Gay Rights

Marriage as an Exclusive Country Club

by Michael A. Jones

category: Marriage Equality

Published February 09, 2010 @ 01:49PM PT

If you're straight and you support marriage equality for gay and lesbian couples, Sarah Silverman has a few words for you. Namely, avoid marriage like the plague.

Silverman dropped by The View this week to promote a new television show that she's got in the pike at LOGO. But when it came time to dishing on marriage, Silverman was less interested in promoting a TV show and more interested in getting straight folks to seriously question the institution of marriage -- at least while 45 states continue to ban it for gay and lesbian couples.

"I can not imagine wanting to get married right now at this time in America," Silverman said. "If you’re for equal rights, why would you get married right now? It’s like joining a country club that doesn’t allow blacks or Jews. There’s no difference. Why would I wanna join that club? It’s gross."

Is she right? Should straight allies be tempted to look at marriage like an exclusive country club -- something they might have access to because of immutable characteristics beyond their control, but something that is unnecessarily discriminatory toward at least 10 percent of the population?

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A War on Conversion Therapy

by Michael A. Jones

category: ExGay Movement

Published February 09, 2010 @ 12:10PM PT

Last week, an undercover activist in England exposed some fairly shocking revelations about British mental health professionals gaming the health care system in order to get the government to pay for conversion therapy for LGBT people. Fed up with conversion therapy and therapists who practice it, the activist, Patrick Strudwick, is now on a mission to root out conversion therapy wherever it exists, and report therapists who practice it to their professional ethics boards.

Strudwick has launched a group on Facebook, the Stop Conversion Therapy Taskforce, where he's drumming up support for a campaign to find health professionals who try and cure gay people, and bring them down.

"We believe that the practice by therapists, psychiatrists and religious leaders of attempting to change a person's sexual orientation is damaging, offensive, immoral, unethical and ineffective," the Taskforce says.

Wonder if the Montgomery County Public School District is paying attention?

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Boy Scouts of America Turns 100, Still Discriminates

by Michael A. Jones

categories: LGBT Parenting, LGBT Youth

Published February 09, 2010 @ 08:39AM PT

So much for that old adage "with age comes wisdom." The Boy Scouts of America celebrates 100 years this year. But despite hitting its centennial birthday, the organization is digging its heels into the ground on the issue of whether gay folks can play a part in the organization.

Ten years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the Boy Scouts could bar gay folks from serving as Scout leaders. Ten years later, the Boy Scouts are again playing the homophobia card, telling two lesbian moms from Vermont that they can't be Scout leaders for their son.

That has some Congressional leaders blazing mad, including Vermont's at-large member of the U.S. House, Rep. Peter Welch. He was among the legislators that fired off a letter to the Boy Scouts of America, urging them to reconsider their harsh stance on banning gay people from serving as Scout leaders.

"As deeply troubling as the exclusionary policy is, the message that the policy sends is perhaps most damaging," said the letter. "The Boy Scouts are teaching America's youth at impressionable ages that lesbians and gays are to be excluded because they are different, and not 'morally straight' as per the Boy Scouts' official stated position."

Indeed, the Boy Scouts of America has spent the better part of its first 100 years training young folks to become active members of a "more conscientious, responsible, and productive society." So why does homophobia and discrimination have to play a part in that mission?

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On DADT, Democrats Should Ignore D.C.’s Chicken Littles

by Nathan Tabak

category: Dont Ask Dont Tell

Published February 09, 2010 @ 07:36AM PT

When it comes to gay rights, much has changed in the 17 years since President Clinton first attempted to allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military.  But when some political analysts speak about gays in the military, a certain U2 song comes to mind.  For these supposed prophets, it's still 1993, and finally repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) policy, as President Obama has vowed to do, could be disastrous for Democrats come November. Fortunately, these analyses are more Chicken Little than Cassandra.

In a recent feature, the Washington Post editorial page asked various pollsters, pundits, and others for their opinions on repealing DADT.  While most of the responses favored an end to the policy, two stood out for their predictions of dire electoral consequences for Democrats.

The first of these answers, unsurprisingly enough, came from a conservative source: Ed Rogers, a former staffer to Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.  Yet his warning seems fairly half-hearted; he acknowledges at the beginning of his response that "it is inevitable that gays will openly serve in the U.S. Armed Forces."  Rogers goes on to warn Republicans that supporting repeal may not play well in primaries, as "[m]uch of the Republican coalition will never support gays in the military."  That may be true, though it's worth pointing out that a recent Fox News poll found Republicans evenly divided, 46-44, on the subject, rather than being overwhelmingly opposed.  After alluding to the standard (and baseless) trope that gays could pose a danger to military cohesion, Rogers suggests that Republicans should listen to former military leaders on the issue.  I'm guessing he doesn't mean Colin Powell.

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Of Gay Judges and Gay Stock Car Announcers

by Michael A. Jones

categories: LGBT Politicians, LGBT Sports

Published February 09, 2010 @ 06:18AM PT

Who's in the mood to bust some glass ceilings this morning?

First comes word out of Senator Chuck Schumer's office that the Empire State's senior senator is going to recommend the first openly gay man for a position on the federal bench. The man, Daniel Alter, has been recommended by Sen. Schumer to fill a vacancy on the bench in the Southern District of New York. Though it's far from a done deal, Presidents typically listen to the Senators when it comes time for the nomination process. If that pattern remains true, the U.S. Senate could be debating its first federal-level judicial nomination surrounding a gay nominee.

That has Sen. Chuck Schumer on Cloud Nine.

“Daniel Alter couldn’t be a more perfect choice. He is a brilliant attorney who possesses the knowledge, balanced views and temperament required of a federal judge,” Schumer said. "I’m proud to nominate Daniel Alter. Period. But I am equally proud to nominate him because he is a history-maker who will be the first openly gay male judge in American history.”

Quite the history-making title to put on you business cards.

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When Health Class Becomes Homophobic Lecturing

by Michael A. Jones

category: Religion and LGBT Rights

Published February 08, 2010 @ 04:33PM PT

Forget learning about the circulatory system, the respiratory system, the nervous system, or even the digestive system. Inside the health classes at Fresno City College, you're likely only to learn one thing: that homosexuals are a "misapplication of human sexuality," and that if you're queer, you should seek treatment.

At least, that's what you'll learn if you're inside the classroom of Professor Dr. Bradley Lopez, who teaches an introductory health class at the college. The ACLU sent a letter to Fresno City College today, documenting some rather homophobic and unscientific curriculum from Lopez's classroom.

According to the ACLU, in addition to telling his students that homosexuality is evil and that gay folks should become ex-gay folks, Dr. Lopez has told his students that homosexuality is a threat to society, and that instead of global warming, students should worry about hellfire and damnation. Oh, and the ACLU says that Dr. Lopez has used quotes from the Bible as empirical evidence to teach his health class students that life begins at conception, and that abortion is murder.

Let Fresno City College's President and Vice President know that this type of academic experience is far from academic excellence. Allowing someone to co-opt a health class in order to teach homophobia is damaging to students, and to the reputation of Fresno City College.

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Five Tips for Converting Others to the Gay Cause

by Abbie Kopf

category: Marriage Equality

Published February 08, 2010 @ 02:04PM PT

We're all familiar with the more annoying practices of evangelism such as people who bike to our front doors or folks who hand out tracts after a ball game.  But telling others about our beliefs is something that we don't do enough of in the gay community.

We might assume that people don't want to hear about gay rights or that they will attack us if we try to bring up who we are and what we're fighting for. Despite these fears, it's absolutely essential that we reach out to others. We're at a critical point in our fight for equality and we need all the soldiers we can get for the war on gay rights.

Gay advocates should take a cue from evangelicals because they've gotten the art of presenting their case down to a science, especially when it comes to converting others. The National Organization for Marriage website provides "Marriage Talking Points" that outline the best ways to talk about the dangers of same-sex marriage. These talking points are researched, they're thorough and they are absolutely frightening ... because they work.

At the Creating Change Conference in Dallas this past weekend, I was fortunate to sit in on a session hosted by the Williams Institute that taught activists how to neutralize gay-rights opponents with factual evidence and current statistics. The know-how to confidently and thoughtfully debate gay issues might allow us to win a few over to our side, but there are some things to keep in mind before trying to convert gay non-believers.

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