Adam Lambert With Queen Is an Open Celebration of Queer Identity
Adam Lambert’s ability to be openly queer while performing songs like “Killer Queen” is also a beautiful tribute to Freddie Mercury’s memory.
www.advocate.com/music/2019/7/26/adam-lambert-queen-open-celebration-queer-identity
It turns out that antigay lawmaker allegedly caught on Grindr also has a gay son
Well, this is awkward.
Earlier this week, Tennessee state Rep. Bill Sanderson announced his immediate resignation from office amid allegations he’s been maintaining a secret Grindr profile.
The political blog The Dog and Pony Show accused the 59-year-old lawmaker of soliciting sex with men, some of whom were up to 40 years younger than him, throughout his tenure in office.
That wouldn’t be such a big deal except for the fact that, while he was doing so, he also supported nearly ever anti-LGBT bill that made its way to the House floor.
In 2011, Sanderson voted to ban cities from adopting anti-discrimination ordinances protecting LGBTQ people and nullified one already in place in Nashville.
In 2015, he signed on to a resolution denouncing the Supreme Court’s ruling on marriage equality.
And in 2016, he voted in favor of allowing licensed therapists to turn away LGBTQ clients on religious grounds.
For his part, Sanderson has denied ever being on Grindr and claims leaked screenshots of sexts between him and other men are fake. He also says his reasons for resigning are “personal” and have nothing to do with this sex scandal.
But there’s another layer to this story that hasn’t been as widely reported.
As it turns out that, Sanderson has a gay son.
According to his Facebook profile, the ex-lawmaker’s son lives in Los Angeles and works at the Ace Hotel.
His Instagram page is mostly shirtless photos of himself with other shirtless guys, pool pics, bedroom selfies, pictures at gay bars, and even a photo with Sam Smith.
Now, obviously, Sanderson’s son is in no way responsible for his father’s actions or homophobic beliefs. But it does add a layer of awkwardness to the situation. Because even if Sanderson is telling the truth when he says he’s never had a Grindr profile, he’s still a total a-hole for voting against his own son’s rights.
We can’t imagine what dinner at the Sanderson house must be like.
Related: 8 antigay politicians whose careers were ruined by sext scandals
Queer Eye’s Fab 5 Lift Up the Gay-Straight Alliance at Jonathan Van Ness’s Old High School: WATCH
Queer Eye‘s Fab 5 visit Jonathan Van Ness’s old high school in Kansas City in Season 4 in order to transform one of his old teachers.
In a supplemental ‘behind-the-scenes’ clip from the visit, Van Ness and the four other Queer Eye gurus sat down with Quincy High School’s Gay-Straight Alliance for a powerful and emotional conversation on issues ranging from coming out in high school, to bullying, allies, and gender identity.
Said Jonathan to the teens: “I couldn’t walk in these halls – I got called the F word every ten steps I took. At that time Gay-Straight Alliance was something I didn’t think would be literally allowed…”
The post Queer Eye’s Fab 5 Lift Up the Gay-Straight Alliance at Jonathan Van Ness’s Old High School: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.
Queer Eye’s Fab 5 Lift Up the Gay-Straight Alliance at Jonathan Van Ness’s Old High School: WATCH
CNN Debate Moderators Should Ask 2020 Democrats: “Do You Support Full and Explicit Constitutional Equality for All Marginalized Communities?”
ICYMI: Why We Must Amend the Constitution to Protect LGBTQ Rights
NEW YORK – Ahead of next week’s Democratic presidential debate, GLAAD – the world’s largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization – today called on CNN debate moderators and other media covering the 2020 presidential election to get every candidate on the record about whether they support expanding the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to include all marginalized communities, including explicit protections for people of color, the disabled, and LGBTQ Americans.
GLAAD is also calling on the media to keep issues important to LGBTQ Americans at the forefront of the ongoing presidential campaign, including urging next week’s CNN moderators to include questions specific to the LGBTQ community. The organization released a list of proposed questions the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates should be asked next week in Detroit:
EXPLAINED: Top Questions for CNN Debate Moderators for Second Democratic Debate
Do you support expanding the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to include explicit protections for all marginalized communities in the United States?
Here’s what the top-tier 2020 Democratic presidential candidates had to say about the current version of the ERA:
Joe Biden: “I supported the ERA from the very beginning.”
Pete Buttigieg: “It’s long overdue for women to be represented in our Constitution. The equal rights amendment is a critical, overdue step towards gender equality. #ERANow”
Julian Castro: “I would do several things, starting with something we should have done a long time ago, which is to pass the Equal Rights Amendment finally in this country.”
Kamala Harris: “That’s why we have the Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act. That’s why we need to pass the Equality Act. That’s why we need to pass the ERA…”
Beto O’Rourke: “…we also need an Equal Rights Amendment ratified in this country…”
Elizabeth Warren: “Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment 40+ years ago, but it was never ratified by enough states. That could change. I support extending the deadline to ratify the ERA. It’s long past time for women’s equal rights to be recognized in our Constitution.”
Additionally, Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, and Bernie Sanders have all cosponsored the Equal Rights Amendment while serving in the U.S. Senate.
What are your plans to achieve full equality under the law for all LGBTQ people in this country?
According to the Movement Advancement Project (MAP), LGBTQ Americans could still be:
Further, if an LGBTQ person experiences a hate crime, anti-LGBTQ attackers can still claim the so-called “gay/trans panic” defense in court in 44 states.
What will you do to stop the epidemic of violence plaguing the transgender community, specifically transgender women of color?
Violence against the transgender community, particularly transgender women of color, has skyrocketed in the last four years. So far in 2019, about twelve transgender people have been murdered, repeating a national trend since 2016.
What are your plans to reverse the 118 anti-LGBTQ actions made by the Trump Administration?
Following the election of Donald Trump, GLAAD created its Trump Accountability Project (TAP) as a resource for journalists, editors, and other news makers reporting on the Trump administration, which catalogues the anti-LGBTQ statements and actions of President Donald Trump and those in his circle.
Since the start of his term in office, President Trump and his administration have issued more than 118 attacks in policy and rhetoric against the LGBTQ community.
Specifically, Would you disband the new State Department’s “Commission on Unalienable Rights” and reinstate the U.S. position of leadership on human rights for LGBTQ people here and around the world?
The State Department recently launched a new “Commission on Unalienable Rights,” a governing body consisting of a swath of anti-LGBTQ activists. This Commission could begin using religion to justify discrimination against LGBTQ people and women on a global scale.
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Making Memories
Brandy Madison posted a photo:
Top – siss boom
Capris – Chix
Hat & Hair – Exile
Sunglasses – Brii Underground
Belly Piercing – SuXue
Flip Flops – Rush
Beach Bag – Dutchie
Background – bestwallpapers.net
More of my Casual pics here:
www.flickr.com/photos/brandy-madison/albums/7215770447379…
Join the LGBT of Second Life Group here:
www.flickr.com/groups/sl-lgbt/
Mike Pence skips town without paying $24K security tab from fundraiser at gay-owned club
Earlier this week, Mike Pence hosted a fundraiser for the Republican Governors Association at the gay-owned Caribou Club in Aspen, Colorado. Entry to the event was $35,000 per couple and, in the end, the fundraiser pulled in a total of $700,000.
Now, the local sheriff’s department says Pence and his team have stiffed them on the $24,000 security bill.
“We had a SWAT team from Garfield County here that I want to see get reimbursed,” Sheriff Joe DiSalvo says. “We had Carbondale officers here that I want to see get reimbursed. They don’t have this kind of money. I don’t have this kind of money.”
Pence, who was in town for less than 24 hours, required 64 police officers, who worked a total of 20 hours each, totaling 519 hours.
“Out of those 64, 14 were state troopers, and we don’t have a responsibility to pay them,” DiSalvo explains. “But the 50 other cops that were here are all on the county dime.”
Adding insult to injury, DiSalvo says his calls to Pence’s senior political adviser Marty Obst have gone totally ignored.
“When I first talked to [Obst] before the visit, he was all smiles and grins,” DiSalvo says. “But I know how this works: They put you on hold until they leave and then they don’t talk to you again.”
“He has not returned a single phone call in two days.”
Requiring taxpayers to foot the security bill for private campaign events is not standard protocol and DiSalvo says the whole situation has been very “disappointing.”
“I guess the whole thing is generally just somewhat disappointing to me,” he laments. “You raise $700,000 in an hour, you should be able to pitch in to support the community that made you feel welcome.”
Related: Why is this gay-owned club hosting a Mike Pence fundraiser?
Suspect Arrested in Murder of LGBTQ Rights Activist Targeted by ‘Saw’-Inspired ‘Gay Hunting’ Website
Yelena Grigoryeva, a Russian LGBTQ activist who had been targeted on a ‘gay hunting’ website inspired by the horror film Saw, was murdered in St. Petersburg over the weekend. Grigoryeva’s body was found in bushes near her home.
Now, police say they have arrested a suspect.
Radio Free Europe reports: ‘The Investigative Committee said on July 25 that an acquaintance of Grigoryeva, a Kyrgyz-born resident of St. Petersburg, had been arrested on suspicion of killing the activist, who was found dead, apparently strangled and with multiple stab wounds, according to local media. The man, whose name was not released, killed Grigoryeva during an altercation and had no political motive, the committee said. “As a result of materials collected by investigators about the deceased woman, it has been established that she led an asocial lifestyle, repeatedly drinking alcoholic beverages with various people, including the suspect,” the committee said in a statement.’
The NY Daily News reported on the Saw-inspired site, which was shut down last week: ‘Inspired by, and named after, the “Saw’ horror movie franchise, the website directed people to track down and assault people who were believed to be LGBTQ. When it started operating around April, 2018, “Saw” welcomed “gay hunters” in a “game” called “Chechnya’s Comeback.” It asked participants to find their targets, and publish their personal information online. According to GayStarNews.com, the site charged 200 rubles ($3) to go through its database. If someone found their name on the website, they had to pay 1,500 rubles ($23) to be removed. The “game” offered legal protection to “users,” and warned them that they could do anything, except kill the targets.’
The post Suspect Arrested in Murder of LGBTQ Rights Activist Targeted by ‘Saw’-Inspired ‘Gay Hunting’ Website appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.
Suspect Arrested in Murder of LGBTQ Rights Activist Targeted by ‘Saw’-Inspired ‘Gay Hunting’ Website
7 Sweet and Brave Tomboys From a New Exhibition
www.advocate.com/art/2019/7/26/7-sweet-and-brave-tomboys-new-exhibition
In 1976, San Francisco Was ‘The Gayest City in the Country’ and This Local News Doc Was Shocking at the Time: WATCH
FLASHBACK FRIDAY….
This documentary made in 1976 by ABC7 called “Bay Gays” was shocking at the time, and opened up viewers to “the gayest city in the country.”
Writes ABC7, which broadcast it in late June: ‘The four part series starts before the rainbow flag was a a symbol for a united community. Before Harvey Milk was elected supervisor, before the White Night riots that followed his death, before HIV and AIDS devastated a community, before same-sex marriage was legal. The language used in this special has evolved over the years. Though the series focuses only gay men, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people were also fighting their own battles for public acceptance. “BAY GAYS” was shocking for its time and is stunning still today for how many of the issues still exist.’
The post In 1976, San Francisco Was ‘The Gayest City in the Country’ and This Local News Doc Was Shocking at the Time: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.
This Local News Documentary About San Francisco’s ‘Bay Gays’ Shocked Viewers in 1976: WATCH
#AM_Equality Tipsheet: July 26, 2019
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES SPEAK OUT AGAINST EPIDEMIC OF VIOLENCE FACING BLACK TRANSGENDER WOMEN: Their calls to action come after the violent death Saturday of Denali Berries Stuckey, the third transgender woman to have been killed in South Carolina since 2018, and one of at least 12 transgender women to have died by violent means this year in the U.S HRC Foundation’s “Dismantling a Culture of Violence” details how anti-transgender stigma, denial of opportunity and increased risk factors create a culture of violence — and provides clear recommendations on how each of us can take action to make our society a safer place for transgender people. Read the statements from Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden.
Thank you @JoeBiden, @KamalaHarris, @BernieSanders & @ewarren for speaking out about the killing of Denali Berries Stuckey. We must work to change the realities that put too many trans people—particularly trans women of color—at risk of violence. t.co/ybkXhjYH5y pic.twitter.com/NZ6XFBX35e
— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) July 25, 2019
TRUMP-PENCE OFFICIAL CLAIMS HIV STATUS IS AN EXCUSE TO SEPARATE FAMILIES AT THE BORDER:
It is unconscionable that the Trump-Pence administration is using HIV status as an excuse to separate families in clear violation of federal law. The cruelty of this administration knows no bounds. pic.twitter.com/UmYIwih3jE
— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) July 25, 2019
U.S. HOUSE PASSES “PRIDE ACT” TO GIVE SAME-SEX COUPLES A REFUND ON TAXES THEY PAID WHEN INEQUALITY WAS BUILT INTO THE SYSTEM: The bill allows same-sex couples to recalculate taxes they paid consistent with the requirements that were in place for different-sex married couples if they legally married before the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 2013. Same-sex couples overpaid an estimated $67 million in taxes as a result of DOMA. More from Washington Blade.
FEEL GOOD FRIDAY — DETROIT BILLBOARD PROCLAIMS “TRANS PEOPLE ARE SACRED”: More from the Detroit Free Press.
New billboard at vacant Detroit intersection has hopeful message t.co/dRhJnFNRZm
— Detroit Free Press (@freep) July 25, 2019
ADVOCATE SHARES EXCLUSIVE FILM CLIP OF FATHER STRUGGLING TO DESCRIBE GRIEF OVER GAY SON WHO DIED: Tu Me Manques is based on a critically-acclaimed Bolivian play, and will primere at the Outfest Los Angeles Film Festival tomorrow. More from Advocate.
LGBTQ PEOPLE OF COLOR REFLECT ON TRUMP’S RECENT COMMENTS THAT PEOPLE SHOULD “GO BACK” TO THEIR COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: More from Them.
GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS
BULGARIAN COURT RECOGNIZES A SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN LANDMARK RULING: The court ruled that an Australian citizen should be recognized as the spouse of a European Union citizen, and should be afforded spousal rights to live, work and travel in Bulgaria. The couple’s lawyer, Denitsa Lyubenova, is a former HRC Global Fellow. More from The Washington Post.
LGBTQ CLUB OWNER IN PUEBLA, MEXICO FOUND DEAD IN HIS HOME: Police are investigating the death of Jorge Abel Espinoza Ocampo on the 25th anniversary of the opening of his popular club. More from Gay Star News.
READING RAINBOW – Bookmark now to read on your lunch break!
ABC San Francisco interviews Rick Stokes, an LGBTQ rights advocate since the 1970s; Advocate reviews the new film The Garden Left Behind, about the epidemic of violence against transgender women of color; NBC reports on a new Tinder update designed to protect LGBTQ people in countries that criminalize same-sex relationships; CNN reminds us that RGB continues to be the clapback kween
RBG on Senator who once suggested she would soon die from pancreatic cancer: “That senator — whose name I’ve forgotten — is now himself dead. And I am very much alive.” #NotoriousRBG t.co/Eaq3DXbyPt
— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) July 25, 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-july-26-2019?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed
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