As Americans, it is our birthright that all people are created equal and deserve the same rights, privileges, and opportunities. Since our earliest days of independence, our Nation has striven to fulfill that promise. An important chapter in our great, unfinished story is the movement for fairness and equality on behalf of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. This month, as we recognize the immeasurable contributions of LGBT Americans, we renew our commitment to the struggle for equal rights for LGBT Americans and to ending prejudice and injustice wherever it exists.

LGBT Americans have enriched and strengthened the fabric of our national life. From business leaders and professors to athletes and first responders, LGBT individuals have achieved success and prominence in every discipline. They are our mothers and fathers, our sons and daughters, and our friends and neighbors. Across my Administration, openly LGBT employees are serving at every level. Thanks to those who came before us, the brave men and women who marched, stood up to injustice, and brought change through acts of compassion or defiance we have made enormous progress and continue to strive for a more perfect union.

My Administration has advanced our journey by signing into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which strengthens Federal protections against crimes based on gender identity or sexual orientation. We renewed the Ryan White CARE Act, which provides life saving medical services and support to Americans living with HIV/AIDS, and finally eliminated the HIV entry ban. I also signed a Presidential Memorandum directing hospitals receiving Medicare and Medicaid funds to give LGBT patients the compassion and security they deserve in their time of need, including the ability to choose someone other than an immediate family member to visit them and make medical decisions.

In other areas, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced a series of proposals to ensure core housing programs are open to everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. HUD also announced the first ever national study of discrimination against members of the LGBT community in the rental and sale of housing. Additionally, the Department of Health and Human Services has created a National Resource Center for LGBT Elders.

Much work remains to fulfill our Nation’s promise of equal justice under law for LGBT Americans. That is why we must give committed gay couples the same rights and responsibilities afforded to any married couple, and repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. We must protect the rights of LGBT families by securing their adoption rights, ending employment discrimination against LGBT Americans, and ensuring Federal employees receive equal benefits. We must create safer schools so all our children may learn in a supportive environment. I am also committed to ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” so patriotic LGBT Americans can serve openly in our military, and I am working with the Congress and our military leadership to accomplish that goal.

As we honor the LGBT Americans who have given so much to our Nation, let us remember that if one of us is unable to realize full equality, we all fall short of our founding principles. Our Nation draws its strength from our diversity, with each of us contributing to the greater whole. By affirming these rights and values, each American benefits from the further advancement of liberty and justice for all.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2010 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon all Americans to observe this month by fighting prejudice and discrimination in their own lives and everywhere it exists.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fourth.

BARACK OBAMA

The provision would allow military commanders to repeal the ban. The repeal would permit gay men and lesbians to serve openly in the military for the first time.

It was adopted as an amendment to the annual Pentagon policy bill, which the House is expected to vote on Friday. The repeal would be allowed 60 days after a Pentagon report is completed on the ramifications of allowing openly gay service members, and military leaders certify that it would not be disruptive. The report is due by Dec. 1.

The House vote was 234 to 194, with 229 Democrats and 5 Republicans in favor, after an emotionally charged debate. Opposed were 168 Republicans and 26 Democrats.

Read the full story at NYTimes.com.

With over 50 LGBT contestants from 22 us states and 6 countries

Admission $20 per night or $50 for the weekend pass

• 6/25 – final competition for Miss Newcomer (drag) and Mister MI (lesbian stud)
• 6/26 – final competition for Miss Plus (full figure drag)
• 6/27 – final competition for Mr and Miss (gay men and drag)

Website: mrandmissinternationalinc.com

This post was submitted by Marlowe Rainbow.

(http://www.bitchmusic.com)
Straight from a tour with the Indigo Girls, Bitch is set to rock Jackson, Mississippi. Get ready for a mix of a rockin’ block party and in-your-face attitude as she performs some of her epic favorites along with her brand new tracks from “Blasted”.

A singer, bass player, violinist, beat poetess, rapper and ukulele player, Bitch throws a kitchen sink’s worth of influences, from hip-hop, to folk, to world beat into her performance-art jam sessions. And, then some.

Bitch has worked with John Cameron Mitchell, the Indigo Girls, Ani DiFranco, JD Samson (Le Tigre), Ferron, and many more.

You don’t want to miss this show.

Opening act: the State Of
(http://www.myspace.com/thestateofmusic)
the State Of is the product of the marriage between Steph Taylor’s edgy piano/synth playing and Nabedi Osorio’s electronic-like live drumming. Their dark pop sensibility is born out of their hometown of Miami, FL and is reminiscent of artists ranging from the Eurythmics and Bjork to Radiohead and the Police. Taylor’s style of playing is often percussive and dark where Osorio’s drumming is melodic and steadfast and when coupled, they create a dynamic sound larger than what’s expected out of two people.

With a plethora of new material, they are currently on tour to showcase songs from their upcoming album, Day Of Abandon, which has tracks that vary from live drum and bass beats met with melodic piano movements to guitar driven rock songs, all reflecting that dark, haunting sound that the State Of is notorious for capturing.

18+/$10

http://www.mssafeschools.org/registration.php

Anyone interested in volunteering may express interest at:

http://www.mssafeschools.org/vol-registration.php

Second Chance Prom will be held May 8th at the Bancorp South Arena in Tupelo, MS. The event will last from 5pm until 11pm. There is no cost to attendees.

