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

The top writer on former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain's website compared the LGBT-rights movement to the totalitarian race the Borg from the TV science-fiction series Star Trek: The Next Generation, according to Raw Story. CainTV.com Editor-in-Chief Dan Calabrese wrote, "You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile." The LGBT-rights movement, Calabrese said, "is evil, not because homosexuality is a 'worse sin' than other sins, but because its champions are trying to not only silence but in many cases destroy those who disagree with them," referring to ousted Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich.

Republican Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant has signed into law a "religious liberty" bill that could be used to justify various forms of discrimination, including anti-LGBT discrimination, according to Think Progress. The measure differs from other states' "Religious Freedom Restoration Acts" because Mississippi law defines the word "person" to include businesses; thus, it applies to corporations instead of just private citizens exercising their religious beliefs. The Family Research Council, an anti-LGBT group, took credit for its passage.

Mozilla co-founder/CEO Brendan Eich has resigned after he came under fire for donating to a campaign to ban gay marriage in California, ABC News reported. In a statement on the Mozilla website, Executive Chairwoman Mitchell Baker said April 3, "Mozilla prides itself on being held to a different standard and, this past week, we didn't live up to it. We know why people are hurt and angry, and they are right: it's because we haven't stayed true to ourselves." Baker added that the future leadership of the company is being discussed.

Speaking of Eich, gay journalist Andrew Sullivan slammed the campaign against the now-former Mozilla CEO, according to DailyCaller.com . Sullivan expressed his "disgust" over Eich's resignation for his one-time opposition to gay marriage, calling it a symptom of gay-rights "fanaticism" and warning the movement is fast becoming "no better than the anti-gay bullies who came before us." Sullivan ( seen as the intellectual father of the gay-marriage movement ) added, "Will he now be forced to walk through the streets in shame? Why not the stocks? The whole episode disgusts me—as it should disgust anyone interested in a tolerant and diverse society."

U.S. District Judge Timothy Black gave notice April 4 that he will require Ohio officials to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states, according to USA Today. "Ohio's recognition bans that have been relied upon to deny legal recognition to same-sex ( marriages ) validly entered in other states ... violate the rights secured by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution," he said. Black will issue the ruling April 14 prohibiting Ohio officials from enforcing the ban, but it will not mean Ohio must allow same-sex couples to marry in the state. By announcing his intention ahead of his ruling, Black gives time for the state to prepare an appeal that can be filed as soon as he rules.

The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) issued a response to what it said was White House Press Secretary Jay Carney's recent statement that an executive order barring anti-LGBT discrimination for federal contractors would be made "redundant" with the passage of Employment Non-Discrimination Act ( ENDA ). HRC stated, "We couldn't disagree more. An executive order first issued by President Johnson still, today, provides important and unique protections for employees of federal contractors against discrimination based on race, sex, religion—despite the fact that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects against such discrimination in workplaces across the country. Even if ENDA were to pass tomorrow, we'd still need the president to sign the executive order in order to ensure that those same protections exist for LGBT workers."

In Texas, after the Southern Methodist University ( SMU ) Student Senate voted to approve an LGBT student senate seat, the student body voted the proposal down, The Dallas Voice reported. Adding a senate seat required approval by two-thirds of the voters, and only 53 percent of those voting were in favor of adding the seat. Of SMU's 11,000 students, only about 2,000 voted.

University of Houston-Downtown senior Kristopher Sharp's story about a flyer that targeted his sexual orientation and HIV status has inspired the revival of an anti-bullying bill, The Dallas Voice reported. The tale of Sharp—also an intern in the Washington, D.C., office of Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., as part of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund's congressional internship program—inspired Murray and out Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., to introduce the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2014. The bill was originally sponsored by the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., and is named for the Rutgers University student who committed suicide in 2010 after his roommate streamed a video of Clementi and another man having sex.

A Texas couple claims their son was turned away from a local Montessori school because they are lesbians, according to The Huffington Post. Tracy Keller and her wife Dawn told local TV affiliate WFAA they had hoped to enroll their 3-year-old son, Landry, at the New Beginnings Montessori School in Bedford, Texas. After they toured the school, however, the two moms say they were told by New Beginnings Director Shamain Webster that it wasn't an option because they were lesbians.

The Social Security Administration ( SSA ) updated its policies and procedures regarding the ability of transgender individuals to receive benefits through their spouses, according to a Lambda Legal press release. This announcement comes after months of advocacy by Lambda Legal on behalf of Robina Asti, a 92-year-old transgender woman who was denied survivor benefits by the SSA after her husband's death. She finally received her benefits on Valentine's Day after Lambda Legal filed an appeal on her behalf.

New reports have highlighted the links between Newsweek's new owners, IBT Media, and Bay Area Olivet University, which threatens to punish students if they're caught engaging in "homosexual activity," according to Media Matters for America. Said reports have revealed, among other things, that university founder David J. Jang "sees Community-affiliated media organizations, including IBT, as an essential part of his mission to build the kingdom of God on Earth. He has said that media companies affiliated with the Community are part of a new Noah's ark designed to save the world from a biblical flood of information."

Advocacy groups and opinion leaders will gather for the Coalition to End Sexual Exploitation Summit in the Washington, D.C., area on May 16-17, hosted by Morality in Media. The summit will bring together groups from all facets—from liberal feminists to conservative religious organizations—who will speak on their views varied regarding pornography and sexual exploitation.

In response to reports of a new cluster of viral-meningitis cases found among Los Angeles area gay men and men who have sex with men ( MSM ), Los Angeles County Public Health Department officials were expected to release an official statement in which they will recommend that HIV-positive MSM and high-risk HIV-negative MSM be vaccinated against the infection, according to Business Wire. In April 2013, Southern California MSM were hit by a similar cluster of cases of the more deadly strain of bacterial meningitis, which killed two Los Angeles gay men and a San Diego student.

Deborah L. Birx has been confirmed as the new global AIDS coordinator for the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator ( OGAC ) in the Department of State, according to a U.S. Agency for International Development ( USAID ) press release. OGAC is responsible for implementing the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief ( PEPFAR ), of which USAID is a key implementing agency. Birx previously served as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's ( CDC ) Division of Global HIV/AIDS, where she oversaw implementation of CDC's PEPFAR programs around the world.

NCLR ( National Council of La Raza ) applauded the Congressional Hispanic Caucus ( CHC ) for endorsing the "Safe Schools Improvement Act ( SSIA )" ( H.R. 1199 ), a bill that would require schools to issue and enforce rules prohibiting bullying and order states to report data on bullying to the U.S. Department of Education, according to a press release. Eric Rodriguez—vice president of the Office of Research, Advocacy and Legislation at NCLR—said, "Bullying is an epidemic in our schools. Unfortunately, Latino children, and LGBT Latino children in particular, are at greater risk of experiencing this type of harassment, which only compounds the barriers to educational success that already exist for Hispanic students."

In a historic move, the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center has awarded one of its month-long writing residencies to an author focusing on trans health policy, according to a CenterLink press release. After reviewing his application on trans health policy engagement, the foundation has chosen CenterLink's Dr. Scout as one of its 2014 writing residents. Dr. Scout's writing pieces will focus on various aspects of trans health, and include direct actions readers can take to create a solution to an element of the problems. In addition, Dr. Scout helped found the LGBT Wellness page on Huffington Post and serves as one of the regular bloggers.

In Wisconsin, transgender man Gypsy Vered Meltzer was elected to the Appleton City Council, marking a historic first, PostCrescent.com reported. The advocacy group Fair Wisconsin said that Meltzer is the first openly transgender individual to hold elected office in the state after he defeated Barney Lemanski 295 votes to 199. Meltzer said his dreadlocks, 50-plus tattoos and gender identity are worth celebrating; however, he added he's ready to serve his constituents.

The Open for Business Coalition—composed of some of the nation's leading business associations—has formed to actively oppose the so-called "religious freedom bills" that are currently before several state legislatures, according to a press release. The coalition is convened by the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and members to date include the National Black Justice Coalition, the Small Business Majority, the U.S. Business Leadership Network and the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. In letters to the Mississippi governor and lawmakers in Missouri and Oklahoma, the coalition stated, "This bill, like the others currently being considered, would not protect 'religious freedom' as claimed, but would effectively guarantee in state law the right to discriminate against vulnerable minority groups."

In response to a parental complaint, public schools in Virginia's Fauquier County will consider removing Two Boys Kissing, a gay-themed young adult novel, from its libraries, according to an Advocate.com item. The district received an appeal to pull David Levithan's book after a committee at Fauquier High School opted to keep the book on shelves. Frustrated by the high school committee's decision, the parent appealed it to the district, whose procedure dictates will organize its own committee and hearing on the subject, which the associate superintendent will host.

Edie Windsor—the plaintiff in the Supreme Court Case that brought down the Defense of Marriage Act—will return to Philadelphia to receive an alumni fellowship award from her alma mater, Temple University, before a screening of Edie & Thea: A Very Long Engagement on April 26, according to Temple's website. Mayor Michael Nutter will also be on hand to recognize Windsor for her contributions to LGBTQ causes, including marriage equality. The movie chronicles the romance of Windsor and the late Dr. Thea Spyer, who were engaged for 42 years.

The American Civil Liberties Union has selected five same-sex couples from across the United States as winners of the its My Big Gay ( Il )Legal Wedding contest, the Associated Press reported. Each couple lives in a state where same-sex marriage is outlawed. They will get logistical and financial help—up to $5,000—from the ACLU to get married the week of April 28 in one of the 17 states, plus Washington D.C., that do allow gay marriage. The contest, launched in December, has coincided with a surge of court victories for supporters of same-sex marriage in several states that currently ban it.

Radio personality Brian "B-DAHT" McLaughlin apologized to an openly gay Winston-Salem State University ( WSSU ) student whom he had criticized in a string of slur-filled posts on Twitter, according to the Winston-Salem Journal. McLaughlin tweeted that Aaron McCorkle shouldn't be elected Mr. WSSU because pictures posted online show McCorkle wearing women's clothing. McCorkle lost the race to Brandon Bowden, who received 727 votes to McCorkle's 565.

A World Vision board member has resigned in protest after the Christian aid group quickly reversed its decision to hire employees in same-sex marriages, according to the Associated Press. Jacquelline Fuller, director of corporate giving for Google Inc., emailed the AP that she remains a "huge fan" of the group's work on behalf of the poor, but she resigned "as I disagreed with the decision to exclude gay employees who marry." World Vision U.S. had said it would hire employees in gay marriages; however, after an uproar, the company reversed that development.

The Alabama House of Representatives approved a resolution urging an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ban gay marriage, according to the Associated Press. Rep. Patricia Todd, Alabama's first openly gay legislator, accused lawmakers of approving the resolution secretly and without open debate. The resolution calls for a national constitutional convention to approve the gay-marriage ban.

A Florida man faces ten counts of attempted second-degree murder and one count of arson for allegedly attempting to burn and kill a lesbian couple and their eight children, LGBTQ Nation reported. Police said Braulio Valenzuela, 73, intended to burn down the home that belongs to two women, who lived next door, because they are lesbians. The flames were extinguished before they could burn down the couple's home. Valenzuela was being held on $230,000 bond.

A New York appeals court ruled that the owner of a Mexican restaurant in Tribeca who warned his staff weekly about the eternal damnation awaiting "gay people" owes a lesbian chef $1.6 million, according to Courthouse News Service. Mirella Salemi had sued Gloria's Tribeca Inc., Gloria's Tribecamex and principal owner Edward Globokar for violations of the New York City Human Rights Law. Among other things, Salemi complained that Globokar held weekly prayer meetings that were essentially mandatory because the restaurant staff feared they would lose their jobs if they did not attend.

Delta CEO Richard Anderson and other influential business leaders in Atlanta have spoken out against efforts to pass "social legislation" in Georgia, calling the anti-gay measures harmful to business, according to Project Q Atlanta. "A number of us—Coca-Cola, Home Depot, AT&T—the very large employers, we did the same thing in Arizona," Anderson recently said. "Companies that are transferring people here want to be in a community that respects the diversity of people's views universally. That's the standard now. Even the governor of Arizona vetoed that legislation."

