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WWW . TheSKaNNeR . COm J aNuaRy 25, 2012 S eaTTle , W aShiNGTON V Olume XXXiV, N O . 4 25 CeNTS i nSiDe ‘Red Tails’ page 2 GOP & Race page 4 Week on the web C hallenging P eoPle to S haPe a B etter F uture n ow page 6 Gay marriage Vote 99 Gregoire pushes issue to forefront amidst growing uproar And by rachel la Corte and mike baker the associated Press 99 PHOtO by SuSan FrieD Kathleen Brodine joined several hundred people at a rally on Jan. 21, to protest the Supreme Court decision in 2010 to equate money with free speech. Similar events were held in cities through out the country. The decision has sparked a movement to amend the constitution “to firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.” Girl’s Story Picked up for TV Show Toppenish girl ‘faked pregnancy’ for research on teen stereotypes by Shannon Dininny the associated Press yaKima, Wash. (AP) — Nine months after revealing to classmates that she had faked her pregnancy for a senior class project, a Washington state teenager is promoting a new book that details the experience and explores her reasons for tak- ing on the project. Gaby Rodriguez of Toppen- ish, Wash. earned international headlines last April when she announced at a high school assembly that she had worn a faux baby bump for months to explore stereotypes about teen pregnancy. Only a handful of people, including her mother, boyfriend and principal, were in on the secret. The rest of the Toppenish community, where buildings are adorned with Western-themed murals in central Washington’s agricultural Yakima Valley, had no clue. The local newspaper, the Yakima Herald-Republic, pub- lished a story that was then inDeX News .....................2,3,8 Calendar ....................2 Opinion ....................4,5 Bids/Classifieds.........6-7 picked up nationally by The Associated Press, and the proj- ect drew both praise and criti- cism. Some people credited her for selflessly committing to her idea and addressing such a seri- ous topic, while others lashed out at her for lying for a school project. Some critics still don’t under- stand what led her to take on the project in the first place, Rodriguez said in a recent inter- view, and she hopes that they’ll get that from her book, ``The Pregnancy Project.’’ The book was written with a ghostwriter. A movie about the experience, starring ``Spykids’’ actress Alexa Vega, premieres Jan. 28 on the Lifetime movie network, and Rodriguez is mak- ing numerous television and radio appearances to promote her story. The book details her mother’s first pregnancy, at age 14, and marriage to the baby’s father — a 16-year union troubled by allegations of abuse that pro- duced seven children. Their See teen on page 3 OlymPia, Wash. (AP) — Washington’s Legislature has enough votes to legalize gay marriage with a statement from Democratic Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen Monday who said she will support the measure, becoming the 25th vote needed to pass the bill out of the Senate. The House already has enough support, and Gov. Chris Gregoire has endorsed the plan. Washington would become the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriages, fol- lowing New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Mas- sachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. Washington state has had a domestic part- nership law since 2007, and an “everything but marriage” law since 2009. Haugen’s announcement came has hun- dreds of people filled the capitol to advocate for and against gay marriage. State senators began considering the bill during a morning committee hearing. “I know this announcement makes me the so-called 25th vote, the vote that ensures passage,” Haugen said in a statement. She said she took her time making up her mind to “to reconcile my religious beliefs with my beliefs as an American, as a legis- lator, and as a wife and mother who cannot deny to others the joys and benefits I enjoy. This is the right vote and it is the vote I will cast when this measure comes to the floor.” Opponents and supporters of gay marriage packed a Senate committee hearing Monday for the first public hearing of the most high- profile issue before the Washington state Legislature this session. Dozens of people crammed into a small Senate committee hearing room, which was quickly filled to capacity as people lined up outside the room two hours in advance of the 10 a.m. start. The Senate set up three overflow areas for the public, including the public gallery on the Senate floor. Opponents of gay marriage wore buttons See marriage on page 3 library Facing Cuts, asks for input Citywide community meeting set for public’s ideas on programs T he Seattle Public Library will hold is last citywide community meeting to discuss improving Library services from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28, at the Northeast Branch, 6801 35th Ave. N.E. (206-684-7539). The meeting will focus on patron needs in the following key service areas: • operating hours • building maintenance. Strategies for stabilizing Library funding also will be reviewed. “Our libraries pro- vide essential educational resources for the residents of Seattle,” said Marcellus Turner, city librarian. “Every day we change lives – from building literacy skills at story times to providing in-depth resources and work- shops for job seekers.” At the meeting, patrons will receive an overview of Library use and budget, as well as suggested options for providing better and more accessible resources and services. Patrons will have the opportunity to voice their priorities around collections, hours, technology and building maintenance. The improvement areas grew out of a pub- lic outreach process to develop the Library’s new Strategic Plan, where more than 33,000 See library on page 3
