Equality Update Newsletter Nov 2005

[Ian David]

Equality Update Newsletter Nov 2005
Human Rights Campaign
[email protected]

LINK PENDING

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What's Inside

1. Shop HRC - new line of HRC holiday cards

2. Marriage - all eyes on Washington State

3. Politics - Marriage Protection Amendment, Victory in Maine,
Veterans Day 2005

4. Spotlight on Equality - Belle Pellegrino

5. Religion News - Vatican scapegoats gay priests

6. Family News - Ellen Kahn is new Director of HRC Family
Project

7. Workplace - HRC teams up with IBM to fight AIDS

8. Coming Out - new podcast featuring SONiA

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1. Shop HRC
Send a message of equality in your holiday cards

HRC's premiere line of holiday cards - Help spread the message
of Equality to your friends and families this joyous Holiday
season. With five fabulous styles to choose from, these cards
are elegantly presented on thick cream paper stock and arrive in
a clear box of 10 with matching envelopes. The Human Rights
Campaign logo and mission statement are printed on the back of
each card. Each box of 10 cards is $19.97, which goes directly
to fund the fight for equality.

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/Oda2vOE1fX4h/

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2. Marriage
All eyes on Washington State

On November 18th we celebrated the two-year anniversary of the
Goodridge v. Dept of Health decision in Massachusetts and now
our attention is focused on the state of Washington. We are
currently awaiting a decision on a case in Washington's Supreme
Court on the constitutionality of denying marriage licenses to
same-sex couples. The court could rule any day. To read
information from Equal Rights Washington about the case, please
click here:

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3. Politics

Marriage Protection Amendment Update
On Wednesday, November 9, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on
the Constitution voted 5-4 along party lines to send the
Marriage Protection Amendment to the full Judiciary Committee.
The earliest the bill could be considered is the week of
December 12. If the Judiciary Committee passes the amendment, it
will move to the full Senate for debate. This divisive amendment
will likely be made an issue in the 2006 election season - take
our "One Year OUT, Count me IN pledge to work for a more fair
and balanced Congress - click here

VICTORY IN MAINE! On November 9, Maine became the final New
England state and the 16th state overall to outlaw
discrimination based on sexual orientation and the 6th state to
outlaw discrimination based on gender identity. Voters said no
to discrimination by a 55-45 vote, victoriously ending a 28-year
battle for an anti-discrimination law that protects GLBT
Mainers. This was the third attempt to repeal the measure and
the first time voters approved the law. HRC provided Maine Won't
Discriminate with more than $150,000 this year alone to defeat
the referendum and significant staff resources. By Election Day,
more than 25 HRC staff members were in Maine working directly
with the campaign.

Veterans Day 2005
Americans celebrated Veterans Day on Friday, November 11, and
the Human Rights Campaign worked with coalition partners to
honor the GLBT veterans who served this country honorably in
every major war, and who continue to serve in silence under the
discriminatory policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." HRC
attended events around the country to highlight the stories of
some of those veterans, gay and straight, who have fought to
protect our freedoms while they and their gay and lesbian
colleagues are forced to live a lie. HRC is also making a
renewed push for cosponsors on the Military Readiness
Enhancement Act (HR 1059). It's time to show our GLBT veterans
and service members that their sacrifices are worthy of our
honor and respect. It's time to lift the ban. Ask your members
of Congress to cosponsor the bill - click here

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4. Spotlight on Equality - October 2005
People making a difference by standing up for equality

In 1968, during the height of the Vietnam War, many American
youths were burning their draft cards and moving to Canada.
Belle Pellegrino was trying to enlist. "I was always raised with
an eye toward serving my country," she says. Belle enlisted in
the Marine Corps and left basic training with the same
enthusiasm she had when entering. "Loved it! I came out of boot
camp proud as anyone can. That's what the Marine Corps does to
you." But Belle was different than most of her fellow soldiers.
While stationed in Tennessee, she met a remarkable woman and
discovered she was a lesbian.

To read the rest of Belle's story, visit the HRC website:

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/O1a2vOE1fX4y/

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5. Religion and Faith

Vatican Document Scapegoats Gay Priests
HRC encourages our members - and all Catholics of goodwill - to
speak to their local priests and register their objections to
the Vatican's discriminatory policy. In a long-awaited document
released today, the Vatican ordered Catholic seminaries to
reject candidates for the priesthood who "practice
homosexuality," have "deeply rooted homosexual tendencies" or
who support "gay culture." What is clear is that the Vatican is
trying to close down an open debate within the Catholic Church
and use gay people as scapegoats rather than deal with the harm
created by a devastating sex abuse scandal. In short, this
decree is a diversion that neither keeps children safe nor holds
criminals responsible. For more information visit:

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/6pa2vOE1fX4U/

Faith and Fairness Town Hall
On Nov. 2nd, HRC's Religion and Faith Program hosted "Faith and
Fairness," a town hall meeting in Washington, DC, which
encouraged us all to draw strength from and find tools for
advocacy in our many faith traditions. The panel that addressed
this well-attended town hall reflected the theological diversity
of our community. Bishop Yvette Flunder - a member of HRC's
Religion Council and the founder and Senior Pastor at City of
Refuge United Church of Christ in San Francisco, CA - provided
the keynote address, and was joined by panelists Rabbi Steven
Greenberg, Senior Minister Robert Hardies, and Reverend Albert
Scariato, M.D. To watch a video of the town hall meeting, click
here:

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/6da2vOE1fX4m/

Want more Religion News? Sign up to receive HRC's Religion and
Faith Program Newsletter - click here:

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/bpa2vOE1fX4u/

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6. Family Life
Ellen Kahn becomes new Director of HRC's Family Project

Ellen Kahn recently joined our team as the Director of HRC's
Family Project, which provides the most comprehensive and
up-to-date information available on the full range of issues
that affect LGBT families. Before joining HRC, Ellen was the
Director of a comprehensive lesbian health program that offered
innovative educational programs for lesbian and gay parents. She
also held a leadership role with Rainbow Families DC, the
Washington, DC, area's LGBT parenting network, and has made an
early priority of establishing better contact with similar
groups across the country. If you're a member of an LGBT family
or parent group - formal or informal - please let us know:

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/61a2vOE1fX4j/

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7. Workplace
HRC Teams up with IBM to Fight HIV/AIDS

HRC has teamed up with IBM to fight HIV/AIDS as part of the
World Community Grid initiative, an ongoing philanthropic effort
that will search for new and more effective strategies to treat
people infected with HIV. By linking thousands of personal
computers together, the World Community Grid will be able to
harness an awesome amount of computing power without investing
in supercomputers. Best of all, the time you donate to the
project is time your computer would otherwise spend idling on a
screensaver. If you'd like to join 100,000 people and 170,000
computers that are already helping fight HIV/AIDS as part of the
World Community Grid, download and install the small, free
software program at
http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/Opa2vOE1fX48/ - all you need
is a computer with an internet connection to help out!

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8. Coming Out
New "Talking About It" Podcast with Singer/Songwriter SONiA

In the latest installment of HRC's "Talking About It" series of
coming out interviews available by podcast, Grammy-nominated
singer/songwriter SONiA and her band Disappear Fear talk about
coming out and perform songs from SONiA's new album. To listen
to the interview, click here, or to read the transcript, click
here

Subscribe to "Talking About It" - drag or copy this link into
your favorite podcast catcher:

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/67a2vOE1fX4E/

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