GLBT News

[urnofosiris]

When his ass points south and he were to look toward the west he could see that the Netherlands are still there, if he were to look north he could see that Denmark is still there, and in both countries there is no longer a distinction as to who marries who as long as both parties are consenting adults. The world did not end, we did not all kill ourselves and there are still people practising heterosexual sex and getting married even.

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


Tara: "uh Willow?"

Willow: "No dancing naked, huh?...It just won't be the same."

Tara: "That's all right, we can save it for later" ----From Wilderness, the newest WT comic written by Amber Benson and Christopher Golden

[Lindy]

Thanks kukalaka for the details



DrG; now who would have thought



I really hope and keep all my fingers and toes crossed that the people here will get their little crosses right (or.. left) at the election. I am kinda terrified at the moment. Miff.



edited to add: The rolling eyes are of course directed at those who wouldn't have. I just saw that this kinda angry looking smiley.. well, looks kinda angry.

*********

Buffy: Kill the bad fairy... destroy the bad fairy's
powercenter, whatever, and all the troubles go away? ...

World is what it is. We fight. We die. Wishing
doesn't change that.

Giles: I have to believe in a better world.

Edited by: Lindy  at: 7/12/02 7:06:00 am

[kukalaka]

You're welcome Lindy



And I'm with you with the finger crossing. Though I'm not very fond of Schröder either, but Stoiber of all people...



Well, even if they won the elections they'd need another party to abolish the law and they know they won't find any

[Kalita]

The requirement has been given two years to go through, but the decision has been made!

Quote:

---

A gay couple shared a celebratory kiss and wept tears of joy today after an Ontario court decision brought them giant steps closer to having their church marriage legally recognized.

The precedent-setting decision is expected to have ramifications across Canada and around the world.



"We're no longer second-class citizens in this country and the time has come for change," said Joe Varnell, who sued the provincial government for the right to marry another man.



"My relationship is validated and nobody can say we're not a real family anymore."



Prohibiting gay couples from marrying is unconstitutional and violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the three-judge panel ruled in a unanimous decision.



"Certainly it is an historic decision and it is unprecedented," Roslyn Levine, counsel to the federal attorney general, said outside the courthouse.



"It means marriage is no longer limited to one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others."



But the decision doesn't mean that Bourassa and Varnell, who were wed in a Toronto church ceremony in January 2001 along with a lesbian couple, are legally married yet.



Ontario Superior Court Justice Heather Smith suspended today's ruling in favour of gay marriages for two years, giving Parliament time to redefine the term marriage.



The couples married in 2001 using an ancient Christian tradition of reading banns - asking in church on three Sundays if anyone objects to a couple's marriage - to avoid having to get city-issued marriage licences.



After the ceremony at the Metropolitan Community Church, which received media attention from around the world, the couples were given marriage certificates from Rev. Brent Hawke.



But when they tried to have the marriages registered with the province, Bob Runciman - then-minister of consumer affairs - refused.



The couples and the church then launched a lawsuit to have their unions recognized.



The case was heard last November in conjunction with a lawsuit brought earlier by eight gay and lesbian couples who had been refused marriage licences by the City of Toronto.



Same-sex marriages are not recognized in any Canadian province.



The only country where they are legally acknowledged is The Netherlands.



A ruling against gay marriages in British Columbia is expected to be heard by the Court of Appeal of British Columbia early next year, and a judge in Montreal has reserved judgment on a similar case in Quebec.



The province has 15 days to launch an appeal to the decision, something Bourassa and Varnell's lawyer Douglas Elliott sees as inevitable.



The Supreme Court will likely end up hearing the B.C., Quebec and Ontario cases together, Elliott said.

---

-The Toronto Star

"Hot lesbian witches! It's f--king genius!"
-Charlie Sheen, Being John Malkovich

[KathleenWolf]

well it's about time...



thanks for the article Kalita... I was waiting to hear what the ruling was today but the news flash I just saw didn't give me much

"I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine."

To The Land of The RainbowWriters

[kukalaka]

Just stopping by to do at Stoiber, Glos, Beckstein, Geis and the like (German conservatives). Nothing unconstitutional about these first steps towards real same-sex marriage



Sorry, too happy to be mature right now

[Lindy]

Oh, yippiyayey..



