On the Monday night beating depicted above, which has made national news, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Ramsey:

"We have 6,700 members on the city police force," Ramsey said to CNN's John Roberts. "Occasionally we have someone engaging in conduct we're not especially proud of. It happens in any large organization.

Ramsey said the beating should be placed in context.

"We're going through a difficult time this week," Ramsey said.

From the same Inky story:

As he left a morning press conference at FOP headquarters, Nutter commented on his interviews with the national media.

"They're coming in on the tail end of things," Nutter said. "To them it's just one more story. But you can't understand what's happening in this city unless you look at what happened on Saturday and Sunday.

"That's not a justification for what the officers did," Nutter continued. "But that was an anomaly. The incident is not representative of what the department is all about."

The context, the murder of a police officer, Sgt. Stephen Liczbinski, on Saturday night, whose killer was caught last night. Again, Mayor Nutter:

Nutter said he felt "anger and disgust" last night as he met Floyd at police headquarters.

"I wanted to see the person who had done this," he said. "It's a disgrace."

He said a "serious message" needed to be sent.

"Stop shooting each other," Nutter pleaded. "Everyone may not have had a storybook childhood," he said, adding that a rocky up-bringing was no excuse for killing another human being.

I don't have much analysis to offer, not sure what to think of it all. Anyone else?

The Inky reports:

Said Chuck Ardo, Gov. Rendell's press secretary, "I can tell you unequivocally that if a pro-slavery bill were to reach the governor's desk, this governor would certainly veto it."

Have you been following this story? An African-American preacher, among many other crazy conservatives, testified at a hearing on Monday FOR a bill that would BAN same-sex marriage, civil unions, and possibly domestic partnership in the state constitution.

Sen. Fumo shot back that this was wrong, even if the legislature passed it. The preacher challenged him, and Fumo said that if there was a secret ballot, the legislature would likely pass a pro-slavery bill [apparently to make the point that majority opinion is not always morally right].

As a result, Fumo has gotten himself and this bill into the headlines.

The appropriations committee is scheduled to vote on it on Monday, and there is a very good chance it will pass. After that, it goes the Senate floor, where it is also likely to pass. That means the only way to stop it from going onto the ballot next year, where it will help pull out conservative R voters, is in the House. Scary huh?

It's interesting then that there has not been much in-depth coverage of the likelihood of this bill's passage which is pretty depressing for someone who is actually being denied most of the rights being discussed already, and will now see even more taken away. It's certainly a regional economic development prohibiter worthy of a lot of attention (remember City Council has already passed a resolution in opposition, with the dissent of the Rs and Anna Verna).

And there's also been very little probing coverage of what Fumo said and why.

It's some reflection (as of course is Obama and Wright and Clinton and all of the surface-level race conversation at the national level) of how bad Americans are at talking about and thinking about and dealing with racism and oppression. And obviously Fumo messed up. He was being really hyperbolic to make a point and he stepped over the line and offended his colleagues who can't believe that he thinks that of them.

And African-American legislators aren't happy either. From a John Baer column:

But Black Caucus Chairman Rep. Thaddeus Kirkland tells me: "It was very insensitive from such a senior senator. It's unfortunate folks don't stick to the issue at hand . . . to equate it [a gay marriage ban] with slavery is wrong."

Asked if he thinks the Legislature is racist, Kirkland said, "No, I don't."

Senate GOP Leader Dominic Pileggi said that if Fumo actually believes a majority of the Senate would vote to reinstate slavery, "It's hard to see how that wouldn't require an apology."

But this where there could be a bit more probing done by the reporters covering this.

Like, hmm. Raise your hand if you think it's plausible that there are racist members of the state legislature.

I mean Rep. Kirkland has to say that, and to accuse colleagues of being willing to vote to reenact slavery is pretty offensive, but come on...no racists in the state legislature?

And this from Sen. Anthony Williams (my Senator) about Fumo:

"Totally unacceptable," said fellow Philly Sen. Anthony Williams, a member of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus.

"And my view of my colleagues is they are not closet racists," he said, "They may not know everything about black culture . . . [but] I don't know the Amish and I don't hate them."

Ok. Sure.

I mean racist or not, when it comes to service to African-Americans by the state Senate particularly, how well are people of color doing? Take a look at the state of PA job growth, African American unemployment rates, housing rights, protection from predatory lending, wage growth, access to capital, access to quality education...and well, the Senate is not exactly performing at 110%.

But does this have much to do with the issue at hand? Yes and No.

Yes in the sense that you can never compartmentalize oppression or ignore a chance to make connection, but no in the sense that Fumo has made potential allies wary of him at a time when his leadership is needed by making a pretty outrageous statement.

But Fumo did say some other stuff at the hearing that was great, like this from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

The hearing turned at times into a verbal sparring match between Sen. Vince Fumo, D-Philadelphia, and various advocates for the amendment who argued that homosexuality is immoral and that government should encourage relationships that involve procreation. They said same-sex unions would undermine God's plan and cause traditional marriage to become undervalued and obsolete.

Mr. Fumo railed back, calling those arguments ignorant.

"If two homosexuals are allowed to get married, is that going to affect your marriage? Your marriage is that weak you're going to get a divorce over that?" he said to Philadelphian James Horn, a father of eight who testified in favor of the constitutional amendment.

Or this from the Harrisburg Patriot-News:

Throughout the hearing, advocates and opponents interrupted testimony with applause and heckling so often that committee Chairman Gib Armstrong, R-Lancaster, struggled to keep control of the hearing with the raucous crowd's outbursts.

That proved even more of a challenge during a lively exchange between former gubernatorial candidate Peg Luksik of the Pro-Life Coalition, who supported the amendment, and Sen. Vince Fumo, D-Philadelphia, who opposed it.

"This amendment is attempting to formalize in the constitution discrimination against people who are of the same sex and want to live together," Fumo said.

Luksik said marriage is an institution that "needs and deserves additional protections because of the attacks that have been made by judges across the country that have sought to redefine the institution of marriage." That's why the state's 1996 marriage-protection law is no longer enough, she said.

But yeah, the slavery comment was over the top...which reminds me, at the end of the day, you gotta love John Dougherty for saying this (from Inky):

"It obviously doesn't help with the advancement of gay rights," Dougherty said. "But maybe he is smarter than everyone else. Maybe he is looking to set up an insanity defense for his trial."

I am not sure if it does hurt the advancement of gay rights, rabid homophobia among Senate Republicans and handful of Dems is doing just fine thank you, but yea, Fumo is kinda nutty. It's gonna be a fun 7 months before he leaves office.

And meanwhile, Inquirer and Daily news: can you actually cover the rest of the action on the bill as in depth as you have covered Fumo? Jesus, is it too much to ask that our newspapers cover the issues as well as the antics?

Dear John and Larry,

Well, it’s over. Months of campaigning, a lot of money spent, and you, Larry Farnese, beat you, John Dougherty, in the 1st senate race. So now what?

Well, John, you sent out an email last week that left me wondering. You said:

We will continue to be a force to be reckoned with and will demand accountability and transparency from those elected officials who represent us, here and in Harrisburg. In other words, we'll be watching. And waiting.

Does that mean you are going to run again in 2012?

The count in last week’s election was close, but it wasn’t that close: Larry won the race decisively. It’s your right to run for office, but if you already know you plan to run again, it means you are going to spend a lot of time in the next four years trying to run Larry down.

And that is business as usual right? Dougherty vs. Fumo (with Larry as a proxy)?

That may be the way things have always been, but this fight is getting really, really tired, mostly because you both have more much important stuff to be doing:

Larry. Nobody was harder on you in 2006--at least online--than I was (except maybe Dan). I did not want to see you unseat Babette. And since then, I have gotten to know you better, and I like you--I’ll never forget how you went above and beyond for Philly Against Santorum from tabling in the square to getting me into highrises to speak (your help was especially notable to me as I had written some pretty harsh stuff about you in your 06 election).

