Gay Men: December 2007 Archives
Will Roscoe has been active in the the Gay movement since 1975, when he helped found Lambda, the first Gay/Lesbian organization in Montana. The following year, he served an intern at the National Gay Task Force, and in 1977, as coordinator of the Gay People's Alliance at the University of Oregon, he spearheaded the formation of the Oregon Gay Alliance, a statewide coalition of Gay/Lesbian groups. In 1978, he completed an internship at the Pacific Center for Human Growth in Berkeley, where he coordinated a successful campaign to win United Way funding, the first Lesbian/Gay social service agency in the country to do so. He also served as voter registration coordinator for the No on 6 campaign in San Francisco (the Briggs initiative), registering over 10,000 new voters.
By Russell Olivera Jr
Ari Gold has become one today's hottest openly gay recording artists in the world. His honest lyrics and truth is found in all his music, and his look on life makes him an outstanding artist and person, a true reflection of positive energy. He has remained true to himself since the beginning, and even as he has and will continue to skyrocket into an incredible career, he has managed to do it being "real".
In a world where celebrity is becoming more and more blurred and role models are harder to fine, we are happy to have Ari Gold in our community. I caught with Ari earlier this month as he released his latest album "Transport Systems", what follows is some of my interview with this Out & Proud Recording Artist.-Enjoy!
I've been a fan of Marcellas Reynolds since I first saw him on Season 4 of Big Brother. I recently got a chance to touch base with Marcellas and find out more about what he's been up to and his new Style Network show.
You first appeared on the CBS show 'Big Brother' in Season 3. How has your life changed since being on the show?
Wow my life is sooo different than before. I think the biggest difference is how many people know me. Not a day goes by without someone saying "Hi Marcellas." And of course now I'm now on TV a lot. Big Brother really changed my life & the direction of my entertainment career.
Services & Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders (SAGE) has announced that Karen Taylor has been hired as the organization's new Director of Advocacy & Training. Creation of this new senior position was funded by a major grant from the Arcus Foundation, as SAGE, in partnership with the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, launches a national advocacy initiative on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) aging issues.
"We are thrilled to have Karen join our staff," said Michael Adams, Executive Director of SAGE. "Her expertise and ability to get things done will make it possible for SAGE to provide a strong national voice for LGBT seniors, as well as more training and resources to benefit our growing senior population," concluded Adams.
I was not a subtle child. When I was eight, I dropped a huge queer clue on my parents and their closest friends during one of their cocktail parties. I swept into the living room, plopped a tape recorder on the coffee table, and cleared everyone from the Oriental rug. I needed an audience, I told them, while I rehearsed the choreography of the second grade's may day dance.
The music was Abba’s “Super Trouper.” My father gulped a martini as I raced through box steps and ball-heel changes for his high-ranking military buddies. In that moment, my father realized that the Read family’s long history at Virginia Military Institute had died with a thud. His son was a fairy.
If you haven't finished your holiday shopping yet, you're running out of time. If you're looking for some last-minute gift ideas, here are 11 great presents. Of course, the best part of these gifts is that the proceeds benefit worthy causes and organizations. We spend so much money during the holidays, why shouldn't some of it go to help others? Here are my favorites:
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Rosie's Peace Tee |
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Lance Armstrong Live Strong Skull Cap |
Billy Bean played major league baseball from 1987 through 1995. He broke into the major leagues with the Detroit Tigers, and tied a major league record with 4 hits in his first major league game. He went on to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the San Diego Padres. Born in Santa Ana, California in 1964. He was a multi-sport star at Santa Ana High School, where he was chosen "athlete of the year" as a senior. He was selected Valedictorian of his graduating class, and went on to become an "All-America" outfielder twice before graduating from Loyola Marymount University in 1986 with a degree in Business Administration.
The thought of going home for the holidays can be happy, but it can also be quite stressful. In addition to the shopping, and decorating, and small talk at cocktail parties, many lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) folks have another issue: family members who may still be unaware or unsupportive of who they are.
Thankfully PFLAG (Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) came up with these holiday tips a few years back. I thought I'd repost them to prepare you for the holiday season.
This Sunday’s edition of the award-winning CBS newsmagazine 60 Minutes will include a story by correspondent Lesley Stahl about reports from Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) of a growing number of openly lesbian and gay troops in the United States armed forces. The segment will also feature an exclusive interview with SLDN client and openly gay Army Sergeant Darren Manzella, who has served a tour of duty in Iraq and is now serving inside Kuwait. Manzella tells Stahl that he has received overwhelming support from both his fellow soldiers and superiors since coming out last year. Stahl’s report also looks at SLDN’s work in assisting service personnel such as Manzella, and the organization’s campaign to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” In addition to Manzella, Sunday’s segment also features SLDN board member Cholene Espinoza, an Air Force Academy graduate and the "It is perhaps only once in a lifetime that we are given the opportunity to do something of paramount importance, and I am honored to be able to use my voice to speak out on behalf of the countless lesbian and gay Americans currently serving in our armed forces."
For nine years, Esera Tuaolo excelled in the N.F.L. as a defensive lineman: he played for five different teams and went to Super Bowl XXXIII with the Atlanta Falcons. He played with some of football's greatest, including Brett Farve, John Randle and Jack Del Rio. He even sang the national anthem in uniform at a nationally televised Monday night game as a rookie and at the 1999 Pro-Bowl.
But as a gay man in the hyper-masculine culture of professional football, Tuaolo was forced to hide his sexuality. The secret crippled him, leading him to drink excessively and contemplate suicide. It also hindered his football achievements, as he felt that if he were too good a player, he would be exposed as a homosexual. He led a double life that deeply depressed him, but which he now looks back on with a new perspective. During this difficult time, he persevered by following his mother's example and maintaining his strong spiritual faith.
By Tod Companion
It's a fact of life that sometimes you get down. For many people, this feeling passes with time. For others, it's a constant condition. When your behavior changes because of this feeling, it becomes clinical depression. For many years, there was little outside of therapy that science could do for those suffering from depression. In recent years, however, advances in pharmacology have led to many medications for depression. Unlike Alice in Wonderland, you can't just take a pill, or eat a cookie to affect a change in yourself.
Depression is not just feeling bad. That's a state of mind, but while it can be a symptom of depression, just feeling bad doesn't mean you are clinically depressed. Depression occurs when this sadness lasts for an extended period of time. It's also accompanied by abnormal behaviors - obsessive eating or starving one's self, inability to sleep or sleeping too much. Loss of interest in sex is often a sign of depression. Disinterest in friends, family, career and life in general are also hallmarks of depression. Depression can also be accompanied by obsessive/compulsive behaviors - counting, constant cleaning, excessive ordering and neatness.
