A personal blog by a graying (mostly Anglo with light African-American roots) gay left leaning liberal progressive married college-educated Buddhist Baha'i BBC/NPR-listening Professor Emeritus now following the Dharma in Minas Gerais, Brasil.
Today President Mary McAleese signed Ireland's civil partnerships bill into national law.
It extends marriage-like benefits to gay and lesbian couples in the areas of property, social welfare, succession, maintenance, pensions and tax. The act also offers additional rights and protections for other cohabiting couples including a redress scheme for financially dependent long-term cohabitants on the end of a relationship. Announcing the signing of the Bill today, Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern described it as "one of the most important pieces of civil rights legislation to be enacted since independence." "This Act provides enhanced rights and protections for many thousands of Irish men and women. Ireland will be a better place for its enactment," he said. "It is of tremendous social significance, for the couples who can now register as partners, for their friends and families - ultimately, for all of us," Mr Ahern added.
Earlier this month the bill passed nearly unanimously in both of Ireland's legislative chambers. The first civil partnerships will take place early in 2011.
Over the foaming-mouthed objections of American evangelicals and some members of the GOP, today the United Nations granted official consulting status the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission.
"Today's decision is an affirmation that the voices of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people have a place at the United Nations as part of a vital civil society community," said Cary Alan Johnson, IGLHRC Executive Director. "The clear message here is that these voices should not be silenced and that human rights cannot be denied on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity." The resolution passed with 23 in favor, 13 against, and 13 abstentions and 5 absences. This victory is particularly significant, coming as it does after a prolonged 3-year application process in the sub-committee that makes initial recommendations on status. Despite full compliance with all procedures IGLHRC faced deferrals, homophobic questioning, and procedural roadblocks in the ECOSOC NGO Committee.
Voting yes was much of the EU and South America, as well as Japan and South Korea. Voting no: Bangladesh, China, Comoros, Egypt, Malaysia, Morocco, Namibia, Niger, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and Zambia.
Sacramento LGBT Community Prepares to React to Federal Prop 8 Ruling
Sacramento, CA – Any day now, Judge Vaughn Walker will released his decision in the Perry v.Schwarzenegger Federal Prop 8 Trial. The leadership of Equality Action NOW and the staff of the Sacramento Gay and Lesbian Center are preparing for that day.
We are hoping the Judge will give everyone at least 24 hour notice but there has been no indication that he will do so. Unfortunately there have been two false alarms, however they did serve as early indications that our social networking works very well and given no other major news outbreak occurs at the time, the media has demonstrated a high interest in our reactions.
If we win, the leadership of Equality Action Now and the staff of the Sacramento Gay and Lesbian Center are planning a party tentatively to be held at K Street and 21st in Midtown, in the parking lot behind McMartin’s Realty beginning at 6:00pm.
If we lose we will march from the Sacramento Gay and Lesbian Center, 1927 L Street, Sacramento, CA 95811, to the west steps of the State Capitol beginning at 6:00pm. There will be speakers and participants will have the opportunity to express their feelings in an open mic forum.
No matter how it goes, a Press Conference will be called within 2 hours of the ruling announcement on the front steps of the Sacramento Gay and Lesbian Center. If you can make it to the Center for the announcement there will be Media who will want to get the immediate reaction to the ruling from people who this effects the most. It is important you have your voice be heard no matter the outcome.
While this ruling can be a huge step forward or a temporary barrier towards equal rights for same-sex marriages, it is well understood that this case will serve as the bases for an appeal. Opponents of same-sex marriages will continue their fight by using every available means legally, as well as in the public arena to deny full and equal rights to LGBTQI (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, Intersex) individuals – and so will we.
It is important to us to continue to build bridges to other communities by coming out and being vocal with our personal stories and issues.
As witnessed in the this trial, what we have on our side is the Constitution and evidence that no one can dispute the fact that same-sex marriages will do no harm to the institution of marriage. In addition there is an abundance of evidence (and common sense) that same-sex marriages will actually strengthen our society and family structure.
Organizations throughout the state and here in Sacramento are urging the community to continue to amplify the themes underscored by Olson/Boies which focused on the inclusion and integration of LGBT people within the legal protections enjoyed by all Americans and framed this current controversy within the larger historical context of past discriminatory laws that have been eliminated. In this way, marriage discrimination against the LGBT community is seen as one more instance of unfounded bias and prejudice that is eliminated and is consistent with the enduring American principle of extending Constitutional protections and fairness to all people.
On the Day of Decision our response to Judge Walker's ruling must include reaching out in fellowship and compassion to those who voted for Proposition 8 in 2008 out of fear and lack of information. Just like the evolution of Governor Schwarzenegger, U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein and San Diego Mayor and Prop 8 trial witness Jerry Sanders, we need to ensure we celebrate or protest with a grace that allows people to evolve in their position towards marriage equality with dignity and join us as we move forward. We need to ensure we do not view this win or lose as a zero sum game against our adversaries - but rather the unfolding of a more inclusive, kind, loving country for everyone.
For National Prop 8 Trial Tracker text “EQUAL” to 69866.
Couples of all ages, married or not, gay or straight who would like to volunteer as Media Spokespersons please contact: Ken Pierce – kpierce8272@yahoo.com
"During the 1990s, when I worked as an escort in Denver, Colorado, I estimate at least 15 percent of my clientele were clergy or connected with the church in some way. There were one-timers and there were guys who came back again and again and again, and they were all the same: positively giddy when the encounter began, unable to look you in the eye as they left. The excitement that initially animated them was wholly overshadowed by the despondency and guilt that would overcome them as soon as it was over.
"I can’t imagine the guilt they were feeling. Not only were they having sex with another man—a sin punishable by God, in their minds—but I believe many of them were doing exactly what Father Gray did: stealing from their own churches. Maybe not a million bucks, maybe not even so much that anyone would notice. But more than once I was paid for my services with a handful of crinkled ones and fives. I would think to myself, how could they take from their own church’s collection plate? The answer is simple and sad: addicts will do whatever they need to do to support their habit." - Former rentboy and outer of Ted Haggard, Mike Jones, writing about Father Kevin Gray for the Daily Beast.
"But theology and history aside, it is clear from the lack of consistent reaction to and organization against the litany of other present-day sins that a large number of people who call themselves Christians do not follow the literal interpretation of the Bible either. So, if some of us are picking and choosing which Bible verses to follow, why are so many opting to pick and choose verses that appear to condemn homosexuality and not the one against marrying a woman who isn't a virgin?
If sin is sin, why such Christian angst directed at the GLBT community and not the greedy corporate community, which, quite frankly, has more direct impact on the average person's life?
The answer is simple: Those who are uncomfortable or fearful of someone who is different from them sometimes hide behind religion to gain power, nurture their ignorance and justify their prejudices.
It's no different from Christian slave owners using Scriptures to feel better about enslaving Africans, or men pointing to Jezebel as a way to keep women out of the clergy, or Bob Jones University picking verses that supported the school's ban on interracial dating.
The extremists aren't fighting gay rights because of sin and honoring Leviticus 18:22. If they were, then where are the faith-based organizations spending millions trying to make adultery a crime punishable by death, as suggested in Leviticus 20:10? Is 18:22 more true than 20:10, or does it just support a more common and entrenched prejudice?"
On the heels of Argentina becoming the tenth country to achieve marriage equality (and the first in South America) Wednesday night, there was yet another important victory closer to home. On Thursday, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruled against foes of D.C. marriage equality. Our opponents had wanted to use a ballot initiative to repeal D.C.'s equal marriage law, which the D.C. Council overwhelmingly passed in 2009. Because D.C. law prohibits ballot initiatives that would abridge civil rights, the Board of Elections and Ethics refused to put the discriminatory measure on the ballot. This week, the District's highest court said that the people cannot, by a popular vote, rob their neighbors of basic civil rights. We applaud that decision, which is a victory both for fairness and for common sense.
The D.C. marriage decision teaches us so much. The Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Act of 2009—the statute under attack—was the result of a long and coordinated effort among elected officials, grassroots activists, civil rights organizations, communities of faith and others. This achievement remains today because of expert legal work of skilled advocates and because of fair-minded city leadership. You cannot point to one single day, or one actor or one tactic that made the difference. Doing it ALL made the difference.
LGBT civil rights progress through thousands of channels. Across the nation—in localities, states, the federal government and the private sector—many actors, many rules, many policies, and many people have profound impacts on our lives. We have to make a mark on all of them.
In some instances, the multiple facets of a civil rights problem are obvious. As we work to repeal DOMA, we know that repeal will not mean that every couple has access to the many state rights and benefits that marriage affords—so the push for marriage equality remains urgent. And as marriage equality has taken hold, we have still seen that hospitals are not yet according our community equal respect—something that we can remedy both with direct advocacy and through the upcoming federal regulations protecting us.
Other policy goals are less immediately obvious. As ENDA proceeds through Congress, we are faced with many other discriminatory policies that it does not directly address—such as barriers to same-sex parents using time off from work under the Family and Medical Leave Act to attend to an adoption or care for a sick child.
In the past year, we've been successful in dismantling several of these regulatory problems, which has made life better for real people. There are many more of them, and they are in our sights.
For a community that is frequently outspent by opponents of equality, and sometimes drowned out by their grassroots, it could seem unwise to focus on more than one or two priorities. I don't believe so. In fact, I believe that by engaging government actors and making tangible and visible progress, we are positioning ourselves better for the high-profile battles. We're showing that it can be done.
Our community has a great track record of speaking up for our civil rights. It might seem more difficult to make a difference when you're not trying to persuade an elected official. I encourage you to read our Blueprint for Positive Change and speak out on an issue that matters to you.
Georgia teen Derrick Martin has partnered with the Trevor Project and other groups to create Project Life Vest, an organization meant to assist LGBT youth facing discrimination after they come out. You may recall that Martin was kicked out of his home in March after attending his high school prom with his boyfriend.
“My situation and the attention it has drawn have provided me a unique perspective and opportunity that I feel I cannot pass up”, Martin noted. “Young people who, like myself, have been disadvantaged because of discrimination, hate, or ignorance need somewhere to turn for help. GLAAD was my life vest, and I plan to be a life vest to as many others as I can. I only want those who face obstacles like mine to know that they are not alone, for everyone has the right to love regardless of sexual orientation.” Project LifeVest’s mission is simple: “To be a helping hand, a life vest, to as many LGBT teens and adults as possible. We will carry out this mission through the establishment of safe places in as many cities as possible; through a call center with a qualified team of counselors who can give advice where needed; through screening a network of families who can, when need arises, host rejected teens while they finish schooling or find a new home.”
Good As You's ever-resourceful Jeremy Hooper has shown that the families depicted on the sides of NOM's Hate Bus don't actually exist, they're just actors ripped out of generic stock photos. We know NOM is having a hard time getting people to show up for the Hate Tour, but seriously, they couldn't find ONE real homo-hating family to pose for their bus?
Not to the anti-gay National Organization for Marriage (NOM). NOM has launched a national tour promoting marriage discrimination against gay and lesbian couples.
In advertising their anti-gay bus tour, NOM referred to supporters of the freedom to marry as those who 'pillage the values of our Nation.'
NOM is escalating its anti-gay attacks and Freedom to Marry is meeting them head on.
To counter NOM's fear-mongering and to show America what being FOR marriage really looks like, Freedom to Marry and local and state equality groups have teamed up for Summer for Marriage, a series of pro-marriage events across the country in July and August.
Find information about Summer for Marriage Tour events in your area:
To challenge NOM's anti-gay rhetoric, Freedom to Marry is:
Working with partner groups on a nationally coordinated campaign to push back on NOM's anti-gay attacks
Engaging in effective media outreach to show how marriage discrimination hurts same-sex couples.
Mobilizing Freedom to Marry supporters to participate in on-the-ground actions with local, state, and national partners.
This is the kind of on-the-ground action we need to change hearts and minds. State-by-state and city-by-city, Freedom to Marry and it's partner organizations are making the case that all loving and committed couples should be free to marry.
Join us - because we cannot allow NOM's distractions, distortions, and discriminatory agenda to go unanswered
Today President Mary McAleese signed Ireland's civil partnerships bill into national law. 
