Monthly Archives: July 2017

Players from many different sports will gather this weekend in Washington for the Stonewall Sports National Tournament. D.C. members, seen here, are active in the LGBT sports world. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The fourth annualStonewall Sports National Tournamentwill be held this weekend at locations throughout D.C. including the National Mall. Along with sports tournaments in kickball, dodgeball and volleyball, afull scheduleis planned with social activities, leadership meetings, Stonewall Yoga, Stonewall Bocce pick-up games and pool parties.

TheStonewall Sportsmodel has spread to 11 cities in the United States and close to 1,000 competitors from those cities will be in attendance for the tournaments. Non-participant passes are also available for those who want to join in on the festivities.

Since its inception in 2010, D.C.based Stonewall Sports has provided sports leagues that are managed as a nonprofit with a philanthropic heart by creating organized communities that have the ability and responsibility to support others in need.

In addition to the sports competitions, the National Tournament brings together our Stonewall community from across the country to address issues in person, says James OLeary, vice president of Stonewall Sports. We will hold our annual meeting with workshops on the technical aspects of community building and programming along with having conversations about safe spaces, diversity, public health and inclusion.

The safe spaces that once existed within the LGBT community have evolved and Stonewall Sports has established a national network that allows for like-minded people to connect.

The National Tournament is a chance for all of the Stonewall cities to get together and talk about our vision and the avenues to reach our community, OLeary says. We have established a network of people that have a similar path.

Stonewall Philadelphiajoined the Stonewall community in 2014 and its members have seen incredible expansion in their sports and numbers. Currently boasting over 1,200 participants, they offer kickball, dodgeball, volleyball, sand volleyball, billiards, yoga and bowling. They have donated about $100,000 to local charities since their inception.

When I first started playing, I immediately began meeting a lot people who I wouldnt have met otherwise, says Stonewall Philadelphia Commissioner Joe Peltzer. Its a great opportunity to have fun, establish connections and raise money for charities. I love watching our players jumping into different friend groups.

Peltzer says that the Philadelphia players are really looking forward to building new connections from other cities and that the teams are melding together to come to the tournament. They will be sending about eight teams to compete in kickball and dodgeball.

The tournament is about competitive play, but we also look forward to the camaraderie and learning about what other cities are doing, Peltzer says. It elevates it above what is going on in your own little bubble.

In the fall of 2015,Stonewall Clevelandlaunched its kickball league, which was immediately followed by the addition of dodgeball. The two leagues have about 465 players andin two weeksthey will be joined by an additional 165 players in their inaugural bocce season.

After launching, we were plugged in instantly to several hundred people of varying age groups, says Taylor Henschel, co-commissioner of Stonewall Cleveland. This is more than an LGBT community. Its place making; creating intentional communities by drawing in your own people along with other people.

Cleveland is a sprawling city and Henschel says it is easy to get stuck in your local sector. The Stonewall model has helped to connect people from the widespread areas. They will be sending five teams to the National Tournament.

The value of this network is something larger than yourself. It gives life purpose, Henschel says. Meeting people from all over the country is a reminder that we are part of this enormous community of queer people. Its pretty profound.

Originally posted here:

Tournament time - Washington Blade

Its a small village that sits right off the Ashley River, Ashleyville-Maryville. Its one of the oldest communities in the heart of West Ashley.

Thursday night, the City of Charleston hosted a community development meeting. Theyve partnered with Dover, Kohl & Partners to prepare what they call a master plan for West Ashley's future. Residents spoke at the meeting, calling for the city to make improvements to the infrastructure and transportation.

About 100 people gathered at Emanuel AME on 5th Ave. Among them, Demette Jenkins. She left home almost 25 years ago, she said shes come home to a much different Ashleyville.

Coming back to Charleston, it has grown tremendously and developed tremendously," Jenkins said.

Shes praying the discussion Thursday didnt fall on deaf ears.

I think that they were really intentional about jotting down what they heard, she said.

Some people came to the meeting from adjacent neighborhoods.

Theres something special and unique about this neighborhood," said Francis Beylotte III.

He and son ride their bikes through the neighborhood. He fears development will make that come to an end.

Im concerned that thats going to go away, and when its gone, poof, thats it.

Representatives from the neighborhood association were there to address some of the concerns about property tax increases. It was one of the main concerns.

A meeting will be held August 5, 2017 to discuss a 4 percent tax exemption available to people who are occupying the property they own. A location has not been given for the meeting, but we will update you as soon as that information is released.

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Concerns about development in Ashleyville-Maryville area shared at community meeting - ABC NEWS 4

While many lay organizations are voicing disdain directly to Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois, over his recent decree denying church services to Catholics in same-sex marriages, the feminist coalition Women-Church Convergence is reaching out to the people of the diocese.

Women-Church Convergence, which "is a coalition of autonomous Catholic-rooted groups working to build just social and ecclesial structures with shared power for everyone, especially women and those whom church and society marginalize," issued the letter July 5 to "friends in faith" in the Diocese of Springfield.

The letter is in response to Paprocki's diocesan decree released June 12 that bars Catholics in same-sex marriages from receiving Communion, receiving funeral rites, and participating in liturgical ministries unless the person shows "signs of repentance."

Related: Lay groups lament Paprocki's decree denying same-sex spouses Eucharist (Jul. 11, 2017)

Women-Church Convergence's "Pastoral Letter to the People of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois" addresses the people of the diocese, saying, "You deserve better because our Catholic faith teaches us to embrace everyone." The letter states that they "politely but firmly reject scandalous teachings of exclusion."

Although response to the decree has been muted from the Catholic clergy, several Catholic lay organizations have been vocal.

Signatories of the Women-Church Convergence letter are: 8th Day Center for Justice Women in Church and Society Committee; A Critical Mass: Women Celebrating Eucharist; Catholics for Choice; Catholics for Choice Canada; Chicago Women-Church; DignityUSA; Greater Cincinnati Women-Church; Loretto Women's Network; Mary's Pence; National Coalition of American Nuns (NCAN); Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA Action Network; Sisters Against Sexism (SAS); Southeastern PA Women's Ordination Conference (SEPA-WOC); Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual (WATER); Women's Ordination Conference (WOC); Women-Church of the Wabash Valley.

The text of the letter appears below.

Dear Friends in Faith,

Our hearts go out to you who have been subjected to pastorally inadequate and insensitive theology in the recent DECREE "Regarding Same-Sex Marriage' and Related Pastoral Issues" given by your bishop the Most Reverend Thomas John Paprocki. You deserve better because our Catholic faith teaches us to embrace everyone.

We who join in sending you this letter rejoice in the many Catholic groups that are living proof of the inclusive, welcoming message of the Gospel.

Please let our words of comfort, solidarity, and encouragement be balm for your souls and strength for your actions at this trying time.

We offer words of comfort to those of you who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, and their allies and family members. It is simply counter to our Catholic faith to single out any group for exclusion. It is especially egregious to use our sacramental system as a basis for rewards and punishments.

The Decree misses the signal importance of public, joyfully celebrated baptisms of babies, young people, and adults as they become part of our community. It ignores the welcome table that is the Eucharist. And, it dishonors the dead who are denied church funerals not because of sin but because of love. Let especially your young people hear us sing atop our voices, "All are welcome."

We offer you our solidarity as you create your own pastoral practices in spite of this negative Decree. Many of us belong to Intentional Eucharistic Communities, women-church groups, Dignity chapters, and the like. We are learning alongside our many religious colleagues what it means to incorporate new understandings of gender and sexuality, new constellations of family, new models of holiness into our midst. For example, we take strength from the "extravagant welcome" of the United Church of Christ and the Welcoming Synagogues Project. We applaud the many religious groups, including Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and Pagans that bring the best of their traditions to bear on the reality of same-sex love because it is healthy, good, natural, and holy.

As Catholics, we do the same. We have been blessed for decades by the work of DignityUSA, New Ways Ministry, Fortunate Families, the Conference of Catholic Lesbians, and many supportive social justice groups in networks like Women-Church Convergence and the Catholic Organizations for Renewal. Some religious congregations have provided warmth and welcome to those who are marginalized by the kyriarchal church. Those Catholic groups stand with you in solidarity as you find your way as a Diocese despite this countersign that you have been given in this Decree.

