A meeting Saturday to organize a Gay Straight Alliance for West River high school and college students brought out a handful of students who will form the core group, and then go out and take the message to others, said Mike Coats, director of The Center West.
The group will continue to meet at 4 p.m. Saturdays. The alliance is intended to be a social outlet for gay students and their straight friends, a place they can get together without fear of bullying.
If The Center West is able to move into a bigger building as Coats hopes, the club could hold dances and other events.Upcoming events for the group include participating in a pride festival in July, and on Saturday, April 5, a free screening of the film, "For the Bible Tells Me So," which explores how Christian American families have coped with their children's homosexuality.
After the 6:30 p.m. showing, a panel including clergy, counselors and others will discuss the film and answer questions.
This is the story that appeared in the Rapid City Journal today. As we expected the homophobes and the ignorance peddlers are out in full force in the Rapid reply. The group will continue to meet on Saturdays a 4pm and are planning some future events and happenings. the meetings are open to anyone of High School or College age. You don't necesarily have to be in school to attend. (O.M.)
Monday, March 31, 2008
Company takes gay man's benefits for moving
EAGLE, Idaho (AP) -- What they didn't know before moving to Idaho could fill a house, and in many ways it does.
Robert Ryan, 42, suffers from depression and asthma after surviving the September 11 terrorist attacks.
The kitchen table holds stacks of legal papers. Medication bottles litter a nearby countertop. The two-story home Robert Ryan, 42, shares with his partner, Ralph Martinelli, 53, overlooks a quaint suburb west of Boise, a rural landscape of ruddy hills that doesn't seem quite as welcoming as it once did.
A 2,400-mile move west that once seemed like a chance at a fresh start, has instead delivered some hard lessons -- especially about moving from a state that recognizes same-sex unions to one of the 21 states that don't.
The couple was stunned when Ryan was dropped from the company insurance plan the two shared in New Jersey, where they were able to register as domestic partners. Idaho does not formally recognize same-sex couples.
"It didn't even dawn on us that this would have an impact," Ryan said.
Ryan and Martinelli met four years ago when Ryan was out of work and battling depression he developed after surviving the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center. Ryan worked on the 74th floor of the south tower and escaped after the north tower was struck first. Six of the 20 employees he managed at Morgan Stanley were killed.
More at CNN:
Robert Ryan, 42, suffers from depression and asthma after surviving the September 11 terrorist attacks.
The kitchen table holds stacks of legal papers. Medication bottles litter a nearby countertop. The two-story home Robert Ryan, 42, shares with his partner, Ralph Martinelli, 53, overlooks a quaint suburb west of Boise, a rural landscape of ruddy hills that doesn't seem quite as welcoming as it once did.
A 2,400-mile move west that once seemed like a chance at a fresh start, has instead delivered some hard lessons -- especially about moving from a state that recognizes same-sex unions to one of the 21 states that don't.
The couple was stunned when Ryan was dropped from the company insurance plan the two shared in New Jersey, where they were able to register as domestic partners. Idaho does not formally recognize same-sex couples.
"It didn't even dawn on us that this would have an impact," Ryan said.
Ryan and Martinelli met four years ago when Ryan was out of work and battling depression he developed after surviving the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center. Ryan worked on the 74th floor of the south tower and escaped after the north tower was struck first. Six of the 20 employees he managed at Morgan Stanley were killed.
More at CNN:
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Sioux Falls showing of "For the Bible Tells Me so."
March 30, Sioux Falls, Zandbroz Variety, 209 S. Phillips, 3 pm
Co-sponsored by The Center East and All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church Social Justice Committee
Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Seattle International Film Festival, Dan Karslake's provocative, entertaining documentary brilliantly reconciles homosexuality and Biblical scripture, and the process reveals that Church-sanctioned anti-gay bias is based almost solely upon a significant (and often malicious) misinterpretation of the Bible.
Does God really condemn loving homosexual relationships? Is the chasm separating Christianity from gays and lesbians too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuss to hate? Through the experiences of five very normal, Christian, American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson -- one discovers how people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child or family member.
Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, For The Bible Tells Me So offers healing, clarity, and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity.
Panelists include:
Dr. Richard Swanson: Professor of Religious Studies at Augustana College
Russ Tarver: Retired Methodist Minister
Kathy Knobloch: Executive Director of Centers for Equality (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community center)
Eileen Friest: Program Director and Counselor of Centers for Equality
Moderated by Deb McIntyre, Chair, Social Justice Committee, All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church
Contact Eileen Friest, 331-1153 or Deb McIntyre, 743-5647
Co-sponsored by The Center East and All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church Social Justice Committee
Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Seattle International Film Festival, Dan Karslake's provocative, entertaining documentary brilliantly reconciles homosexuality and Biblical scripture, and the process reveals that Church-sanctioned anti-gay bias is based almost solely upon a significant (and often malicious) misinterpretation of the Bible.
Does God really condemn loving homosexual relationships? Is the chasm separating Christianity from gays and lesbians too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuss to hate? Through the experiences of five very normal, Christian, American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson -- one discovers how people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child or family member.
Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, For The Bible Tells Me So offers healing, clarity, and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity.
Panelists include:
Dr. Richard Swanson: Professor of Religious Studies at Augustana College
Russ Tarver: Retired Methodist Minister
Kathy Knobloch: Executive Director of Centers for Equality (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community center)
Eileen Friest: Program Director and Counselor of Centers for Equality
Moderated by Deb McIntyre, Chair, Social Justice Committee, All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church
Contact Eileen Friest, 331-1153 or Deb McIntyre, 743-5647
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Rapid City Journal: March 29th 2008: Center West seeks cash and volunteers
Program must move to new location in a few months
The Center West is looking for the community's support in making its dream come true of having a full-service community center for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people in Rapid City.
The building in which The Center West is located is being sold, and the program must move in a few months.
Director Mike Coats said they have been negotiating with a property owner in Rapid City willing to rent to them. The property is large enough and has the facilities so the program could evolve into a real community center, complete with space for dances, events and a coffee house and snack bar, Coats said.
To make it work, The Center West needs to raise some initial funds to pay the first few months' rent and to make some remodeling adjustments to the building, Coats said.The program would be self-sustaining after it's up and running."If the community feels this is something that we need and would be beneficial, then we need to have the community's support and help in making this happen," Coats said in a news release.
"We have some donors who are willing to match donations from the community. We have some donors who will be willing to help us if they see the LGBT community is stepping forward to help make it happen."The center needs monetary support and eventually will need volunteers and people willing to help with dances, special events and day-to-day operations.
Donations can be sent to The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Drive Suite 4, Rapid City, SD 57702.
For more information, call 348-3244.
I didn't send this out as a press release. Just as an e-mail. However, the journal saw fit to publish it and we thank them for doing so. Of course Joe Budd and the usual ignorance peddlers are sounding off again on the rapid reply. (O.M.)
The Center West is looking for the community's support in making its dream come true of having a full-service community center for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people in Rapid City.
The building in which The Center West is located is being sold, and the program must move in a few months.
Director Mike Coats said they have been negotiating with a property owner in Rapid City willing to rent to them. The property is large enough and has the facilities so the program could evolve into a real community center, complete with space for dances, events and a coffee house and snack bar, Coats said.
To make it work, The Center West needs to raise some initial funds to pay the first few months' rent and to make some remodeling adjustments to the building, Coats said.The program would be self-sustaining after it's up and running."If the community feels this is something that we need and would be beneficial, then we need to have the community's support and help in making this happen," Coats said in a news release.
"We have some donors who are willing to match donations from the community. We have some donors who will be willing to help us if they see the LGBT community is stepping forward to help make it happen."The center needs monetary support and eventually will need volunteers and people willing to help with dances, special events and day-to-day operations.
Donations can be sent to The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Drive Suite 4, Rapid City, SD 57702.
For more information, call 348-3244.
I didn't send this out as a press release. Just as an e-mail. However, the journal saw fit to publish it and we thank them for doing so. Of course Joe Budd and the usual ignorance peddlers are sounding off again on the rapid reply. (O.M.)
Friday, March 28, 2008
Rapid City Journal: Students plan gay-straight alliance
Gay and straight teens and college students are invited to a meeting Saturday, March 29, to organize a community Gay Straight Alliance that will provide support and social events for the students.
Gay Straight Alliances typically appear in schools, but there is currently no Gay Straight Alliance at any of the Rapid City public schools, and area college students could use extra support, too, said Mike Coats, director of The Center West. The center is a Rapid City organization that offers support and services for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people.
Coats said students who have wanted to start alliances in their schools recently have met with resistance from staff and faculty. However, the school district has allowed such a club before, and if students have concerns, they haven't made them public, such as at a school board meeting.
"A lot of students are afraid to come out because of the bullying and harassment," Coats said.
Many students nationwide have successfully sued their school districts for trying to bar Gay Straight Alliances, often with legal help from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Federal law under the Equal Access Act prohibits public secondary schools that receive federal funds and that allow any noncurriculum-related student groups to meet at school from denying any other students from forming noncurriculum-related student groups.
But local people here aren't interested in pushing the issue; they just want to form a group that will meet their needs, Coats said. Having a regional group will allow students from communities throughout western South Dakota to participate, he said.
Stevens High School had a Gay Straight Unity club that started in 2003, but the club no longer exists because new students didn't take it over as former students graduated, Coats said.
Coats said the purpose of the new alliance will be to provide a safe place for students to be, to socialize and to hang out with others who are like them and where they can be away from bullying.
If you go:
What: Meeting to organize a West River Gay Straight Alliance
When: 4 p.m. Saturday, March 29
Where: The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Drive, Suite 4, Rapid City
Who: Gay and straight teens and college students, and their friends and family members.
Confidentiality will be maintained.
Info: Call Michael Coats at The Center West, at 348-3244
This article appeared in the Rapid City Journal today. It has generated a lot of comments on the Rapid Reply. There are the usual ignorant, religious condemnations among other negative rants. But there is also a lot of positive support. (O.M.)
Gay Straight Alliances typically appear in schools, but there is currently no Gay Straight Alliance at any of the Rapid City public schools, and area college students could use extra support, too, said Mike Coats, director of The Center West. The center is a Rapid City organization that offers support and services for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people.
Coats said students who have wanted to start alliances in their schools recently have met with resistance from staff and faculty. However, the school district has allowed such a club before, and if students have concerns, they haven't made them public, such as at a school board meeting.
"A lot of students are afraid to come out because of the bullying and harassment," Coats said.
Many students nationwide have successfully sued their school districts for trying to bar Gay Straight Alliances, often with legal help from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Federal law under the Equal Access Act prohibits public secondary schools that receive federal funds and that allow any noncurriculum-related student groups to meet at school from denying any other students from forming noncurriculum-related student groups.
But local people here aren't interested in pushing the issue; they just want to form a group that will meet their needs, Coats said. Having a regional group will allow students from communities throughout western South Dakota to participate, he said.
Stevens High School had a Gay Straight Unity club that started in 2003, but the club no longer exists because new students didn't take it over as former students graduated, Coats said.
Coats said the purpose of the new alliance will be to provide a safe place for students to be, to socialize and to hang out with others who are like them and where they can be away from bullying.
If you go:
What: Meeting to organize a West River Gay Straight Alliance
When: 4 p.m. Saturday, March 29
Where: The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Drive, Suite 4, Rapid City
Who: Gay and straight teens and college students, and their friends and family members.
Confidentiality will be maintained.
Info: Call Michael Coats at The Center West, at 348-3244
This article appeared in the Rapid City Journal today. It has generated a lot of comments on the Rapid Reply. There are the usual ignorant, religious condemnations among other negative rants. But there is also a lot of positive support. (O.M.)
Why can't we discuss, race, gender and orientation as adults?
When I was in graduate school in Pennsylvania, Indiana University of Pennsylvania to be exact, I got involved with the Students for Gay Rights group on campus and the state Commonwealth Association of Students. We were seeking better representation on campus and in the state for minority students of all kinds. That involvement led us to form coalitions with other groups on campus and throughout the state.
This led to a formative moment in my life. We approached the President of the Black Student League to have them join the coalition. They agreed and together we were able to dominate the student government and the state Commonwealth Association of Students for several years.
The process of forming the coalition and the opportunities that followed were what led to the formative moment for me. We were able to cross the divides of race, gender and sexual orientation to discuss our concerns, fears, anger and see each other as real human beings. No longer were we talking at each other in rhetoric, buzz words and divisive, polarizing accusations.
That is what I see in Barack Obama. His speech the other night on race showed me that he gets it. He really gets it. It's time to sit down as adults and get things out in the open and treat each other as human beings and as adults. It's time to work through the anger and the hurt that is felt on both sides and let the process of healing begin. If not now, when?
Of course there are those on both sides who have a vested interest in keeping the divisiveness and polarization because they are making a living at keeping it going. It's time to tell them where to go.
This led to a formative moment in my life. We approached the President of the Black Student League to have them join the coalition. They agreed and together we were able to dominate the student government and the state Commonwealth Association of Students for several years.
The process of forming the coalition and the opportunities that followed were what led to the formative moment for me. We were able to cross the divides of race, gender and sexual orientation to discuss our concerns, fears, anger and see each other as real human beings. No longer were we talking at each other in rhetoric, buzz words and divisive, polarizing accusations.
That is what I see in Barack Obama. His speech the other night on race showed me that he gets it. He really gets it. It's time to sit down as adults and get things out in the open and treat each other as human beings and as adults. It's time to work through the anger and the hurt that is felt on both sides and let the process of healing begin. If not now, when?
Of course there are those on both sides who have a vested interest in keeping the divisiveness and polarization because they are making a living at keeping it going. It's time to tell them where to go.
Shooting of Gay Student Sparks Outcry
OXNARD, Calif. - Larry King was a gay eighth-grader who used to come to school in makeup, high heels and earrings. And when the other boys made fun of him, he would boldly tease them right back by flirting with them.
That may have been what got him killed.
On Feb. 12, another student, Brandon McInerney, 14, shot him twice in the head at the back of the computer lab at their junior high school, police say.
The slaying of the 15-year-old boy has alarmed gay rights activists and led to demands that middle schools do more to educate youngsters about discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
Police would not discuss McInerney's motive. But the day before the shooting, King told McInerney he liked him, eighth-grader Eduardo Segure told the Ventura County Star.
If King had flirted with the other boy, "that can be very threatening to someone's ego and their sense of identity," said Jaana Juvonen, a psychology professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.
McInerney was jailed on $770,000 bail on an adult murder charge that could put him behind bars for life. Prosecutors also filed a hate-crime enhancement, which could bring three more years if McInerney is found to have acted on the basis of the victim's race, religion, nationality or sexual orientation.
The shooting has galvanized Oxnard, a city of nearly 200,000 people about 60 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Several vigils for King have been held, including a march that drew about 1,000 people to this strawberry-growing section of Ventura County.
Read more:
That may have been what got him killed.
On Feb. 12, another student, Brandon McInerney, 14, shot him twice in the head at the back of the computer lab at their junior high school, police say.
The slaying of the 15-year-old boy has alarmed gay rights activists and led to demands that middle schools do more to educate youngsters about discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
Police would not discuss McInerney's motive. But the day before the shooting, King told McInerney he liked him, eighth-grader Eduardo Segure told the Ventura County Star.
If King had flirted with the other boy, "that can be very threatening to someone's ego and their sense of identity," said Jaana Juvonen, a psychology professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.
McInerney was jailed on $770,000 bail on an adult murder charge that could put him behind bars for life. Prosecutors also filed a hate-crime enhancement, which could bring three more years if McInerney is found to have acted on the basis of the victim's race, religion, nationality or sexual orientation.
The shooting has galvanized Oxnard, a city of nearly 200,000 people about 60 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Several vigils for King have been held, including a march that drew about 1,000 people to this strawberry-growing section of Ventura County.
Read more:
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Updates: "FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO"
The Center West is pleased to announce make-up of panel that will discussing the film “For the Bible Tells Me So” following it’s free to the public screening at The Journey Museum theater in Rapid City on April 5th at 6:30 pm.
Joining the panel:
Bruce Baum, pastor at Faith Lutheran Church in Rapid City
Kathy Monson Lutes - Rector, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Rapid City
Richard Fisher, United Methodist Church Pastor, current Vice President, South Dakota Association of Christian Churches
Fred Magnavito, PhD Psychologist working with the Pennington County Sheriff’s Department, PFLAG Dad
Carol Butzman, Mental Health Counselor in private practice in Rapid City and PFLAG Mom
Curtis Price, Treasure, Equality South Dakota, Board Member, South Dakota Centers for Equality, State coordinator for South Dakota Integrity
Moderating the panel; Michael Coats, Director of the Center West,
The Center West wishes to thank all those who are serving on the panel, Fred and Sandy Magnavito who donated the film to the Center West, The anonymous donor who offered to underwrite the cost of the screening at The Journey Museum, the wonderful and gracious staff at The Journey Museum who are doing the set up and theater preparation.
We would like to give a special thank you to Beth Wojahn who has been the coordinator putting together the panel and working with the volunteers and churches who have been so helpful in putting this screening together. Beth has been a valuable volunteer at The Center West and also serves on the Regional Advisory Committee and the State Planning Group for HIV/AIDS prevention for the South Dakota Department of Health.
We are looking forward to seeing everyone on April 5th at The Journey Museum.
Joining the panel:
Bruce Baum, pastor at Faith Lutheran Church in Rapid City
Kathy Monson Lutes - Rector, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Rapid City
Richard Fisher, United Methodist Church Pastor, current Vice President, South Dakota Association of Christian Churches
Fred Magnavito, PhD Psychologist working with the Pennington County Sheriff’s Department, PFLAG Dad
Carol Butzman, Mental Health Counselor in private practice in Rapid City and PFLAG Mom
Curtis Price, Treasure, Equality South Dakota, Board Member, South Dakota Centers for Equality, State coordinator for South Dakota Integrity
Moderating the panel; Michael Coats, Director of the Center West,
The Center West wishes to thank all those who are serving on the panel, Fred and Sandy Magnavito who donated the film to the Center West, The anonymous donor who offered to underwrite the cost of the screening at The Journey Museum, the wonderful and gracious staff at The Journey Museum who are doing the set up and theater preparation.
We would like to give a special thank you to Beth Wojahn who has been the coordinator putting together the panel and working with the volunteers and churches who have been so helpful in putting this screening together. Beth has been a valuable volunteer at The Center West and also serves on the Regional Advisory Committee and the State Planning Group for HIV/AIDS prevention for the South Dakota Department of Health.
We are looking forward to seeing everyone on April 5th at The Journey Museum.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Wayne Besen: A New Stage for the Sultan of Stigma
Since 1973, the once dreaded American Psychiatric Association has become an ally of gay and lesbian equality. They have consistently withstood outside pressure from right wing organizations and instead chose to do what was in the best interest of GLBT mental health. Most notably, they endorsed same-sex civil marriage in a groundbreaking 2005 position paper.
In 1997, the APA first addressed ex-gay (or reparative) therapy by stating, "The potential risks of 'reparative therapy' are great and include depression, anxiety, and self-destructive behavior...Further, APA calls on these organizations and individuals to do all that is possible to decrease the stigma related to homosexuality wherever and whenever it may occur."
In 2000, the APA issued an even stronger statement and recommended "that ethical practitioners refrain from attempts to change individuals sexual orientation, keeping in mind the medical dictum, to 'first do no harm.'"
Unfortunately, a terribly misguided gay psychiatrist, Dr. David L. Scasta, is violating the spirit -- if not the letter -- of APA policy statements. In May, he will be part of a controversial symposium (Scasta calls it historic) he organized. It includes ex-gay therapist, Dr. Warren Throckmorton, who is the Sultan of Stigma and a leading purveyor of religion-based shame therapy.
Read more:
In 1997, the APA first addressed ex-gay (or reparative) therapy by stating, "The potential risks of 'reparative therapy' are great and include depression, anxiety, and self-destructive behavior...Further, APA calls on these organizations and individuals to do all that is possible to decrease the stigma related to homosexuality wherever and whenever it may occur."
In 2000, the APA issued an even stronger statement and recommended "that ethical practitioners refrain from attempts to change individuals sexual orientation, keeping in mind the medical dictum, to 'first do no harm.'"
Unfortunately, a terribly misguided gay psychiatrist, Dr. David L. Scasta, is violating the spirit -- if not the letter -- of APA policy statements. In May, he will be part of a controversial symposium (Scasta calls it historic) he organized. It includes ex-gay therapist, Dr. Warren Throckmorton, who is the Sultan of Stigma and a leading purveyor of religion-based shame therapy.
Read more:
This press release was sent out today
Press Release
“For the Bible Tells Me So”
The Center West in Rapid City is excited to announce that there will be a free screening of the recently released documentary “For the Bible Tells Me so” at The Journey Museum Theater on Saturday, April 5th at 6:30 pm.
Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating homosexuals and Christianity too wide to cross? How can the Bible be used to justify hate? These are the questions at the heart of Daniel Karslake’s “For the Bible Tells Me So.”
A World Premier in competition at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, “For The Bible Tells Me So” was honored with Audience Awards at the 2007 Seattle and Provincetown International Film Festivals and the Kathleen Bryan Edwards Award for Human Rights at the 2007 Full Frame Documentary film Festival. This provocative, entertaining film concisely reconciles homosexuality and a literal interpretation of Biblical Scripture.
Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families—including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson—we discover how people of faith handle, or sometimes tragically fail to handle, having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard’s Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and the Reverend Jimmy Creech, “For the Bible Tells Me So” offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of Scripture and sexual identity.
Thanks to some local donors this film will be presented free to the Public. There will be a panel discussion following the screening with several prominent local clergy and mental health professionals. The public is invited to attend and encouraged to participate in the discussion following the screening.
The Center West is a non-profit corporation dedicated to providing information, resources, referral and support services to the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender community, their families, friends and the community at large. It is located at 3601 Canyon Lake Dr. Suite 4, Rapid City, SD 57702. For more information about this screening or The Center West please call: 605-348-3244 or e-mail info@thecenterwest.org.
(more information about this film can be found at: http://firstrunfeatures.com/forthebible_press.html#)
“For the Bible Tells Me So”
The Center West in Rapid City is excited to announce that there will be a free screening of the recently released documentary “For the Bible Tells Me so” at The Journey Museum Theater on Saturday, April 5th at 6:30 pm.
Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating homosexuals and Christianity too wide to cross? How can the Bible be used to justify hate? These are the questions at the heart of Daniel Karslake’s “For the Bible Tells Me So.”
A World Premier in competition at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, “For The Bible Tells Me So” was honored with Audience Awards at the 2007 Seattle and Provincetown International Film Festivals and the Kathleen Bryan Edwards Award for Human Rights at the 2007 Full Frame Documentary film Festival. This provocative, entertaining film concisely reconciles homosexuality and a literal interpretation of Biblical Scripture.
Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families—including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson—we discover how people of faith handle, or sometimes tragically fail to handle, having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard’s Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and the Reverend Jimmy Creech, “For the Bible Tells Me So” offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of Scripture and sexual identity.
Thanks to some local donors this film will be presented free to the Public. There will be a panel discussion following the screening with several prominent local clergy and mental health professionals. The public is invited to attend and encouraged to participate in the discussion following the screening.
The Center West is a non-profit corporation dedicated to providing information, resources, referral and support services to the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender community, their families, friends and the community at large. It is located at 3601 Canyon Lake Dr. Suite 4, Rapid City, SD 57702. For more information about this screening or The Center West please call: 605-348-3244 or e-mail info@thecenterwest.org.
(more information about this film can be found at: http://firstrunfeatures.com/forthebible_press.html#)
Monday, March 24, 2008
Local LGBT center for dances, events and celebrations
The building in which The Center West is located is being sold and we will have to moving in a couple of months. We have been negotiating with some people here in Rapid City who own some rental property who are willing to rent to us. This property is much larger than we are currently occupying. In fact, it is large enough and has the facilities so we could have a real community center complete with space for dances, events, coffee house and snack bar, etc.
The rent is very reasonable and the owners are willing to work with us. In order to make it work we need to raise some initial funds to pay the first few months rent and to make some minor remodeling adjustments to the building. Once we are up and running the facility could be self sustaining.
If the community feels this is something that we need and would be beneficial, then we need to have the community's support and help in making this happen. We have some donors who are willing to match donations from the community. We have some donors who will be willing to help us if they see the LGBT community is stepping forward to help make it happen.
So initialy we need monetary support. Once we are up and running we will need volunteers and people willing to help out with dances, special events and day to day operations. I have been pitching this to our Board of Directors because I am convinced it can work and that the community will help to get it going and support it. Please prove me right.
Donations can be sent to The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Dr. Suite 4, Rapid City, SD 57702. If you want more information, don't hesitate to call 605-348-3244. If you want to hear more of the goals, plans and the dream, stop in or give me a call.
No donation is too large or too small. Help make the dream of a real, full service LGBT community center here in Rapid City a reality.
Michael M. Coats, Director
The Center West
3601 Canyon Lake Dr.
Suite 4
Rapid City, SD .57702
605-348-3244
info@thecenterwest.org
The rent is very reasonable and the owners are willing to work with us. In order to make it work we need to raise some initial funds to pay the first few months rent and to make some minor remodeling adjustments to the building. Once we are up and running the facility could be self sustaining.
If the community feels this is something that we need and would be beneficial, then we need to have the community's support and help in making this happen. We have some donors who are willing to match donations from the community. We have some donors who will be willing to help us if they see the LGBT community is stepping forward to help make it happen.
So initialy we need monetary support. Once we are up and running we will need volunteers and people willing to help out with dances, special events and day to day operations. I have been pitching this to our Board of Directors because I am convinced it can work and that the community will help to get it going and support it. Please prove me right.
Donations can be sent to The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Dr. Suite 4, Rapid City, SD 57702. If you want more information, don't hesitate to call 605-348-3244. If you want to hear more of the goals, plans and the dream, stop in or give me a call.
No donation is too large or too small. Help make the dream of a real, full service LGBT community center here in Rapid City a reality.
Michael M. Coats, Director
The Center West
3601 Canyon Lake Dr.
Suite 4
Rapid City, SD .57702
605-348-3244
info@thecenterwest.org
Religious Right About-Face: Activists Frank Schaeffer, John Whitehead And Cal Thomas Have Repudiated The Theocratic Movement they Once Led. Here’s Why
By Rob Boston
Frank Schaeffer spent several years making a good living writing books promoting the Religious Right’s worldview and speaking before rapturous crowds of fundamentalist Christians.
Schaeffer, the son of evangelical guru Francis Schaeffer, was the closest thing to a rock star that politically conservative fundamentalism can offer. As the Religious Right soared in the 1980s, Schaeffer was there to ride the wave. Young, bright and charismatic, he could have founded his own Religious Right group or perhaps even launched a political career.
