Re: “D.C., Md. push higher taxes, record spending” (op-ed by Mark Lee, Jan. 27)

Mark Lee’s recent column, “D.C., Md. push higher taxes, record spending” gives readers the false impression that Maryland’s public employees do not contribute to their own pension plans.  Le writes, “While many other states are…demanding that public employees contribute to generous benefit and pension plans…the two kindred jurisdictions north of the Potomac are behaving as outlier from another era.”  While I can’t speak for the District, Maryland State employees and teachers had been contributing five percent of their salaries into the pension plan until July 1, 2011 when—as a result of sweeping pension reforms enacted during the last General Assembly session—the contribution rate was increased to seven percent. —Michael D. Golden, director of external affairs, Maryland State Retirement and Pension System 

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor. Visit washingtonblade.com to join the discussion.

On behalf of Helping Our Brothers and Sisters, I would like to express our thanks to all who helped pay tribute to the life’s work of Franklin Edward Kameny. For many of us, this is the perfect time not simply to say our thanksgiving, but also to redouble our efforts to help achieve equality and to end discrimination.

Special thanks also must go to our Mayor Vincent Gray and the leadership of our D.C. Council members, especially David Catania and Jim Graham who paid personal tribute to Dr. Kameny at the Carnegie Library.

We also express thanks to the Members of Congress and public officials who eulogized him beautifully on Capitol Hill including Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Reps. Barney Frank and Tammy Baldwin, and John Berry, director of OPM. We are grateful to Yale law professor Bill Eskridge for his moving tribute to Kameny.

Thus far, with the generosity of many friends, we have covered expenses for Kameny’s viewing at Carnegie Library and his essential funeral costs, too. To be clear, we are especially grateful to our mayor’s staff for taking care of most of these expenses associated with the public events and the generous use of the prestigious Carnegie Library atrium.

In addition, we have now paid the deposit on a fitting, public gravesite for Kameny at the historic Congressional Cemetery. Charles Francis and Rick Rosendall volunteered to help identify and secure the ideal site near the resting place of Leonard Matlovich as well as Barbara Gittings (who will one day be interred at Congressional with her partner, Kay Tobin Lahusen), but not too close to J. Edgar Hoover and Clyde Tolson.

To honor Frank Kameny’s distinguished military service in Europe during World War II, a U.S. Army grave marker has been ordered and will be supplied at our government’s expense. However, to further distinguish Frank’s legacy as civil rights hero, we will have a second grave footer emblazoned with his famous remark: “Gay is Good.” We anticipate a graveside service in early spring when the markers and the gravesite are made ready.

For all who wish to help raise the remaining $4,000 anticipated, you may make your tax-deductible contribution online at HelpingOurBrothersandSisters.org or simply mail a check to HOBS, P.O. Box 53477, Washington, D.C. 20009. You also may email us at HOBSDC@gmail.com to make arrangements.

Any and all contributions raised beyond these expenses will go toward helping others who are at risk within the LGBT community. Wishing everyone a memorable Thanksgiving Holiday, and to never forget that “Gay is Good.” —Marvin Carter, president, HOBS

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor. Visit washingtonblade.com to join the discussion.

What did Frank Kameny mean to me?  An acquaintance, a rebel, an activist, a friend, a hero, a person who refused to accept life had to be a certain way. He was convinced that “Gay is Good” and he believed that to his core. He lived a lifetime of being angry at injustice. He did not take “no” for an answer. In his final years this refusal to accept “no” could make him a pain, and challenging with regard to his personal life. But, it was who he was. How can we thank him for this trait one day and criticize him the next? While we may have not understood, we could accept it was his way.

He was a hero and a friend. His final voicemail message to me was “How are you Marvin?” and he really wanted to know. He knew of my struggles with PTSD from my Marine Corps covert operations service.

He stayed focused on his cause (our cause) to the end. His mind remained sharp. An avid reader and a news addict, he remained involved with issues and causes to the end. He also was generous with his time for others. I watched, observed and participated in (reveled in) meetings with Frank and Dan Choi. These two activists, so focused, so intent in their struggle/fight for social justice, came together to pass the torch.

