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~~ Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum
~~ Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum |
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| On June 14, 2007, Massashusetts
legislators -- including my own Senator Marc Pacheco -- made me proud
of my adopted home state. They blocked a misguided effort to reduce the
civil liberties of gay and lesbian couples who have enjoyed three years
of the same legal protection that heterosexual people take for granted.
The movement is growing, albeit slowly, as reflected in the Marriage Equality Flag above. On June 12, 1967, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to protect Mr. and Mrs. Loving from the bigotry of marriage laws then in place in my home state of Virginia. It is very fitting that the Massachusetts legislature has moved to protect the marriages of same-sex couples near the 40th anniversary of that decision. |
 My environmental geography blog includes a few entries
about gay rights and identity from a geographic perspective. It
includes an analysis of the summer
2010 Target controversy. |
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During my second year at Bridgewater State College, I
responded to an
invitation to join the newly-forming Safe College Task Force, which
works to promote a safe and positive environment for all members of the
campus community, regardless of sexual orientation or sexual
identity.
Amazingly, people continue to face discrimination, misunderstanding, hatred, and even violence -- all because of who they are or whom they love. See my "because" page for an eloquent statement of these challenges. This page provides access to just a few of the many excellent web sites related to the experiences and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people. BSC Resources AWARE
is a non-discriminatory student organization that seeks to educate the
college community and to establish a nurturing atmosphere for gay,
lesbian,
bisexual, transgendered and questioning persons as well as allies who
support
them. (See the cool archive site,
too!)
The Safe College Coalition takes the Safe Zone concept further, by actively creating opportunities to educate the campus about GLBT concerns. Our web site includes activities at Bridgewater and links to similar efforts at other campuses. Read about the SCTF scholarship program in the BU student paper, which quotes yours truly! This is part of the amazing flood of national media coverage of our scholarship efforts here at the college.
BSC opened the GLBTA
Pride Center in October, 2006. This link provides information
was well as meeting notices. |
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| GLBT Identity in Latin America is a presentation that Pamela Hayes-Bohanan and I made as part of the Safe College Coalition lecture series and Latin American and Caribbean Studies program in November, 2003. The bibliography we prepared is a good starting point for your own research! Other Sites of Interest
Thanks to Emilio Guerra
for creating the custom map above. He now has his own domain at gaydemographics.org, the
motto of which is "It's a big world... and we're everywhere."
Congratulations on the great new site, with statistics about the
geographic distribution of gay and lesbian people in the U.S. and other
nations. Human Rights Campaign - Working for Lesbian and Gay Equal Rights Although this organization has been faulted for inadequate attention to the needs of transgendered persons, it continues to be an important (and well-financed) force in the political arena. Planet Out offers "a vibrant, welcoming and safe [online] community for all gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people as well as their family and friends." It has 600,000 registered members, and includes news, entertainment, travel, and more. The American Psychological Association's Healthy, Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Students Project is working to strengthen the capacity of the nation's schools to prevent risky behaviors and improve health outcomes of lesbian, gay and bisexual youth. For more regional information, including politics, the arts, and special events, Bay Windows is New England's largest gay and lesbian newspaper. Look for it on campus or visit Bay Windows online. The Human Rights Campaign now has a page about Religion and GLBT Americans that refutes the notion that one has to be homophobic to be religious. OBGLTC The Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and Transgendered Concerns at the Unitarian Universalist Association coordinates GLBT-related programs in the UU denomination. With the support of the OBGLTC office, my own congregation in Bridgewater has voted overwhelmingly to become an official Welcoming Congregation. The church's online book store includes several relevant titles. Soulforce Is a non-denominational Christian organization promoting GLBT human rights through non-violent means. I include this link to demonstrate that not all Christians are against gay rights. In fact, many mainstream denominations are actively discussing such issues as gay marriage and gay clergy. Equal Partners in Faith is a similar group, whose mission also includes inter-racial religious unity. Whosoever.org is an online magazine for GLBT Christians. The Gender and Sexuality page at Beliefnet.com includes many articles on continuing developments related to progress on GLBT concerns in various Christian denominations and other religions. Just as it may surprise some to see that not all religious people are anti-gay, many assume that all gay people are politically liberal. For years the only "out" member of Congress was liberal Democrat Barney Frank (whose district office is a block from my house). Since I left Arizona, my Congress member there, conservative Republican Jim Kolbe, has also come out. Proof that he is not unique is the existence and growth of the Log Cabin Republicans, an organization of gay and lesbian Republicans. Issues of sexual orientation and sexual identity are global, of course. The November 2000 issue of the New Internationalist is entitled Sexual Minorities, and includes maps, photos and stories from throughout the world. The site includes a fascinating world map entitled Love, Hate, and the Law. SEXUALITY and SPACE is an official specialty group of the Association of American Geographers. Its purpose is "to promote and facilitate scholarly and geographic inquiry into human sexualities." Whatever your academic discipline or profession, it is likely that a comparable group exists in your field; ask around or check your professional association's web site. Homophobia As a Health Hazard is a well-documented medical report describing the health risks faced by gay and lesbian patients as a result of homophobia in the medical community and in the larger population. Lynn Conway is an accomplished computer scientist who has made significant contributions to the development of Internet protocols, among other endeavors. She is also openly transgendered, and her story has received significant media attention in recent months.
JustinSpace Design is a quirky site that includes very funny critiques of gay-related design issues. Click on "Theme Pink" for a very interesting take on Disney World. Return to James Hayes-Bohanan's Environmental Geography Pages. Visits since
November 30, 2001 |
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