July 2008 Archives

Friends and Colleagues.  I was recently featured in a Metro Weekly article and I would like to share it with you.  While I would normally shy away from such shameless self-promotion, I think this is a great opportunity to share with you my new work at the DC GLBT Community Center, which we call The Center for short.

I'm really excited to be at The Center, and looking forward to seeing the organization grow in the months and years ahead.  I hope you'll take a moment to follow this link and read the article abot me in Metro Weekly.

And please feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you think.  I don't want to broadcast my e-mail address on the web, but you can always connect with me on Facebook, Friendster, MySpace, Connexion, Linked In, or Plaxo.  You can also find me on the web at www.davidmariner.com.

Finally, let me express my appreciation for all the kind words I've received since this article come out, and my deep appreciation for all the folks who have taught me so much along the way about the movement for LGBT equality and the larger social justice movement that we are all a part of.

Sincerely - David Mariner.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa pulled out as keynote speaker for the Human Rights Campaign San Francisco Dinner Saturday night, joining a broad coalition of organizations and elected officials.  Organizers, which included Pride at Work, protested HRC's decision last fall to support an employment non-discrimination which excluded transgender individuals.

Mayor Villaraigosa joins a long list of elected officials who chose to boycott the San Francisco HRC dinner including State Senator Carole Migden, Assembly Member Mark Leno, City Attorney Dennis Herrera, SF Supervisors Bevan Dufty and Tom Ammiano, Board President Aaron Peskin, Supervisor Chris Daly, Supervisor Ross irkarimi,Supervisor Gerardo Sandoval, President of the School Board Mark Sanchez and School Board Members Jane Kim and Eric Mar. 

Lori Michaels has been singing and dancing since she could talk and walk. But hercareer launched into new orbit in 2006, following her official "Coming Out: party at the House of Blues' Club Worship in Atlantic City. It was a House of Blues first, and a turning point for Michaels in her evolution as an artist.

In a time when coming out has evolved from something equated with fear to something much more about freedom, Michaels has freed her artistic soul to deliver "Living My Life Out Loud," her brand new solo album.

continue reading and see a great video clip

A new korean film about the tumultuous relationship between two men from different worlds opens in select theaters July 25th.

Set in Seoul, South Korea, "No Regret" centers on Sumin (Lee Young-Hoon), who leaves the orphanage where he grew up and heads to the city to study art design. After losing his job at a factory due to layoffs, he finds himself working as a prostitute in a gay bar. Initially Sumin resists the advances of Jaemin (Lee Han), who comes from a rich and conservative family that doesn't accept his sexual identity. Eventually Sumin succumbs to Jaemin's advances, after they briefly experience happiness as passionate lovers, Sumin and Jaemin's relationship falls into heartache and tragedy.

continue reading to see an exclusive video clip from the movie...

Steven Diagle is a geographic consultant by day and a rodeo cowboy by night; but currently he's one of 12 remaining contestants on the CBS reality show Big Brother.  His stay may be brief however, as he is one of two guests nominated for possible eviction this week.

Diagle is a champion bull rider in the gay rodeo circuit. He attended the Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, TX as well as the University of North Texas in Denton. He earned a Bachelor's Degree in General Agriculture/Marketing and lists graduating from college as his proudest accomplishment. He also worked on a master's Degree in Applied Geography. In the past, he has hauled horses across the country, taken people on horseback riding treks in the Colorado Rockies and served as a camp director at a children's camp.

On Saturday July 19th the DC Trans Coalition held their first protest outside the DC Department of Corrections. (Additional pictures from the protest are available here).

Over the past four months, the DC Trans Coalition has been pressuring the DC Department of Corrections to enforce current DC human rights law within DC prisons. Rather than working to enforce current human rights law in the District however, the Department of Corrections is working with the Office of Human Rights to try and exempt themselves from the law.

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) today released its second annual GLAAD Network Responsibility Index, a report that maps the quantity, quality and diversity of images of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people on television. Once again, primetime programming on the five broadcast networks was evaluated and, for the first time, original primetime programming on 10 of the highest-rated cable networks was examined as well.

ABC, with shows like Brothers & Sisters, Desperate Housewives and Ugly Betty, again received the highest ranking of the five broadcast networks; NBC and Fox remained the two lowest-scoring networks, with their LGBT-inclusive hours dropping slightly from the previous season. Among the sampling of cable networks evaluated, FX featured the largest number of LGBT-inclusive hours of original programming, while TNT offered the fewest.

As the list of potential vice-presidential candidates narrows, supporters of Barack Obama are sending a clear message that former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn is an unacceptable choice.

Political Strategist David Mixner writes on Huffington Post: "There are some situations so obvious that you almost feel you don't have to comment upon them. Then you wake up one morning and realize not only should you have expressed your opinion but you should have done it loudly and resoundingly and repeatedly. The odious concept of former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn serving on a ticket with Senator Obama is one of those situations."

Nunn once fired two employees simply because they were gay and voted against the employment non-discrimination act.  This places Nunn far outside of mainstream America which overwhelmingly believes such discrimination is unacceptable.  a May 2006 poll conducted by Gallup found that 89% of Americans believe gay men and lesbians should have equal rights in the workplace, and public support for workplace equality continues to grow.

Registration with the United States Selective Service is required of all male citizens and permanent residents within 30 days of turning eighteen, even if you may not be eligible to serve in the military. You need to register even if you are gay, bi, or trans.

Failure to register with the Selective Service before the age of twenty-six will result in a permanent loss of eligibility for all federal Title IV education financial aid including Pell Grants, federal campus based aid programs, and the federal student loan program. Federal financial aid accounts for over 90% of the money available for education beyond high school, both for college and vocational training

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) has released new data showing that while women make up approximately fifteen percent of the armed forces, they account for nearly half of all "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" DADT) discharges from the Army and Air Force. Women have always been disproportionately affected by the law forbidding openly gay, lesbian and bisexual Americans from military service but the 2007 data shows a significant increase in the ban's impact.

Greg Louganis began competing in diving at age 10. By 16, he had won his first Olympic medal, a silver medal on the platform in 1976. At 24, he became the first man in 56 years to win two gold medals in diving by winning both the platform and springboard events. In 1988, competing against divers half his age, he became the first to win double gold medals for diving in two consecutive Olympics.

Greg's diving accomplishments do not stop there. He is a six time World Champion and has held 47 National Championship titles. At the Pan Am Games he earned six gold medals and in 1985 he was awarded the Sullivan Award as the nation's most outstanding amateur athlete.

Among gay men, the subject of prostate cancer is complicated by the intersecting stigmata of both cancer and homosexuality. Most people do not want to talk about prostate cancer and most straight people do not want to talk about homosexuality.

It is therefore not surprising that the overwhelming majority of personal and professional publications about prostate cancer are written by, for and about heterosexual men and their female partners. If prostate cancer, in general, is off most people’s radar screen, then gay men with prostate cancer are a truly invisible species.