Don't forget what the bigots did.

What an amazing week!

Watching gay couples get married in Oklahoma, Virginia, West Virginia, Nevada. Legal marriage is now in a majority of the states. I wept as I watched couples who had been together 20, 30 years finally being allowed to legally marry.

Of course many are not happy. As I write, the state of South Carolina is doing everything they can to not allow gays to marry.

And as hundreds of couples marry around the country, I ask each of you to not forget.

Please don't forget the bigots and the religious extremists. Please don't forget those who used every waking breathe to keep marriage from us.

Please don't forget those who had the power to simply say yes, or vote yes, and instead said or voted no.

Please don't forget those who demonized us, and continue to demonize us.

Which brings me to my point.

Many of these same people are running for election or re-election across the country. Some of them want people to forget their horrible words and votes against gays and lesbians. Some of them think they will get more votes by demonizing us.

Don't let them do it. Don't let them win.

We have the power. It's called the vote.

Vote. Make sure they know we haven't forgotten. Make sure we speak with a loud voice.

Thank you for reading!

The JeffCo School Board fiasco Part II

This is Part II of a series of blog posts about the Jefferson County School Board and recent student walkouts.

This month, one of the new "reformist" board members introduced a proposal to have a curriculum review committee and that the committee's first priority would be to revisit the AP History course.

Although many of the student-organized walkouts were based on the AP History portion of this proposal, including what should or shouldn't be taught in history, I am surprised that no one has brought up the process of selecting the committee.

First, I'd like to share an email sent out by a supporters of the board member, Julie Williams, who wants to create this curriculum committee:
 

This is scary. I wonder how this person thinks about the students who attend JeffCo schools. I wonder what Julie Williams thinks about gay students or students who might call themselves progressive. I wonder if the writer of this email thinks gay people are ungodly.

No matter what you think about "reformist" school board members (not just ours but those across the country), I think it's fair to say that they have an agenda. In our case, I truly believe that our school board majority has no interest in all of our students, that they only care about their agenda.

So just say it.

There are plenty of actions that "reformist" board members have taken that show me that they do not care about all students. I wonder what it's like for gay and lesbian students in the district. Or students who live in poverty.

After over a week of student protests, I also wonder how students in JeffCo feel when being called pawns, or that their actions could never have been planned by themselves but had to have been planned by the dreaded union. Newscasters have called them names. Our own board members seem to think that the students cannot critically think for themselves.

This week two high schools closed due to teacher sickouts. There were a couple of student protests but not on the level of last week. The monthly school board meeting is tonight, and the new curriculum is on the docket.

More to come.

Meanwhile, please vote. Please check out your school board.

Thanks for reading.

Gay pride and persecution

June is gay pride month.

It's actually more about pride. It's an opportunity to celebrate successes in equality, our families, our allies, and most importantly, to "fire up the troops" to work harder and stay focused on what is happening in regards to LGBTQ rights.

Mike and I try to make the gay pride celebration in Denver every year. I go so I can catch up on what I need to be doing in the fight for equality. Petitions, postcards, the new gay rights t-shirt. You get the idea.

It's the same thing I do when I go to a veg fest. What groups are rocking it for the animals? Where does my dollar go further in support of the animals? And of course the food!

This year I have been spending a lot of time paying attention to what is happening to gays and lesbians around the world. It isn't pretty.

In Russia, I am still blown away bu the intense courage shown by activists who face harassment, beatings and arrest just for gathering with a gay pride flag. Yet the activists keep showing up.

In Uganda, the anti-homosexuality act was signed into law this year. The death penalty was taken off of the table due to international pressure. Now it's just life in prison. In 2011, Daniel Kato, the country's leading gay rights activist, was murdered. I have read that Christian groups in the US have helped to fan the fires in Uganda, but that should be a whole other post.

Iran: executions, beatings, lashings, prison. If you are interested in a first-hand story, check this article out: Gay Iranian couple

In France, yes France, anti-gay harassment and violence has increased since gay marriage became legal last year.

I know we have a long way to go in the US. I also recognize that Mike and I can go to church without being arrested. We can walk through a park without being threatened (not all parks, mind you). We do get hate mail but we also put ourselves out there with this blog.

We do not fear being executed, or sentenced to prison for "perversion".

Ten of thousands of LGBTQ people around the world do feel that fear.

This post is for them.

We love you. We support you. We will be your voice.

If you would like to take action in support of LGBTQ people around the world, I have found that Amnesty International is a great organization to support and to get information from: Amnesty International

Going to the Olympics? Say you're gay!

The disgusting and disturbing stories continue to flow in from Russia. Gay and lesbian people are in a dangerous situation there, not only being targeted by violent thugs on the streets (many times wearing police uniforms) but also by politicians in the legislative system.

With the Olympics coming up next year in Sochi talk has turned to boycotting the Olympics. Sending a message to Mother Russia that your hate and violence towards gay people is unacceptable.

Unlike ours here in the US, but that's another blog post.

I'm sure there are many gay athletes who will travel to Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics. The International Olympic Committee is still trying to figure out how safe these athletes will be if they come out. Russian law is pretty clear that they, and anyone openly supporting them, could be arrested.

Yes, just for publicly saying you are gay or publicly supporting gay people.

My idea is this: Go to the Olympics, whether you are an athlete or a fan or a family member or you just like to watch winter sports. If you are an athlete, blow the Russians out of the water. If you are an athlete or any of the others I listed, say you're gay.

That's right, tell the Russians you're gay. Tell the folks at the airport, tell the hotel employees, tell the taxi driver, tell the restaurant folks, the bankers, the gift peddlers, the security people and any Russian you run into: I am gay.

Wear a t-shirt, paint your nails rainbow colors (Like a Swedish athlete did this past week), carry a little sign, make a huge sign for the whole world to see.

I realize that we gay people ask a lot of our straight allies and those who support equality. This would be a huge ask. HUGE. Imagine what it would look like to the Russian bigots and violent predators towards gay people if tens of thousands of people in Russia for the Olympics simply said they were gay! 

We have to speak out against this. Bigotry, hate speech and violence against gay people has to be met by those of us who support equality for all. We cannot let them have the only voice. Furthermore, I feel that I absolutely MUST take action to be a voice for the gay and lesbian people of Russia who live with the threat of violence or arrest every day, and yet still come out publicly and still show up for protests.

I am gay and I support my sisters and brothers in Russia.

Thank you for reading.

Target supporting bigots. Again.

I never stopped shopping at Target. Calls for a boycott after news became public about their financial support for anti-gay bigots resonated with me but I kept shopping. Then I thought I heard that they had started giving to gay organizations and would stop supporting bigots.

Just to be clear, I think people can do whatever they want with their money. If a big company (or small business) chooses to support political bigots, so be it. I can then make the choice to not buy their product or shop with them.

As Mike and I packed for vacation I began getting information that Target, through their foundation, had donated to yet another anti-gay bigot, Ken Cuccinelli, who is running for governor in Virginia (which I consider my home state).

Ken Cuccinelli doesn't like gay people. He calls us "soulless". That is pretty harsh. He has said a bunch of other things about us, including that he wants to bring anti-sodomy laws back. He believes there is only one allowable way to have sex, and that way only includes one man and one woman. I digress from my original topic, but he also says he has never had or given or received oral sex. Red flags for sure.

Mr. Cuccinelli received $3 million dollars from a right-wing PAC called the Republican Governor's Association. Target donated $50,000 to the PAC. That is a lot of money. Imagine the bigotry that can be spread with that much money.

If Target did not want to support candidates that are anti-gay, they could say so when giving the donation.

My relationship with Target is on shaky grounds. Supporting a candidate that believes so many of their customers are soulless is disgusting.

Gay people shop at Target. Lots of us shop there.

I think we should stop. And I think anyone who believes in equality or even simple kindness should stop shopping at Target.

You see, when we shop at Target we end up supporting anti-gay bigots.

Ken Cuccinelli is a bigot, and Target loves him.

I would love your thoughts. Thank you for reading!