In another step forward, the Philadelphia School District has added LGBT History Month (October) to the other culturally significant items included in a student calendar which will be sent home with all students (Philly Inquirer)
Noting that October is Gay and Lesbian History Month is an attempt to be inclusive and is no different from recognizing months devoted to the history or heritage of African-Americans, Hispanics and Asians, said Cecilia Cummings, a spokeswoman for the district.
"The school district maintains and upholds Policy 102, which is a multiracial, multicultural gender-education policy," she said. "Basically, it's a policy intent on fostering knowledge and respect for people of all races, ethnic groups, social classes, genders, religions, disabilities and sexual orientations."
Some parents are up in arms. Shocker! Nicola Rucker thinks her son shouldn't be learning about this "stuff" until he's old enough to come ask her about it. He's 9 years old. He's old enough to ask. The problem isn't the questions he'll be asking, but the answers she'll be giving. She throws out the tired old arguement that sexual orientation is a preference. So it will be very interesting for her to explain to her 9 year old why Mommy chose to be a breeder instead of a dyke.
According to his authorized biography, Archbishop Desmond Tutu has his priorities in order (AP).
"He found it little short of outrageous that church leaders should be obsessed with issues of sexuality in the face of the challenges of AIDS and global poverty," wrote Allen.
That's John Allen, Tutu's former press secretary and author of "Rabble Rouser for Peace" which will be released on Tutu's 75th birthday in October.
Tutu decried the capitulation of Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, to conservative forces in the church on issues such as the ordination of gay priests.
Here's a bit of a roundup from the blogosphere coverage ...
Ann Rodger's PG story was picked up all over the country, including The Huffington Post.
Pam's House Blend points out while 14,000 seats in the Mellon Arena remained empty, Dobson didn't miss an opportunity to make the Christian connection with the African-American community.
Street Prophets note that a turnout of 3,000 doesn't bode well for electoral turnout among the wingnut faithful.
Regarding the Antifa contingent, there's a LiveJournal report here and a blurb from their own website here.
According to the Post-Gazette, 3,000 Pittsburghers showed up to listen to the Focus on the Family hatefest spew its usual wingnut messages: Democrats kill babies, Democrats hate families, Democrats embrace homosexual perversion, blah, blah, blah. One interesting twist was his open criticisms of Republicans for being too soft. Never fear - he did his best softshoe endorsement-that's-not-an-endorsement of Ricky "My Children Lie For Me" Sanctimonious.
The good news is the Pittsburgh's LGBTQ community did not let that message go unchallenged.
Those waiting to hear James Dobson's message last night parked in lots above Mellon Arena and trickled toward Gate 1. Those hoping to counteract Mr. Dobson's message crowded in front of the entrance, lining both sides, creating a tunnel of signage -- in essence, one message forming the physical passageway to the opposite message.
Here, perhaps only here, the two ends of a polarizing issue rubbed against each other. Those walking into the arena saw some 150 protesters. They saw two arrests. They saw signs -- for instance, "5 Christian kids + 2 Christian moms = 1 Christian family." And then they kept walking.
150 people! That's awesome. For a midweek 5:00 PM turnout, that's a powerful statement about the impact Dobson's anti-gay message has had on our community.
You'll recall some tension between the "Standing With All Families" organizers and Pittsburgh's newest incarnation of RESYST! (now known as Antifa). How about this:
For several minutes, the signing and chanting gave way to mayhem. Just before 6 p.m., a band of teens and twenty-somethings -- dressed exclusively in black, and wearing fabric over their mouths -- approached the arena cursing about Dr. Dobson and fascism. Several in the group -- Pittsburgh Antifa, unaffiliated with the rally -- attempted to rush onto Mellon Arena property holding a sign. Security officers stopped the blitz, and police later handcuffed two members, arresting them for disorderly conduct.
Then, things again grew calm. The Antifa members joined with the assembly, creating an odd union of peace-preachers dressed in rainbow colors and radicals holding signs saying "Feed Dobson to the Lions."
Ledcat was there last night (I'm in Phoenix at a conference) and reports that Antifa made their presence known but did not violate the space of the other protestors. They got themselves arrested and all is well in their world I suppose. She reports that the police did have at least one dog for crowd control, but those protesting (aside from the trespassers) followed instructions and there was no problem at all.
And I still have to say hurrah to Antifa for showing up to make a statement, however ill advised. I have many friends who couldn't bother to be there for a variety of reasons, but still feel compelled to complain about Focus on the Family. Kudos to the 150 people who made it a priority.
I love the image of the last paragraph quoted above. That's the new queer community at its best.
David Schelbe, Vice President of Pittsburgh PFLAG, attended the rally itself. He has this to say:
Last night, at Pittsburgh’s Mellon Arena, [Dobson] whipped his devoted followers into a focused frenzy using fear and hate as rallying cries.Almost everyone was on their feet.But, as they stood for family values, they did not stand for mine.
I'm in the middle of the desert struggling to reconcile time zones and this is not the best way to begin a morning ...
These women are poised to be the next generation of leaders in their fields—whether it's sports, business, finance, politics or the arts. In their own words, they tell how they got where they are and where they hope to go next.
This is from Newsweek. The fourth woman profiled? Mary Cheney - Queen Lesbian Bitch of the Bush Apologists. Here's some pearls of wisdom on her "career" as a political campaigner ...
Every political campaign, especially at the national level, is an emotional roller coaster. There are moments that are simply incredible—holding a rally with 10,000 cheering people at midnight in Honolulu, watching my dad win the vice presidential debate and holding the Bible while he took the oath of office.
Mary appears to conveniently sidestep the fact that the Bible her father rode to the Vice Presidency is the very same weapon that's beating her entire community down on a daily basis in these hallowed United States. Not to mention that her father did not win that debate ... but why let facts get in the way of continuing to leverage Daddy's power for your self-promotion?
Leader? She worked for her Daddy, she wrote a book that no one bought and she is the most boring talk radio guest I've ever heard. What the hell kind of leadership is that? If this is Newsweek's idea of including the LGBTQ community, I'm definitely glad we switched to Time magazine.
A Philadelphia man has filed a formal complaint alleging that he was fired after complaining about a "pervasive anti-gay" environment at the Toyota dealership where he was employed.
The ex-employee, Patrick Johnston of Philadelphia, said the work environment at Champion, on Castor Avenue near Cottman, was one in which anti-gay slurs were routine and tolerated.
"Salespeople regularly used slurs like 'faggots' and 'fudgepackers' to refer to gay people," said Johnston, who is gay.
"Even gay customers - who were making these people a substantial commission - were called 'fairies' and 'faggots' behind their backs," he said.
Johnston first complained internally about the pervasive nature of the gay bashing, but was told that it was the nature of the business (365gay.com).
"It is shocking and disappointing that this type of anti-gay bigotry was so widespread at Sloane Automotive Group,” said Johnson's attorney Katie Eyer, of the Center for Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights.
"What is particularly disturbing is that Mr. Johnston was terminated when he complained about Sloane’s response. Retaliatory action of that kind sends a clear message to other employees – don’t complain if you value your job. This type of conduct is precisely the type of employer behavior that the Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance is designed to prevent."
Toyota received a perfect score on the 2005 HRC Corporate Equality Index. Here's their response to that ranking:
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. Jim Press, President and Chief Operating Officer, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
“Toyota Motor Sales is honored to be recognized by the Human Rights Campaign with a perfect score on the Corporate Equality Index. Diversity provides Toyota with a competitive advantage; understanding, embracing and leveraging our differences enables us to achieve our business goals. At Toyota, we acknowledge and support the diversity of sexual orientation and gender expression. Toyota recognizes its responsibility to both its employees and customers, and considers Diversity and Inclusion an integral part of every aspect of the business.”
How is this consistent with a pervasive homophobic environment Champion Toyota's management allegedly described? Sadly for the Correspondents, the parent sales company also owns a Honda dealership. What's a dyke to drive?
Just goes to show -- we may be a market, but equality is a long way down the road.
You are a Reality-Based Intellectualist, also known as the liberal elite. You are a proud member of what’s known as the reality-based community, where science, reason, and non-Jesus-based thought reign supreme.
