Salt Lake City elects first openly gay mayor

Lawmaker Jackie Biskupski made history this week by becoming Salt Lake City’s first openly gay mayor. Election results showed that Biskupski won 52 percent of the votes to defeat two-term mayor Ralph Becker. 19217753-mmmain

“Today is not just about making history,” Biskupski said. “It is about people. It is about affecting change,” Biskupski said. Voters also elected Derek Kitchen  on Tuesday,who became the second gay member of the Salt Lake City Council. Biskupski was first elected as a lawmaker in Salt Lake back in 1998. When asked about how Salt Lake has changed she said, “It’s 2015, and we’ve come a long way from, gosh, when I first got elected.”

Monday Meme: Warrior

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Today’s quote comes to us by openly gay author Tom Spanbauer. Spanbauer’s novels like Now is the Hour and The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon are modern classics that explore love, race and sexuality with humor and prose. Spanbauer doesn’t shy away from difficult topics in his books and has been incredibly open about his own personal struggles. So it’s due to this bravery, humor and talent we honor Tom Spanbauer with a Monday Meme! We happen to think this quote embodies the right kind of attitude to have on a Monday morning.

Obama backs changing Civil Rights Act to ban LGBT Discrimination

On Tuesday, the White House endorsed legislation which would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation. In an interview with the Washington Post, White House press secretary said the Obama administration had reviewed the bill for “several weeks.” He added, “We look forward to working with Congress to ensure that the legislative process produces a result that balances both the bedrock principles of civil rights . . . with the religious liberty that we hold dear in this country.”

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The chances of this Congress approving the legislation are slim but the national discussion whether the LGBT community needs greater safeguards is now on the forefront thanks to Obama’s support. Many view the legislation not only as groundbreaking but vital. Chad Griffin explains, “The unfortunate reality is that, while LGBT Americans can legally get married, millions remain at risk of being fired or denied services for who they are or who they love because the majority of states still lack explicit, comprehensive non-discrimination protections.”

Civil Partnerships Coming to Greece

A bill released this week by Greece’s ministry of justice would give same-sex couples the option of civil partnerships with full marriage rights. The new civil partnerships will cover civil rights, inheritance issues, taxation and employee rights. Hooray!GREEK-FLAG

The not so great news? Greek same-sex couples still cannot adopt under the current law. According to Pink News, “The ministry has said a discussion about whether same-sex couples can adopt will take place in the future.” On the positive side, Greece also announced the forming of a national Council Against Racism and Intolerance.

Monday Meme: Soul

sexton memeHad she lived, poet Anne Sexton would be 87 today. Written off early in the game as the ultimate bored housewife, Sexton proved to be an influential poet who has inspired everyone from Peter Gabriel, Morrissey and beyond. Sexton’s work’s were confessional and talked about things poets just didn’t say at the time. Her own battles with mental illness, drug addiction, abortion, adultery–nothing was off-limits. Though she committed suicide at just age 45, Sexton was able to create beauty out of a few simple words.  And today’s meme illustrates that perfectly!