This all of the news we will forget about when the Ninth Circuit court of appeals Prop 8 decision comes at around 1:00 p.m. today Eastern:

• St. Petersburg, Russia is preparing to ban for LGBT people what Americans would consider First Amendment rights, according to Towleroad.
• From the Philadelphia Inquirer: CNN correspondent Roland Martin continues to dig himself into a deeper and deeper hole.
• The Smoking Gun has video of a brutal daylight anti-gay beating in an Atlanta neighborhood by alleged gang members. Warning: the video is incredibly disturbing.
• Campus Pride awards LGBT campus activists for making colleges around the country better for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.
• Madonna announced her tour dates today, and she’ll be in D.C. on Sep. 23. JoeMyGod has all the dates.

Finally, a report from Uganda television on the start of the new Parliamentary session where the “Kill The Gays” bill will return, despite assurances it was dead, earlier this year.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZa92mVME9k

Learn more about the current incarnation of the “Kill The Gays” bill from our friends at Box Turtle Bulletin.

While the rest of the world nurses their Super Bowl big pro football game hangovers, CNN contributor Roland Martin will be nursing a badly bruised reputation, after lighting up the Twitterverse with several homophobic tweets last night. He’s got a history. And now several angry petitioners are trying to make him history. Even GLAAD wants to see him fired, and Tracy Morgan can tell you, you don’t want to mess with GLAAD!

• The New Jersey Assembly Judiciary Committee voted 5-2 to advance the same-sex marriage bill to the full Senate on Mon. Feb. 16, according to the Star-Ledger. The Senate takes it up three days earlier on the 13th. Will the Senate give same-sex couples in New Jersey a happy Valentine’s Day?
• Meanwhile, according to Huffington Post, Gov. Christie sends some confusing messages to same-sex marriage advocates in New Jersey, calling his effort to get marriage on the ballot “magnanimous.”
• New Mexico state Rep. David Chavez is trying to get a law passed in the state barring the recognition of same-sex couples. He’s not the best spokesperson for defending marriage, since his wife is divorcing him after accusing him of domestic violence.
• According to Karen Ocamb of Frontiers L.A., one of California’s leading LGBT voices has filed for divorce from her wife of four years. Robin Tyler and Diane Olson were two of the first Californians married under the brief period of time that same-sex marriage was legal in that state, prior to the passage of Prop 8.
• Finally, just when you thought the “Kill the Gays” bill was dead in Uganda, its rearing its ugly head again, according to Box Turtle Bulletin.

Finally, for your viewing pleasure, her majesty, Madonna:

Happy Monday!

Uganda’s ambassador to the United States blasted the head of the United Negro College Fund for sending him an “incendiary” letter last week asking him to discuss an anti-homosexuality bill introduced in the Uganda Parliament in his scheduled speech at a Martin Luther King Day event sponsored by the Fund.

Ambassador Perezi K. Kamunanwire responded to that letter by withdrawing as keynote speaker at the King Day event, held Monday morning in Greenbelt, Md. In his own letter, he said United Negro College Fund president and CEO, Michael L. Lomax, “blindsided and startled” him with Lomax’s Jan. 12 letter raising the issue of the anti-homosexuality bill.

In addition, Kamunanwire claims in the letter that the Ugandan Parliament is not planning to reconsider a bill that would impose the death penalty for homosexual acts.

The ambassador, a former college professor who has taught at U.S. universities, said in his letter that he had been invited to speak on education-related issues at the King Day event.

Lomax said in his letter to Kamunanwire that he raised the issue of reports of anti-gay persecution in Uganda after receiving an inquiry from the Washington Blade and others asking why his organization invited a Ugandan official to speak at a King Day commemoration.

“Following a brief telephone conversation with Dr. Lomax in which I expressed concern that changing the topic would distract from our shared commitment to honor Dr. King’s legacy and advance the discussion of education equality, it was clear from his discourteous and insulting tone that I was no longer welcome,” Kamunanwire said in a Jan. 15 letter to William F. Stasior, chairman of the board of directors of the United Negro College Fund.

Kamunanwire sent a copy of his letter to Stasior to the Blade along with an email message expressing concern about the Blade’s story reporting he had withdrawn abruptly as a speaker for the King Day event. The Blade story cited a press release from the United Negro College Fund announcing Kamunanwire’s withdrawal as speaker.

