Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

LGBT impact; Portman declines; Cher's political tangle
National roundup: Special to the online edition of Windy City Times
2014-12-09

This article shared 4599 times since Tue Dec 9, 2014
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


National roundup: LGBT impact; Portman declines; Cher's political tangle

COMPILED BY ANDREW DAVIS

A new study released that Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law released finds that Virginia Sen. Mark Warner and Vermont Gov. Peter Chumlin would have both been defeated by their Republican challengers in the 2014 election if LGB people had not voted, a press release stated. Williams Institute Public Opinion Project Director Andrew R. Flores said, "When Democrats are elected by close margins, overwhelming support for their candidacies from LGB voters plays a decisive role in explaining their victories, as was the case in this midterm election." The full report, entitled "LGB Vote 2014," is at http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/LGB-Vote-2014.pdf.

Sen. Rob Portman ( R ) says he is not running for president in 2016, ending speculation around the centrist Ohio senator, The Hill reported. Portman was mentioned as a potential GOP vice-presidential pick in 2012 and comes from the crucial swing state of Ohio; he also served as director of the Office of Management and Budget under President George W. Bush. Portman supports same-sex marriage, a stance that could have been a point of contention in a Republican presidential primary.

Cher got into a tangle with Iowa Republican Gov. Terry Branstad, apparently responding to a comment he made in response to her previous tweets on hog confinement legislation that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie vetoed, according to USA Today. Christie, a Republican, vetoed a bill that would've banned the use of gestation crates at New Jersey hog farms. Branstad praised Christie's move; later, Cher issued a series of tweets that were highly critical of Christie, Iowa hog farmers, Smithfield Foods and "meat eaters" in general. When told of Cher's Twitter outburst Wednesday morning, Branstad was dismissive, prompting the singer to tweet, "W/Respect Gov Branstad,We do Know about Pigs! The TWO LEGGED KIND! SLAUGHTER YOUR PIGS,BUT MUST U TORTURE THEM 1ST?"

After a four-hour public hearing and months of debate, the Miami-Dade County ( Fla. ) Commission voted eight to three to add protections for transgender people to its four-decade-old human-rights ordinance, according to Local10.com . The move extends legal protections prohibit discrimination in housing, public accommodations and employment based on gender identity or gender expression. Stratton Pollitzer, deputy director of Equality Florida, said in a statement, "With today's victory, more than 50 percent of Floridians are protected from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, giving a major boost to our ongoing efforts to pass these protections statewide."

Also in Florida, same-sex couples throughout the state could begin marrying next month, after a federal appeals court ruled that a stay in the state's gay-marriage ban case will be lifted at the end of the day Jan. 5, TampaBay.com reported. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta rejected a request from Florida's secretaries of health and management services and the clerk of the court in Florida's Washington County to extend the stay. A federal judge based in Tallahassee ruled in August that the state's gay-marriage ban is unconstitutional, but stayed his decision until Jan. 5 to give the state time to appeal.

The Department of Justice announced Dec. 8 that profiling on the bases of religion, gender, national origin, sexual orientation and gender identity by federal law enforcement agencies will be banned, NBC News reported. The draft changes have been under review for months; Attorney General Eric Holder wanted to issue them before he steps down. The new policy means that federal law enforcement officers cannot use these characteristics as the basis for making routine or spontaneous law enforcement decisions like traffic stops.

A federal appeals court ruled that same-sex marriages won't be allowed in Mississippi while the state defends its gay-marriage ban, according to the Jackson Clarion-Ledger. On Nov. 25, U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves overturned Mississippi's definition of marriage as being only between a man and a woman, but he put his own decision on hold for two weeks to give the state time to appeal his ruling. On Dec. 4, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Mississippi cannot issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples during the appeals process; however, the New Orleans-based court agreed to a quick process for considering the dispute over Mississippi's definition of who can marry.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a final rule to implement President Obama's July executive order that bans federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating based on gender identity and sexual orientation. Several pro-LGBT groups applauded the development. For example, Pride at Work Executive Director Jerame Davis said, "At Pride at Work, we welcome this long-awaited change to federal contractor employment policy. The issuance of this rule is the final step to enact President Obama's executive order extending anti-discrimination protections to the employees of companies that do business with the federal government and with it, more than a quarter of the nation's workforce will be covered."

Minnesota's high school sports league passed a set of guidelines for transgender student-athletes, bringing months of fevered debate to a close, the Associated Press reported. The policy, which will take effect next school year, allows transgender athletes to pick the team that fits with their gender identity; it also provides an appeal process for students whose schools turn down their request. The new process for establishing eligibility will include written statements from a student's parents or guardians and health care professionals regarding the student's "consistent or sincerely held gender-related identity."

