"If you're gay, lesbian, or bisexual, would you sacrifice for your trans neighbors and siblings? If you're trans, would you sacrifice for your gay, lesbian, or bisexual neighbors and siblings? It's something worth knowing about yourself and those around you." --Autumn Sandeen, 4/19/2010, the night before GetEQUAL's DADT repeal protest at the White House
Public Calendar
Press/media, organizations, and individuals send your time-based event info to: calendar@phblend.net
The Christian Civic League of Maine's Mike Hein calls Pam's House Blend: "a leading source of radical homosexual propaganda, anti-Christian bigotry, and radical transgender advocacy."
He is "praying that Pam Spaulding will "turn away from her wicked and sinful promotion of homosexual behavior."
(CCLM's web site, 10/15/07)
Ex-gay "Christian" activist James Hartline on Pam:
"I have been mocked over and over again by ungodly and unprincipled anti-christian lesbians."
(from "Six Years In Sodom: From The Journal Of James Hartline," 9/4/2006, written from the "homosexual stronghold" of Hillcrest in San Diego).
"Pam is a 'twisted lesbian sister' and an 'embittered lesbian' of the 'self-imposed gutteral experiences of the gay ghetto.'" -- 9/5/2008
Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth Against Homosexuality heartily endorses the Blend, calling Pam:
A "vicious anti-Christian lesbian activist." (Concerned Women for America's radio show [9:15], 1/25/07)
"A nutty lesbian blogger." (MassResistance radio show [16:25], 2/3/07)
Pam's House Blend always seems to find these sick f*cks. The area of the country she is in? The home state of her wife? I know, they are everywhere. Pam just does such a great job of bringing them out into the light.
--Impeach Bush
who monitors yours Bevis ?? Just thought I would drop you a line,so the rest of your life is not wasted.
While I was on the road last night from Las Vegas (where NetRoots Nation 2010 was held) to San Diego (the city I call home sweet home), Fox Television re-aired a problematic Family Guy episode that they had promised the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and the transgender community that they would not air again.
In May, Fox aired a highly offensive episode of Family Guy in which Quagmire's dad transitioned to become a woman named Ida and featured numerous jokes that were offensive to the transgender community. GLAAD reached out to Fox and asked that the episode not re-air. Despite this, GLAAD has learned that Fox will re-air the "Quagmire's Dad" episode of Family Guy this Sunday, July 25.
Earlier this month, Fox also opted to re-air the problematic "A Brown Thanksgiving" episode of The Cleveland Show, despite assuring GLAAD that the episode would not be shown again during meetings that followed its original airing.
The "Quagmire's Dad" Family Guy episode featured scenes such as one in which food prepared by Ida is thrown in the trash by Lois Griffin and another in which Brian Griffin vomits after having sex with Ida and learning about her gender identity. Community members also expressed concern about a later scene that draws a connection between transgender people and sex offenders.
Per Wikipedia, SethMacFarlane is an American animator, writer, producer, actor, singer, voice actor, and director best known for creating the animated sitcoms Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show. He is also an executive producer for both Family Guy and The Cleveland Show, and 20th Century Fox Television is the common production company for both shows. So, there are common production relationships for both of these animated shows with problematic, antitrans episodes -- episodes with male characters that barfed for extended periods of time after realizing they've had sex with a transgender female character.
From the rest of the glaadBLOG entry on the re-airing of the Family Guy episode:
Fox is aware that this episode was in poor taste and was not well-received by the LGBT community. In addition to GLAAD's outreach, the story was covered throughout the LGBT blog community, most notably in an AfterElton article that quoted Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane saying the episode was "probably the most sympathetic portrayal of a transexual character that has ever been on television."
Yesterday, GLAAD released its fourth annual Network Responsibility Index, an evaluation of the quantity, quality and diversity of images of LGBT people on television. In the report, GLAAD gave Fox an "Adequate" rating. While 30% of the network's primetime programming in the 2009-2010 season was LGBT inclusive, the report noted that offensive episodes of shows like Family Guy and Cleveland Show hold back the network's progress on fairness.
