‘Heterophobia’ as hotel bans straights May 28, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Card, Discriminate, Discrimination, discrimination against lesbians, Equal Opportunity Act, Gay, Heterophobia, Heterophobic, heterosexual discrimination, Homosexual, homosexual hotel, hotel bans heterosexuals, straight, The Peel Hotel.comments closed
An Australian hotel popular with gay men has won the right to refuse entry to heterosexuals and lesbians, officials and the owner said Monday.
The Peel Hotel in Melbourne won an exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act to prevent insults and abuse directed toward gays in its bars and nightclubs, owner Tom McFeely told AFP.
“The hotel predominantly markets itself towards homosexual males, towards gay men and we want to protect the integrity of the venue as well as continue to make the men feel comfortable,” McFeely said.
“When large numbers of heterosexuals or even lesbians are in the hotel that changes the atmosphere and many gay men can feel uncomfortable.”
The landmark decision by a civil tribunal gives the establishment — which does not offer accommodation — the right to refuse entry to people considered a threat to the safety and comfort of its patrons.
Helen Szoke, the chief executive of the Victoria state government’s Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, said the Peel Hotel’s gay clientele had experienced harassment, hostility and violence.
“(They) also have felt as though they’ve been like a zoo exhibit with big groups of women on hens’ parties coming to the club,” she said.
Time Warner Needs to Check Bill Maher May 28, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Bill Maher, Bill Maher Bigot, Bill Maher discrimination against christians, Card, CARD Bigot, Christian, Discriminate, Discrimination, HBO, HBO Bill Maher, HBO discrimination, Imus, imus racism.comments closed
NEW YORK, May 22 /Christian Newswire/ — HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” ran a show on May 18–repeated throughout this week–that began with an attack on the late Rev. Jerry Falwell and then devolved into an assault on Catholicism:
“And it’s easy to start a religion! Watch, I do it for you: I had a vision last night! A vision! The Blessed Virgin Mary came to me–I don’t know how she got past the guards–and she told me it’s high time to take the high ground from the Seventh Day Adventists and give it to the 24-hour party people. And what happens in the confessional stays in the confessional. Gay men, don’t say you’re life partners, say you’re a nunnery of two. ‘We weren’t having sex, officer; I was performing a very private Mass, here in my car. I was letting my rod and staff comfort him. Take this and eat of it, [our emphasis] for this is my roommate Barry. And for all those who believe there is a special place for you in Kevin.”
Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded this way:
Racist jailed for ‘stunt bomb plot’ May 28, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in ANM, Australian Nationalist Movement, Card, John Van Blitterswyk, Racism, Racism against the Chinese, Racist, Racist bomb plot, racist neo-Nazi, stunt bomb plot, Tongeren, Van Blitterswyk, Van Tongeren, West Australian District Court.comments closed
White supremacist Jack van Tongeren’s right hand man was labelled “un-Australian” as he was jailed for more than two years for plotting to bomb four Chinese restaurants in Perth as a publicity stunt.
John Van Blitterswyk, 56, was sentenced in the West Australian District Court for conspiring with three other men, including van Tongeren, to bomb the restaurants in 2004.
The court was told the neo-Nazi Australian Nationalist Movement (ANM) members concocted the plot as a stunt to coincide with the release of van Tongeren’s book, The ANM Story.
They were arrested after some ANM members were charged over racist graffiti in Perth, with two rolling over and giving evidence about the plot.
McBeth faces Fifa racism inquiry May 28, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in African, Card, Caribbean, Fifa investigation, FIFA Racism, John McBeth, Racism, Racism African, Racism British, Racism Caribbean, racism McBeth, Racist, racist Mcbeth, Scottish Football Association, Sepp Blatter, vice-president.comments closed
John McBeth faces a Fifa investigation days before he is due to be made Britain’s new Fifa vice-president. A new ethics committee will investigate McBeth, who stands accused of racism after allegedly suggesting African and Caribbean associations were corrupt.
He also said he had won the Fifa vote because other nations hate England.
McBeth will step down as Scottish Football Association president on Friday but the Fifa post will remain vacant during the investigation.
It is now possible that McBeth may not have the opportunity to take up his new role with Fifa.
That would see the home nations holding another election to find the person to succeed Scottish lawyer David Will, who is retiring after 17 years with Fifa.
In his interview with a number of the Sunday newspapers, McBeth described Fifa president Sepp Blatter as a “tricky customer”.
He went on to claim some Africa representatives have different ethics from the British “fair play” attitude.
