Back to the OYC

It has been far too long since I've sat down to enjoy the pleasure of writing. I've missed this!

So, to catch you up on my world ...

Mark and I moved into our new home on Canada Day and have been busy unpacking and settling in. On Friday the house was hit by lightening, which has definitely been a challenging experience. We are now in the process of replacing the luxuries destroyed by the hit ... not to mention anxiously awaiting the repair of our a/c as we hit record temperatures today.

However, this post isn't about our new home (more on that soon!) ... it's about the following announcement:

I am pleased to say that I will be facilitating a workshop tomorrow night at the Orillia Youth Centre. If you haven't been following me for long, you may not know that the OYC is where I "started out" with workshops. I am excited to head back there for some thorough and honest discussion with the youth. We'll be talking about STIs and contraception ... as well as whatever topics come up! If you're in the area, you should stop by and check it out tomorrow (July 18) at 5pm!

I'll let you know how the workshop goes!

Candice :)

Newsworthy Sex: Mom of first IVF baby has died

I really enjoyed this article. It's amazing how far we've come in just 34 years, and this woman had the courage to be the first!

Enjoy!

Candice :)

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By Linda Carroll

 

Lesley Brown, the woman who gave birth to the first test tube baby has died at age 64 after a brief illness, the British newspaper The Telegraph reports.

Brown sought out the experimental new treatment, in vitro fertilization, after nine years of trying to get pregnant on her own with her husband John.

She gave birth to a daughter, Louise, in 1978 with the help of two British specialists Dr. Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards.

Louise told the BBC, “Mum was a quiet and private person who ended up in the world spotlight because she wanted a family so much. We are all missing her terribly.” Lesley Brown died June 6 at Royal Bristol Infirmary, The Telegraph reported.

Louise’s birth was the beginning of a “revolution,” says Dr. Anthony Wakim, director of assisted reproductive technologies at the Magee-Women’s Hospital at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

“I still remember exactly what I was doing,” Wakim remembers. “I had just started my internship at the University of Maryland and I was pumping gas into my car when I heard it on the radio. It was just mind-boggling. To my mind it was almost science fiction. It was very far fetched.”

It wasn’t long after when groups in the U.S. developed the expertise to produce babies through in vitro fertilization, Wakim says.

And that changed everything for parents who had been suffering with infertility.

“It was a very big deal,” Wakim says. “Before that we had to rely on micro-surgery to break up the adhesions that were scarring the tubes. Those surgeries could drag on for three or four hours and the results were not so good. The scarring could recur and many times there were ectopic pregnancies.

“I look back and I’m flabbergasted.”

The news of Lesley Brown’s death caught Janice Evans by surprise.

“I felt sad when I heard,” says Evans, an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.  “Think about the courage and persistence she must have had. She was a real trail blazer. As were Steptoe and Edwards.” Edwards was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize for developing IVF. Steptoe died in 1988.

Lesley Brown’s story underscores how persistent people can change the world. “If the three of them hadn’t been so determined there would have been a big gap for the many couples who struggle with infertility,” Evans adds.

The iconic photo of Edwards with Lesley and Louise sums it all up, Evans says.

“Edwards has his arm around Lesley, and Louise is standing next to them holding her son. You get the feeling looking at that photo that they were all in the fight together not just to make a change in the Brown family but to push frontiers.”

Today, the results of that groundbreaking birth are all around us. In 2010, 58,727 babies were born through IVF in the U.S., says Sean Tipton, director of public affairs for the American Society for Reproductive Medicine

“It’s remarkable to think that if you look around a preschool classroom, a big chunk of those kids may have come from IVF,” Evans says.

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You can read the original article here on MSNBC.com

You need to see this: Jesus in Drag

Wow.

Not only did this man - Tim Kurek - recognize his own bigotry, he decided to put himself in the position of those he had learned to oppress - the LGBT community. He realized that the stereotypes he had been taught his entire life didn't fit with the reality around him, and he really did something about it.

He is raising the funds ($8,000) he needs to have the book edited and publicized.

Please support him -- even $1 makes a difference!

 



 

For those of you who aren't sure (I wasn't), here's the definition of Pharisee:

1. capitalized : a member of a Jewish sect of the intertestamental period noted for strict observance of rites and ceremonies of the written law and for insistence on the validity of their own oral traditions concerning the law (Merriam-Webster dictionary)

Read about his journey, his book and how we can all help by visiting his Indiegogo page.

Again ... wow!

- Candice :)

Happy Pride Month

June is Pride Month!

I'm proud to stand up publicly as an LGBT Ally and share some of the great things happening around me this month.

Before I get started on that, I want to share with you a video that gave me both goosebumps and warm fuzzies. President Obama's latest video reminding all of us of what has been, and is yet to be, done in the fight for equality.

(You can also watch the video here: Obama Declares June 2012 Pride Month)

Stay tuned for more about Pride Month and some of the great events and celebrations you can attend!

Candice :)



 

Target

U.S. retailer Target has jumped back into the debate on marriage equality. You can now buy PRIDE t-shirts on their website, with 100% of the proceeds going to support a group working to bring marriage equality to Minnesota.

This isn't the first time Target has been involved with the debate on equal rights; two years ago the company came were under fire after financially supporting a gay-marriage opponent running for political office. Fortunately, this time they're on the side of equality and are supporting the LGBT community.

YOU can get involved and support equal rights in Minnesota too! Simply order your PRIDE tshirt here! They're only $12.99 and every penny will support what should already be a reality - the right for every individual to marry the person they love.

You can read more about this here.

- Candice

p.s. HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!

 

Ball Dropping

If you were expecting that title to lead to a post about testicles ... well ... it's not going to. But I'll try to dig something testicular up for you, just so you're not disappointed. :)

Actually, this post is a feeble attempt to reach out to you and let you know that, while I seem to have dropped the ball on posting over the past couple of months, I'm still around! We are now into the final 5 weeks of the school year, and things are craaaaazy busy!

Sorry about the ball dropping. I'll be back soon. For real this time.

Candice

It is official: Obama is on our side!

Marriage equality is once again at the forefront of the political arena in the United States. While the issue has always been emotionally and politically charged, it's taken on a new intensity since Obama announced that he supports gay marriage.

For those of us on the pro-equality side, this is a huge step. Obama has officially separated himself from every other sitting US President with his support. Thank you, Barack Obama, for living in the present and recognizing the future, rather than obsessing over the past. Thank you for NOT being a homophobic bully, and thank you for supporting equal rights for the LGBT community.

Obama's announcement has triggered intense reactions from all sides. Politicians, celebrities, religious leaders and the American public alike are all weighing in. Mitt Romney, the republican most likely to challenge Obama in the 2012 Presidential race, was quick to remind us that he is opposed to same-sex marriage. This has provided a rallying point for conservative Christians in the US, and given them new leverage in their anti-Obama attacks. It's also provided a reinforced point of support for Romney's bid for President.

“So many people were rather lukewarm toward governor Romney and were really looking for some more tangible reasons to support him,” said Phil Burress, president of Citizens for Community Values, who led the ballot drive that banned gay marriage in Ohio in 2004. “Then lo and behold, it just fell out of the sky when Obama came out and endorsed same-sex marriage. . . . We are going to make this our key issue: the attack on marriage.” (The Washington Post, May 11, 2012)

Regardless of the political turmoil, Obama's support has offered renewed life to the fight for marriage equality. Not only has Obama supported marriage equality at full strength, he's offered a clear path for others to publicly endorse it as well.

"Voters and elected officials who might have wanted to step up and have been afraid, they will be less afraid do to do so now," said Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force in a conversation.

Obama, she said, has cleared "political space for other elected officials who may have felt they could not be as clear" as they now can be. She added: "I predict that every person running for office this year will be asked this question." (BBC News, May 10, 2012)

Given the reaction to Obama's announcement over the past few days, it's easy to see that the coming weeks and months are going to be interesting, to put it mildly. Whether this will be helpful or detrimental to Obama's campaign for re-election is yet to be determined. For now, I'm holding onto faith that Americans will opt for progression rather than regression. Fingers crossed!

Candice

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P.S. Want to read more about this issue?

NPR.org: Reaction To Obama's Same-Sex Marriage Support: From Serious to Silly

NPR.org: Obama's Gay Marriage Stance Stirs Black Community

Huffington Post: Obama's Same-Sex Marriage Stance Welcomed by Hollywood Executives

AlterNet.org: It's Great That Obama Endorsed Same-Sex Marriage -- But Now What?

Zee News: Most approve Obama's same-sex marriage decision

BBC News: Gaga and Glee star back President Obama on gay marriage

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