“Vandals spray-painted anti-gay slurs on three [Wilton Manors, Florida] homes and a car early this morning, police say. The incidents, which occurred in 2800 block of Northwest Seventh Avenue, are being investigated as a hate crime, police spokesman David Jones said. He said this is the first time this kind of vandalism has happened in the area and it appears to be random. The words words “gay” and “fag” were painted on the adjacent houses and a car. Three other cars were streaked with spray paint.” That’s wack.[Sun-Sentinel]

Ian McKellen made the decision to come out in 1988. Though loads of political and social progress has been made since then, the actor insists he still receives his fair share of anti-gay threats. None, however, are as pressing as the real violence many homos face on the day-to-day: “There are deaths in public places on the grounds that the victim is gay,” said McKellen in a BBC interview.

“There is a violence of language which can be related to violence in action,” added McKellen a founder member of gay rights group Stonewall.

“My own death threats have declined considerably. I think I’ve become rather boring now to the public at large on this particular … Continued…

Looking to start your day with some disgusting news? Well, you’re in luck, because four New York teens have been arrested after attacking a gay youth shelter.

Carmen’s Place, located in Queens, caters specifically to marginalized and alienated and often homeless young queers who have no where else to go. Apparently some of the neighborhood doesn’t approve, because the kids and staff are repeatedly subject to taunts, pushing and the such.

This week’s incident definitely went a bit further, with a gang of four approaching the shelter, which is housed in a church, and attempting to cause some unholy trouble. Director Reverend Louis Braxton Jr. attempted to stop the madness, but got caught in the crossfire…
Continued…

“Police have arrested 198 people on suspicion of domestic, homophobic and race hate crimes after raids across London, Scotland Yard have said… It is the eighth year the Metropolitan Police has run the operation.” [BBC]

“The Triangle Foundation said Tuesday that the number of violent crimes against Michiganders because of their sexual orientation that was reported to the Detroit-based group jumped 133% last year over 2006.” [Free Press]

Who’s to blame for Lawrence King’s death? That question has been rattling around for a while and will probably never get a clear answer.

Some say that the 15-year old homo deserved to be shot in the head - because, you know, we gays need to control ourselves. Others blame the shooter, 14-year old Brandon McInerney. A few blame society at large, while others prefer to pin the blame on that old fall back, God.

McInerney’s lawyer, as we’ve previously reported, has a more precise target: E.O. Green School. …McInerney’s inability to see another way to solve his problem is partly the fault of the school system, his attorney said.

“Brandon is not … Continued…

Five men have been arrested for allegedly raping and murdering South African soccer lesbian Eudy Simelane. This murder comes after a long line of anti-lesbian murders in recent years, lending even more credence to activists’ worries: the most progressive African nation has done little to fight for the lavender set. [Mamba]

Senate Armed Services Committee chair Carl Levin’s nothing if not tenacious. Or is it quixotic?

The Senator yesterday revealed that he will attach hate crime legislation to the 2009 Defense Authorization Act. And, yes, this tactic should sound familiar.

A federal hate crimes law found itself castrated last year after Senatorial Democrats attached the queer inclusive bill to a Defense Authorization Bill. Leaders were certain that such a pairing would bring in the Republican vote, which typically eschews gay expansion.
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The debate over who’s to blame for Lawrence King’s death continues to rage two months after his murder.

For those of you living under a rock, 15-year old King died in February after a 14-year old classmate, Brandon McInerney, shot him in the head. King had reportedly asked McInerney to be his Valentine, which many say spurred the violent outburst. Thus, many claim that King only invited the explosive retaliation. Journalist Neil Broverman once mulled that theory, while a Mississippi State University student took it one step further: “King… may have gone too far by imposing his sexuality on others.” A pretty distasteful conclusion - and one that will no doubt be getting heavy play during McInerney’s murder trial…
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Judy Shepard is basically the hardest working gay rights activist in the universe. The Wyoming-based mama has been campaigning nearly non-stop for a decade, since her son Matthew was beaten and left for dead.

Sure, fighting for inclusive hate crimes law’s ain’t easy, but Shepard says it’s worth it. “I’m just somebody’s mom who got really angry at the system and felt I had the opportunity to make a change,” Shepard said.
…
Her stump speech brings Matthew to life — his strong opinions, passion for politics, generous nature, short temper. It’s also peppered with references to hope and barbs at the Bush administration.

The work is exhausting, but it has kept her family from becoming … Continued…

Lawrence King’s February murder continues to garner press. And, as we saw in The Advocate last month, some wonder whether King’s queer candor and flirtation invited gun man Brandon McInerney’s ire.

Consider Mississippi State University student Lazarus Austin’s recent op-ed: By imposing his homosexuality on McInerney, he may have set McInerney off. McInerney may not have had an innate hatred of gay people. In fact, he may have tolerated homosexuality, while simultaneously thinking it was immoral, sinful or simply “uncool,” like many people do. King, however, may have gone too far by imposing his sexuality on others. Although King by no means deserved his fate, he may have unfortunately invited it. So gross.
Continued…

Can being openly gay and out invited attack? Sure, yes, definitely. Should gay kids such as Lawrence King thus be encouraged to keep a lid on their lavender ways? That’s what some people say journo Neil Broverman advocates in a new Advocate article: “Mixed Messages,” which is currently excerpted on the magazine’s website.

The piece definitely packs a punch and has some readers doubled over in pain, particularly this paragraph: If they didn’t see the execution coming, most of King’s peers at school knew he was being bullied for being proudly gay and flouting male conventions by accessorizing his school uniform with eye shadow and high-heeled boots. In the months leading up to that morning, King had undergone a metamorphosis.

Guided by a welcoming support system at the group home where he lived, the teenager was encouraged to dress as he pleased and live as the person he wanted to be.

What King and others didn’t recognize was that this encouragement—and his response to it—placed him on a collision course with a culture that found him repulsive.
Continued…

In the wake of Lawrence King’s murder, Portia de Rossi, TR Knight, Andre 3000 and a slew of other stars joined gay station Logo to raise awareness about anti-queer hate crimes. Because, as Janet Jackson says, “None of us are safe until all of us are safe”. The politics of fear being used for good? Crazy!

It’s absolutely super that Logo and these celebrities have come together, but they again raise a serious question: what makes one hate crime more notable than the next? Should one central figure be used to fight a universal campaign. We suppose the pros outweigh the cons on this one, but it’s still something that should be considered.

Watch the video, after the jump…
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Is nothing sacred!? A troublesome trio assaulted a number of gay folk at a Dallas area gay club last week: [Sid Gonzales] said he tried to be friendly and make small talk with the trio. But he said he was not trying to hit on the men, whom he described as straight-looking, well-dressed and college-aged.

When Gonzales asked a few questions, the woman responded but the men said nothing and looked uncomfortable, he said.

Gonzales said he reached out to shake hands with one of the men. The man grabbed Gonzales’ arm, twisted it in the air and slammed it against a knee. Gonzales said the first man also stabbed him in the hand … Continued…

There’s nothing like a girl fight in the morning! While Jennifer L. Pozner appreciates Ellen DeGeneres‘ Lawrence King call to action last week, the journalist takes offense at the funny lady’s pre-message message: “I don’t want to be political, this is not political…” Writes Pozner:
I could be wrong, but hearing Ellen qualify her outrage at a gay child’s murder and her call for wide-spread cultural change in America by saying “This is not political” seemed to map to her discomfort in addressing serious and, yes, political LGBT issues on air after what happened to her career the last time she did that. A hate crime resulting in a kid being killed … Continued…