Twenty years have passed. What does Schaeffer think of the Religious Right today? He wouldn’t touch it with the proverbial 10-foot pole – and the feeling is mutual. A spiritual and professional crisis brought Schaeffer to the understanding that the Religious Right has it all wrong.
“My doubts really began when I realized that the people we were working with on the Religious Right were profoundly anti-American,” Schaeffer told Church & State in a recent interview. “I began to get the same vibe from them I got from my friends on the far left during the Vietnam War. They seemed to be rooting for North Vietnam. When I was working with the Religious Right, they seemed be rooting for the failure of America. Bad news was good news for them.”
More at Americans United:
Frank Schaeffer spent several years making a good living writing books promoting the Religious Right’s worldview and speaking before rapturous crowds of fundamentalist Christians.
Schaeffer, the son of evangelical guru Francis Schaeffer, was the closest thing to a rock star that politically conservative fundamentalism can offer. As the Religious Right soared in the 1980s, Schaeffer was there to ride the wave. Young, bright and charismatic, he could have founded his own Religious Right group or perhaps even launched a political career.
Twenty years have passed. What does Schaeffer think of the Religious Right today? He wouldn’t touch it with the proverbial 10-foot pole – and the feeling is mutual. A spiritual and professional crisis brought Schaeffer to the understanding that the Religious Right has it all wrong.
“My doubts really began when I realized that the people we were working with on the Religious Right were profoundly anti-American,” Schaeffer told Church & State in a recent interview. “I began to get the same vibe from them I got from my friends on the far left during the Vietnam War. They seemed to be rooting for North Vietnam. When I was working with the Religious Right, they seemed be rooting for the failure of America. Bad news was good news for them.”
More at Americans United:
Exhibit A: Pat Buchanan - why we desperately need to discuss race
While progressives and average Americans who think Barack Obama's speech presented a difficult challenge wring their hands worrying about appearing to be racist if they broach the subject in any significant way, the depth of the problem at hand is clear when we have folks on the right like Pat Buchanan just laying it on the line with this kind of mind-blower.
More at Pam's House Blend:
More at Pam's House Blend:
AFL-CIO: Andre Wilson: Winning 'Equity and Access'
"When we can talk to each other and work with each other as human beings, that's when we can make a change."
Andre Wilson has been proving it for years. A union activist in Ann Arbor, Mich., since the late 1970s, Wilson was the first openly transgender person to head a contract negotiating team for a local union—the American Federation of Teachers Local 3550, better known as the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO) at the University of Michigan.
The GEO's members are the university's 1,600 graduate employees, who teach classes and work in the libraries. Like graduate employees at several other universities, they fought long and hard for recognition from university management, and today fight the same battles as other working people: for decent wages and fair working conditions—and against discrimination.
Read more:
Andre Wilson has been proving it for years. A union activist in Ann Arbor, Mich., since the late 1970s, Wilson was the first openly transgender person to head a contract negotiating team for a local union—the American Federation of Teachers Local 3550, better known as the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO) at the University of Michigan.
The GEO's members are the university's 1,600 graduate employees, who teach classes and work in the libraries. Like graduate employees at several other universities, they fought long and hard for recognition from university management, and today fight the same battles as other working people: for decent wages and fair working conditions—and against discrimination.
Read more:
Judy Shepard: Sally Kern’s free speech
In this guest column for GayPolitics.com, Judy Shepard comments on the now-infamous remarks made by Oklahoma state Rep. Sally Kern.
Sally Kern’s comments hit me like a punch to the gut. I was enormously saddened that someone—anyone, really, but especially an elected official—could say such mean things about other human beings. We have so much to deal with already—the incessant dreary news about war, about the economy, about shocking crimes. I’m amazed that someone like Sally Kern found the time to push a whole new theory about who we should fear.
But as despicable as Sally Kern’s ideas are, she is of course free to shout them from the rooftops. One of the oddest responses of people who agree with her has been that we are trying to restrict her freedom of speech. In reality, the Victory Fund gave her a megaphone. If she’s that proud of her speech, she must be thrilled that more than 1 million people have listened to it.
No, the question isn’t whether she has a right to spew hateful rhetoric. The question is whether she ought to.
Read more:
Sally Kern’s comments hit me like a punch to the gut. I was enormously saddened that someone—anyone, really, but especially an elected official—could say such mean things about other human beings. We have so much to deal with already—the incessant dreary news about war, about the economy, about shocking crimes. I’m amazed that someone like Sally Kern found the time to push a whole new theory about who we should fear.
But as despicable as Sally Kern’s ideas are, she is of course free to shout them from the rooftops. One of the oddest responses of people who agree with her has been that we are trying to restrict her freedom of speech. In reality, the Victory Fund gave her a megaphone. If she’s that proud of her speech, she must be thrilled that more than 1 million people have listened to it.
No, the question isn’t whether she has a right to spew hateful rhetoric. The question is whether she ought to.
Read more:
Great articles and letters about problem of bullying
Aberdeen American News: Crack down on bullying
Published on Sunday, March 23, 2008
To the editor - Too many problems that children have are caused by bullying. Schools should have stricter rules for bullying.Bullying harms kids' mental health. A new study provides strong evidence that being bullied can cause depression and anxiety. The article, "Bullying Harms Kids Mental Health," updated Feb. 6, on msnbc.com, states that, "Among identical twin pairs in which one experienced bullying between the ages of 7 and 9 and the other did not, the bullied twin was more likely to have symptoms of internalizing problems at age 10, Dr. Louise Arsenault of King's College, London, and her colleagues found.
"According to the article "Bill would crack down on bullying statewide," updated Feb. 24, on bgdailynews.com, in 70 percent of school shootings and other violent incidents, bullying has played a major role. Between 1996 and 2003, 15 children were responsible for the wounding of 102 and the killing of 35 people. Also in the article "71 percent of pupils admit being a bully," updated Feb 24 on news.bbc.co.uk, of 3,000 secondary school pupils, 71.4 percent admitted to being a bully.
Bullying can also eventually lead to children committing suicide.
I realize that bullying is difficult to control, but with stricter rules, bullies might think twice about doing it again. Teachers are not going to see every time someone gets bullied, but when they do they should have strict punishments so that bullies might not do it again.
Amanda Schmidt
Roscoe
New York Times: A Boy the Bullies Love to Beat Up, Repeatedly
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.
All lank and bone, the boy stands at the corner with his younger sister, waiting for the yellow bus that takes them to their respective schools. He is Billy Wolfe, high school sophomore, struggling.
Moments earlier he left the sanctuary that is his home, passing those framed photographs of himself as a carefree child, back when he was 5. And now he is at the bus stop, wearing a baseball cap, vulnerable at 15.
A car the color of a school bus pulls up with a boy who tells his brother beside him that he’s going to beat up Billy Wolfe. While one records the assault with a cellphone camera, the other walks up to the oblivious Billy and punches him hard enough to leave a fist-size welt on his forehead.
The video shows Billy staggering, then dropping his book bag to fight back, lanky arms flailing. But the screams of his sister stop things cold.
The aggressor heads to school, to show friends the video of his Billy moment, while Billy heads home, again. It’s not yet 8 in the morning.
Read more:
Published on Sunday, March 23, 2008
To the editor - Too many problems that children have are caused by bullying. Schools should have stricter rules for bullying.Bullying harms kids' mental health. A new study provides strong evidence that being bullied can cause depression and anxiety. The article, "Bullying Harms Kids Mental Health," updated Feb. 6, on msnbc.com, states that, "Among identical twin pairs in which one experienced bullying between the ages of 7 and 9 and the other did not, the bullied twin was more likely to have symptoms of internalizing problems at age 10, Dr. Louise Arsenault of King's College, London, and her colleagues found.
"According to the article "Bill would crack down on bullying statewide," updated Feb. 24, on bgdailynews.com, in 70 percent of school shootings and other violent incidents, bullying has played a major role. Between 1996 and 2003, 15 children were responsible for the wounding of 102 and the killing of 35 people. Also in the article "71 percent of pupils admit being a bully," updated Feb 24 on news.bbc.co.uk, of 3,000 secondary school pupils, 71.4 percent admitted to being a bully.
Bullying can also eventually lead to children committing suicide.
I realize that bullying is difficult to control, but with stricter rules, bullies might think twice about doing it again. Teachers are not going to see every time someone gets bullied, but when they do they should have strict punishments so that bullies might not do it again.
Amanda Schmidt
Roscoe
New York Times: A Boy the Bullies Love to Beat Up, Repeatedly
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.
All lank and bone, the boy stands at the corner with his younger sister, waiting for the yellow bus that takes them to their respective schools. He is Billy Wolfe, high school sophomore, struggling.
Moments earlier he left the sanctuary that is his home, passing those framed photographs of himself as a carefree child, back when he was 5. And now he is at the bus stop, wearing a baseball cap, vulnerable at 15.
A car the color of a school bus pulls up with a boy who tells his brother beside him that he’s going to beat up Billy Wolfe. While one records the assault with a cellphone camera, the other walks up to the oblivious Billy and punches him hard enough to leave a fist-size welt on his forehead.
The video shows Billy staggering, then dropping his book bag to fight back, lanky arms flailing. But the screams of his sister stop things cold.
The aggressor heads to school, to show friends the video of his Billy moment, while Billy heads home, again. It’s not yet 8 in the morning.
Read more:
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Qnotes: A plea for Scouting’s true ideals
In my last Editor’s Note (“Perry, Huckabee and the piss-me-off meter,” 3/8/2008), I wrote briefly about Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s new book, “On My Honor: Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts Are Worth Fighting For,” in which he outlines his argument for why the Scouting organization should be able to continue their discrimination against gay members and leaders.
I noted that Gov. Perry and other defenders of the Boy Scouts of America’s (BSA) anti-gay membership and leadership policies often downplay the Scouts’ discrimination against gay youth members. Sometimes, they take their obfuscation a step further.
In an interview with New York Times reporter Deborah Solomon, Gov. Perry said, “Well, the ban in scouting applies to scout leaders.” While his statement isn’t a lie — the policy does, indeed, apply to Scout leaders — it does imply a fallacy. Namely, that the BSA policies apply only to adult leaders.
Hans Zeiger, a 23-year-old Pepperdine University grad student and author of “Get off My Honor: The Assault on the Boy Scouts of America,” continues the shell game in a guest column in the Mar. 10 issue of The Waco Tribune in which he commends Perry’s book.
Not once does Zeiger — whom I had the pleasure of debating when we were younger — mention directly the affect of the BSA’s policy on youth members. He does, however, claim that the Boy Scouts are “under attack by the secular left, particularly by the American Civil Liberties Union.” He also boldly claims that “to change or delude the Scout Oath and Law would be to part ways with a century of successes in Scouting.”
Really? I’ve always considered my life successful. And I feel the same about the lives of other gay, former Scouts I know. We are accomplished, educated, civic-minded men who support the American ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We vote. We are engaged. We care about our families and communities. If allowed, we’d be happily contributing to the Scouting organization and movement that taught us these virtues.
Read more at Qnotes:
I noted that Gov. Perry and other defenders of the Boy Scouts of America’s (BSA) anti-gay membership and leadership policies often downplay the Scouts’ discrimination against gay youth members. Sometimes, they take their obfuscation a step further.
In an interview with New York Times reporter Deborah Solomon, Gov. Perry said, “Well, the ban in scouting applies to scout leaders.” While his statement isn’t a lie — the policy does, indeed, apply to Scout leaders — it does imply a fallacy. Namely, that the BSA policies apply only to adult leaders.
Hans Zeiger, a 23-year-old Pepperdine University grad student and author of “Get off My Honor: The Assault on the Boy Scouts of America,” continues the shell game in a guest column in the Mar. 10 issue of The Waco Tribune in which he commends Perry’s book.
Not once does Zeiger — whom I had the pleasure of debating when we were younger — mention directly the affect of the BSA’s policy on youth members. He does, however, claim that the Boy Scouts are “under attack by the secular left, particularly by the American Civil Liberties Union.” He also boldly claims that “to change or delude the Scout Oath and Law would be to part ways with a century of successes in Scouting.”
Really? I’ve always considered my life successful. And I feel the same about the lives of other gay, former Scouts I know. We are accomplished, educated, civic-minded men who support the American ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We vote. We are engaged. We care about our families and communities. If allowed, we’d be happily contributing to the Scouting organization and movement that taught us these virtues.
Read more at Qnotes:
Bilerico Project: Vitter Scores!
This month's Church and State from Americans United, tells how Republican Louisiana Senator David Vitter has scored a 100% rating from the Family Research Council.
This just shows, once again, the hypocrisy on the right and the proof that right-wing extremists really do hate gays. If you are heterosexual and admit to using the services of prostitutes while married, you can earn a perfect score from the FRC, but they have absolutely nothing nice to say about gay people who have never "sinned."
This reminds me of a state house race in Michigan in 2004, where a pro-gay Republican in conservative West Michigan faced a primary challenger because he refused to vote to ban gay marriage. His primary opponent claimed to be the more moral candidate, even though he had been divorced twice and admitted to using a prostitute while married. The pro-gay Republican spent over $300,000 of his own money and only won his primary by less than 70 votes.
See. They hate the gays, not just the sin. Simply not voting to harm gays made you more immoral than a philandering criminal. Bilerico Project:
Talk about hypocrisy. They truly are only about politics and power. They certainly don't have any moral veracity! (O.M.)
This just shows, once again, the hypocrisy on the right and the proof that right-wing extremists really do hate gays. If you are heterosexual and admit to using the services of prostitutes while married, you can earn a perfect score from the FRC, but they have absolutely nothing nice to say about gay people who have never "sinned."
This reminds me of a state house race in Michigan in 2004, where a pro-gay Republican in conservative West Michigan faced a primary challenger because he refused to vote to ban gay marriage. His primary opponent claimed to be the more moral candidate, even though he had been divorced twice and admitted to using a prostitute while married. The pro-gay Republican spent over $300,000 of his own money and only won his primary by less than 70 votes.
See. They hate the gays, not just the sin. Simply not voting to harm gays made you more immoral than a philandering criminal. Bilerico Project:
Talk about hypocrisy. They truly are only about politics and power. They certainly don't have any moral veracity! (O.M.)
The Nation: Hothead McCain
If you've followed Senator John McCain at all, you've heard about his tendency to, well, explode. He's erupted at numerous Senate colleagues, including many Republicans, at the slightest provocation. "The thought of his being President sends a cold chill down my spine. He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper, and he worries me," wrote Republican Senator Thad Cochran, shortly before endorsing McCain.
You've heard about his penchant for bellicose rhetoric, whether appropriating a Beach Boys song in threatening to bomb Iran or telling Russian President Vladimir Putin that he doesn't care what he thinks about American plans to install missiles in Eastern Europe.
And you've heard, no doubt, about McCain's stubbornness. "No dissent, no opinion to the contrary, however reasonable, will be entertained," says Larry Wilkerson, a retired army colonel who was former Secretary of State Colin Powell's top aide. "Hardheaded is another way to say it. Arrogant is another way to say it. Hubristic is another way to say it. Too proud for his own good is another way to say it. It's a quality about him that disturbs me."
More at The Nation:
You've heard about his penchant for bellicose rhetoric, whether appropriating a Beach Boys song in threatening to bomb Iran or telling Russian President Vladimir Putin that he doesn't care what he thinks about American plans to install missiles in Eastern Europe.
And you've heard, no doubt, about McCain's stubbornness. "No dissent, no opinion to the contrary, however reasonable, will be entertained," says Larry Wilkerson, a retired army colonel who was former Secretary of State Colin Powell's top aide. "Hardheaded is another way to say it. Arrogant is another way to say it. Hubristic is another way to say it. Too proud for his own good is another way to say it. It's a quality about him that disturbs me."
More at The Nation:
Friday, March 21, 2008
Truth wins Out: Ex-Gay Scandal Down Under
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, former clients of Mercy Ministries — an antigay residential program serving Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom — say they were denied professional psychotherapeutic or counseling services and granted only occasional, program-monitored visits to a general practitioner.
Instead of professional care, residents were dictated Bible verses, prayed at, and “exorcised” — and then denied support for appropriate follow-up care. Some residents say they required years of professional care to recover from abuse suffered in the program.
Mercy is a residential program for 16- to 28-year-old women that claims to offer “Christian counseling” to women who struggle with abuse, depression, eating disorders, unplanned pregnancy, and sexuality. Residents are monitored during their trips outdoors and denied access to family and friends for four to six weeks at a time. Some participants reside on-site for months.
Ex-transgender and former Exodus North America executive director Sy Rogers was reportedly featured often in the program’s in-house videos. Former clients who experienced no same-sex attraction say they were disturbed by the program’s preoccupation with stamping out “lesbianism.” Program rules forbid hugging and any other physical contact among clients.
Read more:
Instead of professional care, residents were dictated Bible verses, prayed at, and “exorcised” — and then denied support for appropriate follow-up care. Some residents say they required years of professional care to recover from abuse suffered in the program.
Mercy is a residential program for 16- to 28-year-old women that claims to offer “Christian counseling” to women who struggle with abuse, depression, eating disorders, unplanned pregnancy, and sexuality. Residents are monitored during their trips outdoors and denied access to family and friends for four to six weeks at a time. Some participants reside on-site for months.
Ex-transgender and former Exodus North America executive director Sy Rogers was reportedly featured often in the program’s in-house videos. Former clients who experienced no same-sex attraction say they were disturbed by the program’s preoccupation with stamping out “lesbianism.” Program rules forbid hugging and any other physical contact among clients.
Read more:
Frank Schaeffer: Obama's Minister Committed "Treason" But When My Father Said the Same Thing He Was a Republican Hero
When Senator Obama's preacher thundered about racism and injustice Obama suffered smear-by-association. But when my late father -- Religious Right leader Francis Schaeffer -- denounced America and even called for the violent overthrow of the US government, he was invited to lunch with presidents Ford, Reagan and Bush, Sr. Every Sunday thousands of right wing white preachers (following in my father's footsteps) rail against America's sins from tens of thousands of pulpits. They tell us that America is complicit in the "murder of the unborn," has become "Sodom" by coddling gays, and that our public schools are sinful places full of evolutionists and sex educators hell-bent on corrupting children. They say, as my dad often did, that we are, "under the judgment of God." They call America evil and warn of immanent destruction. By comparison Obama's minister's shouted "controversial" comments were mild. All he said was that God should damn America for our racism and violence and that no one had ever used the N-word about Hillary Clinton.
Dad and I were amongst the founders of the Religious right. In the 1970s and 1980s, while Dad and I crisscrossed America denouncing our nation's sins instead of getting in trouble we became darlings of the Republican Party. (This was while I was my father's sidekick before I dropped out of the evangelical movement altogether.) We were rewarded for our "stand" by people such as Congressman Jack Kemp, the Fords, Reagan and the Bush family. The top Republican leadership depended on preachers and agitators like us to energize their rank and file. No one called us un-American.
More at Huffington Post:
Dad and I were amongst the founders of the Religious right. In the 1970s and 1980s, while Dad and I crisscrossed America denouncing our nation's sins instead of getting in trouble we became darlings of the Republican Party. (This was while I was my father's sidekick before I dropped out of the evangelical movement altogether.) We were rewarded for our "stand" by people such as Congressman Jack Kemp, the Fords, Reagan and the Bush family. The top Republican leadership depended on preachers and agitators like us to energize their rank and file. No one called us un-American.
More at Huffington Post:
Obama pastor backs gay rights
Rev. Wright supported gay ministry, but failed to adopt ‘affirming’ status for church
By LOU CHIBBARO JR.,
The Washington Blade
Mar 20, 10:12 AM
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s controversial ex-pastor in Chicago has largely supported gay rights and has welcomed gays into his 8,000-member congregation at Trinity United Church of Christ, according to activists who know him.
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who recently retired as the Trinity Church pastor, has been hit with a firestorm of criticism after news media outlets began airing video recordings of some of his fiery and racially charged sermons, including one in which he blamed U.S. foreign policy for the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
In a speech in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Obama distanced himself from Wright’s strident political positions but refused to “disown” his pastor of nearly 20 years, reiterating his praise for Wright as his spiritual mentor.
With Obama competing with rival presidential contender Hillary Clinton for gay votes in the upcoming Pennsylvania primary, revelations of Wright’s controversial sermons have raised questions among some activists about whether Obama’s longtime pastor was among the preachers who delivered fire-and-brimstone sermons attacking homosexuality.
“Absolutely not,” said Rick Garcia, political director of Equality Illinois, the Chicago-based state gay rights group.
“Trinity has been among the strongest supporters of LGBT rights,” Garcia said. “I have the highest regard and admiration for Rev. Wright.”
Read more at The Blade
By LOU CHIBBARO JR.,
The Washington Blade
Mar 20, 10:12 AM
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s controversial ex-pastor in Chicago has largely supported gay rights and has welcomed gays into his 8,000-member congregation at Trinity United Church of Christ, according to activists who know him.
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who recently retired as the Trinity Church pastor, has been hit with a firestorm of criticism after news media outlets began airing video recordings of some of his fiery and racially charged sermons, including one in which he blamed U.S. foreign policy for the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
In a speech in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Obama distanced himself from Wright’s strident political positions but refused to “disown” his pastor of nearly 20 years, reiterating his praise for Wright as his spiritual mentor.
With Obama competing with rival presidential contender Hillary Clinton for gay votes in the upcoming Pennsylvania primary, revelations of Wright’s controversial sermons have raised questions among some activists about whether Obama’s longtime pastor was among the preachers who delivered fire-and-brimstone sermons attacking homosexuality.
“Absolutely not,” said Rick Garcia, political director of Equality Illinois, the Chicago-based state gay rights group.
“Trinity has been among the strongest supporters of LGBT rights,” Garcia said. “I have the highest regard and admiration for Rev. Wright.”
Read more at The Blade
Bilerico Project: Bill Richardson endorses Barack Obama for President
What did I have in my inbox this morning? An e-mail from Bill Richardson:
Dear Bil,
During the last year, I have shared with you my vision and hopes for this nation as we look to repair the damage of the last seven years. And you have shared your support, your ideas and your encouragement to my campaign. We have been through a lot together and that is why I wanted to tell you that, after careful and thoughtful deliberation, I have made a decision to endorse Barack Obama for President.
Read more at The Bilerico Project:
Dear Bil,
During the last year, I have shared with you my vision and hopes for this nation as we look to repair the damage of the last seven years. And you have shared your support, your ideas and your encouragement to my campaign. We have been through a lot together and that is why I wanted to tell you that, after careful and thoughtful deliberation, I have made a decision to endorse Barack Obama for President.
Read more at The Bilerico Project:
Woman's Suit Against Seminary Dismissed
From the Bigotry is all right with the Bible Department: (O.M.)
DALLAS - Leaders of a prominent Southern Baptist seminary who believe women are biblically forbidden from teaching men were within their rights when they told a female professor to leave, a federal judge has ruled.
Sheri Klouda was the only female professor teaching at the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's School of Theology when officials decided not to renew her contract in 2006. Klouda claimed seminary officials breached an oral contract guaranteeing she would remain employed if her performance was favorable.
Seminary officials maintain Klouda was not dismissed but was told she would not be granted tenure. They said their actions were based on ecclesiastical decisions protected under the First Amendment's religion clauses. A judge agreed, dismissing her lawsuit Wednesday.
Read more:
DALLAS - Leaders of a prominent Southern Baptist seminary who believe women are biblically forbidden from teaching men were within their rights when they told a female professor to leave, a federal judge has ruled.
Sheri Klouda was the only female professor teaching at the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's School of Theology when officials decided not to renew her contract in 2006. Klouda claimed seminary officials breached an oral contract guaranteeing she would remain employed if her performance was favorable.
Seminary officials maintain Klouda was not dismissed but was told she would not be granted tenure. They said their actions were based on ecclesiastical decisions protected under the First Amendment's religion clauses. A judge agreed, dismissing her lawsuit Wednesday.
Read more:
Gay Attleboro man can't get passport under married name
ATTLEBORO - As an AIDS counselor, Jason Hair-Wynn wants to bring his expertise to Africa, a continent that has been ravaged by the disease.
But when the Attleboro resident recently applied for a new passport so he could go to Africa, he learned the U.S. State Department would not recognize his new hyphenated name because he is a gay man married to another man.
He said the State Department said it was prohibited from recognizing his new name by the Defense of Marriage Act."We are unable to comply with your request for a name change based on the documentation you sent because of the Defense of Marriage Act ...," the letter states.
More at the Sun Chronicle
But when the Attleboro resident recently applied for a new passport so he could go to Africa, he learned the U.S. State Department would not recognize his new hyphenated name because he is a gay man married to another man.
He said the State Department said it was prohibited from recognizing his new name by the Defense of Marriage Act."We are unable to comply with your request for a name change based on the documentation you sent because of the Defense of Marriage Act ...," the letter states.
More at the Sun Chronicle
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Wayne Besen: Obama: From Crisis to Crowning Achievement
It had been a devastating week for Barack Obama. The rationale for his entire campaign was hope and reconciliation. Yet, for days, his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, was shown on television delivering rabid and racially insensitive sermons denouncing America.
Rightfully sensing his candidacy may be history if he did not respond, Obama answered with a spine-tingling, tear-evoking historical speech that was so remarkable, it drew comparisons to addresses made by Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy.
It was visionary, daring, and bold - evoking a flood of praise and the showering of lofty "M-words." Magnificent - moving - majestic - magical - mesmerizing - mellifluous - monumental.
Above all, it was a sincere and honest discussion that avoided all the "P-words" that have defined political discourse on race since the Civil War.
Read more:
Rightfully sensing his candidacy may be history if he did not respond, Obama answered with a spine-tingling, tear-evoking historical speech that was so remarkable, it drew comparisons to addresses made by Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy.
It was visionary, daring, and bold - evoking a flood of praise and the showering of lofty "M-words." Magnificent - moving - majestic - magical - mesmerizing - mellifluous - monumental.
Above all, it was a sincere and honest discussion that avoided all the "P-words" that have defined political discourse on race since the Civil War.
Read more:
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
David's letter to Rev. David B. Zellmer, Bishop, South Dakota ELCA
Earlier I posted an article about the ELCA Lutheran Church's vote on the Church and sexuality and marriage. I received a letter from a good friend and Equality South Dakota Board member David in Aberdeen. His letter is to Bishop David B. Zellmer of the South Dakota ELCA. He was responding to an article in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader that Quoted Bishop Zellmer.
