The New York Times Spotlights Anti-Gay Evangelicals’ Role in Influencing Brutal Legislation in Uganda
January 4, 2010
Three anti-gay evangelical Americans presented a series of talks in Uganda last March about “the threat homosexuals posed to Bible-based values and the traditional African family” which seem to have been a driving force behind Uganda’s proposed legislation to execute some of its gay citizens, according to a New York Times article published on Sunday, January 3.
The United States has now demanded that the proposed legislation meet international human rights standards, but Uganda’s minister of ethics and integrity recently said “Homosexuals can forget about human rights.”
Although Ugandan leaders have indicated that they will curb the legislation to instead call for life imprisonment of some gay people, locals told The New York Times of the damage that’s already been inflicted by American religious leaders:
“What these people have done is set the fire they can’t quench,” said the Rev. Kapya Kaoma, a Zambian who went undercover for six months to chronicle the relationship between the African anti-homosexual movement and American evangelicals.
Mr. Kaoma was at the conference and said that the three Americans “underestimated the homophobia in Uganda” and “what it means to Africans when you speak about a certain group trying to destroy their children and their families.”
“When you speak like that,” he said, “Africans will fight to the death.”
But shortly after Uganda’s posed legislation drew international attention, anti-gay leaders began distancing themselves from their ties to Africa and its growing rate of homophobia. Most notably, evangelical Christian pastor Rick Warren issued a video statement in December that cited “lies and errors and false reports” as linking him to Uganda’s anti-gay sentiments. The New York Times noted, however, that Warren had visited the country as recently as 2008 and has been quoted as comparing homosexuality to “pedophilia.”
The New York Times also published a related report, “Gay in Uganda and Feeling Hunted,” on Monday, January 4, detailing the hardships LGBT people face in Uganda. The article included a compelling multi-media component on its website with commentary from LGBT people on the ground in Uganda. The Times also published a scathing editorial on Tuesday, January 5 calling upon the U.S. Government and others to make it clear to Uganda that if its anti-gay legislation becomes law, “it will lose millions of dollars in foreign aid and be shunned globally.”
We applaud The Times for shining a light on this vital topic and ensuring that people around the world get a clear sense of the immense challenges LGBT people encounter on a daily basis in Uganda, and how they’ve learned to survive.
We’ll keep you updated on the latest information surrounding Uganda’s anti-gay legislation and the media’s coverage of the topic.
Related Posts:North Carolina County Passes Domestic Partner Benefits Despite Defamatory Comments From Commissioner Bill James
December 22, 2009
The Mecklenburg County Commissioners, last Tuesday, passed a domestic partner benefits policy, extending benefits to the spouses of LGBT city employees and making it the seventh North Carolina county to do so. The new policy will take affect next fall during the open enrollment period.
According to WCSC, the 6 to 3 favorable vote makes “a Mecklenburg County employee who is in a same-sex relationship where both partners live together and share financial responsibilities eligible to receive county benefits for their partner as long as one of them is a county employee.”
Many Mecklenburg County residents and allies said passing the law was about basic equal rights.
“I’m not gay but I believe they have [the] right to feed their family,” said George Dunlap, who continued saying that by not passing a benefits package, it promotes bias and says Charlotte is not progressive, he told reporters.
While the board was split on the policy, the most vocal opposition in the media came from Commissioner Bill James. Commissioner James was quoted calling co-Commissioner Vilma Leake’s deceased son, who was gay, a “homo” and accused Commissioner Leakes of pushing her “agenda.”
The Miami Herald’s Steve Rothaus, reported that Commissioner James even sent e-mails to the local FOX affiliate, in which he defended his defamatory language.
“In justifying her position last night in public, she used her son’s ‘lifestyle’ and his death from HIV-AIDS to justify voting for benefits to allow individuals to use tax dollar to engage in the same behavior that resulted in her son’s death.”
According to 365Gay, Leake’s son was gay and died of AIDS.
Last week, the Mecklenburg Commissioners chair Jennifer Roberts said that her colleague Bill James should apologize for his rants but Commissioner Leake said she doesn’t suspect Commissioner James will.
Journalists have been fair and accurate in reporting on this story and GLAAD will keep monitoring this situation. We urge media to continue shining a spotlight on Commissioner James’ outrageous anti-gay comments.
Related Posts:Irish Gay Man Attacked At Neighborhood Bar in Queens
December 17, 2009
Tarlach MacNiallais, an openly gay Queens, NY educator and Irish American citizen, never pegged his neighborhood bar as the place for an anti-gay beating. But that’s exactly what happened to him on December 5, when two bouncers accused MacNiallais of “dancing with another man” and proceed to severely beat him in the club.
The night began like the countless other times MacNiallais and his friends and family had visited Guadalajara De Noche restaurant, in Jackson Heights, Queens.
According to the Irish Central, MacNiallais and his partner of seven years, Juan, and Juan’s four brothers visited the restaurant expecting an open mike sing-along. When they discovered that the club night had been scheduled instead, the group decided to stay and sat in the back near the dance floor.
But when MacNiallais suggested to his partner that they dance to a song the evening changed.
Before they began to dance, a man, described as an employee of the nightclub, came over to the couple and said: “You can’t do that in here. This is not a gay bar.”
“To be quite honest I thought he was joking. I didn’t even look at him,” MacNiallais, told the Irish Central. “I turned around and said, ‘We have as much right to dance as anyone else.’”
According to MacNiallais, he was then yanked from behind, thrown against a wall and kicked and punched repeatedly on his body, including his face and chest. He was treated at a local hospital and released.
MacNiallais’ friends and family proceeded to call the police, who are currently investigating the situation.
The New York Post was the first media outlet to break the story about the incident. However, the article incorrectly stated that MacNiallais was a gay activist who intentionally went into the club to dance with an unnamed man.
MacNiallais says, “I did not just jump up and dance with a total stranger, or with the first man who walked in the bar. I was dancing with my partner of seven years.”
GLAAD has reached out to MacNiallais and local advocates to offer our support and we will keep you updated on this story.
Related Posts:Rwanda to Finalize Draft of New Law that Could Criminalize Being Gay
December 16, 2009
The lower house of the Rwandan Parliament on Wednesday will debate a final draft of a new penal code that would criminalize homosexuality for the first time in that country, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) reported Tuesday.
Article 217 of the draft Penal Code Act will criminalize “[a]ny person who practices, encourages or sensitizes people of the same sex, to sexual relation or any sexual practice.”
The independent publication Box Turtle Bulletin adds that the Penal Code “would also ban counseling and advocacy that could be interpreted as ‘encouraging or sensitizing’ people to enter into same-sex relationships.” That stipulation could gravely impact the ability to deliver adequate medical services to LGBT people in the country.
If approved, the legislation will head to Rwanda’s Senate in early 2010.
The proposal comes shortly after a similar bill was posed in neighboring Uganda. The Ugandan bill originally called for the execution of gay people charged as so-called “repeat offenders” and life imprisonment of anyone engaging in “homosexual activity.”
GLAAD will continue to follow the media’s coverage of the pending anti-gay law in Rwanda. Updates can be found on GLAADblog.org as they become available.
Related Posts:The Washington Post Misses the Mark Again in Its Profile of Anti-LGBT Archbishop Donald Wuerl
December 3, 2009
Just last month, GLAAD alerted readers to The Washington Post’s one-sided profile of anti-LGBT Bishop Harry Jackson published on November 18.
In response to that article, GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios penned a Letter to the Editor that confronted The Washington Post’s bias and challenged the newspaper to set higher standards of fairness in future reporting.
That Letter, however, was not published by The Washington Post, though a Post staff member noted that two other letters that responded to the Bishop Harry Jackson piece were published. (Those letters can be found here and here).
(The text of GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios’s Letter can be found below)
On Tuesday, however, The Washington Post once again published an unfair article by staff writer Michelle Boorstein about the Anti-LGBT Catholic Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl.
Boorstein’s article advanced the misconception that faith communities and LGBT people are incompatible. Boorstein overlooked countless clerics and practicing worshipers who welcome equal protections for their gay and transgender brothers and sisters. Organizations like Clergy United for Marriage Equality – a group of over 200 African-American clergy members who are currently working to achieve marriage equality in Washington, D.C. – and Dignity USA – a national organization that affirms LGBT Catholics across the globe– could and should have been included in Boorstein’s piece to offer a different perspective to the anti-LGBT stance that Archbishop Wuerl has taken.
The article also omits the personal stories of loving same-sex couples whose families are directly impacted by the pivotal equality legislation that is advancing in the nation’s capitol.
GLAAD urges you to contact The Washington Post’s ombudsman, Andrew Alexander, and express your concern about the Post’s unfair articles on LGBT people and marriage protections for committed same-sex couples. Tell The Washington Post that loving same-sex couples and their families deserve unbiased and accurate representation in the newspaper so that readers can make fair and informed decisions about the community and its struggle for equality.
Andrew Alexander – Ombudsman, The Washington Post
____________________________________________________________________
Text of GLAAD President Jarret Barrios’s Letter to the Editor regarding Wil Haygood’s Nov. 18 article, “Seeking to Put Asunder”
Wil Haygood Misses the Mark in Profiling Bishop Harry Jackson
Wil Haygood’s profile detailing Bishop Harry Jackson’s opposition to Councilperson David Catania’s bill that would allow committed same-sex couples the right to marry was one-sided and misleading.
The article portrays Jackson as simply an opponent of same-sex marriage and suggests that he is otherwise unconcerned with the gay community. In reality, however, Jackson has a long history of opposition to equal protections for gay and transgender people. It was not long ago, for example, that Jackson spearheaded the “Muzzling the Pulpit” campaign that sought to defeat crucial hate crimes legislation meant to protect gay and transgender Americans from hate-motivated violence.
”Seeking to Put Asunder” not only presents a narrow interpretation of marriage, but also a narrow interpretation of the gospel. To be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender does not mean one cannot also be a person of extraordinary faith. The article omitted voices of gay and transgender African-Americans and African-American clergy who support equal rights for LGBT people. In the D.C. area alone, there are a number of African-American advocates and allies who could have attested to their community’s support for marriage equality. The group Clergy United for Marriage Equality, for instance, has over 200 African-American clerics who are currently working to achieve marriage equality in Washington, D.C. By not adding theses perspectives, Haywood further reinforced the false notion that the African-American community and its churches all share Jackson’s anti-LGBT views.
Haygood’s own bias becomes clear when he writes of gay and transgender people as those who lead “alternative lifestyles.” It should be noted that both The Associated Press and The New York Times have set guidelines that discourage journalists from applying the word ‘lifestyle’ because of its false implication that sexual orientation and gender identity are matters of choice.
The dialogue between the gay and faith communities merits a fair assessment of information, opinion and theological reflection. Instead, Haygood offered the same partisanship that continues to stifle a more informed and rounded conversation.
Jarrett Barrios — New York, NY
Barrios is the President of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and a former Massachusetts state senator.
Related Posts:Extensive Media Coverage of Brutal Attack on Gay Man in Queens
October 15, 2009
Media coverage of the vicious beating of a gay man in Queens, which we mentioned in yesterday’s blog about the state of federal and local hate-crime legislation, has greatly expanded since the arrest of the second attacker and the release of footage from a surveillance camera that captured the assault.
Jack Price, age 49, was attacked at 4:30am last Friday, October 9th as he left a deli near his home in College Point, Queens. The New York Times’ CityRoom blog reported that 26-year-old Daniel Aleman was arrested on Sunday, charged with assault and aggravated assault as a hate crime. According to the New York Daily News, the second attacker, 21-year-old Daniel Rodriguez, was arrested on Tuesday in Norfolk, VA.
ABC News reported that the suspects taunted Price, who is openly gay, as he entered and exited a local bodega, yelling anti-gay slurs before proceeding to punch and kick him for three minutes – all incredibly recorded on a security camera recently installed to deter graffiti.
Price was able to stumble from the scene of the attack to his home and call police despite his broken jaw and ribs, collapsed lungs, and lacerated spleen. He was taken to New York Hospital Queens where he has currently improved from serious to fair condition after going into a medically-induced coma and undergoing surgery.
City officials and police officers have denounced the crime across the board, saddened that such a hateful crime occurred on their streets.
According to The Daily News, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said, “It’s a despicable crime. The individual was attacked simply for his orientation, and we’re just not going to tolerate it in this city.”
Monday morning, openly lesbian City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan), City Councilman John Liu (D-Queens), and openly gay state Senator Tom Duane (D-Manhattan) held a press conference about the attack outside the hospital in Flushing. Quinn said:
“You get tired of doing these press conferences. When someone is attacked for being who they are and for being proud of who they are, there is no other explanation for that attack than hatred and bigotry.”
Yesterday, however, friends and relatives of Daniel Rodriguez defended him, saying this could not have been a hate crime “because he has gay relatives – and even once had a gay roommate.”
Rodriguez’ sister appeared on a video report by My Fox NY reiterating that this was not a hate-motivated crime, but that her brother should turn himself in, nevertheless.
A subsequent ABC News report included a disturbing interview with Rodriguez’ friend Marcel Gelmi, who described his version of events leading up to the attack. ABC reported, “Gelmi claims that Price had previously propositioned men in the neighborhood, and even had blown his assailants a kiss.”
Gelmi said, “I mean I don’t want no man blowing me a kiss either. I mean things happen.”
The Queens Chronicle quoted openly gay City Council hopeful Danny Dromm at Monday’s press conference pointing out that this is the fourth time in 19 years that a gay man in Queens “lies near death, or actually dead, because he was beaten for being gay.”
District Attorney Richard Brown told ABC News, “This is probably the most vicious and brutal incident that I’ve seen, captured as it was on videotape.”
GLAAD is in close contact the New York City Anti-Violence Project, which has been engaging closely with the NYPD, its Hate Crimes Task Force, and the District Attorney’s office and is speaking with elected officials and doing community outreach. We are offering media assistance to NYCAVP and all of the local partner organizations working on this case.
We will keep you informed of any further media coverage of this brutal attack and GLAAD’s work on this issue.
Related Posts:Chicago-Area Student Files Complaint After Teacher Uses Anti-Gay Slur
October 15, 2009
Jordan Hunter, 17, filed a complaint against a Geneva High School teacher after the instructor used an anti-gay slur in the classroom on October 5.
According to The Advocate, David Burk, a veteran consumer education teacher, made the comments while discussing taxation and the National Endowment for the Arts.“How would you feel about your tax dollars going to pay some black f*g in New York to take pictures of other black f*gs?” Burk reportedly asked the class.
“I’m personally offended,” Hunter told the Chicago Tribune. “I just think it’s completely unacceptable for a person in that position to make any comments that are discriminatory toward any group in a classroom setting.”
Hunter was placed in an alternate class after reporting the incident to school officials.
At a meeting on Tuesday, the Geneva School District 304 (IL) voted to issue a warning to Burk. NBC Chicago reported on Thursday that “a letter of reprimand [will be] placed in his permanent file.”
Burk later admitted to the comments and read an apology to his students on Tuesday.
“The message I conveyed was insensitive and hurtful,” read Burk’s letter. “This is not what I had intended.”
Hunter, however, is not convinced that the school board’s decision is an appropriate result.
“I’m disappointed and shocked,” Hunter told NBC of the outcome. “I thought they would take it more seriously than they did. He’s more than entitled to his views and opinions, but there’s no reason he needs to express them in the classroom.”
Hunter has reached out to GLAAD and we have offered any media resources necessary to help share his story.
GLAAD will continue to monitor the media’s coverage of the Geneva School District’s response to anti-gay slurs in the classroom. Updates can be found on GLAADblog.org.
Related Posts:Defamatory Ad in Yiddish Newspaper Sparks Controversy, Raises Questions in Brooklyn City Council Race
September 8, 2009
On August 27th, an anti-gay ad published in the Borough Park Yiddish newspaper Der Blatt sparked controversy in the race for the coveted Brooklyn City Council seat in the 39th District. The ad used homophobic language to support candidate Brad Lander.
CityHallNews.com reports that the ad, which Lander has publicly denounced and maintains he did not authorize, praises him as a candidate who “strongly opposes various types of abominations and immoral laws that are major issues in the current elections.” According to the Brooklyn Downtown Star, a professional translator confirmed that the Yiddish word toyvos ‘abominations’ is commonly understood to refer to homosexuality. The Der Blatt ad went on to criticize Lander’s fellow Jewish progressive candidates saying “it would be a desecration in the name of God to support the other candidates who support laws permitting abominations…even if such candidates happen to be Jewish themselves.”
This publication set off a series of reactions from other candidates running for that Council seat as well as LGBT advocates and organizations who were understandably concerned and outraged by the anti-gay content they believed Lander had endorsed. However, Mr. Lander has issued a public statement and confirmed in a letter to the Campaign Finance Board and in several interviews that his campaign team “did not request, see, authorize, approve, or pay for this advertisement.”
Lander told YourNabe.com:
“We had nothing to do with it. It would have been a preposterous thing to do. People in Borough Park know of my support of marriage equality and no one would believe that we would have placed this ad. It could only serve to do me harm.”
Lander’s LGBT support base seems to be standing behind him, despite the allegations, though former-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee Howard Dean did tell The Power, an online organizing network, that he would pull his endorsement of Lander if he fails to condemn the language of the ad. The New York Daily News reported that New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Executive Director of the Empire State Pride Agenda Alan Van Capelle issued a joint statement Monday morning calling all attacks against Lander unfair, while denouncing the content of the ad itself.
“I know Brad Lander and am confident that he had absolutely nothing to do with the ad,” Quinn said. “I was pleased that he took immediate action to denounce it. Any attempt to use this ad against Brad is just plain wrong.”
Media and blog reports suggest that Der Blatt has a history of using defamatory language to promote certain candidates without approval. Chris Bragg of CityHallNews.com reported that in this case Rabbi Yitzchok Fleisher asked Der Blatt to publish an ad on behalf of Lander, and that the paper responded, “We’ll know what to write.” When Fleisher saw the result of his request, he was “very upset.” Bragg’s article is the only one to point out the striking similarity of the August 27th ad to one which Der Blatt published on June 20th in support of another Council candidate, John Heyer, which also contained unapproved anti-gay language.
Lander, who has been active in the Brooklyn community for many years, has shown a commitment to marriage equality while also building allies in the orthodox Jewish community – a must for any 39th District hopeful, as the area encompasses both progressive Park Slope and the largely Hasidic Borough Park. In an article published before the present controversy, The Jewish Daily Forward reported that Rabbi Ellen Lippman, a “prominent local voice for marriage equality” and leader of Lander’s progressive congregation Kolot Chayeinu/Voices of Out Lives, fully supported his candidacy.
Still, many feel that Lander has not done enough to correct the newspaper’s misuse of his name to promote homophobia.
Der Blatt is expected to print a retraction, and GLAAD will keep you informed of any further reports regarding the publication of defamatory language in relation to the Brooklyn City Council race.
Related Posts:UPDATE: 20,000 Gather in Tel Aviv to Remember Victims of Anti-LGBT Shooting
August 10, 2009
An estimated 20,000 mourners gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday to remember the victims of last week’s attack that killed two people at the Tel Aviv Gay and Lesbian Association – a community center for LGBT teens.
GLAAD’s original post on the tragedy in Tel Aviv can be found here.
Israel’s president, Shimon Peres, addressed the crowd and emphasized that Israel would not be bullied by anti-LGBT hatred:
We are a nation of ‘Thou shalt not kill’. Those shots hurt us all, as Jews and as Israelis. All people were created in God’s image and all citizens have equal rights. All men are born equal, and every citizen has the right to be who he is – to be free and proud. To freedom we were born, and in freedom we will live.
The suspect in last week’s shooting spree remains at large. Though the killer’s motivation has yet to be verified, The New York Times quoted Israel’s Minister of Internal Security, Yitzhak Aharonovitch, who speculated that the crime had “homophobic motives.”
The vigil coincided with a similar but unrelated incident during which an Israeli soldier was arrested for allegedly making death threats against the LGBT community. The Jerusalem Post reported on the incident in an article published Sunday:
On Saturday evening, a soldier was arrested in Jerusalem for posting death threats on a gay Internet forum… “He threatened to attack the gay community. He wrote things like ‘get ready for another hit. It’s coming. Don’t say you weren’t warned,’” [said] Jerusalem Police spokesman Shmulik Ben-Ruby.
Despite the recent surge in the visibility of anti-LGBT bias, Israel is remarkably accepting of its LGBT citizens. The Associated Press illustrated Israel’s acceptance for its LGBT citizens in an article published last week:
Israel’s gays and lesbians typically enjoy freedoms similar to those of gays in European countries. Gay soldiers serve openly in the military, and openly gay musicians and actors are among the country’s most popular. Tel Aviv holds a festive annual gay parade, rainbow flags are often seen flying from apartment windows and there is a city-funded open house for the community.
Speaking on the still-at-large killer, President Peres said that “Israel will not put up with such an injustice and will not rest until the murderer is brought to trial. The bullets that hit the gay community last week hurt us all.”
GLAAD will continue to monitor the media’s coverage of the tragedy in Tel Aviv.
Related Posts:LGBT Youth Center Murders Ignite Wave of Activism in Tel Aviv & On The Web
August 3, 2009
A masked gunman opened fire on the Tel Aviv Gay and Lesbian Association — an LGBT youth center — on Saturday, killing three people and wounding ten others. The suspect remains at large.
The Los Angeles Times reported on Monday that two of those killed have been identified as Nir Katz, 26, and Liz Trobishi, 16. The third victim is reported to have later died in a Tel Aviv hospital and has yet to be identified.
The New York Times quotes Israel’s Minister of Internal Security, Yitzhak Aharonovitch, as saying that the crime had “homophobic motives.”
The NY Times went on to note that “in the past, swastikas had been painted at the entrance to the center.”
