LGBT POV

Where were you when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast five years ago?

Like many of you, I was stuck to the television watching the city of New Orleans torn apart before my eyes – first the rain, then the flooding, then the fight to rescue the stranded residents. I grew angrier by the minute learning President Bush was on vacation and had to watch a prepared DVD to be brought up to speed, after which he did a flyover. When he finally did visit the devastated region, he commended incompetent Federal Emergency Management Agency head Michael Brown with the now infamous words, “You’re doing a heck of a job, Brownie.”

Heck of a job? We watched dead bodies float in the floods, people stranded without food or water on rooftops waving signs “Help Us!” Dehydrated babies dying in their mother’s arms. Was this OUR America? We drop necessities from helicopters in war torn areas around the world – but we couldn’t do the same in New Orleans? We couldn’t bring truck loads of supplies to the Superdome? From here it looked like abject racism.

Like so many of you, we at Frontiers tried to help – chipping in to send volunteers from St. Thomas Episcopal Church Hollywood to Biloxi, Mississippi to help a “sister” church there. And we teamed up with some good Samaritans from Long Beach to fly in a lesbian couple to re-join some of their gay friends rescued earlier. This was particularly poignant since one was in a wheelchair and the other had to pose as her healthcare provider in the small church that first took them in, lest they suffer even more indignity than losing everything in the storm.  Did they ever go home? I don’t know.

As usual, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow has produced some remarkable stories about Katrina in New Orleans, five years later – especially how it continues to impact the poor. But as someone who sees my job as a journalist as a public service – I want to bring you Rachel’s interview with Garland Robinette, the  ”voice” of radio station WWAL that provided a community service by giving information and connecting families.

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NBC is reporting live now – watch MSNBC. Brian Jenkins asks Richard Engel who right now says “The Last Patrol” will cross the border in about half hour. His reporting is the official Pentagon announcement of troop withdraw. No more combats missions; though some soldiers staying for training.Last troop – 440 troops, per Engel embedded with Striker Brigade. Rachel Maddow reporting live from Baghad now. Side bar: Engel is broadcasting from the “Bloom-mobile.”

UPDATE: Just watched the last combat troop cross into Kuwait, 4:20 Pacific time. That’s March 2003- to-moments ago.

Engels: “The beginning of the end.” About 50,000 troops remain as trainers, desk jobs.

Lt. DeWitt from San Jose – he watched the war start when he was 17; volunteered know he’d be deployed to Iraq; “proud” of the “good job” his unit has done.

Some combat troops coming home, then some going to Afghanistan. Rent the movies “Coming Home” and “First Blood” to understand some of the PTSD that some of the troops might experience….We need to help them.

I’ll have a more thoughtful response later.

UPDATE: Admiral Mike Mullen is on Facebook (pictured) and four hours ago – about two hours before the formal withdraw – he was posting about sending out DADT surveys to military spouses and the need to fill them out. The two responses on his front page are positive.

UPDATE: LETTER FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA ON THE WHITE HOUSE BLOG:

Ending the War in Iraq

Posted by Katelyn Sabochik on August 18, 2010 at 01:00 PM EDT

Earlier today, President Obama sent a message to the White House email list about ending our combat mission and drawing down the number of troops in Iraq.  Check out the email below.  You can sign up to receive periodic updates from the President and other senior administration officials here.

Good afternoon,

Shortly after taking office, I put forward a plan to end the war in Iraq responsibly. Today, I’m pleased to report that — thanks to the extraordinary service of our troops and civilians in Iraq — our combat mission will end this month, and we will complete a substantial drawdown of our troops.
 
Over the last 18 months, over 90,000 U.S. troops have left Iraq. By the end of this month, 50,000 troops will be serving in Iraq. As Iraqi Security Forces take responsibility for securing their country, our troops will move to an advise-and-assist  role. And, consistent with our agreement with the Iraqi government, all of our troops will be out of Iraq by the end of next year. Meanwhile, we will continue to build a strong partnership with the Iraqi people with an increased civilian commitment and diplomatic effort.
 
A few weeks ago, men and women from one of the most deployed brigades in the U.S. Army, the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, returned home from Iraq. The Vice President and Dr. Jill Biden were at Fort Drum to welcome the veterans home and spoke about their personal experiences as a military family:

Our commitment to our troops doesn’t end once they come home — it’s only the beginning.  Part of ending a war responsibly is meeting our responsibility to the men and women who have fought it. Our troops and their families have made tremendous sacrifices to keep our nation safe and secure, and as a nation we have a moral obligation to serve our veterans as well as they have served us. 
 
That’s why we’re building a 21st century Department of Veterans Affairs.  We’ve made one of the largest percentage increase in the VA’s budget in 30 years, and we’re dramatically increasing funding for veterans’ health across the board. In particular, we’re delivering unprecedented resources to treat signature wounds of today’s wars—Traumatic Brain Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. 
 
Our sacred trust to take care of our veterans goes beyond simply healing the wounds incurred in battle. We must ensure that when our veterans leave the Armed Forces, they have the opportunities they need to further their education and support their families.  Through the Post-9/11 GI Bill, some 300,000 veterans and families members have pursued a college degree.  Others are taking advantage of job training and placement programs. 
 
My Administration will continue to do our part to support the brave men and women in uniform that have sacrificed so much.  But supporting our troops and their families is not just the job of the Federal Government; it’s the responsibility of all Americans.
 
As we mark this milestone in the Iraq war and our troops continue to move out of Iraq, I hope you’ll join me in thanking them, and all of our troops and military families, for their service. 
 
Sincerely,
President Barack Obama

As I remember it, the Cronkite newsroom at CBS News was a place where facts ruled. Opinion and humor were in abundance, of course, but rarely did they find their way on air. That’s why the country and President Lyndon B. Johnson listened when anchorman Walter Cronkite broadcast his historic commentary that the war in Vietnam could never be won. By then he was known as “Uncle Walt,” the truth-telling most reliable man in America and Johnson decided not to seek re-election after “losing” Cronkite.

After he retired in 1980 – not happily, a victim of CBS’s mandatory policy of retirement at age 65 – Cronkite started expressing some of his own opinions. An Episcopalian, he became honorary chair of the Interfaith Alliance because, as he said in a public letter:

“I am deeply disturbed by the dangerous and growing influence of people like Pat Robertson and James Dobson on our nation’s political leaders.
Like you, I understand that freedom of speech is a founding principle of our nation, and I respect people with the courage to speak their minds. As a concerned person of faith, however, I have watched with increasing alarm as Religious Right groups manipulate religion to further their intolerant, political agendas. Over the years, they have gained considerable influence at every level of government…on local school boards, in the Administration, the courts, and in Congress. They have shrewdly twisted the traditional healing role of religion into an intolerant, political platform.”

It seems incredibly fitting therefore – and something that would no doubt warm Cronkite’s heart – that the Interfaith Alliance will bestow its 2010 Walter Cronkite Faith & Freedom award on MSNBC openly gay anchor Rachel Maddow for her work covering religion and politics. Chautaqua Institution Department of Religion Director Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell will also be honored at a gala dinner in New York in October.

The announcement says the award “recognizes individuals who courageously promote democratic values, defend religious freedom and reinvigorate informed civic participation.” The IA press release says:

“Walter Cronkite once told me that no less than the future of our nation was at stake in the work of Interfaith Alliance, and I can think of no two people who contribute more to advancing our mission than Rachel Maddow and Joan Brown Campbell,” said Interfaith Alliance President Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy. “Rachel’s passionate coverage of the intersection of religion and politics exhibits a strong personal intellect coupled with constitutional sensitivity to the proper boundaries between religion and government.”

Here’s an example of Rachel Maddow tackling politics, religion and the truth with “ex-gay” activist Richard Cohen:

Rachel Maddow turns shock at the military’s stunning stupidity in their instructional comic book on Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell into hilarious “gaiety” and “challenges” you to respond to the comic book – which one guy did with a comic strip of his own.

Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach talks about the stress of being in “limbo” over the 10-month review of his Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell case – he’s facing discharge one year short of serving 20 years. “My case should be the poster case for the new enforcement standards,” he says, since he was maliciously outed. He also talks about the Pentagon’s new survey questions: it’s unnecessary and insulting.

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Wednesday was Day 44 of the worst environmental disaster in US history and Rachel Maddow flew to New Orleans for a first-hand look at the BP oil gush. During the show, she accessed President Obama’s new push for a clean energy policy and interviewed California Sen. Barbara Boxer, chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, who provides new information on what the Bush Administration said in 2007 about the risks of a spill drilling so deeply for oil.

