This Day In Gay Utah History April 28

28 April 28-

Joe Redburn 

1985- The Golden Spike Humanitarian Award was given to Joe Redburn talk show host and owner of the Sun Tavern by the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire of Utah

Patty Reagan

1988- Dr. Patti Reagan spoke on the topic of Lesbian Sexuality at the Cache Valley Alliance in Logan 

1988 Thursday- We had a Beyond Stonewall meeting at my apartment. We discussed the promotion of the event for the months of May June and July. We have about 20 per cent of the camp sold already. We also decided to give Donny Eastepp and Donie  Marie guest tickets to Beyond Stonewall for Coronation. Unconditional Support has bought 16 seats at Coronation this year. [Journal of Ben Williams]

1991- The Golden Spike Humanitarian Award was given to The Horizon House a support facility for people with AIDS and their families by the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire of Utah

1993- [Several members from the Gay Community served on the police review board]SLtribune The membership roster for two police-review boards was completed Tuesday by Salt Lake City Mayor Deedee Corradini. The two boards were created in January to monitor the Salt Lake City Police Department's handling of residents' complaints and its own internal investigations. Controversy waits in the wings, however, because under Salt Lake Police Chief Ruben Ortega's plan, the boards will have no independent powers and may have relatively few assignments. Critics have called the boards a ``facade'' aimed at glossing over brutality issues. The boards will review only police-brutality complaints deemed to have merit by the police chief. Only the most serious cases– those involving officers' unpaid suspension, demotion or dismissal-- will be reviewed, Mr. Ortega said. Wes Pomeroy, an international expert on civilian oversight, said in February that based on the planned structure, the boards will have little impact on changing police department performance.  Mr. Pomeroy is founder of the International Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (ICOLE). He said the boards will have too little independent authority to qualify them for full ICOLE membership. Late Tuesday, the mayor's office released the 29 names in a brief announcement. The residents will be called alphabetically on a ``rotating basis'' to serve on the Police Use of Force Review Board or the Disciplinary Review Board.  Boards will be composed of three police officers and two residents, giving police the voting majority.  Members of the review-boards ``pool'' are: Robert Archuleta, attorney; Lenoris Bush, UOIC, Maria Camargo, attorney; Rev. France Davis, Calvary Baptist Church; Chad Drage, Salt Lake County Housing Authority; Jane Edwards, YWCA; Ken Gardner, Utah State AFL-CIO; Michael Goldsmith, law professor; Peter Henderson, businessman; Jared Hernandez, financial consultant; Abby Trujillo Maestas, Rape Crisis Center; Lee Martinez, attorney; Leam Moeung, CAP; Cal Noyes,

Cal Noyce

organized labor; Gordon Ottley, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; Mark Pehrson, People with AIDS Coalition; Gary Ratliff, Jordan Meadows Community Council. Also, Rosemarie Rendon, People With Disabilities; Nino Reyos, Native American Coordinator; James Russell, retired; Ernie Saiz, Intermountain Minority Contractors; Feliz Paul Salazar, student; Lavern Snow, Wasatch Hollow Community Council; Gwen Rowley Springmeyer, Adult Probation and Parole; Tamara Taylor, student; Lynn Tempest, Network Magazine; Kenneth Wallentine, attorney, Jeanetta Williams, NAACP; Doug Wortham, teacher

1999 Ben Williams of The Utah Stonewall Historical Society Lecture Series presented  Death In the West:  The Killing of Gays and Lesbians in Utah at the Day-Riverside Public Library.

