KnowThyNeighbor.org

MassResistance Uses the "C" Word

MassResistance Really Stepped Over the Line When Hater/Blogger, Amy Contrada  Resorts to Using the "C" Word When Referring to Tom Lang

I am referring to MassResistance's latest blog/rant in which Amy Contrada really proves that she and fellow hater, Brain Camenker know no bounds when it comes to degrading and attacking members of the LGBT community and anyone else who would dare consider LGBT fellow human beings.

Now I have had alot thown at me since I started KnowThyNeighbor with Aaron Toleos and unfortunately it has not all been from the bigots.   As a matter of fact, it is rumored that Tom Lang is working on a behind the scenes "tell all" book (or at least website) which will document the "personalities" which were involved in the marriage equality movement here in Massachusetts.  No holds barred!!!  More on that to come.

I was called "silly and mean-spirited" by MassEquality and Marty Rouse publicly yet behind the scenes was told that I am likened to "The Nuremburg Files" webmaster who directed anti-abortion suporters to kill abortion doctors.  All this while MassEquality copied KnowThyNeighbor and posted the 143,000 names a day after we did. 

I have been called, "The Great Intimidator" by MassResistance.  "The Rabble Rouser" by Kris Mineau of the Massachusetts Family Institute which I did find extremely insulting because those who had the courage to advocate for themselves should never be called "rabble."  An "Holocaust Amplifier" by a Christian Right blogger.  And I was even called, "The Brian Camenker of the Gay Community" by Marc Solomon (of course Marc blamed a "Senior Legislator" for having coined that title for me) -- but to this day that still hurts...

I have had the KKK call me and threated to kill me, I have been sent three mailed  "death threats" since 2000 and the author even followed me to my new house.  I have been sent every type of magazine subscription imagineable (including Bird's Life) and get at least 2 calls a day because someone signed me up on a mortgage refinance service to find me the best lender.

I have had exotic (female) dancers/hookers sent to my house at 2 AM by one of the people who found his name on the state database for the anti-marriage petition which we posted.  AND  AND  more recently, someone put my phone number on Craigslist.com offering me in a advertisement for providing "Erotic Massages for $ 35 an hour!!"  Can you imagine $ 35 AN HOUR!!!!  And the calls were coming into my cell phone non-stop while I and other bloggers were in a meeting with Governor Patrick.

But I have to say that MassResistance did not need to resort to using the "C" word. I am sure that Brian and Amy were quite upset to lose thirteen of the twenty-five sponsors of that nasty Bill S 321 which they worked so hard duping legislators into supporting.  But that is no excuse what-so-ever!  And please pardon me if I seem sexist in this next statement, but Amy, being a woman, you should know better!

Amy Contrada referred viewers of her blog to a video in which I am featured and descibed me as "the (c)hubby guy with glasses."  This means WAR!

See You Next Tuesday...Amy 

Tom Lang, Director

Can Gays Trust Massachusetts Legislators ?

The LGBT Community Needs to Look At Many Factors Besides The Marriage Amendment Before Promising Full Support of Legislators in 2008 Campaigns

What seemed to be his riding off of the victory energy surrounding the defeat of the anti-gay Marriage Amendment, Marc Solomon of MassEquality promised to make sure that all legislators who voted against the marriage amendment will be re-elected in 2008.  Solomon told the Globe, "we (MassEquality) welcome the newest members of our team with just as open arms as the people who were with us three years ago. We respect every single legislator who came around to supporting equality. What that means is that we will encourage our over 200,000 members to get involved in these reelection campaigns."

Now I have never been one to advocate or practice "blind faith" in anyone.  If I allowed others to do my thinking for me, I never would have started KnowThyNeighbor or had been the leader responsible for orchestrating the very first public switch of a legislator on the same-sex marriage issue, Rep. Brad Hill (R) back in 2005 (which is still posted on the HRC website).  So I am not going to support any legislator based solely on his/her marriage vote and I would suggest that the LGBT community do the same.

Rep. Richard Ross (R-Wrentham) switched his vote on June 14th in favor of same-sex marriage and because of it has been promised the wrath of the anti-gay Mass Family Institute in 2008 but assured the support of MassEquality.  However, Richard Ross in a personal conversation with me about Senate Bill S321 does not think that he wants to remove his support as a sponsor.  Ross told me last Monday that he "cannot be expected to be on (our) side with everything" even after I explained that S321 would not allow teachers to speak about LGBT in a non-sexual basis and that this bill is more anti-education than even anti-gay.  Ross' comment was disturbing to say the least and one wonders how he will vote regarding the 1913 Law and other issues facing our (inclusive) LGBT community aside from marriage.

Another interesting legislator is Rep. Paul Donato (D-Medford) who shares a district with Rep. Carl Sciortino.  Donato was one of the first leges to remove his name from S321 and insists that he gave no permission for his name to have been used as a co-sponsor and has gone on record denouncing this bill.  Donato, however, voted to allow the marriage amendment to proceed to the voters.  I have had two very lengthy conversations with Rep. Donato and when I asked him about the 1913 Law, he said that he has not yet determined how he will vote, but said, "now that the Commonwealth has fully supported same-sex marriage, it doesn't seem right to restrict people from coming here to get married."  A pro-gay marriage challenger to Donato for 2008 has already announced himself and is getting alot of blog support at BlueMassGroup. 

And one more example is Rep. Joseph Driscoll (D-Braintree).  Rep. Driscoll by Marc Solomon's account is a strong Catholic supporter of same-sex marriage who had worked behind the scenes trying to sway other Catholic leges to support marriage equality.  However, the Monday before the ConCon, Solomon called me and asked me to silence my efforts on S321 stating that that my work on this bill was bothering Rep. Driscoll (who is a sponsor of it).  I told Marc Solomon that Rep. Driscoll's name removal could be in my next email blast but was told by Solomon that he believes Driscoll has no intention of removing his name from this bill.  KnowThyNeighbor has personally placed six (6) phone calls to Driscoll's Chief of Staff but not one has been returned, so I cannot check that fact.

Politics is politics but we need to question each and every legislator by the principle and merits of his or her actions.  Sending checks to legislators who supported us on equal marriage yet think it is fine to allow parents to pull their children out of public school classrooms if this very subject is discussed because the terms gay, lesbian or transgender are used is not in the best interest of the LGBT community.  Sending a check to a legislator who supported us on equal marriage yet will not take the time to understand the issues facing the trans-community or at risk youth is not in the best interest of the LGBT community either.   Marriage Equality may have been achieved in Massachusetts, but we still have ALOT of work to do.  But let's start by thinking, questioning and remembering before we act. 

Tom Lang, Director

Director's Note of the Week:

For passionate yet level-headed discussions which often address the complex and diverse issues aside from "marriage equality" facing the LGBT community, it is wise to check in with the folks at QueerToday.   

Bigotry in Massachusetts Is So Last Wednesday

From Kris Mineau to Mitt Romney to the Legislators Who Avoided Enlightenment to Those Nasty Anti-Gay Commenters Littering the Blogosphere...We May Soon Only Be Able to Find Bigots In Museums (or on KnowThyNeighbor.org)

So everyone in Massachusetts and in the world for that matter knows that LGBT people have secured Equal Rights for themselves and future generations in the Commonwealth .  Our Legislature voted 151 to 45 to kill the anti-equality amendment in yesterday's Constitutional Convention to the smiles and cheers of LGBT people and our straight neighbors alike.  If I may steal a term from our opposition, "there was a groundswell of support" but this time, for equality and decency in the BayState.

But what about the leaders of the anti-gay forces.  Kris Mineau, photographed by KTN literally one second after the vote tally proving victory for the LGBT, was on the phone to someone "of higher authority."  Can we guess, Mitt Romney?  Or was it Dr. James Dobson of Focus on The Family?  Or maybe even George Bush?  Kris does not look happy, as a matter of fact he looks quite scared.  Ah, that explains it, Daniel Webster probably had the same look on his face when he realized the identity of "Mr. Scratch."

I need to apologize.  Governor Patrick cautioned us to not gloat but to reach out to our neighbors who were against us.  But you see, the operative word here for me is "were."  We should forgive those who now have seen the light.  Like the eleven law makers who got on the right side of history and supported equality.  And those legislators who removed their sponsorship of Bill S321--one who called me to remove his support of this bill conveniently just moments after the ConCon vote yesterday (Former Rep. now Under Secretary Robert Coughlin).

But Kris Mineau and his like are another story.  Kris immediately began demonizing the legislature, promising investigations into their vote switches and obviously having his grassroots support contact these eleven heroes and threatening them in a series of nasty phone calls and email.  We all MUST contact these eleven leges asap and thank them along with our loyal supporters.

But I think the most surreal and comical Kris Mineau press statement was when he claimed not to have had any money to win this fight for the anti-gays.  Kris, you say that the gay lobby spent 2 million dollars on this ballot question and your organization could not compete.  If I do some quick math with your "170,000 signers" in the "biggest and most successful ballot initiative in Massachusetts history..."  just a $ 10 contribution from each of these "determined activists" so convicted as they were to stop gay marriage, then you would have come close to the gay lobby's investment.  So, I would not be too presumptuous to assume that to win, you could have asked for a mere $ 20 contribution per signer and raised $ 2.4 million, instantly.

