Marriage Momentum in Mississippi

HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/marriage-momentum-in-mississippi?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Bar Goes Out Of Its Way To Declare Straightness After Stealing Gay Bar Logo, Gets Hilariously Shamed

A general rule in business is always alienate potential paying customers, and one Lafayette, Louisiana bar is really acing it.

Bar Code, a downtown lounge set to open soon in Lafayette, wanted to make it extra clear that they aren’t associated with a gay bar in Richmond, VA, also called Bar Code. See where the confusion could come from?

They took to Facebook to clarify:

But a name is just a name, right? Except here’s the gay bar in Richmond:

And here’s the definitely-not-a-gay-bar in Lafayette:

Look familiar? 

Here’s the response the new bar received:

File this under the ‘social media fail’ category.

via IND

Dan Tracer

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/jYqGsTAlb3Y/bar-goes-out-of-its-way-to-declare-straightness-after-stealing-gay-bar-logo-gets-hilariously-shamed-20141126

Postmodern Jukebox Turns Ariana Grande's 'Love Me Harder' Into A James Bond Theme: VIDEO

Sean Mandell

www.towleroad.com/2014/11/postmodern-jukebox-turns-ariana-grandes-love-me-harder-into-a-james-bond-theme-video.html

WATCH: Ariz. Activist Convicted of 'Walking While Trans' Will Appeal

After being found guilty of ‘manifesting prostitution,’ advocate Monica Jones is pushing back against the law that she contends is unconstitutionally vague and targets trans women of color.

read more

Mitch Kellaway

www.advocate.com/politics/transgender/2014/11/26/watch-ariz-activist-convicted-walking-while-trans-will-appeal

When Coming Out Is a Death Sentence: The Rising Tide of Violence Against LGBT Iraqis

Joint briefings by the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), MADRE and the Organization of Women’s Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) published last week expose targeted violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Iraqis.

For two years the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), jointly with Iraqi and international NGOs, has supported humanitarian assistance to vulnerable lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals and worked to raise awareness about their desperate plight.

Out of this work comes two briefings, “When Coming Out Is a Death Sentence” and “We’re Here: Iraqi LGBT People’s Accounts of Violence and Rights Abuse.” The publications expose the depth of suffering and violence perpetrated against LGBT people across different levels of society.

Long a persecuted group, LGBT Iraqis experience high levels of violence that is based on the stigma Iraq society places on differences in sexual orientation and gender expression, and a broad intolerance of those differences. LGBT individuals, if exposed, face unspeakable violence — from within their own families, from their tribes and from the larger community. Government officials are openly disparaging, hostile and frequently complicit in the violence. Once exposed and targeted based on their sexual orientation or gender identity, an individual’s only hope is escape to a shelter or safer area. But the recent rise of the Islamic State has blocked the main escape route to Kurdistan, making the situation even more desperate.

Iraqi LGBT people experience this violence in a climate where the security situation has grown steadily more dangerous. Reports of attacks and atrocities against women and religious and ethnic groups have been mounting in recent months due to the military advancement of the Islamic State group.

Unfortunately, however, this situation is not new. For LGBT people, post-occupation Iraq has never been a safe and welcoming environment; the 2003 U.S.-led invasion unleashed widespread violence, sectarian and ethnic clashes, and ultimately the breakdown of the rule of law.

Over the past few years, religious militias and vigilante groups, with the tacit blessing of the Iraqi security forces, have engaged in rounds of targeted killings of individuals perceived to be “sodomites.” This systematic and hate-motivated violence outlined in IGLHRC’s briefings has left dozens of Iraqi LGBT individuals dead. Many others have suffered torture, sexual violence and humiliation.

Today, LGBT Iraqis are caught between the inhumane treatment by the Islamic State forces, which prescribes death for homosexuality, and the hostile and violent attitude of the pro-government militias, namely the infamous Shiite militia Asaib Ahl al-Haq.

The situation is alarming, as the briefings show. Those who have come to the defense of individuals targeted based on their sexual orientation or gender identity — our brave partners and allies inside Iraq — deserve our profound gratitude. They risk their lives to provide material and moral support, despite grave security risks and threats against their lives.

In a conservative society where very few people fully understand the notion of sexual orientation and gender identity, the majority of the Iraqi population remains hostile to those perceived to be sexual or gender non-conformist: Families tend to disown their LGBT sons and daughters and, even worse, kill them to protect the family “honor.”

Deplorably, society overall views LGBT individuals as sinful, sick people whose very existence should not be tolerated.

Against this backdrop of negative stereotypes and violence, IGLHRC and our partners MADRE and the Organization of Women’s Freedom in Iraq seek to expose the grave human rights abuses and atrocities against LGBT Iraqis in two publications.

In “We’re Here: Iraqi LGBT People’s Accounts of Violence and Rights Abuses,” five individuals share their personal stories of growing up in a war-torn and homophobic environment. From a young age, they experienced abuse and discrimination because of who they are. Some were tortured and witness atrocities against others.

For example, the story of Mahmud, a gay man, is heart-wrenching. At age 24 he was raped by three men who then stole and published photos of him in women’s clothing. When his family saw these photos, they pursued him with the intent of killing him. “I have no problem with the way I am,” he said. “God created me like that. I just want to live freely.”

Others express the same profound desire to live in a tolerant world where they are accepted for who they are.

“When Coming Out Is a Death Sentence” puts the violence against LGBT Iraqis in context — as human rights abuses that must be confronted by the international community. A set of recommendations targets foreign embassies, aid groups and others with the goal of raising attention and trying to improve the situation for the community. In the short run, it is our hope is that many more people like Saad, a gay man also featured in the “We’re Here” report, will find safety. Living with assistance from an NGO that supports LGBT Iraqis, Saad said, “There, I [was] treated with respect, mercy and humanity.”

