MetaFilter posts tagged with equality

"I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay."

mightygodking — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:20:14 -0800

Jason Collins, a veteran NBA center currently playing for the Washington Wizards, is now the first active player in major league American sports to openly declare he is gay.

Sen. Nesselbush: "Today is so important, I even wore a dress."

roomthreeseventeen — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:20:30 -0800

Rhode Island is about to vote to become the 10th state (and last state in New England) to enact marriage equality with the unanimous support of the State Senate Republicans. In March, Rhode Island's governor, Lincoln Chafee, published this op-ed in the Providence Journal, endorsing marriage for all couples. The bill has already passed the House, and will head for the governor's desk. A proposed amendment to allow for a referendum vote in the fall failed, 10-28. Said Senator Crowley:"This won't change my life one bit.. but it will change the lives of so many people [who want to marry]" The new marriage equality bill follows after at least nine years of hard work by organizations such as RI United for Marriage and GLAD. A marriage equality bill has been introduced in RI every year since 1997. Look for Delaware to be next.

I'm all man, baby.

erstwhile ungulate — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:42:59 -0800

Corners of the world where women have yet to tread. Visuals of leadership positions and organizations that are currently and historically boys' clubs. Some of it surprising, some of it expected. All of it sad. If you can overlook some of the pixelization and less than ideal design, it's an interesting exhibit of how deep and pervasive the gender gap is in a high level positions.

The Feminist Housewife

Kitty Stardust — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 12:29:18 -0800

Kelly calls herself “a flaming liberal” and a feminist, too. “I want my daughter to be able to do anything she wants,” she says. “But I also want to say, ‘Have a career that you can walk away from at the drop of a hat.’ ” And she is not alone. Via.

You've Come a Long Way, Baby...?

Miko — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:34:25 -0800

Makers: Women Who Make America is a sweeping 3-hour documentary of the movement for women's equality in the last half of the twentieth century. Airing this month on US public television, it's accompanied by an online archive of videos of interviews with individual women in leadership across a variety of fields. Leaders and activists, celebrities and pioneers, and everyday women retell the story of their awakening, organizing, and world-changing efforts.

Republicans and the unlikely bedfellows of marriage equality

corb — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 07:57:27 -0800

The national Republican Party still continues to oppose same-sex marriage, one of the factors of social conservatism that lost it the youth vote in the 2012 election and may have caused Romney's defeat. Many Republicans, however, have been arguing for a sea change to revitalize the party. They may have found it, in an unlikely appeal that "The party of Lincoln should stand with our best tradition of equality and support full civil marriage for all Americans.". A large number of prominent Republicans have signed onto an amicus brief opposing same-sex marriage bans in the Proposition 8 case currently before the Supreme Court - and some believe that the Republican support may allow the justices the political and legal support to rule for national marriage equality.

Words of wisdom from the not-so-distant past

flapjax at midnite — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 20:43:12 -0800

17 Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes You Never Hear

Not in our backyard

roomthreeseventeen — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 06:54:02 -0800

Following an incident at Fort Bragg where Lt. Colonel Heather Mack's wife, Ashley Broadway, was told she could not join the Association of Bragg Officers’ Spouses, the Marine Corps has issued guidance that spouses clubs operating on its bases and installations must offer membership to the same-sex spouses of gay and lesbian service members. While the Defense Department has not issued similar guidance covering all service branches, and for now is taking the stance that the Fort Bragg spouses club is conforming with the existing rules because the non-discrimination clause does not extend to sexual orientation, the Marine Corps memo makes it clear that they are judging this issue as one of sex discrimination. "We would interpret a spouses club's decision to exclude a same-sex spouse as sexual discrimination because the exclusion was based upon the spouse's sex," the memo said.

"Until you acquire an education, you will never find out who you really are."

zarq — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 21:50:06 -0800

In seventh grade, after school let out, Humaira Mohammed Bachal opened her home in Thatta (Pakistan) to 10-12 friends who weren't allowed to go to school, and taught them what she was learning. By the time she was 16 and ready to take her 9th grade exams, (over her father's objections,) she and four other girls were teaching more than 100 students. Now, her sister Tahira, (age 18,) is principal of the school Humaira founded: with 22 teachers serving more than 1,000 kids in a Karachi slum (yt). All in a country where if you are a young girl in a rural area, you are unlikely ever to see the inside of a classroom, and advocating education for young girls can be life-threatening. Documentary on Humaira on Blip: A Small Dream. The NPR article mentions Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, age 14, who is now recovering from a failed assassination attempt by the Taliban. Miss Yousafzai was the subject of a post this past October on MeFi

Beate Sirota Gordon, 1923-2012; "The Only Woman In The Room"

flex — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 11:45:45 -0800

Beate Sirota Gordon, Long-Unsung Heroine of Japanese Women’s Rights, Dies at 89: a NYT obituary relates the fascinating story of a young woman who was just the right person in just the right place at just the right time and managed to strike a blow for gender equality.

A civilian attached to Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s army of occupation after World War II, Ms. Gordon was the last living member of the American team that wrote Japan’s postwar Constitution. Her work — drafting language that gave women a set of legal rights pertaining to marriage, divorce, property and inheritance that they had long been without in Japan’s feudal society — had an effect on their status that endures to this day. “It set a basis for a better, a more equal society,” Carol Gluck, a professor of Japanese history at Columbia University, said Monday... “By just writing those things into the Constitution — our Constitution doesn’t have any of those things — Beate Gordon intervened at a critical moment. And what kind of 22-year-old gets to write a constitution?” If Ms. Gordon, neither lawyer nor constitutional scholar, was indeed an unlikely candidate for the task, then it is vital to understand the singular confluence of forces that brought her to it: Had her father not been a concert pianist of considerable renown; had she not been so skilled at foreign languages; and had she not been desperate to find her parents, from whom she was separated during the war and whose fate she did not know for years, she never would have been thrust into her quiet, improbable role in world history.

*on Wikipedia *The Story of Beate Sirota, a transcript of a 1999 Nightline interview *About Beate Sirota Gordon at the site for the film The Gift From Beate (Japan, 2004) *The Japan Times - Film depicts Japan's gender equality strife: Written by American woman, Article 24 now seen under LDP threat (link via Shakesville) *The Jewish Daily Forward - Beate Sirota Gordon Dies at 89: Asia Arts Expert Pushed for Japanese Women's Rights *Asia Society - Remembering 'Iconic' Beate Sirota Gordon, 1923-2012; includes two YouTube videos of Gordon speaking in 2007 and 2011 *Shinya Watanabe - Beate Sirota Gordon; includes photos (link via Hoyden about Town)

Assumption of parentage

roomthreeseventeen — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 16:46:27 -0800

In 2009, William Marotta, donated his sperm to a lesbian couple. Although they did not go through a licensed physician, per Kansas state law, the three signed an agreement relieving Marotta of any financial or paternal responsibility. The women, who co-parent 8 children, broke up in 2010, and the state of Kansas is now attempting to get Marotta to pay child support. Late last year, after Jennifer Schreiner and Angela Bauer broke up, Schreiner received public assistance from the state to help care for the girl. The Kansas Department for Children and Families filed a court petition against Marotta in October, asking that he be required to reimburse the state for the benefits and make future child support payments. Marotta is asking that the case be dismissed, arguing that he's not legally the child's father, only a sperm donor. Kansas' Constitution bans same sex marriage.

And there I was, Laughing at the Mormons

marienbad — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 08:52:49 -0800

Gay marriage: Religious 'opt-in' offered, but not to CofE - "The Church of England and Church in Wales will be banned in law from offering same-sex marriages, the government has announced. Other religious organisations will be able to "opt in" to holding ceremonies, Culture Secretary Maria Miller said. But she added that the Church of England and Church in Wales had "explicitly" stated strong opposition and would not be included." Included in the legisation is "Amending the 2010 Equality Act to ensure no discrimination claim can be brought against religious organisations or individual ministers for refusing to marry a same-sex couple."

Justice delayed

roomthreeseventeen — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 13:14:38 -0800

In a private conference this morning, the Supreme Court of the United Stated discussed ten petitions relating to the Defense of Marriage Act and Proposition 8. Among the cases that experts expect will be taken this term are: Windsor v. United States. Plaintiff Edie Windsor and her late partner, Thea Spyer, got engaged in 1967 and lived together for 44 years. They were married in Canada in 2007. In 2009, Thea passed away; because the federal government didn't recognize their marriage, Ms. Windsor was taxed an inheritance tax of over $300,000 because she and Spyer were, according to the United States, legal strangers. In October, 2012 the Second Circuit federal appeals court declared DOMA unconstitutional. Golinski v. United States Office of Personnel Management: Plaintiff Karen Golinski a federal court employee, sought to add her spouse, Amy Cunninghis, to her employer-provided health benefits plan after they were married in California in 2008. She was unable to enroll her wife for health benefits until the Ninth Circuit Court ruled in February 2012 that DOMA is unconstitutional. Brewer v. Diaz: Plaintiff Arizonans sued to block an Arizona law that intended to strip lesbian and gay state employees of domestic partner benefits. In 2012, The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the request of Arizona State officials for an en banc rehearing of the earlier ruling, which maintains family health coverage for lesbian and gay state employees until a court issues a final decision in the case. Hollingsworth v. Perry: Plaintiffs sued to repeal Proposition 8, the California ballot proposition which passed in the November 2008 elections and stripped California of its marriage equality. On February 7, 2012, a three-judge panel on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a 2–1 majority opinion affirming the judgment in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, which declared Proposition 8 unconstitutional, saying it violated the Equal Protection Clause. If the Supreme Court denies cert, same-sex couples will have their right to marry restored within days. Although SCOTUS took no action today, they could announce issue orders next Monday or December 7th. Ten things you should know about DOMA and the Supreme Court SCOTUSblog's four part series.

Project Right Side

zarq — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 10:49:17 -0800

During his tenure as George W. Bush's campaign manager and later as chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC), Ken Mehlman helped push an anti-gay agenda which eventually led to legislation that banned same-sex marriage in 21 states. He came out of the closet in 2010. Since then, he's openly supported gay marriage. Now, his newest endeavor, Project Right Side, is trying to attract conservatives to the fight for marriage equality. He discusses the non-profit's goals in a WSJ editorial: Making the Same-Sex Case. Same-sex marriage laws in the US, state by state. Huffington Post: ...Mehlman has... fundraised for marriage equality initiatives and has publicly spoken out in favor of such measures.

The Gay Moralist

Blasdelb — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 02:25:35 -0800

You are likely already familiar with many of the arguments for and against marriage equality but here are cogent arguments for precisely why it is needed, unthreatening, and beneficial; patiently explained by a gay philosopher who recently spent quite a bit of time hanging out with NOM’s co-founder, Maggie Gallagher. Corvino, also known as “The Gay Moralist (for his longtime column of the same name), is chair of the Philosophy Department at Wayne State University in Detroit. He has spoken at over 200 university campuses on ethics, sexuality, and marriage. “My goal is to promote a more thoughtful conversation on these issues,” he says. “Moral concerns should be conversation-starters, not conversation-stoppers.” The Definition of Marriage If Gay Marriage, Why Not Polygamy? Do Children Need a Mother and Father? Debunking the Regnerus Study Is Gay Marriage a Threat to Traditional Marriage? Is Gay Marriage a Threat to Religious Freedom? Why Marriage? (Why not Civil Unions?) Are People Who Oppose Gay Marriage Bigots? Is Homosexuality Unnatural?

The right...of segregation is clearly established by the holy scriptures...

howfar — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 16:39:58 -0800

Missouri pastor's protest against equal rights has a twist in the tail (SLYT)

Windsor vs. United States

catlet — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 18:30:53 -0800

Today, the Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ruled that "we conclude that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act violates equal protection and is therefore unconstitutional" [PDF of decision]. Plaintiff Edie Windsor has also petitioned the US Supreme Court to hear her case. Windsor's case was represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, the New York Civil Liberties Union, and the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. The ACLU has collected all legal filings and ongoing coverage of the case here.

Gay In The South: Uncle Poodle Speaks Out

hippybear — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 19:18:39 -0800

It all started on Sept 27, when Honey Boo Boo's Uncle Lee "Poodle" Thompson made his first appearance on the show. Not a week had passed before Karen Cox's October 3rd op-ed for the New York Times using him as an example for the encouraging state of being gay in the South. October 8th, Jonathan Capehart wrote his own op-ed column for the Washington Post taking Cox to task for painting too rosy a picture of what GLBT life is like in the South, and calling for Uncle Poodle to speak out. Finally, October 10, Lee Thompson did speak out, in a profile column with the GA Voice, Georgia's gay newspaper. And what he had to say is getting positive attention.

"I would not choose to be any one else, or any place else."

zarq — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 09:05:04 -0800

"Look, goddamn it, I’m homosexual, and most of my friends are Jewish homosexuals, and some of my best friends are black homosexuals, and I am sick and tired of reading and hearing such goddamn demeaning, degrading bullshit about me and my friends." - Merle Miller.
In 1970, two years after Stonewall, Joseph Epstein wrote a cover story for Harper’s Magazine, Homo/hetero: The struggle for sexual identity, that came to chilling conclusions: "I would wish homosexuality off the face of this earth." His incendiary language prompted author/journalist/writer Merle Miller to come out of the closet in the New York Times Magazine, with an angry and poignant plea for dignity, understanding and respect: "What It Means to Be a Homosexual." 40 years later, that essay helped inspire the launch of the "It Gets Better" campaign. Via Miller's piece generated a record-setting 2,000 letters and later was described as "the most widely read and discussed essay of the decade." He expanded it into a short book, On Being Different: What It Means to Be a Homosexual, which was republished on September 25. Charles Kaiser: When the New York Times Came Out of the Closet (Adapted from the book's Afterword.) Dan Savage: The Magazine Article That Changed Everything for Gay People. (Adapted from the book's Foreword.) Tim Teeman, of Gay City News: Epstein, now 75, is a contributing editor at the conservative Weekly Standard and a columnist for the Wall Street Journal. He was “unavailable for comment” when I tried to speak to him, so I sent three questions by email. Did he stand by his original piece, or regret it or any aspect of it in hindsight? Had his views changed or evolved over the years? And would he write about the subject again, now that Penguin is republishing Miller’s landmark essay? No answer.

Insanity, Death, or Abandonment

mannequito — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 23:30:47 -0800

"A blue cloud of smoke wafted over the Famous Five statue that sits just east of the Senate doors. No one seemed to be going insane or looking like they were about to personally invade the United States. There were people of all colours in the crowd, but if any of them were members of The Ring, they hid it well. The peaceful demonstrators were, however, breaking the law, smoking a banned substance that could in theory have landed any one of them in prison." Emily Murphy’s legacy lives on in more ways than most care to remember.

Take that, Caitlin Flanagan

msalt — Sun, 09 Sep 2012 16:04:09 -0800

Focusing on career -- how hookup culture empowers women

Once an Eagle

zamboni — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 11:12:26 -0800

Eagle Scouts Returning Our Badges, a tumblr of pictures and letters from US Scouts renouncing their Eagle award.

For the first time in Olympic history all the participating teams will have female athletes

MuffinMan — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 06:30:57 -0800

The London Olympics has been billed as a notable step forward in gender equality. It is the first Olympics with female representation from all countries despite the many and several barriers to female sport participation that still exist in some countries (including developed ones). These Olympics have female boxers, female athletes from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Brunei and male medal bearers But despite Jacques Rogge's declaration in his opening ceremony speech, some are more equal than others. Australia and Japan are reviewing their athletes' travel arrangements after women were given second class tickets and there is a small, but growing campaign to see male synchronised swimming form part of the program (one of two sports, the other being rhythmic gymnastics, with no male competition). The challenge after the games will be maintaining the momentum for female sports once the cameras switch off, the media coverage moves on and the sponsors renew deals. The discrepancy is arguably most stark in earnings: precisely 2 of the top 100 highest earning sports stars are women - Maria Sharapova and Li Na. Previously, and previously and previously.

You sound like my wife.

shakespeherian — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 12:02:33 -0800

Spike Lee on New York, Obama, film, Hollywood, reality teevee, marriage equality, Taylor Lautner, and so forth.

The "Unstoppable Gay Jew"

zarq — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 18:30:03 -0800

In 1971, "decades before any state had seriously considered legalizing gay marriage, long before anyone had thought of creating—never mind repealing—a policy called “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” before Reagan, before AIDS, before the American Psychiatric Association determined that homosexuality was not a mental illness, and before half the people currently living in America were even born, a man named John Singer stepped into the King County marriage license office in Seattle." Meet Faygele ben Miriam, the radical activist who pioneered the fight for same-sex marriage in Washington State, 41 years ago. Via.