S/He Said
"I don't believe Michele Bachmann's husband is gay – I don't think you'd [Michele Bachmann] run for president – I think he's just effete. If you can have gays who don't seem gay, why can't you have heterosexuals who kind of seem gay? She wouldn't run for president if her husband were gay!"
-Ann Coulter, right-wing pundit, in a guest appearance on an upcoming episode of LOGO's "A-List: Dallas," speaking with gay Republicans,http://www.huffingtonpost.com, Dec. 09. Marcus Bachmann, who has publicly made anti-gay statements, denies that his Christian counseling clinic practices "pray away the gay" reparative therapy, despite evidence to the contrary.
"The finances of LGBT movement organizations appear to be stabilizing despite the difficult economic climate. However, while most revenue streams are increasing, organizations are seeing continued drops in individual donors. Finding ways to reach the 97% of LGBT adults who do not give to these organizations is becoming a more urgent priority."
-Ineke Mushovic, executive director of MAP, about the 2011 National LGBT Movement Report, which provides a comprehensive look of the financial health of LGBT social justice advocacy organizations, http://www.lgbtmap.org, Dec. 6.
"There's more evidence in our polling that the tide is turning on gay marriage. 48% of voters in the state think it should be legal to only 43% who believe it should be illegal. Those numbers should encourage pro-equality voters given that California banned gay marriage by a 4 point margin only three years ago. When you broaden the discussion to include civil unions 78% of voters, including even 65% of Republicans, support some form of legal recognition for gay couples. 85% of Democrats, 79% of independents, and even 65% of Republicans favor at least civil unions."
-In a recent poll, 500 California voters were surveyed by Public Policy Polling, from November 10-13 through automated telephone interviews, http://www.publicpolicypolling.com, Nov. 18.
"The Muppets will save thousands of gay children. In American cinema, one of the rarest narratives is a joyful coming out story. The Muppets seems like a simple reboot of a faded franchise, but watch again and you'll see the protagonist muppet in the classic stages of gay liberation. At the film's climax he claims full muppethood – and through him, young viewers can feel free. Historically, being gay is portrayed as tragic in American cinema. Very few live with joy, which makes claiming one's sexuality a candidacy for martyrdom. Such films are designed to wring tears of sympathy from straight people, who are shocked by the brutality of bigotry. But The Muppets is a surreal, playful and hopeful universe where every difference has a home."
-Nicholas Powers, in his column titled "Coming Out Muppet: The Amazing, Gay Subtext of the New Muppets Movie," Dec. 6, http://www.alternet.org.
