- www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com April 25th, 2011

Dan Lungren (R-CA), Chairman of the House Committee on House Administration — the man who actually signed the contract with King and Spalding, in a statement issued today over K&S’s decision to withdraw as the House’s counsel, writes,

“I want to express my gratitude to former Solicitor General Clement. I admire his unwavering commitment to his clients and his dedication to uphold the law – qualities that appear to be inconsequential at King and Spalding where politics and profit now appear to come first.

“King and Spalding’s cut and run approach is inexcusable and an insult to the legal profession. Less than one week after the contract was approved engaging the firm, they buckled under political pressure and bailed with little regard for their ethical and legal obligations. Fortunately, Clement does not share the same principles. I’m confident that with him at the helm, we will fight to ensure the courts – not the President – determine DOMA’s constitutionality.”

Read the full story here: http://thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/doma-anti-gay-marriage-advocates-attack-equality-supporters-over-lawyer/politics/2011/04/25/19225

- www.thewesternstar.com April 25, 2011

DEER LAKE Gay students and their supporters aren’t going to take it anymore.

The Elwood High School students say they have been bullied enough and they’ve taken a page from an American protest campaign to air their views.

Several of the Elwood students, joined by Xavier students, have been protesting the way they’ve been treated in the past by being part of the NOH8 (No Hate) campaign. They taped duct tape over their mouths, and some of them painted a NOH8 logo on their faces, in form of a silent protest for better treatment of gay and lesbian students in the area.

The NOH8 campaign was formed in California in 2008 when the state banned same-sex marriages. The Supreme Court overturned the proposition last year, but the campaign continues to promote understanding between gay and straight people.

Read the full story here: http://www.thewesternstar.com/News/Local/2011-04-19/article-2437137/Students%26rsquo%3B-silence-speaks-volumes-for-lesbian-and-gay-rights/1

- www.bilerico.com April 22, 2011

This is absolutely disgusting. After an unidentified transwoman tried to use the bathroom at a Baltimore McDonald’s, two patrons started attacking her in full view of other customers and employees. What did the employees do? They filmed it on their phones.

While you can see the manager yelling stop at the two women attacking the customer, none of the other employees even try to intervene or keep the women from dragging the victim across the restaurant floor. Instead, it’s the elderly female customer that seems to do the most to help. The manager and employees simply watch as the victim starts to have a seizure and offer no help whatsoever.

You can let McDonalds know how you feel about their employees reprehensible actions – especially since they filmed it and promptly put it on the internet to degrade the victim further.

Read the full article and see the video here: http://www.bilerico.com/2011/04/transwoman_severely_beaten_at_baltimore_mcdonalds.php

- www.towleroad.com April 22, 2011

Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ), who called on Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to halt deportations of married binational same-sex couples in a letter earlier this month, recorded a video first shown last week at a Princeton University Marriage Equality event in support of Josh Vandiver and Henry Velandia, a married binational couple fighting to stop a deportation that will tear them apart on May 6.

In the video, Holt calls for passage of immigration equality via the Uniting American Families Act, and an end to discriminatory deportations.

“There is no second class in our country, or at least there shouldn’t be…”

Read more and see the video here: http://www.towleroad.com/2011/04/holtvideo.html#ixzz1KHrZ95ZQ

- www.unicornbooty.com April 21, 2011

We told you earlier in the year about the controversial (and ridiculous) bill proposed by Tennessee State Senator Stacey Campfield and Rep. Bill Dunn that seeks to make saying the words “gay” or “homosexuality”, let alone discussing the topics, illegal in Tennessee schools.

It is with deep regret that today we inform you that a panel within the Tennessee Senate has passed the bill by a vote of 6-3. The three dissenting votes came from Democrat senators. This thing is on its way to becoming law in no time.

Read the full story here: http://unicornbooty.com/2011/04/tn-senate-passes-dont-say-gay-bill/

- www.glaadblog.org April 20, 2011

“A woman’s lesbian relationship may have gotten her mother and her killed last night.”

Perhaps unintentional, this was the problematic beginning of a report that aired last night on KXAN-36, the NBC affiliate in Austin, TX. Otherwise solid, Chris Sadeghi’s report detailed the tragic deaths of a young woman and her mother.

On Monday evening, Norma Hurtado, 24, and her mother, Maria Hurtado, 57, were shot and killed in their home by Jose Alfonso, 45, the father of Norma’s girlfriend – whose name has not been released. Early Tuesday morning, San Antonio Police arrested Alfonso on a capital murder warrant. Alfonso was allegedly upset that his daughter was seeing Norma, and this appears to be what prompted the deadly shootings.

Read the full story here: http://glaadblog.org/2011/04/20/father-murders-daughters-girlfriend-glaad-addresses-problematic-coverage/

- By Jeffrey Fishberger www.huffingtonpost.com April 20th, 2011

As the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth, The Trevor Project has served the needs of LGBTQ youth at a dark moment in their lives for the past 13 years — offering hope and expertise when few others are can.

The findings in Dr. Hatzenbuehler’s recently published study in Pediatrics largely mirror what we have learned through the Trevor Lifeline regarding social environments and the risk for suicide among LGTBQ youth — namely that young people who live in areas with a more negative sociopolitical climate towards LGBTQ young people and without affirming resources are at an increased risk for suicide when compared with their peers in more supportive environments.

More than 70 percent of the thousands of calls to the 24/7 Trevor Lifeline originate in the southern and central regions of the United States, where there are traditionally fewer legal protections, in- and out-of-school support services and accepting environments for LGBTQ young people. While there are wonderful programs in these areas that do excellent work, some youth in these areas receive less support and face tougher challenges in their communities and schools.

Read more here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-fishberger-md/gay-suicide_b_851107.html

- www.unicornbooty.com April 20th, 2011

Douglass Boulevard Christian Church has us feeling all warm and fuzzy inside today amid news that the church voted unanimously this past Sunday to no longer grant marriage licenses to heterosexual couples since they are not legally available to homosexual couples in equally committed relationships who are hoping to wed before God.

Taking a stand against marriage discrimination, the church voted to continue performing religious marriage ceremonies to straight couples, but without the legal component that gay couples are legally prevented access to.

Read the full story here: http://unicornbooty.com/2011/04/kentucky-church-stops-signing-marriage-licenses-until-gays-can-wed/

- www.prop8trialtracker.com April 19, 2011

House Republicans plan to pay former Solicitor General Paul Clement and his legal team from King & Spaulding as much as $500,000 of taxpayer money to uphold the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) on behalf of House of Representatives, according to a document obtained by the Huffington Post.

The General Counsel agrees to pay the Contractor for all contractual services rendered a sum not to exceed $500,000.00,” the Contract for Legal Services obtained by The Huffington Post says. The cap could be raised “by written agreement between the parties with the approval” of the House, the document states.

Read the full article here: http://prop8trialtracker.com/2011/04/19/house-republicans-authorize-500000-to-defend-doma/

- Freedom To Marry April 19, 2011

Tax season brings a stark reminder of what the so-called Defense of Marriage Act costs same-sex couples and their families. They are denied the opportunity to file taxes jointly and are penalized for supporting one another, while at the same time pay higher costs for health insurance and are deprived of Social Security coverage they’ve earned. End the “gay tax” by repealing DOMA.

Sign and share the petition here: http://www.freedomtomarry.org/page/s/taxday?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=FTM&utm_campaign=20110415taxdaytweet&source=20110415taxdaytweet