LGBTQ news and entertainment
Zach Wahls is headed out on a tour around Iowa sponsored by LBGT rights group One Iowa to talk to Iowans about why marriage matters.
According to One Iowa “Zach will be joining us in Council Bluffs, Sioux City, Mason City, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, and Davenport. He will be speaking at churches, town halls and house parties across the state.”
Regular readers of The Randy Report know how much I admire this amazing young man. So thoughtful and well-spoken on what he feels and how he communicates to the world.
No hate or anger in this ad at all. Just a clear, fair-minded message from a guy who really represents middle America.
This is what makes the future of America look bright.
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| Ben Cohen, world class rugby player and anti-bullying activist |
Since June is gay pride month, the folks at Buzzfeed made a list of a few straight people that have done things for the LBGT community that we can all feel good about.
How do you like the list? Who would you add?
1. Ben Cohen, rubgy player/activist
2. Lisa Lampanelli, comedian
3. Hudson Taylor, wrestler and coach
4. & 5. Theodore Olson and David Boies, lawyers
6. Benjamin Todd Jealous, president of the NAACP
7. Zach Wahls, student
8. Josh Hutcherson, actor
9. Barack Obama, president
10. Dick Cheney, former vice president
ThinkProgress caught up with Eagle Scout Zach Wahls at Netroots Nation about today’s announcement that the Boy Scouts of America will reconsider its policy discriminating against the LGBT community. He discusses his new initiative, Scouts for Equality, through which he is rallying other scouts to pressure BSA.
Said Wahls:
“It’s not a smokescreen. This proposal was made after Jen Tyrrell’s pettion on Change.org. So even though this has been brought up in the past, it’s never gotten nearly the level of attention that it has today. And as another departure from the past, there’s never been a group — which I actually launched in coordination with a number of other Eagle Scouts today called Scouts For Equality — and we’re going to be working with a number of different groups to really build a community of scouts — Eagle scouts, former scout leaders, that sort of thing — we’re really going to work toward making this policy change.”
GLAAD reports that outspoken advocate and Eagle Scout Zach Wahls today delivered more than 275,000 signatures to the Boy Scouts of America at its National Annual Meeting in Florida, calling on the group to end its long history of anti-gay discrimination and reinstate Ohio mom Jennifer Tyrrell, who was forcibly removed as den leader of her son’s Boy Scouts troop because she’s gay.
After delivering the signatures, Wahls met briefly with Deron Smith, Public Relation Director with the Boy Scouts of America’s national office.
Zach recently sat down with Reason.tv’s Nick Gillespie to discuss why his childhood was a lot like yours, the mainstreaming of same-sex marriage, his new book “My Two Moms” and Obama’s “evolving” views on the subject.
As Olivia Newton-John said “Love is Love.”
Great idea to open dialogue: break bread with folks to talk not about politics or religion, but to just get to know each other over dinner. AND a bottle of wine or three! More wine!
Zach was also on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – check him out below:
I agree with everything Zach says here.
The conversation regarding marriage equality needs to be a respectful one so those who don’t yet see this as a civil rights issue can still be open to a dialogue.
I also wholeheartedly agree that the First Amendment does guarantee freedom of religion but it also does not create a theocracy in America.
Many times you hear anti-gay folks say they don’t want homosexuality shoved down their throats. BUT by trying to create laws that follow religious teachings and using the Bible as the primary foundation of their disapproval, those folks are going down the road of trying to make this country a theocracy. By definition, those people are “shoving” their views onto the LGBT community.
Hours later, his speech was posted on YouTube, where it went viral, quickly receiving more than two million views. By the end of the week, everyone knew his name and wanted to hear more from the boy with two moms.
I recently was talking about how celebrity sightings don’t usually affect me much, but I have to say seeing Zach at 20 feet I dropped my bag and approached him directly. I introduced myself and explained what I do and how much I admire him. He could not have been more gracious as this stranger babbled to him. He was exactly what you would expect from his public appearances, as were his two moms.
My Two Moms also delivers a reassuring message to same-sex couples, their kids, and anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider: “You are not alone.” Make sure you check out his new book.
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| Olivia Newton-John and the Wahls family |
Zach Wahls has written his first book My Two Moms: Lessons of Love, Strength, and What Makes a Family.
The book, which was written with Bruce Littlefield and will be published on April 26th, ensures that Wahls’ story will continue to change hearts and minds, thanks to the media coverage expected to coinside with its release.
And during an election year that has seen mutliple presidential hopefuls demonize LGBT people and their families, the compelling voice of this mature young man rings clearer and clearer.