Category: LGBT rights

by James Sullivan/ Science Recorder / July 24, 2015

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has asked that the California Coastal Commission reject SeaWorld San Diego’s efforts to expand its killer whale tanks.

The project is estimated at $100 million, to be completed in 2018, but has yet to received endorsement from the Coastal Commission.

“This item has been postponed because of all the information submitted,” said commissioner Alex Llerandi.

“The coastal staff is taking the time to ensure all potential issues and viewpoints are considered in any final recommendations.”

By Anna Daniels / San Diego Free Press

Doug Porter recently wrote about the after hours demolition of one of San Diego’s two remaining historic Saltbox houses. The Bernie Michels-Thom Carey house at the corner of Florida Street and El Cajon Blvd was bulldozed by contractors working for developer HG Fenton this past Friday, May 29.

San Diego 6News has reported that the demolition permit may have been issued in error and that the city’s Development Services Department is conducting a “forensic review.” If that is the case, it is one helluva oops. A dozen red roses and a Hallmark card won’t put humpty dumpty back together again.

Strictly radical, always queer

By Anna Prouty

Canvass for a Cause was founded in 2009 as a queer canvassing organization focused on marriage equality. It quickly grew into the intersectional queer safe space and radical activism community it is now.

It’s a Gay Thing

By Linda Perine / Democratic Woman’s Club

As you may have noticed, October has not been a happy month for the San Diego LGBT community.

Earlier this month the Harvey Milk American Diner in Hillcrest closed abruptly, bouncing checks to workers and simply failing to pay others, including the Harvey Milk Foundation.

At an October 8 press conference an LA Times reporter began asking questions about allegations of sexual harassment against Republican Carl de Maio. He is an openly gay candidate for the 52^nd congressional district.

Both stories have grown into full-fledged embarrassments for the LGBT community.

Editor: OB and Point Loma plus much of the Mission Beach and PB areas are within the 52nd Congressional District that Democrat Scott Peters now holds. His main opponent in the upcoming election is our old friend Republican Carl DeMaio, former mayoral candidate for San Diego. (We call him ‘friend’ because he always gives us so much to write about.)

By Lucas O’Connor

Carl DeMaio is running for Congress. You may have heard. And even though he’s had the misfortune of writing down and voting on major issues for more than a decade, so far his campaign is predicated on hoping that nobody notices in spite of article after article after article after article chronicling his career.

The attempts to fake a newfound moderation on social issues have been well chronicled, but if you don’t believe him, don’t ask him… He refuses to talk about civil rights issues even as the Republican leadership Carl’s running to empower continues going along with Tea Party extremists and holding votes on exactly those issues. It’s not clear if anyone’s really sat down yet and explained to Carl that you can’t actually be an à la carte Congressman, but he seems committed to trying anyhow.

By Ernie McCray

Growing up in Arizona
I used to have simple dreams:
Eating in any cafe;
sitting anywhere in a movie theatre
or skating at the rink
at any time on any day;
attending any school
I could get myself to
and swimming in any pool.

San Diego Columnist is elated over marriage equality rulings but dismayed by court’s ruling on Voting Rights Act

By Mark Gabrish Conlan / East County Magazine

The sun is shining this Wednesday, June 26 and it’s a beautiful, if rather hot, day in San Diego. I sent my husband Charles off to work this morning after we both got up early to watch MS-NBC broadcast news of the United States Supreme Court’s rulings on two cases involving the rights of same-sex couples to marry each other. It was a personal story to us because Charles and I are legally married.

We got hitched on July 4, 2008, during the four- and one-half month “window” …

* Interview with Lifeguard Historian Who Notes OB Drownings of 13 on May 5, 1918

* San Diego Bands Play for Benefit and Tribute to Creator of “Crawdaddy” at OB’s Winston’s on Sunday

* Frequency Film Festival Returns to The Ocean Beach Playhouse

* Skateboard Park Designer Got His Start in OB and Point Loma

* History of Medical Marijuana Efforts in San Diego County

* Summer of Love at Liberty Station – All hippies — and hipsters— are welcome!

by Mark Gabrish Conlan / Zenger’s Newsmagazine

First, the good news: the United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear the constitutional challenge to Proposition 8, the voter-approved initiative that abruptly stopped California’s four and one-half month experience of marriage equality in November 2008.

Now, the bad news: the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear the constitutional challenge to Proposition 8.

These words are in memory
of a dear friend whom I met in 1975
through my soul mate Nancy
who also is no longer alive
although they both will
exist forever, in my inner being, spirit wise.
And as it is with life,
I could have never known
back then
that this new friend,
Charlie McKain, Lucky,
would represent the kind of
human progress
in which he has been
involved in
(my mother, by the way,
is turning in her grave
with that ordering of words
as she was the queen of the preposition) –

By Dana Littlefield and Matthew T. Hall / U-T San Diego / May 1, 2012

SAN DIEGO — A judge ruled Tuesday that prosecutors in a case involving a group of same-sex marriage activists violated the defendants’ rights by dismissing potential jurors based on their sexual orientation. Superior Court Judge Joan Weber dismissed the entire jury panel, saying she found it “shocking” that the San Diego City Attorney’s Office would exclude two gay jurors during the selection process.

The Ocean Beach – Point Loma area has lost a strong gay rights advocate and Democratic Party activist as Charles McKain passed away on Saturday, March 17th.

He and his partner of 36 years, Robert McWilliams, had a grand house up the hill from Sunset Cliffs in southern OB (some might call it Point Loma). They both were long-time activists in the local Point Loma Democratic Party club and used to have meetings all the time in their hill-side abode. Charles and Robert were legally married in 2008.

I met them both when I ran for City Council waaaay back in 1987 (I garnered about 10%). They were stalwarts then of the liberal wing of the Peninsula and had opened their house up for Club meetings. I recall sitting in their livingroom explaining why I was a “small-d-democrat”. I have no idea if they voted for me then, but the two of them remained active for decades after.

Here is the article from San Diego Democrats for Equality: