Pam Spaulding's Blog, page 40

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Rep. Barney Frank say Obama will come out for marriage equality in 2012

We've heard Obama promises before, so I'm sure the reaction to this will range from pleased to skeptical. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) was interviewed by the Advocate. Would he back marriage equality in 2012, leaving "god is in the mix" behind? (The Advocate, via the Wonk Room):

GILLIBRAND: Definitely. He put the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" in his State of the Union address. So there's no reason why he can't lean into marriage equality in a public speech or through some action he could do through the White House. I'd be thrilled if he decided to do that. He did take the step of not [defending] DOMA through his Department of Justice, which is a fantastic step because it was one that he was unwilling to do in "don't ask, don't tell." So it shows a shift in his willingness to use the power of the White House - the power of the administration - to change public perception and to change policy.

So I think we could get a very strong public statement out of him.

As far as Barney Frank goes, activists at a Seattle forum were told (Joe Mirabella, The Bilerico Project):

He spoke about the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and briefly mentioned that right after the repeal passed, "someone from the White House asked me if there would be much political fallout if the President came out in support of same sex marriage." Barney Frank replied to the staff member, "there would be absolutely no fall out." Shortly after that conversation, the President announced he would no longer defend DOMA, according to Frank.

I pressed Frank further to see if he would tell us who the staffer was, but he would not.

"This is just my intuition, but I think the President will be supportive of marriage in the states that offer it before the 2012 election," Frank said

So - are these trial balloons or another case of Lucy, the football and Charlie Brown?

Guest column by Ron Hill: Gay Republicans and Democrats: Time to Work Together

Ron Hill bills his site Republicans 4 Freedom as "Advocates For The Rational Wing of the Republican Party." And that he is. Hill wrote for conservative CNN commentator David Frum's web site, and has advocated for repeal of "DADT" and for marijuana legalization. He wrote this in response to Mike Signorile's Advocate commentary, "Lessons Learned," about GOProud, the Tea Party and the grip of the fundamentalists on the Republican party.

Gay Republicans and Democrats: Time to Work Together

By Ron Hill

I must admit to surprise when one gay activist on the left contacted me to report that he would not work with me or support my blog because I'm a Republican. I think this is short-sided.

I find that the American people - Democrat or Republican - all want the same thing for our country: Peace, prosperity, low crime, good jobs, and freedom.

I also find that most Americans - Democrat and Republican - tend to be well-meaning, hard-working, decent folk.

I suspect the majority of people in both major parties agree on where we want our leaders to take us; we just disagree on how to get there. Democrats believe more government will reduce unemployment and lead to more security for our citizens; while Republicans believe less government and lower taxes will lead to greater prosperity and security for our citizens.

It doesn't have to be an issue of one side always being right and another always being wrong.

Yes, there are extremists in both parties, and the 24 hour news cycle only seems to amplify the nuts on the far right and on the far left. But the truth is, we don't have to demonize and hate one another (which is, apparently, the job of Peter LaBarbera, Tony Perkins, and Bryan Fischer).

The rest of us can, and should, be civil to one another. We can disagree without being disagreeable. When gay Democrats and gay Republicans refuse to work together in areas where we have common ground - like supporting equal treatment under the law for all Americans - it only hurts the cause of equality.

For the sake of the next generation of gay and lesbian Americans; Republican and Democratic activists and bloggers need to work together and support each another in those places where we agree. We can agree to disagree - and fight for our side with everything we've got - when it comes to taxes, spending, the proper role of government, and free markets. But when it comes to equal treatment under the law and fighting discrimination, we should stand united.

Working together we can accomplish more that we can by engaging in mere partisan bickering.

I am grateful to Democrats and Republicans who have helped make America a freer place - some current Republicans include the Log Cabin Republicans, who successfully challenged "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", which helped pressure Congress into repealing the law; and Ted Olson, who helped the cause of marriage equality by lending his strong conservative credentials and prestige. GOProud may be controversial, but they would not have even been possible in the GOP 15 years ago. As gay Republicans and gay equality continue to gain increased acceptance within the GOP - which appears inevitable given changing demographics, we can expect to see more conservative gay voices.

