Local Paper Publishes Racist, Homophobic Letter After Lesbian Teacher's Dismissal in West Virginia: VIDEO

Last week, the Lincoln County Board of Education voted to fire lesbian teacher Kelli Burns after three separate hearings, the Lincoln Journal reports:

In a series of claims regarding the situation, Burns told The Lincoln Journal, late last week, that she was comfortable exposing what she termed the "completely inexcusable trashing” of her sexuality and her "so-called lifestyle” by the school system. She further alleged that students had been forced to write submissions saying that she had "tried to turn them gay.” Burns expressed her overall dismay regarding the process in her comments to The Lincoln Journal. "What has this process taught our youngsters? Every day they stand and recite an anti-bullying pledge right after the Pledge of Allegiance. And then they watch for months one of their favorite and most successful teachers be bullied by some staff and administration. The fact is some students actually went on record to teachers and administrators, saying that they were tired of watching me be trashed and slandered and bullied in the classroom. It was brave of them and I admire them for that,” Burns said late last week.

The Journal itself is now coming under fire for publishing a letter it received regarding Burns' dismissal.

Said the letter, which was transcribed from a voicemail the paper received:

"We were really glad to hear that School Board is getting rid of them queers. The next thing is we need to get rid of all the n****rs, the spics, the kikes and the wops....You know even them Catholics, they are wrong as baby eaters...We need to clear them people out and have good, white, God fearing Christians and everybody else needs to be put to death for their abominations....We'll keep Lincoln County white and right. Thank you."

The Lincoln Journal posted a lengthy interview with Burns online about the letter and the dismissal.

Watch the interview, and a news report on the printing of the letter, AFTER THE JUMP...

West Virginia Town Business Welcomes Gay Climbers by Showing They're Sexy and They Know It: VIDEO

Next week is the annual Homoclimbtastic convention in Fayetteville, West Virginia which has grown to 120 registered attendees.

You might not think that West Virginia would be such a welcoming place for a big group of gay climbers, but Waterstone Outdoors, a local rock-climbing and outdoor gear business, has gone all out (and taken it almost all off) to welcome the group. Straight-to-gay marketing at its most relaxed.

Check it out, AFTER THE JUMP...

Civil Union Bill Introduced in West Virginia

A civil union bill has been introduced in West Virginia:

Delegate John Doyle says he introduced the bill Thursday to start a conversation about family equality. The Jefferson County Democrat says that gay and lesbian couples should have the same safety net to deal with the death of a parent or the loss of a job as married couples.

Fairness WV, which advocates on behalf of the gay, lesbian and transgender community, says this is the first time a civil union bill has been introduced in the West Virginia Legislature.

An LGBT anti-discrimination bill also introduced by Doyle has seen no movement since its introduction.

West Virginia Board of Education Adopts Anti-Bullying Policy Protecting LGBT Students

The West Virginia state Board of Education unanimously adopted revisions to its student behavior policy protecting sexual orientation and gender identity, the Charleston Daily Mail reports:

Board members unanimously approved Policy 4373, titled Expected Behavior in Safe and Supportive Schools, amid a flurry of public comments. Public speakers were limited to three minutes each.

The policy combines four previous polices regarding student behavior and discipline. Most notably among the speakers who have rallied for and against the policy was the addition of "gender identity or expression" and "sexual orientation" under the list of characteristics that are specifically protected.

Heading up the support for the new policy was Bradley Milam, executive director of Fairness West Virginia, an advocacy group for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender West Virginians.

"We are elated," Milam said. "This is a long time coming and it affects all students. We are so excited it is becoming a reality in West Virginia, where this (bullying) is an epidemic."

The Gazette adds:

Punishments for harassment can range from detention to suspension from school for 10 days. Students can also be punished for "vulgar or offensive speech" online if it disrupts school learning.

 "Students and teachers alike are entitled to a safe educational environment," said state Superintendent of Schools Jorea Marple. "This policy addresses behavior and school safety comprehensively by addressing inappropriate behaviors proactively to promote safe and supportive learning conditions."

The new policy takes effect July 1.

News: Chris Evans, Kelly McGillis, Nigeria, iPhone

A NYC Maternity shop gave lesbian customers a 10 percent discount yesterday: “Women make 77 cents on the dollar still. When two women are leading a household, they’re not making as much money as a married couple.”

Chris Evans films more scenes as Captain America

Kelly McGillis on her public coming out: "Fundamentally, I was just tired of lying about who I am. I’ve reached a point where my kids are grown, they’re out of the house, they no longer have to be concerned that their friends, their friends’ families, will put them in compromising emotional situations because of my sexual preference. That was a big concern of mine because, unfortunately, a lot of people are not very tolerant. I got to a certain age and I didn’t give a s— anymore.

Gabrielle Giffords' condition is improving.

One of the things that helped build the case against a student charged in the Tyler Clementi case was his deletion of posts on Twitter: "It can help demonstrate that your virtual behavior, online activities, are just as important, if not more so, than everything you do in your everyday life."

Listen: Britney Spears‘ "Till The World Ends" official remix.

First AT&T, then Verizon. Now the iPhone might be now be on its way to T-Mobile.

Openly gay Reverend Rowland Jide Macaulay to re-open House of Rainbow, the only gay church in Nigeria: "Religion is a backbone to life in Nigeria, so we all want to go to church," he says. "But we don't want to lie to God about who we are."

Art: Photographing the deaths of televisions.

This is how one resident of Brooklyn's Columbia Street Waterfront District describes his neighborhood, which has the highest concentration of same-sex households in NYC: "(it) is not the epicenter of gay culture.”

Beyoncé strikes a pose in Paris.

LGBT group Fairness West Virginia hires its first staff member.

Former Sony chairman Norio Ohga, who helped develop the CD, has died.

Larry Kramer on the current generation of gays: I don't know why so many gay men don't want to know their history. I don't know why they turned their back on the older generation as if they don't want to have anything to do with them. I would like us to get beyond that."

News: Mary Morgan, Left-Handers, Ireland, Brandon Routh

New poll reveals that an astounding 73% of the population in Ireland support marriage equality.

Mary Morgan, the first openly lesbian judge in the US, has retired.

Left-handedness still a mystery: "Hand asymmetry (whether left or right) is related to brain asymmetry. And that, Dr. Francks said, 'is not at all understood; we’re really at the very beginning of understanding what makes the brain asymmetrical and what goes wrong — we don’t understand that process in the normal case.'”

Charlie Sheen continues his odd train wreck by introducing a web cast he calls a "random experiment": Sheen's Korner.

Could civil unions come to Colorado, a state that has a Constitutional amendment banning marriage equality?

Listen: Short clip of new Britney Spears single "(Drop Dead) Beautiful."

Spoiler alert: Alexander Skarsgard on the upcoming season of True Blood.

Brandon Routh doffs his shirt for his new movie Dylan Dog: Dead of Night.

An update on the life Greg Louganis.

Anti-gay discrimination bills die in West Virginia due to inaction from lawmakers in that state.

George Michael on his stint in jail: "Remarkably enough, I know people must think it was a really horrific experience - it's so much easier to take any form of punishment if you believe you actually deserve it, and I did."

Gay man brutally beaten to death in New Jersey. Hate crime suspected.

The search continues for Tyche, which, unlike Pluto, scientists believe might be the true ninth planet in solar system.