South Africa Legalizes Same Sex Marriage

Today, South Africa joins Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Canada in the legal gay marriage club. Legislation legalizing same sex marriage was signed today in South Africa making it the fifth country of the world to offer the same government marriage sanction to same sex couples as they offer to different sex couples. Yay!

Woofday!

SimonDrag

Our boy.

Canadian Parliment Will Debate Reopening Marriage

The CBC reports that the Canadian Parliment will move to begin debate on whether or not to reopen the gay marriage issue on December 6th with a vote to occur before the holidays. The vote would only be on whether or not to reopen the issue of same sex marriage and not on same sex marriage itself. The motion is expected to lose by a substantial margin. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is reported to have said that if the House votes against changing the law to allow same sex marriages, the matter would be settled. Does he refer this pending vote to reopen debate, or a potential future bonefide, up or down vote on same sex marriage predicated on a future successful attempt to reopen the debate? Let's hope he means the former.

Gay Marriage Passes S.A. Parliment

The bill that will make South Africa the 5th country to achieve marriage equality for same sex couples has overwhelmingly passed both houses of Parliment and awaits the signature of President, Thabo Mbeki. He is expected to sign it before the Supreme Court imposed deadline of Dec. 1.

Tasmania Runs Anti-Homophobia PSAs On Radio

Check it out.

http://www.workingitout.org.au/Homophobia_title.html

U.S. Religionists Infect UK Schools With Infocrap

A creationist DVD pack produced in the U.S. has found its way into UK schools much to the horror of British officials. The government's position is that creationism has no place in a science curriculum, as reported in The Guardian. No kidding. "Intelligent Design" is no more a representation of reality than "Lord of the Rings" or "Harry Potter." I hope the Brits have the nuts to crack down on this bullshit before it gets out of hand. We need reality-based places to go in the world to escape the theocratic mess created in THIS country by the non-reality-based community.

UK Universities Boot Christian Groups

Student unions at three UK universities have suspended Christian groups because the groups discriminate against gays. Well, of course the Bishops are screeming bloody murder that THE CHURCH is the victim of discrimination. They're just so kneejerk with this countervictimization thing. It's in the Guardian.

Wouldn't it be great if this started happening here.

Keep Them Separate

Here's one we've used at the capitol a number of times. I made it for a counterdemonstration which has now become a tradition, used on the steps of the capitol each May on the day of the state's illegal observance of National Prayer Day. It really upsets the religionists. Someone inevitably comes up and says "isn't it OUR government?" - to which I respond "well yes it is OUR government, but why should OUR government force ME to conform to YOUR religion?"

Dems To Move Against Don't Ask Don't Tell

Massachusetts Rep. Marty Meehan, the incoming chair of the House Armed Services Committee, says he will hold hearings early in 2007 on the 13 year old Don't Ask Don't Tell policy that bars gays from the military. He plans to introduce a bill that would repeal the policy, as reported in the Boston Globe, pointing out that the policy is harmful to the military, .

And The Exodus Begins

Queer University of Wisconsin employees now facing the grim future dealt them by Wisconsin voters are looking for work elsewhere, as reported by 365gay.com. I suspect the university is not the only Wisconsin employer that will see a loss of gay workers and the proven, job creating, entrepreneurial acumen that goes along with them. Perhaps in the future when unemployed christofascist Wisconsin voters sit down to a self righteous meal of "Fancy Feast," they will wonder how life might have been if they'd embraced equality in 2006 instead of driving away the creative class.

Same Sex Marriage Equality Bill Introduced In NJ

The "Civil Marriage and Religious Protection Act", a bill introduced in the New Jersey legislature today, would make it possible for any two consenting adults to get a civil marriage. No special separate name or set of rights...every couple is treated as equal, just the way it should be. It seems odd to have this noble gesture be so closely juxtaposed with the malicious, collective act of hate that was committed against gay families by Wisconsin (and other states') voters just three days ago.

Whether or not this is the bill that passes the legislature in an effort to fulfill the ruling of the New Jersey Supreme Court that said same sex couples must have the same rights as different sex couples , remains to be seen. The court gave the legislature the option of instituting an equal structure with a bullshit name so as not to offend the privileged. "Civil Unions" are the back of the bus!

Fuck Wisconsin

Wisconsin did something they had no business doing, no business deciding on as voters. It was an issue of civil rights and should NEVER have been put before the voters.

While phone banking in River Falls, there were many people that I talked with on the phone who simply had no clue as to what the amendment stood for or what effect their "no" or "yes" vote would have. "If I vote 'no' will that mean gays can't get married?" "Does a 'yes vote' mean gays can get married?" Regardless of this anecdotal confusion, I'm sure the vast majority of people knew exactly what they were doing. The point is, this amendment that should never have been offered to voters in the first place, allowed clueless and/or bigoted people to just totally fuck with the lives of thousands of their fellow citizens, many without even knowing the consequences of their actions.

Some of the volunteers I spoke with at the phone bank will now, as they said they would if the amendment passed, pack up their families and their lives and leave the state in order to protect themselves from the hostile legal environment that is now created there. I'm sure they will be accompanied by thousands more.

Defeat The Amendment Day In Wisconsin

Today outside the Unitarian church in River Falls, Kathy Rausch helped me find just the right place to park the van for maximum shower curtain visibility. While this message was being delivered outside the church to passing motorists, the same message was being delivered inside the church to Wisconsin voters via telephone.

After my shift at the phone bank, I took the banner to the familiar freeway overpass in Hudson until the sun went down.

Wisconsin Phone Banking

The original plan was to go to Eau Claire to get-out-the-vote phone bank against Wisconsin's anti-gay marriage amendment but as it turned out, there was a phone bank operation in River Falls, much closer to the metro. River Falls is just a little south of Hudson. It was easy to find the Unitarian church as it was right on the main drag and next to a little farm with a number of holstiens greeting arriving phone bankers from the other side of the fence. Inside the church, there was a spread of lasagna, sandwiches, cookies and coffee. Cell phones were charged up and ready to go. Volunteers were dispersed throughout the church in meeting rooms and in corners of the sanctuary. Bob and I were handed a script and several pages of names and phone numbers by Beth, the very friendly person in charge. The calling resulted in leaving voice messages for the most part since our shift was in the afternoon and there weren't many people home to answer the phone.

As I was calling down the list, the realization of how wrong it was that we should have to be doing this, trying to convince people to vote a certain way on something they have absolutely no business voting on, hit me. Not a joyful endeavor. Back at it tomorrow.