Justice is served. Today, Shawn Woodward, a 37 year old carpenter, was found guilty of aggravated assault by Judge Jocelyn Palmer in the Ritch Dowrey gay bashing that took place at The Fountainhead Pub on March 13th, 2009. Woodward had punched Dowrey after approaching him saying that he was not a “faggot” (God I hate that word). He said it was self defense, claiming Dowrey touched his crotch.

As a result of this attack, Dowrey suffered permanent brain damage and can’t take care of himself. The bashing sparked the “ENOUGH!” rally in Vancouver on Davie Street, where hundreds, if not thousands, marched in Dowrey’s name and in protest to violence against gays. Here was the footage we took of the emotional day.

The crown still has to decide as to whether or not it was a hate crime and Woodward faces his sentencing on October 22nd.

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• ENOUGH! Rally for Ritchie Dowrey Part II
• ENOUGH! Rally for Ritchie Dowrey

A young man named Jarod McIntosh claims he is being generally discharged from the United States Navy for being gay. How did this come about? Well, he was a culinary specialist aboard one of the submarines and was based out of King’s Bay, Georgia. On April 28th, 2010, he took his cell down to the submarine and it happened to be a restricted area. Needless to say, you aren’t allowed to have any electronics capable of taking photographs in a restricted area. When officers found out he had his phone (with a built in camera) in the area, they confiscated it and told him he’d get it back at the end of the day. His phone was submitted to security to ensure classified photos had not been taken. They hadn’t, of course, but McIntosh had “personal” photos of his own on there that they soon discovered.

They found pictures of him and his boyfriend Doug – obviously telling them that McIntosh was gay. The chief of the boat wanted to see him first thing the next day in his office. He said that he’d get a report file against him under Article 92 Failure to obey a lawful order and he’d get it the next little while. Two weeks passed hadn’t about the report and was informed by captain about getting an dishonorable discharge from the Navy. He was told essentially that bringing the cell phone into the restricted area wasn’t grounds for discharge, but being gay was. His direct superiors tried to challenge this and keep him in the Navy, but the board did not listen and now McIntosh is challenging the decision. How does this stuff still keep happening? So maddening.

Listen to McIntosh’s YouTube Confessional after the jump…

Citing Ronald Reagan (USA) and Vaclav Havel (Czechoslovakia) as precedents for artists-turned-heads of state, Wyclef announced his candidacy, just days before the deadline, for the presidency of Haiti to Time Magazine. Rumors swirled for weeks the rapper might throw his metaphorical hat in the ring. If he wins, I guess we shouldn’t hold our breath for a Fugees reunion anytime soon. BOO.

“If not for the earthquake, I probably would have waited another 10 years before doing this,” Jean said. “If I can’t take five years out to serve my country as President…then everything I’ve been singing about, like equal rights, doesn’t mean anything.”

Though Wyclef is correct in referencing Reagan and Havel as precedents, both of them had decades of political leadership under their belts before becoming president, which the former Fugees’ frontman lacks. Other examples include Filipino actor Joseph Estrada winning the election in the Philippines in 1998, the widest margin in the country’s history. Poland also elected former child actor Lech Kaczynski as their head of state.

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This is a big day for California! In the landmark case of Perry v. Schwarzenegger, the judge (U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker) ruled Proposition 8 as unconstitutional. There is a 136 page report/decision, but the following two sentences in the conclusion pretty much sum it up:

“Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California constitution the notion that opposite sex couples are superior to same sex couples.”

Thanks to the excellent work of the lawyers Ted Olson and David Boies, for arguing that the Proposition 8 denying marriage rights to same-sex couples in California was unconstitutional, the issue has been resolved.

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I first heard about this f–king brilliant campaign on my friend Scott’s Facebook Page. The message is so simple, yet so out-of-the-box, I’m upset I didn’t come up with it myself. Two buddies Nathan Guidas & Luke Montgomery were as mad as f–k regarding BP’s oil spill. From the spill itself to the lack of urgency on BP’s behalf to fix the problem and clean up the mess, they were mad and weren’t going to sit back and do nothing.

Knowing they weren’t alone with their outrage, the boys created http://UnF–kTheGulf.com/, a t-shirt and a video to raise funds for various charities trying to clean the f–king mess. As they put it so eloquently, “Together we can clean up the Gulf… one dirty word at a time.” Find out more about these guys who decided to DO SOMETHING.

