NEWSBYALLISON HOPE

Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty announced yesterday on a conservative talkshow that he would reinstate "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" if he were running the country.

“I’ve been a public supporter of maintaining ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ and I would support reinstating it as well," he said. It is rumored that he may run for president in 2012, a thought that reasonably causes many an LGBT voter to shudder. Then again, Pawlenty may also open a margarita bar instead, as he has repeatedly joked. Doesn't he know Jimmy Buffet is so passe?

"I'm not just a fiscal conservative, I'm a social conservative," T-Paw, as Pawlenty has been nicknamed, relayed on the radio show. When asked how he would treat "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" if elected president, he said, "I believe strongly in traditional marriage. I don't believe all other domestic relationships should be on the same platform as traditional marriage. I just don't buy that." He went on to reinforce that he believes strongly in a "conservative interpretation" of the law.

If you can't play nice, then use the "F" word generously. That's what FCKH8 non-profit media campaigner Luke Montgomery may have had in mind when he created FCKH8.com, a website with the aim of squashing LGBTQ hate. The vehicle for spreading the message are two videos housed on the site, one focuses on equality for same-sex marriage, "FCK PROP 8" and the other on anti-gay bullying, "FCK BULLIES".

The selling point? All of the people featured in the video harness the big, bad "F" word to get their point across. From small children to those old enough to be their great-grandmothers, people go rogue on-screen to express their dismay at the lack of progress we've made with regard to LGBTQ rights, using expletives for emphasis all along the way.

"Warning: F bombs ahead," a text overlay reads as the video opens . "Hi," a gray-haired woman wearing a "FCKH8" t-shirt says. "Are you one of the f*ckwads who has a f*cking problem with my gay son getting married?"

"And my two moms," a little boy who couldn't be older than eight chimes in. "You f*cking want to stop them from getting married?"

"Then listen up haters," two men continue, "For some straight talk on gay marriage."

Today we commemorate World AIDS Day, a time when we turn our attention to the deadly virus that taken the lives of 30 million worldwide, many of whom have been our LGBTQ brothers and sisters. On this day, we also recognize our right and responsibility to help further educate so we don’t lose another 30 million. We’ve come a long way from the dungeon Reagan years, but we still face a time when access to adequate education, preventative measures, and treatment options are still not as omnipotent as they should be.

Yes, there are better treatment options out there and more information than ever before to help prevent future cases, but the fact remains that one in five people living with HIV still don’t know it, celebrities like Oprah are still spreading misinformation about the virus, and funding for people living with the virus has been cut.

Yes, celebrities are also helping to raise HIV awareness and President Obama has pledged to reduce the spread of the virus by 25% in the next five years, but we are still facing a deadly disease that is rapidly spreading almost as quickly as the myths surrounding it still are.

As if grammar-challenged homophobic epithets on Facebook weren’t enough social-networking hate for one day, a Christian group started a Facebook page entitled, “Protest Homosexuality,” which lists a hodge-podge of biblical quotes, and links to articles with titles like, “Hope for Homosexuals,” “Homosexual Urban Legend, The Series,” and “A Gay Christian: An Oxymoron.” Not exactly stocking stuffer reading material this holiday season, but a frightening journey into the world of hatemongering.

“Before you homosexuals make any comments, actually read the article!” the most recent post says, and it links to an article about an “ex-gay” and how miserable this man’s life was until he was “cured” of his homosexuality. I love how the haters think we aren’t in agreement with them simply because we haven’t read their argument. News flash: we know the bible, we know all about your conversion theories, we know what you think about sex. We just know that it’s all poppycock.

They claim being gay and religious are oxymoronic, but what’s actually oxymoronic is their tagline on the Facebook page, which reads, "We do not hate anyone here. Our desire is to see souls saved. But at the same time we need to protect our children from the homosexual activists.” Ah yes, the age old, “We don’t hate you, we just hate what you do,” rhetoric.

Put your creative hats on! MTV’s Logo is in search of some of the best anti-bullying public service announcements in what it’s calling “Logo’s Anti-Bullying PSA Contest”. The contest runs through November 28 and any U.S. resident can submit 25-second videos that convey messages of anti-bullying. The best part? They are looking for amateur filmmakers, everyday people like you and me to fulfill this order. Professional filmmakers are actually explicitly excluded from entering.

Five videos will be selected by Logo from the batch submitted and posted online for voting by the general public in the beginning of December. The videos will appear on all of Logo’s sites including 365gay.com, AfterEllen.com, AfterElton.com and NewNowNext.com. The grand prize winner will be announced on December 14.

“Bullying is wrong. It needs to end. And you can help,” the tagline for the contest reads.

You know we're onto something when Republicans from Arizona with staunchly right-aligned husbands start speaking out on behalf of LGBTQ rights. We can smell the victory, and yet there always seems to a catch. What's that line G.W. fumbled? "You fool me once, shame on who?"

It feels like Cindy McCain was pulling a fast one on the gay community this week, when the wife of former Republican presidential candidate, Senator John McCain, appeared in a  public service announcement calling for an end to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," and then essentially retracted her stance the very next day by way of tweet.

The video, which was organized by the LGBT group NOH8, was part of a string of public service announcements aimed at ending the outmoded U.S. military regulation.

"Our political and religious leaders tell LGBT youth that they have no future," Cindy says in the video. "They can't serve our country openly."

New York State Senator Tom Duane, who happens to be openly gay and a long-time champion for LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS rights, was arrested along with others yesterday in New York City for their civil disobedience over an AIDS housing bill. The protest was staged in response to Governor Paterson’s veto of a bill that would have provided funding for HIV/AIDS.

Senator Duane, along with leaders and members of HIV/AIDS organizations, held up traffic for about ten minutes on Broadway outside City Hall in downtown Manhattan yesterday afternoon before getting arrested by waiting police, according to WNYC.

The bill is meant to protect lower income people living with HIV and AIDS to ensure they won’t have to spend more than 30 percent of their income on related medications and treatments. The bill seeks to cover about 10,000 New Yorkers. Yesterday’s act of civil disobedience was just one recent attempt to get the Governor to reverse his veto before the end of 2010. Both Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Patterson argue that the bill is an “unfunded mandate” that the state cannot afford.

Humor may be the best medicine, but can it cure homophobia? George Takei seems to think so. Best known for his role as Mr. Sulu on Star Trek, Takei made a decision to respond to the homophobic remarks of retired NBA player, Tim Hardaway, back in 2007 using wit to provoke and educate rather than the usual, more serious responses to hate that we see every day. The story is not new (we covered it on Change.org last year), but Takei’s response is something that deserves further examination.

In case you’re not familiar, Tim Hardaway, retired NBA player, said in a live Miami sports radio show, "Well, you know I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don't like gay people and I don't like to be around gay people. I am homophobic. I don't like it. It shouldn't be in the world or in the United States." The comments sparked a large debate and a good amount of backlash. He ended up apologizing (and as recent as this past February, mentioned in an interview on Sirius that he has worked with The Trevor Project and The YES Institute to educate himself on LGBT issues).

George Takei starts out in his segment on Jimmy Kimmel with a seemingly serious message, “Recently, I’ve been troubled to hear comments by former NBA All-Star Tim Hardaway… As a human being, I was shocked and saddened, but I want you to know Tim, that on behalf of gay people everywhere, that despite your ugly words, we don’t hate you. As a matter of fact, we like you. We like you very much. We particularly like your large, powerful calves.” Takei goes on to make overtly flirtatious comments about Hardaway as he not-so-suggestively pets a background image of him, thereby turning on its head the very core of what frightens the ignorant; what if they try to recruit me?!

"My son is gay. Or he’s not. I don’t care. He is still my son. And he is 5. And I am his mother. And if you have a problem with anything mentioned above, I don’t want to know you," starts the rapid-fire mommy blogger post last week that is being met with all sorts of national attention.

The post, a seemingly local, innocuous, and somewhat private attempt to showcase one open-minded mother's anger at the judgmental PTA moms for questioning her young son's choice to dress up in a female Halloween costume (Daphne from Scooby Doo), has taken the abyss that is the world wide web by storm. "My Son is Gay," the post is entitled, matching the lede by the mother, Sarah, on her blog Nerdy Apple Bottom.

The post has seen countless Facebook shares and retweets, and is getting picked up by news outlets nationwide. 38,938 comments later on the blog post itself, and word is still out whether the post is detrimental or beneficial to awareness around LGBTQ identity for parents and their for kids coming out.

A blog post by social media writer Caroline Howard on Forbes.com raises concerns about how the soccer mom essentially outed her five-year old son to the whole wide world without his consent, and that such behavior could well be dangerous. "I wish saying, 'My son is gay,' was as neutral as, 'He’s a people person,'" Howard writes. "It’s not. The memory of bullying victim Tyler Clementi is still too raw. His mom’s blog post is now part of Boo’s digital fingerprint–forever – which may or may not be a problem should he ever apply for a visa to Iran, be vetted for the Marines or do a Google search."

Gene Robinson, the first openly gay Episcopal bishop, announced this weekend that he will retire in 2013. The reason? He may be retiring in part because he's 63 and, like many people at that age who have worked hard their whole lives, he's ready to settle down and step out of the public eye to focus on his family and other matters of personal well-being. Bishop Robinson of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire is also retiring, though, because of the backlash and volatility that his position has brought.

"The fact is, the last seven years have taken their toll on me, my family and you," Bishop Robinson wrote on the diocese website. "Death threats, and the now-worldwide controversy surrounding your election of me as bishop, have been a constant strain."

Robinson marked the first openly gay bishop of any Christian denomination. His brave and bold ordination back in 2003 provoked an onslaught of prejudice and homophobic pushback from the Episcopalian as well as other religious communities, even causing a split in the Episcopal Church. Robinson's position also sparked a call at the 2006 General Convention for "any candidate to the episcopate whose manner of life presents a challenge to the wider church."