My third-grade son has been enjoying biographies, learning things even I didn’t know about Thomas Edison and Benjamin Franklin. So when I read that Frank Kameny, one of the founding fathers of the gay equality movement, was honored November 15 by a memorial service at the Cannon House Office Building near the U.S. Capitol, I […]
The winter holidays always seem to highlight that the world tends to divide toys into “girls” and “boys” varieties. Most of us here, I think, would agree that  no one should be forced into particular types of play based on real or perceived gender. Over at Skepchick, Natalie Reed has a great article on “Guyliner, Murses,
My last name is the same as that of the famous reindeer. I also have red hair—which meant I was the target of quite a number of  “Rudolph the Red-Haired Person” jabs when I was a kid. It wasn’t bullying, but it was annoying, until I learned to embrace the difference and just lord it
Happy holidays to you and yours from me and mine. Posting will be light here through New Year’s, but I’ll be putting up a few things, so do stop by. In the meantime, please enjoy  “Love Makes a Family,” a video from Zach Wahls and MoveOn.org, and once again, celebrate the amazing diversity and love of families
Visiting relatives (or having them visit) for the holidays? Worried about what will happen when conversation over the roast goose (or latkes) turns political, and you find yourself trying to explain to Aunt Mabel why you and your beloved want an actual, legal, marriage? Or why military readiness hasn’t suffered from the repeal of Don’t
Here’s today’s must-read article: Melissa Bollow Tempel, a first-grade teacher in Jackson, Wisconsin, has written at Together For Jackson County Kids about how she approaches issues of gender stereotypes, gender variance, and gender-based bullying. It’s full of insight and actionable ideas. Good stuff, and worth sharing. (For more on the topic, you might also want to
Like many of the Hebraic persuasion, I’ve always felt a little shortchanged when it comes to holiday songs. Radio stations play hours of Christmas carols without repeats, whereas we’re pretty much stuck with “I Had a Little Dreidel” and “Hanukkah, Oh, Hanukkah.” (I know, there are a handful of other traditional tunes, but really, just
This year brought us several new books, fiction and non-fiction, featuring lesbian- and gay-headed familes. While we might hope for greater quantity (and greater diversity across the LGBT spectrum), the quality was at least very good. Here are some of the best.
This morning, lesbian mom Karen Golinski and her lawyers will appear in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, arguing a case that began with her seeking health care coverage for her spouse, but is now a direct challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). My interview of Golinski about the case,
These two dads react with surprise and elation when they find out they’re going to be grandpas. Some things are universal. (Thanks, Family Equality Council!)
