The South Bend, Indiana, Common Council has voted to table the human rights ordinance that would have extended employment discrimination protection to its gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender citizens.

About 200 people packed the meeting room Monday night as council members heard more than two hours of public debate about the proposal.

Some citizens spoke about the need of a progressive mindset, while others spoke about harmful effects they believe could come from the amendment.

“I’ve been ministering to those struggling with same sex attraction for more than 30 years. This lifestyle is truly harmful and dark,” said Patrick Mangan with Citizens for Community Values.

Councilman Oliver Davis, one of the measure’s three sponsors, sought the continuance when it became clear he lacked the five votes needed for a majority on the nine-member council.

Former Gov. Joe Kernan, a former mayor of South Bend, told council members failure to adopt a gay rights bill, ordinance number 30-10, will hurt the city’s image.

“The failure to pass 30-10 sends the message that we as a community are intolerant and we are better than that,” Kernan said.

The South Bend Tribune reported that councilwoman Karen White is the swing vote among the nine-member council. She said the proposal’s language was too vague to win her support. After the meeting, she said she remains undecided on whether she ultimately will support the bill if it comes up for a vote again.

The New Jersey Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a case from six same-sex couples seeking the right to marry, saying the case needs to wind its way through the lower courts first.

The court said it could not consider the merits of the claim that New Jersey’s civil union law is unconstitutional, until there is a trial record, leaving open the possibility it could hear the argument sometime in the future.

Garden State Equality issued this statement:

Today’s procedural decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court, voting 3 to 3 not to take the marriage equality case directly and all but inviting our side to initiate a new case at trial, is, of course, profoundly disappointing.

Today’s decision represents a delay until the Court hears how the civil union law has devastated same-sex families and their children. And any time justice is delayed, justice is denied.

Monday’s announcement is the latest in a series of setbacks for New Jersey’s gay marriage movement, which suffered successive blows from the November election of Governor Chris Christie and the defeat in January of a bill that would have legalized gay marriage.

Outgoing Governor, Jon Corzine, promised to sign the gay marriage bill if passed before he left office on January 19, 2010.

In 2006, the NJ Supreme Court ruled same-sex couples were due the full rights and benefits of heterosexual married couples, but left it up to the state Legislature to provide those rights, leading to the 2006 Civil Union Act.

In the court’s ruling (copy here, PDF), Chief Justice Stuart Rabner wrote, “This matter cannot be decided without development of an appropriate trial-like record.” He added that the court has reached “no conclusion” on the constitutionality of the Civil Union Act.

In the dissenting opinion, Justice Virginia Long wrote that the court should have heard oral arguments to help “guide us on the best procedural course” for creating a trial-like record.

The court’s decision was split 3-3. There is one vacancy on the court, and a majority would have been needed for the High Court to bypass the lower courts.

“This ruling is a saddening setback for our plaintiffs and their families,” said Hayley Gorenberg, Deputy Legal Director for Lambda Legal. “We are now assessing possible next steps in Superior Court.”

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A Georgia graduate student has filed a lawsuit accusing Augusta State University officials of violating her constitutional rights — she claims the school told her that her anti-gay beliefs are incompatible with the standards of her desired profession.

Jennifer Keeton, 24, who is pursuing a master’s degree in counseling, said she was ordered to undergo a re-education plan that requires her to attend “diversity sensitivity training,” complete additional remedial reading and write papers to describe their effects on her beliefs, according to the lawsuit filed last week.

“The school counseling faculty has decided that my views are not acceptable for me or to share with other students,” Keeton said in a video statement produced by the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF).

“They have required a remediation plan in which the end result would be me altering my beliefs or being dismissed from the program.”

Keeton has said in and out class that, according to her Christian beliefs, homosexuality is immoral and a lifestyle choice.

The ADF, a legal alliance that supports religious freedom, filed the suit for Keeton in U.S. District Court in Augusta. The notoriously anti-gay ADF opposes gay marriage, gay adoption, and established an annual “Day of Truth” to counter what it calls the promotion of the homosexual agenda.

ASU officials have made no comment on the suit, but said its counselor education program is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs, and follows the American School Counselor Association’s ethical standards, which specify that counselors in training must “recognize and accept” individual differences, cultural diversity and alternative points of view.

Keeton claimed that despite her beliefs, she would still be able to counsel lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans patients.

Plaintiffs in Donaldson and Guggenheim v. State of Montana.
Source: ACLU

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The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and seven gay couples in Montana filed a lawsuit against the state this week for failing to offer legal protections to same-sex couples and their families.

The suit, Donaldson and Guggenheim v. State of Montana, claims same sex couples are being denied their rights of privacy, dignity and the pursuit of life’s basic necessities as provided for in the Montana Constitution.

Because there is a constitutional amendment in Montana barring same-sex marriage, the couples in the lawsuit are seeking the protection of state-recognized domestic partnerships, similar to those in place in several other states.

