Moving Forward in Mississippi After Election Day
On November 3, 2015, thousands of Mississippians went to the polls and voted for Joce Pritchett, an HRC supporter and the first openly LGBT candidate for statewide office.
HRC.org
Nick Jonas Doesn’t Deny Hooking Up With Guys; Hope Is Alive.
Nick Jonas doesn’t mind if you think he’s gay. In fact, it seems he’d actually prefer it.
His two current acting projects — Kingdom and Scream Queens — cast him as gay. He regularly appears in gay clubs to promote his music, and he even stepped in to save Pittsburgh Pride last summer after Iggy Azalea was uninvited.
Related: Nick Jonas Teases Gay Sex Scenes, Aiming For “As Much Depth As Possible”
But the burning question remains. “So…are you gay?”
When quizzed by Daily Star Online at the Radio One Teen Awards recently about whether he’s hooked up with guys, Nick responded, “I can’t say if I have or haven’t, but if you watch [Kingdom] you’ll see more of that.”
Related: Five Straight Musicians Who Have Courted The Gays To Varying Degrees Of Success
You can’t say, or you won’t say?
It does appear that all the gay baiting is just some very clever marketing, and yet we still wind up liking Nick at the end of the day.
Speaking about his gay fan base, Nick has said, “There’s a thing of recognizing that you have gay fans, as a male artist. I was speaking to some of my very close gay friends as I was making the record, and they told me I should really make the effort to embrace my gay audience as it’s bigger than I might think. There should be more of it. There should be more heterosexual male artists who are comfortable to attract a gay audience and do it in a way that’s authentic. With me, it comes from a very genuine and loving place.”
Could it be that Nick has been “embracing” his gay fans more than we previously thought?
Related: Nick Jonas Got Chained Up In A Gay Bar In London Over The Weekend
Dan Tracer
NEW MUSIC: Bill Ryder-Jones, Cowboy Junkies, Paul Weller, The Twilight Sad, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Turns 40
This week in new music: former The Corals guitarist Bill Ryder-Jones almost rocks out but won’t upset fans of deeply confessional alt pop, Cowboy Junkies release an epic four-CD compilation, Paul Weller returns to form at 56 on Saturn’s Pattern and Scottish miserablists The Twilight Sad strip back last year’s Nobody Wants to Be Here & Nobody Wants to Leave for pure listening pleasure and The Muppets cover “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
Bill Ryder-Jones – West Kirby County Primary
The former guitarist with English indie act The Coral, Bill Ryder-Jones (above) has on two previous solo albums revealed himself to be something of a consummate musician and performer.
Released to critical acclaim, his 2011 debut album If… was an orchestral album recorded with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, an imaginary film score for a movie that doesn’t exist inspired by Italo Calvino’s novel If On A Winter’s Night A Traveller….
The 2013 follow-up On A Bad Wind saw Ryder-Jones take center stage on a collection that brings to mind the confessional work of the likes of Mount Eerie.
On West County Kirby Primary, there is much in the way of a similar sound. However, his hushed vocals – see “Tell Me You Don’t Love Me Watching” and “Daniel”, a song about parents losing a child (Daniel, you belong to the ocean…) – often give way to a heavier sound on the almost-rock “Two to Birkenhead” for example.
Cowboy Junkies – Notes Falling Slow
A four-CD box set, Notes Falling Slowly includes three albums recorded by Canadian alt folk act Cowboy Junkies.
Along with the remastered versions of Open, One Soul Now and At The End Of Paths Taken, the package also includes a CD of newly recorded songs written during the making of those albums.
Of the new recordings, the beautiful “Cold Evening Wind” is most likely to strike a chord with the legions who bought The Trinity Session and The Caution Horses back in the band’s heyday.
A timely and perfect reminder of why an underrated band had great initial success that in no way explains their fading fortunes.
Paul Weller – Saturn’s Pattern
At 56, Paul Weller is something of an elder statesman of the English pop scene.
From the still fresh thunder of The Jam to the unexpected 1980s pop act The Style Council and right through to his prolific solo work, Weller is always hailed although often difficult, especially with his recent experimental output.
On his 12th solo album Saturn’s Pattern, Weller has perhaps come out of the other end of a midlife crisis with a collection that borrows from many styles – compare 1970s rock tribute “White Sky” with pop offering “Going My Way” which recalls both The Style Council and The Beautiful South and “Pick It Up,” a mesmerizing offering worthy of Merchandise.
