tagged w/ Same-Sex Marriage
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Do you notice that some nights you can punch through hundreds of TV channels and not seem to find something you really want to watch? The other night the choice was between over-weight people crying about how hard it was to eat less food, or a documentary on there isn't any food in this African country. We aimed the camera at the TV and took a look at ourselves and what we saw wasn't pretty. Life is tough when the parity of the real thing is just as bad as the real thing. And we all know that other "real" thing is made up.Do you notice that some nights you can punch through hundreds of TV channels and not... more
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February 5th, 2012
05:33 PM ET
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Crossing the plains and kicking up dirt, a new Mormon pioneer
PART ONE…
By Jessica Ravitz, CNN
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San Diego (CNN) – At a 1950s-style house nestled in a peaceful neighborhood nicknamed “Hanukkah Hill,” a smiling Buddha on the porch greets visitors – his arms raised as if to say all are welcome.
Affixed to the doorpost is a mezuzah, a decorative case holding blessings for a Jewish home. Inside, on the family’s refrigerator, hangs a magnet from the Feminist Mormon Housewives blog that says, “Jesus loves us. Who cares what you think?”
In the kitchen stands Joanna Brooks, an accidental, unofficial and admittedly unauthorized source for all things Mormon. She’s making “funeral potatoes,” a classic Mormon casserole, and heaped on the counter are the ingredients: a not-so-healthy dose of cheese, butter, sour cream, hash browns and chicken soup. Her Jewish husband strolls by, takes a look at what’s cooking, and grimaces. Bespectacled and freckled 6-year-old Rosa, standing atop a chair, proudly announces, “I’m Jewish and Mormon!”
The home and life Brooks has created is the product of a complicated journey.
She cannot separate The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from her identity any more than she can leave cheese out of funeral potatoes. But like her persecuted ancestors who braved the unforgiving plains to reach the promised land of what is now Utah, Brooks, 40, fights for her faith.
The battle has, at times, left her feeling beaten.
As a young feminist activist, she saw her beloved church excommunicate her intellectual heroes. She’s felt outrage and soul-crushing grief while watching her church mobilize against same-sex marriages. For about 10 years, she walked away.
But today a vintage postcard of a Mormon missionary boarding a plane sits on her desk to inspire. It reads, in part, “Dare to be different.”
She believes there’s room in the LDS Church for loving criticism and candid talk, that Latter-day Saints like her can not just belong but also serve – without fear of being cast out into the wilderness.
She’s staking her claim to Mormonism, writing about it for Religion Dispatches, debunking myths in national papers, speaking up on podcasts, radio shows and from stages, and offering advice in her column and blog, Ask Mormon Girl. She recently self-published her memoir, “The Book of Mormon Girl: Stories from an American Faith” and writes regularly for Feminist Mormon Housewives. Politico has named her, or specifically her Twitter account, one of the “50 Politicos to Watch.” All this while being an award-winning scholar, a published poet and, oh yeah, a department chair and professor of English and comparative literature at San Diego State University.
[Click the audio player for a Q&A with Joanna Brooks from CNN Radio's John Lisk ]
Amid Mitt Romney’s presidential bid, the “I’m a Mormon” ad campaign and the smash-hit Broadway musical “Book of Mormon,” this Obama supporter has emerged as a refreshing voice for media, hungry for frank discussion about her faith.
Her goal? To be her authentic self and humanize a tradition and people she couldn't love more.
“I just refuse to be ashamed of being Mormon,” she says. “Don’t talk about us like we’re not in the room.”
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CONTINUED…
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February 5th, 2012
05:33 PM ET
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Crossing the plains and... more
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J.C. Penney stands behind Ellen DeGeneres as spokeswoman
February 3, 2012 | 5:45 pm
PHOTO:
Portia and Ellen DeGeneres
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As an openly gay couple, Portia and Ellen DeGeneres have faced plenty of challenges, but one worry they can safely put to bed is Ellen getting dropped by J.C. Penney.
The company has signaled that it is standing by DeGeneres as its spokeswoman, despite the group One Million Moms -- part of the American Family Assn. -- having launched a campaign to force J.C. Penney to end its association with DeGeneres and "remain neutral in the culture war."
In a statement Friday, J.C. Penney responded with support for the comedian, saying it "stands behind its partnership with Ellen DeGeneres."
GLAAD was understandably overjoyed with the news. A site the group had launched to show support for DeGeneres changed focus to show support for J.C. Penney over its decision. As of Friday afternoon, #StandUpForEllen had received more than 26,000 signatures.
"This week Americans spoke out in overwhelming support of LGBT people and J.C. Penney’s decision not to fire Ellen simply for who she happens to love," GLAAD spokesman Herndon Graddick said in a statement. "But while Ellen has the nation on her side, in 29 states today, Americans can still be legally fired just for being gay. Our elected officials should use this incident as yet another example of the support for legal protections for all hard working employees."
.Los Angeles Times...
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J.C. Penney stands behind Ellen DeGeneres as spokeswoman... more
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In Olympia, Washington Governor Christine Gregoire gave the following speech on January 4, 2012.
Today I stand before you as governor of the state of Washington. And as a wife, a mother, a student of the law, and as a Washingtonian with a lifelong commitment to equality and freedom.In Olympia, Washington Governor Christine Gregoire gave the following speech on... more
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Excerpt: Within the lifetimes of most people my age (45), same-sex marriage will not only have been fully legally implemented by all 50 states and recognized by the federal government for tax purposes and such, but advocacy of turning back the clock on the matter will enjoy (and rightfully so) the same political cachet and public support as proposals to re-institute segregation of public water fountains by race or to accord US Senators the privilege of jus primae noctis in their home states.
The rest of it's at: http://knappster.blogspot.com/2012/01/exact-instant-santorum-surge-ended.htmlExcerpt: Within the lifetimes of most people my age (45), same-sex marriage will not... more
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Two more states allow same-sex civil unions
By Josh Levs, CNN
updated 5:24 PM EST, Sun January 1, 2012
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Gay couples first civil unions in Hawaii
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STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Hawaii and Delaware began allowing same-sex civil unions Sunday
5 states recognize same-sex civil unions; 6 and DC recognize same-sex marriage
Opponents say civil unions are a springboard to redefining marriage
"It means that our state supports us," one member of a same-sex civil union says
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(CNN) -- Several same-sex couples came together in the first minutes of New Year's Day in Honolulu to become the first in the state's history to enter into civil unions.
"We really don't want to wait any longer because we have been together for 33 years waiting for the opportunity and our rights and everything that goes with it," said Donna Gedge, who was with her partner Monica Montgomery, speaking to CNN affiliate KITV. "So why wait?"
The couple told CNN last week about their plans to stay up late for the ceremony.
With Hawaii and Delaware joining the list Sunday, five states now recognize same-sex civil unions, while six other states and Washington, D.C., allow same-sex marriage, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Illinois, New Jersey, and Rhode Island already recognize civil unions providing state-level spousal rights to same-sex couples, the NCSL says.
Marriage licenses are given to same-sex couples in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and the District of Columbia, the NCSL says.
California does not currently allow same-sex marriages to be performed.
In May 2008, the state's Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry in California. Proposition 8, a state constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman, passed later that year.
In 2010, a federal district judge ruled that Proposition 8 violated the U.S. Constitution, but enforcement of that decision was stayed pending appeal.
Delaware said its new law became effective at 10 a.m. Sunday.
In Hawaii, online application for civil union licenses was made available beginning at midnight, despite the fact that government offices are closed until Tuesday, the state government said.
The union becomes valid after a ceremony performed by someone licensed by the Department of Health.
"It means that our state supports us, and that's a really good feeling after all this time," Montgomery said at the ceremony.
The laws in Delaware and Hawaii followed heated debates in both states.
In 2010, then-Gov. Linda Lingle, a Republican, vetoed a similar bill in Hawaii, saying the issue needed to be put to a referendum.
Some religious groups were among those pushing for the move. "We need you to mount a campaign to flood the governor's office with requests to veto the bill," Larry Silva, Catholic bishop of Honolulu, wrote on the Diocese of Honolulu's website at the time.
A group called the Hawaii Family Forum argued that "a vote for civil unions is a vote for same-sex marriage."
"Civil unions are a desperate and dishonest attempt to force same-sex 'marriage' on Hawaii," the group said. Despite the opposition, there was no referendum.
In both Hawaii and Delaware, the language of the law emphasizes that "it is not the legislature's intent to revise the definition or eligibility requirements of marriage."
Gedge and Montgomery told CNN last week they hope there will one day be federally recognized same-sex marriage.
Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie, a Democrat, signed the state's civil unions bill into law last February, calling it "a prime example of exercising civic courage. It is about doing what is right, no matter how difficult, no matter how much opposition."
Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, a Democrat, signed his state's bill into law in May.
The Delaware Family Policy Council, which says its goal is to "educate, equip, unify and engage the citizens of Delaware in advocating for family values and preserving the integrity of the family as an institution," argued that civil unions "are a springboard to redefining marriage."