Space is limited so Register NOW! We will send a confirmation email to let you know that your space has been reserved. (NOTE: You will not receive the confirmation email immediately.)

View the Facebook Event.

• Saturday, May 22, 2010 9AM: Rally at Mississippi’s Capitol recognizing Harvey Milk Day  w/guest speakers. Topics will cover discrimination towards the LGBT community in schools, the workplace, military, and legislation.
• 10AM: Caravan to Fulton leaves Capitol
• 3-4PM: Rally in Fulton on Main Street in front of Itawamba Community College

Spread the word.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) organizations, in conjunction with numerous churches and organizations of faith, will meet on the Capitol steps this Saturday, May 22, 2010 at 9AM to respond to the discrimination and inequities facing the LGBT community in Mississippi and the United States. The groups will then caravan to Fulton, MS to join in a peaceful counter-protest of members of Fred Phelps’ Westboro Baptist Church on Saturday from 3-4 PM.

The rally on the Capitol will feature speakers covering topics including spirituality; discrimination in schools, workplaces, and the military; and discriminatory legislation. The caravan will then head north to counter-protest Phelps – most widely known for his widespread vicious messages including “God Hates Fags,” “God Hates Jews,” and “God Hates the USA” as well as his disgusting picketing of military funerals – who has recently announced his church’s intention to picket the city of Fulton. The people and organizations involved in the rally and caravan are determined that the hateful messages of Phelps and Westboro Baptist Church will be met with peaceful but clear opposition.

“The international headlines involving the deplorable treatment of several young people in Mississippi should be a wake-up call not just for the LGBT community, but for everyone in our state,” said Knol Aust, Chair of Unity Mississippi. “We can no longer remain silent. All people in Mississippi deserve to be treated with dignity, respect, equality, and fairness. The rally and caravan offer an opportunity for the caring, fair-minded, rational people of Mississippi to take a stand against hatred and discrimination.”

The organizations endorsing these peaceful efforts include Unity Mississippi, GetEQUAL, Parents Friends/Family of Lesbians And Gays (PFLAG) Jackson, PFLAG Laurel, PFLAG Tupelo, the University of Southern Mississippi Gay Straight Alliance, Northwest Community College Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA), MS Rainbow Alliance, the Libertarian Party of Mississippi, A Brave New Day, Safe Harbor Family Church, Standing on the Side of Love, and First Christian Church of Jackson. These groups endorse the rallies as the most effective way to promote a message of tolerance and inclusion in Mississippi.

The caravan and rallies are being promoted and information will also be updated on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=100377460007104) and on this website.

“I never dreamed so many people would support my fight to take my girlfriend to the prom, much less that I’d end up being asked to be a Grand Marshal at NYC Pride,” said McMillen, an 18-year-old high school senior from Fulton, Mississippi, adding, “I’m really honored and touched to be asked to be part of this celebration.”

McMillen is the plaintiff in an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit challenging her school’s decision to cancel the prom rather than let her bring her girlfriend as her date and wear a tuxedo to the prom. According to McMillen, who has been out as a lesbian since she was in 8th grade, Itawamba Agricultural High School officials told her that she could not arrive at the prom with her girlfriend and that they might be thrown out if any other students complained about their presence at the event.

A federal judge ruled that the school had violated McMillen’s First Amendment rights but stopped short of ordering IAHS to put the school prom back on the calendar because of assurances that an alternative “private” prom being planned by parents would be open to all students. But when McMillen went to the event on April 2, she was one of only a small handful of students from her school present. Later local news reports revealed that the rest of the students from IAHS had spent the evening in a nearby town at another private prom to which McMillen wasn’t invited.

While McMillen has been ostracized and harassed by her classmates at IAHS over the prom cancellation, her struggle has attracted national and even international support. She was invited to attend the GLAAD Awards with Wanda Sykes, was presented with a $30,000 scholarship check on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and a Facebook group supporting her has attracted over 400,000 supporters.

New York City’s annual Pride March began in 1970 as a commemoration of the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. The March has since grown to become the oldest and one of the world’s largest Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) events. This year’s Pride March will begin at 12:00 noon on Sunday June 27th. Step-off for more than 350 groups and 500,000 participants will take place on 39th Street and Fifth Avenue. The March then follows the Lavender Line to its conclusion at the intersection of Christopher Street and Greenwich Street. The Line is an identifying symbol of New York City’s Pride March and will mark all four miles of the March’s route. The route moves south on Fifth Avenue and turns right (west) on 8th Street and proceeds to the top of Christopher Street by the Jefferson Market Library. From here, the March will pass down Stonewall Place and the Stonewall Inn, site of the riots in June of 1969.

McMillen tells The Advocatethat a parent-organized prom happened behind her back — she and her date were sent to a Friday night event at a country club in Fulton, Miss., that attracted only five other students. Her school principal and teachers served as chaperones, but clearly there wasn’t much to keep an eye on.

“They had two proms and I was only invited to one of them,” McMillen says. “The one that I went to had seven people there, and everyone went to the other one I wasn’t invited to.”

Read more at Advocate.com.

This post was submitted by keren welch.