Must-See LGBT TV 5/22-28: 'The Real O'Neals' season finale, 'Nashville' series finale, and more!

www.glaad.org/blog/must-see-lgbt-tv-522-28-real-oneals-season-finale-nashville-series-finale-and-more

Justice for Women Arrested, Assaulted for Kissing in Hawaii

The Honolulu Police Department reaches a settlement after one of their cops allegedly harassed and assaulted a Los Angeles lesbian couple on holiday.

www.advocate.com/crime/2016/5/22/justice-women-arrested-assaulted-kissing-hawaii

San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus Humiliated in Homophobic ‘Nightmare’ at Padres Game: WATCH

The San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus was at the center of a disturbing incident that happened at Petco Park on Saturday night. Called upon to sing the Star-Spangled Banner, there singing was replaced with a recording of a woman, nobody stopped it, and they were led off the field afterward while being taunted by homophobic fans in the stands.

Video of the incident below:

The SDGMC statement:

What should have been a night of joy and celebration at Petco Park last night, instead turned into a nightmare raising serious questions about homophobia within the San Diego Padres organization and its relationship with the LGBT community.

Before the start of the last night’s San Diego Padres game, 100 volunteer singers of the San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus took to the field to proudly sing the National Anthem. Instead, in front of the large crowd gathered for the LA Dodgers game, the San Diego Padres played the recorded voice of a woman singing the anthem.

No attempt was made to stop the recording and start over. No announcement of apology was made to the singers or their friends and families in the stands. No attempt to correct the situation occurred other than to force the 100 men to stand in the spotlight of center field for the song’s duration and then be escorted off the field to the heckles of baseball fans shouting homophobic taunts including “You sing like a girl.”

This incident followed several days of troubling comments and behavior within the San Diego Padres organization. Three days before the game, San Diego Padres representatives aggressively sought to prevent singers from performing the National Anthem unless they purchased a ticket to the game—even if they did not plan to stay for the game—which was not part of any previous discussion or written or verbal agreement and would have cost the small, community-based non-profit thousands of dollars. The demand eventually was rescinded on Friday following repeated complaints made by SDGMC and San Diego Pride to San Diego Padres management.

With this as background, we call on the San Diego Padres and Major League Baseball to immediately launch a full and transparent investigation into the incident to determine if someone or some people intentionally engaged in anti-gay discrimination or a hate crime by playing a female’s voice to represent a group of gay men with the purpose of denigrating and/or ridiculing gay men. The historic significance of such an act is not lost on the LGBT community—especially in relation to professional sports—and added to the depth of embarrassment experienced by the singers and their families.

We also call upon the City of San Diego City Attorney’s Office and the City of San Diego Human Relations Commission to independently investigate this incident to determine if members of the San Diego Padres organization engaged in activity in violation of the San Diego Human Rights Ordinance or engaged in any deliberate hate crimes based on sexual orientation.

We applaud San Diego Padres President and Chief Executive Office Mike Dee for reaching out to our organization to apologize and to offer to meet with LGBT leaders to discuss the incident. We look forward to this meeting. We believe it is important to work together with the San Diego Padres organization to build bridges within the LGBT community rather than burn them down as happened last night.

However, we are very disappointed with the San Diego Padres dismissively brief two sentence statement at 9:37 p.m. on Saturday, May 21, 2016 which did not appropriately address the gravity of the situation nor pay due to the 100 volunteers who took to the field in celebration and were led off in humiliation.

Watch:

 

The Union-Tribune reports that the voice broadcast was reportedly that of the Friday night anthem singer:

The Padres issued a one-paragraph statement during Saturday night’s game to apologize for the incident:

“This evening, during the pregame ceremony, a mistake was made in the Petco Park control room that prevented the San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus from performing the National Anthem as scheduled. We apologize to anyone in the ballpark who this may have offended, and have reached out to the Chorus to express our deep regret for the error.”

