Larry Kramer On Stonewall Boycott

"Don't listen to the crazies. For some reason there is a group of 'activists' that insists on maintaining their prime importance and participation during this riot. Unfortunately there seems no one left alive to say 'it wasn't that way at all,' or 'who are or where the fuck were you.' As with so much history there is no way to 'prove' a lot of stuff, which allows artists such as yourself (and me I might add) to take essences and attempt to find and convey meaning and truth. I sincerely hope this boycott your film shit peters out. We are not dealing with another 'Cruising' here. Keeping your film from being seen is only hurting ourselves. Good luck and thank you for your passion." - Larry Kramer, responding to the Facebook page of Stonewall director Roland Emmerich.

PETITION: Boycott Stonewall Movie

Variety reports:

"A historically accurate film about the Stonewall Riots would center the stories of queer and gender-noncomforming people of color like Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson," a MoveOn petition reads. "Not relegate them to background characters in the service of a white cis-male fictional protagonist." The trailer for Roland Emmerich's film about the 1969 Stonewall riots just debuted online on Tuesday, but it's already sparked controversy among the LGBT community for its portrayal of the start of the gay-rights movement. The preview presents a white man as the centerpiece of the movie, showing a character named Danny (Jeremy Irvine) arriving in New York City, where he meets the gay community on Christopher Street and is radicalized by his experiences with them at the Stonewall Inn. A MoveOn petition aimed at director Roland Emmerich, himself openly gay, urges those who sign it to boycott the movie "for erasing the contributions of of-color queer and gender non-comforming activists."

So far the petition has over 14,000 signatures.

UPDATE: Director Roland Emmerich has responded on Facebook:

When I first learned about the Stonewall Riots through my work with the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, I was struck that the circumstances that lead to LGBT youth homelessness today are pretty much the same as they were 45 years ago. The courageous actions of everyone who fought against injustice in 1969 inspired me to tell a compelling, fictionalized drama of those days centering on homeless LGBT youth, specifically a young midwestern gay man who is kicked out of his home for his sexuality and comes to New York, befriending the people who are actively involved in the events leading up to the riots and the riots themselves. I understand that following the release of our trailer there have been initial concerns about how this character’s involvement is portrayed, but when this film - which is truly a labor of love for me - finally comes to theaters, audiences will see that it deeply honors the real-life activists who were there — including Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Ray Castro — and all the brave people who sparked the civil rights movement which continues to this day. We are all the same in our struggle for acceptance.

Matt Baume On Stonewall

Harlem Hate Pastor Returns To Daily Show

BRONX: Three More Legionnaires Deaths

Via the New York Times:

An outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in the South Bronx has claimed three more lives, bringing the death toll to seven, New York City officials said on Monday amid calls for tighter regulation of water-cooling towers, which are thought to be the origin of the illness. Of the 17 cooling towers officials examined in the South Bronx, five — including towers at the Opera House Hotel and the Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center — tested positive for the legionella bacteria, which can sicken people who inhale water droplets released from such towers. Though the five towers have since been decontaminated, the pollution has raised questions about measures in place to protect the city’s water systems.

Eighty-one Bronx residents have been hospitalized in the current outbreak. Borough leaders last night held an advisory town hall meeting attended by hundreds.

Racing Extinction: Empire State Building Lights Up For Endangered Species

Via NBC New York:

The landmark Empire State Building, known for its stunning light displays, shined brightly with digital light projections of the world’s endangered species Saturday evening. The show was billed as a first-of-its-kind live video projection and aimed to raise awareness about animals at risk of being lost forever. The display, a project conceived by “The Cove” filmmaker Louie Psihoyos, showed a looping reel of endangered animals over a 33-floor span of the southern face of the Empire State Building. In all, 160 species were shown, including a snow leopard, golden lion tamarin, birds, snakes, manta rays, and various mammals and sea creatures. "We're set to lose half the species on the planet by the end of the century," Psihoyos said at the event. At one point an image of Cecil -- a beloved lion in Zimbabwe that was shot and killed by a U.S. dentist during an allegedly illegal hunt in July -- was shown on the building. The killing sparked off a social media firestorm and led to calls for the hunter's extradition. Coincidentally, the uproar gained international attention just days before the light show.

Organizers called the show "a weapon of mass instruction." Their series Racing Extinction will debut on Discovery in the fall.

BRONX: Four Die In Legionnaires Outbreak

CNN reports:

The number of deaths in the New York City Legionnaires' disease outbreak is up to four. Seventy-one cases of the flu-like disease have been reported since mid-July in the South Bronx, up from 31 on Thursday, the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said Sunday. Legionnaires' disease is a respiratory bacterial infection usually spread through mist that comes from a water source, such as cooling towers, air conditioning or showers. It is not transmitted person to person. Symptoms of the disease include fever, chills and a cough. Most people recover, but between 5% to 30% of those who get the disease die, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The four victims were all older adults with additional underlying medical problems, the city said. Fifty-five individuals are hospitalized.

The outbreak has so far been traced to five buildings in the south Bronx, including a hospital and a hotel. Bronx borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. is calling for a city-wide inspection system that would regularly test the water infrastructure of all buildings. People living with untreated HIV are considered to be at high risk of contracting Legionnaires.

Seen In Brooklyn

Via Laughing Squid:

New Zealand street artist Owen Dippie, the incredible mind behind the Renaissance Mutant Ninja Turtles mural, recently created “The Radiant Madonna“, a giant mural that features the Virgin Mary cradling a distinctive Keith Haring figure on the side of a Brooklyn building. Dippie explained the concept behind the mural, which was done in cooperation with the Bushwick Collective, “If art is a religion then Keith Haring is a god”.

(Tipped by JMG reader Wilson)

Sodomites Are Bleaching Harlem

Hate preacher James David Manning wants to build an "anti-sodomite monument" across 125th Street to defy the "bleaching of Harlem."

UNVEILED: $4B Plan For New LGA

As they might say on HGTV, LGA is a complete tear-down. Therefore, according to plans unveiled today, a completely new single $4B terminal will be built in the current parking lot, after which the ramshackle four old terminals will be razed. Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Vice President Joe Biden today held a joint press conference about the project, which is presently slated to begin early next year.  Lots of renderings are in the promo clip below.

RELATED: LGA is currently the 20th busiest US airport, just behind PHL and ahead of FLL. JFK, which is also in Queens, is ranked 5th with double the passenger volume of LGA. ATL remains, by far, the nation's busiest airport with nearly double the traffic of JFK.

Today At Harlem's Hate Church

(Photo by JMG reader Mike)

Today At Harlem's Hate Church

(Photo by JMG reader Jeff)

Helicopters Matter

Via DNA Info:

City councilmembers are pushing ahead with their fight to end noisy tourist helicopter rides, introducing a bill Thursday that would ban the sightseeing flights in New York City. Several councilmembers including Margaret Chin, who represents Lower Manhattan, as well as the Upper West Side's Helen Rosenthal, and Brooklyn's Carlos Menchacha, proposed the legislation, which would squash the use of tourist helicopters that some call unbearably loud and persistent. "The Council finds that there is significant noise pollution caused by the dozens of sightseeing helicopters operating daily from heliports owned by the city," the bill reads. "The heliports used by sightseeing helicopters are near water which carries the sound of those helicopters and significantly disrupts the daily lives of city residents who live and work near the heliports or across the East River."

They might want to rethink their name.

UPDATE: I should have mentioned that the above was a full-page ad in yesterday's New York Daily News.

