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J udge G reg M athis
T h e U n ite d S ta te s is
suffering from an identity
crisis w hen it com es to the
rights and safety o f h o m o ­
sexuals and lesbians. On
the one hand, the g o v ern ­
m ent says it respects the rights o f
gays to live as d om estic partners, to
be free from violence and to w ork in
w hatever field they choose, even
the m ilitary. Y et, the governm ent
seem s to do very little - and even
contradicts itse lf - w hen it com es to
m aking these ideas reality.
R ecently, a federal court lifted
the controversial “D o n ’t A sk, D o n ’t
T e ll” policy that prohibited gays in
by
a-‘!' }Jnrtfaitb OObsemer
Established 1970
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Residential &
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CARPET CLEANING
2 Cleaning Areas or
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Pre-Spray Traffic Areas
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1 Cleaning Area (only)
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O ther Services): $25.00
Gay Rights are Civil Rights
the m ilitary from o penly declaring
th e ir h o m o s e x u a lity . A n y o n e
cau g h t doing so, under the law,
could be im m ediately discharged
fro m s e r v ic e . P r e s id e n t
O b am a has often stated that
he w anted to bring an end to
the policy during his p resi­
dency. H ow ever, as soon as
the ruling cam e dow n, his
Ju stice D ep artm en t began
w orking on an appeal that w ould
keep the ban in p la c e .. .at least te m ­
porarily. A nd they w on.
T he President still m aintains that
he w ants “ D o n ’t A sk, D o n ’tT e ll” to
die, but he says he w ants C ongress
to bring an end to it. It’s highly
unlikely that the P resident will get
his w ish w ith such strong o p p o si­
tion from R epublicans in C ongress.
W hy, then, d id n ’t his adm inistra-
Cleaning
Stairs (12-16 stairs - Wit
zzz
Standing against
discrimination
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Y our frí & m Y NOTA
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tion let the ruling stand? Y our guess
is as good as any.
T h e co nfusion d o e sn ’t end there.
In recent w eeks, w e ’ve been so­
b ered w ith stories o f young gay
m en across the country w ho c o m ­
m itted suicide because they w ere
tired o f being bullied by th eir peers.
R esearch show s that gay and les­
bian teens are four tim es m ore likely
to co m m it suicide than th eir h etero­
sexual counterparts.
There is currently a national cam ­
paign aim ed at young hom osexuals,
designed to lift their spirits, encour­
age them to get help and let them
know that things will get better for
them. In the m idst o f all this support,
one thing is m issing: a governm ent
stance on bullying, specifically bul­
lying o f gay students. W here is the
national policy that cracks dow n hard
on bullies and charges any young
person w ho bullies a gay teen (or a
black o r Latino o r A sian one) w ith a
hate crim e? There isn ’t one.
G ay rights are civil rights and w e
m ust p rotect them . A ny A m erican,
regardless o f race, gender, religion
o r sexual orien tatio n should be free
to liv e life o p e n ly an d sa fe ly .
A m erica, as open as it is in oth er
areas, is not at that place yet and it
should be.
L e t’s force o ur elected o fficials
to take a stand fo r the rights o f all
citizen s by stan d in g up fo r gay
rig h ts. W e sh o u ld o n ly su p p o rt
those w ho fall on the side o f ju stic e,
fairness and equality for everyone.
Greg Mathis is a retired Michi­
gan District Court judge and cur­
rent syndicated television show
judge.
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