28 APRIL 2000 GAY STUDENT CLUB Page B5 School District to Review Veto of 2 Clubs S.L. City officials act after ruling on PRISMBY HEATHER MAY   THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE   Having been rebuked by a federal judge for stopping students from forming a club devoted to discussing homosexual issues, the Salt Lake City School District has decided to review its rejection last year of two other clubs.   On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell issued an injunction forcing the district to temporarily allow East High School students to form their proposed People Respecting Important Social Movements (PRISM) club.   That ruling means that pending the outcome of their civil suit, PRISM students can meet on campus and explore Gay and lesbian perspectives on history, sociology and government.   Two East High juniors sued the district earlier this month, claiming their First Amendment rights of free expression were violated when assistant superintendent Cynthia Siedel denied their application for PRISM.   Now the district is re-exploring decisions against two proposed West High School clubs. On Thursday, Salt Lake City Superintendent Darline   Robles said Siedel will review the two applications to see if they, too, fall under Campbell’s ruling.   West High students wanted to create Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD) and a Women's Studies Club (WSC).Siedel vetoed the clubs last October, questioning their academic credentials and what she saw as exclusive or narrow viewpoints.   Campbell, in fact, mentioned WSC and SADD in her 23-page PRISM decision, though she did not direct the district to allow those clubs to meet.   However, the judge wrote that both matched the curriculum; WSC is related to an English class and SADD goes with a health course.   "Assuming that some of the authors discussed in the English course are female, there is a 'fit' between the subject matter of the club and the subject matter of the course," she wrote of WSC.   The two West High clubs may also benefit from Campbell's attack on the district rule against narrowness. The district said its club policy implies that clubs cannot have an exclusive viewpoint; rather, clubs should explore issues from all perspectives.    But in defending PRISM, Campbell wrote that such a rule isn't implied in the policy and even if it were, it has not been applied consistently. She also noted that all clubs are organized around a particular viewpoint.   On those grounds, Campbell issued an injunction to force the district to allow PRISM members to meet, which they could do as soon as Monday.   Salt Lake City school board members met for 1 1/2 hours Thursday morning before ordering Siedel to review the WSC and SADD decisions. District officials also expressed disappointment with Campbell's ruling. "I had hoped the judge would rule in our favor," Robles said.   She defended the district's ban on narrow clubs: "Our curriculum is not [based on a] narrow viewpoint. When you talk about history, it's a broad viewpoint."   During the next school board meeting on Tuesday, the board could decide to appeal the injunction or rewrite its club policy and explicitly forbid "viewpoint exclusive" clubs.   The battle over clubs began in 1996, when the Salt Lake City District banned all nonacademic clubs to prevent students from forming a support group for Gays and lesbians. The ban was upheld in federal court last October.   In response, Jessi Cohen and Margaret Hinckley created PRISM and claimed it was tied to history, sociology and government classes. When the district denied that club in January the students sued, backed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah.

2003 Martinez: Minority Advisers May Not Have Community's Best Interests at Heart  By Mike Martinez Salt Lake Tribune Guest Columnist   Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson recently appointed a self-proclaimed lesbian as his minority affairs coordinator. Hispanic community activists complained about hiring a white female who claimed minority status only after she came out of the closet. Racial and ethnic minorities point out they do not have the luxury of closeting themselves until they are forced or ready to declare their status.   Activists correctly lambaste this appointment, but they do so for the wrong reason. In Utah, it is fashionable for politicians and corporations to have minority advisory boards or minority advisers. Benefactors publicly parade their boards and advisers as proof of their sensitivity. The governor keeps a minority advisory council and a director. The University of Utah has several minority boards and coordinators. Even newspapers have advisory boards with appointed minority leaders.  The commonality of these boards is that none has a budget, employees or policy-making authority. They are but shills trotted out every few years to sing and dance the praises of their sponsor during the campaign or fund-raising season. Board members enjoy their status as the appointed Hispanic leadership. In this capacity, the supposed advocates enjoy media and political attention as the oracles of diverse thought. Whenever the news media need a quote, they go to the chosen ones. Whenever a politician needs cover for a stupid move that doesn't go over well in the minority community, super-Hispanics provide cover. When community activists get uppity or want to actually meet the pasty faced boss, the Hispanic advocates run interference. Once, the small and disenfranchised Utah Hispanic community needed appointed advocacy to avoid being overlooked. Once, appointees took their positions seriously because they were bridges rather than resume builders. As the Hispanic community underwent an immense growth spurt, the ombudsmen realized they had no resources or authority to deal with the tidal wave of problems inherent in such growth.     Appointed Hispanic advocates, frustrated by their conflicted duties, started avoiding issues paramount to Spanish speakers, lest there be controversy, and morphed into meeting attenders. This is now their safe and noncontroversial pastime. Advisers lay low knowing they will be promoted into higher-paying jobs if they are not contentious and their bosses never meet another Hispanic. This was the route taken by the governor's past three Hispanic directors. Gov. Leavitt recently appointed a Mormon Peruvian as his adviser. The Mexican community thought this appointment showed his religious bias. It is well known that about two-thirds of the native Spanish speakers in Utah are of Mexican descent and are Catholic. The activists miss the point. It doesn't matter who the governor or mayor anoints. Appointees all have the same goal: promotion to a gravy-train job. To do that, they must not place the governor, mayor or agency director in direct community contact, lest they appear insensitive and uninformed about their constituents. Once a necessary evil, Hispanic minions now self-servingly placate, shield and misdirect community efforts. The marionettes impede integration and maturity by perpetrating the stereotype of an infantile community inhabited by the illiterate and illegal. Truth is, the Hispanic community is numerically large, diverse, politically savvy, economically empowered and more than capable of addressing grievances and issues without intermediaries. And Latinos should address issues like everyone else does. They need to file litigation when aggrieved, confront inattentive politicians, become political candidates and most importantly demand a seat on boards where white people sit, where real decisions are made. Latinos need to develop a broader vision of what a community is through active participation and pride of ownership. We must respect our own ideas, accomplishments and individualism before we can expect others to respect us. We must avoid the tendency to argue about who occupies these second-rate patronage positions. Instead, individuals must rise to the occasion when necessary, regardless of adviser impediments. Anderson did not like Hispanic criticism of his appointee. In classic Anderson style, he lashed out at his critics as misinformed and divisive. He then touted his in-house adviser as "the most respected Hispanic advocate in the state." This, in political jargon, means, "I only did it after consulting with one of your own." And the paid scapegoat smilingly

