The Medical College of Wisconsin's Center for AIDS Intervention Research ( CAIR ) has received a five-year, $2.5-million grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Mental Health to investigate the impact of criminal HIV-disclosure laws. Results of this study—entitled entitled "A Multi-State Analysis of the Impact of HIV Exposure Laws,"—will help inform HIV-related legislation, which is often drafted without the benefit of scientific evidence. Results will also inform policy discussions on the role of the criminal law in efforts to contain the disease.
Google honored Mexican bisexual artist Frida Kahlo July 6 on its homepage, marking her 103rd birthday. Kahlo, who died in 1954, was the subject of the Google Doodle, a special logo, according to Advocate.com . Kahlo endured many hardships, including polio at age 6 and a serious bus accident at age 18 that broke her spinal column and crushed her right foot, according to Wikipedia. She did marry artist Diego Rivera, but had affairs with men and women, including dancer Josephine Baker.
Carrie Prejean—who initially made headlines with her anti-same-sex-marriage stance during a Miss USA pageant—got married herself, tying the knot with Oakland Raiders quarterback Kyle Boller July 2 in San Diego, Calif., according to Advocate.com . They were married at the Grand Del Mar Hotel, which is owned by Doug Manchester, who supports the anti-marriage-equality initiative Prop 8. Prejean lost her Miss California crown after the pageant; she then tried to sue, but dropped the lawsuit when a sex tape involving her became public.
Zach Rosen, the web editor who promised to strip if he won the scholarship to the activist gathering NetRoots Nation, has captured the award—and will fulfill his promise, according to Advocate.com . Rosen was selected as the winner from 10 finalists for the meeting, which will be held in Las Vegas July 22-25. Rosen plans to send a photo ( showing full-frontal nudity ) to Fleshbot.com .
Amtrak is directing $250,000 toward a multimedia campaign for LGBT customers—marking the first such venture, Advocate.com reported. Representative Karina Romero said, "We are always looking for new ways to reach potential passengers and this community travels a lot." Not surprisingly, gay-rights groups applauded the move, while conservative organizations are against it.
The Rev. Kevin Gray—a former pastor at Sacred Heart in Waterbury, Conn.—has been charged with first-degree larceny for allegedly stealing $1.3 million, which he then spent on luxury Manhattan spots and male escorts, the New York Daily News reported. Gray, 64, had reportedly stayed at hotels such as the Waldorf-Astoria; bought Armani suits; and opened credit-card accounts for a man he met at a strip club as well as one he met through a male-escort service. Gray, a Catholic priest, left Sacred Heart April 15 on medical leave, telling his congregation he had cancer; however, authorities said Gray was not ill at all.
Kristin Davis—once known as the Manhattan madam who supplied high-priced call girls to now-former N.Y. Gov. Eliot Spitzer—has announced that she would run for governor as the candidate of the Anti-Prohibition Party, according to a press release. Davis said, "We need to legalize marijuana, gay marriage and casino gambling by ending the Prohibition on them. It's also time to end the government prohibition of prostitution in order to drive those who exploit women and utilize drugs out of the business and to protect the public safety as well as filling the public coffers by taxing it."
In Oregon, former Lane County worker Linda Wagner is suing the county, claiming sexual orientation-based discrimination, according to KVAL.com . She claims that the Department of Youth Services was a hostile work environment and that when she filed a complaint, nothing was done. Wagner is now employed at the Douglas County Juvenile Department.
Gay Men's Health Crisis ( GMHC ) has released a new report, "Gay Men and HIV An Urgent Priority," which recommends innovative and expanded approaches to reducing HIV infection among men who have sex with men ( MSM ) . New HIV diagnoses among MSM increased 17 percent from 2005 to 2008. The report also offers a critical review of HIV-prevention programs from the 1980s through 2010.Marjorie Hill, CEO of GMHC, said, "Our recommendations coincide with the White House Office of National AIDS Policy's ( ONAP ) impending release of our nation's first national HIV/AIDS strategy. We are pleased that throughout the development of the national HIV/AIDS strategy, ONAP has prioritized reducing disparities affecting gay men of all races."
The trial of Log Cabin Republicans v. United States of America started July 13, with Daniel Woods, the GOP organization's attorney, saying that the federal government has no basis for maintaining "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," according to Advocate.com . The lawyers also said that gays and lesbians have been deprived "the privilege of serving their country if they choose to be as candid and honest about their human nature as their heterosexual comrades are." However, U.S. attorney Paul Freeborne countered that Log Cabin has no standing to sue on behalf of its members.
In Ohio, authorities are looking for the person or persons who destroyed the only state historical marker for a member of the LGBT community, the Dayton Daily News reported. John Gantt, executive director of the Greater Dayton LGBT Center, said that the marker recognizing Natalie Barney was knocked down in the city's Cooper Park. Barney, a lesbian writer and literary patron, was born in Dayton in 1876, but lived mostly in Paris, France.