So, among the folks who will crawl out from under rocks to tell you, soon-to-be Senator Farnese, how great you are, you can trust me to tell you the truth.

Here it is: there are voters who worry about your ties to Vince Fumo. He is in fact being indicted. Although I think there is a real argument to be made that, despite skimming some off the top for himself, Fumo ultimately brought more money and services to his district than any other Senator in the state, the fact is there is a significant cohort of voters who are tired of Fumo's fiefdom. Fair or not, you are going to need to prove that you are not beholden to Vince Fumo and his political supporters.

Beyond that, you need to vote for, sponsor and shepherd good legislation through the Senate (something Sen. Fumo was often a leader on), and you need to help elect other progressives. There are after all big fights coming up in the State Senate this year like the Philly gun laws, a same-sex marriage ban, healthcare, property taxes, and hey, maybe you can do something about that stupid uniformity clause.

Most important, you have a district that contains some of the wealthiest zip codes in the city, and some of the poorest, and a lot of people in the middle. They all want more services and amenities. But there are some competing interests that have produced racial and class tensions that need to be addressed and, as much as possible, healed.

Your attention being diverted to the Fumo-Doc feud can’t help that healing, or enact any of the other goals above.

As for you, Doc...you have a lot of hiring to do!

According to Tom Ferrick, if we leave out the Laborers, only 1/3 of all building trades members live in the city, and 80% are white, and nearly 99% are men. Meanwhile, 1/3 of all Philadelphians, a larger proportion black than white, live in poverty.

What is wrong with this picture?

I can’t get over the fact that a guy as powerful as you, who built up a union whose membership had been falling, hasn’t done more to hire women and people of color. I know you’ll tell me you’re doing better than some, but the fact is you lead one of the most powerful local unions, (in a sector of employment that’s not portable) and you owe it to the residents of this city, many of whom subsidize local development through their tax dollars, to hire many, many more women and people of color.

Since you won’t be going to the Senate, maybe you can focus all the extra time you had set aside for that on this problem? In this arena, you are more powerful than a State Senator and have the privilege to make real change.

Here are some other things you can do now to demonstrate your leadership:

1) Get all the trades in the state to stop opposing RxforPA. Elected officials listen to you. Lots of people don’t have healthcare. Something needs to be done.

2) Stop propping up Republicans like Mario Civera and Rick Santorum. Your support of Santorum, for dredging or not, was unforgivable in my eyes.

3) Withdraw your current challenge to campaign finance laws, and don’t challenge any more.

Doc, before you pick up the phone to call me, I am not writing this to communicate between you and me, so much as to air the thoughts and ideas I have been hearing from a lot of people in the past few days. I had plenty of chances to say what I thought to your face during the campaign, but speaking on behalf of a larger set of interests, I do challenge you to make significant progress on these issues before you raise the specter of running against Larry in 2012,

The bottom line is that, if you Larry, and you John, both do your jobs well, the people who live in the 1st will benefit. And those citizens need help from both you much more than they need a constant skirmish lasting until the next election (whether for Larry’s seat in 2012, or in a proxy like the 1st councilmanic seat in 2011, DA next year, or maybe a fight against Brady in 2010).

After all, no matter what Anne Dicker did or didn’t do well or right in her own campaign, the 18% of voters who supported her mostly did so because they were sick of voting for either Jets or Sharks, and they want and need real change in their neighborhoods.

The district you live in, and the city you both want to serve, needs more action, and less feuding. As wounds are still healing from the campaign, I hope you’ll both consider that.

Respectfully yours,
Ray

I am back, safely, in West Philly for a minute, where no matter what you snobby Center City-ites or 2nd ward dwellers may think, life on Election Day is much saner than in that crazy 1st state senate district where I spent my morning. Off to Tony's district next, to help out there, but before I go I wanted to remind everyone to get out and vote today.

See Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club's endorsements and answers to candidate questionnaires here, and Philly for Change's here. Find your polling place here, if you are a first-time voter in your division, bring ID or a utility bill with you. Polls are open till 8 PM. Report any election improprieties by calling 866-OUR-VOTE.

If you live in the First Congressional district, even if you support Clinton, please vote for my Liberty City Co-Chair Rue Landau who is running as a delegate for Obama. Your vote for delegate is basically a vote to decide which of the number of delegates that will be pledged to a candidate based on the Obama/Clinton vote, actually get to go to the convention. So vote Rue. (Hopefully this pic of Rue and her O-baby, Eli, will help you make this choice).

Speaking of the presidential, if you are still on the fence, I guarantee this video will swing you to Obama:

Any thoughts on the two ballot questions in Tuesday's election?

There's a yes/no question about whether to amend the Charter to separate the office of the Representative from the Commerce Department.

There's also a yes/no question about allowing city departments to hire 10 (rather than 2) deputy-level managers who'd be exempt from civil service tests and requirements, and also exempt these hires from rules requiring them to live in the city. AFSCME DC 47 says to vote "No" and the Inky says yes. I am inclined to go with the union on this one, because as they point out, we're talking about 500 potential hires which sounds like a lot of patronage to me, but I'm unsure about the first, and curious what others think.

Once upon a time, there was a state representative in NW Philadelphia. She wasn't really a member of any political camp (Fattah, Evans, Fumo) and maybe she thought she needed the patronage of someone to stay in office, so she chose John Perzel. And so she voted with Republicans all the time.

I am talking of course about Rep. Rosita Youngblood. She represents one of the most progressive districts in the city, and yet has been not only a disappointment in office, but also a defector to our cause. Just as there as been a laser focus on the person who represents the 182nd in Center City, Rep. Josephs' seat, there should equally be the expectation that the person who represents parts of North Philly, Germantown, Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, is a progressive leader.

Marc Stier tried and came very close in 2004. Four others tried in 2006. Finally, now in 2008, with Perzel in a far less powerful position, there's only one candidate running against Youngblood, and he has a real shot at winning. His name is Byron Davis.

Byron Davis has been endorsed by:

-9th Ward Democratic Committee
-UNITE-HERE!
-AFSCME District Council 47
-SEIU PA State Council
-Planned Parenthood of SE Pennsylvania
-Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) of Philadelphia
-Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club
-The Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local Union #332
-Americans for Democratic Action (ADA)
-Philly for Change

That's an impressive list of endorsements. This is the one race where there seems to be real progressive cohesion around a challenger, and an uncomplicated campaign (no write-in opponent for instance) that can be won on the ground.

According to his website, Byron is "a resident of Germantown, Byron Davis is an educator, activist, husband and father." And also from his website, here is Byron's basic platform:

3 Keys: Byron Davis believes the people of the 198th deserve a range of opportunities that have not been created by the incumbent towards improving their quality of life.

The keys to this are . . .

Service

Elected officials must live up to their positions as public servants

* Those holding elective office must truly serve the public interest

* Their service must be consistent and of high quality

* They should communicate and bring together the district’s diverse stakeholders

Responsibility

As a husband, father, teacher and community organizer, Byron is not afraid to take on difficult issues or to be held accountable for achieving results. He believes:

* True reform cannot happen unless leaders’ results are measured and compared to what they promised

* “Politics as usual” flourishes when constituents cannot see what their representatives are doing — or with, and for whom, they are doing it

* “Sunlight is the best antiseptic”

Opportunity

Byron believes the people of the 198th deserve dramatic improvements in opportunities, including:

* Increased crime prevention in our streets and schools

* Improvements in the quality of educational and job opportunities

* Business and civic development that enriches all communities for the long haul

Byron Davis deserves your money and your time. If you'd like to donate to his campaign, click here and if you'd like to join Liberty City for a lit drop in Mt. Airy on Monday evening at 6:45 PM, email me. Rides will be provided from Center City.

And if you live in the district, Byron deserves your vote.

