fabulis, the online social network that connects gay men with experiences nearby and around the world, has announced the worldwide availability of its iPhone app. The fabulis iPhone app enhances the fabulis.com website experience, which has gained more than 53,000 members since it first launched April 23. The app has five main features, including "Shake It," which allows the user to shake the iPhone from any part of app and pull up a random profile.
In California, Clay Greene and the estate of Harold Scull, Greene's deceased partner of 20 years, reached a settlement with the County of Sonoma and other defendants, with the county agreeing to pay $653,000, according to a press release from the National Center for Lesbian Rights. In April 2008, county employees separated the couple after Scull fell outside the home he and Greene had shared for two decades. Even though the county had executed both mutual powers of attorney for medical and financial decisions, the county kept them apart; Scull passed away in August 2008.
Nathan Quinones—who helped establish New York City's LGBT-inclusive Harvey Milk High School—has died of a stroke at age 79, according to the New York Times. Quinones was chancellor of the city's school system in the mid-1980s and pushed for higher academic standards; however, he was ousted later that decade at the behest of public officials.
South Bend, Ind.'s, Common Council has voted to table an ordinance that would ban discrimination in the area of employment against LGBT people, according to the South Bend Tribune. Councilmember Oliver Davis, who was a sponsor of the measure, asked for a continuance when he realized he would not get a majority vote from the nine-member governing body. At the July 26 meeting, opponents of the bill wore stickers that stated "SPECIAL STATUS = SPECIAL RIGHTS," while supporters wore buttons labeled "30-10 YES!"—a reference to the ordinance's number.
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., has continued to push for the Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) to overturn its ban on gay men giving blood, according to a press release from his office. During he FDA's Blood Products Advisory Committee's July 26 hearing to review recent recommendations by the Health and Human Services Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability, Kerry provided testimony, arguing that it was possible to maintain the safety of the nation's blood supply without needlessly discriminating against gay donors. The FDA currently forbids men from donating blood if they have had sex with another man since 1977.
In Hawaii, six gay and lesbian couples seeking equality have sued the state, according to Advocate.com . The lawsuit has been filed only weeks after Gov. Linda Lingle vetoed a civil-unions measure that the state legislature had passed. The couples are not seeking marriage rights; instead, they want equal rights and responsibilities for same-sex couples, who are among those currently receiving a limited number of rights called reciprocal beneficiaries.
In Tennessee, Memphis City Council member Janis Fullilove has received several death threats and had a dead cat left on her lawn in the wake of her effort to prohibit sexual orientation-based discrimination in city government, according to WREG.com . Fullilove contacted the Tennesse Equality Project's Jonathan Cole, who said, "She essentially said that they were threatening to kill her. It's scary and our city needs to stand up to this kind of ugliness." Police are closely monitoring Fullilove and her family.
The Los Angeles County ( Calif. ) sheriff's office has said that there have been several sightings of Mitrice Richardson—a lesbian who has been missing for almost a year after police released her in Malibu, Calif.—in Las Vegas, Nev., according to Advocate.com . Michael Richardson, the father of 25-year-old Mitrice, said that there have been approximately 80 sightings of her. After Mitrice went missing, authorities reportedly found evidence in her diaries and text messages that suggested she is bipolar.
More than 60 U.S. rabbis have signed a declaration urging Jewish communities to be more accepting of LGBT people, according to Pink News. The declaration states that Jewish laws prohibit same-gender sexual acts and gay marriage, but askes leaders and believers to have "dignity and respect" for gay people.
Transgender man Thomas Beatie's third child is due any day, according to On Top Magazine. Beatie's first child, Susan, was born two years ago; Austin was born last year. Beatie, who was a beauty queen as a female, had gender-reassignment surgery eight years ago, but decided to keep his reproductive sexual organs. Beatie has been married to Nancy, a divorcee and mother of two, since 2003.
In California, the Palm Springs City Council unanimously supported a policy introduced by Police Chief David Dominguez that would use fewer decoys and more marked police vehicles in stings, according to the Desert Sun. Last year, a controversial gay sex sting resulted in the arrests of 24 men; 19 were charged with indecent exposure, which could put them on a sex-offenders list even though it's a misdemeanor.
***
The Arcus Foundation and the National Black Justice Coalition ( NBJC ) recently hosted a telebriefing for traditional civil-rights organizations and LGBT-rights advocates to improve their outreach and impact around LGBT issues in the African-American community, according to a press release. Panelists included Michael A. Blake, deputy associate director, White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement; and NBJC Executive Director Sharon J. Lettman, among others. A full copy of the report is available at www.arcusfoundation.org/assets/PDF/african_amer_report.pdf.
The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy has announced the availability of approximately $2.3 million in funding for the Add Us In initiative, which will fund up to four cooperative agreements with allotments ranging from $500,000 to $625,000 each, according to a press release. The initiative is designed to increase the ability of companies to employ individuals with disabilities, particularly businesses owned and operated by African-Americans; Asian-Americans; Latino or Hispanic Americans; members of federally recognized tribes and Native Americans; LGBT individuals; and women.
The New Jersey Supreme Court has refused to hear a case in which six same-sex couples claimed the state denied them rights granted to opposite-sex couples, according to Philly.com . The court voted 3-3—one vote short of what is needed for a motion to be granted. The couples must argue through the lower courts. In a statement, Garden State Equality called the decision "profoundly disappointing" but concluded, "rather than a definitive defeat, today's decision is a punt. The punt is frustrating as hell to our families in pain and to an entire people yearning for freedom, but it is a punt, and far from a final decision."
In Alaska, three same-sex couples have sued the state and the municipality of Anchorange, claiming that they denied them equal access to property tax exemptions that disabled veterans and senior citizens receive, according to Advocate.com . ACLU of Alaska lawyer Tom Stenson said, "Alaska law is clear that denying committed same-sex couples the same rights as married opposite-sex couples is unconstitutional."
The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) has urged Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, Ind., to immediately adopt an LGBT-inclusive patient nondiscrimination policy and staff training after a transgender woman claimed biased treatment, according to a press release. On July 18, transgender woman Erin Vaught went to Ball's emergency room, accompanied by her wife and their son, seeking treatment for what she suspected was a lung infection. According to the Muncie Star Press, staff members repeatedly degraded Vaught. At one point, Vaught's wife was allegedly asked by a nurse, "So is it a he or a she? Or a he-she?" In the end, after a two-hour wait without any medical treatment, Vaught was told "we don't know how to go about treating someone with your condition," referring to her gender history.
In Texas, Father Michael Rodriguez said that Catholics should oppose same-sex marriage, On Top Magazine reported. Rodriguez, parish priest of El Paso's San Juan Bautista Catholic Church, said in an editorial in the El Paso Times that " [ a ] ny Catholic who supports homosexual acts is, by definition, committing a mortal sin, and placing himself/herself outside of communion with the Roman Catholic Church." Recently, a lesbian couple married in San Antonio after El Paso officials rejected them.
