Transsexual golfer Mianne Bagger is hoping that the International Olympic Committee's recent ruling that transsexual players can compete as their assigned gender will open doors for her to play on the ladies' tours in Europe and the U.S. She has written to Ladies' European Tour chief executive Ian Randell asking that the rule stating players must be female at birth (nice) be changed. Bagger, 37, has also contacted the tours in America and Australia saying that now the International Olympic Committee have decreed transsexuals can compete at the Olympics, it is time golf followed suit.

Telegraph

Filed in: Transgender | LINK

Jayne, who has no last name, apparently, says people such as Australian sex-change-wanting serial killer Paul Denyer make life even more difficult for people like her. A transsexual who has lived as a woman for the past nine years, Jayne was released from men's jail a week ago after serving a three-year sentence for armed robberies. She thought the men's side would be less difficult for her than living with female inmates. When she received an unsolicited letter from Denyer in Barwon Prison late last year, she admits to being curious but now thinks "He shouldn't be given anything. He treats the whole thing as a joke, and it's an insult to the families of his victims, to me and to all females."

Herald Sun (photo)

Filed in: Transgender | LINK

A deeply divided gathering of the nation's mayors could not reach consensus earlier this week on a proposed resolution opposing a federal constitutional ban on gay marriage. The U.S. Conference of Mayors voted 46-44 to table the resolution, and an attempt to revive it was also defeated, 47-45. Stamford, Connecticut, Mayor Dannel Malloy, a Democrat running for governor in that state and an opponent of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, said he believed the mayors wanted to avoid the issue in a year many of them are seeking re-election.

Yahoo! News

Filed in: Gay | LINK

A University of California study of gay and bisexual young men in Phoenix, Austin, and Albuquerque found that during a six-month period, over a third reported experiencing anti-gay harassment, 5 percent reported anti-gay violence and 11 percent reported anti-gay discrimination. "Our study is one of the first to use a large multi-ethnic sample to document experiences of anti-gay mistreatment over a specific time frame. One of the most alarming aspects of our findings is that those who experience violence and harassment reported lower self esteem and were twice as likely to report having thought seriously about suicide," said the study's lead author, David M. Huebner. The study will appear in the July 1, 2004, issue of the American Journal of Public Health.

EurekAlert

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Columbus, Ohio, Mayor Michael Coleman's administration has quietly arranged to make health insurance coverage available to the domestic partners of city employees - something that caused a stir of controversy six years ago. This time, a vote of City Council wasn't required because the city doesn't pay anything. Starting Friday, the city will offer a new carrier for supplemental, voluntary insurance for any of its 8,000 employees who want health insurance for their unmarried partners - gay or straight. It's on top of what the city supplies, and the employee picks up all of the cost.

ONN

Filed in: Gay | LINK

In London, to protest the commercialism of Gay Pride (remember when no companies would advertise to us?), organizers will hold Gay Shame, the ninth "annual festival of homosexual misery," provocatively scheduled on the same day as Big Gay Out, the official Pride party in London's Finsbury Park.
"We've always been a counterpoint to the rainbow-flag, tight-T-shirt culture of Pride," says Gay Shame hostess Amy Lamé. "We started out when it was still free; now Pride charges you £25 to be marketed at. I hate the way the gay identity has been co-opted by commercial interests. ... I think we're heading for a big crash."

Guardian Unlimited

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Opponents of gay marriage said Tuesday they will submit more than 400,000 signatures to state elections officials next week to place the issue before Michigan voters in the fall. The group counted 324,000 signatures over the weekend and has been inundated with more since then, anti-gay organizers say. Detroit Free Press

In North Carolina, Senate Republicans said Tuesday they are two signatures short of forcing a vote on whether to send to the Senate floor a proposed state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. GOP leaders, unhappy that their proposal is stuck in committee, said last week they would circulate a petition seeking to remove the bill from the panel and bring to a floor vote whether it should be debated by the full Senate. So far, no dice. Myrtle Beach Online

Battles over gay marriage in Michigan and North Carolina

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Homophobic bullying in schools is to be targeted by Waltham Forest Council.
The council will be surveying 25 percent of students this fall, questioning them about bullying, including homophobic abuse. Last year there were 217 reported incidents of racist bullying in schools but more information was needed about the extent of homophobic attacks, said social inclusion and behaviour support manager Dawn Gill. "All children should feel safe and able to express themselves openly," she said. "Boys particularly can be targeted by their peers for being homosexual using it as a way of abusing and intimidating. It is something that is common in schools throughout Britain and it is a facet of bullying Waltham Forest wants to deal with."

Waltham Forest Guardian

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Guess what! Queer Day is one year old today! After more than 5,300 news stories shared from all over the world and more than 400,000 visitors, we kind of feel like the little website that could. Queer Day has certainly been a labor of love for both of us - and Stephen on the weekends - and we sincerely hope you've enjoyed it.

Philo, Nancy and Stephen

Filed in: | LINK

A federal appeals court rejected an attempt today by conservative groups and state lawmakers to stop gay marriage in Massachusetts. The plaintiffs had argued that Massachusetts' high court usurped the power of the Legislature - and thereby violated the U.S. Constitution - when it ruled last year that gay couples are entitled to wed. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed and said the appropriate way to contest the state court ruling is by amending the Massachusetts Constitution - a long process already under way. The Florida-based Liberty Counsel, which launched the lawsuit, said it would appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Kansas City Star

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Lambda Legal has sued Foot Locker Inc. on behalf of a former employee in Columbia, South Carolina, who was harassed by supervisors and co-workers because of his sexual orientation, his attorneys said Tuesday. "Kevin Dunbar was subjected to a nightmarish workplace and then fired because he is gay," said attorney Greg Nevins. The lawsuit claims Foot Locker did not follow its own anti-harassment policy as defined in the employee handbook - Foot Locker includes sexual orientation in its anti-discrimination policies. Dunbar was transferred to three different stores after he complained to managers that co-workers were calling him names in front of customers. One manager told him: "I don't want your faggot ass in my store." Dunbar wrote a formal complaint, which company policy says must be kept confidential. Dunbar's manager called the district manager and then read the complaint in front of customers and Dunbar's co-workers.

The State

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Gays and lesbians moved a step closer toward ordination in the Presbyterian church today after a legislative committee approved a measure that would partially lift the church's ban on gay ministers. The proposal will go before the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) national legislative assembly for a full vote later this week. If passed, it would allow individual churches to dismiss a 1978 interpretation of church law that prohibits gays from being ordained as ministers, elders or deacons. Gays and lesbians in relationships could still be barred from ordination under a separate church law passed in 1997, but liberals said removal of the "Authoritative Interpretation" would be a major step toward full inclusion for gays in the church.

Daily Press

Filed in: Gay | LINK

In New Zealand, former Queer Nation television presenter and self-styled paparazzi Jonathan Marshall has denied "setting up" a Takapuna Grammar School teacher who is facing drugs charges for distributing crystal methamphetamine. Marshall, who now describes himself as a licensed private investigator, was one of four provided with the drug by David Norman Arthur. A videotape taken at the party by Arthur is to be played to the jury. The jury has heard that the tape was removed from his home without Arthur's permission by two of the four young people, William Barling and Alexandre (Sasha) Kouznetsov. The whole scenario is front-page news in New Zealand right now.

NZ Herald

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Overriding another of New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's vetoes, the City Council voted yesterday to require that companies doing business with the city offer equal benefits to the domestic partners of their employees. The override, approved by 41 of the Council's 51 members, clears the way for New York to join a handful of other large cities that require businesses seeking municipal contracts to extend to same-sex couples the same family health insurance benefits provided to other workers. Alan Van Capelle, executive director of the Empire State Pride Agenda, a gay and lesbian civil rights group, called yesterday "the greatest day ever" for same-sex couples in New York.

New York Times

Filed in: Gay | LINK

In Rapid City, South Dakota, city councilman Tom Murphy drew the attention of the Westboro hate clan when he announced his plans to have a sex-change operation. Murphy praised the community for its support during two days of protests by those who called him an abomination in the eyes of God. "I was very proud of Rapid City in the way people conducted themselves," said Murphy. "They showed they were independent thinkers and don't like what this group represents. ... I think Rapid City actually won out on hate," Murphy said a few hours after the picketers left town, taking their "God Hates Fags" signs with them. Murphy confronted the group with peaceful criticism at most locations Sunday and Monday and was joined by others promoting tolerance.

Aberdeen News

Filed in: Transgender | LINK

In Liverpool, a lesbian who could not admit her sexuality to her family was stabbed to death by her ex-lover, a court heard today. The Liverpool crown court jury was told that Tracie Grundy, 40-years-old and a mother of one, murdered her on-again off-again girlfriend Nicola Edge, knifing her in the neck. Grundy and Edge lived together for two years until January 2003 when their relationship deteriorated and Grundy had an affair with another woman. On New Year's Day the two argued, Grundy asked Edge to leave, then she fetched a knife from the kitchen, went into the bedroom and stabbed her. Witnesses have testified this occurred, but Grundy has told detectives she can't recall any of it happening.

ic Liverpool

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

A Cook County judge set bail Monday for three young gay men accused of fighting with police. The melee which took place at Chicago's Gay Pride Parade on Sunday was actually a brawl between gay rights activists and a group carrying anti-gay signs. Supporters of the three activists taken into custody insisted yesterday that police arrested the wrong people. "We find it outrageous that gay people who were there in support of their own day were arrested and targeted instead of the people who, frankly, were trying to bust up our parade," said Andy Thayer, a spokesman for The Chicago Anti-Bashing Network. Robert David Bernstine, 17, of Oak Park, Jeremy A. Hammond, 19, and Neal A. Rysdahl, 21, both of Chicago, are all charged with aggravated battery to a police officer, resisting arrest and reckless conduct, prosecutors said.

Chicago Sun-Times

Filed in: Gay | LINK

We told you yesterday about the pride parade in Conway, Arkansas. What we didn't know is that organizers of the gay pride parade awoke to find their parade route covered in cow manure. Police said the dump-truck load was spread at about 6:30 a.m. and authorities are investigating and criminal mischief and littering charges could be filed. City workers scooped and rinsed the manure from the route and it was cleaned up in time for the event. The parade attracted about 275 marchers in the town of 26,000 north of Little Rock. Protesters along the route heckled the marchers and held signs such as "Sodomy is a Sin that God forgives If We Repent."

Seattle P.I.

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Homosexuality and transsexuality continue to be punishable offenses in 70 countries around the world, Amnesty International says. Of the 70 countries that punish homosexuality, nine punish it by death and Amnesty says that in 2002, "Saudi Arabia condemned 44 people and executed four for the crime of homosexuality." The majority of countries that persecute gays are in Africa and Asia, noting that Nicaragua is the only country in the Americas where homosexuality is still officially a punishable crime.

Hindustan Times

Filed in: Gay | Transgender | LINK

At 6 feet 6, Michelle Van Gorp stood out among women, even female basketball players. On Friday, she stood out again, but for reasons having more to do with her heart than her height. Van Gorp, a center on the Minnesota Lynx basketball team, said she's a lesbian, and representatives of Twin Cities gay and lesbian groups cheered. She didn't call a news conference or send out press releases. She simply answered questions about her sexuality from a reporter for Lavender magazine, a voice of the gay and lesbian community. The article appeared Friday. "It's not anything I ever hid,'' Van Gorp said. "I'm not coming out; I've been out for a long time.''