“My staff at the Embassy of the Republic of Uganda, and members of the Ugandan American community, brought your article to my attention,” he said in his email to the Blade. “In an effort to clarify my decision to withdraw as keynote speaker from the UNCF’s 29th Anniversary Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast fundraiser, I am sharing a letter which was sent to the chair of the UNCF board,” he said.

“This will be my only statement on the matter, as I withdrew my name so as not to distract from the importance of the King holiday and education equality,” he said. “It is my hope that the Washington Blade will report this matter fairly.”

Lomax and a spokesperson for the United Negro College Fund didn’t immediately respond to calls from the Blade seeking their response to Kamunanwire’s criticism of Lomax.

In his Jan. 12 letter to Kamunanwire, Lomax said, “We are dismayed at present polices in Uganda (and in many other African nations) criminalizing sexual orientation, and we view with alarm the draconian penalties, including the death penalty, that the Ugandan anti-homosexuality bill would impose if passed.”

Kamunanwire replied in his letter to UNCF board chair Stasior that Lomax’s assumptions that Uganda’s existing laws and policies result in anti-gay persecution were false.

“It is important to note that Uganda does not have such policies,” he said, adding that the bill in question was introduced by a single member of the Uganda Parliament and was never officially debated or passed.

“[A]nd contrary to popular belief, it is not being reconsidered,” Kamunanwire said in his letter. “This has been explained to the U.S. government, Department of State, and several other concerned parties to their satisfaction,” he said.

The New York Times and international human rights activists reported in October that the Uganda Parliament voted to reopen a debate on the anti-homosexuality bill, which was first introduced in 2009. Some of the activists cited a report by Uganda’s Daily Mail newspaper as saying that Parliament Speaker Rebecca Kadaga confirmed that the bill had been sent to several committees for consideration last October and could be brought to a vote.

A spokesperson for the State Department couldn’t be reached for comment early Monday to verify Kamunanwire’s assertion that U.S. officials were satisfied that the anti-homosexuality bill was not being taken up again. President Obama and Secretary of State Hilary Clinton expressed concern last year over reports of anti-gay persecution in Uganda following the murder of a prominent Ugandan gay rights activist in the activist’s home.

“As is the case with several members of the British Commonwealth, the outdated anti-sodomy laws in the Ugandan penal code were inherited from our British colonizers,” Kamunanwire said in his letter, in referring to existing law in Uganda.

“Quite similarly, there are dormant anti-sodomy laws on the books in fourteen U.S. states, including Virginia where the UNCF makes its home,” he said.

Kamunanwire was referring to a decision by legislatures in some states to leave their sodomy laws on the books following the 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lawrence vs. Texas, which overturned state sodomy laws that criminalized sodomy between consenting adults in private. Legal experts have said the state sodomy laws remaining on the books cannot be enforced under the Supreme Court ruling.

Uganda’s ambassador to the United States abruptly withdrew on Friday as the keynote speaker for a Jan. 16 Martin Luther King Day event sponsored by the United Negro College Fund in Greenbelt, Md.

The withdrawal by Ambassador Perezi K. Kamunanwire came one day after United Negro College Fund President and CEO Michael L. Lomax sent him a letter saying UNCF supporters had expressed concern over an anti-homosexuality bill recently introduced in the Uganda Parliament. The letter was triggered by an inquiry from the Blade.

“Yesterday I was asked for comment by the Washington Blade, the oldest and second-largest circulation LGBT newspaper in the country,” Lomax told Kamunanwire in his letter.

“UNCF’s history and mission make us especially alert to violations of human rights, wherever they occur,” Lomax said in his letter. “So while we recognize that these issues are matters of internal Ugandan policy, we are dismayed at present polices in Uganda (and in many other African countries) criminalizing sexual orientation, and we view with alarm the draconian penalties, including the death penalty that the Ugandan anti-homosexuality bill would impose if passed.”

Lomax added, “Given the interest expressed in the Washington community, I hope that you will address this issue when you speak at the King Day and take questions at the conclusion of your remarks.”

The Blade contacted the United Negro College Fund after a black LGBT resident of the D.C. area sent an email to the Blade expressing “shock, sadness and disappointment” that UNCF would invite a Ugandan official to speak at its King Day celebration given Uganda’s widely known record of anti-gay persecution.

“With the pending legislation there in Uganda, the death penalty for those found ‘guilty’ of being LGBTQ, I don’t think Ambassador Kamunanwire is the most appropriate speaker for Dr. King’s birthday,” said the LGBT resident, who asked not to be identified.

