From this week's David Mixner's Blog

From this week's David Mixner's Blog


LGBT History: The Decade of Lobotomies, Castration and Institutions
By David Mixner
Copyright by David Mixner
Jul 28 2010
http://www.davidmixner.com/2010/07/lgbt-history-the-decade-of-lobotomies-castration-and-institutions.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DavidMixnerCom+%28DavidMixner.com%29

Homosexual Dachau? This name doesn't have anything to do with World War II. More than any other mental institution in the United States, Atascadero State Hospital (photograph) was a chamber of horrors for homosexuals. The tag "Homosexual Dachau" was well-earned for its forced lobotomies, castrations and brutal treatments practiced at that facility. Hundreds of gays and lesbians were forcibly sent by their families to be cured of homosexuality which, as recently as the early 1970s, was considered a sexual and psychological disorder.

The 1950's were an especially dark time for homosexuals. Because of the witch hunts by Senator Joseph McCarthy, Americans started passing horrible and oppressive laws against homosexuality. Same-sex behavior was linked to treason and Communism in that period. Ironically, Senator McCarthy had many homosexual aides at the time led by lawyer Roy Cohen. As the witch hunt spread across America, homosexuals with no politics were sent to the worst institutions imaginable.

Even up until 1971, simply being a homosexual could result in a life sentence. Twenty states had laws stating that the mere fact you were a homosexual was reason for imprisonment. In California (of all places) and Pennsylvania, we could be put away for life in a mental hospital. In seven states castration was permitted as a way to stop homosexual 'deviants.'

At Atascadero State Hospital, doctors (I use that term loosely) were permitted under an obscure California law to commit those who practiced sodomy into the hospital. Once admitted, normal men and women were rendered mentally disabled through the torture of castration, lobotomies, forced chemical treatments and experimental treatments. The horrors experienced by hundreds are almost too hard to comprehend in America.

The most notorious was a Dr. Walter J. Freeman who perfected the ice pick lobotomy. He jammed an ice pick through a homosexual's eyes into the brain and performed a primitive lobotomy. According to records, he treated over 4,000 patients this way around America and it is estimated that nearly 30% to 40% were homosexuals. He believed deeply this was the only way to cure homosexuality.

A caller into an NPR Radio talk show about lobotomies recalled a cousin who was a homosexual. She said,

"PAT (Caller): Yes, I'm Pat from Naples, Florida. I just wanted to tell you about a cousin of mine who, in her late 30s or early 40s, was forced into a lobotomy by an uncle of hers who had some control over her finances. And she was forced into a lobotomy because they said she was a homosexual. And she lived after that in somewhat sheltered situations, like a boarding house, but she never could hold a job and she certainly is not as lucid as your guest. She was eccentric. She had no emotion, only showed emotion as she learned it. But it was only because she was a homosexual that they gave her a lobotomy. ........ And she herself told me how and why she had had the lobotomy. And at that point in her life, she was in her 70s and she said, `Oh, well, that was the right thing to do because they told me I was homosexual.' "

The difficulty in documenting so much of this history is that most of the records, history and data have been destroyed. Families were often adamant about not leaving any trace of the overwhelming shame of having a homosexual in the family and they often erased the gay relative's presence on earth. Many individuals who were terrorized died in the institutions or were made mentally disabled with an inability to recall. Or unable because of their torture to share their journal.

The work we do today for our freedom must honor them. They never got a chance. We have a chance. Let's not lose it



Mom Gives Target Stores Hell! - Watch the Video!!!
By David Mixner
Copyright by David Mixner
Jul 28 2010
http://www.davidmixner.com/2010/07/mom-gives-target-stores-hell.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DavidMixnerCom+%28DavidMixner.com%29


Randi Reitan is one of those moms in the LGBT movement that makes us all proud. Her son Jake is one our promising young leaders and was instrumental in the Soul Force College dialogues. Randi, who lives in Minnesota, was outraged when she heard that Target Stores gave $150,000 to an extreme right wing Republican candidate for Governor in her home state. This is her response!



Posted at 04:00 PM in Boycott, Civil Rights, Discrimination, Randi Reitan | Permalink




Time To Send State Senator Ruben Diaz Packing
By David Mixner
Copyright by David Mixner
Jul 30 2010
http://www.davidmixner.com/2010/07/time-to-send-state-senator-ruben-diaz-packing.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DavidMixnerCom+%28DavidMixner.com%29

Senator_ruben_diaz If there is ever a Hall of Shame for all the homophobes that have added to the oppression of the LGBT community, New York State Senator Ruben Diaz would be right up there hanging between Anita Bryant and the Pope. This hate-filled Democrat takes great pride in being the key to the failure of marriage equality in New York State. The senator, who is a minister in a Pentecostal church, freely uses "God" as an instrument of hate and division.

Ironically, this 'man of God' who preaches from the 'moral high ground' has as his political allies a brunch of crooks, people under investigation and even a man forced to leave the Senate for violence directed toward women. Apparently these crimes are good ones in the eyes of Diaz's God. Let's be honest, Diaz, like so many outright bigots before him, is enjoying the limelight, raising money off our oppression and using fear to develop his personal power. They don't make them any more disgusting than him.

We have a reasonable shot of replacing him in the State Senate this election. Time is short and it is an uphill battle. Nevertheless, we should not shrink from it. At least he must know there is some political price to be paid for his bigotry.