St. Paul Pioneer Press

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

ITV has been cleared of any breach of programming guidelines over the gay relationship storyline on "Coronation Street" that ran for two months over April and May, which whipped up a tabloid frenzy by the way. A total of 89 viewers complained about the plot, which saw Todd Grimshaw come to the realization that he was attracted to men while living with his pregnant fiancee Sarah Platt.

Brand Republic

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Speaking of tabloid stories, even if this one is in Marie Claire, "The Sizzlers Killer Was My Fiancé" tells the story of a woman who was going to marry Adam Woest, who stands accused in the execution-style massacre of 9 gay men at Sizzlers, a gay club in South Africa. She says that Woest knew some of the men and that his brother is gay, so she was quite shocked to hear police say they believed he was involved. "I couldn't imagine Adam doing something like that, let alone killing people we knew," she says.

IOL

Filed in: Gay | LINK

It was at the annual gay pride march in San Francisco that Stanford biology professor Joan Roughgarden had her epiphany. That day in 1997, after spending her first 52 years as Jonathan Roughgarden, she wanted to walk alongside a float created by a transgender support group. As people streamed by her, they seemed to be a piece of biological evidence, proof that diversity was part of nature's plan. Roughgarden, a leading researcher in her field whose controversial new book "Evolution's Rainbow -- Diversity, Gender and Sexuality in Nature and People" deals with issues that cross the wide divide from science to politics and morality. "All those people being pathologized. From a biological ecologist's point of view that is ridiculous." More than 300 species of vertebrates have sex with the same gender.

SF Gate (photo)

Filed in: Transgender | LINK

Beginning next spring, Michigan State University will award scholarships in the memory of slain lesbian teen Sakia Gunn. The awards will be given to student activists who work with issues relevant to students of color who are also a part of the lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender community. Fifteen-year-old Sakia, of New Jersey, was stabbed to death after telling a man who tried to pick up on her and her friends that she was a lesbian. LaJoya Johnson said the scholarship is a way to draw light to a growing community of people identifying with more than one minority group. "I felt like the media wasn't paying enough attention to Sakia's death because she's African American and a lesbian," said Johnson.

The State News

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

In Indian film, first there was "Fire," and then came "Girlfriend." But in between, there were a few lesser-publicized efforts to chart the course of the lesbian movement in India. And a small but significant contribution came from rather unexpected quarters — three student film-makers from a Calcutta college, with their debut, "Cinders." Anahita Sahney, Ankita Dhariwal and Poonam Khara researched their story and based the 25-minute piece on a suicide note by a woman, talking about how she and her children's nanny had been brutalized by her husband, because of their relationship. Only in their film, she becomes an activist, not a statistic.

The Telegraph (photos)

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

When Keith Boykin describes himself as "one of America's leading commentators on race and sexual orientation," he's not bragging. Currently president of the National Black Justice Coalition, an organization established late last year to marshal African American support for same-sex marriage rights, Boykin has become the face and voice of a movement that some see as a logical extension of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, and that others see as its usurpation.

NCM

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Two young men dressed in little more than belts adorned with fabric fruit leaves and matching head-dresses in recognition of the "Bursting with Fruit Flavours" theme of Toronto’s Pride Week stand out as symbols of a universal quest for gay rights. Ramon, 28, and his best friend Gianfranco, 20, both originally from Colombia, were part of the Hola Latino group, near the lead of Toronto's lesbian and gay pride parade. "For me, it’s amazing because you know, in my country, it is like, really difficult to do it," said Gianfranco, who left his homeland to live in Toronto. "Here, it’s really, really nice, and you can enjoy yourself." "It’s amazing," agreed Ramon. "I think Toronto ... needs more of these activities."

Fort Frances Times

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Earlier this week, we told you about a South African website that advocated castrating gay men. Well, it seems to have disappeared over TOS violations. In South Africa, they're actually called AUP violations - meaning Acceptable Use Policy. Anyways, no one seems to know exactly who pulled the plug, but everyone seems to be glad it's gone. Host Sprocket Data's director of operations Jeff Johnston said: "We don't censor content at all; we say we want everybody to play nicely on the Internet."

