Chatham County New Jersey Swears In Openly Gay African American Republican Mayor Believed To Be First In Country, 19-Year-Old Openly Gay Ryan Moore Selected By Australian Labor Party To Run As Candidate In Queensland Election, While Search For Suspects Wanted In New Year’s Day Hate Crime Continues Santa Barbara Citizens March, New York City Drag Club Escuelita Fights Attempts By State Liquor Authority To Force Bar Out-Of-Business

Bruce Harris was sworn in as mayor of Chatham Borough, New Jersey on Tuesday, becoming what is believed to be the first openly gay, black Republican mayor in the country. “I have felt it is my duty to serve the community,” Harris said. “I think that public service is interesting, and finding ways to meet the challenges facing a small community like Chatham Borough is personally rewarding.” The Victory Fund, an organization that works to elect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, said Harris is the first mayor of his kind in the country. Yet Harris, an attorney and 30-year resident of the borough, says he did not enter politics to break barriers. According to The Daily Record, the oldest child of 12 growing up in a civil rights-era household in Iowa, Harris said his parents were great community leaders and role models. “I entered public service partially because of the example set by my parents, both of whom were always active in the community,” said Harris, 61. Harris served the borough for 13 years on various boards and commissions. He also served two terms as a council member, working with mayors Dick Plambeck and Nelson Vaughan. He defeated Vaughan in the November election. “Bruce ran a really smart campaign, and he is well-established in Chatham,” said Leanna Brown, a former state senator and a resident of Chatham for 50 years. “I think his election shows the breadth and depth of the Republican Party.” Brown says Harris’ election shows that Chatham is a changing community. “We’re not solidly one color,” Brown said. “And there is more acceptance of different lifestyles than there may have been in the past.” Brown was the first Republican woman elected to the New Jersey Senate. “Like Bruce, I didn’t do it to be a groundbreaker, I did it to serve my town and my state,” she said. “And Bruce is a great addition to the world of politics.” During Tuesday’s swearing-in ceremony, an invocation was given by the Rev. Shawn Garvey of Stanley Congregational Church, which has a history of embracing gay clergy and members of any race or sexual circumstance. “We live in a diverse world. People come from vastly different life experiences and while we may hold some over-arching ethics and truths to be basically ‘universal,’ treating others the way we would want to be treated, for example the ways in which we personally identify ourselves with those issues and respond to them are always just that: personal,” Garvey said in advance of the event. “That means that everyone’s personal approach is going to be different, in either small or large ways, and that calls for a responsibility to honor those differences and find ways to compassionately and diplomatically live together with them, not despite them,” Garvey added. Harris said he is optimistic about Chatham’s leadership and the future. “I hope that we can continue to find ways to manage smartly and keep taxes and expenses under control so that Chatham Borough can maintain its identity as a distinct community,” he said. “We’ve done a great job of this in the past, and I think that we have an outstanding team on the council, and in the administration, that can, through teamwork, continue to find ways to successfully meet the challenges before us.”

