Carolyn Coles via Flickr

GTFO.

[Update: Upon hearing the news, a good friend of ours asked if straight male bachelor parties are banned, as well. Great question! Brian Rosman, a publicist for The Abbey, says that although that "has never once happened," it would "probably fall under the same ban." Yes, he decides -- "any celebration of straight marriage" is banned from The Abbey. Glad we got that figured out.]

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Harvey Milk

Today, May 22, California celebrates Harvey Milk Day in honor of the slain San Francisco supervisor who was one of the first gay elected officials in the United States.

Milk was assassinated by former San Francisco supervisor Dan White in 1978. A few months before his death, he gave a stirring speech at the Gay Freedom Day Parade in San Francisco. In it, Milk implores gay Americans to come out of the closet as a way to end homophobia and anti-gay politics.

His remarks, which can be found in Randy Shilts' important biography about Milk titled The Mayor of Castro Street, are still relevant today as they were nearly 34 years ago...

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Director Matthew Mishory

On Thursday, Joshua Tree, 1951: A Portrait of James Dean, a stylized, intriguing film about James Dean before he becomes a major movie star, premieres at the Seattle International Film Festival. Los Angeles-based and openly gay director Matthew Mishory, who examines Dean's gay leanings, talked with us about his feature debut.

L.A. Weekly: What was your driving goal or mission for this film?

Mishory: Not to make a biopic or a biography but rather a portrait. A moment in -- or, maybe, outside of -- time. We started with the histories, messy as they might be, and set about arriving at a truth. In doing so, we used every tool in the portraitist's kit. And, of course, we dealt with a period in Jimmy's life that has rarely if ever been dramatized -- and never in this way.

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Patrick Range McDonald

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, left, and Rev. Robert V. Taylor

Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu made a rare appearance in Los Angeles last night at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art with his friend and protege the Rev. Robert V. Taylor, who has written the book A New Way to be Human.

A God that loves everyone and connects everyone figures heavily in their teachings -- Taylor is an openly gay Episcopal priest and was born in South Africa. We caught up with them before their joint appearance.

We asked Tutu and Taylor, who fought against apartheid in South Africa together, their thoughts about how God is often used against the gay community by religious leaders to prove that homosexuality is sinful and wrong...

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Mayweather

We never thought we'd see the day when an A-list rapper like Jay-Z would defend gay rights, let alone a champion fighter.

But following our reports on L.A.-based Manny Pacquiao's anti-gay statements, future Hall of Fame boxer Floyd Mayweather, Jr. begged to differ.

He took to Twitter today and said this:

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MTV

Mario Lopez, right, is a longtime friend of Manny's.

[Update, May 16, 10:30 a.m.: Pacquiao's original interviewer, Granville Ampong, is now saying that he himself quoted Leviticus 20:13 in his article -- so the words "put to death" never came out of Pacquiao's mouth. And the boxer tells ABS-CBN that "I only gave out my opinion that same sex marriage is against the law of God... I didn't know that quote from Leviticus because I haven't read the Book of Leviticus yet." For further explanation, see "The Manny Pacquiao Misquote: A Timeline."]

[Update, 8:30 p.m.: Pacquiao is "not welcome at The Grove and will not be interviewed here now or in the future." Full statement on Page 2.]

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Associated Press

Can someone pass the whiteout?

The best part about President Obama's frequent ATM stops in L.A. are the myriad protesters who storm Beverly Hills and try to seek out his motorcade.

Among them, always, are the LGBT activists, angry that the president still hasn't come out in support of gay marriage (perhaps in fear of further alienating the religious right).

But Obama finally gave his kiss of approval to Gay Nation today...

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WeHo News editor Ryan Gierach, right, with WeHo Councilman John Duran

For years, WeHo News, a spunky online community newspaper, has been a must read for anyone interested in all things West Hollywood, with major news outlets often picking up its breaking stories. Recently, the operation shut down for several weeks, but started up again this week.

Readers have wondered what caused the hiatus, so founder and editor Ryan Gierach sets the record straight in this exclusive interview with L.A. Weekly about his recent struggles with alcohol, and his recovery.

L.A. Weekly: You took a sabbatical. Where were you? And why did you make the decision to take a leave?

Ryan Gierach: I went into a residential rehab to quit drinking and learn the skill set needed to remain sober.

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James Langteaux

Despite what certain religious leaders say about homosexuality, should gay folks be more open to living a spiritual life? To a loving Higher Power, or God, in their lives? Gay Conversations with God author James Langteaux says it may be a good idea.

"A lot of spirituality has been missing from the gay community," says Langteaux, who also wrote God.com and God.net, "which may be the cause for so much self-medicating. You think nothing matters, and you don't treat yourself or other people well. You're nihilistic. That causes a lot of pain, so you use alcohol or drugs to dull it."

He's caught our attention ...

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AHF billboard

The HIV/AIDS advocacy group that brings you those condom and HIV-testing billboards all over Los Angeles turned 25 over the weekend, as first reported by LGBT POV.

Founded by the feisty Michael Weinstein, AIDS Healthcare Foundation has been on the front lines of battling HIV/AIDS since 1987 -- a period of time when AIDS was devastating the gay community.

