This Gay Couple Got Engaged at a Chicago Bulls Game and It Was Absolutely Adorable – WATCH

A gay couple got engaged during Thursday night’s Chicago Bulls game against San Antonio and video of the proposal is the perfect reprieve from the colossal amount of awful going on in the world right now.

Jake Conrad wanted to propose to his boyfriend Michael Holtzman in a special event before a Bulls game, and after reaching out to friends on Facebook, was able to get in touch with the team to set up the proposal. The Bulls management were so moved, they decided to help Conrad up the ante.

Outsports reports: 

While marriage proposals are regular occurrences at sporting events and concerts, this is the first one we have heard about that involved a same-sex couple at an NBA game.

 Bulls spokesman Ross Lipschultz sent Outsports this statement:

“At the Chicago Bulls game vs. the San Antonio Spurs on December 8, the Bulls worked with Jake Conrad to set up an in-game proposal for his partner, Michael Holtzman. Michael has been a lifelong Bulls fan and watches every game. After he once told Jake that his dream was to go to a Bulls game, Jake knew he wanted to propose to Michael at a game to show him how committed he is to making Michael’s dreams come true.

“Jake bought tickets to the game and contacted the Bulls to purchase a fan experience package to propose before the game. The Bulls were touched by Jake and Michael’s story and wanted to make the experience extra special, so they asked Jake if he would be open to proposing during the game. Once Jake agreed, the team worked with him to set up a proposal during a timeout involving Benny the Bull and the Luvabulls. The Chicago Bulls are honored to have been part of such a special moment for this couple.”

Conrad proposed to Holtzman using a Ring Pop.

Once Holtzman said “yes”–to wild cheers from the crowd–Meghan Trainor’s “Dear Future Husband” played throughout the arena.

And the Bulls’ cheerleaders formed a circle around the guys to celebrate.

Bulls legend Scottie Pippen was also present and congratulated Conrad and Holtzman.

Photo via Outsports

Watch the too-sweet proposal, below.

The post This Gay Couple Got Engaged at a Chicago Bulls Game and It Was Absolutely Adorable – WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

This Gay Couple Got Engaged at a Chicago Bulls Game and It Was Absolutely Adorable – WATCH

Cherokee Nation Will Recognize Same-Sex Marriage

Todd Hembree, Attorney General of the Cherokee Nation

The attorney general of the Cherokee Nation issued an opinion on Friday indicated that the tribe of approximately 300,000 living mostly within the state of Oklahoma, will recognize same-sex marriages.

Tulsa World reports:

While agreeing that the tribe, as a sovereign nation itself, was not bound by the 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision that made gay marriage legal in all 50 states, Todd Hembree echoed the court’s reasoning, deciding that the tribe’s own constitution “protects the fundamental right to marry,” regardless of the genders involved in the relationship. That decision appears to nullify a law that the Cherokee Nation enacted in 2004 to specify that marriage had to be between a man and woman.

That law came after two women, Dawn McKinley and Kathy Reynolds, obtained a marriage license from the tribe. Then-Attorney General Dianne Hammons issued an opinion that the license was invalid because Cherokee law, while not specifically requiring couples to be opposite-sex, presumed the traditional definition of marriage. The Tribal Council then quickly passed a bill to make that definition explicit.

The attorney general’s opinion came after a request from the tribe’s Tax Commission director who asked for clarification on licenses issued by the state of Oklahoma.

Under the opinion, conscientious objections to issuing marriage licenses or benefits are prohibited but ministers and citizens are not forced to participate in same-sex ceremonies.

The attorney general also noted that gender roles and sexuality are Christian constructs and before Christianity was introduced to the tribe alternative sexual orientations were recognized.

The post Cherokee Nation Will Recognize Same-Sex Marriage appeared first on Towleroad.

Cherokee Nation Will Recognize Same-Sex Marriage

Congress Passes Global Magnitsky Act; Legislation Includes Tools to Fight Human Rights Abuses Abroad

Yesterday, Congress passed the Global Magnitsky Act as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2017. The Magnitsky Act gives the U.S. government the authority to deny U.S. visas and freeze the U.S. assets of anyone who has committed “gross violations of human rights” against anti-corruption activists or human rights defenders around the world. The bill was named for the anti-corruption lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who died in a Russian prison. HRC has long advocated for passage of the bill, which now awaits President Obama’s signature.

While the bill does not include language that explicitly protects LGBTQ people or any other discrete group, key leaders in Congress highlighted how it will benefit LGBTQ advocates around the world, sending a clear message abroad that the U.S. will not tolerate human rights abuses against LGBTQ people. The Magnitsky Act could be used in cases where LGBTQ activists have been tortured, killed or been subjected to other forms of human rights abuses at the hands of government officials.

“Passing this bill is a very positive step,” said HRC Government Affairs Director David Stacy. “The more tools the U.S. has available to combat human rights abuses abroad, the more the U.S. can do to help to protect LGBTQ people and other vulnerable groups.”

The final version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which contained the Magnitsky Act, also importantly did not include a House-passed provision that would have dramatically expanded religious discrimination with taxpayer funds and undermined President Obama’s executive order prohibiting LGBTQ discrimination in federal contracting. The provision — proposed by Representative Steve Russell (R-OK) under the guise of so-called “religious liberty” — had been previously included in the House version of the bill, but not in the Senate version. Conferees did not include it in the conference report.

Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and John McCain (R-AZ) co-sponsored The Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act in the Senate and Representatives Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Chris Smith (R-NJ) in the House. In addition to the tools mentioned above, the bill also directs the U.S. government to consider information from civil society organizations and Members of Congress when deciding on these sanctions.

www.hrc.org/blog/congress-passes-global-magnitsky-act-legislation-includes-tools-to-fight-hu?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

The GLAAD Wrap:'Allegiance' opens next week, Hulu picks up 'Please Like Me' and more!

www.glaad.org/blog/glaad-wrapallegiance-opens-next-week-hulu-picks-please-me-and-more

Can I Get HIV If I’m a Top?

Is it safer or is that a myth?

www.advocate.com/together-we-know/2016/12/09/can-i-get-hiv-if-im-top

Ad Executives Are Possessed By Demons Who Want Marriage Equality, Says Republican Lawmaker

Turgid, improbably named wingnut (and Republican Colorado state Rep.)  Gordon Klingenschmitt left us with a particularly steaming pile of public access TV this week, with his most recent episode of “Pray In Jesus Name.”

Yes, Gordon James Klingenschmitt, Ph.D — who, much like the guy we hooked up with at The Eagle last Sunday, is nicknamed “Dr. Chaps” — is being a little snit-bitch about a new Zales commercial that prominently features a lesbian couple.

Related: Another Cute Commercial, Another One Million Moms Meltdown

As Dr. Chaps sees it, the only reason this happened is because Zales ad executives were abruptly seized by a gaggle of mischief-making demons, who infiltrated their souls and made them promote marriage equality to please Satan.

Here’s Dr. Chaps’ brain passing gas:

It is a demonic spirit not only inside of the lesbian couple who are pretending to get married in this TV commercial, but now influencing and ruling in the hearts of the ad executives who have decided at Zales Jewelers that they should promote this as a good thing to all of America. They are deceivers, they are fooling the American public and we need to expose this as wrong.”

Later on, he fervently prayed that God will “liberate America from the tyranny of these deceptive images” and promised that Americans will resist Zales’ “attempt to re-educate us.”

You can watch the whole mess below, courtesy of Right Wing Watch:

Unfortunately, Klingenschmitt’s prayers went unheard, as God was enrapt by the evening prayers of Kendra Debarge, age 7, who beautifully outlined why she deserveds a Melissa & Doug Plush Unicorn for Xmas.

www.queerty.com/ad-executives-possessed-demons-want-marriage-equality-says-republican-lawmaker-20161209?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Tom of Finland’s Hypersexualized Drawings Come to Life in Animated DJ Hell Video: WATCH

German DJ-producer DJ Hell’s first new single in three years is out and the video is a sizzling Tom of Finland fever dream that brings the iconic artist Touko Laaksonen’s hypersexualized drawings to life. It’s a full-on collaboration with the Tom of Finland foundation.

Said DJ Hell of the new”I Want U” video:

“My new song ‘I Want U’ centers on love between men. House music emerged from that very early underground club scene in Chicago and New York City, with legendary clubs like The Warehouse and the Paradise Garage. The soundtrack for those nights was presented by DJs like Ron Hardy and Larry Levan, bringing DJ/club culture and gay culture together. With my new album I want to pay tribute to that movement and that time by highlighting Tom’s work.”

Check out the pixellated (but still work-unfriendly) video HERE.

And check out the fully not censored (very work-unfriendly) clip HERE.

The post Tom of Finland’s Hypersexualized Drawings Come to Life in Animated DJ Hell Video: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Tom of Finland’s Hypersexualized Drawings Come to Life in Animated DJ Hell Video: WATCH

A Bright Spot in Hard Times: LGBTQ Workplace Equality

HRC Senior Vice President for Programs, Research and Training Mary Beth Maxwell penned a piece for the Huffington Post this week on the release HRC’s 2017 Corporate Equality Index and the progress of LGBTQ workplace inclusion across the country.

It reads, in part:

Many of us are still reeling from the results of the November election as people across the country are uncertain about what the future holds. Calls from LGBTQ community members — about hate crimes, increased bullying in schools, fears about the security of our families and marriages, about our loved ones who are immigrants or Muslim — have been rolling in. What does this new Cabinet Secretary nomination mean? Will my transgender child be safe at school? What about my gay brother who serves in the military? Will all our gains be rolled back?

We are in for some of the most historic fights to defend and expand equality for LGBTQ people that the community has ever faced. But we can draw on our own history to remember we have faced very hard times before and that LGBTQ equality will continue to move forward.

Over the last 15 years the Human Rights Campaign Foundation has worked to transform the institutions of daily lives: fostering schools that welcome our kids, ensuring respectful and affordable healthcare, building inclusive communities whether in sports or places of worship or workplaces across the country.

We made change long before laws or elected leaders were on our side and this work is now more important than ever. Our flagship Corporate Equality Index (CEI) – the premiere survey of LGBT-inclusive policies, practices, and benefits in the workplace – was launched in the darkest of legal days for the LGBTQ community; when Lawrence v. Texas had not yet been decided, when Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and the Defense of Marriage Act were the laws of the land, and when lawmakers refused to even pass basic hate crimes protections. But it was in this environment, in 2002, that advocates chose a new path to begin transforming workplaces and building a business case for equality and it has been hugely successful.

This week’s launch of the 15th Corporate Equality Index provided a powerful counterweight to the last year of painful attacks on LGBTQ rights and the dignity of our community. There were 517 major businesses that invested in comprehensive efforts to ensure LGBTQ inclusion in their policies, benefits and practices, earning a 100 percent score. This is the highest number of top-rated businesses in the history of the CEI. In addition, this year saw the largest single-year jump in employers adopting transgender-inclusive healthcare coverage, from 511 to 647, including a full half of the Fortune 500. And 82 percent of the Fortune 500 include gender identity protections, up from just 3 percent when the CEI started. Let that sink in for a moment: a large majority of the nation’s largest businesses have proactively identified the need for fairness in the workplace for transgender employees.

This is momentum that no election can undo or stymie.

Read A Bright Spot in Hard Times: LGBTQ Workplace Equality in its entirety here.

www.hrc.org/blog/a-bright-spot-in-hard-times-lgbtq-workplace-equality?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed