Please Sign Petition Against Nigeria's "Jail the Gays" Law

In case you haven’t heard: Nigeria has just passed a hideously draconian anti-gay law. it makes it illegal to register gay clubs or organizations. It makes it illegal to even speak in favor of gay rights — anyone who abets a gay person, witnesses a same sex marriage, or advocates for LGBT rights is in violation of the law. It bans gay marriage, obviously. And it sets prison terms of up to 10 years for offenders — 14 years for people violating the law against same-sex marriage.

There’s a petition up, petitioning Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan to not sign this bill. Please sign it. I just did.

(Hat tip to Yemisi Ilesanmi at Yemmynisting for getting the word out about this.)

Please Sign Petition Against Nigeria's "Jail the Gays" Law
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Women in Secularism Speakers Letter to CFI Board

UPDATE: Ron Lindsay has apologized for his remarks. I have accepted his apology.

This letter was emailed today to the Center for Inquiry board in care of board secretary Tom Flynn. I am one of the speakers who signed it.

June 3, 2013

Board of Directors
Center for Inquiry
c/o Secretary Tom Flynn
PO Box 741
Amherst, NY 14226-0741

Delivered via email.

Dear members of the board:

We write to you as speakers at the Women in Secularism conference last weekend to say that Ron Lindsay’s conduct during this conference was unwelcoming, obstructive, and highly unprofessional. From his opening speech to his use of social media during the conference to his use of the CFI blog to attack a speaker during the conference to his interactions with conference-goers to his current silence on several matters, his behavior as CEO of the conference’s sponsoring organization was unique in our experience as speakers. It made our work at the conference more difficult and has increased the level of ongoing harassment that some of us face as women working in the secular movement. Continue reading “Women in Secularism Speakers Letter to CFI Board”

Women in Secularism Speakers Letter to CFI Board

My 2013 LGBT Humanist of the Year Acceptance Speech

On Saturday, June 1, I was given an award by the American Humanist Association at their annual conference: the LGBT Humanist Pride Award for 2013. It was kind of a big deal, more so than I think I realized until it was actually happening. I thought some of you might like to see my acceptance speech. I went off-script from this somewhat, as I typically do when I give talks, so these aren’t the exact words I spoke from the podium — but they’re pretty close. (There is video from the awards banquet, by the way, with me and Tommy Raskin, the Humanist Magazine’s 2012 Essay Contest Winner. From this page, click through to the AHA13 Saturday Night Awards.)

*****

Thank you so much: to Jennifer, to all the organizers and volunteers who are making this conference happen, and to the American Humanist Association. I’m very much honored by this award, and I’m very grateful for it.

I’ll also admit, when I was first notified that I was being given this award, I was a little puzzled. Completely honored, and completely grateful — but just a little bit puzzled. I wasn’t quite sure what exactly it meant to be the LGBT Humanist of the Year. It seemed at first like I was being honored for being bisexual. And it’s not like being bisexual is an accomplishment, like something I finally achieved after years of hard work and sacrifice — it’s just who I am.

But I don’t actually think I’m being honored today for being bisexual. I don’t think I’m being honored for who I am. I think I’m being honored for what I’ve done with who I am. There are probably lots of things that it means to the American Humanist Association to name someone LGBT Humanist of the Year — but I can tell you what it means to me. Continue reading “My 2013 LGBT Humanist of the Year Acceptance Speech”

My 2013 LGBT Humanist of the Year Acceptance Speech