Tuesday, May 13, 2008

GLBT DIGEST May 13, 2008

**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US AT rays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.

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New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

-A Way With Words
Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts, is a master of theone-liner - a self-described "left-handed, gay Jew" who is not accustomed tobeing in the majority on anything and yet is one of the most powerfulmembers of Congress. Here are some examples, customarily deliveredrapid-fire in his trademark accent, a New Jersey-Boston blend.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/13/washington/13barneybox.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=GAY&st=nyt&oref=slogin

-A Liberal Wit Builds Bridges to the G.O.P.
Representative Barney Frank, the rumpled, cantankerous chairman of theFinancial Services Committee, plopped down on a leather bench off the Housefloor last week. After two months of trying to win Republican support forhis bill to help homeowners at risk of foreclosure, he had come up short.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/13/washington/13barney.html?scp=4&sq=GAY&st=nyt

-Gay rights groups launch hospital rating system
Just over half of 88 hospitals got top marks under a new rating systemcreated by two national gay-rights organizations which hope the standardswill result in more compassionate treatment of gay and lesbian patients.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Hospitals-Gays.html?scp=3&sq=GAY&st=nyt


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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

-Indecent Exposure, and Arrested Development
After the blow-up doll controversy in the Chicago White Sox' clubhouse lastweek, a number of women's groups and social engineers predictably weighed inon the issue. In defense, it doesn't take just an activist to summon emotionwhen an unidentified player props up two nude, inflatable dolls in anAmerican workplace -- dolls with bats strategically positioned around themand one holding a sign that read: "You've Got to Push," a juvenile referenceto the White Sox hitting slump.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/12/AR2008051202769.html

-The Right Time to Make a Move
With a Flexible Attitude, Aging Can Be Graceful
Sometimes timing is everything. The decision my husband, Phil, and I madelast year -- to sell our high-rise condo in a friendly and lively area ofNorth Bethesda and move to a retirement community -- was one of thoseinstances.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/12/AR2008051202552.html


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Miami Herald
http://www.miamiherald.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

-Gay rights groups launch hospital rating system
Just over half of 88 hospitals got top marks under a new rating systemcreated by two national gay-rights organizations which hope the standardswill result in more compassionate treatment of gay and lesbian patients.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/AP/story/530862.html

-Link to full report on hospitals
http://www.hrc.org/issues/hei.asp


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Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Gay rodeo undermines sexual stereotypes
Philadelphia's gay community sought to dispel some sexual stereotypes whenit held the city's first gay rodeo.
http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSN1228177920080512


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365Gay.com
http://www.365gay.com/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Trial Begins In Gay Ex-Gov. Divorce
Settlement negotiations between former Gov. James McGreevey and hisestranged wife broke down Monday and the two prepared for trial Tuesday in adivorce case that has spawned tell-all books and a series of publicsquabbles.

-Federal Judge Hears Gay Button Case
(Ponce De Leon, Florida) A Florida high school is "trampling the FirstAmendment rights of students who support equal rights for gay people", afederal judge was told on Monday.

-Two-Thirds Of Canadian LGBT Students Feel Unsafe At School
The first national study of LGBT students in Canada hasproduced shocking results in a country that prides itself on diversity.

-Anti-Gay Amendment Heads To Arizona Senate
A proposed amendment that would prevent same-sex couplesin Arizona from marrying received final approval in the House on Monday andif approved in the state Senate will appear on the ballot in November.

-Gay Couple Sues Swedish Government For Marriage Recognition
A gay couple married in Canada has filed suit against theSwedish government for refusing to recognize the marriage.

-Statue To Honor Slain Gay SF Politician
(San Francisco, California) A bronze bust of the first openly gay man tohold a prominent elected office in the United States is going up in CityHall, more than 28 years after he was assassinated.


