Category Archives: miscellaneous

‘Love Song’ singer to headline LGBT DNC gala

Sara Bareilles, music, gay news, Washington Blade

Sara Bareilles will be the musical talent at upcoming LGBT DNC Gala (Photo by Amw9991 via Wikimedia Commons)

A pop singer best known for her 2007 hit “Love Song” will be the musical guest for an upcoming Democratic National Committee fundraiser in New York City.

Sara Bareilles is scheduled to perform at the DNC LGBT Annual Gala, which this year is set for May 29 at 5 p.m. at an event space in New York’s Upper East Side.

She headlines the fundraiser following release of her new single “Brave,” which she wrote for a gay friend struggling with coming out.

As previously reported, Jason Collins, an NBA player who recently came out as gay, is also headlining the event.

First lady Michelle Obama and gay television personality Andy Cohen will also make an appearance. President Obama isn’t scheduled to attend.

According to The Huffington Post, tickets start at $1,250 per person and go up to $32,400 per couple to chair the event.

Dems seeking to delay gay-inclusive immigration reform?

Chuck Schumer, Charles Schumer, New York, United States Senate, Democratic Party, gay news, Washington Blade

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is saying nothing in response to a Politico report that one advocate calls “alarming.” (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Key players in Senate talks on immigration reform are staying mum following a media report that Democrats are working to delay a vote on making the package gay-inclusive — prompting one advocate to call for the White House to intervene.

Late Thursday, Politico reported that Democrats are asking the White House to tell Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to withhold amendments for bi-national same-sex couples until the larger measure reaches the Senate floor — where passage will likely be more difficult.

“They’re increasingly uneasy about risking Republican support but reluctant to tell gay rights advocates that an amendment allowing American citizens to seek green cards for their same-sex foreign partners may not get a vote in the Judiciary Committee,” Politico reported.

Concern over the amendments follows remarks from Republican Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) — as well as comments from Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) to the Washington Blade — that including the pro-gay language would kill immigration reform.

LGBT advocates involved in talks told the Washington Blade they’re unaware of any such conversations between the White House and Democrats. Spokespersons for the Human Rights Campaign and Immigration Equality said the Politico report was the first they’ve heard about any such discussion.

Steve Ralls, an Immigration Equality spokesperson, said the White House should go on the record in response to the reporting — which he called “alarming” — because the LGBT community “has a right to know which particular senators” are “scheming to throw gay families under the bus.”

“The chairman has stuck his neck out for gay families, but I fear Schumer is working to avoid confronting the issue because of Republicans’ threats and intimidation,” Ralls said. “If the president is being asked to help slow down or stop a vote, the White House owes our families an assurance that he is refusing to do so.”

The White House didn’t respond to the Washington Blade’s request for comment on the Politico report.

Leahy has filed amendments before the committee along the lines of the Uniting American Families Act, which would enable gay Americans to sponsor their foreign partners for residency in the United States.

One measure mirrors UAFA, the other is restricted to married bi-national couples. According to LGBT advocates, Leahy has given assurances that he’ll bring up the amendments as the committee considers family unification issues for immigration reform.

One group, Immigration Equality, says all Democrats on the committee have given assurances they’d support at least one of the measures — with the exception of Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). That’s just one vote short of a majority vote in committee.

The only Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who offered responses to the Blade on Friday were Sens. Chris Coons (D-Del.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.).

Speaking directly with Blade, Blumenthal said he supports the Leahy measures and is unaware of any talks to delay voting on them.

“I’ve heard nothing about it,” Blumenthal said. “I haven’t spoken with the White House about it; I haven’t heard of any Democrats talking to the White House.”

Ian Koski, a Coons spokesperson, said, “I’m afraid I haven’t heard anything about that other than press reports.”

Alexandra Fetissoff, a Franken spokesperson, was similarly unaware of the discussions detailed in Politico as she gave assurances on the Minnesota senator’s vote.

“We’re unaware of any conversation and Sen. Franken is definitely not making the request,” Fetissoff said. “He plans to support Sen. Leahy’s provision when it comes up for a vote.

