Posted by Susan Berland on Thursday, December 24, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
I’ve been thinking about marriage a lot lately. I’ve been married twice – once for 5 ½ years and this time for almost 30 years. Don’t get me wrong. I love my husband and love being married. But, what’s the big deal about marriage?
Those who say marriage should be between a man and a woman are barking up the wrong tree. Have they looked at the divorce statistics lately? Seems to me that we heterosexuals haven’t done such a great job at it!
Posted by Susan Berland on Friday, October 23, 2009,
In :
Marriage Equality
Miles rode into Washington D.C. on a bus, along with about 1,400 others. They all came to the National Equality March to join in the march for marriage equality. Here he tells us why he came and why marriage equality is important to him.
Posted by Susan Berland on Thursday, October 22, 2009,
In :
Marriage Equality
I met Randy & Holly in Washington D.C. at the National Equality March. They came fromYork, PA to march for equality for their bisexual son and for all people to have the freedom to marry. Here is their story.
Posted by Susan Berland on Wednesday, October 21, 2009,
In :
Marriage Equality
David is a young man from San Antonio, Texas, currently going to school in New York. He tells us why he came to Washington D. C. to march for marriage equality.
Continue reading ...
Posted by Susan Berland on Tuesday, October 20, 2009,
In :
Marriage Equality
Wayne and David are together for 23 years and live in Jacsonville, Florida. They traveled to Washington, D.C. to march for eequality and tell us why and how not being able to marry has impacted their lives.
Posted by Susan Berland on Monday, October 19, 2009,
In :
Gay Rights
While at the National Equality March, I met Scott and Hope and their son Tyler. They were there marching together for equality for all gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. I asked them to share their story.
Posted by Susan Berland on Wednesday, October 14, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
Marching for marriage equality was an amazing experience. New reports vary the number of people in attendace between tens of thousands to 200,000. No matter the number, the feeling was wonderful to be with all those people fighting for LGBT rights.
Posted by Susan Berland on Wednesday, August 26, 2009,
In :
Freedom to Marry
I’ve been asking myself lately, is Obama in favor of the freedom to marry or not? Is he committed to repealing DOMA or not? Did he mean what he said when he was campaigning or not?
All the while so many people were working so hard to get him elected; I was working hard to defeat Proposition 8. I rejoiced at his election. I was sitting alone in the Marin Headquarters for the No on 8 election day action listening to the radio. When the polls closed in California and the news channels announ...
“The North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday, Aug. 18, to preserve an adoption by the state’s only openly gay legislator. Sen. Julia Boseman’s (D-New Hanover) former partner, Melissa Jarrell, had sought to void Boseman’s parental rights. Jarrell gave birth to the couple’s six-year-old son, whom Boseman later adopt...
Posted by Susan Berland on Monday, July 20, 2009,
In :
Gay Rights
My husband and I just returned from a wonderful 2 week vacation in Alaska, ending with a full day in Vancouver. We arrived in the later afternoon on a tour bus from Victoria with others, all of us needing to be dropped off at different hotels. We were the last to be dropped off, so we got a mini tour of the city. We live near San Francisco, a beautiful city surrounded by water and we both loved Vancouver. We talked about how livable it was and even fantasized about the possibility of moving ...
Posted by Susan Berland on Monday, June 29, 2009,
In :
Freedom to Marry
Last Friday I read an amazing letter from a man who had witnessed the riots at Stonewall 40 years ago. I really encourage you to read his account here.
“From a couple of cop cars, one paddy wagon, about a dozen drag queens, the staff of the bar, a few drunks, some onlookers and the ubiquitous Sheridan Square pigeons grew one of the most important incidents in what has become the continuing movements for gay rights.”
On November 5, 2008 when we knew that Proposition 8 had passed and the...
Posted by Susan Berland on Wednesday, June 24, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
I’m new to this game. I’ve only been a “real” activist for a few months. What I mean is that I’ve only been putting myself out in the blogosphere, on Twitter, YouTube, etc. as such since about April. I’ve met some wonderful people in a very short time and my world has expanded in ways I couldn’t have imagined. I read other people’s blogs and am blown away by their content, their style and their professionalism. I’m a mom, trying to make a difference by telling stories o...
Posted by Susan Berland on Monday, June 22, 2009,
In :
Family
In yesterday’sOpinion section of the SF Chronicle, there was a piece on President Obama and how he sets an example of putting family first. The author, Jennifer Weiss, states, “the American public should proudly note that our president takes his personal role as father (and spouse) as seriously as he does his job as father of the country.”
