GLBT DIGEST May 15, 2008

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

-Television
As a Lovers' Kiss Turns a World Around
If you are between the ages of 13 and 87, the last time you met anyone whodescribed herself as a loyal viewer of daytime soap operas you were probablystill hoarding quarters for pay phones and maintaining a casual position onsunscreen. Soaps have been shedding audiences for years now. The young,especially, have found their absurdities elsewhere; there is almost nothingput forth by the writers of "All My Children" that could, in a stupiditycontest, outrank a single moment of "The Hills."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/15/arts/television/15soap.html?scp=4&sq=gay&st=nyt


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Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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-New Jersey ex-governor says he can't pay alimony
Limited income, few assets described in divorce case
The nation's first openly gay governor tried to convince the judge in hisdivorce case Wednesday that he's too poor to pay alimony, saying he's beenfinancially crippled by his resignation and marital troubles.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/sfl-flagaygov0515sbmay15,0,6283717.story

-Midnight Cowboy a retro trip
Released to great acclaim in 1969 and the winner of three Oscars, MidnightCowboy is a superb classic film with a very strange twist or two.
Although this film was a big shocker back in the day, it now seems as if thefilm was targeted to a naive audience with no clue of what the future wouldbring. In today's world, a male prostitute and a homeless man are notshocking.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/entertainment/events/sfl-fltl0515rev-midnightcowboytlbemay15,0,401605.story


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Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/
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-Lutherans to ordain married gay man
Bishop warns of 'irreparable damage' to church
http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/425394

-ACLU launches 'Get Busy, Get Equal'
The American Civil Liberties Union recently launched a gay rights resourcewebsite called "Get Busy, Get Equal." The site gives the community the toolsneeded to create change towards equality.
http://www.expressgaynews.com/blog/index.cfm?type=blog&start=5/13/08&end=5/16/08#18251


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

-Nervous Excitement In Advance Of Calif. Gay Ruling Today
Both sides in the gay marriage debate will be watching California's highestcourt today to see if the nation's biggest state goes the way ofMassachusetts and legalizes same-sex marriage.

-Outrage Over T-Shirt Linking Obama To Curious George
The publisher of the popular children book's series "Curious George" isconsidering legal action against a Georgia bar owner for selling T-shirtsthat link Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama to the inquisitivemonkey.

-Third House Loss Has GOP Fearful For Fall
Stunned House Republicans vow campaign changes and are questioning thewisdom of attacking Democratic presidential front-runner Barack Obama incongressional races after their third straight election defeat inonce-friendly territory.

-Edwards Endorses Obama
Democrat John Edwards endorsed former rival Barack Obama on Wednesday, amove designed to help solidify support for the party's likely presidentialnominee even as Hillary Rodham Clinton refuses to give up her long-shotcandidacy.

-Beaten, Raped And Tortured Uganda Lesbian Begs For UK Asylum
A woman who says she was raped, tortured and beaten after being imprisonedfor homosexuality in her homeland of Uganda is fighting to stay in Britain,where she fled for safety.

-Priest Leaves Parish After Furor Over Gay Support Group
Only weeks after he was appointed parish priest at St. Michael the ArchangelChurch in McKinney, Texas, the Rev. Arthur Mallinson has resigned in thewake of an email and blog campaign to oust him over his involvement with anow defunct Web site that supported gay priests.

-First Gay Legislator In Illinois Dies
Former state Rep. Larry McKeon - the first openly gay member of the IllinoisGeneral Assembly - has died.

-Gay Gov. Testifies At Divorce Trial
The nation's first openly gay governor has begun testifying in his divorcecase, saying he proposed writing a book with his estranged wife, but sheturned him down and later wrote her own memoir.


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

-The Marrying Man
Four years after he pushed same-sex marriage forward in the national debate,Gavin Newsom is waiting for his answer in the California supreme court. Soare we.
http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid52869.asp


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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
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-Misogyny I Won't Miss
As the Democratic nomination contest slouches toward a close, it's time totake stock of what I will not miss.
I will not miss seeing advertisements for T-shirts that bear the slogan"Bros before Hos." The shirts depict Barack Obama (the Bro) and HillaryClinton (the Ho) and are widely sold on the Internet.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/14/AR2008051403090.html

-California's top court to rule on gay marriage
Both sides in the gay marriage debate will be watching California's highestcourt Thursday to see if the nation's biggest state goes the way ofMassachusetts and legalizes same-sex marriage.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/15/AR2008051500589.html?hpid=moreheadlines

-Jodie Foster Ends Her 14-year Lesbian Relationship?
American actress Jodie Foster has split with her long-time girlfriend CydneyBernard, according to reports. The rumours that Foster was having arelationship with the 54-year-old film producer had become public recently,although those in Hollywood, who are close to Foster, had known about the14-year relationship for many years.


