Holidays

Happy Gay-Straight Alliance Day!

Today marks the first-ever National Gay-Straight Alliance Day, a project of the Iowa Pride Network in partnership with the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). In honor of the occasion, I’ll point out my coverage a few years ago of the 20th anniversary celebration of the GSA at Phillips Academy, which has the second-oldest GSA in […]

Three Quotes for Martin Luther King Day

In honor of Martin Luther King Day, here are three of my favorite quotes from Dr. King: Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity

Did Your Kids Get Holiday Presents You Regret?

Now that we’ve all had a little time to recover from the holidays, let me ask: Which of your children’s holiday presents are you most glad they got? Are there any you regret? And do they feel differently? Speaking for myself, I have no regrets. We seem to have progressed past the age when he

Happy New Year!

A joyous 2012 to you and your families! May the year be full of love, happiness, peace, and equality for all.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Says “It Gets Better”

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

Families Make the Holidays — and Love Makes a Family

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

To Grandmother’s House We Go: Talking About LGBT Issues at Holiday Time

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

Hanukkah Songs and Miracles

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

Happy Turkey Baster Awareness Day 2011

A very happy Thanksgiving to all of you celebrating it this week. Remember to make the turkey baster jokes before your relatives do. Posting will be light here for a few days as our family will be stuffing ourselves with poultry and pie.

A Weekend of Triple Remembrance

Today is International Survivors of Suicide Day and National Adoption Day. Tomorrow  marks the Transgender Day of Remembrance. Three separate observances, but each of which has meaning for many of us as members of the LGBT community. No one deserves to die from hatred and prejudice, or because they saw no alternative to suicide. Every child deserves a permanent

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