KnowThyNeighbor.org

Congratulations California! Congratulations Equality!

We cannot ask for a better gift as Massachusetts approaches its 4th Anniversary  of Marriage Equality...California's Supreme Court Overturns Ban on Same-Sex Marriage!!!  East Coast and West Coast!!  Thank You California!

California's top court overturns gay marriage ban

By LISA LEFF, Associated Press Writer 2 minutes ago

SAN FRANCISCO - In a monumental victory for the gay rights movement, the California Supreme Court overturned a voter-approved ban on gay marriage Thursday in a ruling that would allow same-sex couples in the nation's biggest state to tie the knot.

Domestic partnerships are not a good enough substitute for marriage, the justices ruled 4-3 in an opinion written by Chief Justice Ron George.

Outside the courthouse, gay marriage supporters cried and cheered as news spread of the decision.

"Our state now recognizes that an individual's capacity to establish a loving and long-term committed relationship with another person and responsibly to care for and raise children does not depend upon the individual's sexual orientation," the court wrote.

The city of San Francisco, two dozen gay and lesbian couples and gay rights groups sued in March 2004 after the court halted San Francisco's monthlong same-sex wedding march.

"Today the California Supreme Court took a giant leap to ensure that everybody — not just in the state of California, but throughout the country — will have equal treatment under the law," said City Attorney Dennis Herrera, who argued the case for San Francisco.

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Check Out the Photos

Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tom Lang, Co-Director

Anti-Gay Running For School Committee in Rockport

Jonathan Ring, Chairman of the Anti-Gay Cape Ann Marriage and Family, Affiliate of VoteOnMarriage and the Massachusetts Family Institute, Will Be Seeking Election Today For One of Rockport's Two Open Positions For School Committee

Today, Tuesday, May 6th, Anti-Gay Leader and known combattant to KnowThyNeighbor and the LGBT Equality Movement, Jonathan Ring hopes that unsuspecting Rockport voters will elect him to a seat on the Rockport School Committee.  Ring, who sponsored many of the Northshore Meetings of VoteOnMarrige before their failed ballot initiative to end same sex marriage, heads Cape Ann Marriage and Family.  This organization clearly states that members should be seeking election to local and state offices in order to promote its agenda.

Jonathan Ring took on Tom Lang of KnowThyNeighbor last year and drew national attention when Lang contacted a local pizza parlor, Valentino's Restaurant in Gloucester, about the appearance of the notorious anti-gay media maven, David Parker at Valentino's.  Parker was to speak at Valentino's on behalf of Cape Ann Marriage and Family and Lang informed Valentino's that this is something that LGBT patrons of Valentino's and their families should know due to Parker's hurtful rhetoric and actions.  Valentino's cancelled the event due to the fact that Cape Ann Marriage and Family did not pay its $ 100 fee to reserve the space at the pizza parlor, but not before Ring and his group alllegedly launched a letter writing campaign to defame Lang.

What more can be said?  KnowThyNeighbor came across a letter to the editor in the Gloucester Daily Times by Rockport resident Suzanne Carver who is against Jonathan Ring being elected to School Commmittee.  Ms. Carver speaks well to this...

   

Candidate's, group's agenda has no place in Rockport schools

I am writing this letter because I am very concerned with this Tuesday's School Committee election in Rockport — in particular with regards to Jonathan Ring, who is running for one of the two open seats. I oppose Mr.Ring's election.

Mr. Ring's group, Cape Ann Marriage and Family — of which he is the chairman — partners with such groups as Focus on the Family, VoteOnMarriage and the Massachusetts Family Institute as we find from his Web site www.coalitionformarriage.org.

These groups call themselves "pro-family" in an attempt to shroud what their true agenda is — to vilify and demean those who do not conform to their picture of the "ideal" family.

In Rockport and Cape Ann there exist many types of families including those with children being lovingly raised by single parents, divorced couples and same-sex couples — and these families and their children should never be subjected to a "less than" status or political agenda.

I am very fortunate to have had as a mother the late Fran Carver, who was an early pioneer in placing unwanted children in homes of same-sex couples. She understood before many who sought homes for these children, that

same-sex couples could provide the loving homes that these children needed.

