RA-news Newsletter of the Rainbow Alliance at the University of Florida December 2005, Vol. 4, No. 3

---

Please contribute to the Rainbow Alliance Fund. Next Rainbow Alliance Dinner: December 14, 6:30 pm at Liquid Ginger in the Sun Center in Downtown Gainesville. Please RSVP. Upcoming Local Events 12/7 -- University of Florida, Class of 2005 Graduation Reception for Multicultural and Diversity Affairs, Reitz Union Ballroom, 6 pm 1/? -- Conversations about Sexuality – Katrina Schwartz (UF Poli Sci) 1/30 -- Elizabeth Birch 3/1/2006 -- Deadline for Rainbow Alliance Awards Applications 4/2006 -- Pride Awareness Month 4/9/2006 -- Orange-Blue Game Other Events 11/13/2005 - 1/6/2006 -- "Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals" Exhibition: Florida Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL 2006 2/3-5 -- Florida GLBT Democratic Caucus Conference & Assembly, Tampa 3/27-4/3 -- 23rd World Conference of the International Lesbian and Gay Association (Geneva, Switzerland) 4/2006 -- Florida Collegiate Pride Conference, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida 5/18-20 -- GenderYOUTH Leadership Summit (Washington, DC) (There is a UF Chapter.) The Rainbow Alliance is the organization for University of Florida faculty, staff, and alumni concerned with matters related to sexual orientation and gender identity. RA welcomes all members of the University community who share its goals.

---

Contents First Words Features Local . . . . . . . . . Domestic Partner Benefits Approved at University of Florida LGBT Director's Office Moving to Peabody Hall GLBT Life Database Now Available through UF Library Intercollegiate Pride Conference Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals: Traveling Exhibition from the National Holocaust Memorial Museum in Florida National . . . . . . . . . Indianapolis Adds Gender Identity to City Protections 104 More Major Corporations Now Protect Gender Identity in the Workplace International . . . . . . . . . South Africa Becomes Fifth Nation to Accept Same-Sex Marriage Belgium Approves Adoption by Same-Sex Couples 23rd World Conference of the International Lesbian and Gay Association Fudan University Offers China's First General Course on Homosexuality Iran Executes Two Teenagers for Gay Sex; Exact Charges Not Clear Vatican Rules on Homosexuality Film . . . . . . . . . Brokeback Mountain Transamerica BTW... Declaration of Rights for People Living With AIDS [Canada] [Australia] United Nations Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS Queer Immigrant Rights Project Your new money Buy from LGBT-friendly companies! Departments Help us Build the Rainbow Alliance Contributing to the Rainbow Alliance Fund Resources How to Join the Rainbow Alliance Contributors to This Issue of RA-News

---

Features

Domestic Partner Benefits Approved at UF On December 2, 2005, the University of Florida Board of Trustees approved a plan to give domestic partners of UF employees health benefits. The vote was 12 to 1. The plan is expected to go into effect in February 2006. The University will supply those taking advantage of the benefit with HMO-type insurance. Emloyees will have to leave the state group to utilize the benefit. Domestic partners will have to supply proof of their cohabitation and financial interdependence. The benefit is available to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. President Bernie Machen said he expected around 120 people to select the benefit. "About 295 colleges and universities offer domestic partner benefits, but approximately half are private institutions -- including the University of Miami, Stetson University and Rollins College in Florida. Three Florida community colleges also offer domestic partner benefits." "Of the country's top 10 universities as ranked by U.S. News & World Report magazine, five offer domestic partner benefits and five do not, according to The Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay and lesbian civil rights group." About 40 percent of colleges and universities nationally already offer domestic-partner benefits, according to a January survey by the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources. Complete stories from: Miami Herald Tallahassee Democrat Gainesville Sun (11/29) Gainesville Sun (12/3) Employers Offering DP Benefits (Lambda Legal) [top]

LGBT Director's Office Moving to Peabody Hall Currently, the office of UF's director for LGBT Affairs, Tamara Cohen, is located in Graham Hall. In early 2006, the office will be moved to Peabody Hall, where many offices for the Dean of Students are located. UF LGBT Affairs [top]

"GLBT Life" Database Now Available through UF Library 'GLBT Life is the premier resource to the world's literature regarding Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender issues. This database contains indexing and abstracts for more than 80 GLBT-specific core periodicals. The product also contains data mined from over 40 priority periodicals as well as data mined from over 1,200 select titles. GLBT Life was created with the assistance of the ONE Institute & Archives, which holds a very significant collection of archival and present content in the area of GLBT studies. GLBT Life provides comprehensive coverage of traditional academic, cultural, lifestyle, and regional publications, including The Advocate, Lesbian News, Washington Blade, Bay Area Reporter, etc. GLBT Life also indexes & abstracts the full run of many historically significant titles such as ONE, The Ladder, Mattachine Review, Christopher Street and Body Politic. In addition, grey literature including non-fiction titles, bibliographies, case studies, and speeches is also represented. Disciplines covered by GLBT Life include civil liberties, culture, employment, family, history, politics, psychology, religion, sociology and more.' Access GLBT Life by going here. Enter "GLBT" in the search window. [top]

Intercollegiate Pride Conference The Intercollegiate Pride Conference -- sponsored by UF's Pride Student Union -- was held at UF on Nov 18-20. Students from colleges all over Florida attended. Total attendance was around 100, with about 50% from campuses other than UF. The theme of the workshop was "Learning, Growing, and Building Towards the Quest for Acceptance". Complete list of workshops and speaker bios. [top]

"Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals" Exhibition: Traveling Exhibition from the National Holocaust Museum "The Nazi campaign against homosexuality targeted the more than one million German men who, the state asserted, carried a "degeneracy" that threatened the "disciplined masculinity" of Germany. Denounced as "antisocial parasites" and as "enemies of the state," more than 100,000 men were arrested under a broadly interpreted law against homosexuality. Approximately 50,000 men served prison terms as convicted homosexuals, while an unknown number were institutionalized in mental hospitals...." A traveling exhibition from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum -- "Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals" -- will travel during 2005-2007. It will be at three Florida venues during that time (see schedule below). An excellent online version of the exhibition is available at the Holocaust Memorial Museum's Web site. 11/13/2005 - 1/6/2006 – Florida Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL 4/1 - 6/30/2006 – Breman Museum, Atlanta, GA 9/24 - 11/18/2006 – Florida Holocaust Museum, St. Petersburg, FL 7/1 - 8/25/2007 – Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center, Maitland, FL Of Interest: Ahlem Project <http://www.flholocaustmuseum.org/popup_ahlem.htm>. Other Traveling Exhibitions of the Holocaust Memorial Museum to appear in Florida [top]

Indianapolis Adds Gender Identity to City Protections Democratic Mayor Bart Peterson has added gender identity to Indianapolis' non-discrimination policy. The policy (Executive Order No. 2, 2005), which covers city employees, is now consistent with a policy issued earlier this year by Republican Governor Mitch Daniels that covers state government workers. Both city and state governments have now committed to equal employment opportunity without discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Read more... The Indianapolis City-County Council is currently considering the re-introduction of an amendment to its Human Rights Ordinance that would protect all Indianapolis citizens and workers from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in the areas of employment, education, public accommodations, and housing. Nationwide 28 percent of Americans already live in jurisdictions that include gender identity protections. Should this amendment pass, Indianapolis would join the six states, ten counties, and sixty-four cities that have already recognized the value in having gender identity included in human rights laws. Indianapolis is currently ranked the twelfth largest city in the United States by population. Read more... [top]

104 Major Corporations Now Protect Gender Identity in the Workplace The number of major corporations that have added gender identity and/or expression to their non-discrimination policies has surpassed 100, according to the Gender Public Advocacy Coalition (GenderPAC). With recent expansions to the EEO policies of companies such as defense contractor Raytheon, auto manufacturer DaimlerChrysler, investment bank Credit Suisse First Boston, and health-care provider Kaiser Permanente, the total now stands at 104. "This is a major milestone in corporate America's progress in keeping workplaces free from discrimination and harassment caused by gender stereotypes." said Riki Wilchins, Executive Director of GenderPAC. "Measuring up to outdated notions about 'masculinity' and 'femininity' is no longer a condition for employment or promotion at more than 100 companies covering hundreds of thousands of American employees." Read more... [top]

South Africa Becomes Fifth Nation to Accept Same-Sex Marriage South Africa's highest court has ruled in favour of same-sex marriages, which are banned under current legislation. South Africa joins Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Canada in offering full marriage rights to same-sex couples. A number of other countries offer civil unions. The Constitutional Court ordered that parliament amend marriage laws to allow gay weddings within a year. The constitution outlaws discrimination against gays and lesbians, but social attitudes remain more conservative. The court ordered that the definition of marriage be changed from a "union between a man and a woman" to a "union between two persons". Read more... BBC News -- Washington Post Complete background at religioustolerance.com [top]

Belgium Approves Adoption by Same-Sex Couples Belgian MPs have backed plans to allow adoption by gay couples, two years after legalising same-sex marriage. The lower house of Belgium's parliament voted 77-62 in favour of the measure, which must also pass the upper house. If fully approved, Belgium will become the third EU country, after Sweden and Spain, to allow same-sex adoption. Read more... Watch the ILGA commercial... Summary of US States' Adoption Laws... [top]

23rd World Conference of the International Lesbian and Gay Association The next world conference of the International Lesbian and Gay Association ILGA, will be held in Geneva, from March 27th to April 3rd 2006. It will be organised by a coalition of swiss LGBT groups. The conference will be held as the same time as the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, an international fora which has failed to this day to recognise us and our rights. It will be another occasion to remind the UN the urgent necessity to explicitly proclaim sexual orientation and the free expression of gender identity as human rights. Read more... [top]

