Nebraska Senators Are Unanimously for Marriage Equality, But Only If You…
As the perfect example of how trying to rationalize discrimination loses all sense of reason, the Nebraska Legislature yesterday voted 38-0 in favor of an amendment that would recognize same-sex spouses, but only if they are applying for a gun permit and if they are married to someone in the military.
HRC.org
Azealia Banks Says She’s Too Rich To Care If You Think She’s A Homophobe
In case you’re wondering, money still doesn’t buy class.
Rapper Azealia Banks, who famously called Perez Hilton a “messy faggot” (and called for his suicide), then labeled GLAAD “fucking complete bullshit” in retaliation for being called out on her comments, enjoyed yet another Twitter feud over the weekend, this one with Vice blogger Mitchell Sunderland.
In a series of bizarre tweets that would make Amanda Bynes proud, Banks lashed out at Sunderland on Saturday night after he questioned her knowledge of twinks (in response to a previous tweet of hers that he found offensive). The rapper responded that she was a woman who “invented everything feminine” and even gave birth to gay men. She then went on to inform Sunderland that his mother pushed him “out of a pussy” and that his father “did not push you out of his dick.”
Classy, right?
When Sunderland called Banks a homophobe, she fired back with: “I INVENTED femininity, OK? don’t be mad because I have an extra hole,” adding “You gay bloggers try waving that homophobia flag at me like women are not the original source. … I own AWWWWWLLLLL of this. It’s mine.”
When Sunderland tried to end the conversation, tweeting “GOODNIGHT,” Banks replied with “and even if i am a homophobe… so wat? [sic] i still make more $ than you.. still have an extra hole.. and still own everything.”
While we’re not sure which gives Banks more license for bad behavior — her large bank account or her extra hole — there’s one thing we’re sure of: It’s a damn shame controversy doesn’t sell records, because then there might actually be a point to all of this.
Oh wait …
Winston Gieseke
Jon Stewart Mocks the 'Mindful Stupidity' of the Anti-Vaxxers: VIDEO
Jon Stewart took a look last night at the measles outbreak and the anti-vaxxers who refuse to immunize their children, leaving everyone else at risk:
“This is Marin County! They’re not ignorant! They practice a mindful stupidity! If they want to get rid of measles they’ll just steam them out of their vaginas. Look, California, if your crazy wellness ideas only affected you I’d be fine with that. Have all the organic fair trade espresso enemas you want. That’s just something between you and what I assume is your incredibly awake and raring to go rectum. But your choice puts other people in jeopardy!”
Watch, AFTER THE JUMP…
Andy Towle
Quorum: Maurice Tomlinson
Jamaican law professor Maurice Tomlinson thought he was safe, until he was outed as gay—and he was forced to flee. Here, Tomlinson discusses the pervasive cultural and religious attitudes…
Alabama Lawyers Face Off Against Chief Justice In Gay Marriage Fight
In Alabama, which is set to begin allowing same-sex marriages on Monday, two old foes are facing off over the future of gay rights in the state.
A legal group is leading the fight against Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore over his opposition to gay marriage. Last week, Moore wrote in a letter to Gov. Robert Bentley that he planned to oppose a federal judge’s recent ruling that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. He referred to the decision as “judicial tyranny” and said that any Alabama judges who obey the federal court ruling and allow marriage licenses to be issued would be in “defiance of the laws and Constitution of Alabama.”
This week, Moore doubled down on his position, with a letter and memorandum to Alabama’s probate judges, telling them that they are not required to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples once the ruling goes into effect next week. Lower federal courts, he wrote, “have absolutely no legitimate authority to compel state courts to redefine marriage to include persons of the same sex.”
In response to Moore’s statements, last week the Southern Poverty Law Center, a legal advocacy group based in Montgomery, Alabama, filed a judicial ethics complaint against him, charging the chief justice with numerous ethical violations and accusing him of undermining “public confidence in the integrity of the judiciary.” On Tuesday, the SPLC filed a supplement to its ethics complaint, pointing to a radio interview in which Moore stated that, if the U.S. Supreme Court were to determine that the ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, he would face a “very hard decision” whether to follow the law of the land.
