Gays Getting Married; Black Clergy Upset

How typical that some Black Clergy are responding to the civil (not religious) issue of gay marriage through the lenses of Christian-based theology....news flash America.........this IS going to happen.....and you can't stop it!!!!!!!

Read the full article here: http://www.race-talk.org/?p=757

Anye Elite presents "ICON".....

2010 House of Blahnik Ball

Greetings,

On May 22, 2010 , the House of Blahnik (HOB) will commemorate its longevity and achievements by hosting a 10^th Anniversary Ball entitled, Revolutionize 10 (R-10). This event is the culmination of 10 years of ground breaking humanitarian efforts, artistic innovation and the transformation of captivating vogue and runway productions. HOB has re-created, re-defined and re-shaped the house/ball culture, through phenomenal moments that continue to leave a mark upon ball event patrons.  R10 solidifies that the HOB has just begun.

 

From the early beginnings, May 2000 brought together the talents of Jay, Preston and Michael Ebony with that of Hector and Jasmine Infiniti to form what has now become synonymous with the greatness and creativity that house/ballroom culture has to offer.

 

HOB has re-shaped the meaning of performance, bridging the gap of LGBT communities of color in a manner that has brought forth the astounding artistic talents of individuals that are acknowledged throughout the community, on and off the runway.

 

Through the incarnations of artistry, HOB has continuously imbued the beauty reminiscent of the early Harlem Renaissance and the budding house/ballroom culture of New York City 's 1920 movement.

 

HOB has reinvigorated the desire for advancing education, which had seemingly depreciated among this group, through the development of the only scholarship that target members of the house/ball community.  This commitment to education, which is completely reliant on donations, has supported members of the house/ball community and has led to three LGBT people of color acquiring undergraduate degrees. 

 

The HOB has been cited as an inspiration among numerous performers in the contemporary music and performing arts industry, health and human services providers and community leaders for enhancing the trajectory of the LGBT community. 

 

Your commitment, through sponsorship of the R-10 event, will assist in fostering the tradition of ballroom culture, expand opportunities for educational advancement made by the HOB and continue to REVOLUTIONIZE the LGBT community.

 

In Gratitude,

Stephaun Blahnik

NY Overseer & Vice-Chairman- National Board of Directors

The House of Blahnik

The MOCHA Center along with AIDS Rochester lead the Charge to End Homophobia/Heterosexism in Rochester, NY

The MOCHA Center leads the Charge to End Homophobia/Heterosexism in Rochester, NY (click here to see news article and watch a clip of the news coverage).

SkunkPost.com || Lights, camera, DRAG? Who's who of Hollywood Ball

SkunkPost.com || Lights, camera, DRAG? Who's who of Hollywood Ball

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''I AM GAY'' Ads Send Message To Local African-American Community

''I AM GAY'' Ads Send Message To Local African-American Community

Rochester City News: Hope Takes Action: A Road to Victory for Rochester

MEDICINE: An armada to fight AIDS in Rochester

By Tim Louis Macaluso on November 11, 2009

The rate of new HIV infections among African Americans and Latinos in Monroe County is increasing at a pace that is disproportionately higher than the rate for whites. Health experts have known about the trend for several years; the data mirrors a national trend.

The Center for Disease Control found that in 2007, African Americans accounted for 45 percent of new HIV infections nationally, even though they represent only 12 percent of the population. Hispanics and Latinos, though only 15 percent of the population, accounted for 17 percent of new HIV infections.

But reaching people of color with prevention and testing information is a persistent challenge. And encouraging them to participate in HIV vaccine trials is even more difficult.

In 2007, New York spent $48 million on prevention programs, and another $6.5 million for expanded HIV testing in African-American communities. But indications are that the infection rate is still rising.

A coalition, more like an armada, of nearly two-dozen Rochester health and social-service agencies, as well as faith organizations, is trying to refocus public attention on how HIV/AIDS continues to ravage the city's minority communities.