About Nate Guidas:
Nate is an environmental activist and educator with a passion for persuasion. He produced the video and designed the charity shirt. Check out more about him on his website: GreenGuyNate.com

About Luke Montgomery:
Luke is an internet, fundraising and media strategist who works as a consultant for non-profits who want to make a bigger impact and change in the world. He directed the video and designed the website. See more of his work at: GoodIdeasforGoodCauses.com

BP’s oil spill has really f–ked up the gulf. Birds, fish, dolphins & sea turtles are f–ked. Whole communities are f–ked. Together we can hold big oil accountable. Together we can unf–k the Gulf.

watch the f-bomb filled video after the jump. it’s truly brilliant

For the first time in a long time the Province of British Columbia revisits law surrounding common law spouses. In particular, they are having another look at division of property, pensions, and issues when there are children involved.

From the perspective of the GLBT community, where a majority of people still live in Common-Law marriage relationships, this will further strengthen the right of partners who choose to share their lives.

On the flip side. Move in with your partner and after 2 years you’re going to need to contemplate a pre-nuptial agreement.

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This just in! Argentina’s Senate just passed its same-sex marriage bill in a 33-27 vote after 15 hours of deliberation. Now the bill just has to be signed by President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (which is expected to happen very quickly since she has shown clear support for the bill) and gay Argentinians will be able to be married very soon! The former president (Adolfo Rodriguez Saa) said: “Argentina has taken a step forward, but out in the street … it will take time for hatred and resentment to heal.” This is amazing, especially when you consider how “Roman Catholic” the nation is – 90% of the citizens!

The legal code will no longer refer to husband and wife, but instead to “the marrying parties” and same-sex couples will have the same in terms of adoptions, social security and family time as heterosexual couples.

Now, Argentina will join the following nations that allow gay marriage and believe in equality for their citizens: Canada, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, and Iceland.

Check out President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner talking about her viewpoint on the matter, days before the bill was passed today

Pepsi is asking you to VOTE TO REFRESH AMERICA. They are giving away millions in grants to refresh individuals and communities for their “Pepsi Refresh Project“. They’re looking for people, businesses, and non-profits with ideas that will have a positive impact. Though all the ideas are great, there is one in particular I’m urging you to check out and consider voting for.

Bringing Baby Home is a non-profit that helps to improve quality of life for newborns and families by teaching parents the skills needed to encourage positive infant development and strengthen family relationships during the oftentimes stressful transition to parenthood.

Here’s their official mandate and plans for using the Pepsi grant, should they win:

Our Bringing Baby Home (BBH) Program, here at the Relationship Research Institute, is in the running to receive $250,000 from the “Pepsi Refresh Project” so that we can run BBH workshops for at risk families experiencing the transition to parenthood!  If we obtain these funds, we will be able to offer the BBH workshop to hundreds of financially distressed couples and also evaluate whether our program is helpful in reducing child abuse and intimate partner violence. We already know that BBH has been shown to help couples strengthen their relationships, foster positive infant development, and reduce postpartum depression. With these funds, we’d be able to see if BBH can also help to reduce violence in families! 

Funds from this project are provided based on a PUBLIC VOTE! That’s why they need your help! Please go the the Pepsi Refresh website and cast your vote

Bringing Baby Home at the Pepsi Refresh Project Website: http://www.refresheverything.com/bringingbabyhome

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Bare with me here, because I’ve had to find out about this through translated news articles, but from what I can gather one of the more popular gay clubs in Amsterdam, The Cockring, was raided for drugs earlier this month.

On Friday June 11th, over a hundred police officers raided the club. The roughly one hundred patrons there at the time were brought to the police station where there were searched. A couple of people were arrested for trafficking, and a couple more for possession. The club is still closed because of the incident.

I originally heard about this through word of mouth, and I couldn’t believe it. Amsterdam has had a rough time recently living up to its gay tourist destination reputation. There have been a few incidents of attacks on gay men over the last month. Also, a couple of popular bars on one of the main gay streets shut down due to bankruptcy. With pride happening in a little over a month, violence, fear of police searches and another club closing down ain’t great.

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