This is kinda groundbreaking.. and since the conservatives asked for a decision in that matter.. all I can think of right now is neener neener neener



Now gay marriage is not reversable and the rights those couples have will stay their rights

*********

Buffy: Kill the bad fairy... destroy the bad fairy's
powercenter, whatever, and all the troubles go away? ...

World is what it is. We fight. We die. Wishing
doesn't change that.

Giles: I have to believe in a better world.

[kukalaka]

It's getting even better:



The judges stated "special protection of marriage and family" (included in the German constitution) does not mean there mustn't be an institution (someone tell me, if I cannot use that word in that way, please) granting the same rights to a different part of the population. I don't see any way any sane person could go to court again when they start granting more rights to those marriages.



And this is so not what the conservatives wanted to achieve , and again with the



Now if only we didn't have elections in September

[kc070697]

Cipher: I tthink the problem I have with that quote is that many adults have problems separating "business life" from "home life," etc... how do they expect teens to do it? For them to stop & say, "Oh, hey... I'm gay & I have like zero support, but I'm here to LEARN dammit!" I know that when I came out in college, my grades didn't suffer at all. *sigh* Yeah, RIGHT. Give me a break.



Italiangirl: I want those things, too. And I wonder why this didn't make mainstream news? Afterall, we can have like 7 weeks of the stupid DOG MAULING CASE... we as a nation are messed up in the head! Where are our priorities?



I always "joke" with my friends that I can't wait until we actually do find life on other planets because maybe we won't spend so much time pissing on each other. But God help our new friends... they won't have a chance. We will love them for a day or two, until they give us what we want, and then we will persecute them... mercilessly. *shakes her head* But the good news is that lesbians and other minorities might finally be safe.



Kiwiccan: Yes, but it's interesting how they leave out the part about Deaf Culture being sacred to deaf people in general. To them, it would be the equivalent of two black people having a random white child. They wouldn't be able to relate to it. Also, there's the genetic odds of creating a deaf child from a hearing or a non-hearing donor... two deaf people can have hearing children... my partner & I just sat near a couple at Fresh Choice about a month ago... a deaf couple with hearing children... the point being that the odds are slim to none anyway. This has nothing to do with lesbians. I love how people tweak the issue to focus on what THEY want to... Not because it's relevant... but just because.



Thanks for posting this.. My wife is a special education preschool teacher and her stepfather is deaf... she will be interested in this. Also, being a couple who has been trying to conceive our first child for 6 months now, I am not ashamed to say that we have looked closely at the donors we were going to choose. If we are able to pick a brown-haired, blue-eyed Argentinian with great skin because WE WANT TO, why can't someone choose a deaf donor? Truly ridiculous.

Edited by: DrG at: 7/18/02 7:24:58 am

[La]

Quote:

---

it would be the equivalent of two black people having a random white child

---

that actually happens (very very rarely), I saw on dateline or something about a black couple who had a blond-haired, blue eyed child (not an albino) because of some crazy 1 in a bazillion chance disorder of some sort (okay, i don't remember any specifics at all), and then it happened to them a second time.

~La

You know you've been in Korea too long when you start categorizing every experience as your "last". Your "last trip to the supermarket," "your last time on a long-distance bus," your "last time walking down this street."

[drlloyd11]

The Anti-Gay group that made people think they were signing an anti-animal cruelty petition instead of one banning gay cohabitation rights (not just marriage) has wound its way to the legislature. Ugh... scum..



Sen Birmingham, who they mention is running for Gov this year as well.

story.news.yahoo.com/news...VB/1257271



story.news.yahoo.com/news...VB/1259336



thats over..

Edited by: DrG at: 7/18/02 7:26:59 am

[kukalaka]

This is just too good to not add it:

Quote:

---

Bedanken für diesen «Sieg auf der ganzen Linie», wie sich Beck ausdrückte, können sich die Schwulen und Lesben paradoxerweise bei der konservativen Senatsminderheit um den Gerichtspräsidenten Hans- Jürgen Papier. Hätten sie sich auf die liberale Linie der Mehrheit eingelassen, wäre die Urteilsbegründung - wie in zahlreichen anderen Entscheidungen abzulesen - mit Sicherheit von Kompromissen geprägt gewesen. Sie hätten das Gesetz zum Beispiel als gerade noch verfassungsgemäß passieren lassen, einer weiteren Gleichstellung aber vorbauen können. Da sie aber mit abweichenden Meinungen ausgeschert sind, konnte die Senatsmehrheit in die Vollen gehen - und alle Zweifel daran beseitigen, dass auch eine weitere Aufwertung der Homosexuellen-Ehe zulässig wäre.

