Saturday, June 06, 2009

GLBT DIGEST - June 06, 2009

**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:

Challenging Sex Taboos, With Help From the Koran
By ROBERT F. WORTH
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates
WEDAD LOOTAH does not look like a sexual activist. A Muslim and a native Emirati, she wears a full-length black niqab — with only her brown eyes showing through narrow slits — and sprinkles her conversation with quotes from the Koran.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/06/world/middleeast/06dubai.html?scp=3&sq=gay&st=cse


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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/

Cheney Supports Gay Marriage
Former vice president Dick Cheney this week voiced his support for same-sex marriage, as long as it is handled by the states and not the federal government. Cheney, whose daughter has a longtime female partner, said at the National Press Club that "people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish, any kind of arrangement they wish."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/05/AR2009060503423.html

The Last Act
By Amanda Long
His death was unexpected. So was my unusual eulogy. I killed at my best friend's funeral. Everyone was still in shock over John's sudden death. At 38, he had just run a marathon and received a job promotion. His naughty, hilarious e-mails were still in our inboxes. Some who knew John were angry that they'd lost touch with him. Others grappled with fears that it was suicide. (It wasn't: Word of his heart condition came later.)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/29/AR2009052901622.html


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Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/public/us
Go to the links for the following articles:

Judicial 'Activism' Isn't the Issue
By JEFF ROWES
Liberals and conservatives both show too much deference to Congress. The growing dispute between conservatives and liberals over the Supreme Court nomination of Sonia Sotomayor obscures a more troubling point of agreement: The government should almost always win.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124425367341590989.html


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Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

Companies pull advertising after Calif. radio hosts refer to transgender people as 'freaks'
Bank of America, Verizon, Chipotle and other companies have pulled advertising from a Sacramento radio station after talk show hosts referred to transgender people as "freaks" with mental disorders.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-us-radio-station-transgender,0,1815731.story


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Steve Rothaus
www.MiamiHerald.com/gay
Go to the links for the following articles:

Video | Hulk Hogan interrogates Glenn Douglas Packard: On the 1 to 10 gay scale, where are you at?
The naked truth about Brooke Hogan’s roomie, dancer-choreographer Glenn Douglas Packard
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/video-the-interrogation-of-glenn-douglas-packard-hulk-hogan-keeps-an-eye-out-on-brooke.html

Gay-straight West Point alliance to Obama: Don’t expel Dan Choi and other gay/lesbian soldiers
KNIGHTS OUT CALLS FOR PRESIDENT TO ISSUE STOP-LOSS ORDER
The following statement was released today from Knights Out: Knights Out, an organization of 400 straight and gay West Point graduates, former staff and faculty, and allies, respectfully calls on our President to sign a stop-loss order immediately to allow Lieutenant Dan Choi, and all other gay and lesbian soldiers, to continue to serve without risk of expulsion under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/gay-straight-west-point-alliance-to-obama-dont-expel-dan-choi-and-other-gaylesbian-soldiers.html


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

U.S. grants asylum to gay Cuban
HIV immigrant ban stalled approval
By LOU CHIBBARO JR.
U.S. immigration officials have granted political asylum to a gay man from Cuba who said he would face anti-gay persecution and internment in an AIDS sanatorium because of his HIV-positive status if forced to return to his homeland.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/news/national/5929.cfm

Florida: Students protest in Weston over teacher’s anti-gay remarks
Cypress Bay High School students learn real-life lesson in activism
By DMITRY RASHNITSOV
A group of approximately 30 students took to the suburban streets of Weston in protest of GLBT rights, calling attention to anti-gay comments made public at Cypress Bay High School.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/news/localnews/5908.cfm

South Florida must take a step forward in activism
By TONY ADAMS
During a recent trip to New York City, I attended a rally to protest the California court decision to uphold Prop 8, and I got into a lively discussion about religion with the men carrying the “Dignity” banner. When the parade reached Union Square, I jostled for photo-op positioning, inside a circle of well-pierced goth girls debating Obama: friend or foe? Later, I was part of a large group of gay bloggers weighing the merits of a march on Washington. Daily, I sift through hundreds of email messages parsing the term “Civil Rights” in terms of comparing the black struggle with the gay struggle. The fine points of the dissemination of the President’s proclamation were presented to me as possible evidence of our low rung status in his administration.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/view/editorial/5914.cfm

Oh What a Riot!
Can we talk about the 2009 Stonewall Street Festival, please?
By Marc A. Hansen
40 years ago, under the trials and turbulence of the end of the 60’s, Judy Garland passed away and a large group of Drag Queens & Lesbians after morning her passing went to a little bar called The Stonewall Inn. The police raided that gay bar.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/view/columns/5912.cfm


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

BofA, Verizon Ax Ads From KRXQ
By Michelle Garcia
Eight companies have pulled advertising from a Sacramento, Calif., radio station after the hosts of a morning talk show encouraged violence against transgender kids.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid88535.asp

Virtual Gays Say "I Do"
By Amita Parashar
Gays and lesbians can now get married all over the world -- the virtual world, at least. After playing The Sims 3 for a week, Lyle Masaki at AfterElton.com discovered that gay couples can now marry. Earlier versions of the game only allowed same-sex couples to move in together and declare unions.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid88531.asp

Four Teens Charged as Adults in Locker Room Sex Assault
Four Tampa, Fla., teens charged with sexually assaulting a 13-year-old boy in a locker room multiple times over a two-month period will be tried as adults.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid88510.asp


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

New England may see long-term boost from gay marriage
By 365gay Newswire
New England might attract a new, young, “creative class” - thanks to marriage equality in every state but Rhode Island.
http://www.365gay.com/news/new-england-may-see-long-term-boost-from-gay-marriage/

San Angelo mayor resigns to be with gay partner
By 365gay Newswire
San Angelo, Texas residents were surprised this past week when Mayor J.W. Lown resigned from his office to be with his partner in Mexico. Lown, who was re-elected for a fourth term by a landslide vote, is helping his partner, a non-U.S. citizen, get a visa.
http://www.365gay.com/news/san-angelo-mayor-resigns-to-be-with-gay-partner/


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

Parents complain over school assembly on gay issues
By Jessica Geen
A number of parents at a Kent school have complained after gay relationships were mentioned at an assembly. Children at Bromstone Primary listened to a song by Elton John and were told what being gay means as part of an assembly on bullying.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12733.html

Gordon Brown's reshuffle results in three openly gay cabinet figures
By Jessica Geen
Openly gay MP Ben Bradshaw has been appointed as the new culture secretary, replacing Andy Burnham, who is to take over his role as health secretary. The latest reshuffle means that there will be three openly gay figures in the cabinet, as Peter Mandelson is currently the business secretary and Nick Brown is the chief whip.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12734.html

LGBT group claims Iraq is waging a 'campaign of violence and murder' against gays
An Iraqi gay group has said it has evidence the Iraqi government is involved with militia groups advocating violence and murder towards gays. Iraqi LGBT also described a statement from the Baghdad US Embassy as "offensive and insulting".
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12729.html

Comment: Is Obama all talk and no action on gay issues?
Impatience is growing amongst the USA’s gay and lesbian community over President Barack Obama’s slow approach to tackling the LGBT issues he promised to address.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12743.html

Southwark votes in first openly gay mayor
The first openly gay mayor of Southwark, south-east London, has been elected. Councillor Jeff Hook, whose full title will be The Worshipful The Mayor of Southwark, will take on the role for the 2009-10 period with his civil partner as his official consort.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12731.html

Scottish parliament passes hate crime law to protect gays
Members of the Scottish Parliament have voted to pass legislation to protect gay, trans and disabled people from hate crime. The new law means targeting victims because of their sexual orientation, gender identity or disability will become an aggravating factor and is likely to lead to heavier sentences.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12732.html

Former Mr Gay Newcastle among contestants on Big Brother
A former Mr Gay Newcastle is among the gay contestants on this year's Big Brother. Twenty-two-year-old Charlie Drummond describes himself as "camp as Christmas".
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12727.html


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

Arizona Lawmakers Move to End Domestic Partner Benefits
Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services | Tucson, Arizona | The Arizona Daily Star
State lawmakers are moving to strip the domestic partners of state and university employees of the health insurance coverage they gained just a year ago. A provision in the state budget would legally define “dependents” of state employees who are entitled to coverage as a spouse or a child younger than 19 — or younger than 23 if a full-time student. Changing the law would override regulations adopted last year that added domestic partners and their children to the list.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7905/

Gay Youths Coming Out of the Closet and Onto the Web
Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah | Tribune reporter | Chicago Tribune
Moments before Isaiah Freeman-Schub left three years ago to study abroad in Paris, he picked up his laptop computer and wrote a life-changing blog entry. “I must disclose that I am a Martha Stewart-watching, fashion-abiding, flower-arranging, boxer-brief- wearing, hair-styling, … Rachel Ray recipe-cooking, vodka-drinking, nail-filing, exfoliated, pec-toning, pocket square-sporting, football-abhorring, Queer-as-Folk- viewing, Kelly-Clarkson- listening, accessory-coordinat ing, fitness-obsessed, Boystown-going, candle-lighting, fruit fly-leading, necktie-tying, pinky-extending, mirror-looking, GQ-reading, Jake Gyllenhaal-lusting, blow-drying, man-loving FAIRY.”
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7904/

Nice Try, Dick
By Mark Morford | SF Gate Columnist | San Francisco Chronicle
Sorry, Dick. You can’t have it. You can’t have even a moment of credit, a glimpse of sympathy, any sort of merciful forgiveness just because you sort of, kind of half-assedly came out in support of gay marriage, again, even though you actually didn’t. Here’s what you do get: a sidelong look of momentary disbelief, a quick glance in your direction as you sit in your puddle of sour irrelevance on the sidelines of modern culture, as the rest of the thoughtful, open-hearted human race leaves you in the embittered dust. Hey, you made your bed of nails, Dick. You get to impale yourself on it.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7903/

Gay Marriage Dominates Online, Ignored Offline
On Top Magazine
Coverage of gay marriage continues to dominate the conversation online but is being roundly ignored by traditional offline media sources, according to newly released New Media Index figures by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7900/


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[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net ]
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FLORIDA DIGEST - June 06, 2009

**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.


~~FLORIDA GLBT NEWS~~

Equality Florida
http://eqfl.org/

"No Excuses. No Delays." Do we really mean it?
by Nadine Smith, Executive Director
At a recent speaking engagement, I asked a group of people, "What would the world be like if, from the day you were born, prejudice had never touched your lives?" No homophobic bullying in school. Supportive families at homes No trans-bashing humor on TV. No workplace discrimination. Equal treatment of all families regardless or orientation or gender identity. No closet, ever, because you had never, ever needed one. Most of the people responded by talking about new laws that would be in effect but they struggled to name the deeper, more personal impact on the texture of their daily lives. A few talked about what they would no longer fear but struggled to articulate what affirmative would replace those fears. [Contact Ray's List for the full article.]

Come Celebrate Stonewall Street Festival
with Equality Florida!
As a member of our Stonewall Pride Team you will have the opportunity to talk to all sorts of the fun and friendly people. Here's your chance to take a stand and get a tan. Take a stand for equality and have fun in the sun with family and friends. We're looking for enthusiastic volunteers who care about equality and who are willing to share their enthusiasm with others. Volunteer shifts typically last three hours, and involve engaging passers-by, signing up new members, and spreading the word about Equality Florida’s work. The work is easy and fun, and one of the best ways to get others involved! WE NEED YOUR HELP - Just click the link to sign up as a volunteer - Stonewall Street Festival June 20-21
https://indigo501.wufoo.com/forms/stonewall-street-festival/


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PRIDE SOUTH FLORIDA ANNOUNCES 2009 GRANT AWARDS
2009 Grant Recipients
Fort Lauderdale, Florida – June 1, 2009 – Pride South Florida, Inc., the 501 © 3 non-profit organization run by unpaid volunteers that supports a variety of groups who work to promote charitable activities, educational programs, and cultural arts for the GLBT community, is delighted to announce their 2009 Grant Award recipients. As a result of this year's successful “Destination Pride” festival, fifteen (15) qualifying grant requests/proposals were submitted to PSF. After careful consideration and an equitable election process, its Board of Directors selected ten groups for funding for over $24,000. The organizations, awarded dollar amounts, and their grant's missions are listed below.
**2009 Pride Grants
1- Red Hispana Florida – $1,500 - To preserve GLBT pre-AIDS era films which also serve as documentary of our lifestyles.
2- Tuesday's Angels - $2,500 – To provide emergency assistance in the form of eyeglasses to financially needy people with HIV/AIDS.
3- KP Productions - $2,500 – To continue the outreach program providing live musical entertainment to the GLBT community and seniors in our community.
4- Arts United - $2,500 – Sponsorship for Art Explosion 2010. 5- The Names Project South Florida (The Aids Memorial Quilt) - $2,500 – To preserve, care, and use the AIDS Memorial Quilt to foster healing, heighten awareness, and inspire in the struggle against HIV and AIDS.
6- Transgender Equality Rights Initiatives (TERI) - $2,500 – To provide educational, social support and outreach.
7- Sunshine Cathedral /MCC - $2,500 – to purchase follow spotlights for use at community concerts and events held at Sunshine Cathedral.
8- South Florida Musical Guild Inc. - $2,500 - To support the South Florida Pride Wind Ensemble Fall Concert entitled “Incantations”.
9- Church of The Holy Spirit Song - $2,500 – To fund the COHSS food pantry.
10- Fort Lauderdale Gay Men's Chorus - $2,500 – To assist with four concert series during the upcoming season.


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Florida Democratic Party
Karen Thurman Honors PRIDE Month; Reaffirms Democrats' Commitment To GLBT Equality
Tallahassee, FL - As Floridians honor the contributions on the of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) Community by celebrating PRIDE Month, Florida Democratic Party Chair Karen Thurman released the following statement: "During this month-long celebration of PRIDE and throughout the year, Florida Democrats are fighting for equality and civil rights for all residents of the Sunshine State. "As the Party of inclusion, Democrats know that all are created equal and we have fought against discrimination based on race, sex, ethnicity, national origin, language, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, and disability. "Over the past several years, Democrats stood up to change Washington. In doing so, the cause of ending discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans has taken a giant leap forward. [Contact Ray's List for the full article.]


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Stonewall Library & Archives - Ft. Lauderdale
We need you!
Stonewall will be participating in this year's Stonewall Street Festival
Pride of Greater Fort Lauderdale 0 June 20 and 21
Stonewall will have a contingent in the evening parade, Saturday, June 20, 7:00 PM, and we will have an information/membership booth on Sunday, June 21, Noon -7:00 PM.
If you would like to join in the festivities and are able to volunteer your time please let me know.
jack-rutland@stonewall-library.org
954-763-8565
http://www.stonewall-library.org/

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

In commemoration of the one year anniversary of Broward County adding Gender Identity and Expression as a protected class to Broward County's Human Rights Bill, TERI, the Transgender Equality Rights Initiatives has announced the recipient of it inaugural college scholarship. The winner of the 2009 TERI scholarship is Alexandra Vivas of Davie, FL. Ms Vivas is a junior at FIU, working towards a degree in Social Work. Her focus is in advocating for the international transgender community, especially in Spanish speaking countries, which have shown a reduced tolerance for the transgender population. The scholarship was open to transgender individuals and allies to the transgender community. Priority was given to transgender students, but students pursuing medicine, law, social work, psychology, education, public health, etc. and who want to work specifically with the transgender population, advocating on their behalf and providing comprehensive services were encouraged to apply. The scholarship is for future (new students beginning summer semester), current Broward College students, and BC alumni who are pursuing a Bachelor's degree at a University. The scholarship will be for Summer Semester 2009. The award amount is $500 and was given in its entirety to one student. TERI funding for this scholarship was made possible by a grant from PRIDE South Florida. (PRIDEFEST)

EDITOR MICHAEL MONTLACK TO SPEAK ABOUT HIS NEW BOOK MY DIVA
AT STONEWALL LIBRARY & ARCHIVES
Saturday, June 13, 2:00 PM
On Saturday, June 13, at 2:00 PM, Stonewall will welcome editor Michael Montlack who will be reading from his new book, "My Diva: 65 Gay Men on the Women Who Inspire Them." The essayists encompass a wide swath of experience, from poets and professors to novelists and activists. The range of the subjects of their adoration are no less varied.Please join us on Saturday, June 13 at 2:00 PM for this chance to hear Michael Montlack read selections from his book. The event will include light refreshments and is free and open to the public. Stonewall is located at 1300 East Sunrise Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304.


