"Religious Restoration" and "Freedom of Conscience" Bills in West Virginia

Our legislature here in West Virginia is in session only sixty days, and yet, with the state's economy tanking, bills to allow discrimination against LGBT people, to allow guns to be carried without a permit, including on school buses, and to allow people who have not graduated high school to home school children have been the focus of our local Republican legislators.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail ran an article titled "Lawmakers voice support for nondiscrimination," about a video put out by Fairness West Virginia, the statewide gay rights organization, showing both Democratic and Republican legislators denouncing discrimination against LGBT people in the state. Tim Miley, the minority leader in the West Virginia House, a Democrat from Harrison County, thirty miles south of Morgantown wondered "...whether LGBT individuals feel welcome in West Virginia."

I sent the paper a rant Wednesday, too long for a letter. I haven't heard anything back from them, so I'm posting my rant here. I edited it slightly from what was sent.

I saw the video from Fairness West Virginia, showing bipartisan support for equal rights for everyone regardless of sexual orientation.Andrew Schneider of Fairness is a friend, and I'm glad he was able to get senators and delegates from both parties to endorse non-discrimination. 

I'm not sure it means anything. Republicans Charles Trump and Tom Takubo, who  both appear extolling fairness in the video are also cosponsors of "The Religious Freedom Restoration Act," which is widely perceived to be an excuse for people to discriminate against LGBT people, or anyone, in public accommodations. Saira Blair, Republican from the Eastern Panhandle says in your article  "..The video is by no means where I stand on any Legislation." I know she is her own woman (one hopes), but her father, Senator Craig Blair, is a Senate cosponsor of SB 11, The "Freedom of Conscience Protection Act" in the West Virginia Senate. Ms. Blair also said in 2014 ( I found this in "Teen Vogue") "I believe that marriage is a religious institution between a man and a woman."

Tim Miley wonders if ..."LGBT individuals feel welcome in West Virginia." I would say "It's lonesome." I came here in July of 2012 when my spouse was offered the Rabbi position at Tree of Life Congregation, here in Morgantown. Our experience with the congregation has been great. At the end of Rabbi Joe's two-year contract, he was offered another five-year contract by the congregation. We have been accepted as a couple in what I call the "South Park bubble," the neighborhood of big old houses inhabited by college professors from WVU, current and retired, lawyers, scientists, and people who are politically active. I once joked that it was the only place in West Virginia where you could have an Obama sticker on your car.

We try to ignore the slights. I questioned a new dentist about why she had a religious magazine in her waiting room that said that gays want to overturn the U.S. Constitution. I stopped going to a garage where there were religious and political pages on a wall, including one that said " We will not allow anyone to change the definition of marriage." A few times we have been treated badly by servers at restaurants, and crossed them off our list. The managers have often taken our side. I used to go to a WVU-operated gym where some of the staff wouldn't say "Hello" to me when I walked in. I don't go there anymore. We donated to the local AIDS service organization. I signed the check, which was  from our joint account and had our home address was on it. A thank you note came to Joe at the synagogue. I confronted the second-in-command at the organization, and he showed me how no one was listed as a couple at their annual fundraiser. And when we first moved here, I answered an article in the Dominion-Post about the high rate of suicide among young men in West Virginia. My letter suggested that many of these people might be gay, and harassed by family and schoolmates. I met with Mr. Musick, the head of this task force. He told me he could not mention anything gay in relation to suicide. We were also told that we should not go south of Clarksburg, except possibly to Charleston and Huntington, because our lives would be in danger. I found that to be an exaggeration. I travel frequently, but usually on my own. I don't have to look gay or Jewish. I've lived in Baltimore, New Orleans, Miami and Los Angeles, four of the most dangerous big cities in the United States.I don't scare easily.

There aren't a lot of gay people here. Gay men our age (currently 66 and 59) moved away when they were twenty. Joe had a friend in New York in the late 70s whose father in West Virginia suggested he fly out a second-floor window if he was a fairy. He took a bus to New York that day, changed his name, and has not had contact with his parents since. We joined a group called G2H2, Gay Guys Happy Hour. We go out to a restaurant once a month for drinks and dinner. The restaurants have all been great to us. I suppose someone could tell us they don't want to sell drinks and fifteen dinners on a slow weeknight because we are gay, but that hasn't happened. The men we have met at G2H2 live in their parents' or grandparents' old house in the country. The three older couples we have become close to live in Pennsylvania. A few, like us, live in Morgantown.

