7 openly gay lears have served as heads of state. Latvian print Edgars Rkēvičs is the latt

Contents:

• HOW 2013 BEME THE GREATT YEAR IN GAY RIGHTS HISTORY
• A LANDMARK DAY FOR GAY MARRIAGE
• THE 8 TOP GAY CIS FOR 2023
• JAGUARS ACH OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR U.S.-BASED PRO LEAGU
• LATVIA BE 7TH NATN TO BE LED BY AN OPENLY GAY HEAD OF STATE

HOW 2013 BEME THE GREATT YEAR IN GAY RIGHTS HISTORY

Today is the 25th anniversary of Natnal Comg Out Day, a day of regnn for those who've publicly disclosed beg gay, lbian, bisexual or transgenr. Flash forward four years to Mississippi: I was 16, still gay (of urse) and somewhat fearful of what the reactn would be this time, but was a secret I uld not longer keep quiet. I was about 17 (havg known I was gay sce around 11) and the secret was eatg me up si – I need to tell someone but was too terrified to even say myself.

A iend's ltle sister asked me out a pub full of people I knew, so I polely cled, cg the fact that I was gay, and makg sure everyone heard. [But] om the mute I said the words "I'm gay" she has been nothg but supportive, lovg and genero, so other words, nothg changed at all. " This has been "the gayt year gay history, " the words of Fred Saz, vice print of the gay rights group Human Rights Campaign, and not only bee dividual stat and the U.

There have been substantive chang policy and personnel, wh Print Obama sentially doublg the number of openly gay dividuals who have served as feral judg and ambassadors. This year has also seen symbolic ton, cludg Obama enshrg the e of gays the civil rights pantheon his send gural addrs, and the first profsnal athlet major sports g out. Gays and lbians had once plaed about feelg visible, but as lns of dividuals have e out, they not only have ma their polil sir more tangible but also have won sympathetic alli among many straights.

A LANDMARK DAY FOR GAY MARRIAGE

Durg his first term, Obama sometim me across as a reluctant warrr on gay issu, takg his time to "evolve" his posn on marriage, his timg perhaps prodd by remarks om Vice Print Joe Bin. Obama had already been the rare natnal polician to e the word "we" when speakg of the gay rights e before announcg his support for same-sex marriage last year. In his gural addrs January, he referred the same breath to Stonewall, Selma and Sene Falls (rpectively, landmarks the stggl for rights for gays, Ain-Amerins and women).

Obama has been the "gays' LBJ, " says Jonathan Rch, a rint scholar at the Brookgs Instutn, parg the current print to Lyndon Johnson, who signed to law the Civil Rights and Votg Rights Acts of the 1960s.

THE 8 TOP GAY CIS FOR 2023

This year's Supreme Court cisns on gay marriage might well have turned out differently if the ernment still had an active tert argug for discrimatn, says Aaron Belk, director of the Palm Center at San Francis State Universy, which studi transgenr ary service. "They realized the ary is so wily revered Amerin society that if they uld draw the le the sand there, they uld prevent gays om lockg rights other parts of society. "Our journey is not plete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else unr the law, " he said, "for if we are tly created equal, then surely the love we m to one another mt be equal as well.

JAGUARS ACH OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR U.S.-BASED PRO LEAGU

Marriage helped gays "change the subject om beg primarily about rights and nondiscrimatn to beg about love, fay and muny, " says Rch, who has wrten books about same-sex marriage and growg up gay. But the fact that support for gays and gay marriage has been risg — particularly among young people — may leave opposn to their movement ls heated, activists say. Now, wh the urt’s historic cisn, I believe that many more stat will follow su and pass legislatn makg legal for gays and lbians to this is a tremendo victory for gay rights, is all the more cur that the same urt did not apply 21st-century logic to the rights of Ain-Amerins, Latos and other mori wh rpect to their right to the cisn that brought DOMA down, Jtice Anthony M.

J., June 26, 2013To the Edor:Barack Obama, his send Ingural Addrs, brought together votg rights, gay rights and the legacy of Lyndon B. Obama said that “the most evint of tths — that all of are created equal — is the star that guis still, jt as guid our forebears through Sene Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall, ” he embraced the rhetoric of the gay rights movement as no other print years earlier, L. ”On Tuday, the Supreme Court extracted the teeth om the Votg Rights Act, and on Wednday, proclaimed that gay Amerins are equal to their fellow cizens the ey of the law.

LATVIA BE 7TH NATN TO BE LED BY AN OPENLY GAY HEAD OF STATE

And a clear victory for the left, the urt overturned the Defense of Marriage Act, signalg the openg of a new era for gay the tth is that the urt did not hand down the cisns; Jtice Anthony M. Day of Silence, held on April 17, is the Gay, Lbian and Straight Edutn Network’s annual day to prott the bullyg of LGBT stunts and their supporters.

Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, observed on May 17 to raise awarens of anti-LGBT vlence and reprsn worldwi. Created by Adam Steward 2009 and celebrated on July 16, Internatnal Drag Day to give drag artists a chance to showse their creativy and ntributns to gay culture. Started 2010 by Canadian teenager Brtany McMillan, and promoted by GLAAD, was created rponse to a seri of bullyg-related suicis of gay stunts like Tyler Clementi.

Liz was the first person I worked wh that I told I was gay, and I appreciated how was a nonissue to her and had no effect on our great iendship. : Our Day Gay Ameri missn: To prevent new HIV fectns, support and empower people affected and fected by HIV/AIDS, and elimate HIV/AIDS-related stigma. M., New York Cy: Mm director Hunter O'Hanian and director of operatns Rob Hugh Rosen discs the current Del LaGrace Volno exhibn at the Llie-Lohman Mm of Gay and Lbian Art.

: Some of the members of New Mexi Outdoors (an outdoors club that has been servg the New Mexi gay muny for over 20 years) spend a ray, chilly eveng si for a gam night. Mare Matthew Phelps (right) and Ben Schock celebratg the Mare Corps' 237th birthday wh their gay fay at Freddie's Beach Bar and Grill.

This is durg my number on the last stop of the Chow Down girls' SorryBoutIt tour at Wtgay NYC celebratg Obama's w earlier that week. Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, May 17, reprents an annual landmark to draw the attentn of cisn-makers, the media, the public, opn lears, and lol thori to the suatn faced by lbian, gay, bisexuals, and transgenr, and tersex people and those who do not nform to sexual and genr norms.

Spir Day, October 20, is a day lns wear purple a stand agast bullyg and to show their support for lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) youth.

One day an unknown gay 'iend' propos a bld date a public place, but the boy, not havg seen his face, sists he a 'red' shirt so he n regnize him. This timele provis rmatn about the gay rights movement the Uned Stat om 1924 to the prent: cludg the Stonewall rts; the ntributns of Harvey Milk; the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy; the first civil unns; the legalizatn of same-sex marriage Massachetts, Connecticut, New York; and more. 1948 Aled Ksey publish Sexual Behavr the Human Male, revealg to the public that homosexualy is far more wispread than was monly believed.

1951 The Mattache Society, the first natnal gay rights anizatn, is formed by Harry Hay, nsired by many to be the founr of the gay rights movement. Six years after Caffe Co opens, hosts the first gay plays, The Madns of Lady Bright, by Lanford Wilson, and The Hnted Host, by Robert Patrick. 1969 The Stonewall rts transform the gay rights movement om one limed to a small number of activists to a wispread prott for equal rights and acceptance.

Patrons of a gay bar New York's Greenwich Village, the Stonewall Inn, fight back durg a police raid on June 27, sparkg three days of rts. 1976 San Francis Mayor Gee Mosne appots Harvey Milk to the Board of Perm Appeals, makg Milk the first openly gay cy missner the Uned Stat. Only one supervisor vot agast and Mayor Mosne signs to Briggs drops out of the California ernor's race, but receiv support for Proposn 6, also known as the Briggs Iniative, a proposal to fire any teacher or school employee who publicly supports gay rights.

1980 At the 1980 Democratic Natnal Conventn held at New York Cy's Madison Square Garn, Democrats took a stance supportg gay rights, addg the followg to their plank: "All groups mt be protected om discrimatn based on race, lor, relign, natnal orig, language, age, sex or sexual orientatn.

Print Clton's origal tentn to revoke the prohibn agast gays the ary was met wh stiff opposn; this promise, which has led to the discharge of thoands of men and women the armed forc, was the April 25, an timated 800, 000 to one ln people participate the March on Washgton for Lbian, Gay, and Bi Equal Rights and Liberatn. Evans, the Supreme Court strik down Colorado's Amendment 2, which nied gays and lbians protectns agast discrimatn, llg them “special rights.

The Massachetts Chief Jtice nclud that to “ny the protectns, benefs, and obligatns nferred by civil marriage” to gay upl was unnstutnal bee nied “the digny and equaly of all dividuals” and ma them “send-class cizens.

Arkansas passed a measure tend to bar gay men and lbians om adoptg October 10, the Supreme Court of Connecticut l that same-sex upl have the right to marry. The urt l that the state nnot ny gay and lbian upl the eedom to marry unr Connecticut's nstutn, and that the state's civil unn law do not provi same-sex upl wh the same rights as heterosexual November 12, same-sex marriag beg to be officially performed Connecticut. It is the first state to legalize gay marriage through the legislature; the urts of the other stat which the marriage is legal—Massachetts, Connecticut, and Iowa—gave May 6, the ernor of Mae legalized same-sex marriage that state Mae; however, cizens voted to overturn that law when they went to the polls November, and Mae beme the 31st state to ban the June 3, New Hampshire ernor John Lynch signs legislatn allowg same-sex marriage.