Join the Support Kevin Jennings Facebook group

Just a simple message this morning.

If you support Kevin Jennings and want to help stop the attack against him, join the Support Kevin Jennings facebook group.

The reason for this page is simple: There is a serious problem regarding school bullying. This problem adversely affects the mental and physical well-being of all children, specifically lgbt children.

Jennings is more than qualified to handle this problem. However there are people who will do what they can to take him down. Be it for ratings or personal homophobia, Jennings has a huge target on his back.

And that's not right. Someone who is trying to help our children should be supported and commended, not made the victim of those who would bear false witness or sling nasty innuendo in the name of God.

If the lgbt community and our allies don't stand up for Jennings, then we are turning our back on one of our own.

Frankly, I'm not down with that.

Fox News corrects inaccurate Jennings article. Politico does the same

The Plum Line is reporting that Fox News has issued an online correction of the Kevin Jennings article, making sure to include information to include the defense of the young man (Brewster) whom Jennings supposedly gave advice to in 1988. The statement is important because many have accused Jennings of "condoning statutory rape:"

When Jennings was a young teacher a teenager confided in him about having sex with a stranger and Jennings didn’t report it to authorities. Jennings has said he regrets his actions.

The “statutory rape” charge is based on the assertion that the kid was 15 years old at the time, a claim originally floated, wrongly, by Jennings himself, and continuously amplified by Fox News and the right even after it had been corrected.

On Friday Media Matters produced what it said was the kid’s drivers license, showing that the kid was 16, legal age of consent in Massachuttes, and also produced a Facebook exchange that seemed to show that a Fox News reporter had been informed directly by the kid himself that they’d misrepresented his age.

Fox News has now issued an online correction.

Plum Line now asks a very appropriate question: since Sean Hannity heavily pushed the claim of statutory rape, will he make a correction.

In that same vein, I asked the exact question about the site Politico. In a recent article, Glenn Thrush said that U.S. Rep. Steven King (R-Iowa) was demanding Jennings' dismissal.

Thrush, unfortunately, pushed the inaccurate claim that Brewster was 15-years-old.

I emailed Thrush informing him of his error and he has updated his article making the change.

Editor's note - Those who want to aid Jennings can join the Support Kevin Jennings facebook group. It refutes all of the lies lodged against him.

Chicago lost Olympics because of the HOMOSEXUALS and other Monday midday news briefs

Hartline: the Olympics bypassed Chicago because of the homosexualist anti-Christ spirit - Well that explains everything.

Raped trans woman 'harassed in public and on the internet' - This should not happen. period.

Obama to Speak at HRC Dinner on Eve of National Equality March - Email announcing lgbt protest about this event (and making sure to talk crap about HRC) in T-Minus 10 . . 9 . . 8 . .

Smart answers to lies about Kevin Jennings - a list of talking points

Throughout the Kevin Jennings controversy, it amazes me that many people (lgbts included) are still not informed of the truth.

I apologize for those who feel that I may have spent too much time on this issue but it's important to me because it has a lot to do with the safety of our lgbt children and us supporting our leaders.

Through the following short list of talking points, I hope to touch on the main distortions regarding Kevin Jennings.

The small stuff (he is anti-Christian, he said something ugly about God) will be ignored.

Distortion - Kevin Jennings is a czar

Truth - Kevin Jennings was appointed by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan as an Assistant Deputy Secretary to lead the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools. This office was created in 2002 during the George W. Bush administration and Jennings is the third to hold the office.

Distortion - Jennings has no experience in his position

Truth - Via Thinkprogress.org : Jennings, in fact, will be the first head of OSDFS in years to have a background as an educator. His predecessor, Deborah Price, received her BS degree in home economics, worked on the National Prayer Breakfast, on the Senate Republican Policy Committee, and then doing student aid in the Department of Education. Her predecessor, Eric Andell, was a judge from Texas and was eventually fired. He “pleaded guilty in federal court to one misdemeanor count of conflict of interest that included using federal money to pay for personal expenses.” Jennings has received many mainstream education awards, including the Distinguished Service Award of NASSP. ThinkProgress spoke to NASSP Executive Director Gerald Tirozzi, who wrote a recommendation letter on Jennings’ behalf. He said that he has “always been impressed with Kevin and his forthrightness. He’s a very courageous young man.” Tirozzi stressed that Jennings’ work on school bullying made him an ideal fit for this particular position.

Distortion - Kevin Jennings advises children on sexual activities, such as "fisting," as proven by the "Fistgate" incident

Truth - Jennings wasn't present when the so-called "Fistgate" incident took place.

In 2000, Jennings' organization, GLSEN, co-sponsored a state conference, "Teach-Out," that was sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Education and the Governor’s Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth. This conference was held at Tufts University.

Included among the conference-goers were preadolescents, who were (like the rest of Teach-Out's attendees) allowed to ask questions about sex in a safe environment.

One student asked what fisting was, and was answered with an explanation.

A rightwing group, Mass Resistance was entered unauthroized into the conference and a person working for Mass Resistance organization, Scott Whiteman, taped some of the students without their knowledge.

As a result of the outcry that was generated when parents heard tapes of the event, Margot Abels, a state employee who participated in the discussion, and two other state employees were fired.

Abels later sued the Massachusetts Department of Education, Mass Resistance leader Brian Camenker, and Whiteman for "violating her civil rights and the state's antiwiretapping law."

In 2001, she was not only reinstated but was also given back pay via arbitration. The arbitrator, Marc Greenbaum ruled that:

Abels was not acting on behalf of the Department of Education, but said the department had knowledge of and "supported" her participation in the presentation.

Greenbaum also said:

that her participation was "authorized by her superiors, and her conduct, while controversial, did not violate then-established department guidelines."

Lastly:

He also said that the tape was "misleading" because portions of it, which contained "important messages about AIDS prevention, abstinence, postponement, alternative forms of sexual intimacy and the need for students to enforce their own boundaries of personal security," were missing.

Distortion - In 1988, Jennings advised an underaged child to continue a sexual relationship with an older man and did not report the incident to authorities

Truth - In an interview with Media Matters, the young man in the center of the controversy said the charges against Jennings isn't true:

Since I was of legal consent at the time, the fifteen-minute conversation I had with Mr. Jennings twenty-one years ago is of nobody's concern but his and mine. However, since the Republican noise machine is so concerned about my "well-being" and that of America's students, they'll be relieved to know that I was not "inducted" into homosexuality, assaulted, raped, or sold into sexual slavery.