Prior to Kamunanwire’s decision to withdraw as a speaker at the King Day event, UNCF spokesperson Joye Griffin told the Blade UNCF invited the ambassador to speak “based on his career as an educator and scholar,” including his role as a professor at U.S. colleges.

“As one supporter put it, he has impressive credentials and his record indicates that he has spent a lifetime of engaging intellectually in the exploration of freedom struggles both here and abroad,” Griffin said.

In his Jan. 12 letter to Kamunawire, which he released to the Blade, Lomax said he would be appearing at a separate United Negro College Fund event in Minneapolis to commemorate Martin Luther King Day in which the daughter of human rights advocate Bishop Desmond Tutu would appear.

“As I am sure you know, UNCF was founded 68 years ago in response to the pervasive denial of educational opportunities to African Americans,” Lomax said in his letter. “Non-discrimination is at the heart of what UNCF has always stood for. Our policy prohibits discrimination based on race, color, creed, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status and disability.”

Lomax told Kamunawire in his letter that UNCF is “partnering with the Human Rights Campaign, the country’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Americans, on an initiative that has formed a working group to take stock of LGBT issues affecting students and faculty on our campuses and to establish a mission, goals and objectives to address those issues.”

In a press release issued on Friday, UNCF announced that Lomax apparently cancelled his appearance at the Minneapolis event and would replace Kamunanwire at the King Day celebration in Greenbelt.

The release says Lomax “will speak on human rights and the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He will be substituting for the scheduled speaker, the Ugandan ambassador to the United States, Perezi K. Kamunawire, who withdrew after Dr. Lomax requested that he address the anti-homosexuality bill now pending in the Ugandan parliament.”

Kamunawire and a spokesperson for the Embassy of Uganda in Washington couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.

An LGBT advocate who asked not to be identified is urging two national gay rights groups and human rights organization TransAfrica to call on the United Negro College Fund to cancel an invitation to the Ugandan ambassador to the U.S. to appear as the keynote speaker at a Jan. 16 Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration in Greenbelt, Md.

“I am writing to you to share my shock, sadness and disappointment that the featured keynote speaker for the United Negro College Fund Jan. 16, 2012 event celebrating the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is H.E. Perezi K. Kamunanwire, Ambassador to the United States from Uganda,” the activist said in an email to the Blade.

The D.C.-area activist noted that with legislation pending in Uganda calling for the death penalty for persons found “guilty” of committing consensual homosexual sex acts among adults that it is “most inappropriate” for an African-American organization to invite an official representative of Uganda to speak at a King Day event.

The activist stated in the email that the activist has urged the Human Rights Campaign and the National Black Justice Coalition, two LGBT organizations; and TransAfrica, a human rights organization that promotes equality and freedom in African countries, to speak out against the United Negro College Fund’s decision to invite the Ugandan ambassador to speak at the King event.

Joye Griffin, a spokesperson for the United Negro College Fund, said in a statement that the organization has a strong policy opposing discrimination based on sexual orientation. She said UNCF also opposes “abuses and violations of human rights whenever they occur.” Griffin said UNCF invited the Ugandan ambassador to speak at the King Day event based on his career as a distinguished educator and scholar who has taught at U.S. universities and directed black studies programs.

Representatives of the other three groups couldn’t be immediately reached to obtain their response to the activist’s concern.

U.S. and international LGBT rights organizations have called on the Uganda Parliament to withdraw from consideration what activists have described as the “kill the gays” bill.

Presentation on Uganda
Rev. Mark Kiyimba
Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
Unitarian Universalist Church
10309 New Hampshire Ave.
Silver Spring, MD
Free, open to the public
Uucss.org
Ugandaunitarian.org

These are challenging times for LGBT people and their allies in Uganda. Fanned by anti-gay rhetoric from American evangelicals working in the country, Ugandan politicians are trying to resume debate on the infamous Anti-Homosexuality Bill first introduced in 2009, just as Republican presidential candidates are bringing anti-gay rhetoric to the primary campaign.