This is the promise that guides IGLHRC’s work with LGBT people around the world for human rights for everyone, everywhere.

www.huffingtonpost.com/hossein-alizadeh/when-coming-out-is-a-deat_b_6201210.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

Tacoma to Offer Trans-Inclusive Health Benefits for City Employees

Following the release of the 2014 Municipal Equality Index (MEI), more cities are embracing inclusive health care coverage for all.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/tacoma-to-offer-trans-inclusive-health-benefits-for-city-employees?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Marriage Equality In Mississippi! Can It Get Any More Inevitable Than That?

You’d have thought that you’d see a Muslim governor in Mississippi before you’d see marriage equality, but it turns out you’d be wrong. A federal court has ruled that the state’s ban on marriage is unconstitutional. Just to underline how inevitable marriage equality has become even in the South, a federal judge in Arkansas struck down that state’s ban just hours before.

The ruling is on hold for two weeks while the state prepares an appeal. There are now 35 states where marriage equality is the law or been found constitutional.

Judge Carlton Reeves determined that Mississippi’s ban on same-sex marriage amounted to “state-sanctioned discrimination” and concluded that “same-sex couples should be allowed to share in the benefits, and burdens, for better or for worse, of marriage.” Reeves also addressed the state’s decades-long history of homophobia, calling Mississippi out for “a constellation of state laws that treat gay and lesbian Mississippians as lesser, ‘other’ people.”

It’s worth noting that both Reeves and Kristine Baker, the judge in the Arkansas case, were appointed to the bench by Obama. (Just in case you ever wonder about the consequences of elections.) It’s also worth noting that the lawyer representing the couples challenging the law was Roberta Kaplan, who represented Edie Windsor before the Supreme Court.

Reeves’ ruling is an earthquake in a state that just this year passed a bill making it legal to discriminate against LGBT people if you say Jesus told you to do so. Needless to say, heads immediately began exploding across the state as opponents of anything gay struggled to adjust to the 21st century.

Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association, which is headquartered in Tupelo, called on Gov. Phil Bryant to disregard the ruling altogether.

“There is one and only one short range solution to a runaway judiciary on the issue of sodomy-based marriage: a governor with the testosterone to stand up and just say no,” Fischer said. Because the judiciary has no police force, Fischer argues, “If its unconstitutional rulings are ignored, what will the Supreme Court do?”

One side effect of the Mississippi ruling is to prove data geek Nate Silver wrong. Silver had predicted that Mississippi or Alabama would be the last state to legalize marriage equality based on changes in public attitudes. Alabama isn’t looking good for Silver either.

Mississippi State Rep. Alyce Clark, who has a gay son, had the appropriate response to Reeves ruling: “Maybe we won’t be last in everything.”

True, for a change. And who is going to want to hold the title as the last state to embrace marriage equality?

JohnGallagher

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/v2FaeodfBPw/marriage-equality-in-mississippi-can-it-get-any-more-inevitable-than-that-20141126

Out Country Singer Ty Herndon: The Support I've Received Since Coming Out 'Blew My Mind'

Brian Sloan

www.towleroad.com/2014/11/out-country-singer-ty-herndon-the-support-ive-received-since-coming-out-blew-my-mind.html

Lord Christopher Monckton Argues That Gays Have As Many As 20,000 Sexual Partners, Defending Anti-LGBT Lawmaker
Gays have “an average of 500-1,000,” and as many as 20,000, sexual partners in their lifetime, according to a conservative pundit.

Lord Christopher Monckton, who served as a “Special Advisor” to former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and has been an outspoken skeptic of climate change, made the claims in a column for WorldNet Daily earlier this week. In the piece, Monckton was defending Australian lawmaker Rosalie Crestani, who has proposed legislation that would reportedly ban media releases on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) issues in the city of Casey and cut diversity training for local staff.

Describing the community as “QWERTYUIOPASDFGHJKLZXCVBNM,” as “that ought to cover every real or imaginary form of sexual deviancy they may dream up,” Monckton writes:

Official survey after official survey had shown that homosexuals had an average of 500-1,000 partners in their sexually active lifetime, and that some had as many as 20,000. One wonders how they found time for anything else.

The wages of promiscuity is deadly disease. It is now at last admitted, even in official circles, that HIV is chiefly a disease of homosexuals and drug-abusers — and that a far greater percentage of homosexuals than heterosexuals do drugs.

Noting that most gays have relationships that often “last as little as a few hours,” Monckton goes on to defend Crestani personally:

She is a Christian, so she is well used to the ancient theology that draws a clear distinction between hating the sin and loving the sinner. The key point she makes over and over again is that educating potential homosexuals in the medical dangers of their deathstyle will benefit the homosexual community first and foremost.

Earlier this year, Monckton made headlines for claiming there’s been no global warming for almost 18 years.

While he has argued that he’s “no birther,” he has nonetheless openly questioned President Barack Obama’s citizenship, reportedly declaring, “I haven’t a clue where Obama was born and I wouldn’t want to entreat into the private grief behind investigating … but [the birth certificate displayed on the White House website] … is plainly a forgery and I would regard that as a very serious matter,” according to the Daily Caller.

www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/26/lord-christopher-monckton-gay-issues-_n_6226282.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

Lake Street Dive Joins HRC’s Equality Rocks Campaign

Indie and soul band Lake Street Dive is the latest artist to join HRC’s Equality Rocks campaign in support of marriage equality.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/lake-street-dive-joins-hrcs-equality-rocks-campaign?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed