Wonder why?

If you have any question as to why South Bend needs to add protection on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity to its Human Rights Ordinance, read the following comments from the wndu website and consider that the people leaving these comments are possibly our neighbors, employers, teachers, etc. They clearly demonstrate why protection is needed on this basis.

Notice also that many fail to realize that the amendment proposed previously exempted churches and religious groups, an exemption asked for by South Bend Equality. They also confuse the issue with others, enabling them to make even more false claims.

Notice also that none are unwilling to sign their real/full name to their comments.

Posted by: Sporty Location: LaPorte on Apr 28, 2009 at 09:56 AM
This should never pass as it could be used against religious institutions for not hiring a gay person. It also is a stepping stone towards 'hate speech' indictments. If someone speaks out against gay relations say in a religious venue,that could be termed 'hate speech' and subject the individual to arrest. We need to be extremely careful how we address this issue as it has great ramifications for the future.

It's a stepping stone to nothing other than the ability to report alleged discrimination an ability that already exists for many others.

Posted by: Anonymous on Apr 28, 2009 at 10:41 AM
There are Federal discrimination laws already in place to protect people from these types of actions in the workplace. It is actions like this that make it obvious these individuals go to IUSB. This is an attempt to draw attention to themselves for whatever selfish reason they may have. Yes, we know you are gay... no one cares.

There is currently NO state or federal legislation available for South Bend residents. State and federal employees are the only ones who have such protection.

Posted by: tina Location: culver on Apr 28, 2009 at 10:49 AM
Is it S.B. or S.G. (Sodom and Gomorrah)

Unfortunately, tina fails to recognize the culture of Sodom and Gomorrah, one in which the sin of inhospitatlity was a grave sin.

Posted by: Anonymous on Apr 28, 2009 at 10:57 AM
They should be out assisting the needy instead of promoting their sick values.

Last time I checked, we were fighting for the equal treatment of every member of our community. That's sick??? Perhaps Anon is admitting he/she doesn't have an orientation or gender identity?

Posted by: Harry Location: South Bend on Apr 28, 2009 at 11:13 AM
Sporty is correct and it's time that the rest of us stand up for what we believe. These individuals have the same basic human rights as the rest of us, but that is it - no more, no less. I certainly don't believe that they have a right to marry, since that is for a man and a woman. Do what you will behind your doors, but don't expect me to accept your perverted behavior.

This issue isn't about marriage. I'm not sure when holding a job, going to school, maintaining a home or spending money in our community became perverted behavior.

Posted by: Anonymous on Apr 28, 2009 at 11:17 AM
if you are not a permanent resident of our fair city, stay out of our council meetings, pushing your agenda, which runs against the majority of the people in this country. This has been my pet peeve for years. When non resident college students can vote in our local and state elections and influence the results. Vote abstentee for your home area, just like I did when I was in the Military. Just a remminder to the city council, you are in a conservative midwestern state that has strong beliefs. We elected you, we can fire you.

Last time around, the leaders of the opposition didn't live in South Bend. Perhaps they should have stayed in their home towns instead of coming to South Bend to push their agenda.

Posted by: Tonya on Apr 28, 2009 at 12:06 PM
If you don't feel safe in SB, don't stay.

Hard to comment on someone who demonstrates so little concern for their neighbors.

Posted by: Me Location: Topeka on Apr 28, 2009 at 12:16 PM
They can do as they wish with their meetings, but it seems to me that there are more important issues than whining about the fact that most of us straight people view their acts as sick and disgusting!

Topeka? Home of Fred Phelps,the man responsible for protesting military funerals. We have another individual who doesn't realize that the majority of people, including straight people, actually support protection of this basis. In fact, such support is around 80%.

Posted by: Billie Location: Jean on Apr 28, 2009 at 01:03 PM
Michael Jackson likes young kids. Should the city council enshrine his right to be with young kids?

Pedophilia is a crime and it has nothing to do with the issue at hand.

Posted by: Jenny on Apr 28, 2009 at 01:48 PM
SICK SICK SICK. Totally unatural..and wrong. Quit wasting the councils time. Seek attention elsewhere. I like Jills comment.

I see. Equal protection for all is a waste of time. Interesting.

Posted by: Heather on Apr 28, 2009 at 08:53 PM
To Janna, God does love gays and lesbians, but he did not create them to be that way. If he did it gays and lesbians would be able to have babies, it would not take a man and a women to make a child.

Look out infertile straight couples. Not sure when having babies was a requirement for holding a job,etc.

GLBT amendment sought in South Bend again

City council voted down proposal in '06.
from the South Bend Tribune
4/29/09
Jaimie Loo, staff writer

SOUTH BEND — Students from Indiana University South Bend, the University of Notre Dame and Saint Mary's College asked the Common Council during privilege of the floor Monday to consider amending the human rights ordinance to include language for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered persons.

IUSB Equality vice president Zach Duncan said that without adding language for GLBT people to the ordinance, he doesn't think he would be protected by the law if he was fired from a job for being gay. After he graduates, Duncan said, he would consider leaving South Bend for a job market that has GLBT protections.

Saint Mary's College sophomore Courtney Helman said an environment in which GLBT people cannot report discrimination only furthers intolerance. Helman cited the recent suicide of Carl Walker-Hoover of Massachusetts, who repeatedly was taunted by classmates who claimed he was gay. Walker's mother reported the ongoing harassment to school administrators, she said.

Notre Dame College Democrats president Henry Vasquez said everyone should have basic human rights and that it took progressive changes in this country for African-Americans to be treated equally. Vasquez said he hopes council members will take a stand and be part of the next movement to guarantee rights for GLBT individuals.

None of the council members are supporting measures to reconsider amendments to the human rights ordinance at this time.

In 2006, the council held several public hearings on the proposed amendment over a two-month period. The amendment was defeated in a 5-4 vote.

The proposed amendment was introduced again in 2007 by former council members Charlotte Pfeifer and Randy Kelly but was later pulled from the agenda. In a Tribune interview in late November 2007, Pfeifer said she and Kelly felt there wasn't enough time for the council to review new information before the council's last meeting of the year, and they wanted to make sure there was support for the ordinance before it was brought up again.

College students fight for gay and lesbian rights in South Bend

Apr 28, 2009
wndu.com

Several groups of college students stood up for what they believe in last night at the South Bend Common Council meeting, saying their rights are not protected and it must change.

They are talking about changing the city's human rights ordinance to include sexual orientation.

Back in 2006, there was a heated debate in the council chambers over this same issue.

Under the current ordinance, gay and lesbian students say their biggest fear is to live in South Bend after graduation.

“If I decided to start a career here, I could be fired just because of the fact I'm gay, not for the fact my job qualifications have blundered, just for the fact I'm gay,” said Zach Duncan, a student at IUSB.

Duncan and other supporters say they will keep showing up to these meetings hoping to persuade the council to make some changes.

"The Last Prejudice" Claims Another Victim

By Gilbert H. Caldwell,
Retired United Methodist Minister and member of the Soulforce Executive Director's Round Table

The setting is Springfield, Massachusetts: Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover is a student at the New Leadership Charter School. He is active and popular and well-liked by many of the teachers at the School. But, the 11 year old boy was found by his mother hanging from an electrical cord in her home. Ms. Walker was interviewed by Anderson Cooper of CNN and she shared that her son Carl had been verbally abused by some of his classmates, calling him "gay" and using negative words to assault his person.

Rev. Dr. Mel White, founder of Soulforce was on the program with Ms. Walker and put into context some of the reasons for the hatred and abuse that many young people express toward their fellow students who are LGBTQ, or whom they have labeled as being so. Mel, in response to questions from host Anderson Cooper, identified the negative role much of the Church has played in creating the environment for the abuse and bashing of LGBTQ persons, young and old, and in the case of Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, a young person whose actions and mannerisms were thought to be gay.

Peter J. Gomes, Professor of Christian Morals and Preacher to Harvard University, wrote "The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart." He describes the bias, bigotry and prejudice toward persons who are same gender loving as "The Last Prejudice." Gomes in his magnificently written book, details how flawed interpretation of the Bible and the embrace of that interpretation by much of the Church, has contributed to the climate that supports and sustains much of the bigotry directed at the LGBTQ community.

I participated in a vigil on the steps of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver, following the beating and death of Matthew Shepard. Although the death of Carl Walker-Hoover was self-inflicted, I feel today as I felt those many years ago. It is difficult to describe the emotional impact the sad and tragic news from Springfield, Massachusetts had upon me when I first heard it.

Mel White, Jeff Lutes the Executive Director, and the staff of Soulforce and Soulforce Q have developed resources and have experiences and insights that could help the Church from continuing to be an accomplice to the harm and hurt caused by those who do violence to LGBTQ persons, or those who are thought to be.

May the death of Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, with all of the pain, hurt and anger it evokes in many of us, become a teaching moment - especially for the Church. It is the task of the Church to proclaim to young people, and those not-so-young, that God loves them regardless of their sexual orientation, race, or gender. Some adults failed not only Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover. They also failed to teach those young people who abused Carl - causing his death - that all persons are of sacred worth.

Notre Dame students take ‘staND’ against hate

from the South Bend Tribune
4/17/09
By MARGARET FOSMOE
Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND — Some University of Notre Dame students on Thursday snapped up free T-shirts, eager to join a campus effort to eliminate hatred toward gays, lesbians and transgender people.

