KAGAN:

The confirmation hearings of potential-lesbian-or-not Elena Kagan will begin today, which will include a week of questioning to determine her fitness for the role of Supreme Court Justice as well as a little more about her stance on important political issues, something we’re all curious about. Lines of criticism that Republicans will likely take against her include her lack of judicial experience and her history of opposing DADT. A huge stockpile of her emails and documents from her time in the White House during the Clinton administration will also be a major topic of discussion, with both sides asking her to explain and clarify her views based on those documents. (@washingtonpost)

Becuase Kagan has been so guarded in terms of what her views on the law are, however, it will be difficult for anyone to find a real foothold to criticize her. It’s still unclear whether her confirmation hearings will be as much of a storm of partisan controversy as Sonia Sotomayor’s — on the one hand, Kagan is so mysterious, it’s hard to find much to argue over; on the other, she has short hair and is not married to a man, so is obviously a huge f*cking dyke. Which of those things will the committee focus on? No one knows! Slate is holding a poll of how many votes readers predict for Kagan; feel free to participate or leave your opinions in the comments. (@slate)

The LA Times has a liveblog of the action. Check it out.

PRIDE:

A bunch of pride celebrations happened yesterday, including New York City Pride. We were there! Here’s OurSceneTV’s coverage of the parade.

STONEWALL:

The New York Times speaks with Storme DeLarverie, an 89-year-old veteran of the original Stonewall riots, in a touching interview that highlights the history of Pride as well as the importance of caring for the LGBT elderly. “This one,” she said of the ring on a pinky finger, “I hit a guy so hard I knocked the stone out, and I hadn’t gotten around to put it back yet.” She had forgotten that the gay pride march was Sunday. Her mind and her memory are not as sharp as her wit and her tongue. She said she had been living there, at the Oxford Nursing Home, for years (she arrived in April). She was not sure how old she was (she will be 90 in December). (@nytimes)

MARRIAGE:

Some “well-placed experts” theorize that even a legal win in the fight for gay marriage could still be a loss for gay Americans — they say that a very close and divisive Supreme Court ruling, even if it’s ultimately in our favor, could embitter the average American and make the country less supportive of gay marriage. I feel like these experts were not gay and didn’t take into account that we might prefer being able to get married than having other people feel good about it, but it’s an interesting point to consider. (@keennews)

In other news, David Boies said some really awesome stuff about the Prop 8 trial. “I think that this case is probably the case in which my opponent has had less of an argument than in any case that I can think of. They have essentially a slogan, a bumper sticker, a tautology: They say “marriage is between a man and a woman.” That’s the question. That’s not the answer. And they don’t have any reasons why that ought to be the answer.” Actually it’s a very interesting article where he says many validating things that will make you feel good, you should read it! (@salon)

FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT:

Ken Cuccinelli, the Virginia attorney general who wanted universities to get rid of protections against discrimination for queer students, has stated that this move would be constitutional because gays and lesbians aren’t protected by the Fourteenth Amendment. Specifically, he said that “the category of sexual orientation would never have been contemplated by the people who wrote and voted for and passed the 14th Amendment,” Sort of like how the rights of people of color would never have been contemplated by the people who originally wrote the constitution! (@theadvocate)

ICELAND:

The prime minister of Iceland married her longtime partner on Sunday, the first day that same-sex marriages became legal. The law allowing gay couples to marry was passed without a dissenting vote in Iceland’s parliament this year. (@ap)

RADIO:

A new radio station in the West Bank is one of the first all-women’s radio stations in the Arab world. Its name, Nisaa FM, means “women,” and its founders seek to entertain as well as empower women. (@voanews)

CASTRO:

A shooting death in the Castro this weekend cast a shadow over San Francisco Pride. Stephen Powell, 19, was shot in the torso and pronounced dead on Saturday night. Another 19-year-old was arrested for the crime. (@pamshouseblend)

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