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NEWS AND VIEWS THAT IMPACT LIMITED CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERNMENT

"There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with
power to endanger the public liberty." - - - - John Adams

Friday, June 3, 2011

San Francisco ball players are not Gay enough

William Shakespeare was right:
"The First Thing We Do, Let's Kill All the Lawyers"

Three men suing a gay baseball association, for ruling that they were not gay enough to be included in a 2008 competition, will have their day in court, a judge has ruled.

The men, members of a San Francisco softball team competing in the 2008 Gay Softball World Series near Seattle, say they were discriminated against and humiliated when questioned in front of a room full of people about their sexual orientation.

After a vote on whether the men were 'gay or non-gay', the trio were disqualified from the competition.

Regular competitors: Steven Apilado (kneeling, second from
right), Jon Russ (holding banner left) and LaRon Charles
(centre, next to Russ) seen in 2007

 Steven Apilado, Jon Russ and LaRon Charles - who are openly bisexual - allege that the event's sponsor and competition rules violate state anti-discrimination laws.

Rules of the annual Gay Softball World Series, sponsored by the National Gay Amateur Athletic Association (NAGAA), state that only two members of each team can be heterosexual.  The event disqualified Messrs Apilado, Russ and Charles because they were on a team that already had two heterosexual members.

The trio allege in their lawsuit that the ruling is discriminatory. Both sides had been preparing for an August 1 trial, with the trio's suit backed by the National Center for Lesbian Rights in San Francisco.

The group, which advocates bisexual rights, said NAGAA's rule discriminated against bisexuals by not including them in the definition of 'gay'.

The men's lawsuit alleges that they were individually questioned about their sexuality - in a room containing as many as 25 people. Panel members then voted on whether they men were gay or not.

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