The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force sent out a press release last night informing us - and everyone else - that Rea Carey has been named the non-prifit's new executive director. Carey takes over for Matt Foreman, who left earlier this year and under whom Carey worked for four years.
The contemporary gay rights movement got off the ground way back in 1969. Despite nearly forty years of struggle, activists still can't overcome one fundamental hurdle: should the gay movement subscribe to separatist isolationism or dedicate itself to more universal human rights?
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Lane Hudson and Matt Foreman know a little something something about the gay rights movement. As the outgoing leader of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Foreman has helped spearhead a number of movements in Washington, New York and throughout the rest of the United States. The activist tells us he caught the activist bug after witnessing the atrocities of West Virginia's coal mining industry and only later got involved in the nascent gay rights movement. Foreman later got caught up in the more progressive, grass roots-oriented gay rights movement. Hudson, meanwhile, has been involved in activism since his wee years, when political active family members informed his social consciousness. The former Human Rights Campaign staffer gained notoriety after exposing Mark Foley's inappropriate exchanges with congressional pages. He lost his job for his involvement in that scandal and now works as an independent gay rights activists and contributes to Huffington Post. Just in case you didn't know…
The editorial union of these men counts as the first in a sporadic series called "Homo Encounters," during which our editor moderates a conversation between two notable homos from various fields. Today's one super Tuesday, so we thought Hudson and Foreman could offer some interesting thoughts on where the gay movement remains today - and where it's meant to go tomorrow. We don't want to give too much away, but be prepared for the pros and cons of incrementalism, how the Democrats can shape up (or ship out), why the federal level ain't the shit and which political enemies should be our mentors - after the jump, naturally.
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The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force wants to take Jim Naugle to task. They've asked the Fort Lauderdale City Commission to formally censure the mayor for his repeated verbal attacks on the gays.
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The US Department of Justice may be getting too overzealous in their fight against child pornography. New amendments to the Federal Labeling and Record keeping Law, aka Section 2257, will require adult social networking sites such as Manhunt and Gay.com to keep a log of users who post "sexually explicit" snapshots.
Passed in 1988, Section 2257 works to combat child pornographers, but a series of amendments have expanded the law's net, especially on the net. Though regulations are meant to hinder porn peddlers, they can also be expanded to social sties. Private citizens who submit naughty pictures must register and provide a photo id. These logs can then be reviewed by the Attorney General and the FBI, says The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
Those of you interested in fighting this invasion of privacy better hurry up - the public has until September 10th to file a complaint. The Task Force provides all the relevant information.
Ed. note: Today's installment of America's Queer Liberty picks up where yesterday's left off…
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America's plurality voting system limits voter's options. With one man and one vote, the man or woman with the most votes wins an election, regardless of whether they receive a majority. In such an environment, voters tend to vote tactically. That is, they lean heavily in one direction or the other. There's no middle ground.
The religious right's well aware of this democratic flaw. Taking advantage of changing political tides, these "value voters" used tactical voting to elevate the GOP to heavenly heights - with hellish results.
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Britney Spears' alleged lesbianic liaison may be indicative of a new sexual culture among America's young women:
For many of today's women in their late teens and 20s, openness to intimate physical relationships with either gender has become a way of life, rather than an "experiment." This relatively new phenomenon is likely a product of a generation unconcerned with labels."These young women see sexuality as a fluid thing," said National Gay and Lesbian Task Force spokeswoman Roberta Sklar. "It's not just between your legs. These relationships are physical, emotional and intellectual, and the boundaries are not hard set."
Women's lesbianic ways not hard set? Oh, Sklar, you rub our funny bone good!
Despite promises of the proverbial and mythical “American Dream,” America’s pluralistic voting system stymies progressive politics. Not only does our “first past the post” mechanism negate majority rules, America’s plurality voting scheme tends toward a two party rule, which can lead to some pretty queer politics.
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The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force totally one-upped those suckers over at Human Rights Campaign, who recently surveyed all the democratic presidential candidates' gay policy. The NGLTF's exhaustively entitled The 2008 Presidential Candidates’ Positions on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues, meanwhile, offers the first comprehensive look at "the top" nineteen presidential candidates.
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• Gerard Butler. Naked. 'Nuff said. [!! omg blog !!]
• It sure is hard being gay in suburbia. Especially when you can't find a whore to settled down with you. [Daily Herald]
• It's alright to be gay in Latin America. Just remember not to try to be too normal. [The Economist]
• Stephen Colbert on 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'. [PageOneQ]
• The Roxy's closing on Saturday. Get you glitter, glow sticks and shitty club mixes and live it up. [NY Observer]
• South African flick Black Beaulahs takes a look at the lives of three gay men in Soweto. Did you know that "beaulah" is South African slang for beautiful man? Well, now you do… [Mamba Online]
• The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force sez, "Porn stars are just like us!" [AmericaBlog]
• A Forrest Gump sequel? Vomit. [Ain't It Cool?]
• Maryland's Montgomery County School says fuck you to haters and vows to keep teaching about homosexuality. [Washington Times]
It's no surprise to see correlations between a state's legislation concerning abortion and its laws concerning gay rights. New analysis from the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and two other advocacy groups that looked at 25 different laws – ranging from recognition of same-sex unions to accessibility to emergency contraception – put New Mexico and New York on the top of the list, while Ohio and South Dakota shared the bottom spot.
Not surprisingly, the conservative legislator Sen. Lee Schoenbeck (R-, S.D.), congratulated himself, calling the results as “a badge of honor.”
