Combined Gay News Headlines (T5T-1)

When It's Time to Come Out at the Office

ON OUR GAYDAR â€" News, notes, clicks, and quips from around the web. • Why gay employees don't come at out the office: "either they have a preference to keep their personal and professional lives separate or they fear potential repercussions." • The White House blogs about Stonewall. Imagine seeing that posted on George W.'s homepage. • Liza [...]

Marks His Words: Gays Will 'Have Some Pretty Good Feelings' About Obama Administration

In an applause-laden speech at the White House this afternoon, President Obama laid out his most detailed committment to the gay community yet. Reiterating previous promises to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, enact federal hate crimes protections, and repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell, our great orator of a president [...]

If White Gay Leaders Exclude Blacks From Their Plans, Should They Expect Their Support?

We've identified the white gay personalities behind California's same-sex marriage push. We've passed along the message of black gays feeling excluded from the struggle for equality. And now Blacklight publisher Sidney Brinkley, who's written much about the intersection of race and sexuality (and is no stranger to controversy), has a word for the white-centric movement [...]

An Angel Named Farrah

It was a sad announcement, Farrah Fawcett had lost her long battle with Cancer on June 25, 2009. Farrah was an American Icon, the beautiful Girl next Door from Corpus Christi, Texas who became a Hollywood Legend. She rose to fame in the 70’s and was so huge she became forever a part of pop [...]

Quote of the Day

This is quite possibly the understatement of the year, from the Washington Times article on the recent debacle involving South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford: Extramarital affairs, gambling,mbling, alcohol abuse, prostitution and sexual pursuit of minors have taken a toll on the GOP. Via The Stranger.

The 40th Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots

From: Fresno Stonewall Democrats   Fresno Stonewall Democrats will be commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots on Sunday June 28th starting at 9 p.m. at the Den bar located at 4538 E Belmont Ave., in Fresno, on the south side of Belmont about 2 and ½ blocks east of Cedar. (559) 255-3213. The arresting event will [...]

Anti-Discrimination Strides in Delaware and Kalamazoo, Michigan

Two more blocks were added this week to the civil rights quilt, although both with threads still dangling.  On June 25th, both houses of the Delaware legislature passed "Senate Bill 121, [which] adds sexual orientation to the list of protections under Delaware's anti-discrimination law. That law covers housing, employment, public works contracting, public accommodations and insurance."  It's taken 10 years of trying to get this bill passed.  Governor Markell apparently has spoken in favor of similar bills previously, so is expected to sign this one.

In Kalamazoo, MI on June 29th, the city council passed a fully-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance!  This is incredibly exciting, because the ordinance had passed once before then was rescinded for strategic reasons.  And now it's back, stronger than before.  Get the inside scoop here from Mattkazoo.

The threads still dangling on these great developments?  The Delaware bill protects us based on sexual orientation but not gender identity or expression, and the Kalamazoo city ordinance will have to weather a referendum challenge.  As always, more work remains to be done.  But we're used to that, and I'm not going to let that perennial reality get in the way of celebrating two victories for civil rights in one week.  As Dan Savage is fond of saying, we're winning!

DoJ's Response to GLAD's DOMA Challenge Delayed Until September

First the Department of Justice released the gratuitously homophobic Smelt brief.  Then we read reports that DOJ had rebuffed efforts by GLAD and Lambda Legal to "sit down with top folks at Justice to talk about [other active federal DOMA lawsuits] and what it meant and to engage in more cooperative lawyering".  No surprise then that some of us were curious to see what aroma the next LGBT-related DOJ brief would emit.  

The DOJ's response to GLAD's DOMA challenge, Gill v OPM was expected today, June 29th.  However, because GLAD is amending their filing, we'll have to wait until fall for DOJ's response.

Update: GLAD Will File Amended Complaint
June 26, 2009

The government's response to our DOMA complaint will not be due June 29. Per agreement between the parties, GLAD will be filing an amended complaint in late July. It will include all of the tax plaintiffs (some of whom were not originally included for administrative reasons), reflect the fact that the passport plaintiffs' issue has been resolved, and perhaps make some other changes. The amended complaint will be posted [on GLAD's website]. The government's response will be due on September 18, or 45 days after the amended complaint is filed.

Surely with this delay President Fierce Advocate's DOJ will have had plenty of time to comprehend the difference between professional duty and gratuitous and damaging verbal violence.  Right?

And here's the list of the guests invited to the WH Stonewall reception

Here you go, folks, from the pool report, passed on to the Blend by the White House Press Office...

