“The Bridge,” a one-hour radio talk show focusing on current issues and events from a GLBT perspective, which airs Sundays at 2:00 p.m. on San Diego’s progressive talk station AM 1360 KLSD, will host Gay & Lesbian Times publisher Michael Portantino as a special guest this Sunday, Dec. 10.

“Call in and tell me exactly what you think of the positions we’ve taken this year at the Gay & Lesbian Times,” Portantino said, urging listeners to call the program and participate in the discussion.

“The Bridge” has devoted the entire hour to an open discussion with Portantino and community members on various topics, including those covered in the Gay & Lesbian Times and many of the controversial positions the newsmagazine has taken during the last year.

To contact “The Bridge” or to talk on air, call (858) 560-1360.

San Diego LGBT Pride has gifted to the community more than $100,000 from this year’s festival proceeds.

The amount surpasses all donations made in individual past years, with the exception of $100,000 granted through the San Diego LGBT Pride Fund at the San Diego Human Dignity Foundation in the years 2003 and 2005.

The Center this year received $36,625 for a variety of community service programs and events, including the Youth Housing Project, The Center’s annual gala, Latin Pride, the Transgender Day of Remembrance and the Community Coalition Breakfast, to name a few. This year’s donation raises the overall total given to The Center to $66,625.

Portions of the 2006 donation to The Center will also be allocated to support the organization’s Endowment Fund, its general fund, and for fulfilling a pledge to name the Welcome Center in The Center’s lobby.

Other beneficiaries this year include the San Diego Foundation for Change, which granted funds on behalf of San Diego Pride to Ordinary Dharma, PFLAG and the Gay, Lesbian Straight Education Network. Additional funds were granted to APICAP, the Cesar Chavez Commemoration Committee, the Gay Men’s Chorus, Lambda Letters, Latin Pride, the Liberty Education Forum, Mama’s Kitchen and the Martin L. King Jr. breakfast. In support of the Stonewall Citizens Patrol, a special contribution will also be made to American Veterans for Equal Rights.

Additionally, $7,000 in festival tickets were donated in July to Being Alive, the San Diego American Indian Health Center, San Ysidro Health Center’s CASA South Bay and active-duty military personnel.

San Diego Pride incorporated in 1994 and has given more than $1 million to a wide variety of GLBT organizations since then.

Pride’s 2007 celebration is scheduled for July 20-21.

For more information about San Diego Pride, call (619) 297-7683. To sign up for the Pride e-newsletter, visit www.sandiegopride.org.

Renewing efforts to end the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage in California, Assemblymember Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, reintroduced on Dec. 4 the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act.

The bill, sponsored by Equality California (EQCA), would allow same-sex couples to obtain a marriage license from their county clerk.

The bill was introduced as the new Legislature convenes for start of the 2007-08 legislative session, the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act is nearly identical to AB 849 (Leno), which the Legislature passed in 2005, making it the first legislative body in the nation to pass a measure allowing same-sex couples to marry. Like AB 849, the new bill also protects religious freedom and reaffirms that no religious institution would be required to solemnize marriages contrary to its fundamental beliefs.

“Each branch of government must rise up out of the shadows of inequality and be counted on this important civil rights issue by using their powers to put an end to discrimination against all people,” Assemblymember Leno said. “It is more important than ever that our legislative branch here in California reaffirms the belief that marriage is an institution only strengthened by inclusiveness. Our society is strengthened by stable and committed relationships, and our governmental bodies should be doing all they can to help these relationships flourish.”

In California, same-sex couples can register with the state as domestic partners, which entitle them to hundreds of protections. However, same-sex couples in California and their families are still ineligible for more than a thousand federal protections offered to married couples, including family and medical leave, social security benefits, long-term care insurance and the ability to sponsor a partner for immigration.

“Domestic partnerships or civil unions cannot replace the critical protections afforded through marriage or adequately safeguard same-sex couples in older age, upon illness or disability, or in times of crisis,” said Equality California executive director Geoff Kors. “Extending marriage protections to same-sex couples is the right thing to do.”

A broad coalition of civil rights organizations and leaders support the measure, including the California State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the United Farm Workers (UFW), the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Chinese for Affirmative Action, the Anti-Defamation League, the California National Organization for Women (NOW) and the California Council of Churches, among many others.

Assemblymember Leno put the bill across the Assembly desk on Dec. 4. It will be heard in policy and fiscal committees in the Assembly and Senate beginning in early 2007.

Former City Councilmember John Hartley, who is now chair of Partners for Safe Neighborhoods, will be the featured speaker at the Hillcrest Neighborhood Watch meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 12, at 7:00 p.m.

The central message of the night will be neighborhood empowerment. The meeting will be held in an attempt to conjure interest among neighbors who wish to take direct action in protecting their neighborhoods. The meeting will take place at the Joyce Beers Community Center, located on the east side of Vermont Street, two blocks north of University Avenue and across from Trader Joe’s.

For more information about the meeting, contact Hartley at (619) 299-8870 or e-mail him at hartley2k@aol.com.

Councilmember Toni Atkins was chosen by her colleagues on the City Council at their Nov. 28 meeting to represent them on a number of countywide intergovernmental bodies, putting her in several positions that make critical decisions about the region’s future.

These appointments reflect Atkins’ expertise in urban planning, housing, transportation and other infrastructure needs.

Atkins was appointed to the San Diego Association of Area Government (SANDAG) Board of Directors. SANDAG develops regional policy in such areas as land use, growth, transportation, housing, the international border, public safety and economics. Atkins will also serve as an alternate on SANDAG’s Executive Committee and its Regional Planning Committee, as well as co-chairing its Housing Working Group.

Atkins will continue to represent the City Council on the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System Board and will serve on the MTS Executive Committee. She was also re-appointed to the City-County Joint Homeless Task Force.

“The City of San Diego has a critical role to plan in shaping the future of our region, and I am gratified to have the confidence of my colleagues for representing the city in that process,” Atkins said.

Council President Scott Peters has also reappointed Atkins as chair of the City Council’s Budget and Finance Committee, a new committee created when the city moved to the strong mayor form of government. She will also serve on the Council’s Land Use and Housing Committee.

The San Diego City Council appointed local businessperson Susan Atkins to the San Diego Library Commission, on which she will serve a two-year term.

Atkins is a member of the executive committee of the board of directors at Biocom, a trade association for the life science industry, and has held leadership roles in Women in Communications, the National Investor Relations Institute and the American Heart Association, among other organizations.

Atkins served on American Heart Association Research Roundtable Steering Committee for five years and is a founding member of the Athena Entrepreneurs Steering Committee. She has served as board president of Diversionary Theater, finance co-director for the Equality for All campaign for marriage equality for same-sex couples, and is a member of the Victory Fund, which supports gay and lesbian candidates for elected office. Atkins, who has led one of the largest fund-raising teams in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Walk, received The Center’s Renee Ricketts Lesbian Health Award in 2003.

Along with her appointment to the Library Commission, the city of San Diego named Nov. 19, 2006 Susan Atkins Day, which was Atkins’ 60th birthday. The council made its proclamation Nov. 14.