Meet Jeff and Heidi Wilke, the parents of Kristy, who wanted to submit their daughter’s wedding announcement to the Omaha World-Herald, the newspaper Kristy’s great, great, great, great grandfather founded in 1885. The submission was rejected because Kristy is engaged to be married to Jessica, the two to marry next summer in Minnesota. Kristy said that her father “was told by the publisher that as a policy they don’t print same gender wedding or engagement announcements.” The family, upset, but undeterred, started a Facebook page, Kristy saying “We know we can create change without destroying an organization. This isn’t about taking the World Herald down. Just a change in policy. 2,000 people on Facebook alone – we can create this change.”
And change the Wilke family did create, late Monday afternoon the World-Herald announced it had revisited and revised its policy. “The ‘Celebrations’ page of the Omaha World-Herald has provided a place to buy space to celebrate weddings, engagements, anniversaries and birthdays. It will continue to be just that. Celebrations announcements regarding legal weddings, engagements for legal weddings or anniversaries of a legal marriage will be welcomed, regardless of the genders of the couple,” wrote the publisher of the paper, Teddy Kroeger, adding that “We will not run announcements regarding commitment ceremonies, partnerships and other non-marriage unions, again regardless of gender.” Originally, the World-Herald said that since same sex marriage was not legal in the state, it did not print same sex marriage announcements. Kroger also addressed allegations the paper’s efforts to address same sex issues, specifically gay marriage, were lacking and that World-Herald adopted an anti-gay tone. “In recent years, our News Department has given extensive coverage to this matter (gay marriage). That coverage has not been limited to the political debate or legislative and court actions on same-sex marriage. We have featured gay and lesbian couples in our Living sections. We have written editorial that consistently call for civil discourse on this emotionally charged issue. We commissioned a poll and published findings that show a majority of Omahans support either same-sex marriages or civil unions. This new organization is not guilty of hating gays and lesbians. Should we have seen this issue more clearly? Probably. Have we been too slow in reacting to this matter? Maybe. But hateful? Never.”
Republican Rick Perry, governor of Texas, campaigning for re-election – his opposition is Democrat candidate Bill White – told a crowd last Thursday “There is still a land of opportunity, friends – it’s called Texas. We’re creating more jobs than any other state in the nation ... Would you rather live in a state like this, or in a state where a man can marry a man?”
Paris Hilton, arrested over the weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada when a white bag fell out of her purse containing .8 grams of cocaine, reportedly told the arrested officer she thought the bag contained gum. She is scheduled to be arraigned October 27th on a felony charge of drug possession.
The beautiful Francisco Lachowski graces the cover of the September/October 2010 issue of Essential Homme, inside he is exposed.
Brazilian boys – male models from Joy – in an editorial that seems to celebrate pubic hair.
Channing Tatum seen near the Hyatt Hotel in Toronto, Ontario, heading for a run, with an assortment of accessories.
Robert Pattinson (and his beard) spotted Sunday post-Emmy partying.
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