Ok, the race for Vince Fumo's seat is such a car wreck on the highway: you just can't help but stare. It's important, but there is so much else going on like the city budget, gun law drama with the DA, state rep challengers like Brown and Davis, and incumbent fighters like Tony Payton...oh, and isn't there a presidential debate or something tonight?

That said, let's talk for one sec about Dougherty's new poll. I asked campaign manager Brian Hickey if cross-tabs were released to media, and he said no. So that means we've only got this email to go on:

So I am no pollster, but I know a bit about voter targeting and I passed statistics on the 2nd try. So here goes some questions:

1. How many voters were sampled?
2. Was the sample comprised of frequent voters + a demographically accurate sampling of the unlikley voters who are coming out for Presidential election?
3. What is the margin of error?

Without answers to those questions, based on this data, it's hard not to think that Dicker and Farnese are pretty much in a tie, and that undecideds will distribute pretty evenly. And, if the poll is only of frequent voters, it makes sense that Dougherty is so far ahead, since those are folks who have gotten the most mail, calls, and the most likely to listen to ward leader/committee person advice.

That's not to deny the fact that Dougherty clearly has a huge advantage, not just in poll numbers, but cash on hand, and endorsements too. But without crosstabs for the poll released today, it's hard to get a more accurate picture of the race--especially since a voter universe this big and unpredictable hasn't been seen in Philly in over 30 years.

Many thanks to Marcia Gelbart at the Inky for this from last night's Jefferson-Jackson dinner, where both Clinton and Obama addressed city ward leaders, from Obama:

He also cited Fattah as something of an inspiration to him when he ran for senator in Illinois. "I said to myself, if a guy named Chaka Fattah can get elected, so can Barack Obama."

From today's DN:

Tired of having your cell-phone signal fade away when you ride the Market-Frankford El underground?

Well, if you're an AT&T user, you're in luck.

AT&T officials said yesterday its customers can now make calls, send text messages and check their e-mails when they ride the blue line underground, thanks to a new wireless system that the communications company installed in the c

I am sorry El users. I hope the trolley is still safe.

I am still reeling from the events of this weekend in the 1st state senate race. (Click here for background.) Anne says she is still in this race to win, but her staff and volunteers who quit say that she has changed her campaign strategy to focus on Center City wards only to help John Dougherty, and to secure a 2nd place win for herself.

I am not sure what the truth is, and Anne has not called me back yet, but apparently she was shown a poll by Larry Ceisler that puts her in 2nd place, and she has said that her decision to change strategy is about using resources as effectively as possible to move up, and win 1st place. This poll has not been publicly released, nor has any poll been released that shows Farnese in 2nd either.

Even without polling, or knowing the whole story about Anne's staff quitting, Farnese still has a huge money advantage over Anne, and for anyone who has ever worked an election you'll know that without a serious volunteer army, (in a district like like you'd easily need 2,000-5,000 voter IDs + 250 or more Eday volunteers) it is hard to win without money to pay field staff. That means Anne could be in serious trouble and is unable to win even 2nd place.

Accept that possibility as a reality for a minute. An important question for Dicker supporters and undecideds then becomes:

Is there a difference to you between Dougherty and Farnese?

I have heard every possible answer in on and offline conversations with folks, from Dougherty is the one who can amass power in Harrisburg the quickest, and do good things for the city, to Dougherty is corrupt and will be indicted, or that Dougherty does not have any progressive credentials to draw upon from his labor leader resume. Farnese on the other hand has been around groups like PFC and Liberty City, and done real work to support them, and developed a progressive platform, say some, whereas others think he is beholden to Vince Fumo, and still more think he needs to demonstrate more of an understanding and commitment to liberal ideals.

A real conversation about the issues are important, and some sense of metrics should be used to get to produce a real analysis of the two.

• At the end of the day, if elected, which of these two has the most in common with the ideals of the progressive community?
• What are the issues the state senate is likely to consider in 2009, and what lead will the Guv or new leadership in the House provide?
• Which of the two would best lead the fight for progressive legislation?
• Which would be the most effective in actually passing it, and why?
• And what do we expect realistically from a newly elected city-elected state senator?

For as much talk as there has been about this race, there's been little real substantive talk about the issues. Who is up for a conversation about them?

(warning: spin will be heavily moderated, so keep your comments on track! There are other forums in which to talk about the political intrigue, I will heavily moderate this particular post to guarantee that folks are only talking about policy issues by candidate.)

Yesterday, Mayor Nutter signed into law some pretty serious measures to try to end gun violence. According to the Inky:

The five laws - called everything from unconstitutional to criminal by critics - do the following:

Limit handgun purchases to one a month.

Require lost or stolen firearms to be reported to police within 24 hours.

Prohibit individuals under protection-from-abuse orders from possessing guns if ordered by the court.

Allow removal of firearms from "persons posing a risk of imminent personal injury" to themselves or others.

Outlaw the possession and sale of certain assault weapons.

Cool! It's time the city stood up for itself, and Nutter's actions not only send a signal that his administration is going to devote resources to the fight, but also serve as a real incentive for our local state legislative delegation (including those suburban members who have a vested interest in seeing less guns on the streets) to fight for us too.

After we win, I hope this kind of resolve and logic...

Nutter embraced the idea of taking "direct action" to challenge a legal status quo to protect city residents.

"If we all sat around bemoaning what the law was on a regular basis," Nutter said. "I'd probably still be picking cotton somewhere as opposed to being mayor of the city of Philadelphia."

...will be extended to other areas of divergence between city residents and the state legislature, like allowing same-sex unions, or implementing progressive taxation, or requiring a fair distribution of education funds, or passing an even better campaign finance law, etc.

How awesome would it be if Mayor Nutter made the city solicitors' office into a totally activist office, responsible for challenging the state constitution every time it prohibits Philadelphia from passing progressive laws to the benefit of its people?

I spent many of my formative years babysat at the knees of my grandparents and aunts and uncles in South Jersey, and I never once thought I'd volunteer to move there. I love my family don't get me wrong, but I hated how they would always call our city "Philly," and complain about the taste of our water, and were generally down on the urban environment.

But, as much as I love Philadelphia, after 28 years it's finally occurred to me that maybe they were right. Except it's not Philadelphia I find fault with, but Pennsylvania.

New Jersey is a solidly blue state, and they are consistently on the cutting edge when it comes to progressive public policy. From civil unions for LGBT people to liberalized absentee voting laws to a very progressive income tax to abolishing the death penalty, you've got your pick of concrete progressive legislative accomplishments to chose from in NJ.

And yesterday's really topped the cake: New Jersey became one of only three states in the nation to offer paid family leave to its workers.

From the Inky:

New Jersey's version would offer workers up to six weeks' leave to care for sick family members and newborn or adopted children. During the last legislative session, another version of the bill, which would have offered up to 10 weeks of paid leave, failed to clear the legislature.

The current bill would offer workers leave at two-thirds of their salary, up to $504 per week, for six weeks. Workers would pay for the program through payroll deductions, which would cost an estimated $33 per year. Workers would be limited to one leave per 12-month period.

Federal law mandates most employers give workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid family leave, although companies with fewer than 50 employees are exempt.

Paid family leave is an essential plank in a 21st century New Deal for workers. Why?

Because when the first New Deal got started in 1933, many more households contained a full-time stay-at-home member. So when someone else got sick or ill, there was someone available to help.

This is not the case today as any of us who has cared for a sick family member can tell you. In an era where hospital stays are shorter, prescriptions are handed out like candy, and the procession of home care workers into the home of a sick family member can make your head spin, it's necessary to have someone else around full-time.

But without paid leave, when one of the worst aspects of our conversion into a service economy is that vast numbers of workers no longer have sick or vacation days, a lot of people care for their family members in lieu of earning wages, and in some cases, give up their job to do so. Paid family leave addresses this problem.

There are also obviously a lot more women in the workplace today than in 1933, which makes paid family leave an essential worker benefit for any female employee who wants to give birth. Not to mention the fact that starting a family via birth or adoption interferes with work in almost every scenario you can imagine (one parent or two, gay or straight) since we all work a lot more more hours than did our forebearers.

Paid family leave allows families to stay fiscally secure during rough times which, in the long run, benefits our shared economy. It's a shame that states are having to slowly fix this the lack of paid leave in the "landmark" FMLA bill Clinton got passed back in the 90's, but it's heartening that it is happening, and happening right across the river.

In short, I heart NJ's paid family leave.

We need this here too. Dollar for dollar, New Jersey is really setting itself up as a competitor with our region for jobs and residents in a very significant way. Decent home prices, good schools, paid family leave (and for me civil union laws) are all just a PATCO ride away in New Jersey.

And the chances of us getting all (if any) of the progressive reforms they've put in place soon are slim. So unless we decide to secede soon, it might be time to call a real estate agent...

I had been thinking a lot about the death of Sean Patrick Conroy last week. Conroy suffered an asthma attack, and died, after being jumped by a group of boys in the Concourse at 13th and Market. He suffered a very unfair and brutal death in a place I have spent a lot of time myself.

And just when I gathered my thoughts enough to write about it, something else happened...

Today's Inquirer has a story about Tyesha Tazwell, attacked underground at 8th and Market by a group of kids whose ages ranged from 16 to 20. Tazwell was jumped and injured, but is alive and likely to recover. from the Inky:

Tazwell said she couldn't explain the ordeal she suffered, but believes that the root of the problem extends beyond the teens themselves.

"It starts at home. They don't have strong foundations in their households, and that's why they come out and do senseless things."

I agree. And that is why the plan to charge the five Gratz High School students involved in last week's incident as adults seems ludicrous to me.

Of what practical use is it to throw the kids who attacked Sean Patrick Conroy in jail for the rest of their lives, or charge them with the death penalty? Or to encourage homicide investigators to dig up whatever evidence they can to make them stick?

How does it help us to have our DA find the most stringent charges she can in either case?

Is the logic here that punishing all of these kids as severely as possible will make the rest of us feel safe again?

Those that have developed a bloodlust for the 16 and 17 year old boys from last week, and maybe the kids from this week, are sadly mistaken if they think that life imprisonment, or execution, is going to end random acts of violence in this city. Or, make any of us feel safer in the Concourse.

I'm not saying that both sets of attackers shouldn't suffer the consequences of their actions. And obviously, we have to deal with these kids inside the confines of our current system, but we need to quickly develop a bigger, concrete response that gets down to the root of the problem here.

And not just because this is the "liberal" thing to do. My concerns are selfish: I have been jumped before, and I did not like it. And I don't want it to happen again. To me, or anyone else. And I don't think sending these kids to jail forever will help all that much.

So rather than demagoguery and hysterics, I'd like to see a response by our city's leaders that makes a difference.

I think these incidents are proof that we need to act urgently to improve our city's schools, access to jobs, and, perhaps less practically but equally important, offer a sense of hope to those whose reckless behavior comes, in some part, not from inherent evil, but a real sense of hopelessness.

If we can't move beyond panic, and actually hear the clarion call sounded by these incidents now, well, then when?

Same-sex couples are currently denied the right to marry, or form civil unions in Pennsylvania.

And LGBT family law makes adoption and surrogacy difficult and costly.

Beyond that, LGBT Pennsylvanians aren't protected from discrimination in hiring or firing processes, or in the pursuit of home ownership, property rental or even getting hotel rooms.

As a whole, gay men earn less than straight men, lesbians less than straight women, and to be queer, and a person of color is to occupy the lowest wrung on the economic ladder.

It's not just about money: safe schools for LGBT kids, assisted living for older queers, domestic violence protection, decent and sensitive healthcare and insurance, police fairness, unfair ID requirements...

...the list of injustices against LGBT people goes on and on.

