OneAngryAlly: Trouble at Occupy Berkeley Protests - I Know, Right?

The Occupy movement continues to grow and spread, and a logical place to set up shop is Berkeley, California, historically a hotbed of political activity. Well, police of that fair city barely gave it a day before clashing with protestors on the iconic campus - 39 demonstrators were arrested yesterday, on that first day.

Administration officials responded to the protesters by agreeing to let demonstrators stay on school property, but forbid them from erecting any sort of shelter or using sleeping bags, a move which would keep the students from starting an encampment like the ones in hundreds of cities across the world aligned to the Occupy movement. In a vote from Occupy Cal organizers early in the day, however, protesters decided to pitch tents on school property, despite those orders from the administration to refrain from doing so.

Video from throughout the course of events show police attacking protesters with batons, bluntly striking them in their abdomens and elsewhere. Some footage has also surfaced in which police are clearly seen striking protesters, unprovoked, from behind.
“We were linked arms, peacefully, when they were stabbing and beating people as hard as they could, it hurt really bad when they got me in the stomach,” Ashley Pinkerton, a student at UC Berkeley, tells Daily Cal after being beat by the police.

Here's the video; you decide.



As one student summed up in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle: "This just shows us how afraid they are of the Occupy movement."

#OccupyOakland Protestor/Iraq War Veteran Critically Injured

In the latest bit of news to emerge from Tuesday's police brutality in downtown Oakland, a 24-year-old Occupy Oakland-er and Iraq war vet, Scott Olsen, has been hospitalized in critical condition. He was hit by a piece of projectile, which witnesses say was from flash-bang grenades launched by police. (Police naturally deny this, but there are videos circulating that suggest otherwise.)



Says a friend and fellow protestor:

"I'm just absolutely devastated that someone who did two tours of Iraq and came home safely is now lying in a US hospital because of the domestic police force."

I couldn't have said it better myself. Healing thoughts go out to Olsen, and let's hope that we don't hear any more of this kind of story. I'm especially thinking of particular army vets I know who are out there occupying at the moment.

Police Deploy Tear Gas on Occupy Oakland Protestors

Late last night, several scuffles broke out between police and protesters camped out near City Hall in Oakland, California. This followed an early-morning raid by police, disbanding a camp that had been set up for more than two weeks, and resulting in 97 arrests.

The first evening scuffle broke out after several hundred people made their way back to City Hall in an attempt to re-establish a presence in the area of the disbanded camp.

The protesters had gathered at a downtown library, marched toward City Hall and ultimately were met by police officers in riot gear. Several small skirmishes broke out and officers cleared the area by firing tear gas.

The scene has repeated itself several times since. But each time officers move to disperse the crowd, protesters quickly gather again in assemblies that authorities have declared illegal.

Protesters and police offered up different versions of the story; police cited violence in the crowd directed at police, while organizers simply reminded the officers of the goal of the movement- "people trying to have their rights to basic services." Let's hope this sort of police involvement doesn't become a trend at these widespread, largely peaceful demonstrations nationwide.

#OccupySeattle will be marching in support of Occupy Oakland - check out Ian Awesome's twitter #OneAngryQueer for more updates.

New Hampshire To Repeal Gay Marriage Act?

Just over a year ago, New Hampshire governor John Lynch signed into law an act which allowed gay marriage. Yesterday, lawmakers in the Republican-dominated legislature got one step closer to repealing that act, as the state House Judiciary Committee moved forward on a bill that would eliminate gay marriages, replacing them with a foggy version of civil unions (which New Hampshire had allowed since 2007, prior to the gay marriage act):

The bill would not enact the same civil unions law that was in effect before gays were allowed to marry. That law granted gays all the rights and responsibilities of marriage except in name. The proposed civil unions law would be open to any two adults and would let anyone refuse to recognize the unions. It also would allow anyone to discriminate against the couples in employment, housing and public accommodations based on religious or moral beliefs.

I'm David Bates and I command you to have children!

Right, because if we let them, gay people will just marry willy-nilly, so we may as well open it up to "any two adults" - even relatives, perhaps? Some lady I happen to pass on the street? Sponsors of the bill condemn such same-sex couplings, citing the state's need to "[promote] stable and committed marital unions between opposite-sex couples so as to increase the likelihood that children will be born to and raised by both of their natural parents." Last I checked they weren't campaigning against divorce, separation, or single parenthood in the state of New Hampshire, though please stop me if I'm wrong. The statement that marriage exists solely to produce a child is an egregious one and a blow to civil rights, not to mention all that advocates, gay and straight, have fought for in the state over the past few years.

Legislators say that gay marriages already on the books will continue to be recognized, and opponents of the bill say there is little likelihood that it will pass. Still, stay tuned for more news from New Hampshire, or better yet, contact those assholes: rep.bates@live.com.

--submitted by OneAngryAlly while Ian Awesome continues to be off saving the world!

OneAngryAlly: Screwy Voting Laws in Ohio Continue

Greetings, OAQ readers! While Ian Awesome is busily holding down the activism fort, I'm going to try to toss up a few news stories. First, I'll begin with typical OneAngryAlly fare - ridiculous things that could only happen in the great state which I currently call home.

After the 2010 census, Ohio had to eliminate two Congressional districts (why people wouldn't want to move here is beyond me). Naturally, something like this has the potential to be upsetting, at least to the two representatives whose districts were squished, but the resulting map, drawn by Republican leaders in the state, has left many Ohioans scratching their heads.


The map divides major cities, such as Toledo, as well as carving chunks out of smaller counties, seemingly without reason. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (one of my personal favorites) now has a district spanning a few hundred miles along the northern edge of Ohio (see that green thing that looks like pond scum creeping along the bottom of Lake Erie? That's his district).

Anyway, state Democratic leaders have begun to fight this, seeking to implement changes or put a referendum on the ballot. Turns out, though, that trying to change Congressional districts that have already been changed, and in an election year, isn't quite so simple.

State law mandates that elections for U.S. senate and most state and local offices be held during the March primary. However, should the re-re-districting succeed, the candidates also, by law, still need 90 days prior to the election to file. To allow time for this, and also for further debate, the election for U.S. House was postponed until June 12. Guess what came with it? The presidential primary.

Yes. Ohio is now having two primaries. And the, dare I say, really important one (as Ohio has long been a battleground state in elections) is not until June. Iowa and New Hampshire are having a "who can have the first primary" contest, Ohio does them one better in having more primaries than anyone else; as the date of the first primary moves ever earlier, Ohioans could select their party choice for president SIX MONTHS following the first primary. Not to mention that Ohio voters, famous for being disenfranchised/confused at every turn by our darling state's government, now have to remember to vote not once, but twice, and in June?! Something tells me that voter turnout is going to be extremely low for both.

I don't know about you all, but the thought that the primaries, any way you stack it, are so close fills me with a shiver of excitement and quite a bit of stone-cold fear. Who else is ready to celebrate New Year's by voting in primary elections?

OneAngryAlly: The Heartbeat Bill Keeps on Pumping

What a wonderful week this has been! I rejoiced as DADT finally ended, college students continue to express reverence for soldiers missing in the line of duty, and Oregon won't be playing Texas in football anytime soon. Not all news this week, however, was worth rejoicing.

On the same day that surely saw countless celebrations of our equal freedoms finally progressing forward, in Columbus, Ohio, there was another sort of mass gathering. Yesterday, several hundred pro-lifers gathered at the Ohio Statehouse to demonstrate in support of HB 125. Nicknamed the "heartbeat bill," this piece of legislation would give Ohio one of the strictest anti-abortion laws in the country; approved by the Ohio House in June, it's awaiting Senate approval.

Apparently this is as crazy as those anti-abortion activists get.

The bill would outlaw any abortions after a heartbeat could be detected. This usually happens by 6-7 weeks, and as early as 22 days after conception. At this point, many women are indeed fortunate enough to know that they are pregnant, to have surveyed their options, and to be ready to choose abortion. However, for many, many women this is not the case. This law would effectively ban abortions in the state of Ohio, and it is so extreme that even the Ohio Right to Life group (which exists mainly to support pro-life legislation) opposes the bill.