...despite welcoming gay teen storylines on hit musical comedy "Glee" on Fox, and the appointment of lesbian Ellen DeGeneres as a judge on "American Idol", the Fox network was slammed for offensive stereotypes on "Family Guy" and "The Cleveland Show". GLAAD said that on both animated series last season, characters vomited at the thought of having sex with a transgender woman.
GLAAD is continuing to call for meetings with Fox to remove this highly problematic episode from future airings and ask Seth MacFarlane to address the public response to this episode from the gay and transgender community.
We urge you to do the same and write to Fox with your concerns:
If GLAAD is accurately reporting that Fox Entertainment said that they would not re-air the problematic episode -- and I tend to believe GLAAD wouldn't make that up -- then that would make the folk at Fox Entertainment liars. And as part of the community that is being demeaned by Seth MacFarlane's and 20th Century Fox Television depictions of trans people as being vomit worthy, I plan on sending an email.
If Mr. MacFarlane and company want to meet a real trans person who will tell them that their portrayals of trans women have been as f***ed up as a sh**-gravy sandwich, my Pam's House Blend e-mail address is public, and I'm available to talk face-to-face with them.
Freedom To Marry's Evan Wolfson and I were on the "Organizing the Equality Movement in the Obama Era" panel at Netroots Nation 2010, and I sat down with him a bit later in the conference to get his thoughts (as a first-time attendee)
If you didn't catch the NN panel, it's below the fold.
Hop over to Huff Post to read this essay by LGBT ally, Howard Dean, the and former Governor of Vermont (and DNC Chair). F'in A - a call for the Dems to get a flipping spine. If Dems can't get the job done with control on the Hill -- and against a GOP unwilling to denounce the racists and xenophobes in their midst -- what it the point of having control. A snippet:
I don't believe all or even most of the Republican party voters are racist, but going at least as far back as Lee Atwater, the Willie Horton ads, and the attacks on John McCain in the South Carolina primaries in both 2000 and 2008, the immigration debate in 2006, there is a persistent willingness in the Republican party to use race baiting for electoral advantage. The fact is, this is racist behavior.
Now if the Tea Party, which is not a professional group of politicians have the decency to repudiate the racist fringe in their group, why can't the Republicans? Obviously they think this approach works on the margins, but even if this stuff works, it sure doesn't produce good leaders or a civil society, and it certainly doesn't produce a stronger America, it produces an even more polarized and angry America. It's that willingness to put party ahead of country that has the Republicans in such low regard.
...Stand up for what you believe in. I admire Nancy Pelosi because she is tough, gets things done, and doesn't take crap from the right wing or any one else. After the year and a half this country has just been through, it is pretty obvious that the right-wing has no intention of cooperating with anyone, and that they will do anything to regain power, just as they were willing to do anything to hold on to it. The only reasonable approach is to stand up to them as you would any group of bullies. Call them out for what they do - or don't do as the case may be. If the Tea Party can call out some of their own members, surely we can call out a group of people who have put their party ahead of their country.
...The fact is that the Democrats won the election in 2008. The Republicans refuse to do anything for the country except say "no". That means we have to work hard and do what we believe is right. And we have to stop apologizing for it. We have to stand up for what we believe in and stop trying to make deals with people who cannot be trusted to make deals for the good of our country.
The short update is that the six couples challenging the Garden State's civil union law will need to file a case in Superior Court, but this ruling was a disappointment.
In a split decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court has 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.
"This matter cannot be decided without the development of an appropriate trial-like record," wrote Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, who added that "We reach no conclusion on the merits of the plaintiffs' allegations regarding the constitutionality of the Civil Union Act."
The couples filed the case in the aftermath of the failure of same-sex legislation in the state Senate, arguing that the state's 2006 civil union law had failed to grant them the full rights and benefits of heterosexual married couples that the court mandated the Legislature provide them with four years ago.
