HRC President Chad Griffin: An LGBT Attorney General “Isn’t About Symbolism”
With Attorney General Holder’s annoucement he will step down, the Obama Administration must now seize the opportunity to appoint the nation’s first openly LGBT cabinet member.
HRC.org
EJ Johnson Debuts New Bod After Shedding 50 Pounds With Surgery
Magic Johnson’s fabulously flamboyant gay son EJ has lost 50 pounds after undergoing gastric sleeve surgery five weeks ago.
Johnson shared the news in an interview on Entertainment Tonight this week, revealing that he sought advice from Star Jones before going under the knife.
“She told me that it was definitely a tool for a whole new life,” he said. “It was not something that was the easy way out by any means. This is not something that you do and then all of a sudden everything is gone and you’re skinny and you’re a new person. It’s definitely a tool and something that you have to work at.”
In an interview with People, the 22-year-old up-and-coming fashion icon said “weight is something that I’ve been struggling with for pretty much all of my life,” and that shedding the pounds so quickly is “really exciting.”
Johnson says he first considered weight loss surgery two years ago after several popular diets failed to help him lose weight. “Nothing was working, and I wanted to make a more permanent decision to get back on track,” he said.
Johnson said he’ll discover his ideal weight on his weight loss journey, and hopes he’ll achieve his desired result within a year. He plans to adjust his lifestyle accordingly by eating a balanced diet daily, cutting out breads and alcohol, and because this man couldn’t possibly be any more fabulous, taking dance cardio classes five days a week.
“Being able to take control of my life again, take control of what I’m eating and my fitness is enlightening and empowering,” he said.
Check out EJ’s ET segment below:
Queerty Editor
Check Out This Michigan Candidates Awesome Response to Anti-gay Bigotry: READ
Josh Derke, a Democratic candidate for state representative from Michigan’s 93rd House District, has made public an awesome pro-LGBT letter he sent to anti-gay listed hate group Public Advocate of the United States (PAUC) having received a survey from the group, reports The Advocate.
Derke says that when he received the “2014 Michigan Family Values Survey” – which he refers to as “a pile of excrement” – from the Michigan-based PAUC, his jaw dropped.
The survey demanded that candidates “pledge to refuse any donation from the Homosexual Lobby or their allies — especially from Tim Gill or Paul Singer” or face being accused of supporting the “Anti-Family Agenda.”
Writing on his blog, Derke said:
“I have received some pretty outrageous letters and surveys before, but I just couldn’t be silent about this. I chose not to participate in their survey. I couldn’t. … I elected instead to send a letter. Their survey was hurtful; I have family, and many friends, that are LGBT. They’re not immoral, and they’re not seeking special privileges.”
Derke’s letter, directed to PAUC’s Eugene Delgaudio – who was recently censured by the Republican party for misuse of county funds – is one of the best and most entertaining replies to anti-gay bigots that are likely ever to read.
Apologizing to Delgaudio for his lack of support of the homophobic agenda, Derke says that the gays have “already dug their fabulously manicured claws into me, and I am afraid to report that I have been brainwashed into mindless support of the Homosexual Agenda.”
Worth quoting at length, the letter makes clear to the hate group that the “homosexual agenda” is “a phantom of your own creation”:
“Would that it were that your erudite survey had reached my desk earlier, ere I succumbed to their influence, my mind might yet be unshackled from the horrible idea that all people deserve equal treatment and dignity.
“Let me tell you what pro-family is, Eugene. Pro-family is standing by your gay brother for merely being who he is. Pro-family is accepting your cousins, your friends, and homosexual parents across the globe for who they are. It is recognizing that all credible studies that have explored the issue of gay and lesbian parents have shown that they raise well-adjusted children who are just as successful as those raised by straight parents. Pro-family means that you’re not going to rip established families apart because you can’t see through the veil of your own self-defeating prejudices.
“Pro-family is not demonizing and dehumanizing people because they’re different than you are. It is not labeling a group of people immoral because you don’t understand human sexuality.
“I am far from silent on pro-family issues. I am, in fact, vociferous. I imagine that it is a voice you’d rather be silent. The truth is that there is no homosexual agenda. There is no homosexual lobby. There are only people — men, women, transgendered, and others — who deserve equal treatment under the law, and equal respect in our society. Human beings with dignity, who love and are loved, in return.
“You signed the letter as “HON. EUGENE DELGAUDIO,” but there is nothing honorable about your letter, your survey, or your conduct. You and your group should be ashamed of sending this pile of excrement. And I hope that if there is even a shred of humanity within you that you feel a twinge of guilt and shame for comparing loving couples and parents to pedophiles.”
Josh Derke now has a fundraising page up at JoshDerke.ruck.us. Read the cover letter to the survey he received from the PAUC, AFTER THE JUMP…
Jim Redmond
Marine Le Pen enrhume Lgbt, Conchita Wurst et Céline Dion
Here's Where To Buy The World's Cheapest Pot (INFOGRAPHIC)
It’s no secret that drug costs vary from country to country, but the price differential can be amazing.
For instance, the average price of a gram of marijuana in the west African country of Guinea is only one cent, according to the United Nation’s 2014 World Drug Report.
However, that same bud would cost a whopping $110 in the United Arab Emirates.
On the other hand, a gram of cocaine that sells for $483 in New Zealand will only cost $2 in Panama.
To see which countries are close to be drug-free and which ones are closest to offering free drugs, check out the infographic below, compiled by DrugAbuse.com, a website that provides information about drug and alcohol abuse.
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Nick Jonas Drops Pants, Grabs Crotch, Breaks Hearts
Any gay men that Nick Jonas failed to swoon in his recent ab-fueled campaign to build a giant and unwavering gay fan base will surely be hooked after seeing him drop his pants and grab his crotch for Flaunt magazine.
The 22-year-old singer properly acquainted us with his abs by flashing them at gay clubs around New York last month, and before that, knocked us out with his enormous biceps in Out.
To kick off his debut solo album’s press tour, he spoke with handfuls of different media outlets about how much he loves and wants to satisfy gay men.
Today, he’s taunting the gays to come deeper into the Nick Jonas pool by posing with his pants around his ankles, bulge in hand, and revealing his ass crack for the first time ever.
On behalf of all gays everywhere, we accept your invitation, Nick.
Check out some photos from Nick’s latest shoot for Flaunt below (see a few more at Just Jared), and hang tight on the Nick Jonas bandwagon because this ride is clearly just beginning.
Queerty Editor
Gay Twins Release Follow Up Q&A Video After Filming Their Coming Out to Parents : WATCH
Adam and Luke Monastero, the 21-year-old fraternal twins who came out to their parents on hidden camera last month, have released a follow-up video where they ask mom and dad a series of follow-up questions – whether they knew their sons were gay, if they want grandchildren, how they’ll react when the boys bring over boyfriends and other questions asked by social media followers.
Lots of love and acceptance in the parents’ answers – just the way it should be.
Check it out, AFTER THE JUMP…
Kyler Geoffroy
LGBT Test
This is test video.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRECeS389DM&feature=youtube_gdata
'Mandy and Eva,' Documentary Photography Book, Explores Trans Lives
Over the course of six years, documentary photographer Willeke Duijvekam followed the lives of two transgender girls as they came to live as their own authentically, realized selves.
Duijvekam is a photographer who takes an interest in people whose lives differ from the socially expected norm, and he decided to embark on documenting the lives of Mandy and Eva, the results of which are featured in the new book Mandy and Eva .
In order to better understand his work and his vision for the book, The Huffington Post chatted with Duijvekam this week.
The Huffington Post: Where did the inspiration for the project come from?
About ten years ago I met a youngster who felt uncomfortable about his gender. His mother told me stories which showed me how little understanding there was from his surroundings and how her son suffered beneath them. Her stories touched me. I also had never heard of gender dysphoria. I was guided by my fascination with the perplexing split between body and mind. But also by the courage of the young people who refuse to allow society’s expectations to dictate their lives.
How is this project different from other photo essays you’ve seen about transgender people?
I think because I followed Mandy and Eva for so long, my eyes were able to penetrate far below the surface. When you begin to photograph you see the outside first.
Gender dysphoria is a complex condition that can be difficult to understand. I wanted to get to know them and try to live in their daily struggle between inner life and appearance, so that I could transfer my perception to the viewer.
You spent six years with Mandy and Eva — how did your relationship grow and how is that seen in the photos?
Willeke Duijvekam: My relationship became closer, my presence as a photographer more natural. In the beginning I was still an outsider. That you can see in the photos. In the beginning of their transition phase they were both concerned with the evidence for the outside world. I too was initially seen as that “outside world.” Mandy, for example, was constantly working with all kinds of girly things to show how limber she is, dancing etc. Later in the series you can see she is not busy with “proofing” herself anymore.
What’s the most surprising thing you learned while doing the project?
I learned a lot from the parents of Mandy and Eva. How they support their children and give them all space and opportunities they need to be happy with their own being.
Were there any moments that you captured that ended up feeling to personal to share?
Yes, there were. Especially with Eva, I have all the “milestones” she experienced and everywhere I was with her I brought my camera. I captured all her important milestones. For example, the moment she told her classmates she felt like a girl, but also the moments around her [gender confirmation] operation. They were personal, emotional moments for her, and her family. I have deliberately chosen to show no drama, but recognizable, almost casual moments. This is how I think the viewer comes closer to the emotional world of Mandy and Eva, without feeling like a voyeur. By showing no drama, but the everyday struggle of two teenagers, this document remains close to their own experiences.
What do you want viewers to take away from the photos?
What I want to show is that Mandy and Eva are two remarkably normal girls -– the one more vivacious, the other quieter –- who do nothing other than live according to the dictates of their feelings. Buy the book and you’ll see what I mean.
For more information about Willeke Duijvekam, Mandy and Eva and how you can purchase the book, head here.
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