GLBT DIGEST November 10, 2007

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
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http://www.abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/story?id=3834625&page=1

POLL: Support for Civil Unions Rises, Yet Sharp Divisions Remain

On Key Social Issues, Partisan Divisions Loom Large

ANALYSIS by GARY LANGER
Nov. 8, 2007-

A record number of Americans in the latest ABC News/Washington Post pollsupport civil unions for gay couples, and most continue to favor legalabortion -- while behind those majority views sharp political andideological divisions rage on.

Overall, 55 percent favor allowing homosexual couples to form legallyrecognized civil unions, giving them the same rights as married couples inareas such as health insurance, inheritance and pension coverage. That's upfrom 45 percent in an ABC/Post poll in 2006; the previous high was 51percent in 2004.

Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani's support for gay civilunions (and legal abortion) has been disconcerting to core groups within hisparty. Conservative Republicans and evangelical white Protestants opposecivil unions by more than 2-1, and Republicans overall oppose them by 58-39percent. Yet some are willing to overlook the issue, notably televangelistPat Robertson, who endorsed Giuliani yesterday.

Similarly, while 55 percent of Americans support legal abortion -- steadythe last five years, and almost exactly the 12-year average in ABC/Postpolls -- that ranges from 78 percent of liberal Democrats to a low of 31percent of conservative Republicans.

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://www.baywindows.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=glbt&sc2=news&sc3=&id=52117

Study shows more gays coming out

by Lisa Keen
contributing writer
Thursday Nov 8, 2007

The number of same-sex couples identifying their relationship as such inU.S. Census surveys has increased five-fold since the information was firstcollected, according to a study out this month.

That study shows that Massachusetts ranks third among the states in terms ofthe highest number of same-sex couple households per 1000 households. NewHampshire and Maine rank sixth and seventh, respectively, and Rhode Islandis 10th. Vermont held onto the number one slot for the third year in a row.

Among the 50 most populous cities, Boston ranks seventh in terms of thehighest number of same-sex couple households per 1000 households. No otherNew England city ranked among the top 10. San Francisco and Seattle held thefirst and second positions.

In 1990, the Census Bureau counted 145,130 same-sex couple householdsthroughout the United States. The latest estimate, based on a 2006 samplingof the population, puts that number at 779,867.

The numbers were analyzed in a report released Nov. 2 by Gary Gates, asenior research fellow at the Williams Institute, a research center at UCLAfor sexual orientation, law, and policy studies.

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http://www.baywindows.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=glbt&sc2=features&sc3=&id=52121

VA system issues memo on treating trans vets

by Ethan Jacobs
staff reporter
Thursday Nov 8, 2007

With little to no fanfare the Veteran Affairs (VA) Boston Healthcare Systemissued a patient care memorandum to its staff in September detailingguidelines for providing care to transgender patients. Advocates describethe memo as a landmark achievement in transgender healthcare and say it isthe first known case of a VA system demonstrating in writing its commitmentto creating an inclusive and welcoming environment for transgender veterans.

"The thing is there are other facilities that are doing what is in thispolicy," said Monica Helms, president of the Transgender American VeteransAssociation (TAVA). "The difference is these other places don't have awritten policy, so it's almost like the doctors that are there who treattransgender individuals, they decided this is how they're going to do it,and the only difference is Boston decided to put it down on paper."

She said she knows of about a dozen other VA hospitals and healthcaresystems that provide inclusive healthcare for transgender patients, but TAVAhas been pushing for them to put that policy in writing, and the Boston VAsystem is the first they know of to do so.

Diego Sanchez, former co-chair of the Massachusetts Transgender PoliticalCoalition (MTPC), praised the memo's author, VA clinical psychologist Dr.Jillian Shipherd, for her commitment to ensuring that transgender patientsreceive adequate healthcare throughout the entire VA Boston HealthcareSystem. About 10 years ago when he was serving as director of JRI Health'sTransHealth Education and Development Program, Sanchez said Shipherdcontacted him and asked him to do staff trainings at the Jamaica Plain VAhospital. Sanchez and Holly Ryan, now co-chair of MTPC, did a series oftrainings for the staff focused on three areas: General trans healthcare andbarriers to care, HIV prevention for trans patients and mental health andsubstance abuse issues in the trans community. By about 2000 Sanchez said hebegan receiving positive feedback from trans patients about the treatmentthey received at the VA, particularly after the VA added an option forpatients to identify as transgender on medical forms and began the practiceof referring to patients according to their chosen name and gender pronoun.

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http://www.pridesource.com/digestarticle.shtml?article=27845

Suicide of transgender youth in Holland raises questions

by Todd A. Heywood
Originally printed 11/08/2007 (Issue 1545 - Between The Lines News)
Capitol Correspondent

HOLLAND -

The October 29 suicide of 16-year-old transgender Ian Benson has the LBGTcommunity asking hard questions.

"As parents, this is one of our worst fears," said Collette Beighley,Triangle Foundations West Michigan operative. "Our worst fear is that someof our kids will end up like Matthew Shepard, but sometimes we have toremember the pain is so intense that they take their own lives."

Beighley knew Benson, and her daughter called Benson her best friend.Beighley organized a memorial vigil for Benson last week, but the questionsabout why Benson took his life remain. Benson was well liked and his familyaccepted him for who he was. In fact, his mother started a national group tosupport families dealing with transgender children. Something that did notexist before.

"All I can say is that the Trevor Project statistics are startling,"Beighley said. The Trevor Project estimates that one out of two transgenderswill attempt to take their lives, with many succeeding. "Supportive parentshave a lot to worry about. They have to worry about not only the externalforces but the internal conflicts that arise for these kids."

Dr. Julie Nemecek knows the internal conflicts all too well. A year ago, asshe was struggling to keep her job at Spring Arbor University and transitioninto a woman, it almost became too overwhelming. She talks of sitting in herliving room with a gun in hand, suicide note written. She stopped herselfbecause she thought of her family and what her suicide would do to them.

"What is terribly difficult is to explain how your mind works differently,"said Nemecek. "Not even why, but how."

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://www.thegaymilitarytimes.com/071106Steinman.html

A New Look at the Zogby / Palm Center Data on Gays in the Military

By RADM Alan M. Steinman, USPHS / USCG (Ret)

Last December, the Michael D. Palm Center and Zogby International publishedthe results of a poll of Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans concerning gaysin the military. The poll was extremely significant because it was the firsttime a scientifically valid opinion survey of current military combat troopswas conducted on this issue. The entire study can be found on the PalmCenter website:

http://www.palmcenter.org/publications/dadt/dont_ask_dont_tell_isnt_working_survey_reveals_shift_in_military_attitudes

When looking at the opinions of these troops, it is important to rememberthat the entire basis of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) law was founded onthe assumption that the known presence of gay troops would be so distastefuland disruptive to straight service members that unit morale and unitcohesion would suffer, and therefore combat readiness would be degraded. ThePalm Center / Zogby Poll didn't query stateside military members or thosewho served in the military a decade or more ago; the poll focusedexclusively on troops who were either in combat in these two current wars ordirectly involved in support roles for the combat troops.

A brief summary of the demographics of the poll respondents is as follows:

*545 U.S. Military personnel who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan (or incombat support roles directly supporting those operations).

*65% active duty; 16% veterans; 6% mobilized Reserve/Guard; 13%non-mobilized Reserve/Guard

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http://www.miamiherald.com/692/story/301681.html

Dems take humorous swipe at Romney

By PHILIP ELLIOTT
Posted on Fri, Nov. 09, 2007

Democrats are taking a humorous swipe at Republican Mitt Romney's attempt toturn his supporters' discards into campaign cash.

The Democratic National Committee planned to launch an online auction Fridayto sell goods symbolizing the past policy positions they say Romney hasdumped.

The presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor this week askedsupporters to sell off old items to benefit his presidential bid.

Romney Campaign Manager Beth Myers sent an e-mail to supporters and askedthem to sell their old belongings on "Mitt Market," an online auction site."Do you have items lying around that you don't use?" the campaign asked onits site. "From bicycles that the kids have outgrown to old electronics orbaseball cards, your stuff may be someone else's treasure."

Democrats then turned the tables with a tongue-in-cheek stunt.

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/338915_pastor09.html

Pastor accused of child rape ruled with an iron hand
Allegations shatter small congregation in South Kitsap

Friday, November 9, 2007
Last updated 5:35 a.m. PT

By CLAUDIA ROWE
P-I REPORTER

PORT ORCHARD -- Church leaders in South Kitsap County are a genial group.Despite theological differences, they meet monthly for lunch, hobnobbingabout charity events or ways to improve their ministry. Over the years, theyoccasionally extended invitations to Pastor Robbin Leeroy Harper, asking himto join their circle. But the mild-looking church leader rebuffed everyoverture.

Pastor Robb, as he is known to adherents, led a congregation of 60, who metseveral times a week on the quiet, rural road where Harper had founded TheChurch. There, in a gated compound, he preached a non-denominational --though strict -- interpretation of the Bible and kept largely to himself.

Many in South Kitsap believe they now know why.

Eight days ago, Harper was charged with multiple counts of child rapestretching back at least to 1994, after five young women -- all of themone-time members of the congregation -- accused the married father of fourof years of sexual abuse within the church compound.

"When you're up to no good, you tend to hide," said Jamie Greening, pastorat First Baptist Church in Port Orchard. "Even the most theologicallyseparatist types remain involved in their communities. But this group waspretty much completely behind doors. The word that I would use is fringe,very fringe."

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-6010.html

Canadians mark 40 years of gay rights activism

9th November 2007 11:22

On November 7, 1967, the Supreme Court of Canada rejected the appeal ofGeorge Everett Klippert, who had been condemned to indefinite imprisonmentfor consensual sexual relations with other men.

