Closing a decade that Time magazine has called the worst in history, 2009 has thrown its own share of lemons at our community. Some of them were new, such as, the California Supreme Court decision to uphold both Proposition 8 and the 18,000 marriages performed last year, creating once again, a state that embraces a separate but equal mentality. Of course, then there was (former) Miss California USA 2009 Carrie Prejean, but the year also included the usual suspects, such as the Westboro Baptist Church and Buju Banton making their rounds locally.

Still, amidst the sour lemons, our community was able to make lemonade: Gov. Schwarzenegger signed Sen. Mark Leno bill AB 2567 making May 22, Harvey Milk Day; Rev. Thomas Wilson became the first openly gay and partnered man in Diocese of San Diego to be ordained into the priesthood; Diversionary Theatre performed the phenomenal Dear Harvey, the Metropolitan Community Church moved into its new home in Mission Bay; and the San Diego Men’s Chorus (SDMC) and the Gay Men’s Chorus of San Diego (GMCSD) will be merging in the coming new year.

With the bitter and sweet in mind, we offer you a summary of the top news stories we reported on in 2009:

January

Local faith leaders spoke out against Pastor Rick Warren giving the keynote speech at President Obama’s inauguration ceremony; Thomas Jeffrey Brooks pleaded not guilty in murdering Edward Andrew and implanting his body in a cement egg in the backyard of an Alabama Street home in North Park; and more than 400 gay activists gathered at Los Angeles Convention Center to organize and strategize to win back same-sex marriage in California and state marriage-equality leaders publicly spoke about what went wrong with the No on 8 campaign.

February

A San Diego jury agreed that spectators and participants at the 2007 San Diego LGBT Pride Parade sexually harassed four firefighters, but only awarded them $5,000 each in damages for emotional distress; up to 200 gay rights and union leaders gathered outside the Manchester Grand Hyatt to protest a speech by former President Bill Clinton and to demand that the hotel sever ties with its owner Doug Manchester and improve working conditions; and San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis completed her investigation into the fatal shooting of Steven Paul Hirschfield on July 19, 2008, by Harbor Police Officer Clyde Williams concluding that the officers use of deadly force was justified and that he bears no criminal liability.

March

Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco introduced Senate Bill 572 to designate May 22, Harvey Milk Day and local San Diegan leaders including City Commissioner Nicole Murray-Ramirez led push to have the bill enacted; on the 15th anniversary of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, the federal law prohibiting gays and lesbians from serving in the military, Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Calif., reintroduced The Military Enhancement Readiness Act (H.R. 1283), a bill that sought to repeal the ban and local veterans spoke out against the ban; and Rev. Thomas Wilson became the first openly gay and partnered man in Diocese of San Diego to be ordained into the priesthood at All Souls’ Episcopal Church.

April

Assemblymember Marty Block explained his reason for not voting on HR 5, a State Assembly resolution declaring that Proposition 8 was an improper “revision” of the California Constitution at a San Diego Democratic Club meeting; the state-wide transgender community gathered for San Diego’s 4th Annual Transgender Leadership Summit; the San Diego Syphilis Elimination Community Task Force promoted a month-long syphilis-screening campaign and designated April as STD Awareness Month; and the Diversionary Theatre held the world premier of Dear Harvey, a play about the late civil rights leader Harvey Milk.

May

Doug Manchester, the owner of Manchester Grand Hyatt, announced that he would donate $125,000 to the gay community, many believe for his $125,000 donation to the “Yes on 8” campaign last summer; more than 4,000 marriage-equality supporters marched from Balboa Park to the Hall of Justice Downtown in response to the California Supreme Court’s decision to uphold Proposition 8 and the 18,000 same-sex marriages that California allowed last year; nearly a 1000 attended San Diego’s annual Harvey Milk Diversity Breakfast; and The American Civil Liberties Union threatened to sue Mt. Woodson Elementary School in Ramona whose principle refused to let a student present a report on slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk until her classmates received their parents’ permission to hear it.

June

Rhythm Turner, singer and guitarist in local band, Rhythm and The Method was assaulted after she hugged her girlfriend outside Canes Bar & Grill and posted an online video recounting its details; during the Equality Torch Relay in Lemon Grove, a bystander attacked SD Pride Executive Director Ron deHarte; San Diegans marched in support of same-sex marriage through central California towns, ending with a rally in Fresno, where movement leaders vowed to win the hearts and minds of opponents; and Michael Pilcher, a 21-year-old resident of The Center’s Youth Housing Project died from a drug overdose at the East Village Sunburst Apartments location.

July

The GLBT community honored the life of Seaman August Provost, murdered just outside Camp Pendleton; San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders delivered meal number five million for Mama’s Kitchen; GLBT activists and union leaders committed to a second year of its year old boycott against Manchester Hyatt Hotel; and Members of the Metropolitan Community Church voted in favor of buying a church in the Mission Bay area to call their own.

August

Petty Officer Jonathan Campos charged with murdering Seaman August Provost committed suicide in the brig at Camp Pendleton; the Greater San Diego Business Association appointed San Diego native Tom Luhnow as its new chief executive officer; the agency that decides on how federal HIV dollars will be spent for San Diego County HIV services, the San Diego HIV Health Services Planning Council, passed its 2010/2011 budget with increases to core services and decreases to (and elimination of some) supportive services; and the San Diego Men’s Chorus (SDMC) and the Gay Men’s Chorus of San Diego (GMCSD) announced that they would be merging in the new year.

September

Local activists organized a San Diego contingent to attend the National Equality March (NEM) in Washington, D.C.; the campaign to repeal Proposition 8 in 2010, Restore Equality 2010 presented its statewide plan and elected its leadership; Vinzen Matthew Williams, 21, was sentenced to one year in county jail and ordered to attend anger management classes for twice punching lesbian musician Rhythm Turner outside a Mission Beach restaurant; and local nonprofit Townspeople celebrated its 25th anniversary.

October

State and local marriage equality leaders debated whether to repeal Proposition 8 in 2010 or 2012 at a San Diego Democratic Club (SDDC) meeting; the U.S. Census Bureau outreached to the local GLBT community with a forum on the upcoming 2010 Census; Gov. Schwarzenegger signed AB 2567 making May 22, Harvey Milk Day, a state day of recognition; and protestors denounced anti-gay reggae singer Buju Banton’s performance at Solana Beach venue Belly Up and counter-protested Westboro Baptist Church’s anti-gay protest of San Diego High School.

November

National Center for Lesbian Rights Executive Director Kate Kendell discussed recent GLBT legislative setbacks and successes at a San Diego Democratic Club (SDDC) reception; the Metropolitan Community Church’s (MCC) held special dedication services and events for its new Mission Bay home; the GLBT community honored transgender people who have been killed this year because of hatred or prejudice at the Transgender Day of Remembrance march and memorial; and Attorney General Jerry Brown, Harvey Milk’s nephew Stuart Milk and veteran Diane Schroer were honored for their advocacy of GLBT civil rights at the annual San Diego Equality Awards.

December

The community honored HIV/AIDS advocates at the Dr. A. Brad Truax Awards and remembered those affected by the epidemic at the Mama’s Kitchen Tree of Life ceremony on World AIDS Day; local community leaders sent proposals to the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee recommending that Harvey Milk be honored on a U.S. postage stamp; and GLBT advocacy organizations were recently forced to vacate their 301 University Avenue building after recent storms caused the building irreparable mold damage.

Considering all this, on a national level, our continued fight for marriage equality and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” remain amongst the top headlines. And sadly toward the end of the year we saw Windows Media Group, LLC, publishers of the Washington Blade and several other GLBT publications shuttered. While all of this news continues to break, we continue steadfast and look forward to bringing you the top headlines on a local and national level in 2010. For an in depth look at these stories and more look to our year in review feature or on page 30 or visit our archives on the Web at www.gaylesbiantimes.com. Happy Holidays from all of us at the Gay & Lesbian Times!