Superiority Texas Style: Lesbian Tops Straight Man (Gene Locke)

In the recent race for mayor of Houston, Texas it boiled down to a male lawyer and a lesbian.

Gene Locke is the male lawyer who tried every dirty trick he could to trash Annise Parker. Gene Locke focused on the fact that Annise Parker is an open and proud lesbian. His campaign spent many thousands of dollars trying to drive home this fact, in hopes that would be enough.

Hey Gene, evidently Houston citizens aren't as bigotted as you!

In my dreams I hope that people were able to see being Lesbian has nothing to do with one's ability to perform a job. But sadly, I wouldn't be surprised if it has more to do with the fact Gene Locke is a lawyer.

But no matter what the reason, Gene Locke (a straight man - we presume) was topped by Annise Parker (a lesbian).

I hope she used a really big strap on.


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Don't 'Protect' Me; Give Me Your Respect

By Abigail Garner
NEWSWEEK

Growing Up With A Gay Father Wasn't Easy--But Only Because Our Society Doesn't Accept Families Like Mine

I could have made up an answer, just to avoid a potentially tense situation. But I answered honestly, "I'm an advocate for gay and lesbian families." He looked confused so I gave him a little more information. "I talk and write about the experiences of children growing up with gay and lesbian parents."

I travel frequently for my job, so I've been in this situation before. In the best cases, answering this question opens the door to a discussion, regardless of whether the person supports the idea of gay parents raising children.

But occasionally, the passenger next to me responds with silence. That's what happened this time. He looked at me, blinked and then sat back in his seat, staring straight ahead. Finally he grabbed the magazine in the seat pocket in front of him and opened it. His body language, roughly translated, meant, "I did not buy a perfectly good seat on this airplane so that I could sit next to some lesbian."

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Attack on Wayland, Michigan teen may be a hate crime

by Lynn Turner
The Kalamazoo Gazette, Michigan

WAYLAND -- A Wayland Union High School freshman was allegedly attacked by two other girls Tuesday on the last day of school in what police say may be a hate crime related to the victim's sexual orientation.

The three students, all 14, were cleaning out their lockers after fourth period, about 1:30 p.m., when the suspects surrounded the girl and the fight broke out, Wayland Police Chief Dan Miller said. The fight lasted about 30 seconds before school staff broke it up.

The victim, who had some facial bruising and was treated by emergency medical technicians at the school, identifies herself as a lesbian, Miller said.

"I guess some say she's pretty outspoken, and the other two girls didn't like that,'' he said. "We were told by the two suspects it was over the sex-orientation issue that they don't believe in.''

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Chile's First Lesbian Magazine Hits Newstands

by Roxanne Klaassen
The Patagonia Times

Chile’s first lesbian magazine, ‘Rompiendo el Silencio’ (Breaking the Silence), will make its nationwide debut next week. Magazine organizer Erika Montecinos Urrea described its release as a historic moment for Chile.

‘‘It’s been a long struggle, but, finally the social conditions seem to allow space for a printed lesbian magazine,’’ Montecinos told the Santiago Times.

Erika said discrimination and ‘lesbiafobia’ are strong in Chile, even more among women than men, who mostly like to associate lesbians with their sexual fantasies. In some public places, women or men may not kiss or even hold hands because such gestures conflict with social standards. During the dictatorship, she added, it was unthinkable to be an out of the closet lesbian.

“That’s why it is important to offer a real magazine,” Montecinos said. “We want to reach out to woman who don’t use Internet, mostly older women and women in the countryside, and also make a visible statement to the outside world.”

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Outing Mom or Dad

Jennifer Campbell, Citizen Special
Ottawa Citizen

'I have two moms."

Against her better judgment, 12-year-old Robin Wagg let her friends in on her secret. It didn't go well.

"People tease me a lot because I have gay parents and they think that I'll be a lesbian," Robin says. "I tell them I'm not going to be a lesbian -- and sometimes I just walk away."