And now a new one: we're being attacked by a Philadelphia Democrat in the state senate.

A NE Philadelphia Democrat, Senator Mike Stack, voted the "Marriage Protection Amendment" out of Senate Judiciary committee 2 weeks ago. This bill would amend the state's Constitution to define marriage as solely between one man and one woman, and would prohibit civil unions, and potentially more (like Philadelphia's domestic partnership law). A vote of the whole State Senate is expected in the next 2-3 weeks.

Please add your name to the Liberty City petition to Stack here: http://www.libertycity.org/forms/stack

You may remember a few months ago, a similar petition to another Philly Dem, Rep. Bill Keller, helped achieve a reversal of his position on a non-discrimination bill, and we're hoping to strike again.

We're already doing really well on signatures (thanks to Neighborhood Networks for sending it out). And I got cc-ed on this really cool email:

From: Immy & Phil Ferrara
APRIL 02, 2008
STATE SENATOR-58TH WARD LEADER
MICHAEL J. STACK, III
SENATE DISTRICT #5 OFFICE
12361 ACADEMY ROAD
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19154-1927

Dear Senator Stack:

We are truly & deeply saddened and disappointed to learn of your “sole” Democratic Senator “affirmative” vote on the Marriage/Civil Union Senate Bill #1250, effectively restricting & denying the rights of our beloved surrogate gay & lesbian sons & daughters to marriage &/or civil union.

Our GLBT sons & daughters & friends & families (remember that multitudes of families in our area have GLBT members, including Philip Jr., our own son) suffer the last acceptable & legal discrimination each day of their lives, losing employment, housing, credit/finance, religious, police/legal rights, and now maybe even their personal relationship rights.

We would truly & dearly appreciate your granting us, as soon as possible, a meaningful period of time at your local office, as our State Senator & family friend, to discuss our concerns, and attempt to educate & inform you concerning this issue.

Thanking you in advance for your anticipated attention to our request, we remain

Respectfully yours, with Peace & Love,

Immy & Phil Ferrara, Sr.
58TH WARD--29TH DIVISION COMMITTEE WOMAN--IMMY FERRARA
58TH WARD--29TH DIVISION ALTERNATE--PHIL FERRARA, SR.
(“PROUD” parents of Philip, Jr.)
(“PROUD” 58th Ward Executive Committee Members)

Wow.

With all of the issues that Democrats in the Pennsylvania Senate--like say improved gun laws, more school funding, or an amendment to change the tax uniformity clause--it is disturbing that Stack is willing to spend time and resources to amend the Pennsylvania Constitution to deny rights.

The proposed amendment could take away existing legal protections for committed long-term couples and their children, as well as limit other types of relationship recognition. It would also prohibit civil unions.

Not to mention that it is an unstrategic bill for a D to support since constitutional amendments go before the voting public, and this one will likely hit in 2010, just in time for the Rs to use as a tool in the Gubernatorial race.

That means progressives statewide--including our local grassroots progressive groups as well as the more traditional organizational pillars of progressivity like organizations of labor folks, enviros, choice groups, immigrant rights advocates, African-American, and others, all need to pile on to this fight.

Some progressives scorn LGBT organizing with its silly "one issue" focus and "siloing," Some even blamed us for losing the 2004 election. (never mind that Kerry was kind of a dud...)

Sure, the LGBT community is no monolith: queer African-Americans, queer Fillipinos, queer Jews, queer WASPS, women, men, transwomen, transmen, other gendered folks, femmes and butches, "str8 acting" and queens, we're all different. Although, unfortunately, within our community, privelleged white men still hold most of the power, just as in society as a whole. But at the end of the day we are all united by our exclusion from heteronormativity in a way that is unique.

That's left some LGBT folks bitter toward a progressive community that doesn't seem to see LGBT struggles as a priority.

Well, here's a chance to start from scratch and focus in on one Democrat on Philadelphia who should know better.

Mike Stack needs to get with the program. Help him do that by signing the petition here:

http://www.libertycity.org/forms/stack