Bent Alaska | Alaska's LGBTQA blog

National Protest Against Prop 8 on Nov. 15

Monday, 10 November 2008 – 3:07 PM | 8 Comments

The birth of a new gay rights movement — the civil rights movement of the 21st Century — is unfolding before our eyes.

Join the Impact

If you’ve been watching our brothers and sisters protesting the passage of Prop 8 in California wishing that there was something you could do to help, there is: a group called Join The Impact is planning a nationwide protest against Prop 8, organizing simultaneous rallies on the steps of City Halls all over the country from Mobile, Alabama to Laramie, Wyoming on Saturday, November 15th at 10:30 a.m. PST/1:30 p.m. EST.

This protest is being held to rally against the passage of Prop 8, along with Arizona’s Prop 102 and Florida’s Prop 2, both of which banned gay marriage, and the Arkansas Adoption Ban, which prevents unwed couples (and therefore gay and lesbian couples) from adopting children.

Visit JoinTheImpact.com to find the protest nearest you. If you don’t see your city listed, round up a few friends to serve as organizers, and ask the group to add it to the list.

** No one is coordinating a protest in Alaska yet. Do you want to join this national event?**

Citing the Stonewall Riots of 1969, which marked the birth of the gay rights movement, Join The Impact urges us all to come together again to show the nation that we are “one loud voice that needs to be heard.”

“It’s time we come together for debate, for public recognition, and for love! Let’s move as one full unit, on the same day, at the same hour, and let’s show the United States of America that we too are DESERVING OF FULL EQUALITY UNDER THE LAW!”

Repeal Prop 8

Movements are visceral and popular, often borne of outrage and anger. What we are witnessing on the streets and online is a community of people who have come together to say: “These are our lives. This is our time. This is unacceptable.” Organized from the bottom-up by thousands of ordinary people, this people-powered phenomenon is exponentially growing by the minute, online and offline.

This is our moment to stand strong together — gay and straight — and say that we refuse to accept a California where discrimination is enshrined in our state constitution. Sign the Courage Campaign’s pledge to repeal Prop 8 and help restore marriage equality to California.

Thousands of Same-Sex Marriage Supporters Protest Prop 8

Monday, 10 November 2008 – 12:19 AM | 2 Comments

The backlash against California’s new ban on gay and lesbian marriage intensified over the weekend, with thousands of people gathering around the state during mostly peaceful protests.

More than 3000 opponents of Proposition 8 gathered Sunday at a rally at the state Capitol as speaker after speaker exhorted them to fight to restore the right to same-sex marriage.

“This fight is not over,” Elana Metz, organizer of the Sacramento rally, told the spirited crowd. “We will demand our human rights.”

“I didn’t see it coming,” said Joe West, who traveled from San Francisco. “It was like a punch in the gut. We worked so hard to bring change in this election, and then this happens.”

The weekend of protests started Friday evening when about 1,000 people gathered in San Francisco and about 2,000 people gathered in Long Beach. About 5,000 people turned out Saturday evening for a Prop. 8 protest in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles, and a candlelight vigil in Laguna Beach drew about 1,000 people.

The state’s largest event was held in San Diego on Saturday, with about 10,000 protesters.

On Sunday, hundreds gathered outside Saddleback Church in Lake Forest (Orange County), an evangelical megachurch that pushed for the ban. About 400 assembled outside Oakland’s Mormon Temple, forcing Highway Patrol officers to temporarily close two Highway 13 ramps to protect the marchers.

Several Prop 8 related incidents were reported. A supporter of the marriage ban carrying a plastic foam cross clashed with protesters at Palm Springs City Hall on Friday. A progressive Jewish synagogue in Sacramento that performs same-sex ceremonies was vandalized on Sunday when “Leviticus 18-3” was spray painted on the wall.

“I stood on the street corner with my family in protest of Proposition 8,” said Jennifer Chadwell of Santa Maria, a small town on California’s Central Coast. “We were pushed, called horrible names, got drinks poured on us, and two of our fellow protesters were threatened with knives.”

“These things were all done by people claiming to want to restore family values to California.”

At the Sacramento protest, the crowd covered the Capitol steps and spilled into the surrounding park. Dozens of rainbow gay pride banners waved, along with hundreds of the blue and white “Vote No on Prop. 8” signs left over from the campaign.

There were also hundreds of homemade signs, broadcasting the feelings of those left shocked and disappointed when Prop 8 passed by 52% of the vote. “Hatred is Not a Family Value,” one said. “Love Will Prevail,” another added. “I’m Embarrassed to be a Californian,” said a third.

