Hello Senator Reid's staff,
My name is Leo Murrieta, I am a strong supporter of Senator Harry Reid. I always defend the Senator when I get the opportunity, because I know that he has done many great things for Nevadans.

I'm writing you because I ask that the Senator encourage jobs in Nevada by becoming a supporter in the Senate for the Employer Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). Nevadans need his leadership with this bill that would retain jobs for Nevadans, strengthen our local economies, and provide stability to the rising unemployment figures in our great state.

The LGBTQ citizens of Nevada strongly support the Majority Leader, and were adamantly overjoyed at the passing of the Matthew Shepard and William Byrd Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act. However, the great and presing matter at hand in our state is not a case of equal rights, it is simply and purely, jobs.

Senator Harry Reid, please continue representing Nevadans in the U.S. Senate. Please continue being a leader behind job creation, please become a champion of ENDA.

Your supporter,
Leo Murrieta

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hello Senator Ensign's staff,
My name is Leo Murrieta. I am a registered Democrat, but I strongly believe that job creation in Nevada should out-weigh partisanship. Please do not write me off.

I'm asking that Senator Ensign please support job creation and retention in Nevada. I'm asking that Senator John Ensign show leadership and the U.S. Senate and support the Employer Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).

Nevadans need leadership with this bill that would retain jobs for Nevadans, strengthen our local economies, and provide stability to the rising unemployment figures in our great state.

Job creation is a bi-partisan issue. Creating and retaining jobs is what Nevada's crippled economy needs in order to recover.

I ask that Senator John Ensign please support job creation in Nevada. I ask that Senator John Ensign please stand up for Nevadans, I ask that Senator John Ensign please support legislation that would strengthen Nevada's economy.

Thank you,
Leo Murrieta

Earlier this afternoon on the Jerry Doyle radio show, a conservative radio program that deals primarily with conservative political topics aimed against the President, the Democratic Party, and Liberal Ideologies, Conservative columnist Ben Shapiro had very tasteless words to say about President Obama's recent appointment to the Commerce Department. Shapiro was on air when he called Amanda Simpson, the first ever Presidential appointment within the Transgender community, a "MoMan", assumingly making a play of the words Man and Woman. Very creative indeed. Mr. Shapiro also went on to insinuate that Ms. Simpson was given this appointment for being a Transgender person instead of her qualitifcations, calling Transgender people mentally unstable and unqualified for such an appointment.

What Mr. Shapiro failed to mention however is that Ms. Simpson has quite a respectable resume under her fashionable belt;

1) A Masters degree in Business Administration from the University of Arizona in 2001
2) A Masters degree in Engineering from the California State University Northridge in 1988
3) A Bachelor degree in Physics from Harvey Mudd College in 1983
4) 30 years experience in the Aerospace and Defense Industry
(most recently working as Deputy Director of Advanced Tech Development for Raytheon)

Mr. Shapiro is only partially siting findings from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) when he says that Transgender people are "mentally unstable". Though in his defense, Gender Identity Disorder (GID) is classified under the same section as pedophilia in the DSM. What he doesn't realize is that European doctors and medical professionals have removed GID from the books years ago (Yet again, Europe surpasses The U.S. regarding social policy).

It's quite a dis-service to the listener when Mr. Shapiro jumps on the conservative bandwagon and decides that fact-checking has suddenly been removed from a journalist's list of criteria... even if you wish to make an opinion Mr. Shapiro, at least have some facts behind your words, that's all I ask.

God bless America.

That's the mentality right now... the gay scene is being overtaken by Levi Johnston's Playgirl.com photos. Prominent names like The Advocate and Towleroad have made this story primetime news on their sites... while at the same time paying very little attention to a great activist for the LGBT community.

The real story here is that David Mixner is being awarded the Point Foundation's Point Legend Award at the NY Point Honors Gala in April of next year. The Point Foundation is the country's largest scholarship/granting organization for LGBT students of merit. It's a great foundation that Mr. Mixner has support for years, and has finally agreed to be recognized by the foundation.

