GLIFAA Pride Booth Sign Up! Please email Michelle Schohn to represent GLIFAA at the Pride Festival Sunday, June 14 between 11am and 6pm |
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Thanks to everyone who participated in this year's election! We are tallying the votes and informing candidates - expect an announcement this week about the 2009-2010 Board.
We hope you will join us Wednesday for our first Official Pride event - the Women's Happy Hour at Cafe Asia.
Fill your calendars with all of the local and international events by downloading the PDF Pride event calendar here.
We need volunteers for GLIFAA's booth at the Pride Street Festival this year - contact President Michelle Schohn to get on the list for Sunday, June 14th.
Please look below at new efforts to ensure action on LGBT issues in the Obama Administration and visit www.TheDallasPrinciples.org
Happy Pride!
-The GLIFAA Board |
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GLIFAA Women's Happy Hour
All are welcome to join GLIFAA at Cafe Asia - as we celebrate diversity within the LGBT community by specifically welcoming women (lesbian or not) to Cafe Asia in Rosslyn. Full PRIDE Calendar
Location: Cafe Asia 1550 Wilson Blvd #1 Rosslyn Arlington, VA Metro: Rosslyn (Blue/Orange Line)
Wednesday, June 3
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GLIFAA Pride Parade Reception
Come socialize, enjoy some appetizers and beverages, then join GLIFAA by marching in the Parade to represent GLIFAA publicly with our banner. Full PRIDE Calendar
Location: Bob Gilchrist's House 2147 N Street NW #C Metro: Foggy Bottom/Dupont Circle
Saturday, June 13
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GLIFAA General Meeting & Happy Hour @ Nellies
This Month we will hold our general meeting in conjunction with a Happy Hour at Nellies Sports Bar (this is a LGBT venue as well as sports bar). Full PRIDE Calendar
Location: Nellies Sports Bar 900 U ST NW Metro: U Street (Green Line)
Wednesday, June 17
6:00-9:00pm Meeting at 7:00pm
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From Ambassador Michael Guest:
Since leaving the Department, I've become involved in a range of
efforts to try to compel our government to take action to provide
equality now for LGBT citizens, and to compel a clearer USG response to
LGBT human rights violations overseas. These efforts include support
for equal treatment at the State Department, of course, and also the
creation of a new NGO, the Council for Global Equality ( www.globalequality.org).
They now include what is for me an exciting new approach. After months
of vibrant e-discussions, two dozen of us flew to Dallas last weekend
to brainstorm how to generate greater momentum. Our sense was that we
need a new way of mobilizing American voices from across this country
to counter the push-button response of conservative advocacy groups
every time sexual orientation and gender identity issues arise.
The result is a set of principles and goals, and a call to action, that
we hope will inspire countless Americans, gay and straight, to say, 40
years after Stonewall, "Let's put this issue behind us and get on with
America's future."
What we produced is at www.TheDallasPrinciples.org.
Please check out our site and join us. The more e-clicks of agreement
we register, the greater our community's ability to carry the message
to the White House and Capitol Hill that equality means but one thing: the time for our full civil rights is now. |
Sign-up For FSI's Course:
LGBT in the Foreign Affairs Community
This workshop will highlight challenges for LGBT employees and their families overseas and provide guidance in finding solutions:
Foreign Service Institute
Wednesday, June 10
- Open to all foreign affairs agency employees and members of household
- For registration provide the name, agency and contact information of the attendee to FSITCTraining@state.gov
- Non-State tuition rate: Free
- For further information contact Transition Center@ FSITCTraining@state.gov
Also Contact David Tessler
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Immigration Equality asked GLIFAA to pass this legislative alert to all its members who may be interested:
Take Action to support
LGBT Immigrant Families!
Tell
Congress: Keep Our Families Together!
Congressman Mike Honda (D-CA), a long-time
champion of the LGBT community, will soon introduce The Reuniting Families
Act. This landmark immigration bill ends harmful practices -
such as long visa wait times and discrimination against LGBT families
- that prevent loving families from being together.
In an historic move, Congressman Honda
has included lesbian and gay people as part of this remarkable legislation
. . . marking the first time in Congressional history that lesbian
and gay couples have been included as part of a multi-issue immigration
bill.
As our country begins a conversation
about comprehensive immigration reform, this important first step helps
to ensure that, moving forward, we're included, too. The President
supports us, and Congress is increasingly on our side. Now, our
community can be part of fixing our nation's broken immigration system
by supporting their efforts.
