Equally Speaking
The following is a transcript of HRC’s morning news webcast "Equally Speaking." To view the current videos visit the main Equally Speaking page.
Good morning, and thanks for tuning in to Equally Speaking, your morning dose of GLBT news from the Human Rights Campaign for Monday, July 14th . I’m Tommy Lodge.
And I’m Cuc Vu. First up, news from Congress.
A subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives is slated to hold a hearing on the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy next Wednesday. The hearing, which is not officially scheduled yet, will be the first time the policy has been evaluated by lawmakers since it was enacted in 1993. Eric Alva, a former Marine Staff Sergeant and past spokesperson for HRC’s efforts against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” will speak as a witness at the hearing.
Senator Barack Obama's campaign has confirmed that his faith-based initiative will not direct federal dollars to groups that proselytize or advocate for reparative therapy. If elected, Senator Obama plans to implement a council to provide secular social services to communities in need through faith-based organizations. Some members of the GLBT community voiced concerns that tax dollars would go to organizations that support reparative therapy, a controversial practice that claims to help gays and lesbians lead heterosexual lives through religious devotion.
A global AIDS relief bill that includes a call for the repeal of a ban on foreign visitors and immigrants with HIV from entering the U.S. moved forward late last week after the Senate voted to end a two-month-long filibuster. Next week, Senator Jeff Sessions is expected to introduce an amendment that would remove the repeal provision from the legislation. HRC is working with a coalition of GLBT and AIDS advocacy groups to gather enough votes to defeat any motion to strike the repeal provision from the bill.
Late last week, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled that marriage benefits for gay and lesbian couples can’t be applied retroactively to the time before marriage for same-sex couples was legalized in the state. The court issued the ruling as part of a malpractice case brought by Cynthia Kalish and spouse Michelle Charron, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003. Charron’s claim for loss of marital companionship was rejected because they weren’t married before she was diagnosed.
Openly gay Dallas County Judge Jim Foster is pushing to add sexual orientation to the county’s employment nondiscrimination policies, despite concerns that Republican commissioners would vote down the proposal. A spokesperson said it is unclear if Foster plans to put the proposal on the Commissioners Court’s agenda for a possible vote. The county’s current nondiscrimination policies cover race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, disability and political affiliation.
South Carolina's tourism agency is refusing to pay for a controversial campaign aimed at attracting GLBT tourists from Great Britain. None of the other U.S. cities involved in the campaign, including Atlanta, Boston and New Orleans, have backed out. The state employee who approved the ad campaign resigned last week.
That’s the news from us today. Thanks for tuning in to Equally Speaking.
Thanks for watching, and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow morning.
House of Representatives to hear testimony on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Senator Obama’s faith-based initiative plan will bar reparative therapy and proselytizing, and more.