We can’t be perfect – but we can focus on what is important to us. Does that mean that some things are left undone? Yes. So we must surround ourselves with others who complement us — who may have the same goals, the same sense of justice — but may be working toward and for the cause in a different way.

Yes, Frank was my hero, and he was my friend. I am proud and privileged to stand next to him. Frank, your body may have left the premises – but your spirit and inspiration remains. —Marvin Carter, Washington, D.C.

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor. Visit washingtonblade.com to join the discussion.

Your front page salute (Oct. 14) to the passing of gay rights advocate Frank Kameny brought tears to my eyes and I plan to frame it and place it in a prominent place in my home.

I wonder how Kameny would have reacted to the news that Ann Coulter, the darling of the conservative right wing of the Republican Party, is going to appear in an upcoming episode of Logo’s “A-List: Dallas.” She will be joining GOProud executive director Jimmy LaSalvia in the episode.

I’ve never heard of GOProud but am guessing that it is similar to the Log Cabin group, which is comprised of conservative Republican gay men. Speaking only for myself (although I would like to think that Kameny would side with me), I have nothing but disdain for gay men and women who vote for Republican candidates in state and national elections but profess to be strong advocates of equal rights for all minority groups in this country.

They couldn’t care less about issues that impact on the clear majority of people who are just getting by financially, most likely living from paycheck to paycheck if indeed they are fortunate to have jobs.

I am not suggesting blind allegiance to one political party, although I am ready to commit to the “99 percent”/anti-Wall Street” movement and offer my services to advance its cause in any way I can. Not one of the Republican candidates for president has articulated any stance or belief that I would subscribe to and support.

I must admit to an aversion to Logo’s “A-List” series. I have tried to get through an entire 30-minute episode in the current “New York” series but haven’t been able to do so because I find the gay men on the show to be unbelievably narcissistic and self-absorbed, not to mention inarticulate and shallow twits. Come to think of it, Coulter and the “A-List: Dallas” queers probably deserve each other. —Bob Litman, Washington

Sometimes words fail. I just spoke to Frank last week. He called frequently on Fridays with comments (and polite criticisms) of the week’s paper. He was upset last week because his closest Blade newspaper box had the previous week’s issue inside. I asked him to finally let us comp him a subscription. He reluctantly agreed and we only got one issue out to him before this awful news. Frank helped to found the Blade and never missed an issue. Those of us who now write for the gay press without pseudonyms, or who serve openly in the U.S. military, or who legally marry a same-sex partner in D.C., do so in large part because of Frank’s pioneering and fearless work. Gay is, indeed, good. —Kevin Naff, editor, Washington Blade

I only hope that Frank passed with the same smile on his face that he had at the recent HRC dinner when being wheeled around by a beautiful young man. Frank Kameny will go down in the history books as a fighter for the civil and human rights of the LGBT community. He will be remembered for his courageous stands for justice and his fight for his own rights. I assume that on his tombstone will be the words ‘Gay is Good,’ an expression that he always wanted to be remembered for.

Not many people get the honors that they deserve while still able to enjoy them. But Frank was fortunate to see his life’s work honored in many ways. He saw one of his greatest fights, the right of gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military, come to fruition. He was honored by President Obama and a new generation that benefitted from his struggle to live openly the life that he was born to live.

We have lost an icon and a hero. May he rest in peace knowing he lived a life that made a difference.  —Peter Rosenstein, columnist and longtime LGBT rights advocate

Frank was a force of nature. He was a man of high intelligence, endless nerve, and a steel spine. When his own government fired him for being gay in the late 1950s, he was filled with patriotic indignation, outraged that a country that he had defended in front-line combat in World War II would treat him so unjustly. He treated his firing as an act of war, and (as he has said countless times since) he was not in the habit of losing his wars. Unlike most other “homophile” activists at the time, Frank used his own name and refused to cower in fear. He did not think there was the slightest thing wrong with him. He appealed his case to the Supreme Court and wrote his own brief. His entire strategy was based on seizing the moral and intellectual high ground, specifically invoking America’s founding principles and demanding for gay people the birthright of any other American citizen. He did this at a time when he had no backup, no army of activists and fundraisers behind him. He took on the U.S. Civil Service Commission and the Department of Defense by himself, on his own wits and native courage. —Rick Rosendall, vice president, Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance

Words like “champion” and “pioneer” are too frequently bandied about. But both apply to Dr. Frank Kameny. At a time when gays were shunned and vilified, Frank had the vision, and the chutzpah, to press for gay rights as civil rights. He took a courageous stand for equality by directly engaging with the legal system and fighting his way up to the Supreme Court. As importantly, he played a vital part in steadily building a social movement for gay pride that would first help to change the way we think about ourselves and then change the way others think about us. We, all of us, gay and straight, are thus in his debt. —Leslie Calman, executive director, Mautner Project

“Dr. Frank Kameny was more than a pioneer. He was definitely that. But he was also a trailblazer, a mentor, an inspiration — a hero. The list of platitudes to describe the father of the modern gay rights movement is endless. In 1957, Frank was fired as a federal government worker because he was gay. That was then. We, as gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people all owe a debt of gratitude to the lifetime of work Frank has done on our behalf. May we now stand on his shoulders and continue the fight for equality.  Let’s make Frank proud!” —Robert Turner, president, D.C. Log Cabin Republicans

“Frank Kameny was a champion of equal rights, a founding father of the Pride movement, and a hero to so many of us in the LGBT community. Dr. Kameny never ran from who he was and in so doing empowered millions to be open with the world about who they are. While I am deeply saddened by his passing, I am grateful for the fearless and brave life that he led. Frank Kameny changed minds and opened hearts to acceptance and tolerance in Washington, D.C. and all over the world.” —D.C. Council member David Catania

The day before Frank passed away I stumbled on a picture of him in a Christopher Street Magazine from 1976. He is quoted as saying: “We all know that Gay is Good. It’s up to us to get out there and make it better — much better.” Frank did make the world better for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. I am so pleased we had the opportunity to honor him at the DC Fall Reception last month. He inspired us then, and inspires me still, to get out there and make it better for our community. —David Mariner, director, DC Center for the LGBT Community

Dr. Frank Kameny was an American hero who transformed our nation’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community (LGBT). … He was known for being feisty and combative, but he was also big-hearted. He honored me personally by attending my swearing-in, and showed his ability to forgive by accepting my official apology on behalf of the government for the sad and discredited termination of his federal employment by the U.S. Civil Service Commission, the predecessor of the agency I now head. We presented and he accepted OPM’s highest honor, the Theodore Roosevelt Award, given to those who are courageous in defense of our nation’s Merit Principles. I am grateful for his life, his service to his nation in WWII, and his passion and persistence in helping build a more perfect union.  He was a great man, and I will sorely miss him. —John Berry, director, U.S. Office of Personnel Management

In memory of a giant. All we have achieved grows from your accomplishments. Thank you Frank. —DC Allen, The Crew Club

I am spoiled that I had the great honor of knowing one of my heroes Dr. Frank Kameny. I first met him at a Pride meeting where he raised the roof by saying that we would win our fight for human rights because we are right and they (our enemies) are wrong.

One of my favorite memories of Frank was running into him in line outside Velvet Nation one Saturday. He was attending an after party and was standing outside in suit and tie surrounded by hundreds of club goers who probably had no idea that they were in line with a living legend. Frank appeared to have an excellent time.

Another great memory was being at the White House when President Obama name-checked him in a speech welcoming the first-ever GLBT Pride event. I asked him later if while organizing the first-ever LGBT protest in front of the White House in the early ‘60s he ever thought that he would be singled out by the president at an LGBT event, Frank paused and said “honestly, no.” Frank inspired so many and lived a life that proved that Gay is Good. —Chris Dyer, former D.C. Office of GLBT Affairs liaison

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor.

