Politics and Law
- Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) introduced the Student Nondiscrimination Act, a companion to a House bill by Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO). It would prohibit discrimination on the basis of real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity in any program or activity receiving federal funds. “Discrimination” would include harassment. Already, some are saying this provides “special” rights to LGBT students. I just did a longer piece for Keen News Service on various state-level anti-bullying measures and the whole issue of “enumerating” sexual orientation and gender identity. Expect this to be a key issue as SNDA and related legislation moves forward.
- The new sheriff of West Hollywood is Captain Kelley Fraser, also a lesbian mom.
- A lesbian couple in Iowa are suing the state to have both their names placed on their daughter’s birth certificate. Even though the two were married under state law before the girl’s birth, only the biological mother’s name was put on her birth certificate. A Lambda Legal lawyer told the Iowa Independent that she thinks this was just an error that will soon be resolved.
- The Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel weighs in on the revelation that the state’s star witness in support of the ban on gay men and lesbians adopting was caught vacationing with a male escort from Rentboy.com.
- Legislation to allow second-parent adoptions in Louisiana failed in a state House committee.
Media and Entertainment
- ABC’s hidden camera news magazine set up a situation in which an actor posing as a bigoted waiter hassled same-sex parents with their children at a diner—first two moms, then two dads. After Elton reports that few onlookers spoke up to defend the family. (See also this article in the Boston Globe Magazine. It suggests that teaching bystander students to intervene when they see bullying would be more effective at stopping it than programs focusing on just victims and bullies.
- CNN’s In America series will in June be bringing us “Gary and Tony Have a Baby,” a profile of two gay men who become fathers. After Elton interviews host Soledad O’Brien.
- LesbianDad asks a very good question about Glee: Why have we never seen Rachel’s two dads, but we get a major storyline involving her birth mom, whom she has never known? (Worth reading the extensive comments on the post, too, by folks far more Gleeky than I.)
I always read your round-ups, Dana, and want to thank you for the inclusion here. I have been quite schooled by the lengthy comments which also (wheew!) help me feel better for writing such a lengthy post. Loquaciousness begats loquaciousness, apparently. Also, I think many of us have a lot to say about the rare and significant appearances of our families in Prime Time.