IOL

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Usually quiet Hampton Roads, Virginia, gays have had enough. A new law that will outlaw all contracts among people of the same sex, including business ventures, wills and child custody arrangements, goes into effect next week. "Our community hasn't galvanized like this before over a cause," said Keith Flippen , a local actor and television producer. "We see this as a direct assault on our futures in the state of Virginia. It's a slap in the face. There comes a time when you have to say, 'Enough, no.'" To us it seems pretty clear that time is now.

Virginian-Pilot

Filed in: Gay | LINK

A Scottish education official branded "utterly unconvincing" by a sheriff who heard he was assaulted and robbed after rejecting an offer of gay sex has resigned. Fraser Macpherson, 41 and married to a woman, was criticized at the trial of the man accused of assault and robbery. Macpherson insists he went into a secluded area not to have sex with the man, but to have a word with him after the man offered him money for sex. We're branding Macpherson as "utterly unconvincing" as well. Anyways, the assault charges against Thomas Paterson, 20, didn't stick. Paterson was convicted of theft though.

The Herald

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Supporters of a gay marriage ban in Oregon pressured people into signing petitions and failed to witness voters' signatures, according to complaints filed Monday by a Portland-based gay rights group. Basic Rights Oregon says it has been monitoring the petition drive by the Defense of Marriage Coalition for weeks, watching for violations of election law. But a spokesman for the Portland-based Coalition said volunteers have been careful to follow the rules, calling the complaints "insulting and inflammatory."

Statesman Journal

Filed in: Gay | LINK

A libel suit arising out of Friskopp and Silverstein's highly charged parental rights dispute was thrown out by the Fourth District Court of Appeal. The prominent and allegedly often volative San Diego lesbian couple are the authors of "Straight Jobs Gay Lives: Gay and Lesbian Professionals, The Harvard Business School, and the American Workplace." The two have fought for nearly five years over custody of the two children Silverstein had through artificial insemination using sperm from an anonymous donor. Friskopp claimed defamation in a letter Silverstein wrote to the gay and lesbian center and gay press claiming Friskopp was "a convicted perpetrator of domestic violence against me, (and she) has made repeated false accusations of child abuse and neglect against me."

Metropolitan News-Enterprise

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

Martha Juillerat served as pastor of her small Presbyterian church in rural Minnesota for 15 years until she came out as a lesbian and was forced to step down. She urged fellow Presbyterians who gathered Monday at the church's national legislative assembly to lift the ban on ordaining gays and lesbians as ministers, elders and deacons in the church. "Sometimes it is more than I can bear that this church has decided to discriminate against an entire class of people," Juillerat urged a committee considering a proposal to eliminate the ban. "I know that this church can do better." Others say younger people are leaving the church because of the anti-gay rule.

620ktar

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

A hotly debated bill that would bolster the rights of same-sex couples is part of the erosion of values turning New Zealand into a "moral wasteland," the country's top Catholic official says. Catholic Archbishop Cardinal Thomas Williams likened reforming politicians to "modern barbarians" who aim to "tear down existing standards, and to debase ideals that have come to characterise a society built on sound moral principle." Prime Minister Helen Clark called the cardinal's views "sad."

news.com.au

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Jim and Diane Senior expect to take some heat from members of the community, but supporting and being proud of their lesbian daughter Ann is more important.
Maybe the loss of their son in an auto accident made them even more aware of how precious their children are and the importance of sharing in their lives. Maybe that's why Jim is now a co-owner of Diesel, a lesbian bar opened by his daughter in Des Moines, Iowa. Jim says the bar ownership came about when a lesbian hangout in Des Moines called Dolly's closed, leaving gay women with no place to congregate.

