BACKTRACK: Gay Marriage is NOT Fine with Rick Perry!

Texsa Governor Rick Perry, who made headlines over the weekend for his comments regarding states' rights and the passage of marriage equality in New York, has clarified those remarks in an interview with hate group leader Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council.

Said Perry to a group of donors in Aspen, Colorado last Friday: "Our friends in New York six weeks ago passed a statute that said marriage can be between two people of the same sex. And you know what? That's New York, and that's their business, and that's fine with me," said the Governor. "That is their call. If you believe in the 10th Amendment, stay out of their business."

Said Perry to Perkins today: “I probably needed to add a few words after that ‘it’s fine with me,’ and that it’s fine with me that a state is using their sovereign rights to decide an issue. Obviously gay marriage is not fine with me. My stance hasn’t changed.”

You can listen to the full interview at the hate group's website.

RESOLVED: Fort Worth Rainbow Lounge Patrons Settle Case Over 2009 Raid!

Two bar patrons hurt during a 2009 raid on the Rainbow Lounge on the anniversary of New York's Stonewall riots, have settled with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, the Star-Telegram reports: The state agreed to pay $210,000 to Chad Gibson  who suffered a head injury, and $15,000 to George Armstrong, who suffered a torn rotator cuff, during their arrests June 28, 2009, at the gay bar.

The arrests came as agents from the beverage commission and Fort Worth police officers conducted a joint inspection at the bar.

As part of the settlement, Gibson and Armstrong agreed not to sue the agency or anyone connected to it, or the two agents and supervisor involved in the incident. In a settlement with the city this year, Gibson was awarded $400,000 and Armstrong $40,000.

Said attorney for the men Don Tittle: "I think they feel that they received a level of justice, although it was slow. The monetary compensation was fair, but I think it was important to both of them that there be change within both organizations. As a result of the incident, both Fort Worth and TABC have taken affirmative steps to improve relations and to be more sensitive to diversity."

FREE: Killer Of Broussard To Be Released!

On this weeks TIME Warp, we remembered the Brutal Murder in 1991, when ten men attacked a 27-year old gay man named Paul Broussard outside of a Houston nightclub. One of those men, Jon Buice, brandished a knife and stabbed Broussard to death. Now Buice is being released from prison.

Explaining their decision, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles cited his age at the time, 17, and note that he has spent his jail time obtaining college degrees and taking vocational courses.

While that may be enough for them, Broussard's mother, Nancy Rodriguez, has for years argued against releasing Buice, and noted in 2007 that he and his cohorts "not only took Paul's life, they took his future."

What's your opinion on this case, reader? Should Buice's age at the time of the attack be a factor? If so, should age be a factor in Brandon McInerney's trial?

COME OUT: Politico Revives Rumor About Rick Perry Being Gay!

Politico reports that Texas Governor Rick Perry is prepared to defend himself against seven-year-old rumors that he is gay if and when he plans to run for President:

They spread for two months, were posted on various websites and were vetted by many national outlets, all of which turned up nothing. But Team Perry, asked about how it's prepared to handle them when they emerge if he runs, said it remains "false and misleading."

"As you may know, Rick and Anita Perry first met in grade school, went on their first date together in 1966, have been lovingly married since 1982 and are parents to two grown children," said top Perry strategist Dave Carney. "This kind of nameless, faceless smear campaign is run against the Perry family in seemingly every campaign, with no basis, truth or success."

"Texas politics is a full contact support, live hand grenades and all; unfortunately there are always going to be some people who feel the need to spread false and misleading rumors to advance their own political agenda," he said.

And you know, they hadn't really been at the top of our mind until Politico brought them up.

UNITED: March against LGBT-phobia set in Dallas

Activists will gather at the JFK Memorial in downtown Dallas as part of the worldwide recognition of International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, known as IDAHO, on May 17.


The event began in 2004 but this is the first time Dallas will participate, according to Dallas Voice.

“It’s celebrated around the world and we’ve never had one here in Dallas,” said organizer Daniel Cates.

