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Happy New Year

Happy New Year. Hopefully everyone will have a safe, joyous and wonderful celebration, and, 2009 will be an incredible year for everyone. Rod 2.0 is taking a much-needed break for a few days. Light posting resumes over the weekend and regular posting resumes over Monday.

British Football Stars to Tape Anti-Homophobia Video

Following a series of high-profile cases of anti-gay and homophobic abuse shouted by British football fans, the Football Association is taking the unprecedented step of taping the sport's top stars to speak out against homophobia.

"A video showing football stars speaking out against homophobia will be released next year as part of an unprecedented drive by the sport's governing bodies to tackle a sharp rise in abuse and discrimination. The video will be shown in cinemas, on TV and in stadiums in an attempt to rid terraces and pitches of homophobic chants and slurs, the Guardian reveals.

"It is hoped that up to a dozen players, including David Beckham, Rio Ferdinand, Sol Campbell, David James, Wayne Rooney, Ashley Cole and Cristiano Ronaldo, will be persuaded to take part."

Ferdinand is one of the loudest voices on and off the field for speaking out on anti-gay abuse and homophobia. Another black football player, Sol Campbell, has recently been the focus of one of the more disgusting cases of racist and homophobic abuse. Campbell has also used the opportunity to speak out against homophobia and has been applauded by gay sports fans.

FA to Tackle Homophobia with Video [Guardian]

Some Background...
2 Arrested After Racist Taunts of Sol Campbell [R20]
Rio Ferdinand: Deduct Points for Homophobic Fans [R20]
Campbell Taunted with Racist, Homophobic Insults [R20]

Rare Court Victory for Uganda Gays

The past year has seen a steady wave of state-sanctioned, anti-gay hysteria in Uganda. There is finally some good news to report. A Kampala court rules the "continuing suppression" of gay and sexual minority rights groups is unconstitutional. The ruling is being celebrated as a landmark victory by the East African nation's lgbt community.

The Guardian reports, "A judge ruled in favour of gay rights activists Victor Mukassa and Oyo Yvonne in their law suit against the attorney general of Uganda over an illegal raid on Mukassa's home in 2005.

"Judge justice Arach ruled that constitutional violations to privacy, property and human rights had occurred during the 2005 raid and accepted that the attorney general was accountable for the actions of local police officials, reported Afrol News. During the raid, police officials searching for "incriminating materials" seized private documents and arbitrarily arrested Mukassa's colleague, Yvonne, who was then forced to strip at a local police station to 'prove she was a woman'. "

Mukasa is a transgender lesbian and one of the few LGBT activists in Uganda willing to publicly speak out.

Uganda already has some of the most draconian anti-gay legislation on the planet—sex between two people of the same sex is a criminal offense and punishable by life imprisonment—and under new legislation it would be illegal just to be gay. Last year, a cabinet minister warned gays and lesbians to leave the country. At the same time, Uganda's leading Muslim cleric suggested all gays should be detained, marooned on an island in Lake Victoria and left to die.

Judge Denies Request of Lawrence King's Accused Shooter

Another update in the prosecution of Brandon McInerney, the 14-year-old accused of gunning down openly gay classmate Lawrence King. A judge denies a requested showing how Ventura County prosecutors decide when juvenile offenders will be tried as adults. The Ventura County Star:

McInerney's lawyers, Scott Wippert of United Defense Group of Studio City and Robyn Bramson of North Hollywood, recently filed the discovery motion, seeking notes, communications, correspondence, internal memos and other documents they say will give them insight in to how prosecutors made the decision.

Wippert said prosecutors never looked into such things as McInerney's school or family situations.

Wippert argued in court that the District Attorney's Office didn't use discretion, failing to look at such things as the circumstances surrounding the case or McInerney's school or home life. That violated the defendant's constitutional right to due process, he said.

He said he doesn't understand why prosecutors refuse to give defense lawyers information about the decision-making process. "It's a scary world to think that a DA has unfettered discretion to do whatever they want," Wippert said.

McInerney is charged with first-degree murder and a hate crime in the Feb. 12 slaying of 15-year-old Lawrence King at their E.O. Green school in Oxnard. McInerney allegedly shot King after his classmate—who was biracial, openly gay and sometimes wore makeup—gave him a Valentine Day's card. The 15-year-old King's brutal murder has helped raised awareness around bullying, gay youth and gender identity.

The decision to prosecute McInerney as an adult was somewhat controversial and a number of gay activists and organizations lobbied against the decision. McInerney faces a sentence of 51 years to life if convicted of all the charges.

McInerney Lawyers Denied Request [VCS]

Some Background ...
Defense Will Have Access to King's Records [R20]
Defense in King Case Looking for Speedy Trial [R20]
King's Alleged Killer Will Be Tried As An Adult [R20]
Will Lawrence King's Killer Be Tried As An Adult? [R20]
Mixed Messages [Advocate.com]
Newsweek's Disturbing Feature on Lawrence King [R20]
WaPo Profiles 15-Year-Old Openly Gay Teen [R20]
News: Noah's Arc, Lawrence King, Black Gay Youth [R20]
News: Pope, Lawrence King, Simmie Williams [R20]
News: Obama, Clinton, Pharrell, Lawrence King [R20]

Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays to all our readers and visitors from the Rod 2.0 family. Hopefully your travels are well, your families are safe, and the holidays are relaxing and joyous.

I'm taking a few days off. There will be occasional posts over the weekend and the blog should be up to speed on Monday or so.