Fight Back New York is organizing, in coordination with other organizations, an all out effort to unseat him. They are doing hardcore political research into his record, background and business ventures. So, please, go to their site and volunteer and contribute whatever is possible. Even the smallest donation sends a powerful message.

Diaz must hear from us.





Weather: You Think You Have Been Hot!
By David Mixner
Copyright by David Mixner
Aug 1 2010
http://www.davidmixner.com/2010/08/weather-you-think-you-have-been-hot.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DavidMixnerCom+%28DavidMixner.com%29


Heat-wave As we wait for the approaching possibly brutal hurricane season, there is no question that 2010 will be a year to remember for weather. Already we have had major flooding in China, Poland, India, Pakistan, Sydney, Nashville, Phoenix, Iowa and so many other places. In addition, this is the year where Washington, DC had over 50 inches of snow in just a couple of weeks bringing our national capitol to a halt.

What has effected the most people has been the unbearable heat. July will be the second hottest in history for a number of places including New York City. March through July has been the hottest run of months in history for the city. However around the world it has also been an extraordinary year for heat. Dr. Jeff Masters in WunderBlog on WeatherUnderground.com has written of this global heat wave:

This year now ranks in second place for the most number of countries that have set extreme heat records, according to a list supplied to me today by Chris Burt. The new list removes a number of old disputed records, resulting in the year 2007 surpassing 2010 as the year with the most extreme heat records--fifteen. Keep in mind that the matter of determining extreme records is very difficult, and it is often a judgment call as to whether an old record is reliable or not. The list of countries (225) includes islands that are not independent countries, such as Puerto Rico and Greenland.

Russia had its hottest temperature in history on July 11, when the mercury rose to 44.0°C (111.2°F) in Yashkul, Kalmykia Republic, in the European portion of Russia near the Kazakhstan border. The previous hottest temperature in Russia (not including the former Soviet republics) was the 43.8°C (110.8°F) reading measured at Alexander Gaj, Kalmykia Republic, on August 6, 1940. The remarkable heat in Russia this year has not been limited just to the European portion of the country--the Asian portion of Russia also recorded its hottest temperature in history this year, a 42.3°C (108.1°F) reading at Belogorsk, near the Amur River border with China. The previous record for the Asian portion of Russia was 41.7°C (107.1°F) at nearby Aksha on July 21, 2004.

Sudan recorded its hottest temperature in its history on June 25 when the mercury rose to 49.6°C (121.3°F) at Dongola. The previous record was 49.5°C (121.1°F) set in July 1987 in Aba Hamed.

Niger tied its record for hottest day in history on June 22, 2010, when the temperature reached 47.1°C (116.8°F) at Bilma. That record stood for just one day, as Bilma broke the record again on June 23, when the mercury topped out at 48.2°C (118.8°F). The previous record was 47.1°C on May 24, 1998, also at Bilma.

Saudi Arabia had its hottest temperature ever on June 22, 2010, with a reading of 52.0°C (125.6°F) in Jeddah, the second largest city in Saudi Arabia. The previous record was 51.7°C (125.1°F), at Abqaiq, date unknown. The record heat was accompanied by a sandstorm, which caused eight power plants to go offline, resulting in blackouts to several Saudi cities.

Chad had its hottest day in history on June 22, 2010, when the temperature reached 47.6°C (117.7°F) at Faya. The previous record was 47.4°C (117.3°F) at Faya on June 3 and June 9, 1961.

Kuwait recorded its hottest temperature in history on June 15 in Abdaly, according to the Kuwait Met office. The mercury hit 52.6°C (126.7°F). Kuwait's previous all-time hottest temperature was 51.9°C (125.4°F), on July 27,2007, at Abdaly. Temperatures reached 51°C (123.8°F) in the capital of Kuwait City on June 15, 2010.

Iraq had its hottest day in history on June 14, 2010, when the mercury hit 52.0°C (125.6°F) in Basra. Iraq's previous record was 51.7°C (125.1°F) set August 8, 1937, in Ash Shu'aybah.

Pakistan had its hottest temperature in history on May 26, when the mercury hit an astonishing 53.5°C (128.3°F) at the town of MohenjuDaro, according to the Pakistani Meteorological Department. While this temperature reading must be reviewed by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) for authenticity, not only is the 128.3°F reading the hottest temperature ever recorded in Pakistan, it is the hottest reliably measured temperature ever recorded on the continent of Asia.

Myanmar (Burma) had its hottest temperature in its recorded history on May 12, when the mercury hit 47°C (116.6°F) in Myinmu, according to the Myanmar Department of Meteorology and Hydrology. Myanmar's previous hottest temperature was 45.8°C (114.4°F) at Minbu, Magwe division on May 9, 1998. According to Chris Burt, author of the authoritative weather records book Extreme Weather, the 47°C measured this year is the hottest temperature in Southeast Asia history.

Ascention Island (St. Helena, a U.K. Territory) had its hottest temperature in history on March 25, 2010, when the mercury hit 34.9°C (94.8°C) at Georgetown. The previous record was 34.0°C (93.2°F) at Georgetown in April 2003, exact day unknown.

The Solomon Islands had their hottest temperature in history on February 1, 2010, when the mercury hit 36.1°C (97°F) at Lata Nendo (Ndeni). The previous record for Solomon Islands was 35.6°C (96.0°F) at Honaiara, date unknown.

Columbia had its hottest temperature in history on January 24, 2010, when Puerto Salgar hit 42.3°C (108°F). The previous record was 42.0°C (107.6°F) at El Salto in March 1988 (exact day unknown).