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- Just Equally Speaking….
- Eagles owe Philadelphia the 8 million it needs to keep libraries open
- who would like to see Verizon offer cable TV in Phila?
- Council Committee Passed the Freeze
- Carol Campbell Passes Away
- My first trip to the public library
- Fight digital exclusion
- What if half of Philadelphia didn't have roads?
Gayborhood: It's Official!
Submitted by Ray Murphy on Mon, 04/23/2007 - 5:09pm.
I know this is old news, but after much wrangling the Gayborhood was officially named the "Gayborhood" last week. There was a brief diversion into renaming the city's homo heaven "Midtown Village" but common sense prevailed, and the Gayborhood is now official.
It's a happy time for some gays, although the city's sanctioning of gay Philly life is bittersweet for people like me who saw the Gayborhood as not just a refuge from the cruel straight world, but also a center for queer organizing that could attempt to take down the patriarchy...or at least have fun trying.
Now the good old Ghood is all sanitized and filled with straight people and the sign thing sort of takes all the fun out of it.
All in all though, seeing Frank DiCicco dedicate the Gayborhood with "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" being sung in the background by the Gay Men's Choir may make it worth it.
Check out the video here (as usual philly.com makes it very complicated to share news which made embedding the video hard).
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Sanitized and as straight as
Sanitized and as straight as my two front teeth though it may have become, I am wondering if there are economic development lessons to be learned here as it relates to other segments of our population. Can you briefly speak to the history of the Gayborhood?
Why is it that those specific blocks became a congregating point? A club, restaurant, someone's apartment?
Once informally cemented as the Gayborhood, what forces drove the evolution from informal organizing to...growth into something more?
Other than the most recent "official" designation, what role did the government play, if (preferably not) any?
More Milestones
ENDA Introduced
(Washington, DC) - Today America made an historic stride forward in protecting the civil rights of transgender people. Members of Congress Barney Frank (D-MA), Deborah Pryce (R-OH), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Christopher Shays (R-CT) introduced the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would prohibit workplace discrimination based on "sexual orientation" and "gender identity."
It remains legal in 33 states to fire or refuse to hire someone based on sexual orientation, and it is legal in 42 states to do so based on a person's gender identity. Today's introduction of ENDA demonstrates that Congress recognizes the need for workplace protections on the federal level.
Congratulations! This is a
Congratulations!
This is a great milestone. Philadelphia does, in fact, have a great tradition of diversity. I drive around many of our communities, particularly in CC and South Philly and see all types of people living around each other, frequenting all types of businesses and, plainly put, it makes me so happy.
Unfortunately, our tradition of inclusiveness has lagged behind for a while. But, it is starting to catch up. This is a big step in the right direction and I'm proud that my city has a "Gay-borhood."
Now, I want to see a designation "little Mexico" in South Philly so Joe Vento can stay in Jersey forever!
Now, I want to see a
Excellent, excellent idea. Andif Geno's is not right in the heart of it, we can easily gerrymander it to make sure it is included.
If that's all it took to keep her away...........
I'd have payed for the signs myself!
Pennsylvania AFA gasbag calls for a fundie boycott of Philadelphia
Published by Pam Spaulding May 7th, 2007 in Conservatives Sure Are Funny, Bad Ideas, Fundies
Good grief. Philly Mayor John Street recently unveiled 36 rainbow street signs in the gay district of the city — Philly’s Gayborhood — located from Chestnut to Pine Streets between 11th and Broad Streets.
Philadelphia actively courts gay travel dollars, so this was just another way to highlight the City of Brotherly Love’s commitment to diversity. This support, however, has enraged Diane Gramley of the American Family Association of Pennsylvania.
http://pandagon.net/2007/05/07/pennsylvania-afa-gasbag-calls-for-a-fundi...