Daily Iowegian

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

David Antoine's coming out last year did not exactly fill his family with pride. A few months shy of his high school graduation, his mother told him to pack his bags and he was suddenly out on the icy streets of Brooklyn. Brian Murray is still trying to find his place in what is known as the gay community. A good night is the soft bed of a stranger and $100 in the morning. A bad night is an empty stomach, a park bench and the rousing jolt of a nightstick on his bare feet as he is ordered to move on. "Being homeless is not exactly conducive to dating," he says with a shrug. "These days, I'm not feeling very prideful."

New York Times (photo)

Filed in: Gay | LINK

When Europeans first arrived in the Americas, they found men engaged in erotic entanglements virtually on the quayside. They responded with the horror their religion had implanted in them, holding out their bibles and shouting "Abomination! Devilry! Witchcraft!" The problem was they found the same thing almost everywhere they set foot in East Asia too. China and Japan both looked on this kind of activity with a cool shrug of the shoulders. But as European colonizination gathered force so did hangings, disembowelment by mastiffs and burning people alive. Luis Crompton, in his new book "Homosexuality and Civilization," researches gay history in great detail.

Taipei Times

Filed in: Gay | LINK

In Kolkata, India, 300 gay and lesbian people braved cold stares and sneers from bystanders to walk through the traditionalist city in support of the rights of India's sexual minorities. They ignored the unsympathetic stares and comments and walking on silently, at times stopping only to hand out fliers that spoke of the need to recognize homosexuality. "This march is to tell the civil society about people like us, that we exist in this society and that homosexuals are among our brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, friends, neighbours... everywhere," Rafiquel Haque Dowjah said, chief of the gay advocacy group Integration Society. Homosexuality is still illegal in India based on a British colonial law.

New Kerala

Filed in: Gay | LINK

In Australia, the mother of a Melbourne man found dead in a boat says she wants to clear her son's name. Authorities said 28-year-old George Karalis murdered his 32-year-old cousin six years ago while on a boating trip, that the pair were lovers and that Karalis then hung himself. Helen Karalis denies her son was in a homosexual relationship, saying both men were involved with women. Whether that's true or not, what does seem clear is new evidence that police failed to perform the most basic investigative processes at the time. Former Victorian homicide detective Steven Curnow told the court it was clear that both men were murdered.

ABC Australia

Filed in: Gay | LINK

San Francisco Pride still had its traditional leather-clad legions and dramatic drag queens, but it featured marchers even more radical -- married same-sex couples. Gay and lesbian newlyweds hoisting poster-sized reproductions of their marriage licenses had a starring role at San Francisco's 34th annual parade. They were joined by Mayor Gavin Newsom and others who helped promote same-sex unions in the history-making wedding march at City Hall earlier this year. Newsom received the kind of reception usually reserved for movie stars.

Monterey Herald

Filed in: Gay | Lesbian | LINK

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg waved the rainbow flag during Sunday's gay and lesbian rights parade, but he's not quite ready to carry that banner into Madison Square Garden during the Republican National Convention. Bloomberg says he won't use his position as convention host to tout his mostly liberal social stances. "The delegates to the convention would be the ones who express themselves. My job is to be a host," he said.

Newsday

Filed in: Gay | LINK

In Conway, Arkansas, Gay Pride went on as planned, although a few protesters did turn out to "voice God's opinion," as one humbly put it. Last week, a council member tried to pass a resolution condemning the parade but couldn't get a second for the motion. The council never considered it, leaving dozens of Conway residents very upset. (!)

KATV

Filed in: Gay | LINK

With his finger on the trigger of a fluorescent water gun, Mark Johnson turned to the skies. "As long as the sun is out," he said, "it'll be a perfect day for a water fight." His instrument of choice at Toronto Pride was an EX Power 630 water cannon. According to Johnson, the pump-action device has great distance, decent volume and "surprisingly good" water capacity. "It's got an impressive look, but it's a bitch to carry." Though clearly preoccupied with dousing spectators, the 21-year-old's official duty was to represent Wave, a queer youth support group.

