Sweden to end ban on gay blood donors

AFP via the Swedish Wire:

"Men who have had sex with men will no longer be permanently barred from donating blood," the National Board of Health and Welfare said in a statement released on World AIDS Day.

Sexual orientation will no longer determine whether a person can give blood. Instead, people who have engaged in "sexually risky behaviour" can be barred as donors for one year.

The problem has always been that gay men are banned, even monogamous gay men, but promiscuous heterosexual men are considered a-okay. Read the rest of this post...

When to repeal Prop 8?

It's a more difficult question than it sounds: When to try for gay rights advances. It's understandable that some people think "it's always a good time to try." But as recent losses in Maine and other states have shown, when you lose on an issue repeatedly, it sends ripples to other states, that then start to go bad on your issues as well. Losing can set a very bad precedent that has consequences politically. Having said that, I've found that in the past, at times, I've been too conservative in my prognostication as to whether a specific issue was ripe, or whether we should hold back. I said hold back, others went ahead, and they won. So is next year time to repeal Prop 8? Is it timely to be pushing marriage in the states, rather than civil unions or domestic partners (and wait to push marriage later)? Read the rest of this post...

Another reader tells the DSCC that the gAyTM is closed

What's interesting is that Joe and I didn't really include the DSCC and the DCCC in our DADG campaign. Only because it helps to limit your targets, so you can stay focused, and the DNC, Organizing for America, and President Obama have all three either gone back on promises to our community, snubbed our community, or harmed our community. Still, I'm hearing from a number of readers who have sent similar messages to the DSCC. These messages help.

Greg gave me permission to republish his name and email:

From: Greg Fickas
Date: December 1, 2009 11:06:47 AM CST
To: info@dscc.org
Cc: John Aravosis
Subject: Re: quick note

Dear J.B.,

As a gay American I have taken the Don't Ask Don't Give Pledge. This administration made promises to the LGBT community that it has not only failed to keep, but has worsened through actions such as its insulting and homophobic legal defense of DOMA which compares same-sex marriage to pedophilia and incest.

The LGBT community was proud to support candidate Obama, but President Obama's record on LGBT issues so far has been very poor. In fact, it started out poorly from his inauguration when homophobic bigot Rev. Rich Warren was invited to give the invocation. It should also be noted that the very same Rick Warren has as yet failed to condemn pending legislation in Uganda that would criminalize homosexuality with penalties of life imprisonment and death and even penalties of prison for individuals who fail to report on their friends and family members whom they suspect being homosexual. What is the President's position on this barbarism that will terrorize a segment of the Ugandan population and which is condoned by the man who gave the invocation at his inauguration?

I'm sorry it has to be this way, but this is a civil rights issue that the administration simply must address. Until there is progress on these LGBT issues and more, I will no longer be making any more contributions to the DSCC.

Sincerely,

Greg Fickas
Centennial, Colorado

--- On Mon, 11/30/09, J.B. Poersch wrote:

From: J.B. Poersch
Subject: quick note
To: greg
Date: Monday, November 30, 2009, 6:56 PM

Friends,

I need your help right now. The DSCC's November fundraising deadline is midnight, and Republicans stand ready to defeat health reform and destroy us. If we don't match their intensity, we'll lose this argument - and our majority.

Click here to donate, and a group of senators will chip in the same amount. Even $5 will make a difference.

Thanks for your help.

J.B.

BTW, donate today, and you'll get 20% off in the DSCC Store.

------------------------------------------------

Paid for by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee,
http://www.dscc.org, and not authorized by any candidate or
candidate's committee.

------------------------------------------------

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DC passes marriage

Needs a second vote later this month, then on to the mayor for signature. Read the rest of this post...

For the love of God, please ban divorce

Please support the 2010 California Marriage Protection Act. A ballot measure that would ban divorce in California. It's time to make the bigots put up or shut up.
Read the rest of this post...

Marriage of gay couple blocked in Argentina

Gay marriage isn't legal in Argentina. This couple sued to change that. They won in a lower court, but another court blocked it, pending a decision by the Supreme Court. It's fascinating to see the same issue progress along similar lines in an entirely different part of the world. Read the rest of this post...

"Matthews Place" looking for intern

Calling all young, socially minded LGBT kids in the Denver metro area looking for a great opportunity! Judy Shepard is looking for an intern for "Matthews Place." If I were still college aged, and in the Denver area, this is exactly the kind of gig I would plug myself into:

US:

Since Matthew's death and the creation of the Matthew Shepard Foundation, Judy Shepard has spent countless hours meeting young people across the country. Many of these young people have reached out to her to share their stories about the pain and hurt of being teased, harassed, and mistreated by their peers, parents, and other community members for being who they are.

Judy quickly discovered that there is a gap in the information that is being offered to young people, especially those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQQ) and allied community. She felt that one way the Matthew Shepard Foundation could use its voice is to provide young people with a safe place to access resources and information critical to their development and survival.

Matthewsplace.com is that vehicle and continues to be a fitting tribute to Judy’s son Matthew who was killed simply for being who he was. MatthewsPlace.com provides LGBTQQ and allied youth with a site that incorporates cutting-edge technology with up-to-date information and resources about how to live a healthy, productive, and hate-free life.

THE TASK:

As an intern you will be asked to spend 16 hours a week this spring assisting MSF staff with the ongoing maintenance of MatthewsPlace.com. This will include identifying new resources and content to post to the site on a weekly basis. You may also be asked to provide other support within the organization as needed.

THE INTERN:

We are looking for someone who has knowledge of and/or interest in social justice issues, is getting ready to start college or is currently enrolled and has the ability to work independently in a fast-paced, dynamic work environment.

Apply by attaching cover letter and resume here.

Read the rest of this post...

Richard Cohen on Gay Marriage

Today is World AIDS Day. I'm looking around to find some good, reputable AIDS groups informing us of how the Obama administration has done in its first year on AIDS issues. Stay tuned. In the meantime...

A really nice article from Cohen.

The reasoning in the declaration is so contorted that it brings to mind the dire warnings from years past of what would happen if blacks and whites were allowed to marry -- not to mention similar references to what the Almighty purportedly intended. This sort of comparison irritates many African Americans who oppose same-sex marriage, but I can see no reason why the civil right extended by the Supreme Court in Loving v. Virginia (interracial marriage) is any different than the one sought by gays and lesbians. Marriage has certain economic advantages, and to withhold them based on nothing more than religious preference or, at bottom, a certain disgust entrenched in convention, is clearly a civil rights matter.

In the end, the courts will decide this question. That's what they're for. It's doubtful that the voters of Virginia would have allowed Mildred and Richard Loving to tie the knot back in 1967 any more than the public in general approves of same-sex marriage today. Such a legal case, spearheaded by the political odd couple of David Boies and Ted Olson, is likely to reach the Supreme Court in the not-too-distant future. Then, I suspect, wedding bells will ring through the land -- and, after a pause, America will wonder what the fuss was all about.

Read the rest of this post...