The recent news of the teen suicides, although I’m sure many more have gone unnoticed by the media over the years, has broken my heart. We have lived too long in a world filled with cruelty and violence when parents and educators just accept the harassment, bullying and torture as normal kid behavior. It’s not normal kid behavior. It’s wild animal behavior. It’s the pack mentality that in nature culls the weak or sickly from the herd and has been somehow assimilated by humanity to cull the different and unique. The children who don’t fit the demographic. Who is teaching these children, these bullies, to hate? To prey on these gay kids? Their parents- society. It breaks my heart. So today in honor of the BlogBlast for Peace I ask you to:

TEACH PEACE

Because of that victory in April, Jen and Dawn are now married. Because of DOMA, their marriage is not recognized or respected by our federal government. That’s a disgrace. It’s long past time for DOMA to go.

Iowa plaintiffs Jen (left) and Dawn (right) BarbouRoske with their daughters Breanna and McKinley stand with Congressman Jerrold Nadler outside of the U.S. Capitol Building.

The Respect for Marriage Act introduced today will repeal this shameful law that currently prevents the federal government from recognizing the marriages of same-sex couples. For example, same-sex spouses are not entitled to Social Security benefits in the same way their married neighbors are and are forced by their government to lie when they file their federal tax returns, as they are required to check the “single” box when they are legally married.

The BarbouRoskes have been together for nearly 20 years and when they got married this summer, they got the same license and undertook the same responsibilities as every other married couple in Iowa. The federal government should not discriminate against them. That’s why Lambda Legal’s attorneys have been working closely for months with Congressman Nadler’s staff and colleagues from our sister LGBT organizations to craft this bill and prepare for its launch today.

Please call or email your member of Congress today to ask him or her to co-sponsor and support the Respect for Marriage Act.

Earlier this year, Lambda Legal’s unanimous marriage equality victory in the heartland state of Iowa showed that Americans are ready for change. But there is a lot of hard work ahead to gain passage of this bill. There are already more than 90 co-sponsors—which is inspiring—but we need more.

We have a fact sheet available online to explain more about this bill and what it means to you.

It was great to be in Washington today. After 13 years, it is time to take this insulting and discriminatory law off the books. We are proud of Congressman Nadler, openly gay members of Congress Tammy Baldwin (WI) and Jared Polis (CO) and the many other co-sponsors, and thank them for their leadership.

Lambda Legal will continue to fight to see that the Respect for Marriage Act is passed—and will keep fighting for the rights of same-sex couples across the country. Thank you for supporting our work and being part of history!”

Do your stuff, ppl!
Peace, out!
“

40 freaking years.

So yippee! A few of we queers, in a few states may marry (even if it’s not federally recognized), and a few more in a few more states may file as “domestic partners”. The military is okay with queers as long as they will lie about it, and 40 years after Stonewall it seems that we all still must fear being raided while out for an evening. We must fear being arrested for having a few beers in a bar. We still must fear being brutalized and ending up in the hospital.

And you know what? You know what all you queers? All you gays, lesbians, transgenders… All you fags, fairies and queens? All you butches, dykes and rug munchers??

It could happen to you.

If it could happen in a big city like Fort Worth, which has a large and open gay community, it could happen anywhere. And don’t you dare gimme any shit about TEXAS! It was my friend Shelly who is from Texas, who called me this morning so mad she could spit (and that was after she had calmed down a little and written about The Debacle At The Rainbow Lounge) and told me about this perversion of authority.

Just think for a minute about how often shit like this happens all over America in small towns that doesn’t make National Headlines.

Think about that. If you are queer, and have been bashed, harassed or yelled at; if you have been the butt of crude jokes and stares and whispers; if you have suddenly realized it might be a good time to leave wherever you happen to be- then you have probably already thought of this. More than that, you live with it just like I do. I live in a small town where the local bigots refer to my GirlyBoi and I as “the ladies”. Unless we piss them off or maybe don’t happen to be within earshot- Then we magically become “those dykes”.

If you are not queer, you should think about it, too.

If you are an ally, I love you. We need our straight allies to be as out as we are. We need our straight family and friends to stand up and be counted as horrified by shit like this; as morally outraged and offended about this!

And if you are not out as an ally, and you have a friend or family member who is gay; if you love or even care a little about someone who is gay…

Stand up!

I’m serious. Stand up for love. Stand up for the people you love and care about. Refute your own fear, quit worrying about your neighbors, your boss, your other friends. If we queers can do it, so can you.

‘Nuff said. Peace, out!