Report Shows LGBT Health Disparities
A new report on the non-HIV health and human service needs of LGBT people in New York state shows significant disparities compared to non-LGBT people, reflecting national trends exacerbated by lack of adequate data and homophobia.
The state-sponsored report, the first of its kind for New York, was prepared by researcher Somjen Frazer and published by the Empire State Pride Agenda. It is based on government data, interviews with 60 LGBT health and human services experts, and surveys of 3,500 LGBT New Yorkers.
Key findings of the report, according to Somjen, include the pervasiveness of homelessness, which poses a substantial barrier to service access. Fourteen percent of LGBT people, including one-third of transgender respondents, reported being homeless currently or at one point in their lives.
Lack of culturally competent care also creates hurdles, with 40% of LGBT respondents saying that too few health professionals were adequately trained to deliver services to LGBT patients. Moreover, 27% said they feared they would be treated differently if their health care provider learned they were LGBT.
See Report Shows LGBT Health Disparities
Advocate.com
* Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
| Published by |
 |
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/07/report-shows-…
On the job and in the closet
Canada may be viewed as one of the world’s most inclusive societies, but a study released Wednesday suggests many gay employees in Canada still face barriers when it comes to career advancement.
The study by the research organization Catalyst is the first of its kind in Canada. Its main findings were based on survey responses from 232 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Canadian employees.
Less than half of respondents said their manager and colleagues are very comfortable with LGBT employees. Fewer than one in ten thought their manager and co-workers are very informed about issues facing gay workers.
The key barriers LGBT workers face at work are discriminatory behaviour, a lack of awareness on the issue, and exclusion from networking opportunities with others, Catalyst said.
“Workplace barriers to career advancement for LGBT employees in Canadian organizations persist,” the report said. “Women and men reported exclusion from the ‘old boys’ club’ and were acutely aware of the career limitations of exclusion from important networks.”
About 12 per cent of gay women say they are completely in the closet at work, versus 5 per cent of men.
This year also marks 40 years since homosexuality was decriminalized in Canada. In 2005, Canada became the fourth country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage.
The work environment is far more inclusive now than even a decade ago. But many workers remain fearful about the repercussions of coming out of the closet, said Darrell Schuurman, Toronto-based manager of market development for VIA Rail and board member of the Canadian Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.
“We all think that Canada is such a progressive place, and it really is relative to other countries, but are we there yet completely? No,” he said. “In terms of feeling comfortable and open, there’s still a lot more that can be done” within the workplace. See On the job and in the closet
Globe and Mail
* Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/06/on-job-and-in…
Nevada governor follows through on threat to veto DP bill
CARSON CITY — As promised, Gov. Jim Gibbons on Monday vetoed the bill that would allow same- and opposite-sex couples to become legal domestic partners with many of the rights and privileges of married couples.
In his veto message, Gibbons said he rejected state Senate Bill 283 because it is contrary to the wishes of Nevada voters who in 2002 approved the Protection of Marriage constitutional amendment. That amendment stipulates a marriage may be between only a man and a woman.
But the governor said his veto should not be taken to mean he believes that “domestic partners are in any way undeserving of rights and protections.”
He said that on Saturday he signed a bill to prevent discrimination in public accommodations based on one’s sexual orientation.
“I am disappointed, but it wasn’t unexpected,” said state Sen. David Parks, D-Las Vegas, about the veto.
Parks, the bill’s sponsor, who is openly gay, said times have changed since the Protection of Marriage amendment, and some polls show strong public support for domestic partner legislation.
However, a Las Vegas Review-Journal poll conducted May 12-14 found that 50 percent of poll respondents opposed the proposal, with 38 percent favoring it and 12 percent undecided.
See * Nevada governor follows through on threat to veto DP bill
Las Vegas Review-Journal (5/26) Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/05/nevada-govern…
For gay couples, married matters
Five years after the first same-sex weddings in Massachusetts, gay and lesbian couples express deeply traditional reasons for deciding to wed and cite equally conventional benefits flowing from marriage, according to a study being released this week.
A significant majority of the 558 gay men and women surveyed said that since marrying, they feel more committed to their spouses, more accepted in their community, and more likely to be open about their sexual orientation at work.