“I know two or three (at Fifa) whom I’d want to count my fingers after shaking hands with them,” he said.
“If I come across corruption, I have to expose it. I must try to stay true to my beliefs and hope I don’t get seduced.
“By and large, the four British countries know what fair play is and when we are stepping out of line.
“But, as soon as you hit Africa, it’s a slightly different kettle of fish. They’re poor nations and want to grab what they can.
“I presume the Caribbean is much the same – they just come at it in a different way.”
Berea touted as model for nation – Affirmative action for the poor May 28, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in affirmative action, Affirmative action for the poor, African Americans, African-American, Berea, Berea affirmative action, Black, Blacks, Card, college, Henry Louis Gates Jr., interracial college, Jean Fairfax, Kentucky State College, low-income affirmative action, middle class, White, Whites.comments closed
Berea College — and its emphasis on providing a college education to those who don’t have the means to pay for it — should become a model for the rest of the country, renowned scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. told the school’s graduates yesterday.The nation needs an economic bill of rights, guaranteeing access to a safe, good education, affordable health care and a place to live, said Gates, a Harvard professor of African-American studies and a cultural critic.
He challenged the 245 graduates to do better than his generation.
“Will you have the will to insist that the Berea ideal becomes the American ideal?” he asked.
Gates noted that Berea, which was founded in 1855, was the first interracial college in the south. He said the school has been a model for the rest of the country ever since.
The college, which admits only low-income students and does not charge tuition, awarded Gates an honorary degree of humane letters. Jean Fairfax, a civil rights leader who began her career at Kentucky State College, now Kentucky State University, was also awarded an honorary degree.
An economic bill of rights would have the effect of affirmative action for the poor, Gates said. Race-based affirmative action provided a way for blacks to enter the middle class, and he was one of those who benefited, Gates said.
Protesters denounce King Tut exhibition in US as racist May 21, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Africa, African, African Americans, African-American, African-American studies, Association of Kemetic Nubian Heritage, Black, Blacks, Card, Franklin Institute, King Tut, King Tut Exhibition, King Tutankhamun, Racism, Racist, Racist Exhibition, Temple University, White.comments closed
Molefi Asante, professor of African-American studies at Temple University, led a protest yesterday in front of the Franklin Institute claiming the museum’s exhibit on King Tutankhamun is racist.”This is a crime scene,” he shouted. “This is an area of criminal theft, identity theft.”
Among the grievances shared by members of the Association of Kemetic Nubian Heritage, of which Asante is president, is that the exhibit has no mention of Africa and that information within suggests that King Tut, an African, was white.
Asante specifically pointed to a representation of Tut that “looks more like Boy George than the boy king.”
About 50 protesters walked in front of the crowded museum stairs carrying signs bearing statements including “Nefertiti is my sister,” “Stop stealing our history” and “King Tut’s daddy was black.”
Asante said the exhibit doesn’t tell visitors Egypt is in Africa, and he believes that many people leave thinking Egypt is in Europe.
He claims the museum did this for “commercial reasons.”
Pregnancy discrimination is on the rise May 21, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Card, David Grinberg, Discriminate, Discrimination, Elaina Smiley, Family and Medical Leave Act, pregnancy, Pregnancy Discrimination Act, pregnancy discrimination complaints.comments closed
By Eve Tahmincioglu
I think I should set the record straight about something quite a few readers ask about: Pregnancy discrimination is indeed illegal.
You hear that, employers out there?
You cannot refuse to hire a woman because she is pregnant. You cannot fire her because she is pregnant. You cannot demote her or dock her pay because she is pregnant. Even if you ask a woman about her child-rearing plans, and don’t do the same of your male job applicants or employees, that’s a no-no.
Seems pretty basic. Alas, not to everyone.
Despite the fact that we supposedly live in a society that is becoming more understanding, and corporate America tells us more supportive, of work-life balance, the number of pregnancy discrimination complaints across the country is actually on the rise, big time.
“The increase in pregnancy discrimination charge filings and lawsuits is cause for concern,” says David Grinberg, a spokesman for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Such charges filed with the EEOC, state and local agencies jumped nearly 19 percent to a record 4,901 last year, from 3,977 in 1997.
Discriminating Lenders, or Just Discrimination? May 20, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in African Americans, African-American, American Indians, Black, Blacks, Card, civil rights law, ethnic group discrimination, Fair Housing Act, fair-housing complaints, housing discrimination, housing racism, Indian reservations, Lawsuit, lender discrimination, mortgage discrimination, mortgage loans, National Community Reinvestment Coalition, Native Americans, NovaStar Financial, NovaStar Financial discrimination, people with disabilities, racism discrimination, Richard Johnson, The National Community Reinvestment Coalition.comments closed
When mortgage lenders refuse to write loans on central-city rowhouses, does that violate federal fair-housing rules?
What about refusing to write mortgages on houses in a community dominated by an ethnic group? Or not offering mortgage loans for houses that may be used in part to accommodate disabled adults?
Just how much protection do fair-lending and other civil rights laws provide to mortgage applicants who are rejected not because of their credit scores or financial capacities but possibly because of the location, type or potential use of their homes?
A major consumer group is mounting a campaign aimed at nailing down the answers. The National Community Reinvestment Coalition filed lawsuit May 9 against NovaStar Mortgage, a subsidiary of publicly traded NovaStar Financial, based in Kansas City, Mo. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in the District, charges that NovaStar has repeatedly violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to offer mortgages on rowhouses in downtown Baltimore, on homes on Indian reservations anywhere in the country, and on houses that may be used in part to shelter and care for disabled adults.
Such bans have “no business justification,” according to the suit, and illegally discriminate against African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans and people with disabilities.
Weight and Height May be Added to Massachusetts Anti-Discrimination Laws May 18, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Card, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Discriminate, Discrimination, Height discrimination, Massachusetts Anti-Discrimination, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, Race, Weight discrimination.comments closed
Ellen Frankel stands just 4-foot-8 1/2 inches tall, a size that allowed larger co-workers to playfully scoop her up at the office and make remarks about her height. Some even patted her on the head.
Lawmakers are considering complaints such as hers as they review a bill that would make Massachusetts just the second state to bar discrimination based on height or weight.
“People in authority will very easily make comments about height that they wouldn’t make about race or gender,” said Frankel, a Marblehead author.
Jeanne Toombs understands the frustration. She says overweight people routinely are discriminated against because of their size.
“It’s not fair. No matter what you think of fat people, they deserve to be treated like human beings,” said Toombs, 59, a piano teacher who weighs 300 pounds and is on the board of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance.
The proposed law does not define short or fat. It would apply mainly to the workplace but also to landlords and real estate transactions.
Discrimination debate: Women-only hotel floors May 18, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Crowne Plaza, Crowne Plaza discrimination, Dhaval Brahmbhatt, Discriminate, Discrimination, discrimination against males, Gloria Allred, Grand Rapids, Hotel Floors women only, KKK, Ku Klux Klan, Marriott hotel, Marriott hotel discriminate, Marriott hotel discrimination, Marriott hotel women's only floor, men-only lounges, Women-Only, Women-only hotel floors, Women_only hotel.comments closed
When a hotel sets aside a floor and a lounge for women only, is it discrimination or good business?
As TODAY co-host Matt Lauer discovered, it might be both, depending on whom you ask.
“It is discrimination,” said Los Angeles attorney Gloria Allred. “You are excluding men from the lounge. Are we going to have male-only lounges as we used to have? No. What we want are equal rights. Not more rights, not less rights, but equal rights.”
“Of course it’s for the bottom line,” countered Donny Deutsch of CNBC’s The Big Idea. It’s also a great idea, he added. “They’re in the business of helping and serving their customers. This is catering to women’s needs. It’s hospitality. What is wrong?”
The discussion was sparked when the new Marriott hotel in Grand Rapids, Mich., said it will set aside its 19th floor for women only. For an extra $30 a night, women will get such amenities as special hair dryers and toiletries.
They also get a women-only lounge where they can enjoy a drink without worrying about men hitting on them.
Bank Of America Sued For Race Discrimination May 18, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in African Americans, African-American, anti-Black discrimination, Bank of America discrimination, Bank of America racism, Bank of America Racist, Black, Blacks, Card, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Discriminate, Discrimination, North Carolina, Racism, Racist.comments closed
Five black current and former employees of Bank of America Corp. have sued the second-largest U.S. bank, accusing it of racial discrimination by steering lucrative clients to their white counterparts.The 29-page complaint, filed Thursday with the U.S. District Court in Boston, contends that the bank discriminates against African-Americans in pay, promotions, training and support services.
It said the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank regularly teams African-American workers together and assigns them to largely minority neighborhoods and low net-worth clients.
When the workers complained, according to the lawsuit, the bank said it believed that clients are more “comfortable” dealing with bankers and brokers of their own race.