The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) issued a statement congratulating Charlotte Burrows and P. David Lopez on their confirmations to posts with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ( EEOC ) by the U.S. Senate. "Charlotte Burrows and David Lopez have proven that they have the temperament, experience and judgment to serve on behalf of America's work force, and understand the need for LGBT Americans to be protected from discrimination in their workplaces," said David Stacy, HRC's government affairs director. The Hill reported that Burrows was confirmed 93 to two, while Lopez was approved 53-43.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe kicked off the 2014 Virginia-1 ( VA-1 ) Tourism Summit by highlighting Virginia's strength as a tourist destination and discussed ways tourism can contribute to Virginia's economic growth and keep the Commonwealth competitive. During the summit, McAuliffe announced the creation of an LGBT Tourism Task Force that will focus on showcasing Virginia as an LGBT-friendly destination and maximizing the opportunity for growth in this new tourism sector, according to a press release. Tourism is a $21.5-billion industry employing 213,000 Virginians statewide.

The Washington, D.C., Council voted to ban conversion therapy that seeks to turn gay teenagers into heterosexuals, according to the Washington Post. The unanimous council vote puts the district in the rare company of only California and New Jersey to ban the practice. It also raises the possibility that, after legal challenges to bans in those states recently failed, similar efforts may proceed elsewhere.

A pastor in Tempe, Arizona, said that if humanity wants to have an "AIDS-free world by Christmas," then gays should be put to death as God has ordered in the scriptures, according to LGBTQ Nation. Pastor Steven Anderson of the Faithful Word Baptist Church called for the mass extermination of LGBT people in a sermon entitled "AIDS: The Judgement of God." In response, Planting Peace—perhaps best known as the organization that built the rainbow-colored Equality House across the street from the Westboro Baptist Church compound in Kansas—is raising funds that will go toward helping people with HIV/AIDS. With every donation, a lump of coal will be sent to Faithful Word.

The New Republic, the political magazine that openly gay Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes bought a couple of years ago, has seen resignations from numerous writers and editors recently, according to TechCrunch. The exodus was spurred by the departure of New Republic editor Franklin Foer and longtime literary editor Leon Wieseltier. Now, Hughes has written an op-ed for the Washington Post in which he lays out his perspective. Among other things, he argues that portraying the dispute as a case of "Silicon Valley versus tradition … dangerously oversimplifies a debate many journalistic institutions are having today." The New Republic won't publish its next issue until February 2015.

The first event of its kind, an LGBTQI Jewish clergy retreat brought together more than 60 clergy members and students recently in San Francisco, Advocate.com reported. Participants represented different branches of Judaism as well as various ages and experience levels, and they hailed from four countries: Germany, Israel, Canada and the United States.

The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating the murder of Deshawnda Sanchez, according to a National LGBTQ Task Force press release. Rev. Darlene Nipper, deputy executive director at the Task Force, said, "The National LGBTQ Task Force is outraged by the murder of Deshawnda Sanchez and the ongoing homicides targeting transgender women of color taking place throughout the nation. This year alone, 12 transgender African-American and Latina women have been murdered—and there seems to be no end in sight to these ongoing tragedies." Earlier this year, the National LGBTQ Task Force launched #StopTransMurders, a public education campaign to raise the voices of transgender activists and allies working to end anti-transgender violence.

In New Jersey, legislation has advanced that would make it easier for people who have changed their sex and names to get new birth certificates, according to the Associated Press. The bill approved by a state Senate committee would not require transgender people to undergo gender-reassignment surgery; state law currently requires the operation. Gov. Chris Christie vetoed a similar bill last year.

Gay-rights activists in Wyoming are hoping the recent court victory affording them the right to marry will give them momentum as they push to outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, LGBTQ Nation noted. Lesbian state Rep. Cathy Connolly, D-Laramie, said she believes the shift on the same-sex marriage issue in Wyoming will persuade a majority of lawmakers in the session that begins next month to ban discrimination against same-sex couples. Connolly said the bill she's working on will address various provisions of state law, such as qualifications for serving on juries, and specify that people can't be excluded because of sexual orientation or gender identity.

In Illinois, a suburban Cook County gay man, on Dec. 4, filed an employment discrimination complaint with the Chicago District Office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commision and the Cook County Commission on Human Rights, claiming that he was wrongfully fired from his church job after announcing through social media that he was marrying his longtime partner. The complaint was announced at Cook County Third Municipal District Courthouse in Rolling Meadows. Colin Collette was musical director at Holy Family Catholic Parish in Inverness. He and his partner, William Nifong, were vacationing in Europe when they became engaged and announced the occasion on Facebook. When they returned home, however, Collette was informed that he was being let go from his position. Since then, Collette has been trying to get his job back.

