ISSN: 2372-2207

September 2015 Suggested Retail Price $2.95

Ryan Cassata

Photo Credit: Stacy Cornett

“Stay True, Stay You”

2 Diversity Rules MagazineSeptember 2015

My Two CentsBy Jim Koury, Editor

Inside This Issue (partial listing) David-Elijah Nahmod ...................................... Page 3 Stay You, Stay True ........................................... Page 4 Kristen MacKenzie ........................................... Page 8 Amazon Trail .................................................... Page 11 Dishonored Bodies ............................................ Page 14 Travel to Vietnam .............................................. Page 16 Heading to Kauai .............................................. Page 17 Beware Junk Debt Collectors ............................ Page 18 Resources and Diversions .................................. Page 22

Welcome to the September issue of Diversity Rules Magazine! It is hard to believe that fall is fast ap-proaching and the summer will be gone once again until next year! What a momentous summer it was though with the Supreme Court ruling legalizing same sex marriage throughout the country. It was a long time coming with many legal challenges to overcome but equali-ty and fair treatment prevailed, de-spite having a somewhat conserva-tive Supreme Court on our hands.

This month’s feature guest inter-viewee is Ryan Cassata. I would like to welcome Ryan to Diversity Rules Magazine. His interview is great and very informative.

At the invitation of George Walsh of Step 3 Entertainment, I first met Ryan in Washington, DC when he performed for a select crowd for a debut of his new CD at the time. I, along with the rest of those in

attendance, were simply in awe of Ryan’s talent, forceful performance and compelling lyrics. I knew then he would be someone to watch and I was not wrong. He has become a notable songwriter and singer in his own right and I am sure we will be hearing a lot more of Ryan Cas-sata in the future.

Along with Ryan’s interview, as usual, there are other great articles that will be sure to pique your in-terest. There are columns by our regular writers as well as some new ones! Enjoy.

I want to also welcome a new ad-vertiser - the Otsego County Of-fice of the Aging. They may be able to help you with costly Medi-care premiums and copays. Check out their ad on page 12.

I hope you enjoy your last vestige of summer and have a great fall. See you all soon.

Diversity Rules MagazinePO Box 72

Oneonta, NY 13820James R. Koury, Editor/Publisher

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Websitewww.diversityrulesmagazine.com

Blogwww.diversityrulesmagazine.blogspot.com

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Copyright 2015 Diversity Rules MagazineAll Rights Reserved

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3Diversity Rules MagazineSeptember 2015

David-Elijah Nah-mod is a film crit-ic and reporter in San Francisco. His articles ap-pear regularly in The Bay Area Reporter and SF

Weekly. You can also find him on Facebook and Twitter.

David developed Post Traumatic Syndrome Disor-der (PTSD) after surviving gay conversion therapy as a child and has found that many in the LGBT community suffer from severe, often untreated emotional disorders due to the extreme anti-gay traumas they endured. This column chronicles his journey.

I was impressed and moved when I first met Rev. Megan Rohrer. Megan is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in San Francisco. Megan, who prefers to use gender

neutral pronouns, is the first openly transgender pastor to be installed at a Lutheran congregation--Megan always specifies that she’s “openly” trans-gender, as not all trans people are out. It’s impor-tant, they feel, to respect people’s privacy.

I covered Megan’s installation at Grace Lutheran for Bay Area Reporter, then did a follow-up interview with her for South Florida Gay News. Every time I hear Megan’s voice, every time we meet, I felt a sense of peace. Megan is a person who’s filled with love for the world. Obviously their congregation agrees, as Grace Lutheran’s membership has seen a sharp increase since Megan took to the pulpit.

Megan is also involved in homeless outreach. They have many years experience of working with San Francisco’s Night Ministry, hitting the streets of the City during the after-midnight hours in order to offer prayer and counseling to the homeless, and to help people on the streets find shelter and food. One of Megan’s personal projects is to help homeless people suffering from vi-sion loss obtain free eyeglasses.

“Be the change you want to see in the world,” said Gandhi. Few people I’ve encountered in my life-time live up to this phi-losophy more than Rev. Megan Rohrer.

So naturally I was shocked, in late June, when Megan needed to contact the San Fran-cisco police to ask them to keep an eye on Grace Lutheran. Megan had re-ceived threats of violence which came from within the LGBT sphere.

“Someone needs to track this dude down and beat the shit out of them,” stated the Tweet which Megan screen-grabbed and posted on her Facebook page. The tweet, from an account called “ no name Wiener”, is owned by a transgender woman. As this and other threats directed at Megan came in the immediate af-termath of the church shootings in South Carolina, Megan took no chances.

Megan was targeted due to her efforts to get Meagan Taylor, an African American transgender woman, out of jail. Taylor had been arrested at a motel in Des Moines Iowa on false prostitution charges. Megan was raising funds in order to get Taylor released. The people who threatened Megan wanted the money sent to them.

Nahmod - Cont’t on page 6

If You Could Read My Mind: A PTSD Memoir: Healing - Part I

By David-Elijah Nahmod