‘Elderly’ drivers seek freedom from DMV ageism May 8, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in age limit driving, Card, Citizens Against Discrimination, Discriminate, discrimination against the Elderly, DMV, DMV discrimination, driving discrimination.comments closed
Once an adult, twice a child, the old wives’ wit goes. If you live long enough, you might be unfortunate enough to leave this world the way you entered it: needing diapers.
Most senior citizens do their best to maintain as much of their freedom and dignity as they can until that unhappy helpless moment arrives. They don’t need meddlesome legislators to drive them to dependence prematurely.
Besides, what constitutes “elderly” anyway? Recently I was forced to ponder this burning baby boomer’s question and decided that it really boils down to a matter of perception.
I heard a report of “an elderly woman’s” body being found after a fire. She was 60. Sixty is elderly? Sure, if you are a 20-something television copywriter; not if you are a 50-something columnist.
Still, young marketers in this youthful, health-conscious era try to sell us on an “active adult” image in which 60 is the new 40, 50 is the new 30 and so on. Then reality bites, usually when you can’t get your achy bones out of bed in the morning. Or you figure out on your own that it’s best to avoid driving at the height of rush hour. Age, they wistfully argue, is nothing but a number.
But that magic senior number, set at 75 by the District’s Department of Motor Vehicles, is just plain arbitrary.
TV producer accused of racism, sexism May 8, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in African Americans, African-American, Asian, Black, Blacks, Card, Chinamen, IATSE, Intl. Assn. of Theatrical Stage Employees, Law & Order: SVU, Racism, Racist, Sexism, Sexist, Ted Kotcheff, Ted Kotcheff racism, Ted Kotcheff racist.comments closed
A Hollywood union has accused an executive producer of “Law & Order: SVU” of making racist and sexist remarks, claiming he often refers to Asian-Americans as “Chinamen.”
The Intl. Assn. of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) said it has complained to the show’s producer, NBC Universal Television, in three instances involving allegations against executive producer Ted Kotcheff over the past three years.
In the latest allegation, Kotcheff is accused of referring to a crew member as Stepin Fetchit, an old Hollywood stereotype denoting a servile, simple-minded black man.
The union said its attorneys notified NBC Universal brass in a letter dated April 7 that Kotcheff also told the crew member to “get your Caribbean ass out of here — go back to the Caribbean.”
The letter also claims Kotcheff “frequently refers to Asian Americans as ‘Chinamen’ and describes women in sexually derogatory and demeaning terms,” according to an IATSE press release distributed Wednesday.
Religious Discrimination 101: On The College Campus May 8, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Alan Cooperman, anti-Christian, Card, Christian, Christians, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, college, College discrimination, Discriminate, Discrimination, Gary A. Tobin, Institute for Jewish and Community Research, professor discrimination, Religion, religous discrimination, university.comments closed
Alan Cooperman wrote a interesting story for the Washington Post that talks about the views that college faculty have towards religion. Specifically it seems that negative views of evangelical Christians topped the list in the one study that was done:
The other survey, by the San Francisco-based Institute for Jewish and Community Research, confirmed those findings but also found what the institute’s director and chief pollster, Gary A. Tobin, called an “explosive” statistic: 53 percent of its sample of 1,200 college and university faculty members said they have “unfavorable” feelings toward evangelical Christians.
A graph accompanying the story drove the point home. By comparison, only three percent of faculty members had unfavorable feelings toward Jews. What’s funny is that the latter survey was designed to gauge anti-Semitism.
The only groups with significantly negative responses were Christians and Muslims. A full third of faculty had negative views toward Mormons, with 22 percent reporting unfavorable views toward Muslims, 18 percent with negative feelings toward atheists, 13 percent with negative feelings toward Roman Caholics, 10 percent with negative feelings toward the non-religious, nine percent with negative feelings toward non-evangelical Christians and four percent reporting negative views toward Buddhists.
Link to the full article at washingtonpost.com
Audit uncovers discrimination against disabled in Newton housing May 3, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in audit, Card, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Committee for People with Disabilities, Disability Law Center, Disabled, Discriminate, Discrimination, discrimination against disabled, Discrimination against people with disabilities, discrimination in housing, housing discrimination, minority group, Murphy, Newton housing, The Newton Fair Housing Task Force.comments closed
The woman called a real estate agent looking to rent an apartment, and indicated that she uses a wheelchair. Despite promising to call her back about prospects, the agent never did.
Another person without a disability called the same agent and was shown an apartment.
A man who is blind called an agent about renting a unit in a three-family, owner-occupied building. The agent asked if the man had pets, and he acknowledged using a guide dog. The agent said the owner lived below the available apartment, and the guide dog “would drive her crazy.” The man did not get the apartment.
