» R.I.P.

"John Lyon Burnside III, a founder of the Radical Faeries, inventor and longtime partner of the late gay rights pioneer Harry Hay, has died. Mr. Burnside, known for his plucky resistance against gay assimilation, died Sept. 14 at age 91 after a bout with cancer. He lived most recently in the Haight-Ashbury district, at the home of longtime friend Joey Cain." [SF Chronicle]

  4 Responses


The Mormons have been dominating the Proposition 8 fund raising, but Hollywood's elite are doing their damndest to counter right wing attacks.

Director Steven Spielberg and his actress wife, Kate Capshaw, join Brad Pitt and other A-listers in donating to the fight against Proposition 8, a measure seeking to reverse this year's gay marriage win. Upon making their $100,000 donation public, Spielberg and Capshaw had this to say:

By writing discrimination into our state constitution, Proposition 8 seeks to eliminate the right of each and every citizen in our state to marry regardless of sexual orientation. Such discrimination has NO place in California's constitution, or any other.

You can tell they're serious by the fact that they capitalized "no."

[Image]

» Movement!

"The Uniting American Families Act (UAFA), a bill that grants equal immigration rights to Americans in same-sex binational relationships, garnered an unprecedented level of support in Congress this month when four more Senators and sixteen more Representatives joined in cosponsoring the legislation." [Constant Contact]

  1 Response


A group of anti-gay activists in Sacramento, California, lack two things: foresight and logic.

The crowd of about fifteen gathered outside Mayoral candidate Kevin Johnson's church this weekend to protest his support for the state's gay marriage laws. Though he personally defines marriage as one man and one woman, Johnson, a former NBA player, has come out against the prohibitive Proposition 8, which he says would "write discrimination into the constitution."

Obviously this irks the protesters, who wanted to give Johnson a piece of their mind. Unfortunately for them, Johnson was out of town on Sunday and missed the action. They probably should have checked his schedule, huh?

As for the lack of logic - the group refuses to back Johnson's opponent, mayor Heather Fargo, because she also doesn't support Proposition 8.

So, rather than voting for either one of the candidates, this group of fifteen are urging their peers to simply write in any old candidate, which basically guarantees either Fargo or Johnson will win. Idiots.


Malawi's going to get some gay action this weekend!

Despite some public opposition, the Malawi Gay Rights Movement announced they plan to make their official launch. And, in a surprising turn of events, claim President Bingu wa Mutharika gave them the green light:

Magrim interim chairperson, Mc Leod said the launch for the association, which reportedly has 3,890 members, is planned for Saturday 13th September 2008 in Blantyre coming after claims that President Mutharika has given them moral support to exist.

“The leadership of Magrim sought an audience with the President to seek permission to launch the movement. The President has wished us well and promised to grant an audience when he returns from USA where he has gone for a UN summit,” said Magrin spokesman.

Despite the president's support, Malawi's legal code still rails against the gays and prescribes hard labor as punishment. And not the good "hard labor."

» Eeks!

"… A measure to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman has received an influx of campaign contributions from individuals in recent weeks. The Yes for Marriage campaign pulled in more than $2.3 million from 160 donors across the state since the secretary of state’s reporting period that ended Aug. 13. That brought the campaign’s total to about $3 million." [AZ Republic via Box Turtle Bulletin]

  1 Response
» (Not) Bitchin'!

Some of Colombia's gays are angry that Tuluá mayor Rafael Eduardo Palau wants to ban men from riding on the back of motorcycles. The mayor's office says it only hopes to enforce the ban from the hours of 6pm-6am and will exempt gay men who submit their names to the government. [Blabbeando]

  2 Responses
» Community Organizing…

Worried about anti-gay violence, some Kansas-based activists are taking public safety into their own hands with a new group, Project Resistance. The small, yet dedicated team plans on organizing patrols and outreach and the such. [LJW]

  1 Response


Some go-getter guppies launched a war of words this weekend on Manchester Gay Pride, which charges an admission fee for their "gay village." Organizers were none-too-pleased:

A small group of gay youngsters incurred the wrath of Manchester Gay Pride Festival organisers with a number of placards and t-shirts that read Pride Before Profit and Pride Is a Protest.

Minutes before the march moved off from Liverpool Street, Festival director Jackie Crozier went up to David Henry of the Queer Youth Network.

“What is on that,” she asked, pointing to a placard lying face down on the street.

Mr. Henry turned the placard over, revealing the message Pride Before Profit.

“Give me that sign,” she demanded. “We told you that we don’t want that kind of thing here.”

What's that line about the oppressed becoming the oppressors?


California's gay marriage showdown has been getting a lot of press lately, but let's not forget a similar battle's brewing in Florida, where social conservatives introduced Amendment 2 earlier this year. That measure would ban gay marriage in the Sunshine State.

And, financially speaking, things are looking good for the pro-gay parties:

…The money has been streaming in. Lots of it. As of last week, Florida Red & Blue, which is against the amendment, had raised more than $2 million in cash. That's more than four times what the competition, Florida4Marriage, has earned.

Overall, the majority of Florida Red & Blue's money has come from individuals. Florida4Marriage's funds, on the other hand, are mostly via the Republican Party of Florida, which gave $300,000 of the total $492,969. "There just isn't a lot of support there to pass it," says Derek Newton, campaign manager for Florida Red & Blue.

In a surprising turn of events, one of Florida Red & Blue's biggest contributors is Jon Kislack, a straight Republican who's fighting Amendment 2 for his daughter, who's a lesbian. Said Kislack, "It's just not right that our laws, public policy, and social climate in Florida are so unwelcoming."

» Infuriated.

Gay foes claim Elmira, New York's police department discriminated against them and violated their free speech rights when they forbade them from passing out homophobic materials at a pride rally this summer. Now they're suing. [WETM-TV]

  Respond
» Turning Out.

"More than 600 people - three times the number organizers expected - marched through Mumbai on the weekend in the city’s first gay pride parade. While the parade had the marking of most Western pride celebrations, marchers also carried a strong message to the government - repeal the laws against sodomy." [365 Gay]

  1 Response
» New Leadership…

"The Washington D.C based National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) has hired openly out Connecticut State Representative Jason W. Bartlett (D-Bethel) as Deputy Director." Remember when we interviewed Bartlett and wrote that kick ass article on NBJC? Those were the days… [On Top]

  Respond


California's voting ballots are almost set to go to print - and the Proposition 8 language will stay the same.

Right wing activists have been fighting for weeks to change wording on the measure, which would overturn this year's gay marriage win. Non-profit collective Yes on 8 claim that Attorney General Jerry Brown's harsh working would encourage a "no" vote, thus leaving same-sex nuptials in place.

Two courts have ruled against their argument and now it seems they're taking defeat gracefully. The coalition's spokeswoman Jennifer Kerns remarked, "We intend to leave the final outcome to the voters."

A recent fund raising tally shows that Proposition 8 supporters have raised about $3.7 million, while progressive parties have about $4.1 million. Approximately 51% of voters said they plan to vote against the prohibitive legislation.

» Bright!

Power company PG&E energized gay rights in California by donating $250,000 to fight Proposition 8, which would reverse the state Supreme Court's legalization of gay marriage. The brilliant part? Social conservatives can't boycott electricity! [LA Times]

  4 Responses


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