09.29.07
Posted in D's Thoughts at 7:00 am by pikapp44
Disney issued a formal apology to a San Diego man for an incident Saturday at Disneyland that the company claims was a misunderstanding but which the man asserts was anti-gay bias. Sounds to me that this was just one big mistake - but here’s the news - from gay.com:
Wil Kenney claims he was targeted and harassed by Disneyland security — as well as roughed up by Anaheim, Calif., police — because a Disney staff member overreacted to Kinney’s holding another man’s hand.
According to Kenney, he and his partner — along with two other same-sex couples and their children — were walking through the theme park’s Downtown Disney area when Disney security detained them.
Security claimed Kenney had threatened someone with a gun; Kenney denied it. Anaheim police were called; Kenney said they forced him face-first into a wall and then frisked, searched and interrogated him in front of hundreds of Disney guests.
Kenney said officers left after finding no weapons on anyone in his party. He said he may have been targeted by police because a Disney employee grew nervous seeing Kenney holding hands with his partner, which he believes led to the chain of events.
Read the rest of the story after the jump.
Rob Doughty, vice president of communications for Disneyland, said the whole incident was a misunderstanding that had nothing to do with Kenney’s sexuality. Doughty claimed Kenney made a hand gesture that a Disney crew member interpreted as threatening. Doughty said security came over and detained Kenney and his group, who grew angry.
“He made his hand look like a gun,” Doughty said. “Someone interpreted that as a gun.”
One of Kenney’s friends at Disneyland was Brian van de Mark, the owner of a communications and marketing firm that focuses on social-justice issues. Van de Mark, who is serving as Kenney’s media representative, said there was no threatening hand gesture. Van de Mark said that after the police left, Kenney and his group demanded a meeting with Disney security manager Deana Van Noy.
At that meeting, van de Mark said, Van Noy told the group that she “could not remember whether the cast member (who contacted Disney security) said she was threatened, felt threatened or was offended,” and that she added, “It doesn’t make a difference anyway.”
Doughty could not confirm that Van Noy used those words. Doughty, who heads Disney’s employee gay group, said Disney staffers were not even aware Kenney was gay until two hours after the incident.
“Our policy is, everyone is welcome,” Doughty said. “If a same-sex couple wants to hold hands at our park, that’s fine.”
The Anaheim park’s unofficial Gay Days are Oct. 5-7 this year.
Doughty said the apology was being issued for the misunderstanding over the hand gesture and denied that a homophobic employee started the whole scuffle.
“I can assure you, this is a company that would not tolerate that behavior from a cast member,” he said. “We’re a very welcoming company.”
But van de Mark claims that Van Noy refused to apologize to the group, and that after the meeting, plainclothes Disney security followed them around the park. According to van de Mark, the group went to a Disney store, where a Disney employee asked how their day was.
When they answered that it had not gone well because they had been harassed by security personnel, van de Mark said the crew member told them, “Well, in fact, you’re still being followed,” and pointed to plainclothes security officers in their midst.
Anaheim police Sgt. Rick Martinez denied the incident had anything to do with the guests being gay. When asked whether Kenney was pushed against a wall and frisked, Martinez said, “I would define it as ‘detained.’” Kenney and his group “might have been frisked,” he said.
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09.17.07
Posted in D's Thoughts at 9:41 pm by pikapp44
You know once in a while we list our sites on directories. Some don’t allow gay sites (jerks) and some do. One of them is Aviva Directory, check it out when you get a chance
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09.07.07
Posted in D's Thoughts, E's Thoughts, Gay Portal at 4:45 pm by pikapp44
Gay Franchise is the premier source for Gays and Lesbians to identify Franchisors who understand the value of diversity and recognize the need to open their doors to new and diverse markets.
It’s dedicated to expanding America’s economic growth by connecting the GLBT business community with equality-minded Franchisors.
Research shows that Gay and Lesbian consumers spend their dollars with companies that have progressive policies.
Owning your own franchise is exciting, but being “out” at work is even better. So whether you currently own a business or are thinking about taking that leap, GayFranchise.com is now available to provide you with the resources you need to make the right decision.
