Archives › 2008 › October
Hooked on Giveaways
Shifting from political discussion to something more fun: let’s have a giveaway. While at BlogHer Boston Saturday, I picked up some books from Hooked on Phonics, one of the conference sponsors. The Hooked on Phonics company has been around for over 20 years now. They’ve expanded their range beyond phonics, and now offer learning aids [...]
Students Take Field Trip to Lesbian Teacher’s Wedding
Here’s a good one for discussion: A group of first-graders in San Francisco took a field trip to City Hall last Friday to attend the wedding of their lesbian teacher. They threw rose petals and blew bubbles. Mayor Gavin Newsom officiated. The field trip was a parent’s idea, a surprise for the children’s dedicated teacher. [...]
BlogHer Boston Bonanza
I had a bloggeriffic time Saturday at the BlogHer Boston conference. The best part was networking with other women bloggers, some of whom had backgrounds very different from my own. I even went to a session on food blogging just for the heck of it. (I actually have a secret desire to be a food [...]
Let’s Twitter!
Do you Twitter? I’ve just joined the micro-blogging social network, which means you can keep up with Mombian posts and other news by “following” me there, taking advantage of Twitter’s pervasiveness across the Web, mobile phones, and other devices. Just go to www.twitter.com/mombian and click “Follow.” I’ll keep my Twitter feed updated with short news [...]
In Memoriam: Matthew Shepard
Ten years ago today, Matthew Shepard was pronounced dead at Poudre Valley Hospital in Wyoming after being severely beaten in a homophobic attack. His parents have since become outspoken advocates for erasing hate. I had the honor of hosting Judy Shepard when she spoke at Merrill Lynch in 2000, back when I was head of [...]
Coming Out, Staying In
I’ve written and vlogged already this week in honor of today’s National Coming Out Day. (Maybe it’s my Jewish heritage that makes me want to extend fun holidays across an entire week.) I think it’s clear that I generally think visibility is a good thing. In all the hoopla today over the benefits of coming [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
The Connecticut Supreme Court today ruled that “same sex couples cannot be denied the freedom to marry.” GLAD has links to some of the news coverage of this historic event. Also check out this video of the lead plaintiffs, Beth Kerrigan and Jody Mock, reacting to the news. Have tissues handy. The Council of Europe [...]
Marriage Equality Win in Connecticut!
The Connecticut Supreme Court just ruled in favor of marriage equality for same-sex couples: Our conventional understanding of marriage must yield to a more contemporary appreciation of the rights entitled to constitutional protection. Interpreting our state constitutional provisions in accordance with firmly established equal protection principles leads inevitably to the conclusion that gay persons are [...]
LGBT Parents Win Big in Arkansas
Hot off the presses: The good news keeps rolling in this week: The Arkansas Blog (from the Arkansas Times) reports that the state Department of Human Services will drop its rule that prohibits placement of foster children in homes with unmarried couples (and by definition, same-sex couples). “Instead, it will decide placement on a case [...]
“She Got Me Pregnant”: Episode 46
This week, Helen and I offer our parenting perspectives on recent news about celebrity lesbian moms Melissa and Tammy Etheridge and Rosie O’Donnell. What would happen if moms showed off their parenting talents on Rosie’s upcoming variety show? We also wonder why there aren’t more celebrity gay dads, despite the recent addition of singer Clay [...]
Visibility and Parenthood
I have a piece up at 365gay.com in honor of National Coming Out Day this Saturday. It’s titled “Heterosexual Assumptions,” but also discusses the many complexities of being out as an LGBT parent. I can’t crosspost it yet, but you can pop over there to have a read (and catch up on the news while [...]
Supreme Court Upholds Dismissal of LGBT Children’s Book Case
After refusing to rule on a case involving a sperm donor who claimed parental rights, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a second rejection this week that means good news for LGBT families. They dismissed the appeal of two couples from Lexington, Massachusetts who said their school district violated their constitutional rights when it included LGBT-related [...]
Going to BlogHer Boston?
If you’re going to be at the BlogHer Boston conference this Saturday, please drop me a note so we can say hi! I’ll be on the Closing Keynote panel, “Change Your Future; Change the World,” but should be around the rest of the day as well. Here’s what we’ll be discussing on our panel: Blogging [...]
Supreme Court Lets Stand Ruling on Lesbians and Donor Semen
Good news: The U.S. Supreme Court today refused to hear a case “that would have had far-reaching implications for lesbians and single women choosing to bear children,” according to law professor Nancy Polikoff, author of Beyond (Straight and Gay) Marriage: Valuing All Families under the Law. The case involves a Kansas woman whose sperm donor [...]
Playground Songs from Erin Lee and Marci
Children’s musicians Erin Lee and Marci bring us the next of their regular posts with thematic recommendations for kid-friendly music, plus activities to make the songs an interactive experience for the whole family. Look for Erin Lee and Marci here on the first Monday of each month, or visit their homepage, www.gottaplay.org. I’ve created links [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
Inspirational quotes of the week: Mom was not an extraordinary person, but she was a person who accomplished extraordinary things, and this is an important thing because each of us is needed to continue her work. It would be a shame if you left here today thinking that Mom was somehow bigger and bolder than [...]
(Here’s a longer piece on Banned Books Week I wrote for Bay Windows, October 1, 2008. Seemed a good way to end the week.) This week marks the 27th annual Banned Books Week, the American Library Association’s celebration of the freedom to read. LGBT-inclusive children’s books have long been on the ALA’s list of works [...]
“She Got Me Pregnant”: Episode 45
Helen and I celebrate a Banned Books Week full of fur and feathers. We discuss several LGBT-inclusive children’s books as well as an earlier work that was banned for supposedly promoting interracial marriage. We also point out the opportunity parents are missing by avoiding difficult topics with their children, and explain how we are helping [...]
Melissa and Tammy to Wed, Legally This Time
Best wishes to two of the world’s most famous lesbian moms, Melissa and Tammy Etheridge, who have revealed they will legally wed. As Tammy noted on her blog, however, the couple were wed (without the legal approval) on September 20, 2003. “darlin’, i AM married,” she writes. “now, do you mean, do i want to [...]
Great Banned Books
I’ve been using Wednesdays to post recommendations for books about non-traditional (or non-specific), but not necessarily LGBT families. Given that this is Banned Books Week, however, I thought I’d just offer a few more thoughts stemming from that event. Here’s an interesting fact, for example: Nearly half (43) of the books on the Radcliffe Publishing [...]
Sarah Palin Almost Convinced Me
Sarah Palin almost got me. Not that I’d ever vote for the McCain/Palin ticket, but I was almost convinced that Palin had a spark of understanding about LGBT issues when she said of “one of my absolute best friends for the past 30 years, who happens to be gay,” that “She is not my gay [...]
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