As potential Republican candidates gather this week in Washington, D.C. for the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, released a new microsite 2016: Republican Facts that will serve as an online resource for documenting the record and rhetoric of potential 2016 GOP presidential candidates, and where they stand on key LGBT issues.
Some three years after the RNC “autopsy” concluded that candidates need to “demonstrate they care” about LGBT Americans, candidates instead appear to prefer avoiding LGBT issues entirely. The New York Times reported recently that despite a looming Supreme Court Ruling on marriage equality, “notably, from those who are likely to seek the Republican presidential nomination — there was silence late last week.”
“For those committed to LGBT equality, actions speak louder than words,” said JoDee Winterhof, HRC’s Vice President for Policy and Political Affairs. “It’s unfortunate that a field with so many Republican candidates is so united against basic LGBT rights, from marriage equality to protecting LGBT Americans from discrimination.”
The second phase of the project will cover the positions of potential Democratic candidates on LGBT issues. As a resource to journalists, HRC’s website hrc.org/2016RepublicanFacts highlights the public statements of candidates on key issues, including: Support for marriage equality Support for non-discrimination bills Opposition to dangerous conversion therapy History of harmful rhetoric Support for the right of LGBT Americans to adopt
As candidates evolve and expand their positions on LGBT issues, and as the field expands this research will be updated to take into account their most recent publicly available statements. Additions, questions and suggestions can be sent to 2016research@hrc.org
Today, the Human Rights Campaign issued an updated primer for reporters on a wave of more than 30 bills threatening LGBT equality in the guise of “religious freedom” across the country.
In addition, HRC is specifically spotlighting the harm these bills will do to jobs and economic activity in the states where they are being considered.
This week, in response to one such anti-LGBT bill threatening economic growth and business in Arkansas, both Apple and Wal-mart spoke out in opposition to precisely these kind of bills.
In a statement, Apple noted, "our employees in Little Rock have a right to equal treatment under the law, as do their coworkers in Cupertino and around the world. We join the many voices across Arkansas in opposing H.B. 1228 and we urge the State's legislators to vote against the bill."
Rates of teenage childbearing – in or out of wedlock -- have fallen sharply since the early 1990s, and the divorce rate has declined since the late 1970s and early 1980s. But the diversification of American family structures continues unabated, reports University of Texas sociologist Shannon Cavanagh in a review of new census data prepared for the Council on Contemporary Families.
Between 1960 and 2014, Cavanagh reveals, the percentage of children living in a mother-only household tripled, from 8 to 24 percent. There are now more children living in single-mother households than in male breadwinner-female homemaker families. Only 4 percent of children live with a single father, but this is a four-fold increase since 1960.
In 1960, 9 out of 10 children lived in two-parent households; today fewer than 7 out of 10 do so. And this figure, Cavanagh points out, understates the extent of change. Demographers estimate that half of all children will spend some part of their childhood outside a married-couple nuclear family.
Cavanagh discusses the complex relationship between education, family structure, and poverty. Children in married-couple families, she confirms, are less likely to be poor than children in single-parent families, especially when their parents have a college education. But people from low-income backgrounds are less likely to marry and much more likely to divorce than individuals from higher-income families. And access to education, as well as to marriage, has become increasingly unequal over the past 40 years. Between 1970 and 2013, the percentage of youths from high-income families who had earned a four-year college degree or higher by age 24 rose from 40 to 77 percent. But the percentage of young people from the lowest income bracket who had earned a degree rose much more modestly, from 6 to 9 percent.
Financial security helps children more than a particular family structure. While having two parents may help in keeping children out of poverty, writes Cavanagh, it is no guarantee: Witness the fact that that there are almost as many poor or near-poor children in two-parent families as in one-parent ones. She explains, “Financial security, even more than household composition, shapes children’s everyday experiences in ways that contribute to growing inequality.” For example, as Sandra Hofferth reported last month in another study for CCF, financial resources are a better predictor of participation in extracurricular activities than family structure. And access to such activities in turn predicts better academic achievement. “Although having a second parent in the household may be important, having financial resources may be even more important, and having a second parent by no means guarantees such resources,” concludes Cavanagh.
Stephanie Coontz, CCF’s Director of Research and Public Education, notes that this report confirms two trends that family researchers have been seeing for several years now. “First, there is no longer any such thing as ‘the typical’ American family – and most people will experience several different family or living arrangements over the course of their lives. Second, the marriage gap is more result than cause of increasing inequality. Claiming that we wouldn’t need anti-poverty programs if everyone got married and completed college is like saying we wouldn’t need bridges if everyone just got themselves a boat.” Coontz asks us to consider this: of the 25 fastest growing occupations, 20 do not require a college education nor do most pay a living family wage. “Most Americans, whatever their political ideology, are concerned about the widening gap between the haves and have-nots. We cannot have a reasoned discussion of possible solutions if we don’t understand the complex interactions between economic trends, educational opportunities, and family stability,” concludes Coontz.
The Board of Trustees of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) announced today that Scott Shiller has been named as its new President and Chief Executive Officer. Daniel Ritchie, who has served as both CEO and Chairman of the Board of Trustees since 2007, will continue as Chairman.