However, you get the feeling that Weller has rediscovered his craft. Saturn’s Pattern reminds you that he is one of the best songwriters in England and a worthy contemporary of Paddy McAloon.
The Twilight Sad – Òran Mór
In the build up to last year’s Nobody Wants to Be Here & Nobody Wants to Leave, there was a palpable sense that Scottish miserabilists The Twilight Sad were perhaps coming to an untimely end. However, the album proved to be critical hit and even managed to notch up close to 2 million plays on Spotify.
Not bad for an outfit often seen as less bombastic and second-run version of Muse.
Recorded live in Glasgow, Scotland, Òran Mór includes most of Nobody Wants to Be Here & Nobody Wants to Leave in fine acoustic format along with covers and b-sides.
Always interesting to hear a band doing an alternative take on earlier work, the album is particularly effective as it strips back a charged set to reveal powerful songwriting. This is perhaps best revealed in “I Could Give You All That You Want.”
Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody
Yes, you are that old.
Released on October 31st, 1975, “Bohemian Rhapsody” has since become one of the most recognizable songs in music history. Whether legendary status is based on irony, songwriting or aural madness, the song has been covered umpteen times.
Here’s two of our favorite homages.
The post NEW MUSIC: Bill Ryder-Jones, Cowboy Junkies, Paul Weller, The Twilight Sad, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Turns 40 appeared first on Towleroad.
Michael Fitzgerald
Washington Man Sentenced for Antigay Knife Attack in Seattle
Troy Deacon Burns, 38, was sentenced to 30 months in prison for yelling antigay slurs and threatening to stab three Seattle gay men, according to Reuters. Burns, who claims he doesn’t remember his actions that night, was charged under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act.
Burns pleaded guilty in early August and claimed he was drunk and on drugs at the time of the attack. According to the Justice Department, he approached three gay men in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood and started yelling homophobic slurs while holding a knife above his head in a stabbing position.
When the men ran, Burns gave chase and caught one of the victims. He continued to threaten to stab the man while yelling slurs. While one of the other victims returned to rescue the man Burns had cornered, the third ran to get help from police.
Officers arrested Burns at the scene. He continued to yell antigay slurs while inside the police vehicle. No one was injured in the incident.
“No one should have to fear attack because of their sexual orientation when they walk down the streets of the cities and towns in Western Washington,” said U.S. Attorney Annette Hayes.
Bil Browning
www.advocate.com/crime/2015/11/10/washington-man-sentenced-antigay-knife-attack-seattle
This Little Girl Just Told One Million Moms What We've All Been Thinking
One Million Moms is no match for 11-year-old Amaya.
Last month, the hate group launched an anti-gay attack on Mattel after the company featured Amaya and her gay adoptive dads in the November/December 2015 issue of American Girl magazine in an article titled “Forever Family.”
“American Girl is attempting to desensitize our youth by featuring a family with two dads… We must remain diligent and stand up for biblical values and truth. Scripture says multiple times that homosexuality is wrong, and God will not tolerate this sinful nature. American Girl doesn’t highlight other sins in their magazine,” the group wrote alongside a plea for people to boycott Mattel until they take a “neutral stand.”
But when Amaya, who was in foster care before being adopted, and her dads, Rob and Reece Scheer, joined “Good Day DC” to talk about the controversy, the little girl made it clear what One Million Moms can do about their bigotry.
“I would say, ‘This is none of your business,’” she told the host.
Rob Scheer suggested the group should shift their focus elsewhere.
“This is our family and it works for us,” he told the station. “And you know what? We have four amazing kids that we adopted out of foster care. These are four kids that have fulfilled our life more than we ever thought. And so, the Million Moms, I say to them, ‘You know what? Go to your local foster care agency. Those kids could really use your help. And not worry about the Scheer family.'”
In an interview with the Washington Post, the Maryland father, who was in foster care himself, said he was shocked at such hatred coming from mothers.
“I don’t live in a plastic bubble,” he said. “I am a gay man and I have four African American kids. I understand people out there are ugly. But I didn’t expect a group of moms to say we are sinners.”
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.
Kansas teacher asked to resign for showing anti-LGBTI bullying video returns after outcry
A Kansas high school teacher who was asked to resign after showing his students a video telling them not to bully LGBTI students has returned after outcry.