"You can't really talk about civil unions without talking about same-sex 'marriage' because there really isn't any difference," the group argued.
But Markell, at a signing ceremony last year, said, "This bill is about a new energy and excitement. It's about a moment in our history that came about because people came together to work for it, because it became clear that Delaware's LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community is in fact part of every Delaware community. The greater good is served when we speak out and fight hard when we see that bias, prejudice or even outdated laws attempt to lessen any one of us."
Bonnie Limatoc, who was part of the midnight ceremony in Hawaii on Sunday, told KITV, "The historic part for me is to be one of the first to open that door so that the rest of them after us, there's others out there that want to do this. ... We can show them, "Hey, you love somebody, you have the right to be with them the rest of your life also.'"
"Our message is go for the gusto," her partner Lydia Pontin added. "Don't be ashamed."
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CNN's Brianna Keilar contributed to this report.
.CNN...
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Two more states allow same-sex civil unions
By Josh Levs, CNN
updated... more
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The CWA opposes gay rights, comprehensive sex education, drug and alcohol education, and feminism. It touts “pro-life” and “pro-family” values. A few days ago, Concerned Women for America posted a video (below0 with Crouse rattling off a litany of statistics about the gay community's threat to traditional marriage. Janice's God only knows where she got the statistics she presented in the video. I've tried to find them prior to writing this rebuttal without much luck.
http://veracitystew.com/2011/12/16/hateful-janice-crouse-bashes-gays-in-defense-of-marriage-video/The CWA opposes gay rights, comprehensive sex education, drug and alcohol education,... more
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Time...
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‘Gay’ Penguin Pair Adopts a Baby Chick in China
Hot on the tail feathers of Canada's gay penguin controversy, a China zoo has given another same-sex penguin couple the opportunity to raise a chick — and so far, everyone seems to be doing just fine.
By Erin Skarda | @ErinLeighSkarda | December 7, 2011 | 37
PHOTO: A pair of African penguins walk together in Betty's Bay, South Africa
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First came Roy and Silo and their children’s book, And Tango Makes Three, and then Buddy and Pedro made headlines as a gay penguin couple who were being separated by the Toronto Zoo. Now, meet China’s same-sex penguin pair, 0310 and 067 — or as NewsFeed likes to call them, Adam and Steve.
Adam and Steve have a pretty lush life at Harbin Polar Land in northern China. While zookeepers at the Toronto Zoo were quick to separate their “gay” penguin couple for mating purposes, keepers at Harbin Polar Land embraced their eccentric penguins by not only giving them a same-sex wedding ceremony worthy of Leslie Knope, but also providing them with their very own baby chick to care for.
Adam and Steve had a history of stealing eggs from other more traditional couples during hatching season. So when keepers noticed a mother of recently hatched twins struggling with her parenting duties, they decided to give Adam and Steve the baby they were looking for.
While it might seem, well, different for a penguin chick to have two male parents, in fact, all penguins are known to have natural instincts for parenting, as males and females equally share in the responsibility to incubate and care for their chicks, before and after they’re born. For this reason, keepers at Harbin Polar Land are confident that Adam and Steve’s chick will grow up to be just like its penguin peers.
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Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/12/07/gay-penguin-pair-adopts-a-baby-chick-in-china/#ixzz1fyqPpW5Y
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‘Gay’ Penguin Pair Adopts a Baby Chick in China
Hot on... more
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For the first time ever, a congressional committee has voted to require the federal government and all states to recognize same-sex marriages. Yesterday, on a party-line vote, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved the Respect for Marriage Act, which states that, "for the purposes of any Federal law in which marital status is a factor, an individual shall be considered married if that individual’s marriage is valid in the State where the marriage was entered into or, in the case of a marriage entered into outside any State, if the marriage is valid in the place where entered into and the marriage could have been entered into in a State.”For the first time ever, a congressional committee has voted to require the federal... more
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Republicans and neo-conservatives have been clamoring about the threat same-sex marriage poses to the institute of traditional marriage. Gay and lesbian couples who have gained the right to marry in some states have already proven more of a commitment to their life-partners than Kardashian showed to her hubby; if Bieber truly did cheat on his long-time girlfriend, well, not to be graphic here, but it wasn’t his values doing the salutin’.
http://veracitystew.com/2011/11/06/last-word-on-the-bieber-baby-and-kardashian-katastrophe/Republicans and neo-conservatives have been clamoring about the threat same-sex... more
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CNN...
