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Gay couple shot in Dallas; Harvard may add LGBT question to applications
NATIONAL ROUNDUP: Special to the online edition of Windy City Times
by Andrew Davis, Windy City Times.
2011-11-30

This article shared 6614 times since Wed Nov 30, 2011
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In New York, police have closed the case of Jamey Rodemeyer, the 14-year-old who recently committed suicide, allegedly because of bullying, Advocate.com reported. Rodemeyer killed himself in September after posting online that he was dealing with bullying he "could never escape." However, authorities said there wasn't enough evidence of what occurred and that said evidence didn't point to any single student.

Jarrett Barrios, the former president of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), is now a regional executive for the American Red Cross of Eastern Massachusetts, Advocate.com reported. He will start his new job Nov. 29. Barrios resigned from GLAAD in June after a donation from AT&T influenced GLAAD's decision to offer an opinion in the Net neutrality debate. The Red Cross does not allow gay men to donate blood, following a mandate from the Food and Drug Administration.

In Maryland, lesbian Baltimore County police officers Margaret Selby and Juanika Ballard now have the right to extend their health benefits to their spouses after initially being denied the opportunity, according to Advocate.com . Selby and Ballard filed separate complaints with the county in August 2010 when the county started deducting premiums from their paychecks for spousal coverage. The county is mulling an appeal of the decision.

In Des Moines, Iowa, a transgender woman was allegedly harassed in a bar—and the incident was caught on tape, according to Advocate.com . A man walked up to a transgender woman in Z's Bar & Grill and ripped off her wig to win a $100 bet. "They thought it was funny, and we don't," said bar manager Sharon Pasutti. "I don't feel that anybody has the right to do that to anybody." Des Moines recently added gender identity to its nondiscrimination policy.

In Texas, Republican State Board of Education member George Clayton has come out of the closet, according to a Huffington Post article. In an email, he stated, "So as to avoid the tyranny of misinformation and innuendo in this political race, I wish to say that I, in fact, do have a male partner who lives with me in my home in Richardson, Texas." The revelation, however, has caused prominent right-winger Donna Garner to drop her endorsement of Clayton, who is running for re-election.

In North Carolina, the congregation of Raleigh's LGBT-affirming Pullen Memorial Baptist Church unanimously voted to stop its pastor from legally marrying anyone until she can marry same-sex couples under state law, according to the News & Observer. In a statement, the church said, "As people of faith, affirming the Christian teaching that before God all people are equal, we will no longer participate in this discrimination." Marriage ceremonies at Pullen will still be held; however, they will be holy unions that "reflect the spiritual nature of the solemn commitments between two people in a loving relationship."

The national Episcopal Church may discipline Bishop Mark Lawrence, the leader of the diocese of South Carolina, over issues related to same-sex marriage, according to MercuryNews.com . While some conservative congregations left the national church over the issue, the South Carolina diocese has remained while opposing marriage equality. Lawrence told the Associated Press, "Personally, I'm not afraid; I'm concerned for the diocese. What's at stake here is the worldwide Anglican community: the third largest body in Christendom."

Mo Baxley, the executive director of the forces behind New Hampshire's marriage-equality law, has resigned, according to Boston.com . Baxley led New Hampshire Freedom to Marry for nearly six years, including through the state's adoption in 2007 of a civil-unions law and the 2009 passage of a law recognizing same-sex marriage. Baxley resigned because of insufficient funding drawn partly through the group's national organization.

Gay hookup site Manhunt.net has launched a new web-based mobile site taccessible via iPhone, iPad and Android browsers at m.manhunt.net, according to GaySocialites.com . The new Manhunt Mobile is not a native app; therefore, it's not subject to the adult-content restrictions imposed upon competing mobile dating and hookup applications by Apple's App Store and Google's Android Market.

Brian Dorsey of Lancaster, Pa., won the 2012 U.S. Mr. Gay title Nov. 19 in Philadelphia, according to PhillyMag.com . There were 16 contestants from around the country, including Virginia Beach, Va.; Denver; and San Antonio, Texas. Among the event's judges were The A-List's TJ Kelly and Jade Starling, the lead singer of Pretty Poison ("Catch Me, I'm Falling").

Barney Frank, one of the few openly gay individuals in the U.S. House of Representatives, announced Nov. 28 that he will not seek re-election, according to the Washington Post. Frank, 71, has served office for 16 terms. In 1987, Frank became the first congressman to officially come out of the closet. In a statement, President Obama said, "This country has never had a Congressman like Barney Frank, and the House of Representatives will not be the same without him. For over 30 years, Barney has been a fierce advocate for the people of Massachusetts and Americans everywhere who needed a voice.

Harvard University is considering adding to its applications the option of having students identify themselves by sexual orientation, according to the Huffington Post. Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons assured the Harvard Crimson that LGBT identification would not influence a person's chances of being accepted, he added the wording is part of the university's effort to make it more welcoming. Two years ago, the university received a $1.5 million gift from the Harvard Gay & Lesbian Caucus to endow the F. O. Matthiessen Visiting Professorship of Gender and Sexuality.

