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20
Years (and we're
still queer!)
The Rest of Our World
The
Rest of Our World
A
Banner Year for LGBTs in Office
Washington, DC - The New Year got off to a great start for openly gay
lawmakers across America. In January, in addition to seeing New Jersey's
first openly gay mayor sworn in, the first openly gay Speaker of the New
York City Council took office, an openly gay state legislator took her
seat in the Arizona State Senate, the first openly gay man to win an election
in Oklahoma was re-elected, and the nation's first openly gay and black
mayor was returned to office in Cambridge, Mass.
In Long Hill Township,
NJ, Democratic candidate Gina Genovese won a close election to the town
council by narrowly defeating a twelve-year incumbent Republican in a
predominantly Republican town in predominantly Republican Morris County.
Following the election, Genovese was unanimously elected by the town council
to serve as the first openly gay mayor in New Jersey history. New York
City Democratic Councilwoman Christine Quinn was elected the first openly
gay City Council speaker, largely considered the second most influential
public official in New York City after the mayor.
In Arizona, Democrat Paula
Aboud was sworn in this week following her appointment to the State Senate.
Plus, two trailblazing lawmakers were returned to office this week. Former
Democratic Mayor Ken Reeves from Cambridge, Mass. – who had served
as the first openly gay and black mayor in the country from 1992-1995
– was returned to office, and Oklahoma County Commissioner Jim Roth,
who became the first openly gay man to win an Oklahoma election in 2002,
was re-elected as Chair.
Groups Say 'I Do' to Marriage
San Francisco - In eight amicus briefs filed with the California Court
of Appeal, more than 250 religious and civil rights organizations urged
the court to put an end to state laws that deny same-sex couples the protections
of marriage. The Court is hearing the state's appeal of the March 2005
decision by San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard Kramer, which held
that California’s current statutory ban on marriage of same-sex
couples violates the California Constitution.
"I am proud to join with other
civil rights leaders in standing up for fairness and dignity for all,"
said Alice Huffman, President of the California Conference of the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "Never before
has such a diverse array of groups stepped forward to call for an end
to the unfair treatment faced by same-sex couples and their families when
they are denied the ability to marry." The group filed an amicus
brief asking the Court of Appeal to apply the holding in Perez v. Sharp,
the 1948 California Supreme Court decision striking down laws banning
interracial marriage, to the current case.
TransWomen Shot
Guatemala - One transgender woman in Guatemala was killed and another
remains in serious condition after both were shot in the head by men whom
witnesses believe were police, Amnesty International said today.
"This is, sadly, only the latest
in a string of murders of transgender people in Guatemala," said
Dr. William F. Schulz, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA.
"Once again, not only have police and government authorities failed
to protect transgender people, but they also may be directly complicit
in their deaths."
According to a local organization,
there have been seven homicides of transgender sex workers in Guatemala
City this year.
No Pumping for Girls
Anderson County, TN - Boys will be boys and if that means they just can’t
be trusted around girls, then girls will have to give way. That seems
to be the message Tennessee administrators are sending to a star athlete
who was involuntarily removed from a weight-training class because "there
weren't any other girls in the class ... a situation that's really not
good."
On the second day of classes,
Anderson County High School senior Ambrea Phillips, a straight-A student
and member of the track and field team, was told by school officials that
she had to drop the course because of a safety issue.
According to the Gender Public Advocacy
Coalition, Ambrea was told to work in the school office instead.
"Pencil pushing is a far
cry from a substitute for weightlifting," said Sam Sewell, GenderPAC's
Youth Program Director.
Ambrea and her family are now
planning to file a formal Title IX complaint with the state. Title
IX of The Education Amendments of 1972 mandates that schools not deny
any student participation in any educational program or activity on the
basis of sex.
Sex Sting Nabs Pastor
Oklahoma City - An executive committee member of the Southern Baptist
Convention was arrested on a lewdness charge for propositioning a plainclothes
policeman outside a hotel, police said.
Lonnie Latham, senior pastor at South Tulsa Baptist Church, was booked
into Oklahoma County Jail Tuesday night on a misdemeanor charge of offering
to engage in an act of lewdness, police Capt. Jeffrey Becker said. Latham
was released on $500 bail.
Latham, who has spoken out against
homosexuality, asked the officer to join him in his hotel room for oral
sex. Latham was arrested and his 2005 Mercedes automobile was impounded,
Becker said. He has reportedly resigned his position.
