GLBT DIGEST - January 30, 2009

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

-Judge: Anti-gay marriage donors must be public
By STEVE LAWRENCE
A federal judge denied a request Thursday to keep secret the names of donors to California's anti-gay marriage initiative, saying the public had a right to know who gave money to state ballot measures.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/29/AR2009012903263.html

-Same-sex rights could be expanded in Wash. state
By RACHEL LA CORTE
Adrienne Purcella's life has changed a lot in the past year: She got a job as a police officer and officially entered a domestic partnership with Libby Cope.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/29/AR2009012900946.html


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South Florida Blade
http://www.floridablade.com/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Saddlebacking!
By Rebecca Armendariz
Dan Savage has done it again! Fresh off the heels of the Rick Warren inauguration controversy, Dan's readers have elected an alternate definition for the word "Saddlebacking" (of the Saddleback Church that Warren started). "Saddlebacking" is "the phenomenon of Christian teens engaging in unprotected anal sex in order to preserve their virginities."
http://www.floridablade.com/blog/index.cfm?blog_id=23721


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

-Life on the Hill: Frank's new aide settles into job
By Lisa Neff
He's lobbied. He's testified. And now he's working on the Hill, a new member of U.S. Rep. Barney Frank's team in The Rayburn House Office Building. His title, which Sanchez believes will fit on a business card, is "legislative assistant for LGBT, healthcare, labor, veterans, census and Social Security issues.
http://www.365gay.com/living/life-on-the-hill-frank%E2%80%99s-new-aide-settles-into-job/

-Judge issues stern warning in nasty lesbian custody case
By 365gay Newscenter Staff
In a long-running legal dispute between two women over parental visitation rights, a Vermont Family Court judge Thursday issued a stern rebuke to a Virginia woman over her latest attempt to deny her former partner visitation rights to their child.
http://www.365gay.com/news/judge-issues-stern-warning-in-nasty-lesbian-custody-case/

-Nigeria moves to ban gay marriage
By 365gay Newscenter Staff
Even though homosexuality is illegal in Nigeria, the country's Parliament is considering legislation that would make it a crime for two people of the same-sex to marry.
http://www.365gay.com/news/nigeria-moves-to-ban-gay-marriage/

-Utah gay rights bills get off to bad start
By 365gay Newscenter Staff
Legislation that would allow same-sex couples to sue for wrongful death damages has been defeated in a state senate committee. It was the first of six LGBT bills filed in the legislature this session.
http://www.365gay.com/news/utah-gay-rights-bills-get-off-to-bad-start/

-Psychoanalysts call for end to military gay ban
By 365gay Newscenter Staff
The American Psychoanalytic Association is calling on Congress to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the law the bars gays from serving openly in the military.
http://www.365gay.com/news/psychoanalysts-call-for-end-to-military-gay-ban/

-National gay rights conference opens in Denver
By 365gay Newscenter Staff
Some 2,000 LGBT civil rights activists from across the country are meeting in Denver to plan strategies on the national and local level.The Creating Change conference, sponsored by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, opened Wednesday and will run through the weekend.
http://www.365gay.com/news/national-gay-rights-conference-opens-in-denver/

-Gay foe Palin launches PAC
By The Associated Press
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin launched a political action committee Tuesday to help support candidates for federal and state office.
http://www.365gay.com/news/gay-foe-palin-launches-pac/


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

-Colombia Rules Gay Couples Must Be Granted Same Rights as Straight
In a historic decision handed down Wednesday, Colombia's Constitutional Court ruled same-sex couples must be granted the same rights as heterosexuals in common-law marriages. The court's decision means Colombia's gay couples will be awarded dozens of rights that straight, unmarried couples have enjoyed for years and follows other recent rulings that have won the nation's same-sex couples inheritance, pension, health, and social security rights.
http://advocate.com/news_detail_ektid71941.asp

-Giuliano Steps Down From GLAAD
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation announced Wednesday that its president, Neil Giuliano, will step down later this year to pursue "personal interests" and complete a book about his personal and professional life. Giuliano has been president of GLAAD for 3-1/2 years. Prior to his work with GLAAD, Giuliano was mayor of Tempe, Ariz., and was a university administrator and faculty associate at Arizona State University.
http://advocate.com/news_detail_ektid71928.asp

-Miami No Place to Pee for Transgender People
When it comes to safe bathrooms for people identifying as transgender, Miami is no paradise.
The Florida city has the fewest safe toilets of all major U.S. municipalities, reports the Miami New Times. The newspaper based its pronouncement on a list originated by Safe2Pee.org, a group that tracks gender-neutral facilities across the country -- which include bathrooms that aren't marked with men/women signs or are labeled unisex. Many transgender people have experienced harassment, violence, and discrimination when utilizing a public bathroom that is specifically designated for either men or women.
http://advocate.com/news_detail_ektid72052.asp


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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

