Kenneth Cole and HRC Announce New Partnership To Promote LGBT Equality
Following nationwide marriage equality victory, limited-edition tie will help fund efforts to establish full federal equality for all LGBT Americans
HRC.org
Miss Mississippi Has Zero Patience For Kim Davis’ Antigay Antics
Meet Hannah Roberts, aka Miss Mississippi. The biochemistry graduate from the University of Southern Mississippi lit up social media after throwing a bit of Southern-style shade at Rowan County clerk Kim Davis during Sunday’s Miss America contest.
Related: How To Get Kim Davis’ Signature Look
“Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis was jailed for defying the Supreme Court’s order to issue same-sex marriage licenses. She claims the order violates her religious freedom. Does it?” the judge asked.
Though she had 20 seconds to answer the question, Roberts only needed half the time. Without missing a beat, she smiled and said: “It absolutely does not violate her religious freedom. That is her job that she was voted into doing, and that law is a federal law throughout the rest of the country. So, yes, she did violate the law there. Thank you.”
Afterwards, Roberts was met with thunderous applause from the auditorium. Some folks on social media, however, weren’t so supportive of the response.
“Renowned theologian Miss Mississippi says Kim Davis violated federal law,” Fox News contributor Todd Starnes tweeted.
“She lost it with her Kim Davis answer,” another person tweeted.
Roberts may not have been crowned Miss America last night, but she certainly won in our book.
Related: Kim Davis Returns To Work, Claims “I Am No Hero”
Graham Gremore
Miss America Contestants Slam Kim Davis, Trump, and Support Planned Parenthood
Last night’s Miss America pageant took a surprisingly liberal bent after three southern contestants decried attempts to defund Planned Parenthood, chastised anti-marriage equality Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, and took a swing at Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy.
In total, 52 contestants took the stage in Atlantic City to compete for this year’s crown, but it was Miss Tennessee, Miss Alabama, and Miss Mississippi who stole the show.
Miss Mississippi, Hannah Roberts, fielded a question about renegade Kentucky clerk Kim Davis’ continued refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. While most opposition to marriage equality has come from southern states, Miss Mississippi came down firmly in favor of gay and lesbian couples. Roberts took first runner-up in the competition.
“[Issuing marriage licenses] absolutely does not violate her religious freedom,” she said. “That is her job she was voted into doing. That law is a federal law throughout the rest of the country. So, yes, she did violate the law there.”
Hannah Robison, Miss Tennessee, was asked about Republican threats to shut down the government if their attempts to ban federal funding for Planned Parenthood are unsuccessful. No federal funds are used to support abortions.
“I don’t think Planned Parenthood funding should be cut off,” Robison said in response. “The $500 million dollars that gets given to Planned Parenthood every single year goes to female care. It goes for scanning for cancer. It goes for mammograms. And if we don’t get that funding to Planned Parenthood, those women will be out of health care for reproductive costs.”
Asked about Donald Trump’s amazing rise to the top of the Republican presidential field, Miss Alabama, Meg McGuffin, said the GOP should be “absolutely terrified” of the business mogul’s reign at the top of the polls.
“I think Donald Trump is an entertainer, and I think he says what’s on a lot of peoples’ minds,” she told judge Taya Kyle, the widow of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle. “But I think the Republican Party should be absolutely terrified of all the attention that he is taking from incredible candidates like Jeb Bush and Chris Christie who could absolutely do the job of president of the United States.”
Colorado contestant Kelley Johnson also added to the night’s queer theme by saying she would choose Ellen DeGeneres to be the first woman featured on the 10-dollar bill. Johnson cited the lesbian comedian’s upbeat style and said DeGeneres’ “entire platform is speaking tolerance and equality for all.”
The question and answer portion counts for 20 percent of contestants scores and is infamous for the ridiculous and vapid responses from beauty queens. In 2009, former Miss California USA Carrie Prejean rose to national prominence for her response opposing marriage equality. Prejean didn’t win the competition and was later stripped of her title as California’s top beauty queen.
