Archives › 2007 › June
When Giant Gay Penguins Roamed the Earth
Given the discovery of five-foot-tall penguins that lived in prehistoric Peru, coupled with the knowledge that some penguins exhibit a certain “biological exuberance” towards members of the same sex, one can only conclude that 36 million years ago, free of today’s social mores, the giant birds once frolicked free and proud. That seems an appropriate [...]
Weekly Political Update
A slowish week for news: President Bush has threatened to veto a routine appropriations bill for the District of Columbia because of the city’s domestic partner registry. The White House claims “Under federal law, legal marriage is the union between a man and a woman. Federal tax dollars are not used to extend employment benefits [...]
Online Drum Fun
Looking for an engaging, non-branded online game for your young ones? Try the Tiny Drum Machine. Not a “kids’ game” per se, it nevertheless entertained my four-year-old for better parts of this afternoon. It’s a simple music-making program where you can specify notes and tempo or let it randomly entertain you. There are five variations, [...]
(Originally published in Bay Windows, June 28, 2007.) Is your child’s school inclusive of LGBT families? If not, how can you improve it? Jennifer Chrisler, Executive Director of the Family Pride Coalition, recently spoke with me about their new interactive tool that helps parents answer these critical questions. What is the Rainbow Report Card (RRC)? [...]
MizPee Helps You Find the Nearest Public Toilet
Taking a break from all the political posts of late to pass on this news of potential interest to parents and pregnant women, among others: MizPee lets you use your mobile phone to find the nearest, cleanest, public toilet. Text your city and state to their phone number, or point your mobile browser at www.mizpee.com. [...]
Full Apology for Newark Student
Garden State Equality reports an ultimately positive outcome to the tragic saga of Newark high-school student Andre Jackson and the photo of him and his boyfriend that was excised from the school yearbook. They explain in an e-mail: Newark Schools Superintendent Marion Bolden today attended the final graduation rehearsal at East Side High School in [...]
Family Voices IV
This week’s Family Voices interview is with gay dads Rod and Lindel, who live in Massachusetts with their toddler Hugh. Below, they share their thoughts about adoption, extended family, routine, visibility, and more. As with the previous families highlighted in this feature, they are members of the Family Pride Coalition’s OUTSpoken Families program, and committed [...]
A sobering new study of secondary schools in Britain concluded that homophobic bullying is “almost epidemic.” The School Report study, conducted by the Schools Health Education Unit for LGBT-rights organization Stonewall, found: 65% of young LGB people experience homophobic bullying in Britain’s schools. 97% of gay pupils hear derogatory phrases such as “dyke” or “poof” [...]
Update on New Jersey Yearbook Incident
Newark School Superintendent Marion Bolden apologized to student Andre Jackson for blacking out a yearbook photo of him and his boyfriend David Escobales kissing. She said the district would reissue an “un-redacted version” of the yearbook to any student at the school who wants one. Jackson is disappointed about the apology, however, since it was [...]
Wimbledon 2007
The Wimbledon Tennis Championships start today, making this a time of celebration for us sports-loving types. Even though legend Martina Navratilova retired last fall after winning her 59th career title (at the U.S. Open), she’ll be participating as a commentator for the BBC. Defending champion and out lesbian Amélie Mauresmo is one of the top [...]
Reading Roundup on Lesbian Moms
A few stories from round and about: “Gay woman’s home is haven for struggling youths” from Lower Hudson Online, is about Mary Keane, a single mother and lesbian in Westchester County, New York, who has opened her home to 18 foster or adopted children, some gay or lesbian and some straight. (Thanks, PageOneQ.) “Gay life: [...]
New Jersey School Blacks Out Gay Couple’s Yearbook Photo
A New Jersey High School has taken every copy of its new yearbook and blacked out a photo of a student kissing his boyfriend—even though it left photos of opposite-sex couples kissing. The photo appeared in a section of pages that students may purchase to fill with pictures of family and friends. NJ.com reports: Newark [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
The California Supreme Court asked lawyers in the state same-sex marriage case whether the state’s domestic-partnership law “provides all the benefits of marriage, and whether the term ‘marriage’ has special legal significance.” (Well, yes, otherwise why would we want it?) The University of Kentucky has expanded its health insurance scheme to include all dependents residing [...]
