Equalitopia

UK Catholic adoption agency loses bid to ban gay parents from service

A Roman Catholic adoption charity’s appeal to be allowed to discriminate against gay people wanting it to place children with them has been rejected.

Catholic Care in Leeds, England, wanted exemption from new anti-discrimination laws so it could limit services provided to homosexual couples on religious grounds.

The Charity Commission said gay people were suitable parents and religious views did not justify discrimination.

In a statement, Catholic Care said: “The charity is very disappointed with the outcome.

(Full Story: BBC News)

I was there when the Governor of Hawaii vetoed House Bill 444
A guest opinion piece by Être Humain

I was there at the Hawaii State Capitol when our governor, Linda Lingle, vetoed House Bill 444, which would have given all couples the right to get a civil union, homosexual or heterosexual. All of us came out early in the morning to wave signs for equality, and many showed their support by honking.

After we learned that she would veto the bill, we were all disappointed, and many got up to the microphone and spoke about their long-term relationships. One man, with his boyfriend for five years, said he wonders everyday that if something happens to either of them, the other will be granted visitation rights. Another man, with his boyfriend of twelve years, called Lingle a “coward,” and yelled, “Shame!”

Everybody knew that even though her decision affected gay couples’ lives personally, it would not be the end. Hawaii’s ACLU and HRC have already vowed they’d litigate until the case reaches the Supreme Court. Other politicians came out to show their support, including Gary Hooser, majority leader of the Hawaii Senate, and Justice Steven Levinson, who authored the Supreme Court’s Baehr v. Lewin back in 1993, which deemed same-sex marriages constitutional.

There were many people dressed in white with buttons that said “iVote”, alluding that they would vote out supporters of equality. For the most part, we ignored them and they ignored us. After Lingle handed down her decision, her supporters sang hymns and yelled out prayers, swaying with their hands in the air.

[July 6] was a big defeat for equality, but Hawaii activists vow to never stop fighting until the LGBT community is treated as first-class citizens: as equals.

US opinion on gay marriage shifting rapidly

A few months ago, we posted a chart showing that America’s opinion on gay marriage has eased slightly, but a recent chart by Five Thirty Eight shows that it could be even more of a change.

The chart uses data from dozens of polls about gay marriage. We may soon be able to safely say that the majority of America supports gay marriage!

Studies have shown us that americans who oppose gay marriage are both less educated and older.

See also:

• America’s opinion: gays receive the most discrimination
• Gays in the military: A thorough breakdown of opinions
• Archive: LGBT data and infographics

(Chart by Five Thirty Eight)

Two men promote equality by attempting to break world record for longest continuous kiss 

UPDATE: We’ve just been informed that the kiss has been postponed to Saturday, September 18th at approximately 10am until 7PM on Sunday.

Matty and Bobby are New Jersey college students and LGBT activists. On Wednesday, August 11th (UPDATE: Saturday, September 18th), they will be attempting to break the Guinness World Record record for the longest continuous kiss.

The current record is held by Nikola Matovic and Kristina Reinhart of Germany managed, who kissed for 32 hours and 7 minutes in 2009.

Equalitopia interviewed Matty and Bobby to get some insight into why and how they plan on breaking the world record.

EQUALITOPIA: So, you’re attempting to break the record for the longest kiss—what made you decide to do this?

BOBBY: We were watching an episode of Fantasy Factory where someone made the world’s largest skateboard, and I commented on what a waste it was to do something that ridiculous and that the only reason the person was able to do it was because he had a lot of money. So Matty came up with the idea of the longest kiss, and then the idea kind of hit us as the longest kiss between two boys to support gay rights.

MATTY: Yeah. Why break a record if it doesn’t mean something? And to us, this means so much.

EQUALITOPIA: You two have been training for the event. Could you tell us a few things you’ve been doing to prepare?

BOBBY: We have been practicing standing in place for hours at a time, and being awake for a prolonged period of time is something we do quite often at college.

MATTY: My personal record for being awake without sleeping is 72 hours. This was back in February when I was at an exhausting convention in Boston for campus activities. So, we know that it’s possible. And like Bobby said, we’re in college, sometimes, like during midterms and finals, neglecting sleep is necessary. Haha. Also, Bobby and I will be practicing the thirty-three hour kiss on our own in two weeks from now, to prepare for the event. We’ve even come up with a set of hand signals for our select stand-by supporters in the event of both foreseen and unforeseen obstacles that may arise during the time period.

EQUALITOPIA: Standing, being awake, not eating, bladder concerns—what part of the 33-hour kiss are you most worried about?

BOBBY: I think staying awake and completely focused on not breaking our lips apart will be the most challenging. But I am also concerned about the ability to stand for such a long duration, my ankles are not exactly the best.

MATTY: Of course, all of these will be worries. And I let it be Bobby’s job to worry and keep me grounded in remembering what it is we’re challenging our bodies to do, besides stay lip-locked for all of this time. Haha. Honestly, I’m most worried about the weather. Hopefully it doesn’t rain, because even though we’ll be under a canopy, I don’t want to catch pneumonia!

EQUALITOPIA: So Bobby is in a relationship, and he’s completely in support of the cause?

BOBBY: Yes, I am in a relationship and my boyfriend supports the cause completely. We all know each other, and we’re very close friends.