The next day, Tommy Douglas, the first leader of Canada's New DemocraticParty, rose in the House of Commons and called for homosexuality to bedecriminalised.

Since then, the NDP has led the pack in defense of lesbian, gay, bisexualand transgender rights.

New Democrats succeeded in banning discrimination based on sexualorientation, tirelessly worked for equal marriage and are fighting today forinternational LGBT rights and for an end to discrimination based on genderidentity.

As proof of its firm resolve to stand up for full equality and human rights,the NDP marked this important anniversary by unanimously adopting acomprehensive range of policies on LGBT rights during its Federal Council inWinnipeg last weekend.

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-6014.html

Maltese press question MEP over gay club visits

9th November 2007 12:28
PinkNews.co.uk staff writer

A leading newspaper in Malta has questioned the gay-hostile voting record ofone of the country's Member of the European Parliament in light ofrevelations that he is a regular at Brussels gay bars.

LGBT activists are angry that David Casa, 38, voted against motions in theparliament that condemned homophobic violence and discrimination.

Newspaper Il Torca reported in September: "Many homosexuals commented withthis newspaper that David Casa was seen a number of times in gay clubs inBrussels."

Reporters contacted Mr Casa about these allegations and were told that heonly goes to gay establishments for "politically-related events."

"Whenever I am invited from groups and organisations who fightdiscrimination of every kind, yes I attend," he told Il Torca.

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=columnists&sc=ryan_shattuck&id=50354

An Open Letter to Homophobia

by Ryan Shattuck
EDGE Boston Contributor
Sunday Nov 4, 2007

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I happen to be friends with Homophobia.Well, by 'friends' I mean 'acquaintances.' And by 'acquaintances' I mean 'wehappen to share the same carpool to work.' Needless to say, I've had a fewissues with Homophobia over the years, and I finally built up the courage toget a few things off my chest by writing Homophobia a letter, as follows.

Dear Homophobia,

I've been meaning to write you a letter for quite some time now. I'm goingto be frank with you - this isn't a friendly letter to swap recipes or toask how the kids are doing (speaking of which, your emailed pictures of your3-year-old son from last Halloween are interesting to, what's the word I'mlooking for, nobody).

Rather, I have a bone to pick with you. A rather large, gay-hating bone thesize of at least Fred Phelps.

You've had a long illustrious career, Homophobia. You've accomplished morein just one lifetime than most people do in, well, an entire lifetime.You'veinfluenced fake-politicians ranging from Rick Santorum to David Vitter.You'vemotivated fake-celebrities ranging from Isaiah Washington to Ann Coulter.You've inspired fake-religious leaders ranging from most religious leadersto... that about covers it.

I got it. Great. You've had a long productive career. I'm impressed. AntiQueer-Loving Larry Miller is impressed. We're all impressed.

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
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http://www.pridesource.com/article.shtml?article=27821

BTL Editorial: We need more heros

Between The Lines Newspaper
From issue number 1545
Originally printed 11/08/2007

Next week the LGBT community will commemorate the National Transgender Dayof Remembrance to honor the "T" people who have lost their lives.Unfortunately, one more soul was added to that list last week when IanBenson, a Holland transgender teenager, committed suicide.

It is unlikely that Benson wanted to become a martyr. But it is hard to notsee a connection between how ostracized trans people are in this world andBenson's final, desperate act. All those who knew and loved Benson for theperson he truly was, including his supportive parents, describe him asbright, engaged and aware of his identity and the world around him. Perhapsthat realization was just too painful, and for that to be true we must allshare a piece of the responsibility for this tragic loss.

The world is tough for trans people. Many are invisible even within the LGBTcommunity. Others suffer indignities for simply having the courage to showtheir real selves to the harsh glare of public scrutiny. Our society isvested in the dual gender roles - boys and girls - nothing in between, andfor some the threat that trans people pose causes them to literally see red.Too often it is the color of the blood they shed in their attacks.

That is why it is so important for us to appreciate and honor the life storyof a heroine like Dr. Kathryn Wright. In the early 1990s, she saw theweakest in Detroit - teenagers who had contracted HIV/AIDS - and withoutjudging them, she reached out to help. She heard terrifying stories, we aresure, about risky behaviors that resulted in infection, and she just lovedthem. She healed them, spiritually and physically.

One of Dr. Wright's early transgender patients was murdered, and she stillgrieves her.

We need more heros like Dr. Wright.

Perhaps the next time we encounter someone who is completely different,maybe even threatening, we respond with compassion. We resist our lesserselves who want to tease or harm that person who is so strange. We insteadlook for our better selves in their faces, and see the common qualities weall share as human beings.

It would be wonderful if someday the Transgender Day of Remembrance had tobe cancelled because there was no more violence or discrimination against"T" folks. We suspect that if that day ever comes, the world will look verydifferent than it did to Ian Benson.



