The fiftieth anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? is important reading after a presidential election marred by political violence, scandalous published campaign emails, allegations of sexual scandal that rocked both political parties and both presidential candidates, and cringing campaign statements by both presidential candidates that…
Gospel music undeniably has a queerness at its roots that has not only shaped the genre but it has continued to give gospel music its enduring vibrancy. One of black gospel’s darlings and Pentecostal preacher Kim Burrell was ousted from The Ellen DeGeneres Show, sending shock waves throughout the African American community. Burrell along with…
“Phil Berger, the powerful Republican leader of North Carolina’s Senate, couldn’t stop the debacle,” wrote Jonathan M. Katz for Politico in the article In North Carolina, Some Democrats See Their Grim Future. “A state law that effectively banned legal protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people – a law he’d pushed through the statehouse…
Local Politician of the Year – Councilmember Georgette Gomez 2016 saw many impressive local election victories. Mayor Faulconer and multiple councilmembers cruised to June wins, County Supervisor Kristin Gaspar beat incumbent Dave Roberts, and former Councilmember Todd Gloria moved to the State Assembly. None seemed as improbable at the outset as Gomez’s rise. In a…
This past Saturday, community activists and friends of Will X. Walters gathered at the Rainbow Flag monument in Hillcrest to remember the young activist who took his own life. Will’s recent case against the San Diego Police Department had gotten national attention, especially after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in his favor….
I’m writing this piece knowing that by the time it’s published the situation may have changed; the deadline and the publishing time leaves a window for events to move forward. But even knowing this, I feel a need to comment on the fast moving events in North Carolina regarding HB2 – the so-called “Bathroom Bill.”…
Dec. 19, the Electoral College chose Donald Trump as the next president. How did Sec. Clinton go from prohibitive favorite to runner-up? Here’s my summary of six weeks of coverage. The national polls weren’t that far off Clinton’s lead in the popular vote stands at nearly 3 million votes, or 2.1 percent, only 1.1 percent…
For five years now, young businessman Johan Engman has closed his restaurants (Fig Tree, Breakfast Republic, etc.), on Christmas Day to provide a complimentary gourmet dinner for military veterans through the Wounded Warrior Project. This wonderful event has grown so big that Engman, who has donated the bulk of the costs, needed some help and…
After the doom and gloom of our fall—and boy did moods around here fall—I’ve noticed, with the approach of the holidays, an unusually earnest air of festivity around town. People crave more light in winter; this year our neighborhood seems to be going all out on bright decorations. Homes that have never boasted more than…
To the shock of many of us LGBTQ people of faith is the Vatican’s recent decision in the document “The Gift of Priestly Vocation,” to ban gays to the priesthood; thus, reaffirming its 2005 stance. Those of us who have “deep-seated homosexual tendencies” or who “support the so-called ‘gay culture’” are categorically denied to serve one of the church’s…