Friends have rallied for cover boy/gay Atlanta fitness guru Dylan Bolen, who was injured when the SUV he was driving flipped over on Interstate 20, Project Q Atlanta noted. Bolen took to Go Fund Me to ask for help; friends responded, with 44 people donating $3,600 of his $4,000 goal in fewer than 20 hours.

The Supreme Court of the United States declined April 7 to hear a case brought by a New Mexico wedding photographer who refused to photograph a same-sex couple's wedding due to religious objections, according to an ACLU press release. The case raised similar issues to those raised by a vetoed Arizona law that would have given business owners the right to discriminate. "No court has ever held that businesses have a First Amendment right to discriminate, and it is no surprise that the Supreme Court has denied this attempt to overturn settled law," said Joshua Block, staff attorney with the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Project.

In Nebraska, Legislative Bill 485—a measure that would ban job discrimination against LGBT Nebraskans—failed in the face of a filibuster, according to Omaha.com . Lawmakers voted 26-22 on a motion to cut off the filibuster on LB 485. The vote fell short of the 33 needed to end a filibuster but was one more than would have been needed to advance the bill in the 49-member legislature. At least one supporter, state Sen. Amanda McGill, predicted Nebraska will pass such legislation in coming years.

Hundreds of people turned out to counter Westboro Baptist Church's protest in Moore, Okla., according to WTVR.com . ( Westboro Baptist Church members previously said God sent deadly tornadoes to Moore last year as punishment for America's tolerance of homosexuality. ) Eight minutes into Westboro's planned 30-minute protest, some counter protesters crossed the street to confront Westboro members. Police held back Moore residents while Westboro members rushed to pack their signs and leave.

U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that Peter TerVeer—a gay man who sued the Library of Congress for firing him in 2012 because of his sexual orientation—has legal standing to claim he's entitled to protection under Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964, The Washington Blade reported. However, the judge also granted the U.S. Attorney of D.C.'s request to dismiss other claims by the lawsuit that the Library of Congress violated TerVeer's constitutional rights as well as violated Library of Congress regulations and policies. TerVeer claims that he was fired after being harassed and humiliated by a supervisor who repeatedly quoted biblical passages condemning homosexuality.

Republican South Carolina state Sen. Mike Fair condemned the University of South Carolina-Upstate for its upcoming two-day LGBT symposium, The Huffington Post reported. "It's just not normal and then you glorify, or it seems to me, that the promotion at USC-Upstate is a glorification of same-sex orientation," Fair said while discussing the one-hour program, "How to Become a Lesbian in 10 days or Less." State Sen. Kevin Bryant ( R ) also called the university's choice of programming a promotion of "perversion" and a misuse of state funds.

A transgender college sophomore has been barred from living in all-male dorms, and now his lawyer has lodged a federal complaint against the university, The Huffington Post reported. George Fox University, a Christian school in Newberg, Ore., says officials denied Jayce's December request to live with his male friends because of the school's "theological commitments." The university says it's in the process of implementing a policy that only permits housing arrangements based on birth sex. Jayce ( known only by one name ) identifies as male.

A major U.S. car manufacturer reversed an initial decision to deny a woman her husband's pension benefits based on its determination that their nearly-30-year marriage was void because he was transgender, according to a Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund press release. The benefits administrator challenged the validity of Michael and Nancy's marriage because Michael was transgender, stating that their marriage was void as a same-sex union. When Michael died in 2012, he and Nancy were still being told that Nancy would not receive spousal benefits.

President Obama signed two executive actions aimed at eliminating sex discrimination in federal contracting—an act the Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) said underscores the need for Obama to offer protections to LGBT workers, according to a press release. HRC President Chad Griffin said, "Issuing these executive orders helps build momentum for Congress to act on paycheck fairness legislation. The exact same logic applies to the executive order that would afford protections to the LGBT workers of federal contractors. By the stroke of his pen, the president can immediately protect over 16 million workers and pressure Congress to pass ENDA."