Sheehan's Stand

Retired general testifies in support of DADT by blaming gays for military failures and sexual assaults, believes burden is on gays to prove military will ''become better''

Published on March 19, 2010, 10:01am

Hearing, Rally and Arrests

Thursday's ''Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' repeal efforts go from Capitol Hill to incarceration, including an appearance by Kathy Griffin

Published on March 18, 2010, 4:59pm

A day that began with the formality of a ''Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' (DADT) Senate hearing took a turn for the dramatic Thursday with the arrest of activists at the White House -- and a bit of celebrity in between. The morning's Senate hearing featured former Air Force Maj. Michael Almy and former Navy Lt. j.g. Jenny Kopfstein, two clients of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN), testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the morning of Thursday, March 18. ...[more]

DADT Repeal Still Uncertain

Some question White House, Congressional enthusiasm for 2010 repeal; Rep. Patrick Murphy's bill gets second Republican sponsor as Rep. Anh Cao signs on

Published on March 18, 2010, 1:16am

Calling Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Penn.) ''a tireless champion'' for the repeal of the ''Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' policy, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network spokesman Kevin Nix pointed to the work and progress made on repeal since the veteran took over the efforts in the House as the reason he will be serving as the keynote speaker at Saturday's SLDN Annual National Dinner. The dinner, which will be the group's 18th, will follow a day in which members and supporters of SLDN ...[more]

Wone Trial Nears

Government shifts approach in its case against three gay men in three-year-old murder of a local lawyer

Published on March 18, 2010, 1:15am

Inside D.C. Superior Court on a cold and rainy Friday afternoon, Kathy Wone's gaze moved to the floor of the courtroom as two attorneys representing the United States government described what remains of her husband, Robert Wone. ''About three to four milliliters of blood,'' Assistant U.S. Attorney Glenn Kirschner told Judge Lynn Leibovitz, adding that there are also some of Wone's tissue samples stored in formaldehyde. According to the government's toxicologist, neither sample is suitable for toxicology testing. Three-and-a-half years ...[more]

Transgender Women Assaulted

Arrest made in attack in Petworth neighborhood; police report hate crime involving a metal pole

Published on March 16, 2010, 8:05am

The Metropolitan Police Department arrested a man suspected of assaulting two transgender individuals, also described as members of the Latino LGBT community, shortly after the incident on Saturday, March 13. According to a report released Monday, March 15, by Sgt. Carlos Mejia, who heads MPD’s Special Liaison Units (SLU), police were called to 14th and Sheperd Streets NW on Saturday. There they found two “transgender individuals,” one of whom suffered injuries from the attack and received medical treatment. “The investigation ...[more]

First Step for Families

New legislation would empower federal government to withhold funds from state adoption agencies that discriminate against LGBT people

Published on March 15, 2010, 1:43pm

On March 10, Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.), with nine Democratic co-sponsors, introduced the Every Child Deserves a Family Act to address anti-LGBT discrimination in adoption. LGBT equality advocates, however, describe the bill's introduction as only the first step in building support for the nondiscrimination measure. The bill would make it illegal for any entity involved with adoption or foster care placement that receives federal funding to discriminate in its placement decisions based on sexual orientation, gender identity or marital status. ...[more]

Motley's NOM Money

National opponents of same-sex marriage donate to D.C. candidate challenging marriage bill author David Catania

Published on March 12, 2010, 5:55pm

Last Spring, when the D.C. City Council voted 12-1 in favor of recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions in the District, Paul Trantham riled up opponents of the measure by filling the Council's halls with chaos, shouting: ''Vote them off the Council! Each one of them… they are destroying our youth.'' Those opposing the legalization of same-sex marriage in D.C., such as the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), are doing just what Trantham suggested. NOM is supporting Rev. Anthony J. ...[more]

Ice Capade

Stars on Ice denies allegations that Olympian Johnny Weir was excluded from tour because he's ''not family friendly.''

Published on March 12, 2010, 4:38pm

On Friday afternoon, a spokeswoman for the Smuckers Stars on Ice Tour denied allegations made by both U.S. Olympian Johnny Weir and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation that he has been kept out of the tour because he is ''not family friendly.'' Jennifer Cosgrove, a spokeswoman for Stars on Ice, responded to GLAAD, writing in a statement released to Metro Weekly, ''We are disappointed that there is untrue and inaccurate information being disseminated. Please be assured that the ...[more]

No, Virginia, There Is No Nondiscrimination Policy

News Analysis: Virginia Gov. McDonnell's executive directive on employment discrimination is about appearances, not policy

