ACT UP founder Larry Kramer delivered this speech in New York on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the multichaptered, affiliated, spun-off phenomenon of an activist "organization."

"God we were so creative while we were dying…"

"It is very wearying to witness our carrying-on so passively year after year, particularly now that all of us, all of us have been given the gift of life. I know that young gays don't think this way, but many of us died to give you this gift of staying alive. You are alive because of us. I wish you would see this, and we all owe it to the dead as well as to ourselves to continue a fight that we have stopped fighting."

"Democracy does not protect us. Unity does."



Not to trivialize the impact of that which Larry speaks (the video speaks for itself) but… What the hell is he wearing? A quilt? A flak jacket? A missionary's robe?

Kidding aside, play the whole damn (one-hourlong) thing. Contextualize this mess. Learn (y)our history.

Meanwhile, anyone know what's up with the local chapter?

Hmmmmmmm. Nice disclaimer. Read More | Comment »

Mandy at Project Transitions sez they'll be shooting a PSA for Texas Swing on Sunday, March 25, at Rainbow Cattle Co. at 11am.

And they need you as an extra.

We know you gots some gay cowboy in ya. C'mon. Food and coffee will be provided.

Direct all questions to Mandy: 454-8646. Read More | Comment »

UPDATE
The Equality Ride indeed met and enjoyed fellowship (see related post: March 20) with students on the Baylor campus in Waco.

However, the hospitable cuddly bear atmosphere turned creepy when plainclothes cops arrested a number of riders along with a Baylor student while the group was chalking messages on a school sidewalk.

Chalking seems to be an acceptable mode of public communication on the conservative campus, so these arrests are curious, and the bail set at $2,000 (ex-SQUEEeeeeze me???) is outrageous.

A number of photos of the chalking and arrests (click through to the last few photos) have been posted by Eq-Rider/blogger Adam Britt. Read More | Comment »

… is our mother, too. Mother Earth: this big, bluish, floating ball of life with its limited natural resources and a bunch of Americans chugging black smoke clouds of SUV and Mickey-D, littering the land with all that damn packaging, while those gray-hairs on the Hill are too weak-in-their-Depends to face global warming and its implications on our life and our society.

Then, along came Gore with his planet-hugging movie in the mainstream, this former-Veep leading the eco-charge for clean livin' and sustainability. Hooyah!

Yesterday, Mr. Gore marched right into Congress armed with 500,000-plus signatures from concerned American citizens (like me and you) who support immediate government action in taking on the climate crisis here and now! Watch the video of his hearing to see how it went.

To show his gratitude for the great deal of support throughout this challenge, Gore is saving a block of Live Earth (a 24-hour concert scheduled for July 7, 2007) tickets for those who signed their name online. Check out that sample line-up: Pharrell, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, Snoop Dogg, Lenny Kravitz, Snow Patrol, Black Eyed Peas, Kelly Clarkson, Melissa Etheridge, Bloc Party … the list goes on. Read More | Comment »

"Oh my God. Let's get some shoes."
My friends tell me I am months late [almost a year … – ed.] in finding this online gem. Better late than never, I say. Brave the intro. Read More | 1 Comment »

Growing up a Presby, I implicitly understood that "don't-ask-don't-tell" vibe. It's what emanated from our congregation, a bellowing group of tight-tied straight-laceys who just loved and adored our wonderful, flamboyant choir director Lloyd … but-lordy-no, would they ever acknowledge the fact that he had a male partner. They just turned their heads.

Homos and religion; they go together kinda like a rottweiler at a Vienna sausage farm. So, I'm just glad someone is actually talking out loud about it. Here in Austin, progresso-Texas, at the upcoming early-April '07 Presbyterian Seminary Colloquium: "Whom Shall We Send? Whom Shall We Not? The Church's Struggle With Homosexuality," the seminarians will be talking about it... out loud.

Can we get an amen? Read More | Comment »

[original post March 15]

The Equality Ride kids, a bus full of earnest gay-rights activists touring conservative college campuses across the country will indeed make it onto campus and pay a visit to the fine folk at Baylor University in Waco.

Originally the school's admin was not going to allow the visit from the group of touring SoulForce activists. But calmer heads prevailed and the university will allow a visit as long as the group is sponsored by Baylor students.

And there is a willingness to open up dialog by a courageous batch of Baylor Bears (as in the official Baylor mascot, not the other sort … though we feel compelled to point out that their mascot support squad is curiously called the Baylor Bear Backers. Um, yeah.). Good on 'em.

The meetings shall commence Monday, March 19, 11:30am.

See UPDATE above, March 22. Read More | 1 Comment »

Latest flash from the National Association of Kirk/Spock Love: After decades of creaming in your kling-ons you hot li'l K/Sers, finally, some Trek fic will go where no man has gone before: a Gay Star Trek Love Story.

Mr. Sulu, honey, you are wanted on the bridge. Read More | 1 Comment »

I love them. I love the Lesbians on Ecstasy. (And I'm not the only one.) I will always dance like a spaz when they play. I will always have to put my hat in my back pocket and wake up with a sore neck. I will always jump like a giggling schoolgirl, grabbing at all the glow sticks lead hot-dogger, Frankie (or Lynne T, hot, you mighta heard her spin over IDKE), is chucking at the crowd, with this devilish grin. I will always be silly with glee, jumping up and down over and over again, in synch with these four Canadian rockers, dancing my heart out while they match the sentiment with what you expect from them, a sweaty, deep, dark electro-thrash of a good time. Mmmm.

More later. Because love doesn't fade. Read More | Comment »

HOME! Read More | Comment »

Don't know about anyone else there, but when the Octopus Project started playing with Black Moth Super Rainbow (they just made an album together), the energy started swirling, whipping around, kids started jamming in, taking up space like Japanese high-rises, anywhere we could fit, and there, pushed up against the wall, barely catching a glimpse of the audio-visual extravaganza, I felt the floor give. Read More | Comment »

'Tis true, 'Merica (the beautiful) has its very own Britpop sensation just waiting to happen. And they're as American as a fag in the Castro Scissors for Lefty from San Fran. The lead singer of this band, Bryan, is one of those guys who seems to transcend this plane of existence. This reality. He embraces your arm when he talks to you, floats smiles like blades of grass, but you're not always sure he's right there with you while he's spouting such joy. Just … somewhere. Read More | Comment »

Slipped in (literally – how we got in is still a mystery; I swear, I pulled no strings) to the blessedly early South by Southwest Buzzcocks set. So foxy fierce, even as close as they are to assisted living.

Damn formative faggots (at least Pete Shelley), I must say. At least they helped set me on my path back in the day, that's for sure. Has GLAAD ever given an image award to these poofs? And tell the truth: How many of you masturbated to "Orgasm Addict" in 1981? C'mon, raise your hand.

Oh, that means I have to stop typing… Read More | Comment »

You know that minute, when you are so saturated with the throng and tired of fighting the tide on yet another street blocked off to accommodate the drunken proletariat? Well, I always have at least one of those per South by Southwest day and a sure fire way to calm me is to surround myself with friendly (albeit snarky) faces. So when parking stress on SoCo was gettin' me down, I slipped into Vivid/Blackmail to get some luv. Fashionista clerks Jeremy and Sherry always have something dishy to say. So I poked them like bears to see what bugged them most about the crowds this year.

Jeremy was in a very good mood (the store was staying nice and bu$y) and said he wasn't bitter yet but still managed this: "Slouch boots. I am so over slouch boots. And sorority girls in slouch boots. You can't take a sorority girl and stick her in a pair of Urban slouch boots and make her a hipster. It just doesn't happen. Wait, that sounds mean. I'm just grumpy because I can't get my coffee. I am not waiting in that line at Jo's."

Owners Gail (click gallery link) and Evan were seen outside pushing their twin babies up street into the sunset. Sweet. Read More | Comment »

Oh those wacky ministers, getting all hypothetical. God blogger Rev. R. Albert Mohler Jr. asked in a recent entry: Is Your Baby Gay? What if You Could Know? What if You Could Do Something About It?

What if??? What if we left the hypothesizing up to the secular humanists, Al? Have a little faith, Al. Cuz God don't make no junk (I read that on a cute shirt, once.)

Oh, for god's sakes... Next they're going to be telling us that we can't date fetuses. Jesus. Read More | Comment »

New Favorite band: The nastysweet Yo Majesty from Tampa, FLA. More about them later.

New Favorite Shout It Out: "Fuck dat shit!"

New Favorite line on their MySpace page:
"Influences: yeah! usually un da da influence!"

Here's where they'll be the rest of the weekend:

Sat., Mar 17, 5pm: Whoopsy Magazine party @ Trophy's
Sun., Mar 18, 1:15am w/ Thunderheist, Vin Sol, Bitchass Darius, 215:TFK, and Tactic @ Peacock Lounge Read More | 1 Comment »

But it's all about the music. Joan introduced (see below) bands from her Blackheart label, including Girl in a Coma, the Dollyrots, and the Vacancies. Read More | Comment »

Ooh, these photos make we want to do a series... Of photos, y'all. Don't be nasty.

Click the Gallery link above the photo. Maybe we'll put in more. Read More | Comment »

Made of plastic. It's fantastic. This one's a Faggotgirl. Read More | Comment »

I have listened to the song "Sweet Bills" so many times in the past five days, screaming along, feeling it, with windows open on Guadalupe, so many times that I have worn down the album to bareness. It now skips. Balls.
But, I did get it for free and by accident (to the goddess) so hey, no worries, right? It's just that I have simply become obsessed, like every time I'm in my car, I want to hear this song. I need to. Sometimes you get those songs you love, that speak to you, that live inside you for whatever reason, the type that you start over to hear it again before the track is even done; this one, it just does it for me. I spend the whole time relating it to my life, my mother, wondering if it's about his. I dance. I even get teared up a bit. And then I start it all over again.
"Sweet Bills," the title track to the album that is circulating the States and making other wide-eyed bushy-tails ask the same thing: Who is this guy?
Who?

SXSW: Sat., March 17, 12:30pm, Bluhammock Party, Iron Cactus Rooftop, 606 Trinity. RSVP to get on "the list."

Also: Sat., March 17, 5:30pm, ATXtreme Party, Cafe Caffeine, 909 W. Mary. Read More | Comment »