Ben and Jerry’s to Serve “Hubby Hubby” This Month

In honor of the first legal marriages of same-sex couples in Vermont, Burlington-based Ben and Jerry’s will rename its “Chubby Hubby” flavor to “Hubby Hubby” for the month, reports the AP, via the Rutland Herald.

I had a similar idea when Vermont first approved marriage equality, but clearly I wasn’t the only one.

No details yet about what form this renaming will take—if we’ll see actual package changes (get your collectible edition now!) or if they’ll just change the flavor-name signs in their shops in the Green Mountain State or around the country. Any Vermonters out there with the inside scoop?

Ben and Jerry’s has long been a supporter of LGBT rights, and it’s nice to see them marking the occasion, however they do it. I might just have to celebrate and buy myself a pint.

Mary Cheney Donated to Anti-LGBT Candidate

Mary Cheney, daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, and a lesbian mom, gave a $1000 donation to the Senate campaign of former Rep. Rob Portman (R-OH) in May. The interesting part? Portman voted against same-sex marriage and allowing gay couples to adopt children in the District of Columbia.

Raw Story has the full story, including a link to a copy of Portman’s FEC filing listing Cheney’s donation.

What do you all think of this? On the one hand, not all of us are single-issue voters, and LGBT rights might not, in fact, be our first consideration when evaluating a candidate. Fair enough. Also, I know opinion on the importance of marriage equality is split even within the LGBT community. On the other hand, I don’t think I could donate to a candidate who voted against adoption rights for same-sex parents, unless he had done so for some procedural reason and I knew he was really in favor of them (which doesn’t seem to be the case here). I therefore can’t excuse Mary Cheney for her donation, especially when the rights impacted families in her own backyard. (Cheney and her partner Heather Poe live in Virginia.)

Your thoughts?

LGBT Parenting Roundup

Politics and Law

Two big wins this past week:

• Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court ruled that same-sex couples have the right to adopt each other’s children.
• Uruguay’s lower house of Congress approved a bill to allow same-sex couples to adopt children. The Senate must vote before September 15, and is also expected to approve. Uruguay approved same-sex civil unions last year.

And various ups and downs: Read the rest of this post »

Weekly Political Roundup

(There’s been a lot of parenting-related news this week, which I’m putting into a roundup for Monday. Stay tuned. Below is more general news.)

The death of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) this week touched people of all orientations and identities. For many in the LGBT community, his death meant the loss of a long-time advocate for our rights. Here are a few of the more noteworthy pieces I’ve seen about his impact on our community:

• HRC, along with the expected adulatory press release, also put out a long list of Kennedy’s accomplishments related to LGBT rights.
• Phil Reese at Bilerico sums them up in more elegant prose.
• Also at Bilerico, Karen Ocamb offers a look back at Kennedy’s life and times and suggests his life might serve as “a parable for America.”
• LGBT newspaper Bay Windows, in Kennedy’s home state of Massachusetts, has put out a special issue on Kennedy, with pieces by Rebecca Haag, president and CEO of the AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts; independent journalist Lisa Keen; Former HRC director Tim McFeeley (who worked with Kennedy on the first introduction of the Employment Nondiscrimination Act (ENDA)); co-publisher Sue O’Connell; and Marc Solomon, marriage director for Equality California and previous leader of MassEquality, who writes on “How Ted Delivered Marriage to Massachusetts.” There’s also a compilation of comments from leaders around the state and country on Sen. Kennedy’s passing.

On to other news: Read the rest of this post »

Goodbye, Reading Rainbow

Some sad news this morning from NPR: Reading Rainbow, the 26-year veteran of children’s television programming, airs its final episode today. The show has won more than two-dozen Emmys, and is the third longest-running children’s show in PBS history, after Sesame Street and Mister Rogers.

The show is ending because no one will put up the several hundred thousand dollars needed to renew the show’s broadcast rights, says NPR. They also report the opinion of John Grant, head of content at WNED Buffalo, Reading Rainbow’s home station:

Grant says the funding crunch is partially to blame, but the decision to end Reading Rainbow can also be traced to a shift in the philosophy of educational television programming. The change started with the Department of Education under the Bush administration, he explains, which wanted to see a much heavier focus on the basic tools of reading — like phonics and spelling.

Grant says that PBS, CPB and the Department of Education put significant funding toward programming that would teach kids how to read — but that’s not what Reading Rainbow was trying to do.

“Reading Rainbow taught kids why to read,” Grant says. “You know, the love of reading — [the show] encouraged kids to pick up a book and to read.”

Yes, the basic tools are important, but they have to follow the love. (I’ll spare you my usual rant about the many failings of No Child Left Behind.) Read the rest of this post »

Organizing for Safe Schools in Minnesota

I posted a blurb in my last LGBT Parenting Roundup about the Anoka-Hennepin School District in Minnesota, which agreed to pay a $25,000 settlement to the family of a high school junior after two teachers harassed the boy in the classroom about his perceived sexual orientation. I received the e-mail below from a local mother who is taking matters into her own hands and working for change, even though she has “never done any type of activism” before.

While I don’t often post about purely local events, I thought this one was a good example of community organizing and helping to create positive change in our schools, which seemed especially relevant this time of year.

Hi Dana,

Thanks for running a blurb about the situation in my school district. Monday evening was the first School District Board meeting after the incident hit the papers. The board room was full with parents and concerned citizens that wanted to let the board know their dismay with the incident and with the way it was handled, and in response to a public letter the board sent out minimalizing the occurances of such incidents. Two students, two district employees and several concerned citizens addressed the board during the period open for public comment with personal stories and experiences. They made it very clear that the largest school district in the state of Minnesota has been hiding its head in the sand, and frankly, we as citizens are fed up with it.

I have opened my home to concerned citizens and parents for a round table discussion on how to organize and get some changes implemented in our district. Phil Duran, the staff attorney for Outfront MN is planning on attending, and so far I have heard from about a dozen parents and district staff that will also be attending. I have never done any type of activism, but this to me was so aggregious, that I could no longer say that attending the PRIDE parade was enough to show support for GLBT issues.

Anyways thanks again for blogging this!

Take Care.
Robin Mavis

http://www.facebook.com/robin.mavis
[Ed. note: Personal Facebook page. Event Facebook page is below.]

After the jump: The invitation to the discussion Robin is hosting. Read the rest of this post »

“She Got Me Pregnant”: Episode 80

Helen and I share even more viewer feedback on kids’ movies, including one woman’s trauma about pink elephants, several films involving rodents, and how anime could even help children’s reading and language skills.

(If the embedded video above doesn’t work, try it at Dailymotion.)

Brought to you in partnership with After Ellen.

COLAGE Speak OUT Camp Coming Up This Fall

[Editor's note: Passing along this press release as-is. —Dana]

Do you have/had one or more lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer parents?

Do you want to connect with a fabulous and fun community of others who share that experience?

Do you want to learn and strengthen your skills for making change in the world?

Join COLAGE at our first-ever national Speak OUT Camp!

http://www.colage.org/programs/events/speakoutcamp/

What: COLAGE Speak OUT Camp
A brand new COLAGE program for teens and adults, this long weekend will engage current and emerging COLAGE leaders in community building, popular education, skill building, action planning, and fun. Speak OUT Campers will gain the knowledge, tools, and support to make a difference on the issues that matter most while getting to immerse in COLAGE community, relax and celebrate our fabulous movement of youth and adults who have or had a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer parent. Read the rest of this post »