I was very emotional after reading David's letter because although he was talking about his experiences, I saw myself and my own struggle to overcome the hatred that was placed into my soul by the Catholic Church. Thank you David for expressing so eloquently what so many of us "old timers" have experienced at the hands of so-called Christian Churches.
My prayer is like yours that we may eventually be able to be rid of the spiritual degradation and violence that is being inflicted on our young LGBT people's souls in the name of religion.
I have posted David's letter in it's entirety below. (O.M.)
Rev. David B. Zellmer, Bishop
South Dakota ELCA
March 16, 2008
Dear Rev. Zellmer,
I am writing to share a bit of personal testimony about the recent marriage statement issued by the "task force" of the ELCA. As a former Baptist, then ELCA Lutheran member and church organist/musician who no longer attends services under the roof of any church, I thought I would share a few words that come to mind whenever gays, marriage and the church are mixed together in one bowl.
To those of us who are responsible gay adults, the vast majority of the LGBT population, we are unable to begin to understand the continued denigratory focus on two committed, same gender, loving persons that want to spend the rest of their lives together in an arrangement no different than the so-called "traditional" couple. I can't help but wonder that if the focus were taken away from the sexual issue and placed on the heart-felt bond between people, a lifting up in enlightenment would allow a fresh breeze to begin to dissipate the foul air of stale old arguments.
This is a time in history that marks a beginning to the end of discrimination and unfair treatment to people such as myself. For 57 years I have longed for the feelings of an unclean spirit to be swept away from my soul but I fear I will never be able to fully wash the stains of misguided spiritual doctrine away. Those stains were forced upon me and imbedded beneath my skin by mortals misrepresenting the gospels. My heart aches that young boys and girls in pews across South Dakota still hear the words that can infect with the disease of self-hatred, consume and drive a nation to division and affect political outcomes. I weep at the sadness of this reality.
I cannot offer you more wisdom than you already possess. There is a truth to this issue that lies within each of us, often deep within some of us that needs to be recognized not as a virulent bacteria but as a hidden cure for the cancer of hatred and fear. My hope is that it be found, tested, rated fit for human consumption and fed to the masses.
I pray earnestly for your Watertown meeting and this years Synod Assembly to be a time where forward vision can find new direction and your congregants can embrace the words of a long remembered Sunday School song; Open up your heart and let the sun shine in.
Sincerely,
David D. Fischer
prior member Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Aberdeen, SD
I was very emotional after reading David's letter because although he was talking about his experiences, I saw myself and my own struggle to overcome the hatred that was placed into my soul by the Catholic Church. Thank you David for expressing so eloquently what so many of us "old timers" have experienced at the hands of so-called Christian Churches.
My prayer is like yours that we may eventually be able to be rid of the spiritual degradation and violence that is being inflicted on our young LGBT people's souls in the name of religion.
I have posted David's letter in it's entirety below. (O.M.)
Rev. David B. Zellmer, Bishop
South Dakota ELCA
March 16, 2008
Dear Rev. Zellmer,
I am writing to share a bit of personal testimony about the recent marriage statement issued by the "task force" of the ELCA. As a former Baptist, then ELCA Lutheran member and church organist/musician who no longer attends services under the roof of any church, I thought I would share a few words that come to mind whenever gays, marriage and the church are mixed together in one bowl.
To those of us who are responsible gay adults, the vast majority of the LGBT population, we are unable to begin to understand the continued denigratory focus on two committed, same gender, loving persons that want to spend the rest of their lives together in an arrangement no different than the so-called "traditional" couple. I can't help but wonder that if the focus were taken away from the sexual issue and placed on the heart-felt bond between people, a lifting up in enlightenment would allow a fresh breeze to begin to dissipate the foul air of stale old arguments.
This is a time in history that marks a beginning to the end of discrimination and unfair treatment to people such as myself. For 57 years I have longed for the feelings of an unclean spirit to be swept away from my soul but I fear I will never be able to fully wash the stains of misguided spiritual doctrine away. Those stains were forced upon me and imbedded beneath my skin by mortals misrepresenting the gospels. My heart aches that young boys and girls in pews across South Dakota still hear the words that can infect with the disease of self-hatred, consume and drive a nation to division and affect political outcomes. I weep at the sadness of this reality.
I cannot offer you more wisdom than you already possess. There is a truth to this issue that lies within each of us, often deep within some of us that needs to be recognized not as a virulent bacteria but as a hidden cure for the cancer of hatred and fear. My hope is that it be found, tested, rated fit for human consumption and fed to the masses.
I pray earnestly for your Watertown meeting and this years Synod Assembly to be a time where forward vision can find new direction and your congregants can embrace the words of a long remembered Sunday School song; Open up your heart and let the sun shine in.
Sincerely,
David D. Fischer
prior member Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Aberdeen, SD
Barack Obama: A More Perfect Union
The complete text of Obama's speech today is posted at the Bilerico Project. Having read it and listened to parts of it I can only say "Wow." HE GETS IT!! OBAMA GETS IT! HE UNDERSTANDS AND I DO BELIEVE IS THE HOPE FOR CHANGE.
I heard a speaker on PBS Radio yesterday. I think it was Cal Thomas who said that hope was a dangerous thing. I guess he wants us to vote Republican because there is no hope.
But i believe that without hope we only end up with the disastrous administration we have now. We can not afford to go that way again. There has to be hope that things will get better for all of us not just a privileged few.
I heard a speaker on PBS Radio yesterday. I think it was Cal Thomas who said that hope was a dangerous thing. I guess he wants us to vote Republican because there is no hope.
But i believe that without hope we only end up with the disastrous administration we have now. We can not afford to go that way again. There has to be hope that things will get better for all of us not just a privileged few.
Monday, March 17, 2008
SoDakNORML.org: Our good friend Tom is in trouble for trying to counter nausea from AIDS drugs and treatment
Tom Faltynowicz (falti-NO-vich) is a 43-year-old gay rancher in southern Meade County in South Dakota. He has also contracted AIDS, the symptoms of which he alleviates with cannabis. He was diagnosed as having AIDS, based on T-cell count, in 1990. His prognosis at the time was, “maybe a few years.”
Last September, Meade County officials were told that Tom was growing “marijuana” in his trailer house situated near his parents’ house at the ranch headquarters a few miles north of Rapid City, So. Dak.
Tom welcomed the police who came to investigate, Meade County Investigator Michael Walker and So. Dak. Division of Criminal Investigation Agent John Griswold, and immediately admitted growing cannabis to treat his condition. He invited the officers into his house to see his grow operation.
The evidence list says there were five plants and about a quarter-pound of dry “marijuana.”
Faltynowicz pled to possession of more than two ounces but less than 1/2-lb. of “marijuana.” That’s the lowest order of felony; maximum two years plus $4000.
The court, Circuit Judge Jerome Eckrich, will sentence Tom on April 21, 2008.
Tom’s AIDS specialist, Dr. Traub, of Rapid City, will speak at his sentencing hearing. The state’s attorney has already said he will not object to anything Traub has to say. Everything I have seen regarding this case leads me to believe no one wants to punish Faltynowicz. On the other hand, the law is the law.
More at South Dakota Norml:
Tom is a good friend and should not be punished for trying to seek the only treatment that works. We are all with you Tom!! (O.M.)
Last September, Meade County officials were told that Tom was growing “marijuana” in his trailer house situated near his parents’ house at the ranch headquarters a few miles north of Rapid City, So. Dak.
Tom welcomed the police who came to investigate, Meade County Investigator Michael Walker and So. Dak. Division of Criminal Investigation Agent John Griswold, and immediately admitted growing cannabis to treat his condition. He invited the officers into his house to see his grow operation.
The evidence list says there were five plants and about a quarter-pound of dry “marijuana.”
Faltynowicz pled to possession of more than two ounces but less than 1/2-lb. of “marijuana.” That’s the lowest order of felony; maximum two years plus $4000.
The court, Circuit Judge Jerome Eckrich, will sentence Tom on April 21, 2008.
Tom’s AIDS specialist, Dr. Traub, of Rapid City, will speak at his sentencing hearing. The state’s attorney has already said he will not object to anything Traub has to say. Everything I have seen regarding this case leads me to believe no one wants to punish Faltynowicz. On the other hand, the law is the law.
More at South Dakota Norml:
Tom is a good friend and should not be punished for trying to seek the only treatment that works. We are all with you Tom!! (O.M.)
Oregon: George ripped over gay rights repeal initiative
By DAVID BATES Of the News-Register
Two Yamhill County lawmakers are aiming to sponsor a statewide ballot initiative that would repeal Senate Bill 2, which the Legislature's Democratic leadership shepherded through last year to prohibit discrimination in housing and employment based on sexual orientation.
State Sen. Gary George, R-Newberg, and Rep. Kim Thatcher, R-Newberg, have submitted a ballot title to state elections officials, who announced this week that they will accept public comments on it through March 25.
The statutory amendment filed by George and Thatcher, who are partnering with Nazarene ministry worker Victor Vityukov of Salem, carries the following draft title: "Removes sexual orientation from statutes listing impermissible discrimination grounds; deletes other sexual orientation-related provisions."
While that clock is ticking, gay rights activists are seething over remarks George made to a reporter for Just Out, the state's flagship gay newspaper, which posted them on its website.
On Tuesday, Just Out posted on its blog excerpts from what it termed "an explosive interview" with George. The paper said the interview would be published in its entirety in its print edition of March 21.
The exchange between George and the reporter, not identified in the posting, includes this response to a question about what recourse employees have if they are fired because they're gay:
"As an employer, I don't wanna hear about it. This workplace is for work purposes. My advice to the gay community is shut up, just don't talk about it. If you walk around talking about what you do in the bedroom, you should be on the pervert channel."
Read the rest at News Register:
Two Yamhill County lawmakers are aiming to sponsor a statewide ballot initiative that would repeal Senate Bill 2, which the Legislature's Democratic leadership shepherded through last year to prohibit discrimination in housing and employment based on sexual orientation.
State Sen. Gary George, R-Newberg, and Rep. Kim Thatcher, R-Newberg, have submitted a ballot title to state elections officials, who announced this week that they will accept public comments on it through March 25.
The statutory amendment filed by George and Thatcher, who are partnering with Nazarene ministry worker Victor Vityukov of Salem, carries the following draft title: "Removes sexual orientation from statutes listing impermissible discrimination grounds; deletes other sexual orientation-related provisions."
While that clock is ticking, gay rights activists are seething over remarks George made to a reporter for Just Out, the state's flagship gay newspaper, which posted them on its website.
On Tuesday, Just Out posted on its blog excerpts from what it termed "an explosive interview" with George. The paper said the interview would be published in its entirety in its print edition of March 21.
The exchange between George and the reporter, not identified in the posting, includes this response to a question about what recourse employees have if they are fired because they're gay:
"As an employer, I don't wanna hear about it. This workplace is for work purposes. My advice to the gay community is shut up, just don't talk about it. If you walk around talking about what you do in the bedroom, you should be on the pervert channel."
Read the rest at News Register:
Sunday, March 16, 2008
The Center West organizing regional GSA
The following press release has just been sent to area media:
Press release
Western South Dakota Gay, Straight Youth Alliance organizing
The Center West, an information, resource, referral and support center serving the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in Western South Dakota will be hosting an organizational meeting for a Western South Dakota Regional Gay, Straight Alliance on March 29th at 4pm at The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Dr. Rapid City.
The purpose and mission of a Gay, Straight Alliance is to provide a confidential, safe, supportive, nurturing environment for LGBT youth and their friends and supporters in order to be able to grow, understand themselves and others by learning, being informed and socializing with other LGBT youth and appropriate adult mentors.
LGBT students in Western South Dakota have made several attempts within the various schools to organize a GSA. Most have been met with resistance both from administrators and from faculty and staff. Plus, students have been afraid and unwilling to come out publicly to form these organizations because of the negativity surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity issues. The threat of harassment and bullying is an ever present danger.
Mike Coats, Director at The Center West has been working with LGBT youth in Western South Dakota for several years and is very familiar with the obstacles facing LGBT teenagers and young adults in this area. The hostile and negative climate facing these young people creates feelings of isolation, negative self image and self worth and too often leads to risky, self destructive behaviors and even suicide. The suicide rate for LGBT youth is six times the national average for youth of the same age.
Conversations with local school counselors point out that the vast majority of those who attempt suicide have sexual orientation or gender identity issues. While this may or may not be the main cause for all suicide attempts it is very much a contributing factor in most and very often is the 1000 pound elephant in the middle of the room that no one has the courage to talk about.
It is for these reasons that The Center West is inviting LGBT students of both high school and college age to gather on March 29th at 4pm for the purpose of organizing a regional GSA to assist each other and provide support, information and social opportunities not available elsewhere.
There are more than 2.5 million gay students under the age of 18 in the USA alone.The first Gay Straight Alliance was started in Europe over a half century ago.
There are over 3500 Gay Straight Alliances in the USA. Gay, Straight Alliances have been very successful in helping LGBT young people come to terms with sexual orientation and gender identity issues and also to help create a safer, more nurturing environment for LGBT youth in which to learn and to grow. They have also been very helpful in reducing bullying in schools and also to counter the negative affects of that bullying.
While The Center West will be sponsoring and hosting these groups, it will be the students’ organization and they will maintain control within the guidelines set by The Center West Board of Directors. Once organized, the GSA will divide into High School and College age alliances.
The Center West is also inviting parents and teachers who are interested in providing guidance and other assistance to call the Center West to arrange a meeting and to get more details. The Center West’s mission is to provide assistance to not only the students but to parents, families and anyone who works with teenagers and young adults. For more information call 605-348-3244.
Michael M. Coats, Director
The Center West
3601 Canyon Lake Dr.
Suite 4
Rapid City, SD 57702
605-348-3244
Press release
Western South Dakota Gay, Straight Youth Alliance organizing
The Center West, an information, resource, referral and support center serving the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in Western South Dakota will be hosting an organizational meeting for a Western South Dakota Regional Gay, Straight Alliance on March 29th at 4pm at The Center West, 3601 Canyon Lake Dr. Rapid City.
The purpose and mission of a Gay, Straight Alliance is to provide a confidential, safe, supportive, nurturing environment for LGBT youth and their friends and supporters in order to be able to grow, understand themselves and others by learning, being informed and socializing with other LGBT youth and appropriate adult mentors.
LGBT students in Western South Dakota have made several attempts within the various schools to organize a GSA. Most have been met with resistance both from administrators and from faculty and staff. Plus, students have been afraid and unwilling to come out publicly to form these organizations because of the negativity surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity issues. The threat of harassment and bullying is an ever present danger.
Mike Coats, Director at The Center West has been working with LGBT youth in Western South Dakota for several years and is very familiar with the obstacles facing LGBT teenagers and young adults in this area. The hostile and negative climate facing these young people creates feelings of isolation, negative self image and self worth and too often leads to risky, self destructive behaviors and even suicide. The suicide rate for LGBT youth is six times the national average for youth of the same age.
Conversations with local school counselors point out that the vast majority of those who attempt suicide have sexual orientation or gender identity issues. While this may or may not be the main cause for all suicide attempts it is very much a contributing factor in most and very often is the 1000 pound elephant in the middle of the room that no one has the courage to talk about.
It is for these reasons that The Center West is inviting LGBT students of both high school and college age to gather on March 29th at 4pm for the purpose of organizing a regional GSA to assist each other and provide support, information and social opportunities not available elsewhere.
There are more than 2.5 million gay students under the age of 18 in the USA alone.The first Gay Straight Alliance was started in Europe over a half century ago.
There are over 3500 Gay Straight Alliances in the USA. Gay, Straight Alliances have been very successful in helping LGBT young people come to terms with sexual orientation and gender identity issues and also to help create a safer, more nurturing environment for LGBT youth in which to learn and to grow. They have also been very helpful in reducing bullying in schools and also to counter the negative affects of that bullying.
While The Center West will be sponsoring and hosting these groups, it will be the students’ organization and they will maintain control within the guidelines set by The Center West Board of Directors. Once organized, the GSA will divide into High School and College age alliances.
The Center West is also inviting parents and teachers who are interested in providing guidance and other assistance to call the Center West to arrange a meeting and to get more details. The Center West’s mission is to provide assistance to not only the students but to parents, families and anyone who works with teenagers and young adults. For more information call 605-348-3244.
Michael M. Coats, Director
The Center West
3601 Canyon Lake Dr.
Suite 4
Rapid City, SD 57702
605-348-3244
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Medical Decision Bill Advances
By Lisa ReinWashington Post Staff WriterSaturday, March 15, 2008; B05
With prospects all but dead for legalizing same-sex marriage or even civil unions this year, gay rights advocates scored a small victory yesterday in their piece-by-piece pursuit of legal rights now denied gay and lesbian couples in Maryland.
Same-sex couples would have the same rights as spouses to make hospital and nursing-home visits, end-of-life choices and other medical decisions under a bill that won preliminary passage in the Senate.
The change to medical decision-making, opposed by most Republican senators, is one of three bills pending in the Democrat-controlled General Assembly that would create a legal, domestic-partner relationship to give gay couples limited benefits of marriage. Rights to joint property ownership and inheritance also have a good shot at passage before the legislature adjourns next month.
The incremental measures, some of which were vetoed by former governor Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R), are likely to be signed by Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) and would represent a step forward for thousands of gay couples in Maryland. But it is increasingly clear that the votes are not there to legalize same-sex marriage, now the law in Massachusetts, or civil unions, which are legal in six states.
More at Washington Post:
With prospects all but dead for legalizing same-sex marriage or even civil unions this year, gay rights advocates scored a small victory yesterday in their piece-by-piece pursuit of legal rights now denied gay and lesbian couples in Maryland.
Same-sex couples would have the same rights as spouses to make hospital and nursing-home visits, end-of-life choices and other medical decisions under a bill that won preliminary passage in the Senate.
The change to medical decision-making, opposed by most Republican senators, is one of three bills pending in the Democrat-controlled General Assembly that would create a legal, domestic-partner relationship to give gay couples limited benefits of marriage. Rights to joint property ownership and inheritance also have a good shot at passage before the legislature adjourns next month.
The incremental measures, some of which were vetoed by former governor Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R), are likely to be signed by Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) and would represent a step forward for thousands of gay couples in Maryland. But it is increasingly clear that the votes are not there to legalize same-sex marriage, now the law in Massachusetts, or civil unions, which are legal in six states.
More at Washington Post:
Inclusive Baptist pastor survives ouster effort
The senior pastor of a Baptist church embroiled in a debate over putting photos of its gay members in a church directory will be allowed to keep his pulpit.
Members of Fort Worth's Broadway Baptist Church voted 499 to 237 on March 9 to reject an attempt to oust the Rev. Brett Younger.
"I hope we will move forward and be the church together and that others will come and share church with us," said Younger, who has led the congregation for seven years. "Broadway has been, for a long time, an amazing congregation that is willing to tackle difficult issues. I think it will continue to be a congregation that challenges its members to think and serve."
A group calling itself Friends for the Future of Broadway had collected more than 160 signatures on a petition calling for Younger's removal. They worried that Younger was embracing a theology they considered too liberal.
Read more:
Members of Fort Worth's Broadway Baptist Church voted 499 to 237 on March 9 to reject an attempt to oust the Rev. Brett Younger.
"I hope we will move forward and be the church together and that others will come and share church with us," said Younger, who has led the congregation for seven years. "Broadway has been, for a long time, an amazing congregation that is willing to tackle difficult issues. I think it will continue to be a congregation that challenges its members to think and serve."
A group calling itself Friends for the Future of Broadway had collected more than 160 signatures on a petition calling for Younger's removal. They worried that Younger was embracing a theology they considered too liberal.
Read more:
Friday, March 14, 2008
Focus on the Family's Glenn Stanton’s Lack of Transparency
This a blatant example of the dishonesty and yellow journalistic practises of F.O.F. and fundamentalist's view of truth, accuracy and accountability. (O.M.)
Last week, we reported on Focus On the Family’s Glenn Stanton’s Citizenlink article in which he claimed that “anthropologists agree” that there is only one definition of what constitutes marriage and family. That article, when it first appeared on March 3, looked like this:
More at Box Turtle Bulletin:
Last week, we reported on Focus On the Family’s Glenn Stanton’s Citizenlink article in which he claimed that “anthropologists agree” that there is only one definition of what constitutes marriage and family. That article, when it first appeared on March 3, looked like this:
More at Box Turtle Bulletin:
Pgh City Council Prez Response to Rep. Sally Kern
Ms. Kern:
Today I listened to your remarks (http://www.victoryfund.org/listening. ) related to your views on gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people (GLBT). I was thoroughly disgusted by what you had to say and astonished that someone who presumably took an oath of office to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the laws of this nation would espouse hateful, bigoted and un-American views.
I sit here in my office and only wonder who else might be on your "less equal" list. I also wonder, if we should follow your illogic, what it is we should do about this "threat" to the nation? Round them up and put them in extermination camps? How would you have us "cut out this cancer" assuming we do away with our Constitution and Bill of Rights and host of other civil rights we enjoy in this free and democratic nation? Of course you always have the option to relocating to a country that embraces polices of persecuting those who are "less equal." But then AGAIN, you to may run the risk of being persecuted yourself.
Read more at Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents:
Having lived in the Pittsburgh area for many years, I find this letter very refreshing. (O.M.)
Today I listened to your remarks (http://www.victoryfund.org/listening. ) related to your views on gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people (GLBT). I was thoroughly disgusted by what you had to say and astonished that someone who presumably took an oath of office to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the laws of this nation would espouse hateful, bigoted and un-American views.
I sit here in my office and only wonder who else might be on your "less equal" list. I also wonder, if we should follow your illogic, what it is we should do about this "threat" to the nation? Round them up and put them in extermination camps? How would you have us "cut out this cancer" assuming we do away with our Constitution and Bill of Rights and host of other civil rights we enjoy in this free and democratic nation? Of course you always have the option to relocating to a country that embraces polices of persecuting those who are "less equal." But then AGAIN, you to may run the risk of being persecuted yourself.
Read more at Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents:
Having lived in the Pittsburgh area for many years, I find this letter very refreshing. (O.M.)
Lutheran Group Addresses Marriage Issue
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 2:51 p.m. ET
NEW YORK (AP) -- A task force drafting a statement on sexuality for the nation's largest Lutheran group said Thursday that the church should continue defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
However, the panel did not condemn same-gender relationships. The committee expressed regret that historic Lutheran teachings have been used to hurt gays and lesbians, and acknowledged that some congregations already accept same-sex couples.
The report released by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is part of the denomination's yearslong effort to bridge internal differences over the Bible and homosexuality.
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, a separate, smaller group, is theologically conservative, and teaches that same-gender relationships violate Scripture.
Called a ''Draft Social Statement on Human Sexuality,'' the report is a wide-ranging study of Christian views on sexual morality, premarital sex, domestic abuse and families.
But the most anticipated part of the document was whether the task force would recommend equal standing for gay and heterosexual couples in the 4.8 million-member church.
Next year, the panel will decide whether to suggest changes in current clergy standards that bar gays and lesbians from being ordained if they are sexually active. After revisions, both proposals will be presented for a vote to the 2009 Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis.
Read more:
While many view this as an incremental step forward for the LGBT community, The Luthern Church still has a long way to go. In the meantime too much spiritual oppression and violence is being directed toward the LGBT community. This has a serious negative impact on youth who are trying to come to terms with their religion and their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Come see the film "For the Bible Tells Me So" which will be shown at The Journey Museum in Rapid City on April 5th at 6:30 pm. (O.M.)
Filed at 2:51 p.m. ET
NEW YORK (AP) -- A task force drafting a statement on sexuality for the nation's largest Lutheran group said Thursday that the church should continue defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
However, the panel did not condemn same-gender relationships. The committee expressed regret that historic Lutheran teachings have been used to hurt gays and lesbians, and acknowledged that some congregations already accept same-sex couples.
The report released by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is part of the denomination's yearslong effort to bridge internal differences over the Bible and homosexuality.
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, a separate, smaller group, is theologically conservative, and teaches that same-gender relationships violate Scripture.
Called a ''Draft Social Statement on Human Sexuality,'' the report is a wide-ranging study of Christian views on sexual morality, premarital sex, domestic abuse and families.
But the most anticipated part of the document was whether the task force would recommend equal standing for gay and heterosexual couples in the 4.8 million-member church.
Next year, the panel will decide whether to suggest changes in current clergy standards that bar gays and lesbians from being ordained if they are sexually active. After revisions, both proposals will be presented for a vote to the 2009 Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis.
Read more:
While many view this as an incremental step forward for the LGBT community, The Luthern Church still has a long way to go. In the meantime too much spiritual oppression and violence is being directed toward the LGBT community. This has a serious negative impact on youth who are trying to come to terms with their religion and their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Come see the film "For the Bible Tells Me So" which will be shown at The Journey Museum in Rapid City on April 5th at 6:30 pm. (O.M.)
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Update on "For the Bible Tells Me So."
The post I made earlier failed to mention the date and time of the screening for the film "For the Bible Tells Me So." Old Man's old brain fails some times.
The screening is scheduled for April 5th at 6:30 pm at the Journey Museum Theater. Hope to see everyone there!
The screening is scheduled for April 5th at 6:30 pm at the Journey Museum Theater. Hope to see everyone there!
Read interview with Butch Merrit
Butch Meritt was a leading spy in America's homegrown cold war against Homosexuals.
Read interview at Metroweekly:
Read interview at Metroweekly:
Former Ohio Sen. Howard Metzenbaum Dies (Great friend and advocate for the LGBT community
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Sen. Howard Metzenbaum, an Ohio Democrat who was a feisty self-made millionaire before he began a long career fighting big business in the Senate, died Wednesday night. He was 90.
Metzenbaum died at his home near Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said Joel Johnson, his former chief of staff. No cause was given.
During 18 years on Capitol Hill, until his retirement in 1995, Metzenbaum came to be known as "Senator No" and "Headline Howard" for his abilities to block legislation and get publicity for himself.
He was a cantankerous firebrand who didn't need a microphone to hold a full auditorium spellbound while dropping rhetorical bombs on big oil companies, the insurance industry, savings and loans, and the National Rifle Association, to name just a few favorite targets.
Unabashedly liberal, the former labor lawyer and union lobbyist considered himself a champion of workers and was a driving force behind the law requiring 60-day notice of plant closings.
When other liberals shied away from that label, Metzenbaum embraced it, winning re-election in 1988 from Ohio voters who chose Republicans for governor and president, and by wider margins than either George Voinovich or George H.W. Bush.
That victory produced his third, final and most productive term in the Senate. When it was over, in 1995, he started a new career as consumer advocate, heading the Consumer Federation of America.
Born June 4, 1917, Metzenbaum grew up a child of poverty and prejudice on Cleveland's east side.