NORAD and Google Track Santa's Christmas Eve Journey

It's always pretty cool on Christmas Eve when NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) tracks Santa Claus and his reindeer on radar. This holiday season has something more for tech geeks: Google is enabling you to follow his trip in Google Maps, on 3-D in Google Earth, on YouTube, and on Twitter. There is also a mobile platform that displays the NORAD/Google locators on iPhone and 3Gplatforms.

The above is a screenshot from Google Maps (click to expand) which showed Santa's current location in the South Pacific. Hopefully there are a few nice presents in Santa's sleigh for everyone out there.

Obama to Take Oath of Office on Lincoln Bible

The transition team announces President-elect Barack Obama's historic inauguration becomes even more symbolic because he "will take the oath of office using the same Bible upon which President Lincoln was sworn in at his first inauguration." Obama becomes "the first President sworn in using the Lincoln Bible since its initial use in 1861."

Recently the president-elect announced he will take the oath of office using his full name, Barack Hussein Obama, to begin a "unique opportunity to reboot America's image around the world and also in the Muslim world in particular."

Not Feeling Well

Sorry for taking the long weekend without warning. Not feeling very well and came down with a bad head cold. Should post one or two items later this afternoon.

Developing: Prop 8 Sponsors Seek to Nullify 18,000 Gay Marriages

Breaking news from California on Proposition 8. The Yes on 8 campaign petitions the California Supreme Court to "nullify" the marriages of the estimated 18,000 gay and lesbian couples who legally married before voters approved the referendum that outlawed gay unions. The Sacramento Bee reports:

The campaign filed a brief arguing that because the new law holds that only marriages between a man and a woman are recognized or valid in California, the state can no longer recognize the existing same-sex unions.

"Proposition 8's brevity is matched by its clarity. There are no conditional clauses, exceptions, exemptions or exclusions," reads the brief co-written by Pepperdine University law school dean Kenneth Starr, the former independent counsel who investigated President Bill Clinton.

The campaign submitted the document in response to three lawsuits seeking to invalidate Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment adopted last month that overruled the court's decision in May that briefly legalized gay marriage in the nation's most populous state.

Attorney General Jerry Brown also filed his brief with the California Supreme Court today. Brown argues Proposition 8 should be invalidated. Brown changed his position as he previously stated "he would fight to uphold the initiative in his role as attorney general, even though he personally voted against it."

This would be the first time in history the state has been asked to forcibly divorce couples who were legally married. Doesn't sound very Christian, imho. The only silver lining here is that sex-obsessed Ken Starr is the lead counsel on this motion. Hopefully his losing streak will continue.

Thanks KAREN OCAMB and MAD PROFESSAH

Posted

"The Source" Profiles Black Gay HIV/AIDS Activists Jonathan Perry, Phill Wilson and Jesse Milan

The Source is normally not required monthly reading—the hip-hop/ebonics/music "journalism" genre is just not our thing, baby—but grab a copy of the December 2008 issue. (PDF) The editors of the hip-hop bible profile four black HIV/AIDS activists and three are black gay men well known to Rod 2.0 readers—Phill Wilson, executive director of the Los Angeles-based Black AIDS Institute; Jesse Milan, chairman of the BAI and co-chair of the Centers for Disease Control; and hottie youth HIV activist and blogger Jonathan Perry.

Perry tells The Source public speaking has allowed him to "put a face" to HIV activism. "People tend to think that when you find out your HIV status that life is over, and initially it is that way in your head. But for some people, it is just the beginning. It's an opportunity to move forward consciously knowing there's more at stake."

Jesse Milan says as a lawyer and chair of numerous boards and committees "many people don't view that as activism, but I certainly do. Activism is not necessarily just marching in the streets, although it could be that. Activists can be active and accomplish their goals in many different ways." Milan has been mentioned as a candidate in the Barack Obama White House as the new "AIDS czar." Let's hope Milan's boardroom activism takes him there.

The photo editorial and interviews are a nice touch, too. Kudos to the editors for profiling black gay men, who are hit the hardest by the HIV epidemic and not going the easy route and finding several straight black women or men who were positive.

December 2008 "Source" [pdf]

More HEALTH
More HIV

Some Background ...
Will An Openly Gay Black Man Become Obama's AIDS "Czar"? [R20]
Jonathan Perry in "The Advocate" [R20]
Phill Wilson: Candidates Must Address HIV/AIDS [R20]
Ending Black Homophobia Will Reduce HIV [R20]
CDC: Young Black Gay Men Hit Hardest by New HIV Infections [R20]
HIV Spreading in NYC at Three Times National Rate Black/Latino Gay Men Hit Hardest [R20]
CDC: "Troubling" Rise in HIV Among Black Gay Men [R20]
GMHC's "I Love My Boo" Campaign [R20]
HIV Rates Rising Among Black NYC Gay Men [R20]
CDC Tracking "Serious" Strain of Syphilis [R20]
The HIV Morning After Pill? [R20]
Black Gay Men and "The Pill" [R20]
Do You Disclose Your HIV Status? [R20]
Primetime Reports Black HIV Epidemic [After Elton]
"Out of Control: AIDS in Black America" [R20]
POZ Examines Race and the Down Low [R20]
HIV Rates Rise Among NYC Black Gay Men [R20]
POZ Examines Race and the “Down Low” [R20]
"Urban Rally Against AIDS" [R20]
The ABCs of Black HIV [R20]