I serve on the LGBT Equity Commission at WVU as the community member. There will be an LGBT Center next year, and under President Gee, the University has made great strides in combating prejudice against LGBT people, and against religious and ethnic minorities. Our problem here is in the West Virginia Legislature, where Cindy Frich,one of our Republican legislators, asked for a resolution to the US government to have a constitutional convention specifically to ban any recognition of same-gender relationships. Joe Statler, another of our representatives, voted for it as well. I believe Delegate Frich is again asking for a constitutional convention.

My husband is happy with his work here at Tree of Life. When he signed his new five-year contract, I decided to be happy too. With some of the last money I inherited from my parents, we were able to make a down payment on a modest house in Suncrest. We applied to three mortgage lenders; only one called us back. And in an attempt to change the political culture of West Virginia, I filed to run as a delegate to the State Assembly. Morgantown has a sign on US 119 as you enter town saying "Building A Diverse Community." I would like to help make that diverse community a reality.

Barry Lee Wendell
P.O. Box 831
Morgantown, WV 26507
304-685-1098
blogging at:  themorgantowner.blogspot.com
campaign website: barryinthehouse.com
wendell.barry@aol.com

Since I originally wrote this, the Charleston Area Chamber of Commerce has come out against these bills as "bad for business." They cite what happened in Indiana after bills with almost identical language were passed there. All well and good, but I would like someone to say "It's immoral to have a business open to the public, and say 'Not You' to a specific group of people." I grew up in Maryland when it was strictly segregated by race, and to a lesser extent, by religion. I would not want to see West Virginia go in that direction.

The S.A.G. Awards 2016

My SAG-AFTRA card says I've been a member since 1986- thirty years this year. I should get an award for that. There were originally two unions: The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists which was for radio announcers and actors, and The Screen Actors Guild, which was for movie actors. With the advent of television, AFTRA took the daytime shows and the news announcers, and SAG took prime time. I joined AFTRA first, because you could pay to join without working, and SAG a year or two later, after I got a speaking part on General Hospital in 1987. SAG used to be hard to join. I did it legitimately, although it did not help me get an agent. The merger was controversial because you didn't have to work to join AFTRA, but it was ultimately necessary to fend off rapacious producers who would pit the two guilds against each other.

This is the 22nd year of the SAG Awards, acting-only awards for people who can't get into the more prestigious Academy. Theoretically, it is more democratic, because only actors vote for other actors. There is still quite a bit of hype and advertising, and many good performances are overlooked for big names and studios.

The studios send DVDs, called screeners, to SAG-AFTRA members, with instructions that they are strictly for awards season and not to be sold or given away. One is supposed to destroy them. I've held onto a few. Usually, DVDs are not yet available to the general public. Lately, studios have been sending codes to allow one to watch movies online. Netflix, which we didn't have at home, sent me a card with a code for three months of free watching. I watched the first episode this season of "House of Cards" and "Orange Is The New Black" over the last two days. Joe and I watched screeners for "Brooklyn," "Spotlight," "The Big Short," "The Danish Girl" and I saw part of "Beasts of No Nation." They sent screeners for "Steve Jobs" and "Room," which I didn't watch, and "Straight Outta Compton" which I saw in an otherwise empty theater here in Morgantown. I could have watched some of the other movies online, but I didn't. "Trumbo" and "Woman In Gold" I saw in theaters prior to the announcement of the awards.

I didn't vote in the stunt or most of the television categories, and I know I slighted some good work because I didn't take time to see it. And I have my prejudices.

I only saw two of the best actor nominees: Bryan Cranston in "Trumbo" and Eddie Redmayne in "The Danish Girl." A close call, but I picked Redmayne, because he was believable in a "stunt" kind of role, and didn't try to make his character likable.