Duke Lacrosse Rape Case: Trying to get the ‘Black’ vote? May 3, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in African Americans, African-American, Black, Black vote, Blacks, Duke Lacrosse Rape Case, Mike Nifong, nifong, nifong Racism, Racist Mike Nifong, Rape Case, reverse racism, White, Whites.comments closed
The question is will this outcome affect Jesse Jackson’s scholarship offer for the accuser?
He said he is waiting until the woman is “strong enough” to meet with him for prayer, and so he can formally offer her a scholarship. He said the offer stands, regardless of the outcome of the case.
Disgraced shock jock Imus to sue CBS Radio May 3, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in African Americans, African-American, Black, Blacks, Card, CBS Racism, Discriminate, Discrimination, Don Imus, Imus, Imus in the Morning, imus racism, Imus Racist, Imus Radio, Martin Garbus, MSNBC, nappy, nappy headed, nappy headed hos, Racism, Racist, Rutgers women's basketball team.comments closed
A lawsuit will be Don Imus’s rejoinder to CBS Radio, which fired the controversial U.S. radio host after his recent racist and sexist comments about a university-level women’s basketball team.
Imus has hired lawyer Martin Garbus, a First Amendment specialist, to help him sue his former employer.
Garbus said on Thursday that he expects to file a breach of contract suit on behalf of Imus by next week.
According to Garbus, part of the host’s CBS contract acknowledged his services to be “irreverent” and “controversial.”
Solidarity predicts end of affirmative action May 3, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in affirmative action, African Americans, African-American, Black, Blacks, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Indian, Johannesburg, Racism, Racist, reverse racism, South Africa, White, Whites.comments closed
A Johannesburg metro police campaign to recruit white, coloured and Indian members could be part of the slow death of affirmative action, the trade union Solidarity said on Thursday.
The scrapping of affirmative action — and discrimination against young white people — at entry-level is “a rapidly growing trend”, said Solidarity’s deputy general secretary, Dirk Hermann.
Apart from the Johannesburg metro police, several mining houses and large businesses are actively recruiting white people at lower levels, he said.
“This means that affirmative action is slowly dying from the bottom up.”
Solidarity saw the move as the first step in a process of exempting young people from affirmative action.
However, Hermann said it should not only be scrapped at the lower levels of the labour market, but throughout.
At the moment — in the metro police — minorities are being given the message that they are being recruited, but should not expect promotion.
House approves bill that bans discrimination based on genetics May 3, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in Card, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Discriminate, Discrimination, gene discrimination, Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, genetics, Human Genome Project.comments closed
After more than a dozen years of working on the issue, Congress is rightly poised to clear a bill that would prohibit insurers and employers from using genetic information as a source of discrimination.The bill, which cleared the U.S. House last week, bans employers from using one’s genetic information in making hiring, firing or promotion decisions. Likewise, insurers would be prohibited from denying coverage or charging higher premiums based on a person’s genetic disposition to certain diseases.
The benefits of prohibiting such discrimination are clear. For starters, it would alleviate the fear of losing jobs or health insurance coverage for those in need of crucial genetic testing for medical reasons.
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2007 cleared the House with a 420-3 vote. The bill is expected to easily pass in the Senate, and President Bush has said he will sign it.
The government has already invested $3.7 billion in the Human Genome Project. The ban on genetic discrimination would ensure the job is completed, with proper protections that safeguard individual privacy and allow us to make the most of scientific research.
CARD {Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination} Source: kansascity.com
Snoop Dogg say’s “Rappers Ho’s are different” Rules are different for Imus April 12, 2007
Posted by C.A.R.D in basketball, CBS Radio, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Don Imus, Hip Hop, ho, hoe, Hoes, Hos, Imus Racist, MSNBC, nappy, nappy headed, nappy headed hos, nigga, nigger, Racism, Racist, rap, rapper, Rappers, Rutgers University, Snoop, snoop dog, Snoop Dogg, Snoop Imus, women's basketball team.comments closed
Rapper has dismissed comparisons between sexist hip-hop lyrics and the recent racist remarks made by radio DJ Don Imus.
Imus was suspended by CBS Radio and MSNBC on Monday after he referred to the Rutgers University women’s basketball team as ‘nappy-headed hos’–a racially charged sexist term.
Snoop frequently refers to women as “b**ches” and “hos” in his music, but he insists Imus’ use of the term was unacceptable and the 66-year-old DJ should be taken off the air.
The Doggystyle star says, “It’s a completely different scenario.”
C.A.R.D 