Dear Jody: A web funeral?
Q: My "Uncle George" died recently. My "Aunt Mabel," Uncle George's wife, is in the hospital right now. She's expected to get better, but the doctors don't know how long she'll be hospitalized. The doctor [...]
Queeries: Must two brides dress like twins?
By Steven Petrow Q: My fiancee and I are planning our wedding, which is going to be very "traditional" in many ways. We agree on almost all the details, except the all-important one of what [...]
Ferndale Pride
Residents, organizations and community leaders of Ferndale have planned a series of events to both complement and supplement Motor City Pride's Hart Plaza festivities on Friday, June 3 and early Saturday, June 4. Volunteers for [...]
Still Jammin’
So what if the music sucks. "If you're on ecstasy, anything sounds good," says John Collins, who's comparing the era his career was born out of - the '80s - to what we're hearing now. [...]
Deep Inside Hollywood
By Romeo San Vicente Johnny Depp is going to get 'Thin,' man You can't tell anyone in Hollywood anything. It seems like, more often than not, that people in positions of power believe they have [...]
Q Scopes: You’re sexy as hell, Gemini!
By Jack Fertig Pluto and Eris, both in hard aspect to the Sun, bring out everyone's competitive streak, crank up the stakes and complicate the struggle. Communication is the key, which means you have to [...]
Hear Me Out: Not feeling the ‘Love?’ on Jennifer Lopez’s new album
Jennifer Lopez, 'Love?' On her first album in four years, J.Lo isn't waiting for tonight - it's already here. There's debaucherous drinking and dancing on the hyper-slamming first single "On the Floor," leaning on the [...]
Chung Chung
Across 1 Class for future AZT makers 5 Of an appendage in your face 10 Unkissed prince? 14 "Desert of the Heart" novelist Jane 15 ___ Gay 16 NG: Racing sled 17 NG: Pancake topping [...]
The OutField: Changing the game for good
By Dan Woog Over the past two decades, LGBT educational issues surged into the headlines. Library books, curricula, protection for gay students - all have earned important national attention. One area, though, still seemed off [...]
‘Eleemosynary’ is filled with charity
By Bridgette M. Redman Three generations of extraordinary women: Rebecca Covey, Julia Glander and Michelle Meredith in "Eleemosynary" at the Williamston Theatre. Photo: Chris Purchis There is little more difficult in life to interpret [...]
TPT’s ‘Crimes’ guilty of stealing hearts
By John Quinn Inga R. Wilson, Maggie Meyer and Hallie B. Bard in Tipping Point Theatre's "Crimes of the Heart." Photo: Howard and Charlotte Meyer "When life hands you lemons, make lemonade" is such [...]
Dorsey tickles with Ann Landers’ tales
By Bridgette M. Redman Diane Dorsey stars as columnist Ann Landers in Stormfield Theatre's "The Lady With All the Answers." Photo: Sandra Debnar One of the biggest challenges to doing a solo show is [...]
Out of Town: Louisville and Lexington
by Andrew Collins Every year in May, all eyes fall upon Kentucky's pastoral Bluegrass region. During the first week of the month, the city of Louisville holds the Kentucky Derby, the most celebrated Thoroughbred racing [...]
Euro institutions mark IDAHO
by Rex Wockner INTERNATIONAL NEWS Major European Union institutions issued statements and took other actions to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia on May 17. They included the European Parliament, the European Commission, [...]
Gay families exhibit at European Commission
by Rex Wockner INTERNATIONAL NEWS The European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association staged an exhibition about same-sex families in the main building of the European Commission in Brussels May [...]
LGBTs stage festival in Belarus, marchers arrested
by Rex Wockner INTERNATIONAL NEWS LGBT people in Belarus opened their first Equality Festival at Minsk's Crowne Plaza hotel May 14. About 100 people attended, including some foreign diplomats. "I commend and admire your courage," [...]
Montenegro gay concert tear-gassed
by Rex Wockner INTERNATIONAL NEWS Assumedly anti-gay hooligans tear-gassed an International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia concert in Montenegro's capital, Podgorica, on May 17, according to the European Parliament's Intergroup on LGBT Rights. The report [...]
St. Petersburg OKs gay demo, Moscow bans Pride again
by Rex Wockner INTERNATIONAL NEWS With city approval, some 150 LGBT activists staged a "Rainbow Flashmob" in St. Petersburg, Russia, on May 17 in conjunction with the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. Organizers said [...]
Lesbians of color support network hosts Motor City Pride Boat Ride
DETROIT- The Lesbians of Color Support Network, the only mentorship program exclusively serving LGBT young women of color in Southeast Michigan, will host the first annual "Motor City Pride Boat Ride," a fundraiser aboard the [...]
