If things keep going this way, it won't be safe for bigots anywhere. And then what kind of country will we have?
Oh that's right, a nice one.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Via Just Out: Washington State’s Suquamish Tribe Makes Gay Marriage Legal
The Suquamish Native-American tribe in Kitsap County, Washington, this week made same-sex marriage legal on tribal land, reports The Seattle Times. Heather Purser, a commercial diver who lives in Seattle but was raised in Kitsap County off the reservation, sparked the issue with tribal council after months of attending meetings. She was assigned a tribal attorney who asked her to get proof that the tribe recognized homosexuals by collecting stories from the elders.
That effort was dropped until she moved to Seattle and met her partner. This renewed her efforts with the Suquamish Tribe.
That effort was dropped until she moved to Seattle and met her partner. This renewed her efforts with the Suquamish Tribe.
Via AmericablogGay: Mormon study looks at gay experience within church
There is a study of 1,000 gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender Mormons being conducted by Utah State University, and is said to be the first to focus on that particular demographic. One of the gay Mormons featured in this article claims to have given a talk to his congregation as to how the Holy Ghost had been a comforter to him:
Watching television one day with his mother, Clayson said he pointed out that one of the "Survivor" cast members was both gay and Mormon.
"She said, 'You can't be both,'" Clayson said.
It's a dilemma many gays in the church face as they struggle with their identities as both homosexual and religious faithful.
No, that is not true. It depends on one's denomination or theology as to whether or not there is any sustained cognitive dissonance for someone who is gay and a religiously faithful person. The analogy I would make is between being a member of GOProud or Stonewall Democrats, and then making a spurious claim one can't be both gay and politically active. It depends on the policies that group stands for. True, being an active Mormon or Catholic and gay is a stretch, but being a progressive member of the United Church of Christ is not inconsistent in the slightest.
One can make the argument that one is both gay and working within an organization to make it more progressive, but it is self defeating and ridiculous to claim one believes the tenets of an organization that disagrees with your very right to exist.
Via AmericaBlogGay: American Heritage Dictionary has a new editor: Steve Kleinedler
Congrats to Steve Kleinedler, on his new job as Editor of American Heritage Dictionary. He knows words. In 2009, Steve wrote a powerful post about the death of his husband, Peter Dubuque, which revealed how "ordinary" same-sex marriage had become in Massachusetts. I've linked to that post many times over the past few years. It really moved me and a lot of other people.
Andrew Harmon wrote an article about Steve's new job at the Advocate, including a link to his post at AMERICAblog:
“The job of dictionaries is primarily to describe how language is used, not to dictate how it should be used,” lexicographer Steve Kleinedler, The American Heritage Dictionary’s new executive editor, wrote in a 2009 op-ed.
The statement is part American Heritage Dictionary ethos, part personal experience. In 2009, Kleinedler’s husband died suddenly, just two months after Kleinedler and fellow editors had revised the definitions of several marriage-related words to reflect the changing culture. The definition of widower, for example, was revised from "a man whose wife has died and who has not remarried" to "a man whose spouse has died and who has not remarried."
“In the shattered aftermath of profound loss, an obsolete or incomplete definition of widower would seem an insignificant detail,” Kleinedler wrote, “but all such trivial details viewed together coalesce into a constant reminder of a two-tiered, unequal system. Therefore, having had the ability to revise the definitions that appear in a major American dictionary took on an important resonance for me.”
Kleinedler ascended to the dictionary’s top editor position Monday after 14 years on staff. He previously served as supervising editor.
Changing words, changing society.
Via AmericablogGay: Rick Santorum takes a swipe at Dan Savage
Monday, August 1, 2011
Via JMG: NAACP Stages First-Ever Panel Discussion On Black LGBT Rights
Clip via No More Down Low TV. A partial clip description:
reposted from Joe
The debate gets heated when the current NAACP president is asked how can the LGBT community take the NAACP seriously when its current board members are out saying that gay rights are not civil rights, referring to current NAACP board member Rev. Keith Ratliff recent statement: "Gay community, stop hijacking the civil rights movement."
reposted from Joe
Via NPR: Shots - Health Blog: Can Therapy Help Change Sexual Orientation?
Can Therapy Help Change Sexual Orientation?
A debate over the value of conversion therapy has been raging in psychological circles for more than a decade. Two men who underwent the therapy, with vastly different results, share their story.
A debate over the value of conversion therapy has been raging in psychological circles for more than a decade. Two men who underwent the therapy, with vastly different results, share their story.
Via JMG: SOUTH CAROLINA: Paper Prints Wedding Notice For Interracial Gay Couple
Andrew Sullivan points us to the above wedding announcement published by South Carolina's largest daily newspaper. Rather than smile at the image of all those good ole boys freaking out over today's paper, let's wish the happy couple our best. (Whoops, smiling anyway.)
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