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  WINDY CITY TIMES

National News
Special to the Online Edition of Windy City Times
by Andrew Davis
2010-10-20

This article shared 4260 times since Wed Oct 20, 2010
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The Department of Justice has appealed the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" injunction that United States District Court Judge Virginia Phillips granted in the case Log Cabin Republicans v. United States, according to the Denver Post. The Obama administration is now fighting an order against a policy the president has vowed he will "end on [ his ] watch," as he said Oct. 14. The department is contending that Phillips did not have the authority to issue such a sweeping change.

In an appearance on the Fox News program The O'Reilly Factor, Ann Coulter defended New York GOP gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, who recently stated anti-gay remarks at a stop in Brooklyn, according to On Top Magazine. Paladino told a group of Orthodox Jewish leaders Oct. 11 that he did not want children "brainwashed into thinking that homosexuality" is OK. Coulter said, "I think it's a little offensive to merge gays and gay left-wing activists. That was the only thing he was condemning." She then compared what Paladino did to "going to Chicago. You say, 'Go Cubs.'"

Isaac Katz, the son of anti-gay Washington University in St. Louis physics professor Jonathan Katz, has come out of the closet, Advocate.com reported. Isaac wrote a piece for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in which he came out to his parents this summer. Jonathan Katz was originally selected to work on the BP spill; however, when an anti-gay essay he wrote in 1989 surfaced, he was removed from the scientific team.

In Tennessee, arson is suspected at a fire at the XYZ Club, a gay nightspot, according to the Knoxville Journal. Firefighters found the outside dining area on fire, and extinguished the flames before they reached the club's interior. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has been contacted to aid in the investigation.

In Minnesota, Twin Cities Roman Catholic Archbishop John C. Nienstedt denied communion to some two dozen gay-rights activists during his first student Mass at St. John's Abbey, according to Examiner.com . The group, composed of members of PRiSM ( People Representing the Sexual Minority ) and the Rainbow Sash Movement identification, was apparently responding to the state's bishops mailing of 400,000 DVDs to Minnesota Catholics about the Catholic Church's teaching on same-sex marriage. The archdiocese said that Nienstedt was only refusing to allow the Holy Eucharist as a site for protest.

Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders ( SAGE ) has launched its National Resource Center on LGBT Aging, the country's first and only technical-assistance resource center aimed at improving the quality of services and supports offered to LGBT older adults nationwide, according to a press release. In February, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ( HHS ) awarded a grant to SAGE—and its 10 national partners—to establish the center. To learn more, visit www.lgbtagingcenter.org .

The website JustUsBoys is seeking to raise funds and awareness for the Matthew Shepard Foundation, named after the late college student who was the victim of a hate crime in Wyoming. JustUsBoys—a site where young gay and questioning men can talk about their issues, fears and day-to-day experiences—wants to raise $10,000 for the foundation, and then match those donations with a corporate donation of another $10,000. See http://www.justusboys.com/pledgedrive.

Essence.com, the online companion to the Black women's periodical Essence magazine, will feature a lesbian couple in its "Bridal Bliss" section for the first time ever, according to a GLAAD press release. Aisha and Danielle Moodie-Mills will be the first lesbian couple to have their love story and wedding photos featured on the website. They were married Aug. 7, at the Old Westbury Gardens in Old Westbury, N.Y. ssence.com Managing Editor Emil Wilbekin said, "Essence has a history of covering the LBGT community and the inclusion of Aisha and Danielle's wedding in our Bridal Bliss feature is a natural extension of that commitment."

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality have released the National Transgender Discrimination Survey: Report on Health and Health Care, a report of 6,450 transgender and gender non-conforming people, according to a press release from the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. Among the major findings were that 19 percent reported being refused care because they were transgender or gender non-conforming; 28 percent said they have been harassed; and 41 percent of respondents reported attempting suicide, compared to 1.6 percent of the general population. The full report is at http://www.transequality.org/PDFs/NTDSReportonHealth_final.pdf.

Transgender golfer Lana Lawless is suing the Ladies' Professional Golf Association ( LPGA ) after being refused entry in a tournament because a rule stipulates that competitors must be "female at birth," according to an Advocate.com item. Long Drivers of America, which sponsors the event, has changed its policy since Lawless won in 2008 to be in line with LPGA rules. Lawless' suite claims that the gender requirement is a violation of California civil-rights laws.

In an online column that was published on National Coming Out Day ( Oct. 11 ) , Family Research Council President Tony Perkins blamed the recent publicized wave of teen suicides on the gay community, Advocate.com reported. Perkins wrote, in part, "Some homosexuals may recognize intuitively that their same-sex attractions are abnormal—yet they have been told by the homosexual movement, and their allies in the media and the educational establishment, that they are 'born gay' and can never change. This—and not society's disapproval—may create a sense of despair that can lead to suicide." The group Media Matters criticized the Washington Post for providing Perkins with a platform.

In Texas, openly gay Fort Worth City Councilman Joel Burns pleaded with teens who were being bullied because of their sexual identity, according to the Huffington Post. Fighting back tears, Burns said, "I want to tell any teen who might see this, give yourself a chance to see just how much better life will get. And it will get better, you will get out of the household that doesn't accept you, you will get out of that high school and you never have to deal with those jerks again if you don't want to. You will find and you will make new friends who will understand you and life will get so, so, so much better."

Fox commentator Glenn Beck condemned the anti-gay attacks that recently occurred in New York City, according to the Huffington Post. Returning to his show Oct. 13 after being out for medical reasons, Beck said the graphic nature of the violence—which included beating and sodomizing the victims—had shocked him and had him wondering, "Who are we and who are we becoming?" Beck also said, "This is not only anti-gay; it is anti-human." The New York Daily News reported that police have arrested a tenth man in connection with the attacks; however, another member of the Latin Kings Goonies gang has been released on bail.

In Pennsylvania, the death of transgender woman Stacey Blahnik Lee, 31, is now considered a homicide, according to the San Diego Gay & Lesbian News. Lee's boyfriend discovered her body Oct. 11 in the home they shared in South Philadelphia. The medical examiner said that the victim was strangled to death. Neighbors described Lee as "really nice" and "very friendly."

Florida's Department of Children and Families ( DCF ) will not fight a unanimous appeals court ruling that called the state's gay-adoption ban unconstitutional, according to an On Top magazine item. DCF spokesman Joe Follick told CNN that "the depth, clarity and unanimity of the DCA opinion—and that of Miami-Dade Judge Cindy Lederman's original circuit court decision—has made it evident that an appeal would have a less than limited chance of a different outcome." Frank Gill, who brought the initial suit, can now legally adopt the two boys he has raised with his partner for six years.

In Oregon, gay student teacher Seth Stambaugh has been fired from a Portland school because he discussed same-sex marriage with a fourth-grader, AlterNet.org reported. Stambaugh, who was enrolled in Lewis and Clark College's Master of Education program, answered the youngster's question by saying it would be illegal for him to get married because he would wed another man. Beaverton School District spokeswoman Maureen Wheeler has said that the district does not discriminate.

Raymond Castro, who was present during the Stonewall riots in 1969, recently died at age 68, according to Advocate.com . Castro was inside the Stonewall Inn in New York City's Greenwich Village on June 27, 1969, and "is documented as the only person arrested that evening who was known to be gay." He once told the New York Daily News that many people "think Gay Pride is just a big party. None of this would have been possible if it wasn't for 1969."

A billboard in Colorado shows President Obama as a cartoon terrorist, Mexican bandit, gangster and gay man, according to Advocate.com . The anonymous advertiser paid artist Paul Snover to create the image, and the four versions of Obama—who are shown gambling with the Bible and the Constitution—are under the sign "Vote DemocRAT. Join the game." Snover said that the advertiser wanted "to represent the influences he saw the president as having in his administration."

