LGBT News Clips Monday (January 23, 2012)

 

Monday (January 23, 2012) News
Headline		Date	Outlet	Links
.HRC In the News (5)
	Lobbying for just a nod, a mention	01/23/2012	Politico	Text	View Clip
	Same-sex marriage on docket in Washington	01/23/2012	Associated Press	Text	View Clip
	GW declines to pay extra medical tax	01/23/2012	GW Hatchet, The	Text	View Clip
	The Private Sector And Gay Equality	01/23/2012	TheDailyBeast.com	Text	View Clip
	HRC Gala is around the corner: Are you on board?	01/21/2012	Q-Notes	Text	View Clip
Activism/Protest (2)
	It Gets Better: The Bagram Edition	01/22/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	Project to tour state	01/21/2012	Q-Notes	Text	View Clip
Education/Youth (1)
	Phillip Parker, 14, Has Killed Himself	01/22/2012	Towleroad	Text	View Clip
Entertainment/TV/Movies (6)
	'Sex And The City's' Cynthia Nixon Says Being Gay Could Be Choice	01/22/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	Charlotte: Center to present film series	01/21/2012	Q-Notes	Text	View Clip
	Coming Out in a Sundance Debut	01/21/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	Watch Trailer: HBO Set to Air Elton John Documentary	01/21/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	'30 Rock' Spoofs Tracy Morgan's Gay Controversy	01/21/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	Julia Roberts, Jim Parsons, Alec Baldwin, Matt Bomer Join AIDS Drama 'Normal Heart'	01/21/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
Events/Fundraising (2)
	GLAAD Lays Off Almost A Quarter Of Employees	01/22/2012	Towleroad	Text	View Clip
	'Glee's' Jane Lynch To Be Honored For Her Gay Advocacy At NCLR Event	01/21/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
Family/Home life/Children (2)
	Virginia To Consider Opposing Gay Adoption Bills	01/22/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	Adoption Debate In Virginia Hits The Legislature	01/21/2012	Towleroad	Text	View Clip
Hate Crimes/Criminal (1)
	Hazing death may be bias-based	01/21/2012	Q-Notes	Text	View Clip
Marriage (5)
	Washington Lawmakers to Consider Marriage Bills Monday	01/22/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	NOM Pledges $250,000 To Advance New Hampshire Gay Marriage Repeal	01/22/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	The Test Ahead	01/21/2012	Q-Notes	Text	View Clip
	The Economic Benefits of Marriage Equality in Washington State	01/21/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	NOM: N.H. Lawmakers for Gay Marriage "Will Suffer the Consequences"	01/21/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
National Politics (1)
	Gingrich Beats Romney in South Carolina	01/21/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
Politicians/Leaders (8)
	Santorum Feels "Absolutely No Pressure" to Drop Out	01/22/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	Video: Santorum Glitter-Bombed in South Carolina	01/22/2012	Advocate, The	Text	View Clip
	Mayor Thomas Menino Says Gay Marriage Has Made Boston Better	01/22/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	Meet Rick Santorum's Honorary Campaign Chair	01/22/2012	Towleroad	Text	View Clip
	Washington's Chris Gregoire Wishes Obama Would Join Her In Endorsing Gay Marriage	01/21/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	Fox Psychiatrist On Newt Gingrich: Infidelity A Sign Of Awesomeness	01/21/2012	Towleroad	Text	View Clip
	Obama To Endorse Gay Marriage In SOTU? White House Won't Rule Out Possibility	01/21/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
	Annise Parker: Gay Marriage Would Have Made A Tremendous Difference In My Life	01/21/2012	On Top Magazine	Text	View Clip
Religion (1)
	Religious Freedom To Discriminate Under Assault In Alaska	01/21/2012	Towleroad	Text	View Clip
Lobbying for just a nod, a mention | View Clip 01/23/2012 Politico The State of the Union address may be one of the most heavily lobbied 6,800-word documents in Washington. Immigration reform; the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community; background checks for gun buyers; and the Keystone pipeline are just a few of the wide array of issues liberal groups are lobbying White House aides to tuck into the text of President Barack Obama's State of the Union address. It's an annual tradition: Trade groups, unions and advocacy organizations scramble to sell their cause in hopes of scoring one of the specific references sprinkled throughout the speech each year. And this time around, the White House appears to be paying closer attention than usual to what its friends want to hear. "Generally speaking, it is the Super Bowl of politics — it's as competitive and difficult in that way," said Robert Raben, president of progressive lobbying firm The Raben Group. "This is where the president lays out to his biggest audience of the year what he stands for and what his party stands for." "The advocacy and lobbying is intense," he added. This year, the White House has been open to hearing from groups that will be critical to Obama's reelection effort. A day after Obama returned in January from his family's holiday vacation in Hawaii, the president stopped by a meeting in Washington where chief speechwriter Jon Favreau was talking with a confab of progressive leaders from the group Common Purpose. The group represents women's organizations, ethnic groups, labor and progressive grass-roots coalitions. This iteration of the group's weekly Tuesday afternoon meeting at the Capitol Hilton was an opportunity for Favreau to take suggestions about what should be in the president's speech, according to a person briefed on the meeting who requested anonymity because it was off the record. Other groups are taking their wish lists — which range from requests for single words to long-shot pushes for entire pieces of legislation — to the White House themselves. The Human Rights Campaign successfully pushed to keep the "don't ask, don't tell" repeal effort in Obama's speech last year, even after Congress approved the legislation. This year, the group pushed Obama to mention the LGBT community in his list of accomplishments and policy proposals. "The inclusion of our community in those laundry lists in any part of the speech helps us tremendously in being thought of as a vital part of the American fabric," said Fred Sainz, a spokesman for HRC. "The good news for this White House is that they don't believe that the oracle of wisdom begins and ends with them, so they are solicitous of perspectives from a wide variety of folks," he added, noting that lobbyists know that issues related to jobs have a better shot. The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials views the speech as an opportunity for the president to shore up support among disappointed backers. NALEO Executive Director Arturo Vargas said concerns about voter ID laws in states like South Carolina and Obama's failure to secure immigration reform may force his organization to lobby the White House directly for language in the State of the Union that could help stave off further disenchantment among Hispanic voters. "This year, we may [lobby] simply because of the dynamic of going into 2012 and what's left of his administration," Vargas said. "It would be important for him to mention that there still is unfinished business — the major policy challenge that this administration faces that has not been addressed." It isn't just Obama's allies who are knocking on the White House's doors. The National Association of Manufacturers has been at odds with the administration over a slew of issues in the past three years, including the National Labor Relations Board's policies, the Environmental Protection Agency's regulations and the stalled Keystone pipeline project. Aric Newhouse, NAM's chief lobbyist, said the trade association will be working with administration officials and members of Congress to encourage the president to support policy proposals its members view as good for manufacturers. "What NAM members want to hear is the president say, 'I'm proud to announce tonight that I'm going to approve Keystone,'" Newhouse said. "Unfortunately, we've had to play a lot of defense on energy policy," he added. "I'd love it if that would change in the coming months." A change, of course, is just what many lobbyists hope the State of the Union will bring for some issues that have gotten short shrift in the past. Gun control advocates tried unsuccessfully to tie the deadly shooting spree that injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) to a push for Obama to finally address the politically difficult issue. This year, Mayors Against Illegal Guns — a coalition led by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino — plans to send a letter to Obama to encourage him to address the background check system, noting the one-year anniversary of the Tucson, Ariz., shooting. And lobbyists aren't the only ones hoping to influence what will be in the final document. There is also intense internal lobbying by members of the Cabinet and Congress, adding to the competition for White House bandwidth. As members of Congress greet the president on the floor of the Capitol before the speech, some will quickly convey pitches for their pet issues, in many cases after having consulted with like-minded lobbyists. Ultimately, the State of the Union address is a test of connections that have developed over time and sheer creativity. "The Office of Public Engagement is the door to the White House, but the more sophisticated you become, you learn to work people like Valerie Jarrett, Pete Rouse or if you have a relationship with Jon Favreau or Melody Barnes," said one person familiar with the process of lobbying the administration. "We have a lot of allies who have direct relationships with [these] people. I call it lobbying with a lower case 'L.'" One labor leader likened the process of getting a nod in the speech to a scene in a Joseph Conrad novel in which French sailors, aboard a warship off the shores of Africa, fruitlessly shoot their guns into a vast forest — even though "it's clear they have no idea what they're shooting at." "It's not like that — but it's sort of like that," he said. "It's not completely blind, but it does have this kind of one-way quality to it — they're very protective of what's in that speech." Return to Top
Same-sex marriage on docket in Washington | View Clip 01/23/2012 Associated Press The last time same-sex marriage was debated in the Washington state Legislature, lawmakers voted to ban it. Fourteen years later, Washington could become the seventh state plus the District of Columbia to legalize same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage has won the backing of several prominent Pacific Northwest businesses, including Microsoft Corp. and Nike Inc., along with lawmakers who once opposed it. Bills to legalize same-sex marriage have been introduced in the House and Senate, sponsored by two gay lawmakers. The measures will have their first public hearings Monday. "If there's one word to sum up where Washington is on marriage equality, it's momentum," said Michael Cole-Schwartz, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based Human Rights Campaign. Same-sex marriage is legal in New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and the District of Columbia. Lawmakers in New Jersey and Maryland are expected to debate same-sex marriage this year as well. The debate over same-sex marriage in Washington has changed significantly since lawmakers passed the state's Defense of Marriage Act in 1998. The constitutionality of DOMA was ultimately upheld by the state Supreme Court in 2006, but earlier that year, a gay civil rights measure passed after nearly 30 years of failure, signaling a change of mind-set in the Legislature. Democratic state Sen. Ed Murray, a gay lawmaker from Seattle, has led the push for gay civil rights and is sponsoring the Senate marriage bill. "The culture changes and the politics follows," he said. "The most political act that changed the culture wasn't in Olympia, it wasn't me. It was people coming out to their families, to their workplace. That's what's changed people's minds." The state House is widely expected to have enough support to pass same-sex marriage, and Gov. Chris Gregoire publicly endorsed the proposal earlier this month. The state Senate is now just one vote shy of having enough backing to approve the bill, with a half-dozen lawmakers remaining uncommitted. In October, a University of Washington poll found that 43 percent of respondents said they support same-sex marriage, up from 30 percent in the same poll five years earlier. Another 22 percent said they support giving identical rights to gay couples but just not calling it marriage. Several religious groups have opposed any discussion of same-sex marriage. This month, the Catholic bishops of Washington issued a statement saying that same-sex marriage was not in the public interest and calling on "the citizens of this state to maintain the legal definition of marriage." Rep. Jamie Pedersen, a Democrat from Seattle who is sponsor of the House bill, said that even if a same-sex marriage law doesn't pass this year, the stage has been set for future success. "This change is inevitable," he said. "It's just a question of how long the families of same-sex families are going to have to wait for that justice to be done." Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/01/21/MNS61MSN97.DTL#ixzz1kIdtZiO6 Return to Top
GW declines to pay extra medical tax | View Clip 01/23/2012 GW Hatchet, The The University has no plans to reimburse employees in domestic partnerships for extra taxes they pay for medical coverage, despite a flurry this month of colleges and businesses opting to cover the added expense. Domestic partnership health coverage is counted as taxable income by the federal government, making recipients of those benefits pay additional fees because – unlike their married counterparts – their unions are not legally recognized. The University offers domestic partnership plans, but does not cover the expense of the federal tax. Beginning this January, Columbia and Yale universities and Barnard College joined a growing list of organizations that reimburse their employees for the extra cost. In the business sector, Google, Apple, Facebook and Teach for America are among the companies that already reimburse domestic partners for the $1,200 to $1,500 tax, The New York Times reported Jan. 11. This month, Bank of America, Microsoft and Ernst & Young also expanded their benefit packages to include tax compensation. The growing list of employers that reimburse the tax signals a trend to equalize the playing field among heterosexual and gay professionals in higher education. University spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard declined to say why the University does not reimburse the tax, but maintained that GW complies with existing federal tax laws. "GW extends benefits to both same-sex and opposite-sex domestic partners. We currently do not reimburse additional tax costs incurred by domestic partners in their health plans," she said. Benefit policies are reviewed each summer and no plans have been made as to what benefits will be considered this year, she said. GW expanded its medical benefits last year to include support for opposite-sex domestic partners so unmarried couples in committed relationships could receive the same benefits as married couples. These couples are also subject to the extra tax on benefits. The District and six states permit gay marriage, while 10 others allow domestic partnerships – a difference that determines if homosexual couples pay the additional tax. Unlike same-sex couples under federally recognized marital status, domestic partners must adhere to benefit regulations for local or state-sanctioned unions. Compensating employees for these taxes is known in human resources lingo as "grossing up," which helps "to level the playing field for gay and lesbian couples," Michael Cole-Schwartz, director of media relations for the Human Rights Campaign, said. The LGBT-rights organization "encourages all employers to not only offer these benefits but to also ensure there aren't additional financial barriers to taking advantage of them," Cole-Schwartz said of the tax. "GW should reevaluate [reimbursing the tax] because it would aid in maintaining equitable health and promoting diversity within the GW community," Dana Tai Soon Burgess, a gay professor who heads the Department of Theatre and Dance, said. Return to Top
The Private Sector And Gay Equality | View Clip 01/23/2012 TheDailyBeast.com One of the oldest arguments we had in the old gay rights movement - back when it was a monolithic captive of the New Left - was whether discrimination could be countered more effectively by private choice or public mandate. My view was that the government should not discriminate against gay citizens in any way, but that the private sector and anti-gay religious communities should retain more freedom. The market would eventually win over bigotry, I argued. That's me and my libertarianism. The consensus view was that federal anti-discrimination laws were much more vital, and the top priority of the Human Rights Campaign. That was in 1988. Such a federal law remains out of reach more than two decades later, despite massive support from the general public. But without such a law, we've been able to test whether the free market logic of non-discrimination can work. Today, we hear this news: For the first time ever, all 100 firms on Fortune's Best Companies To Work For list this year have non-discrimination policies that include sexual orientation. This is not because they are somehow being noble. It is because they are serving their shareholders by employing the absolutely best people for the jobs they have and do not want to miss someone's talents because of something irrelevant like sexual orientation. Hence capitalism enables equality. And the last entity to get with the program is the government. Return to Top
HRC Gala is around the corner: Are you on board? | View Clip 01/21/2012 Q-Notes The Human Rights Campaign North Carolina Gala is swinging into town the weekend of Feb. 23-26. With it comes a variety of statewide and national leaders, activists, entertainers, philanthropists and other movers and shakers. Return to Top
It Gets Better: The Bagram Edition | View Clip 01/22/2012 Advocate, The Members of the OutServe chapter serving in Afghanistan have debuted their own "It Gets Better" video from Bagram Air Base. Return to Top
Project to tour state | View Clip 01/21/2012 Q-Notes The Vote Against Project will be taking to the super slab during the next few months to photograph participants who wish to defeat the anti-gay amendment on the May 8 ballot. Return to Top
Phillip Parker, 14, Has Killed Himself | View Clip 01/22/2012 Towleroad Another one. From WSMV.com: A Gordonsville boy's parents say bullying caused their son to take his own life. Phillip Parker, 14, died this week. His parents said he was constantly bullied for being gay. ... "He was fun, he was... Return to Top
'Sex And The City's' Cynthia Nixon Says Being Gay Could Be Choice | View Clip 01/22/2012 On Top Magazine Cynthia Nixon has said that being gay for her is a choice Return to Top
Charlotte: Center to present film series | View Clip 01/21/2012 Q-Notes The GayCharlotte Film Series has announced its upcoming three-part "Breaking In: The Business of Movies" schedule. It is a project of The LGBT Center of Charlotte. Return to Top
Coming Out in a Sundance Debut | View Clip 01/21/2012 Advocate, The Among the entries at this year's festival is a short film by a gay Korean-American man who used the project to come out to his family. Return to Top
Watch Trailer: HBO Set to Air Elton John Documentary | View Clip 01/21/2012 Advocate, The Elton John is coming to the small screen on February 2 in the new documentary, The Union, directed by Cameron Crowe. Return to Top
'30 Rock' Spoofs Tracy Morgan's Gay Controversy | View Clip 01/21/2012 On Top Magazine The controversy over Tracy Morgan's anti-gay jokes last summer ended with a big laugh on NBC's '30 Rock' Return to Top
Julia Roberts, Jim Parsons, Alec Baldwin, Matt Bomer Join AIDS Drama 'Normal Heart' | View Clip 01/21/2012 On Top Magazine Julia Roberts, Jim Parsons, Alec Baldwin, Matt Bomer and Mark Ruffalo are set to star in the big screen adaptation of 'The Normal Heart' Return to Top
GLAAD Lays Off Almost A Quarter Of Employees | View Clip 01/22/2012 Towleroad The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation laid off 11 of its 45 employees last week. From The Advocate: The cuts come against the backdrop of an economy that still has not fully recovered, and nonprofits everywhere continue to face... Return to Top
'Glee's' Jane Lynch To Be Honored For Her Gay Advocacy At NCLR Event | View Clip 01/21/2012 On Top Magazine Jane Lynch, who plays Sue Sylvester on 'Glee,' will be honored for her gay advocacy at NCLR's 2012 Anniversary Celebration Return to Top
Virginia To Consider Opposing Gay Adoption Bills | View Clip 01/22/2012 On Top Magazine Virginia lawmakers are set to consider opposing gay adoption bills Return to Top
Adoption Debate In Virginia Hits The Legislature | View Clip 01/21/2012 Towleroad Last month in Virginia, the VA Board of Social Services "finalized regulations" peeling back discrimination protections encoded in the state's adoption laws, according to the AP, allowing religious adoption agencies receiving state moneys to discriminate against prospective LGBT parents. Some... Return to Top
Hazing death may be bias-based | View Clip 01/21/2012 Q-Notes On Nov. 19, 2011, Florida A&M University student Robert Champion Jr. was found unresponsive aboard a band bus after the school's biggest game of the year. Police ruled the death a homicide from hazing. Return to Top
Washington Lawmakers to Consider Marriage Bills Monday | View Clip 01/22/2012 Advocate, The Large crowds are expected Monday in Olympia as lawmakers begin considering whether to make Washington the seventh state in the nation where marriage equality is legal. Return to Top
NOM Pledges $250,000 To Advance New Hampshire Gay Marriage Repeal | View Clip 01/22/2012 On Top Magazine NOM has pledged $250,000 to support New Hampshire lawmakers who vote for a bill that would repeal the state's gay marriage law Return to Top
The Test Ahead | View Clip 01/21/2012 Q-Notes I am bewildered already by the blizzard of emails I receive daily about the upcoming vote (May 8, 2012) on a constitutional amendment in North Carolina that would further restrict and solidify what it means to be married in this state. I've been talking about the vote since both houses of the General Assembly voted upon its passage in September 2011. Return to Top
The Economic Benefits of Marriage Equality in Washington State | View Clip 01/21/2012 Advocate, The Passage of a marriage equality bill in Washington would add $88 million to the state economy and generate millions in tax revenue, according to a report released Friday by The Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. Return to Top
NOM: N.H. Lawmakers for Gay Marriage "Will Suffer the Consequences" | View Clip 01/21/2012 Advocate, The The National Organization for Marriage announced it would spend $250,000 to support New Hampshire lawmakers favoring repeal of the state's marriage equality law. A vote on the issue appears to be within weeks. Return to Top
Gingrich Beats Romney in South Carolina | View Clip 01/21/2012 Advocate, The Riding a recent surge that defied incendiary "open marriage" allegations by an ex-wife, Newt Gingrich has won Saturday's primary over Mitt Romney, who outspent the former House speaker in the state by 2 to 1. Return to Top
Santorum Feels "Absolutely No Pressure" to Drop Out | View Clip 01/22/2012 Advocate, The "I think people realize that Mitt Romney is now no longer the inevitable," he told CNN's Candy Crowley in a Sunday morning interview. Return to Top
Video: Santorum Glitter-Bombed in South Carolina | View Clip 01/22/2012 Advocate, The Occupy protesters were among those on the rope line at Rick Santorum's South Carolina election night party at The Citadel military college in Charleston, where the candidate faced another round of glitter bombing directly following his speech to the crowd. Return to Top
Mayor Thomas Menino Says Gay Marriage Has Made Boston Better | View Clip 01/22/2012 On Top Magazine Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino has said gay marriage has made Boston 'a much better place to live' Return to Top
Meet Rick Santorum's Honorary Campaign Chair | View Clip 01/22/2012 Towleroad Rev. O'Neal Dozier is a nut. I've spoken with him on two occasions, most recently when he whipped into a frenzy the most acidic elements of South Floridian fundamentalism to support a teacher who was in trouble for dousing an... Return to Top
Washington's Chris Gregoire Wishes Obama Would Join Her In Endorsing Gay Marriage | View Clip 01/21/2012 On Top Magazine Washington state Governor Chris Gregoire wishes President Barack Obama would join her in endorsing gay marriage Return to Top
Fox Psychiatrist On Newt Gingrich: Infidelity A Sign Of Awesomeness | View Clip 01/21/2012 Towleroad South Carolina's big primary is today, and Newt Gingrich is the most talked about man in America. He's been up, he's been down, and then he was up and then down and now up again, and the caprices of fate... Return to Top
Obama To Endorse Gay Marriage In SOTU? White House Won't Rule Out Possibility | View Clip 01/21/2012 On Top Magazine Is President Obama preparing to endorse gay marriage in his State of the Union address? The White House won't rule out the possibility Return to Top
Annise Parker: Gay Marriage Would Have Made A Tremendous Difference In My Life | View Clip 01/21/2012 On Top Magazine Houston Mayor Annise Parker on Friday provided powerful testimony on what marriage means to gay and lesbian couples Return to Top
Religious Freedom To Discriminate Under Assault In Alaska | View Clip 01/21/2012 Towleroad ... and it's not just in Virginia. In Alaska, too, securing legal protections for gayfolk may prevent the free exercise of religion. From The Anchorage Daily News: A national conservative Christian legal group says the gay rights initiative on Anchorage's... Return to Top