Congresswoman speaks out on HHS removal of gay advice website
by Matt | February 24th, 2006 |The Health and Human Services Department of the United States of America is being questioned by a member of Congress after a website conting LGBT-inclusive advise was taken down. (source)
Supposedly, HHS removed the site on January 11, 2006, after receiving a letter (which was also published) from the anti-gay group Family Research Council. The letter was sent to the Secretary of the HSS, Michael Leavitt and complained that the website was “loaded with biased, politically-charged language, such as condemnations of so-called ‘homophobia,’ ‘heterosexism,’ and ’sexual prejudice’”.
According to the article:
The FRC (Family Research Council)Â demanded a prompt response from Leavitt. It also called on its members to contact the agency and complain that the site “uses material from pro-homosexual activist groups such as … Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) … ”
When the site was removed the FRC immediately proclaimed victory and cited a letter from Leavitt’s office indicating that the content had been removed because it was not within the mission of HHS.
“This shouldn’t be about politics or fringe ideology. It should be about the responsibility of the government to provide complete, accurate and accessible health information that serves all Americans effectively, including our GLBT loved ones,” said Jody M. Huckaby, PFLAG’s executive director.
“HHS has removed basic health information on one site at the demands of an extremist group, and has completely omitted all content about GLBT youth on another. This is outrageous and unacceptable.”
Representative Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from the State of Wisconsin, last week stood up to question the actions of HHS.
Rep. Baldwin is one of only three openly gay or lesbian members of the Congress. Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass) and Representative Jim Kolbe (R-Arizona) are the other openly gay members. (It must be noted that while gays and lesbians make up anywhere between 4%, at the lowest, and 10%, at the highest, of the total population, we are only representative by a total of 0.7% of Congress)
Rep. Baldwin is currently circulating a letter within Congress and among her colleagues. The letter calls for the material on LGBT health to be reinstated by HHS.
Technorati Tags: gay youth, gay, lgbt, gay rights, health, health and human services, congress, family research council, tammy baldwin
Matt, 22, is an LGBT journalist, activist and youth advocate currently living and working in Charlotte, N.C., where he serves as the Editor of Q-Notes, the Carolinas' LGBT news source. 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.
View all posts by Matt