elrhiarhodan | Entries tagged with civil rights

And if you are an American, you need to vote, too!

Please.

HOLY SH*T (You've Got To Vote) from Funny Or Die

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/606383.html

On Monday, SCOTUS refused to allow a county clerk in Kentucky, Kim Davis, who objects to same-sex marriage on religious grounds, to continue to deny marriage licenses to all couples, gay or straight.

This case, Davis v. Miller, was the court's first opportunity to consider whether a government official may refuse to comply with the Obergefell v. Hodges decision that granted a nationwide constitutional right to marriage equality, based on religious grounds.

Ms. Davis, an ELECTED county clerk, requested that she be excused from this obligation based on her religious beliefs. The case was filed as an emergency application to the Supreme Court, and Justice Elena Kagen, who supervises cases in the judicial circuit that includes Kentucky, referred the matter to the full court.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit had already denied Ms. Davis' petition, stating:

“It cannot be defensibly argued that the holder of the Rowan County clerk’s office, apart from who personally occupies that office, may decline to act in conformity with the United States Constitution as interpreted by a dispositive holding of the United States Supreme Court... There is thus little or no likelihood that the clerk in her official capacity will prevail on appeal.”

The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals' decision.

So, either Ms. Davis needs to do her job or resign.

'nuff said.

ETA: And apparently, Ms. Davis feels her bigotry trumps the Constitution and has continued to refuse to issue marriage licenses. New York Times article.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/547815.html

Today, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, announced:

“Following the Supreme Court’s historic decision in Obergefell that every couple has the same right to participate in the institution of marriage, whether the partners are of the same-sex or opposite sexes, I directed Justice Department staff to work with the agencies to ensure that the ruling be given full effect across the federal government. Thanks to their leadership and the quick work of the Social Security Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs, today I am proud to announce that the critical programs for veterans and elderly and disabled Americans, which previously could not give effect to the marriages of couples living in states that did not recognize those marriages, will now provide federal recognition for all marriages nationwide.

The agencies are currently working towards providing guidance to implement this change in law. Just over a year ago, Attorney General Holder announced that agencies across the federal government had implemented the Supreme Court’s Windsor decision by treating married same-sex couples the same as married opposite-sex couples to the greatest extent possible under the law as it then stood. With the Supreme Court’s new ruling that the Constitution requires marriage equality, we have now taken the further step of ensuring that all federal benefits will be available equally to married couples in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the US Territories. The department will continue to work across the administration to fulfill our commitment to equal treatment for all Americans, including equal access to the benefits of marriage that the Obergefell decision guarantees.”

Source - Justice.gov

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/539098.html

Marriage equality is now the law of the land!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

From Justice Kennedy's decision:

No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.

It should be noted with great joy that this decision comes forty-six years, less two days, after the Stonewall Riots started the Gay Rights Movement.

"Stonewall Inn 1969" by Diana Davies, copyright owned by New York Public Library
Wikipedia:Contact us/Photo submission. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Photo, circa September, 1969: The sign in the window reads: The sign in the window reads: "We homosexuals plead with our people to please help maintain peaceful and quiet conduct on the streets of the Village.

From the New York Times

In a long-sought victory for the gay rights movement, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the Constitution guarantees a nationwide right to same-sex marriage.

( Read entire article )

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/534474.html

Yesterday, the ban on marriage equality was rescinded and both opposite-sex and same-sex couples were allowed to apply for marriage licenses. Guam is the first U.S. territory to recognize the rights of all its residents to marry.

In April, Guam’s attorney general, Elizabeth Barrett-Anderson, directed the territory to begin processing same-sex marriage applications, but officials, backed by the governor, Eddie Calvo, refused. Calvo sued, and he was represented by an outside firm because the attorney general disagreed with his lawsuit.

The ban was struck down on Friday, but the judge, Frances M Tydingco-Gatewood, gave the territory a couple of days to prepare the marriage applications.

Gay couples will be able to marry five days after applying for a license, but the waiting period can be waived.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/532507.html

Ending a drawn-out battle over same-sex marriage in Florida, Miami-Dade on Monday became the first county in the state to allow gay couples to wed after a state judge lifted a temporary ban on the nuptials.

