Archives › 2006 › June
Transgender Rights and Same-Sex Marriage
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 [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
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 [...]
Firework Safety
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 [...]
Don’t Leave Your Children in Hot Cars
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 [...]
HRC Releases “State of the Workplace” Report
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% [...]
Introducing Mombian Books
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 [...]
Organic Milk Not Always What It Seems
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 [...]
AfterEllen.com Feature on Lesbians in Advertising
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, [...]
PFLAG Rings Bell at New York Stock Exchange
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 [...]
Wimbledon 2006—and Martina, Of Course
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 [...]
Hilton Advertises to G Part of LGBT Market
Hilton Hotels last week announced a new ad campaign targeting “the GLBT community.” The ads, to be run in major GLBT publications, have the tag line, “Come as you are . . . fabulous.” Hmm. Last I checked, “fabulous” was a word most often used to describe the gay male community. (Not that lesbians, bisexual, [...]
HRC Posts New Video Resources for LGBT Parents
In early June, the Human Rights Campaign held a town hall in Washington, D.C., for LGBT people considering parenthood. They have posted videos of the panelists’ speeches and the question-and- answer session. Topics included legal and financial issues as well as the emotional aspects of becoming parents. There are aksi downloadable PDF files with additional [...]
A new study indicates that most breast cancer treatments are safe during pregnancy, Blogging Baby reports. If true, this could mean fewer instances of the terrible choice between the life of the mother and the life of the baby. The researchers warn, however, that women should still not undergo radiation therapy while pregnant. They also [...]
Great American Backyard Campout
Tomorrow, June 24, is the Great American Backyard Campout (GABC). It’s sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) as a way of getting kids to experience the wonders of nature and for families to share the outdoors together. I think this is a terrific idea. While my personal idea of camping is setting out with [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
A relatively slow week for pure political news, though the decisions by the Episcopalian and Presbyterian churches have political dimensions. The Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military discovered a Pentagon document of retirement and discharge policies that classifies homosexuality with mental disorders, despite mental health experts abandoning that view decades ago. [...]
Amazon Bargains
I don’t usually do such materialistic posts, but Amazon.com has a few sales going on right now that may be of interest. (My mom’s an inveterate bargain hunter; you can blame it on her.) Eligible books are 4-for-3 (lowest price one is free), including children’s books from Eric Carle, Dr. Seuss, and others, as well [...]
I got a laugh out of this tongue-in-cheek article by Reg Henry on banning same-sex marriage. An extract: The nuclear family is called nuclear because it is apt to detonate from time to time and when that happens everything is radioactive for a while. But, really, what is a bit of creative sulking, bickering and [...]
San Diego Expected to Select Lesbian Fire Chief
Fire trucks are one of my son’s current obsessions. He has an entire fire company’s worth of vehicles in his playroom. He’s visited fire houses and fire museums, and managed to collect three different Junior Firefighter badges and five hats. He and his teddy bear “rescue” me on a regular basis. It was thus with [...]
Happy Birthday, Mombian!
A year ago today, I wrote my first post for Mombian. I’m pleased that the vision I had for the site back then seems to have been a worthy one. My goal was to create a blog of useful news and resources for lesbian moms—as lesbians and as moms. I drew on my own experience [...]
Following the Episcopalians’ decision to permit LGBT bishops, the Presbyterian Church U. S. A. approved a measure allowing local churches to decide on the fitness of an individual to be ordained or serve as a lay official, even if the issue of sexual orientation arises. The measure does not, however, revoke a church law that [...]
Father, Mother, Butch, Femme, Parent
LesbianDad has a thought-provoking Father’s Day post on fatherhood in lesbian families, and her chosen role as Baba, a “parent midway between Mother and Father.” This brings to mind some of Kwynne’s earlier postings on Butch Baby Makin’ in which she talks about parenthood and butch identity. These are important views that don’t get a [...]
Episcopalians Reject Ban on LGBT Bishops
Clergy and lay delegates in the Episcopalian House of Deputies today rejected a proposed ban on LGBT bishops that was being urged by other churches in the worldwide Anglican Communion. This will likely kill the measure, at least for this year’s General Convention. The Episcopalians’ newly elected Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori, said yesterday she [...]
Egg Freezing May Open New Fertility Options
For years, doctors have frozen embryos and sperm to help prospective parents preserve them for future use. Eggs, however, could not be frozen and used with more than a minor chance of success. That may be changing. Japanese researchers have announced a new technique that gives frozen, then thawed eggs the same pregnancy-success rate as [...]
A new study by the National Cancer Institute and National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences says that sleeping with a light on, working a night shift, or not getting enough sleep could be causes of breast cancer. This work confirms several previous studies, providing what researchers say is “the first proof that light is indeed [...]
Happy Juneteenth Day!
It’s Juneteenth Day, a commemoration of the ending of slavery in the U. S. and the achievements of African Americans. The National Juneteenth Observance Foundation (NJOF) says that nineteen states, plus the District of Columbia, now recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday. At least eleven more mark it in some fashion, such as a legislative [...]
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