Headlines: HRC Carolinas honorees, black history, RDU LGBT center, S.C. home-schooling mom
by Matt | January 29th, 2008 |
Headlines from the Jan. 26 issue of Q-Notes, your premier source of LGBT news and views in the Carolinas.
HRC Carolinas announces 2008 honorees
Elke Kennedy, Bennie Colclough and Myers Park Baptist to be honored at February dinner
by Matt Comer . Q-Notes staff
CHARLOTTE — The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Carolinas Gala committee has revealed the winners of the 2008 Equality Award and Trailblazer Award, which will be presented Feb. 16 during the 13th annual fundraising dinner. The announcement of the honorees was made public on Jan. 9.
The Equality Award, which recognizes outstanding individual or organizational work for LGBT equality and progress, will be presented to Elke Kennedy of Greenville, S.C., and Charlotte’s Myers Park Baptist Church. The Trailblazer Award will be presented to the Rev. Dr. Bennie Colclough. Read more…
Black history: Stories often unheard
Black LGBTs have made impact on nation, world
by Matt Comer . Q-Notes staff
Each February, school children across America learn about African-American civil rights leaders, politicians, inventors, judges, business owners and many other black movers and shakers throughout history. The stories they rarely hear, however, are those of African-Americans who were also lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.
Just as black activists have long contended that gay history has a “blackout” on LGBT/same-gender-loving (SGL) people of color, Black History Month observances often likewise fail to honor the heroes of the black LGBT community. Read more…
LGBT center organizes in RDU
compiled by Q-Notes staff
RALEIGH — The GLBT Center of Raleigh’s Organizational Development Committee (ODC) has announced it is taking nominations for the Governance Team. The Team will assist in establishing the Center as a legal entity.
The OCD is looking for candidates who are positive, action-oriented individuals and interested in making the dream of having a brick and mortar structure in Raleigh a reality. One does not need a great deal of experience, but a willingness to be a strong team player with a great work ethic. Individuals are needed to work with a diverse group of people and help in the decision-making process. Read more…
OPINION: Home-schooling mom will bring SC schools to far right
by Jack Kirven . Q-Notes staff
South Carolina’s beleaguered education system is fraught with challenges. Case in point: Only 50 percent of the high school students in the state complete a high school diploma in four years (among the worst ratings in the country). Incompetence, discrimination and favoritism at all levels of the organization engender frustration and everywhere there are problems, problems, problems…
With so much going awry, many groups with a widely divergent range of perspectives constantly hurl new ideas into the fray, never allowing any of the changes enough time to actually begin to work. One such group, S.C. Parents Involved in Education (SCPIE) has scored a major victory, which could possibly prove disastrous for LGBT students and their allies: SCPIE co-founder Kristen Maguire has been selected as the chairwoman for the South Carolina Board of Education, despite the fact that she has no degree in teaching or education; home-schools her four daughters, rather than entrust their learning to the organization she will be leading; and lists abstinence education, intelligent design and school choice as her main priorities. Read more…
Visit Q-Notes Online at www.q-notes.com. Our next issue comes out on Feb. 9, one week prior to the HRC Carolinas Gala in Charlotte, N.C.
Matt, 22, is an LGBT journalist, activist and youth advocate currently living and working in Charlotte, N.C. A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Matt attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and is still continuing to pursue his bachelors degree. He is the Owner & Editor of InterstateQ.com and has been active in LGBT advocacy work since the age of 14.
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