The May 17 date was chosen by the Paris-based IDAHO committee: Although U.S. groups like the American Psychological Association had already removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders, the World Health Organization did so on May 17, 1990.

In countries where a Pride Day celebration is banned, a demonstration against homophobia might be permitted.

In Dallas, Cates said, “We’re doing a candlelight vigil, not a loud, screaming march. Chicago is doing a boisterous protest.”

TARGET: Log Cabin Republican Attacked, Called Anti-Gay Slur In Dallas!

The Log Cabin Republicans are holding their annual convention at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas this weekend and one of its members was involved in an altercation at a bar inside the hotel early yesterday morning. The Dallas Voice has the story on the assault in which the attacker used an anti-gay slur:

“Two groups of intoxicated individuals got into a verbal argument,” (Sr. Cpl. Kevin) Janse (of the Dallas PD) said in an e-mail Saturday afternoon. “Supposedly the victim and his friend were whistling at the suspect, who took offense and shoved the victim. Officers interviewed both parties and made a class-C assault. Which is not a jailable offense if the two parties can be separated, which they were. Detectives are interviewing all parties as we speak but there is no indication of a hate crime based on what both parties are telling detectives. Just two drunk people.”

NOT ACCEPTED: School Boots Student Groups After Gay Club Forms!

A New Mexico school district has forbidden all extra-curricular clubs from meeting during school hours or using school resources—right after a gay-straight alliance applied to become a club. The Clovis school board says it’s purely a coincidence, and that it had already been reviewing the policy, but the ACLU is suspicious. “This sort of tactic has been used in the past,” an ACLU of New Mexico rep tells Reuters, “A lot of alarm bells went off when we saw this.”

The club will still be free to meet after school—but not to put up fliers, make announcements, or otherwise advertise its existence. “Now it’s almost an underground operation,” one senior at the school tells Reuters. This isn’t the school’s first brush with this kind of controversy, either; in 2008, there was a public outcry when lesbian couples were featured in yearbook photos. The principal now reviews all potentially controversial yearbook content.

PROTECTED: Dallas adds trans protections!

After listening to more than 30 minutes of public comments in favor of the proposal, the Dallas County Commissioners Court voted 3-2 along party lines Tuesday to add transgender protections to the county’s employment nondiscrimination policy, reports Dallas Voice.

About a dozen people from the LGBT community addressed the Commissioners Court prior to the vote, which came five weeks after the court voted unanimously to add sexual orientation but not gender identity/expression to the policy covering the county’s 7,000 workers. Despite rumors over the last few days, no one spoke against the proposal.

Commissioner John Wiley Price provided the third and decisive vote in favor of transgender protections, joining fellow Democrats County Judge Clay Jenkins and Commissioner Dr. Elba Garcia. Republican Commissioners Maurine Dickey and Mike Cantrell voted against the transgender protections. (Watch video of the court’s discussion below.)

LGBT advocates who attended Tuesday’s meeting erupted in applause after the dramatic vote, and they gathered on the steps of the county administration building for an impromptu celebration moments later.

Texas may strip away transgender marriage rights!

Two years after Texas became one of the last states to allow transgendered people to use proof of their sex change to get a marriage license, Republican lawmakers are trying to roll back the clock, 365gay.com reports.

Advocates for the transgendered say a proposal to bar transgendered people from getting married smacks of discrimination and would put their legally-granted marriages in danger of being nullified if challenged in court.

One of the Republican sponsors of the legislation said he’s simply trying to clean up the 2009 law in a state that bans same-sex marriage under the Constitution.

“The Texas Constitution,” Sen. Tommy Williams said, “clearly defines marriage between one man and one woman.”

Texas Man Kills Daughter's Girlfriend and Her Mother Over Lesbian Relationship

An Austin, Texas man upset that his daughter was in a lesbian relationship has been arrested for the murder of his daughter's girlfriend and the girlfriend's mother, the Austin Statesman reports:

Jose Alfonso Aviles, 45 , went to the house in the 7100 block of Dixie Drive where Norma Hurtado, 24, lived with her mother and shot both women after knocking on the door, officials said Tuesday. He has been charged with capital murder and could receive life in prison or the death penalty if convicted.

Why Is 'Homosexual Conduct' Still Illegal in Texas?

According to the Texas state penal code, "homosexual conduct" is still a criminal offense—even though the Supreme Court deemed the state's anti-sodomy law unconstitutional eight years ago. Though the state stopped enforcing the law after the Supreme Court's decision, it's still on the books—and will likely remain so, even though a pair of bills introduced in the Texas House recently would finally remove it. The problem? The legislature's Republican supermajority might never allow the bills to come to a vote, Mother Jones reports. In their party platform last year, the Republicans made it clear they wanted homosexuality to remain outlawed.

Texas Firefighters Fired Over Nude Male Photo Collage

Two Victoria, Texas firefighters have been fired over a nude male photo collage displayed at Victoria Fire Station No. 2. Victoria is between Houston and Corpus Christi.

The Victoria Advocate: About 10 photographs were joined together in a montage that included a scantily clad crotch shot, a shot of one nude man kissing another nude man's body, a cartoon of two men kissing, a shot of one nude man looming over another with his hands on his shoulders, a bare-chested man and a shot of a man's scantly clad rear end.

LGBT advocates call on Commissioners Court to protect trans Dallas Government Employees!

Three members of the LGBT community spoke today during the Dallas County Commissioners Court’s regular meeting, calling on the court to add transgender employees to the county’s nondiscrimination policy, details in Dallas Voice.

Kelli Ann Busey, who is transgender, commended the court for adding sexual orientation to the policy covering the county’s 7,000 employees a few weeks ago.

“But transgender people are not the same as gay people,” Busey said. “We need to be protected differently.”

Busey said many transgender people are homeless after transitioning.

“Without workplace protections, we cannot live up to our potential,” she said.

Dave Guy-Gainer spoke on behalf of Equality Texas. He told the commissioners about a poll conducted by Glengariff Group that sampled registered voters in Texas on 12 rights as they pertain to the LGBT community.

“According to the poll, 70 percent of all Texas voters support prohibiting employment and housing discrimination for transgender citizens,” he said.

Texas House budget includes anti-gay measure, leaves out needed funds for AIDS drug program!

The Texas House approved a budget Sunday that includes massive cuts to public education, Medicaid and, well, just about everything else. The House budget, which now goes to the Senate, would trim $23 billion from current state and federal spending over the next two years. Democrats in the House, who are outnumbered 2-to-1, say the cuts will have disastrous effects on key services, reports Dallas Voice.

As we noted the other day, the House budget includes an amendment that would require public colleges and universities in Texas with LGBT resource centers to spend an equal amount, dollar for dollar, on centers promoting “traditional and family values.” The amdendment from Rep. Wayne Christian, R-Center, passed by a margin of 110-24.

Texas College Republicans Chair Resigns After Use Of Anti-Gay Slur!

Charlie McCaslin, chairman of the Texas College Republicans, has resigned from his post following the emergence of a video in which the Southern Methodist University junior is heard calling the opponents of National College Republicans candidate Alex Schriver "fags."

McCaslin used the slur during a toast to Schriver who himself is heard reacting favorably to the speech by cheering “To Charlie!” McCaslin, who seems inebriated in the video, is over the legal drinking age of 21.

According to the site The Other McCain, "Schriver called McCaslin’s comments 'inappropriate and highly offensive,' and warned that 'it is possible that some could incorrectly interpret my actions to be supportive” of McCaslin’s remarks. 'I regret putting myself in that situation,' Schriver said in the statement. 'I hope that any who were offended will accept my sincere apology.'”

Fort Worth settles gay bar-police debacle!

Chad Gibson and George Armstrong, two men who were injured during a police “inspection” of the Rainbow Lounge nearly two years ago, received a $400,000 settlement from the Fort Worth City Council on March 23. The settlement was approved without debate and with no admission of liability. The men allege that officers’ excessive force caused Gibson’s head injury and Armstrong’s torn rotator cuff. The timing of the event — conducted on the eve of the 40th anniversary of Stonewall — drew protests and national media attention, according to Q Notes.

Sundance Selects Takes SXSW’s Breakout Gay Romance “Weekend”!

Andrew Haigh’s “Weekend,” one of the most talked about films at the SXSW Film Festival (and winner of the audience award in the Emerging Visions program), has been acquired for North American release by Sundance Selects. Additionally, Sundance Selects picked up broadcast and digital rights in France, Benelux, Spain, Portugal, East-Central Europe, Turkey, and Greece.

Rainbow World Fund raises money from LGBT community for Japan earthquake/tsunami relief!

The Rainbow World Fund, an all-volunteer LGBT international humanitarian service agency, has created a Japan earthquake fund, reports the Dallas Voice..

Among the hardest hit cities is Sendai, Japan. In 1997, Mayor Ron Kirk signed a friendship agreement with that city. No word yet on whether Dallas will mount a separate relief effort for Sendai.

From the Rainbow Fund Japan relief page: A 8.9 earthquake followed by a tsunami stuck northern Japan on March 11, 2011. Nearly 1,000 have died and thousands still remain unaccounted for. Thousands have been injured, hundreds of thousands are now homeless. Millions are without water, food and power. Several nuclear power plants were impacted, radiation has escaped and there is a threat of a meltdown. Many aftershocks above magnitude 6.0 have occurred.

At the request of our generous donors, RWF has set up a fund to help the Japanese people recover. RWF has many direct ties with Japan through our annual World Tree of Hope project which is a collaboration between RWF and members of the Japanese American community.

To make a donation, click here and specify “Japan.”

To make a donation by check, mail to Rainbow World Fund, P.O. Box 14480, San Francisco, CA 94114-2336.

Texas LGBT Democrats meet to strategize for the future!

Members of the Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus from all across the state met in Austin on March 5-6 to assess the “ass-whipping” Democrats took at the polls last November and to develop messaging and other strategies for winning in 2012, according to caucus president Dan Graney (Pictured).

Keynote speakers were openly bisexual Arizona state Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and national transgender activist Mara Keisling.

Sinema warned Texas Democrats that “Arizona is coming to a state near you,” calling her home state the breeding ground for the anti-immigrant, anti-choice, anti-worker’s rights and anti-children’s health care measures currently being proposed in many state legislatures, including Texas.

Sinema called the spreading efforts an attempt by the Tea Party to “mainstream hatred in this country,” adding that “Tea Party” is just another name for Republicans as told to the Dallas Voice.

Sinema said Democrats must build coalitions to stop such legislation, and encouraged LGBT Democrats to reach out to even unlikely allies to get — and give — support.

“After all, LGBT people make up only 4 percent of the electorate and you need 50 percent plus one to win,” Sinema said, who stayed after her speech to autograph copies of her book, “Unite And Conquer: Building Coalitions That Win — And Last.”

Dallas gay couple files non-discrimination claim against Dallas Morning News

Mark Reed-Walkup and Dante Walkup, a Dallas area gay couple, announced today that they have filed a non-discrimination claim against the Dallas Morning News for the newspaper’s refusal to run their wedding announcement.

The couple, married December 10th in a ceremony at the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, DC, placed and paid for a wedding announcement in the Dallas Morning News, 365Gay.com Reports.

However, Jim Moroney, chief executive and publisher of the Dallas Morning News, refused to run the couple’s announcement, citing Texas’ discriminatory law barring gay couples from legal, civil marriage in the state.

The couple filed a complaint on December 27, 2010, with the city of Dallas’ Fair Housing Office due to the newspaper’s violation of Chapter 46 “Unlawful Discriminatory Practices Relating to Sexual Orientation,” which prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation in housing, employment and public accommodations.