Monday, July 18, 2016

I posted this on FB: N E V E R ever… N U N C A!

Because of republican / evangelical opposition to the GLBTq community, I left my own country to stay with my husband. 

>> I will pause here to let that sink in <<

Luckily he is Brazilian and in 2010, Brasil allowed spouses of GLBTq Brazilians to immigrate. In fact, because of our PHD's they wanted us! 

Over 12 years, it cost us well over $30,000.00 for my husband to stay in the USA legally, and it just became too expensive, and to be honest we were tired of being treated as less than 2nd class citizens. So we decided to sell everything (in the process we lost our home - a 22 year investment down the tube - in a short sale because the BUSH government destroyed the economy) and immigrated to a country that, with all its problems, respects marriage equality. 

Thank you / Obrigado Brasil!

As someone who has been traveling and living off and on in Latin America since 1980, and who has lived overseas now for almost 6 years, and has been voting by mail-in ballot... all I can say is shame on the USA for even thinking of this Trump regime! And shame on anyone who enables it! 

Trump-Pence will be the final and complete end to any form of democracy left in the USA. Astonishing how some former Berners and republicans will gladly throw their GLBTQ family, colleagues, neighbors, acquaintances under the bus for this extremist right wing tea party evangelical FoxTV Nazi party! 

As someone who has lived in numerous countries in Latin America, the USA has created shit storm after shit storm here… (creating even more illegal immigration!). The last one being Iran-Contra in Nicaragua and Guatemala, where over a million people died in THAT forgotten republican intervention, and where the instability left from it still lingers. 

I could not, will not, cannot EVER vote for ANY republican… because of their egregious foreign policy - IRAQ being the last time we made this mistake - and because of their homophobia. 

N E V E R ever… N U N C A!

Via Faith in America



Faith In America Supporters,

I want to update you with the work Faith In America accomplished this last week.

California’s SB 1146:

In the last two years, over 70+ Christian Universities and Colleges have submitted for Title IX exemptions. These Title IX exemption requests are in direct response to the Department of Education’s inclusion of transgender students in 2014. This new bill would require three things:

1. Schools must disclose their request for a Title IX exemption to prospective and current students, faculty members, and employees.

2. All schools requesting the Title IX exemption are required to submit all the documents to the Student Aid Commission which will in turn list the schools on their website.

3.  LGBT students at any of these Christian schools would be eligible to file a civil suit for discrimination.

For NBC, I wrote on why these Christian institutions cannot claim their right to discriminate while also attempting to maintain federal funding.

“These schools should have to be transparent with their students and constituency,” I wrote. “If these institutions feel comfortable requesting a right to discriminate then they should also feel comfortable defending their decision publicly. Just as the schools have their legal right to discriminate so should the students have the right to private legal action when discriminated against. This may lead to Christian institutions losing federal funding. That’s a good thing. No private institution should be able to receive government assistance while breaking its nondiscrimination laws.”

You should also read this stunning essay from a Bisexual student on his experience navigating intimate partner violence and his schools Title IX exemption.

GOP’s Platform & Gov. Mike Pence VP Pick:

The GOP continues to push a violate anti-LGBT agenda. First, noted anti-LGBT Tony Perkins influenced the GOP to include conversion therapy in their platform. This adoption of this outdated and explicitly condemned practice should be seen as an act of violence towards LGBT people, especially LGBT youth.

Faith In America told ABC News the following: "The addition of conversion therapy in the GOP’s platform shows they’re far from finished fighting against the LGBT community," Faith in America executive director Eliel Cruz said in a statement. "Conversion therapy has been denounced by all leading medical organizations. The practice stems from a religious-based archaic understanding of sexuality that believes homosexuality is a choice and is sinful."

Next, Republican frontrunner Donald Trump selected Governor Mike Pence as his Vice President running mate. This selection proves what many LGBT advocates have been saying for a while: Donald Trump is just as dangerous for LGBT people as any of the other Republican candidates.

In the Advocate, Faith In America was quoted condemning the decision:

“Governor Mike Pence has an atrocious anti-LGBT record,” said Eliel Cruz, executive director for Faith in America, which fights religious-based bigotry. “His bigoted anti-LGBT law cost the state millions of dollars while allowing businesses to discriminate against LGBT citizens. In choosing him as a VP, Trump is proving what we’ve known all along: He’s no friend to the LGBT community.”

United Methodist Church LGBT Clergy Inclusion:

For some good news! The United Methodist Church made history in electing the first openly gay bishop. Reverend Karen Oliveto was elected by the Western Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church last Friday evening. This nomination goes in direct conflict with the decision made at the General Conference of the world Church in which the United Methodists voted against allowing openly LGBT clergy to serve.

Faith In America praised the election in LGBTQ Nation:

"The United Methodist Church is the second largest Protestant denomination in the United States. Last night, they became the largest Protestant denomination with an openly gay Bishop. In electing Rev. Karen Oliveto, the Western Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church performed civil disobedience against the world church. This is historic. It’s also an act of spiritual protest against a homophobic policy that denies openly LGBT clergy from ministry. This election shows the UMC is changing and that the Holy Spirit is moving the church towards justice."

That’s some Holy Trouble!

Sincerely,
Eliel Cruz
Executive Director

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Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor día- Flower of the day - 18/07/2016

“Ao identificar um padrão de comportamento negativo que gera conflito através de uma teimosia, de um vício em brigar para defender pontos de vista e da necessidade de sempre ter a última palavra, talvez exista um pacto de vingança inconsciente. Talvez você esteja projetando o seu passado na pessoa com quem está se relacionando; tentando forçar os seus pais a te ouvirem, a te aceitarem – a te amarem. Então, ao observar o sofrimento e a angústia que isso gera na sua vida e na vida dos outros a sua volta, você começa a querer mudar. Aos poucos, antes de brigar, você morde a língua - você escolhe deixar de atuar no padrão.”

“Al identificar un patrón de comportamiento negativo que genera conflicto a través de una terquedad, de un vicio enpelear para defender puntos de vista y de la necesidad de tener siempre la última palabra, tal vez exista unpacto de venganza inconsciente. Tal vez estés proyectandotu pasado en la persona con quien te estás relacionando; intentando forzar a tus padres a que te escuchen, a que te acepten,a que te amen. Entonces,al observar el sufrimiento y la angustia que esto genera en tu vida y en la vida de los demás a tu alrededor, empiezas a querer cambiar. De a poco, antes de pelear, te muerdes la lengua - eliges dejar de actuar en el patrón.”

“When we identify a pattern of negative behavior that creates conflict through stubbornness, an addiction to fighting, defending points of views, and the need to always have the last word, we might see that underlying all of this, exists an unconscious pact of revenge. Perhaps we are projecting our past on the person we are in relationship with, as though trying to force our parents to listen to us, to accept us, to love us. As we observe the suffering and the distress this causes in our life and in the lives of those around us, we begin to want to change. Gradually, before we accept the invitation to war, we hold our tongues and we choose to stop acting out of this pattern.”

Via Daily Dharma / July 18, 2016: Equality of Self and Other

To understand that others are so much like oneself creates a different perspective, a startlingly changed worldview. When this is internalized, you are not confronting another divide, but meeting someone with whom you have so much in common. You feel you know the person.

—Jeffrey Hopkins, "Equality"