The post San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus Humiliated in Homophobic ‘Nightmare’ at Padres Game: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

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A Birthday Message to Harvey Milk, From Cleve Jones

On what would have been Harvey Milk’s 86th birthday, his former colleague and close friend shares his thoughts on the man and his legacy.

www.advocate.com/commentary/2016/5/22/birthday-message-harvey-milk-cleve-jones

Trump’s SCOTUS List: Why It’s Bad News for LGBT People

Donald Trump is working hard to make amends with the GOP’s most conservative voters, who weren’t exactly #teamtrump just a few months ago.

On Friday, he earned the endorsement of the National Rifle Association, slamming Hillary Clinton’s stance on gun control. Last month he tweaked his opposition to North Carolina’s HB2 law, just one day after voicing his objection to the legislation. And earlier this month, he warned supporters about the dangers of a possible appointment of a liberal-leaning Justice, saying that it would “destroy our nation.”

True to form, on Wednesday he released a list of 11 possible nominees to fill the void left by the sudden death of gay rights foe Justice Antonin Scalia last February.

The names surely pleased the Republican Party’s most hard-line conservatives: eight men and three women, all white, all heterosexual. Not all of them have ruled in LGBT cases. Some have, while others have ruled to restrict voting rights, or limit abortion rights. Most of them have clerked for the Court’s most conservative Justices, like Scalia and Clarence Thomas, and all of them are affiliated with the very influential conservative legal group The Federalist Society. Of the 11 possible picks, we came up with the four most likely to win the Kim Davis Intolerance Award, whenever that is created.

1. William Pryor, a judge on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. When he served as Alabama’s attorney general in 2003, he wrote an amicus brief defending Texas’s antigay sodomy law in Lawrence v. Texas, comparing homosexuality to prostitution, adultery, necrophilia, bestiality, possession of child pornography, and even incest and pedophilia. Lambda Legal called him the “most demonstrably antigay judicial nominee in recent memory,” and opposed his nomination to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in 2005. Pryor also changed his vacation plans to avoid being at Disney during gay days, according to former HRC President Cheryl Jacques.

 

2. Diane Sykes, a judge on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, has argued that an anti-LGBT student group, the Christian Legal Society, did not violate Southern Illinois University’s School of Law’s anti-discrimination policies by denying membership to people who “engaged in or affirmed homosexual conduct.” In Christian Legal Society v. Walker, Sykes denied that CLS engaged in discrimination, Think Progress notes, because “it made an exception to its policies for LGBT people who refrained from having sex.” And so, Sykes opined, CLS should still be recognized as an official campus group and keep receiving public funding.

 

 

3. David Stras, Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, was among the court majority who opposed the assignment of a new title for a 2012 constitutional amendment against marriage equality. Instead of “Recognition of Marriage Solely Between One Man and One Woman,” Minnesota’s Secretary of State Mark Ritchie had proposed “Limiting the Status of Marriage to Opposite Sex Couples,” but conservative lawmakers feared the new title would make voters more likely to vote against the amendment. Stras and the court majority sided with the lawmakers, and the title wasn’t changed.

 

4. Don Willett, Texas Supreme Court Justice, likes to make jokes on social media and criticizes Trump regularly. Perhaps not unsurprisingly, he has also used Twitter to mock marriage equality, tweeting early last year that he could “support recognizing a constitutional right to marry bacon.” Willlett also retweeted FOX News’ tweet about a transgender student in California who joined the girls’ softball team adding: “Go away, A-Rod.”

 

 

I could support recognizing a constitutional right to marry bacon. pic.twitter.com/HKPW6tE4H6

— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) April 30, 2015

Go away, A-Rod. “@FoxNews: California’s transgender law allows male high schooler to make girls’ softball team t.co/hnTrWAaV8g“

— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) February 14, 2014

The other (very conservative) jurists on the list are: Steven Colloton and Raymond Gruender, both judges on the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Thomas Hardiman, a judge on the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, Raymond Kethledge, a judge on the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals; Allison Eid, Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court; Joan Larsen, justice of the Michigan Supreme Court; and Thomas Lee, Associate Chief Justice on the Utah Supreme Court.

