Mass. GOP candidate outlines senate strategy

(Needham, Mass.) Republican Scott Brown is hoping to ride a tide of voter anger at Wall Street bailouts and soaring national debt as he seeks to topple Democrat Martha Coakley in the race to fill the U.S. Senate seat held by the late Edward Kennedy.

In an interview with The Associated …

Vanasco: LGBT champion announces run for Kennedy seat

Massachusetts attorney general Martha Coakley, who filed the lawsuit against the federal government claiming that DOMA is discriminatory against gays and lesbians, announced Thursday she will run in the special election for late Sen. Edward Kennedy’s seat.

From Change.org:

In July 2009, Coakley filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government challenging the …

President Obama to Bestow Presidential Medal of Freedom on Harvey Milk

Equality California Urges Governor to Sign Harvey Milk Day Bill into Law

San Francisco – Today President Obama announced that he will honor assassinated civil rights leader Harvey Milk with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor recognizing significant contributions to the nation and the world. The President will also honor Senator Edward Kennedy and tennis legend Billie Jean King, an open lesbian and longtime champion for the rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community, with the Medal of Freedom on August 12.

“President Obama understands that Harvey Milk’s legacy reaches far beyond San Francisco, and that his story is an inspiration to everyone who believes in equality and fairness,” said Geoff Kors, Equality California (EQCA) executive director. “Harvey Milk risked everything to change the course of history and to secure many of the civil rights and protections we enjoy today. In light of Harvey Milk receiving this incredible honor, we urge Governor Schwarzenegger to sign the Harvey Milk bill into law as a tribute to Harvey Milk’s courageous work to end discrimination against the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.”

Last year, EQCA sponsored the first bill in the country to officially honor Milk, the nation’s first openly gay man elected to major political office, but the Governor vetoed it. Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) introduced the Harvey Milk Day bill, sponsored by EQCA, again this year. The legislation would require the governor to annually proclaim May 22 as Harvey Milk Day, designating it as a “day of special significance,” to recognize Milk’s work to secure equal protections.

Equality California (EQCA) is the largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender-rights advocacy organization in California. In the past decade, EQCA has strategically moved California from a state with extremely limited legal protections for LGBT individuals to a state with some of the most comprehensive civil-rights protections in the nation. EQCA has passed over 50 pieces of legislation and continues to advance equality through legislative advocacy, public education and community empowerment. www.eqca.org

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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/07/president-oba…

Senate gives nod to gay-inclusive hate crimes bill

The U.S. Senate voted 63-28 to attach gay-inclusive federal hate crimes legislation to the 2010 defense authorization bill. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D.-Mass., who first proposed amending U.S. hate crimes law to cover sexual orientation, issued a statement saying that the proposal would “[close] the flagrant loopholes that for too long have prevented effective prosecution of these shocking crimes that terrorize entire groups of communities across America.” Google/The Associated Press

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