Via JMG: WYOMING: Laramie City Council Approves Sweeping LGBT Rights Ordinance

Via the Associated Press:

The Laramie City Council on Wednesday approved a local anti-discrimination ordinance in the college town where Matthew Shepard's death triggered nationwide sympathy and brought a re-examination of attitudes toward gays 17 years ago. The council voted 7-2 in favor of the measure that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in housing, employment and access to public facilities such as restaurants.

Local organizers focused their efforts on Laramie after the Legislature repeatedly rejected anti-discrimination bills, most recently early this year. The Laramie Nondiscrimination Task Force presented a draft ordinance to the City Council last summer. Jeran Artery, head of the group Wyoming Equality which has lobbied for the anti-discrimination measures at the state Legislature, said he was thrilled with the council vote.

Judy Shepard, Matt Shepard's mother, is active in a Denver-based foundation that bears her son's name and focuses on equality issues. "I'm thrilled that Laramie's doing it, at the same time sort of saddened that the state of Wyoming can't see fit to do that as well," Shepard told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Wednesday before the council vote from Washington, D.C. "Maybe the rest of Wyoming will understand this is about fellow human beings and not something that's other than what they are."

Labels: Laramie, LGBT rights, Wyoming

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Empire State To Go Red For AIDS Walk

Tonight Harvey Fierstein will throw the switch to illuminate the Empire State Building in red as part of the GMHC's "Light Up New York" campaign to mark this weekend's 30th Annual AIDS Walk in Central Park.

Fierstein says: "May these lights, and those burning throughout the city, brighten the night sky with remembrance of the countless precious friends and family we've lost to AIDS. May they carry our pledge to see the end of this disease once and for all."

Numerous other city landmarks are also going red this week. They include One World Trade Center, Bloomingdale's, the Helmsley Building,  the JFK control tower, the Bank Of America tower, the New York Stock Exchange, and the NASDAQ billboard in Times Square.

Labels: AIDS Walk, Empire State Building, GMHC, NYC

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Faces - United Nations Free & Equal

Via FB Amigos

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 14/05/2015

A ignorância em relação à nossa realidade espiritual faz com que vejamos somente a superfície das coisas. Perdemos a capacidade de enxergar o espírito que nos habita. O materialismo é o responsável por isso. Por causa dele o ser humano está sempre numa correria pelo lucro e se esquece do respeito, da gentileza, da bondade e do amor. Nos tornamos especialistas em transformar tudo em dinheiro. Tudo vira instrumento para adquirir poder. O dinheiro é uma forma de energia muito poderosa que faz parte do jogo neste mundo, porém essa energia precisa estar a serviço do espírito. Quando utilizado pela sabedoria, o dinheiro é um instrumento divino, mas quando utilizado pela ignorância, ele se torna uma ferramenta de destruição.”

“La ignorancia en relación a nuestra realidad espiritual hace que veamos solamente la superficie de las cosas. Perdemos la capacidad de ver el espíritu que nos habita. El materialismo es el responsable de eso. Por causa de éste el ser humano está siempre en una carrera por el lucro y se olvida del respeto, de la gentileza, de la bondad y del amor. Nos volvimos especialistas en transformar todo en dinero. Todo se vuelve un instrumento para adquirir poder. El dinero es una forma de energía muy poderosa que es parte del juego en este mundo, sin embargo esta energía necesita estar al servicio del espíritu. Cuando es utilizado por la sabiduría, el dinero es un instrumento divino, pero cuando es utilizado por la ignorancia se vuelve una herramienta de destrucción.”

"When we are ignorant about our own spiritual reality, we see things only at the surface level. We lose sight of the spirit that inhabits us. Materialism is the culprit here, causing humans to fall into a rat-race for profit. We forget all about being respectful and kind, about being good and loving. We specialize in monetizing everything around us, so it all becomes a means of giving us power. Money is a powerful energy and an inherent part of the game of life in this world – but this energy needs to be at service of spirit. When used with wisdom, money becomes a divine tool; when it's employed by ignorance, it becomes a destructive weapon."

Via Daily Dharma

Letting Go of Spiritual Experience | May 14, 2015 In the overall context of the spiritual journey, it is important to remember that self-transformation is a continuous process, not a onetime event. One cannot say, 'I used to be a nonspiritual person, but now I have been transformed into a spiritual person. My old self is dead.' We are constantly being transformed when we travel on the path. - Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche, "Letting Go of Spiritual Experience" Read More →

Thich Nat Hanh: Explicacion del Ego

Explicacion del Ego
Posted by DJ Pollyfonika on Friday, October 10, 2014

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http://makeitequal.org/

Via LGBT* Bahá'is:

Gender and sexual minorities battle the stigma of being labelled sinful.  In order to deconstruct that stigma, we must understand a few things.  Firstly, what the nature of sin is, how to classify and recognize it; and secondly, we must determine whether or not homosexuality, transexuality and other gender and sexual minorities fall under the category of “sinful”. Currently, based on very little and controversial evidence, being lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans* or otherwise gender non-conforming is seen as inherently evil and sinful.

