Box Turtle Bulletin

Coming Up: What Are Little Boys Made Of?

Tonight at midnight Eastern, 9:00 p.m. Pacific, BTB will unveil a major investigation that has been nine months in the making. It is about what happened when a psychologist told the parents of a very young boy that their son was too sissy, and that if something wasn’t done the boy would grow up to be gay. The parents were eager to avoid that fate. So after nearly a year of experimental treatment, the young boy was declared “normal.” The psychologist went on to become a well-regarded expert in gender and sexual identity in young children on the strength of this breakthrough, and he wrote about his famous case in twenty different papers, articles, chapter and books during the course of his career.

But what happened to that little boy?

In “What Are Little Boys Made Of?”, an original BTB investigation, we talk to that young boy’s family to unveil the truth behind that experimental treatment program and how it affected that little boy. And not just that little boy, but his entire family as well. It all goes live tonight right here on BTB at midnight Eastern, 9:00 p.m. Pacific.

The Daily Agenda for Monday, June 6

TODAY’S AGENDA (OURS):
Education Dept. LGBT Youth Summit: Washington, D.C. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will hold its first ever LGBT Youth Summit today, beginning at 8:30. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will give the opening remarks this morning, Keven Jennings, assistant deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, will introduce Education Secretary Arne Duncan on tomorrow. The summit, hosted by the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, will bring together students, educators, administrators, and heads of federal and nonprofit agencies to provide information and seek solutions to the problem of bullying and violence against LGBT youth. The two-day summit, “Creating and Maintaining Safe and Supportive Environments for LGBT Youth,” will take place today and tomorrow.

Premiere of “Taking A Chance on God”: Rome. The world premiere of the movie, “Taking a chance on God,” by Brendan Fay, takes place today in Rome, as part of a much larger bill of events for Europride taking place this week. The film is about the life of John McNeill, a gay priest who inspired the founding of DignityUSA and has worked tirelessly for equality for LGBT people both inside and outside the Catholic Church. The 85-year-old priest is in Rome today and will be on hand for the premiere.

EQCA Town Hall: Fresno, CA. Equality California will host a “Back to the Ballot?” Town hall meeting in Fresno to discuss whether we should wait for the courts to restore the freedom to marry — a decision which could have a nationwide impact — or whether Californians should try to overturn Prop. 8 through a ballot measure in 2012. The town hall will take place this evening in the Staff Dining Room at Fresno City College, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

TODAY’S AGENDA (THEIRS):
Herman Cain Tours With Iowa Anti-Gay Group: Sioux City, Pella, Iowa City. GOP Presidential aspirant Herman Cain will deliver a series of lectures today in events organized by the anti-gay group Iowa Leader. The tour begins this morning with a lecture at Dordt College in Sioux City at 11:00 a.m., then moves on to Pella Christian High School at 1:30, then to the University of Iowa in Iowa City at 5:00 p.m. He will also be conducting an invitation-only “Leadership Roundtable in each city. Family Leader has been in the forefront of efforts to impeach the state’s Supreme Court and overturn its decision declaring a ban on marriage equality unconstitutional. Previous GOP candidates who have already participated in lecture tours include former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Reps. Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann, and former Sen. Rick Santorum.  Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich will trod that same well-worn path on July 11.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:
Thomas Mann: 1875. The German author, social critic and 1929 Nobel Prize winner mined the rich material of his own life and family for many of his novels, including the Buddenbrooks, The Magic Mountain, and A Death in Venice, the latter of which is credited with introducing homosexual themes in the general culture. Mann married in 1905 and had six children, but when his diaries were unsealed in 1975, they revealed his struggles with his own homosexuality. Mann’s political views began in the conservative end of the spectrum, having supported the Kaiser Wilhelm II, but after the Great War, his became increasingly liberal and a staunch supporter of democratic principles. This naturally led to his strident denunciations of Nazi policies. When Hitler came to power in 1933, the Manns were vacationing in Switzerland and they never returned. Mann settled in Southern California and recorded several anti-Nazi speeches which were broadcast during World War II by the BBC into Germany. After the war, he returned to Switzerland, where he died in 1955 of atherosclerosis.

Harvey Fierstein: 1952. He‘s most famous as the actor and playwright of the Tony Award-winning Torch Song Trilogy, about a drag-performer’s search for true love and family. He also wrote the book for La Cage aux Folles which garnered him another Tony Award. He also won a Tony for his role as Edna Tumblad in the Broadway version of John Water’s Hairspray.  Film credits include his role in the film version of Torch Song Trilogy and Woody Allen’s Bullets over Broadway. He also appeared is Mrs. Doubtfire‘s makeup artist brother.  His acting debut was in 1971, when he appeared in Andy Warhol’s only play Pork.

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).

Thirty Years

Today marks the thirtieth anniversary of the Centers for Disease Control’s publication of a mysterious set of illnesses which took the lives of five gay men in Los Angeles. AIDS had been swirling around unnoticed since the 1930s, and doctors in Europe and Africa began to notice that people were falling victim to a host of diseases which are normally curable in the Congo River basin in the late 1970s. But it took the CDC report of a cluster of cases in southern California to signal that the mysterious deaths were somehow related. The rest, as they say, is history, with a whole lot of stigma thrown in.

Karen Ocamb happened to be in the middle of Southern California’s epidemic in the 1980s. She was living in a “glass closet,” as she described it. She was out to select friends. She found herself becoming an AIDS care provider simply because her friends needed her help. She told me via email, “I didn’t come out to family until I had to tell Chris Scott’s mother — the wife of an Air Force General and my godmother who was living at a military retirement community associated with March Air Force Base — that her son was gay, had AIDS, was dying in Intensive Care and she should dash to his side. Chris was closeted, too. I came out to my Aunt Bobbie and then my mother because I didn’t think it was fair that AIDS outed Chris but I could stay in the closet. My Aunt Bobbie said she already knew and my mother basically disowned me.”

Karen has put together what amounts to being a lovely online shrine to the many people she knew over the years along with her memories as an AIDS care advocate and LGBT journalist. You can see her updates by following this tag. She has it all, beginning with an interview with Dr. Robert Gottlieb, who wrote the first CDC report after having noticed the remarkable similarities between four cases of an “apparently new” disease. She continues with some of her own personal memories, activists and allies, early marches, rallying cries, demonstrations, indifference,  bigotry and hope. Karen is currently participating in the AIDS LifeCycle, a seven day ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

The Daily Agenda for Sunday, June 5

TODAY’S AGENDA (OURS):
AIDS March and Vigil: West Hollywood, CA. The AIDS Healthcare Foundation will hold a candlelight vigil and march on the 30th anniversary of the first official AIDS diagnosis. The “Remember AIDS” event will begin at 7:00 p.m. at Matthew Shepard Memorial Park, at Santa Monica and Crescent Heights boulevards. At 8:00 p.m., a candlelight march will proceed west along Santa Monica Boulevard to West Hollywood Park on San Vicente Boulevard. Around 9 p.m., AIDSWatch.com will present a large-screen projection of names of those who have died from HIV/AIDS, along with visual highlights from HIV/AIDS history. roadway singer and recording artist Sam Harris will also perform.

Pride Celebrations This Weekend: Albuquerque (Los Ranchos), NM; Buffalo, NY; Columbia, MO; Cork, Ireland; Detroit, MI; Guerneville, CA; Hampton Roads, VA; Kansas City, MO; Queens, NY; Salt Lake City, UT and Winnipeg, MB.

Other Celebrations This Weekend: Gay Days, Orlando, FL and Razzle Dazzle Dallas, TX.

AIDS Walk This Weekend: Boston, MA; London, UK and Syracuse, NY.

TODAY IN HISTORY:
Pneumocystis Pneumonia — Los Angeles: 1981. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published this notice in the June 5, 1981 edition of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report:

In the period October 1980-May 1981, 5 young men, all active homosexuals, were treated for biopsy-confirmed Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia at 3 different hospitals in Los Angeles, California. Two of the patients died. All 5 patients had laboratory-confirmed previous or current cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and candidal mucosal infection. Case reports of these patients follow.

Patient 1: A previously healthy 33-year-old man developed P. carinii pneumonia and oral mucosal candidiasis in March 1981 after a 2-month history of fever associated with elevated liver enzymes, leukopenia, and CMV viruria. The serum complement-fixation CMV titer in October 1980 was 256; in may 1981 it was 32.* The patient’s condition deteriorated despite courses of treatment with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP/SMX), pentamidine, and acyclovir. He died May 3, and postmortem examination showed residual P. carinii and CMV pneumonia, but no evidence of neoplasia.

Patient 2: A previously healthy 30-year-old man developed p. carinii pneumonia in April 1981 after a 5-month history of fever each day and of elevated liver-function tests, CMV viruria, and documented seroconversion to CMV, i.e., an acute-phase titer of 16 and a convalescent-phase titer of 28* in anticomplement immunofluorescence tests. Other features of his illness included leukopenia and mucosal candidiasis. His pneumonia responded to a course of intravenous TMP/.SMX, but, as of the latest reports, he continues to have a fever each day.

Patient 3: A 30-year-old man was well until January 1981 when he developed esophageal and oral candidiasis that responded to Amphotericin B treatment. He was hospitalized in February 1981 for P. carinii pneumonia that responded to TMP/SMX. His esophageal candidiasis recurred after the pneumonia was diagnosed, and he was again given Amphotericin B. The CMV complement-fixation titer in March 1981 was 8. Material from an esophageal biopsy was positive for CMV.

Patient 4: A 29-year-old man developed P. carinii pneumonia in February 1981. He had had Hodgkins disease 3 years earlier, but had been successfully treated with radiation therapy alone. He did not improve after being given intravenous TMP/SMX and corticosteroids and died in March. Postmortem examination showed no evidence of Hodgkins disease, but P. carinii and CMV were found in lung tissue.

Patient 5: A previously healthy 36-year-old man with clinically diagnosed CMV infection in September 1980 was seen in April 1981 because of a 4-month history of fever, dyspnea, and cough. On admission he was found to have P. carinii pneumonia, oral candidiasis, and CMV retinitis. A complement-fixation CMV titer in April 1981 was 128. The patient has been treated with 2 short courses of TMP/SMX that have been limited because of a sulfa-induced neutropenia. He is being treated for candidiasis with topical nystatin.

The diagnosis of Pneumocystis pneumonia was confirmed for all 5 patients antemortem by closed or open lung biopsy. The patients did not know each other and had no known common contacts or knowledge of sexual partners who had had similar illnesses. Two of the 5 reported having frequent homosexual contacts with various partners. All 5 reported using inhalant drugs, and 1 reported parenteral drug abuse. Three patients had profoundly depressed in vitro proliferative responses to mitogens and antigens. Lymphocyte studies were not performed on the other 2 patients.

Reported by MS Gottlieb, MD, HM Schanker, MD, PT Fan, MD, A Saxon, MD, JD Weisman, DO, Div of Clinical Immunology-Allergy; Dept of Medicine, UCLA School of Medicine; I Pozalski, MD, Cedars-Mt. Siani Hospital, Los Angeles; Field services Div, Epidemiology Program Office, CDC.

Editorial Note: Pneumocystis pneumonia in the United States is almost exclusively limited to severely immunosuppressed patients (1). The occurrence of pneumocystosis in these 5 previously healthy individuals without a clinically apparent underlying immunodeficiency is unusual. The fact that these patients were all homosexuals suggests an association between some aspect of a homosexual lifestyle or disease acquired through sexual contact and Pneumocystis pneumonia in this population. All 5 patients described in this report had laboratory-confirmed CMV disease or virus shedding within 5 months of the diagnosis of Pneumocystis pneumonia. CMV infection has been shown to induce transient abnormalities of in vitro cellular-immune function in otherwise healthy human hosts (2,3). Although all 3 patients tested had abnormal cellular-immune function, no definitive conclusion regarding the role of CMV infection in these 5 cases can be reached because of the lack of published data on cellular-immune function in healthy homosexual males with and without CMV antibody. In 1 report, 7 (3.6%) of 194 patients with pneumocystosis also had CMV infection’ 40 (21%) of the same group had at least 1 other major concurrent infection (1). A high prevalence of CMV infections among homosexual males was recently reported: 179 (94%) had CMV viruria; rates for 101 controls of similar age who were reported to be exclusively heterosexual were 54% for seropositivity and zero fro viruria (4). In another study of 64 males, 4 (6.3%) had positive tests for CMV in semen, but none had CMV recovered from urine. Two of the 4 reported recent homosexual contacts. These findings suggest not only that virus shedding may be more readily detected in seminal fluid than urine, but also that seminal fluid may be an important vehicle of CMV transmission (5).

All the above observations suggest the possibility of a cellular-immune dysfunction related to a common exposure that predisposes individuals to opportunistic infections such as pneumocystosis and candidiasis. Although the role of CMV infection in the pathogenesis of pneumocystosis remains unknown, the possibility of P. carinii infection must be carefully considered in a differential diagnosis for previously healthy homosexual males with dyspnea and pneumonia.

References

1. Walzer PD, Perl DP, Krogstad DJ, Rawson G, Schultz MG. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in the United States. Epidemiologic, diagnostic, and clinical features. Ann Intern Med 1974;80:83-93.
2. Rinaldo CR, Jr, Black PH, Hirsh MS. Interaction of cytomegalovirus with leukocytes from patients with mononucleosis due to cytomegalovirus. J Infect Dis 1977;136:667-78.
3. Rinaldo CR, Jr, Carney WP, Richter BS, Black PH, Hirsh MS. Mechanisms of immunosuppression in cytomegaloviral mononucleosis. J Infect Dis 1980;141:488-95.
4. Drew WL, Mintz L, Miner RC, Sands M, Ketterer B. Prevalence of cytomegalovirus infection in homosexual men. J Infect Dis 1981;143:188-92.
5. Lang DJ, Kummer JF. Cytomegalovirus in semen: observations in selected populations,. J Infect Dis 1975; 132:472-3.

