Amazing Gay Marriage Speech Goes Viral (Maureen Walsh)

Washington State Rep. Maureen Walsh (a Republican) gave a passionate speech defending marriage equality that's going viral. Is gay marriage coming to Washington? The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur breaks it down.

WASHINGTON: Christian Activist Files Demand For Names Of 70 Local Strippers

A Christian activist in Washington state has filed a public records demand for the business licenses of 70 local strippers, allegedly in order to pray for their souls. 

“I would pray for those dancers by name,” David Van Vleet said after the hearing. “I’m a Christian. We have a right to pray for people.” Van Vleet said he also was trying to protect the public’s rights. “I was trying to do something for the public good because that’s why we have the record law,” Van Vleet said. But U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Leighton issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting disclosure of licenses for about 70 dancers and managers at DreamGirls at Fox’s in Parkland. Jenn Kaplan, an attorney for Fox’s, argued release of the licenses would violate the workers’ First Amendment and privacy rights. The licenses include stage and legal names, dates of birth, signatures, photos, height, weight and eye color.

A final decision is due on December 15th.

Seattle Court Orders HIV+ Man to 'Cease and Desist'

Health officials secured a court order telling a man who has infected at least eight people with HIV to stop spreading the virus that causes AIDS.

The King County Superior Court order issued Sept. 4 orders the man to follow a health department cease and desist order and to show up for counseling and treatment appointments, The Seattle Times reported Thursday.

The name of the man was not released to protect his privacy.

He was diagnosed with HIV in 2008 and has spread the disease through unprotected sex, Public Health Seattle & King County said.

If he fails to follow the order he could be jailed for contempt of court.

"We're not trying to criminalize sexual behavior here," said Dr. Matthew Golden, director of the department's HIV/STD control program. "We are trying to protect the public's health. And we're trying to make sure that everyone gets the care they need, including the person involved in this."

The man has been told to disclose his status to sex partners and advised on how to practice safe sex, according to court papers.

Despite the counseling, eight people diagnosed with HIV from 2010 through June named him as a sex partner.

Health officials said the man ignored the department's cease-and-desist order and failed to show up for medical appointments. The agency filed for court enforcement of its order, saying his conduct continued to endanger public health.

The public-health agency has sought legal enforcement of its cease and desist orders only once before, in 1993, in the case of a sex worker who eventually left the jurisdiction.

Killer Says He Murdered Gay Men As Revenge Against The United States

The Seattle man who confessed to the June hook-up murders of two gay men now says he killed them and two others as revenge against the United States for military actions taken in the Middle East. 

Ali Muhammad Brown, who had already been charged in the targeted killing of a gay couple in Seattle and the point-blank shooting of a New Jersey college student, was charged Wednesday with the April slaying of 30-year-old Leroy Henderson in Skyway, Wash., according to the King County Prosecutor's Office. According to a criminal complaint filed in King County, Brown took responsibility for each shooting and told investigators he carried out the killings to gain retribution for lives lost during U.S. military action in Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. "My mission is my mission between me and my lord. That's it," Brown said during a jailhouse interview in New Jersey, according to the court filings. "My mission is vengeance, for the lives, millions of lives are lost every day." "All these lives are taken every single day by America, by this government," Brown continued. "So a life for a life." Brown's bloody rampage began April 27, when he is accused of gunning down Henderson near his home in Skyway. On June 1, he used a dating application for gay men to lure Dwone Anderson-Young and Ahmed Said to a Seattle nightclub before shooting them both at close range, documents say. The 29-year-old "essentially executed" both men, according to court filings.

Brown was captured in New Jersey last month after being identified on surveillance video when robbing a convenience store.

Elementary School Forces Students To ‘Pay’ To Use Bathroom, Students Wet Themselves Instead

This past May 15 was a yellow-letter day at Mill Plain Elementary school in Washington state when not one, but two young ladies in the 3rd grade chose to forgo a trip to the restroom rather than provide payment to their teacher. Unfortunately, it was later revealed that both of those students later wet themselves in class. Despite this opportunistic teacher’s attempt to extort money from her students for things like candy and bathroom breaks, the Evergreen Public School District has decided no disciplinary action is required.

Of course, there is more to the story than meets the eye. The money the 3^rd graders possessed was not exactly legal tender. As part of a rewards program established in the grade, students would be given “money” for achieving tasks and as recognition for good things done. After having earned their reward money students could trade for candy and other things.

In response to a marked increase in classroom disruptions, the teachers introduced a bathroom break fee. As the teacher explained, this method was meant to be least confusing because the money exchange system was already in place. Introducing a separate bathroom pass system would have required the elementary students to navigate two systems. The district and school also stated that, in cases of emergencies, students are not denied immediate use of the restroom.

The results of the first investigation, released Thursday afternoon, were lauded by Evergreen Education Association President Gloria M. Smith. Smith explained the exoneration meant her teacher would neither be placed on leave nor receive disciplinary measures. The teacher was only out of class on Monday of this past week, according to Evergreen Public Schools spokeswoman Gail Spolar.

A second investigation is also currently underway regarding the second 3^rd grader involved. Her mother, Jasmine Al-Ayadhi, is upset that she was never called by the school when this occurred.

They gave her an option of black spandex pants that were size 7 or boy’s blue shorts. My daughter is a size 10. She was being teased. The boys were making fun of her because of the shorts.

However the investigation turns out, Al-Ayadhi stated she would not be returning her daughter to Mill Plain Elementary School and would instead opt to home-school her.

How can you return a child to a school where she’s being humiliated and degraded?

Terrorism Charges Possible in Seattle New Years Eve Gay Bar Arson

Musab Mohammed Masmari — the 30-year-old suspect arrested for New Year’s Eve arson at Seattle's Neighbours gay nightclub — has plead guilty. His plea agreement could get him anywhere from five to 20 years in prison.

The Seattle Times provides more details about how Musmari committed his crime:

Police say that Masmari avoided a security check at Neighbours by entering an adjacent bar called Therapy Lounge. He then passed through an interior door between the bars into the two-floor dance club and was seen on surveillance footage walking around with an object that appeared large enough to contain a 1-gallon gas can, according to the state charging documents.

Masmari allegedly fled the club within seconds of flames first appearing on the footage, the papers say. Club patrons and a bartender quickly doused the blaze with a fire extinguisher.

There were more than 750 people inside the club that night, authorities said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Greenberg — supervisor the Joint Terrorism Task Force handled the case— suggesting that hate-crime and terrorism may be mentioned as part of his motives during his sentencing hearing on July 31.

Dominic Holden, the openly gay reporter for The Stranger, provided a timeline of the investigation leading to Masmari’s arrest. Police identified Masmari carrying a large container of gasoline from nightclub footage. He was at Sea-Tac airport trying to escape to Turkey with his worldly possessions when police apprehended him.

Bill Banning Gay Conversion Therapy for Minors Passes Washington House in 94-4 Vote

Washington's House of Representatives has passed a bill that would ban 'gay conversion therapy' for minors, the AP reports:

House Bill 2451, which passed on a 94-4 vote, would make it an act of unprofessional conduct to try to change the sexual orientation of a patient under 18. That would include efforts to change behaviors, gender expressions or to reduce sexual or romantic attractions toward people of the same sex. The lawmakers who opposed the measure were: Reps. Mark Hargrove, R-Covington; Brad Klippert, R-Kennewick; Jason Overstreet, R-Lynden; and Elizabeth Scott, R-Monroe.

Eastside Catholic School President Resigns Following Outcry Over Firing of Gay Vice Principl

Mary Tracy, the Eastside Catholic School president whose decision to dismiss her school’s gay vice principal for marrying his partner sparked widespread backlash from students and faculty, has resigned from her position at the Sammamish, Washington school. KING5 reports:

 

Sister Mary Tracy submitted her resignation to school trustees Sunday, effective immediately. In an email sent to parents and staff Tuesday night, the school said a search for her replacement will begin shortly.

"For Sister Mary it was a difficult but necessary decision so that a new leader can be brought in to ensure the entire Eastside Catholic community is on a positive path forward," the email said.

The news was a welcome change for critic’s of the school’s decision to remove Vice Principal Mark Zmuda (pictured right), who lost his job when administrators learned he had married another man. Zmuda was told that he could keep his job if he dissolved his marriage, but refused the offer.

Zmuda’s termination was not well-received by the students and faculty at the school. Protests were organized on campus and a ‘Z Day’ protest event was planned for later this month. While there is no word yet on whether Zmuda will be reinstated to his position, supportive parents see Tracy's resignation as a positive first step.

"This opens the door for us being able to have an open communication with the board about other issues that need to be resolved," said Eastside Catholic parent Florence Colburn.

Colburn and more than twenty other parents met Tuesday night to discuss a petition for the community and for school board members, asking for changes beyond a new president.  That includes alterations to campus policy on who can teach, to Catholic law on gay marriage and for Zmuda to be reinstated.

"I don't know if fair is the right word," said Colburn of Sr. Tracy's resignation, "But it is the correct outcome.  There just have been too many misrepresentations."

Lesbian Teacher At Catholic School That Fired Vice Principal For Gay Marriage Gets Engaged

Eastside Catholic High School in Sammamish, Washington has been in the news — a lot — after firing beloved Vice Principal Mark Zmuda last month for getting married to a man. Students walked out of the school en masse and have been protesting, writing letters, organizing, and holding meetings.

It’s gotten so bad since Zmuda was dismissed that the school board chairman just resigned, claiming he needed a break. School president Sister Mary Tracy claims Gene Colin’s resignation has nothing to do with Zmuda’s firing, or the atmosphere since.

Yeah, right.

Sister Mary Tracy is about to face yet another challenge. Eastside Catholic High School’s drama coach, Stephanie Merrow, just got engaged, to a woman. Today, she will wear her engagement ring to school.

“Either I’ll be fired or the students will say, ‘right on,’” Merrow told local radio station KIRO-FM, according to KING 5 News.

“It doesn’t matter if I get fired, I want (students) to know that I think what they did was incredible and if anything changes, it’s going to be because of this next generation,” Merrow added.

She also spoke about the firing of Vice Principal Zmuda.

Students walkout of Catholic high school in support of gay, married principal; yay, future

We know that both Catholics, despite their leadership, and young people, despite grownup baggage, tend to support equality in heightened numbers. Here's what those truths look like when they come together at one Washington high school:

Gay Weddings Made Up Seventeen Percent Of Washington Weddings Last Year

Last November, Washington's Referendum 74 passed in a "clear win" for marriage equality, making the Evergreen State the first in the Pacific Northwest to legalize gay marriage. According to the AP, more than 7,000 same-sex couples were married in Washington State in the last year, the first year in which it was legal for same-sex couples to legally do so:

So far, most of the state's same sex marriages, 62 percent, were between two women.

The top five counties where same sex marriages took place are King, Clark, Pierce, Snohomish and Thurston counties. Garfield County is the only county where no same sex marriages were performed.

As previously reported, the state's LGBT friendly marriage laws have also helped to drive tourism as many people from nearby Oregon as well as other parts of the county are coming to Washington to make it official. Roughly 25% of the gay couples who were married in Washington this past year came from out of state. Of those, the largest contingent was comprised of Oregonians.

Teens Suspended for Wearing Confederate Flags to Protest LGBT History Month

A pair of 16-year-old students in Maple Valley, Washington got some time off for bad behavior in the form of a suspension from school last week for wearing Confederate flags to school in an apparent statement against LGBT Pride Month; KIRO TV reports.

The suspended teens claim their decision to wear the "stars and bars" to school was a response to a classmate who wore a rainbow flag to school in honor of LGBT History Month. The boys wore the flags in common areas around several students who got upset. A woman picking up her nephew at school saw the flags as a symbol of slavery and racism and commented, "I can see where we wouldn’t OK that -- there’s too many ethnic backgrounds that that could offend,"

"If he can wear his flag in support of what he believes, we figured we could do that as well," said one of the suspended students, who only gave the name "Grady" in an interview with KOMO News further stating "We put ours around our necks and kind of walked around with them, [..] It’s just a way of showing our southern pride, nothing racist at all." Full story here!

Judicial Conduct Commission Admonishes Judge Who Refuses To Perform Same-Sex Marriages

A Superior Court Judge in Washington State who refuses to officiate at the weddings of same-sex couples has been “admonished” by the state’s Judicial Conduct Commission. An “admonishment” – a warning that is noted in the Judge’s employment record – is the least severe punishment the commission could have levied.

Judge Gary Tabor, a graduate of Oklahoma Christian College, said publicly that “for philosophical and religious reasons”, he would not perform marriages for gay and lesbian couples, even though such unions have been legal in Washington State since last December. The Commission found that by continuing to perform marriages for heterosexual couples, Judge Tabor “created an appearance of impropriety.” (Appearance? Ya think?)

According to the Olympian, the commission ruled when the judge agreed to officiate at weddings, it was incumbent upon him that he did “not discriminate or appear to discriminate against a statutorily-protected class of people, thereby undermining public confidence in his impartiality.’’

Besides accepting the admonishment in his file, Judge Tabor has agreed not to perform any marriage ceremonies, and will be responsible to make sure a judge is always available to perform weddings for couples requesting the service.

Is it just me, or does this seem like too small a penalty for Judge Tabor to pay for his blatant discrimination? It isn’t like he has a disability that doesn’t allow him to perform one of the functions of his job. He just refuses to do it. It is against the law in Washington to discriminate against gay people, and yet the commission is allowing this judge to continue his homophobic ways.

It seems to me Judge Tabor might be better suited to another line of work.