This week, Sept. 4-10, marks the 37th annual National Suicide Prevention Week. This month also marks the one-year anniversary of nine LGBT teens across the United States tragically taking their own lives after enduring relentless bullying and discrimination in school. Unfortunately, although this tragic string of LGBT youth suicides was highly (and uniquely) publicized, it was not an anomaly. Studies conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and independent research groups consistently show that between 30-40 percent of LGBT youth have considered and/or attempted suicide at least once in their lifetimes. Even higher percentages are stigmatized, bullied, harassed, and assaulted for their sexual orientation or gender identity/expression in schools across the country. These statistics are absolutely unacceptable. No child should suffer like Seth Walsh or Tyler Clementi or any other LGBT youth who has tragically attempted or fallen victim to suicide. As LGBT adults, as American citizens, and as human beings, it is our responsibility to help end this tragic epidemic.

Fortunately, a number of groups have been working toward creating conditions in which suicide is no longer a common tragedy among sexual minority youth. The Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has been combating bullying, harassment, and discrimination in schools since the 1990s. Since 1998, The Trevor Project has operated as the leading national organization focused on suicide prevention efforts among LGBT and questioning youth. The Trevor Project provides The Trevor Lifeline, a confidential around-the-clock helpline; TrevorChat, a suicide and crisis prevention online chat service; and a variety of other programs and resources for youth and schools. More recently, after the string of suicides last year, online columnist Dan Savage launched the “It Gets Better” campaign, which prompted thousands of youth, parents, LGBT community members, allies, celebrities, and politicians—including the president of the United States—to create and post videos on YouTube encouraging struggling LGBT youth that life does get better.

Unfortunately, even the best efforts of GLSEN, The Trevor Project, and other organizations formed to aid LGBT youth are not enough. No number of YouTube videos assuring sexual minority youth that life will get better eventually can completely drown out the messages to the contrary that these youth see in school and on television everyday.

When a teenager turns on the news and sees that another gay man was beaten up in Salt Lake City, that a group of transgender women and their friends were shot by a D.C. police officer, and that the Defense of Marriage Act still prevents same-sex couples from receiving equal protection under the law, they are told that it doesn’t get better. This is unacceptable. We need to make it better, and we need to do so now. We all need to get involved in politics, in our communities, and in schools to make life better. Not just for LGBT adults, but for LGBT youth, too.

In 1993, GLSEN founder and former Assistant Deputy Education Secretary for Safe and Drug-Free Schools Kevin Jennings was asked to edit the first-ever high school gay and lesbian history text. I have heard Kevin give many speeches in support of LGBT inclusiveness in schools, but he has always ended with the same story: “As I was doing research, I learned of One Magazine, America’s first gay magazine, which began publication in 1953. I decided to read some, and came across this letter to the editor in One’s October 1954 issue: ‘I will always remain willing to support, in my small way, any effort to reduce intolerance toward a minority group in the United States. Intolerance is basically as un-American as Communism. I realize the road ahead of us is long and difficult, but that part of the road already traveled has been pretty tough, too.’” People like Frank Kameny and Lilli Vincenz, Harvey Milk and Mara Keisling, and Kevin Jennings himself, have traveled a tough road, but they have still managed to make an incredible difference in the lives of LGBT youth. It is our turn, and our responsibility to the LGBT youth of the present and future, to keep traveling down that road.

In honor of National Suicide Prevention Week, The Trevor Project is encouraging members of the LGBT and allied community to be a resource for youth who need to talk. To take the Talk To Me Pledge and join the Talk To Me campaign, go to HYPERLINK “http://www.trevortalktome.org/”trevortalktome.org. —Samuel Garrett, Washington, D.C.

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor. Visit washingtonblade.com to join the discussion.

It’s no secret that cigarettes are extremely dangerous to your health. Cigarette smoking takes the lives of more than 400,000 Americans each year and, according to a report from the American Lung Association, the lives of more than 700 District residents. Menthol cigarettes are just as cancer-inducing as regular cigarettes and because of the flavoring, even more palatable for young smokers who quickly become addicted. Among African Americans, whose smoking rates are high, menthols are disproportionately the cigarette of choice.

