Morning Sweep

By now you've probably heard about Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's absurd comment stating that gay people don't exist in Iran--that it's a "phenomenon" of other countries. Here are a few responses to his claim:

Here's the actual video clip of Ahmadinejad's full commentary on homosexuality in Iran. Al Jazeera provides a rather balanced view of the entire (controversial) Columbia University event (via YouTube). City Room live-blogged the entire event.

His comments about gay people led the New York Times front page article covering the event.

Martin Lewis writes on the Huffington Post that Iran is a social conservative's paradise...and that they should consider moving there.

The New York Sun interviews two prominent Iranian leaders within the LGBT rights movement, both of whom comment on the state of fear that LGBT people in Iran constantly live in.

And Queerty adds this cartoon, which is sadly--and morbidly--spot-on.

In other news:

Many cities in Southern Florida have outlawed discrimination against transgender people in response to Ft. Lauderdale's anti-LGBT mayor Jim Naugle and the firing of Susan Stanton as city supervisor of Largo, FL after she came out as transgender. (via Queerty)

John Edwards came out with a plan to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS, which includes federally funded "age appropriate" sex education.

Democratic NY State Senator Craig Johnson (Nassau) is already under attack from the state Republican party, which hopes to win the seat back in 2008. Johnson won an expensive and high-profile special election in February and is vocally supportive of multiple pro-LGBT pieces of legislation, including marriage equality.

An HRC intern was the victim of a hate crime after leaving a Washington, DC bar.

A lesbian couple staged a sit-in in a state government building in Denver, CO after they were denied a marriage license...and were then arrested. (via Good As You)