Questions about gay teen murder in Baltimore
Jason Mattison Jr., 15, an openly gay high schooler, was found dead last week in his aunt’s home; the suspect charged, Dante Parrish, 35, was a family friend. Mattison was raped, gagged with a pillowcase, stabbed repeatedly in the head and throat and shoved in a closet.
Says the Baltimore Sun:
Jason’s …
Tags: Baltimore Sun, Dante, Family Friend, Gay Baltimore, Gay Teen, High Schooler, Mattison, Pillowcase, Teen MurderAuthor E. Lynn Harris dies at age 54
The openly gay, best-selling author E. Lynn Harris died earlier this morning while on a book tour along the West Coast. The tour was in promotion of his eleventh novel, “Basketball Jones“, the story of a player in the NBA and his gay lover. While the cause of death is still unknown, his personal assistant did say that the Harris’s health had recently declined. Further questions, however, went unanswered. The celebrated author, known best for his books centered on life as a gay, black man, was 54 at the time of his death.
Born in Flint, Michigan, E. Lynn Harris moved around a lot, finally finding his home and settling down in the South. As a student at the University of Arkansas, he become the school’s first male cheerleader and was, till his dying breath, a giant Razorbacks fan. Later in life, Harris returned as a visiting professor in the school’s English department.
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Best-selling author E. Lynn Harris has died Entertainment Weekly - -
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Online blogs report Atlanta author E. Lynn Harris has died Atlanta Journal Constitution
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/07/author-e-lynn…
Forced into closet by nation they serve
Wednesday in Annapolis, the United States Naval Academy welcomed the most racially and ethnically diverse class in its history: 14 percent Hispanic, 10 percent African-American - and perhaps 2 percent to 3 percent homosexual. I added that last part. No one knows how many plebes are gay or lesbian, but studies have placed the percentage of homosexual men and women serving this nation’s military in that range, with some 65,000 said to be on active duty. It’s a fairly safe assumption that a small percentage of plebes will have to keep their sexuality a secret if they want to graduate from the academy and, after that, fulfill their obligations to the country.
That’s what “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” demands.
It forces men and women serving the nation to lie about their sexual orientation or risk discharge. An estimated 13,000 men and women have been discharged under Don’t Ask in the 16 years since the law took effect. The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network says 277 of the discharges have occurred since Barack Obama became president. As a candidate, Mr. Obama pledged to end Don’t Ask. Last week, the he reiterated his support for eventual repeal of the law by Congress.
Skip Muller was a midshipman at the Naval Academy at the start of the Don’t Ask era. Prior to entering the academy, he had studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute in California.
“As an 18-year-old I struggled to understand my own sexuality, while all around me I saw people actively targeted, investigated and ejected from the military because they were homosexual,” Mr. Mullen writes on the Web site of USNAOut, an organization of gay Naval Academy alumni. “I forced myself to date women and live the lie that consumed and exhausted me for years to come.”
After graduating from the academy in 1996, Mr. Muller served two tours aboard destroyers, the second cut short by honorable discharge under Don’t Ask. See
Forced into closet by nation they serve
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Baltimore lesbian couple found dead
(Baltimore) A lesbian couple was found dead in their apartment on Wednesday reports the Baltimore Sun. A daughter and niece of an upstairs neighbor were able to open the front door of the apartment and find the couple face-down on their bed.
Several clues indicate foul play, including an open front …
Tags: Apartment, Baltimore Sun, Couple Face, Foul Play, Lesbian Couple, Niece, Upstairs NeighborWill Maryland recognize gay marriages?
Maryland’s attorney general is deciding whether gay marriages performed in other states will be legally recognized by his state, the Baltimore Sun reports.
Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler is a Democrat and a strong advocate for equal marriage. Maryland defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman, but …
Tags: Advocate, Attorney General, Baltimore Sun, Democrat, Douglas F Gansler, Equal Marriage, Gay Marriages, Man And A Woman, marriageMD State AG studies recognizing out of state gay nuptials
Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler is exploring whether same-sex marriages performed in other states can be recognized in Maryland, a move that could open an avenue for legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples who have been rebuffed by the courts and legislature here.
The exercise puts Gansler - a Democrat and vocal proponent of same-sex marriage - in a difficult position. Maryland law clearly defines marriage as between a man and a woman, but the state also adheres to a long-standing legal principle that generally acknowledges couples married elsewhere.
Gay-rights activists say the ability to marry would not only strengthen their relationships but confer hundreds of rights, benefits and responsibilities on them, including community property protections, control over funeral arrangements of a spouse and an obligation to pay child support.
For many married same-sex couples living in Maryland, the issue isn’t just a legal conundrum but deeply personal.
