Dr. Frank Kameny, Jewish Gay Rights Pioneer, Dies At 86

Dr. Frank Kameny lived many of his 86-years as an out activist, leader and hero. It is with only a blessed form of irony that he left us today, on National Coming Out Day. May Frank’s memory be for a blessing. To understand our LGBT American history please get to know a bit more about his story. Our history and our civil rights seemed to be paired perfectly with Frank Kameny’s once radical notion that we have a right in this country to stand up for, “First Class Citizenship for Homosexuals.” Right on, brother.

Some of Frank Kameny's z"l donated picket signs and buttons are on display as part of an exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum where they are on loan from the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. The signs read, "First Class Citizenship for Homosexuals" and "Discrimination Against Homosexuals Is As Immoral As Discrimination Against Negros and Jews."

Dr. Frank Kameny z"l marching with the Mattachine Society of Washington D.C.

First coined by US Politcal candidate Frank Kameny z"l in 1968, someone else added the word "so" to the original graffiti. Perhaps a reflection of that person's opinion on how far gays have come since 1968... Thank you Frank.

Related articles

• Frank Kameny, Gay Rights Pioneer, Dies At 86 (huffingtonpost.com)
• Grandfather Of LGBT Rights Movement Frank Kameny Passes Away At 86 (lezgetreal.com)
• Frank Kameny, R.I.P. (volokh.com)
• Pioneering gay activist Frank Kameny dies at 86 (miamiherald.typepad.com)
• Gay rights pioneer Kameny dead at 86 (cnn.com)
• Frank Kameny, gay rights pioneer, dead at 86 (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

 

gays have kids too

During these days between the Jewish New Year and Yom Kippur, Jews are told to reflect on what really matters to us. So here it goes, one thing that really matters to me is continually bringing the stories and realities of everyday LGBT Jewish leaders into the mainstream. Many LGBT folks don’t always have the big life concepts mapped out for them. By the way, when I write “them”, I do mean me as well.

I often look to the experiences of my family to help me navigate this world but a few things don’t always translate. Some translations on expectations and roles get lost on me. Not so much because of discrimination any more, but more often the nuance of difference. I work to find community and friendships with other LGBT Jewish leaders, in part because they model one of the many ways that I might too have a healthy same-sex relationship, how to raise children, how to present the gender identity that works for me, or how to juggle the demands of chosen family versus biological family.

Something else that matters to me is a love of democracy and the drama of politics. So when I saw this ad yesterday, pairing my love of politics with a story that brings a local queer Jewish family into the mainstream – I had to link to it. So in honor of speaking out to what matters to me during the Jewish High Holiday’s as well as embracing October as LGBT History Month please take a look at this 33 second ad featuring our LGBT lives having mainstream visibility. The ad features a gay and Jewish former city supervisor, Bevan Dufty running for mayor of San Francisco, proudly introducing himself in his most important identity role: a father.

Related Stories

• Autostraddle, Bevan Dufty Reminds Us Gay Candidates Have Kids Too (link)
• I Want to be a (Gay) Dad, Celebrating LGB Parents (link)
• Queer Landia, Gay SF Hopeful features Daughter in New Ad (link)
• Towlroad, Gay SF Mayoral Hopeful Bevan Dufty Features Daughter (link)
• The Stir, Gay Candidate for Mayor ‘Exploits’ Kid By Admitting She Exists (link)
• David Mixner Blog, Impressions (link)
• Politco, Ben Smith’s Frontiers of Gay Politics (link)
• Gay Politcs, Bevan Dufty in Someplace New (link)
• San Francisco Bay Guardian, Bevan Dufty loves MUNI (link)

 

sweetness follows

we of course, all witnessed the seas of political activists empowered to change their worlds this past year. as we approach the jewish high holidays this evening, i stop for a moment to revisit some of the more local advances and news that i witnessed this past year.

overall folks within my community seemed to mostly agree with natalie portman in not wanting anything to do with john galliano. we wrestled through a few of the more challenging conversations with courtesy from tony kushner’s views on israel to ballot measures seeking to outlaw circumcision. we saw the demise of don’t ask don’t tell celebrated in the streets and hardly had time to pay attention to a new state law created by jewish gay leader, mark leno that requires lgbt history be taught in california textbooks. within a more hyper-local perspective we celebrated everything out and proud about gertrude stein, marched to honor 30-years of AIDS activism, watched allen ginsberg howl on-screen and sang our good-byes to both elizabeth taylor and debbie friedman.

still thinking locally, it has been a great year for many of our outstanding lgbt jewish leaders to shine. just to name two of the many deserving leaders, roberta achtenberg, was appointed as the first lesbian to the federal civil rights post and bevan dufty, whom if elected in november, would be san francisco’s first gay (and possibly third jewish) mayor. while we still can’t beat the reputation of states like new york that decided everyone can get hitched there this year we did just learn that our dear city of san francisco did not loose first place in hosting the highest concentration of gay and lesbian couples over the past decade.

at my synagogue, congregation sha’ar zahav, i participated with 40 other members in the year of civil discourse and learned together through the training how to disagree with people i respect but don’t always want to listen to. on a even more personal note i moved once again back into the castro.

as i am approaching my own sense of sweetness on this last day of the Jewish month of elul 5771, i pause to remember that not everyone’s life is so full of honey right now. this morning i watched with sadness as alyssa rodemeyer, the sister of jamey rodemeyer, discussed the continued bullying of her late brother after he took his own life this last week at the age of 14. it made me realize that we still have a lot of work to do together. i look forward to seeing what sweetness we can create together in community in 5772.

