The 24th annual AIDS Walk New York, held May 17, attracted 45,000 participants and raised $5.6 million, according to a Gay Men's Health Crisis press release. Since its start in 1986, the walk has raised more than $111 million for dozens of HIV/AIDS service organizations. This year, the event's Opening Ceremony featured actress/singer Hilary Duff, Carson Kressley ( Queer Eye for the Straight Guy ) , Brooke Smith ( Grey's Anatomy ) and Michael Urie ( Ugly Betty ) .
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's Institute for Welcoming Resources, COLAGE and Family Equality Council have released a curriculum designed to help communities of faith support LGBT people and their families, according to a Task Force press release. Among the items in the "All in God's Family" kit are Families Like Mine, a book about adults with LGBT parents written by Abigail Garner, whose father is gay; and a CD containing the exhibit "That's So Gay: Portraits of Youth with LGBT Parents."
Retired Archbishop Rembert Weakland plans to donate the proceeds from sales of his forthcoming memoir to the Catholic Community Foundation, a Wisconsin organization, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The memoir, "A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church," is due out in June. In the book, Weakland writes about his homosexuality and not adequately overseeing pedophile priests. Weakland, 82, resigned seven years ago after it was revealed that he had paid $450,000 to Paul Marcoux, a former Marquette University theology student who accused him of date rape in 1979.
In South Carolina, House legislators are debating the merits of teaching gay students about abusive relationships, according to TheState.com . Republican Rep. Greg Delleney proposed amending a Department of Education bill so that only heterosexual relationships can be discussed in the training. However, Rep. Ken Kennedy, D-Williamsburg, objected. The bill will be discussed further soon.
In Tennessee, officials have nullified the marriage of transwoman Jo T. Rittenberry and her husband, according to an Advocate.com item. Rittenberry, 46—who claims to have undergone sex-reassignment surgery in Canada—married Jeffery Scott Phillips, now 33 in 2007. However, authorities do not believe that Rittenberry ever had such an operation—and the state does not recognize the alteration of gender, anyway.
In Colorado, Allen J. Andrade—who was recently sentenced to life in prison for the murder of 18-year-old transwoman Angie Zapata—received an additional 60 years in prison, according to On Top Magazine. Andrade received more time after prosecutors proved he was a perpetual criminal, which carries a stiffer sentence.
The family of Lawrence King—the gay student killed last year in Oxnard, Calif.—has been allowed to sue the foster home where he lived for wrongful death, On Top Magazine reported. The family has alleged in a lawsuit that Casa Pacifica and its staff are responsible for the teen's death by encouraging him to express his sexuality. Brandon McInerney is charged with shooting King twice in the head during class; McInerney, now 15, has pled not guilty.
In Florida, an appeals court has ruled that the state has to recognize adoptions same-sex couples were granted in other states—even though Florida law bans such adoptions, according to Advocate.com . The decision will go into effect in about 30 days at the earliest. Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights ( which won the case ) doubts that those seeking to reinstate the ban will succeed in getting the state supreme court to hear the case.
The U.S. Army wants to remove First Lt. Daniel Choi because of his sexual orientation, according to the Times Herald-Record. Choi graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 2003 and served as an interpreter in Iraq in 2006 and 2007; later, he left active duty and joined the New York Army National Guard. Recently, he joined a West Point alumni group called Knights Out ( with West Point's mascot being the Black Knight ) , and started talking with the media about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Choi has said he will not resign, even if he does not get an honorable discharge.
Salt Lake County, Utah-based Internet retailer Overstock.com recently gave its LGBT employees more protection than current state and federal law requires, according to KCPW.org . "We're more aware we have to be letting our gay and lesbian employees know that we're in support of them at the workplace, and that's why we've put it in writing," said Stormy Simon, Overstock.com's senior vice president of marketing and customer care.
Infection with anal human papillomavirus ( HPV ) —a virus that can cause anal and cervical cancers—is associated with a higher risk of new HIV infection in previously HIV-negative men who have sex with men ( MSM ) , according to a new University of California at San Francisco study. The 1,400 study participants were part of the EXPLORE trial, a large clinical trial to test the efficacy of a behavioral intervention for HIV-negative MSM with sites in Boston, Denver, New York and San Francisco.
In Washington, D.C., Councilmember Marion Barry has said that there will be a "civil war" if the council takes on a broader same-sex-marriage measure later this year, according to the Washington Post. Barry was the only dissenting vote when the 13-member council approved a bill that would allow the district to legally recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions.
In Georgia, police have deemed a fire that took the lives of lesbian couple Naumbyia T. German and Kiona Lively as "suspicious," according to a Statesboro Herald item. ( German and Lively were wed March 2007 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ) A third woman who lived at the residence—identified as the mother of one of the victims—was found unharmed at a local motel; she is not a suspect.
