Filed under: gay rights, government | Tags: gay, marriage, doma, maine, yes on 1, no on 1, same-sex marriage
We knew it was going to be close. Polls leading up to yesterday’s referendum in Maine were split nearly evenly among those who supported marriage equality and those opposing it. In the end, the “No on 1″ folks–those who support marriage only between a man and a woman–won with 53% of the vote.
Jesse Connolly, the manager of the “Yes on 1″ campaign in Maine, released a statement that was less conciliatory than itching to continue the fight:
We’re in this for the long haul. For next week, and next month, and next year– until all Maine families are treated equally. Because in the end, this has always been about love and family and that will always be something worth fighting for.
For gay marriage advocates, the big picture encompasses several New England states that have sanctioned same-sex marriage: Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Iowa is also a state that has legalized gay marriage. The grim news is that 31 states have voted against it.
Is the state-by-state approach to gay marriage our most effective strategy? Piece-meal, local political battles have seen many defeats, including prominent states like California and now Maine. It’s apparent that the need for a federal repeal of DOMA–for our national government to provide leadership in this human rights issue–is now more critical than before.
Filed under: gay rights, homophobia, racism | Tags: african american, black, cnn, eddie long, equality, farrah gray, gay, obama, steve perry, tyree simmons, tyrone mcgowan
CNN presents a special report on “Blacks and Gay Equality”. The “down low”, black churches, Obama’s promise of gay equality: CNN anchor Don Lemon poses the issues to a panel of prominent African American men, including authors, college seniors, and preachers, including Tyree ‘DJ Drama Simmons, Bishop Eddie Long, Tyrone McGowan, and Steve Perry.
My favorite quote comes from author Farrah Gray, who says, “Many of us live in the 51st state of the United States: the state of Denial.” He admits the problem of African American homophobia did not come to his attention until the publication of J.L. King’s ground-breaking book, On the Down Low.
Citing a speech by President Obama at the recent Human Rights Campaign fundraiser, the newsclip presents sound bytes about the African American community and its issues with homophobia. Interesting fact: The leading cause of death for African American women, aged 25-34, is HIV/AIDS. Though the assumption by one of the guests is that this is linked directly to the down low, this health statistic is surprising–and worrisome–nonetheless.
Filed under: gay rights | Tags: bilerico project, cleve jones, gay, marriage equality, national equality march
Prominent gay rights activist Cleve Jones talks with Bil Browning of The Bilerico Project about the National Equality March scheduled for October 10-11 2009 in Washington, DC. Jones addresses criticisms of the march–its apparent lack of focus–and encourages a change in strategy from the state level to the national stage.
Jones, of course, was one of the prominent activists who helped to elect Harvey Milk and collaborated with Dustin Lance Black on the Oscar-winning screenplay of Milk. Seems that he’s fully behind the National Equality March coming up over Columbus Day weekend. With anti-gay sentiment in the Obama administration’s support of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (not to mention DOMA), it’s critical to make the road trip to D.C. to show our numbers to Congress and the nation about the need for LGBT equality.
“I want our people to stop accepting second-class citizenship,” Jones says. “To reject incrementalism, to reject compromise, to reject delay.”
Filed under: gay life, music | Tags: animation, gay, grizzly bear, two weeks
Animator Gabe Askew posted an amazing video to virtuoso indies Grizzly Bear and their song, “Two Weeks.” It’s a sweet love story, replete with cardboard freeways and cut-out doors and swirling fishes connecting them all. An ode to GLBT folks everywhere.
Along with the Modest Mouse/Heath Ledger collaboration that I posted about a few weeks ago, I think I’ve fallen in love with the possibilities of animation again.
Filed under: gay rights, immigration | Tags: family, gay, lesbian, shirley tan, uafa, uniting american families act
For 23 years, Shirley Tan has raised twelve-year old twins in a California suburb. She lives with her partner in a peaceful community, singing in the church choir and caring for her mother-in-law. About her mostly heterosexual community, Tan says that her sons’ classmates “know they have two moms, and it has never been an issue.”
On January 28, 2009, at 6:30 a.m., immigration officers broke into Tan’s home to deport her. The Filipina woman was hand-cuffed, searched, and loaded into a van before being returned to her partner with an ankle-bracelet and an impending deportation order. As Tan relates her story to a Senate sub-committee, Tan and her son (seated behind her) become increasingly emotional. It’s heart-breaking to watch.