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Dolphin Democrats - Ft. Lauderdale
The Dolphin Democrats Host “Presidential Pride Reception”
Event to Feature the Current and Former Presidents of the GLBT Democratic Club
WILTON MANORS, FL—The Dolphin Democrats, Florida’s largest and oldest Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) Democratic Club, is hosting its annual “Presidential Pride Reception” on Sunday, June 7th at 5pm. With over 400 members, the Dolphin Democrats is the largest GLBT political club in Florida and one of the strongest in the nation. Please join us as we celebrate our success, honor our leaders, and plan for the future in this year of renaissance for the Dolphin Democrats.
Sunday, June 7th, 2009 - 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm
At the Home of - Julie Carson and Susan Pierce
1500 NE 24th Street - Wilton Manors, Florida
Member $10.00 • Non Member $20.00
FREE Entry with $30.00 Membership Renewal
Press is welcome to attend.


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Stonewall Street Festival - Wilton Manors
Stonewall Street Festival - 40th Anniversary
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, which is internationally recognized as the catalyst for the modern gay rights movement. We send out the call to everyone to join us in honoring this historic event. The Stonewall Committee needs volunteers for this wonderful event. If you are interested, please contact Marc Hanson at marc@stonewallstreetfestival.com


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[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net ]
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Friday, June 05, 2009

GLBT DIGEST - June 05, 2009

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

Old-School Treatment for Miss California
Regarding Michael Kinsley's May 22 op-ed column, "A Crown of Thorns for Miss California?":
I am in favor of same-sex marriage, and I agree with Mr. Kinsley that Miss California, Carrie Prejean, should be free to voice her opinion against it. Yet I found it amazing that, in service to his argument that Miss California be allowed to speak out, Mr. Kinsley qualified it with, "[she did so] ever so politely and tentatively, and only when asked." Huh?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/04/AR2009060404168.html

Ganymede Readings
Forty years ago this month, the patrons of a popular Greenwich Village gay bar called the Stonewall Inn -- fed up with the frequent police raids and arrests -- decided to fight back, during a time when it was still risky to make noise about being gay. Known as the Stonewall Riots, the angry, sometimes violent demonstrations that followed marked the birth of the modern gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) rights movement. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/04/AR2009060401778.html


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Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

Lowe cartoon hit its mark
June 5, 2009
I want to thank Chan Lowe for his outstanding gays in the military cartoon, which a friend passed on to me. It says so much, so eloquently, without rancor.
Richard Fogaley, Atlanta, Ga.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-lowe-cartoon-letter-m060509pnjun05,0,65792.story


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Steve Rothaus
www.MiamiHerald.com/gay
Go to this link for the following articles:

The Forward: Why straight people go to gay synagogues – and what we can learn from them
From The Jewish Daily Forward:
By Jay Michaelson
In the next few weeks, gay and lesbian synagogues and Jewish organizations will be marching in New York, San Francisco and other cities around the country as part of gay pride parades. But many of the people marching won’t be gay themselves: More and more “gay” or GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender) synagogues have significant percentages of “straight allies” among their membership — in some cases, even majorities. Although there are no precise statistics quantifying this trend, it is unmistakable to anyone who visits one of these congregations, and, in an era of shrinking synagogue affiliation, prompts the question of why these institutions are growing among a population they do not even try to serve. Maybe all of us have something to learn here.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/the-forward-why-straight-people-go-to-gay-synagogues-and-what-we-can-learn-from-them.html

Photo gallery | Miami Gay Men’s Chorus rehearses for June 19, 20 concerts at Colony Theater on Lincoln Road
Thursday night, I attended rehearsal for the Miami Gay Men’s Chorus’ upcoming concerts on June 19 & 20 at the Colony Theater in Miami Beach. The chorus will perform Look Back, Inward & Forward, a “celebration of the Miami Gay Mens Chorus’ fabulous first decade features a sparkling selection of audience favorites from ABBA to Sondheim to Elton John,’’ according to a news release.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/photo-gallery-miami-gay-mens-chorus-rehearses-for-june-19-20-concerts-at-colony-theater-on-lincoln-road.html

'Bent' at Rising Action Theatre
BY CHRISTINE DOLEN, cdolen@MiamiHerald.com
Martin Sherman's Bent opened on Broadway almost 30 years ago, but the power of its storytelling, which helped win it the 1980 Tony Award as best play, hasn't aged. Fort Lauderdale's Rising Action Theatre is taking on its biggest dramatic challenge to date in producing Sherman's play about gay men who were shipped off to Nazi concentration camps. Michael Perry, Larry Brooks and Larry Buzzeo, who is also staging the play, are featured in the cast. Bent, which contains sexual situations and nudity, runs through July 19 at Rising Action, 840 E. Oakland Park Blvd. Performances are 8 p.m. Wednesday and Friday-Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets cost $35 ($25 this Friday, Sunday and Wednesday only). Call 800-595-4849 or visit www.risingactiontheatre.com.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/bent-at-rising-action-theatre.html


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

SoFla gets Syked out
Wanda Sykes serves up her signature sarcasm
By SHERI ELFMAN
Angry, outspoken and politically incorrect, Wanda Sykes is always outrageously funny. Known for her roles on “The New Adventures of Old Christine,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “The Chris Rock Show,” “Monster-in-Law” and most recently for killing at the White House Correspondents’ dinner, the sassy comedian will perform at the Fillmore Miami on Saturday, June 6.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/arts/feature/5919.cfm

Students protest in Weston over teacher’s anti-gay remarks
Cypress Bay High School students learn real-life lesson in activism
By DMITRY RASHNITSOV
A group of approximately 30 students took to the suburban streets of Weston in protest of GLBT rights, calling attention to anti-gay comments made public at Cypress Bay High School.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/news/localnews/5908.cfm

Pride is a go!
Plans for festival keep marching on
By JASON MICHAELS
The Pride of Greater Fort Lauderdale organization voted Wednesday to approve the festival plans and hold the event, as scheduled on the weekend of June 20th and 21st. For several weeks, the annual festival faced cancellation because of lack of sponsorships.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/news/localnews/5906.cfm

Broward GLBT Youth Group: the community’s next generation
"It’s really transformed my life and given me a greater sense of belonging"
By DMITRY RASHNITSOV
Many teens who are struggling to come to terms with their sexuality hide behind a wall of emotional angst and unanswered questions, but one local group is available for adolescents and their parents to help in the understanding process.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/news/localnews/5909.cfm

Oakland Park attackers appear in court
Suspects accused in beatings of two gay men in separate attacks
By DMITRY RASHNITSOV
The two men accused of assaulting two gay men in separate attacks in April had their first appearance in front of a judge on May 28.
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/6-4/news/localnews/5907.cfm

Harvard to create chair in gay studies
$1.5 million gift helped create visiting professorship
BOSTON
Harvard University is creating a visiting professorship in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender studies with a gift of $1.5 million from the Harvard Gay & Lesbian Caucus. The professorship is one of the first for gay and lesbian studies in the United States. The University of Louisville has a chair in race, class, gender and sexuality studies named for lesbian poet and activist Audre Lorde.
http://www.floridablade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=25641


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

Air Firm Cleared of Antigay Claims
By Julie Bolcer
A cabin crew boss’s claims that she was told not to hire male flight attendants who might be perceived as gay were dismissed this week by a UK tribunal, reports the BBC. Alexandria Proud had claimed unfair constructive dismissal by Gama Aviation, a charter aircraft firm that supplies pilots and flight attendants for privately-owned aircraft.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid88436.asp

Drag Queens, Canada, and Gum
Stride Gum, known as the "Ridiculously Long Lasting Gum," must really want gay chewers -- a new promotion for Stride will feature drag queens performing a dance-off during the Toronto Pride festival.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid88297.asp

R.I.: Pick Up Your Dead Gay Partner
Rhode Island, the last New England state holding out on same-sex marriage, isn't quite ready to let gay couples walk down the aisle -- but it may grant domestic partners the right to claim each other's body and arrange funerals.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid88252.asp


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

German zoo: Gay penguin pair raising chick
By The Associated Press
(Berlin) A German zoo says a pair of gay male penguins are raising a chick from an egg abandoned by its parents.
http://www.365gay.com/news/german-zoo-gay-penguin-pair-raising-chick/

New England may see long-term boost from gay marriage
By 365gay Newswire
New England might attract a new, young, “creative class” - thanks to marriage equality in every state but Rhode Island. “It will be a selling point when it comes to trying to lure people with same-sex partners who are being wooed for a job,” M.V. Lee Badgett, a University of Massachusetts economist who studies gay and lesbian issues, told Reuters.
http://www.365gay.com/news/new-england-may-see-long-term-boost-from-gay-marriage/


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

Gay couples to be protected by Hong Kong domestic violence law
The Domestic Violence Ordinance will have an amendment to include same sex couples, the Hong Kong Government have announced. However, they have been keen to stress that this will not mean the government will legally recognise same sex marriages or relationships in any other respect.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12718.html

Tennessee schools to remove block on gay educational and news websites
A long running battle to unblock educational gay websites from schools in Knox County, Tennessee may be over. Following the start of legal proceedings, the County Superintendent has said web filters would be adjusted.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12723.html

Study finds gay men do better at college but bisexual women lag behind
New research has indicated that gay men achieve more at college than their straight male counterparts. However, the work also showed that bisexual women do worse during higher education than straight women.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12728.html

Gay couples refused marriage and partnership announcements
A number of American newspapers in states where gay marriage is illegal are refusing to print announcements of civil unions.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12725.html

LGBT group claims Iraq is waging a 'campaign of violence and murder' against gays
An Iraqi gay group has said it has evidence the Iraqi government is involved with militia groups advocating violence and murder towards gays. Iraqi LGBT also described a statement from the Baghdad US Embassy as "offensive and insulting".
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12729.html


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

IL: Civil Unions Bill in Limbo
Amy Wooten | Chicago Free Press
Because state lawmakers Sunday faced a fiscal crisis and a looming deadline, a bill that would have granted Illinois same-sex couples civil unions if passed never came up for a vote before the session ended.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7861/

IL: Chicago after Stonewall: The First Year
St. Sukie de la Croix | Chicago Free Press
In the early hours of June 28, 1969, police raided New York’s Stonewall Inn and lesbians and gay men fought back for three days. We all know the story, but how did the lesbian and gay community in Chicago react? They didn’t … not at first, anyway.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7859/

Assaulted Lesbian Musician Posts Online Video Alleging Homophobia
Rhythm Turner, 25, singer and guitarist in local band, Rhythm and The Method believes she was the victim of a hate crime when Vincen Matthew Williams, 21, assaulted her, after she hugged her girlfriend, outside Canes Bar & Grill in Mission Beach on Thursday, May 14. “I was assaulted because of my sexual orientation, because I choose to want to give my girlfriend a hug,” Turner said.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7855/


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Thursday, June 04, 2009

GLBT DIGEST - June 04, 2009

**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.

RAY'S LIST ARTICLES CONTINUE BELOW:

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

New Hampshire Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage
By ABBY GOODNOUGH
The New Hampshire legislature approved revisions to a same-sex marriage bill on Wednesday, and Gov. John Lynch promptly signed the legislation, making the state the sixth to let gay couples wed.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/us/04marriage.html?_r=1&scp=6&sq=gay&st=cse

Harvard to Endow Chair in Gay Studies
By JACQUES STEINBERG
Harvard University will endow a visiting professorship in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender studies, a position that, it believes, will be the first endowed, named chair in the subject at an American college.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/education/04harvard.html?scp=4&sq=gay&st=cse

Vote on Gay Marriage
Six states have now made it legal for same-sex couples to marry. New York is not one of them. Gov. David Paterson wants the state to guarantee that right, and the protections that come with it, and the Assembly approved legislation legalizing same-sex marriage last month. Malcolm Smith, the leader of the State Senate, insists that he, too, favors marriage for gay couples, but he won’t let a bill go to the floor unless he’s privately lined up enough votes.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/opinion/04thu4.html?scp=2&sq=gay&st=cse


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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
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Liberals May Be Looking for a Take-Back
By Dana Milbank
President Obama is just killing the progressive movement. For the past few years, liberal activists have gathered in Washington each spring for the Take Back America conference, where speaker after speaker -- Obama sometimes among them -- would give rollicking denunciations of the Bush administration before packed rooms of partisans.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/03/AR2009060303173.html

Playing for Pride
By Lavanya Ramanathan
Capital Pride week will get underway tomorrow, and although many folks here know it for the parade through Dupont Circle, club events and pageantry (or should we say pageants?), there are a ton of off-the-radar Pride-related and Pride-friendly events in town this week.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/03/AR2009060304155.html

In NH and Iowa, gay marriage has political angle
By HOLLY RAMER and MIKE GLOVER
Iowa and New Hampshire traditionally offer presidential candidates vastly different political landscapes when they seek their party nominations. Yet legalizing gay marriage, as both states have now done, is unlikely to have much impact in 2012 because of party dynamics and the different emphasis voters place on social issues.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/04/AR2009060400568.html


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

Activists to take Moscow mayor to court over homophobic comments
Russian gay rights activists are to take the city's homophobic mayor to court for saying that gay people undermined the heart of a morally health society.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12699.html

Gay penguins rearing chick in German Zoo
A gay penguin couple living in a German zoo have hatched a chick which they are now rearing as if it were their own child. They're one of three gay couples living in the zoo.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12697.html

Labour launch gay election video ahead of European elections
Village bar in Soho saw the launch of the Labour Party's LGBT Election Broadcast last night by the Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12700.html

Chicago may appoint 'anti-gay' city councillor
The mayor of Chicago may be about to appoint an openly homophobic alderman to its city council, according to reports.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12693.html


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

The ‘Big M’ is ‘Empathy’
Chris Crain | Citizen Crain
It was a bit of a head-turner this week when Dick Cheney, the former vice president and conservative attack dog, took time out from his blistering critique of Barack Obama to disagree with the president from the left on the issue of same-sex marriage. “I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish — any kind of arrangement they wish,” Cheney said during a question-and-answer session that followed his harsh assessment of how the current occupant of the White House is handling the economy and national security. “The question of whether or not there ought to be a federal statute to protect this, I don’t support. I do believe that historically the way marriage has been regulated is at the state level. … But I don’t have any problem with that. People ought to get a shot at that,” he added. Read more
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7843/

Thirty Five Percent of Americans Live in States with Some Same-Sex Relationship Protections
Timothy Kincaid | Box Turtle Bulletin
Six states (Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire) now recognize marriage equality. Although actual marriages do not yet take place in a few (due to effective dates), sixteen million Americans live in states that value their same-sex couples as equal citizens. This is 5.3% of the US population.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7842/

Video: Do Gays and Lesbians Have a Friend in the White House
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7841/

Deceased Bishop’s Son Goes on the Record with GCM Watch
Gay Christian Movement Watch
The son of a deceased COGIC bishop voluntarily spoke on the record with GCM Watch about his father’s administration and the controversy surrounding a murdered homosexual pastor in COGIC. GCM Watch reported on the shocking news of the murder and Pastor Ronald Paige’s apparently openly homosexual lifestyle here. Additionally, we raised questions (as did the Memphis media) about why sexual abuse allegations reported to Walker went unheeded. But according to Walker’s son, the elder Walker did do something: he removed Paige from his jurisdiction.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7840/

CA: S.F.’s Blast at Vatican was Legal, Court Says
Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer | San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco didn’t cross into constitutionally forbidden territory of government hostility to religion when the Board of Supervisors denounced a Vatican order to Catholic Charities not to place adoptive children with same-sex couples, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday. The 2006 resolution condemned the Vatican’s “hateful and discriminatory rhetoric” and urged local church officials to defy the order by Cardinal William Levada. The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights sued, contending the city was expressing hostility toward Catholicism in violation of the Constitution.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7838/

Mental Illness Less Likely for Lesbians’ Kids
The Copenhagen Post
The challenges faced by homosexual parents could play a role in how well their children ward off psychological problems
Children with lesbian mothers have a lower risk of developing psychological illnesses than children growing up with a father and a mother, a recent University of Copenhagen study finds. The study is the first of its kind in Denmark. The study found that while five percent of children from traditional families developed conditions such as depression or anorexia between 1992 and 2008, the number was two percent among the 387 children of lesbian parents participating in the study. The findings, according to Merete Lauberg, of the University Of Copenhagen Department Of Public Health, suggest that concerns that alternative families have a negative effect on child development are over.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7834/