A Maine court has awarded the family of a transgender girl $75,000 in a settlement of her discrimination lawsuit against a school district where administrators made her use a staff, not student, bathroom, according to the Associated Press. Student Nicole Maines won her lawsuit against the Orono school district in January before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, which ruled that the school district violated the Maine Human Rights Act. It was the first time a state high court in the U.S. concluded that a transgender person should use the bathroom of the gender with which they identify.

ABC-7 reported that a 12-year-old boy from Folsom, California, committed suicide after schoolmates had reportedly bullied him for being a cheerleader. Ronin Shimizu, a former sixth-grader enrolled at Folsom Middle School, was taken out of the school to be home-schooled after intense harassment from fellow students. According to Ronin's friends and family, the harassment centered around Ronin being the only boy cheerleader for the Vista Jr. Eagles squad.

Two Central Florida men—whose driver's licenses were cancelled because they changed their names using their out-of-state marriage license—have filed a lawsuit against the state of Florida, seeking to have their legal marriage recognized, according to LGBTQ Nation. Daniel Wall-DeSousa, 40, and Scott Wall-DeSousa, 37, filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court, asking a judge to force the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to recognize their marriage. The couple eventually obtained new Florida driver's licenses showing their new last names, but the department abruptly cancelled them after they appeared in a local television news report.

The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) responded to the nomination of Ashton Carter as secretary of defense in light of the challenges that remain for full LGBT equality in the U.S. military. In a statement, HRC Government Affairs Director David Stacy said, "While there has been a tremendous amount of progress made in the Armed Forces over the past several years starting with the repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell', transgender service members are still forced to serve in silence because of outdated regulations. There is no valid reason for this to continue. Once confirmed, Ashton Carter should address this expeditiously."

A British gay-porn star who was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport for attempting to smuggle a half-pound of crystal meth in his body has been sentenced to two years in federal prison, MyFoxLA.com reported. Philip Gizzie, who uses the stage name Bruno Knight, must also serve three years of supervised release after getting out of prison. Gizzie, 31, was arrested June 16 after he told airport customs officers that he had "inserted three large objects containing methamphetamine'' into a body cavity. In a letter to the court, Gizzie said he had been addled by drugs at the time of the crime and was thankful for the sobriety he found during five months in a federal lockup.

An Arkansas high school canceled a program of speeches traditionally given by members of the homecoming court, and students say it's because one participant initially wanted to talk about being a lesbian, even though she eventually agreed not to address the subject, Advocate.com reported. Quitman High School administrators told an Arkansas TV station the speeches were removed because the program was becoming too lengthy. However, students and staff say the removals were spurred because of an unidentified 15-year-old student who gave the speech in question during a rehearsal for the ceremony.

Revolution Church Pastor Jay Bakker ( the son of the late Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker ) recently sat down with Larry King to discuss the minister's progressive Christian views and assesses the state of contemporary Christianity in America. Among other things, Bakker talked about the acceptance of the LGBT community in Christian churches, saying, "the church is sex-obsessed" and "the church feels like they need to control people."

Lincoln, Nebraska, mayor Chris Beutler has approved changes that will allow same-sex spouses of city employees to receive health insurance and other benefits, according to LGBTQ Nation. Beutler's decision to accept Blue Cross and Blue Shield's definition of marriage, which includes same-sex marriages, opens the possibility of city benefits being extended to same-sex spouses of city employees. The change comes following a decision by county officials last month not to extend most pension benefits to same-sex spouses of county employees, claiming it would violate the state's ban on same-sex marriage.

A Florida man with an obscene-sounding name was hit with several felony charges after pulling a man into his car while watching gay pornography, The New York Daily News noted. Phuc Kieu, 58, was watching the porn in his green Honda Civic when he attacked a male passerby, punching the victim in the mouth and grabbing his backpack with the $220 the victim withdrew from an ATM; Kieu then tried to tear off his shirt, belt and pants. Kieu is charged with sexual assault, kidnapping and robbery without a weapon.

A Texas appeals court has ruled that former ESPN announcer Craig James did not cause Texas Tech University to fire Mike Leach as its head coach, according to Courthouse News. Leach was fired in 2009 after 10 seasons coaching the Red Raiders; That December, ESPN reported how James' son, Adam, a player on Leach's team at Texas Tech, complained that Leach had "twice confined him to small, dark spaces while the team practiced" after he suffered a concussion. Craig James ran for the U.S. Senate in 2012, but lost the election, and anti-gay comments he made during the campaign led Fox to back out of plans to hire him.