Speaking at an Empire State Pride Agenda dinner, New York Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Andrew Cuomo said that he wants to make "equality a reality," according to Advocate.com . Cuomo—who also criticized his opponent, controversial candidate Carl Paladino—said, "I don't want to be the governor who just proposes marriage equality. ... I want to be the governor who signs the law that makes equality a reality in the state of New York." The event, hosted by Sarah Jessica Parker and Bravo's Andy Cohen, raised approximately $1 million for the organization.

The American Foundation of Equal Rights will hold a major benefit art auction Oct. 28 at the Gladstone Gallery in New York to build support for its mission to achieve full federal marriage equality, according to a press release. ( The foundation is the sole sponsor of the Perry v. Schwarzenegger federal case that declared California's Prop 8 unconstitutional. ) Mogul David Geffen and actress Hilary Swank are among those co-hosting the event, which will feature live and silent auctions of artwork from international artists.

On the Oct. 17 airing of the show Meet the Press, Ken Buck, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate from Colorado, compared being gay to alcoholism, according to Talking Points Memo. During a debate between Buck and Democratic candidate Michael Bennet, moderator David Gregory asked Buck if he thought homosexuality is a choice. He responded that he thought it was an option, and added, " [ B ] irth has an influence over it, like alcoholism and some other things." Among the other topics were the Tea Party movement—which is credited with helping Buck defeat Republican Jane Norton in the primary—and the budget.

The National AIDS Fund ( NAF ) has earned the coveted four-star rating from Charity Navigator, America's leading charity evaluator, according to a press release. This is NAF's fourth consecutive four-star rating, the highest score possible. "Only nine percent of the charities we rate have received at least 4 consecutive 4-Star evaluations," said Charity Navigator President/CEO Ken Berger in his letter to National AIDS Fund. "This exceptional designation demonstrates that National AIDS Fund consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way, and outperforms most other charities in America."

In Mississippi, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit against the Forrest County Sheriff's Department and several officers on behalf of Andre Cooley, a corrections officer for juvenile detainees who was allegedly fired when his supervisors discovered he was gay, according to a press release. The lawsuit claims that the department violated Cooley's constitutional rights. On June 14, while at home and off-duty, Cooley called 911 after his boyfriend became physically violent. Among the officers responding to the call was Chief of Corrections Charles Bolton, one of Cooley's supervisors, who learned of Cooley's sexual orientation. Staff Sergeant of Jail Operations Donnell Brannon told Cooley the next day that he was fired.

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation ( GLAAD ) joined millions of community members and allies to support LGBT youth by participating in Spirit Day, which was Oct. 20, according to a press release. In addition to wearing the color purple that day, GLAAD asked people to turn their Facebook and Twitter photos purple until that date and to share messages of support for LGBT youth. Purple symbolizes "spirit" on the rainbow flag, a symbol for LGBT pride that was created by Gilbert Baker in 1978.

In New York, Lt. Dan Choi, a gay-rights activist who was discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," tried to re-enlist in the military the same a Pentagon spokeswoman said that military recruiters have to accept gay applicants, Advocate.com reported. Choi was attempting to enter the U.S. Marine Corps, which does not accept laterial transfers of officers from other military branches. In light of Judge Virginia Phillips' injunction against the anti-gay policy, the Department of Defense notified the five military branches that they must comply with the ruling.

Also in New York, the trial of accused killer John Katehis, 18, has started, Advocate.com reported. Katehis allegedly killed openly gay radio journalist Goerge Weber in the victim's Brooklyn home last year. Defense attorneys are painting the defendant as the victim of a 47-year-old sexual predator; prosecutors are saying that Katehis was a cold and calculating individual who made an oral sex-for-cash arrangement with the victim and then fatally stabbed him.

Steven Slater—the former JetBlue flight attendant who became something of a folk hero this past summer after famously walking off his job—pled guilty to one count of misdemeanor attempted criminal mischief and one count of felony criminal mischief, according to AOL News. Slater, who happens to be gay, avoided jail time, but will have to complete a year-long mental-health program as well as attend substance-abuse counseling.


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