From Huffington

Rob Smith: Did Dan Choi Jump the Shark, or Has the Gay Community Forgotten What Real Activism Is?

People keep wondering who's going to be the Martin Luther King of the gay rights movement, and that I still don't know, but I think yesterday's actions may have put us one step closer to finding our Malcolm X.

VIA JMG: HomoQuotable - Rob Smith

"Dan Choi will always be that rock star activist that handcuffed himself to the gates of The White House. Of course Dan Choi jumped the shark, and he did it in his military uniform for all the cameras to see. You know what, though? I think what we needed was to see something like this to light a fire under each and every one of us that cares as deeply as he does about Don't Ask, Don't Tell repeal, and about full equality in general. This movement needs him as much as it needs me, or Jarrod Chlapowski, or Lt. Col Victor Fehrenbach, or any of the other gay veterans who share our past of silent service knowing that it reflects the present of thousands of gay soldiers currently serving. Maybe it's time to act up all over again. Maybe the rumblings of this being a part of a more coordinated activist effort are true. Maybe it is time to Get Equal.

"People keep wondering who's going to be the Martin Luther King of the gay rights movement, and that I still don't know, but I think yesterday's actions may have put us one step closer to finding our Malcolm X." - Huffington Post blogger and armed services veteran Rob Smith, who says he finds Dan Choi's action yesterday to be both inspiring and baffling.

a repost from JMG

Via JMG: We Can Do It

Reichen Lehmkuhl appears in a new campaign from the Open Artist Movement along the lines of the NOH8 photo series.

We Can Do It! is a photo campaign to build solidarity and personal strength through positive messaging. The goal is to bring to life modern iconic individuals, by depicting them as powerful and not victims in support of the global LGBT movement worldwide.

Prints sell for $10 and you can be photographed too, although it's not clear how much that costs. Hit the link above for a gallery of other well-known activists. I like this, but I'm not about to showcase my ballerina arms.

(Via - Towleroad)

another great repost from JMG

Via JMG: Friendly Voices - Miley Cyrus

"There has been so much controversy sometimes about what I’ve said or done because I believe there are no mistakes because God is the only one who can judge us. That’s the reason I deleted my Twitter account because I said on there that I believed in gay marriage because everyone should have the right to love each other, and I got such hate mail about my being a bad person." - Teen pop star Miley Cyrus, talking to People Magazine.

Miley adds: "I don’t really watch television at all. But there is one show I’m addicted to: RuPaul’s Drag Race. I love me some RuPaul. I love RuPaul’s motto. It goes something like, ‘A real lady is never bitchy, a real lady is sassy.'"

(Tipped by JMG reader Arthur)

reposted from JMG

From JMG: Traditional Values Coalition: Massa Attack

Andrea Lafferty at the Traditional Values Coalition took a little longer than expected to issue this bit of predictable blather.

The ex-Congressman from New York is now the new poster child for upholding the 1993 law banning gays and lesbians from serving in the military. His former Navy colleagues are coming out of hiding to expose his decades-long habit of trying to seduce his subordinates – known as “snorkeling” in the Navy. As the public learns more about Massa’s aggressive homosexual advances toward his subordinates, his former Navy colleagues are going public with lurid tales of his gay exploits aboard Naval vessels.

Here is a clear case of a gay sexual predator assaulting his subordinates in the Navy and getting away with it. Massa’s shipmates were afraid of turning him in for fear of retaliation. If the Congress overturns the 1993 law banning gays and lesbians from openly serving in the military, lechers like Massa will have free reign to aggressively stalk and conquer young subordinates. Does Congress really want to legalize the predatory behaviors of such men? Overturning the 1993 law will give gays and lesbians license to go after young soldiers, sailors and Marines. Men like Massa will then multiply in the Armed Forces – undermining unit cohesion and military readiness.

Lafferty omits the extremely inconvenient fact that Eric Massa is a straight-identified opposite-married man with four children. Just the type that commits the very offenses she claims to fear and someone that would be unaffected by a repeal of DADT.reposted from JMG

From JMG: Gen. John Sheehan: The Bosnian Genocide Happened Because Of Gay Soldiers

Retired Gen. John Sheehan testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee today, claiming that openly gay soldiers in the Dutch military were partially responsible for the failure of the NATO peacekeeping action in Bosnia, a failure which resulted in the genocide of thousands of Muslims.

The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Carl Levin, pressed him to clarify his comments about Srebrenica. "Did the Dutch leaders tell you it (the fall of Srebrenica) was because there were gay soldiers there?" asked an incredulous Senator Levin. "Yes," Gen Sheehan said and added: "They included that as part of the problem." Gen Sheehan, who retired from the military in 1997, said he had been told that by the former chief of staff of the Dutch army. Senator Levin vehemently rejected Gen Sheehan's allegation, saying that drawing a connection between the massacre at Srebrenica and gays in the Dutch military was "totally off-target". The failure of the Dutch UN troops to fend off an attack by Bosnian Serb forces had "nothing to do with sexual orientation" but was related to "their training and the rules of engagement", Senator Levin said. Nearly 8000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were killed after Serb forces captured the eastern town on July 11, 1995, in the worst massacre in Europe since World War II.

posted by Joe

From JMG

The HRC Wants You To Know Their Side

Concerned about the "Lt. Dan Choi Kanye'd the HRC" story being reported on some blogs (including this one), the HRC has posted the following elaboration of their earlier comment.

Singer Tom Goss kicked off the event followed by the first American wounded in the Iraq war, retired Marine Staff Sgt. Eric Alva. Also speaking were Ben Mishkin of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and Alex Nicholson of Servicemembers United. Finally, Kathy Griffin took to the stage, talking about her experiences this week in Washington, welcoming Lt. Dan Choi to the stage to make a few remarks and then calling for a moment of silence to honor our troops who serve in silence.

There’s been some confusion about Lt. Dan Choi’s role in the rally. As Joe Solmonese was walking to the stage, Lt. Choi asked Joe if he could have a speaking role. Joe explained that it wasn’t his sole decision to make on the spot given that there was already an established program that included Kathy Griffin, other organization and veterans. After Choi then spoke with Kathy Griffin, she agreed to bring him up on stage and speak to the crowd during her remarks.

So basically, it appears that it was Kathy Griffin who made the call to override Joe Solmonese and bring Choi to the podium. Good for her. I have to wonder why a DADT protest in the nation's capital wouldn't have included the nation's most famous and well-spoken gay veteran in the first place. (Not to disparage Sgt. Eric Alva in the least, whom I think is fantastic.)

UPDATE: John Aravosis at AmericaBlog says the HRC statement is "utterly untrue."

That is simply untrue. I was there, standing next to Dan, about 10 feet from Kathy Griffin and Solmonese. They were behind a rope line, to keep them from the rally attendees. They looked over at Dan when he asked them, for the second time, to come with him to the White House (mind you, they had no idea that he was planning to handcuff himself), and they just stared back at him. They were not helping engage the rally about how to build pressure - the rally was over, they were already off the stage, behind it actually, getting ready to leave behind a secure rope line to separate them from the crowd. I'm sorry, but this statement is flat out untrue. They were getting their photos taken. Unbelievable.

UPDATE II: It looks like Choi and Capt. Jim Pietrangelo will be spending the night in jail.

another repost from JMG

From JMG

Ranker's Top Ten Anti-Gay Activists Caught In The Act Of Being Gay

Ranker.com has posted their list of the top ten anti-gay activists who've been caught in the act of being gay. Go to the site for photos and how each were caught. Here's their list of self-haters, all of whom have been exhaustively covered on this here website thingy.

1. Troy King
2. Jim West
3. Richard Curtis
4. Bruce Barclay
5. Roy Ashburn
6. Larry Craig
7. Ed Schrock
8. Robert Allen
9. Ted Haggard
10. Mark Foley

List-topper Troy King's story was hilarious, but my personal favorite remains Richard Curtis' night of shame.

reposted from JMG

FRom JMG: Joy Behar At The GLAAD Awards

GLAAD is trickling out the video clips from Saturday's Media Awards in NYC. This one is pretty good for Joy Behar's digs at Barbara Walters, Eric Massa, Sarah Palin, and John McCain. Joy also gives credit for her success to the gay clubs in the West Village. NSFW for Joy's potty mouth.

a repost from JMG

Michael Buble - SNL

JMG Quote Of The Day - Rep. Alan Grayson

"As the Knave's horse says in Alice in Wonderland, 'dogs will believe anything.' I'm sure Sarah Palin knows all about politics in Central Florida, since from her porch she can see Winter Park. I look forward to an honest debate with Governor Palin on the issues, in the unlikely event that she ever learns anything about them." - Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL), responding to Sarah Palin's attack on him. (Winter Park is just north of Orlando.) This bit from Grayson's site is priceless too:

Palin, the former half-term Governor, current-nothing and future-even-less, charmed the all-Republican audience with her folksy folksiness and her homespun homespunnery. Atypically, Palin was wearing clothes that she had paid for herself. At the end of the event, she shared her recipe for mooseface pie. In response to Palin's attack on Rep Grayson, Grayson actually complimented Palin. Grayson praised Palin for having a hand large enough to fit Grayson's entire name on it. He thanked Palin for alleviating the growing shortage of platitudes in Central Florida. Grayson added that Palin deserved credit for getting through the entire hour-long program without quitting. Grayson also said that Palin really had mastered Palin's imitation of Tina Fey imitating Palin. Grayson observed that Palin is the most-intelligent leader that the Republican Party has produced since George W. Bush.

(Tipped by JMG reader Craig)

reposted from JMG

Will Phillips' Acceptance Speech at the 21st Annual GLAAD Media Awards in New York

Will Phillips, 10-Year-Old, Won't Pledge Allegiance To A Country That Discriminates Against Gays (VIDEO)

Will Phillips Shines at GLAAD Media Awards

Watch: Fierce 10-Year-Old Advocate Will Phillips Demands Obama Do More for Gay Rights

From JMG: Alber & Goss

This Is Who We Are

Gay singer/songwriters Matt Alber and Tom Goss team up on This Is Who We Are, which they are offering for download in return for a donation to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network. Last month I posted a early version of the song.

Singer-songwriter buddies Matt Alber and Tom Goss teamed up recently with videographer Zack Rosen of Washinton DC’s TheNewGay.net to shoot the video for their anti-DADT (Don't Ask Don't Tell) anthem, “Who We Are.” The video features discharged servicemen Mike Almy and David Hall. Matt and Tom are offering the song as a free download in return for a donation to The Service Members Legal Defense Network, the organization spearheading the effort to repeal DADT. David Hall, mentioned above, is now Development Director & Information Technology Manager at SLDN. Following the download/donate link is a brief Q&A with Matt and Tom about "Who We Are."

Visit the official site for the single for more information and the SLDN donation link.

reposted from JMG

From JMG: Barney Frank on DADT

The White House Doesn't Want DADT Repealed This Year

According to Rep. Barney Frank, the reason the DADT repeal wasn't attached to a defense appropriations bill is that the White House doesn't want it repealed this year. Kerry Eleveld at the Advocate:

As Rep. Barney Frank told me Friday, “I’m disappointed with the administration talking about delaying legislation for a year. But I’m working with Patrick Murphy [the lead sponsor of the House repeal bill] on it and I’m hoping we can push ahead.” Like many pro-repeal advocates, Frank has consistently pinpointed the National Defense Authorization Act as “the only vehicle” for overturning the ban legislatively. When I noted that the White House has failed to designate the defense authorization bill over a stand-alone bill as its preferred method for repealing the policy, Frank responded, “That’s because they don’t want it done this year, not because they want it done separately.” If Frank is correct, that would help clarify two things: (1) why administration officials declined to comment on the introduction of Sen. Joseph Lieberman’s new repeal bill — because they actually prefer the defense authorization act over a stand-alone bill; (2) why they haven’t advocated for a repeal measure to be included in this year’s authorization act — because they would prefer the issue recede into the shadows until next year.

(Via - AmericaBlog)

another great find reposted from JMG

J.Genoino, Deputado (São Paulo) ILGALAC Curitiba 2010

Exclusive video: Olson and Boies Q&A on Prop 8

Last Wednesday, the New York Times hosted an intimate question and answer session with the lawyers currently working to overturn Proposition 8 in California, Ted Olson and David Boies. (Our earlier recap of the discussion).

Send / Share

Add Comment

Even if you’ve read stories about the evening, Boies and Olson speak with such passion and persuasion that the video is worth watching. Being in the same room with them was like being in the presence of history.

The Times was kind enough to send us over the video – we’ve encoded it below. Pix on the post are courtesy of Sara Krulwich from The New York Times.

Watch Gay Video & Lesbian Movies

From JMG: Texas Rewrites History

Christianist extremists have successfully rewritten American history. Here's just a few of the textbook changes approved by the Texas State Board of Education.

-The Board removed Thomas Jefferson from the Texas curriculum's world history standards on Enlightenment thinking, “replacing him with religious right icon John Calvin.”

-"Teachers in Texas will be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation's Founding Fathers, but not highlight the philosophical rationale for the separation of church and state." “I reject the notion by the left of a constitutional separation of church and state,” said David Bradley, a conservative from Beaumont who works in real estate. “I have $1,000 for the charity of your choice if you can find it in the Constitution.”

-The Board refused to require that “students learn that the Constitution prevents the U.S. government from promoting one religion over all others.”

-McCarthyism will be taught as an example of how communism was rooted out of the federal government.

-Students will learn about the "patriot movement" of the 1980s and 1990s, including Phyllis Schlafly, the Contract With America, the Heritage Foundation, the Moral Majority and the National Rifle Association.

-"Board members also rejected requiring history teachers and textbooks to provide coverage on the late U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy and new Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, while the late President Ronald Reagan was elevated to more prominent coverage."

The TSBOE is by far the most influential in the nation, which is why religious extremists have stacked the board with its members. Textbooks manufactured in Texas are sold to school systems nationwide.

reposted from JMG

From JMG: TickleGate: SNL Rips Eric Massa

resnorkled from JMG

The War at Home

Republicans retreat from their harshest “don’t ask, don’t tell” rhetoric, Democrats cower, and bigots are given airtime, all while a pointless yearlong study is launched. Haven’t we been here before? Click the pic to make the jump to the Advocate article:

Via CNN

The worlds funniest commercial

From PHB: The official Vatican line: the Pope is being set up

We're really heading into weird territory now. In what is supposed to be a defense of Pope Benedict from accusations of covering up pedophile priest cases, the Vatican spokesbots are handling this with complete ineptitude.

The Vatican spokesman, speaking to Vatican Radio and Associated Press Television News, defended Benedict.

"It's rather clear that in the last days, there have been those who have tried, with a certain aggressive persistence, in Regensburg and Munich, to look for elements to personally involve the Holy Father in the matter of abuses," the Rev. Federico Lombardi told Vatican Radio.

"For any objective observer, it's clear that these efforts have failed," Lombardi said, reiterating his statement a day earlier noting the Munich diocese has insisted that Benedict wasn't involved in the decision while archbishop there to transfer the suspected child abuser.

Lombardi told The AP that "there hasn't been in the least bit any policy of silence."

"The pope is a person whose stand on clarity, on transparency and whose decision to face these problems is above discussion," Lombardi said, citing the comments by Scicluna, who works in the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, which was long headed by Benedict before his election as pontiff.

"To accuse the current pope of hiding (cases) is false and defamatory," Scicluna said. As Vatican cardinal in charge of the policy on sex abuse, the future pope "showed wisdom and firmness in handling these cases," Scicluna said.

Wow. Do they think we've all forgotten how Cardinal Law was shipped out of Boston as he was about to face charges for abuse cover up, all the secret settlements? Amazing.

Jump here to read the full article on PHB

From JMG: Police Find 11 Other Victims On Video Of SF's Anti-Gay BB Gun Attackers

The San Francisco police have found eleven other victims on the video made by the three men arrested for shooting a gay man with a BB gun.

The men have been charged in San Francisco with a hate crime and assault for allegedly firing a BB rifle Feb. 26 at the face of a man they believed was gay. The man, who was walking on 16th Street near Guerrero Street, was not badly hurt and later identified the three suspects. The three were freed on $50,000 bail soon after their arrest. But on Friday, Mohammad Habibzada, Shafiq Hashemi and Sayed Bassam, all 24, appeared in court and were immediately rearrested. They were all being held late Friday on $450,000 bail. They were returned to custody after prosecutors viewed a video that police found in the three men's car when they were arrested. Brian Buckelew, spokesman for District Attorney Kamala Harris, said the video showed the 16th Street attack and BB rifle shootings aimed at 11 other men. Police say the video depicts the suspects laughing as they fire. Investigators say they have been unable to find any of the additional alleged victims. Still, Buckelew said prosecutors may file additional charges against each of the three defendants.

The three men are cousins. Police believe they drove around the Castro and other gay neighborhoods looking for men that appeared to be gay.reposted by JMG

PORTUGAL: Lei de Igualdade no Casamento enviada ao Presidente para ...