For actress, I saw Saoirse Ronan in "Brooklyn" and Helen Mirren in "Woman In Gold."  Ronan was heartbreaking, but Helen Mirren had a more powerful story to tell. I voted for Rachel McAdams in "Spotlight" over Alicia Vikander in "The Danish Girl." Both played young women believable in today's society, but Vikander was in a period piece. She and Redmayne seemed to be in different movies.

The only category where I saw every movie was "Best Ensemble Cast in a Movie." The nominees were "Beasts of No Nation" (which I did not watch to the end), "The Big Short," "Spotlight," "Straight Outta Compton,"and "Trumbo." All of these were great and I would recommend them. I voted for "Straight Outta Compton" because the actors are not well known, because the major parts (except for Paul Giamatti) are African-American, and The Academy didn't nominate any  African-American actors. The actors in "Straight Outta Compton" are as talented as any of the big names in the other movies.

I voted for Jim Parsons in "The Big Bang Theory" for television comedy actor because he is actually gay ( although his character is not) and "Orange Is The New Black" for television ensemble cat because it is mostly women (who get short-shrift in the movie biz) and largely minority. People think African-Americans and Latin Americans playing thugs on television actually are thugs, but of course, they are trained actors who can put that on. I also like that the actors are different ages and shapes on that show. I'm all about diversity.

I understand that my choices are not entirely rational, but I also understand that none of the award choices at this time of year are rational. A script, a director, how one relates to a character or a theme, and just what one chooses to see or not see, make a big difference.

The SAGAFTRA Awards will be on TNT Saturday night, January 30.

The Democratic Debate

I spoke to some people from "West Virginia for Bernie" a few weeks ago, and I added myself to their Facebook page. I got a message that they were having a watch party Sunday, January 17, at The Ramada Inn's bar, just south of Morgantown. They were planning to start early, and have some candidates for office speak for a few minutes. I wrote and asked if I could speak also. Ultimately there were six of us, and one proxy for the Democratic incumbent, speaking at this event. There are five seats at-large in our district for the state legislature. Mike Manypenny, running for US Congresss against our Republican incumbent, also spoke.

We each had five minutes to speak, including questions. I had rehearsed what I planned to say. I talked about being a West Virginian-by-choice, and my marriage to The Rabbi, who I pointed to in the crowd. My agenda is right for the Bernie crowd. I am against union-busting, so-called right-to-work, for prevailing wage, pro-union. I also brought up environmental issues, gun control, the importance of the election of judges in May, and abortion. I am for strong environmental protection, pro-choice, and against concealed carry with no permit, which the Republicans want to push this year. I felt I spoke as well as the other speakers.

I had time for three questions. Joe, who had heard me rehearse, asked about diversity. I talked about the signs saying "Building a Diverse Community" at the entrances to Morgantown, and how I would like to make that promise real. Someone else asked if, knowing that people in the legislature can be closed off and suspicious of people who haven't lived here for generations, or who they perceive to be "different." I said  I would wow them with my "Hollywood sparkle" and my natural charm.

The debate started at nine. We stayed for the first hour. The event was organized by Bernie's followers, so they loved him. He stuck to his story about breaking up the big banks and revolutionizing the economy to reduce income inequality. He and Hillary traded barbs about their past records. For her part, Hillary was able to defend herself aggressively and attack.  Martin O'Malley pointed out how he had balanced Maryland's budget and brought down crime in Baltimore. The others brought up the recent problems with police and unrest in Baltimore. He only said that happened after he left office.

 O'Malley got in one dig,which I was unhappy about. When Sanders and Clinton talked about their memories of the Civil Rights March on Washington in 1963, he said it was the year he was born. I was thirteen at the time of the great Civil Rights March, and I remember it clearly. My parents refused to let me go, not that I could have gotten there without them.

I would vote for any of the Democrats over any Republican. Bernie is a Jew from Brooklyn, and idealistic about what he can actually accomplish. Hillary is cold and calculating, which might serve her better than Bernie's idealism serves him. She has both help and baggage from her husband. Martin did well for Maryland, including pushing through same-gender marriage. I'm not sure many people know who he is.

