Beyond the Carolinas
“Sesame Street” puppets Bert and Ernie are longtime roommates who have famously provoked the question “are they or aren’t they” for decades. However, in recent weeks the push for the plush pair to come out of the closet has gained even more steam with the creation of a popular change.org petition calling for the adorable couple to get hitched to celebrate the legalization of gay marriage in New York. Plus: More national and global headlines.
President Barack Obama, U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen notified Congress July 22 that the military is ready to end “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the discriminatory two-decade old policy that bars lesbian, gay and bisexual people from serving openly in the military.
Activists upset with civil unions bill. Bachmann wants marriage amendment. New health guidelines praised. Suit filed for New Jersey marriage rights.
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announced June 15 the creation of a first-ever resource center to support the resettlement of LGBT refugees. The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), a division of ACF, awarded a $250,000 grant to the Heartland Alliance of Chicago to create this training and technical assistance center.
A new Gallup Poll shows a majority of the American people (53 percent) support marriage rights for committed gay and lesbian couples. Plus, the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBT civil rights organization, has endorsed President Barack Obama for reelection, and other national and global news.
Civil unions approved in Delaware, Tenn. strips local laws. Plus: Full welcome for gay clergy, Teacher of the Year honored, ‘Milk’ is the cream of gay films.
Critical new research has found that LGBT youth who experience high levels of school victimization in middle and high school report impaired health and mental health in young adulthood. Plus: DOJ files to dismiss pay suit. NBA stars fight anti-gay speech. First out senator possible.
Delaware House of Representatives votes 26-15 to approve a civil unions bill that will provide same-sex couples who enter into such arrangements the same rights, protections and obligations now granted to married couples in the state. Plus, firm drops DOMA defense, legislative updates, President Clinton calls for N.Y. marriage and global briefs.
At a Congressional hearing on “Defending Marriage” in the Subcommittee on the Constitution, GetEQUAL, a national LGBT rights organization using direct action and nonviolent civil disobedience tactics, presented Maggie Gallagher, one of those testifying at the hearing and the board chair of the National Organization for Marriage, with the inaugural “Anita Bryant Award for Unbridled and Unparalleled Bigotry.”
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) led 11 colleagues in an April 6 letter to Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano urging immigration equality for legally married same-sex couples who are currently discriminated against under the Defense of Marriage Act.
Chad Gibson and George Armstrong, two Fort Worth, Texas, men who were injured during a police “inspection” of the Rainbow Lounge nearly two years ago, received a $400,000 settlement from the Fort Worth City Council on March 23. Plus: Civil unions bill introduced in Delaware, DOMA news, gay giving for Japan, and more.
Plus, new SLDN communications director hails from South Carolina, Lesbians ‘burned’ by insurance company, Obamas host anti-bullying conference and more.
President Barack Obama has decided that the government will no longer defend Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The controversial law discriminates against legally married same-sex couples by refusing to recognize their marriages for any purpose, even if they are valid under the law of the states where the couples live. The decision was announced Feb. 23 in a statement from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
National and global headlines: Iowa marriage repeal, birth registration, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and more…
Plus other national and global headlines: Hospital visitation rights in effect, No Name-Calling Week observed, GLAAD unveils media awards noms, Workplace rules at Jewish non-profits studied, Key Ugandan activist murdered.
In December, President Barack Obama said his views on gay marriage equality were “evolving.” However, his personal position stands in stark contrast to his administration’s recent decision to defend in court the anti-gay Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which bars the federal government from recognizing legally married same-sex couples.
The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention has added three new task forces to address suicide prevention efforts within high-risk populations: LGBT youth; American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/AN); and military service members and veterans. This brings to six the number of task forces formed by the Action Alliance, the public-private partnership forged in September to advance the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.
A settlement in the Atlanta Eagle raid lawsuit will force the Atlanta Police Department to rewrite unconstitutional policies regarding arrest, search and seizure, and make other changes to protect the public from police misconduct.
Dan Kirsch, the onetime visionary behind OutCharlotte and The Charlotte Lesbian & Gay Center, has stepped down as executive and artistic director of Diversionary Theatre.
2010 midterm election wins and losses for the LGBT community, plus more national and global news.
