H&M Brand Launches New Inclusive Campaign with Transgender Models and Crew
This week, a major clothing brand is launching a new transgender-inclusive campaign.
HRC.org
Daily Archives: August 18, 2015
Desperate Man Fears His Attraction To Twinks Is “Disgusting,” But Who Has The Real Problem?
Desperate Man Fears His Attraction To Twinks Is “Disgusting,” But Who Has The Real Problem?
Society doesn’t so much as bat an eye when a man — say in his 30s — shows interest in a woman in her early to mid 20s. It’s almost expected that he’ll find a younger woman sexy.
But is there a double standard in the gay community?
The Right has consistently tried to label gay men as deviants, predators, or even pedophiles. Is it possible that some have become overly sensitive in an effort to dispel those horrible accusations?
We got to thinking about this after we came across a Reddit thread in which a gay man in his 30s confesses to debilitating shame because of where his sexual attractions fall.
In his post titled “Is a (older) bear into twinks ‘disgusting?’”, user brtw82 writes, “I know all the mantras. People have preferences, age is just a number and so on. However, I constantly feel like I’m judged and I’ve started to think they are right. Maybe someone in his 30s with a bear look into young looking guys is really disgusting.”
Related: Photos: Foxy Older Gentlemen Remind Us That Age Is Just A Number
He goes on to fill in some key details — he’s attracted primarily to young men in their early-mid 20s, but has met harsh criticism from both gay and straight friends/family.
“A friend told me clearly that my ‘twink fetish’ is ‘disgusting,’ I should stop ‘raping kids’ and I should see a doctor. One of my closest friends (who has two teenage sons) subtly told me that I was not welcomed anymore at his house. My mom never said anything, but she constantly asks if I have found a nice guy of my age to marry and have kids.”
And when he sought refuge in what he thought were like-minded peers, it was hardly any better.
Related: PHOTOS: Daddies & Twinks Battle For Your Affection In A Game Of “Who Would You Rather?”
“I tried to look for new friends in the gay community and I thought I found some in a gay sport team. They were guys around my age and body type (muscle otter/bear). Nice guys to hang out with, but not attractive for me. Again, the honeymoon ended when they found out about my preferences. Some were not really friends and were just trying to get in my pants, so they kept telling me that I should try a ‘real man’ (i.e. them). Others just ‘bullied’ me and told me I was pathetic, that I wanted a sugar-baby, that I had to compensate for my size and so on.”
Now he’s at his wit’s end, and is considering psychiatric help.
Many have chimed in to offer words of reassurance that there is nothing wrong with being into younger guys, so long as it’s legal and consensual.
“That is just wrong,” said one commenter. “Every time you say something like that, a young looking twink who is into bears cries alone into his pillow.”
Related: Six Pro Tips For Being The Best Daddy For Your Boy
And one young man offered this: “I’m a younger guy (24) and I have a preference for older, more experienced guys. You sound like my type, tbh 🙂 There’s nothing to be ashamed of,” adding, “it may be that the word ‘twink’ is what’s setting people off. There’s nothing wrong with saying you like younger men.”
And he might have a point — while many embrace the word ‘twink,’ it does connote ‘childish’ or ‘naive’ to others.
Either way, there is no reason brtw82 should have to experience degrading shame for being into young men — life is way too short for that.
Here’s some of the best advice he received: “Dude you’re thirty, you’re not old. You’re not doing anything a straight bachelor isn’t doing. My 24 year old sister is dating a 46 year old and no one is judging him. Your ‘friends’ sound like judgmental pricks.”
Related: Don’t Mind The (Age) Gap: Seven High Profile May/December Gay Relationships And How They Worked Out
Dan Tracer
cardiff pride wales 2015
Antigay Discrimination Bill Endorsed by Republican National Committee
Antigay Discrimination Bill Endorsed by Republican National Committee
The legislation, aimed at countering the Supreme Court’s legalization of same-sex marriage, is called the First Amendment Defense Act.
Dawn Ennis
Here's How Feminism Could Be Good For Mental Health
Here's How Feminism Could Be Good For Mental Health
Feminism for the win, again.
In a recent video, YouTube vlogger Ginny McQueen discusses how feminism can have a powerful impact on mental health. “These things seem like they would have nothing to do with each other,” McQueen says, going on to explain how “feminism works towards helping both men and women in the area of mental health.”
McQueen explains that women are twice as likely than men to be diagnosed with anxiety, depression and PTSD. Men, however, make up 82 percent of suicide deaths.
She says that the patriarchy sets up rigid parameters for “what men and women should be.” Pressure to adhere to strict gender roles can exacerbate emotional and mental health issues for some and discourage others from seeking treatment.
“Women are being diagnosed for their issues because they seek help for those issues,” McQueen says. While women are often shamed for our emotions (see here and here), traditional gender roles assume women to be emotional, while men are taught to be tough. “Women aren’t told to ‘suck it up’ or ‘be a man,'” she says.
Many men do suffer from depression and anxiety, but may be less likely to seek out help because traditional gender roles tell them they can’t express their feelings. “Feminism is out there trying to make sure everyone gets treated equally, including in areas of mental health,” McQueen says.
Feminism fights for people of all genders — women, men and trans* — to be treated equally when it comes to any area of life. If our culture made it more acceptable for a person of any gender to seek help, mental health might just improve.
H/T WifeyTV
Also on HuffPost:
— 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.
Rosie O’Donnell’s 17-year-old daughter is reported missing
Rosie O’Donnell’s 17-year-old daughter is reported missing
Rosie O’Donnell is seeking the public’s help in finding her 17-year-old daughter, Chelsea, who was last seen a week ago.
O’Donnell posted a photo of Chelsea on Twitter Tuesday (18 August) along with her brown and black terrier named Bear – a therapy dog – and said the two were last seen in Nyack, New York, and may be in New York City.
‘Chelsea stopped taking her medicine and is in need of medical attention,’ O’Donnell writes in a blog post.
Authorities have been looking for the teenager in the Rockland County area since Sunday (16 August) and she was last seen on 11 August wearing a black sweatshirt hoodie, dark ripped blue jeans, women’s grey converse sneakers and a black backpack.
Chelsea has a large tattoo on her right side of a dream catcher with the word ‘Breathe.’ Anyone with information can contact authorities at 845-358-0206 or 911.
The missing teen is one of O’Donnell’s five children. Her other mother is O’Donnell’s ex Kelli Carpenter.
The post Rosie O’Donnell’s 17-year-old daughter is reported missing appeared first on Gay Star News.
Greg Hernandez
www.gaystarnews.com/article/rosie-odonnells-17-year-old-daughter-is-reported-missing/
Zachary Quinto Would Never Slut-Shame, Says Zachary Quinto Nine Months After Slut-Shaming
Zachary Quinto Would Never Slut-Shame, Says Zachary Quinto Nine Months After Slut-Shaming
“It was not my intention to judge anybody or to rankle anybody, or to put myself in some kind of superior position by any means.
I think if people use PrEP as part of a responsible regimen of taking care of themselves and preserving their bodies and their well-being and the well-being of the people they’re having sex with, then more power to them.
There was this thing that I was ‘slut-shaming.’ Anybody who knows me knows that that is the last thing I would ever do.
I just think that we can’t let our guard down.”
— Zachary Quinto to HuffPost, responding to criticism he received over his comments from November of last year
Dan Tracer
Watch This Humanoid Robot Navigate Underbrush And Uneven Terrain With Scary Ease: VIDEO
Watch This Humanoid Robot Navigate Underbrush And Uneven Terrain With Scary Ease: VIDEO
Boston Dynamics is proving humanity is growing ever closer to a fully functional robot after showing off their humanoid robot navigating underbrush and uneven terrain in a video for DARPA’s Robotics Challenge.
As NBC News reports, a video from Boston Dynamics shows the robot navigating a bed of uneven rocks along with it trekking through a heavily-wooded area and thick underbrush with relative ease. The company’s founder Marc Raibert explained during a robotics panel earlier this month that they’re focused on getting the robot out in the real world to test unpredictable situations the robot will experience, accelerating trial phases and speeding up development.
However, developers at MIT are giving Boston Dynamics a literal run-for-their-money with a quadruped model they call the Cheetah that not only trots but can leap small hurdles without breaking its stride. Watch both the humanoid and quadruped models navigate obstacles with scary ease, below:
The post Watch This Humanoid Robot Navigate Underbrush And Uneven Terrain With Scary Ease: VIDEO appeared first on Towleroad.
Anthony Costello
Watch This Humanoid Robot Navigate Underbrush And Uneven Terrain With Scary Ease: VIDEO
EXCLUSIVE: Hi Fashion Celebrates Chosen Families In New Video
EXCLUSIVE: Hi Fashion Celebrates Chosen Families In New Video
The LGBT electro-pop duo premieres ‘Mother Sister Father Brother’ exclusively with The Advocate.
Gina Vivinetto
Why A Kentucky Judge's Order Is Both A Win And A Loss For These Gay Couples
Why A Kentucky Judge's Order Is Both A Win And A Loss For These Gay Couples
MOREHEAD, Ky. (AP) — Two same-sex couples in this small eastern Kentucky county got everything they wanted in a ruling from a federal judge Monday, except for one sentence.
U.S. District Judge David Bunning denied Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis’ request to delay his ruling from last week ordering her to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. That ruling followed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in June legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide. But Bunning then delayed his own decision, effectively granting Davis’ request while also denying it.
“If the Court decided to delay enforcement of its Order while Davis pursues an unpromising appeal, it would essentially give Plaintiffs a favorable legal ruling with no teeth and prolong the likely violation of their constitutional rights,” Bunning wrote.
But Bunning acknowledged that “emotions are running high on both sides of this debate” and said he would delay his ruling while Davis appeals to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Attorneys on both sides disagreed about the implications. Dan Canon, representing the gay couples, said Davis remains under the judge’s original order. But Mat Staver, who represents Davis and is the founder of Florida-based Liberty Counsel, said the convoluted order essentially grants her request for more time.
What is clear is that Davis will continue refusing to issue marriage licenses to anyone in this county of about 23,000 people, home to Morehead State University in the Appalachian foothills of eastern Kentucky. Until the case is resolved, no new wedding can be legally recognized in Rowan County unless the couple obtain a marriage license somewhere else.
“This is not something I decided because of this decision that came down,” Davis testified in federal court last month. “It was thought-out and, you know, I sought God on it.”
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in June legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. But it also “ensures that religious organizations and persons are given proper protection as they seek to teach the principles that are so fulfilling and so central to their lives and faiths.”
Bunning, and now the court of appeals, are left with the narrow issue of whether that ruling infringes on a local elected official’s religious beliefs.
Bunning says no, arguing that Davis is “free to believe that marriage is a union between one man and one woman, as many Americans do.”
“However, her religious convictions cannot excuse her from performing the duties that she took an oath to perform as Rowan County Clerk,” he wrote last week.
Davis’ lawyers compare her to other religious objectors, such as a nurse being forced to perform an abortion, a noncombatant ordered to fire on an enemy soldier, or a state official forced to participate in a convicted prisoner’s execution.
Clerking has been a family business in Rowan County. Davis worked for her mother for 27 years before replacing her in the elected post this year, and her son Nathan now works for her. He personally turned away a gay couplelast week.
Around the U.S., most opponents of gay and lesbian marriage rights are complying with the high court. Some other objectors in Kentucky submitted to the legal authorities after Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear told them to begin issuing licenses to same-sex couples, or resign.
Kim Davis is one of the last holdouts, and apparently the first to be challenged in federal court, putting her and tiny Rowan County in the middle of one of the country’s largest social upheavals.
Davis wants Kentucky lawmakers to allow county clerks to opt out of issuing marriage licenses for religious reasons. But the governor has declined to call a special session. Davis faces fines and possible jail time for contempt of court if she loses her challenge and still refuses to issue licenses. But she can only be impeached from her $80,000 a year job by the legislature, and impeachment proceedings are unlikely even after the lawmakers reconvene in January.
Davis, through her attorney, declined to be interviewed. Acquaintances describe her as easygoing but reserved. She hid behind her attorneys to avoid being photographed in a courthouse hallway and had to be told to speak up from the witness stand.
Beneath her quiet nature lies a steadfast resolve not to compromise, even after a video of her refusing to issue a license to a gay couple, David Ermold and David Moore, generated more than a million views online.
Shortly after she took office in January, she said she wrote every state lawmaker she could and pleaded to change the law, to no avail. So, on June 26th — the day the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide — Davis told her staff not to process any more licenses until further notice, no matter who asked.
Under Kentucky law, marriages must be licensed by a county clerk, who first determines if the couple meet all legal requirements — such as being unmarried, and old enough. And because every license issued in Rowan County is under her authority, she feels she can’t delegate the job to a non-objector.
“If I say that I authorize that, I’m saying I agree with it, and I can’t,” Davis told the court.
Rowan County Judge Executive Walter Blevins can issue marriage licenses if the clerk is “absent,” but the term is undefined in state law. Both Blevins and Bunning decided Davis not issuing licenses for religious reasons does not mean she is absent. That leaves Davis, for now, firmly in control.
Davis said her beliefs on sin are shaped by “God’s holy word” in the Bible, and that she attends church “every time the doors are open.” She also leads a weekly women’s Bible study at the county jail.
“I love them. They’re the best part of my Monday,” Davis said.
Davis testified that the Bible teaches that marriage is between one man and one woman and that sex outside of marriage is a sin. Court records indicate Davis herself married when she was 18 in 1984, filed for divorce 10 years later, and then filed for divorce again, from another husband, in 2006.
Many Christians believe divorce also is a sin, and an attorney for the same-sex couples repeatedly questioned her about this in court. Asked if she would religiously object to issuing a marriage license to someone who has been divorced, she said, “That’s between them and God.”
Davis has not said how she would react should she lose her appeal.
“I’ll deal with that when the time comes,” she said.
— 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.
