HomoQuotable - Jared Polis

"Oh, it didn't pass? OK. So we still need to pass it? OK. So we'll try to pass that one for you, too. But that's why we need it. And of course Obama supports that, our Congress supports that, our Senate supports that. I thought we did pass it, so we will try to get that. But that's exactly why we need it though, because in some of the areas where gays and lesbians do feel terrorized every day, the local authorities are in league with the forces of hate. And this would, when we pass it -- thanks for pointing that out -- give you recourse to go to the federal government to investigate hate crimes in your area." - Openly gay freshman Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO), who didn't know that gays are not covered by federal hate crimes laws.

The Dallas Voice has the audio of Polis' speech, during which he was corrected by the president of the Texas Stonewall Democatic Caucus. I find it rather incredible that an openly gay Congress member does not know exactly what the goals of the movement are.

UPDATE: Andy Towle has gotten a statement about the flap from Polis, which says in part:

"It's rather remarkable to me that this is getting so much play. Obviously I am well acquainted with hate crimes laws, ENDA, DADT, and other issues facing our community but we all sometimes make mistakes when we're speaking, especially in this case when I had just finished talking about how we in Colorado had gotten a hate-crimes law.

"I didn't just start working on these issues when I arrived in Congress, I've been an active supporter of HRC for years and advocated for the hate crimes law when it was being considered in Colorado.

"There's no excuse for the mistake, but anyone who speaks a lot is bound to make them from time to time. What surprises me is how eagerly some people have leapt on it. We are on the same side, fighting the same fight, and supporting our LGBT community, as I was in Austin for the Stonewall Dems.

Jared Polis"

Read Towleroad's entire post on the story.

Lawrence King's Parents Sue School, Claim Dress Code Was Not Enforced

The parents of murdered gay teen Lawrence King have sued the school district and Ventura Country, claiming that the school's failure to force King to dress like a boy led to his killing.

The boy's parents, Dawn and Gregory King, along with his younger brother, Rocky King, are seeking unspecified damages related to the fatal shooting of the 15-year-old boy as he sat in English class at E.O. Green School in Oxnard on Feb. 12.

To protect their rights to sue, plaintiffs must file claims against public agencies for injury, death or property damage within six months. The claims were received last Friday, a few days before the six-month mark.

King's father declined comment Thursday, and family attorney Steve Pell did not return a call seeking comment. Hueneme Superintendent Jerry Dannenberg said he had informed the school board Wednesday that the complaint had been filed. Officials have turned the matter over to a self-funding insurance authority to consider.

"We were anticipating some type of claim to be filed," the superintendent said. The county's risk manager, Chuck Pode, said he expected to reject the claim. King was a ward of the court and living at the Casa Pacifica shelter for abused, neglected and emotionally troubled children at the time of the shooting.

"From what I've seen of the contentions and immunities given to government employees, I expect this one would be rejected, and I'm sure Mr. Pell does, too," he said. Pode said he has more questions than answers about the two-page complaint. "Much of what they had to say is against the school district, and they kind of mix and match what county obligations are and the school district's are," he said.

In the claims, the Kings say school and county staff members failed to enforce the middle school's dress code. That put the feminine-dressing King at particular risk at a time when staff members knew he had "unique vulnerabilities" and was "susceptible to abuse" because of his perceived sexual orientation, the claim says.

The family says educators knew the boy was at risk because he had been subjected to death threats at Hathaway School, an elementary campus he attended in Oxnard. King had told friends he was gay, and he wore makeup, jewelry and high-heeled boots with his school uniform — something Dannenberg said the teen had the freedom to do under his First Amendment rights.

Assistant Principal Joy Epstein, the only person named in the complaint, is accused of encouraging the boy to wear "women's clothing, shoes and makeup." She created an environment of "perceived safety" for King when "in fact she could not and did not protect Larry from the threats and ultimate death," the claim says.

The school district has said that it would have been a violation of King's rights to force him to dress as a boy. However, dress codes require that students not dress in manner that will "cause a distraction" to other students. Last week King's killer, Brandon McInerney pled not guilty. Extensive coverage of the King story on JMG can be found here.

Hate Crimes Bill Dead For Months

The Democrats' ploy of attaching the federal hates crimes bill (the Matthew Shepard Act) as an amendment to a Department of Defense appropriations bill did not work because the Dems also attached an amendment requiring troops to pull out of Iraq by May 1, prompting Republicans to plan a filibuster on the item. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) pulled the bill from consideration last week. The bill will probably not be considered again until October or later.

Some gay rights groups such as the HRC continue to support attaching the MSA to the DOD bill, but others are silent. A similar ploy failed in 2004 when the Senate approved the hate crimes act as attached to a DOD appropriations bill, but the House did not allow it to come to a vote. This time the situation is reversed as the House approved its versions of the hate crimes act in May. Activists theorize that Bush would not dare veto a DOD bill, even with the MSA attached, so long as the troop withdrawal provision isn't there too.

Justice For Kevin Aviance

All four assailants charged in last summer's brutal assault of drag entertainer Kevin Aviance pled guilty in NYC court today, receiving prison sentences ranging from 6 to 15 years in plea agreements that included hate crimes embellishments. The four young men, who range in age from 17 to 21 years old, had faced up to 25 years each for the attack, had they been found guilty in a trial. All had been charged with gang assault as a hate crime.

The above hefty sentences, satisfied readers, are the result of New York's hate crimes laws. To ensure that such justice is available to LGBT people nationwide, please read the post below this one and make sure that your representative in Congress hears from you.
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LGBT-Inclusive Hate Crimes Bill Introduced In Congress

Yesterday, with the support of a broad coalition of professional organizations, including many law enforcement groups, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) introduced the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which will extend hate crimes protection to the LGBT community. Today the American Family Organization issued an action alert to stop the legislation, saying that the hate crimes bill will be "the first step toward silencing any opposition to the homosexual lifestyle."

To dramatize the horrible perversions about to be wrought upon God-fearing society, the AFA imbedded a video of a Chicago gay pride parade, with the red-lettered warning: "The video is highly offensive, but it is real footage from the actual parade." The video is nothing but standard pride parade footage, shirtless hunks gyrating on floats, boys holding hands, an occasional drag queen. (It was clearly made by a gay man, who laid a great dance track under his footage. I feel sorry for this guy whose home movie has been hijacked by the AFA.)

Visit the HRC's site where they have made it very easy for you to find and contact your Congressperson to urge support for this very important bill or to thank them for already being a co-sponsor. My representative, Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), is already onboard and I just sent her an appreciative note. Go to the HRC link above and find out where your Congressperson stands. Do it NOW.

UPDATE: The owner of the video has made it private, preventing the AFA members from seeing it. Good boy!
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Battle Cry For Hate Crimes Bill

The current issue of The Advocate features a joint column by HRC head Joe Solmonese and activist Judy Shepard calling for immediate action on a national hate crimes law, as this may be the best year to get such a bill passed.

Fear of violence remains a horrible reality for millions of GLBT Americans—even in places that many consider “tolerant” or “progressive.” Every act of violence is tragic and harmful in its consequences, but not all crime is based on hate. A bias-motivated crime affects not only the victim and his or her family but an entire community or category of people and their families.

The current federal hate-crimes law, enacted nearly 40 years ago, covers only bias attacks based on race, ethnicity, national origin, and religion. In the case of a hate crime based on sexual orientation or gender identity, our government’s hands are tied: It doesn’t have the authority to go after perpetrators of anti-LGBT violent crime. It’s time to update the law to protect everyone.

Recent high profile anti-gay hate crimes have dramatized the need for a national hate crimes law that includes crimes against LGBT people. Read the Solmonese/Shepard Advocate column here.
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