Federal judge rules DADT unconstitutional

A federal judge in Riverside, California ruled the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy to be unconstitutional on Thursday, saying that DADT is a violation of the 1st Amendment rights of gay and lesbian soldiers. The ruling came from a case filed by the Log Cabin Republicans.

U.S. District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillips said the policy banning gays did not preserve military readiness, contrary to what many supporters have argued, saying evidence shows that the policy in fact had a 'direct and deleterious effect' on the military.

Phillips said she would issue an injunction barring the government from enforcing the policy. However, the U.S. Department of Justice, which defended 'don't ask, don't tell' during a two-week trial in Riverside, will have an opportunity to appeal that decision.

The ruling: DADT unconstitutional - US District Court

The federal government is expected to appeal, and it is unclear what the status of DADT will be in the meantime. Judge Phillips has given the plaintiffs until September 16 to respond, and the Department of Justice must submit its objections by September 23.

LCR director R. Clarke Cooper: "As an American, a veteran and an Army reserve officer, I am proud the court ruled that the arcane 'don't ask, don't tell' statute violates the Constitution. Today, the ruling is not just a win for Log Cabin Republican service members, but all American service members."

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network: "We're pleased by the judge's decision, but this decision is likely to be appealed and will linger for years. Congress made the DADT law 17 years ago and Congress should repeal it. The Senate will have the opportunity to do just that this month and most Americans think the Senate should seize it."

VIDEO: Anderson Cooper discusses the ruling with Jeffrey Toobin

Suicide Prevention Week

This week is National Suicide Prevention Week, Sept. 5-11, 2010. Because of harassment and prejudice, lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth are up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers, and one quarter of young transgender people report having attempted suicide. The chances of a suicide attempt are 8 times more likely for LGBTQ youth who come from a family who rejects them.

Watch the new "Give a Damn" PSA featuring Judith Light, Modern Family's Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Lily Tomlin, and Parenthood's Mae Whitman educating people on suicide among LGBT youth:

The Trevor Project focuses on crisis and suicide prevention efforts among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. Their Y-CARE project is a guide for how you can help someone who is suicidal.

More Facts About Suicide and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth:

• In the United States, more than 34,000 people die by suicide each year (2007 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC).
• Suicide is the third leading cause of death among 15 to 24-year-olds, accounting for over 12% of deaths in this age group; only accidents and homicide occur more frequently (2006 National Adolescent Health Information).
• Suicide is the second leading cause of death on college campuses (2008 CDC).
• For every completed suicide by a young person, it is estimated that 100 to 200 attempts are made (2003 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey).
• Lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth are up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers (Massachusetts 2007 Youth Risk Survey).
• More than 1/3 of LGB youth report having made a suicide attempt (D'Augelli AR - Clinical Child Psychiatry and Psychology 2002)
• Nearly half of young transgender people have seriously thought about taking their lives and one quarter report having made a suicide attempt (Grossman AH, D'Augelli AR - Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior 2007)
• Questioning youth who are less certain of their sexual orientation report even higher levels of substance abuse and depressed thoughts than their heterosexual or openly LGBT-identified peers (Poteat VP, Aragon SR, et al – Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2009)
• LGB youth who come from highly rejecting families are more than 8 times as likely to have attempted suicide than LGB peers who reported no or low levels of family rejection (Ryan C, Huebner D, et al - Peds 2009;123(1):346-352)
• It is estimated that between 20 and 40 percent of all homeless youth identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and/or transgender (2006 National Gay & Lesbian Task Force: An Epidemic of Homelessness). 62% of homeless LGB youth will attempt suicide at least once—more than two times as many as their heterosexual peers (Van Leeuwen JMm et al – Child Welfare 2005)

Being a teenager is hard enough, but being an LGBT teenager with an unsupportive family can feel overwhelming. If you are a youth who is feeling alone, confused or in crisis, please call The Trevor Lifeline at 1-866-4-U-TREVOR for immediate help. You are not alone!

Sara's News Roundup 9/5/10

Recent LGBT news selected by Sara Boesser in Juneau, Alaska.

1) Professor's Book Is First to Explore Two-Spirit Literature in Northwest Native Groups

http://www.newswise.com/articles/professors-book-is-first-to-explore-two-spirit-literature-in-northwest-native-groups

Newswise, August 24, 2010

2) Peter, Paul, & Mary's Warning to NOM

http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/08/31/Peter_Paul_and_Mary_to_NOM_Cease_and_Decist/

Advocate, August 31, 2010

3) 28th Annual Conference of the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association, Sept. 22-25, 2010, San Diego

http://www.glma.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.viewPage&pageID=954&nodeID=

San Diego, Calif., Gay and Lesbian Medical Association

4) Same-sex marriage gains GOP support

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/27/AR2010082705614.html

Washington Post, August 27, 2010

5) British expat makes history with first foreign gay marriage in Nepal

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/expatnews/7967665/British-expat-makes-history-with-first-foreign-gay-marriage-in-Nepal.html

U.K., Telegraph, August 30, 2010

6) Morning AARP: Slow Motion -- Women tennis players in slow motion

http://blog.aarp.org/shaarpsession/beth-s-carpenter/

AARP, ShAARP Session, August 26, 2010

7) Newspaper Will Allow Legal Gay Wedding Announcements

http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/08/30/Omaha_World_Herald_Caves_to_Complaints/

Omaha, Nebraska, Advocate, August 30, 2010

8) Delia (formerly David): 'I was trapped in the wrong body'

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/delia-formerly-david-i-was-trapped-in-the-wrong-body-2047969.html

U.K., The Independent, August 10, 2010

9) Should a parent seek therapy for a child who crosses the gender divide?

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/31/1799603/battle-of-sexes-should-a-parent.html

Miami Herald, August 31, 2010

10) Old and bold: North Shore group reaches out to the gay senior community

http://www.wickedlocal.com/newburyport/news/x683717115/Old-and-bold-North-Shore-group-reaches-out-to-the-gay-senior-community

Newburyport, Mass., Newburyport Current, August 27, 2010

11) Tim Gunn Book on Celibacy, Antigay Dad

http://www.advocate.com/Arts_and_Entertainment/Entertainment_News/Tim_Gunn_Book_on_Celibacy,_Antigay_Dad/

Advocate, September 3, 2010

12) Court overturns duo's transgender legal recognition

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/09/02/3000714.htm

West Australia, ABC News, September 2, 2010

13) New Miss Universe for Marriage Equality

http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/09/02/New_Miss_Universe_for_Marriage_Equality/

Mexico, Advocate, September 2, 2010

14) Fidel Castro takes 'responsibility' for persecution of Cuban gays

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/laplaza/2010/09/castro-interview-gay-persecution.html

Los Angeles Times, September 2, 2010

GLAAD media training in Anchorage

What would you say - and how would you say it - if a reporter, coworker or neighbor who is not yet an ally asked why we need LGBT rights? What are the best ways to get across our message of equality and be understood?

A top gay media strategist is coming to Anchorage next weekend to teach the LGBT community how to speak to the public and the media to advance equal rights in Alaska.

Adam Bass, a Senior Media Strategist at GLAAD in Los Angeles, is coming to Anchorage to offer a media workshop for the LGBT community and allies. Community members, religious and organization leaders, and allies are invited to come to the workshop.

The event will be from 10am to 1pm on Saturday, September 11, at the conference room in the lower level of 1057 West Fireweed Lane.

The workshop will focus on how to tell our stories and build support through media advocacy. By ensuring that the stories of LGBT people are heard through the media, we will promote understanding, increase acceptance, and advance equality.

Participants will learn the ins and outs of communications strategy, talking points, media interviews, and the power of telling their story.

Communications work, like lobbying or door knocking, involves strategy that can move public opinion about issues to accomplish a goal. This advocacy workshop will give you the resources you need to speak up about equality, to move public opinion, and to help make equality in Anchorage a reality!

The workshop will be free of charge. For more information, please contact Adam Bass, Senior Media Strategist at GLAAD, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

We can all be more media savvy to advance LGBT rights in Anchorage. Don't miss this excellent opportunity.

Alaska Pride Conference 2010

The 17th annual Alaska Pride Conference will be held on Saturday, October 9, 2010 from 8 am to 4:30 pm at Alaska Pacific University in the Carr-Gottstein Building. The conference organizers are calling for workshop proposals and vendor applications. The forms are available for download at Identity, Inc.

Workshop Proposals are due by Sept. 15, and Vendor Applications must be submitted and paid in full by Sept. 30.

They have a special deal with the WestMark Hotel downtown for those who live outside of Anchorage, and have secured a block of rooms for just $75 a night. To make your reservation, please call their reservations department toll free at (1-800-544-0970). Ask for the 17th Annual PRIDE Conference sleeping room rate and they will be happy to confirm your reservation over the phone.

The AK Pride Conference is held every year in Anchorage, on or near National Coming Out Day (Oct 11). The mission is to facilitate unity within the queer communities of Alaska and our Allies, to promote equality for all, and to provide education and fun.

If you have any questions, please contact Johnathan or visit the AK Pride Conference 2010 Facebook page.

Four A's 25th Anniversary

Did you know that 25 years ago this month the Four A's was formed as an all volunteer agency that took helpline calls from volunteers' living rooms about the new epidemic called AIDS?

For the next year, we will be celebrating and recognizing the incredible support we've received from the community for the past 25 years. This will include a marketing campaign taking a look at the past 25 years of HIV/AIDS in Alaska to illustrate how far we've come from those beginning days and culminate in a celebration event in February of 2011. Stay tuned for more as we kick off this 25th Anniversary Adventure!

"Did You Know" Fact:

The Alaska Department of Epidemiology announced the first three cases of AIDS in Alaska in August of 1983.

Watch for more 25th Anniversary "Did You Know" Facts in e-mails, our Facebook page and on our website throughout the year! Who knows, there might be a pop quiz...

Don't forget the Arctic Siren's Cabaret on Friday, September 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Snow Goose Theater. Tickets are $15 and proceeds of this fantastic show will benefit the Four A's!

Repeal of DADT will improve military readiness: new ads

A gay active duty marine speaks out against the "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy in the third weekly ad by MilitaryReadiness.org. Mission critical personnel are still being discharged under DADT, which puts all service members in danger. Watch the newest ad:

MilitaryReadiness.org has the facts on DADT and the repeal:

» Approximately 14,000 men and women have been abruptly fired because of DADT since 1993. Tens of thousands more have voluntarily left the military because of the unnecessary burden of serving under DADT.

» The DADT policy violates the core values of every branch of the U.S. military.

» Congress should act to repeal the DADT law immediately. The Defense Department will create a plan to successfully manage the implementation of the new policy.

» The DADT repeal amendment to NDAA is completely respectful of the study and process set up by the Pentagon to address implementation issues.

» The American people overwhelmingly want the DADT law repealed. A majority of conservatives, Republicans, Independents, weekly church-goers, and even Tea Partiers also support the repeal of the DADT law.

» At least 3 Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and 3 Secretaries of Defense now support repeal of the DADT law.

The "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Lobby Day on Thursday, September 16, 2010 is hosted by Servicemembers United and the Servicemembers United Action Fund, the creators of MilitaryReadiness.org. The Lobby Day will focus on the DADT repeal amendment that will soon be debated by the full Senate. It's time to get this done!