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.
Hello and thanks for tuning in to Equally Speaking, your daily does of LGBT news from the Human Rights Campaign for Monday, November 2nd. I’m Jonathan Monteith.
And I’m Charlie Nordstrom. To begin, a new policy in Birmingham, Ala., schools protects LGBT youth.
The board of education in Birmingham, Ala., passed an anti-bullying policy that protects LGBT students and teachers from harassment and discrimination. Openly gay school board member Howard Bayless used personal stories to urge the eight other board members to pass the policy and explain how damaging anti-gay bullying can be.
Today, the city council of the District of Columbia will hold more hearings on Council Member Catania’s equality marriage proposal. More than 150 people are set to testify, from religious leaders to politicians to ordinary citizens. Further information is available at HRCBackstory.org.
Dan Delong, a teacher of an Illinois high school, was suspended for letting his 10th grade students read an article titled, “The Gay Animal Kingdom.” The article was written by biologist Joan Roughgarden and discusses the activities of homosexual societies among more then 450 animal species. In response to the suspension, hundred of students rallied in support of Delong. The suspended teacher will face a school board hearing today regarding the issue.
Mohammad Hashim Jhokio, a 60-year-old Pakistani man, was beat to death in his own home because he was gay. A mob of fellow villagers burst into Jhokio’s home because they abhorred his sexual orientation. When they entered the home, they found him in bed with another man and beat him to death on the spot. No details were released about the other man.
LGBT activist are upset over Buju Banton’s scheduled performance at a nightclub in Ybor City, Tampa’s gay friendly neighborhood. Banton is a reggae singer whose lyrics advocate violence against homosexuals. The club’s board of directors stated he doesn’t support Banton’s message, but he has to honor the signed contract.
Over the weekend, thousands of the LGBT community and their allies gathered in Trafalgar Square in London. The crowd gathered for a vigil in response to heightened anti-gay violence in London. The focus of the vigil was to remember Ian Baynham, who was murdered earlier this year in a homophobic attack, and James Parkes, who was beaten last week in another homophobic attack.
That’s the news from us today, thanks for watching.
We hope you have a great day and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow.