X-Men, Not All Fiction; New York Times, 5/30/14

Brent Staples, New York Times; X-Men, Not All Fiction:

"The X-Men movies offer an allegory of 20th-century race hatred that features mutants with special powers as the despised minority and the military industrial complex as the principal instrument of persecution.

The first film, released in 2000, embraced this theme explicitly; it situated the childhood of a mutant named Magneto in the horrors of the Holocaust and the Auschwitz death camp.

The race history references in the seventh and latest film, “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” are oblique by comparison. But pay close attention and you will notice the writers directing your attention ever so briefly to the Jim Crow-era United States and a time when federal policies toward black people resembled the “master race” theories of the Nazis more closely than many Americans understand.

The tipoff in “Days of Future Past” comes in a snippet of dialogue spoken by, of all people, a tour guide working at the Pentagon, where Magneto, who manipulates metal with his will, is held captive by the military.

When someone needs a bathroom, the guide responds blithely that there are lots of them to be found because the Pentagon was built during segregation, but then leaves it there."

The uncomfortable role white people play in diversity; CNN, 5/28/14

Susan Bodnar, CNN; The uncomfortable role white people play in diversity:

"Racism is just another word for hating our realness.

Our commonality as a country derives from the fact that we all have an identity just beneath the surface of our skins.

The variety of stories that inhabit the people who call this country home -- from the brutality of slavery to the flight from genocides to the call to some better god -- enable democracy's creative synergy.

The hands that have built the instruments of modern America have been every color, every nationality and every religion.

I want to be part of a world that loves and embraces humanity as a diverse and interconnected organism. I want to be part of a world that accepts that every difference has a color, and every color has a unique meaning.

How do I do this?

I realized that it starts at home.

Rather than teaching my kids that they are white, I want to impart to them that they are part of a kaleidoscope -- lots of continually shifting colors and shapes."

Google's White Male-Heavy Staff Underlines Tech's Diversity Problem; NPR, 5/29/14

Elise Hu, NPR; Google's White Male-Heavy Staff Underlines Tech's Diversity Problem:

"All the talk about is confounding when you hold it up against this data; if the technology industry is truly a meritocracy, does it follow that the people with merit are overwhelmingly white and male?

Google brings up the pipeline problem as a possible explanation for its whiteness: It has limited hiring pools of people of color and women...

Education in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math) is important, to be sure. We've reported on the social science that shows stereotypes lead girls to quit science.

But there are other ways to think about the utter dominance of white males in tech: Technology journalist Kara Swisher and tech mogul Vivek Wadhwa blame laziness in hiring.

The data are helpful. As our guest blogger Catherine Bracy wrote for us last summer, closing the gender gap in technology on the extent of the problem."

Google Releases Employee Data, Illustrating Tech’s Diversity Challenge; New York Times, 5/28/14

Claire Cain Miller, New York Times; Google Releases Employee Data, Illustrating Tech’s Diversity Challenge:

"Of its United States employees, 61 percent are white, 2 percent are black and 3 percent are Hispanic. About one-third are Asian — well above the national average — and 4 percent are of two or more races. Of Google’s technical staff, 60 percent are white, 1 percent are black, 2 percent are Hispanic, 34 percent are Asian and 3 percent are of two or more races.

In the United States work force over all, 80 percent of employees are white, 12 percent are black and 5 percent are Asian, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Google’s disclosures come amid an escalating debate over the lack of diversity in the tech industry. Although tech is a key driver of the economy and makes products that many Americans use ever yday, it does not come close to reflecting the demographics of the country — in terms of sex, age or race. The lopsided numbers persist among engineers, founders and boards of directors."

Review - 'Days Of Future Past' Proves 'X-Men' Still Among The Best; Forbes, 5/28/14

Mark Hughes, Forbes; Review - 'Days Of Future Past' Proves 'X-Men' Still Among The Best:

"If you’ve seen any of the X-Men movies, you know that the general conflict tends to involve humans distrusting mutants, mutants trying to convince humans to accept them, and Xavier trying to convince Magneto to coexist peacefully with humans while Magneto attempts to wage a war he considers self-defense. And much of that dynamic is at work in DOFP. Except it’s all upended, because now they all know Magneto was right that humans would eventually try to exterminate mutants. Except that only happens precisely because Magneto’s hostility causes another mutant to commit a crime eventually bringing about the extermination of mutants. Except Xavier isn’t sure he believes his own rhetoric anymore and is ashamed that Magneto was apparently right all along. Except Magneto resorts to the very actions against his own kind that he has long raged against when committed by humans. And so on.

It’s a story filled with those sorts of exceptions, taking the familiar and finding a new approach that breaths fresh life into age-old themes. And that’s the key, really, to why this franchise has continued to deliver solid stories time after time. The themes it repeats are the sort that always resonate, because they continue to be relevant to our modern lives.

The fear of those who are different, and the fanatical belief that they threaten to destroy us if we don’t destroy them first — this absolutism, this certainty of the righteousness of immoral actions under the belief it is self-defense against those who would do the same to us, drives so much of our more obvious global conflicts, but also more subtly speaks to the underlying cause of many of our social conflicts as well. And as in the film, it is very easy to lose hope, to lose faith, to retreat and refuse to listen to the warnings of what fruit those seeds will eventually bear. The film speaks to the fundamental truth that we cannot afford inaction in the face of such threats — threats arising from the nature of our struggles against one another (and thus against ourselves), threats caused precisely by the nature of fanaticism and absolutism that forever seek an enemy with which to do battle, as such extremes inevitably must.

Those battles between extremists willing to annihilate one another, under the moral certainty that their own immorality is justified, have always threatened the existence of us all, and we will rise or fall, live or die, together. That is the truth at the heart of the X-Men films, and while it’s a theme visited time and again in this series, it has never been so resonant nor so fully realized as in DOFP. We see this theme realized in the arcs of several characters, each of whom examine the theme in radically different ways and end up at different perspectives. Even when certain of them reach the same final conclusions, they arrive there in unique ways and — especially in the case of Mystique — there is a great deal of nuance and inner conflict over the implications of each choice, including the final climactic one. Never before in the series have so many X-Men experienced this level of soul-searching, nor been this alive and defined, which is saying a lot in light of how great most of the other films have been."

The True Origins of 'X-Men'; Rolling Stone, 5/26/14

Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone; The True Origins of 'X-Men' :

"It's all there in The X-Men No. 1, almost everything that would become a billion-dollar movie franchise decades later (the latest movie, X-Men: Days of Future Past, hits theaters May 23rd): Professor Xavier, his school for gifted youngsters, the flirting and feuding mutants in residence, the humans outside who feared and hated them, even the helmet-wearing villain, Magneto, ready to achieve mutant liberation by any means necessary. The comic book debuted just after the March on Washington, and Professor Xavier, too, had a dream. In creating characters who faced prejudice because of inborn differences, Lee baked in an effectively malleable metaphor. "The main objective was to show that bigotry is a terrible thing," Lee says. "If you needed an objective for a superhero story!"...

Director Bryan Singer (of Usual Suspects fame) signed on, ready to shift the mutant metaphor yet again, letting it encompass homophobia (in his second movie, a mutant's mom asks, "Have you tried not being a mutant?")...

There are more X-movies on their way, and the central theme never stopped resonating, obvious as it may be: Stewart says it was a "strong incentive" for him and his friend Ian McKellen, the openly gay actor who plays Magneto (Fassbender plays a younger version). "It was dealing with a contemporary issue," says Stewart. "Prejudice, and the treatment of those thought to be different. That people should be allowed to express their individuality and should not be victimized for being different."

Allegheny County marries its first same-sex couple amid smiles, tears; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/21/14

Kaitlynn Riely, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Allegheny County marries its first same-sex couple amid smiles, tears:

"Two days ago, U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III in Harrisburg ruled that Pennsylvania's Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional. The ruling, handed down early Tuesday afternoon, meant that Pennsylvania immediately recognized same-sex marriages that were performed in other states. And it meant that in Pennsylvania, same-sex partners could apply for, and would receive, marriage licenses.

The Marriage License Bureau in Allegheny County was closed Tuesday for Election Day, but the county announced shortly after Judge Jones' decision that couples could begin the online application process immediately. By midnight Tuesday, 160 marriage license applications had been filed, a spike from the 29 filed the day before, county spokeswoman Amie Downs said...

First in line, and in line well before the office opened, were Ms. Garrity and Ms. VanHaitsma.

Ms. Garrity, a 38-year-old senior research associate for UPMC, and Ms. VanHaitsma, a 35-year-old recent Ph.D. recipient who plans to begin teaching college English, met four and a half years ago, introduced by mutual friends at a birthday party. They got engaged in February 2013 and, in what Ms. Garrity said was a "happy coincidence," they had a noncivil marriage ceremony Saturday at the Union Project in Highland Park.

It was a wedding with all the trappings of tradition: 120 guests, two rings, a wedding dress and a burnt almond torte from Prantl's. When it was over, the two women were married in the eyes of their family, their friends and themselves, but not in Pennsylvania's.

They planned to drive to Maryland, where gay marriage is legal, to make it official. They were both at home Tuesday, recovering from wedding festivities before returning to work, when they realized a trip to Maryland was unnecessary."

Pennsylvania Governor Won’t Fight Ruling That Allows Gay Marriage; New York Times, 5/21/14

Trip Gabriel, New York Times; Pennsylvania Governor Won’t Fight Ruling That Allows Gay Marriage:

"Gov. Tom Corbett of Pennsylvania said Wednesday that he would not appeal a judge’s ruling striking down Pennsylvania’s ban on same-sex marriage.

With the decision, Pennsylvania became the 19th state, along with the District of Columbia, where same-sex couples are able to marry. Judge John E. Jones III of Federal District Court on Tuesday became the latest judge to throw out a series of state bans around the country, writing, “It is time to discard them into the ash heap of history.”

Mr. Corbett, a Republican facing a difficult re-election this year, announced his decision the day after Democratic primary voters picked Tom Wolf, a wealthy businessman, to challenge him. Polls show a majority of Pennsylvanians favor legalizing same-sex marriage. Had the governor appealed the court’s decision, he risked handing his opponent a potent issue on which to drive Democrats to vote."

Same-sex marriage ban ruled unconstitutional in Pennsylvania; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/20/14

Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Same-sex marriage ban ruled unconstitutional in Pennsylvania:

"The law barring same-sex marriage in Pennsylvania is unconstitutional, a federal judge based in Harrisburg ruled today.

The decision by U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III comes in a case filed in July by 11 gay couples, two teenage children of one of the pairs and a widow. The couples include Deb and Susan Whitewood of Bridgeville, Diana Polson and Dawn Plummer of Point Breeze, and Lynn and Fredia Hurdle, of Crafton Heights.

Represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Philadelphia firm Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller, some of the plaintiffs demanded that Pennsylvania recognize gay marriages forged in other states, while others sought to tie the knot in their home states.

The defendants are state Health Secretary Michael Wolf, Revenue Secretary Dan Meuser and Donald Petrille Jr., Bucks County register of wills. Gov. Tom Corbett was originally a defendant, but was dropped from the case because his office doesn’t directly administer marriage-related state functions."

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights around the world; Guardian, 5/16/14

Feilding Cage, Tara Herman, Nathan Good, Guardian; Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights around the world:

"Being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is illegal in almost 80 countries, and in at least five of them is still punishable by death. Ahead of the International day against homophobia and transphobia on 17 May, explore the legal situation for LGBT people around sex, marriage or civil partnerships, adoption, workplace discrimination and hate crime by region, country and overall population."

More than 2.7 billion people live in countries where being gay is a crime: New research lays bare discrimination faced by gay people – in not a single country do they enjoy equal rights as heterosexuals; Guardian, 5/16/14

James Ball, Guardian; More than 2.7 billion people live in countries where being gay is a crime: New research lays bare discrimination faced by gay people – in not a single country do they enjoy equal rights as heterosexuals:

"More than 2.7 billion people live in countries where being gay is punishable by imprisonment, lashes or even death, new research obtained by the Guardian shows.

The stark figure from the International Lesbian and Gay Association (Ilga) highlights the discrimination faced by gay people around the world; the full report shows there is not a single country where LGBT people enjoy equal legal rights with their heterosexual counterparts.

Five countries – Iran, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen – still have a statutory death penalty for homosexuality, while a further 71 countries punish same-sex couples with lesser sentences of imprisonment or corporal punishment...

All Out, a global campaign for equal rights, welcomed the research but said it highlighted the difficulties faced by gay people across the world.

Executive director Andre Banks said: "As a lesbian, gay or trans person, there is nowhere you can go on the planet to be treated equally under the law. It is unfair and it is untenable. But, the laws don't tell the whole story. Everywhere you go, there are millions of people who reject the notion that your ability to live openly and free from torture and discrimination should be an accident of your birth."

Uganda anti-gay law led to tenfold rise in attacks on LGBTI people, report says; Guardian, 5/11/14

Owen Bowcott, Guardian; Uganda anti-gay law led to tenfold rise in attacks on LGBTI people, report says:

"Uganda has suffered an alarming rise in attacks on gay and lesbian people since it passed an anti-homosexuality law late last year, research has found.

The report, compiled by Sexual Minorities Uganda, detailed an attempted lynching, mob violence, homes burned down, blackmail, lost jobs, arrests, evictions and suicides. The number of recorded incidents had increased tenfold, the group said. At least 25 people were reported to have fled Uganda, seeking asylum in neighbouring Kenya and Rwanda.

In many cases tabloid newspapers published stories identifying men or women who were subsequently disowned by their family or assaulted in the street. Several are facing prosecution.

The anti-homosexuality act (AHA) was ratified by the Ugandan parliament on 20 December last year and signed into force, in the face of international protests, by President Yoweri Museveni in late February."

X-Men: Days of Future Past, Trailer 2

X-Men: Days of Future Past, Trailer 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6acRHWnfZAE

X-Men: Days of Future Past, Trailer 3

Trailer 3, X-Men: Days of Future Past: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsjtg7m1MMM

Why the X-Men go back in time in their latest movie; New York Post, 5/17/14

Reed Tucker, New York Post; Why the X-Men go back in time in their latest movie:

"The writers and producers behind the new “X-Men” movie, however, are out to remedy mistakes made during the franchise’s six-film run, including the “Wolverine” spinoffs.

“Days of Future Past” begins around 2023. Civilization has been destroyed by powerful robots called Sentinels, whose mission is to hunt and kill mutants.

In a last-ditch effort to save the world, Professor X (Patrick Stewart) and Magneto (Ian McKellan) send Wolverine’s consciousness to 1973 so he can avert the apocalypse by rallying the young X-Men and derailing the still-gestating Sentinel program."

Billie Jean King: ‘Fight For Equality And Inclusion For Everyone’, Boston's NPR 90.9 WBUR, 5/10/14

Karen Given, Boston's NPR 90.9 WBUR; Billie Jean King: ‘Fight For Equality And Inclusion For Everyone’:

"KG: What about closer to home? Jason Collins debuted in the NBA this year. Michael Sam might be drafted in the NFL this weekend. Why has it taken so long for these milestones to happen?

BJK: Because we’ve been scared, and we want to be accepted when we finally come out. And you have to remember the chemistry in a locker room is very fragile. It just is. It’s a sensitive place. It’s where people are together. They’re under stress. They want to win. There’s a certain culture that’s been created around it. And for men it’s the macho culture. That’s the epitome especially [in] football.

It’s very important that the straight athletes support the gays because they have the power just in numbers. So we need straight quarterbacks for instance to come out and say “Get over it. They’re a team player. As long as they do their job. I don’t care how they live their life away from the football field.” And that’s the way it should be for everyone. One by one — it’s been a real grassroots movement, the LGBT movement. One by one coming out to your mom, your dad, to a friend. See you’ve got to feel safe. That’s the major thing. Accepted and safe. And if you don’t feel like you’re going to be safe, it’s very hard to come out."

The facts show it: female CEOs are more likely than men to be fired; The Observer via Guardian, 5/17/14

Edward Helmore, The Observer via Guardian; The facts show it: female CEOs are more likely than men to be fired:

"The report finds that men and women are broadly comparable in every area –except one: "Women are more often outsiders," says co-author Ken Favaro. "So they're more vulnerable. They don't know the organisation. They can't diagnose the problems as quickly and don't understand the culture or how to get it to work for them – and they aren't necessarily given more time to deliver."

While the proportion of women in the CEO class has doubled to nearly 4% in the past five years, a figure that the study's authors believe could rise to 33% by 2040, the sex norms of global corporate leadership remain stubbornly hard to shift.

With a smaller internal leadership pool to choose from, companies hiring female executives from outside are also likely to be less tolerant of shortcomings than they are with executives groomed in-house. And external CEOs are seven times more likely to be dismissed after a short tenure.

"We tend to like those that are most like us," says Favaro. "Sadly, company boards are still mostly men, and they're more inclined to pull the trigger on women if things aren't working out. Women are treated more harshly by men because there are more men in the boardroom." As long as this lasts, he adds, "women will be at a disadvantage"."

Google to release diversity data about workforce; Associated Press via USA Today, 5/15/14

Associated Press via USA Today; Google to release diversity data about workforce:

"Google is planning to release statistics documenting the diversity of its workforce for the first time amid escalating pressure on the technology industry to hire more minorities and women.

The numbers are compiled as part of a report that major U.S. employers must file with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Employers, though, aren't required to make the information publicly available.

Google Inc. had resisted previous calls for it to share the diversity data.

About 7 percent of tech workers are black or Latino, both in Silicon Valley and nationally. Blacks and Hispanics make up 13.1 and 16.9 percent of the U.S. population, respectively, according to the most recent Census data."

In Kansas, first lady Michelle Obama urges graduating students to embrace diversity; Washington Post, 5/16/14

Katie Zezima, Washington Post; In Kansas, first lady Michelle Obama urges graduating students to embrace diversity:

"Speaking on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education ruling, first lady Michelle Obama challenged high school seniors Friday to stand up to prejudice when they see it and not be afraid to talk about race.

Addressing graduating high school students in Topeka, Kan., where the 1954 Supreme Court decision desegregated the city’s schools, Obama said many young people today find it hard to imagine segregation and may not appreciate the changes wrought by the ruling."

Newt Gingrich Complains Straight People Are Being Repressed; HuffingtonPost.com, 5/14/14

Katherine Fung, HuffingtonPost.com; Newt Gingrich Complains Straight People Are Being Repressed:

"Speaking on Tuesday's episode of CNN's "Crossfire," Gingrich argued that Jones and Ward had a right to their anti-gay opinions. "You guys talk about how you want to be inclusive, except of course, if somebody tweets this, then having a death threat or 'let's send them off to sensitivity training,'" he complained to the panel. "It strikes me, that's repression, that's not inclusive."

"Is it repression to try to teach them to be understanding and open to other people, especially when you talk about people they have not been exposed to?" guest and former NFL player Jamal Anderson countered.

"Shouldn't we also be teaching people who are gay to be open and understanding of people who — ?" Gingrich began to ask, setting off crosstalk between the panel members."

Another door opens: Michael Sam and the Rams smash a barrier; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/16/14

Editorial Board, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Another door opens: Michael Sam and the Rams smash a barrier:

"Once again, the St. Louis Rams are leading the National Football League into the future. In 1946, the Rams (then in Los Angeles) defied the bigots in the bleachers and on rival teams by signing Kenny Washington, an African-American, to its formerly all-white roster.

Before Washington became the first African-American to play in the NFL, the conventional wisdom was that many white fans would not accept racial integration of the sport. But Washington’s talent on the field silenced the bigots, making it easier for the black athletes who followed to be accepted and respected in the NFL...

One day, drafting players who happen to be gay will be as unremarkable as drafting players who happen to be black. But just as Kenny Washington had to walk through that door for black players first, Mr. Sam’s frankness about himself will open doors — and minds — for others."

How Michael Sam Inspired the Great Facebook Kiss-In; HuffingtonPost.com, 5/14/14

Michelangelo Signorile, HuffingtonPost.com; How Michael Sam Inspired the Great Facebook Kiss-In:

"Costello wondered if "the kiss" would be a problem with the other players on the team. This reflected what we've seen in much of the media, some of it coming from much more hostile quarters. People just aren't used to seeing two men or two women kissing, even with all the news coverage of gay marriage. Judging by some of the reactions to the Sam/Cammisano kiss, I'm not sure what they think gay men in relationships do. Play checkers? (Well, maybe sometimes.) We see straight people kissing all the time, all over television, in magazines, in films, on the Internet. A lot of people who consider themselves pro-gay probably are uneasy about seeing gays kissing, just like a lot of people who in the past said they supported interracial marriage were probably uneasy when they saw two straight people of different races kissing (and some still are). And in this case, it's a gay black man and a gay white man kissing.

Mark Joseph Stern wrote a terrific piece on Slate about how all of this means one thing: Gay people need to be kissing more in public. There simply needs to be more queer smooching to desensitize the world.

So with that, I hereby launch the Great Facebook Kiss-In, urging everyone -- whether gay, straight or bi -- to change their profile pics to two women kissing or two men kissing...

Just change your profile pic to a kissing same-sex couple, and urge others to do the same. And for that matter let's do it on Twitter too (and tweet this post with the hashtag #kissin). One day in the future we will look back on all this ridiculousness and laugh. But that's only going to happen if we do exactly this kind of thing a lot. So change those profile photos now."

Don Lemon: Why Aren’t Donald Sterling Haters Defending Michael Sam?; Mediaite, 5/13/14

Matt Wilstein, Mediaite; Don Lemon: Why Aren’t Donald Sterling Haters Defending Michael Sam? :

"“I wonder what Jackie Robinson would think of all of this? Remember him?” Lemon asked listeners. “When many were screaming ’no race mixing’, he was the guy who risked his life for inclusion in sports, inclusion for African-Americans and all people of color.”

“Michael Sam is now the guy risking his livelihood and perhaps bodily harm on and off the field for further inclusion of all Americans,” he said. “So here’s the real question, the same voices, the big named players, leaders and influencers who so vehemently denounced Donald Sterling by sending out statements and tweets and giving press conferences, where are they in support of Michael Sam?”

In reality, the number of professional athletes speaking out against Sam has been relatively small, and when he came out publicly back in February, many prominent figures voiced their support. But Lemon is right when he says that that level of support does not match the condemnation that came down on Sterling after his racism was revealed."

How Will Michael Sam Be Treated In An NFL Locker Room?; Forbes, 5/12/14

Lee Igel, Forbes; How Will Michael Sam Be Treated In An NFL Locker Room? :

"Sam is the first potential NFL player to publicly identify himself as gay. While many quarters are regarding his selection and its airing on live television as groundbreaking, and despite a bit of a controversy having bubbled up about that kiss, the Rams locker room and front office are likely treating his selection as business-as-usual. Sam himself has not had much to say about his widely-discussed lip locking. Instead, like a lot of those who are drafted later than anticipated, he has mainly grumbled that he should have been taken earlier and that he will prove it during training camp.

In the relationship between sports and society, Sam’s selection is a signal event. His journey from publicly announcing his homosexuality ahead of the NFL Draft to having his late-round selection aired live on ESPN is further evidence that attitudes about homosexuality are changing fast—and for the better. But the underlying reason why Sam’s story has gained so much attention has to do with the reality that our society still has serious challenges about how some people and groups treat those who are different from what is considered the mainstream.

Sports is not immune to these issues. But sports is once again showing that it can lead the way when it comes to inclusion of “the other,” beginning in the locker room."

The ADL’s Flawed Anti-Semitism Survey; New York Magazine, 5/14/14

Jesse Singal, New York Magazine; The ADL’s Flawed Anti-Semitism Survey:

"According to Ryan D. Enos, a political scientist at Harvard who studies inter-group relations, this sort of binary system is problematic. It “creates strange claims, such as a person that expresses these attitudes on five questions about Jewish stereotypes is okay, but a person that answers six affirmatively is an anti-Semite, same as a person that answers affirmatively on 11,” he wrote in an email. “Most people would think that is [a] strange way to label the people holding those attitudes.” Moreover, he argued, “researchers don’t tend to believe that people can usefully be split into people that simply either do or do not have prejudice against another group.” Prejudice “operates on a continuum, not [as] a yes or no.”

Jeni Kubota, an NYU researcher who studies stereotypes and prejudice (and who praised the report for the impressively large swath of the world it covered), pointed out that researchers generally allow for a range of responses on these sorts of questions so as to build a more nuanced view of respondents’ beliefs."

What Smith Students Don’t Get About Diversity; Time, 5/13/14

Dawn Ginnetti, Time; What Smith Students Don’t Get About Diversity:

"It was a hot issue on campus. I began to have a dialog with other students, professors and staff on campus. Some supported Lagarde as our speaker, while others opposed her. Over the next few months I began to think about Lagarde as an individual and not as the organization that she represents. I also began to think about Smith and the ideas the college and student body represent. We support and believe in the boundless potential of all women. We recognize that we are not all alike, and we find strength in our diversity. We honor the sacrifices of the women who came before us. We honor the commitment and strength of women doing things that have never been done before—women like Lagarde, the first female director of the IMF.

I was disappointed when I found out Monday that Lagarde had withdrawn as our commencement speaker. Smith has opened up a world of possibilities to me that I had never dared to dream of before I came here. That being said, we students sometimes neglect to think of diversity in a larger sense. Diversity of thought is equally important. As an educated woman, I should be willing to hear differing views and treat them with the same respect and thoughtfulness that I would want from those whose views I oppose."

Bell: What took so long for Michael Sam to be drafted?; USA Today, 5/11/14

Jarrett Bell, USA Today; Bell: What took so long for Michael Sam to be drafted? :

"Yet amid all of the back-slapping for the NFL, there's an essential question:

Why did it take so long?

Why did Sam have to wait until a team used what is generally regarded as a throwaway pick?

Sam demonstrated great courage in revealing before the NFL scouting combine in February — under the pressure of being outed — that he was openly gay.

He also made an apparent great sacrifice.

There were punters and kickers chosen before a player who led the Southeastern Conference last season with 10½ sacks and 18 tackles for loss. There were players from small schools who played against less-accomplished competition, who were chosen before Sam.

There were undersized linemen just like Sam, chosen before Sam.

Was this because Sam is gay?

It sure seems that way, no matter what we've heard about the NFL culture being progressive enough — with the league advancing a Respect in the Workplace agenda — to tolerate a player without regard to his sexual orientation."

Watch the amazing ESPN video of Michael Sam's reaction to being drafted; Yahoo.com, 5/10/14

Frank Schwab, Yahoo.com; Watch the amazing ESPN video of Michael Sam's reaction to being drafted:

"A young man who has worked his whole life to get drafted by the NFL gets the call that he has been selected. He tries to keep it together while the team is on the phone but can't. He gives in to the emotion and enormity of the moment and the tears come. When he's done on the phone, he shares the moment with a kiss with his significant other.

It just turns out that in this particular video from ESPN's telecast (via NFL.com), Michael Sam is gay. That's a first.

Sam and the St. Louis Rams made history when the Rams made him the 249th pick of the draft, in the seventh round. He's the first openly gay player drafted by the NFL.

The story itself is great. The video will be replayed many times. Having an openly gay player kiss his boyfriend after being drafted by the NFL was a moment many probably never figured would come. But really, at the heart of it, the moment was just like any other football player getting the phone call from the NFL that changes his life."

Nintendo Apologizes Over Same-Sex Marriage Controversy; Associated Press via Huffington Post, 5/10/14

Derrik J. Lang, Associated Press via Huffington Post; Nintendo Apologizes Over Same-Sex Marriage Controversy:

"Nintendo is apologizing and pledging to be more inclusive after being criticized for not recognizing same-sex relationships in English editions of a life-simulator video game. The publisher said that while it was too late to change the current game, it was committed to building virtual equality into future versions if they're produced.

Nintendo came under fire from fans and gay rights organizations this past week after refusing to add same-sex relationship options to the game "Tomodachi Life.""

Compromise on Gays Pleases No One, Scouts Are Learning; New York Times, 5/8/14

Kirk Johnson, New York Times; Compromise on Gays Pleases No One, Scouts Are Learning:

"What hangs over the Boy Scouts in all its discussions about leaders — how to pick, train and monitor them — is the specter of the past, when some sexual predators were able to use scouting to gain access to victims. Mr. Smith, the Scouts spokesman, said the organization makes “no connection between the sexual abuse, or victimization of a child, and homosexuality.” Still, there is no question that scouting’s detailed rules on “youth protection” are mostly about heading off inappropriate sexual behavior.

But the new approach since last year’s vote, with what amounts to essentially a code of silence about homosexuality, with little to no guidance in the training materials on how to incorporate gay scouts into a troop or to discourage bullying of a gay scout, sends the wrong message, said Pascal’s mother, Tracie Felker.

“If you connect the dots, it’s still saying that being gay is unacceptable,” she said."