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National Gay News
http://nationalgaynews.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/
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-Will Gay Delegate War Spoil The Race?
With only six primaries left - and Barack Obama's resounding lead over rivalHillary Clinton - many people have basically declared the delegate selectionover. That, however, would be premature. While the majority of the statesand overseas regions' delegate numbers have been determined, most of themmust still decide which individuals will head to Denver this August. haveruled which candidate gets how many delegates, most of them still mustdecide who will head to Denver this August. And, like so many things in thiselection, there's loads of drama surrounding the process. Infighting,allegations, personal homophobia and potentially impotent DNC "gay delegategoals" may derail the whole process.

-Gay TV Channel Caught Up in RuPaul "Drag" Net
MTV Networks' Logo, which targets lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgenderviewers, has greenlighted a reality competition series starring noted dragqueen RuPaul. "RuPaul's Drag Race" will feature contestants competing tobecome "America's next superstar drag queen," with RuPaul serving as host,mentor and judge. Online voters will help pick one of the contestants atwww.RuPaulsDragRace.com

-Sneakiness Wins in Michigan Court By Deb Price
When Michigan voters headed to the polls in 2004 to decide the fate of aproposed amendment to the state constitution, they'd been told the followingby its lead proponent: "(This) has nothing to do with taking benefitsaway. This is about marriage between a man and a woman," said MarleneElwell, campaign director of Citizens for the Protection of Marriage. CPM'sWebsite declared the group's purpose was "for defining marriage as the unionof one man and one woman. Period."

-Girls Love Gay Male Porn
i just got back from a weekend at the University of California at SantaBarbara, where I attended "Console-ing Passions: An International Conferenceon Television, Audio, Video, New Media, and Feminism). It was three days ofgeeking out with academics about TV, the Internet, and various kinds ofmedia studies-who knew that people are getting their Ph.D.'s in BattlestarGalactica and The Hills these days? Naturally, the first panel I went to wasall about porn, with four scholars presenting papers on lesbian identitypolitics and pornography, the 1980s cult hit Café Flesh and its '90s sequel,the industry in Vietnam, and bad-boy director/current Justice Departmenttarget Max Hardcore, that last topic featuring the best title ever:
"Scrunchies, Braces, and Throat Fucking: Performances of Girlhood in GonzoPorn."

-"Only Gay Men Eye Me Up," says Posh
English pop singer Victoria Beckham has revealed that she no longer attractsstraight guys - as the only men who eye her up are gay. The Spice Girlrecently confessed to the fact that she attracts gays like a moth to alight. "All the men that like me are gay. It's true. I have a really stronggaydar. I do love gay men though," The Sun quoted her, as saying.

-First Openly Gay Illinois Lawmaker Dies
Former state Rep. Larry McKeon, the first openly gay member of the IllinoisGeneral Assembly, died Tuesday, House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currieannounced Wednesday on the state House floor. McKeon, 63, a ChicagoDemocrat, did not seek re-election in 2006 because of health struggles thatincluded cancer and an AIDS-related digestive illness.

-Kentucky Gay Civil Rights Leader Elected to National Organization
Jordan Palmer, co-founder and president of Kentucky Equality Federation hasbeen unanimously elected to the Board of Directors of Marriage Equality USA.
Marriage Equality USA was founded in 1998 and has chapters operating acrossthe nation. Marriage Equality USA seeks to "secure legally recognized civilmarriage for all, at the federal and state level, without regard to genderidentity or sexual orientation."

-More Bang For Your Buck
he Aurora Group is delighted to announce the recent disbursement of almost$45,000 to GLBT community groups and projects as a result of a successfulfundraising year. Aurora continues its support of both Twenty10 GLBT YouthSupport and the Gay and Lesbian Counselling Service NSW (GLCS) as mainbeneficiaries, with disbursements of $15,000 and $10.000 respectively. Thisis a significant contribution to the ability of these groups to provideessential services to the community.


