The South Carolina legislature officially banned same-sex marriage as lawmakers ratified a voter-approved amendment, according to 365Gay.com . Nearly 80 percent of the state's residents voted last November to prohibit gay marriage. Meanwhile, House committees in New Hampshire and Illinois have moved ahead with measures that would allow for same-sex civil unions.
Also in South Carolina, Jason Pickel and Darren Black Bear, a gay couple, was reportedly not allowed to check into a hotel room, Advocate.com reported. Pickel and Black Bear told local television station WLTX that when they called the Affordable Suites of America about details, and when he told the clerk that the room was for his partner and himself, she said, 'We don't rent to gay people at all.'
LGBT-rights activist and tennis legend Billie Jean King has officially endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton for president, according to a press release from Clinton's campaign. 'As a young woman, mother, advocate, First Lady and Senator, she has continually shown us she is passionate about improving family issues, healthcare, equal pay and the challenges that people all across this nation face on a daily basis,' King stated.
In Michigan, an anti-bullying measure that would also protect LGBT students has passed the State House, 365Gay.com reported. The bill was expected to sail through the House, which is controlled by the Democrats, but is expected to encounter substantially more trouble in the GOP-controlled House.
Arrests are mounting as the Soulforce Equality Ride makes its way across the country, according to 365Gay.com . On March 28, three riders were cuffed at Kentucky's the University of Cumberlands. Riders have also been arrested at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kentucky and Baylor University in Texas. The Equality Ride is attempting to speak with administrations at schools that have anti-LGBT policies.
Over a dozen faith-based investors in Abbott Laboratories have requested that the pharmaceutical giant not take away new drug applications from Thailand, according to a press release from Christian Brothers Investment Services ( one of the investors ) . Abbott withdrew several medications, including the HIV/AIDS drug Kaletra, after Thailand's government 'issued a compulsory license for non-commercial use within its public health system.
In California, We the People, Sonoma County's GLBT newspaper, has folded after 18 years, according to The Bay Area Reporter. The nonprofit community-owned corporation that publishes the newspaper will now produce a Web site, GaySonoma.com .
In Hamilton County, Tenn., a prison shower revealed that Alexander David Cross, a 42-year-old charged with statutory rape, is actually Elaine Ann Cross, Advocate.com reported. Cross has pled guilty to a charge of having sex with a 15-year-old girl as part of a deal with prosecutors.
Judy Dlugacz, founder and president of the lesbian travel company Olivia, has announced that Lisa R. Henderson has joined the company as general manager, according to a press release. Henderson, a founding member of several technology companies, will run the day-to-day operations.
In New Hampshire, an anti-same-sex marriage bill has been defeated in the state House, 365Gay.com reported. The Republican-based measure would have changed the state constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage, but Democrats called the bill discriminatory. The measure was defeated 233-124.
The National Black Justice Coalition recently held its second annual Black Church Summit in Philadelphia, according to Gay City News. About 150 people attended and heard ministers such as The Rev. Michael Eric Dyson and Bishop Yvette Flunder. In a speech entitled 'Theology of Homoeroticism, Dyson said, 'The closet is punishing because it is antithetical to the liberation of the spirit. We purchase love at the expense of our own self-recognition.'
In Michigan, a cousin of 72-year-old gay activist Andrew Anthos disagreed with a medical examiner's finding that Anthos died as a result of a fall. Anthos died on Feb. 23, days after being allegedly attacked by a man who followed him off a bus. Detroit police recently said that the case was closed.
First, it was Tim Hardaway with the inappropriate comments. Now, former NBA player and current Continental Basketball Association coach Micheal Ray Richardson has been suspended for anti-Semitic comments he made in a newspaper interview, Advocate.com reported. Among other things, Richardson said that he had employed 'big-time Jew lawyers.' Richardson also reportedly yelled an anti-gay slur at a heckler during a recent game.
