If Gays Can Legally Marry, Why Can’t This Member Of Parliament Wed His Children?

There are questions. If gay people are allowed to get married, why can’t you marry your cat? Why can’t you marry Jupiter? Your old Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom DVD? The pi formula? If gays can get married, what’s to stop alpacas from marrying llamas?

Fortunately, the questions Australian MP Dennis Jensen posed to Parliament on Monday were far more even-keeled than those we’ve listed above. No, Jensen merely wondered why he couldn’t marry his entire family.

“I love my siblings, I love my children, I love my parents,” he said. “But does that mean I should marry them…?”

Related: Rand Paul Thinks You Can Now Marry Animals

Using the same logic as that obnoxious kid in first grade — “If you love chocolate, why don’t you marry it?” — Jensen asked all the tough questions and pulled no punches: “Why not allow incestuous marriage if one or both parties agree to be sterilized? How about the love of, say, two sisters who have lived together for most of their lives? Should that be called marriage?”

Graciously, he made clear that he thinks same-sex couples should be able to formalize their relationship in some vague and abstract way… Just so long as it wasn’t, like, marriage.

Not surprisingly, his baiting questions earned Jensen a number of negative comments online, prompting him to tweet, “Amazing how many who preach tolerance are themselves unbelievably intolerant!”

Which begs the question: If gays can get married, what’s to stop Dennis Jensen from marrying someone who preaches tolerance but are themselves intolerant? Well, smartypants…?

h/t: Gay Star News

Derek de Koff

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Stonewall Inn Voted a NYC Landmark: VIDEO

New York City’s famed Stonewall Inn was today voted an historic landmark by New York City’s landmarks commission.

The Greenwich Village bar is today considered to be the birthplace of the modern gay rights movement.

The AP reports:

The unanimous vote Tuesday marks the first time a site has been designated as a landmark in the city because of its significance to LGBT history.

Patrons fought back against a police raid on the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969. The uprising is commemorated in gay pride events every year in New York and around the world.

Andrew Berman, executive director for the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, spoke about the significance of Stonewall Inn in the trajectory of LGBT history:

“To me, the Stonewall Inn represents what Selma represents to the civil rights movement and what Seneca Falls represents to the women’s rights movement,” New York City Public Advocate Letitia James said before the commission. “It must be protected from rapacious developers who would destroy the history and what this place represents.”

Watch a video showing the unanimous vote, below:

Landmark Designation for @StonewallInnNYC @nyclandmarks vote unanimous @gaycivilrights pic.twitter.com/EfCXy7fmYT

— Michael Herzenberg (@MHerzenberg) June 23, 2015

[h/t TNCRM]

The post Stonewall Inn Voted a NYC Landmark: VIDEO appeared first on Towleroad.

Sean Mandell

Stonewall Inn Voted a NYC Landmark: VIDEO

Point Foundation Announces 2015 Scholars
Point Foundation empowers promising LGBTQ students to achieve their full academic and leadership potential – despite the obstacles often put before them – to make a significant impact on society.

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REVIEW: BEST WESTERN Willow Bank Hotel, Manchester

Sleek, stylish and perfectly located – with a portrait of Alan Turing in the dining room

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jamiet

www.gaystarnews.com/article/review-best-western-willow-bank-hotel-manchester230615

Maya Rudolph’s Brutal Spoof Of Rachel Dolezal Can’t Be Missed

Perhaps Rachel Dolezal’s decision to check every available box by coming out as bisexual was the last straw, for comic genius Maya Rudolph has finally given the world what it’s been waiting for: her spot-on impression of the controversial former NAACP president who introduced “transracial” into the lexicon. Not since Tina Fey skewered accomplished big game hunter former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin has there been such intense anticipation.

Check out the skewering below.

Jeremy Kinser

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Virginia Governor Orders Removal of Confederate Flag from License Plates

The Confederate Flag will no longer be an option on Virginia specialty license plates following an order this morning from Governor Terry McAuliffe, The Roanoke Times reports:

McAuliffe’s decision comes on the heels of efforts in South Carolina to remove the Confederate flag from the statehouse grounds following a racially motivated shooting that left nine dead in a Charleston church.

It also follows a Supreme Court decision last week that ruled states can censor messages on license plates.

“Although the battle flag is not flown here on Capital Square, it has been the subject of considerable controversy, and it divides many of our people” McAuliffe said in a statement. “Even its display on state-issued license tags is, in my view, unnecessarily divisive and hurtful to too many of our people.”

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2002 ruled that the Confederate Flag could appear on the plates after a court battle launched in 1999 by The Sons of Confederate Veterans.

Adds The Roanoke Times:

McAuliffe said today that the Attorney General’s Office will take steps to reverse the prior court ruling in Virginia and the Department of Transportation will develop a plan for replacing the existing plates as soon as possible.

Currently, nearly 1,600 Virginia automobiles carry the plates.

The post Virginia Governor Orders Removal of Confederate Flag from License Plates appeared first on Towleroad.

Andy Towle

Virginia Governor Orders Removal of Confederate Flag from License Plates

Larry Kramer Stars in New HBO Documentary

A new HBO documentary debuting June 29 focuses on the life and work of the one and only Larry Kramer, the firebrand at the center of HIV/AIDS activism.

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Bil Browning

www.advocate.com/politics/media/2015/06/23/larry-kramer-stars-new-hbo-documentary

The Teachers Who Gave Me a Voice
Living a happy life as a gay teen in Nixa, Missouri isn’t the easiest thing to achieve. Most of my life was spent in the metaphorical closet where it was dark, scary, and smelled like moth balls. After a long time of searching, I finally found the light I needed to brighten up my life. Jeremy Charneco-Sullivan and Jackie Swindell have been that light for me, and they have helped me to achieve that happy life that every hard-working teenager deserves. They started a club that feels like home to me, have been phenomenal role models, and have shown me ways to work outside my community to change the world.

These small-town high school teachers started a club that is already doing astounding things. The most recent being our GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) having been presented the award for GSA of the Year at GLSEN’s annual Respect Awards. This would have never come about without my small-town teachers with big hearts. Mr. Sullivan and Ms. Swindell had so much courage to start the GSA in this heteronormative, gender-stereotyped part of the country, but they did it. I, along with many other grateful students, think it’s shown to be worth the effort. If you’re thinking about starting a GSA at your school, follow Shia LaBeouf’s advice and “JUST DO IT!”

I have learned how to hold my head high, how to love myself, and how to love other people, even when they may not support me. Mr. Sullivan helped me mature into the young lady I am today. Ms. Swindell not only taught me grammar, but also helped me to see the world for what it really is. Of all my role models, these two have been the most essential to the growth of my character. I can’t imagine how my life would be without their support and unconditional passion for LGBTQ equality. If my community had more people like them, I wouldn’t be afraid for the future.

Once I felt comfortable sharing my views within the club, I felt I could share my thoughts with the world. This is another thing I have to thank them for because without these stepping stones I would still be that timid, closeted girl in the back of the classroom, too scared to share her thoughts. I would not have the passion to change the world and the courage to stand up for myself if not for my wonderful teachers. And trust me, I have to stand up for myself often in my tough little town.

I have been set free with the help of my GSA. I found trust in a place where I didn’t think I had allies. I can live my life the way I want to and I have the tools to do so. I’m so grateful for these two amazing people. I respect them not only as teachers, but as allies, leaders, and teammates in the battle against inequality. Mr. Sullivan and Ms. Swindell have helped me find the pull chain in my dark, scary closet and I’ve never been happier.

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

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