Fudan University Offers China's First General Course on Homosexuality Set to start in September, the course will examine the health, legal and social issues relating to homosexuality, said Sun Zhongxin, an associate professor of sociology who will lead the course. "We hope this course, which is an optional one open to the whole university, will introduce the study of sexual orientation to more and more students," Sun told China Daily yesterday. The course was designed for an intake of 100 students, but the number of students signing up has far exceeded that, Sun said, adding that the faculty is going to offer more places. Jiang Liming, a Fudan student about to enter her fourth year, said the homosexual course was a hot topic on the campus. "I know that many students signed up for it and people now talk about it a lot," she told China Daily. "I do not have to attend that course for credit hours because I've got enough, but if I have time I will go there to learn some new knowledge," she added. Read more... [top]

Iran Executes Two Teenagers for Gay Sex; Exact Charges Not Clear International controversy erupted after Iranian officials executed two gay teenagers who were originally reported to be convicted of homosexuality, however later reports released by the Iranian government after international furor claimed the conviction was for the rape of a 13-year-old boy. The two were hanged July 19. Only the age of one of the two executed teens was officially released to the public. He was 18 year old Ayaz Marhoni. The other, Mahmoud Asgari, according to the Iranian Student's News Agency (ISNA) was aged 17, but other news agencies have reported the teenager's age as 16. In the original report by the ISNA it was said that the two were found having sex together when they were both 16. It also reported that they were held and beaten for fourteen months before the execution. The UK-based gay rights group, Outrage! claims the report issued later by the government of Iran is a "smokescreen" to justify killing homosexuals. And one media outlet, Direland, has blasted the media holdings of Rupert Murdoch that includes Fox News Channel and The Times newspaper for publishing the subsequent Iranian government issued allegation of rape as matter of fact without mention of the previous stories before international condemnation bearing no such accusations. Read more... [top]

Vatican Rules on Homosexuality The Vatican’s tougher stand on homosexuality has divided American Catholics, with some welcoming it as a renewal of a Church plagued by scandal and others warning it would further alienate Catholic leaders. Reflecting the divisions foreseen by some churchmen and scholars, a Catholic priest in Arizona announced his resignation because of "aggressive anti-gay positions" at the Vatican and the U.S. Church. "I could no longer stay in that institution with any amount of integrity," Rev. Leonard Walker, 58, told the Arizona Republic after resigning from the Queen of Peace Church. Apparently trying to defuse controversy over the eight-page Vatican document officially released on Tuesday, the president of the U.S. Roman Catholic Church, Bishop William S. Skylstad, said priests with "homosexual inclinations" can be good priests and should not fear discussing the issue. Read more... [top]

Brokeback Mountain This much-anticipated movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Keith Ledger. It is directed by Ang Lee andis based on a short story by Annie Proulx, which appeared in the New Yorker several years ago. The story was optioned shortly after it appeared, in spite of Proulx's reservations after an unsuccessful film adaptation of one of her novels. The story begins in Wyoming, in the summer of 1963. Gyllenhaal and Ledger are tending sheep in a remote location. Their friendship deepens and becomes sexual. At the end of the summer, they go off to other lives, eventually marrying and having children, but their friendship never ends and the intimacy they shared hangs over them. The movie may be somewhat too long, but Lee's directing is generally considered accomplished and the performances are compelling. Read the variety review... [top]

TransAmerica TransAmerica is the story of a man, Stanley, who is in the process of becoming a woman, Bree, when he discovers that he has a son from sexual encounter years before. The son is in jail and Bree comes to his rescue. She does not reveal her identity, but persuades the son to take a corss-country road trip with her. Bree/Stanley is played by Felicity Huffman from Desperate Housewives. Her performance has been highly praised. Harvy Karten's review on CompuServe [top]

Departments

Help Us Build the Rainbow Alliance 1) UF Faculty and Staff: We want every LGBT staff or faculty member and ally to be a Rainbow Alliance member. Tell interested friends and colleagues about Rainbow Alliance. They can check out the Web site at <www.ra-online.org>, or bring them along to a monthly dinner. They can join by sending an e-mail to <info@ra-online.org>. 2) Alumni: Our mailing list of UF alumni is growing. Alumni are a vital part of the University community. Anyone with an interest in improving the LGBT envrionment at the University of Florida should look into Rainbow Alliance. Working together with Pride Student Union and the Director of LGBT Affairs, we are working to keep alumni informed, to help them connect, and to draw on their expertise. 3) Contribute: The Rainbow Alliance Fund at the University of Florida Foundation (established March 2003) is the only one of its kind at the UF Foundation specifically dedicated to the support of the LGBT community at UF. The Fund needs continuing support if we are to realize our goals. As always, details about contributing to the Rainbow Alliance Fund can be found at the end of the newsletter. Details about payroll deduction will be e-mailed to RA members soon. A word to out contributions: Your donation is fully tax-deductible, and the RA Fund is not used to support operations of the Rainbow Alliance. Learn more below. 2) Statewide: Help us connect with staff and faculty on other Florida/Deep South campuses working on LGBT issues. We have some unique challenges in the South. Maybe we can support each other and collaborate on progress. [top]