Ugandan Unitarian minister Rev. Mark Kiyimba gives a presentation Tuesday on the state of LGBT rights in his home country. (Photo by Nancy Pierce; courtesy Unitarian Universalist World)

Although homosexual acts by both men and women are already illegal in Uganda and punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment, this bill seeks to step up enforcement and increase penalties against gays and lesbians and their straight allies. “Repeat offenders” would be subject to the death penalty. Individuals and companies promoting LGBT rights would be penalized. Ugandan citizens would be required to report any homosexual activity within 24 hours or face a maximum penalty of three years imprisonment. Ugandan citizens living abroad would be subject to extradition for having same-sex relations outside of the country. Similar sanctions would apply to HIV-positive people.

One of the leaders in the fight against the Anti-Homosexuality Bill is Rev. Mark Kiyimba, minister in exile of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Kampala, Uganda’s capital. Kiyimba, a straight ally, has been forced to leave Uganda because of threats against his life. He has received numerous death threats and was brought in for police questioning for “recruiting homosexuals at his church.” The minister is currently touring the United States speaking out against the Anti-Homosexuality Bill and the American evangelical pastors who support it. He has left his wife and child behind in Uganda, but plans to return to them soon.

As part of his tour, Kiyimba will be speaking at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Silver Spring Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 7:30 p.m. Senior minister Rev. Elizabeth Lerner Maclay is proud to host.

“Rev. Mark Kiyimba is one of the most courageous, compassionate and visionary religious leaders in the world today,” Maclay says. “The peril he and his congregation are facing remind us why equal rights and protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people are essential the world over — including here in Maryland. We’re sure a lot of people will want to hear about the remarkable work he and his congregation are doing in the face of incredible danger.”

Kiyimba and Maclay are quick to point out that the Ugandan bill has strong links to American politics and the effort to export the American culture wars to Africa, where it is finding fertile soil, especially in conservative sub-Saharan countries. The Anti-Homosexuality Bill was introduced in October 2009 on the heels of a two-day conference led by American pastors Scott Lively, Don Schmierer and Caleb Lee Brundidge who asserted that homosexuality is a direct threat to the cohesion of African families. Lively, a former state director for Focus on the Family, said the conference, which was attended by thousands, including prominent Ugandan politicians, was like “a nuclear bomb against the gay agenda in Uganda.”

In response to this, Kiyimba said there is a moral obligation for his church to oppose the anti-gay bill.

“Because the bill was started by evangelicals,” he says during a Blade interview this week, “we thought it necessary for our church to counter those negative attitudes. We must do everything we can to stop this bill.” He organized an LGBT conference in Kampala that was attended by about 200 activists and his church hosted an event called “Standing on the Side of Love: Reimaging Valentine’s Day” last February. Kiyimba also founded the New Life Children’s Home and the New Life Primary School, an orphanage and school for children who have lost parents to AIDS or who themselves are HIV positive.

Kiyimba, who has a strong record as an advocate for both women’s rights and gay rights, feels it is important for progressive evangelicals to stand against the hate-filled rhetoric of some American right-wing pastors.

“It was started by Focus on the Family,” he says. “They started spreading hate among the people here. They are the ones who started it by coming to Uganda and holding seminars and workshops and telling people that homosexuality cannot be healed and telling people that there is a homosexual agenda to destroy the family and that the government needs to do something — that governments all over the world need to take a strong stand against homosexuality.”

Kiyimba also noted that there are links between the debate on the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda and the Republican primaries. “Politicians such as Michelle Bachmann and Rick Santorum are linked to the American evangelical pastors who went to Uganda. There is no difference. They use the same language to discuss homosexuality and the traditional family, but in Uganda they are calling to kill the gay people.”

The timing of Kiyimba’s talk in Silver Spring is noteworthy because it comes right before the one-year anniversary of the murder of Ugandan activist David Kato. Since the bill was introduced, Ugandan media have issued calls for harsher punishments for “immoral” behavior. Organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have reported an increase in detention and torture of those suspected of having homosexual relations, and one newspaper published a list of Uganda’s 100 “top” gays and lesbians, along with their photos and addresses, and the command “hang them.” Many on the list have been threatened, beaten and ostracized. One of them, David Kato, Uganda’s most prominent gay activist, was found bludgeoned to death last January. Police investigating the crime have called it a robbery.

