NAACP Chairman Julian Bond is taking some heat for his stand on behalf of LGBT people. Bond was recently re-elected to serve another term as the NAACP Chairman. He is being challenged on the letter he signed with NAACP President Ben Jealous in support of the California legislatures call for the California Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8. While this is not a new position for the NAACP some who are opposed to LGBT rights are challenging Chairman Bond’s authority to sign the letter.

API Equality-LA is a coalition of organizations and individuals who are committed to working in the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) communities in Greater Los Angeles for equal marriage rights and fair treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ) families through community education and advocacy.

We thank NAACP Chairman Julian Bond and NAACP President Ben Jealous for their support of the same-sex couples and the California legislature’s call for the California Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8, which strips the fundamental right of same-sex couples to marry. We also thank the NAACP for joining other key civil rights groups in filing an amicus brief supporting the effort to invalidate Proposition 8, on the grounds that a simple majority cannot undo the state Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection for minority groups.

As one of the most important civil rights organizations in the nation, it is crucial that the NAACP stands up for the rights of every person of color, including those who are LGBTQ. We applaud the NAACP for its brave and visionary leadership on the issue of marriage equality.

API Equality-LA urges its supporters to show their support and appreciation for these NAACP leaders. Send a note to your NAACP State Conference president, local NAACP Branch president, and anyone else within the NAACP. You can also post a note on the NAACP Facebook page.

Full HR 5 Video (1 hour, 33 minutes):

Direct Link to the California Assembly Judiciary Committee’s HR 5 Video

On Tuesday, February 17th, 2009, the California Assembly Judiciary Committee convened a hearing to discuss HR 5, an Assembly resolution to oppose Proposition 8, introduced by Assembly Member Ammiano. The Committee heard arguments from both proponents and opponents of Prop 8.

Co-author of HR 5 Assembly Member Ted Lieu stood up and made this speech:

“Ten years ago I did not support marriage equality. I am a proud co-author of HR5, and proud to support Sen. Leno’s marriage equality bills. To me the issue is very simple, it’s about love. You never see the words love in the constitution. And that’s precisely the point. Government ought not to be regulating the most sacred private parts of loving individuals. I love my wife, but there is no reason that love takes any precedence over Assembly Member Ammiano’s love, or Sen. Perez’s love of his life. There is nothing unique about my love that qualifies my wife and I to get a piece of paper that says marriage, that Tom Ammiano can’t get for the love of his life.”

“No matter where you believe love flows form Jesus Christ, as I do, or from Allah or from the human condition, you believe that love is the most sacred part of life. … For government to choose winners and losers as to which love qualifies for what, is the ultimate offensive notion of what we are all about. The issue isn’t about your beliefs, it is about whether you think the government should be regulating in this most sacred area.”

“My view is that government should not pick winners and losers. We need to treat everybody equally. Government should stay the hell out of regulating this most sacred institution.”

Source:
http://www.calitics.com/showDiary.do;jsessionid=81E26AEACEFB325FF0C3ABC0 9E5CB6C3?diaryId=8096

Contingent Organized by API Equality-LA Draws Record Participation

Los Angeles – On Saturday, January 31, 2009, a record 200 people joined the API Equality-LA contingent in the Golden Dragon Parade in Los Angeles’ Chinatown, one of the city’s most popular community event. Saturday marked only the fourth time in the parade’s 110-year history that a contingent representing and supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) members of the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) community has participated in the parade.

“We expected a strong turnout after all of the energy in our community since the November 2008 election, but we were absolutely astounded to welcome 200 participants – nearly three times as many as last year!” said Ericson Herbas, API Equality-LA steering committee member and one of the organizers of the contingent. “Particularly meaningful for all of us, we were also joined this year by same-sex couples who had been able to legally marry before November 2008.”

Wearing bright red t-shirts, the large contingent marched proudly through the streets of Chinatown, carrying banners displaying the six colors of the rainbow. The rainbow is commonly used to represent the pride of the LGBT community and was chosen by the API Equality-LA contingent to also represent the diversity of the coalition’s membership and supporters.

“Our participation in the lunar new year parade each year sends a powerful message of pride, diversity and inclusion,” said Marshall Wong, API Equality-LA co-chair. “Saturday was a wonderful way to enter the Year of the Ox.  It is said that the Ox is a sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work.  Fortitude and hard work describe exactly what we need to win back the freedom to marry for the LGBT community.  Today we took a short stroll around Chinatown but we’re committed to the long march to full equality.”

The contingent was led by a drum troupe playing traditional Korean drums, comprised of volunteers from the Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance (KIWA). And bringing up the rear of the API Equality-LA contingent was Danza Méxica Cuauhtemoc, a cultural troupe performing traditional Aztec dances, accompanied by Aztec drums and dressed in traditional Aztec clothes and tall feather headdresses.

“API Equality-LA was thrilled to be able to include both Korean and Aztec drums as well as Aztec dancers,” said Eileen Ma, another API Equality-LA steering committee member and organizer of the contingent. “For us, the drummers and dancers reinforced our message of pride in our diversity as a community.”

The diversity of the marchers was also evident in the organizations that officially joined the API Equality-LA contingent, many of whom proudly displayed their own organizational banners as part of the contingent. In addition to API Equality-LA, other organizations who participated in the contingent included: Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC); Asian Pacific Health Care Venture (APHCV); Asian Pacific Islander Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (API PFLAG); ); California Faith for Equality; Chinese Progressive Association (CPA) of San Gabriel Valley; Equal Roots Coalition; Gays United Network (Gays U.N.); Japanese American Citizens League (JACL); Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance (KIWA); Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC); Love Honor Cherish; OCA-Greater Los Angeles; South Asian Network (SAN); and Asian Pacific Islander Pride Council, which includes Asian American Queer Women Activists (AAQWA), Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team (APAIT), Chinese Rainbow Association, Gay Asian Pacific Support Network (GAPSN), and Satrang.

Media Advisory Contact
Eileen Ma
eileen@kiwa.org
323-680-2485