Miss Sophia says Goodbye to V103

V-103 has not renewed the contract of Miss Sophia (nee Joe Taylor), who was part of the Frank and Wanda morning show.

In an interview today, Miss Sophia said he wasn’t given any real reason why the station chose to drop him beyond “we want to go in a different direction.” That’s the equivalent of saying, “It’s not you, it’s me” in personal relationships.

Miss Sophia was the first drag queen to be a regular on Atlanta radio. He spent more than four years at V-103 doing the entertainment report when Frank and Wanda remained the dominant No. 1 show in the city.
His closer has become a classic: “When I talk, you talk, we talk, that’s girrrrrl talk on the people’s station, V to the 103.” He trills the “three” with gusto.


“I’m not shocked,” Miss Sophia said. He said he saw the signs that things were coming to an end but didn’t get into details. (I’m in New York today and he was leaving town, so we’ll try to meet next week and talk in more detail.)

I left messages with Frank Ski and Wanda Smith. No responses yet.

“I’m emotionally okay,” Miss Sophia said. “I’m going to weigh my options. I can do movies. I can do TV. I can do radio.”

“I grew as a person,” he added. “I learned a lot. I met a lot of people and appreciate the relationships I built. But I’m excited about the future, too.”

We will miss Sophia in the Morning but we wish her all the luck and blessings coming her way!!!!!!

RIP Gary Coleman

CNN) -- Former child star Gary Coleman, who rose to fame as the wisecracking youngster Arnold Jackson on the TV sitcom "Diff'rent Strokes" but grew up to grapple with a troubled adulthood, has died. He was 42.




Coleman died of a brain hemorrhage at a Provo, Utah, hospital, Friday afternoon, according to a hospital spokeswoman. The actor fell ill at his Santaquin, Utah, home Wednesday evening and was rushed by ambulance to a hospital, Coleman's spokesman had said in a statement earlier Friday.



He was then taken to another hospital -- Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo -- later Wednesday night.



In the late '70s and early '80s, Coleman was one of television's brightest stars, the personality around which NBC's "Strokes" -- the story of two inner-city children who are taken in by a wealthy businessman, his daughter and their housekeeper -- was built.



His natural charm and way with a line -- the frequently uttered "Whatchoo talkin' 'bout, Willis?", directed at his older brother (played by Todd Bridges), became a catchphrase -- helped make the show a breakout hit, a mainstay of the NBC schedule from 1978 to 1985 (and on ABC for a year afterward).

DADT PASSED!!!!!!

Victory is OURSSS!!!!!!

An Amendment to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell passed the House of Representatives today with a vote of 234 to 194. 5 Republicans voted in favor of the Amendment. 229 Democratic Representatives voted in favor.




The Senate Armed Services Committee also voted in favor of the Amendment. The Service Members Legal Defense Network (SLDN), which describes itself "as a national, non-profit legal services and policy organization dedicated to ending "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," released the following statement:

Thursdays Thunder

Model/Actor Jesse Williams....YES YES YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Gay couple wins a Wedding

When Jonathan Howard and Gregory Jones, both 29, first decided to enter the Ultimate Wedding Contest -- a competition co-sponsored by Crate & Barrel and Daily Candy that would earn one lucky couple a $100,000 dream wedding -- they were in it to win the fairy tale.

"It was just before Valentine's Day, and I'd opened up my email and seen one from Crate and Barrel, and it said 'The Ultimate Wedding Contest: Win $100,000!,'" says Greg, a clinical psychologist. "I was like, 'Jon, come here!'"
Yesterday, the couple, who are engaged and live in Washington, D.C., were crowned the second-place winners, free to choose $7,500 of Crate & Barrel bounty for their registry.

Malawi Couple Seperated

CNN) -- One of two gay men jailed in Malawi after they got engaged has been transferred to another prison, a human rights campaigner and gay rights activist said Wednesday.


It was not clear why Steven Mojenza was moved from Chichiri prison, where he had been serving time with his partner, Tiwonge Chimbalanga. The pair was sentenced last week to 14 years in prison after being found guilty of gross indecency and unnatural acts.