The black T-shirts, with white lettering, read: "I will not be silent. I will not be indifferent. I will not just tolerate."

The T-shirt giveaway was part of the annual "Make a StaND Against Hate" week on campus, designed to end hostility toward others based on sexual identity.

Many Notre Dame students generally are accepting of others, regardless of sexual orientation, but there still are jokes, hurtful remarks and hostile comments heard on campus, according to students involved in the shirt handout.

"I had several friends who had to transfer (from Notre Dame) because they experienced daily harassment in their dorms (regarding their sexual orientation)," said Notre Dame junior Eddie Velazquez, co-chair of the campus Core Council for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Questioning Students. Such hostility "is definitely present on this campus," he said.

The week's events are "really important. I feel like a lot of people here just brush (such issues) under the rug," said freshman Jason G'Sell, who stopped by to pick up a T-shirt.

Some students will be wearing the shirts today to mark National Day of Silence, dedicated to creating safer schools and colleges for everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

The week's activities included banner signings, a film screening and the shirt giveaway. The events end today with a silent campus procession and a prayer service.

Staff writer Margaret Fosmoe:
mfosmoe@sbtinfo.com

Rise of hate groups should be no surprise

Thursday, March 26, 2009 3:21 AM
By Leonard Pitts Jr.
There are now 926 hate groups in this country.

Take a second and consider that number. It represents an increase of more than 50 percent since 2000. And by hate groups, I don't mean guys in their bathrobes who go online and pretend their followers are legion. No, I mean actual Klan cells, Neo-Nazi sects, gay-bashing "churches," cliques of black separatists, white nationalists, nativists, racist skinheads and other merchants of venom who meet, plot and recruit in all 48 contiguous states. (Alaska and Hawaii have no known hate groups.) Nine hundred twenty-six of them. The number is a record.

We learn this from the Southern Poverty Law Center www.splcenter.org) in Montgomery, Ala., which has, since its founding in 1971, become a leading authority on the business of hate. According to the latest issue of Intelligence Report, the center's quarterly magazine, that business is booming.

And maybe you wonder how this can be. How can hate enjoy such phenomenal growth in a nation where a Jew serves as senator from Connecticut, a Muslim serves as representative from Minnesota, a Hispanic is governor of New Mexico and a black man is president? The answer is that we are a nation where a Jew serves as senator from Connecticut, a Muslim serves as representative from Minnesota, a Hispanic is governor of New Mexico and a black man is president. Because if those things strike you as signs of progress, well, they are signs of apocalypse to those who believe only white, male Christians are fit to lead.

But that's not the only reason for the increase. The center also cites the debate over illegal immigration that has dominated much of this decade. Though President George W. Bush offered thoughtful, moderate leadership on the issue, he was drowned out by demagogic extremists competing to see which could most effectively scapegoat undocumented workers. They, too, bear responsibility here.

Finally, there is the economy. When things get tough, people become more receptive to the idea that their miseries are all the fault of some alien other. So the stock market, too, is implicated. Hate rises when the Dow falls.

I imagine the center's findings land like cold water in the faces of those who took Barack Obama's ascension to the presidency as proof that the nation was finally cured of the sickness of hate. The truth, I'm afraid, is more nuanced than that.

Maybe it helps to think in terms of alcoholism, a disease that can, with treatment, be contained, controlled, put into remission -- but never cured. Even when you've got years of sobriety under your belt, the germ of it lurks in your bloodstream. Which is why alcoholics do not call themselves cured. Rather, they say they are recovering.

Hate is something like that, a fact some of us have never quite understood. Such folks are convinced there is a goal line out there somewhere which, once crossed, will allow the nation to declare itself cured. And once cured, we'll never have to grapple with hatred again.

But it doesn't work that way.

In a nation so deeply riven by culture, race and religion, there is always a temptation to hate somebody, to blame some group of others for the job you lost, the crime committed against you, the fear and uncertainty you feel. There is a simplicity and a seductiveness to it that are all too easily mistaken for righteousness.

So there is no cure for a nation's hate. There is only an ongoing process of getting better, not unlike the alcoholic who must daily earn his sobriety anew. This explosion of hate is a reminder of what happens when we forget that, when we are undeservedly sanguine about how enlightened we've become.

It is said that eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. Well, that's the going rate for tolerance, too.

Leonard Pitts Jr. is a columnist for The Miami Herald.

lpitts@miamiherald.com

Celebrating with the NAACP

from the South Bend Tribune
2/15/09

A day to celebrate a century of work by the NAACP
COMMENTARY

LEONARD PITTS

It began before it began.

This was in 1905 when the great black scholar W.E.B. DuBois called a meeting of prominent black men. They met on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls because hotels in their own country would not accommodate them and formed what became known as the Niagara Movement.

The Movement, which held a subsequent meeting at Harper’s Ferry, W.Va., issued a statement that said in part, “We claim for ourselves every single right that belongs to a freeborn American, political, civil and social; and until we get these rights we will never cease to protest and assail the ears of America.” But the movement, hampered by various difficulties, soon sputtered and became inactive.

Then the riot came.

For six days in August of 1908, a mob of white people surged through the streets of Springfield, Ill., lynching and maiming black people at will and at whim. The irony of this happening in the hometown of Abraham Lincoln, earnestly if somewhat simplistically revered as the Great Emancipator, was lost on no one, the rioters least of all. “Lincoln freed you, we’ll show you your place,” they cried as they flogged black people through the streets.

The appalling spectacle energized white liberals like Mary White Ovington and Oswald Garrison Villard. On Lincoln’s 100th birthday, Feb. 12, 1909, they joined with DuBois and other remnants of the Niagara Movement to issue a call for a conference on race. That call, a century ago today, was the birth certificate of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

The milestone simultaneously demands and defies commemoration.

It is, after all, hard to hug an institution. And if it’s true that history is biography, it’s not hard to understand why the NAACP has often seemed overshadowed by larger-than-life personalities like Malcolm X, Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson. Even its most celebrated members — DuBois, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Thurgood Marshall, Medgar Evers, Rosa Parks — are better known for what they did than for the organization to which they belonged.

Who regards the NAACP with the reverence those men and women inspire? DuBois notwithstanding, there is in the NAACP story no central charismatic figure. Instead, there is The Work. There is fighting voter suppression and protesting lynch law and writing legal briefs. There is issuing press releases and filing complaints and lobbying lawmakers. There is awarding scholarships and publishing reports and sponsoring workshops and holding accountable. There is advancement made in increments.

Until one day you look up and see that because of those increments, the world has changed as if in a bolt of lightning. The 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision is the most obvious illustration, but really, the proof is the whole country since 1909. It is Sidney Poitier and Condoleezza Rice and Guion Bluford and Barack Obama. And me. Maybe even you.

For all that, one often senses in African America a certain ambivalence toward the NAACP. Too middle class, says one school of criticism. Not relevant, says another. Still others are offput by scandals of leadership over the last 15 years or so. And for some, perhaps the organization’s greatest sin is simply this: it is not exciting.

Organizations seldom are.

But they do The Work, don’t they? The Work that is bigger than one person and longer than one life. Because the NAACP has done The Work, we can pause upon a milestone in a world transformed, a world in which Obama is president and Oprah is queen. If the difference looks like a lightning bolt, we know better.

And we celebrate the increments by which we advance.

Leonard Pitts Jr. is a columnist for the Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, FL 33132. Readers may write to him via e-mail at lpittsmiamiherald.com.

America's sin: Silence in the face of injustice

America's sin: Silence in the face of injustice
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
1/21/09

In his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. proclaimed, "We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people ..."

While we can take comfort in the fact that the civil rights movement ended this country's most blatant forms of racism, the persistence of injustice in our society should inspire outrage and action.

Are we standing in appalling silence as our immigrant neighbors live in constant fear of workplace raids and racial profiling — all because they were forced to leave their home countries to find work to support their families?

Are we speaking out to demand and end to discrimination against people based on their sexual orientation? Or are we watching silently as others are denied equal rights?

Are we demanding that this exceptionally rich country provide for the basic needs of all? Or are we content to substitute charity for justice as long as our own comforts are secure?

If King were alive today, he would no doubt demand that we end these appalling silences that perpetuate human suffering and indignity.

Jackie Smith
South Bend

My apologies

I must apologize for the delay in posting several articles. Sometimes, it gets a bit overwhelming having to deal with the "gay agenda". You know, living a "homosexual lifestyle" can be quite tiring with having to constantly deal immoral activities such as caring for kids, school activities, homework, meals, housework, holidays and family. Things like keeping up with a blog sometimes just have to wait. I'm just grateful that Denise picked up more milk yesterday. Now, if I can just remember to pick the dog u some treats, we'll be back on top of things.

Ordinary

From the South Bend Tribune
Voice of the People
12/31/08

I have always known I was different. I could not put a name on it, but people around me sensed my vulnerability and they used it against me. When I was very young I was sexually abused by a teenage neighbor. I stayed pretty much a loner for a good part of my life since.

It would be years before I could put a name on my feelings. I have taken classes at Indiana University South Bend in psychology, sociology and anthropology. These diversity classes led me into gay organizations where I finally found a home. I can relate to these people and I have found peace of mind among them. So it makes me feel sad when

Christians use the Bible to discredit and misrepresent the gay experience in this community and elsewhere.

ay people are ordinary people just trying to live their lives. That's all. End of story. We are kind, giving, responsible people who wish nothing more than to stop being discriminated against.