PORTUGAL: Lei de Igualdade no Casamento enviada ao Presidente para ...
Portugal Gay

A lei que consagra a igualdade no casamento civil para gays e lésbicas foi enviada para promulgação no dia 5 de Março. Em teoria Aníbal Cavaco Silva terá 8 ...

Veja todos os artigos sobre este tópico

From JMG: Johnny Weir: Too Gay For Stars On Ice

Olympian Johnny Weir has not been asked to join the Star On Ice tour because organizers don't find him "family friendly."

GLAAD has learned from a source that wishes to remain anonymous that sponsors of the Stars on Ice Tour, which include Smuckers and IMG Entertainment, have refused to allow 3-time US National Champion and 2-time Olympian Johnny Weir to participate because they claim that he is “not family friendly.” To say that Weir is “not family friendly” would be a clear jab at his perceived sexual orientation. Weir is extremely involved with his family. He is putting his younger brother through college, and supports the family financially because his father’s disability prohibits him from working. Weir’s dedication to his family can be clearly documented in the Sundance series, Be Good Johnny Weir, which follows him and his family and friends through his life and career as a championship skater.

GLAAD's petition to Stars On Ice sponsors Smuckers and IMG is here.

reposted from JMG

From JMG: Friendly Voices - Desmond Tutu

"Uganda's parliament is debating legislation that would make homosexuality punishable by life imprisonment, and more discriminatory legislation has been debated in Rwanda and Burundi. These are terrible backward steps for human rights in Africa. Our lesbian and gay brothers and sisters across Africa are living in fear.

"And they are living in hiding -- away from care, away from the protection the state should offer to every citizen and away from health care in the AIDS era, when all of us, especially Africans, need access to essential HIV services. That this pandering to intolerance is being done by politicians looking for scapegoats for their failures is not surprising. But it is a great wrong. An even larger offense is that it is being done in the name of God. Show me where Christ said "Love thy fellow man, except for the gay ones." Gay people, too, are made in my God's image. I would never worship a homophobic God." - Desmond Tutu, in an editorial published in today's Washington Post.

And what has Pope Palpatine said about Uganda? NOTHING.reposted by JMG

From Savage

There's Just No End to the Hate

Posted by Dan Savage on Thu, Mar 11, 2010 at 3:46 PM

ThinkProgress:

Glaad reports that sponsors have “refused to allow” American figure skater Johnny Weir to join the Stars on Ice Tour because they deemed him “not family friendly.” While Weir — a three-time national champion — has never “officially announced his sexual orientation, he has garnered a significant amount of LGBT fans” and is also known for his flashy costumes. Weir won an online poll that asked fans who they wanted to see in the tour, but Stars on Ice seems to have barred him because of his “perceived sexual orientation."

Says GLAAD:

To say that Weir is “not family friendly” would be a clear jab at his perceived sexual orientation. Weir is extremely involved with his family. He is putting his younger brother through college, and supports the family financially because his father’s disability prohibits him from working. Weir’s dedication to his family can be clearly documented in the Sundance series, Be Good Johnny Weir, which follows him and his family and friends through his life and career as a championship skater.

You know what would be family friendly? A bunch of pissed of queers and Weir fans buying tickets to Stars on Ice and tossing bags of rock salt and dog shit onto the ice from their seats before the show.

Permalink | Post Comments (46)

Quote of the Day

"During an interview with the cast of The Hurt Locker on Monday, I turned to actor Anthony Mackie and made a joke about "man hugging" in reference to a hug he and fellow actor Jeremy Renner had shared a few weeks earlier on our air. It was meant to be lighthearted, but some were offended by what they believed to be a homophobic comment. That was never my intent, but that doesn't matter. Words are extremely powerful and should never be chosen lightly, even in a lighthearted moment. I apologize to any and all that I offended. My support of the gay and lesbian community is longstanding and well documented. It has not and will never waver."

-- The Today Show's Meredith Veira apologizing for her unintentionally homophobic comment in a post-Oscar interview.

K8 on the Census

The census is coming. Make sure you fill out yours - and you do it honestly so we can queer the census! We're not all gay white men living in five cities!

From JMG: ABC Nightline Covers Uganda's "Kill Gays" Bill And Pastor Martin Ssempa

Last night Nightline delivered an excellent report on the situation in Uganda, interviewing the genocidal Pastor Martin Ssempa and his American evangelical accomplice Scott Lively. Watch this.

reposted from JMG