But key players in the immigration talks didn’t push back against the Politico report to say that the assertions are untrue.

Schumer, a member of the “Gang of Eight” that produced the base bill, is the lone Democrat on the panel who hasn’t committed to voting for the amendments in the committee. His office didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The offices of Sens. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), who are also members of the “Gang of Eight,” also didn’t respond.

In the Politico article, Durbin is quoting as saying Obama is “working behind the scenes,” but declined to give additional details. The article doesn’t quote him as saying whether the White House is involved positively or negatively in working toward a gay-inclusive bill.

The only Democratic member of the “Gang of Eight” who responded was Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.). Tricia Enright, a Menendez spokesperson, said she’s “not aware” of requests made to the White House to ask Leahy to hold off on the amendments.

Additionally, the office of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) didn’t respond to a request for comment. According to Immigration Equality, her vote also was in question, but she’s given assurances she’d support the more restrictive amendment offered by Leahy limited to married bi-national same-sex couples.

As for what Leahy has been told, a Senate aide referred to the Politico article. The Vermont senator is quoted as saying he spoke with Obama regarding immigration reform on Wednesday, but the issue regarding gay couples didn’t come up.

“I am the most senior member of the Senate, I’m an experienced chairman. He’s happy I’m handling immigration,” Leahy reportedly said. “He hasn’t suggested whether I should or shouldn’t do it because he knows I’ll make up my own mind.”

Family unification issues for immigration reform, under which UAFA would fall, are scheduled to come up before the committee next week starting on Monday.

Ralls said he expects the amendments to come up on Tuesday, but cautioned they may not come up at all if Leahy feels he doesn’t have sufficient support in committee.

“We are concerned, given the very weak support of Democrats and ongoing threats from Republicans, that the amendments may not even be given an up or down vote in committee, despite Leahy’s leadership and passion for the issue,” Ralls said.

Blumenthal said the last he heard was that Leahy intended to offer the amendments in committee, but plans may have changed.

“The last I heard from him, he was going to proceed, but that was last week,” Blumenthal said. “I can’t speak for him. I don’t know what he intends to do, but I understood he was going to offer the amendment.”

Obama addressed the issue during a news conference as part of a visit to Costa Rica earlier this month. The president called including the provisions the “right thing to do,” but left the door open to signing a bill that lacked protections for bi-national gay couples.

“I can also tell you I’m not going to get everything I want in this bill,” Obama added. “Republicans are not going to get everything that they want in this bill.”

Former Obama official calls for ENDA executive order

Barack Obama, gay news, Washington Blade

A gay former counsel for USAID is calling on President Obama to take action against LGBT workplace discrimination. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

A gay former member of the Obama administration says it’s time for President Obama to issue an executive order barring LGBT workplace discrimination among federal contractors as he touts his agency’s independent action on the issue.

In an op-ed published in Washington Post late Thursday, Jeffrey Marburg-Goodman, special counsel for the U.S. Agency for International Development and a foreign policy adviser to the 2008 Obama campaign, called on Obama to issue the order to build on his record in advancing LGBT rights.

“Although admittedly imperfect and only partial, an executive order that helps advance employment equality nationwide is overdue,” Marburg-Goodman writes.

Issuing the executive order, Marburg-Goodman writes, would build off Obama’s earlier LGBT achievements, such as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal and naming a record number of LGBT government appointees.

Additionally, Marburg-Goodman says issuing the directive could be “a tipping point” that would lead to passage of legislation to protect LGBT employees known as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

Marburg-Goodman makes a special point of touting the work USAID has undertaken to address LGBT workplace discrimination. In October 2011, the agency issued guidance saying it “strongly encourages” its contractors to adopt non-discrimination policies for workers, including on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

“Individual federal agencies have done what they could to advance equality and reflect current American norms and values,” Marburg-Goodman said. “Last year, we at the U.S. Agency for International Development, under the leadership of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Administrator Rajiv Shah, announced the most advanced position any federal agency has taken on this issue.”

