Ron Suresha: Author of Bears on Bears Thursday, November 3rd - 7:00pm Food & Beverage Reception - 7:30pm Discussion Join us for a visit with author and bear expert Ron Suresha. Ron's nonfiction anthology, Bears on Bears: Interviews & Discussions (2002), includes 25 dialogues with 57 bear-identified men and bear-lovers from around the world. Suresha asserts that Bears on Bears is "the first interview book ... compiled primarily from online interactions" using online chat technology. Ron will be reading from his new fictional anthology titled Tales from the Den. A bisexual-identified man, Ron edited, with Peter Chvany, the nonfiction book Bi Men: Coming Out Every Which Way (2006). Suresha's two bisexual men's anthologies were named finalists in the 2006 Lambda Literary Awards (Lammys) in Bisexual Literature. In 2008, Suresha edited for Journal of Bisexuality a special issue commemorating the sexagennial (60th) anniversary of the publication of Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, commonly known as the Kinsey Report, as Bisexual Perspectives on the Life and Work of Alfred C. Kinsey, which was named a finalist in the 2008 Lambda Literary Awards in Bisexual Literature. That same year, Suresha became Acquisitions Editor for Bear Bones Books, an imprint of LGBT publisher, Lethe Press, which released a revised edition of his Bears on Bears including five additional interviews. The imprint has also reissued several men's fiction anthologies he edited. Ron lives in western Connecticut with his husbear, Rocco Russo. His website is www.ronsuresha.com. Previous Rainbow Forum Speakers Green is the New Pink: An Earth Day Event Thursday, April 21, 6:30pm Eco-Friendly Potluck & wap Meet On the Eve of Earth Day 2011, The LOFT will be hosting an event to celebrate the work of the No Impact Project (www.noimpactproject.org). The No Impact Project is an international, environmental, nonprofit project, founded in the spring of 2009. It was inspired by the No Impact Man book, film, and blog. Its mission is to empower citizens to make choices which better their lives and lower their environmental impact through lifestyle change, community action, and participation in environmental politics. In Celebration of Women's History Month: Explore pivotal moments in the history of working and working-class women in the metropolitan area. Tuesday, March 29th at 7 pm Dr. Christina Stern delves into the Triangle Factory fire, women labor activists like Emma Goldman, the kosher beef riots, Margaret Sanger, Radium Girls, and others. Explore pivotal moments in the history of working and working-class women in New York City and the broader metropolitan area. Can't Get Enough of the Great Outdoors? The LOFT's Rainbow Forum presents Sundance Outdoor Adventure Society January 13th Join us for an evening with Sundance Outdoor Adventure Society, as Sundance members present a slide show and specifically discuss the many kinds of outings they lead. They also will go over house rentals in Vermont and Fire Island. Plenty of Sundancers will be on hand to answer questions and talk to LOFT members about the Society's topics that interest them. Visit www.sundanceoutdoor.org to learn more and come January 13th with your questions. Refreshments will be served. LOFT Director David Juhren Reading from and Discussing his Novel, The Code November 11, 7:00 p.m. You know him as the Executive Director of The LOFT, engaged in working for and within the LGBT community, but David Juhren has other talents, too, like writing! David opened his first book when he was five years old, and fell in love with reading. When David came out of the closet in his early forties, he put his new prospectives and energies to use, and wrote his first gay-themed novel, The Code, an historical novel taking place during World War II, and is an adventure/spy/romance story following the relationship between Roger, an American attache, and Clive, an English naval captain. Come and here David read from his book, answer questions about the writing process, or sign your copy of the book. Order your copy in Advance by Clicking Here!. Andrew McIntosh: Coming Out in Collegiate Sports October 14, 7:00 p.m. Earlier this year, a captain of SUNY Oneonta's men’s lacrosse team announced in an online essay that he was gay. That captain was Andrew McIntosh, who exemplifies the brave face of not only coming out, but doing so while playing a collegiate sport. Andrew's coming out was reported in the New York Times, which said: "Sports have long been viewed as inhospitable to gay men. The number of American male professional team athletes who have come out can be counted on two hands. In locker rooms, antigay slurs are tossed around as casually as borrowed towels. Yet for those who follow the increasingly common stories of athletes who decide to come out while in college, Andrew McIntosh’s story is not an anomaly, but the norm." Join us as we celebrate National Coming out Day (October 11), as Andrew recounts what led up to his coming out, and the reaction of his family, friends, and team mates. Cathy Marino-Thomas - Board President of Marriage Equality New York September 9, 7:30 p.m. 2010 Spend an evening with Cathy Marino-Thomas as she discusses the fight for marriage equality in New York State, and the next steps in the movement. Cathy is an outspoken advocate, organizer, and also a spouse, and parent, who has been tireless in fighting for our rights. Founded in 1998, MENY can claim to be one of the oldest organizations in New York to advocate for full and equal marriage for same-sex couples. This grassroots, and totally volunteer organization, has led events in New York City, Albany, and Washington D.C.