According to this article in today's New York Times, Miami-Dade was the first county to proceed because the judge’s ruling Monday was part of a state lawsuit, separate from a broader federal lawsuit. The judge, Sarah Zabel, of the Miami-Dade Circuit Court, declared the prohibition on same-sex marriage unconstitutional in July but had kept the ban in place pending appeals. On Monday morning, in response to a federal ruling last week in Florida, she lifted that temporary ban.

Three hours later, Judge Zabel officially married two of the six couples who had sued the county over the same-sex marriage ban. The wedding took place at Miami’s civil courthouse, where the couples exchanged rings.

Florida becomes the 36th state to allow gay couples to wed. (The District of Columbia also permits same-sex marriages.)

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/506038.html

Seriously, I'm kind of flailing here so you'll have to excuse a certain level of incoherence. Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, Inc. has come out.

The head of one of the most valuable and successful companies in the entire world is gay.

Throughout my professional life, I’ve tried to maintain a basic level of privacy. I come from humble roots, and I don’t seek to draw attention to myself. Apple is already one of the most closely watched companies in the world, and I like keeping the focus on our products and the incredible things our customers achieve with them.

At the same time, I believe deeply in the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, who said: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ ” I often challenge myself with that question, and I’ve come to realize that my desire for personal privacy has been holding me back from doing something more important. That’s what has led me to today.

For years, I’ve been open with many people about my sexual orientation. Plenty of colleagues at Apple know I’m gay, and it doesn’t seem to make a difference in the way they treat me. Of course, I’ve had the good fortune to work at a company that loves creativity and innovation and knows it can only flourish when you embrace people’s differences. Not everyone is so lucky.

While I have never denied my sexuality, I haven’t publicly acknowledged it either, until now. So let me be clear: I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me.

Being gay has given me a deeper understanding of what it means to be in the minority and provided a window into the challenges that people in other minority groups deal with every day. It’s made me more empathetic, which has led to a richer life. It’s been tough and uncomfortable at times, but it has given me the confidence to be myself, to follow my own path, and to rise above adversity and bigotry. It’s also given me the skin of a rhinoceros, which comes in handy when you’re the CEO of Apple.

The world has changed so much since I was a kid. America is moving toward marriage equality, and the public figures who have bravely come out have helped change perceptions and made our culture more tolerant. Still, there are laws on the books in a majority of states that allow employers to fire people based solely on their sexual orientation. There are many places where landlords can evict tenants for being gay, or where we can be barred from visiting sick partners and sharing in their legacies. Countless people, particularly kids, face fear and abuse every day because of their sexual orientation.

I don’t consider myself an activist, but I realize how much I’ve benefited from the sacrifice of others. So if hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it’s worth the trade-off with my own privacy.

(Source and complete article)

I've been a huge fan of Apple products since the first Macintosh came out in 1984. I've stuck with Apple through their long slide into near-irrelevance and rejoiced each time I'd see one of their products appear on television or in the movies (from Star Trek IV to Independence Day). I've owned almost every iteration of the iPod, I've stood on line (I'm a New Yorker, we're not sheep to wait "in" line) for hours waiting for the latest releases of the OS and on one very memorable day, was at an Apple store, on line in the dark at 5:30 AM to ensure I'd get the very first iPhone.

Some people think I'm nuts about Apple, and I try to explain why - citing better design, reliability, build quality - the whole "it just works" ethos.

But that's not really it.

In 1993, Apple Computer was offered significant tax incentives to set up a customer support center in Texas, outside of Round Rock. The local Texas county government revoked the incentives when they found out that Apple offered equal health care benefits to same-sex couples, saying that they didn't want to be the ones who "introduced homosexuality to Texas".

Apple was willing to walk away from the deal, and away from Texas. Retaining the tax breaks was both a matter of economics and a matter of principle for the company. The county quickly conceded and granted Apple an equivalent set of tax incentives. (The article in the New York Times is like going through a time capsule of the history of intolerance).

To me, Apple has always been a beacon for fairness and tolerance and equality. That is a large part of why I love Apple. And today, reading Tim Cooks words - especially "I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me" makes me twice - no, a thousand times - as proud to be a consumer and user of Apple products.

Thank you, Tim Cook, for your courage and your leadership.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/492424.html

In 1998, Alaska was the first state to impose a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages, and today, a Federal judge has overturned that ban, stating that it "violates the U.S. constitutional guarantee of due process and equal protection."