The District’s LGBT community, too, should be alarmed by the widespread availability of menthol cigarettes. LGBT people smoke at 50 percent or more the rate of the general population. Our youth are exceptionally vulnerable: studies have shown LGBT youth to smoke at 2.5 to 9.7 times the rate of straight youth. Access to menthol cigarettes increases their chances of becoming smokers.

In 2009, the FDA instituted a ban on cigarettes containing flavors, herbs and spices. Farewell to vanilla, cinnamon, licorice, cloves and many other flavors that are proven to be enticing to youth. Why should “cool mint” menthol be treated any differently?

In 2011, the federal Food and Drug Administration’s tobacco advisory committee concluded, “Removal of menthol cigarettes from the marketplace would benefit public health in the United States.” To save our youth, Mautner Project urges the LGBT community to learn the dangerous facts about menthol cigarettes and speak out for change. We urge readers to join a new coalition, SmokeLess LGBT DC, to make their voices heard.

Visit Mautner Project’s website today and join the fight against tobacco, mautnerproject.org/education/tobacco.cfm. —Leslie J. Calman, executive director, Mautner Project

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor. Visit washingtonblade.com to join the discussion.

The summer is a perfect time to consider who we want in charge at the Wilson Building next year. Given our current leadership, it’s also a great time to consider running for office to replace them. We all deserve better.

Next year’s City Council primary date is April 3. For the most part in this overwhelmingly Democratic city, odds favor whoever wins in April. LGBT Washingtonians—leaders in business, neighborhoods and community organizations—should consider bids to replace some longtime City Council members who may no longer be serving us well.

If you live in Wards 2, 4, 7 or 8, you should consider whether you could do a better job than your current representatives on the Council. Two at-large seats will also be available, so experienced leaders thinking about serving on the Council needn’t limit themselves to their own ward boundaries. Finally Board of Education seats in the same Wards and all ANC seats are also available for those interested and qualified.

The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund will help talented and committed leaders determine if there’s a path to victory in a particular political race. If you believe you would make an excellent candidate for elective office, come talk to us and let’s determine whether a run for office is right for you.

Our city needs new leadership and new voices, and our local LGBT community is among the most talented in the country.  — John Klenert, Victory Campaign board member

The following was submitted as a letter to the editor. Go here to join the discussion.

Re: “Biddle beats out Vincent Orange for interim post” (news, Jan. 13)

To my fellow D.C. citizens and neighbors, both LBGT and supportive allies, our capital city has yet another opportunity to exercise one of the few electoral privileges we have: to elect a person to the City Council.

Our new City Council Chair Kwame Brown had to vacate his At-Large Council position when sworn into his new office. To fill the vacancy under the current terms of the Home Rule Act, the Democratic State Committee has exercised its right to appoint an interim member, while we await the April special election. If you believe the Washington Post, Sekou Biddle was named after much backroom arm-twisting and other shenanigans.

So now we have 17 other people who have been scouring the eight city wards for signatures. For the record, as I write this essay, I have not yet selected my personal choice. Although our LBGT issues are important, I hope those who will vote will look beyond our concerns and consider the many challenges we face citywide.

However, as an aside, as a member of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund’s Campaign Board, I am disappointed that we do not have a qualified member of our community running. Having three of our people on the City Council would have been just great. That said, let’s look at some of the issues the candidates should be ready to address if he/she wants our support.

If any asked me the primary issues our city faces, I would say in no particular order: continuing education reform, ongoing safety issues, congressional interference in local issues due in part to lack of voting rights/statehood, city budgets (revenue versus expenses), employment and health issues.

Are all the candidates pro-LBGT? How many testified on the record before the City Council in favor of equality marriage? Who can go beyond being merely for or against Michelle Rhee to continue education reforms? How many have bothered to lobby Congress on home rule issues beyond attending rallies and actually met with members of Congress? Who has a grasp of the HIV epidemic and can offer creative, cost effective programs to eventually stop it?

