Carol Adair, the spouse of U.S. Poet Laureate Kay Ryan and a venerated teacher at the College of Marin, died of cancer on January 3rd, 2009, at the age of 66. She is survived by Ryan, two daughters, four grandchildren, her mother, and four siblings. Her death was first announced in the Marin Independent Journal […]
Ten years ago today, Matthew Shepard was pronounced dead at Poudre Valley Hospital in Wyoming after being severely beaten in a homophobic attack. His parents have since become outspoken advocates for erasing hate. I had the honor of hosting Judy Shepard when she spoke at Merrill Lynch in 2000, back when I was head of
In honor of all the victims of the tragedy of September 11 and its aftermath, their families, and their friends. May we all work in whatever way we can for a safer, more peaceful world for our children.
In June, I was happy to relate the news that two pioneers of the lesbian- and LGBT-rights movements, Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, would be the first same-sex couple to marry legally in San Francisco. Today, I am saddened by the news of Martin’s death. She and Lyon had celebrated over 50 years together.
Last week, Jennifer Davis and her partner Andrea Pisanello were shot and killed in Largo, Florida, and Davis’ four-year-old daughter and two-year-old son were shot and killed in nearby Clearwater by Davis’ former husband, Oliver Bernsdorff, whom she had divorced in August. He is the children’s father, and had retained custody of them. Bernsdorff shot
In honor of all the victims of the tragedy of 9/11 and its aftermath, their families, and friends. May we all work in whatever way we can for a safer, more peaceful world for our children.
I’d never heard of Mason Andrews before reading of his death this past week, but without him, my son might not exist. No, he’s not our sperm donor—he’s the doctor who performed the first in vitro fertilization in the U. S. Although conservative activists tried to stop him from attempting the procedure, his privately funded
Pioneering feminist author and one of the founders of NOW, Betty Friedan, died yesterday at the age of 85. I was a feminist before I (knew I) was a lesbian. I cannot claim, however, that Friedan’s seminal work, The Feminine Mystique influenced me directly. By the time I was old enough to read it, it