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Rachel also spent some time in the wetlands 15 miles outside of New Orleans – wetlands that are at risk of getting oil during hurricane season.

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Rachel Maddow’s interview with Kentucky GOP senate candidate Rand Paul created quite a stir when he suggested that the federal government had no right telling private businesses who they could and could not serve – which appears counter to non-discrimination foundation of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. He’s dialed that stand back a bit. But in this must-watch segment from Thursday night’s show, Rachel brilliantly looks at the philosophical underpinnings of Paul’s libertarian principles. This is a framework that surely deserves further exploration – how this applies to federal versus state marriage and immigration laws, for instance. Hopefully, LGBT and other leaders working to secure equal rights will seriously consider this presentation.

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UPDATED: Rand Paul, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate from Kentucky, appeared on the Rachel Maddow show Wednesday night to discuss his views on the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He says he does not agree with racism or discrimination of any kind, but he thinks businesses should have a right to free speech and to make their own decisions, which some say may include discrimination. House Majority Whip James Clyburn, for instance, told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Thursday morning (see below) that the club in which Paul held his victory celebration was “members only.” Several commentators have also pointed out that slavery was a business. Paul has since issued a clarification on his campaign website. Please click inside for the full statement.

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I have been infuriated about this racist Arizona immigration law since it first popped onto my radar two weeks ago on April 13. Last Friday, longtime Latina and LGBT activist Gloria Nieto wrote about it from her perspective and then when Gov. Brewer signed the bill later that afternoon, Gloria called for a boycott of Arizona over the new law. BTW – when asked by a reporter how a law enforcement officer would come by that “reasonable suspicion” that someone was undocumented other than by the color of their skin, Brewer said she didn’t know. Racial profiling is against the law in Arizona.

Since then, Rachel Maddow has pointed out the law’s link to the white supremacy movement. (See video below)

Today, Tobias Barrington Wolff, Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a longtime LGBT attorney and constitutional scholar, sent a letter to friends and colleagues urging everyone to “stand up against this law.”

Here’s an excerpt:

“The purpose of this law is not to get rid of all undocumented immigrants. The purpose of this law is to disempower all brown-skinned immigrants in Arizona, turning them into a third-class group who must live in constant fear of government and are subject to arbitrary abuse and exploitation.

LGBT people know what it means to be declared by statute to be inherent criminals — to be told that we are illegal people. Transgender people know what it means to be told that their very being, dress or appearance makes them inherently suspicious and subject to arrest and detention.

We must stand up against this law, and we must do so loudly and strongly.”

Please click inside to read Tobias’ full letter. Here’s Rachel Maddow’s take:

You may have heard about the incredibly draconian immigration proposal in Arizona – I wrote about it last week Well, Gloria Nieto has something to say about it too: “This election season has seen the return of the scourge of the Mexican immigrant, the identified source of all problems in the United States. The state of Arizona has seen fit to pass a clearly unconstitutional law giving law enforcement virtually unlimited power to question and detain any person they want, demanding ID’s birth certificates, green cards. The bill, SB 1070 – which the governor is expected to sign on Saturday – sits as a sword of Damocles over the head of the Latino community in Arizona.”

Please click inside to read the rest of Gloria’s essay.

Here’s Rachel Maddow on the bill Thursday night:

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Be your own Rachel Maddow! Fans of the brilliant MSNBC commentator know that one reason Maddow is so popular is because she confronts lies with the truth. Now LGBTs and their allies can do the same thing when it comes to the debate about the military’s antigay policy, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

On Wednesday, the watchdog group Media Matters for America – founded by openly gay politico David Brock in reaction to the “Republican Noise Machine”– published a special report correcting the myths and lies perpetuated by biased or ignorant journalists – or reporters who slant coverage to keep access to powerful sources. That’s what many of us suspected was the agenda behind NBC’s Lisa Meyers’ devastating coverage of the original gays-in-the-military story in 1993. (See the video of Meyers report as part of this story. )

Consider, for instance, the February 23 edition of Fox News’ Special Report where Bret Baier uncritically reported that Gen. George Casey stated that repeal of the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) policy “might … adversely affect readiness.”