Kris, we all know that you had the database and addresses of these 170,000 signers, it shouldn't have been that difficult to send them a letter asking for money.  And if you needed a more searchable database, you could have always used the one here on KnowThyNeighbor !!!!

Sorry Governor Patrick, but you have to afford me just a "little gloat."  Or dare I say, Governor, "Let The People Gloat!"

Tom Lang, Director

Please call and thank these nine legislators along with our loyal friends.

Rep. Geraldo Alicea         Rep.GeraldoAlicea@hou.state.ma.us       617-722-2060

Rep. Christine Canavan    Rep.ChristineCanavan@hou.state.ma.us   617-722-2006

Rep. Paul Kujawski          Rep.PaulKujawski@hou.state.ma.us         617-722-2017

Rep. Paul Loscocco         Rep.PaulLoscocco@hou.state.ma.us         617-722-2220

Rep. Robert Nyman         Rep.RobertNyman@hou.state.ma.us         617-722-2020

Rep. Angelo Puppolo       Rep.AngeloPuppolo@hou.state.ma.us       617-722-2011

Rep. Richard Ross           Rep.RichardRoss@hou.state.ma.us           617-722-2305

Rep. James Vallee          Rep.JamesVallee@hou.state.ma.us           617-722-2380

Rep. Brian Wallace         Rep.BrianWallace@hou.state.ma.us          617-722-2013

Sen. Gale Candaras        Gale.Candaras@state.ma.us                      617-722-1291

Sen. Mickael Morrissey   Michael.W.Morrissey@state.ma.us             617-722-1494   

 

Senate Bill S321 Update

The Following Twelve Legislators Have Retracted Their Sponsorship of the Overtly Anti-Gay and Anti-American Bill S321--Parental Notification

Updated June 10th 4:30 P.M.

Rep. Bruce Ayers (D-Quincy)
Rep.BruceAyers@hou.state.ma.us 
617-722-2460

Rep. Thomas Calter (D-Kingston)
Thomas.Calter@state.ma.us
617 722-2425 x7310 C: 781 831-3221

Rep. Stephen DiNatale (D-Fitchburg)
Rep.StephenDiNatale@Hou.State.MA.US
978 342-0110

Rep. Paul Donato (D-Medford)
Rep.PaulDonato@hou.state.ma.us or RepDonato38@aol.com
617-722-2960 or 781-395-1683

Rep. Lewis Evangelidis (R-Holden)
Rep.LewisEvangelidis@hou.state.ma.us
617-722-2263

Rep. Paul Frost (D-Auburn)
Rep.PaulFrost@Hou.State.ma.us
617-722-2489

Rep. Christopher Fallon (D-Malden)
Rep.ChristopherFallon@hou.state.ma.us
617-722-2430 or 781-321-5553

Rep. Bradford Hill (R-Ipswich)
Rep.BradHill@hou.state.ma.us
617-722-2489 or 978-356-9008

Rep. Jeffrey Perry (R-Sandwich)
Rep.JeffreyPerry@hou.state.ma.us
617-722-2396 or 508-888-2158

Rep. Karyn Polito (R-Shrewsbury)
Rep.KarynPolito@hou.state.ma.us
617-722-2230 or 508-845-2300

Sen. Richard Tisei (R-Wakefield) (confirmed error in inclusion)
Richard.Tisei@state.ma.us 
(617) 722-1206

Sen. Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester)
Bruce.Tarr@state.ma.us
(617) 722-1600

Interesting and important read regarding Rep. Paul Donato from BlueMassGroup

Massachusetts Legislators Claim Fraud on Anti-Gay Bill S321

Four Legislators Ask Senate Clerk to Remove Their Names as Co-Sponsors of Senate Bill S321-- Parental Notification (update 06/08/07--1:40 PM ELEVEN legislators have removed their names)

**UPDATE** 6-13-07 Senator Hedlund's Office confirmed that
Senator Hedlund was the "filer" of this bill (by request for a constituent) and his office managed the names of the 25 co-sponsors.  Senator Hedlund's office maintains that there is a record of 25 sponsorship requests directly from legislative offices.  However, Senator Richard Tisei's name appearing was a legitimate error.