While the state could appeal to the 9th Circuit Court, the chances of it winning were slim since the federal appeals court already has ruled against Idaho and Nevada, which made similar arguments.

Source: New York Times

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/490837.html

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has elected to deny review any of the five pending marriage equality cases, allowing same-sex marriage to proceed in Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Analysis of the decision suggests that the justices do not intent to revisit their decision last term which paved the way for marriage equality by overturning California's Proposition 8 ban until a Federal Appeals court upholds a state ban.

Today's action brings the number of marriage equality states from 19 to 24, plus the District of Columbia.

Thanks to

ultracape for alerting me to the news as posted in today's New York Times.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/489740.html

The Right to Marriage Equality Confirmed in Utah

"A state may not deny the issuance of a marriage license to two persons, or refuse to recognize their marriage, based solely upon the sex of the persons in the marriage union," the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in its ruling on Utah.

Conservative and heavily Mormon, Utah became the 18th U.S. state where marriage rights were extended to same-sex couples when a federal district judge ruled in December 2013 that a state ban on gay matrimony was unconstitutional.

That decision was put on hold by the appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, but not before more than 1,300 gay and lesbian couples had tied the knot.

ETA: complete ruling is available to read here. Read it, it's beautiful and moving.

Indiana's Marriage Equality Ban Overturned

Separately, a U.S. federal judge struck down Indiana's ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional on Wednesday and ordered officials to start issuing marriage licenses.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge Richard Young said the state's ban violated the Constitution's due process and equal protect clauses in the Fourteenth Amendment.

Source: New York Times

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/460371.html

Pennsylvania's ban on gay marriage was overturned by U.S. District Court Judge John E. Jones III, saying:

"We now join the 12 federal district courts across the country which, when confronted with these inequities in their own states, have concluded that all couples deserve equal dignity in the realm of civil marriage."

And somehow I missed this, but yesterday (Monday), Oregon became the 18th state to recognize same-sex marriage, when couples began applying for marriage licenses immediately after U.S. District Judge Michael McShane issued a ruling that invalidated that state's voter-approved same-sex marriage ban.

Also Monday, a federal judge in Utah ordered state officials to recognize more than 1,000 gay marriages that took place in the state over a two-week period before the U.S. Supreme Court halted same-sex weddings with an emergency stay.

Source: New York Times

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/447610.html

I usually don't like to copy entire New York Times articles into a journal entry, but with the paywall and so many friends on my flist who might not be able to access the editorial pages and the importance of the subject matter, I've elected to copy Frank Bruni's Op-Ed piece about Larry Kramer - The Angel in America.

( I LEARNED long ago to open my inbox with trepidation. A journalist is a magnet for complaints. )

Thank you, Frank Bruni.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/438764.html

Alt text: "I can’t remember where I heard this, but someone once said that defending a position by citing free speech is sort of the ultimate concession; you’re saying that the most compelling thing you can say for your position is that it’s not literally illegal to express"

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/435561.html

According to this breaking news item in the New York Times, the newly elected Virginia Attorney General, Mark Herring, will not defend that state's gay marriage ban, "concluded the marriage prohibition is unconstitutional." Furthermore, Herring will file a brief supporting challenges of the state's constitutional ban on gay marriage later today.

"After a thorough legal review of the matter, Attorney General Herring has concluded that Virginia's current ban is in violation of the U.S. constitution and he will not defend it," spokesman Michael Kelly wrote.

Herring, a Democrat who campaigned in part on marriage equality, planned to file a brief Thursday morning with the federal court in Norfolk, where one of the lawsuits is being heard, as notification of the state's change in position in the case, Kelly said.

The state's shift comes on the heels of court rulings in which federal judges struck down gay marriage bans in Utah and Oklahoma.

The lawsuits in Virginia say the state's ban violates the Constitution's equal protection and due process clauses.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/421771.html

According to New Jersey State Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson, “There is no ‘public interest’ in depriving a class of New Jersey residents their constitutional rights while appellate review is pursued ... On the contrary, granting a stay would simply allow the State to continue to violate the equal protection rights of New Jersey same-sex couples, which can hardly be considered a public interest.”

The state has asked the New Jersey Supreme Court to hear the case on an expedited basis. But Judge Jacobson said that the state had not demonstrated that its appeal was likely to be successful. And she denied the state’s argument that New Jersey would suffer “irreparable harm” if marriages began happening, ruling instead that the people harmed would be the same-sex couples who would have to wait even longer to access the federal benefits that the United States Supreme Court guaranteed them in its landmark decision in June.

Source: New York Times, October 10, 2013

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/390653.html

A New Jersey judge ruled on Friday that the state must allow same-sex couples to marry, finding that failing to do so deprives them of rights that are now guaranteed by the federal government following a ruling by the Supreme Court in June.

However, this does not mean that same-sex couples can fully participate in the same civil and economic rights as heterosexual couples. New Jersey allows for civil unions, but not marriage and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) has vetoed at least one Marriage Equality bill and will, most likely, direct the state Attorney General to file an appeal.

Thank you, Ultracape, for the heads up. The full text of the NY Times article can be found here.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/388010.html

I'm kind of shaking here...I really thought this day would never happen. After the first decision came down, I was really prepared for a split call.

1 - DOMA - the reviled Defense of Marriage Act that denies legally married same-sex couples the right to receive Federal employment benefits, has been struck down:

"DOMA’s principal effect is to identify and make unequal a subset of state-sanctioned marriages. By seeking to displace this protection and treating those persons as living in marriages less respected than others, the federal statute is in violation of the Fifth Amendment." — JUSTICE ANTHONY M. KENNEDY

2 - The lawsuit brought by the opponants of same-sex marriage to enforce Proposition 8 as been found to be without standing. California can resume its legal obligation to perform same-sex marriages.

In the California case, the court ruled that opponents of same-sex marriage did not have standing to appeal a a lower-court ruling that overturned California’s ban. The Supreme Court’s ruling appears to remove legal obstacles to same-sex couples marrying in the state, but the court did not issue a broad ruling likely to affect other states.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/366074.html

I am particularly proud to report that Rhode Island took a step on Tuesday toward becoming the 10th state to approve same-sex marriage when a major legislative committee forwarded a marriage bill to the State Senate.

(My father grew up in the Ocean State and my sister has lived there for more than 25 years).

By a vote of 7 to 4, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill that would allow gay and lesbian couples to marry, while allowing religious leaders who oppose such marriages to refuse to perform them. The landmark vote by the full Senate could come on Wednesday. Gay rights advocates said that they think they have the votes to prevail, all but ensuring adoption of same-sex marriage by the only state in New England that does not already allow it.

“We think that when the vote is called, we can win,” Ray Sullivan, campaign director of Rhode Islanders United for Marriage, said Tuesday afternoon of the imminent Senate vote.

A similar bill passed the House in January by a vote of 51 to 19, and Gov. Lincoln Chafee, a onetime Republican who is now an independent, has strongly supported “marriage equality.”

The Rhode Island Senate Judiciary Committee failed to support a counterproposal to let the public decide the marriage issue in a referendum, and all five Republican members of the 38-member State Senate declared support for same-sex marriage.

From the New York Times, Gay Marriage Measure Advances in Rhode Island

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/349577.html

Today, the United States Supreme Court is listening to arguments in two cases that will (1) decide the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act and (2) the constitutionality of California's Proposition 8.

There have been numerous articles in the NYT about this, some going to ridiculous lengths to present an opposing view (witness Adam Lipnik's bizarre comparison of these cases to the Roe v. Wade decision). But the best one, by far is this one - In Less Than 50 Years, a Sea Change on Gay Rights.

The article concludes with this quotation from Former Congressman Barney Frank:

In his youth, Mr. Frank said, he realized he was drawn personally to men and professionally to government. He assumed the former would impede the latter.

“At this point,” he concluded, “I think my continued sexual attraction to men is more politically acceptable than my attraction to government.”

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/338084.html

“I cannot, for my nation, my culture, my class, demand privileges which I refuse other groups.”

Eleanor Roosevelt

It is a terrible thing that so many of this great nation's politicians have not and will not grasp this ideal. But yesterday, the people spoke, and spoke loudly, clearly and with great emphasis. In Maryland, in Maine, In Minnesota and hopefully in Washington State, too, voters turned away from the hate and the lies and gave all of their citizens the same privileges that the majority enjoy.

The fiftieth anniversary of Eleanor Roosevelt's passing is today. With yesterday's election results, I think she'd be pleased to see how her work as continued.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/307434.html

32 times, the basic civil right of marriage has been defeated at the polls. The haters and fear mongerers kept trying, but they've lost their hold:

In Maine, marriage-equality proponents have the upper hand, 55-45.

In Maryland, the contest is very close: 51 percent to 49 percent, with same-sex marriage supporters with a slight edge.

In Minnesota, the question is worded slightly differently as a matter of banning same-sex marriage. Opponents of the ban are leading, 57-42.

Washington State hasn't reported in yet.

3 and 32, and lets hope it's 4 and 32 when the sun rises

Posted via LiveJournal app for iPad.

Thank you to my friend,

ultracape, for alerting me to this important legal pronouncement:

A federal appeals court in Manhattan ruled on Thursday that the federal statute defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman unlawfully discriminates against same-sex married couples by denying them equal federal benefits.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is the second federal appeals court to reject a central portion of the federal law, the Defense of Marriage Act, following the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, in Boston, which handed down its ruling in May.

But this decision on Thursday is the first time that an appeals court has subjected the law to a relatively tough test for constitutionality that, in effect, elevates issues of sexual orientation to the constitutional level of cases involving sexual discrimination.

The United States Supreme Court will be taking up this matter in the current term. But given that the current makeup of the court is one of the most conservative in U.S. history, it may be unlikely that DOMA will be found unconstitutional. The Supreme Court may likely rule that this is a matter for states, not the Federal government, to decide, if it doesn't actually hold that the law is Constitutional.

But let's take our wins when and where we can.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/303812.html

Step the First:

Christine Gregoire, the two-term (by the skin of her teeth) governor of Washington State has signed a bill into law making same-sex marriage legal. This makes Washington the seventh state to grant full and equal rights to all persons. The law goes into effect on June 7th. Washington state has had domestic partnership laws since 2007, and in 2009 passed an "everything but marriage" expansion of that law, which was ultimately upheld by voters after a referendum challenge.

Opponents said they would file a ballot challenge after Gregoire signed the measure that would require voters in November to either uphold or overturn the law. If the referendum gets enough signatures by June 6 the law is put on hold pending the outcome of a November vote.

Source: New York Times, Washington Governor Signs Gay Marriage Bill 2/13/2012

Step the Second:

The New Jersey State Senate voted on Monday to legalize same-sex marriage, a significant shift in support from two years ago, when a similar measure failed. The legislation faces a vote on Thursday in the State Assembly, but even if that chamber passes the measure, as expected, Gov. Chris Christie, who favors holding a referendum on the issue, has said he will veto it.

“The margin brought the notion of an override out of fantasyland,” said Steven Goldstein, chairman of Garden State Equality, a gay rights group. “Before today, I would have said the chances of an override were one in a million. Now I’d say it’s about one in two.”

Overriding the anticipated veto would require the approval of two-thirds of both houses, which in the Senate translates to 27 votes. But Democrats, who control the Legislature and have made the bill their top priority this year, argue that they have nearly two years — until the session ends on Jan. 14, 2014 — to muster just three more votes than they won on Monday.

Source: New York Times, New Jersey Senate Votes to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage, 2/13/2012.

Step the Third:

Matt Bomer has, in one beautiful and classy moment, fully acknowledged his relationship with Simon Halls and their three children. Even though there has been some debate as to whether this constitutes a "coming out" moment, it is, for the the record, the first time Matt has publicly acknowledged a committed relationship with his partner. 'Nuff said.

Source: White Collar Fixation, quoting multiple sources, 2/13/2012

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/247188.html

The Federal Appeals Court for California has ruled that the gay marriage ban is unconstitutional.

The ruling states:

"Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently. There was no such reason that Proposition 8 could have been enacted."

"Whether under the Constitution same-sex couples may ever be denied the right to marry, a right that has long been enjoyed by opposite-sex couples, is an important and highly controversial question," the court said. "We need not and do not answer the broader question in this case."

Furthermore, it has ruled that the lower court decision, which was challenged because the Chief U.S. Judge Vaughn Walker (now retired) disclosed that he was gay and in a long-term relation, was properly made, without bias. It was the first instance of an American jurist's sexual orientation being cited as grounds for overturning a court decision.

The ruling; however, does not mean that same-sex marriages can resume in California. The court said gay marriages cannot resume in the state until the deadline passes for Proposition 8 sponsors to appeal to a larger panel of the 9th Circuit. If such an appeal is filed, gay marriages will remain on hold until it's resolved.