Related articles

• Alyssa Rodemeyer Talks About Continued Bullying Of Late Brother Jamey (lezgetreal.com)
• Jewish New Year Brings New Music (npr.org)
• Hundreds Attend 14-Year-old Who Committed Suicide, Jamey Rodemeyer’s Funeral (perezhilton.com)
• Jamey Rodemeyer’s Sister Talks About the ‘We’re Glad You’re Dead’ Chants at Homecoming Dance: VIDEO (towleroad.com)
• Celebrating life, legacy and 5 foot tall lesbians (qjew.wordpress.com)
• Gay Ugandan refugee finds home in Jewish Bay Area (qjew.wordpress.com)
• PHOTOS: Gay Jews And Pals Party Like It’s 5772 For Rosh Hashanah (queerty.com)
• Obama, Rick Perry, others greet the Jewish New Year (thehill.com)
• Lady Gaga towers over Obama fundraiser in Northern California (latimesblogs.latimes.com)
• Curve Magazine Calls Bevan Dufty an International Supergay (blogs.sfweekly.com)
• Big Girls, Small Kitchen: The 9 Best Jewish Dishes For The High Holidays (huffingtonpost.com)
• One Drop of Honey Sweeter Than The Last (beittshuvah.wordpress.com)
• Curve Magazine Calls Bevan Dufty an International Supergay (blogs.sfweekly.com)
• Big Girls, Small Kitchen: The 9 Best Jewish Dishes For The High Holidays (huffingtonpost.com)
• One Drop of Honey Sweeter Than The Last (beittshuvah.wordpress.com)

 

Yasher Koach: Paul E. Singer, Steven A. Cohen and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg!

My mother called me this morning to tell me how wonderful it is that such generous and usually conservative leaning people are giving to marriage equality in New York. Sounds to me like the core Jewish values of Tikkun Olam  (Hebrew: תיקון עולם‎ meaning to Repair the World) has influenced a few incredibly powerful figures in New York and I hope it continues. The donors both Jewish (and not Jewish) represent some of New York’s wealthiest and most politically active figures like Steven A. Cohen and Paul E. Singer, a hedge fund manager, top-tier Republican donor and father to a gay son. Even Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg is giving speeches and fundraising parties for Marriage Equality. According to the NYT article Mr. Cohen, who runs SAC Capital Advisers and has become an increasingly active Republican fundraiser described his views simply: ‘We believe in social justice for all Americans.'” Well, Yasher Koach! (a customary way of congratulating those who do an honorable job directly meaning from Hebrew “יישר” “כוח” “may your strength be firm.”). 

Mr. Steven Cohen

See why diverse groups of people in our Jewish community give.

 

allegations note that trump is not just mean but lacks a decent vocabulary when annoyed or angry

i wish this were a farce but reportedly the donald has just out-ranked koby bryant in being horribly un-clever at being mean to people he disrespects. allegations of a history of anti-semitic epithets and harassment of women and gay employees has been reported today.

if this allegation is true i will still have enough information as to not cast my vote for him to be our next american president.  (i did like staying in his hotel in vegas. we had a great coupon for $99 a night during our finkelstein family reunion. the hotel was smoke free and the pool deck was really quiet). but back to the topic, a man with that much real estate and who is ultimately responsible for the “unlucky statements” of Miss Carrie Prejean should really be more creative when angry or annoyed. allegedly calling an international superstar a “faggot jew” behind their back is in poor taste, bigoted and embarrassingly simple minded.

dear donald, i know how much easier it would be for you to shrug this recent news off as fabricated lies... but it would be so much easier for us bloggers to tolerate you in the media if you were not such a mean bully. i know of a great list of anti-bullying resources if you are open to learning. love, lisa

 

candidates

Rebecca Kaplan

to the lgbt jewish candidates this election season, thanks for representing! of the 20,354 votes for lgbt jewish candidates in district 8 – scott wiener takes the gig to lead the castro with 8,964 votes… yet with rafael mandelman 7,796 – 36.3% and rebecca prozan 3,594 – 16.73% the race was tough! for the sf member of the san francisco board of education race lgbt jewish candidate jamie rafaela wolfe received 14,518 votes but with 4.82% of the vote she will not be able to serve. and no one candidate for oakland mayor has yet grabbed the brass ring of 50 percent plus 1 vote so don’t give up hope for rebecca kaplan (as currently she is in a close & complicated 3rd place). plus we have of course good news with barney frank who was reelected to us congress, jared polis who retained his colorado seat for us congress and david cicilline who is now going to begin his first term in us congress as previous mayor of providence! what will happen next election season…? should we support a candidate just because they are jewish? lgbt? no, but i sure do love all the folks that ran! (and of course, thank you to the always amazing victory fund for making this happen too!) 

mark leno and scott weiner

rafael mandelman in the castro

bevan dufty with his young child sydney duty-goldfader

jared polis and marlon reis with the polis schutz family clapping behind them

david cicilline

rebecca prozan

scott weiner speaking at an hrc dinner he co-chaired

jamie wolfe as pictured in the san francisco bay area reporter (bar) for her run for school board

judge linda colfax

barney frank looking passionate as always

mark leno explaining a bill rebecca kaplan in front of lake merritt in oakland, ca