Homophobia in Sports: The Other Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

via Black Enterprise, By Andreas Hale

Amaechi is recognized as the first NBA player to be openly gay and released a memoir Man in the Middle in 2007. The book and Amaechi were met with mixed results from active NBA players. Some applauded his courage while others scrutinized the notion that there was a gay man amongst them.

Players like Tim Hardaway expressed how they wouldn’t be willing to accept a gay player as a teammate.But Amaechi’s former teammate and now retired NBA player Troy Hudson understands both the locker room mentality and sympathizes with Amaechi and other gay athletes who remain silent.

“Little things like taking a shower in the locker room would make them uncomfortable,” Hudson says when asked why players are apprehensive about having a gay teammate in the locker room. “I think that if an athlete is gay it makes it hard for him to be part of the team. The biggest concern is that they will lose friendship and brotherhood with their teammates.”

Another rationale is that some feel they may be perceived as gay by association. “It’s not just that you are not gay, but you aren’t even going to be close to being gay,” says Khalid Salaam, Slam magazine Senior Writer. “Not because you’re against it. Rather, our culture doesn’t allow you to exist comfortably in it until you get much older.”

On the other side of the coin are the struggles of the lesbian community in sports, which are nearly polar opposites of their male counterparts. A reverse sexism comes into play for female athletes who are oftentimes assumed to be gay simply because of their physical prowess. When Swoopes, who is frequently referred to as the “female Michael Jordan,” revealed that she was gay in 2005, the news came and went without nearly as much buzz as if a male athlete were to do the same.

 It’s a double standard based on presumed gender roles that show no signs of changing anytime soon.

Read more.

The end to 'don't ask, don't tell' follows shifting public attitudes

via The Monitor, By Brad Knickerbocker

“Don’t ask, don’t tell” officially comes to end September 20. And while the controversial ban on gay men and women serving openly in the US military no doubt will continue to be the subject of social and political debate, the change in policy comes as public attitudes have shifted dramatically since DADT came into force 18 years ago.

Many gay elected officials, newscasters, sports figures, and other prominent public figures no longer feel the need to be closeted. Six states now allow same-sex marriages. And public attitudes toward LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) Americans have moved toward greater tolerance – particularly among younger generations.

Between 1996 and 2011, according to Gallup, the percentage of those polled who think marriages between same-sex couples “should be recognized by the law as valid, with the same rights as traditional marriages” has doubled to 53 percent. Meanwhile, the percentage that thinks such marriages should not be valid has dropped from 68 percent to 45 percent


Read more. 

Gays Should be Proud of Obama's Accomplishments

 via GMHC, By Sean Cahill and Sabina Ibarrola

In 2009, gay newsmagazine The Advocate ran a cover story on President Obama's perceived shortcomings on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) policy, illustrating the story with its own take on the famous Shepard Fairey campaign posters and asking "NOPE?" in place of the cutline "HOPE."

 Nearly two years later, however, the Obama administration has indeed made important strides in both LGBT and HIV/AIDS policy, which bear reflecting on during this year's LGBT Pride Month.

There are of course the high-profile achievements, such as the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," and the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (2009), which mandates a federal response to bias crimes motivated by sexual orientation and gender identity.  The Shepard Act also mandates the collection of data on hate crimes based on gender identity.  But there have been other, quieter victories too.

In terms of HIV/AIDS, January 2010 saw the repeal of the HIV travel and immigration ban, lifting a 22-year prohibition on HIV-positive visitors entering the US for any reason.

 Also in 2010, the White House Office of National AIDS Policy released the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, which aims to reduce new infections, increase access to care, and reduce health disparities, with a focus on African Americans (half of new infections) and gay men (more than half of new infections).

This spring, the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator at the U.S. State Department issued field guidance for HIV prevention among men who have sex with men (MSM), which also includes language addressing the needs of transgender people.

Read more.

Pentagon Confirms New DADT Discharges

via The Advocate, By Andrew Harmon

The Pentagon confirmed Monday that more service members have been discharged under “don’t ask, don’t tell” pending certification of the policy’s repeal, with one individual’s discharge approved as recently as Thursday.


A total of four airmen have been discharged under the policy in the last several weeks, Pentagon spokeswoman Eileen Lainez confirmed Monday.