The Miss USA and Miss America pageants are rival competitions. Miss USA is owned by Donald Trump.
Watch below as the top contestants answer judges’ questions during the competition.
Feeling the Bern: Sanders Is an Advocate for LGBTQ Issues
Some headlines lately have pointed out Hillary Clinton’s unpopularity among American voters, but in some circles in the LGBTQ community she’s a popular cultural figure. Many might attribute her support from sexual and gender minorities to her hiring of a gay campaign manager, Robby Mook, and her campaign announcement video that featured two same-sex couples. Thus, her support networks in the LGBTQ community come as no surprise, including a key endorsement from Equality California.
All too recently, though, the same LGBTQ cultural icon was speaking out against same-sex marriage in senate just eleven years ago. Rewind a little further and it was the Clinton administration that signed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) into law during the lifetimes of almost every potential 2016 voter. Only now, when it’s politically convenient and the Democratic voting base stands behind marriage equality and related causes, is the former First Lady speaking out in favor of the community. It is certainly worth celebrating that a high-profile political leader has lent her support to the LGBTQ demographic, but that is not enough to earn my vote.
There is, however, another candidate who has stood by LGBTQ Americans far longer than Clinton. His political record tells a much more supportive story than Clinton’s very recent flip-flop on the issue. While mayor of Burlington, Vermont and in the midst of the AIDS epidemic – a very homophobic time in U.S. History – Bernie Sanders issued a declaration of Lesbian and Gay Pride Day in 1983. In 1996, Sanders was one of 67 House members to vote against DOMA. His alliance to LGBTQ causes hasn’t flailed in recent years, with Sanders keeping sexual orientation and gender identity issues pivotal to his current campaign for the presidency.
An intersectional look into the Sanders campaign’s core issues undoubtedly sets him apart as an optimal candidate for the wellbeing of LGBTQ Americans. The senator has primarily framed his campaign around the issue of income inequality. Despite stereotypes about affluence in the LGBTQ community, class issues disproportionately affect the demographic. Most notably, 40 percent of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ, and overall LGBTQ Americans deal with higher rates of poverty, homelessness, and economic insecurity.
The War on Drugs is another domain where Sanders’ stances would directly benefit the LGBTQ American population. Sexual and gender minority youth are alarmingly incarcerated at disproportionate rates in the Juvenile Justice System. Sanders seeks to reduce these disparities in incarceration caused by school-to-prison pipelines, which even more drastically affect racial minorities. Policy-wise this translates to eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent offenses, while also investing in mental health interventions for people struggling with substance abuse. These policies, particularly mental health interventions, would directly benefit LGBTQ Americans, who abuse substances at higher rates than heterosexual and cisgender individuals.
In addition to mental health, physical healthcare is a critical issue for the LGBTQ community. At a time when transgender individuals are less likely than their cisgender counterparts to have health insurance, Sanders’ plan for a single-payer healthcare system would be a tremendous help.
While the cultural landscape for LGBTQ issues is rapidly changing, our community’s political needs must follow suit. In the upcoming Democratic primaries, one candidate offers peripheral cues of cute same-sex couples to match her inconsistent views on marriage equality. On the other side, Bernie Sanders brings to the table a consistent political record that speaks for itself, as well as innovative policy frameworks on income inequality, incarceration, and healthcare. It is of course up to each individual voter to determine their candidate of choice, but this queer is feeling the Bern.
— 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.
Check out some of the hot guys from Bear Week in Sitges
Bear Week in Sitges has consistently grown overt the past few years, and has now become one of the world’s destination vacations for gay guys who like their men big and hairy.
The September event routinely attracts around 5,000 guys to the Spanish seaside resort, and this year’s event – the 14th – which concluded yesterday, was possibly the busiest yet, pulling guys in from all over Europe and beyond.
Most spent their days by the beach or pool, before enjoying afternoon siestas and evening action at the bars and clubs.
A stretch of the paseo (sea front) of this quaint Spanish resort is designated as the ‘Bear Village’, and highlights included the annual Mr Bear Sitges contest, ‘Bear Crawls’ around the bars, and the ever-popular nudist zone on Balmins Beach.
There’s also the fun of squeezing through ‘bear alley’ (a narrow street crammed with evening revellers), otherwise dubbed the ‘car wash’ because of all that one rubs up against while pushing through!
This year’s event also attracted a higher number than usual of American guys, some of whom stopped off as part of a Mediterranean cruise event from Barcelona.
Many of those attending shared highlights via Instagram. Check some of the images out below…
The post Check out some of the hot guys from Bear Week in Sitges appeared first on Gay Star News.
David Hudson
www.gaystarnews.com/article/check-out-some-of-the-hot-guys-from-bear-week-in-sitges/
Australian Leadership Ousts Prime Minister Who Stood in the Way of Marriage Equality
HRC praised the news and urged the new Prime Minister to take action by allowing a vote on national marriage equality legislation.
HRC.org
Kim Davis Returns To Work, Claims “I Am No Hero”
It looks like Kim Davis’ 15 minutes of infamy may finally–finally!–be coming to an end.
The 49-year-old Rowan County clerk returned to work this morning and she says she’s done with all the drama.
“I don’t want to have this conflict,” Davis announced during a press conference. “I don’t want to be in the spotlight. And I certainly don’t want to be a whipping post.”
Related: Kim Davis Is Getting Her Very Own Armed Militia Security Detail
Davis went on to say she was faced with a “seemingly impossible choice” when ordered by a federal jude to pick between following her conscience or losing her $80,000 annual salary/ticket to Heaven for denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
In the end, however, she went where the money was and choose to keep her job.
“I am no hero,” Davis continued. “I’m just a person that’s been transformed by the grace of God, who wants to work, be with my family. I just want to serve my neighbors quietly without violating my conscience.”
Davis then said she would no longer interfere with deputy clerks issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in Rowan County, but there’s a catch. None of those licenses will be authorized by her.
Related: How To Get Kim Davis’ Signature Look
“Any unauthorized license that they issue will not have my name, my title or my authority on it,” Davis explained. “Instead, the license will state that they are issued pursuant to a federal court order.”
Then she added she had “great doubts” whether those licenses would ever be considered valid.
Unfortunately for Kimmy, she’s wrong. Again. Both the governor, the attorney general and the county attorney have all confirmed those licenses will, in fact, be valid, despite the Notorious K.I.M.’s divine authorization.
“I love my deputy clerks and I hate that they have been caught in the middle of any of this,” Davis concluded. “If any of them feel that they must issue an authorized license to avoid being thrown in jail, I understand their tough choice and I will take no action against them.”
Related: Time To Get Clerks Out Of The Marriage License Business For Good
H/t: Associated Press
Graham Gremore
Kim Davis Hides in Office with Blinds Shut, Sheriff’s Deputy Outside: PHOTO
Clerk #KimDavis is inside her office with the blinds closed. A Rowan Co. Sheriff’s deputy is standing guard outside pic.twitter.com/Sm44W6drZu
— Paris Lewbel (@PLewbel) September 14, 2015
Chicago ABC36 reporter Paris Lewbel shot this photo inside the Rowan County Clerk’s Office. Kim Davis hides in office with the blinds closed, as a sheriff’s deputy stands guard outside.
Davis told reporters this morning:
“I don’t want to have this conflict, I don’t want to be in the spotlight, and I certainly don’t want to be a whipping post. I’m no hero, I’m just a person who has been transformed by the grace of God…Effective immediately, and until an access is provided by those with authority to provide it, any license issued by my office will not issued or authorized by my me. I want the whole world to know, no mistake about it, that my deputy clerks do not have the authority to issue a license whatsoever. If any of them feels that they must issue an unauthorized license to avoid being thrown in jail, I understand their tough choice and I will take no action against them. However,…Any unauthorized license that they will issue will not have my name, my title, or my authority on it, Instead, they will say that they are issued pursuant to a federal court order.”