Other pro-lifers are not so wise, querying (this is my favorite), "How many wonderful Americans are not on this earth because of abortion?" Yeah. Because our biggest problem these days is underpopulation.

That this bill could pass in the state of Ohio alarms and offends me; I am comforted only by the knowledge that it is unconstitutional, going against Roe v. Wade, and would ultimately not stand up in court. Nonetheless, I wrote my state Senator Troy Balderson (who was appointed a few months ago - the senator he replaced turned his back on the working-class families in his district, advocating and voting for a major anti-union bill before magically remarkably getting a job as a lobbyist for a coal-related company. Just another day in the life in Ohio....):

"HB 125 is an assault of the most egregious sort on women's health in the state of Ohio. This bill allows women no control over their own bodies; this assumption of women's decision-making capabilities is downright offensive in this day and age. What would you do if it were your daughter or sister who found themselves with a pregnancy at a time where they would have been absolutely unable to care for the child?

This bill could ban abortions as early as three weeks into a pregnancy
- a time where even the healthiest, wealthiest women rarely know they
are pregnant. It essentially outlaws abortion, giving Ohio one of the
strictest anti-choice laws in the nation. Do you want that on your
record?

As you try to balance the state budget, think about how much more
difficult it will become as you have to educate, feed, and clothe these
offspring of what will surely be Ohio's newest baby boom.

You were appointed to serve in the Ohio senate to represent the wishes
of your constituency. Please abide by that promise, and show us that
the 20th District can yet again be proud of its senator who, regardless
of party lines, respects the demographic from which he hails."

Are you from Ohio? Email or call your senator and ask him or her to respect women's rights, and the constitution! Ah, there's nothing sexier than a man or lady who respects my anatomy, autonomy, and America!

OneAngryAlly: Justice in the Heartland . . .

The family of a Missouri seventh-grader continue their legal battle against the girl's school district this week, the latest development in an ongoing traumatic saga for the young teen, a rape victim and special education student. Yes. You read that right. Not only does this youth face an inherent uphill battle in school and life, but she also was raped, and it is around this incident that the lawsuit is centered. Where was she raped? At school.

The girl was first raped at Republic Middle School in the spring of 2009, according to the lawsuit. After the mother notified the school, the girl described the rape and "multiple sexual assaults" she'd experienced at school that year to Duncan, Mithelavage and Ragain [school officials who are named in the lawsuit]. They then told the mother that they thought that her daughter made it all up.

Even after the girl provided details about her attack and named the attacker, the school officials, who ought to have been her protectors, dismissed her allegations as false; not only that, but they forced her to apologize to her accuser, and then punished her for filing a false allegation.

Following instructions from the school, the girl wrote an apology to the boy she accused of raping her and had to personally give it to him, according to the lawsuit. She was then expelled for the remainder of the 2008-09 school year. The school also told "juvenile authorities" that she filed a false report.

After she came back the following school year? Guess what happened next. The same boy raped her again. Now her family is suing the southwestern Missouri school district, Republic School District.

Pretty much everything about this story is appalling. The thought of any sexual assault happening at school is chilling. Public school is the only safe haven that some children have. And to see behavior like that in a middle school is all the more unsettling. Speaking from experience, a thirteen-year old girl may be one of the most vulnerable beings on the planet, and to see her violated physically breaks my heart. To have that violation compounded by trusted educators is offensive beyond all imagining. I only hope that the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri agrees.

For the record, a physical confirmed that she was indeed raped, but the school district refuses to budge. How can there be any sense of justice when things like this can happen in our country?

OneAngryAlly: Wait, Did Something Good Just Happen?

Amid all of the hustle and bustle in Washington D.C. this week in regards to the national debt, another change occurred that is in some ways equally exciting and monumental - this time in regards to womens' health, one of our favorite topics!