Back to the Courts

Opponents of the same-sex marriage ban filed a challenge to the new constitutional amendment with the California Supreme Court, arguing that the rights guaranteed by the court in a May decision overturning a 2000 same-sex marriage ban can’t be overturned by a simple ballot measure.

Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, an opponent of Prop. 8, expressed support for the court challenge on CNN’s “Late Edition” Sunday, calling the measure’s passage “unfortunate.”

“But it is not the end because I think this will go back into the courts,” the governor said. “It’s the same as in the 1948 (California) case when blacks and whites were not allowed to marry. This falls into the same category.”

The governor’s position on the fate of the existing same-sex marriages aligns him with California Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown, who has said he believes that the state Supreme Court will uphold the existing marriages as valid.

The 14-word constitutional amendment does not state explicitly that it would nullify same-sex marriages performed before the Nov. 4 election, although proponents say it will. Legal experts differ on this point.

Supporters of Prop. 8 argue that the legal challenges are little more than desperate attempts to overturn the will of California voters.

It’s more than that, said Dennis Mangers, a former Orange County legislator who will take over next month as chief of staff to state Sen. Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento.

“It’s very clear we’re not going to take no for an answer,” said Mangers, who married his longtime partner this year. “If necessary, we’ll go back to the ballot … and give the voters of California another chance.”

The Role of the Church

In Oakland, the loud and peaceful protest outside the Mormon Temple included dozens of gay and lesbian couples whose marriages are in limbo. They were focusing their anger on the church because of its endorsement of Prop. 8 and the flood of campaign donations by LDS members.

But not all churches favored Proposition 8. In Pasadena, the 4,000-member All Saints Episcopal Church announced that while it could legally no longer marry same-sex couples, it would continue to bless gay civil unions.

“It’s very unfortunate and embarrassing that the (Christian religion) is in large part responsible for this act of bigotry,” the Rev. Ed Bacon told reporters after his Sunday sermon.

"The Laramie Project" Brings the Truth about Hate Crimes to Fairbanks

Sunday, 9 November 2008 – 8:01 PM | Comments Off

Matthew Wayne Shepard was an openly gay university student who was brutally attacked near Laramie, Wyoming in October 1998 and left to die, tied to a fence in the middle of the prairie. He died several days later.

“The Laramie Project” is a play by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project about the reactions of the people of Laramie to Shepard’s murder. The play draws on hundreds of interviews with inhabitants of the town in the months after the incident and during the trial.

Theatre UAF is presenting “The Laramie Project” along with a panel discussion “Live and Let Live: The Local Context of The Laramie Project” after the 2 pm performance of the play on Saturday November 22.

“We really wanted there to be some kind of discussion, so the many issues raised in this get further attention and so people can feel really involved,” said Carrie Baker, local director of the play. “We wanted a forum for dialogue. If nothing else, if people to talk about this and other hate crimes, it is a step in the right direction.”

Panel discussion members will include Kayt Sunwood of the UAF Women’s Center, Peter Pinney of Cooperative Extension, and Chris Coffman of the UAF English Department.

“The Laramie Project,” presented by Theatre UAF at the Salisbury Theatre, 8:15 p.m. on Nov. 14, 15, 21 & 22, and 2 p.m. on Nov. 22, 23. The discussion “Live and Let Live” follows the 2 p.m. performance on Nov. 22.

Tickets: $15 adults, $12 seniors, military and UAF employees, $7 students, available at the UAF Wood Center or the Theatre UAF box office: www.uaf.edu/theatre/season

Read the News-Miner article about the local production of “The Laramie Project.”

Read the powerful editorial by current Juneau resident and former Wyoming resident Leslie Wood about Matthew Shepard’s murder and anti-gay hate crimes, printed last month on the 10 year anniversary of Shepard’s murder: Remembering Matthew Shepard.

Discrimination in Alaska? Share Your Story

Saturday, 8 November 2008 – 4:59 PM | Comments Off

The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska wants your stories of LGBT discrimination in Alaska.

According to our recent survey, 44% of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Alaskans and their allies believe that discrimination is the most pressing social problem affecting their lives personally. Now that we know the numbers, we need your stories to make your experiences real to the people who are in a position to change the law.

In 1989, Identity Inc. published Identity Reports: Sexual Orientation Bias in Alaska, a thorough and eye-opening study that documented incidents of discrimination, violence, and harassment against LGBT people living in our state. It has been almost twenty years since anyone has collected similar testimony. While a lot has changed, we know that anti-LGBT discrimination and harassment persists. This is your opportunity to tell us how.

Share your story with us. Help us make Alaska a fair and equitable place to live.

Send your testimony to Tiffany McClain, LGBT Public Policy Coordinator, ACLU of Alaska

Protesting Prop 8

Friday, 7 November 2008 – 11:28 PM | 2 Comments

This Week in GLBT Alaska 11/7/08

Friday, 7 November 2008 – 5:02 PM | Comments Off

Check out this week’s events from Alaska GLBT News.

For full listings, news briefs and up-coming events, subscribe to AGN, the weekly email newsletter.

Juneau

SEAGLA Social Fridays 6-8 p.m.

Fairbanks

Irina Rivkin, plus Alma and Inna 11/8, 6:30 p.m. at UAF’s Schaible Auditorium

Fairbanks PFLAG Meeting 11/9, 4 p.m.

“The Laramie Project” Play and Discussion at Theater UAF, 11/14-11/23

Anchorage

Mr./Ms./Miss Gay Alaska Pageant Show 11/8, 8 p.m at Mad Myrna’s

Trans Support Group, Sundays 4-6 p.m. at the GLCCA

Hump Day Happy Hour, Wednesdays 5-7 p.m. with The Last Frontier Men’s Club

Alaska Women Write, Thursdays 6-8 p.m. at Immanual Presbyterian Church

Craft and Chat, Thursdays 7-9 p.m. at the GLCCA

Obama WON . . but Prop 8 Passed

Thursday, 6 November 2008 – 5:28 PM | Comments Off

What an election: the joy and amazement of Obama’s victory, the heart-breaking passage of Prop 8 eliminating same-sex marriage in California, and the uncertainty of the Alaska Congressional races. The country moves forward with Hope and Change, but Alaska may be stuck with Ted and Don, and Californians betrayed their own neighbors.

The fight for gay rights will continue. Lawsuits have been filed to block Prop 8, and legal groups are preparing to defend the 18,000 same-sex marriages that were performed in California. Gay and lesbian couples can be legally married in Connecticut starting Nov. 12. Other New England states elected supportive legislatures and governors. Gay and lesbian candidates and allies around the country won races for the US Congress, state legislatures, city councils, school boards, and judicial positions. President-elect Obama supports the repeal of the ‘Don’t Ask-Don’t Tell’ military policy, and the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA.) Our issues aren’t priorities like the economy and the wars, but these bills will eventually move through Congress and we believe that Obama will keep his word and sign them.

Two steps forward, one step back . . . another step forward . . .

Just Say No to Mike Kelly

Monday, 3 November 2008 – 9:48 PM | Comments Off

“Make no mistake, provision of benefits to homosexual pairs will be just the beginning. Bets are on that the next lawsuits will come from shacked-up heterosexuals and common-law marriage folks who will claim the Supremes have treated them shabbily when compared to homosexual pairs.”

– editorial by Rep. Mike Kelly on partner benefits for gay and lesbian state employees (12/29/06)

Rep. Mike Kelly co-sponsored the $1.2 million advisory vote bill to block same sex employee benefits granted by the Alaska Supreme Court. Kelly is hoping his north Fairbanks district re-elects him to the state legislature. I’m hoping they don’t.

The good folks at FieryBlazingHandbasket compiled a list of reasons why they oppose Mike Kelly:

1) Sarah Palin endorses him,

2) His campaign ads are just as offensive as he is,

3) he is part of the lawsuit to stop or delay the abuse-of-power investigation of the Palins,

4) homophobic gay basher doesn’t even come close to describing him,

5) he, along with Palin and other homophobes in the Lege, spent 1.2 million to hold that nasty, discriminatory advisory vote on whether or not the constitution should be amended to prohibit same-sex couples from receiving the same benefits as hetero couples (which thankfully failed),

6) he’s Pete Kelly’s brother,

7) During his tenure as CEO of GVEA, the Intertie was conceived and permitted – the latter occurring without a Best Interest Finding made by the State- thanks to legislation sponsored by his bro,

8) he makes little effort to hide his disdain for the “little people” (i.e. everyone else except his bizness cronies),

9) he holds everyone else to a different energy standard than himself (we should all turn off our lights and conserve fuel, while he flies all over in his private plane),

10) he has a low opinion of Natives (although I am sure he would righteously deny it), and indeed of anyone who is not white, Christian, conservative, and hetero,

11) he writes vituperative, mean opinion pieces as a state legislator,

12) he’s buds with the sewer mafia and Seekins – need we say more?