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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
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http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007711060317

MY TURN: There's little left to debate about same-sex marriage

By Ron Bernard-Rivera
November 6, 2007

The Free Press seems to think that just because only two people out of ahundred spoke against gay marriage, it means that the debate is unbalancedand that a boycott is responsible for the low turnout. There might beanother explanation for teh low number of anti-marriage people willing tospeak out now.

Back in the year 2000, the anti-marriage people argued very passionatelythat civil unions were simply gay marriage by another name. They said thatif we allowed civil unions in Vermont, the sacred institution of marriagewould be at risk. They claimed that the fabric of society would be utterlydestroyed. They even said that the foundation of civilization itself wouldcrumble. They said that if we allowed civil unions, it was a slippery slopeand there would be no way to stop polygamy. They told us that peoplemarrying animals would soon follow.

Since no one can honestly point to any of these predictions actually comingtrue, then these people may be a little slow to show their faces and repeatthe same tired talking points now that everyone has seen the truth. Therewere no negative side effects from civil unions.

The only thing left for this crowd to argue is that they believe that gaysand lesbians are immoral. Denying marriage to gays because they are immoralwithout having a morality test for straight people is a little one-sided.Isn't it strange to believe that murderers, rapists, thieves, and thugs aremoral enough to be married because they are straight, but honest, loving,gays and lesbians are not? Don't people believe that they should treat theirneighbors as they want to be treated and don't they realize that they havegay and lesbian neighbors?

We should treat everyone equally in Vermont. If it is too much of a stretchto give marriage to gays and lesbians, let's have only civil unions foreveryone. Then everyone will experience the reason why civil unions aren'tgood enough. When unequal civil unions are substituted for marriage, I thinkthat most Vermonters will be surprised to find out that their rights stop atthe border. When they go to any other state, they will have to figure out ifthey are married, civil union partners, or completely unrelated in thatstate. They will have to pray that nothing bad happens to them in anotherstate because without marriage, hospitals don't have to treat your spouse asa next of kin.

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http://www.consortiumnews.com/2007/110607a.html

The War on Medical Marijuana

By Patrick McCartney and Martin A. Lee
November 6, 2007

Editor's Note: Eleven years ago, California voters passed Prop 215, theCompassionate Use Act, permitting the use of marijuana to treat medicalconditions. But state and local officials are still collaborating withfederal law enforcement in a war on medical marijuana:

On the morning of Jan. 13, 2004, Tehama County prosecutor Lynn Stromunexpectedly announced that the state of California was dropping chargesagainst Cynthia Blake and David Davidson for possessing and growing cannabiswith the intent to distribute.

While the two medical marijuana patients waited in the courtroom, Strom andthe defense attorneys disappeared inside the judge's chambers to discuss themotion to dismiss.

Moments later, more than a dozen sheriff's deputies pounced on the haplesscouple, handcuffed them, and shoved them into an unmarked police car waitingoutside the courthouse in the Sacramento Valley town of Corning.

They were already en route to jail in Sacramento when Strom informed theirlawyers that the state was bowing out because the Feds were taking over thecase.

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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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http://www.pridesource.com/digestarticle.shtml?article=27808

Author, activist shares experiences with Jackson audience
by Todd A. Heywood
Originally printed 11/08/2007

Capitol Correspondent

JACKSON -

Marc Adams was allowed to watch only one television program as a child,Jerry Falwell's Old Time Gospel Hour. And even then, he said, he was allowedonly to watch the first half hour. The second half was Falwell's preaching,something his fundamentalist Baptist minister father thought was tooliberal.

By accident, one night Adams had a chance to catch some of the forbiddenfruit of Falwell's "liberal" sermon and the television minister was railingagainst the evils of homosexuality. "Jerry started talking about it as asin, and if you really believed God was all powerful, God could certainlychange someone's behavior from homosexual to heterosexual," Adams told agathering of 30 people in Jackson last Friday. "I heard hope. I could changemy life and become straight."

That message had a lasting impact on Adams. He decided then and there thathe would attend Falwell's Liberty University. He said he knew his parentswanted him to go to a religious university, it was expected of him and hisclassmates of the Christian high school they attended. But when he announcedhis plans to attend Liberty the response was not good.

"That didn't fly. I could have come out to them and had a better receptionat that point," Adams said with a laugh. "They told me if I wanted to go tothat place, they would not be paying for any of that."

But he was determined to go there. So determined in fact that he completedhigh school at age 16 and enrolled in Liberty. He got a job and found aboyfriend. The relationship lasted only six months, and afterwards, Adamssaid, he realized he had been sidetracked from his plan to become straight.

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http://www.beliefnet.com/story/144/story_14449_1.html

'He's Bringing Great Sadness to Our Home'
Operation Rescue founder Randall Terry talks about his gay son.

Interview by Paul O'Donnell

Longtime anti-abortion activist Randall Terry in recent years has campaignedagainst gay marriage and homosexuality. So it was of some embarrassment tohim when his son Jamiel published an article in the May issue of Outmagazine revealing that he is gay. Terry responded by writing an op-ed,sharply criticizing his son and saying, "He is no longer welcome in myhome."

