Ian McKellen takes Hollywood to task for its lack of gay characters in blockbuster films
“Well, nobody looks to Hollywood for social commentary, do they?”
Monthly Archives: May 2018
14 Boston-Area Students Who Vandalized Own High School with Anti-Gay Slurs, Swastikas May Avoid Criminal Charges
14 Boston-Area Students Who Vandalized Own High School with Anti-Gay Slurs, Swastikas May Avoid Criminal Charges
Fourteen students at Arlington High School outside of Boston who vandalized the school, breaking glass and spray-painting swastikas and anti-gay slurs on the building will avoid criminal charges if they participate in a program called restorative justice, FOX25 Boston reports:
Officials say the boys will be offered the chance to participate in a program that gives victims the opportunity to meet with offenders and offer ideas about possible restitution. If the boys decline to participate, they could face criminal prosecution.
The decision was made in consultation with the Arlington Human Rights Commission, the Anti-Defamation League and the Arlington LGBTQIA+ Rainbow.
All the students accused were male teens. Additional vandalism included feces spread on walls, according to one student.
After the vandalism occurred the community’s newly formed Rainbow Commission got involved, and students were invited to graffiti the building with messages of love and solidarity.
The post 14 Boston-Area Students Who Vandalized Own High School with Anti-Gay Slurs, Swastikas May Avoid Criminal Charges appeared first on Towleroad.
HRC and Lawyers’ Committee Request an Investigation into Anti-Transgender Incident in California
HRC and Lawyers’ Committee Request an Investigation into Anti-Transgender Incident in California
Today, HRC and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, one of the nation’s premier racial justice organizations, released a letter requesting that California Attorney General Xavier Becerra conduct a thorough review and investigation into a recent anti-transgender incident in California. This past week, Jazmina Saavedra — a political candidate in California — recorded a non-consensual video of her following a transgender woman into a bathroom, harassing her and repeatedly and intentionally misgendering her. The candidate then posted the video online and later posted anti-transgender language on her social media platforms. If the incident as described and captured by the candidate is accurate, the incident may qualify as a hate crime, which under California law can include misdemeanors in addition to physical assault and other crimes. The letter to Attorney General Becerra asks for a full investigation into this potential hate crime and clear invasion of the harassed woman’s privacy.
“Across our country, we are seeing a spike in hate crimes targeted at our nation’s most vulnerable communities. We urge State Attorney General Becerra to use every tool in his arsenal to determine whether Ms. Saavedra’s conduct violates state law,” said Kristen Clarke, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “As the federal government continues to retreat from its responsibility to prevent and prosecute hate crimes, we urge state law enforcement agencies to step in, fill the void and protect the rights of survivors.”
“Jazmina Saavedra’s actions are dangerous. She invaded a woman’s privacy while harassing and misgendering the victim. This type of discriminatory behavior is unacceptable, especially from someone seeking to represent the people of California,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “HRC joins Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in requesting that Attorney General Becerra launch a full and thorough investigation into this potential hate crime.”
In November of 2017, the HRC Foundation and the Trans People of Color Coalition released a report detailing the epidemic of anti-transgender violence over the past five years.
The Stop Hate Project of the Lawyers’ Committee works to strengthen the capacity of local government as well as community leaders, law enforcement, and organizations around the country to combat hate by connecting these groups with legal and social services resources and creating new ones in response to identified needs.
Pride Festival – Press Launch
We Need a Queer Army in Oklahoma (and Kansas and Alabama)
We Need a Queer Army in Oklahoma (and Kansas and Alabama)
Blue staters, push your cynicism aside and help us.
www.advocate.com/commentary/2018/5/22/we-need-queer-army-oklahoma-and-kansas-and-alabama
Transgender kids’ brains resemble their gender identity not their biological sex
Transgender kids’ brains resemble their gender identity not their biological sex
FBI Informant, Louis Spencer, Real Housewives, Oregon Bullying, Zombie Alert, American Idol, Chris Christie: HOT LINKS
FBI Informant, Louis Spencer, Real Housewives, Oregon Bullying, Zombie Alert, American Idol, Chris Christie: HOT LINKS
OREGON. Settlement reached by ACLU in horrific bullying of gay Oregon students: “The settlements remove Principal Bill Lucero from his job and require that the school district work with the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Oregon (ACLU of Oregon) to develop policies and training to prevent future discrimination. The district will remain under Oregon Department of Education supervision for five years…Smith and Funk said the school was extremely hostile to LGBTQ students. Principal Lucero repeatedly failed to respond to LGBTQ students’ complaints, including when his son, who also attends the school, nearly hit the couple with his car while yelling a homophobic slur. According to an investigatory determination letter from the Oregon Department of Education (ODE), when some staff tried to support the students’ attempts to raise their concerns, district and high school leadership retaliated. Lucero also made students recite Bible verses as punishment, a fact that ODE confirmed was known by Superintendent Bill Yester.” Funk’s essay on the bullying…
TRUMP’S TWEETS. Aide ghost writers purposely misspell words and use bad grammar to sound more like Trump. “They overuse the exclamation point! They Capitalize random words for emphasis. Fragments. Loosely connected ideas. All part of a process that is not as spontaneous as Trump’s Twitter feed often appears.”
BELARUS. UK embassy slammed for flying rainbow flag: ‘In a lengthy statement, the Interior Ministry said the UK was challenging the country’s “traditional values”. “The LGBT community, and all this fight for ‘their rights’, and the very day of the community are just a fake!” A spokeswoman for the embassy said it would not comment. Homosexuality is not illegal in Belarus but it is a taboo.’
REAL HOUSEWIVES…OF THE ’60S? Bravo to send housewives back in time “into a traditional decade where men made the money, women made the home, and teenagers actually did as they were told.”
KENTUCKY. Primary for candidate who will try and unseat Kim Davis happening today.
STEFAN A HALPER. FBI source who assisted Russia investigation was veteran of Nixon, Ford, and Reagan administrations: “In the summer and fall of 2016, Halper, then an emeritus professor at Cambridge, contacted three Trump campaign advisers for brief talks and meetings that largely centered on foreign policy, The Washington Post reported last week. At some point that year, he began working as a secret informant for the FBI as it investigated Russia’s interference in the campaign, according to multiple people familiar with his activities.”
LOUIS SPENCER. Prince Harry’s ‘hot cousin’ getting attention after royal wedding
FLORIDA. Lake Worth emergency alert system sends out “zombie” alert.
NET NEUTRALITY. Senators Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) tell FCC to investigate millions of fake comments: “If you’re catching up, the FCC’s repeal of net neutrality was not only overwhelmingly unpopular, but the process was riddled with serious issues. Millions of fraudulent comments were submitted using real people’s names and addresses without their knowledge or consent. Some of those people even sent a letter to the FCC asking that the fraudulent comments made in their names be removed, and the agency refused.”
NORTH KOREA. Trump admits summit may not happen. ‘Trump made the remark while he met with Moon Jae-in, South Korea’s president, for pivotal discussions ahead of the American president’s planned meeting with the North Korean dictator. The summit is scheduled for June 12 in Singapore, which is widely viewed as a neutral site. Yet doubts continue to grow about whether the meeting will actually take place. Trump’s remarks Tuesday were the strongest indication yet that the summit might not happen as planned.’
BUT, BUT, THERE’S ALREADY A COIN…. Commemorative coin features Trump and Kim Jong Un. “What a superb money-making opportunity it is for a totally uncorrupt White House and an ethical AF president who definitely isn’t exploiting the office for his own personal wealth or glory…”
OMFG. “A commemorative coin featuring Trump & North Korea’s Kim Jong Un has been struck by the White House Communications Agency ahead of their planned summit next month. …A number of the coins are available for sale through the White House Gift Office.” t.co/FGAfshcybK pic.twitter.com/QQFlcOATiN
— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) May 22, 2018
EFFECTIVE. Chris Christie praises the Mueller probe: “You can’t argue the investigation hasn’t been effective so far…there’s no way to make an investigation like this shorter, but there’s lots of ways to make it longer. He’s executed on a number of those ways to make it longer.”
“Bob Mueller himself is not a partisan, he’s an honest guy, he is a hard working guy, he’s smart and you can’t argue that the investigation hasn’t been effective so far”
Chris Christie weighs in on Mueller investigation@NicolleDWallace & @Eugene_Robinson discuss pic.twitter.com/k3neN3Dya5
— Deadline White House (@DeadlineWH) May 21, 2018
SAD REUNION OF THE DAY. Former American Idol contestants reunite for “Where Are They Now?”
TOO HOT FOR TUESDAY. Cody.
The post FBI Informant, Louis Spencer, Real Housewives, Oregon Bullying, Zombie Alert, American Idol, Chris Christie: HOT LINKS appeared first on Towleroad.
HRC Mississippi Hosts a House Party in Tupelo to Talk About Equality
HRC Mississippi Hosts a House Party in Tupelo to Talk About Equality
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Recently, HRC Mississippi staff joined members and supporters at a house party in Tupelo to discuss the ongoing work for full LGBTQ equality around the state. Rob Hill, HRC Mississippi state director, shared information about specific actions of HRC Mississippi and used the gathering as an opportunity to enlist support from those in attendance.
HRC has been very active in Tupelo and throughout northeast Mississippi over the last several years. HRC’s #LoveYourNeighbor campaign has shared videos and stories of the unique experiences of LGBTQ people and allies in Northeast Mississippi. The project was funded by a generous grant from Toyota, which has a manufacturing plant in Blue Springs, just outside of Tupelo.
Additionally, as part of the #LoveYourNeighbor campaign, HRC released two television advertisements that aired for two weeks in March of this year in the Northeast Mississippi media market, which includes the cities of Tupelo, Columbus and Starkville.
We are grateful to the people who showed up at the party and to the many people who shared their stories through the #LoveYourNeighbor campaign. Their participation is having a tangible impact and moving equality forward in the Magnolia State, particularly in northeast Mississippi.
Editor’s Letter: Never Forget the People Who Fought for You
Editor’s Letter: Never Forget the People Who Fought for You
Diane Anderson-Minshall on the shoulders we stand on.
www.advocate.com/commentary/2018/5/22/editors-letter-never-forget-people-who-fought-you
Adam Rippon just became the first gay person to win ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Adam Rippon just became the first gay person to win ‘Dancing with the Stars’
