It's 9:00pm. It was date night for the husband and I. We had a nice dinner at Applebees before watching Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen - The IMAX Experience. The movie started a little after 7, and anyone who has seen the new Transformers movie knows its runtime is ungodly long, spanning close to 2.5 hours. So why - on date night - am I compelled to blog before the movie even officially ends?

No, the hubby and I didn't sneak out for a lil' date-night frivolity that I just had to share with you, and no, we didn't get into a fight with a redneck requiring us to leave the theater early (the entertainment of that alone might have been worth the price of admission). Even though I chose the movie tonight, for the first time in my life I walked out in the middle of a movie because it offended me so badly.

Homophobic remarks, racial stereotypes and anti-Semitic slurs abound - in a "children's" movie? You've got to be kidding... Right?!

(May not be work safe - yeah, that's how bad this movie gets)

Continue reading "Transformers 2: "Homophobia in Disguise"" »

The last of Indiana's four publicly supported four-year universities will offer domestic partner benefits after January 1st. Kudos to Projector Chad Tew for pushing the University of Southern Indiana to institute partner benefits for LGBT employees; he's been a driving force behind the updated employee policies.

Effective Jan. 1, the University of Southern Indiana will offer full benefits to same-sex domestic partners of university employees.

The decision, made by outgoing USI President H. Ray Hoops, brings a conclusion to an issue that's been controversial on the West Side campus for more than a year.
...
In a column published July 15, 2008, in the Courier & Press, Tew wrote that USI needed the policy change to remain "competitive as an employer with all of the other four-year state universities, as well as other universities in the region."

Tew also argued that the issue was one of fairness. "Those who can legally marry in Indiana can get benefits for their spouses. Those who cannot legally marry and who do the same work should be offered the same benefits for their partners that are currently present in the marketplace."

After news that Indiana's controversial LGBT organization will actively oppose federal legislation to outlaw employment discrimination shocked the state's LGBT community, many people were left wondering who's responsible. Other state and national LGBT organizations quickly denounced Indiana Equality's (IE) contentious stance.

In a June 16^th blog entry, "Media Inquiry and ENDA Clarification," IE was ambiguous about which board members actually voted to oppose the top federal LGBT rights bill and a follow up media inquiry printed on the blog on June 24^th was even less helpful.

While the original post claimed board members were "unanimous (with one abstention)," the second statement adds that two other members weren't present but doesn't specify which members voted for the new policy, who abstained and which members didn't vote. The organization didn't answer further requests for clarification, changed a public listing of board members, and refused to say how individual members voted.

The group's unaccountable decision has left many in the LGBT community with the realization that a small clique of people they don't know, didn't elect, and don't agree with have set themselves up to be the "leaders" of Indiana's gay rights movement.

But who are they? Who voted to jeopardize four Hoosier Congressmen's votes in favor of federal legislation to outlaw employment nondiscrimination shortly before it is decided on Capitol Hill?

Continue reading "Who's responsible for Indiana Equality's anti-ENDA stance?" »

I'll admit that young transition is both a scary and exciting thought to me. Children who know who they are - deep down, at a level of passion few people reach in adult lives, let alone as kids - should be free to express their gender identity. The actual bit of discrimination is miniscule - in the interest of safety, the school had asked the girl in question to use a unisex bathroom instead of the girl's bathroom. As an educator, I understand this. As a transgender person, I understand why this is wrong:

The discrimination in question first occurred in October 2007 when the child was in the fifth grade at Asa Adams School. Until then, she was allowed to use the girls' bathroom, although she was biologically male. But that fall, the transgender child was followed into the girls room by a male student who had "previously started to harass her by stalking her and calling her 'faggot,'" according to the Maine Human Rights Commission investigator's report.

After the second such episode, the boy was suspended and removed from the transgender child's class. At that point, school officials told the transgender child that she had to use a single-stall faculty bathroom at the other end of the school, and that was when her parents decided to take the matter to the Maine Human Rights Commission.

But that's not the point here. There's a saying among schoolteachers about children getting in trouble: there is always a reason for bad behavior. With that being said, I want to bring attention to our pawn-using, political statement making Fail-of-the-Month: the provoker's Grandpa, Paul.

Continue reading "One big win for human rights, one big fail for grandpa" »

Fellow blogger Ruth Holladay's cousin, Joe Holladay, was recently beaten on the Upper East Side on gay pride weekend. Joe went to school in Indianapolis before eventually finding his way to Boston where he lives currently.

According to the New York Daily News:

A man visiting a friend on the upper East Side was robbed and pistol-whipped during Gay Pride weekend by a group of hoodlums yelling anti-gay slurs, the victim and cops said Sunday.

Joseph Holladay, 36, said he was set upon by at least three men on E. 85th St. about 4 a.m. Saturday.

I hope Ruth keeps us up to date on Joe's condition. Our hearts go out to him in this difficult time.

There are two types of transgender comics in the world. This fact is not a judgment of quality so much as it a statement of taxonomy.

I've featured the first kind in the past two weeks' posts; "Closetspace" and "Venus Envy" present transgender people facing issues that come up in transition. The situations that arise, problems that develop, and plans that form are, for the most part, based on some form of reality. These are the stories of transgender people.

