http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/10/13/senate-confirms-lesbian-as-federal-district-judge/
Alison Nathan has been confirmed by the full U.S. Senate as a federal judge for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. She becomes only the second out lesbian ever to serve on the federal bench.
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/10/25/meet-americas-first-openly-gay-political-candidate/
“There was nothing in the books that said a gay person could not run,” explains Jose Sarria of his groundbreaking run for political office in San Francisco 50 years ago. The 89 year-old founder of the Imperial Court System said police harassment of homosexuals throughout the 1950s inspired him to borrow a suit and persuade city politicos to let him on the ballot in 1961.
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/11/02/victory-fund-candidates-win-newspaper-endorsements/
Numerous Victory Fund-endorsed openly LGBT candidates have also won the backing of their local newspaper editorial boards. On Election Day we’ll find out if that helps put these candidates over the top.
Here are a just few Victory candidates racking up multiple endorsements:
Adam Ebbin – Virginia State Senate District 30 – endorsed by theWashington Post
Chris Seelbach – Cincinnati, OH City Council – endorsed by the Cincinnati Enquirer
Bevan Dufty — Mayor of San Francisco — endorsed by the Bay Area Reporter
Alex Morse – Mayor of Holyoke, MA – endorsed by The Republican
Wayne Abraham – Greensboro, NC City Council – endorsed by the Greensboro News & Record
Zach Adamson – Indianapolis City Council – endorsed by the Indianapolis Star
Rory Neuner – Lansing, MI City Council At-Large – endorsed by the Lansing State Journal
Mike Laster – Houston City Council, District J – endorsed by the Houston Chronicle
Sally Clark – Seattle City Council – endorsed by the Seattle Times
Tom Rasmussen – Seattle City Council – endorsed by the Seattle Times
Ryan Mello – Tacoma, WA City Council – endorsed by The News Tribune
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/11/09/gay-lesbian-candidates-win-big-across-u-s/
Openly gay and lesbian candidates endorsed by the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund won election to municipal, judicial and state legislative offices from coast to coast Tuesday night. At least 53 of the group’s 75 endorsees were victorious, with two races still undecided this morning.
Candidates in Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Charlotte, N.C., made history, becoming the first openly gay or lesbian candidates elected to those city councils. In Virginia, Adam Ebbin became the first openly gay person elected to the State Senate, and in New Jersey, Tim Eustace became the first non-incumbent openly gay candidate to win a seat in the State Assembly.
“The election of gay and lesbian candidates in places where they have never won before is a major step forward, and we could not be happier about these victories,” said Chuck Wolfe, president and CEO of the Victory Fund. “All of the openly LGBT candidates who stepped up to run for office this year are true leaders who deserve our profound thanks.”
Of the 75 candidates endorsed by the Victory Fund in 2011, 46 were non-incumbents, 22 were women and 15 were people of color.
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/11/14/out-washington-state-lawmakers-to-push-marriage-bill/
Openly gay and lesbian legislators in Washington state have announced they will introduce a bill next year seeking full marriage rights for same-sex couples.
“Our objective is to strengthen the social and legal protections for average, mainstream Washington families — the men, women and their children who make their homes in our communities and neighborhoods,” said Rep. Jim Moeller, speaking to The Columbian.
“We’re going to push it. I believe 2012 is the best chance we’ve ever had to make marriage equality a reality,” said Sen. Ed Murray, an openly gay Democrat who has served for years in the legislature.
Washington United for Marriage, a coalition of dozens of LGBT, labor and religious groups, is set to announce their plans at a press conference today, according to the Seattle Times.
Recent polling shows most Washingtonians would vote to uphold the law if opponents try to reverse it via a statewide ballot initiative.
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/11/18/gay-man-elected-minority-leader-of-colo-house/
Democrats in the Colorado House of Representatives have elected an openly gay man to lead their caucus, meaning he could become House Speaker if the chamber flips back to Democratic control next year.
Rep. Mark Ferrandino of Denver, who co-sponsored a civil unions bill this year that failed to pass in the Republican-controlled House, said he will work to put Democrats back in charge of the nearly evenly divided chamber.
http://www.breezejmu.org/news/article_6d6fb96e-05b8-11e1-b089-0019bb30f31a.html#.Tso0PPFU2vM
A chorus of “awws” echoed from the Madison Equality crowd as senior Spanish major Marjorie Cook that they would discuss ways for lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender people to have a family at Tuesday’s meeting.
“There’s going to be people in your life who are going to struggle with this,” Cook said. “I’m graduating, and it’s a serious thought for me because one day I want to start a family.”
Cook, the senior adviser to Madison Equality, hosted a discussion Tuesday night about the obstacles that nonheterosexual people face when it comes to starting a family.
Madison Equality has about 200 members and is the JMU community for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students as well as their allies.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bevan-dufty/gay-dad-san-francisco-mayor_b_1022968.html
I’m proud to be a gay dad with a beautiful child who has a wonderful lesbian mom.
Recently, Congressman Jared Polis (D-Colo.) became the first openly gay parent in congressional history. But just this month conservative religious leaders in Honduras asked the government to deny Ricky Martin — a gay dad with twins — the right to visit their country and perform at an October concert.
We’ve made a great deal of progress, but there is so much more to be done.
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/culture/2011/11/4106424/racing-history-aspiring-mayor-christine-quinn-gay-leader-or-leader-w
In early April, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn called Kathryn Wylde, the president of the city’s most powerful business lobby, with a proposal: She wanted Wylde to round up some of her members and release a letter in support of same-sex marriage.
Wylde’s Partnership for New York City, an organization that represents the city’s business elite, does not ordinarily embark on social crusades. But Quinn, who has become the preferred 2013 mayoral aspirant among business leaders like Wylde, made the Richard Florida-esque argument that gay marriage was as much a business issue as it was an issue of civil rights. Open societies build creative classes, which, in turn build economies, and so on.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nathan-manske/true-lgbtq-stories-annise-parker_b_1084681.html
Houston mayor Annise Parker was elected two years ago and was re-elected two nights ago. She’s also a lesbian, making her the first openly gay mayor of a major U.S. city. When we asked her to share a story with us — any story, not necessarily about politics — she was inquisitive. Her Chief of Staff checked and then double-checked with us if Mayor Parker could really share any story from her life. We said, “That’s correct.” After finally meeting the mayor, she asked one more time: “Any story, right? It doesn’t have to be about the election?” After affirming, she began her story, and I realized why she triple checked:
Mayor Parker could share any story she wanted, and she chose to share an honest, courageous story about first love as a teenager.