GLBT Business links and resources are featured on GayFranchise.com
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08.29.07
Posted in D's Thoughts, Gay Rights at 4:58 pm by pikapp44
Sen. Larry Craig’s “I’m not gay” declaration met with disdain Wednesday from gay activists, many of whom knew for nearly a year — long before his recent arrest — of allegations that the conservative Idaho Republican solicited sex from men in public bathrooms.
They view his case as a prime example of hypocrisy — a man who furtively engaged in same-sex liaisons while consistently opposing gay-rights measures as a politician.
“He may very well not think of himself as being gay, and these are just urges that he has,” said Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. “It’s the tragedy of homophobia. People create these walls that separate themselves from who they really are.”
In Washington, some of Craig’s fellow Republican congressmen began calling for his resignation, as did the Log Cabin Republicans, the largest gay GOP group. The White House expressed disappointment in the case while avoiding a statement of support for Craig.
The cumulative weight of the allegations served to convince many conservatives — as well as gay activists — that Craig was being untruthful.
“For most people living in the closet, and particularly for people in power, they dig themselves in so deeply they can’t see a way out,” he said. “When they are found out, their life does come crashing down around them — not because they were gay, because of the way they covered it up.”
The Craig case also raised questions about the phenomenon of male sex in public restrooms — how prevalent is it, and who participates?
The issue has been a source of controversy this summer in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where Mayor Jim Naugle has drawn fire from gay-rights groups for suggesting that such bathroom sex is a significant problem and briefly proposing installation of automated, single-user toilets.
After reports of Craig’s arrest, police officials around the country gave widely varying accounts of whether public bathroom sex was a serious problem in their areas.
“My sense is that most of the people who engage in bathroom sex are living closeted lives,” Foreman said. “If you’re open, you can hook up on line, in a bar or even through your church.”
William Leap, an anthropology professor at American University, said his research indicated that up to half of those who engage in male bathroom sex would consider themselves heterosexual.
“You’ve got several groups of folks,” he said. “Happily married men with children who enjoy having sex with men every so often, and also self-identified gay men who enjoy the thrill of anonymous sex.”
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06.18.07
Posted in D's Thoughts at 7:22 am by pikapp44
“There are some things that we were able to discuss that we weren’t able to discuss with Rosie, like heterosexual sex.”
—Barbara Walters to Ryan Seacrest on his KISS-FM radio show On-Air with Ryan Seacrest Wednesday, about how The View had changed since Rosie O’Donnell’s departure.
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06.11.07
Posted in D's Thoughts at 4:07 pm by pikapp44
Gov. Deval Patrick became the first sitting Massachusetts governor to march in the Boston’s gay pride parade Saturday, just days before state lawmakers were expected to vote on a ballot question that could ban same-sex marriage.
The Democrat, who walked with his daughter, Katherine, and Mayor Thomas Menino in the 37th annual parade, said he wanted to keep Massachusetts a state where same-sex couples could marry legally.
Patrick said the 2003 court decision that paved the way for same-sex marriage ”affirmed the principle that everyone comes before the court as equals.”
”That is an argument we need to make to representatives and senators this week,” he said. ”What experience has taught us is that the sky hasn’t opened up, families are still intact.”
In 2003, the Massachusetts supreme judicial court barred the state from denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But it also ruled last year that lawmakers must vote on the proposed ballot question, instead of letting die without a vote, as some lawmakers advocated.
If the ballot question receives support from 50 of 200 state lawmakers at a Constitutional Convention scheduled for Thursday, it would be placed on the 2008 ballot.
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06.05.07
Posted in D's Thoughts at 3:35 pm by pikapp44
President Bush’s nominee to become the next surgeon general of the United States has a questionable record on gay issues. John Holsinger, a Kentucky cardiologist and professor, was nominated on May 24, but his past writings and activities betray a decidedly antigay bias.
In a paper titled “Pathophysiology of Male Homosexuality,” for example, Holsinger claimed that his understanding of biology and anatomy prevented him from believing that gays and lesbians deserved equality.
Holsinger, along with his wife, also founded the Hope Springs Community Church, a well-known “ex-gay” ministry where, according to the church’s pastor, gays and lesbians undergo conversion therapy to rid themselves of their homosexuality. Such therapy has been denounced by nearly every major medical organization in the country, including the American Psychological Association.
“Dr. Holsinger has a record that is unworthy of America’s doctor,” Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese said in a statement, referring informally to the post of surgeon general. “His writings suggest a scientific view rooted in antigay beliefs that are incompatible with the job of serving the medical health of all Americans. It is essential that America’s top doctor value sound science over antigay ideology.”
Holsinger’s nomination must be approved by the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, whose Democratic members include presidential hopefuls Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, Barack Obama of Illinois, and Christopher Dodd of Connecticut.
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06.04.07
Posted in D's Thoughts, E's Thoughts at 1:30 pm by pikapp44
We read about the lesbian who sued eHarmony. We decided that she should have used PrideDating.com. That company is new and hot and it would have helped her meet her next partner.
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05.21.07
Posted in D's Thoughts, Gay Portal at 4:30 pm by pikapp44
Orlando Florida’s Gay Days Celebration is not a single event. It is a total gay and lesbian vacation experience. Gay Days is comprised of multiple events staged at world famous attractions, gay & lesbian clubs, and unique venues. May 29- June 4
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05.16.07
Posted in D's Thoughts, Gay Rights at 6:31 pm by pikapp44
The marriages of more than 170 gay couples from New York who wed in Massachusetts before last July are valid because New York had not yet explicitly banned same-sex marriages, a Massachusetts judge ruled.
Couples are barred from marrying in Massachusetts if their marriages would be prohibited in their home states. The New York Court of Appeals ruled against same-sex marriages on July 6, 2006.
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders had asked for clarification of the status of New York couples who married in Massachusetts before that ruling. Massachusetts became the first state in the country to allow gay marriage in May 2004.
Suffolk Superior Court Judge Thomas Connolly ruled last week that those early marriages are legally valid.
“Just being able to say without any qualifications — ‘we’re married’ — it feels great,” said Amy Zimmerman, a New York City resident who married Tanya Wexler in Somerville on May 19, 2004, the third day same-sex weddings were allowed in Massachusetts.
A spokesman for New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo indicated that his office considers the marriages at issue valid.
“Since 2004, it has been the position of the attorney general’s office that New York law presumptively requires the recognition of marriages validly performed in other jurisdictions,” John Milgrim said. The opinion he cited came from Cuomo’s predecessor, Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
New York state has recognized same-sex marriages in some cases — those performed in Canada, for instance, are considered in determining public employees’ retirement benefits. But in 2005 a state appeals court ruled that a man could not sue a hospital for malpractice in the death of his longtime partner, despite their civil union in Vermont.
Michael Long, who heads New York’s Conservative Party, predicted Connolly’s ruling will not hold up in New York if gay couples press for marriage rights there.
“It’s wishful thinking by some homosexual couples that the interpretation of a particular judge will change their status,” Long said. “The law in the state of New York is very clear — marriage is between a man and a woman.”
Although the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court said in March 2006 that gay couples from states with no “express prohibition” of same-sex marriage could marry in Massachusetts, it was unclear at that time whether gay marriage was specifically banned in New York and Rhode Island.
Connolly ruled in September that gay couples from Rhode Island have the right to marry in Massachusetts because laws in their state do not expressly prohibit same-sex marriage. Whether Rhode Island honors those marriages is an unsettled issue; its Legislature has rejected same-sex marriage, but its attorney general issued a nonbinding opinion this year advising his state to recognize those conducted in Massachusetts.
Susan Sommer, senior counsel for Lambda Legal, a New York-based gay rights organization, said New York common law has held that as long as a marriage is valid where it is performed, it will be respected in New York.
“Not everybody along the way has agreed — there’s been some litigation around it — but the clear direction is one of growing respect and recognition,” she said.
Spitzer, a Democrat, has proposed that gay marriage be legalized, but so far has failed to convince either the Republican-led state Senate or the Democratic-controlled state Assembly to do so.
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