One of those individuals is Airman First Class Albert Pisani, who spoke to The Advocate earlier this month of his voluntary separation under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” which defense officials approved on April 29.

Air Force spokesman Maj. Joel Harper told The Advocate that the discharges of three additional service members — two female staff sergeants and one male second lieutenant— have been approved since an April 29 discharge. Harper declined to say whether Pisani was the April 29 discharge, citing confidentiality reasons.


Read more.

Obama treading carefully on gay issues in 2012 bid

via Reyters, By Mark Egan

Gay leaders will likely give Obama high marks at a fundraiser in New York on Today for pushing through issues like winning gays the right to serve openly in the military.

Yet calls for the White House to back gay marriage and strengthen federal anti-discrimination protection will probably go unheeded as Obama treads carefully in the run-up to next November's election.

"The conundrum Obama faces is keeping this essential core constituency while not going overboard and alienating the high-intensity opponents of that constituency," said pollster John Zogby of IBOPE Zogby International. "His challenge is to continue to play it cool and not to go overboard."

Independent voters, seen as less likely to back gay causes, will be crucial in winning closely contested states such as Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida, Indiana and Wisconsin.

With the economy in trouble, the election is shaping up as a tighter race for Obama than his 2008 victory and he must keep key voting groups on board.

Evangelicals mostly vote Republican, but Obama took 30 percent of their votes in 2008 and he cannot afford to lose them, Zogby said. African Americans voted 95 percent for Obama in 2008 and heavily oppose gay marriage, he said.

Among Latinos, which Obama won in 2008, 40 percent call themselves social conservatives.

By contrast, the gay vote is small although influential. A CNN exit poll from 2008 showed 4 percent of voters were gay, lesbian or bisexual and 70 percent of them voted for Obama. Another reckoning puts gays at 7 percent of voters.

Boston University political science department chair Professor Graham Wilson said Obama will want to keep his gay constituencies sweet because they have high incomes, making them a potentially strong fundraising group.

"So long as Obama maintains his reasonably OK record on gay issues and Republicans continue to be identified with fairly aggressive anti-gay sentiments, there is not much doubt as to where the gay vote goes," Wilson said.

Read more.

LGBT leaders helped fuel Rahm's win

 Via Chicago Sun-Times

Chicago’s LGBT leadership went all out for Rahm Emanuel.The LGBT establishment players and their cash helped fuel Rahm Emanuel’s Feb. 22 victory. And their vote surely spurred the election of James Cappleman in last week’s 46th Ward runoff election, adding a second openly gay alderman to the Chicago City Council. In the 44th, 46th and 48th wards, Emanuel racked up about 74 percent, 70 percent and 68 percent of the vote respectively.

Those three North lakefront areas are home to most of the city’s LGBT voters. During the heated mayoral campaign, the four leading aspirants ardently wooed the city’s LGBT leadership, lusting for its progressive credentials and money muscle. Emanuel prevailed big-time, winning the vast majority of heavy-hitting LGBT leaders across the spectrum of politics, business, government, arts and culture.

Emanuel also won support from virtually every LGBT political and activist group, from the national Human Rights Campaign to the Equality Illinois Political Action Committee.Critics argue that the rush to Rahm is sacrificing justice for access. Yet Emanuel won, in part, because there was “not a truly galvanizing alternative” in the mayoral race, said Tracy Baim, publisher and executive editor of the Windy City Times, the city’s leading LGBT newspaper.

Emanuel appeals to an LGBT electorate that has grown “more sophisticated,” said Baim, who has been covering her community since 1984. Those voters were looking “beyond their base issues,” she added. They came to a pragmatic conclusion: Emanuel will be “a pit bull for Chicago.” They think “he can get the job done. He’s good for our city. He’s not perfect, but he’s good.”

Read the rest

'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Is Bad Health Policy

via Medical News, by Michael Smith

The military "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gay, lesbian, and bisexual service members is not only a constitutional and legal issue -- it also has serious health implications, an epidemiologist claims.

The policy often means that sexually transmitted infections go undiagnosed and service members and their partners are untreated, Kenneth Katz, MD, of San Diego State University, wrote in a Perspective piece published online by the New England Journal of Medicine.

And messages aimed at preventing HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases -- and tailored for gay, lesbian, and bisexual service members -- are not transmitted, Katz argued.

