[Technicolor Musings] Living Without Hate

October 20 marked a fairly recent "holiday" of sorts known as Spirit Day, which is a day dedicated to showing support for the LGBT youth, especially for those who are victims of bullying based on their sexual orientation. The day is celebrated by wearing purple, which represents spirit in terms of the traditional LGBT rainbow flag. And it's not something that only gay people should participate it - it's for everyone who supports the idea that we are all equal and we should have fundamental respect for one another as fellow human beings. It's one of many manifestations of a growing movement to offer more support for younger members of the LGBT community including The Trevor Project.

And this week actor Zachary Quinto officially came out in order to show his support after the news that another  LGBT youth, Jamey Rodemeyer, had committed suicide due to bullying.

There are an increasing number of LGBT movements trying to promote tolerate and fighting against bullying, homophobia and the like. There are interesting campaigns that are social network specific like Wipeout Homophobia on Facebook and there are more high profile campaigns like NOH8 (No Hate). All of which are definitely steps in the right direction - gay and straight people working together to promote a greater message of true acceptance of gender diversity and challenging those who continue to espouse a message of hate.

More and more people are standing up to try and remember the basic fact that we are much more than our sexual orientation. This does not define is - people are far more complex than that. While it is part of our identity as individuals it does not define all that makes us who we are and thus we shouldn't be judged based on a single aspect of our being alone.

It's a lot of inspiring work - something that I definitely want to continue to support as much as I can. A lot of these campaigns are built around trying to spread a message of love and greater community instead of trying to force the definitions of gender lines in everyone's faces. You don't always need to resort to extreme rhetoric in order to get your message across. Sometimes you just need to express yourself clearly, consistently and in an intelligent manner.

So this is just a gentle reminder that we're all people, who deserve the same rights as everyone else. Our gender orientation does not make us a completely different class of people nor do our beliefs or likes and interests. We're all human and part of single global community and that deserves an agreement of mutual respect, if anything else.

We're not asking people to love us or anything crazy like that. We just want people to remember that we're not all that different and there's no reason to go out of your way to make us feel that way, or go to the extreme of trying to make us feel bad for simply being who we are.

[Google] Giving China The Finger

Image via Wikipedia

Google's policy of supporting the Chinese government's ultra-strict internet censorship policy has been a long-standing pain for human rights advocates and free speech defenders around the world. For a company with an informal motto of "Don't be evil", its continued support of Chinese policy has always been seen as an inconsistency in their actions and their supposed support of internet liberty and freedom of information.

So finally they're doing something about it.

In an official blog post, Google announced a sudden shift in Google policy in terms of how it intends to operate its Google.cn domain. Whereas before they fully supported China's censorship rules on Google.cn while keeping Google.com uncensored, they have now decided that they will no longer censor its Google.cn result. They intend to consult with the Chinese government regarding how they can continue to operate within Chinese law without censoring its results at the risk of being forced to shut down Google.cn and perhaps its entire Chinese operations in general.

The reason for this appears to be a series of attacks on the Google network recently targeting the Gmail accounts of several known human rights activists in China. While Google claims that the hacking attempt generally failed in the sense that no sensitive information was acquired in the attack, they still feel it was some sort of an affront on their continued operations in China and a sign of the prevailing political culture that won't allow for freedom of speech in any regard.

It took you long enough, Google. Seriously.

But still, better late than never and the Geeky Guide for one fully supports this long overdue shift in Google policy. Take that Chinese censors! And a double dumb ass on you!

[Gay Rights] Vote NO to Proposition 8

Image by bobster1985 via FlickrTomorrow is November 4, 2008 in the US, also known as Election Day. While it is the day the Obama-McCain contest will finally be decided and a new US President will be declared, it's also a very important day for gays and lesbians across America and even around the world. Let's face it, despite the current economic woes, many countries look to superpowers like the US as a model for democracy and how laws should be defined. To have even a single state in the US make such a stark stance for or against GLBT rights will mean a lot for governments around the world.

For those who tuned in late, California Proposition 8 entitled Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry is a measure attempting to amend the California state constitution with the statement "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." This would run counter to the recent California Supreme Court ruling stating that Proposition 22, which added a definition to the California State Family Code that marriage is the union between as a man and a woman, was in violation of the equal protection clause in the state constitution.