---

summary: Gays and lesbians in Germany have to thank the 3-person minority of the court that wanted to stop the law. If they had been willing to compromise, the decision would not have been "it's OK to give homosexual marriages the same rights as "real" ones", but only "the law as it is is OK, but it can't go further". And I just can't help laughing at this

--

Do Vulcans ever lighten up? Do you ever have fun? - At regular intervals.

[Robin]

Life is a funny thing, isn't it.

[skittles]

from the BBC Monday, July 29, 2002



Conservative MP Alan Duncan has announced that he is gay, the first serving member of his party to do so publicly.



Mr Duncan's "clear and unequivocal" statement that he is gay comes amid apparent feuding between Tory modernisers and traditionalists.



David Davis was axed as party chairman after anonymous claims that he was blocking Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith's more progressive, inclusive agenda.



The Times newspaper says Mr Duncan Smith has welcomed and supported Mr Duncan's decision to declare his sexuality.



The shadow foreign affairs minister has never kept his sexuality from friends and colleagues.



He told the paper: "The Tory view has always been, 'We don't mind, but don't say'. Well, that doesn't work any more.



"I think the only realistic way to behave these days, particularly if you are a politician, is to be absolutely honest."



Central figure



Talking about homosexuality, he told the paper: "It's how you're born, and it's no different from being born Jewish, Catholic, short, tall or anything else."



While several Labour MPs are gay, Tories MPs who have been outed in the past have resigned or lost their seats.



But in January the Conservative Party signalled a change in its approach to gay issues by calling for homosexual partners to be given some of the legal rights held by married couples.



Mr Duncan, MP for Rutland and Melton, said he hoped his decision would make the "path of others easier" but insisted that no one should feel obliged to discuss their private life.



He has been a central figure in Tory politics for more than a decade.

His home was the headquarters for John Major's successful 1990 leadership campaign and he organised William Hague's 1997 victory.



He vigorously backed Michael Portillo in the most recent leadership battle but Mr Duncan Smith promoted him to shadow the Middle East minister in the wake of 11 September.



Home support



Kenneth Bool, chairman of Mr Duncan's Rutland and Melton Conservative Association, praised the MP's honesty.



"Our MP, Alan Duncan, is doing an excellent job as Member of Parliament for the Rutland and Melton Constituency and as a Shadow Foreign Minister at Westminster," he said.



"His honesty is not an act of confession, it is a refreshing act of initiative and typical of the man.



"It is simply not an issue, as we believe most people will take a mature view and will not be overly concerned.



"As chairman I confirm that he has the full support of the officers and the management team of the Rutland and Melton Conservative Association."

skittles

.. for when I see you even for a moment, then power to speak another word fails me, instead my tongue freezes into silence... -- Sappho

[drlloyd11]

The Boston Globe (motto: now only ten years behind the times). Ran an odd editiorial from the Omsbudman saying she was *considering* announcing civil unions in some special section. Why she mentioned this if she was only *considering* and why if its not even going to be in the wedding pages escapes me..

[kukalaka]

Question to all kitties: I'm just wondering whether there are openly gay politicians in your country.



After reading that article I know about the UK, but I don't even know about the situation in the US

--

Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age 18. - Albert Einstein

[Kalita]

No big surprise, but the Liberal Chretien government isn't taking the initiative on allowing same-sex marriage, by formally appealing an Ontario Superior Court decision that not allowing same-sex marriage to be unconstitutional.



This means that the ball is now in the Supreme Court. As they have shown exactly the same attitude as the Ontario court towards similar issues, it's highly likely they'll uphold it, and the government will be forced to change the federal marriage laws.



They just were too chicken to do it on their own. Article



My hometown of Toronto, OTOH, is being more proactive, thankfully. Article

"Numfar... Do the dance of shame."

