Feature Archives

8/2/2004: Comedian Margaret Cho was invited to perform at the LGBT Unity 2004 event in Boston during the Democratic National Convention. She was uninvited from the event by Human Rights Campaign, which was one of the ten organizations that were part of the event. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force withdrew from the event when it heard about the uninvitation. The NGLTF had recently given Cho a Task Force Leadership Award, and she has been given a variety of awards in the past. Margaret Cho is an outspoken advocate for LGBT rights, and she has spoken at several pro-same-sex marriage rallies in Northern California.
"I am not surprised at the reversal in light of how the Kerry campaign distanced itself from Whoopi's routine in response to the unrelenting media hype and Republican criticism," said Margaret Cho's manager, Karen Taussig. "It's Whoopi's job as a comedian to say things that are sometimes shocking. I wish they could have backed her up. Dennis Miller can make gay jokes about Senators Kerry and Edwards at a recent Bush rally in Wisconsin to a complete absence of media scrutiny. No one demanded a tape of that event or alleged that his comments as a comedian might reflect poorly on Bush."

Margaret Cho's press release about the uninvitation | Margaret Cho's Blog | MargaretCho.net | BuzzFlash Interview with Margaret Cho | Original Flyer from the event | Gay Geeks | Margaret Cho's State of Emergency Tour

Over 400 people attended an August 8th rally in San Francisco's Sunset District was held to show support for same-sex marriage. Photos Conservatives have recently staged anti-marriage equality demonstrations of 7,000 people in San Francisco and 5,000 in Alhambra. Event co-sponsor Marriage Equality California said, "We must do our part to organize FOR marriage equality." The rally was called by a coalition of organizations including Gay Asian Pacific Alliance, the Asian & Pacific Islander Wellness Center, Equality California/Marriage Equality California, and Asian Equality (formerly the Asian Pacific American Coalition for Equality. The rally took place from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm in Larsen Park (at 19th Avenue & Wawona) in San Francisco’s Sunset district on Sunday, August 8th. A similar rally was held in Los Angeles on that date. Some organizers in San Francisco are planning to head to the October 11th National Rally for Marriage Equality in Washington, DC. Participants were asked to bring signs, "sass," and fellow supporters to the rally.

Pacific News Service article Ethnic Communities Speak Out Against Gay Marriage | Baptist Press article about SF rally against gay marriage | Article about Gay Activism in Asian and Asian-American Churches | Asian American Bar Association Supports Same-Sex Marriage | Asian American Journalists Association| GLAAD Media Resource Kits geared towards communities of African descent and Asian Pacific Island communities. More rallies against same-sex marriage are tentatively scheduled for August 21st in San Jose, LA, and San Diego-- current info is available on the Current Issues Page on the Asian Equality website.

6/27/04: As Pride festivities have been hitting the streets across the US this month, the battle continues to rage over corporate sponsorship of what started, at least, as a political movement. By far the most controversial corporate sponsor has been Coors, controlled by the Coors family, which donates millions each year to anti-gay and other right-wing causes, started the Heritage Foundation, and whose side ventures have ranged from the John Birch Society to the Nicaraguan Contras. Following the outcry from queer activists that Pride is about true liberation, not a marketing scheme for anti-gay corporations, there has been some progress: so far this year only three cities are helping Coors sell beer: Atlanta, Denver and Reno.
Peter Coors is currently on unpaid leave from Coors Brewing Company to campaign for US Senate as a Republican; according to Coors, during this time, Peter Coors' views, for instance supporting a constitutional ban on gay marriage, "do not reflect the views of the company." For several years, the National Lawyers Guild has been supporting a boycott of Coors, which has recently been renewed in light of Peter Coors' run for Congress.
Following a labor-backed boycott against Coors' union-busting policies, in 1978, gay San Francisco politician Harvey Milk launched a boycott of Coors products that spread across the country—triggered by Coors' employees being forced to take homosexuality lie detector tests. Since then Coors has attempted to court the gay community. It extended benefits to the partners of gay workers and in 1999 hired Mary Cheney to help it gain access to the gay market. Cheney left the company in 2000 to work on her father Dick Cheney's campaign for Vice President.

