The U.S. House of Representatives this afternoon passed the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (LLEHCPA), aka the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act. This is a major step towards enacting the legislation that will include protections against hate crimes on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, among other categories. It […]
(Originally published with slight modification in Bay Windows, May 3, 2007.) Prospective LGBT parents often ask me “Where do I start?” Because there is no established tradition for how we create our families, it is easy to feel like a stranger navigating Boston without a map. While no two people follow the exact same path
My preschooler has loved Blue Man Group, the offbeat musicians and entertainers, ever since he saw an exhibit featuring their PVC-pipe instruments at the Boston Children’s Museum. (Yes, we have something of a PVC-pipe obsession around here.) He loves to watch the video clips on their Web site, but his latest interest is their new
Today is the start of the WNBA preseason, giving me a needed dose of women’s-sports watching to tide me over until Wimbledon starts at the end of June. I am, as it happens, hopelessly inept at actually playing basketball (and softball, for that matter), but am finding I have to raise my game this year.
We are closer than we’ve ever been to the passage of a federal hate-crimes act that includes sexual orientation and gender identity among its protected categories. The U.S. House of Representatives will vote on the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (LLEHCPA) this Thursday. LGBT-rights organizations are urging all supportive Americans to
What can you learn about race from a seven-year-old? Rachel at Alas, a blog explores this question based on her own experience, and it’s worth a read. If you’re a multi-racial family, you may find immediate resonances. Even if you’re not, however, it will give you a lot to ponder in terms of how our
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected without comment an appeal by Lisa Miller-Jenkins, a biological mother who has been trying to deny visitation rights to her former partner Janet Miller-Jenkins. (Thanks, PageOneQ.) The case has bounced between the jurisdictions of Vermont and Virginia. Lisa Miller-Jenkins was attempting to appeal a Vermont Supreme Court ruling that the
Today marks the tenth anniversary of “The Puppy Episode,” aka “The coming Out Episode” on Ellen, the comedian’s eponymous first television sitcom. GLAAD has a lengthy press release discussing the significance of the show. It was a turning point in depictions of LGBT people on television, and an empowering moment in many of our personal
I enjoy finding seasonal books for my son, and was pleased to stumble upon John Segal’s Carrot Soup. In it, Rabbit spends many hours planning and cultivating his carrot garden, only to find that the carrots have vanished right before the harvest. He asks his friends Mole, Dog, Cat, and others if they have seen
Lots of good news this week: The U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee passed the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which includes protections crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and sent it to the floor of the House. An Indiana high school teacher who risked her job supporting a student-newspaper editorial
