Harry Truman and the Fight to Finally Repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

If you were flipping through the pages of your local newspaper this morning, and stumbled upon the "This Day in History" section, you might have come across this entry:

July 26, 1948: U.S. President Harry Truman issues Executive Order 9981, effectively desegregating the U.S. military.

As Presidential executive orders go, this is probably one of the biggest in history. Civil rights activist Dorothy Height (who sadly passed away earlier this year) deemed Truman's order "the most significant institutional advance for the civil rights of black Americans since President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation." And the order was one of the finest examples of a President bucking popular opinion, in order to do what was fundamentally right.

As Joe Sudbay at AMERICAblog notes, Truman's push to desegregate the military ran counter to popular opinion, with almost two-thirds of the country saying back in 1948 that the military was just fine as a segregated institution. Heck, even the U.S. military, when surveyed about their views on race, were hesitant to desegregating the military (as Igor Volsky at Think Progress pointed out last week). Still, Truman knew that it was the right thing to do. And sometimes, the right thing to do shouldn't have to wait until popular opinion catches up with it.

The parallels between Truman's push to desegregate the U.S. military, and the push today to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and open the U.S. military up to gay, lesbian and bisexual servicemembers are pretty striking. Indeed, it was Harry Truman's grandson, Clifton Truman Daniel, who recently noted the similarities, saying that proponents of keeping the military segregated used similar arguments to proponents of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
Clifton Truman Daniel wrote a letter to President Obama, on behalf of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN), challenging "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" earlier this year. At the time he wrote that while he's uncertain how his grandfather, President Truman, would have reacted to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," he was hopeful that his grandfather would have recognized the basic issues of fairness and equality in the debate.

"While I have no idea where my grandfather would stand on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I do know that he admired service and sacrifice. An estimated 66,000 gay and lesbian Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Coastguardsmen are willingly risking their lives to defend our nation, despite being treated as second class citizens," Clifton Daniel Truman wrote. "I would hope that my grandfather would want his openly gay great-granddaughter and others like her to have the opportunity to serve the country they love with dignity and integrity."

We're hopefully heading in the right direction toward a repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Indeed, nearly 80 percent of the country want to see the policy thrown out the door. The U.S. Senate is likely going to vote on their "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" compromise legislation in September, as part of the defense spending bill, which should set in motion (outrageous Pentagon surveys notwithstanding) the process for moving repeal forward.

But there is something to be said about Truman's bold act of courage in issuing Executive Order 9981. If only other Presidents had the same tenacity to break down institutional discrimination wherever it may exist.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Source By: Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor

Fire Someone in Memphis Because They're Gay? You Can Do That

Memphis. It's a city that has such deep ties to the movement for civil rights, that it's practically impossible to think about advancements in equality without mentioning the town. Yet to this day, the city of Memphis has no anti-discrimination protections for its LGBT citizens. That means that when it comes to the workplace, those who have a job in Memphis can be fired, denied a promotion, or harassed because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. And that's definitely a bleak spot when it comes to the reputation of the city.

But efforts are underway to change that. City Council member Janis Fullilove (who really has the most heart-warming last name of any politician I can think of) has introduced a measure that would add some really important language to Memphis's anti-discrimination ordinance. If Fullilove's measure passes, the following language will be added to the ordinance: "There should be no discrimination in hiring, promoting or demoting a city employee based on sexual orientation, gender identity or expression."

The City Council will take up the measure next on August 3. But while it seems like a no-brainer that such an ordinance rooted in equal rights would pass, this measure is totally up in the air. And that's because several anti-gay politicians and church groups are organizing like the dickens to defeat it. Take Bellevue Baptist Church, which earlier this year made headlines for kicking a softball team out of their church league, because they were worried it had too many lesbian players on it. The pastor of Bellevue, Steven Gaines, is dead set against this ordinance.

"It's going to discriminate against people of faith who are Christians in their worldview, and I believe with all my heart that they have rights too," said Pastor Gaines, taking on the role of snake oil salesman to try and confuse people into thinking that this ordinance would discriminate against a Christian's right to hate gay people. Pastor Gaines said that he's going to organize his church, and other churches, to blast city council with emails and phones calls.

We can't let Pastor Gaines and his cohorts be the only voices touching the Memphis City Council. Send a message to the council today, urging them to pass this ordinance and take a bold step for equality. Already, fellow Tennessee city Nashville has passed an anti-discrimination ordinance inclusive of gender identity and sexual orientation. Memphis should be in the same league. Let's get them to pass this measure at their next meeting.

Source By: Michael A. Jones (Change.Org)

Stonewall sponsors Black Pride

Gay rights charity Stonewall has become a main sponsor of UK Black Pride.
Black Pride, to be held on Saturday August 14th, is the UK's biggest celebration of African, Asian, Caribbean, Middle Eastern and Latin American LGBT people and their friends.

The theme for this year's event is 'Pride, A Deeper Love' and Black Pride will be returning to Regent's Park, London, for its fifth year.

Alongside the main stage and dance tents there will be licensed bars, world food, a VIP tent, secret garden, chill out zone and games area, as well as education and welfare workshops, community stalls, children’s area and much more.

Last year's event saw 1,500 people buy wristbands and watch headliner Beverley Knight, plus dozens of LGBT acts and DJs.

The community event, which began in 2005 as a black lesbian and bisexual outing to Southend-on-Sea, has "pride before profit" as one of its slogans.

Phyllis Opoku-Gyimah, UK Black Pride director, said: “I’m thrilled that Stonewall has formalised its long standing support for our community-led initiative. The help they have gifted us will help to ensure that we put on a strong event that gives space to non-white LGBT people to showcase the best of who we are, as we see ourselves, rather than how others choose to portray us.

"Of course, UK Black Pride has always been an inclusive and everyone is welcome to join this celebration."

Stonewall chief executive Ben Summerskill said: “Stonewall is proud to stand up for all lesbian, gay and bisexual people no matter what their ethnicity or nationality. That is evident in the work we do, and it’s why we're proud to back UK Black Pride as a main sponsor.

"UK Black Pride shows the power of communities coming together to celebrate diversity. Stonewall encourages everyone to attend the festival."

Source By: Jessica Geen (Pink News - UK)

Argentina Makes Gay Marriage History

Put your Evita soundtrack on this morning, and head on down to the track "A New Argentina." There's a line in that song, "A new Argentina, the chains of the masses untied!" How apt, given that in the middle of the night, Argentina's Senate cast a historic vote breaking the chains of inequality that the country's gays and lesbians have faced when it comes to civil rights under the law. In a 33-27 vote, Argentina now becomes the first Latin American country to fully recognize marriage equality.

What a victory for gay rights advocates, who in recent days had to face a stepped up campaign of intolerance from the Mormon Church and the Catholic Church. Indeed, the Catholic Church helped organize massive rallies in Buenos Aires to oppose gay marriage, under the framework of children having the right to a mom and a dad. Ironic, one might say, that the Catholic Church in Argentina would center their argument against marriage equality around children's rights, given the lengthy history of Argentina's Catholic Church when it comes to (a) being engrossed in a child sex abuse scandal, and (b) the Catholic Church's acquiescence to, if not downright facilitation of, the seizure of children from tortured, disappeared and murdered women during Argentina's Dirty War. Children's rights: what a nebulous term for Argentina's Church.

But while the Argentine Catholic Church could use a history lesson this morning, the country as a whole is about to make history, becoming yet another country to take the bold step to recognize marriage equality. Sen. Norma Morandini, one of the 33 votes in favor of marriage equality, said that the Senate vote for gay marriage was a vote for humanity. She echoed the words of Argentina's President, Cristina Kirchner, in saying that gay marriage is a human rights issue, and one that countries should eagerly move to recognize.

"What defines us is our humanity, and what runs against humanity is intolerance," Sen. Morandini said. Nothing spells intolerance more than denying an entire bloc of citizens equal rights.

How big is Argentina's decision? Well, so big that it prompted Ricky Martin to tweet: "#Argentina votes yes on gay marriage! A great nation making history."

But even more so, Argentina's bold move toward marriage equality is another example of how when it comes to laws including LGBT populations, the United States is falling more and more behind the rest of the world. That's a fact not lost on Evan Wolfson from Freedom to Marry, the American organization working to achieve marriage equality here in the States.

"Today's historic vote shows how far Catholic Argentina has come, from dictatorship to true democratic values, and how far the freedom to marry movement has come as twelve countries on four continents now embrace marriage equality," said Wolfson. "Key to Argentina's human rights achievement was strong leadership from legislators and the president. It is time we see more of our own elected officials standing up for the Constitution and all families here in the United States. America should lead, not lag, when it comes to treating everyone equally under the law."

So there you have it, America. Argentina has a message for you, and it's that bold leadership requires standing up to the anti-gay forces that try to throw LGBT people under the bus. That's right. It's time to stand up to the Family Research Council, Focus on the Family, and the institutional Catholic Church, rather than living in fear of them. That's what fierce advocacy looks like.

Meanwhile, let's end this post with the words delivered by Argentina's Senate President after the historic vote. As the vote displayed on an electronic board for all to see, six words were uttered: "Gay marriage is law in Argentina."

Now those are six words to start your morning right.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Source By Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.

Australian presenters to be investigated for ‘anti-gay’ remarks

Two Australian sports commentators are facing an investigation by the New South Wales anti-discrimination board for their remarks about men’s figure skating.

Mike Molloy and Eddie McGuire made the remarks last week during the Winter Olympics men’s figure skating contest.

They joked about the sexual orientation of the contestants and made a quip about flamboyant US skater Johnny Weir being gay.

Australian gay rights activist Gary Burns made an official complaint about the remarks, while Channel Nine also received angry emails about the pair.

Molloy had said: “They don’t leave anything in the locker room these blokes do they?”

McGuire interrupted: “They don’t leave anything in the closet either do they?”

Molloy then joked that McGuire could get into trouble for the comment but then said described another skater’s costume as something even singer Prince would not wear.

Another competitor’s costume was described by McGuire as “a bit of a broke back” – a reference to the gay cowboy film Brokeback Mountain.

Burns told AAP that the pair should apologise for their comments.

He said: “These hired goons were not down at the pub drinking flat beer with their mates, they were on national television being viewed by millions of Australians.

“On Mardi Gras eve the board’s decision to accept this complaint is a timely reminder to homophobes like McGuire and Molloy they won’t get away with vilifying homosexuals.”

Weir, the figure skater who was the butt of Molloy and McGuire’s jokes, has refused to comment on whether he is gay.

He was also a target of French commentators who suggested he should take a gender test. The Quebec Gay and Lesbian Council has demanded an apology from French channel RDS for the remarks, which it said were “outrageous” and “homophobic”.

Weir told a press conference this week that he believed in free speech and did not want to see the broadcasters punished.

But he added: “I want them to think before they speak. I want them to think about not only the person they’re talking about, but also other people like that person.

“What people as a majority need to do is think, and think about who they’re affecting. … I don’t want, 50 years from now, more boys and girls to go through this same thing.”

Source by Staff Writer, PinkNews.co.uk

Marines chief says US military gay ban ‘is working’

"The commandant of the Marine Corps said yesterday he did not agree with lifting the ban on gay US soldiers being open about their sexuality.

General James Conway told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that he believed that the “current policy works”.

He is the highest-ranking military officer to disagree with president Barack Obama’s stance that the 1993 law should be repealed.

Gen Conway is thought to be the only chief to have carried out a survey of his generals on their feelings about lifting the ban.

In November, it was reported that he had been more outspoken than other service chiefs in his opposition to out gay soldiers.

Yesterday, he said: “I think the current policy works. At this point. . . my best military advice to this committee, to the [defence] secretary, to the president would be to keep the law such as it is.”

He added that repealing the ban should not be a question of fairness. Instead, he said, the question was whether it would “enhance the war-fighting of the United States Marine Corps.”

President Barack Obama and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen support repeal of the law, which allows gay soldiers to serve as long as they kept their sexual orientation secret.

If they reveal it, or are outed, they can be fired. Around 13,000 soldiers are believed to have been discharged under the law. In addition, their partners are not informed if they are killed or injured in action.

Earlier this week, Army Chief of Staff General George Casey and Army Secretary John McHugh told the panel they did not support a temporary ban on discharges while a year-long review is carried out.

In the House of Representatives yesterday, Congressman Jim Moran read a letter on the floor from an active duty soldier in Iraq.

He said that the soldier had “learned that a fellow soldier was also gay, only after he was killed by an IED in Iraq. The partner of the deceased soldier wrote the unit to say how much the victim had loved the military; how they were the only family he had ever known.”

According to the University of California’s Palm Center, the unnamed soldier is the second publicly known case of a gay soldier killed in action during the current wars in the Middle East.

The first was US Army Major Alan Rogers, who died while on patrol in Iraq in January, 2008.

Statisticians have estimated that more than 200 gay and lesbian service members have died in action since the onset of the conflict."

Source By Jessica Geen. Pink News

Top U.S. General: Let Gays Serve Openly

Gen. Raymond Odierno, the top U.S. general in Iraq (Source:AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)







The top U.S. general in Iraq said Monday he could slow the exit of U.S. combat forces this year if Iraq’s politics are chaotic following elections this spring. Gen. Ray Odierno said there are no signs that will be necessary, but he says he has a Plan B and told his superiors about it during Washington meetings over the past week.

The U.S. has about 96,000 troops in Iraq nearly seven years after the American-led invasion that overthrew dictator Saddam Hussein. That’s the lowest number of American forces in the country since the invasion.

Under an agreement negotiated under former President George W. Bush, all combat troops are to leave the country by Aug. 31 although some 50,000 will remain behind to help train Iraqi security forces.

The remaining support troops are to be gone by the end of 2011.

"If you ask me today, I’m fully committed and that’s the right course of action," Odierno told reporters at the Pentagon.

However, he noted earlier, "if something happens" between now and late spring - such as problems with the formation of the new Iraqi government following elections next month - the U.S. could slow down the rate of deployments. The U.S. also could speed up the withdrawal if necessary, he said.

When asked whether gays should be allowed to serve openly in the military, Odierno said yes, "as long as we are still able to fight our wars."

His comment was among the first to come from a senior military leader currently leading troops in battle since the Pentagon announced earlier this month that it will study the issue.

Odierno said he hadn’t had much time to think about the military’s "don’t ask, don’t tell" policy and said it has been a "non-issue" to him.

"That doesn’t mean it’s right," he said. "All I’m saying is as I’ve implemented this war now for seven-years, we’ve been able to get forces out that are ready and prepared to conduct operations.

"My opinion is everyone should be allowed to serve, as long as we’re able to fight our wars and we’re able to have forces that are capable of doing whatever they are asked to do," he said.

Source by Anne Flaherty Associated Press

Lawmakers to press military on fate of gay ban :: EDGE New England

Lawmakers to press military on fate of gay ban :: EDGE New England

Court: La. must put 2 adoptive fathers on document :: EDGE Provincetown

Court: La. must put 2 adoptive fathers on document :: EDGE Provincetown