"We are terribly disappointed about today's ruling. Our plaintiffs and the New Jersey legislature's own Civil Union Review Commission documented the rampant discrimination same-sex couples face as a consequence of civil union status, and this ruling now relegates our plaintiffs to second-class citizenship for even longer.
"The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in favor of equality in 2006, and this ruling is a saddening setback for our plaintiffs and their families, who have been denied the rights and responsibilities of marriage for years, and now continue to be denied.
"Separating out one group and relegating the people in it to a lesser status, in this case to civil unions in New Jersey, invites discrimination from all quarters-the government, businesses, schools, medical providers, individuals.
"It is heartbreaking that these families must wait longer for equality. As the son of one of our plaintiff couples pointed out when we launched our new motion, he has waited for half his life for his family to be treated equally and it still hasn't happened. He is now almost college-aged.
"We are now assessing possible next steps in Superior Court."
The reaction from Garden State Equality's Steven Goldstein:
"Because of the legislature's inability to act and the Supreme Court's decision today, New Jersey continues in a caste system where an entire people are thrown aside into a profoundly inferior status, spit on, dumped on, utterly degraded, by hospitals and employers who mock the term "civil union." Children will continue to live with an imprimatur of inferiority, psychologically devastated because they can't marry or because their same-sex parents cannot marry. Same-sex couples will continue to be denied the consistent right to visit one another in the hospital, to make medical decisions for one another, and to receive equal health benefits from employers, all because of the deprivation of the equality and dignity that uniquely comes with the word 'marriage.'
"We at Garden State Equality will never give up - not until our dying breath. Since our founding in 2004, New Jersey has enacted 211 laws at the state, county and local levels advancing the civil rights of LGBT community, a record matched in few other places in the world. It's because we and our allies, including so many predominantly straight organizations across New Jersey, never gave up and never gave in. And we never will give up or give in, so help us God.
"Cesar Chavez said it best. You cannot uneducate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the people who feel pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.
"We have seen the future, and the future is ours."
This came into the inbox while I was at Netroots Nation -- the group Citizens for Repeal, which represented gays and lesbians on active duty in the military, is rebranding to address post-DADT concerns and transition. From its release:
Gay and lesbian service members are organizing themselves in order to help the Pentagon prepare for life after "don't ask, don't tell." This week, they are publicly launching OutServe (formerly known as Citizens for Repeal), the first-ever organization of actively serving gay troops and they have started speaking openly with Pentagon officials as well as public audiences. For information about the group go to www.outserve.org
According to the group's Co-Director, JD Smith, "Active duty and reserve gay and lesbian troops have been critical to the nation's defense, but almost completely absent from the conversation. We're fixing that." Smith, who goes by his initials in the interest of privacy and safety, is an officer. Smith says that OutServe has expanded by word of mouth and Facebook since its formation as an underground network in October 2009 and now consists of approximately 450 gay and lesbian service members, including approximately two dozen deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Growth has been swift, and an average of 15 new members are joining each week. The group verifies each new applicant against a database of U.S. troops to ensure that only active duty individuals join.
In response to concerns that after the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell," gay troops will parade their sexual orientation or engage in other inappropriate conduct, the group is organizing its public launch this week around the release of a statement outlining its expectation of a smooth transition. "Following the lifting of the ban, it will be business as usual," according to the group's Overseas Director, an enlisted service member deployed with an artillery unit in Baghdad. "We defend the nation now and we will keep defending it after repeal. We are issuing the statement to explain that to people."
Several organizations representing gay and lesbian graduates and affiliates of the Service Academies are planning to co-sign the statement along with OutServe, which is the principal author.
