“GAY REPORT” March 22 2012

In Local News:
 The Illinois primary elections were held on Tuesday. The elections received a record Low turnout with a meager 24%, the lowest turnout for a presidential primary in 70 years. This year GOP front runner Mitt Romney rolled out an easy win over his main rival Rick Santorum. The primary also spelled defeat for some Gay and Lesbian candidates, for an election, that despite the truly disappointing turnout was highly monitored by the LGBT community. Mike Forti, a gay Democratic Cook County Judicial Circuit candidate and Mary Trew lost their races for judge. But lesbian judicial candidate Andrea Schleifer and Gay attorney John G. Dalton won judicial seats for the 12th and 2nd sub circuits. Additionally the race between Paula Basta and incumbent representative Kelly Cassidy for the 16th district seat came out in favor of Representative Cassidy with 62% of the votes.
 Two men were quickly thrown out at a Santorum rally last weekend in Arlington Heights, Ill. after they protested by yelling Mic check and kissing in the crowd.
 The men, identified as Timothy Tross and Ben Clifford, did not confirm whether or not they were gay saying they wanted to emphasize Santorum’s anti-gay-rights policy. The incident occurred while Santorum was speaking at Christian Academy in Arlington Heights, Ill. His appearance had been expected to draw protests from gay rights supporters.
 On the subject of elections, the advocate reported that Michelle Obama is reminding voters that their choice for president will affect the fate of marriage equality, since the president makes appointments to the Supreme Court. The first lady campaigned for the president’s reelection at a Tribeca fund-raiser hosted by Robert DeNiro. She stated “Let’s not forget the impact [the Supreme Court’s] decisions will have on our children’s lives for decades to come — on their privacy and security; on whether they can speak freely, worship openly, and love whomever they choose.”
 k.d. lang and The Siss Boom Bang will headline the Center on Halsted’s fifth annual Human First Gala May 12 at the Harris Theater. Andy Cohen from Bravo will be hosting the event. Lang said “I’m looking forward to celebrating and honoring the work that Center on Halsted is doing for the LGBT community” Tickets for Human First 2012 range from $125 to $500 per person and may be purchased securely online at Harris Theater’s Web site
 Juries found Dharun Ravi guilty of invasion of privacy and hate crimes for spying on his Rutgers University roommate Tyler Clementi. What is being called the Rutgers Spycam case came about when Ravi used a webcam to spy on his roommate in a romantic moment with another man and wrote on his twitter account about it. Cleminti asked dormitory officials to change his room but committed suicide soon after. The jury of seven women and five men deliberated for 12 hours and agreed, finding him guilty of hate crimes among other charges.

 The New Hampshire House of Representatives has rejected a bill to repeal the state’s 2-year-old law allowing same-sex marriage, dealing a blow to activists who had hoped to make the Legislature the first in the country to repeal a gay marriage law. Lawmakers in the House voted 211 to 116 against the bill, which would have repealed gay marriage and replaced it with a preexisting Civil Union’s law. Opponents of gay marriage had hoped to win the two-thirds majority to pass the bill even Gov. John Lynch had threatened to veto the bill if it ever reached his desk
 Fashion designer and filmmaker Tom Ford is the newest celebrity to take a stand against bullying. Along with fellow filmmaker Brett Ratner and the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, Ford has created a filmmaking contest to battle bullying. The contest encourages aspiring filmmakers to produce an advertisement for GLSEN’s “Think Before You Speak” campaign. The winner will be flown to Los Angeles and will attend GLSEN’s annual Respect Awards where the ad will be screened. If you’re an aspiring filmmaker, visit GLSEN.org for more info.
In International News:
 The Canadian government is warning gay tourists to Russia to avoid being open about their orientation if visiting St. Petersburg after a new law came into effect last weekend barring the promotion of homosexuality. The new St. Petersburg law bans “public actions propagandizing homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality and transsexuality among minors:” Governmental Travel warnings are now noting that while homosexuality is legal in the country, “some still strongly disapprove of it.
 LGBT people are advised to avoid displaying affection in public, as they can be targets of violence.

 Marriage proposal during sporting event shook the crowd with excitement
 Marriage proposals during sporting events are nothing new but In Toronto last Saturday a proposal shook the crowd with excitement at the Scotiabank Place Hockey arena. A Maple Leafs fan named Alicia was escorted onto the ice wearing a blindfold. When the blindfold was removed, she looked up at the video scoreboard and read a message from her girlfriend, an Ottawa Senators fan named Christina. Alicia was met on the ice by her girlfriend. After a quick whispered conversation Christina popped the question on one knee. And don’t worry, she said yes.
In Entertainment News:
 Glee Mastermind Ryan Murphy is planning yet another project outside of the TV musical, American Horror story and the rumored movie starring Beyoncé. Late last month NBC ordered a comedy pilot from Murphy and “Glee” co-executive producer Allison Adler for a half-hour show, which Murphy will direct. The project is about a gay couple and a woman who becomes their surrogate. The project will star Andrew Rannells from “The Book of Mormon” and Ellen Barkin are negotiating to join the show.
 The Hunger Games opens THIS weekend. The highly anticipated big screen adaption of the susan collins book stars Academy award nominee Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, and heartthrobs Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson as Gale and Peeta. The film is already receiving positive reviews and expected to beat Twighlight in its opening weekend success. So all of you Hunger Heads get your tickets early because this weekend the film is expected to make, a killing.