A few weeks ago I alerted you to a special opportunity to support NCLR. OurMatching Gift Challenge is in full swing — a chance to have your gift matched dollar for dollar.

Things move fast around here. Since I last wrote, a number of things have changed for us and this country.

First, we helped a former student of Bethel Baptist School in Walls, Mississippi, file a complaint with local authorities after being sexually abused for three years by a teacher attempting to “cure” his sexual orientation.

Then, NCLR and co-counsel in our Utah case challenging the state’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples, asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. This was a landmark moment in our fight to win the freedom to marry.

On Monday, NCLR represented four couples in the Idaho marriage equality case in oral arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco.

Protecting kids. Marriage equality. Immigration rights. These are just a part of the ever-changing legal landscape we’re working on every day.

What hasn’t changed is our need for financial support to fight for LGBT people across the country.

That’s why I was so excited when a generous NCLR donor challenged us to raise $50,000 from our amazing network of supporters. She promised to match all contributions up to $50,000.

If we can hit the goal, that will mean a total of $100,000 for NCLR and all our work for equality and civil rights. But, right now, we’re only halfway there.

I hope that you’ll consider a special gift right now.

Whatever ever you can give — $25, $50 even $100 — will be doubled in value and will provide us with the financial backing to fund all of the work that we do.

Right now, anti-equality groups are pulling out all of the stops to halt our progress. Let’s not let them succeed.

Make a donation at NCLRights.org.

The post Double down for equality: A message from NCLR executive director Kate Kendall first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Vice President Joe Biden spoke to over 1,000 LGBT rights supporters at the Human Rights Campaign Los Angeles gala on March 22. Vice President Biden’s inspiring remarks in support of global LGBT equality represent the latest step from a White House that has made fairness and dignity for LGBT people one of its top priorities.

The post Joe Biden speaks at HRC gala first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Antigone Rising (photo by Leslie Van Stelten)

BY NATASIA LANGFELDER
Lesbian.com

Antigone Rising is an all-female band that has been on the alt-country music scene since the early 2000s. After years of touring with high-profile headliners such as The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith and Joan Jett, band members Kristen Ellis-Henderson, Cathy Henderson, Dena Tauriello and Nini Camps are back with a new EP, “Whiskey & Wine Vol. 1&2.” Their first single, “That was the Whiskey,” is a lighthearted tribute to wild southern nights.

Despite the carefree subject matter, Antigone Rising has been on a serious journey in recent years. In 2012 they traveled as cultural ambassadors throughout the Middle East. And the year before that, founding band member Kristen Ellis-Henderson and her wife wrote “Times Two, Two Women in Love and the Happy Family They Made.” Since then, the band has taken a firm public stance in favor of marriage equality. Now, Antigone Rising is hitting the road again with tour dates lined up across the U.S.

In this interview, I spoke with Kristen Ellis-Henderson about the inspiration behind “Whiskey & Wine” and what it’s like being an all female band on the country music scene.

Your newest single, “That Was the Whiskey,” is currently a smash on Country Music TV and CMT.com. Why do you think it’s had such resonance with the country world?

I think country music fans love songs that tell stories. “That Was the Whiskey” is a really fun, and probably for some people very relatable, story song.

Tell us about the “Whiskey & Wine” EP — what was the creative process like and what messages do you want fans to take away from it?

We really do work and think hard about the songs we write. We are entirely independent, from recording the songs in Nini’s home studio all the way to raising funds to promote the EPs. So, in a sense, some fans who are really plugged in may take away a sense of indie spirit. But most importantly, I just want people to listen to the music and really like it.

Antigone Rising’s style has been designed as alt-country rock. Is this EP going further to the country side of this spectrum?

I think there are very obvious country elements to it, but I do not think it’s more country than rock. Country music has really risen to the mainstream in recent years and the reason for that is because of the great songwriting coming out of Nashville. Country music is foremost about great songs. The fact that Nini [Camp] and I get to co-write with brilliant songwriters like Lori McKenna (Faith Hill, Little Big Town) and Kristen Hall (formerly of Sugarland) who happened to have penned massive country music hits, might speak to why our songs have a country feel. But Nini and I wouldn’t write it if we didn’t feel it. And the band certainly wouldn’t play it. I firmly believe we are a rock band with a country sound. And in 2014, that should be OK.

Bass player Kristen Henderson and her wife wrote a memoir in 2011 “Times Two, Two Women in Love and the Happy Family They Made” and have since become “poster girls” for LGBT marriage equality. Has that had an impact on relationships with other country music stars and your fan base?

I have found, if anything, that being “poster girls” for the LGBT equality movement has broadened our fan base. I think people are drawn to honesty and when you’re telling the truth, people like it. Our audiences are very diverse. Our country music friends have always been our friends’ they’re still our friends and are supportive. The Nashville community and the country music community as a whole may not be as open minded, but we’re not a band that goes toward the darkness. We look for the light — and are drawn to the open doors and the opportunities. We don’t look for the glass half full side of our story. Our glass is overflowing.

You are in an all female band in an industry that is still dominated by men. How has this affected your journey?

Again, we always spin it to our advantage. At a festival with 10 guy bands, we rock the house and people leave saying “the all female band is who I remember.” And if they’re not saying that, we haven’t done our job. That being said, there needs to be more opportunities for women in the business. It has not changed much since we’ve been in it. I do believe female artists need to empower each other — and one critical way of doing that is to give each other opportunities. We have been in situations where we did not get an opening slot with a major female artist because the promoter or manager felt like too many women on a bill won’t sell tickets. The Bangles brought us out on tour with them a few times. Two all-female bands on the same bill. You don’t see that very often. And we plan to pay that forward in our career.

In 2012, Antigone Rising performed in the Middle East as United States Cultural Ambassadors. What was the most memorable moment from that trip?

There were several memorable moments. But one in particular jumps out instantly. Our first day in the West Bank (Palestine), we did an outreach program in a small village called Nahlin, and it’s an area of great unrest in the region. We spent the day with all the women in the village — talking, performing, exchanging American traditions for theirs. Each generation of women in the village shared a tradition with us. They cooked us lunch and we were so moved by their hospitality and graciousness. It shattered any preconceived notions we brought with us that people in this region hate Americans. It was the opposite. The people in this village just wanted to share their customs and culture with us. It was a really intense and amazing day. The U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem edited a great video of our experience.

Which band member has the quirkiest habits while touring?

The irony is that one of our road crew members has the quirkiest habits. And without naming names, we cannot leave hotels in the morning until this road crew member’s feet are completely dry — often she will use a blow dryer to dry them. That being said, it makes my band mates quirky habits pale in comparison. I mean, the road makes you do odd things. I tie my underwear in a knot after wearing them so as not to accidentally wear them again. That’s a pretty deep, dark road trick I am sure my band mates will punch me in the arm for admitting to publicly. We’ve been touring for so long now I don’t even know what quirky is.

Antigone Rising has toured with artists such as Joan Jett, Aerosmith, The Bangles and The Rolling Stones. Which of these artists had the wildest fans?

Joan Jett, hands down. Her fans are die hard and fiercely loyal.

Tell us about the best piece of fan mail you’ve ever received.

When people send us videos of their kids singing along to our songs, or when young performers send us links the them performing our songs, those are always the best.

As a woman-fronted band, you have a lot of female fans and little girls looking up to you. What advice would you give them as they chase their passions in life?

Sometimes it takes a lot of “nos” before you get a yes. I have a silent mantra I repeat in my head (passed on to me from Grammy-winning songwriter Julie Gold) “they’re wrong, they’re wrong, they’re wrong.” Of course, you should stop saying the mantra when they’re right.

Need more Antigone Rising? Help the band raise money to tour and market by visiting them on PledgeMusic.  Five percent of the proceeds will be donated to GLAAD upon hitting the targeted goal. The campaign is also granting backers the opportunity to get an exclusive advanced digital download of “Whiskey & Wine — Volume 1” before it’s available anywhere else.

The post Antigone Rising delivers boot stompin’ girl power first appeared on Lesbian.com.

A new study from Indiana researchers tells us what most even minded people will already have assumed to be true: that sex and romance in gay relationships are closely linked.

The research, published this month in the Archives of Sexual Behavior, is based on an Internet survey of almost 25,000 self-identifying gay and bisexual men from the United States and delves into a question that science actually has little concrete data on: whether sex and romantic love are linked among same-sex partners in the same way that it is for straight people.

Read more at Care2.com

Care2 is the largest online community of people passionate about making a difference.

The post New study reveals gay love really is ‘same love’ first appeared on Lesbian.com.

The posting made by the Subway shop in Angers, France, advertising a deal for straight couples only.

BY ANNIE-ROSE STRASSER
ThinkProgress

A Subway sandwich shop in Angers, France shut down on Sunday after it outraged customers with a heterosexuals-only Valentine’s Day deal. As the French legislature considers the merits of passing same-sex marriage equality, the owner of a local Subway franchise put his two cents into the debate by giving a 14 euro special to “H/F” (male/female) couples. The deal sparked so much anger the the shop actually closed its doors.

Also on the poster was an asterisk that read: “Discrimination (?): No, the marriage for all law has advanced, but has yet to be ratified by the Senate. Until then, I’ll use my freedom of expression.”

Read more at ThinkProgress.org

The post French Subway shop closed after Valentine’s homophobia first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Lauren Drain, former Westboro Baptist Church member poses for NOH8. (Photo: Adam Bouska/NOH8)

BY CAVAN SIECZKOWSKI
Huffington Post Gay Voices

Lauren Drain, a former member of the Westboro Baptist Church, appears in a new ad for the NOH8 campaign, a charitable organization that promotes equality. Not only has Drain denounced the anti-gay, hate-mongering group, but she is also speaking out on behalf of anti-bullying efforts.

Drain says she still identifies as a Christian but believes that religion should not be used for hurt. “I don’t think anyone should judge or persecute another human being or any group of individuals based off of those personal, chosen, beliefs,” she says in a statement on the NOH8 website. “I am against any and all forms of violence, discrimination, bullying or bigotry directed at someone else due to their personal lifestyle.”

Read more at Huffington Post Gay Voices

The post Former Westboro Baptist poses for NOH8 Campaign first appeared on Lesbian.com.