By Justin Snow on December 6, 2012 @JustinCSnow
In a Dec. 5 letter sent to Democratic and Republican leaders on Capitol Hill, 24 of the country’s most financially successful gays and lesbians urged Congress to work with President Barack Obama to reach a deal to avert the “fiscal cliff.”
Citing a report published by the Center for American Progress last month that warned going over the fiscal cliff would result in cuts that would directly affect LGBT Americans, the letter argues for the adoption of Obama’s plan, which preserves Bush-era tax cuts for middle-class Americans, but allows those tax cuts to expire for those making more than $250,000 a year.
First obtained by Jonathan Capehart of The Washington Post, the letter argues that across-the-board cuts inflicted by sequestration would “compromise LGBT health by reducing programmatic funding used to address the health care needs of gay and transgender Americans, impair the federal government’s ability to investigate claims of workplace discrimination, and remove critical resources from government agencies working to prevent bullying and school violence.”
Moreover, higher tax rates would hurt middle-class LGBT families, who have been shown to have lower levels of income compared to straight Americans.
A stalemate continues between the White House and Republicans on Capitol Hill over a plan to address the fiscal cliff. Known as sequestration, going off the fiscal cliff would cause cuts to federal spending and tax increases to automatically take effect on Jan. 2, 2013.
Republican leaders, including House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, have balked at Obama’s proposal, despite threats from Obama to veto any bill that extends tax breaks for the country’s top earners. During an interview on CNBC yesterday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the Obama administration is “absolutely” willing to go off the fiscal cliff if Republicans do not compromise on raising tax rates for top earners.
In a statement provided to Metro Weekly, White House spokesman Shin Inouye said the Obama administration welcomes those urging Congress to act.
“President Obama is committed to growing our economy from the middle out by ensuring a strong, secure, and thriving middle-class. If Congress doesn’t act by the end of the year, a typical middle-class family will see their taxes go up by about $2,000,” Inouye said. “We welcome all Americans who are speaking out about the need for Congress to act.”
The letter’s authors, all of whom make more than $1 million annually, conclude by noting their financial support to re-elect Obama and their shared vision of a “country in which everyone has a fair shot and does his or her fair share.”
READ the full letter here:
Dear Speaker Boehner, Senator Reid, Senator McConnell, and Representative Pelosi:
We are successful LGBT Americans who now or in the past have earned an annual income of $1,000,000 or more.
America has been good to us: it has provided the foundation and opportunity to succeed. We want that same opportunity and possibility for all Americans, but we are concerned about the future of our community and our country.
At the end of this year, a series of deadlines will require our leaders to make important decisions that will have a huge impact on the economy — and on the LGBT community. If Congress fails to act, across-the-board cuts to vital programs will be triggered even as taxes go up on the middle class.
For LGBT Americans, this “fiscal cliff” isn’t just an abstract concept. A report released by the Center for American Progress, the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, and a coalition of 23 national LGBT organizations outlines the real and lasting impact it would have.
Across-the-board cuts would compromise LGBT health by reducing programmatic funding used to address the health care needs of gay and transgender Americans, impair the federal government’s ability to investigate claims of workplace discrimination, and remove critical resources from government agencies working to prevent bullying and school violence.
At the same time, higher tax rates would further endanger middle class and working class members of our community. LGBT Americans have lower levels of income than other Americans, according to a recent Gallup report, and face additional economic obstacles caused by the so-called Defense of Marriage Act and the lack of federal workplace protections.
In the recent election, many of us contributed significantly to re-elect the President, and we support the President’s vision of a country in which everyone has a fair shot and does his or her fair share.
We urge Congress to work with President Obama to avoid the fiscal cliff with a balanced approach, and to preserve the middle class tax cuts while allowing tax cuts for the best off to expire. It’s the right thing to do.
Signed,
The Honorable Bruce W. Bastian, Terry Bean, Paul Boskind, David Bohnett, Roberta Conroy, Bill Derrough, Karen K. Dixon & Nan Schaffer, Joe Falk, Dale Frederiksen & Bob Page, Nanette Gartrell, MD & Dee (Diane) Mosbacher MD, PhD, Tim Gill, Mel Heifetz, Glenn Johnson & Michael Melancon, Kathy Levinson, Terrence Meck, Charles Myers, Suze Orman & Kathy Travis, Laura Ricketts, Sarah Schmidt, Andrew Tobias
[Editor’s Note: This post has been updated to incoporate a statement from a White House spokesman.]
By John Riley on March 16, 2025 @JRileyMW
Masked attackers in Israel are reportedly using Grindr to lure and entrap members of the LGBTQ community to severely harm them.
According to reports, the assailants are creating fake profiles on the popular dating app and arranging meetings in remote locations in the city of Haifa.
The victims are then ambushed and reportedly stabbed with sharp weapons. A few assailants have attempted to carry out lynchings.
The Aguda, an LGBTQ task force, documented at least ten such incidents in recent months, reports the Jerusalem Post.
But some victims have chosen not to report the attacks, making it more difficult for police to track down and arrest offenders.
By John Riley on February 25, 2025 @JRileyMW
Two college students in Indonesia have been sentenced to be publicly caned for engaging in same-sex relations.
The couple, aged 24 and 18, were arrested on November 7, 2024, after neighborhood vigilantes in the city of Banda Aceh, who suspected them of being gay, broke into their rented room to find them naked and hugging each other.
The lead judge, Sakwanah, said that the two students were "legally and convincingly" proven to have had gay sex -- which is forbidden under Sharia law -- and would thus be caned, receiving 85 and 80 lashes, respectively.
"During the trial it was proven that the defendants committed illicit acts, including kissing and having sex," she said. "As Muslims, the defendants should uphold the Sharia law that prevails in Aceh."
By Randy Shulman on February 22, 2025 @RandyShulman
I am apologizing to Margaret Cho.
Not for anything I've said over the course of our lively hour-long phone interview one recent Saturday, but for this magazine's past transgressions.
This issue, you see, marks Cho's fourth appearance on a Metro Weekly cover in three decades, and I'm sheepishly begging forgiveness for how we handled the previous headlines, bastardizing her last name for the sake of a pun.
"Cho-Zen."
"On With the Cho."
"Cho Girl."
"It's all good," she laughs, taking it in stride. One thing about Margaret Cho is that she doesn't offend easily, if at all.
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