My planned return is January 5th, 2009.

For all things gay, merry and bright, I recommend checking www.queerty.com.

May you and your loved ones have a delightful and safe holiday!

Dr. Phil hosted a program today entitled “Gender Confused Kids” and even had an “expert” Glenn Stanton from the notoriously anti-gay and transphobic Focus on The Family. Transgender affirming voices were also heard on the show, but it is the title and the selection of Focus on the Family that concerns me most.

The website goes on to talk about “gender confusion” and also links to Focus on the Family.

There is also a poll on the website:
“What do you think causes gender confusion? Should a parent let their child dress as the opposite sex?”

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The Yes on 8 campaign filed a brief Friday arguing that because the new law holds that only marriages between a man and a woman are recognized or valid in California, the state can no longer recognize the existing same-sex unions. 

The campaign submitted the brief in response to three lawsuits seeking to invalidate Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that overruled the court’s decision in May that legalized gay marriage. 

Both Attorney General Jerry Brown and gay rights groups are maintaining that the gay marriage ban may not be applied retroactively. 

The Supreme Court could hear arguments in the cases as soon as March. 

–Associated Press

“Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, said transition team officials were attentive during the meeting and very appreciative of the clarity of recommended policy changes. ‘They were taking notes, they were listening, they were responding, they were asking questions, they were a very, very engaged transition team and that bodes well for our community moving forward,’ she said.

“About 60 people attended the Dec. 10 meeting, including transition leaders such as John Podesta, co-chair of Obama’s transition team; Jim Messina, who is in charge of Obama’s personnel decisions; Mike Strautmanis, director of public liaison and intergovernmental affairs; Melanie Barnes, whom Obama tapped to become the White House’s domestic policy director; and Parag Mehta, the transition team’s liaison for minority groups, according to activists.

“Carey said activists also told transition officials that the gay community is interested in being part of the major issues of the day, including the economic crisis or health care reform.

“Activists made it clear that the gay community wants to be “part of creating solutions to these problems” and asked transition officials to make sure that “LGBT people are not left behind when these discussions are taking place,” Carey said.

“Solmonese said his role at the meeting was to discuss non-legislative changes that Obama’s administration could make to improve the lives of gay and transgender Americans.

“He said he presented the transition team an 80-page document of proposed changes.”

According to Trevio, a recent study from the Latino Commission on AIDS “found that HIV/AIDS cases are rising at alarming rates among the two million Latinos in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.” She adds, “Prevention education isn’t keeping pace.” Trevio writes that public awareness efforts likely are not having much effect among Hispanics because the “targets of these messages — which include legal and undocumented workers — don’t trust the messenger.” A report from Progressive States Network found that “every state identified by the study, with the exception of Alabama, has passed policies criminalizing undocumented immigration,” according to Trevio. “These laws intimidate people from seeking any assistance,” she writes, adding, “For example, South Carolina passed a series of laws that include establishing a hotline to report suspected nonresidents and making it a crime to transport or harbor undocumented immigrants.” The report found that as a “result of this anti-immigrant climate and the high rate of people without health insurance,” many HIV-positive Hispanics do not “seek medical attention until they are in its late stages,” Trevio writes.

However, some “states are trying to confront this crisis,” according to Trevio, who adds that North Carolina in October “conducted a bilingual campaign to encourage people to get tested. Even so, the report found that these states didn’t have enough bilingual professionals to address the crisis.” Trevio writes that the study “made several recommendations, all rooted in communication. Whether it’s utilizing more Spanish-language media to market prevention programs, training more people to speak Spanish, partnering with Latino organizations to replicate their successful programs or connecting with Hispanic religious and community leaders, it all comes down to opening lines of communication to a population that has been forced to stay in the shadows of society.” She concludes, “For their health and for the health of the country, these Latinos must come forward — and the sooner the better”