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Please switch over to the Equality Florida Blog.
That's where you will get Breaking New and features that matter to you.

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Make the switch and tell your friends.
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Blogged with the Flock Browser

We are switching to the Equality Florida Blog

Equality Florida Blog

Please switch over to the Equality Florida Blog.
That's where you will get Breaking New and features that matter to you.

http://eqfl.blogspot.com/

Make the switch and tell your friends.
Thanks
Nadine

BREAKING NEWS: Gainesville Voters Reject Charter Amendment 1, Uphold LGBT Protections

 

Victory In Gainesville Voters Reject Fear Tactics and Discrimination March 24, 2009 (GAINESVILLE, FL) Equality Florida joins with local leaders in Gainesville and fair-minded people across the state and nation in celebrating today's decisive victory over discrimination and fear embodied in Gainesville Charter Amendment 1. Voters rejected the amendment by a vote of 58% to 42%. If passed, Charter Amendment 1 would have repealed existing civil rights protections for Gainesville's gay and transgender community. For over a year, backers of the amendment have waged a fear-based campaign filled with outright lies and media campaigns that dehumanized gay and transgender people. Specifically, these extremists drew a target on the backs of transgender people with bigoted messages intended to instill fear in the hearts of Gainesville citizens. Led by Equality Is Gainesville's Business, a coalition of local, state and national organizations worked together to stop discrimination from being legalized in Gainesville. The sweeping language of the ballot initiative, imported to Florida by a far right conservative group in Michigan, would have also prohibited the City of Gainesville from ever providing nondiscrimination protections beyond those listed in the Florida Civil Rights Act. "Supporters of Charter Amendment 1 waged a campaign that blatantly lied to voters about the protections Gainesville has provided transgender citizens." said Joe Saunders EQGB campaign manager. "By targeting transgender people, proponents of Charter Amendment 1 have proven the need for inclusive anti-discrimination laws. Voter's embraced Gainesville's anti-discrimination laws tonight when they rejected Amendment 1." Saunders is also the field director for Equality Florida. "This is a local victory but it's significance reaches across our state and our nation. Those pushing Amendment 1 are part of a national effort to repeal LGBT protection in communities across the country," said Nadine Smith, executive director for Equality Florida. "This victory sends a strong signal that we will not allow extremists to turn back the progress we have made to secure equality for everyone." The local team waged a strong grassroots campaign reaching voters and unmasking the real human impact of the proposed amendment. "Today Gainesville voters showed that they value the rights of all citizens," said EQGB Chair and Gainesville City Commissioner Craig Lowe. "They have rejected the politics of fear and instead chose to retain the values that make our city such a beautiful place. Today, our voters showed their true character by emphasizing that, in Gainesville, every person matters." A broad array of organizations came out to publicly oppose Charter Amendment 1. These organizations include: the Anti-Defamation League - Florida, the ACLU of Florida, Equality Florida, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Center for Transgender Equality, Lambda Legal, National Center for Lesbian Rights, Organizations United Together (O.U.T.), UM (University of Miami) for Equality, Florida Association of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, Florida NOW, Gainesville Area NOW, Judy Levy NOW PAC, Alachua County Democratic Party, Alachua County Green Party, Alachua County/Gainesville League of Women Voters, Alachua County NAACP, Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce, Gainesville Area AIDS Project (GAAP), Gainesville Commission on the Status of Women, Human Rights Council of North Central Florida, Interweave, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Gainesville, North Central Florida Central Labor Council, Pride Center of North Central Florida, Social Justice Council of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Gainesville, Trinity Metropolitan Community Church, United Church of Gainesville Social Concerns Committee, University of Florida Students for Change, Students for a Democratic Society @ UF, Wild Iris Books and Wild Words Café, University of Florida Faculty Senate, University of Florida Presidential LGBT Concerns, and University of Florida Student Senate. Equality Florida is Florida's only statewide human rights organization dedicated to the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. Through education and advocacy, the organization is committed to building a state of equal rights for all Floridians, inclusive of all sexual orientations and gender identities. -30-

 

Gainesville Voters Take A Stand Against Discrimination

It's still unofficial, but right now with 82% of precincts reporting about 61% has voted down City Charter Amendment 1. Here's the election returns.

For over a year, supporters of Charter Amendment 1 have waged a fear-based campaign that blatantly lied to voters about the intent and impact of Charter Amendment 1 and specifically targeted transgender people with harmful discrimination. The sweeping language of the ballot initiative, which was written by a far right conservative group in Michigan, would have prohibited the City of Gainesville from providing nondiscrimination protections beyond the minimal protections set forth in the Florida Civil Rights Act.

Again.  It's still unofficial, but I  feel confident in saying the ugly tactics to dehumanize transgender people have failed.  Today the City of Gainesville has once again proven itself as a beacon of progress.  

Breaking News: Ryan Skipper's Killer Found Guilty

Ryan Skipper's Killer Found Guilty
http://tinyurl.com/skippertrial

Today, Joseph Bearden, one of the two accused killers of Ryan Skipper, was found guilty of second-degree murder and robbery.

On March 15, 2007, Ryan Skipper was stabbed 19 times and left to die on a dirt road in Polk County, Florida. His death is a bloody reminder of the anti-gay hatred faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in our state.

Just days ago, a prosecution witness revealed that shortly after the killing, Joseph Bearden, the defendants, said, "He felt he was doing the world a favor by getting rid of one more faggot."

The 19 stab wounds that Ryan Skipper suffered are what the FBI calls 'overkill'. That's when the violence in an assault is beyond what would be necessary for a robbery and more than would even be required to take someone's life. Overkill is a key indicator of a hate crime.

During his closing statement, State Attorney Castillo said the brutality of Ryan's murder indicated, "hatred, contempt and utter disregard for another human being because he was gay."

Hate crimes are directed at groups of people. They are intended to make an entire community afraid simply because of who they are.

But hate crimes are only effective as a two-step dance: first the offender sends fear into people's hearts with a heinous act of violence. Then leaders around them act like nothing more happened than a car theft gone wrong. No action. No public acknowledgment of what has happened. No commitment to ensuring this never happens again. Their silence is as terrifying as the violence itself.

Click here to take action.
http://tinyurl.com/trialverdict

Tell Gov Crist and Attorney General McCollum that they must refuse to be the second-step in the cycle of anti-gay hate violence. Tell them to speak out, to turn the tide and declare that gay and transgender people are valued members of our society and that hate violence will not be tolerated against any group.

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Equality Florida in the News: Crist in Fix Over Supreme Appointment

"Meanwhile, the prominent gay rights group Equality Florida sounded its own warning to its members: "The ultra right-wing American Family Association has begun to rally around Judge Alan Lawson ... flooding the governor's office with calls, faxes, and e-mails. We cannot let the American Family Association decide the make-up of the Florida Supreme Court!"

Crist In A Fix Over State Court Post
By WILLIAM MARCH wmarch@tampatrib.com

The Tampa Tribune

In the next week or so, Gov. Charlie Crist faces one of the toughest political decisions of his tenure as governor: A Supreme Court appointment that pits conservatives in his own party against a minority community Crist is courting.

Religious conservatives and the National Rifle Association are backing Judge C. Alan Lawson of the 5th District Court of Appeal, calling him the most qualified of the four candidates presented to Crist.

On the other hand, some liberal groups and black activists - including state NAACP President Adora Obi Nweze, whom Crist recently named as his minority affairs adviser - are ardently backing Seminole County-based Circuit Judge James E.C. Perry.

If Perry is chosen, he would be the second black justice on the seven-member state Supreme Court.

Both sides have lobbied Crist, and he has strong political reasons for not wanting to alienate either side.

Crist has proclaimed his intent to make racially diverse judicial appointments, and he wants black and minority support if he runs for the U.S. Senate next year.

At the same time, his relations with the conservative base of the Republican Party are badly strained, partly because of his backing of President Barack Obama's stimulus plan. An appointment conservatives don't like would only worsen that.

University of South Florida political scientist Darryl Paulson summed up Crist's dilemma: "Given his background, you would expect him to appoint an African-American," Paulson said. "Part of his success has been reaching out to African-Americans.

"But given the political situation, you might expect him to use the appointment to heal the wounds with the conservatives."

Crist has named three Supreme Court justices, two of them highly conservative: former Congressman Charles Canady of Lakeland and former appellate Judge Ricky Polston of Graceville.

Given Crist's overall moderate politics, Paulson said, those appointments appeared designed to placate the political right.

Crist chose his third appointee, Circuit Judge Jorge Labarga, after demanding that the nominating committees that choose nominees provide him more racially diverse choices.

Labarga, a Cuban emigre and former public defender, was originally appointed to the bench by then-Gov. Lawton Chiles, a Democrat. In choosing Labarga, Crist passed over former Jeb Bush administration official Frank Jimenez, which disappointed some conservatives.

'Diversity Is Very Important'

The next appointment could be Crist's last chance for a black appointee: No more justices are nearing retirement age.

Besides Perry and Lawson, the other two nominees for the appointment are Circuit Judge Debra S. Nelson of Sanford and Orlando lawyer Daniel J. Gerber, known for defending chemical manufacturers against allegations of toxic exposure.

Perry is a registered Democrat but is a Jeb Bush appointee, as are Lawson and Nelson.

Crist will interview all four today and may name his appointee this week.

Asked Tuesday how important it is to him that one of his appointees be black, Crist said, "The overriding concern is always that you have people that are honest, that are ethical, that are intelligent, that are compassionate ... and have humility. But obviously diversity is very important to me and that's why I sent some of those nominees back, so I'll be looking at that very closely."

Betting in political circles centers on Lawson and Perry but choosing either likely would anger supporters of the other. Each side argues for its candidate partly by pointing to its political enemies' support of the other candidate.

Read More
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Divorced from Reality

Divorced from reality

Editorial

Palm Beach Post

Having helped to make sure that marriage in this state is off-limits to gays and lesbians, the Florida Family Policy Council wants to set marriage standards for everybody else in Florida.

New GOP chairman: "No, no, no" to civil unions

New GOP chairman: "No, no, no" to civil unions Despite some well-publicized calls for a more inclusive GOP, newly installed Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele rejected the possibility of any kind of legally recognized civil union for gays and lesbians. Appearing on Mike Gallagher's radio show, Steele responded to a question on civil unions by saying, "No, no no. What would we do that for? What are you, crazy?"  ThinkProgress.org (2/23)

Dustin Black's powerful and poignant Oscar acceptance speech

facebook Nadine Smith 4:16pm Feb 23rd Dustin Black's powerful and poignant Oscar acceptance speech To nadine38.undo2@blogger.com, nadine38.fairness@blogger.com, and nadine38.info@blogger.com   Beautiful words. Please share this with everyone. Academy Award Winner for Best Original Screenplay Dustin Lance Black acceptance speech: ""Oh my God, this was not an easy film to make. I have to thank all the real life people who shared their stories with me... When I was 13 years old my beautiful mother and father moved me from a conservative Mormon home in San Antonio, Texas to California and I heard the story of Harvey Milk. And it gave me hope, hope to live my life, gave me the hope to live my life openly as who I am. And maybe even I can fall in love and get married. I want to thank my Mom who always loved me for who I am even when there was pressure not to. If Harvey had been alive today, I think he'd want me to say to all the gay and lesbian kids out there that have been told that they are less than by their churches, their government or their families that they are beautiful, wonderful creatures of value and no matter what anyone tells you, God does love you and that very soon I promise you, you will have equal rights, federally, across this great nation of ours" Nadine has shared a link to a video with you. To view the video or to reply to the message, follow this link: http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=902885304&k=6V1Y44RY334M5FGIYJ5XYS Are your friends bothering you? You can opt out of emails from friends on Facebook.

Sean Penn Wins Oscar for "Milk" Acceptance Speech

facebook Nadine Smith 6:31am Feb 23rd Sean Penn Wins Oscar for "Milk" Acceptance Speech To nadine38.info@blogger.com, nadine38.undo2@blogger.com, and nadine38.fairness@blogger.com   Nadine has shared a link to a video with you. To view the video or to reply to the message, follow this link: http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=902885304&k=5XB5X5WZUVXM5FGIYJ5XYS Are your friends bothering you? You can opt out of emails from friends on Facebook.

Oscar Winner Gives Shout Out to LGBT Youth

"Oh my God, this was not an easy film to make. I have to thank all the
real life people who shared their stories with me... When I was 13
years old my beautiful mother and father moved me from a conservative
Mormon home in San Antonio, Texas to California and I heard the story
of Harvey Milk. And it gave me hope, hope to live my life, gave me the
hope to live my life openly as who I am. And maybe even I can fall in
love and get married. I want to thank my Mom who always loved me for
who I am even when there was pressure not to. If Harvey had been alive
today, I think he'd want me to say to all the gay and lesbian kids out
there that have been told that they are less than by their churches,
their government or their families that they are beautiful, wonderful
creatures of value and no matter what anyone tells you, God does love
you and that very soon I promise you, you will have equal rights,
federally, across this great nation of ours"

Dustin Lance Black wins for MILK

Batwoman: 30 Years Postmortem and Better than Ever

by Lisa Moody

 

Batwoman's back!  Although I remember her as Batgirl, she is resurrected from her 1979 grave as Batwoman and she's smokin'!  And, she's a lesbian! Now, before my fellow lesbians get their boxers in a wad over the fact that she's a lipstick lesbian, take a deep breath and repeat after me...We have a superhero!  OK, one created precisely for the male-dominated comic audience to drool over and fantasize about, but who cares?  Batwoman's a hottie that everyone can enjoy.

 

We now have a superhero role model to proclaim loudly that women, and lesbians in particular, can be strong, smart, agile and athletic, and do great things for the community, the nation, and the planet.  And they can be sexy and curvaceous.  You'll note she's a real woman—a solid five feet, ten inches who is ample and round.  She's not a flimsy, heroin-chic skinny.  This girl's got girth.

 

The creators are saying that her gayness will simply be a fact of life.  From what I've read, her sexual orientation won't be exploited or made into a mockery or, excuse the obvious, a cartoon character. Her lesbianism simply is. This is a huge step forward and I believe a sign of the current times. In my day…did I really say that? In my day, lesbian role models were…um…they were…well, where were they?  They didn't exist.  And when movies finally featured openly lesbian characters, they were their lesbianism instead of just being people.  Plus, they were usually dysfunctional, totally screwed up dyke-drama queens, or they were straight women who were portrayed as confused and experimenting and "went back to" their men with an overriding undercurrent of apology.

 

In my day…God help me again…we marched in Washington DC, we asked but didn't tell, we were voted-against in attaining equal rights to straight people…oh, that still is my day.  We had to stand out in order to try to fit in, if that makes sense.  From what I've witnessed recently in younger lesbians (20-somethings), they aren't so much their lesbianism.  It is one aspect of who they are, but it doesn't singularly define them.  I like that. 

 

Not long ago, I was part of a panel discussion following a Clip film festival movie and I had the audacity to say I look forward to the day when we don't need gay films, meaning, when we are simply an accepted part of society.  So accepted, that we are integrated as part of the whole.  I used the example of Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner in The Bodyguard.  Long after I saw the movie, it hit me that they had an interracial relationship and never once in the entire movie were either of their races mentioned. It simply was, and as a viewer, we accepted that without question.  That's what I strive for in our filmmaking future.  When I said this at the Clip discussion, I heard lots of gasps. I think I actually got booed, although that may have been in my imagination.  But the audience was older—like, my age—and we fought hard for our recognition and perhaps we're not ready to let go of our standout position, unlike our successors.

 

So the resurrected Batwoman may be our bridge, from "my day" to tomorrow.  A superhero that sets a high standard for all humans.  Who happens to be gay.  I can see the future much closer than I ever imagined.  The next Black President will simply be the next President.  The next lesbian superhero will simply be a superhero. In the meantime, we'll claim Batwoman just as she is:  One of our own.

Orlando Sentinel coverage of the Ryan Skipper Trial

FULL STORY: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orange/orl-skippertrial1709feb17,0,6216987.story

Gays are quiet allies of victim's parents

Jeff Kunerth

Sentinel Staff Writer

February 17, 2009

In the two years since their 25-year-old son was stabbed to death in what police have called a gay-hate crime, Lynn and Pat Mulder have been embraced by gay activists, and they have hugged them right back.

But the trial of Joseph Bearden -- the first of two men charged with murder in the death of Ryan Keith Skipper -- has created a quandary for both the Mulders and gay-rights activists.

The Mulders want justice for their child. Gays want to bring attention to the case as a crime against their community.

Lynn Mulder said Assistant State Attorney Cass Castillo advised him that any conspicuous presence by the gay community, inside the courtroom or demonstrating outside the courthouse, could jeopardize the trial, which began Monday in Bartow. So the Mulders are asking them to show their support, but silently, unobtrusively. Until the trial is over, they're being asked to become invisible and voiceless.

"The jury cannot be influenced in their decision by any demonstration of support," Mulder said. "My only concern is they [the gay community] ought not to be easily identified as supporting one side or the other."

This is particularly problematic for Vicki Nantz, whose documentary on Skipper's killing, Accessory to Murder, is largely responsible for publicizing his death and making him the face of hate crimes against gays in Florida. But she is among those in the local gay community who have developed a close relationship with the Mulder family.

"If I didn't love Pat and Lynn Mulder, I would be standing there with a sign," Nantz said. "But the people most inclined to demonstrate have a personal relationship with Lynn and Pat, and that comes first with all of us. We'll put our activist hats in the drawer until this gets resolved for Lynn and Pat."

Before Skipper's killing March 17, 2007, the Mulders were not involved in gay issues. Since that time, they've become gay-rights activists -- appearing at protest rallies and events, joining gay organizations and offering solace to other parents whose children have been victims of crimes against gays.

"To the Mulders' credit, they have really stepped forward at a time when they could have simply withdrawn and become embittered," said Nadine Smith, head of Equality Florida, a gay-rights organization. "Instead they have been beacons of hope and kindness. They have really spoken out against hate violence."

Just as the Mulders have been there for the gay community, gays have been inclined to be there for the Mulders.

Nantz said she intends to be in the courtroom for the trial, keeping her emotions in check. Nantz has asked other gay activists to do the same.

"Everyone feels kind of conflicted. It's a conflict because the hate-crime anger is so personal for so many people," she said.

Gay groups, such as Equality Florida, also are encouraging their members to honor the wishes of the Mulders. But the urge to be there, to be vocal and demonstrate for justice, is a natural reaction, Smith said.

"There is a lot of anxiety that justice will not prevail, because we've seen it fail before," Smith said.

FULL STORY: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orange/orl-skippertrial1709feb17,0,6216987.story