Tag: Gregory Storer

The “It Gets Better” Project

Dan Savage started the It Gets Better Project, to try to make a positive difference to the lives of young people who are being bullied and struggling because of factors relating to their real or perceived sexual orientation.

I made a video for the project.  You can view it here:

My partner Gregory also told his story:

I invite you to also record a video for the project.  It’s really easy to do.  Just open your phone cam, plug in a web cam on your laptop or personal computer, or ask a friend to help you out.  Take a minute or longer and tell your story.  Tell a story of how you survived your school years, how you helped a friend get through, how you might have been a bully and how you regret it, how you said something once that you think might have had a negative impact on someone and wish you could have taken it back.  Please, just say something, something sincere and from the heart.  You might just make someone sit up and listen.  They might think twice about taking their life, or give them a ray of sun to lighten a dark place.

Joel Burns told a deeply moving story:

President Barak Obama has spoken from the White House:

These are just two of the more amazing contributions to the project.  There are hundreds more.  Every one adds a little extra piece to the puzzle of hope and love.

You can make a difference.  You owe it to someone who needs your help.

The Sacred and the Secular: The Same Sex Marriages Case – An Evening with Albie Sachs

On Monday night I had the privilege of hearing Albie Sachs talk about his involvement in legalising same-sex marriage in South Africa.  An amazing person, someone we can all learn something from.

See below for details on the event and some background on Albie Sachs.

Albie Sachs, Gabi Crafti, Michael Barnett & Gregory Storer (photo by Gaby Jung); Sep 20 2010
Albie Sachs, Gabi Crafti, Michael Barnett & Gregory Storer; Sep 20 2010 (Photo by Gaby Jung)

The Sacred and the Secular: The Same Sex Marriages Case – An Evening with Albie Sachs

Organisation The Human Rights Law Resource Centre
Date 20 September 2010
Description The Human Rights Law Resource Centre (HRLRC) invites you to an evening with Albie Sachs, Former Judge of the South African Constitutional Court, on the topic of ‘The Sacred and the Secular: The Same Sex Marriages Case’.Sachs was appointed by Nelson Mandela as an inaugural judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. He was a member of the National Executive of the ANC and played a crucial role in South Africa’s transition to democracy, including by contributing towards the drafting the South African Bill of Rights. Whilst in exile in Mozambique in 1988, Sachs was badly injured by a car bomb placed by South African security agents. He lost an arm and the sight of one eye as a result.

As a judge of the Constitutional Court, Sachs was responsible for many landmark human rights judgments, including in relation to equality, non-discrimination and social and economic rights. In 1991, Sachs won the Alan Paton Award for his book ‘Soft Vengeance of a Freedom Fighter’. He is also the author of ‘Justice in South Africa’ (1974); ‘The Jail Diary of Albie Sachs’ (1966); ‘Sexism and the Law’ (1979); and ‘The Free Diary of Albie Sachs’ (2004). Sachs’ latest book, ‘The Strange Alchemy of Life and Law’, will be launched in Melbourne at this seminar.

Sachs is visiting Australia to deliver the University of New South Wales Law Faculty Annual Hal Wootten Lecture.

Time: 5.45 pm for 6.00 pm to 7.30 pm.
Venue DLA Phillips Fox, Level 21, 140 William Street, Melbourne
Cost $30 ordinary; $15 concession
Contact admin@pilch.org.au

The Sacred and the Secular:

The Same-Sex Marriages Case

with

Albie Sachs

Former Judge of the South African
Constitutional Court

Albie Sachs was appointed by Nelson Mandela as an
inaugural judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa,
from which he retired in 2009. He was a member of the
National Executive of the ANC and played a crucial role in
South Africa’s transition to democracy, including through
the drafting of the South African Bill of Rights. In 1988,
while in exile in Mozambique, he was badly injured by a car
bomb placed by South African security agents, losing an
arm and the sight of an eye.
As a judge of the Constitutional Court, Justice Sachs was
responsible for many landmark human rights judgments,
including in relation to equality, non-discrimination and
social and economic rights.
In 1991, Albie Sachs won the Alan Paton Award for his
book Soft Vengeance of a Freedom Fighter. He is also the
author of Justice in South Africa (1974), The Jail Diary of
Albie Sachs (1966), Sexism and the Law (1979) and The
Free Diary of Albie Sachs (2004). His most recent book,
The Strange Alchemy of Life and Law, will be launched in
Melbourne at this seminar.
Albie Sachs is visiting Australia to deliver the University of
New South Wales Law Faculty Annual Hal Wootten
Lecture.

Alex Fein & Yaron Gottleib, Sensible Jews engaged in anti-secular intolerance

Alex Fein is “The Sensible Jew“.  Yaron Gottleib has been a regular contributor on her blog.  They announced their engagement to each other this week.  I don’t believe there has yet been a disclosure of their relationship status on the blog.

On Alex Fein’s Facebook wall* she takes a swipe at the Secular Party:

Alex Fein
August 12, 2010

It’d be frightening if they ever had a real chance at power – Socialists, Fascists, Secular fundamentalists with bizarre Israel policy… Yaron looks at the ugliest candidates standing at the coming election.

Alex Fein August 12, 2010 It'd be frightening if they ever had a real chance at power - Socialists, Fascists, Secular fundamentalists with bizarre Israel policy... Yaron looks at the ugliest candidates standing at the coming election.

This is a reference to a blog on the analysis of the “ugly” political parties running candidates in the coming election.  The analysis is mostly pathetic and shows a lack of maturity by its author.

I posted this comment* in response to her statement on Facebook:

Alex, you remark that the “Secular fundamentalists” are [amongst] “the ugliest candidates standing at the coming election”.  How do you justify this assertion?

Gregory Storer is the Secular Party candidate for Melbourne Ports. His name will appear on your ballot paper.  In the lead-up to the election he has written a number of articles regarding upholding human rights and equality, including equality for women.  He critiques Michael Danby’s poor performance on some of these issues.  How does that make him one of the “ugliest candidates”?

I ask you read what he has to say (http://gregory.storer.com.au/) and would appreciate you then justify what I would consider your outrageous claim.

Michael.

https://www.facebook.com/alex.fein.3/posts/151144704897023?comment_id=151371704874323

Let’s see what engaging response the Sensible Jew comes back with.

* As of April 2019 the public Facebook profile “Alex Fein” disappeared and may have become “Jal Peretz“, with restricted access to its content.

Secular Gregory

Gregory Storer is running as a candidate for the Secular Party of Australia in the Division of Melbourne Ports in the 2010 Federal Election.

Read Gregory’s blog and find out how you can support him.  He’ll be glad to hear from you.

I’m really proud of Gregory.  He’s prepared to put his money where his mouth is.

Michael.

A Pluralist Panel on Homosexuality & Judaism: comment, photos and my address

I was invited to participate in “A Pluralist Panel on Homosexuality and Judaism” by Hineni (Melbourne) and the Monash Jewish Students Society on Thursday June 3 2010.  The other panelists were Michael Cohen, Rabbi Shamir Caplan (Orthodox), Rabbi Ehud Bandel (Conservative), Rabbi Fred Morgan (Progressive).  Absent from the panel due to illness was Hinde Ena Burstin who was to talk from a Jewish lesbian perspective.

Kudos to the event organisers Hineni and MonJSS for bringing this much-needed discussion to the community.  It is perhaps the first time an intelligent, informed public discussion has been had in the Melbourne Jewish community on anything to do with homosexuality.

It was put to me that the evening was going to be controversial, not so much because of homosexuality being in the topic, but that there was going to be one each of a Progressive, Conservative and Orthodox rabbi (a Neapolitan assortment?) in the same room at the same time.  I’m sure there’s a joke in there somewhere.  🙂

Aside from a few minor technical and logistical glitches the evening went really well.  Each of the first four speakers delivered their address from their respective professional perspectives with no real surprises or revelations.

The Orthodox perspective given apologised for being intolerant of homosexuality and didn’t offer very much real hope for same-sex attracted people.

The Conservative perspective was up front about being “in the middle” of tradition and change, yet said that gay men and women were equal within the community and their sexuality needed to be taken into account and not ignored.

The Progressive perspective similarly acknowledged the importance of a person’s sexuality and went on to say that the Progressive movement was supportive of same-sex relationships and would acknowledge them as much as possible, yet they weren’t on par with heterosexual relationships.

Both the Conservative and Progressive perspectives put forward also acknowledged that children could be successfully raised in a same-sex relationship, something that the Orthodox perspective didn’t seem to have the capacity to understand.

Audience members were asked to write questions down on paper supplied and then at the end of the panel presentations, a selection of questions would be put to the panelists.  The questions asked were intelligent for the most part but didn’t ask the tough questions that I felt needed to be asked of the rabbis.

What made me most unsettled about the line-up of speakers (aside from me) was that they were all heterosexual men, dictating the terms of acceptance, to one degree or another, of same-sex attracted men and women and our relationships.  I would really like to have seen a female rabbi (yes, they do exist in the Progressive world) or an openly gay one (yes, they do exist) speak on the topic.

My thanks again to Hineni and MonJSS for organising the evening.  My thanks also to my wonderful partner Gregory Storer for giving me the necessary support.  His photographs of the evening can be viewed on Google Albums and Facebook.

My address from the evening is here.

Michael.