22 Photos of LGBTQ Writers, Artists, & Activists of the ’80s and ’90s

www.advocate.com/photography/2019/6/07/22-photos-lgbtq-writers-artists-activists-80s-and-90s

Asia Kate Dillon is bringing non-binary gender identity to Hollywood

Name: Asia Kate Dillon, 34

Who They Are: Actor, activist

What They Have Contributed: Dillon gained attention as a prodigy when they graduated from the Actor’s Workshop of Ithica, an adult training program, at 16. A series of stage and television roles (such as Orange Is the New Black) followed before Dillon landed the part of Taylor Mason on the Showtime series Billions. Taylor marks the first time a major non-binary character has appeared as a series regular. This year, Dillon gets an even bigger stage, starring in John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum. 

Why We’re Proud: Few public personalities—actors, celebrities or otherwise—have offered up the kind of frank discussion of non-binary gender identity that Dillon has. Beginning with their tenure on Billions, Dillon has used every platform as a chance to discuss gender identity, the difference between gender and sex, how a non-binary gender is a form of transgenderism, as well as appropriate use of the singular “they” pronoun.

In Billions, Dillon has given us the first major non-binary character in TV history, challenging the perspective of millions of viewers while simultaneously entertaining them. In Parabellum, Dillion insisted their character be cast as non-binary.

As Dillon told Queerty:

The character was not written as a non-binary character. That was something I brought to Chad and Keanu, and it was something they were immediately open to. It wasn’t like I had to even convince them. I just said, “We have an opportunity here.” There was nothing in the script that required the character to be a trans person. So I said “I’m a non-binary actor. Let’s make this character non-binary.” It’s really a credit to Chad, Keanu, and Lionsgate. These films have always been incredibly diverse going back to the first one, in terms of ethnic diversity, cultural diversity, people of all shapes, sizes, colors. Even martial arts diversity. So adding diversity to the third installment, they were just like of course.

Not content to limit their activism to queer issues, Dillon has launched the production company Mirror/Fire and produced the multimedia performance piece Us, exploring racism and the #BlackLivesMatter movement in the United States.

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#TGIF get out of my dreams get into my car. ?#AKDAF?

A post shared by Mx. Asia Kate Dillon (@asiakatedillon) on Oct 12, 2018 at 3:09pm PDT

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Gay Country Singer Ty Herndon Releases His 1995 Hit with Male Pronouns, ‘the Way I Wish I Could Have Sang It For You Then’

Country singer Ty Herndon, who broke out in 1995 with the hit single “What Mattered Most”, has re-recorded the song with male pronouns, “the way I wish I could have sang it for you then.”

The track was Herndon’s first #1 single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Herndon came out in 2014.

The post Gay Country Singer Ty Herndon Releases His 1995 Hit with Male Pronouns, ‘the Way I Wish I Could Have Sang It For You Then’ appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.

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#AM_Equality Tipsheet: June 7, 2019

HORRIFIC — DETROIT MAN CHARGED WITH TARGETING, MURDERING THREE PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY WERE LGBTQ: Reports Ann Zaniewski (@AnnZaniewski) of the Detroit Free Press: “Devon Robinson, 19, of Detroit is facing three counts of first-degree murder in the May 25 shootings of Alunte Davis, 21, Paris Cameron, 20, and Timothy Blancher, 20, all of Detroit, in a home on Devonshire on the city’s east side, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said Thursday. Two other victims were also shot but survived.” Worthy’s office said Davis and Blancher were gay men, and Cameron was a transgender woman. Robinson is expected to be arraigned this morning in District Court in Detroit. “This case illustrates the mortal danger faced by members of Detroit’s LGBTQ community, including transgender women of color,” Fair Michigan President Alanna Maguire said. Read the full story at the Detroit Free Press.

• And in North Carolina, Chanel Scurlock, a 23-year-old transgender woman, was found dead of gunshot wounds early Thursday in a field near Lumberton, according to reports. “RIP baby,” wrote a friend on Facebook. “ “You [lived] your life as you wanted. I’m proud of you for being unapologetically correct about your feelings and expectations of YOU.” Police told a local news outlet they have “great leads” in their investigation. More at the Advocate.
• Dallas police working with city’s LGBTQ leaders to address killings of transgender people. Police say they have four active murder investigations. More from ABC News.

This is horrific. We as a nation must confront this epidemic of hate violence before one more life is taken. t.co/YhWwO0NTml

— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) June 7, 2019

METRO WEEKLY’S JOHN RILEY (@JOHNANDRESRILEY) SPOTLIGHTS SUPER LGBTQ ALLY SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI (@SPEAKERPELOSI) FOR PRIDE MONTH: More from Metro Weekly.

We could not have a stronger or more steadfast champion fighting for LGBTQ Americans at this crucial moment in our nation’s history than @SpeakerPelosi. Must-read interview in @metroweekly: t.co/UypMF44BsC

— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) June 6, 2019

NINETY-NINE DEMS URGE STATE DEPT. TO RECOGNIZE CITIZENSHIP OF LGBTQ COUPLE’S CHILD: Chris Johnson (@chrisjohnson82) reports in the Washington Blade.

POLL SHOWS TEXAS VOTERS OPPOSE REFUSING SERVICE TO LGBTQ PEOPLE BY 3-1 MARGIN: When asked in a Quinnipiac University poll, “should businesses be allowed to refuse service to someone based on their sexual orientation or sexual identity?” 71 percent said no. Read more at the Austin American Statesman.

