ACLU wins Gay-Straight Alliance Lawsuit Against Florida School

In a gay-straight alliance case that was closed at one time because the student who brought it, Yasmin Gonzalez, graduated, and then reopened when a current student was prevented from reviving the Okeechobee High School GSA, a judge in Florida has ruled that the group was discriminated against by the school board:

"The Gay-Straight Alliance of Okeechobee High School may now meet on campus like all other non-curricular school groups, and their case against the School Board of Okeechobee County is closed, U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore wrote in an opinion signed Tuesday. Moore granted them Alliance’s otion for summary judgment and ruled the School Board violated the club’s First Amendment rights by refusing to recognize it as a non-curricular student organization. Moore also ruled that the School Board is statutorily obligated by the federal Equal Access Act to grant the club the same rights to meet on campus as other non-curricular student groups have."

Said the ACLU: "Moore broke the legal mold by asserting that schools must provide for the well-being of gay students the same as straight students and therefore, the school cannot discriminate against the GSA."

Previously
Federal Judge Says Gay-Straight Alliance May Continue [tr]

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Two Princes: Gay Couple Elected Homecoming Royalty

Earlier this month, a gay couple, Brandon Raphael and his prince, Kiernan Gatewood, were elected "Princes" of Davis Senior High School's Homecoming in Davis, California. They rode the parade route in the back of a pick-up truck and were cheered on by the local comunity and their school.

The Sacramento Bee reports: "In the weeks since officials announced the homecoming court, there's been no public outcry -- not by campus leaders, not by students and not by the community. Students said they were encouraged that the election was not an issue for campus administrators. They said they were less surprised that a gay couple would win than they were that officials allowed it to happen."

Said Chandler Fox, co-president of the school's gay-straight alliance: "I think it's just such a good thing for our school. Just knowing that the other kids recognize them as a couple and would vote for a gay couple to be prince and prince of homecoming. ... I don't know, I just think it's awesome. I want people to know about it so maybe it can happen at another school."

Royal yes to diversity at Davis Senior High [sacramento bee]
(via queerty)

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News: Hairspray, Knut, Day of Silence, Cannes Film Festival

"Day of Silence" tensions, combined with the recent fever over violence at Virginia Tech, lead to lockdown at Indiana High School: "The Day of Silence at New Castle Chrysler High School coincided with a national Day of Silence and aimed to support gay, bisexual and transgender students. 'People were in their shirts for it, people were in their shirts against it, and it just caused a lot of drama that I didn't think was needed,' said student Kayla Boyles."

Berlin's global warming icon, Knut the baby polar bear, is the target of an anonymous death threat.

Middlebury College in Vermont, one of the Advocate's top 100 colleges for gays and lesbians, is tagged with anti-gay graffiti.

Netflix cashes in on Virginia Tech killings, featuring Oldboy, film killer modeled himself after.

Line-up announced for Cannes Film Festival: Wong Kar Wai's My Blueberry Nights to open fest; Gus van Sant back in competition with Paranoid Park...

ERUPTING: Thousands flee Colombian volcano.

Purported David Beckham nude an instant internet hit!

Gaydar founder Gary Frisch, who plunged to his death from an eighth-floor balcony in early February, was found to have raised levels of ketamine in his body: "Estate agent Stephen Ruddock was standing outside a nearby building when he saw Mr Frisch's body hit the ground. He said Mr Frisch shouted 'Waheey' moments before he plunged to his death. Mr Ruddock said: 'It was a celebratory thing. I saw his body come into my line of sight. It arced in the air and hit the ground.' Pathologist Dr Peter Wilkins said raised levels of ketamine were found in Mr Frisch's blood and liver. He added: 'It can have similar effects to LSD, confusion and hallucinations.' Recording a verdict of misadventure, the coroner, Dr Paul Knapman, said: "I don't think that it can be said he intended to kill himself. 'This is not suicide at all. He jumped to his death from the balcony of his flat on the eighth floor while under the influence of drugs.'"

Baby pilot whale found swimming in Brooklyn, dies.

Hairspray trailer hits the internet Aqua Net.

Kathmandu, Nepal gets its first gay beauty salon: "The salon, which offers regular beauty parlour services like haircuts, facials, manicures and pedicures, is also a training academy for members of the gay community who want to train as beauticians. The first batch of 10 young metis - gay men who dress as women - is running the salon under the aegis of the Blue Diamond Society (BDS), Nepal's sole gay rights group." The Blue Diamond Society recently received two awards from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission for grassroots groups making an impact in gay rights.

