Here's an informative slideshow of famous and a few in-famous gay people in all walks of life.  Some of the segments might take a bit of time to open so be patient.  

The slide show pics are presented as just facts without editorializing about some celebreties who are publicly known and mostly of  self-outed personalities.  

I don't think outing someone without that person's consent helps our cause UNLESS that person can be shown to be a hypocrite and is using his/her power to hide while at the same time hurting other gay people.  

As Harvey Milk said, "Come out, come out, wherever you are," as it gives our straight bashers less fuel to hate us with. 

And to paraphrase another out person, Barney Frank, Mass. Representative, people are less homophobic than they think they're supposed to be.  

It's the sheep syndrome of following the lead animal wherever it goes; clearly bad behavior when no one is harmed by being who they are as consenting adults.  

http://wcbstv.com/slideshows/gay.celebrities.gay.20.228680.html

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Moderator's note:  For those who don't know, Enid is a small town in north central Oklahoma, the county seat of Garfield County.  It has a small airforce base, Vance, and a branch campus of one of the state colleges.  It also has a small semi-pro symphony orchestra and an acoustic jewel of a music hall (a remodeled Masonic temple) to play in www.enidsymphony.uniqhorns.com

www.GayOKC.com Directory Listing

OGLPC's Marching Banner in the OKC M.L. King Day Parade, 1-19-09

Dr. King could have been 80 years old this year.

Photo courtesy of Glenn Hightower

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Okla County Republican Precinct Resolution Condemns Sally Kern

February 3, 2009

By James Miko

As more and more disturbing news comes out about Sally Kern’s past and as the Oklahoma House District 84 Representative continues to push an extremist ideology in the state, it appears some of her fellow Republican Party members may be beginning to distance themselves from her.

During the Tuesday, February 3rd, meeting of the Republican Precinct 330 at the Candlewood Chapel on S. Sooner Road just hours ago, a resolution was introduced that condemned Kern’s 2008 speech over the homosexual agenda.   

The resolution reads as follows:

http://www.gossip-boy.com/330_Condemns_Kern.html

John Calhoun, a devoted worker-bee in the field of equality and long time treasurer of OGLPC is moving to bigger horizons in Canada.  We wish him well in his new environment.

http://newsok.com/downtown-planner-moving-on/article/3336181

Downtown planner moving on
BY STEVE LACKMEYER
Published: January 8, 2009

During construction planning for Nonna’s in Bricktown, owner Avis Scaramucci
found herself at odds with John Calhoun over what she felt were minor
changes to windows or architectural features.

Fast forward four years and Scaramucci is among those sadly saying goodbye
to the assistant city planner who has been a key player in downtown urban
design committees. After an 18-year career with the Oklahoma City Planning
Department, Calhoun is leaving this week for a job as a heritage planner in
Windsor, Ontario.  (SNIP)  complete at:  http://newsok.com/downtown-planner-moving-on/article/3336181

October 2008 Newsletter  -  updated with election results

Protest the outrageous anti-gay remarks of State Rep. Sally Kern - and the refusal of the Speaker of the House to denounce her!  Oklahoma is in the national spotlight, but now for an ugly side.  Check the latest updates from the Cimarron Alliance, PFLAG OKC, and Oklahomans for Equality.

From O.G.L.P.C.'s Pink Papers:

Congratulations to two openly gay / lesbian delegates chosen for the Democratic National Convention:  Al McAffrey (Oklahoma City) and Karen Parsons (Yukon)!

Irene Tyson Equality Award winner Bob Lemon:  "Gay people aren't broke and don't need fixing."  (OKC Pride, June 2007)

O.G.L.P.C. meets the second Monday of each month, 7:00 p.m., at the Neighborhood Alliance office, 1236 NW 36th St (corner of Classen Blvd), Oklahoma City.  Google map: ( http://tinyurl.com/7pm42k )

All concerned people are welcome, regardless of political affiliation, gender presentation, or sexual orientation!