Source: New York Times, CA Gay Marriage Ban Is Unconstitutional, Feb. 7, 2012.

And tip of the hat to

ultracape for the heads up.

Crossposts: http://elrhiarhodan.livejournal.com/245541.html

My heart gave a little rip and studder when I read the news last night that Anne McCaffrey had died. Her books, particularly the original Dragonriders of Pern and Harper Hall Trilogies were seminal works that strongly shaped my views of the world.

As a pre-teen and a teenager, I played the pedal harp and piano (or rather, took lessons) and naturally gravitated towards first to Dragonsong and Dragonsinger, then I read the original Dragonflight and Dragonquest. White Dragon and Dragon Drums were published just as I was entering high school, and all six books - my original paperback copies are a beloved part of my library.

When I say that these books were important in shaping my worldview, I mean that they were the books that made me aware that there was nothing wrong or unnatural about same sex relationships. I remember reading Dragonflight and realizing that male Green Dragon riders were doing it with other men and no one really seemed to think it was anything out of the ordinary, wrong or strange.

And in 1977 (when I first read these books), that was unique.

Ride on, dearest Anne.

Ganked from Daring Fireball:

Clint Eastwood to GQ:

Because what I really believe is, let’s spend a little more time leaving everybody alone. These people who are making a big deal out of gay marriage? I don’t give a fuck about who wants to get married to anybody else! Why not?! We’re making a big deal out of things we shouldn’t be making a deal out of. […]

They go on and on with all this bullshit about “sanctity” — don’t give me that sanctity crap! Just give everybody the chance to have the life they want.

I found this by way of Erastes' blog this morning.

Apparently GLBT people do not exist.

Linda Harvey, an anti-gay activist and lobbyist on behalf of Mission America, has announced that “there is no proof that there’s ever anything like a gay, lesbian, or bisexual or transgendered child, or teen, or human.”

“There are no such humans,” she added.

Following this quote through the various news sites and blogs that have picked it up, a lot of the comments say things like "she's never be on the internet, she's never been to [name of big city], etc."

I think what she's really saying that there is not there there is no such thing as GLBT people. She's saying that they aren't human.

It's 2011, why does this shit still happen?

And why am I not surprised that it does happen, either. Earlier this week, 14 year old Jamey Rodemeyer committed suicide after being bullied for over a year with taunts about his sexuality. The young man had even posted to the "I Gets Better Project" on YouTube.

You can listen to Harvey's appalling statement on Right Wing Watch.

To every Senator and Member of Congress, regardless of party or political standpoint, who voted to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell, thank you.

Thank you very, very much.

Next up...The Defense of Marriage Act - Public Law No. 104-199, 110 Stat. 2419.

Current Music: The Hours - Philip Glass

Today is Election Day...

GO VOTE.

Now.

Do it.

I've never believed in the expression, don't vote, don't complain. But if you want to be part of something great, you want to stand tall and do what people all over the world can get killed for, or if they can vote, their choices are invalidated by corruption, or are predetermined by power hungry oligarchs.

Be a citizen.

Be powerful.

I saw this last night - apparently if you're gay and you're old, you have NO FUCKING RIGHTS IN SONOMA COUNTY.

This is one of the most heartbreaking news stories I've read in a long, long time.

(Summary of story ganked from

gyzym 's post)

Clay and Howard, 77 and 88 respectively, lived in Sonoma County. They'd been together for 20 years. When Howard fell down the stairs, the county separated them, putting them each in different nursing homes against their will. AND they sold their house and their belongings without permission! BECAUSE APPARENTLY CLAY AND HOWARD ARE NOT PEOPLE, JUST GAYS.

Please follow the link above to

copperbadge 's post and both sign the petition and send a letter to the New York Times. Straight or gay or whatever, this is about YOUR MOST BASIC CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS. Do nothing, and the same things will happen to you.

Also, please tweet this if you're on Twitter, post it on Facebook and every other social media site you play on. Repost this on your Journal here throughout the day - as it rolls down everyone's Flist, it needs to reappear at the top. Feel free to copy this entire entry if you want.

Remember this...

"THEY CAME FIRST for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

THEN THEY CAME for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

THEN THEY CAME for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

THEN THEY CAME for the Catholics,
and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant.

THEN THEY CAME for me
and by that time no one was left to speak up."

(attrib. to Martin Niemöller, circa 1955)