➤ STEVEN MATTEO, from p.8 ➤ STATEN ISLAND YANKS, from p.8
Last year, Matteo was one of several
lawmakers who mounted an
effort to push the mayor and governor
to make an exception to the
ban on government travel to North
Carolina. He sought the waivers
to allow a local school sports team
to travel to the Tar Heel State, telling
the Staten Island Advance that
students shouldn’t be “casualties
of politics.” Borelli and State Assemblymember
Nicole Malliotakis,
both of whom also boast strongly
anti-LGBTQ records, joined him in
that effort.
Matteo did not respond to questions
for this story, with calls to
his offi ce going unreturned.
The Staten Island lawmaker’s
transphobic record coincides with
a wave of unprecedented violence
against transgender folks — especially
trans women of color —
around the nation. There have been
more than a dozen documented
cases of black trans women suffering
violent death this year, and
locally, a trans woman, Layleen
Xtravaganza Cubilette-Polanco,
died in city custody in June after
she was thrown into restrictive
housing at Rikers Island. She succumbed
to seizures caused by epilepsy,
despite jail offi cials having
already known about her health
conditions.
Matteo, meanwhile, has a decent
chance at bringing his bigotry
with him to Borough Hall. He has
$126,510 on hand, following his
most recent fi ling last month in his
bid for borough president. If elected,
he would replace his old boss,
James Oddo, for whom he served
as chief of staff during the beep’s
time in the City Council.
Matteo is clearly no political
outsider His rise has been aided by
support from others in city political
circles, including lawmakers who
have tried to put on an LGBTQfriendly
face in public. Queens
Councilmember Eric Ulrich, who
paints himself as a moderate Republican,
was in the midst of touting
his pro-LGBTQ stances during
the city public advocate race earlier
this year when he gave Matteo’s
campaign a $175 donation. It was
the second time Ulrich pumped
cash into Matteo’s war chest, after
previously doing so in 2017.
but the organization appeared
poised to shake things up this
time around after a wave of negative
publicity — including from
the Pride Center — ensued following
the team’s announcement of a
season-long deal with Chick-fi l-A,
which has become notorious for
shelling out donations to anti-LGBTQ
organizations .
The team’s original plans entailed
giving away a free chicken
sandwich to fans every time the
Yankees hit a walk-off home run
this season, but they apparently
scrapped that deal after public
outcry emerged.
Representatives from the Pride
Center said they met with the
Staten Island Yankees to clear the
air, and the Chick-fi l-A deal was
subsequently terminated. The
team did not immediately respond
to requests for comment about the
Chick-fi l-A deal.
“I received communication from
them that they ended their partnership
prior to the end of the
contract period,” Carol Bullock,
the executive director of the Pride
Center, told Gay City News over
the phone on August 21. “For us,
the point was any organization
that continues to partner with
another organization that works
against everything that we do is
doing the same thing.”
With the Chick-fi l-A partnership
in the rear-view mirror, folks
at the Pride Center and LGBTQ
baseball fans across the borough
hope that the Pride night game
will mark the beginning of a clean
slate.
“Because the partnership is
now dissolved, we’re happy to celebrate
Pride night,” Bullock said.
In a written statement, the Pride
Center encouraged fans to attend
the game and show support for
the team and the LGBTQ community
on Staten Island, saying, “It’s
sure to be a fun evening of inclusion
and hopefully a win for the
home team.”
There will also be fi reworks after
the game as well as a “Broadway
at the Ballpark” promotion
featuring special performances
during the game. The fi rst 1,000
fans will get a Staten Island Yankees
20th anniversary poster.
BUSINESS PROFILE
A Hair Shop For All!
BishopsCuts/Colors
By Camille Sperrazza
Women’s haircuts were
always more costly than
men’s…and no one did much
about it.
Until now.
Bishops Cuts/Colors in
Manhattan’s Greenwich
Village offers a full menu of
a la carte pricing – and gender
is never mentioned. Rates
are the same for anyone who
wants to come in for a buzz or
cut, no matter whether they
have long hair or short hair.
T h e u n i s e x s h o p i s
Trans, dedicated to creating
a safe space for trans men
and women to get their hair
says, “We empower local
with their individualism.”
The shop is a haven where
customers can be themselves,
securing a hair style that’s
right for them.
Bishops offers a full menu
of cuts, color, styling options,
shampoo services, blow-outs,
conditioning, and facial
hair grooming services. The
staff is comprised of people
who are dedicated to their
craft, and are devoted to
creating the hair styles
that customers want. Each
stylist has more than ten
years’ experience.
More than just a place to
get a haircut, a visit here
is an experience. “We pride
ourselves in our art and
abstract and colorful mural
extends to the back of the
store. Bishop TV – a YouTube
Channel – plays music videos
continuously. In short, it is a
fun place where everyone is
accepted.
The reasonable rates make
hair care accessible to all.
that clients can see how
much they want to spend,
and select those services,
!
two services – for example,
a buzz cut and a shave –
they may save as much as
$10. Take advantage of the
"###
offer 20% discounts, ongoing
#!
&
Mondays, get 50% off cuts.
Blow-outs are $25.
The Bishops Cuts/Colors
in Greenwich Village
opened February 16th of
this year, but there are
several Bishops’ locations
throughout the United
'
founded in Portland in 2001,
as an alternative to high-end
salons and cheap chop shops.
What makes them so
successful – besides the
dynamic hair styles, of
course – is the sense of
community they offer.
Perhaps it is difficult for
New Yorkers to imagine,
but something as simple as
getting a haircut was not
always easy for trans men
and women.
The company strives to be
good neighbors, partnering
with organizations such as
()
envisions a society free of
violence and abuse.
Bishops is all about
celebrating differences in
an environment that offers
no judgment. The company
is named after the founder’s
*
Rottweiler mix.
Bishops Cuts/Colors 10
Downing St., Manhattan
in Greenwich Village, (212)
242-4400, www.Bishops.co.
Open Mondays – Fridays,
10 am – 8 pm; Saturdays,
9 am – 8 pm; and Sundays,
10 am – 7 pm.
GayCityNews.com | August 29 - September 11, 2019 9
/www.Bishops.co
/www.Bishops.co
/GayCityNews.com
