The LuLac Edition #2411, April 30th, 2013

Scranton Mayoral candidate Liz Randol. (Photo: Randol campaign) 

RANDOL GETS NODS 

Elizabeth Randol, Democratic candidate for Scranton Mayor, has received endorsements from two statewide nonprofit organizations: the Pennsylvania National Organization for Women and Equality Pennsylvania. “Receiving this vote of confidence from such esteemed and important groups in the Pennsylvania community is a true honor,” Dr. Randol stated. “I share their commitment to social justice and am very pleased to be able to accept their endorsements.” 
PA NOW’s website states that it “is a statewide grassroots, nonprofit volunteer organization with over 13,000 contributing members and currently has 20 chapters in [Pennsylvania]. [They] belong to the National Organization for Women based in Washington, DC which has over 500,000 members. NOW members are women and men, young and old, all colors, classes, and backgrounds, working together to bring about equal rights for all women.” 
In Equality PA’s written announcement, Adanjesus Marin, chair of the organization’s 501c4 board, commented, “We have candidates we are supporting from across the state, from the big cities to the rural center, and all of these people, if elected, will be strong advocates for the LGBT community. We urge all our members to vote for these exceptional candidates.” Additional details about Liz’s campaign can be found on her: 
Website: http://elizabethrandol.com 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/RandolforMayor2013 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Randol4Mayor 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethRandolForMayorOfScranton

COMING OUT 

Yesterday NBA Basketball player Jason Collins came out and told the world he was gay. This is significant because Collins is the first player of the four major sports to proclaim that he was gay. I applaud the young man’s courage for doing this publicly. I think that his wearing of the number 98 to pay tribute to gay murder victim Matthew Shepard is a wonderful thing too. I think all of that is great. But I’m conflicted. If I had a kid like I was when I was 8 or 9, crazed about sports, how would I explain this situation? 
This might not be the most politically correct thing to say but Collins' sexuality is and was a choice to either keep quiet or be made public. Was there any great demand to hear how Collins’ spent his “Days and Nights of Molly Dodd?” Any thinking person knows that our entire population has gays in it. 99% of them function without fanfare and the 1% who don’t fly under the radar, are readily accepted too. 
Collins’ statement has been praised by everyone from the everyman to the President. And that’s good for tolerance, acceptance and better understanding. But let’s not confuse this with Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier. No one tried to deliberately stop Collins from making a living at a sport he loved. 

MEDIA MATTERS

Judge Correalle Stevens. (Photo: Standard Speaker). 

“COURTS 101 WITH JUDGE CORREALE STEVENS” TO PREMIERE ON PCN 

In an historic first, Superior Court President Judge Correale Stevens spends an hour with the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) on Thursday, May 2 at 7:00 p.m. talking about Pennsylvania’s legal and judicial systems. In a series called “Courts 101 with Judge Correale Stevens,” the head of Pennsylvania’s second highest appellate court will appear on PCN for four episodes. 
During the hour-long programs, Judge Stevens will talk about judicial temperament, what makes a good lawyer, and more about the court process. Viewers can check pcntv.com for airtimes. “Many Pennsylvanians have questions about our judicial system, and PCN has given us a great opportunity to talk directly to citizens about how courts work, to de-mystify what might seem like a confusing and intimidating process,” said Judge Stevens, who is serving his second 10-year term as a Superior Court judge and his first as that court’s president judge. PCN’s president, Brian Lockman, called “Court 101 with Judge Stevens” an important milestone for Pennsylvania. “The Superior Court was the first of the appellate courts to open up some of its proceedings to the public through PCN’s cameras. Now, Judge Stevens is making time to explain what citizens are seeing on PCN and for that, we are grateful.” 
PCN is a nonprofit, noncommercial news organization created and supported by cable television companies. PCN receives no state or federal funding. Network programming is distributed by participating cable systems in Pennsylvania serving more than 10 million Pennsylvanians in 3.3 million homes. For more information about PCN as well as network channel designations, visit www.pcntv.com.