Although group members remain cautious about revealing their identities while "don't ask, don't tell" is still law, they are beginning to speak more openly in anticipation of the end of the ban. They have started to deliver public lectures on university campuses, and are engaged in ongoing dialogue with military researchers. "We have made two points to Pentagon officials," says Ty Walrod, the group's Co-Director and civilian spokesperson. "First, we trust the Commander in Chief to deliver on his pledge to fully implement non-discrimination. Second, while we believe that the Pentagon's research efforts are sincere and we are able and willing to help in any way, we have concerns about the confidentiality of its survey and the authenticity of some of the respondents." Walrod, the only non-military member of the group, is based in San Francisco.
In Britain, Sweden, the Netherlands and other foreign countries where militaries have lifted gay bans, organizations representing gay and lesbian troops serve as a bridge between service members and defense ministries. OutServe plans to play a similar role after the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell." Smith says that the organization already has provided information, resources and social support to gay troops, and will continue to do so following repeal. In addition, the group will continue to offer advice to Pentagon officials about issues relevant to the community.
The Baghdad-based Overseas Director added that, "We are here to fight and win wars, serve with integrity and honesty and protect the people fighting next to us. We are proud to sacrifice for the nation we love, but we have a lot of educational work to do."
The Outserve statement is below the fold, but I wanted to include the perspective of Alexander Nicholson, Executive Director, Servicemembers United, who took issue that the views of active duty individuals have not been part of the mix to date.
"It simply isn't true to suggest that active duty troops haven't been a part of the debate and deliberation on this issue. In fact, I would suggest that active duty voices have led the discussion, given that Dan Choi and Victor Fehrenbach have dominated most media coverage of this issue and have represented our community in a dedicated and persistent fashion. To suggest otherwise is an insult to these guys who have put a lot on the line.
Also, it flies in the face of all the work that SLDN and Servicemembers United have done to privately facilitate the Working Group's extensive access to the gay military community. Wild and inaccurate claims from people who are temporarily interested in this issue at the height of its publicity are the last thing our community needs at the last hour after years and years of hard work to get us where we are today."
As fast as they issued mea culpas because of the treatment of Shirley Sherrod, some members of the right are now seemingly taking back those mea culpas and are attempting to make Sherrod into Madame Defarge while at the same time trying to make Andrew Breitbart into a victim.
My guess is that in the next few days you will be hearing about this interview with Anderson Cooper in right-wing circles:
The portion of the interview which will probably be focused on is at 2:30 when Sherrod says she thinks Breitbart would like to get African-Americans "stuck back in the times of slavery." She later says that she thinks he is a racist. Both of these statements came from her responding to a comment Breitbart made in Politico, another online site.
Did I say will be focused on? I meant to say is now being focused on.
Have you ever been listening to the ramblings of a lunatic and thought to yourself, “This just sounds too familiar?”
Maggie Gallagher and other anti-equality figureheads have said a lot of interesting (and by interesting, I mean profoundly moronic) things with regards to the LGBT rights movement. But every time I hear one of them prattle on about how equality for gay people is a horrifying threat to the world as we know it, I can’t help but wonder why I feel as though I’ve heard it all before.
And then I realize: I have heard it all before, coming from my US History teachers.
George Wallace – if you ask pretty much anyone other than him – was racist. In fact, Wallace became a symbol of racism back in 1963 when, as governor of Alabama, he stood in front of a University of Alabama doorway and literally tried to block the black students from entering the school.
(As a side note, I really hope there comes a day when we get to watch Maggie blocking the doorway into City Hall as gay couples go to get married in, say, Nebraska.)