Tom Leahy, a social studies teacher in the Conway Springs school district, returned to his classroom on Monday (9 November) after overwhelming support from LGBTI organizations and the public.
He had started a class project where students were asked to create colonies.They were then allowed who to let in, and some said they wouldn’t allow gay people.
So in an effort to teach inclusion, diversity and acceptance, Leahy showed the video Love Is All You Need – a world of mostly gay people where you are bullied for being straight.
Some parents condemned Leahy, calling for the school to fire him.
The school reportedly asked Leahy to resign, which he said he inititally intended to do, but changed his mind after receiving a huge amount of support.
According to The Wichita Eagle, Leahy returned to his classroom on Monday after a 10-day leave of absence.
In a written statement, officials said he ‘will be allowed back in the classroom with some safeguards in place to make sure the students in the classroom are okay which is our number one concern.’
The post Kansas teacher asked to resign for showing anti-LGBTI bullying video returns after outcry appeared first on Gay Star News.
Joe Morgan
Passion Pit Frontman Comes Out as Gay
Michael Angelakos, the frontman of the band Passion Pit, came out publicly yesterday.
HRC.org
www.hrc.org/blog/entry/passion-pit-frontman-comes-out-as-gay?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed
New Film Examines the Horror of Being Gay, Old, and Forgotten: WATCH
New Logo documentary Gen Silent examines the experiences of six aging LGBT people and the generation gap between gay youth and the elderly gay community.
The documentary sheds light on how gay seniors are often forced to deny their sexuality in order to access such institutions as care homes.
Gen Silent also finds that elderly gay people often age alone because of such factors as broken relationships and the decision to not have children.
In an interview with Huffington Post, director Stu Maddox talks about his personal experience of interacting with aging gay people and the importance of breaking down barriers between gay youth and the elderly gay community.
Said Maddox of filming these LGBT seniors:
“The isolation was just… can’t describe it. We queer folk don’t have a patent on growing old alone but we definitely get a double dose of it because our support group is smaller. Even now, it’s more likely you have a brother or sister who has “issues” with you and won’t be there for you in the crunch, or that you lost a lot friends from AIDS in the 80s/90s, or maybe you just don’t want the married with children life. All of these things made me realize that it’s extra important to fill my life starting now with people who will really love me enough to wipe my bottom later on. Did I just say that? Yup. It’s true though.”
Watch a trailer for the documentary below.
The post New Film Examines the Horror of Being Gay, Old, and Forgotten: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.
Michael Fitzgerald
New Film Examines the Horror of Being Gay, Old, and Forgotten: WATCH
Pastor Opposed to HERO Thinks Biblical Therapy Will 'Heal' Transgender People
David Welch, a Baptist pastor who is well-known in Houston as one of the organizers of the successful campaign to defeat the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, is becoming almost as well-known for his views of those people who identify as transgender.
The pastor of Bear Creek Church, who draws an average of 3,000 faithful to his weekly sermons, feels “transgender people disrespected the Christian God by wanting a body other than the one he created for them,” according to a report in the Houston Chronicle.
Rev. Welch led opposition to the ordinance, and told the newspaper Saturday trans men and women suffered a “mental disorder” that should be “healed,” not validated by policies that accommodate their needs.
People do not have the right to choose their gender, Welch told the Chronicle, and should be treated with what the paper described as “Biblical therapy” in order to “settle their confusion.”
But conversion therapy, also known as reparative therapy, has been condemned by experts as well as the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which joined with the American Psychological Association last month in calling for an end to the practice.
“Extremist, right-wing religionists, people out there on the fringe — and they are a real minority — captured the narrative on this election,” said Terri Burke, executive director of the Texas affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union. She discussed the HERO vote with the Voice of America, the government-funded institution that is chartered to present objective, unbiased and accurate news and information to the world.
Rev. Welch claimed that the fear of predators in public restrooms is valid, the VOA reported, and if he was questioned about the accuracy of his statement, that question and his answer did not appear in VOA’s online report.
“We have incidents all over America where men who claim to be women, or claim to be transgender, or predators are going into women’s restrooms,” said Welch.
In point of fact, transphobic claims like Welch’s, frequently recycled by opponents of equal access for LGBT people, are patently false. The ordinance would in no way have allowed legal cover for men to enter women’s restrooms.
