How about this? Just in!

[scott snedeker]

How about them apples?

Washington began recognizing gay marriages performed in other states Tuesday – a move that is being called a potential first step toward allowing same-sex couples to wed in the nation’s capital.

The district’s measure stops short of other laws in states such as Iowa and Vermont, which allow for same-sex wedding ceremonies. But it adds to their momentum.

Moreover, Washington would be a unique prize in the battle over gay marriage. Not only does it bring the issue to where the nation’s lawmakers live – making it part of the city’s culture – but it also marks gay marriage’s first foray into a predominately black community.

Washington’s city council passed the law to give married same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples by a 12-to-1 margin in May – a vote that supporters hail as significant.

“Nationally, anti-gay rights activists have had a great deal of success in encouraging black voters to oppose gay rights, partially because [gay rights] are seen – incorrectly – as a ‘white issue,’” writes Adam Serwer on the website of American Prospect, a liberal magazine.

“But in Washington, D.C., the diverse composition of the marriage-equality movement means that marriage-equality activists don’t have to ‘reach out’ to the black community, because they’re already part of it,” he adds.

But black leaders have said that the 12-to-1 vote is not reflective of the community at large. In a city where 56 percent of residents are African-American, there is little chance a gay-marriage law would be approved if put to voters, says Derek McCoy, a pastor at Hope Christian Church in suburban Washington.

He says the law is yet another example of a legislative branch “pulling a fast one on the constituents.”

A group of black ministers filed a lawsuit in an effort to stall the bill until a referendum could put the question to Washington voters. A judge dismissed the suit.

Black ministers have led much of the opposition to the law, rallying the city’s black churches as well as the broader African-American community. Surveys have shown that a majority of blacks oppose gay marriage. Some 70 percent of blacks in California voted in favor of Proposition 8, the ballot measure that bans same-sex marriages.

Mr. McCoy says he is “continuing to push a battle on the issue.” But he agrees with proponents of same-sex marriage on at least one thing: “I do believe [recognizing gay marriage in Washington] puts it on a national scale, and at least brings that level of attention to it.”

For gay-marriage advocates, that presents them with an ideal stage to show the country – and especially lawmakers from around the nation – that legalizing gay marriage is no threat to traditional marriage values. The ultimate goal: revise or overturn the Defense of Marriage Act, which bans federal recognition of gay marriages.

For those opposed to legalizing same-sex marriage, the capital is an equally vital piece to stop the spread of gay marriage and prevent it from becoming a federal issue.

“Washington, D.C., is symbolically a really important place for a marriage-equality win,” says Molly McKay of Marriage Equality USA, a leading same-sex marriage advocacy group. “I think that it is really important that that happens around the social environment where are elected officials are located.”[/I]



What I find rather suspicious is the media making this out to be a polarized gay vs black community issue. Doesn't that sound like "The Man" making two socially oppressed groups appear to be "pawns" that "He" is settting against each other? I remember an episode of STAR TREK where such an entity did exactly that to keep the Klingons and Humans fighting for its benefit!

I don't buy into this game! No sir!

http://features.csmonitor.com/politi...ext-big-prize/

[awediot]

Good news...

brings up some interesting points>

The Difference of Gay...

[Gennee]

Gay rights is EVERYBODY'S issue. If it isn't an issue in the black community, explain the much higher rates of HIV/AIDS infections. By all the denial, homophobia, and transphobia African-American men, women and youth have few places to turn to.

The black community needs to come out of denial that there are no GLBT folks in the pews, businesses, and families. These things need to be discussed openly.

Gennee

[bnmoore]

Originally Posted by Gennee

Gay rights is EVERYBODY'S issue. If it isn't an issue in the black community, explain the much higher rates of HIV/AIDS infections. By all the denial, homophobia, and transphobia African-American men, women and youth have few places to turn to.

The black community needs to come out of denial that there are no GLBT folks in the pews, businesses, and families. These things need to be discussed openly.

Gennee

We have a large enough gay poplulation here in Atlanta to support the success of two festivals, Stonewall Weekend and Labor Day (Black Pride). I usually participate in both.

Here's some info:
http://www.inthelifeatl.com/

I usually wind up in BWMT relationships. That seems to be what I attract most often.

Ben N. Moore

[offog]

' “Nationally, anti-gay rights activists have had a great deal of success in encouraging black voters to oppose gay rights, partially because [gay rights] are seen – incorrectly – as a ‘white issue,’” writes Adam Serwer on the website of American Prospect, a liberal magazine. '

'Derek McCoy, a pastor at Hope Christian Church in suburban Washington ... " ... says the law is yet another example of a legislative branch “pulling a fast one on the constituents.” '

"A group of black ministers filed a lawsuit in an effort to stall the bill until a referendum could put the question to Washington voters. A judge dismissed the suit."

Good for that judge! I can't believe that black ministers, who are normally such great civil rights advocates, would get so worked up over "gay rights".

I'm very disturbed by Derek McCoy's comments and by the actions of the group of black ministers. Hello! What do you think would have happened to progress in black civil rights if they had been left to popular vote instead of that eeevil legislative branch? Blacks wouldn't have even got the right to vote!

About the perception that gay rights is a "white issue", that probably isn't the only reason for anti-gay feelings among blacks. I remember something I learned in Sociology 100. When you belong to an oppressed group, a common reaction is to take it out on other oppressed groups. That's why poor blacks and "poor white trash" despise each other. And yeah, "the Man" uses that to play "his" enemies off against each other.