The Daily Agenda for Friday, July 22

Jim Burroway

July 22nd, 2011

TODAY’S AGENDA:
Pentagon To Certify Readiness for DADT Repeal: Washington, DC. On June 29, President Barack Obama told a White House gathering of LGBT advocates that the Pentagon’s certification for the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” will be a matter of “weeks, not months.” That was three weeks ago and change. Last night, multiple news outlets reported that Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has agreed to certify to the President that the military is now ready to allow gay and lesbian Americans to serve openly in the military. The announcement will be made this afternoon. This comes two weeks after the Joint Chiefs told Panetta that ending the ban will not affect military readiness. The discriminatory policy will formally end sixty days after President Obama signs the certification and submits it to Congress.

Pride Celebrations This Weekend: Burlington, VT; Detroit, MI (Black Pride); Ft. Wayne, IN; Halifax, NS; Harrisonvillle, VA (PDF) and Tampere, Finland.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:
Emily Saliers: 1963. A singer-songwriter and one half of Indigo Girls, she plays the guitar, banjo, mandolin, ukulele and the Greek bouzouki. She met her Indigo Girls partner, Amy Ray, when they were in elementary school together in Decatur, Georgia. Both Girls are lesbian, although Saliers jokes that she prefers “gay” because “lesbian has three syllables.” Their new album, Beautiful Queen Sisters is due in October.

Rufus Wainwright: 1973. His mother was the late Kate McGarrigle, and his father is Loudon Wainwright III. With genes like that, it’s no wonder Rufus won a 1989 Genie Award for Best Original Song when he was only fourteen years old. Rolling Stone named his eponymous debut album as one of the best albums of the year and named him the Best New Artist of 1998. When he was younger, he said that he wasn’t much of a marriage equality supporter. But now that he and his partner, Jörn Weisbrodt, became parents earlier this year, all that has changed. They are engaged to be married.

If you know of something that belongs on the agenda, please send it here. PLEASE, don’t forget to include the basics: who, what, when, where, and URL (if available).

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