The executive director of the New City YMCA, 1515 N. Halsted, has been fired and overnight rentals at all YMCAs have been barred after a clash on Dec. 19 between families arriving for a swim meet and participants in an overnight transgender fashion show and ball, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Greg Weider, who had served as New City's acting director for two years, was fired Dec. 22. Two days earlier, programming manager Michael Horton, who was in charge of scheduling at the center, submitted his resignation, according to Steven Dahlin, executive vice president and chief operating officer of YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago. He said rentals at all 16 Chicago-area YMCA community centers will need approval from the downtown office because of the incident, in which Chicago police were called to help break up the two groups.
The entire New City facility had been rented out from 11 p.m. on Dec. 18 to 8 a.m. on Dec. 19 for a fashion show and dance featuring cross-dressing and transgender models; families were due to arrive early on Dec. 19 to use some of the same rooms to prepare for a Y-sponsored swim meet scheduled for 7 a.m. When the elementary and junior high kids on New City's Orcas swim team showed up shortly after 6 a.m., parents were upset to see the 'House of Escada' fashion show and dance in full swing. The parents and fashion-show participants eventually confronted each other.
In a letter obtained by the Sun-Times, YMCA President and CEO Steve Cole apologized to swim meet participants, the New City board of directors, and New City Y members, while stating that the transgender event 'in itself does not pose a problem for our organization, as the YMCA does not discriminate ... .'
