Kevin Jennings—who has served in the U.S. Department of Education since 2009, and is the founder and former executive director of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network—is leaving his post, according to Advocate.com . Jennngs will become president and CEO of Be the Change, a nonprofit public-service and organizing group.
Lightspeed Systems—which produces software used for website filtering in thousands of public schools across the United States—has confirmed that it will update its software to remove a filter that blocked websites with content geared toward the LGBT community, according to an ACLU press release. The company made the announcement after the ACLU sent letters to school districts using the software as part of the organization's national "Don't Filter Me" initiative, which aims to combat illegal censorship of pro-LGBT information on public school computer systems.
The Human Rights Campaign has criticized the Tennessee legislature for passing SB 632/HB 600, a bill that bans cities and counties from prohibiting discriminatory practices by any means. While the bill prohibits localities from adopting anti-discrimination laws on any basis—including race, religion, sex and age—it was motivated by an ordinance prohibiting discrimination on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity in Nashville. Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam can veto the legislation.
In Pennsylvania, lesbian couple Kerry Wiessmann and Beth Resko filed a complaint against the State College Area School District, claiming that it only provides domestic-partnership benefits only to opposite-sex couples, according to Courthouse News Service. "The two women have shared their lives, home and financial obligations for over twenty-five years," the complaint states. "They are also raising two children together. Plaintiffs seek equal access to the family health insurance benefits that defendant offers to its employees with spouses and opposite-sex domestic partners but denies to employees like Ms. Wiessmann who have same-sex domestic partners like Ms. Resko."
Janet Mock—an editor at People.com, a popular blogger and co-host of the podcast The Missing Piece—has come out as a transgender woman in a new memoir, according to Opposing Views. She told Marie Claire, "After high school graduation, many of my classmates were throwing big graduation parties and buying new cars. Those kids went looking for good times and great memories, but I was desperately searching for one thing only: a chance to be in the right body for the first time in my entire life. ... Two weeks after the surgery, I was in class at the University of Hawaii, finally focusing on something other than my gender." She has also made a video for the "It Gets Better" project.
A new study shows that gay men have a lower health-related quality of life than other men after prostate cancer treatment, according to U.S. News and World Report. In the study, 92 gay men in the United States and Canada completed an Internet survey that included the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index (EPIC), which is designed to assess patient function after cancer treatment. Compared to men in the general population, gay men reported statistically significant worse functioning and more severe bother scores on the EPIC urinary, bowel and hormonal system scales. Gay men also reported worse EPIC sexual scores, as well as much worse mental health functioning and higher fear of cancer recurrence.
In California, a jury awarded $1.1 million to Los Angeles police sergeant and media relations spokesman Ronald Crump May 19 after he claimed harassment and retaliation after complaining that a supervisor mistreated him because he is gay, the L.A. Times reported. Crump's former employer, John Romero (who has been promoted to captain since the suit was filed), allegedly called Crump "the new Ruby minus the heels," in reference to the woman in the unit. Over the last decade, at least 16 other officers have won million-dollar-plus jury verdicts or settlements from the city in lawsuits involving accusations of sexual harassment, racial discrimination, retaliation and other workplace injustices.
Transgender mayoral candidate Sandra Dunn placed third in Amarillo's mayoral election in an 11-candidate field that included an anti-gay minister, the Dallas Voice reported. Mayor-elect Paul Harpole won with 77 percent of the vote. Roy McDowell came in second with 13 percent and Dunn was third with 3 percent. Dunn said her third-place finish should give her some weight in city council.
Recently, the American Family Association's (AFA's) Bryan Fischer called gay people "Nazis" two days in a row, according to On Top Magazine. Fischer, the AFA's director of issue analysis for government and public policy, compared the gay-rights movement to Adolf Hitler's Nazis, and the Roman Catholic Church's Spanish Inquisition. On his radio program, he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, they are Nazis. Homosexual activists, when it comes to freedom of speech, are Nazis. When it comes to freedom of religion, they are Nazis."
A comprehensive study covering 60 years of sexual-abuse allegations against the U.S. Roman Catholic Church has identified no definitive cause for the crisis, and it proposed changes that would require radical reforms to its hierarchy, according to TIME Magazine. Liberals have claimed that the church's reliance on an all-male, celibate priesthood encourages abuse by providing no outlet for natural sexual desire, while conservatives have tried to connect sex abuse to the growing number of gay priests. However, the 300-page report (researchers at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City) says that they're both wrong.
In Texas, authorities have arrested a third person in connection with an attack outside an El Paso gay nightclub earlier this month, according to an Advocate.com item. Ivan Gallardo, 17, was charged with aggravated assault and booked on a bond of $50,000; Roman Olvera, 19, and a 16-year-old boy had also been arrested for allegedly assaulting Lionel Martinez, 22. A group of six males attacked Martinez, who is not gay, while yelling anti-gay slurs; Martinez remains in critical condition.
The Rhode Island House has passed a civl-unions bill, according to Advocate.com . Despite criticism from anti-gay groups and equality advocates (the latter who see civil unions as emblematic of second-class status), the measure had bipartisan support, passing by a vote of 62-11. The bill now heads to the state senate.
