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Brisenia Flores : Nuestra Hija

15 Jun 2009

60arivacainvasionjpeg When Brisenia Flores and her father Raul were shot to death by Shawna Forde and Gunny Bush, two anti-immigrant activists with ties to the Minutemen, they weren’t asked for their papers. The goal wasn’t to observe, document and report as Jim Gilchrist, the leader of the Minuteman Project, has said in trying to distance himself from his associates charged with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of first-degree burglary and one count of aggravated assault. The goal was to use violence against a family viewed as expendable to help further their cause of using violence against those viewed as expendable.
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Ex-Miss California: I Lost my Crown Because of the Gays

6:28 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · California| Controversia| GLBT| States| society · Comments Off

12 Jun 2009

carrie-prejean-parents Wow, I basically saw this one coming yesterday, word for pathetic word:

Former Miss California USA Carrie Prejean says she lost her crown because of a comment she made about gay marriage and not because she had been skipping appearances.

Prejean told Matt Lauer on NBC’S “Today” show Friday that she “absolutely” had been dethroned because of the comment, when she said marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Nice try, Carrie. But in another captivating display of my psychic prediction powers, pageant officials are saying exactly what I predicted yesterday: you couldn’t keep your commitments because you were too busy making anti-gay marriage appearances for the Evangelicals. And having hangovers.

So, bye-bye, La Jolla, Viva Miss Malibu!

Via / AP – Yahoo News

Miss California Loses Her Crown After All

10 Jun 2009

carrie-prejean

We called it the story that wouldn’t die, and apparently it still hasn’t. Miss California, Carrie Prejean – that bastion of morality and American values — has been stripped of her crown, after originally keeping it after a photo scandal. This time it’s not because of her liberal ways with her blouses but for something a lot less sexy – for slacking off. CNN reports:

Carrie Prejean has been dethroned as Miss California USA for “contract violations,” including missing scheduled pageant events, according to a state pageant official.

Prejean, 22, retained her title last month despite a controversy over topless photos, missed appearances and her statements against same-sex marriage.

Miss USA pageant owner Donald Trump decided to fire Prejean a month after he gave her a second chance.

“Carrie is a beautiful young woman, and I wish her well as she pursues her other interests,” Trump said.

Tami Farrell, Miss Malibu, will assume Prejean’s title and assume the responsibilities she apparently wasn’t able to be bothered with. Pageant officials say she violated her contract because she was unwilling to make appearance on behalf of the pageant.

My guess is that Prejean slacked off because she was out there trying to pursue her career as a spokesperson for the Christian Right’s anti-gay marriage movement. ¡Le salió el tiro por la culata!

Via / CNN

Gay Marriage is Legal in New Hampshire

5:06 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · GLBT| New Hampshire| States| society · 2 Comments

3 Jun 2009

Much to the disappointment of me and my fellow Californians, we are light years behind New England in terms of civil rights in comparison to our friends on the East Coast. Nonetheless, I am overwhelmingly pleased about New Hampshire’s landmark move of signing gay marriage into law just minutes ago. From HRC’s BackStory blog:

New Hampshire Governor John Lynch signed marriage equality legislation moments ago, calling it a great day for all New Hampshire families. Below are photos and video from the Human Rights Campaign’s work in the state.

Congratulations to New Hampshire, to HRC and to all the activists that helped make this a reality.

Background here and latest news here.

Viva New England!

Via / HRC Backstory

Gay Latino Teen is Prom Queen in L.A.

1 Jun 2009

It sounds like a script for the feel good movie of the year, but it’s a true story. An openly gay L.A. teen decided it might be fun to be a part of his high school’s prom court, but he didn’t want to be prom king — he thought prom queen would be more up his alley. And instead of being the target of bullying or ridicule, Sergio Garcia’s classmates at Fairfax High rallied around him and made his wish come true:

A few days before the dance and election, the contenders gave short speeches on why they deserved the crown.

“At one time, prom may have been a big popularity contest where the best-looking guy or girl were crowned king and queen. Things have changed and it’s no longer just about who has the most friends or who wears the coolest clothes,” Garcia told the crowd of seniors. “Sure, I’m not your typical prom queen candidate. There’s more to me than meets the eye.”

The audience erupted in applause after his speech, and a group of his female friends spent the rest of the week wearing pink crowns and campaigning for him.

On Saturday night at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, wearing a charcoal-gray tuxedo and a black bow tie, he was named prom queen.

“I felt invincible,” Garcia said.

He’s among the first male students in Southern California to take the title usually owned by female high school beauties.

“It just shows how open-minded our class is,” said Vanessa Lo, 18, the school’s senior class president.

Congrats to Sergio and his classmates. We can only wish that the rest of high schools in America — or in California for that matter — were so cool. Viva Fairfax High!

Meanwhile, anti-gay marriage protests rage in Sergio’s home state.

Via / LA Times

Texas Mayor Steps Down, Reveals His Love for Undocumented Immigrant

27 May 2009

Central Texas doesn’t get a lot of public officials coming out of the closet, either about their sexual orientation or about their emotional relationships with undocumented immigrants, but the city of San Angelo got a double whammy when Mayor J.W. Lown sent in a resignation letter “from an undisclosed location in Mexico“, revealing the nature of his personal life (see a video of the reading of the letter above). The Houston Chronicle reports:

What made it stunning wasn’t the status of Lown’s office, which pays $600 a year, but the status of his lover.

Lown fell for an illegal Mexican immigrant.

A man.

Lown told the San Angelo Standard-Times he had fallen for the man in March, after he had already filed for re-election. The man came to the U.S. five years ago to study at Angelo State University.

It was unclear whether he had a student visa, but if he did it apparently had expired.

Lown told the Standard-Times he chose not to take the oath of office while “aiding and assisting” a person who was illegally in the country.

Lown had been an extraordinarily popular mayor. Only 32 years old, he was elected in 2003 as the city’s youngest mayor. Serving in an office that inevitably requires decisions that accumulate enemies, he managed to get re-elected three times with increasing margins of victory each time. Two weeks ago he defeated two challengers by garnering 89 percent of the vote.

Lown did not give the name of his lover, but said he planned to stay in Mexico to try to obtain a visa so that his partner can return with him if “the people of San Angelo will welcome me back.”

Hats off to Mayor Lown on his courage and honesty. Here’s hoping his partner gets a visa and San Angelo will indeed let him come home.

Check out a tape of the official press conference after the jump. It’s quite poignant.

California, Get Some Courage

4:19 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · California| Controversia| GLBT| society · 2 Comments

26 May 2009

Guess who’s not proud to be a Californian again?

Even in the worst of times, it is important to remember: the fight is not over.

Please sign the pledge to keep the campaign for marriage equality in California going. This can’t end this way.

Via / Courage Campaign

New Hampshire Governor to Make Gay Marriage a Reality

12:58 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · GLBT| Justice| New Hampshire| States| society · 1 Comment

15 May 2009

After a landmark decision in New Hampshire’s legislature late last month which would make gay marriage legal in the New England state, this dream is coming closer to becoming a reality as the governor said today that he will sign the bill when it comes across his desk — with a few modifications.

New Hampshire Governor John Lynch says that when a new draft of the bill comes his way — one which will allow churches to refuse to marry gay couples if this goes against their beliefs — he will indeed sign the bill into law. This would also apply to wedding service providers (think caterers, florists) as well, who will not be able to be sued for discrimination if they refuse to provide their services. Legislators have agreed with the changes and will provide churches “protection” from having to perform same-sex ceremonies if their traditions don’t allow it.

Governor Lynch had some inspiring words today with regard to the legislature’s decision and his own new way of thinking:

Lynch, a Democrat, had loomed as a possible obstacle in New Hampshire. The governor had supported civil unions but consistently opposed gay marriage. But his thinking changed, he said yesterday.

“Throughout our history, our society’s views of civil rights have constantly evolved and expanded,” Lynch said in a nearly 600-word statement. He cited New Hampshire’s tradition of landing “on the side of individual liberties and protections,” adding, “That is what I believe we must do today.”

The passage of the gay marriage bill in New Hampshire’s and Maine’s legislatures makes 6 states in the U.S. that allow or will allow same sex marriage. In New England, the only one that still prohibits it is Rhode Island.

Via / Boston Globe

Latinos: Somos Mas o Menos? Malos o Buenos?

11:11 am By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Cities| Media| States| Women| arizona · 4 Comments

14 May 2009

One of the biggest lines fed by the anti-immigrant movement is that there are already so many of “us”, that the U.S. can’t afford to school any more of “our” children, and give “us” anymore of “their” jobs. And today I have come across a flurry of stats being released that seem to be all over the place in terms of just how many of “us” there are.

Today, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that: The minority population reached an estimated 104.6 million — or 34 percent of the nation’s total population — on July 1, 2008, compared to 31 percent when the Census was taken in 2000. Nearly one in six residents, or 46.9 million people, are Hispanic, the agency reported.

Even more telling for the future: 44 percent of children younger than 18 and 47 percent of children younger than the age of five are now from minority families.

The quickly expanding Latino population is having a healthy impact on the economy, according to Ken Gronbach, author of “The Age Curve: How to Profit from the Growing Demographic Trend.”

“Latinos have saved our country,” he said. “They represent 14 percent of the population but 25 percent of the live births. The United States is the only western industrialized nation with a fertility rate above the 2.2 percent replacement rate.”

So people should be thanking us no? Well let’s look at some of the areas that are experiencing growth and the reception that growth is getting.
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Dirty Lender Charged Latinos More for Loans

11 May 2009

000004273718xfeature With all of the corruption and dirtiness and in finance-related industries of late, it should perhaps come as no surprise that beyond just “legally” taking advantage of unsavvy consumers by lending them money they could never pay back, at least one of these institutions made it a policy to charge Latinos more for borrowed money. A federal investigation has been opened on California lender Golden Empire Mortgage, Inc., of Bakersfield, which allegedly cannot explain the drastic differences in prices between white customers and Latinos. ConsumerAffairs.com reports:

According to the FTC’s complaint, Golden Empire violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) in pricing mortgage loans. They allegedly gave loan officers and branch managers wide discretion to charge, in addition to the risk-based price, “overages” through higher interest rates and higher up-front charges. The defendants allegedly paid loan officers a percentage of the overages as a commission and failed to monitor whether Hispanic consumers were paying higher overages than non-Hispanic white borrowers.

The complaint alleged that the company’s policy and practice of allowing loan officers to charge discretionary overages resulted in Hispanics being charged higher prices because of their national origin – price disparities that are “substantial, statistically significant, and cannot be explained by factors related to underwriting risk or credit characteristics of the applicants.”

I don’t know why I am surprised by this. It seems that when it comes to the finance sector, the news just gets more and appalling as the days go by. Is it any wonder why we are in the situation we are in now, with so many dirty banks in control of our money and our homes?

Via / ConsumerAffairs

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