I met some people and distributed my card. Someone approached me Monday at the Martin Luther King birthday bash. He had seen me at the debate watch party.

This week, I was to go to a union meeting Tuesday and a Young Democrats meeting Wednesday at WVU, but it was too cold for the former, and two snowy for the latter.

Once the weather is better, I hope to be out more. The deadline to register to run for office is January 30. Then we will all know how many of us are running for this office.

I can see where being Jewish and gay in West Virginia is not necessarily a winning combination. Not impossible, though. All of the candidates were strong and forthright in their speeches and were clearly coached in how to dress and speak. I have experience from acting and teaching in how to get my points across, and I hope to use that experience.

The State of The Union

I enjoyed President Obama's speech this week. He seemed relaxed and in good humor. I've never agreed with everything he has tried to do, but for the most part, I still believe in him.

In his speech, he talked about how The Affordable Care Act has brought health care to many who did not have it before. He also said "We've got to make it easier to vote, not harder." And "We have to reduce the influence of money in politics, so that a handful of families or hidden interests can't bankroll our elections." While the Democrats applauded this line, the Republicans sat on their hands. I guess the "hidden interests" and "handful of families" are the people who run the Republican Party.

I love that he said "...we secured the freedom in every state to marry the person we love." I've been with my Joe for ten years now, and we have been married for more than seven. I know it's hard for people to accept that two men or two women can be married, but we are, and Republican candidates for president who would annul our marriage are only mean and hateful. Religious arguments do not trump my freedom.

Our junior Senator Shelley Moore Capito, and our Congressional representative, David McKinley, have voted time and again to overturn the Affordable Care Act, and expressed disappointment at the Supreme Court decision forcing West Virginia to recognize our marriage. They have fought the EPA on clean air, supposedly because of the potential loss of coal mining jobs, but they have allowed mining companies to get out of pension and health care obligations for retired miners. It seems they care about the coal mine owners, not the actual workers. Local politicians like to deny climate change. Scientists, even here in West Virginia, have noted changes in the plant and animal life in our state with alarm.

The Republicans from our district in the State Legislature promised to provide jobs and fix the roads. In the current legislative session, which just started yesterday, they have already proposed bills to limit abortions, to repeal prevailing wage and make West Virginia a "Right to Work" state. They say the last two will mean more jobs in West Virginia. The truth is it will line the pockets of corporate CEOs at the expense of workers, and will ultimately hurt the state's economy.

Last session, our local Republicans proposed charter schools, asked for a US Constitutional Convention to ban same-gender marriages, introduced a voter ID bill, and passed a bill to ease safety regulations in coal mines. None of these will fix the roads or provide jobs.

That's what made me sad about the President's speech. He is compassionate and progressive, wanting to really do something good for average Americans. I only get fear and loathing from the Republicans.

My candidacy for West Virginia State Legislature is a long shot. It would be great if I could bring some of President Obama's leadership to West Virginia, to defend his legacy in a state where he is often vilified, to conquer fear of the future. I want to respect West Virginia's legacy, but I want to move our state forward.

Buchanan County, Virginia

I always thought I had moved to Appalachia when Joe and I came to Morgantown in 2012. Now I know better. The main road through Buchanan County, Virginia is U.S. 460 between Bluefield, West Virginia and Pikevile, Kentucky. The road is four lanes and parallels Lavisa Fork River southeast of Grundy. In town, 460 has been relocated to the side of a blasted-out mountain, as the former road through downtown flooded one time too many. Buchanan County has lost more than a third of its population since the 1980 census.

Coal is still king here. Monstrous-looking coal plants line 460 in the eastern part of the county, and giant trucks carrying unidentifiable equipment crowd the roads. People live in the stream beds. The rest of the terrain is steep.

Many of the county's schools have closed. One middle school is now a law school run by the state, and there is a pharmacy school in an office park. The paper today had an article about the opening of a four-year optometry school.

Grundy is the seat of Buchanan County. There is a tiny Main Street, protected by flood walls and even a gate to close off the access to it from relocated US 460 and State Road 83. which runs across the county perpendicular to 460. Both roads are designated east-west, although 460 is more north-south in this county. Across from old downtown is a new two-story Wal-Mart, which backs on a blasted-out mountainside. There are other stores in that complex.

