Dangerous Ideas

Wow, this is big, fantastic news! The California Supreme court has just ruled in favor of marriage equality! This makes California the second state after Massachusetts to legalize same-sex marriage.

Of course, some people who believe in segregation may have succeeded in putting forth a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage for November’s ballot. If you believe in equality, please considering joining the effort to fight this attempt at enshrining discrimination in California’s constitution.

I’ll probably be volunteering with both ECQA, a general umbrella org. for marriage equality in CA, and API Equality to spread awareness of the issues and help get out the vote to defend our rights.

I just saw this on a mailing list I’m on. Anti-choice activists gather annually on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade to protest a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion. Reproductive freedom activists also stage a demonstration at this time, and are calling out for anyone who believes in the cause to join participate:

Defend Reproductive Freedom, Rally/ March Sat. Jan. 19, San Francisco

Please join community members and activists at the “Forward– Not Back! Reproductive Justice for All!” rally and march to counterprotest the anti-abortion “Walk for Life– West Coast.” Spread the word:

Resist the religious right! Protest their anti-choice march with a vibrant reproductive rights presence on the 35th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade! Saturday, January 19th, 2008. Assemble at Justin Herman Plaza, Market and Embarcadero streets in San Francisco at 10:30am.

This will be the 4th year that 10,000 right wingers will be bussed in to San Francisco for their annual “Walk for Life– West Coast.” Organizers of the “Walk for Life” want to strip women of their rights to a safe and legal abortion.

We need YOU to participate in forming a counter-demonstration by joining the January 19th Coalition. Your ideas, energy and outreach are urgently needed.

We demand: free, accessible abortion on demand; no forced sterilization; health care; pre- and post-natal care and childcare for all; safe and accessible contraceptives; the end of discrimination of GLBTQI and queer communities; sexual freedom and quality sex education.

The next January 19th Coalition meetings are Wednesday January 9th and Wednesday January 16th from 7:00-8:30pm at New Valencia Hall, 625 Larkin Street, Suite 202, San Francisco (a few blocks from Civic Center BART and on the Muni lines 19 and 31).

For more information, please call (415) 864-1278 or email the Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive Rights at bacorrinfo@gmail.com. Or check out www.bacorr.org. Everyone is welcome.

If you can’t make a meeting just show up at 10:30am on 1/19/08, Justin Herman Plaza, SF.

I’m glad to hear that Hillary Clinton and John McCain won in Hew Hampshire. I hope the rest of the early primary states continue a trend of mixed results so that those of us voting later feel like we’re actually participating in the election (of course, states voting after Super Duper Tuesday might not be so lucky).

Absentee ballots are going out this week in California. Given that more than 40 percent of the voters for the last California election voted by mail, it’s possible that a huge number of Californians will vote before the results of the other early primaries are known. Which means that some voters in California might actually vote without using earlier primary results as a criteria.

For a while, it looked like once again a small number of voters would have a hugely disproportionate effect on the presidential race. Headlines kept reading like Clinton was almost out of the running and that Barack Obama was the new front-runner. I find this so disturbing. As John Edwards said today after his 3rd place finish, even after NH has voted, less than one half of one percent of the country’s voters have had a shot at this. Why should so few people determine who’s the front-runner and who isn’t? And they really can because in addition to the media, polls showed a marked difference before and after the Iowa caucuses. Fortunately, the polls did not accurately predict the actual votes.

I completely understand that the idea with staggered votes is to give smaller states a chance to have presidential candidates visit them, but is what we have now really better than a national primary? It’s always the same two states that vote first. And Iowa and New Hampshire are not exactly representative of the rest of the country (for one thing, both states have relatively few people of color voting).

Do John Edwards, Barack Obama, Bill Richardson and Joe Biden prefer white voters? Maybe that’s an unfair question, but it’s the first thing I thought of when I read that John Edwards, Barack Obama, Bill Richardson and Joe Biden pulled out of the Michigan primary because Michigan dared to move their primary into January. The Democratic Party has followed this up by deciding that Michigan voters shouldn’t matter:

Democratic leaders voted Saturday to strip Michigan of all its delegates to the national convention next year as punishment for scheduling an early presidential primary in violation of party rules.

In spite of the vote, some party leaders and officials said they believed the delegates would eventually be seated at the convention.

Michigan, with 156 delegates, has scheduled a Jan. 15 primary. Democratic Party rules prohibit states other than Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina from holding nominating contests before Feb. 5. Florida was hit with a similar penalty in August for scheduling a Jan. 29 primary.

The bit about Michigan maybe getting their votes back later sounds good except that Edwards, Obama, Richardson, and Biden aren’t even on the ballot, so Michigan voters will have fewer checkboxes than voters in most other states. Something similar has happened to Florida for pushing up their primary, too.

Why is it so important to preserve the historical role of Iowa and New Hampshire as the first in the nation caucus and primary respectively? According to Wikipedia, Iowa only about 4 percent of the population includes people of color, and New Hampshire is even more unbalanced at only about 3 percent people of color. This compares with Michigan where about 17 percent of the population are people of color and Florida at about 19 percent. True, the Democrats have allowed Nevada (same neighborhood of POC as MI and FL) and South Carolina (which has even more POC at about 31 percent) to move their primaries forward. But, of course, following IA and NH.

I can understand the Dems wanting to try to keep states in line, but is disenfranchising voters really the right way to do it? Especially since both MI and FL have much more diverse populations than the favored states of NH and IA?

I’m mad not just because the candidates have pulled out, but because they aren’t fighting for the voting rights of Michiganders and Floridians and pointing out the obvious racism inherent in the system. And people wonder why people are drawn to 3rd parties. Argh!

Maybe a national primary would introduce issues of its own, but the current system just sucks. If we had to have some smaller states go first to give them more attention, why shouldn’t we put states like South Carolina, New Mexico, and Hawaii first in line? Hawaii’s population is about 59 percent POC and, heck, it was a sovereign nation not that long ago!

Anita Borg had a dream: by the year 2020, half the graduates of computers science programs would be women. That’s a lot easier than having half the people in high tech be women, but it’s still a tall order. Anita passed away in 2003, but she still inspires people to work for the equality. She started a group called Systers that was one of the first online communities for women. Systers is a women-only group that provides an important network for women in science and technology. The Anita Borg Institute carries on some of Anita’s work. Recently, the Anita Borg Institute was given an anonymous challenge grant – every donation will be matched up to $15,000 through December 6. Here’s the message posted by Robin Jeffries of ABI to the Systers mailing list:

Systers,

The systers list is sponsored and supported by the Anita Borg Institute (ABI), a non-profit devoted to improving the lives of women technologies and helping technology improve the lives of women everywhere.

Like every other non-profit, they exist on the donations of others. Those donations provide systers with technical support (thanks, Kathy, for all you do), computing power, spam protection, support for pass-it-on grant reviewing, and may other things. In addition to systers, ABI runs the Grace Hopper celebration, administers several awards for women in computing – so that the male dominated industry will know who the brilliant women are, provides leadership training for women at various stages of their career, and a host of other things.

ABI has just been offered an anonymous challenge grant. From now until December 6, your individual donations will be matched dollar for dollar (up to $15,000), thanks to a generous grant from an anonymous donor. If they meet this goal, it will result in $30,000 in funding toward their many programs.

Please, consider giving to the Anita Borg Institute NOW (before December 6), while this challenge grant is active. I already have. Your donation makes a difference to our field, to many of the women working in it, and to women all over the world who want to better themselves through technology. Please pledge whatever you can (even $5 or $10) to help meet this $15,000 goal.

To learn how you can donate, go to http://anitaborg.org/get-involved/donate/

Thanks,

Robin Jeffries Her Systers’ Keeper

One of my first personal close experiences with injustice in our society was the murder of Vincent Chin. My mom worked for General Motors at the time (she never met him in person) and was involved early in the fight for justice for him. Until activists made an issue of it, the murder of Chin by two white laid-off auto workers didn’t make waves.

Bigotry-motivated murders are still happening regularly, and still being underreported. Although the brutal murders of Brandon Teena and Gwen Araujo are well known, the Transgender Day of Remembrance Web site notes that more than one person a month has died because of their gender expression:

The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, whose murder on November 28th, 1998 kicked off the “Remembering Our Dead” web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester’s murder — like most anti-transgender murder cases — has yet to be solved.

Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgendered — that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant — each was a victim of violence based on bias against transgendered people.

We live in times more sensitive than ever to hatred based violence, especially since the events of September 11th. Yet even now, the deaths of those based on anti-transgender hatred or prejudice are largely ignored. Over the last decade, more than one person per month has died due to transgender-based hate or prejudice, regardless of any other factors in their lives. This trend shows no sign of abating.

Given the recent news about stripping gender identity protection from ENDA and that the stories of Brandon Teena and Gwen Araujo it’s almost surprising that the Day of Remembrance isn’t more widely covered. The Day of Remembrance has been going on for nine years. I’m on several LGBT mailing lists but only only one of them – Equality North Carolina – sent out a mailing mentioning the event. Of course, the HRC is one of the other organizations whose mailing list I’m on. They’re the organization I think of first when people talk about how same sex marriage is a rich gay white person’s issue. I don’t think that’s true, of course – marriage equality affects everyone – but I can see how people might come to think so if they see the HRC as a leading LGBT org.

Ironically, as Lambda Legal notes, removing protection for gender identity from ENDA cripples the act not just for transfolk, but for many others:

Lambda Legal’s preliminary assessment of the revised version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act shows the bill to be riddled with loopholes in addition to failing altogether to protect transgender people against discrimination.

“Leaving out protections for transgender people is unacceptable, and passing a bill riddled with loopholes will make it harder to achieve equality on the job,” said Kevin Cathcart, Executive Director at Lambda Legal. “You can’t be fired for being lesbian, gay or bisexual but you can be fired if your boss thinks you fit their stereotype of one.”

FYI, one creative way some artists have marked the day is the Transgender Day of Remembrance Web Comics Project.

From CPA:

Dear Allies,

Tomorrow, Thurs. Nov. 15! Please join us in supporting the Parc Hong Kong workers in their first public protest. We will start promptly at 11 am and end by 11:45 am, so please try to arrive by 10:30 or 10:45.

thank you for your support!

Shaw San Liu Worker Organizing Center Chinese Progressive Association

“Parc Hong Kong” Immigrant Restaurant Workers Protest Wage Theft,

Seek up to 3 Months Backwages

Rally and Press Conference

11:00 am, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2007

San Francisco City Hall Steps

On Thurs., Nov. 15, “Parc Hong Kong” restaurant workers are standing up to protest wage theft and demand justice.

Join Chinese immigrant restaurant workers, community supporters and members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors at a rally on Thurs. Nov. 15, from 11 am to 12 pm.

They will protest wage theft of up to 3 months backwages owed, demand that the employer pay all back wages and penalties, and call upon the city government to enforce labor laws in San Francisco.

The Parc Hong Kong Story

Over 40 Chinese immigrant workers are owed up to 3 months of wages (estimated total over $100,00) from the Parc Hong Kong restaurant, a dim sum and seafood restaurant in the Richmond district. Many are new immigrants who did not get a penny for their work.

Time and time again, the employer has offered workers bounced checks instead of paying their wages. In August they shut their doors and have resisted efforts by federal, state and city labor departments to reclaim workers wages.

At the press event, Parc Hong Kong workers will deliver wage claims forms totaling over $100,000 to OLSE and give testimony to the injustice they have experienced. Join us to tell Parc Hong Kong and other irresponsible restaurant owners that the elected leadership and community will not tolerate further wage theft in San Francisco!

For more information, please contact Shaw San Liu at (415) 391-6986 ext. 313 or reply to shawsan at_ cpasf _dot org.

Sorry about the last minute notice, but there’s a vigil this evening for Ruby Rodriguez, who was murdered in San Francisco one week ago today. The press release mentions two other murders of transwomen of color in the past six months just in the Bay Area, which is a crazy high number.

This is from CUAV’s (Community United Against Violence) press release, which I saw on APIQWTC:

Community Mourns Murder of Latina Transgender Woman —————————————-

Requests Attendance at Vigil to Demand Change

San Francisco, California (March 22, 2007) – A Nicaraguan transgender woman, Ruby Rodriguez, 24 years old, was murdered on Friday, March 16, 2007. Her body was found on the corner of Cesar Chavez and Indiana Streets in the Mission District of San Francisco. The murder is currently under investigation by the San Francisco Police Department. Community United Against Violence (CUAV), EL-LA, San Francisco LGBT Community Center, TRANS Project, allies, and community members will hold a community vigil in her honor on Friday, March 23, 2007 at 6:00PM, on the corner of 24th Street and Mission Street in the Mission District.

Organizers request that the community bring a white candle to the vigil. There will also be an additional altar set up on Cesar Chavez and Indiana Street, and community members are encouraged to bring flowers, photographs, cards and good wishes to this site. Let us not forget Ruby. She was an exceptional woman who was intent on improving her life. Ruby participated in various support groups and language classes, and idolized Chicana singer Selena.

This murder comes at the heels of at least two other violent deaths of transgender women of color in the San Francisco Bay Area over the past six months. Transgender people, particularly low-income transgender women of color, are disproportionately poor, homeless, criminalized and imprisoned as a result of systemic discrimination in our daily attempts to access safe housing, healthcare, employment, and education. Unfortunately, Ruby’s murder is not an exception, but an everyday fear for many transgender people who are targeted and brutalized by institutions and society at large. Our communities mourn Ruby’s death and ask for a renewed commitment to real safety for transgender communities. It is vital that the Mayor’s Office, the San Francisco Police Department, and the District Attorney’s Office work to end the cycles of criminalization, poverty, and violence in transgender communities and communities of color.

Please direct any questions about the vigil to Tina D’Elia or Alexandra Byerly. If anyone has any information regarding Ruby’s murder, please contact Inspector Karen Lynch at (415) 553-1388 or Inspector Tom Cleary at (415) 553-9569 of the SFPD Homicide Unit.

The next protest against Monster Cable is this Wed., Feb. 21, 2007, at Union Square (San Francisco). Among others, you can see Hei Gu (Chinese drumming group) there with big red drums. From CPA’s Justice for Monster Cable Workers blog (slightly reformatted for clarity; I think this must have been pasted from another medium):

Weekly Boycott Action

Chinese New Year’s, But No Red Envelope for Workers

Wed., Feb. 21, 12 pm - 1:30 pm

Meeting at Union Square, dowtown San Francisco

Come spend your lunchtime with laid-off workers, community allies and musicians!

BOYCOTT MONSTER CABLE! After months of protests and no progress with Monster Cable, laid-off workers have launched a boycott of Monster Cable products. Support the boycott and Monster Cable laid-off workers in their demands that the company:

• Provide us with a just and fair compensation package which recognizes our years of service
• Contribute to a Community Transition Fund to support laid-off workers in vocational training and job development

The issue of low-income housing at Pacific Renaissance Plaza in Oakland Chinatown may be nearing a close. PacRen has been put up for sale and the bids are coming in. And it’s not just affordable housing that’s on the line any longer, it’s also the commercial property as well. PacRen is a prominent fixture in Chinatown, and upcoming decisions by the City of Oakland will determine how much affordable housing will remain in the complex, and also the type of merchants that will be housed there. This could turn into a really positive thing – imagine a place where individuals and families with low incomes can afford to live in Chinatown, living in a plaza that includes locally owned shops true to the character of today’s Chinatown. Of couse, it could turn out differently, too, with affordable units being reduced or eliminated, and local merchants being pushed out, a story that’s repeated in so many communities these days.

Please take a moment to ask Oakland city council members to help preserve the character of Oakland Chinatown. Here’s an action alert from the SCEC:

STOP CHINATOWN EVICTIONS COMMITTEE —————————————-

(Asian Pacific Environmental Network, CJWP, Just Cause Oakland, Oakland Tenants Union)

COMMUNITY ACTION ALERT: OAKLAND CHINATOWN AFFORDABLE HOUSING HANGS IN THE BALANCE

ACTION NEEDED: Contact Oakland City Councilmembers and Mayor Dellums to Request that No Council Decision be Made at the February 20, 2007 Closed Session that Would Result in the Sale of ANY of the Pacific Renaissance Affordable Housing Units.

City Contact Information:

• Mayor Ron Dellums, 238-3141, officeofthemayor@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 1: Jane Brunner, 238-7001, jbrunner@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 2: Pat Kernighan, 238-7002, pkernighan@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 3: Nancy Nadel, 238-7003, nnadel@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 4: Jean Quan, 238-7004, jquan@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 5: Ignacio De la Fuente, 238-7005, idelafuente@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 6: Desley Brooks, 238-7006, dbrooks@oaklandnet.com
• Dist. 7: Larry Reid, 238-7007, lreid@oaklandnet.com
• At large: Henry Chang, 238-7008, cityochang@aol.com

Please call and email the Mayor and councilpeople today. The message is simple: In their closed session on the 20th, only approve bids that will preserve ALL 50 of the affordable housing units at Pacific Renaissance.

