It’s become a tradition that on the first night of LA Pride, the LA Gay & Lesbian Center’s LifeWorks Mentoring program throws its annual cocktail party and silent auction and honors LGBT activists for their contributions.

The evening’s other honoree was the remarkable Zach Wahls, a 19-year-old student at the University of Iowa who became a YouTube phenomenon when he addressed the Iowa State Legislature in support of his two moms and of gay marriage.

We spoke before he got his award. I wanted to know how his life has changed since the video of him speaking so eloquently and lovingly about his family went viral.

“I was not expecting that and if I had been expecting it I’m not sure I would have done it,” he admitted. “It was entirely unexpected. The speech was on a Monday night and Wednesday was the day it took off. I remember sitting in my apartment shaking because of all this pressure and attention and my life was all of a sudden under a microscope and that was not something I’d ever experienced or asked for. It was scary. But at the same time, I knew I had the chance to maybe change the conversation a little bit – for awhile anyway. You either choke or you don’t and I did my best not to.”

He’s since been working with Lambda Legal and One Iowa to protect marriage equality.

“The fights not over,” he said. “Once you’ve secured marriage equality, you have to work your ass off to protect it because the fight’s not over until the other side stops fighting.”

Zach is going to be a part-time student next fall so he can focus on speaking and writing.

“I think the next year-and-a-half is going to be a real pivotal time for this struggle,” he said. “We’re finally starting to see, on a national level, that a majority of Americans support full marriage equality but you also have a lot of candidates on the Republican side all campaigning on this ‘return to family values’ which seems kind of silly to me. the fact of the matter is, increasing marriage rights seems like the best way to increase family values.”

Other than the honorees, among those at Saturday’s star-studded event were Dustin Lance Black, Greg Berlanti, Geri Jewell, Pauley Perrette, Greg Louganis, Jack Mackenroth (Project Runway), Susan Olson (Brady Bunch), Erin Murphy (Bewitched), Charlene Tilton (Dallas), David Moretti (The Lair), Queer as Folk alums Michelle Clunie and Scott Lowell, Doug Spearman (Noah’s Arc) and the reigning Mr. Gay USA Michael Holtz.

LifeWorks Executive Director Michael Ferrera (pictured with Louganis) and Lorri Jean, CEO of the LA Gay and Lesbian Center, also addressed the crowd talking about this terrific program.

Black presented the award to Wahls and before the presentation, I wanted to get the Oscar winners thoughts on the LifeWorks program which honored him two years ago.

“We keep saying it gets better and to come out and embrace who you are once you get past the bullying or whatever is going on in school,” Lance said. “It’s one thing to say it but you have to make sure that those kids have a place to go so it does get better, so that we’re fulfilling that promise. This is one of those programs that does help it get better.”

Below is Zach Wahls addressing the Iowa legislature:

The openly gay three-time U.S. figure skating champion talked to OnTheRedCarpet.com about the honor.

“This is actually my first gay pride parade ever,” he said. “I don’t know what to expect, I would assume lots of glitter and lots of six packs – it is Los Angeles.”

“I never dreamt of being the grand marshal of a gay pride parade, simply because it took me a long time to find my pride,” he added. “I always was focused more on my sport and making something of myself other than being gay and being born that way. That was just something I was born with, the same with me being white, so I always wanted to do extra, do more.”

“In the last couple years, with so many people having trouble and me being in the spotlight more than ever in my life, I realized that I am proud!” Johnny said. “I am so happy to be me and I’m so happy for all the things that I was born with. And I need to show that to the world, that it’s okay to be different, it’s cool to be this amazing addition to society… And for our brothers and sisters who can’t celebrate pride around the world, like one of my favorites, Russia. Their pride parade in Moscow got shut down and that egged me on even more to be here and be supportive of my community.”

It is our most important civil rights issue at this time and it’s just a glaring omission. But strides have been made and for that reason, I’m posting his proclamation here in its entirety:

The story of America’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community is the story of our fathers and sons, our mothers and daughters, and our friends and neighbors who continue the task of making our country a more perfect Union. It is a story about the struggle to realize the great American promise that all people can live with dignity and fairness under the law. Each June, we commemorate the courageous individuals who have fought to achieve this promise for LGBT Americans, and we rededicate ourselves to the pursuit of equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Since taking office, my Administration has made significant progress towards achieving equality for LGBT Americans. Last December, I was proud to sign the repeal of the discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. With this repeal, gay and lesbian Americans will be able to serve openly in our Armed Forces for the first time in our Nation’s history. Our national security will be strengthened and the heroic contributions these Americans make to our military, and have made throughout our history, will be fully recognized.