She goes on to list what Obama does to be a good father:
The president has dinner with his family most nights.
Posted by Susan Berland on Tuesday, June 9, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
The gay marriage movement is changing, so I’ve heard, what we will call our quest for marriage. Personally, I’ve been calling it gay marriage. I think it says what we want, it’s easy and everyone knows what we’re talking about. Not everyone agrees.
I like the term marriage equality, but some people, when I’ve used that term, look at me with raised eyebrows, wondering what it means. Same-sex marriage says the same thing as gay marriage, only with more syllables.
Posted by Susan Berland on Friday, June 5, 2009,
In :
Gay Rights
My grandchildren arrived last night and they only come to visit once a year. They live in Florida and I in California. I usually visit them 2 or 3 times a year. My time with them is precious and I want to remember it. I take pictures. But I don’t just take pictures; I put them in albums and tell the stories of what we are doing, why they are important to me, how I feel about them. I want them to remember as well.
I’ve always taken a lot of pictures – I guess you could say I’m t...
Posted by Susan Berland on Wednesday, June 3, 2009,
In :
Marriage Equality
As I stated in my last post, President Obama declared June to be LGBT Pride Month. While he supports civil unions, he does not support marriage equality and was silent on DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act), enacted September 21, 1996.
1. No state (or other political subdivision within the United States) needs to treat a relationship between persons of the same sex as a marriage, even if the relationship is considered a marriage in another state....
Posted by Susan Berland on Tuesday, June 2, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
Today, President Obama declared June to be LGBT Pride Month. It was an amazing feeling to read what he wrote in his proclamation. He said, in part, “Here at home, I continue to support measures to bring the full spectrum of equal rights to LGBT Americans. These measures include enhancing hate crimes laws, supporting civil unions and Federal rights for LGBT couples, outlawing discrimination in the workplace, ensuring adoption rights, and ending the existing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy...
Posted by Susan Berland on Friday, May 29, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
With the recent defeat at the California Supreme Court, the LGBT community is understandably angry. I’m angry, but more sad than angry. At every blog or news report I read about the day of decision, I cry. In general, if I let myself, I cry fairly easily, but this is different. This hits me in my heart.
During the fight against Proposition 8 last year, I saw a lot of anger on our side and I still see it. I see a lot of people call Prop 8 Prop H8. It’s not that those who wrote and p...
Posted by Susan Berland on Wednesday, May 27, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
Yesterday, the California Supreme Court voted 6 to 1 not to overturn Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that wrote discrimination into our state’s constitution. I was there on the steps of the Supreme Court when the decision was “announced.” It was not so much announced – it was just the look on the faces of those coming out with the decisions in hand that told the whole story. And then they turned their thumbs down, confirming what we all dreaded. I was not totally surprised by...
Posted by Susan Berland on Monday, May 25, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
It’s Sunday, May 24, 2009. The California Supreme Court has announced that on Tuesday they will announce their ruling on Proposition 8, the amendment to the California constitution defining marriage as being between one man and one woman. I’ve hardly slept since I found out. I’d say I’m a nervous wreck, but that is too dramatic. But, I am nervous and worried. The voters passed Proposition 8 in large part, I believe, due to a campaign of lies and deceit.
Posted by Susan Berland on Sunday, May 17, 2009,
In :
Gay Rights
I'm straight. One of my sons is straight; one son is gay. Did any of us choose to be that way? Were we born that way?
In the discussions on gay marriage on someone’s blog, I stated, "As the mother of a gay son, you cannot tell me when he is denied the very same rights my straight son has, that is not about equality and civil rights."
I received the following comment:
"Neither of your sons are denied any rights. You have one son who chooses not to marry the opposite gender and thus he is ...
Posted by Susan Berland on Friday, May 8, 2009,
In :
Gay Marriage
We Have to Start Now
"A year from now you will wish you had started today." Community Activist, Karen Lamb
May 1st and 2nd, I attended Camp Courage, a training camp for Gay Marriage Activists, put on by the Courage Campaign. I’m proud to be a gay marriage activist. I come to activism late in life. The majority of those there were in their 20s and 30s and many were seasoned veterans. Those closer to my age had been activists for 30 years or more.
A gay marriage activist and a Jewish mother with a quirky sense of humor, helping couples and families turn their photos into legacies with beautiful memory books. It’s all about fairness and equality.
A gay marriage activist and a Jewish mother with a quirky sense of humor, helping couples and families turn their photos into legacies with beautiful memory books. It’s all about fairness and equality.
