
Worcester panel explores intersection of marriage and race
The black community's "don't ask, don't tell policy" toward homosexuality, as one black gay man who attended a panel discussion on marriage equality and race described it, is just one of the barriers to a better understanding of the marriage issue in the black community - and the LGBT community in general.
Most of the Mass delegation to support ENDA with or without Baldwin amendment
If the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) does come up for a vote on the House floor, most members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation have pledged to support it whether or not it includes an amendment to ban discrimination based on gender identity as well as sexual orientation.
LGBT public backs MassEquality
An online survey of MassEquality members shows that there is strong support for keeping the grassroots organization going -- even though marriage equality has been secured in Massachusetts.
Larry Cirignano reaches out to the gays
News of an upcoming Phelps protest prompted former Catholic Citizenship president Larry Cirignano, who was recently acquitted of assault and battery charges, to reach out to gay activist Tom Lang of the group KnowThyNeighbor to try to draft a joint letter from LGBT groups, MassResistance and religious conservatives asking Phelps not to come to Massachusetts.
Director Tim Sullivan on Gay Horror and "Driftwood"
Some people have childhood stories about dressing up in their parent's clothes. But Tim Sullivan was probably covering himself in ketchup and trying to knock down chandeliers. He talks about 'Driftwood"... and why we don't see more gay themes in horror films.
Sheryl Swoopes Asked :: "How Gay is the WNBA?"
About 15 minutes into her onstage interview with WNBA superstar Sheryl Swoopes at Provincetown's Unitarian Universalist Meeting House on Oct. 13, comedian Vickie Shaw cut to the chase: "How gay is the WNBA?" Shaw asked, abruptly changing the subject of her previous question about who inspires Swoopes (her mother) and causing the 200 or so ladies in the pews to erupt in laughter and applause.
Youth tell state commissioners what it's like to be gay in Central Mass
The Massachusetts Commission on GLBT Youth gathered in Worcester Oct. 22 for the second in a series of regional meetings across the state, and they heard from high school students firsthand about the challenges they face as LGBT young people. During a meeting at Worcester Technical High School with students from that school's gay/straight alliance (GSA), as well as three students who traveled to the meeting from Milford, which is located about a half-hour southeast of Worcester, the commission asked them what problems they face and what support they have found in their school, at home and in other areas of their life.
Durkin memorialized at Allston church
About 40 people gathered Oct. 21 at St. Luke's and St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in Allston to celebrate the memory of Corporal Ciara Durkin, the lesbian National Guard soldier serving in Afghanistan who was found dead from a gunshot wound last month. Durkin's family joined with members of the congregation of which Durkin had been a part before leaving to join the National Guard to talk about the ways that Durkin touched their lives. Durkin was memorialized in two funeral services, one in Quincy and one in her native Ireland, earlier this month.
Stakeholders want to see MassEquality continue
A report by the consultant hired to help the MassEquality Board of Directors determine the future of the organization shows that there is widespread consensus among MassEquality coalition partners, national LGBT activists and MassEquality's major donors to keep the organization viable even though the fight for civil marriage rights has been secured in Massachusetts for the foreseeable future.
Jury finds Cirignano not guilty
Larry Cirignano, the former executive director of Catholic Citizenship charged with misdemeanor assault and battery, has been found not guilty by a Worcester County jury. Shortly after resuming deliberations Oct. 22, the jury sent a note to Judge David Despotopulos telling him that they were "at an impasse." Despotopulos urged them to go back into deliberations, consider every juror's position carefully and try to come to a unanimous verdict. Just an hour and a half later, at 12:30 p.m., they did.
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