My Administration has also taken steps to eliminate discrimination against LGBT Americans in Federal housing programs and to give LGBT Americans the right to visit their loved ones in the hospital. We have made clear through executive branch nondiscrimination policies that discrimination on the basis of gender identity in the Federal workplace will not be tolerated. I have continued to nominate and appoint highly qualified, openly LGBT individuals to executive branch and judicial positions. Because we recognize that LGBT rights are human rights, my Administration stands with advocates of equality around the world in leading the fight against pernicious laws targeting LGBT persons and malicious attempts to exclude LGBT organizations from full participation in the international system. We led a global campaign to ensure “sexual orientation” was included in the United Nations resolution on extrajudicial execution — the only United Nations resolution that specifically mentions LGBT people — to send the unequivocal message that no matter where it occurs, state-sanctioned killing of gays and lesbians is indefensible. No one should be harmed because of who they are or who they love, and my Administration has mobilized unprecedented public commitments from countries around the world to join in the fight against hate and homophobia.

At home, we are working to address and eliminate violence against LGBT individuals through our enforcement and implementation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. We are also working to reduce the threat of bullying against young people, including LGBT youth. My Administration is actively engaged with educators and community leaders across America to reduce violence and discrimination in schools. To help dispel the myth that bullying is a harmless or inevitable part of growing up, the First Lady and I hosted the first White House Conference on Bullying Prevention in March. Many senior Administration officials have also joined me in reaching out to LGBT youth who have been bullied by recording “It Gets Better” video messages to assure them they are not alone.

This month also marks the 30th anniversary of the emergence of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, which has had a profound impact on the LGBT community. Though we have made strides in combating this devastating disease, more work remains to be done, and I am committed to expanding access to HIV/AIDS prevention and care. Last year, I announced the first comprehensive National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States. This strategy focuses on combinations of evidence-based approaches to decrease new HIV infections in high risk communities, improve care for people living with HIV/AIDS, and reduce health disparities.

My Administration also increased domestic HIV/AIDS funding to support the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program and HIV prevention, and to invest in HIV/AIDS-related research. However, government cannot take on this disease alone. This landmark anniversary is an opportunity for the LGBT community and allies to recommit to raising awareness about HIV/AIDS and continuing the fight against this deadly pandemic.

Every generation of Americans has brought our Nation closer to fulfilling its promise of equality. While progress has taken time, our achievements in advancing the rights of LGBT Americans remind us that history is on our side, and that the American people will never stop striving toward liberty and justice for all.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2011 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon the people of the United States to eliminate prejudice everywhere it exists, and to celebrate the great diversity of the American people.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fifth.

BARACK OBAMA

For 41 years, members of the LGBT community and their families, friends and allies have gathered for the annual LA PRIDE Celebration, produced by Christopher Street West.

This year’s month-long commemoration will feature the inaugural proclamation of LGBT Heritage Month by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the historic WeHo Dyke March, the iconic three day festival and one of the largest LGBT pride parades in the world.

Each year, Christopher Street West recognizes people and groups that have especially impacted the LGBT community. This year’s honorees are led by the great Margaret Cho, actress, comedienne and humanitarian who will receive the Morris Kight Lifetime Achievement Award.

Bravo executive Andy Cohen, host of Watch What Happens: Live, will take time away from all those crazy “Real Housewives” of New York City-New Jersey-Orange County-Atlanta-Beverly Hills to be honored as person of the year.

Other honorees: Dr. Isabel Gomez-Bassols, the nation’s leading Hispanic radio psychologist reaching 80% of Latino households around the country, will receive the George Moscone Award; progressive activist Suzy Jack will get the Harvey Milk Award; Asian Pacific Islander Equality – Los Angeles will receive the Connie Norman Award for working tirelessly to build bridges within ethnic communities to garner support for marriage equality; Youth of Gay Straight Alliance Network is to be honored with the Outstanding Youth Award for creating safer environments for all students by addressing homophobia and transphobia in schools; Frontiers Magazine will receive the Torie Osborn / Dick Michaels Media Award; Glenne McElhinney gets the Pat Parker Arts Award for helping to remember, record and re-tell the history of California’s LGBT community; Renowned transgender advocate and educator Valerie Spencer will be presented with the Berman Schaffer Award; The popular leather bar Eagle LA will get the Sheldon Andelson Award for consistently supporting causes near and dear to the hearts of the LGBT community; and Sergeant James Farrell, a veteran member of the West Hollywood Sheriff’s station and law enforcement leader, is to be presented with the CSW Special Community Award.