Watch her full statement HERE.
Anybody want to venture a guess as to what the end game of this will be?
The post Kim Davis Hides in Office with Blinds Shut, Sheriff’s Deputy Outside: PHOTO appeared first on Towleroad.
Andy Towle
Kim Davis Hides in Office with Blinds Shut, Sheriff’s Deputy Outside: PHOTO
Kim Davis Returns to Work, Lets Others Issue Licenses
Renegade County Clerk Kim Davis is back on the job, saying she won’t issue marriage licenses to any gay or lesbian couples who might apply but will not interfere with her deputies who will issue the documents instead.
Today is Davis’ first day of work in her Rowan County office since being released from jail on contempt of court charges. Davis was released last week but took time off to plan her next steps.
According to CNN, Davis returned to work and is allowing her deputy clerks to continue issuing licenses, saying she will “take no action against them.” In a news conference this morning, she stressed that the licenses could only be issued if her name and title are not on the documents. But licenses issued without the clerk’s name may or may not be valid, according to legal experts following the situation.
“Any marriage license issued by my office will not be issued or authorized by me,” she warned, adding, “I want the whole world to know.” The news conference was broadcast live on CNN and other networks. Meanwhile, Davis also said, “I don’t want to have this conflict, I don’t want to be in the spotlight, and I certainly don’t want to be a whipping post.”
Davis was jailed after repeatedly violating court orders. She first stopped issuing licenses to both straight and gay couples following June’s Supreme Court ruling in favor of marriage equality. After four couples of a variety of sexual orientations sued her for refusing to do her job, a federal judge ordered Davis to issue the licenses. Her multiple appeals of the decision have all failed.
Still, she defied the law and was jailed on September 3 for contempt. Davis spent five days there before being released because her deputy clerks began issuing licenses, as required by the judge.
Davis’ legal team filed an emergency appeal on Friday, arguing that the judge ruled improperly by extending his order to all couples seeking marriage licenses instead of narrowly tailoring his decision to the four couples who sued her. The appeal is not expected to win.
Watch video of the newest Kim Davis news conference below:
Bil Browning
www.advocate.com/marriage-equality/2015/9/14/kim-davis-returns-work-lets-others-issue-licenses
Tom Hardy Shuts Down Reporter Who Asks About His Sexuality
Tom Hardy was none too pleased when a reporter asked about his sexuality at the Toronto International Film Festival.
A reporter from the LGBT site Daily Xtra proposed a question to Hardy on Sunday during a TIFF press conference for his new film “Legend,” asking: “In the film, your character Ronnie is very open about his sexuality, but given interviews you’ve done in the past, your own sexuality seems a bit more ambiguous. Do you find it hard for celebrities to talk to media about their sexuality?”
Hardy was not having it.
“What on earth are you on about?” he asked, followed by a laugh from the audience.
The reporter was referring to an interview Hardy gave to British gay magazine Attitude in 2008 during which he was asked if he had ever had sexual relations with men.
As a boy? Of course I have. I’m an actor for fuck’s sake. I’m an artist. I’ve played with everything and everyone. But I’m not into men sexually. I love the form and the physicality but the gay sex bit does nothing for me. In the same way as a wet vagina would turn someone else into a lemon-sucking freak. To me it just doesn’t compute now I’m into my 30s and it doesn’t do it for me and I’m done experimenting.
But, on Sunday, Hardy was less verbose.
“I don’t find it difficult for celebrities to talk about their sexuality,” he responded. “Um, are you asking me about my sexuality?”
“Um, sure,” the reported replied.
“Why?” Hardy asked. And then it was all over. “Thank you.”
“Legend” is based on the book The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins by John Pearson about twins Reggie and Ronnie Kray, who some claim were both gay.
— 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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