Oklahoma Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus is a non-partisan information and education group chiefly focused on the human and civil rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) persons and the political issues connected to those rights.

What we do:

• Serve as a conduit of information between the political and public opinion leaders and the LGBT communities through press releases, monthly meetings, informative website, and a confidential mailing list of over 4000
• Survey political candidates prior to elections then score and distribute their responses to the LGBT community through direct mailings, press releases, and other media outlets
• Created a speakers bureau which provides free speakers on LGBT issues for groups as well as gay and straight media requests
• Lobby at the state level on issues that pertain to the LGBT community
• Continue to push both local and statewide legislation that would include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes under the hate crimes statutes and ordinances
• Continue to push for funding of an effective Human Rights Commission on both statewide and local levels
• Work with other human and civil rights groups throughout Oklahoma toward our common goal of Equal Rights for all Oklahomans

What we do not do:

• We are not a political action committee and we do not make direct contributions to political candidates.
• We are not an HIV/AIDS service group.
• We do not share or sell our mailing or membership lists.

How do we raise funds?

• Our primary source of funding is from membership dues and contributions.

How do we spend our funds?

• We are a volunteer organization and our funds are spent on the mailing, website, and meeting costs needed to update our members on pertinent political issues.

When and where do we meet?

• O.G.L.P.C. meets the second Monday of each month at 1236 NW 36th St, Oklahoma City (Neighborhood Alliance), at 7:00 p.m.

Worst Anti-Gay Voices Of 2008

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Prop. 8 backers blast Calif. Attorney General

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APNewsBreak: Larry Craig dropping further appeals

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Brian Bond to Be Tapped As Deputy Director of Obama's Public Liaison Office

A transition team aide has told The Advocate that President-elect Barack Obama will name Brian Bond deputy director of the White House Office of Public Liaison. 

Bond, a political veteran who has headed the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund and held several positions at the Democratic National Committee, will have managerial and strategic responsibilities for the entire Public Liaison office as well as function as the point person on LGBT issues. The liaison office is tasked with communicating and promoting presidential policies to individual constituency groups and serving as a sounding board for the president on policies that affect certain interest groups.

Who will be our Harvey Milk?

editorial -- Who will be our Harvey Milk? Who will recruit us as we move forward? Published Thursday, 08-Jan-2009 in issue 1098 True leaders know the cup is half-full. When Harvey Milk saw Anita Bryant he didn’t see fear; he saw opportunity. He saw the work Bryant – a singer, beauty queen, and celebrity orange juice spokesperson – who was best known for her work in favor of bigotry against gays and lesbians, as an opportunity to mobilize, energize and bring GLBT social justice issues to the forefront of the late 1970s. Harvey Milk wanted to bring that fight to California and he did.

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Jerry Brown’s Argument to Void Prop. 8 Under Attack

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Calif. gay marriage foes want donors anonymous

Marriage is not Sacred or a Sacrament

Many argue that marriage is essentially and necessarily a religious rite. These Christians conceive of marriage in almost exclusively religious terms and conclude that therefore legalizing gay marriage constitutes a type of sacrilege — an unjustified intrusion of the state into what is necessarily a religious matter. Because of religion's traditional role in sanctifying marriages and presiding over wedding ceremonies this is understandable, but it's also incorrect.
(SNIP)

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Will Vermont Allow Same-Sex Marriage?

Montpelier, Vermont - January 7, 2009

It has been nine years since Vermont lawmakers and residents were embroiled in a bitter battle over civil unions. In the meantime two states -- Massachusetts and Connecticut -- have granted same-sex couples the right to marry. New Jersey and New Hampshire started offering civil unions, and California performed same-sex marriages until voters passed Proposition 8, which bans gay marriage, on November 4, 2008.

