PFLAG Co-Founder Dies At Age 90

Adele Starr, the co-founder and first president of PFLAG, has died in Los Angeles at the age of 90.

In 1976, Starr founded the Los Angeles chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, a gay rights and acceptance organization known then as Parent FLAG, now as PFLAG. In 1979, she spoke on the steps of the U.S. Capitol at a march for gay rights — a seminal event often credited with uniting a then-nascent movement. Two years later, she became PFLAG's first national president; she served in that capacity until 1986 and remained a forceful advocate for civil rights and, in later years, for the legalization of same-sex marriage. Starr served at the helm of PFLAG during the onset of the AIDS crisis, said her longtime friend and collaborator Terry DeCrescenzo, founder of another advocacy group formed to reach out to gay and lesbian youth. "In that time, a lot of us lost hope," said DeCrescenzo, 66, of Studio City. "Not Adele. And PFLAG became enormously important because it was rock solid.... She was a good woman. She'll be missed.

Adele Starr: "We cannot understand those arrogant people who have decided that a heterosexual lifestyle must be imposed on everyone and that they have a monopoly on morality. The American way is respect for diversity with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

TENNESSEE: Lesbian Couple's Home Torched, Homophobic Neighbor Suspected

A lesbian couple in rural Tennessee returned from a trip to Nashville to find their home burned to the ground and the word "QUEERS" spray-painted on their garage.

The couple feels they're victims of a hate crime, and were targeted because they're gay. They've been together for more than 15 years. Carol Stutte has an adult daughter from a previous relationship who also lived with them. At the time of the fire, they were in Nashville celebrating their fifth anniversary in Tennessee. "My daughter was supposed to be here. She was sick," Carol Stutte said. "I was grateful my baby girl didn't get killed in this fire. She would have been trapped in the basement." The couple moved to Vonore from Oklahoma. Carol Stutte says her partner is too afraid to come back to the property since the fire. She says they've been harassed all five years they've lived there by one neighbor. She also says recently the neighbor threatened to kill them and burn down their house," Stutte said. "I knew we had been threatened, but we never thought anything would be followed through."

The local police and the state arson squad are investigating the fire as a possible hate crime. PFLAG has sent out a call for donations of cash and household items for the women. The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Church is also taking donations.

The Hunt For Lingle's Lady Friends Is ON

JMG reader Josh writes:

I thought your readers might just love this photo of us with Governor Lingle, taken at the Kailua Independence Day parade (held on July 5). This photo was taken just 24 hours before Governor Lingle vetoed the civil unions bill, and at the Independence Day parade, no less. The Governor spent 15 minutes posing for photos with a dozen representatives of PFLAG-Oahu, and treating us like human beings, even though she had decided a week ago to veto the civil rights bill and to call for a statwide vote on whether we should have relationship recognition. This is the new face of evil. Love the smile--she must be "comfortable" with her decision, all right.

Meanwhile the emails have been flying between highly-placed activists today as the hunt for any "lady friends" of the twice-divorced and gaydar-pinging Gov. Lingle heats up. Please email me with any tips or clues at JoeMyGod@gmail.com.

Lingle's term ends in December and her successor may be nutjob Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona, seen below being "annointed in the Lord" at a Christianist voodoo ceremony in which they pledge to "break every weapon of the enemy."

NEW YORK: Finally We Get A Beauty Queen That We Can All Love

The just-crowned Miss New York is a winner in a more ways than one.

Miss New York 2010, Claire Buffie, is an outspoken advocate of human rights, opening the dialogue about equality amongst youth, teens and adults alike with her platform "Straight for Equality: Let's Talk." The issues of gay rights make up the civil rights movement of our generation and reach far beyond marriage equality. As Miss New York 2010, Claire aims to break the stigma of marginalized youth, eliminating discriminatory vocabulary and changing the climate in New York schools. She celebrates diversity and the things that make us all unique and strives to instill pride, dignity and respect in developing minds and compassionate hearts. This will be a year of change in New York State and Claire is ready to support this incredible movement.

All Over Albany adds that Buffie is an executive board member of the NYC chapter of P-FLAG. And she works at the Genius Bar at the Fifth Avenue Apple store, where the stream of gay boys is undoubtedly nonstop. She'll be competing for Miss America 2011 in January in Las Vegas. Go Claire!

(Tipped by JMG reader Matt)

Quote Of The Day - Brian Burke

“The best thing about when Brendan told me he was gay, I didn’t have to take anything back. I hadn’t made any derogatory comments about gay people, I hadn’t told him they were sick or twisted or God would punish them — some of these absurd things that people say about homosexual people. I didn’t have to take anything back. I said it to him. We were both in tears.” - Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke, talking about his son, who was killed in a car accident earlier this year. Burke will march with PFLAG in Toronto's pride parade.

PhoboQuotable - Greg Quinlan

"Ms. Nooyi, you lead PepsiCo’s Diversity and Inclusion Governance Council. I don’t want to hear any more words from you about diversity and inclusion -- I want you to actually practice it. As for Peggy Moore, who represents PepsiCo on the PFLAG Board Workplace Diversity Committee, she should be fired because she doesn’t know the first thing about diversity if she can’t respect people like me. And PepsiCo should resign immediately from PFLAG’s so-called Diversity Committee. Why would PepsiCo sit on a committee that defines diversity to only include those people whose religious ideology they agree with?

"Ms. Nooyi and PepsiCo Board of Directors, do you make these decisions because of replicated scientific studies supporting specific biological etiology for homosexuality? I can answer that for you. You can’t because there is zero evidence. ZERO that anyone is born homosexual. Once again, I urge the PepsiCo Board of Directors, yes; each and every one of you, to do your jobs and hold PepsiCo to the ideals and standards it claims to follow. I shouldn’t have to come here year after year asking PepsiCo to stop funding hate against people like me. " PFOX president Greg Quinlan, screaming to PepsiCo's board of directors at their annual shareholders meeting.

"Ex-gay" loser Quinlan has his delicate, finely-laced pink panties in a twist because PepsiCo has contributed to PFLAG and the Human Rights Campaign.

HomoQuotable - Greg Quinlan

"We now know that Pepsi has given over a million dollars to the Human Rights Campaign and to another hate group called PFLAG, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays -- an organization that tells parents that their children are born homosexual. Therefore they must accept them and that the only way to love them is to accept, embrace that homosexual lifestyle. This is extremely troubling because now what is happening is that the PepsiCo Corporation is using our money -- whether you're a shareholder or whether you're a customer -- [they're] using your money to promote hate against Christians and other people of faith." - PFOX "ex-gay" spokesdouche Greg Quinlan, who plans on confronting Pepsi executives at their annual stockholders meeting.