Can You Prove You're Gay?

I ran across this story at Pam's House Blend about a beautiful young man, Alvaro Orozco, who was constantly beaten by his father in Guatemala because daddy suspected him of being gay. He was thrown into a detention center for boys, where he was continually harassed. Eventually, he made his way to the US, was picked up by immigration, released, helped by several Catholic Charities (where he couldn't tell them he was gay), then by some 7th Day Adventists (who are also anti-gay, so he kept silent), and finally, ended up in Canada where he is appealing for sanctuary under the laws that protect GLBT persons who might be persecuted or killed in their own countries.

Here's the problem: They don't believe he's gay. Why? Because he didn't have gay sex as a teenager. HAVE GAY SEX? He was running for his life! He was hiding his homosexuality in order to survive. Hiding his sexual orientation is how he is still alive. So, how does "prove" this board that he's actually gay? Bring in some friends and have an orgy there in the courthouse?

Read his whole story on a website set up to help him. It's an incredible story told by a young man who deserves the best in life. Anytime you think you got it bad, think of what he had to do to survive.

And in a related story, we find out that the KKK is growing again. Why? Because of all them damned "Mexicans" streaming across the border and presence of jerks like Pat Buchanan who seems to be on every single news channel pushing his xenophobic agenda. What a world we live in.

This Sunday on Broadway at Bedtime

This weekend, on Sunday's edition of Broadway at Bedtime, I'll be interviewed by Will Conyers. It will play stateside, EST, in a live stream at 5am Sunday at their website at Broadwayatbedtime.com.

NY Big Voice Video Diary #21

Steve goes to the Mahattan School of Music to work with two opera students who are working with Mark Janas who has given them "How Do You Fall Back In Love?" (from THE BIG VOICE) to learn. This video is their rehearsal, so they're still working on the song, but agreed to let me post it.

Quote Of The Day: NBA Player (Retired) Comes Out

Apparently, it's okay for pro athletes to come out of the closet AS LONG AS THEY'RE RETIRED:

What if Philadelphia 76ers forward Shavlik Randolph had said he's not really comfortable with black teammates, but he manages? What if he'd said, "As long as you don't bring your blackness on me I'm fine"? And "As far as business-wise, I'm sure I could play with him. But I think it would create a little awkwardness in the locker room"?

That would be so not OK it's almost impossible to express. Randolph would get a thank-you card from Michael Richards for taking the heat off of him. But Randolph said those things about having a gay teammate, so, hey, no problem.

King Kaufman in Salon

Alan Chambers on Ted Haggard

ExGay Watch reports that Exodus Executive Director Alan Chambers admits that this whole "Ted Haggard got changed back into a total heterosexual in three weeks of therapy" sounds suspicious.

Alan, who has been proudly proclaiming his own heterosexuality (after 16 years of "struggle") admits that he "is human" and dances around the question of whether he still has same sex attraction, basically admitting without admitting that he does. This is one of the trickier parts of dealing with the Exodus types. They constantly use the phrase "freedom of homosexuality" but when they say it, they mean, "No longer having gay sex" or "living the gay lifestyle" or "identifying" as gay.

In the real world, where they don't live, "freedom from homosexuality" means no longer attracted to persons of the same sex. Unfortunately, this misuse of language is what propels their advertising and promotional campaigns. The dishonest political right machine of James Dobson plays on the double meanings, knowing the public doesn't study this deceptive rhetoric enough to "get" that most of the Exodus people are, in fact, still gay. Gayer than gay. They just don't "identify" as gay.

So now Ted Haggard, after three weeks, is suddenly a rampaging heterosexual after having admitted that he "struggled" with this HIS ENTIRE LIFE. Wow! That must have been some amazing therapy if Rev. Ted can get "cured" of something that most professional exgays can't even get cured of.

As Andrew Sullivan pointed out in his blog, this is a symptom of the sickness of the fundamentalist religious mindset. It cannot face reality. And when reality rears its head, the fundamentalist goes into complete denial. It's the sort of thing that can lead to a complete mental breakdown if you are unable to free yourself from it.

By lying to himself, his wife, his family and the rest of the world, Mr. Haggard only makes himself and the whole Exodus cause look as foolish as they actually are.

Alan realizes this, of course. He's not a stupid man. I'll say this for him. In this transcript which I linked to, he acknowledges that many gay and lesbian persons have managed to reconcile their faith and their sexuality. Money quote:

CHAMBERS: Not at all. I think that there are plenty of gay people out there who are Christians, as well, but for me, homosexuality wasn’t compatible with my faith, and my faith was much more important than that.

Usually he tells everyone the exact opposite. He even said once that you couldn't even be a CELIBATE gay and be Christian, if you referred to yourself as "gay." Dr. Dobson isn't going to be very happy with that kind of talk. His political empire of gay hate rests on keeping these Exodus boys in line.

Fighting Back in Washington

In the state of Washington, the state supreme court made the decision that same sex couple could be barred from marriage because they can't have children. So, marriage equality advocates have decided the best way to fight back against such an absurd ruling was to force the issue by creating an initiative making it illegal to be married unless you're going to have children. IOW, if you're going to bar marriage from same sex couples on this silly and flimsy reasoning, then apply it to everyone. This is from their site:

The Washington Defense of Marriage Alliance seeks to defend equal marriage in this state by challenging the Washington Supreme Court’s ruling on Andersen v. King County. This decision, given in July 2006, declared that a “legitimate state interest” allows the Legislature to limit marriage to those couples able to have and raise children together. Because of this “legitimate state interest,” it is permissible to bar same-sex couples from legal marriage.

The way we are challenging Andersen is unusual: using the initiative, we are working to put the Court’s ruling into law. We will do this through three initiatives. The first would make procreation a requirement for legal marriage. The second would prohibit divorce or legal separation when there are children. The third would make the act of having a child together the legal equivalent of a marriage ceremony.

Absurd? Very. But there is a rational basis for this absurdity. By floating the initiatives, we hope to prompt discussion about the many misguided assumptions which make up the Andersen ruling. By getting the initiatives passed, we hope the Supreme Court will strike them down as unconstitutional and thus weaken Andersen itself. And at the very least, it should be good fun to see the social conservatives who have long screamed that marriage exists for the sole purpose of procreation be forced to choke on their own rhetoric.

Eating On A Dollar A Day

My crazy nephew, Geoffrey, has decided to see if he can eat for an entire month on a dollar a day and blog about it. I told him the only mistake he's making is refusing to allow his girlfriend's mother to feed him. Once, when I was in New York long ago, I had only $5 and it had to last a week. So, I figured out where all the Happy Hours were that gave out food like peanuts and bananas. I also accepted hand-outs from friends.

At the end of the week, I had $3 left.

Sharing Steve Songs

On Monday, Mark Janas invited me down to the Manhattan School of Music where I met with two wonderful students, Leona and David, who are going to be performing "How Do You Fall Back In Love" at an event next week. I am so thrilled and proud of them. I taped their rehearsal and though it's probably not fair to post much of it while they're still working out the kinks, they gave me permission. So, I'll be making a video soon.

Then, this morning, I met with Broadway star Brian Stokes Mitchell who is informally gathering material for a new album. After a nice "hello and howdy" over tea and coffee, we settled in to work. Unlike Devin, who preferred to jump right in and try out the songs, Stokes wanted to just listen. It was quite intimidating, but I didn't let it keep me from plunging right ahead. In fact, it was quite an honor.

I would play him a song, he would say he loved it and then, excitedly, say, "Play me another!" And another and another. I think we sat there for two hours going through song after song. I also printed out some sheet music and gave him a CD with all my demos. It was really thrilling.

Nothing guaranteed. I know every songwriter in New York would die to have a song sung by him, so I have no idea if anything of mine will make the cut. But just the fact that he was really so very moved by so many of them, and so anxious to hear everything, it was a songwriter fantasy come true.

The thing about my songs, everyone keeps telling me, is that they are contemporary, but they still tell full stories that can be useful for solo cabaret performances, band gigs or theatrical settings. In L.A., this scene is non-existent, so it feels amazing to be here and to have great singers telling me how much they respect my work. In L.A., songwriters get about as much respect as a buggy whip salesman.

I like it. I like it a lot.

More Celebs at The Big Voice!

Lenny Wolpe from "The Drowsy Chaperone"


Broadway and TV star Brian Stokes Mitchell


Broadway and TV star Roger Rees

Playbill: Big Voice Valentine's Day Event

Playbill covers the Valentine's Day event.

Haggard is Heterosexual!

According to this news item on the NY Times site:

DENVER (AP) -- One of four ministers who oversaw three weeks of intensive counseling for the Rev. Ted Haggard said the disgraced minister emerged convinced that he is ''completely heterosexual.''

Haggard also said his sexual contact with men was limited to the former male prostitute who came forward with sexual allegations, the Rev. Tim Ralph of Larkspur told The Denver Post for a story in Tuesday's edition.

''He is completely heterosexual,'' Ralph said. ''That is something he discovered. It was the acting-out situations where things took place. It wasn't a constant thing.''

Ralph said the board spoke with people close to Haggard while investigating his claim that his only extramarital sexual contact happened with Mike Jones. The board found no evidence to the contrary.

That's because straight guys always hire male prostitutes when they want to "act out." After all, female prostitutes are so difficult to come by.

READER MIKE ADDS: In other news, Michael Jackson announced he's completely white, Richard Simmons is convinced he's incredibly butch, and Britney Spears is convinced she's extremely intelligent.

It's So Cold Here...

This is the time of year when shows that aren't selling out end up closing because it's so COLD here. Wind chill factor of 10 below. How does that affect us? We don't know yet. We may survive and we may not. If you're in the New York area, though, this would be the week to come see the show. Like, now.

Daniel from ExGay Watch & The Spitzer Study

As usual, the so-called "exgay" movement is distorting the science behind a study done by Dr. Spitzer as they prepare for one of their misleading "Love Won Out" lie-fests. Daniel of ExGay Watch has made this video explaining the truth is very specific detail.

We Want Gay Couples For Valentine's Day

We need YOU if you are a gay or lesbian couple living in New York or near New York. We plan to have a mass interfaith same sex ceremony right after our show on Valentine's Day. Grab your honey and come down the synagogue. The new governor of New York supports same sex marriage. Time to let him know who we are. If you and your partner will participate, write us here and let us know!

NY Big Voice Video Diary #20

Actor Joe Sirola tells a story about Ethel Merman at Sardi's and Jim responds with a story about the late great Dorothy Fields. Then a brief interview with Amy, who makes an announcement.

NY Big Voice Video Diary #19

Jim and I got back to our old neighborhoods here in New York.