"In very real ways," Katz wrote, the policy threatens the health of service members as well as the community at large, and may even have an impact on the ability of the service as a whole to respond to combat missions.

Katz cited the case of a gay serviceman who came to his municipal STD clinic in San Diego County complaining of rectal pain and discharge. The diagnosis was rectal gonorrhea, which was treated according to CDC guidelines with an intramuscular injection of 125 mg of ceftriaxone (Rocephin) along with one gram of oral azithromycin (Zithromax) for empirical treatment of chlamydia.
But, Katz noted, the man had had ready access -- for free -- to military clinics.

He said he chose the municipal clinic because he would have felt uncomfortable discussing his sexual behavior with a military doctor.

Katz reported that, in 2002, nearly one in 10 clients of a gay men's health clinic in San Diego were sailors on active duty, which is consistent with his own experience.

But there are an estimated 66,000 gays, lesbians, and bisexuals in the military, or about 2.2% of the total, he noted. "How many of them have no access to nonmilitary medical care?" Katz wrote. "How many simply don't seek it?"

Read the rest.

Who's That Queer? [Eric Alva]

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Marine Staff Sgt. Eric Alva was the first American wounded, losing his leg in the war in Iraq and was awarded a Purple Heart and received a medical discharge from the military. After being honorably discharged, Alva came out as gay, and has been one of the most vocal veterans to speak out against the military's "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" policy.

Having survived a war injury, Alva felt he’d been given a second chance at life. He discovered a new calling. “I had to use my voice,” he says. “I had fought and nearly died to secure rights for others that I was not free to enjoy. I had proudly served a country that was not proud of me.”

In 2003, Alva received the Heroes and Heritage Award from La Raza. People magazine honored him with the Heroes Among Us Award (2004). He received the Patriot Award from the city of San Antonio (2004), and the Public Citizen Award from the National Association of Social Workers (2008).

Alva earned a Bachelor of Social Work in 2008, and is studying for a master’s degree in that field. He lives in San Antonio with his long-term partner, Darrell Parsons.

Obama Tells Teens: "It Gets Better"

Via Whitehouse.gov - Some words of hope by President Obama for Dan Savage's It Gets Better project. Now if we could only get him to strike down institutionalized discrimination with DADT and ENDA, then we'd be in business..

Who's That Queer [Colonel Margarethe Cammermeyer]

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Margarethe "Grethe" Cammermeyer (born March 24, 1942) is a former colonel in the Washington National Guard and a gay rights activist.


Born in Oslo, Norway, she became a United States citizen in 1960. In 1961 she joined the Army Student Nurse Program. She received a B.S. in Nursing in 1963 from the University of Maryland. She furthered her education at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, earning a master's (1976) and Ph.D. (1991) from the School of Nursing.

She met her partner, Diane Divelbess, in 1988, when she was 46 — after she had ended a 15-year marriage to a man and had four sons.

In 1989, in response to a question during a routine security clearance interview, she disclosed that she is a lesbian. The "don't ask, don't tell" policy was not yet in effect at the time, and the National Guard began military discharge proceedings against her. On June 11, 1992, she was honorably discharged from the military. Cammermeyer filed a lawsuit against the decision in civil court. In June 1994, Judge Thomas Zilly of the federal district court in Seattle ruled her discharge, and the ban on gays and lesbians serving in the military, unconstitutional. She returned to the National Guard and served as one of the few officially accepted openly gay or lesbian people in the military until her retirement in 1997.

A television movie about Cammermeyer's story, Serving in Silence, was made in 1995, with Glenn Close starring as Cammermeyer. Its content was largely taken from Cammermeyer's autobiography of the same name.

Read the rest at Wikipedia

Dignity and Respect for All Except..............

Check out the Army's new racially diverse comic book that lays out, step by step, how the Army discriminates against the gays. Anyone else see the irony in this? Thanks for the lead Queerty!

Dems move forward with DADT Repeal

Via HuffPo -

Congressional negotiators and White House officials are moving forward with plans to add the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell to the upcoming defense authorization bill, Democratic sources tell the Huffington Post.

In Congress, members are being whipped to ensure that the votes will be there for passage, should the legislation be placed in the bill. At this juncture, aides say, the prospects look good. Meanwhile, a source close to the White House says the president has instructed the Defense Department that he believes the repeal of DADT should be placed in the authorization bill.