On Thursday, both Jamiel and Randall Terry gave extraordinary interviews toBeliefnet editor Paul O'Donnell. In his interview, Jamiel explains that hewrote the article because "I wanted my father to see I'm not going to hell,"but says that he still loves his father. Below, Randall says that Jamiel is"bringing great sadness to our home and embarrassment to our family."

How did you find out about Jamiel's article?
Four weeks ago he told me they had contacted him, and he was entertainingthe idea.

He told me he approached them with an email.
Yeah, but that's not what he told me. I found that out yesterday.

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http://www.gaypeopleschronicle.com/stories07/november/1109074.htm

State turns down $1.25 million for HIV education
Avalanche of e-mails may change agency's mind, though

by Anthony Glassman
November 9, 2007

Columbus--State residents are inundating the Ohio Department of Educationwith phone calls and e-mails after the agency indicated that it would notapply for $1.25 million in federal grant money earmarked for the state.

By not applying, Ohio joins only Utah in rejecting the Centers for DiseaseControl, Division of Adolescent and School Health grants, which would bepaid out as $250,000 a year for half a decade.

Ohio did not apply for the grant seven years ago, when the state was in themidst of an abstinence-only sex education frenzy. This year, however, sawthe inauguration of Gov. Ted Strickland, who has already rejectedabstinence-only funding.

If the state doesn't apply for the DASH money by November 21, they will notbe able to apply again for another five years.

The fate of that earmark is far from sealed, says Earl Pike, executivedirector of the AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland.

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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/11/09/BAQCT7E9P.DTL&nl=top

New strategy for attacking AIDS focuses on cell's distress signal

Sabin Russell, Chronicle Medical Writer
Friday, November 9, 2007

(11-08) 18:47 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco researchers have come upwith a new strategy for a potential AIDS vaccine: creating one that attacksa newly discovered distress signal displayed by cells infected with HIV.

Efforts to design vaccines that identify and kill HIV itself have beenrepeatedly stymied by the ability of the AIDS virus to mutate quickly. Assoon as the vaccine-assisted immune system learns to attack the virus orcells infected with it, new forms of the microbe emerge that the body'sdefenses do not recognize.

But the distress signal - actually small proteins churned up to the surfaceof cells infected with HIV - is unchanging.

In theory, a vaccine might be crafted to destroy cells that display thissignal - killing at the same time the hidden HIV quietly duplicating itselfinside them.

"For a vaccine against an infectious agent, this is a completely newstrategy," said Dr. Douglas Nixon, a UCSF immunologist.

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http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-6016.html

Nigeria loses out on Commonwealth Games

9th November 2007 13:03
Tony Grew

Glasgow will host the 2014 Commonwealth Games, it was announced today.

Scotland's largest city beat a bid from the Nigerian city of Abuja by 47votes to 24 at a meeting of the Games voting nations in Sri Lanka.

Gay activists in Nigeria had questioned whether that country should beallowed to host the Games because of its "systematic persecution of lesbianand gay Nigerians."

First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond told the BBC: "We will make thesegames the greatest sporting event our country has ever seen.

"They will be our chance to show the whole world the very best of Scotland."

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http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-6009.html

Discrimination against gay athletes on sports agenda

9th November 2007 11:05

At a recent sports conference in Reykjavik, Iceland, hundreds of leadingmedia professionals, academics, and officials met to discuss controversialissues in the sports world.

Among those topics, which included changes to the current doping policy, wasaddressing the discrimination against the growing number of gay athletes.

"Play the Game" is an independent institution which aims to strengthen thebasic ethical values of sport and encourage democracy, transparency andfreedom of expression in world sport.

Over the past 10 years, the conference has achieved a unique status as "theonly platform in international sport where qualified critics andhigh-ranking sports officials engage in unrestricted and constructivedebates about the main challenges to modern sport," according to the forumwebsite.

Canadian Roger LeBlanc, a leading researcher in the field of gay athletes,addressed a growing concern, which he referred to as "the conspiracy tosilence gay athletes."

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Forwarded from EuroQueer

www.c-fam.org

Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay Launch Radical
Homosexual Rights Document

By Samantha Singson

(NEW YORK - C-FAM) At a meeting at UN headquarters this week, acoalition of NGOs and the governments of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguayhosted the New York launch of a document which seeks to advance homosexualrights at the national and international levels. Boris Dittrich, advocacydirector for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender program at HumanRights Watch and moderator of the event stated that this document was the"Magna Carta for human rights in the areas of sexual orientation and genderidentity."

Called the Yogyakarta Principles , the document lists human rights thatalready exist in binding international law such as the right to life andfreedom from torture, and reinterprets each one to include homosexualrights. Based on the tenet of non-discrimination, the Principles assert thatnations are legally bound to change their constitutions and penal codes toincorporate homosexual rights, including rights to same-sex unions and gayadoption.

