Latino LGBT and civil rights organizations hold community forum for “hard to count” community to discuss importance of being  included in the 2010 Census.

Los Angeles, CA – The Latino Equality Alliance (LEA) – an alliance of LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) community based groups – MALDEF and the Census Bureau held a community forum last Saturday, February 27 with numerous families in Highland Park, a largely Latino neighborhood in Los Angeles, to discuss why and how the LGBT community should be counted in the 2010 Census. The first of its kind, the forum was to educate same-sex Latino couples on how to fill out the Census form to make sure that LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) couples participate and are counted.

“The LGBT community is denied a number of federal civil rights associated with military service, social security, immigration, health and marriage benefits. A Census of LGBT couples is a good first step in highlighting the needs of our community,” stated Eddie Martinez, LEA co-chair and associate director of the Wall/Las Memorias.

An accurate Census count of the LGBT Latino community in the U.S. will help secure funding for crucial health programs and needed services for the community. Recent studies indicate that Latino LGBT communities experience a large disparity in health outcomes compared to the general population. Census demographic data helps educate legislators and the public about the specific needs of the Latino and LGBT community and prioritize funding accordingly.

Reflective of a policy change by the Obama Administration, the 2010 Census is the first national effort to acknowledge same-sex couples, providing insight into the size and racial diversity of the LGBT community.

“Same-sex couples filling out the Census can indicate their relationship to their married spouse by indicating ‘husband’ or ‘wife.’ Other same sex couples can select the ‘unmarried partner’ option to reflect their household status,” explained Matthew E. Weinstein, LGBT community partnership specialist for the Census Bureau.

“We appreciate the Census Bureau is recognizing the LGBT community to be as diverse as the general public and that each community comes with its own needs,” said Ari Gutierrez, LEA co-chair and vice president of HONOR Political Action Committee. “The Census does not ask transgender status or sexual orientation questions but Transgender individuals can select the gender with which they identify. Importantly, the Census is completely confidential and will benefit our community in the long-run,” she added.

Forum speakers include, Lauren Pérez-Rangel, Western Regional Census Director for MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund) who stated, “MALDEF is deeply vested in making sure we achieve a full count of all Latinos and that includes Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) members of our community.  We are working with the Latino Equality Alliance to reassure the Latino community that the census is confidential and extremely important. At MALDEF, we strive for all Latinos to have fair and equal treatment in society, and achieving an accurate count of the Latino LGBT community will assist us in advocating for improved policies and practices for the community.”

As part of a larger civil rights effort, the Latino Equality Alliance’s forum provided an opportunity for members of the Latino LGBT community to actively engage in changing incorrect perceptions and to increase support by the mainstream Latino community. The Latino Equality Alliance is funded through a grant by the Liberty Hill Foundation.

LGBT community service organizations including BIENESTAR Human Service’s 11 southern California locations, have been designated Census Resource Centers where the public can access additional information about how to fill-out the Census form.

For information about the LGBT Census and resource locations visit www.ourfamiliescount.org or call 1-877-352-3676. Photographs of the February 27 event in Highland Park, CA also are available upon request.

Out & Equal Workplace Advocates is proud to announce that three new Board members have joined its governing Board of Directors.

They are:

• Ambassador (ret.) Michael Guest, Senior Advisor to the Council for Global Equality
• Julie Hogan, Regional Vice President at Xerox Corp.
• Megan Wallent, a General Manager at Microsoft

“I am delighted to welcome our new Board members to Out & Equal,” said Founding Executive Director Selisse Berry. “They each bring an incredible amount of dedication and passion to the movement of achieving lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workplace equality, and they will help us further our mission nationally and globally.”

Guest made national headlines three years ago when he decided to retire from his role as a U.S. diplomat — serving in various positions over 26 years — to protest the lack of equal rights, benefits and protections for partners of gay and lesbian Foreign Service employees. He subsequently served on President Barack Obama’s State Department Transition Team, identifying remedies to these policies, which the Obama Administration has since adopted. Guest co-founded and works with the Council for Global Equality, a coalition of 18 human rights and LGBT organizations that seeks stronger U.S. support for LGBT equality at home and abroad. He resides in Washington D.C. with his partner, Alex Nevarez.

Hogan is responsible for Xerox sales, technical services delivery and professional services throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. She has played various roles at Xerox over the last two decades. She joined Xerox as a customer services engineer, held various services operations management positions and general management assignments, including strategy, planning and technology infrastructure. Before joining Xerox, she served in the United States Navy, providing technical support for classified defense computer systems and intelligence projects. She currently resides in San Ramon, California with her partner, Allison Leach.

