'Over the past 10 years more than 10,000 personnel have been discharged as a result of ( Don't Ask, Don't Tell ) , including 800 with skills deemed 'mission critical,' such as pilots, combat engineers, and linguists. These are the very job functions for which the military has experienced personnel shortfalls. General John M. Shalikashvili, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1993 when the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy was enacted, no longer supports the policy because he now believes that allowing gay men and women to serve openly in the military would no longer create intolerable tension among personnel and undermine cohesion. A recent Zogby poll supports this view. It found that three-quarters of Afghanistan and Iraq veterans were comfortable interacting with gay people.' — Lawrence J. Korb, assistant secretary of defense under President Reagan, testifying before the House Committee on Armed Services, April 16.
'Under an Obama administration, the United States will lead by setting a strong example, which includes making clear that asylum for persecuted people is a bedrock principle of American and international law. Moreover, Obama will exert diplomatic pressure and employ other foreign policy tools to encourage other nations to address human rights abuses and atrocities committed against LGBT men and women.' — Statement from Barack Obama's campaign, April 21.
'Dean noted that he personally supports same-sex marriage, a position brought about by 'getting to know gay people' during and after his 2004 presidential campaign.' — From a March 28 Washington Blade story summarizing Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean's deposition in a wrongful-termination lawsuit brought by former DNC gay-outreach director Donald Hitchcock.
'I've never been one of the gay darlings; I've always been one of the pariahs. Myself, Sandra Bernhard and Scott Thompson from Kids in the Hall, we're all very good friends and we all consider ourselves to be gay pariahs. One year, in a pride parade, we put ourselves in a cage and put a sign on it saying 'gay pariahs.' We thought it was hilarious, but again, people just got really mad about it. You know—get a sense of humor.' — Comic/singer/actress Lea DeLaria to the Kansas gay magazine Liberty Press, April issue.
'I'm not sure I can sing 'Holiday' or 'Like a Virgin' ever again. I just can't—unless somebody paid me like $30 million or something. [ If ] some Russian guy wants me to come and sing 'Holiday' at his wedding that he's gonna have to a 17-year-old—you know it.' — Madonna in an appearance on New York City's WHTZ radio, March 27.
'I didn't fit into the popular group [ in high school ] . I wasn't a hippie or a stoner, so I ended up being the weirdo. I was interested in classical ballet and music, and the kids were quite mean if you were different. I was one of those people that people were mean to. When that happened, instead of being a doormat, I decided to emphasize my differences. I didn't shave my legs. I had hair growing under my arms. I refused to wear makeup, or fit the ideal of what a conventionally pretty girl would look like. So of course I was tortured even more, and that further validated my superiority, and helped me to survive.' — Madonna to Vanity Fair, April issue.
'I used to think that you could blog and you could sort of say anything and nobody would know, but really everybody knows.' — Friend-of-gays comedian Margaret Cho to the Portland, Ore., gay newspaper Just Out, April 4.
—Assistance: Bill Kelley
