Sexual Orientation

Mischaracterization of issues and legislation is typical of those opposing any so-called "gay agenda," and Fred Akers' letter about three California bills proves him no exception ("Candidate's support of bills trouble reader," June 2). Akers describes Senate Bill 1437 as requiring explicit study of "lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-genders in our society," and erasing "traditional distinctions of gender or sexual standards." What the bill actually says is that social sciences shall include an "age-appropriate study of the role and contributions of both men and women, Black Americans, American Indians, Mexicans, Asians, Pacific Islanders and other ethnic groups, and people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender," and that no instruction or materials shall "reflect adversely" upon any of these groups.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- What the Supreme Court wouldn't do on discrimination over sexual orientation, the Glendale Human Relations Coalition is trying to do on its own. The organization voted 18-5 Thursday night to ask the City Council to stop giving federal block grant funds to groups that discriminate based on sexual orientation, gender identity, domestic partner status and other sex-related criteria. If the ban is adopted by the council, groups such as the Verdugo Hills Council of the Boy Scouts of America will no longer be able to receive grant funds for their programs.

Approval of waiver could be dangerous It was extremely discouraging to read of the City Council's denial of an appeal for the 1,800-square-foot home in Chevy Chase Canyon ("City Council shuts down plan appeal," May 18). We have a hillside ordinance in order to maintain the integrity and quality of residential life in the hills of Glendale. Critical to this is the minimum 7,500-square- foot requirement. Ignoring this minimum will lead to overbuilding in this delicate environment.

Alex Coolman SOUTHWEST GLENDALE -- The city should broaden its nondiscrimination policies to prevent giving money to groups that exclude people, residents said at a Thursday night symposium held by the League of Women Voters. Dozens of Glendale residents and several city officials attended the meeting on the city's nondiscrimination policy, held at Fire Station 21 on Oak Street. Many of those in attendance, including Glendale resident Marjorie Davis, expressed concern that public money could be going to organizations unwilling to serve all members of the public.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- The Glendale Human Relations Coalition is mulling whether to ask the city to ban giving federal block grant funds to organizations that discriminate based on sexual orientation and age. The coalition voted overwhelmingly Thursday to set up a four-member committee to do a brief review and bring back suggestions on whether the proposal should be further studied by the organization. The Boy Scouts of America was never mentioned during the meeting, but it is one organization that could be affected if Glendale were to expand its criteria on the distribution of federal funds.

While Sunday marks the first anniversary of the date the mayor of San Francisco began issuing marriage licenses for same-sex couples in San Francisco, the issue stopped being a debate in the Unitarian Universalist church decades ago. The Standing on the Side of Love campaign reaffirms the UU church's standing on the issue, that marriage is a basic human right regardless of sexual orientation. "It's a non-issue within our congregation whether somebody's gay or straight," said Rev. Thomas Schmidt, whose Sunday service at Unitarian Universalist Church of the Verdugo Hills will highlight the Standing on the Side of Love campaign.

Can students in Northern California who were taunted and beaten because of their sexual orientation sue school administrators for failing to protect them? The answer is yes, according to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal. This case was brought by high school and middle school students in a town called Morgan Hill, which is near San Jose. The students claimed the school district failed to protect them from harassment based on their sexual orientation.

During lunchtime Friday at Glendale High School, amid the usual hubbub of snacking and socializing, about 50 students and teachers sat in a circle in a silent protest of harassment and discrimination in any form. They were local participants in a national initiative known as the Day of Silence, a campaign in which students don’t speak for a day to call attention to how gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth are “silenced” because of harassment and bullying in schools.

Last week, the California Supreme Court ruled against two physicians who allegedly denied ? based on their religious opposition ? a legal medical treatment to a patient based on her sexual orientation. The decision was issued in a lawsuit filed by a lesbian against doctors in a Vista medical group who refused to artificially inseminate her. Did the ruling ban California citizens from having a moral conscience, or did it free them from religious domination by others? ? Being a ?

You know what I like best about Sequoia National Park? The fact that conservationist John Muir walked off its dusty trails and into a warm bed with a woman. What inspires me most about Neil Armstrong? That a straight man was willing to take one small step for mankind. Why do I appreciate the Declaration of Independence? Because the Founding Fathers proudly wore heels, Capri pants and powdered wigs when they signed it. Really? No. But now that I have your attention: Should a person's sexual identity be the criteria by which we measure their brave, noble and unselfish accomplishments?