Go Camp!
This Saturday, June 23, is the annual Great American Backyard Campout (GABC), an event sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation “for families, youth and individuals to camp out in their backyards or local parks and to discover the fun of being in the great outdoors.” For those with young children, it’s a chance to try [...]
Mombian Turns Two
Two years ago today, I wrote my first post for Mombian. My goal was to create a blog of useful and fun news and resources for lesbian moms—as lesbians and as moms. Today, I look back on over 1000 posts, two successful Blogging for LGBT Families Days, almost 600 entries in the Mombian Resource Directory, [...]
Giving Genetics the (Ring) Finger
Boys with ring fingers longer than their index fingers tend to do better in math, according to a new study by psychologists at the University of Bath. (Thanks, Slashdot.) This would be nothing more than an interesting tidbit that might make me check my son’s hands next time I cut his nails, except that it [...]
Children and Identity: All Possibilities
Two articles today gave me cause for reflection about children of LGBT families and the development of identity: “I’m Not Gay, but My Four Mums Are,” in the Sydney Morning Herald profiles 21-year-old Eamon Waterford, who was born into a two-mom family, but acquired two more when they split up and repartnered. (Thanks, Abigail.) The [...]
Family Voices III
This week’s Family Voices interview is with lesbian mom Ruth, who lives in San Antonio with her partner Della and their eight children. Ruth writes “We have kids created nearly every way but alien abduction.” Although they live in a fairly conservative area of the country, their experiences with the legal and medical systems and [...]
The Cheapening of Marriage
The “99 Cents Only” store in Lewisville, Texas, will be hosting a licensed minister on June 30 who will perform ceremonies at the store for—you guessed it—99 cents. Shouldn’t someone be defending against this sort of thing?
Vermont Judge Rules in Interstate Lesbian-Custody Case
In a case that bounced between the jurisdictions of Vermont and Virginia and was rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court in April, a Vermont judge awarded Lisa Miller (formerly Miller-Jenkins) custody of her biological daughter, Isabella, though he mandated regular visitation rights for the girl’s non-biological mother, Janet Jenkins (formerly Miller-Jenkins). I’ve written about this [...]
You Say “Vegas of Gay Marriage” Like It’s a Bad Thing
After winning a vote to secure marriage rights for same-sex couples residing in Massachusetts, LGBT activists are moving on to the next target: rescinding a 1913 law that has been used to prevent out-of-state same-sex couples from having their nuptials here. (The law was originally used to prevent out-of-state interracial couples from marrying in the [...]
Last Monday, I posted an interview with Tina Owen, one of the winners of this year’s Point Foundation scholarships. Today, the other Point Scholar who is also a parent, Utah resident Kim Hackford-Peer, gives us her thoughts on winning the scholarship, parenting, and education. Kim is pursuing her PhD in Education Culture and Society at [...]
Happy Father’s Day
A happy day to all the dads, GBT and not, as well as the lesbian parents who choose to celebrate this day as theirs. I’ll leave the day to you, and not offer any post of my own, except to point readers to a couple of posts by two of my favorite bloggers, who each [...]
Upcoming TV Shows on LGBT Families
Public television stations around the country are broadcasting many specials for Pride Month. Here are a few about LGBT families that caught my eye: In the greater New York area, WNET will be airing: Mom’s Apple Pie: The Heart of the Lesbian Mothers’ Custody Movement: This film, narrated by Kate Clinton, was an official selection [...]
MomsRising Petitions Congress to Stop Toxic Toys
If you are as incensed as I am over the recent recall of millions of Thomas the Tank Engine trains, you might want to pop over to MomsRising and sign their petition to tell Congress and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC): “Testing children’s products for toxic chemicals must be a priority. No more toxic [...]
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