Michelle Obama received loads of praise last month when, at an event for gay Democrats, the potential first lady said, "We are all only here because of those who marched and bled and died, from Selma to Stonewall, in the pursuit of a more perfect union."

The "Selma" of which Mrs. Obama spoke refers to a 1965 march in Selma, Alabama, when police beat back civil rights activists trying to march to Montgomery as a protest to a black teenager's shooting. The event immediately became known as Bloody Sunday. The "Stonewall" of which Mrs Obama spoke, of course, refers to the Stonewall Rebellion of 1969, widely seen as the launch of the contemporary gay rights movement. With that geographical reference, Obama sought to - and succeeded in - linking the civil and gay rights movements. The crowd - and the press - went wild, but not everyone agrees with Obama's optimism.

Racism and homophobia, some believe, are so completely and utterly different that drawing a comparison between the two amounts to a mortal political sin. That’s a perfectly reasonable argument. Race and sexuality have exceedingly divergent histories in the United States, and thus result in entirely different emotional experiences. White people can't understand anti-black sentiment anymore than straight people can comprehend homophobia.

Black, gay people have felt both, of course, which puts the National Black Justice Coalition in a precarious position.

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Mainstream media's finally picking up on what we already knew: Surgeon General nominee Dr. James Holsinger's a homo-hater. As we've reported, Holsinger advocates so-called ex-gay therapy.

Not only does Holsinger work for the United Methodist Church, he founded the Hope Springs Church, which holds the traditional family in high regard. Above you'll see CNN's coverage of Holsinger's queer nomination, including a few words from The Gay and Lesbian Task Force's leader, Matt Foreman. You'll also hear the White House's statement on the matter:

On numerous occasions, [Holsinger] has taken up the banner for underprivileged populations and he will continue to be a strong advocate for these groups and all Americans.

The White House, of course, has never quite understood the meaning of "underprivileged" or, really, "American".