At my mother's funeral service, I was approached by scores of people, most of whom I did not know and who had come from all over Massachusetts to pay their respects. Over and over again, many introduced themselves as the

children of these couples, and they told me that if it hadn't been for my mother, they would never have known a family that loved them. I could not have had a better legacy to pass to my own son as his grandmother truly

understood what it meant to be "pro-family."

Though Jonathan Ring and members of his group have the right to their opinions, I do not believe that the Rockport schools need to become a battleground for him or his organization and its agenda.

Suzanne Carver

Normanstone Drive, Rockport

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UPDATE 05/07/08

Anti-Gay Jonathan Ring LOST the election in Rockport for a seat on School Committee.  The two seats go to Brian Sullivan 1370 votes and Melissa Tingley 1304 votes.  Jonathan Ring had a mere 474 votes. see Gloucester Times

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Tom Lang, Director

Anti-Gay Slang used by Governor Easley to Endorse Hillary Clinton

Governor Easley calls Rocky "a pansy" compared to Hillary Clinton, gets laugh from North Carolina Audience and Hillary Clinton herself

NOT FUNNY, Governor Easley, and how dare you use that term in a political speech.  But I guess it shows exactly how ignorant you and your audience are.  Boy, do I feel sorry for North Carolina Democrats.

Gay men have been called "pansies" for decades.  Along with faggots, fudgepackers, etc.  And you know it.

Pansy, (pejorative, slang) A male homosexual, especially one who is effeminate as taken from Wiki and other dictionaries.

And how dare you Senator Clinton laugh when he used that term to gain your endorsement.  Would you laugh if he had said that Rocky is a "pussy" compared to you?  I think not.

On playgrounds, sports teams, and male-dominated or controlled situations especially where young children are competing, pejorative, anti-gay and homophobic slang are still somehow permitted to be used.  But just remember Mrs. Clinton those same people that would use such terms to denegrate male children consider calling them "girls" almost as much if not more of an insult.

Tom Lang, Director   

Anti-Gay Legislator Caught on Tape

Oklahoma State Representative Sally Kern didn't know she was being recorded when she delivered this disgraceful tirade about how gay citizens are destroying America by choosing to advocate for themselves and participate in our democracy.

Aaron Toleos, Director
(978) 821-4620

John Kerry Challenger, Ed O'Reilly, Changes Stance on DOMA Repeal

Ed O'Reilly, Progressive Democrat Challenger to Senator John Kerry, Tells KnowThyNeighbor That He No Longer Supports the Repeal of the Third Part of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) But Now Supports Its Full Repeal Pointing To GLAD Attorney Jennifer Levi As the Reason For His Earlier Gradualist Positioning

BayWindows reporting on the John Kerry Re-Election Challenge by Dem Ed O'Reilly could have been alot better.  If KnowThyNeighbor had been asked for comment, BayWindows would have been told that Ed O'Reilly in a series of emails to Co-Director, Aaron Toleos, has stated on February 26, 2008, "For the public record, I am for the repeal of ALL of DOMA." 

O'Reilly who is hoping to beat Senator John Kerry in the primary this September also goes on to say, "The legislation (DOMA) was mean spirited and was meant to discriminate against people who are gay.  I will not stand for any "class" of people being discriminated against."  And, "people who are gay are not "less than" people who are not gay and our laws need to reflect this on every level."

Ed O'Reilly's comments were prompted by KnowThyNeighbor's Aaron Toleos who questioned O'Reilly for his YouTube video and his response to a Progressive Democrats of America questionnaire in which O'Reilly listed "Repealing Section 3 of DOMA" as one of his top issues.  Toleos asked of O'Reilly, "Are you really interested in repealing ONLY section three (of DOMA)?  That's the Hillary Clinton position and the less progressive position.  I am really looking for a candidate that is willing to repeal DOMA completely (the Obama & Edwards position)."

Ed O'Reilly really seems to "get it" regarding LGBT Rights and Equality for All and once he looked at DOMA, he understood that it was a bad piece of anti-gay, anti-American legislation and unequivally now stands for its FULL REPEAL.  But why was he first only for the Repeal of Part Three of DOMA, and seeming to be mimicing Hillary Clinton's position--one which confused so many LGBT leaders and pundits at the time?