Wallent has spent more than a decade working for Microsoft, responsible for delivering multiple versions of Internet Explorer, leading a large team that built major portions of Windows Vista, and currently leads a team in the Windows Server and Tools Division. She’s an outspoken advocate of transgender rights, and transitioned on the job in 2007. She chronicled her experiences on meganwallent.com

, which has generated a wide and varied readership. She resides in Seattle, Wash., with her spouse, Anh, and their children, Peri, John and Daniel.

Berry also thanked outgoing Board members, Tara Bunch, who served four years on the Board, including two years as President, and Amanda Simpson, who left the Board this month after three years to take a senior advisory position within the United States Department of Commerce.

“Tara and Amanda have both played invaluable roles with Out & Equal,” Berry said. “We appreciate everything they have done for us, and their commitment to making a difference for the LGBT community. They will continue to be instrumental in the movement for LGBT equality, either through their direct involvement with Out & Equal or by being the voices of our community in their own workplaces.”

The new Board members will serve a two-year renewable term beginning this month.

Media Contact: Associate Director of Marketing & Communications Erik Olvera, 415-694-6512, eolvera@outandequal.org

Out & Equal offers a wide range of programs and services to promote LGBT workplace equality, including the Out & Equal Executive Forum, set for April 19-21, 2010 in New York City, and the Out & Equal Workplace Summit, set for Oct. 5-8, 2010 in Los Angeles.

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Out & Equal™ Workplace Advocates is a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. Out & Equal champions safe and equitable workplaces for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. The organization advocates building and strengthening successful organizations that value all employees, customers, and communities. See our website, www.outandequal.org, for more details.

LIMBIC FIRE | fashion : design : art : music

Our favourite pic is none other than the sassy Miss Joey herself wearing the most fabulous and sexy outfit:

Hillbilly Doin’s Glamourous Hair Clips by Pam Esposito

Fun, flirty hair clips that are always a perfect fit! Great for adding a little sparkle or shine to any outfit.

To see the whole collection visti the Hillbilly Doin’s Shop on Etsy:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/hillbillydoins

Girltalk Online gives these fabulous hair clips two thumbs up! Check out the White Sparkly Butterfly – worn by none other than Paris Hilton!

Born male but living as a woman, Orrin Harris, 48, who is known as Pepper, sleeps during the day and stays up all night.

http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/nyregion/1-in-8-million/index.html#/orrin_harris

DC AGENDA LAUNCHES
Former Employees of Washington Blade Vow to Continue Mission, Begin New Venture

WASHINGTON, DC — The Washington Blade, formerly the nation’s oldest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) newspaper, died on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 9:30 AM. The 40-year-old paper ceased operation under the weight of its parent company’s financial problems. Window Media’s financial condition and the exact reasons for closing the Washington Blade remain unclear. No statement has been issued by the former executives from Atlanta, Miami or New York regarding how the decision to abruptly shut down the publication was made.

After Monday’s shuttering, 17 former employees vowed to not miss this Friday’s production of Washington DC’s LGBTQ news weekly. Today they delivered on that promise. At 9:30 AM this morning the publication that will replace the Washington Blade – DC Agenda – hit the streets. As demonstrated in the first issue, the new publication provides critical coverage of local and national LGBT issues along with much needed community news.

“The power and effectiveness of the Washington Blade did not die with the name,” said DC Agenda Publisher Lynne Brown, also former Publisher of the Washington Blade and employee of that publication for over 23 years. “That strength actually came from the spirit and intensity of those who wrote the stories and reached out to the community. It’s those same people who are the backbone of this new venture, a group that is the true definition of grit and resilience.”

“It’s been a tough week, but we have been buoyed by the outpouring of support from our colleagues, our community, people all over the city and even beyond DC,” said DC Agenda Editor Kevin Naff. “The DC Agenda represents former Blade employees’ commitment to carry on the important mission and work of the Blade,” said Naff. “We expect this effort to grow and evolve and to eventually include a larger and more diverse group of voices.”

The 17 former Blade staff members, who also celebrated that publication’s 40th anniversary last month, hand-distributed the first edition of DC Agenda on Friday November 20th, 2009 at 10:00 AM EST.

