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Madge-ic moments
"Make a hometown girl feel welcome," Madonna urged at her long-time-coming return to Michigan Nov. 18. And, at Detroit's Ford Field, they did. All 30,000 of them. Amidst an undersold sea of girls and gays, [...]
Madonna-produced documentary to make TV debut on World AIDS Day
The feature documentary "I Am Because We Are," which looks at the lives of children orphaned by AIDS in Malawi, Africa, will premiere on Sundance Channel on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1. "I Am Because [...]
‘Milk,’ meet Oscar
Gay rights activist Harvey Milk was tragically gunned down in 1978, but his legacy - and his rousing words, "You gotta give 'em hope" - spill into the now. Which is what makes out director [...]
Unleash your wit, Cancer!
By Jack Fertig Horoscopes Sun, Mercury, and Mars are all careening into Sagittarius together, boosting energy and humor like the Marx Brothers just crashed your party. Fortunately, this triple conjunction should give you the energy [...]
Out of the pocket, and into today
By Dan Woog The OutField Bill Konigsberg's high school years were confusing. He loved baseball, but was attracted to guys. He'd never heard of gay athletes; he thought he was the only one on the [...]
…And the Winner Is…
Q Puzzle Across 1 Start of a song from "South Pacific" 5 Material from Sylvia Beach? 9 Pricks cover them 14 Soon, to Shakespeare 15 Protected, to seamen 16 Up partner 17 Amsterdam's land (abbr.) [...]
The aftermath of Prop. 8
by Jay Kaplan In May 2008, California's Supreme Court held that it is unconstitutional and a violation of equal protection to deny same-sex couples the right to marry in the state. On Nov. 4, in [...]
Missing the point: New play inspires misunderstanding at Performance Network
ANN ARBOR - Misperceptions and a misunderstanding of the term "inspired by" are apparently behind a bubbling undercurrent of anger directed towards a comedy at Performance Network Theatre that some believe bathes a recently deceased [...]
Huckabee: ’60’s civil rights fight differs, as gays not cracked in head or hosed’
An appearance on ABC's "The View" has landed FOX News commentator and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in some hot water. In a recent stop on the TV talk show to promote his new book, [...]
Condom ad raises questions
EAST LANSING -- An advertising insert placed in the Michigan State University student newspaper, The State News Nov. 13, is raising eyebrows among health educators. Durex condoms initiated a national advertising campaign called Durex U [...]
Community gathers for 9th Annual Transgender Day of Remembrance
FERNDALE - Nearly 70 people filled the rows at Metropolitan Community Church of Detroit on the bitterly cold evening of Nov. 21 to commemorate Transgender Day of Remembrance. The event, held each year, is held [...]
ACLU of Michigan honors lawyer, Arcus Foundation at dinner
by Jessica Carreras DEARBORN - The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan held its annual dinner and awards reception on Nov. 22 with a full crowd at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn. The night included [...]
Obama appointments hold good news for LGBT community
By Lisa Keen Keen News Service The appointments are rolling out steadily now for the Obama administration. Sometimes, they are actual announced appointments; sometimes, they are leaks about presumably certain appointments. But so far, most [...]
BTL Editorial: Ten things you can do to help stop the HIV epidemic in America
As many may recall, Matt Foreman, the former executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, made waves in February when he told the Creating Change conference in Detroit that HIV/AIDS was a [...]
Ol’ Blue Eyes and pals would be proud
By D. A. Blackburn Imitation, they say, is the sincerest form of flattery. If this is true, Deano, Sammy and Frank are probably sitting around the great bar in the sky, beaming with pride. "The [...]
This could be the start of … something
By Martin F. Kohn, guest critic One reason why Nicky Silver might call a play "Raised in Captivity" may be that "Man's Search for Meaning" was already taken (by the late Viktor Frankl) and, besides, [...]
Caviar to the particular at Tipping Point
By Robert Bethune Somewhere in the back of my brain lurks a ghost story about a group of perfect strangers who find themselves called together to form a dinner party. I wonder if that same [...]
Blue skies in Vermont – it’s about time
By Robert Bethune There's a song in "Irving Berlin's White Christmas," now on at the Fox Theatre, about unemployed generals. That unintended topicality is as close as you will come to anything that would shake [...]
MAPP and MAF to merge
by Jessica Carreras In a small gathering of friends and community members at Dino's restaurant in Ferndale, Midwest AIDS Prevention Project's CEO Craig Covey and Michigan AIDS Fund's CEO Dave Coulter announced a historic merger [...]
City of Detroit to hold day of health awareness events
The Michigan Department of Community Health, the city's division of Health, Wellness and Disease Control, the Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion and the Wayne County Department of Public Health will join together to [...]
LAAN Red Ribbon Gala to raise money, support for HIV/AIDS programs
On Dec. 5 at 7 p.m., the Lansing Area AIDS Network will be hosting their annual Red Ribbon Gala at the Eagle Eye Golf Course and Banquet Facility in Lansing. The event, which includes a [...]
