Here’s a bit of news that just popped up, although the event it refers to is a few weeks old: The same day that Alabama ruled against same-sex marriage, a transwoman and her partner legally married in Chilton County. The judge doing the ceremony said it was legal because the transwoman had not undergone gender reassignment surgery, and was thus still biologically male. (Thanks to the Gay & Lesbian Leadership SmartBrief for the tip.)

On the flip side, Abigail Garner points out the case of a Nebraska couple with one MTF spouse, whose 37-year marriage is in danger of annullment because of a same-sex marriage ban. All that fighting to be recognized as the gender you really are, only to have to fight for your relationship to the one you love.

As Abigail points out, citing the daughter of the couple above, trans issues can be a hidden weapon in the fight for marriage equality. Legal same-sex marriages already exist, when we include couples with at least one trans partner. It’s a good thing transgender rights are making progress and transgender people seem to be finding more acceptance within the rest of the LGBT community. They deserve it for themselves, but we’ll all benefit.

• Let’s start with some good news: The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples could become foster parents because (gasp!) there is no correlation between a child’s welfare and living with a “homosexual.”
• The Georgia Supreme Court began hearing arguments on reinstituting a ban on same-sex marriage. Last spring, a lower court ruled the amendment unconsitutional on a technicality. This week’s arguments centered around whether the ban would preclude civil unions or any marriage-like benefits, such as a partner’s health insurance. Even if the Supreme Court finds against the ban, legislators could try to push for a differently worded amendment in their next session.
• Religious leaders in Massachusetts called on Catholic bishops in their state to stop their campaign against same-sex marriage. They say that fighting same-sex civil marriage on religious grounds violates the separation of church and state.
• A recent poll from New Jersey brings the heartening news that half of New Jerseyans support same-sex marriage, while two-thirds support same-sex civil unions.
• In New York, the Empire State Pride Agenda is gearing up for rallies any day now when the state’s highest court rules on the constitutionality of same-sex marriage. The rallies will take place regardless of the decision, in seven locations across New York. As in Georgia, even if the court rules that same-sex marriages are constitutional, legislators can still fight for a new amendment banning it. A good show of support at these rallies is thus part of the ongoing battle.
• A Rhode Island couple argued before a Massachusetts Superior Court for their right to marry in the Bay State. The state Supreme Court had earlier said that the lower-court should decide if gay and lesbian couples from states that do not ban gay marriage could marry in Massachusetts.

The idea of letting kids near explosive devices has always seemed like a bad one to me. According to the CDC, during the month around July 4:

• 40% of [firework-related] injuries occurred among children ages 14 years and younger;
• Injuries were most commonly associated with fire-crackers (17%), sparklers (17%) and rockets (14%).

The American Academy of Pediatrics warns that:

• Fireworks can result in severe burns, scars and disfigurement that can last a lifetime.
• Fireworks that are often thought to be safe, i.e. sparklers, can reach temperatures above 1000 degrees Fahrenheit, and can burn users and bystanders.
• Parents should attend professional fireworks displays rather than using fireworks at home.
• The AAP recommends prohibiting public sale of all fireworks, including those by mail or Internet.

If, despite these warnings, you want to go ahead with your own firework display, you should at least read these safety tips from the National Council on Firework Safety.

Don’t forget your barbecue safety, either.

Have a safe and happy fourth of July!

From the ever-vigilant Pam of Pam’s House Blend, a reminder not to leave your children in hot cars, even for a few minutes. Nearly 300 children have died this way since 1998. This seems like an obvious no-no to me. Apparently, though, the number of people forgetting their children in cars is rising, since airbags mean children now ride in the back. Whether because of forgetfulness or convenience (”I’ll only be a few minutes”), there’s still no excuse.

Let’s review: the interior temperature of a car can increase 19 degrees in ten minutes. A child’s core body temperature increases five times faster than that of an adult’s. Heatstroke occurs when the core body temperature reaches 104 degrees, and a temperature of 107 degrees is considered lethal.

Plan extra time for errands. Take your kids in with you.

The Human Rights Campaign has released its “The State of the Workplace 2005-2006” report. There’s lots of good news. For the first time, a majority of Fortune 500 companies (albeit only 51% percent) offer domestic partner health insurance benefits. A more solid majority (86%) now include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies. While only 16% include gender identity and/or expression, this is a tenfold increase from 2001. In related legislation, seven states banned private-sector discrimination based on both sexual orientation and gender identity or expression, and 10 more on sexual orientation alone. That’s a trend to be happy about, whether you’re working or currently staying home and using or wanting your partner’s employment benefits.

Still, there’s room for improvement in all of the above areas. Additionally, I think it’s worth mentioning that legislation was introduced in Congress to end federal taxation of domestic partner health coverage. Seventeen major corporations support the bill. Coverage of the measure, however, seems to have been overwhelmed by the flood of media about same-sex marriage. Let’s face it, though: federally recognized marriage is a long way off, and much as many of us want marriage rather than civil unions or domestic partnerships, we may have to deal with the latter for at least some time. This legislation is a step towards fairness and would have a direct impact on our family finances (as well as giving corporations a break on the extra payroll taxes they pay for DP benefits). The bill is currently in committee. You can find out more about it on the HRC Web site, and urge your senators to cosponsor it if they haven’t already.

The report also covers policies and benefits for employees of state and local governments and of colleges and universities. All in all, it’s a great read if you’re interested in workplace issues, either as a worker or the partner of one. (As the former head of a Fortune 500 company’s LGBT employee group, I have an obvious bias here. You may find it dull as dust.) There’s lots of ammunition for dealing with recalcitrant HR departments. (For example, did you know that the San Francisco Human Rights Commission maintains a state-by-state database of insurance carriers that provide plans inclusive of same-sex partners?)