Judy Blume—the writer of such classics as Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret—sparked controversy with a letter on behalf of Planned Parenthood, describing a donation to the organization as a "gift any mother will appreciate," the Chicago Tribune reported. Pro-life groups quickly responded, and Blume received hundreds of e-mails, with some being "harassing and intimidating," a Planned Parenthood spokesperson said. However, Blume has also received over 25,000 supportive messages.
The National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association ( NLGJA ) announced that Michael Tune is its new managing director "and will oversee its efforts to support newsroom diversity and ensure fair and accurate coverage of LGBT issues," according to an organizational press release. Tune, who succeeds David Barre, will also lead NLGJA's flagship programs, such as its annual convention, which will take place in September in Montreal.
In New York City, police feel that the recent attack on accountant Alan Williams might be a hate crime, the New York Daily News reported. One of the attackers allegedly said, "I got him good," after the gang jumped Williams as he hailed a cab around 2 a.m. on May 14. Williams' friends said that he is out, and officers said he had a Gay Men's Health Crisis card.
Trans activist/attorney Phyllis Randolph Frye is being honored by Texas A&M University, according to the Dallas Voice. The school's Department of Multicultural Services recently presented the 2009 Diversity Service Awards, including the Phyllis Frye Advocacy Award. The invitation to the awards ceremony read, in part: "Included this year is a new award honoring civil rights pioneer and the grandmother of the transgender movement in America—Phyllis R. Frye, who graduated from Texas A&M University in 1970 with her B.S. Degree in Civil Engineering and in 1971 with her M.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering."
Three out United States representatives—Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Barney Frank of Massachusetts and Jared Polis of Colorado—along with Jerrold Nadler of New York, have introduced a resolution that would recognize the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, according to On Top Magazine. The riots—which symbolized the beginning of the gay-liberation movement—took place in New York City's Greenwich Village in 1969. "We honor all those who stood their ground at Stonewall as we carry on their quest for full and equal rights for all Americans," Baldwin said in a statement.
A gifted actor's life is remembered in Tribute to Heath Ledger: The Unauthorized Story, now available on DVD courtesy of Infinity Entertainment Group. Special features include personal tributes to Ledger—who starred in such films as Monster's Ball and Brokeback Mountain—as well as the featurettes "Ledger as The Dark Knight" and "The Lost Boys: James Dean & Heath Ledger."
Brady Green has been convicted to stalking talk-show and America's Next Top Model host Tyra Banks, according to IMDB.com . Green was arrested March 18 at a restaurant near the New York City studio where Banks films The Tyra Banks Show; he told officers the pair "had a thing together" after he pursued her for months. Green could receive 90 days in jail when he is sentenced June 18.
Tony winners Lin-Manuel Miranda and Cynthia Nixon announced this year's nominations for the awards May 5 at the New York Public Library at Lincoln Center, according to Broadway.com . Billy Elliot topped the list of nominees with a total of 15 nods—tying the record previously held by The Producers. Among the actors nominated are Geoffrey Rush ( Exit the King ) , Jane Fonda ( 33 Variations ) , former American Idol finalist Constantine Maroulis ( Rock of Ages ) and openly gay John Glover ( Waiting for Godot ) . The awards ceremony will be held at Radio City Music Hall June 7.
The last-ever photos of late blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe are expected to fetch thousands of dollars in an Internet auction, according to IMDB.com . Pianist Buddy Greco has released four pictures of the Some Like It Hot star at the Cal Neva resort in Nevada just five days before her death in 1962. There were originally 36 photos, but 30 of them were stored in the World Trade Center and were destroyed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Mickey Carroll, one of the last surviving Munchkins from the movie The Wizard Of Oz, has died two months before his 90th birthday, according to IMDB.com . The former actor—whose godfather was the gangster Al Capone—was born Michael Finocchiaro. Carroll got his break as a teenager when his mentor, entertainer Jack Haley, took him to Hollywood, and he was cast as Mickey in the Spanky and Our Gang TV and film series.
Out actor Thom Bierdz is returning to the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless as a regular after leaving the show two decades ago, according to TV Guide. Bierdz has signed a one-year contract with the soap that made him a star, giving the show two openly gay actors in him and Cybill Shepard's daughter, Clementine Ford, who plays Mac. In an e-mail to friends, Bierdz—who is also known as an artist—stated that "the progressive storyline promises to do with my painting, and my sexuality."
Lesbian comedian Wanda Sykes—who recently caused a stir at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner with comments about Rush Limbaugh—and her wife, Alex, welcomed twins Lucas Claude and Olivia Lou April 27, according to E! Online. The couple tied the knot Oct. 25, 2008, shortly before Wanda officially came out at an anti-Prop 8 rally in Las Vegas.