Asked why American gays and lesbians and their allies should be concerned about the fight in Uganda, Kiyimba says, “People should join us and understand that we are a global village now. We are all one. If I am hurt, at the end of the day, you are also hurt. We want our friends in the West to take some responsibility to speak to the government here and in Uganda so that they can have an open mind on homosexuality. It is not a vice that people choose. We need to have an international voice to speak for those voiceless people in Uganda,”

Maclay shares two more reasons why locals should attend Kiyimba’s talk. First, she notes, “We need to pay attention — stay informed, talk to our legislators, write letters to the editor, contribute funds. This is an opportunity for people in the area to learn first-hand about the situation in Uganda. We are dealing with the same issues here, issues of respect and safety, in very different, but still very significant ways.”

But more importantly, she adds, our attention to the issue could help save Kiyimba’s life. “He is going back to Uganda at the end of the month. He can be kept safe by our awareness and concern. American input has a big impact on Ugandan society. It can be an impact that spreads hatred and intolerance or we can turn it around and reach out with compassion and respect. It is my absolute belief we can turn it around. It is my great hope that our care for him and his congregation and the children they care for will keep him safe.”

Attendees of a November 16th meeting have reported to LGBT blog Ex-Gay Watch that ‘ex-gay’ group Exodus International may be near the brink financial ruin.

According to Ex-Gay watch Exodus leadership, prominent religious leaders and former heavy-weights in the ‘ex-gay’ world gathered in New York to discuss “rebranding” Exodus with an eye on survival; with Exodus President Alan Chambers allegedly saying “everything is on the table.”

“It was also clear from the meeting that this is their last resort, their “Hail Mary” so to speak — they’ve tried everything else,” David Roberts of Ex-Gay Watch writes. “Indeed, it seems certain that Chambers would have made pleas to anyone he knew with money before taking this drastic action. And we’ve all seen the odd inconsistencies apparent in their public face.”

Exodus International has traditionally taught that same-sex attraction can be overcome with discipline and prayer. Exodus has been linked to the discredited “Love Won Out” tour with Focus on the Family, as well as other ‘ex-gay’ movements and promoters. Recently, Exodus board member, Don Schmierer played a part in helping push for a law in Uganda that would criminalize ‘homosexual behavior’ as well as even outlaw heterosexuals from advocating for LGBT people, and most notably, would impose capital punishment for HIV+ gays and lesbians.

Both Ex-Gay Watch and Truth Wins Out — an organization that directly confronts ‘ex-gay’ messaging — expressed belief that Exodus may follow the lead of former ex-gay camp leader John Smid in releasing an ‘apology’ of sorts in order to change its public image.

“…[W]e know that Chambers plans to make some announcements at the Exodus Leadership Conference in January, 2012,” the Ex-Gay Watch post says. “Speakers unusual for such an event have been invited, along with a church communications expert who was also present at the meeting. It may be through their voices that Chambers will frame the plan for re-branding Exodus. It will be after this conference that Exodus announces whatever it is they decide, presumably some sort of apology which allows them to maintain their core ideology, while claiming to have gone about expressing it badly — too much truth and not enough grace, etc.”

Truth Wins Out distributed a press release on Wednesday warning of an impending “fake apology” from Exodus.

“The problem with Exodus International is that it peddles a faulty product that causes harm to its clients,” said Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “Rebranding efforts for Exodus are no different than putting a new car body over a sputtering engine. It won’t be long before people realize it’s the same old lemon.”

Rev. Disani Christopher Senyonjo (Blade photo by Michael Key)

Rev. Disani Christopher Senyonjo, a former Anglican bishop in Uganda, will speak at All Souls Memorial Episcopal Church (2300 Cathedral Ave., N.W.) in Washington Sunday at the church’s 11 a.m. Mass. A reception will be held in the fellowship hall with a discussion forum following the service. It’s open and free to the public.

Senyonjo, who’s straight and retired in 1998, is on what he’s dubbing the “Compass to Compassion Tour” in the U.S. in which he’s attempting to educate Americans about the persecution of LGBT Ugandans and gays in 75 other countries that face persecution and even death simply for being LGBT.

Last year, Senyonjo founded St. Paul’s Foundation for International Reconciliation (stpaulsfoundation.com) to support global equality for LGBT people and their allies.

Rev. John Beddingfield, pastor of All Souls, is gay and invited Senyonjo to the church through a D.C. Anglican bishop who knows Senyonjo. Church leaders say how the Episcopal Church (most Anglicans in the U.S. are Episcopalian) treats believers is radically different from how they’re accepted in other parts of the world, even by others in the worldwide Anglican Communion.

“We wanted to offer him a forum,” said Jeff Wells, an All Souls volunteer. “I know our priest also feels passionate about fighting for gay rights and supports other mission work in South Africa.”

Senyonjo was scheduled to appear in D.C. with a gay-affirming Lutheran group tonight. Visit allsoulsdc.org for more information about his Sunday appearance.

‘Into October’ is one of the pastels by Lou Gagnon on display at Touchstone Gallery. (Image courtesy of Touchstone)

Friday, Sept. 16

Green Lantern (1335 Green Court, N.W.) presents Fahrenheit tonight with Susan Morabito at 9 p.m. Cover is $7.

Busboys & Poets is kicking off a new monthly event, an open mic, jam session and talent showcase, tonight at 10 p.m. hosted by Y’Anna Crawley in the Zinn Room of its Hyattsville location (5331 Baltimore Ave., Suite 104). Admission is $5 at the door.

The Gay District Open House is tonight at 8 p.m. at St. Margaret’s Church (1830 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) from 8 to 11:30 p.m. Gay District is a weekly discussion group for gay men from the ages of 18 to 35.

The D.C. Queer Writers Collective will be holding its monthly writing circle tonight at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) at 6 p.m.

D.C. Women in Their Thirties will meet tonight at 8 p.m. at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.).

Town (2009 8th St., N.W.) is having its weekly Bear Happy Hour tonight starting at 6 p.m. There is no cover for this 21 and older event.

Touchstone Gallery (901 New York Ave., N.W.) has two exhibits on display, “The Nature of Joy” featuring pastels by Lou Gagnon and “Off the Square” featuring canvas wall reliefs by Mary H. Lynch. The gallery is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 17

A new gay-welcoming Catholic church, St. Hedwig’s Old Catholic Church, has its first Mass today at 9 a.m. The church will meet each Sunday morning at Palisades Community Church (5200 Cathedral Ave., N.W.) in Washington. The church, not affiliated with the Vatican, describes itself as one with “progressive Catholic values” that welcomes those “disaffected by mainstream traditions” and what some consider “politically distorted teachings of Christ” in other faith traditions. Bishop Michael Seneco, who’s gay, is the pastor. Visit sainthedwigs.org for more information. All are welcome.

The Skullduggery and Skin Show is tonight at Red Palace (1212 H St., N.E.) at 10 p.m. featuring magic and burlesque. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at redpalacedc.com. All attendees must be 21 or older.

DJ Abel will be spinning at Town’s (2009 8th St., N.W.) Red Party tonight at 10 p.m. There is a $8 cover from 10 to 11 p.m. which then goes up to $12. All attendees must be 21 or older.

Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens (4155 Linnean Ave., N.W.) is having its tenth annual Gay Day today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Partnering with Rainbow Families, the morning starts with a LGBT family garden party. The afternoon will bring square dancing, music, “Punch on the Portico” and more. General admission is $15, $12 for seniors and $10 for members and college students. Children 18 and under will be admitted for free.

The Ladies of Lure present Bare: Ol’Skool Edition with DJ Rosie and DJ Keenan with special guests DystRucXion Dancers at Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) tonight at 10 p.m. There is a $7 cover before midnight and $10 after. All attendees must be 21 or older. There will be a cash prize for the best ol’ skool attire.

Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) presents Hellmouth Happy Hour where every week an episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” will be screened and drink specials will be offered. This week the episode is “Passion.”

Chris Brown will be performing at the Verizon Center (601 F St., N.W.) tonight at 7 p.m. with Kelly Rowland, T. Pain and Tyga. Tickets range from $39.75 to $85.75 and can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com.

Green Lantern (1335 Green Court, N.W.) hosts “Slippery When Wet: Black Out!” tonight from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. with prize packages and Manhunt giveaway. DJ t-one D.C. will be spinning.

Sunday, Sept. 18

Anniething Goes and 2Tuff present LTJ Bukem at U Street Music Hall (1115 U St., N.W.) with Thunderball, Slant, BJoo and vAnniety Kills tonight at 9 p.m. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online at ustreetmusichall.com.

Zoom Urban Lesbian Excursions presents Hoopnotica today at 3 p.m. The class, which will teach the basic moves of hooping, will take place at Sylvan Theater on the National Mall near the Washington Monument and hoops will be available to rent. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online at phatgirlchic.com/zoom.

Monday, Sept. 19

Town (2009 8th St., N.W.) is throwing a New Year’s Eve-style party tonight to countdown to the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” on Tuesday. Doors open at 9 p.m. and there is no cover. This is not a fundraiser and is one of many parties happening around the country. For more information, visit servicemembers.org.

