'I have a personal bug up my ass that gay history is not taught in the schools. Abraham Lincoln and George Washington were gay. It may be up to activists to ram this truth down the throats of America because gay historians are too timid to. Timidity is so boring, don't you agree?' — Writer and activist Larry Kramer in a speech marking the 20th anniversary of ACT UP, at the New York Lesbian and Gay Community Center, March 13.
'It's [ the UK Civil Partnership Act ] a thing that doesn't just give me a lot of pride, but it has actually brought a lot of joy. ... The change in culture and the civilizing effect of it has gone far greater than the gay and lesbian community. ... By taking a stand on this issue and by removing a piece of prejudice and discrimination, and by enabling people to stand proud as what they are, it has had an impact that I think is far more profound on the way the country thinks about itself.' — British Prime Minister Tony Blair addressing the Stonewall Equality dinner, March 22. Stonewall is the UK's leading gay lobby group.
'The country has come to accept stereotypical gay men—sardonic fellows with fussy hair who live in over-decorated apartments with a striped sofa and a small weird dog and who worship campy performers and go in for flamboyance now and then themselves. If they want to be accepted as couples and daddies, however, the flamboyance may have to be brought under control. Parents are supposed to stand in back and not wear chartreuse pants and black polka-dot shirts. That's for the kids. It's their show.' — Garrison Keillor, of A Prairie Home Companion fame, in a March 14 column syndicated by Tribune Media Services.
'Gays serve openly in the military in 23 of 26 NATO countries ( the United States, Turkey and Portugal are the exceptions ) . In Britain, senior officers predicted dire consequences when its gay ban was lifted in 2000. Several officers resigned in protest. So what happened? The experience has been so successful that the British military now recruits gays and offers partner benefits.' — USA Today editorial, March 14.
'I heard from a friend and fellow NLGJA member about the [ Queer Eye for the Straight Guy ] casting notice. I crashed on my friend's sofa in Hoboken. The show was billed as 'Will and Grace' meets 'Trading Spaces' meets Esquire magazine. I never thought I would get it, because 500 people auditioned and I had never even been in a school play. But oddly enough they were not overly fixated on looks, and they kept calling me back. We shot the pilot in July 2002 in Boston. We had no idea it was going to take off the way it did.' — Queer Eye for the Straight Guy food guy Ted Allen to Outlook, the quarterly magazine of the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, winter 2007 issue.
'I can't just print some random thing that somebody has sent me, because I really hold myself up to a journalistic standard. I don't want to print lies. I think that's why I get a lot of respect and recognition in the mainstream media, because I'm rarely wrong. The best sources are my friends. I have a lot of friends.' — Blogger Perez Hilton as quoted in Outlook, the quarterly magazine of the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, winter 2007 issue. He spoke at a symposium on celebrity journalismr.
'HRC is almost worthless and has been since the day it was born. I totally agree with Andrew [ Sullivan ] that it is a cash cow milking gullible gay men and women and providing scant evidence that it is money well-spent. Every once in a while they manage a minor victory in Washington but hardly one to merit their existence. I say this sadly. I'll tell you one thing: that they are able to corral so much money every year is scary. It's scary that so many of us believe they are doing good stuff. What are they seeing that I can't see? We are in worse shape in Washington than we have ever ever ever ever ever been. Washington is HRC's turf. I shudder.' — Writer and activist Larry Kramer to this column, March 20.