On Monday,, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that insurers will be required to cover contraception and other fundamental services, without any additional cost-sharing (aka co-pays, which can add up to hundreds of dollars even for the best-insured patient). This will enable women around the country to receive services such as "well-woman visits; screening for gestational diabetes; human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing for women 30 years and older; sexually-transmitted infection counseling; human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) screening and counseling; FDA-approved contraception methods and contraceptive counseling; breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling; and domestic violence screening and counseling."

Needless to say, this is fantastic news, folks! This is a huge step forward; I can hardly believe it that the government is (finally) endorsing family planning and recognizing the link between providing safe, available contraception, counseling, and testing and having healthy, happy human beings. Shocking, I know! Over here in Ohio, I'm doing a little dance in a pile of birth control pills!

Naturally, our friends at FOX News were shocked by this giant step forward, and they wasted little time before reminding us as to the depths of their hatred and intolerance. Family PAC Federal Vice President Sandy Rios was on the air yesterday, spewing all sorts of ridiculous assertions, made all the more offensive by the fact that they came from a woman.

Rios is outraged that, at a time of great national debt, "we're now going to cover birth control, breast pumps, counseling for abuse? Are we going to do manicures and pedicures as well?"



Yes, Sandy, because counseling for abuse - you know, when one person in a relationship physically or emotionally harms another and sometimes people die - is totally the same as sitting in a salon as my feet get scrubbed with pumice stone before I select the season's trendiest color with which to paint my toenails with. It's absolutely outrageous that the government should think to protect and counsel survivors of abuse. Outrageous.

Ms. Rios also claims that "uncontrolled sexual behavior is what is harming our girls, not our lack of birth control - which by the way they don't seem interested in taking anyway."

Funny, because I am pretty sure that over 15 million women in this country take birth control. Not to mention that that was an unnecessary snide afterthought of a comment.

I'm not sure of her logic through the rest of her diatribe, honestly, where she links the availability of contraception to promiscuity, that somehow if birth control is available those slutty, slutty young women will have multiple sexual partners (but no unwanted pregnancies!) rather than unprotected sex with one partner. She says that "having a baby is not the worst thing" - apparently the moral weight of having slept around is far, far worse than the lifelong commitment to a child that you can't afford to raise. Uh-huh.

This woman's crazy train proceeds to go down the rails, as she mentions a country I wasn't aware still existed called Red China, where womens' health is strictly regulated (wait - more regulated? I thought we were worried about spending on womens' health when we're $14 trillion in debt):

“In Red China, they have this down to a science. The local health care centers make women come in every month to be examined to see if they’ve had their cycle to make sure they are taking their medication and if they have a baby they are roundly punished, if they have an extra baby that baby is aborted. That is the control we’re moving toward.”

I'm sorry, but I don't even have words for this. It's especially confusing that a leader of the Family PAC is, for whatever reason, so vehemently against government support of safe, educational womens' services that somehow she advocates abortion. Do you see this right there?? I saw it. Let's look again: ". . . if they have an extra baby, that baby is aborted. That is the control we're moving toward."

You can watch the whole shenanigans - rewatching the craziest parts - right here:




Luckily, her comments have not created much buzz, and even if they have - the HHS's recommendation still stands. I, for one, am breathing out a sigh of relief that finally something good happened in this neverending battle, and that our opponents are having a harder time finding footing for their fruitless, offensive accusations.

OneAngryAlly: It Just Keeps Getting Worse

This week, the Ohio House of Representatives passed not one, not two, but THREE laws that restrict a woman's right to choose. Additionally, impatient to join the cool-kids club composed of our glorious allies to the north and west (that is, Wisconsin and Indiana), the word is out that state Senator Kris Jordan is poised to introduce a similar bill that would defund Planned Parenthood entirely.

When Kasich says "For Ohio," he doesn't mean ALL Ohio.

The trifecta of these three bills would leave Ohio with the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. The most well-known of these (in the shocking case you didn't follow my extremely nerdy links to the text of the bill), HB-125, is also known as the heartbeat bill. Right off the bat you know that is not a good sign. Through a convoluted reasoning sequence, the bill concludes that "fetal heartbeat has become a key, medical predictor that an unborn human individual will reach vitality and live birth;" and that "cardiac activity begins at a biologically identifiable moment in time," and therefore no abortion shall be performed after a fetal heartbeat is detected.