For full information about all 2011 LA PRIDE events, honorees, sponsors and Christopher Street West, please visit LAPRIDE.org.

Constance wanted to take her girlfriend to her prom and rather than letting her do so, the school canceled the event then parents held a private event they did not invite her to.

There was a legal battle which Constance won (she awarded $116,000 in damages and legal fees) and, I hope, some of these “adults” have learned a few things.

Meanwhile Constance goes on with her life and has just been named one of the women of the year by Glamour magazine.

“I was raised to always be proud of who you are,” she tells the magazine.

Kelly Osbourne, grand marshal of the 2010 LA Gay Pride Parade with her mother Sharon Osbourne, did not sit quietly when she passed by a group of homophobic “Christian” protesters along the parade route.

Sharon berated the protesters, taking to the loud speaker  and shouting: ‘You should be ashamed of yourselves!’ according to a report in the Daily Mail.

Kelly said into her microphone: “My God loves gays!”  She then led the crowd in a chant of “God loves gays!”

Colin Farrell has issued a statement in support of BeLonG To Youth Service’s STAND UP! Campaign against homophobic bullying of gay young people.

The star of In Bruges, Pride and Glory and The Recruit recalls his memories of how his gay brother Eamon Farrell was terribly treated when they were young and growing up in Dublin.

Here is an excerpt:

Intolerance is not genetically encoded – it is taught. It is learned at home. It is learned in the classrooms and it is learned anywhere else we gather as a group. But it is usually learned early and added onto from there. If there is nothing to feared, there is nothing to hate. If there is nothing to hate there is no pain.

My brother was so forceful in standing up for who he was, and for the good that he knew was inside of him. Many people missed out on an opportunity, not only to enjoy him, but to enjoy themselves by embracing his “difference”.

They missed out because they saw him as a threat – not as a testament to the kaleidoscope and diversity of this beautiful world. Bullying is torture, it is another betrayal of basic human decency and its scars reach way into the future of its survivors. But the saddest truth is that not all children survive it. It is a potentially fatal societal illness and must be respected and not feared.  Respected and dealt with as a very real problem and as an adversary of a potentially harmonious world, that should have no place for bullies or bullying.”

]]> http://greginhollywood.com/colin-farrell-speaks-out-against-homophobic-bullying-intolerance-is-not-genetically-encoded-it-is-taught-25216/feed 3 http://greginhollywood.com/bill-maher-on-the-million-mo-march-13678 http://greginhollywood.com/bill-maher-on-the-million-mo-march-13678#comments Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:42:20 +0000 Greg Hernandez http://greginhollywood.com/?p=13678 Bill Maher has written an interesting (and funny!) piece for Huffington Post in advance of President Barack Obama’s speech tomorrow at the Human Rights Campaign’s dinner and Sunday’s National Equality March in Washington DC.

Here’s an excerpt:

New Rule: Everyone deserves equal rights. That’s why they’re called “equal” and “rights.” Tomorrow night President Obama will speak before a gay rights group, and on Sunday there will be a massive gay rally in Washington, or as I call it, the Million Mo March. Which makes this weekend the perfect time for Obama to announce he’s repealing “don’t ask, don’t tell” and committing to a full-throated endorsement of gay marriage. One, because it’s the right thing to do and two, because it will throw the conservative base into such a frenzied, pants-shitting panic that they’ll drop all that BS about death panels and socialism and let us all get some actual work done.

But of course that’s not going to happen. I can tell you what the president is going to tell his audience tomorrow: How much he supports them. How much he agrees with them. And how he wishes he was President so he could help them out. But here’s the thing about being president. There isn’t a lot you can do without either Congress, Oprah or Goldman Sachs behind you. But there is one thing the president can do with the stroke of a pen: He can let gays serve openly in the military. It’s called an executive order. Harry Truman wrote one in 1948 for blacks in the military, and that was that.

Here is a LINK to the entire piece which ends this way: And when they get out there on Sunday, Gay Nation also needs to do everything in their power to scare the hell out of right-wing homophobes. I want to see you guys rollerblading down the Mall in nothing but a speedo and a nun’s habit, holding a sparkler in one hand and a penis popsicle in the other.

Yikes!!!

Both were very careful with their answers and clearly did not want to directly criticize President Barack Obama who, so far, has increasingly frustrated thew LGBT community with his lack of action on a host of LGBT issues. In his campaign for the White House, Obama pledged to repeal DOMA.

“I’m not going to walk down the path of controversy by suggesting that President Obama’s not going to step up and do what he said he was going to do and I have confidence he’ll get there,” Newsom said. “I think it’s a question of timing. I was concerned obviously about the DOMA filing. There were a lot of commitments made on DOMA, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and hate crimes. We need to make sure that those are advanced. But again, we’re just just five-and-a-half, six months into an administration and so there’s time. But obviously that filing is of some concern so we will obviously make that point in an appropriate manner.”

Newsom added: “I still believe that this president will be, I think, the biggest champion and friend of the LGBT community that we’ve ever had. I’m confident of that at the end of the day. But right now, we obviously look forward to seeing some more examples of that in the months and years ahead.”

Villaraigosa echoed Newsom’s remarks but made clear his displeasure with the brief: “While I’m not a lawyer, I can tell you that I don’t understand the legal reasoning in the federal brief … I’m concerned about the implications of some of the arguments that are being made by the justice department.”

“I can tell you that I do believe that President Obama is a man of his word, one who understands that this issue of civil rights is an issue that can’t be limited to just some of us. It has to be a value that we support and fight for for all of us. And the issue of marriage equality and hate crimes and discrimination are issues that transcend any one group and they really speak to our values as Americans.”

While I follow politics closely, I fortunately have close friends who are among the best at what they do. They were also at the press conference so I point you to their more extensive coverage. Michael Finnegan’s report can be found at LATimes.com and Ted Johnson’s can be found soon at Variety’s Wilshire and Washington blog. Karen Ocamb’s coverage will be at FrontiersINLA.com.

(Pictured above are Ted, me and Michael after the press conference and before the parade. The three of us also had a great time at Lifeworks and a fun dinner after. Great weekend with great friends!)

Instead of riding in the back of an open car like most officials, Newsom walked the parade route down Santa Monica Boulevard Sunday morning on foot. He often made his way from to one side of the street to the other to shake the hands of screaming parade watchers who treated him like a rock star. Behind Newsom was an army of supporters marching and holding colorful Newsom in 2010 signs.

Newsom, who is running to be the Democratic nominee for Governor of California, is wildly popular in the LGBT community for leading the fight for gay marriage over the last five years going so far as to order San Francisco’s city clerk in 2004 to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. While the marriages ultimately did not stand up in court, they did lead to the CA Supreme Court ruling legalized gay marriage last year – before voters passed Proposition 8.

“The issues that define the day and the issues that bring us all together are not new. You think about this: all over the world, nations of people are being literally torn apart because of religious and ethnic controversies that have fueled fanaticism and have fueled terrorism but here we are in West Hollywood … in the most diverse county in the most state in the world’s most diverse democracy. And I believe that the world looks to us to see that it’s possible to live together and advance together and prosper together across every conceivable difference because at the day, that’s what we’re celebrating here at LA Pride. We’re not tolerating it, we’re celebrating it. We’re stepping up and standing and making a statement to the world that this is what it’s all about.”

Newsom also paid tribute to the roots of Gay Pride: the Stonewall Riots which took place in Greewich Village 40 years ago this month and are widely considered to be the beginning of the gay rights movement.

“I’m very thankful to those who couldn’t be here, the people that stood strong and stood tall some 40 years ago in 1969 at Stonewall on June 28 there on Christopher Street. They had the courage of their convictions to say, ‘You know what? We’re no longer going to sit here in the shadows, we’re not longer going to sit here and take it. And they stepped up and they said, ‘You know what? We count. We matter.’ And that’s when history was changed. It wasn’t just changed for Proposition 8. It was changed decades ago when people stood up and fought for principal. There are good days and there are bad days. But we have made an enormous amount of progress in the last 40 years but the march of equality clearly is a long march. And so I look forward to marching with you – all of you. And I look forward to the day when we right the wrong of Proposition 8.”

Coming soon on Greg In Hollywood:

– Newsom and Villariagosa on DOMA filing and Federal Prop. 8 lawsuit

– A photo gallery of today’s parade in West Hollywood

Because he has won the admiration of so many people, there was a feeling of protectiveness toward Lance when he showed up at the Sunset Gower Studios lot in Hollywood Saturday to be honored by Lifeworks Mentoring, a group which offers one on one, peer and group mentoring opportunities for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth ages 14-24.

Lance accepted his award before a stellar crowd that included Milk producer Dan Jinks, Olympic Gold Medalist Greg Louganis, activist Judy Shepard, actress Donna Mills and actors John Wesley Shipp, Peter Paige and Doug Spearman, among others.

His appearance came just a day after photos of him and an ex-boyfriend having unprotected sex were posted on the Internet and led to Lance issuing a statement late Friday saying he wanted to emphasize the importance of responsible sexual practices.