Please stand with Congressman Honda and
our families, and urge your
elected representative to co-sponsor The Reuniting Families Act.
ACT NOW to Urge
Your Member of Congress to Cosponsor the
Reuniting Families
Act!
Please call your U.S. Representative
and ask him or her to cosponsor the Reuniting Families Act, which will
allow gays and lesbians to sponsor our partners for immigration.
Along with the Uniting American Families
Act (UAFA), Congressman Honda's bill is another sign of historic progress
for the lesbian and gay community, and it is critical that our elected
representatives know this is an important issue for our community.
There are two QUICK ACTIONS you
can DO TODAY to support family unity:
- Call NOW
to urge your Representative to cosponsor the Reuniting Families Act!
Contact the Capital Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 to be directly
connected to your Representative. (If you don't know who your
representative is you can find out at www.congressmerge.com )
- Forward this message to 10
friends immediately and urge them to participate.
Thanks for making sure that
comprehensive immigration reform is truly comprehensive
- and includes LGBT families!
For more information on immigration discrimination
against LGBT families, see www.immigrationequality.org and learn about the Reuniting Families Act and its supporters. |
LGBT Advocacy at U.S. Embassy Albania
A shining example of LGBT Outreach
From Melissa Schraibman, Post Rep Albania:
With significant support and encouragement of U.S. Ambassador John
Withers and the Embassy PAO, my partner Mindy Michaels and I have been
working since March with a small group of Albanian activists, human
rights NGOs, and the Dutch Embassy to try and jump start a LGBT
movement in Albania, where there has been very little visibility or
organized activity to date (no gay bars, cafes). Mindy is fortunately
a long-time LGBT activist and former director of the LGBT center at
American University. Moreover, due to the discriminatory EFM policy,
has no currently paid job, so she has some time and energy to dedicate
to the project. The Albanians hold the U.S. in high regard, and so the
U.S. Embassy in Albania has a high profile and a definite impact on the
Albanian government and public.
The main goals at this point are 1) promote visibility; and 2) create community; and 3) pass an anti-discrimination law that includes sexual orientation and gender identity. Activities to date include:
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Lectures at major universities.
Mindy has a Ph.D in Anthropology, and Albanian universities usually
welcome American guest lecturers. The PAO has obtained invitations for
Mindy to speak at several universities in Tirana on LGBT-related
topics. The PAO has also featured these lectures on the Embassy
internet website. See http://tirana.usembassy.gov/may_2009.html
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Roundtable discussion at U.S. Embassy.
With PAO assistence, we organized a roundtable strategy discussion in
April with the U.S. Ambassador, the Public Affairs Officer and FSN
staff, Albanian LGBT activists, human rights NGOs, representatives from
the Dutch Embassy. The U.S. Ambassador expressed his support, and one
activist even came out publicly as a lesbian at the meeting, which is
quite rare in Albania.
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Facebook/website creation. On April 30, some young Albanians began a new facebook gay straight alliance group for
GLBT rights in Albania. Since then, it has gained 275 members, almost
entirely Albanian. The discussion forum has been very active, with
multiple posts every day. In collaboration with the same group of young
Albanians, we obtained the website address, http://www.gayalbania.org,
and Mindy is helping a Albanian volunteer web designer develop a
functional and informational website with information in Albanian.
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University panel discussion with Ambassador.
On the occasion of International Day Against Homophobia, the Ambassador
participated in a panel discussion, along with Mindy, with nearly 150
Albanian students at the University of Tirana, expressing his support
for LGBT rights. His appearance at the event was widely covered by
television and print media.
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International Day Against Homophobia (May 17) events. In addition to the panel discussion, and in cooperation with the Dutch Embassy, a number of events were organized:
- Newspaper editorial from the U.S. Ambassador in Shekulli newspaper on Sunday, May 17.
- An interview with Mindy and two gay Albanians (using pseudonyms) in Panorama newspaper on Sunday, May 17.
- An interview with the Dutch Ambassador in Panorama on Saturday, May 16.
- A story on BBC Albania on gay issues in Albania Wednesday, May 27 or Thursday, May 28. It will also be posted with a story on the BBC Albania website.
on Wednesday, May 20.
- 30,000 Mania postcards with information about the International Day Against Homophobiadistributed for a two week period (beginning Saturday, May 16) in bars and cafes in Tirana, Durres, Shkoder and Vlore.
