HISTORIC!

No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice and family."

"In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than they once were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their pleas is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfilment for themselves Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization's oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right."

What a historic day for the United States.  The last block of equality to fall.  Truly all are now equal.  Equal to love who they love and be recognize.

The response is overwhelming and was immediate from around the world. Talk about the lives of so many changing in an instant.

Many  headlines today started with Hollywood's response to marriage equality and shared the tweets of individuals celebrating this historic ruling.

But that is not Hollywood's response.  Those are individual responses.

The  real Hollywood response that needs to be seen is to stop this idea that leading stars and storylines must be straight.

Hello Hollywood look around..... the world is beyond the idea that the only way is straight.    Bring the equality to Hollywood  that the world is embracing.

The world is moving ahead of you .... catch up.

Speaking of catching up....

Today Sundance Channel had a poll of those LGTB movie couples that they would like to see married.   And what couple led the votes?

Oh you know it.

Brokeback broke barriers when it came to the screen. But it was ahead of time for many.

Looking back from there to now it is monumental how much change has happened.

Hollywood catch up and those in Hollywood you too  

The world is different place, those baby steps 

can become strides of pride  now.

you too big guy .... remember you tweeting this video

Out Spotlight XXXXVI

Today's Spotlight focuses on the Native American tribes and homosexuality.

In Native American history this is recognition of those called Two Spirits which could be seen as homosexuality in their culture. Now one tribe's stepped up to show their support of the gay members of their nation.

In August of this year the Coquille Indian Tribe on the southern coast of Oregon, a recognized federally sovereign nation within the United States, not bound by state of Oregon's constitution, recognize allowing same sex marriage among its members.

"The Coquilles (which tribal leaders prefer to pronounce KO-kwell) are probably the first tribe in the nation to legalize same-sex marriage", said Brian Gilley, a University of Vermont anthropology professor and author of the book, Becoming Two-Spirit: Gay Identity and Social Acceptance in Indian Country.

Because the Coquilles have federal status, a marriage within the tribe would be federally recognized. That would violate the Defence of Marriage Act, a law that says the federal government "may not treat same-sex relationships as marriages for any purpose."

The federal government could challenge the Coquille law as a way of testing the limits of tribal independence. The tribe has concluded that the Defense of Marriage Act may bar the tribe from conferring federal benefits or money on same-sex spouses, but understand the risks of their actions.

The new law establishes tribal rules for recognizing marriage, whether for gay or heterosexual couples. It will not take effect until the tribe also creates laws for divorce and child custody according to their tribal attorney. The seven-member tribal council expects to adopt such laws next year.

Historically homosexuality have been recognized by many tribes, but the Coquille Nation is the first and tribe to support gay marriage. Both the Cherokee and the Navajo, (the largest Native American tribe)Nations have banned same sex marriages.

The term "Two-Spirit" refers to a belief among some tribes that there are people who manifest both masculine and feminine spiritual qualities. According to Native American scholars, many tribes once revered Two-Spirits, viewing them as a third gender with a special spiritual connectedness. In these tribes, Two-Spirits filled important tribal roles as counselors, storytellers and healers.

This belief, scholars have also observed, has been eroded in many places by the imposition of Judeo-Christian views of homosexuality as sinful.

"Homophobia was taught to us as a component of Western education and religion," Navajo anthropologist Wesley Thomas has written. "We were presented with an entirely new set of taboos, which did not correspond to our own models and which focused on sexual behavior rather than the intricate roles Two-Spirit people played. As a result of this misrepresentation, our nations no longer accepted us as they once had."

Bay Area American Indian Two Spirits (BAAITS) is a six-year-old nonprofit that offers support and activities to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Native Americans. Similar groups exist in Oklahoma, Colorado and Minnesota. BAAITS and other groups are trying to help the Native American Nations to reconnect with Two Spirits and homosexuality within the 800 tribes in the United States.

The Coquille Nation is stepping forward with their acceptance of same sex marriage.

Ken Tanner, chief of the Coquilles said: "Native Americans are sensitive to discrimination of any kind. For our tribe, we want people to walk in the shoes of other people and learn to respect differences. Through that, we think we build a stronger community."