05.20.08
Gay OK
The international guide to LGBT websites
Study: 22% of Gays Lack Health Insurance
Nearly a quarter of gay and lesbian Americans lack proper health insurance and are twice as likely as their heterosexual counterparts to have no health insurance coverage, according to a new study. Harris Interactive reported Monday that 22% of gay and lesbian survey respondents have no health insurance, compared with 12% of heterosexual adults in the survey.
Eighty-four percent of LGBT survey participants also said it was important that employers seek out health insurance companies that provide domestic-partner health coverage when choosing specific health care providers. Sixty-seven percent said they would be likely to consider a health insurer if they knew that the agent selling the insurance plan was openly LGBT.
“We must step up all efforts to serve the uninsured and take the lead in transforming our health care system for not only our GLBT members but all those who are not covered by health insurance today,” Peter Francel, head of the sales product group for Aetna, said in a press release on Monday.
05.16.08
Gay marriage for CA
The California Supreme Court overturns a ban on same-sex marriage; Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who twice vetoed equality, says he’ll stand by the 4-3 decision and won’t support a November ballot measure that could overturn the ruling.
05.15.08
Building Gay Political Muscle
With Amendment 2 looming over the November 2008 elections, gay rights organizations are mobilizing supporters and community members to become key players in gay-friendly campaigns and the effort to defeat the constitutional measure to ban same-sex marriage in Florida.
Political strategists consider the battle over Amendment 2 not only a test of Florida’s GLBT political clout, but a key indicator for American attitudes about gay issues across of the nation. The prevailing thought among organizers and political pundits alike is “as Florida goes, so goes the nation.”
So the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) chose Florida to kick off “Camp Equality,” a nation-wide training program designed to train volunteers how to affectively strategize, organize and work a political campaign. The first event took place in Fort Lauderdale on May 10-11, training volunteers how to campaign for pro-LGBT issues, and defeat measures such as Amendment 2.
“Defeating this amendment is critical not just for the GLBT community in Florida,” said Marty Rouse, the Human Rights Campaign’s national field director. “It will send a message across the nation that the tide is turning for GLBT equality.”
California Supreme Court Overturns Gay Marriage Ban
This morning the California state supreme court issued its decision on the same-sex marriage case, and the majority held that laws excluding gay and lesbian couples from the right to marry are unconstitutional. The decision paves the way for California to become the second state in which gay and lesbian residents can marry.
The case involved a series of lawsuits seeking to overturn a voter-approved law that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
”This is a landmark and historic day,” said Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. “We are grateful that the court upheld the most precious and cherished values of fairness, opportunity, and, most basically, the fundamental right to marry the person you love.”
California already offers domestic partnerships that offer virtually the same state-level legal rights and responsibilities as married spouses, including the right to divorce and to sue for child support.
A coalition of religious and social conservative groups is attempting to put a measure on the November ballot that would enshrine California’s current laws banning gay marriage in the state constitution. It’s unclear what impact today’s decision will have on this initiative. The secretary of state is expected to rule by the end of June whether the sponsors gathered enough signatures to qualify the marriage amendment, similar to ones enacted in 26 other states.
05.14.08
Marriage Equality, Inc - A Great Resource
Marriage Equality USA (MEUSA) believes that same-sex couples should have the freedom and the right to civil marriage.
The organization’s sole purpose and focus is to end discrimination in civil marriage so that same-sex couples can enjoy the same legal and societal status as opposite-sex couples.
Marriage Equality USA (MEUSA) understands how critical it is for a greater number of voices to be heard and often works in tandem with other state and national organizations.
Some of MEUSA’s activities to date include:
Began the Valentine’s Day/Freedom to Marry Day Marriage License Counter demonstrations across the country where same-sex couples ask for marriage licenses from their city hall and county recorder’s offices.
Obtained support of our Marriage Declaration from council members, clergy, community boards, mayors, and other key people throughout the U.S.
Sponsored the first-ever Same-Sex Wedding Expo in NYC, garnering solid support from gay and non-gay businesses.
Calif. Supreme Court To Rule Thursday On Gay Marriage
The California Supreme Court announced on Wednesday it will issue its ruling tomorrow on whether same-sex couples can marry in the state.
The judgment is expected at 10:00 am PT, and LGBT groups throughout the state are making plans to be in San Francisco for the decision.
The case before the state Supreme Court dates back to 2004 when San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Some 8,000 couples exchanged vows before the state Supreme Court ruled Newsom had acted illegally.
The court nullified the marriages but said its ruling dealt only with Newsom’s actions. The justices said at the time the question of whether barring same-sex couples from marrying violated the state’s equal protection clause of its constitution was a separate matter.
05.13.08
Destinations: When in Tel Aviv…
Considering that it’s barely 60 years old, Israel has become quite gay quite quickly, and nowhere more so than in Tel Aviv, its boy- and Bauhaus-filled commercial, cultural and culinary capital.
This sunny seaside town, with its Miami-esque Mediterranean promenade and easygoing café culture, is packed with the kind of “we’re here, we’re queer” vibe more typically found in Sydney and San Francisco than in one of the most conservative regions in the world.
But it wasn’t always this way. Just a decade ago the country witnessed its first televised gay kiss, courtesy of producer-director couple Eytan Fox and Gal Uchovsky, who went on to make the iconic gay-themed Israeli films “The Bubble” and “Yossi & Jagger.” “The Bubble,” in particular, presented an air-kissing, gym-going, chest-shaving Tel Aviv that — at least for visitors — is not so far from the truth.
There are easy-access saunas, a troika of sex clubs, cruising and sunning on gay beaches and plenty of high-culture diversions like symphony, opera, dance and theater — with many performances in English.
05.07.08
FBI Raids Special Counsel’s Office
FBI agents Tuesday raided the office of U.S. special counsel Scott J. Bloch, whose department is under investigation for alleged obstruction of justice, National Public Radio reports.
The Office of Special Counsel, among other duties, oversees protection for federal employees who call attention to wrongdoing. Bloch’s management of the office has been controversial since his appointment by President Bush in 2004. Early on, he said he would not investigate any claims of discrimination based on sexual orientation. Several employees in his office say that because Bloch suspected them of leaking this information to the press, he gave them the choice of resigning or being transferred from Washington to a new field office in Detroit, NPR reports.
It was not clear whether Tuesday’s raid was related to this particular matter, but federal authorities, including the Office of Personnel Management, have been looking into accusations that Bloch obstructed an investigation and retaliated against career employees in his office.
FBI agents Tuesday questioned Bloch at his office and seized computers and documents. They also went to his home in Alexandria, Va., with a search warrant. Also, a grand jury in Washington issued subpoenas for Bloch and several of his employees, sources told NPR.
Bloch, the FBI, and White House officials all declined comment on the matter
05.06.08
Gay Penguin Tale Tops List of ‘Challenged’ Children’s Books
A children’s story about a family of penguins with two fathers once again tops the list of library books the public objects to the most.
And Tango Makes Three, released in 2005 and co-written by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, was the most ”challenged” book in public schools and libraries for the second straight year, according to the American Library Association. The book is based on the true story of two penguins in New York’s Central Park Zoo who became a couple and fostered a third chick named Tango.
”The complaints are that young children will believe that homosexuality is a lifestyle that is acceptable. The people complaining, of course, don’t agree with that,” Judith Krug, director of the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, told the Associated Press on Tuesday.
The ALA defines a ”challenge” as a ”formal, written complaint filed with a library or school requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness.”