Gay.com Chat Rooms Have Returned From The Dead For Your Cybering Enjoyment

On August 1 of this year, the last remaining users of Gay.com received a message informing them the site had changed management and that the iconic online chatrooms would “disappear” and all their data would be erased. Forever.

“All the personal information you provided in your profile, including pictures and stories, will be permanently deleted,” the message explained. “Unfortunately, you will not able to retrieve any of your old information. … The dating website as you know it, will not be coming back.”

It was a sad day for gays of a certain age whose teens and 20s were defined by those chatrooms, back before Grindr was a thing, and many of them lamented over the fact that that chapter of their lives, albeit one they hadn’t visited in over a decade, would be closed forever.

Related: End Of An Era: Gay.Com Chat Rooms Are No More As Of Today

Well, good news, guys! The chatrooms have been restored.

“Chat is back!” the newly revamped Gay.com has just announced. “The new chat rooms are now available but we are in the process of testing them. All users who registered their accounts before Monday 26th of September, 2016 have been given sneak-peak access. If you haven’t already created an account, make sure to register now and reserve your username!”

And as for all of you who were sad to learn your previous usernames and profiles had been deleted forever, we’ve got good new for you, as well.

Gay.com says: “In order to help preserve your identity and any relationships that you may have built up in the previous version of Gay.com, we have taken steps to reserve usernames for their previous owners. Register your new account using the same Username and Email combination and the username will be released to you.”

Related: If Gay.com Goes Offline and Hundreds of Thousands of People Can’t Hook Up, Does It Make a Sound?

What a relief!

Of course, the question now is: Now that the chatrooms have been restored, will people actually go back to using them? Or have apps like Grindr and Scruff made online chatrooms obsolete?

www.queerty.com/gay-com-chat-rooms-returned-dead-cybering-enjoyment-20160929?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

The Hillary Shimmy Song is the Feel-Good Viral Video of the Campaign Season: WATCH

The Hillary Shimmy, which the Democratic nominee performed after a particularly aggressive and long-winded attack on her at Monday night’s debate, now has its own song, further ensuring its place in the annals of viral campaign moments.

It’s a feel-good moment in a campaign season that has had so few of them.

The song was written by Jonathan Mann, who writes a song a day: “My superpower is that I can take any idea, no matter how complex, and distill it down into a short, catchy, memorable song.”

And the lyrics, via DailyKos:

This dude is coming at me
I just smile and let him be
The dude brought your own rope
He put the bullet in the gun so

I’m just gonna shimmy
Shimmy Shimmy Shimmy Shimmy
HRC

Shimmy Shimmy Shimmy Shimmy
Hillary

He just keeps on shouting, “Wrong!”
So I’ll get my Jim Halpert on
He is a flightless bird
I think I’ll never say another word
I’ll just be singing this song

Watch:

The post The Hillary Shimmy Song is the Feel-Good Viral Video of the Campaign Season: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

The Hillary Shimmy Song is the Feel-Good Viral Video of the Campaign Season: WATCH

Google Is Hosting One of Kenya’s Most Notorious Anti-Gay Activists at its California Headquarters: VIDEO

Google has confirmed it will host one of Kenya’s most outspoken anti-gay activists at its headquarters in Mountain View, California.

Ezekiel Mutua, the head of the Kenya Film Classification Board, has been on a mission to ban any content that “promotes homosexuality” in Kenya.

Ezekiel Mutua is the King of Petty 😂 pic.twitter.com/0tFAT3yM7n

— Masaku (@masaku_) September 26, 2016

Quartz reports that Mutua is best known for demanding that YouTube take down a remix of Macklemore’s “Same Love.” Although his demand was denied, YouTube flagged the video as “potentially inappropriate.”

By Ezekiel MUTUA banning gay songs/cartoons, he just operates in his own world. He enacts his own laws and implements them from his house

— Lord Mutai (@ItsMutai) July 28, 2016

Mutua also banned a film about Kenya’s LGBT community, a podcast co-hosted by a lesbian actor, and a gay speed-dating event in Nairobi that didn’t actually exist. He also said that Netflix is a threat to Kenya’s “moral values and national security.”

RELATED: Gay Activist Files Suit in Kenya’s High Court Calling for Decriminalization of Gay Sex

Mutua confirmed on Facebook that he has successfully received a visa in order to attend Google’s Web Rangers conference on digital literacy and safety.

Thank you @Size8Reborn for offering to work with @InfoKfcb in our campaign to restore moral values #KFCBChuka pic.twitter.com/Q8Sy3ngPWB

— Ezekiel Mutua, MBS (@EzekielMutua) September 25, 2016

A representative for Google Kenya said:

“Politicians have many questions about the internet and Google. To help answer these questions Google has a team that engages with and responds to queries from politicians and sometimes we invite them to events so they can get an understanding of the work we do.”

In June, Nairobi News named Matua “the most unpopular person in Kenya” after he called for the rescheduling of two popular TV shows from the the watershed.

“@OnyangoOnyach: Next thing we will hear is Ezekiel Mutua banning all electricians from touching naked wires!”@martin_taimoo

— Sansee (@niiteevanso) April 28, 2016

Convictions for gay sex in Kenya currently carry a prison sentence of 14 years.

Watch the “Same Love” remix Matua attempted to ban below.

(Image via Twitter)

The post Google Is Hosting One of Kenya’s Most Notorious Anti-Gay Activists at its California Headquarters: VIDEO appeared first on Towleroad.

Google Is Hosting One of Kenya’s Most Notorious Anti-Gay Activists at its California Headquarters: VIDEO

Samantha Bee Went to the Stonewall Inn During This Week’s Presidential Debate: WATCH

Samantha Bee visited the Stonewall Inn and a sports bar in Times Square to help assess Monday night’s contentious debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

But first, her own analysis:

Bee celebrated the fact that the debate was up against Monday Night Football and actually won the night:

“For once, concussion ball was not as compelling as watching American Democracy playing Russian roulette.”

Bee noted that the debate went fine for Trump for a while, until Kellyanne Conway’s control collar stopped working:

She also mocked Donald’s statement that Hillary has been fighting ISIS for her own adult life. Bee noted that she actually helped Clinton fight ISIS in 2006, in her gap year before Wellesley, and it was easy because ISIS hadn’t even been formed yet. She shared this photo:

Watch:

Bee also took a look at Lester Holt’s moderating technique, which was sadly lacking fact-check.

“Trump warned us that Hermione Clinton would be cheating by doing something called ‘preparing’, like some kind of busybody PTA mom overplanner. But Trump never considered the possibility that she might be a ‘Count of Monte Cristo overplanner’. She spent months building an elaborate trap for Trump and he lumbered right into it. All she had to do was step out of his way while he called a woman fat.”

Bee pointed out the answer to Trump’s question to Clinton about Alicia Machado, the former Miss Universe winner he called fat.

“Where did you find this?”

Snapped Bee: “Um, from her. And from your book. You should read it sometime. It’s about you.”

“Now you have a real problem. Not only with her, but with any women who has ever been called fat. Which is all of us. We’ve been dealing with you our whole life.”

Bee also assessed Clinton’s gleeful shimmy, Sean Hannity, Megyn Kelly’s “mean girl” superpower, and the mean thing Trump didn’t say.

ENJOY:

Bee’s correspondents also visited two debate parties to see who won. Ashley Nicole Black went to a viewing party at the Stonewall Inn while Alana Harkin went to Tonic, a sports bar in Times Square.

They found out what the neanderthals at Tonic thought: that Hillary was wearing an earpiece, a pantsuit a bulletproof suit, and a catheter, and also what the ‘human gif generators’ at Stonewall thought: If Donald Trump were a drink, it would be piss.

At the end of the night, the human gif generator faced off against the neanderthal:

And well, it went pretty much as expected.

Watch:

The post Samantha Bee Went to the Stonewall Inn During This Week’s Presidential Debate: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Samantha Bee Went to the Stonewall Inn During This Week’s Presidential Debate: WATCH

PepsiCo to Receive HRC Corporate Equality Award at HRC’s 2017 Greater NY Gala

Today, HRC announced that PepsiCo will receive the HRC Corporate Equality Award at the 2017 HRC Greater New York Gala on Saturday, February 11, 2017, at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. The award recognizes Pepsico’s exceptional commitment to equality for the LGBTQ community.

“PepsiCo is a longtime leader in LGBTQ workplace equality,” said Deena Fidas, director of the HRC Workplace Equality Program. “Through inclusive corporate policies and practices that embrace the strength of diversity, PepsiCo continues to demonstrate a steadfast commitment to supporting its LGBTQ employees. We are thrilled to recognize PepsiCo’s outstanding leadership with the HRC Corporate Equality Award.”

PepsiCo has consistently earned a perfect score of 100 for several years on the HRC Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI) – the national benchmarking tool on corporate LGBTQ-inclusive policies and practices. PepsiCo is a long-term supporter of LGBTQ equality, and the company is also an inaugural member of the groundbreaking Business Coalition for the Equality Act – a group of leading U.S. employers supporting federal legislation that would provide clear, consistent protections for LGBTQ people by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, access to public places, federal funding, credit, education, and jury service.  Executives from PepsiCo have also used their public platforms to speak out against deeply discriminatory anti-LGBT state laws, including in Mississippi and North Carolina.

“At PepsiCo, we are guided by a basic principle: when we respect one another and embrace the uniqueness that each of us brings to the table, we succeed,” said Tony West, executive vice president, Government Affairs, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary and executive sponsor of EQUAL, PepsiCo’s LGBTQ employee resource group. “Our persistent effort is to foster an environment where people can not only come to work and have a rewarding professional life, but also see their personal values reflected in the workplace they’ve chosen. Supporting our LGBTQ associates is an important part of our overall commitment to diversity and inclusion.”

“On behalf of the HRC Greater New York Gala Committee, we are excited to award PepsiCo the 2017 Corporate Equality Award,” said Lauren Verrusio, co-chair of the HRC Greater New York Gala. “Time after time, PepsiCo continues to prove their commitment to their LGBTQ employees and an inclusive and diverse workplace. The company’s support of federal legislation that would provide commonsense, non-discrimination protections for the LGBTQ community is also further evidence of that commitment.”  

The Greater New York Gala is one of HRC’s most prestigious events of the year, attracting more than 1,000 of the organization’s most active leaders, supporters, and members. The event regularly draws political officials from federal, state, and local governments, as well as celebrity entertainers and leaders in the business community. To purchase tickets for the #HRCGreaterNY gala, learn more about the event, ways to volunteer, and more, please visit www.HRCGreaterNY.org

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.

www.hrc.org/blog/pepsico-to-receive-hrc-corporate-equality-award-at-hrcs-2017-greater-ny-gal?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

HRC Joins With Nation’s Leading Pediatric Organizations on New Guide Supporting Transgender Youth

Today, HRC Foundation joined with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians (ACOP), which together represent more than 66,000 pediatricians and pediatric specialists across the country, to release Supporting and Caring for Transgender Children, a new guide for community members and allies to ensure that transgender young people are affirmed, respected, and able to thrive.

The resource comes at a time of unprecedented attention on transgender identities and during a national dialogue on the inclusion and rights of transgender students and youth. Recently, transgender young people have too frequently found themselves targeted by hurtful and mean-spirited debate, particularly following the passage of North Carolina’s discriminatory HB2 law.

Supporting and Caring for Transgender Children explains what it means for children to be transgender, why medical experts embrace a “gender-affirming” approach, and how community members can support transgender children, young people and their families. Transgender advocate Jazz Jennings, an HRC Foundation Youth Ambassador, and her family tell their story in the new resource, which also includes quotes from parents Wayne Maines, Ofelia Barba Navarro, and Peter Tchoyrk. In creating the guide, HRC partnered with physicians and mental health professionals who have worked extensively with transgender children.

“While our country continues its national conversation around transgender equality, we must never forget that at the center of this dialogue are real children fighting to be seen, valued and respected,” said Mary Beth Maxwell, HRC’s Senior Vice President for Programs, Research, and Trainings. “This new guide provides parents and clinicians alike with vital information in their ongoing pursuit of doing right by all young people.  Our partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians reinforces the overwhelming medical consensus that respecting and affirming transgender young people is not only necessary, but also potentially lifesaving.”

As co-authors of Supporting and Caring for Transgender Children, the AAP and ACOP are continuing their longstanding commitment to the care and wellbeing of transgender children. In addition to its support of the resource, the AAP is developing a policy statement on caring for transgender youth that it plans to publish next year.  

“We know more than ever before about what transgender children need to grow up safe and healthy, and a large part of that is being accepted, nurtured and supported in their gender identity by their family, physicians and community,” said Karen Remley, MD, MBA, MPH, FAAP, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the AAP. “We hope this new guide will become a useful tool for anyone who has a transgender child in their life.”

“The ACOP is excited to be a part of this guide providing pediatricians, other primary care physicians, allied health staffs, patients, families and caretakers with this vital information for transgender youth.  We suggest all efforts ensuring transgender young people be respected and valued,” said Carl R. Backes, DO, FACOP, ACOP President

The guide comes in advance of the launch of HRC’s Parents for Transgender Equality, a groundbreaking, nationwide council of parent-advocates working to educate the country on the lives and needs of their transgender children. Last year, HRC released the Moms for Transgender Equality video series featuring moms from across the country telling their families’ stories.  More recently, HRC unveiled the follow up series, Dads for Transgender Equality.  AAP president Benard Dreyer penned a letter urging his colleagues to support their transgender patients, and a group of pediatric gender experts spoke out against stigmatizing laws and policies in a moving HRC video.

To learn more about HRC’s work on transgender equality, visit www.hrc.org/transgender.

www.hrc.org/blog/hrc-joins-with-nations-pediatric-organizations-on-new-guide?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

These Are the Rad Women You Need to Know Now

The new book Rad Women Worldwide: Artists and Athletes, Pirates and Punks, and Other Revolutionaries Who Shaped History spells out who the heroines are.

www.advocate.com/women/2016/9/29/these-are-rad-women-you-need-know-now

Sex Workers Speak: What Our Work Means

Ever wondered what goes through a sex worker’s head when they make money each day? Find out from several LGBT women who lived, or currently live, the life. 

www.advocate.com/love-and-sex/2016/9/29/sex-workers-speak-what-our-work-means

How to Make Sure LGBT Issues Come Up in the Next Debates

Amanda Kerri offers some suggestions, like sneaking diuretics into the candidates’ water.

www.advocate.com/commentary/2016/9/29/how-make-sure-lgbt-issues-come-next-debates

Trans Vets Deserve Surgery Benefits

It’s time the VA paid for gender-confirmation surgery for trans servicemembers who need it, Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois argues.

www.advocate.com/commentary/2016/9/29/trans-vets-deserve-surgery-benefits