According to the ACLU, under Montana law, it is possible for same-sex couples to be barred from visiting their partners in the hospital and to be left out of conversations about emergency medical care. Montana inheritance laws refuse to recognize same-sex couples, and can leave surviving partners with nothing if their partners die without valid wills.

“It’s unfair for same-sex couples who have made commitments and formed families to be treated by the state like legal strangers,” said Betsy Griffing, Legal Director for the ACLU of Montana. “Lesbian, gay and bisexual Montanans are valuable and productive members of society who should be treated fairly if their partner is in the hospital or dies without a will.”

The suit seeks a mechanism such as the domestic partnership laws adopted by several other states to provide similar protections for committed same-sex couples.

The plaintiffs (pictured, clockwise from top-left) are: MJ Williams and Nancy Owens of Basin; Denise Boettcher and Kellie Gibson of Laurel; David Wilson and Casey Charles of Missoula; Mary Leslie and Stacey Haugland of Bozeman; Mike Long and Rich Parker of Bozeman; Jan Donaldson and Mary Anne Guggenheim of Helena; and Gary Stallings and Rick Wagner of Butte.

This photograph is one of the few mementos Clay has left of his 25 years together with Harold.

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California’s Sonoma County has agreed to pay $600,000 to settle a lawsuit by an elderly gay man who claimed he was separated from his dying partner, accused of abuse, and left penniless when county officials auctioned the contents of their home.

Clay Greene, 78, of Guerneville, CA, filed the lawsuit earlier this year, claiming the county’s Public Guardian program discriminated against him because of his sexual orientation.

It began in 2008, when Greene’s partner of 25 years, Harold Scull, 88, was injured after falling down the front steps of the couple’s home and was taken to a local hospital.

Greene said that when Scull was in the hospital, Sonoma County officials denied visitation for the couple, contending they were mere “roommates,” despite signed wills, medical declarations and powers of attorney.

Three months later, Scull died alone and Greene was left with nothing.

The lawsuit also alleged that after Scull’s death, social workers forced Greene into a nursing home and sold the couple’s property, including art and heirlooms. The county’s lawyer, Gregory Spaulding, denied the discrimination claims but admitted mistakes in selling the couple’s property.

With his share of the money, which amounts to about $350,000 including an additional $50,000 from a Glen Ellen nursing home named in the suit, Greene will be able to live out his retirement in comfort.

“He’s very pleased,” said Greene’s attorney, Anne Dennis of Santa Rosa, who will receive half of the county settlement. “He thought he’d be dead before the county ever gave him money. And he’s relieved he doesn’t have to go to trial.”

In settling the suit, Greene agreed to drop allegations that county officials actions were the result of discrimination.

“What Clay and Harold lost can never be replaced, but this settlement brings a measure of justice to their story,” said Amy Todd-Gher, senior staff attorney for the National Center for Lesbian Rights, which represented Greene in conjunction with Davis.

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A federal judge on Friday issued an injunction preventing the State of Arizona from enforcing a law that would have prevented lesbian and gay state employees and their domestic partners (and the children of those partners) from receiving health benefits, referring to it as illegal discrimination.

The bill, passed by the legislature last session and signed by Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, eliminated coverage for non-spouse domestic partners, whether they were heterosexual or gay. The lawsuit, filed by Lambda Legal, said that heterosexual couples had the option of receiving benefits simply by getting married, but gay and lesbian couples can’t do so in Arizona.

United States District Judge John Sedwick agreed, citing the Arizona constitutional amendment that bars same-sex marriages, and said the state is making benefits for the partners of its employees available “on terms that are a legal impossibility for gay and lesbian couples.’’

The state argued, among other things, that the law saves Arizona money, to which Judge Sedwick addressed in his 33-page decision:

“Contrary to the State’s suggestion, it is not equitable to lay the burden of the State budgetary shortfall on homosexual employees, any more than on any other distinct class, such as employees with green eyes or red hair.”

He said the evidence shows that the cost of providing benefits to then partners of gay and lesbian workers is no more than 0.27 percent of total health care spending by the state. And even if cuts had to be made elsewhere, the judge said, that still doesn’t make the law right.

Arizona lawmakers included the provision to eliminate domestic partner health benefits for gay state employees as part of a last-minute budget deal signed by Brewer last September, while retaining spousal health benefits for heterosexual workers. Friday’s injunction barring enforcement of the insurance cut-off will take effect in ten days.

The State can appeal the ruling immediately to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, or proceed to defend the discriminatory budget provision on the merits in the District Court.

About 800 state employees are affected. State officials have not announced whether they will appeal the ruling.

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David Thompson, an attorney saddled with the unfortunate task of representing Prop 8 defendants, remarked in court during the federal trial that supporting the Prop 8 campaign was” political kryptonite,” according to the Washington Post.

Thompson, while cross-examining Stanford professor Gary Sergura, attempted to show that Prop 8 supporters “had been assaulted, gotten death threats and been subjected to economic boycotts,” and that the gay rights movement had suffered because of it.

In other words, Thompson was saying Prop 8 (a.k.a. “traditional marriage”) supporters are the victims here, not gay people. And that gay people have brought negative backlash upon themselves by standing up for their equal rights.

Sergura countered that he considered boycotts an acceptable political tool, but “organized violence or even broad disorderly behavior certainly has a negative impact.”  He said such behavior was “a cry for help or expression of frustration, or maybe the ultimate expression of powerlessness” by those whose lives were affected by the passage of Prop 8.

What would Thompson have the LGBT community do in response to having our equal rights stripped away? Sit back and take whatever hate-filled bigotry so-called “traditional marriage” supporters dish out with no repercussions?  Does he honestly believe his side would do the same if the shoe were on the other foot?  Judging from the hate speech [unpublishable here] that Prop 8 supporters were spewing out at Prop 8 rallies and during the trial, the answer seems to be a resounding “no”.

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Last week, Todd Ransom, a 28 year-old gay man from Orem, Utah, committed suicide.

While it is unclear why exactly Ransom took his life, friends report that he struggled to reconcile his sexual orientation with his Mormon upbringing.

Todd Ransom

There have been few reports of Ransom’s death in the media. Local news outlets have published only brief accounts from when Ransom’s body was discovered July 19.

But in a website memorial launched this weekend, Ransom’s family released this statement:

“Our beloved son, brother and friend took his own life at Battle Creek Canyon near Pleasant Grove, Utah after a long and painful battle with depression.

Some people have said that Todd ended his life because he was gay or felt persecuted by the LDS Church and his family, but this is not true. We loved him unconditionally. We were always there for him.

Todd attempted suicide previously and we know from that experience that his manic depression was a constant thorn in his side and that there were other factors that influenced his suicide. Todd didn’t always agree with us or want to share his life with us, but he was loved by us. That is the undeniable truth.”

Ransom’s death has fueled new debate about suicide among gay Mormons. Utah bloggers have written that this is the third gay suicide in Utah this month, all of which have been largely ignored by local news outlets. And according to the Deseret News, a LDS owned and cultured newspaper:

- Every 11 days a Utah teen commits suicide
- Utah leads the nation in suicide among men 15-24
- Utah has the 11th highest overall suicide rate in the nation
- Suicide is the #1 cause of death among Utah teens

Last year, Ransom signed up to participate in Reed Cowan’s film, 8: The Mormon Proposition, a documentary that chronicled the Mormon Church’s involvement in the passage of California’s Proposition 8, the voter-approved ban on gay marriage.

According to Cowan, Ransom left inexplicably before he could appear in front of the camera.

A candlelight vigil for Todd Ransom was held Tuesday at the Utah state capital. (Photo via David Daniels Photography)

But the memorial website goes beyond speculation, and explains with much candor, Ransom’s life and struggles:

“Our lives changed when Todd announced to his family in 2001 that he was gay. Thus began the difficult dance that takes place between a faithful Mormon family and a much-loved son and brother who chooses to live a gay lifestyle.

It was difficult for his parents to publicly acknowledge his homosexuality, and this hurt Todd in ways that his parents did not intend. On the other hand, in spite of his upbringing in the LDS Church, Todd insisted that family members affirm his sexuality in ways that put them at odds with their conscience and beliefs.

Todd was very hurt when his parents felt that they could not attend his commitment ceremony with Jake Jacquez, his partner of eight years, however he and Jake were both welcome in our home.”

Ransom was born July 11, 1982 in Princeton, New Jersey. He grew up in Tucson, Arizona and Orem, Utah. He graduated with honors from the University of Utah in May 2009, earning a BS degree in biomedical engineering.

Friends say Ransom left behind a note reading “Sunrise – Accept This Offering.”

A candlelight vigil was held last Tuesday evening on the steps of the Utah state capital. Photos at David Daniels Photography.

Ransom’s obituary here.

With thanks to Laurie Beth’s Grotto for calling our attention to the memorial website.

Gaymon

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The ACLU joined gay rights groups, civic and religious leaders in calling for an independent investigation into the death of a prominent Atlanta CEO who was shot and killed last week during an undercover sweep of alleged homosexual activity in a New Jersey park.

DeFarra “Dean” Gaymon, 48, CEO of the Credit Union of Atlanta, was shot and killed last Friday in Newark’s Branch Brook Park.

Authorities said he was masturbating and propositioned an undercover Essex County sheriff’s detective before a confrontation that led to the fatal shooting.

The undercover officer, whose name has not been released, told investigators that on the evening of June 17, he had returned to the woods after chasing down another suspect, because he realized he had lost his handcuffs.

When he bent down to retrieve his handcuffs, he claims he was approached by Gaymon, a married father of four, and was propositioned for sex.

The former Montclair, NJ resident, in town for his 30-year high school reunion, “appeared to panic” when the detective identified himself and showed his badge in an area of the park known to the Essex County Sheriff’s Office as a gay sex pickup spot, authorities said.

Essex County Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino said Gaymon then assaulted the officer and ran.

“The officer made repeated commands to Mr. Gaymon to stop and submit. Mr. Gaymon ignored those commands, did not raise his arms or make his hands visible and repeatedly threatened to kill the officer,” Laurino said. “Mr. Gaymon then lunged at and attempted to disarm the officer while reaching into his own pocket.”

“What we have here is a situation where an unarmed citizen ends up dead as a result of what would have been a minor crime,” said Deborah Jacobs, executive director for the ACLU-NJ.

A key question asked by all groups involved was why the officer pulled his gun for what Jacobs at the ACLU called “basically a misdemeanor for which you normally get a fine.”

Gaymon’s family is demanding a federal investigation, accusing the officer who said he fired in self defense of lying.

“We know that the police killed an innocent man, with no history of or disposition towards violence,” the Gaymon family said in their statement, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“Dean Gaymon was a nonviolent, non-aggressive and nonthreatening person his entire life,” said the statement. ” It would have been completely and totally against his nature to ‘tussle’ with a police officer, to resist authority, to assault a police officer…Words such as ‘I am going to kill you’ would not be uttered from him.”

McMillen

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A Mississippi school district has agreed to pay a recent high school graduate $35,000 in damages and adopt a policy prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, according to a statement released Tuesday by the American Civil Liberties Union.

Itawamba County School District officials agreed to have a judgment entered against them in the case of 18-year-old Constance McMillen, who sued her school for canceling the prom rather than let her attend with her girlfriend. The agreement ends a precedent-setting lawsuit brought by the ACLU on behalf of McMillen, who suffered humiliation and harassment after parents, students and school officials executed a plan to put on a “decoy” prom for her while the rest of her classmates were at a private prom 30 miles away.

“I’m so glad this is all over. I won’t ever get my prom back, but it’s worth it if it changes things at my school,” said McMillen, who was harassed so badly by students blaming her for the prom cancellation that she had to transfer to another high school to finish her senior year.

“I hope this means that in the future students at my school will be treated fairly. I know there are students and teachers who want to start a gay-straight alliance club, and they should be able to do that without being treated like I was by the school.”

According to court documents, school officials agreed to implement a policy banning discrimination or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, the first policy to do so at a public school in the state of Mississippi.

The school also agreed to pay McMillen $35,000 in damages and pay for McMillen’s attorneys’ fees.

“We hope this judgment sends a message to schools that they cannot get away with discriminating against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. LGBT youth just want to be treated like their peers and do all the normal high school things, like going to the prom with the date they choose,” said Bear Atwood, Interim Legal Director at the ACLU of Mississippi.

Armed with chants and shouted prayers, more than 300 opponents and proponents of same-sex marriage faced off Sunday on the south lawn of the Rhode Island State House on Sunday.

Two members of the National Organization for Marriage pray as a pro-same-sex-marriage protester waves the gay-rights rainbow flag above them. (via Providence Journal)

Speakers from the New Jersey-based National Organization for Marriage seemed startled as they were encircled by gay rights advocates who yelled, sang, waved the rainbow flag, and chanted “Get your hate out of our state.”

The NOM rode into town as part of a 19 state bus tour, opposing same sex marriage.

Currently, same sex marriage is legal in four New England states, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire, but not Rhode Island, and protesters say they want to keep it that way.

Westboro bigots outside the Lady Gaga concert in St. Louis

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Homophobic hate-monger Fred Phelps’ gang of Westboro Baptist Bigots has taken a break from picketing military funerals with its “God hates fags” message to picket the Lady Gaga concert in St. Louis on Saturday night.

“Now what type of wicked hypocrites would we be if we did not warn this little false prophetess and all of her over-indulged sycophants that they are each one, individually heading straight to hell in a gender-confused, self-loathing, tone-deaf hand basket,” said Westboro, via their website.

In response, about an hour prior to her concert, Gaga posted this message to fans, via Facebook:

“At the risk of drawing attention to a hateful organization, I would like to make my little monster fan aware of a protest being held outside the Monsterball in St.Louis tonight. Although we have had protesters before, as well as fundamentalists at the show this group of protesters are hate criminals and preach using lude and violent language and imagery that I wish I protect you all from.

Their message is of hatred and divisiveness, but inside at the Monsterball we preach love and unity.

My request to all little monsters and public authority is to pay these hate criminals no mind. Do not interact with them, or try to fight. Do not respond to any of their provocation. Don’t waste your words, or feelings, no matter what you hear or see.

You are more fortunate and blessed than they are, and in your heart just pray for them. Although I respect and do not judge anyone for their personal views on any politics or religion, this group in particular to me, is violent and dangerous. I wanted to make my fans aware of my views on how to approach, or rather not approach, these kinds of hate activists.

Be inspired to ignore their ignorant message, and feel gratitude in your heart that you are not burdened or addicted to hate, as they are. X”

And post-concert, via Twitter:

@ladygaga: Tonight love and hate met in St. Louis. And love outnumbered the hate, in poetic thousands. Hate left. But love stayed. + Together, we sang.

Westboro is a small church in Topeka, KS, and is not affiliated with the Baptist denomination or any other Baptist church. According to news reports, almost all of its members — fewer than 100 — are related to founder Fred Phelps either by blood or marriage.

The District of Columbia’s highest court has rejected yet another challenge to D.C.’s same-sex marriage law, ruling Thursday that opponents cannot ask voters to overturn it.

In a 5-4 decision, the D.C. Court of Appeals rejected an appeal brought by Maryland pastor, Bishop Harry Jackson, and others that sought to recognize the right of D.C. voters to vote on gay marriage.

On three separate occasions this year, the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics has rejected referendum petitions on the issue of same-sex marriage, ruling that a ballot measure on the issue will not be allowed.

The board has consistently ruled that such a measure would violate the city’s Human Rights Act that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation.

On Thursday, the Court of Appeals affirmed that decision:

Appellants contend that the proposed initiative would not authorize or have the effect of authorizing prohibited discrimination. We disagree with both contentions, and we therefore affirm the Superior Court’s rulings that the Council acted lawfully in imposing the Human Rights Act safeguard and that the Board correctly determined that the safeguard required it to reject the proposed initiative.

Read the full decision (.pdf) here.

Opponents had wanted to challenge a law that took effect March 3, allowing same-sex couples to marry. They have made numerous attempts to get approval to put an initiative on the ballot asking D.C. voters to define marriage in the city as between one man and one woman.

The D.C. Council passed the historic legislation on December 15, 2009, to legalize same-sex marriage in the District of Columbia; the bill was signed by mayor Adrian Fenty just 3 days later.

Jackson’s efforts have been thwarted by two Superior Court judges and a D.C. appeals court. During the mandatory 30-day Congressional Review period, neither the U.S. House or Senate took up the issue, although two Republican lawmakers from Utah, Rep. Jason Chaffetz and Sen. Bob Bennett, introduced resolutions designed to force a ballot initiative. On March 1, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to put the law on hold.

In the dissent, Judge John R. Fisher wrote that “even if we assume that the people at large are more likely to discriminate against minorities than are their elected representatives, appellees forget that there are numerous checks and balances in place here to protect against the tyranny of the majority.”

He pointed out that an initiative could be defeated at the polls, it could be disapproved by Congress (under the “Home Rule” authority), or it could be amended or repealed by the D.C. council.

Jackson said that while he was disappointed in the appeals court decision, he was encouraged that the decision was split.

Lawrence King

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A California judge has denied a request by defense attorneys to delay the trial of a teen accused of murdering a gay classmate.

Ventura County Superior Court Judge Charles Campbell turned down the request from Brandon McInerney’s attorneys who were seeking more time to interview witnesses for the high-profile school shooting case.

McInerney, 16, who is being tried as an adult, is charged with first-degree murder and a hate crime in the Feb. 12, 2008, shooting death of 15 year-old Lawrence King.

“We can’t respond. We are not prepared,” McInerney’s lawyer, Robyn Bramson, said. “We have no case to put on.”

“We have no defense,” added McInerney’s other lawyer, Scott Wippert.

Brandon McInerney, charged with first-degree murder.

King, who dressed in a feminine style and told friends he was gay, was allegedly shot the back of the head by McInerney in a computer lab at E.O. Green School in Oxnard, CA.

The two boys had been sparring in the days before the killing, allegedly because King had expressed a romantic interest in McInerney, who was 14 at the time.

McInerney faces a maximum prison sentence of 50 years to life if he’s convicted of first-degree murder.

Prosecutors have offered to agree to a sentence of 25 years to life if McInerney pleads guilty to first-degree murder and a hate-crime allegation.

Prosecutors said they will be ready with testimony and evidence. Jury selection is expected soon, with opening statements later this month.

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The county of Sonoma, California is renowned for its beautiful rolling hills of wine vineyards and spa resorts, but it also has an ugly side.  This month, a jury there will begin hearing the case of Harold Scull and Clay Greene, an elderly couple who endured the worst nightmare imaginable at the hands of health care workers and county officials two years ago in the small town of Sebastopol.

A lawsuit accuses the county’s office of the public guardian/conservator of forcing the two men into separate nursing homes, auctioning off the contents of their home, and carting off choice heirlooms for themselves.

Sitting in his cramped studio apartment in Guerneville, CA, where he lives alone, Greene told PressDemocrat.com:

“They stole my furniture, put me in a retirement home and told me to shut up.  They took my cats. They took everything.”

This photograph is one of the few mementos Clay has left of his 25 years together with Harold.

It all started when Scull, 88, was injured after falling down the front steps of the couple’s home in 2008 and was taken to a local hospital.  Greene, 78, said that when Scull was in the hospital, Sonoma County officials denied visitation for the couple, contending they were mere “roommates”, despite signed wills, medical declarations and powers of attorney.

Greene said he and Harold were then forced by public officials to live in separate nursing homes.  Three months later, Harold died alone, and Greene was left with nothing.  Only with the help of dedicated and persistent court-appointed attorney Anne Dennis was Clay released from the nursing home following Harold’s death.

County attorney Gregory Spaulding said the case is “about domestic abuse, not gay rights.”  Spaulding alleges that Scull was hospitalized after he was attacked by Greene, and their belongings were sold for about $35,800 to cover expenses for their care.

“When the facts come out, the story that’s being thrown out will be found inaccurate in a number of respects,” Spaulding said. “The case came to the public guardian when Scull reported he had been assaulted by Clay Greene.”

However, NCLR  executive director Kate Kendall doesn’t see it that way. She told the Windy City Times, “In the 33 years of our organization’s history, this case is perhaps among the most tragic NCLR has ever been involved in. Clay and Harold had taken all of the necessary precautions to protect them in a time of crisis. Not only were their relationship and legal documents ignored, Clay and Harold literally lost everything.”

“Because of the county’s actions,” Kendall continued, “Clay missed the final months he should have had with his partner of 25 years. Compounding this tragedy, Clay has literally nothing left of the home he had shared with Harold or the life he was living up until the day that Harold fell, because he has been unable to recover any of his property. The only memento Clay has is a photo album that Harold painstakingly put together for Clay during the last three months of his life.”

Stu Maddox, director of a new documentary called Gen Silent, about the plight of elderly LGBT people, said, “Here we are in California, where the state has required sensitivity training for LGBT elders, where we have some measure of legal protections as LGBT citizens, and yet here is my worst fear staring me in the face.  We discovered in the film this kind of disaster happening no matter how progressive the community or the laws. It made me realize how important it is to have LGBT involvement in the oversight of the actual places and the people caring for us.”

Anne Dennis, along with Stephen O’Neill and Margaret Flynn of Tarkington, O’Neill, Barrack & Chong, will represent Clay in the lawsuit against the county, the auction company, and the nursing home, with technical assistance from NCLR.

The case is Greene v. Sonorma County. Gen Silent premiered May 8th in Boston.

Want to help?

• Sign the petition demanding justice at Change.org
• Join the Facebook group
• Support the work of NCLR

Editor’s Note: The trial in the case of Greene v. Sonoma County is scheduled to commence on July 27, 2010 in Sonoma County Superior Court in Santa Rosa, CA. The Courtroom View Network (CVN) will webcast gavel-to-gave coverage.

Derrick Martin was presented with the Courage Award on June 12, 2010, from LifeWorks, the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center’s youth mentoring program.

The gay Georgia teen who who decided to take his boyfriend to high school prom earlier this year, and was subsequently kicked out of his parent’s home, launched an outreach organization on Monday to help LGBTQ youth.

“Thanks to the kindness of strangers, I survived abandonment for the ‘crime’ of being gay and young,” said Derrick Martin, 18, in announcing the creation of Project LifeVest, an organization to assist teens who are in situations similar to his — facing abandonment, abuse, or discrimination because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

“My situation and the attention it has drawn have provided me a unique perspective and opportunity that I feel I cannot pass up”, Martin said.

“Young people who, like myself, have been disadvantaged because of discrimination, hate, or ignorance need somewhere to turn for help. GLAAD was my life vest, and I plan to be a life vest to as many others as I can. I only want those who face obstacles like mine to know that they are not alone, for everyone has the right to love regardless of sexual orientation.”

In March, Martin won the approval of his school to take his then-boyfriend, Richard Goodman, to the senior prom at Bleckley County High School in Cochran, GA. His parents disapproved, and kicked him out of the family home; some classmates protested, and Martin became the object of death threats.

But when Martin’s story made national headlines, gay rights supporters from around the country came to his aid. He and Goodman attended the prom on April 17 without incident.

“If I have anything to say about it, no one else will ever have to go through what I did. Project LifeVest is my ‘give back’ for the critical help caring people around the country extended to me when I needed it.”

Martin told LGBTQ Nation that Project LifeVest is being launched using his life savings, but has plans to seek funding; the organization is also accepting donations at its website.

Martin also plans to attend Georgia Southern University in August, where he will study pre-law.

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The once-progressive Aloha state seems doomed for Republican takeover, following lame duck Governor Linda Lingle’s veto yesterday of a same-sex civil unions bill passed last month by the state legislature.

Lingle was certain to make the pending veto as agonizing as possible for LGBT couples in the state, who anxiously waited weeks for her to “carefully consider” the bill, then put it on a list of potential vetoes, then slam down the hammer last night.

Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle vetoed the state's same-sex civil unions bill

Many were hopeful Lingle would simply ignore the bill, making it become law by default.  But she took a different approach altogether, calling her decision “well-reasoned,” and seizing the opportunity to use typical GOP speak, blaming the mostly Democratic legislature for passing the bill without giving the people of Hawaii a chance to vote on it.  Sorry, Lingle, but in a Republic like the United States, the civil rights of a minority are not a matter for the tyranny of the democratic majority to decide.   That’s what our elected representatives in the legislature are there to prevent, and a true Republican should know better.

