It's Not Right... But It's OK.

Yesterday, we discussed the increasingly complicated and convoluted politics of comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) in Congress. Apparently, the House now has its own CIR deal floating around... And threatens to (further) undo the incredibly fragile Senate CIR deal. The CIR debate in Congress has been... Well, it's been awfully ridiculous lately.

Yet as that's been going down, many activists continue fighting for reform and to stop the deportations. And in fact, something quite amazing happened at The Center last night. DREAM Big Vegas, PLAN, and allies decided to help local DREAMers obtain DACA status. Oh, and they did so with a drag show!







There was plenty of fierce fashion, fabulous lip synchs, great original singing, and more. Oh, and DREAM Big raised enough money to fund two DACA applications! And during the intermission, the audience had a chance to listen to the stories of DREAMers who've only known life in America and just want a chance to succeed like the rest of us.

What made last night's event even more poignant was the demonstration of the intersection of Southern Nevada's Latin@ community and Southern Nevada's LGBTQ community. Believe it or not, both co-exist. Both cooperate. Oh yes, and many people are part of both communities!

This is actually another reason why 21st Century Know Nothing hopes of wedging the two communities against each other will ultimately prove to be futile. Especially as the plight of LGBTQ immigrants reaches the forefront, there's renewed purpose to make comprehensive immigration reform truly comprehensive. And besides, we know the 21st Century Know Nothings have never had the best interest of either community at heart anyway.

In fact, our long held suspicion was pretty much proven true last night. The Grio's Joy Reid broke the story of a Heritage letter (remember them?) circulating among Congressional Republicans and demanding that they essentially stop governing at all so they can circle the wagons around the latest haute faux scandals in hopes of weakening President Obama politically. Oh, yes. That's right. And many Republican Congresscritters already look to be taking their advice.

Clearly, they haven't met Raffi or Julius. Both have been living in this nation nearly their whole lives. Both have been educated in Southern Nevada schools. And both want to obtain the American Dream. Yet because their families came to America undocumented, they've had to live in fear and in constant limbo. Raffi now has DACA status. And while it's better than nothing, not even that is 100% guaranteed to prevent deportation. And they're being forced to raise money for DACA fees because Congress hasn't passed the DREAM Act.



Raffi & Julius and Ricardo & Blanca are among the many reasons why Congress should finally be moving on CIR. And so are undocumented workers who deserve freedom from exploitation. And so are LGBTQ families who deserve freedom from a life apart. These people are real people. They deserve better, and so do we.

Yet as usual, the 21st Century Know Nothings and the Republican Party that they have way too much power over can't get their act together. So they're ready to kill CIR and focus all their attention on bludgeoning President Obama with fictitious scandals. As Whitney would say, "It's not right, but it's OK."

Well, it's not all that OK. It's just that, as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., would say, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." Something must change. Immigration reform must happen. And if Republicans don't join the solution, they'll soon understand firsthand why the 19th Century Know Nothings didn't last long.

It's not right, but it's OK. Got that, Senator Dean Heller (R-46%)?

New Center... & New Beginnings

On Saturday, The Center (for Southern Nevada's LGBTQ community) celebrated the grand opening of the Bob Forbuss Building in Downtown Las Vegas. Not only is it the new headquarters for The Center, but it also injects some new life into another Downtown Las Vegas neighborhood. That's why the courtyard filled up with people from throughout the community to witness the star-studded ribbon cutting.

Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and City Council Member Bob Coffin (whose district includes The Center) attended. And they gave some fairly brief remarks before the ribbon cutting. In Coffin's speech, he gave a very full-throated endorsement of LGBTQ equality. He's even hoping there will one day be weddings at The Center!









Also attending on Saturday were Rep. Dina Titus (D-Paradise) and Former Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas). Both have long records of supporting Nevada's LGBTQ families. And The Center is now just around the corner from Dina Titus' new district office. Titus talked for a few minutes about her history HERstory with the local LGBTQ community, and about the fabulous new addition to Downtown Las Vegas. Oh, and she also sounded hopeful about SJR 13's passage and marriage equality coming to Nevada.







Even several state lawmakers headed down from Carson City for the grand opening. State Senator (and Center board member) David Parks (D-Paradise), Senator Pat Spearman (D-North Las Vegas), and Assembly Member James Healey (D-Enterprise) all pitched in for the ribbon cutting. And James Healey now has a meeting room named after him!

As mentioned above, there was a healthy crowd outside. Yet when they moved inside, they were stunned by the interior. Thanks to the support of many corporate, foundation, and other community sponsors, The Center now has a cafe inside, along with several meeting rooms (big and small!), a recreation center, staff work space, and even a new area designated just for testing and treatment for HIV/AIDS and other STDs.

It was amazing to see the outpouring of support for The Center and Southern Nevada's LGBTQ community on Saturday. Not too long ago, something like this would have been considered unimaginable. Yet it happened on Saturday.

And now, The Center has a new home to serve the larger community. And Downtown Las Vegas has a new landmark. Hopefully, this will be the start of something amazing.

Eat Sammy's Pizza. Support Your Local LGBT Community Center. It's a Win-Win!

What have you done lately to support our community? Well, The Center and Sammy's have just the yummy solution! I hope to be seeing you on Thursday. If you'll be at the Green Valley Sammy's, stop by my table and say hi! ;-)

NCOD Festival This Saturday

(Also at Stonewall)

Here's another reminder for the National Coming Out Day festival this Saturday at Commercial Center. The Stonewall Democratic Club will have a booth there this weekend, so please stop by and say hi. :-)

Maybe-Baby Workshop on the 26th

(Also at Stonewall)

Here's an important upcoming event at The Center that may interest you, especially if you're thinking about having kids.

You're invited to join We Are Family for their annual Maybe-Baby Workshop Saturday, September 26 • 2:30PM at The Center If you would like an Evite to the event, please e-mail adele@wearefamilylv.org

SB 283: SoS Ross Miller in Town to Explain New DP Law

[Nevada Secretary of State Ross] Miller is allowing couples to pre-file until Sept. 24 so they can receive their certificates on Oct. 1. Miller said his office has received about 350 filings.

“We’re already past Wisconsin, and we’re expecting a very high volume of filings in the first week,” Miller said. “To accommodate the high volume, we wanted to allow for a month of pre-filing so we would be able to process those registration forms.”

So far, it's continued good news on the SB 283 front. Miller was here in Vegas last night for The Center's forum on domestic partnerships (DPs). Notary publics were on hand to notarize DP registration forms. And fortunately, a number of remaining questions on DPs were answered by Miller, State Senator David Parks (D-Las Vegas) (who authored SB 283), and a large cast of lawyers specializing in family law.

Many couples were concerned about past debts affecting their current partners. Kunin explained that a person’s past debt is separate until the partnership is registered with the state.

“From the date of partnership backwards, it’s separate,” [attorney Ishi] Kunin said. “From the date of partnership forward, it’s community or joint.”

Other topics of interest included adoption, prenuptial agreements and medical benefits. The new bill doesn’t mandate that employers give health insurance to an employee’s partner, although some companies have said they’re willing to recognize an employee’s domestic partnership.

In case you still have questions about SB 283, take a look at what I uncovered some weeks ago. And if you need some real legal advice, contact one of these law firms for help.

And btw, speaking of The Center, today is National Center Awareness Day. And considering what The Center has done to make sure SB 283 became law, as well as what they're doing now in holding these town halls to help our community understand how SB 283 helps us, we should tip our hats and thank them for the great work they're doing.