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Gay ads: business or propaganda?
Until recently, using gay themes in advertising was considered taboo, and a call for a boycott from one hate group or another usually followed. Remember Bill O’Reilly and the other FOX News goons going...
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History of marriage shows an evolving institution
The big day is drawing near: The Supreme Court will begin hearing oral arguments in the Proposition 8 case — officially called Hollingsworth v. Perry — on March 26. In recent weeks, the number of...
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It’s the anti-gay rhetoric, stupid
It’s that special time of year again — when right-wingers flock to the D.C. area for the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), ready to soak up all of the love and inclusiveness that is the...
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The tale of two civil rights movements
Rev. James Meeks After a surge of momentum in February, the marriage equality bill has stalled in the Illinois House. Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) recently said the measure was 12 votes short, so...
View ArticleSurvey reveals the irony of being ‘gay’
In my new home of San Francisco, the downtown streetlights are lined with rainbow flags billowing in the omnipresent Bay breeze, signaling that Pride Month has arrived. It’s hard to ignore the progress...
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Learn from mistakes of the Illinois marriage equality failure
ILLINOIS CAPITOL BUILDING. PHOTO: TONY MEREVICK / CHICAGO PHOENIX It’s all too common in politics for insanity to take hold — trying the same thing over and over, and expecting different results. In...
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LGBT voters key in Illinois governor race
Gov. Pat Quinn, Photo: Tony Merevick. A recent Chicago Phoenix news story posed the question, “Would same-sex marriage be legal in Illinois if Bill Daley were governor?” The short answer is: he isn’t,...
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Is the media bias toward same-sex marriage justified?
It’s old news that the media has a liberal bias. It shouldn’t have been a surprise, then, when the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism revealed in a study, released last month,...
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NJ court ruling emphasizes civil union is not equal to marriage
New Jersey couple celebrates court victory. Photo: Garden State Equality. In an exciting distraction from the continued bad news flowing out of Washington, New Jersey this week became the fourteenth...
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Will Illinois lawmakers finally surprise us?
Rep. Greg Harris announcing no vote on marriage equality in May. Photo: Tony Merevick. After the heartbreaking failure in May to pass marriage equality—and a promise by the bill’s chief sponsor to call...
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Who else wins in Illinois marriage vote?
[dropcap]I[/dropcap] usually hate admitting I’m wrong, but this past week proved an exception—when the Illinois General Assembly defied my pessimistic prediction and passed marriage equality in an...
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Arrested Boystown Development
Proposed Out Hotel in Boystown. Illustration: Koo and Associates. [dropcap]P[/dropcap]art of what makes city living so dynamic is the constantly changing urban environment. Unlike the suburbs—where new...
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Harvey Milk's legacy is not just for us
Strolling down Market Street in the Castro on the night before Thanksgiving, I was surprised to run smack-dab into a massive candle-lit vigil, peacefully marching toward Downtown. Then I saw the...
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Rahm: LGBT champion or political opportunist?
Photo: Gerald Farinas. [dropcap]S[/dropcap]tanding under the shimmering beams of the Pritzker Pavilion—on my first assignment as editorial board intern for the Chicago Tribune—I watched as Chicago’s...
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Phil Robertson got his freedom of speech
Phil Robertson. Photo: NBC. If you didn’t already assume that “Duck Dynasty” star Phil Robertson doesn’t approve of homosexuality, you deserved to be surprised this week when he revealed that opinion...
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In 2013, world diverges on gay rights
Gov. Pat Quinn signs marriage equality bill. Photo: Sam Yingling. Twenty-thirteen may well be a year remembered in history books. No matter which perspective you look from, it’s been a landmark year...
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Howard Brown must answer for missteps
While 2013 may have been an impressive and groundbreaking year for gay rights, it was more of a mixed bag for Howard Brown Health Center, the Midwest’s largest LGBT-oriented healthcare provider The...
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Ending the LGBT smoking epidemic
Blue-grey plumes of noxious poison rise in every direction, hovering in a thick haze near the ceiling of the enclosed patio at Toad Hall, my favorite Castro establishment. I’m fighting the impulse not...
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The myth of the affluent gay
There’s been a narrative in the media for the past decade or so that LGBT people—and gay men in particular—are more affluent and educated than the general population. Supported by statistics from...
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LGBT voters have tough choice this November
Every election cycle, those 5-10% of American voters who can’t make up their mind—a week before Election Day—get ridiculed by the news media and comedians alike. Saturday Night Live, The Daily Show,...
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