Welcome to the first edition of Fabulous Friday, a review of the week's news for the LGBT Kos Community. I'll begin by highlighting some interesting news stories, as well as providing a list of some notable LGBT diaries here at Daily Kos. If you ever run across stories/blog posts/diaries that should be included here, please send a kosmail to LGBT Kos.
Please note: This is supposed to be a safe space to discuss our issues, so please, keep your piefights where they belong, which is not here. That applies to the meta food fight of the day, the Obama Wars, what have you. It's not that we don't like debate or that we don't have opinions on those issues. There are places for these debates and they are not here at LGBT Kos. We are more interested in the diversity of our life experiences, our cultures, and our dreams of a better tomorrow. We believe that we can create a space to discuss these differences without engaging in the political debates that have often divided our community. If you can't abide by this rule, you'll be asked to leave.
LGBT News - Education
There are also a couple of stories this week about the ACLU confronting schools in California and Illinois for using filters that block LGBT websites.
ACLU challenges school's net filter on gay info
The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California announced Wednesday that it has notified the Oroville Union High School District that its Internet-filtering software has been improperly configured to block access to Web content geared toward the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.
The ACLU has sent demand letters to school districts across the country as part of the organization's national "Don't Filter Me" initiative, which seeks to combat illegal censorship of LGBT educational information on public school computers.
LGBT News - Health
The Huffington Post reports on a new study which shows that bullying in schools carries negative, long-term health consequences.
LGBT Bullying In School Linked To Long-Term Health Effects In New Report
A new report by the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University traced the effects of LGBT-victimizing bullying in school -- including unintentional epithets like “that’s so gay,” more direct verbal harassment, and physical violence -- beyond their initial sting in school hallways. Using data from the project's survey of 245 LGBT young adults, the paper links such bullying to long-term health and developmental problems.
It found that LGBT-targeted bullying related to gender expression or sexual orientation during school years led to increased young adult depression, suicidal thoughts, social adjustment issues and risky sexual behavior. LGBT young adults that reported high levels of anti-LGBT victimization as teens were 5.6 times more likely to report suicide attempts than those victimized less frequently. They were more than twice as likely to report being clinically depressed, and they were more than twice as likely to report having been diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease by young adulthood.
The report also found that young adult GBT males are targeted more frequently than their female counterparts, and that the amount of bullying a boy receives in school can help predict the health issues he will face later in life.
You can read more about that report here.
The city of Seattle is considering changes to its health care plan to expand coverage for its transgendered employees.
Commission, mayor agree: Transgendered employees deserve more health coverage
The city of Seattle's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Commission has asked the city council to consider changes to the employee health plan. Seattle's health benefits do not cover the costs associated with transgender health care issues, including gender reassignment surgery.
In a memo to City Council Civil Rights Committee Chair, Bruce Harrell, the commission said: "the exclusions have devastating effects on transgender employees."
Mayor Mike McGinn said he was unaware of the exclusions but now believes "they make a compelling case." "The medical authorities recognize that this is a medical necessity for individuals."
LGBT News - Sports
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the San Francisco Giants will become the first professional sports team to produce a video for the "It Gets Better" campaign.
SF Giants to make video for 'It Gets Better' drive
While celebrities, politicians and everyday people have posted more than 10,000 "It Gets Better" videos to YouTube to build awareness of the continuing problem of gay suicide and anti-gay bullying, no teams in the pro sports world have stepped forward to produce a video.
SNIP
Giants spokeswoman Staci Slaughter said that the team had been thinking of joining the campaign before Chapin started his petition drive, but that his efforts speeded things up. She said the exact content of the video and which, if any, players or members of the coaching staff will participate have not been determined.
Originally, the plan was to produce the video for the Giants LGBT Night home game in August, Slaughter said, "but now we're trying to get it done sooner than later."
And Charles Barkley states the obvious -- that there are gay professional athletes. He goes further and talks about homophobia in sports and whether professional athletes are ready to play alongside an openly gay athlete.
Charles Barkley: I had gay teammates
"First of all, every player has played with gay guys," Barkley told 106.7 The Fan, adding that any player who says he hasn't is "a stone-freakin' idiot."
"It bothers me when I hear these reporters and jocks get on TV and say: 'Oh, no guy can come out in a team sport. These guys would go crazy.' First of all, quit telling me what I think. I'd rather have a gay guy who can play than a straight guy who can't play," Barkley said.
LGBT News - International
A right-wing church group crashed a rally for the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia in Adelaide, Australia. Members of the Adelaide Street Church--referred to as the Westboro Baptist Church of Australia by LezGetReal--reportedly carried hateful signs and pulled a woman out of her wheelchair. Video here.
Gays, Christians clash at Adelaide rally
A gay and lesbian rally against homophobia in Adelaide has ended in violence after it was crashed by Christian protesters, with one person being removed by police.
About 200 people gathered outside parliament on Saturday to rally in support of International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia when members of the Adelaide Street Church showed up.
Rally organiser Jason Virgo said one woman was pushed out of her wheelchair and police had to be called.
Notable Diaries
LGBT-related diaries that did not make the recommended diaries list and were not rescued.
Good News
A victory for the LGBT community in Volusia County, Florida:
Volusia passes anti-discrimination ordinance
DELAND -- Starting in July, it will be illegal in Volusia County to discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, housing, or places of public accommodation like restaurants or bars.
The Volusia County Council approved the ordinance today on a 6-1 vote after hearing from nearly a dozen speakers.
LGBT Kos News
We're very excited about the response to our group so far. We've gotten a lot of requests to join. We've been talking about adding a Sunday afternoon Open Thread diary. If you are interested in helping out with that, or the Wednesday or Friday diaries, please send a Kosmail to the group or one of the administrators.