We Democrats and Republicans may not always agree - but there is little to gain from criticizing others in the struggle for greater equality and acceptance, while there is much potential for gain if we stop criticizing one another and start working together on those areas where we do agree.

I will work with anyone - Libertarian, Republican, Democrat, green, Log Cabin or GOProud - to advance freedom in America for all of our citizens. To do otherwise is foolhardy. I hope my fellow activist and bloggers on the left can see the wisdom in this approach.

And like I said, we can always fight like alley cats over other issues - and then have a beer together when the vote is over with like civilized Americans.

Comment by Pam: I've always believed (and blogged here) that we need a strong out gay presence in the GOP in order to achieve full equality, a presence that would challenge the religious fundamentalist base full out. We see that happening outside the party structure from the Log Cabin Republicans from the legal perspective regarding DADT, along with the work of Ted Olsen pairing with David Boies on marriage equality. The focus has been on why LGBT equality is a constitutional issue -- a conservative principle about freedom from government intervention.

That's the challenge for an organization like GOProud -- it's hard to take a stand against marriage equality on that basis and still call the group conservative. Is it possible to work within the party as it stands now, or is success going to come from taking legal actions outside the party that actually represent constitutional conservative values?

The right answer would be both, but the back of the right wing evangelicals needs to be broken. The party hasn't figured out how to replace that fundie voter base, so it continues to cleave to these retro social values. That's a FAIL as a long term plan for party growth, and they know it (just look at the ridiculous alienation of the Latino vote by the party).

Equality NC's faith leaders press conference challenges anti-gay lawmakers, counters fundie rally

As you may know, North Carolina faces the prospect of a marriage amendment ballot initiative in 2012 due to the turnover of our General Assembly to the Republicans after the 2010 midterms. Bills have been filed in both the House and the Senate and will inevitably come up for a vote. The monstrous Senate version of the bill would deny same-sex partners benefits such as visitation rights in hospitals and health insurance.

A fundie rally featuring the Family Research Council's Tony Perkins was held on Wednesday, with speakers bleating about protecting marriage. Some of our elected officials in favor of this discriminatory amendent made an appearance.

"It's time. It's time, North Carolina, it's time," Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, told a cheering crowd on the Halifax Mall. "It's time to protect from those in Washington and those activist judges who are willing to aid those who want to redefine and ultimate destroy marriage."

...About a dozen lawmakers were introduced at the rally, including two key House Republicans who said the question would be heard in the Legislature in 2011.

"It will get done this year," House Majority Leader Paul Stam, R-Wake, told the crowd.

...Amendment opponents could be helped by changing attitudes about homosexuality. Supporters point to surveys showing more than 70 percent like the amendment, but a 2009 Elon University Poll showed about half of North Carolina adults oppose one. And a February Elon poll showed more than half of North Carolina residents now support some form of legal recognition of same-sex couples.

And that is why Equality NC held a press conferences with faith leaders in the community to counter the madness. While lawmakers contiinue to talk about the amendment in moral and biblical terms, the fact of the matter is religion has no place in this discussion when it comes to civil equality. However, if they are going to play that game, they need to know that when it comes to faith, the right has no lock on morality. In fact, these pious perpetrators of discrimination are discriminating against members of the faith community that want to marry same-sex couples. And that's what one lawmaker pointed out.

Rep. Marcus Brandon, D-Guilford, the second openly gay lawmaker elected in North Carolina history, said he believes some churches can confuse the values of the Christian faith and Jesus. "Jesus was a compassionate person, and he would not have a rally outside right now," he said.

ENC Communications Director Jen Jones sent out this report:

Many people are talking about a certain anti-LGBT rally that happened on May 17.

But, I'm here to tell you about what really happened that day.

