'Gay money': The currency of change?

Contents:

• WHAT’S THE BUZZ ABOUT THE ‘GAY DOLLAR’? … AND WHY YOU SHOULD RE.
• FIRST GAY DOLLAR CIRCULATN, OM CANADA MT, THE GAY LOONIE
• WHY THE GAY DOLLAR IS A POWERFUL WEAPON FOR CHANGE
• WHY CANADA’S ‘GAY DOLLAR’ IS SO IMPORTANT TO ME
• 'GAY MONEY': THE CURRENCY OF CHANGE?
• PURSUG THE GAY DOLLAR
• THE GAY DOLLAR
• THE GAY DOLLAR DEMYSTIFIED
• THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985
• CANADA'S NEW GAY RIL OPPONENTS — AND SOME SUPPORTERS — OF LGBTQ RIGHTS
• ONE DOLLAR GAY S HAS SELECTED THE BT CHEAP GAY PORN FOR YOU
• HIGH QUALY GAY PORN AT A CHEAP PRICE
• GAY PORN FOR A DOLLAR

WHAT’S THE BUZZ ABOUT THE ‘GAY DOLLAR’? … AND WHY YOU SHOULD RE.

5% of Amerin adults intify as lbian, gay, or bisexual.

You’ll monly hear this buyg power also referred to as the ‘pk dollar’ or ‘gay dollar.

Canada circulated the first “Gay Dollar”, a new , “memoratg 50 years of progrs regnizg the rights of LGBTQ2 Canadians”. Feral Fance Mister Bill Morne unveiled the new one-dollar that pays tribute to Parliament’s passg of legislatn that “iated the crimalizatn of homosexualy Canada” 1969.

FIRST GAY DOLLAR CIRCULATN, OM CANADA MT, THE GAY LOONIE

In the early days of lonial Canada, homosexly was punishable by ath and this was modified to ten years prison. In the mid 20th century, Canada further crimalized homosexualy through the vented tegori of “crimal sexual psychopath” and “dangero sexual offenr. What is the gay loonie?

As an umbrella term may enpass same-sex attractn and a wi variety of genr variance, cludg people who might be scribed Wtern culture as gay, lbian, bisexual, transsexual, transgenr, genr queer, cross-drsers or who have multiple genr inti. Has gay equaly been achieved Canada? Some historians and advot say new gay rights memorat a myth.

WHY THE GAY DOLLAR IS A POWERFUL WEAPON FOR CHANGE

Meanwhile, the leadg LGBTQ2 rights anizatn Egale Canada prais $1 that marks 1969 ‘turng pot’ for homosexual rights.

Then India, bs started marketg towards LGBTQ people as soon as India’s Supreme Court crimalized gay sex. After Equox’s chairman announced a fundraiser for Tmp, gay men and other LGBTQ people banned together to boytt the gym anchise.

Ultimately, gay men and other LGBTQ people need to regnize their power. The power of gay money is already regnized by pani but not yet feared by them. And wh pani racg to get a slice of the “rabow enomy, ” utilizg gay wallets as weapons for change is a great route we n all take.

WHY CANADA’S ‘GAY DOLLAR’ IS SO IMPORTANT TO ME

See our guil at I first heard the news that Canada would but a gay dollar this year, my first reactn was, “Hmm... ”My humble, don’t-e-a-ck, prent-day gay self first saw the new as ernmental sills, such as when the U.

)The marks a 50-year anniversary of the crimalizatn of homosexualy Canada 1969 and, nsirg how relatively short that span is, the chang have been absolutely astoundg. The is the least that n be done to memorate darker tim and the gas that the LBGTQ muny has was a time at the peak of the AIDS crisis when my iends and I ma our own gay money. Durg breaks, we’d take bills out of our wallets and stamp them wh a pk triangle and the words “Gay Dollar.

I got my ear pierced, slapped a pk triangle sticker on the bumper of my Honda Acrd and ocsnally donned a gay T-shirt. Get ed to (please, if that’s all right wh you) many who were raised durg the time when AIDS was a ath sentence, my awakeng arose om anger at the sense that gays were dispensable. I’d thrown up my arms over the oft-stated notn that gays were perverts and generat.

'GAY MONEY': THE CURRENCY OF CHANGE?

I never heard any discsn on the topic durg my formative gay years. Even now, gay marriage feels like a right for others, not me. While I see elrly men publishg weddg announcements and silently cheer their special day, gay marriage seems like somethg that’s more for a younger generatn, people who are growg up wh as a right.