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has signed a transgender-rights bill the state legislature passed, the Huffington Post reported. The measure bans discrimination on the basis of gender identity for anyone seeking employment, housing or post-secondary education. "No individual should face discrimination because of who they are," Patrick said in a statement. The bill will take effect next July.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation has launched the first-of-its-kind Jewish Organization Equality Index (JOEI) survey, according to a press release. Modeled after HRC's Corporate Equality Index and Healthcare Equality Index, JOEI is designed to measure LGBT inclusion in the programs and employment practices at Jewish non-profit organizations. HRC President Joe Solmonese said, "The goal of this work is to inspire a new dialogue on LGBT diversity in the Jewish community. HRC will establish collaborative partnerships with participating organizations and act as a conduit to the wealth of existing resources within the LGBT Jewish community."

In an interview with New Hampshire's Nashua Telegraph, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney said that he is still opposed to same-sex marriage but he favors gay rights, according to On Top Magazine. He said, "I oppose same-sex marriage. At the same time, I don't believe in discriminating in employment or opportunity for gay individuals. ... That has been my position all along." In the past, rivals Rick Santorum, Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry have criticized Romney over the issue of marriage equality.

In Texas, gay couple David Zaragoza and Travis Vanderlaan were shot during a robbery near their Dallas apartment, according to the Dallas Voice. One was shot in the head and other in the neck; both are expected to survive. Jail records show that Kyle Bibbs, 31, is one of the suspects who has been taken into custody; he is being held on $100,000 bond on two counts of aggravated robbery.

A San Diego, Calif., couple is claiming that a United Airlines agent used an anti-gay slur against them, according to an On Top Magazine item. Billy Canu and his partner say the incident took place at Denver International Airport Nov. 26. In a Facebook post, Canu claimed they were treated rudely when they asked about the United lounge; when they complained, the manager allegedly called them "faggots." United spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said, "We have received this complaint and are reviewing, and we will reach out to the customer directly."

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul said that the government should "butt out" of same-sex marriage, according to On Top Magazine. When the Des Moines Register asked Paul about the government's role in marriage equality, he responded, "That's my ideal—just butt out. If you're going to have government under the constitution, the states have a lot more authority than the federal government has to define it. I'd rather see it be outside of government and then we would not be arguing about this."

The National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), K&L Gates LLP and the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance (NAGAAA) have negotiated a settlement in a case brought against the NAGAAA, according to a press release. The case was brought by three bisexual softball players whose team was disqualified from competition following a protest hearing at the 2008 Gay Softball World Series in Seattle. In 2008, the players' eligibility to play was challenged, based on a NAGAAA rule limiting the number of non-gay players who could play on a World Series team.

The Michigan state senate passed a new anti-bullying bill that excluded a controversial exemption that would have allowed bullying for religious or moral reasons, after more than 50,000 people joined a popular student-led petition campaign on Change.org, according to a press release. Katy Butler and Carson Borbely, two bullied Michigan students who started the petition, said they were relieved that the legislature stripped the "license to bully" language, but were disappointed that state lawmakers failed to pass a stronger bill that enumerates the reasons why students are bullied and requires that schools report back on how well they're protecting kids.

Just six months after the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDR) announced that it would not allow civil union couples to file taxes jointly, the agency has reversed the decision and updated its system to include same-sex civil union partners. The directive came directly from Gov. Pat Quinn, said Sue Hofer, a spokesperson for the IDR. "The governor said that being in a civil union in Illinois is the equivalent of being married in Illinois, and married people file jointly," Hofer said.

The Kansas Equality Coalition is urging for the repeal of a state law criminalizing "unnatural" sexual activities—including same-sex relations, according to the Huffington Post. Even though the U.S. Supreme Court case Lawrence v. Texas essentially voided the Kansas statute, the state law (which also considers oral and anal sex illegal) is still on the books. Thomas Witt, chair of the coalition, told the Lawrence Journal-World, "We believe that the current statute, while ultimately unenforceable, is an affront to thousands of law-abiding gay and lesbian Kansans."

Vermont has made history by swearing in marriage-equality activist Beth Robinson as the state's first openly gay Supreme Court justice, according to the Huffington Post. Robinson, 46, replaces retiring Justice Denise Johnson. Robinson said, "I'm humbled by the confidence that Governor [Peter] Shumlin has placed in me, and deeply grateful both for the opportunity I've had to serve his administration these past 10 months, and for the chance to serve Vermont's judiciary in the years to come."

In New York, Livingston County Supreme Court Judge Robert Wiggins found that New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms may proceed with its suit against the state's marriage-equality law, according to Advocate.com . The group wants to overturn the law on the grounds that the state legislature followed improper procedures in the days leading up to the vote. Among other things, the complaint claims that the Republican senate conference and elected officials, including Gov. Andrew Cuomo, held meetings in violation of the state's open meetings laws.


This article shared 6614 times since Wed Nov 30, 2011
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