O'Reilly points to Jennifer Levi at GLAD for allegedly having instructed his campaign to only focus on Section Three of DOMA.  In O'Reilly's email to Aaron Toleos he wrote, "After talking with people in the campaign issues group today, the reason we focused on Article 3 was the result of conversations the group had with Jennifer Levi, senior counsel at GLAD and the lawyer involved in the Goodrich decision.  She wanted us to focus on Article 3.  We believe in solidarity and working as a team and the issues group asked me to only focus on Article 3 as a result of Attorney Levi's request."

Now I have not yet heard from our sources or in the public realm of any definitive reasoning why focus should be solely on Section Three of DOMA as opposed to its Full Repeal.  KnowThyNeighbor has heard that there is a silence on many LGBT fronts regarding same-sex marriage until "after" the 2008 Presidential Election, but our community deserves to be told the truth.  Is this a tactical maneuver based on the issue at hand, Marriage Equality, and Federal Protections, or is this a way to throw Hillary Clinton a bone on her bid for the White House, the latter being a tactical means of support from the LGBT leadership to allow Clinton to publicly equivocate on a major LGBT issue, marriage, to appeal for and win the votes of those who are not with us on full marriage rights?

We need to get the bottom of this as we are owed answers.  There is one thing for sure here, however, aside from politics, maneuvers, tactics, pulling favors, jobs, loyalties, the White House etc... is the LGBT Community and what we are "supposed" to be fighting for.  Having a very pro-gay public figure such as Ed O'Reilly in a very public race against Senator John Kerry, making very public statements standing up for the full rights and protections of all of us is a great thing.  For him to have allegedly been told to hold back his "full" public support on one of our bigger issues, DOMA, is a very reckless thing.  Thank God that KnowThyNeighbor helped Ed O'Reilly to re-think his positioning

LGBT Leaders must stop directly and indirectly telling the members of our community and our staunch supporters that we indeed are a class of "less than" Americans.  Aaron Toleos is quoted in the March/April 2008 edition of Spirit Boston magazine in the Hetero Hero feature that "This is the time in history when everybody needs to be pushing forward."  And I would like to add that we need to note his choice of words.  "Pushing forward" not "shuffling."

Tom Lang, Director

CNN Misleading Voters on Gay Issues in Presidential Primaries

Hillary Clinton is Bad for Gays With Respect to The Defense Of Marriage Act,   Same-Sex Marriage and Equal Rights, But You Wouldn't Know That From CNN's Website

If I meet one more LGBT who says to me, "Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are EXACTLY the same on Same-Sex Marriage" I think I will just lose it!  Yes, Clinton and Obama are both against Same-Sex Marriage but "for" Civil Unions" but they are NOT the "same" on the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act or DOMA--that reprehensible, bigoted pro-active piece of legislation which was created to give our country permission for the social and political realm to segregate and demonize gay people.  Barack Obama wants the FULL repeal of DOMA while Hillary Clinton only wants repeal of the "third part" of DOMA and has yet to acknowledge the fact that DOMA is a bad thing.

This distinction on the repeal of DOMA is a very important and crucial part of the same-sex marriage issue and should be included in CNN's breakdown of issues on its website.  Every day when I watch CNN and the CNN internet journalist, Josh Levs, instruct viewers on how to navigate the CNN.com website for the self-acclaimed most "comprehensive" breakdown of candidates and the issues I now suspect that CNN may inadvertently be part of the problem of the confusion of gay and pro-equality voters on the issue of same-sex marriage.  And how dangerous Hillary Clinton's views really are.

The Defense of Marriage Act or DOMA, signed by President Bill Clinton in 1996, was not only a maneuver to stop Federal Marriage Protection of same-sex couples (ie Federal Pensions, Immigration of Partners, Federal Tax benefits, Inheritance, just to name a few) but it was and still remains an assault on the very soul of gay people, our families and our children.  To "Defend Marriage" from whom?  From what?  Answer, from those evil, immoral gays, that's whom!  Hillary Clinton should know better.  Shame on her!