The Star (photo)

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Just when you thought Big Brother producers must be running out of twists and turns to keep viewers hooked, enter bisexual singer Becki Seddiki. The 33-year-old North Londoner was introduced to the house yesterday afternoon in a bid to liven up the Channel 4 show. She said she had been a Big Brother contestant in Italy, but soon confessed she was bluffing and was actually English. The surprise arrival lifted the mood of her nine housemates, who have endured an alcohol ban since a brawl ten days ago which led to the ouster of bisexual contestant Emma.

This is London

Filed in: Bisexual | LINK

Sharon Spina, who wants to have her 22-year marriage annulled because her husband is now living as a woman, is taking her case to the Kentucky Court of Appeals. Actually, she wants it annulled because her family is rich and a divorce would make her share some of her stuff. Paul Spina, now Paula, was general counsel and a corporate officer in Sharon's family business, which owns a number of car dealerships and saw revenue last year in the neighborhood of $400 million.

Kentucky.com

Filed in: Transgender | LINK

Columnist Annette John-Hall, who is African American, was a little nervous when she found her husband, not exactly a devotee of the New York Times Bestseller list, reading J.L. King's "On the Down Low: A Journey Into the Lives of 'Straight' Black Men Who Sleep With Men." She asked him why he was reading the book. "Rahsaan, Jaida and Nia," he replied. "He was speaking of our three children," John-Hall says. "The more we can engage them in an informed conversation about the consequences of having unprotected sex, of the importance of taking responsibility, of just knowing what's going on in the world, the better. We may be reluctant to talk about it as a community, my husband argued, but as a family a 'down-low' discussion could save our kids' lives."

FortWayne.com

Filed in: Gay | LINK

For Suann Serra, the issue of gay marriage hits a lot closer to home than for most in Charlestown, South Carolina. She's a lesbian, and that idiot on the city council railing about gay marriage is unfortunately her brother, Richard "Rippy" Serra. "I think what the gay community is asking for is the same rights every heterosexual person has," says Suann Serra. "It is sad that with all the tragedy of war, homelessness, and violence in the world that people feel the need to condemn others for who they love," she said. "It is even sadder when it is your own family member who is doing the condemning."

Westerly Sun

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK

New Zealand legislator Janet Mackey is sorry she said the Civil Union Bill had been hijacked by gay ministers of Parliament, Prime Minister Helen Clark said today. Mackey did not vote when the bill had its first reading, then accused gay MPs of hijacking the legislation and making it into their own issue. Um, isn't it? Anyway, "I think she is sorry that she has made those comments," Clark told NewstalkZB today. Apparently Mackey made her remark to newspaper reporters, but didn't think they'd print it.

Stuff

Filed in: Gay | LINK

A gay federal prison inmate in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, has dropped a lawsuit that sought to force prison officials to allow him to send letters to his partner of 18 years, who is jailed in the same prison. Kerry Dean Shotsberger, who is serving a sentence at the Federal Correctional Institute-Loretto for bank fraud, sued twice this year challenging federal prison rules that keep inmates from corresponding unless they are married or immediate family. Shotsberger claimed that his 18-year relationship with his partner was tantamount to being a common-law couple or immediate family. A judge denied his request and said he was welcome to try to get the Legislature to legalize same sex marriage. But he can't write to them, either.

CentreDaily.com

Filed in: Gay | LINK

Lesbianism in the UK armed forces and the police in the 1940s and 1950s was tacitly encouraged by the authorities because it was regarded as preferable to seeing trained women become pregnant and leave the job. New research into lesbians in uniform has revealed that women in the police could often set up home together in shared rooms in police accommodation. 'There is no doubt that some women were drawn by the cliches about lesbians in uniform,' said researcher Rebecca Jennings, who drew on personal accounts of lesbians from the time. 'But they also saw the armed forces and the police as more accepting of lesbianism. One source even thought the forces openly welcomed lesbians.'

Observer

Filed in: Lesbian | LINK