The group will hold "Hope Takes Action: A Road to Victory for Rochester" on Saturday, November 21, to kick-start the initiative. The event - a combination of music, food, education, and advocacy - is at the Auditorium Theater from 4 to 8 p.m., and is free and open to the public.

More people in the African-American community are being tested for HIV, says Stephaun Clipper, prevention and programs manager with the MOCHA Center. But overcoming fear and trust issues, considering the devastating impact of the Tuskegee Experiment, he says, is a major hurdle for health-care professionals working with African Americans.

Racism also contributes to the problem, Clipper says. Environmental factors and socio-economic differences, he says, can lead to ambivalence.

"If I'm a person that feels I do not have the same access as the larger culture, I may not be as receptive," he says.

For Adelik Rivera, a caseworker at McCree McCuller Wellness Center, the obstacle is language. Speaking basic Spanish isn't enough.

"People come from many different countries where the regional dialects are almost like different languages," she says.

And, she says, information is often presented in medical terms many Latinos don't understand.

"The community is actually very open to talking about sex and sexual orientation," she says. "But we have to speak in plain and simple words."

Poverty is the other obstacle for the Latino community, Rivera says.

"They're not as concerned about their health as we would like them to be," she says. "They are more concerned with putting a roof over their heads and food on the table. Health problems of any kind, even HIV, are just not their highest priority."

Reaching undocumented workers, Rivera says, is extremely difficult.

"Right now, it is such a delicate subject," she says. "They might come in for testing, but they may not give you accurate information."

Getting more people of color to participate in the University of Rochester's HIV vaccine trials - especially in the local HVTN 505 study, is the coalition's other goal. The HVTN 505 study is a follow-up to the previous study for high-risk groups that ended in 2007.

The UR's HIV Vaccine Trials Unit has gone so far as to re-brand itself as the "Rochester Victory Alliance," in part to avoid inhibiting people from volunteering. A common misconception is that the vaccine will transmit the disease.

It is critically important for people from the high-risk minority communities to participate in the trials, says Dr. Michael Keefer, associate director of the UR's HIV vaccine trials. The trials, he says, have raised new questions about transmission, the number of vaccines needed, and dosages. It's the type of work that can't be gleaned using animal models.

"We need their help to map a way forward," he says.

Help Save SOVO!!!

Laura Douglas-Brown and the team over at SOVO are working tirelessly to revive a media outlet for the LGBTQI community in Metro Atlanta. Please consider supporting this effort. As you may or may not know, Windows Media, the parent company to the Washington Blade, Southern Voice and a few other LGBTQI media outlets has decided to shut its doors (without any notice to its subsidiaries).

Please check out www.sovo.com for more information and ways you can support this effort to bring back a media outlet for our community to Metro Atlanta.

The Cost and Causalities of Science: HIV/AIDS in Black America

UNITED STATES: "The Cost and Causalities of Silence: HIV/AIDS in Black America"
New York Beacon (10.08.09):: Tony Wafford

"There is a terrible and terrifying creature stalking the black community night and day. This terrible and terrifying creature is called HIV/AIDS, and it has come to our community and is consuming our life energy and undermining our future. It is now the number-one killer of our people between the ages of 22-45.

"To save and protect the lives of our children and people as a whole, there are several things we must do.

"First, we must embrace the victims for who they are - above all, members of our community and families, our friends and fellow human beings, deserving the respect we are all due as bearers of dignity and divinity.

"Second, we must practice an ethics of care and responsibility for the ill and vulnerable among us.

"Third, we must urge our leaders, organizations, and especially our religious institutions to take up this issue in a serious and sustained manner.

"Fourth, we must each of us help to build a national conversation about this most deadly disease. This will include an honest discussion of the varied sexual practices people engage in secretly and openly.