Uber Wins Battle Against NYC

Via USA Today:

A proposed cap on Uber and other for-hire vehicles in New York City has been put on ice after the $40 billion start-up agreed to "not flood the streets" until questions about the impact of its growth on traffic can be determined. A bill to limit Uber and other for-hire taxis had been slated to go to a vote before the New York City Council on Thursday. The cap was to limit Uber and other for-hire vehicles until city officials could study their impact on the city's already clogged streets. In March, the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) reported that the number of Uber cars in NYC had outpaced yellow taxis for the first time. At the time, there were There are 14,088 cars, including luxury SUVs, affiliated with Uber in the city's five boroughs, compared with 13,587 yellow cabs, TLC said. That raised concerns about congestion, pollution and street parking.

Music Journalist Barry Walters Looks Back At Manhattan's Legendary Saint Disco

Veteran music journalist Barry Walters has penned a fascinating look back at Manhattan's much-storied Saint nightclub. It begins:

From September 1980 to May 1988, The Saint defined gay nightlife in New York during its most tumultuous and literally plagued decade. Conceived by off-Broadway impresario Mailman, who had just scored a runaway success with The New St. Marks Baths, The Saint set such high standards that it soon rendered its competition redundant.

“When it opened, it just sucked the life out of all the other clubs,” says Robbie Leslie, the most popular of the disco’s surviving DJs. “Everyone abandoned these clubs they professed loyalty to. It only took a week or two, and they just flocked over to The Saint.”

Housed in the three-story former site of the psychedelic rock concert hall Fillmore East, The Saint offered multi-sensory pleasure like no other venue before or since. It featured a circular, 4,800 square foot dancefloor topped by an aluminum dome 76 ft. by 38 ft. under which much of the club’s 1,500 lights would shine, as well as constellations from a Spitz Space System projector ten times brighter than one in a typical planetarium. Designed by architect Charles Terrell, The Saint pointedly directed one’s attention skyward. Its experience was clearly meant to be uplifting – visually and otherwise.

The perforated dome hid the last and largest of the revered Graebar sound systems: Powered by 630 drivers and 32 amplifiers, nearly 500 speakers generated 26,000 watts – a figure touted in The Saint’s publicity materials as being “probably the most powerful per square foot for entertainment purposes in existence.” All this splendor ultimately cost $4.6 million in 1980 dollars – well over $13 million in today’s currency.

You don't have to be an eldergay to enjoy the full piece.

AUDIO: There are many recordings of Saint DJ sets floating around. In the above-linked piece Walters includes this set from closing night DJ Jim Burgess.

PETITION: Turn NYC's Christopher Park Into Nation's First LGBT National Park

The petition is here.

Harlem Hate Pastor James Manning: Don't Get Injected With Sodomite Demons

Ali Forney Center Breaks Ground On Residence Named For Bea Arthur

Via press release:

On Monday, July 20, 2015, there will be a groundbreaking ceremony for the Bea Arthur Residence, an 18-bed residence for homeless LGBT youth operated by the Ali Forney Center. In 2012 the New York City Council and the Manhattan Borough President awarded $3,300,000 for the renovation of a long vacant building owned by the New York City Department of Housing and Preservation Development. The building has now been turned over to the Ali Forney Center in partnership with Cooper Square Committee, and renovations are beginning this month. It is anticipated that the building will begin to provide housing by the end of 2016.

Bea Arthur gave one of her final public performances as a benefit for the Ali Forney Center in 2005. She was very upset to learn that hundreds of thousands of LGBT teens were rejected by their families, and driven to homelessness. She said that she would do anything in her power to help these teens. When she died in 2009 the Ali Forney Center learned that she had bequeathed $300,000 to us in her will. At that time, Carl Siciliano, the Executive Director of the Ali Forney Center, pledged that the first building they owned would be named in her memory.

The groundbreaking will be attended by state and city political leaders and by the staff and clients of the Ali Forney Center.

NEW YORK: Innocent Commuters Trapped On City Bus With Screaming Preacher

"Evangelist Tamesha Morgan preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ on the NYC Transit. A Must See! Thank you Yeshua." Including speaking in tongues.

(Tipped by JMG reader Kent)

LIVE VIDEO: New York City Throws Ticker Tape Parade For World Cup Champions