In this Issue:

Last Chance! H4PJ and Uptown Players Present Hair: March 4 at 7 p.m.
Maryland boy dies from toothache: $80 extraction would have saved him
Historic breakthroughs expected for gay-rights bills in Congress
Commentary: Give Department of Peace a Chance by Rep. Jim McDermott

H4PJ and Uptown Players Present Hair
Benefit Performance – March 4 at 7 p.m.
Last Chance to purchase tickets!

Uptown Players has joined once again with Hope for Peace & Justice to present a special one-night only benefit performance. “Hair,” the American tribal love-rock musical, will be performed on Sunday, March 4 at 7 p.m. to raise money for the campaigns, programs and workshops of Hope for Peace & Justice. Tickets for this special performance are only $40 and include a post-show dessert reception. Seating is limited.

Come celebrate the 40th anniversary of this groundbreaking musical and recall the “Age of Aquarius” with this “rockumentary/rock musical” revival. “Hair” captures the innocence and passion of the 1960s, concentrating on the values of peace, love and understanding. The storyline follows a group of politically active young people in New York’s East Village, who band together as “The Tribe” and try to change the world.

Featuring songs like “Aquarius,” “Good Morning, Starshine” and “Hair,” this musical celebrates the hippie days of the late 60s, which still hold relevance today.

“Hair” is intended for mature audiences and contains partial nudity.

Click here to buy your tickets today!

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Maryland boy dies from toothache
$80 extraction would have saved him
By Mary Otto
Originally Published by the Washington Post

WASHINGTON - Twelve-year-old Deamonte Driver died of a toothache Sunday.

A routine, $80 tooth extraction might have saved him.

If his mother had been insured.

If his family had not lost its Medicaid.

If Medicaid dentists weren't so hard to find.

If his mother hadn't been focused on getting a dentist for his brother, who had six rotted teeth.

By the time Deamonte's own aching tooth got any attention, the bacteria from the abscess had spread to his brain, doctors said. After two operations and more than six weeks of hospital care, the Prince George's County boy died.

Deamonte's death and the ultimate cost of his care, which could total more than $250,000, underscore an often-overlooked concern in the debate over universal health coverage: dental care.

Some poor children have no dental coverage at all. Others travel three hours to find a dentist willing to take Medicaid patients and accept the incumbent paperwork. And some, including Deamonte's brother, get in for a tooth cleaning but have trouble securing an oral surgeon to fix deeper problems.

In spite of efforts to change the system, fewer than one in three children in Maryland's Medicaid program received any dental service at all in 2005, the latest year for which figures are available from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

‘They know there is a problem’
The figures were worse elsewhere in the region. In the District, 29.3 percent got treatment, and in Virginia, 24.3 percent were treated, although all three jurisdictions say they have done a better job reaching children in recent years.

"I certainly hope the state agencies responsible for making sure these children have dental care take note so that Deamonte didn't die in vain," said Laurie Norris, a lawyer for the Baltimore-based Public Justice Center who tried to help the Driver family. "They know there is a problem, and they have not devoted adequate resources to solving it."

Maryland officials emphasize that the delivery of basic care has improved greatly since 1997, when the state instituted a managed care program, and in 1998, when legislation that provided more money and set standards for access to dental care for poor children was enacted.

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Historic breakthroughs expected for gay-rights bills in Congress
By David Crary
Originally Published by the Associated Press

NEW YORK – Anti-gay bias has flared up in Hollywood and pro basketball recently, and soon the topic will be thrust dramatically into a new forum – a reshaped Congress likely to pass the first major federal gay-rights bills.

Wary conservative leaders, as well as gay-rights advocates, share a belief that at least two measures will win approval this year: a hate-crimes bill that would cover offenses motivated by anti-gay bias, and a measure that would outlaw workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Also on the table – although with more doubtful prospects – will be a measure to be introduced Wednesday seeking repeal of the “don't ask, don't tell” policy that bans openly gay and lesbian Americans from serving in the military.

All three measures surfaced in previous sessions of Congress, at times winning significant bipartisan backing but always falling short of final passage. This year, with Democrats now in control and many Republicans likely to join in support, the hate-crimes and workplace bills are widely expected to prevail.

“With liberals in control, there's a good possibility they'll both pass,” said Matt Barber, a policy director with the conservative group Concerned Women for America. “They're both dangerous to freedom of conscience, to religious liberties, to free speech.”

If approved by Congress, the bills would head to the White House. Activists on both the left and right are unsure whether President Bush would sign or veto them.

For gay-rights leaders – whose efforts to legalize same-sex marriage have been rebuffed by many states – the congressional votes are keenly anticipated after years of lobbying.

“This is a major step in our struggle,” said Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign. “I know there's a lot of despair on the other side.”

The workplace bill – titled the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or ENDA – is the subject of behind-the-scenes negotiations. The bill that emerges is expected to expand on earlier versions to cover not only sexual orientation but also gender identity, thus extending protections to transgender employees. Churches and small businesses would be exempt.

For many Americans, ENDA's provisions would be familiar. More than 85 percent of the Fortune 500 companies include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies, as do 17 states and many local governments.

And publicly, there is increasingly little tolerance for overt anti-gay bias. The National Basketball Association swiftly repudiated retired all-star Tim Hardaway after he spoke this month of hating gays, while TV actor Isaiah Washington apologized and sought counseling after using a gay slur in reference to a fellow actor on “Grey's Anatomy.”

Advocacy groups also say there have been huge strides in regard to protections for transgender people – with nine states, scores of major corporations and more than 70 colleges and universities now banning discrimination based on gender identity.

California's ban, in effect since 2003, has not triggered a flood of litigation, but it has prompted employers to proactively improve their policies for dealing with transgender employees, said Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

In past years, some congressional supporters of gay rights warned that ENDA's prospects would be crippled by including protections for gender identity. This year may be different.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., said the version he is helping draft will indeed cover transgender employees, while offering some allowances to employers so they can enforce dress codes and minimize controversies over bathroom use.

“With the proper amendments, I think we can get it,” said Frank, one of two openly gay members of Congress.

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Commentary: Give Department of Peace a Chance
by US Rep. Jim McDermott
Originally published by the Seattle Times

In a world torn by conflict, I can't think of a better time, or a greater need, for America to act as a force for good at home and around the world.

A bill recently was reintroduced in Congress that will go a long way toward bringing peace both at home and abroad. The measure would create a Cabinet-level Department of Peace.

The proposed department will give voice to the latest research and expertise on peaceful efforts in many areas — from safe schools to international arms control.

The legislation, which I am co-sponsoring, would fund, support and coordinate programs already in existence — in schools, prisons, police departments, educational institutions, charitable organizations and elsewhere — that are proven to reduce domestic and international violence and enhance the security and health of all Americans.

I believe a Department of Peace represents the ideals on which this country was founded. Our legislation, HR 808, embodies the dreams and aspirations of Americans to live in a nation that uses its great strength to support the cooperative efforts of people throughout the world to create peace.

In my years as a congressman and as a physician in the U.S. military, I have recognized repeatedly that the interests of the one cannot triumph over the interests of the many; that the security concerns of the United States are best served by diplomacy and cooperation rather than brute force.

A Department of Peace won't be just another top-heavy bureaucratic organization. Much like the Environmental Protection Agency, it will provide a uniting framework for existing organizations scattered throughout the U.S. currently working to bring peace to our communities and the world.

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Related Links

Department of Peace Campaign

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