The Obama administration has repeatedly said it prefers a legislative solution to addressing LGBT workplace discrimination as opposed to issuing an executive order.

Shin Inouye, a White House spokesperson, said Friday he has no updates on the directive in response to the op-ed piece.

“Regarding a hypothetical Executive Order on LGBT non-discrimination for federal contractors, I have no updates for you on that issue,” Inouye said.

Marburg-Goodman isn’t the first former Obama administration official to call on Obama to issue the executive order. In March 2012, Elizabeth Warren, then a candidate for U.S. Senate, endorsed the idea in an interview with the Washington Blade, saying, “Any steps that the president can take toward non-discrimination benefit the whole country.” Prior to representing Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate, Warren was special adviser for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under Obama.

Tico Almeida, president of the LGBT group Freedom to Work, praised Marburg-Goodman for calling on Obama to issue the executive order.

“I suspect some White House staffers are fairly annoyed with Mr. Marburg-Goodman for calling them out in such a high-profile way for their unforutnate desicion to delay President Obama’s executive order for LGBT workplace fairness, but I think he deserves our praise for using his stature as a distinguished Obama appointee to advocate on the LGBT workplace issues that some other administration officials have neglected for too long,” Almeida said. “I commend him for using his strong voice in favor of the pending executive order.”

Further, Almeida called on other former members of the Obama administration to speak out in favor of the executive order, including John Berry, who until last month was head of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and the highest-ranking openly gay person in the Obama administration.

“It would be great if other gay former Obama appointees like John Berry followed Mr. Marburg-Goodman’s lead in advocating for this long overdue policy from the Obama Administration,” Almeida said.

Berry couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. According to the Washington Post, he’s on Obama’s short list for U.S. ambassador to Australia.

Mixing up the motion

Keep your muscles guessing by mixing up the kinds of movements you do in your workout. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Whether you’re doing bicep curls, squats or crunches, the direction your body moves in is essential to how much muscle you can potentially gain or how much fat you can potentially lose. It’s important to recognize and incorporate all the body’s planes of motion into your fitness routine.

Breaking down the three planes:

The front to back plane, also referred to as the sagittal plane, includes exercises like jogging, chest press and rowing.
The side-to-side plane, also referred to as the frontal plane, includes exercises like jumping jacks, side lunges and lateral raises.
The twisting plane of motion, also known as the transverse plane of motion, included exercises such as medicine ball wood chops, Russian twists or rotating cable pulls.

When I’m training at the gym, I often notice people who consistently repeat the same exercises in the same plane. Unfortunately for them, moving in the same plane is not helping them reach their fitness goals as effectively as they could if they were moving in all three planes of motion. Here’s why.

The body adapts very quickly to the movements we create for it and therefore, it doesn’t have to do as much work or exert as much energy to the rip the muscle (tearing the muscle fiber) or to burn the fat during exercise.

For instance, do you do traditional dumbbell bicep curls in the front to back motion every time you come to the gym? If so, you’re probably not working the muscle as effectively as you could be. After a few weeks your body will adapt to this pattern and your muscle will stop growing as quickly. Therefore, you should mix up your bicep curls by doing them from the side or by rotating your wrist outward at the top of your bicep motion. In addition, you could mix up your cardio and burn more fat and calories by adding in some jumping jacks at a fast tempo for two minutes without stopping.

A great way to get yourself out of your comfort zone and to get yourself moving in these different planes of motion is by writing down your exercises before your workout and labeling each exercise with the planes of motion listed above. For instance, bicep curls would be labeled with front to back plane, while jumping jacks would be labeled with side-to-side plane and medicine ball wood chops would be labeled with twisting plane. The visual of you having to write it down will help you increase your likelihood of trying and integrating new movements into your workout.

I’ve included a great set of sample exercises for you try in all three planes:

Torso rotation machine (twisting plane) — four sets, twisting on each side for 20 reps, start with 20 pound plate
Weighted alternating side lunges (frontal plane) — four sets, 10 reps of each side, start with 10 pound dumbbells
Barbell chest press — four sets,10 reps, start with the weight of the bar

So the next time you venture to the gym for a workout, what plane will you move in?

Bucky Mitchell grew up in Pennsylvania’s Amish country and says many of the exercises in his regimen are derived from the kinds of movement Amish men and women use in their daily chores. Mitchell, who’s gay, believes in a fun, challenging workout that results in weight loss, more muscle and a stable core. Find him online at theamishtrainer.com.

Gay Russian man’s death sparks outrage

Volograd, Russia, gay news, Washington Blade

Volograd (Photo by Markv via Wikimedia Commons)

Authorities continue to investigate the death of a gay Russian man whose body was found near the city of Volgograd on May 10.

The Moscow Times reported investigators said they found Vladislav Tornovoi’s body in the courtyard of an apartment building outside the southern Russian city. The newspaper cited local media that said Tornovoi’s assailants sodomized him with empty beer bottles and set his body on fire after he came out to them after they celebrated Victory Day that commemorates Germany’s surrender to the then-Soviet Union at the end of World War II.

Reuters reported authorities have taken two men into custody in connection with Tornovoi’s death.

Tornovoi’s murder took place against the backdrop of growing concerns over anti-LGBT laws and violence in Russia.

The State Department in January criticized the passage of a bill in the Russian Duma that would prohibit the “promotion of homosexuality” to minors. Russian lawmakers are expected to give final approval to the measure in the coming weeks.

A St. Petersburg court in February upheld a previous ruling that dismissed a lawsuit against Madonna for violating the city’s law that bans “homosexual propaganda” to children during an August 2012 concert. The singer criticized the statute and authorities who arrested more than 80 gay men before and during her performance during the annual GLAAD Media Awards in New York in March.

Madonna also blasted Russian President Vladimir Putin for the two-year prison sentences that three members of the feminist punk rock group Pussy Riot received after they staged a protest against him inside Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral last year.

A Moscow court last August upheld the Russian capital’s 100-year gay ban on gay Pride marches, but organizers of the annual event plan to once again try to stage it on May 25.

Reuters quoted Nikolai Alekseev, a prominent Russian LGBT rights advocate, who reportedly told the Interfax news agency that Tornovoi’s death underscores the consequences anti-gay laws have had in the country.

“This monstrous incident in Volgograd demonstrates the fruits of the homophobic policy that is being conducted in this country, including the initiative to ban homosexual propaganda,” he said.

More than 50,000 attend Chilean LGBT rights march

More than 50,000 people marched for LGBT rights in the Chilean capital on Saturday. (Photo courtesy of JP Catepillán/Movilh)

An LGBT rights march in the Chilean capital on Saturday drew more than 50,000 people.

Chilean folk singer Camila Moreno; presidential candidates Andrés Velasco, Tomás Jocelyn-Holt, Marco Enríquez-Ominami and Marcel Claude and Rafael Dochao, the European Union’s ambassador to Chile, took part in the Santiago event that also commemorated the International Day Against Homophobia. Former President Michelle Bachelet, who is also a candidate to succeed President Sebastián Piñera in this November’s presidential elections, endorsed the march in a letter.

The march also took place against the backdrop of the debate over Piñera’s proposed bill that would extend civil unions to same-sex couples in the South American country.

He has yet to formally introduce it.

“The government and the National Congress should take note of these massive mobilizations that demonstrate time and time again that the majority of this country supports full equality of rights for sexual minorities,” Rolando Jiménez, president of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movilh,) an LGBT advocacy group that organized the march, said. “The political class always says that it has to listen to the people, but enough of this. It is time to act.”

Neighboring Argentina is among the 11 countries in which gays and lesbians can currently marry.

Uruguay’s same-sex marriage law will take effect on Aug. 1. Nuptials for gays and lesbians are legal in the Brazilian capital of Brasilia, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and 11 of the country’s other states.

Piñera last July signed an LGBT-inclusive hate crimes and anti-discrimination bill into law in response to outrage over the murder of Daniel Zamudio, a gay man whom a group of self-described neo-Nazis allegedly beat to death in a Santiago park in March 2012. The trial of the four men who prosecutors maintain attacked Zamudio is expected to take begin in the coming months.

Movilh spokesperson Jaime Parada Hoyl last October became the first openly gay political candidate elected in the country when he won a seat on the municipal council in the wealthy Santiago enclave of Providencia. The Chilean Health Ministry last month also lifted a ban on gay and lesbian blood donors.

Those who took part in the Santiago march also demanded the government pass a law that would allow transgender Chileans to legally change their names and sex without a court order.

Leahy to amend immigration bill for gay couples

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) will amend immigration reform to include UAFA. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The lead sponsor of the Uniting American Families Act in the Senate has announced that he’ll introduce the legislation as one of two committee amendments for gay couples as part of comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said in a statement on Tuesday that he filed the measure — which would enable gay Americans to sponsor their foreign partners for residency in the United States — along with several other amendments before the committee for the immigration bill.

“For immigration reform to be truly comprehensive, it must include protections for all families,” Leahy said. “We must end the discrimination that gay and lesbian families face in our immigration law.”

According to the statement, Leahy also filed a separate amendment that would provide equal protection to lawfully married bi-national same sex couples that other spouses receive under existing immigration law.

Jessica Brady, a committee spokesperson, said the UAFA-like amendment covers permanent partners, but the other measure is for bi-national same-sex couples who are married. The amendment for permanent partners can be found here and the amendment for married couples can be found here.

LGBT advocates have said they previously received assurances that Leahy would offer UAFA as an amendment when the committee marks up the bill, but Leahy’s announcement is the first time that he’s publicly committed to offering the amendment.

Steve Ralls, spokesperson for the LGBT group Immigration Equality, said his organization “fully supports” both amendments and is optimistic they will find majority support in committee.

“We expect in the coming days that the chairman will, as he has so far, work to get the votes for a successful amendment in committee,” Ralls said. “We have every faith that we’re going to win.”

All committee amendments to comprehensive immigration reform are due at 5 p.m. The committee is scheduled to vote Friday on the first round of amendments. Subsequent votes are slated for May 14, May 16, May 20 and every day that follows until there’s a final vote on the bill. Chances are the amendments for gay inclusion will come up on one of these later days.

Leahy files this second amendment that would only apply to married same-sex couples after Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who had previously withheld support for UAFA, was quoted in Politico as saying she he had concerns about the legislation as currently written, but would accept it with certain changes.

The California Democrat reportedly said she’d vote for the amendment if it required gay couples to marry in the United States within 90 days in a state that allows same-sex unions.

“But I’m not for just accepting affidavits,” she reportedly added.

Plans for a vote on the amendment come as Republican senators among the “Gang of Eight” who produced the base immigration bill have spoken out against its inclusion in reform. A piece last week from Politico quoted Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as saying it would “virtually guarantee” the legislation won’t pass.

“This issue is a difficult enough issue as it is,” Rubio was quoted as saying. “I respect everyone’s views on it. But ultimately, if that issue is injected into this bill, the bill will fail and the coalition that helped put it together will fall apart.”

Leahy had previously commented on these assertions on Sunday during the NBC’s “Meet the Press” when asked by host David Gregory to respond to Republican criticism that including the measure in immigration reform would kill the legislation.

“You know, we’ve had about 10 different things that people say will kill it,” Leahy said. “If we don’t make the fence long enough, that kills it. If we don’t have a high enough fine, that kills it. Well, the fact is, a lot of people want to kill an immigration bill, no matter what.”

On Sunday, President Obama weighed on the matter when asked about it during a news conference in Costa Rica, reiterating his support for including gay couples immigration reform while maintaing both sides in the immigration debate will have to accept compromise.

“I can tell you I think that the provision is the right thing to do,” Obama said. “I’ll also tell you that I’m not going to get everything I want in this bill. Republicans are not going to get everything they want in this bill.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the Human Rights Campaign sent out a statement to members of the media responding to GOP claims that they’d scuttle immigration reform over gay-inclusion in the bill.