Bernie Dolezal Jr.
South Bend

Happiness is the Declaration of Human Rights

From the South Bend Tribune
Michiana Point of View
12/12/08

I was sitting in the Local 5, United Auto Workers, hall for the 60th anniversary of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Dec. 6 and I was feeling proud. I had a smile in my heart. I was smiling because my dear mother was so proud of being a union member all of the years that she worked at Simplicity Pattern Company. I was proud because my daughter is a current member of Local 5. The unions make it possible for working-class people, people of color and women, to live well -- good decent independent lives. Honest money.

I was proud of the Indiana University South Bend students who provided us with slapstick between speakers. I smiled at the adorable little girl, now a teenager, who I remember sleeping in the brown rocking chair that I bought from her mother during the West Washington Street yard sale 10 years ago. I smiled at all of the people in the room who I have known for years who, like me, are gray, wrinkled, pot-bellied and committed.

I smiled to think about the article in The Tribune that said Eleanor Roosevelt was instrumental in getting the Universal Human Rights Declaration passed and how Hillary Clinton stood up for women's rights in Beijing 13 years ago.

When it was my turn to speak, I was in good company as I stood up once again for individuals' long overdue human rights. A person's right to file a complaint with the South Bend Human Rights Commission if that person believes he or she may have been discriminated against because of sexual orientation or gender identity in the areas of education, housing, public accommodations or employment is a human right. I smiled because the South Bend Common Council came within one vote in 2006 of amending the ordinance that would allow this very basic human right: justice.

The late, beloved and former council member Roland Kelly and I held hands under the table as the ordinance was being debated. I always smile when I think of my sweetheart.

It seems so pitiful, so embarrassing and so sad that people today in this great country would have to beg for a basic human right, justice. Indianapolis passed the same ordinance in December 2005. South Bend can also.

The boogeyman accusations are, "where will this stop, we are going down a slippery slope, and these are special rights."

In the USA we don't stop. There is nothing slippery about this slope and the only thing special about these rights is that we openly deny them to some people while we give them to others.

I continue to run into people who are shocked that these rights are denied to some of our citizens. Those shocked are old and young, people of all races, and Christians and non-Christians.

Our Declaration of Independence talks about inalienable rights ... "Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." We don't stop until we fulfill the promise of the president that President-elect Barack Obama most admires, Abraham Lincoln, who stated in the Gettysburg Address, "Dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."

I smiled. I smiled inside; a smile of pride, hope and the confidence that we will do the right thing ... we always do. Happy birthday, Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Happy birthday to ya!

Charlotte D. Pfeifer lives in South Bend.

"Special Rights"

More wacky comments brought to you by CCV member, Tom Uebbing. Notice that he claims that regardless of what the facts are regarding homosexuality, we should still make a moral judgment on it. Of course, this moral judgment must be based on HIS understanding of HIS religion. No other opinions need apply.

From the South Bend Tribune
Voice of the People
12/12/08

Rev. Edward Ruetz's characterization of the opponents of special rights for homosexuals as unChrist-like is facile. He alleges that Jesus did not condemn homosexuality. Jesus affirmed the sin of Sodom will be punished. (Matthew 10:15; 11:24) Jesus' personally authorized representatives ("He who rejects you, rejects me" -- Luke 10:16), the Apostles, repeated his warning. Jude identified the sin of Sodom as "unnatural vice." (Jude 7)

Paul identified homosexual sex as sin (Romans 1:27) which if unrepented bars entrance to heaven. (1 Corinthians 6:9)

Even if homosexuality were inborn and genetic, which it is not, the practice should not be legitimized in the law any more than a hot temper. You still must make a moral judgment about it.

Simply uttering the magic word "discrimination" does not make a case for good law. If what is protected is an intrinsically disordered and morally wrong behavior -- homosexual sex -- enforcement of the law will inevitably pose a conflict for citizens of conscience. They would be punished for opposing the negative effects of homosexual behavior. We would punish what is good for the sake of accommodating what is bad. That is bad law.

Tom Uebbing

South Bend

Bathroom 'issue' just a silly distraction

From the South Bend Tribune
Voice of the People
12/10/08

Bathrooms? Please. This is the argument used in the '70s when many of us were working to get the Equal Rights Amendment passed. I remember hearing that what the proponents of the ERA really wanted was joint bathrooms. It was a ludicrous, weird argument.

And here it is again, being used by Joe Sergio, in his letter of Nov. 13. It would be laughable, except that it completely ignores the real issues: Justice, equality, and freedom -- in the workplace, in education, in housing and medical care -- for all people, not just for some, and instead focuses on toilets.