Just look at what’s happening right now in California following the disastrous 2008 passage of Proposition 8 – it’s left 18,000 married couples in the state in legal limbo, and is the subject of a landmark federal case, Perry v. Schwarzeneggger, which is expected to make its way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Connecticut School of Law professor John C. Britain wrote a rather compelling article regarding the use of ballot initiatives to decide civil rights.  In it, he notes that “the [Supreme] Court, in a truly Madisonian fashion, guards the interests of the minority against the will of the majority” when considering the use of “direct democracy”, which is espoused by so many conservative Republicans today.

Of course, Lingle’s veto has been applauded by her conservative supporters and counterparts.  Hawaii News Now reports that the two Republican gubernatorial candidates – Lt. Governor James “Duke” Aiona and Honolulu mayor Muffi Hanneman – support Lingle’s decision.  Both agree with Lingle that the people of Hawaii should have the opportunity to vote on the issue.

Abercrombie

However, Democratic candidate Neil Abercrombie, who left Congress to run for Hawaii Governor, issued a statement saying:

“Civil unions respect our diversity, protect people’s privacy, and reinforce our core values of equality and aloha. It will be up to the next governor and legislature to ensure that all people of Hawaii receive equal treatment.”

The ACLU and Lambda Legal are already preparing lawsuits.  Staff attorney Laurie Temple of the ACLU told the AP, “We’re obviously disappointed that Governor Lingle has, once again, used her power to deny the people of Hawaii their civil rights.  Luckily for the people of Hawaii, however, our constitution prevents discrimination based on sexual orientation. If the Governor won’t honor her oath to uphold the constitution, the courts will.”

But it’s going to be a long, uphill battle.  The state legislature has already indicated it will not attempt to override Lingle’s veto, and Aiona, the front-runner in the Governor’s race, came to Lingle’s defense, saying, “To put that kind of pressure on one person, especially during an election year, and knowing how this issue is falling, that’s just totally unfair.”

The San Francisco Chronicle is wondering if gay and lesbian (or all) travelers should boycott the state.  But contributor Jeanne Cooper noted, “Recently I wrote about wedding sites and package providers in Hawaii, and all but one of the representatives I interviewed said they welcomed same-sex couples for commitment ceremonies, and would do the same for same-sex marriages, as soon as those became legal (the other made referrals to a specialist in same-sex ceremonies.)”

Would a boycott of Hawaii really help the LGBT couples who live there and are affected by this decision?  Most of them work in the hospitality industry, which depends heavily on tourism.  A boycott would simply cause them to lose their jobs on top of keeping them second-class citizens in the eyes of the state.  They are the ones we should be thinking about, because they have the most at stake in Hawaii’s already-ailing economy and political environment.

Stay tuned for more as this story develops.

Levi Johnston wants to take off the boxing gloves with the Palins.

Just days after appearing on an episode of Kathy Griffin’s “My Life on the D-List” reality show, where the hilarious comedian went to Alaska to visit her faux boyfriend Levi Johnston, the Playgirl stud is saying he wants to bury the hatchet with the Palin family.

During the episode, Griffin was determined to get into the “Palin Compound” using Levi, and tried several times to make him talk about Sarah, Todd, and Bristol. Johnston went along with it a bit, even driving Griffin by the Palins’ home. But mostly, he remained uncharacteristically quiet, particularly in light of the scathing interview he gave Vanity Fair last year, titled, “Me and Mrs. Palin”, in which he tore into the former Alaska Governer-turned-media magnate and was highly critical of the way she and Todd raised their children.

But now Johnston has told People magazine he wants to improve his relations with the Palin family, particularly Sarah Palin:

“Last year, after Bristol and I broke up, I was unhappy and a little angry,” Johnston said. “Unfortunately, against my better judgment, I publicly said things about the Palins that were not completely true. So to the Palin family in general and to Sarah Palin in particular, please accept my regrets and forgive my youthful indiscretion. I hope one day to restore your trust.”

Sarah Palin has yet to issue a statement in response to Johnston’s apology. It appears to come after he and Bristol Palin both realized they needed to put aside their differences and hostilities for the sake of their child, Tripp. Either that, or he was strong-armed into it.

Bristol Palin spoke of the “need for good co-parenting” in People, which she described as “creating healthy and honest relationships between the parents” (someone’s been reading self-help books). Bristol added, “Tripp one day needs to know the truth and needs to know that even if a mistake is made the honorable thing to do is to own up to it.”

Okey-dokey, then.

Lingle

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Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle vetoed a civil unions bill Tuesday that would have given same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples, saying the issue needs to be put to a referendum.

Lingle said the bill was equivalent to marriage, which she believes should be reserved for a man and a woman.

“There has not been a bill I have contemplated more or an issue I have thought more deeply about during my eight years as governor than House Bill 444 and the institution of marriage,” Lingle said at a news conference.

“I have been open and consistent in my opposition to same-sex marriage, and find that House Bill 444 is essentially same-sex marriage by another name.”