Published on March 11, 2010, 8:34am

Over the past month, three differing documents produced by two statewide elected officials in Virginia have led to a whole lot of confusion about where the Commonwealth stands on protection of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from discrimination. First, Republican Governor Bob McDonnell issued an executive order relating to ''Equal Opportunity.'' The Feb. 5 order noted that ''[t]his order is in furtherance of the stated policy enacted by the General Assembly, and specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of ...[more]

Festival's Future

Amid harsh economic realities and an evolving community, One In Ten calls for town-hall meeting to chart gay film fest's fate

Published on March 11, 2010, 2:25am

As piles of snow melt away, preparing the stage for cherry blossoms, change is in the District's air. But it's not all Mother Nature's doing. One In Ten, the LGBT cultural organization responsible for the annual Reel Affirmations film festival, marking its 20th year in 2010, is readying for its own big changes. What those changes will be, however, remains to be seen. ''A lot of festivals across the country have been closing their doors, and we don't want to ...[more]

Time for Tributes

Nominations now open for Capital Pride Heroes and Metro Weekly's Next Generation Awards

Published on March 11, 2010, 2:24am

In a city as dynamic as Washington, and with a vibrant LGBT community to match, there's no doubt that there are an endless number of local leaders worth heralding for their contributions. In an effort to identify a few more of these folks, Metro Weekly's Next Generation Awards and Capital Pride's Heroes awards are now accepting nominations. The Next Generation Awards, marking their second year, celebrate local ''activists, leaders and artists'' younger than 30, while Capital Pride's Heroes are defined ...[more]

Husbands and Wives

Group same-sex wedding ceremony in D.C. may be one for the Guinness record book

Published on March 11, 2010, 2:23am

For some, the notion of a mass wedding might conjure discomforting images right out the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. But that's not the case for dozens of local gay and lesbian couples who have registered to exchange vows at an upcoming mass wedding in the District on March 20. GLBT Wedding Services by Event Emissary is offering Saturday's daylong affair under the title ''Our Time Has Come,'' to be held inside the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium downtown. The ...[more]

Doctor, Doctor

Despite gains in society, gays and lesbians still face challenges receiving equal treatment in health care

Published on March 18, 2010, 1:13am

Back in the very early 1990s, not long after college and in the depths of my great post-collegiate career crisis — fancy speak for ''educated and unemployed'' — I found myself without health insurance. This seemed no big deal for a young, healthy, adult male. Then my wisdom tooth decided to make a move, becoming impacted, painful and in desperate need of removal. After many calls to dentists' offices to no avail, a friend told me to call a local ...[more]

Vatican's Past Imperfect

Amid a new choirboy scandal, social evolution is leaving the Catholic Church behind

Published on March 18, 2010, 1:11am

Pope Benedict XVI has been beset by matters of the flesh lately, from the growing sexual-abuse scandal in Germany to the revelation that a member of a Vatican choir procured male prostitutes for one of the pope's ceremonial ushers at 2,000 euros a pop. A headline in the March 13 issue of The New York Times declared, ''Church Abuse Scandal in Germany Edges Closer to Pope.'' This refers to the revelation that 30 years ago in the Archdiocese of Munich ...[more]

Seniors in the Spotlight

LGBT aging is not a news trend, it is what we are living every day

Published on March 18, 2010, 1:09am

It's been another big news week for LGBT aging. An Associated Press story released Monday on coming out late in life; the SAGE/Movement Advancement Project report entitled ''Improving the Lives of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Older Adults''; and a significant LGBT presence at the National Council on Aging/American Society on Aging's annual conference -- the largest conference of aging professionals and policymakers in the country. There's a reason for this attention. Our nation is aging, and the LGBT ...[more]

Political Proof

It may seem counterintuitive, but we need Virginia's Republican governor and attorney general to pursue their far-right, anti-gay platform

Published on March 11, 2010, 2:27am

Just to be clear about this before I start: I was appalled that Bob McDonnell could be elected governor of Virginia and absolutely horrified the Ken Cuccinelli was elected attorney general. In fact, I can't even remember who else ran for attorney general -- all I know is that I voted for the candidate who was not Ken Cuccinelli. As a current Northern Virginia resident who also happened to attend college in the state lo these many years ago, I'm ...[more]

Transformational Tie

Marriage may not change our relationship, but it changes our relationship to our community

Published on March 11, 2010, 2:26am

It's funny, and often fascinating, how so much can change in such a short time -- and yet change so little. When our family arrived back home on Tuesday evening, we were the same family we were when we left home that afternoon. Yet, as a family we experienced an important change when my husband and I -- after being married in all but the legal sense for 10 years -- were legally married to each other Tuesday afternoon. The ...[more]