Shiller comes to the DCPA from the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami where he served as Executive Vice President since 2007. At the Arsht Center, he oversaw major programming and marketing initiatives, which in his first year, led to a $3.3 million turnaround with a growth in average ticket sales from 43 to 70 percent and a 76 percent increase in attendance. Under his leadership, the Center’s programming continued to experience broad growth and now includes more than 500 public performances, nearly 900 ancillary events and more than 500,000 guests each year. He is committed to the creation of new work and has presented 12 world premiere plays and musicals at the Arsht Center.
As CEO of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Shiller will work collaboratively to achieve the DCPA’s mission — to be the most engaging theatre organization in the nation. At the core of this goal is a renewed focus on all of the DCPA’s audiences. “The community’s appetite for and support of theatre makes Denver audiences among the best in the country,” said Shiller. “I am extremely excited to be a part of, learn from and contribute to the DCPA’s next evolution as it connects artists and audiences together.
“I’m excited to join such a robust arts community,” continued Shiller. “The NEA recently ranked Colorado first in the nation in theatre, concert hall and museum attendance, and the DCPA plays a major part in that success. Its reputation as one of the nation’s preeminent arts organizations coupled with its commitment to new works and national tour launches makes Denver and Colorado the envy of writers, directors and artists around the country. I’m excited to add fuel to the engine as the DCPA cements its position as a national leader.”
“Scott joins us at a pivotal time in the DCPA’s history,” said Ritchie. “Following an extensive analysis of our priorities, our emphasis will be on deepening and enriching relationships with our entire community. Scott’s leadership will enable me to focus on board matters and reauthorization of the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District in 2016.”
Prior to the Arsht Center, Shiller presented and produced shows in major cities across the US, serving as Vice President of Programming at The Chicago Theatre and LA’s Kodak Theatre, Director of Programming & Engagement Manager at Boston’s On the Line Company, and as Theatre & Marketing Manager for Broadway in Boston. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Emerson College in 1997 and was named to the prestigious 40 Under 40 by the South Florida Business Journal. His civic involvement has been considerable: he’s served as Chairman of The Carbonell Awards and The Rosie Herrera Committee; served as an active member of The Broadway League, Tony Awards, Sylvester Cancer Gala, and Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and supported a number of local and national charities.
“The DCPA leadership has created a strong foundation for continued artistic success,” said Shiller. “I can’t wait to get started.”
The National Park Service is offering two upcoming opportunities for individuals to “step back in time” and experience life as it might have been 170 years ago at a trading post on the Santa Fe Trail. Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site staff and volunteers will lead two immersive experiences at the site over the next few months.
On Saturday, March 14 the fort will host “Frontier Skills Day.” This one-day experience will allow adults to experience fur trade life of the 1840s. Participants will perform “hands on” activities in roles as traders, laborers, domestics, carpenters, blacksmiths, soldiers and hunters.
Activities might include learning Indian Sign Language, adobe work, frontier cooking, using 19th century hand tools, animal packing, or military drills depending on which role you occupy.
Pre-registration is required for this event, which will run from 9 am to 4 pm on that Saturday. Cost to attend is $20 which includes supplies and materials for living history activities and a period meal. For those seeking a longer, deeper immersive experience, and the chance to live at the fort for a few days, the site will again host a Living History Encampment in June. This 5-day, 3-night event will run June 3 – 7 with two days of classroom training followed by three days of living in the fort.
This event offers the unique opportunity to travel to the past for an extended period of time and get a much deeper understanding of life at an isolated trading post in the 1840s. Roles include trader, trapper-hunter, laborer, blacksmith, carpenter, domestic, or military engineer.
Registration forms and information for this event are also available at the park website or by calling 719-383-5023. Cost for this experience is $300 for adults and $150 for children (must be accompanied by a parent or guardian). This cost includes instruction, clothing and equipment, as well as food and accommodations while living at the fort. Graduate level credit is also available through Adams State University. Both of these events will focus on the history of the fort as it relates to cross-cultural relationships found in the region during the 1830s and 1840s while participants get to experience life as it was in the past.
Feeding the huge social media fan-frenzy for all things RuPaul’s Drag Race related, Untucked, the after show of the hit Logo TV series, is being distributed as a digital series this season. Weekly, full-length episodes will premiere exclusively on YouTube.com/WOWPresents every Tuesday at 9:00 AM EST, starting March 3.
Some of the most memorable moments of the past six seasons have happened during Untucked, the show that follows the contestants backstage, as they wait for the judges to deliberate their fate in the competition.
“This is the viewers chance to see what really goes on behind-the-scenes at RuPaul’s Drag Race. It’s not just untucked - it’s uncensored, unhinged, and unapologetic, bitch. Just like Madonna,” said World of Wonder founders Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato.
