Updated: Metcalfe Doesn’t Like Male Colleagues Touching Him

He doesn’t want to be touched by other men. He is a married heterosexual and he had no qualms announcing so during debate on a land use bill by the PA House Committee on State Government. That’s our Daryl Metcalfe.  And he’s officially heterosexual. Representative Matt Bradford, the ranking Democrat on the committee, was seated […]

City of Butler Considers Expanding Non-Discrimination Protections to LGBTQ Community

Butler County Queer

This is a very important blog post about a very important decision taking place just a wee bit north of Downtown Pgh. Butler City Council is considering creating a Human Relations Authority that would be responsible for ensuring resident of the City are protected in areas of employment, housing and public accommodation from discrimination based […]

Post-Gazette Ignores Trans Community When It Comes To Discrimination

When I saw the headline “Jurassic Legislature: As gays marry, lawmakers won’t protect their rights” I cringed. I thought to myself as I opened the link “please let them get it right, please let them get it right.” BOOM. They got it so very wrong. The poor performance of the state Legislature has a number […]

Cloning Equality

Pittsburgh LGBT

If you could clone one element from another city you’ve visited — a building, a cultural institution, a common street food, etc. — and bring it back to your own hometown, what would it be? I actually put together an entire plan to do this – to study best practices in LGBTQ municipal equality via a […]

People Are Standing Up To Daryl Metcalfe

Letter To The Editor Pittsburgh

Last week, Daryl Metcalfe tried to rally the troops to impeach State Attorney General Kathleen Kane for derelicting her duty to defend the state DOMA law (Kane will not defend the state law in various court cases, most notably one led by the ACLU in federal court.)  In response, a few folks wrote in to […]

A Bishop, a Rabbi and a Newspaper Columnist Walk Into a Gay Bar

The Post-Gazette has published a lovely piece from Rabbi Aaron B. Bisno, senior rabbi of Rodef Shalom Congregation in Squirrel Hill. We don’t like the government intruding into citizens’ personal lives, and we have a deeply ingrained sympathy for victims of prejudice, having so often been victims ourselves. As Rabbi Yoffie states, “We know from long […]

Here’s What We Need To Do About HB 300

From the  City Paper (excellent analysis btw):   But the bill might at least get a hearing — and that “is critically important,” Sims says. “We haven’t had people testifying before us about the impact of discrimination, saying, ‘You’re telling me I’ve lived and worked here my whole life, but I’m not treated equally?’” Metcalfe […]

Delaware Offers Marriage Equality While PA Introduces “Marriage Protection” Amendment

Good job Delaware. I’m glad I’ll be spending a few days there this summer and promise to spend money! Meanwhile here in Pennsylvania, State Representative Daryl Metcalfe is caught up in the “let’s go back in time” Western PA groove and has introduced ANOTHER bill that would define marriage in our Constitution. It is  HB […]

Vote on PA “Marriage Amendment” Delayed

Vote on PA “Marriage Amendment” Delayed

Tuesday AM. The Pennsylvania House Committtee on State Government was scheduled to vote on HB 1434 which started the ball rolling on a proposed constitutional amendment to define marriage. etc etc etc. Today, that ball didn’t go anywhere. Again. Debate on the proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex unions was put off until a dateTBD. The […]