Please accept our encouragement to consult widely with one another, pray and reflect on how, in your well-formed Catholic consciences, same-sex loving people can be incorporated faithfully, respectfully, fully into your communities. Marriage is a sacrament that eventually will be available officially to same-sex loving persons. It is already celebrated by some groups among us so do not lose heart.

We send you strength and courage to do what we have had to do with similarly wanting letters from church officials before this one: we politely but firmly reject scandalous teachings of exclusion. Instead, we urge you to study the biological, psychological, and theological data accepted by courts, governments, and many faithful Catholics. It is clear that same-sex love is simply love. Catholics believe that love is of God. Please accept our commitment to join you in this struggle.

We wish you every blessing as you, the people of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, develop your own important views and practices on loving relationships.

With respect and care.

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Women-Church bypasses Paprocki, appeals directly to Springfield Catholics - National Catholic Reporter (blog)

William Lamar, the senior pastor at D.C.s historic Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, is tired of presiding over funerals for parishioners who died of heart disease, diabetes and stroke.

So on Thursday, he and another prominent African American pastor filed suit againstCoca-Cola and the American Beverage Association, claiming soda manufacturers knowingly deceived customers about the health risks of sugar-sweetened beverages at enormous cost to their communities.

The complaint, filed in D.C. Superior Court Thursday on behalf of the pastors and the Praxis Project, a public health group, alleges that Coke and the ABA ran an intentional campaign to confuse consumers about the causes of obesity.

Lamar and Delman Coates, the pastor at Marylands Mount Ennon Baptist Church, claim soda marketing has made it more difficult for them to protect the health of their largely black, D.C.-based parishioners.

Their case is similar to another suit that was filed, and later withdrawn, by the same legal team in California last January.

The lawsuit marks a break with tradition for African American and Latino community groups who have been reliable allies of Big Soda for years in policy fights across the country despite overwhelming evidence that the harms of drinking soda impact their communities disproportionately.

Obesity, hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and lower-extremity amputations are all far higher among people of color than among whites. These communities also drink more soda and are exposed to more soda advertising.

Its become really clear to me that were losing more people to the sweets than to the streets, said Coates, who said he has seen members of his congregation give their infants bottles filled with sugary drinks. Theres a great deal of misinformation in our communities, and I think thats largely a function of these deceptive marketing campaigns.

In a statement, Coca-Cola dismissed the pastors' charges and the merits of the earlier lawsuit in California, which lawyers say they withdrew to refile with the new plaintiffs.

"The allegations here are likewise legally and factually meritless, and we will vigorously defend against them," the statement said. "The Coca-Cola Company understands that we have a role to play in helping people reduce their sugar consumption."

This suit, much like the prior one in California, argues that the beverage industry has deceived consumers about the unique link between soda consumption and diseases such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes, using messaging tactics similar to those once deployed by tobacco companies.

According to the complaint, Coca-Cola executives have invested millions of dollars in research, sponsored blog posts and advertising campaigns intended to disprove or confuse the link between soda consumption and disease. The companys ads and its executives, as well as a number of compensated nutrition bloggers, have also advanced the argument that lack of exercise is primarily responsible for the obesity epidemic, and that the calories consumed in soda can be easily offset by increasing physical activity.

In 2013, Coca-Cola developed a 30-second prime-time TV ad, called Be OK, that claimed a brief walk, a single victory dance or a brief laughing spell were sufficient to burn the 140 calories in a Coke can.

Coca-Cola Senior Vice President Katie Bayne also famously told a USA Today reporter in 2012 that there is no scientific evidence that connects sugary beverages to obesity.

The suit argues that science shows otherwise: There is, in fact, a well-established link between soda consumption and obesity, though the exact mechanism of that link is not well understood. A 20-year study of 120,000 adults, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2011, found that people who drank an extra soda per day gained more weight over time than those who did not. Other large-scale studies have found that soda drinkers have a greater chance of developing Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and gout.

Those epidemics are even worse among communities of color, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity impacts nearly half of all African Americans and 42 percent of Latinos, vs. just over one-third of whites. A 2016 study in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities also found that soda consumption was a particularly strong predictor of future weight gain for black children.