"A 19-year-old openly gay candidate has emerged as one of the Australian Labor Party’s picks for the upcoming Queensland state poll. The Sydney Star Observer reports that Ryan Moore will seek election in the seat of Glass House, which covers the Sunshine Coast hinterland. A volunteer at Brisbane community broadcaster 4ZZZ who was inspired to join the Labor Party after a chance encounter with former prime minister Kevin Rudd, Moore has been a fierce gay rights advocate since becoming politically active two years ago. “My work with 4ZZZ sparked my interest in politics and the difference it can make in people’s lives,” Moore said. “In terms of the Labor Party, I saw how Kevin Rudd interacted with an organisation I worked for called the Oaktree Foundation, which funds educational projects in the third world, and was amazed at his support.” Moore now sees himself thrown onto a much larger stage than community radio, where he intends to run on local issues while retaining his strong passion for LGBTI community advocacy. No stranger to successful young candidates (see: 21-year-old Wyatt Roy’s successful federal election bid last year), Moore says it is no big secret as to why Queensland has become a breeding ground for enthusiastic young players in politics. “I think the political scene is rejuvenating and the ALP is refreshing itself,” he said. “I’m not the only young candidate, we have another 19-year-old in Southern Downs and some people in their early 20s running in Brisbane’s northern suburbs. Parties recognize the need to rejuvenate and engage with a demographic that often aren’t represented in Parliament.” Labor lost Glass House in the 2009 election to the Liberal National Party’s Andrew Powell, but Moore believes he’s well placed to challenge. “I’ve lived in Maleny for a very long time and looking at the LNP’s plan for Queensland – which is to rip away years of reform with very little structure to doing so – once I have an opportunity to get into that with the community, I’m in with a good chance,” he said. In light of the recent threat by Independent MP Rob Messenger to repeal the state’s Civil Partnerships Act, Moore said he’ll be ready to defend the legislation if elected. “I don’t think it matters whether it’s Rob Messenger or the LNP, there’s going to be a push to repeal [civil unions] in the next term,” he said. “The funny thing is the LNP have spoken about how they think it’s a waste of time in Parliament in the first place and how it’s a distraction, so why do they want to repeal it? Parliament is not here to take away people’s rights, and rights they’ve fought very hard for at that. If there is a push for a repeal I’ll be standing steadfastly against it.”

The search continues for three suspects who allegedly committed a "hate crime" on two men they though gay Sunday morning in downtown Santa Barbara. The violent attack left both men with wounds, and one with a serious gash to his head. A passerby caught it all on a cell phone camera. KEYT reports that Wednesday citizens marched from City Hall to the location of the attack on Ortega and Chapala Streets today. They spoke out against the crime. Among them, David Selberg with the Pacific Pride Foundation, who said, "Our hearts go out to the victims. And we're here to say, we are not afraid and that we are standing by these victims and our community. Santa Barbara is no place for hate." Mayor Helene Schneider said, "This is something we need to stand up and speak out about and not fall away into the shadows." Many of those in the group held signs against hate crimes. Deputy Police Chief Frank Mannix again asked for community help to locate the suspects, or any witnesses in the area of the early morning attacks. The victims were reportedly in the area where they had celebrated the New Year. A taxi was also seen in the video and police are hoping the driver saw what happened and could provide some information.

A New York City nightclub, Club Escuelita, the legendary gay club that has been a fixture near the Port Authority since 1996, says the State Liquor Authority is trying to put it out of business over two minor violations. According to The New York Post, in papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, Escuelita charges the SLA is cutting corners in a bid to take away their license, a move the club charges is clearly aimed at clearing gay, lesbian, transgender persons and minorities out of the gentrifying area. "I also believe that we are no longer welcome on West 39th Street as minorities scare the mostly white tourists who patronize the newly built and expensive boutique hotels" on the block, owner Sayvon Zabar said in an affidavit. Justice Geoffrey Wright signed an order this morning temporarily barring the SLA from moving against the club pending a full hearing on January 12, when he will also consider the club's request to order sensitivity training for the agency. The SLA is going back to court tomorrow to try to convince the judge to change his mind. One of the club's lawyers, Tom Shanahan, said many of the club's customers and performers - including several drag queens - will be on hand to show their support at the hearing because "we can't figure out why the SLA is being such a drag." The agency notified the club that it would not renew their liquor license, which is set to expire next month, because of two incidents last year. In one, the club's manager was arrested for allegedly assaulting a patron. In the other, a bartender was accused of selling a drink to an undercover officer posing as a minor. Zabar said in court papers the manager denies any wrongdoing, and noted that the criminal case against him is still pending. He also said the club is investigating the alleged sale of alcohol to a minor, but noted the club, which had been admitting people 18 and up, had a strict wristband policy in place to insure that no minors were served booze. The club - which has been served as a starting point for the likes Lady Bunny and RuPaul - wrote the SLA in December to say they're now barring people under 21 from going to the club. A representative for the SLA did not return an e-mail for comment.