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).

Red Sox To Produce “It Gets Better” Video

Sam Maden

The Boston Red Sox have announced that they will become the third Major League Baseball team to produce a video for the “It Gets Better” anti-bullying campaign:

We are proud of dedicated Red Sox fans like 12-year-old Sam Maden who have taken the courageous step of publicly standing up against bullying of LGBT youth,” said Susan Goodenow, Senior Vice President/Public Affairs and Marketing for the Red Sox, in a statement. “The Red Sox have frequently done PSA videos, or public service announcement videos, on important social issues. We are currently producing an “It Gets Better” video to support the It Gets Better campaign to stop bullying of LGBT youth and teen suicides. We hope that when it is released it will both reflect our continued commitment to be active participants in the community and help advance the efforts of Sam and others to stop bullying. Our team stands for respect and inclusion – there is no place for discrimination or acts of hatred in Red Sox Nation.”

The announcement came after 12-year-old Sam Maden started an online petition asking the ball club to produce a video. Maden began the campaign after his seventh-grade teacher asked him to come up with a project that could “make a difference” in the world. More than 9,000 fans signed the petition.

This announcement not only demonstrates the power of one person to make a difference, but it also shows that the BoSox can still beat the Yankees.

The Daily Agenda for Saturday, June 4

TODAY’S AGENDA (OURS):
EQCA Town Hall: Santa Barbara, CA. Equality California will host a “Back to the Ballot?” Town hall meeting in Santa Barbara to discuss whether we should wait for the courts to restore the freedom to marry — a decision which could have a nationwide impact — or whether Californians should try to overturn Prop. 8 through a ballot measure in 2012. The town hall will take place this evening at the Pacific Pride Foundation/LGBT Center, 126 E. Haley Street, Suite A-11, from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m.

Pride Celebrations This Weekend: Athens, Greece; Albuquerque (Los Ranchos), NM; Boiling Springs (Spartanburg) SC; Bucharest, Rumania; Buffalo, NY; Cambridge/Kitchner/Waterloo, ON; Columbia, MO; Cork, Ireland; Davenport (Quad Cities) IA; Dayton, OH; Detroit, MI; Ft. Collins, CO; Greensboro, NC; Guerneville, CA; Hampton Roads, VA; Honolulu, HI; Huntington/Charleston, WV; Kalamazoo, MI; Kansas City, MO; Queens, NY; Sacramento, CA; Salt Lake City, UT; Spencer, IN; Staten Island, NY and Winnipeg, MB.

Other Celebrations This Weekend: Gay Days, Orlando, FL and Razzle Dazzle Dallas, TX.

AIDS Walk This Weekend: Boston, MA; London, UK; Long Beach, CA, and Syracuse, NY.

TODAY’S AGENDA (THEIRS):
TheCall Alaska: Wasilla, AK. Lou Engle’s TheCall wraps up its second and final day in Wasilla because“We believe that Alaska is key for the future of this nation.” The last time Engle put on TheCall was in Uganda last year, in which he lent support to that nation’s Kill-The-Gays effort. Events yesterday and this morning were set aside as “general sessions.” Something called “TheCall Solemn Assembly” begins at 3:00 p.m. and continues for the next seven hours! That’s plenty of time for hilarity to ensue.

Faith and Freedom Conference and Strategy Briefing: Washington, D.C. Put on by Ralph Reed’s Faith and Freedom Coalition, this conference (and strategy briefing!) opens this morning for a two-day confab at the Renaissance Washington, D.C. Downtown. The line-up today includes: former Sen. Rick Santorum, former House speaker Newt Gingrich, Sen. Mark Rubio (R-FL), Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA), former Secretary of Education Bill Bennett, Southern Baptist Convention’s Richard Land, and Family “Research” Council’s Ken Blackwell. The featured speaker for the evening gala is former Godfather Pizza magnate Herman Cain.

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).

How do you piss off a United Methodist minister?

How do you piss off a United Methodist minister?

Seriously? Have you ever met a United Methodist minister? Not exactly an excitable bunch.

But it seems to me that some UMC ministers have found a cause around which they are willing to be radical militant activists: marriage.

Now the UMC has not adopted a same-sex marriage rite. It hasn’t even approved Methodist ministers being allowed to conduct marriages. But those in the church who believe in equality have become rather, shall we say, disinclined to quietly wait for change.

