jiorth
& sou
CAROLIN
r
a
t the anti-gay marriage amendment
Sarah Jessica Parker
talks about new film role 25
Would you consider
refusing to file your taxra
in protest of the
proposed same-sex
marriapt amendment?
Next issue:
Gardening
noted . notable . noteworthy GLBT issues
VOLUME 20 . ISSUE 22
SINCE ±90A
Qu^ theater in
the Carolinas
WWW.Q-NOTES.COM
MARCH ±± . 200«
Refusing to file: is a ban on same-sex marriage
the same as taxation without representation?
Hendersonville gay couple's refusal
to pay taxes is sparking a nationwide
movement
by Donald Miller
HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. — just outside
tFie tiny town of Hendersonville, N.C. lives a
71-year-old artist who has sparked what
may develop into a nationwide movement in
protest of same-sex marriage bans.
Charles Merrill’s name popped up in the
media several weeks ago when he and his
partner Kevin Boyle announced that they
would not pay Federal or North Carolina
Income Tax on over two million dollars worth
of stock sales and income for 2004, because
of unfair discrimination in the Federal and
State Income Tax Codes.
“I have no intention of paying Federal and
State Income taxes because my same-sex
partner and I cannot be legally married and
receive the same tax benefits as other mar
ried couples,” Merrill explained.
“By not paying taxes, this is a deliberate
act of civil disobedience towards a president
that wants to make an amendment to the
Constitution to only allow marriage between
a man and woman, rather than two people
who love each other, and that discriminates
against us as full citizens of the United
States.”
Merrill is back in the spotlight, as his ini
tial movement seems to be picking up steam
around the country as a way to protest anti
gay discrimination.
Merrill didn’t pay for 2004 and won’t for
2005, even if there are consequences. He
says he’ll fight in court even if it results in jail
time.
“I’m not afraid of the consequences,” says
Merrill. “I’m 71 years old. “I’ve had a great
life. This is my opportunity to make a state-
see GAYon 5
Charles Merrill says President Bush's endorse
ment of a same-sex marriage ban is discrimi
nation against American citizens.
N.C. State Sen. Julia
Boseman to speak at
Charlotte Guild
Boseman previously spent four years on the New Hanover
County Board of Commissioners
by Bert Woodard
State Senator julia Boseman (D-Hanover), from Wilmington,
will speak at the Charlotte Business Guild’s (CBG) March 21 meet
ing. Boseman is the first and to date
the only openly gay member of the
North Carolina General Assembly.
Born and raised in New Hanover
County, Boseman graduated with a
Bachelor of Science in Finance from
the University of North Carolina at
Wilmington in 1989. She received her
law degree from North Carolina
Central University in 1992 and has
been a practicing attorney in
Wilmington for more than a decade.
She was elected to the New
Hanover County Board of Com
missioners in 2000 and served four
years with distinction. Her civic boards
and committees include UNCW Board
of Visitors, Board of Tfustees of New
Hanover Regional Medical Center and
the Legion Stadium Commission. She
formerly served on the Transportation
Advisory Committee, Girls, Inc. and the
N.C. State Senator Julia
Boseman is the first and
only openly gay member
of the Norm Carolina
General Assembly.
UNCW Seahawk Club Board of Direaors.
Boseman and her partner, who is the
softball coach at UNCW, have one child.
see GUILD on 4
A soldier's story
Joy and pain
Editor's Note: These are the thoughts of a gay soldier — a North
Carolina native — who has been deployed to Iraq. Because of
the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, he must remain
anonymous.
In the shadow of the “Mohammed Cartoon-Gate, and the recent
blowing up of the ancient Shia Mosque, things in Central Iraq have
been really uneasy. My feelings of nervousness and apprehension
change minute by minute as new reports come to us from the intelli
gence officer. My emotions and strength lately have been like the
tides, they go and come
based on the events
around the camp. You
just never.know what to
expect, one minute you’re
laughing and enjoying a
cup of coffee — the next
you’re diving into a
bunker to avoid indirect
fire, mortars or rockets
coming into the base.
Sad occurrences are becoming a daily thing for me. Recently, one
of my interpreters’ lost his father. He was kidnapped and shot in the
head — all in the name of religion. I find it confusing sometimes —
Islam teaches peace and kindness. Not many people are following
those teachings it seems.
1 can tell you there isn’t much peace here currently and we are in
the midst of what I feel is civil war.
In another section where I work insurgents broke into one of our
interpreters houses. The family was interrogated and threatened and
told they should nbt be working with the Iraqi army and the coalition
forces.
It is very dangerous for the interpreters and the soldiers to admit
publicly they’re working with the new gov
ernment or with the coalition — it’s a see SOLDIER'S on 4