Mormons Fund Anti-Gay Amendment (Again)

Monday, 3 November 2008 – 1:12 PM | Comments Off

The Mormon Church is a major player in organizing and funding Prop 8, a proposition to eliminate same-sex marriage in California. As of October 28, Mormons accounted for 46 percent of the total support for Prop 8, according to MormonsFor8.com.

Much of the Mormon money has been funneled into ad campaigns that are narrowing the gap between Prop 8’s passage and failure. Two months ago, it looked almost certain that Californians would reject the measure, feeling it stripped citizens of an important civil right.

But a series of commercials now in heavy rotation claim that if Prop 8 is defeated, the pleasures of same-sex marriage will be taught in public schools, although education experts reject this claim. And the checks continue to flow in from the church.

The Mormon Church also funded Alaska’s constitutional amendment against same-sex marriage in 1998.

But divisions have emerged in the Mormon community about the church’s role in the fight over Prop 8. Laura Compton, a married mother of two boys, started MormonsForMarriage.com to give Mormons who support same-sex marriage a way to know that “You are not alone. We especially want people who may be feeling estranged from the fellowship of their local congregations to know that they are not alone.”

Mormons disagree with the Church’s involvement in Prop 8 for different reasons — some believe in marriage equality, some think the money on the campaign should have been spent on social welfare projects, and others believe in the separation of church and state.

Meanwhile, the NO on 8 campaign created a video on Mormons taking away civil rights that are granted by the California Supreme Court:

Gay Alaskans on Sarah Palin: The Final Analysis

Sunday, 2 November 2008 – 11:35 PM | Comments Off

Gay and lesbian Alaskans overwhelmingly support Obama and Biden over McCain and Palin, according to last week’s poll on Bent Alaska. Why aren’t we voting for local girl Sarah Palin? What have we learned about her record on LGBT issues?

She supported the 1998 state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
She opposed the 2005 Alaska Supreme Court decision granting employee benefits to same-sex partners.
In her 2006 run for governor, she stated that she does not support expanding hate crimes laws, that only married (heterosexual) couples deserve spousal benefits, and that one of her top three priorities is to preserve traditional marriage.
During her first month as governor, she signed a bill asking the court to delay the implementation of same-sex partner benefits.
She vetoed a bill that banned partner benefits in defiance of the Court ruling, because she knew the bill was unconstitutional. Her signing statement said that she opposed the court decision, although she was obligated to veto the bill.
She signed a bill approving a statewide advisory vote on same-sex partner benefits, saying it would lay the groundwork for a state constitutional ban on the benefits.
She attends a church that promotes ex-gay events, preaching that same-sex attractions must be suppressed or eliminated.
Her church also worked to remove certain books from the public library and local bookstores, including a gay-positive book. As mayor, Palin questioned the librarian repeatedly about the book removal policy, then fired her.
She supports a federal ban against gay marriage.

A few gay Alaskans support Palin as Vice President. I’ve heard two reasons for this:

1. “I’ve met her and she seems like a nice person,” and 2. “She’s Alaskan.”

But the vast majority of LGBT Alaskans are not voting for Palin, and most did not support her run for governor.

The following quotes are a sample of the comments by LGBT Alaskans that have crossed my screen since Gov. Palin’s nomination for Vice President:

“I cannot believe McCain played such a wild card. And I do not believe for a moment Palin is ready for this job. What a weird moment for our national history – not to mention Alaska history.”

“She simply vetoed the bill banning health benefits to gays because it would violate her oath of office . . . So she supports banning same-sex benefits, but won’t violate the state constitution to do it. Wow. We don’t need ‘friends’ like that!”

“I don’t think she’s ever said a friendly word about gay people, that they ought to have health benefits like other people do, or anything along those lines.”

“I advocate strongly against any ticket which names Sarah Palin as a candidate. Of utmost importance to me . . . is Palin”s opposition to abortion and family planning rights. Palin opposes the use of birth control, as well sexual health education classes for teens.”

“Palin does not choose to address long standing issues of discrimination, neglect, and alienation for the Native Alaskan population. How can we expect her to understand race, ethnicity, and minority issues on a national level? Her lack of cultural competency frightens me.”

“The fact that she claims to have gay friends is great… She can be polite while removing our civil rights.”

“Oh, hurray, she’s Alaskan, she’s cute, she’s energetic, she stood up to the big boys on oil, she gave us each $1200, she didn’t kick our asses as much as she could have in the advisory vote [against partner benefits.] She’ll still vote against us every time she has the chance, and being in national office gives her a lot more power to make us miserable.”

“She is toooooo inexperienced and McCain is just tooooo old.”