News Items

1. According to the BBC, Antonio Ruiz is the first gay man to receive a letter of apology from the Spanish government for being imprisoned in 1976 for being gay.  Mr. Ruiz received both a letter and nearly $6,000 in reparations for three months that he was incarcerated under a law enacted during the Franco Regime.  Although Franco died in 1975, the law was still in effect after his death.   Ruiz's letter and compensation were made possible through Spain's Historical Memory Law of 2007, which recognizes victims of the Spanish Civil War and the Franco Regime.

2. Many LGBT groups are expressing outrage at the Grammy nomination of an singer who has called for the murder of gay men.  The singer, Buju Banton, sings in “Boom, Bye Bye” that “faggots get up and run” when he comes, that “they have to die,” and that he will shoot them in the head or “burn them up bad.”  He not only has refused to stop singing the song, but has insisted, “There is no end to the war between me and faggots." In a statement, the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center said, “It’s an affront to LGBT people, and to all fair-minded people around the world, that Buju Banton was nominated."


3. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has spoken out against the nomination of the first out lesbian to be assistant bishop of Los Angeles.  Asking that the bishops of the Communion continue to acknowledge  a "gracious restraint" in order to hold the church together, Williams reminded all that Rev. Mary Glasspool's position as assistant bishop was not final, and that there was still time to stop her appointment.  His quick response to Glasspool's selection was especially difficult for many since he has yet to condemn the Ugandan "Anti Homosexual Bill of 2009," graciously or otherwise.

4.  It looks like we may be seeing a vote on equal marriage rights in New Jersey this week after all.  Since Gov. John Corzine has promised to sign the bill into law before he leaves office in January and because his successor has vowed to veto it, the next few days are the only opportunity to pass an equal marriage bill.  It remains quite uncertain, however, if the bill will pass the legislature.

"Why is it that, as a culture, we are more comfortable seeing two men holding guns than holding hands?" 

-novelist Ernest Gaines

London Gay Men's Chorus

Here's a tape of the London Gay Men's Chorus version of "Hark the Herald Angels Sing." (When I Come Out on Christmas Day.)  Not always perfect sound, but still worth it.

 

Voting for Senator in Massachusetts

Tomorrow, Massachusetts will nominate a Democrat and a Republican to run for the senate seat held for over four decades by Ted Kennedy.  While no one in the bunch can match the political skills he honed during that time, the Democratic field of four  is strong.  I can easily and enthusiastically support any one of them in the final election.  It's a comforting feeling, as is the fact that all four are great on LGBT issues, from ending don't ask, don't tell to supporting same-sex marriage rights.

Remember: same sex marriage has been in Massachusetts a little over five years.  Today it would be hard to imagine anyone winning a state wide office on a platform of opposing marriage equality.  In the 2010 governor's race, for example, Charlie Baker, the Republican, has already addressed the issue head on when declaring his candidacy, vowing his full support, then selected an out gay man as his running mate.  And, as I have noted before, Deval Patrick has been an indispensable leader in the fight for marriage equality.

What this means for me when I vote tomorrow is that I've gotten to know the candidates a little better than I might have.  The candidate debates avoided an issue that, when discussed in the political forum these days, rarely offers new insight.  We know the sound bites on both sides; there's not much more to say so candidates simply say it  louder, angrier.  There's been none of that in the Democratic primary because of the unanimity of opinion.  So now we can dig deeper, try to understand the backgrounds and impulses of the candidates, get a better handle on their knowledge of other, more complex issue.  The litmus test is gone; I don't even have the option of voting for a Democratic candidate against equal marriage rights in Massachusetts.  I can make my decision on their stances on the death penalty, civil liberties health care.  I can weigh experience  more than I might have.  In short, I have choices.

Not too long ago, it was considered risky, even courageous, to support civil unions in a statewide election.  When Robert Reich ran for the Democratic nomination for governor in 2002, he made headlines by supporting equal marriage.  Now, it seems, you'd make headlines if you didn't.

In the Republican primary in Tuesday, one of the two candidates  is in complete support of same sex marriage.  The other, Scott Brown, is a state senator who was a leader in opposition to equal marriage rights. Because Brown is better known and has the party behind him, he'll probably get the nomination.  But it will be a tough road for him.  Massachusetts voters like their Republicans with a moderate to liberal bent when it comes to social issues.  Mitt Romney ran on such a platform, then shifted to the right when he decided to run for president.  Scott Brown must know this.  The marriage issue is listed last on his website, and his position is far more tempered than it was, one that would be hard to use to justify an amendment to the federal constitution: I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. States should be free to make their own laws in this area, so long as they reflect the people's will as expressed through them directly, or as expressed through their elected representatives.  This is a significant shift from his insistence on a referendum in Massachusetts.

So at least here in Massachusetts, I don't have to eliminate anyone in the Democratic party because of their stand on marriage.  It's a refreshing feeling, and one I hope more and more voters will be able to experience.

No one will find the way out of hate and violence unless we do. Go without hate, but not without rage. Heal the world.

– Paul Monette

Anyone else find this more than a little disturbing?

This is a speech from Rick Warren, who opened the presidential inaugural with a prayer.  He has also refused to speak out decisively against the Anti-Homosexuality Law now being debated in Uganda.

Church news...

For the record, I am not an Episcopalian.  I think it's important, however, to recognize when a major church takes steps to be inclusive of LGBT people, especially when so many churches seem to do otherwise.  Too often, I believe that LGBT youth are given the message that there is no spiritual home for them.  This can be devastating, especially given the profound difficulties LGBT youth can face. So I list these events not at someone who hopes bring people "into the fold," but to acknowledge that not all churches are part of the anti-LGBT movement.

So here are four significant events in the Anglican Church this past week might give us hope.  I've mentioned two of them in past posts.

1. On Saturday, December 5,  the Episcopal Church (the Anglican Church in the United States) elected its first openly lesbian bishop.  Gene Robinson of New Hampshire was the first openly gay bishop.  Rev. Mary Glasspool was elected assistant bishop of the Diocese of Los Angeles.  Following Rev. Robinson's election to bishop, the Anglican Church became fractured.  No doubt Rev. Glasspool's election will deepen that division.


2. We shouldn't simplify or assume that all are in agreement in the Anglican Church.  There are profound differences, especially between the Episcopal Church (The US Anglican Church) and the Anglican Church in other parts of the world regarding LGBT people.   One vocal opponent of the Anti Homosexuality Law proposed in Uganda (which would put LGBT to death) has been an Anglican Bishop in that country,  Canon Gideon Byamugisha.  He has stated that if Uganda moves forward and passes the Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009, it will amount of a "gay genocide" in the country.  It's safe to assume that the more conservative Anglican Church in Africa would not be supportive of either Rev. Robinson or Rev. Glasspool, but Byamugisha's decisive opposition to the pending law in Uganda should not be understated.  Progress is relative.

3. This week Bishop Thomas Shaw of Massachusetts instructed clergy that they may  "solemnize marriages for all eligible couples, beginning Advent I.  Solemnization, in accordance with Massachusetts law, includes hearing the declaration of consent, pronouncing the marriage and signing the marriage certificate." All eligible couples, according to Bishop Shaw, includes same-sex couples.


4. Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has issued a statement expressing concern about the pending Ugandan legislation to present the death penalty for LGBT people.  I can hope that other major religions will release similar documents.

Bottom line? We need more condamnation, both publicly and in one-on-one diplomacy, to bring the world's attention to this possible "gay genocide."  And we need to remember that not ALL churches are complacent at best, and supportive if this sort of policy at worst.