8
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Mr. Gay USA crowned
HICKORY — Ryan Davis was named Mr.
Gay USA on July 25 following a weelend of
competition. The event was held at Club
Cabaret. Both the contest and the venue are
Club Cabaret owner Jeff Reeves (left) with
Mr. Gay USA 2004 Ryan Davis.
owned by |eff Reeves (himself a former
Miss USofA at Large, Nancy Newton).
Twenty contestants competed for the
title which was being relinquished by
Raphael Matthews after a successful reign.
(Coincidentally, Matthews’ partner is the
current Mr. Continental and will give up his
own title Labor Day weekend in Chicago.)
The first runner-up to Davis was Mr.
NC USA Monte St. James followed by Todd
White, Mr. Charlotte USA, and Savion
Armani Black. Rounding out the top eight
were William Benion, Sebastian Armonte,
Eriq and Michael Armani. Best Non-final
ist finisher was Cody Domino.
Straight athlete sues gay-themed website
WAKE COUNTY — Gay-themed sports
site Outsports.com has been pulled into a
legal battle with a straight Wake County
man whose picture appeared on the site.
Chris Harbinson is seeking over $ 10,000 in
damages from the organization, as well as
punitive damages and legal fees, claiming
he has suffered "extreme embarrassment,
public humiliation, mental agony, and
damage to his name and reputation.”
The photo in question was
one of over 150 featured on the
site that covered the Los
Angeles Marathon and was
posted without a caption.
Harbinson was a participant in
the marathon, and the photo
of him shows him stretching
and smiling for the camera'
Atlanta-based attorney Cynthia Counts
is representing the site. She described the
case as frivolous and totally without merit.
The photographer who took the picture
was a credentialed member of the media
and Harbinson was participating in a pub
lic event. Outsports.com removed the
photo after receiving a cease and desist
order in April.
Ni!.waiits sex talkers
RALEIGH — State health officials are
poised to take HIV peer counseling to the
next level by recruiting teams of African-
American “popular opinion leaders” to
spread the word about safe sex in gay
dance clubs and on college campuses
throughout the Triad, Triangle and
Charlotte metro region.
Program leaders say they will meet with
bar employees and scfiool officials to iden
tify men and a few women in each com
munity with the looks, reputations and
social skills to impact others’ sexual
behaviors.
“People have heard these messages
about preventing infection and getting
tested from public health workers for 20
years now,” Phyllis Gray, a project manag
er at the HIV/STD Prevention and Care
Branch of the N.C. Department of Health
and Human Services, told The Associated
Press. “But they are still taking chances and
engaging in risky behavior.”
It is hoped that the safe sex message
will resonate more strongly among
African-American men who have sex with
men if it comes from an influential peer.
According to state HIV figures, black men
are nine times more likely to be infected
with HIV than white men.
The innovative program is funded by a
$1.4 million grant from the national
Centers for Disease Control. State health
officials hope to have the effort up and
running by Dec. 1.
MAP seeking gay men’sstaffer
CHARLOTTE — Metrolina AIDS Project
is searching for a Gay Men’s Health