
involvement. As an active Democrat, he cur
rently serves as Ghair of Weaver Dairy Precinct,
on the Orange County Democratic Executive
Committee, and on the State Executive Com
mittee of the Democratic Party.
Kleinschmidt served as the first openly-gay
Speaker of the Student Congress while in law
school at UNC. He serves on the board of di
rectors of the NC GLBT civil rights organiza
tion, Equality NC Project.
Mark Kleinschmidt was raised in Goldsboro,
NC. He lived in the Chapel Hill community
from 1988-1992 and 1997 to present. He is a
career Air Force NCO and registered nurse. He
has a BA in Education, 1992, and graduated
from UNC Law, May 2000. T