Gay Marriage Activist Dead At 87
Posted on August 27, 2008
Filed Under Gay/Lesbian, Women | Comments Off on Gay Marriage Activist Dead At 87
Del Martin, one of the plaintiffs in California’s landmark gay marriage case, has died.Martin and her longtime lady love, Phyllis Lyon, fought tirelessly for the right to wed and finally got their wish this June, when San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom officiated their well-publicized celebration. Martin, whom you can see on the left, was 87 years old.
In honor of Martin’s life of civil rights activism, here’s an excerpt from a 1956 essay she wrote in The Ladder, a lesbian magazine Martin and Lyon edited.
…The lesbian is a very elusive creature. She burrows underground in her fear of identification. She is cautious in her associations. Current modes in hair style and casual attire have enabled her to camouflage her existence. She claims she does not need help. And she will not risk her tight little fist of security to aid those who do.But surely the ground work has been well laid in the past 5½ years. Homosexuality is not the dirty word it used to be. More and more people, professional and lay, are becoming aware of its meaning and implications.
Lyon was reportedly by her wife’s side during her final hours.
McCain Lashes Out At Madonna Video
Posted on August 26, 2008
Filed Under Elections 2008, Entertainment, Music, Politics | Comments Off on McCain Lashes Out At Madonna Video
Credit: Kevin Mazur/WireImageCampaign
Officials for U.S. Senator and Republican presidential candidate John McCain have shot back at Madonna for a segment of her just-launched new concert tour.
Madonna kicked off her Sticky and Sweet world tour at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, on Saturday. During her performance of Get Stupid, an image of McCain is shown alongside those of Adolf Hitler and Robert Mugabe, as well as photos of global warming and destruction.
Later in the concert, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s face is shown in a sequence that also includes images of Mahatma Gandhi, John Lennon and Al Gore.
“The comparisons are outrageous, unacceptable and crudely divisive all at the same time,” said Tucker Bounds, a McCain campaign spokesman.
“It clearly shows that when it comes to supporting Barack Obama, his fellow worldwide celebrities refuse to consider any smear or attack off limits.”
Earlier this month, the McCain campaign released a television ad portraying Obama as a celebrity, juxtaposing images of the Illinois senator with photos of Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. Shortly after, hotel heiress and notorious party-girl Hilton starred in a tongue-in-cheek internet rejoinder that poked fun at the “wrinkly, white-haired dude” who endorsed her for president with his ad.
Women Have A Better Shot at Open
Posted on August 26, 2008
Filed Under New York, Sports, Women | Comments Off on Women Have A Better Shot at Open
No American man has won the U.S. Open tennis tournament since Andy Roddick in 2003. No American woman has won the title since Serena Williams in 2002. The prospects for an American woman winner this year are better than for an American man, but things aren’t exactly rosy.
The men’s tennis world is ruled by the gritty Spaniard Rafael Nadal, the paramount Swiss Roger FedererJustine Henin and the possible season-ending shoulder injury to 2006 winner Maria Sharapova.
and the emerging Serb Novak Djokovic. The women’s world is a bit uncertain and less predictable, with the retirement of 2007 U.S. Open champ
The absence of Henin and Sharapova creates opportunities for many players, including Serena and Venus Williams, who won Wimbledon in July. Venus last won the Open in 2001.
“Serena to me is more dangerous on hard courts than Venus because she’s a little more well-rounded,” McEnroe said. “I think their motivation at the big events is there. The mistake people make is that if they play well, they are going to win. They aren’t as dominant as they were. The women’s game has gotten more athletic, the players are bigger, stronger, quicker and in many ways Venus and Serena set the tone for that. You look at [Ana] Ivanovic, the young Russians, and the Williamses aren’t so intimidating. They raised the bar for the women’s game.” [via Newsday]
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