[drlloyd11]

Quote:

---

Question to all kitties: I'm just wondering whether there are openly gay politicians in your country.



After reading that article I know about the UK, but I don't even know about the situation in the US

--

---

In Mass we had 2 openly gay congressman (now one after a retirement), and several out state legislatures. The original pick for the Republican Lt Gov spot was an openly gay man.

A gay woman came terribly close to a congressional seat (the vote was held on sep 11th, disrupting many things) as well.

This years pride parade was mentioned on page C17 of the globe, and only in an article discussing how some people thought it was too "mainstream"

[Banshee]

Last week the Fayetteville Observer in Fayetteville, NC decided to run a Civil Union announcement for two local men. Since then the letters to the editors have been filled with the usual BS religious retoric. I'm calling on the kittens to read the letters and write their own in support of the newspaper and the editors. As evidenced by things past, when the kittens get worked up about something people take note



-S

[chloecat]

Just in case anyone is interested:



Court Website's summary:



Voting 6-1, the Supreme Court today reversed an appeals courts decision affirming the denial of name-change applications filed by a Butler County lesbian couple.



The women, long-time cohabitants Jennifer Lane Bicknell and Belinda Lou Priddy, sought to change their names to "Rylen," a hybrid of letters common to their surnames. The probate court denied the applications, saying that allowing cohabitants to adopt a common surname would violate Ohio's public policy in favor of marriage. The court of appeals affirmed.



The Supreme Court's majority opinion by Justice Alice Robie Resnick holds otherwise. "Any discussion [in this case] on the sanctity of marriage, the well-being of society, or the state's endorsement of nonmarital cohabitation is wholly inappropriate and without any basis in law or fact," Justice Resnick wrote.



"[Bicknell and Priddy's] only stated purpose for changing their names is to carry the same surname to demonstrate their level of commitment to one another and to the children that they planned to have. Both acknowledge that same-sex marriages are illegal in Ohio, and it is not their intention to have this court validate a same-sex union by virtue of granting the name-change applications.



The two women easily cleared the statutory hurdle of providing a "reasonable and proper cause" for the requested name change, the Supreme Court said.



"It is clear that appellants have no criminal or fraudulent purpose for wanting to change their names. They are not attempting to evade creditors or to create the appearance of a state-sanctioned marriage," Justice Resnick wrote.



"Accordingly, we hold that [the] name change applications are reasonable and proper under [the statute] and, therefore, reverse the judgment of the court of appeals."



Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, who cast the dissenting vote, asserted that the majority had exceeded the court's authority. "By our decision today, we have judicially read into a statute an interpretation that I do not believe the General Assembly intended," she wrote.



"Allowing unmarried couples, whether homosexual or heterosexual, to legally assume the same last name with the stamp of state approval is directly contrary to the state's position against same-sex and common-law marriages, neither of which Ohio recognizes. This is a social policy decision that should clearly be made by the General Assembly after full public debate and discourse, not by judicial legislation."





Check out full opinion at www.sconet.state.oh.us/ro...o-3615.doc

[tyche]

A quick run-down of gay politicians in the UK...

Tony Blair's first cabinet had three openly gay ministers: Chris Smith, Nick Brown and Peter Mandelson, although none of them are in the same jobs now. (Incidentally, the very fact that 3 ministers in one cabinet were gay led certain sections of the media to conclude that the country was being run by a 'gay mafia'. As opposed, obviously, to the straight mafia who comprise the other 98% of the government.) Not surprisingly Labour and Liberal Democrat parties are far more gay-friendly than the Conservative party, although the Liberal (precursor to the Liberal Democrats) leader Jeremy Thorpe did have to resign in the 1980s following allegations that he had plotted to have his young gay lover murdered.

As far as I can recall, the most senior lesbian politician in the UK is Angela Eagle, who is a junior minister in the current government.

Interestingly enough, my local (Conservative - yup, I live in the back of beyond) MP is rumoured to be gay, though I have no idea whether or not this is true. But Alan Duncan coming out is a big deal, b/c he is the most senior Conservative politician ever to admit to being gay. Michael Portillo, another leading Conservative, admitted to gay affairs in his youth: it is widely believed that this counted against him when he ran for the party leadership, and he has now left politics to pursue a career in broadcasting. (Ironically, he lost his seat in parliament at the 1997 general election to the openly gay Stephen Twigg.)

Which reminds me of the most satisfying moment of the 1997 election - the Exeter result, where Ben Brown (at least, I think that's his surname), an openly gay Labour candidate, beat the sitting Conservative MP, who had run a virulently homophobic campaign against him - which included dubbing him 'bent Ben'. It was extremely satisfying to see so many pissed-off homophobes.

Don't keep up with the Joneses. Drag them down to your level. - Quentin Crisp

Bitterness Central

Edited by: tyche at: 8/1/02 2:23:49 am

[Epicurus]

Hey Kalita thanks for all your posts on this thread.

You are keeping me up to date on the GLBT issues that are happening in my home province.

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance
and conscientious stupidity."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

[Kalita]

Epicurus - You're very welcome. I'm just so glad this thread is here, so we have a forum to talk about these things. Thank goodness for the Kitten!

"Numfar... Do the dance of shame."

[drlloyd11]

MICHIGAN: BIAS SUIT The State Supreme Court ruled 4 to 3 that a Detroit police lieutenant who claimed she was discriminated against because she is a lesbian had no right to sue the city. The officer, Linda Mack, who has since retired, sued under a provision in the city charter that forbids discrimination based on sexual orientation. The court ruled that the city could not legally enforce the provision because state law did not recognize sexual orientation claims.

[skittles]

DrLloyd, Here is an article on the lawsuit from the Detroit Free Press. Makes me ashamed to say I live in Michigan



From the Detroit Free Press, August 1, 2002



Court reverses on police lawsuit



Ex-lieutenant claimed gay harassment charge



By Suzette Hackney

Free Press Staff Writer



A former Detroit police lieutenant who sued the department for harassment because she is a lesbian had no right to pursue litigation, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.



In a 4-3 decision, the state's highest court said the city was protected from the lawsuit under governmental immunity. The decision reverses a 2000 Court of Appeals ruling.



Linda Mack, a former lieutenant with the Detroit Police Department, sued the City of Detroit in Wayne County Circuit Court in 1999, claiming she was reassigned from her position as a squad leader in the sex crimes unit to desk duty after she rebuffed romantic advances of male supervisors.



"She told them she shouldn't be accosted that way, and furthermore she told them she was a lesbian and not interested.



"The harassment intensified. She went from conducting major investigations and major apprehensions of sexual criminals to being ordered to do no police work," Peter Macuga, Mack's attorney, said Wednesday.



"The conduct of the Detroit Police Department and its command staff was atrocious," he said.



As a result of the problems, Mack, a lieutenant since 1987, retired, saying she suffered severe emotional distress and damage to her reputation and career.



She brought her antidiscrimination claim under a provision of the city charter that states the city has a duty to protect employees from discrimination based on such criteria as race, age, handicap and sexual orientation.



The charter also states that the city's Human Rights Department has the duty to investigate complaints of unlawful discrimination against any person based on that same criteria.



Still, city attorneys argued that Mack's claims of intentional emotional distress were barred by governmental immunity. The city also argued that the charter only allowed Mack to file a complaint with the Human Rights Department. A Wayne County Circuit Court judge agreed and dismissed the case. Mack appealed.



In 2000, the Michigan Court of Appeals reversed the circuit court decision, ruling that Mack could sue for sexual-orientation discrimination. The city appealed to the Michigan Supreme Court.



Ruth Carter, corporation counsel for the city, did not return calls seeking comment.



Detroit police would not comment on the ruling, but Sgt. Ricardo Moore, a spokesman, said the department prohibits harassment or discrimination against gays and lesbians.



"Our policy mirrors that of the federal government as it relates to sexual orientation," he said. "Any complaints of that nature are investigated by the department's personnel bureau."



Contact SUZETTE HACKNEY at 313-222-6672 or hackney@freepress.com.

skittles

.. for when I see you even for a moment, then power to speak another word fails me, instead my tongue freezes into silence... -- Sappho

[urnofosiris]

Quote:

---

Question to all kitties: I'm just wondering whether there are openly gay politicians in your country

---

We had one (here in the Netherlands) and he got shot in the head just before our recent elections. Of course he was not shot because he was a gay man but because he was an individual his killer happened to hate. Isn't that grand? Makes it all so much better.