Read the rest...

AMA opposes 'don't ask, don't tell;' says gay marriage bans contribute to health disparities

A law which makes people lie to their physicians is a bad law.

via San Francisco Examiner, by Lindsey Tanner

The American Medical Association on Tuesday voted to oppose the military's 'don't ask, don't tell' policy, and declared that gay marriage bans contribute to health disparities.

The nation's largest doctors' group stopped short of saying it would seek to overturn marriage bans, but its new stance angered conservative activists and provides a fresh boost to lobbying efforts by gay-rights advocates.

"It's highly significant that the AMA as one of this country's leading professional associations has taken a position on both of these issues," said Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, a Washington-based advocacy group.

The health disparities measure "in the long run, will certainly help efforts to win marriage equality," Carey said.

Read the rest.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand: Repeal DADT Now!

Check out New York's junior senator imploring Obama and Congress to move on Don't Ask, Don't Tell at HuffPo.

Since 1994, almost 13,000 gay servicemen and women have been discharged from the military based not on their performance but on their sexual orientation. In 2009 alone, we've had more than 400 of our brave men and women leave the military under Don't Ask Don't Tell. This is simply unacceptable. It is time to repeal this outdated and immoral policy once and for all and end the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly and honestly in our armed forces.

To that end, I've secured the commitment from Senator Carl Levin, Chair of the Armed Services Committee, to hold the first hearing on the policy since it began 16 years ago. Chairman Levin expects to hold the hearing soon and it's my hope that it will be instrumental in demonstrating the level of support that exists for repeal not only throughout the country -- where polls consistently indicate that solid majorities oppose the policy -- but within the military itself.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-kirsten-gillibrand/the-right-time-to-repeal_b_310352.html?alacarte=1

Read the rest at HuffPo.

Chicago Event to Honor Gay Vets

The Tribune is reporting that Chicago's Commission on Human Relations will honor gay military veterans at an event in downtown Chicago. Organizers say the event is the country's only municipally sponsored military salute to gay veterans. "With Liberty and Justice for All" will be held on Aug. 5 at Richard J. Daley Plaza.

U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley is slated as a featured speaker. He has co-sponsored a bill that would repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the U.S. Military's ban on openly gay service members.

The keynote speaker is a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel and the U.S. Navy Diversity Senior Advisory Group. Luke Visconti was on active duty as a naval aviator and commissioned officer with the Navy from 1982 to 1990, and in the reserves until 1992.

Help Lt. Dan Choi: Send an E-Mail to Nancy Pelosi before July 4

Lt. Dan Choi is being fired from the military for refusing to lie about who he loves

Help him keep fighting by signing this letter to Speaker Pelosi asking her to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

This Independence Day, please visit the Courage Campaign website to help Dan keep his job by pushing for the en of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Obama Aint Yer Daddy People

He's Not Your Daddy, or: Obama and the Personal Politics of Gay Marriage

image - TMNK on Flickr

via The Bilerico Project, by Yasmin Nair

As I've written countless times before, I think gay marriage is the wrong cause and should be dumped immediately. So I didn't think I'd care much about the recent Department of Justice move to dismiss the Smelt case against DOMA. But, to my surprise, I found myself enthralled by the legal arguments that have sprung up around it. I'll be writing on these at greater length, but for now I wanted to share some preliminary musings and observations about the initial gay and lesbian responses to the administration's case.

First, I was struck by the amount of petulance and, frankly, sheer hysteria that marked the outburst against Obama who has, it seems, gone from being the Great Hope to the Great Betrayer. Although I haven't done a scientific count, I'm willing to bet that "betrayal" has been the most used word in the gay blogosphere over the last few days. For the most part, I concur with Alex Blaze's analysis of the issue and especially when he writes that "The Smelt case was a bad idea from the beginning that the gay activist community opposed, but the plaintiffs and their lawyer went ahead with it anyway." I don't even support gay marriage, but I'm bemused by the extent to which people are defending a suit that they may not even agree with in the first place. It's a little bit like the old joke: the food here is terrible, and there's so little of it. In this case: The lawsuit here is terrible, yes, and how dare he dare he seek its dismissal!