MAPP and MAF to merge
by Jessica Carreras In a small gathering of friends and community members at Dino's restaurant in Ferndale, Midwest AIDS Prevention Project's CEO Craig Covey and Michigan AIDS Fund's CEO Dave Coulter announced a historic merger [...]
National notables talk HIV/AIDS at ACLU Dinner
by Jessica Carreras Though the ACLU of Michigan's annual dinner did not focus on the problems associated with the HIV/AIDS epidemic, two of the night's honored guests, Arcus Foundation Executive Director Urvashi Vaid and entertainer [...]
MSU marks World AIDS Day with quilt viewing
In partnership with the Lansing Area AIDS Network and the Olin Health Center, the Michigan State University's Kresge Art Museum and MSU Museum will be displaying part of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt throughout [...]
Obama urged to act on domestic HIV/AIDS in first 100 days
by Bob Roehr The nation's leading AIDS organizations are calling on the incoming Obama administration to take strong action on the domestic epidemic during its first 100 days. During the campaign, President-elect Obama "said he [...]
BTL Editorial: Ten things you can do to help stop the HIV epidemic in America
As many may recall, Matt Foreman, the former executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, made waves in February when he told the Creating Change conference in Detroit that HIV/AIDS was a [...]
Myth busting HIV
MYTH: "Hey, it's cool if I get it, I just take a pill and it goes away!" FACT: While it is true that HIV has become a "manageable disease" since the mid-90s, the reality is [...]
Michigan AIDS Fund to hold World of Desserts for AIDS Day
On Dec. 4, the Michigan AIDS Fund will hold their second annual World of Desserts event in honor of World AIDS Day at the Detroit Historical Museum. The event will feature an array of dessert [...]
World AIDS Day Calendar
by Jessica Carreras See the AIDS Memorial Quilt. Hold up a candle. Donate. Pray. Reflect, remember and spread the word about Dec. 1, World AIDS Day. Here's your BTL guide to the week's events. Where [...]
Kalamazoo City Commission passes gay rights ordinance
BTL staff KALAMAZOO - Monday night city commissioners passed an ordinance banning discrimination based on a person's sexual orientation. The Equal Rights Ordinance is aimed at protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered individuals from discrimination [...]
Kalamazoo City Commission passes gay rights ordinance
KALAMAZOO - Monday night city commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance banning discrimination based on a person's sexual orientation. The Equal Rights Ordinance is aimed at protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered individuals from discrimination in [...]
Kalamazoo City Commission passes gay rights ordinance
KALAMAZOO - Monday night city commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance banning discrimination based on a person's sexual orientation. The Equal Rights Ordinance is aimed at protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered individuals from discrimination in [...]
Creep of the Week: Mike Huckabee
It's never too soon for 2008 presidential also-rans to begin running again, and that's just what ultra conservative Republican Mike Huckabee seems to be doing as we speak. On Nov. 18 Huckabee appeared on The [...]
Standing firm, moving forward
By Rea Carey Last weekend, the nation witnessed an outpouring of emotion and determination from lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the wake of both a historic and painful election day. The outcry by [...]
Wee bit o’blarney!
What do you give a friend's mother who's celebrating her 93rd birthday? A dozen American Beauty roses? A box of Godiva chocolates? Obvious choices. A very special occasion requires a very special gift. I met [...]
The silence and stigma are killing us
Viewpoint We have a problem in the gay men's community. Our silence about the epidemic slowly eating us away is killing us. As much as this might sound like it is some ancient diatribe written [...]
World AIDS Day: Until a cure comes along
On Dec. 1, we will observe the 20th World AIDS Day. The day when individuals and organizations from around the world come together to bring attention to the global AIDS epidemic. In a year when [...]
Off to Africa
The closet door is opening - but not because Adam Martin's coming out. He's going back in. Leaving behind four years as a prevention specialist with Community AIDS Resource and Education Services in Kalamazoo, where [...]
Prince William shakes it (yes, that!) for the camera
Billy Masters "I am very proud. I'm proud to be a woman. I'm proud to be a black woman. I'm proud to be gay. And I love you all. Now let's go get our damn [...]
Holy man-trimony
All the beefcake at Bally couldn't appease the unevenness of "Kiss the Bride," a cobwebby love triangle comedy-drama that has more identity issues than its confused characters. Topping them is Ryan (James O' Shea), whose [...]
Out screenwriter brings ‘Milk’ biopic to the big screen
By Larry Nichols Not only is "Milk" about the life of the first openly gay man elected to public office, but it represents a huge leap in Dustin Lance Black's profile as a screenwriter. Before [...]
New exhibit opens at Paramount Bank
Paramount Gallery's new exhibit, "Object of Desire," will run through Jan. 2 and feature artwork by local high school teachers and students from the metro Detroit area. "Object of Desire" is an open-call multimedia juried [...]
Long live Amanda Palmer
By Laura Witkowski Amanda Palmer is a theatrical master of dark and salacious subject matter, a daring original - punk in the truest sense of the word. On stage, Palmer typically sports the perfect mix [...]