There was no mention of the photos at Saturday’s event by Lance. He was introduced by Jinks (pictured with Lance and Lifeworks Executive Director Michael Ferrera) who said of his friend:

“Not only did he win the Academy Award, but he gave what I think was the best Oscar speech anybody has ever given. And most people, after winning an Oscar and giving a spectacular speech would sit back and collect the money and coast on their laurels. But Lance, for the last several months, has traveled around this country speaking to gays and lesbians and to others about causes that are important to all of us and has proven to be an essential leader in our community. I’m so proud to call him my friend.”

Lance took the stage and confessed that he really wasn’t very good at keeping his speeches short.

Here is most of it:

“Like many LGBT people, I knew I was gay from a very young age so that also meant that I knew that I was less than most kids, meant that something was supposedly wrong with me,” he began. “It meant that I was a second class citizen and that according to my church, I was right down there with all the sinners and the murderers and the rapists – all 3 foot, 4 inches of me at 6 years old. And I had two options: I could shrink away, I could try not to be noticed, not to excel, and to vanish in school and in all my activities. Or, the more permanent solution which was to take my own life. And sadly, that’s not a unique ciurcumstance in our country today. Even today, one in three kids seriously contemplates suicide and gay and lesbian kids are four times more likely to attempt suicide than their straight brothers and sisters and nine times more likely if they come from non-accepting homes. … For those who do come out, those who do have the bravery and do survive, 26 percent – over one-quarter – are kicked out of their homes.”

But Lance talked about how he was one of the lucky ones who heard the story of Harvey Milk from a theater director when he was just 14 years old.

“Not surprisingly, that story gave me hope,” he said. “And I didn’t want to kill myself anymore and I didn’t want to cry myself to sleep anymore. In fact, I started to dream again and I stopped trying to vanish and I started trying to excel.”

“But you know what? Like probably all of us I never heard a peep about Harvey Milk in school. I  fact, I never heard a peep about any LGBT person of any consequence growing up much less having the good fortune of having a mentor or someone to turn to. It took a turn of luck for me to learn that I had a forefather, a turn of luck to discover I had someone I could look up to, and a turn of luck to save my life. And that, my brothers and sisters, that is wrong.”

“Unlike any other minorities, most LGBT kids do not come from families with gay and lesbian parents. That’s just how it is. We don’t have parents who can personally understand the inspiration, pride and steely self-worth needed to survive as a sexual minority today. We as an LGBT people are unique in that we must learn about and be inspired by our minority role models outside of our homes. That is why it is so vitally important to reach our young LGBT people today. [To] know that they have role models, that they have access to mentors and strong parental figures  who they can find safety in, who they can celebrate with when the times are good and depend on when the road gets rough. We can no longer leave the future of the lives of our youth to luck, they are too valuable. Their hopes and their dreams are too precious. They are our sons and our daughters – every one of them. And it is our moral obligation to be there to catch them when they fall and to lift them up.”

The festival doesn’t open until noon today but people have been partying all week already. A real highlight is always Sunday’s parade which I never miss – even the year someone decided it was a good idea to have Paris Hilton as the grand marshal.

Not a good choice.

A better pick seems to be this year’s grand marshal: Chelsea Handler. Like Paris, she’s blonde, but unlike Paris, she has wit and intelligence and great humor. She spoke with Frontiers In LA Magazine about Pride and other topics. Here is some of it:

Q. You’re doing Pride now, you were last year’s Queen of the Carnival for Halloween, so it seems like you may be trying to dethrone Madonna and become the new Queen of the Gays.

A. Oh no, she could take me in a fight, so I can’t even pretend to dethrone Madonna. I like to just do whatever I can when they ask me to. I try to show up for stuff if it’s local. I don’t really have any excuses since I live around the corner. [Laughs]

Q. You were one of the first celebs to speak out against Prop. 8 last year, so thank you. What’s your two cents on all the recent states to go for marriage and Miss California and all?

A. I think [the marriages are] great! That’s what they should be doing, they should be doing it regionally and then hopefully it can spread across the country. Miss California is an idiot and Donald Trump’s an idiot and they can both be idiots together.

Q. Do you mind all the press?

A. There is a certain point with the press when you say, “Enough already,” because you don’t want to be such a media whore. My TV show’s on seven nights a week, three times a day. E! repeats it, so it’s kind of like a saturation. But you don’t want to turn things down because you don’t want to get a reputation for not liking to do press. So I just try to keep an even balance. With my books I end up getting a lot more press, so combined it may be overwhelming for some people, especially people who are sick of me. I’m not trying to pull a Tori Spelling or anything.