The survey indicates that there is something universal about the legal protections and social advantages afforded by the institution of marriage, said the study’s authors from the University of California, Los Angeles as well as independent researchers. And it suggests, they said, that a ritual once scorned even by many same-sex couples has the power to ease discrimination.
“This really helps us confirm and makes us understand why same-sex couples demand marriage - if it’s just about the legal rights, why wouldn’t they be happy with civil partnerships?” said Stephanie Coontz author of “Marriage, A History.”
“They want access to that word that is so highly valued by our society and by other people.
“It is one thing not to invite your child’s girlfriend or boyfriend to dinner,” said Coontz, a professor at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash. “It is quite another thing not to invite the spouse.”
Same-sex marriages began in Massachusetts on May 17, 2004, after the Supreme Judicial Court declared that gay and lesbian couples had the right to wed. The ruling ignited a political and social maelstrom in Massachusetts and beyond, but since then four other states - Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, and Vermont - have extended marriage rights to same-sex couples. Lawmakers in New Hampshire are currently debating whether to make their state the next to do so.
The study was prepared and paid for by UCLA’s Williams Institute, which examines legal and public policy issues related to sexual orientation and is funded by foundations and individuals, including supporters of gay marriage.
The authors of the survey, which consisted of about 30 questions, said they regarded it as an initial assessment of gay marriage, largely designed to explore issues arising during public debate rather than to delve into more personal aspects of couples’ relationships. For example, researchers asked whether respondents’ children had faced taunting as a result of their parents’ same-sex marriage - only 5 percent had - but did not ask how happily married partners were.
“We’ve been interested in the impact of marriage for a long time,” said Lee Badgett, researcher director of the Williams Institute and senior author of the study. “I’ve been combing the universe for data, but there just aren’t that many places to look at same-sex couples who are literally married.”
See For gay couples, married matters Boston Globe * Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/05/for-gay-coupl…
CNN Poll: Generational gap on gay marriage
A new national poll suggests that a majority of Americans oppose legalizing same sex marriages — but there’s a vast generational divide on the issue.
Fifty-four percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Monday say that marriages between gay or lesbian couples should not be recognized as valid, with 44 percent suggests they should be considered legal.
Among those 18 to 34 years old, 58 percent said same-sex marriages should be legal. That number drops to 42 percent among respondents 35 to 49 years old, and to 41 percent for those 50 to 64 years of age. The poll indicates that only 24 percent of Americans 65 and older support recognizing same-sex marriages as valid.
While a majority of those polled oppose legalizing gay marriage, 6 out of 10 feel that states that do not recognize gay marriages allow civil unions. When it comes to supporting civil unions, the poll indicates a similar generational shift.
Three states, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Iowa, currently allow same-sex marriages. A law passed by Vermont law makers that makes gay and lesbian marriages legal takes effect in the state later this year. Lawmakers in Maine and New Hampshire are close to passing a similar bill.
See CNN Poll: Generational gap on gay marriage
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/05/cnn-poll-gene…
Who Supports Gay-Rights Issues?
A new poll from Quinnipiac University gives us a decidedly mixed picture of gay rights issues, reporting widespread opposition to gay marriage (55 percent to 38 percent), support for civil unions (57 percent to 38 percent), and opposition to the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy (56 percent to 37 percent).
The military question offers a pretty striking sub-statistic: a vast majority of respondents in military households don’t think openly gay men and women would be divisive for the military (though I haven’t seen a breakdown on whether most respondents were servicemen/women themselves, or whether they were wives, husbands, children, etc.)
There are some interesting underpinnings here to mine, rendering a picture of what kinds of people fall on the “pro” side of gay-rights issues. Quinnipiac tells us it’s women (who are six to 15 points more likely to support gay-rights issues than men), young people (53 percent of 18-34 year olds support gay marriage), Jews (81 percent support gay marriage), people who know someon who is gay (group is split on marriage, but supports civil unions while the “no” group doesn’t), and people with college degrees (support gay marriage 50 percent to 45 percent).