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The Advocate
http://advocate.com/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Advocate Wins GLAAD Best Magazine Coverage Award
The Advocate was honored by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamationwith the award for Outstanding Magazine -- Overall Coverage at theorganization's 19th annual awards ceremony. Newsweek, Us Weekly,Entertainment Weekly, and CosmoGIRL! were all up for the award, which hashitherto been reserved for non-LGBT media.
http://advocate.com/news_detail_ektid54262.asp

-Austin Elects First Lesbian Council Member
Randi Shade was elected Saturday to become Austin's first openly gay electedcity council member. Shade beat incumbent Jennifer Kim with 64% of the voteto win the Place 3 seat. She was endorsed by the Gay and Lesbian VictoryFund.
http://advocate.com/news_detail_ektid54253.asp

-14 Detained in Malaysian Gay Bust
Police in Penang, Malaysia, detained 14 men Sunday in a gym believed to be afront for a gay club. The Malaysian national newspaper The Star reportedthat vice authorities raided the gym on Saturday, obtaining 1,800 condomsfrom the premises. Assistant commanding officer Azam Abd Hamid said thatused condoms were littered all over the floor. He also said that six menwere discovered naked in three toilet stalls.
http://advocate.com/news_detail_ektid54256.asp


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National Gay News
http://nationalgaynews.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Playboy Plans Move Into Gay Market With Cable VOD
Playboy Enterprises is planning a move into the gay market with softcorecable video-on-demand, XBIZ has learned. With a working title of GayTargeted VOD Package Service, Playboy plans to initially offer Time WarnerCable subscribers 20 hours of gay male programming. The service is slated tobegin operating next month.

-How Long Till You Earn Your First Million?
If you know that Hollywood's top stars can earn $20 million dollars per filmand that the average time to shoot a movie is six months, you won't besurprised to see that their paychecks make the average person's income lookminuscule in comparison. In fact, if these celebrities worked standard8-hour workdays, it would take them less than seven days to earn $1 million.

-Two Percent of Gay Men Bashed Per Year
Dr Thomas Lampinen says the results of a new nine-year study on gaybashingsshow the youngest members of the queer community run the highest risk ofbeing attacked for their sexual orientation. According to the study,entitled "Incidence of and Risk Factors for Sexual Orientation-RelatedPhysical Assault Among Young Men Who Have Sex With Men," queers aged 23 andyounger were bashed three times more frequently than the other studyparticipants.

-Penang: 14 Held, 1,800 Condoms Seized at Gay Joint
Police detained 14 men in a fitness and sauna centre believed to be a frontfor gay activities in Jalan Fettes here. In the 6pm raid on Saturday, policefrom the state anti-vice department also seized 1,800 pieces of condoms fromthe premises. George Town OCPD Asst Comm Azam Abd Hamid said six men, allnaked, were caught in three toilets while the others were found patronisingthe joint.

-Mensuas 2008 Swimsuit Collection
Mensuas announces their 2008 Swimsuit Collection for Men featuring swimsuitsby Baskit, Mensuas, N2N Bodywear and Timoteo. Just in time for summer, thesenew swimsuits are great for the beach or laying by the pool. Mensuas hascarried N2N Bodywear swimsuits for several years. The N2N Bodywear 2008Swimsuits include the Catalina Competitor, Corona Competitor, CosmoCompetitor and the X-Poser. The new and daring designs will sure to get younoticed at the beach.

-R&D Sites Launches GayConsumer.com
A new directory for the gay consumer debuts this summer, aptly named forit's target audience, GayConsumer.com - http://www.gayconsumer.com Thewebsite aims to create a national directory designed to connect gay andlesbian consumers with gay-owned and gay-friendly services, providers andmerchants, and is being launched by gay-owned R&D Sites.

-Day Seeks To Mark Shame On Homophobia
The International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO) is an event designed toheighten awareness of homophobia in societies across the globe. The event isnow in its fourth year. Unlike GLBT Pride, celebrated globally in June,whose mission to foster a healthy acceptance of homosexuality is carried outwith a theme of increasing pride in the gay community, IDAHO is saying thatit is society that must end homophobia. IDAHO acknowledges that homophobiaexists around the world - even state-sponsored homophobia - and its impacteffects all of society negatively.

