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Mary Griggs

~ The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.

Mary Griggs

Monthly Archives: February 2014

Anti-LGBTQ Jim Crow

26 Wednesday Feb 2014

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LGBT Equality, Mary Griggs, Rant

by Mary Griggs

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First, Kansas. Then Arizona. Now Mississippi, Missouri and Georgia are trying to enshrine LGBTQ discrimination in state laws.

Have we forgotten our history? Is there anyone who thinks reviving Jim Crow laws are a good idea?

Jim Crow was a an exaggerated, highly stereotypical black character created by a white actor in blackface in the late 1820’s. The success he had with his song and dance routine ensured the name entering into the lexicon as a collective racial epithet for blacks.

Moving from the minstrel circuit to the public square, Jim Crow laws helped enforce a racial caste system in the Southern states that lasted until the 1960’s and the Civil Rights Movement. These laws enforced segregration and kept people from consorting with other races in everything from barbers to movie theaters, from toilets and drinking fountains to buses and taxis. Worse, they included hospitals, schools, restaurants, apartments and hotels.

They also criminalized those who went so far as to co-habitate or marry someone of another race. A sample of the laws on intermarriage are below:

  • Arizona: The marriage of a person of Caucasian blood with a Negro, Mongolian, Malay, or Hindu shall be null and void.
  • Florida: All marriages between a white person and a negro, or between a white person and a person of negro descent to the fourth generation inclusive, are hereby forever prohibited.
  • Georgia: It shall be unlawful for a white person to marry anyone except a white person. Any marriage in violation of this section shall be void.
  • Mississippi: The marriage of a white person with a negro or mulatto or person who shall have one-eighth or more of negro blood, shall be unlawful and void.
  • Maryland: All marriages between a white person and a negro, or between a white person and a person of negro descent, to the third generation, inclusive, or between a white person and a member of the Malay race; or between the negro a nd a member of the Malay race; or between a person of Negro descent, to the third generation, inclusive, and a member of the Malay race, are forever prohibited, and shall be void.
  • Missouri: All marriages between…white persons and negroes or white persons and Mongolians…are prohibited and declared absolutely void…No person having one-eighth part or more of negro blood shall be permitted to marry any white person, nor shall any white person be permitted to marry any negro or person having one-eighth part or more of negro blood.

Horrible, weren’t they?

Pulled from the trash can of history, the new anti-LGBTQ Jim Crow laws will allow any individual, group, or private business to refuse to serve gay couples if “it would be contrary to their sincerely held religious beliefs.” Private employers can fire transgender employees on account of their gender identity or expression. Stores may deny lesbian couples goods and services. Hotels can eject gay couples or deny them entry in the first place. Businesses that provide public accommodations—movie theaters, restaurants—can turn away same-sex couples at the door.

These bills are written in such a way that could allow many forms of discrimination against LGBTQ people – and in some cases anyone – as long as an individual feels that they are following the tenets of their religion.

Who will be targeted next? Unwed mothers? Interracial couples? Jewish couples?

Government-sanctioned discrimination, regardless of why, is a step in the wrong direction.

As Rabbi Stephen Kahn, of Scottsdale’s Congregation Beth Israel wrote:

As an American, I will always fully support the constitutionally protected rights of every citizen; the right of free expression of their own religious beliefs and convictions whether or not I personally/theologically agree with their beliefs or practices. However, as an American, a Jew and a Rabbi, I know that religious freedom does not permit me the right to oppress or discriminate against others because I think their theology or way of life is wrong. This is the antithesis of constitutional freedoms and the foundation of our country. The potential – both implicitly and explicitly – of legalizing a person or person’s right to persecute and discriminate against others under the guise of religious freedom is both intellectually objectionable and theologically corrupt of any scriptural justification I know of, especially in a free society.

Are we going to allow such corruption to become law?

I say no. We must defeat them. And we must not only fight these bad bills but we must unite at the ballot box to defeat any politicians who would pervert the constitution to justify their bigotry.