Vansant is a Census-Defined Place (CDP), the suburb just south of Grundy. It has the fast-food places and the big grocery store.  From Grundy, it is less than twenty miles to Pike County, Kentucky and Mercer County, West Virginia.

People here were friendly, nodding "hello" to me even though I don't know them. Their accent is not like in West Virginia. They use a long "E" for short "I, pronouncing "his" like "he's." There is a drawl to all this. Despite the drop in population, there are 23,000 or so people, more than in many West Virginia counties. Fancy houses line 83 east of Grundy.

I had dinner last night at a pizza and subs place next to the motel, lunch today in the big grocery store in Vansant at the salad bar, which was fully half desserts. I got a fried chicken breast and a biscuit to complement my healthy salad just to spite my recently unclogged arteries. There was an eating area in the store, and people were socializing. Even the people passing through all seemed to know someone standing around chatting.

There is a Grundy Plaza in Vansant. This may be the former warehouse that Wikipedia says the downtown Grundy stores moved to after the 1977 flood. I dined at the Chinese buffet. Young men were eating there in groups, more clean-cut than the men I saw during the day. Perhaps they were law students, whose semester starts next week. The food at the buffet was bad - everything fried, no plain white rice. The waitress was friendly, touching my arm several times.

I stayed at the Comfort Inn in Grundy on Business 460, which I think was the original route before the flooding. The hotel is across from the river, and while that side of the street is empty, there may have been shops there at one time. The new 460 was above us, cut into the mountain.

The hotel was crowded. I booked the last single king-bed room Sunday for Tuesday. I thought maybe it was the family of law school students, but it appeared to be working people, overwhelmingly men, miners, railroad people (Norfolk and Southern Railroad has a huge yard north of Grundy) and people in trucks from utility companies. The hotel is more luxurious than most Comfort Inns.

When I checked in, I asked the clerk where to go,and he said the main tourist attraction was Breaks Interstate Park, 20 miles from Grundy on the Kentucky border. The main part of the park is in Virginia, but probably not in this county. I may have cheated on my system, going into the next countybut I am unrepentant.  The motel, cabins, visitors center and beach were closed for the winter.

People had said it wouldn't be warmer than Morgantown. January in Grundy is usually one degree warmer than Morgantown, and three degrees warmer in the afternoon. It was 21 F. this morning and 42 F. in the afternoon with bright southern sunshine. That's why I saved the park for afternoon.

I asked the hotel breakfast lady why the screen on the television said schools were opening late in many surrounding counties. She, like other people around here didn't understand what I said. Maybe it's my accent. She said it's because of the icy roads when it's cold. Morgantown schools don't open late for 20 degree weather. It has to be 0 in the morning. I did note in the morning that it was sunny in many places, but in the shadow of the mountains, dark and cold. There was snow throughout the area on the ground in the places that are always shady.

The congressional district here covers most counties in southwest Virginia. I think more people live in fifteen square mile Alexandria, near Washington, D.C., than in eight counties of southwest Virginia. Today's paper out of Tazewell, the next county southeast of here, says that a retired postal worker is challenging the local Republican congressman as a "Bernie Sanders Democrat." I've said that about my state delegate candidacy.

I don't think people here are as conservative as I expected. They seem to be friendly, hard-working people, many of them in unions, religious, judging by the number of churches I saw today, and taking active measures to save their area from oblivion. In addition to many active coal mines, I saw abandoned mine equipment and what looked to me like reclaimed mining land- the only places I saw that were flat and treeless.

It's a beautiful place, Buchanan County, and I wish the people luck and blessings in adapting to change here.

Here are the pictures.

Main St., Grundy. This is all of it.