By David Smith It's always been humorous to me when people see me and expect that I have a super ripped body, only to be a bit let down when they lift up my shirt and realize they have to scrub their laundry elsewhere. With the countless hours of training and exercise I do, it's a wonder that I am not a walking cover of "Men's Fitness" but, it's not my focus or care. I often ask friends, clients, random people what their goals are for fitness, many of them are gay, bi, straight, trans or whatever. The most common response among men, especially gay men is that they want 6 pack abs, they want to be ripped and have that nice body that our culture has come to expect. Like most gay men, I myself suffer from body image issues as well
It is no secret that sex sells, which is why ads and marketing material often contain images of hot people with hot bodies, mostly nude! Every once in a while I will stop myself and look at my body, no matter how it looks to others or where I am at in my training, I often still see my old, 190lb self that I had long shed. Yet this journey has never really been about how I look, it's been about how I feel about myself and really about what I can do and accomplish.
For most people to get a 6 pack one needs to follow a strict regime of diet and intense exercise, to achieve a body such as that you must rid yourself of all those little treats that life offers you. You sacrifice so much to have the perfect body, but for who? For the guy at the bar that won't call you back the next day?
I have never had a 6 pack nor do I care to, 90% of my daily diet consists of healthy foods, I eat clean but I am also not afraid to treat myself to some naughty sweets either. I can train up to 5/6 hours a day but as an athlete, training for the chance to compete at the Olympic Games each mile I put in, each drop of sweat is for a greater purpose. In the end my body is a reflection of my habits, my goals and my actions, it's a part of who I am. Instead of trying to please others, it's important that we think about ourselves. Your goals, your dreams, your passions, it should be about what makes you feel good, not what you think other people want to see. There's so much I could go on about this subject but for now I think I will end it here.
Stay active my friends! David Smith is an exercise professional, athlete, blogger and owner of
Stonewall Fitness. He is a certified personal trainer and holds a
Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and Nutrition. He is an active
athlete and Gay Games medalist training and competing in triathlon and
swimming. He is passionate about bringing the LGBT community together
through exercise and fitness.
Are
you a new or experienced writer or blogger? Do you want to be? Or maybe
you're just some gay guy with something to say? Well, what better forum
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active and meet new people this spring with LGBT Kickball (and Flip
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Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Anime, SteamPunk, Horror and more come together this weekend in Colorado Springs for GalaxyFest. Starting bright and early on Friday, March 27 and going through to the wee hours of Monday morning, GalaxyQuest offers artists, actors, and vendors.
Drew: GalaxyFest and GalaxyFest After Dark sound so fun. I'm bummed I'll be out of town this weekend and will have to miss it. Valdamar: It going to be great! I went last year and had a lot of fun. It's not a gay event but it's very gay-friendly. It's very everybody friendly. An all-embracing type of event. And this year The Locker Room is going to be involved. We were just going to be doing a 10-minute performance at one of the parties on Friday night but then their second stage opened up so we inherited that for a whole show of our own. Tell me about The Locker Room's Fantastic Voyage. Well, the men of The Locker Room are sexy guys who perform at clubs, events and private parties. Most of them are straight
but very gay friendly. They're all looking forward to the show.
In addition to the guys we'll have The Dolls of Insanity burlesque group
performing with us. We also have a guy who does like fire spinning and
stuff and he's gonna do these neon glowing things, and a
drag queen named Kyrah Jordan in addition to a bunch of other stuff. So it's a good variety of things going on in
the show and at the same time there's a ton of stuff going on at the
rest of GalaxyFest like the kilt-blowing ... Wait. What? Kilt-blowing?It's this thing where they have guys in kilts ladies with leaf blowers and they run around blowing their kilts up. That might be my new fetish. We're on right after them so we'll be on stage from about 11pm until 1 in the morning. Then there's a
body painting thing on Saturday and our big muscle guy who's like 6'4"
250 pounds of muscle is going to get painted up. We call him Big O. And two of our other guys will be working
with another artist so, altogether, three of our guys will be getting painted on
Saturday night. It's going to be a lot of fun! Argh, so sorry to miss it. Anything else we should know? The Locker Room is always looking to expand what we're doing and we're working a lot of events. We have some guys who dance, shot boys, even just some guys who just stand around looking pretty, all sorts of good stuff. So we're looking for guys with interesting talents to join us and auditions will be on Sunday.
You can join HRC Colorado and Joyride Brewing Company tonight at Cheers to Equality, an opportunity to raise a glass in our city's newest micro-breweries.
HRC Colorado will be taking over most of the brewery for the evening, so why not finish off your hump day with a few pints? Included in the price is your entrance, two free pints (or six tasters), a tour and Q&A session with Brewmaster David Bergen and Brewer Gina Lechuga, and annual membership to the Human Rights Campaign.
Bayard Rustin was the chief organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, an openly gay man, and an LGBTQ activist.
In 2013, Rustin was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In awarding the medal, President Obama said, "For decades, this great leader, often at Dr. King's side, was denied his rightful place in history because he was openly gay."
Now we all have a chance to give Rustin and his legacy the public awareness and recognition they deserve with a United States postage stamp. Please take a few minutes to visit the National LGBTQ Task Force's campaign page where you'll find a sample letter to send to the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee to recommend a stamp in honor of Bayard Rustin.