-Raul Castro's Daughter Spearheads Anti-Homophobia Drive
President Raul Castro's daughter, Mariela, is organizing Cuba's secondanti-homophobia festival this week to boost public awareness of thecountry's long-marginalized gay community, this time with the approval ofher dad's government. "There's political support for this educationalstrategy. It's the best thing that's happened to us," Mariela Castro saidabout the backing the National Center for Sexual Education (CENESEX) sheheads is receiving from Cuba's Communist Party.

-GLBT Historical Society Hosts Exhibit and Event Series with Dykes on Bikes
An exhibition celebrating the mythic place DYKES ON BIKES® holds at theforefront of the annual SF Pride Parade, and in the hearts of millions ofpeople all over the world as an inspirational symbol of queer pride andlesbian power. Dykes on Bikes® powerfully embodies how lesbians have stoodat the forefront of queer pride for 30 years. The exhibit "30 Years at theForefront," hosted by the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Transgender (GLBT)Historical Society, uses a significant anniversary to look back andcommemorate this anchor SF institution that has become internationallyrenowned. The exhibit also looks forward and celebrates the landmark legalvictory Dykes on Bikes® recently won, securing full ownership over its name.

-Vanderbilt's Faculty Senate Calls For Transgender Protection
Vanderbilt University's Faculty Senate has unanimously approved a resolutionasking Vanderbilt Chancellor Nick Zeppos to include protection oftransgender students, faculty and staff in the university'snon-discrimination and anti-harassment policy. The resolution, which was
approved on Monday, May 5, is almost identical to one that was adopted byVanderbilt Student Government and prompted by a petition drive by Vanderbilt'sstudent chapter of the Human Rights Campaign.

-Provincetown Named Best Gay Resort in America
For the third consecutive year, web and magazine publisher PlanetOut hasnamed Provincetown the best domestic gay resort town in its 2008 PlanetOutTravel Awards.Key West and Palm Springs were runners up for the award.
Provincetown innkeepers Park Davis, Jim Rizzo and Dave McGlothlin acceptedthe award on the town's behalf during a ceremony at the 2008 InternationalGay and Lesbian Travel Association's Travel Expo in Las Vegas.


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Marriage Equality News
http://samesexmarriage.typepad.com/weblog/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-California: "I think there is a good chance we are about to face whatcould well be the single most important battle we have ever seen in the LGBTrights movement." That's how Matt Coles, Director of the ACLU LGBT Projectdescribes the epic battle we will face should the California Supreme Courtdecide in our favor on the same sex marriage case later this month. Thismajor conflict will result from the confluence of two events:
The California Supreme Court strikes down state law limiting marriage toopposite-sex couples. Almost simultaneously, voters will weigh in on aballot initiative sponsored by VoteYesMarriage.com to amend the state'sconstitution to outlaw same sex marriage -- undoing the Supreme Courtdecision.

-New York: For many Democratic members of the Assembly, last year's passageof a bill to legalize same-sex marriage was the culmination of years ofbattle and persuasion within their party's ranks, and most of themeventually supported the legislation. For the few Assembly Republicans whoultimately supported the bill, the vote was potentially far more risky: apublic break with their own party on an issue that at the time was stillconsidered in some quarters to be radioactive, potentially evencareer-killing. But the experience of Assemblywoman Teresa R. Saywardsuggests that those fears may be unwarranted. Ms. Sayward, left, athree-term Republican from the North Country, an observant Roman Catholic ina heavily Catholic district, surprised many of her colleagues last year whenshe rose to speak in support of the bill, reflecting on her own experiencescoming to terms with the fact that her son, Glenn, was gay.

-Arizona: A proposed amendment that would prevent same-sex couples in
Arizona from marrying received final approval in the House on Monday and ifapproved in the state Senate will appear on the ballot in November. Theproposed amendment defines marriage as a union between one man and onewoman.


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Pink News - UK
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Human fertilisation bill passes first Commons test
MPs have voted in favour of a major update to human embryology laws despiteopposition from religious MPs.
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill was given its second reading by340 votes to 78, a majority of 262.

-Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority accused of gay prejudice
The body which awards compensation to victims of violent crime rejected aclaim from a gay man because of his sexuality it has been claimed. KennethNeil, from Glasgow, was the victim of a vicious and unprovoked homophobicattack.