The Emma dilemma: "A 7-year-old girl is at the center of a court battle that is equal parts gay rights struggle, jurisdictional quandary and legal ethics question."

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Federal Judge Says Gay-Straight Alliance May Continue

Saying there was no evidence that the club would not "dedicate itself to the purposes, such as tolerance, that it has outlined without involving obscene or explicit sexual material," a federal judge ordered Okeechobee High School to allow a gay-straight alliance there to continue holding meetings while a lawsuit, filed by the ACLU, is ongoing.

The school had claimed, according to the NYT, that the club was "'sex-based' and violated the school’s abstinence-only education policy."

The ACLU's lead attorney in the case, Rob Rosenwald, who is representing the gay-straight alliance's president Yasmin Gonzalez, said, "This decision sends a clear message to other schools that they face a similar fate in federal court if they choose to discriminate by deliberately misrepresenting GSAs as something they're not. Violence and harassment against gay students is a rampant problem in Florida."

The attorney for the Okeechobee County School Board said he thought the board would be satisfied, given the judge's determination of the club's purpose: "It appears that the judge will hold club members to the limitations they presented in court that they will not discuss sex or promote sexual acts in school. I think the concern that club members would discuss sexual activity in school will be alleviated by this order."

Gay-straight alliances are formed to promote tolerance, however, they are often the target of bigoted and ignorant parents and school board members who eitehr don't understand their mission, or choose not to accept it.

Judge Orders a Florida School to Allow a Gay Tolerance Club [nyt]
Federal Judge Rules Okeechobee, FL Students Can Form Gay-Straight Alliance Club [aclu]

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News: Tony Dungy, Clinton Requiem, Nip/Tuck, SA Divorce

As a sixth paper drops Ann Coulter's column, the AP wonders if she's reached a tipping point.

Madonna to guest star on Nip/Tuck, possibly opposite Rosie O'Donnell.

One of the first gay couples to register for a civil union in South Africa, Richard Thornton and Andries Jacobs, have filed for divorce: "Barely a month after a chance encounter in a West Rand shopping mall, they exchanged rings and vows of fidelity on January 5, one of the first same-sex couples to be married in South Africa under the then newly enacted Civil Unions Act. Ironically, they could become the first divorced under the legislation. Just two months later, the marriage has crumbled and 52- year-old Thornton has filed for divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences and desertion. Jacobs, 20, packed his bags in the dead of night just weeks into the marriage as arguments over coming home late and overpossessiveness escalated."

Hilary Duff hits the gay bar circuit.

Beckham impostors attempt to crash Hollywood power lunch spot The Ivy. This time they weren't hawking fragrance.

Priest in Saskatchewan cut from church for performing gay marriages. Rev. Shawn Sanford Beck considers his position an act of civil disobedience: "I felt unable to say no to those requests. That goes against everything else I'm about in my ministry and everything else that the church stands for...I have no desire to get myself off the hook. I'm trying to send a very strong message to the gay and lesbian community, and to other communities that have been alienated from the church, that we don't all think the same and there are people willing to go to the wall."

House conservatives attempt to neuter global warming committee by appointing chief climate skeptic.

Ford Motor Co. said that American Family Association had nothing to do with their decision to cut ties with GLAAD Media Awards.

Roxy R.I.P. - a New York Times obituary.

David Mixner's requiem for the Clinton era: "Today, the Clintons run the political machine trying to save the status quo in the Democratic Party. Their fundraising operation is notorious for its ruthlessness and elitism. Their circle of advisors and friends are tough and aggressive with anyone who refuses to pledge allegiance. They are surrounded by money collectors like Terry McAuliffe who shakedown donors with warnings that they will be punished if they give to another candidate. Senator Clinton’s position on the Iraq War is by far the most calculated of any candidate. And on so many other issues, her positions are measured and break no new ground. Each appearance is predictable and perfectly arranged. Whether by necessity or choice, the spontaneity, exuberance and hope we saw in both of the Clintons in 1992 is gone."

Sick mugger attacks 101-year-old woman in Queens.

Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy back under the microscope for anti-gay Indiana Family Institute fundraiser. Colts release statement: "Coach Dungy's feelings on the importance of marriage and family are well known. He, of course, is free to speak to any group he wishes. The club does not take positions in political issues in which it is not directly involved. The Colts do not endorse any political or religious position taken by any group that any Colts employee decides to speak or lend his or her name to."

Utah Governor Jon Huntsman signs bill targeting gay-straight alliances. The legislation would allow school districts to ban them should they not "maintain the boundaries of socially appropriate behavior." According to the AP, "The new law has more than a dozen pages of regulations, including requiring parental permission to join a club, a faculty sponsor for the club, prohibiting students at another school from joining the club and submitting written materials to the principal within 24 hours after a meeting so parents can review them."

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High School Senior Brings Focus to Iowa Bullying Bill

The Cedar Rapids Gazette takes a look at anti-gay bullying in Iowa schools, focusing on the courageous story of high school senior Robert Perrin-Hayes who came out to his classmates when he was a sophomore, and immediately became the target of anti-gay bullying.

While giving a speech about bravery, he decided to come forward and tell his class, "I'm gay." That's when the bullying began, he said. Because of his disclosure, Perrin-Hayes was subject to a continual stream of taunts and physical threats.

Said Perrin-Hayes, who is now an activist for the Iowa Pride Network: "At first, I didn’t do anything because I was afraid. I don’t think teachers know how to deal with it. It should be the same as other kinds of harassment, but when you’re gay, it seems to be different."

Iowa is currently considering a "safe schools" anti-bullying bill that would protect students from harassment based on, among other things, sexual orientation. Perrin-Hayes will speak this Thursday at the Governor’s Conference on Gay Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender Youth, as he did at the first one which was held last year.

Perrin-Hayes and other courageous young adults deserve attention for the changes they are trying to make. Says Perrin-Hayes: "We all bleed, and when we do bleed, it’s red, believe it or not. Would I like to be run off the road, would I like to be shoved in the hallway? No. It’s not a choice. Nobody would choose to be treated like I am."

Protection Against bullies [cedar rapids gazette]

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News: Prince Harry, Gay-straight Alliances, Scott Speedman

Brokeback begone: Bill introduced in Wyoming that would invalidate same-sex marriages performed in other states.

Scott Speedman tugs the heartstrings at Sundance.

Politics played a role in the government's response to Hurrricane Katrina, according to former FEMA head Michael Brown: "Political storm clouds gathered again over the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina as former Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown said party politics influenced decisions on whether to take federal control of Louisiana and other areas affected by the hurricane. Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco said the partisanship Brown described was "disgusting," while a White House spokeswoman said Brown was making "false statements." Brown told a group of graduate students Friday that some in the White House had suggested the federal government should take charge in Louisiana because Blanco was a Democrat, while leaving Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, a Republican, in control in his state." (via crooks & liars)

A great story from the Miami Herald about the importance of gay-straight alliances in high schools: "Just knowing that there are other kids like me, or who care about the same issue that I do, it makes me feel great. Less alone. That life is not hopeless."

Prince Harry angers his training squad by skipping a 100-minute march for a night of partying at the Cuckoo Club.

Tony Blair backs his Communities secretary Ruth Kelly as she attempts to find a loophole in new gay rights laws that would allow Catholic adoption agencies to turn away gay couples: "A spokeswoman for Ms Kelly, who has overall responsibility for equality, said the minister wanted to "protect the pool of prospective parents" and would be trying to find a "pragmatic way forward" this week. The Catholic church has threatened to close its seven adoption agencies rather than comply with laws that forbid them to discriminate against gay couples."

REPORT: FOX has approached the Beckhams to do an Osbornes-style reality show.

Federal judge rules that city of Philadelphia had the right to arrest members of Repent America at that city's PrideFest in 2004 after the group used a bullhorn to spew Biblical verse during stage event. Judge: "There is no constitutional right to drown out the speech of another person."

Vice President Dick Cheney rejected a conciliatory offer to go into talks with Iran in the spring of 2003.

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News: Key West, Brazil, Beckham Scientology, Wax Cowell

Michael J. Fox will attend George W. Bush's upcoming "State of the Union" address at the invitation of Rhode Island Rep. Jim Langevin, who has been confined to a wheelchair for most of his adult life.

Meet Mr. Brazil 2007.

Heidi Cullen, the Weather Channel's foremost climatologist, says AMS should not approve meteorologists who disagree with scientific theories on global warming: "Meteorologists are among the few people trained in the sciences who are permitted regular access to our living rooms. And in that sense, they owe it to their audience to distinguish between solid, peer-reviewed science and junk political controversy. If a meteorologist can't speak to the fundamental science of climate change, then maybe the AMS shouldn't give them a Seal of Approval. Clearly, the AMS doesn't agree that global warming can be blamed on cyclical weather patterns. It's like allowing a meteorologist to go on-air and say that hurricanes rotate clockwise and tsunamis are caused by the weather. It's not a political statement...it's just an incorrect statement."