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World Vibe

by Lisa Hix
San Francisco Chronicle

Asian America affairs The six-week United States of Asian America Festival kicks off today with two art exhibitions. At SomArts Bay Gallery, curated by Taraneh Hemami and Anuradha Vikram, "East of the West" delves into the religious, ethnic and cultural diversity of the Middle East; the roles of women, queer and transgendered people in traditional culture; and the identity issues of immigrants. At SomArts Main Gallery, "Flo Oy Wong, 70/30: Seventy Years of Living, Thirty Years of Life," curated by Nancy Hom, celebrates the groundbreaking work of a Bay Area artist known for explorations of community issues through art. On Saturday, the festival screens "Bonds That Heal: Queer API Women's Films," a program of films created through the Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project, curated by Madeleine Lim. See Web site for more festival events and schedule details. Today through May 25. Free. SomArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan St., S.F. (415) 864-4126, www.apiculturalcenter.org.

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Women displaced by blaze feel LGBT community’s love

by Ethan Jacobs
Bay Windows

After an April 11 fire at the Jefferson Village apartments in Framingham left them temporarily homeless, two longtime lesbian activists, Laverne Saunders and Judah Dorrington, have received an outpouring of support from the LGBT community.

The couple has received donations from AIDS Action Committee, the Multi-cultural AIDS Coalition and will be the beneficiaries of a Gender Crash fundraiser organized by fellow activist and Gender Crash founder Gunner Scott.

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'Township lesbians too scared'

By Natasha Joseph
The Star


South Africa: Human rights groups say that lesbians in Khayelitsha are too frightened to picket and protest outside the trial of nine men who stand accused of beating 19-year-old Zoliswa Nkonyana to death more than two years ago.

The brutal attack on Nkonyana was apparently motivated by the fact that she was living openly as a lesbian. On February 3, 2006, a mob of 20 men beat her to death in Khayelitsha's E section.

Nine of her alleged attackers appeared in the Khayelitsha magistrate's court on Monday, but the case was postponed because one accused's lawyer was not present in court, said the Western Cape Alliance for Campaign 07-07-07.

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New rights for lesbian parents in New South Wales

By Adam Lake
Pink News

The government of New South Wales (NSW) has announced that children born through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) to lesbian mothers will have the same rights as those of heterosexual couples.

A total of 50 laws across NSW covering the Local Government Act, Industrial Relations Act and the Constitution regulation, will be amended to include new parental presumption protection for female same-sex couples.

Attorney-General John Hatzistergos said he had accepted NSW Law Reform recommendations extending "parental presumption" provisions to cover gay mums.

It was estimated 20 per cent of the state's female same-sex couples had children, Mr Hatzistergos said.

Mr Hatzistergos has consistently opposed any further same-sex relationship recognition in NSW.

Mr Hatzistergos later said that said the changes would not go as far as moves in Tasmania, and soon-to-be implemented changes in Victoria, where same-sex couples could add their name to a register.

"We want to see how this pans out nationally," he told reporter.

The changes in the law will be put through by the NSW parliament later this year.

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Massive Lesbian Invasion! Denver now home to largest monthly women's party in the US!

by: GLINN Gay News Distribution, OIA Newswire

Denver, CO April 15, 2008: When Colorado voters enacted Amendment 2 in 1992, which prohibited legislation protecting LGBT persons from discrimination, their actions earned Colorado a national reputation for being unfriendly toward the LGBT community. Amendment 2 was overturned in 1997 and now, just over a decade later, Denver has earned bragging rights as the site of the nation's largest monthly women's party.

Metro Denver's LGBT community, estimated to be as large as 250,000, had previously offered few events for women outside of the annual Pride Fest festivities. However, on March 4th of this year, a mostly lesbian crowd of 2,000 (ranging in age from 21-75) attended First Friday, a monthly women's event that began 5 years ago. Dede Frain, the founder of Babes Around Denver (BAD), organized the original First Friday as a casual happy hour for friends. The event has grown into a much-anticipated monthly party that consistently fills Tracks, Denver's largest gay nightclub. Just last week, BAD received a coveted "Best of Denver 2008" award from Westword, a popular local weekly newspaper that highlights activities in the metro area.

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Uganda: Government refuses passport to transgender woman

A post by Gay in Uganda last week reveals the discrimination the country's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) population faces when applying for travel documents:

Ugandans know a guy called Brenda. A gal, because Brenda is a trans person. Meaning that biologically the birth was to a male baby, but growing up Brenda was more confortable in the female role, and ultimately embraced the female gender.

Recently, Brenda needed travel documents. They were denied. Reason, they don’t give them to ‘people who have changed themselves’. Julie Victor Mukasa (Note: a Ugandan lesbian activist) tells of the time that she had to prove that she was biologically female at the RDC’s office in Kampala, when she went to get passport forms filled. Use your imagination how she proved that.

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Lesbian judge receives ‘Woman of the Year’ honor

San Francisco Superior Court Judge Donna Hitchens has joined the ranks of “Woman of the Year” honorees from the 13th Assembly District. Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) nominated Hitchens for the award in recognition of her groundbreaking work to improve the accessibility of the legal system for low-income families and children.

In a statement Monday, March 10, Leno pointed to Hitchens’s help establishing coordinated youth services and a mandatory training program for juvenile court attorneys as well as her work in helping to establish the court’s Family Law Self-Help Center. He also praised Hitchens for working closely with the Child Trauma Research Project and the University of California, San Francisco forensic psychiatry program to see that such things as neutral custody evaluations are available to families with limited means.

Leno called Hitchens “one of those extraordinary individuals we rarely come across in our lifetimes,” and added that, “She has put her time and talents to use for those that need them most – foster youth, young people exposed to violence and low-income families. She has touched the lives of so many throughout the Bay Area, I was proud to honor her today.”

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For housewives, she’s the hot ticket

Jackie Warner, the lesbian fitness trainer whose seesaw love life is chronicled in the Bravo reality series “Work Out,” is maneuvering through a dark, half-built gym in Hollywood.

Already a minor celebrity thanks to her show, Warner has plans to renovate this equipment-strewn space and offer affordable group fitness classes.

“I think my top demographic is not the gay and lesbian community, but housewives,” said Warner, 39.

“I cannot tell you how many of the e-mails that we got from last year’s ‘Work Out’ reunion that were women saying, ‘I am married. I have never looked at another woman. I have a huge crush on Jackie,’ ” Cohen said.

“I’m from St. Louis,” Cohen said. “When I go home a lot of times I’m amazed by the suburban married women that are coming up to me and saying, ‘I’m in love with Jackie Warner.’ ”

“They get crushes,” she said in her office at Sky Sport & Spa, her penthouse gym in Beverly Hills. “I have hard-core women that get major crushes. … I have women that send me photos of themselves with their husbands and three teenage boys or whatever — I’m just giving you an example — with a love letter attached.”

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GED Program Launches for LGBT Youth

It's tough enough to be a teenager today, but for Boston teens who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, it can be traumatic. They often deal with homophobic bullying, have alarmingly high school-dropout rates, and many are homeless.

But a unique new program created by Justice Resource Institute (JRI), a nonprofit provider that advocates on behalf of children and adults who experience the greatest barriers to social justice, may give these young people hope.

"A Gateway To Success" was launched today by JRI's Boston Gay & Lesbian Adolescent Social Services (Boston GLASS) Center, with the help of Verizon and IBM.

JRI received a $75,000 grant from the Verizon Foundation and 10 new computers from IBM to support the new initiative, which that will provide workshops to help these young people complete their GEDs.

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Atlanta activist has spent her life bridging gaps between gay and straight

Emily "Dixon" Taylor's work in Atlanta's gay and lesbian community began in the 1980s.

We came together raising awareness in the battle against AIDS," said longtime friend Michael Aycock. "She has brought the gay and lesbian and the straight communities together in the larger Atlanta community in a really good way."

Taylor, an Alabama native, recently became the second recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Atlanta Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.

In 2000, Taylor was named one of 20 "Women Making a Difference" by Atlanta magazine. She was the first openly gay woman appointed to the Small Business Task Force for the state of Georgia by then-Secretary of State Max Cleland in 1994.

Taylor has 35 years in real estate sales, but along the way also worked as a sales representative and later investor-owner for Southern Voice, a newspaper founded to give voice to gay and lesbian issues.

She was "the heart and soul of the paper" said current publisher Bob Gundy. "Dixon was instrumental in growing the paper," and helped take it from a biweekly publication to a weekly paper. This gave people a voice who had no voice, addressing social issues that weren't a part of the mainstream media.

Taylor is a lifelong Presbyterian, having kept her membership at Birmingham's First Presbyterian Church until just a few years ago, when her parents passed away. She has Presbyterian ministers in her family "as far back as you can go," she said, including her great-great-uncle, who was President Woodrow Wilson's minister. Now she is a member at Morningside Presbyterian Church.

"She always brings a wonderful spirit and presence to our church and life together," said the Rev. Joanna Adams of Morningside. "Her Presbyterian heritage is a positive part of who she is."
Taylor said that in no way has she ever felt a conflict between her religious beliefs and being gay.

"What I am delighted with seeing," Taylor said, "is a shift from the extreme positions in some of our charismatic and evangelical churches and seeing them shift ever so slightly to be able to open the door to more of an acceptance of the reality that homosexuality is not a choice."

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Illinois: Playhouse vandalism possible hate crime

ELWOOD -- A small plastic playhouse in the back of a large yard in the Noel Estates subdivision was the scene of the crime.

Police are still investigating and are considering whether or not it is a simple case of criminal trespassing and criminal damage to property or a hate crime.

Kelli Outlaw owns the two-story brick home on the large lot in the usually quiet rural subdivision along Noel Road. She is the white, single mom of a 13-year-old biracial daughter.

The windows to the playhouse were kicked in and the words Gay, White Power as well as a version of a portion of her daughter's name with a racial epithet attached were sprawled over the outside.

Her daughter's friend was one of eight youths, ages 13 to 17, who were later determined to have been involved. A cell phone belonging to one of the girls was found inside the damaged playhouse. A flagpole and a surf board also were damaged.

"She told a teacher about it and all the teacher did was tell her to just deal with it," Outlaw said. "My daughter was also called a Mexican lesbian at school."

Outlaw claims the problems started at the school and were allowed to escalate into what happened in her yard.

Outlaw moved to Elwood from Joliet two years ago because she was drawn to the peace and quiet of the area. It is a move she now regrets.

Outlaw said she went and talked to school officials about the possibility of having an assembly on racism. She said her request was denied.

Outlaw said she will press charges so the other youths involved will learn that there are consequences for their actions. One of the mothers involved has already requested she drop the matter so her son will not have a police record.

"He admitted to kicking in the windows and said the girls were responsible for the writing," Outlaw said. "It was his decision to be involved and he did nothing to stop what happened. These kids need to learn they cannot get away with these things. If something is not done now things will get worse."

Superintendent Ron Kanzulak said the school has zero tolerance for racial slurs and when aware of problems, they are handled with extreme severity.

Pat Barry, spokesman for the Will County Sheriff's Department, said the matter remains under investigation.

"We are taking this very seriously," Barry said. "We have identified the youths involved and are determining how best to proceed."

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City's gay prejudice that dare not speak its name

The only known lesbian on the board of a top City of London company blames business leaders today for the climate of fear that forces corporate gays to keep their sexuality secret.

Ashley Steel, from the accountancy giant KPMG, believes that gay people in the Square Mile are scared that their careers will be blighted if they are open about their orientation. She admitted having lied at work about a ring given by her long-term lover, pretending that it came from her grandmother, to conceal her lesbianism from her colleagues.

“There are going to be thousands and thousands of people who will leave work this evening, go home and feel that they have had an awkward day because they have not been able to be themselves,” Dr Steel, 48, said. “That cannot be right.”

“It’s about CEOs [chief executive officers], chairmen of the UK’s biggest companies. They can’t be silent on this. They actually have to take a very active role themselves. They have to be outspoken and they have to demonstrate to their people and to customers that they are very happy about working with gay people, that gay people are welcome in their organisations.

“What they can’t do is send a memo to their human resources department and say ‘Could you please put in a diversity programme?’. This is not something that chairmen and CEOs can delegate.”

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Variety-Q Releases New Online Gay and Lesbian Social Network

New York, NY, April 12, 2008 --(PR.com)-- Variety-Q has created a new online gay and lesbian social network and dating community. The website Variety-Q.com is an all-inclusive site designed to encourage networking and communications within the GLBT community. The social network provides its members an opportunity to share pictures, videos, instant/private messaging and email all within the community. The site also features a community forum to encourage member participation.

Variety-Q.com maximizes its appeal to GLBT individuals by consisting of several small communities that reflect the diverse populations within the GLBT community. Each community is directed to the Variety-Q.com site via its own URL. Community members are also provided direct URLs to their individual profiles within the website.

“We are hoping that the GLBT community will respond to our efforts to provide a valuable service. Our VQ-TV video channel includes new content via the YouTube community, our forums are relevant and we have designed a website around community versus strictly dating. Additionally, our dedication to equality for the gay and lesbian community is demonstrated by our commitment to GLBT non-profit organizations” said Damien Gray, CEO of Variety Board (the parent company of Variety-Q.com).

Variety-Q.com is a private venture designed to form an all-inclusive virtual gay and lesbian community. The website can be reached via www.Variety-Q.com.

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When Straights Take Over the Gay-borhood

Last month, my girlfriend, Jackie, and I went on our first vacation together. We went to New York to visit a Santa Barbara friend who moved there to broaden her professional horizons and, for an added bonus, date a few ladies.

But New York would be different. My friend lived in Park Slope in Brooklyn, and practically every travel book Jackie and I read used some variation of the phrase, “Park Slope, or Dyke Slope as it’s referred to because of the high concentration of lesbians, is a lovely brownstone neighborhood …” Plus, two New York natives swore it was lesbian heaven, and one of my coworkers, who lived in the city for seven years, actually said, “You’ll be in paradise; you won’t ever want to come back.”

Ah, the pang of disappointment: nary a lezzie in sight. In fact, quite the contrary; we were surrounded by straight couples and sat next to two gay fellas who spent a large portion of their morning trying to get their adopted child to say “Dad.”

It’s happened before in other zip codes. Last March, the San Francisco Chronicle described the outrage of many gay and lesbian residents in the Castro, who felt their historic part of town was being taken over by heterosexuals seeking safe neighborhoods in which to raise their children.

Such a shift happened in our fair city not so long ago. Remember the days of Hades, or Chameleon, or Gold Coast, or Fathom? With all those long closed, Paddy’s in Ventura is the only seven-days-a-week gay bar in the tri-counties. And while Robert Mendez’s six-year-old Red Room on Sunday nights at the Wildcat is fabulous, it’s only one night. What happens if I want to dance to Kelly Clarkson on Friday or Saturday?

If gays don’t need a special part of town, that means we’re not all that special or, more importantly, different from anyone else. People are starting to realize what we gays have known all along: We’re just like you, and you are just like us.

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Justice Dept. probes case of lesbian who was fired

The Inspector General’s Office at the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether a career attorney and former prosecutor at the department was dismissed from her job in 2006 because of rumors that she’s lesbian, according to a news media report.

If the allegations are confirmed, the Justice Department official responsible for the dismissal could be accused of violating an executive order issued by President Bill Clinton that bans sexual orientation discrimination in the federal workforce, said Elaine Kaplan, an official who monitored federal workplace issues during the Clinton administration.

President George W. Bush has left the executive order in place, rejecting calls by anti-gay groups that he rescind it.

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