It is time to show them they’re on the wrong side of history. Again.

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Equal Love

14 Friday Feb 2014

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Marriage Equality, Mary Griggs

marriageequality_300by Mary Griggs

Despite Randy Thompson’s recent declaration that “Valentine’s Day is only for one man and one woman,” the LGBTQ community should not feel excluded from this day.

According to one legend, in 269, the Roman Emperor Claudius II prohibited marriage for young men, declaring that bachelors made better soldiers. Ignoring the ruling, Valentine secretly continued to perform marriage ceremonies. As a result, he was arrested and beaten. Because Valentine refused obey the Emperor’s decree, he was beheaded outside the Flaminian Gate.

mary speaking croppedAs I participated in the Forum For Equality Louisiana’s press conference announcing the lawsuit to challenge Louisiana’s refusal to recognize same-sex marriages, I was struck about the current application of this holiday to our community – the Roman state was wrong then and the state of Louisiana is wrong now.

You cannot read or listen to the stories of our plaintiffs without realizing that marriage equality for loving couples is the right thing to do. Loving adult couples who are willing to make the necessary sacrifices and take on the required responsibilities deserve the same legal rights, benefits and respect that marriage bestows. Committed couples should not be denied the security and legal protections of marriage. It is flat out wrong to make it harder for these couples to take care of and be responsible for each other and any children they might raise.

The Forum For Equality lawsuit (see FFELA Lawsuit PDF) charges that Louisiana’s refusal to recognize same-sex marriages violates the US constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process. The lawsuit also asserts that state officials infringe upon the couples’ First Amendment rights by requiring them to claim that they are unmarried on state tax returns.

As the lawsuit argues: “Louisiana’s disparate treatment of same-sex and opposite-sex couples who are married outside of Louisiana demonstrates that the purpose of the Louisiana Anti-Recognition Laws is to ‘impose a disadvantage, a separate status, and so a stigma upon all who enter into same-sex marriages’ that were lawfully celebrated in other states.” This is just legalized homophobia.

These couples want to have the same rights and responsibilities as any other married couples in Louisiana. Their legal marriages should be treated like all other marriages. The state doesn’t have a legitimate reason to not to recognize them.

The saint for whom this day is named made the ultimate sacrifice for his commitment to marriage. I hope that some of you can make a financial commitment of $10 or more per month to help the Forum For Equality Louisiana in their fight for marriage.

With the hope that someday marriage equality will come to Louisiana, I want to wish everyone a very happy St. Valentine’s Day!

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Challenging Louisiana’s Refusal To Recognize Marriage Equality

12 Wednesday Feb 2014

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The Forum For Equality Blog

me graphich Today, Forum for Equality Louisiana , together with four couples, filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s constitutional ban on recognizing same-sex marriages legally performed outside of the state.

The lawsuit charges that Louisiana’s refusal to recognize same-sex marriages violates the US constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process. The prestigious New Orleans law firm of Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann filed the suit in US District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, on behalf of Forum for Equality Louisiana and four couples. The couples are Jacqueline and Lauren Brettner, Nicholas Van Sickels and Andrew Bond, Henry Lambert and Carey Bond, and Havard Scott and Sergio March Prieto. Meet the Plaintiffs here.

Louisiana singles out only same-sex marriages for unequal treatment, a violation of the constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process. Louisiana’s disparate treatment of same-sex and opposite-sex couples who are married outside of Louisiana demonstrates that the purpose of…

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Lammy Nominee!

03 Monday Feb 2014

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Publishing

Lammy Seal

The 26th Annual Lamdba Literary Awards will be held on Monday, June 2, 2014.

The Lambda Literary Awards identify and celebrate the best lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender books of the year and affirm that LGBT stories are part of the literature of the world. The Awards ceremony has consistently drawn an audience representing every facet of publishing.

The category of LGBT Speculative Fiction includes science fiction, horror, fantasy, and related genres in novel, novella, and short story form.