In 1988, I had taken a bus home for the weekend, and on the return trip met someone who was also gay. The next day, I had a conversation with Mr. Jennings about it. I had no sexual contact with anybody at the time, though I was entirely legally free to do so. I was a sixteen year-old going through something most of us have experienced: adolescence. I find it regrettable that the people who have the compassion and integrity to protect our nation's students are themselves in need of protection from homophobic smear attacks. Were it not for Mr. Jennings' courage and concern for my well-being at that time in my life, I doubt I'd be the proud gay man that I am today.

Distortion - Jennings expressed admiration for Harry Hay. Hay was one of the nation's first homosexual activists who launched the Mattachine Society in 1948, founded the Radical Faeries and was a longtime advocate for the North American Man-Boy Love Association, NAMBLA.

This means Jennings, by way of connection, has a liking for pedophilia

Truth - In the 1987 speech, Jennings didn't say a word about NAMBLA. He praised Hay for his early work for lgbt rights, not his later support of NAMBLA. Jennings made mention of Hay's pioneering work for lgbt rights, something that many obituaries did when Hay died.

We know that the right opposes Jennings because he is an openly gay man, as expressed so "eloquently" by Peter LaBarbera via our recent email exchange:

". . . Kevin Jennings is a lying, reckless, anti-Christian bigot . . ."

The question is what have we done to ensure that Jennings has the support of the community.

In layman's terms, we need to let everyone know that "we've got Jennings' back."

It's going to take more than wringing our hands after the fact.

You can go here to give some support to Jennings.

Matt Barber crosses another anti-gay plateau

Anti-gay Liberty Counsel figure Matt Barber has just crossed another plateau. He wrote a book.

No doubt it will repeat his distorted tale of being fired from AllState because he wrote an anti-gay column (which utilized the discredited work of Paul Cameron) "on his own time."

The tale is a distortion because Barber used company equipment to write the columnn and he also identified himself as an employee of AllState; two facts that always seem to be excluded from the religious right telling of the story.

This book leaves me conflicted for two reasons:

1. I don't want to wish any ill will on anyone, especially someone who is working hard on a book. Having had to self-publish one myself, I know how difficult it is to do such. Barber didn't have to work as hard as I did because he worked his connections. And I admire that just a little. Barber parlayed his AllState factoid into a cushy position at Concerned Women for America, the Liberty Counsel, and now a book with mentions by Newt Gingrich and Mike Huckabee.

You have to admire his chutzpah; that is if you ignore his basic disregard for truth.

2. Far be it from me to make comments on someone's personal appearance, but I have to say it. Barber looks like a Las Vegas lounge singer.

Oh come on. Can't you just picture him in a sleazy dive somewhere off of the Vegas strip singing some off-key version of a Frank Sinatra song with a phony Italian accent in front of a bevy of half naked female dancers where he will be followed by an awful comedian whose top pops off in the middle of her routine?

This is the guy who is fighting a culture war for the preservation of so-called American values? A guy who looks like a rejected character from Showgirls?

Seriously though, I'm sure the book will get lots of attention. And this isn't a good thing because Barber doesn't bring anything new to the table. He is yet another phony religious right expert who will exploit the Christian beliefs for his own purposes via peddling the same old lies.

Case in point, a recent One News Now article which inaccurately claims that he debunked a recent study which proved that children in lgbt households suffer no adverse effects:

Matt Barber of Liberty Counsel tells OneNewsNow that the conclusions are totally false. He points to another massive study conducted by homosexual researchers at the University of California.

"The preponderance of studies shows that girls raised by lesbian so-called 'parents' are more sexually adventurous or less chaste. They're more likely to experiment and try lesbianism to self-identify as lesbians," Barber notes. "[And] boys raised by homosexual men have a fluid concept of gender roles and are more likely to engage in the homosexual lifestyle."

How in the world does Barber conclude that the pro-lgbt parenting study is false? Not only does he not give proof of this but he also doesn't give the name of the study which he says refutes it.

I emailed Barber asking which study he was referring to and of course I didn't receive an answer.

But after a little research, I discovered which study he was referring to; a 2001 study conducted by researchers Judith Stacey and Timothy Biblarz.

And I think the reason why Barber didn't give any information regarding the study is because the way he distorted it has been debunked on numerous occasions by Stacey herself, as this link will show.

And as far as his other claims regarding "domestic violence" and a "short lifespan," those are lies peddled by the religious right for the past 30 years and have been easily refuted by so many others, me included.

But why in the heck should Barber care about truth? He has a book deal and more prominence.

That's all that matters, right?

Related posts:

How religious right groups distort legitimate research to demonize the gay community

Dissecting a One News Now article

New attack against Kevin Jennings - the 'NAMBLA' connection

Apparently some on the right are blowing off the embarrassment of their recent unsuccessful attack against Education Dep. appointee Kevin Jennings because they are starting a new one. The following nonsense (which is better described by the World Net Daily piece) is currently running on several blogs and sites.

Hannity will probably grab it next week:

A transcript from a 1997 speech shows Office of Safe Schools chief Kevin Jennings in the U.S. Department of Education expressed his admiration for Harry Hay, one of the nation's first homosexual activists who launched the Mattachine Society in 1948, founded the Radical Faeries and was a longtime advocate for the North American Man-Boy Love Association, NAMBLA.

"One of the people that's always inspired me is Harry Hay," the transcript shows Jennings saying, "who started the first ongoing gay rights groups in America. In 1948, he tried to get people to join the Mattachine Society. It took him two years to find one other person who would join.

"Well, [in] 1993," Jennings continued, "Harry Hay marched with a million people in Washington, who thought he had a good idea 40 years before."

However, according to Media Matters, the speech had nothing to do with NAMBLA:

Media Matters contends that Jennings was referring to Hay's pioneering work with lgbt rights; something that several obituaries also did when Hay passed on.

What's happening here is innuendo by association. I also admire Harry Hay's work for lgbt rights but I certainly don't like his support of NAMBLA.

So am I a pedophile now?

Many Americans list George Washington as one of the greatest Presidents this country ever had.

But Washington did nothing to stop the slave trade nor did he do anything to get women the vote.

So do the Americans who admire Washington for how he led this country at its founding support slavery and keeping women away from the ballot box?

This entire thing is ridiculous and the root of it is homophobia, pure and simple.

I wish the right would have the guts to admit it.

Know your lgbt history - California Suite

What a week, what a week!

After all of the petty ugliness of the Kevin Jennings controversy, I thought that I would devote this edition of Know Your LGBT History to some light comedy.

California Suite (1978) was a comedy written by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Neil Simon.

It featured four episodes regarding the misadventures of couples who check into a ritzy hotel for the weekend.

Between you and me, the movie misses a lot, especially an opportunity to make the most of a once-in-a-lifetime team up of legendary comedians Bill Cosby and the late Richard Pryor.

The only place the movie does hit its mark is when it comes to the couple from England.

One of my favorite actresses of all time, Maggie Smith, portrays a distinguished English actress who has just gotten her first Oscar nomination for a silly comedy. She and her husband (Michael Caine) are in town for the ceremony.

As they prepare for the Oscars and the eventual letdown of her loss (her character does not win), they hilariously tear each other apart as they examine their relationship.

It seems that Smith's husband is gay, a fact that she is aware of and does not seem to mind. That is until after she loses and in the middle of her sadness needs some "physical comfort."

Smith and Caine are at the top of their game here. Whenever I rented California Suite, I always fast forwarded through the other couples to get to these two.

Interesting bit of trivia - Smith would win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for this role, making it the first time someone has ever won an Oscar for portraying an Oscar loser.

Enjoy:







Past Know Your LGBT History postings:

Know your lgbt history - Taxi (Elaine's Strange Triangle)

Know your lgbt history - Come Back Charleston Blue

Know your lgbt history - James Bond goes gay

Know your lgbt history - Windows

Know your lgbt history - To Wong Foo and Priscilla

Know your lgbt history - Blazing Saddles

Know your lgbt history - Sanford and Son

Know your lgbt history - In Living Color

Know your lgbt history - Cleopatra Jones and her lesbian drug lords

Know your lgbt history - Norman, Is That You?

Know your lgbt history - The 'Exotic' Adrian Street

Know your lgbt history - The Choirboys

Know your lgbt history - Eddie Murphy

Know your lgbt history - The Killing of Sister George

Know your lgbt history - Hanna-Barbera cartoons pushes the 'gay agenda

'Know your lgbt history - Cruising

Know your lgbt history - Foxy Brown and Cleopatra Jones

Know your lgbt history - I Got Da Hook Up

Know your lgbt history - Fright Night

Know your lgbt history - Flowers of Evil

The Jeffersons and the transgender community

LaBarbera actively pushing lie against Kevin Jennings

To answer the question of my post this morning, I don't think some members of the religious right are ready to apologize to Kevin Jennings as of yet.

Our "friend," Peter LaBarbera is re-publishing a post on his webpage by the Illinois Family Institute slamming Jennings.

The post was from September 30 and it includes the inaccuracy that the young man Jennings counseled was 15.

LaBarbera is presently running the piece unchanged even though it has been confirmed that the young man was 16 and thus of legal age in Massachusetts.

This means that LaBarbera is actively pushing a blatant lie.

Other news briefs:

Real Mainers step up for 'No on 1' ads - The anti-gay marriage folks in Maine are using stock photos while our side are using real people.

Morehouse College fires an employee responsible for sending biased email from work addy - I don't like to see people fired but the employee was in the wrong. Period.

Anti-gay-marriage fundraising to be investigated - Two words - HOT DAMN!

Religious right owes Kevin Jennings an apology

You are so pathetic Alvin. Hanging on a technicality. You are as corrupt as the perverted movement you serve. Spare me the preaching.

Peter LaBarbera

After all of the time and energy he devoted to demonizing Obama appointee Kevin Jennings, Peter LaBarbera doesn't even have the decency to apologize for his inaccurate assumption that Jennings counseled an underage child to have sex with an adult.

I won't even publish what else he said about Jennings because I know some folks would really get angry. Needless to say, however, the unposted material proves the safety of children was the last thing on LaBarbera's mind when he attacked Jennings.

Meanwhile, he has focused attention on another member of GLSEN in a pathetic attempt to salvage some degree of credibility.

And LaBarbera is not alone in his duplicity.

Via Goodasyou comes the news that the Family Research Council issued a statement unbelievable in its audacity and willingness to distort the situation.

For people like Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Michelle Malkin, and the rest of Fox News, this is just old hat; attacks on Jennings was politics as usual. Politics has been called the eternal sea where controversies rise and ebb on a daily basis and they were just merely "going with the flow."

However for people like LaBarbera, Tony Perkins, and the organizations they represent whose entire credibility lies with the fact that they are fighting for Godly principles, this moment has to be an embarrassment.

And in a perfect world, those who would defend people like Perkins and LaBarbera would question whether or not they deserve these defenses.

I'm not talking about the rabid supporters; the ones who think that lgbts lurk about in every corner looking to corrupt.

I'm talking about the supporters who are really comfortable of the methodology of the religious right but agree with the notion of so-called traditional values and morality.

Since when is it moral or traditional to drag a man's reputation through the mud, to look through past writings and speeches to find something that can be manipulated and sleazed up in order to brand someone?

And since when is it moral or traditional to not own up when you have been proven wrong?

Phony traditional values groups and figures have been lying about lgbts for so long that I doubt this will be the incident which finally shows them for the morally empty entities that they are.

But it's nice to dream.

UDPATE - Media Matters gives the final word on the matter:

EXCLUSIVE: Media Matters confirms student at center of Fox fueled Jennings controversy was of legal age.

In addition, Media Matters interviewed the young man who Jennings counseled, Brewster. Brewster, who is now in his mid-30s, said the following:

Since I was of legal consent at the time, the fifteen-minute conversation I had with Mr. Jennings twenty-one years ago is of nobody's concern but his and mine. However, since the Republican noise machine is so concerned about my "well-being" and that of America's students, they'll be relieved to know that I was not "inducted" into homosexuality, assaulted, raped, or sold into sexual slavery.

In 1988, I had taken a bus home for the weekend, and on the return trip met someone who was also gay. The next day, I had a conversation with Mr. Jennings about it. I had no sexual contact with anybody at the time, though I was entirely legally free to do so. I was a sixteen year-old going through something most of us have experienced: adolescence. I find it regrettable that the people who have the compassion and integrity to protect our nation's students are themselves in need of protection from homophobic smear attacks. Were it not for Mr. Jennings' courage and concern for my well-being at that time in my life, I doubt I'd be the proud gay man that I am today.

- Brewster

UPDATE 2 - Peter LaBarbera is re-publishing a post on his webpage by the Illinois Family Institute slamming Jennings.

The post was from September 30 and it includes the inaccuracy that the young man Jennings counseled was 15.

LaBarbera is presently running the piece unchanged even though it has been confirmed that the young man was 16 and thus of legal age in Massachusetts; a fact that he is aware of based upon his email to me.

The lgbt community needs to remember and remind people of how the right tried to destroy Kevin Jennings every chance we get.

Related post:

New facts vindicate Kevin Jennings - the young man he counseled was of legal age

New facts vindicate Kevin Jennings - the young man he counseled was of legal age

I was planning to post a piece comparing the pseudo controversy of children singing a song praising President Obama to past phony moral panics put on by the religious right.

But something caught my eye today via Americablog.

CNN covered the Kevin Jennings controversy and revealed a few facts that even I wasn't aware of.

And they aren't negative facts:



And if that's not enough, according to Media Matters:

. . . Jennings' attorney wrote in a 2004 letter that the student was 16 years old, which Jennings' book appears to support, and that 16 is -- and was at the time -- the legal age of consent in Massachusetts.

The funny thing about this is that a friend of mine, Matt Algren, has said from the beginning that the young man was the legal age of consent.

Take a bow, Matt. You nailed it!

I went to the mat for Jennings because I believed in what he was doing and I know how the religious right distorts situations.

Please don't think I'm gloating when I say this because I am not, but:

It feels good to be vindicated.

UPDATE - Peter LaBarbera gives statement about the latest developments in Jennings controversy

I wondered what folks like Peter LaBarbera felt about this new information.

LaBarbera published a lot of negative pieces on Jennings such as:

Was Troubled Teen Seduced by Adult Homosexual and Counseled by GLSEN Founder Kevin Jennings Really ‘Gay’?

Washington Times: Obama ‘Safe Schools’ Czar Kevin Jennings Enabled Sexual Predator of Teen Boy

I emailed LaBarbera saying that I felt he owes Jennings an apology. This is his reply:

You are so pathetic Alvin. Hanging on a technicality. You are as corrupt as the perverted movement you serve. Spare me the preaching.

So much for the Christian principle of apologizing when you are wrong.

Related posts:

Let's not be so quick to blame Obama if Kevin Jennings is dismissed

Washington Times publishes ugly hit piece on Kevin Jennings

The new attack on Kevin Jennings - he said something ugly about God

The continuing attacks on Kevin Jennings - now Fox News gets involved

The possible attack on the President's lgbt appointees

The tea party idiots - will they go after the lgbt community next?

Traditional Values Coalition attacks Kevin Jennings and . . . Tom Cruise?

Support Sean's Last Wish and Kevin Jennings

The religious right thinks that character assasination is a Christian virtue

The war against Kevin Jennings - now it's getting pathetic

Attacks on Kevin Jennings sleazy, un-Christian

More right wing lunacy on Kevin Jennings courtesy of Kevin McCullough

More attacks on GLSEN'S Kevin Jennings - Now the Family Research Council gets in the act'''

'Fistgate' and President Obama - religious right pushes a pitiful attempt of guilt by association

Homophobic mess at Morehouse, Jennings answers critics, and other Thursday midday news briefs

Homophobic email about same-sex wedding spurs controversy at Morehouse College - Here we go again. Maybe if some folks didn't see black men as a "commodity," this sort of thing wouldn't happen.

A closer look at Donald Mendell, Stand For Marriage Maine's latest talking point - Another Maine anti-gay marriage point exposed as a distortion courtesy of Goodasyou.org

Obama official regrets advice to gay student - Hopefully the final word on the Jennings situation. I love the way Jennings pointed out certain facts about the controversy.

Catania unveils marriage bill - I love it! Harry Jackson will have a fit!

UN: 4 million on AIDS drugs, others still in need - We definitely need to do more.

Family Research Council head misrepresents credible information to hurt ENDA

Recently, Family Research Council head Tony Perkins submitted testimony to Congress in opposition of Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

The bulk of his testimony were anecdotes of supposedly how ENDA would hurt free speech.

As Goodasyou.org pointed out, at least one of his anecdotes was a distortion of the facts. Perkins claimed that the person in the case was able to sue because he was merely perceived as gay.

Perkins was making the point that the lawsuit in that case was frivilous.

But Jeremy Hooper from Goodasyou.org showed that the person in the case was not only perceived as gay, but also harrassed and fired because of that perception.

And I think I found another sly distortion from Perkins regarding ENDA. The part I want to address is in bold:

The principle at stake is whether personal disapproval of these chosen and harmful behaviors (homosexual conduct and sex changes) should be officially stigmatized under law as a form of bigotry that is equivalent to racism. Since such disapproval is the dominant viewpoint in the American public,explicitly taught by leading religions,and empirically supported by the negative health consequences of those behaviors

Perkins is pushing the "homosexuality has negative consequences" factoid that has served the religious right well for so many years.

The endnotes of his testimony says:

Evidence for the negative health consequences of homosexual conduct is available even from pro-homosexual sources such as the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association. See their "Top Ten Issues to Discuss with Your Healthcare Provider" online at: http://www.glma.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.viewPage&pageId=586&parentID=533&nodeID=1

To echo Jeremy Hooper in his denunciation of Perkins, it's a matter of perception.

Perkins is pushing the notion that "if people engage in same-sex intercourse, they face negative consequences."

However, at no time does the Top Ten Issues even imply this. This is what it does say:

LGBT people have some unique health needs and concerns. Unfortunately, many health care providers don’t fully understand these issues, so it’s important to take charge of your health by asking your healthcare provider about the health matters that may apply to you.
The following lists will help you communicate even more effectively with your healthcare provider:

10 Things Gay Men Should Discuss with Their Healthcare Providers

(Click here to downoad .pdf version)

10 Things Lesbians Should Discuss with Their Healthcare Providers

(Click here to download .pdf verson)

10 Things Transgender Persons Should Discuss with Their Healthcare Providers (Click here to download .pdf version)

Now while this medical information breakdown does concede that in some cases, lgbts face bigger health problems than the heterosexual population, at no time does it ever say anything about these health problems being the "negative effects of homosexual behavior."