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

-New report claims 86 countries criminalise same-sex acts
The International Lesbian and Gay Association's 2008 report onstate-sponsored homophobia says that being lesbian or gay is risking jailtime in 86 countries and death penalty in seven.

-Britain's out MEP to march in Turkey for gay rights
Michael Cashman with join authors, journalists and human rights defenders ona march against homophobia and transphobia in Ankara on Saturday. Mr Cashmanis one of only two out gay MEPs in the 785-member European Parliament.

-IDAHO will be marked with "gravitas, concern, determination, wit and irony"
The organisers of the International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO), havesaid they are delighted at the range of events taking place across thecountry. 17th May is IDAHO.

-Islamic influence on UN Human Rights Council worries humanists
The Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association (GALHA) has written to ForeignOffice minister Lord Malloch-Brown about the activities of the Organisationof Islamic Conference.


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

-Moscow Authorities Ban Gay Picket In Support of Criminal Prosecution ofMoscow Mayor
Pride organizers to conduct a press conference on Friday to coincide withIDAHO day
The Prefecture of the Central Administrative Area of Moscow has refusedpermission to stage a small demonstration by gay men and women in front ofthe General Prosecution office in downtown Moscow on Saturday May 17 tocoincide with the fourth International Day Against Homophobia. Organisersand participants had planned to demand the starting of criminalinvestigation against Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov on the basis of Article 149of Russian Criminal Code for systematic preventing of the conduct of publicactions by representatives of the gay community. The organisers hadintentionally decreased the number of participants to a maximum of tenhoping to get authorization for the picket with the main slogan "Article 149has not been repealed!" The picket was supposed to take place at 1 pm onSaturday.

-2nd. EuropeanTransgender Council transforms into 1st. global conference oftransgender activists
More than 200 transgender activists from 5 continents came together from May2nd. ? 4th. for the 2nd. European Transgender Council `Make Human RightsWork´ at Rathaus Schöneberg (Schöneberg Town Hall) Berlin. Participants camefrom 83 groups and 38 countries: in addition to almost all western, southernand northern European countries the list also includes - among others -Russia, USA, Peru, Japan, Namibia, Kyrgyzstan, the Ukraine, Israel, Armenia,Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgian Republic, Serbia, Iceland, Romania, Croatia,and White Russia. Human rights issues, anti-discrimination legislation andan exchange of experiences on an international level were the centralconcerns of the Council.


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HeartStrong
http://www.heartstrong.org
Contact rays.list@comcast.net for the full article

The children removed from the fundamentalist Mormon offshoot/rebelliongroup in Texas are used to religious homeschooling. And now, the state ofTexas has instructed those providing foster care to continue to homeschoolthe kids in order to precent further culture shock. There is some logicto that line of thinking but what has not been discussed by the media ishow any of the young people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgenderare dealing with the brainwashing they have endured from their families.
Because the majority of the agencies providing foster care for these kidsare religious, HeartStrong has expressed its concern to each agenciesregarding further damaging the development of any of the students who aredealing with being GLBT by furthering any additional faith-basedanti-GLBT teachings in homeschooling lessons.
HeartStrong will release any and all responses to its efforts to bring tolight the plight of the GLBT young people continuing to be religiouslyhomeschooled.
HS Mission Statement
HeartStrong is a non sectarian organization established to provideoutreach to gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and other personsadversely affected by the influence of all denominations of religiouseducational institutions. HeartStrong is also committed to educating thepublic about the persecution of GLBT's and others at religious educationalinstitutions.
http://www.heartstrong.org


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From Transgender Equality
Contact rays.list@comcast.net for the full article

-COLAGE Releases Groundbreaking Resource on Transgender Families
San Francisco, May 14 , 2008 - COLAGE is proud to announce the release ofits Kids of Trans Resource Guide, the first of its kind, which was writtenby and for people with transgender parents. While many transgender peoplehave children, very few resources exist for transgender parents and theirfamilies. Having a transgender parent can often feel isolating orchallenging. This crucial resource will provide the growing community ofchildren, youth, and adults with one or more transgender parent(s) muchneeded information about their experience. "When my father explained that(s)he was becoming a woman, (s)he handed me a pamphlet about transgenderissues," says Monica Canfield-Lenfest, COLAGE Kids of Trans Fellow. "Ireally wanted a pamphlet for me. Ten years later, that resource finallyexists." The Kids of Trans Resource Guide offers a range of perspectiveswith valuable quotes from the experts themselves - people of all ages withtransgender parents.
www.colage.org