While David Beckham bides his time in Spain taking phone calls from Tom Cruise, Victoria Beckham says she wants nothing to with Scientology. "Tom spoke to David for hours about Scientology. He feels it could help to lift him out of the blues over his football career. But Victoria is having none of it. She can’t see the point of joining something like that where you have to donate money."

Diana Ross to be American Idol mentor this season.

Idol frightfest: wax likenesses of Ryan Seacrest and Simon Cowell make their debut.

While some threats to high school gay-straight alliance groups have been quashed in Virginia, they are struggling in gay-friendlier Toronto area.

Focus on the Family has its sights set on Key West Gay Spring Break. (via fundie watch)

Scientists reveal how 1918 flu epidemic killed over 50 million: "Essentially, people are drowned by themselves."

Still on tap for Apple? Widescreen video iPod and tablet Mac.

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News: Buddha, Island Vanished, Reggie Bush, Supergenes

REPORT: White County school board agrees to pay ACLU $168,000 for legal costs and $10,000 to student plaintiffs over longstanding gay-straight alliance feud.

Boy hailed as reincarnation of Buddha reappears after nine months in the wilderness: "The 17-year old teenager Bomjon, who had been "meditating without any food or water" in the jungles of Ratanpuri village in the district had disappeared under unknown circumstances in March this year and was found in the jungles near Pathlaiya-Nijgadh road section of the Mahendra Highway on Sunday."

Lawrence, Kansas (home to the University of Kansas) is considering a city registry for gay and lesbian couples: "Supporters said the registry would not automatically give gay and lesbian couples the legal rights afforded to married couples, but the registry would serve as a legal recognition of the couple's relationship. 'It would indicate that the city is welcoming and supportive of its gay community members,' said Maggie Childs, who heads the Lawrence chapter of the Kansas Equality Coalition, which asked Lawrence Commissioner Mike Rundle to set up the registry. 'In my mind, the primary benefit is symbolic.'"

In the latest of its high-concept fashion ads, Diesel takes on global warming.

First inhabited island washed off the face of the earth by global warming: "The obliteration of Lohachara island, in India's part of the Sundarbans where the Ganges and the Brahmaputra rivers empty into the Bay of Bengal, marks the moment when one of the most apocalyptic predictions of environmentalists and climate scientists has started coming true."

Sports Illustrated ponders the best-looking athletes. More on one of their picks, Reggie Bush.

POLL: New Hampshire residents more open to civil unions than gay marriage.

Godfather of Soul, James Brown is dead. Fans pay tribute...

Do you have the "supergene"? "People with this "supergene" have a much higher chance of living to age 90 and beyond without developing dementia, the confused thinking and memory loss that so often plagues the oldest of the old."

Couple roleplays the political way. (via AmericaBlog)

University of California Santa Cruz reconsiders blood donation drives after gay student is turned away. Student: "I was turned away because of my sexual contacts. The reasoning behind me not being able to give blood is ridiculous. ... It made me feel like an outcast."

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News: Franco Zeffirelli, Mexico, 'Fag' Students, London HIV Stats

Conservative party in Mexico considering filing challenge to Mexico City's new gay union law, saying it violates rules in that country's constitution which protect the family. "City legal counsel Maria Estela Rios, however, called the argument 'absurd' because the law guarantees legal rights for same-sex couples, but does not legalize gay marriage."

Pittsburgh area school board Vice President William Scherfel refers to students in gay-straight alliance as "fags".

Not funny: Seinfeld's Michael Richards spews racist tirade at the Laugh Factory.

What will happen in the next 50 years? More than 70 scientists offer their forecasts.

Carol Channing gets the last word in on the interview that tried to crush her gay-friendly reputation.

New York's HX acquires Boston's In Newsweekly.

Robbie Williams says he'd have sex with a man to save an animal's life: "I wouldn't enjoy it but I could do it under pain of death, or if it meant saving a baby bunny from being burned alive." I'd be willing to bet he's saved a few rabbits already.

Director Franco Zeffirelli said that a priest put the moves on him as a boy, in Catholic school, but it seems he quite enjoyed it: "Sexual abuse is putting it too strongly. There was no penetration. I felt sorry for the poor man. If I had realised what he had in mind, I would probably have given him what he wanted. I thought the priest felt a special affection for me, he was always kissing me. (Homosexual experiences) are not always bad for boys. I don't think they make you homosexual. Sexual choice is made for you early on in life anyway - if you like girls, you like girls."

Tom and Katie's Cruiseazy wedding photo.

One out of every ten gay men in London is HIV positive as is one out of every 25 across the UK, according to a new report.

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