Via JMG: Harvey Fierstein On Orson Scott Card

"Look at that asshole [Orson Scott Card] that wrote this new Harrison Ford movie [Ender's Game]. I think that you can have any opinion you want, but at least be willing to take the consequences of your opinion. It’s like, 'Well, I hope that people will be more understanding,' or what did he say? 'More tolerant of my views.' The quotes that got me about him weren’t against gay marriage -- he wanted homosexuality criminalized in the United States. That's what he called for. You want me to be tolerant of you wanting to criminalize homosexuality? Fuck you on your grave, you piece of shit." - Harvey Fierstein, telling it like it is to the Hollywood Reporter. 

Labels: Broadway, gay artists, Harvey Fierstein, Hollywood, movies, NOM, Orson Scott Card

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Via JMG: Canada Updates Russia Travel Advice

 

From Canada's just updated travel advisory for Russia:

Although homosexual activity is not illegal in Russia, a federal law has been passed that prohibits public actions that are described as promoting homosexuality and “non-traditional sexual relations”. This law could render any homosexual and pro-homosexual statements punishable. Public actions (including dissemination of information, statements, displays or conspicuous behaviour) that contravene or appear to contravene this law may lead to arrest, the imposition of a fine and deportation. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender travellers, as well as their friends and families, have been targets of harassment and violence.

RELATED: The US State Department's advisory for Russia contains warnings about "harassment, threats, and acts of violence" against LGBT people, but does not yet note the recent passage of the national ban on "homosexual propaganda." It does note the passage of the earlier regional bans.

Labels: Canada, Russia, State Department, tourism

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Via JMG: Quote Of The Day - Scott Shackford

Quote Of The Day - Scott Shackford

"What’s sad about this effort is that if Russia succeeds in getting its hands back on Stoli, then a boycott actually makes sense. But the consequence will be that a powerful businessman who does support the gay community will lose his company. Boycotting Stoli now is a very bad idea. [Stoli owner Yuri] Scheffler is an ally who the gay and lesbian community needs to work with, not alienate. From a Western perspective it may be hard to realize that an incredibly rich person like Scheffler has the potential to be a victim of Russia’s authoritarian regime like its gay citizens or members of Pussy Riot, but it’s extremely important not to look at the nature of power and influence there the way we do here." - Scott Shackford, writing for Reason.  The entire essay is worth your time.

Labels: boycotts, LGBT rights, Russia, Stoli

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Via JMG: HRC: The IOC Shouldn't Trust Russia

Via press release from the Human Rights Campaign:

Mere verbal assurances from the Russian government that foreigners will be exempt from their repressive laws are not enough,” said Human Rights Campaign (HRC) President Chad Griffin. “The IOC must obtain ironclad written assurance from President Putin. But more importantly, they should be advocating for the safety of all LGBT people in Russia, not simply those visiting for the Olympics. Rescinding this heinous law must be our collective goal.”
In June, a law banning "propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations" was passed by Russia’s Federal Assembly and signed into law by President Vladimir Putin. Under the guise of protecting children from "homosexual propaganda," the law imposes fines or jail time to citizens who disseminate information that may cause a "distorted understanding" that LGBT and heterosexual relationships are "socially equivalent." The fines are significantly higher if such information is distributed through the media or Internet.

The HRC is responding to this story.

Labels: Chad Griffin, HRC, IOC, LGBT rights, Olympics, Russia, Sochi Olympics, sports

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Via JMG: Quote Of The Day - Desmond Tutu

Yesterday I reported that the United Nation's had launched a global campaign for the LGBT rights during a meeting in South Africa.  At the launch announcement was Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

South Africa's Nobel peace laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu says he will never worship a "homophobic God" and will rather go to hell. The retired archbishop was speaking at the launch of a UN-backed campaign in South Africa to promote gay rights. Archbishop Tutu said the campaign against homophobia was similar to the campaign waged against racism in South Africa. "I am as passionate about this campaign as I ever was about apartheid. For me, it is at the same level," he added.

(Image via Memeographs)

Labels: Desmond Tutu, religion, United Nations

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Via JMG: NBC Responds To IOC Statement

Yesterday the International Olympic Committee released a statement declaring that it had "received assurances from the highest levels" of the Russian government that athletes and fans would be exempt from arrest under the "homosexual propaganda" law during the Sochi Olympics. Buzzfeed's Chris Geidner reached out to NBC for a statement:

“NBCUniversal strongly supports equal rights and the fair treatment for all people. The spirit of the Olympic Games is about unifying people and countries through the celebration of sport and it is our hope that spirit will prevail,” NBCUniversal senior vice president of corporate communications Cameron Blanchard told BuzzFeed Friday evening. Human Rights Campaign had raised questions about the coverage plans in a letter to NBC officials earlier this week, with HRC president Chad Griffin writing, “NBCUniversal … has a unique opportunity — and a responsibility — to expose this inhumane and unjust law to the millions of American viewers who will tune in to watch the Games.”

