Five Things You Should Know

Five Things You Should Know

5 things you should know that impact the LGBT community

1. Bachmann repeats opposition to marriage equality

During a campaign appearance in Iowa, Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann said gay people have the right to get married — to a person of the opposite sex. Bachmann was responding to a question from Jane Schmidt, 16, who asked the candidate about support of the LGBT community and marriage rights. "They can get married," Bachmann said. "But they abide by the same law as everyone else. They can marry a man if they're a woman. Or they can marry a woman if they're a man."

16-year-old Nicholas Adelman, of Salt Lake City, writes an open letter to Michele Bachmann. Click to read letter..

2. Gingrich says he would review repeal of DADT

Newt Gingrich, who is leading in the polls for the Republican presidential nomination, told the Military Culture Coalition that he would have voted against allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. As president, he said he would favor an extensive review for repeal of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. The former House speaker said he supports the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines marriage as a union of one man and one woman. Meanwhile, Candace Gingrich-Jones, the openly gay half-sister of the candidate, said she will support President Obama's re-election.

3. DNC faith outreach official criticized for marriage stance

A Washington, D.C., pastor hired by the Democratic National Committee to head the party's faith outreach program says that while he is supports LGBT equality, including civil unions for same-sex couples, he does not support marriage equality. Critics say the choice of the Rev. Derrick Harkins suggests the party is "tone-deaf" on the issue. "The Democratic Party should be speaking out forcefully and forthrightly in support of the dignity and equality of all Americans and equal protection under the law, which includes the freedom to marry," said Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry.

4. Gay man named prime minister of Belgium

Elio di Rupo, head of the Socialist Party of Belgium, has been named prime minister, becoming the European Union's first openly gay head of government. The outcome ends a 540-day stalemate over who would lead the country. Di Rupo, a 60-year-old former chemistry professor and mayor, came out in 1997 in response to media inquiries.

5. Australia has world's first openly intersex mayor

Tony Briffa has been elected mayor of Hobsons Bay, Australia, which makes him the world's first openly intersex mayor. Doctors designated Briffa female at birth, but his genetic makeup is male and he currently uses male pronouns for himself. "I am not male or female, but both. I am grateful for the years I lived as a woman and the insight and experiences it gave me," he wrote on his website. -E