Now Vermont could be on the cusp of becoming the next state to grant same-sex couples the right to marry. Senator John Campbell, D-Quechee, has introduced a bill that would do just that. It also grants religious institutions the right to deny performing the marriages. (SNIP)

A privilege to have served

BY JIM ROTH

It is with immense gratitude that I say thank you to my fellow citizens for the opportunity to serve you these past years. I am forever grateful for the chance to toil in the field of public service and I am forever blessed because of you.

In an inspiring speech titled "The Man in the Arena,” President Theodore Roosevelt said "the credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotion, and who spends himself in a worthy cause.” While I appreciate these words, the true credit belongs to the citizens who gave me the chance to serve.

As your corporation commissioner and as an Oklahoma County commissioner, I accomplished every task I had hoped. My guiding principle was simple: Always put the people first. I thrust myself into the arena and fought the good fight defending the rights of all people. I took an oath to honor all people and in turn you have given me the highest honor of my life — the chance to give back.

As a corporation commissioner, I worked to expand the horizon of Oklahoma through native blessings like natural gas and wind, through new energies and energy efficiencies. I encouraged our utility providers to think bigger and am glad they are making progress today. These willing partners are developing programs that will benefit generations of Oklahomans to come.

At Oklahoma County, we implemented programs that eliminated public waste and saved the taxpayers millions of dollars. We built better roads and bridges and brought relief to our aging senior citizens. It wasn’t always easy battling entrenched attitudes that resisted change, but working with you, I never worked alone. In the end, I feel that I left Oklahoma County much better than I found it because you trusted me to serve you.

So as I move into the next chapter of my life I will take with me all the good friends and memories made along the way. My time in public service has come to an end, but my desire to make this state the best it can be has not. I am excited for new opportunities and new arenas to create the change I wish to see in the world.

I have devoted my career to public service these past 14 years and your help along this journey has made me a better person. I hope I have made you better as well. As this chapter closes, I am reminded of another passage from President Roosevelt’s speech, where he says: "If he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that he may never be one of those cold and timid souls, who know neither victory nor defeat.” God bless you citizens of Oklahoma for you have blessed me so. Thank you for the honor to serve you.

Bishop Robinson's Prayer Censored by HBO

Courtesy of Rex Wockner, journalist and blogger, google him...

http://www.nhepiscopal.org/

A Prayer for the Nation and Our Next President, Barack Obama
By The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire

Opening Inaugural Event
Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC
January 18, 2009

Welcome to Washington! The fun is about to begin, but first, please join me in
pausing for a moment, to ask God's blessing upon our nation and our next
president.

God of our many understandings, we pray that you will...

Bless us with tears - for a world in which over a billion people exist on
less than a dollar a day, where young women from many lands are beaten and
raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition,
malaria, and AIDS.

Bless us with anger - at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees
and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender
people.

Bless us with discomfort - at the easy, simplistic "answers"
we've preferred to hear from our politicians, instead of the truth, about
ourselves and the world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the
challenges of the future.

Bless us with patience - and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be
"fixed" anytime soon, and the understanding that our new president is
a human being, not a messiah.

Bless us with humility - open to understanding that our own needs must always
be balanced with those of the world.

Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance - replacing it with a genuine respect
and warm embrace of our differences, and an understanding that in our diversity,
we are stronger.

Bless us with compassion and generosity - remembering that every religion's
God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community,
whether across town or across the world.

And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of
President of the United States.

Give him wisdom beyond his years, and inspire him with Lincoln's
reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy's ability to enlist our best
efforts, and Dr. King's dream of a nation for ALL the people.

Give him a quiet heart, for our Ship of State needs a steady, calm captain in
these times.

Give him stirring words, for we will need to be inspired and motivated to make
the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.

Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership,
there will be neither red nor blue states, but the United States

Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience
of discrimination, that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still
its victims.

Give him the strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember
that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his
daughters' childhoods.

And please, God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and
we're asking FAR too much of this one. We know the risk he and his wife are
taking for all of us, and we implore you, O good and great God, to keep him
safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand - that he might do the work we have
called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in
the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and
peace.

AMEN.