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May Meeting Another special day is rolling around, and on May 11 at 3pm, we’ll gather
to
celebrate our MOTHERS with our annual potluck meal, complete with fun and
fellowship galore.
Just bring enough food for you and your significant other(s), plus
maybe a
little extra for those who may be there who didn’t get the word about the
potluck. Silverware and drinks will be provided.
And of course it would be great if you would bring along a picture of
your
mom or some other woman who has been of particular significance in your
life.
Next year, instead of seeing a border of clip art moms,
there will be
photos taken of our own PFLAG moms, and they will adorn the front page
(bikinis will be admissible). In case your editor isn’t able to take
a
picture of you (or your mom), please be sure to get a photo to him in time
for the May newsletter. (Current photos are not required, but you WILL be
identified). :)
There may even be a guest speaker or two at our May 11th meeting (not
pinned down yet), so it should be another great time together.
Come join us. We’d love to see you.
Remember!!! 3pm at Village Presbyterian Church, 6641 Mission
Rd., Rm 307.
From Our President
The profound irony and sarcasm of Mark Twain’s The War Prayer seems
particularly suitable now. His acrimonious humor is an appropriate
commentary on the opportunist, corrupt policies of the Bush regime.
Bush
cites the bible and calls on his God to favor him in his imperial
military
aggression as if war were a football game.
Mark Twain so deeply expresses the inherent debased and immoral
configuration of war and religion. Religion is too often used to
justify
violence and bigotry, especially against lgbt people. Many churches
and
religious practitoners exploit religious beliefs and writings to rationalize
their homophobia, part of the pattern of the perversion of religion.
The War Prayer
by Mark Twain
“O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to
battle - be Thou near them! With them, in spirit, we also go forth
from the
sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe. O Lord our God,
help
us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover
their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead, help
us to
drown the thunder of the guns with the shreiks of their wounded, writhing in
pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help
us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief;
help us to turn them out roofless with their little children to wander
unfriended the wastes of their isolated land in rags and hunger and thirst,
sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in
spirit, worn with travail, imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and
denied it - for our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight
their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water
their way with the blood of their wounded feet! We ask it, in the
spirit of
love, of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is ever-faithful refuge and
friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite
hearts. Amen.”
Reprinted from The Herald of the Heartland Humanists, vol. 4, issue 1
Helen Cohen
What's Happening At The Center
(The Lesbian and Gay Community Center, that is)
1) Recently, LGBT voices united with those of our straight allies. The
result
was a unanimous 13-0 Kansas City Council vote in favor of extending domestic
partner benefits to city employees and establishing a domestic partner
registry. This action begins an important process which needs your support
to
ensure its success.
2) You also made quite an impression at the Kansas City Star. Your insights
and personal stories on the importance of including announcements of gay and
lesbian commitment ceremonies in their paper were powerful and moving. (And,
those emails WERE reinforced by ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero in
his
meeting with STAR's editorial staff.)
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REGULAR MEETINGS AT THE CENTER
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A.A.
Mondays, Tuesdays & Fridays 6.30pm
Saturdays 6pm
FtM Support Group
1st and 3rd Thursdays 7pm
Contact: matthewyork2002@aol.com
LGBT Bridge Club
Last Sunday of the Month
Beginners Class 1pm,
Bridge Party 2 - 5pm
Contact: joetimkc@aol.com
Literary Lesbians
3rd Thursdays 7pm
Gen Q Youth Nights
Wednesdays 7 - 8.30pm
Outdoors KC
1st Saturdays 1pm
PROMO
2nd Tuesdays 7pm
LGBT All-Family Potluck
1st Saturdays 5 - 7pm
Contact: prince-sayward@usa.net
My Sister's Room
1st Sundays 1 - 4pm
Men's Enrichment Network
Every Friday, 7pm at the Center
Passages Youth Group
Sundays 6pm
Yoga
Wednesdays 6pm
$8 members, $10 non-members
OUTDoors KC
1st Saturdays 10am
http://geocities.com/outdoorskc
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If there is something that you would like to see created, changed, or
accomplished, get connected with other people wanting to do the same.
Participate....volunteer....or both!
CALL OR COME BY TODAY!
The Lesbian & Gay Community Center of Greater
Kansas City, 207
Westport Road - Suite 212
(816) 931-4420,
www.lgcc-kc.org
Monday-Saturday,
10:00am - 8:00pm
Bitchin' & Fighting for equality
Gian Sachdev , Philadelphia Weekly
There's no better time for the military to reevaluate its "don't ask,
don't
tell" policy toward gays, lesbians and bisexuals serving in the armed
forces
than during the current war with Iraq. As if watching loved ones go to
war
weren't hard enough, imagine being a gay man or woman forced to keep your
feelings for your partner from public view.
As the Inquirer reported this week, the
system by which troops must
communicate with their same-sex partners overseas rivals the complexity of s
ecret transmissions between coalition units embedded deep in enemy
territory.
But in this case it's not just the enemy gay enlistees have to fear.
It's
also their own allies.
The military still has grounds to
remove a gay soldier from active
duty. It's happened before, and it could happen again.
In 1995 a woman training as a weather
forecaster for the Navy in
Biloxi, Miss., reported enduring months of antigay remarks from an
instructor. Later, after she was transferred to another base, the
harassment
intensified – this time extending to her senior officer. She
eventually felt
it necessary to invent a fictitious boyfriend.
When she found herself in an actual
relationship, she opted to reveal
her sexual identity. She was quickly discharged.
In one scenario the Inquirer noted, a
gay man can't send a letter to
his partner overseas without the fear of revealing his sexual preference.
Instead, notes are sometimes rewritten by women to mask masculine
handwriting.
The fear of public exposure among gay
troops and their partners has
also reduced emotional public reunions to a simple firm handshake.
If a senior official were to discover
the truth behind a letter or a
handshake, an investigation would likely ensue, even if the soldier in
question were desperately needed to fight the war in Iraq. Linguists
trained
in Arabic were discharged recently when their sexual preference was
discovered, notes Human Rights Watch.
What's worse, gay soldiers' covert ops
could spark harassment – or
worse – from their straight peers. Ugly incidents have occurred
before, and
the military isn't keen on intervening when they do.
Wartime is tough enough on troops
trying to stay alive in hostile
territory. They shouldn't have to wage a battle on two fronts.
Coming June 6, 7 and 8
KC PRIDE WEEKEND
Barney Allis Plaza will once again be the focus as a variety of events take
place for all ages and genders.
Be sure to mark your calendar: Fri., 6pm-11pm;
Sat., 11am-11pm; Sunday 11am-6pm.
Parade? Of course. Watch for more details in the June
newsletter.
DON’T MISS IT!!!!!!!!!
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