Immigration Advocates Demand Release of Abused Trans Asylum Seeker

Immigration Advocates Demand Release of Abused Trans Asylum Seeker

Nicoll Hernández-Polanco says she’s faced transphobia and verbal, physical, and sexual abuse from immigration staff and other detainees in her all-male facility, despite posing no ‘security threat.’

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Mitch Kellaway

www.advocate.com/politics/transgender/2015/01/14/immigration-advocates-demand-release-abused-trans-asylum-seeker

Gay Teacher Fired After Posting Marriage Announcement On Facebook

Gay Teacher Fired After Posting Marriage Announcement On Facebook
A gay substitute teacher in Charlotte, N.C., has been fired from his job at a Catholic high school after posting on Facebook about his plans to marry his longtime partner.

Lonnie Billiard taught theater and English at Charlotte Catholic High School for more than a decade. After retiring in 2012, he has remained part of the community as a substitute teacher.

Those ties ended, however, after Billiard revealed his plans to marry Rich Donham, his partner of 12 years. On Dec. 30, Billiard said he received a call from the school’s assistant principal saying he was no longer welcome to be a substitute teacher.

“I’m 68. Nobody is going to shove me back in that damn closet,” Billiard told McClatchy, which reported on the firing. He also said that his sexual orientation was well-known by other staff members at the school.

David Hains, a spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, told McClatchy that Billiard’s Facebook post violated the agreement that he and all other employees sign stating that they will not act publicly in ways that are against the church’s positions.

“We don’t even ask people to uphold church teachings. Our policy says they can’t oppose church teachings,” Hains said, adding it would be like “the guy working for Coca-Cola to walk around with a Pepsi in his hand.”

Billiard also told QNotes, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender publication in North Carolina, that he’s concerned about the impact his firing will have on LGBT students.

“It sends the message that they don’t matter,” Billard said. “One of the counselors there actually had a kid come into their office after this announcement and asked, ‘Am I going to be expelled because I’m gay?’ It sends such a destructive and hurtful message to kids, instead of validating them for their beauty and validating them for the love they bring. It tells them they don’t count.”

Billiard maintains that the diocese made the decision to fire him. The diocese said school officials were the ones who chose to terminate his position.

In 2012, according to QNotes, the diocese also fired a gay music director after he married his partner.

Lisbeth Meléndez Rivera, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s director of Latino/a and Catholic Initiatives, criticized Billiard’s firing, noting that the pope has taken a less severe approach to LGBT rights.

“The diocese’s actions seem to contradict Pope Francis’ more pastoral approach to LGBT people in the church,” she said in a statement. “Decisions like this reflect a tone-deafness among American Catholic clergy. While Pope Francis asks. ‘Who am I to judge?’ and speaks of the gifts LGBT people can bring to the Church, this Diocese has appointed itself judge and jury. The Diocese of Charlotte should be following the Pope’s example and become the home we know the Church can be to all.”

There currently is no federal law prohibiting workplace discrimination against individuals on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Such legislation, known as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, passed the Senate in 2013 but never made it to the House floor for a vote. Charlotte Catholic High School would not have been affected by ENDA, however, since there was an exemption for religious schools.

Want more updates from Amanda? Sign up for her newsletter, Piping Hot Truth.

www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/14/lonnie-billiard_n_6472566.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

International LGBT Activists Sending Letter to President Obama

International LGBT Activists Sending Letter to President Obama

Last month, 24 global LGBT advocates sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to articulate a clear U.S. policy for responding to any country that attacks or denies rights to their LGBT community.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/international-lgbt-activists-sending-letter-to-president-obama?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

“Well-Endowed” Justin Bieber Accidentally Mistaken For A Girl At Gay Republican Event

“Well-Endowed” Justin Bieber Accidentally Mistaken For A Girl At Gay Republican Event

Screen shot 2015-01-14 at 9.36.59 AM2015 isn’t shaping up to be a great year for alpha male Justin Bieber’s ego.

Earlier this month, the “Baby” singer found himself the subject of ridicule after unretouched photos from his recent Calvin Klein shoot revealed that he wasn’t quite as buffed, bulged or hairy as the final photos implied.

Bieber’s team immediately went into crisis mode. First it sent a cease and desist order to the website that published the photos. The images were scrubbed and the website issued the following statement: “We sincerely apologize to Bieber for the hit to his ego and to the millions of tweens on social media we upset.”

Then Bieber’s personal trainer jumped to his client’s defense, going on Access Hollywood to say, “I can definitely confirm [Justin] is a well-endowed guy. I sound weird saying that, but yes.”

Now, it seems the tween heartthrob’s ego has been issued yet another blow. Earlier this week, he and four friends showed up to a fried chicken restaurant in Los Angeles only to find his usual spot was taken by a gaggle of Log Cabin Republicans, who were in the middle of a meeting.

Not pleased his private area was occupied, Bieber and his pals decided to sit there anyway.