Have a read while you’re enjoying a few days off from work for the holiday weekend. (I hope my international readers have a good weekend, too. You can laugh at the fact that Americans celebrate their national day of independence by grilling hot dogs and setting off explosives.)

I’m very excited to announce the beta launch of Mombian Books, a place for people in LGBT families to share book ideas. I’ve found that although there are lots of LGBT-family booklists around, they tend to repeat many of the same books (Heather Has Two Mommies, Daddy’s Roommate, etc.), with maybe a few unique ones per list. It means scrounging around for ideas, and hoping the individuals who maintain the lists remember to update them. There’s also no easy way to find books both about LGBT families and simply appropriate for them. (E.g., Heather Has Two Mommies is about an LGBT family;Green Eggs and Ham isn’t, but contains nothing that would be objectionable.)

Mombian Books, however, is a “social booklist” site, intended to harness the collective book recommendations of LGBT families. After signing up, you maintain your own list of books, which you can rate, add comments to, and tag with keywords. You can also see all the books, ratings, comments, and tags that other users have entered, and search by tag, author, or keyword. You can even see which other users are currently reading books you like or want to read. This means that as more people participate, Mombian Books will become more and more useful.

Books are automatically linked to Amazon, so you can easily buy ones that interest you. There are also links that make it easy to e-mail book ideas to other people.

I’d like to keep the focus on kids’ books and books for and about LGBT parents, but will not be overly pedantic about this. Books on relevant politics or useful household topics (gardening, cooking, etc.) would also be fine. Anything that strays too far afield (say, a book about Web development), I reserve the right to remove (though I’m always willing to discuss it).

I’m running Mombian Books through a Web-application service called Ning. This means some functionality is limited by what Ning offers—but I thought it was robust enough to give it a try. You’ll have to create a username and password and agree to the Ning User Agreement.

Start by visiting Mombian Books and clicking “Sign Up” in the upper right. Please then read the few additional notes I’ve put on the front page, and start searching and sharing. (I’ve added a handful of my own recommendations to get things going, but hope others will contribute soon.)

I’m calling this a “beta test,” which means an introductory period while we see how things go and I work the kinks out of the system. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.

If you buy organic milk for your family, you may want to read this article about the corporate feedlot farms that are moving in on traditional small-scale organic dairies. The demand for organic milk has skyrocketed, and dairy corporations want in on it. They feed their cows organic grains, but don’t always provide the open pasture that is the hallmark of small organic farms and the assumption of many organic-purchasing consumers.

For those whose primary concern is making sure their milk is chemical-free, the feedlot milk, as long as it is organic, may be an acceptable, and possibly cheaper alternative to small-farm organic products. For those concerned about animal welfare or the viability of small farmers as well, it may not. Either way, it’s best to make your choice as an informed consumer.

Since I’ve blogged about lesbians in advertising (or the lack thereof) a couple of times in the past few days, I wanted to point out a full-length article that appeared today on AfterEllen.com covering the same topic. Hop on over if you want to read a more detailed review of lesbian-themed ads over the years—good, bad, but rarely ugly.

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) will ring the closing bell on the New York Stock Exchange this Friday, the first time an LGBT family group has done so. The event symbolizes “ring[ing] the closing bell on homophobia.” It also highlights the increasing buying power of LGBT Americans, estimated at $641 billion today, and projected to reach $1 trillion by 2012, even without counting families and friends (a calculation someone should make). (Thanks to PageOneQ for the tip.)

On a related note, the New York Times reported today on marketers targeting the LGBT market. It discussed the increasing number of channels for LGBT-themed media, including Viacom’s Logo and Bravo’s Outzone TV. With all their talk about “targeted marketing,” however, I feel obligated to repeat my earlier caution that the LGBT market is not always a unified one, marketing-wise. L, G, B, and T have different interests, in-jokes, and in some cases, media channels. (The percentage of gay men reading Curve, for example, must be pretty low.) An ad that works well with one group might fall flat with the others. Not to mention that we parents are often at the stage of looking for vastly different products and services than our child-free peers. I can’t wait till I see the first baby-food ad featuring an LGBT couple. But hey, if Earth’s Best wants a targeted channel for lesbian moms, they can drop me a line.

It’s Wimbledon time again, and play begins today at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. Out lesbian Amélie Mauresmo is the number-one seed and a contender for the women’s singles title. Lesbian icon Martina Navratilova, who turned pro in 1975, will play doubles.

I had the pleasure of hearing Martina talk on an Olivia cruise last spring. She spoke extensively about Shape Your Self, her new health and fitness book. More than just a compilation of exercises, the book describes her entire philosophy of fitness. She explains:

I think the key to a successful transformation from an out of shape individual to a finely tuned one is this—You have to want to change, first of all. The change needs to come from the inside so that eventually the outside will be healthy too.

And it needs to be fun.

Hear, hear.

Martina also walks the walk as a lesbian role model, having created the Rainbow Endowment to harness the power of LGBT dollars. Poke around her official site for more. There’s a lot about her charities and endorsements as well as her tennis. (She supports environmental and animal-rights groups, too.)

Best of luck to Martina, Amélie, and all the other competitors at their sport’s premier event. (I’ll note, however, that Wimbledon remains the only major international tennis tournament that awards the men more money than the women.)

If this talk of tennis inspires you as a parent, the U. S. Tennis Association has information on getting kids started and helping them improve.