This article shared 4599 times since Tue Dec 9, 2014
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

Thailand parliament passes landmark marriage bill
2024-03-27
On March 27, Thailand's parliament approved a marriage-equality bill by an overwhelmingly large margin—a landmark step that moves one of Asia's most liberal countries closer to legalizing same-sex unions, media ...


Gay News

Kara Swisher talks truth, power in tech at Chicago Humanities event
2024-03-25
Lesbian author, award-winning journalist and podcast host Kara Swisher spoke about truth and power in the tech industry through the lens of her most recent book, Burn Book: A Tech Love Story, March 21 at First ...


Gay News

Wyoming is latest state to ban gender-affirming care for minors
2024-03-24
On March 22, Wyoming became the latest state to prohibit gender-affirming care for minors, The Hill noted. In doing so, it joined 23 other states that passed laws restricting or banning the treatment. Legislators in both ...


Gay News

Chicago alder proposes renaming street after Obama
2024-03-22
Openly gay Black Chicago Ald. Lamont Robinson has proposed renaming Columbus Drive after former U.S. President and city resident Barack Obama, media outlets noted. The street stretches through the Loop from East Grand Avenue to DuSable ...


Gay News

Congressional Equality Caucus on FY24 bills passing the house
2024-03-22
--From a press release - WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-02), released the following statement after the House successfully passed the final funding bills for Fiscal Year ...


Gay News

WORLD Uganda items, HIV report, Mandela, Liechtenstein, foreign minister weds
2024-03-21
It turned out that U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Senior LGBTQI+ Coordinator Jay Gilliam traveled to Uganda on Feb. 19-27, per The Washington Blade. He visited the capital of Kampala and the nearby city of ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Va. marriage bill, AARP, online counseling, Idaho items, late activist
2024-03-21
Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed bills protecting same-sex marriages at a state level, surprising some, WRIC reported. The bills—passed out of both chambers along mostly party lines—will require clerks ...


Gay News

LGBTQ+ candidates Marcelino Garcia, Precious Brady Davis win primary elections to keep MWRD seats
2024-03-21
Marcelino Garcia and Precious Brady-Davis, the two openly LGBTQ+ incumbents in the race to keep their seats on the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD), won their primary elections and will move on to the general this ...


Gay News

Small LGBTQ+ candidate pool nevertheless scores some important victories March 19
2024-03-20
Relatively few openly LGBTQ+ candidates were running in the March 19 Illinois Primary Election. But there were some significant contests in play at the local, state and federal levels. Openly gay Ald. Ray Lopez (15th Ward) ...


Gay News

Gay Irish prime minister to step down
2024-03-20
In a surprise move, openly gay Irish Prime Minister (or Taoiseach) Leo Varadkar has announced his resignation, citing "personal and political, but mainly political reasons," according to CNN. Varadkar said he felt he was no longer ...


Gay News

Chicago's LGBTQ+ Advisory Council sets a new course
2024-03-18
Chicago's LGBTQ+ Advisory Council held its first meeting of the calendar year on Feb. 28 at City Hall in the Loop under the leadership of the recently appointed chair Jin-Soo Huh. The LGBTQ+ Advisory Council is ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Missouri measure, HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, judge, Texas schools
2024-03-15
In Missouri, a newly proposed law could charge teachers and counselors with a felony and require them to register as sex offenders if they're found guilty of supporting transgender students who are socially transitioning, CNN noted. ...


Gay News

PASSAGES: Former Chicago Commission on Human Relations chair Clarence Wood
2024-03-13
LGBTQ ally and former Chicago Commission on Human Relations (CCHR) Chair and Commissioner Clarence N. Wood died March 5. He was 83. Wood was born April 14, 1940, in Alabama. While primarily raised in Alabama, Wood ...


Gay News

Longtime LGBTQ+-rights activist David Mixner dies at 77
2024-03-12
On March 11, longtime LGBTQ+ and HIV/AIDS activist David Mixner—known for working on Bill Clinton's presidential campaign but then splitting from him over "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT)—died at age 77, The Advocate reported. ...


Gay News

LGBTQ+ Victory Fund remembers co-founder David Mixner
2024-03-12
--From a press release - Today, LGBTQ+ Victory Fund President & CEO Mayor Annise Parker released the following statement on the passing of LGBTQ+ civil rights activist and LGBTQ+ Victory Fund co-founder David Mixner: "Today, we lost David Mixner, a founding ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.