According to the Principles, "Sexual orientation is understood to referto each person's capacity for profound emotional, affectional [sic] andsexual attraction to, and intimate and sexual relations with, individuals ofa different gender or the same gender or more than one gender." Thedocument states that "gender identity is understood to refer to eachperson's deeply felt internal and individual experience of gender, which may or maynot correspond with the sex assigned at birth."

Panelist Mary Robinson, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rightsand signatory to the Yogyakarta Principles, praised the document foraddressing a "deficit in the human rights system" that does not adequatelyaddress discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity,which she argues are "core human rights issues."

Though she was not present at the meeting, a letter from current UNHigh Commissioner on Human Rights Louise Arbour was distributed at themeeting in support of the Yogyakarta Principles. Arbour reiterates heroffice's commitment to promoting and protecting sexual orientation andgender identity and states that "Excluding lesbian, gay, bisexual,transgender and intersex persons from equal protection violatesinternational human rights law as well as the common standards of humanitythat define us all."

Pro-family UN experts note that not a single UN human rights treatymentions sexual orientation and furthermore, UN member states haverepeatedly rejected attempts by Brazil and the EU to pass resolutionspromoting broad homosexual rights.

The panelists strongly encouraged government delegations to use theYogyakarta Principles throughout the UN system and as a guide for all futureprograms and work. Dittrich praised the government of the Netherlands foralready using the Principles to help determine development aid. To helpmore countries follow the Netherlands example, the organizers announced thatan activist guide on the Yogyakarta Principles would be published in theupcoming weeks.

The event was organized by several prominent homosexual rights groupssuch as the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC),the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) and Human Rights Watch.

For more news visit us at www.c-fam.org



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Advocate.com

http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid50335.asp

World's Largest Gay Church to Break Ground for New Chapel

November 09, 2007

The Cathedral of Hope and the grassroots organization Hope for Peace &Justice will break ground on the Philip Johnson-designed Interfaith PeaceChapel this coming Sunday in a special service.

The 175-seat chapel is meant to serve as a bold statement of theDallas-based organizations' commitment to peace and interfaith dialogue andcooperation. The building will be open to congregations of various faiths aswell as seekers of peace who claim no particular faith group. It will alsoserve to provide sharp contrast to the George W. Bush Library, to be built ashort distance away on the campus of Southern Methodist University.

The Cathedral of Hope is the world's largest liberal Christian church with aprimary outreach to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. Itslocal and national church ministries, outreach programs, pastoralcounseling, Web site (www.cathedralofhope.com), and television media touchthousands of lives each day. Hope for Peace & Justice empowers progressivepeople of faith to be champions for peace and justice. The organizationseeks to give voice to principles such as the creation of a culture of peacerather than war; equal rights for all people, not just the majority; andeducation as a means of societal transformation rather than economicseparation.

The groundbreaking is timed to coincide with the 20th anniversary of theReverend Michael Piazza's installation as the church's senior pastor.Piazza, who now serves as dean of the cathedral as well as president of Hopefor Peace & Justice, was senior pastor for 16 years before retiring in 2003.A special reception will be held in his honor after the service.

The service will take place Sunday, November 11, at 3 p.m. The Cathedral ofHope is located at 5910 Cedar Springs Road in Dallas. The service is freeand open to all. (The Advocate)



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ExpressGayNews.com

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/annearundel/bal-ronan1109,0,1584761,print.story?coll=bal_sports_motorracing_promo

Physician convicted of Mid sex tapes
Court martial finds Academy doctor betrayed trust

By Josh Mitchell
Sun reporter
9:28 PM EST, November 9, 2007

WASHINGTON

A Navy physician was sentenced Friday to nearly four years in the brig after a military jury found that he had secretly recorded Naval Academy midshipmen having sex in his Annapolis home.

The jury also dismissed Cmdr. Kevin J. Ronan from the Navy and stripped him of his government pension.

The 10-day general court-martial at the Washington Navy Yard concluded with Ronan, who turns 42 today, being escorted in handcuffs through a cold rain into a van. He declined to talk to reporters.

Before sentencing, Ronan told jurors it was a "privilege" to wear his Navy uniform and that he never dishonored it during his 16 years in the military. But he expressed regret at buying the surveillance equipment that was used to tape the midshipmen.

"A crime occurred in my house with equipment I knowingly provided," Ronan said. "I take responsibility for that and the people that were hurt by that."

more . . . . .



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ExpressGayNews.com

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/08/born-to-be-gay/1504.html

Born To Be Gay

By: Rick Nauert, Ph.D.
Senior News Editor

Reviewed by: John M. Grohol, Psy.D.
on November 8, 2007

Thursday, Nov. 8 (Psych Central) -- For years scientists have debated if sexual orientation is determined by nature or nurture. New evidence suggests enetics is a significant factor for whether an individual is homosexual or heterosexual.

The findings emanate from a Canadian study of the brains of healthy, right-handed, 18- to 35-year-old homosexual and heterosexual men using structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

The research, conducted by Dr. Sandra Witelson, a neuroscientist at McMaster niversity was a follow-up of a ten-year old study that demonstrated there is a higher proportion of left-handers in the homosexual population than in the general population - a result replicated in subsequent studies which is now accepted as fact.

