Something To Celebrate: 12 Of The Best LGBT Moments Of The Week February 5 - February 11

In our bi-monthly series Something To Celebrate we take a look at the biggest and best LGBT moments of the week.

Something To Celebrate was developed as a companion to our Know Thine Enemy series, because as important as it is to know what our enemies are saying about us so that we can properly prepare and respond to their attacks, it's equally important to take a few moments to come together to celebrate our victories and recognize the work our community and our allies are doing.

During the last seven days we witnessed some incredible moments -- from the Prop 8 decision to gay marriage being passed in Washington to the amazing support Ellen DeGeneres received after the anti-gay organization One Million Moms came out against her partnership with JC Penney.

Have a look at 12 of our favorite stories from the past week and then if there other stories or events that took place this week that you want to honor (even personal victories!), tell us about them in the comments section below!

Comments

[Pablito Garcia]

11:40 AM on 03/18/2012

Number 11 is NOT good news.

There is NOTHING good about people being jailed for speech. Be it in the UK or elsewhere. Hate crimes legislation is a farce being foisted upon compassionate liberals having homo-guilt. As a real activist, I want NOTHING to do with expanding the powers of such organizations as the FBI etc to be "investigating" people even if they're "haters"

Nor do I want some judge to tell me the frat boy who broke a bottle over my head, wasn't really doing it because I'm gay. F them.

Remember, a jury decided Rodney King wasn't beaten for being black?!

[Zurichilux]

08:54 AM on 05/29/2012

It was inciting hatred. If someone was calling for all bearded asian muslims to be executed, they would be imprisoned too, and rightly so.

[Volantiad]

07:54 PM on 02/27/2012

Oh, HuffPo: thank you for some good news! With all the h8t, cruelty, ignorance, etc. rife in the world, it is bolstering to be able to read a little good news in all of that.

[dws51564]

01:43 PM on 02/12/2012

Why is it exactly that people continue to fight against equality in a country founded on equality? If they don't like America why do they stay?

[thereisonlyoneparty]

07:40 PM on 03/04/2012

Why is it that people who claim to support equality fight against true equality?

[Zurichilux]

08:56 AM on 05/29/2012

How exactly do they fight against true equality? What is true equality to you? Treating homosexuals as second class citizens?

[mrld20]

10:51 AM on 02/12/2012

I agree with everything except for the Christian couple... A private business shouldn't be forced to provide service to everyone...

That's why its private... They can choose who they want to serve... Public is different...

[labrat03]

11:19 AM on 02/12/2012

People would be appalled if a Christian couple didn't allow Jews or Muslims to shop at their store. A Jewish person or a Muslim person does not adhere to the Christian lifestyle either, yet they are not allowed to be discriminated against, but a gay couple is allowed to be discriminated against?

[mrld20]

05:10 PM on 02/12/2012

I'm gay... If some silly person refused to serve me I'd take my business elsewhere and tell all my friends and allies that person is anti-gay...

Customers won't go there because of that person's bigotry towards Jews, Muslims, and gays... It's Economics 101 called the boycott... There's no need to run and scream for a lawsuit...

[Helen Greenfeld]

03:44 PM on 02/13/2012

First off do not compare religion and sexual preference. That said if I walked into a store and the owner did not want to serve me for whatever reason, I would turn on my heal and walk out. It's not good business for them.

[rockysparks]

01:08 PM on 02/12/2012

But they're NOT a Christian couple. True Christians follow Jesus' teaching to "Love Your Neighbor as Yourself" --- unconditional love. Not "Love Your Neighbor Unless Your Neighbor's a Nasty Old Poofy" ...

[geraldrtmcdge]

08:37 AM on 02/12/2012

Celebrating! Do you really want to celebrate? There's a God in heaven waiting to come and take us to a place where there will be no more suffering, no more sorrow, no more pain, no more I'm hungry, no more I'm cold, no more I don't have enough for the rent, no more what am I going to do now. This God wants to end all kind of discrimination, hatred, disease, poverty, This God wants to love and care for each of us. This is something to celebrate. He wants all sinners to come out of the closet and walk into His open arms. Arms that He once opened wide and said come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy ladened and I will give you rest. Yes, it seems like a fairy tale. But it's for real. But we need to come, we need to accept His forgiveness, we need to forsake our sinful lives and accept Him. This world, this government, accepting our lifestyles is nothing to celebrate. That's only satan trying to make us comfortable in our sins, so that we won't feel the need to change, feel our need of The Savior. But it won't change the way you feel. Deep down you'll find that the only thing that will satisfy that emptiness is Jesus.

[rockysparks]

12:57 PM on 02/12/2012

So all sinners should come out of the closet? Including people who commit the sin of bigotry against homosexual people? I'm for that. Will you be the first? Hmmm?

[geraldrtmcdge]

07:32 PM on 02/12/2012

If you feel I'm a bigot, tell me how and I will confess and ask God's forgiveness. I don't think I am one. If you come with me to church or visit me in my home I'll make no distinction between you or any one else. I'll love you with all the love that God can give me and we will worship Him together. Email me at [e-mail]

[dws51564]

01:19 PM on 02/12/2012

Religious comment on legal equality in our country are irrelevant. Next

[geraldrtmcdge]

07:37 PM on 02/12/2012

You desire equality for something that doesn't exists. Desire what is already given in the Constitution. All men are created equal. And that includes women. But you ask to create a separate cast. There is no such thing as a he she or a she he. This is something that satan has made up to fool and confuse us. God made us male and female. Satan wants the homosexual community to consider themselves not part of God's creation. Satan wants every one to be lost for all eternity. That is why God gave us His word to end the confusion and set us on the proper path to Him. Lets go together. love [e-mail]

[geraldrtmcdge]

08:25 AM on 02/12/2012

"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."*The conditions of obtaining mercy of God, are simple and just and reasonable. The Lord does not require us to do some grievous thing in order that we may have the forgiveness of sin. We need not make long and wearisome pilgrimages, or perform painful penances, to commend our souls to the God of heaven or to expiate our transgression; but he that confesseth and forsaketh his sin shall have mercy.
The apostle says, "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed."* Confess your sins to God, who only can forgive them, and your faults to one another. If you have
- 40

[rockysparks]

12:57 PM on 02/12/2012

Great idea. Let's start with the sinners who speak hate and commit crimes against homosexual people ...

[geraldrtmcdge]

07:28 PM on 02/12/2012

You are right, lets start with them. But we can not omit ourselves. Hate is made by satan. He is the one that has made many so called Christians not live up to all God would want them to be. We forget many times that we are all sinners. It matters not the sin. Sin will keep any unforgiven sinner out of eternal life. But for those who admit they are sinners and come to our Savior they will find that fountain filled with blood drawn from Emanuel's veins and any sinner plunged beneath that flow will lose all their guilty stains. Lets plunge in together. I'm a sinner. I have lusted, I have cheated, I have lied and lived a lie. But I have a Savior that can make us white as snow. He's done before and He will do again. All we have to do is come. We don't need to change before we come. He only asks us to come.

[dws51564]

01:20 PM on 02/12/2012

Irrelevant in the debate on equality. Next

[geraldrtmcdge]

07:19 PM on 02/12/2012

There is no equality in sexes. Women are women and men are men. God designed it to be so. To try to treat one as the other hinders the both of you from the growth and fulfillment that God has created us to become. We all have the sin that we are weak at. To some it may be lying or stealing,or cheating or cheating on their spouses. Some are tempted by homosexuality. But to all God says He can set us free and give us the victory over these temptations. He says today when we hear His voice, to not harden our hearts. He asks only that we come and spend some time with Him and He will do the rest. Why not answer His call. There is a song that says " The Savior is waiting to enter your heart, why don't you let Him come in, there's nothing in this world that can keep you apart what is your answer to Him. Time after time He has waited before, and now He is waiting again. To see if your willing to open the door, Oh how He wants to come in. It's a beautiful song. If you'd like to hear it I would love to sing it for you. But even more Jesus would like for you to experience His indwelling personally. Love you Gerald.

[cuteliberalchick]

01:09 AM on 02/12/2012

love my men and women.They all can be great lovers.

[Godweiser]

07:10 PM on 02/11/2012

Here's hoping Maryland is the next bit of good news on this front. My delegates better vote in favor of gay marriage or prepare to be voted against; there's plenty of Democrats where they came from.

[The Greatest Days]

04:56 PM on 02/11/2012

How awesome it is that Hulk responded that way. What a decent guy. I doubt anyone ever really believed for a second that he is gay, but he handled it well.

[Godweiser]

07:10 PM on 02/11/2012

The Hulkster got props from me for saying what he did with class.

[beringer37]

02:43 AM on 02/13/2012

Agreed, he made her look very petty.

[Ioan Lightoller]

06:18 PM on 02/13/2012

Agreed. His ex really does look trashy in comparison.

[Booo7553]

04:13 PM on 02/11/2012

Yes PLEASE post more weekly columns like this one. It's so easy to look at the bad things happening and ignoring the real good things that are creating positive change. Kudos to HuffPost for this!!

[gaydood]

04:04 PM on 02/11/2012

A VERY GOOD WEEK !!!!!!!!!!!!

[DessieRandom]

03:18 PM on 02/11/2012

It's been a really truly great week!!!

[KellyRyan]

03:03 PM on 02/11/2012

It's been a week worthy of celebration, and it has been the absolute best Valentine's gift I could possibly receive.

[Mindy Czech]

02:46 PM on 02/11/2012

The Daniel Radcliffe thing was particularly awesome. I'm not a HP fan, but I know a lot of people who are and if a kid can see Harry Potter saying that it's okay to be gay and we need gay rights, it could lead to more tolerance and acceptance and less bullying. (I felt the same when Miley Cyrus came out in support for equality.) I also really was surprised by Hulk Hogan. Like I said, I love it when a man with plastic hair makes so much sense. He and John Cena seem to be the biggest gay allies from the wrestling community now. (Yes, I watch the WWE with my wife. I don't have "Guiding Light" anymore, so this fills my soap opera void.)

[StevenWells]

06:19 PM on 02/11/2012

Nice comments, Mindy.

I hope you don't mind that two things stuck me in a humorous way. The first is the idea of WWE as a substitute for soaps. I don't quite know what it is, but I'm sure there's a great joke somewhere in that progression.

The other is how one thing can have different meanings to different people. I got that your "HP" meant "Harry Potter." But just this morning, I mentioned "HP" to my partner - meaning "HuffingtonPost" - and he, being a computer programmer, thought I was talking about "Hewlett-Packard."

Don't mind me; my mind sometimes wanders like this for hours.

Faved.

[Mindy Czech]

11:04 PM on 02/11/2012

It's professional wrestling, lol. My wife and I watch Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown every single week, and it is totally just a soap opera geared towards men and boys. It's so stupid and corny, but it's addictive. Me and Cindy even went to see it live last year when it came by.

My mind wanders and I get trail off a lot, too. It's so easy to get me to digress, and at the last second I always try to segue back into what I was talking about to begin with- that is, if I can remember what it was.

[PLAINTOM]

01:45 PM on 02/11/2012

" rounding up to the closest million..." LOL Ellen

[Mindy Czech]

03:21 PM on 02/11/2012

It's conservative math. It's no different than meth math.