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 21st. I’m Sarah Birnie.
And I’m David Paul. First up, news from California.
According to new poll data, a majority of California voters say they would oppose a November ballot initiative to ban marriage for gay and lesbian couples. The poll found that 51 percent of likely voters say they would vote against Proposition 8, while 42 percent say they would vote for it. The poll shows a change from 2000, when 61 percent of voters cast ballots in favor of a similar ballot initiative that strengthened a law defining marriage as being between one man and one woman.
The National Institute of Health announced late last week that plans for a large-scale trial of a potential AIDS vaccine are being dropped in favor of a smaller, more focused study. The trial of the vaccine had been planned to include 2,400 men in the United States in a study called PAVE 100. The agency that developed the vaccine said that if a significant effect is found in the small trial that an expansion of the study may be carried out.
The conservative Christian Alliance Defense Fund filed a lawsuit this week on behalf of June Sheldon, a former San Jose City College professor who claims she was fired for advocating that people choose to be gay. The suit alleges that Sheldon was fired after a student complained about her answer to a question on the impact of genetics on the behavior of gay and lesbian people. The issue over whether homosexuality is the result of nature or nurture is likely to be key in the case.
An Oklahoma County Commissioner seeking reelection is preparing to send out a homophobic comic book to registered Republicans in his district. Commissioner Brent Rinehart spent two months designing the 16-page comic book, which features Satan, gay men and women in togas, and crude depictions of public officials discussing sodomy and pedophilia. Last year, Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson filed felony campaign finance charges against Rinehart. His trial is set to begin in September.
Members of Oklahomans for Equality are urging lawmakers to include sexual orientation in hate crime laws after a Tulsa gay couple’s home was vandalized twice in one week. Robert Stotler and his partner have been repeated victims of hate crimes but police can only report the crimes as acts of vandalism. Oklahoma is one of 17 states that have hate-crime laws that do not protect GLBT people from crimes directed at them because of their sexual orientation.
In South Carolina, an 18-year-old man was assaulted by his father after returning home from a gay pride parade. According to police, the father brutally attacked the teen on two separate occasions. Deputies, who have not been able to make immediate contact with the teen's father, say both incidents are under investigation.
That’s the news from us today. Thanks for tuning in to Equally Speaking.
Have a great day, and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow morning.
"New poll shows a majority of California voters oppose Proposition 8, The National Institute of Health announces change in plans for AIDS vaccine trial, and more.