Former Candidate Linda Ketner ‘Outs’ S.C. Republicans
Matt Comer | Q-Notes
An openly lesbian 2008 South Carolina Democratic candidate for Congress has called out three Palmetto State Republicans for being closeted gays in an interview for a progressive Democratic blog. The bombshell statements were made in a FireDogLake interview on June 1 from Linda Ketner, an openly lesbian 2008 Democratic candidate against South Carolina’s First Congressional District incumbent Henry Brown.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7831/

Alberta Passes Controversial Human Rights Law
Poe News
Alberta legislators passed legislation early Tuesday that will give parents the option of pulling their children out of class when lessons on sex, religion or sexual orientation are being taught. Link
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7830/

Senate Talks LGBT Immigration
Kerry Eleveld
The Senate Judiciary Committee held the first congressional hearing on the Uniting American Families Act Wednesday. The act would allow gay and lesbian citizens to sponsor their partners for residency in the United States. “For too long, gay and lesbian American citizens whose partners are foreign nationals have been denied the ability to sponsor their loved ones for lawful permanent residency,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “Under current immigration law, many citizens have been forced to choose between their country and their loved ones. No American should face that choice.”
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7826/


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Wednesday, June 03, 2009

GLBT DIGEST - April 03, 2009

**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 Secret Weapon to Destabilize Systems’
Your Jokes | Send via the comment link below:
In the next issue of Rolling Stone, “American Idol” runner-up Adam Lambert will apparently announce he is gay. This will come as quite a shock to both people who are just getting over the discovery that Clay Aiken is gay. – Janice Hough, Palo Alto, Calif.
http://laughlines.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/03/a-secret-weapon-to-destabilize-systems/?scp=4&sq=gay&st=cse

Harvard to Endow Chair in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Studies
By Jacques Steinberg
Harvard University will endow a visiting professorship in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender studies, a position that, it believes, will be the first endowed, named chair in the subject at an American college. The visiting professorship, which the university is planning to formally announce as part of commencement exercises on Thursday, was made possible by a gift of $1.5 million from the Harvard Gay and Lesbian Caucus. With the gift, Harvard said it would regularly invite “eminent scholars studying issues related to sexuality or sexual minorities” to teach on campus for one semester, according to a draft of a university press release.
http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/03/harvard/?scp=3&sq=gay&st=cse

Bill Proposes Immigration Rights for Gay Couples
By JULIA PRESTON
Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the Democrat from Vermont who is the powerful chairman of the Judiciary Committee, is adding another controversial ingredient to the volatile mix of an immigration debate that President Obama has said he hopes to spur in Congress before the end of the year.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/03/us/politics/03immig.html?scp=2&sq=gay&st=cse

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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
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Federal City Digest: What to Watch
by Garance Franke-Ruta
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds the first-ever congressional hearing on obstacles faced by gay couples under U.S. immigration law and the Uniting American Families Act, written to address them.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/02/AR2009060203942.html


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Steve Rothaus
www.MiamiHerald.com/gay
Go to this link for the following articles:

Candidate to lead North Carolina GOP sues over 'vicious rumor' that he's gay
By SARAH OVASKA, News & Observer
Tom Fetzer, the former mayor of Raleigh, N.C., filed a libel lawsuit late Monday afternoon against a Wilmington radio host who is accused of forwarding an e-mail insinuating that Fetzer is gay.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/candidate-to-lead-north-carolina-gop-sues-over-vicious-rumor-that-hes-gay.html

MTV Awards writer: Eminem, Bruno stunt was completely planned, rehearsed
By JAKE COYLE, Associated Press
The head writer for the MTV Movie Awards has settled the debate: the stunt involving Sacha Baron Cohen and Eminem at the MTV Movie Awards was completely planned. Comedy writing veteran Scott Aukerman wrote in a posting on his blog that the incident was staged and rehearsed in advance.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/mtv-awards-writer-eminem-bruno-stunt-was-completely-planned-rehearsed.html

Dunedin, Fla., takes small step boldly against gay and transgender discrimination
Editorial in The St. Petersburg Times:
Without a peep of protest from any resident, Dunedin city commissioners gave preliminary approval two weeks ago to an ordinance intended to protect gay and transgender individuals from some forms of discrimination. Thursday night, commissioners will take a final vote, and if the proposal is approved, Dunedin will be only the second Pinellas city to go so far to protect people from discrimination because of their sexual orientation or identification. Dunedin's effort is commendable and the protections are needed, but city officials should make sure they understand the limitations of their proposal and some potential problems with its implementation.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/dunedin-fla-takes-small-step-boldly-against-gay-and-transgender-discrimination.html

BBC video | Venezuela 'silent' on hate crimes rise
By Will Grant
In a city where about 40 murders take place every weekend, it may not come as a big surprise that four prostitutes have been killed on the same stretch of road in Caracas in recent months. But when you find out that all four were transsexuals or transgender, it changes the picture somewhat.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/bbc-video-venezuela-silent-on-hate-crimes-rise.html


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

D.C. ministers back same-sex marriage
More than 130 sign ‘marriage equality’ declaration
By LOU CHIBBARO JR
More than 130 clergy representing dozens of churches and at least two synagogues in the District of Columbia released a joint statement Tuesday expressing support for legalizing same-sex marriage in the city.
http://www.floridablade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=25624


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

Vanasco: Where is Obama on Ill. civil unions?
By Jennifer Vanasco
Southern Illinois’ The Pantagraph reports that Illinois’ civil unions bill, after passing a state House committee, was left to languish at the end of the session. The bill is still alive, if barely: it can be passed anytime in the next two years.
http://www.365gay.com/blog/vanasco-where-is-obama-on-ill-civil-unions/

Together - but apart: the challenging world of same-sex, binational couples
By Jennifer Vanasco
“I fell in love with America because of the Declaration of Independence, with the idea of a right to the pursuit of happiness,” says Fred, from France, in Sebastian Cordoba’s documentary ‘Through Thick and Thin.’ “Now I live in America, and to me my family is my happiness; and it is this most simple happiness that we are denied.”
http://www.365gay.com/living/together-but-apart-the-challenging-world-of-same-sex-binational-couples/


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

Stonewall: Go and vote tomorrow to keep homophobes out
By Comment
As the homophobic British National Party (BNP) look set to gain a seat in the European Parliament, Stonewall Chief Executive Ben Summerskill calls on gay voters to go to the polls. It's been a tough month for politics. From moats to mortgages, dog food to duck islands, the credibility of the democratic process in Britain has been hit hard.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12694.html

Tribunal rules Catholic charities are breaking the law over gay adoptions
By Jessica Geen
The Charity Tribunal has ruled that Catholic adoption charities which refuse to serve gay couples are breaking the law. Catholic Care (Diocese of Leeds) had wanted to take advantage of a clause the 2007 Sexual Orientation Regulations which allows charities to discriminate by amending its charitable objectives.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12692.html


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Daily Queer News
http://ww.dailyqueernews.com
Go to the links for the following articles:

Video: Masters & Johnson’s Notorious ‘Ex-Gay’ Study Debunked
Wayne Besen | Truth Wins Out
For decades, anti-gay organizations have gleefully pointed to a Masters & Johnson study that claimed to cure homosexuality. It has also been used by the so-called “ex-gay” industry to “prove” gays could go straight, if they just tried hard enough. In a groundbreaking book, “Masters of Sex”, author Thomas Maier discovered through investigative reporting that the results of Masters & Johnson’s study were fabricated.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7797/

Gitmo Detainee Dies of Apparent Suicide
DAVID McFADDEN and DANICA COTO The Associated Press | Rutland Herald
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A Yemeni detainee at Guantanamo Bay has died of an apparent suicide, U.S. military officials announced Tuesday. The Joint Task Force that runs the U.S. prison in Cuba said guards found Muhammad Ahmad Abdallah Salih unresponsive and not breathing in his cell Monday night. His is the fifth apparent suicide at the Guantanamo prison, which President Barack Obama plans to close by January.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7796/

Honduran Police Aide, Abet Trans Murder
Michelle Garcia | Advocate
Human Rights Watch released a report on Friday calling on Honduras’s police to stop abusing transgender citizens. According to the international human rights group, transgender people are reporting repeated rape, beatings, extortion, and arbitrary arrests by officers. At least 17 transgender Hondurans have been publicly murdered since 2004, yet none of the killings have led to prosecution. Juliana Cano Nieto, LGBT researcher for Human Rights Watch, said the state is “failing miserably” at protecting those under the most basic of rights. “The police have an obligation to protect people and to investigate violence, no matter who the victims are,” she added.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7794/


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#####

GLBT DIGEST - June 02, 2009

**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.

RAY'S LIST ARTICLES CONTINUE BELOW:

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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
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Amid Criticism, D.C. Plans Big Effort to Spread Word on AIDS
By Darryl Fears
On her drives from one end of the District to the other, Anita Hawkins is struck by the rarity with which she sees billboards or bus stop advertisements telling residents that AIDS is a major health threat in the city.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/01/AR2009060103479.html

Cheney Endorses Gay Marriage on a 'State-by-State Basis'
By Dan Eggen
Former vice president Richard B. Cheney waded into another roiling public debate yesterday, saying that he supports legalizing same-sex marriage as long as the issue is decided by the states, rather than the federal government.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/01/AR2009060103266.html


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Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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Jonah Goldberg: GOP should be proud to promote its beliefs
It's a lovely thing when the conventional wisdom proves to be so spectacularly wrong. The entire Democratic Party, not to mention the media establishment, simply took as a given that suave and charming, President Barack Obama would mop the floor with grumpy, truculent, sardonic former Vice President Dick Cheney.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-02goldbergsbjun02,0,6045708.story


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Steve Rothaus
www.MiamiHerald.com/gay
Go to this link for the following articles:

National Center for Lesbian Rights: ‘Tell Congress keep our families together!’
Letter from Kate Kendell, executive director of National Center for Lesbian Rights:
Congressman Mike Honda (D-CA), a long-time champion of the LGBT community, will soon introduce the Reuniting Families Act. This landmark immigration bill helps to end discrimination that prevents loving families from being together, such as preventing same-sex partners from sponsoring their foreign partners for a permanent visa, long visa wait times, and more.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/06/national-center-for-lesbian-rights-tell-congress-keep-our-families-together.html


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

India's Little Gay Magazine That Could
By Amita Parashar
In a country where it's still illegal to be gay, a newly relaunched LGBT magazine is becoming a strong voice for a growing community. Bombay Dost (Bombay Friends), India's first and only LGBT publication, has just relaunched after going out of print in 2002 when the then-underground publication ran out of financial support. The original Dost, which printed from 1990 to 2002, was available mostly through roadside vendors and often wrapped in plain brown paper.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid87572.asp

Evangelical: Christians Owe Gays Apology
A prominent professor of Christian ethics says Christians should ask for forgiveness from gays and lesbians in his review of a new book chronicling the pain experienced by gay youths when religion is used to justify prejudice and discrimination.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid87543.asp


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

Vanasco: Christine Quinn thinks NY is getting gay marriage
By Jennifer Vanasco
Open lesbian and Speaker of the New York City Council Christine Quinn says that after conversations with Albany lawmakers, she thinks gay marriage will pass. Read more...
http://www.365gay.com/blog/vanasco-christine-quinn-thinks-ny-is-getting-gay-marriage/

Neff: Reaching out to Californians
By Lisa Neff
An angry, raw, bitter, hostile response from a stranger about idiotic, bigoted, uninformed voters of California. Read more...
http://www.365gay.com/opinion/neff-reaching-out-to-californians/


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

Sweden appoints lesbian bishop
The Church of Sweden has appointed a lesbian as the Lutheran bishop of Stockholm. Eva Brunne, who is in a registered partnership, is believed to be the world's first lesbian bishop. She won the post by 413 votes against 365 votes and will succeed Bishop Caroline Krook, who is to retire in November.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12673.html

Scottish National Party and Catholic Church's 'secret plan' to defy gay adoption laws
The Scottish National Party and the Catholic Church worked together secretly in order to avoid new legislation requiring religious adoption agencies to help gay couples, it has been reported.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12678.html

Spanish Supreme Court rules judges cannot refuse to marry gay couples
The Spanish Supreme Court has ruled that judges in lower courts or in local town halls must marry gay and lesbian couples if required.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12680.html

64% of homophobic incidents in Northern Ireland are not reported
One of the largest surveys on the experiences of lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Northern Ireland has revealed many have been the victim of homophobic abuse and violence.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12683.html

US President Barack Obama proclaims June to be LGBT Pride Month
The President of the United States yesterday issued a proclamation in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans Pride month.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12684.html

PinkNews.co.uk survey: Greens tipped for Euro elections but Tories on top for next general election
A survey of PinkNews.co.uk readers has found that support for Labour has dropped dramatically since the last general election. Thirty-seven per cent of the 270 respondents had voted for Labour in May 2005, compared with 24 per cent for Liberal Democrats and 23 per cent who voted Conservative.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12682.html


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

Life Only Gets Worse for LGBT Iraqis
Seth Michael Donsky | EDGE Contributor | EDGE Boston
Two young gay men were found dead recently in Baghdad’s Sadr City slum, wearing diapers and women’s lingerie–at least according to reports. The bodies of four other men, beaten to death, were discovered by Iraqi police, each bearing signs reading “pervert” in Arabic on their chests. Additionally several coffee shops in Sadr, that were popular with gay Iraqis have been set on fire recently.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7726/

WA: Gay Rights Group Wants to Name Petition Signers
Mark Rahner | Seattle Times
A gay-rights group is promising to “out” some people in a way, but in this case it won’t mean exposing closeted gays. Instead, members of Washington-based WhoSigned.org plan to shine a light on those who sign petitions for Referendum 71, an attempt by religious and conservative groups to overturn the state’s 2009 Domestic Partner Expansion Bill.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7723/

CA: Judge Says State Can Bar School Discrimination
Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer | San Francisco Chronicle
California can prohibit public schools from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or identity, a judge ruled Monday, rejecting an invasion-of-privacy claim by a conservative group that said a new state law would force school officials to allow boys into girls’ locker rooms. The law, which took effect last year, added sexual orientation and gender identity to a list of categories in which schools may not discriminate in teaching or instructional materials. Other categories include race, sex and national origin. A legislative committee analysis said the new measure merely clarified existing statutes and didn’t actually change them. The committee noted that another section of the state’s education laws already prohibited bias based on any status covered by California’s hate crimes law, which included sexual orientation and identity. Read more
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7722/

Gay Couples View Marriage as Legal Protection, Not Commitment Symbol, Study Shows
University of Texas
Challenging the idea that marriage is necessary for solidifying relationships, a new study from The University of Texas at Austin reveals same-sex couples in long-term relationships believe marriage is more important in terms of legal rights, but less so as a symbol of commitment.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7721/

When Asked, This Gay Soldier Told
CAMERON BIRD | THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
TUSTIN In a calm corner of his garage, a soldier rummages through reminders of the last ten years of his life. Silver coins. A Middle Eastern sash. An Army pistol. Only a few of the souvenirs in Dan Choi’s war chest will fit into his travel duffel. As he packs, his mom walks in. She reaches around her son’s boulder-sized biceps for a hug. “Are you staying for dinner?” “I’m not sure.” By nightfall, though, Choi will surely be gone. He’s getting out of Tustin, maybe for good. Monumental change has unsettled the 28-year-old combat veteran and his family. In March, on national television, he said, “I am gay.” Read more
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7720/

Australia to Clamp Down on Hate Crimes
Express Buzz
MELBOURNE: The string of attacks on Indian students in this Australian city has led the provincial government of Victoria to push for a plan that would have tougher sentences for hate crimes. The damage control action comes within months of Australia launching a multi-million dollar effort to woo Indian students. Melbourne is the capital of Victoria.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7716/


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Monday, June 01, 2009

GLBT DIGEST - June 01, 2009

**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:

Nevada Partnership Bill Now Law
By STEVE FRIESS
The Nevada Legislature voted into law a domestic partnership registry for same-sex and unmarried straight couples on Sunday evening, with the Assembly mustering the two-thirds vote required to override a veto by Gov. Jim Gibbons, a Republican. The move makes Nevada the 17th state to recognize the relationships of gay men and lesbians, creating the registry with the secretary of state by which couples receive legal protections associated with marriage.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/01/us/01nevada.html?scp=2&sq=gay&st=cse