- An interview with two gay Albanians on a radio program Copyright, which was aired live on Friday, May 22.
- An open call to end homophobia and discrimination signed by 24 Albanian NGOs published in a major newspaper.
- Homemade posters (made by some of the
young people involved with developing a new GLBT organization) that
were posted all around the Bllok area on Saturday night, May 16, saying
that "Homophobia is Social Disease," and noting that Sunday was the
International Day Against Homophobia.
Activities planned for the future include:
- Books translated into Albanian. There are no LGBT
books available in Albanian. The PAO has indicated that it would
support a proposal (through the small grant program) for an NGO to
translate two books into Albanian, books that would be appropriate for
use in an academic setting. We are in the process of identifying these
two books (ideas, anyone???) and working with an NGO to put in a
proposal.
- Pride events. We would like to organize a public
showing of "Milk" in June with introductory remarks by the Ambassador.
We are awaiting final approval to obtain the rights to show the movie,
and then we hope it can be subtitled in Albanian. We also plan to do a
book display at the American corner (thanks for the idea, Rangoon!).
We also are planning a road trip with some of the new activists to the
Pride in Zagreb.
- Regular social events. In progress on an informal
basis, but there are plans to start a private facebook group to
organize movie showings, bar outings, and beach trips.
- Possible reception for LGBT folks and family at AMB residence. The
Ambassador has offered, and it may be very helpful to those few parents
who know about their LGBT children. It is a bit premature for this,
but it was quite generous of him and we will try and organize it a bit
later.
We would welcome any other ideas. Also, it would be great if
someone were coming to Albania next year when we leave who would be
willing to work on these issues. There is so much pent-up energy here
for LGBT activism, it is really exciting to be involved at this stage,
and the Albanians are so happy I can't even describe it. |
GLIFAA Events Abroad! U.S. Opens Minds in Iraq, China and Burma
Does your event belong here?? Email GLIFAA
Event: Gay Pride Theme Party Date: Friday, May 29, 2009 Time: 8:00 pm Location: Baghdaddy's at U.S. Embassy Baghdad Event: Film Documentary: "Before Stonewall"; Photo and Book Exhibit Date: Tuesday, June 2, 2009 Time: 5:00 pm Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Movie of the Week: "Milk" Date: June 1 - 6 Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: "Amour", a multimedia Bharata Nathyam dance performance by Shanmugha Sundaram, sponsored by Alliance Francaise of Madras + SAATHI. "Amour" is an
ode to the famous French sculptor and painter Auguste Rodin,
celebrating the right of all people to express their love regardless of
sexual orientation or gender. Date: Friday, June 5, 2009 Time: 6:30 pm Location: Alliance Francaise Auditorium, No. 24, College Road, Chennai
Event: Film Documentary: "After Stonewall" Date: Monday, June 8, 2009 Time: 5:00 pm Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Discussion with representatives from PSI, Alliance, The Help, and MBCA on HIV in the work place Date: Wednesday, June 9, 2009 Time: 5:00 pm Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Movie of the Week: "Philadelphia" Date: June 8 - 13 Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Digital Video Conference with Matt Coles, New York-based Director of ACLU's LGBT Project, a discussion of the LGBT movement in America with local activists in Chennai. Date: Tuesday, June 16, 2009 Location: US Consulate General Chennai, 220 Anna Salai, Chennai http://chennai.usconsulate.gov/
Event: Panel discussion: Gay and Lesbian Lives Around the World; Theatrical Performances Date: Wednesday, June 17, 2009 Time: 5:00 pm Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Movie of the Week: "Bangkok Love Story" Date: June 15 - 20 Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Come watch Oscar-winning movie 'Milk,'
for which Sean Penn bagged the Oscar for Best Actor, sponsored by the
US Consulate. The inaugural address will be delivered by the US
Consular Section Chief, Bryan Dalton, and Ms. Rose, TV celebrity &
transgender activist, will be the Chief Guest. Dress in party wear for
Oscar Night Premier! Date: Monday, June 22, 2009 Location: South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce Auditorium Mahatma Gandhi Salai; Thousand Lights; Chennai www.close2rose.com
Event: Pride Party! Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 Time: 5:00 pm Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon Event: Movie of the Week: "Noah's Arc" Date: June 22 - 27 Location: American Center Burma - 14 Tawin Street, Dagon Township, Rangoon
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