Let out your inner art critic, and win a trip to San Francisco!
There are some amazing light art installations that light up the City by the Bay, and by selecting your favorite, you and a friend could fly round-trip to visit!

www.queerty.com/let-inner-art-critic-win-trip-san-francisco-20181129?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

HRC Sits Down with Parents for Trans Equality Council’s Ashley Rhodes-Courter and Erick Smith

Post submitted by Sula Malina, HRC Children, Youth and Families Program Coordinator

HRC recently sat down with Ashley Rhodes-Courter and Erick Smith, members of HRC Foundation’s Parents for Transgender Equality Council from Florida. Ashley and Erick are the proud parents of three young children — the oldest of whom is transgender — and are the founders of The Foundation for Sustainable Families. Their non-profit provides direct services to children and families, and works with other organizations to meet the needs of the most vulnerable.

What inspired you to join HRC’s Parents for Transgender Equality Council?

Advocacy has always been a cornerstone of our family. Ashley grew up in foster care, which inspired her to become a social worker. As foster parents, we have cared for more than 25 children. Our daughter, Skyler, was also adopted from foster care. Skyler began her social transition at four years old. We joined the Council to be a voice for transgender children and families, and we hope to help bring about more awareness and best practices when working with LGBTQ children in foster care or those who come from high-risk situations.

What part of HRC’s work do you connect with the most?

As the parents of a transgender child, we are so thankful for HRC and the many ways they support children and families. HRC’s comprehensive Welcoming Schools resources have been invaluable to our family and schools in our community groups. We also continue to advocate for more open adoption practices, which is an important part of our work as allies.

This November, we celebrate National Adoption Month. Why is this month important to you as parents of a trans child?

National Adoption Month is special to us because adoption saved Ashley’s life. Young people in the foster care system are disproportionately impacted by homelessness, addiction and intimate partner violence — Ashley watched this play out with most of her peers and even her own brother. Our daughter, Skyler, was almost murdered prior to entering foster care, and we were able to adopt her just before her second birthday. We want to ensure that every child has the chance to find a safe and committed family to love them unconditionally and indefinitely.

What’s one message you have for other parents of transgender children or who are considering fostering or adopting a trans child?

Being a parent means loving your child unconditionally and constantly seeking ways to help them thrive. It’s also important to understand that being LGBTQ is not a choice. Children can’t choose who they are any more than they can choose the environments they are born into. Foster children face often insurmountable odds without a support system that loves, educates and cares for their entire well-being.

HRC Foundation’s Parents for Transgender Equality Council is a group of 24 inspiring parents of transgender youth from across the country. The council serves as a coalition of the nation’s leading parent-advocates working for equality and fairness for transgender people, with the intention of connecting, mobilizing and amplifying many of the most powerful voices of love, inclusion and support for transgender equality.  

To learn more about All Children – All Families’ work to promote LGBTQ inclusion in child welfare, check out hrc.org/acaf. For more information about Rhodes-Courter’s work, including her international best-selling books “Three Little Words” and “Three More Words,” check out her website.

www.hrc.org/blog/hrc-sits-down-with-parents-for-trans-equality-councils-ashley-rhodes-courte?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Bar owner says he was unfairly targeted by police for attracting “too many blacks and f*gs”
The owner of a popular nightclub in Seaside Heights, New Jersey has filed a federal lawsuit accusing police and borough officials of unfairly targeting his business.

www.queerty.com/bar-owner-says-unfairly-targeted-police-attracting-many-blacks-fgs-20181129?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Melania’s Xmas Trees, Nancy Pelosi, Jerome Corsi, Deutsche Bank, Judge Judy, John Krasinski’s Nudes: HOT LINKS

HAIRY XMAS. Melania Trump thinks her blood red Christmas trees “look fantastic.”

ANOTHER FLIP. TJ Cox beats GOP Rep. David Valadao in California, giving Democrats gain of 40 House seats. ‘Cox clinched his victory more than three weeks after election day, when updated results from Fresno and Kings counties pushed his lead over Valadao to 529 votes. The contest was the country’s last remaining undecided congressional contest.’

LET THEM EAT NOTHING. Republicans think people aren’t entitled to food.

IT’S TRUE. Jaden Smith insists he’s dating Tyler the Creator.

NANCY PELOSI. Voted in as House Speaker, must persuade half of 32 Democrats who opposed her in January House floor vote.

SO WHAT, WHO CARES. Conspiracy theorist Jerome Corsi said he absolutely wanted to see the Wikileaks emails: “Everybody in the world who was in news or political operations after July 22 2016 when Assange dumped all these emails on [then-Democratic National Committee Chairwoman] Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and said he had more, everyone wanted to know what they were.”

BERLIN. Deutsche Bank offices raided in money laundering investigation. ‘The German bank confirmed in a statement that the police were investigating several of its offices in Germany and said the investigation related to the Panama Papers, a trove of files that put a spotlight on global money laundering. “We are cooperating fully with the authorities,” Deutsche said in the statement.’

HIGH PAYCHECKS. Judge Judy is the highest-paid TV host: ‘For the first year ever, Judy Sheindlin—more commonly known as Judge Judy—reigns supreme not only in her own courtroom, but also across all of television. Pocketing $147 million pretax last year, Sheindlin is the highest-paid television host, outearning all others…Ryan Seacrest, who hosts Live with Kelly and Ryan, saw his earnings leap from $58 million to $74 million this year thanks to his eight-figure check for hosting the revived American Idol. DeGeneres’ income also climbed thanks to a $20 million check from Netflix for a single stand-up special.’

CHELSEA NYC. Signs of life in the gayborhood?

OREGON. Eugene Gay Men’s Chorus makes debut: ‘The Eugene Gay Men’s Chorus will sing songs from multiple holiday traditions to ring in the holiday spirit. It formed last spring after an open house for singers in the gay community brought interested voices together, and it has rehearsed throughout the summer. Artistic director Evan Miles received master’s degree in choral conducting from the University of Oregon and joined the Portland Gay Men’s Chorus as a featured conductor during its trip to China last summer.

RYAN MURPHY. Producer/director to be honored with Hollywood Walk of Fame star on December 4.

SEXTER OF THE DAY. John Krasinski sends nude photos to Dwayne Johnson.

Did you hear @JohnKrasinski sent a naked photo to @TheRock? You heard me. pic.twitter.com/lUdthBxmig

— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) November 29, 2018

THIRSTY THURSDAY. Tony Mayorga.

 

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Melania’s Xmas Trees, Nancy Pelosi, Jerome Corsi, Deutsche Bank, Judge Judy, John Krasinski’s Nudes: HOT LINKS