In that light, for gay marriage activists to now insist that Obama ought not to have sought to dismiss the case is a bit like poking someone with a very sharp spear and then crying foul when they do what they can to retaliate. Let me just say this as a layperson: if you file a lawsuit, the other party is going to file to dismiss. That's kind of how it works.

Second, I'm intrigued at the level of personal bile and anger leveled at Obama and the paradoxically high level of expectation that people seem to have for him. The sense of betrayal around the Smelt case exposes the extent to which people seem to have over-invested in Obama's supposed munificence and good will towards the gay community. Yes, he's clearly brilliant. Yes, he may well be to the left of Bush, which is not saying very much. But come on people, he's not your daddy.

Read the rest.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell - Why the Silence?

Via the Daily Beast -

During the campaign for president, Barack Obama promised to end the military’s ban on gays. So what's the hold up? Exclusive new information from Daily Beast contributor Jason Bellini reveals that gay leaders may be to blame.

Barack shows some love for the LGBTs

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, AND TRANSGENDER PRIDE MONTH, 2009

- - - - - - -

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

Forty years ago, patrons and supporters of the Stonewall Inn in New York City resisted police harassment that had become all too common for members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Out of this resistance, the LGBT rights movement in America was born. During LGBT Pride Month, we commemorate the events of June 1969 and commit to achieving equal justice under law for LGBT Americans.

LGBT Americans have made, and continue to make, great and lasting contributions that continue to strengthen the fabric of American society. There are many well-respected LGBT leaders in all professional fields, including the arts and business communities. LGBT Americans also mobilized the Nation to respond to the domestic HIV/AIDS epidemic and have played a vital role in broadening this country's response to the HIV pandemic.

Due in no small part to the determination and dedication of the LGBT rights movement, more LGBT Americans are living their lives openly today than ever before. I am proud to be the first President to appoint openly LGBT candidates to Senate-confirmed positions in the first 100 days of an Administration. These individuals embody the best qualities we seek in public servants, and across my Administration -- in both the White House and the Federal agencies -- openly LGBT employees are doing their jobs with distinction and professionalism.

The LGBT rights movement has achieved great progress, but there is more work to be done. LGBT youth should feel safe to learn without the fear of harassment, and LGBT families and seniors should be allowed to live their lives with dignity and respect.

My Administration has partnered with the LGBT community to advance a wide range of initiatives. At the international level, I have joined efforts at the United Nations to decriminalize homosexuality around the world. Here at home, I continue to support measures to bring the full spectrum of equal rights to LGBT Americans. These measures include enhancing hate crimes laws, supporting civil unions and Federal rights for LGBT couples, outlawing discrimination in the workplace, ensuring adoption rights, and ending the existing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in a way that strengthens our Armed Forces and our national security. We must also commit ourselves to fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic by both reducing the number of HIV infections and providing care and support services to people living with HIV/AIDS across the United States.

These issues affect not only the LGBT community, but also our entire Nation. As long as the promise of equality for all remains unfulfilled, all Americans are affected. If we can work together to advance the principles upon which our Nation was founded, every American will benefit. During LGBT Pride Month, I call upon the LGBT community, the Congress, and the American people to work together to promote equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2009 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon the people of the United States to turn back discrimination and prejudice everywhere it exists.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-third.

BARACK OBAMA
# # #

America Must Realign Itself With Truth, Justice, and Fairness To All Americans

by Scott Foval, blogger and host of ScottsBigMouth.com and contributor to The Huffington Post

There is a sad reality to being in a 'minority group' in the United States.

Despite politicians' and pundits' trumpeting of our nation as being the "most free nation on Earth," Americans still have hypocritical double-standards about Gays, Lesbians, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Questioning Americans.

This is especially true when it comes to 3 of the most visible issues our country is facing--1. Gay Marriage, 2. The U.S. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy, and 3. HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment funding.

For decades every other social group in the United States has been prioritized to make strides in our society. Women, ethnic groups, religious minorities; all have seen major strides in equality and equal protection under the law in the past 40 years. Indeed, where it used to be acceptable to discriminate, oppress, physically abuse, and outwardly harm members of these social groups; today they are protected in ways that other countries have yet to catch up to.