For those of you playing along at home, a fetal heartbeat can be detected as early as three and a half to five and a half weeks after conception. Honestly, at that point, very few ladies know they're pregnant, and I'd wager even fewer would have arrived at the heart-wrenching conclusion that they need to have an abortion.

The worst part? It's not just our imbecile of a governor who supports this bill. Most of the Representatives quoted in the article are women. Says Republican Kristina Roegner, "There are over 28,000 abortions in Ohio each year. This bill, if passed, would save the vast majority of them. These are all little babies with a beating heart, each one deserving the chance of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? Give me a break. I'm pretty sure a three-week-old embryo doesn't know the first thing about any of these three, but a struggling young woman? Most certainly. To Ms. Roegner, and other members of the Ohio House, I ask: what would you do if it were you, or your daughter, or your sister or your cousin?

The constitutionality of this amendment is questionable, as it likely undermines Roe v. Wade, so there is a little hope that it won't stand up in court. It also allows practically no room for medical emergencies, which is downright terrifying. Ladies: Grab your uteri and run for the border!

OneAngryAlly: Keep Your Laws Off My Ovaries!

Today, everyone's favorite appallingly conservative Midwest governor Scott Walker is set to approve Wisconsin's new budget, which contains $1 million in cuts to Planned Parenthood. With this action, Wisconsin will join Indiana (also led by a favorite appallingly conservative Midwest governor), Kansas, and North Carolina in entirely ending state funding of the organization.

Despite the fact that anywhere from less than one percent to three percent of said funding is used for abortions, pro-life supporters rejoiced at the news, just one more blow to working-class Wisconsin. Less than one percent. Yup, all those baby-killin' liberals over at Planned Parenthood do is provide abortions. 100% of the time.

As a resident of a rural Midwestern state, one of the most heartbreaking parts about this story involves the clinics which stand to lose the most. The more metropolitan clinics (in Madison, the capital, for instance) will still be able to provide many services, as they receive funding from federal sources and elsewhere. No, the clinics receiving the primary impact of the state cuts are in small communities like Shawano and Wisconsin Rapids. If these outposts are anything like the Planned Parenthood clinic in my small community, they already have little to offer the low-income residents of the area. Now, these women will have nowhere to go for basic health care.

I recently needed to visit my local Planned Parenthood, in rural Ohio, another state where such funding is in limbo. When I called, early on a Monday morning, to make an appointment, I was told that the next available slot was the following Monday afternoon. And why? Was this because the clinic was absolutely jam-packed over the upcoming week? Oh, no. They only have the ability to have the doctor in one day a week, and in fact were closing five hours early on the day I spoke to the receptionist. There is no other option in my community, and I was forced to wait a week. Fortunately, my life was not in danger, but it was still not the most pleasant week of my life. Hey, Scott Walker, and pro-life douchebags! These clinics are already barely hanging on by a thread, and womens' health is at stake! What I do with my ladyparts is none of your business!

Now, I know that many of you faithful readers do not have to worry about parenthood or planning for it, but this is an issue that affects everyone. I can spend all day telling you guys about the services Planned Parenthood does provide - annual exams, contraception, education, a safe place, just for starters - and I'm sure that we all at some point have benefited from these.

Instead, I will leave you with another example that outrages me beyond all belief; I guess we can be grateful that this practice does not still exist. North Carolina legislators are currently debating paying a settlement to women who endured forced sterilization at the hands of the state as recently as the 1970s. The justification given? The woman interviewed, a 14-year-old rape victim, was "promiscuous." Fortunately, the state is considering a payment (a paltry $20,000); however, North Carolina's heavily conservative, hateful legislature will probably vote it down.

This sort of garbage absolutely turns my stomach. How advanced are we as a society when we still have to debate womens' basic rights? Womens' health affects everybody, everybody.

Read more about North Carolina's eugenics program.

OneAngryAlly: Followup: Yes, Prop 8 is Still History

Hello, friends, your crotchety companion here again (doesn't have quite the same ring to it, does it? Oh well).