The Library of Congress Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender Employees presents “The Frank Kameny Papers: A Gallery Talk” today at the Library of Congress (101 Independence Ave., S.E.) at noon, led by John Earl Haynes, a modern political historian at the Library, and focusing on two items from the Kameny Papers currently in the “Creating the United States” exhibit.

Tuesday, Sept. 20

Remington’s (639 Pennslyvania Ave., S.E.) is hosting D.C. Drag Idol tonight from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. hosted by Raquel Savage Black. Admission is $5.

The LGBT Congressional Staff Association is hosting a panel discussion tonight from 5 to 7 p.m. at in the Orientation Theatre at the Capitol Visitors Center to discuss racial justice and LGBT equality. Some of the topics will include addressing homophobia, bi and transphobia in the black community, cultural barriers to coming out, how do African-American LGBT images in media shape attitudes and more. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, email twaun.samuel@mail.house.gov.

Wednesday, Sept. 21

Green Lantern (1331 Green Court, N.W.) will host the weekly Poz D.C. happy hour upstairs from 8 p.m. to midnight.

Jonathan Dillon from American University will be presenting his work and research with three LGBT rights organizations in Uganda at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) tonight from 7 to 9 p.m. The presentation will largely focus on the work of these organizations but some research findings will be shared. There is a recommended donation of $5 that will be given to the organizations in Uganda.

Thursday, Sept. 22

Gays & Lesbians Opposing Violence (GLOV) is having its monthly meeting tonight in the main room at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Stonewall Kickball presents “Chow Down for the D.C. Center” at Level One (1639 R St., N.W.) tonight. All night, twenty percent of the food sales will be donated to the Center.

The D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) and Tongue in You Ear presents the Brother Tongue Poetry Workshop series. Tonight is the first in a series of four workshops led by Regie Cabico, a three time National Poetry Slam finalist who has appeared on two season of HBO’s Def Poetry Jam. All sessions will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $25 for all four sessions. For more information and to register, visit thedccenter.org.

Lambda Sci-Fi, an LGBT science fiction, fantasy and horror group, is having its book discussion group today at 7 p.m. at 1425 S St., N.W. For more information, call James at 202-232-3141, e-mail to info@lambdascifi.org, or visit the group’s website lambdascifi.org.

Barack Obama (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

President Obama issued a proclamation on Thursday that could prohibit those engaging in LGBT persecution overseas from entering the United States.

The proclamation bars entry of immigrant and non-immigrant aliens who organize or participate in war crimes or serious violations of human rights — which could include those seeking to pass legislation in Uganda that would institute the death penalty for homosexual acts.

“The United States’ enduring commitment to respect for human rights and humanitarian law requires that its Government be able to ensure that the United States does not become a safe haven for serious violators of human rights and humanitarian law and those who engage in other related abuses,” Obama states.

Specific language in the proclamation explicitly states that those who persecute people based on their “sexual orientation and gender identity” are among the categories of those who won’t be able to enter the United States.

Additionally, the proclamation prevents not only those who perpetuated human rights abuses overseas from entering the United States, but also those who have “attempted or conspired to do so.”

“The proclamation also bans admission to the United States for those who are complicit in organizing these abuses — not just those who carry them out,” a White House fact sheet states. “As such, it allows the United States to act before planned abuses and atrocities metastasize into actual ones.”

The proclamation gives the secretary of state, or the secretary’s designee, the authority to identify people who won’t be able to enter the United States based on this new guidance.

However, other language in the proclamation states that such an individual could enter the country if the secretary of state determines that the “entry of such person would be in the interests of the United States.”

Mark Bromley, chair of the Council for Global Equality, said the order gives the Obama administration “an important tool to use in dissuading extremist actions that are prejudicial to basic human rights, and in encouraging the development of inclusive laws and societies.”

“The Council praises this move, which could in principle be used to justify the exclusion of hate-promoting politicians like Ugandan parliamentarian David Bahati, who introduced a ‘kill the gays bill’ in a previous legislative session in Uganda and may do so again,” Bromley said. “That bill, of course, would have carried dire consequences for LGBT individuals in Uganda.”

Bahati was previously invited to attend the National Prayer Breakfast in February 2010, but was later disinvited by organizers and didn’t make an appearance after he introduced his draconian anti-gay bill.