MATTY: Bobby’s boyfriend is such a good sport. And he knows this isn’t about him and I kissing; it’s about something much more important. When you really think about it, the kissing part is really only an extra added element to these other obstacles, like a hire wire performance artist wearing a blindfold when crossing a tightrope. So really, we’re attempting to break the World Record for Longest Continuous Standing-Spree without Using the Bathroom with Our Lips Touching. Bobby’s boyfriend understands something else though, that we hope others will see in the cause. Given that Bobby and I are just friends (and we’re not each other’s type, despite how cute Bobby is), this kiss isn’t just about supporting LGBT rights and cementing a place for the LGBT community in an expression of affection honored by the Guinness World Records. This kiss is about fighting hegemonic norms. In deaf culture, beyond the gesticular vocabulary, body language is the primary form of communication. For the hearing population, we limit ourselves in spoken language by the words we use. This kiss isn’t about sexual or romantic expression between two lovers. We’re not required to make-out, use our tongues, or any of that nonsense. It’s all really simple and innocent; it’s a kiss between two men, two friends. Hopefully, others will see this and begin to think that it’s okay to kiss your closest friends Hello and Goodbye, to let them know in other ways that you care and are ready to face the obstacles life throws your way together, when the words refuse to surface in our voices. And afterall, thirty-three hours is a long time to be standing together with our lips touching - I doubt Bobby and I will want to kiss each other for a while after that. Haha. And his boyfriend is Awesome because he understands this :)

EQUALITOPIA: Who’s going to be there? Are you required to have a Guinness World Record representative to witness it?

BOBBY: We’re not required to have a Guinness World Record representative there, but we do need official witnesses, who will serve to gain nothing from participating in this event.

MATTY: Yeah, there is this entire package of evidence we must supply and submit to the Guinness Records committee for approval. But the more the word is spread, the more people that come and support our campaign, the easier this all becomes.

EQUALITOPIA: There was a six-week long approval process? What was required in this process?

MATTY: We had to submit an application to Guinness explaining why we wanted to attempt to break this record, how we were going to achieve in doing so, and so on. Then we had to wait for them to process our application. And then it was another several weeks before we received our approval. Without going through this, we weren’t allowed to talk about attempting to break the record or we could be disqualified. So it was a pretty heft secret between Bobby and I for six weeks, and we couldn’t even move to launching it as a campaign until all was said, done, and given the go-ahead.

EQUALITOPIA: What happens if you don’t break the record? Will you try again?

BOBBY: We hadn’t really talked about it. But, it’s up to Matty. I wouldn’t mind giving it another try.

MATTY: Absolutely! But, I don’t believe in failure. If I have to hold Bobby up for thirty-three hours, pinching his rib cage with one hand to keep him awake, and pressing his head against mine with the other to keep up lip-locked, we’ll do whatever it takes!!

We have discussed it, and we do plan to live-stream the event online now. That information will be up on the website soon.

Follow Matty & Bobby on their official site, Facebook, and Twitter.

This is a developing story. Follow Equalitopia Blog for updates.

(Photo: AJVR Photography)

A photo by Steve Griffin / The Salt Lake Tribune:

As a rainbow appears in the background Jeff Key, of Salt Lake City, proudly holds the flag as advocates for gay marriage rally on Capitol Hill in Salt Lake City after a federal court judge overturned California’s same-sex marriage ban Wednesday. Key asked his husband to remarry him during the rally.

(via sadax on Reddit)

BREAKING: Proposition 8 ruled unconstitutional

In a landmark victory, a federal judge declared Proposition 8 unconstitutional.

Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that California’s Proposition 8 should be overturned in a 136-page ruling.

According to the Dallas Voice:

The defense has said it will appeal Walker’s decision to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and the case is expected to eventually wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

The defense has also requested a stay of Walker’s ruling pending appeal, but Walker has not yet ruled on that request. If the stay is granted as expected, same-sex couples could not begin marrying in California right away.

The conclusion of the ruling:

“Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite- sex couples are superior to same-sex couples. Because California has no interest in discriminating against gay men and lesbians, and because Proposition 8 prevents California from fulfilling its constitutional obligation to provide marriages on an equal basis, the court concludes that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional.”

And an excerpt from the ruling:

A private moral view that same-sex couples are inferior to opposite-se couples is not a proper basis for legislation.

(Photo: New York Times, hat tip to Queerty)

Gay couple save life of homophobe who abused them for three years

A married gay couple in Birmingham, England saved their homophobic neighbor in a house fire, after years of verbal abuse.

Bryn and James Tudor experienced years of verbal abuse from their neighbor, Baljit Koonar, according to Sunday Mercury. Even after Baljit Koonar was forced to sign a “Good Neighbour Agreement” in 2008, the abuse continued.

Last week, Koonar received a 18-month supervision order and was forced to pay the couple £150 as compensation.

Just a few weeks before that, Koonar and his family were trapped in a deadly fire.

“I was sleeping when something woke me up at around 5am. I could taste smoke in the back of my mouth,” James explains.

“I couldn’t see anything out of the front window, but when I went to the back there was smoke billowing out of next door and the family were on the roof.”

Koonar, his wife, their two children, and the children’s grandmother were stranded on the roof.

After rushing to get a ladder, the couple helped the family down to safety and brought them into his home. They offered them water and and chocolate to calm them.

“Our thoughts weren’t about him. We wanted to get the kids down as soon as we could. You don’t think about anything that person has done, it’s just about the value of human life.”

James hopes that they can now be “proper neighbours,” if not, friends.

(Photo: Todd Klassy)