I first noticed this in 2008 when California’s two conferences (Northern and Southern) thumbed their nose at their national rules and said “Fine, so our current pastors are banned from conducting marriages… well, then, we’ll vote to encourage and support retired ministers conducting same-sex marriages. That ain’t breaking no rules!”

And then this past weekend, the Baltimore – Washington Conference passed the following resolution, ensuring that this issue will be brought up next April at the national convention.

“[I]n those civil jurisdictions where homosexual persons have been granted the right to same gender marriage or civil union, ceremonies celebrating those marriages or unions may be conducted in our churches and by our ministers, the decision being the right and responsibility of the pastor.”

That wasn’t expected to pass. But the pro-gay ministers are refusing to sit still and respect the hesitations of others.

But that wasn’t really the example of how you piss off a UMC minister. That’s just progress. To really piss one off, you have to propose a marriage ban.

During the Methodists’ annual conference in St. Cloud this week, about 40 clergy members signed a statement saying they would “offer the grace of the Church’s blessing to any prepared couple desiring Christian marriage.”

“Groups have been meeting who want to challenge parts of the United Methodist polity with which we disagree — that which relates to the lesbian, gay, transgender, and bisexual community and Christian marriage,” said the Rev. Bruce Robbins, who serves at Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis.

“With the possibility of a constitutional amendment in the state of Minnesota [defining marriage as limited to heterosexual couples], this seems important.”

I can just see the indignation. “A ban? Well, I’m so angry I’ll just, I’ll just… offer the grace of the Church’s blessing, by golly! That’s what I’ll do!”

Don’t you love it when the Methodists get all defiant and activisty?

………
UPDATE: The Christian Post says that the number of signatories has now increased to 70. They are really pissed.

Update 2: There seems to be some confusion due to the tone of the commentary. I am not mocking these Methodist ministers. They are taking rather large risks, and are true heroes.

Chicago Cubs To Produce “It Gets Better” Video

How about this announcement?

The Chicago Cubs will produce an “It Gets Better” video, which takes a stand against anti-gay bullying and homophobia. The project has been in the works for more than a week and is set to be filmed after the team returns to Wrigley Field from its current 10-game road trip.

…”The Cubs applaud the Giants for their stand against anti-LGBT bullying. Bullying of anyone for any reason is unacceptable,” said Laura Ricketts, Cubs owner and board member. “We are proud to join the Giants in taking a stand against bullying and encourage other professional sports organizations to do the same.”

Wrigly Field is located just a few blocks away from Chicago’s Boys Town neighborhood, and has been a financial supporter of many LGBT organizations and charities in the Chicago area. In 2010, Laura Ricketts, an openly gay member of the Ricketts family who owns the Cubs, and retired shortstop and first baseman Ernie “Mr. Cub” Banks rode on the team’s float in Chicago’s Pride Parade. The Cubs will host “OUT at Wrigly” on July 17 when the Cubs take on the Florida Marlins. Maybe the Marlins can have a video out by then.

Earlier this week, the San Francisco Giants released their video for “It Gets Better,” the anti-bullying campaign begun by Dan Savage and Terry Miller. A Boston Red Sox fan, twelve-year-old Sam Maden, has launched a campaign to get his favorite team to make a video as well.

Sad About Marriage, Not About Murder

Jeff Kropf, the Oregon state director of the conservative Americans for Prosperity, was sad when he learned about the shooting death of Debbie Lee Higbee Benton, 54, of Gladsone County Oregon. But it wasn’t the murder that made him sad:

You see, it was their marriage makes him sad. But now that their marriage was ended with a bullet, maybe Knopf can cheer up now.

[Hat tip: Goldy @Slog]

FL Congressman: Gay Marriage Will End Society

Right Wing Watch is following the proceedings at Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Forum Collegians, and caught this video of Rep. Allen West (R-FL) warning that marriage equality is an “oxymoron” and will end society:

The term ‘gay marriage’ is an oxymoron. Because marriage is a union and a bond between a man and a woman to do one single thing: the furtherance of society by procreation, through creating new life. Have you ever read the book America Alone by Mark Steyn? It’s about demographics. And if we continue with a cycle of debt and punishing our unborn then it just becomes a matter of time before you don’t have society.

VA Legislator Charges Fed With Promoting A “Class 6 Felony”

Virginia Delegate Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William) sent a letter to the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank demanding that they remove the rainbow flag that is flying outside the building in honor of Pride month:

In a letter to Richmond Fed President Jeffrey M. Lacker, Marshall says the homosexual behavior “celebrated” by the bank “undermines the American economy” and is a class six felony in Virginia.