I was raised hearg that gays were pedophil.

When I beme a prcipal, I didn’t re much any more, but I didn’t want my gay inty to be a distractn. ” I knew there was a need for adoptg persons wh special needs but my own ternalized homophobia got the way yet aga.

PURSUG THE GAY DOLLAR

I always felt that if I were a gay dad would create more of a liabily for the be sure, not havg children is my greatt regret. I acknowledge that some of was my own dog but society’s view of homosexuals and s opns regardg gay adoptns also played a major I found circl of people who embraced and accepted me, reports of hate crim and discrimatn took their toll subtle ways. There are tim when I still feel ashamed – even a pariah – as a gay man.

THE GAY DOLLAR

Dpe the gas, I ntue to see the hate the onle ments wrten after stori such as the one announcg the gay Canadian dollar. ”I’ve now e to the pot where I believe a limed-edn, gay Canadian has great meang symbolilly.

THE GAY DOLLAR DEMYSTIFIED

I look forward to holdg my first ernment-approved gay money, a bold sign by artist Joe Average. It is for gays who never lived to see rights and protectns enshred law.

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

It is for younger LGBTQ people to learn more about how far we’ve e and to ga a eper sense of gay pri. No one n say for sure how started, but dollar bills wh the words "gay money" or a pk triangle stamped on them are surfacg around the untry, cludg stampg is beg done by gay men and women who want to prove a pot. "The purpose is to show the amount of money that gay nsumers spend, " says Richard, who cled to give his last name.

Richard don't want his full inty known -- not bee he is gay, but bee is illegal to face money. Richard stamps both the pk triangle and the words "gay money" on his dollar bills and knows others who do the far, he has had only one negative reactn om a retailer, he says.

CANADA'S NEW GAY RIL OPPONENTS — AND SOME SUPPORTERS — OF LGBTQ RIGHTS

"It is not an anized effort, " says Rob Kane, spokman for the Natnal Gay and Lbian Task Force, a lobbyg anizatn based Washgton. "It is an effort om some lol groups or 's a personal way for dividual people to show gay enomic power and to show visibily. "Gay enomic power is a force to be reckoned wh, activists say.

Overlooked Opns is a Chigo-based marketg rearch firm that polls gays and lbians. A January 1992 poll of 7, 500 people found that the average gay male hoehold e was $51, 624, says Rick Dean, a senr vice print at Overlooked Opns. Most -- though not all -- gay hoeholds are childls, two-e upl, which means more disposable e to spread circulatn of "gay dollars" seems to grow whenever the issue of gay and lbian rights is the foreont of the news, Ms.

ONE DOLLAR GAY S HAS SELECTED THE BT CHEAP GAY PORN FOR YOU

Kane stance, she says, more people began stampg their money after the march on many of the dollar bills were seen Pensala, Fla., after a Cy Council member publicly objected to Memorial Day activi that drew thoands of gays and lbians.

Circulatg the stamped money serv the purpose of keepg gay rights issu on the mds of many, Ms. A woman -- the shier -- had jt received a dollar bill wh "gay money" stamped on . It ma the people thk about gay rights.

The Baltimore Pri Ftival nclud s 29th annual weekend of revelry last night, ppg two days of ee parti, paras, ncerts, drag-queen ntts and other events celebratg gay liftyl.

HIGH QUALY GAY PORN AT A CHEAP PRICE

Those proceeds benefed the Gay and Lbian Communy Center of Baltimore. "We're seeg a lot of pani supportg the [gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenr] muny over the years, and the ftival is one way they're dog that, " said Stt Bm, Pri 2004's -anizer and edor of Gay Life newspaper.

"There are not jt gay bs that support the muny. Now, at least half her bs is om gays and lbians, primarily om the Mount Vernon neighborhood. This growg lol acceptance of gays and lbians stems om crease exposure on several onts, bs owners and other observers say.

GAY PORN FOR A DOLLAR

Senate next month -- promote overall gay nscns. Though some of the imag perpetuate gay stereotyp, they still help heterosexuals bee more fortable wh GLBTs. They also enurage younger gays to bee more at ease wh their sexualy and provi an overall humany to homosexuals.

"Wh the exposure, people tend to realize that people close to them are gay or lbian -- and thgs change, " said Michael Lemmon, manager of Lambda Risg, a bookstore on Wt Chase Street that specializ gay and lbian lerature.