$10.5 Million Organization Let's Black Gay Hero's Remains Go Into A Plastic Bag

DEVELOPING STORY - 37 days after his death, Tyrone Garner's attorney Mitchell Katine of Williams, Birnberg & Andersen L.L.P, has admitted that Tyrone's brother signed the papers this morning releasing Tyrone's body to the county for cremation (at no cost). However, he would like for Tyrone's ashes to be put in a metal urn (instead of a plastic bag) and he would like to run/print some obituaries at a total cost of $430.00. The fund which was set up has only received $225.00 to date, $205.00 short of the now $430.00 needed to just put Garner in an urn and not a plastic bag.  This comes after Tyrone's body laid in limbo for over a month. Tyrone Garner was the black gay plaintiff in the famous Lawrence v. Texas case. 

I am not soliciting donations for $205.00 because for an attorney and an organization with an operating budget of $10.5 million, that’s just fucking ridiculous!  Not to mention how his name and case was pimped and used to raise money for Lambda Legal and other groups.  This is just another example of how Blacks are used and discarded by the so-called gay leadership of America.

I am not a deeply religious person, but it makes you wonder if Tyrone is looking down from heaven and seeing that his so called friends and allies wouldn't even cough up the dough to bury or cremate him.

Garner's body is headed to Harris County, Texas, to be disposed of as a pauper.

Keith Boykin points out that “ironically, it was a police officer in Harris County who barged into a private apartment and arrested Garner for having consensual sex with a male partner. And it was the state of Texas that spent an enormous amount of time and money in pursuing the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.”

It’s clear Tyron Garner was a hero to the LGBT community. Every gay man who engages in sex in the State of Texas should be thanking him for having the courage to do what he did.  Not to mention that Lawrence v. Texas, was the most important U.S. Supreme Court case for the gay and lesbian community.

Garner and his partner were arrested in their own apartment in Houston, Texas while engaged in consensual sexual activity. The two men were tried and convicted of "deviate sexual intercourse." After a five-year court battle, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed their convictions in 2003. In a landmark decision, the Court struck down all state laws that prohibited homosexual intercourse, thus wiping away the conservative argument that gays could were not entitled to equal treatment under the law because homosexual sex was a crime.

Since that time, the Lawrence decision has helped to lay the groundwork for marriage equality, civil unions laws, and a challenge to the military "don't ask, don't tell" policy against openly gay service members. No other hero of our community would be allowed to lie in limbo a full month after he died.

The fact that his remains were not properly cared for and the situation was kept under wraps for an entire month is proof positive of what the life of a Black gay man is worth in America.

The Money Trail
Lamda Legal gives thousands of dollars to political candidates every year.  Just take a look at the numbers.

1 . Adams, Michael
7/26/2004 $200.00
Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Lambda Legal/Director Of Education [Contribution]
JOHN KERRY FOR PRESIDENT INC 

2 . Cathcart, Kevin
8/6/2004 $1,000.00
New York, NY 10005
Lambda Legal/Executive Director [Contribution]
KERRY VICTORY 2004 

3 . Gasparini, Mark A
6/28/2004 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal/CFO [Contribution]
JIM STORK FOR CONGRESS 

4 . Goldstein, Frances
9/25/2003 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal Defense Fund/Executive [Contribution]
EDWARDS FOR PRESIDENT 

5 . Goldstein, Frances
8/28/2003 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal Defence/Deputy Directo [Contribution]
DEAN FOR AMERICA 

6 . Hill, Rick
10/18/2004 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal/Director of Events [Contribution]
DNC SERVICES CORPORATION/DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE 

7 . Logue, Patricia
10/15/2004 $250.00
Chicago, IL 60657
Lambda Legal/attorney [Contribution]
DNC SERVICES CORPORATION/DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE 

8 . Logue, Patricia Ms.
7/28/2004 $250.00
Chicago, IL 60657
Lambda Legal/attorney [Contribution]
KERRY VICTORY 2004 ]

9 . Senterfitt, Jack H.
5/28/2004 $1,750.00
Atlanta, GA 30306
Lambda Legal/Attorney [Contribution]
FRIENDS OF CATHY WOOLARD, INC

Are you as pissed off as I am? Contact them directly.

Kevin M. Cathcart
Lambda Legal Executive Director
South Central Regional Office
3500 Oak Lawn Avenue, Suite 500
Dallas, TX 75219-6722
(214) 219-8585
(214) 219-4455 Fax
kcathcart@lambdalegal.org

Note: In the Supreme Court case, Garner is identified as "Tyron Garner." However, in news accounts, he is identified as "Tyrone Garner with an "e" at the end of his name.

Comments

[Jay B]

ah Jasmine, not nice... this whole self righteous rage smells here... the advertising budget from this very blog for just a few days would cover all the necessary cost... so how come you didn't pick the tab? Or if you think people at lambda legal make too much money, you could have quietly written them an email and solicit for a donation. It's not that you didn't know how to reach them... It looks like they raised all the money as soon as they become aware of it. Many people here would gladly chip in few $$ as well should they know what's going on... But now, sorry, you look guilty of what you're accusing others of -- being hypocritical :-(

[decafdyke]

zjz, thank you. the bill should have been paid, but whether lambda's senior staff have enough disposable income to give $500 to their chosen presidential candidates is not really relevant to the funeral bill problem, imho.

[zjz917]

People are confusing the money the organization has received from donors with how Lambda's employees decide to spend their salaries.

People give charitable donations to Lambda Legal so Lambda can bring civil rights litigation, not to make donations to their clients' families. It's nice that several Lambda staff members decided to help Mr. Garner's family by donating money from their own paychecks.

In response to MPetrelis's comment: like other 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, Lambda does NOT give money to politicians.

[oeeoeeo]

So my question is - how does this solve the real issue here? So Lambda ponied up the remainder of the $430, in order to get an urn for Tyrone Garner's remains and a few obituaries published.

What I don't understand is why, 37 days after Garner died, when a prominent lawyer from our community had started a fund to cover a real burial, that same lawyer had not checked in to see how much had been raised and didn't alert Lambda (who had sent an e-mail about the fund to Texas members) that only $225 had been raised!

I also want to know why - THIRTY-SEVEN days after Garner died, even that paltry $225 was not turned over to the family.

It's great that Lambda folks ponied up the remainder of the money out of their own pockets, but it's unforgivable that Mitchell Katine started a fund, got the word out on that fund to only a few people, but never checked back to see how much money had been raised.

I feel like the "leaders" of our community let Garner down, and subsequently, because no one told anyone that money was needed, let us down.

This is unforgivable and my outrage has not been squelched now that Garner got a pauper's cremation, a nice urn and a few obituaries published.

Garner deserved a real burial, which is presumably what he and his family wanted, not to be left on ice for 37 days while some in our community waited around for funds that weren't coming.

Shame, shame, shame...this wouldn't have happened if a white gay hero had died without adequate funds for a burial.

[torrid_wind]

Peace Be Upon You, Jasmyne:

To echo the question raised by ExHack (above), where can we send donations to Tryrone's brother for the metal urn and the obituaries he would like to run/print?

Please post a response or e-mail me directly with the necessary contact information.

Elijah Muhammad (and Audre Lorde in "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House" published in "Sister Outsider") said it very well when he said: "It is a shame and disgrace to the intelligence of any people to lie at the feet and doorsteps of another nation, asking, praying to be cared for. Love and unity of self and kind is the key to our salvation."

We cannot depend on others to take care of us. We must take care of our own.

I am your brother.

Nasheed

[Tiffany843]

This is so sad. He should be buried as a hero. LAMDA legal should be ashamed. I sure hope that they do the right thing and pay for the urn and give him a wonderful service.

[rjp]

Obviously the blog owner has an agenda of her own. A bit too much racist hate may be coming through her blog.

I wrote Lambda Legal and informed them of her concern ... her is the reply back.

It seems once made aware of the situation they took action. Sometimes cooperation and communication is needed before hateful assumptions are jumped to ... those negative thoughts only hurt this woman and those who read her blog.

------------------------------------

Thank you for your email. Everyone at Lambda Legal understands your
concerns. In fact, within hours of being made aware of the unfortunate
circumstances faced by Tyron Garner's family regarding his burial, we
raised the balance of the funds through staff donations. Our sympathy is
with the family at this difficult time.

I hope this reassures you that Lambda Legal supports our plaintiffs long
after they are plaintiffs. Please let me know if you have any questions,
or if there is anything else I can do to help.

Rachel Katzenellenbogen
Director of Membership
Lambda Legal

[ExHack]

Jasmyne,

Where can we send money?

[Texas76132]

ditto!

[MPetrelis]

Here is information on how much the top people at Lambda Legal earn, as reported in the group's most recent IRS 990 form, as posted on www.guidestar.com. This is the direct link: http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2005/237/395/2005-237395681-021f6dec-9.pdf . Registration required, and well worth the time it takes! -mpetrelis

Kevin Cathcart
Executive Director
$240,860

John Westfall
Development Director
$175,372

Michael Adams
Director of Education/Public Affairs
$150,048

Frances Goldstein
Deputy Director
$146,170

Jon Davidson
Legal Director
$145,988

Mark Gasparini
Chief Financial Officer
$134,226

[Eric B.]

I hope money is raised for Tyrone,I am a Republican and a civil libertarian, I think in this case the Supreme Court ruled well.

In a day when Republicans should have argued and applied consistent conservative ideals they choose not to.

This case shows how prejudice can lead to people abandoning there own principles simply to please one's soul, thanfuly the constituion not one's soul was the test for
justice.

by the way you have a great blog

http://hiphoprepublican.com/

[MPetrelis]

So Lambda leaders have lots of money to give to politicians, but they couldn't afford to help bury gay hero Garner?

[MPetrelis]

www.tray.com

1 . Adams, Michael
7/26/2004 $200.00
Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Lambda Legal/Director Of Education [Contribution]
JOHN KERRY FOR PRESIDENT INC
[View Image]

2 . Cathcart, Kevin
8/6/2004 $1,000.00
New York, NY 10005
Lambda Legal/Executive Director [Contribution]
KERRY VICTORY 2004
[View Image]

3 . Gasparini, Mark A
6/28/2004 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal/CFO [Contribution]
JIM STORK FOR CONGRESS
[View Image]

4 . Goldstein, Frances
9/25/2003 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal Defense Fund/Executive [Contribution]
EDWARDS FOR PRESIDENT
[View Image]

5 . Goldstein, Frances
8/28/2003 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal Defence/Deputy Directo [Contribution]
DEAN FOR AMERICA
[View Image]

6 . Hill, Rick
10/18/2004 $500.00
New York, NY 10011
Lambda Legal/Dirtector of Events [Contribution]
DNC SERVICES CORPORATION/DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE
[View Image]

7 . Logue, Patricia
10/15/2004 $250.00
Chicago, IL 60657
Lambda Legal/attorney [Contribution]
DNC SERVICES CORPORATION/DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE
[View Image]

8 . Logue, Patricia Ms.
7/28/2004 $250.00
Chicago, IL 60657
Lambda Legal/attorney [Contribution]
KERRY VICTORY 2004
[View Image]

9 . Senterfitt, Jack H.
5/28/2004 $1,750.00
Atlanta, GA 30306
Lambda Legal/Attorney [Contribution]
FRIENDS OF CATHY WOOLARD, INC