In Rhode Island, U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy said that Bishop Thomas J. Tobin prevented him from receiving the Roman Catholic sacrament of Holy Communion because of Kennedy's support of abortion rights, the Providence Journal reported.Kennedy, the son of the late U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, said that Tobin explained the penalty by telling him "that I am not a good practicing Catholic because of the positions that I've taken as a public official," particularly on abortion. Kennedy did not say if he obeyed the bishop's order.
The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) has joined leaders and advocates in launching Our Families Count ( www.ourfamiliescount.org ) , a new voluntary public education initiative promoting LGBT visibility and participation in next year's U.S. Census, according to a press release. "It is vital that every LGBT person participate in the Census," said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. "Census data allows LGBT families to be visible in a way like no other, and that is why HRC is a proud member of the Our Families Count partnership."
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) report reveals that adolescent girls 15—19 had the largest reported number of chlamydia and gonorrhea cases ( 409,531 ) when compared to any other age group, followed closely by women ages 20-24, according to a press release. The report—Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance, 2008, which tracks reported cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis in the United States—also showed that African Americans continue to be more disproportionately affected by STDs than any other racial or ethnic group.
In Vermont, Family Court Judge William Cohen granted custody of 7-year-old Isabella Miller to her lesbian non-biological mother, Janet Jenkins, Advocate.com reported. Jenkins and former partner Lisa Miller broke up in 2003 after Miller said she was no longer gay. Cohen wrote, in part, "in the long term, the change in custody will be in [ Isabella's ] best interests as she will have the opportunity for maximum continuing physical and emotional contact with both parents." Lisa Miller plans to appeal the ruling.
The American Civil Liberties Union ( ACLU ) of Puerto Rico has said that the commonwealth's Department of Justice will investigate the murder of Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado as a hate crime, according to an Advocate.com item. The ACLU said that the department will also train judges and prosecuting attorneys on procedures regarding hate crimes. Mercado's body was found Nov. 13; he had been decapitated, dismembered and burned.
In an interview with CBS anchor Katie Couric, former Republican governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said that he believes in traditional marriage because the goal of heterosexual unions is procreation, according to Advocate.com . He argued that allowing same-sex marriage could lead to polygamy being condoned: "Can we change it to multiple spouses?" If not, why not? You know, I hear people say, 'Well, what would be wrong?' What would be wrong, then, with a man having two or three or six or seven wives? Or a woman having six or seven husbands all at the same time?"
In Atlanta, Ga., the Lloyd E. Russell Foundation has donated $12,000 to help start a new gay publication since the Southern Voice shut down, according to an Advocate.com item. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that "Gay activist and businessman Lloyd Russell was active in Atlanta politics as a Libertarian candidate in the 1990s. His nonprofit was started to support the gay community in Atlanta and in the Southeast." The Southern Voice, the Washington Blade and other publications closed recently due to the financial difficulties of their parent company, Window Media.
Also in Atlanta, Lambda Legal has filed a federal lawsuit against Police Chief Richard Pennington and 48 officers for a Sept. 10 raid at the Atlanta Eagle bar, according to CNN.com . A statement from the organization said, "The Atlanta Police Department [ APD ] dispatched about 20 to 30 officers to the Atlanta Eagle, including its 'Red Dog' unit dressed in SWAT team gear. But inside the bar, the APD found no public sex, no drugs or illegal weapons." Lambda Legal also said that, during the raid, patrons heard anti-gay slurs and were subjected to excessive force.
In Massachusetts, Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Baker has chosen openly gay State Sen. Richard Tisei as his running mate, according to 365Gay.com . On Twitter, Baker ( who earned an MBA from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University in 1986 ) stated, "Want you to be the first to know: I've chosen State Senator Richard Tisei as my running mate. Excited about this team." Tisei is the only gay Republican in the state legislature; there are six gay and lesbian Democrats, including state Rep. Sarah Peake of Provincetown, according to Wikipedia.
The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) has responded to an FBI report that revealed the number of victims of hate crimes based on sexual orientation increased by 11 percent in 2008. HRC President Joe Solmonese said in the statement, "These numbers are unacceptable. While it is so important that we have the new federal hate crimes law, it is critical to ensure that we continue working with the Department of Justice to ensure the safety of LGBT citizens." President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act Oct. 28.
A Canadian court has ordered the country's refugee board to review the previously rejected asylum application of Bethany Smith, a lesbian U.S. soldier who said she received death threats because of her sexual orientation, according to AFP. Smith, 21, claimed that she was constantly harassed ( verbally and physically ) and that she asked to be discharged after being outed. Smith has served at Kentucky's Fort Campbell, where Private First Class Barry Winchell was beaten to death 10 years ago.
In Massachusetts, a court has rejected transgender wife-killer Robert "Michelle" Kosilek's attempt to get taxpayer-funded electrolysis treatments, the Boston Herald reported. Kosilek, 60, had previously received seven Department of Corrections-approved treatments at $500 each because his attorneys had argued that the procedures were medical necessities. Kosilek, 60, is in prison for life after strangling wife Cheryl in 1990. Oral arguments on whether the state should pay for Kosilek's gender-reassignment surgery are scheduled for Dec. 21.
In time for the holidays, the Human Rights Campaign has released Buying for Equality 2010, according to a press release. The guide divides businesses and their consumer products into red, yellow and green categories based on their score on the HRC Foundation's Corporate Equality Index, a nationally recognized benchmark of LGBT inclusion. See www.hrc.org/BuyersGuide.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and SAGE ( Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders ) have jointly released "Outing Age 2010: Public Policy Issues Affecting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender ( LGBT ) Elders," an update to the groundbreaking Outing Age report issued in 2000, a press release stated. "Outing Age 2010" presents an in-depth look at public policy issues and challenges facing millions of aging LGBT people in the United States. Among the findings are that federal and state bans on employment discrimination are necessary to prevent LGBT elder poverty, and that sSignificant health differences persist, with no federal commitment to identifying or addressing them. See www.thetaskforce.org/reports_and_research/outing_age_2010.
David Huebner, an openly gay attorney recently nominated by President Barack Obama to be the U.S. ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa, has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate, according to the Metropolitan News-Enterprise. Huebner, a founding board member of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation ( GLAAD ) , headed the China Practice and International Disputes Practice of the U.S. law firm of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP. Huebner is the third openly gay ambassador in U.S. history and the first picked by the Obama administration.