“If they end up doing that, they should just own it and call it what it is: homophobia,” said Fred Sainz, HRC’s vice president of communications. “Labeling the inclusion of bi-national couples in the immigration bill as toxic is nothing more than a tired, insulting ruse designed to distract attention from their own failure to represent all Americans.”

The HRC statement cites statistics on the overwhelming support that LGBT rights enjoy among the American public. Among them are polls showing 58 percent support for marriage equality and 73 percent support for employment non-discrimination protections. No statistics on UAFA were provided in the statement.

“There is a jarring disconnect between the American public and these senators when it comes to issues of LGBT equality,” Sainz concluded. “It’s pretty dated to consider LGBT equality as a controversial, hot-button issue like these senators are portraying it to be. In fact, a strong and diverse majority of Americans support equality. These senators are towing a tired line that no longer represents mainstream opinion, and they’re throwing same-sex couples under the bus in the process.”

Obama criticized for lack of LGBT Cabinet appointments

Citizens Metal, Barack Obama, gay news, Washington Blade

HRC is criticizing President Obama for not naming an openly LGBT person to his Cabinet. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBT rights group, criticized President Obama Friday for failing to nominate an openly LGBT person as part of his Cabinet.

Michael Cole-Schwartz, a spokesperson for HRC, said, “it is quite disappointing” that no openly LGBT Americans are among Obama’s nominees in the wake of him finalizing his Cabinet.

“While the Cabinet is full of staunch allies, there is no reason why qualified LGBT Americans willing to serve their country should be overlooked, especially in a day and age when LGBT people are an integral part of the fabric of our nation as everyone from doctors to teachers to professional basketball stars,” Cole-Schwartz said. “The president has said it’s our job to remind him when he’s fallen short and while there’s much for which to applaud him, on this issue this president has fallen far short.”

President Obama rounded out his selections for the 15 posts in his second-term Cabinet without naming an openly LGBT person. Before leaving for Mexico and Costa Rica for discussions with leaders in those countries, Obama on Thursday nominated Chicago businessperson Penny Pritzker as commerce secretary as well as White House economic adviser Michael Froman as U.S. trade representative.

Earlier in the week, Obama named Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx as his pick for transportation secretary. The president nominated Foxx, who’s black, for the position in the wake of criticism that his Cabinet lacked diversity and a stern letter from Congressional Black Caucus Chair Marsha Fudge (D-Ohio) who criticized Obama for not having more black people in his Cabinet.

Meanwhile, LGBT groups have been calling for the nomination of an LGBT person as part of Obama’s Cabinet and for an openly LGBT nominee as a G-20 ambassador.

Such a nomination would be historic because no openly LGBT person has ever before been named or served as a Cabinet member.

Shin Inouye, a White House spokesperson, responded to the criticism about the lack of LGBT nominees in the Cabinet by pointing to Obama’s record on LGBT issues.

“The president is deeply committed to diversity in his administration, and he’s proud of the of LGBT appointments he’s made throughout all levels of his administration,” Inouye said. “Moreover, he has a strong record of accomplishment on issues of concern to the LGBT community and will continue to make progress in that area.”

Another group that has called for the appointment of an openly LGBT Cabinet member is the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund. Chuck Wolfe, the Victory Fund’s CEO, told an audience at the Equality Forum in Philadelphia on Friday that Obama’s failure to make such a pick was “disappointing.” But Wolfe noted that there remains time for an openly LGBT Cabinet pick before the end of Obama’s second term.

Obama has had opportunities to name an openly gay person as part of his Cabinet since the start of his second term, but none were taken. For example, many hoped that John Berry, the former head of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, would be named as interior secretary because of his background heading the National Zoo and a junior position he held within the department during the Clinton administration.

But that Cabinet role ultimately went to Seattle-based businessperson Sally Jewell, who helped with the effort to legalize marriage equality in Washington State. Still, the Washington Post has reported that Berry is on Obama’s short list for a nomination as U.S. ambassador to Australia.

Another name drawing speculation was Fred Hochberg — who’s gay and headed the U.S. Export-Import Bank during Obama’s first term — for a nomination as commerce secretary. An administration official told the Blade in December that Obama was closely looking at Hochberg for the role, but the president made another choice for that Cabinet post this week.