(Trump photo: Michael Vadon Wikimedia Commons)

The post Trump’s SCOTUS List: Why It’s Bad News for LGBT People appeared first on Towleroad.

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School Policy Says It Can Kick Out Students With Gay Parents

“This is as forward as I’ve seen them take this particular agenda.”

The post School Policy Says It Can Kick Out Students With Gay Parents appeared first on ThinkProgress.

thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2016/05/22/3780706/school-can-deny-students-with-gay-relatives/

Mr. Gay Great Britain Gets Personal On Testing HIV Positive After Resisting PrEP

When Sadiq Ali heard about a clinical trial for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) happening in the United Kingdom in 2013, the athletic 26-year old hesitated. He worried about what starting PrEP might say to people about his sexual behavior. The stigma he associated with being on the prevention pill was just too much for him.

“I was ashamed to even be offered this thing, even though I barely knew what it was,” the Londoner says now. “I thought that only highly promiscuous and risky sex practitioners would take this. I went through this process of ‘slut shaming’ myself. I was still very naïve at this point.”

So, Sadiq waited a few more months, had second thoughts, and decided to enroll in the PrEP study after all. Unfortunately, fate had dealt him a crushing blow.

Between the time Sadiq heard about the study and before he actually began taking PrEP, he was infected with HIV. It occurred literally days before he started taking the pill. His first HIV test during the study, in January of 2014, revealed the infection.

“I thought if I took PrEP it would make me all the things I didn’t think were me. Things that I didn’t want to be,” he says, pointing to the promiscuity about which many gay men taking PrEP are accused. “But instead, not taking it resulted in me contracting HIV.”

Related: Five Sexy Men On PrEP Explain Why They Are Taking The Pill

The irony of Sadiq’s tragic timing forged an advocate who is fighting both HIV stigma and for the adoption of PrEP in the United Kingdom (it is an advocacy issue that was further ignited when the UK National Health Services took action that has delayed the approval of Truvada as PrEP, perhaps for years).

This past year, Sadiq won the title of Mr. Gay Great Britain, and his advocacy platform is something he now understands all too well: HIV stigma among gay men, and why PrEP is such an important new prevention tool.

In his emotional and inspiring video as a contestant for Mr Gay World, Sadiq courageously shared his story of deciding to join the PrEP trial too late, and what the experience has taught him about internalized stigma.

“Something was lifted from my shoulders when I filmed the video,” Sadiq says. “I can now be in a position to educate.”

 

British PrEP advocate and gay internet personality Greg Owen understands just how frustrating the unfortunate timing of Sadiq’s HIV diagnosis was. Greg, too, was infected with HIV just as he was to begin participating in a PrEP trial. The two men – one a longtime advocate, the other a newly minted one – filmed an interview for #GregChats that is as good-natured as it is emotional.

As for Sadiq’s week at Mr. Gay World in Malta, he valiantly showcased both his advocacy and his eye-popping skill as a gymnast and circus performer. Alas, the crown went to Mr Spain, Roger Gosalbez Pitalug.

“I am more motivated than I have ever been and I feel proud,” says Sadiq. “I know that I am doing the right thing. I want to tell people that there is a way to protect yourself, and there is no need to judge yourself for that. To take your status into your own hands is something empowering.”

Winning the pageant was always beside the point, Sadiq believes.

“Of course,” he says, “I have already won.”

(Photo credit: Josh Auke. Videos produced by Nuno Lopes.)

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10 Things About 2016 That Would Make Harvey Milk Beam From Ear To Ear

Happy Birthday, Harvey — which also means happy Harvey Milk Day! The civil rights hero would have been 86 this year, and though he helped fan the flames of the fight for civil rights, he couldn’t possibly have imagined how much progress we would have made by now.

It’s been an incredible year for LGBTQ rights, both in the US and around the world. Of course, there’s still lots of progress remaining to be made — particularly in the area of trans freedoms — but even just halfway through 2016, there’s a ton to feel great about.

1. Marriage Legalized in Colombia

Congrats to our queer friends to the south! This past April, the Colombian high court ruled 6-3 that the constitution requires marriage equality. They’ve had limited civil unions in the country since 2007, but now they can look forward to full federal equality. It’s the fourth South American country to legalize the freedom to marry, and it won’t be the last.

2. Charlotte Passes Nondiscrimination Ordinance

What could go wrong? The Charlotte City Council passed a bill in February that protected LGBT people from discrimination in the context of public accommodations, contracting, and other areas. (In other words, no more refusing to make cakes for gay weddings.) Despite having widespread support on the council, passing 7-4, state Republicans sprang into action to oppose the measure and passed HB2, which rolled back protections and created new ways to harm queer people.

3. National Outrage Over North Carolina

Fortunately, the days when politicians could demonize LGBTs without fear of repercussions are over. After North Carolina passed its draconian HB2, which made life miserable for everyone, but particularly trans people seeking bathroom access, the country flew into an outrage. The governor backpedaled a bit, but in general held firm on the bill — a stance that will likely hurt him in the upcoming election. Jerk presidential candidate Ted Cruz defended the bill as well, and before long he was out of the running.

4. The World’s First Endowed Academic Chair of Transgender Studies

You might not have heard, because it didn’t generate the kind of outrage that draws clicks, but the University of Victoria in British Columbia now has an endowed academic chair of transgender studies. We’re looking forward to the scholarship that this makes possible, thanks in large part to a donation of $2 million. That cash came from Jennifer Pritzker, a trans woman and former Army Colonel.

5. Salt Lake City’s First Openly Gay Mayor

Who’d have thunk it? A queer mayor in the home of the Mormons. Jackie Biskupski is the first openly gay mayor for Salt Lake City, although there have doubtlessly been lots of closeted mayors in the past. She’s also the city’s second female mayor, and a longtime advocate for civil rights.

6. Italy and Estonia Drag Their Feet Toward Marriage Equality

Ugh, come on Italy, hurry up. The country recently became the last in western Europe to offer relationship recognition to same-sex couples with the adoption of civil unions. And those limited protections are better than nothing, but come on — it has to be marriage. Similarly, Estonia recently legalized civil unions and adoption, but that’s still not good enough. Those countries’ slow progress is probably due to the influence of the Catholic Church, which has clung to power and wealth while oppressing people for centuries.

7. Montana Bans Discrimination — Sometimes

Governor Steve Bullock has taken a few incremental steps towards protections with the issuing of an executive order that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of gender identity. That’s nice, but it doesn’t go far enough, failing to cover housing and public accommodations and education and finance. (You can be denied a loan in some states because you’re gay.)

8: Greenland Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage

Now that’s more like it. Take a lesson, Italy and Estonia. By a wide margin, Greenland’s parliament legalized marriage equality back in April. Couples were allowed to marry on the very same day. This had been in the works for a year, but was delayed by elections, so it’s nice to see how quickly the bill moved from concept to execution.

9. Canada’s Ceremonial First Kiss Goes Gay

Master Seaman Francis Legare and his partner, Corey Vautour, made history this year when they made out. Traditionally, the Canadian Navy selects one lucky sailor to be greeted by his or her partner upon return home, and for the first time ever the honor was shared by two men. Congrats to the happy couple! This is one area in which the United States was slightly more progressive: the first queer Navy kiss in America was back in 2011, between Petty Officer 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta and her girlfriend.

10. The First Trans Pride Flag

Hard to believe it took this long, but Santa Clara County became the first in the nation to raise the transgender pride flag. Pink, blue, and white, it flew over City Hall for Transgender Day of Visibility on March 31. Kudos to the Bay Area town that made it possible. Harvey would have been beaming.

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