A glaring exception, indeed a group that has not only been ignored, but in fact is still actively shunned and told to "deal with it" today; is the GLBTQ community. Even Native Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, and Latin American folks have greater rights to equal treatment than GLBTQ folks, whereas 10 years ago these groups were largely ignored by the greater political power classes, and barely could get 10 minutes with a major political leader to discuss their issues. When you think of ethnic and religious leaders who preach discrimination against GLBTQ Americans, while simultaneously claiming equality is a fundamental right; such is evidence of how far we have yet to go.

When it comes to Gay Marriage; the religious right has no problem with any other type of 'married' relationship between two people. They have no problem with multi-ethnic, cross-denomination, cross-religious, even cross-class unions. GLBTQ marriages are the sole area where they claim the "sanctity of marriage is threatened." Heck, they don't even make this much noise about 'non-believers' like Pagans, Atheists, non-Christian faiths, or WICCANS. Nope, they only raise caine about GLBTQ Americans' wanting to have legal equality.


On the U.S. Military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, when you compare us to the other top military organizations in the world, we have fallen way behind other countries. From the United Kingdom, to Canada, to Australia, to the UN peacekeeping forces--all see all of their soldiers as equally valuable and equally necessary. The U.S. Military, though, under Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and even William J. Clinton; the creator of the bizzare and outwardly harmful "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy; through George W. Bush's regime, all continued to open up the ranks to all comers except GLBTQ members. They claimed that recognizing the equality and necessity of GLBTQ members would harm troop morale; but if you talk to real troops, real commanders (at least the modern and forward-thinking ones), and real military leaders--they'll tell you that GLBTQ officers and enlisted soldiers continue to be some of the most dedicated patriots ever to wear their uniforms.

When it comes to global epidemics, the media raises all kinds of hyper-awareness about the H1N1 "Swine Flu," Breast Cancer, Diabetes, and Autism; but couldn't care less that HIV/AIDS is still as rampant in the U.S. as it ever was. Last night I watched Uncle Charlie Gibson shine the ABC World News "light of truth" on the 2nd wave of drug-resistant HIV/AIDS and an epidemic of anti-retroviral drug abuse in South Africa, but I can't even remember the last time I saw a network news report about how drug resistant strains of HIV/AIDS, MRSA, Hepatitis, and Syphilis are ravaging the GLBTQ communities in whole new ways. Stranger still is how the local media here in Chicago have outright ignored the reality that Governor Pat Quinn has targeted public health programs that feed the ADAP, Ryan White, and other HIV/AIDS victim support programs as some of the biggest cuts proposed under his new budget. Even after the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, LifeLube.org, The Windy City Times, The Free Press, and Gay Chicago all decried the cuts in their pages, and Gay Liberation Networks' Andy Thayer was acquitted by a jury for allegedly assaulting a Chicago Police Officer; our community's issues are nearly ignored by the rest of our local press and political establishment.

Except, that is, when they want our money. Yep, Illinois political and business leaders have suggested that Illinois should be the "honeymoon destination" for GLBTQ couples who get married in Iowa. Of course, these same hypocrites can't see fit to give GLBTQ Illinoisans equal rights to marry as Iowa does. Nope, they just want the gay dollar without giving us the equal protection under the law against discrimination, tax fairness, or even protecting the salaries that produce it.

Now I'm not saying that America is bad, or that Americans are bad. I'm just pointing out here that America is the land of hypocritical attitudes when it comes to true equality for all people. Straight folks, especially those in the religious and ethnic minority communities, seem to want equality only for themselves and not truly for everyone. Politicians are even worse, because they're willing to ask for gay money, but don't have the political cohones to actually stand up and deliver real equal rights for the GLBTQ folks from whom they almost always have their hands out to squeeze a few bucks.

It is time for all Americans to deal this hypocrisy a fatal blow, and truly level the playing field for all Americans, and it starts at the top. President Obama relentlessly worked the gay community to support him, promising all measures of change under his administration. As of yet, he has yet to deliver. Governor Quinn, Mayor Daley, legislators, supervisors, and aldermen are no better; as they have continued to ask for our wallets, but pretend our money, health, and value as productive contributors to society isn't as important when the heat is on from the religious leaders, corporate beancounters, and agents of intolerance.

It is time for America to realign itself with true equality, to give GLBTQ Americans all the same prioritization; and to give the same amount of respect and dignity to us that they do any other productive and patriotic community in our country. It is time for us to stand up and make them, especially now, when we have been promised change, but have yet to see any happen.