-The Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference
(MBLGTACC) will hold its 17th annual conference Feb. 13-15, 2009 at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Bloomington, home of the world-renowned Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, was recently ranked by The Advocate as the nation's No. 1 gay-friendly small town vacation destination. Indiana University was included in The Advocate's top 20 list of schools for LGBT students nationwide.
http://www.mblgtacc.org
http://www.mblgtacc.org/


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

-MEPs worried about trans violence in Honduras
By Staff Writer, PinkNews.co.uk
Members of the European Parliament are demanding that the EU raise the issue of violence against trans people with the Honduras government.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-10958.html

-People who reject Church teaching on homosexuality should leave says bishop
By Tony Grew
A Roman Catholic leader in Malta has said that church members who do not accept "Christ's teachings" should leave altogether. Mario Grech, the Bishop of Gozo, commented after the first openly gay candidate for parliament in Malta protested against the Pope's hostility to homosexuality by leaving the Roman Catholic Church.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-10932.html


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Daily Queer News
www.dailyqueernews.com
Go to the links for the following articles:

-Spanish Supreme Court Deadlocked Over Allowing Familiesto Opt Out of Homosexual Indoctrination
Matthew Cullinan Hoffman | Life Site News
MADRID, January 27, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Spanish Supreme Court has been deadlocked for two days over whether or not to permit parents to remove their children from a government civics program that indoctrinates students with homosexual ideology. The program, entitled "Education for Citizenship," instructs teachers to "revise the student's attitude towards homosexuality" and to teach children to reject "existing discrimination for reason of sex, origin, social differences, affective-sexual, or whatever other type" and to carry out a "critical evaluation of the social and sexual division of labor and racist, xenophobic, sexist, and homophobic social prejudices." The Catholic Church and numerous individuals have protested the program, which is mandatory throughout Spain, including the nation's private schools, although the latter have the option of ignoring individual directives in the program. The case before the Spanish Supreme Court is an appeal of a decision of the highest court of the Spanish Province of Andalucía, which ruled that people may sue to prevent their children from being indoctrinated in the program, but later ruled against a particular group of families seeking exemption. Read more

-Louisiana Court of Appeal Upholds Benefits for Same-Sex Partners of New Orleans City Employees
Lambda Legal
'The appeal by ADF left New Orleans city employees and their families in unnecessary legal suspense for a year.'
The Louisiana Court of Appeal, Fourth District, has upheld a Lambda Legal victory in lower court that the city of New Orleans was within its authority when it granted health benefits to domestic partners of city employees and established a domestic partner registry for city residents. The January 15 decision came a year to the day that the Civil District Court for Orleans Parish ruled that the State Constitution does indeed grant the city of New Orleans the authority to offer health benefits to the domestic partners of city employees and maintain a registry of domestic partners for city residents. The anti-gay Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) appealed that ruling, saying that the registry violated state laws prohibiting marriage for same-sex couples and that local governments lack the authority to govern such arrangements, but the Court of Appeal rejected those arguments. The three-judge panel wrote: "The registry ordinance has no effect on the Civil Code articles relating to marriage, creates no obligations between the parties who choose to register, and provides neither an enforcement mechanism nor a cause of action for which redress may be sought in courts of this state." Read more

-Rights Groups Release Updated Guide for New York Same-Sex Couples Married Out of State
Lambda Legal
Lambda Legal, Empire State Pride Agenda, New York Civil Liberties Union and the American Civil Liberties Union have released a guide outlining government protections and obligations for same-sex couples in New York who married out of state. The updated guide is released as the first anniversary of Martinez v. County of Monroe draws near, and in light of last week's decision in Lewis v. New York State Dept. of Civil Service - both notable appellate court rulings that upheld government recognition of out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples.
The document, titled: Your Government Respects Your Marriage: Developments in New York State Agency Recognition of Same-Sex Couples' Out-of-State Marriages, details many of the ways state agencies around New York accord legal respect to married same-sex couples. Lambda Legal, NYCLU, Empire State Pride Agenda and ACLU worked closely with state agencies to confirm and clarify the legal rights afforded to same-sex couples married out of state. The summary offers an overview of some of these statewide protections. "The guide is a crucial primer for same-sex couples who are recognized as spouses in New York," said Susan Sommer, senior counsel at Lambda Legal, who has litigated many of the cases confirming marriage respect for same-sex couples. "It shows significant areas in which these couples now are protected, ranging from access to health insurance, to accurate birth certificates for children born to same-sex couples, to important workers' compensation benefits if tragedy strikes. But until New Yorkers in same-sex relationships can marry in their home state, they are still vulnerable to discrimination." Read more


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HIV Leadership Forum
The time has come to empower and mobilize our community!
When we opened the list-serve on January 20, 2009, it was intentionally done without fanfare. We wanted to see what other individuals, mostly LEAP graduates, wanted to contribute and share with other AIDS activists/ advocates throughout the country. This moderated list-serve provides us all an opportunity to communicate with one another while reducing the number of e-mails that often clutter up our inboxes. [...] Please encourage other AIDS activists/advocates to enlist and participate.Subscribe:
HIV_Leadership_Forum-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

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