Wallace was an avid proponent of segregation, while simultaneously swearing up and down that he did not really hate black people. He just, ya know, wanted them to kinda stay away. In that sense, it is my firm belief that he and modern-day foes of equality have more in common than we could ever hope for. The easiest way to compare two people is by comparing their words, so let’s have a look:
George Wallace on the Civil Rights Act of 1964: “It threatens our freedom of speech, of assembly, or association, and makes the exercise of these Freedoms a federal crime under certain conditions. Ministers, lawyers, teachers, newspapers, and every private citizen must guard his speech and watch his actions to avoid the deliberately imposed booby traps put into this bill. It is designed to make Federal crimes of our customs, beliefs, and traditions.” Source
Andrea Lafferty (Traditional Values Coalition) on the 2009 Hate Crimes bill: “Your pastor could be prosecuted for conspiracy to commit a hate crime if it passes and become law. This so-called 'hate crimes' bill will be used to lay the legal foundation and framework to investigate, prosecute, and persecute pastors, business owners, Bible teachers, Sunday School teachers, youth pastors -- you name it -- or anyone else whose actions are based upon and reflect the truth found in the Bible." Source
In both cases, a bill that was created to protect a minority group from being specifically targeted by those who would oppress them was twisted into some referendum on the oppressors’ freedom of speech. In both cases, this attempt to intimidate Congress out of the necessary progressive action failed.
As I write this, Senator Al Franken from Minnesota is sitting across from me at my table in the huge Rio Hotel ballroom. We're watching House candidate Tarryl Clark, who will take on Rep. Michele Bachmann in Minnesota. He came out from backstage to watch and since my table is closest to the door, he just plopped down and gave me a polite "Hello."
I'm starstruck that the guy I watched declare "The Al Franken Decade" on Saturday Night Live when I was twelve is six feet away from me.
I am sitting at the GetEqual table for the Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid's Q&A; session at Netroots Nation where we are breaking exclusive news on the Blend.
Dan Choi has delivered a letter to Sen Reid about his service and DADT -- and his West Point ring will be given to Reid today. Joan McCarter handed Reid letter and ring from Dan Choi:
July 24, 2010
The Honorable Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader:
Dear Harry:
My West Point ring has always symbolized an irrevocable promise: my commitment to serving America and my duty to defend freedom and justice. Today, with my discharge from the army for telling the truth, the ring takes on a new meaning, serving as a symbol for the enduring pain of broken promises.
America was founded on the principles of inalienable rights, equality, and the promise of justice for all. But today, Americans remain segregated from that promise. Fired from our jobs, discriminated in the military, denied equal access to our own integrity and acknowledgement of our families, we cannot conclude that our country has manifested its own promise, over 230 years later.
You have also made personal promises to me that the senate would repeal military discrimination before the end of 2009. Indeed, you sent a letter to President Obama and Secretary Gates, claiming that was the most you could do to save my career. You promised to lead on repeal of discrimination. I believed your promise because you are the most powerful senator in America. Truly, no one can do more. The false hope of your promise has been made real to me today with another letter: the letter terminating my military service.
But I present this ring to you, symbolizing my promise as a fellow citizen: my service continues.
I promise I will hold you accountable to your obligations to lead in the effort to end discrimination, both in the workplace and in the military. My promise is not merely written on a piece of paper or words alone, but in the hearts of every lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender American fired from their jobs because of broken promises from those who purport to be our friends. History will judge us and conclude that the greatest obstacles to justice were not the loud rants of bigots, but the quiet fears of those unwilling to stand firm in the fulfillment of their commitments. I refuse to allow my friends register themselves in history as obstacles to justice.
I commit to you my renewed pledge and continued service. To you and all those "friends" who manipulate, deceive and exploit our community, I will serve as a reminder of the consequences we all pay when allegiance to political careers takes higher priority than allegiance to America's promise.
Sincerely,
Lt. Dan Choi
US Army, Discharged under DADT
Also, Senator Reid has delivered a letter to the President. A critical passage:
The Blend exclusive also includes these letters from Reid and Dan Choi's discharge paper...
Pro-equality ally and Virginia U.S. Congressional candidate Krystal Ball attended her second Netroots Nation this year, and she's doing extremely well in the race to represent the 1st district in Virginia.
Her opponent, anti-gay Republican incumbent Rob Wittman, is a real bible beater.
As a member of the Values Action Team, I will continue to support pro-life, pro-family legislation. I will work in defense of parental rights, religious liberty, and the definition of marriage as a union between one man and one woman. Furthermore, I support efforts to curb internet pornography and obscenity.
Now one would assume, even with those fundie credentials, Wittman would not want his supporters or his party, given the state of the economy and how it affects his constituents, focusing on gay-baiting Krystal Ball.
Well how wrong is this - the Blend has learned that a push-poll in support of Wittman, dialed up voters in the district with lines of questioning that harken back to the 1990s-2004 gay-baiting bullshite of the highest order.
First of all, the lead-in statement is for the caller to tell the resident the questions are about "Krystal Ball's obsession" regarding support for "special rights" for the LGBT community. And then the caller is asked this (I sh*t you not):
"Krystal Ball has a strange infatuation with gays and lesbians. It makes one wonder what is in her past."
The caller is then asked if this concerns them in voting for Krystal.
WTF? There are so many things wrong with this garbage I don't know where to begin.
* How is it an infatuation to say you believe that all people are entitled to full equality under the law?
* Excuse, me, but the "what is in Krystal's past" statement is beyond belief -- besides, what if she had a girlfriend in the past? What if she's bi, WHO THE FLIP cares? Will that information tell you anything about any candidate's position on job growth, the environment, the BP oil disaster. Is it any of your business? Why, push-poller, are you obsessing about this particular subject?
Krystal's got a great video up addressing Wittman's absenteeism in his state. This is hysterical. I know that feeling - when we had Elizabeth Dole as our senator, she was always MIA.
After numerous complaints that your Congressman refuses to answer your emails, answer your calls or show up to explain his votes, we decided to bring Rob on the road so people across the 1st District of Virginia would finally have a chance to have their representative listen to their concerns. Buckle up and enjoy the ride!
Many thanks to Karen Ocamb at LGBT POV for this, so you can see verbatim how House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refuses to answer a direct question about a vote on ENDA, and puts the responsibility on the community to educate the trans-ignorant members of Congress.
Wait - don't we have organizations inside the Beltway for that? WTH have they been doing all this time? They are the ones with access, not us.
Moderator Cheryl Contee:
A recent poll indicates that a majority of Americans support the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act – ENDA. ENDA now has 198 co-sponsors. While you and President Obama have both been strong advocates for ENDA’s passing, the bill is stuck in committee and promises of passage haven’t been kept. @Dr.TJulianWeiss on Twitter, MCC on JackandJillpolitics and Perfect Stormer on Daily Kos all want to know will we see passage of ENDA anytime soon?
Speaker Nancy Pelosi
: (she does some thank yous and recognitions first). ENDA has been something that has been part of my being (?) since I went to the Congress. And then some years later, around 16 years ago, we finally had legislation that we could rally around. This is an absolute priority, not only for me personally, but for our House Democratic Caucus.
Under the leadership of George Miller (D-CA), the chairman of the Education and Labor Committee which has primary jurisdiction, we have been working very hard to try to iron out some of the – to have some clarity of language that could dispel some opposition. This is something that has to be done. It’s so long overdue. It’s almost embarrassing to have to have to pass a bill to end discrimination in the workplace.
I am happy, though, that it fits comfortably on the path we set ourselves on. We said we were going to do hate crimes – fully inclusive hate crimes – and we did pass that legislation as Rachel said [during a video], the Matthew Shepard legislation. We’re very proud of that – that it was fully inclusive.
And then next on my agenda was ENDA but there was support to take up Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and we’re very proud that we passed that in the House. I might say that I would have hoped that there would have been a moratorium on any discharges from the military (applause) until it was resolved (? applause makes it hard to hear end).
But I do think that my the time 2010 comes to an end, so does Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. And at the same time, we are holding….I need your help to get the biggest possible vote on ENDA.
All of these issues took time. You know when we started hate crimes – you know that was when I first came to Congress 23 years ago. It wasn’t an issue of “fully inclusive.” Gay, lesbians, bisexuals – but then transgender became an issue and the challenge became greater. Same thing with ENDA.
But we’re against discrimination – against anybody and everybody and our bill will be fully inclusive (applause).
I can’t give you a time. But I can tell you that it is a priority and it had been our hope to do it this year. We have to finish Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and hopefully we can do both this year.
Moderator:
Who’s blocking the passage of ENDA and whom should the netroots target?
Pelosi:
Well, I think I would target in a positive way (audience rumbles) – this is America – show your appreciation for those who are with you, with us – encourage them to be not only a vote but a leader on the issue – persuader, the peer pressure that is there. Because I don’t think – I think that some of the opposition comes from those perhaps in the work, um – in the business community who may not understand the – how this can be practically accomplished. We think it can. I think that should be the least of it, when we’re talking about ending discrimination in our country.
So my advice would be just – let’s get the drum beat going, get everybody as enthused as they have been. We won by 40 votes on Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Forty votes! That is a very big – we hardly won anything by four votes, much less 40 votes (laughter) in the (? can’t make it out).
(Shout from GetEqual’s Robin McGehee: “Move on ENDA now!”)
Moderator:
Hey – I’m going to release the crackin (?), alright, so please don’t’ shout out questions from the audience.
Pelosi:
No, but it is – your impatience is justified. Let’s make it productive so that we can all work together and strengthen each other as – to get this passed as soon as possible. Very important. (Applause)
Moderator:
Thank you.
Moderator:
Thank you, Speaker.
Pelosi: I love ENDA. I feel a little pride of being there at the start of all that. Barney Frank, Tammy Baldwin and now Jared Polis, who is going to be here, I understand this weekend – have been an important part of all this.
(What to make of a company like Target that has great LGBT employee policies but supports anti-gay politicians? - promoted by Lurleen)
This past Monday WCCO News in Minneapolis/St. Paul reported that Target Corporation donated $150,000.00 to Minnesota Forward the Political Action Committee for Tom Emmer. Emmer is the GOP Teabagger candidate for Governor of Minnesota. Emmer is also anti-equal rights for LGBTQ people, couples and families. What is Tom Emmer's view on Marriage Equality?
Marriage
I believe marriage is the union between one man and one woman. As a legislator, I have consistently supported the constitutional marriage amendment that protects traditional marriage.
So what's happened? Citizens United is what has happened. Because Target is a Corporation and they now have the same rights as people, they can spend as much money as they want towards political campaigns.
When I wrote to Target's President Gregg W. Steinhafel, their Public Policy person in their Guest Services department responded as follows (see below fold).
In the midst of the Shirley Sherrod hoopla, an interesting situation involving the Tea Party Movement seems to have gone unnoticed:
One of the most prominent men in the tea party movement, Tea Party Express spokesperson and former chair Mark Williams, is abandoning the group he helped propel into the role of the tea party's public face.
. . . In his resignation letter to the TPE, Williams says he left the group after the past week's public battle with the NAACP made him too hot to handle.
"I feel compelled to separate myself from any further involvement with the Tea Party Express so that I can pursue other interests," Williams wrote, "and to free the tea party movement from any more distraction based on my personal comments or blogs."
It’s interesting that when Van Jones resigned, folks were commenting about how Glenn Beck - who orchestrated opposition to Jones - "got a scalp.” When ACORN was taken down thanks to the videos of James O’Keefe which were pushed by Andrew Breitbart, both were given the dubious honor of “getting a scalp.”
Shouldn’t the same be said for the NAACP regarding Williams?
After all, it was their resolution denouncing racism in the tea party which fueled the entire controversy causing Williams to make a complete ass of himself and thereby proving the NAACP’s point.
Probably not and for two reasons. No one likes to think of the NAACP as out to “take scalps” and wreck careers. It wouldn’t fit into the image of a venerable civil rights groups, although it couldn’t hurt if it did.