Yeah, it's pretty bad.

If this measure gets pushed, this will be the first time a state will take such a strong stance against GLBT rights by making such unions unconstitutional. The constitution, whether on a state or a national level is practically a sacred thing when it comes to government. It's the very basis for all other laws and it defines the guiding principles for that government in terms of how the laws can be formed. To set in stone that same-sex couples should be denied the right to marry will impact more than just the estimated 16,000 couples who have been married in the state of California. It affects us all and will send ripples through the minds of citizens all over the US and eventually the world whether straight or gay.

In case you tuned in really, really late, I am an out and proud gay man. I don't suffer from limp wrists nor do I speak in a falsetto tone. I don't wear dresses nor do I see anything wrong in any of these things - they just aren't me. If your image of what constitutes a gay man or woman is just in the realm of stereotypes, that's just unfair. It's even worse if you make decisions like what to vote on such measures on a ballot is just inhumane and cruel.

We live in a world of infinite diversity and human nature is what drives that. You can be whoever you want to be and whatever you want to be as long as you don't harm others. Allowing two men or two women to get a piece of paper that says they're married and all the rights that come with that document doesn't hurt anyone - it just allows the same rights and privileges to other people who live normal lives, work to earn a living and have their own dreams of starting a family. It's one thing to vote on a measure that protects others against harm - to vote on a measure that takes rights away from others for no really valid reason is just cruel and vile and just plain wrong.

I'm a gay geek and I'm proud of both words in that term. But neither term alone defines who or what I am - a person is a lot more than a label. When you talk about me, you're talking about the sum total of my life experiences thus far and everything I've ever said, thought or done. It's also everything that I might do in the future and what I might accomplish. You don't get to judge me based on a stereotype or a notion or even just an inkling of who and what I am. Even more, you don't get to deny me my rights and take them away.

I may not live in the US anymore, but I share the concerns that every other gay man or lesbian or whatever else is affected by Proposition 8 feels right now. You don't own marriage just because you're heterosexual and your religious denomination has a sacrament called marriage - that's why there are civil marriages and church marriages. Sure, religions get to decide who or what gets to be married and thus some churches support polygamy while others require monogamy. That's none of my business. But civil marriages are defined by the government and laws are supposed to be decided without religious bias. That's why there's a separation between Church and State!

Tomorrow you're voting about more than just a stereotype or what makes you feel "comfortable" based on your sensibilities or your upbringing or whatever you learned in Sunday school. You're voting about the lives and futures of thousands of same-sex couples in the state of California and thousands more across the country and around the world. You're voting on whether or not it's okay with you to take someone's rights away. Today it's just the right to marriage, but who knows what else might be next.

We live in a world where people get to vote regardless of gender and people get to marry regardless of race or color. Why is it so hard to make the same consideration for homosexuals?

Think about all this when you cast your vote tomorrow Californians. Think about the lives you're going to change with this one vote. Vote responsibly and in consideration of human rights and the fundamental rights of all people, man, woman, gay, lesbian, or whatever else is out there in this wonderfully diverse world.

Vote NO tomorrow on Proposition 8! Vote NO to discrimination!

[TV] Ellen DeGenres on the Death of Larry King

On February 12, 2008, 15-year old Lawrence "Larry" King was killed by 14-year old Brandon McInerney, whom he had asked to be his Valentine days before. Larry had been shot in the head.

On February 28, 2008, Ellen DeGeneres took some time to talk about homophobia on her show and presented the world with a very strong message about equality.

This is what she had to say:


#8 - Ellen DeGeneres Discusses The Recent Tragic Death

[United SEA] An End to the Silence?

I've been tagged as a contributor for the United SEA blog for some time now. I admit I've been trying to get a feel for what direction the entries should be geared towards before getting into serious posting. I guess that time is more than up, eh?

The discussions centered around the 12th ASEAN summit seem a prime choice for discussion here, more so this year's summit given the controversies around the formation of a Human Rights body.

One of the biggest failings of the ASEAN, in my opinion, has been the standing policy of "non-interference" in the vaguely termed "internal affairs" of member countries. The policy seems so Asian in itself that we would rather allow whatever travesties to happen in fellow nations out of some sense of courtesy to the other. Under the banner of non-inteference we've seen the cases of the likes of Anwar Ibrahmim move along unchallenged or the continued imprisonment of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi from Myanmar prison.