I am not all that much into politics anymore, sometimes I pick up on hearing something about members of our parliament being gay but as for high ranking political figures, I only recall one of our ministers, Ien Dales, who died in 1994 ago while still in office from a heart attack. She was a formidable woman. The other -would have been- high ranking politician was Pim Fortuyn, who was murdered last may.

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

Tara: "uh Willow?"

Willow: "No dancing naked, huh?...It just won't be the same."

Tara: "That's all right, we can save it for later" ----From Wilderness, the newest WT comic written by Amber Benson and Christopher Golden

Edited by: DrG at: 8/1/02 8:18:30 am

[Dave V]

A bill allowing same-sex couples to adopt children was approved by the Manitoba legislature:

(edited because Sun Media no longer archives their stories, but the Winnipeg Free Press does)

Quote:

---

Tories flip-flop, vote against adoption rights for gay couples



Fri, Aug 2, 2002

By Mia Rabson



Less than a year after stating publicly that he would support a bill giving adoption rights to same-sex couples, Tory leader Stuart Murray led his party's outright rejection of the legislation in the house yesterday.

The bill passed, with 30 NDP MLA and Liberal leader Jon Gerrard voting in favour, and 22 Tories voting against it. Three MLAs were not present. It amends 56 statutes, the most contentious of which is gay adoption.



Murray said yesterday his personal feelings differ from his party's vote.



"Although I said as an individual I support same sex adoption, there are a number of Manitobans who have a different opinion," Murray said. "The majority of people who I spoke to were not in favour of this and I felt we needed to stand up for them."



Last summer, the Tories publicly criticized the NDP for not including adoption rights in a bill which amended statutes to not discriminate against gay and lesbian Manitobans. Both Murray and Justice Critic Joy Smith have since indicated their party supported gay adoption rights.



"Loving parents, I believe, raise good children... you can't convince me that one person can love better than another person," Murray told the Free Press in November. Murray said he told his caucus to vote freely by their conscience yesterday, and all 22 members present voted no.



Smith said her constituents had a lot of questions and she wanted the NDP to postpone the bill until more public consultations could take place. A public hearing a week ago brought out 39 people, 24 of whom supported the legislation, 15 of whom did not.



Justice Minister Gord Mackintosh, who was blasted by the gay community last summer for not pushing this legislation, was dismayed by the Tories reaction yesterday. "This is a very serious flip-flop," Mackintosh said. "What happened to putting the progressive back in progressive conservative?"



mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca

---

In recent weeks, opponents tried to make the case that children might be in danger from pedophiles etc., ignoring the strict screening procedures for prospective parents and the existence of a provincial Child Abuse Registry for offenders.

Edited by: Dave V at: 8/3/02 7:39:27 am

[skittles]

From the BBC news in Wales:



Gay 'wedding' plan is pushed



Saturday, 3 August 2002, 14:42 GMT



Llanelli could become the first town in Wales to offer "weddings" for gay couples if a pressure campaign pays off.



Carmarthenshire County Council said it will consider offering civil partnership services to same-sex couples.



Trades Union Congress is lobbying the town's register office to lay on the services, which do not constitute formal marriage in law.



Metropolitan areas of England and Scotland already offer the special ceremonies. But no offices in Wales have made provisions.

The Church In Wales and Church In England currently preclude marriages for gay and lesbian couples.



Gay couples in London have been able to demonstrate their commitment in a civil partnership service, offered through the London Partnership Register, since September.



Manchester became the first city outside of the capital to offer the services and Scottish registers have followed suit.



Debbie Rees from Llanelli, who chairs the Wales TUC's gay and lesbian steering committee, is campaigning for the town to adopt the same kind of service.



"We are very much behind England and Scotland on this issue," she said.



"It would be fantastic if Llanelli was to become the first town in Wales to move into the 21st Century and recognise gay and lesbian couples who want to show how much commitment means to them."



Carmarthenshire County Council's head of statutory services, Peter Jones, said: "It is something we would have to consider."

skittles

.. for when I see you even for a moment, then power to speak another word fails me, instead my tongue freezes into silence... -- Sappho

[semiramis]

And some sad news from sydney



www.smh.com.au/articles/2...78485.html



Sydney GL Mardi Gras collapses..............