Thanks to your quick response to the 100,000 plus person email blast by KnowThyNeighbor asking that you contact the twenty-five legislators whose names appeared as co-sponsors of S321, Senator Richard Tisei, Senator Bruce Tarr, Representative Chris Fallon and Representative Paul Donato have confirmed that they will be asking the Senate Clerk to remove their names as co-sponsors of this anti-gay bill. 

KnowThyNeighbor had a lengthy conversation with Senator Richard Tisei, The Senate Minority Leader, this morning and the Senator is stating that for the record, he did not request that his name be added as a co-sponsor of this bill and that his record on LGBT rights speaks for itself.  Senator Hedlund's aide, Ted Langill, confirmed that they have no email or phone record that confirmed Tisei's request for inclusion in the bill that would require a parental permission slip for teachers to use the words "homosexual, lesbian, transgender" or to discuss the current equal marriage fight or acknowledge the existence of families being headed by same-sex couples.  Senator Tisei also confirmed to KnowThyNeighbor that Rep. Fallon, Senator Tarr and Rep. Donato also found their names erroneously on Bill S321.

Rep. Paul Donato's office made a statement to KnowThyNeighbor that the Representative's name appeared on S321 "without permission" and "no one from Rep. Donato's office contacted Senator Hedlund" requesting that Rep. Donato be included in the co-sponsorship of S321.  So far Senator Hedlund's aide is stating that Senator Tisei is the only co-sponsor without an email or telephone trail.  But just a moment ago in speaking with Rep. Donato himself, KTN was told that the Representative contacted the Speaker of the House and the Senate Clerk and has had his name removed.  Rep. Donato told me emphaticly that he is not a sponsor and when he actually read Bill S321 he found it "disgusting."  Our email from Rep Donato earlier today:

"Tom

I am NOT a supporter of this anti-gay bill and I along with a number of reps and senators have asked

that our names be removed.

We have asked Sen Hedlunds office to investigate as to how our names were listed as co-sponsors

Representative

Paul J. Donato"

Can't the anti-gays get anything passed in Massachusetts without fraud and deception?  So far four legislators allegedly had their "names stolen" or were deceived regarding S321.  I anticipate a few more will state for the record the same thing.  You must continue to call and email the remaining twenty-one legislators and explain the nature of Bill S321.  Assure them that the very intent of this bill, as was confirmed to KTN by the S321's writer, Brian Camenker of MassResistance, was to make sure that this bill was far reaching and would disallow any discussion of LGBT people in the classroom.

Call or Email these Legislators TODAY and demand that they remove their names from Bill S321.

Rep. Jay Barrows (R-Mansfield)
Rep.FJayBarrows@Hou.State.MA.US 
617 722-2425

Rep. Robert Coughlin (D-Dedham)
now in Gov. Patrick's administration. Call his assistant Sarah MacDonald at 617-788-3649
sarah.macdonald@state.ma.us

Rep. Vinny deMacedo (R-Plymouth)
Rep.VinnydeMacedo@hou.state.ma.us
617 722-2100 or 508 224-7572

Rep. Joseph Driscoll (D-Braintree)
Rep.JosephDriscoll@hou.state.ma.us 
617-722-2460

Rep. Paul Frost (R-Auburn)
Rep.PaulFrost@Hou.State.MA.US
617-722-2489

Rep. Susan Gifford (R-Wareham)
Rep.SusanGifford@hou.state.ma.us 
617-722-2090 or 508-295-5999

Rep. William Greene (D-Billerica)
Rep.WilliamGreene@hou.state.ma .us 
617-722-2210 or 617-722-2215

Rep. Robert Hargraves (R-Groton)
Rep.RobertHargraves@hou.state.ma.us 
(617) 722-2305 or 978-448-5456

Rep. Donald Humason (R-Westfield)
Rep.DonaldHumason@hou.state.ma.us 
617-722-2803 or 413-568-1366

Rep. George Peterson (R-Grafton)
Rep.GeorgePeterson@hou.state.ma.us 
617-722-2100 or 508-839-1000

Rep. Elizabeth Poirier (R-North Attleborough)
Rep.ElizabethPoirier@hou.state.ma.us 
617-722-2976 or 508-695-3296

Rep. Richard Ross (R-Wrentham)
Rep.RichardRoss@Hou.State.MA.US 
617-722-2305

Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Hanson)
Rep.DanielWebster@hou.state.ma.us
617-722-2487 or 781-826-6712

Sen. Scott Brown (R-Wrentham)
Scott.P.Brown@state.ma.us 
(617) 722-1555

Sen. Robert Hedlund (R-Weymouth)
Robert.Hedlund@state.ma.us
617-722-1646

Tom Lang, Director