Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

Desert blooming for gay New Mexicans
by Deb Price
2003-04-09

This article shared 1745 times since Wed Apr 9, 2003
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email


Only three months into the new state legislative season, New Mexico has terrific news to share: The cultural crossroads that mixes pueblos and high-tech companies is becoming the 14th state to ban job discrimination based on sexual orientation.

The desert is finally blooming for gay New Mexicans, who've sowed seeds for a dozen years.

Last November, they helped elect a gay-friendly governor, Democrat Bill Richardson.

"My advice to activists in other states," says Gloria Nieto of the Coalition for Equality in New Mexico, "is don't show up at the last minute and say, 'We want this.' We showed up early to raise money for candidates and to show we were part of the team."

To the delight of spectators wearing fluorescent labels reading "Another New Mexican for Civil Rights," both the state House and Senate recently passed the breakthrough bill.

The legislature also passed a hate crimes bill to enhance penalties of assailants who target a victim because of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity. Richardson has pledged to sign it as well as the discrimination legislation (which covers employment, housing, public accommodations and credit, and applies to gender identity as well as sexual orientation).

New Mexico's victories come as many legislatures are turning their attention to those of us who are gay.

Much of that activity is positive: Seven states are weighing bills to give gay couples the state-level rights and responsibilities of marriage, without using the word "marriage."

However, North Dakota, Texas and Oklahoma are considering bills intended to bar gay people from becoming adoptive or foster parents.

"At the state level, gay and lesbian families are being talked about like never before," notes Seth Kilbourn, national field director of the gay Human Rights Campaign. "Gay groups are bringing forward gay men and lesbians to tell their compelling stories. That is really having an effect on lawmakers."

In California, Lydia Ramos recently told lawmakers about the nightmare she endured in a custody battle with relatives of her daughter's biological mother, Lydia's partner, who had died in a car accident.

California is considering a bill to ensure that a gay couple's child cannot be taken away from the surviving parent because of a tragedy. The measure would build on the statewide domestic partnership registry California created in 1999 -- expanding it to give gay couples comparable rights to our married counterparts.

New York is seeing movement on couples' rights as well, following the breakthrough late last year when the legislature and governor joined together to make it the 13th state banning anti-gay job discrimination.

The change of heart in the New York legislature reflects the Sept. 11 tragedy: Lawmakers, seeing that terrorists made no distinctions among victims, moved quickly to treat gay victims and their surviving partners no differently than heterosexuals. For example, the legislature expanded the state's on-the-job death benefits program to include surviving partners of Sept. 11's gay victims.

"Our challenge this year is to expand legislators' consciousness that our gay and lesbian families need protections all year, not just on one tragic day," says lobbyist Ross Levi of the Empire State Pride Agenda, New York's gay rights group.

To help do that, the Pride Agenda asked two similarly situated gay men to tell lawmakers how New York treated them differently: Because of the exception made by the legislature, Larry Courtney was eligible for workers' compensation death benefits after his partner of 14 years was killed in the attack on the World Trade Center. But Bill Valentine was denied benefits after his partner of 21 years, a flight attendant, died when his American Airlines flight crashed in New York two months later.

State lawmakers, long willing to ignore inequities suffered by their gay constituents, are showing signs of listening.

Deb Price of The Detroit News writes the first nationally syndicated column on gay issues and is the co-author of "Courting Justice: Gay Men and Lesbians v. the Supreme Court." To find out more about Deb Price and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com .

COPYRIGHT 2003 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.


This article shared 1745 times since Wed Apr 9, 2003
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

SHOWBIZ Dionne Warwick, OUTshine, Ariana DeBose, 'Showgirls,' 'Harlem'
2024-03-29
Video below - Iconic singer Dionne Warwick was honored for her decades-long advocacy work for people living with HIV/AIDS at a star-studded amfAR fundraising gala in Palm Beach, per the Palm Beach Daily News. Warwick received the "Award of ...


Gay News

Lambda Legal Launches "Speak OUT" awareness campaign uplifting trans, nonbinary voices
2024-03-28
--From a press release. VIDEO BELOW - (NEW YORK, NY — March 28, 2024) In advance of Transgender Day of Visibility, Lambda Legal, the nation's oldest and largest legal nonprofit working to achieve full equal rights for LGBTQ people and everyone living with ...


Gay News

SPORTS Red Stars prepare to kick off NWSL season against Utah Royals
2024-03-15
It's been a busy winter for the Red Stars, and it's time to put their work to the test. Following a last place finish in the 2023 NWSL season, Chicago has had an active offseason transforming ...


Gay News

One Roof Chicago launches youth-focused workforce development program
2024-03-14
One Roof Chicago (ORC) is set to launch its first training, education and job placement program for LGBTQ+ young adults in late spring. This Community Health Workers and Elder Care program is a part of ORC's ...


Gay News

Longtime LGBTQ+-rights activist David Mixner dies at 77
2024-03-12
On March 11, longtime LGBTQ+ and HIV/AIDS activist David Mixner—known for working on Bill Clinton's presidential campaign but then splitting from him over "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT)—died at age 77, The Advocate reported. ...


Gay News

Pride 365 event emphasizes year-round support for LGBTQ+ employees
2024-03-07
Queer employees are queer all year-round. The need for employers to accordingly support and uplift them year-round was the core message at Howard Brown Health and Citywide Pride's Pride 365 "Out of Office to Out in ...


Gay News

THEATER 'R & J' puts a female, queer spin on Shakespeare
2024-03-05
Romeo and Juliet is the theatrical gift that keeps on giving. It's been reworked for the masses numerous times, whether in direct adaptations or musicals such as West Side Story. Shakespeare's plotline points have even inspired ...


Gay News

ELECTIONS 2024 Illinois' first openly gay congressman isn't done yet: A conversation with Eric Sorensen
2024-02-23
A Rockford-born meteorologist, U.S. Rep. Eric Sorenson didn't plan on being a politician. But after seeing how his work in broadcasting impacted his viewers in both the Rockford and the Quad Cities areas, he wanted to ...


Gay News

THEATER Dot-Marie Jones talks Goodman production, 'Glee,' 'Bros'
2024-02-12
Running through Feb. 18 at the the Goodman Theatre, the production Highway Patrol works with a script conceived entirely from Emmy-winning actor Dana Delany's (TV's China Beach) digital archive of hundreds of tweets and direct messages ...


Gay News

Coalition of LGBTQ+ advocates, health care providers release Project RAINBOW report
2024-02-12
--From a press release - SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A coalition of more than two dozen LGBTQ+ advocate organizations and health care providers are releasing a new report aimed at addressing the challenges and discrimination that ...


Gay News

SAVOR 'The Bear,' new pizza lounge, Chicago Black Restaurant Week
2024-02-11
"Bear" necessities: The third season of the Chicago-set series The Bear will debut in June, per Variety. FX chairman John Landgraf made the announcement during the network's presentation at the Television Critics Association's winter 2024 press ...


Gay News

Howard Brown Health President and CEO to depart following ten years of service
2024-02-08
--From a press release - Following 10 years of dedicated leadership, David Ernesto Munar has decided to step down as President and CEO of Howard Brown Health. His last day will be on February 29, 2024. "The board celebrates David's work ...


Gay News

Activists, pols promise readiness for upcoming challenges at Equality Illinois gala
2024-02-05
Over 1,350 attendees joined with the advocacy organization Equality Illinois for its 2023 gala the evening of Feb. 3, both to celebrate another year and raise funds to continue its work into the future. Over 100 ...


Gay News

Chicago firefighter receives over $500,000 settlement in City discrimination lawsuit
2024-01-20
James Mundo, a Chicago firefighter who identifies as a gay man, settled a discrimination lawsuit against the City of Chicago for $515,000 last month. Mundo sued the city alleging it failed to take adequate measures to ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Women's college, banned books, military initiative, Oregon
2023-12-29
After backlash regarding a decision to update its anti-discrimination policy and open enrollment to some transgender applicants, a Catholic women's college in Indiana will return to its previous admission policy, per The National Catholic Reporter. In ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.