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

Sotomayor Was a Passionate but Civil Activist
By Amy Goldstein and Alec MacGillis
Around Christmas of 1973, a fellow sophomore approached Frank Reed, a leader of Princeton University's Chicano Caucus, to hand him a formal complaint she had typed up and to ask him to support it.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/31/AR2009053101935_pf.html

Calif. Gay-Marriage Opponents Plan Rally: Opponents of same-sex marriage announced plans to gather Sunday night in two California cities to celebrate weddings between men and women, a day after hundreds of supporters of legalization marched in Fresno.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/31/AR2009053102314_2.html

What to Watch
Educator Jill Biden, wife of the vice president, will address the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network in New York tonight at the group's annual Respect Awards gala, which recognizes leaders in creating safe schools for all students, "regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/31/AR2009053102416.html


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

Church Ousts 61 Antigay Clergy
By Amita Parashar
The Episcopal Church has ousted 61 clergy over an ongoing dispute around LGBT issues in the church. The members, the church said, had aligned with former bishop John-David Schofield, who was ousted from the church and stripped of his title in 2008. At the time, the church said he "repudiated the doctrine, discipline, and worship of the Episcopal Church."
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid87258.asp


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

New Hampshire reaches compromise on gay marriage
The New Hampshire House and Senate have agreed to change one word and add a sentence to a bill which will allow gay marriage in the state.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12671.html

Sweden appoints lesbian bishop
The Church of Sweden has appointed a lesbian as the Lutheran bishop of Stockholm. Eva Brunne, who is in a registered partnership, is believed to be the world's first lesbian bishop. She won the post by 413 votes against 365 votes and will succeed Bishop Caroline Krook, who is to retire in November.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12673.html

Police 'concern' over gay murders and rise in homophobic hate crimes
Police have expressed concern over a rise in homophobic violence following a number of murders of gay men. Scotland Yard statistics show a nine per cent rise in homophobic and transphobic offences to 1,372 in the year up to April. Greater Manchester police saw a 63 per cent rise in homophobic crime.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12670.html

Danny La Rue dies aged 81
Drag queen Danny La Rue died last night aged 81. The entertainer was best known for his impersonations of of female celebrities such as Elizabeth Taylor, Zsa Zsa Gabor and Margaret Thatcher.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-12672.html


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

Diversity Benefits Community
The Daily Star
In a proclamation dated June 2, 2000, then-President Bill Clinton decried prejudice against gay and lesbian citizens. “Gay and lesbian Americans have made important and lasting contributions to our nation in every field of endeavor,” Clinton wrote. And with that, the month of June was declared Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. “I encourage all Americans to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies and activities that celebrate our diversity and recognize the gay and lesbian Americans whose many and varied contributions have enriched our national life,” Clinton wrote. Read More
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7664/

Exhibit Celebrates 40 Years of Gay Activism
Gay News Blog
Forty years ago this month, riots against a police raid at the Stonewall Inn marked the beginning of the gay liberation movement. An exhibit opening today at the New York Public Library charts what happened in the heady year that followed.Before Stonewall, gay rights activists pursued a lonely agenda, working for homosexuals to be accepted as part of normal society and not as the sociopaths judged by psychiatric associations. “But 1969 suddenly saw a mass movement getting behind these activists,” said curator Jason Baumann, amid the artifacts of the blossoming battle, from colorful newsweekly publications to photos of the first Gay Pride march up Sixth Avenue in 1970. Read more
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7663/

Illinois House Did Not Vote on Civil Unions Bill Before Deadline
LGBT Q News
Illinois will not be joining Nevada with a civil unions law this month.
Greg Harris, the sponsor of the Illinois civil unions bill, has been reporting on his Facebook page on the mad rush to close out the Illinois legislative session today. He reports that it was a hectic day that saw the governor’s budget rejected, which forced the legislators to scramble to put together an austerity emergency budget that will force deep cuts across state programs.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7662/

Spain Judges Have to Marry Gays
Typically Spanish
A judge had appealed to the Supreme Court saying he did not want to carry out a gay wedding on religious grounds
The Spanish Supreme Court has ruled that judges in lower courts or in local town halls cannot refuse to marry gay and lesbian couples. The case was brought after a magistrate in Sagunto, Valencia, presented an appeal to the Supreme Court saying he did not want to carry out the ceremony on religious grounds. The General Council for Judicial Power, the body which oversees the judiciary in Spain, has already ruled that judges cannot refuse, and now the Supreme Court has ruled that members of the judiciary are subject to law as is everyone else. Link
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7660/

Study shows gay couples want legal rights, regardless of marriage
Contact: Matt Shipman
matt_shipman@ncsu.edu
919-515-6386
North Carolina State University
New research from North Carolina State University shows that gay and lesbian couples are forming long-term, committed relationships, even in the absence of the right to marry. However, couples surveyed for the study overwhelmingly said they would get married if they could in order to secure legal rights – such as retirement and healthcare benefits. “Our study indicates that marriage is both more and less important to gay and lesbian couples in long-term relationships than was perhaps previously understood – more important in terms of the legal rights it conveys, but less important as a symbol of commitment,” says study co-author Dr. Sinikka Elliott, an assistant professor of sociology and anthropology at NC State. “This research underscores the need for legal protections and rights for all couples.”
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7654/


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Sunday, May 31, 2009

GLBT DIGEST - May 31, 2009

**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.

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

Nevada Senate Overrides Veto on Domestic Partners Measure
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Nevada Senate has voted to override Gov. Jim Gibbons’s veto of a measure that would give domestic partners, whether gay or straight, many of the rights and benefits that Nevada offers to married couples.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/us/31nevada.html?scp=14&sq=gay&st=cse

Suze Orman Is Having a Moment
Suze Orman almost had me with her professed aversion to frivolity, her seasoned advice to families in debt, her advocacy for gay rights in the financial world. But teachers? “Too underpaid ever to have any real self-worth?” Perhaps it is better for all involved that she stay out of our classrooms; she clearly buys into the notion that infects much of American culture — that money is our way of keeping score, that it is some validation of our worth. And has Oprah, champion of schoolteachers, heard Orman’s rhetoric on the subject?
ALISHA GOLDBLATT
North Yarmouth, Me.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/magazine/31letters-t-SUZEORMANISH_LETTERS.html?scp=11&sq=gay&st=cse

Sotomayor Would Be Sixth Catholic Justice, but the Pigeonholing Ends There
By LAURIE GOODSTEIN
If Judge Sonia Sotomayor is confirmed for a seat on the Supreme Court, she will be the sixth of the nine justices who are Roman Catholic — a stunning robed portrait in a country where Catholics were once targets of discrimination and suspicion.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/us/politics/31catholics.html?scp=9&sq=gay&st=cse

What’s a Liberal Justice Now?
By JEFFREY ROSEN
When talking about the Supreme Court, Barack Obama has resisted the familiar ideological categories that have defined our judicial battles for the past several decades. He has made clear that despite his progressive inclinations, he is not a 1960s-style, Warren Court liberal — someone who believes that the justices should boldly define constitutional rights in an effort to bring about social change. It’s true that Obama has cited Chief Justice Earl Warren as a judicial ideal, emphasizing that Warren, a former governor of California, had a sensitive understanding of the real-world effects of Supreme Court decisions. But at the same time, Obama has suggested that liberals in the Warren Court mold may have placed too much trust in the courts and not enough in political activism. “I wondered,” he writes in his book “The Audacity of Hope,” alluding to Senate battles over George W. Bush’s court appointments, “if in our reliance on the courts to vindicate not only our rights but also our values, progressives had lost too much faith in democracy.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/magazine/31court-t.html?scp=5&sq=gay&st=cse


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Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
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Sizing Up Judge Sotomayor
Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is taking flak for her comment that judges decide cases from their own frames of reference ["Heritage Shapes Judge's Perspective," front page, May 27]. Although some seem shocked by this revelation, it is clear that all judges decide cases from their own frames of reference -- if they did not, then every judge would reach the same decision based on the same facts and the same law (and there would be a lot fewer lawyers). Everyone's opinions are colored by their personal frames of reference. People have different views on abortion, taxes, gay marriage, immigration, gun control, health care and every other social, political, and legal issue because of their different upbringing, culture, education and life experience. Judge Sotomayor is no exception; she just chose to express it.
LUCINDA LOW SWARTZ
Kensington
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/30/AR2009053001694_2.html

