House Committee to Probe Into Detainee Deaths; Black Voters Could Change Politics in the South

Tribe Leaders and Sheriff to Meet After Reservation Shootout
Riverside County sheriff's officials escorted by federal mediators will meet with tribal Chairman Robert Salgado at the tribe's country club to try and reduce tensions between local law enforcement and the Soboba Indians after they killed two suspects in an hourlong gunbattle and locked down the reservation. San Jose Mercury News.

Black Turnout Changes Southern Politics
"The sharp surge in black turnout that Senator Barack Obama has helped to generate in recent primaries and Congressional races could signal a threat this fall to the longtime Republican dominance of the South, according to politicians and voting experts." New York Times.

California Needs Immigrants of All Skill Levels
"Two of California's most immigrant-dependent industries - agriculture and Silicon Valley - are pushing narrow measures through Congress in an effort to employ foreign workers at opposite ends of the labor market, people who pick vegetables and the postgraduate engineers and scientists of Silicon Valley." San Francisco Chronicle.

House Committee to Investigate Detainee Deaths
After the Washington Post series on the neglectful detention of immigrants, John Conyers and other lawmakers are requesting documents on the detainees deaths for further review. Congress Daily.

Gays and Lesbians Celebrate Court Decision
"Gay and lesbian couples in San Francisco rejoiced on Thursday over a State Supreme Court decision affirming their right to marry even as political leaders on both sides of the issue girded for an extended fight over the ruling in the courts and at the ballot box." New York Times.

Detained Iowa Workers Transferred to Jails
"Most of the 389 immigrant workers caught in the nation's largest single-site immigration raid moved out of a makeshift detention center Thursday and into one of nearly a dozen jails scattered throughout Iowa." Des Moines Register.

Headlines for May 16, 2008

• China Earthquake Toll Tops 21,500
• House OKs Iraq Withdrawal Measure
• McCain Predicts US in Iraq Until 2013
• Palestinians Denounce Bush Visit to Israel
• Residents: US Attack Kills 18 in Pakistan
• US: 2,500 Youths Jailed in Iraq, Afghanistan, Gitmo
• CIA Kidnap Trial Begins in Italy
• Burger King Fires Exec, Investigator for Targeting Tomato Pickers
• HIV-Positive Man Sentenced to 35 Years for Spitting at Officers
• Wheelchair-Bound Scholar Dies in US Jail
• May 16 is Bike to Work Day
• Chiding Obama, Bush Likens Iran Talks to Hitler Appeasement
• California Supreme Court Overrules Gay Marriage Ban
• Admin Promotes GMO Crops in Food Aid Package

BBC NEWS | Americas | California lifts gay marriage ban

–It really isn’t something that should surprise anyone who understands what discrimination is.
Read more [Left News]

California Gay Marriage Ban Overturned

The California Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry; Schwarzenegger vows to uphold the ruling.
Read more [AlterNet.org]

California court OKs gay marriages

SAN FRANCISCO -- The California Supreme Court overturned a ban on same-sex marriages yesterday in a major victory for gay rights advocates that will allow homosexual couples to marry in the most populous U.S. state.
Read more [Times Colonist News Feed]

Court legalizes same-sex marriages

SAN FRANCISCO -- The California Supreme Court overturned a ban on same-sex marriages yesterday in a major victory for gay-rights advocates that will allow homosexual couples to marry in the most populous U.S. state.
Read more [The Province]

California lifts gay marriage ban

California's top court overturns the state's ban on same-sex marriages in a ruling expected to reignite debate.
Read more [BBC - Americas]

Yes Marriage, No Justice

Congratulations to the many parties who worked so hard to achieve same-sex marriage in California.

However, our Queer community has now demonstrated a singular goal to assimilate to the very same set of social and political benefits that until recently have been so effectively turned against us. In this case, dismantling the master's house with the master's tools is not the answer. A marriage contract is nothing more than an artificial set of rights and privileges that everyone regardless of marital status should have.

Has anyone considered the irony of this victory in light of the deleterious "marriage promotion" policies structured into federal assistance programs based on racist stereotypes? Or the futility of being married when you can't afford healthcare for either you or your spouse? Is this what we really want to prove -- that the Queer community is so single-minded we've lost sight of genuine social justice?

I sincerely hope that all of California’s Queers can now come together and re-focus on a broader and more inclusive social justice agenda -- joining with many other communities in equity movement activities such as enacting universal healthcare, eliminating racism, and strengthening our schools. Because true justice is not just about getting what we think is ours for ourselves alone, it's about bringing everyone to the table.

California Supreme Court Overturns Ban on Gay Marriage

The California Supreme Court, in 4-3 decision, overturned a ban on gay marriage Thursday, paving the way for California to become the second state where gay and lesbian residents can marry. Associated Press.

In other news, an HIV positive man receives 35 years in prison for spitting on a Dallas police officer because a jury found that Willie Campbell used his saliva as a deadly weapon. Associated Press.

More gay men are victims of violent crime, report shows

Gay men in Vancouver are twice as likely as straight men to be victims of violent crime, suggests a study conducted at the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS.
Read more [CBC - BC]

Will Bush Crony Scott Bloch's Gay-Hating Finally Catch Up with Him?

The FBI is now investigating the man who declared war on equal protection for gays in federal workplaces.
Read more [AlterNet.org]

Will Bush Crony Scott Bloch's Gay-Hating Finally Catch Up with Him?

The FBI is now investigating the man who declared war on equal protection for gays in federal workplaces.
Read more [AlterNet.org]

Tale of an Indian Lesbian

While the single unmarried daughters in the city's posh enclaves fall into dreams of securing rings from America-branded MBA sons of high status families, Charu lies tossing and turning under satin sheets fantasizing about hibernating in the folds of the supple sari clad bodies of women.
Read more [SAMAR Magazine]

This Way Out: "Hotel de Dream" and Little Sisterand#039;s and the Law

Author Edmund White dreams of author Stephen Crane; bookstore beats Canada Customs. Plus diluted partner registry passes Canberra muster, British Lords okay anti-queer hate incitement law, no partner benefit equality for Michigan state workers, more news.
Read more [Radio4All]

Tories call for lesbian IVF 'fathers'

Bar lesbians from IVF treatment in absence of father figure, say Conservatives
Read more [The Guardian (International + UK)]

Can't Kill The Spirit: Gay ALF Activist Roger Troen Dies at 77

Read more [Infoshop News2]

Courts Rule in Favor of Deception

Anti-gay crusaders are deceiving voters about their strategies and intentions -- and the courts are playing along.
Read more [AlterNet.org]

Deb Price: Courts Rule in Favor of Deception

Anti-gay crusaders are deceiving voters about their strategies and intentions -- and the courts are playing along.
Read more [AlterNet.org]

Two-thirds of LGBTQ students feel unsafe: report

More than two-thirds of Canadian high school students who identify themselves as homosexual, bisexual and transgendered said they felt unsafe at school, according to a national survey.
Read more [CBC - Newfoundland]

Sacha's vision of greatness

Sport: Portsmouth's Alexandre Gaydamak on foreign owners, the FA Cup final and his £100m fortune
Read more [The Guardian (International + UK)]