After-party benefits the Ruth Ellis Center
DETROIT- The Cupcake Collective deejays are sponsoring a party at the Old Miami on Saturday, June 4 from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. The event benefits the Ruth Ellis Center, one of three shelters in [...]
Victorian punk-themed benefit for Ferndale Public Library and Queer for Books
FERNDALE- Floral company Blumz by JR Designs is sponsoring a benefit, An Evening Under the Poppy, for the Ferndale Public Library and the Queer for Books book club on Friday, June 3 at 6:30 p.m. [...]
Youth summit June 11-12
DETROIT- KICK, The Agency for LGBT African-Americans, is sponsoring a youth summit on June 11-12 at the Ruth Ellis Center. Registration and continental breakfast begins at 9:30 a.m. with the opening session at 11:00 a.m. [...]
SE Dyke March June 4
FERNDALE- The Southeast Michigan Dyke March, an event with the goal of promoting visibility of the area's lesbian, transgender, bisexual, and queer community, will be held Saturday, June 4 at 2 p.m. in downtown Ferndale. [...]
Equality Action Tour stops in Detroit to discuss discrimination against gay and transgender Michiganders
DETROIT- A coalition of advocacy organizations is launching an Equality Action Tour, a series of town hall events to promote equality for all in Michigan. The sixth event in the series will take place at [...]
Regressive social agenda clear in Republican budget
By Eric Rader Over the past few weeks, much of the nation has been focused on national and international events, including the killing of Osama bin Laden, developments in the Mideast peace process, large spikes [...]
TN gov. signs anti-gay law
By Tara Cavanaugh NASHVILLE- Tenn. Gov. Bill Haslam signed a controversial bill into law Monday night that bans cities from creating anti-discrimination policies that are stricter than state anti-discrimination law. The city that will be [...]
EQCA hires new ED
By Rex Wockner Equality California announced its replacement for former Executive Director Geoff Kors on May 16. Roland Palencia will lead the LGBT movement in the nation's most populous state. Unknown to many California LGBT [...]
Focus on the Family president says anti-gay activists have “probably lost” on marriage
By BTL Staff NEW YORK- In an interview in the June 4, 2011 issue of World Magazine, Jim Daly, president and CEO of Focus on the Family, a leading funder of anti-marriage equality activists, said [...]
HUD offers 9.1M to HIV/AIDS housing
WASHINGTON- The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Monday that it is offering up to $9.1 million to address the critical housing needs of low-income persons and families living with HIV/AIDS, including homeless [...]
Web-filter company updates software in response to ACLU complaints about illegal censorship of LGBT content on public school computers
By BTL Staff NEW YORK- Lightspeed Systems, which produces software used for website filtering in thousands of public schools across the U.S., says it will update its software to remove a filter that blocked websites [...]
Rainbow Rumpus launches free downloadable books about LGBT families
MINNEAPOLIS-- Rainbow Rumpus, the online magazine for kids and teens with LGBT parents, is launching a free series of downloadable books designed to fight bullying and promote acceptance. Each book tells a story about a [...]
Stick to the budget, Repubs.
Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that Republicans across the country had a great election last year, and our state was no exception. Michigan citizens voted in a majority-Republican state House and [...]
Stacey Campfield
Creep of the Week Ah, yes. The joys of sex education. I think all of us have fond memories of that day in fifth or sixth grade when the boys got shuffled into one room, [...]
What do you think about ‘glittergate’ – an activist dumping rainbow glitter on Newt Gingrich, who’s hoping for the Republican nomination for the 2012 presidential race?
As funny as that was, it'll probably only make people who are against homosexuality think that we are childish and don't deserve grown-up rights. -Jay Topham What a waste of glitter! -Anthony Battaglia I think [...]
Two up yours!
Parting Glances Gay composer Leonard Bernstein's 1956 broadway musical "Candide" has a bravura soprano song, "Glitter and be gay" written for and originally sung by Barbara Cook (still giving concerts at 80-something). I thought of [...]
Sports, homophobia
Compiled by Tara Cavanaugh S/he Said "Every player has played with gay guys. It bothers me when I hear these reporters and jocks get on TV and say: 'Oh, no guy can come out in [...]
Civil unions better than nothing
By John Corvino By the time you read this, the Rhode Island House will have passed a civil-unions bill that no one seems to want. Many gay-rights advocates in the state, led by Marriage Equality [...]
President Obama voices support for June’s Pride month
The story of America's LGBT community is the story of our fathers and sons, our mothers and daughters, and our friends and neighbors who continue the task of making our country a more perfect Union. [...]
Motor City Pride draws more than 44,000
By Tara Cavanaugh Motor City Pride celebrated its new location at Detroit's Hart Plaza this past weekend. BTL photo: Andrew Potter. With its move from a suburb to a city, more days and a [...]