GREENSBORO -- An openly gay freshman at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro (UNCG) won the student government spring election for student body president by an overwhelming majority in mid-April.

Michael Tuso, 19, a native of Raleigh, officially took office Apr. 29. His duties as student government president include overseeing funding for hundreds of student organizations, serving on the university's board of trustees and acting as a liaison between students and university administration.

Tuso might be the first-ever openly gay student body president at any school in the UNC system. Past members of UNCG’s student government couldn’t recall ever hearing about an openly gay president and members of the system-wide Association of Student Governments couldn’t either. Web searches also returned nothing.

ANT will be the featured performer at Columbia’s Business Guild gala.

COLUMBIA — What do you get when you mix scores of LGBT people, a nationally respected, openly gay comedian, the mayor of a state’s capital city, food and dancing? The S.C. Gay and Lesbian Business Guild Gala, of course.

On May 16, the Guild will host their annual awards gala with featured entertainer ANT at the Embassy Suites Hotel on Greystone Blvd. The event starts with a reception and networking hour at 6 p.m, followed by the gala program at 7 p.m. A cash bar will be available during the gala and an after dinner dance is scheduled from the end of the program until midnight.

The event marks the 15th anniversary of the S.C. Gay and Lesbian Business Guild, a well-established LGBT organization that is among the oldest gay groups in the state.

Read more »

Regular visitors to Q-Notes Online have already noticed a change in our online presence. A week prior to this current issue, Q-Notes staff rolled out our website’s new design.

The new Q-Notes Online features daily news, RSS feeds, article talkbacks, staff blogs, a daily email news update and more. The new site and its behind-the-scenes construction enable us to better serve you and helps us get the news out faster and better than ever before.

On the new website readers can engage in community discussions on each published article. You can also sign up to receive a daily email delivered right to your inbox every morning containing the latest LGBT news from around the Carolinas.

Read more »

UNC-Charlotte students walk past Belk Tower, where LGBT students say they were verbally attacked by anti-gay preachers.

CHARLOTTE — When LGBT and allied students affiliated with the University of North Carolina-Charlotte’s PRIDE student group held their Day of Silence observances, they were confronted with loud and disruptive protests from anti-gay preachers. The events and their aftermath have led to calls for campus policy revisions.

On Apr. 17, students were holding a peaceful demonstration at the campus’ Belk Tower. PRIDE President Braxton Midyette told Q-Notes that about seven preachers “invaded the space PRIDE had reserved for the event” and “verbally attacked” supporters with the slurs they were shouting.

Midyette said, “They were also ‘preaching’ on the fact that it was good that [15-year-old California student] Lawrence King was murdered for being gay and that he, along with the rest of us, were going to Hell for being homosexuals or friends of homosexuals.”

Organizers called campus police, Midyette said, but they took “very little” action. “It was a struggle to even get them out there and actually do something about these individuals,” he charged.

Read more »

CHARLOTTE — As first reported on Q-Notes Online, a popular radio disc jockey was forced to issue written and on-air apologies after making anti-gay remarks on his show broadcast Apr. 15.

CJ of 96.1 FM The BEAT made the remarks while discussing a reported kiss between openly gay gossip blogger Perez Hilton and pop star John Mayer. The comments included calling two men kissing “disgusting,” “sick,” “gross” and “yuck,” according to blogger and Hickory resident Brandon Greeson, who sent a letter of complaint to the station.

Greeson also took his displeasure with CJ’s comments to the internet, where he published his letter on his blog.

Read more »

BUNN, N.C. — Mary Helen Phelps, 43, calls herself a “reformed redneck.” Her journey toward accepting her female-to-male transgender son has taken her from valleys of worry and despair to mountain tops of joy and reconciliation.

Phelps and her son will soon join Soulforce’s American Family Outing, a national event wherein families with LGBT parents or children will visit six American mega-churches with anti-gay positions or doctrines. Joel Osteen’s more than 40,000 member Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, will be one of Soulforce’s stops. Phelps and Collie plan on attending worship there on Mother’s Day, May 11.

Phelps, who grew up in this traditionally conservative Baptist town just outside Raleigh, said she didn’t hesitate when invited to participate in the American Family Outing by her son.

Read more »

Jamaican activist seeks asylum
QUEBEC, Canada — After the deaths of 13 of his activist colleagues, Gareth Henry, one of Jamaica’s leading LGBT rights activists, has fled the impoverished island nation to seek asylum in Canada. He has claimed refugee status because his life is in danger if he stays in Jamaica.
Henry, a highly visible and [...]

Charlotte
Windmeyer receives top award
CHARLOTTE — Because of his commitment to social justice, education development and training, Campus Pride founder and executive director, Shane L. Windmeyer, has been honored with the 2008 Voice of Inclusion Medallion from the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) — College Educators International. The Voice of Inclusion Medallion recognizes an individual for [...]

GLAAD takes stand for fairness
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) withdrew from a “Pride Rocks” event scheduled to take place this summer at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego because the property is owned by San Diego businessman Doug Manchester. He has publicly and financially supported a California amendment [...]

Candidate plans fundraising ‘roast’
GREENVILLE, S.C. — James Akers, Jr., an openly gay candidate for the Greenville County Council, is turning humor into campaign cash.
Akers, 27, is planning a fundraiser for May 18, 2-4 p.m. at Cafe and Then Some. The event will be a “roast”of Akers and will allow supporters to see a lighter side [...]

Michael Heath is so anxious to go back in time you’d think he expects to earn frequent flier miles for the journey.
Heath, executive director of the Christian Civic League of Maine, has initiated a referendum that would ban same-sex marriage and civil unions and prohibit same-sex couples from adopting. It would also remove sexual orientation [...]

Remember those old and worn out saws we’ve heard for years? Gay men present a problem to society because they are more likely to be sexual predators. Or, how about this nugget: Gay Straight Alliances (GSA’s) will result in higher HIV rates among students and the only object of these “clubs,” anyway, is to recruit [...]

The recent public airing of statements made by presidential candidate Barack Obama’s former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, opened a Pandora’s box surrounding the underlying racial tensions that still exist between the black and white communities in the 21st century, as well as the continued existence of institutional racism.
The LGBT community has quickly inserted itself [...]

On Apr. 17, 2008, Q-Notes let down North Carolina’s LGBT community by refusing to endorse either of the remaining Democratic presidential candidates (www.q-notes.com/2008/04/17/primary-concerns/). It makes no sense for Q-Notes to expect North Carolinians to “get out there and work your rear off” for the eventual nominee, while at the same time declaring your own support [...]

As First Lady and U.S. senator, Hillary Clinton has championed efforts to improve the lives of LGBT Americans. Hillary has many accomplishments championed on behalf of the LGBT community.
Hillary fights against Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA)
In 2004 and in 2006, Hillary worked to defeat the FMA. As chair of the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee, [...]