More at Associated Press:
Metzenbaum died at his home near Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said Joel Johnson, his former chief of staff. No cause was given.
During 18 years on Capitol Hill, until his retirement in 1995, Metzenbaum came to be known as "Senator No" and "Headline Howard" for his abilities to block legislation and get publicity for himself.
He was a cantankerous firebrand who didn't need a microphone to hold a full auditorium spellbound while dropping rhetorical bombs on big oil companies, the insurance industry, savings and loans, and the National Rifle Association, to name just a few favorite targets.
Unabashedly liberal, the former labor lawyer and union lobbyist considered himself a champion of workers and was a driving force behind the law requiring 60-day notice of plant closings.
When other liberals shied away from that label, Metzenbaum embraced it, winning re-election in 1988 from Ohio voters who chose Republicans for governor and president, and by wider margins than either George Voinovich or George H.W. Bush.
That victory produced his third, final and most productive term in the Senate. When it was over, in 1995, he started a new career as consumer advocate, heading the Consumer Federation of America.
Born June 4, 1917, Metzenbaum grew up a child of poverty and prejudice on Cleveland's east side.
More at Associated Press:
Letter From Tucker (Oklahoma City High School Senior)
Rep Kern:
On April 19, 1995, in Oklahoma City a terrorist detonated a bomb that killed my mother and 167 others. 19 children died that day. Had I not had the chicken pox that day, the body count would've likely have included one more. Over 800 other Oklahomans were injured that day and many of those still suffer through their permanent wounds.
That terrorist was neither a homosexual or was he involved in Islam. He was an extremist Christian forcing his views through a body count. He held his beliefs and made those who didn't live up to them pay with their lives.
As you were not a resident of Oklahoma on that day, it could be explained why you so carelessly chose words saying that the homosexual agenda is worst than terrorism. I can most certainly tell you through my own experience that is not true. I am sure there are many people in your voting district that laid a loved one to death after the terrorist attack on Oklahoma City. I kind of doubt you'll find one of them that will agree with you.
I was five years old when my mother died. I remember what a beautiful, wise, and remarkable woman she was. I miss her. Your harsh words and misguided beliefs brought me to tears, because you told me that my mother's killer was a better person than a group of people that are seeking safety and tolerance for themselves.
As someone left motherless and victimized by terrorists, I say to you very clearly you are absolutely wrong.
You represent a district in Oklahoma City and you very coldly express a lack of love, sympathy or understanding for what they've been through. Can I ask if you might have chosen wiser words were you a real Oklahoman that was here to share the suffering with Oklahoma City? Might your heart be a bit less cold had you been around to see the small bodies of children being pulled out of rubble and carried away by weeping firemen?
I've spent 12 years in Oklahoma public schools and never once have I had anyone try to force a gay agenda on me. I have seen, however, many gay students beat up and there's never a day in school that has went by when I haven't heard the word **** slung at someone. I've been called gay slurs many times and they hurt and I am not even gay so I can just imagine how a real gay person feels. You were a school teacher and you have seen those things too. How could you care so little about the suffering of some of your students?
Read the rest at Pam's House Blend:
On April 19, 1995, in Oklahoma City a terrorist detonated a bomb that killed my mother and 167 others. 19 children died that day. Had I not had the chicken pox that day, the body count would've likely have included one more. Over 800 other Oklahomans were injured that day and many of those still suffer through their permanent wounds.
That terrorist was neither a homosexual or was he involved in Islam. He was an extremist Christian forcing his views through a body count. He held his beliefs and made those who didn't live up to them pay with their lives.
As you were not a resident of Oklahoma on that day, it could be explained why you so carelessly chose words saying that the homosexual agenda is worst than terrorism. I can most certainly tell you through my own experience that is not true. I am sure there are many people in your voting district that laid a loved one to death after the terrorist attack on Oklahoma City. I kind of doubt you'll find one of them that will agree with you.
I was five years old when my mother died. I remember what a beautiful, wise, and remarkable woman she was. I miss her. Your harsh words and misguided beliefs brought me to tears, because you told me that my mother's killer was a better person than a group of people that are seeking safety and tolerance for themselves.
As someone left motherless and victimized by terrorists, I say to you very clearly you are absolutely wrong.
You represent a district in Oklahoma City and you very coldly express a lack of love, sympathy or understanding for what they've been through. Can I ask if you might have chosen wiser words were you a real Oklahoman that was here to share the suffering with Oklahoma City? Might your heart be a bit less cold had you been around to see the small bodies of children being pulled out of rubble and carried away by weeping firemen?
I've spent 12 years in Oklahoma public schools and never once have I had anyone try to force a gay agenda on me. I have seen, however, many gay students beat up and there's never a day in school that has went by when I haven't heard the word **** slung at someone. I've been called gay slurs many times and they hurt and I am not even gay so I can just imagine how a real gay person feels. You were a school teacher and you have seen those things too. How could you care so little about the suffering of some of your students?
Read the rest at Pam's House Blend:
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Gay talk show host attempts to contact Oklahoma Rep. Kern during television broadcast
by Nick Langewis
Openly gay comedienne and daytime talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, having recently weighed in on the Lawrence King murder, again took the unusual step of addressing a political issue in today's episode.
Addressing the ongoing controversy surrounding a speech made by Oklahoma State Rep. Sally Kern to what she thought was a private audience of Republicans, subsequently leaked onto the Internet.
The recording has sparked public outcry and support alike nationwide after its debut on YouTube and concurrent campaign by the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund.
The speech, which accused gays of "infiltrating" government posts in order to indoctrinate children in public schools and otherwise further the "homosexual agenda," prompted DeGeneres to attempt a phone call to Kern, to audience applause, during the show's taping.
Read more at Page One:
Openly gay comedienne and daytime talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, having recently weighed in on the Lawrence King murder, again took the unusual step of addressing a political issue in today's episode.
Addressing the ongoing controversy surrounding a speech made by Oklahoma State Rep. Sally Kern to what she thought was a private audience of Republicans, subsequently leaked onto the Internet.
The recording has sparked public outcry and support alike nationwide after its debut on YouTube and concurrent campaign by the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund.
The speech, which accused gays of "infiltrating" government posts in order to indoctrinate children in public schools and otherwise further the "homosexual agenda," prompted DeGeneres to attempt a phone call to Kern, to audience applause, during the show's taping.
Read more at Page One:
Advocate: Paterson Hailed as Staunch LGBT Supporter
LGBT activists say soon-to-be New York governor David Paterson will be a boon for LGBT rights and a healer in Albany.
By Kerry Eleveld
An Advocate.com exclusive posted March 12, 2008
Lt. Governor David Paterson, who will assume the responsibilities of governor of New York on Monday, March 17, is viewed by gay and trans activists alike as the staunchest of supporters for the LGBT community. Paterson will be the first African American and legally blind governor of the state.
“He has been there in every critical fight over the last two decades,” said Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, naming hate-crimes legislation passed in 1987, the Sexual Orientation Nondiscrimination Act (SONDA) passed in 2002, and the ongoing fight to legalize same-sex marriage.
Read more:
By Kerry Eleveld
An Advocate.com exclusive posted March 12, 2008
Lt. Governor David Paterson, who will assume the responsibilities of governor of New York on Monday, March 17, is viewed by gay and trans activists alike as the staunchest of supporters for the LGBT community. Paterson will be the first African American and legally blind governor of the state.
“He has been there in every critical fight over the last two decades,” said Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, naming hate-crimes legislation passed in 1987, the Sexual Orientation Nondiscrimination Act (SONDA) passed in 2002, and the ongoing fight to legalize same-sex marriage.
Read more:
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Screening set for "For The Bible Tells Me So."
We can now officially announce that everything is set for the free screening of "For the Bible Tells Me So." Thanks to Fred and Sandy Magnavito for donating the film to the Center West and to an anonymous benefactor for underwriting the cost of the screening and the rental of the Journey Museum Theater. It will be shown on April 5th at 6:30 pm at the Journey Museum in Rapid City.
The film delves into the many concerns about what the Bible says and doesn't say about homosexuality. And it confronts the personal problems that are caused by misinterpretations and misreadings of what the true intent of the Bible passages are.
A panel discussion will follow the screening consisting of clergy from various denominations, mental health professionals, representatives from Equality South Dakota and The Center West. Members of the audience will be able to engage in the discussion as well.
The screening is free to the public. Everyone is invited and encouraged to attend. Especially anyone with concerns about the Bible and homosexuality.
The film delves into the many concerns about what the Bible says and doesn't say about homosexuality. And it confronts the personal problems that are caused by misinterpretations and misreadings of what the true intent of the Bible passages are.
A panel discussion will follow the screening consisting of clergy from various denominations, mental health professionals, representatives from Equality South Dakota and The Center West. Members of the audience will be able to engage in the discussion as well.
The screening is free to the public. Everyone is invited and encouraged to attend. Especially anyone with concerns about the Bible and homosexuality.
Wayne Besen - Daily Commentary
Spitzer Sputters: Republicans, it seems, account for the majority of sleazy sex scandals, but the Democrats do the illicit affair with theatrical flare. Who will ever forget presidential hopeful Gary Hart on the yacht "Monkey Business" with Donna Rice sitting in his lap or Bill Clinton taking it too far with the cigar?
Read more:
Jamaica Boycott: Jamaica's anti-gay climate was "strongly condemned" this week by The International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA). However, they offered a toothless response and failed to call for a much-needed boycott.
Read more:
Outrageous In Oklahoma: In an ominous sign for the GOP, Democrat Bill Foster won the reliably Republican seat that was previously occupied by House Speaker Dennis Hastert. The Democrats also now occupy former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's seat.If you wonder why the GOP is collapsing, one just has to look at the bigoted comments made by Oklahoma House Rep. Sally Kern. In a speech to 50 supporters - and one person with a concealed tape recorder - Kern portrayed homosexuality as the largest threat to this nation - even more dangerous than terrorism.
Read more:
Read more:
Jamaica Boycott: Jamaica's anti-gay climate was "strongly condemned" this week by The International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA). However, they offered a toothless response and failed to call for a much-needed boycott.
Read more:
Outrageous In Oklahoma: In an ominous sign for the GOP, Democrat Bill Foster won the reliably Republican seat that was previously occupied by House Speaker Dennis Hastert. The Democrats also now occupy former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's seat.If you wonder why the GOP is collapsing, one just has to look at the bigoted comments made by Oklahoma House Rep. Sally Kern. In a speech to 50 supporters - and one person with a concealed tape recorder - Kern portrayed homosexuality as the largest threat to this nation - even more dangerous than terrorism.
Read more:
Ford Statement Refutes AFA's Claims
Yesterday the American Family Association issued a press release claiming that the Ford Motor Company had surrendered to their ongoing boycott and would cease marketing to gays and end charitable contributions to LGBT organizations.
This morning I made a few phone calls, initially speaking to Suzanne Wait, head of Ford GLOBE, the company's LGBT employee group. Wait declined to comment on the AFA's claim, referring me to Jim Cain, Director of Product Communications at Ford. After a pleasant chat on the phone, Cain sent me this email to clarify Ford's position on LGBT marketing.
Read more:
This morning I made a few phone calls, initially speaking to Suzanne Wait, head of Ford GLOBE, the company's LGBT employee group. Wait declined to comment on the AFA's claim, referring me to Jim Cain, Director of Product Communications at Ford. After a pleasant chat on the phone, Cain sent me this email to clarify Ford's position on LGBT marketing.
Read more:
Boy, 10, hangs himself after telling his mother: 'I want to be a girl'
A boy of ten hanged himself after telling his mother that he wanted to become a girl, an inquest was told yesterday.
Cameron McWilliams, who liked to wear girls' underwear, asked if he could start using make-up just days before committing suicide, the hearing heard.
His mother, who described him as a lonely young boy, told the coroner: "It was apparent he was unhappy and said he wanted to be a girl. He did like girls' things."
She said he had been teased after being found in his half-sister's underwear, but had been forbidden from wearing make-up until he was much older.
Read more:
Cameron McWilliams, who liked to wear girls' underwear, asked if he could start using make-up just days before committing suicide, the hearing heard.
His mother, who described him as a lonely young boy, told the coroner: "It was apparent he was unhappy and said he wanted to be a girl. He did like girls' things."
She said he had been teased after being found in his half-sister's underwear, but had been forbidden from wearing make-up until he was much older.
Read more:
Cookie Magazine: Pinkboys; The Pink Dress
Young Sam demands to wear a dress to school, forcing his parents to make a decision: protect him from ridicule or cultivate his self-expression?
By Sarah Hoffman
At seven o'clock on a Thursday morning, my 4-year-old son announced, "I'm going to wear a dress to school today." I froze, teacup halfway to my lips. I shouldn't have been entirely surprised by the statement, given Sam's history on the pink side of the dress-up box, but this time something was different.
The previous weekend, Sam and I had visited his grandma in Malibu. Looking to cool down after a sunny playground romp, the three of us had wandered into a high-end children's boutique. While his grandma and I snickered over rhinestone-encrusted Converse sneakers and $600 infant sweaters, Sam was drawn to a frilly pink sundress. "Can I have it?" he asked.
Read more:
By Sarah Hoffman
At seven o'clock on a Thursday morning, my 4-year-old son announced, "I'm going to wear a dress to school today." I froze, teacup halfway to my lips. I shouldn't have been entirely surprised by the statement, given Sam's history on the pink side of the dress-up box, but this time something was different.