Baha'is believe religious laws, not to be mere laws and regulations to be followed, but rather “that the precepts laid down by God constitute the highest means for the maintenance of order in the world and the security of its peoples ”  To me this means that these laws are written into the very nature of existence, and if not adhered to, there are consequences to one’s soul and to one’s life. Sometimes these consequences are spiritual in nature, sometimes mental and sometimes physical.  And usually this can lead to the break down of one’s life and society in general.

For instance, all religions generally prohibit murder, arson, theft and mendacity.  These are universally seen as sinful and inherently wrong.  They are clearly explained in almost every Religion of God.  Murder, for example, is wrong because God has willed to raise something up, and you are making yourself an equal to God, and believe that you have more of a say to who has life and who doesn’t than He does.  This is only one reason that murder is wrong. 

Another good example is the use of drugs and alcohol.  Almost every religion prohibits the consumption of substances that impair or impede a person’s natural senses and sensibilities.  This impairment is itself a reason for banning the use of alcohol and other drugs. The consequences of alcoholism and drug addiction are easily seen. Science has proven that these substances have a negative effect on the lives and health of human beings.

So we can see that these things (arson, murder, alcoholism et cetera) are harmful to human beings.  Science has shown this, and it is in agreement with religions that say these actions have harmful spiritual effects.

In the Baha'i Faith, and most other religions, however, being gender or sexually non-conforming (homosexual, trans* et cet) is lumped into the same category as these sins.  It is seen as inherently evil and sinful and is treated as such.  In what way is this the case though?  I have never seen a single shred of evidence to suggest that this is the case.  In the Baha'i Writings other issues such as drug addiction and alcoholism are explained and deconstructed. This is not the case with LGBT* issues.  Despite the Baha'i view that homosexuality is a disease, not one shred of evidence as to its pathology, its treatment or its prognosis is given.  This is not the case with other “diseases” such as alcoholism.  In terms of murder being viewed as a “spiritual disease,” this is not the case.  The pathology is explained and has been in the human consciousness for a very long time (I gave an example of its “pathology” above). This alone is all that is necessary to prove its sinfulness.  In the Baha'i Faith, a huge onus is put on the individual to independently investigate reality.  It is important to “see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others.”  So we are not exactly taking it for granted that murder and other sins are against the Laws of Nature, but rather we see with our own eyes that they are wrong.  Through the mercy and grace of God, it has been written in the Books of almost every religion, and our own limited scientific accomplishments have proven, that these sins are inherently destructive to human-kind. However, in almost every one of the Central Books of the main world religions, rules and regulations regarding gender-variant and sexual minorities have been vague and non-conclusive.  It seems the Prophets have chosen to remain silent about this subject.

Until the time that being homosexual, trans* or otherwise a sexual or gender-variant minority is proven to be inherently wrong and against the Laws of Nature in a conclusive and non-biased setting, it should be viewed as against Baha'i law to in any way discriminate against them (including their right to be joined in a Baha'i marriage). Why? 

Bahá'u'lláh has declared that religion must be in accord with science and reason. If it does not correspond with scientific principles and the processes of reason, it is superstition. For God has endowed us with faculties by which we may comprehend the realities of things, contemplate reality itself. If religion is opposed to reason and science, faith is impossible; and when faith and confidence in the divine religion are not manifest in the heart, there can be no spiritual attainment.¹ 
-‘Abdu'l-Baha

At this point, science has proven homosexuality as non-pathological. It is not a disease, it is not inherently wrong, and it has no known consequences.  Science has shown that discrimination based on gender and sexual identity is damaging to individuals and society at large. Until this ceases to be the case, it is impossible to hold someone accountable for using their judgement on these things. To discriminate, and removing a person’s voting rights and effectively expelling them from the community for being “flagrantly homosexual” is discrimination, against an LGBT* person for aligning themselves with current scientific thought and medical practice, is immoral.  To do the same for a homosexual couple who decides to marry, when it is not done to heterosexual couples who procreate outside of marriage or otherwise break current Baha'i sexual laws, is discrimination, and it is not in keeping with the Baha'i principles of independent investigation, personal conscience, unconditional love or justice.

I will post soon about the Baha'i laws and Writings that currently effect LGBT* people, how they have been interpreted and other possible ways of interpreting them.

Make the jump here to join in the tmblr discussion

Via WGB: REPORT: Half of LGB Americans Identify As Christian

More LGB Americans consider themselves Christian than ever before. In a new Pew Research Center report, 48 percent of LGB Americans identify as Christian, up from 42 percent in 2013. The statistic contrasts the study’s finding of overall decline of Christianity, from 78.4 percent of Americans identifying as Christian, down to 70.6 percent.

“The 'Christians vs. LGBT people' narrative that we hear so often is part of the story, but as the Pew poll shows, it's not all of it. In fact, it's the 48 percent of LGBT Americans who are Christians who are best positioned to change both religious attitudes about same-sex marriage and secular attitudes about religion. As LGBT Christians continue to find their voice, they'll be changing both their churches and the LGBT community for the better.” Full story here!

Also via Daily Dharma

BLOG: TURNING INTENTION INTO MOTIVATION How do we motivate ourselves to live up to our best aspirations? Thupten Jinpa, the Dalai Lama's principal translator and a scholar in his own right, offers two exercises that align our strongest motivations with our highest intentions.  Read More →

Via Daily Dharma

Beyond Meditation | May 13, 2015 The superhighway of meditation practice alone can’t be a pretext for bypassing essential ego work; we also must traverse the local roads of personal and interpersonal transformation. - Lewis Richmond, "The Authentic Life" Read More →

NSFW: YOGA PARODY - JANELLE MONAE, JIDENNA

SCORE!!! Olympics Officials Make HUGE Pro-Gay Move

SCORE!!! Olympics Officials Make HUGE Pro-Gay Move

In what's already being hailed as "a great step forward," the International Olympic Committee has taken a significant move against future intolerance toward the lesbian, gay and bisexual community in the Olympic Games.

The Chicago Tribune reports that IOC members unanimously voted to approve a recommendation which adds non-discrimination language regarding sexual orientation to the Olympic Charter.

"The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Olympic Charter shall be secured without discrimination of any kind, such as race, color, sex, sexual orientation, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status," the Charter now reads, according to the publication.

The decision to update the wording, which will also be included in all future Olympic Games host city contracts, follows a flurry of controversy surrounding the 2014 Winter Olympics, which were held in Sochi, Russia. A number of high-profile LGBT rights advocates called for the U.S. to boycott the Sochi games in response to Russia's controversial "gay propaganda" legislation.

Cher, Madonna and Lady Gaga were among the high-profile celebrities to decry the law, which imposes fines and sentences on anyone deemed to be distributing "pro-gay" information to minors. Full story here!

  Read the orginal on WGB here

Via WGB: International Study Finds Widespread Anti-Gay Discrimination in Sports

One in four gay men said they had received verbal threats of harm or had been bullied while participating in sports, and around 80 percent of people said they had witnessed such discrimination, according to a survey of 9,500 respondents.

The findings were contained in "Out on the Fields," released Sunday, which officials said was the first international study and the largest conducted on discrimination against gay, lesbian and bisexual participants in sports.

The study, which also canvassed heterosexual respondents, surveyed nearly 3,000 people in Australia, 2,025 in the United States and 1,780 in Britain. The study was also conducted in Canada, New Zealand and Ireland. Full story here via Edge!

Make the jump here to read the full article at WGB

Project ~ Equality

I Don't Know -Yes Equality

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día- Flower of the day 12/05/2015

“À medida que a sua consciência vai se expandindo, que a sua percepção vai se ampliando, e você começa a enxergar as partes da sua personalidade que estavam trancadas em negação, simultaneamente, seu canal espiritual vai se alargando. Ao mesmo tempo em que trabalha para transformar os aspectos negativos da sua personalidade, aos poucos você vai se tornando uma usina de transformação do sofrimento planetário. Então você passa a captar os karmas dos grupos mais próximos, e conforme o seu canal vai se abrindo, o diâmetro de captação vai aumentando.”

“A medida que tu consciencia se va expandiendo, que tu percepción se va ampliando, y comienzas a ver las partes de tu personalidad que estaban trabadas en negación, simultáneamente, tu canal espiritual se va ensanchando. Al mismo tiempo en que trabajas para transformar los aspectos negativos de tu personalidad, de a poco te vas volviendo una usina de transformación del sufrimiento planetario. Entonces pasas a captar los karmas de los grupos más próximos, y conforme tu canal se va abriendo, el diámetro de captación va aumentando.”

"As our consciousness expands, our perception widens and we get to see parts of our personality that were locked up in denial. As that happens, our spiritual channel continues to broaden. Even while we work to transform the negative aspects of our personality, we become 'power plants' for transforming global suffering. We start taking on the karma of those closest to us, and as our inner channel continues to open, we reach circles with an ever-expanding radius."