Based in Los Angeles, the organization has become the largest HIV/AIDS medical provider in the United States and has gone global over the years, working in 22 countries.

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Vimeo

Hide your eyes, kids.

Vimeo not only beats YouTube in film-school cred and picture quality -- it also wins for tolerance!

Fred Karger, our favorite gay Republican for president (OK, our only gay Republican for president, and only gay person for president, in general), says his smokin' new Venice Beach campaign video, whose raciest moment is a brief kiss between two gay men in beach wear, was pulled from YouTube yesterday...

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Forced therapy in the film "Clockwork Orange"

Are you gay and your parents want you to be straight? Have they suggested different "therapies" to make you "normal"? A bill working its way through the California state legislature seeks to protect you from such bad craziness so you can't be forced into shock treatments or any other demented procedure.

Written by California State Senator Ted Lieu and sponsored by the gay rights group Equality California, Senate Bill 1172 would force psychotherapists to tell gay patients about the mental and physical harms of undertaking any so-called "gay therapies." Therapists would also need the consent of a patient before moving forward with their dangerous work.

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Ted Soqui

Jeremy Bernard, left, and Rufus Gifford

We were perusing the New York Times on Sunday and came upon a major story in the Style section about White House social secretary Jeremy Bernard, who, according to all reports, is doing a bang-up job for President Barack Obama.

Bernard made major news last year when he became the first openly gay man to get the social secretary gig, but we got to know him four years ago when he was a Los Angeles-based fund raiser for the Obama campaign. Guess what? He excelled at that job, too.

So we thought we'd bring out the 2008 L.A. Weekly profile on Bernard and his then partner, Rufus Gifford, titled "Obama's Gay Gold Mine."

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Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum

Do you hate gays and lesbians with all your heart and soul? We've got news for you: a new scientific report says you may actually have same-sex desires yourself. Does this mean that Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is gay? Hmmmmmm...

Conducted by a research team from the University of Rochester, the University of Essex, England, and the University of California in Santa Barbara, the study breaks ground in documenting that "homophobia is more pronounced in individuals with an unacknowledged attraction to the same sex and who grew up with authoritarian parents who forbade such desires," a press release from the University of Rochester states.

To be honest, we're not surprised. It seems like some kind of Law of the Universe that well-known, homophobic politicians and ministers inevitably get caught in a gay sex scandal at one point or another. Remember U.S. Senator Larry Craig or Pastor Ted Haggard?

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Gay rights pioneer Harry Hay

Co-founder of the Mattachine Society and the Radical Faeries, longtime Los Angeles resident Harry Hay would have turned 100 years old on Saturday, April 7. He is widely regarded as the father of the American gay rights movement.

By all accounts, Hay was a major league rebel, holding close to his principles and left-wing political beliefs and sometimes clashing with the gay rights movement as it became more organized over the decades. "I condemn the national gay press for its emphasis on consumerism," he once said.

Hay was born in 1912 in England and moved to Los Angeles with his family in 1919. By 1923, he realized he was attracted to other boys. In 1950, he helped found the Mattachine Society, one of the first organized gay rights groups in the United States.

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Manhattan Beach Police Department

Cruel and unusual?

The L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center blasted an angry presser yesterday, calling out sister news stations CBS2 and KCAL9 for printing/airing the "mug shots, names and birthdates for the 18 men who were recently charged in an undercover sex sting operation at a Manhattan Beach public restroom."

We were a little surprised ourselves to receive said PDF from the Manhattan Beach Police Department...

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drurydrama

Next year aspiring UC and Cal State students will probably be asked, along with requests for age and ethnicity, if they're gay or straight.

Why, you ask, is that any business of theirs?

It's not, entirely:

Whether or not you answer, as with the question about ethnicity, will be optional. But a new California law ...

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Once full marriage equality is wrapped up in California, there's not much left for the gay rights movement to do in one of the most tolerant states in the nation, right?

Wrong.

"We're in a period of a different kind of activism," says Courage Campaign founder Rick Jacobs. "Things have advanced so radically and positively. We need to take a step back and see what we can do to finish the job."

Here are a few suggestions for front line activists, donors who support them, and everyday folks just trying to take care of themselves. More ideas are welcomed...

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urscorp.com

San Ysidro, gay rights capital of SoCal?

It's not as infamous a gay-rights fight as marriage or hospital visitation, but discrimination against same-sex couples at our nation's border crossings can be just as offensive and cumbersome.

As it stands, gay couples must file separate Customs forms when re-entering America. If they have children together, the process can become especially complex.

But now, reports Instinct Magazine, U.S. Homeland Security may be heading toward reform:

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Atlantis Events

Two Southern California men initially arrested in the Caribbean for having gay sex pleaded guilty today to indecent exposure, reports Associated Press.

The men were each fined $900 and driven to the airport. Whew.

The duo was identified as John Robert Hart, 41, and Dennis Jay Mayer, 43, of Palm Springs. The pair were on an all-gay cruise organized by West Hollywood tour company Atlantis Events when they were arrested after allegedly having sex on-board in view of land.

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