Violence against gays spurs Jamaican boycott
A call by San Francisco gay activists for a boycott of travel to Jamaica, and of some of the island nation's most well known brands, is gaining some ground -- it's even received attention in Jamaica.
The boycott, initiated by advocate Michael Petrelis, stems from a recent State Department report that found high levels of violence against gays in Jamaica in 2008, including "arbitrary detention, mob attacks, stabbings, harassment of homosexual patients by hospital and prison staff, and targeted shootings of homosexuals. Police often did not investigate such incidents," the report concluded.
Incidents detailed in the report included the fire bombing of a two gay men's home, and a mob that broke into another home, killing three people and likely a fourth.
Gay advocates, including Supervisor Bevan Dufty, held a kick-off event in the Castro last weekend. Dufty, who is calling local gay bars to urge them to pull Myers Rum and Red Stripe beer from their shelves, also reached out to Jamaican Consul General Newton Gordon, who agreed to come to a meeting with Dufty at others at City Hall next week.
Dufty, who has traveled to the island nation six times, said the violence against gays in Jamaica -- and the fact that authorities appear to condone it -- is "unconscionable" and that he hopes a stand in San Francisco will have an effect.
Last year, a similar boycott was canceled at the request of gay Jamaicans.
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On divisive issue of gay clergy, two churches weigh softer stance
Two mainline Protestant denominations, after decades of wrestling over the place of homosexuality in the church, are considering allowing local congregations to select pastors who are in long-term, monogamous, same-gender relationships.
The church council of the largest Lutheran body in the US, the 5-million-member Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA), decided this week to send such a recommendation to its national assembly. The proposal would take effect if supported by majority vote at the assembly's biennial meeting in August.
The 2.3-million-member Presbyterian Church (USA) approved the idea at its national assembly last summer, but a majority of the church's 173 district bodies, called presbyteries, must vote in favor by June for it to become church policy.
While it's not clear that either denomination will embrace the change, their actions reflect the shifting views on homosexuality in society, as well as an acknowledgement that the old consensus in the churches has broken down and a new one is not likely to arise soon. The churches are seeking to accommodate differing views and avoid a denominational split.
"There is no question that attitudes have shifted in the church in the way in which this issue has been interpreted theologically," says the Rev. Peter Strommen, chairman of the ELCA task force for studies on sexuality, which developed the recommendation.
"People of sincere faith are coming to different, strongly held conclusions" based on different interpretations of scripture and tradition, he said during a Tuesday teleconference with reporters. "It's hard to imagine that as being possible 15 years ago."
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Confirmation of gay Obama appointee proceeds without controversy
The breezy confirmation hearing of openly gay Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry was a milestone in the LGBT community’s journey toward equality.Sixteen years ago, the U.S. Senate became embroiled in debate over whether to confirm Roberta Achtenberg, President Bill Clinton’s openly gay pick for assistant secretary of Housing and Urban Development. It ultimately voted 58 to 31 (11 senators did not vote) to approve the nomination, but not before Senator Jesse Helms (R-NC) famously referred to Achtenberg on the floor of the chamber as "that damn lesbian." The appointment of openly gay people to administration posts in Washington no longer seems to be a matter of controversy. The Washington Post described the atmosphere for Berry’s confirmation appearance in front of a Senate committee March 26 as "jovial." See Confirmation of gay Obama appointee proceeds without controversy
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