Philosophically, people are more likely to support gay-rights issues if they think people are born gay or straight (65 percent back gay marriage), while those who think homosexuality is a choice are much less likely (15 percent support gay marriage).
So, in sum, groups that are more likely to vote liberal, plus people who know someone is gay.
See Who Supports Gay-Rights Issues?
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/04/who-supports-…
Political Memo Same-Sex Marriage Holds Peril for GOP
WASHINGTON — It was only five years ago that opposition to same-sex marriage was so strong that Republicans explicitly turned to the issue as a way to energize conservative voters. Yet today, as the party contemplates the task of rebuilding itself, some Republicans say the marriage issue may be turning into more of a hindrance than a help.
The fact that a run of states have legalized same-sex marriage in recent months — either by court decision or by legislative action — with little backlash is only one indication of how public attitudes about this subject appear to be changing.
More significant is evidence in polls of a widening divide on the issue by age, suggesting to many Republicans that the potency of the marriage question is on the decline. It simply does not appear to have the resonance with younger voters that it does with older ones.
Consider this: In the latest New York Times/CBS News poll, released Monday, 31 percent of respondents over the age of 40 said they supported same-sex marriage. By contrast, 57 percent under age 40 said they supported it, a 26-point difference. Among the older respondents, 35 percent said they opposed any legal recognition of same-sex couples, be it marriage or civil unions. Among the younger crowd, just 19 percent held that view.
Steve Schmidt, who was the senior strategist to Senator John McCain of Arizona during his presidential campaign, said in a speech and an interview that Republicans were in danger of losing these younger voters unless the party came to appreciate how issues like same-sex marriage resonated, or did not resonate, with them.
“Republicans should re-examine the extent to which we are being defined by positions on issues that I don’t believe are among our core values, and that put us at odds with what I expect will become, over time, if not a consensus view, then the view of a substantial majority of voters,” Mr. Schmidt said in a speech. See Political Memo Same-Sex Marriage Holds Peril for GOP
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/04/political-mem…
Utah opposition to civil unions shows proponents of Prop 8 Lied - again
You may remember how proponents of Prop 8 claimed they were not against Civil Unions for queers - they only wanted to protect marriage from being destroyed, etc.
Well, over in Utah (home of The Mormon Church) we can now see the truth: far right conservatives and the Mormon Church are against any form of equality for LGBT people. Read on:
Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said Friday that Utah’s constitutional amendment banning gay marriage also prohibits civil unions, and that Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. is wrong when he says it’s open to interpretation from the courts. “When it comes to civil unions, it’s absolutely clear. There is no doubt,” Shurtleff said in an interview. “That’s in the Constitution.” Utah voters approved Amendment 3 to Utah’s Constitution in 2004, stating that marriage can only consist of a union between a man and a woman and that “No other domestic union, however denominated, may be recognized as a marriage or given the same or substantially equivalent legal effect.” On Thursday, Huntsman said that it is not clear that the Constitution bans civil unions. “I think that ultimately could be a court case and that might be adjudicated in court if it comes to that level,” Huntsman said during his monthly KUED news conference. “But [the amendment] wasn’t clear. That spoke to marriage and anything subordinate to marriage, I think, would probably be adjudicated in a court of law.” Shurtleff said that, based on the language of the amendment and the legislative intent and history, “they clearly were prohibiting civil unions.” On Friday, Shurtleff sent a Twitter message to 380 correspondents: “It is NOT a matter for the courts, the PEOPLE have spoken!”
Salt Lake Tribune - United States
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/04/utah-oppositi…
Mainline Clergy Survey shows high support for activist government, growing support for LGBT equality
Leading researchers on religion and politics today released the results of an in‐depth survey of
Mainline Protestant clergy political engagement during the 2008 election season, attitudes on social and economic issues, and the public role of the church. The Mainline Protestant Clergy Voices Survey (CVS), conducted by Public Religion Research, is the largest survey of mainline clergy in seven years, and the broadest ever in scope. Mainline Protestants, who make up 18 percent of all Americans and nearly a quarter of all voters, have been trending Democratic in recent years, but remain fairly evenly divided in their political behavior.
