San Francisco Says Goodbye To Prop 8

From JMG reader Sean Chapin in San Francisco. Bring on the happy dancing bears! Play loud!

Harvey Milk Day - Hope

Video by Sean Chapin.

"What came to be called 'The Hope Speech' was initially conceived as a stump address, wherein Milk attempted to embolden a strong GLBTQ nationalism within the Castro, while also appealing for an alliance with other disenfranchised groups and straight folks," wrote Jason Edward Black and Charles E. Morris III in their anthology An Archive of Hope: Harvey Milk's Speeches and Writings (University of California Press, 2013). Milk would revise the speech and recite it several more times at various appearances, according to the introduction written by Black and Morris to the version they included in their book. It was a defiant speech about gay self-acceptance that included Milk's call for LGBT people to come out of the closet and inspire others to do so. For as Milk said, particularly of LGBT youth, "And you have to give them hope. Hope for a better world. Hope for a better tomorrow. Hope for a place to go if the pressures at home are too great. Hope that all will be alright."

SAN FRANCISCO: Activists Handcuffed At City Hall Valentine's Marriage Protest

Fourteen activists were handcuffed in San Francisco yesterday after a marriage equality sit-in at City Hall.  The group was taken out of the building and released without citations.

Same-sex couples tried to get marriage licenses Thursday at the county clerk's office at San Francisco City Hall as part of a symbolic Valentine's Day protest against California's ban on gay marriage. The annual action, organized by Marriage Equality USA, was preceded by a news conference at which organizers said they simply want the same rights as heterosexual couples. Tabaco and Thom Watson are one of the couples waiting for gay marriage to be legalized in California and who went to the clerk's office to ask for a marriage license. "We know we won't be able to get legally married today," Watson said. "We're asking for that same recognition until it's simply the way things are." The group walked to the clerk's office while singing the song "What the World Needs Now Is Love" and chanting for marriage equality. One man in a tuxedo in the rotunda, apparently unaware of the purpose of the chanting, yelled, "We're trying to get married here, have some respect!"

JMG reader Sean Chapin was there and provides video.

Sean Chapin Reacts To 49ers Flap

Santa Claus Is Coming....Out

SF Officials React To SCOTUS

Video by JMG reader Sean Chapin.

SF Chorus: A Tribute To Harvey Milk

Yesterday was the 34th anniversary of Harvey Milk's assassination. JMG reader Sean Chapin writes with a description of the clip below:

The video follows an original chorus member (Robert Rufo) who was at the chorus' first-ever public appearance, which was at the candlelight vigil on the steps of City Hall the night when Harvey Milk was assassinated. Robert Rufo remembers what it was like that night, and how the chorus has been living the legacy of Harvey Milk since then over the last 34 years. The video shows Robert Rufo and the SF Gay Men's Chorus singing at the 34th anniversary memorial service and marching with candles to the Castro. Speakers at the memorial service last night included Supervisor Scott Weiner, Harvey Milk's campaign manager Anne Kronenberg, Mayor Ed Lee, former Mayor Willie Brown, George Moscone's son Jonathan Moscone, California State Assemblymember Tom Ammiano, Supervisor David Campos and Harvey Milk's nephew Stuart Milk. The song/recording in the video is "Thou Lord Our Refuge", which the chorus sung that night at City Hall when Harvey Milk left us in 1978, as re-arranged by chorus member Edwin Morales and performed earlier this year in 2012. The chorus in June 2013 will be premiering a landmark concert called Harvey Milk 2013, Living The Legacy.

Sean Chapin - Marry Them

Sean writes: "Marry Them is an original song about a straight husband who sings to his wife about how he's changed his mind toward supporting marriage equality."

Selena Leffew - I Have Two Fathers

Beyond cute.

Zach Wahls At Obama Fundraiser

Video by JMG reader Sean Chapin.

San Francisco 49ers Become First NFL Team To Join It Gets Better Campaign

Via press release from JMG reader Sean Chapin:

The San Francisco 49ers have become the first NFL team to join the It Gets Better Project, an online video project where thousands of videos condemning anti-gay bullying are curated. The 49ers’ video comes after a successful petition drive, led by fan Sean Chapin, who rallied more than 16,000 people to sign his petition on Change.org encouraging the 49ers to make a video. “With their ‘It Gets Better’ video, the 49ers are shining a golden beacon of hope to LGBT youth, and as a gay man, I enthusiastically applaud their courage and leadership,” said Chapin, who also successfully petitioned the San Francisco Giants last year to become the first Major League Baseball team in the country to make an “It Gets Better” video. “This is a proud day for San Francisco, as two of our professional teams have taken a bold stand against bullying,” said Chapin. “Let’s hope this is only the beginning, and that more NFL and professional sports teams around the country take this opportunity to speak up on behalf of LGBT fans and kids.”

Well done, Sean!

Pay The Gay Away

Via JMG reader Sean Chapin, who also provided the headline. Source.

SF Gay Men's Chorus Celebrates 75th Anniversary Of Golden Gate Bridge

Sean Chapin - Evolution

A tribute to yesterday by JMG reader Sean Chapin.

SAN FRANCISCO: Rep. Nancy Pelosi Honored At AIDS Memorial Grove

Video by Sean Chapin. Have you visited the AIDS Memorial Grove? Make a point of doing so on your next visit to San Francisco, it's unspeakably moving.

The AIDS Quilt: 25 Years Later

Video by Sean Chapin.

When San Francisco Got The News

Video by Sean Chapin.

Sean Chapin: I'm Married & I Know It

Another winner from JMG reader Sean Chapin.

Sean Chapin - He's Gay, He's Gay

Major League Baseball Adds "Sexual Orientation" To Union Agreement

More good news in the world of sports.

Major League Baseball, which saw Jackie Robinson break the color barrier in 1947, today will announce incremental progress in another civil rights issue. The new Collective Bargaining Agreement adds “sexual orientation” to its section on discrimination, a person with direct knowledge of the agreement told the Daily News. Article XV, Section A of the MLB’s expiring Basic Agreement, in effect from 2006-2011, states: “The provisions of this Agreement shall be applied to all Players covered by this Agreement without regard to race, color, religion or national origin.” In the new agreement, which will be made public this afternoon, the words “sexual orientation” will be added to the equivalent section.

RELATED: You may recall that the San Francisco Giants, upon the urging of local activist Sean Chapin, became the first pro sports team to create an "It Gets Better" video. Several other pro baseball teams have since followed suit. I don't think it's far-fetched to give Chapin some credit for today's news.