Why is that? Why would anyone want to cheapen a conversation about people and justice and equality in such a way? Conversations about difficult, controversial subjects are far better served, surely we can all agree, by focusing on the real issues.

Nancy Mascotte did not stand before the SouthBend Common Council to make a case for the creation of joint bathrooms serving both males and females. These already exist -- in our homes and in family bathrooms in many public places. She was speaking out for what does not exist: equality for all Americans. Let's not trivialize the issue.

Martha Carroll

South Bend

Judge and Jury

I've never been on trial before, although I worked as a paralegal for many years and am familiar with courtrooms. It is quite a different perspective, however, to actually feel like your fate lies in someone else's hands. That is the feeling I get when I think about the South Bend Common Council deciding whether or not to amend the city's Human Rights Ordinance to include sexual orientation and gender identity. I feel like they are judging me - like they have some strange power over my life.

In reality, these feelings are quite overblown. Although it seems like I'm begging for their blessing, all I really want is a place to go to file a grievance should I believe I've been discriminated against. The Council members don't need to condone with my orientation, or even really to understand it. They just need to admit that GLBT persons do face discrimination and should have somewhere to go to report allegations. This system works in cities all over America; there is no reason why it should not work here in South Bend.

I've given some thought as to why I feel like the Council is scrutinizing my friends and me every time this issue comes up. Maybe it's because of the way society tries to put GLBT persons in a box and marginalize us? Or, perhaps it is because it feels like those who condemn do so much more loudly than those who accept?

For whatever reason, I think there needs to be perspective on this issue. After all, this is not Solomon deciding whether or how to split the baby; it is elected officials recognizing a hole in the system of justice and equal rights that needs to be filled.

If the Council decides to allow GLBT persons access to the Human Rights Commission, life will be more secure. I'll gain assurance in the knowledge that my job, my house, my education, and my life in South Bend are valued and protected. If the amendment is rejected, I'll know that discrimination is definitely alive and well, and that it still permeates not only the fabric of society, but the power structure in our government, too.

Unfortunately, the latter confirmation would be no surprise, but it would be a big disappointment. After all, I am a constituent, too.

A voice of reason

Straighten up and gain some tolerance
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
11/24/08

Joe Sergio's Nov. 13 letter scolds Nancy Mascotte for her mantra of "intolerance" which was not directed toward the whole South Bend community, as Sergio indicates, but toward those citizens who do discriminate against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transvestite people.

In fact, his organization, Citizens for Community Values, has used deceptive language to cloud the issue of our citizens' human rights in South Bend. Its members sanitize the word "discrimination" and turn it into a catchy, duplicitous phrase: "no special rights."

Some citizens, I believe strongly, are not only intolerant of GLBTs, but acting unChrist-like. While on this Earth, Jesus chose to serve the poor, the outcasts and the marginalized in his Jewish society. Jesus never uttered a word of condemnation about homosexuality. We can presume that if gays were present and marginalized, they were a part of his community.

In our own times, gay people have come out of the closet into which most societies put them for centuries. Recent scientific studies find that, for a true homosexual, sexual orientation was not chosen by them but given to them by nature (and God?). I know that I did not choose my own heterosexuality.

I consider myself as a "straight for equality." Doing what is right can be simple. Easy. Straightforward.

Rev. Edward J. Ruetz
South Bend

More "love" from the opposition

11/13/2008

GLBT

Nancy Mascotte's letter on Oct. 7 should be a real eye-opener to those who haven't been following the efforts by the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transsexual group to enact special rights for those professing to engage in these sexual behaviors.

After analyzing years of information, this group not only failed to demonstrate discrimination against GLBT, but they only evoked disagreement with their efforts.

During this time, Mascotte and others attacked many of our largest and most community-oriented employers, including Martin's Super Markets, Memorial Hopital and Wal-Mart, during these public hearings for, among other things, not allowing men to use women's bathrooms and visa versa. With the mantra of the South Bend community as being "intolerant," Mascotte and the GLBT leaders continue to demonstrate their hypocrisy by chanting "intolerance," while themselves demonstrating intolerance with those who dare to disagree with their conclusions.

Now they are demonizing leaders like Jay Dunlap, who lovingly oppose them. Those in the community who know Dunlap recognize him as an educated, thoughtful gentleman, father and husband. Mascotte's characterization is outright bizarre. The GLBT community should stop the vicious personal attacks and stop calling anyone who disagrees with them bigots, fanatics, extremists and hatemongers.

Joe Sergio
South Bend

Note: Joe Sergio is also the owner of First Response, a disaster restoration company located in South Bend.

If you're interested in reading the actual minutes from the hearing/public comments, the transcript is located on the Common Council website. The hearing on 29-06 starts on page 2.

Majority Rule, Minority Rights

Majority Rule, Minority Rights

On the surface, the principles of majority rule and the protection of individual and minority rights would seem contradictory. In fact, however, these principles are twin pillars holding up the very foundation of what we mean by democratic government.

· Majority rule is a means for organizing government and deciding public issues; it is not another road to oppression. Just as no self-appointed group has the right to oppress others, so no majority, even in a democracy, should take away the basic rights and freedoms of a minority group or individual.

· Minorities -- whether as a result of ethnic background, religious belief, geographic location, income level, or simply as the losers in elections or political debate -- enjoy guaranteed basic human rights that no government, and no majority, elected or not, should remove.

· Minorities need to trust that the government will protect their rights and self-identity. Once this is accomplished, such groups can participate in, and contribute to their country's democratic institutions.

· Among the basic human rights that any democratic government must protect are freedom of speech and expression; freedom of religion and belief; due process and equal protection under the law; and freedom to organize, speak out, dissent, and participate fully in the public life of their society.

· Democracies understand that protecting the rights of minorities to uphold cultural identity, social practices, individual consciences, and religious activities is one of their primary tasks.

· Acceptance of ethnic and cultural groups that seem strange if not alien to the majority can represent one of the greatest challenges that any democratic government can face. But democracies recognize that diversity can be an enormous asset. They treat these differences in identity, culture, and values as a challenge that can strengthen and enrich them, not as a threat.

· There can be no single answer to how minority-group differences in views and values are resolved -- only the sure knowledge that only through the democratic process of tolerance, debate, and willingness to compromise can free societies reach agreements that embrace the twin pillars of majority rule and minority rights.

Discrimination

Discrimination
(SBT Voice of the People)
10/15/08

Jay Dunlap, who opposes an amendment to the Human Rights Ordinance to protect gay, leslian, bisexual and transgendered people (Voice, Sept. 25) is confused and misguided. The SouthBend Human Rights Commission does not deal with individuals who are disadvantaged; it deals with individuals who are discriminated against. Even a wealthy, well-educated man could be the target of discrimination.

Only members of Citizens for Community Values, such as Dunlap, dispute that there is discrimination against GLBT persons. The question is, are our representatives on the Common Council going to remedy the situation? Will they give GLBT persons the right to bring complaints of alleged discrimination to the HRC for investigation? Other Indiana cities permit this (e.g. Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Bloomington, Michigan City), and it works.

In his Viewpoint on Aug. 15, Don Wheeler stated that he didn't pay too much attention to the rhetoric of the opposition when the amendment was voted on two years ago, because the arguments against the legislation were factually incorrect or irrational. Dunlap's letter is a perfect example. The council must see through this obfuscation.

Discrimination is discrimination, even when it's called "loving opposition."

Elizabeth Karle
South Bend

A Democrat by any other name...

The following statement is included in the 2008 platform of the national Democratic Party (p. 51-52):

"A More Perfect Union We believe in the essential American ideal that we are not constrained by the circumstances of birth but can make of our lives what we will. Unfortunately, for too many, that ideal is not a reality. We have more work to do. Democrats will fight to end discrimination based on race, sex, ethnicity, national origin, language, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, and disability in every corner of our country, because that’s the America we believe in. We all have to do our part to lift up this country, and that means changing hearts and changing minds, and making sure that every American is treated equally under the law. "

And, in our own state, the 2008 Indiana Democratic Party platform states:

“The Indiana Democratic Party is proud of our long-standing commitment to and support for civil rights and equality. Our 2008 ticket makes history, creating the opportunity for the first African-American president and the first female governor. As the party of the people, we strongly oppose restriction of opportunity to Hoosiers based on their race, religion, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or economic background.”

These ideals are what the Democratic Party, and - dare we say - many Republicans, aspire to. The Mayor gets this. The South Bend Common Council, which is comprised of 9 members (eight of whom claim to be Democrats) fell short of reaching the goal of equality by failing to pass an amendment to the Human Rights Ordinance to level the playing field for GLBT persons in July, 2006. Only Pfeifer, Kelly, Kirsits, and Puzzello stood firm.

No doubt this issue will come up again. When it does, will the Democrats be true to their party's ideals, or will they turn their backs on these aspirations? Will the eight (D)s be Democrats, and vote like Democrats...or will they behave like something else?

Chicago may get 'gay-friendly' high school

from CNN.com
By Mallory Simon

Story Highlights
High school would not be exclusively for gay students

Officials say harassment contributing to high dropout rates among gay students

39 states don't have laws against bullying based on sexual identity

Advocate: "We can continue to do nothing ... or we can save young people's lives"

(emphasis added)

(CNN) -- Public school officials in Chicago, Illinois, are recommending approval of a "gay-friendly" high school because harassment and violence are causing gay students to skip class and drop out at alarming rates.