Handedness is a sign of how the brain is organized to represent different aspects of intelligence. Language, for example, is usually on the left - music on the right.

In other research, Witelson and research associate Debra Kigar, had found that left-handers have a larger region of the posterior corpus callosum - the thick band of nerve fibres connecting the two hemispheres of the brain - than right handers.

more . . . . .



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ExpressGayNews.com

http://expressgaynews.com/print.cfm?content_id=4182

Gay columnist stirring up Latino mainstream
Author of Nuevo Herald columns featured at Miami Book Fair

By JW ARNOLD
Nov. 08, 2007

Gay Miami journalist Daniel Shoer Roth, author of a newly published collection of columns, will be one of the influential authors featured at the Miami Book Fair International this weekend at Miami Dade College.

Roth has collected a series of his most thought-provoking columns from Miami's el Nuevo Herald in a bilingual volume titled "Stories of Truth and Hope," which was published in collaboration with the Dade Human Services Coalition. In the spirit of Roth's column "En Foco," which takes a raw look at the social and economic issues facing his community, the book hopes to inspire a sense of hope and fuel civic activism.

The author is the first to admit his own unique background colors his perspective. "I'm a gay Latino Jew," he says, "Throughout the book, you see a special sensitivity to minorities. I grew up Jewish in a very Catholic society and gay in a very machista country. This book is definitely the result of feeling discriminated against, but it takes a positive route and, hopefully, will foster tolerance for any issue, including gay issues."

A native of Venezuela, Roth came to the U.S. in 1997 to study journalism and Latin American and Caribbean studies at New York University's graduate school. An internship with el Nuevo Herald landed him a full-time position as a reporter in 1999. Eight years later, he is a full-time columnist exploring the contentious issues in Miami's conservative Hispanic culture.

One of the difficult topics Roth tackled early was the struggle of young gay hildren.

more . . . . .



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/11/110907seat.htm

Goodyear Ordered To Pay $4.4M In Discrimination Suit

by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: November 9 2007 - 5:00 pm ET

(Seattle, Washington) A jury in Seattle, Washington has ordered Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company to pay a woman $4.4 million after finding the company demoted and then fired her after she complained of discrimination because of her sexuality.

Melissa Sheffield went to court alleging that Goodyear had retaliated against her after she complained her boss had made disparaging remarks about her sexuality.

She testified that the boss had made slurs about gays and lesbians and when she confronted him he said he knew she was a lesbian and did not want to work with gay people.

Sheffield also said she heard that the boss carried a gun to work, a violation of Goodyear policy, and she asked him about it.

He confirmed he was armed and when she told him that was not permissible, he said if she made him mad he would "pull it out and urinate all over [her]."

more . . . . .



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/11/110907hiv.htm

Scientists: 'Fossil DNA' In Cells Possible Key To AIDS Vaccine

by The Canadian Press
Posted: November 9, 2007 - 5:00 pm ET

(Toronto, Ontario) Canadian and U.S. scientists have identified a potential new ``Trojan Horse'' method for creating a vaccine against AIDS, even as repeated efforts by researchers to prevent HIV infection using traditional immunization approaches continue to fail.

Instead of trying to directly target the rapidly mutating human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the scientists suggest a vaccine could take aim at what's known as fossil DNA _ genetic material from ancient viruses that has inserted itself into every human cell over our evolutionary history.

In a study published Friday in the journal PLoS Pathogens, the researchers say it appears that HIV reactivates this usually dormant DNA - called human endogenous retroviruses, or HERVs - by disrupting the normal controls that keep it in check.

The study found that in some HIV-positive individuals, infection-fighting T cells are able to target HERV-enabled cells, said co-principal author Brad Jones, a PhD candidate in immunology at the University of Toronto.

Jones said a huge stumbling block for scientists and drug companies seeking an effective vaccine is that HIV is like a moving target - it exists in many variations and constantly mutates.

more . . . . .



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/11/110907enda.htm

Kennedy To Introduce ENDA In Senate

by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: November 9, 2007 - 5:00 pm ET

(Washington) Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) says he will introduce a Senate version of the the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in the current session.

"I'm working with leadership to move this bill forward as quickly as possible," Kennedy said in a statement.

The Massachusetts Democrat has a long history of advocating for LGBT civil rights. Most recently he guided the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act to passage.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act passed the House on Wednesday (story) but without protections for the transgendered.

"Although the bill is narrower than many of us had hoped, the House action is still a main step in the long journey toward full civil rights for every American."

more . . . . .



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/11/111007allen.htm

Florida Republican Guilty In Washroom Sex Case

by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: November 10, 2007 - 7:30 am ET

(Tampa, Florida) State Rep. Bob Allen (R) has been convicted of offering an undercover male police officer cash for sex.

Allen, a longtime foe of LGBT rights in Florida, will be sentenced next Thursday. He could be facing 60 days in the county jail and a $500. fine. Republicans in the legislature said the conviction will allow them to move forward with plans to remove Allen from office.

Following the verdict his attorney accused the prosecution of misconduct and said he will seek a new trial.

Allen was busted in July during a sting at a men's washroom at Veteran's Memorial Park in Titusville, Florida.

In taped statements made by Allen to police following his arrest and released by the force Allen admits to soliciting the male officer but claims that it was the result of being nervous by the high number of black men in the park.

"I certainly wasn't there to have sex with anybody and certainly wasn't there to exchange money for it," Allen told officers.

Of the arresting officer Allen said in the tape, "This was a pretty stocky black guy, and there was nothing but other black guys around in the park."

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The New York Times

http://theboard.blogs.nytimes.com/

Gay Rights, the Transgendered, and Accepting Partial Progress

By The Editorial Board
November 9, 2007, 3:09 pm

This week brought a civil rights breakthrough. The House of Representatives passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would protect gay people against workplace discrimination. (Related Editorial: An Overdue Step for Equal Justice, Nov. 9.)

The vote was 235-184. (Check how your representative voted here.)

Senator Edward Kennedy is laying plans to get the bill to the Senate floor early next year.

Not everyone, however, is happy with the vote - and that includes many people who strongly favor gay rights.

The "nay" votes included 35 Republicans - despite the efforts of Chris Shays of Connecticut and Deborah Pryce of Ohio to persuade their G.O.P. colleagues to vote in favor - but also some of the House's most pro-gay-rights members, like Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York.

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The New York Times

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/11/09/dobsons-choice/index.html?ref=opinion

Dobson's Choice

By Tobin Harshaw
November 9, 2007, 4:56 pm

Tags: the campaign, the religious right

In terms of campaign '08, this week has been the week of the great religious-right fallout.

"Dr. James Dobson, who has largely been made irrelevant to the 2008 Republican presidential race, has apparently found his man, and according to an adviser, is ready to change the landscape of the Republican nomination race," reports The American Spectator's Prowler.

"Sources close to Dobson say that within the next ten days he is coordinating an endorsement plan with the presidential campaign of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee."

Kyle E. Moore, at Comments from Left Field, weighs in in a perceptive and uncharacteristically) calm manner:
Among the many different underlying stories within the GOP primary elections, one of the most significant has been the behavior of the Religious Right, often seen as one of the Republican party's most potent political power centers. In a largely unimpressive field where most of the leading candidates have more than their fair share of obstacles to appeasing the socially conservative base, the fate of who would gain the attention of the country's most powerful Christian leaders, or if anyone gets anything at all, has been a question mark plaguing the campaigns.

more . . . . .



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To Form a More Perfect Union: Marriage Equality News

Information, news, and discussion about the legal recognition of same-sexcouples and their families, including marriages, domestic partnerships,civil unions, adoptions, foster children and similar issues.

http://samesexmarriage.typepad.com/weblog/

Go to the website, above, for the following articles:

A federal judge has rejected a lawsuit aimed at blocking New Jersey'sDivision of Civil Rights from investigating a civil rights complaint by twolesbian couples that they were told they could not have civil unionceremonies at the pavilion on Ocean Grove's boardwalk. The pavilion is ownedby the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, a Methodist organization but itis regularly rented out for public functions including weddings. Theassociation told the couples that the pavilion is a religious structure andthe denomination rejects same-sex union ceremonies.The state Division ofCivil Rights began an investigation after the two couples filed formalcomplaints. (story)

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Over 200 people turned up at a candlit vigil on Thursday night outside theIrish Dáil [Parliament Building] to protest at the lack of equality for samesex couples in this country. The event was organised by the LGBT section ofthe Labour Party, who re-introduced a Civil Unions Bill in the Dáil lastweek. The Labour Bill, which sought to introduce a form of civil partnershipfor same sex couples that provided equal rights and responsibilities tomarried couples, was voted down by 66 votes to 59 followiing an argumentthat it was unconstitutional. Instead the Minister for Justice, Equality andLaw Reform, Brian Lenehan set a deadline of March 31st for the heads of theGovernment's own Bill to be introduced.

--
Marriage For Freedom to Marry is the gay and non-gay partnership working towin marriage equality nationwide. Headed by Evan Wolfson, one of America'sleading civil rights advocates and lawyers, Freedom to Marry brings newresources and a renewed context of urgency and opportunity to this socialjustice movement. Freedom to Marry brings the work of its partnerorganizations into a larger whole, a shared civil rights campaign thatfosters heightened outreach to non-gay allies. The first part of the programmay be heard as an MP3 file by clicking download. Freedom to Marryencourages dialogue with Americans thinking through the need to enddiscrimination in marriage, provides support to targeted state and localefforts, and promotes fairness for all families, including same-sex couplesand the children raised by gay parents. By working to secure equal access tocivil marriage licenses from the government, we help reinforce our country'shistoric commitment to freedom, the pursuit of happiness, and equal justicefor all.


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