Homophobia does not seem to be rampant in Tel Aviv, however. The Associated Press illustrated Israel’s acceptance for its LGBT citizens in an article published on Sunday:
Israel’s gays and lesbians typically enjoy freedoms similar to those of gays in European countries. Gay soldiers serve openly in the military, and openly gay musicians and actors are among the country’s most popular. Tel Aviv holds a festive annual gay parade, rainbow flags are often seen flying from apartment windows and there is a city-funded open house for the community
Israel’s Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized Israel’s acceptance of LGBT people, saying “We are a tolerant, democratic country governed by the rule of law, and we must respect each and every person.”
In response to the vicious attack, LGBT Israelis are reigniting a sense of activism for their community and refuse to be intimidated. The AP reported that “thousands took to the street in an impromptu march after Saturday night’s attack to mourn for the victims and call for tolerance. Other demonstrations were planned Sunday in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and other Israeli cities.”
Blogger Joe Jervis posted a video on his blog, Joe.My.God, in which an Israeli protester is heard reflecting on his renewed sense of pride:
I came here to show my support for those who live in the proud gay community and are grieving over their dead. I hope that this terrible day will also give you strength and mark a turning point. This day should give children the strength to tell their parents ‘I’m gay’. This day should give parents the strength to love their children for who they are. This day should give the strength to make a change within Israeli society, so that it will be proud of its gay community.
Tel Aviv’s mayor, Ron Huldai, affirmed that the city will not waver in its acceptance of LGBT citizens and vowed that Tel Aviv will continue to “maintain its pluralistic nature.”
Vigils are now scheduled worldwide to honor the victims of the attack. Twitter users are spreading the word about vigils in London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Manchester, and many other cities across the globe.
New York City’s City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn has called on fellow New Yorkers to join her in remembering victims on Wednesday at the synagogue of the Congregation Beth Simchat Torah.
The search for the shooter will continue and Israeli authorities have vowed to prosecute the suspect to the full extent of the law.
GLAAD will continue to monitor coverage on the anti-LGBT shooting in Tel Aviv.
Related Posts:American Apparel Not Deterred by Anti-LGBT Vandals
July 24, 2009
A Washington D.C. area American Apparel store had its window shattered by vandals on Tuesday, allegedly in a protest of the store’s ‘Legalize Gay’ t-shirt display.
American Apparel has been a longtime outspoken advocate in support of LGBT equality and began printing ‘Legalize Gay’ on its trademark, multicolored plain tees in November 2008 in response to California’s passage of Prop. 8 – a bill that repealed marriage protections for same-sex couples in that state.
Although American Apparel does not donate all proceeds from the shirt’s sales to LGBT organizations, the company notes on its website that:
Scores of our employees were on the frontlines of [Prop. 8] protests in Los Angeles, handing out hundreds of Legalize Gay t-shirts to supporters, and we have donated over $17,000 worth of these shirts to protestors, Harvey Milk High School in New York City and local gay-interest businesses. We plan on donating at least 1,000 more to organizations that support marriage equality, and are currently discussing potential projects with GLBT Historical Society in San Francisco.
The Washington Blade reported yesterday that Kassandra Powell came to work on Tuesday to find that her Silver Springs, MD store had its front display window broken. The ‘Legalize Gay’ t-shirt display still stood among the broken glass. Powell, who manages the store, later reported that nothing had been stolen.
Just one day later, a Georgetown store received a phone call from an anonymous male who threatened to break that store’s window unless store management agreed to remove the ‘Legalize Gay’ tees from its windows. The caller said that he “found the shirts offensive.”
American Apparel responded to the threat in a statement on Wednesday that let would-be vandals know the company will not be intimidated:
Not only are [vandals] not going to prevent us from speaking out on [marriage for same sex couples], an issue that is important to this company and our employees, but we’ll continue to run Legalize Gay advertisements in papers across the DC- Metro area. We’ll also send Legalize Gay t-shirts to any group in Washington DC that is fighting for gay rights and will help support any protest or rally for the cause. We don’t find this kind of thing funny and we definitely don’t find it intimidating.
GLAAD applauds American Apparel for standing its ground in a commitment to fairness and equality and will continue to monitor any developments related to this issue.
Related Posts:GLAAD Issues Statement on Perez Hilton’s Apology For Using Anti-Gay Slur
June 25, 2009
GLAAD released a statement today on Perez Hilton’s apology for using an anti-gay slur:
New York, NY, June 25, 2009 – Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton this morning wrote a blog post on PerezHilton.com where he stated that he was “sorry” and “the ‘F’ word will never be uttered from my lips again.”