Historic side of the Buchanan County Courthouse, early 20th century, Grundy

flood wall and the Wal-Mart cut into a mountain, Grundy

U.S. Post Office, c. 1960, Main St., Grundy

Former Middle School, now a law college, Grundy

Wells Fargo Bank Building, Vansant

restored and moved pioneer cabin, 1838, Breaks Interstate Park

Laurel Lake, Breaks Interstate Park

The Towers geological formation, Breaks Interstate Park, unfortunately, looking into the sun

2015 and 2016

We had an exciting year here in Morgantown. Most importantly, we bought a house. This was my biggest goal for the year, and we did it with a little help from my late mother, Deborah Polk Wendell, because I had not spent all of the money she left me at her death. She wanted me to have a home in Beverly Hills. Suncrest, Morgantown is as close as I could get.

Medicare was important this year. My legs were swollen and the dermatologist checked for blood clots which weren't there. The cardiologist thought maybe my heart wasn't working properly, and I had that fixed with three new stents at the end of September. My legs are no longer swollen.
Joe and I traveled to Philadelphia for the CCAR (Reform Rabbis) convention. We stayed in an architectural landmark, a former bank headquarters in The International Style. We stopped in to see Joe's cousins out in the suburbs. We visited our friends Spencer Gill and Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill in Virginia Beach over July 4. Neither of us had ever been in the Norfolk-Virginia Beach area. Ellen and I go way back-to my early days as a substitute teacher, when she taught at Le Conte Junior High in Hollywood. We stopped to see my sister Robin in Greenbelt, Maryland on the road (exactly half way) and picked her up on the way back for a visit with us here in Morgantown. My friend Roann visited us on the way to and from a conference in Baltimore.  We met at Israeli dancing in LA in 1984. She lives near Ann Arbor, Michigan.

In my quest to visit one county within three hundred miles of here each month, I visited the cities of Martinsburg, Madison, Sutton and Wellsburg in West Virginia, Reading, Altoona and Sayre in Pennsylvania, Ashland and Augusta in Kentucky, Bland and Fincastle in Virginia, and Georgetown, Ohio. Joe went to Sutton for the day with me, about a hundred miles south of here, in Braxton County. My friend Dee went to Wellsburg, in the northern panhandle of West Virginia, where we spent an atypical warm sunny November day.

One thing I don't like in Morgantown is the political life here. The Democrats in 2014 lost control of the House of Delegates, and the five delegates in our district went from three Democrats and  two Republicans to four Republicans and one Democrat. Our Republicans pushed to overturn safety regulations in the coal mines, start charter schools, and pass a voter ID bill. They are all anti-choice and pro-gun. I took personal offense that one of our Republicans filed a resolution to ask the US Congress to have a convention to pass a Constitutional Amendment to ban any recognition of same-gender relationships. It didn't go anywhere, but she and one other Republican in our district voted for it.

Given the lackluster campaigns run by Democrats in 2014, I decided to run for state delegate. The primary campaign may have as many as nine candidates for five slots in the general election. I'm still getting organized, and the date to actually file (I pre-filed) is later this month. I have a treasurer, a bank account and a website, http://www.barryinthehouse.com . I'm on my way.

Most importantly in 2015 and going forward, I have my strong relationship with Joe. He's been there holding my hand in the hospital, encouraging my candidacy for office, bragging to friends about me and keeping me physically and emotionally warm.

There are pics that I am unable to post because I took them on my Android phone, used an app (Kies) to transfer them to my Mac, yet I am unable to post them on the blog, copy and paste them, or even send them back to my phone. Technology can be frustrating.

Here are some pics I can post from 2015:

Last January in Morgantown. I was ill most of the month and didn't get out.

Purim at Tree of Life  February

With Joe's father's relatives near Philadelphia March

Holocaust survivor Marcel Drimer and his wife with me and Joe. He spoke at WVU.

My sister Robin with Joe at the Botanical Garden near Morgantown, April

With our friends Ellen and Spencer, their dog and Spencer's mother- Virginia Beach- July

Baby naming at WVU Hillel- August

Coopers Rock Shabbat August

Taschlich - throwing our sins into Decker's Creek - Rosh Hashana September

Unrolling the Torah - Simchat Torah - October

Our house- October 4

Our street -late October

Beach-themed 70th birthday party November

With the Hample kids at Thanksgiving, singing their hearts out - Memphis- November

With my sister at Riversdale Mansion, West Riverdale, Prince George's County, Maryland- December