GLBT group reacts to candidate Hagedorn’s anti-gay blog posts

As the Minnesota Independent first reported earlier this month, 1st Congressional District candidate Jim Hagedorn removed blog posts disparaging of gays, fellow Republicans and Native Americans from his “Mr. Conservative” blog within days of announcing his candidacy. Now, with new deleted posts discovered, the state’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender advocacy group has called for an apology from Hagedorn.

State LGBT leaders weigh in: After 40 years, has Pride run its course?

Forty years ago, gay and lesbian activists rioted in New York’s Greenwich Village in protest of police raids on gay bars and arrests of gay people. This weekend’s remembrance of the Stonewall riots, which galvanized the LBGT rights movement, prompts a question: After four decades, has Pride kept its political edge, or has it become merely a big party, more focused on consumerism than civil rights?

Domestic partner benefits advance in House

Legislation that would pave the way for domestic partner benefits for state employees passed a key committee last week. Currently, gay and lesbian state employees are barred from providing state employee benefits for their families, a discrepancy that advocates say puts state government and state colleges and universities at a competitive disadvantage. The bill, HF 1219, passed the House Health Care and Human Services Policy and Oversight Committee by a voice vote.

State’s largest school district ends anti-gay policy

For more than a decade, the Anoka-Hennepin School Board had a policy that forbade teachers and students from speaking about homosexuality, except to describe it as abnormal or invalid. But the board Monday approved a more inclusive policy after years of work by community members to make the district more accepting of all students.

Marriage equality will be hot legislative issue in 2009

Same-sex marriage will again be a hot topic in the state Legislature this year, and some new initiatives are sure to create controversy. But for a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community that has been playing defense against social conservatives for more than a decade, the 2009 legislature will be the friendliest in years, some lawmakers say.

Community Commentary: Quieter session for gay issues but momentum’s still building

Minnesota Monitor welcomes guest commentaries from community members and organizations to be published at our discretion. Today, Monica Meyer, public policy director for OutFront Minnesota,  shares her thoughts on GLBT issues in the Legislature.

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