I won't go into the politics here, but it's both a shame (& IMHO) not really surprising.



Our Mardi Gras parade could well be over.......

The longer I live, the less I resemble the rest of humanity
Violet Trefusis

[drlloyd11]

www.wired.com/news/cultur...64,00.html



You could call them an unambiguously gay duo.



In the current issue of a DC Comics series called The Authority, superheroes Apollo and The Midnighter get hitched on the second-to-last page, becoming "husband and husband." They also adopt a child and, presumably, live happily ever after.









See also:



• It's a Mad, Mad, Mad Magazine

• When Comics and Law Collide

• Discover more Net Culture







No one knows quite for sure about the "happily ever after" part, though, because the issue on newsstands now is the last in the series.



Such is life in the comic book world, where there's a growth industry in gay characters but few make much of an impression.



In fact, even the most devoted fans and artists of gay comics at last weekend's Comic-Con International convention were hard-pressed to name more than a couple major comic-book stars who prefer their own gender.



But in a sign of changing times, not everyone is keeping score. "Ten or fifteen years ago, I remember feeling really desolated because there was nothing to relate to. Now there's tons of stuff, and I don't care," said Brad Rader, 44, a Los Angeles artist for major comic books. "The less oppression I feel about being a gay person, the less I (care) about gay things."



While gay characters are fairly new, alleged gay subtexts aren't. Critics began complaining about gay content in the comics shortly after Batman and Robin started shacking up in a mansion above Gotham City. In the 1954 book Seduction of the Innocent, a Bellevue Hospital psychiatrist claimed he knew how to read between the lines in the Batman comic books.



He pointed out that Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson, the alter egos of Batman and Robin, lived together in a "sumptuous" home with a butler and lots of pretty flowers in vases.



"It is like a wish-dream of two homosexuals living together," the author wrote, adding that Robin often walked around with his bare legs spread apart, exposing his crotch.



Wonder Woman, meanwhile, came under fire in a psychiatric journal for being man-hating and "plainly lesbian."



But outside of the sub-genre of erotic comics, unsubtle gay themes didn't start regularly showing up in comic books until the 1980s and 1990s. Now, gay supporting characters have appeared in everything from The Incredible Hulk and The Green Lantern to The Flash and the Star Trek comic books.



"Superman" works with a lesbian Metropolis Police Force inspector. And this year, a major gay character called Northstar joined the "X-Men" team, thrilling gay fans who say they feel a special kinship with outcast characters who must hide their true identities and find families on their own.



"X-Men are perfect until they hit 13, and suddenly they have these magical powers they don't know what to do with. It's very much like queerness," said Chicago artist Charles "Zan" Christensen, 29, who's launching a series about a semi-closeted superhero named Captain Kinetic.



The rise in characters with alternative lifestyles has evolved as comic books themselves -- left for dead only a few years ago -- are experiencing a rebirth of sorts thanks to hit movies like X-Men and Spider-Man





Gay artists, writers and fans, meanwhile, have formed a support organization (the Gay League) and held their 15th annual panel discussion at the ComicCon, the world's largest comics convention.

Some activists in the comics business are pushing for more gay characters, creating a dilemma for artists who are torn over how much their work should become a push for social justice.



"What's really important in storytelling is to tell the truth," said Devin Grayson, a bisexual Oakland, California, comic-book writer who works for DC Comics. "We need to see relationships in all their complexities. And part of what we're doing is making sure heroism is available to everyone."



But in a panel discussion at Comic-Con International, other artists bristled at the idea of some sort of informal quota system.



"If I come up with a good story, I don't want to have to say, 'Gay character, check,'" said Chuck Kim, a writer for DC Comics. "There shouldn't have to be a checklist."



In fact, many superheroes aren't sexual at all, despite wearing tights all the time.



"People have expanded the market to include all sorts of fringe things, but it's still about right and wrong. It's all about the villain they're fighting next week, not who they're dating," said San Diego artist Joe Phillips, the creator of mainstream and gay comics.



While there may not be many gay characters in comics, there also aren't many ethnic minorities, Jews or seniors, either, he added.



"Most of the characters are going to be your typical white straight male character, because that's the main audience that buys the comic books," he said. "That's who they identify with."