A new marriage dilemma
By Don Lemon, CNN
updated 10:30 AM EST, Tue August 23, 2011
PHOTO:
Don Lemon poses on the red carpet at a fundraising event for gay youth suicide prevention.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
As same-sex marriage is legalized, many are asked, "When are you getting married?"
Don Lemon was asked about this on the red carpet by New York Magazine
"Not all gay people want to or should get married," Lemon said
Editor's note: Don Lemon anchors "CNN Newsroom" on weekends during prime time and is a correspondent for the network. He will guest host "The Joy Behar Show" on HLN each night this week at 10 ET. He's also the author of a memoir called "Transparent." You can follow him on Twitter, @donlemoncnn.
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(CNN) --
Ah, the confirmed bachelor.
Think George Clooney, Gerard Butler or even old Hollywood's Clark Gable. We anticipate whom they'll turn up with on the red carpet at the next Hollywood premiere or which starlet will be photographed hanging from their arm as they slip out of the hottest, newest restaurant or nightclub.
Though it wasn't celebrated by larger society, it used to be that gay men once enjoyed that same freedom to play the field. But thanks to our freedom-fighting brethren, not anymore.
Don't get me wrong; it's not that I long for the good old days when gay men and women had to hide and lie about themselves and their partners by calling them "friend" or "roommate." Not at all! But as same-sex marriage is becoming legalized in places like New York and beyond, many of us suddenly have to face the reality and the question that many of our straight friends have always faced: "When are you going to settle down and get married?"
More and more these days, I hear gay couples lamenting over it in restaurants, at work and at dinner parties. My friends call me with their own similar accounts.
Lucky for them, they don't get called on the carpet over it in public. But I did, literally on a red carpet. And it lives in print and on the Internet for all to see. It was my first red carpet experience earlier this summer after coming out publicly in my book "Transparent."
It didn't go well when a New York Magazine reporter inquired about my own marriage intentions.
Here's the exchange:
So there we were, chatting with newly out CNN anchor Don Lemon at Monday's Trevor Live event, and just like annoying Aunt Sadie, we asked if he and his partner of four years are planning on tying the knot. After a long, awkward pause, Lemon laughed and said, "Listen, I am not planning on getting married. I'm not planning on not getting married." Another pause. "You mean, you're asking me if I'm planning on getting married in the near future?"
Yes, that's what we're asking, we pressed. "Since I was a kid I've always wanted to get married. And I think that now that, you know, there is a possibility for me to get married, I think that, yeah, one day I would like to get married, and maybe soon," Lemon said. "I have no immediate plans, but I say why not? I am in a very happy, very solid relationship, so sure, one day I'd like to get married, and I might do it."
Obviously Lemon was not comfortable talking about this, but just like Aunt Sadie never takes the hint, we blustered on with questions about this hypothetical wedding. When our conversation ended and Lemon was walking away, we overheard him say to his rep, "Did I dance around that enough?"
I warned you it didn't go well.
I wasn't ready for that question from a persistent reporter. Nor am I ready for it from family members, friends, neighbors or random people who approach me in public.
Honestly, I hadn't pondered marriage since I came to terms with my sexuality almost two decades ago.
But it really hit home for me when to my and my boyfriend's surprise The New York Observer named me a 2011 media power bachelor and I got the news in an e-mail that my colleague Joy Behar had tied the knot with her long-time boyfriend, Steve Janowitz. While the power bachelor thing was fun, the Joy thing got me thinking. I haven't had the opportunity to ask her directly why she decided to get married after 29 years of unwedded bliss.
Maybe it had something to do with her new grandson and her public support of gay marriage. Perhaps New York's new marriage law had greased the skids for Ms. Behar-Janowitz. Whatever her reasons, Joy's last tweet before running off with Steve was a sign for me. It simply reads, "gone fishing."
So just as I did when I came out publicly this summer, I'll get ahead of all those "fishing" for an answer about my marriage plans. While I respect the gay couples who have or are planning on tying the knot soon, the truth is, just like straight people, not all gay people want to or should get married.
But perhaps the best answer and the one closest to my own comes from a personal quote on the website IMDB from another confirmed bachelor, Leonardo DiCaprio.
"People always like to make up stories. I am not planning on getting married. Then again, I might wake up tomorrow and decide to get married!"
Thanks Leo.
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A new marriage dilemma
By Don Lemon, CNN
updated 10:30 AM EST, Tue... more
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Now that same-sex marriage is legal in New York, let the weddings begin! The first couple to be married in New York City were Phyllis Siegal, 76, and Connie Kopelov, 84, who have been together for over two decades.Now that same-sex marriage is legal in New York, let the weddings begin! The first... more
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Jean Harris dies at 66; forceful gay-rights organizer
The longtime Democratic Party activist campaigned in favor of gay candidates, pushed California to expand domestic-partnership rights and helped block an Oregon bill that would ban talk of homosexuality in schools.