ICYMI — ACTOR JAKE CHOI (@THEJAKECHOI) GIVES POWERFUL SPEECH ADVOCATING FOR LGBTQ YOUTH AT HRC COLUMBUS DINNER: “Tonight, I remember the kids like me growing up in all kinds of neighborhoods, some afraid, some lost and confused, some thrown out by their families because of who they are or who they love,” said Choi. “Some — too many — who have taken their own lives due to bullying either by peers or their families and relatives.” More from Advocate.

DEFENSE DEPARTMENT CONTRADICTS TRUMP’S CLAIM ABOUT TRANSGENDER TROOPS: “The Military Health System covers all medically necessary treatments and prescription medications,” said Defense Department spokeswoman Jessica Maxwell, contradicting Trump’s claim that service-members are “not allowed to take any drugs.” More from Aaron Blake (@aaronblake) at The Washington Post.

PRIDE MONTH ROUNDUP

FROM NYTIMES — “STONEWALL RIOT APOLOGY: POLICE ACTIONS WERE ‘WRONG,’ COMMISSIONER ADMITS”: Read more at the New York Times.

“YOU DON’T GET TO PUT LGBTQ PEOPLE BACK IN THE SHADOWS” — SINGER-SONGWRITER MELISSA ETHERIDGE ON STONEWALL 50: “To my children’s children, LGBTQ will be just another color in the crayon box of all kinds of beautiful mixes,” says Etheridge (@metheridge) to the Daily Beast’s Tim Teeman (@TimTeeman). Read more from The Daily Beast.

PRIDE IS FOR EVERYONE WHO BELIEVES IN EQUALITY: HRC shares five reasons why Pride is about everyone — including millions of allies — joining to celebrate our individuality and advocate for LGBTQ equality. More from HRC

OLYMPIANS TO SHARE THEIR PERSONAL STORIES TODAY AT OUTSPORT PRIDE: Nicole Branagh (@NicoleBranagh), Randy Gardner (@theRandyGardner) and Greg Louganis (@greglouganis) will share stories of glory and personal struggle as LGBTQ athletes. More from OutSports.

 GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS

“MY LIFE WILL BE OVER IF I’M DEPORTED TO KENYA” — RUGBY PLAYER RECEIVES NOTICE TO LEAVE UK: “As a gay man, whose country of birth, Kenya, persecutes homosexuals, I felt my whole world collapse around me…” writes Bristol Biston’s (@bisonsrfc) Ken Marcharia in an oped. More from The Guardian.

GLOBAL PRIDE CELEBRATIONS TAKE PLACE AMID EFFORTS TO DECRIMINALIZE SAME-SEX RELATIONS: More from the Washington Blade.

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

Oprah Magazine spotlights groundbreaking role of transgender actress and model Isis King (@MsIsisKing) in Ava DuVernay’s “When They See Us”; Advocate features cover story of Nafessa Williams (@NafessaWilliams) on being television’s first Black lesbian superhero

In our new cover story, @BlackLightning‘s @NafessaWilliams talks to @DeliciousDiane what it means to play TV’s first Black lesbian superhero: “Every day I feel so honored to be giving a voice to this character.” t.co/sby1Yulq4g pic.twitter.com/PQr7JaGJEV

— The Advocate (@TheAdvocateMag) June 6, 2019

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-june-7-2019?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Lesbian Couple Bloodied by Gang of Men in Horrific Attack on London Bus

A lesbian couple was beaten and robbed by a gang of men in a horrific homophobic attack on a London bus that left them bruised and covered in blood. Melania Ps shared the photo and story on Facebook to bring awareness to chauvism, misogyny, and homophobic violence.

Wrote Melania: “We must have kissed or something because these guys came after us. I do not remember if they were already there or if they got on after us. There were at least four of them. They started behaving like hooligans, demanding that we kissed so they could enjoy watching, calling us ‘lesbians’ and describing sexual positions. I do not remember the whole episode, but the word “scissors” stuck in my mind. It was only them and us there. In an attempt to calm things down, I started making jokes. I thought this might make them go away. Chris even pretended to be sick, but they kept on harassing us, throwing us coins and becoming more enthusiastic about it.”

Melania continued: “The next thing I know is that Chris is in the middle of the bus fighting with them. On an impulse, I went over there only to find her face bleeding and three of them beating her up. The next thing I know is I’m being punched. I got dizzy at the sight of my blood and fell back. I do not remember whether or not I lost consciousness. Suddenly the bus had stopped, the police were there and I was bleeding all over. Our stuff was stolen as well. I do not know yet if my nose is broken, and I have not been able to go back to work, but what upsets me most is that VIOLENCE HAS BECOME A COMMON THING, that sometimes it’s necessary to see a woman bleeding after having been punched to feel some kind of impact.”

She concluded: “I’m tired of being taken to a SEXUAL OBJECT, of finding out that these situations are usual, of gay friends who were beaten up JUST BECAUSE. We have to endure verbal harassment AND CHAUVINIST, MISOGYNISTIC AND HOMOPHOBIC VIOLENCE because when you stand up for yourself you shit like this happens. By the way, I am thankful to all the women and men in my life that understand that HAVING BALLS MEANS SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. I just hope that in June, Pride Month, stuff like this can be spoken out loudly so they STOP HAPPENING!”

The post Lesbian Couple Bloodied by Gang of Men in Horrific Attack on London Bus appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.

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Idaho’s Gay State Representative Stands His Ground

The first out gay man in Idaho’s state legislature says, “Sometimes for us, the win is in not losing ground.”

www.advocate.com/news/2019/6/07/idahos-gay-state-representative-stands-his-ground

56 Photos of Erotic Mythology by L’Oiseleur Photography

www.advocate.com/photography/2019/6/07/56-photos-erotic-mythology-loiseleur-photography