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Lambda Legal's Clock In Pledge-a-Thon for Workplace Equality is less than 24 hours away!
Supporters have turned out in record numbers from all over thecountry. With over 4,000 individual pledges, we're sending a powerfulmessage to employers and lawmakers that workplace discrimination isunacceptable. Help us take that number to 5,000 by tomorrow, May 15. Postthe pledge form at your workplace and collect signatures. Then fax the formto 212-809-0055 by 9:00 pm EST tomorrow, Thursday, May 15 so we can tallythem up. Or you can take your form to one of our Pledge-a-Thon Drop-InCenters. There is still time for a final push to get others to sign thepledge. Together we can pulverize workplace discrimination!
http://ga4.org/campaign/clockin


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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

Sex And The American Mom: 1 In 3 Report Getting Action On The Side
You or someone you know is having an affair We know, it soundssurprising, shocking even, but apparently that is the caseCookie Magazineand "AOL Body" did a survey on the subject and 30,000 people respondedAsfar as surveys go, that is a big number, and it's even bigger when youconsider that their questions were aimed solely at married women withchildren ... Read the rest at HuffingtonPost.com
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/colleen-dealy-and-taylor-baldwin/sex-and-the-american-mom_b_101403.html

-Campus Pride Summer Leadership Camp
Finally the camp you have been waiting for! Campus Pride organizes thesecond annual Summer Leadership Camp for LGBT and Ally college students. Thefive-day camp experience works to develop stronger undergraduate studentleaders and safer, more LGBT-friendly colleges and universities.
Participants have the opportunity to learn valuable campus organizingskills, coalition building and strategies for creating change at collegesand universities.
CAMP is for you if you want:
*A phenomenal leadership and personal growth experience inclusive of gender identity/expression and sexual orientation.
*Key leadership concepts to becoming a stronger LGBT & Ally leader.
*Effective strategies and skill training for grassroots coalition building.
*Access to premiere faculty and national leaders in social justice, humanrights and civil rights advocacy.
*Successful campus organizing practices and the chance to explore challenges confronting your campus.
*Helpful resources and innovative tools from national organizations.
*A personal action plan for your campus to become more LGBT-friendly.
* Opportunity to connect and work with peer student leaders from across thecountry.
*An inclusive approach for celebrating diversity and motivating others.
*An open, safe environment to express yourself.
*Fun, entertainment and lasting relationships.
WHEN
Saturday, July 19, 2008 10:00 AM -
Thursday, July 24, 2008 1:00 PM
WHERE
Glen Complex
Towson University
8000 York Road
Towson, Maryland 21252

-From American Family Association
McDonald's is still trying to distort their support for the homosexualagenda by twisting words. While McDonald's says it is not a member of theNational Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, the NGLCC website proudlylists them as a "Corporate Partner and Organizational Ally." In a telephonecall from McDonald's Vice-President Jack Daly, on May 2, he confirmed to AFAthat it gave $20,000 to the NGLCC.
In addition, Daly told AFA that Richard Ellis, vice president ofcommunications for McDonald's, is a "gay man" and personally approved the$20,000 donation to the NGLCC. Mr. Daly also claimed that Richard Ellis waselected to the NGLCC board as a private citizen and not a representative ofMcDonald's. Yet, Richard Ellis is listed on the NGLCC website as VicePresident of Communications, McDonald's USA.

-Calling all parents, grandparents and caregivers of gender variant andtransgender children (under 18)-we need your participation!
TYFA is sponsoring an online survey to gather statistical information aboutour children and families. Your participation is confidential and anonymous.
You may answer as many or as few questions you are comfortable with.Theintention of the survey is to gather data from parents, grandparents orprimary caregivers of gender variant and transgender children under the ageof 18. This would include children who identify as transgender, bothgenders, a third gender or neither gender. We hope to include a broadsection of children with gender expression that is perceived as 'different'from their assigned birth sex. [...] Here's the link to our survey:
http://www.questionpro.com/akira/TakeSurvey?id=909229

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