| July E-Newsletter |
| Volume III / Issue 7 / July 9, 2007 www.respectsacramento.org |
| 2. Next meeting July 11 at The Lavender Library Our regular monthly meetings have returned to the Lavender Library Archives and Cultural Exchange at 1414 21st Street. Our meetings will continue to be held on the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 pm. Hope you can make it! |
| 4. GSA Network News "Dear Governor" Postcards - Send Your Thoughts to the Governor's Office Have you educated Governor Schwarzenegger about safer schools yet? A few weeks ago, GSA Network mailed all of the CA GSAs packets of "Dear Governor" postcards. These super-snazzy postcards have a photo from the rally of this year's awesome Queer Youth Advocacy Day, and on the back is a support message for AB 394 (Safe Place to Learn Act) and SB 777 (Student Civil Rights Act). All you have to do is write down your opinion and fill in your address. These postcards are an easy, quick way for you, your GSA members, and your friends to start connecting with the Capitol. We all educated and lobbied lawmakers at QYAD, and we are continuing to reach out to them via visits, phone calls, and letters. But we also need to teach the Governor about the importance of protecting student from harassment and discrimination too. If both bills make it through the Legislature, they will end up on his desk for his consideration. He needs to hear from us early and often. Suggestions for using the postcards: 1. Arrange a postcard-signing party with your GSA before the school year ends. 2. Take the cards to your local hangout spot, community center, or youth group meeting and get your friends to sign cards too. 3. Are you going to Pride this year? You can probably get lots of folks interested there! GSA Network will be distributing free packets of the postcards all summer and into the fall. If you need more cards, just send an email to advocacy@gsanetwork.org with your name and address or send a message to the MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/qyad2007. You Could Be a GSA Network Board Member Are you...
If you answered yes to these questions, you should apply to GSA Network's Governing Board. GSA Network's Governing Board is a group of youth and adult allies who oversee the organization. Board members are responsible for organizational planning, evaluating, fundraising, and governing. The board meets four times a year in person, rotating between Southern, Northern, and Central California. Youth board members' travel expenses are paid. Youth board members' terms are for 1 year. To apply, email carolyn@gsanetwork.org to request an application. Applications will be due by Friday, July 6th. We hope to fill several board slots in July, so don't delay! All youth from California are welcome to apply. People of color, female and transgender people, and straight allies are especially encouraged to apply! |
| 4. Community Announcements From Tina Reynolds: West Coast LGBT Summit On Saturday, July 21 at noon, there will be a West Coast LGBT Summit meeting to discuss steps to prevent the kind of violence that befell Satendar Singh. The summit will include people from many different organizations and members of the community. If you wish to attend, please RSVP to meeting@outsacramento.com The location will be in the downtown/midtown area of Sacramento California and will be selected based on the volume of responses. The exact location will be posted a few days in advance on www.outsacramento.com. If you wish to speak at the summit meeting, send your name, contact information, what organizations you belong to if any, a summary of your presentation, and the approximate length needed to meeting@outsacramento.com. A series of videos covering this topic will be available on the television show www.BeingGayToday.com A video showing recent homophobic protests in Sacramento from 6/16/07 is available online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-6hCMVvVbI If you are interested in activism, please contact www.natefeldman.com (forwards to his Myspace account.) SIGLFF The Sacramento International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (SIGLFF) is looking for volunteers for the 2007 year. See lots of films, meet the artists; use your talents, be appreciated; be on the inside of one of Sacramento's biggest LGBT arts event; meet and connect with interesting people; learn new skills; build relationships, network; play & have fun. Contact Diva at phyllips@comcast.net if you are interested in learning more or visit the website at http://www.siglff.org. Sacdancesport July 21st Putting on the Ritz - A Class Act Dance and Musical Review. Featuring the new dance troupe "Reaching Across America - Unity through Dance" with dancers from UK, India, Thailand, Russia, Vietnam, and including dancers of Mexican, Chinese, Puerto Rican, African, and Western European descent. sacdancesport@aol.com $15 Introduction to Social Dancing Starts first Wednesday in July!!! (July 11th) 3 weeks $29 (Three weeks because of 4th of July) 6:00 at Faces Learn the Latin and Ballroom Dances most popular in the GLBTI dance community. Great exercise. Cha-cha, Rumba, Swing, Jive, Waltz, Tango, and more! Make new friends! Lots of fun! 916-214-0933 Call or Email: sacdancesport@aol.com |
| That's enough for now. Did I leave anything out? Please drop me a line. Do you have an announcement or item that you'd like to include in our newsletter? Would you like to write an opinion piece about something in the LGBT education area? Tell us about what's going on in your GSA! Send complaints, comments, or submissions to admin@respectsacramento.org and I will be happy to place it in our newsletter, which is composed at the end of the current month and sent out in the first week of the subsequent month. Make this your newsletter by contributing to it! See you at our next meeting on July 11 at the Lavender Library, 1414 21st Street at 6:30 pm. Jerry O'Connor Respect Sacramento Board Member Respect Sacramento PO Box 191678 Sacramento CA 95819 (916) 733-2135 info@respectsacramento.org www.respectsacramento.org |
| 1. From the Editor: Hatred leads to death On Sunday, July 1, Satendar Singh was picnicking with friends at Lake Natoma when a group of Russian-speaking men began to hassle them. They were attacked with racial and ethnic epithets for being of South Asian descent (Fijian and Indian) and Satendar was singled out for homophobic slurs. The men continued the harassment throughout the day. That evening, six men from the group picked a fight. One man struck Satendar, who fell and hit his head. Satendar never regained consciousness and was removed from life support on Thursday, July 5. On Friday, July 6, members of the LGBT community, with leaders of the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community, organized and held a vigil at Capitol Park's World Peace Garden in memory of Satendar, and were joined by members of many minority communities, as well as political and faith leaders. One of the organizations leading the push for justice and fairness in Satendar's name is the Sacramento Stonewall Democrats. They tell us that a Community Task Force has been formed to "respond to this horrible crime." According to Stonewall, "this task force is coordinating efforts to insure that we put pressure where pressure is needed to make sure that A) these people are caught, B) that they are charged appropriately for the crime, and C) prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law." Stonewall also tells us that state and federal officials are watching the progress of this case. "We have also been contacted by the U. S. Attorney’s Office, the San Francisco office of the U. S. Department of Justice, and the State Attorney General's office who are all closely monitoring this investigation to ensure hate crime enhancements are applied if appropriate. This case will continue to develop very quickly. If arrests are made, all of these offices will contact the District Attorney to monitor the progress made in the prosecution of this case." We hope so. It is clear that the criminal actions of these men were the result of ignorance and prejudice of the type that has been fostered and proclaimed by particular "faith" communities in the Sacramento area, and some Russian and Slavic churches have been at the forefront of this campaign. Anyone who has attended an LGBT event has encountered these hate-mongers. Our GSA Dance has been picketed by these people. These zealots must be taken to task by the whole community, not just the LGBT and API leadership. And if it turns out that the offenders were from one of these "churches" or influenced by these "religious" leaders, they must be held accountable -- in our criminal or civil courts or through the tax code. No "church" that teaches hate -- the hate that leads to death -- should ever enjoy a tax exemption from the people. |
| In this edition 1. From the Editor: Hatred leads to death 2. Next meeting July 11 at The Lavender Library 3. California Teachers Association GLBT Safe Schools Grant 4. Community Announcements 5. GSA Network News |
| In memory of Satendar |
| 3. California Teachers Association GLBT Safe School Grants The CTA Safety in Schools Grant was created to promote human and civil rights by making our public schools safe for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons. Grants up to $500 are available to members, students, and districts to create programs to promote understanding and respect for GLBT persons. For more information, download a PDF copy of CTA's trifold brochure at http://www.respectsacramento.org/files/cta_glbt_grant.pdf |