HEALTH
GMHC, Callen-Lorde Looking at Merger
AIDS agency looks to “sustainability,” health clinic cites effectiveness
BY MATT TRACY
Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) and
the Callen-Lorde Community Health
Center are pursuing a merger to
combine the unique healthcare and
social services offered by each organization.
GMHC CEO Kelsey Louie told staffers in an
August 8 email obtained by Gay City News that
the potential partnership is in line with his organization’s
strategy to incorporate healthcare
options that would bring “a full continuum of
services for our clients and helping to ensure
GMHC’s long-term sustainability.”
Compared to GMHC’s HIV/ AIDS-specifi c focus,
Callen-Lorde offers a broader range of services
and specifi cally caters to LGBTQ folks.
GMHC originally served as a key resource for
gay men living with HIV/ AIDS during the onset
of the epidemic in the early 1980s, hence its
name, but has since expanded to serve a wider
demographic. Louie noted that even though
Callen-Lorde’s focus is on serving the LGBTQ
DONNA ACETO
GMHC’s CEO, Kelsey Louie, told employees that the organization
could soon merge with Callen-Lorde to improve services and help
“ensure GMHC’s long-term sustainability.”
population, its services are, like GMHC’s, available
to all New Yorkers.
This potential collaboration signals GMHC’s
aim to broaden its operation and demonstrate
to potential funders a fuller range of capabilities.
GMHC had considered creating its own
medical clinic and “co-locating” the clinic in its
own space before setting its sights on a merger
with an organization already certifi ed as a
Federally Qualifi ed Health Center.
“After reviewing our options, we think that
collaborating with an existing agency is the
fastest and most cost-effective route,” Louie
wrote in the email.
Louie noted that regardless of whether a full
merger happens, other joint efforts between the
two organizations are possible. He stated that
Callen-Lorde is interested in bringing its mental
health clinic to the eighth fl oor of GMHC’s
location at 307 West 38 Street.
Should the merger be fi nalized, a Callen-
Lorde spokesperson told Gay City News, both
sides expect that a transition would begin in
late 2020 or early 2021.
➤ GMHC-CALLEN-LORDE, continued on p.13
SPORTS
Caster Semenya Loses in Court Again
Olympic star targeted by discriminatory testosterone rules
BY MATT TRACY
Caster Semenya, a South African
Olympic gold medalist, is pulling
out of September’s 800-meter competition
at the world track and fi eld
championships in Qatar after a Switzerland
court ruled on July 30 that she must adhere to
rules requiring her to take testosterone-reducing
medication.
The court ruling marked yet another setback
in what has been a decades-long pattern of
discrimination against the international track
star. Transphobic and racist conservatives have
long perpetuated false stereotypes about her
physical appearance to push invasive tactics
like “sex testing” — all to curtail her ability to
compete.
The issue has bounced around in courts for
some time and Semenya is still aiming to succeed
via an appeal. In a May ruling, the two-time
Olympic gold medalist lost her initial appeal in
the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after
the International Association of Athletics Federations
(IAAF) announced new rules last year
that required women athletes with high levels
YANN CARADEC/ WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Caster Semenya, seen here in 2018, vows to continue “my fi ght for
the human rights of all of the female athletes concerned.”
of testosterone to reduce their levels. The court
argued that “such discrimination is necessary”
to maintain “the integrity of female athletics.”
Semenya has maintained that her testosterone
levels are naturally occurring.
Last month, Switzerland’s Federal Supreme
Court suspended the rule, which paved the
way for Semenya to compete while under appeal
without having to alter her testosterone
levels. The July 30 ruling reverses the Supreme
Court’s decision.
“I am very disappointed to be kept from defending
my hard-earned title, but this will not
deter me from continuing my fi ght for the human
rights of all of the female athletes concerned,”
Semenya, 28, said in a written statement.
Her attorney vowed to continue fi ghting. “The
judge’s procedural decision has no impact on
the appeal itself,” Schramm said. “We will continue
to pursue Caster’s appeal and fi ght for her
fundamental human rights. A race is always
decided at the fi nish line.”
Semenya is known for her talent in the
800-meter competition — she won it during
the 2012 and 2016 Olympics — and many suspect
the IAFF specifi cally created testosterone
requirements for that competition because of
her.
“I know that the IAAF’s regulations have always
targeted me specifi cally,” she said in May.
“For a decade the IAAF has tried to slow me
down, but this has actually made me stronger.
The decision of the CAS will not hold me back.”
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