Earlier this week I told you about the Prop 8 supporters' most recent exercise in bigotry; having learned that Judge Walker, who had provided the ruling last summer striking down this hateful ruling, was himself gay, attorneys for the cause launched a counterattack questioning the validity of Walker's ruling, and, indeed, his impartiality in the matter.


That's the face of Justice!

Fortunately, saner heads prevailed, and yesterday a federal judge denied the motion to vacate Walker's ruling.

In an intelligently written ruling in which he pretty much lays the smackdown, Judge James Ware writes that "it is not reasonable to presume that a judge is incapable of making an impartial decision about the constitutionality of a law, solely because, as a citizen, the judge could be affected by the proceedings," which was the same argument I made earlier.

So, after a little kerfluffle, Prop 8 stands as having been struck down, and the only thing that has changed is that its wingnut supporters look even a little bit more bigoted. Hey, anti-gay-marriage Californians: Time to let it go.

[Towleroad]

OneAngryAlly: Don't Judge The Judge

Note from your editor:  I'd like to introduce my newest contributor, Sarah N., who will be posting sporadically as OneAngryAlly-- because shit doesn't just piss off us queers, but our allies as well.  She is going to help out while I'm at Netroots and will lend her unique perspective to OAQ.  Though if she starts jawing your ear off about responsible food choices and why eating beans and rice is better than the steak I'm having for lunch, feel free to tune her out.  Vegans.  Ha.

Hello! I am Sarah N., and this is my first post for you lovely readers. Ian Awesome will undoubtedly write some sort of introduction for me, but suffice it to say I'm a straight, close friend of Ian's (I know, right?) who rivals him in awesomeness level (but I certainly don't surpass it). I'll be writing about issues that enrage and engage queer and non-queer alike, attempting to give my spin on things. I live in Ohio, so there'll often be opportunity for me to give y'all an update on things that piss me off in Midwest politics (and trust me, there's a lot). So, I hope you enjoy!

Today, however, we go to San Francisco for the news, where the continuing Prop 8 melodrama takes another turn. As you'll recall, Prop 8, which was passed back in the '08 elections and banned same-sex marriage in the state of California, in August 2010 was overturned in Federal District Court in San Francisco. Now, proponents of this biased initiative are crying foul about another element of the case: Vaughan Walker, the now-retired judge who ruled on the case, is himself a gay man.

"'Judge Walker's 10-year same-sex relationship creates this unavoidable impression that he was just not the impartial judge that the law requires,' says Andrew Pugno, one of the attorneys defending Proposition 8. Pugno says the issue here isn't Judge Walker's sexual orientation — not exactly — but rather that his relationship left him in the same shoes as two same-sex couples who wanted to get married."

Why? Because striking down Prop 8 might open the door for more freedoms in the judge's own life? Because, after two decades on the bench, where, you know, his entire job was to be impartial and leave his own self-interests out of the picture, Walker would suddenly drop all of that "fair and balanced" nonsense to further an agenda?

The implications for these accusations are chilling. Does this mean that, as a woman, I couldn't rule on a case involving my right to have an abortion? That as a native Oregonian, I couldn't preside fairly over a case involving Oregon's medical marijuana or assisted-suicide laws, because those could *gasp* give me, personally, greater rights and freedoms?

Does this mean that, as a human being, I would be unable to rule on this very case? The results and implications of so purposely antagonizing an issue as Prop 8 reflect on every one of us as humans.

Attorney Ray Marshall of the California Bar Association makes a similar comparison:

"Marshall notes that one of the landmark cases in civil rights history — Brown v. the Board of Education desegregating public schools in the 1950s — was decided unanimously by an all-white Supreme Court."

"'The presumption was that of course nine judges — all white men — will read the Constitution and make the decision fairly,' Marshall says."

Prop 8 supporters: Face it; you lost. Take your hatred and bigotry elsewhere. Or, better yet, step out of your self-imposed bubble of self-interest and allow others the chance to love and live as they so desire.

'Til next time, cheers!
--OneAngryAlly

[NPR]