GLEH Housing for Gay and Lesbian Seniors

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom became the latest Democratic official to take a noticeably public swipe at President Barack Obama for inaction on gay rights. The California Democrat -- who told the New York Times's Maureen Dowd that his political future was so fuzzy he could, in a couple years, end up "as the clerk of a wine store" -- called Obama's slow walking on support for gay marriage "fundamentally inexcusable."

On Wednesday, the NOH8 campaign protesting California's Proposition 8 announced a new high-profile Republican supporter: John McCain's wife, Cindy McCain. NOH8 is a photo project in which subjects are photographed wearing white, against a white background, with their mouths taped shut and "NOH8" painted on their faces.

Paula Basta, 53, is inducted into the Chicago Gay & Lesbian Hall of Fame for her long-term work in improving the lives of senior citizens, especially LGBT senior citizens, and promoting women’s and LGBT rights. Photo: ISRAEL WRIGHT

The Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA), a local non-profit organization composed of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and heterosexual residents of the Charleston area uniting to eliminate prejudice based on sexual orientation and gender identity, is also the local sponsor of Operation Shoebox, which is a national project that sends shoeboxes full of gifts and necessities like snacks, toiletries, magazines, cd’s & dvd’s and clothing to troops and military staff serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Orignally started in 2003, the project has since shipped literally hundreds of thousands of packages overseas.

The state's most populous county is poised to follow the capital city next week in passing new protections for gay and transgender residents. The Salt Lake County Council on Tuesday will consider a pair of statutes that offer protections against discrimination based on sexual preference and gender identity in the areas of housing and employment.

In 2011 the first of the baby boomers will begin turning 65, and by 2030, it is estimated that the country's elder population will have ballooned to 72.1 million people. Although accurate numbers are hard to come by, LGBT groups estimate that at the height of this aging boom there will be anywhere from 2 to 7 million LGBT elders living in the United States. Yet little attention has been paid to addressing the needs of aging LGBT people. For much of the last three decades, the gay community's focus has been consumed with battling the AIDS epidemic and winning basic legal rights. End-of-life issues have gotten scant notice.

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and SAGE (Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders) have just released Outing Age 2010: Public Policy Issues Affecting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Elders, an update to the Task Force’s groundbreaking Outing Age report issued in 2000. Like its predecessor, Outing Age 2010 presents an in-depth look at public policy issues and challenges facing millions of aging LGBT people in the United States.

The nation’s largest LGBT newspaper publisher shut down this week, taking with it the oldest gay paper in the country and several other LGBT publications. Window/Unite Media LLC announced Monday that it was closing down and immediately ceasing operations of its six subsidiaries, including the Washington Blade, which has served the D.C. community for 40 years. In addition to the Blade, Window also owned the 20-year-old Southern Voice, the South Florida Blade, David Atlanta, 411 Magazine and Houston Voice, which two years ago ceased printing and transitioned to an online publication.

It’s been just under ten months since Barack Obama took the oath of office. So why isn’t America a shiny, lavender-hued Shangri-La where LGBTs serve openly in the military, same sex marriage is the law of the land, AIDS funding has grown to meet actual needs, and heterosexuals erupt in applause as you swish your way down the street?

Reed Cowan’s reasons for making a film about the Mormon church’s activism against gay marriage in California are personal. Himself gay and Mormon, Cowan clashed with his family over his sexual orientation and the beliefs of their faith, but it was a conversation between him and a sibling about her support of Proposition 8 cemented his commitment to make the film: "8: The Mormon Proposition."