The consensus to create a human rights body is a tremendous move for the group and a very large step that will require a lot of changes, especially related to the non-interference policy that has so long protected the practice of human rights violations within the region.

The discussions came along in line with current discussions to revise the ASEAN charter before November of this year to redefine the organization and make it more akin to the European Union, which the group is now trying to emulate. This makes perfect sense given the mixed progress over the years with the ASEAN unable to really promote meaningful changes amongst the member nations as much as it would like to.

The debates around the formation of a human rights body were largely opposed, of course, by Myanmar given their own shady practices at times that have often been met with international outrage if not suspicion. Also affected are Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam are all run by either authoritarian or single-party governments who may have some difficulty with dealing with a regional human rights body with its accompanying rules and regulations.

I'm in full support of this move by the Association - human rights should be protected regardless of nationality or personal beliefs since these are fundamental rights entitled to everyone. These should not be subject to the petty internal politics or the opinions of any one government. However in order for this body to be meaningful within the region, this will mean completely turning their backs on the older policy of non-interference. In place of this would be a greater sense of regional social responsibility driven by the need to care and be concerned about what is going on beyond one's own borders.

It's time we stop being silent about the abuses going on just next door - if we truly believe in human rights and how fundamental rights, then we defintely need to strike harder to get all thius one. Through this, I expect we'll benefit from having a stronger regional voice in the form of the ASEAN and its human rights body along wtih greater interdependence among member nations.

It's time we stepped up to the plate and really show everyone what this region is truly capable of and that it's not just about the US or the EU anymore. The ASEAN wants to sit at the big adults table now as a true global power to be respected and dealt with equitably as opposed to being a loose association of nations that gets little done if only in an effort not to offend one another.

It's a bold move and one that's long overdue. Let's hope that we get through the many changes involved leading to this next evoutionary step in the organization's path towards becoming much more than it is now.

References:

• Inquirer.net: ASEAN still at odds on rights, charter
  
• International Herald Tribune: Asean foreign ministers overcome Myanmar resistance at Manila meeting and agree on human rights commission
  
• CNN.com: Myanmar agrees to human-rights body

[US] Oh No, Guantanamo!

It looks like Guantanamo Bay is back in the news because of a Tuesday US Appeals Court ruling that the prisoners' rights of habeas corpus don't apply if they're held outside of absolute US sovereignty like in say, I dunno, perhaps Cuba?

It doesn't make much sense now does it? Whatever happened to our sense of human rights being absolute in themselves. Aren't human rights, like those rights of legal representation and knowing the crimes you're guilty of fundamental to everyone? In the eyes of the Bush government, apparently not. Instead what they've done is to try and squirrel their ways into legality by declaring these detainees as unlawful combatants, thus outside of the need of an actual criminal charge in order to justify holding them indefinitely.

It's amazing how the Bush government just keeps on pushing forward without whim or care for the opinion of the rest of the world. What gives them the right to hold themselves above all of us? Why do they get to twist their laws to serve their purposes while trampling over the rights and freedoms of everyone else?

Related Links:

• [US] 5 Years of Gitmo
  
• TIME Magazine: Does the Gitmo Decision Make Sense?
  
• TIME Magazine: Losing Europe in the War on Terror
  
• TIME Magazine: Why Japan is Unhappy with the US

Photo linked from Flickr user poppy painted's photostream.

[US] 5 Years of Gitmo

It's hard to imagine that the Guantanamo Bay facility has been around for five years now. Just think about it - five years of legal limbo for all these people - oh I'm sorry, we know they're all terrorists, right? Or do we?

Don't bother - that wasn't a question, haha.

Of course news is littered with various anniversary stories and of course reports of the various protest actions against the detention facility.

I guess this also helps explain Bush's timing for his speech, Wednesday night. Just one day more and he'd have to deal with anti-Gitmo protesters along with his anti-war folk and his newer anti-surge groups. It's definitely a colorful time for the Little-President-That-Could.

The Geeky Guide joins Amnesty International and other human rights groups in calling for this illegal facility to be shut down.

The injustice must end.