School officials say the proposed school would offer a welcoming, harassment-free environment for gay students.

The School for Social Justice Pride Campus, which officials say will not be exclusive to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students, is aimed at being safe and welcoming for any student looking for another school option, said Josh Edelman, executive officer in the Chicago Public Schools' Office of New Schools.

"It is not going to be a 'gay high school,' but yes, in a way, it is meant to target kids who feel they have been victims of bullying for their sexual orientation or perceived orientation," Edelman said.

Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan announced his recommendation Wednesday. Officials said Pride Campus would be separate physically but be attached administratively to the School for Social Justice.

School officials said the standards and curriculum for the school would be in line with other schools in the district. The school would also offer counseling for students, though because of federal laws, officials cannot ask students about their sexual orientation. The curriculum would not rely on, but would incorporate lessons about, sexual identity in history and literature classes, officials said.

"It's about creating another option for kids," Edelman said. "When it comes down to it, though, it is all about having a choice and providing high-quality options for students, whether they are gay or not."

The school could be a lifeline for students who are struggling for academic success.

Gay and lesbian students are three times more likely to miss school because they feel unsafe, according to a 2003 Chicago Public School District survey. And a study released Wednesday by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network showed similar trends across the country.

The national study, which the group says is the most comprehensive report ever on the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students nationwide, found that 86.2 percent of those students reported being verbally harassed, 44.1 percent physically harassed and 22.1 percent physically assaulted at school in the past year because of their sexual orientation.

This harassment, the study concludes, has affected students' ability to achieve success in school, causing their grade-point level to be, on average, half a point lower than that of heterosexual students nationwide.

Dropout levels are higher among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students because of more frequent truancy, the study found. Almost 32 percent of those students missed a class because of feeling unsafe, compared with only 5.5 percent of heterosexual students nationwide, the study said.

Truancy and lower grades aren't the only repercussions of anti-gay sentiments in schools, said Kevin Jennings, the founder and executive director of GLSEN. He cited the killing of Lawrence King, a 15-year-old student shot by a classmate in Oxnard, California, in February after King asked to be his valentine.

Jennings said the repercussions of harassment alone underscore the need for Pride Campus.

"If we keep doing nothing, we are going to keep getting these horrifying levels of harassment, greater rates of skipping, not going to college and more tragic violence like the murder of Lawrence King," he said. "Those are our choices. We can continue to do nothing, and we know the results, or we can save young people's lives and offer them an education and a future."

A similar school in New York, the Harvey Milk High School in the East Village, was created because of similar fears.

The school, which had been around since 1985, serving gay and lesbian students, expanded to a "gay-themed" school for 100 students in 2003. The Pride Campus is expected to serve 600 students, school officials said.

Harvey Milk High School, like the Pride Campus, is open to all students regardless of sexual orientation. But unlike the proposed school in Chicago, Harvey Milk requires its attendees to be at risk of dropping out because of harassment.

Harvey Milk boasts a graduation rate of 95 percent of its students -- all of whom were at risk of or had dropped out -- well above the city average of 52 percent.

When the school opened its doors, protesters, led by anti-gay Kansas minister Fred Phelps, screamed at supporters gathered outside to repent for their "sodomite behavior."

Edelman said that while some concerns have been raised about Pride Campus at community meetings, officials have not heard any large-scale opposition.

One Chicago resident said at a meeting that he could not support the school because of his religious beliefs, Edelman said. Others told local media they didn't support the use of public money to create the school. Some thought that if gay students went to the Pride Campus, students in other schools would not learn to accept the gay community. Instead, they suggested, the focus should be working toward acceptance in all schools.

"Absolutely, we should work for [acceptance] across the board," said Jennings, the GLSEN executive director. "But it's not going to change overnight, and in the meantime, these kids aren't going to graduate."

Jennings said that GLSEN research shows acceptance among peers is helped by having a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender support group at school.

The most important factor, according to the GLSEN study, is the existence of a state law that protects students from harassment based on their sexual orientation.

Thirty-nine states, including Illinois and New York, do not have laws offering that specific protection, Jennings said citing the GLSEN study. Some have laws, but they don't specify on what basis the protections apply, which Jennings said was essentially as effective as having no law at all. California, Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin are the only states with specific sexual orientation protections for students.

The Chicago School Board will vote October 22 to approve the School for Social Justice Pride Campus in addition to 17 other proposed schools.

As far as Jennings is concerned, the school board's choice is an easy one.

"The choice they are making is not should we have this kind of school," he said. "The question is 'Are we going to do anything we can to get these kids an education?' And there's only one right answer -- yes."