COMMUNITY STRUGGLE BACKGROUND: Four years after the Oakland Chinatown and housing rights communities have been fighting to preserve the Pacific Renaissance affordable housing units, and three decades after Chinatown activists worked to secure these same units, we are close to securing permanent affordable housing for Chinatown’s low-income and elderly residents. Some of the key aspects of the struggle include the following:

• In the 70’s and 80’s, Chinatown activists worked to secure the Pacific Renaissance 50 affordable housing units in response to the devastation of thousands of affordable units in Chinatown due to City redevelopment efforts. The City of Oakland provided over $30 million in public subsidies to the Pacific Renaissance developers, including a $7 million loan for the affordable housing.
• In April 2003, the Pacific Renaissance developers attempted to evict all 50 families, mainly low-income, immigrant elders. The Oakland progressive community organized in support of these tenants. Community groups and tenants filed a lawsuit against the developers and compelled the City of Oakland to sue the developers for defrauding the City and tenants that resulted in the loss of the City’s $7 million loan and the 50 affordable housing units.
• In May 2006, on the eve of trial, the parties entered into a tentative settlement agreement that would result in the preservation of the Pacific Renaissance affordable housing units. The settlement provided for the City to purchase the commercial property, affordable housing, and parking spaces for $40 million. The City could then sell the commercial property and parking spaces to another buyer for a higher price. The City has been working to find a buyer for the property and set a deadline of January 31, 2007 for all bids.
• The community has made clear, again and again over the years, its support for retention of all 50 affordable apartments at Pacific Renaissance. They are central to meeting the housing needs of low-income residents as well as to the vitality and character of Chinatown.

WHAT’S AT STAKE: City Council Decision at the February 20th Closed Session Could Result in the Sale of Some of the Affordable Housing Units

• The City is trying to recoup its costs of the lawsuit by selling off some of the affordable housing units. We need to make sure our elected officials know that the housing rights and Chinatown communities do not want any of the units to be sold.
• Creative options exist to help close any money gaps that the City has including renegotiating the sales price of the Pacific Renaissance property, allowing a nonprofit housing developer to purchase the affordable units, and deferring the City’s attorneys fees. The City must get back into negotiations with the Community and Tenant Plaintiffs to work out a solution.
• This is a closed-door meeting with no public comment. We need to make our voices heard NOW to impact the decision on Tuesday.

Please call and email the Mayor and councilpeople today.

The message is simple: In their closed session on the 20th, only approve bids that will preserve ALL 50 of the affordable housing units at Pacific Renaissance.

Thank you for your crucial support.

For More Information Contact: Just Cause Oakland, 763-5877; victory@justcauseoakland.org

For more info on the web, http://www.cjwp.org/stopevictions.html

I just got a message from a friend at the Chinese Progressive Association about a new blog supporting the workers Monster Cable laid off. The site has background on the case … here’s an excerpt:

Background On Oct. 20, 2006, Monster Cable Products, Inc. laid off over 120 production workers from their Brisbane facility, outsourcing their jobs to low-wage labor overseas to increase profits. The company is a highly profitable company which sells high end audiovisual cables, home theater equipment, etc. The laid-off workers are mostly monolingual middle-aged Chinese, Vietnamese, Latino, and Eastern European immigrants who worked an average of over 8 years and as many as 20 years for the company.

The campaign is asking people to link to the blog, maybe using Monster Cable in the link text, so that it’ll come up higher in search rankings.

Monster Cable makes audio and video cables that are sold at places like the Apple store (there’s a blog post about a protest that was organized at this week’s Mac World conference), Circuit City, the Good Guys, etc.

It’s sad when people who build a place get pushed around and eventually can’t afford to live in the neighborhood they made a desirable destination. CJWP has been involved in the effort to get low-income housing reinstated at the Pacific Renaissance Plaza. Many of the people who were displaced were elderly, disabled, poor, and/or monolingual. Their homes at PacRen were important not only because they were affordable housing, but because they were in the heart of Chinatown, where they could see doctors, friends, and others who speak their language. The tenants’ battle has made some great progress, but it’s a complicated situation. From the Oakland Tribune:

The city purchased the space — plus 50 affordable residential units — for $40 million as part of a settlement agreement to end a drawn-out lawsuit with developer and owner Lawrence Chan.

The city hopes to retain the 50 affordable units, but needs to recoup its expenses — not only the $40 million but also several million dollars in lawyers fees, said Carl Chan.

The article talks about how some commercial tenants hope to buy the property but that it might be hard for them to compete with large developers:

If they go with the highest bidder — (possibly) an outsider with deep pockets — rent will increase and we cannot afford to stay here, said Wong, who hopes the city will give current tenants a chance to buy the property, even if they are not the highest bidder.

Wong and others point to Lawrence Chan as an example of an outsider — a Honk Kong-based developer — who doesnt have the communitys interest at heart. The business owners — many of whom own and work at their shops six or seven days a week for long hours and are familiar with the community — want to keep the plaza a vibrant center of Chinatown.