Opinion to Address Same-Sex Unions
At Issue Is Md. Recognition of Marriages Performed Elsewhere
By John Wagner
Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler (D) is planning to issue a formal opinion in coming weeks on whether the state can recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, his office said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/30/AR2009053001917.html

Calif. gay marriage opponents gear up for rallies
By GARANCE BURKE
Hundreds of gay marriage supporters marched in rural, conservative California, but before the dusty roads could clear, opponents of same-sex couples planned to take to the streets to renew their resolve.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/31/AR2009053100213.html


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

View From the Hill: Obama's Silence
Next month the Obama administration is expected to present a package of pro-LGBT announcements. But on the heels of his silence surrounding Prop. 8, will it be enough to satisfy the masses?
http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid87139.asp


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Forwarded from Gays Without Borders
Contact rays.list@comcast.net for the full article

U.S. embassy to hold first-ever gay pride party tonight -- in Iraq (May 29)
In the short time that President Obama has been in office, there have been many breaches of foreign protocol such as an overt familiarity with the British Queen and bowing to the Saudi King. But the most significant indiscretion will occur tonight as homosexuality is promoted in our embassy in a foreign land — in Baghdad, Iraq, no less. In the May 22, 2009 edition of The Washington Post, columnist Al Kamen wrote a piece entitled, "For One Night, Baghdad Gets a Pink Zone." He revealed that the State Department is "holding what the invitation says is the first-ever U.S. Embassy Gay Pride Theme Party next Friday at Bagdaddy's, which is the embassy employee association's pub." The invitation, which was sent out on May 10, encouraged everyone to, "Dress in drag or as a gay icon."
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/cavere/090529

Following an eight year ordeal the Ugandan gay asylum seeker John 'Bosco' Nyombi has finally won asylum in the UK.
Despite a well-documented media and government anti-gay campaign in Uganda, which has included articles and photos of Bosco, he was deported in September last year. The UK Border Agency making it usual claim that LGBT can be safe in such countries if only they are 'discrete'. However the method of his deportation, which involved deception, violence and rule breaking, led to a historic decision by a British court following which the Home Office was forced to return him to the UK in March, where he was immediately put into a detention centre due to an 'error'.
http://madikazemi.blogspot.com/2009/05/in-major-victory-for-lgbt-asylum.html


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Steve Rothaus
www.MiamiHerald.com/gay
Go to this link for the following articles:

Video | ‘My Miserable Lonely Lesbian Pregnancy’ author Andrea Askowitz at Books & Books in Coral Gables
On YouTube:
Who Have You Told by Andrea Askowitz from Lip Service 9, May 16, 2009. Taped at Books & Books, Coral Gables, FL. Check out AndreaAskowitz.com for more information or to buy her memoir, "MY MISERABLE LONELY LESBIAN PREGNANCY"
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/05/video-my-miserable-lonely-lesbian-pregnancy-author-andrea-askowitz-at-books-books-in-coral-gables.html


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

Letters to the Editor
I was raised in a Catholic home, attended Catholic schools and a Catholic university and, at one point, studied for the priesthood. I understand Alberto Cutié's decision. I also recently joined the Episcopal Church. The Roman Catholic Church is a noble institution, and I am thankful for all that it gave me in terms of spiritual beliefs and values. Unfortunately, it is also an institution with a history of resisting change. Cutié found everything he needed in the church except the right to form a deep and lasting relationship with someone he loved. I left the church because I am gay and was told that my sexuality was an affliction that I had to bear silently and forgo the possibility of creating a loving relationship with another man. I expect that Cutié will find the Episcopal Church a warm, familiar and welcoming home. I did.
FRED FEJES, Fort Lauderdale
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/letters/story/1073022.html


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

Alaska: Fundamentalists Raise Bar of Intolerance
Alan Boraas | Anchorage Dail News
In the 1930s the public health nurse in Kenai was a lesbian. Before post-WWII homesteading and the late-1950s oil boom, Kenai was an isolated little Alaska coastal village off the road system. The population of 2,300 was half Dena’ina and half assorted Americans, Scandinavians, and a few Filipinos and Russians. The economy centered on the fish canneries at the mouth of the Kenai River, which operated full-throttle in the summer. Life quieted down in the winter: men trapped, women sewed, the kids attended the American Territorial School and everyone visited and went to church on Sunday. Life was pretty much like every similar-sized Alaska coastal village.
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7618/

TX: Annise Parker: “Pragmatic Houston Gal” Runs for Mayor
Gay Politics
Houston City Controller Annise Parker has been elected citywide six times, a political record that has prepared her for the toughest campaign of her life. Earlier this year she announced her run for mayor of Houston, the fourth largest city in the United States. GayPolitics sat down with Annise to talk about the campaign ahead and her decision to run in what could be an historic election. GP: Let’s get the big question out of the way first. Why do you want to be mayor of Houston? I know it sounds trite, but I love this city. I’m a Houston gal, through and through. I grew up in Houston and attended public schools. I worked my way through college, then up the ladder in our oil and gas industry for 20 years before I went into public service. This city has given me everything I have. I love it and want to give something back. Read more
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/news/7616/


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FLORIDA DIGEST - May 31, 2009

**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.


~~FLORIDA GLBT NEWS~~

Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

Priest who left Catholic Church prepares sermon for Episcopal Church
The Rev. Alberto Cutie will preach at his new church, the Episcopal Church of The Resurrection. The church allows its priests to marry, unlike the Catholic Church.
A popular Miami priest nicknamed "Father Oprah" was set to give his first sermon Sunday since leaving the Roman Catholic Church after photographs surfaced of him kissing his girlfriend on the beach. The Rev. Alberto Cutie will preach at his new church, the Episcopal Church of The Resurrection. The church allows its priests to marry, unlike the Catholic Church.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/sfl-alberto-cutie-episcopal-sermon-f053109,0,1997032.story

~~FLORIDA GENERAL NEWS~~

City and county officials across Florida fight law they say "muzzles" local leaders
By Josh Hafenbrack
Decrying an attempt to "muzzle" local leaders, city and county officials are urging Gov. Charlie Crist to veto a bill that they say would leave residents in the dark about the impacts of everything from property tax cuts to charter changes. Under the bill, cities, counties and school boards would be banned from using public funds for political advertisements on ballot issues, although the expenditures would still be allowed if the information was purely factual. And elected officials could still express their opinions, as long as they don't use taxpayer resources to do it.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-ballot-amendments-muzzle-053109,0,6331879.story


Florida Democrats Rally Around Alex Sink For Governor
State Democrats will host a dinner Saturday evening for Alex Sink in Miami Beach. Sink serves as Florida's chief financial officer. She will be one of the featured speakers at the state party fundraiser. The event will be her first major speech since announcing she will run for governor. About 1,000 party supporters and activists will be at the dinner.
http://www.justnews.com/news/19611466/detail.html?treets=mia&tid=2655619429813&tml=mia_dailyforecast&tmi=mia_dailyforecast_1_04000105312009&ts=H


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Fort Report
http://www.fortreport.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

Gelber drops out of Fla. Senate race
Associated Press - 05/31/09
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FL_SENATE_GELBER_FLOL-?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US

It's time to stand behind national catastrophe fund
Tampa Tribune - 5/31/2009
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/may/31/co-its-time-to-stand-behind-national-catastrophe-f/news-opinion-commentary/

Safe-home program allowed to lapse
Daytona Beach News Journal - 5/31/2009
http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/News/Headlines/frtHEAD09053109.htm

Businesses hail workers'-comp legal fee cap
Miami Herald - 5/31/2009
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/story/1074029.html

Lifting embargo a trade-off for S. Fla. business
Miami Herald - 5/31/2009
http://www.miamiherald.com/581/story/1073952.html

Governor should sign 'electioneering' bill cracking down on Florida local government
St. Petersburg Times - 05/31/09
http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/legislature/article1005891.ece

FAU lays off 30 employees, including five tenured professors
Sun-Sentinel - 05/31/09
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/sfl-fau-profs-laid-off-052909,0,5105001.story

Florida A&M divided over President Ammons' six-figure bonus
Tallahassee Democrat - 05/31/09
http://www.tallahassee.com/article/20090530/FAMU/905300320/Florida+A&M+divided+over+President+Ammons++six-figure+bonus


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