No other Christian perspectives were presented in the VOA’s or Chronicle’s reporting, to challenge Welch’s condemnation of transgender individuals.
The Chronicle did, however, shine a better light on the struggle of transgender residents by covering a small rally Saturday, organized by Nikki Araguz Loyd, founder of the Transgender National Alliance. She told the newspaper that media coverage of HERO promoted a shallow, simplified notion of what a trans person is.
“Our mission is to create a new perception of trans people,” she said. “Not a stereotype.”
But in reporting on the dozen or so protesters attending the rally, the paper relied on appearances, rather than delving deeper to convey the authentic identities of those involved, and mangled some facts and statistics along the way.
One such example was in describing Olivia Maynard, who told the Chronicle, “We are here to say ‘We are not going to rape you in the bathroom,’ ” The newspaper portrayed Maynard, 41, as “a transgender woman with tidy makeup, flowing hair and a loose blouse. She would be hard to pick out in a women’s restroom.”
To his credit, however, reporter Dylan Baddour then shared Maynard’s story of self-discovery and coming out, the benefits of medical intervention as well as the cost of authenticity: losing her job and family.
In reporting on the struggle of the transgender community, Baddour wrote that Saturday’s rally “drew more than trans folk to support the cause of a deeper perception.” and mentioned straight cisgender [non-trans] allies took part, including an Army veteran, whose wife actively promoted the cause in social media. He also interviewed a local psychologist and Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, to give Chronicle readers a better understanding of the transgender experience.
“Research from Boston Medical Center found gender dysphoria affects up to 1 in 100 Americans to varying degrees and may be encoded in genes,” Baddour wrote, which is accuarate. But he also wrote that “one in five Americans knows or works with a transgender person, according to an April report by the Human Rights Council.”
Actually, that’s the Human Rights Campaign, and its survey found 22 percent of likely voters reported they knew or worked with someone trans, up from 17 percent in 2014. It turns out there is another statistic dealing with one in five Americans, and it’s that one in five transgender Americans has experienced homelessness, and that same number has experienced discrimination in seeking a home, according to NCTE.
The newspaper article concluded not with Rev. Welch’s rhetoric but with Maynard, getting soaked in a downpour as her fellow demonstrators dispersed. “She admitted little optimism in her quest for a job and to reconcile her relationships,” Baddour wrote. And he reported that after HERO, she senses that people who know or meet her are now suspicious.
“I just want to live a happy life for however long I have left on this planet,” she told the Chronicle.
And living as the woman she is requires going to the women’s bathroom, Baddour added.
Dawn Ennis
If you buy poppers in the UK after Christmas, you could go to jail for seven years
Selling or buying poppers in the UK could land you in jail for seven years, according to new legislation being enacted by the Government.
Home Office Minister Mike Penning has reportedly said he is insistent that amyl nitrates, widely used in the British LGBTI community, must come under new legislation that bans ‘legal highs’.
Lawmakers are banning the drug under a ‘blanket ban’ on the production, distribution, sale and supply of psychoactive substances. This ban will cover many substances including laughing gas, salvia and vanilla sky, but alcohol, nicotine and caffeine are exempt.
Gay rights activists, as well as a committee looking over the bill, argued poppers are ‘not seen to be capable of having harmful effects sufficient to constitute a societal problem’.
David Bridle, managing editor at London gay scene magazine Boyz, said at a meeting held last night (9 November) with the minister, LGBTI activists and the National AIDS Trust that it made sense for poppers to be regulated under current sex shop licensing and therefore continuing to be available to over 18 gay men as the sex tool they have been for over 30 years.
‘The minister was unmoved, even after I explained our Boyz readers and others in the gay community were “gobsmacked” this Conservative government (of equal marriage and other pro-gay policies) was banning poppers,’ he said.
Penning has previously said the Misuse of Drugs Act will ‘fundamentally change the way we tackle new psychoactive substances’.
‘It will put an end to the game of cat and mouse in which new drugs appear on the market more quickly than Government can identify and ban them’.
Activists are now appealing for a review, but as it stands now, poppers will be banned in the UK for sale or purchase. This includes importing from online websites from next year.
The law will be enacted by trading standards officers from April 2016.
Gay Star News has contacted the Home Office and is awaiting a response.
The post If you buy poppers in the UK after Christmas, you could go to jail for seven years appeared first on Gay Star News.
Joe Morgan
You must be 18 years old or older to chat