Geidner reports that NBC noted that the Olympics are still seven months away and that "specific coverage plans are yet to be finalized." Let's hope that coverage includes much more than the above blanket statement of support.

Labels: IOC, NBC, Russia, Sochi Olympics

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Via Tricycle Daily Dharma

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 27, 2013

Make the First Move

Usually we are in a stalemate with our world: 'Is he going to say he is sorry to me first, or am I going to apologize to him first?' But in becoming a bodhisattva we break that barrier: we do not wait for the other person to make the first move; we have decided to do it ourselves.

- Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, "The Bodhisattva Vow: Eight Views"

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Tricycle Daily Dharma July 24, 2013

Practicing with Loss

Loss is a fact of life. Impermanence is everywhere we look. We are all going to suffer our losses. How we deal with these losses is what makes all the difference. For it is not what happens to us that determines our character, our experience, our karma, and our destiny, but how we relate to what happens.

- Lama Surya Das, "Practicing with Loss"

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Via JMG: NEW MEXICO: AG Tells State Supreme Court He Won't Defend Marriage Ban

 

New Mexico Attorney General Gary King yesterday told the state Supreme Court that he will not defend a lawsuit calling for the legalization of same-sex marriage.

In written arguments filed with the court, King said the justices should invalidate the state’s ban on gay marriage if they agree to resolve the issue in a lawsuit filed by two Santa Fe men who were denied a marriage license. King, a Democrat who plans to run for governor next year against Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, said New Mexico law effectively doesn’t allow gay marriages although there’s no statutory provision that specifically prohibits, or authorizes, gay couples to be married. “New Mexico’s guarantee of equal protection to its citizens demands that same-sex couples be permitted to enjoy the benefits of marriage in the same way and to the same extent as other New Mexico citizens,” King said in the filing.

The state Supreme Court had asked King to respond to the lawsuit, but in yesterday's response, King also said the couple's case should be rejected because it had improperly bypassed lower courts and would set a precedent for direct actions to the high court. Earlier this month the ACLU and the National Center for Lesbian Rights also filed a lawsuit on behalf of six gay couples asking the state Supreme Court to clarify whether same-sex couples can marry in New Mexico.
RELATED: Back in March the mayor of Santa Fe declared that there is nothing in state law than bans same-sex couples from marrying.

Labels: lawsuits, marriage equality, New Mexico

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Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 23, 2013

Equality

We are not born equal, are not created equal. We are born different, and live different, and die different, because of our different karma. But there are certain areas where things become equal. There is no difference in the attainment of enlightenment. When we attain nirvana, we all are equal.

- Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, "Going Upstream"

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Via JMG: HomoQuotable - Harvey Fierstein

"Mr. Putin’s campaign against lesbian, gay and bisexual people is one of distraction, a strategy of demonizing a minority for political gain taken straight from the Nazi playbook. Can we allow this war against human rights to go unanswered? Although Mr. Putin may think he can control his creation, history proves he cannot: his condemnations are permission to commit violence against gays and lesbians. Last week a young gay man was murdered in the city of Volgograd. He was beaten, his body violated with beer bottles, his clothing set on fire, his head crushed with a rock. This is most likely just the beginning. [snip]

"With Russia about to hold the Winter Games in Sochi, the country is open to pressure. American and world leaders must speak out against Mr. Putin’s attacks and the violence they foster. The Olympic Committee must demand the retraction of these laws under threat of boycott. In 1936 the world attended the Olympics in Germany. Few participants said a word about Hitler’s campaign against the Jews. Supporters of that decision point proudly to the triumph of Jesse Owens, while I point with dread to the Holocaust and world war. There is a price for tolerating intolerance." - Harvey Fierstein, writing for the New York Times.

Labels: activism, Harvey Fierstein, HomoQuotable, LGBT rights, Olympics, Russia, Sochi Olympics, sports, Vladimir Putin

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Via JMG: COLOMBIA: High Court Rebukes Campaign To Block Same-Sex Marriages

 

Colombia's Constitutional Court has told Inspector General Alejandro Ordóñez to drop his campaign to block same-sex marriages. J. Lester Feder reports at Buzzfeed:

Ordoñez had been threatening disciplinary action against any official who took up this authority. His case was based on the fact that the court’s ruling did not specifically say that couples can “marry,” nor did it directly change the law. Instead, it gave congress until June 20, 2013 to change the law to give equal rights to same-sex couples. The 2011 ruling only gives the power directly to judges and notaries because congress failed to act, and ambiguity in the ruling left it unclear whether they will call these unions “marriages” or something else entirely. On Friday, the court rejected Ordoñez’s petition for it to clarify that it did not intend to open marriage to same-sex couples. And Constitutional Court President Jorge Iván Palacio sternly warned Ordoñez to “observe the determinations of this Court and monitor their strict and timely compliance.”

Feder notes that the Court has still not clarified the murky wording of their 2011 ruling. LGBT activists, however, are taking their message to Ordóñez as a very positive sign.
RELATED: Same-sex marriage is legal in the South American nations of Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina.

Labels: Colombia, marriage equality, South America

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Via JMG: Updated Marriage Map Of Europe

 

We still don't know exactly when marriages will commence in England and Wales, but some are saying it will be mid-2014.  Images via Wikipedia.

Labels: England, Europe, marriage equality, Wales

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Via JMG: Queer Nation: Dump Russian Vodka

 

Via email:

In light of the Putin regime’s attacks on the LGBT community, Queer Nation is calling for a worldwide boycott of Russian vodka. Do not buy or drink Russian vodka: Brands include Russian Standard and Stolichnaya. Demand that bar owners do not buy or serve Russian vodka. Ask your favorite club promoters, DJs, and entertainers to insist that Russian brands are not served in the venues in which they perform. It’s time to target Russia. Dump Russian vodka! Queer Nation is asking that consumers worldwide dump Russian vodka. Queer Nation expects to have additional actions that the LGBT community can take to make one message clear -- violence against the LGBT community anywhere will be met with swift and direct action.

Image by Gilbert Baker.

Labels: boycotts, LGBT rights, Russia, vodka

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Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 22, 2013

Our Way of Observing Things

It is because our way of observing things is deeply rooted in our self-centered ideas that we are disappointed when we find everything has only a tentative existence. But when we actually realize this truth, we will have no suffering.

- Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, "The Heart Sutra"

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Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 21, 2013

No Reason to be Unhappy

Whether we are suffering at present or have suffered in the past, there is no reason to be unhappy. If we can remedy it, then why be unhappy? And if we cannot, there's no use in being unhappy about it—it's just one more thing to be unhappy about, which serves no purpose at all.

- H.H. the Dalai Lama, "Enduring the Fires"

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What I want to be when I grow up: Daniel Orey at TEDxSacramento

Via JMG: Britain To Grant Posthumous Pardon To Gay Codebreaker Alan Turing

Famed WWII codebreaker Alan Turing will be granted a posthumous pardon by the British government. Turing committed suicide after being convicted of gross decency under Britain's anti-homosexuality code.

The government signalled on Friday that it is prepared to support a backbench bill that would pardon Turing, who died from cyanide poisoning at the age of 41 in 1954 after he was subjected to "chemical castration". Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, a government whip, told peers that the government would table the third reading of the Alan Turing (statutory pardon) bill at the end of October if no amendments are made. "If nobody tables an amendment to this bill, its supporters can be assured that it will have speedy passage to the House of Commons," Ahmad said. The announcement marks a change of heart by the government, which declined last year to grant pardons to the 49,000 gay men, now dead, who were convicted under the 1885 Criminal Law Amendment Act. They include Oscar Wilde.

Turing is considered by many to be the father of computer science.

Labels: Alan Turing, Britain, LGBT History, science

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What I want to be when I grow up: Daniel Orey at TEDxSacramento

Publicado em 17/07/2013:

 

Daniel Orey, PhD, is a professor of mathematics education in the Centro de Educação Aberta e a Distância at the Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto in Brazil. A professor for 22 years at California State University, Sacramento, in the College of Education and the Department of Learning Skills, he began his teaching career in 1978. After living and teaching in Guatemala, he completed a Masters degree at New Mexico State University, and earned a Ph.D. at the University of New Mexico. Daniel's Masters work took him to Patzun, Guatemala where he undertook field research with LOGO, computers and Mayan children. During his doctoral research, he served as a consultant at the Colegio Americano de Puebla and for Apple de México. With specialties in mathematics education, modeling and ethnomathematics, he was a Fulbright scholar to the Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas; served as a CNPq visiting researcher at the Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto; and served as a Senior Fulbright Specialist to Kathmandu University in Nepal. In 2011, Daniel and his husband moved to Brazil where he is currently teaching at Univeridade Federal de Ouro Preto.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)