Three Washington DC Community Advisory Boards for HIV/AIDS Research have written a joint letter addressing sex and gender data collection in HIV/AIDS research. The letter is being posted online for one month so that interested CABS and community members can sign-on. All sign-ons must be received by May 11th. The letter will then be submitted to the Cross-CAB Working Group for NIH NIAID Division of AIDS (DAIDS) funded HIV/AIDS Research.

The three CABs are: The Capital Area Vaccine Effort which serves as the community CAB for the NIH Vaccine Research Center, The Georgetown University Medical Center CAB which is part of the AIDS Clinical Trials Group, and the Washington VA Medical Center CAB, which is part of the International Network for Strategic Initiatives in Global HIV Trials.

Most researchers have come to realize that the term 'sex' refers to birth sex or biological sex; and that the term 'gender' refers to someone's gender identity. This was discussed in detail at the Forum for Collaborative HIV/AIDS Research meeting on Sex and Gender, which I attended back in 2003. I guess I thought that since the meeting was co-sponsored by the CDC and the NIH that we would all be on the same page going forward. Sadly, their continues to be significant discrepancies across networks in how data on sex and gender is collected.

All we are really asking is for DAIDS to get their act together and collect data on sex and gender in a consistent and appropriate manner. This is the right thing to do for everyone, but it is particularly important for the transgender community.

You can find out more by clicking here. I hope that you will join us by signing on to the letter either as an individual or as an organization.

The New Gay Wedge Issue
Republican Presidential Candidates Run to the Closet

In 2004, a Republican controlled Congress attempted to use the least widely supported gay rights issue (marriage equality) as a wedge to divide the Democratic vote. But in 2008, a Democratic Congress will tackle the most widely supported gay rights issue (employment discrimination), deepening a growing divide in the Republican Party.

The 2008 Republican primaries are here, and this time around it’s not just the gay Republican staffers who are running back into the closet. Republican presidential candidates are squeezing in with them.

John McCain once denounced Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance on the right”. Now McCain is working hard to gain Falwell’s approval. He recently spoke at Falwell's Liberty University.

Mit Romney once promised in a 1994 campaign to co-sponsor the federal Employment Non-discrimination Act and to support nondiscrimination protections for gay people in the area of housing and credit. Now, he says he's changed his mind on these issues.

Rudy Giuliani has a strong record of supporting LGBT Americans, including support for civil unions for same sex couples. Even he, however, is shying away from his LGBT track record. These days Giuliani's main talking point on LGBT issues is his opposition to marriage equality.

Sadly, all three of these Presidential candidates are distancing themselves from their own records on LGBT equality in an attempt to gain Republican primary voters.

It’s not working. Religious right voters are looking for a true believer.

The religious right were fooled in 2004. Sure, top ministers like Rev. Ted Haggard got regular conference calls with the White House, but he may say the right things, George Bush clearly does not share their beliefs. Beltway insiders know he only hates gay people as much as is politically necessary. Behind the scenes same-sex couples are given the same treatment as married couples at White House affairs. Domestic partners are treated the same as spouses at swearing in ceremonies. To add insult to injury the Bush twins attended a same-sex wedding. Bush himself has refused to say a single negative word about the Vice President’s lesbian daughter Mary Cheney, or her decision to have a baby. And what about those weekly conference calls? It’s been widely reported that White House staffers joke about the backward views of those ministers afterwards.

And it doesn’t stop with George Bush. The Mark Foley scandal called attention to the fact that many of the elected Republicans who vote anti-gay, hold no such personal beliefs. The former chair of the Republican Party, Ken Mehlman is widely rumored to be gay.. Many key republican staffers have also been ‘outed’. Still, many Republicans stand by their gay staff. Even Rick Santorum pledged during his campaign not to discriminate in his office. He quickly rescinded the pledge in a press release however, when he realized how much it angered the religious right.

And this is only the beginning.

In 2004, a Republican controlled-congress attempted to use the least widely supported gay rights issue (marriage equality) as a wedge to divide the Democratic vote. Ironically in 2008, a Democratic controlled congress will tackle the most widely supported gay rights issue (employment discrimination), deepening this growing divide in the Republican Party. It's the new gay wedge issue.

Now obviously the important distinction is that Republicans forced a vote on marriage equality strictly for political gain. Democrats are not wasting the country’s time in this manner. Rather, the movement to end workplace discrimination is a widely supported cause. The effect it will have on the Republican Party in 2008, however, is eerily similar to the effect marriage equality had on the Democratic party in 2004.

This debate will likely be debated in Congress while the Republican primaries are in full-swing.

Across the board, Republican Presidential candidates will be forced to state their positions on this simple question: Is it ok to fire someone simply because they are gay or lesbian?

You can guess how Sam Bownback. This Republican candidates is trying to challenge the current frontrunners by appealing to the growingly discontended extreme right of the Republican Party. But what about Giuliani, Romney, and McCain,? Will they stand with majority of Americans who oppose workplace discrimination, or will they stand with the religious right?

Democratic Presidential candidates are united in their support of equality in the workplace, but this issue is likely to split the Republican candidates down the middle. Welcome to the new gay wedge issue.

A preview of tomorrow night's Top Design ....

Of all the 2008 presidential candidates, I have to say John Edwards is the one who has impressed me most up to this date. There are several reasons I'm impressed with Edwards.

First, he finally admitted he made a mistake by voting for the war in Iraq, something Hillary Clinton has yet to do. This is one of the stumbling blocks the Kerry/Edwards ticket faced often.

Second, he is running a grassroots campaign. While Clinton and Obama are focusing on the big ticket ($1,000+) fundraising events, Edwards is steadily building a grassroots base. Those big spenders will 'max out' quickly. You cannot donate more than $2,300 for the primary and $2,300 for the main election. Hillary Clinton has so many folks that have maxed out on the primary donation, that she's already fundraising for the main election. The grassroots base, however, almost never maxes out. There are a lot more of us donating $25 to $50 a month. Edwards is wise to focus on building a large base that will be able to support his campaign over the long haul.

Third, Edwards is strong on LGBT issues. I believe any candidate is only as strong on LGBT issues as the person who is advising her or him. So when I heard that Eric Stern is volunteering for the Edwards campaign, that definitely caught my attention. Eric as you know previously served as the Executive Director of the Stonewall Democrats and as the Director of GLBT outreach at the DNC. Edwards, Obama, and Clinton are all taking very similar positions on LGBT issues, but only John Edwards has Eric Stern. In addition to Eric, longtime activist David Mixner has signed on to support Edwards. Hillary Clinton also has some great folks supporting her (Hilary Rosen & Ethan Geto). But when it comes to Barack Obama, I don't really know any of the folks who are advising him on LGBT issues, and that makes me nervous.

I haven't made up my mind yet, but I'm leaning towards John Edwards at this point. For more information and current blog posts, be sure to visit www.outforedwards.org.

Of all the 2008 Presidential candidates, Obama is the one who has the least visible support among established LGBT leaders. Yes I know, David Geffen did a fundraiser for him. But by comparison.....

Hillary Clinton counts among her supporters Jeff Soref(Board member of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and former chair of the DNC LGBT Caucus), Ethan Geto (New York LGBT advocate and fundraiser for Howard Dean in the last cycle), Hilary Rosen (beltway insider and partner of former Human Rights Campaign Executive Director Elizabeth Birch).

John Edwards counts among his supporters Eric Stern (former DNC GLBT outreach Director and former Executive Director of Stonewall Democrats) and David Mixner (longtime political operative).

Barack Obama has a strong record of support for the LGBT community. He voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment and has said he supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Lifting the Ban on Military Service, and Hate Crimes Legislation. Like Hillary, however, he can't give a simple, uncomplicated answer to the marriage question. His answers are often tortured, and only make matters worse.

Obama has thought a lot about HIV/AIDS. He recently gave an interesting speech on the state of HIV/AIDS, which you may want to read. More recently he showed leadership on HIV prevention research with introducing the Microbicide Development Act.

For ongoing coverage of Barack Obama on LGBT issues, be sure to check out www.outforobama.org.

As the 2008 Presidential race starts to heat up, it's important to look at where all the candidates stand on issues important to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. I will be putting up posts about all the candidates, but today I start with Hillary Clinton.

All the 2008 candidates have a record of supporting the LGBT community, and Hillary Clinton is no exception. You can check out a video of her recent speech to the Human Rights Campaign to get a feel for yourself.

Hillary is on record in support of the three issues that are most likely to come into play in the next year: The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), Hate Crimes Legislation, and Ending the Military Ban on LGBT soldiers. I haven't seen, however, anything about whether or not Hillary supports a transgender-inclusive ENDA. So if anybody knows about this - please let me know.

On the issue of Marriage Equality, Clinton's answers have been painfully nuanced, especially when addressing her New York constitutents, who would like to see her be a leader on this issue. She has said, however, that she suports equal benefits and responsibilities for same sex coules.

For ongoing coverage of Hillary Clinton on LGBT issues in 2008, visit www.outforhillary.org.