In Minnesota, gay marriage will be on the ballot next year as the state House signed off on a proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, according to a Chicago Tribune item. After hours of emotional debate, the House voted 70-62 to put the question to the state's voters. Lesbian state Rep. Karen Clark urged her fellow legislators to not "make [her] go off to Iowa;" after the vote, she said it was "a sad day for Minnesota." The amendment would define marriage as an institution only for a man and a woman.
The majority of Christian Americans oppose the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act, favor protecting LGBT people from discrimination, and support anti-bullying laws according to new polling released by the Human Rights Campaign, in partnership with Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research. In perhaps the most compelling finding, more Christians than the overall population say their faith compels them to believe the law should treat LGBT people equally. Additionally, a strong majority of Christians believe that anti-LGBT religious leaders do more harm than good.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that it is offering up to $9.1 million to address the critical housing needs of low-income persons and families living with HIV/AIDS including homeless individuals and families. "These grants will allow states and local communities to forge new partnerships and develop strategies to meet the housing needs of low-income and homeless persons living with HIV/AIDS," said Mercedes Márquez, HUD's assistant secretary for community planning and development. "By offering our local partners these funds, we are giving them the necessary tools to provide real hope for those who might otherwise end up on the streets without the care they need.
In response to a protest by the Westboro Baptist Church, comedian Lisa Lampanelli pledged to donate $1,000 to Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC), the nation's oldest HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care services provider, for each of the 48 activists who was present—which she rounded up to $50,000, according to a press release. "We are grateful for Lisa Lampanelli's kindness and courage to fight homophobia," said Marjorie Hill, Ph.D., CEO of GMHC. "She is holding up a mirror to bigotry and hatred, and reflecting back love and generosity."
Frank Bruni, 46, has become the first openly gay op-ed columnist at the New York Times in its 160-year history, according to the publication. He has worked for the Times as a restaurant critic and has had a writing career at the newspaper that has spanned two presidential campaigns. Bruni said, "I'm excited and really grateful. At The Times and beforehand, I've been lucky to be able to write about many different topics, and I'm eager to take on a job that will allow me to range across most or all of them in a reflective, analytical and sometimes—I hope—spirited way."
Three U.S. Army colonels based in South Korea have been reprimanded for taking part in an anti-gay skit poking fun at new rules designed to protect out gay soldiers, according to Advocate.com . The skit featured the officers using effeminate gestures and imitating Sirs Elton John and George Michael as well as lip-synching to a song by Boy George. The Eighth Army commander, Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson, did not witness the skit but said the officers showed "extremely poor judgment."
Frontline published the Facebook page of Wikileaks suspect PFC Bradley Manning, who didn't try to hide his sexual orientation despite being in the military, according to Advocate.com . Manning, 23, discussed his relationship problems with another man and revealed his interest in news items such as the Prop 8 trial in 2010. Manning, charged with transferring and distributing classified material to Wikileaks, is in a correctional facility in Ft. Leavenworth, Kan.
In Bangor, Maine, a vandalized memorial honoring a gay man who was murdered almost three decades ago has been rededicated, Advocate.com reported. On July 7, 1984, Charlie Howard, 23, was walking with a male companion when three teens attacked him and threw him off a bridge. A memorial was erected in 2009 near the site of Howard's death; however, it was recently spray-painted with an anti-gay slur. About 75 people gathered to rededicate the memorial.
A coalition of 117 national civil-rights and civic organizations has sent a letter to senators establishing five principles for ensuring that the fiscal year 2012 budget and debt-limit deals address the nation's debt in a fair, equitable and responsible manner, according to a press release. Among the organizations signing the letter were GLSEN, the National Center for Transgender Equality, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the Southern Poverty Law Center and CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers.
In El Paso, Texas, a federal judge has ruled in favor of a voter-approved city ordinance that prohibits health benefits for gay and unmarried partners of city employees, as wellas elected officials and retirees, according to KFOX.com . City Attorney Charlie McNabb has said that the ordinance would end health benefits for about 200 others, including retired city employees. The police union is suing on behalf of a lesbian officer, her partner and retirees who could lose their health benefits.
Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, a Republican, has signed a bill protecting transgender people against discrimination in the areas of employment, housing and public accommodations, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Sandoval signed Assembly Bill 211 in a ceremony attended by transgender activists and the bill's primary sponsors. The law will take effect Oct. 1.
In Missouri, the Joplin outpost of the LGBT-affirming Metropolitan Community Church was completely destroyed by a tornado May 22, according to Instinct magazine. The Spirit of Christ MCC's website read, "Thank you for your concern, the tornado hit just as we were begining service on Sunday night. We rode out the storm in the basement of the church with only two people injured. The building that we had previously rented from Unity of Joplin was completely destroyed." To donate, visit https://equalityfederation.salsalabs.com/o/35019/p/salsa/donation/common/public/?donate_page_KEY=390.
Dharun Ravi, 19, has pled not guilty of 15 charges related to allegedly spying on former Rutgers University roommate Tyler Clementi's tryst with another man, according to the Boston Herald. Clementi jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge Sept. 22, 2010. During his eight-minute court appearance, Ravi did not speak and entered his not guilty pleas through attorney Steven Altman.
