Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Alliance of Fighters: When the oppressed band together with vision, they make a mighty opposition
Opinion: Representatives from the faith, business and arts communities joined political activists and public officials on April 20 to mark the 40th anniversary of the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington. Illustrating in microcosm D.C.'s remarkably successful LGBT movement, the evening gathered an array of leaders and fighters who have overcome differences of race, religion, culture, sexual orientation and gender identity to work together. D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton spoke of the test our coalition will face in the months ahead as Republicans in Congress attack the District of Columbia with a series of social riders to our city's Fiscal Year 2012 appropriations bill, seeking to impose their will over that of D.C. voters on issues from abortion funding and school vouchers to marriage equality. The challenge is heightened by concerns that our purported Democratic allies will use the District as a bargaining chip, as they did in the recent Fiscal Year 2011 budget deal. The power Congress holds over our city has loomed over GLAA's efforts over the years, from hate-crimes legislation to domestic partnerships to sodomy law repeal. Every advance involved a broad-based effort. We knew that winning and keeping marriage equality required not only a supermajority in the D.C. Council, but a diverse coalition to prevent the anti-gay right from dividing our city along racial and religious lines. Solid preparation led to a landmark victory. ... (more)
Horoscope: April 28-May 4, 2011
Horoscope:
Heavenly Round-Up: You're gravid with the forces of nature at their most elemental. This heaviness occasionally descends into queasiness. Take more ginger in your diet to help with that vague nausea. Write a check to your favorite nonprofit to lighten your load, build your future and ease your physical discomfort with the present state of the world. It might behoove you to stick a plant on the windowsill and watch it grow. There's more to meditation than just breathing and posing. Call your old guru for a tune-up.
Aries: Situation normal is all effed-up, but it's not as rosy as you might prefer. Will you dig in and get down to the bottom of the problem? Will you lounge around complaining under your breath and behind the backs of those you hold most to blame? Act with enthusiasm.
Taurus: You're a superstar, blazing across the hemisphere of the sky, writing your name in the concrete effects of your actions. This is how you will be remembered. This is the taste you leave in the mouths of those around you. Make a statement you're proud of.
Gemini: There's an idyllic, pastoral scene going on just over the hill; you're not there because you're sulking. Could you pull up your socks and get on with making up your mind and acting on your decision in a manner calculated to bring your social value up a notch?
Cancer: It's easier to see what's not going right than it is to always be doing the best of all possible things at the most timely of all possible moments. You're challenged to put down the role of Greek chorus and get on with making your own plot move forward. Dance.
Leo: It's not easy. It's not fun anymore. It's not fulfilling some of the time, either. But you are called to rise to acts of heroism and generosity such as have not been seen in the world in many a year. Are you game? Are you courageous enough? Just say ''Yes.''
Virgo: Look around you. You've been on your voyage of discovery for so long you might not remember where it was you were hoping to have got to by this stage of your development. Could you settle where you are? If not, why not? If so, then get busy with base camp.
Libra: Destiny isn't always noble and shining from on high. Sometimes it's a message encoded in our own flesh. What is your body trying to tell you? How far from optimal is your current health condition? How much responsibility are you willing to take for that?
Scorpio: Where there's a will, there's a way. You can make one online for less than $20. Why that? Why now? How about to ground you in the present by giving you something concrete from the future to which you can contribute right this second. Really! Do it!
Sagittarius: You are the queen of all you survey, so get out those cute specialized bits of surveying gear and get on with figuring out where you are, how much farther there is to go, and the specific shape of the terrain you hope to cover. You can ask a Pisces for insight.
Capricorn: It's not the specifics you find off-putting; it's the clouds of generalities plaguing you like a swarm of no-see-ums. Stop trying to pin down those pesky details. Instead, focus on bringing others (with different visual skills) into your sphere of productivity.
Aquarius: Simplicity could save you time, money and heartburn. Groundedness could bring you into mature perspective (even if only temporarily). Sincerity could be the best team builder since the free ice cream initiative. Don't be afraid to listen; you'll learn lots.
Pisces: Between the external pressures to make yourself more real than you've ever been, and your internal desire to melt, thaw and resolve yourself into the very most ephemeral essence of your being, lies the middle path of compassion. Walk it for your own sake. Please. ...more
Heavenly Round-Up: You're gravid with the forces of nature at their most elemental. This heaviness occasionally descends into queasiness. Take more ginger in your diet to help with that vague nausea. Write a check to your favorite nonprofit to lighten your load, build your future and ease your physical discomfort with the present state of the world. It might behoove you to stick a plant on the windowsill and watch it grow. There's more to meditation than just breathing and posing. Call your old guru for a tune-up.
Aries: Situation normal is all effed-up, but it's not as rosy as you might prefer. Will you dig in and get down to the bottom of the problem? Will you lounge around complaining under your breath and behind the backs of those you hold most to blame? Act with enthusiasm.
Taurus: You're a superstar, blazing across the hemisphere of the sky, writing your name in the concrete effects of your actions. This is how you will be remembered. This is the taste you leave in the mouths of those around you. Make a statement you're proud of.
Gemini: There's an idyllic, pastoral scene going on just over the hill; you're not there because you're sulking. Could you pull up your socks and get on with making up your mind and acting on your decision in a manner calculated to bring your social value up a notch?
Cancer: It's easier to see what's not going right than it is to always be doing the best of all possible things at the most timely of all possible moments. You're challenged to put down the role of Greek chorus and get on with making your own plot move forward. Dance.
Leo: It's not easy. It's not fun anymore. It's not fulfilling some of the time, either. But you are called to rise to acts of heroism and generosity such as have not been seen in the world in many a year. Are you game? Are you courageous enough? Just say ''Yes.''
Virgo: Look around you. You've been on your voyage of discovery for so long you might not remember where it was you were hoping to have got to by this stage of your development. Could you settle where you are? If not, why not? If so, then get busy with base camp.
Libra: Destiny isn't always noble and shining from on high. Sometimes it's a message encoded in our own flesh. What is your body trying to tell you? How far from optimal is your current health condition? How much responsibility are you willing to take for that?
Scorpio: Where there's a will, there's a way. You can make one online for less than $20. Why that? Why now? How about to ground you in the present by giving you something concrete from the future to which you can contribute right this second. Really! Do it!
Sagittarius: You are the queen of all you survey, so get out those cute specialized bits of surveying gear and get on with figuring out where you are, how much farther there is to go, and the specific shape of the terrain you hope to cover. You can ask a Pisces for insight.
Capricorn: It's not the specifics you find off-putting; it's the clouds of generalities plaguing you like a swarm of no-see-ums. Stop trying to pin down those pesky details. Instead, focus on bringing others (with different visual skills) into your sphere of productivity.
Aquarius: Simplicity could save you time, money and heartburn. Groundedness could bring you into mature perspective (even if only temporarily). Sincerity could be the best team builder since the free ice cream initiative. Don't be afraid to listen; you'll learn lots.
Pisces: Between the external pressures to make yourself more real than you've ever been, and your internal desire to melt, thaw and resolve yourself into the very most ephemeral essence of your being, lies the middle path of compassion. Walk it for your own sake. Please. ...more
Lesbian in Spain denied fertility treatments
Editor's Note: This story was cross-posted with permission from the LezGetReal website.
Today, The Reader.es, reports that: 'A woman who wants to become a mother says that she has been refused fertility treatment on the national health service because she is a lesbian.'
Spain's health minister says the national health care system does not discriminate on the ground of sexual orientation.
read more
Today, The Reader.es, reports that: 'A woman who wants to become a mother says that she has been refused fertility treatment on the national health service because she is a lesbian.'
Spain's health minister says the national health care system does not discriminate on the ground of sexual orientation.
read more
It's The Perfect Time To Put A Sexy Spring Back In Your Step
May marks the perfect month for purposeful redefinition and a spring clean of old ways.
"Life is made up of moments, small pieces of glittering mica in a long stretch of gray cement.?
? Anna Quindlen (A Short Guide to a Happy Life)
What does that mean to us, gay travelers? I think it means that as we pound the pavement of everyday life, we always need be on the lookout for twinkling, shiny flecks of delight that shift our focus and ignite a sincere relish for every tick of the clock we?re lucky enough to enjoy.
If your new year's resolutions have fallen by the wayside, now's the perfect time to put that sexy spring back into your ambitious steps. Here's how!
read more
"Life is made up of moments, small pieces of glittering mica in a long stretch of gray cement.?
? Anna Quindlen (A Short Guide to a Happy Life)
What does that mean to us, gay travelers? I think it means that as we pound the pavement of everyday life, we always need be on the lookout for twinkling, shiny flecks of delight that shift our focus and ignite a sincere relish for every tick of the clock we?re lucky enough to enjoy.
If your new year's resolutions have fallen by the wayside, now's the perfect time to put that sexy spring back into your ambitious steps. Here's how!
read more
National Day of Silence 2011
This Friday April 15th marks the annual National Day of Silence at thousands of high schools and colleges around the country. Educators and students will refuse to speak for a day to call attention to the harassment, bullying and discrimination that gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans students face in school each day....Read Full Post
Listen to Uh Huh Her's new EP, 'Black and Blue'
Listen to Uh Huh Her's new EP, 'Black and Blue': Sounding / looking hot as ever.
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