Here at NetRoots Nation, I listened to the answer to a the answer Speaker Of The House Nancy Pelosi gave to an ENDA question posed to her. It was a gimmie that she was going to take credit for the gimmie of -- the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community practically done deal requirement of -- fully inclusive hate crime legislation.
Then she talked about the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) legislation. After talking about federal hate crimes legislation, Speaker Pelosi began talking "time tables," how more education work by and for transgender people for reluctant house members, and how Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) was moved ahead of ENDA, even though ENDA was her "top priority" LGBT issue.
However, she indicated she was proud that the House was taking on as a fully inclusive ENDA, and talked about how important that transgender people are included in the legislation that will move forward.
Someone actually shouted out that we need movement on ENDA now, and moderator Cheryl Cottee shut down the shouter for being disruptive. However, Speaker Pelosi engaged the "disruptive" shouter by saying she understand LGBT community impatience.
It's truly amazing to me that Democrats in Congress -- as well as President Obama -- don't really "get" why the LGBT community have grown disillusioned with them, and that lost voting momentum. Kerry Eleveld pretty much summed up the disillusionment in PBS's News Hour piece For Democrats, Concern About Momentum as Midterms Approach. Judy Woodruff set up Eleveld's remarks this way:
Many gay rights advocates say they feel the Obama administration has given short shrift to their issues. As a candidate, Mr. Obama promised to end the military's ban on letting gays serve openly in the ranks, known as don't ask, don't tell.
He also said he would push to repeal the Defense of Marriage act, or DOMA, and expand the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
Kerry Eleveld is Washington correspondent for "The Advocate," a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender news magazine. She credits the president for progress on don't ask, but says the effort on the other priorities has been lacking.
Eleveld said:
[President Obama's] administration has not pushed on those. Don't ask, don't tell is still in the making. We're going to see where that goes. But -- but he has not pushed in any way, other than in some speeches.
If you look at him coming in, what he talked about, what he promised again and again, and also the majorities that he came in with, I would say he is woefully behind at this point.
And, in the context of the gAyTM...
There is a fair amount of money that flows from the LGBT community to the Democratic National Committee, to the president, to Democrats in general. And I think what you're really wondering is, what's going to happen to that flow of money? Are people going to start saying, why are we giving to Democrats? Why are we giving to the Democratic National Committee? Why are we giving to the president? Maybe we should just be picking individual candidates.
As for my take on the answer by Pelosi, I thought the answer was weak. LGBT people have done the work -- especially transgender people have done the work -- Speaker Pelosi's attempt to shift this back to the grassroots is unconscionable. It's pure, unadulterated, unprocessed manure.
I was sitting next to Pam during this plenary session, Pam made a comment during an Obama video on those Obamabots who buy into the -- well, what I am calling unprocessed manure:
Obama video at #NN10. Says to keep holding him accountable. Koolaiders clapped @ pitiful #LGBT "accomplishments."
Someone named Sharoney tweeted back:
Koolaiders? Harsh Pam. You have more class than that.
Frankly, I believe Pam and I both are too angry to be "classy."
I'm back to my Navy saying I quote so often -- and now will specifically use on the answers on LGBT issues by Speaker Pelosi and President Obama:
Looks like sh**, smells like sh**, gotta be chocolate, right?
I don't believe all or even most of the Republican party voters are racist, but going at least as far back as Lee Atwater, the Willie Horton ads, and the attacks on John McCain in the South Carolina primaries in both 2000 and 2008, the immigration debate in 2006, there is a persistent willingness in the Republican party to use race baiting for electoral advantage. The fact is, this is racist behavior.
Pro-equality ally and Virginia U.S. Congressional candidate 
Then she talked about the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) legislation. After talking about federal hate crimes legislation, Speaker Pelosi began talking "time tables," how more education work by and for transgender people for reluctant house members, and how Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) was moved ahead of ENDA, even though ENDA was her "top priority" LGBT issue.
And, in the context of the gAyTM...