“It is important and appropriate that Perez Hilton apologized to the LGBT community and his audience for his use of anti-gay slurs,” said Rashad Robinson, Senior Director of Media Programs at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).
“GLAAD will continue our work to educate the public on the harms of anti-gay slurs that feed a climate of hatred and intolerance against the LGBT community.”
You can read more background on the story here and here.
Related Posts:UPDATE: GLAAD Responds to Statement By Perez Hilton Regarding His Use of Anti-Gay Slurs
June 24, 2009
Perez Hilton released another statement last night, regarding his use of anti-gay slurs:
“Words can hurt. I know that very well, from both sides of the fence. The other night in Toronto, after feeling physically threatened by a verbally abusive Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas, I chose the most hurtful word I know to hurl at him. I was in an out-of-the ordinary situaton and used a word that I would not utter under normal circumstances. My intention – however misguided it may have been – was to stand up for myself and tell this belligerent man that I had enough of his badgering and was not going to continue to let him berate and intimidate me. I wanted to hurt him with the word I chose, not anyone else. Unfortunately, the one who got hurt was me and, subsequently, a lot of other people. I wish none of it had happened. I can’t take it back. I did what I thought was best at the moment to stand up for myself in a non-violent yet still assertive way. Clearly, I am not homophobic. Also, I am not nor have I ever claimed to be a spokesperson for the gay community. I am just speaking for myself, a gay man. One who is labeled “flamboyant” in the media. An American that is not granted equal rights under the law. I will continue to speak out for equality and I will continue to say things that upset both gay people and straight people. Who I am as a person and what I do for a living are two separate things. I’ve come to terms with all my incongruities and am proud of who I am and what I do. In closing, words can hurt. But words should not provoke someone to violence. Stripped away from the mask of Perez Hilton, I have been extremely bothered by the public reaction to my assault. Violence should never be condoned with such statements as “It’s Karma” or “I don’t believe in violence but….”. In fact, several television and radio shows over the past couple of days echoed the sentiment “He had it coming”. Would they have said the same thing if I was a woman? Would I have “deserved it” if I had been stabbed? Or shot? Or killed? I was attacked from behind without warning and repeatedly punched in the head in a cold, disgusting and unnecessarily violent manner by Polo Molina, the road manager for the Black Eyed Peas, who I did not even speak with that evening. I did not share any words with him and his assault on me was completely unprovoked. I feel like everything happens for a reason and I leave this traumatic experience as a person with more compassion. Specifically, there was an instance last year when actor Jesse Metcalfe was attacked outside of a Hollywood nightclub by a fellow entertainer. I did not condone the violence, but I did make light of that situation. I regret that. Sincerely. There are many ways to deal with disagreements, both good and bad, but violence is never the answer. Never. I now know that first-hand. It should not be condoned, promoted or accepted. No one “deserves” to be the victim of violence. No one “has it coming.” NO ONE. And victims should not be ridiculed. I look forward to marching for equality in Washington, D.C. this October. And I look forward to standing up for my rights in a Toronto courtroom shortly, as I fully intend to seek every lawful remedy against the man that attacked me.”
Today, GLAAD responded to this statement. Rashad Robinson, Senior Director of Media Programs at GLAAD:
First and foremost it is important to remember that the violence committed against Perez Hilton is absolutely unacceptable and ought to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
Perez Hilton’s acknowledgement that words can hurt is an important step in the right direction, and while his change of tone is welcome, he still seems to be justifying the use of the slurs.
A statement that stops short of apologizing for and disavowing the use of that slur doesn’t get us where we need to be – these are vulgar anti-gay slurs that feed a climate of hatred and intolerance that continues to put our community in harm’s way. When someone from our community uses a far-reaching media platform to promote these kinds of slurs, it sends a message that it’s OK to use these dehumanizing words.
Related Posts:This is an important moment. Now that Perez Hilton has acknowledged that words can hurt, GLAAD calls on him to take this opportunity to reflect on his use of demeaning and defamatory language against many different communities on PerezHilton.com – not as Perez Hilton, but as Mario Lavandeira, an openly gay man who just went through a scary and traumatic experience.
GLAAD Issues Statement on Perez Hilton’s Use of Anti-Gay Slur
June 22, 2009
Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton posted a video today in which he made the following remarks about a confrontation with will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas and members of the band’s entourage:
And that is when I made the split-second decision – that I was gonna say what I thought was the worst possible thing that thug [will.i.am] would ever want to hear. As I was standing my ground – without being violent or physical which I would never do – I told him – and you know what? I don’t need to respect you and you’re a f**. You’re gay and stop being such a f***ot.