Chinese Shutter Gay Festival
Beijing - In shutting down Beijing's first-ever gay and lesbian cultural
festival, the Chinese government violated basic freedoms and persecuted
activists who are addressing the country's burgeoning AIDS crisis, Human
Rights Watch and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network said in letters to
the Chinese authorities.
"China continues to talk
about political reform, but closing down a cultural event is a crude reminder
of the limits on openness," said Scott Long, director of the Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch. "This
police raid was an effort to drive China's gay and lesbian communities
underground and to silence open discussions about sexuality throughout
the country."
Organizers planning
the Beijing Gay and Lesbian Culture Festival anticipated a first-ever
weekend of films, plays, exhibitions and seminars about homosexuality,
a subject that has long been taboo in China. Participants were to include
noted academic researchers, actors, filmmakers and artists, as well as
activists for sexual rights and health, specifically HIV/AIDS.
Heartland City Protects Rights
Indianapolis - The Indianapolis City Council in December passed protections
that expand the city's Human Rights Ordinance to include protections against
discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations based
on sexual orientation and gender identity.
"This victory shows
what can come from a united community," said Kathy Sarris, president
of Indiana Equality. A similar measure failed by an 18-11 vote in April.
'Sexual Cleansing' in Nepal
Nepal - A string of police attacks on transgender people reflects the
vulnerability of Nepalis in a climate of violence where civil liberties
remain restricted, Human Rights Watch said last month in a letter to Nepalese
authorities.
"Police in Kathmandu are violently
attacking and even sexually abusing transgender people to clear the streets
of people they deem immoral," said Scott Long, director of the Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch. "Nepali
human rights groups are calling this crackdown 'sexual cleansing.' This
amoral campaign has to stop."
In the latest reported incident, on
January 3, three metis were walking in the Thamel district of Kathmandu.
A local slang term for transgender people, a meti is a man by birth who
identifies as a woman. Four uniformed police from Durbar Marg police station
reportedly saw them and shouted, "Metis! Kill them!"
One meti was beaten with a baton
on her back; one policeman pulled his gun and pointed it at her, threatening,
"These hijras pollute the society and must be cleaned out" (hijra
is a common term for a transgender person). The two other metis were also
beaten severely.
LA Cops Play Games
Los Angeles - When the competition commences at the Seventh Gay Games
in Chicago this summer, officers of the Los Angeles Police Department
in uniform will be marching with the assembled athletes opening the Gay
Games VII Sports and Cultural Festival from July 15 to 22. The sponsorship
of the games by the LAPD marks a first for any major metropolitan police
force and will help the LAPD continue and increase its commitment to diversity
within its ranks.
While in Chicago for the games,
members of the LAPD Recruitment Unit will meet with participants and visitors
to discuss the more than 250 career opportunities open to members of the
LAPD.
"The LAPD is a great career with
opportunities galore right out of the Academy," said Phyllis Lynes,
Assistant General Manager for Public Safety for the City Personnel Department.
Salaries start at $52,000.
Pre-emptive Strike?
Washington, DC – Before Congress adjourned in December, Congressman
Barney Frank strongly criticized provisions included in a major Department
of Defense bill that will pre-empt state and local laws barring anti-gay
discrimination. According to a press release from Frank's office, once
the legislation receives final Congressional approval, it will be illegal
for communities to prevent certain groups, such as the Boy Scouts, from
using public buildings because the groups are not in compliance with laws
and ordinances designed to protect people from discrimination. The direct
impact of this law will be to make it impossible for local governments
to enforce laws barring discrimination based on sexual orientation, Franks
said.
Dykes on Bikes Win
According to a report of SFGate, the lesbian motorcycle group that has
for many years led the San Francisco Gay Pride Parade has won its fight
with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. The Patent Office had denied
a trademark for "Dykes on Bikes," alleging that "dyke"
was offensive and derogatory.
The women appealed the
initial ruling and submitted "hundreds of pages" of material,
including testimony and citations to indicate that the word is no longer
considered disparaging. "The word dyke has been used to put us down,
and we have taken that name and reclaimed it as a source of pride,"
exulted Vick Germany, on behalf of the group.
The trademark protection
was sought because a Wisconsin woman had planned to open a clothing company
called "Dykes on Bikes."