The previous weekend, Sam and I had visited his grandma in Malibu. Looking to cool down after a sunny playground romp, the three of us had wandered into a high-end children's boutique. While his grandma and I snickered over rhinestone-encrusted Converse sneakers and $600 infant sweaters, Sam was drawn to a frilly pink sundress. "Can I have it?" he asked.
Read more:
Mission of Matthew Shepard's mother: Stop hate crime
By Craig Wilson, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — Judy Shepard is having her photo taken in Lafayette Park across from the White House.
A winter wind is blowing down Pennsylvania Avenue, but she does what the photographer asks. She takes off her down vest and sits on a bench, smiling the best she can under the circumstances.
Shepard has been doing the best she can under the circumstances for almost a decade now.
It was in 1998 that Matthew, her 21-year-old son, who was gay, was beaten, tied to a fence and left to die, which he did three days later. It was a hate crime that made headlines around the world.
Read more:
WASHINGTON — Judy Shepard is having her photo taken in Lafayette Park across from the White House.
A winter wind is blowing down Pennsylvania Avenue, but she does what the photographer asks. She takes off her down vest and sits on a bench, smiling the best she can under the circumstances.
Shepard has been doing the best she can under the circumstances for almost a decade now.
It was in 1998 that Matthew, her 21-year-old son, who was gay, was beaten, tied to a fence and left to die, which he did three days later. It was a hate crime that made headlines around the world.
Read more:
State legislator's anti-gay words draw national focus
By Michael McNuttCapitol BureauRep. Sally Kern says she does not plan to apologize for comments in which she calls homosexuality "the biggest threat our nation has, even more so than terrorism or Islam.”
Kern, R-Oklahoma City, said she listened to about a minute of the audio that has been posted on the Internet and confirmed she made the comments, but that they were edited "without a doubt.”
"They took a part here and stopped the recording and picked up this part and made it sound like it was one long tirade,” she said. "It is a blanket misrepresentation of what I was doing.”
The Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, sent letters to Gov. Brad Henry and to House Speaker Chris Benge, R-Tulsa.
The Cimarron Alliance Foundation, an Oklahoma City-based group, has sent a letter to Benge stating that Kern "must apologize or be censured by the House of Representatives.”
Benge has no comment on the letter or Kern's comments, his spokeswoman said late Monday.
"The homosexual agenda is destroying this nation; it's just a fact,” Kern is heard saying on a YouTube audio segment. "I honestly think it's the biggest threat our nation has, even more so than terrorism or Islam.”
Read more at NewsOK.com
Kern, R-Oklahoma City, said she listened to about a minute of the audio that has been posted on the Internet and confirmed she made the comments, but that they were edited "without a doubt.”
"They took a part here and stopped the recording and picked up this part and made it sound like it was one long tirade,” she said. "It is a blanket misrepresentation of what I was doing.”
The Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, sent letters to Gov. Brad Henry and to House Speaker Chris Benge, R-Tulsa.
The Cimarron Alliance Foundation, an Oklahoma City-based group, has sent a letter to Benge stating that Kern "must apologize or be censured by the House of Representatives.”
Benge has no comment on the letter or Kern's comments, his spokeswoman said late Monday.
"The homosexual agenda is destroying this nation; it's just a fact,” Kern is heard saying on a YouTube audio segment. "I honestly think it's the biggest threat our nation has, even more so than terrorism or Islam.”
Read more at NewsOK.com
Monday, March 10, 2008
S.F. mayor may run for governor
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is considering a 2010 run for governor - a campaign that would embrace many of the same divisive causes he has championed as mayor, including same-sex marriage, universal health care and protections for illegal immigrants, The Chronicle has learned.
Newsom has long been rumored to be a potential contender in what is likely to be a crowded field of Democrats looking to succeed Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a list that includes Attorney General and former Gov. Jerry Brown, former state Controller Steve Westly and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
In recent months, Newsom has quietly been meeting with Democratic campaign strategists and other supporters to discuss a gubernatorial run, and he is now "certain to at least consider the possibility," said Eric Jaye, a Newsom confidant and political consultant.
When asked whether he was planning to run, Newsom said, "A number of people in the last few months have reached out and talked to me about it."
He declined to discuss any details of a possible campaign.
"It's premature to talk about it in the open," Newsom said. "In the next few months we'll see what happens."
Read more:
Mayor Newsom has been the number one advocate of same sex marriage and started the ball rolling by allowing LGBT people to get married in San Franscisco. A great friend of the LGBT community. (O.M.)
Newsom has long been rumored to be a potential contender in what is likely to be a crowded field of Democrats looking to succeed Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a list that includes Attorney General and former Gov. Jerry Brown, former state Controller Steve Westly and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
In recent months, Newsom has quietly been meeting with Democratic campaign strategists and other supporters to discuss a gubernatorial run, and he is now "certain to at least consider the possibility," said Eric Jaye, a Newsom confidant and political consultant.
When asked whether he was planning to run, Newsom said, "A number of people in the last few months have reached out and talked to me about it."
He declined to discuss any details of a possible campaign.
"It's premature to talk about it in the open," Newsom said. "In the next few months we'll see what happens."
Read more:
Mayor Newsom has been the number one advocate of same sex marriage and started the ball rolling by allowing LGBT people to get married in San Franscisco. A great friend of the LGBT community. (O.M.)
Clinton wins Texas, Ohio
The fight for votes from the LGBT community was very much part of the Texas and Ohio primaries Tuesday, March 4, and the eventual victor in those Democratic contests, Senator Hillary Clinton, went an extra mile to win them.
Clinton gave a joint telephone interview February 27 to the Dallas Voice in Texas, the Gay People's Chronicle in Cleveland, and Outlook Weekly in Columbus, Ohio. In that interview, she promised, as president, to have a liaison to the LGBT community. She also did a 20-minute phone interview with the Houston Area Stonewall Democrats and, according to the group, "Senator Clinton lang=EN wholly committed to making immediate priorities of her administration such key issues as passing a completely inclusive ENDA, passing a completely inclusive Hate Crimes bill, and eliminating 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'"
read more at The Bay Area Reporter
Clinton gave a joint telephone interview February 27 to the Dallas Voice in Texas, the Gay People's Chronicle in Cleveland, and Outlook Weekly in Columbus, Ohio. In that interview, she promised, as president, to have a liaison to the LGBT community. She also did a 20-minute phone interview with the Houston Area Stonewall Democrats and, according to the group, "Senator Clinton lang=EN wholly committed to making immediate priorities of her administration such key issues as passing a completely inclusive ENDA, passing a completely inclusive Hate Crimes bill, and eliminating 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'"
read more at The Bay Area Reporter
Lawrence King PSA: Pass It On
Logo has launched a public service announcement in response to last month’s hate-crime murder of 15-year-old gay student Lawrence King and other young hate-crime victims.
The PSA seems aimed at young people. Many of Logo’s sister brands across MTV Networks will carry it, though Logo is making it available to other networks as well. The spot features Portia de Rossi, Janet Jackson, and a whole bunch of other famous people outside my sphere of pop-culture knowledge.
Sharing the spot within the LGBT community here is preaching to the choir; perhaps those of you with teens can ask if they’ll circulate it on MySpace, Facebook, or wherever the kids of all orientations and identities are hanging out these days. You can also find other ways to take action at LOGOonline.com and at GLSEN’s Remembering Lawrence site.
"Project Harmony” to Address Needs of LGBTQ Families of Color
The Family Equality Council (FEC) today launches Project Harmony, a new initiative designed to ensure “that the issues and concerns of families of color are part of the national dialogue on LGBTQ family equality.”
“We are committed to building the most informed and effective national programs serving LGBTQ families of color and to fully integrating the voices, experiences and needs of these families into all of the work of the Family Equality Council,” said Project Harmony Program Manager Lisbeth Meléndez-Rivera. “Existing research shows that households including gay Latino men and African-American lesbians have the highest concentration of children among LGBTQ-headed families. We as a movement have much to learn from the struggles and successes of these families.”
Read more
The PSA seems aimed at young people. Many of Logo’s sister brands across MTV Networks will carry it, though Logo is making it available to other networks as well. The spot features Portia de Rossi, Janet Jackson, and a whole bunch of other famous people outside my sphere of pop-culture knowledge.
Sharing the spot within the LGBT community here is preaching to the choir; perhaps those of you with teens can ask if they’ll circulate it on MySpace, Facebook, or wherever the kids of all orientations and identities are hanging out these days. You can also find other ways to take action at LOGOonline.com and at GLSEN’s Remembering Lawrence site.
"Project Harmony” to Address Needs of LGBTQ Families of Color
The Family Equality Council (FEC) today launches Project Harmony, a new initiative designed to ensure “that the issues and concerns of families of color are part of the national dialogue on LGBTQ family equality.”
“We are committed to building the most informed and effective national programs serving LGBTQ families of color and to fully integrating the voices, experiences and needs of these families into all of the work of the Family Equality Council,” said Project Harmony Program Manager Lisbeth Meléndez-Rivera. “Existing research shows that households including gay Latino men and African-American lesbians have the highest concentration of children among LGBTQ-headed families. We as a movement have much to learn from the struggles and successes of these families.”
Read more
Los Angeles Times: Civil unions aren't marriage
The M-word does matter, and courts should make that clear.
March 8, 2008
In a 3½-hour session that sounded sometimes like a law school seminar and sometimes like a radio talk show, the California Supreme Court this week wrestled with the question of whether the state Constitution's guarantee of "equal protection of the laws" requires the recognition of same-sex marriages.
The justices delved into whether sexual orientation is immutable, whether gays and lesbians constitute a "suspect classification" deserving of special protection by the courts, and whether a 1948 ruling against a ban on interracial marriage was a precedent for invalidating a state law that describes marriage as "a civil contract between a man and a woman." But the central issue in the case was identified by Justice Carlos R. Moreno. Referring to the fact that California grants same-sex couples the benefits of marriage under the term "domestic partnerships," Moreno asked: "Doesn't this just boil down to the use of the M-word -- marriage?"
The best response came from the lawyer for the city of San Francisco, which briefly granted marriage licenses to same-sex couples in 2004. "Words matter," Deputy City Atty. Therese Stewart said. "Names matter."
Read more:
March 8, 2008
In a 3½-hour session that sounded sometimes like a law school seminar and sometimes like a radio talk show, the California Supreme Court this week wrestled with the question of whether the state Constitution's guarantee of "equal protection of the laws" requires the recognition of same-sex marriages.
The justices delved into whether sexual orientation is immutable, whether gays and lesbians constitute a "suspect classification" deserving of special protection by the courts, and whether a 1948 ruling against a ban on interracial marriage was a precedent for invalidating a state law that describes marriage as "a civil contract between a man and a woman." But the central issue in the case was identified by Justice Carlos R. Moreno. Referring to the fact that California grants same-sex couples the benefits of marriage under the term "domestic partnerships," Moreno asked: "Doesn't this just boil down to the use of the M-word -- marriage?"
The best response came from the lawyer for the city of San Francisco, which briefly granted marriage licenses to same-sex couples in 2004. "Words matter," Deputy City Atty. Therese Stewart said. "Names matter."
Read more:
Sunday, March 9, 2008
NARTH's psychiatrist Joseph Berger thinks bullying is OK
In a blog on NARTH's website, Berger expressed disgust with a Northern California school that accommodated a cross-dressing kindergartner and other children with "gender-variant" behaviors. Berger said that instead of teaching tolerance, schools should "let the other children ridicule" boys and girls who don't conform.
"The National Assn. for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality positions itself as a scientific group dedicated to helping gay men and lesbians shed same-sex attractions and realize their "heterosexual potential." Its statements routinely outrage gay-rights activists. But two commentaries posted online in recent months by members of NARTH's scientific advisory committee have raised concerns among its closest allies as well.One psychiatrist called for allowing schoolchildren to shame and ridicule classmates who don't act according to stereotypical gender roles. Another board member, a therapist, asserted that slaves may have been better off in chains than in "savage" Africa."
Read at Transgender News:
NARTH Scientific Advisory Committee member Joseph Berger said on a blog in reaction to a San Francisco Chronicle article on gender identity issues, "I suggest, indeed, letting children who wish go to school in clothes of the opposite sex - but not counselling other children to not tease them or hurt their feelings."On the contrary, don't interfere, and let the other children ridicule the child who has lost that clear boundary between play-acting at home and the reality needs of the outside world."Maybe, in this way, the child will re-establish that necessary boundary."
Read more at Transgender News:
"The National Assn. for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality positions itself as a scientific group dedicated to helping gay men and lesbians shed same-sex attractions and realize their "heterosexual potential." Its statements routinely outrage gay-rights activists. But two commentaries posted online in recent months by members of NARTH's scientific advisory committee have raised concerns among its closest allies as well.One psychiatrist called for allowing schoolchildren to shame and ridicule classmates who don't act according to stereotypical gender roles. Another board member, a therapist, asserted that slaves may have been better off in chains than in "savage" Africa."
Read at Transgender News:
NARTH Scientific Advisory Committee member Joseph Berger said on a blog in reaction to a San Francisco Chronicle article on gender identity issues, "I suggest, indeed, letting children who wish go to school in clothes of the opposite sex - but not counselling other children to not tease them or hurt their feelings."On the contrary, don't interfere, and let the other children ridicule the child who has lost that clear boundary between play-acting at home and the reality needs of the outside world."Maybe, in this way, the child will re-establish that necessary boundary."
Read more at Transgender News:
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