GLAAD issued a statement today in response to Hilton’s video. From Rashad Robinson, Senior Director of Media Programs at GLAAD, via the statement:
These are vulgar anti-gay slurs that feed a climate of hatred and intolerance toward our community. For someone in our own community to use it to attack another person by saying that it is, quote, ‘The worst possible thing that thug would ever want to hear,’ is incredibly dangerous. It legitimizes use of a slur that is often linked to violence against our community. And it sends a message that it is OK to attempt to dehumanize people by exploiting anti-gay attitudes.
We have reached out to Hilton and asked him to apologize for promoting this anti-gay slur, and we would ask media outlets to avoid repetition of the slur in their coverage of this story.
Robinson goes on further to say:
While not all the facts in this case are known, the violence that appears to have been committed against Perez Hilton is unacceptable and ought to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
The full statement can be found here.
Related Posts:Anti-Gay Infomercial Resurfaces in North Carolina and California
June 22, 2009
Back in February, we blogged about partnering with LGBT community members and leaders in several local markets who were responding to an anti-gay infomercial titled Speechless: Silencing the Christians, which was produced by the American Family Association. Local expressions of concern led stations in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Columbus, Ohio to either decline to air the infomercial or postpone airing it indefinitely.
Just this week GLAAD has received three more reports of constituents spotting the anti-gay paid program on their local affiliates. One person saw it in West Hollywood, California on Independent Cable Channel, KDOC on Sunday, June 21, where it aired from 7 to 8 p.m. Another GLAAD constituent alerted us that the infomercial aired on WJZY the CW Channel 46 in Charlotte, North Carolina on Saturday, June 20 from 9 to 10 p.m. And we heard from other GLAAD constituents that the program aired on KMPH Fox 26 in Fresno, California on Sunday, June 21 (Special thank you to these twitter users for the heads up on Fresno: Gayrainarmy, k8cch14 and jace78).
We appreciate our members alerting us to this information and urge local constituents to take their cue from other local folks who saw this program in the past and spoke out about the fear-mongering rhetoric contained in the hour-long piece. GLAAD’s Senior Director of Media Programs Rashad Robinson had this to say in his Huffington Post opinion piece about this issue last February:
The infomercial was created and financed by the anti-gay American Family Association and features interviews with anti-gay activists who make a series of predictable, breathless, fear-mongering claims about LGBT people and equality.
As you would expect, the video is propaganda, pure and simple — manufactured to perpetuate a climate of hostility toward our community and to create a culture where lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are less safe, less secure, and where our families are put in harm’s way.
Robinson also went on to advise local activists how to respond if this program comes to a market near them:
And it’s critical that local community members across the country be vigilant should the AFA try to place this propaganda in their local markets, and be ready to effectively explain why the public’s airwaves should not be used to sow seeds of fear, hostility and malice in the communities they serve.
While it is sad that anti-gay activists want to continue to perpetuate fears about our community, at the end of the day, it’s all they have left. Every day, more and more Americans are getting to know and understand LGBT people and our families. For those whose opinions of our lives are becoming more favorable, the single greatest contributing factor is knowing someone who is gay or lesbian. And as more Americans see and know us as we are, our opponents’ myths, attacks and defamatory stereotypes will continue to fall on ever-growing numbers of deaf ears.
We hope that people who live in the markets served by the three stations that are reportedly now airing this anti-gay infomercial will reach out to the stations using the contact info below. Help them understand why you are deeply concerned that they could be providing a platform for an out-of-state anti-gay group to create a climate of fear and hostility in your community.
As always, please use a respectful, approachable tone and appropriate language when voicing your concerns about this program.
KDOC-TV- Santa Ana, California
Janice Mansfield, Program Director
(949) 442-9800
jmansfield@kdoc.tv
John Manzi, General Manager
(949) 442-9800
jmanzi@kdoc.com
WJZY-TV (The CW)- Charlotte, North Carolina
Joe Heaton, Programming Manager
(704) 944-3340
jheaton@wjzy.com
Will Davis
Vice President and General Manager
(704) 944-3305
KMPH FOX 26-TV – Fresno, California
Debbie Sweeney
Program Director
T. (559) 453-8850
dsweeney@kmph.com
Jack Peck
Vice President & General Manager
T. (559) 453-8850
viewercomments@kmph.com
Related Posts:J.R. Jackson
General Sales Manager
(559) 453-8850
jrjackson@kmph.com
