Julian Bond For Mississippi Marriage

"Mississippians know sexual orientation or gender identity shouldn’t matter when it comes to working hard and taking care of your neighbor. Mississippians know all children are valued, no matter who they are. And Mississippians know that above all, treating one another with dignity and respect is what counts.

"The fight for basic civil rights is not a quest for superiority or an unvoiced desire for power. It is, at its root, a battle to raise us all up. We all deserve the right to try and fail, move forward and fall back, and ultimately succeed on our own merits and individual gifts. But for many of us, our ability to dream of a greater and more brilliant future is limited by the color of our skin, the texts of our religious tomes, and the gender of whom we love and who we are.

"The push for full equality for all Americans has always come with hurdles and setbacks. But we are not dissuaded from our path. LGBT Mississippians and their families yearn for a better day, one that we can work together to create. Let’s begin right now." - NAACP chairman emeritus Julian Bond, writing for the Jackson Clarion-Ledger. Hit the link and read the full op-ed.

LGBT And Civil Rights Groups To GOP: Denounce The FRC's Values Voter Summit

A coalition of LGBT and civil rights groups today published a full-page ad in the Washington Post, demanding that the GOP denounce this weekend's Family Research Council Values Voter Summit. Here is the text in full:

Dear Mr. Priebus, Fifteen years ago, your predecessor called for party members to shun the Council of Conservative Citizens because of the group’s “racist views.” “A member of the party of Lincoln should not belong to such an organization,” GOP Chairman Jim Nicholson said. His comments had their intended effect: Senior members of Congress distanced themselves from the group. Today, Chairman Priebus, we ask that you take a similar stand and call upon Republican officials to disassociate themselves from the groups behind the upcoming Values Voter Summit.

The reason is simple: These groups engage in repeated, groundless demonization of LGBT people — portraying them as sick, vile, incestuous, violent, perverted, and a danger to the nation. The Family Research Council, the summit’s host, is vigorously opposed to extending equal rights to the LGBT community. Its president, Tony Perkins, has repeatedly claimed that pedophilia is a “homosexual problem." He has called the “It Gets Better” campaign — designed to give LGBT students hope for a better tomorrow — “disgusting” and a “concerted effort” to “recruit” children into the gay “lifestyle.” He has condemned the National Republican Congressional Committee for supporting three openly gay candidates.

Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association, a summit sponsor, has said the U.S. needs to “be more like Russia,” which enacted a law criminalizing the distribution of LGBT “propaganda.” He has also said, "Homosexuality gave us Adolph Hitler, and homosexuals in the military gave us the Brown Shirts, the Nazi war machine, and six million dead Jews.” Similarly, Mat Staver of the Liberty Counsel, another summit sponsor, has compared those who do not denounce same-sex marriage to those who remained silent during the Holocaust. Marriage equality, he has said, is the “beginning of the end of Western civilization.”

This kind of extremism should not be legitimized by elected officials, because it is contrary to our nation’s highest ideals. As you have said, “People in this country, no matter straight or gay, deserve dignity and respect.” Yet, as in years past, several prominent members of your party — including U.S. Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz, and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal — are currently planning to address the Values Voter Summit that begins on Thursday in Washington. So, the question now is: Will you live up to your own words and tell the members of your party to shun groups that demean other people and deny them dignity? Will the GOP condemn anti-LGBT bigotry as vigorously as it opposed racism 15 years ago? Political leadership makes a difference. We ask that you urge the members of your party not to attend the Values Voter Summit.

The letter is signed by the heads of GLAAD, the HRC, the SPLC, the NAACP, Faithful America, and People For The American Way. Embiggen the image above to see the letter.

LOS ANGELES: Chapter Head Of NAACP Resigns Over Donald Sterling Scandal

CNN reports:

The Donald Sterling scandal has claimed collateral damage: the president of the NAACP's Los Angeles chapter. Leon Jenkins resigned Thursday, after the civil rights group came under fire for its plans to present a lifetime achievement award to the Los Angeles Clippers owner. The NAACP chapter rescinded its offer Monday after Sterling's racist remarks came to light. But the damage was done. The backlash the group faced was brutal. "Please be advised that the legacy, history and reputation of the NAACP is more important to me than the presidency," Jenkins said, in announcing his resignation. He said he was stepping down to separate the organization from the "negative exposure I have caused."

VIRGINIA: 13 States + DC File Amicus Brief In Support Of Marriage Plaintiffs

The following states and Washington DC have filed a collective amicus brief with the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal in support of Virginia's marriage equality plaintiffs: Massachusetts, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. Equality Case Files has the full brief. Money quote:

As in other cases raising constitutional challenges to state marriage laws, there is considerable agreement between Amici States and those States that defend exclusionary laws. All States agree that marriage is a core building block of society; as a result, they regulate entry into, responsibilities during and after, and exit from marriage. Moreover, States establish policies that encourage individuals to get and stay married because they recognize that marriage provides stability for families, households, and the broader community; that children are better off when they are raised by loving, committed parents; and that state resources are preserved when spouses provide for each other and their children. On all of these points— and many more—all States are in accord.

Gay-friendly briefs were also filed today by the NAACP, PFLAG, the Episcopal Church, the Anti-Defamation League, the American Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Family Equality Council, and many others. See them all here. You might be especially interested in a brief filed by a group calling itself Historians Of Anti-Gay Discrimination. I'm just now digging into it, tell us what you think.

Fox Host Hails "NAACP" National Champs

Raw Story wonders if it was a Freudian slip.

“The UConn Huskies are the 2014 NAACP national champs,” Childers remarked during the second hour of the Fox & Friends First morning show. On her next attempt, she correctly stated that the team had won the national title for the NCAA — or National Collegiate Athletic Association. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People — or NAACP — is a civil rights organization focusing on equality for African-Americans and other minorities. At least 10 of the 15 players on the winning UConn team were African-Americans.

Civil Rights Coalition To Congress: Don't "Legitimize Extremism" By Attending FRC's Values Voter Hate Summit

The above groups have signed on to a Southern Poverty Law Center letter which asks members of Congress not to attend the Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit. Via press release:

"Public officials need to know the real ‘values’ they’re endorsing when they attend the Values Voter Summit,” said Heidi Beirich, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Intelligence Project. “Offensive and bigoted lies are not magically transformed into the truth just because a group with the word ‘family’ in its name keeps repeating them.” The letter describes how the FRC has repeatedly portrayed gay men and lesbians as sick, evil, incestuous, violent, perverted and a threat to the nation. It points out that FRC President Tony Perkins has gone so far as to describe the “It Gets Better” campaign – an effort to give LGBT students hope for a better tomorrow – as “disgusting” and part of a “concerted effort” to “recruit” children into the gay “lifestyle.” The letter also points out that Bryan Fischer, AFA spokesman and director of issue analysis, has blamed gay men for the Holocaust and the Nazi Party. “Homosexuality gave us Adolph Hitler, and homosexuals in the military gave us the Brown Shirts, the Nazi war machine and 6 million dead Jews,” Fischer has written.

Among the cavalcade of congressional crackpots scheduled to attend: Crazy Eyes, Gohmert Pyle, Frothy Mix, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Jim Jordan, Tim Scott, Paul Ryan, and Steve King. Read the full letter here.

Alveda King: The NAACP And Gay Activists Have Formed An Unholy Alliance

Julian Bond For Maryland Marriage

NAACP Head Speaks To HRC

NOM's Puppets: Black Pastors Blast NAACP For Endorsing Same-Sex Marriage

(Via Good As You because NOM has bravely blocked me from subscribing to their YouTube channel.)

FRC Cheers Romney At NAACP

Log Cabin On Romney At NAACP

"With his opening remarks to the NAACP today, Governor Romney sent a message that he recognizes the importance of an inclusive Republican vision for victory in November. He deserves credit for taking the step to include sexual orientation by name. That said, it is unfortunate that he countered his outreach to gay and lesbian Americans with a gratuitous attack on the freedom to marry. If Governor Romney truly desires to represent all Americans, Log Cabin Republicans encourages him to avoid divisive social issues and focus on jobs and the economy." - Log Cabin Republicans head R. Clarke Cooper, via press release.

Romney Booed At NAACP Convention

Gay Night At DC's Ballpark

Clip description:

For it's 8th annual Night Out at the Nationals, Team DC broke a new record with more than 4,000 tickets sold as part of the nation's largest LGBT night in professional sports. Taking part in the celebrations were Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.), who threw out the first pitch; special guests Benjamin Jealous, president of the NAACP and outspoken supporter of marriage equality; the DC Different Drummers; and the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, who performed the national anthem as well received Team DC's "Team Spirit" Award.

