American Veterans for Equal Rights

American Veterans for Equal Rights (AVER) is a U.S. non-profit organization which supports and advocates for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender veterans of the United States Armed Forces.

It was founded by several LGBT veterans including St. Sgt. (Army Reserve-Rtd.) Miriam Ben-Shalom; Navy Ensign, Jim Woodward, president of the San Diego Veterans Association; Chuck Schoen;bisexual US Army veteran Cliff Arnesen of the New England Gay, Lesbian & Bisexual Veterans, Boston MA; in 1990 as the Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Veterans of America, the oldest organization of LGBT veterans.

History

Ben-Shalom, a lesbian Army Reserve enlisted soldier who was discharged in 1975 by the military after it was revealed by a higher officer that she was lesbian, fought through the judicial system to retain her post. While initially successful, a higher federal Court of Appeals ultimately reversed the decision.

To help defend others in similar situations, she worked with other LGBT veterans to establish the GLBVA in 1990. Ben-Shalom served as National President until shortly after the 1993 March on Washington, when her resignation was demanded by unanimous action of the Board of Directors due to consequences relating to several events during the days of the March program. The organization attended the March showing a list of over thirty chapters and affiliated organizations. Not long after the March, that number had dropped to fewer than six active local chapters or affiliates after large numbers of members expressed extreme dissatisfaction with events that took place during the March.

Lord

Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others acting like a master, a chief, or a ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are entitled to courtesy titles. The collective "Lords" can refer to a group or body of peers.

Etymology

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, the etymology of the word can be traced back to the Old English word hlāford which originated from hlāfweard meaning "loaf-ward" or "bread keeper", reflecting the Germanic tribal custom of a chieftain providing food for his followers. The appellation "lord" is primarily applied to men, while for women the appellation "lady" is used. However, this is no longer universal: the Lord of Mann, a title currently held by the Queen of the United Kingdom, and female Lord Mayors are examples of women who are styled Lord.

Historical usage

Feudalism

Under the feudal system, "lord" had a wide, loose and varied meaning. An overlord was a person from whom a landholding or a manor was held by a mesne lord or vassal under various forms of feudal land tenure. The modern term "landlord" is a vestigial survival of this function. A liege lord was a person to whom a vassal owed sworn allegiance. Neither of these terms were titular dignities, but rather factual appellations, which described the relationship between two or more persons within the highly stratified feudal social system. For example, a man might be Lord of the Manor to his own tenants but also a vassal of his own overlord, who in turn was a vassal of the King. Where a knight was a lord of the manor, he was referred to in contemporary documents as "John (Surname), knight, lord of (manor name)". A feudal baron was a true titular dignity, with the right to attend Parliament, but a feudal baron, Lord of the Manor of many manors, was a vassal of the King.

Lord (disambiguation)

Lord is a general title denoting deference applied to a male person of authority, religious or political or a deity.

Lord or LORD may also refer to:

Lord (band)

Lord (sometimes spelled LORD) is a heavy metal band from Wollongong, Australia. The group began as a solo project for "Lord Tim" Grose of Dungeon in 2003 and expanded into a complete band when Dungeon broke up in 2005. They have released four albums and 3 EP's to date. Lord has appeared with major acts that include Queensrÿche, Nightwish, Nevermore, Saxon and Gamma Ray. The band's name is usually stylised in all capital letters.

History

Between 1988 and 2000, Dungeon singer/guitarist and founding member "Lord Tim" Grose had collected a number of compositions he felt were either too personal to submit to the band or inappropriate for its style. In 2003, he collected these songs on an album called A Personal Journey that was issued under the name Lord. At the end of 2005, Dungeon came to an end and Lord became a band featuring Grose and drummer Tim Yatras (also of Dungeon), along with guitarist Mav Stevens and bass player Andrew Dowling from Brisbane metal band Sedition. Yatras has also been a member of several black metal bands including Nazxul, Austere and Battalion. A Personal Journey was re-mastered and released to mark the occasion.