Father’s Day in a house with lesbian moms.
Perhaps you are wondering what Father’s Day is like in a family with lesbian moms. Me too. Over the 19 years we have been parents, there has been no pattern.
I don’t sense any sadness from our kids about the holiday. It’s not like Valentine’s Day when you don’t have a valentine. But I am not naive. I am sure our kids find themselves wishing for a father from time to time but it remains unspoken. And while I hold my head up very high about the kind of parenting my partner and I provide for our three kids, yes, sometimes on Father’s Day I feel a tiny twinge. I can’t really describe it. It’s just a twinge.
I think it was partially due to that twinge that I lobbied many years ago to get Father’s Day.
Let’s be clear. It was not a gender confusion thing. I just thought it was quite practical. Think about the more thoughtful school or camp forms that don’t ask for “Mother” and “Father” but now ask for “Parent 1″ and “Parent 2.” I’m not suggesting that Hallmark become quite this thoughtful with their holidays but you get the idea. Mother’s Day in a house with lesbian moms, as I wrote about last month, can be a challenge. It’s quite an awesome day on the one hand and yet at the same time, it is not a singularly special day for either of us.
Thus my idea to turn Father’s Day into Jojo Day.
You see, ,my kids call me Jojo. My kids’ friends. My kids’ teachers. My kids’ friends’ parents. Its origin is quite simple. Scout the Elder was Agent Zero.
When my partner Eileen was pregnant with Scout, we talked about the name thing. Eileen had a preference to be called Mom and as she was handling the hard labor (literally), that seemed just right. But what will this baby call you, she asked? I don’t know. Let’s see what she comes up with.
See
Father’s Day in a house with lesbian moms.
The Star-Ledger - NJ.com
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/06/fathers-day-i…
Oscar Winner Sean Penn Leads Call for Harvey Milk DayPenn Joins Equality California and Sen. Leno to Introduce Legislation Honoring Slain Civil Rights
San Francisco - Sean Penn, Academy Award-winning star of Milk, called for a statewide “day of special significance” in honor of slain civil rights leader Harvey Milk. On Tuesday, Penn joined State Senator Mark Leno and State Assemblymember Tom Ammiano at a press conference to introduce the Harvey Milk Day Bill, SB 572. Sponsored by Equality California (EQCA), the bill seeks to educate Californians about the former San Francisco City Supervisor, who became the nation’s first openly lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) person elected to major political office.
Milk’s service as an openly gay official helped bring LGBT people out of the closet and into civic life. During his time in office, he was responsible for both passing San Francisco’s first gay-rights ordinance and helping to defeat the controversial Briggs Initiative, which sought to ban gay and lesbian teachers from public schools. Milk, along with San Francisco Mayor George Moscone, was assassinated in November 1978.
“We may have lost Harvey Milk, but we have not lost his passion, his commitment, and his courage to fight for equality and justice for all,” said Geoff Kors, Executive Director of Equality California. “Harvey Milk is not just a hero to LGBT people. His endurance in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges is a source of pride for every Californian. This bill aims to give people a positive representation of who LGBT people are – an image that inspires pride and self esteem for all.”
“Harvey Milk was a true American hero,” said Senator Leno. “He gave hope to an entire generation of gay and lesbian people whose basic humanity and freedom had been denied and dishonored, and he literally gave his life so that I and other LGBT elected officials could serve in public office. Harvey’s courage still inspires us today as we continue to struggle for equal rights following the passage of Proposition 8 in California. His story has been told around the world in “Milk,” starring Academy Award winner Sean Penn, and today we fittingly continue our work to preserve that legacy for generations to come.”
The measure would proclaim May 22nd ‘Harvey Milk Day’ and add it to the list of state holidays, although it will be crafted in a way so as not to generate additional state costs or increase the number of paid state holidays.
The legislation was originally introduced last year by Sen. Leno, but Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the measure at the time, claiming Harvey Milk was not well known enough beyond San Francisco. Since that time, however, Harvey Milk has become a focal point of national conversation following the release of the film Milk. Following the Milk’s success, both Sean Penn and screenwriter Dustin Lance Black received an Oscar for their work on the film.* Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
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Obama’s Pastor Pick Makes Anti-Gay Gesture - Again …..
Rick Warren, who has been out of the news for, oh, about 10 minutes, since the controversial California pastor was picked to give the invocation at Barack Obama’s inauguration, is back.
Recapping here: After sticking a fork in the eye of gay rights advocates by actively supporting Proposition 8 — which overturned the legalization of gay marriage in California — Warren compounded their outrage by equating gay marriage with incest in an interview with Beliefnet.
The hubbub lulled down a little over the holidays but today, he’s back, with an open invitation to any group displaced by their denomination. This is code for Episcopal congregations that oppose that church’s acceptance of a gay bishop in 2003. Earlier this week, a California judge ruled that a breakaway congregation, St. James in Newport Beach, cannot keep its property now that they have left the Episcopal Church.
The Southern Baptist Warren shared his letter with Christianity Today which says, in part:
We stand in solidarity with them, and with all orthodox, evangelical Anglicans. I offer the campus of Saddleback Church to any Anglican congregation who need a place to meet, or if you want to plant a new congregation in south Orange County.
See Rev. Rick Warren takes another jab
USA Today -
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No ballot question on Cleveland’s DP registry after signature drive falls short
A group of local pastors has come up short in an effort to trigger a referendum vote on Cleveland’s domestic-partner registry.
The group, led by the Rev. C. Jay Matthews of Mount Sinai Baptist Church, needed to submit about 11,000 signatures by Wednesday to put the issue to a citywide vote.
Matthews said only a few thousand signatures were collected. He blamed the failure on a narrow time frame over the holidays.
See No ballot question on Cleveland’s DP registry after signature drive falls short
The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) (1/8)
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