Yet another opportunity for an openly gay Cabinet nominee was California Assembly Speaker John Perez, who reportedly was on Obama’s short list for the role of labor secretary. That position instead went to Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Thomas Perez. Although he’s straight, he has one of the strongest records on LGBT rights in the Obama administration because he testified before the Senate in 2009 in favor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and helped implement the hate crimes protection law.

Despite the lack of an openly LGBT Cabinet member, Obama is known for making more openly LGBT appointees than any president before and named more than 260 openly LGBT appointees within his administration. Just last month, the Senate confirmed Eric Fanning for the role of Air Force under secretary — the second-highest civilian position for that service. And Obama has nominated 10 openly gay people to serve as federal judges — including Pamela Ki Mai Chen, the first confirmed openly gay Asian-American nominee — when only one openly gay person had previously served on the bench.

Celebrating 3 years in business

Eric North, Tom French, Physician’s Rejuvenation Center in D.C., Washington Blade, skin, gay news

Eric North and Tom French (Photo courtesy of North and French)

PAID ADVERTORIAL

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Reverse or slow down the aging process

man, facial creme, gay news, Washington Blade

(Photo courtesy of Bigstock)

PAID ADVERTORIAL

By DR. HADI RASSAEL

There are two simple facts about getting older. First, aging is inevitable; second, in most cases it can be reversed or slowed down.

There are many options available including cosmetic surgery, such as face/neck lift, facial implants and eyelid surgery. Non-surgical options include Botox, Dermal Fillers or even less invasive microdermabrasion or chemical peels. Other options include laser treatments, which include ablative and non-ablative laser treatment as well as IPL or light photo-rejuvenation treatments.

A facelift allows the facial tissue to be tightened and pulled smooth across the face and neck. Facelifts are generally performed under local anesthesia with an oral or IV sedative. In more extensive cases, general anesthesia is recommended. The surgery involves an incision starting above the hairline at the sides of the forehead, extending down below the ear and around to the back of the hairline. A midline neck lift can be achieved with an incision at the chin. Once the skin is lifted, the facial muscles and tissue are tightened. Liposuction may also be required. Excess skin is then stretched back and cut away. Depending on the type of the lift, the procedure can take anywhere from 2 to 5 hours and is performed as an outpatient operation in a surgical suite. After surgery pain is usually minimal and medication is prescribed to help. For a short time (1-3 weeks) swelling, bruising, and some numbness should be expected. With a normal recovery you can expect to be back to your daily routine, excluding strenuous exercise, within 2 days to 2 weeks depending on the type of procedure.

For those who do not desire surgery as an option, non-surgical facelift might be a great solution. There are many different techniques for a non-surgical facelift, most of which are better suited for younger people who are thinking of plastic and cosmetic enhancement for the first time. An important advantage of choosing a non-surgical facelift is the shorter recovery period.

The most popular non-surgical facelift procedure is Botox. More than 6 million people underwent a Botox non-surgical facelift procedure in 2012 alone. Botox involves a series of injections that relax the muscles and smooth the skin and reduce the appearance of wrinkles and lasts three to six months.

Dermal Filler injections are another type of non-surgical facelift procedure. Dermal Fillers saw a 5 percent increase in 2012 from 2011. This technique causes skin to raise the tissues and decrease the visibility of wrinkles and fine lines. The two popular products, Juvederm and Restylane, both hyaluronic acid products, last about 6-12 months. Other options are Radiesse, lasting 12 months and Artefill, non-resorbable filler.

Skin resurfacing techniques such as the chemical peel, dermabrasion, microdermabrasion and laser skin resurfacing (ablative and non ablative) are also common types of non-surgical face lift procedures also had a significant increase in percentage from the previous years.

The key to achieving the perfect result is to speak with an experienced and knowledgeable cosmetic surgeon in your area. This expert can determine what procedure may be best for you and discuss the risks and benefits associated with surgical or non-surgical facelift procedures.