Caitlyn Jenner makes statement by peeing inside ladies room at Trump Tower

The reality series I Am Cait has wrapped up its second season but star Caitlyn Jenner still has the cameras on her.

Jenner, 66, posted a video on social media Wednesday (27 April) in which she put to the test Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump’s recent remark that Jenner and other trans people could use the restroom of the gender of which they identify at any of the Trump-owned properties.

‘Last week Donald Trump said I could take a pee anywhere in a Trump facility,’ Jenner said as she walked up to Trump International Hotel And Tower in New York City.

‘So, I am going to go take a pee in the ladies room.’

A camera follows Jenner as she walks into the building and asks for directions to the ladies room. She is directed without incident and enters the room with a ‘W’ on the door.

As she emerges she says to the camera: ‘Thank you Donald, I really appreciate it. And by the way Ted (Cruz), nobody got molested.’

Trump had said there is no need to have transgender-specific toilets because ‘that would be discriminatory’ and ‘unbelievably expensive for businesses and for the country.’

Cruz, the US Senator from Texas trying to thwart Trump’s presidential run, had his campaign quickly create a television ad taking Trump to task essentially for not being transphobic.

Trump had been speaking in the context of North Carolina’s HB2 which bans transgender people from using the bathroom of their gender identification.

States the Cruz ad: ‘Should a grown man pretending to be a woman be allowed to use the women’s restroom? The same restroom used by your daughter? And your wife? Donald Trump thinks so. It’s not appropriate and it’s not safe. It’s PC nonsense that’s destroying America. Donald Trump won’t take on the PC police. He’s one of them.’

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Is Anderson Cooper Kelly Ripa's Next Cohost? (Video)

www.advocate.com/media/2016/4/27/anderson-cooper-kelly-ripas-next-cohost-video

Are Gay Guys More Masculine Than Straight Guys?

One trait commonly associated with masculinity is the behavior of seeking other male attention for approval. Think team sports, which as described in the below video, is “all about dude-on-dude approval.”

But gay guys often strive to achieve a similar end, also regularly seeking validation from other men. The tactics may differ, however.

Does that make gay men, by definition, hyper-masculine?

Related: DC Gay Party Group Is Totally Inclusive, As Long As You’re White, Young And Masc

In the latest release from ASAPThought, this question is broken down to reveal that the answer isn’t so black-and-white.

Perhaps a more fitting question is: Why does society place a value system on gendered traits, historically rewarding the masculine and downgrading the feminine?

Watch below:

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Nobody Wants To Work Out At Madonna’s Toronto Gym, Owners Forced To Rebrand

Madonna is no stranger when it comes to bizarre business ventures. Whether she’s promoting Kabbalah propaganda disguised as children’s books, hawking a line of bargain bin perfume named after her 1991 documentary Truth or Dare, or releasing a Japanese skincare line inspired by her 2012 album MDNA, she’ll try anything if she thinks it’ll make her a buck.

Related: Rebel Heart: Madonna’s Most High Profile BFF Breakups And What We Can All Learn From Them

In 2010, the Queen of Pop launched a fitness franchise called Hard Candy Fitness, named after her 2008 album Hard Candy. Gyms were opened in cities around the world, including Berlin, Mexico City, Sydney and Toronto, among others. Each one features colorful disco balls, non-stop EDM music videos, and oversized pictures of Madonna everywhere. In the lobby. In the hall. In the locker room. In the weight room. In the cardio room. In the yoga studio. In the bathroom. Everywhere you turn, there’s Madonna, watching you, judging you.

But it looks like the party is ending at one of the locations. Fitness fanatics in Canada, it seems, have had enough of the 57-year-old chanteuse staring down at them while they’re doing squats and bicep curls. Because Leonard Schlemm, the owner of the 42,000-sq-ft gym in downtown Toronto, says he’s rebranding. Immediately.

“Madonna was fabulous,” he tells Torontoist.

Not fabulous enough, however, to make people pay $100 a month plus a $69 “administrative fee,” or $28 for a day pass, to hang out at her gym. Schlemm says dwindling memberships, a lack of support from the franchise and the fact that people couldn’t seem to wrap their heads around the concept of a Madonna-themed fitness center have all played into his decision to rebrand.

Related: 15… No, Um, 10… No, Seven Times Madonna Was A Really Great Actress

“People couldn’t figure out where Hard Candy was and then they were turned off by the brand because they thought it was a dance studio,” he says.

We’re sure negative Yelp reviews accusing the club of being too loud, having crappy customer service, charging stiff cancellation fees and being “much like its founder, Madonna … highly over-rated, pretty on the outside, but low on substance” also didn’t help.

Oh, and then there was the issue of people, often tourists, constantly coming in and taking selfies next to the giant pictures of Madonna and then leaving.

“We are in the business of providing fitness to people who want to be in shape,” Schlemm adds. “We aren’t a destination for you to come and take a selfie.”

So, he says, he’s closing Hard Candy this weekend and reopening on Monday as Aura Fitness. He says it will be “one of the nicest [clubs] in the world.”

“If I had to pick a place to workout in for myself,” he says, “I’d choose this one.”

While the overall look of the gym won’t change too drastically, the makeover does mean the giant pictures of Madonna, every single one of them, will be ripped down.

We sure she’s going to be just devastated.

Related: Madonna Lyrics Reimagined As Motivational Posters

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‘Snowden’, Andy Cohen, Tom Daley, Faroe Islands, Gay Games, Apple, 98 Degrees: NEWS

MOVIES. First trailer for Oliver Stone’s Snowden arrives.

HISTORY. Gay rights group Mattachine Society sues federal government for details on President Eisenhower’s anti-gay order: “The suit in U.S. District Court accuses the government of conducting an inadequate search for the material and of groundlessly withholding some records on the basis of national security. Executive Order 10450 allowed broad categories of federal workers, including those with criminal records, drug addiction and “sexual perversion,” to be singled out for scrutiny and termination as threats to national security.”

TELEVISION. Andy Cohen has a new show coming your way on Bravo, Then And Now: “Each episode focuses on a defining year in history and dissects the biggest news stories, pop culture moments, and hottest trends to show how these pivotal events from the past affect how we live today.”

So excited that Bravo picked up #ThenAndNow !! Can’t wait to make more! @WorldOfWonder t.co/MymKxn4uF1

— Andy Cohen (@Andy) April 27, 2016

GAY GAMES. Hong Kong wants to host the ‘gay Olympics’ to improve LGBT rights in China: ”Hosting the games in Hong Kong will make change because the guy in Starbucks or the taxi driver will have a completely different awareness of the LGBT people.”

RIO 2016. Tom Daley helps unveil Team GB’s new uniforms for Rio 2016 designed by Stella McCartney.

GAY MARRIAGE. Same-sex marriage bill advances in the Faroe Islands: “After a long debate which included a proposal for a referendum that was later withdrawn, the Faroese Legislature approvedtheir same-sex marriage and adoption bill during its second reading on a vote of 19-14. According to the parliamentary calendary, the final reading is scheduled for Friday.”

POLITICS. Bernie Sanders campaign to cut hundreds of staffers after Tuesday night losses.

APPLE. Body found in conference room at the tech giant’s Cupertino compound: “According to reports, a female employee was involved in an argument and had gotten a head wound, from possibly a gun. Some reports say a body was found in the conference room from a ‘possible suicide.’”

NORTH CAROLINA. 98 Degrees refuses to perform in the Tar Heel state because of anti-LGBT law, HB 2.

pic.twitter.com/o6V7yocF7n

— 98 Degrees (@98official) April 27, 2016

MIDDLE CLASS SQUEEZE. 47% of Americans are unable to come up with $400 in cases of emergency.

ACTUAL CANNIBAL. Some poor guy got punched in the face because he was mistaken for Shia LaBeouf. 

WAYBACK WEDNESDAY. Recall some of Matt Bomer’s hottest moments on White Collar. 

AWKWARD. Prince William and Duchess Kate hurriedly removed a plaque beneath a painting they thought might offend President and Mrs. Obama before their visit to Kensington Palace recently: “The title of the painting is ‘The Negro Page.’”

HUMP DAY HOTTIE. Athlete and trainer Arran Arogundade.

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Tenn. Gov. Signs Bill Allowing Psychologists to Turn Away LGBT Patients

Tennessee will allow mental health professionals to deny service to prospective LGBT patients if it conflicts with their religious convictions.

www.advocate.com/health/2016/4/27/tenn-gov-signs-bill-allowing-psychologists-turn-away-lgbt-patients

Anti-LGBTI ‘religious freedom’ bill is effectively dead in Missouri

Missouri won’t be enacting a so-called ‘religious freedom’ law – at least not this year.

Senate Joint Resolution 39, which sought to make it legal for clergy and wedding vendors to decline to participate in a same-sex wedding, was voted down by the House Emerging Issues Committee on Wednesday (27 April).

If the bill had passed both houses of the Missouri legislature, it would have been put on the ballot for voters to decide on.

‘I am deeply disappointed that Missourians will not have the opportunity to vote on protecting religious freedom,’ Senator Bob Onder, who sponsored the proposal, said in a statement.

He pointed out that seven weeks ago the Missouri Senate stood through the longest filibuster in state history and voted 23–7 to advance SJR 39.

‘House members caved to pressure from special interests and killed the religious freedom amendment,’ he stated. ‘It is wrong that Missouri voters will be denied a voice in the decision-making process.’

But House Minority Leader Jacob Hummel applauded the House committee.

‘The ultimate issue here is whether our state constitution protects all Missourians or grants special rights to some to detriment of others,’ he stated.

‘In the years to come, I am confident today’s action will be remembered as being on the right side of history.’

H/T: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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Tom Daley Models Nearly Nonexistent New Speedo For The Olympics

With just under 100 days to go until the Olympics kick off in Rio, team Great Britain has released the looks for their athletes’ various states of dress, all designed by Stella McCartney in association with Adidas.

Or, in Tom Daley‘s case, undress.

The 21-year-old diver looked to be the chilliest participant on stage as he stood proudly in his Team GB speedo.

Related: Tom Daley Pumps Iron Half-Naked And Soaking Wet In Brand New 2015 Calendar

Track star Jessica Ennis-Hill said of the outfits, “It’s an amazing design and I think it will give British athletes a massive sense of pride and give us an edge in Rio.”

We’re not sure Tom’s speedo will give him any sort of competitive edge — it looks like the piece of fabric used for it was no bigger than a dinner napkin — but there’s no arguing whether or not he’s doing his country proud just by existing in it.

Also, if someone could please tell us who is standing on the left in the above photo we’d be much obliged.

Here a short video from the unveiling event:

Team GB and ParalympicsGB kit for Rio pic.twitter.com/Xcuxrd9PeT

— Matt McGeehan (@mattmcgeehan) April 27, 2016

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Six Yale Athletes Come Out Together To Change The Game For Homophobia In Sports

Out Yale rugby player Luc Ryan-Schreiber

We often commend the bravery of college athletes choosing to come out publicly, noting that the spotlight they sometimes-awkwardly receive does wonders for their fellow students as well as the next generation of athletes, gay and straight.

So with the news that six athletes at Yale have decided to come out together and form a support group for LGBTQ athletes on campus, those commendations go double.

According to Outsports, in addition to two athletes who are not fully out to their families (but are to their peers), the four founding members of the group are:

• Timothy Cox, running, ’17
• Jake Leffew, golf, ’19
• Luc Ryan-Schreiber, rugby, ’17
• Wayne Zhang, diving, ’18

Ryan-Schreiber has previously said that while he encountered support from his teammates, his freshman season coach regularly used homophobic language with the team. That coach is no longer active at the school.

Related: College Swimmer Parker Camp Told Everyone He’s Gay. The Reaction He Got Will Inspire You

“Flash forward to my junior year and I have a great new rugby coach, the team is awesome,” Ryan-Schreiber told Outsports. “When I got connected with Jake, who was struggling with the identity of a gay athlete, we talked it out and afterwards I realized there was no resource around currently.

“So I met with the athletic department to discuss this. After my first meeting with [senior associate athletic director] Brian Tompkins, he asked if I knew any other gay athletes. So I went to find them and we started the group with the hope of improving the reality for LGBT athletes here at Yale.”

We absolutely love the idea. Not only does the collective coming out strategy take the focus off any one individual athlete (NFL — are you listening?), but by forming an official group to help others, the focus becomes the system and what can be done moving forward.

Related: College Baseball Star Matt Kaplan Comes Out To The Fury Of…Nobody

“Our end goal is to create an infrastructure and a social and institutional culture where any athlete feels comfortable coming out and being a queer athlete at Yale,” diver Wayne Zhang told Yale Daily News.

These students have created the opportunity to meaningfully impact their campus, and that could reverberate to other campuses once the idea takes root. Congrats to them all!

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Tennessee Gov. Signs Law Allowing Therapists to Turn Away Clients for Being Gay

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has signed an anti-LGBT bill that will allow counselors and therapists in the state to turn away clients based on “sincerely held principles.”

The bill is yet another piece of legislation targeting LGBT citizens under the guise of so-called ‘religious freedom.’

The AP reports: 

Republican Gov. Bill Haslam told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he signed the bill after talking to numerous counselors, including those who were in favor and those opposed.

The American Counseling Association called the legislation an “unprecedented attack” on the counseling profession and said Tennessee was the only state to ever pass such a law.

NBC4i adds: 

Senator Jack Johnson, who sponsored the bill, previously told News 2 “it’s not anti-anybody, it’s not anti-anything; it’s just pro-religious liberty.”

Via BuzzFeed: 

After the Tennessee legislature passed the bill earlier this month, LGBT groups pressured Haslam to block it. However, their efforts were minimal compared to the crush of corporate lobbying faced by governors of Mississippi and Georgia, where legislatures this year passed broad religious freedom bills that critics said allowed services and products to be denied to LGBT people. […]

House Bill 1840 provides counselors and therapists immunity from liability if they turn away a client whose goals, outcomes, or behaviors conflict with their beliefs. Counselors who decline clients would need to refer them to a provider who will see them.

It was originally introduced to protect sincerely held religious beliefs, but lawmakers widened it slightly. As passed, it would instead protect counselors acting on “sincerely held principles.”

BREAKING: Tennessee gov signs bill allowing counselors to refuse treatment based on religious beliefs.

— The Associated Press (@AP) April 27, 2016

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