Every week Between The Lines learns of new or enhanced Internet resources available to the community. As a service to our readers we will feature these sites as space permits. Please be sure to check on our website for links to these and other great surfing locations at https://www.pridesource.com.
Don't Amend t-shirt sales to benefit fight against marriage amendment
The Don't Amend web site (http://www.dontamend.com) is offering a t-shirt from Don't Panic (http://www.dontpanic.com) to benefit its efforts against the anti-gay marriage amendment. For a mere $16 you can tell the world that, "Marriage is a human right, not a heterosexual privilege." Well, at least the part of the world looking at your chest.
While you're at the site shopping, take a moment to sign the Don't Amend pledge which states, "I won't vote for anyone who supports the anti-gay amendment." So far less than 20,000 people have signed. Get the word out. Send the site to your email lists, sign the pledge, and then stick to it come November.
{HEADER Lambda Legal releases 'Little Black Book' resource against police
harassment and other dangers gay men encounter when cruising for sex}
Lambda Legal launched a national campaign last week to fight police harassment and other harms men face when cruising for sex. Lambda Legal's latest publication, Little Black Book, tells men who have sex with men about their legal rights if they are harassed or arrested while cruising for sex in public.
Lambda Legal's Help Desk receives many calls from men looking for legal assistance after being arrested or harassed by the police. An earlier edition of the Little Black Book was one of the most popular pages at Lambda Legal's website (http://www.lambdalegal.org). According to Lambda Legal, many gay men taken into police custody do not know their basic civil rights and often, without their knowledge, allow them to be trampled upon by prosecutors or the police.
Michigan HIV News web site
Michigan HIV News (http://www.mihivnews.com) is published as a news and information service for professionals and volunteers in HIV prevention and care services and is provided by the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project (MAPP).
This exhaustive site covers a lot of ground. It includes a link to help you find a testing site in your area, job postings in the HIV/AIDS field, up to date news about HIV/AIDS, and more. You can also download their quarterly newsletter as a .pdf file. This site is a great resource for anyone interested in HIVAIDS issues in Michigan.
'Queer Eye on Comics' debuts
Just how gay are comic books? That question is one that will be explored on a weekly basis in "Queer Eye on Comics," a new review feature presented by Prism Comics. At the beginning of each week the nonprofit organization, which advocates for greater inclusion of LGBT characters and creators in the comic book industry, will offer a new humorous review of a past or current comic book on its website, http://www.prismcomics.org.
"'Queer Eye on Comics' will begin appearing on the features section of the Prism Comics website on February 22nd," said Charles "zan" Christensen, president of Prism Comics.
NCLR issues tool kit on LGBTQ youth in foster care and juvenile justice
In a new tool kit, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) offers resources designed to educate people about the experiences of LGBTQ youth in the foster care and juvenile justice systems.
The tool kit materials can be accessed at http://www.nclrights.org. The materials include a summary of California's new law prohibiting harassment and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in the foster care system, a Q&A guide about this new law, as well as fact sheets on the experiences of LGBTQ youth in the foster care and juvenile justice systems.
NCLR's Youth Project has been advocating for LGBTQ youth in schools, foster care, juvenile justice settings, and the mental health system since 1993. The Project provides direct, free legal information to youth, legal advocates, and activists through a toll-free line; advocates for policies that protect and support LGBTQ youth; and litigates cases that establish legal protections for LGBTQ youth in schools, foster care, juvenile justice and other settings.
IGLHRC calls for global mobilization to help pass UN Resolution on Sexual Orientation and Human Rights
The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), along with a global coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), has issued a call to LGBT organizations and allies around the world to mobilize in support of the UN Commission on Human Rights Resolution on Sexual Orientation and Human Rights. This landmark resolution is the first one in the history of the United Nations that specifically spells out that abuses on the basis of sexual orientation are human rights violations. It recognizes the existence of sexual-orientation based discrimination around the world; affirms that such discrimination contravenes what has been established in major human rights instruments; and calls all governments to promote and protect the human rights of people, regardless of their sexual orientation. This resolution which will be considered at the 60th session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (March 15-April 25 in Geneva, Switzerland).
For more information on the resolution and on how you can help mobilize support for its passage, see the Action Kit on our website at www.iglhrc.org under Publications/ Fact Sheets (http://www.iglhrc.org/site/iglhrc/content.php?type=1&id=109).
Further information is also available at the International Lesbian and Gay Association's website at http://www.ilga.org.
