"I believe if two people want to commit to each other, God bless 'em," Jeanne Phillips (AKA Dear Abby) told The Associated Press. "That is the highest form of commitment, for heaven's sake."
She goes on to say, "If gay Americans are not allowed to get married and have all the benefits that American citizens are entitled to by the Bill of Rights, they should get one hell of a tax break. That is my opinion."
Read the whole article on Gay.com here.
The annual Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is now available for download. Read it here.
The results? 195 companies received a perfect score -- a 41% increase from 2007. 15 of these companies appeared in the CEI for the first time.
Wal-mart slipped from 65% last year to 40% in 2008. Why? In response to conservative critics, Wal-mart no longer supports GLBT organizations. Their new stance is to not to "support or oppose highly controversial issues." Read more about Wal-mart's GLBT policies here.
The worst:
The gove-nator, Arnold Scwarzenegger, is set to veto the gay marriage bill that passed the California Senate 22-15. This is the second time in two years the actor-turned-politician has denied the citizens of the second-largest gay population in the nation the rights to marry.
Read the disappointment here.
Did you miss the HRC Logo Democratic Debates (like I did)? Watch the synopsis above to catch the highlights.
And stay tuned for the update on the Republican candidates responses to their invites... I'm sure they'll say yes soon...
I came across this poll on About.com regarding gay marriage, and of course I had to vote.
In the article accompanying the poll, there is a great paragraph that I must quote:
If the Christian Right were to be believed, legalized gay marriage might usher in the Apocalypse, but then again the Christian Right so often uses apocalyptic terms it's difficult to take them very seriously. Similarly grave forecasts were made about ending slavery, desegregation, interracial marriage, letting women vote, etc. Somehow, the Earth has managed to keep spinning and the sun hasn't exploded. Why imagine that gay marriage is any different?
National coming out day is October 11, 2007.
This falls on the 20th anniversary of the 1987 Gay and Lesbian March on Washington and the unfurling of the AIDS Quilt on the National Mall. National Coming Out day began on October 11th of the following year as a way of continuing the spirit openness, honesty, and visibility that the march and the AIDS Quilt presentation inspired.
Do your part to keep the spirit alive.
Talk About It.
Ten Reasons Gay Marriage is Un-American
1. Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.
2. Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.
3. Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.
4. Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn’t changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can’t marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.
5. Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britany Spears’ 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.
6. Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn’t be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren’t full yet, and the world needs more children.
7. Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.
8. Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That’s why we have only one religion in America.
9. Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That’s why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.
10. Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven’t adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.
Michael Moore has mentioned his next movie may be about gay rights. (article here)
“If you believe in equality, if you believe in standing up for the rights of all, especially for people most affected by bigotry and discrimination, then you have no choice but to be present and accounted for when it comes to standing up for gays and lesbians in our society.”
What: A 90 minute Presidential candidate forum on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues
When: 8pm CST on August 9, 2007
Where: Los Angeles, CA (aired on LOGO television channel)
Who: Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y.; Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn.; former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C.; Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio; and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill
Read the HRC press releases here.
Edge Magazine reports on progress of a possible cure for HIV:
In a breakthrough that could potentially lead to a cure for HIV infection, scientists have discovered a way to remove the virus from infected cells, a study released Thursday said.Read the full article here.
The scientists engineered an enzyme which attacks the DNA of the HIV virus and cuts it out of the infected cell, according to the study published in Science magazine.
The enzyme is still far from being ready to use as a treatment, the authors warned, but it offers a glimmer of hope for the more than 40 million people infected worldwide.
Our friends at thetaskforce.org have posted a document showing the stance of all 2008 Presidential election candidates on Gay Rights.
Who supports same-sex marriage? Mike Gravel (D-AK) and Dennis Kucinich (D-OH).
Who does NOT oppose the Federal Marriage Amendment? Fred Thompson (R-TN), Mitt Romney (R-MA), Mike Huckabee (R-AR), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and Tom Tancredo (R-CO).
See all of the candidates' stances in detail here.
Wal-mart pulled the plug on donations to gay-friendly organizations due to a threatened boycott by Conservative Christian groups. (article here)
Not that I want the evil Wal-mart empire linked to homosexuality, but you have to admit it could solve the nation's Wal-mart problems. Think about it. Most of Wal-mart's "followers" are in the southern states; most of the Conservative Christian groups are in the southern states. There could be a huge drop in Wal-mart's sales (and thus profits) if a right-wing boycott is put into place.
So, how can we create the sodomy-discount store connection?
Have the Pride parade run through the Wal-mart cosmetic section? No, there are too many toothless distractions to keep the parade on route.
Create a fake news story about Sam Walton's gay affair with a young Strom Thurmond? INGENIOUS! Someone get Katie Couric on the phone... she'll do anything for a ratings boost right now.
Does the hair on your head grow in a counter-clockwise pattern? You're gay.
Is your index finger longer than or the same size as your ring finger? Gay.
Are the fingerprints on your thumb and pinkie finger of your left hand dense? Gay, Gay, Gay.
Are you left-handed or ambidextrous? Yep, Big Homo
Don't believe me? Read the facts here.
1 in 6 hate crimes is motivated by the victim's sexual orientation. The Matthew Shepard act can help stop this. This act was passed in the House of Representatives, and is now up for vote in the senate.
Our friends at the Human Rights Campaign have created a video and a quick way to e-mail your senators to let them know you support the Matthew Shepard Act. Check out the video here.
Please take a moment to tell your senators to support the Matthew Shepard Act. (link here)
In the past 14 years, over 11,000 service members have been discharged from the military for being homosexual.
One of these service members was Stephen Benjamin. He is one of the few servicemen who speaks Arabic, yet there is no place for him in today's military.
Our friends at Brave New Foundation have created a video telling Stephen's story. (video here) They have also created a petition you can sign and have sent to your members of Congress. Even if you don't have time to watch the video, check out the petition here.
You can read Stephen Benjamin's oped piece from the New York Times here.
Haven't we come far enough as people to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell?" The following countries allow homosexuals to actively serve in their military:
Gay Rights
A "Gay Bomb?" WTF?
I'm speechless. Read the article yourself. (article here)
Is this real?
Gay Rights:
