Today in Wikipedia: Ségolène Royal

Okay, so I'm totally obsessed with Wikipedia (if you couldn't tell). I surf it all the time, whenever I'm bored, just to read about random stuff I wouldn't otherwise know about. Yes, I know this makes me the biggest dork ever. Yes, I also know that it can be completely wrong and often is, but I just can't help it. So, when I find an entry that is particularly interesting, I will share it with you. My loyal readers. Or reader. Hi Mom.

Yesterday I was reading about Ségolène Royal, the woman who could be the first female President of France. She's clinched the nomination of the Socialist party (one of the largest political parties in France) and is widely regarded to be one of the two front runners. Though some on the left in France have problems with her because she's too "centrist," she's far more progressive than anyone who would ever have a chance at the U.S. Presidency (sorry Ralph and Dennis!)

She also seems to just be a cool lady...much better than the Hillster. So I was psyched when I read this in her Wikipedia entry:

LGBT issues

In 2000, Royal, as the then Minister of the Family and Children spoke out against anti-gay bullying in schools, saying, “School must be a place of tolerance, of welcome. Too many young people face teasing, social exclusion because of their sexual orientation… Some consider drugs, suicide attempts. It is time to stand up to this hostility shown towards homosexuality.” She later introduced an educational packet in high schools and colleges called “The Happiness of Loving”, designed particularly for teachers and nurses. It comprises a video, educational information and printed copies for students which address the different issues of homosexuality and homophobia. It includes information on the Civil Partnership scheme, the situation of homosexuals and the discrimination they face abroad. Royal commented further on the issue later that year: “It is necessary, in my opinion, to step up against homophobia, to recognise and respect each other, with our differences”.

A law passed in February 2002, introduced by Royal on behalf of the Jospin government, gave legal recognition, for the first time, to families with same-sex parents, part of the law’s object. Article 7 of the law amended Article 337 of the Civil Code in allowing the parents to “[delegate] all or part of the exercise of their parental authority to a third person, member of the family [or] trustworthy near relation,”. Article 337-1, added by the law, ensures that “delegation may provide, for the needs of education of a child, that the father and mother, or one of them, shall share all or part of the exercise of parental authority with the third person delegatee."

In a June 2006 interview with LGBT publication Têtu, Royal said "opening up marriage to same-sex couples is needed in the name of equality, visibility and respect" and said that if her party formed the next government, she would introduce a bill to legalize same-sex marriage and adoption.

Since my day job is working to ensure safe schools for LGBT students, I was pretty psyched to hear that she's been talking about those issues since 2000. Can you imagine John McCain or Hillary Clinton being so vocal?

Maybe when she's elected, she can start France's first gay-straight alliance.

Associated Press: Not so much with the pop culture references

The headline above was an AP story on the internets the other day, speculating that Ann Coulter's recent homophobic comments about John Edwards were the beginning of the end for her. But The Tipping Point was all about how trends go very quickly from relative obscurity to mass appeal very quickly. Not so relevant for Ann Coulter, 46.

Think they meant to say "Has Ann Coulter jumped the shark?"