R.I.P. Whitney - America loses its Queen of the Night

Whitney Houston  (1963 - 2012)

You mean same-sex families have children? Alert the Marines!

The entitlement and audacity of some who oppose lgbtq equality never ceases to amaze me.

Of all of the false hysterical claims they make, the one about children has to take the cake.

"If marriage equality is accepted, children will be forced to learn about gays."

The nerve of such statement is exceeded by its inanity. Same-sex families are raising children across America and guess what? These children are attending public schools and are being vocal about their families, as they should be.

So to all of those so-called moral folks who think they own the patent on the word "family," marriage equality doesn't need to be legalized for your child to know about same-sex families. The odds that they probably have classmates in same-sex homes are very good.

As it should be. Any home which provides love and support ought to be celebrated.

A perfect example of this is the following is Spencer Perry, 17, son of Prop. 8 plaintiffs Kris Perry and Sandy Steir, talking about the damage Prop. 8 has caused his family and what has changed because of this week's 9th Circuit Appeals Court ruling.

Perry is not a hypothetic. He is a reality - one of many:

Know Your LGBT History - Nell Carter

I was especially sadden when actress and singer Nell Carter passed away in 2003. She was one of the few celebrities I had wanted to meet. She was truly an awesome lady.





From Wikipedia:

Born Nell Ruth Hardy in 1948 to Horace and Edna Mae Hardy in Birmingham, Alabama, Carter was one of nine children. She overcame adversity and personal hardships before finding success as an actress. Her father died in an accident with a power line. A man raped her when she was 16, and she became pregnant from the attack, giving birth to a daughter, Tracy.

She was in the 1971 rock opera Soon, which closed after three performances. She was the Music Director for the 1974 Westbeth Playwrights Feminist Collective's production of "What Time of Night It Is". Carter appeared alongside Bette Davis in the 1974 stage musical Miss Moffat, based on Davis' earlier film The Corn Is Green. The show closed before making it to Broadway. She broke into stardom in the musical Ain't Misbehavin, for which she won a Tony Award in 1978. She also won an Emmy for the same role in a televised performance in 1982. Additional Broadway credits included Dude and Annie.

In 1979, she had a part in the Miloš Forman-directed musical film adaptation of Hair. Her vocal talents are showcased throughout the motion picture soundtrack. One of the more memorable moments in the film involves her rendition of the song "White Boys" where she can be seen dancing playfully as she performs the song (alongside Ain't Misbehavin co-star, Charlayne Woodard).

In 1978, Carter was cast as Effie White in the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, but departed the production during development to take a television role on the ABC-TV soap opera, Ryan's Hope in New York. When Dreamgirls premiered in late 1981, Jennifer Holliday had taken over the lead. Carter also took a role on television's The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo, before landing a steady role as housekeeper Nell Harper on the sitcom Gimme a Break!, for which she earned Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominations. The popular show lasted from 1981 to 1987.

'NOM ally - Use chemicals to 'cure' gays' and other Friday midday news briefs

New York Rabbi: Use Chemicals To ‘Cure’ Homosexuality - And this guy just happens to be an ally of the National Organization for Marriage. But just use chemicals. Why not shock treatment? They used to do that once. I bet NOM will register no comment on this one.

NJ Family Policy Council: Homosexuality Is Unhealthy, Can Be Cured, Linked To Pedophilia- Old lies die hard, don't they?

Top 10 questions on next steps in the Prop 8 trial - What you need to know about the next step in the Prop 8 trial.

Glitter-Bombing: Is It Fabulous Or Foolish? (POLL) - Glitter-bombing is lazy and stupid. Visibility for the sake of visibility is counterproductive. And the best work for equality is not done in front of the cameras. We need to organize and marshal all allies in this battle.

Supporting Ellen DeGeneres = supporting fisting for children?

Ellen DeGeneres

By now, you all know of the ridiculous attack on JC Penny by the religious right group One Million Moms simply because the company has partnered up with popular lesbian comedian Ellen DeGeneres,

It hasn't gone well for One Million Moms (a sham offshot of the anti-gay hate group the American Family Association). Many folks have been turned off of the boycott because it's nothing more than wanton homophobia. This group don't like DeGeneres because she is a lesbian. In fact, not only has JC Penny dug in, but people, such as radio personality Howard Stern, have voiced strong support of the store and DeGeneres,

But like a moron who continues bash his head against a brick wall while ignoring the pain, One Million Moms and its supporters slog on.

Sandy Rios

Take for example this awful piece written by former Concerned Women for America employee Sandy Rios:

Imagine you had to make a case against Ellen DeGeneres being the new spokesman for JCPenney. Ellen is charming and delightful ... witty, warm and engaging. What's not to like about Ellen DeGeneres? And yet for thousands ... yeah millions of Penney's customers, it is an unsettling proposition.

American Family Association's OneMillionMoms have said as much. In fact they've asked JCPenney to reconsider their choice of a spokesperson. They've launched a campaign to get Penney customers to tell the retailer how they feel. But thousands are fighting back, including the new CEO of JCPenney, former Apple executive Ron Johnson, who said, "I think Ellen is someone we all trust. She's loveable, likeable, honest and funny, but at her soul, we trust her." On-line petitions have sprung up sponsored by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Discrimination, GLAAD, in fierce defense of DeGeneres. It's the intolerant Religious Right pitted against the affable and charming Ellen DeGeneres and really, on that basis it is a losing battle.

School superintendent stands up to 'ex-gay' group

The recent controversy regarding an ex-gay group, PFOX (Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays) distributing flyers to students at a Maryland school district just took an interesting turn.

Montgomery School Superintendent Joshua Starr expressed his opinion about the controversy and he didn't mince any words. According to Pink News:

Superintendent Starr said the school was legally bound to allow the group to spread their message, as it is with all non-profit organisations, even though the group’s message that sexuality can be changed is rejected by medical professional bodies.

He reportedly told students: “This group has figured out how to use that law to spread what I find to be a really, really disgusting message, frankly.”

Needless to say, PFOX officials were angry at Starr's words. They are demanding that Starr be censured:

Regina Griggs, executive director of PFOX said: “We call on the Montgomery County Board of Education to enforce its Nondiscrimination Policy and censure Starr immediately.

“The Policy mandates that schools provide ‘an atmosphere where differences are understood and appreciated, and where all persons are treated fairly and with respect in an environment free of discrimination and … abuse.’ Clearly Superintendent Starr has violated the Board’s Policy.

“Starr’s verbal abuse, disrespectful behavior, and slurs against the ex-gay community amount to hate and illegal sexual orientation discrimination, which are all forbidden by the Policy.”

I frankly think that Griggs is full of it. Starr has not stopped the schools from distributing the flyers so I fail to see where there is any discrimination.

Truth Wins Out, an organization dedicated to fighting  the lies of "ex-gay groups" also points out the irony of PFOX officials whining about Starr's statement:

The president of PFOX, Greg Quinlan, refers to LGBT people as “flaming faggots” and a board member, Peter Sprigg, supports imprisoning LGBT people and once claimed we should be “exporting” homosexuals. The despicable organization even has a “prayer” on its site that says: “Father, I want to thank you for the awesome change you have wrought in MY life. How you allowed me to survive while I was trapped under the deception of homosexuality, that it even resembled ‘life’.”

PFOX’s former President, Richard Cohen, was permanently expelled from the American Counseling Association for multiple ethics violations. Prior to his stint at PFOX, Cohen was a Moonie and once even belonged to the Wesleyan Community Church, a Vashon Island cult that practiced naked “therapy” in churches. Cohen’s therapy outfit, The International Healing Foundation, sent a representative to Uganda to speak alongside a holocaust revisionist at a conference with the goal of “wiping out” homosexuality.

In my opinion, Starr's comments about PFOX's message being disgusting was on the mark, if rather a bit too nice for my tastes. He should have made comments about the organization's cast of characters.

Hat tip to Truth Wins Out.

'Gays will lose because they are perverts' and other Thursday midday news briefs

Editor's note - It is rare that I receive negative comments on my posts and it is even rarer that I feature these posts. However a comment today on my Chai Feldblum post deserves a spotlight. A certain anonymous (funny how they are always anonymous) commentator wrote me the following:

Sorry, guys, but you will loose in the end. Last time I checked, the Sun was still coming up in the East. You are perverts not because of your sexual proclivities but because of your mentality. Zero sum game, as Chai said. Normal people win, you loose.

Of course I had to answer him/her back. To read what I said, go to the post in question. And if you feel the need to respond to him/her yourself, by all means please do. Don't be too mean (no threats or vulgar language) or try to totally annihilate the child.. Save some for other commentators.

In other news:

Marriage Equality Bill Introduced in Illinois - In 2004, anti-marriage equality bills hit the country like a tidal wave. I think it's time for us to have a tidal wave of our own.

Eye doctor warns of dangers 
of political protest 
on gay 
marriage - Stop this glitter-bombing shit now!

Uganda gov’t says it does not support anti-gay bill reintroduced to parliament this week - Let us pray that this awful bill does not succeed.

Truth Wins Out to Slam Newt Gingrich for Hypocrisy on Marriage Equality in Thursday Roll Call Ad - Pluck that turkey, Truth Wins Out!