Just in time for the holidays, Monster Cable laid off employees and outsourced their jobs overseas. These employees have worked for Monster Cable for years and are mostly immigrants. The Chinese Progressive Association (CPA) is organizing a protest to crash their holiday party at 1 p.m. Friday (today!). Details from their mailing (reformatted):

MONSTER CABLE’S HOLIDAY PARTY ACTION! FRI, DEC 22ND AT 1 PM IN BRISBANE —————————————-

Last weekend, over 100 laid-off Monster Cable workers and their community supporters held a press conference and holiday march for justice, delivering candy canes to major electronics retailers who carry Monster Cable Products, such as Circuit City, Cambridge SoundWorks and Guitar City for them to call on CEO Noel Lee’s “holiday spirit” to fairly resolve the concerns of laid-off workers. Thank you for all that came out - but its not over, we need YOUR help for our next important action before Christmas.

Noel Lee, the CEO, is having a holiday party at his factory in Brisbane this Friday, December 22nd at 1 pm and we want to crash it! Since Monster Cable Stole the workers’ Christmas, its time to crash his Christmas party. It will be FUN! In the holiday spirit, we will sing Chinese and English Christmas carols and give a nice Christmas gift and card to Noel Lee!

We know the holidays are near and that everyone is very busy this time of the year, but this is the final action before Christmas. Please make it to this important action, details are below: >

• Date: Friday, December 22, 2006
• Time: 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
• Place: Meet at Bayshore Blvd & Geneva Ave (in Daly City near Brisbane) - we will shuttle people over to the location - Please Call 510-449-1172 if you arrive later.

BACKGROUND On Oct. 20, 2006, Monster Cable Products, Inc. laid off over 120 production workers from their Brisbane facility, outsourcing their jobs to low-wage labor overseas to increase profits. The company is a highly profitable company which sells high end audiovisual cables, home theater equipment, etc. The laid-off workers are mostly monolingual middle-aged Chinese, Vietnamese, Latino, and Eastern European immigrants who worked an average of over 8 years and as many as 20 years for the company. Laid off workers want a just severance as with previous laid off workers and want the company to address their long term unemployment issues by contributing to a Community-Worker Transition Fund. Last year alone, Monster Cable’s estimated sales were over $300 million dollars.

*MAJOR RETAILERS THAT CARRY MONSTER PRODUCTS*

• Best Buy
• Home Depot
• Radio Shack
• Frys Electronics
• CompUSA
• Target
• Circuit City
• Cambridge SoundWorks
• Guitar Center
• Apple Store

Ever been at a demonstration, march, or rally and wanted to make more noise? A group of people at CJWP have gotten together with some others to form a new drumming group. The idea is to practice together regularly (in Oakland) until we get good enough to make a good showing at rallies, marches, and other events.

You can sign up for the list at http://lists.jooksing.com/mailman/listinfo/cjwp-drumming.

I’ve seen this announcement for “In God’s House” on a few mailing lists I’m on. Unfortunately, I’m probably going to be in Los Angeles when this film gets shown, otherwise it sounds interesting.

Anyway, the movie is playing on Wednesday, October 11 at 7:00 pm:

Chapel Building Pacific School of Religion (PSR) 1798 Scenic Ave (at corner of LeConte Ave), Berkeley, CA 94709

Here’s an excerpt from the film’s Web site

Asian, Christian, and Gay or Lesbian? Asian American lesbians and gays and their parents and allies have been largely invisible and silent in Christian churches. Some Asian American churches ignore and rarely discuss the issue for fear of division and conflict. Other Asian American church leaders have condemned homosexuality and publicly protested against same-sex marriage. Yet there are many gay and lesbian Asian American Christians and their families, quiet and invisible, in churches across the country. Where are their stories? What are their experiences? This honest and thought-provoking film invites you to hear personal stories which have long been unheard. It tells a story that those in the church need to hear: that of Asian American Christian lesbian and gay people and their parents.

Oneida Chi, a devout young adult Chinese American in an evangelical Christian church, speaks of her struggle with the discovery of her own sexual orientation and her search for self-acceptance and religious community. Husband and wife Harold and Ellen Kameya, active leaders in their Japanese American church, tell the story of their shock and confusion when their beloved daughter first came out, of the isolation and alienation they felt in their church, and of the importance of a church community in their Christian journey to grow in understanding, courage and love for their daughter. The Rev. Nobuaki Hanaoka, an immigrant Asian pastor, seeks to fulfill Jesus’ message of justice and love for all people as he speaks out and supports the full acceptance and affirmation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the church.