But it does say few things that Perkins may not appreciate. For example, take the subject of depression/anxiety in the lesbian community:

Lesbians have been shown to experience chronic stress from homophobic discrimination. This stress is compounded by the need that some still have to hide their orientation from family and colleagues at work, and by the fact that many lesbians have lost the important emotional support most others get from their families due to alienation stemming from their sexual orientation.

Or substance abuse:

Research indicates that lesbians may use illicit drugs more often than heterosexual women. This may be due to added stressors in lesbian lives from discrimination. Lesbians need support from each other and from health care providers to find healthy releases, quality recreation, stress reduction, and coping techniques.

Or how about this point regarding how difficult it is for the members of the transgender community to receive adequate health care:

Transgender persons are often reluctant to seek medical care through a traditional provider-patient relationship. Some are even turned away by providers. A doctor who refuses to treat a trans person may be acting out of fear and transphobia, or may have a religious bias against GLBT patients. It’s also possible that the doctor simply doesn’t have the knowledge or experience he needs. Furthermore, health care related to transgender issues is usually not covered by insurance, so it is more expensive. Whatever the reasons, transgender people have sometimes become very ill because they were afraid to visit their providers.

In other words, Perkins made the claim that being an lgbt has "negative health consequences," but cited a pro-gay document which in part said the health problems lgbts face have more to do with dealing with an unaccepting society.

If he weren't so consumed with using the material inaccurately, Perkins would realize that Ten Top Issues actually makes the case for ENDA. Less worries about how you would be perceived on the job as an lgbt leads to less stress. And less stress leads to good health.

Gone are the days when folks like Robert Knight brazenly cited Paul Cameron studies during their Congressional testimony.

But as Perkins proves, members of the religious right still have a way of distorting lgbt lives to suit their agenda.

Independent polling shows 'No on 1' leading in Maine

From Americablog Gay comes this awesome news:

Jesse Connolly, the campaign manager for No on 1/Protect Maine Equality posted new poll results over at DailyKos:

A new public poll from Democracy Corps was released yesterday, showing us with a slight lead this race 50% to 41%, a significant jump from kos's numbers from the other week of 46-48.

The numbers are encouraging, but it's that 9% undecided that will determine this race. The investment of our supporters has allowed us to get on TV before our opponents and counter every lie they have tossed at us.

Tonight at midnight is the end of the third quarter and all of you kossacks know what that means: we will need to turn in our fundraising report.

Our campaign will be judged on the strength or weakness of this report.

I suggest that everyone go to the link and see what they can do contribute to this campaign.

One thing I have to mention about this campaign is how much I like its consistency. From the very beginning, the No on 1/Project Maine Equality folks have defined the issue and hammered their message home.

And they weren't afraid to not only use actual families but also challenge the opposition on their lies.

That's how it's done.

The following commercial says it all:

FRC's Tony Perkins caught in a distortion and other Wednesday midday news briefs

Perception as a weapon: We'd de-arm both employers and Tony P. - Goodasyou.org catches FRC's Tony Perkins in a distortion about his anti-ENDA testimony.

Federal Court Throws Out Suit Against Miami Hospital By Lesbian Barred From Dying Partner - This is a hot mess!

President Obama Must Speak Out On Maine Now - I have one problem with that. Mixner should say this to ALL lgbt spokespeople. The situation with Matt Foreman calling AIDS a "gay disease" comes to mind. Foreman meant that lgbts should take a bigger role in AIDS/HIV prevention just as Julian Bond meant when he called AIDS a "black disease." However, Foreman's words were misconstrued by the religious right.

Ex-Gay Group Calls Hate Crime Laws “Anti-Ex-Gay” - This is funny.

Many Maine Catholics Supporting Marriage Equality, Despite Bishop's Efforts - This is good news!

Focus on the Family Seeks to Exempt Alabama Gays from Antibullying Protection - Why of why am I not surprised?

Doctors settle case for denying lesbian treatment - Good news for us usually means that One News Now and the rest of the religious right aren't pleased.

I get bizarre, disturbing email regarding my Kevin Jennings coverage

Not everyone is happy with my coverage of the Kevin Jennings situation.

I received this email last night. Read it all at your own risk:

Isn't it great that we are in America, where we can all voice our opinions about anything? First of all, I and most people who have a problem with the conference at hand AND Mr. Jennings, are NOT from the "religious right" to use your terminology. We are ordinary Americans who are concerned about the direction of morality in society at large and in the public schools specifically. Do you find that offensive? You claim that, "The so-called fistgate attack was pitiful because neither Jennings nor GLSEN had anything to do with the questions asked." True but very misleading. Mr. Jenning's organization, GLSEN, DID SPONSOR THE EVENT! Your reasoninbg is totally fallacious. You make it sound like GLSEN and Jennings had NO idea what was going to be said in the conference. If so, why hasn't Jennings come out and publicly denounce the conference and the remarks and teachings that were made there? To me, that is the most telling feature of the story. Jennings, by his silence, is condoning the disgusting behavior described in detail by the panel. Just because the gay community finds certain behaviors normal and appropriate for the youth of today does not make it so. By continuing to push your agenda in the public schools, you are opening yourself up to a backlash that will set your program back 100 years. Just as many straight people were beginning to have some sympathy for the gay people and starting to perhaps be a little more inclined to support some of the gay agenda, you ram "queerness" down the throats of their kids (pun intended) in PUBLIC school.That alone makes you an idiot. These feelings are shared by many of my gay friends who found the behavior of the panel to be "totally outrageous" as one friend put it.
I am not against homosexuality in general terms. What people do behind closed doors in their bedroom is their own business. It becomes mine when my child is given instruction in the deviant details ( how to enjoy fisting) of sex without my knowing or my permission. It doesn't matter if we are talking gay or straight sex, it is still inappropriate! It is unbelievable that the public school system allows these type of conferences. My tax dollars go to pay the salaries of the 3 administrators who led the conference, as did yours. The only difference is that my position is supported by about 85% of the population. I understand that as a gay man you feel that you have been treated unfairly in life. You also feel that it is important to teach children to be accepting of the gay lifestyle from a young age. The problem is for you that most Americans disagree and if you think ACORN being torn to shreds was something, wait until you see what happens to gay rights group who continue to push their agenda in our schools. Call it a threat if you want to, but it is reality. The American people are truly fed up and they will not stand for the type of garbage that went on in that conference any longer.

Now I don't regard the person's comments as a threat. But the comments were a challenge to me on my blog. And I don't take challenges lightly. I hope you found my response to be sufficient. Even though I was tempted to use profanity, I decided to take the high road:

I found your long response somewhat amusing. Let me address your silly points one by one.

1. I never said that GLSEN did not sponsor the event. But I did call into question the notion that this was a GLSEN event. It was also co-sponsored by the Massachusetts Dept. of Education.

2. Jennings was not present at the time of the incident. He was not aware of what happened. The person who talked about fisting was fired but was rehired with back pay by an arbitrator for a multitude of reasons, including the fact that the taping of the incident was misleading. As I recall, Jennings did criticize the conversation but he also criticized the illegal taping of the event.

3. I think that you are under some silly impression about a few things. First of all, not all gays are into fisting but some heterosexuals are.

Secondly, I alway find it funny that ignorant people have to pull the bandwagon technique. Your platitudes about "Americans are getting tired of having so-and-so shoved down their throats" only reveal just how weak your argument is in that you have to invent back up. Can't your argument stand on its own merits? Don't you have any guts to stand on your own rather than call an invisible posse?

4. Try to take this in and deal with it - lgbts are not going to live our lives in accordance to your ignorance. There is more to our lives than bedroom behavior. We have families, jobs and yes pay taxes also. Those tax dollars you alluded to belong to us also.

We have children in schools and our children will not be taught that their families are inferior just to suit your silly notions of superiority.

In addition, this country does not solely belong to you or folks who believe as you. You don't run a damn thing. You do not dictate policy. And you need to get over yourself.

I hope you enjoyed this verbal asswhipping as much as I enjoyed giving it to you.

I'm ashamed to admit it but that was fun. It is clear that my work is having an effect on some people.

Let's not be so quick to blame Obama if Kevin Jennings is dismissed

The echo chamber of attacks on Kevin Jennings is intensifying regarding the alleged approval of statutory rape. My guess is sooner or later we will hear the fraudulent phrase of "anger is swelling over an education pick of President Obama" despite the fact that very few people who are not lgbt or are not of the right ever heard of Jennings.

But I am viewing some disturbing things from members of the lgbt community.

Now I am not saying that I agree with statutory rape, period. Nor am I trying to drum up defense for Jennings solely due to the fact that he is gay.

I sincerely believe that Jennings is getting a bad deal and I also believe that he is the best person for the position that he has been appointed to.

And it is with that same sincerity that I am calling out some folks for throwing in the towel already. I am hearing a few lgbts claiming that Jennings committed a crime and he has to go.

Now I have stated my opinion on Jennings and the alleged incident involving supposed statutory rape but in all honesty, none of us know the facts.

We don't know what was said exactly between Jennings and Brewster.

We don't know just how old the alleged adult was in the case.

And we don't know what exactly the law dictates in the matter.

But we do know that the forces involved don't like President Obama, Jennings, or lgbts in general.

We do know that these folks have been known to lie and distort.

We do know that they lied when they said Jennings "encouraged" the relationship. Hell, we don't even know if it was a "relationship" rather than a one-time mistake.

And we do know that they not only distorted the tape of Jennings talking about the incident, but have been enveloping Jennings with a tissue of lies from the very beginning in sleazy attempts to derail his appointment.

Now they are whining about a double standard regarding Jennings and Roman Polanski despite the fact that Polanski was convicted of a crime and we still are not aware that Jennings did anything wrong.

So why in the hell are some of us so quick to give in? Why are we so quick to give their distortion credibility? Shouldn't our loyalty be to Jennings?

I sincerely hope that this situation doesn't end like I think it will - with Jennings' dismissal and another embarrassment for the Obama Administration.

But if this happens, perhaps it will teach us something.

Maybe before we start whining about how Obama isn't doing enough for us, why don't we concentrate on doing for ourselves.

You can't expect loyalty for perceived allies if you are not willing to give it to members of your own community.

Warren G. shows the hypocrisy/homophobia of rap music

I was going to pull out some news briefs but something via Vanity Fair caught my eye.

Rap artist Warren G said the following in an interview:

I ain’t against gay people. I’m just against it being promoted to kids. . .
I know people that’s gay. My wife’s got friends that are gay. I got family that’s gay. Cousins and shit. He cool as fuck. He cool as a motherfucker. He’s my homie. I just mean that on some of these TV shows, they got dudes kissing. And kids are watching that shit. We can’t have kids growing up with that. . . .but let’s keep it behind the scenes. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with it if that’s what two dudes wanna do. Cool. But that’s not bring that out into the world, where the kids can see that. We don’t want all the kids doing that. ‘Cause that ain’t how we was originally put here to do. Like I said, I ain’t got no problem with the gays.

What? Excuse me? Is this the same guy who spent a considerable amount of time rapping about "money 'n' bitches." Isn't this the same guy who got arrested last year for drug posession?

Who the hell appointed him as a moral spokesperson? I guess when you reduce the worth of black people to the lowest common demoninator of sex, that means all black people get reduced, lgbts of color included.

Well speaking for myself and so many lgbts of color he has insulted (and many of them lead households that include children), I want to school Mr. G. on a few things.

With all due respect to Warren G, maybe he should stop obsessing over what he thinks is gay sexual behavior and start focusing on heterosexual sexual behavior. Since he has a problem with two men kissing, I would sincerely hope that he has an equal problem with songs and videos that objectify women as sex objects, that teaches black children to be underacheivers, and that romanticize the selling of drugs.

Or have I just described the contents of his last albums?

Just to be clear about things - homosexuality is not a "lifestyle." Putting on a skin tight dress or wearing your pants down past your ass, drinking and hitting on each other in a club, and then having wild sex that leads to illegitimate births is a lifestyle.

Why don't folks like Warren G. ever criticize that?

You see this is the problem that lgbts of color face in the black community. This open hypocrisy that we are supposed to say nothing about.

I am so sick and tired of members of black community who will screw each other till the cows come home without the courtesy of a wedding ring and then have the absolute nerve to pass judgment on lgbts of color just because we want a little affection from each other.