"Abstract Gender," however, falls into the second category of transgender comics: the "magic change" comic. By far, these comics are more prevalent and are oftentimes more irreverent than the comics falling into category one. Instead of dealing with the issues of transition, these comics often poke fun at gender roles, leaning heavily on dramatic irony to make their point heard.

And, for the most part, Abstract Gender succeeds at being a "magic change" transgender comic.

Continue reading "Transgender Comics: "Abstract Gender"" »

A lot of Projectors write and ask what we send to our e-mail list. Each night at midnight, we round up all of the day's posts and send them out to subscribers. We only include the front page portion of the post (same as our RSS feed) to keep the e-mail shorter and allow readers to decide faster whether or not they'd like to read the entire article.

E-mail Daily Digests

• Bilerico Project Daily Digest
• Bilerico-Indiana Daily Digest
• Bilerico-DC Daily Digest
• Bilerico-Florida Daily Digest

It's a great way to check in on what was posted if you can't visit every day - especially with as much content as we put out daily! Plus, occasionally we run special contests open only to our e-mail subscribers. You can click the links below to sign up for a site's digest. The state sites have different content so you'll want to subscribe to more than one if you're in DC, Indiana or Florida!

Before we get to the best posts from this week on the Bilerico sites, don't forget to e-mail 50 ENDA-shy Democrats!

Friday

Michael Jackson: Goodnight, Sweet Prince...or Princess Filed by: Patricia Nell Warren
The "New" NJ Trans Drivers License Regs, Part 2: Buying My Identity Filed by: Rebecca Juro

Thursday

Don't Cry For Mark Sanford, Argentina Filed by: Terrance Heath
A Bilerico interview with new GLAAD president Jarrett Barrios Filed by: Father Tony
Don't Be Played for a Sucker, Again Filed by: Michael Hamar (B-DC)

Wednesday

You say you want a revolution.... Filed by: Brynn Craffey
Gut Check Filed by: Kate Clinton

Tuesday

Traditional Marriage Threat Alert - Brownsburg, Indiana Filed by: Donna Pandori (B-IN)
Why there won't be a gay Martin Luther King Filed by: Alex Blaze
5 "I can't help it" excuses that need LGBT help Filed by: Austin Crowder
Pictures from Pride of Greater Ft. Lauderdale! Filed by: Waymon Hudson (B-FL)

Monday

The Dancing Man (YouTube's Latest Viral Sensation) Talks With Bilerico Filed by: Prince Gomolvilas
Sesame Street knows what marriage is Filed by: Bil Browning

Sunday

Visibility Matters: Scientific Proof Filed by: Dana Rudolph
"The Times of Harvey Milk" now on YouTube Filed by: Waymon Hudson

Many in South Bend are praising Mayor Steve Luecke for his executive order issued Wednesday that bans GLBT discrimination of city employees and prospective workers. However, council members Henry Davis Jr. (district 2) and Oliver Davis (district 6) are not.

In 2006 the Common Council considered a similar proposal which would have banned GLBT discrimination city-wide but the measure was defeated by "one vote".

Council members Henry Davis Jr. and Oliver Davis were not on the council in 2006 so it is not clear how they would have voted but their initial reaction to Mayor's executive order sheds light on how they might vote in the future.

Continue reading "South Bend Council Members Henry Davis Jr. & Oliver Davis Do Not Support Equal Rights For GLBT?" »

The Act Blue has a great ad that they want to run in local markets to go after Democratic Senators who oppose the public option. For some reason that I just can't figure out, the Democratic Senators who oppose real health care reform all have taken a bunch of money from the insurance industry. Here's the ad, and they want you to stop by their site to put your name on it.

The Act Blue is thinking that if they have enough support from folks in the Hoosier state that they'll put one together that discusses Evan Bayh.

Despite his pandering on health care at the JJ Dinner last week, Bayh will probably end up being one of the worst Senate Democrats on the issue if he isn't pressured. The guy has taken lots of campaign contributions from the insurance industry and Eli Lilly, so premium caps, cost controls, and a public option that can negotiate prices with pharmaceutical companies will all be problems for him.

All this is to say that these people need pressure to work in our favor, and Act Blue has a good ad idea. Please help them out.

I just got a phone call from a well placed source on Capital Hill that confirmed that the hate crimes bill currently before the Senate will be added to the Defense Authorization Bill. Remember how well that worked out for us last time?

Congressmembers can use our lives to bargain for bombs and defense spending instead of simply affirming our dignity as human beings worthy of safety from persecution and violence if hate crimes are added to the defense authorization.

You need to call your Senator NOW and ask them to save the hate crimes bill from certain death! If it's added to the defense authorization bill it will be the death of hate crimes this year.

You can look up your Senator's direct phone number here or call (202) 224-3121 and tell them to SAVE THE HATE CRIMES BILL.

From WSBT Newstalk

South Bend Mayor Steve Luecke is issuing his first Executive Order and it will prohibit discrimination against city employees who are gay, bisexual or transgender.

Continue reading "Breaking: South Bend Mayor To Protect LGBT City Workers" »