Mitt Romney To Address NAACP

The man who has pledged to impose a federal amendment to ban same-sex marriage will address the group who earlier this month officially endorsed it. That should be...interesting. Via press release:

Every four years we invite the presidential candidates to address our convention, and we are delighted that Governor Romney has decided to join us,” stated NAACP Chairman Roslyn M. Brock. “Governor Romney will have the opportunity to speak to NAACP leaders from every state in the nation. We are proud to offer a forum to discuss the important issues of the day.” “We are pleased that Governor Romney has decided to join us in Houston this summer,” stated NAACP President Benjamin Todd Jealous. “This election will be about how to provide the best future for all Americans, of every color and background. As America grows more diverse, we can choose to embrace that diversity or let it divide us. We look forward to an engaging conversation with Governor Romney about his vision for a more just society.”

Mitt Romney's "vision for a more just society"? Snork.

NAACP President Ben Jealous At Netroots

His handler took this photo of us just as I was expressing my admiration and thanks for the NAACP's ardent support of the LGBT movement. It's a pity my eyes are closed, but I think I was a little taken up in the moment.

NEW YORK: Gay Groups To Denounce NYPD's Stop-And-Frisk Policy

A broad coalition of LGBT groups and others will gather at Manhattan's Stonewall Inn today to jointly denounce the NYPD's racist stop-and-frisk policy.

“We are all standing together against police harassment on the basis of a person’s identity,” Rea Carey, the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, said in an interview. “There was no rational reason to raid the Stonewall Inn in 1969, and there is no rational reason to stop black and Latino men in 2012 and frisk them simply for being who they are,” she said. The gay rights groups, including the Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal and the Empire State Pride Agenda, also plan to participate in a march on June 17 to protest the stop-and-frisk practice. The march is being organized by the N.A.A.C.P., the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, and 1199 S.E.I.U., a union of health care workers. In 2011, the police stopped and questioned New Yorkers 684,330 times; 87 percent of those stopped were black or Latino.

The event kicks off at 4pm.

Alveda King Fires Back At Critics

"The 21st century homosexual lobby likes to point to the professional relationship between my uncle Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bayard Rustin, his openly homosexual staffer who left the movement at the height of the campaign. Rustin attempted to convince Uncle M. L. that homosexual rights were equal with civil rights. Uncle M. L. did not agree, and would not attach the homosexual agenda to the 20th century civil rights struggles. So Mr. Rustin resigned. He was a brilliant strategist and was hired by Uncle M. L. not because he was gay, but because he was a capable strategist. He also was not fired, he chose to resign. My uncle was not a bigot, and he didn't judge people for the color of their skin nor their sexual orientation. Neither do I. As compassionate Christians who won't be forced to sit on the back of the bus as far as our spiritual commitments are concerned, we can be compassionate without endorsing sin." - Alveda King, apparently feeling the heat after yesterday's denouncement of the NAACP. Hit the first link for much more.

Alveda King Denounces The NAACP

"Neither my great-grandfather, an NAACP founder, my grandfather Dr. Martin Luther King, Sr. an NAACP leader, my father Rev. A. D. Williams King, nor my uncle Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. embraced the homosexual agenda that the current NAACP is attempting to label as a civil rights agenda. In the 21st Century, the anti-traditional marriage community is in league with the anti-life community, and together with the NAACP and other sympathizers, they are seeking a world where homosexual marriage and abortion will supposedly set the captives free." - Alveda King, in a press release published by Christian Newswire.

Black Pastor Calls For Quitting The NAACP

"When you recognize that the black community is strongly a Christian-based group of people, conservative in most of the things they believe, the NAACP has gone diabolically the opposite direction of tradition of the black community. [The NAACP] really is doing this in order to stay relevant and in order to build up their revenues as it relates to what they can get from the gay community. I think those individuals who call themselves Christian or call themselves Jewish who are members of the NAACP should denounce the organization, should cancel their membership, and really look for something else or another organization such as the Frederick Douglas Foundation to be affiliated with." - Timothy Johnson, the (surprise) founder of the Frederick Douglas Foundation, whose website appears to be entirely about defeating Barack Obama.