See State studies gay nuptials Baltimore Sun - * Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
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Award-winning journalist Kevin Naff to direct both Genre Magazine and Washington Blade’s editorial vision
NEW YORK — Genre Magazine, a division of Window Media LLC, the nation’s largest gay publishing group, today announced the appointment of veteran LGBT journalist Kevin Naff as Editor-in-Chief of Genre Magazine. He will be responsible for the day-to-day operations and strategic planning for the magazine, while continuing his post as Editor of Washington Blade — the nation’s oldest, largest and most respected gay newspaper — celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2009. The announcement was made today by William Kapfer, Genre Publisher and Window Media Co-President.
Naff joins Genre after more than six years with the Washington Blade, including nearly three as editor, where he has overseen a senior team of editors and reporters responsible for covering some of the country’s most historic political events and its leaders. Naff is an award-winning journalist, columnist and blogger known for his provocative approach to analyzing the news. In addition to recurring guest commentator spots on Sirius/XM satellite radio and National Public Radio (NPR), he has been tapped for national appearances on such shows as Fox News’ “O’Reilly Factor,” CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360″ and CBS’ Logo network.
William Kapfer, Genre Vice President & Publisher and Window Media Co-President, says: “Kevin brings a real passion for LGBT journalism, and an appreciation for the vital role Window Media’s collection of print and digital assets bring to the community. Our readers demand flexibility not just in the content they receive, but also in how that content is delivered. This appointment underscores Genre’s mission to continue to produce the top quality magazine in our category–while continuing to provide readers with easily accessible, fresh, original content across our suite of integrated media channels.”
“I’m excited to join the team at Genre and help build on the magazine’s colorful history,” Naff said. “I look forward to advancing Genre’s mission, while also celebrating this year, the Blade’s 40th year as the nation’s leading LGBT news source.”
Prior to joining the Blade, Naff worked for Reuters as a financial journalist in New York, then spent four years at the Baltimore Sun, launching its web site in 1996. He served as vice president of business development for an online startup and as a private consultant before returning to journalism at the Blade. Naff sits on several boards, including the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association D.C. chapter, Live Baltimore and the Pennsylvania State University gay alumni organization. He lives in Baltimore with his partner of 11 years.* Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/03/award-winning…
Maryland Governor proposes health benefits to partners of gay …
”This move is consistent with the governor’s goal to provide affordable, quality health care to more Marylanders rather than fewer. It’s absolutely the right thing to do.”
Shaun Adamec, spokesman for Maryland Governor Martin O’Malleyspokesman who is making the proposal that same-sex partners of state workers should receive heal care benefits. The Baltimore Sun reports that some 300 employees would expected to take advantage of the offer and that it would put Maryland in line with the District of Columbia and several other states that offer some benefits to employees’ non-legally married partners. (Baltimore Sun)
See Maryland Governor proposes health benefits to partners of gay …
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Our view: Governor O’Malley’s move to cover same-sex partners is a … Baltimore Sun
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/02/maryland-gove…
Retired captain focuses documentary lens on gay and lesbian …
One captain in the Marine Corps had to sign the confining orders to send a lesbian to jail, but was so disturbed that the next day the officer, who was also gay, submitted his resignation papers. Another man, from the Naval Academy Class of 1958, was kicked out of the military because his name was found in the address book of a “known homosexual.” Other gay men and lesbians left the service because like Steve Clark Hall, a nuclear submarine captain who retired after a 20-year Navy career, they could no longer bear the burden of harboring an enormous secret about their identity. “I was tired of being single and not being able to live life the way I wanted to,” said Hall, 54, who has begun gathering these stories for Out of Annapolis, the documentary film he is making about gay and lesbian alumni of the Naval Academy.
Like many of his fellow academy graduates, Hall is devoted to the institution he says deeply shaped him morally and intellectually: He is part of the “President’s Circle” of donors, which requires a minimum annual gift of $2,500 to the academy’s foundation. He talks in glowing terms about his time in Annapolis, the lightweight crew team, the friendships he made and the mentors who guided him. He rarely takes off his class ring.
This clean-cut Navy booster who still has trouble putting his hands in his pockets - something Mids were not supposed to do - might not seem like an obvious candidate to undertake a project sure to thrill some and outrage others. But though he insists that making waves goes against his relatively conservative nature, he is pouring his time and a good chunk of his money into documenting what he sees as an important, and all too often invisible, part of military history.
“When I was a midshipman, there were no gay or lesbian role models,” he said. “All we ever heard was when someone was kicked out.” See Retired captain focuses documentary lens on gay and lesbian …
Baltimore Sun, United States
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