My book, In the Midst of Tribulation, is currently being considered for this award and is in the midst of some really terrific books. Here is a list:

LGBT SF/F/HORROR

  • 20th Century Un-Limited, Felice Picano, Bold Strokes Books
  • A Special Kind of Folk, Barry Brennessel, MLR Press
  • After Shadow, Kim Pritekel, Sapphire Books Publishing
  • Alien Quest – Book one in the Alien Danger Series, Mark Zubro, MLR PRess
  • Arnica, I Christie, Blue Feather Books, LTD
  • The Art of Forgetting: Rider, Joanne Hall, Kristell Ink
  • Backwards, Nell Clowder, Little Tree Books
  • The Beast Without, Christian Baines, Interactive Publications/Glass House Books
  • Beloved Gomorrah, Justine Saracen, Bold Strokes Books
  • Beyond the Horse’s Eye–A Fantasy Out of Time, Janet Rose, WordSpace, Publications
  • Blood’s A Rover, D.J. Bershaw. Earwater Press
  • Choices Made – A Tale of the Gwerin, Scott William Simmons, Scott William Simmons
  • Collaborators, Deborah Wheeler, Dragon Moon Press
  • Creatures of Grace, P. Kristen Enos, CreateSpace
  • The Daughter Star, Susan Jane Bigelow, Candlemark & Gleam
  • Death by Silver, Melissa Scott & Amy Griswold, Lethe Press
  • The Demon Abraxas, Rachel Calish, Bella Books
  • Deprivation; or, Benedetto furioso: an oneiromancy, Alex Jeffers, Lethe Press
  • Dragon Slayer, Isabella Carter, Less Than Three Press
  • Dust Devil on a Quiet Street, Richard Bowes, Lethe Press
  • Earth’s Angel, Siri Caldwell, Bella Books
  • Echo’s Revenge, Linda Kay Silva, Sapphire Books Publishing
  • The Engineered Throne, Megan Derr, Less Than Three Press
  • For Want of a Fiend, Barbara Ann Wright, Bold Strokes Books
  • The Forbidden Scroll, Robert Joseph Greene, Icon Empire Press
  • Hell’s Belle, Marie Castle, Bella Books
  • The Horde, Linda Kay Silva, Sapphire Books Publishing
  • Hungry Ghost: Tales of the Pack Book 2, Allison Moon, Lunatic Ink
  • In the Midst of Tribulation, Mary Griggs, Bella Books
  • In the Nick of Time, Linda Kay Silva, Sapphire Books Publishing
  • Invisible Soft Return :\, Roberta Degnore, Digital Fabulists
  • Light, Nathan Burgoryne, Bold Strokes Books
  • Like Light for Flies, Lee Thomas, Lethe Press
  • Magical Echo, Linda Kay Silva, Sapphire Books Publishing
  • The Magistrate, Keira Michelle Telford, Venatic Press
  • The Mingled Destinies of Crocodiles & Men, Eric Arvin, Wilde City Press
  • No Sister’s Keeper, Jeanne G’Fellers, Bella Books
  • Piper, Leona Carver, Less Than Three Press
  • The Plain of Bitter Honey, Alan Chin, Bold Strokes Books
  • Promised Valley Peace, Ron Fritsch, Asymmetric Worlds
  • Saving Morgan, MB Panichi, Bella Books
  • Scarlet Revenge, Sheri Lewis Wohl, Bold Strokes Books
  • Shell Game, Benny Lawrence, Bedazzled Ink Publishing Company/Nuance
  • Shirewode, J Tullos Hennig, Dreamspinner Press
  • The Stars Change, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Circlet Press, Inc.
  • The Vampire’s Witch: Book III in the Vampire’s Angel Series, Damian Serbu, Regal Crest Enterprises/Mystic Books
  • Weeping Walls, Gerri Hill, Bella Books

It would be honor to be a finalist but I confess I’m totally stoked to be among such great authors!

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