“Mainline Protestants are probably the most under‐examined major religious group in the United States,” said Dr. Robert P. Jones, President of Public Religion Research. “That’s especially surprising when you consider that they occupy so much of the vital middle ground in American politics.” Jones said that Mainline Protestants, once the religious bedrock of the Republican Party, are now an important swing constituency that has been moving slowly but steadily away from the GOP since the early 1990s. He said the new survey will be invaluable in helping us understand Mainline Protestants’ role in the American religious landscape by shedding light on the attitudes and political engagement of mainline clergy.
“Mainline clergy are highly educated, political interested, and socially engaged,” said Jones. “They are strong supporters of church‐state separation, but they are also interested in being more personally involved on social and political issues.”
The CVS surveyed senior clergy from the seven largest mainline denominations: United Methodist Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, American Baptist Churches USA, Presbyterian Church USA, Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ, and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The survey found significant differences across the denominations on religious and political measures.
Among its findings on social and political issues:
Mainline clergy are much more likely to identify as liberal and Democratic than conservative or Republican. Almost half (48%) of all mainline clergy identify as liberal, compared to about one‐third (34%) who say they are conservative. A majority (56%) of mainline clergy identify with or lean towards the Democratic Party, compared to roughly one‐third (34%) who claim a Republican affiliation, a 22‐point gap. Clergy political leanings vary considerably by denomination. Three quarters (74%) of UCC clergy identify as liberal, compared to less than a third (32%) of ABCUSA clergy.
Mainline Protestant clergy are broadly supportive of government’s role in addressing social problems such as unemployment, poverty and poor housing. More than three‐quarters (78%) agree that the federal government should do more to solve social problems, and more than 4‐in‐10 strongly agree.
Mainline clergy are strongly supportive of government action in the areas of health care and the environment. More than two‐thirds (67%) of clergy agree that government should guarantee health insurance for all citizens, even if it means raising taxes. And nearly 7‐in‐10 (69%) clergy say that more environmental protection is needed, even if it raises prices or costs jobs.
On a broad range of issues, mainline clergy affirm equality for gay and lesbian Americans. Roughly two‐thirds of mainline clergy support some legal recognition for same‐sex couples (65%), passing hate crime laws (67%), and employment nondiscrimination protections for gay and lesbian people (66%). A majority (55%) of mainline clergy support adoption rights for gay and lesbian people.
Mainline Protestant clergy are strong advocates of church‐state separation. A majority (65%) of mainline clergy agree that the U.S. should “maintain a strict separation of church and state.” Mainline clergy are more worried about public officials who are too close to religious leaders (59%) than about public officials who do not pay enough attention to religion (41%).\
Mainline clergy are more likely to publicly address hunger and poverty and family issues than controversial social issues. More than 8‐in‐10 clergy say they publicly expressed their views about hunger and poverty often in the last year, and three‐quarters say they addressed marriage and family issues often. Only about one‐quarter (26%) say they often discussed the issues of abortion and capital punishment.
The survey also includes findings on religious measures, including clergy religious self‐identification (mainline, evangelical, born‐again), their views on the interpretation of scripture, and the relative importance of evangelism and social action.
Dr. John Green, Director of the Bliss Institute for Applied Politics at the University of Akron, served as advisor to the project and supervised its data collection. Green also participated in two of the earlier studies of mainline clergy in 1989 and 2001 upon which this new survey builds.
“This survey adds significantly to our knowledge and understanding of mainline clergy,” said Green. “Scholars of religion as well as journalists and interested activists will benefit from the information and insights it offers.”
The survey, which was conducted by mail, contained over 250 separate questions and generated
2,658 respondents with a response rate of 44%. The Mainline Protestant Clergy Voices Survey was funded by the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund.
| Published by |
|
Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/03/mainline-cler…
Number of people with no religion grows
(New York City) A wide-ranging study on American religious life found that the Roman Catholic population has been shifting out of the Northeast to the Southwest, the percentage of Christians in the nation has declined and more people say they have no religion at all.
Fifteen percent of respondents said they …
Tags: American Religious Life, Christians, New York City, People, Religion, Respondents, Roman Catholic Population, Southwest