Though in separate cells at Chichiri, the men were able to see each other briefly "from time to time," said Peter Tatchell, a London-based gay rights activist who has been advocating for the men.

Gift Trapence, executive director of the Malawi-based human rights group Center for the Development of People, visited Chimbalanga in prison Wednesday and said Mojenza was not the only prisoner who was moved to another facility.

Trapence said he planned to visit Mojenza at the new prison Thursday and would learn more then.

Tatchell expressed fears for Mojenza's mental and physical health.

No appeal has been scheduled, Trapence said.

"The lawyers are going to submit the papers either this week or next week," he told CNN from Malawi. "The court is going to give the dates for the appeal, so we can't speculate right now because the court has not given the date."

Lawyers for the men are hopeful the 14-year sentence will either be reduced or thrown out on appeal, Trapence said.

The two men, both in their 20s, were arrested in December at their home in Blantyre, Malawi, for professing their love in a traditional engagement ceremony. They were rounded up after news reports surfaced, charged under colonial-era sodomy laws and detained at Chichiri prison without bail
The arrests received some popular support in the conservative southern African nation, but sparked condemnation by gay-rights activists. Human-rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called for the couple's release.
Homosexuality is illegal in Malawi, as it is in most African nations, and government officials have said they are simply upholding the law. Activists in Malawi, however, say they are violating the country's constitution, which outlaws discrimination.
The Malawi Law Society said the prosecution of the two men was driven by prejudice, not jurisprudence.

Anthony Kamanga, Malawi's solicitor general and secretary for justice and constitutional affairs, said the law does not conflict with the constitution and has denied the charge of prejudice.

Byrd to support DADT

Washington (CNN) - Sen. Robert Byrd, D-West Virginia, announced Wednesday that he would support an amendment to repeal the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy for gay and lesbian servicemembers after securing a change that would delay implementation of the repeal for 60 days after certification of a military review

Homophobia with Xem Van Adams

E. Lynn's Final Book

In My Father's House


For his final new series, New York Times mega-bestselling author E. Lynn Harris introduces Bentley L. Dean, owner of the hottest modeling agency in Miami’s sexy South Beach.

Only the world’s most beautiful models make the roster of Picture Perfect Modeling agency and they only do shoots for the most elite photographers and magazines. They are fashionista royalty—and the owners, Bentley L. Dean and his beautiful partner Alexandra, know it. But even Picture Perfect isn’t immune from hard times, so when Sterling Sneed, a rich, celebrity party planner promises to pay a ludicrously high fee for some models, Bentley finds he can’t refuse. Even though the job is not exactly a photo shoot, Bentley agrees to supply fifteen gorgeous models as eye candy for an “A” list party—to look good, be charming and, well, entertain the guests. They don’t have to do anything they don’t want to, but...



His models are pros and he figures they can handle the pressure, until one drops out and Bentley asks his protégé Jah, a beautiful kid who Bentley treats as if he were his own son, to substitute. Suddenly, the stakes are much higher, particularly when Jah falls in love with the hottest African American movie star in America. Seth Sinclair is very handsome, very famous, and very married—and his closeted gay life makes him very dangerous as well. Can Bentley’s fatherly guidance save Jah from making a fatal mistake?

Drama Dupree and Isis

Whitney Paige

Congratulations to Whitney Paige...our new Gay USofA Classic!!!!!!!

Go WHIT WHIT!!!!!!!

Video of Tuesday's Prelim to Miss Gay USofA

Federal ban on gay men's blood donation to be reconsidered

CNN) -- When Mark Shields started his job at the American Red Cross in Madison, Wisconsin, he rolled up his sleeve to give blood. It made sense. Part of his job was encouraging the public to donate and supporting the organization's lifesaving mission.

Before he could give, he was told that his blood could never be accepted. Because he's gay.
"I was 23 at the time. I was just coming out," he said. "I was trying to be part of our organization's mission and feeling like I can't do this. ... I certainly felt put on the spot. It was a bad feeling for a lot of reasons."
Under Food and Drug Administration rules, men who have had sex -- even once -- with another man since 1977 are not permitted to give blood. The rule was implemented in 1983, sparked by concerns that HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, was tainting the blood supply. Screening tests to identify HIV-positive blood had not been developed. The policy was seen as a safety measure.

Mark Shields promoted blood donations for two years at the American Red Cross.But today, with the availability of more accurate testing, activists, blood organizations and several U.S. senators say the lifetime ban is "medically and scientifically unwarranted" and are calling for change.
The Federal Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability will consider the issue in meetings June 10 and 11 in Rockville, Maryland. The committee makes recommendations to the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the FDA.

Medical opinions vary; some experts say that lifting the ban could pose health risks to blood recipients.
The Human Rights Campaign, the American Red Cross, America's Blood Centers and AABB, formerly known as the American Association of Blood Banks, support easing the lifetime ban to allow gay blood donors. In a joint statement, the blood organizations said that safety was the first priority and that potential donors should be screened more fairly, regardless of sexual orientation.


About three months ago, Sen. John Kerry and 17 other senators signed a letter to the FDA blasting its "outdated" policy.



Gay men, including those who are in monogamous relationships, are forbidden from contributing blood for the rest of their lives, while "a heterosexual who has had sex with a prostitute need only wait a year [before giving blood]. That does not strike me as a sound scientific conclusion," Kerry wrote in a March 9 letter.
The FDA defended its current policy in an e-mailed statement to CNN.com: The policy, it said, is "based on scientific data that show that certain medical, behavioral and geographical factors are associated with increased risk of transfusion transmitted diseases."


The agency has been "taking into account the current body of scientific information, and we are considering the possibility of pursuing alternative strategies that maintain blood safety," the statement said.


The FDA retained the ban on gay blood donors after reviewing the issue in 2000 and 2006.
Health statistics show that men who have sex with men have a higher rate of diseases including HIV, syphilis and hepatitis B. Gay men who would be likely to donate have an HIV prevalence that is over 15 times higher than that of the general population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


FDA: Blood donation questions and answers


"I do not see this being a gay rights issue," said Dr. Jay Brooks, professor of pathology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, adding that he favors gay marriage and gays serving in the military.


The issue of blood donation has "nothing to do with someone being gay. Any group that's epidemiologically at risk of making blood unsafe, it's unfortunate. ... It's a matter of epidemiology."
The different standards between gay and straight people exists because the risk of HIV is much lower in heterosexuals, he said.


"The interest of the recipient is greater than any donor," Brooks said. "I'd hate to tell the one person who got HIV through a blood transfusion, 'Sorry, we changed the regulation.' "
These days, blood screenings are so effective in detecting diseases that the risk of such infection is very small, said Dr. Norbert Gilmore, a professor and clinician at the McGill University Health Center in Canada.
The blood donations go through HIV antigen screening (to detect antibodies produced by the body in response to the virus) and nucleic acid testing. However, there is a "window period" for about two weeks after an individual becomes infected with HIV when these tests cannot detect the virus.
But that risk of this infection is "so small, we should look at the day-to-day realities rather than those infinitesimal risks," said Gilmore, whose research published this week in the Canadian Medical Association Journal criticized the ban in Canada and the U.S. as unscientific.





The most important issue in this debate should be the safety of the patients, said Mark Skinner, president of the World Federation of Hemophilia.
"This isn't an issue just about HIV. It isn't a gay issue," he said. "This is an issue that relates to safety in the blood supply. Those decisions should be made on science, not based on societal concerns. We readily recognize the MSM [men who have sex with men] ban is discriminatory, but it's discriminatory for a reason.
"What we're looking for is a thoughtful review. We're not opposed to the change. We want to understand what additional risks patients might be asked to accept," he said.
Shawn Decker, a hemophiliac who contracted HIV through contaminated blood products, said he supports allowing gay men to donate blood.

Read more about Shawn Decker
Potential donors should be screened based on risky behaviors such as unprotected sex or intravenous drug use, not sexual orientation, he said.
Decker said he was looking forward to a time when "those very allies and friends" in the gay community "are allowed to pony up and give the blood that is used to create my treatments for hemophilia."

Lt. Dan Choi Not Happy

I kind of see his point...what do you think?

Events in Atlanta

MondoHomo


Yes, it’s this week, and we’ll be updating you with details as the days count down. But how could we not include the MondoHomo Dirty South Festival, a grassroots startup that has become an annual must-do?

WHO: LGBTQQI alternaqueers who like to rock

WHAT: Arts, counterculture, social justice, DJs, drag, burlesque, politics, slam poetry, theater, dance parties and more disco, punk, hiphop and electro acts than you can handle.

WHEN: May 27-31

WHERE: Mostly at Eyedrum Gallery

WHY: Because there should be room for everyone in the queer village.

The March

SOMB...Shirt off my back but Laura Gentle

White House to end DADT

Gay Internet politics are weird and kooky. The mode is 24/7 distemper and disappointment. Even victories are dismissed with historical analysis that have zilch connection with actual history.




Take yesterday’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” deal brokered at the White House. Sure it’s a compromise. There are thresholds that need to be met, and the Defense Department’s study still gets to be completed by December; however, repeal is official policy. I’ll say that again. The repeal of DADT is official policy. The question now focuses on when, not if.



Still think Obama sold us out and is no different from your standard Malawi judge? Fine. Here is the Palm Center’s director Aaron Belkin in a press release.



“For the past seventeen years, every expert who has studied this policy has emphasized that dismantling it [DADT] would require leadership. Leadership is what the President showed today.”



Want to accuse Belkin of being an Obama stooge? What about this line from the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network?



“The White House announcement is a dramatic breakthrough in dismantling ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ The path forward crafted by the President, Department of Defense officials, and repeal leaders on Capitol Hill respects the ongoing work by the Pentagon on how to implement open service and allows for a vote this week,” said SLDN’s executive director Aubrey Sarvis. “President Obama’s support and Secretary Gates’ buy-in should insure a winning vote, but we are not there yet. The votes still need to be worked and counted.”



That last sentence is for you. You want DADT to be a relic like military segregation? Well it’s time to give Congress a call. Why? Because the approved proposal is an amendment to the annual defense spending bill.



I’ll make it real easy for you. Here is contact information for U.S. senators and representatives.

http://www.365gay.com/blog/052510-the-white-house-takes-the-step-to-end-dadt/

USofA Highlights

Complements of Brent Silver

The Time Has Come!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today starts a 4 day battle for Miss Gay USofA 2010-2011. I don't know about you all but I'm excited and can't wait to see who the new winner will be. I know everyone in my house hold is rooting for Jayda Iman Alexander. What about yours?
Details will come the minute I find out what's going on...stay tuned!!!!!!!

Tuesday's Tease

Model SEAN BILOSKI YES YES YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Monday's Muse

Actor/Model..Christian Keyes...YES YES Y

ESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Go Head On NANCY P!!!!

Nancy Pelosi spoke to The Hill recently about her conviction to end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell this legislative term. She is convinced the House of Representatives can pass a repeal of the restrictive Clinton-era law. This is good news! She also intimated that it may be done by adding the repeal to the defense authorization bill, a favored tactic of many Democrats. The bad news? ENDA may not have the same momentum. Though she supports ENDA her words are less convincing, “When the opportunity is there, we want to bring that up, and I hope that will be soon. We’ll see what people want to do. It’s not my own personal decision. We’ll just see where we go from here.” Come on Nancy, it’s way past time.

http://www.365gay.com/topics/news_politics/weekend-watercooler-dadt-is-ending-lgbt-students-get-a-hero/

Anti Bully Law....GLORY GLORY GLORY

"• Governor Smiley, makes me smile. On Thursday, Senator Al Franken introduced the long awaited Student Non-Discrimination Act. This bill would protect GLBT students and those perceived to be LGBT from bullies and the school administrators that refuse to protect them. The bill put an end to discrimination for LGBT students and administrators who ignore harassing behavior. Violators of the law would possibly loose federal funding and would open themselves up to lawsuits under the law. Franken said, “Our nation’s civil rights laws protect our children from bullying due to race, sex, religion, disability and national origin. My proposal corrects a glaring injustice and extends these protections to our gay and lesbian students who need them just as badly.” It’s nice to know that someone is looking out for the most vulnerable of children."

I think this is simply beautiful and I hope people actually take this serious!!!!!!! One more to check off of our list!!!!!YAYYYYYY

What would you do?

This Video is a must see...All I can say is WOW!

Kara Ross off to American Idol

According to Gay USofA press, Kara Young Ross will not be able to sit in as Judge for Miss Gay USofA 2009-2010. She is set to travel with the Great Gladys Knight with a commitment to style Knight's hair during her time on American Idol. Khori T. Ross will be sitting in for Kara at panel.

Best of Luck to Kara and to Khori on their new jobs!!!!!!!!

Malawi Gay Couple Jailed

CNN) -- A gay couple in Malawi, found guilty of gross indecency and unnatural acts after they took part in an "engagement ceremony," was sentenced to 14 years in prison Thursday.

Steven Mojenza, 26, and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, 20, were convicted in a court Tuesday.

The pair was arrested in December at their home in Blantyre, Malawi, for professing their love in a traditional engagement ceremony. They were rounded up after news reports surfaced, charged under colonial-era sodomy laws and detained at Chichiru Prison without bail.

The arrests received some popular support in the conservative southern African nation, but sparked condemnation by gay rights activists. Human rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called for the release of the couple.

Prop H8..Lights Camera Action

More than a dozen mainstream media news organizations petitioned a federal judge Tuesday to allow broadcast of closing arguments in the Proposition 8 lawsuit.


Send / ShareAdd CommentIn a letter to U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker, the news groups say such a broadcast, and webcast, would “enhance the public’s ability to witness the parties’ respective closing arguments in this historic case.” They ask Walker to once again seek approval from the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Alex Kozinski to include closing arguments under the circuit’s pilot project on broadcast of court proceedings.

The letter was delivered to Walker on behalf of NBC and CBS, Fox News, Associated Press, National Public Radio, the Cable News Network, In Session (formerly known as Court TV), and other large media interests.

The unprecedented interest in the case challenging Proposition 8, California’s same-sex marriage ban, prompted Walker initially to seek approval for some limited live broadcast of the proceedings, as well as delayed viewing on youtube.com. But before the trial got underway, in January, the U.S. Supreme Court intervened and prohibited Walker from making a broadcast of the proceedings available anywhere outside the federal courthouse in San Francisco.

The 5 to 4 majority of the Supreme Court indicated its decision to bar broadcast of the Perry v. Schwarzenegger trial was based –not on the merits of whether this trial should be made available for public viewing, but rather because— “it appears the courts below did not follow the appropriate procedures set forth in federal law before changing their rules to allow such broadcasting.”

Specifically, the majority suggested that Walker allowed only five business days for public comment on his plan to make the proceedings public, whereas “administrative agencies…usually” provide 30 days or more.

In their letter to Walker, the news organizations note that the federal district court has, since that time, re-opened the public comment period for 30 days and set forth the rules to authorize “the taking of photographs, public broadcasting or televising, or recording” court proceedings as part of the 9th Circuit’s pilot project. The news groups say they believe those developments make broadcast of closing argument “consistent with federal law” and the Supreme Court’s initial ruling.

The groups also note that earlier objections by defendants that broadcast of the proceedings could make them vulnerable to criticism or harassment from people who disagree with them are not at issue in the closing arguments since only attorneys will be speaking in court.

The case has received considerable media attention in part because two high-profile attorneys –conservative Ted Olson and liberal David Boies—are heading up the legal team challenging the anti-gay initiative.

As of Tuesday night, Walker had not yet indicated whether he would seek approval for the broadcast.

Closing argument is scheduled for June 16.


 2010 Keen News Service

http://www.365gay.com/news/media-asks-for-broadcast-of-prop-8-closing-argument/

Thursday's Thunder

Model Miguel Orjuela