“We thank all those who have taken the risk of advertising in our new venture. We also would like to invite readers to visit our new news website at www.dcagenda.com and our temporary support website at www.savetheblade.com.” said Brown. “We are thrilled with what we achieved this week. This early iteration of our new newspaper is modest but…we did it! And we look forward to doing it again next week.” concluded Brown.

About DC Agenda: DC Agenda’s mission is to inform, enlighten and serve as the LGBTQ community’s news source.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Lynne Brown, publisher, 202-486-0625, lynnebrown222@comcast.net
Kevin Naff, editor, 410-404-0325, kevinnaff@yahoo.com

OurFamiliesCount.org Officially Launches
LGBT Community Bilingual Public Education Campaign for Accurate 2010 U.S. Census

November 10, 2009 Washington DC – Many leaders and advocates among America’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community unite today in the launch of Our Families Count (www.ourfamiliescount.org) — a new voluntary public education initiative promoting LGBT visibility and participation in next year’s U.S. Census.

The new 2010 Census education project is a truly collaborative and unique strategy to unite disparate populations across the entire LGBT spectrum. The outreach effort is designed to educate all about the importance of responding to the once-a-decade Census.

Why LGBT Communities and Leaders Care about the 2010 Census

Expert demographer and Williams Institute Research Fellow Dr. Gary Gates described why the 2010 Census matters to the LGBT community especially, “Reliable information on LGBT people is hard to come by and the need for accurate knowledge is real. Census statistics guide many key government decisions. For LGBT citizens especially, statewide organizations and local community centers need information for planning services, while advocacy groups need to know more about the LGBT population as they lobby for resources.”

Gates also noted that, “Americans have many misconceptions about the LGBT community that Census data have allowed us to correct. For example, among those in same-sex couples: one in six lives in a rural area, one in four is a person of color, one in five is raising children (two in five among people of color). Although the 2010 Census does not include questions on sexual orientation or gender identity, the Census count of same-sex partners and their families provides vital information for and about the LGBT community.”

It also is important to emphasize that Census information is never shared with other U.S. government agencies for the purpose of law enforcement or compliance with immigration laws. The Census is used only and confidentially to find out more about all American households and the U.S. population, and is never used to violate any person’s privacy. The Our Families Count campaign also takes no position on specific policy issues or questions.

For additional information generally on the 2010 Census: visit www.census.gov

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/28/hate.crimes/index.html

These ‘victims’ had drunkenly picked on a couple of Drag Queens dressed to the hilt, not knowing that the Girls were cage fighters on a stag-do who managed to dish out some serious blows knocking the victims to the pavement. Now we don’t condone such unladylike behaviour – but these guys had it coming!

Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSILex-2Uu8

Summit set for Oct. 6-9 in Orlando, Fla.

Sept. 23, 2009

As Congress considers federal laws that would protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from workplace discrimination, one of the most influential supporters of equality in President Barack Obama’s administration will deliver his inspirational speech to nearly 2,000 people attending the 2009 Out & Equal Workplace Summit.

John Berry—the administration’s highest-ranking LGBT official as the Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management—will speak on Oct. 9 during the Summit’s Closing Plenary, which will wrap up four full-days of the world’s premier conference on LGBT workplace equality at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort near Orlando, Fla.

He was instrumental in President Obama’s recent decision to extend limited domestic partnership benefits to LGBT federal employees, a move he has called “the first step, not the final step” in the federal government’s commitment to extending equal rights and protections to all LGBT Americans.

Berry has consistently been a voice of LGBT equality at the federal level, repeatedly reiterating the administration’s support for passage of a fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, hate crimes legislation, the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act.

He joins an impressive list of Summit speakers that includes Sharon L. Allen, chair of Deloitte’s board, Kevin Brockman, executive vice president of global communications for Disney-ABC, John Quinones, co-anchor of ABC newsmagazine “Primetime,” and Kenji Yoshino, author of “Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights.”

“Everyone should take part in this opportunity to hear directly from someone who is helping shape LGBT history,” Out & Equal Executive Director Selisse Berry says. “He is actively working to secure equal rights not only for federal employees, but for all of us by inspiring change and for being a catalyst for equality.”

If you’re interested in covering this speech or any other aspect of the 2009 Workplace Summit, please contact Associate Director of Communications & Marketing Erik Olvera at 415-694-6512 or eolvera@outandequal.org.

Media calls: Erik Olvera, 415-694-6512 or eolvera@outandequal.org