* At the same time as those who would use religion to justify their hate stood outside of the legislature, Equality NC stood with fair-minded faith leaders inside the General Assembly for their formal announcement against the anti-LGBT amendment--an event that drew statewide (and national) attention to the issue of LGBT equality in NC;

Right: Rev. Dr. T Anthony Spearman, pastor of the ?Clinton Tabernacle AME Zion Church in Hickory, NC, stands with other statewide clergy from all denominations at the North Carolina General Assembly in opposition of the state's proposed anti-LGBT amendment.

* as the anti-gay industry pieced together 2,000 anti-LGBT supporters on the legislative lawn, we counted the 2,000 anti-amendment postcards we had signed to give to legislators at OutRaleigh alone--an event, by the way, that drew 6,000 LGBT supporters in Raleigh just three days before;

* while those who wished to silence us yelled at the legislature from the outside, you joined our all-day "act in," adding to the thousands of postcards and thousands of e-mails and phone calls forwarded to local legislators, voicing your opposition to the anti-LGBT amendment; and

* as known hate groups used their bigoted bullhorns to call the LGBT community "unnatural," you pledged an unprecedented amount of support to help Equality NC fight against their bigotry in our BUCKS AGAINST BIGOTRY Challenge, surpassing our $10,000 goal to raise a record $14,016 online in the nine days leading up to our day "AGAINST BIGOTRY."

What really happened is that Equality NC's organizer Josh Wynne worked tirelessly to get your tens of thousands of messages to local legislators; ENC's Administrative Coordinator Shawn Long managed countless anti-amendment correspondence and local engagements, connecting you with what is possible with a little Equality; Rebecca Mann, ENC's Director of Organizing & Outreach, mobilized hundreds during our statewide EQUALITY IN ACTION tour, educating all on the harms of the anti-LGBT amendment; ENC Faith Organizer Ryan Rowe brought people of faith to the forefront of our Equality efforts; Andrew Porter, our Eastern NC organizer, expanded our pro-LGBT reach in the all-important eastern region; Jess Osborne, our Charlotte-based organizer on loan from HRC, identified new volunteers and activists; Director of Development Kay Flaminio put your pledges of support to good use in our ongoing fight "against bigotry;" and Ian Palmquist, ENC's Executive Director, brought them all together--creating the strongest LGBT advocacy team our state has ever seen.

And what did I do? I told you what really happened on May 17: that our supporters, our messengers, our allies, our friends, our volunteers, all spoke up and showed those hate group leaders and anti-LGBT speakers on the legislative lawn what a rally of support really looks like.

For Equality,

Jen Jones

Your ENC Communications Director

Guest column by Raynard Jackson - Enough!!!! (with the 'I'm gay' thing already)

This is an early AM piece to stir the pot. With the bumper crop of self-outings in the news recently, I was waiting for this sort of commentary to hit the internets. Black Republican columnist Raynard Jackson sent me this piece and as I expected, he doesn't understand why Don Lemon or any of the other figures who came out of the closet are important to LGBT rights. And that's an understatement. I'll leave it to you to first protect your keyboards, and secondly, to set the record straight, so to speak. Opinions like these are floating out there and deserve a response. --Pam

Enough!!!!

By Raynard Jackson

Rick Welts, "I'm gay." Don Lemon, "I'm gay." Will Sheridan, "I'm gay." Uhhhhhhhhhh, ENOUGH!

Who cares? Does the public really care about their sex lives? Who these people choose to be romantic with is of no concern to me and should be of no concern to those who know them.

Rick Welts is the president of the Phoenix Suns professional basketball team. He is very well respected and is considered one of the best executives in all of professional sports. Don Lemon is a weekend anchor for CNN news in Atlanta. Will Sheridan played college basketball for Rutgers University (and is now an aspiring singer).

This week each of them, independent of each other, all admitted in the media that they were gay. They were not caught in some compromising position and threatened with blackmail. They just felt the public had a "right" to know.

Here is what Lemon had to say, "I think if you're going to be in the business of news {as a reporter}, and telling people the truth, of trying to shed light in dark places, then you've got to be honest. You've got to have the same rules for yourself as you do for everyone else."

