Center Blog

Here are some current LGBT-related blog posts I found recently:

JOE.MY.GOD
Two more LGBT rights bills failed to get out of committee in the Utah legislature yesterday. Dead are the bills to allow gay and unmarried couples to adopt and the bill that would have protected LGBT folks from housing and employment discrimination. The haters framed their arguments against the bills in the tired “homosexuality is a choice” bullshit.
http://joemygod.blogspot.com/2009/02/utah-kills-two-more-lgbt-rights-bills.html

GAY POLITICS
A week after saying that homosexuals were an abusive and violent threat that had overrun law enforcement in Jamaica, MP Ernest Smith has apologized for his comments under pressure from the Jamaican Labour Party. Despite this, Smith has continued his call for outlawing all LGBT groups in Jamaica including the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals, and Gays (J-FLAG). Jamaica still operates under Colonial Era Law that criminalizes homosexual acts with punishments of up to ten years in prison.
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2009/02/17/jamaican-mp-apologizes-calls-for-lgbt-groups-to-be-outlawed/

TOWERLOAD
Towleroad has obtained a letter sent to Brigette Browning, President of Local Union 30 UNITE HERE, regarding Clinton’s speech over the weekend at the San Diego Manchester Grand Hyatt which was picketed by hundreds of activists angry that the former President was disrespecting a boycott over Hyatt owner Doug Manchester’s contributions to Proposition 8.
http://www.towleroad.com/2009/02/clinton-regrets.html

FEMINISTING
Good and bad news regarding LGBT rights and religion came out of Charlotte, North Carolina this weekend. A milestone was achieved in the Presbyterian church as leaders ratified a proposal to reverse their denomination’s ban on gay pastors and elders in the area. While the ban stood for several decades, the civil debate ended this weekend with a 133-124 vote. Amen.
http://www.feministing.com/cgi-bin/movabletype/mt-search.fcgi?IncludeBlogs=2&search=LGBT

TECHPRB
GayCities announced today the release of an iPhone application (GayCities iPhone App splash page (http://www.gaycities.com/iphone/)) that maps nearby gay-friendly restaurants, bars, hotels, and beaches in over 70 cities worldwide on their iPhone or iPod touch. Available for free at the iPhone App Store, the GayCities iPhone application is the first application from a gay media or internet company and it fully leverages the advanced location, mapping and live connection capabilities of the Phone and iPod touch.
http://techprb.wordpress.com/2009/02/12/gaycitiescom-announces-first-full-featured-lgbt-travel-iphone-application/

TRANSGRIOT
But it speaks to a larger problem in the GLBT community. For the longest time the historical record on what happened in the GLBT community was written by white people, with the predictable results of GLBT people of color and transgender people being erased from it.
http://transgriot.blogspot.com/2009/02/this-is-how-whitewashing-us-out-of-glbt.html

QUEER TODAY

A day before Valentine’s Day, Congressman Jerold Nadler will reintroduce, in the House, the Uniting American Families Act, a bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate discrimination in the immigration laws by permitting same-sex permanent partners of US citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (green card holders) to obtain Permanent Resident Status in the same manner as spouses of citizens and lawful permanent residents. Last year. US Senator of Vermont, Patrick Leahy, introduced the same bill in the Senate.
http://queertoday.ning.com/profiles/blogs/uniting-american-families

Also, check out the folks over at Queercents for tons of useful information on finances, health, career, and relationships focused on our community.