Former New York Times Executive Editor Joseph Lelyveld has written a biography about the late Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi—and is fighting British articles that focus on Gandhi's close relationship with another man, according to Yahoo! News. Lelyveld's book, Great Soul: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle with India, has garnered mostly positive reviews. However, the British daily the Telegraph recently proclaimed, "Mahatma Gandhi 'racist and bisexual' claims new book." Similarly, the UK Daily Mail focuses on Gandhi's relationship with the German-Jewish architect and amateur body-builder Hermann Kallenbach, who lived with Gandhi in South Africa in the early 1900s.
The condom company Sir Richard's ( www.sirrichards.com ) has debuted products that are in sustainable packaging, and the business—which has partnerships with such corporations as The Wynn Las Vegas & Cassa Hotel NYC, Whole Foods and Paul Smith—has a unique donation program. Sir Richard's is currently working with Partners in Health in Haiti, donating one condom for each one that is purchased.
Govs. Peter Shumlin of Vermont and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island joined Marriage Equality Rhode Island at a press conference at the Rhode Island state House advocating for the passage of marriage-equality legislation currently before the General Assembly, according to a press release. "It is truly a pleasure to be in Rhode Island to share Vermont's experience with marriage equality," said Shumlin. "I am here ... to tell our story and let those members know Vermont is a better and more just place for having made full marriage equality the law."
In Connecticut, the state legislature's judiciary committee postponed a vote on a measure that would legally protect transgender people. The bill's opponents argue that sexual predators could misuse a law that allows biological men to use women's facilities; the measure's supporters say that these concerns are merely tactics to have the bill quashed. The committee's deadline on the measure is April 15.
Same-sex couples in Delaware are one step closer to having civil unions as members of the state Senate's Administrative Services and Elections Committee voted to send civil-union legislation to the full Senate for debate and a vote, according to a press release from Gov. Jack Markell's office. Markell said Senate Bill 30 respects the rights and honors the commitment that couples make to each other to spend their lives together in partnership. Several of Delaware's larger employers offer domestic-partnership benefits, including Bank of America, Du Pont, Kraft Foods, Home Depot, J.C. Penney, Sallie Mae, Target and Walgreen Co.
In Georgia, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) counselor Marcia Walden is claiming she was wrongly terminated because of religious discrimination for refusing to advise a woman in a lesbian relationship, according to SeattlePI.com . The company that the CDC had hired to provide counseling services, Computer Sciences Corporation, fired Walden at the CDC's request. Now, Walden is asking a federal appeals court to allow her to sue the CDC.
Crystal Dixon—who was fired from her job at Ohio's University of Toledo three years ago for writing a column saying that being gay is a choice—is now leading a human-resources department in Michigan, according to an Advocate.com item. In the column, Dixon wrote, "As a Black woman who happens to be an alumnus of the University of Toledo's Graduate School, an employee and business owner, I take great umbrage at the notion that those choosing the homosexual lifestyle are 'civil rights victims. Here's why: I cannot wake up tomorrow and not be a Black woman." Dixon will be a director of a joint human-resources department for the city of Jackson and Jackson County.
Social conservative Matt Barber is defending comments he made that LGBT teens commit suicide because "what they are doing is unnatural, is wrong, is immoral," according to an On Top Magazine item. Defending the remarks, Barber—an associate dean at the Liberty University School of Law—said, "When homosexual activists and other progressives in the pro-sin movement are exposed to biblical truth, their reaction is invariably visceral and loud."
The inaugural Out on the Street, an LGBT event hosted by Wall Street firms, brought out approximately 150 senior-level employees, according to Advocate.com . Said employees included out gay executives and their families from Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, among other companies. Organizers said the afternoon-long event was geared toward how to support LGBT employees and how to leverage diversity for business growth.
Another conference, Out & Equal's Executive Forum attracted 45 LGBT business leaders, according to a press release. "The people who gather for the Executive Forum are those who know very personally the strength that comes from bringing all of who they are to work," said Selisse Berry, Founding Executive Director of Out & Equal. "They know it has helped them become strong corporate leaders and they are committed to creating a safe and equal workplace for others." Among the speakers was Roberta Achtenberg, a commissioner with the United States Commission on Human Rights.
The White House has announced the nomination of Alison J. Nathan, an out lesbian, for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. "Alison Nathan is a distinguished individual who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to justice throughout her career," said President Obama in a statement. "I am grateful for her decision to serve the American people from the District Court bench."
The New York-based International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) issued a statement saying that violence and discrimination against LGBT people in Haiti has increased since the January 2010 earthquake. Conservative religious leaders in Haiti even blame LGBTs for the earthquake, leading to increased stigma and violence. "UN Agencies, private organizations, and governments must recognize the horrible impact of the Haiti disaster on LGBT people," said Cary Alan Johnson, IGLHRC's executive director. "While the needs of some marginalized groups are at least acknowledged, LGBT people are completely ignored."
Daniel Hernandez, Jr., the openly gay student intern credited with saving the life of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., after the Jan. 8 shooting attack in Tucson, Ariz., will speak as a guest keynote and receive an honorary National Voice & Action Leadership Award at Camp Pride ( www.campuspride.org/camppride/ ) on July 19-July 24 in Nashville, Tenn., according to a press release. The award highlights the work of undergraduate college students who are creating positive change for LGBT and ally issues within their communities.
In California, San Francisco's iconic A Different Light Bookstore is apparently closing, according to BayCitizen.org . "Everything must go" signs were spotted in the store—a prime indicator of impending closure. A Different Light has been the gathering place for the Bay Area's gay literati for decades, and the company was first established in 1979. The store's owner, Bill Barker, said in 2009 after closing the West Hollywood branch that he had no intention of closing the San Francisco store.
In Los Angeles, Beth Chayim Chadashim synagogue (BCC), whose Hebrew name translates as "House of New Life," is moving into a new building two blocks west of the modest storefront space that has been the congregation's home since 1977, according to a press release. The new building was once a home to a church led by singer/actress Della Reese. BCC was founded in 1972 as the world's first "gay synagogue" by a handful of gay and lesbian Jews who were encouraged by the Rev. Troy Perry, founder of the then-fledgling, first gay and lesbian Christian congregation, Metropolitan Community Church.
LGBT activists are campaigning for the U.S. Postal Service to issue a stamp honoring the late gay politician Harvey Milk. David Mixner, one of the activists, said that Milk "would get that twisted smile of his and say, 'Hell, imagine all those straights having to lick my backside to send a piece of mail.'" Others involved in the campaign include Milk associate Cleve Jones; Milk's nephew, Stuart Milk; California assembly speaker John Pérez; screenwriter Dustin Lance Black; and the Rev. Troy Perry.
In Massachusetts, Gov. Deval Patrick has named Barbara Lenk to the state supreme court, making her the first openly gay individual in that role, according to the Wall Street Journal. Gov. William Weld appointed Lenk to the state superior court in 1993, and she wsa named to the appeals court in 1995. Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders issued a statement saying, "We applaud Gov. Patrick for his continued commitment to creating a bench that truly reflects the diverse communities of this state."
It turns out that John Joe Thomas—who stoned a mentally disabled senior citizen, Murray Seidman, to death—was a Mormon priest, according to an Advocate.com item. After becoming a priest, Thomas baptized and later befriended Seidman. Thomas claimed the killed Seidman because the Old Testament urged him to do so after the victim allegedly made sexual advances toward Thomas.
Possible Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has downplayed the money he directed to the American Family Association (AFA) to help oust three Iowa judges who ruled for marriage equality, according to Advocate.com . Gingrich is honorary chair of the conservative group ReAL Action, which gave $125,000 to AFA Action. In an interview with Igor Volsky of The Wonk Room, Gingrich denied that AFA is a hate group, saying that it is a "Christian" organization.
In Washington, D.C., Susan Burns attempted to ruin a Paul Gauguin painting at the National Gallery because the work showed two topless women together, Advocate.com reported. The painting, Two Tahitian Women, is valued at $80 million. Burns, 53, of Alexandria, Va. was charged with attempted theft in the second degree; she told an investigator, "He has nudity and is bad for the children. He has two women in the painting and it's very homosexual."
The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination has ruled that a landlord must pay $25,000 for trying to force an HIV-positive tenant to move or get rid of his emotional-support dog, according to Advocate.com . The attorney for the tenant, Richard Blake, said that a doctor suggested the dog to help Blake battle depression. Blake got Kayla, a boxer mix, and his mood and health began to improve.
The National Senior Citizens Law Center has released a groundbreaking report entitled "LGBT Older Adults in Long-Term Care Facilities: Stories from the Field," according to a press release. The center worked on the report with several other groups, including Lambda Legal and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Among the findings was that a majority of LGBT older adults believe that staff of long-term care facilities would discriminate against an LGBT elder who was open about his or her sexual orientation. See www.LGBTLongTermCare.org for survey results.
Servicemembers United—the nation's largest organization of gay and lesbian troops and veterans—has filed an amicus curiae brief with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals as the court decides whether to reinstate an injunction barring enforcement of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT), according to a press release. The case in question, Log Cabin Republicans v. United States of America, resulted in District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillips ruling that DADT is unconstitutional and enforced an injunction barring enforcement of the law, but that injunction was stayed pending appeal by the Justice Department.