Lest anyone shrug this off as just another Fox News-Republican spin machine story, remember that the father of modern political conservatism – the late Arizona Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater – also called for lifting the ban against gays serving openly, crystallized in this famous quote: “You don’t have to be straight to be in the military; you just have to be able to shoot straight.”

It’s one thing that the Fox News reporter didn’t know about Goldwater. But he should have known and reported that Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. Central Command, appeared two days earlier (Feb 21) on NBC’ Meet the Press and was asked whether “soldiers on the ground in the field care one way or the other if their comrades in arms are gay or lesbian.” Petraeus said: “I’m not sure that they do….I served, in fact, in combat with individuals who were gay and who were lesbian in combat situations and, frankly, you know, over time you said, ‘Hey, how’s, how’s this guy’s shooting?’ Or ‘How is her analysis,’ or what have you.”

Please click inside to read more and see how you can help.

It’s one thing when a big guy like Keith Olbermann makes irate or snarky comments about Glenn Beck – the weepy, often wrong conservative talk radio and Fox TV commentator who has a “gazillion” followers. But when skinny PDd lesbian geek Rachel Maddow talks about getting death threats from Beck groupies, calls him out for lying about her and then tells Beck to “back off! – something’s happening here. I wonder if this might be the beginning of the “spinal transplant” Howard Dean has been calling for. Watch for yourself.

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Every time I jumped up, pumped the air with my fist and yelled, “Who Dat? Who Dat?” my dogs jumped up too, started barking and thought someone was outside or at the door.

As the world probably knows after Sunday night’s incredible Super Bowl game in Miami between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts – “Who Dat” is short for “Who Dat?! Who Dat?! Who Dat say dey gonna beat dem saints?!”

The blaring headline on the New Orleans Times-Picayune website Sunday night was: “WHO DAT? NOBODY!”

“Who Dat?” was the background chant to Rachel Maddow’s Friday night show from New Orleans, which she dubbed “The Rachel Maddeaux Sheaux.”

At one point she said: “I am here to tell you that America wants New Orleans to be back – and in the run-up to this big, dumb game, it totally feels like it is.”

The Times-Picayune – whose reporters virtually lived in their offices to cover Hurricane Katrina for which they received Pulitizer Prizes – wrote an editorial thanking the Saints for the role they played in the recovery of the beloved city. Please click inside to read an excerpt (and please check out their photos from which this shot was taken).

The LGBT blogospher exploded Wednesday morning with reaction to the historic Senate Armed Services hearing Tuesday during which Defense Sec. Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mullen announced their desire to repeal the discriminatory Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, pursuant to President Obama’s State of the Union address saying he wanted to repeal DADT this year.

Retired General Colin Powell, the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who supported congressional passage of DADT in 1993, also issued a statement Wednesday saying he supported the new approach.

The reaction to the repeal has been excitement that the end of DADT seems in sight mixed with cautious pushback over why the high commanders didn’t announce a suspension of enforcement while the policy is under review.

But for me – a military brat who’s been covering this issue since David Mixner first raised the prospect of lifting the ban on gays serving openly with presidential candidate Bill Clinton in 1991 – two developments I never thought I’d see also happened Wednesday: Mullen posted his opinion about DADT on his blog on the Joint Chiefs of Staff website (with a link to the full hearing transcript, video is coming) and the Pentagon featured a “straight” news report about DADT.

And here’s Rachel Maddow’s interview with Lt. Col. Fehrenbach:

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Please click inside to read the roundup.

The State Department confirms that one of the six Americans killed in the 7.3 earthquake in Haiti was 35 year old transgender artist Flo McGarrell from Vermont.

In the TV news report here, the reporter calls Flo “him” while Flo’s mother says “her” – but the love and devastation is authentic. And, says the mother, “That is Flo’s wish – to be remembered as a man.”

If you want to help – text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross relief for Haiti. CNN is live blogging the relief effort, as well as reporting it on cable. The LA Times has more on how to help. Please click inside for more information – including a page set up by Michael Goff and Andy Towleroad on how to help and a video report from Rachel Maddow.

MBNBC’s Rachel Maddow on President Barack Obama on Thursday night’s David Letterman show:

“The most interesting thing about Obama’s first year is how crazy the opposition has gone in reaction to him. And that’s been so exciting – the Sarah Palin, Michael Steel, Tea Party thing on the right – that I think that nobody’s noticed that he’s quietly put together the most legislatively accomplished first year of any president in a generation.”