-Britain: Conference will tackle LGBT mental health outcomes
A national conference on mental health and well-being for lesbian, gay,bisexual and transgender people will be held in Nottingham later this month.


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Forwarded from Ron Mills
http://www.RonMills.us

After she was exposed, Rep. Kern refused to apologize. In fact, she has evenappeared on television to repeat her outrageous assertions.
http://www.youtube.com/v/tFxk7glmMbo&hl


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Forwarded from Euro-Queer
Contact rays.list@comcast.net for the full article:

-Chicago, NY, SF: May 16-17 Actions for Gay Russians
Gay activists in three U.S. cities will mobilize for vigils on May 16 and 17for IDAHO, International Day Against Homophobia, and the focus will be toapply pressure on the Russian government to grant all necessary permits tothe organizers of Moscow's third gay pride parade, scheduled for late May.
Last year, despite the mayor of Moscow refusing to grant permits to parade,gay marchers from around the world attempted to peaceably take to thestreets for equality and tolerance, and were violently assaulted byultra-nationalist thugs, sending some of the gays, covered in blood, to thehospital. Russian police stood by and did nothing to stop the attacks. Thisyear, before gay Russians again try to exercise their human rightsprotections, activists outside the country will send a message to theKremlin, through vigils at consulates and at gay venues: We are watching howyou treat your gay citizens.
http://mpetrelis.blogspot.com/2008/05/chicago-ny-sf-may-16-17-actions-for-gay.html


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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
Go to the links for the following articles:
Contact rays.list@comcast.net if can't access the article

-Hit TV drama features gay soldiers in 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' tragedy
"You keep your personal life separate from your work life. I just neverthought I'd meet my personal life at work." The storyline of last night's"Grey's Anatomy" brought light to a possible scenario that faces thousandsof partnered gay and lesbian militaryservicemembers under the veil of secrecy required to live under "Don't Ask,Don't Tell":
A terminal illness.
10 USC 654, enacted in 1993, requires a gay member of the military to remaincloseted in order to serve. The law calls for discharge if a servicemembercomes out, or is outed; discovery of a relationship with a person of thesame sex is one example. On a daily basis, the Pentagon fires an estimatedtwo people, joining the ranks of over 12,000 whose careers have been endedunder "Don't Ask."
http://pageoneq.com/news/2008/greys_050908.html

-LGBT-inclusive children's book at risk
Sometimes, I hate being right. It wasn't a stretch of the imagination

to foresee that the new storybook Uncle Bobby's Wedding, by Sarah Brannen,would be a target for the right. I didn't imagine they'd quote me whiledoing so, however. The conservative publication Town Hall just published thearticle "Librarians Against Censorship," by Brent Bozell III. Bozell says:
Already we can predict how the ALA next year will complain about anyobjection to a book called "Uncle Bobby's Wedding," the story of a youngguinea pig who worries that her Uncle Bobby won't play with her anymoreafter he "marries" his boyfriend Jamie. The book ends at the "wedding," withChloe as the enthusiastic flower girl.
http://www.mombian.com/2008/05/10/guinea-pigs-at-risk/

-Polygamy versus polyamory
With some of the commentary on this list about the YFZ ranch incident, Ithought I would comment about the distinctions between polygamy (esp aspracticed by this sect) and the modern theory and practice of polyamory.
Before doing that, let me say that I share with others the concerns aboutexcessive government and police action in this case. While I'm nosympathizer of the Fundamentalist LDS church and its patriarchs, theevidence I've looked at shows that Texas law enforcement authorities, thecourts and social services extended their reach in its wholesale seizure ofchildren and their mothers from the YFZ compound, as well as rushing theirinvestigation (witness the revelation after the fact that the telephonecalls which started this mess turned out to be fraudulent). We cannotdefend individual rights by engaging in collective prosecution.
That being said, we also need to be careful in comparing the FLDS practiceof polygamy (or "plural marriage"), and the theology/ideology behind it,with the theory and practice of polyamory. One thing to remember is thatFLDS plural marriage is sustained in an isolated theocratic autocracy, whilepolyandry emerged and embraces the values of pluralism and democracy.


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