6/27/2004: San Francisco's Pride Week has ended. This weekend, activists continued to rally for justice around the issue of gay marriage, as the Bush and religious right-backed constitutional ammendment redefining marriage is set to appear before the Senate by July 12, and the over 3,000 gay marriages performed in SF last February hang in the balance. Meanwhile, radical queer activists Gay Shame continue their campaign to expose marriage as a tool for patriarchy, covering the city with "Out for Blood" stickers. Many signs and banners at events during the weekend were related to the hung jury and mistrial declared earlier in the week in the case of Gwen Araujo, a murdered transgendered teenager from the Bay Area. Kate Raphael was one of the community activists who were chosen to be Grand Marshals for Sunday's Pride Parade. Not everyone experienced the right to march without trouble, though, as Fresno dealt with homophobic police forces earlier this month.
Events:
-There was a Tranny March on Friday, June 25th (Photos).
-The San Francisco Dyke March 2004 took place on Saturday, June 26. Its theme was "Uprooting Racism." The Rally and Stage Show were held at Dolores Park, from 3:00 p.m until the beginning of the march. The March left Dolores Park at 7:00 p.m. and wound its way through the Mission to the annual Pink Saturday celebration in the streets of the Castro. The march was stated to be "for all dykes and all women," and there were fewer men marching this year than in the past. Men were asked to stand and support from the sidelines. Photos
-Hundreds of thousands of people participated in Pride events over the weekend. The Out 4 Justice Celebration took place both Saturday and Sunday afternoons at Civic Center Plaza.
-The Parade took place Sunday, June 27 , traveling west along Market Street to Eighth Street. Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 Video: 1 | 2 Some organizers believe that this was the first-ever Pride March to include a Poly Contingent. Pacifica Radio had a bicoastal live Pride Broadcast
More Pride Events | API-LGBT | Gay Shame | Black Pride: SF/OAK | Past Indybay Coverage of SF Pride: 2003 2002 |
Global IMC Coverge of PRIDE/CSD 2004

Gloria Anzaldúa, who was a lesbian feminist Chicana/Xicana theorist and creative writer, succumbed to an illness that was apparently related to diabetes on May 15, 2004. She left this world at the age of 61, just weeks before completing her dissertation and earning her doctorate from UC Santa Cruz. Read more about her on the Web Altar for Gloria and on Indybay's Race Page

8/12/2004: The California State Supreme Court has ruled that Mayor Newsom lacked the authority to issue the more than 3900 same-sex marriage licenses that San Francisco approved in February and March of this year, and also that the marriages are void. Statement from Equality California, Lambda Legal, National Center for Lesbian Rights, and ACLU of Northern California. Over 3900 same-sex couples were married at SF City Hall earlier this year. However, the court did not rule on the issue of whether or not same-sex marriages should be legal. Protests were held that evening in cities all over the state. Photos: Fresno | San Francisco: 1 | 2 | Santa Cruz | Audio from Santa Cruz List of cities in which protests were held. Equality California asked for same-sex couples to go to their local county clerk's office to request marriage licenses on Friday, August 13, 2004. They asked that when the couples were turned down, they turn in a Certificate of Engagement to express their commitment to getting married. For a list of action locations, see Marriage Equality California's website

8/10/2004: The California Supreme Court has confirmed that it will release its opinion on SF Mayor Newsom's authority to issue marriage licenses this Thursday. That day's ruling will not address the legality of gay marriage in the state. That issue is still working its way through the lower courts and is expected to reach the high court later this year. The question of whether gay marriage could be legal in the state is still in the lower courts, and it is expected that the California Supreme Court will consider the issue later this year.
On May 25th, the California Supreme Court heard oral arguments about whether or not the city of San Francisco had the right to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. There will be a rally outside the building during the time of the hearing. After two hours of testimony, the court will have up to 90 days to issue its decision. The battle for same-gender marriage in California is also being fought at the legislative level: Equality California's AB 1967, the Marriage License Non-Discrimination Act, which is under the sponsorship of San Francisco Assemblyman Mark Leno. The bill passed the Judiciary Committee, headed for the Assembly Appropriations Committee. The legislators who believed that the bill would not advance further this year were correct- in spite of lobbying efforts by California clergy and others, the bill was put aside until December and the next legislative session.
The internationally-sponsored National Marriage Equality Express will ride from San Francisco to Washington, DC from October 4-11, 2004.

5/21/2004: This week, Massachusetts Senate today voted to repeal the law that made it illegal for out-of-state residents to marry in that state. However, even if it passes the Senate, it would not be signed by Governor Romney. The state Attorney General has sided with the Governor and has said that any marriages performed for same-sex couples from out of state would be voided.
5/17/2004: City and town clerks in Massachusetts began to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples today. Annie Goodridge and Hillary Goodridge, amongst other couples, went to court to request waivers of the three-day waiting period, and they were married. Legal battles all the way up to the Supreme Court had failed to stop the licenses from being issued; Governor Mitt Romney had said that clerks will not be allowed to issue licenses to gay couples who are from out-of-state. Licenses are being issued to out-of-state couples in three cities, including Provincetown. As early as 2006, voters may be able to vote to ban gay marriage in Massachusetts.

How Same-Sex Marriage Became Legal in Massachusetts | Religious Tolerance Same-Sex Marriage Page | NGLTF Marriage Center | Freedom to Marry Coalition of Massachusetts | Mass Equality | Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders‘ Info on how to get a license.

Nationwide same-sex marriage activism: May 17th was a day of Equal Marriage Rights for All: End Discrimation, Bigotry, & Racism actions. In San Francisco, people gathered at Powell and Market and marched to a rally at City Hall. Photos | Audio
June 7th will be a National Anti Federal Marriage Amendment Meetup Day