Blythe Nobelman

bears the blame as the activists withdraw, lest they show ill will toward one of their own.  Checkmate. Truth is, Anderson, up for re-election, appointed non-heterosexual Blythe Nobleman to appease and organize the gay and lesbian community. Putting her on the public dole saves campaign funds. This was not some grand diversity gesture but merely a vote grabbing ploy.     The crusader has become politically savvy. Et tu, Rocky?- Mike Martinez is a Salt Lake City attorney. mikemartinez@sisna.com

2003 CHad Keller as guest of Joe Redburn attended the GLAAD Awards in Los Angeles. "Oh my gosh....what a reenergizing experience......I have to tell you it all.... Partied with Catherine Manhiem, Julia Roberts, and Queer as Folk...."

2003 Out with oppression Students at 4 Utah high schools work to heighten awareness By Diane Urbani Deseret News staff writer Sixteen-year-old Tyler Follett could still speak, since he hadn't yet donned a surgical mask. As fellow students milled around him, lining up for masks and stickers, Tyler summarized the reason scores of Utah high schoolers refused to speak for 24 hours. The silence, he explained, was the cornerstone activity of Oppression Awareness Week, a focus on the oppression occurring in their classrooms and lunchrooms.       "It hurts people, and not only that, oppression can kill people," the Highland High School sophomore said. He was referring to the April 8 beating death of a 39-year-old retarded man in Hartford, Conn. Or he might have meant the killing of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student in Laramie, Wyo., in 1998, or of James Bird Jr., a black man dragged to his death behind a truck in Jasper, Texas, the same year. They're sobering facts for typically loquacious teenagers, but those at Highland, West, Northridge and Park City high schools haven't shied away. Many spent their spring break preparing for Oppression Awareness Week, painting posters and banners and planning for the lunchtime information tables. Asked whether he's experienced oppression himself, Tyler didn't hesitate. "Yes, in the way I've been treated. I'm gay . . . and the stuff people say to me" is hurtful. "I know they're kidding around, but still. "Unless someone points it out to you, you don't realize what's going on," added Alicia Washington, a senior at Northridge High in Layton. She's one of hundreds of Salt Lake area students who've attended the Anytown weekend camps sponsored by the National Conference on Communities and Justice. At the camps, teens are tossed together with peers from other cliques. Then, after a few days together, they return to school, to tune new eyes and ears into that environment. At Northridge, some of the banners pointing up forms of oppression such as "heterosexism," or discrimination against gays and lesbians, prompted some outcry. "We did have to relocate those (posters)," Washington said. Some students scrawled anti-gay graffiti on them, and the posters were moved away from the school's main entrance and hung on less conspicuous walls. Yet students, parents and teachers have been talking about their messages all week. "Most definitely, people are curious," said Washington. Heterosexism is one kind of oppression that is rampant in Utah in 2003, the students say. "You hear things like, 'That's so gay,' a lot," said James Lunn, a 16-year-old who attends West High School. "That's so gay" might be said in "fun," but it's doubtless a slur, he said. Classmates may urge him to let it go or lighten up, but such speech reinforces anti-gay stereotypes. And those, as in Shepard's case, can lead to violent hate crimes. Then there's sexism. "Opening a magazine," said West senior Amanda Stephenson, "shows you how women are expected to be thin, silent followers." Teen-oriented media emphasize boyfriends, makeup and size-2 fashions. Then there are Stephenson's fellow students, who stand in front of the principal's office and "rate girls" on a scale of 1-10.      "They'll say, 'She's a 5, she's a 2, she's a zero,' out loud, as you're walking by," Stephenson said. She helped organize West's week of activities including the 24-hour period of silence from Wednesday noon to Thursday noon. During that day and night, students wore surgical masks and wordlessly handed out neon-green cards that read, "We are silent for 24 hours to raise awareness of oppression."       At Highland on Wednesday, 17-year-old Lahdan Saeed handed out 50 masks in less than 15 minutes. More students came in asking for them, and Lahdan had to apologize for running out of both masks and "Racism will end, but not without you" stickers. "Oppression isn't a typical high school word," she said. But students see what it means, in the way their school's population is divided along racial, religious and class lines. "There are a lot of stereotypes and biases," she said. "You can see the segregation, walking down the halls, in the lunchroom. The ESL (English as a second language) students sit in their own area, the upper-class white kids sit in their area, the skaters sit apart from them."       Stephenson said the same thing goes on at West, and probably at any high school in Utah. "Friends of a feather flock together," yet hundreds of her classmates have also attended NCCJ's Anytown camps. That experience "takes students away from school, to an environment in the mountains, where they can have a peaceful, inclusive community for a weekend. Then, hopefully, they can bring it back to

Dave Litvack

school." "They come off the bus in those cliques," said David Litvack, NCCJ's assistant director. "When they get on the bus to go home, (the students) look completely different." Campers create skits, watch documentary films and talk, and they learn to let others speak their minds without "shutting them down," Litvack said. "You're not going to change someone's mind by telling them what they should think, especially with moral or religious issues." But having a dialogue — not an argument — in a safe environment can help people understand each other. Litvack, not a native Utahn, learned by listening to students talk about their experiences here that prejudices persist, even into this era when some believe we've moved past racism. "I heard a biracial student talk about the racism that existed within his own family," he recalled. "For another student, growing up Jewish in Utah meant feeling rejected in school every day."      NCCJ activities are designed to help young people explore the roles they can play in building an inclusive community, he added. Students discuss "how they can be an ally to a person who's being treated unfairly." In the middle of high school-lunchtime pandemonium, West principal Joyce Gray reflected on Oppression Awareness Week. "What's so neat about this, in my opinion, is that it's totally generated by the students. I hope they can spread their understanding about oppression against people in our world, and I hope that one day, probably not in my lifetime, it will end." Gray, who is black, was raised in the South. "I grew up with racism," she said. "The key is: You don't hold those negative experiences so tightly that they drain you." Gray was surrounded by prejudice, but she also knew people who lifted her above it. "I focused on being a teacher, like Mr. Owens," her music teacher when she was a girl in Virginia. Gray graduated from Virginia State University at Petersburg and had three offers for teaching positions. She went to the westernmost one in Las Vegas. There, "my first principal was another model," as she worked toward her next goal. Gray has been principal at West for seven years, and she holds no illusions about her school. "You see all the isms," including racism and "faithism," discrimination based on which faith community a student does or doesn't belong to, Gray said. "The one that is quite prevalent in the media is sexism." Walk through the nearby Gateway shopping center, and you can find all kinds of women's clothing that, of course, emphasizes outer appearance over inner development. "The school is in competition with the merchants. They want to sell the clothes that we don't want the kids to wear to school, the clothes that violate the dress code."       Stephenson acknowledged that the oppression awareness banners aren't going to change people's minds inside of a week. "We just want to get some people thinking about it," she said. Some of the banners have quotations that, while unfamiliar to the predominantly white, Christian student body, epitomize the student organizers' message. At West's northern doors, a poster raises a point from the prophet Mohammed: "A man's true wealth is the good he's done in the world."

2003 Why the Utah Stonewall Historical Society capitalizes "Gay". By Ben Williams The standard rule of English grammar is that proper nouns and adjectives are always capitalized. Why "Gay", when used as a synonym for homosexual people, is not capitalized by all media should be questioned by all who feel that we are indeed a separate cultural and sexual minority group apart from the heterosexual majority. Even nearly thirty-four years ago on November 14, 1969, the Los Angles Free Press reported that "the Committee for Homosexual Freedom voted at a recent meeting to request all publications to hereafter capitalize the word Gay. The proponents of the measure argued that Gay is a proper noun and adjective which describes a people." The Committee for Homosexual Freedom was very critical of heterosexual writers and lexicographers who by lower casing the word were blamed for the psychological oppression of homosexuals. In all documents, articles, and correspondence, the Utah Stonewall Historical Society will follow the rules of good grammar and capitalize the word Gay, as we feel the word does indeed connote that homosexuals are a people distinct from the heterosexual majority and worthy of being an upper case word. There is a definite distinction between the homophones "Gay" and "gay". We may at times be a gay (happy) people but we are always a Gay (homosexual) people. It's who we are, not what we do, that makes us a unique people worthy of having a heritage and preserving that heritage for future generations.

2005 LAMBDA HIKING CLUB April 28 - May 1:  Car Camping at Natural Bridges National Monument. According to the Natural Bridges National Monument web site, "Natural Bridges protects some of the finest examples of ancient stone architecture in the southwest. Located on a tree-covered mesa cut by deep sandstone canyons, three natural bridges formed where meandering streams eroded  the canyon walls... At 6,500 feet above sea level, Natural Bridges is home to a variety of plants and animals." We'll have lots of time to explore the area. Plan on our traditional Saturday evening potluck dinner and social.  Call Randy [Burk] 

Logan Brueck

for more information See our website at www.gayhike.org for more information. Thomas Hughes HIV Prevention Specialist Utah AIDS

2007 The Righteously Outrageous Twirling Corps of Salt Lake City (aka: ROTC-SLC)  is holding a fundraiser Saturday April 28th, 8 am - 1 pm. at the E-Center  in West Valley. Radio Station B98.7 is hosting a large yard sale and the ROTC-SLC is taking part in it, along with doing a small showing during the day.  The money ROTC-SLC raises is to help with expenses they are going to accrue on their road trip to Las Vegas Pride to participate in the Parade

2007 Please Join Empress XX Sheneka Christie  Empress XXX Krystyna Shaylee along with the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire for: Black and White Ball (come dressed in Black, White, or Black and White) Saturday April 28th Trapp Door SLC UT *9pm $5 cover All Proceeds to Benefit the RCGSE Scholarship Fund. Please note Scholarship applications are available on line at www.rcgse.org and are due May 20th for review.

2008 Marshall Jacob Myers (1983 ~ 2008) committed suicide During his brief 25 years,

Marshall Jacob Myers

Marshall loved, inspired, challenged, and cajoled us to love him unconditionally. We will always remember him for his loving nature, his creativity in art and words, his generosity, and loyalty to family and friends. Marshall had eclectic taste in music, was working towards a degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Utah, enjoyed gardening, hiking, seeing the world, and spending time with his friends. He spoke Latin, dabbled in oil painting, was an experienced tarot card reader, and loved experimenting with spices and flavors in the kitchen. A deeply spiritual person, Marshall sought enlightenment from religious and philosophical traditions from around the world. His was not the easiest journey through life. He confronted challenges many people twice his age have never seen. We wish him peace and joy in the next phase of his soul's journey. He is survived by his parents and his two sisters. Preceded in death by his brother Jeremy.  Marshall Jacob Myers committe suicide on April 28th, 2008. Family and friends gathered shortly after to celebrate his life. No formal funeral services were held, but a commemorative headstone will be placed in Larkin Sunset Gardens in Sandy, Utah.

2010 Kristen Ries Nominations  I  nominate Donald Steward aka Ruby Ridge. Donald Steward has been an active member of the community for 25 years and personified the meaning of community service.  Few in this community has given their time, energy, and money as unselfishly as Donald.  Among his contributions to our community are: One of the founders of Horizon House for People With AIDS One of the founders and organizers of Camp Pinecliff for People With AIDS and their families One of the founding member the Cypersluts-  a fundraising group that raises 1000’s of dollars for charity Chair of the Utah Pride Parade for 5 years or more Organizer of 3rd Friday Bingo Fundraiser which has raised tens of thousands of dollars for Gay and non Gay non-profits. Donald Steward is long over due to be recognized as a Dr. Kristen Ries Award recipient, an award that epitomizes unselfish service to building and nurturing our Queer Community. Ben Williams 1991 Recipient

Lee Castillo

2018  At the Democratic State convention Businessman Kurt Weiland and social worker Lee Castillo were forced into a primary to decide who will face eight-term Rep. Rob Bishop, after neither reached the 60 percent of delegate votes' necessary to win the Democratic nomination outright. Weiland, a business consultant, and  Castillo, a social worker, will compete in a primary for the 1st Congressional District and the right to challenge eight-term Republican Rep. Rob Bishop.