The Uniting American Families Act addresses inequality in federal immigration law. Where a heterosexual couple would be protected from this deportation because of a heterosexual marriage, this option is, obviously, not available to gay and lesbian couples. Tan faces deportation to the Philippines after twenty-three years in the United States. Towleroad and The New York Times both offered reports on the proposed act. Click here to learn more or donate.
Filed under: boston, education, gay rights | Tags: chair, gay, harvard, larry kramer
News from the ivory tower: Harvard has endowed the nation’s first chair in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered studies. This will be the first of its kind, and was established by the school’s gay and lesbian caucus.
CUNY established the first gay and lesbian studies program in 1986. Activist Larry Kramer tried to endow a chair in gay studies at Yale in the late 90’s.
Filed under: entertainment, pop culture | Tags: fish, gay, kanye west, south park
This is pretty darn funny.
Kanye West was outed last night on South Park as a gay fish. The best moment is at the end of the clip when his eyes lock on a giant mackerel (or catfish? I was never big into fishing). No word yet from the man himself on the South Park portrayal.
Filed under: film, gay rights, pop culture | Tags: carpetbagger, david carr, film, gay, gus van sant, milk, sean penn
Just caught a video of the NYT’s arts columnist David Carr interviewing Sean Penn. I like Carr, aka “The Carpetbagger”–he’s somewhat cranky, approachable yet smart, and an all-around good guy. When I’m watching the videos that he produces for the Times, he always seems to be amazed that he gets to interview movie stars and write about film for a living.
In his video from the New York Film Critics’ awards, he interviews Penn about his buzzworthy performance in Milk. I’m not shy to post again about Gus Van Sant’s fantastic–and important–film about Harvey Milk, the man who stood up for civil rights in San Francisco, before he was assasinated by a jealous colleague. My guess is that Sean Penn will score an Oscar nomination, but fall short of winning the actual Best Actor award because of Hollywood’s (or the general public’s?) fear of recognizing the contributions of gay men and women.
Or maybe I’m just seeing the glass as half full. Oscar nominations come out on Thursday, January 22.
And for God’s sake, if you haven’t seen Milk yet, what are you waiting for?
When did “gay” become a dirty word?
Towleroad posted an interesting observation this morning about the good censors from our paper of record, The New York Times. It seems that if you sent me a text or passed along an article via the iPhone, the word “gay” would be replaced with the word “beep”. Ridiculous.
Reminds me of the subtle yet immeasurable effects of classifying homosexuality as a psychological disorder by medical professionals until 1973, and a mental disorder by the Pentagon as recently as 2006. If doctors and government officials can tell us we’re not right, what hope is there for young folks struggling with their identity on their own?
You can send your own feedback to the NYT feedback here.
UPDATE: The NYT removed the word “gay” from its censored list. Less than 24 hours elapsed: their official word is that it was unintentional and an error.
Filed under: art, gay rights, social justice | Tags: byu, censorship, college, gay, mormon
And he’s a young photography student at Brigham Young University. His photographs depict–gasp!–people who identify themselves as homosexual. And accompanying each portrait is a kind of alter image: the face of a family member or friend who is supportive of the gay student.
Seems like a simple, lyrical concept that embraces gays and lesbians, and also shows their allies–loved ones, friends, and family–accept them, no matter their sexuality.
BYU is not alone in its university-sanctioned censorship (it’s just in the public eye because of its anti-gay support of Prop 8. As institutions dedicated to open dialogue and understanding, colleges and universities must be the last places of close-mindedness–opting instead to be leaders of tolerance.
Greg Lukianoff writes about the increasing intolerance of art, opinion, and literature in The Huffington Post:
Sounds crazy, but sadly it’s true. Students at the University of Oklahoma have been warned not to use their university e-mail accounts for “the forwarding of political humor/commentary” during this election season.
Meanwhile, anyone who has an actual opinion on the election should think twice about expressing it on a bumper sticker at the University of Illinois, or in their dorm window at University of Texas at Austin. In fact, students who hung an Obama sign in their window at UT Austin were threatened with expulsion.
Here’s the artwork of the BYU artist, sans censorship:
Pretty darn subversive work, huh? My hunch is Mapplethorpe would just shrug his shoulders at the controversy and move on.
