Gay and Lesbian Connection

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the nation’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, issued the following statement today on the Florida federal court ruling to allow a gay-straight alliance (GSA) group to meet on school grounds. ??The ruling follows a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union in November 2006 after students at Okeechobee High School were denied access to meet on campus. U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore upheld his earlier ruling that GSAs do not interfere with Florida’s policy of abstinence-only education and, for the first time, held that schools must provide for the well-being of gay students.??In a statement from HRC Senior Youth & Campus Outreach Senior Manager Candace Gingrich said:??“The ruling makes it crystal clear that students have the absolute right to form Gay-Straight Alliances and that schools need to consider the welfare of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students. This is a victory for all students in Florida – not just those who are GLBT but for their straight allies and those with GLBT family members. ?

?“For too many GLBT students, school is not a place where they can feel comfortable or safe. Yazmin Gonzales, the student who attempted to form the GSA in this case said it perfectly, ‘You shouldn’t have to grow up feeling like you’re alone.’ Thanks to her bravery, a lot less GLBT students will feel that way.”

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Is Being Gay a Choice

Most professionals agree that sexual orientation and gender identity are not things that a person can change.

Though  we don’t know exactly what determines gender identity or sexual orientation we do know that neither can be attributed to any one, easily adjustable, factor.

Various groups claim to be able to change sexual orientation and gender identity through therapy. There is no scientific basis for these claims, and the success rate is very dubious. Often people in such programs emerge feeling bad about themselves, and experience guilt when they are not able to change.

Ultimately, what is much more important than trying to be someone who you aren’t, is learning to like the person who you are!

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ABC, FX Top GLAAD’s List

 

ABC and its drama “Brothers & Sisters” broke new ground when two gay characters married on the show, the first time that’s ever been done on a network primetime program, said the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). GLAAD today released its second annual GLAAD Network Responsibility Index, and it’s no surprise that ABC tops the list. The network has a history of addressing gay and lesbian issues and featuring gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender characters on its shows, reports GLAAD. Among cable networks evaluated, FX featured the largest number of LGBT-inclusive hours of original programming, while TNT offered the fewest.

 

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TUC (Trades Union Congress) General Secretary, Brendan Barber called on the Government to include lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) equality education in the school curriculum, as the only way to address homophobic bullying in schools.

Mr. Barber said that schools need to protect their pupils from homophobic bullying, and that promoting LGBT equality in the classroom is the best solution:

“While the UK’s education system ought to be in the vanguard of the fight against homophobic discrimination, all too often it is in fact part of the problem,” he says.

“Whereas our schools and colleges have done much to counter racism and sexism, the same cannot be said when it comes to tackling homophobia.

“Despite some notable exceptions, too many educational establishments are breeding grounds for the worst kind of casual prejudice.”

Referring to the Stonewall survey, The School Report, published last year, Mr. Barber continues: “A survey by Stonewall last year laid bare the huge scale of the problem.

“Indeed its shocking findings ought to act as a wake-up call to us all.  Almost all LGBT pupils reported hearing homophobic abuse.

“No less than two thirds reported being the victims of bullying.  And perhaps most alarming of all, one in six said they had been subjected to death threats.

“The consequences of all of this don’t just impact on academic attainment, which takes a pretty big hit. Don’t just impact on mental health, which is suffering as incidences of self-harm rise. But also on the self-esteem of young LGBT people, which is being shattered.

“And while 99 per cent of schools told the Stonewall survey they had general anti-bullying policies, just six per cent had anti-bullying policies that dealt with LGBT issues.

“That’s why the TUC has joined forces with the teaching unions, Stonewall and other LGBT groups to make LGBT equality education becomes a priority for Government.

“By working, campaigning and by lobbying, genuine progress can be made,” he concludes.

 

  

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The American Family Association, which condemns gay and lesbian family causes like marriage equality, has called for a boycott of fast-food chain restaurant McDonald’s.

 McDonald’s, however, has given the AFA notice that it’s not about to allow its policies to be dictated by anti-gay groups.

 In a letter to the AFA Pat Harris, Global Chief Diversity Officer for McDonald’s, wrote, “We treat our employees and our customers with respect and dignity, regardless of their ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or other factors. We support out employees’ personal involvement in organizations of their choice.”

 ”McDonald’s is a trusted and well-respected neighbor, employer and corporate citizen in communities across the U.S. We will continue to support our people and their right to live and work in an inclusive society.”

 

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WorldPride is scheduled to come to Jerusalem this August. Organized for the fourth consecutive year the city’s annual gay pride festival promises to be transformed into an event truly befitting what Jerusalem should be: a world city.

Five months from now, thousands of people from all over the world are expected to gather in Jerusalem, united by a vision of community instead of conflict, a celebration of diversity instead of the blind repetition of dogma.

Jerusalem’s gay and lesbian community is a unique example of people coming together beyond ethnic, religious, or national boundaries. Together, both gay Arabs and Jews, plan to make a global statement for love, tolerance, and pride.

 

 

 

 

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Most professionals agree that sexual orientation and gender identity are not things that a person can change.

Though we don’t know exactly what determines gender identity or sexual orientation, we do know that neither can be attributed to any one, easily adjustable, factor.

Various groups claim to be able to change sexual orientation and gender identity through therapy. There is no scientific basis for these claims, and the success rate is very dubious. Often people in such programs emerge feeling bad about themselves, and experience guilt when they are not able to change.

Ultimately, what is much more important than trying to be someone who you aren’t, is learning to like the person who you are!

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           I’m running for President to build an America that lives up to our founding promise of equality for all – a promise that extends to our gay brothers and sisters. It’s wrong to have millions of Americans living as second-class citizens in this nation. And I ask for your support in this election so that together we can bring about real change for all LGBT Americans.

Equality is a moral imperative. That’s why throughout my career, I have fought to eliminate discrimination against LGBT Americans. In Illinois, I cosponsored a fully inclusive bill that prohibited discrimination on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender identity, extending protection to the workplace, housing, and places of public accommodation. In the U.S. Senate, I have cosponsored bills that would equalize tax treatment for same-sex couples and provide benefits to domestic partners of federal employees. And as president, I will place the weight of my administration behind the enactment of the Matthew Shepard Act to outlaw hate crimes and a fully inclusive Employment Non- Discrimination Act to outlaw workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

As your President, I will use the bully pulpit to urge states to treat same-sex couples with full equality in their family and adoption laws. I personally believe that civil unions represent the best way to secure that equal treatment. But I also believe that the federal government should not stand in the way of states that want to decide on their own how best to pursue equality for gay and lesbian couples -whether that means a domestic partnership, a civil union, or a civil marriage. I support the complete repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Federal law should not discriminate in any way against gay and lesbian couples, which is precisely what DOMA does. I have also called for us to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and I have worked to improve the Uniting American Families Act so we can afford same-sex couples the same rights and obligations as married couples in our immigration system.

The next president must also address the HIV/AIDS epidemic. When it comes to prevention, we do not have to choose between values and science. While abstinence education should be part of any strategy, we also need to use common sense. We should have age-appropriate sex education that includes information about contraception. We should pass the JUSTICE Act to combat infection within our prison population. And we should lift the federal ban on needle exchange, which could dramatically reduce rates of infection among drug users. In addition, local governments can protect public health by distributing contraceptives.

We also need a president who’s willing to confront the stigma - too often tied to homophobia - that continues to surround HIV/AIDS. I confronted this stigma directly in a speech to evangelicals at Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church, and will continue to speak out as president.

That is where I stand on the major issues of the day. But having the right positions on the issues is only half the battle. The other half is to win broad support for those positions. And winning broad support will require stepping outside our comfort zone. If we want to repeal DOMA, repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and implement fully inclusive laws outlawing hate crimes and discrimination in the workplace, we need to bring the message of LGBT equality to skeptical audiences as well as friendly ones - and that’s what I’ve done throughout my career. I brought this message of inclusiveness to all of America in my keynote address at the 2004 Democratic convention. I talked about the need to fight homophobia when I announced my candidacy for President, and I have been talking about LGBT equality to a number of groups during this campaign - from local LGBT activists to rural farmers to parishioners at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where Dr. Martin Luther King once preached.

Just as important, I have been listening to what all Americans have to say. I will never compromise on my commitment to equal rights for all LGBT Americans. But neither will I close my ears to the voices of those who still need to be convinced. That is the work we must do to move forward together. It is difficult. It is challenging. And it is necessary.

Americans are yearning for leadership that can empower us to reach for what we know is possible. I believe that we can achieve the goal of full equality for the millions of LGBT people in this country. To do that, we need leadership that can appeal to the best parts of the human spirit. Join with me, and I will provide that leadership. Together, we will achieve real equality for all Americans, gay and straight alike.

 

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Equality Florida and the Safe Schools Coalition Celebrate Anti-Bullying Law Eight Years in the Making

Florida Becomes 36th State to Pass Anti-Bullying Law

After 8 years of effort on the part of hundreds of students, parents, educators and civil rights groups, The Florida Safe Schools Coalition celebrates the unanimous passage of a statewide anti-bullying bill.

According to Nadine Smith, Executive Director for Equality Florida, “The legislature has made clear that any school that fails to prevent and respond to anti-gay bullying and to protect every student will be in violation of this law and will face the consequences. We will hold them accountable.”

 

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More young people are coming out to themselves, earlier than ever before as gay and lesbian.  But this increasing awareness of their sexuality does not come without a host of problems.     Often they have to hide their sexual orientation from their peers, family members and others, which can leave them both socially and emotionally isolated.  Those who are not closeted may face discrimination, verbal or physical harassment.  That’s bad enough  but there seems to be an epidemic of homelessness among gay youth.  And recently ex-gay ministries have shifted their focus to young people.                                              So while coming out  is more prevalent today than it was 25 years ago, one thing hasn’t changed: the lives of gay youth can be difficult and challenging.      

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