Who has developed an economic plan to bring unemployment rates down and increase tax revenues? Who is willing to freeze hiring and salaries of non-safety employees for a two- to three-year period the same way that has been proposed for federal employees? Who is willing to insist that future Council members be full-time employees? Who has ideas to improve ANC operations? Who favors expanding elected positions in D.C.?  Who can be relied upon to be a true independent, intelligent voice and not be another rubber stamp creature with a microphone?

Try to attend candidate forums. Don’t be shy to ask questions and if not satisfied with answers, let them know! Read the blogs and individual websites, call candidates at their campaign office or even at their homes if you want to know something. Let each one pass/fail your own employment interview. Finally, regardless of how many polling stations will be open (that is an entirely different matter), be sure to vote. —John Klenert, Washington

The following were submitted as letters to the editor or posted as comments to our website.

Re: “How engaged is HRC in ‘Don’t Ask’ fight?” (op-ed by Lane Hudson, Dec. 17)

We were surprised to hear of an op-ed in the Washington Blade last week alleging that Joe Solmonese, president of HRC, had not been engaged in the arduous fight to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

As the authors of the stand-alone bill in the Senate, we can tell you nothing is further from the truth. Saturday’s historic 65 to 31 vote repealing this policy is testament to Joe’s leadership and HRC’s role in this legislative battle. — Joseph I. Lieberman and Susan M. Collins, United States Senators

Re: “It gets better gets annoying” (blog post by Kevin Naff, Dec. 17)

It Gets Better is annoying? You know what I find annoying? Listening to the news to hear about another young gay kid killing himself because he was bullied so badly. I don’t care who participates in it, whether gay or straight, Clinton or Bieber, as long as the message gets out there, because those kids need to know that just because the other kids in their schools are naive, not everyone is, and that there are people that they don’t even know that care about them, and feel their loss when they harm themselves. —Frankie

Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater here. IGB is serving a need in the community for people without support to see a glimmer of hope, enough hope not to commit suicide. This is life and death for people.

If you’re frustrated by celebrities and politicians leveraging a cause, I totally understand. Keep in mind though that celebrities and politicians are constantly being reinforced with the idea that their association to a cause, in any form, matters. Not as much as their money, and certainly nothing compared to any actions they might take. Ultimately, though, that’s a problem with people “buying the hype.” —Paul

Your sentiment is shared by a lot of us that feel It Gets Better should choose its speakers with more care. Nice post. —Terence

Re: “HISTORIC: Senate approves ‘Don’t Ask’ repeal” (news, Dec. 18)

With the impending repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” only one federal anti-gay domino remains standing: The 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. With the new, Republican-controlled House unlikely to pass a DOMA repeal measure, it’s going to take a Supreme Court ruling declaring DOMA, California’s Proposition 8 and all other state laws banning same-gender marriage unconstitutional before LGBT Americans will finally have full legal equality. —Skeeter Sanders

Re: “Should HRC’s Solmonese resign?” (blog post by Kevin Naff, Dec. 17)

Right, gays are in the Democrats’ pocket. The Republicans are “allegedly” so much worse. Has Kevin Naff been paying attention? Hate crimes was passed with a Democratic Congress and president. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs advocated for DADT repeal under a Democratic administration. And from where are most of the votes to repeal DADT coming: Democrats. Without the need for a cloture vote, a Democratic Senate would have already passed this. —BMF

Given the choice between HRC and the cabal of unaccountable billionaires buying up our movement — one org and one blogger at a time — I’ll pick HRC. I see what they have achieved and when they screw up I know where to call. But the handful of major funders and their shadowy operatives claim credit but never step up to take the blame when they screw up. They own half the local, state and national groups. I’m glad HRC is big enough not to be shoved around by them. —Allen

HRC is not only not producing on a national level, its existence stifles the ability of local and state level organizations to marshal the resources needed to mount effective campaigns for equality where it really counts. So-called HRC “local” groups mimic the national organization’s high-profile image with monthly events and fundraisers, and the obligatory “A-gay” oriented big ticket annual dinner. Everyone involved appears to feel good about what they’re doing, but very little political action ever takes place and no real progress ever seems to be made. —Michael