David Mixner was the mastermind behind the National Equality March, and has been fighting for equality since the days of JFK. He's also worked in the civil rights movement, the anti war effort protesting the Vietnam War, and a strong activist in the fight against HIV/AIDS. That's a small snapshot of his resume, but the truth is that he's a great guy that's fighting alongside today's voices for our equality.

The fact that Levi Johnston stayed front page news longer than David Mixner is a shame... these publications should really consider the platform that they have and think about what their original purpose was. Who doesn't think prestige when they think about The Advocate? Who doesn't think of reliability and relevance when they think of Towleroad? They should try to live up to their reputation more often, because the community is watching.

Congratulation Mr. Mixner, I speak for young activists everywhere when I say that we owe you a debt of gratitude to your generation of activists.

Thank you again,

Bless God and Bless the Gays.

Since I know you came for the pics...
check out some of Levi Johnston's pics HERE

It was announced earlier today that the House Education and Labor Commitee is postponing the markup/review on ENDA which was scheduled for a vote on Wednesday at 10am.

The Commitee Chairman, Rep George Miller, said that there are ammendments that still have to be reviewed and that is why the bill is being postponed... according to the Bilerico article. It's true that the bill has gone unchanged for the most part since its original debut a few years back, but now we're playing politics.

Rep Miller needs to be told to stop messing with our equality! Pushing this back to December-February is pushing it back into the mid-term elections of next year, a time when support for LGBT legislation is going to be hard to come by. Thus, successfully killing ENDA.

If you have something to say to The Honorable George Miller, email him here.

George Miller

If Nevada LGBT's want to know how D-3 Dina Titus would allow this bill to be postponed, email her here. (She doesn't cosponsor the bill anyway, so you may want to ask her about that  while you're at it.)

Dina Titus

One thing that has become apparent to me in the weeks after the National Equality March is that the Transgender community is very misunderstood and seldomly appreciated as a part of our LGBT community.

Why don't we demand their equality and freedoms as well? We seek to civil rights for the Gay and Lesbian community, but you never hear about our Trans brothers and sisters anywhere! I met some amazing Transgender men and women at the NEM, and I've been able to keep in touch with quite a few of them, but one thing that has been expressed to me is that they're willing to fight alongside us!

Even though the LGB's have both intentionally and unintentionally brushed our Trans siblings to the side, they still continue to march on the same streets as we march on, they still continue to send the same emails to their electeds that we send to our electeds, and they share the same fear of discrimination and violence that we face both in the workplace and in our daily lives. The "T" in LGBTQ... etc, is a vital part of our umbrella of equality, and they're suffering the same injustices that we are, if not more.

We should all make a united effort to be inclusive within the LGBT community (use however many letters you want, I don't mind)! While ensuring that every color of our rainbow gets the opportunity to fight for their equality just as much as the equality of their brothers and sisters!

Thank you BILERICO.COM and Austen Crowder for the wake up call!

God bless America.

The LGBTQQIA community has struggled for equality for decades, but it isn't until recently that our community has begun to gain some solid ground.

2009 has seen recognition from Congress like never before, with legislation aimed directly at granting us our equality;

HR 1283 - Military Readiness Enhancement Act of 2009 - Introduced in March
HR 3017 - Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2009 - Introduced in June
HR 3567 - Respect for Marriage Act of 2009 - introduced in September
HR 3827 - Every Child Deserves a Family Act - Introduced in October

We can't depend on our congressional representatives to come to their senses on their own, we have to make it known that we demand these bills pass through the House and Senate. This isn't to say that we haven't seen a great amount of support from the House and Senate already!

One thing that this generation has to remember is the blood, sweat, and tears that previous generations have put into the fight for equality. As we move forward, it's important that we value their efforts because without the pioneers of the 60's and beyond, we wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

This President has already removed the traveling restrictions against HIV positive people, and has made statements that show support for our equality.

Standing together and stannding strong is the only way that our generation will make our previous generations proud, the time for unity and action is now.

Bless God and Bless the Gays

Did you know that if you look online that you'll find at least 45 different instances since 2000 that LGBT people have been viciously attacked or murdered because of their sexual orientation.

This was brought to my attention by Kinetickyle on my twitter account (citizen0). Thanks Kyle.

That number may not seem like much to you, but read the reports below of some of those cases. To see if even one of these should have happened.

1) On July 3, 2000, in Grant Town, West Virginia, the victim, Arthur "J.R." Warren, was punched and kicked to death by two teenage boys who reportedly believed Warren had spread a rumor that he and one of the boys, David Allen Parker, had a sexual relationship. Warren's killers ran over his body to disguise the murder as a hit-and-run. Parker pleaded guilty and was sentenced to "life in prison with mercy", making him eligible for parole after 15 years. His accomplice, Jared Wilson, was sentenced to 20 years

2) On June 16, 2001, Fred C. Martinez Jr., a navajo transgender teen and two-spirit student was bludgeoned to death near Cortez,  Colorado by 18-year-old Shaun Murphy, who reportedly bragged about attacking a "fag". Murphy received only a 40yr sentence.

3) The December 2002 homicide of Nizah Morris, a transgender woman in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has gone unsolved. The transgender entertainer collapsed from entoxication outside a bar late at night, and placed into a cop car by onlookers who helped Morris into the car since she could not stand on her own. The police reported dropping her off on a street that was far from where she lived, minutes later a passing motorist called the police after Morris was found lying on the sidewalk bleeding from her head. Morris suffered extensive injuries to her skull and was placed on life support only to die two days later.

4) On July 23, 2003, Nireah Johnson and Brandie Coleman were shot to death by Paul Moore, when Moore learned after a sexual encounter that Johnson was transgender. Moore then burned his victims' bodies. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to 120 years in prison

5) On October 2, 2004, multiple assailants in Waverly, Ohio, attacked Daniel Fetty, a gay man who was hearing-impaired and homeless. Fetty was beaten, stomped, shoved nude into a garbage bin, impaled with a stick, and left for dead; he succumbed to his injuries the next day. Prosecuters alleged a hate crime. Three men received sentences ranging from seven years to life.

6) On March 11, 2005, Jason Gage, an openly gay man, was murdered in his Waterloo, Iowa, apartment by an assailant, Joseph Lawrence, who claimed Gage had made sexual advance to him. Gage was bludgeoned to death with a bottle, and stabbed in the neck, probably post-mortem, with a shard of glass. Lawrence was sentenced to fifty years in prison.

7) On July 30, 2006, six men were attacked with baseball bats and knives after leaving the San Diego, California Gay Pride festival. One victim was injured so severely that he had to undergo extensive facial reconstructive surgery. Three men pleaded guilty in connection with the attacks and received prison sentences. A 15-year-old juvenile also pleaded guilty

8) On May 12, 2007, Roberto Duncanson was murdered in Brooklyn, New York. He was stabbed to death by Omar Willock, who claimed Duncanson had flirted with him.

9) In February 2008, Duanna Johnson, a transsexual woman, was beaten by a police officer while she was held in the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center in Tennessee. Johnson said the officers reportedly called her a “faggot” and “he-she,” before and during the incident. In November 2008, she was found dead in the street, reportedly gunned down by three unknown individuals. This case was never solved.

10) On June 30, 2009, Seaman August Provost was found shot to death and his body burned at his guard post on Camp Pendleton by Petty Officer Jonathan Campos. LGBT community leaders "citing military sources initially said that Provost’s death was a hate crime." Provost had been harassed because of his sexual orientation. Military leaders have since explained that "whatever the investigation concludes, the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy prevented Provost from seeking help." Family and friends believe he was murdered because he was openly gay; Campos committed suicide a week later after admitting the murder, the Navy have not concluded if this was a hate crime.

There isn't anything I can say to make this edgy, witty, or humorous for you... This is what's happening to the LGBT community in this country. Hate crimes aren't a joke and they affect everyone of us in the community,

Be careful out there.