Jean Harris
Political activist Jean Harris was called “the lesbian Al Sharpton” for her colorful personality and confrontational style. (Denise Penn)
By Elaine Woo, Los Angeles Times
July 2, 2011
Jean Harris, a feisty advocate for gay and lesbian rights and longtime Democratic Party activist who helped elect openly gay candidates in California, has died. She was 66.
Harris, who had a number of serious health problems, was found June 25 in her Palm Springs home by her partner, Denise Penn. An autopsy to determine the cause of death is underway.
An Orange County native, Harris played a key role in mobilizing support for the so-called lavender sweep of 1990, when San Francisco voters elected two lesbian supervisors and a gay school board member.
She held prominent leadership posts in Democratic circles, including chief of staff to San Francisco Supervisor Harry Britt, who succeeded gay icon Harvey Milk after his assassination in 1978, and deputy to Mayor Frank Jordan after he took office in 1992.
Known as a savvy organizer, Harris became the founding director of Basic Rights Oregon, the state's largest gay-rights organization, in 1996. Under her guidance, the group collaborated with environmental, labor and abortion-rights groups to build a base of 125,000 gay and pro-gay voters that became a decisive force behind the defeat of a 2000 ballot measure to prevent discussions of homosexuality in Oregon schools.
Following the victory in Oregon, she returned to California to serve as executive director of the Alliance for Pride and Equality (now called Equality California), which became one of the state's most influential advocacy organizations for the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals. In 2001 she worked with then-Assemblywoman Carole Migden (D-San Francisco) to pass AB 25, a landmark bill that granted domestic partners many of the same rights as married couples.
"Her legislative advocacy, grass-roots organizing and coalition building became the bedrock for the modern LGBT justice movement in California," Jim Carroll, interim executive director of Equality California, said in a statement this week.
Harris left the organization in 2003 to campaign for Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean. She later worked for former state Assembly Speakers Herb Wesson and Fabian Nuñez and former state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata.
Born in 1944, Harris grew up in Long Beach. She majored in history at Cal State Long Beach before enrolling in post-graduate courses at San Francisco State.
She worked her way through college climbing telephone poles for GTE, eventually rising into the management ranks. In 1971 she entered politics as a field organizer for Sen. George McGovern's presidential campaign. In later years she served as chair of the California Democratic Party's Lesbian/Gay Caucus and president of San Francisco's Harvey Milk Lesbian/Gay Democratic Club.
Once described as "the lesbian Al Sharpton" for her colorful personality and confrontational style, Harris was unabashed about her sexuality and political goals.
"She could be a pain," said John Burton, the former state legislator who chairs the California Democratic Party. "She'd push and sometimes people got upset with her, but she cared enough to not be nice in order to achieve the community's goals."
Harris favored men's clothing, telling authors Karen V. Hansen and Anita Ilta Garey that she wore ties "because I want every man who sees me to know … I'm after their power. … They know right up front, I'm a dyke, I'm tough, I'm here, I want to know exactly what's going on, and if you've got the power, I'm gonna try and take it from you."
In addition to Penn, her partner of 10 years, Harris is survived by her mother, a brother, a sister, four children and a granddaughter.
.Jean Harris dies at 66; forceful gay-rights organizer
The longtime Democratic Party... more
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Why do they always have to portray God as a mean ass, vindictive son-of-a-bitch?
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New Hampshire Passes Law Forcing Old People To Watch Gays Marry
June 17, 2009 | ISSUE 46•27 ISSUE 45•27
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11.22.06 Where Do Homosexuals Get All Their Energy?
06.27.07 CONCORD, NH—Less than two weeks after legalizing gay marriage in the state, New Hampshire legislators enacted a new law Tuesday making it mandatory for persons over the age of 60 to attend three same-sex weddings every year for the rest of their lives. "Beginning July 1, all senior citizens must publicly condone gay unions by RSVPing to the rainbow-colored invitation, putting on nice church clothes, and spending an afternoon celebrating the wedded bliss of two men or two women who like to have sex with each other," bill H.B. 437 read in part. "Any grandparent who refuses to weep joyously when the grooms kiss may be subject to harsh penalties." Gay marriage advocates are already protesting the new statute, which they say unlawfully forces homosexuals to have gross old people at their weddings.New Hampshire Passes Law Forcing Old People To Watch Gays Marry
June 17, 2009 | ISSUE... more
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