“The Richmond Fed’s endorsement of costly, anti-social, immoral behavior is rejected by 6,000 years of Western Religious and moral teaching,” writes Marshall, who is among the General Assembly’s most conservative members and has long been outspoken on gay-rights issues. “You want the American people to trust your [judgment] in economic matters when your spokesperson celebrates an attack on public morals?”

Marshal seems to have missed the memo in which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down sodomy laws in 2003’s Lawrence v. Texas.

The Daily Agenda for Friday, June 3

TODAY’S AGENDA (OURS):
Smithsonian Observes 30 Years of AIDS: Washington, D.C. and online. Beginning today, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History will observe the 30th anniversary of the first reports of what became known as AIDS with a three-part display and website. At the National Museum of American History’s “Science in American Life” exhibition, “HIV and AIDS Thirty Years Ago” will examine the early scientific and political reactions between 1981 and 1987. The Smithsonian’s Archives Center will host “Archiving the History of an Epidemic: HIV and AIDS: 1985-2009,” which includes archival material and quotes from oral histories of those who were affected by the epidemic, along with a panel from the AIDS Memorial Quilt honoring Roger Lyon, who died of complications from AIDS in 1984 shortly after testifying before Congress. The online website, “HIV and AIDS: 30 years ago,” can be accessed here.

Pittsburgh Pride Advocacy Rally: Pittsburgh, PA. Pittsburgh Pride will hold a rally on he steps of the City-County Building, 414 Grant Street, in downtown Pittsburgh beginning at 6:00 p.m. The rally will feature:

• Stuart Milk, Executive Director of the Harvey Milk Foundation and Harvey Milk’s nephew
• Zach Wahls, the 19-year-old University of Iowa student who spoke last February about the strength of his family during a public forum on a proposal to ban same-sex marriage in Iowa.
• Rev. Mary Kay Totty, pastor of Dumbarton United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C., whose church in 2010 voted unanimously to adopt a statement of support of marriage equality.

EQCA Town Hall: San Diego, CA. Equality California will host a “Back to the Ballot?” Town hall meeting in San Diego to discuss whether we should wait for the courts to restore the freedom to marry — a decision which could have a nationwide impact — or whether Californians should try to overturn Prop. 8 through a ballot measure in 2012. The town hall will take place this evening at the San Diego LGBT Community Center, 3909 Centre Street, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

NGLTF Pink and Purple Weekend: Washington, DC. This event takes the place of the former DC Leadership Awards and DC Recognition Evening. The goal of Pink & Purple is to bring together different facets of the LGBT community in one weekend with a series of events. The weekend will include a woman’s event, a mini-power summit to include Academy for Leadership and Action participants, a dance event and an awards brunch to honor community leaders and allies. For details and a complete schedule, please see the event’s web site.

Pride Celebrations This Weekend: Athens, Greece; Albuquerque (Los Ranchos), NM; Boiling Springs (Spartanburg) SC; Bucharest, Romania; Buffalo, NY; Cambridge/Kitchner/Waterloo, ON; Columbia, MO; Cork, Ireland; Davenport (Quad Cities) IA; Dayton, OH; Detroit, MI; Ft. Collins, CO; Greensboro, NC; Guerneville, CA; Hampton Roads, VA; Honolulu, HI; Huntington/Charleston, WV; Kalamazoo, MI; Kansas City, MO; Queens, NY; Sacramento, CA; Salt Lake City, UT; Spencer, IN; Staten Island, NY and Winnipeg, MB.

Other Celebrations This Weekend: Gay Days, Orlando, FL and Razzle Dazzle Dallas, TX.

AIDS Walk This Weekend: Boston, MA; London, UK; Long Beach, CA, and Syracuse, NY.

TODAY’S AGENDA (THEIRS):
TheCall Alaska: Wasilla, AK. Lou Engle’s TheCall goes to Wasilla because “We believe that Alaska is key for the future of this nation.” The last time Engle put on TheCall was in Uganda last year, in which he lent support to that nation’s Kill-The-Gays effort. Feel free to expect similarly-sinister hatred expressed as “love” here, as well as the usual bats-in-the-belfry craziness we’ve come to expect from Engle. The two day event continues tomorrow.

