News

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A Forest Fire, A Motorcycle and a Wonder Woman Outfit – a Women’s Festival Comes Full Circle.

“Women’s Weekend”, the classic women’s music and comedy festival that has been happening in the Russian River area for over 27 years is being reinvented by it’s original founder. In September of 1986 Carmen McKay was a worker at the West Coast Women’s Music and Comedy Festival near Yosemite when a large forest fire broke out endangering the lives of the 150 workers setting up for the festival, and ultimately, cancelling the festival itself. Carmen donned a Wonder Woman outfit she happen to have with her, and led the woman out of danger on her motorcycle. She then diverted 600 […]

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Governor Brown Signs Bill Enshrining the Freedom to Marry in State Statutes

On July 7, Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 1306, authored by Sen. Mark Leno and co-sponsored by Attorney General Kamala D. Harris, Equality California and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. The bill will bring California statutory law into line with the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2013 decision restoring the freedom to marry in California. While both the California and U.S. Supreme Courts have affirmed the right for same-sex couples to marry, current state laws in many cases do not reflect that change. SB 1306 ensures that references to “husband” and “wife” will be replaced with gender-neutral language such as […]

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Burger King Offers Proud Whopper in SF

Burger King is celebrating gay pride with a message on its Whopper wrappers. The fast-food chain says it will post a video online Wednesday that shows scenes from a San Francisco location where it sold a “Proud Whopper.” Customers were not told what is in the burger, which comes wrapped in rainbow paper. Once opened up, a message inside the wrapper states, “We are all the same inside.” The idea is that the Proud Whopper is no different from the regular Whopper, despite its colorful packaging. The marketing effort is part of Burger King’s push to connect with customers in […]

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HRC Statement on the Death of Frank M. Robinson, Speechwriter to Harvey Milk

In response to news of the death of Frank M. Robinson, science fiction writer, LGBT activist and speechwriter to San Francisco City Supervisor Harvey Milk, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) president Chad Griffin issued the following statement. “Through his collaboration with Harvey Milk, Frank Robinson gave the LGBT movement its rhetorical backbone–and brought hope to countless LGBT Americans, especially young people, for the very first time. I was lucky to meet Frank on my very first week on the job as HRC president, and though we all mourn his passing today, we’re overwhelmed with gratitude for his contributions to this fight […]

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Supreme Court Rejects Challenge To Law Banning Gay Therapy

The Supreme Court has rejected a challenge to California’s law that bars mental counseling aimed at turning gay minors straight.  The justices on Monday let stand an appeals court ruling that said the state’s ban on so-called conversion therapy for minors doesn’t violate the free speech rights of licensed counselors and patients seeking treatment. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last year that California lawmakers properly showed that efforts to change sexual orientation were outside the scientific mainstream and have been rejected for good reason. Liberty Counsel, a Christian legal aid group, had challenged the law along with […]

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New Jersey Judge: Ex-Gay Therapists May Be Liable For Damages To Former Clients

  A preliminary ruling in a New Jersey court suggests that an organization that provides supposed ex-gay therapy may have to pay out damages to clients who were harmed by the conversion therapy. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) brought the suit a year and a half ago, accusing Jews Offering New Alternatives for Healing (JONAH) of consumer fraud for providing ex-gay therapy. Plaintiffs outlined humiliating and degrading experiences from their treatment, including having to strip nude in front of their therapist and re-enact past trauma. Their suit demands compensation for the failed treatment, as well as for the therapy […]

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Gay Wine Weekend Kicks Off Friday

The Sonoma Valley is celebrating Gay Pride Month with activities that welcome the LGBT community with special tributes and tours. The crown jewel of the celebration is Gay Wine Weekend 2014 Friday through Sunday at various Wine Country venues. Now in its fourth year, the weekend is organized by Out in the Vineyard, a a LGBT travel company run by Healdsburg native Mark Vogler and long-time Sonoma resident Gary Saperstein. “It’s a celebration of food and wine and the ambiance and lifestyle of Wine Country,” Saperstein said of the weekend. “That’s what we really want to show off.” Gay Wine […]

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Lawsuit Filed To Block Nation’s Last Unchallenged Same-Sex Marriage Ban In North Dakota

Seven couples have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the ban on same-sex marriage in North Dakota, the last remaining state without a court challenge. The clerk of the court confirmed that the lawsuit was filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Fargo. It challenges both North Dakota’s constitutional ban on gay marriage and its refusal to recognize marriages of same-sex couples who legally wed in other states. The lawsuit means cases are currently pending in all 31 states with gay marriage bans. Judges have overturned several of those bans since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down part of the federal […]

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Equality California Celebrates Statewide Victories for 57 EQCA Endorsed Candidates in Primary

Equality California congratulates the EQCA-endorsed winners in Tuesday’s statewide primary election. Of the 61 candidates endorsed by EQCA, 57 are guaranteed to advance to November’s general election. In addition, two EQCA-endorsed candidates appear to be likely to advance to the general election, but the races are still too close to call. Overall, as many as 59 of EQCA’s 61 endorsed candidates are likely to progress to the general election. “This is exciting news for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and ally communities throughout the entire state of California,” said Rick Zbur, executive director-elect of EQCA. “California voters have shown that […]

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Supreme Court Refuses To Put Gay Marriage On Hold In Oregon

The Supreme Court is refusing to halt a federal judge’s order declaring Oregon’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional. The court issued an order Wednesday declining to block any new same-sex unions in the state while a federal appeals court considers whether an anti-gay marriage group can intervene in the case. The order follows an emergency appeal by the National Organization for Marriage that seeks to overturn the May 19 ruling of U.S. District Judge Michael McShane. The group had unsuccessfully tried to intervene in the lower court proceeding after Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum declined to defend the same-sex ban. Hundreds […]

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