"Fifth, we must urge testing as a key strategy for detection and prevention of its spreading. Testing is especially important for men in jail and prison who have engaged in high-risk activity and who will be reintegrating back into their families and community.

"Sixth, also, we must organize to struggle for more resources to deal with this horrible crisis.

"Seventh and finally, we must realize and act on the knowledge that we are our own resources and rescuers. Indeed, it is our efforts which are decisive in any struggle we wage. 'For a people that cannot save itself is lost forever.'

"This is a fundamental point in the struggle against HIV/AIDS. We must repair our own selves, raise ourselves from the ruins of disease and oppression, hold ourselves and others responsible, and together build the community and world we all want and deserve to live in."

The author is the National Action Network project director for the Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative.

B-More Black Gay Youth Found Dead: Family Reaction Cause for Question

B-More Black Gay Youth Found Dead: Family Reaction Cause for Question

Southern States Most Impacted by HIV/AIDS; Receive Less Funding/Support

http://newsone.com/nation/southern-u-s-has-highest-aids-related-death-rate-yet-lacks-funding/

Georgia Senate Pushes to Succeed from United States

http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2009/04/georgia-state-senate-use-racist-code-language-to-threaten-secession-from-usa

CIty Newspaper: Local Armada of Community Organizations Spearhead New HIV Direction

http://www.rochestercitynewspaper.com/news/articles/2009/11/MEDICINE-An-armada-to-fight-AIDS-in-Rochester/

An Interview: Stephaun gets personal with RoCkii!

Greetings;

Here is a link to an interview of me conducted recently. I hope you enjoy and visit this blog also! Click here.

NBJC Applauds Obama Administration Inclusion of LGBT in HUD Programs

NBJC Applauds Obama Administration Inclusion of LGBT in HUD Programs Steps include first-ever national study of discrimination against members of the LGBT community in the renting and sale of housing Media Contact Contact: Cindi Creager (917) 331-5684 creager@glaad.org Media Contact Contact: Kellee Terrell (323) 313-7019 terrell@glaad.org     The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) applauds today's announcement of proposals designed to ensure that U.S. Housing And Urban Development (HUD) housing programs are open to all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. These initiatives are among the strongest steps yet taken by the Obama Administration to ensure full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) individuals in all aspects of society. Included is a proposed rule to explicitly include LGBT individuals in eligibility requirements, as well as specifying that sexual orientation or gender identity not be considered as factors in qualifying for any FHA-insured mortgage. "This is a very positive development, and we are confident that it is one step among many that the LGBT community can look forward to from this President," said Sharon J. Lettman, NBJC Executive Director. "It is vital that we recognize all the compositions of African American families, from single mom-led households to grandparents raising their grandchildren; families of color also include LGBT households and family members." Noting that prior state and local studies have demonstrated the existence of bias against LGBT renters and homebuyers, HUD also announced its intent to commission the first-ever national study of discrimination against members of the LGBT community in rental and sale of housing and intends to being the regulatory process immediately. "It has long been said that local government most clearly reflects the hearts and minds of the people," noted Lettman, "and so we applaud the federal government following the lead of state and local governments in working to secure equal opportunity for its LGBT citizens." "We hope to see a focus on LGBT youth, specifically youth of color," added Deputy Executive Director Jason W. Bartlett, who is also a Connecticut State Representative. "As an African American organization, we think that LGBT youth of color is a significant factor that needs to be addressed by these changes." More than 42 percent of the country's homeless youth identify as LGBT, and approximately 90 percent of that group are people of color, according to a 2006 study released by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute and the National Coalition for the Homeless. The National Black Justice Coalition (www.NBJC.org) is a civil rights organization dedicated to empowering Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. Our mission is to end racism and homophobia. NBJC envisions a world where all people are fully empowered to participate safely, openly and honestly in family, faith and community, regardless of race, gender-identity, or sexual orientation. - ### - To stop receiving email from National Black Justice Coalition, click here.