The bill, approved by the state Legislature in late April, would have granted gay and lesbian couples the same rights and benefits the state provides to married couples.

Lingle called the issue too emotional and too important to be decided solely by the governor or the state Legislature, and recommended a state constitutional amendment be placed on the ballot for voters in 2012.

Lingle’s veto comes on the last day she had to take action, otherwise it would have become law without her signature.

One man and five minors were arrested in an Atlanta Park on Friday night after an assault and robbery of a gay couple, according to Atlanta police.

From the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

At approximately 10 p.m., Jarvis Johnson, 19, and five other males ranging in age from 13 to 17 approached two men having a picnic in Piedmont Park, asked if they were gay and then threatened them, the report states. The suspects then began to attack each individual separately.

“We were just finishing up dinner and playing cards when they came up to us and asked if we were gay,” Joshua Noblitt, 32, told the AJC on Tuesday. “It wasn’t very organized. I don’t know if they thought gay men in the park would be an easy target based on stereotypes and stuff, or what.”

Noblitt sustained a visible head injury and back pain from being kicked in the head and kidneys.

Further investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in a previous armed robbery minutes earlier.

Two days after fire officials call a blaze that destroyed a gay pride float possible arson, leaders from the LGBT community’s Imperial Court were able to rebuild their float, and took first prize in the July 4 parade contest.

From KTUU-TV:

The Imperial Court of All Alaska, an organization supporting the gay community, rebuilt its float with community support after it burned in a suspicious fire early Friday morning.

“Our float is now called ‘Phoenix Rising,’” said Colleen Crinklaw, who helped build both the old and new floats. “Two days ago on Friday morning, our original float was burned in a suspicious fire.”

But like a phoenix rising from its ashes, donations and support made it possible to rebuild the float in one day — “Phoenix Rising” won the Grand Champion trophy at Sunday’s parade.

Photo: Colleen Crinklaw via Anchorage Daily News

Authorities in Anchorage, AK are investigating the cause of an early morning fire on Friday that destroyed a gay pride float intended for a 4th of July parade.

The fire started in a garage and spread to a nearby duplex, according to fire officials. The float was in a car tent in front of the garage; it had previously been used in last weekend’s gay pride parade, and was being readied for the Fourth of July parade.

It’s unclear if the fire was an accident or arson. But KTUU-TV reported that witnesses told fire investigators they saw someone running from the driveway just moments before the garage went up in flames.

The float belonged to the gay rights organization Imperial Court of All Alaska.

A fire department spokeswoman said the fire is being called suspicious and is under investigation.

Photo via the Anchorage Daily News.

Cuomo

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New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo told the reporters that, if elected governor this fall, he would push to legalize gay marriage in the Empire state during his first year in office.

From The Wall Street Journal:

Asked by a reporter if he would make the passage of a same-sex marriage bill a priority in his first year on the job, Cuomo told reporters in New York City: “It’s a priority.”

State lawmakers, he said, “have their hands full with their current legislative agenda, most notably the budget, but my opinion, my policy point of view, it is a priority.” Asked if he thinks a gay marriage bill could pass the Legislature in 2011, an off-election year, Cuomo replied: “Do I think it can? Yes.”

When Cuomo first ran for governor in 2002, he declared that he supported civil unions over same-sex marriage. It was not until his 2006 bid for state Attorney General that Cuomo announced his support of gay marriage.

Last December, the NY state Senate rejected a gay marriage bill in a crushing defeat for gay rights advocates who had waged a long, expensive campaign and had won pledges of support from Senate Democratic leaders.

While the battle continues in the fight for gay marriage, Mother Jones reports there are still 13 states that haven’t criminalized bestiality. That’s correct, two same-sex individuals in a committed, loving relationship cannot get married in most of these states, but bestiality is just fine.

Source: Mother Jones

From Mac McClelland, MJ‘s Human Rights Reporter:

I don’t know about you, but as you may know, when I get moody about the ridiculous discriminatory laws against homos here, I make maps of weird stuff I can legally bone or marry….

There are, you’ll probably not be surprised to learn, three times as many states with no direct prohibitions against the sexual assault of an animal (according to the Animal Legal Defense Fund) as there are states that allow gay marriage.

Source: Mother Jones.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 7-0 Wednesday to uphold the state’s constitutional ban on same sex marriage and civil unions, saying the 2006 constitutional amendment was properly put to voters in a statewide referendum.

According to Milwaukee Public Radio:

University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Professor William McConkey filed suit in Dane County Circuit Court seeking to have the marriage amendment declared invalid because the amendment consisted of two questions that could have reached different results had they been asked separately: whether to ban gay marriage, and whether to ban civil unions.

Polling at the time reportedly showed much greater support for civil unions.

McConkey alleged the referendum’s wording that included the phrases gay marriage and civil unions violated the single subject rule set forth in the state constitution. He says he’s disappointed and angry with the high court’s ruling.

Justice Michael Gabelman says both sentences included in the amendment, “carry out the same general purpose of preserving the legal status of marriage in Wisconsin as between one man and one woman.”