Are you kidding me? One of the supposed tenets of journalism is to report what happens and not become part of the story. What does his sexual preference have to do with his reporting on a story? So, Mr. Lemon, I want to know how much money you make, your home address, your cell and home numbers, your social security number, the name and address of your parents, etc.

Lemon is basically saying that we, the public, have a "right" to know his deepest, darkest, most private information. This is ludicrous.

I am really having a difficult time understanding why the public needs to know this. None of this information is relevant to the performance of their jobs. None of this has anything to do with workplace camaraderie. None of this is anyone's business.

More below the fold.

This public confessional will not make them a better executive, a better anchor, or a better singer. As a matter of fact, if I admitted to a co-worker that I was a Christian (and they did not share my belief), it could be construed as workplace harassment. Just ask any human resources professional.

But, from all the media accounts of these confessionals, you would have thought they just survived the Holocaust.

Here is what former Bill Clinton aide, Keith Boykin, had to say, "Don Lemon is probably the most high profile "mainstream" black gay man alive today, and his simple act of courage will help redefine not only how society sees black gay men, but how we see ourselves." Boykin has lost his mind.

Are gays discriminated against? Sometimes. But they are protected by laws, not because they are gay, but because they are humans. That is why I am fundamentally against the "gay rights" movement.

Being gay is not and should not be a protected class, being human is. If you are assaulted, there are laws on the books that punish the perpetrator-not for hitting a gay person, but for hitting a person.

Gays who feel the need to have these public confessionals are not so much concerned about equality; but rather acceptance.

We know that the media is very liberal, thus they are trying to make heroes out of these gays who have gone public. They are not heroes, they are regular people.

Would the media react the same way to someone who publically admitted they had a drug problem, alcohol problem, or a stealing problem? Should they be portrayed as heroes too?

These are all about personal choices and the fear that public knowledge of these behaviors, in their thinking, might cause them to be frowned upon by society-thus be discriminated against.

Who you choose to be intimate with is a personal and private matter. I find it quite disturbing that gays feel the need to thrust their private proclivities upon the public.

If you choose to be gay, have at it. But, I don't have to be in agreement with your lifestyle choices; nor does it preclude us from going out to dinner or a ball game. If we are friends, we are friends because you are a nice person, not because you are a nice, gay person.

Ironically, the word gay ends with the letter "y." As in why do gays feel the public needs to know what sex they choose to be intimate with? Why do they attempt to force private, personal information into the public arena? Why do they think the public even cares about their private choices?

In the end, I don't care who they choose to be intimate with and would prefer not to be told. I won't ask, so please don't tell! Enough already.

Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.- public relations/government affairs firm. He is also a contributing editor for ExcellStyle Magazine (www.excellstyle.com) & U.S. Africa Magazine (www.usafricaonline.com).

Tuesday open thread and news and notes

There's a lot going on, and I haven't the energy to write up individual posts (still KO'ed; no passage of kidney stone yet), but there's plenty to discuss.

* In shakeup, HRC poised to lead Md. marriage effort. via the Washington Blade:

The Human Rights Campaign is expected to emerge as the coordinator of a reorganized coalition of national and local LGBT groups pushing for passage of a same-sex marriage bill in the Maryland Legislature next year, according to sources familiar with the effort.

...Attempts failed earlier this year to pass same-sex marriage and gender identity bills in the Maryland Legislature. Now, insiders familiar with LGBT politics in the state say these two new developments represent a shakeup of the established order, where the LGBT group Equality Maryland led lobbying efforts on behalf of the two bills for the past seven years.

Meanwhile, rumors that HRC has offered to make a significant cash contribution to the financially troubled Equality Maryland in exchange for the group allowing HRC to select its next executive director were heightened this week when HRC's regional field director, Sultan Shakir, began working at Equality Maryland's headquarters office in Baltimore on Monday.

* There was a "save marriage" rally at the NC State Capital yesterday (about 3,500 fundies participated, including Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council; I'm told Bam Bam Barber and The Peter were there), and the counter-protest drew the attention of the police. Take a look at an officer as he tries to intimidate the counter protestors. More coverage is at the Charlotte Observer.

This Video was taken by LGBTQ resource,The Triangle, www.trianglelgbt.com. It shows State Capital Police trying to intimidate peaceful LGBTQ counter protesters at anti-LGBTQ faith based rally in Downtown Raleigh on May 17, 2011. State Capital Police only back off when local news reporter inquires into what the police are doing. There is also a snippet of the false information the speaker is telling the crowd about the LGBTQ community. The rally was held by Return America in response to a press conference given by pro-LGBTQ faith leaders in the Legislature Building regarding SB 106 earlier that morning. There will be a pro-LGBTQ rally on June 3, 2011 in downtown Raleigh, you can go to http://getequalnc.org/rally-in-raleigh/ for more information.

* LGBT POV has a guest post up worth a click: Binational Couple to Republicans: Is Our Love Less Than Yours?

I want the same right every heterosexual citizen of my country has. If an American citizen is fortunate to find someone they want to wake up with every morning, they can invite that person - whereever they may come from - to live with them here in the land of the free. Except us queers. That most precious pursuit of happiness - shared, committed love - is not OUR right if there is a border between us. But it's not just a national border: antigay politicians have tried for years to erect legal borders between us and our families and our countries - all in the name of some "morality" they profess to uphold, only to be proven hypocrites in the end.

* From the "you must be kidding me dept" - Bryan Fischer: Gays Are Nazis.

The homosexual agenda is just like Islam: there is no room for dissent, there is no room to leave, once you're in, you can't leave. Muslims won't let you leave, homosexuals won't let you leave - if you leave, they claim you're faking it, so there's no way out. There's no freedom of choice, there's no freedom of religion - if you have religious views about homosexual behavior, you are squashed.

I mean, ladies and gentlemen, they are Nazis. Homosexual activists, when it comes to freedom of speech, are Nazis. When it comes to freedom of religion, they are Nazis. There is no room in their world dissent, there is no room in their world for disagreement, there is no room in their world for criticism. You criticize homosexual behavior, they tag you as a bigot and a homophobe and then they got to work to silence you just like the Roman Catholic Church did in the days of Galileo - it's no different; it's the Spanish Inquisition all over again.

Ladies and gentlemen, they are Nazis. Do not be under any illusions about what homosexual activists will do with your freedoms and your religion if they have the opportunity. They'll do the same thing to you that the Nazis did to their opponents in Nazi Germany.

* Charles Barkley: In sports, ability to play should outweigh sexual orientation. Wow; sports figures continue to lead the way this week.

"I really like ESPN," Barkley added. "They do a great job. But like once every two or three months, they bring all these people on there, and they tell me how me and my team are going to respond to a gay guy.

"First of all, every player has played with gay guys. It bothers me when I hear these reporters and jocks get on TV and say: 'Oh, no guy can come out in a team sport. These guys would go crazy.' First of all, quit telling me what I think. I'd rather have a gay guy who can play than a straight guy who can't play."

* Blender and Village Voice writer Steven Thrasher has a wonderful piece up - an interview with one of the Freedom Riders, Lew Zuchman, about the extraordinary, historic ride for civil rights.

Fifty years ago this month, black and white Freedom Riders set out on buses for the South to challenge local segregation laws, particularly in bus terminals' restaurants and waiting rooms. Their 1961 journey became a turning point in the civil rights movement when the activists were met with mob violence in Mississippi and Alabama, and images of the bitter attacks were widely aired on TV and in the press. One of those riders was a 19-year-old white kid from Forest Hills, Queens, named Lew Zuchman. Now a Manhattan resident and still active in social-justice issues and civil-rights work, Zuchman is setting out today for Jackson, Mississippi, to reunite with his fellow Freedom Riders. We spoke with him about the historic journey and this year's reunion.

