6. GCSU News
Kappa Sigma is banned for 4 years from GCSU campus, no involvement in campus activities and no recognition by university. Found responsible for 10 of 12 charges levied against them.
http://www.gcsunade.com/2012/09/06/kappa-sigma-revealed/
Petition started by Connor Johnson seeks to remove Chick-fil-A from campus. Funds from student’s meal plans go to Chick-fil-A.
TW: hate crimes and violence against gay man
5. Four marines are facing assault charges and hate crimes after allegedly beating a film student outside a gay bar
Attack was preceded by anti-gay slurs - Lance Cpl. Lewis Serna, Lance Cpl. John O’Leary, Pfc. Thomas Pentek, Pfc Sean Miller were arrested Monday and have returned to their units on bail.
Maj. Manuel Delarosa says Marines are cooperating with local law enforcement and conducting its own review - “This is behavior that’s not acceptable in the Marine Corps. Any crimes of intolerance are unacceptable.”
4. Election News
Delegate count: Mitt Romney-660; Rick Santorum-281; Newt Gingrich-135; Ron Paul-51
Need 1,144 delegates to win Republican nomination
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Romney’s campaign pulled a sharply negative ad against Santourm which was supposed to air April 24th
Santorum cancelled Monday’s campaign events after daughter was hospitalized (Trisomy 18)
Spokesman Hogan Gidley - “We appreciate the outpouring of support and prayers. The prayers worked, she’s doing much better.”
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Obama has announced opposition to marriage amendment which will be on the November ballot in Minnesota
Would restrict marriage to only opposite sex couples
Kristin Sosanie - “It would single out and discriminate against committed gay and lesbian couples - and that’s why the President does not support it.”
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As likely GOP nominee, Romney will be far behind Obama once he clinches the nomination - must raise money for general election, hire more people and sent them to critical states, hone message to resonate with more voters
As incumbent, Obama has advantages - well ahead on fundraising, organization and broad pitch to voters
Romney must figure out how to achieve unity with a base that has resisted his candidacy
6. National Organization for Marriage memos show that they tried to split the Democratic Party base by pitting African-American and Latino communities against LGBTQ communities
(Do they not realize there are LGBTQ of all races?)
Documents are from 2009 - part of a two-pronged legal challenge of Maine’s financial disclosure laws - still unresolved: whether NOM has to release the names of donors to successful 2009 campaign to ban gay marriage in Maine
Quotes from memos:
“The strategic goal of this project is to drive a wedge between gays and blacks - two key Democratic constituencies.”
“Will the process of assimilation to the dominant Anglo culture lead Hispanics to abandon traditional family values? We must interrupt this process of assimilation by making support for marriage a key badge of Latino identity…a symbol fo resistance to inappropriate assimilation.”
Strategy also called to portray Obama as a “social radical” and create negative view of gay marriage by linking it to pornography and sexualizing of children
2. Rick Santorum got trolled
Two men attended a Rick Santorum rally and in the middle of his speech, yelled “mic check” to make people look at them and then started making out - booed by the crowd and removed by security
Timothy Tross and Ben Clifford wouldn’t reveal whether or not they were gay, saying Santorum’s stand on gay rights was the important issue
5. Christian Rock Band preaches hate to high school kids
(TW for anti-gay and anti-woman sentiments)
Dunkerton High School in Iowa invited Junkyard Prophet (a Christian rock band) to perform a few songs and preach a message against bullying, being violent and doing drugs - instead they preached their opinions on homosexuality, abortion and women
After the band performed, they separated the faculty from the students and the students into boys and girls
Talked to the boys about the band’s Ten Commandments and talked about musicians who had died of a drug overdose
Told the girls to save themselves for their husbands and to assume a submissive role in the household - leader forced the girls to chant a mantra about remaining pure - would not allow anyone to leave the room
Girls were told they’d have mud on their wedding dresses and anyone who was gay would die at 42 (unclear whether they discussed homosexuality with the boys)
The band is part of the “You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International” Christian youth ministry founded by Bradlee Dean
Dean has advocated for imprisonment of LGBT people, said gay men molest an average of 117 children “before they get caught” and that Muslim nations who execute gays are more moral than American Christians
2. Washington governor signed gay marriage bill into law
Washington is now 7th state in the nation to legalize gay marriage
Law takes effect June 7th
Opponents already reacting - plan to file challenge Monday which would put the bill on hold until a vote.
6. Prop 8
Federal appeals court expected to rule tomorrow on constitutionality of Prop 8, which banned gay marriage in California
During arguments, court seemed to be leaning towards striking down the ban
Whatever the decision, it will likely be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court
Update: Prop 8 was ruled unconstitutional and opponents appealed the decision, it is expected to reach the Supreme Court sometime this year if 4 or more justices agree to hear it.
8. Washington may become 7th state to legalize gay marriage
Senator Haugen announced she would cast the deciding vote to legalize gay marriage.
Governor publicly endorsed the proposal earlier this month.
Opponents have said they will challenge any new law with a public referendum.
