Out In The Mountains : News - The Rest of Our World

Sacramento, CA
Governor Receives Nods and Nays

"Log Cabin (Republicans) thanks Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for signing a record number of pro-gay bills during his term in office," said Jeff Bissiri, Log Cabin's California Director. "The Governor has been true to his word that he supports basic fairness and equality for our families (...) His record shows that inclusion wins," Bissiri said in a September press release.
      Included in bills favoring the LGBT community are the Nondiscrimination in State Programs and Activities Act; the Panic Excuse Prevention Act, which limits the use of the so-called "gay panic" defense in criminal trials; and the Omnibus Housing Nondiscrimination Act.
      Meanwhile, in San Francisco, the Respect for All Project of Women's Educational Media condemned Schwarzenegger's veto of Assembly Bill 606, the Safe Place to Learn Act. The legislation would have strengthened existing state law prohibiting anti-LGBT harassment and discrimination in California's public schools, the group said.
      "Studies show that LGBT students hear anti-gay slurs about 26 times a day at school and that every year, more than 30 percent of LGBT students report being threatened or injured at school. This is simply unacceptable," said Debra Chasnoff, executive director of Women's Educational Media and co-founder of the Respect for All Project.

New York
Japanese City Urged to Keep Rights Policy

A move to eliminate "sexual orientation" from a Japanese city's three-year-old antidiscrimination ordinance would be a damaging blow to the cause of full equality, Human Rights Watch said last month in a letter to the city's mayor. The city assembly of Miyakonojo was scheduled to debate the issue in September, the HRW said.
     "Rights should never be subject to repeal," said Scott Long, director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch. "A city that became a model of progress by affirming equal rights must not break its promises now."
      In 2003 the southern Japanese city of Miyakonojo, located in Miyazaki prefecture, became one of the first cities in the country to include "sexual orientation" in its gender-equality ordinance.

Atlanta, GA
Lesbian Mom Given Custody of Daughter

In a decision handed down in September, the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled that a parent's custody or visitation rights cannot be limited just because that parent is gay or lesbian, and lives with their partner, when there is no adverse effect on the child, Lambda Legal reported.
     "This is really great news for our client and gay and lesbian parents in Georgia," said Jack Senterfitt, Senior Staff Attorney in Lambda Legal's Southern Regional Office in Atlanta. "It means custody arrangements can't be challenged just because a parent is gay or lesbian."
      Victoria Moses and Kelvin King had a daughter together. After the couple split, primary custody of the child was awarded to Moses. After Ms. Moses' partner moved into her home, King sued to change custody. A lower court did so, even though King had not paid child support for over a year and a half.

New York
Jamaican and Montreal AIDS Activists Recognized

Gareth Williams, a leading AIDS activist and voice for the rights of sexual minorities in Jamaica and the English-speaking Caribbean, is the recipient of the 2006 International Award for Action on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network and Human Rights Watch announced last month. Stella, a Montreal-based support and information group organized by and for sex workers, is the recipient of the Canadian award.
     "Against enormous odds and at great risk to his own physical safety, Gareth Williams has been a courageous campaigner against human rights violations targeting lesbians, gay men and HIV-positive Jamaicans," said Rebecca Schleifer, a researcher with Human Rights Watch's HIV/AIDS Program.
      Stella, the recipient of the Canadian Award, serves women, transvestites and transsexuals. The group maintains an ongoing presence in sex work venues, including streets, escort agencies, massage parlors and strip bars.       "Since 1995, Stella has worked to improve the quality of life and working conditions of sex workers so that they may work and live in safety and with dignity," said Joanne Csete, Executive Director of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network.

Platteville, WI
Lambda Seeks Justice for Gay Man Who Was Beaten

In court papers filed last month, Lambda Legal seeks recovery for damages suffered by a man who was gay-bashed.
      "Mr. [Brett] Timmerman was singled out and beaten by his attackers because he is gay," said James P. Madigan, Staff Attorney in Lambda Legal's Midwest Regional Office in Chicago. "He suffered physical as well as emotional injury and has shouldered significant expense in the aftermath of the attack."
      Timmerman, a student at UW-Platteville, at the time of the assault, was about to walk into a local sandwich shop when his would-be attackers called him a "faggot." Then Oden Waite and Enove Urias slapped and spit in Timmerman's face and struck him in the head before pushing him to the ground. When the police arrived, they pulled Waite off Mr. Timmeman and arrested Waite. Both Waite and Urias would later falsely accuse Mr. Timmerman of starting the fight. This led to a citation for disorderly conduct against Mr. Timmerman that prosecutors later dismissed.

Washington, DC
Ivy League Supports Rights

The Ivy League - the nation's most elite institutions of higher education - is now unanimous in banning discrimination against students, faculty or staff based on their "gender identity or expression," GenderPAC said in a press release last month.
      Following its September board meeting, Yale University announced it had become the final Ivy League school to adopt such protections in its employment and student admissions policies, joining Brown, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell, Harvard, Princeton, Columbia and Dartmouth.

South Africa
Lesbian Conference in Johannesburg

Despite emotions stoked by personal stories of marginalization among lesbians that led to tears, the four-day lesbian conference hosted by Forum for the Empowerment of Women (FEW) was a success, according to Donna Smith, the organization's chief executive officer.
      Held at Woman's Gaol of Constitution Hill in August, the conference's main intention was to start working as a collective, and to work full-scale on gay issues.
      Following the Coalition of African Lesbians (CAL) conference a few months before, the South African conference attracted lesbian mothers, lesbians living with HIV/AIDS and transgender individuals from all walks of life and provided a forum where they shared, learned and taught each other about their struggles.

Washington, DC
Women Doubly Affected by "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Women continue to be discharged at twice the rate of their presence in the armed forces under the federal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law banning openly lesbian, gay, and bisexual service members, according to new data obtained by Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN).
      While women account for approximately 15 percent of the armed forces, they totaled 30 percent of those dismissed under the gay ban in FY 2005, SLDN reported. In all, 219 women out of a total of 726 service members were discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

New York
Ugandan Gays Suffer Under Crackdown

In a country where a sodomy conviction carries a penalty of life imprisonment, a Ugandan tabloid's decision to publish the names of alleged homosexuals is a chilling development that could presage a government crackdown, Human Rights Watch said in a recent report.
     "For years, President Yoweri Museveni's government routinely threatens and vilifies lesbians and gays, and subjects sexual rights activists to harassment," said Jessica Stern, researcher in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights Program of Human Rights Watch. "At a moment when sensational publicity has spread fear among a whole community, the authorities must exercise their responsibility to protect, not persecute."
      Human Rights Watch called on Ugandan authorities to end a long campaign of homophobic statements by top officials, including President Museveni; to cease arrests under the sodomy laws and promptly repeal them; and offer protection against violence and harassment to human rights defenders working to protect lesbian and gay rights.

Compiled this month by Editor Lynn McNicol

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