* You should also click over to read "The Freedom Riders and same-sex marriage", David Kroll's discussion about the role of civil rights legend Rep. John Lewis, who was one of those Freedom Riders and has spoken eloquently about LGBT rights and is a strong ally (I heard him speak about it a couple of years ago at Equality Alabama's gala). David notes Lewis skipped the issue in a recent appearane in my area:

I was near tears listening to this man who had fought for the simple right of regular people to be treated with respect and dignity regardless of the amount of melanins made in their skin. As he closed, he spoke of the need for the graduates to still engage in what he called "good trouble" to continue to fight for a day where there is "one America" regardless of whether you are Black, white, Asian, Latino, Native American...

But what struck me immediately was that he did not choose that moment to take on the issue of equality among two people who love each other. Perhaps it was because the crowd was about three-quarters African American and he wanted to speak to their issues (although same-sex marriage is an issue in this community as well).

You can watch Lewis's pro-LGBT equality speech here (with transcript).

* Michelangelo Signorile takes a swing at GOProud, the Tea Party and the right wing grip on the GOP in this article up at the Advocate, Lessons Learned. I have no idea how GOProud will respond, but Mike hurls enough against the wall that will stick unless the org releases some sort of statement.

There are two things we've learned from GOProud, the small, often obnoxious right-wing gay group that makes the Log Cabin Republicans seem like liberals. For the uninitiated, this is the group that supports outspokenly anti-equality public figures - from Ann Coulter, who was paid to speak to the group, to Donald Trump, who is opposed to any gay unions-and targeted gay congressman Barney Frank during the 2010 election with an ad that called him "catty."

First off, denialists and elitists who believe they are superior to other gays - even if the attitude masks a pitiful self-loathing - are clearly as prevalent as ever in the LGBT movement, except that they can now be out of the closet. Perversely, the fact that we can find such people in GOProud is a measure of our success.

The other thing we've learned is that the Christian right, contrary to all the media blather about it losing steam as the Tea Party ascends, still has a grip on the GOP, and this can actually be helpful in gaining civil rights through the Democratic Party-if the Democrats recognize a useful wedge issue staring them in the face.

More Rapture-readiness: gays are responsible for the second coming of Jesus

Should we pat ourselves on the back for this one? Harold Camping, the genius fundie who believes that Jesus is returning on May 21 to take up the true believers to heaven (preceded by an alert - earthquakes in each time zone), said the Homosexual Agenda is the trigger. From a Rapture Q&A at SFGate:

Q: How many will be Raptured?

A: Campbell estimates 200 million. The remaining nearly 7 billion face a grisly fate - crushed in the quake, burned by sulfur, turned into pillars of salt, etc.

Q: Any other reason [for the Rapture]?

A: Yes. Gay Pride and same-sex marriage. Camping says God will punish America and the rest of the world for Gay Pride and same-sex marriages, just as Sodom and Gomorrah were punished with fire and brimstone in the Old Testament.

Now folks will really need to party hard and praise The Gay on May 21.

Also see:

* Are you rapture ready - fundie billboards say the end is near: May 21, 2011

* More Rapture-readiness: MN jeweler launches 50% off Second Coming Sale

* $140K flushed away: retired subway worker invests life savings in 5/21/2011 Rapture ads

'Homosexuals want your children' - the lie that keeps on giving

crossposted on Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters

The National Organization for Marriage's lying flyer about the repercussions of allowing gay marriage in New York put a perspective on this entire so-called cultural battle for me.

And it's a point that the lgbt community needs to emphasize.

When they - be they NOM, the Family Research Council, etc - cannot stand against lgbt equality by logic, they manipulate the fears about children being harmed.

It's a highly effective scare tactic. And an old one. Check out snippets of this 1986 comic which was endorsed by the Concerned Women for America and former Congressman William E. Dannemeyer:

Now take another gander at NOM's flyer:

 

While NOM's flyer isn't as crude or blatant as the Hafer cartoon, the implications are the same - "the homosexuals are after the children of America."

