Luis Modesto de la Vega and Roy Canizares, two Miami-Dade County men, were arrested Sept. 6 for allegedly defrauding the Medicare system out of $1.4 million in by altering the blood samples of HIV patients to make it appear that they needed expensive medications, according to The Washington Blade. They are accused of recruiting HIV patients to provide blood samples by offering them cash and Publix gift cards.
Caffyn Kelley is the architect behind www.QueerMap.com, which aims to show the cultural significance and social power of homosexuality by mapping queer meanings. Among other things, the site features a 'Dictionary of Symbols' that explores 35 recognizable homophobic stereotypes, including such terms as 'abnormal,' 'depraved,' 'lonely' and 'effeminate.'
In Oklahoma, Sheila Dawson, the mother of a 15-year-old boy, has accused the Grove School District of unjustly removing her son from school and spreading rumors that he carries the AIDS virus, The Washington Blade reported. Dawson, whose son now attends school in Missouri, said he is not HIV-positive. A school board member commented that the student was offered home-schooling or enrollment in an alternative academy.
Former New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey's The Confession is enjoying substantial success, ranking No. 3 in nonfiction hardcover sales in The New York Times book review in the Oct. 8 issue, the newspaper said. Also, the book ranked No. 1 in biography-autobiography and No. 4 in adult nonfiction based on first-week sales of 15,000 recorded by Nielsen BookScan U.S. ( McGreevey will be at Barnes & Noble, 1 E. Jackson, Oct. 4, 12:30 p.m. )
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has recently signed several pro-LGBT measures, according to press releases from Equality California. Among them was the Gwen Araujo Justice for Victims Act, which addresses the use of so-called 'panic defense' strategies. He also signed the Civil Rights Housing Act of 2006 ( which specifically bans discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation, among other things ) and the Code of Fair Campaign Practices Act.
The National Latino Congreso passed a resolution calling for equal rights and civil rights protections for all Latinos, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation, according to a GenderPAC press release. The Congreso convened Latino leaders, organizations and elected officials for the first national Latino meeting since 1977 as it focused on creating a long-term agenda and mobilizing the Latino community.
Researchers are seeking lesbians and bisexual women for a study on sexual functioning with breast cancer. It is a one-time mail survey and particpants receive $20 each for completing it. This study is being conducted by Boston University School of Public Health and is funded by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Fund. Call Brandy Allen at 617-638-5982 or 877-414-1399.
Members of the LGBT-rights organization Soulforce who were protesting against 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' were arrested in Spokane, Wash., and Little Rock, Ark., according to 365Gay.com . Three people were charged with trespassing at an enlistment office in Spokane when they held a sit-in and eight were arrested in Little Rock. So far more than 30 members of the group have been arrested for holding protest sit-ins.
More than 500 people rallied in a Palm Springs park Saturday to protest 'Love Won Out,' an ex-gay conference being held in nearby Indian Wells by Focus on the Family, according to 365Gay.com . One of the speakers at the rally was lesbian Palm Springs Councilwoman Ginny Foat, who told the crowd that there are choices in life. One of the speakers at the conference was Nancy Heche, mother of actress Anne Heche, who was once involved with Ellen DeGeneres.
AIDS Partnership Michigan and the Ruth Ellis Center, two Detroit health and social services agencies, will expand HIV testing and educational efforts among young Black males with almost $2 million in new federal funds over the next five years, The Detroit Free Press reported. The money will help pay for faster tests that give results in 20 minutes.
In Philadelphia, some parents are upset that the city's school district has designated October as Lesbian And Gay History Month, NBC10.com reported. One parent even responded, 'Gay and Lesbian Month? That's sexuality—that's a preference.' The school district also allows 20 gay and lesbian organizations to meet on various high school grounds after classes.
A report by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union ( ACLU ) shows that teenage girls in New York State prisons are being abused and neglected by state authorities—and that it is worse for lesbians, 365Gay.com noted. One girl, identified as Devon A., said in the report that ' [ i ] f you're gay they think you think you're a man, so they restrain you harder.
Laramie, Wyo., police have not figured out why University of Wyoming student Justin Ross Geiger, 20, went on a rampage July 16 in which he sexually assaulted his male roommate; killed a male and female student; and then took his own life, The Washington Blade stated. Surviving sexual assault victim Anthony Klochak, 19, has not provided any details of how Geiger, of South Beloit, Ill., sexually assaulted him. Autopsy results indicated that the victims and suspect had alcohol in their systems, but no other drugs were found.
A study led by Dr. Benigno Rodríguez of the Center for AIDS Research at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland found that using viral loads as a guideline for determining the rate of loss of infection-fighting CD4 cells was accurate in only five percent of cases, 365Gay.com reported. The results of the study, which involved 2,800 untreated HIV-positive patients, are in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The Georgia Court of Appeals ruled that a parent's custody or visitation rights cannot be limited just because that parent is gay or lesbian and lives with his or her partner, according to a Lambda Legal release. Victoria Moses and Kelvin King had a daughter together; after the couple split and Moses' partner moved into her home, King sued to change custody.
The 10th Annual Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) Dinner will take place in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 7 and will honor Billie Jean King, Frank Kameny and Mike Berman as well as couple Lance Bass and Reichen Lehmkuhl, according to a press release. Tickets may be reserved online at www.boxofficetickets.com or www.hrc.org/nationaldinner.
Speaking of the HRC, the organization issued a release praising the introduction of the bipartisan Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act into Congress; the measure was introduced by Senators Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., and Gordon Smith, R-Ore. The act would provide all federal employees with equal pay for equal work by extending family benefits to employees' same-sex partners.
Black civil-rights leader and academic Julian Bond has thrown his support behind same-sex marriage, an issue that distances him from conservative African-American leaders such as Bishop Eddie Long and T.D. Jakes, according to AOL Black Voices. Bond, who teaches at the University of Virginia and George Mason University, likens gay rights to civil rights and writes op-ed pieces on the right for gay marriage in newspapers and magazines.
The L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center sued the Internal Revenue Service ( IRS ) in U.S. District Court to force the IRS to release documents related to its allegedly discriminatory rejection of the center's application for non-profit status in the early 1970s, according to a press release from the center. More than a year after filing for federal 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) non-profit status in 1971, the IRS denied the application from the Gay Community Services Center ( as it was known then ) because it was not 'organized and operated exclusively for charitable and educational purposes.'
Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean will be the featured speaker at the 2006 Baltimore Gay Black Pride Pre-Black Out Party Reception on Oct. 6 at the Wyndham Baltimore Inner Harbour Hotel, according to an The International Federation of Black Prides ( IFBP ) press release. 'It is a very historic appearance, given this is the first time the chair of any national party system has addressed a Black gay audience specifically,' Earl Fowlkes, President/CEO of the IFBP and the IFBP Fund, issued in a statement.
The Holy Relationships Midwest Regional Conference—whose mission is to promote the full inclusion of sexual and gender identities in Christian churches—will take place in Iowa City on Oct. 20-22. Keynote speakers include Dr. Rita Nakashima Brock and the Rev. Dr. Mel White; 30 workshops include seminars on body image and sexual relationships. See www.holyrelationshipsmidwest.org .
In a development few might have predicted, the former psychic known as Miss Cleo has come out, according to Advocate.com . The woman, whose real name is Youree Dell Cleomili Harris, said that she was inspired to come out publicly by a teenage godson.