List of invited guests at the LGBT event in the East Room

White House LGBT Event
June 29, 2009

Administration Officials

John Berry, Director, Office of Personnel Management

Fred Hochberg, Chair, Export-Import Bank

John Easton, Director, Institute of Education Sciences at the Department of Education

City and State Officials

Jason Bartlett, Connecticut House of Representatives
Kate Brown, Oregon Secretary of State
David Dibble, Minnesota State Senator
Evan Low, Vice-Mayor, Campbell, CA City Council
Al McAffrey, Oklahoma House of Representatives
Andrew Mcdonald, Connecticut House of Representatives
Robert Meza, Arizona House of Representatives
Christine Quinn, New York City Council
Debra Shore, Metropolitan Watern Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
Denise Simmons, Mayor of Cambridge, MA
Kyrsten Sinema, Arizona House of Representatives
Patricia Todd, Alabama House of Representatives
Lupe Valdez, Dallas County Sheriff

The invitation-only guests are below the fold.
Other Invited Guests (Invite Only)
Michael Adams, Service and Advocacy for LGBT Elders (SAGE)
Mark Agrast, Washington, DC
Madeline Alk, New York, NY
Ron Ansin, Harvard, MA
Judith Appelbaum, Department of Justice
Chip Arndt, Miami Beach, FL
Cornelius Baker, National Black Gay Men's Advocacy Coalition
Tom Barbera, SEIU Lavender Caucus
Andrew Barnett, Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL)
Jarrett Barrios, Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)
Vic Basile, Office of Personnel Management
Christopher Bates, Washington, DC
Michael Bauer, Chicago, IL
Terrance Bean, Portland, OR
Jeremy Bernard, National Endowement for the Humanities
Jennifer Besson, Washington, DC
Dana Beyer, Chevy Chase, MD
David Binder, San Francisco, CA
Elizabeth Birch, Washington, DC
Jeremy Bishop, Pride at Work (AFL-CIO)
David Bohnett, Beverly Hills, CA
Marsha Botzer, Quilcene, WA
Raymond Buckley, DNC Vice-Chair
Eliza Byard, Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN)
Christopher Caldwell, Los Angeles, CA
Leslie Calman, Mautner Project
Rea Carey, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
Charles Carter, New York, NY
Kevin Cathcart, Lambda Legal
Curtis Chin, Los Angeles, CA
Jennifer Chrisler, Family Equality Council
Jamie Citron, Department of Health and Human Services
Wes Combs, Washington, DC
Roberta Conroy, Santa Monica, CA
Cheryl Cook, Department of Agriculture
Stampp Corbin, San Diego, CA
Michael Council, Columbus, OH
Wilson Cruz, West Hollywood, CA
Mark Davis, Philadelphia, PA
Q Todd Dickinson, Washington, DC
Daniel Dozier, Washington, DC
Ruby Dunning, Washington, DC
Ingrid Duran, Falls Church, VA
Christopher Dyer, Washington, DC Office of LGBT Affairs
Steven Elmendorf, Washington, DC
Fred Eychaner, Chicago, IL
Eric Fanning, Department of Justice
Bishop Yvette Flunder, City of Refuge United Church of Christ
Earl Fowlkes, International Federation of Black Prides
Rebecca Fox, National Coalition for LGBT Health
R. Brandon Fradd, New York, NY
Daniel Galindo, San Antonio, TX
Adolfo Garay, New York, N
Jesus Garcia, TX LULAC 4871
Joan Garry, Montclair, NJ
Rufus Gifford, Washington, DC
Emily Giske, New York, NY
Mitchell Gold, Hickory, NC
John Gonzalez, Washington, DC
Vernita Gray, Chicago, IL
Chad Griffin, Los Angeles, CA
Patrick Guerriero, Gill Action
Hon. Michael Guest, Former Ambassador
Rebecca Haag, AIDS Action
Steve Hildebrand, Sioux Falls, SD
Gavin Hilgemeier, Federal GLOBE
Leonard Hirsch, Federal GLOBE
Lorilyn Holmes, Federal GLOBE
Clifford Honicker, Knoxville, TN
Conrad Honicker, Knoxville, TN
Gerald Hoose, Stonewall Participant
r />Ernest Hopkins, Communities Advocating Emergency AIDS Relief
Hon. James Hormel, Former Ambassador
Paul Horning, Atlanta, GA
Brad Hoylman, Village Independent Democrats
Jody Huckaby, Parents, Families, & Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)
Kevin Jennings, Department of Education
Jennifer Jones, Department of Housing and Urban Development
Frank Kamney, Washington, DC
Elaine Kaplan, Office of Personnel Management
Paul Kawata, National Minority AIDS Council
Mara Keisling, National Center for Transgender Equity
Kate Kendell, National Center for Lesbian Rights
Jacqueline Kittrell, Knoxville, TN
Harry Knox, Human Rights Campaign
Steven Latasa-Nicks, New York, NY
Andre Leon Talley, White Plains, NY
Richard Llewellyn, Los Angeles, CA
Robert Llewellyn, Los Angeles, CA
Rosemary Llewellyn, Los Angeles, CA
Thomas Lopach, Export-Import Bank
Lin Lougheed, Miami Beach, FL
Claire Lucas, Corona del Mar, CA
Glenn Magpantay, Federation of LGBTQ AAPI Organizations
Mary Beth Maxwell, Department of Labor
Lisbeth MelendezRivera, Unid@s
Shannon Minter, National Center for Lesbian Rights
Chance Mitchell, National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
Mary Morten, Chicago, IL
Babak Movahedi, Miami Beach, FL
David Munar, National Association of People with AIDS
Kevin Naff, Washington Blade
Justin Nelson, National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
J. Alexander Nicholson, Servicemembers United
David Noble, NASA
Matt Nosanchuk, Silver Spring, MD
Robyn Ochs, BiNet USA and Bisexual Resource Center
Derek Orr, DC Office of Disability Rights
C. Dixon Osborn, Washington, DC
Kathleen Padilla, Philadelphia, PA
Pari Parker, Washington, DC
Skip Paul, Beverly Hills, CA
Terry Penrod, Columbus, OH
Troy Perry, Founder Metropolitan Community Churches
Thomas Petrillo, Washington, DC
Frank Pond, Los Angeles, CA
Robert Raben, Raben Group
Gautam Raghavan, Department of Defense
Steven Ralls, Washington, DC
Ellen Ratner, Washington, DC
Miriam Redleaf, Chicago, IL
Catherine Renna, Chicago, IL
Dr. Sylvia Rhue, National Black Justice Coalition
Jeffrey Richardson, Washington, DC
Laura Ricketts, Chicago, IL
Anthony Riley, Prince Georges County, MD
Carmen Robello, New York, NY
Bishop Gene Robinson, Diocese of New Hampshire
Hilary Rosen, Washington, DC
David Rosenauer, New York, NY
Renee Rosenfield, New York, NY
Jane Saks, Chicago, IL
Aubrey Sarvis, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network
Thomas Schmidt, Stonewall Participant
Marsha Scott, Washington, DC
Evan Shapiro, New York, NY
Jonathan Sheffer, New York, NY
Judy Shepard, Matthew Shepard Foundation
Babs Siperstein, Edison, NJ
Melissa Sklarz, National Stonewall Democrats
Mary Snider, Silver Spring, MD
Courtney Snowden, The Raben Group
Joe Solmonese, Human Rights Campaign
Rick Stafford, DNC LGBT Caucus Chair
Eric Stern, UC Berkeley School of Law
Jon Stryker, Kalamazoo, MI
Sally Susman, New York, NY
John Tedstrom, Global Businessusiness Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GBC)
Kevin Thompson, Seattle, WA
Andrew Tobias, DNC Treasurer
Jeffrey Trammell, Washington, DC
Ted Trimpa, Denver, CO
Gregory Varnum, National Youth Advocacy Coalition (NYAC)
Alex Wagner, Department of Defense
Paquita Wiggins, Beltsville, MD
Phil Wilson, Black AIDS Institute
Peter Wilson, New York, NY
Robert Witeck, Arlington, VA
Chuck Wolfe, Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund
Tobias Wolff, Philadelphia, PA

Willamette Week Profiles Couple for Stonewall Anniversary

Willamette Week wrote a lovely profile of a local gay couple who recently celebrated their 56th anniversary. Go to the Willamette Week websitek wrote a lovely profile of a local gay couple who recently celebrated their 56th anniversary. Go to the Willamette Week website to read the full story and check out their photos.

A Stonewall poem from the Governor

Last night was Basic Rights Oregon PAC's celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. It was a fantastic event thanks to the great work of volunteers who put it together, and all our sponsos a fantastic event thanks to the great work of volunteers who put it together, and all our sponsors. But the highlight was the poem that Governor Barbara Roberts wrote and delivered. Enjoy...

Stonewall Anniversary Poem

by Governor Barbara Roberts

From Stonewall to Salem, Across this whole nation We've marched and we've lobbied, Forty years in duration. For fairness, equality For dignity and rights For safety, and partners To turn on the lights. To come out of the darkness, Emerge from the closet, To rise above hatred And the bigots who cause it. The path has been long With hurdles and roadblocks But the future looks bright With adoptions and wedlocks. So on this eve of Stonewall We celebrate gains We stand shoulder to shoulder For the work that remains. We thank all who have given, Taken risks, led the way Lesbian, Trans, Bi, Straight and Gay. So - lift up your glasses And your hearts - one and all As we toast our martyrs and heroes And the brave souls of Stonewall.

Contact Rep. Walden and ask him to Co-Sponsor ENDA!

ENDA is being introduced tomorrow in the house! Our next step is to call Rep. Walden and ask him to be a cosponsor of ENDA. Below is a script to use. It is essential that we flood his lines to let him know how many of his constituents support ENDA! Once you've called, let me know what the staffer said and then ask all of your friends and family in the district to call as well!

affer said and then ask all of your friends and family in the district to call as well!

Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and have them connect you to your Representative (based on your zip code). Tell them:

"I am a constituent and I would like you to please tell Representative _______ that I would like him/her to become a cosponsor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. ENDA would ban discrimination against all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the workplace. Can you tell me whether or not Representative _______ has cosponsored the bill?"