It's sad in a way that after over 20 years, the architects of hatred and homophobia haven't changed their fear mongering, isn't it?

But it's also typical. We've seen this story before on so many occasions, so the lgbt community should know the ending.

Eventually we win.

Just something to keep in mind just in case some of us choose to immerse ourselves in the seductive pool of discouragement and self-pity.

No matter how much money NOM has. No matter how lies the organization tell. No matter how many legislators allow their egos to be stoked by this group, the fact of matter is that there is nothing pure or moral about NOM.

When push comes to shove, NOM exploits the fears about gays and children to stop lgbt equality in the same manner that racists exploited fears about black men raping white women in the sad effort to stop integration.

I guess that does make them bigots, huh?

Maggie Gallagher would be so disappointed.

Related Post:

NOM knows that it lied in the New York ad and does not care  - Unfortunately NOM's attempt to demonize lgbts in regards to children goes way beyond images. Here the organization does not address the false claims of its New York ad, but instead attempts to exploit an article from a pro-lgbt blog to shift the argument.

LGBT Jewish heroes celebrated in new poster series

Harvey Milk, Kate Bornstein, and Lesl?a Newman are the first three subjects of a new website and poster series about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Jews who have transformed the world through their words and lives.  The timing of the project's launch is in honor of Harvey Milk Day on May 22 and LGBT Pride Month in June.

LGBT Jews have made enormous contributions to American culture, society, and politics.  The posters will provide a way for kids and adults - whether  LGBT or straight - to see and learn about who LGBT Jews are, what they have contributed to American and American Jewish life, and why their identities, as LGBT people and as Jews, matter.

Coming on the heels of the horrific spate of suicides among LGBT youth last fall, Idit Klein, Executive Director of Keshet noted, "Supporting LGBT youth means celebrating queer Jewish heroes. I want gay kids to walk into their day school and Hebrew school classrooms and see that their community is honoring LGBT Jewish visionaries. My hope is that seeing these posters of LGBT Jews will help young LGBT Jews and their friends and family never question their rightful place in the community."

The website has a page dedicated to each person, complete with bio, lots of pictures, a bibliography and a topical action link.  In short, a term-paper-writer's dream.  This is an excellent resource for both students and teachers at time when school curricula rarely recognize the contributions of LGBT people as such (Fingers crossed for that changing soon in California!).

The posters and companion website www.LGBTJewishHeroes.org are a project of Keshet, the largest Jewish LGBT organization in the U.S.  Keshet's mission is to "ensure that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Jews are fully included in all parts of the Jewish community."

Related:

* Jewish Community Provides Strong Faith-Based Response to LGBTQ Bullying

Gays Glitter Newt!

Hilarious.

From the notes on Robert Erikson's YouTube account:

At a book signing in Minneapolis, recently declared the hippest and gayest city in America, I greeted 2012 GOP presidential contender and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with a shower of rainbow glitter.

"Feel the Rainbow!" I shouted. Gingrich was conducting the book signing as part of The Minnesota Family Council & Institute Annual Dinner 2011 celebration. The MFC has been an instrumental mover of a marriage inequality amendment that would enshrine discrimination in Minnesota's state constitution.

John Aravois at Americablog has stills.

And it really does get creepy as the sign cards say. The bodyguard says:

"So goes you, goes the rotting of our country.

Have you ever seen us attend on of your events? Have we disturbed your events?

Never. Peace be with you."

Actually, your kind is always coming into our spaces and making Hell for us. You never leave us alone. You'd still be coming into our bedrooms if the Supreme Court hadn't put a stop to it. And you'd reverse that in a heartbeat if you could.

Newt Gingrich was scheduled to give a speech at an event sponsored by the Minnesota Family Council later in the evening. MFC is the group responsible for pushing the Minnesota Gay Marriage Ban Amendment which seems poised to go before voters in 2012:

The Minnesota Family Council threatened Republicans that any effort to stall the bill will be redefined as a vote against the bill, while the National Organization for Marriage pleaded that if the bill doesn’t go forward it will encourage “gay marriage activists.”