Tom Lang, Director

Gay Marriage = Good For Business

This week's Boston Business Journal has a feature article examining how gay marriage is benefiting the Massachusetts workforce.  Get this -- it seems that some gay people would prefer to live in a place where their families are respected and honored rather than a place where they are dehumanized and denigrated. Who woulda thunk it?

Gay marriage attracts out-of-state workforce

Boston Business Journal - by Lisa van der Pool Journal staff

Massachusetts has a dubious reputation for losing talented workers to less pricey markets. But a trend that runs counter to the talent drain has emerged in the form of the state’s controversial same-sex marriage law.

Massachusetts native Jeffrey Webb loved the Los Angeles lifestyle. He had a great job as a law partner in the L.A. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, and his life partner, Mark Schuster, was equally happy with his work as chief of general pediatrics and professor at UCLA. "We both had positions that were hard to replicate," said Webb, 43.

Even so, Webb and Schuster left the California sunshine in December and moved to Brookline with their twin sons. It wasn't the promise of enduring a gloomy Massachusetts winter that beckoned them -- it was the ability to live in Massachusetts as a legally married couple...

...Massachusetts has a dubious reputation for losing talented workers to less pricey markets. But a trend that runs counter to the talent drain has emerged in the form of the state's controversial same-sex marriage law, a powerful lure for same-sex couples who want to live in a place where they can get married, gain legal rights and have access to spousal health benefits. In fact, some observers see the influx of same-sex couples as a boon for the state's economy.

Read the full article at the Boston Business Journal website

Aaron Toleos
(978) 821-4620

Anti-Gay Floridians Outed - WINK

Another video from Florida... Aaron Toleos

Be my valentine? Not in our state.

Valentine's Day. A moment to pause and  celebrate the love , affection, and enduring commitment you share with your significant other. That is unless you live in a place where gay individuals, couples, and their children are dehumanized and denied basic rights because of the fear, ignorance, and apathy of our political leaders and straight citizenry.

In that case, it's a great day for some civil disobedience. See below which I received today from Soulforce. Also note today's NY Times story.

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The following text is modified from an article written by Soulforce organizer Chris Hubble, and originally published in Out Front Colorado:

There may be no contemporary narrative more compelling for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people than Valentine's Day. However commercialized this romantic icon has become, couples still fervently celebrate it. On this day, too, LGBTs subtly remind ourselves (and everyone else) just how "mainstream" we really are. We plan commitment ceremonies, trade sentimental gifts, deliver extravagant bouquets of roses, consume voluminous quantities of chocolate, and spend profligate amounts on restaurant dinner bills ... just like everyone else!

But Valentine's Day also evokes a mythological, historical narrative which tells the story of a civil resister of an oppressive regime seeking to deny its citizens' rights. When the Roman Emperor Claudius II sought more soldiers for his brutal military campaigns, he tried to deny young Roman men the right to marry -- apparently believing that single men might be more easily persuaded to join his legions. Valentine, a Christian priest living in a pagan world, defied the emperor's decree and continued to observe the holiday honoring Juno, Roman goddess of marriage, by secretly marrying young Roman couples. When his defiance was discovered, Valentine was jailed - and subsequently died on February 14, 269 C.E.

This year, in addition to celebrating Valentine's Day in the conventional way, Englewood, Colorado couple and Soulforce volunteers Kate Burns and Sheila Schroeder also remember this historic St. Valentine. You see, last September 24th, they were arrested for staging a sit-in at the Denver Clerk and Recorder office after being denied a marriage license. For this courageous act of civil disobedience, Kate and Sheila went to court yesterday and a hearing was set for February 28, with the actual trial set for April 13 and 14, 2008. Numerous local religious leaders have already submitted affidavits on their behalf, arguing that the State's denial of their marriage rights (and refusal to recognize their marriage rites) represents a violation of both the "Free Exercise" and the "Establishment" clauses of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.  Kate and Sheila have been interviewed by both local and national media outlets and today their story appeared in The New York Times.

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Happy Valentine's Day!

Aaron Toleos, Director
KnowThyNeighbor.org
(978) 821-4620

   

Video: KnowThyNeighbor Florida to Post 600,000 Names

Florida is heating up again. Stay posted as more info will be coming soon.

Aaron Toleos, Director
(978) 821-4620