U.S. Secretary Of Health And Human Services Kathleen Sebelius Rallies Gay And Lesbian Democrat Voters In Charlotte And Voices Opposition To North Carolina Constitutional Amendment Limiting Marriage To A Man And A Woman, U.S. Attorney General For Central And Eastern Kentucky Says Enforcement Of Hate Crimes Intensified, Gay And Transgender Candidates In Florida Politics, Take Steps To Prevent Google From Collecting Your Browsing History, Emma Stone Saves The Oscars, Jesse Tyler Ferguson And Justin Mikita, Tom Daley

At a Charlotte gathering that often sounded like an Obama campaign rally, top Cabinet member Kathleen Sebelius told nearly 1,400 people at a gay-rights fundraiser Saturday night that it is "hugely important" to not only re-elect her boss in November but also to defeat the proposed North Carolina constitutional amendment that will limit marriage to one man and one woman. Democrat Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said a host of Obama-initiated advances for the gay community - including repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in the military - could be "wiped out in a heartbeat" if the Republican presidential nominee wins this year. According to The Charlotte Observer, she suggested in her 14-minute speech at the Charlotte Convention Center that gays, lesbians and other Obama backers in this key swing state use the May 8 vote on the amendment as a sort of practice run for the effort needed in November to keep North Carolina's 15 electoral votes in President Barack Obama's column. "I know there's an important election in early May in North Carolina," Sebelius told the North Carolina gala of the Human Rights Campaign, the country's largest gay and lesbian civil rights group. "And I think it's a great template for what needs to be done to organize people and turn out people for November. North Carolina is hugely important in this next (presidential) election." Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx personally welcomed those at the gala - a sign that things have changed since 2005, when then-Mayor Pat McCrory, a Republican, refused to issue a welcoming letter for the gala in Charlotte that year. During his remarks Saturday, Foxx also spoke out against the proposed constitutional amendment reaffirming North Carolina's ban - already in state law - of same sex marriage. Saying he had heard from gay and lesbian city workers and police officers who could not take bereavement time or care for their partners, Foxx told the crowd that "when I go into the ballot box in May ... I'm going to be voting against Amendment 1." He said he was concerned that passage of the amendment would scare away from Charlotte - site of the 2012 Democratic National Convention - those businesses that want to attract talented gay and lesbian employees. "They ... don't want a 'Not Wanted' sign hung over their front (door)," Foxx said. Representatives from three of the night's corporate sponsors - Wells Fargo, Time Warner Cable and Bank of America - boasted to the crowd that gays and lesbians feel welcome working for their companies. Top Wells Fargo official Laura Schulte even announced that her company had just lit up the city's new Duke Energy tower in the rainbow colors of the gay and lesbian community. At the request of the Human Rights Campaign, the convention center reserved at least two bathrooms in the lobby outside the gala for "gender-neutral restrooms." In her remarks, Sebelius catalogued the advances the Obama administration has made on issues important to homosexuals. Under the health care reform law administered by her department, for example, it will be illegal for insurers to discriminate against anyone because of sexual orientation or gender identity. People overseas who have HIV/AIDS are no longer barred from traveling to America, she said, and the Obama administration has waged a campaign against bullying in schools. No longer, Sebelius said, should people be denied the right to pursue their dreams "because of who they love." Also at the gala, CNN anchor Don Lemon was given the group's Visibility Award, which honours gays and lesbians who "are living open and honest lives."

To those who might consider attacking people because of their race or sexual orientation, U.S. Attorney Kerry B. Harvey has a message: Don't. "They need to understand that they're playing with fire, that it won't be tolerated," Kerry said in an interview Friday with The Louisville Courier-Journal. Harvey said he has made enforcement of federal civil-rights laws — including the law regarding hate crimes — a priority since he took office in May 2010 as the top federal prosecutor for Central and Eastern Kentucky. He designated a unit within the office to focus on civil-rights enforcement, and on Thursday the office hosted a training session for state and local police and prosecutors. About 100 people attended the training. It was the first such session during Harvey's time as U.S. attorney, said Kyle Edelen, spokesman for the office. One focus was changes in federal hate-crimes law. In 2009, Congress broadened the law to add crimes motivated by a victim's sexual orientation, disability and gender to the list of hate crimes, according to Harvey's office. Harvey said he could not discuss pending cases, but confirmed the changes "have generated some activity on our part." Harvey said he wants to educate the public about civil-rights laws, and to deter people from committing hate crimes. The federal hate-crime law also covers violent acts motivated by the victim's race, color, religion and national origin. Harvey pointed out that while an assault might be considered a misdemeanour under state law, punishable by no more than a year in prison, the attack could be charged as a felony hate crime under federal law if it was motivated by the victim's race, sexual orientation or other factors covered by the law. That could bring a sentence of up to 10 years, or life if the crime included aggravating factors such as kidnapping or sexual abuse. Harvey said he wants police to be aware of the hate-crimes law and the changes so that they will be more likely to spot whether a crime was motivated by bias. Kentucky State Police statistics show there were 69 hate crimes reported in Kentucky in 2010, according to Harvey's office. Harvey said it is likely many hate crimes go unreported. The U.S. Attorney's Office that covers Western Kentucky hosted a training session last year for state and local police that focused on hate crimes and human trafficking, according to Stephanie Collins, spokeswoman for the office. Jordan Palmer, president of the Kentucky Equality Federation, which advocates for gay, lesbian, transgender and intersex people, applauded Harvey's focus on civil-rights enforcement. "He's shown enormous sensitivity, enormous outreach," Palmer said. The federation asked federal authorities to investigate alleged assaults on a gay man and a lesbian woman in Harlan County last year.

When Randy Ross was running for Orange County Florida School Board in 2000, he had a secret. "I was worried people were going to find out I was gay," Ross said. What a difference a dozen years can make. Now there are three openly gay candidates on this year's Orlando City Council ballot — including Ross — and a transgender candidate running for the Orange County Commission. The Orlando Sun-Sentinel reports that as society has grown more accepting of gay people during the past decade, more candidates for public office have grown willing to campaign without concealing their sexual orientation. And with issues of equality — gay marriage, adoption and workplace benefits — heating up, more members of the gay community are drawn to politics. "Being gay was not as easy as it is today. It's really a relief to not have to worry about it. You're going to see a lot more people from the LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] community stepping up to run for office," said Ross, who works for a marketing company. At the same time, few would-be politicians want to be seen as "gay candidates." They say they're running on mainstream platforms, not gay-rights issues. "The way I look at it, being gay is just one small part of who I am. I want to focus on the broader issues that affect everybody in the city: jobs, ethics, keeping our neighbourhoods safe," said Chase Smith. Smith and Ross both are running to represent City Council District 1, which doesn't have an especially high percentage of gay voters. It's a four-way race that also includes Jim Gray, a vice president of office leasing giant Parkway Realty Services, and state corrections Officer Stephen Rayle. Smith grew up in Wauchula, a tiny city of 5,000 in Hardee County in southwest Florida. He was interested in public service from a young age and was elected to the Wauchula City Council at age 20. But he wasn't comfortable being "out" in the conservative community. He sat on the council for the next 12 years as a closeted gay man. Locally, Orlando Commissioner Patty Sheehan, who is lesbian, paved the way. In 2000, she became the first openly gay candidate to run for — and win — a seat on the Orlando City Council. She has been re-elected twice since then and will be on the April 3 ballot as she seeks her fourth term representing District 4. Smith moved to Orlando and worked as Sheehan's aide at City Hall. More recently, he has been an aide to Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs while also serving as county ombudsman. He has taken a leave from that job to campaign. There are at least 26 LGBT elected officials in Florida, including Craig Lowe, who was elected mayor of Gainesville in 2010. But even nationwide, openly transgender candidates are still a rarity. An official with the Washington-based Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which helps LGBT candidates at the local, state and federal level, estimated that less than a half-dozen transgender U.S. politicians currently hold office. The most recent to win, Alameda County, California, Superior Court Judge Victoria Kolakowski, has described a common frustration of having to deal with media often focused on this one element of her life. "That's all reporters tended to ask her about," Victory Fund spokesman Denis Dison said. Dison said it's "a natural curiosity," especially in communities with few gay and lesbian politicians. But the group advises candidates to deal with the transgender or gay issue head on, "then talk about the issues you want to talk about." Orange County District 5 Commission candidate Gina Duncan said she experienced the same media "flood of exposure" because of her transgender background. "But frankly, I find that I'm talking about the issues," she said. Duncan, a 56-year-old Democrat who has 30 years of experience in mortgage banking, is president of the Metropolitan Business Association, the region's gay chamber of commerce. For 50 years, Duncan was Greg Pinkston, who grew up in Brevard County, starred on his high-school-football team and was homecoming king. Pinkston was married for 25 years, fathered two children and had a successful career in banking. In 2007, he had the surgery that completed the transition from male to female. Duncan is among the first openly transgender candidates to run for office in Florida. One of the most recent was Donna Milo, a conservative Cuban-American who ran unsuccessfully for Congress and Miami City Commission. So Duncan said she appreciates the history that could be made: No openly transgender candidate has won prominent office in Florida. But she expects it to play little or no role in her race, which at this point could pit her against incumbent Republican Commissioner Ted Edwards. "I understand the significance of it," Duncan said. "But I haven't found it to be a detriment or something we're dwelling on."

Beginning March 1, changes to the privacy policy of Google will allow the company to gather, store, and use personal information based on user’s browsing history. Digital Journal explains how to delete your history ahead of Thursday deadline.

The 84th Academy Awards were held Sunday, a sleepy affair at best. The Artist and Hugo were the big winners, The Artist earning best picture, best director, and best actor, among others. Meryl Streep, in an upset, won best actress. The highlight of the evening, if there was one, would have been presenter Emma Stone.

Jesse Tyler Ferguson and his dreamy boyfriend Justin Mikita spotted arriving at Elton John’s AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party.

Tom Daley (and a tremendous treasure trail) on deck following a disappointing performance during the Men’s Synchronised 10 metre Platform diving finals, Tom and his partner Peter Waterfield finishing out of medal contention, earning Daley a very public scolding from the coaching staff.