Minnesota already has a law forbidding gay marriage, but just in case the State Supreme Court someday decides gays SHOULD be treated equally, they thought they'd add a little *asterisk onto the Constitution, just so it's clear to the Justices who shouldn't be treated equally.

This will be lovely, the gays of Minnesota will be treated to another election cycle of constant fear mongering. The lovely thing for Republicans is our resources will be split between supporting Democrats and fighting for our own Civil Rights. Well played, Talibangelicals.

I think Gingrich deserved it just for this alone:

"I think there is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us, is prepared to use violence, to use harassment. I think it is prepared to use the government if it can get control of it. I think that it is a very dangerous threat to anybody who believes in traditional religion."

Screw him. Painting LGBT Americans as violent and fascist. From where I sit, the daily headlines are all about how LGBT Americans are on the receiving end of violence.

I have yet to hear about a single one of these supposed violent hetero-bashings that Newt is alleging our community participates in.

What's most offensive is Gingrich is alleged to be "brilliant" not an uncommon assessment. I can't say I share that, if he really believes the words he said, he's really a fucking dumbass.

LGBT Americans have done nothing many, many other Americans have done to effect change. A "brilliant" man knows what violence and fascism really are, and the LGBT rights movement has engaged in neither. He is either stupid, or a soulless monster that is happy to paint gays as "violent" and "fascist" for votes, attention and money and is completely unremorseful about the effect his words have.

Screw him. He deserves to be humiliated and pwned. He deserves to double down on the security so this doesn't happen again. And other demagogues need to see what happens when they lie and slander the gays.

We're everywhere and we always will be, and that's their worst nightmare.

Did I tell you the one about the radio show appearance & a trip to urgent care for a kidney stone?

The only reason I'm able to type this is an adequate dose of pain meds...lolHeh. What a day. I wasn't feeling well Monday night, with dullish pain in my lower left back. It felt vaguely familiar, so I just ignored it (I have a high pain tolerace). I went to work and felt like crap all day, having to limp/walk bent over till I left.

Don Lemon: "I wish everyone could feel what I feel"



I then sucked it up to do a segment on the Michelangelo Signorile Show to talk about Don Lemon's chat with him during the prior hour. I was on about 20 minutes and had a great discussion with Mike about the commonalities Don and I shared re: colorism, the black/gay phenomenon as well as the double minority status when among non-POC LGBTs. We also touched upon Don's new status of role model (like it or not, if you're on major media, it's bestowed upon you in this age of celebrity), and why other closeted people in his industry choose not to come out.

Anyway, I'm sure Mike will have the interview up soon; Mike has the interview up; it's well worth taking in; Don Lemon is very candid and his personal revelations have clearly lifted a burden off of his shoulders.

***

So the second half of the story - Kate gets home as I finished up with Mike and I'm having trouble getting up from the floor of our spare bedroom (I usually do the show in there, sitting cross-legged on the floor since it's quiet). The pain was getting pretty excruciating (maybe a 7 out of 10). I (stupidly) have some chicken soup because I hadn't eaten, and we went to urgent care.

After a not-too-long wait (45 min, which is an eternity as the kidney stone is scraping around), we went into the patient suite. The doctor, seeing my history of two prior kidney stone attacks and my description of my current pain, agrees with me that it's likely another stone (there were some high up in the kidney after the last attack in 2008; one must have moved down). So no CT scan or X-Ray, no morphine, for crying out loud.

I left after receving a shot of Toradol in my bum (muscle relaxer), and an anti-nausea pill. We had to wait 20 minutes to see if there was pain reduction. Sadly, it didn't do much of anything. So she wrote me a 12-pill script for Vicodin. Hopefully the stone will pass in a couple of days. The pain is always the worst just as it scrapes its way out, so I'm not looking forward to that. Until then, lots of clear fluids, lights out and fetal position for me.