Eagle Forum Collegians Summit: Washington, D.C. Phyllis Schlafly parties with conservatives one-fifth her age. as her Annual Eagle Forum Collegians Summit winds up its second and final day. The shindig at The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. features former Virginia Sen. George “Macaca” Allen, Stanley “The Scandinavian Marriage Sky IS Falling” Kurtz, and Tea Party Express leader Amy “No Social Agenda” Kremer, and Kevin Williamson, Deputy editor of The National Review. It all culminates with a final address by the grande dame herself before ushering everyone onto awaiting buses for the…

Faith and Freedom Conference and Strategy Briefing: Washington, D.C. Put on by Ralph Reed’s Faith and Freedom Coalition, this conference (and strategy briefing!) opens this morning for a two-day confab at the Renaissance Washington, D.C. Downtown. The line-up is a veritable who’s who of anti-gay politics: House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), Reps. Alan West (R-FL), Mick Mulvaney (R-SC), Paul Ryan (R-WI), Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), Mike Pence (R-IN), Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Pete Sessions (R-TX), Eric Cantor (R-VA), Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA), Steve King (R-IA), Tom Price (R-GA), Tim Huelskamp (R-KS), Vicki Hartzler (R-MO), and Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN). Add to that bill Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbor, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Family “Research” Council’s Tony Perkins and former Sen George “Macaca” Allen (R-VA), and you’ve only reached lunchtime. The evening session features Tim Pawlenty, Mitt Romney, Donald Trump, Grover Norquist, and the national coordinators of the Tea Party Patriots Jenny Beth Martin & Mark Meckler (remember: no social issues!).

TODAY IN HISTORY:
Aversion Therapy in Management of 43 Homosexuals: 1967. An article under that title by M.J. MaCulloch and M.P. Feldman appeared in the June 3, 1967 edition of the British Medical Journal. While electric shock aversion therapy was an expensive form of therapy, it was surprisingly common. The authors reported the results of 41 men and two lesbians who they treated at Crumpsall Hospital in Manchester, U.K. The treatment consisted of administering painful electric shocks while projecting photos of attractive men (or women, in the case of the two lesbians). Of the 43 subjected to this torturous treatment, five were between the ages of 15 to 20. Eighteen were being treated under court order. Seven dropped out without completing the treatment, and 11 were “unimproved.” That left 25 who claimed that they were “improved” after twelve months. The “failures,” they said, tended to have a higher Kinsey rating — in other words, they didn’t have a basis in bisexuality to work with.

The authors concluded that “In our opinion the approximately 60% rate of improvement achieved in our series (over other reported studies) is mainly due to the use of an aversion therapy technique which has been carefully designed to make the most effective use of the findings of the experimental psychology of learning.” Ten years later, researchers from Hollymoor Hospital in England would present the results of their own study which failed to replicate MacCulloch and Feldman’s findings. Among the second group’s problems was a very high dropout rate which was much higher than what MacCulloch and Feldman reported. “It appears that the Feldman and MacCulloch group had undergone some clinical preselection before referral,” they wrote. Ten years later still, aversion therapy would finally be largely abandoned — for ethical reasons as well as the growing realization that it simply didn’t work.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:
Alla Nazimova: 1879. The larger-than-life Russian-born Hollywood silent film star was as exotic and flamboyant off the screen as on. Her screen debut in 1916 led to eleven more films in two years. Her specialty was outrageously exotic yet tragic characters. Her most famous role was that of the title character Camile, a 1921 film which featured Rudolf Valentino. It was at about that time that she became a producer, specializing in experimental artistic masterpieces which, unfortunately, were commercial flops. 1923’s Salome was particularly scandalous, as was her thinly concealed bisexuality off screen. Her “marriage” with gay actor Charles Bryant didn’t fool anyone. Her home, which she named “Garden of Allah,” was the scene for many glamorous private parties, and her name was connected with several Hollywood starlets and women of the arts. She is the credited with coining the phrase “sewing circles” to refer to lesbian or bisexual actresses who concealed their true sexuality. Her career ended in 1925 with the advent of the Hayes Code, although she had some minor film appearances in the 1940s (she was Doña Maria in The Bridge of San Luis Rey). She died in 1945.

Other Birthdays Today: Josephine Baker: 1906; Allen Ginsberg: 1926; Anderson Cooper: 1967.

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).

Federal Reserve Flies The Colors

The rainbow flag is flying at the Richmond, Virginia branch of the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank:

“We strongly support a diverse and inclusive culture at the Richmond Fed and have learned that it is important to value and embrace differences, both seen and unseen,” Sally Green said, chief operating officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.

“We are flying the ‘Pride’ flag as an example of our commitment to the values of acceptance and inclusion,” Green added.

The flag is being flown at the request of PRISM, an employee LGBT group started at the Fed’s Richmond branch last year, and will fly throughout the month of June. Predictably, the sight of the rainbow flag has anti-gay activists seeing red.

LaBarbera Award: Bryan Fischer

Admittedly, the American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer could qualify for this award virtually every day, so we’ve had to raise the bar for his nomination for this award. (He’s won three times before.) Yesterday, Right Wing Watch caught Fischer saying this:

You’re going to have the homosexual lobby committing one hate crime after another against service members, especially officers, who have deeply held convictions about the acceptability of homosexual behavior. And so I’m predicting that things are about to get very ugly in the United States military for people of faith. We are going to see principle-driven officers, one after another, are going to become to victims of systematic hate crimes. This is going to be a pogrom, this is going to be virtual genocide, military genocide, career genocide for people of faith in military, perpetrated by the homosexual lobby.

Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty have both appeared on Fischer’s program trolling for anti-gay votes.

The Daily Agenda for Thursday, June 2

TODAY’S AGENDA (OURS):
Philadelphia Trans-Health Conference: Philadelphia, PA.Based on pre-registration figures, conference organizers expect the 10th Annual Philadelphia Trans-Health Conference to be the largest yet. Last year’s event drew 1,500 attendees, and is the largest trans-specific conference in the world. It all kicks off today at the Pennsylvania Convention Center and continues through Saturday, and is open to transgender community members, activists, allies, and service providers. Continuing Education Units and Continuing Legal Education Units will be available for certain workshops. Please check their web site for more information.

Rally In Raleigh: Raleigh, NC. The Sexuality and Gender Alliance (SAGA) and GetEQUAL NC will unite today with other groups and individuals to fight the proposed constitutional amendment to make same-sex marriage even more illegaler. The rally begins at noon at the State Government Halifax Mall, adjacent to the N.C. Legislative Building at 16 W. Jones Street in downtown Raleigh.

Pride Celebrations This Weekend: Athens, Greece; Albuquerque (Los Ranchos), NM; Boiling Springs (Spartanburg) SC; Bucharest, Romania; Buffalo, NY; Cambridge/Kitchner/Waterloo, ON; Columbia, MO; Cork, Ireland; Davenport (Quad Cities) IA; Dayton, OH; Detroit, MI; Ft. Collins, CO; Guerneville, CA; Hampton Roads, VA; Honolulu, HI; Huntington/Charleston, WV; Kalamazoo, MI; Kansas City, MO; Queens, NY; Sacramento, CA; Salt Lake City, UT; Spencer, IN; Staten Island, NY and Winnipeg, MB.

Other Celebrations This Weekend: Gay Days, Orlando, FL and Razzle Dazzle Dallas, TX.

AIDS Walk This Weekend: Boston, MA; London, UK; Long Beach, CA, and Syracuse, NY.

TODAY’S AGENDA (THEIRS):
Eagle Forum Collegians Summit: Washington, D.C. Who knew that 86-year-old Phyllis Schlafly is throwing a party for conservative college students? Well, her two-day hootenanny known as the Annual Eagle Forum Collegians Summit begins today at The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. It looks like a pretty big deal. Speakers include Reps. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Trent Franks (R-AZ), Vicky Hartzler (R-MO), Tim Huelskamp (R-KS), Steve King (R-IA), Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Jim Jordan (R-OH), Tom Price (R-GA), Paul Ryan (R-WI), and Allen West (R-FL). That’s just today’s schedule. The conference is free.

Vatican AIDS Summit: Rome. Pope Benedict XVI’s comments last year about condom use appeared to have been a small step toward removing the Catholic Church’s longstanding opposition to using condoms to reduce HIV transmission, but the Vatican’s newspaper has since then run a series of articles reinforcing the church’s position that abstinence and fidelity in marriage are the best ways to curb HIV.  But at least the Church’s conference, which begins today, won’t be an empty echo chamber. Dr. Michel Sidibe, executive director of UNAIDS, will speak at the conference. The U.N. agency maintains that condoms are an “integral and essential” part of prevention programs, and calls for their inclusion in education programs alongside information about delaying the start of sexual activity, limiting sexual partners and marital fidelity. Organizers insist however that the Vatican AIDS Summit won’t result in any changes to the church refusal to heed the scientific consensus on AIDS prevention.

Family Values Conference: London, UK. The U.S.-based World Congress of Families will host a regional hand-wringing today at Baden Powell House, Queens Gate, South Kensington. Speakers include Concerned Women for America’s Janice Crouse (who believes that Methodists shouldn’t marry Jews) and Don Feder (a featured speaker at a 2007 Watchmen On the Walls conference in Riga, Latvia).

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:
Candace Gingrich-Jones: 1966. The lesbian advocate and kid sister to GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, Candice has publicly called her brother to task over his support for California’s Prop 8. “What really worries me is that you are always willing to use LGBT Americans as political weapons to further your ambitions,” she wrote. “That’s really so ’90s, Newt. In this day and age, it’s embarrassing to watch you talk like that.” Things haven’t changed much for Newt. He’s still running like it’s 1994. But Candace is married to her wife, Rebecca, and works as the HRC’s Associate Director for the Youth and Campus Outreach Program.

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).