Ben Coleman, event chairman of the Los Angeles chapter of the gay right-wing political group, told 790 KABC that Bieber initially went unnoticed by the Log Cabin Republicans. They just thought he was a random girl sulking in the corner.

Eventually the manager approached and said “some other people” would like to “hang out in the corner” and eat chicken wings.

That’s when Coleman realized the girl who had just crashed their meeting was actually Justin Bieber.

“I saw the group and, literally, I didn’t see Justin Bieber,” he said. “I just saw a bunch of girls. I got a closer look and said, oh yeah that’s the Biebs, for sure. But he looked like a butcher version of Miley Cyrus.”

That’s also when Coleman turned into a giddy schoolgirl.

“I tried to get a pic of the Biebs in front of the Log Cabin banner,” he said, “but the bodyguards said no. And they had guns. So that didn’t happen. Otherwise it was a dream come true.”

Related stories:

Gay Adult Film Star Offers Justin Bieber $2 Million For Sex Scene

Unretouched Calvin Klein Photos Show Justin Bieber Was Beefed Up, Bulged Up, And Given A Hairy Stomach

Justin Bieber’s Penis Will Be Redacted From Police Security Footage. Sorry, Everyone.

Graham Gremore

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/XBLQjzvuEsQ/well-endowed-justin-bieber-accidentally-mistaken-for-a-girl-at-gay-republican-event-20150114

Outrage, Protests Ensue After Colorado Church Cancels Lesbian's Funeral: VIDEO

Outrage, Protests Ensue After Colorado Church Cancels Lesbian's Funeral: VIDEO

Collier

Vanessa Collier, a lesbian Coloradan who died on December 30 while cleaning her gun, was denied a funeral service at Denver’s New Hope Ministries because her family refused to edit out pictures of Collier kissing her wife in a video tribute to the departed, BuzzFeed reports. Collier was 33 and is survived by two girls, 7 and 11, and her wife, Christina Higley.  

The video in question had been provided to the church 48 hours in advance, however, the church lost the copy and did not review it until the morning of the ceremony. The result was that when the family refused to give in to Pastor Ray Chavez’s ultimatum to remove the the photos of Collier and Higley kissing from the video, the service was cancelled after it had already begun:

“People started taking their seats at 10 a.m.,” [Collier’s friend Jose] Silva said. “At 10:15, the pastor said, ‘Due to technical difficulties, the funeral is being moved.’” He thought it was a joke. “I thought we were being punked.”

Friends and family had to pick up Collier’s open casket, flowers and other arrangements and move it to the Newcomer Funeral Home across the street.

“They don’t want overt, open homosexuality in their sanctuary,” said Gary Rolando, the chaplain who eventually conducted Collier’s service at the Newcomer Funeral Home, across the street from the church.

RallyHigley later posted an emotional update on Facebook (below), asking, “Please I am begging anyone to help explain to our children why our life together as a family is any less than anyone else’s and inappropriate in a house of God?”

Collier’s friends and family were quick to organize a “Dignity in Death Rally” to show their outrage over New Hope and Pastor Chavez’s decision to expel Collier and her mourners. 

Nearly 1,600 people have signed a change.org petition calling on Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper to “protect the rights of gays and their families in death.”

Watch a news report from ABC 7 News, AFTER THE JUMP…

 



Sean Mandell

www.towleroad.com/2015/01/outrage-protests-ensue-after-colorado-church-cancels-lesbians-funeral-video.html

Backstage With Adore Delano

Backstage With Adore Delano

I had the opportunity to sit down with Adore Delano backstage after her show at the TLA in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We chatted social media, ex-boyfriends, her new album, and why she wants to kill Bianca Del Rio.

What do you experience when you get off the stage?

Adore Delano: Sweat. Sweat everywhere. I imagine my balls smell like bleach and how much I need to shower. I don’t want to hug anyone because I sweat a lot.

How was tonight’s show for you?

Tonight was fun! They are always fun. These little shows, they are always intimate and really cool. You see a lot of people from Twitter and Instagram and you put their faces to the names. Like that one guy that came up and was like, “I am BoB_FAGET.” I know you’re BoB_FAGET!

Who is he?

He is a guy on Instagram. He has the name BoB_FAGET. I was so jealous of that and I told him that. I recognized him instantly. It’s so weird but really neat that I get to travel and meat these mother fuckers in person.

You have a really good relationship with your social media following.

Fuck yeah! You have to man. From the beginning, that’s all I had. No one would come to my drag shows before Drag Race but I had a big social media following because I knew had to work it. I am very active on social media.

I think you have the biggest social media following of any of the Drag Race contestants. Is this true?

Yeah. It is awesome. It is a cool feeling. When you see shit like that, it’s good to know that people actually get it. That’s what you really need to focus on. I’m learning. Just to shut my mouth, and learn that the positive overcomes the negative.

Well I saw you posted on Facebook about last night’s show this morning. About being nervous before your show. What happened there?

I was just being a baby. I was kind of scared. It was our first show for this run of this tour. These venues aren’t really selling out. But I went to a show when I was 14 to see the Distillers, and Brody was performing in front of 50 people. They are one of my favorite bands ever. And she fucking slayed. I was thinking about that. And my band last night was like, “Who the fuck cares if no one comes? We are making music. We are having fun. Take a shot and shut up and have fun.”

2015-01-12-unnamed22.jpg

What happened with that Raven and Delta drama that happened on their Fashion RuView show?

Oh god. Delta and I go back. She is like my home girl. Her and I are the only Mexican American contestants to be on the show. I only know that because she would bring it up all the time. She is cool. But my feelings were hurt. Even though people said that, “You signed the contract to let them do that to you.” But when they act like they don’t get it, it just hurts. I have so much respect for them and I look up to them. Raven was the first drag queen I had ever seen. Her and Detox in LA when I was baby. I respect Raven and Detox so much. So it hurt my feelings.

What do you think of when I say Raven?

Artist. She is a fucking awesome makeup artist. She is very talented and creative. She is very inspiring. Before Sharon Needles a lot of people were emulating Raven’s makeup and style. Sharon then kind of changed that. She made it cool to be edgy and weird. But, Raven is beautiful.

You had a boyfriend but said on stage tonight you are now single. What happened there?

Distance. He lives in Australia. When you get in a relationship like that that is long distance, it is really fucking hard. I am on the road. I was being faithful. My mom says, “Don’t ever love anyone more than they love you.” And that has been in my head since I was a kid. I was feeling it was one sided. If you are not sure that you are in my love with me, I can’t do “I’m not sure”.

Are you guys still friends?

Yes. Very much so. And I love his mom. My family fucking adores him. So that was hard. When I told my brother, he was the most upset. They all love him so much. He (Kristian) is a good kid. He is a sweetheart. Just chill.

What is next for you?

A new album.

A new album! When is that coming out?

Probably the same time this one came out last year. We are working on what producers to work with. We are writing a lot of shit. Working with the same writer, Ashley. She is awesome. Yeah, just touring. I just want to make music. And see these little fuckers. My fans.

2015-01-12-unnamed23.jpg

Let’s play some rounds of kill, marry, fuck. First round: Darienne Lake, Courtney Act, and Bianca Del Rio.

Why? I can’t kill them! Those are my home girls. Oh no! I don’t know who to kill. I like them all. Who should I kill, John (Adore’s assistant and cousin)?

John: Bianca would kill you.

Bianca said she doesn’t want to kill marry or fuck anyone of you. She wants to get you all jobs.

I would kill Bianca.

Because then you would have won.

Yes. I want Bianca to die of old age so I can take the crown. I would then marry Darienne. And fuck Courtney.

I like that. Jink Monsoon, Raja, or Sharon Needles?

Kill Sharon. Fuck …..

Fuck Raja?

I guess I’d fuck Raja. I just don’t want to marry any of them. I’ll marry Jinkx but then I would probably divorce her because we would just be singing all the time while making eggs in the morning.

What would you be singing?

She will be singing show tunes and I will singing, “Shut the fuck up!” No, I love Jinkx.

For more information on Adore and where she will be performing in 2015, visit www.adoredelano.com.

www.huffingtonpost.com/alexander-kacala/backstage-with-adore-dela_b_6457334.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

Gay Mormon Man Married To A Woman Compares Gay Sex To Donuts

Gay Mormon Man Married To A Woman Compares Gay Sex To Donuts

Oh, brother. One of the nutjobs husbands from TLC’s controversial new show My Husband’s Not Gay sat down with ABC’s Nightline to talk about his attraction to men, and it’s just as awkward and uncomfortable as you might expect.

“When I’m having sex with [my wife], I don’t wish she were a man,” he said. “I don’t fantasize about her being a man. I am with her. And I am having sex with her. And it’s her I love and want to be with.”

To help better explain himself, he offered up the following analogy:

“I love donuts! I would eat donuts three times a day. But I desire to be able to fit in my pants in the morning, too. SO you could say I’m oriented towards donuts. And if I were being true to myself, I would eat donuts a lot more than I eat donuts. But am I miserable? Am I lonely? Am I denying myself because I don’t eat donuts as much as I’d like to eat donuts? I’m not.”

All the while, his doting Mormon wife sits glossy-eyed and smiling by his side.

My Husband’s Not Gay chronicles the lives of four gay men, many of whom are married to women, living in Salt Lake City. The show has received harsh criticism by gay rights activists who feel it delivers a damaging message about gay people. Earlier this month, a Change.org petition calling for the show to be cancelled garnered 100,000 signatures, TLC, however, was unpersuaded and has refused to take the show off the air. 

See the awkward interview below. And excuse us while we go indulge ourselves in a donut.

World News Videos | ABC World News

Graham Gremore

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/nIQkGgV_v4Q/gay-mormon-man-married-to-a-woman-compares-gay-sex-to-donuts-20150114

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