Pop icon Madonna to be honored with the Advocate for Change Award at the 30th Annual GLAAD Media Awards

www.glaad.org/blog/pop-icon-madonna-be-honored-advocate-change-award-30th-annual-glaad-media-awards

#AM_Equality Tipsheet: February 5, 2019

HRC RESPONDS TO REPORTS THAT AT TONIGHT’S SOTU, TRUMP WILL ANNOUNCE HIV PLAN — AFTER TWO YEARS OF UNDERMINING EFFORTS: “If this administration wants to combat the spread of HIV, they need to immediately end their efforts to cut Medicaid funding, undermine the Affordable Care Act and license discrimination against the most at-risk communities when they seek health care,” said David Stacy, HRC Director of Government Affairs. “This administration simply cannot achieve this goal while, at the same time, charging forward with attacks on health care for the communities most impacted by HIV.” More from HRC and The Washington Post.

• Great news from National Immigration Law Center: “Marco Villada, a former DACA recipient whose life was turned upside down by an injustice that separated him from his husband and left him stranded in Mexico for half a year, will attend the State of the Union Address on Tuesday as a guest of Rep. Lou Correa (CA-46).” More here.
• And in a powerful show of support for transgender service members and veterans who are under attack by Trump-Pence, members of Congress including Representatives Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and A. Donald McEachin (D-Va.), and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) will bring as their SOTU guests transgender troops and vets. More from Washington Blade.

Congressman @RepMcEachin will host US Navy Petty Officer Second Class Megan Winters as his guest to President @realDonaldTrump‘s State of the Union tomorrow.
We & @OutServeSLDN are proud to represent Megan in the fight against the #TransMilitaryBan. #SOTU t.co/r5S1DnVjJh

— Lambda Legal (@LambdaLegal) February 4, 2019

NEW POLLING IN MISSISSIPPI SHOWS BROAD, BIPARTISAN SUPPORT FOR UPDATE TO STATE HATE CRIMES LAW: “It is clear that updating Mississippi’s hate crimes laws is a non-controversial, commonsense solution toward ensuring victims of bias-based crimes are treated more fairly under the law, and now we know it is a proposition that has widespread bipartisan support across the state,” said Rob Hill, HRC Mississippi state director. Support outweighs opposition throughout the state — and across party lines. See the full polling here. More from The Associated Press.

• Twin bills that would update the law to include sexual orientation, gender identity and disability are awaiting a hearing in the Mississippi statehouse.

TUESDAY TWEET — NEW VIDEO FROM HRC AND RAICES HIGHLIGHTS DANGERS OF TRUMP’S “RETURN TO MEXICO” POLICY:

Trumps “Return To Mexico” policy will force LGBTQ asylum seekers like Angner to stay in Mexico indefinitely while their immigration cases go through the courts.

Don’t let our govt turn its back on vulnerable people.

We need you to call your elected officials today. pic.twitter.com/tR5BeVrSN8

— RAICES (@RAICESTEXAS) February 4, 2019

STATEHOUSE ROUNDUP:

• Arizona lawmakers push for hearing on a bill that would ensure transgender people have dignity in death by making it easier to correct someone’s gender on a death certificate. More from The Daily Beast.
• Anti-equality lawmakers in South Dakota have introduced a bill to block transgender student-athletes from participating on teams aligned with their gender identity. More from Argus Leader.
• A Minnesota bill would close a loophole that forces a mother to adopt her own child if  she is in a same-sex marriage and not the birthing parent. More from Twin Cities Pioneer Press.

ACCURATE DATA ON THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY  KEY TO HELPING POLICY MAKERS ADDRESS NEEDS: New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that two percent of U.S. high schoolers are transgender. This visibility is not only helping countless youth feel seen, but also gives lawmakers a better picture of the needs of the trans community, which is not accounted for in the U.S. Census and other federal surveys. More from USA Today.

NEW LAWSUIT ALLEGES TRANS MARYLAND TEACHER HARASSED AT PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Jennifer Eller’s suit alleges she was repeatedly harassed, insulted, misgendered and threatened — and that school officials retaliated against her when she reported the abuse. More from Baltimore Sun.

ICYMI — PARENTS OF TRANS & GENDER EXPANSIVE YOUTH MEET WITH CONGRESSIONAL TRANSGENDER EQUALITY TASK FORCE: The HRC Foundation’s Parents for Transgender Equality National Council, a group of the nation’s leading parent-advocates in the fight for transgender equality, met with members of Congress to discuss their families’ moving journeys and the urgent need for Congress to pass the Equality Act.

“I said ‘Well, honey, your dad’s love comes with a lifetime guarantee.’”

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WATCH: Incredible parents of transgender youth speak with @RepJoeKennedy & other members of Congress about the importance of the #EqualityAct. pic.twitter.com/plgLNsjpKH

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) February 3, 2019

WE MUST ADDRESS VIOLENCE TARGETING LGBTQ COMMUNITIES OF COLOR: The recent horrific attack on Jussie Smollett has sparked a nationwide conversation about the epidemic of violence that disproportionately targets Black people, LGBTQ people and religious minorities — and those living at the intersections of multiple identities. More from HRC.

OVER 200 RALLY IN TEXAS FOLLOWING ATTACK ON SAME-SEX COUPLE IN AUSTIN: More from Austin Statesman.

TODAY — SENTENCING IN CASE INVOLVING ROBBERY OF TRANS WOMAN; MURDERING WOMAN’S BOYFRIEND: Matthew White, 34, is accused of targeting transgender woman for robbery. During one such incident, White allegedly murdered the boyfriend on one of his targets. More from KYW News Radio.

GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS

HORRIFYING — SAME-SEX COUPLE MURDERED IN RUSSIA: More from Meduza.

OPENLY GAY POLISH POLITICIAN ROBERT BIEDRON FOUNDS NEW POLITICAL PARTY: The Wiosna (Spring) party calls for improved rights for women and the LGBTQ community. More from The Washington Post.

READING RAINBOW – Bookmark now to read on your lunch break!

The New York Times reviews the upcoming novel “An Indefinite Sentence,” a memoir of a gay man from India; Forbes discusses the $1 trillion (yes, with a “T”) buying power of the LGBTQ community

Have news? Send us your news and tips at [email protected]. Click here to subscribe to #AM_Equality and follow @HRC for all the latest news. Thanks for reading!

www.hrc.org/blog/am-equality-tipsheet-february-5-2019?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Toronto Serial Killer Staged Victims’ Bodies to Photograph Them, Was in the Process of Killing a Man When Police Knocked

WARNING: This story includes some graphic details some readers may find upsetting

The monster who last week pleaded guilty to eight counts of first-degree murder for the killings of men he targeted in Toronto’s gay village, appeared at day one of his sentencing hearing on Monday.

The Court heard gruesome details about Bruce McArthur’s strategy in targeting his victims, and what he did to the victims’ bodies.

McArthur was charged for the murders of Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Mahmudi, Dean Lisowick, Selim Esen, Andrew Kinsman, Skandaraj (Skanda) Navaratnam, Kirushnakumar Kanagaratnam and Abdulbasir Faizi, whose names were read aloud by crown prosecutor Michael Cantlon.

The Guardian reports: ‘The court heard that McArthur staged photographs of his victims’ corpses, posing the bodies in a fur coat and black leather hat, and – in two cases – with a cigar between their lips. Cantlon described the extensive collection of photographs McArthur kept of his victims – many of them taken while they were alive. McArthur also shaved and stored the facial hair from his victims, Cantlon said.’

McArthur was in the middle of a ninth murder when police knocked on his door, The Independent reports: ‘Police, who had been monitoring the 67-year-old landscape gardener as a potential suspect, moved in for fears another murder was about to take place. When they arrived, they found McArthur had chained the man – identified in court only as John – to a four-poster bed and placed a black bag over his head. He was taping his victim’s mouth shut at the moment police knocked.’

Victims’ families and friends also read statements, remembering their lost loved ones.

Watch a report from CBC:

Toronto police have been blasted for neglect in pursuing the disappearances of men for years in the gay village, and for how they dealt with McArthur whom they had come into contact with several times.

The Globe and Mail reports: “Police interviewed Mr. McArthur twice in the years before his arrest in January, 2018. In addition to the 2016 interview, officers talked to him in 2013, after police were told Mr. McArthur had a romantic relationship with Skandaraj Navaratnam, the first man to go missing, and that he had visited his third victim, Majeed Kayhan, before his disappearance. An internal review into the way the 2016 incident was handled was ordered later.”

Sergeant Paul Gauthier will be charged with insubordination and neglect of duty on Tuesday morning, the Globe and Mail adds: “Sgt. Gauthier’s lawyer, Lawrence Gridin, said the charge is connected to an incident in 2016. The Globe has previously reported that in 2016, Mr. McArthur was interviewed by police after a man said Mr. McArthur choked him during sex. No criminal charges were laid at the time.”

Gauthier’s lawyer released a statement on Friday night: “The decision not to charge Bruce McArthur for the 2016 incident was made in conjunction with Detective Gauthier’s supervisor and based on the information available at the time. Det. Gauthier conducted a proper investigation and fully documented the arrest of McArthur so that the information was available to all other investigators. McArthur’s monstrous nature was difficult to uncover because he led a life of extreme deception, not because of anything to do with the 2016 arrest. Det. Gauthier has great sympathy for the victims and the community.”

The post Toronto Serial Killer Staged Victims’ Bodies to Photograph Them, Was in the Process of Killing a Man When Police Knocked appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.

Toronto Serial Killer Staged Victims’ Bodies to Photograph Them, Was in the Process of Killing a Man When Police Knocked

Donald Trump Doesn’t Care About HIV/AIDS—Here’s How He Could

The president will reportedly discuss goals of ending HIV at SOTU. ACT UP NY explains how he can actually help. 

www.advocate.com/commentary/2019/2/05/donald-trump-doesnt-care-about-hivaids-heres-how-he-could