This is not an entirely new dilemma for Moore, nor is it the first time he has faced challenges over an inclination not to comply with a higher court. In 2001, the year Moore was first sworn in as chief justice, he arranged for workers to install a two-and-a-half-ton granite monument of the Ten Commandments in the central rotunda of the Alabama state courthouse. The SPLC, whose offices are next door to the Supreme Court, was among several groups to file a suit calling for the monument’s removal, citing the separation of church and state. A federal court order demanded the monument be removed, but Moore refused to comply, and in 2003, he was dismissed from the bench. (He was re-elected to the post in 2012.)
“He hasn’t learned his lesson,” Richard Cohen, president of the SPLC, said of Moore. “He wasn’t elected to be the chief pastor of Alabama, he was elected to be the chief justice, and he doesn’t understand the difference.”
Moore did not respond to a request for comment.
Cohen did notice one key difference this time around, however. During the fight over the Ten Commandments monument, the SPLC was flooded with threats and angry letters. But in the past week, Cohen says, his group has received thank-you notes from around two dozen lawyers. “The sentiment on the bar is overwhelmingly against Moore,” he said.
Indeed, it does not appear that Alabama’s legal community is rallying behind Moore’s position, although support for same-sex marriage in the state still trails the rest of the country. The Alabama State Committee of the American College of Trial Lawyers released a statement calling Moore’s letter to the governor “improper and unfair.” The Alabama Probate Judges Association has also turned its back on Moore. Initially, the group advised its members not to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, arguing for a narrow interpretation of the court ruling that struck down the ban. But last week, after clarification from the judge who issued the ruling, the association changed its position, stating that it will encourage its members to comply with the decision and that, once the stay on the ruling is lifted Monday, same-sex couples may apply for marriage licenses.
“I think it’s quite telling that the Alabama Probate Judges Association has reversed its position,” Ron Krotoszynski Jr., a professor at the University of Alabama School of Law, told The Huffington Post. “Like Chief Justice Moore, these judges are subject to popular election; yet, unlike the incumbent Chief Justice, they clearly recognize that they have a legal duty to honor a binding order of a federal court that invalidates a state constitutional provision because it violates the federal Constitution.”
Krotoszynski said the matter has come up several times in the constitutional law course he teaches to first-year students, both in and out of class. “They seem embarrassed,” he said of his students, noting that “they understand the supremacy clause of the Constitution,” which states that federal laws take precedence over state laws.
“Whether or not the students personally agree or disagree with same-sex marriage, they clearly appreciate that a state court judge cannot resist or refuse to honor a higher ruling,” he added.
Channing Tatum And Friends Strip Down In First “Magic Mike XXL” Trailer: WATCH
Grease up those stripper poles, kids, Channing Tatum, Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer and the rest of the gang (minus Oscar-winning Lincoln driver Matthew McConaughey) are gearing up for the most anticipated sequel of the queer year, Magic Mike XXL.
Warner Bros. released the first official poster for the film (above), which grinds its way into theaters July 1, while People has some exclusive photos and an interview with director Gregory Jacobs, who promises this film won’t be as “dark” as the last one. Here’s hoping that means better lighting to capture the hotness of the male leads in all their glory.
Check out the trailer for Magic Mike XXL, below:
Les Fabian Brathwaite
Cristiano Ronaldo Shows Off His Greased Physique To Promote New Underwear Line: VIDEO
Soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo is promoting the latest collection for his underwear line CR7 by modeling in a series of steamy shots recently posted online. Ronaldo has also released a behind the scenes video of his photoshoot showing the “fittest man alive” getting greased up for the camera.
Watch the video and catch a few more skintillating shots, AFTER THE JUMP…
Sean Mandell
The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender LGBT Network
The network for Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender people was established to support and make a difference to Islanders whose sexual orientation is not heterosexual. At our first meeting,…
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