The driver got up, it is alleged, and told Buchanan and Hughes that someone had complained about them and that they had to get off his bus. Buchanan stated that “he was really in my face. He said ‘you bitches need to get off the bus…I can’t stand fags.’”

The couple refused to leave, and the driver called the police. The police said that the couple had done nothing illegal, but the two did get off the bus after a two-hour ordeal. It even saw a CTA supervisor get called.

Buchanan has said that he feels that the two were targeted because they are two black men who were kissing in public. He noted that there was a straight couple who were kissing on the bus at the same time. Buchanan stated that “Where does it state on CTA we can’t kiss on the bus? Straight people kiss on the bus all the time.”

Jacob Meister of the Civil Rights Agenda is representing the couple, who are working on filing a complaint against the CTA. He has said that the TCRA will work with the CTA before taking it to the courts. Meister stated that “If they don’t take it seriously enough, we’ll file a complaint. It will cause them problems, and I don’t think they want that.” A complaint was made with customer services at the CTA.

Camila Grey And Leisha Hailey

This is some good news. Uh Huh Her has released their new album Nocturnes. It officially came out today, in fact. Have to thank Adam Lambert for the tip off. The duo fronted by Leisha Hailey and Camila Grey recently made news when they were ejected from a Southwest Airlines flight due to the two kissing, but that should not get in the way of the fact that the duo have made some great music.

I have listened to one of the songs off of the new album, and found that it seems very well crafted if you are into their particular genre. Often less established artists can spend more on time on their craft.

So, if you are interested, it is possible to get the album through iTunes or via http:uhhuhher.com. Hope you enjoy.

Snell also said “When we were explaining how gay people have rights, he basically insinuated that we were not a normal couple and should not be kissing.” Folds and Snell also say that the manager had stated that the hotel had received complaints that the couple were acting inappropriately. Folds stated “They have yet to tell us what that inappropriate activity is. Other than the kissing, that’s all they can say because that’s all we were doing.”

According to the news report:

The couple says they were left alone, and they continued to kiss. They were approached again.

“Told us that they wanted us to leave, and I mentioned that the pool didn’t close until 8:00,” said Folds.

Folds and Snell say when 8 p.m. rolled around, they were approached by a security guard who showed them the door.

“I was disheartened by the whole experience,” said Snell.

“It was very much understood that they were kicking us out,” said Folds.

General Manager Alper Oztok issued a statement that said:

“Four Seasons respects the behaviors of our guests, except where doing so may be a breach of law or create tensions among people. This was the case on the night in question, as our staff received several complaints about the guest’s behavior. I can assure you that the gender of the couple was never at issue.”

The couple have reached out to Gay Pride St. Louis and the Human Rights Campaign. All they have said they want is an apology and for the hotel to make it clear about their kissing policy.

Camila Grey And Leisha Hailey

Leisha Hailey’s call for a boycott of Southwest Airlines has gained some steam with reality star Kelly Osbourne and musician Moby joining in the calls. Hailey and her band mate-girlfriend Camila Grey were kicked off of a Southwest Airlines flight for kissing. Hailey is most famous for playing Alice Pieszecki on Showtime’s lesbian drama The L-Word and the two formed the duo Uh Huh Her.

Southwest has said that the two were kicked off of the flight because several passengers had complained that their behavior was ‘excessive’, at least initially. Later, Southwest claimed that it was because the couple were overly aggressive after being confronted and insist that they do not discriminate against gay people. This is despite the fact that they have had several incidents including with the bisexual lead singer of Green Day.

The women have said that they shared a “modest kiss”. They wrote “We find it very disturbing that the same airline who lauds itself as being LGBT friendly has twisted an upsetting incident that happened into our behaviour being ‘too excessive.’”

OnTopMagazine wrote:

Moby, 46, joined Hailey’s call for a boycott in a tweet to his more than 1.3 million followers: “Southwest air has kicked people off of their planes for: kissing, wearing baggy pants, and being overweight. So: boycott southwest airlines.”

The twenty-six-year-old Osbourne swore off the airline. “Dear @SouthwestAir ur archaic thinking makes me sick! ur discrimination towards ur passengers is deplorable! i will NEVER fly southwest!” she tweeted.

Camila Grey And Leisha Hailey

Leisha Hailey and girlfriend and bandmate Camila Grey were kicked off of Southwest Airlines for what is being described as “excessive” kissing.Apparently, someone who objects to two women being in love with each other objected to the two being affectionate and complained vociferously. This comes not long after the lead singer of Green Day, Billie Joe Armstrong, was ejected from a flight on the same airline because his baggy pants were too low.

Given that Armstrong is bisexual, this brings up all sorts of issues.

Hailey issued the following statement about the couple’s ejection from Southwest saying (Via Dallas Voice):

“We have always promoted tolerance, openness and equality both as a band and as individuals. We both come from loving homes where our parents not only love and accept us, but are also proud of who we are. We believe everyone has the right to live openly in this society as equals. In no way were our actions on Southwest Airlines excessive, inappropriate or vulgar. We want to make it clear we were not making out or creating any kind of spectacle of ourselves, it was one, modest kiss. We are responsible adult women who walk through the world with dignity.

We were simply being affectionate like any normal couple. We were on the airplane less than 5 minutes when all was said and done. We take full responsibility for getting verbally upset with the flight attendant after being told it was a ‘family airline.’ We were never told the reason the flight attendant approached us, we were only scolded that we ‘needed to be aware that Southwest Airlines was a family oriented airline.’ No matter how quietly homophobia is whispered, it doesn’t make it any less loud. You can’t whisper hate.

We ask this airline to teach their employees to not discriminate against any couple, ever, regardless of their own beliefs. We want to live in a society where if your loved one leans over to give you an innocent kiss on an airplane it’s not labeled as “excessive or not family oriented” by a corporation and it’s employees. We find it very disturbing that the same airline who lauds itself as being LGBT friendly has twisted an upsetting incident that happened into our behavior being ‘too excessive.’ The above is not an apology and we are in the process of filing a formal complaint with the airline. We hope that when all is said and done a greater tolerance without prejudice will evolve.”

The two are behind the band Uh Huh Her, and Camila was a keyboardist for Adam Lambert for about a year. In fact, an irate (unusual state for such a nice man) Adam took to Twitter yesterday to issue a number of responses to the ejection of his friends from Southwest.

There has been some question as to whether or not Camila is Leisha’s girlfriend, but this statement’s first line should put this to rest. They were on their way to El Paso, Texas to see Camila’s mother, according to some sources.

Camila Grey And Leisha Hailey

Ah…well,the reactions about Leisha Hailey and her girlfriend being kicked from a flight on Southwest Airlines have started to come, and the usually mild mannered Adam Lambert was one of those who tweeted in response to it. Her girlfriend, Camila Grey, was a keyboard player for Adam while on the road for a year. They even talked about the incident, so Adam is well aware of what went on.

Responding to a number of comments on his Twitter feed, Lambert stated several things:

“Cam played keys for me for a year on the road. We just spoke about it. I DO know the real story.”

“News: kissing is NOT indecent behavior. No matter what sex u are. So if two of the same sex are sweetly kissing, get over it!”

“No one bats an eye when straight couples kiss in public. When a gay couple does it’s “not family friendly”. #doublestandard”

Responding to one person in particular, Adam stated about those who complained about the kissing “I expect them to challenge themselves to accept what they may not understand. To respect others rights and to grow up!”

For one of the sweetest and kindest people on the web, it is hard to imagine Adam getting as angry as he seems in these tweets. Of course, he is not alone. A lot of people are furious at the treatment of Leisha and Camila. In fact, the two of them, who are the duo Uh Huh Her, took to their Twitter feed to state “I call for a boycott for @SouthwestAir for their intolerance. Period. Unacceptable. Keep hearing more stories of these incidences. Insane!”

Adam retweeted a lot of their tweets.

The LGBT Community is behind Leisha and Camila in this. What happened was unacceptable.

Taken from Adam’s Twitter feed which can be found here at http://twitter.com/#!/adamlambert

Editor’s Note: There has been some question as to whether or not Camila Grey is Hailey’s girlfriend. According to NBC and the AP, she is. They wrote “A flight attendant escorted the lesbian actress and her girlfriend, Camila Grey, off the plane after other passengers complained about the couple’s public display of affection, The Associated Press reports.”

Perhaps Southwest Airlines should have kicked the passengers who complained about L-Word actress Leisha Hailey’s kissing of her girlfriend off the plane rather than kicking the actress off. Hailey was escorted off the plain with one of the flight attendants saying that the airline is a “family” airline. Southwest claims that they were kicked from the plane because of multiple complaints from passengers.

Hailey was not quiet about being booted. She took to twitter and made six separate tweets about being booted. She first wrote “I have been discriminated against by @SouthwestAir. Flt. attendant said that it was a “family” airline and kissing was not ok”.

She then tweeted “This is an outrage. I demand a public apology by @SouthwestAir and a refund. Hate is not a family value. I will never fly this airline”; “We were escorted off the plane for getting upset about the issue. @SouthwestAir endorses homophobic employees. No one made her accountable”; “Since when is showing affection towards someone you love illegal? I want to know what Southwest Airlines considers as ‘family’”; “I know plenty of wonderful same sex families I would like to introduce them to. Boycott @SouthwestAir if you are gay. They don’t like us”; and finally “Did I mention to @SouthwestAir that I have a lot of their actions recorded on audio and video? RT #boycottSouthwest #discrimination”

Southwest is trying to explain this saying that “Initial reports indicate that we received several passenger complaints characterizing their behavior as excessive.” They went on to say “Our crew, responsible for the comfort of all Customers on board, approached the passengers based solely on behavior and not gender. The conversation escalated to a level that was better resolved on the ground, as opposed to in flight.” Of course, what they forget is that there are people for whom a peck on the cheek or holding hands is too much and too excessive, and that they had a choice between being discriminating assholes and telling the other passengers to cope. The bit about it being a family airline certainly did not help their case.

Nor does the fact that it is on tape.

Finally, TMZ reports that “SWA notes, ‘We are ready to work directly with the passengers involved to offer our heartfelt apologies for falling short of their expectation.’”

Yeah, who are you going to be more concerned about? The bigots or the victims here?

Olivia Travel offered its first all-woman cruise in 1990 and remains the only company in the world offering cruises that cater only to lesbians, according to Wikipedia.

“Olivia was created to serve a lesbian market that ranges from women who must live quietly in suburbia, to women who have the freedom to walk the streets holding hands. I am extremely blessed to have been part of this amazing experience. When the company launched 35 years ago, I never dreamed Olivia would become the company that it is today,” says Judy Dlugacz, President and Founder of Olivia.

According to the Olivia.com website 98% of the women who travel with Olivia Travel return.

This is due largely to the fact that Olivia cruises include exclusive entertainment for lesbians which includes popular celebrities such as Melissa Etheridge, kd lang, Heart, Belinda Carlisle, The Go Gos, Indigo Girls and Paula Cole; sports stars such as Sheryl Swoops, Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Rosie Jones and comedians like Margaret Cho, Whoopi Goldberg, and Lily Tomlin.

The lesbian travel company prides itself on “featuring both international superstars and the latest up-and-coming performers, thereby catering to a wide cross section of women”.

Olivia rolled out its Sistas at Sea™ and Sistas at Play™ programs for lesbians of color; and in April 2008, one of the stars of the popular lesbian series “The L Word”, Leisha Hailey, signed on as Olivia’s spokesperson and voice to the company. The L Word featured the cruise line in some of their episodes, highlighting the fact that Olivia is part of the lives of most lesbians who love to travel. Leisha Hailey attracts fans of The L Word to the Olivia brand.

You can read more about what it’s like on an Olivia vacation on About.com here or watch a YouTube video commercial for Olivia.com below:

You can also find a social networking community on Olivia.com called Olivia Connect.

This portion of their website allows lesbians online to network and communicate, find out more about Olivia and its lesbian-friendly partners, and talk about their trips with Olivia Cruises. You can find my profile on Olivia Connect here where you will find that I post articles I write for the portion of Olivia Connect called Olivia Voices. Olivia Voices are blogs by lesbians online sharing their voices on different topics of interest to other lesbians. You can find my voice on Olivia here where I share the articles that I write for my blog Lesbian Mommy and LezGetReal.

I hope that you enjoyed this article and learning more about what Olivia has to offer lesbians worldwide.

GayWired Media includes some of the most well respected digital brands serving the LGBT community including flagship sites GayWired.com, 247Gay.com and LesbiaNation.com.

LesbiaNation.com evolved into SheWired.com in 2008.

SheWired.com Senior Editor Tracy E. Gilchrist announced the transition by saying:

While the Web remains a relatively young media outlet compared to newspapers, radio, film and television, LesbiaNation.com, at 11 years old, is ancient by Internet terms. And it’s to the credit of the site’s creators and the editors and writers who’ve contributed outstanding content throughout the years, that I’m in the position as Senior Editor of LesbiaNation.com, soon to be SheWired.com, to shepherd the site into fun, fresh, important pop culture territory.

Fun, fresh and important are three accurate terms for the new site, with it’s celesbian personalities, featured columns, and user friendly atmosphere.

SheWired.com brings users these exciting new columns and features:

- Cathy DeBuono’s Weekly Vlog “What’s Your Problem?” – The star of “Out at the Wedding” offers her candid opinion on how to deal with the trials and tribulations life serves up on a daily basis.

- Jill Bennett’s Weekly Vlog “The Violet Underground” – Want to know what’s on Jill’s mind? Check out “The Velvet Underground,” where she’ll feature politics and pop culture as well as exclusive “South of Nowhere” coverage.

- Staceyann Chin’s Weekly Blog – Poet and activist Staceyann Chin pushes the limits delivering her thoughts on a variety of subjects, including relationships, dating and sex.

- Gloria Bigelow’s Weekly Blog – A featured star of “Laughing Matters…Next Gen!,” Bigelow brings her own brand of humor to SheWired.com by riffing on the week’s top pop culture and political headlines.

- Exclusive Interviews and Features – SheWired.com premieres with exclusive interviews with “The L Word’s” Leisha Hailey, the Indigo Girls’ Amy Ray, “All My Children’s” Tamara Bruan and The Veronicas’ Jess Origliasso. Additionally, SheWired.com sits down with D-Listed’s Michael K to discuss the “gayelle” phenomenon.

We LOVE SheWired.com and are subscribed to their site as they are a great source of entertainment news and celesbian interviews.

You can find the SheWired.com homepage here, or you can reach out to them on Facebook here or Twitter here.

Julie Phineas is a work at home mom of 2 who lives in Southern California. You can find out more about her online by visiting her website at www.juliephineas.com.

Known to many as Alice Pieszecki from Showtime’s The L Word, Leisha Hailey was born in Okinawa, Japan on July 11, 1971.

Not only is Leisha an actress, but she’s also a musician, where she first went public in the band the Murmurs and is continuing to pursue her musical career in the band Uh Huh Her.

Leisha Hailey is to star in a spinoff of the L Word, The Farm, which will be written by the creator of the L Word, Ilene Chaiken.