I am so sick and tired of black pastors who will say nothing about the depressing rate of black men in prison and black girls with babies but will break each other's necks to get camera time in order to dehumanize lgbts of color.

I am so damn tired of being treated like a dog being allowed to come in a house as long as he doesn't pee on the furniture. "Oh I don't have a problem with gay people as long as they are not in my face about it."

What the hell is that supposed to mean anyway?

I am sure the entire African-American community does not feel the same way as Warren G. but damn his comments get me angry.

Can black folks have a serious conversation about lgbt issues? Is it totally impossible?

Lgbts of color are not objects to be pointed at or referred to as dogs or "the other."

We are contributing members of society and especially the black community.

And I don't think it's asking too much for the black community to gives us the respect we are entitled to.

Brian Camenker, Matt Barber create anti-gay hot mess

People for the American Way has clips from last weekend's Take Back America conference.

The clips are interesting to say the least. Most particularly interesting are the clips from the Countering the Extremist Homosexual Movement seminar co-moderated by Brian Camenker of the hate group Mass Resistance and Matt Barber of the Liberty Counsel.

First let's take a look at Camenker:



He does project a certain aura of creepiness, doesn't he? Is it just me or is Camenker practically drolling while enthralling the audience with pseudo-salacious material about the transgender community.

And here I thought Peter LaBarbera was spooky.

Now let's look at Matt Barber:



Barber is no slouch in the weird department as his rapid fire delivery of lies is just incredible. He seems to be going through his routine with the urgency of a good actor who realizes that he is trapped in a abysmal film.

And he also makes it a point to call President Obama “a secular humanist, a radical socialist moral relativist.”

Perhaps it would have been more to the point for Barber to have taken a page from former wrestler Dusty Rhodes and say something like "he doesn't like Obam or his mama."

For the record, despite what Barber says, remember three things:

Adding sexual orientation to hate crimes legislation does not give lgbts an unfair advantage. Both the heterosexual and lgbt orientation will be protected.

No employer should have the right to fire a capable employee even if said employer has a "deeply held belief" that homosexuality is wrong.

No researcher or physician has ever called homosexuality a "dangerous lifestyle." Someone should tell Barber that Paul Cameron doesn't count.

But making bad generalizations about the lgbt community is nothing new to Barber as this piece regarding him and lgbt families proves.

What are these people? Dedicated students to the National Organization for Marriage's School of self sabotage?

All I can say that if these are the folks who have been picked to adequately teach others how to attack lgbts, then let's not waste any time grinding them in the dust.

I don't believe in the concept of playing with your prey.

Related posts:

The anti-gays are encouraged to get more militant and disgusting

Mike Huckabee and Congressional leaders to attend conference with hate group

Dissecting a One News Now article

Washington Times publishes ugly hit piece on Kevin Jennings

I had a bad feeling about this last weekend and now it is coming to fruition.

For months, the right have been lobbing bombs at Kevin Jennings, President Obama's Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools.

They have levied ridiculous charges against him - he wants children to be "taught" gay sex, he uses profanity, he hates Christians, he has said nasty things about God.

The charges are easily kicked aside. But then comes the most serious one - Jennings allegedly approves of pedophilia because he supposedly didn't report an relationship between a 15-year-old and a older man.

Based upon what I have seen and read over the past few days, it is this charge which the right will try to make stick.

And today came a huge hit piece via the Washington Times by way of Fox News.com:

A teacher was told by a 15-year-old high school sophomore that he was having homosexual sex with an "older man." At the very least, statutory rape occurred. Fox News reported that the teacher violated a state law requiring that he report the abuse. That former teacher, Kevin Jennings, is President Obama's "safe school czar."

. . . According to Mr. Jennings' own description in a new audiotape discovered by Fox News, the 15-year-old boy met the "older man" in a "bus station bathroom" and was taken to the older man's home that night. When some details about the case became public, Mr. Jennings threatened to sue another teacher who called his failure to report the statutory rape "unethical." Mr. Jennings' defenders asserted that there was no evidence that he was aware the student had sex with the older man.

Knowing Fox News' "track record" when it comes to the Obama Administration, I would like to hear this tape.

As luck would have it, Media Matters heard the tape. And there are a lot of distortions with what is being claimed.

In addition, there are a more few things that I find disturbing about this Fox News/Washington Times gang-up on Jennings.

Let me break down the distortions as I and Media Matters sees it.

In the first place, Jennings is not a "czar." He was appointed to his position by Education Secretary Arne Duncan.

In using the term "czar," the Washington Times is using the Glenn Beckish code word for supposed "corruption" in the Obama Administration as a way to weave a narrative of "Jennings is indicative of Obama appointees."

Then there is the claim that Jennings encouraged the young man to "use a condom" in the relationship:

In 2000, Mr. Jennings gave a talk to the Iowa chapter of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, an advocacy group that promotes homosexuality in schools. On the tape, Mr. Jennings recollected that he told the student to make sure "to use a condom" when he was with the older man.

According to Media Matters, the Washington Times distorted the condom quote:

JENNINGS: And I said, "Brewster, what are you doing in there asleep?" And he said, "Well, I'm tired." And I said, "Well, we all are tired and we all got to school today." And he said, "Well, I was out late last night." And I said, "What were you doing out late on a school night?" And he said, "Well, I was in Boston." Boston was about 45 minutes from Concord. So I said, "What were you doing in Boston on a school night, Brewster?" He got very quiet, and he finally looked at me and said, "Well, I met somebody in the bus station bathroom and I went home with him." High school sophomore, 15 years old. That was the only way he knew how to meet gay people. I was a closeted gay teacher, 24 years old, didn't know what to say. Knew I should say something quickly, so I finally -- my best friend had just died of AIDS the week before -- I looked at Brewster and said, "You know, I hope you knew to use a condom." He said to me something I will never forget. He said "Why should I, my life isn't worth saving anyway."

And then comes the huge misrepresentation - that Jennings encouraged the relationship. From the Washington Times piece:

That he actively encouraged the relationship is reinforced by Mr. Jennings' own description in his 1994 book, "One Teacher in 10." In that account, the teacher boasts how he allayed the student's concerns about the relationship to such a degree that the 15-year-old "left my office with a smile on his face that I would see every time I saw him on the campus for the next two years, until he graduated."

But nowhere in the book does it say that Jennings actually encouraged the relationship. Here is the portion in question mentioned by the Washington Times in its exact context:

On a hunch, I suddenly asked "What's his name?" Brewster's eyes widened briefly, and then out spilled a story about his involvement with an older man he had met in Boston. I listened, sympathized, and offered advice. He left my office with a smile on his face that I would see every time I saw him on the campus for the next two years,until he graduated.

Now while there no longer seems to be a question of whether or not "Brewster" was of age, the situation is still not as clear cut as the right is trying to make it.

Jennings never saw any relationship and it was a judgment call whether or not he should have told anyone what Brewster told him. What if he had? I tend to think that the story would have had a very negative denouement- Brewster's suicide.

And I think that Jennings had the same feeling, which was why he kept silent about what Brewster told him.

Instead of attacking Jennings, we need to ask ourselves what would possess a young man like Brewster to put himself in a situation like that. Why would a young man feel so depressed about his God-given sexual orientation that he doesn't care about putting himself in danger?

How often does this continue to happen and what can we do to stop it?

Attacking Jennings for dealing with the situation the way he did is a classic case of ignoring the forest for the sake of the trees.

Because he had to deal with a situation like this one, Jennings is exactly the right person to deal with issues of school safety. He knows the reasons why youngsters, particularly lgbt youngsters, exposes themselves to danger and based on his track record with GLSEN, he can work to stop this behavior

But neither Fox News, the Washington Times, nor any other party on the right seems to care about because they are determined to put Jennings' head in their trophy case.

They don't care about the safety of lgbt children because they have a more practical purpose for zeroing in on Jennings.

If their charges can get him dismissed, it would look bad for the Obama Administration. In addition, the religious right can refer to this situation for a long time when they want to push the lie that "gays recruit children."

Lastly, it would also be another thing to get the lgbt community mad at the President.

So attacking Jennings may turn out to be a win-win situation for the right.

But it may also be death for America's children.

You can go here to give some support to Jennings.

Related posts:

The new attack on Kevin Jennings - he said something ugly about God

The continuing attacks on Kevin Jennings - now Fox News gets involved

The possible attack on the President's lgbt appointees

The tea party idiots - will they go after the lgbt community next?

Traditional Values Coalition attacks Kevin Jennings and . . . Tom Cruise?

Support Sean's Last Wish and Kevin Jennings

The religious right thinks that character assasination is a Christian virtue

The war against Kevin Jennings - now it's getting pathetic

Attacks on Kevin Jennings sleazy, un-Christian

More right wing lunacy on Kevin Jennings courtesy of Kevin McCullough

More attacks on GLSEN'S Kevin Jennings - Now the Family Research Council gets in the act'''

'Fistgate' and President Obama - religious right pushes a pitiful attempt of guilt by association

Facebook poll asks should Obama be killed, Judy Shepard called a liar, and other Monday midday news briefs

Gay Good Samaritan Acquitted of Kidnapping - I'm putting this post from Box Turtle Bulletin on my page because it tees me off. A case where heterosexual parents don't do their job and a gay man who stepped in gets attacked physically and also by the police.

Facebook poll up now - Should Obama be killed? - TELL me again how this isn't about race. I dare you!

Exodus’ Hired Researcher Counters Own Study’s Claim of Ex-Gay ‘Change’ - Just another day in the bizarro world of "ex-gay" thought.

Salt Lake City Man Calls Judy Shepard a Liar to her Face - This is why we must make a point to beat down religious right lies at every turn. There is actually a school of thought out there which claims that Matthew Shepard's murder had nothing to do with his sexual orientation. Despite the fact that it has been proven continuously, as long as the headless monster of that "20/20" special is out there (and as long as religious right groups pump it up), this nasty school of thought will continue.

Black gay gospel singer gives exclusive interview, dispels myths

We are now seeing that the idea of a black president seems to drive some white folks crazy.

In comparison, the quickest way to drive the black community nuts is to mention the subject of the lgbt community.

African-American gospel singer Tonex recently became the first black gospel singer to come out publicly.

Granted, he is not the first African-American gay gospel singer (i.e. James Cleveland and others), but he is the first to have the guts to be honest about his sexual orientation.

These are his words in an exclusive interview with Black Voices:

I'm studying daily on the subject of same-sex matters. I'm tired of echoing what I've been told. I want to know for myself the true interpretation of scriptures in Biblical text and well as scientific documentation.

You know, it's not easy growing up in a Pentecostal/Evangelical church, where everyone is pretty much anti-gay, although it's common knowledge that some of the most anointed musicians and singer-songwriters have, or have dealt with, same-sex attraction at some point. For me, it was particularly taboo because of my upbringing and the ministerial call on my life. I then had to think about the repercussions of this revelation. But I knew I had to get free.

. . . There was so much more in that interview that I thought was, unfortunately, overlooked. So much more to my story then the sexuality part, but most church folks are sexually repressed anyway, so they naturally gravitate right toward that type of subject matter. I noticed parts one and three weren't juicy enough for the church or the public, yet they were the key to the whole puzzle. I talked about my same-sex attraction. I don't think that there was any new information here. I've addressed this issue in my music for years. But for many, I guess, it was a shock of sorts. But believe me, it wasn't for shock value. The real story is not cute, ladies and gentlemen. Freedom, my friends, is not for cowards.

There is a sad part to this entire situation as far as I am concerned. Tonex says that 96 percent of the responses he received have been positive. That enough confirms a belief I've had about the black community.

Approval or disapproval of gays and lesbians in the black community is far more complex than folks realize.

The simplistic belief that the black community automatically does not approve of homosexuality is driven by three factors:

- The religious right's eagerness to exploit the ignorance of the African-American community regarding its lgbt members.

- The cowardice of influential black leaders who tackle the issue with the force of a baby licking the tip of icing off of a cake.

- And the self absorption of the lgbt community at large which refuses to acknowledge that the lgbt struggle for self-determination is present in some form or another in every ethnic group, every culture, and every country.

It's a question that deserves far more attention than it is getting (hello Advocate magazine!).

However, I know that waiting for a major lgbt magazine to do a serious story on gay issues in the black community is like waiting for BET or Ebony or Jet to do a serious story on the issue.

I'll probably be waiting so long for this to happen that my credit will become good.

Still, Tonex should be commended for his pioneering step. It's not his fault that both of his communities are way behind on the issue.