Theres a health crisis in the U.S., especially in our communities, and especially among children, said Xavier Morales, the executive director of the Praxis Project. This is not coincidental, he added: They target our communities with their marketing. Were going into those communities trying to save lives, and theyre going out and erasing our message.

The soda industry has argued that, on the contrary, theyve done a lot to support communities of color and the fight against obesity. In recent years, these companies have grown their portfolios of low-calorie and no-calorie beverages.

We support the recommendation of the World Health Organization (W.H.O.), that people should limit their intake of added sugar to no more than 10 percent of their total daily calorie intake. We have begun a journey toward that goal," Coke said in a statement. "So we are taking action to offer people moredrinks in smaller, more convenientsizes,reducing sugar inmanyof our existing beverages, andmakingmore lowand no-sugar beverage choicesavailableandeasier to find at local stores. Well also continue making calorie and nutrition information clear and accessible so people can makemore informedchoices forthemselves and their families without the guesswork.

Soda companies have also, through the American Beverage Association, funded a number of nutrition and healthy cooking programs in low-income neighborhoods in New York, Los Angeles and other cities. ABAs partners on that project include the National Council of La Raza and the National Urban League.

Americas beverage companies know we have an important role to play in addressing our nations health challenges. Thats why were engaging with health groups and community organizations to drive a reduction in the sugar and calories Americans get from beverages," the ABA said in a statement. "Unfounded accusations like these wont do anything to address health concerns, but the actions were taking, particularly in areas where obesity rates are among the highest, can make a difference.

The ABA also disputes the contention that there's a link between obesity and soda.

Beverages are not driving obesity rates," the organization said. "Obesity has been going up steadily for years while soda consumption has been going down steadily. Shouldnt obesity rates have gone down with the reduction in soda consumption if the two are connected?

But companies such as Coca-Cola do still market more to Latino and black communities a function of the fact that they drink sugary beverages at a greater volume than whites.

Multiplestudies by the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut have found that soda advertisements appear more frequently during TV shows targeted to black audiences. Black teens see three times as many Coca-Cola ads than white teens do. Billboards and other signs for low-nutrient foodsshow up more in black and Latino neighborhoods.

And yet, minority communities have historically been stalwart allies of large soda-makers, Coca-Cola included. As New York University professor Marion Nestle details in her book Soda Politics, those companies have been major funders of minority advocacy groups, including the NAACP, since the 1950s a strategy initially intended to expose soda to new demographics.

Advocacy groups representing people of color, including local chapters of the NAACP and the Hispanic Federation, have since become instrumental in beating back soda taxes in places such as New York, Richmond, Calif., and Santa Fe, N.M. When the American Beverage Association sued to prevent the implementation of Mayor Michael Bloombergs soda tax in early 2013, both the NAACP and Hispanic Federation filed a brief in support of it.

Lamar said he was grateful that companies such as Coca-Cola had supported these organizations but that their philanthropy did not negate the science or the fact that their marketing is mendacious.

This campaign of deception has also been bestowed on the leadership of our major Latino and black organizations, Coates added. The leaders of many of these organizations, like the average lay person, is just not aware of the science.

That represents a shift that Nestle calls highly significant.

In the past, this community has supported the soda industry in opposing public health measures even though the health impact of sugary drinks is higher in that community, she told The Washington Post. It is highly significant that this community is joining the CSPI lawsuit. It should put the soda industry on notice that it needs to stop targeting African Americans who are at high risk of chronic diseases encouraged by sugary drink consumption.

But it is unclear whether the suit will ultimately have more than a glancing impact on the beverage industry. Coke and the American Beverage Association do not need to respond to the complaint until September. At that point, Maia Kats the litigation director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest and one of the lawyers on the case said she believes they will push for dismissal.

In the meantime, Lamar and Coates say, they will continue visiting hospitals, and overseeing funerals, for members of their churches suffering from obesity-related illnesses.

I am disgusted by the number of hospital visits I make, Lamar said. It just adds to the injustices all around us.

Read more:

Study: Black children are exposed to junk-food ads way more than white kids are

Americans were cutting back on sugary drinks. Now that's stopped.

When soda companies target minorities, is it exploitation?

More here:

'We're losing more people to the sweets than to the streets': Why two black pastors are suing Coca-Cola - Washington Post